- Community! - How could I not start with the cliche reason everyone loves UD? I don't even know how to describe it, but it's there. One of the things I remember hearing in one of the videos shown at an event about the community is how EVERYONE holds doors opens for people behind them, no matter what or how far behind you that person is. I realized that was so true around campus. Everyone is so friendly and kind to each other, in little and big ways. Even now in real life when someone doesn't hold a door for me, I automatically think "that person definitely did not go to UD."
- Friends! - Some of my very best friends are the ones I made while at UD. We have the best memories ever and will continue to for years to come :) (after we force all our own kids to go to UD so that we have an extra excuse to go back all the time)
- Basketball! - The UD Arena is consistently ranked as one of the best arenas in college basketball with the best fans. Basketball is also a great excuse to go back to campus. This past winter, my friends and I went back for the game against Xavier. We will have to figure out a different game to go back for this year though due to all of the conference re-alignment business going on. Also, the Dayton Flyers fight song is awesome. And I really like the fact that it's not one of the super big, popular schools that everyone has a t-shirt from. So if I see someone walking around Chicago (or anywhere) with a UD t-shirt or driving with a UD sticker on their car, I know they almost surely went there (or have kids that do/did). There is even a bar in Chicago with UD affiliation to go watch the basketball games at with other fans! (This photo below was taken at Milano's at UD though)
- Tim's! - Most UD students either love Tim's to no end, or hate it and usually refuse to go. It's one of the dirtiest most college-like bars out there I'm sure. I'm on the love end of the spectrum. I really like to dance (not well, but everyone there is too drunk to notice anyways) and Tim's facilitates my love for dancing. There are never good pictures taken at Tim's because nobody is capable of decent pictures by that time, so this is me and one of my favorite people to go to Tim's with, Brigitte - a Tim's VIP.
- Dining Halls! - UD had some pretty great dining halls. I don't have much else to compare them to though except the few times I visited ND (also great dining halls). The fact that I could eat whatever I wanted and not gain a pound was pretty great too. If I went back to that lifestyle, I would gain at least 50 pounds in a week. Through my sophomore year, VWK was all-you-can eat and despite being in my picky eating stage still, I ate as much grilled cheese and pasta as I could. Pita pizzas from KU, ice cream from The Galley, and chicken tender wraps from VWK and Marycrest were all my favorites. I think I ate the exact same thing for lunch every day freshman year at the Empo - a turkey sandwich and a Crunch bar. The dining halls were also a great place to just sit with friends for awhile and chat and people watch.
- Ghetto! - I guess this goes back up to the part about the community. For anyone who isn't familiar with UD, juniors and seniors (and 5th years) can live in the student neighborhood lovingly referred to as the Ghetto. Some of the houses even have their own names. When the weather is nice, everyone is outside on the porch or in the yard. Sometimes you can bring your couch in the yard...
- Dayton 2 Daytona! - This is the greatest vacation ever created...for college students; nobody else would survive this. It is also the unhealthiest trip ever created. There really isn't any other way to spin this besides a very cheap vacation with all UD students drinking all day long at the pool, beach, and the local hotspots for 6 days. I went 2 years and as much fun as it was, my body would not be able to handle something like that ever again.
The UDXC Team! -Probably the best group of girls ever. I only competed on the team my senior year, but it made the year so enjoyable and I became friends with the best people! Actually I was friends with the majority of them before senior year, but then running together every day brought us even closer. I think it was during my training to try out for the team and then competing with the team that has made me realize my potential as a runner.
There's so much more I could say about UD and stories I could tell, but those are the parts that are most memorable to me. Obviously, it's the people that make it so memorable, not just the place. Oh, and I learned a lot and got a couple degrees. That part is important too!
I'd like to especially wish a happy first day of classes to my brother Kyle and to the siblings of some of my best friends. It's a family school. GO FLYERS!!
UD Friends - Why do YOU love UD??
Why do you love YOUR school?
BILLIKENS
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