Anna

Remember the glory days of your youth? Neither do we. To jog your memory, we interviewed Anna, another fresh-faced pre-frosh in the first flush of her flowering.

Hometown: Missoula, Montana

School: Barnard

Prospective Major: I honestly have no idea and my answer to this question could probably change every month, but right now the urban studies program is looking really interesting.

Prospective Dorm: I didn’t know I got to choose, but honestly I’m from Montana. Living anywhere in New York City is exciting.

How long do you think it’ll take to lose your…

…dignity? I tried to think of a witty answer to this and am failing miserably… Without ever having actually BEEN in college, I guess I would say it’s college, and I’m sure there will be dignified times and less dignified times.

…moral compass? I like to think that my moral compass will stay intact, but I guess we’ll see.

…sanity? My sanity has been lost for a long time. :)

Why Barnard?

I chose Barnard because of its fantastic location and the mix of the smaller liberal arts college with the benefits of the relationship with Columbia. I loved my tour guide when I toured Barnard this summer, and so I think that helped a lot.

You’re from Montana. What do you think the transition to a highly populated area like New York will be like? What are you looking forward to, and what will you miss the most about home?

I have a lot of family in the Northeast, especially the Boston, New York City, and Philly areas, and so I have spent time in more populated places, but it will definitely be a change. I’m excited for diversity — not just in people but in food, shopping, art, opportunities. I also realize that New York will be very, very different from what I’ve grown up in. I’ll miss being able to drive 20 minutes and camp or 5 minutes and hike, I’ll miss having the Clark Fork River run through the center of my city. I’ll miss the people — Missoula is a small enough city, and Montana is a small enough state, that it often feels that everyone knows everyone and that can be awful, but it can also be incredible. Missoula is the type of place where people show up for each other and pull through for each other. I’ll miss the community feel, and the strength that comes with that.

In your opinion, has Hannah Montana helped or hurt the image of your home state?

I’m pretty sure Hannah Montana is actually from Tennessee, but as far as the name, I’m pretty sure there’s a railroad town in Eastern Montana that considered changing it’s name to Hannah in order to boost tourism. Hannah Montana herself is probably the most well known thing to steal our state’s name.

What are you doing with the rest of your senior year?

Hopefully lots of sleeping, catching up on Netflix, and lurking on the Barnard and Columbia Facebook pages…But actually I have some IB tests to take and a tennis season to finish, so my 4th quarter is still looking pretty full.

Image via Green Door Photography