Are there Dances in College?

I never went to high school dances. I had some friends who would go, but mostly, we stayed out of it. I think this is probably for multiple reasons: 1) being a matter of who I am as a person and 2) being the politics of school dances at my particular high school, and 3) my disdain for dancing in public spaces.

But when I got to Carleton, I gained some of that sweet, sweet confidence that adults are always talking about and tried out my dancing shoes*

*note: I have a literal pair of dancing shoes. I can’t find any full-body pics of me wearing them, but imagine: platform wedge golden majesties, one for each foot.

And let me tell you—I do not always love a school dance, even at Carleton!!! But a lot of people really do have a lot of fun, especially at little gatherings we’ll have to get ready together before a dance. That’s usually my favorite part. We also take a lot of pictures.

All of this is to say that last night at Carleton was Midwinter Ball—a big fancy dance that happens in the middle of every winter term. The whole student center turns into three different dancing meccas: one more traditional DJ/jumping up and down room, and two others that I think are ballroom dancing and swing dancing? Or tango? Unclear. I’m not a dancer, as previously mentioned.

Before the ball, I went as Sam’s “spicy date” to hang out and take pictures with the cross country/track & field teams (Sam runs; I don’t). Actually, I barely knew anyone from the running at Carleton world before this year, and I’m so glad that Sam has been bringing me into this world—sure, the runners have a lot of jokes about their “muscles hurting” and use words like “pacing,” but they’re nice and funny and welcoming.

The actual ball part is not so much for me—so lets revisit some “getting ready to go out” montages from the past few years:

It’s funny to look back at these pics and think about the people in them—all of whom made appearances at last night’s Midwinter Ball (years later!). Maya was the first Big Friend I made at college, and now she works for SAO, the student activities office, so she was helping set up and run the event. We danced together. Brynne and Melanie got ready together this year, and we passed each other fleetingly on the dance floor. Clara’s my roommate now; she told me that I looked cute even when I hadn’t brushed my hair!

I think when I started this post, I was aiming at a Big Reflection on Growing and Confidence and College Changes, but now, I’m just thinking about my friends and relationships with people at Carleton. I think it doesn’t matter, too much, whether you Cannot Wait to boogie down once you get to college, or whether the idea of being in a gym space with sweaty people your age makes you tense up—because college is literally set up to help you meet and form connections with people who are so good and different from you, and once you find them, you’re not going to be thinking about what your shoulders look like when Carly Rae Jepson starts to play.

Lynn is a senior CAMS major and WGST minor from the desert. She’s super into podcasts, comedy, queerness, and food. You can catch her doing improv with Cujokra or stand up with the Queens of Comedy — or perhaps reading something by Roxane Gay, baking at Dacie Moses, looking at her résumé to remember what else she does, or in the Weitz trying to find her hard drive. Meet the other bloggers!