Perhaps it's the warmer weather bringing skimpier clothes. Or maybe the sunny days give everyone a more attractive glow. In any case, it seems that at Bowdoin, romance flourishes along with the flowers come springtime. The number of dates Bowdoin students go on may be inversely proportional to the amount of snow on the ground. Even the birds and the bees agree it's mating season. And why shouldn't there be a little more love in the air at the end of school? Let's take a closer look at the SPRING FLING.
Spring beneath the Pines means barbecues, studying, sunbathing on the Quad, and sloshball. It's no surprise Ivies Weekend and the Gala are in the spring-everyone is a little more willing to let loose and go out and meet more people than they might be likely to find otherwise.
Also, as much as we hate to admit it, the fact that school is about to be over is in the back of everyone's mind. Whereas someone might be slightly more cautious about getting into a relationship in October-the thought of the entire year ahead may be daunting-the end of school presents a respectable opt-out. Moreover, if you like a few people at the beginning of the year, you might not want to put all your eggs in one basket. But come April, you may have crossed some of them off the list and decided that you might as well go for broke with one or two. If you make a fool of yourself, you'd only have to deal with it for a few weeks anyway.
Meghan is a veteran spring fling-er. For two years in a row now, she has been asked out by guys in mid-April and ended up having great relationships with them that were far more fun, not to mention mature, than any other situations she has found herself in at any other point in the school year.
"I don't know what it is," she comments, "but literally the same week two years in row, these great guys who seemed to ignore me until then suddenly decided they want to go out."
The spring fling is especially common among seniors (and for some reason, found even more frequently with senior girls and under-class guys), which may be due to the fact that the built-in deadline has a little more finality. Knowing that they will never have to deal with the aftermath gives seniors even more incentive to jump into any sort of relationship during their final months at Bowdoin. For this reason, the spring fling would seem to be popular with sophomores about to spend their junior year abroad.
Lars explains that as a sophomore, he wasn't as nervous to ask out Caitlin, a senior, last week, because he knew the worst-case scenario would be that he would get rejected and feel awkward around her for a few weeks. And when I spoke to Caitlin, she confided that she was more willing to go out with Lars because she figured, "Why not? I'll be out of here in a month anyway, I might as well give it a try."
Carrie remembers, "When I was a sophomore, three of my guy friends started going out with senior girls in the spring. And this year it's already happening again! They start to date more or less right after Spring Break, go to dinner a few times, go to the Gala together, the guy stays up for Senior Week, and then after graduation it's done."
As Carrie points out, spring flings are a perfect way to ensure a Gala date. Not to mention guarantee a great end of the year. Things can move pretty quickly in the last few weeks, because there is always the choice to keep going or to just end it after school is over.
It seems that in general, spring flings present an ideal situation for all. There is little pressure, minimal repercussions, and the potential for a very positive outcome for all parties involved. And so, as you go into your final few weeks of this year, I urge you to get out there and ask someone out. Whether you've liked them since September or just saw them in the Fashion Show, seen go for it-wouldn't you like to finish off this year with a bang? (No pun intended.)