Editor's note: Scene will continue to feature the dorms and residence halls of Notre Dame and Saint Mary's throughout the spring semester. Anyone interested in writing a dorm feature should e-mail Scene at Scene@nd.edu

It is now; it is here, that the loneliest tears fall, muffled in drifts of dirtied snow. Now. What is now? Now is the lull that rests quietly between Groundhog and Valentine's Day, the days where we sit with hearts in a quivering flux between the loss of a rodent whose very shadow is feared and revered, and a day devoted to the expression of romantic love. Where can a young person turn in a time of such straining flux? The answer, which you are all surely screaming in your thoughts, is community.

This, and nothing less, is what life in the residence halls of St. Mary's is all about.

Now you're probably thinking: Oh, a boy is writing this article about St. Mary's? Ooooo a boy! What's a boy doing writing an article about a school that would not admit him, even after five attempts? Well, I'll tell you what, everyone, before we go any further, let's just get this out of the way and say that I love Saint Mary, I love her college, and as an Observer journalist I possess the integrity to discuss Saint Mary's with an objective eye and a professional pen.

That is to say, this is not just going to be another article about tickle fights.

Saint Mary's has five residence halls in four buildings, strange as that might sound, and each one has its own character and spirit. The residence halls are the heart of St. Mary's identity, and it is from this beating heart that the college arteries pump out fresh, newly oxygen-invirogated women into a global body eager for strong and vibrant voices with pleasant pitch and timbre. For many of these women, their journey to the world begins in Regina Hall.

Regina Hall

From the outside, Regina Hall, not to be pronounced with a "long i" unless one wants to be "smacked," is perhaps Saint Mary's most unremarkable residence hall: flat and block-like in appearance. The beauty of a place is more than brick-deep, however, and once one has entered the lobby of Regina, one knows that this is a special place. The foyer of this impressive structure holds two tiny pews on each side, as if to say, "Welcome to a place of worship. Pop a kneel." It also has a tiny potted plant that looks like a palm tree, seemingly placed to compliment the pews. One is left with a sensation that this is a place both sacred and tropical.

Inside the main doors, the visitor is confronted with an impressive chapel, and two expansive lounges on either side of the main lobby. The lounge on the south side is brilliantly furnished in clusters of sofas and easy chairs ideally arranged for conversation. It also features an enormous glass wall that peers over the indoor swimming pool and a very nice grand piano where people can rattle off a few ditties while they smoke a well earned and fully acceptable cigarette. The North Lounge is also nice and features a fireplace.

One of Regina's most popular features is that it is composed almost entirely of singles. The first floor offers larger rooms, but for the most part the rest of the dorm is filled with singles, most belonging to younger members of the Saint Mary's community.

Regina is a building that can produce very different responses when it enters the ring of candid discussion. Sophomore Stephanie King said, "The best part of Regina is probably living across the hall from all of your friends. Since almost every room is a single, you get your own space, and your friends are all right there."

Senior Kathleen Foley disagreed. "I feel bad for them," she said of Regina residents. "It's funny 'cause it sounds nice in all the brochures. It's got a pool, it's close to classes, you get a single. But when you open your door, your room is closet-size. Well … it ain't so bad."

That is apparently the most common complaint of Regina residents, but King said that though the rooms are roughly 8-by-10, it is worth it in the end, just to be part of the Regina community. King said, "It's a really good community. It's friendly, and everyone says hi to everyone."

McCandless Hall

McCandless Hall is another residence hall largely associated with underclasswomen and also one that lacks some of the visual appeal of the older buildings. It was completed in 1964 and named for Saint Mary's Marian McCandless, the alumna who founded the Saint Mary's publication, The Courier, in 1966. Its exterior is a fairly plain brown brick face with rows of what look like compressed train tracks wrapped around the building's perimeter.

Like Regina, the interior of McCandless distinguishes it from the rest of Saint Mary's living facilities. Having the advantage of being the newest residence hall, McCandless can offer such amenities as the air-conditioned study carrels for each room, and um ... a sink in every room. Which is admittedly a smaller amenity, but think of how much time a body doesn't have to spend walking back and forth every time those chompers need a brushing. OK, so it's not the nicest of interiors either, physically, but look deeper. Look at the community within!

According to the staff of McCandless, it has sections that are a little smaller so they are more closely knit. Additionally, the students living in McCandless are mostly underclasswomen, so it is a very energetic place.

Hall Director Kelly Ignatoski is very enthusiastic about her new role in McCandless. "I love McCandless," she said. "I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. It is a great building, and it has a great spirit. And we have a great staff. And I'm not just saying that because they're all standing behind me." And that is when the brawl erupted. Not really, but it was touch-and-go for a minute there.

Asked what she thought of McCandless Hall, Le Mans senior Kathleen Foley replied, "No tunnels, no way," in reference to McCandless's omission from the underground tunnel network at St. Mary's. Foley continued, "And it's closer to Angela Athletic Facility, so it's probably full of really skinny girls."

But the residents of McCandless know it as more than a location. To them, it's just home.

Holy Cross Hall

At the end of the tree-lined Avenue lies a monument to the architecture of the past — Holy Cross Hall. It is a beautiful old building, the oldest of the residence halls in fact, and just by walking across its front porch and into its classic lobby with twin, curved staircases, one cannot help but feel a pang of jealousy that one cannot live there. Especially if one isn't even afforded the chance just because of one's gender. One can really feel the pangs if that's the case. That's when the sting begins to burn.

Holy Cross is home to 320 residents, mostly second- and third-year students, and it is possessed of some of the largest rooms ever created. No joke — you could squeeze a roller skating rink into some of these rooms and still have room to herd alpacas. They are immense and feature hardwood floors, incredibly high ceilings, enormous windows, but they only have two temperature settings — Hell and Eskimo Hell.

The real charm of this building is not in its parlors or its VendoLand. It is in its community. These are no hostile Amazon women in Holy Cross, living in gated seclusion bringing in men for the sole purpose of breeding and then sending them to the place from whence they came. No, these be a friendly and chaste people, and though the author of this article was required to be accompanied by an escort, as are all men in all St. Mary's residence halls, it was still one of the most welcoming environments on campus.

Responding to inquiries of her opinion of Holy Cross Hall, though, LeMans Hall resident Foley stated, "I think it's gorgeous and it's beautiful, but sh-t, the whole distance to class thing. It's way out there."

Annunciata Hall

The fourth floor of Holy Cross Hall is actually a residence hall unto itself. Annunciata Hall, a.k.a. "The Rockin' Sorority," is a special section designed for seniors to live in community together, and that is exactly what happens. They live in community. It looks like a normal floor, but Annunciata offers extra amenities such as a very nice break room with a big screen TV. It also has its own computer lab and kitchen, and members of the community are given a key that accesses the basement entrance so they do not have to pass the scrutiny of the front desk every time they want to enter and leave the building.

An Annunciata resident who would only identify herself as "Gabby" explained: "It's just nice being on a floor with all seniors. The extra door is just a little extra incentive."

Fellow Annunciataette Megan Bodary agreed: "I feel tough. I feel like a big kid, finally, you know? I just like the feeling when you walk in the elevator and get to say, `Could you press four, please?' It's a separation. It's just enough."

While there will always be a naysayer such as Foley, — who said: "I always thought it was so funny that they renamed it a whole hall when it's just the fourth floor. That's all it is!" — there is something impressive about the community of Annunciata. It is composed entirely of women on the brink of leaving one stage of life and embarking on another journey, and they are all in it. They are all in it together.

Le Mans Hall

Opened in 1925, Le Mans (silent "s") Hall houses 520 students and numerous administrative offices, but it is also the most recognizable landmark on the Saint Mary's campus. It is an enormous structure with a commanding bell tower as its focal point. Once inside, the first floor is a wonderland of classy wood paneling, and the main lobby is speckled with small metal chandeliers that give it an almost medieval flavor. Large wooden pillars also make their presence felt in the lobby, softly whispering, "Is it a forest, or is it an indoor place?" And then it cackles.

Most Le Mans Hall residents are absolutely in love with the building and the people who people it. "There's a lot of quiet," said RA Sara Velligan, "so it's easy to get things done. And at the same time there are a lot of distractions whenever you want to find them. Best of both worlds, really."

Surprisingly enough, Foley agreed: "I'm lazy and Le Mans is close to everything. Yeah, we're huge. We have the most washing machines of any building on campus."

And the one naysayer in Le Mans, who desired anonymity, stated, "There is no best part about living on campus. They're unhelpful and stupid … I just don't like the business department, that's all. I'm sorry." So really, she can pretty much be discounted.

Indeed, any residence hall at Saint Mary's offers a sense of spirit that is difficult to match at other schools; almost all of the women interviewed agreed. Even Kathleen Foley. Despite the sometimes-hindersome issues of visitation hours and access cards, life on the Saint Mary's campus is a life lived in community, and it is largely through this community that Saint Mary's students are able to prepare themselves for the world outside.

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