With summer comes freedom, change of scenery, and poor decisions, but though all of us LSU Tigers are out having the time of our lives, we can all agree that at some point in the summer we miss the place we know as our second home.
Mid-March
As students return from spring break, looking slightly more bronzed and maybe still slightly hungover, they head into class dreading the next month and a half. The spring slump begins and the work piles up. More and more study groups appear on the quad and parade grounds.
April
Students start their countdown for the three months of freedom that lie ahead. With each trip into the basement of Himes Hall, they realize they are one less test away from getting a much-needed break. This is when students either strive or fall between the cracks and lose any and all momentum they had throughout the semester.
Beginning of May
Tigers drink their sorrows away at Tigerland as exams near the corner and kill their dreams of tanned bodies and inebriated decision-making. Classes are coming to an end, and you can feel the excitement rising. Girls are spotted wearing clothes other than Nike shorts and oversize T-shirts.
Exam week
Middleton is flooded with students 24/7 wiping their tears with pages upon pages of notes. The quad is also filled with sleeping bodies and many ENOs. You can smell desperation as you walk through the halls. You will also notice those few students cramming right before there exam because they decided to say “F this” and drink their worries away with no regrets. By Wednesday night, students start to hit their breaking point and more meltdowns are noticeable.
End of Exam Week
The entire mood of the campus is changed. Everyone is happy again. The bars are loaded with students taking shots to finish off their year. End of the year parties are thrown, and many memories are forgotten by the tried and true “black out till you pass out.” This is also a bittersweet time as it means many goodbyes to the friends that don’t live nearby.
Beginning of June
Half of the students are out on trips enjoying the sun, while the other half sit at home living vicariously through Instagram and Facebook photos, binge-drinking wine at home and watching way too much Netflix.
Mid July
Tigers are posting throwback pictures of their time at LSU with sappy captions about wanting to be back in Death Valley or their “real home.” Countdowns to football season begin and are posted daily. By this time, we are all “Callin’ Baton Rouge” and can’t wait to be reunited with our fellow Tigers.
Beginning of August
The packing to move back to our college town begins. We load our cars and say our goodbyes to Mom and Dad, all of our hometown friends attending different schools and of course, our pets (the hardest goodbye).
Mid August
Students return and move into either their dorm or off-campus housing. Tigerland is filled with Tigers ready to kick off the fall semester by getting hammered. All Tigers are happy to be back at the university we all love and call home.
As we move in, we bid goodbye to our summers of fun and say hello to an even more fun time, football season in Death Valley. We accept that we must be responsible once again and we take on another great year at the best University in the SEC.
