To get an idea of what life is like as an introvert at college, I feel it’s important to start at the beginning. So, I want to explain what it was like when I moved in to the dormitories.

When I moved in to the residence towers at the University of Oklahoma (OU), there were men with boxes on carts that were pushed to the towers. They loaded my belongings into the carts and took them up to my room. This was great, because that meant I wouldn’t have to carry bags and boxes up nine floors. My dorm was on the ninth floor of one of the residence towers, which would have proven difficult if there weren’t any elevators. I got up to my dormitory and, aside from my belongings, it was empty. The first thing I noticed was the bunk bed. When I completed my housing contract, I had opted in for a lofted bed. That way, I could put my desk underneath it. The only way they would have given me a bunk bed was if my roommate and I had mutually agreed to have one. I put my bedclothes on the top bunk and waited for my roommate. I was hoping we could agree to get maintenance to fix the ordeal. I waited to put together everything else until my roommate got there, so we could have mutual agreement on how to set the room up. I put all my clothes in my dresser and wardrobe and sat at my desk. I waited all night, but she never showed up. I decided to take the bottom bunk before I went to sleep, because I was too tall for the top bunk.

While I was waiting for my roommate, I decided to go downstairs, where there were people everywhere. They were meeting with friends, talking with parents, and lining up or something. I decided to join the line, and I found out that everyone was going to OU’s President’s speech. I arrived at the speech with five minutes left. After the speech was over, I got back on the bus and rode back to campus. I decided to go back to my dorm. I did not have a cell phone at the time, so I stayed to myself. Although I didn’t have anyone to talk to, I decided to go to ‘the Caf’ to have dinner. I sat alone and ate.

The next day, after studying the campus map for a few minutes, I decided to take a walk and try to understand where the buildings are located. I ran into one of my small group leaders from Camp Crimson while walking around, and I joined her group for the freshmen tours. We walked around the buildings and I got a tour of campus. Then I went back to my dorm and hoped to see my roommate, but she was still not there. I decided to reorganize the room. I moved the desks and the bed and the dressers into a way I could easily maneuver the room. I decided to keep the bottom bunk, and we would reconsider the bed situation if, and when, my roommate showed up.

Days went by, and she never came. I went to my resident advisor and asked her about my roommate, but I apparently did not have one. I had gotten an email with the name of the girl I was supposed to room with, but she ended up living elsewhere. I also found my friends a couple days later.

I never got rid of that bunk bed and I rearranged my dorm room many times. I eventually did get a roommate, but that’s another story.