'Tis the season for finals and formals. The end of the second semester always brings about two different kinds of stressors for me, and probably for everyone else who is in a sorority, and I still can't decide which one stresses me out the most. OK, so this is obviously a joke (kind of, sort of, it really depends on the day you ask), but something I've noticed from my experiences at the formals I've been to in college is aspects that these experiences shared with those from my high school proms. Sure, it's a little different, that's a given, but the similarities between the two in most areas is uncanny.
1. You obsess over the event months before it even happens, and try and plan the entire night out, down to the time before and after the actual event, the group you're going with, and when and where pictures are happening. You also end up getting way too stressed out way too early on.
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2. You want to find the dress -- this can be the most stressful part of it all. You want to be unique, you want to stand out, you want to make a statement, and do all of this without having to donate an appendage in order to afford the dress of your dreams.
3. For other events, it's OK to not have a date. But not for the event -- formal (prom). It's fine to not have a plus-one for a semi-formal. Other sorority functions are cool to fly solo or bring a gal pal along, but formal is a different story. And no, I'm not saying that you have to have a boy to enjoy formal (I'm all about that single-woman swag), but it does make for wonderful pictures and nice slow dances.
4. You want to get pictures with everyone and really anyone that you can. After all, this is a special night where you actually try to look your very best and you want to document this every chance that you get. In order to do this, you have to plan where you're going and also figure out everyone else's plans.
5. Because you know that the night will be filled with lots of pictures and social interactions, you want to make sure that your hair and makeup are hashtag-flawless. In high school for prom, I got my hair and makeup done (regretfully), and this is a difference in college for formal, but I still work just as hard to make it look professionally done (probably still with regretful results).
6. You have to be selective with what you eat and how you eat it. If you're anything like me, you like to eat. You also probably don't eat super well and get unidentified stains everywhere, on everything, always (like I said, if you're like me). And this is certainly not the night to let this happen.
7. The highlight of the night is when the dance floor opens up. It's kind of the main event within the main event. This is the time when pictures are done, socializing becomes singing, and it's time to let loose and celebrate because you made it to the big night, you survived, and now it's time to let go and enjoy the rest of the evening!
