Hey y'all, welcome to the woods! My name is Garrett Crouch, and I'm a '26 from Edmond, Oklahoma. Besides blogging, I'm involved in Greek Life and Dartmouth's Psychological and Brain Sciences Department. I enjoy reading fiction, listening to 90s rock, and playing video games and guitar in my free time. Other than that, I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to share a bit of my Dartmouth student experience with you—stay a while and enjoy!
Being away from campus these past few weeks has made me realize just how much I enjoy Hanover; having a break from Dartmouth's fast-paced academic environment is nice, but I'm ready to get back into the swing of things. I miss my friends and professors, and I'm excited to take advantage of the winter weather finally—as one might guess, Oklahoma doesn't get much snow…
One thing I've been trying to do is call my newfound college friends at least once a week and share winterim experiences, and that's seemed to ease my Hanover homesick blues ever so slightly; however, I still have an underlying urge to get back on campus.
My roommates and I plan to switch up the layout of our dorm room before the winter term begins, which is another thing I'm looking forward to once I'm back in Hanover—there is so much I'm excited about. With the quarter system especially, getting a fresh start multiple times during the school year is nice. Winter term will be my first official "fresh start" and some of my goals include updating/renovating my dorm room, developing new study strategies, as well as utilizing my meal plan more efficiently (spacing out my extra dining dollars ; ) ).
Another thing I've realized while away from Hanover is that I thrive while working hard in Dartmouth's fast-paced environment. To elaborate, going back to fall term, I found myself occasionally stressed out about academics, yet still extremely productive and satisfied. During winterim, I haven't felt productive as I did on campus during the fall, and now that I'm somewhat acclimated to Dartmouth's academic environment, I'm excited to be productive again.
In short, I'm grateful for the opportunity to be home spending quality time with my friends and family, but I miss Hanover significantly more than I realized I would; I truly feel like Hanover has become my home away from home. It's neat finally internalizing what your upperclassmen peers meant when explaining their process of introspection and how college changes you significantly—winterim has been that internalizing moment for me. I have two homes now…
Three years ago today, I received an email that would shape my entire Dartmouth experience in a way I never could have predicted. It's funny to think that it all started because I was a prospective student obsessively reading this very blog.
The River Cluster (the group of residence halls closest to the Connecticut River, including French and Judge Hall) has a reputation…and some of it is warranted. But there's more to living in the River than you might expect!
