Editors Note – Not all weekends are created equal. While some weekends, like Family and Homecoming, bring a variety of activities to the table, there will occasionally be a weekend, such as this one, with less going on. This is why Reporters Jose Gonzalez and Bradley Merkle out to discover what Eastern students do when they are left to their own devices.

Many of Eastern students spend their weekends on-campus.

Michael Bilek, a freshman pre-pharmacy major, said he enjoys staying on campus during the weekend because it gives him the opportunity to catch up with friends.

“I just find people and do stuff with them, whether it be going out to eat or playing video games,” Bilek said. “I find other people who also don’t drink and we do stuff and hang out sober.”

Bilek also said he enjoys going to the various events around the university during the weekend and plans his weekends on a whim.

“I just get together with people and I’m happy with that,” Bilek said. “And I say we have more fun than people who do drink, and one of my close friends Alex Hinton said to me ‘if you can’t have fun with all of your cognate functions, then maybe you don’t deserve to have fun at all.’ But as long as you have the right friends, you don’t need to drink.”

While some students do not see drinking or going to bars as a part of their weekend routines, other students enjoy their time at the bars.

Adam Polensky, a graduate kinesiology and sports major, said he makes sure his priorities are done before going out.

“I only go out Friday or Saturday, and pre-game before going to the bars around midnight or so, mainly because house parties are more of the underclass trend,” Polensky said.

“It’s more convenient to go to Stu’s rather than the square or Marty’s,” Polensky said.

Polensky said he prefers the bars more than house parties because he would prefer hanging out with people of his own age rather than underclassmen. He finds drinking as a way to interact socially with his friends.

Jackson Bittner, a freshman psychology major said he prefers using his weekends to chill and game online with friends from other universities.

Bittner said he likes to go hang out with people from his residence hall because he feels going home to Ottawa is a hassle.

“I either have a really long drive or get a ride to Mattoon, and then it’s a long train ride,” Bittner said. “I also stay here to have the full days to get my work done because if I go home, then I don’t get anything done.”

Dan Chorzempa, a senior pre-business management major, said his weekend consists of staying here and going out with his friends.

Chorzempa said he prefers partying more here and goes out to pre-game before going to the bar, then goes to the bar around 11 or midnight and to Stu’s or Panther Paw for a couple hours and then calls it a night.

He also said he goes to Stu’s or the Paw because it is convenient for him because it is close to where he lives and it is also fun.

Students on campus all have a routine when it comes to the weekend. Some are opposite of one another, but everyone has their own way of entertaining themselves in whatever way they please.

Jose Gonzalez can be reached at 581-7944 or [email protected].