We’ve all been there. Some of us are experiencing it right now (like me, yay!… not), and others are laughing about the many wrongs us freshmen make during our first experiences while starting college. Freshman year experiences for everyone are either really, really great, or they suck tremendously.
Here are some of the things I’ve experienced since I’ve arrived here on campus, and I hope that, maybe, you’ll find yourself laughing at some of my feats because you know you went through—or are experiencing—the same things too.
1. You get overwhelmed at the amount of choices at the dining halls. While we aren’t even going to talk about the aftermath of college dining hall food (you know that you know what I’m talking about), the entire process of just finding something to eat is overwhelming. Both Regatta’s and Commons have an equal amount of ooey-gooey goodness of sandwiches, entrees, burgers, salads, and desserts (let’s not even get started on the drink selection), but the overabundance of food coupled with the fast-paced students carrying their to-go trays just might cause a panic attack if you’re not careful. When I first entered Regatta’s after my parents left on move-in day, I was immediately faced with the hardship of locating exactly what food I wanted to eat, and even now, three weeks later, I still don’t know where everything is.
2. You freak out about the layout of the buildings and where to find your classes… because you can’t find the stairs. Yeah, totally me. I still don’t know where all the stairs are, and only two of my classes require the usage of them. You can usually find us confused freshman herding by the elevators, where we try to cram as many people as possible into one lift, all while watching the upperclassmen walk by with looks of annoyance and hilarity on their faces, hoping and praying we’re not late to class.
3. The laundry machines seem like alien objects. Seriously, are those things from Mars or something? I mean, after doing about three loads of laundry, I totally have it down, but you can guarantee the first time I used one I was calling my mom, asking her tons of questions because the washer and dryers here are nothing like the ones at home. Load, detergent and softener, quarters, and then select wash cycle. It especially sucks when someone overfills one of the sections with liquid bleach in one of the washers, so only one of them is usable.
4. You definitely cried when ordering your textbooks. After realizing that Follett’s prices were utterly ri-dic-u-lous, you moseyed your way on over to Amazon, signed up for the free 6-month prime membership (which you know will get you through ordering spring semester’s textbooks) and still continued to cry because those textbook prices weren’t that much different. The only awesome part was that on some of them, you got free two-day shipping (even then, my French 200 textbook wasn’t a part of the Prime program, so I ended up ordering it through the publisher website). And, as a warning, the prices only go up from there as the years progress, apparently.
5. The printers are machines from the Devil himself. Actually, they’re not. We just complicate things more than we probably should. I mean, who isn’t afraid of a huge machine that can scan, copy, and print all of your pages at once? It’s not just “Print-and-Go” anymore, friends. It’s a little tricky at first: slide card, click the necessary requirements, and make sure the printer starts printing. Then, you can’t forget to press the “Access” button on the right side panel when you’ve finished because someone might decide to use your entire printer funds up that you saved for the end of the semester to print out all of your Psych study guides and notes. But, much like the washers and dryers, once you get the hang of it, you can fly through the process with no problems. Except for maybe having to get one of the IT guys to change out the paper in the 24-hour room. But really though: it took me 20 minutes at the printer the other day.
6. Yik Yak has been the gift from the Gods that is the center of your universe. When walking from class to class, sitting in the dining halls, or getting really upset at how loud your hallmates are when you’re trying to catch up on your “Orange is the New Black” episodes, Yik Yak is the place you go. The anonymity of the website not only gives you the freedom to talk about whom—or what—ever, but also to not have everyone hate you in reality because most people can’t figure out who you are. Sure, there’s a lot of ridiculous rambling on there, but sometimes you hit the jackpot with some of the funniest comments and thoughts in the world. Also, you learn to always—always—listen and praise Black Anchor (who is really P-Tribz totally trolling every CNU yakker).
Well, there you have it, folks. Freshman year is both an exciting and terrifying time for everyone, and it’s pretty safe to say that we’ve all experienced a little of everything from freaking out that you brought too much stuff on move-in day to not knowing where the classrooms in the Ferg are located. Hopefully, things will get easier for everyone as the year goes on, and you can join me next year in remembering all of the things we went through at the beginning of this year when the class of 2020 joins us! Until then, I’ll be C-N-You on the flip side, Captains!