I am an early riser. Always have been. No one in my suite wakes up before 8. You wouldn't believe how quiet a dorm can get when absolutely no one else in the dorm is awake, and how absolutely reverberating a noise can sound no matter how hard you try to be quiet. So, I did the only sensible thing I could do: plugged in my headphones, turned the computer on, and watched a movie. Even the light clicks of my keyboard, which I normally find so soothing, were crashing and jarring in the heavy silence that blanketed my room.

Thankfully, one other person in my building wakes up early, so around 9 (by this point I had already been awake for three hours. Go figure) I got ready and trotted downstairs with banana bread while she made me tea. We talked, and watched people move in while we sipped culture from a mug (even though she makes tea horribly. No milk? And honey instead of sugar? Blasphemy!). But then she had to leave, and then I wandered back to my room to find my roommate awake finally. I don't know how she could sleep for that long, but that thought was quickly driven from my mind by our suitemates....innovational solution to their bare windows.

They tore their moving boxes apart and plastered the tattered remains all over the window.

It was amusing to say the least.

Wandering took over most of my day, exploring the campus and just mingling with people I will be living with for the next year. Found the gym, and a huge computer lab, and even one of my classrooms. Bothered my friend, and then more friends appeared, and we started our politically incorrect game once more (which is about a billion times better with a multitude of people). That lasted, unsurprisingly, for a few hours. By this point, we all realized we were hungry and ate as an actual group, not by myself in my room.

And Barrett has a huge club fair that is full of water games while every single group tries to buy you with small toys and candy. It was amusing for a moment, but we quickly retired to the dorms. Once again, our room has become the central hub of excitement and socializing. I like it. These people are charming, intelligent, humorous, and just all around pretty relaxed. They aren't trying to keep appearances up, they aren't fake or throwing themselves around for attention like in high school.

If the classes are anything like the people in terms of change, this is going to be a very refreshing year indeed.

For now we are just waiting the day away until we can go and ravage the Target. Then we will come home with our treasures and settle in and await the start. And maybe I'll actually learn to sleep in this year, seeing as none of my classes start before 9. But I'm going to eat better, and go to the gym, and I'm going to just be so much better this year. A new start. I'm excited.