The decision of where you’re going to college is a hard one. There are many factors that can go into it. Perhaps you wanted an adventure, or colder weather or you had a dream major you wanted for that dream career. Whatever brought you to Hamline, understand there are some headaches that always go along with going to college out of state.
Plane Rides:
Because of the distance, there’s no possible way to just get in a car and drive home. You have to book a plane ticket, try and figure out a ride to the airport and lug your stuff through security. After the billionth trip from home, to school, back home, you’ll be a pro and wonder why everyone takes forever to get their shoes and coats off for security. This routine can get old after awhile, especially when you know all your friends who could drive home are already hanging out with their family and relaxing with their pets as you cram onto a plane.
Packing for school:
You know you go to school out of state when packing becomes a game of weight due to airline regulations. Each year when you have to pack, you wonder how you could possibly have gained so many things, and you wish you could just chuck it into a car and drive home. After rearranging everything into bags, or finding a friend to take half of your stuff to their house, you know that no matter what, you are not opening your freakishly full suitcase again until you are safely home.
Not knowing anything about Minnesota:
Every time someone in class or a teacher tries to talk about a town around the college, you just smile and wonder where in the world that town is. This can get annoying, especially when it seems like everyone around all migrated from the same high school, but it can be amusing to hear your friends’ local gossip and weird stories about the places around your school.
Never Seeing Family:
Besides holidays you never see your family. Phone calls home become a must. Every time something exciting happens, or you have questions about adulating, is when you miss your family the most and wish you could see them before the next holiday that’s two months down the road. Even though home is a phone call away, it seems impossible to have longer than a twenty minute conversation with your family as your schedules stop matching up.
Missing home:
You’ll envy your friends who say they’re heading home for the weekend and you’re stuck at school. You’ll miss your own bed, your pets, home cooked meals and a clean bathroom with nice hot water for showers. You’ll miss the quiet and the privacy, and wonder if you could suddenly fly home for the weekend just to sleep in your old comfy bed and steal your pets to bring back to campus.
You’ll miss everything, from your family to your own bed, but even though there are headaches that come from going to college out of state, you’ll soon find that your college will become your home, and you could never imagine going anywhere else.