2008 Woodie Awards
Sex in the UniverCity
Shana Secory
Issue date: 10/15/08 Section: Student Life
When I walked into my roommate's bedroom the other night, she was on her laptop. There was a small box in the lower, left corner of her computer screen. Inside this box was a small, moving man. When I looked closer, I saw that the man was my roommate's boyfriend doing his homework. I asked her why she was silently watching her boyfriend doing his homework over the Web cam, and she responded, "He lives so far away that I like to be able to see him and he likes to see me."
After I laughed, made fun of her, and of course, tried the Web cam out for myself, I got to thinking about long-distance relationships and what technology adds to them.
Do long-distance relationships even work?
Freshman Emily Haavik said that she has seen long-distance relationships work and fail.
"I would never get into one myself unless the person was very valuable to me," Haavik said.
So, if the person is so important to you that you are willing to date them, no matter how far away from each other you may live, then why is long-distance dating so challenging?
Freshman Haley Anderson said that it's hard to coordinate phone calls and not be busy when they call. Two years ago, Anderson was in a long-distance relationship for seven months.
"I really wouldn't recommend them," she said.
On a more physical level, freshman Dave Wadsworth said "they blow," because there is nothing physical to the relationship. One would think Wadsworth may have had a bad experience when he claims that there are "too many other guys [or girls] around" for anyone to stay loyal in a long-distance relationship. "Get a good long-distance calling plan," he said.
A different angle to long-distance relationships is when the two people live in completely different countries. Senior Alice Bolton dated someone that she met while studying abroad in England. Once she got back to the states, the time difference was really challenging.
"I was thrown back into my life here, and he didn't really understand that," she said.
When I first caught my roommate on the Web cam with her boyfriend, I was caught off-guard. It seemed so sad that it was the only means of communication that they had.
For instance, freshman Donald LaBoone said that it is hard to communicate with someone long-distance because the two people may interpret words differently since you can't see them.
"I think that AOL or any kind of instant messaging [with video] would work well" for a long-distance relationship, LaBoone said.
I have heard that a lot of people use Web cams when they study abroad, so why is it any different when you are dating someone? Maybe now that we have this new technology, cyber-talking isn't as "cyber-stalking" as we think it is. But in terms of long-distance relationships, is this all worth it?
Bolton said, "make sure you really want to be in it, because it can be hard and you don't know how long it will last."
After I laughed, made fun of her, and of course, tried the Web cam out for myself, I got to thinking about long-distance relationships and what technology adds to them.
Do long-distance relationships even work?
Freshman Emily Haavik said that she has seen long-distance relationships work and fail.
"I would never get into one myself unless the person was very valuable to me," Haavik said.
So, if the person is so important to you that you are willing to date them, no matter how far away from each other you may live, then why is long-distance dating so challenging?
Freshman Haley Anderson said that it's hard to coordinate phone calls and not be busy when they call. Two years ago, Anderson was in a long-distance relationship for seven months.
"I really wouldn't recommend them," she said.
On a more physical level, freshman Dave Wadsworth said "they blow," because there is nothing physical to the relationship. One would think Wadsworth may have had a bad experience when he claims that there are "too many other guys [or girls] around" for anyone to stay loyal in a long-distance relationship. "Get a good long-distance calling plan," he said.
A different angle to long-distance relationships is when the two people live in completely different countries. Senior Alice Bolton dated someone that she met while studying abroad in England. Once she got back to the states, the time difference was really challenging.
"I was thrown back into my life here, and he didn't really understand that," she said.
When I first caught my roommate on the Web cam with her boyfriend, I was caught off-guard. It seemed so sad that it was the only means of communication that they had.
For instance, freshman Donald LaBoone said that it is hard to communicate with someone long-distance because the two people may interpret words differently since you can't see them.
"I think that AOL or any kind of instant messaging [with video] would work well" for a long-distance relationship, LaBoone said.
I have heard that a lot of people use Web cams when they study abroad, so why is it any different when you are dating someone? Maybe now that we have this new technology, cyber-talking isn't as "cyber-stalking" as we think it is. But in terms of long-distance relationships, is this all worth it?
Bolton said, "make sure you really want to be in it, because it can be hard and you don't know how long it will last."
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