Banquets

There's something about shelling out an exorbitant dollar amount, donning ridiculously formal and uncomfortable evening attire (gowns and monkey suits), and settling in a mediocre dining hall to chow down on bad vegetarian food that really makes a girl feel like a princess...

Okay... so banquets aren't all they're cracked up to be, but there was one part of that intro that was totally serious. Girls love banquets because they make them feel like princesses, especially when asked by a charming prince. But unfortunately for some girls, this dream never becomes a reality, and often long before this (usually some time during junior year) the girl who's always been the forward one, the leader, the maker, puts her foot down. She's done running after simpering puppies of men and begging one of them to escort her to school-sponsored events. She's done being the creative and romantic one. She refuses to spend her time, energy, and nerves hatching plans she would rather someone else spend nerves executing for her. She's had it. She will not ask another boy to the banquet. If she's going to go, he is going to have to ask her.

I remember what this felt like. Trust me girls, just because I'm attached now doesn't mean I don't feel your pain. You see, it was little more than a year ago (okay, maybe year and a half), that I similarly dug my heal in the sand. I was NOT going to ask another boy to the banquet. See, formerly, I had negotiated all my past dates. One turned out pretty well, the other (through no fault of anyone) turned out to be a near disaster. The winter banquet of my junior year I decided I was done. I was either going to get asked, or I wasn't going to go.

My story ends much like a fairy-tale. I got asked to the banquet by a nice guy whom I incidentally had a crush on. We went to the banquet together (he was a perfect gentleman, pulling out my chair and fetching me punch), then crashed at his house for a post-banquet game night with some friends. It was a blast, and as it turns out, only the beginning of a wonderful relationship. Now that unexpected banquet date is my boyfriend.

Not every girl is so lucky, and so I have a message for the men:
In short: STOP BEING WUSSIES, MAN UP, AND ASK SOMEONE! There are dozens of girls out there who are just waiting to be the belle of the ball. Girls with a sense of humor who are more than ready to have fun. It doesn't have to be a lifetime commitment. It's 1 night--a few hours, not more than two if you don't want to be. You can sit in a boring class for almost that long.

Tomorrow is the last day to buy banquet tickets, so get on the ball already! Even if you're totally strapped for ideas you can always consult a good girl friend, or guy friend who's dating, or a teacher for heaven's sake. Just DO IT ALREADY! You only get one senior banquet (as does she), so why not take a risk?