The time has come to pack everything away and begin the journey to your home away from home: college. Move-In Day is right around the corner, and as much as I’m looking forward to this semester, there are a few things I hate about Move-In Day.
- Packing. The worst part about going to college is packing. All of the cute things you bought for your dorm room will suddenly become your worst enemies, as you attempt to wrestle them into boxes. Choosing which pair of jeans to take and which to leave behind will be hard, but it’s better to leave a few rather than overpack.
- Fitting everything into the car. The second-hardest part of packing is fitting everything you’ve packed into the car. Fitting everything in could take anywhere from two to twenty tries.
- Traffic. Normal college town traffic can be kind of slow, but college town traffic on Move-In Day is horrendous. Expect Walmart and every gas station in town to be packed.
- Actually attempting to move in. The only thing harder than getting everything into the car is getting everything out of the car and moving into your room. This takes an extreme amount of patience and dedication from the whole family. But this only happens after you wait in line for an hour to receive the key to your room. Like I said, lots of patience.
- That one super nosey person on your floor. Let’s face it. There’s always going to be that one person on the floor who peeks into your room before you’ve had a chance to unpack. She will more than likely be overly cheerful and invite you to participate in a variety of activities throughout the semester.
- Inevitably, the elevator stalls. If you’re terrified of elevators or a little claustrophobic, this can be a nightmare. The elevators are usually packed to full capacity with dollies and shopping carts full of other students' possessions.
- Unpacking. The only thing worse than packing, is unpacking. And unpacking generally takes longer than the packing did. When it’s time to go home come Christmas break, you’ll be finding things you forgot you had in those dusty boxes under the bed.
- Roomie awkwardness. If you’re one of those lucky souls that picked a random roommate, prepare for the awkward introductions. Meeting the total stranger that you’ll be sharing a room with for the next six months can be a little intimidating, but if you establish clear boundaries and spend a little time getting to know each other, you’ll be alright.
- All the good restaurants are packed. All the work it takes to move in can work up quite an appetite. The only drawback to going out to eat on Move-In Day is the wait time. More than likely, everybody else will be hungry, too. This means that all the restaurants will be packed and the length of time you spend waiting for a table will be substantially longer than usual.
- Saying goodbye to Mom and Dad. As much as we complain during the summer about Mom and Dad’s rules, when it comes time to say goodbye, it’s hard. Living away is a huge change, but don’t forget, Mom and Dad are only a phone call away.
As many complaints as I have about Move-In-Day, I love my school and I’m looking forward to seeing what the rest of the year will bring.
