Several months ago, although it seems way longer, I was researching which college would fit me best and considering the importance of my preferences when filling out questionnaires on collegeboard.org, naviance.com, and a few other sites. It was quite difficult for me to think about what was most important and I stressed over this way too much. I wound up applying to a variety of schools: large, medium, small, far, near, the whole nine yards. After it all, I decided to attend the smallest and the closest one. I chose a school that is only 30 minutes away from home, and I could not be happier.

Since I live on campus, I am independent, but since I am still so close to home, I can drive home whenever I please. This is especially important for when I don’t want to eat a single thing being offered or pizza for the third time in a week, so I go home for my mom’s cooking. I have yet to use all of my meal swipes for each week and this is because of my intense schedule, road trips for volleyball, my strong desire for a big hug from my parents, an argument or two with my younger brothers, and a slobbery kiss from my dog.

Being a “res-muter”, aka a resident-commuter, definitely has its perks. I can hang out with my new college friends, relax in my room without my mom asking me to do chores or my brother bothering me for homework help. If I am feeling stressed or overwhelmed though, I drive home. Even with my family’s occasional yelling and excitement over football games, my house is still quieter than my school. At college, there is continuous noise and doors shutting, and someone who seems to play the same six damn songs over and over and over again. I go to sleep and hear the songs, I wake up and hear the songs...I come back from class and still hear the songs! So, it is nice to go home and do homework once in awhile. But on the flip side, I am not being told by my parents to go to bed, to be quiet, or to get off of the phone because it’s three in the morning, so I can’t really complain. I can stay up with my friends and sit in the lounge on my laptop, play cards, and eat snacks. I enjoy this freedom.

There are some ups and downs of college, as with anything else in life, but my college experience is turning out to be great. I am enjoying having the best of both worlds. My boyfriend and a few of my friends have been able to drive to Morristown to meet me for lunch and I am grateful for this. I am glad to still be connected with my family and friends from home, but also have the opportunity to meet some really cool and friendly people at school. I feel that if I were a commuter, I would struggle with making friends and participating in events because I would want to go home after finishing class. As a resident, I am in the middle of it all and constantly see signs in the halls, bathroom stalls, and elevators about upcoming events. I have friends who ask me to go with them to events because, why not? And I am grateful for them in my new world.