Anyone who was alarmed by the sound of moans emanating from the Travers/Wolfe lounge on Oct. 17 can rest assured that all the commotion was only the result of the College's annual "Sex Mania" event sponsored by the ResEd and Residence Hall Association staff of Travers and Wolfe Halls.
About a dozen staffers donned hot pink T-shirts and posed as "Sex Maniacs" for the evening. They led the crowd in a series of interactive games and shared valuable information about safer sex, gender relations and domestic violence.
Throughout the night, audience members eagerly volunteered themselves for activities such as "the candy necklace game" and "the lap dance competition," checking their inhibitions at the door in pursuit of some sexy fun.
The evening also had a more serious side as representatives from several on-campus organizations such as PRISM, VOX, Health Services and the Office of Anti-Violence Initiatives took turns addressing the crowd and offering information on topics like STIs, pregnancy, sexual assault and questions of sexuality.
One of the evening's loudest events was certainly the "fake orgasm contest," which drew attention from students lingering in the lobby on their way to the Travers/Wolfe dining hall. Even the on-duty security guards peeked their heads in to make sure nothing "illicit" was going down in the lounge.
The contest was enough to instill some fear in the hearts of the male audience members. After seeing the performance some of the ladies put on, many were left to stare at their girlfriends questioningly and simply wonder.
The audience, which consisted mostly of freshmen and sophomores, paired up with roommates, floormates and even total strangers in an effort to win one of the dozens of sex-themed prizes given away. Several students with "experienced fingers" coached their teammates on the fastest way to remove a lady's undergarments before leading their team to victory in the hilarious "bra game."
"The event was so much better than last year," Lynette Barnes, sophomore psychology and finance major, said. "It's just great to see how. 'open' the new freshmen are."
One of the event's most popular guests was Kait Boyle, party consultant for Passion Parties, who brought along a treasure chest full of dildos, vibrators, lubricants and sex manuals.
"Sex and pleasure are a natural part of life, and for those who choose to have sex, they should know as much as they can about it" Boyle said.
While she agreed that being well-informed about the dangers of sex is crucial, she felt that only viewing sex as this "scary thing" can leave people unprepared physically and emotionally. That is why she chose to host Passion Parties.
After co-eds flooded her table at the end of the night, Boyle said, "I was pleasantly surprised when a few men came up to me asking about?products which would give their girlfriends better orgasms ... I think the class of 2011 is heading in the right direction."
Even if you weren't lucky enough to win the huge purple rotating vibrator that Boyle donated, plenty of other students took home penis-shaped balloons, "anatomy candy," after-sex tissues, dildos, candy panties and the Mr. Potato Head of penises: Dicky Dick Head. The College's underclassmen earned their share of the evening's goodies by demonstrating their skills during the raucous lap dancing segment and the no-handed condom on a banana contest.
Although you had to be somewhat of an exhibitionist to walk away with the night's fun prizes, pamphlets, stickers and condoms were free for the taking, courtesy of the campus organizations in attendance. Health services brought back its Wheel of Sexual Trivia and informed students of the services it offers such as STI testing, HPV vaccinations, discounted condoms, birth control, emergency contraception and referrals to the on-campus chapter of Planned Parenthood.
Sex Mania also devoted some time to the topic of abstinence with a nod to those who didn't succumb to the night's libido-increasing atmosphere. As Laura Matricciano, sophomore nursing major, advised, "Sex can wait, masturbate!"
As the evening came to a close, the Sex Maniacs cleared out the chairs and cranked the music for an all-out dance party, while a few students lingered at some of the sexual health information tables. By the end of the night, the condom bowl was empty, the penis balloons were popped, and most of the audience had moved the party upstairs to put the night's prize winnings and newfound sexual health tips to good use.
