Sadly I am now out of college. At this point I'd say that 50 percent of the people I hang out with are now done with school as well. However one of the prime and most crazy times you could ever hope to have is a spring break. If it's spent anywhere warm, any kind of coast, the excess of youth and energy seem to overwhelm the area for the minute. And trust me, MTV will probably be there in some capacity. Cancun, South Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Malibu, Hawaii, Dominican Republic...the list goes on. However, these trips take money, planning and effort. None of which I had in the Spring of 2010. I did have a good time, with friends that will always be friends after that non-trip we all took. This is the story of Spring Broke.
There were thoughts of going somewhere. Ideas had been floated. None acted upon. And now here we were in March, stuck in State College. There would be no warm weather either In fact, while the previous week had been rather nice, and the one following would be exquisite, the week where we had no responsibilities other than to show up to work, and have fun and forget about the troubles of the world was quite shitty. Wind, rain, and cold with little sunlight.
Lesser people would be deterred from going out. They might stay in. Watch re-runs of 'The Office', catch a basketball or hockey game. Read a book. My friends are not those kinds of people. They have off, and since we have no money to go on a real trip...we will still take leave of our realities, even if it's in mind only.
The beginning of the week was for the most part uninteresting, but still relaxing. If you went out, perhaps you shot some pool at a dive bar, or chilled watching sports. Maybe one or two of your friends went for a half-off-the-house Irish Car Bomb slug fest (My roommate...good work) on a Monday (and Wednesday). Either way everyone was prepping for Saturday. Saturday was designated as the day that we would get together and really go all out. Barbecue, beer, slapping the bag, etc. Shenanigans must ensue. from the balcony of the porch.
Fortunately for myself I actually began the Saturday at work. Though the students were still gone, business was not that different than usual, thanks to the fact that the locals actually decided to come out from their suburban holes. This would keep me from participating in the early parts of preparation, ... the food preparation, setting up of music, hiding of various electronics, locking of certain doors, unnecessary pre-gaming and general awkwardness that happens when parties are just being setup/beginning.
When I do arrive, the timing is perfect, hot dogs and burgers are on and cooking, no one is sober, but no one is messy, and everyone is grinning, knowing that this is going to be a fun experience that everyone has been looking forward to.
From here on the night goes no different than any other house party night. There is keg stands, beer pong, flirting, beer bongs, stoners moving away to smoke for a minute, or possibly somebody got a hold of something else, in any event, the night is going strong. The energy seems to just grow and grow, people bring pasta salad, chips, beer, a bag of wine, a fifth of Jack Daniels. The people that have stayed here with us, that would join up for a night on the town on a Wednesday knowing in all likelihood that a group of 4-10 people would make up 25% of the patronage at any given bar; they're all here. And in that revelry is what made spring broke special. Everyone is on the same page for that whole week, and everyone seems to be together.
And thus begins the singing. I don't quite understand how or why we all got there, but somehow, terrible drunk singing is contagious at this point. Perhaps it was the song, perhaps it was just a moment, but we are all in unison singing Michael Jackson's 'Will You Be There', which may be better titled under "That 'Free Willy' Song". Now if you are some degenerate and have never seen the movie, here's a helpful youtube link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33XPuLXJ6p0
Now, I have several theories as to why we started singing this song.
1. 'Free Willy' was a great movie from most of our childhoods, and even though looking back on it, we never really continued our love of whales until now. (Though I do admit, I made my Dad help me save one whale by calling that free number at the end of the movie and donating like 20 bucks, I got a dumb ass packet about the whale and never gave a shit again....sorry Dad.)
2. We were wrapped in our euphoric bliss. We felt on top of the world, and as friends conquered the town. This is (I think) not to dissimilar from what would happen had we actually had money to go on spring break. We would have a group of friends that would chill for the week, we would have some fun early, but in reality be really saving up for that last night, that last hurrah, where shit just starts hitting the fan. That at the end of this you know you have to get back to the grind so that you're squeezing every last bit of freedom out of this trip and you will do exactly, and in no uncertain terms, whatever the fuck you want.
3. Michael Jackson's shit got really hot after he died, the feeling had not subsided and thus even if you felt like the song was dumb as shit you felt socially obligated to sing along to fit in with everyone else
4. Well...we were all just pretty wasted at this point.
After this serenade the night continues at a raucous and chaotic pace. Eventually I turn to see key's being punched through beer cans. And for some reason my friends are discarding their shirts.
Typically I avoid these scenarios, I don't particularly like getting my picture taken, I don't typically like to be an exhibitionist of any sorts. I like attention, but only in reasonable doses, otherwise I become extremely self-conscious. This however, was spring broke. These were different circumstances than which I usually operate. (See also, Birthday, Hotel State College Christmas Party, Arts Fest, Home Football games and 80's parties.) So I too partook in the pic, the subsequent crush of the beer, and then, for reasons unknown even to myself, I leaped
I thought I could clear the hedges, and then, maybe, I don't know...role through through the brief stretch of lawn. I thought, I could make it. Looking back, it was quite foolish, but it was fun as shit and I don't regret it. My initial landing didn't hurt, which may have been in part to the fact that we were listening to punk rock at my time of departure. In any case, the effect was contagious and my stunts were then duplicated by various people which makes me feel good that I wasn't alone in that energetic euphoria.
And as the songs kept playing and times became timeless, you realize that's all spring break is. It's an opportunity to release energy with your friends and peers in as fun a manner as you can possibly express. And in our particular case it was good to know you could always escape if you wanted to, even if you didn't go anywhere.
No comments:
Post a Comment