1. Should I take the RIPTA or walk to class?
Unless it’s raining or you’re injured, there aren’t many valid excuses to take the RIPTA during the first few weeks of classes. Sure, you don’t want to show up to class all winded from trudging up the URI hills but you have all year to ride the RIPTA once it gets cold and slippery out. Be careful because the RIPTA will be very crowded during wintertime! Don’t be lazy. Enjoy the fresh air.
2. Why URI Secure…WHY?!?!?
It’s 11:57 and you have a paper due at 12:00. After hours of working on it, you’re finally ready to submit. You type sakai.uri.edu in the search bar and it decides not to load. The clock strikes 12 and your paper is officially late. Every URI student has experienced something like this due to our horrible internet, and if you haven’t yet, you will.
3. Should I drop this class?
With the add/drop option being available for two after classes starting, it gets tempting to want to change your schedule. Realistically, the date of the final has a lot to do with the classes we drop. Who would want to be taking a 3 hour test on December 22 when Christmas is only 3 days away?! Not me! But then again, that cutie that sits in front of me could help me study… Priorities.
4. To go to class, or to skip and go to the beach?
Rhode Island is known for it’s unpredictable weather, but somehow we’ve seen mostly sunny and hot days since our arrival in Rhody. With the beach being only ten minutes away, it’s almost impossible to motivate yourself to sit in a classroom all day. It could be a possibility to motivate yourself to do homework on the beach, though.
5. Should I stay in tonight or go out?
You know that waking up for your 8 AM tomorrow will be absolutely brutal, but you also know that you’ll have serious FOMO seeing the Instagram posts of all your friends who are going out. My advice? The college days are limited! Go out and have fun but don’t forget to put a limit on how much you drink… No one wants to be hung over in class.
6. Should I order from I-Zone or Rhode house tonight?
It’s the beginning of the semester and the separation anxiety from calzones is real. The debate between ordering from either I-Zone or Rhode House is a tough one and is something that URI students go through often. When you are not in the mood to cook or go to the dining hall, either one of these places are your best bets.
7. Should I wear sweatpants to class, or look like I care and put on some nice clothes?
Obviously if it was the norm to always wear pajamas, we all would. But sadly, it’s not the norm, especially for the first couple weeks of school. Putting on a cute sundress for class doesn’t take too much effort. Plus, you never know who you’re going to see! *Wink wink*
8. To rush or not to rush?
Greek life takes up a large part of URI’s population, which could pose this question. If you’re even slightly considering it, the best thing you can do is try it out!
9. Is it weird to text the boy I had a thing with last semester?
You guys may have lost touch over the summer, and you’re unsure if you want to rekindle old flames or just let it be. It’s totally normal to want to catch up, plus “how was your summer?!” is a great conversation starter. If you’ve realized that you’re no longer interested, there are plenty of fish in the Rhody sea!
10. Am I ever going to need this textbook?
No, professor. I’m not going to buy this $175 textbook when it’s just going to collect dust in my room all semester. If you do, however, decide to buy the “required” materials, I definitely recommend using a website like Chegg or Amazon. It’s always much cheaper, and the books are usually in decent condition
11. Is 2 hours enough time to get from my off-campus house to campus in the morning?
The traffic from Narragansett to URI in the morning makes a 15 minute drive a 15 hour drive. Rhode Island needs to build some more roads that bring you to campus from Narragansett because the daily traffic is ridiculous.
12. Why did I go out to eat so much this summer?
The minute you take one bite out of a meal from Hope, you start to realize how greedy you were this summer when buying food everyday. At this point, you would give anything for a home cooked meal!
13. Why did I enroll in an 8 AM?
You’ve spent your entire summer sleeping in until 2p.m., what made you think that was going to change once school starts? Everyone has this idea that they are going to suddenly become productive once school starts, which may be true, but once all is said and done… Sleep > anything.
14. Is the 40 minute drive to Warwick for Chipotle worth it?
The answer to this is always yes. You may be adding some miles to your car and using a little bit of gas but none of that will matter after you take a bite into a Chipotle burrito and remember what true happiness feels like.
15. When is an acceptable time for my home friends to come visit?
You’ve spent all summer together, and you miss them already. You also want them to meet all your school friends and see where you live most months out of the year. Having your friends from home come to visit is lots of fun, but once they’re here you’ll never want them to leave!
If you’ve had any of these thoughts already, don’t worry. You are not alone.