Coming home from a long day of work, physical education teacher Gene Kendall is welcomed by his wife and two sons. While Kendall enjoys spending time with his family, he also likes participating in various activities with friends. Similar to Kendall, many students and staff find ways to navigate their social life among family commitments.
Kendall’s family-oriented lifestyle causes him to find ways to spend time with friends while also being present for his family.
“I like to go out. I just don’t typically have a lot of opportunities. I have two young sons and my wife usually works at night, so I have to be at home,” Kendall said. “A lot of my socializing is playing video games or playing Dungeons and Dragons online with my friends.”
Contrasting his current schedule, Kendall reminisced on ways he would spend time with his friends in his youth.
“When I was a teenager, my group of friends had a few people who could drive, so we would always go to someone else’s house or roam around town looking for something to do,” Kendall said.
Similar to Kendall in his childhood, senior Sean Sawaya prefers to spend time with his friends at home due to its manageable setting.
“I prefer staying at home with friends because I’m in a more controlled environment, and we get to do things we like easily,” Sawaya said. “We’re at home, and we have a kitchen. I like baking with friends, and then we can use that to eat those foods when we’re watching movies.”
While factors such as schedules and specific interests are important to some, freshmen Marbelly Ramos Soto finds that her frame of mind plays a role in how she chooses to spend her time.
“It usually just depends on how I’m feeling. My mood affects whether I know I want to stay in or go out because when I’m tired or feeling down I would rather stay in than go out,” Ramos Soto said.
Sophomore Ricky Rex Alexias mentioned the spontaneous aspect of stepping out that varies.
“It’s a bit more adventurous, and the outside is more random. Plus, you have an opportunity to meet new people outside,” Alexias said. “Usually we (Alexias and his friends) go out to see movies, and then we eat afterward and just chill.”
While some activities follow a familiar routine, others offer more unplanned experiences. Since affordability can be a worry for some, Alexias recommends trying outdoor activities that require no cost.
“If money is an issue, then you can do a lot more adventurous things. You could go hiking, you could go mountain biking, you could go to the beach, things like that,” Alexias said.
Like Alexias, Kendall noticed the cost of socializing with friends outside the house. Kendall highlighted the increase in prices that seem to continue growing and how much things have changed since his teenage years.
“The price of going out has gone up dramatically over the years. When I was a kid we could go to the movies for $2.50. Now movie tickets are 4x that,” Kendall said. “When I leave my house nowadays, I expect to end up spending more money than I would like to.”
While options such as whether to stay in or go out are significant, Sawaya shared that friendship is important.
“I enjoy spending time with friends because it is something that makes me feel seen and heard,” Sawaya said. “It is a place not to worry about problems and go outside of your comfort zone while having fun at the same time. It’s the ultimate destresser.”