Many freshmen dream of their first Friday on a college campus. It’s a time of freedom, with no parents or curfews to worry about. This year, students had a variety of entertainment options to choose from. Friday Fest, night clubs, off-campus parties and just hanging out in the dorms were just a few options.
Aurora Bravo, a freshman in biological sciences, had big plans. She was going to Friday Fest.
“Lifehouse!” seemed to be all Bravo could stammer out when asked of her Friday night plans.
The concert wouldn’t last all night, however, and Bravo and her friends seemed unsure of their post-concert plans.
“We make plans as we go along,” said Rose Isadore, a freshman in physics and friend of Bravo.
Kelly Fredenburg, a freshman in textiles, said she also planned on attending the concert, but she didn’t know what she was doing afterwards.
“I just don’t know what else is out there,” Fredenburg said.
With no curfews or restrictions set up by a higher authority, one could stay out until the sun comes up — and many do. It usually takes a while for the new college student to figure this out, let alone to figure out exactly what to do with all these strange new night hours.
Friday night after the Lifehouse concert, the area near the Tucker and Owen Residence Halls was pretty much vacant, save for a few girls nonchalantly batting a ball over the volleyball net at Tucker Beach.
On Cates Avenue, Caleb Haselton, a freshman in mechanical engineering, and Sam McGowen, a freshman in life sciences, leaned up against a lamppost outside Tucker Residence Hall.
“We’re about to meet one of my friends,” McGowen said.
When asked if the two were going to a party, Haselton responded with a no.
“Just hanging out,” Haselton said.
Christine Buch, a freshman in elementary education, and Lauren Allen, a freshman in FYC, ran by in a rush, carrying their high-heeled shoes and dressed like they were about to hit the town.
“We’re going to see Troop 41,” Buch said, catching her breath.
Troop 41, an underground rap group based out of Raleigh, was playing a show downtown that night.
Shortly afterwards — save for the small handful of people who seemed to be piling into cars and speeding off into the night to do cool stuff — everyone was seemingly heading in. Fredenburg, who was unsure of her plans for the rest of the night earlier in the evening, was later on the street with a gaggle of bubbly girls, as though she’d finally found something else to do.
“My roommate wanted to go to a party at her brother’s house,” Fredenburg said. “It was this string of parties on a street, it was called Clark Crawl, but I didn’t know the time. We ended up at a frat house and we got lost on the Wolfline. It was crazy.”
Fredenburg had mastered the concept that, as a college student, one’s evening does not necessarily have to end at 10:30 p.m. Perhaps she was ahead of the learning curve. The realization will eventually dawn on the rest — they’ll catch up with time.
