During my freshman year of college, I tried to have what I thought would be the complete college experience: I lived in a dorm with a less-than-ideal roommate, dealt with loud neighbors, ate sub-par meals and read texts for countless hours at my small, poorly lit desk.
And I did all this while living in the same town I grew up in.
I know it probably sounds strange that I paid to dorm at school when I could easily live at home and save money. I knew I was lucky I had the option of where to live; my parents told me they wanted me to live on my own and experience life outside the walls of my house.
But for all of the freedom and independence I felt while dorming at UB, I found I didn't enjoy it as much as some of my peers. I didn't have time to go out every weekend and sleep all day because I had to work nearly every weekend at my part-time job. I didn't become close with my roommate - and her boyfriend being over every night didn't help the situation.
I hated having to rely on a meal plan for my meals during the day. I didn't like having restrictions on how many meals I could use per day because I often had times where I couldn't use one of my meals because I was working or in class. And eating the same unhealthy meals at the same places on campus became too monotonous for me. I could only eat so many meals from Sizzles or Hubies where the food was fried, salty or both.
I also didn't enjoy the dorm bathrooms.
I hated going into the bathroom and finding clumps of hair in the drain or soap and water splashed all over the floor. I was forced to wear flip-flops to shower so I didn't contract some unknown foot fungus.
Living next to a kitchen area sucked. It was hard studying for my World Civ midterm while listening to a group of students in the next room cooking strange meals and loudly talking about their drunken adventures on South Campus or at Mojos.
I found the longer I lived in my cramped dorm room, the more living at home didn't sound so horrible. Many of my friends were commuters and told me I was so lucky to live on campus because commuting was horrible and driving to school every day was a hassle.
For my second year, I decided to live at home.
From what I had heard from my commuter friends, I dreaded driving back and forth to campus every day even before the fall semester began. I didn't know if this was the right decision, but I was willing to try it out for the year.
I've found commuting isn't nearly as bad as people make it out to be. I get to live in a room by myself without a roommate. My family gives me space and time to do work and study without bothering me. I'm saving money by not paying for a dorm room and meal plan.
And having home cooked meals every day isn't a bad deal either.
Sure, I miss being independent and living alone. Things like staying up late or listening to music aren't as acceptable to my family as they are to me.
But I like seeing my family and my pets every day. I like that I can go home every night and sleep in my bed, rather than an uncomfortably small dorm bed. I like that I can go home to my family and not be bothered with messy roommates and a small, dark dorm room. And driving back and forth to school every day isn't nearly as bad as all my friends said.
Sometimes I think about the college experience I'm missing out on by not living away from home and I know a lot of my friends wish they didn't have to spend four years at UB under their parents' roof. Sure, I don't go to as many parties and I don't get to live with a bunch of my friends, but living at home is really what you make of it.
You can make friends on campus to spend time with while you're here. It doesn't have to be lonely and friendless. I make time to spend with friends and activities on campus can make a boring day on campus more exciting.
I've come to realize my college experience may not be what I envisioned as my college career before I got to UB, but I know my experience is my own. If my experience in college happens while I live in my house away from campus, I'm perfectly OK with that.
Email: lisa.epstein@ubspectrum.com
