In high school, summer always feels too short–– you have like, ten weeks, maybe. And it's filled with camps and family vacations and college visits and work. But in college? Your summer is about as long as a semester, maybe longer. And by the end, you're going to actually want to go back to class.
1. You've already caught up with all your high school friends.
Sometimes it can take a while, but after the first four or five weeks, you've had time to meet up with all your high school friends already. So there's nothing new in that department.
2. You find yourself running out of things to do in your free time.
I mean, I don't have much free time between two jobs and an internship, but the other day I cleaned for two hours, played guitar for an hour, read a book for an hour and then I was so bored that I closed my eyes and made myself go to bed ... at 7:30 p.m.
3. You don't have any more shows to watch.
I spend the entire semester getting behind on my favorite shows (Bachelorette, Game of Thrones, and Scandal, to name a few) and then spend breaks catching up on them. But to think, I've watched an entire season of Game of Thrones, Orange is the New Black, Bachelorette, Scandal, Nashville, AND I'm two seasons into my third re-watch of West Wing? This is becoming a bit much.
4. You've run out of new things to do with your friends.
I live in a mid-sized city, so there's plenty to do. But after a couple months, I had exhausted my list of new restaurants I wanted to try and new places I wanted to go. Drinking and BBQ'ing don't really get old, except that after a while, they do.
5. You've gotten used to your new income.
At the beginning of summer, you're probably working 20 or 30 more hours a week than you do during the semester because you aren't taking classes. And at first, you have so much money, you're not used to it. You still buy TV-dinners and frozen pizza even though you can afford better. But after a while, you adjust, and this is dangerous! Because you're not always gonna be rollin' in that dough, and you really should save for books and whatnot.
6. You miss the structure of your daily life.
At first it feels like freedom to not have to wake up at 9am every morning. But the thirteenth time you pull an all-nighter for no reason, you'll start to feel like you're losing touch of yourself, and you'll miss having constancy in your life.
7. You email your professors.
Maybe I'm just a teacher's pet, but I like to touch bases with my professors, even ones I've had semesters ago, throughout the school year. If I'm near their office, I'll drop in to say hello. But I don't do this over break, because it's a break for both of us! I don't have to write papers, they don't have to grade them, and with this means that neither of us have to be polite and build relationships with one another. But I've started to miss my mentors and so, yes, I emailed them all this week. I actually made an appointment to see one of my favorite professors, and I'm feeling kind of pathetic right about now.
8. You start to shop for school supplies.
I have four weeks of summer left, but I just bought a backpack. And I found myself shopping for a new tablet and stocking up on pens. I have a problem.
