As a psych major, studying behavior has in part what I enjoy most about learning psychology and the inner-workings of people’s minds. So, I’ve always been a people person. I find it natural to strike up a conversation with someone and not have it be awkward. I wish that could be a skill to put on my resume. After the pandemic, it has been a little hard to get back to the groove of studying behaviors since my own worst subject was myself and watching me go through hours upon hours of toxic behaviors towards myself was enough. I was lonely. I had missed the connections that I had made and was going to make that first year of being here at UMBC pre-COVID. Once they announced that everyone would come back to campus, I was excited but apprehensive, because after all we are still in a pandemic. But, it’s crazy to say that coming back to campus after a year or so has opened up a new wave of psychological behaviors and subjects to study from.

Listen, I’m totally going to be the one to say it; some people on campus are DOWN BAD. I mean, HORNY BAD. If you really think about it, keeping 18-24 year olds away from other people during the primetime that they should be making social connections is bound to backfire. There are surges of young people going out and continuing the social activities that they conducted pre-COVID. Some relationships have not survived the pandemic and some were made during or even after. This social surge will become a hot-topic in future psychological studies. We still do not have a means of measuring it because it is happening suddenly and there is still a pandemic out there. We do not know where the data should start or end. Once we do have a means of time, the variables of partners, sexual intercourse, dating, going out, etc. will ALL look different as compared to before the pandemic.

Now besties, I HAVE to tell you what happened to me this week. I WAS DOWN BAD. I went out with some friends in my club and I had the night of my life. One, because I deserved it and Two, because I think it would’ve helped to make more connections with people who I shared the same interests with. I never expected to see myself like this but I was flirting and being touchy and just a baddie with all the dudes in my club. Where did this confidence come from? Who is this lady? It was an evolved me. One who wants to make relationships and one who strikes up a conversation. It was scary because I didn’t know I had it in me. I guess it just goes to show that once you had more time stuck in a room with only yourself, you choose to either evolve it or destroy it. Let me tell you, after I told the punchline of my joke and all the guys started laughing, I could feel the extrovert power coursing through my veins. I’m still single, but I think I’m just gonna play the field. Oh boy, am I going to play it.

If you catch me out like this, please do not tell my mama.