Bridging the Distance: How to Stay Connected with Friends and Family
Ronnie shares her tried-and-true tips and tricks to keep in touch with her loved ones who are off-campus.
Ronnie shares her tried-and-true tips and tricks to keep in touch with her loved ones who are off-campus.
It’s really easy to make new friends at Carleton, but that doesn’t mean you should stop talking to your friends and family who are not on campus. However, with the fast-paced trimester system, and the many different activities and clubs to join, it can be hard to stay in touch with these off-campus friends. Here are some of the tips and tricks I’ve picked up through the years.
Manage parental expectations
Your parents might start randomly calling, or bugging you about calling them. Just know that it comes from a good place (even if it’s annoying). They miss you! But this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t set boundaries. They probably don’t know how much work you have to do, or when you’re in class. Letting them know that you have to study or write a paper might get them to call less. I really like talking to my parents, so I try to tell them when the best times to call me are. This keeps them happy while still giving me time for homework and social events!
Texting is easy and low maintenance
One of my favorite ways to stay in touch with friends and family is by sending photos of campus life, whether it’s a photo of a pretty drink from one of the cafés in town or an interesting bug you saw in the Arb. I’m also a big fan of comparing the NYT Wordle and Connections.
Phone calls, video calls, and gaming galore
WiFi is, of course, included with tuition, and we have eduroam at Carleton. For us, this means that WiFi can be accessed anywhere on campus, even outdoors!
You could also make a Discord server with your friend group to chat together. I’ve played a lot of Minecraft with friends. I also love playing co-op Stardew Valley (plus, it works with up to four people). If you prefer analog, you can send out and receive letters through Mail Services on campus. There are also some post-office boxes scattered around campus.
Managing time zones
Over 70% of Carleton students do an Off-Campus Studies (OCS) program. So, the odds are pretty high that you or one of your friends will be on a different continent at some point during your Carleton career. I actually know two Carls who are currently both on continents other than North America! Scheduling is really useful, especially with busy schedules and vastly different time zones.
Summertime (or wintertime) meet-ups
I usually end up only doing occasional check-ins with friends from home, but breaks are the perfect time to meet up with people to grab coffee or a meal together. Over this summer, I went to two Summer Send-Offs (Chicago, Illinois and Bay Area, California) where I saw some of my friends and met some cool new people too. My summer internship was in Seattle, Washington, so I also met up with my friends from there. Pretty much everywhere you go, there will be other Carls!
These tips can also be used over the summer and winter to stay connected to your friends and family. Once you graduate, these same tips can help you maintain the lifelong friendships you made at Carleton. Plus, there is always your Reunion every 5 years!
Ronnie (they/she/he) is a senior Biology major from Oak Park, IL. Outside of blogging, she is also an Admissions tour guide and a Student Ambassador for Alumni Relations. You can usually find them in Cowling Gymnasium with the Ballroom Dance Team, practicing for the next competition or chatting with teammates. They also have very strong opinions about food on campus (especially LDC eggs and Burton fried tofu). She is also the commodore of Carleton’s sailing club and a DJ for KRLX, the student run radio station.