As I sit in the common area of my floor, surrounded by both returning and new neighbors, I finish editing my study abroad video. I’m being meticulous about this montage, knowing that the passion and memories I experienced on this trip must be perfectly conveyed to my readers. So, I experienced an iPod Shuffle experience in my head, flashing memories and photos, experiences and laughs.
I’m remembering when I first walked in my room, discovering my sleeping roomie who quickly became my confidante. I see my first time walking down Tottenham Court Road, realizing that the main mode of transportation in London includes two feet. I remember taking in all the crowded cities characteristic of every main city, the efficient methodology of the Tube and public transportation.
I see my first time being attacked by a pigeon.
I remember my nerves on my way to my first class session in this study abroad, a science major in a humanities environment. I wondered aloud, “How can I remember how to get to class on foot, so far away?” So naïve, back then. I remember all the street names, all the Tube stops and line colors, all the paths I took.
Though my experience physically in London is over, a piece of my heart will forever be there with the memories and people. However, since returning to Mason this week, I’ve already seen half of my peers on campus and in get-togethers. Studying abroad was one of the most eventful and most amazing experiences I’ve ever had.
There’s something about being in a different country with other first-timers that fastens the forming bond between you. You rely on every person to go somewhere, not daring at first to travel alone. You learn each other’s UK numbers, rooms, likes, quirks.
But the strongest memories in the forefront of my mind are not the monuments I saw but, the late-night runs to Sainsbury Local, McDonalds, crazy Tube adventures, amazing plays, fake British accents, slightly leaking sinks and temporarily dismantled heaters.
Everything.
So despite the predominant theme of reluctance to leave London, I am very appreciative of this opportunity I’ve had to travel, study, learn, and meet people.
I had heard that study abroad was recommended, though no one could quite explain why. I’m afraid I might have to second that thought: studying abroad is a unique opportunity to experience all that you’ve wanted to under the influence of education. Keeping your intellectual cells turning, your boding moving, your nerves excited, and your clothes clean, you learn something new about yourself.
You could even say you change.
Let me explain. For my performance project, my roommate Jenna and I adapted stock characters from One Man Two Guvnors’s commedia dell’arte theme and placed them into contemporary London society. Learning their personalities, rereading the script, we both did crazy things: stood atop structures and in the midst of heavy public traffic and yelled at the top of our lungs, asked people for food, posed with food and toilets, ran across parks, chased pigeons, ran into stationary objects, and more.
But it might even be the small things that mature you: traveling by yourself, exploring international countries, submersing yourself into foreign cultures, being patient with different disciplined rules and social expectations, taking initiative to adjust to the transportation system, learn the landscape and routes.
Learning the true meaning of the word “independent.”
As a freshman there is still so much that I have yet to, learn, discover and explore, but I am confident that I am one giant step closer to being prepared for the unknown.
Room·ship /ˈro͞omˌSHip/
Noun: A relationship between college roommates that develops at the speed of light due to unique bonding experiences.
u·nique /yo͞oˈnēk/
Adjective: Taking an ordinary activity and making it Facebook/Twitter status worthy; ‘taggable’ with one or more persons who will at least ‘Like’ this public declaration of fun.
As I was walking from one professor’s office hours to another I pondered to myself, “Why do I feel as if I’ve known all my London friends and my Mason roommates for years?”
I didn’t understand how I could possibly connect so quickly with the people around me, whether it was a three-week study abroad or one semester in a triple. Then I pulled a Sherlock Holmes Taking Statistics and hypothesized that living with people brings a whole new level of comfort and understanding.
So, I turned to the general college myths and found this popular one: everything is accelerated in college including, but not limited to, the amount of work, passage of time, depth of relationships, and amount of life decisions.
But that seemed too complex.
I think it’s something simpler. I call it roomship.*
There’s something about crying during the Notebook** together, eating pancakes in the wee morning, ‘metroing’ to DC at night, choosing potential Facebook pictures, making YouTube videos, and kicking around a soccer ball in the middle of the sidewalk that screams, “We’re quirky enough that this is going to be our norm.”
So, when my London peers and I share inside jokes and laugh at my British flag knee-highs, I remember exploding hotel coffee machines. When my roommates and I share the watermelon Sour Patch kids, I remember move-in day when we completely re-organized our furniture and invested in a ginormous neon blue tub full of snacks.
Therefore, I am happy to share how thankful I am, being back at Mason, where both core groups are meeting each other and hitting it off! The new semester is here and with a win against James Madison and Homecoming this Saturday, Mason is alive with pep rallies, jewel hunts, and talent shows!
To all the future roommate combinations in the Mason Class of 2015, don’t be afraid to embrace roomship as a sign of school spirit!
*Lauren patented ‘Roomship.’
**Feel free to substitute other options like Modern Family, The Way We Were, and 500 Days of Summer.
The county bus halted and I gathered my purse, Smartrip in hand. Swiping the card, the doors opened and I entered the Vienna station. Escalators moving, people grabbing the railing, we transported ourselves to the flashing platform and grabbed a seat on the metro.
Officially in D.C., he grabbed a seat next to mine and leaned in: “What-you listening to?” This stranger’s breath smelt of alcohol and his body posture was too close for comfort at eleven o’clock in the morning. I merely shrugged and said, “music.” After a fist pump, invasive questions about boyfriends, and comments about me hating the world, he finally left.
With a station to prepare, I grabbed my phone and left to see the Smithsonian. Walking up the steep stairs, walls opened to reveal a beautiful sunny day and I smiled as I walked towards the National Museum.
This is what makes public transportation worth its quirks: D.C.
As my feet crunched on the gravel, I took in the familiar sights of the Monument, Capital, Merry Go Round, bands and tourists, urban bikers, and cultural food booths.
As I entered the Hall of Human Origins and learnt about evolution, from the sea to neanderthals, I left feeling educated and hungry…for a hotdog and soda, of course.
Sitting on the bench, looking around at the people making memories with each other and remembering the ones I have made over the years, I smiled and clapped for reunions that took place all around me.
Trashing my wrapper and recycling my bottle, I got to my feet and quoted Ferris Bueller, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don ‘t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
The most amazing thing to watch in college is the transformation of study habits.
For the first month, my floor was the happening floor: late-night pancake runs, doors always open, movie marathons. Now, however, as exams are approaching and midterms looming, the study room is actually being utilized for its stated purpose.
It’s inspiring to listen to conversations around campus revolve around tests. It’s shocking to find the library packed on various levels.
The most visible experiences of college studying I’ve seen is the compilation of books. I love seeing study groups, I love seeing people giving each other advice on papers, projects, trick mathematical formulas.
Just now, the inspiration behind this post over chemistry homework, my suit mate needed an example of breaking a social norm for her paper, which by the way, she wrote with the help of another roommate’s psychology book, and my roommate gave her an example she executed for her high school class.
As a people watcher, as a possible neuro major, human interactions like these make me smile.
So, don’t be ashamed of studying or being intellectual, the nice thing about college?
Most people actually want to do well and put forth their best work; if they’re on your floor, you just see the ‘behind the cool face’ persona.
My research class moved buildings but since I was frazzled after my previous class, I went to the wrong building. After realizing I was on the wrong side of campus, I backtracked to the new building and got lost within the building.
Apparently, Enterprise Hall has two sides of the building which you can access through an elevator on the lower level.
Anyways, while I was on this campus exploration campaign, I saw a college tour…
College tours are unsettling, for both the prospective students and the experienced college students.
I don’t necessarily mean unsettling is bad, but as a one-month college freshman who still remembers applications, senior year, ap classes, friends, etc, so vividly, it hit me hard.
In those brief moments as I passed the prospective families to go into my building, trucking it from the other side of campus to the new building, I felt a wave of empathy. Awkward if you’ve been on college tours and not felt this but: ‘This is college. It’s huge! So many students! They live away from home? She looks like she’s found her way around campus! They look so collegey!”
And in that psychological analytical moment, I felt like a true college student- only from the outside looking in. It’s hard to explain how disoriented I felt, still a high school senior at heart, but to all the prospective students reading this: College students are as disoriented by tours as you are 
So when you’re coming to campus for a tour, don’t feel like you’re out of place. You’ll probably see a freshman like me running around in circles, though I’ve memorized the layout of Mason, just pretending to look like she’s all ‘grown up.’
Bond.
Freshmen on GMU’s campus bond on the weekend. For starters, even if you set your alarm clock early to get a head start on a productive weekend, you end up waking up later than planned…and that goes for everyone on your floor.
So, first thing we do: refreshen ourselves from a exciting, busy week.
Once awake and saying your hello’s to roommates (I call everyone on my floor a roommate, though I’m actually in a triple), you make plans. For this weekend, my roommates and I decided to make fun dance videos and post them on Facebook, in addition to adventuring off-campus. So the “Sweet Suite”, as we call ourselves, rolled out of the Park Sunday afternoon, jumped on the easily accessible Mason Shuttle, and found Fairfax Corner.
If you ever need to get groceries, need to shop, get to the metro, or take an adventure, there is a shuttle from campus. It’s free and easy–though the Cue Bus is also free for Mason students if you show your student ID.
Anyways, we splurged on burgers and milkshakes at Red Robin, enjoying the new setting of being off-campus for awhile; let’s be honest, it’s awesome feeling independent and accomplished just for getting off campus, even if we do love living at Mason. Afterwards, we went to Walmart and restocked on sodas and cough medicine (it’s flu season and luckily, Mason offers free flu shots!).
Then it rained.
So, three girls with backpacks full of Gatorade, Water, Cranberry Juice, cereal (yummy and healthy Kashi!), and bobby pins (easier than doing something fancy when you know the rain’s going to mess up your ‘cute clothes’ plan for class), ran from Walmart into the middle of a parking lot, abiding by pedestrian laws to catch the shuttle. Turns out, the driver had seen us, recognized us, and would’ve waited anyways.
Nevertheless, running (which I also metaphorically mentioned in my last blog) brings people together.
When the Sweet Suite returned to the Park, we got down to business: cleaned and organized.
So, all in all, there are tons of things to do on the weekends here at Mason. This weekend was a chill weekend for my roommates and I, yet we still went off-campus for a little adventuring and public transit mastering.
But not to worry, if D.C. adventures are more your style, you will just have to stay tuned to see what happens this coming weekend…
The most amazing thing to watch in college is the transformation of study habits.
For the first month, my floor was the happening floor: late-night pancake runs, doors always open, movie marathons. Now, however, as exams are approaching and midterms looming, the study room is actually being utilized for its stated purpose.
It’s inspiring to listen to conversations around campus revolve around tests. It’s shocking to find the library packed on various levels.
The most visible experiences of college studying I’ve seen is the compilation of books. I love seeing study groups, I love seeing people giving each other advice on papers, projects, trick mathematical formulas.
Just now, the inspiration behind this post over chemistry homework, my suit mate needed an example of breaking a social norm for her paper, which by the way, she wrote with the help of another roommate’s psychology book, and my roommate gave her an example she executed for her high school class.
As a people watcher, as a possible neuro major, human interactions like these make me smile.
So, don’t be ashamed of studying or being intellectual, the nice thing about college?
Most people actually want to do well and put forth their best work; if they’re on your floor, you just see the ‘behind the cool face’ persona.
My research class moved buildings but since I was frazzled after my previous class, I went to the wrong building. After realizing I was on the wrong side of campus, I backtracked to the new building and got lost within the building.
Apparently, Enterprise Hall has two sides of the building which you can access through an elevator on the lower level.
Anyways, while I was on this campus exploration campaign, I saw a college tour…
College tours are unsettling, for both the prospective students and the experienced college students.
I don’t necessarily mean unsettling is bad, but as a one-month college freshman who still remembers applications, senior year, ap classes, friends, etc, so vividly, it hit me hard.
In those brief moments as I passed the prospective families to go into my building, trucking it from the other side of campus to the new building, I felt a wave of empathy. Awkward if you’ve been on college tours and not felt this but: ‘This is college. It’s huge! So many students! They live away from home? She looks like she’s found her way around campus! They look so collegey!”
And in that psychological analytical moment, I felt like a true college student- only from the outside looking in. It’s hard to explain how disoriented I felt, still a high school senior at heart, but to all the prospective students reading this: College students are as disoriented by tours as you are
So when you’re coming to campus for a tour, don’t feel like you’re out of place. You’ll probably see a freshman like me running around in circles, though I’ve memorized the layout of Mason, just pretending to look like she’s all ‘grown up.’
