The Cavalier Daily
Serving the University Community Since 1890

Top 10 types of college love

A single’s attempt to sum up what we call crazy, stupid love

<p>Paige Waterhouse is a Top 10 writer for The Cavalier Daily.</p>

Paige Waterhouse is a Top 10 writer for The Cavalier Daily.

1. Unrequited love

Severus and Lily, Gunther and Rachel, Sharpay and Troy — what do all of these iconic fictional duos have in common? The desperate, failed attempts of one yearning to acquire the love and affection of their long coveted crush. Frankly, unrequited love sucks, but there are still many ways to attempt to win over your beloved. Maybe try selling your service to the Dark Lord, or offering them exorbitant amounts of coffee, or what about arranging extravagant dance numbers? If you still have no success, then I’m afraid I am out of ideas, friend. Just know that you are not alone in your struggles. Maybe one day — cute guy from my COLA?

2. Instagram love

Ah yes, the Instagram couple. Both of their pages are post after post of cuteness, matching costumes for parties, fun coffee dates and of course — anniversary posts. We get it, you’re in love and we are so very happy for you — really, we are. It would just be nice to see some new faces on my feed. Mix it up with some shots of colorful sunsets or adorable puppies just to reassure us that you have a little variety in your life. Don’t worry, you’re still “totes the cutest couple ever!” as all of your followers can clearly see.

3. Best friend love 

There is no purer form of love than best friend love. A best friend is someone you can talk to 24/7 and never get annoyed. A best friend is someone you can not hang out with for months and then still pick up right where you left off. A best friend is someone who secretly restocks your snack stash with Clif Bars when she realizes how sad you were you forgot to buy them at the grocery store. Whether you have one or 10, show your besties some extra love today, because without them, life — and your snap stories — would be exceedingly dull.

4. Girl you met at a party love 

Want to find love fast? Some may suggest online dating or sitting in a cafe waiting for your inevitable rom-com meet up. Both are inefficient compared to the instantaneous love you can find by bumping into a girl at a party. She tells you that she absolutely loves your top, and you say that her makeup must have been done by the goddess Aphrodite herself. A few more compliments later and boom — you’re best friends. You give each other relationship advice in the bathroom, and two songs later, she’s asking you to be a bridesmaid at her wedding. Sadly, this beautiful womance is short-lived and will fade with tomorrow’s hangover.

5. Your crush from lecture love 

A large lecture hall is one of the best places to people watch. Skimming the rows, you are destined to find at least one cutie, studiously taking notes and chewing on the end of their pen cap. And suddenly, after one look, this person has become your lecture love. This person is the one you are destined to admire from afar and never actually interact with. You sit too far away to spark up some small talk, and there’s no chance of discovering their personality through class discussion — so you create a story in your head. You discover their quirks, favorite food and acquired music taste all by staring at the back of their head. Are you being creepy? Maybe, but it makes the slow moments in class a little more interesting.

6. Sibling love

If best friend love is the purest form of love, then sibling love is the most authentic. If you are an only child, please feel free to skip ahead, but if growing up you always had to share the spotlight — this one’s for you. Sibling love is strong because there is no one else in the world who has pretty much experienced every aspect of your life alongside you. No one else understands the dynamics of your family, has witnessed every single embarrassing story and has force fed you too many grapes as a child — “accidentally.” Siblings are great because no matter how old you get and how your life changes, they’ll always be there — it’s like a “no subscription required” type of love. They give you advice, hand-me-downs and above all — unconditional love. Make sure to give them some back today.

7. Roommate love

This is a unique form of love that takes three distinct forms. Form number one is mutual understanding. When asked by family members, you describe your roommate as “nice” and “chill”. You probably met them on Facebook and decided to room together based on the sole fact that you both love “Harry Potter”. Now you realize that being in the same fandom doesn’t equal automatic best-friendship, but at least they respect your space. Form two is the “I would wake you up if the fire alarm went off” love. You don’t get along, and they kind of get on your nerves a lot, but they’re still a struggling student like you, so they deserve a little love, right? Form three is genuine love. I’m talking “stay up till 2 a.m. debating whether or not narwhals are real” kind of love. That’s when you know it’s real, and your roommate needs to watch more Animal Planet.

8. Hoo Crew love 

One of the most powerful forms of love — Hoo Crew love — knows no bounds and is shared across Grounds between each University student. This love is especially evident at sporting events when the crew goes wild cheering for beloved teams. Looking at the orange and blue body paint and giant heads of our favorite players floating in the crowds, some may say the love is too strong. But no, Hoo love is a mighty bond that is here to stay, getting us through our most devastating losses and blossoming with our most triumphant wins.

9. University staff love 

If you are going to show a little extra love to anyone on Valentine’s Day, share it with our University staff. Maintenance, dining services, groundskeepers, Ambassadors, professors, administrators, our beloved President Jim Ryan and all other members who keep the University running are worthy of our affection. Drop a simple thank you and a smile to spread some well deserved appreciation.

10. Self love 

Today is a day to celebrate those that you love in your life, but it is also a day to celebrate the love you have for yourself. If this seems to be the particular type of love that you struggle with, you’re not alone. There are many types of love to experience in this world, and chances are, you feel a lot of them each day. If you can find yourself loving some of the people listed here, then you too are also worthy enough to receive of such affection. So love yourself because just as you feel it for others, there are a lot of people out there that love you too.

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