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diversions
Smorgasport program
a success
By Tina Dhamija
On-line Forty-Niner
Cal State Long
Beach hosted a night of games, live music, movies and more
on Friday when the first ever Smorgasport festival was held
at the Gold Mine gym.
More than 300 students
and spectators gathered in the name of leisure for the event
on Friday night at 5 p.m, and the evening did not end until
1 a.m.
"I've seen
a lot of events like this done at other campuses as a way
of welcoming students back [to school]," said Rita Hayes,
the coordinator of the event and recreation director at CSULB.
"It's hard to tell who'll be showing up, but I like to
think it presents an opportunity for those kids staying in
the dorms, who may not have anything to do tonight, to come
here and play games and have fun."
Nearly 15 types
of games and physical activities were offered throughout the
evening, along with a barbecue dinner and the live music of
bands "Champion the Average" and "Strategies
for Hangmen." From 7 p.m until 1 a.m, popular movies
like "Varsity Blues" and "American Pie"
were shown inside the gymnasium and the bottom floor of the
University Student Union was open for participants to bowl
or play billiards.
"After having
fun at 'Casino Night,' I decided to come see what [Smorgasport]
was all about," said Stephanie Gilmore, a freshman chemistry
major. "It sounded fun and interesting and so far it
has been."
Also a part of
the festivities was an underlying theme of health awareness.
Health pamphlets and surveys on everything from vaccinations
to sexual health awareness were posted at the main entrance
booth of the Smorgasport site. Also posted at the main booth
were free Smorgasport commemorative T-shirts and pens, given
to the first 500 people to show up for the festival, Hayes
said.
"The idea
for [Smorgasport] really came to me just because it happens
on a lot of other campuses," said Hayes. "I eagerly
stepped up to help run and promote this event because I feel
it can really help get students more involved on campus."
Some of the highlights
of the evening's events, Hayes said, were the "Open Swim"
in the university pool, co-ed basketball games, a volleyball
tournament, water polo, indoor soccer and several types of
martial arts activities, ranging from Tae Kwon Do to Aikido.
"I just wanted
to bring my family and play some of the outdoor activities
here," said Kim Thach, a sophomore liberal studies major.
" I like that we can swim here tonight and oh yeah, the
free T-shirts are a plus as well."
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