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DAILY

5/24/22 11:20

Dear Class of 2026,

Welcome to the University of Michigan! You’ve worked hard and made it through your last high school finals, countless application essays and difficult college decisions.

Congratulations!

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College is an opportune time to grow. Over the next four years, you will not only learn about who you are, but who you want to be. You will feel lost, you will make memories and you will learn what it means to find home in yourself.

Although much of The Daily’s staff did not experience the crowded dorm rooms, lecture halls and parties that usually define the first few weeks of university, we know more than anyone that the places you will see, the people you will meet and the experiences you will have your freshman year are not to be taken for granted. We created this guide to help you navigate the U-M experience, and to share with you the advice we wish we would have heard. We hope that you will recognize yourself in these pages, and know that you are not alone.

It’s time for you to explore campus, connect with fellow incoming students and begin building a home for yourself in Ann Arbor. It may seem scary to branch out of your comfort zone, especially in a new environment, but my time here at the University of Michigan would not be nearly as meaningful if I didn’t pursue the unfamiliar.

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Enroll in courses outside of your interests. Join a club you’ve never heard of. Stay up late talking with someone you’ve just met and wake up early to find the best coffee shop in Ann Arbor. Trust yourself, keep an open mind and listen to what you need.

Try it all, Cubs (those are baby Wolverines)! The Daily will be here for you all the way.

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Niche tips from The Daily

By PAIGE HODDER, Managing Editor

If there is one thing that is certain about The Michigan Daily, we know a lot about the University of Michigan. After three years of being a student myself, I could write a list of all the basic tips and tricks of Ann Arbor and campus life, but you will hear those a million times and can find that knowledge anywhere. As a staff of over 400 students, us Daily staffers are also aware of all the little things, the insider tips and random secrets there are to know about being a student here — and those are what I hope to share with you instead.

The following is a list of the niche tips and tricks, collected from Daily staffers, that every freshman should know before arriving on campus:

1

Listen to the townies (aka the full-time residents of Ann Arbor):

Campus can be a bubble and sometimes you will go weeks without encountering someone not associated with the University. But, there is a wealth of information to be found. For example, when a strange old man tells you to “follow the music to the hippie hash,” on a Friday night as you’re walking around State street with your friends, listen to him. The hippie hash will lead you straight to Fleetwood Diner: the best late-night diner in Ann Arbor. Bring a sticker or two to add to the sizable sticker collection on the wall. And, of course, order the hippie hash — a delicious mix of hashbrowns, vegetables and feta cheese, Fleetwood’s signature dish.

DOMINICK SOKOTOFF/Daily

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Wash your pillowcases every time you do laundry and your sheets as often as you can make yourself:

This may seem like I’m nagging, but trust me, it is a piece of advice you should take to heart. It is so easy to toss your pillowcase into the hamper once a week (yes, this is how often you should be doing laundry) — there is no excuse not to do it. Plus, the feeling of lying down on a clean, fresh pillowcase is one of the simple pleasures that will really help you through this transitional period. The same can be said for sheets, which you should wash often. I understand that the size of bed sheets can make washing them a hassle, so just try to do it when you can. Your skin, especially your face, will also thank you for this — remember, stress is terrible for acne.

Ignore the anti-North Campus bias:

To all those whose hearts will soon be breaking upon receiving housing assignments in Bursley and Baits Residence Halls, I feel you. It is tough: I lived in Baits myself. But, I am not going to tell you to get on waitlists for central campus housing as soon as possible; living on North Campus can be a good thing if you go in with the right mindset. For one, making friends is tough in all the dorms; don’t let the Markley Residence Hall kids tell you otherwise. And there is a lot to like about living in a dorm tucked away in the woods. It is quiet on North Campus in a way it will never be on Central Campus. Take the opportunity, especially if most of your classes will be on Central Campus, to use that quiet to separate your work and home life a bit. Make a day out of going to Central Campus, finish your homework in the library and only then return to North to eat and sleep — the Bursley dining hall is open latest, after all. And enjoy the nature around you! North Campus has some great places to take a walk and, unlike the Diag, you will never have to fight for hammock space up there. Finally, if none of North Campus’s offerings end up being beneficial to you, you will at least know the Blue Bus system better than all of your friends.

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MANAGING EDITOR THE MICHIGAN DAILY

4

Check out the massage chairs on the 4th floor of the Michigan Union:

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Do we even need to explain this one?

5

Leave the East Liberty and South University neighborhoods sometimes:

I know most of you don’t even know what these places are yet, so explore them first. Plenty of fun can be found here, so these are great places to check out while you’re first settling in. But they can also become another bubble of comfort and it is easy to slide into habits where you stop exploring and start repeating. Ann Arbor is a huge city, and it would be a shame if you graduate and never visit the non-college student areas: visit the parks around the city and learn their history, go kayaking or tubing in the river, go golfing or ice skating off-campus. The city is also famous for its food, so check out restaurants like Blue Nile to try something new, go to an off-campus Chipotle to avoid the State street lines or even venture further to Ypsilanti to see what our neighbors have to offer.

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10

The best dining hall is the closest dining hall:

Dining hall loyalties run strong through students, especially those still in student housing. You will hear sweeping recommendations, like “South Quad is by far the best!” and niche ones, such as “Bursley has the best salad bar!” But, you will soon find out that finding the time and energy within your busy schedule to make it to a dining hall is a lot tougher than you think. That is why the best food available is almost always the food that requires the least amount of energy to get to — especially in the winter.

YEAR ONE TIPS

There are plenty of study spaces on campus, from the Shapiro Undergraduate Library (the UGLi), to the Union, to your dorm’s common rooms. But none of them can offer the opportunity to study surrounded by art. The room is open to students whenever they want to use it, so if you are looking for a place to shake up your routine and immerse yourself in the dark academia fantasy, then this study room will be perfect for you. Plus, the UMMA will eventually close and kick you out in the evening, helping to prevent the accidental overnight study coma.

Take a class solely because it interests you:

Don’t do it because it fulfills requirements, not because your friends are taking it or because it fits in your schedule nicely. Look through the course guide, especially during your first year, and take a class that catches your eye. Almost everyone comes into college with an idea of what their major might be, but if you commit to that too early and never allow yourself to push those expectations a bit, you will never know what you are missing out on. We as a society seem to have moved beyond college as learning just for the sake of it, but taking the time to immerse yourself in a non-career-based interest can be really rewarding and take the mental load off of required classes.

I know you want to sleep in, but trust me, the sun becomes a precious commodity in Michigan very quickly.

Your dorm is only so big, and, despite your best efforts, you will probably spend more time there than you want to. So, open the space up a bit by making a habit of opening up your curtains. And, if the weather is nice, pop open the window and let some fresh air in. This is the only way I survived the late-season heat during my freshman year.

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By doing so, you exponentially increase your risk of locking yourself out of not only your dorm room, but also your building, which can only be accessed via MCard after hours. No one wants to be the person calling their roommate out of bed after dark to let them in because you ran out the door without thinking.

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Open the curtains in your dorm:

Use the study room at the University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA):

Don’t ever leave your room key and MCard in your room at the same time:

MANAGING EDITOR THE MICHIGAN DAILY

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A former introvert’s guide to navigating a big school

By GEORGE WEYKAMP, Daily News Editor

I

’m going to be completely real with you: when I committed to the University of Michigan two years ago, I was convinced I had made the worst mistake of my life.

I had spent all of high school under the impression that a big public school like this one would eat me alive. How could I — someone who had never drunk more than a sip of alcohol in their life, was terrified of party culture and went to a school with a graduating class of less than 300 people — possibly fit in at a Big Ten school?

Now, if you’re in my situation you’ve probably heard from countless counselors, peers and maybe even siblings that the University isn’t that big. It is. One nice thing about The Michigan Daily’s 131 years of editorial independence is that no one is making me lie to you. The University is huge. And overwhelming.

And scary.

But honestly, that’s what makes it great.

Two years in, I can confidently say I would’ve hated going to one of the small liberal arts colleges that wouldn’t give me enough financial aid. In all honesty, they sound boring. So here are my tips and tricks on how to make a big school feel small, from a former introvert.

SAY YES

Don’t say yes to everything, obviously.

The first few weeks of college can be overwhelming, especially for introverts.

But everyone is scared to death that first week, even if they’re pretending they aren’t.There’s constantly something going on — people you’ve never met before are Design by Jennie Vang

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NEWS THE MICHIGAN DAILY

suddenly your roommates, your next door neighbor won’t shut up at 3 a.m. and people you’ve met exactly one time will ask you to go to the movies, to eat in the dining hall or to find your classes.

My advice? SAY YES!!! If they’re terribly boring, guess what, you’ve lost out on 20 minutes of your life and you never have to see them again. But if they’re great, you could form a relationship that could last a lifetime.

SAY NO

Okay, I know I’m contradicting myself, but as much as you should say yes to trying new things and hanging out with people, never be afraid to say no to things you are uncomfortable with. If you’re not comfortable drinking, don’t drink! Again, no one’s paying me to lie to you: “Welcome Week” is kind of a mess.

People in your hall will drink. But you don’t have to. If you aren’t comfortable drinking, then don’t drink. For the most part, people don’t suck as much as they did in high school and won’t judge you for going to a party completely sober if that’s what you want to do.

DON’T DON’TJUST JUSTRELY RELYON ONYOUR YOUR HIGH SCHOOL FRIENDS

If you’re like me and are an in-state student, you’re probably coming to college with (for better or for worse) some people you know from high school.

Don’t rely on them! While it can be nice to catch up at dinner or hang in the Diag occasionally, eventually your high school friends are going to meet other people.

And while they (probably) won’t abandon you completely, it can be really isolating

when your one friend on campus is busy.

JOIN JOIN AT AT LEAST LEASTTWO TWOCLUBS CLUBS

Ok this is cliché, but trust me. I joined The Daily as a nerdy pre-med student because I wanted to make friends. Now, I’m actively pursuing a career in journalism and have met some of the best friends of my life. I can’t put into words how this student organization has changed my life, and it can do that for you too! Not only do the clubs on campus connect you with people who have similar interests, but they also force you to get to know new people. If you go to a few meetings and decide you hate it, guess what: it’s a big school, everyone there will forget about you if you stop showing up. You might be stuck on their Listserv from now until the end of the time, though. And if that doesn’t happen, you’ll have found your own little niche on campus.

GO TO SPORTS GAMES

Before college, I thought football was a waste of time (and I played it). Two years later, I can confidently say I still hate all sports, except U-M football. There is something electric about being in the Big House surrounded by 100,000 fans decked in maize and blue that makes you feel part of something bigger than yourself.

Also, the chants are fun — like really, really fun. Buy season tickets; don’t miss out (P.S. no one really cares about your assigned seats).

DON’TBE BEAFRAID AFRAIDTO TO DON’T EMBARRASS YOURSELF EMBARRASS YOURSELF

I went to a really small high school where I felt like everyone was watching my every move constantly. At the University, no one can watch 40,000 people’s every move, so you’re off the hook. Audition for that acapella club, look into that improv group, try that sport you’ve never even played, join the kazoo club! Even if you suck, you never have to see those people again.

Daily News Editor George Weykamp can be reached at gweykamp@umich.edu.

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I

n my experience, there are two ways you can go about making friends in college.

Option one: talk to every person you see, exchange numbers and try to interact with them whenever possible (aka whenever you’re confident enough to send a message, or whenever you feel like it’s appropriate).

There’s that, or you can join a club.

I tried the first strategy, and it didn’t work super well for me. I’m still glad I tried it; I was just too nervous to actually talk to people. If you’re not like me, and you think you’ll have no trouble getting up the courage to text first, go ahead with this strategy: it should work wonders for you.

If you are like me, though, then I suggest you join the Quidditch team.

In all reality, your Quidditch team doesn’t actually have to be the Quidditch team, if you catch my drift. If you don’t, keep reading — I’ll explain.

I found the Quidditch team at Festifall, the annual event where all the clubs and student organizations gather on the Diag to pitch themselves to students. You can walk around and talk to new people, find out about different clubs and get added to their listserv email groups. And, if you’re like me, you’ll find your Quidditch team there.

At first, I was hesitant to join. Not because I was afraid of the people, or the activity itself, but because I was afraid they didn’t want me. Spoiler alert: Every student organization on campus wants you.

Don’t be afraid to take the leap and try.

Even if there is an application, or a tryout, or another barrier to entry, don’t let it scare you! I promise you, you have more of a shot than you realize.

I had never played a sport like Quidditch before. I had spent the past three weeks doing virtually no exercise, and I was

incredibly out of shape. And in order to get onto the Quidditch team, you have to try out. I nearly dropped out right then and there. But then I woke up the morning of tryouts, made my way to the Nichols Arboretum, and I tried out.

And I actually made it onto the team.

So, tip #1: Don’t be afraid to try for the things you want.

Then there was the part of actually being on the team. My first practice with the Quidditch team was daunting, and I’m sure you’ll feel the same way when you go to the first meeting of a student organization you’ve joined (assuming you take my advice and try). The thing I was worried the most about was finding someone to talk to. Once I was there, I was overwhelmed by everyone’s preexisting relationships.

I barely knew how to play the game, and there all the older kids were, joking about past games and tournaments and plays.

The only people I could relate to were the two other freshmen.

Their names are Danny and Renee. I approached Danny first, albeit cautiously, but he was just as afraid and clueless as I was. But, as it turned out, we both lived in Mary Markley. We walked to practice together, and he was one of the few people who understood how afraid I was to talk to other people on the team and what it was like sinking into an activity I wasn’t used to.

Renee was different in some ways, but she was the same as me in others. She was much more outgoing than I was, but she also needed to build connections with the other people on the team just as much as I did. She forced me to talk to more people, and she made me relax, even when I was scared.

So, that’s where tip #2 comes in: Start with the freshmen and branch out.

Chances are, they’re in the same place as you.

The second phase of my master plan, after I approached the freshman, was branching out, which was almost as terrifying as joining or attending practices. The juniors and seniors on the team were incredibly intimidating. Even the sophomores, who hadn’t been on campus yet and were just as clueless and terrified as I was, were scary.

But I had already formed my freshman group and needed to expand.

That’s where social events come in.

Chances are, in any student organization you choose, there will be social events.

These are events that are casual — out of the scope of the student organization — and they’re also prime friend-making opportunities. That senior who may look terrifying on the pitch (at least in my case) or in the newsroom, again my case at the Daily, may look far more approachable when you’re playing a board game with them.

The thing is — you’re never going to know if you don’t go. I was scared of social events at first because it meant a lot of talking and a lot of interacting, which can be exhausting. But it was attending those events that made the Quidditch team my Quidditch team. Inside jokes were made, I came out of my shell and I started to feel like I could approach these people. The next thing I knew, I was chatting with them at practice, joking with them in the car to tournaments and even hanging out with them at other social events.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

Four tips on joining student orgs I learned from the Quidditch team

By RILEY HODDER, Summer Managing News Editor

Design by Abby Schreck

NEWS THE MICHIGAN DAILY

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The part

T

he first car ride to your dorm is overwhelming.

It’s an overpacked SUV filled with things you’ll stuff in the back of your closet and never look at again until move-out, the same things that a girl on YouTube told you were “college essentials.”

It’s your dad turning down the music from your August Spotify playlist that’s connected to the car’s speakers so he can give you another piece of advice that he forgot he had already mentioned yesterday, and the day before that and – unsurprisingly – the day before that.

It’s your mom slipping a hot pink pepper spray and safety alarm into your bag without you looking.

It’s your brother falling asleep in the front seat after you kept him up late; as a sentimental hoarder who saves the old gum wrappers your friends folded into hearts

Design by Roshni Mohan

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MICHIGAN IN COLOR THE MICHIGAN DAILY

during math class, you decided to procrastinate the crushing task of packing your whole life into an SUV. It’s your mom sitting silently to hide the cracks in

her voice and looking out the window to conceal the tear-stains on her cheeks and glossiness in her eyes. But to you, it’s high expectations and fear. All this newfound independence is just dumped onto your shoulders like your partially ripped high school backpack that you’ve decided would suffice for college, and you’re now expected to lug around the weight of your life everywhere you go. It’s overthinking what your life is about to become, what your roommate you met from a Facebook group might actually be like outside of a screen, if you’ll get lost finding your room or the dining hall, and to an introvert like me, the most daunting of all: how hard it is going to be to make friends.

The thought of making new friends scared me. So many people were coming to the University of Michigan with friends from their hometowns or friends they made through Facebook groups, and I came in with no one, since my roommate was moving in much later than me. Because of this, I did everything in my power to form these friendships early on. I left my door open like all the college advice YouTube videos and TikToks told me to. I smiled at everyone in the halls, forgetting I had a mask on my face, and they wouldn’t be able to tell. Yet, nothing sparked.

No immediate friendships formed that would last a lifetime like the girls on YouTube promised me. It took time for me to make friends. But once I did, it wasn’t like I pictured it. We weren’t spending every day exploring the city, trying every restaurant and boba place or going out to parties. We were sitting in my dorm, eating fries from the Bursley dining hall while watching “That ‘70s Show,” something we did for weeks until we had to leave the dorms due to the pandemic. It was nice to have these friends — the people you can stay in with and just relax. But there was only so many soggy fries and stale dorm air that I could take, and that’s only something I would prefer doing after already experiencing the city.

they don’t show you After another year, I was starting my sophomore year, or as I like to call it, my freshman year redo. The car ride was a little different this time. My brother had moved away to med school, so it was just my parents and I in the car ride back to campus, but otherwise, it felt the same. We moved into my apartment, and just like that, I was in college again.

Every past expectation from a failed freshman year came back twice as hard, heightened by the underlying fear of having to make friends again.

Every college story I saw on TV revolved around these big, cute friend groups that did everything together.

I wanted that and felt like if I didn’t have it, then I couldn’t have the classic college experience. It pushed me to spend my free time wherever my few friends wanted to go, and if they weren’t free, I’d spend my time just sitting in my apartment. If I wanted to try a restaurant, I’d ask my roommates or my friends, and if they were busy, I wouldn’t go. Because watching those classic college movies made me feel like there was no point in going by myself since I wouldn’t enjoy it nearly as much. This pattern summed up both my freshman year and the beginning of my freshman year redo perfectly. I never saw the city like I wanted to, like I imagined I would on the car ride there.

It was only after I got upset with my roommate for never wanting to go out that I realized how ridiculous I sounded.

I was upset that since I never went out without her, I never got to see the city.

While I was complaining that I never got the chance to go out since no one wanted to come, she asked me a question I should have asked myself every time I wanted to leave the apartment: “Why don’t you just go by yourself? Everyone else does.”

Her words really made me think.

Why was I making such a big deal of having to go everywhere with friends?

What was I trying to prove, and to who?

The characters in the movies I was watching? The girls from the YouTube channels? Myself and my insecurities?

Whatever it was, it stopped me from

By ROSHNI MOHAN, MiC Columnist

having that dream freshman year and my dream freshman year redo. But my roommate’s words made me realize that being alone is integral to every college experience. It’s just the part that the YouTube girls don’t mention and that the college movies conveniently leave out. So, I decided to give myself one more chance at a redo.

The first time I went somewhere on campus alone — other than to class — was to get boba and study. I plugged in my wired headphones, which kept falling out after getting caught on my sweater or bag, and walked. I went to the boba place that I had gone to once before with my dorm friends during freshman year, and then to the Union, since I always found the quiet lounge pretty to look at. The walk was surprisingly peaceful. Nobody cared that I was getting boba alone or studying alone. Half the people I saw were too. And to me, it was just my music and the city of Ann Arbor that I deprived myself of, something I missed out on my freshman year.

I never realized how important being alone really is. Yes, you become independent and don’t have to rely on others as much, but you also learn a lot about yourself. I don’t want my advice to you to be the cliché “use college to find yourself,” but in hindsight, it is.

Not in the “find out what you want to do with your life” kind of way, but more in the “find out your favorite restaurant on Main Street and your favorite floor of the UGLi to study on” kind of way.

Use college to find yourself, and answer the simple questions like: What sugar level do you prefer in your boba?

Are you a picnic or hammock person?

Smaller apartment parties or frats? Joe’s Pizza or NYPD? Can you actually handle an 8 a.m. class or do you just think you can? And the best way to answer those questions is to answer them alone.

MiC Columnist Roshni Mohan can be reached at romohan@umich.edu.

MICHIGAN IN COLOR THE MICHIGAN DAILY

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Design by Jennie Vang

By SARAH OGUNTOMILADE, MiC Assistant Editor

Reflections on my freshman year

“

Tell us about your favorite ice cream flavors, and we’ll tell you what 90’s RomCom you are.”

Now, bizarre internet quizzes like these might seem like an absurd way to spend one’s time, but sitting hunched over my laptop on my twin-sized bed freshman year, meticulously answering these ridiculous questions on BuzzFeed quizzes, was my idea of a productive night in.

My closest friends will tell you that I love personality tests. From BuzzFeed quizzes to the Enneagram, I’m infatuated with the idea of knowing myself from an outside perspective.

I once thought that self-awareness and confidence were contradictory, that somehow being confident required some level of delusion or a lack of self-awareness.

I obsessed over personality tests like the Enneagram and the Myers-Briggs in hopes that they would provide me some sort of insight into how others perceived me. I thought that without confirmation of how others felt about me, having high selfesteem was simply irrational. This thought process resulted in me really caring what others thought about me during my freshman year. I believed that in order to present myself in the best light to all the new people I was going to meet, I had to be overly critical of myself.

Embarrassment was my least favorite sensation, to the point that it kept me up at night. So my first year in Ann Arbor, I

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MICHIGAN IN COLOR THE MICHIGAN DAILY

avoided embarrassment like the plague.

I wouldn’t raise my hand in class, even when I knew the answer, in fear of being that student who wouldn’t shut up. I would simply starve instead of eating in the dining hall alone. I over-fixated on every public failure, like when I tripped and fell in the Diag, even though I’m pretty sure no one was looking. I meditated on every awkward silence and convinced myself that the other person wasn’t really interested in talking to me. Perhaps it was the realization that I would never be able to control how others perceived me that caused me to simply isolate myself from those around me.

The importance of first impressions had been instilled in me from childhood. I have vivid memories of my Nigerian mother smothering my face with vaseline before the first day of kindergarten, telling me that I had to be on my best behavior so my teachers knew I came from a good household.

I remember preparing for job interviews, my dad lecturing me on the importance of making a good first impression, especially when competing for work as a minority.

And what was freshman year if not one drawn-out first impression?

I had to get it right the first time. I mean, this was the first year of adulthood, right?

I had to be perfect. There was no room for embarrassment here. But first impressions are not like BuzzFeed quizzes; you can’t keep redoing them until you get the result that you want.

So every day, I would obsess over what I was wearing and what I was posting. I would leave every conversation wondering

what the other person thought of me. I would fall asleep to a mental reel of every social interaction that had taken place that day. I was unnecessarily torturing myself, and I didn’t know how to stop.

I have been the new girl more times than I would have liked. I moved halfway across the world a month before my senior year of high school. I knew what it was like for all eyes to be on me, for people to wonder who I am, where I came from, and how I got here.

Yet, I never felt as much pressure to perform as I did my freshman year of college. Why did I suddenly care so much about what people thought of me?

Well, in addition to Buzzfeed quizzes, my second guilty pleasure would definitely be coming-of-age films. A coming-of-age story is one that follows a protagonist as they transition from childhood to adulthood.

It captures first loves, first heartbreaks, first college parties and other firsts we hope to experience in our early adulthood.

Reflecting back on high school, I would have described myself as a late bloomer when it came to a lot of these “firsts,” so I put a lot of pressure on freshman year to be the start of my “coming-of-age” arc. I had convinced myself that college is where my life would truly begin. College is where I would meet my future husband, or at least my bridesmaids. College is where I would figure out who I was, and who I was meant to be.

In November of my first year here at the University of Michigan, I found myself cracking under the pressure that only I had placed on myself.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

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5/20/22 10:55 AM

1

Fleetwood Diner

It’s 3 a.m. You and your closest friends are just coming down from a night of hedonism and adventure around a chilly Ann Arbor. The only thing that is on anyone’s mind is cheap, warm, greasy food. Eggs, hash browns and toast all in generous portions struggle to stay on one plate. A third of a pound of ground beef, cheese and onions soak through the rye they’re all precariously placed on.

Hot dogs with all kinds of toppings burst with every bite. The mere thought of it all makes your heart warm and your mouth water. Then, through the fog, a great red neon sign reveals itself to you: “Fleetwood Diner.” The sign is perched upon a small, sheet metal-clad shack that looks plucked straight out of a ’50s Americana fairytale. Layers of stickers covering every surface of the restaurant suggest the place has been a staple for hungry midnight marauders for decades.

The place is only just big enough to fit a few groups, which makes your table feel all the more special. You look around and see a diner packed with college kids in the same boat as you. You all swear the food tastes better after midnight.

Fleetwood Diner has become such a staple in moments such as these that it’s almost impossible to imagine Ann Arbor without it. And as it’s open 24 hours, you’ll soon see how essential this little spot is regardless of the time of day you visit.

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2

Amer’s Deli

There’s perhaps no place in Ann Arbor as versatile as Amer’s Deli.

Need a quick bite to eat in between classes? Boom. Amer’s. Catching up with some old friends? Boom. Amer’s. Looking for a casual not-too-serious date spot? Boom.

Amer’s. Walking into Amer’s, you’re immediately flooded with just how insanely massive their menu is. Right above the main counter is a seemingly endless snaking display of chalkboards each filled entirely with menu items written in the teeniest, tiniest print. While this may seem overwhelming the first time you visit, it’s always exciting trying obscure menu items, going out of your comfort zone and finding new favorites (please try the Megwich).

This variety also ensures that everyone will find something to love here.

And if you spend the time to explore Amer’s expansive menu, you’ll quickly realize how dang good everything on it is. Whether you order a sandwich, some breakfast or an açai bowl, it all seems to hit the spot. Plus, with Amer’s wicked convenient and centrally located spot, which is usually packed with students, you’re bound to run into some unexpected friends on the many trips you’ll inevitably be taking.

Jerusalem Garden

When I first arrived in Ann Arbor two years ago, I only had one goal in mind: to find some good shawarma. After tearfully wishing my hometown shawarma spot goodbye and embarking to a land of unfamiliar slow roasted rotisserie meats, I knew I had to find a place to replace my old love. What ensued was a journey that took me to the far reaches of Ann Arbor. On my travels, I found many delicious shawarma spots — Pita Kabob and Baba Dari proved promising, but ultimately fell flat of my hometown favorite. That was until I discovered Jerusalem Garden, shining out to me like a piece in their glistening stained glass sign — absolute Middle Eastern perfection.

Perhaps you don’t share the same passion for shawarma as I have. That can be excused. However, Jerusalem Garden is more than just your typical quick, food truck style shawarma stop. Jerusalem Garden offers seriously delicious middle eastern cuisine, a premium selection of Turkish coffees and an ambiance fancy enough you’ll want to take your parents there when they visit. So if you ever get the hankering for some tabbouli or stuffed grape leaves and visit Jerusalem Garden, you’ll be sure to catch me sitting on the porch, chowing down on the best shawarma in town.

Three essential food spots in Ann Arbor

By KAI BARTOL, Summer Managing Arts Editor

ARTS THE MICHIGAN DAILY

15

Social media accounts you HAVE to follow as a UMich student

The Michigan Daily @michigandaily has the in on EVERYTHING. Local musical artists? Yep. University President AND/OR City Council members being a little frisky? Always. TMD staffers befriending squirrels dressed as squirrels? I think you know the answer by now. On top of this, these accounts are the best place to learn about the University and Ann Arbor-based news as well as everything you could ever want to know about U-M sports. Following The Michigan Daily on ALL platforms is a necessity, and not just because this entire amazing edition is by our staffers.

You can find us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok, and for all your sports needs follow @theblockm on Twitter and Facebook.

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AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT THE MICHIGAN DAILY

UMich Fits Even though the typical U-M student dress code is maize or blue sweats, others are dressing to impress. @Umichfits is run by a current student who takes pictures of students wearing cool, interesting and jazzy outfits in the Diag or around campus. Follow them on Instagram to keep up with their next shoot location as well as outfit inspo, because we could all use some more excitement in our everyday looks. If you are looking for even more spicy outfits, check out @umichfits_u_missed.

By MISHAL CHARANIA & MARTINA ZACKER, Summer Managing Audience Engagement Editors

UMich Affirmations

As @umichaffirmations says themselves, this account is “#inspiration for your soul.” Umich Affirmations will keep you up with the news and current U-M events with 10/10 Photoshop edits. Most importantly, the account affirms that you are not alone in your experiences. You are lucky enough to attend the school with the BEST affirmations account because although the account is constantly dealing with other rival university affirmations accounts, we tend to come out on top. If you love this account, make sure to check out their merch so you can have an affirmation stuck on your computer, on your tote bag or even as your shower curtain.

UMich Missed Connections

Sometimes, someone is so cool or cute and it takes you a second to process it. And after 10 minutes, or even 10 days, you realize that you might have just missed your soul mate. Luckily @michiganmissedconnections on Instagram has your back! They can help you try and find your perfect person, or at least give you the chance to slide into their DMs. If a description of yourself never makes it on the account, just reading the hilarious and adorable descriptions of your classmates will brighten your day. Even if you are not looking for love, make sure to check out their posts for anything that might even remotely describe you.

ALL of the dining hall food reviewers

Here at the University, you never know what dining-hall food you can and can’t trust. Luckily, all of the dining halls have at least one, if not multiple, food review Instagram accounts that you can trust (mostly). Of course, follow your heart (or stomach) but be wary of where it might take you (aka a dorm toilet). While there are many accounts that cover dorm food reviews, a few of these include @bursleyfoodcritic and @ mojoculinarycreations. Just keep an eye out for @umich_milkdrinkers because they have spies everywhere.

AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT THE MICHIGAN DAILY

17

YES

The power of saying

T

Advice from TMD’s opinion section

his will be my last year at the University of Michigan. I lost my freshman year to the COVID-19 pandemic. I’m losing another year of undergrad to early graduation. I was promised four years of life-changing experiences, and now I have to spend my second and last “real” year wrapping things up. You would think, dear reader, that my U-M experience has been subpar. What if I told you that you were wrong? What if I told you that in the time that I’ve spent here, I’ve made some of the most concrete, loving and fulfilling connections that I’ve ever made in my life? Most importantly, what if I told you that all of my best experiences here started with a one word response?

I ended my freshman year in a weird haze. Overall, it was a solid year and I made great friends, but if I’m speaking frankly, it was nothing to write home about. As I geared up for my return to Ann Arbor ready to spend a “true”

18

Talk to your professors! You might hear this all the time and not think much of the idea, but the faculty here is an outstanding resource.

If you’re an introvert like me, it may be daunting to take that first step and introduce yourself, but I promise it’s worth the bit of anxiety. They’ve dedicated their lives to the subjects that you’re interested in studying and would love nothing more than to help you reach your full potential, both academically and personally. Going to office hours is a great way to get help studying for a test, but you should also view that time as an opportunity to ask questions and receive insights that you can’t find anywhere else.

ARTS & OPINION THE MICHIGAN DAILY

year at school (something my friends referred to as “freshman year take two”), I realized what I had to do in order to make the most of my time here: I just had to say “yes.” Of course, school is important and I’m not saying to not work hard. I’m saying play just as hard as you work. Every U-M student is of extremely high caliber. You will spend hours upon hours in the Shapiro Undergraduate Library slaving away in preparation for one exam or the other.

You will type as fast as your fingers can possibly move to submit that paper that’s due in an hour. And yes, you will have a few really good stress-cry sessions here and there. It’s just part of life. But you deserve balance. Should you also attend every tailgate you possibly can? Yes. Should you stay up talking to your friends in the living room instead of getting a couple extra hours of sleep?

Yes. Should you audition for that dance team that seems cool or apply to write

By SWARA RAMASWAMY, Daily Arts Writer

for the newspaper that caught your eye?

Yes and yes.

This place is huge. It is all too easy to get caught up in the tide of what’s going on and lose a sense of self and place. By simply saying “yes” to the opportunities that come your way, you open yourself up to so many different ways you can make such a daunting place feel like home. You will become friends with some of the coolest people that have ever graced your presence and you will begin to think of them as family. You will learn things about yourself that you’ve never dared to consider before.

Your experiences will give you the tools you need to go forward without fear and self-doubt. And even if you must depart early, you will leave feeling proud of everything that you’ve done. The best parts of your life are waiting for you.

Just say yes.

Daily Arts Writer Swara Ramaswamy can be reached at swararam@umich.edu.

My biggest piece of advice for your freshman year of college is to adjust and ease up your expectations for yourself, both from a social and academic perspective.

College comes with so many different changes — from course loads to social life — and especially that move to a completely new place. It is so important to make it known to yourself that you don’t have to be perfect and have things go smoothly for you immediately because with new changes comes a probable transition period. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself to be the “most” of yourself you can be; just do your best. Join organizations that you find meaningful, take classes that mean something to you, meet new people that you feel closely connected with. Don’t force yourself to take everything on like you may have done in high school. Go easy on yourself because it will turn out better for you, your transition to college, your academics and your overall mental health.

College can be super hard, even if you think you are ready to move out of your family home. For me, the transition to college was a lot harder than I anticipated it to be. If you have a similar experience to what I had, don’t stress yourself out too much. You will adjust, just give it time. My advice to you is to take pretty easy classes your first semester. You can check how hard a class is by searching it on U-M Atlas and looking at the % workload. Aim for all of your classes to be under 10-15% workload so you are able to adjust to university life without stressing out about academics too much. Also, I would advise you to join clubs/organizations, sit by random people in the dining hall and go to social events around campus in order to make some friends. Talk to people in your dorm hall and get on good terms with your roommate(s). Take care of yourself, however that may be. There is no shame in turning to CAPS resources if you need to. You got this!

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Design by Madison Grosvenor

The “college experience” is overrated

By LEAH LARSON, Opinion Columnist

W

hat actually defines the “college experience?” Some college students say that simply living away from home or finding your true self is what the college experience is all about.

I had the pleasure of talking to Christian Schwartz, a rising junior here at the University of Michigan, who told me that college students can become more “selfsufficient” and that college can make students “more sociable and outgoing.” I would argue that you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to become more sociable or more independent, especially if college isn’t right for you. Attending a university is not a prerequisite to becoming the person you want to be.

The most common definition of the “college experience” that I hear from friends and past almost-lovers is more complex than greater independence.

They say the true college experience is drinking, going to frat parties or getting high with your friends after you finish that pesky exam. Establishing a new friend group to do those activities with is a significant part of college, and it often comes with a huge amount of pressure, says Elise Kanefsky, a rising sophomore at the University.

Drinking and partying can be loads of fun, but I think college kids often forget what it’s like to have fun while they’re sober. Sometimes, I think back on high school and remember the times when all of my friends would hang out sober on a Saturday night. I haven’t experienced hangouts like that much in college, which

just goes to show how stressed out young adults are during their studies. “Going hard” on the weekends can be an outlet for forgetting about your stressors from the previous week.

Truly the most overrated part about the college experience, though, is hookup culture. I talked recently with my sister, a student at Western Michigan University, about our experiences successfully finding significant others while in college.

To no surprise, we both came up with the same conclusion: No one wants to commit to a relationship.

The whole idea of creating a college experience through hooking up and having fun with no worries seems to be enough for a lot of students, which is why it is so hard for people who want to settle down to find an eligible significant other.

Meaningless sex can be healthy in some instances, but it can also be disastrous.

Emotional intimacy is very valuable, but I think most college students don’t want to commit to a relationship because of the fear of heartbreak. I say, let yourself fall in love because the heartbreak will heal.

According to Kanefsky, “hookup culture creates a sort of detachment from one’s emotions and can affect how someone treats others.” The degree of casualness applied to sex in modern college life can make someone who expresses romantic feelings seem weird or overbearing. It’s a shame that those who have a lot of love to give can’t seem to give it.

Even though hookup culture can be unfavorable in some instances, a few

flings might not be so bad. They allow for fun and pleasure without the emotional hurt. Hookups may help college students work on themselves and take a break from the pressure of trying to impress others.

So, my advice to you is this: Let yourself have a crush on that pretty girl who always sits at the front of the lecture hall.

Heartbreak sucks, but at least it shows you what you want in a relationship — or whether you even want one. You just might learn some things about yourself too. Explore your sexuality, experiment with polyamorous relationships, just don’t hold yourself back from a potentially amazing thing, if that’s what you want. Trying out a relationship can be a lot more meaningful than a Friday night hookup.

You can make the “college experience” out to be what you want it to be. Do what you want to do. The current definition of the “college experience” (drinking, partying, hookups) is overrated.

Sometimes, the best college experiences are watching a movie at home or going on a date with a boy you met through mutual friends. Don’t feel pressured into using substances, going out every Thursday, Friday and Saturday night or going home with a frat boy you met twenty minutes ago. Make friends, find yourself — or don’t (but I hope you do). These four years just might be the best four years of your life.

Leah Larsen is an Opinion Columnist and can be reached at leahlars@umich.edu.

OPINION THE MICHIGAN DAILY

21

W

hen I entered my freshman year, “long-distance relationships never work out” echoed in my subconscious. It was a sentiment I had heard countless times but ignored with staunch vexation. As a couple, we had survived some serious impediments before: a pandemic that isolated our families for months, no-contact while he backpacked through sequestered mountains and our first bout of long-distance while he attended out-of-state college for the duration of my senior year. But I had stubbornly resolved that our relationship would endure my first year at the University of Michigan. I took umbrage at the more experienced people in my life who advised against my decision.

We aren’t like those other couples, I dismissed, and our healthy communication will surely shield us from the problems associated with long-distance, right?

Wrong. Unsurprisingly, we inexorably ended our relationship just three months into my freshman year. I was suddenly converted from rationalizing and defending my decision to anyone who’d listen to realizing how invaluable ending distance relationships can be for living life to the fullest during your first year.

As two former participants in longdistance relationships, we offer this token

of advice to incoming freshmen who may be teetering on making such a decision: dump them!

“Distance doesn’t change anything” Possibly the most significant misconception about long-distance relationships is that the “only difference” between long-distance relationships and in-person relationships is the physical distance itself. While this optimistic outlook may be an easier pill to swallow, it overtly contradicts what we now know to be true: Physical distance changes absolutely everything about the way a relationship works, from muddling previously straightforward communication to the amount of effort that must be channeled into the relationship to ensure its survival.

Suddenly, your intertwined lives become distinctly separate, complicating the “togetherness” you grew accustomed to during the relationship. Hugs, kisses, handholds and sex are reduced to video chatting and text messaging, an irreplaceable loss for partners who value physical intimacy in their romantic relationships. The incongruencies between partners that are typically manageable in-person can be immensely magnified by distance, which puts a great deal of strain on the relationship and exposes its weaknesses.

While the in-person relationship may have felt effortless, rewarding and mutual, the distance can make relationship maintenance feel exhausting, unfulfilling and unequally distributed.

The unfortunate reality is that long-

Our advice to freshmen:

Ditch the long-distance relationship

By SOPHIA LEHRBAUM & AMY EDMUNDS, Opinion Columnists

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OPINION THE MICHIGAN DAILY

Design by Abby Schreck

distance relationships are like doubleblack diamond runs at ski resorts: Few can surmount it, and the rest get hurt by overestimating what they can handle.

When it comes to long-distance, loving the other person is simply not enough to keep the relationship alive.

A time of rapid and exponential growth If you’re like most people, your freshman year will be the first time that you’re living without dependency on your parents. This new freedom will give you the opportunity to discover who you really are on your own.

What are your personal morals? What do you believe? How will you live? This time of exploration will begin during your college years and lend to drastic personal growth.

As most college sophomores can tell you, the person you are when you enter your freshman year of college is rarely the person you are when you finish. Freshman year is a catalyst for exponential growth and change, which yields transformed life perspectives, goals for the future and even changes the person you fundamentally are. Your friend group may be completely unlike what you had in your high school years, shaping you into a very different being. You may discover new loves and hobbies, while dropping old activities that formerly may have had a much larger impact on your life. Because of the immense amount of change that freshmen undergo during their first year of college, many relationships that began with like-mindedness and camaraderie can quickly become incompatible.

Understandably, people change over time.

But this much change in a short span of time is heavily pronounced and disruptive in a long-distance relationship. While in-person relationships allow for partners to change and adjust together, long-distance typically encourages a more separate growth that results in very separate outcomes for each person involved. This can mean that you and your partner are suddenly discordant in terms of political views, long-term goals, interests or attributes. In other words, the relationship may no longer “work” because it has evolved past its original condition, now existing between two very different people than who it began with. Just as developing children quickly outgrow their old clothes, developing college freshmen may quickly outgrow their old relationships.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com

DOMINICK SOKOTOFF/Daily

campus playlist

My high school graduation gift was a pair of AirPods. I thought they would be an easy way to listen to music on walks and catch up on a technology trend a few years late, but they quickly became so much more. During freshman year, I experienced the best and worst days of my life with my AirPods perpetually stuck in my ears, providing a sort of understanding and support through lyrics and melody. I became obsessed with curating the perfect playlist for walking every corner of the University of Michigan campus, making hundreds of playlists to suit every seemingly insignificant moment. To me, a playlist is a college survival kit. Here is a starting point for your playlist and survival kit, centered around some unavoidable campus landmarks.

By Kaya Ginsky, Summer Statement Correspondent

The Diag - “Campus” by Vampire Weekend

ALI CHAMI/Daily

Much like the song “Campus” by Vampire Weekend (a band founded by students at Columbia University), there is something so quintessentially collegiate about the Diag. Thousands of unknown and familiar faces pass by at the epicenter of campus every day. While the Diag is the perfect place to people-watch and a necessary roadblock to getting nearly anywhere on campus, it is also where you will see every single person you know. The flirty classmate in your 9 a.m.? The cool dorm neighbor who is your new “friend crush?” Your scary professor who assigned 30 pages of reading during syllabus week? The Diag is the largest stage on campus and a place where you can either show off or hide away and tune out the crowds.

As you walk through the masses, Ezra Koenig’s voice sounds over the poppy baseline: “Then I see you, you’re walking ‘cross the campus… How am I supposed to pretend I never want to see you again?”

Frat/Co-op Row - “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers

ALI CHAMI/Daily

When “coming out of my cage” sounds out of the Big House speakers, all 110,000 maizeand-blue-clad fans harmonize for two minutes of chaos. But the lyrics apply to the party scene beyond game-day tailgates and the Big House. The defeated jealousy hidden in the party hit makes it an anthem for a wasted night. In the song, guitarist-songwriter Dave Keunig depicts singer Brandon Flowers’s breakup with a cheating girlfriend. The chorus repeats (in an angst-ridden, jealous voice) that Flowers must return to being the optimistic “Mr. Brightside.” Here, whether centered around house parties, Greek life, cooperative houses or student organizations, there is always something to do. With the “scene’s” ever-busy environment, jealousy runs rampant and we are prone to mistakes. When we feel painful regret, either from missing out or messing up, there is always next weekend. You just have to stay “Mr. Brightside.”

STATEMENT THE MICHIGAN DAILY

23

The University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) - “Picasso Baby” by Jay-Z While Jay-Z’s “Watch the Throne” era swagger and confidence are largely unattainable for a college freshman, his throwback music provides the ultimate soundtrack for strutting campus. “Picasso Baby,” a rap packed with references to art icons from Basquiat to Da Vinci, is the perfect song to play as you walk into the beautiful UMMA. Fittingly, in a stunning work of performance art filmed for a music video, Jay-Z performed “Picasso Baby” for six hours at a New York gallery in 2013. Like Jay-Z, the UMMA is eclectic, constantly innovating and evolving since its rise to fame in the art world. Though the UMMA’s student/faculty curators and iconic artists (including Picasso) may stun you, Jay-Z’s confident verse will keep you hopeful that you too can have “a house like the Louvre or Tate Modern.”

SYDNEY HASTINGS-WILKINS/Daily

The Law Quadrangle - “Writer in the Dark” by Lorde

JULIANNE YOON/Daily

The Law Quad — the classical stone and stained-glass-covered law campus — has an otherworldly feel that syncs perfectly with Lorde’s ballads. The towering Law Library Reading Room is silent aside from the scratching of pencils and clicking of computer keys. It is one of the few places on campus where one can find complete quiet. The strictly enforced silence is reminiscent of Lorde’s live a cappella performance of “Writer in the Dark,” when she infamously “hushed” the cheering crowd to belt the heart-wrenching song. As you walk the moonlit stone paths, you can reflect on the sometimes painful transitions to college life while listening to Lorde’s 2017 album, Melodrama. Hopefully, you realize you can “love it here,” maybe even until your “breathing stops.”

The Big House - “Pump it Up” by Endor

ALI CHAMI/Daily

“Pump it Up” started as a pre-practice hype song for U-M tight end Joel Honigford. It soon became a team favorite, with an infectious beat and learnable lyrics –– making it the perfect touchdown song. After the historic win last November against Ohio State, “Pump it Up” became the soundtrack for a monumental 2021 season. It was the fight song for the underdog team, unleashing the power of 110,000 U-M fans screaming into the freezing air of the Big House: “Don’t you know, pump it up? You got to pump it up.”

JENNA HICKEY/Daily

The Hill - “Vienna” by Billy Joel You will face the year’s most transitional moments in the freshman dorms: the first days, the late nights studying and the formation and breakdown of friendships, to name a few.

The Hill, a campus neighborhood containing four first-year dormitories, is the main space on campus where students go through these massive transitions together. Billy Joel’s poetic piano serenade, “Vienna,” written from the perspective of Joel’s father, feels like a paternal lecture. The 1977 song is a timeless hit that makes even old fans tear up as they reflect on their coming of age. In the song, Joel’s father reminds him to “dream on, but don’t imagine they all come true.” Nearly 45 years later, the lessons remain true, for both “Vienna” and the world “waits for you.”

Nichols Arboretum - “The Difference” by Flume SARAH BOEKE/Daily

and Toro Y Moi

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STATEMENT THE MICHIGAN DAILY

Nichols Arboretum, lovingly nicknamed “The Arb,” is a year-round outdoor exercise haven. With dozens of trails along forests and the Huron River, the Arb is the perfect place to meet friends or put in your earbuds for a solo workout. In the natural space on the edge of campus, you can tune out everything except your feet on the trail and the noise in your ears. DJ Flume and singer/producer Toro y Moi provide warm EDM tunes to energize a run up the Arb’s rolling hills. In “The Difference,” powerful, rapid beats and vibrant melodies suit the Arb at its best times: in the snow, in autumn and in full bloom. The empowering song serves as a reminder that Ann Arbor (no matter the weather) is “just another world” to “get a grip on and hold on to.”

Finding your “why”: A letter to you, future freshman

By JULIA VERKLAN MALONEY, Summer Managing Statement Editor

I

believe that you are right where you should be. This is because you have had a short lifetime of experiences, growth, friendships, heartbreaks, triumphs and mistakes that have shaped you to be who you are –– the person who has the privilege of joining the legacy of “leaders and best” come August. And while you landed at the University of Michigan in part due to your exceptional test scores and displayed leadership, your wellwritten essays and impressive transcript, in actuality you are here because you have a question to truthfully answer. A question that admissions counselors believed you are worthy of taking on, shaped by your circumstances and your story. That question is: Why Michigan?

Indeed, your admission comes with the agency to explore the raw truths of your studentship and capabilities, something that your application could not capture nor that your acceptance letter could begin to tell you. Something I would like to illuminate now in more than 650 words. *** Three failed password attempts glared at me, the blue light of the computer creating a glaze across my eyes. After reaching to the back of my brain to retrieve the buried combination of letters and symbols, I got into my high school Dropbox account, which houses the document that served as my metaphorical golden ticket. A page-length essay of 12-point Times New Roman letters answering the “Why Michigan?” essay prompt

required of all U-M applicants.

I wrote this short essay as a junior in high school, spending months on its verbiage.

Reading it now, I am peeved by the posh language and the not-so-subtle desperation written in my voice. My less than 650 words are truthfully impassioned and hungry yet completely ridiculous and naïve.

Per the instruction of YouTube tutorials and online college forums, much of the language goes into specifics of the program I sought to pursue and the resources I planned on using (if given the opportunity, of course). Indiscreetly embedded are the clubs I wanted to join and the professors I wished to learn from, making my word count a collection of fluff that I felt was forced and disingenuous.

To be more candid, though, my 17-yearold self cited a campus tour and shadow of a current student as my true why. Despite growing up just 40 minutes outside of Ann Arbor, I never had fostered a connection to the school or campus prior to admission season –– instead idolizing the school from a distance to protect myself from the seemingly inevitable rejection I feared. My guard was lowered sometime in September 2018, for I wrote in my essay that “I felt truly captivated by the progressive and expansive nature of the campus,” which was “a peaceful and refreshing feeling that I simply did not find while visiting other campuses.” Considering that, at the time, the only other school I had toured was Michigan State University, that was an obvious and unchallenged “feeling,” yet a truthful one nonetheless.

I was enthralled by the juxtaposition of the antiquity of the Law Quadrangle to that of the modernism of the Ross School of Business. Peace was to be found in Design by Tamara Turner the textured gray

stonework and the streamlined terracotta. The domestication of the Diag squirrels and the presence of hidden street art were campus oddities that did not go unnoticed. Little pockets of personality were everywhere you looked. The sheer expanse of coffee shops and cultural fusion restaurants made my stomach burble. The composition of the city was unique like the people who graced it. The block ‘M’ was an inviting symbol of visual culture on each and every t-shirt, building or signage it was plastered on. A seemingly simplistic letter that held so much weight and history.

Ann Arbor spoke to me and I wanted to keep up the conversation. It was a feeling that can be best described as that moment when you try on your wedding dress and just know it’s the one (or so I’ve heard). I felt that the University was right, the perfect fit.

And somehow, the feeling was mutual. *** After completing two years here, one being entirely remote, I can confidently say I have found my why. At least, partly.

I found it in the bark of two trees in the Diag, the site where my best friendship budded within my swaying hammock.

I found it on 420 Maynard St. inside a building that is rich with history and talent, the same building where I found my role model and where I established my career path. I found it in the cracks in the sidewalk on Catherine Street and the books on the shelves of Hatcher Graduate Library, two examples of random and seemingly unimportant facets of Ann Arbor that are so special to only those that truly pay attention. I found it in the brass fixtures in the Law Library, the soft light pouring from the stained glass, exposing all of its glory. I found it on the second floor of the Michigan League, a space that is so beautifully characterized by its tiled floors and tufted curtains.

Read more at MichiganDaily.com STATEMENT THE MICHIGAN DAILY

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JULIA SCHACHINGER/Daily

In 2022, Michigan hopes to

By JARED GREENSPAN, Managing Sports Editor

O

h, what a difference a year can make.

Last summer, members of the Michigan football team insisted that things had changed inside Schembechler Hall, but few outside the program believed them. The Wolverines still carried the stains from the 2020 season, in which they stumbled through a disastrous 2-4 campaign and reached the nadir of Jim Harbaugh’s tenure as head coach.

Twelve months later, Michigan enters the 2022 season in a new position. Weighty expectations have been a constant in Ann Arbor through Harbaugh’s time in Ann Arbor, but this year, those expectations are built on the previous year’s revelatory success.

Last season, the Wolverines toppled the vaunted Buckeyes, captured the equally elusive Big Ten Championship and earned a berth in the College Football Playoff.

Each accomplishment was a first in the Harbaugh era, now eight years strong.

In last year’s wake, the question looming above the program has shifted.

No longer is it: Can Michigan ever get over the hump? Instead, it becomes: Can Michigan avoid falling back down the hill?

And after a topsy-turvy offseason — one that, most notably, saw Harbaugh

seriously entertain a return to the NFL, only to reaffirm an alleged unwavering commitment to Michigan — the program is oozing confidence.

“The state of Michigan football right now is scary good,” Harbaugh said during his first press conference of the offseason in March, a smile plastered across his face.

That conviction is backed by an impressive collection of offensive talent, which should make for a high-octane offense. The running back tandem of junior Blake Corum and sophomore Donovan Edwards makes for one of the nation’s most explosive backfields on paper. Additionally, fifth-year receiver Ronnie Bell, the leading pass-catcher in 2020, returns from a torn ACL to bolster an already-deep receiving corps; all but two starters return to the offensive line, which won the Joe Moore Award as the nation’s best unit in 2021.

Amidst an abundance of weapons, the most-pressing question looms under center. Senior quarterback Cade McNamara, a proficient game-manager often pigeon-holed for his limitations, led Michigan to its best season in decades a year ago. And yet, his job security remains tenuous, as prized sophomore J.J. McCarthy waits in the wings. McCarthy’s talent is undeniable, leaving many to wonder if Michigan is better suited making McCarthy QB1. Harbaugh’s

tenuous decision has been delayed, for now, as McCarthy works his way back from a shoulder ailment.

On defense, the Wolverines have far more holes to fill. Last year’s All-American game-wreckers — defensive end Aidan Hutchinson and edge rusher David Ojabo — are in the NFL. So often, Hutchinson and Ojabo flipped games in Michigan’s favor, terrorizing the opposition. It was a luxury that will no longer exist in 2022.

Still, despite the obvious absences, there is plenty of talent to account for a sturdy — if not stellar — defensive unit.

Expect senior defensive tackle Mazi Smith, sophomore linebacker Junior Colson, senior cornerback D.J. Turner and senior defensive end Mike Morris to become the group’s primary playmakers.

Looking back on it, 2021 felt magical.

Michigan became a feel-good story — a rare position for one of college football’s most storied programs to occupy — and re-captured the hearts and imaginations of a long-suffering fanbase.

But fans are impatient, and as one season blurs into another, the memories of yesteryear become less topical, replaced by the present. And on Sept. 3 against Colorado State, when the page officially flips to 2022, the new challenge will officially begin: If the Wolverines can repeat their triumphs of 2021, they can have a successful season, parlaying a magical ride into a greater restoration.

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ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily

sustain last year’s triumphs

Begin your U-M Journey Before Arriving on Campus.

Michigan Online is your destination for free online courses taught by leading U-M faculty. Explore courses now to help you prepare for your on-campus experience this fall.

Learn more about Michigan Online and our courses at online.umich.edu/content/new-students/ AD THE MICHIGAN DAILY

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The University of Michigan has a ton of cool opportunities and programs for upperclassmen, and it’s great to start thinking and preparing for them early! The Ford School of Public Policy offers an amazing program for students interested in government. The Public Policy School offers much smaller class sizes, lots of events with high-level policymakers and excellent professors!

Philosophy, Politics and Economics (often called PPE) is a similar program that combines those three disciplines.

PPE students have a crazy amount of freedom in how they meet degree requirements. Finally, Organizational Studies is another great program for people interested in social sciences. Like PPE and the Public Policy School, this program offers a lot of flexibility and a tighter community. Applications for these programs are for sophomores in the winter semester, but it’s great to explore and consider these programs early!

Around 70% of first-year college students experience severe homesickness. If you ever feel this way, just know all transitions take time and patience. There may be times when you feel as if you are not making connections or having as much fun as everyone else; however, this is all an illusion. On social media, you will always see the fun parts of someone’s life and rarely see the hard parts. I encourage you to stick with it and remember freshman year is not the only time you can meet others — you will be surprised at how many new friendships you form even after your first year. Seek comfort in the fact that you will find your place here; all it takes is some trust in the process.

As a freshman adjusting to campus life, you will definitely be walking a lot, if not bussing to your classes.

There is a great app called U-M Magic Bus where you can find bus stops near you, a real time map, a trip planner and even exact times of when the bus you’re looking for is going to arrive. The app is always pretty accurate in my experience, with most bus times being 2-3 minutes off the app at most. As for getting around the city of Ann Arbor, you are going to want to use the Ride buses. The app you will want to use to track those is called Transit, and it features the time it will take you to walk from your current location to the stop, the amount of time until the bus arrives and the nearest stop to your destination.

I came to Michigan for football, but I’m staying for everything else

By LYS GOLDMAN, Daily Sports Writer

KATE HUA, JULIA SCHACHINGER/Daily

F

ootball school.

From an athletics perspective, that’s what the University of Michigan is known for. And for many incoming students, that label played a considerable role in their decisions to become Wolverines. In my case, it was a key part of why I chose to spend my undergraduate years in Ann Arbor.

Growing up a passionate Michigan football fan, I couldn’t wait to tailgate and join the student section at the Big House. And let me tell you, game days did not disappoint. Being part of the 110,000-plus fans packed into the biggest stadium in America — especially on that snowy afternoon last November when the Wolverines finally defeated their biggest rival — is a feeling I can’t quite put into words.

But when I reflect on my favorite Michigan athletics moments from my freshman year, football isn’t the only thing that comes to mind.

In addition to remembering my experiences on football Saturdays, I think about going to the NCAA Wrestling Championships in Detroit. I think about trekking down to the athletic campus to watch lacrosse and tennis. I think about watching the women’s basketball team make the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. Michigan football is amazing, don’t get me wrong, but this university’s athletic department has so much more to offer than just Saturdays in the fall.

When I first joined the sports section of The Michigan Daily, my first task was to shadow and write a mock story for a

wrestling meet. It was one of the only sports I could sign up for, so I reluctantly chose to do it even though I had never watched wrestling before (and had no idea what the rules were). I watched YouTube clips and looked through the rulebook the night before heading to Crisler, but I was still confused and, frankly, not very interested in learning more than I had to about the sport. I didn’t plan to watch or attend any more meets after I finished my shadow assignment.

But I was wrong.

Flash forward to a few months later when I sat in the press box of the NCAA Wrestling Championships at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. The tournament was a three-day affair that left me absolutely exhausted, returning to my dorm room well past midnight each day. But it was more than worth it. Much to my surprise, I started to truly love watching wrestling, so much that I didn’t mind missing the beginning of March Madness or St. Patrick’s Day festivities in Ann Arbor.

In August, if you asked me to predict the best experiences of my freshman year, I never would have guessed that a wrestling tournament could make that list. But it did, and that’s exactly why I’m writing this article, why I’m urging you to venture outside of the Big House and explore the 28 other varsity sports at Michigan. You never know what one game might turn into.

That’s not the only reason, though.

This past season, the wrestling team won the Big Ten Championship and placed second in the NCAA Tournament. The

women’s gymnastics team — the defending national champion — took home its twentysixth Big Ten Championship crown. The women’s basketball team made a historic run in the NCAA Tournament. The men’s and women’s tennis teams both won Big Ten Championships.

Supporting these teams means getting to witness championships, titles and historic feats. It’s a special feeling watching teams in maize and blue win trophies and make history, a feeling that every Michigan student can experience if they make use of the opportunities at their fingertips.

That feeling is even more special when you share it with friends. Especially as a freshman, adventuring with new friends to the athletic campus to watch lacrosse, tennis and soccer is the perfect way to get to know them — and create lasting memories.

One of my professors — who also went to Michigan for undergraduate — told my class that he made it his goal to go watch every varsity team play at least once as a student.

Not only did he accomplish that goal, but he said it was one of his favorite parts of his four years in Ann Arbor. I have decided to set that same goal for myself, and I think it’s a great one for you to consider, too.

Sure, Michigan might be a football school. But it’s not only a football school — it’s a sports school.

My biggest piece of advice, and something I will continue to do in my next three years as a Michigan student, is this: take advantage of that.

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WOMEN'S BASKETBALL The Michigan women’s basketball team made history in the 2021-22 season, finishing with a 25-7 record and reaching the Elite Eight for the first time in program history.

In her senior year, Naz Hillmon became the only Wolverine player — man or woman — to score 2,000 points and collect 1,000 rebounds.

Her 21.0 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game were Michigan’s best and played a vital role in its success.

Recently drafted to the WNBA, the Wolverines will have to find a way to fill her absence next season.

Part of the solution seems to be in place. Michigan acquired Greta Kampschroeder — its first AllAmerican in program history — via the transfer portal early in the offseason. Kampschroeder, as well as Leigha Brown and Emily Kiser — both returning for their fifth years — will help to step up in the absence of Hillmon to build on last season’s success.

WRESTLING After a shortened 2021 season that ended with a fifth-place finish in the NCAA Championships, the Michigan wrestling team bounced back in 2022. Led by a strong senior class, the Wolverines won the Big Ten Championship en route to a national runner-up finish in the NCAA Championship.

Repeating that success won’t come easy, as Michigan will be without its 125-pound NCAA title winner, graduate student Nick Suriano who provided a strong spark to begin each dual meet for the Wolverines, going 16-0. Senior upperweights Logan Massa, Myles Amine and Mason Parris also helped the team to its 12-1 season behind 30, 37 and 41 dual points, respectively. Although Michigan will be without them next year, redshirt sophomore Cameron Amine, redshirt junior Will Lewan and redshirt freshman Dylan Ragusin seem primed to pick up their weight.

After matching their best NCAA performance in program history, the Wolverines hope to build on that in the coming season, despite losing talent from last year’s strong senior class.

WOMEN'S GYMNASTICS Following a season in which the Wolverines walked away with a national title, the expectations for their 2021-22 season were high. And as Michigan entered the NCAA Championship with a 14-1 regular season and a Big Ten Championship under its belt, it seemed to be fulfilling those high standards. But in the semifinals, the Wolverines placed last.

Despite the heartbreaking finish, Michigan is positioned to bounce back for a strong season next year. With reigning AAI award recipient — women’s gymnastics most prestigious accolade — Natalie Wojcik using her extra year of eligibility, the Wolverines retain a key leader on and off the mats. Wojcik has cemented her position as one of the best Michigan gymnasts of all times with four perfect 10s and the highest all-around in program history.

After ending the season on a sour note, the Wolverines have a chip on their shoulder going into next year. Michigan is capable of reverting to its title-winning self, but to do so, it must focus on the future and not dwell on the past.

Non-revenue sports roundup

EMMA MATI/Daily

MADELINE HINKLEY/Daily

By LINDSAY BUDIN, Summer Managing Sports Editor

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BECCA MAHON/Daily

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