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The Spectator
From a Senior Perspective
The Top 10 Lessons We've Learned as Hamilton Students
by Lindsey Wong '09 and Emily Chapin '09Mind Your Manners Columnists
10. Yeah, five months of winter sucks, but take some time to embrace the winter wonderland. Build a snow fort! Have a snowball fight. Make a snowman. The snow is also another reason to go abroad (refer to #5).
9. Be polite and appreciative of the Bon Appetit staff. Not only is it common courtesy, but they are the ones who can get you raw eggs to bake a cake and let you in when you lost your card.
8. Nobody really likes the "Hamilton cool." It's hard to branch out after freshman year, so be friendly to people around campus; even just a smile is enough to make the Hill a better place.
7. Go do something you've never done before at least once. Try out the climbing wall. Go play nine holes. See an interpretive dance performance. Take a yoga class. These are opportunities you may never have again… not only that, but they're free!
6. You may not enjoy the smell of cow dung in the morning, but try taking a walk just off campus and check out the area you will end up spending four years (or more) living in. Go down the hill to the swimming hole, walk the G Road loop, or drive up to Skyline to watch the sun set.
5. Go abroad for at least one semester. You may love Hamilton now, but by your third year, you will want a break. It's a great way to rejuvenate before senior year and get a little taste of the world outside the bubble on the Hill.
4. Get to know your professors. They have a lot to offer both in and out of the classroom. Other than being a great resource for letters of recommendation, they know way more about life, careers, and how to succeed than you may see in lecture. Plus, believe it or not, they were our age once too.
3. Embrace all the Hamilton traditions. They may sound outdated, silly, or stupid, but the long history of the College and the continuation of these customs is what makes Hamilton special. Besides, where else is it acceptable to wake up at 6 a.m. to start drinking???
2. Stay up all night, SOBER, with your friends, just for fun. Try to make it to the 7 a.m. opening of commons. Maybe it's just the moonlight, but something magical happens when you should be sleeping.
1. Stop stealing chairs from my table in Commons without asking. Stop putting four-inch sandwiches on the grill when I already have a quesadilla cooking. And you're still messing with the toasters… We're always watching!!!
As we wrap up our time at Hamilton, we have come to realize we learned a lot. These 10 lessons don't even begin to touch upon the lessons Hamilton teaches you. Good luck with finals and enjoy what time you have left on the Hill!!