As you begin to creep toward making all of your decisions on college, one common subtopic is commuting. Is it beneficial? Is it stressful? Is it worth the money just to skip the drive and live on campus? Well, have no fear. I have real life experience when it comes to making the choice to commute.

PROS

1) You can leave campus whenever you want. No waiting for a bus, no walking far distances, no begging someone who is lucky enough to have a car on campus for a ride. You just grab your keys from your bag and you're on your way. It's a really great feeling to have that true freedom.

2) You don't have to pay for rent. Which as a broke college student is delightful. Living with my parents still has been a blessing in disguise. While those on campus or near campus are spending an arm and a leg to live near the "action", I am still in close enough proximity to go out and have fun, but I don't have to count my pennies before doing so.

3) You aren't restricted to on campus food choices. Let's be honest; not all on campus food is great. And chances are if it tastes great, it treats your body not so great about an hour later. The wonderful thing about having wheels is you don't have to put yourself through that misery. You can travel to your favorite restaurant of choice on your own schedule and grab something that won't reek havoc on you later. Trust me, your body will thank you.

4) You can drive to classes across campus. Okay, I know this is lazy but I live in Ohio and the winters are straight up brutal. I am not feeling like bundling up in five layers and boots to hike fifteen minutes across campus in a blizzard to find out class is canceled. Then, even if you still have class you sweat your butt off before you can get all five layers back off. By the time you are done taking off all the layers, class is over and it's time to put everything back on. No thanks, I'll stick with my single winter coat and 5 minute walk to the building.

5) You get the scenic route. There is nothing I enjoy more than taking the back roads home. It's just so peaceful which is very useful after a super stressful day of realizing that you have to "adult" the rest of your life.

Now for the not-so-fun parts of being a commuter.

CONS

1) Traffic. It can be brutal. If people could please just learn to drive, take their time, and not be maniacs, we would all just be peachy. But, instead I have to leave an extra 20 minutes earlier than I should just in case someone decides to cut someone off and "accidentally" spins them out. Come on people, this isn't NASCAR. Be smart.

2) Finding a parking space. I swear they never have enough of these in convenient spots. The lots that are available are a little further away from where you want to be, but most days that's fine. If you are really adamant about getting a super close spot, just arrive a little earlier than you normally would and you'll have plenty of time to stalk people getting into the cars to steal their spot.

3) The effort it takes to get to class. Make sure you schedule all your classes in a straight shot. It is the hardest thing having a three hour break. It gives you just enough time to go home and relax and then drive back. But, often times it is so hard to go back. Also, don't torture yourself with 6:40 AM classes when you have to commute there. It's painful to drag yourself there and a do not suggest it to anyone.

4) The weather can be awful. Once again, winters are brutal and there is nothing worse than struggling to drive to your class in your tiny car in the middle of a blizzard with none of the streets plowed just to find out your class is cancelled. It is literally the worst experience ever and then you have to risk your life again driving back the way you just came.

5) While we're on the topic of cancelled classes, sometimes teachers cancel classes too late. Why. Just please, why? It really drives me nuts how teachers can cancel classes five minutes before they are scheduled to begin. Sometimes I wonder if they forget there are people who drive 30-40 minutes to get to their class on time just to find out, psych! No class, go home. Thank you for allowing me to waste my gas money.

All in all, the pros have always outweighed the cons for me. I enjoy my freedom and not having to pay for rent or groceries. I love the fact that I am still with my parents for I have always been a family person. Plus, living at home and commuting has made me feel like I am easing into adulthood rather than just being thrown into it. Others may have different opinions than me and maybe I would feel differently if I had chosen to live on campus as a freshman. However, I am happy with the choice that I have made and I wouldn't change it if I could go back and do it over. I love watching the seasons change, being able to go wherever I want, and being able to escape the traffic of the city. I love being a commuting college student.