1. You have to experience the flash floods in person.
As someone who's had their backpack soaked and textbooks ruined, you just have to bond with the rest of the student body. The best part is walking into class and seeing all of your other classmates who were also not prepared and are sitting down with dread.
2. Backpack sweat embarrassment is a right of passage.
August is brutal. There are no doubts about that. Zoom will never teach you how to get over yourself.
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3. Accidently walking under the Century Tree and being doomed to a life of singleness.
Everyone assumes that you're going to go to college and meet the love of your life. Well, here's the reality: it's not all that true. You might as well walk under the Century Tree and get to class quicker than avoid it.
4. Banner holders yelling at you to join their organization, even though you have no interest in it.
Ah, yes. The banner holding group. I don't know how many flyers I've taken and not looked at again-ever. If you want to join an org, the best way to do it is to look it up in Google.
5. MSC baked good organization sales.
These might be the best treat to exist. Sometimes waiting in line for lunch is not worth it. A baked goods sale? I have eaten countless cupcakes for lunch before. It's college. Do what you want.
6. The Underground lunch rush.
I remember my freshman year knowing the sweet spot as to when to go and not experience a line out the door for Chick-fil-a. If you try to go when all classes actually get out, you're going to be waiting out the door.
7. Trying to get from West Campus to Main Campus in 20 minutes or less.
For the life of me, I can't figure out why they schedule a freshman-level math class on the complete opposite side of the campus. However, most have found that getting a bike is much quicker than trying to rely on the bus system.
8. Finding the best bathrooms to use on campus.
This is actually a challenge. When you don't live on campus, you have to be in the know of where it's acceptable to use the bathroom and where it is not.
9. Breakaway traffic headache every Tuesday night.
If you're trying to get anywhere on a Tuesday night around 8:30-9, don't even bother. Breakaway is an on-campus ministry where thousands of students flock to Reed Arena and the traffic is a nightmare. I'm not sure why there's not a specific bus that runs to shuttle people to and from it.
10. Asking awkwardly to sit down at a table that's already occupied by another person.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. It's awkward, but sometimes you meet the best people that way.
11. Dining hall food- the dos and don'ts
One time I used a meal swipe just so I could sit with my friends at Sbisa and smuggle my own veggie straws inside. Honestly, dining hall food is something that just has to be learned through the experience. Is it worth waiting in the pasta line? Or should you just go for a sandwich?
