Spring Fling at Penn is a long-honored tradition in which students enjoy some usual attractions: fried deliciousness in the Quad, an EDM-filled concert on Friday, and general shenanigans all around. But my favorite part of Spring Fling is one that most people don’t think to partake in: people watching (aka SPECtating).
For the casual observer, Fling is the perfect spectator sport. The freedom of this particular April weekend throws Penn students’ usually odd behavior into overdrive, causing them to do things that no one in their right mind would dream of doing (but no one is really in their right mind during Fling, are they?). This is exactly why it is the best time to take a step back from throwing inhibitions to the wind and look around. If you’re lucky (or have eyes at all), you will see some particularly…interesting things. The visual highlights of the past two Spring Flings include multiple freshmen passed out face-first in the Quad (always hilarious), students’ various inventions for sneaking contraband into the Quad without getting caught, and my personal favorite, the guy who jumped on stage with Tiësto and proceeded to shave his head in a fit of paranoia.
So this year take a minute to observe the revelry of your peers and have a good laugh. Appreciate that this is likely the only time in your life you will get to do such reckless things, because before you know it college will be over, and you’ll be that weird kid who graduated a few years ago but still shows up to Fling.