Before college, I had never been to a house party. Almost at the end of my first semester, I am astounded by how little etiquette people seem to have when in other people’s homes. Just because it’s a frat doesn’t mean it’s a barn, or that you suddenly live there because you’re drunk.
For starters, stop bringing groups of 20 plus people out with you. You and your first-year friends yelling down the street in full glitter makeup on a Thursday night seem to have forgotten this is a residential area. Don’t go alone, of course, but open houses shouldn’t be your next hall program.
Another thing that’s really getting on everyone’s nerves is the complete disregard for personal space. The guys at the door won’t be more compelled to let you in if you’re up on their stairs, close enough to smell exactly how much you pre-gamed. Lines are supposed to be orderly. We are all desperately trying to be sweaty and all up on someone we don’t know. But when you push and shove that only makes the swarm monitors more annoyed and less likely to let you — and everyone else on the steps — in. The responsibility of maintaining order and comfort should fall on everyone. Just do your part and watch your own actions. If you wouldn’t go up to someone and grab their arm while sober, don’t excuse it after a few beers. And no, the small of a girl’s back is not the most “convenient” place to help support her if you’re trying to walk her home politely.
Puke. In. A. Toilet. So far, I have been puked on, seen puke in a cup, in a sink, and puke in fries (that one was my bad). We’re nasty is my point. If you have even the slightest inkling that you could be sick, let the people in the bathroom line know, and they will be more than happy to give you a fast pass to your porcelain savior.
On the topic of drinking — we get messy. If you’re dancing with a drink in your hand try to be careful, and in the event you do douse someone in Genesee Light, apologize. And don’t get pissed when you eventually get beer on you. It’s the main reason we designate frat shoes in the first place.
To say more about how disgusting college kids are, even frat bros have trash cans. Everyone would very much like you to use them. The amount of pickup these people do after parties has to be comparable to petty crime atonement. Stacking your cups on a table is more respectable than throwing a cup like you’re aiming for distance. Or if you’re feeling especially nice and particularly lucid, maybe help them out and pick a few things up around where you’re standing.
One of the main reasons frat parties are seen as having such a lowly atmosphere is because of the way we feel we’re allowed to act. Greek life may be a hedonistic outlet for our stress, but that doesn’t mean we should be going balls to the wall and losing all manners whenever more than 40 people show up. If nothing else about binge drinking dissuades you, hopefully a healthy dose of embarrassed guilt will ensure you go have fun responsibly.
