Before coming to FAMU, my parents told me they wanted me to spend my first year living in campus housing.
At first, I hated the idea of being stuck in a room with a complete stranger, but with time, (and the realization that I didn’t have a choice in the matter) I came to accept my soon-to-be lifestyle.
After I moved into Gibbs, the housing staff held a dorm meeting. This is the part where the management goes over all of the policies for staying in dorm rooms.
This meeting was a complete waste of time for a couple of reasons.
First, there were so many people crammed into the Gibbs Hall lobby that chances are you couldn’t see who was talking. Even if you could see them, you wouldn’t be able to hear them because everyone else was talking.
This meeting was also a waste of time because the administration spent an hour going over all of the rules.
After the meeting, all of the rules were apparently immediately forgotten.
Reviewing the rules in the housing packet, I noticed the first one said that quiet hours are to be observed 24 hours a day.
This rule is a complete joke because there is no such thing as quiet hours in Gibbs Hall.
On any given day, you’re liable to hear two or three different TV shows, people shouting from one end of the hall to the other, several telephone conversations and various radios throughout the building.
Even the Resident Assistant for my floor likes to prop his door open and blast his stereo from time to time.
According to my handy-dandy rule book, excessively high levels of music are prohibited in the dorm, and can lead to confiscation -Yeah, right.
Another issue I have with staying in a dorm room is the fire drills. Now, I understand that fire drills are necessary to ensure that residents know exactly what to do if there ever is an emergency, but judging from the way Gibbs Hall plans their fire drills, fires only happen at two or three in the morning.
This is extremely frustrating because many people like to get a good night’s sleep for their early morning classes, and that’s kind of hard to do when you’re standing outside freezing in your underwear.
My last gripe with housing is the fact that there is no hand soap in the bathrooms. Not only is this disgusting to think about, it is also extremely unsanitary.
As a matter of fact, I heard from a friend of mine say the only reason she voted for a specific candidate in the campus wide elections was because that person put soap in their bathrooms.
While it may sound like I loathe staying in a dorm, I really don’t.
There are some positive aspects of living on campus. Dorms are great places to meet new people, and you’re close to everything that happens on campus. You are also close to the cafe, save on gas money, and can wake up at 8:58 and make it to your 9:05 class.
If that’s not enough of a reason, just ask yourself one question.
Where else can you get doughnuts, t-shirts, CD’s, pizza and walk-by prayer requests without ever having to leave your room?
Sidney Wright is a freshman newspaper journalism student from Tampa. he can be reached at famuanopinions@hotmail.com.