Living in Richmond is a series of ups and downs, pros and cons and a lot of back and forth. What I’m trying to say here is that some things are worth the trouble while others are not. Some things are just plain annoying. The most annoying thing? Richmond’s idea of “winter.” Where I’m from in Pennsylvania, we experience all four seasons every year, without fail. Going to school here is a completely different story. Instead of having to wait 365 days to experience all that mother nature has to give, here I can have it all in just seven. I give you a normal week for me during “winter” at VCU.
Sunday: I have to be honest; I never leave my dorm on Sundays. I’ve got work to do and typically there isn’t anyone on campus anyway. So I’m usually safe from dealing with whatever is going on outside. I must say though, if anything is happening, it’s probably snowing. Because who needs snow during the week when it could actually be useful for stuff like canceling class? No one here, apparently. It is very pretty to look at though. And quite a step up from my dorm last year, where snow days meant hearing shoveling directly outside my window at 9 a.m. You could say I’ve moved up in the world.
Monday: Despite the fact that it was literally cold enough for snow yesterday, it is magically now 60 degrees. Not only does that mean that classes are on, but it also signifies another bipolar week. My dorm room is 100 square feet. My closet is smaller than my wingspan. Needless to say, I only have space to display one season’s worth of clothing at a time. To have to pull out lighter fair for this one day is bothersome. Not to mention I only have two classes. Such a waste of an outfit.
Tuesday: Without a doubt, Tuesday is my busiest day. From 8:30 a.m. until 9:45 p.m. I have class. So of course the weather isn’t going to cooperate. In the morning when I leave, it’s a chilly torrential downpour. By the time I get out of my first class all the rain seems to have stopped, and those who left home later than me are staring at my rain boots as if I am insane. Cute. Fast-forward to my 3:30 p.m. class and now it’s hot again. Except I’m wearing a lined raincoat and big boots. Is that a dry-clean only cashmere sweater I’m sweating in? Yes. Yes, it is.
Wednesday: One word: windy. I try to make some sort of effort when I go to class. That includes doing my hair. I get it just right, I put on my coat and leave…only to enter a world so windy that it could rival Dorothy’s trip to Oz. I mean honestly, if it doesn’t mess up my hair it makes my face hurt. And to brave Monroe Park without glasses on is to risk getting stuff in my eyes. I don’t even think about wearing contacts, they’ll be dry before I navigate the crosswalk.
Thursday: Some days, I just get lucky. I dress perfectly in the morning for a cold day, and that’s what I get. Nice. How is this achieved? If you’re like me, you have an app or two to help you decipher the weather. This is because no one can be trusted. Not your roommate, not the view outside your window and definitely not the weather from yesterday. Now maybe it’s only me with this issue — probably because I get cold more easily than the average person — or maybe it’s the nature of Richmond; but if I don’t use an app to check the weather, I always lose. I’m no technology junkie, but in this case my phone is my best friend. There’s a fine line between “taking a chance” on the weather and looking like an idiot to your fellow classmates because you thought that it “didn’t look too cold.” Here’s looking at you girl in a cardigan when it’s clearly 37 degrees out.
Friday: TGIF! So I’m ecstatic that only two classes stand between me and the weekend, but get this: the forecast reads 45 degrees with a 45 percent chance of rain. What does that mean? What am I supposed to do with that information? 45 degrees I can do, no problem. But a 45% chance of rain? It’s less than 50% so it probably won’t rain, but it’s so close that it actually could. What this really means is, “Do I wear my suede shoes that totally go with this outfit and risk getting them wet, or do I wear rain boots and deal with the possibility that everything will be dry?” Decisions, decisions.
Saturday: Forget this, I’m staying in.
Photo Source: https://twitter.com/VCUSocialWork/status/428569895224111104