THE RANT: Dear Vermillion Haters

Dear Vermillion Haters,

For Spring Break this year, I elected to stay in Vermillion for a couple of reasons: First, I live in a small town in Wisconsin. There is literally nothing to do there; we have no downtown and we are landlocked between the city of “Dirty ‘Stalis” and the town of Waukesha. Second, I was working that whole week. And third, well, I love Vermillion.

That’s right, I said it. I love Vermillion. And I’m sick of hearing the griping of many of the students about how much they “hate Verm.” Please, just shut your mouths.

If you hate Vermillion so much, why the heck did you come to school here in the first place? I understand if it had something to do with the fact that it was the cheapest place to go, or you could get in-state tuition, or scholarships or what have you. But you should have been able to come to the school, walk around campus and the town, and seen what you would be dealing with for four years (or more…although, if you hate it for undergrad, you’d probably hate it for grad school, too). If you didn’t like it when you came and visited, why did you decide that it would be a right fit for you?

I chose USD because, for one reason, I loved the fact that the town and the campus were almost completely integrated. You walk two blocks one way from campus, and you reach Main Street. Walk four blocks the other way, and there is Jones and, of course, Mister Smith’s. There is a park and a walk down by the river, along with docks that you can fish off of. The town is so small compared to any town or city that I’ve lived in before, and it’s peaceful and quiet. How many towns can honestly say that they are a college town that still has a peaceful atmosphere?

Maybe I’m biased. I was given pretty much free reign of where I got to go to school, within reason, of course. And, thankfully, my parents gave their blessing — they love it here, too.

So now what? You decided to come to Vermillion and attend a great school, but the town is what you hate. I can’t change your mind for you about Vermillion, but I have a few suggestions to make it more fun:

Go down to the river and go for a walk or a bike ride. Go fishing. Go see a movie! There are little shops downtown; go get ice cream. And hey, if you’re staying here this summer, there is a Shakespeare Festival in June right in Prentis Park.

My best suggestion, though, is voiced out of personal frustration:

Just stop complaining about Vermillion. If you hate it, well, you’re crap out of luck — go to another school. No one wants to hear about how much you hate it; they’ll either hate it more, or just find you annoying. There aren’t many other towns like Vermillion in the world — appreciate it, because someday when you “get the hell out of Verm,” you’ll miss it.

Sincerely,

Corey Wannamaker, Freshman