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Life as an RA (Rant)
15 years ago
First off, it's a pretty good gig, all things considered, but there are some serious drawbacks that have been getting to me lately:
|||||||||||||||||||| You live and work in the same place ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
There is no separation between your various lives, and you are basically always on the job. I've got about 30 residents, and while ten or twenty minutes of help might not seem like much for a single resident, it really adds up quickly. There's also a certain amount of perkiness required to be warm and welcoming enough that they can actually approach you with their concerns. If it's a bad day, you sometimes just have to fake it, lest it create more drama on the floor. You are constantly living in a fishbowl, which brings us to....
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Privacy? LOL!!!!! ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Since I live in a room meant for 2 people, I have two beds. The thing about 2 long twin beds pushed together is that they form a king-sized bed (if you put a little padding between the mattresses). Now, as a young twenty-something, I can think of about a thousand things I'd love to be able to do on that giant bed, some things with others and some without (like napping). However, when I'm in the room, I have to assume I'm open for business, especially since all the residents will. I try to maintain an open-door policy, but when I really need to have the door closed for something like working on a final paper or talking with a resident that needs help, I can generally count on my messages being ignored and hearing a knock and some whining if I don't answer it right away. That's IF they knock and don't just come on in, which has led me to lock my door on a few different occasions.
|||||||||||||||||| School, Social Life, Job: Pick Two ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Balance is always an issue when you are working your way through college, but it can be tough when you've got so many people to answer to and take care of. I think I do a pretty good job of balancing most of the time, though. I've realized that this job will swallow your soul unless you get out and let loose once in a while. I haven't been out of my college town since the start of school almost a month ago, and this will be my third consecutive weekend on call. Luckily, the Jazz band I'm in is heading to Chicago for a few days of fun.
That's about all I have for now, since I've got to get to class. If you're in a dorm, please be nice to your RA. We work hard, I promise.
[/rant]
|||||||||||||||||||| You live and work in the same place ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
There is no separation between your various lives, and you are basically always on the job. I've got about 30 residents, and while ten or twenty minutes of help might not seem like much for a single resident, it really adds up quickly. There's also a certain amount of perkiness required to be warm and welcoming enough that they can actually approach you with their concerns. If it's a bad day, you sometimes just have to fake it, lest it create more drama on the floor. You are constantly living in a fishbowl, which brings us to....
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| Privacy? LOL!!!!! ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Since I live in a room meant for 2 people, I have two beds. The thing about 2 long twin beds pushed together is that they form a king-sized bed (if you put a little padding between the mattresses). Now, as a young twenty-something, I can think of about a thousand things I'd love to be able to do on that giant bed, some things with others and some without (like napping). However, when I'm in the room, I have to assume I'm open for business, especially since all the residents will. I try to maintain an open-door policy, but when I really need to have the door closed for something like working on a final paper or talking with a resident that needs help, I can generally count on my messages being ignored and hearing a knock and some whining if I don't answer it right away. That's IF they knock and don't just come on in, which has led me to lock my door on a few different occasions.
|||||||||||||||||| School, Social Life, Job: Pick Two ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Balance is always an issue when you are working your way through college, but it can be tough when you've got so many people to answer to and take care of. I think I do a pretty good job of balancing most of the time, though. I've realized that this job will swallow your soul unless you get out and let loose once in a while. I haven't been out of my college town since the start of school almost a month ago, and this will be my third consecutive weekend on call. Luckily, the Jazz band I'm in is heading to Chicago for a few days of fun.
That's about all I have for now, since I've got to get to class. If you're in a dorm, please be nice to your RA. We work hard, I promise.
[/rant]
