sierra madre 
Kaelyn Hayes
ENG134-65
10/30/2014
Home Away From Home
Home. Home is where acceptance, love, warmth, protection, and connectedness all under the same roof. Home is where you are loved and nurtured by family. Home is where no masks are on to guard off judgement and ridicule. Home is where not only physical growth takes place, but also where mental maturing from experiences occurs. Majority of the freshman have come to Cal Poly leaving that home to make a new one in San Luis Obispo. We start alone together, in a brand new environment that we will call home for the next four to five years. In some cases, it will become a permanent home. For freshman year, my home, along with 119 others, is the connection dorm Sierra Madre, Tower 5. Within every room is a different dorm experience. Room placement, layout, decorations, amount of persons living together, light exposure, and neighbors all are factors that contribute to everyone’s first year at Cal Poly. Unlike the classic, beautiful appearance of the red-bricked dorms, Sierra Madre towers are dull, concrete boxes that resemble prisons without bars on the windows. My room is a double with low beds, has a scenic view of the mountains, a neutral color scheme, and a big white wall. The light that shines in through the window bounces off the white wall and brightens the room like sun against the snow. The soft yellows and beiges of our bedding and decor makes the room a relaxing, peaceful environment. Luck was on my side and gave me, what I think is, the perfect living arrangement. A person who has bunk beds, bright, maybe obnoxious colors, a shadowed window, or a darker room will have a different story and perspective than I. “With three of us, there is hardly any wall space because of the bunk beds, which makes the room appear to be more dark. It is also really difficult to keep clean because of all our busy schedules.” says Ali, resident of Tower Five. She explained that when the room feels cluttered, it makes
ENG134-65
10/30/2014
Home Away From Home
Home. Home is where acceptance, love, warmth, protection, and connectedness all under the same roof. Home is where you are loved and nurtured by family. Home is where no masks are on to guard off judgement and ridicule. Home is where not only physical growth takes place, but also where mental maturing from experiences occurs. Majority of the freshman have come to Cal Poly leaving that home to make a new one in San Luis Obispo. We start alone together, in a brand new environment that we will call home for the next four to five years. In some cases, it will become a permanent home. For freshman year, my home, along with 119 others, is the connection dorm Sierra Madre, Tower 5. Within every room is a different dorm experience. Room placement, layout, decorations, amount of persons living together, light exposure, and neighbors all are factors that contribute to everyone’s first year at Cal Poly. Unlike the classic, beautiful appearance of the red-bricked dorms, Sierra Madre towers are dull, concrete boxes that resemble prisons without bars on the windows. My room is a double with low beds, has a scenic view of the mountains, a neutral color scheme, and a big white wall. The light that shines in through the window bounces off the white wall and brightens the room like sun against the snow. The soft yellows and beiges of our bedding and decor makes the room a relaxing, peaceful environment. Luck was on my side and gave me, what I think is, the perfect living arrangement. A person who has bunk beds, bright, maybe obnoxious colors, a shadowed window, or a darker room will have a different story and perspective than I. “With three of us, there is hardly any wall space because of the bunk beds, which makes the room appear to be more dark. It is also really difficult to keep clean because of all our busy schedules.” says Ali, resident of Tower Five. She explained that when the room feels cluttered, it makes