When you're in college, you open your mind to a whole new bag of possibilities. That was deep, right? College is about finding yourself and being YOU. Then again, college is about the academics and exams and schoolwork...the mountains and mountains of schoolwork that I'm avoiding by writing this article. Let's get in this, shall we? For the sake of my homework.
1. Living on-campus in a shoebox dorm.
Unless you're Queen of Pinterest, your dorm set-up probably isn't that fancy. Even if you attempt to decorate according to your college dorm Pinterest board, three months in and you won't even be able to see the floor. Dorms are small; unless you're lucky and get one of those massive dorm rooms.
2. Eating on-campus food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
At home, all you had to do when you came home was walk to the fridge. Now you actually have to throw on a pair of pants, trudge to the dining hall (in freezing weather sometimes) and stand in that long line for chicken parmesan. It's convenient, using your meal plan money for relatively good food, but it gets old once you're in your sophomore, junior, or senior year. Sometimes you just want to make that trek to Chipotle for something different.
3. Walking past the different organizations on campus passing out candy and balloons.
Remember when your mom told you to never take candy from a stranger? Apparently we all forgot that when we decided to walk across campus taking random pieces of chocolate from sororities, fraternities, and other organizations. It's hard to avoid them; I usually take a scenic route to class just to avoid them.
4. Football (and tailgate) season.
If you go to a school like Virginia Tech, then your school is probably all about football. Probably centered around football, more like it. We rally around our team, jump to Enter Sandman, and enjoy the turkey legs and milkshakes at the games. Before the games, college students head over to Center Street or wherever everyone is tailgating and dance to music and get hype for the football game. The NFL is for proud fans and dads to cheer for on Sundays after church; college football is different entirely. College football is for stressed out college students wanting to cheer on their team and show their love and pride for their school.
5. The party scene.
If your college doesn't have a party scene, then it's one of the few that doesn't. College comes with a social life and you don't have to partake in the activities that students seem to participate in on the weekends (starting on Thursday), but there are parties seem to be going on every weekend. Whether it's Greek life or not, having a social life and partying isn't that bad. Sometimes, it's actually fun and you get to *let loose*.
6. Procrastination levels high.
I'm procrastinating right now. I'm supposed to be getting ready for class but instead, I'm writing this article. When you're in college, you learn one skill: time management. If you can learn this, you've basically mastered college. Yeah, you get your degree in micro-whatever. Sometimes you just put off writing that paper or studying for that quiz because you want to finish the last episode of Grey's Anatomy. Your parents might not approve but the fellow college student understands and gets your pain. I get your pain.
7. Pulling all-nighters.
When you're not procrastinating, you're usually doing homework (or on the party scene). Staying up late in the library (or the Math Empo if you're me) is a norm and probably surrounded by cups of coffee or Red Bulls. The college student next to you doesn't judge you; in fact, they ask you for an extra pencil because hey, college.
8. Being proud of your school.
When you come to college, you're nervous, scared, and excited all at the same time. It's an exciting process for new freshies. Graduating seniors are envious of the freshmen. Juniors are nervous to be a senior next year. Sophomores are like...wtf? Freshmen have no clue what they're about to get into but the upperclassmen--the seniors--are there to tell you to buckle up...this is about to be a bumpy four years with laughter, tears, and a whole lotta coffee.
9. When you graduate, you really don't know what to do with your life.
College is kind of a safe haven from the rest of the world. When you graduate, now what? Are you supposed to get a job? Find a home? Get insurance? Find a soulmate? Have kids? What are these responsibilities that college didn't prepare me for? I promise you, if you think college didn't prepare you for those things, you're wrong. It probably did, you just missed out on it. But college won't throw you in the ring for you to get torn to shreds, but will guide you along to get you where you need to be--whether that's graduate school, landing your dream job, or fulfilling your lifelong dream of being a traveller.
College is a weird time. It's in between still being a kid in high school and being a real adult and having real responsibilities. You are considered a real adult and supposed to be mature in college but then again, we are immature and are still learning. Heck, just enjoy your college experience because you will only get this once (maybe, if you aren't planning on grad school or going into a fifth year). Okay, maybe you will get college again but enjoy these four years, and we'll talk.
