When I made the decision to attend Fordham, it was after just one quick visit to the Rose Hill Campus. The visit was so short that I never actually got an official tour of campus; I never checked out the dining hall, or the library, or the gyms, but most importantly I never saw the inside of a freshman dorm room. When housing preferences came out, I had absolutely no idea what to choose, so I decided to wing it. Somehow, I lucked out and was placed in Alumni Court South – also known as “The Dirty South.” You may be questioning my enthusiasm for living in a dorm known for its supposed lack of hygiene, but the unfortunate communal bathrooms and lack of air conditioning proved to be only minor drawbacks in the grand scheme of things. Alumni Court South may not have been the prettiest residence hall, but I have no doubt in my mind that it was the best, and I want to take a moment to say thanks.

Dear South,

Thank you for welcoming me — a frantic, anxious and already sweaty freshman — into the smoldering hot, humid building without any air conditioning at all! You taught me how truly #blessed I am to have air conditioning everywhere in my house back at home, and the importance of having multiple fans in your dorm room. Unlike those spoiled kids in Martyrs and Loyola, the students of South were summer heat warriors and handled the warmth like champs. Not to mention, a little heat didn’t stop us from working up a sweat with hall-wide dance parties, along with various other bonding sessions. And when winter came along and air conditioning was no longer necessary, our closets were still three times the size of those in Martyrs’, so who were the real winners here?

I also want to thank you for strategically placing yourself right along the Metro North Tracks. Although I couldn’t sleep for the first week of college, the trains every 10 minutes and their blaring horns proved to be a fantastic way to prevent myself from oversleeping in the morning before class! You forced me to accustom myself to the loud, disrupting sounds of the trains and traffic, thereby training me to be a much deeper sleeper.

Thank you for being located so close to Sub Co. Weekly viewings of "The Bachelor" would not have been nearly as enjoyable without the pints of Ben & Jerry’s purchased with excessive amounts of DCB. Also, I doubt I could have made it through midterms and finals without study breaks to pick up Auntie Anne’s pretzels! And of course I never would have fully gained the “Freshman 15” if it weren’t for the fact that Sub Co was always there for me, so conveniently nearby.

Finally, thank you for giving me a random roommate who is just as weird as I am, and for giving me a lifelong best friend. I don’t think I could have chosen a better roommate for myself if I tried! Thank you for bringing together kids from California, Georgia, Puerto Rico, and Jersey all under one roof and encouraging us to befriend the others in our building that we otherwise never would have met. Thank you for providing me with some of the most absurd experiences ever, and countless awkward run-ins after some wild nights out. Thank you for housing me when I laughed and cried and laughed so hard that I cried. Most of all, thank you for helping me realize how lucky I am to have a bedroom all to myself at home!

I’ll miss you, South; O’Hare has a lot to live up to!

Love,

Lexi