Textsfromlastnight.com and the “TWI: Texting While Intoxicated” application have company. A new website called Slopnessmonster.com has hit the Internet, featuring pictures of students in various drunken states.
The creator Patrick (who did not want to disclose his last name) from Austin, Texas said the term “slopness monster” refers to when alcohol in excess meets sloppy.
“I don’t know exactly how the term was coined, but after a night of drinking, we got back to my friend’s place and one of our other friends, who was pretty fat at the time, came out in skinny jeans and no shirt and did the most ridiculous, atrocious dance,” he said. “That is the definition of a slopness monster right there.”
Patrick said this happened in 2008, but he did not think of coming up with a website until April 2010.
“In April, I started a Tumblr page, and by October, I thought to put up a full-blown site,” he said. “It looked terrible at first but it is slowly making progress. ”
Students at Cal Poly seem to have mixed feelings about the website.
Haley Armstrong, a nutrition freshman, said she views the website as pointless.
“I mean, I could see myself checking out the website with my friends and stuff, but I don’t really know how I feel about it,” Armstrong said. “I think it’s just dumb.”
Patrick, however, said there was an overwhelming, positive response seen by people sending in pictures from Cal Poly as well as the addition of a “SLOpnessmonster” fan page on Facebook.
However, one student said the website paints a negative image of Cal Poly students.
Teal Moore, an agriculture science junior, said the website makes drinking look positive.
Moore said with everyone in San Luis Obispo being able to access the website, the older community members might use this website as proof that more ordinances are necessary to keep partying under control.
“It makes people seem irresponsible and makes (getting drunk) look more positive than it actually is to be that wasted,” Moore said.
However, Patrick said the point of the website is not to give off a negative message, but to be more like comedic relief.
“I don’t post any pictures of people getting taken off in ambulances … those pictures are not funny,” Patrick said. “I just think it will make people think twice about getting too drunk.”
In addition, he website is seeing improvements with its growing popularity. Early in April, the website underwent changes as a new Web designer took over.
“We have made some changes to the site, but there is still a lot more to come,” Patrick said. “I am also starting to brainstorm other interactive features to add to the site … maybe try to evolve it from just a picture blog to an entertainment brand. (An iPhone app) will hopefully incorporate a lot of interactive features I’m brainstorming, on top of being able to upload content from your phone.”
Patrick said one of his main goals for the site is to continue to have the picture aspect, but allow people to upload original content when going to events and concerts.
“It’s really hard to tell where the site will go because you can get as creative as you want with a site,” Patrick said. “The users ultimately determine what they like and don’t like, so I’ll just keep trying new things.”