California leavin'
My college experience in the Golden State didn’t measure up to life at KU
By Joe Hunt
Thursday, February 28th, 2008
Until I arrived on August 12, 2005, I had never been to Kansas. I had never seen a picture of the place outside of the KU course catalog. My only frame of reference came from the movie Twister, in which an old lady living in a field had several spinning metal contraptions in her front yard to detect tornados, which must have roared through her property endlessly, or so I thought.
Yet here I am, 1,800 miles away from the only home I’ve ever known: Orange County, Calif., the land of beautiful beaches, perfect weather and not-so-realistic television shows. People often don’t understand why I came to Kansas. “Why the hell did you decide to come out here?” they ask, with puzzled expressions on their faces.
Joe navigates his 1,800 mile drive from California to Kansas.
Well, this is why I came to Kansas: I was finishing up my freshman year at Cal State Fullerton, a commuter college in Orange County. As one of 800 students living on a campus that hosted more than 35,000 people, I quickly realized there was no school spirit, no sports (besides baseball) and no recognition of the university’s existence by the surrounding community. That, and living approximately 50 yards from a freeway the likes of which Kansas has never seen, made me question the “college experience” Fullerton was providing.
Sure, the beach, Disneyland, my family and the Staples Center (home of the Los Angeles Lakers) were all a short drive away, but what about those crazy fans that smeared themselves in paint before the most mundane of sporting events? What about those old fraternity houses that look like giant mansions? What about the local bars dedicated to and frequented by a largely underage student body? I wanted those things.
As I trudged into my dorm room at Fullerton on a beautiful Saturday afternoon in late February, I saw my roommate, blazed as usual, watching a college basketball game on television. KU was playing, and students were covered in paint, screaming rabidly as the announcer said that “All the shops in town close up early when there’s a basketball game going on,” something I later learned was a gross exaggeration. I didn’t watch the game, as I have never really cared for college basketball, but instead I went to my computer and spent the next hour filling out an application to transfer to the University of Kansas. I didn’t bother applying anywhere else. A few months later I was packing up my truck, ready to head out to uncharted territory, a state where I didn’t know a single person. I guess you can say I’m somewhat spontaneous.
My parents, who have both lived in the Orange County area their entire lives, supported my decision, though my mother was a bit apprehensive about not seeing her oldest child for months at a time. This was a much bigger step than going from high school to a college just 30 minutes away. “You know you’re going to be there for the next three years of your life,” my mother reminded me as I got ready to leave. I know, Mom. “And you don’t know anyone there.” I know, Mom. “And you’re coming back as soon as you graduate.” I know, Mom.
I spent my first year in Oliver Hall. The atmosphere was fun, the people were friendly and, initially, it didn’t feel too different from being in California. But something was off. I could never quite shake the feeling that I just didn’t fit in. It’s hard to put a handle on what was different. I just wasn’t in my comfort zone. I wasn’t at home. I didn’t feel as comfortable meeting new people or joshing around with casual acquaintances.
When people here find out I’m from California—and if they ever do, it’s against my best efforts—they seem to step back and re-evaluate me, not as the person I am but who they expect me to be. It’s subtle, but it’s there. I have a great group of friends here that I see every other weekend or so—not nearly enough—but the day-to-day life between those times feels a bit empty. After I graduate, I’ll still be a Jayhawk, but I’ll be going home.
I miss home. I miss being able to go outside in shorts at any time of the year, being able to have bonfires on the beach at night and having my choice of dozens of restaurants for delicious Mexican food. I miss my friends I’ve known since grade school, and I miss my girlfriend, whom I only get to see during breaks.
And guess what? I don’t paint myself crimson and blue for sporting events, I’m not in a fraternity and I’m not a huge fan of bars. But this doesn’t mean I regret coming to KU. I cherish every friend I’ve had the pleasure of meeting here, and it’s been an interesting change from the same old song and dance in California that has been my past and will probably be my future. I took a chance to see someplace new and different, and while I haven’t seen any tornadoes out here, I can always tell the relatives back home about the microburst and that stoplight I saw rolling down the street in the wind.
I wouldn’t trade seeing that for any sunny day.
Discussion
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Hey, Joe:
I'm a Cal State Fullerton alum and Titan Athletics Club donor. It was fun reading your story, and I'm happy you found what you were looking for at Kansas. My first-choice college was Mizzou, but I couldn't afford to go out of state, and CSUF has a tremendous journalism program (grads all over the place, from the OC Register, of course, to the NY Times and everywhere in between).
You're mostly right about campus life at CSUF. Unless you're in a frat, heavily involved in AS, or a lifer on the Daily Titan, it's like there is no campus life. But that's how it is at a commuter school in the middle of 20 million people, with anything you could possibly think of doing within 90 minutes away.
It's getting better, though. The student body is getting younger (average age was about 26 when I was there), and this year, for the first time, really, we are getting a passionate (if small) student base, all in orange, for basketball games. We've won 20 games and, with some luck the next week, could be in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1978.
Baseball is still good, looking for 16th College World Series trip and fifth national title, and you can get an excellent education at CSUF. School, and the social life of school, is what you make of it.
I had a great time at CSUF, made many life-long friends, and I'm having a blast at the basketball, soccer and baseball games. Wish we'd bring back football, but that's another issue.
Have a great time at Kansas. Part of me wishes I had had that kind of college social experience. Mizzou, or Berkeley, somewhere with a true college atmostphere. But I don't regret my time at CSUF.
Go Titans!
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