The 9 Types of People You Meet in Annenberg

Annenberg, the good old freshman dining hall, serves as much more than a place to eat. Freshman week, it was a place to make friends (whose names you don’t even remember anymore). Now, it’s a place to spend three hours because you keep running into people and you really don’t want to do start that Expos paper. Annenberg is a microcosm of everything that is freshman year—and it’s a jungle out there. Here is a convenient guide to the types of people you will run into:

The Celebrity

This person can't walk three feet without stopping to talk to someone. We get it, you're popular, but nobody has that many friends. Please, no one wants to wait an hour to find a table just because you need to catch up with that girl you met at the Owl last weekend.

The Facebook Celebrity

Sort of like The Celebrity, but the opposite. They may not know everyone, but everyone knows them. You’ve been Facebook friends with them for months but have never spoken. You feel uncomfortably familiar with their life story for someone you’ve never met, but then again, so do the 1665 other people in the Class of 2018 Facebook group.

The Ex-Hookup

You’re still not really clear on what the protocol is here. Make eye contact? Pretend not to recognize them? Stop and say hi? Yeah, probably not. But maybe it’s not them. It was super dark on the dance floor Friday night. It’s totally not them. Wait, yes it is, and you totally were just staring at them for like, two straight minutes. Ugh.

The Annen-buddy

You’re not sure if this person has been following you for months or you two just have very similar schedules, but either way, you somehow are always in Annenberg at the same time. You’ve never met them and aren’t entirely sure that they exist outside of the ‘berg, because whenever you try describing them to your friends no one knows who you’re talking about.

The Tourist

Also not a Harvard student, but they did sneak in behind you when you walked in. No, don’t worry, that “No Trespassing” sign definitely doesn’t apply to you, random stranger! Now they’re clustered at the door, trying to take pictures while simultaneously pretending to not understand the HUDS staffer telling them to please leave.

The Beautiful Stranger

You two made eye contact at the panini maker, and maybe your hands even brushed when you handed them the serving tongs for the fries. Who are they? Why don’t you know them? A beautiful future that ends with adjacent beds at the nursing home flashes before your eyes, but while you’re trying to figure out a socially acceptable way to start a conversation, they’ve already disappeared.

The Familiar Face

They smiled at you as you walked over to the salad bar. Uh-oh. They totally look familiar but you have no idea what their name is or where you might have met them. Oh god, they're walking toward you. Act casual. You awkwardly fixate on your glass of water and hope they don't notice you hiding behind the basket of bananas. They totally do.

The Athlete

Also known as "The Athletic Clique" because you’ll never see this person in Annenberg without a table full of their teammates. You make the mistake of sitting with this person once, but then quickly remember you don't know anything about sports in general, much less the score of this week’s game. You concede defeat, awkwardly bus your tray, and make a mental note to maybe work out sometime this semester.

The HUDS Staffer

They're nice, friendly, and always happy to help. Whether you’ve forgotten your ID for the fourth time in one week or are running into the ‘berg right before closing time, you can count on a smile from HUDS!