Donlon is a terrible building to live in but it’s by far the best dorm at Cornell

When I received my freshman year rooming assignment, I was on my way to a summer rafting trip with two Cornell juniors.

“Where are you living?” they both pressed me.

“Mary Donlon Hall,” I replied.

Their reaction was unexpected. Both students started yelling with what I presumed was happiness, and I stared at them both, confused.

“You’re a lucky, lucky boy,” one of them said. “Donlon is the most fun dorm.”

As I was moving in, my expectations for Donlon were high. The building was in pristine condition on move-in day, and my roommate and I immediately got along very well. My expectations of freshman life rose again. After about a semester and a half of living in Donlon, I’ve learned the ups and downs of our particular dorm.

From what I’ve seen, yes, Donlon is the most fun dorm. The RAs are relaxed, a high number of the residents party very hard, and I think we’re the only dorm where you can find people to hang out with until about 5 AM. However, living in Donlon does come with downsides. For one, my room is never warm during the winter. I don’t know if the heater in my room is broken, I don’t know if I have a bit of an odd situation because I’m on the end of the hall. What I do know, however, is that I always wear a hoodie and sweats in the dorm, and when I do homework at my desk, I make sure that I have a blanket with me.

However, the cold is nothing compared to the bathrooms. There are about 90 students on my floor, and there’s one men’s, one women’s, and one gender neutral bathroom, each with three toilets and three to four showers. I think you can imagine how the men’s room looks, especially on Thurday, Friday, and Saturday nights. Drunk kids often miss the toilet (believe it or not), leading to a small layer of urine on every toilet seat and on the floor of every stall. The showers are full of unidentified substances, but the worst part is the vomit. People throw up in the toilet, in the sinks, on the counter, in the trash can, in the shower, and, on rare occasion, in the hallway. There’s often a few days before the cleaning crew graciously cleans this up, so phrases like, “Don’t go into the second stall, there’s vomit everywhere” have become commonplace. But hey, there are trade-offs for living in the party-filled dorm, right?

Still, even with the bathroom situation and the near non-existence of a heating system, Donloners share a bond much tighter than what I’ve witnessed in other dorms, such as the Low Rises or in Jameson or CKB. People in those dorms often know their neighbors and are acquaintances, but they don’t hang out with them for many hours on a daily basis. I’m very close with a lot of my neighbors, and it’s not rare for seven or eight guys to play Xbox and eat lunch together for an hour or two on a Tuesday afternoon.

Perhaps it’s because many people in Donlon, especially on my floor join fraternities or sororities, but Donlon’s atmosphere is much more relaxed and welcoming than what I’ve seen in other dorms. Other dorms are usually quiet and give off the vibe that people are studying hard, while in Donlon, there are usually people relaxing in the lounge, there are people blasting music, and there’s always someone willing to chill at any given time. So physically, Donlon is a terrible building. But if you get assigned to live in Donlon, I can guarantee that you will have fun.