Review Reviews: Freshman Year

Zoe Dominguez:

“I can’t wait until we’re 23s! Oh, wait, I’ll always be a 25.”

Fall: After a three-day drive up from Texas, Hanover was a welcome sight. While the College’s Orientation Week might have been the closest I’ll ever get to actual hell, I remained enthusiastic for the start of class. My introductory government course, Political Philosophy, was my favorite class, as I got to listen to my classmates pontificate about the work of great philosophers like Aristotle just to be swiftly rebuffed by our professor. Every. Single. Class. With October came the great Homecoming bonfire and the end of the “frat ban,” meaning the parties moved from the dorm rooms of the Fayerweathers to the basements on Webster Avenue. Fall Term was full of novelty, excitement, and quite a bit of adjustment. 

Winter: While the six weeks of winterim crept by, I missed my new friends. Reuniting with everyone at the start of Winter Term was electric as we all buckled in for our first Hanover winter. The walk to my 9 a.m. class in blizzard-like conditions was a unique experience that not every college can offer its students. Thank you, Dartmouth! Though the snow was occasionally a pain, trying my hand at activities like cross-country skiing and ice skating made for good memories. I know the famed Winter Carnival weekend was also full of great memories, I just… can’t seem to recall them right now. What I do remember is that my friends and I participated in the “Polar Plunge”—a Dartmouth tradition in which you jump into the frozen Occom Pond. To describe the event in one word: invigorating. As the weeks went on, the snow melted, and we were all ready for spring break to begin. 

Spring: If change is a breath of fresh air, Spring Term was strapping on an oxygen mask. The green grass greeting those returning to Dartmouth quickly became snow covered. The snow melted quickly, but flurries plagued campus for the first couple of weeks. I remember going through a small crisis once I realized I could not simply wear a sweater and leggings everyday. As freshmen settled in, it became harder to discern who was a ‘25 and who was an alumnus looking to “run it back” for the weekend. And run it back they did. At the end of Week 8, students were blessed with the weekend to end all weekends, Green Key. The glory of Dartmouth was celebrated with a 72-hour revelry which I thoroughly enjoyed. However, I am sad to report that I did not make it to the Friday night main stage of 2016’s greatest hits. As spring comes to a close, I look back fondly on all of my freshman-year experiences, and I eagerly anticipate whatever awaits me in my sophomore year. 

Jack Brustkern:

Fall: Fall kicked off with a rocky start. Between freshman trips all but canceled in the hours preceding their commencement and a general sense of overwhelm from hundreds of people and opportunities pulling me every which way—which did not benefit from the fact that I signed up for about half of the 200 clubs on campus—it was quite the adventure. But some way or another I found a rhythm, embracing the spontaneous 5am sunrikes and late-night food runs, and squeezing in time for work in between. Homecoming weekend sticks out as particularly incredible—that bonfire was far more tremendous than even the most stunning descriptions had made me dare to imagine.

Winter: Then came winter, which was indeed cold but not as brutal as was forewarned. Although I must confess that the term “skiing the east” ought to be replaced with “skating the ice” or “slushing the mashed-potatoes” (so as to not be confused with the real snow out west), repping runs with friends made up for any letdown in snow conditions. On the classes front, one of mine lost its first six weeks to online zoom classes for fear of that unspoken disease—as if the entirety of campus wasn’t spreading every germ in the book in packed frat basements three nights a week. But such disappointing courses that term were counterbalanced by other far more sensible and enlightening ones including a political theory course with the beloved Professor Lucas Swaine.

Spring: And then came Spring, beloved Spring—that long-awaited term when everyone realizes that the sun is God’s greatest gift to man and how we all had some form of seasonal depressive disorder during the winter. Spring term was the term when College life finally settled into a more healthy flow, and the sudden increase in spontaneous kayaking, hiking, and other adventures could be enjoyed without coming at the detriment of other commitments. But out of all the adventures, Green Key takes the cake as both the most hyped event and one that well exceeded its expectations. Freshman year was a blast, and I’m sure looking forward to seeing what the fall of ‘22 has to throw our way. 

James Eiler:  

Fall: From my home in the wilderness of Blueberry Hill, I journeyed to the metropolis of downtown Hanover. It took multiple miles of travel, but I arrived at my dorm safely. I had never done so much as a virtual tour of campus, so I had little idea of what to expect from Dartmouth College. However, I jumped into fall term and quickly adjusted to the bustle of college life. I hiked the mountains of the Upper Valley in freshman trips, explored the wilderness of the Fayes basement, and ventured into the depths of frat basements. I along with the rest of my class failed to touch the Homecoming bonfire, and for that we shall forever live in shame. I also learned humility, as I quickly realized that four years of high-school German had not prepared me to skip two years of college German. I changed a lot in the ten weeks of fall term, and mostly for the better. 

Winter: Winter. Isn’t. That. Cold. Want to spend ten weeks listening to southerners complain about GHASP! SNOW IN JANUARY! Christ, people, this is New England—you knew what you were getting into. The cries of the unacclimated aside, winter term was a constructive experience. With the frat ban a distant memory, I spent as much time as possible playing real pong and “networking” over copious drinks. I became even more humble as multivariate calculus demanded more attention than I could afford to give it; I had to network after all. I completed the Polar Plunge in the dead of night, jumped off the death slide, and took a few too many ice balls to the head during the great snowball fight on the Green at midnight. At the very least, I survived winter term, which is more than I can say for my liver. 

Spring: Spring came and, with it, one final snow on the first day just to welcome the warm-bloods back. Classes continued as they always do, too quickly and in a general haze. In the blink of an eye, we arrived at Green Key. From Thursday to Sunday, I endeavored to be as unproductive as possible while still hitting all of the major events. At the concert, we screamed for “I SPY” and screamed for it again once it ended. To be honest, I don’t remember much about the rest of the concert, something about a Catholic hotel I think. Unfortunately, I may have carried on too long, and am now looking forward to finals with dread.