It’s an unfortunate truth about college: you will overpack. While some of us can admit to bringing along a few odd belongings to school, most of us have learned that in a cramped dorm room, less is more.
There are those among us, however, who have not learned how to live in moderation. They arrive at school with bags, totes and tubs filled to the brim with useless objects and force their parents to carry them up three flights of stairs and into their new dorm rooms.
These people are, of course, freshmen.
We can’t fault them; we’ve all done it. We’ve all taken that last glance around our bedrooms before heading off to school and spotted something that we decided might actually be useful in our new college life — only to realize later that what we brought was completely unnecessary.
However, some freshmen take their compulsive packing to the next level. These people are what we call the Harding Hoarders.
On today’s episode we meet three freshmen: Rachel McCurry, Kendalyn Pierson, and Madaline Jones.
First up is Rachel McCurry, who, in her haste to pack for school, brought along a full-sized corn hole game.
“I thought maybe it would be fun to play in the hall if we ever get bored,” McCurry said.
The game was a gift from her brother, who made the corn hole platforms himself. However, those in Rachel’s dorm will have to wait before the corn hole tournament begins.
“I don’t have the bean bags,” McCurry said, “They’re coming in the mail.”
Next we have Kendalyn Pierson. Among the many useless treasures Pierson brought, she’s the most concerned about what to do with her inflatable couch. The couch, which neatly fits into a small bag, was meant to be used for lounging on the front lawn. However, Pierson said she’s run into a small problem with this special piece of furniture.
“I can barely blow it up,” Pierson said. “What am I going to do with it now?”
Finally, we have Madaline Jones.
Jones has a close relationship with her dog, Coco, so when she came to Harding she decided to bring along something to remember her precious pup by: a framed portrait of Coco, painted by Jones’ friend. The portrait sits on Jones’ desk as a daily reminder of the dog she left at home.
“Harding said I couldn’t actually bring my dog to college,” Jones said. “A painting of her was the next best thing.”
So, to all you upperclassmen who know future Harding students: Please advise them to put some serious thought into what they pack, or they might end up on the next edition of Harding Hoarders.
