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The Scarlet & Black

The Scarlet & Black

A Little Bit of Franz Sets Up in Grinnell

Natalie+Duncombe%2C+Lindsay+Fujimoto%2C+Emma+Knatterud-Johnson+and+Claire+Weidman+%28all+%E2%80%9915%29+call+1021+High+Street+Home.+Photograph+by+Tela+Ebersole.
Natalie Duncombe, Lindsay Fujimoto, Emma Knatterud-Johnson and Claire Weidman (all ’15) call 1021 High Street Home. Photograph by Tela Ebersole.

1021 High Street, otherwise known as Viva La Franz, is home to Claire Weidman, Natalie Duncombe, Lindsay Fujimoto and Emma Knatterud-Johnson (all ’15).

For many reasons, the name “Viva La Franz” naturally arose as a fitting title for the household.

“Franzia is our favorite beverage, I would say,” Weidman said.

“I was in France last semester,” Duncombe added.

Natalie Duncombe, Lindsay Fujimoto, Emma Knatterud-Johnson and Claire Weidman (all ’15) call 1021 High Street Home. Photograph by Tela Ebersole.
Natalie Duncombe, Lindsay Fujimoto, Emma Knatterud-Johnson and Claire Weidman (all ’15) call 1021 High Street Home. Photograph by Tela Ebersole.

Walking into the house, one is usually greeted by Fujimoto sitting on the couch. In fact, if Fujimoto is not sitting on the couch, the house begins to feel weird.

“Fuji is always sitting there waiting for everyone. It’s comforting,” Duncombe said.

“Yesterday I was sitting there, and everybody was like, ‘Hey, you’re not Fuji,’” added Weidman.

Weidman, Duncombe, Knatterud-Johnson and Fujimoto are all volleyball teammates, and had always thought that living together their senior year would be, in the words of Duncombe, “totally awesome.” Duncombe also raised the philosophical question of whether they are still teammates, considering they are seniors and the volleyball season is over.

One of the perks about living in a house with four teammates is that Sunday morning gossip is easy.

“Before, [when] living in the dorms, you had to go outside and bundle up and now I can just go across the hall,” Duncombe said.

To Knatterud-Johnson, it is great to wake up and hear your friends giggling, presumably about you. She added that living on High Street is entertaining on weekend nights.

“I like living on High Street because it’s really great to be in your room and hear people walk by drunk every weekend.”

Duncombe pointed out, however, that things might get a bit rough in the winter when walking to the D-Hall and the Bear becomes a chore. Luckily, both Duncombe and Weidman have cars.

But who needs cars when there are trains? Just feet away, train trucks run through Viva La Franz’s backyard.

“When the train comes by it rattles the house,” Knatterud-Johnson said.

“The first time in happened I thought the house was falling down,” Fujimoto added.

Aside from the jewel-toned paint on the walls—that looks really good on Instagram—the residents of 1021 High Street agree that the Hell Hole in the basement is the defining characteristic of the house. While the hole has recently been covered up, it was once filled with creepy dolls and weird medical instruments.

“I once saw a saw down there,” Fujimoto said.

“Our first year this was Zombie House and so there was a huge hole in the basement and people saw spirits,” Duncombe said. “I think we have managed to get rid of that by now.”

Because of their widely different schedules, the residents of Viva La Franz rarely share meals not involving Franzia.

“We all fend for ourselves,” Weidman said, “There is not an endless supply of food in the kitchen like there is in the dining hall which is both the worst and best thing.”

Chores are assigned via a chore wheel, which seems to be an effective system considering that the house is very clean. With the exception of Fujimoto’s room, the residents all agree that they are tidy people.

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