Picture the scene: It’s midnight on a Wednesday, and you enter a seething mass of drunk, sweaty bodies. Attacked by viciously pointy elbows and briefly smothered by the rugby team, you finally win a spot on the dance floor. It soon dawns on you that you are so wedged in someone’s armpit that you are actually unable to perform your usual (slightly unconvincing) dance moves to the blaring 2010s. Feeling suddenly cripplingly sober, you attach yourself to the swarm of freshers queueing to buy a seven-pound shot…
The return to Why Not in September was like childbirth (if childbirth involved VKs, sticky floors, and Pitbull): I had somehow forgotten the pain long enough to do it again.
Since then, I must admit, my club attendance has been nothing short of appalling. A weekday night out now feels like pure insanity! I know I’m not alone here. Our social calendars seem to have shifted towards lunch dates, coffee runs and Friday nights out, which end at 12 am sharp. It’s left me wondering what prompted such a drastic change from first-year, when we were seen more on Cowgate than in the library.
Are we simply adjusting to the ramped-up pressure of second year? With readings that seem to have almost doubled and looming year abroad applications, does that 9 am simply feel less skippable? Many of us have also adopted committee roles in societies, which don’t always pair well with a horrible hangover.
It’s no secret that alcohol is a major part of the first year social life. As a social lubricant, it helped many of us navigate the chaos of living with strangers, or being asked “what degree do you do?” for the fifth time in one night. Maybe the more solidified friendships that come with second-year mean that we no longer have to centre alcohol within our relationships. Let’s face it: you’re always going to have a much more fulfilling catch-up over dinner than shouting over the music in Hive.
The rise of the flat party is also undoubtedly to blame, trading cramped smoking areas for living rooms (if you’re lucky enough to have one). They’ll have you spending money on a themed costume rather than an entry wristband. I’m personally a massive fan of sipping cheap wine from a mug and chewing someone’s ear off. Besides, the snooping potential is endless.
But as much as I love flat parties, coffee dates, and exploring new parts of the city, I’m not ready to hang up my clubbing boots just yet. Second years and beyond – this is a call to action. With Halloween swiftly approaching, we must reconnect with our first-year roots and get back to the clubs. Dust off a teeny outfit and get back onto Cowgate!
Image via Mark Chan.