Turn it Down, Ten-Man!

It’s Friday night and you forgo the usual ritual of tequila shots, awkward dancing to the latest T.I. song, and waking up the next morning (aka 3 p.m.) with painful aches and even more painful recollections for a mellow night of takeout from the Kong and numerous episodes of Gossip Girl. After getting your feet toasty warm by the fireplace (aka the stack of Moo Shu chicken on the floor) and cheering for Team Serena, you hear a drunken rendition of “Living on a Prayer” that would make even William Hung cringe. Apparently, not everyone shares your goal for ambience.

While the “party suites” in Harvard Houses undoubtedly give the underwhelming social scene a boost every weekend (and often weekdays), these party havens come with casualties: for the students living next door to the raving rooms, peace and quiet can be hard to come by.

Julia M. Spiro ’10 of Pfoho had no idea what she was getting into when she moved in next door to the Belltower Suite. But the nightly loud music and shaking walls quickly clued her in. When she decided to take a night off from the party scene earlier this fall, Spiro, who is also a Crimson magazine editor, found that the party scene wasn’t going to let her off the hook. Comfortably snuggled in her PJs, Spiro was surprised to discover a large, wasted stranger stumbling through her room. After numerous exchanges (name calling on the rando’s part and “please get out of my room” from Spiro), she finally convinced him to leave only by agreeing to escort him back to the Belltower, still sporting her pyjamas.

Spiro is not alone in her plight. Another Quadling, Alice M. Ging ’11 hears music blasting from her neighbors’ room until 2 a.m. every night, but says, “It’s not a big deal, just a bit annoying.” Even more annoying for Ging is hearing the firedoor alarm go off whenever a belligerent party-hopper gets lazy and forgets to read.

But living next to party suites does have its advantages. A sophomore in Mather notes the ease of just stepping out of his room and “following the music.” However convenient partying at neighbors’ might be, Spiro has definitely learned her lesson about locking her door and notes that “since this happened within the first few weeks of school, it’s only a sign of things to come.”