Sorority House

[aephi alum]

Originally Posted by AlphaFrog

If you have an 8am, how do you keep your alarm from waking everyone else on the sleeping porch? I've been wondering this since I first heard of this concept.

There was a coed fraternity at my school, where everyone (men and women) slept on a sleeping porch, specifically, the attic. One of the house duties was a wake-up system that they called "arousal" (LOL). Whoever was on "arousal" duty slept in a room in the main house, with an alarm clock set for 5am (!). Each member signed up for a specific wake-up time starting at (I think) 6am, and the "arousal" person was responsible for quietly awaking each member at his/her chosen time.

[AOII Angel]

We didn't have a house but a dorm floor, but I lived with my sister for two years. When she graduated, I made my mom pay for me to have a private room for my senior year. My room was always open and sisters were in there all the time, but I didn't want a random freshman roommate.

[alum]

80% of housed students at my daughter's school had singles. Both the dorms and the sorority houses had doubles but also plenty of singles. She had a single all 4 years even in the decrepit first-year dorm. The sorority houses are only 15 years old so they are quite modern.

My son's university has mostly doubles in the dorms. His fraternity house.is quite old and the beds seem to be tucked under the eaves in the bedrooms in doubles, trips, and quads.

[KillarneyRose]

I think a single room is always better, but that's just me. Heck, I've been married 21 years and I'd still like my own room!

[amIblue?]

Originally Posted by KillarneyRose

I think a single room is always better, but that's just me. Heck, I've been married 21 years and I'd still like my own room!

I am right there with you and Virginia Woolf. I think we all need a room of one's own. I am a nicer person when I can have my alone time to recharge and regroup.

[KSUViolet06]

My chapter house was all doubles and that was considered to be a luxury as everyone else was mostly triples or even quads. As much as I would've LOVED my own room (I'm an introvert), the sister I roomed with is one of my best friends today (and I graduated undergrad 7 years ago.) Having a roommate was a pretty valuable experience in terms of learning to live with others, too (as I am an only girl and wasn't really used to sharing space.)

[barbino]

I think that moving into the house and getting to know all the girls better requires some room-sharing. I can be an introvert, but I think that for at least your first year in the house that sharing is the best. Many years ago I lived in our house for 2 years. Most of the rooms were doubles (I lived in a double 2 semesters) and 3 rooms were 3 or 4 girl rooms (I lived in these the other 2 semesters). You have the rest of your life to live alone if you want; I think that if your sorority has a house you should live with your sisters. By senior year you might be ready for a single, though ...

There is one exception - I have always thought that the idea of open-air dormers where the whole chapter slept in a giant room was kind of crazy. I don't know if I could do that.

[lunalovegood]

For perspective: I'm a rising junior. My freshman year I lived mostly in a single in the dorms, then sophomore year I moved into the AGD nuthouse and had a different roommate each semester. Our house is set up so that the president is guaranteed a single, and the rest of the rooms are doubles with one triple. Three other doubles can be made into triples and the original triple a quad if necessary.

I'm friends with both sisters I roomed with, but first semester was admittedly difficult since the first sister and I were SO different personality wise and had different schedules/different things that ticked us off. Second semester my roommate was aiming for a single that opened up (which she didn't ultimately get) and I ended up moving in with my best friend (who needed a new roommate since her other best friend/roomie went abroad). It was the best idea ever -- even though she's my best friend, we get along very well as roommates. Similar schedules, same rules about "what goes", and we're living together next year as well.

I've always been more of an introvert and ALWAYS had my own room growing up, but I LOVE living with my roommate. I think it depends on personalities more than anything. Sure, you love all your sisters and have your best friends, but it's definitely easier to live in close quarters with some than others!

[Titchou]

You learn to sleep thru all but your own!

[AlphaFrog]

Originally Posted by Titchou

You learn to sleep thru all but your own!

That wouldn't have worked for me. Unless I'm exhausted, my husband's alarm still wakes me up.

[Titchou]

Originally Posted by AlphaFrog

That wouldn't have worked for me. Unless I'm exhausted, my husband's alarm still wakes me up.

We put them in the bed with us so it wasn't on a hard surface.

[Kevin]

From a house corp standpoint (and I don't see how NPC groups would feel any different), if we're confident we can fill every single bed all of the time, no matter what, a single-room concept is great. If we could ever foresee having an empty bed, then a single-room concept can result in a lot of money burning.

[DubaiSis]

I've heard (though never lived it) that once you get used to being woken gently every morning by an actual person, you really miss it when you have to go back to an alarm clock world. It's not the waking up part that would be my problem, it's the going asleep. Every roll over, snore, mid-dream chuckle, would set me off and I'd never sleep. Yeah for the ridiculously light sleepers of the world.

On a related note, can houses even be built these days with sleeping porches? I would think crowding and people per square foot regulations would prohibit it in new construction. Considering the last house at Iowa to be built (the beautiful AChiO house) had to include sufficient parking, I can't imagine they'd have said "but it's ok to sleep 40+ girls in 1 room!"

[MaryPoppins]

Having lived in two doubles, and one quad, I can say the quad was easier because everyone went to great trouble to be accommodating to one another. Living in the double with luck of the draw women, was always walking on egg shells.

[DeltaBetaBaby]

Our chapter house slept 67, in a mix of singles and doubles, with one triple. For the most part, sophomores got doubles, and juniors got singles or a double if they didn't have a lot of points. I think it was fun to room with someone, but it was also nice to be in the president's suite :-)

We had an open air dorm that nobody slept in regularly, but it was often used for visitors or live-outs. During work week prior to recruitment, a lot of seniors stayed there if their apartments weren't available yet.