Are You Ready?

Shh, can you hear it? That eerie silence? The calm before the storm? The anticipation for possibly the greatest weekend in UNH history is growing and Friday is just a few days away.

Since the administration announced the move of Homecoming weekend to the same weekend of Halloween, the UNH campus and community has been buzzing with excitement. It's been dubbed "Hallowcoming" and it is going to be one heck of a weekend: two hockey games, tailgating, homecoming football, parade, fireworks, Halloween costume parties, volleyball senior day and potentially great memories. I say potentially, because quite honestly, we might not actually remember all of it.

The stars have aligned and two of the best, craziest and outrageous college weekends have been combined into one. However, this also means that the two weekends that usually average the most arrests, apart from maybe Spring Climax, are also combined. Arrest numbers will most likely exceed the 48 we saw last year leading up to and following the Wiz Khalifa concert.

This weekend poses two huge questions: what do I wear for Halloween? And how do I not get arrested? Have no fear, for I am going to share some of my senior wisdom that will hopefully help provide answers to both.

First on the table is the question of what to wear for your ever-important Halloween costume. The first tip I have is to wear something that can be comfortable in a variety of temperatures, or at least wear layers so you can adjust appropriately. Sure it may be 80 degrees in that dirty basement, but when the cops break up that party a mile off campus and you have to walk back, that "cat" costume may be a bit light for a New Hampshire fall night. This happened to me sophomore year, but luckily my full Celtics warm-up jumpsuit was suitable for the warm and cold. Also, you want it to be comfortable – you're going to be wearing all night, or all weekend if you're dedicated, so be sure to take that into account.

The second tip I have for a costume is to be original, but not too obscure that you will have to be explaining yourself all night. I have a feeling we'll see about 25 Lady Gagas and even more Nicki Minajs this weekend.

Personally, I would love to be Chuck Testa, but only three people would probably get it. Last year my Jagerbomb costume was borderline too obscure. It was definitely creative, but only about a third to half the people who saw me got it. Those who got it loved it, but those who didn't thought I was just some weirdo with deer antlers and a fake bomb taped to my stomach.

As for the arrest problem, there are a few things to take into consideration. The most common arrest at UNH is underage intoxication. If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times and it is no secret that underage college students drink.

I did it, you probably did it and thousands of you will do it this weekend. For those of us who are 21, we only have to worry about public intoxication, but the tips for both situations are similar. Don't attract attention to yourself and don't cause a scene and you will probably be fine.

One of the problems about drinking is that it usually throws common sense out the window and the only thing it really takes to avoid an arrest is common sense. Be respectful to the police, be smart about your decisions and chances are, they won't bother you.

On big party weekends like this one, the police are looking to control the crowds and keep people safe. They will not single out random students from a crowd and ask for their ID, but if you're calling attention to yourself, they probably will. Stay together in groups, watch out for hotdog costumes and mind your own business. There is no reason you can't have fun and partake in various college nightlife activities and still stay out of trouble or harm's way.

The biggest tip I have for you this weekend is to be safe, but still have as much fun as humanly possible. You are only in college once, and believe me, it goes by way too fast. So enjoy yourself and your time here, but be smart, stay safe and most of all:

Stay classy, not UMassy.