Parody of the Party

The other week I went to a parody of the party 'social' at uni; this meant that everyone had to dress as their political affiliation (it was a politics social...). I didn't have a clue what to go as, i mean.. i am conservative,  but what does that mean i go as? In the end i just dressed in blue and, as a joke, printed out a Maggie Thatcher mask. This seemed like the best thing to do because it would be obvious what i was - meaning i wouldn't have to give the awkward explanation of what i was meant to be and then just get given awkward looks, whereas if i just wore blue people could partially think i was just depressed...

So, i set off to the bar, dressed from head to toe in blue with my mask on - although it was the best mask for looking out of so i had to put it on the back of my head. I had told a few friends what i was going as and they had just laughed and said 'that's brave'. I had shaken this off as a joke, thinking nothing of it, however when i got to the social i realised that this was no joke... Quite the contrary as soon as i walked in i was already getting bizarre looks and evil stares.

Now, i know that i grew up in a sort of bubble, where i live there wasn't even an local election last year because no one stood against the conservatives. So i am just used to no one being that against Thatcher... Even people who are Labour and Liberal still seem to respect her. It probably isn't just because of where i live, but also because non of the people i know at home are as politically inclined. So really doing a politics degree at uni i should have seen the whole thatcher hatred coming...

One of the funniest things that happened in the course of the night was a conversation between me and two bartenders. I was talking to a group of people and suddenly heard laughter behind me, so turned around to see two of the bartenders looking at me and saying "you literally are a two-faced bitch! No offense.." (They soon reassured me that it was nothing to do with me being a bitch personally, purely because Thatcher was, to them, a bitch). So there it was, two complete strangers felt that because i was wearing a mask with Thatcher on it they were suddenly able to call me a two faced bitch! Of course i saw the funny side of it, but that didn't make it any more shocking at the time.

If i thought that the bartenders were bad i had no clue about what was coming for the rest of the night. At one point i found myself surrounded by a group of people who turned out to be Marxists - obviously not fans of Thatcher... They were so shocked that i was a supporter of Thatcher and actually seemed insulted that i was wearing her face on the back of my head. I quickly reassured them that i didn't particularly support Thatcher, that it was just an idea i had that i thought would be apt for the social. I quickly made my way out of that particular group i managed to stay away from them for the rest of then night.

What i was most shocked about was the fact that multiple people were dressed as Sarkozy and Palin, yet that was fine because they were obviously joking, whereas me with a Thatcher mask meant that i was obviously a keen Thatcherite and supported all of her policies and therefore hated the North (which seeing as i was surrounded by Northerners wasn't a good thing).

Now i know i'm making this evening sound worse than it was, the majority of people (after me explaining that it was a joke) did see the funny side, even if a few people obviously didn't find it funny... But it was just such a different reaction than i had imagined. What was amusing was that the next day when photos appeared from the event i found that there were more of the back of my head (with my mask) than with me. Random people that i hadn't even talked to had secretly posed with the back of my head!

So although I definitely don't regret wearing the mask, I was still shocked at the response and probably won't do it again in the future. It was a great starting point for conversations, but for certain people it meant it was a definite ending point. It surprisingly took me a year to work out that people doing a politics degree actually take offense when people support something that they hate.

The New Year's Eve Dilemma

It's coming up again, that time of the year which everyone looks forward to, only for it to happen and no one feel any different... Every year millions of people get ready to see the new year in with friends and loved ones, planning far in advance what parties to go to... Only to realise that once the second hand reaches twelve it really isn't that big a deal...

It's sad that the majority of New Year's Eves are huge anti-climaxes... Everyone gets so excited and then can't help but feel a little bit down when their big night wasn't so big at all... After all, it is just like any other day, the only main impact it makes on everyones lives is that for a few weeks you keep getting the year wrong when writing the date... So does this mean that we shouldn't celebrate New Year's Eve anymore? Should we just give in and accept that although it feels like it should be celebrated, really it is just like any other night? My answer is definitely not. There must be some reason why people still feel that it is acceptable to sometimes spend around £50 just for a ticket to a New Year's Eve party...

1) The Tradition
For years people have celebrated the New Year! Did you know that on New Year's Eve in 2010 an estimated 250,000 people gathered in London to watch the 8 minute long fire works display? Traditions vary from "Irish Wind" - a tradition of predicting the political future of a country by checking which way the wind blows at midnight on New Year's Eve, to celebrating the first baby being born. If we stopped celebrating it we would be losing a huge part of our culture.

2) The excuse for a huge night
It's an excuse to either dress up nicely or in some weird costume and make a fool of yourself, but it's ok because everyone does it! It's not like on people's birthdays when YOU may be dressed up and ready for a big one, but people walking past in the street look completely normal. On New Year's everyone is up for having a good time, and if we stopped celebrating it we would be missing out on a chance to have a great night.

3) Seeing people you wouldn't usually see
New Year's Eve is a great chance to have a catch up with people you don't always have a chance to see. It's the time of year when people have big parties with friends and family, where everyone is in a good mood and you don't think about anything else. With jobs and university it's hard to make sure you see everyone, so it's great having one night of the year when you know everyone is out - it's as if it is mandatory. Whether it is out in London or at someones house, you often see people that you definitely would not have otherwise.

4) Being part of something big
Now, this is generally the reason that New Year's Eve is an anti-climax... Nonetheless i still think it is a reason for us to keep celebrating it. When people celebrate New Year's Eve you really feel part of something. You can imagine everyone in England counting down the seconds, and then all at once shouting "Happy New Year!!". There isn't much that England does as a whole, so it's nice that we have something that the majority of people celebrate. So even though after New Year's Eve some people feel like their has been an anti-climax, it is still important to feel like you are part of something that everyone thinks is special.

5) It only happens once a year
This isn't something that happens every month, it happens once a year. Well, being pedantic each new year only happens once. Surely that is something to celebrate?

Obviously these are not the only reasons why i think that we should still celebrate New Year's Eve, there are hundreds, but they are some of the important ones. My point is that although New Year's Eve can be a let down, generally it is a fun night. You just have to make sure you don't put too much pressure on it. Realistically your life will not change between 11.59 and 12.00, even if technically it is the next year. People should put less of a burden on the night and just enjoy it for what it is - a night with your friends which also happens to be seeing one year into the next. We have to stop expecting a night to be magical on its own, and instead focus on making it special ourselves.

So, I hope that everyone has a great New Year's Eve. Sure, it may well be another anti-climax when it happens, but during the hours before and the hours after hopefully it will be a great night.