yeah freshman year at berkeley I lived in a suite-like place where we had a private kitchen and bathroom (still shared a room tho.)
my two suitemates were my college bestfriends and still are. the enforced closeness can be good. (and can be really, really bad.) when we moved to our own apartment soph year, I ended up again sharing a room w/ the same guy, voluntarily.
― iatee, Friday, 2 October 2009 22:47 (fourteen years ago) link
xp - even her snobby preppy friends apologized to me for having to live with her
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Friday, 2 October 2009 22:47 (fourteen years ago) link
I had a single in an apartment. Go Kresge!
yeah but Kresge was the exception right...? And you had to live in that zoo layout, with all the sliding/doors windows facing each other
― the taint of Macca is strong (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 2 October 2009 22:48 (fourteen years ago) link
Yeah unless you were lucky enough to be in Kresge East (which most freshman were not).
― Alex in SF, Friday, 2 October 2009 22:49 (fourteen years ago) link
my bf from highschool had a roommate freshman year at Porter, then lived in some co-ed suite thing in College 8? sophomore year with another friend from hs who was a junior and another friend of hers
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Friday, 2 October 2009 22:51 (fourteen years ago) link
Yeah all the other colleges had a very small % of singles. And College 8 had a pretty wide variety of housing. Some apartments, some singles, some suites.
― Alex in SF, Friday, 2 October 2009 22:54 (fourteen years ago) link
Brown campus housing was almost entirely horrible. It was like it was adhering to some anachronistic ideal of higher education = monastic deprivation
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Friday, 2 October 2009 22:55 (fourteen years ago) link
I liked living on campus, but my job was on campus, the gym was on campus, the library was on campus, etc, so I was mostly just being lazy. Plus I hadn't yet discovered how much I loved biking so I was not into being at the whim of Santa Cruz buses.
― Alex in SF, Friday, 2 October 2009 22:57 (fourteen years ago) link
yeah, but the UCSC campus was geographically set apart from Santa Cruz; Brown had plenty of apartment buildings around it, that we were forbidden to live in until Senior year.
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Friday, 2 October 2009 22:59 (fourteen years ago) link
yeah campus living was pretty great except for my asshole roommate
― the taint of Macca is strong (Shakey Mo Collier), Friday, 2 October 2009 22:59 (fourteen years ago) link
When did Daniel Wang move back from Berlin?
― Shh! It's NOT Me!, Friday, 2 October 2009 23:10 (fourteen years ago) link
Sexiled textile major in sexting scandal
― Bay-L.A. Bar Talk (Hurting 2), Saturday, 3 October 2009 03:02 (fourteen years ago) link
Why would anyone have sex in their dorm rooms?!? That's what parks nearby the campus are for those silly nitwits!
― Alex Android (Viceroy), Saturday, 3 October 2009 03:19 (fourteen years ago) link
My freshman dorm-mate had found his leather jacket in a dumpster, slept on the dorm mattress with no sheets, and washed his one towel and clothing over Christmas break.
I got a number of handjobs while he was in the room, but we tried to be discreet about it. We had to keep our heads under the covers anyway because he smelled so awful.
At least he turned me on to Danzig.
― Nate Carson, Saturday, 3 October 2009 09:06 (fourteen years ago) link
sounds like you went to a pretty punk rock college
― iatee, Saturday, 3 October 2009 09:07 (fourteen years ago) link
When Leslie Lobel was a student at Tufts University in the late 1970s, her dormitory roommates learned a simple code when they wanted to be left alone for a sexual romp:
"There was a dry-erase board, and you would write, 'Come back in 20 minutes.'
Pssst...this is not a code.
― Lovely and tender, like velvet. (Upt0eleven), Saturday, 3 October 2009 09:28 (fourteen years ago) link
"There was a dry-erase board, and you would write, 'Coming in 20 minutes.'"
― Ned Raggett, Saturday, 3 October 2009 11:26 (fourteen years ago) link
"We had a code we'd use. One person would say to the other, 'I expect to be having sex in our room until three-ish, can I have the room to myself til then?' We got this code from the Navajo."
― a full circle lol (J0hn D.), Saturday, 3 October 2009 11:51 (fourteen years ago) link
lol at all of this
― a misunderstanding of Hip-Hop and contracts (HI DERE), Saturday, 3 October 2009 13:41 (fourteen years ago) link
You have to share rooms in U.S. universities?
Yeah, I was amazed when I went to study in the UK and everyone had single rooms.
― katherine helmand province (jaymc), Saturday, 3 October 2009 15:01 (fourteen years ago) link
I work at a UK university which has 12 double rooms, all in great demand from international postgrads with spouses.
― Madchen, Saturday, 3 October 2009 16:22 (fourteen years ago) link
There were a number of double rooms at Sussex but they generally ended up with a single occupant. Whoever could stick it out the longest wound up with a fat double to themselves, without having to pay any extra.
― Lovely and tender, like velvet. (Upt0eleven), Saturday, 3 October 2009 16:27 (fourteen years ago) link
Kingston had halls of residence with single rooms for first year students, but after that you were on your own, unless you wanted to become a house rep.
― a gift from your mind in the form of the perfect beat (snoball), Saturday, 3 October 2009 17:03 (fourteen years ago) link
It saves soooo much trouble if you just fuck your roommate.
― tie me up, dress in drag, and read to me from the bible (kenan), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:10 (fourteen years ago) link
In my first year at uni I was in a shared room, there used to be lots of them.
― SBana Ng (Noodle Vague), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:12 (fourteen years ago) link
My college was shared doubles (or triples, but those were in huge rooms in the upper floors of converted mansions) for first-years and then suites with large rooms for each student on each side of a Jack and Jill bathroom. Most had wood floors, old-style radiators and sash windows.
― edward everett horton hears a who (suzy), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:17 (fourteen years ago) link
freshman dorms: shared doubles, central heat, cinderblock walls, and particleboard furniture :/
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:20 (fourteen years ago) link
I don't think college freshman need anything better than that tbh
― iatee, Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:23 (fourteen years ago) link
I mean, palatial dorms/cafeterias/etc. are one of the reasons they need to / can justify raising tuition again and again
― iatee, Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:24 (fourteen years ago) link
er, they need to raise / can justify raising
― iatee, Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:25 (fourteen years ago) link
xxp - but considering how much tuition and fees are, it's kinda awful if you think about it. I think it really hails back to some monastic tradition where serious study requires lack of material comforts
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:26 (fourteen years ago) link
Sarah Lawrence had the New Dorms, allegedly designed by the architect for Lincoln Center - at the opening ceremony the guy apparently wept with despair. These were for first years and maybe 45 sophomores and had the whole showers and stalls thing going on. Somebody painted a bulseye at the bottom of a four-floor staircase to notionally encourage better aim in suicide attempts.
― edward everett horton hears a who (suzy), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:28 (fourteen years ago) link
one of my english teachers in HS said I should go to Sarah Lawrence.
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:36 (fourteen years ago) link
did you ask if they'd foot the bill?
― iatee, Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:37 (fourteen years ago) link
it was a moot point, because my parents felt that NYC was too dangerous.
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:40 (fourteen years ago) link
I think it really hails back to some monastic tradition where serious study requires lack of material comforts
Possibly that, and maybe also hails back to the days when women didn't go to college. When it's just a bunch of dudes, who cares what cramped corner they sleep in.
― tie me up, dress in drag, and read to me from the bible (kenan), Saturday, 3 October 2009 20:49 (fourteen years ago) link
well, the freshman dorms at what was once the women's college associated with the previously all-male university I went to were just as bad. They were pretty much the same.
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Saturday, 3 October 2009 21:01 (fourteen years ago) link
I had this plan to scare my roomie away the first week. I decorated my side of the room with all these satanic images and HR Giger posters, then left for the weekend--hoping he's see this stuff and request a move so I could keep the double room to myself.
When I came back, he had moved in, and absolutely plastered his side of the room with this incredible collection of Heather Thomas posters. Heather in scuba gear, Heather in the bubble bath.
I was crushed.
― Nate Carson, Saturday, 3 October 2009 21:02 (fourteen years ago) link
HR Giger? Weak. Take hundreds of Polariods of his family and put them all over your wall.
― tie me up, dress in drag, and read to me from the bible (kenan), Saturday, 3 October 2009 21:48 (fourteen years ago) link
Haha. Well this was 18 years ago, so it's a bit late.
He was a good guy. Just smelly beyond belief.
― Nate Carson, Saturday, 3 October 2009 21:53 (fourteen years ago) link
lived in a dorm for one year.4 guys, 2 bedrooms, private bathroom & small kitchen.
definitely fell asleep at least once to the sounds of my roommate getting a blowjob from his girlfriend.
one time one of the dudes who lived in the other bedroom ran into the kitchen naked with a hard on yelling something but i don't remember what tbh. (he had a girl in his room.)
― ian, Sunday, 4 October 2009 03:48 (fourteen years ago) link
my horrible preppy roommate definitely got it on a few times while i was in the room. it was much quieter than her blowdryer which she'd use in the room at 8am while i was asleep because i didn't take any classes before 11am.
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Sunday, 4 October 2009 03:52 (fourteen years ago) link
same roommate was a jazz composition major who played lap steel. he was actually a pretty cool dude. but one time he gave me shit for typing a paper at 2am while he was trying to sleep (????) and i was like "DUDE U PLAY CHARLIE PARKER SOLOS ON YER STEEL AT 8AM."
from then on i think we had an understanding.
― ian, Sunday, 4 October 2009 03:56 (fourteen years ago) link
also he would not let me smoke reefer in the room!
― ian, Sunday, 4 October 2009 03:57 (fourteen years ago) link
and he was a jazz composition major?
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Sunday, 4 October 2009 03:59 (fourteen years ago) link
YES!!!!!!
― ian, Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:00 (fourteen years ago) link
i mean... wtf
he was canadian and pronounced "pasta" funny.
all the jazz dudes at my college were potheads, i'm pretty sure
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:01 (fourteen years ago) link
mebbe his jazz teachers convinced him that pot was lame and it was heroin or gtfo
― iatee, Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:01 (fourteen years ago) link
haw. he was older. like 24 iirc? or 26? and he just did not smoke pot or drink much or do any drugs.
props to him for being the first person to ever play me "jesus blood" by gavin bryars tho.
― ian, Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:02 (fourteen years ago) link
i would not want to be 24 years old living in a dorm.
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:04 (fourteen years ago) link
he was a weird guy i tell ya
― ian, Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:08 (fourteen years ago) link
i don't doubt it, was he the smelly guy, or was that someone else's weird roommate?
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:10 (fourteen years ago) link
nah his hygiene was better than mine tbh
― ian, Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:11 (fourteen years ago) link
oh the smelly guy was Nate's roommate ... never mind.
― somewhere a poll is missing its wacky write-in vote (sarahel), Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:14 (fourteen years ago) link
So glad my bad joke upthread didn't kill it.
I only had roommates freshman year. It was unpleasant, mostly because the best friend of my two roommates was rabidly anti-semitic but too dense to figure out I was Jewish. In addition they were all Asian and made a big deal of their minority status. Somehow its the contradiction of someone being fervently multiculturalist yet still anti-semitic that bugged me more than the anti-semitism itself.
― Shh! It's NOT Me!, Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:33 (fourteen years ago) link
haha favoring your own culture doesn't nec scream 'multiculturalist' to me. why didn't you come out of the jew closet and fuck w/ that dude?
― iatee, Sunday, 4 October 2009 04:37 (fourteen years ago) link
i dont remember.
― Shh! It's NOT Me!, Sunday, 4 October 2009 14:36 (fourteen years ago) link
http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2010/01/06/no-longer-sexiled-universities-grapple-sex-dorms
― max, Friday, 8 January 2010 15:24 (fourteen years ago) link
that url does not deliver on its promise
― 鬼の手 (Edward III), Friday, 8 January 2010 15:28 (fourteen years ago) link
I was hoping the introduction of grapple sex dorms would solve this sexiling issue once and for all
― 鬼の手 (Edward III), Friday, 8 January 2010 15:29 (fourteen years ago) link
"I will never forget the look on my roommate's face the next morning," Daley said. "I could see that he felt his privacy had been violated ... He transferred schools after our freshmen year and has spent the rest of his life living in Asia. I am not saying this experience is what caused him to do this. Just saying.
not asia!
― an american hippie in israel (Jordan), Friday, 8 January 2010 15:31 (fourteen years ago) link