At some point in my life I've been told that a grown man should never 1) enjoy the lyrical prose of female pop stars, 2) watch children's television (Jersey Shore?) and 3) cry. Well I did all three yesterday when I came across a video of Katy Perry serenading Elmo on Sesame Street. Haters gonna hate, but the last time I was this excited was when there were rumors that Bieber was coming to Dartmouth (BIEBER FEVER > KE$HA).
More importantly, Katy Perry and Elmo represent the fine line between the good ol' kindergarten (sorry didn't go to preschool) days and our glory days @ now. Dartmouth is kind of overrated. We learned all the good stuff 12 years ago reading, righting, rhythmic. Ask yourself, what's really changed? No place like Dartmouth brings out the change, or lack there of, in our lives since elementary school. Flair: Remember those days of dress up? Make believe, pretend, story telling, journeys imagination was the limit. It's still the same here, except we're more public about it and there's actually still no reason. Our outfits are just as ridiculous ponies, banana suits, Harry Potter, princesses. The brighter the flair, the more fun. (Magenta is the bomb.) That Ninja turtle backpack is equally hip now as it was then. Girl-Boy Dynamic: Boys still chase girls etc etc. The endless circle of cat and mouse ensues. Trying to impress someone with sweet Fisher Price trucks or legos is now replaced by spin serve pong skills. Playdates are now tails events. And yet all of this is counterbalanced by that "Girls rool, boys drool" and vice versa attitude. The sandboxes are now basements and meetings, traditions and bro/sisterhood. Also, cooties definitely still exist (mono/swine flu). Academics: Learning about the colors of the rainbow vs. ROYGBIV in Chem 5? Meh. But you still want to get more then three smiley face stars on the effort chart just like that A- median in ASTRO3.Speaking Gibberish: Blitz? Boot? Facetime? Those aren't real Websta Dictionary words!Arts and Crafts: How is cutting snowflakes out of paper any different then building a giant wooden sculpture in the middle of the Green? How are those nametags you had to make with sprinkles and crayons any different then those Chi Gam signs? The snow sculpture is a glorified snowman and I'm pretty sure a good part of my elementary school curricula was dedicated to making sounds/"music" by banging wooden sticks on drums (what up MUS51).Cute animals: WHO DOESN'T LOVE PUPPIES. Naps: You can sleep when you're dead right? Wrong. Naps aren't scheduled anymore, but we still decide to take three to five hour naps instead of attending our 12s. Yeah, maybe going to sleep after midnight isn't a big deal anymore, but it's still equally not that cool to go to sleep early.Lunch boxes, uniforms, and silly hats: Most fun you never want to have again?Riding school buses: Equally as rowdy and a lot more fun now. There's still that one kid that pees on the seat.General Sloppiness: No doubt, hygiene then and now takes the backseat. The whole brushing teeth, keeping the room clean, taking a shower everyday, not walking around in boot becomes more a recommendation than a necessity (NO PARENTS!!!). Also, three-second rule applies to pong balls just as much as candy right? On the topic of food: Yay for Billy Bobs, nay for vegetables. Raging: No doubt kindergarteners were cracked out (we all went through that dirt/glue eating phase). Now add in a sprinkle of Keystone, a pint of caffeine, some post puberty hormones, Panarchy rave and you get DARTMOUTH UNDERGRAD.
Some might be disturbed by these similarities. But it's not a bad thing. Isn't that the point of college to explore for awhile? The Dartmouth bubble, like grade school, gives us just enough structure without hindering our freespiritness (not a real word). If anything, the Dartmouth culture may be a reflection of our instinct, our desire to every once in a while escape back to our younger, carefree days in an environment where it's OK to be ridiculous.
