#siglife
By now, you’ve probably heard of the phenomenon known as #swuglife. If not, go ahead and read some articles on it here: http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2012/09/24/drimal-profile-of-a-swug/ and http://yaledailynews.com/weekend/2013/03/29/swugnation/?fb_ref=wp. Basically, a SWUG is a Senior Washed Up Girl. The girls described go to parties and dance wildly, but always leave alone. They’re friends with the frat guys, but realize that when it comes to hooking up, they are not the target audience. They dance on tables at bars and text sophomore boys, even though they said they’d never hook up with a younger guy. Of course, for some senior girls, having this label is reassuring, knowing that they’re part of a larger group, a phenomenon and it’s a way of reclaiming which could just be seen as a little bit sad. You could be depressed that the hot seniors don’t want to hook up with you… or you could just embrace the #SWUGlife and laugh it off. As a senior girl, I can sympathize and, okay, empathize with this perspective. It certainly appears to be true that as guys get older, they get hotter, while girls just get… older. And I certainly don’t have that new-penny shine I had 4 years ago, when I was a naïve freshman. I’m older, I’m wiser, and I know the drill. So I can of course see the senior girl part. But washed up? Have these SWUGs ever been out to bars in the real world? Sure, compared to an 18 year old, we’re crypt-keepers but when the other women in the bar are 28 or 30, you’re all of a sudden the young, hot thing again. Breathe easy, SWUGs, for you shall be fresh meat once more. But that’s only one aspect of this term that I find hard to swallow.
Sure, I’m not hooking up with guys as often as I was freshman fall. But in what universe is that a bad thing?? Sure, I’m older, but I’m also way wiser. I don’t (usually) want just a one-night stand anymore. If I want one, I go and get it but on any given night, you will find me totally content to have my bed all to myself. I know myself well enough to know that what I really want is a meaningful relationship and, given that I’m graduating in a month, I know that Bowdoin can’t give me that. I’ve got other relationships to develop, like those with my roommates, who will continue to be incredibly important people to me post-graduation. I have a job to prepare for and a new life in a new place to get excited about. I’m still happy to be at Bowdoin, but I’m just not the same person I was freshman year. It’s as simple as that. I’m not washed up as much as I’m indifferent. I’ll dance alone in the Boom Boom Room, or watch Hunger Games unabashedly on the elliptical, or get three frosted banana bars with no shame, not because I’m irrelevant, but because at this point, why in the world wouldn’t I? Some nights, I feel like getting drunk and dancing wildly and some nights, I’d rather share a bottle of wine while watching Mad Men with my friends. It’s a different place to be, for sure. Sophomore year, I remember seeing the senior girls and being equally in awe at how cool they were, but also pitying them a bit, because I knew the boys didn’t want them. And now? I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss those times when I walked into a party and instantly got grabbed by a cute boy. There was a time, I have to admit, when that seemed like the most important thing. And the boy-crazy part of me still thinks fondly of that, still likes to have a boy to text (yes, I was probably too affected by the Disney princesses… Sorry…) But I also am wise enough now to realize what a small part of my life that is. I have my independent study, which I have a huge intellectual crush on. I have my friends, both here and elsewhere, my parents, my whole life ahead of me. Put into that light, I just can’t possibly think of myself as washed up… I’m a Senior Indifferent Girl and I’m so happy to be living the #siglife.