With the recent emergence of warmer spring weather, the campus was quick to flip into all the cliches that sunny collegiate days portend. Grass is to be lounged on, the Mall becomes a volleyball court — college students are finally behaving the way any promotional campus photographers would want us to. With the warmer weather, one can only think that this will lead to an increase of connections. Carnegie Mellon students are smiling and playing frisbee —naturally this will lead to love.
Lately students who would have otherwise been holed up in Scaife or Sorrells are now performatively reading on Dog Hill and playing spike ball on the Cut. This can only mean that there will be a surplus of students seeing each other for the first time and submitting to the Instagram account @cmu.missed.connections.
Missed connections accounts serve an interesting function in the campus meet cute economy, it’s doubtful that many posts actually result in a connection but it’s still something that many college students think of when getting dressed for lectures in the morning. Maybe this will be the day your future partner sends in “2 the cutie in my 112 lecture with the red hoodie I want u carnally.”
Carnegie Mellon students are notorious for their social ineptitude; does missed connections dispel opportunities for students to make friends and learn how to approach people? You can stay anonymous and hide behind a pastel wall of text, but will anything come of it? Who knows. Additionally, the anonymity of it all can lead to some uncomfortable declarations of love. Do the baristas at La Prima and De Fer or TAs want their customers and students lusting after them? Where does the line get drawn between compliment, flattery, and harassment? Nevertheless, it would be fun to find yourself as the subject of a missed connection. It’s nice knowing that we are somewhat aware of each other on campus and missed connections proves that when we do look up from our phones in the moments when we have to jump out of the path of an electric scooter or a dorky one-wheel, for a brief moment we see each other.
To the person running missed connections… so many questions. It’s anticipated that many staffwriters at The Tartan would kill for the chance to interview you. In the meantime, Carnegie Mellon students everywhere appreciate and anticipate the entertainment we garner from every post you make.
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