Clothes and Chaos: Online Shopping Sees a Pandemic Surge

There’s something about getting a package in the mail reminiscent of an early scene in “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” where Edmund has just tumbled through the wardrobe only to come face-to-face with the White Witch. Cold and beautiful, she promises that she can get him anything he wants. “Turkish delight?” he asks. Thousands of kids remember watching the intricately carved box appear from nowhere, delivering a sense of comfort and well-being even in the midst of the unknown. 

Editors' Note

In a time of many firsts, this week marked yet another novel experience for many Dartmouth students. Whereas setting up dorm room decor is usually a pre-term activity, move-in this term took place in six-hour time blocks last weekend, between weeks two and three of the term. Arriving in Hanover, the process was orderly but time-consuming. First stop: trek through Leverone Field House to stick a cotton swab up your nose. Second stop: haul luggage to your room. Third stop: wait.

A Shot in the Dark: Students Receive Early Vaccines

When I virtually signed Dartmouth’s “Community Expectations” agreement last summer, I didn’t think much of a certain line. I agreed to “receive a vaccine for COVID-19, should one become available that is both FDA- and Dartmouth-approved,” if I wanted to live on campus and access Dartmouth’s facilities. At that point, a COVID-19 vaccine seemed years away — a promise overshadowed by the stress of preparing for a virtual academic year.

Looking Ahead: Students React to Winter Term Changes

Every winter, Hanover undergoes a transformation. The days get shorter, temperatures plummet and snow covers campus. However, this winter features a more dramatic shift than usual. As Dartmouth prepares to welcome students back for the winter term, signs of a more fun, social experience are appearing around campus.

A Light at the End of the Tunnel?

As the pandemic drags on into the new year, many people are getting sick of strictly adhering to COVID-19 guidelines. With the first doses of the vaccine rolling out across the country, some have started to let their guards down and regard restrictions with a more lax attitude.

Quarantine Creations: Students Make Art in Isolation

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began almost a full year ago, I’ve thought a lot about the future of art. If art is a mode of self-expression, what happens when your sense of self, removed from the places and people that shape it, is rocked? If art is a vessel for our joy, what happens when the sources of joy change? I was afraid that life in lockdown would make us too tired to create things, or that stress and lack of materials would immobilize us even when we wanted to create things. I hoped that making things was such an inherently human act that it would pull us through the wildest of circumstances.

Mirror Asks: New Year's Resolutions

Every January, gyms fill up with fresh-faced clientele eager to fulfill New Year’s resolutions made the night before over glasses of champagne. For many, New Year’s resolutions are a way to try something new, refocus on old rhythms or buckle down on long-term goals. After the dumpster fire of 2020, it’s hard to say whether New Year’s resolutions feel completely irrelevant or more important than ever. In this edition of Mirror Asks, a few Mirror writers share their own thoughts on the new year and the things they’re looking forward to in 2021, both big and small. 

Editors' Note

Dear ’24s: Freshmen Reflect, in Their Own Words, on Fall Term

Dear Class of 2024, These 10 weeks have flown by much quicker than I expected. I was nervous to be on campus, but I'm now very grateful that I came. I’m going to miss being here.  The experience certainly wasn't what I originally expected. Given the circumstances, some things were difficult.

Making the Grade: Students Adapt to Reduced Tutoring Resources

At the end of week five, I hit a breaking point studying for my upcoming microeconomics exam. In a stressed-out frenzy, I sent an email to the Tutor Clearinghouse, politely asking if my individual tutoring request for ECON 21 had been processed. I added that I “would be really grateful if my requested pairing could be made!”

Dining at Dartmouth with Disordered Eating

Food is an inescapable part of our campus culture. We find it everywhere: in dinner picnics on the Green, as fuel for late-night work sessions in Novack and as an oddly popular topic of conversation. But not everyone’s relationship with food is straightforward. Many students with eating disorders struggle to navigate Dartmouth’s dining halls and food-dominated social scene, and their difficulties are only compounded by COVID-19 restrictions.

Skiway Offers Socially Distant Opportunities for Winter

Each day’s early sunset is a reminder that winter is coming. The intensity of the cold and the scarcity of the daylight hours strengthen the appeal of the indoors. But as COVID-19 cases rise and many students plan to return to campus in the winter, the announcement of the Dartmouth Skiway’s reopening was a bright point in a dreary-looking flurry of information.

A Separate Space: Socializing and Studying at Baker-Berry

Dartmouth students have great affection for our libraries — take our interactions with the Dartmouth Library Instagram account. When I was a freshman, my First-Year Trip leaders showed me which parts of Baker-Berry were social and which were designated for intense studying. Although different spaces within the library function in different ways, the library as a whole feels like home to many students. This time last year, I remember stacking my belongings — essay drafts, extra pens, flaming hot cheetos and caffeinated yellow vitamin water — in the shelves of the periodicals, preparing to practically live there until finals were over.

To Be (On Campus) or Not To Be: ’24s Debate Whether to Return for Winter

When Dartmouth first announced it would allow students to live on campus this fall, many ’24s were overjoyed. With some universities transitioning fully online, students were grateful that the College had granted them at least one remnant of a normal college experience.

Transfer Students Reflect on a Tumultuous Fall

“I almost made it the whole term without being interviewed by The Dartmouth for being a transfer,” said Sevie Browne ’24, a transfer student from Tufts University. Alas, no such luck. Dartmouth saw 45 new transfers this fall, about three times as many as usual. 

Join the Club: Student Groups and New Members Look Back on 20F

Now that the fall term — a critical time for freshmen and other students to join clubs — has wound down, leaders and new members of student organizations across campus have had an opportunity to look back on the successes, challenges and outlooks for their respective clubs as winter term quickly approaches.

Christmas from a Distance: Students Prepare for an Altered Holiday Season

Whether gathering with extended family around dishes of turkey and pie during Thanksgiving, piling on a couch with friends to watch “Home Alone” or excitedly embarking on a New Year’s vacation, many people eagerly anticipate the joys of the holiday season. The winter months are usually an ideal time to reunite with friends and family and reflect on the past year.

Editors' Note

Well, we did it — we finished 20F. Whether that means completing your first term in Hanover or managing to stay sane while taking online classes in your childhood home, we all have something to celebrate. This fall was not without its obstacles and difficult moments, but we can all take pride in knowing that despite all that the world has thrown at us — a pandemic, a divisive election, remote learning — we managed to persevere. 

Election Week Blues: Students Reflect on Politics, Classes and Community

During election week, many Dartmouth students struggled to cope with an extended period of uncertainty. As they waited for ballots to slowly trickle in, students also had to manage the stress that comes with week eight of fall term. Some relied on friends and avoided social media to manage anxiety, while others found comfort in staying informed on vote counts. And while some students are hopeful about the future, others remain worried.

Campaigning During COVID-19: Student Volunteers Reflect On the Election

For most Dartmouth students, participating in the American democratic process meant casting a vote in this year’s general election. In the weeks leading up to Election Day, political energy blanketed campus, with ubiquitous voter registration drives, campus-wide emails and high-profile visibility efforts placing the campaign at the forefront of Dartmouth’s collective consciousness.