If Medill second-year Will Kramer and his roommate, Weinberg second-year Leka Davis, ever stop living together, they might have the custody battle of the century. There’s Michael, their inflatable and death-defying cow. Then there’s the tortilla blanket, the stuffed avocado and the plush baguette — the beginnings of a really strange burrito. And that’s not even touching on Richard the skeleton (or his lookalike rug) and the rest of the non-plush decorations in their dorm room.
The collection started last year, when Kramer and Davis first lived together. The baguette came first, as a gag gift for Davis’s gluten-avoidant girlfriend, but it has since become theirs. Then the avocado, which was a gift from Davis’s family. And then, Michael, who even made an appearance at Dillo Day (they hoisted the inflatable cow above the Offset concert crowd).
“She got into various hijinks and was injured,” Kramer said. “We were going to lay her to rest, but we decided that she deserves to live a little longer.”
Kramer said it’s fun to tell the stories behind the items. He and Davis plan to continue the collection in their apartment next year, with Kramer’s room being for livestock and Davis’s room for photorealistic foods.
“We want to grow this collection,” Kramer said. “It’s fun to see where this stuff has been and what it’s doing here now. It’s a representation of a story.”