One of my favorite movies ever has to be "Accepted". For those of you who haven't seen it, Bartleby (Justin Long) creates a fictional college to cover up the fact that he doesn't get accepted to any of the colleges he applies to and then it becomes a legit thing when "accepted students" start showing up at the old mental institution they rented for appearance. There's one particular scene that always catches my attention when I watch it and that's when Bartleby introduces his parents to the Dean, Lewis Black. I don't want to fully spoil this scene because it's a gem but I kind of have to, a little.
Dean Lewis starts off his rant by saying that college is the time when young men and women start to "expand the way they look at their world" and he couldn't have been more right about that. After that he goes on to talk about buyers and sellers and getting a good job, but he says it in a really, in your face way... But anyways! I always pay attention to that scene because, in all reality, he's right. College really does affect the way you look at the world. Sometimes the change in perspective is for the better but you don't really think about it until you're home for the summer and you're either working a summer job you can't stand or your sitting on the couch of your parents house eating chips and watching Breaking Bad for the fourth time.
I've hit that point. I'm working a summer job I loathe and then come home and binge watch TV shows because there's nothing else to do. I'm trying to keep my mind off how much I miss college. Being at school has really changed the way I look at a ton of things and the differences that have come with it aren't all that bad. Some of the things I've noticed that have changed for me are...
1. Food
College really spoils you when it comes to food. There's a full buffet at almost any hour of the day and when there isn't, they give you money on a card and you can use that to order food! It's amazing! But sadly, that's not how that works in the "real world." College has made food so easily accessible that it's almost a crime. Going from those beautiful lines of massive amounts of food to scrounging through your kitchen to hopefully find something is not fun. It's a horribly sad transition and after about the third bag of chips I'd eaten in a couple days, I finally decided that cooking would probably be worth taking up. It was, and I can thank college for making me realize that food isn't always going to be there for me and that making it is awesome fun!
2. Free Time
When you're at school and you have some down time in between class you can either run to the dining hall or maybe a friends room or possibly your own room to take a nap. When you're home and you have free time, chances are you're cleaning the house attempting to please your parents. If you aren't cleaning the entirety of your home then you're most likely laying around hoping one of your friends calls you to do something because the boredom is slowly melting away your sanity. Trust me. Been there, done that. After constantly having something to do at school, sitting around kind of sucks. The only thing that sucks even more than sitting around and doing nothing is knowing that it's possible that having your brain melt away may be how you're going to spend your down time for the rest of your life.
3. Friends
College is a whole new world when it comes to the amount of people your age. If you went to a small high school like me then chances are you were super stoked to go and live in a dorm and not know everyone you were graduating with. You make so many new friends and they slowly begin to be your second family. Your neighbors and dorm-mates become your brothers and sisters and it's really amazing how they open you up to the world. They share so many crazy experiences with you and they help you out and guide you to who you want to be. They help you see all the different opportunities in the world just by hanging out with you and searching weird articles on the internet or even just talking to you about the clubs they're in and the things they like to do. Their experiences can help you find and do something amazing. Your high school friend definitely shared some great memories with you but they aren't around to help you when you're at college, but that isn't always a bad thing. Your old friends may have had your back in high school but as time goes on and you're away longer, they can fade away. It just leaves more room for new friends to fill the void and new friends lead to new opportunities!
4. Relationships
Like I said before, I went to a small high school. When you were in a relationship everyone and their mothers knew about it. When I got to college it was amazing how many guys were there that actually shared my interests and wanted to get to know me. (There were guys who were interested in art and hockey and weren't total jerks!) College relationships are so much more amazing than high school ones and I was all for them! The guys in college that want to be in a relationship are a lot more mature than the ones in high school which makes the relationship a lot easier and a lot more fun and special. All the dates you go on and the places you go are a lot more fun when you're doing it with someone who gets you and wants to be with you. There was a huge gap in how dating worked from high school to college though, but it really helped me to appreciate dates. I went from just hanging out with my boyfriend around town to having a special night where me and my boyfriend went to get pizza then went to go see the Shaun Cass Improv Show. The dates are more personal and planned out and they're a lot more meaningful. This is the one thing that has changed for the absolute best and the positivity that came with this change is wonderful!
5. Home
I always grew up hearing the phrase "home is where your heart is." I never realized how truthful that phrase was until I had left school for winter break my freshman year and felt like I was surrounded by strangers. If there is one thing that college has changed for me it would have to be where I actually belong. When I went away I was eager to leave for so many reasons, independence was one of them. When I got out there and made friends and actually made myself join clubs, like the hockey team, I knew that's where I belonged. I found a part of myself that I didn't know was there and the longer I'm at Oswego the more I realize that city is my new home. College has helped me to expand my world in a way I didn't think possible. It has made me realize that home isn't just where your heart is, it's where you need to be. I find myself thinking a lot more about going home to Oswego than I do going home to my mom, brother, or dad. I feel like I'm missing out when I'm not there, that I need to be living there and involving myself in that community and trying to get out on my own. Being where my family is, just doesn't feel right anymore and that's okay. With all the rest of the change thats going on, why wouldn't moving on with my life be good?
