It has taken the past decades and the many many collegiate experiences before us to carefully craft the meticulous and dramatized art of going out. The art of getting ready to get ready and then getting ready, the art of pre-gaming the pre-game to the game and the post-game of the game… or something of those sorts. We all try to form ourselves into something new for the night, sifting through our closets to decide which form of ourselves we will be- edgy or classic? fun and flirty or cute and casual? Calling upon the oh so serious forces of our sorority sisters to shift and change and adjust, to dress and make-up, to decorate each other until we look so so far away from the srat gal in the big-tee and nike shorts.

To begin there is the stripping away of the caked on make-up lazily left on from the night before and then the painful act of weening yourself- slowly and carefully- out of the XL srat shirt (or frat shirt for all of the groupies out there) to force yourself to put on clothing that actually fits your body. Of course there is the trying on and on and on and changing and indecisiveness of choosing the absolute perfect combo of clothes as per recommendation of every friend you have ever met to ensure that you have the perfect look for the night.

Then, followed by the hours of sitting around and procrastination and distraction up until the point that you realized your uber is picking you up in 10 minutes to where you fling yourself about the room, wrecking havoc and throwing or rather plastering make-up, perfume and jewelry on as you run out the door. But if only it stopped there… the trying and possibly frightening act of finding your uber after several wrong attempts and the sketchiness of approaching random cars asking for “Laquita” or “James” or whoever your driver is for the night, but once you happen upon the golden moment of finding your rightful uber driver the night is finally in motion and you can’t help but feel like the world is before your carefully picked out brown leather booties that perfectly match the tassel on your beaded necklace.

For it has taken all of these years, with the knowledge and make-up tips of generations prior to lead us to the now, to the point of mastering this art of going out, of forging ourselves into little bits and pieces of our friends and their personal styles made up into one perfect form of who we chose to be tonight.