Dorms empty for Midnight Madness

Sales associates hurriedly handed over carts with wheels already spinning, raffle tickets and maps to busloads of students at Wal-Mart Friday night. \nMidnight Madness, an orientation program that is part shopping spree, part festival, was underway, and teams of freshmen with dorm keys strung on lanyards swinging on their necks sprinted around the store grabbing pillows, beanbag chairs and 15 cent packets of Ramen noodles. The event lasted from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. as packed buses stopped at eight locations on campus to shuttle the shoppers to and from the late-night shopping mecca.\nEntire dorm floors came to the wild shopping extravaganza with their resident assistants leading packs of freshmen looking for last-minute supplies at reduced prices and a social night of bonding with new floormates.\n"I tried to drag everybody along," said sophomore resident assistant Olga Liapis-Muzzy. Some members of her group said they needed items like contact solution and decorations for their new rooms, while others said they just came to have a night out with new friends.\nThe social aspect of freshmen shopping until they dropped was emphasized at the event, said Melanie Payne, associate director of orientation programs. Sounds of constant chatter and bursts of giggling were audible over the shouting sales associates directing shoppers to registers with small lines. DVD players, CDs and other dorm room essentials were also raffled off about every 15 minutes, while flashes emitted from instant cameras manned by Wal-Mart employees to commemorate the event. \nShoppers were handed Coke Zero as they left the superstore, while some of those entering received movie posters and other goodies.\nJenny Yearby, a freshman resident of Teter Quad, said the social aspect wasn't the main draw for her however, it was the deals.\n"We needed a few last things for the dorm," Yearby said as she waited by her cart teaming with towels and DVDs for her roommate to return. "We found some good deals."\nDisplays of common staples of dorm life like IU T-shirts and macaroni and cheese enticed shoppers to fill their carts.\nFreshman Shawn McCullough cruised down the grocery aisles with determination and two friends in tow. Before rolling on to the mounds of microwaveable cuisine, he said he came because of hunger and he needed food, pausing only for one word answers as he prepared to toss food into his cart.