'Tis the season. Not the holiday season, the graduation season. Where every weekend of your summer is spent going to grad parties and reminiscing about how easy high school was. Since everyone will be suffering through them together, here are a few things I have found to be helpful.
1. Bring a large purse or backpack.
Being the broke college student, you need all the help you can get. And graduation parties always have extra food. Plastic bags or Tupperware containers will come in handy.
2. Plan ahead.
This way you can attend multiple parties in one day and kill many birds with one stone. If you know a lot of people, it can be hard to keep track of all the parties you have been invited to, and you do not want to miss out on free food. Just think, you could have breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack all taken care of.
3. Bring a buddy.
Do it, even if you have to drag them there. You never know when you are going to need someone to help plan your escape. It also helps when you forget how you know the graduate and have no idea who their family is.
4. Be prepared.
Keep handy dandy note cards in your purse or pocket. Write answers to the inevitable questions, "Where do you go to school?" "Didn't you already graduate?" and "Why are you not working?" It helps to think of excuses if you need to leave a conversation early, like "Sorry, I need to go feed my ducks."
5. Wear a name tag.
I know it sounds silly, but it really helps. Not everyone can remember the hundreds of people they once briefly met and decided to invite to their graduation party.
6. Always make a card.
Whether it is hand written or printed off your computer, it doesn't have to be extravagant, just something to let the graduate know that you still remember them. And since you are now in college, you can give them relevant advice.
Now go out there and have fun. After all, graduation parties are meant to celebrate the accumulation of years of hard work. Even if all they do is make you feel like you are behind in life, go and support your fellow lifers.
