20 Years Since I Went off to College

20 years ago this week I moved into the dorms to begin college. It made me wonder what the 18 year old version of me would think about how my life unfolded over the next 20 years. But I'm not sure I was looking that far ahead at 18. I think my focus was on college and what came immediately after over where I would be at in life at 38. 

What an exciting time that was, and I have many fond memories of living in the dorms. When I lived in the dorms (or anywhere for that matter), I've always wondered about the people who lived there before me. So I decided to write a letter to the current residents and share with them my memories of living in the same 10x11 room 20 years before them.

September 1st, 2025

Dear residents of 4320 Elliot,

Congratulations on your matriculation to the University of Michigan.

20 years ago, I found myself in the same spot you are in today, residing in 4320 Elliot. I had roomed blind, and while my roommate and I soon realized that we wouldn’t be best friends, we got along just fine.

The rooms still had a landline phone in them which was wild even for 2005 since by then everyone had a cell phone. In 2005 only some rooms had modular furniture, so we had a company build a loft, which is what most residents did. Under the loft we had a futon. On the weekends my roommate would typically sleep on the pulled out futon with his girlfriend, while his friend who lived on north campus would sleep in his bed. 4 people in a 10x11 room was a tight squeeze.

My roommate, his girlfriend, and his friend in our room

There were a few events that year that I vividly recall. I was playing NCAA ’05 on Playstation 2 in the room next door and won on a fluke play. My friend who lived in the room ran out and kicked an air vent leaving a big dent. I’ve always wondered if that dent is still there. If so, that dent is my legacy.

In March of that year our RA was unjustly fired. Despite the residents’ efforts to come together and overturn this, we spent the last month without an RA, which certainly led to some chaos amongst the men of the floor.

No amount of Save Forest posters can redeem an RA who gave out their master keycard to a resident

On the weekend of St. Paddy’s Day several us of snuck a keg into the hall lounge that had been converted to a triple due to overcrowding in the dorms. When the RA showed up, instead of shutting it down and writing us up, he joined in for a few beers. I think this is when the hall really started gelling together.

On that topic, winter semester is when friendships started to really solidify. Fall semester was such a blur with meeting so many new people, football season, and then thanksgiving and finals. When I went home for winter break, I remember thinking that I had met tons of people but didn’t really feel like I had made any great friends yet. That all changed during winter semester when the cold & dark days of January and February meant a lot more hanging around Markley. Most people I know tend to agree that friendships were really made during winter semester.

Friendships in progress at 4230 Elliot

Many of the friends I made in Markley I still consider amongst my closest friends. Next weekend I’ll be meeting up with a bunch of them at the Oklahoma game and we’ll reminisce about our days in that crappy dorm. While you should study and make sure you get a good education, don’t forget to enjoy the social aspects of college. The friendships are what I cherish most from my time at Michigan.

Please do not feel the need to respond to this letter. It was mostly a self-serving endeavor.

Go Blue!

Brian Russell