There is nothing quite like a college town. Everywhere you look you see about ten people sporting your school colors, whether they’re a student or not. A lot of my high school friends chose schools in big cities, like UT in Austin, TCU in Fort Worth, or SMU in Dallas, and as cool as it would be to walk to class in the midst of all the city hustle and bustle, I wouldn’t trade my little college town for anything. Here are some of the reasons why college towns are so great:

1. The town revolves around the university. Everywhere I go, I see America’s Brightest Orange. Both of the Walmart’s in Stillwater have huge Pistol Pete displays all year round and you can buy an OSU shirt in just about any store you walk into, whether they typically sell apparel or not.

2. Everyone knows you’re a college student. You don’t even have to be wearing a college t-shirt for everyone to know that you’re a student. Everywhere you go there is some adult asking you about your major, or some waitress venting with you about tests. The whole town knows when it’s midterm week and provides friendly smiles to help get you through it.

3. Your professors understand school functions. When America’s Greatest Homecoming rolls around, professors usually understand that it is the busiest, most stressful week of the entire semester (aside from finals of course). On a friendly campus like ours, professors typically cut us students some slack by not having any tests or papers due on that week, which is probably a rarity at bigger universities.

4. Game days are a way of life for the whole town. Half the people that tailgate for the football games aren’t even college students, they’re locals and alum. You’ll also notice that some of these expert tailgaters don’t even have to go into the game, they get the full game day experience by watching it on TV outside the stadium in their extravagant tents. And as for away games? Every restaurant in Stillwater will have the game on and even some stores, like Hobby Lobby, will be playing the game over the speakers.

I truly think that living in a place that revolves around my university has only enhanced my college experience. Stillwater truly is the epitome of college town and at this point I can’t even imagine what it would be like going to school in a huge city. So thank you, Stillwater, for giving me the best college experience so far.