Alex decided she was going to Mizzou a while ago and invited me to their final tour. The campus was gorgeous. One of the first things we saw were the dorm rooms and the tour lady looked dead at us and said, “now don’t room with your best friend. They may be your favorite person but it’s much different living with them.”

I can’t even tell you how many times we’ve heard that one. I show up to every family gathering and suddenly Aunt Deborah, who you see once every three years, decides that she knows exactly what’s going on in your life better than you do.

Now, I don’t mean any disrespect, but sometimes it gets tiresome hearing that you and your friend are inevitably set up for failure based on no evidence or context. It’s like when I became a teenager, and everyone told me that I had to hate my mom now. That’s just what teenage daughters do, right? Wrong.

There’s no need to set yourself up for failure for no reason. I can’t stand preconceived notions. Does rooming with your friend work out for everyone? No. Certainly not. I have lots of friends who I enjoy being with, but I also know I could never room with them. But I know I would be able to room with Alex in a heartbeat because I would do anything for her. Compromise and understanding are the key to any sort of friendship. I know that we complement each other well, and we will support each other moving into the future.

We’re starting our own sorority. It’s called Omega Sigma Alpha (ΩΣΑ). Before anyone thinks this is stupid, Mr. Asher’s wife did the same thing. All arguments are invalid. The main premise is to feed the squirrels at Mizzou. They’re very fat and cute, and I need to feed them. One jumped on a branch and the whole branch just creaked towards the ground, but we were on a tour, and I couldn’t laugh because the guide was talking about finances or something. Overall, it was hilarious.

As well as having taco Tuesdays at Fuzzy’s and buying a cheesecake for finals, we are both pretty hyped to go to school together for four more years. Thirteen years of school down, four more to go!

–Svetlana Wunnenburg