I am a few weeks into this semester. Classes have started. I'm spending a healthy bit of time hanging out with friends. Homework happens, or it doesn't. Pretty typical stuff. Yet this is not last semester; I am a commuter nowadays. The differences are subtle, but undoubtedly present. For the most part, they are not happy changes. That said, the eye of the commuter allows me to finally see and understand and appreciate the value of on-campus life while enjoying the benefits of being off of it. To give a fair hearing to both worlds, I'll try to list the pros of each, starting with those things I miss:

1. The spontaneity.

I used to spend parts of my weekend chilling in my dorm room. Theoretically, homework happened. But often, to my utter delight, people would just barge in and hang for a bit. I knew where my boy was, and my boy knew where I was. Things just happened. Not anymore.

2. The sleep.

I definitely sleep whether or not I am on campus, but in its quiet little ways, commuting eats heavily into my sleep schedule. See, I usually would head back to my dorm once I was too tired to keep doing homework. Now, I head all the way back to my home. One of these things devours about 20 minutes of my precious beauty sleep. I'm crying.

3. The pillow talk.

This isn't weird, don't worry. My relationship with my former roommate is completely platonic. But, that didn't stop us from having conversations deep into the night regarding every inanity known to humankind. These were good times. Shout out to Gregory Conan.

Losing all of these things is tragic. I definitely prefer the on-campus lifestyle, and being torn from it has been a hard adjustment. Nonetheless, I still find myself commuting. I am just now coming to terms with it, and that is partly due to handful of tantalizing perks:

1. The money.

Let's be real. This is far and away the biggest reason that I am where I am. Looking at my bank account now fills me with a potent surge of dopamine. There are numbers in it. And they are before the decimal point. Who knew this was even possible for a college student?

2. The quiet.

Dorm life can be pretty noisy. I can recall several nights where sleep seemed to be nothing more than an abstract concept thanks to the ruckus from all the silly young whippersnappers. Now, upon entering my domicile of quietude, I am wrapped in a soft blanket of tranquility. I can even go to sleep before 10:00 pm if I so choose!

3. The solitude.

This may seem really weird, especially coming from an extrovert, but it is nice to encounter almost zero people in the morning. I might see a family member or two, but even they are largely not to be seen. No one has to be exposed to my morning dread of humanity.

For those of you who might be looking into a similar decision — that is, going from on-campus to commuting — I would encourage you to appreciate what you have. I mentioned a few of the benefits, but there are certainly many more. The connectedness you have now will never be quite the same. Even so, stay happy. Both lives are good. Do what you need to do to achieve your goals; your world will still be joyful.