August 23-25: Move-in days. It’s finally time to haul that mod floor lamp, those bright… August 23-25: Move-in days. It’s finally time to haul that mod floor lamp, those bright plastic cups and dishes, and the sheets and comforter you picked out from Bed Bath ‘ Beyond with a 20-percent-off coupon into your new dorm room.

Your gaze glanced over that pile of imperative stuff packed into every open space available in the family car and you soon realized those grotesque blue and gold housing carts may perhaps be the greatest invention ever.

Move-in day, whether you are a freshman who is doing it for the first time or an elder senior wondering why you’re still hauling around the same junk in your trunk, can create some high-strung, stressed-out people.

But maybe you stopped yourself sometime during the commotion of the day, in between waiting in line to get into the Towers’ elevators or standing in line in the Schenley Quad to snack on some free cookies and ice cream, and soaked in the day’s experience and all that it consists of at Pitt.

“It wasn’t that bad,” said Jen Glasser, a freshman who lives in the Towers. “I moved in last week with the band. I’ve just been avoiding the elevators now.”

“I’m excited to get into the routine of things and starting classes,” said Suci Madjidji, a freshman who also moved into the Towers last week.

Luckily, Pitt offers the assistance of the Arrival Survival staff to help ease some of those move-in day worries.

“They’ve been really helpful, those people with the yellow shirts,” said Janet Fiki, a freshman who moved into Sutherland Hall last week.

“A bunch just came and helped move in my carts. We were done in like 50 minutes.”

Mike and Sheila Finn, parents of a Pitt sophomore, took a break during the bustle of moving their daughter into Brackenridge Hall to enjoy the refreshment table in the Schenley Quad.

Mike commented, “We’re pretty impressed. We have two other kids in college and this has been the best so far. They’re [the Arrival Survival staff] very friendly and helpful.”

“An assistant dean even came and asked us how we were doing and if we needed anything. You don’t get a lot of administration like that in college,” added Sheila.

Not everyone has the good fortune of an entirely smooth move-in event, and it is almost impossible to find one that is flawless.

“We stopped to pick up an Ethernet cable that was forgotten at home,” admitted Sheila Finn.

Diane O’Connor, mother of a Pitt sophomore, was frustrated with her experience this year.

“We’re pretty disappointed so far. There’s no parking in the Quad. We finally found parking after driving around three times, and there are volunteers all over but there are not enough actually helping. They seem to just be standing around,” she said.

Some of those students standing around in the yellow T-shirts had tried to get around the commotion of their own move-in by signing up to be a part of the Arrival Survival staff and thus being allowed to move in a few days early. They help other students wheel their clanking carts, direct confused parents with parking and hand out ice cream sandwiches, all while getting a small compensation for their helpfulness.

“It was a lot more calm this year. It’s the reason I decided to do Arrival Survival. It’s what a lot of people do,” said sophomore Angela Marcotte.

So smuggle in that George Foreman (which you’ll regret as soon as you attempt to clean it), tape up that mixology poster and enjoy the start of another year in the residence halls at Pitt.