You can’t tell, but I’m jumping up and down with excitement right now…in a very composed, grown-up manner, of course. Why? Because I’m about to reach yet another point of being considered a grown-up: moving into an apartment. Starting college is a big step in terms of living away from your parents and having a bunch of free time on your hands (sometimes more than you know what to do with), but living in the dorm is quite a different experience from living in an apartment. If the difference isn’t readily apparent, it’s okay! That’s why I’m ranting about why I’m excited about moving into an apartment.
Dorm food. The first few meals taste fine. After that, it just…well, let’s just say that it doesn’t take long for you to stop questioning what the blob on your plate is. You just eat it just to eat. Okay, okay. I guess I’m being a little too harsh here. Some people love dorm food, and others tolerate it, and I admit that if you’re a smart eater, it’s fine. However, it’s still dorm food. You have no idea what’s *really* in it (despite what the sign next to it claims is in the mysterious meat loaf), and it’s not okay that you stop questioning after a while. This is going to sound cheesy (speaking of which, is prevalent in many dining common dishes, might I add), but despite the fact that I’m not the greatest cook in the world, I still want to have that personal connection with the food I eat. There’s just something about cooking your own food (or having your own food cooked for you by your mom…whichever it is) that is clearly lacking in dorm food.
Okay, enough about how I dislike dorm food. Moving to…rooms. I’m moving from one dorm room to another room! What’s the big deal, you may ask. My new room has other rooms connected to it! Duh. Seriously though, as fun as the common bathrooms and study lounges were, I am looking forward to being able to watch t.v. in the living room without having to ask a bunch of other people what they want to watch (not to mention no longer having to seeing random, half-naked people wandering about the bathrooms at 3 a.m.).
Alright, this next reason is a bit child-like, but there’s something about saying “I’m heading back to my apartment” that sounds so much better than “I’m heading back to my dorm.” Now, I have nothing against dorms (believe or not, they’re not that bad…I’m just really excited to live in an apartment!), but they are still a form of regulation in a college student’s life. In other words, even though you can stay out as long as you want, you still return to sleep in a place that has rules similar to home. They provide your furniture, your food, and electricity. Yes, you paid for all of that, but it’s the difference between a preassembled…I don’t know, toy roller coaster and assembling it yourself. Even though it will take you a few tries to get all of the pieces together in the correct way, you’ll feel so much more accomplished and (dare I say it) connected to it than if you would be if it came already made for you.
Transitioning from living at home to a dorm to an apartment is typically a gradual process (thank goodness), but despite how you get there, you’re eventually considered an independent adult. I know that living in an apartment is a huge responsibility and lots of work, but if you haven’t already noticed, I’m still really, really excited! I am not going to go as far as to say that I’m totally ready for it, but I do know that I’m ready to earnestly try and make it work, which I guess can be a sign of growing up…? Either way, yay for having a kitchen that I can cook my own food in!...which is really just a more composed way of saying NO MORE DORM FOOD. Oh yes.
-- Lena Lam
No comments:
Post a Comment