Hey all!
So, I am currently going to college at TU in Indiana, and I live in the smallest dorm on campus. My dorm, Swallow Robin hall, holds 50 women and 25 men. This is significant in comparison to the other dorms holding 300 each. Because we're so small, we are often given stereotypes or even completely forgotten about. I've been living here for over a month now, and I'd like to give you the top 4 misconceptions of Swallow Robin Hall.
1. We're all shy.
This is probably one of the most common stereotypes we hear about Swallow. We are not all shy. Yes, there may be one or two shy people, but that doesn't mean we're all shy. There are shy people who live in Olson or Wengatz too. Don't generalize us.
Story- Campus was having a giant 24 hour campus visit for prospective students last week and there was a few of them sitting at the table that is usually where Swallow people sit at meals. (Before you generalize again, everyone has a "designated wing table" that they sit at.) So, to be kind, we moved to a new table instead of crashing their party and sitting down at their table with them. We sat at the table directly next to the other. While we're sitting there, we hear someone talking to prospectives about dorm stereotypes and I hear the TU student sitting with them say, "And Swallow people are all super shy and never talk to anyone..." Wow. Did I so want to pop over to them and say, "Hi! I'm from Swallow. We are very outgoing and are you aware that you are currently sitting at our table?" I refrained.
2. Swallow is where the weirdos live.
This hurts, but it's totally something we've all heard before. One of my friends who lives in English Hall was having a conversation with her wing mates and one says that her sister told her that everyone in Swallow is weird. Newsflash- you're generalizing again! Maybe your sister met someone who lived in Swallow and was a little off-kilter, but we are not all like that! Take some time to get to know us and you might really like us. Swallow residents make the greatest friends in my opinion.
3. Swallow is where they put the Irish Studies people.
Yup. I've heard this one to my face after I told them that I lived in Swallow. No one in Swallow is currently in Ireland. We have one person in Ecuador, but that's it. And how would it make any sense to have all of the Irish studies students together in one dorm. The dorm would literally be empty for an entire semester. Nope. We live here, all 70 of us, and we like it.
And lastly,
4. Swallow doesn't actually exist.
I don't know how this makes any sense at all, but I have heard someone say that they believed Swallow was a conspiracy because they had never met anyone from Swallow before. We may be small, but we are mighty. Wherever I go I see at least one other person from Swallow. We are here, you just have to look harder.
So there you have it. The top 4 things we hear while living in Swallow Robin. While we may have the longest walk to the DC or the KSAC, we are the closest people to Chic-fil-A and above all, we are a family. Not just our wing or our floor, but the entire dorm. A close-knit family, and that's why I love Swallow.
Megan
