I wake up in the morning not to my own alarm but to the blare of my roommate's. We've been living together for about seven months and I still haven't asked her why she has chosen what seems to be positively the most grating of sounds to start her day with, especially when it doesn't even work.
After a few moments of the repeating alarm I groan, "Esther…"
With a start, her head pops out of the cocoon she fabricated in her dreamscape.
"Wha- sorry! Yup," she gets out, clumsily grasping her phone, short brown curls hanging around her face in a magnificent bedhead.
I stretch out my limbs, relishing in the morning feeling of 9 hours of sleep as I flip on my stomach and clutch my pillow tight to my chest, staring out at the best view from the Homer dorm (in my humble opinion). The soft gold light reflects off the buildings of downtown Providence, catching itself on the closer steeples and newly budding trees like algae on fishing lines. The world feels aglow and it's because of this light, bouncing off the silver Girl Scout cookie wrappers I taped to my wall, I feel a bit more excited about the promise of a Monday morning and a 7.5 hour studio as daunting as that might be to my current state of sentience.
I push my comforter off me and make the drop down to the cheap shag carpet. I wince, landing on my ankle wrong in the same way as when you jump off a swing. My orientation week work order never answered and I too lazy to follow up have gotten mostly accustomed to the high altitude of my bed, but every now and then my dreary clumsiness gets the better of me. It pays off though in laughs, watching friends struggle to climb on and each adopting their own method. I stumble towards my closet, yanking open the curtain and grabbing my caddy. Slipping on my flip flops (the bane of my fashion existence) I open the door and head to the bathroom, deadbolting as I go. As I brush my teeth and wash my face I remember a time I left my room deadbolted and in came two guys I'd never met. Not in scary way though, they stood in the doorway and explained they had lived in the room the year before and were curious as to who lived there that year and what it looked like. Cleaner, was the consensus. I found it a very wholesome practice to return back to the room and meet the new you in a certain way. Something voyeuristic and nostalgic, but not in a creepy way really. It made me feel there was something special about that room in particular. I had told Esther when she got home and we agreed we would do the same, forgetting of course that Homer was set for construction and the room may not even exist to come back to. At least I have 3 more months to enjoy its sunrise.
On the way back to my room I pass Kiki in the hall and aggressively avoid eye contact. I find her incredible and thus incredibly intimidating, even though we live across from each other. My whole hall doesn't interact all that much, at least not in what my preconceived notions of college would be, but there's no animosity so I find that a pretty good place to be. Once I asked Kiki for a pad because I was out and she was very nice about it. Maybe I should just ask to hang out sometime.
I quickly get dressed and put on some light makeup (I've been skipping a lot of it for the sake of my skin) and pile my notebooks into my bag to head out. I climb up the flight of stairs and into the Homer lounge, always a different state of disbelief. Today, pretty average, just a few ping pong balls and Ben and Jerry's containers. Once though I woke up at 5AM to go work in studio and I came upstairs to find all the chairs turned on their side and a pumpkin ripped open in the center of the floor.
In the Met I hand my card to Jolie, my campus mom, and head in. There I grab a quick breakfast of miso soup with spinach and some hashbrown baby cakes. A certain level of trust was gained by RISD when I saw they stocked Cholula, the best hot sauce known to man, so of course I'm grabbing that. After eating, I grab a granny smith apple to go and head out on my trek to 15 West.
I find it so interesting to observe how people get around campus, probably a similar form of fascination to all those in LA obsessed with their morning commute (and probably a similar level of annoyance for those who have to hear about it). I always like to ask if people are stairs or hills. Personally I'm a hills at heart, in part because I'm afraid of going down stairs, but all my friends are stairs so it's become my habit to take all of the stairways to get from place to place. I hustle down the metal stairs (the second scariest on campus) and see Huck in his usual smoke spot, hoodie pulled over his blue curls. I cross the road with little thought to oncoming traffic. They can always pay for my education if they want. I proceed down those concrete stairs (bumped up to number 3 because Aya's friend fell down them and like broke her ankle) mindful of the loose napkins, broken glass, and abandoned pizza. At the crosswalk to Market Square I wait for the cars to stop, though none of them want to. I always find that annoying because there's a sign and everything.
I get to 15 West and take the elevator up because I am lazy and also I feel kinda like a secret agent using my keycard on it. I enter the studio, my favorite from first semester, and take a seat at one of the large grey tables in the projector area next to Jessica. Jessica's reading a book, a YA novel by the looks of it and keeps her eye on the page and she works at some yogurt. I hate yogurt so so so much and would not willingly choose to be around it, but it's Jessica so I sit. We all make sacrifices for friendship. Jessica is from somewhere kinda nearby Rhode Island and it's either South Carolina or West Virginia (one of those directional adaptations of a state) but sadly I cannot remember which. We met this semester because we have section together and I'm lowkey very sad we didn't meet sooner.
"Good morning," I say, shoving my stuff under the table.
"Morning," she responds with a smile.
I pull out my notebook and pen, prepping for another day of tangential lecturing when she says, "Hey so my friends and I are having one of those movie nights I was telling you about this weekend. Do you wanna come?"
"Oh yeah I'd be down," I say, actually psyched out of my mind. "What day?"
"Saturday night, like around 7:30?"
"Sounds great, I'll text you."
At this point people have trickled into the classroom, all slouching on their stools and awaiting the professor. He enters and begins setting up the radio station we've been working on as the overarching class project. And we settle in to a morning of studio time.
As we shrug on our coats and head out of the building I check my phone to a text in the group chat from Leon.
Leon Calzone: Met?
Me: Omw, walking from 15west
Leo: yessir
Bella: cumming!
I dash up the stairs on my way back, excited to see my friends again and also get some of that good good vegetarian sushi. I take the shortcut (debatably shorter) through the gym and up through the Met. Meeting Leon at the utensils I suggest, "Outside?"
"Yeah, I think Bella and Aya have a table" he responds.
I head out and scan the area to find them. Bella's wearing her blue and white patterned jumpsuit over a white shirt, some barrettes in her short strawberry hair, Aya, in her classic skater fashion, one green van propped on the bench, nonchalantly cool as always. I smile as I approach, taking a seat across from them to maximize my view and exposure to sun.
"Hey, how's everyone's day going?" I say, tucking in to my food.
"Good, I have studio today," says Aya.
"Same," says Bella.
"Which ones?'
"Spatial," says Aya.
"Drawing," says Bella. "What about you?"
"Spatial too," I reply. "I honestly don't know what we did this morning."
"What do you mean?" Bella asks.
"Well like I know we did stuff but I always feel like we take the most roundabout way to do anything in that class. It's kinda a shame because I think the content of that class and the whole experimental radio concept is so dope, but the execution is just… I mean he's never taught before so."
"Wait, what? Like never?" asks Aya, raising her eyebrows.
"I mean, I don't know for sure, but I don't think so," I clarify. "It's the same prof as Audrey where he got swapped in like a week or two before class started. So he's at least never taught this class before. I think afternoon is just work time though so I'm psyched for that. Wood shop time baby!"
"Nice," says Aya. "[insert dialogue about her spatial studio]"
"And Bella, how are you?" I ask.
"I'm good, I'm good," she says. "Just drawing today. Gets exhausting."
"I feel that," I affirm, and Aya nods.
"But I'm supposed to make applesauce tonight with Lucinda and Tallulah," Bella continues, lighting up. "In the South kitchen. So I'm very excited for that."
"Oh my god fun," I say. "For a project?"
"No… just for fun," she smiles.
"Of course haha," I say.
"That's so wholesome, I want to make applesauce," Aya says. "That's something we would do on my farm if my parents would let me stay on my farm over the summer."
"Why won't they?" Bella asks, as Leon approaches the table and slings his cowboy boots over the bench, taking a seat next to me.
"I don't know!" Aya says with a sigh. "It doesn't make sense because they're so supportive of my friend doing the same thing but when it comes to me… it's probably because he's a guy."
"Do what thing?" Leon asks?
"Live on a farm by herself," I lean over and fill him in as Bella and Aya discuss the sexism of single person farming.
"So how's everyone's day going, what studios do y'all have?" Leon asks.
"Good," I say and then pointing at each of us, "Spatial, drawing, spatial."
"We already did that question, too late buddy," says Bella with a smirk.
"Yeah so fuck you Leon," I say jokingly.
"He-bu- I'm sorry! How was I supposed to know?!" He sputters, his voice raising in indignation in the common Leon defense. We all laugh and affirm that he's fine. He shakes his head, "I can never get a break around here, jeez."
"More interesting that way," says Aya with a mouth full of sushi.
"How are you though?" I ask.
"Good, I just woke up," Leon chuckles.
"So I'm assuming you don't have studio?"
"No, I'd be fucked if I had studio," Leon says. "Just my hpss class."
"You're in the one about the Cold War, right?" asks Aya.
Leon nods.
"Hey guys what if I start going by Lizzy?" I ask.
"No," says Bella. "You mean just randomly change your name?"
"Yeah that doesn't make much sense," Aya says.
"Well my middle name is Elizabeth so it's not out of nowhere."
"Pride and Prejudice wannabe," Bella teases. I scrunch my nose at her, knowing she's right at least in part.
"Lizzy is cool but in like a Disney XD way," Leon says.
"Oh my god, what?" I ask, eyebrows raised.
"I don't know I just think of a girl going to prom in converse!" he explains. "That or the girl from Total Drama Island."
"Bruh," I say. "Okay fine, Sofia's fine. Forget I mentioned it."
"I mean we'd respect your choice…" Bella says noncommittally.
"No, no forget I said anything," I say, laughing.
Aya and I head inside to grab some ice cream and cereal for the road and then we all split up for our afternoon classes.
After an afternoon of spatial I stand in the elevator on the way down and half heartedly attempt to brush away the sawdust that's embedded itself into every crease of my jeans. It was the wrong day to wear a sweater and I quickly get up, writing it off as a part of the experience. I have some time between studio and dinner so I veer to the left and enter the library. I regret that I didn't spend enough time in the library during first semester, only dropping by a few times to study. It wasn't until wintersession that I realized the beauty of wandering into an aisle and picking a book at random. I follow this pattern and my eye is caught by a book with exposed binding and the word "Camps" printed cryptically on the side. It seems interesting and I head to check it out.
"Checking out?" asks the friendly short employee at the desk.
"Yup, just that."
"ID please," they request and I scramble to hand them my ID. "Thanks."
They scan my card and I have absolutely no fees. Beautiful.
"Here you go," they smile, handing me the book. "Have a nice day!"
"Thanks, you too!" I respond, zipping up my bag and heading out.
The day aged nicely by the hour; I open the doors and am met with a cool breeze flowing through the building lined streets. I quickly walk out of the shadows of 15 West into the sunshine of almost golden hour, still warm in prolonged exposure (making me grateful for the slow change of the traffic light). I cross the bridge of the canal, taking a moment to peek over the edge at the reflections on the black rippling water. As I climb the all too familiar stairs I see a text from Jacob to me and Audrey asking about dinner. I alert him that I'm on my way and after a quick dinner with them I return to my dorm room where I find it incredibly hard to do homework, especially with the temptation of a Bon Appetit video drop looming. I do manage to pull myself up from my bed long enough to scroll through and highlight my readings for THAD and HPSS which go by actually really fast and are totally not confusing or boring at all! After brushing my teeth I head to sleep. My roommate's not back yet, probably working in studio, so I set my podcast out loud with a sleep timer and pull on my blankets, hoping for good dreams.