In the South, a sleeping porch was often for the summer only. It had lots of windows or was just a big porch with screens, and was usually on a second floor. Our sorority house had its sleeping porch on the third floor. I thought it was wierd at first, but grew quickly to LOVE it. Nobody lived on third - just the chapter room and closets up there - so it was quiet and you could sleep any time, day or night. Alarm clocks were necessary, but you were expected to turn them off quickly. The windows stayed open year-round - and it DOES get cold in Tuscaloosa, Alabama - but you just cuddled up in your electric blanket. Daughter's sorority house at UA (DZ, not DG) has sleeping porches, but there are 2 on each floor along with rooms, so they get a good bit of noise. She hated them. But she's spoiled and pampered!;)

I forgot to finish the history of the sleeping porch...remember, this was before air conditioning. The porch, with all the open windows, allowed more breezes to blow through than in one's room. We have several homes in town, built in the 1890s, that have sleeping porches. In the summer, the family slept out there on, for example, day beds or hammocks. In the winter or cooler weather, they slept in beds inside the house.

hum....maybe this is why I'm just not getting it. I come from a place that is pretty...open??? I guess. We have boys that live in our house (well practically) and we have sisters who live in fraternity houses. But I still find the sharing the room with like 50 other people just a little weird. Didn't it freak you out when you first stayed there? and what is this about guest rooms? Wow, I really am not a 'real' greek....

At IU, most of the sororities have rules about where guys can and can't be...I don't know of any which allow guys anywhere except the first floor. Not in the rooms and certainly not in the cold dorm! (Again, rules might have changed since I was there!)

I don't think fraternities have similar rules, but I could be wrong.

We're pretty open but I'm pretty sure it's a national Pi Phi policy not to have men spending the night. We have guys that are over quite a lot but they don't spend the night and aren't in the house after midnight. On the weekends I just about live at my boyfriend's fraternity but this is because of the guest rules in my house! We go to his house to sleep. It's not a hard concept! :) I personally have documented medical reasons why I cannot sleep in the cold dorm and therefore I sleep in my room. I did stay up there once as a pledge when I was visiting a sister late at night and didn't want to walk home. It wasn't scary and if I didn't have extenuating circumstances I'm sure I'd love sleeping up there. It's a respect issue...I'm sure you wouldn't want a random guy in the cold dorm so you don't do it to your sisters. It's also nice because you don't have to worry about the horror story of someone hooking up in the bed below you! :eek:

At my house we don't have a guest room. There are sororities on my campus that have guest rooms so that their alums can come visit. At my boyfriend's fraternity is where I've stayed in a guest room. It's common practice at Wabash College (an all male college) to have guest rooms in the fraternities. The guest rooms usually have a king sized bed and full bathroom with shower for the female guests on the weekends. I really like the guest room at my boyfriend's fraternity. It has a big bed (so comfy!), a big desk, dresser, closet, really nice shower and private bathroom. It's nice for privacy and if you have a big group of girls coming up it's a nice place to stay.

You're still greek even if you don't do the cold dorm. :D It's a matter of preference and there are houses here who don't have a cold dorm. It's just one more thing to learn about! :)

I think I would really enjoy this. It would be nice to be able to be loud in my room (my keyboard is freakishly loud) without worrying about bothering my roommate. My house is basically like the freshman dorms upstairs, just a hallway with lots of little one- and two-person rooms with a bed, desk, and closet for each person.

I personally loved the cold dorm! (Also, I don't know if jharb mentioned it or not, but we also had a warm dorm as well. :)) It was so peaceful to sleep in when it was warm, and in the winter time was cold enough to be comfortable.

I kind of miss it! Even when living in my own apartment I keep the heater turned down low at night. :D

I don't mind sleeping in the cold but when you wake up in the morning and get out of bed, aren't you FREEZING? I wouldn't want to get out of bed.

I first learned about this from one of Mr. Adrienne's classmates at Purdue who is a Pi Phi and described their "cold air dorm" when she visited. The reason she gave was the "preventing the spread of germs" which I think someone else mentioned earlier.

Is this a trend in Indiana, or is it Pi Phi specifically? (Just curious.)

Adrienne
:)

I think this is a midwestern thing (not just Pi Phi).

Considering I stayed in the same room for 2 years (even when larger ones were available) because it had its own heat that I could crank, NWIH would I have lasted in a cold air dorm!!! :)

It's not just Pi Phi. There are other sororities on Butler's campus with cold dorms.

Yeah, it's a little cold when you wake up, but I guess I never minded too much since my bed was right next to the door. :)

There are two houses up here that have cold dorms or as we call them: dormers. During recruitment when I saw them, I thought it was sort of wierd, but I think that I would have gotten used to it, but up here in Michigan I think that it would be even colder in the winter. ;) It would be interesting to try to live in. Plus who can pass up having the 24 hour dark room to take naps in peace.

Definitely not just a Pi Phi thing, although Pi Phi was one of the houses at IU with such a sleeping arrangement.

I think it is mostly midwestern, although I've seen some schools on the West Coast with that sort of arrangement.

Im just so fasinated by the whole idea of a sleeping porch. Its origins make sense (southern climate, pre AC)...but its amazing to see how its a greek cultural thing. I kinda wish they had something similar to that in our Up North houses...the heat within the bulidings the winter killssss me.

I'm also curious to see how this is set up...could someone be a doll and post some pictures??? It would be much appreicated!:p

We don't really take pictures of the cold dorm...but think of a big huge room filled with bunk beds. That's basically it! lol...not that exciting, but it's nice for the girls who sleep up there. Ours is on the third floor of our house and has a bathroom up there too so you don't have to come down to the second floor to use the facilities! :D