As August rounds third base, it tows the bittersweetness
of returning to school on its back. Some days move in isn't coming fast enough, followed by nights of debating whether or not to become a commuter student.Going into my sophomore year, I shouldn't feel the same separation anxiety that I felt moving into my freshman dorm. Unfortunately, I've been cursed with incredible parents who make leaving home so hard. Ugh! There are so many independences to look forward to each year, but they tend to go hand in hand with the downsides of living without the watchful eyes of mom and dad.1. No one is constantly checking your grades. Missing class here and there, a bombed pop quiz, that F for stapling your twenty page essay when the professor likes it paper clipped. These don’t seem so important in the grand scheme of life when you're the only one who knows. What a relief, I don't have to worry about forging a parent’s signature on report cards anymore! At least for me, I achieved my high school A's more because I didn't want to get grounded than anything. It's easy to let school fall short on the priority list when your parents aren't getting email notifications every time a new grade is posted. Or was that just my mom?
2. No one is there to cook for you. Say goodbye to dad's juicy steaks with a side of mashed potatoes and corn. You don't get to come home after a long day and just sit at the table waiting for food to appear in front of you. But no cooked food means pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! What could be better? You can eat anything you want without asking for permission. Which leads into the next great/terrible thing... 3. No one will tell you when you're getting fat. No condescending eyes when you reach for your third donut. There's not a hand slapping 150-calorie drinks out of your hand. No one to make you feel guilty! At last, I can eat two bags of Açai berries in peace. But without that polite reminder from mom that your face is looking pudgy, five pounds becomes twenty and two bags becomes ten. 4. No one is nagging you to clean up. Thank goodness. For nineteen years I've been trying to convince my mom that I prefer my room messy, but she won't listen. And when she passes her tolerance point, she nicely cleans my room and then I can't find anything for the next six months. I never have and never will understand the purpose of making my bed each morning when I'm going to ruin it that same night or during a highly likely afternoon nap. After nine months without nagging, my freshman dorm contained a moldy cheese knife, four stained hot chocolate mugs, one unopened jug of Tide detergent, and I developed a dust allergy. I don't really know what else there is to say. 5. No one treats you like a child anymore. Finally, I'm getting the respect I so righteously deserve! Professors interact with you like an adult, you can spend money where you see fit, go to bed at any time, make your own decisions. I don't even know where I should use my independence first! This doesn't stop the nostalgic twinges for those days when you can come home and vent to your mom because it just wasn't your day. There's not someone always on your side when you screw up; the responsibility falls on your grown shoulders. You don't get cut slack anymore. Not to mention you have to pack your own lunch, too.
