As Hofstra freshmen pack for college for the first time and head to campus, we try to take warnings into consideration and start packing early. We have our shopping lists memorized and Pinterest board on the ready, boxes and bins ready to go, and yet, we just can't bring ourselves to pack. I'm writing this the day before the long-awaited Move-In Day, and I still haven't packed my clothes. Summer goes by faster than expected, and while our high school friends still have a week left before school, we're milking the last few hours. The struggles of packing for college begin much earlier than you think.
1. Buying dorm supplies.
First you hit Pottery Barn for inspiration. Then you realize that Pottery Barn has no actual concept on the size of a dorm room. Then you get to Bed Bath & Beyond and get ALL your bedding. Then you get to Target and realize they have the same sheets for a better deal, so you go back to Bed Bath & Beyond, return the sheets, get to Target, and buy the same sheets, but cheaper. Then you get to TJ MAXX and find a comforter. Then you go back to Bed Bath & Beyond and get the rest of your dorm supplies like whiteboards, shower curtains, rugs, etc. Then you find a cheaper rug that looks nicer at Target. So you repeat step 4. Then you go to Staples and get your school supplies, and Costco for anything else, but you still have to go to Best Buy to get new headphones, and maybe Apple to fix your laptop. And then you get to the Container Store for your storage, and you spend HOURS in there because there's just so much to choose from! Then you realize everything you got at the Container Store can be found for cheaper at Bed Bath & Beyond. Repeat.
2. Figuring out what the color scheme for your room would be.
There are only so many comforters that are neon orange. Find something different. Make your life easier.
3. Figuring what your roommate will get.
Especially if you have 3 roommates, and you all realize that you all got the same thing, so now you have 4 things for the room when you only needed 1 of it, but you also realize that none of you got the other thing that you all thought the others would get. It's a circle. Communication is key.
4. Storage.
The best way to figure out how much storage space your room will have is to call the Residence Life office and ask for the dimensions, and how high the bed will rise. This was you can sort of figure out how many bins can fit, and how much you can shove in your glorified broom closet of a room.
5. Realizing that what you got isn't allowed in the residence halls.
Say if the Keurig doesn't have automatic shut off, or if you got power bed risers, curtains, or anything else that can be a fire hazard. Have fun digging up the list of prohibited items. In most cases, tapestries and twinkle lights aren't allowed, but if you can think of a loophole last minute, use a tapestry as a bed skirt instead if the brochure says "tapestries cannot be hung on walls" or twinkle lights aren't allowed "hanging from ceilings or windows". Also, halogen lights, I think almost everywhere, are not allowed. Same goes for surge protectors versus power strips.
6. Organizing your stuff.
If you're like me, you want to organize your dorm stuff into piles to make sure you have everything before packing. This means your stuff will sit on your floor collecting dust while your parents ask why you haven't packed yet and you keep saying, for weeks on end, that you're organizing it. And then you complain that you can no longer live in your room because of how cluttered it is.
7. Finally starting to pack your stuff.
Finally you start to put your "organized" dorm stuff in boxes and bins. This means you pack your food box, but you leave it open in case you want more. Then that box sits there for weeks on end, while the rest of your dorm stuff clutters the floor collecting dust. But, hey, you started packing. Way to go. It's like two weeks before school starts now, and you keep saying you're going to pack tomorrow, until.....
8. It's two days before you leave and all you packed was food.
Well, that went by fast. So much for keeping an organized packing schedule. First you throw everything that can't fit in a box or bin in the car. Then you pack all the bins and boxes that are ready to go. Then you realize you can't find the cable that connects the TV to the campus cable network. So you rip apart your bins because you swore you just put it in there yesterday. Then you get frustrated because you can't find it, give up, and then find it in the food box 10 minutes later. Oh, and that thing you ordered on Amazon that you risked ordering because its time of delivery was estimated to arrive between two days before you leave two two days after you move in, it's definitely coming two days after moving in. Just get it when you visit home.
9. It's the last day of summer.
And you need to pack your clothes, but you're waiting for another load of laundry to be done because your favorite shorts are in there, and you can't do anything until they're done. You put any pictures you want to hang up in a folder on your laptop, but you don't print them out. You want to finish packing the car tonight (aside from your laptop, backpack, and ukulele) so you can leave and get to campus on time the next morning. Good luck with that.
Despite having Pinterest boards of dorm ideas and storage well before I knew I was dorming, and despite thinking I was prepared, I still might have to go on a last-minute Target run three days into Welcome Week because I can't find my facewash. College, here I come!
