Sex and the Smithie: Goodbye feast, hello famine
Issue date: 2/4/10 Section: Opinions
The "Sex and the Smithie" column is written by a different Smith student each week.
Coming back to Smith from break is like facing months of drought after weeks of rain, and I'm not talking about my vagina. Of course I knew coming to Smith would mean fewer opportunities to meet boys and engage in some good old-fashioned heterosexual activity. What I didn't consider was the extreme pressure this puts on the single straight Smithie to meet boys when she goes home for breaks.
It resembles a blood sport in some ways. Talking to a boy gets a girl 10 points, especially if she can prove he was either flirting or trying to get her into bed. Making out and subsequent levels of hooking up results in the appropriate kudos from her friends. Sex merits an entire dinner conversation, and coming back to Smith with a long-distance relationship equals the Holy Grail.
All of these options are great because, for the most part, a girl gets the subsequent experience and bragging rights without actually having to deal with the day-to-day frustration and monotony of the college boy, who knows he is a hot commodity, around here, especially to the "poor, sexually frustrated Smith student."
I understand the physical side of this practice. Months spent conjugating verbs, studying bacteria under a microscope and bent over research for term papers can leave a girl feeling a little lonely, especially when there's no one to cuddle up with at the end of the night when the library closes.
Perhaps more pressing is the physical side of relationships, which doesn't seem available except in the package of high-schooler, rude frat boy or townie. Besides being women in our prime childbearing years with all our evolutionary impulses screaming to find a steady supply of sperm and go at it like rabbits, sex in all its forms feels good. Sometimes a random kiss or an extra long shower doesn't quite do the trick.
From a non-sexual point of view, after spending so much time in an estrogen bubble, spending time with the other sex can seem refreshing. Conversations centering around sexual double entendres (that's what she said), sporting events and the rules of beer pong provide a change from sexual politics and vicious house gossip.
All these things I understand. However, I do not think these reasons are the driving forces behind the manhunt that occurs when school lets out. Instead, it's motivated by a desire to tell other Smith students about what happened over break, spend hours analyzing the endlessly confusing male behavior and, most of all, prove to oneself as well as one's friends - and enemies - that men find her attractive.
Whatever your reasons for stacking up conquests over break, or focusing on one special guy, I hope you made enough memories to last a semester - or at least until you make it home for spring break. I know I did.
Coming back to Smith from break is like facing months of drought after weeks of rain, and I'm not talking about my vagina. Of course I knew coming to Smith would mean fewer opportunities to meet boys and engage in some good old-fashioned heterosexual activity. What I didn't consider was the extreme pressure this puts on the single straight Smithie to meet boys when she goes home for breaks.
It resembles a blood sport in some ways. Talking to a boy gets a girl 10 points, especially if she can prove he was either flirting or trying to get her into bed. Making out and subsequent levels of hooking up results in the appropriate kudos from her friends. Sex merits an entire dinner conversation, and coming back to Smith with a long-distance relationship equals the Holy Grail.
All of these options are great because, for the most part, a girl gets the subsequent experience and bragging rights without actually having to deal with the day-to-day frustration and monotony of the college boy, who knows he is a hot commodity, around here, especially to the "poor, sexually frustrated Smith student."
I understand the physical side of this practice. Months spent conjugating verbs, studying bacteria under a microscope and bent over research for term papers can leave a girl feeling a little lonely, especially when there's no one to cuddle up with at the end of the night when the library closes.
Perhaps more pressing is the physical side of relationships, which doesn't seem available except in the package of high-schooler, rude frat boy or townie. Besides being women in our prime childbearing years with all our evolutionary impulses screaming to find a steady supply of sperm and go at it like rabbits, sex in all its forms feels good. Sometimes a random kiss or an extra long shower doesn't quite do the trick.
From a non-sexual point of view, after spending so much time in an estrogen bubble, spending time with the other sex can seem refreshing. Conversations centering around sexual double entendres (that's what she said), sporting events and the rules of beer pong provide a change from sexual politics and vicious house gossip.
All these things I understand. However, I do not think these reasons are the driving forces behind the manhunt that occurs when school lets out. Instead, it's motivated by a desire to tell other Smith students about what happened over break, spend hours analyzing the endlessly confusing male behavior and, most of all, prove to oneself as well as one's friends - and enemies - that men find her attractive.
Whatever your reasons for stacking up conquests over break, or focusing on one special guy, I hope you made enough memories to last a semester - or at least until you make it home for spring break. I know I did.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Jessica
posted 2/04/10 @ 11:07 AM EST
"From a non-sexual point of view, after spending so much time in an estrogen bubble, spending time with the other sex can seem refreshing. Conversations centering around sexual double entendres (that's what she said), sporting events and the rules of beer pong provide a change from sexual politics and vicious house gossip. (Continued…)
smithie28
posted 2/13/10 @ 9:07 PM EST
Yes, females are capable of saying those things, but it's just not the same. Also those are just three random examples the author came up with. I personally miss hearing guy talk. (Continued…)
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