Dear Locals: A Response to THAT Raisin complaint

It was Monday morning and my flatmate was getting her kids ready for the foam fight. The Raisin receipt was a classic egg on the head, simple yet effective, and naturally they did it on the street.

“That’s someone’s flat!” yells a disgruntled local.

… Yeah, we know, it’s our flat. This was said as someone was bending down to clean away any debris left by our antics. “And what’s that on the windowsill?” the local continued, now pointing at a pot of chutney left by some nondescript stranger a good while back. After explaining that it wasn’t ours and we were just as frustrated at the mess by our flat as he was, he finally left. But it made me think: Why do locals assume we don’t care about our town?

We have just as much right to live here too. We pay our rent and we work at the University. Just because we come from different places doesn’t mean we don’t view St Andrews as home. I care immensely about this town. Its beauty was a big pull factor for me applying here, and I’m not about to destroy that.

So when I saw a St Feudrews post complaining about Raisin Sunday, I decided to write a response:

Dear whoever you are,

Raisin is our time to let off steam. It’s one day a year where we let loose and have fun in our own town. We don’t hurt anyone by doing it. To complain how we are a nuisance, or to suggest that Raisin Monday is already too much and we don’t need Sunday, is not fair.

I understand that it’s perhaps not what you want on a Sunday, but it is one day (and a small part of Monday morning). Compared to other university towns, St Andrews is a god-send. We’re not an especially riotous lot – in fact we’re known (and more often mocked) for being very tame. We get one day a year where we get a bit silly, but our behaviour isn’t that bad. It’s mainly people in funny costumes running around, excited that they’ve made new friends and enjoying an age old tradition. I understand that the drunkenness might be frustrating but, other than asking for your help with a scavenger hunt, the students on Raisin aren’t trying to bother anyone at all. They’re not assaulting you or graffiti-ing the buildings. They’re running around dressed as a pirate trying to find a policeman to hug.

Also, looking around the town this week, there’s no evidence Raisin even happened. We’re a tidy lot and the town isn’t damaged – only our livers, but that’s not your problem.

So, we’re sorry that your Sunday was disturbed by our fun but deadlines were over and we deserved it. I don’t think it’s too much to ask to have one day a year where we let loose. This is our town too, and we have just as much right to be here as you do.

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