Packing for College: Your Room in General

So, we've gone through all the rest of the thing - bedding, bathroom, desk, closet... What else is there to talk about? 

Well, actually, there's a LOT of things left to talk about! I'm going to apologize in advance that there aren't any pictures; I've been busy and haven't had time to take any to plug into this article! (I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.)

What kinds of miscellaneous items can we cram into your room? Let's find out!

1. Refrigerator
Please, before you buy one, check with your residence hall and see if you're allowed to have your own refrigerator. Make sure that yours fits the requirements - my dorm doesn't allow anything over 1.5 amps - and make sure that it's going to fit in your room. 

Try to catch a good sale. I managed to get mine at Lowe's for only $126. (Of course, I used my military discount on that, plus it was already on sale for $128, down from $176.) I was going to get one at Wal-Mart for $128 + tax, but I could never find the amps on it, so we went to Lowe's, where they're more knowledgeable about stuff like that. We even managed to wedge this fridge into my little car! (It took a lot of effort.)

My fridge is REALLY big - like 4.0 cubic feet! - and should hold everything we should ever need. My room mate's going to be buying the Fridge Sticker each semester, since I bought the fridge!

2. Printer
Again, check with your dorm and see if this is all right.

I also got my printer on sale. It was 50% off on the BestBuy website, so my dad ordered it, and I went to go pick it up. It's very nice quality, and it's wireless. It also has ePrint, which is awesome! (I can print stuff from my phone AND iPad!) Plus, it works with both Macs and Windows, so my roomie can use it, too! (I just have to give her the installation disk.)

If you don't think you're going to be printing off a lot of stuff, then by all means, don't buy a printer. Print stuff at the library instead. If you ARE going to be printing a lot of stuff, a printer is a great investment. PLUS, you can use it once you're out of college and living on your own!

3. Bulletin Board/Whiteboard Calendar
I bought one of these things last year for my closet door. It's amazing! I can write down all of my assignments and when they're due on the calendar, then stick things to the little bulletin board part beneath it (like finished assignments) so that I don't forget anything. It's brilliant, and certainly a great investment of $10.

You can find these at Wal-Mart (which is where I got mine), but I'm sure Target or some other stores will have them, as well. (And if not...there's always the internet!)

It's a great way to get yourself organized, and if you're anything like me, you're going to need all the help you can get!

4. Decorations!
It's no good to have your own little space and not be able to decorate it! I know; some of you are living in a single room, where both of you are nearly on top of each other all the time. Some of you may have suites, though, so use that to your advantage!

I know a girl who has Christmas lights strung up around her bed. (Other people put them in their window.) 

Bring pictures to hang on your bulletin board. Bring things to decorate your door (ask your roomie's permission first, though!). Figure out how you want to decorate your bathroom. 

I didn't do much of anything last year, because I didn't want to offend Jamie or anything. (I'm not a very good roomie.)

5. Television?
Let's be honest, guys: You're not going to have a lot of time for television in college, and if you do, you're most likely going to watch TV on the internet: Hulu and Netflix are great for doing so (because we all know you're going to be binge-watching Doctor Who). Why pay extra for a TV that you're hardly going to turn on throughout the year?

Jamie only had a TV last year because it was on sale, and she could use it in her room when she went home. Halfway through the year, it blew a bulb or something and never worked again. She did get it replaced, eventually, but I never watched it while she was gone. I did watch a few episodes of Psych, as well as the Vice Presidential Debate, but everything else that I watched, I watched on Netflix.

The TV's up to you. Choose wisely! I don't want you wasting your precious money on things that you're probably not going to need!

6. Rugs
Trust me on this one: You're going to want rugs. Dorms are rarely carpeted, and let me tell you: those tile floors are terrible in the mornings. Get a rug for just in front of your bed (and have your roomie do the same, if they want), or see if your dorm offers a way to carpet your room. (If they do, try not to take it. It's often way expensive and far more trouble than it's worth. Plus, are you going to remember to vacuum it? Better off going with the small area rugs and whatnot.)

Just remember to give them a good shake now and then, and beat the dirt out of them! We don't want you to end up with black feet at the end of the year!

7. Surge Protectors/Power Strips
My dorm has three outlets. THREE. One by the bathroom (we used it for the fridge/TV last year), one under my desk, and one under my roomie's bed. If it hadn't been for the power strips, I never would've gotten anything done. Simply amazing.

***

Again, CHECK YOUR DORM REGULATIONS. That's really the only advice that I can give you here! If you don't check the rules, then you're probably going to get written up during the monthly (or sometimes bimonthly) dorm inspections. (YES, they actually do those. Sometimes they're more thorough than you'd like; other times you could be making meth in the closet and nobody would care/know.)

General rule of thumb? HAVE FUN. BE CREATIVE.

If you can do that, then you've got this dorm-thing down!

Is there anything else that you'd like to see me talk about? Do you want to talk about how I handled this short mini-series? Would you like to write a post for this series? Leave a comment, please!