After choosing my electives, applying for a student loan, and liquefying all traces of my high school past, I still wasn’t ready to call myself a university student. But since attending the Student Life 101 Day at the University of Waterloo, I’m finally official: I now have a big, goofy sweater with “WATERLOO” slabbed on the front.
The Student Life 101 Day meant a chance to meet some of the department heads, explore the school library, and figure out where your classes are. Unlike my older sister, I can’t measure the angle of the sun relative to the highest building, determine that I’m facing North, and therefore realize that I must head West to reach section A-2, where chemistry class is held. Being able to familiarize myself with the campus ahead of time means that I can now use the ancient method of, “My chemistry class is near the big concrete building.”
I also got to check out the Tim Horton’s on campus, which has couches, coffee tables, and lounging chairs for cool people to… well… look cool in. It made me think of the sitcom Friends.
As in, completely lame-ass.
Before the end of the day, I also had a chance to pick up my ‘WatCard,’ a student ID card which allows me to borrow books from the library, have access to computer labs, get on the city buses for free, and be able to carry a Batman lunch-box without getting beaten up. I assumed the people handing out the cards would use the efficient system known as, “If you look like the picture on your card, we’ll hand it over.” Instead, I first needed to provide government-issued picture ID, my letter of acceptance from Waterloo, and (as proof of my loyalty) give a University of Toronto sweater a good slapping.