The character and personality of a room can be revealed by the way it is decorated. There is unique spice, flare, and a pinch of personality to each of the dorm rooms that we as students spend so much time in each day. Students tend to decorate their rooms in three main spaces: the desk, the wall, and the “empty space.”
The Desk
A desk and a chair are always present in each room before the students arrive. Decoration around the desk area can make it appear more relaxing and create an environment conducive to studying. Adam Shustak ’10 enjoys the comfort of his own laptop with speakers and various office supplies. “Although some people think that having a clean, paper-free desk is more productive," said Adam, “I find it easier to work with a messy desk. Having many papers scattered everywhere allows me to look at everything at once.” Adam also said that he likes the comfort of his music while working on homework. “Some people think that it is distracting, but in fact it has the opposite effect on me. I concentrate more easily, and I get more work done. The music keeps my mind from drifting.” Whether the desk is immaculate or messy, whether the music is on or off, the desk is a space that reflects the student’s “study style.”
The Wall
After the early fall poster sale at the SAC, posters seem to be the predominant item on each dorm room wall. Many movie posters and scenic posters were sold, among others. Some of the posters hanging on Choate students’ walls around campus go far outside this norm, however. Chris Grava ’10 obtained a poster from his father, who is an alumnus of Choate. The poster is a not-to-scale map of Choate Rosemary Hall in the 1980s. It provides a look into the past with Choate landmarks like the Archbold Infirmary, Brownell classrooms, dormitories behind Brownell, tennis courts on Mem Field, and the Paul Mellon Science Center, which is presently the Humanities building. Chris enjoys this kind of poster “eye-candy,” but others prefer bulletin boards and syllabi adorning their walls. It all depends on taste, but as Chris said, “having something on your wall is better than looking at a monochromatic, boring white wall.”
The Empty Space
Unless a room is extremely small, students normally have some free space to decorate. The possibilities of what can fill this space are endless. Last year, fish tanks seemed to be a trend, and freshmen were big on guitars and keyboards. This year, with the launch of “Halo 3,” Xbox 360s are present in many rooms around campus. According to an anonymous source, there are approximately sixteen people playing online around Choate at any given time after sports. The source also said that there are one or more Xboxes in each male dorm, with most dorms having two. According to the source, many students enjoy “playing Halo on weekends, and it is a great way to relieve myself from the stress and worries of Choate everyday life.”
Whether students prefer to decorate desks, walls, or fill space with things like couches or monitors, decorating a dorm is a great thing to do. Decorating the room can make the room feel like a student’s own.
