it's that time again, folks!
I'm sure those of you anxiously clenching your Mount Allison acceptance letters are more than ready to finally leave the house you grew up in. I know that I certainly was. My three years at Mount Allison flew by but I'll try to remember back from when I was in your shoes to give you some advice for the next eight months to come.
So, here are some necessities to have packed (especially if you're in residence):
1. A whiteboard for your door. YES YES YES. This is definitely what you need. Pick up some colorful dry-erase markers while you're at it. Do you get excited when you get a parcel or letter in the mail? I certainly do. This is exactly the excitement that tickles your toes when you discover a friendly message on your whiteboard. Write on your neighbours' and they'll do the same. It's so much better than writing on Facebook walls!
2. A floor mat to put in front of your door. S is for Sackville and S is also for SNOW... and LOTS of it! So, it's VERY handy to have something to soak up all the slosh from your shoes when you're after trucking through mountains of snow.
3. Posters, pictures and prettifications. Keep in mind that your room is going to be your room for the next eight months... so you're going to want to personalize it! Your room shares the essence of a hospital room splattered with bare walls and emptiness, so be sure to bring things that will make it "you". When new friends visit your room, they'll get to know a lot more about you by its aesthetic appearance... so doll it up!
4. Sandals. Unless you're in Campbell res, you're going to be sharing communal washrooms and showers. I cringe at the thought of my feet alone... so think about the many peoples' feets that you'll be sharing headquarters with. Yes. Pack a few pair of flipflops to sport in the shower.
5. Power bar with surge protection. For some safety reasons (though MANY people refuse to obey this), you're prohibited from using extension cords... so get a power bar or two to supply the source needed for all your electronic junk.
6. Stackable storage bins. These are super super handy. It's hard to keep organized in a small space, especially if you have a roommate. You can NEVER have too many stackable storage bins! You can get ones in the dollar store in various colours!
7. A Glade plug-in. The preferred snack in residence, for some reason or another, is microwave popcorn. Sure, it's great at first... but I'm not over exaggerating when I say you'll be walking down the hall to the scent of buttered popcorn every day/night. You'll need something to mask the nauseating scent(it becomes nauseating after you're forced to consume it every day) so pick up one of these plug-ins and a few bottles of Febreeze.
8. ALARM CLOCK. This is pretty obvious. If you don't have a cell phone equipped with an alarm, you'll definitely need to pick up one of these. It can be hard to haul your rear out of bed for those 8:30am classes so you'll need an alarm clock with an obnoxious crow for that extra push.
9. QUARTERS. You've probably already packed numerous rolls of quarters. Now, times it by ten and pack the difference. You really have no idea how many quarters you'll need for laundry. And quarters you have stashed away for laundry will quickly turn into quarters for the vending machines in the lobby. Oh, those vending machines will come in handy to quench your late night cravings for munchies.
10. A ridiculous amount of warm clothes. If you haven't read my blog on Sackville winters, click here. So, don't forget to pack your scarves, mits, hats, etc. in order to survive snowy Sackville storms.
Hopefully, this blog will be of help to you while you're double checking your packing list! Look me up when you get to town and I'll be more than happy to show you the ropes.
Take care for now!
