Wigglesworth, the Yard's mostoddlyshaped dorm, consists of several unconnectedsections strung out along busy Mass. Ave.Wigglesworth residents may never meet the studentsin their neighboring entries. If the dorm lackscohesiveness, however, it scores high points forquality of living. Its spacious triple andquadruple suites have a close-up view of livelystreet activity, and traffic quiets down late atnight so residents can sleep.

Straus, hidden in the Yard's leafysouthwest corner, is the second-youngest dorm inthe Yard. Straus' smallish but nice quad suitescontain private bathrooms.

Weld has funky, castle-like trim on theoutside and large, social hallways on the inside.The dorm is currently undergoing massiverenovation, and will soon be the first Yard dormto be fully handicapped-accessible.

Unfortunately, the construction won't becompleted until the winter. First-years who wouldhave lived here will instead be exiled to distant29 Garden St. and placed in rooms withkitchens and carpeting. Harvard will provideshuttle buses to the Union. Lots of groupbonding-or maybe group commiserating-is in storefor this bunch.

Matthews will also be renovated nextyear; residents of this dorm will move across theYard to Weld after first semester. Matthews'Gothic exterior resembles the set of a horrormovie, and its dark interior hallways can be alittle spooky. But the woodpaneled rooms arenicely sized, and Matthews residents often turnthe hallways and stairwell into an arena forcreative dorm games.

Less history--but sometimes more fun--awaitsthe residents of the Union dorms. Located just afew feet behind the first-year eatery, these dormsare converted apartment buildings with reputationsfor wildness.

Pennypacker's central circular staircaseis a great place for congregating. And people do."The Pack's" bright landings are full of people atall hours, and a four-story beer funnel makes anappearance on its open stairwell once a year orso. Pennypacker's rooms are not massive, but theirquirky shapes offer a change of pace from thestandard Yard dorms.

Hurlbut residents--who call their dorm"the Butt"--live in "pods," huge circular commonrooms with singles branching off of them. Most ofHurlbut's oddly-shaped rooms are comfortable andin good repair. Unlike the other first-yearresidences, Greenough feels much like a"typical" college dorm. Long narrow hallways, tinyboxy rooms, and communal bathrooms are the normhere.

Students at other colleges, most of whom livein minuscule two-person boxes with cinderblockwalls and linoleum floors, tend to get jealouswhen they see pictures of elegant Harvardquarters. And with good reason. Harvard's dormshave some drawbacks, of course--students need todevelop the stamina to climb stairs and a hightolerance for old architecture. But a housingsystem that involves working fireplaces, woodenfloors, spacious rooms and beautiful landscapingisn't such a bad start to a Harvard career