Living in residence during my first year at Western was by far one of the best decisions I have made. I was very hesitant at first, mainly because I was nervous about the possibility of having a roommate and the uncertainty of which building I would end up in. When I submitted my residence application, I had listed my top three choices as follows: Ontario Hall, Delaware, and Perth Hall. The reason I had chosen these three was because Ontario Hall (Ohall) and Perth are both Hybrid-style residences. This means that either two single rooms or two double rooms share a bathroom and a small inner hallway/storage space which suited my lifestyle best. When I found out I would be living in Perth, I was quite happy.
Before you move into rez, you’re given a “time slot” that you’re supposed to arrive at. My suggestion is to be there as soon as you can. Luckily, I was able to arrive in the morning and was one of the first few people in the building. This made it a lot easier to move in and use the elevators. When you arrive at your rez, the rez sophs are there to help you unload you car and they take all of your stuff up to your room. **Make sure every single one of your bags are labeled with your name and your room number so they don’t get lost of stolen.** When you get to your room, if you’re sharing with a roommate, you will have been assigned a specific bed. Take your time setting up your room. I found that it helped to have my parents not in the room while I was unpacking since the bedrooms are not huge and this way it gives you time to take in this huge adjustment. Don’t forget to hug your parents and siblings and family goodbye when they leave. This change is just as hard for them as well.
The first week in rez you’ll be meeting so many people and honestly you probably will only remember a handful of their names. Over the next few months, you will either become very close with the people on your floor or you’ll find other friends in different buildings. I can not emphasize enough how important your rez soph is. They are the people in upper years who live in your residence. They will honestly help you with anything you could possibly need. Whether it’s just a friend to share a laugh with or someone to confide in, they are there to help you. There are also a lot of resources on campus that I will talk about in a later blog.
I know one burning question everyone has about residence is the food. There will always be hype around the “freshman 15” myth but the cafeterias at Western do a great job of providing healthy and accommodating meals for any diet. Because I lived in Perth, I ate almost all of my meals at Ohall. Not because Perth doesn’t have good food, I just ended up having a lot of friends in Ontario Hall and I enjoyed their variety of meals. Here are a few tips for eating in residence:
- Breakfast is usually the easiest meal as there are so many choices. There is usually a large selection of cereals, yoghurts, and bagels/breads and there is always fresh fruit in the morning. There is also pancakes, sausages, bacon, and eggs almost every morning as well. I would
suggest staying with the yoghurt and granola, or a piece of toast and eggs during the week and enjoying pancakes or bacon on the weekends. - Lunch is a tricky meal because depending on when your classes are you may have to eat earlier or later or even grab something from the UCC or Spoke. During lunch time there is always a sandwich bar where you can make wraps, sandwiches, and pitas. And of course, there is the hot serve area where there is sometimes macaroni, meatballs, chicken, etc.
- Dinner is usually the hardest meal to eat healthy because there are so many options. At dinner there is always a salad bar, but the other options vary every night. Sometimes there is a taco bar, pasta bar, stir-fry bar, hamburgers and fries, beef/chicken/salmon, lots of vegetable choices, and there are always vegetarian and gluten-free options as well. There are also lots of dessert options so my advice is to try and only eat a dessert maybe once or twice a week if you’re looking to avoid the “freshman 15.”
At the end of the day, eat what makes you happy but remember good foods will help fuel you and your brain so it can stay alert during the day.
Residence is supposedly “a place to sleep and a place to study” but you will quickly learn it is much more than just that. It is where you will meet new friends, help each other study, and learn new things about yourself and your peers.
~ Paige Cooper
