In the fall of their senior year, Enxhi Buxheli, Rebecca Chen, Georgia Seidel, and Kristie Colton made a pact to “protect” their Saturdays, which meant spending the day together, often off-campus. “Lowell E-101,” the name they gave their group, hopped on a bus to go apple-picking, visited Boda Borg for reality gaming adventures, went to the movies, hiked, and even set up a tent for indoor camping.
When they didn’t feel like going out, they’d do a movie night or indulge in facial masks, lounging on the big beanbag that took up half their common room.
“Our protected Saturdays were honestly the highlights of my college experience,” said Buxheli, calling them “a time to refresh and get away from schoolwork.”
Chen, Seidel, and Colton met as first-years in Thayer Hall and by senior year had brought Buxheli into the fold.
Buxheli studies physics; Chen, economics; Colton, computer science; and Seidel psychology.
Despite their differences, Chen said, “We can be ourselves around each other, and I think we understand each other to an unsettling extent.
“I took a gap semester — which is a full nine months apart with breaks — and nothing changed, which is a testament to the strength of our friendship.”
These days, Chen is living on Harvard’s campus, spending many hours on FaceTime; Buxheli is in Florida with her family; Colton’s dad is teaching her to cook at home in Utah; and Seidel has returned to the Australian farm where she grew up.
Seidel writes, “Everything we did together was fun … even homework wasn’t that bad. We would seriously chat and laugh all day if we could. Once again this is going to sound lame but having all of us together in the same room really made going back to our dorm feel like going home at the end of the day.”