September 15, 2023 | Features | Written by Anya Jones
Matthias Hall. Rooms facing Uintah Street At 8:00 PM the sun had almost completely set. The lights started to come on.
The first thing that will strike you is the number of girls’ rooms. Soft ambient lights line the walls and medium-sized lamps sit on the window sills. Even from the street, you can see the Pinterest-inspired wall decor that is the hallmark of trying to forget your brick walls. The boys’ rooms are dark, kept alive by a strip of bright green LED lights along the edge where the walls meet the ceiling. To the negative eye, it is completely unattractive. The LED lights are like a fun toy because they come with a remote control that has buttons of different colors. Use this remote control.
Some girls’ rooms have newly formed groups of first-years piled onto one bed, ostensibly for weekend debriefing, discussing the latest class contribution from the resident devil’s advocate, or playing ‘would you rather’ but only with questions about foot stuff. In some rooms, two roommates move silently and effortlessly, creating a complex pattern of crossing without ever touching each other. In a room lit with green LEDs, a boy opens his computer screen and watches an episode of “The Office.” Maybe he likes to tell people that this is his sense of humor.
On Uintah Street, the whirring sounds of nearly dead cars and cheerful motorcyclists make it impossible to hear the “For You” TikTok page, even with headphones. Here, the busy lives of keen commuters and runners are on full display. You can learn about motorists’ age, emotional state and, on this occasion, marital status at a glance as they drive on the two-lane road.
You’ll see a mother taking her kids home from baseball practice. Her role will likely be with carpool rotation. You can tell because there are three kids in the back seat, all the same age, squishing around in very tight seatbelts, screaming nonsense about how Yuria’s mom (real name because they just met someone with it) is letting him eat Lucky Charms after dinner and… “,”for me My mom says so crazy“.
You will see a middle-aged man who has to shave the remaining hair on his head if he has hereditary baldness. He holds his phone to his mouth, his hand planted on the top of the steering wheel. He drives my mom’s car – a blue Honda CR-V. He looks tired and ready to go home so he can reheat the leftover pasta. He’s on the phone with his wife. You can tell how relaxed he is and how heavy work remains for the day.
Behind him, in a white Honda Civic, is a woman who looks too small to be in the springs. She is too well to go home after a day’s work. She’s going to meet people somewhere. The dinner she was looking forward to. Dinner with the small group of sane people I found in a very crazy city.
Contestants. Lots of people running on Uintah Street. This begs the question: “Why?” The cute neighborhood I found one time I went on a mental health walk north of campus is a great place to run. It’s a quiet, leafy area, and there are a million dogs you can say hello to as you pass by.
For example, the Tiger Trail runs for miles along Monument Creek and accesses some surprisingly pristine edges of the city. It even has the advantage of dirt-like gravel instead of uneven, broken concrete. Hosted by Uintah St. Every character in The Springs. You’ll hear every type of engine ever made and modified, and you’ll see that group of Duck Dynasty bikers. It’s like an airport airstrip. And it’s not like you’re just passing by on Uintah St. No, I can see you many times running up and down this messy stretch of road. It’s confusing.
A United Postal Service delivery man with stringy gray hair just above the shoulders drops a package and doesn’t greet anyone. The first-years soccer students travel the long way home just to walk through Matthias’ back doors. Three lemon scooters pass by, ringing their bells despite being alone on the sidewalk. Other Honda. The left turn lane on Nevada Street is blocked because left turners think there is not enough room for both lanes to turn left. You won’t hit each other. A DoorDasher was seen delivering the pizza to Mathias as he waited outside for one minute, then got into his car and immediately drove off with the pizza. No student was seen trying to retrieve the pizza. Ordinary night.