Dark Night

First days

Serafina and I were up at at 'em early. We were in Zero Week, a week before classes started where you could explore campus and LA and meet people. The first day was Volunteer day, where we went out in the community. I was assigned to a park where we pruned trees, cleaned up, and did some weeding. It was a nice way to meet people and do something nice. Serafina was assigned to help paint a youth center. She came back to the room paint-flecked but also enthusiastic. We tracked down our RA to find out what had happened to Helena. He didn't know and had already initiated an inquiry. That night we went to "This Is Bruin Life" which was a show put on by alumni and current students, where the chancellor and student body president also spoke.

The next day was the activities fair. There were close to a thousand clubs and organizations on campus, which meant there was a lot of territory to cover. We started out by going to the Wooden Center and getting a GroupX pass, which allowed unlimited access to the spin bikes, gym floor, and classes, including yoga and barre. Then we started browsing at the fair. We talked to a lot of people even when we weren't interested in their group, and in the first forty-five minutes, Serafina had two dates and I had one. We also collected candy (it was like a Bruins-themed Halloween) and swag like plastic cups, lanyards, bandaid dispensers. The restaurants around campus also set up booths with free samples and we grazed rather than eating lunch. Frigging delicious.

 We were both interested in a few groups like the Bruin Belles Service Association, which was  dedicated to community and university service and the promotion of women's leadership, the film society, and Circle K. Serafina, a former Gold Award Girl Scout, was interested in Bruin Scouts, which had the goal of providing support for local Boy and Girl Scout troops, and I said that it sounded interesting, but I wasn't completely sold on it, mainly because there were so many interesting groups and limited free time. I took information on Collaboration in Undergraduate Research Enrichment at UCLA, which exposed students to research opportunities. She stopped at the Sociology Undergraduate Association, Women's Pre-Law Association, Kappa Alpha Pi, a pre-professional legal fraternity and LatinX Pre-Law Association  and took their information. I was a little more frustrated; most of the science-related clubs and organizations were medical or biochemistry-related, which wasn't my thing at all. I took information about EARTH (Environmental Awareness, Recycling, and Terrestrial Health) which  addressed the health-associated aspects of environmental concerns such as climate change, pollution, and sustainability and a student writing club, feeling like it wouldn't hurt to improve my writing. In between talking about our first day of classes, I heard my name called. Looking around, I saw Naomi waving at me, and took Serafina over to introduce her. Naomi and I quickly caught up and she asked us how we were liking the fair. "It's a little overwhelming," I said, and the other two agreed. "There are so many clubs, but I can't find any that are focused on climate change for research or outreach; there's engineering or medical-based things, but not much else. I'm getting a little worried about being able to meet people and getting involved."

"It's a lot easier for pre-law," Serafina confirmed. "I have tons of options." I made a face at her. Naomi smiled. From that we discussed our plans for the evening; we were going to an outdoor movie at Sunset Recreation; popcorn, ice cream, and candy would be provided. One of Serafina's dates had gotten the wristbands for us and he promised to set me up with one of his friends.

Back at our room, the mystery of the vanishing roommate had been solved. Helena had decided last minute to stay in Massachusetts and attend nursing school at Boston College. We rolled our eyes at each other when our RA told us. "So it looks like you won't have a third roommate this quarter," he said cheerfully. "That might change, though, if somebody can't stand their roommates and need to be switched."

Back in our room, Serafina proposed using the third bed as a couch until somebody moved in, which worked for both of us. She had a set of sheets she really didn't like and we put the bottom sheet on it and made plans for a Target run the next day to get some pillows after recruitment. Then we put that aside and went up and down the hall chatting with our dormmates until it was time to get ready for the movie.