The Case for A Fridge

Stockbridge Hall has no dormitory-accessible refrigerator. I have been to hall government meetings and brought up this fact. Unfortunately, it seems everyone agrees that it would be an unwise decision to have a refrigerator in the common hall for all people to have access to. They decided that the upkeep of a fridge would be too much and no one would want to do it. Interestingly, Stockbridge is one of the only dormitories without a refrigerator on NDSU’s fine campus. Instead, hall government bickers over what kind of meme flags they’re going to buy for the basement rec lounge.

The Case for a Fridge:

A fridge is a commonplace appliance in nearly every home. It is an essential piece of food storage that has been developed for over a century to keep food at a safe level. In Stockbridge as a freshman you are pretty much required to buy your own fridge for your room. This isn’t easy for everyone! Not everyone has access to funds in the same way, I’m sure not all college freshmen are completely adept with their finances and at least for me, I had extenuating circumstances preventing me access to a minifridge. This lack of a fridge made me overly reliant on dining centers during the week and kind of floating around on the weekends waiting for food. I stayed in the dorms over all breaks. Kind of lame. But, it gave me time to reflect on the fact that I would have starved if it were not for peanut butter and ramen.

There is no place to keep meat, vegetables, and dairy products in Stockbridge. There is no place to save a meal overnight in Stockbridge. There is no access to a consistent refrigerator, something so basic I didn’t think about it for the first month I was here. International students have a relationship with work that prevents them from making a liveable wage in most cases. This relationship could be dangerous when placed in an environment where something as simple as a fridge is not present. Over break I was overly reliant on dry food products. No meat of any kinds, very few vegetables that keep without cooling technology. Basically just ramen, bread, tortilla chips, and peanut butter. I was sustaining myself thanks to my girlfriend who had meals with me all the time. I am lucky in that regard, I don’t know what I would have done without her. With the dining centers being closed over breaks this year I was completely lost. Overall, the case for a refrigerator is simple. Who doesn’t have one? Like, what? How is this a debatable action? How could a group of people acting for the interest of the hall lifeblood not understand that a fridge is not just something that needs to be cleaned, but an act of removing food instability for those living in the hall full time, who aren’t from here and have few friends and family to spend time with in the area?