I officially have two weeks left of my freshman year of college. Two weeks left of dorm life, two weeks left of regular trips to the Anteatery, and two weeks left of one of the most formative years of my life.
When I think back to who I was in fall quarter, it feels like I’m looking in a funhouse mirror. I know that that’s me, but it’s such a warped, different version of me than who I am today. I know how negative that sounds, but I promise I don’t mean it that way. I’m just acknowledging that I’ve changed a lot, for the better (and maybe a little for the worse).
I think it is very weird knowing that at this time last year, I had no idea what to expect when I came here in the fall. I didn’t know what to expect out of college, and it didn’t help that I was going from my very isolated hometown to bustling California. So now, as I look back on this year, I have a few things that I wish I could tell myself in September.
You will get sick.
Unfortunately, it is, in my opinion, part of the college experience to get sick every other week. Since the COVID-19 pandemic started in 2020, the idea of being sick is a lot more jarring than it used to be. The first few weeks of school it seemed that almost everyone got sick. After all, we were all moving into a very confined space and from places all over the world, there was bound to be a little bit of germ spread. Not even the second week of school, I came down with a head cold, but I was terrified that it was COVID. Thankfully it wasn’t, and I got better quickly, but that was the first major COVID scare that I had ever had. Once it became more common to be sick, I got a little bit less nervous about getting COVID, but only a little bit. Still, every single time I cough I get tested for COVID. Gotta stay safe!
Communal showers aren’t that bad.
I was absolutely geeking over the idea of communal bathrooms, specifically showers, for the longest time before coming here. Within two days, my shower routine became disgustingly simplified– I was in and out in 15 minutes– whereas at home I was taking upwards of 30 minute showers. Now, I don’t really mind communal showers. I don’t particularly like them, but I also don’t particularly hate them. I am rather neutral about communal showers.
Go to the beach more!
I think I went to the beach maybe once during fall quarter. At the beginning of summer, I was fully ready to go to school and spend all of my time at the beach.
That did not happen.
But it should’ve! I’ve always been a beach goer: I love reading and taking pictures and just photosynthesizing (laying in the sun like a plant). Now, I find myself wanting to go to the beach every other day. Unfortunately, that is not particularly realistic because of classes and plans, but I think I could definitely do for a few more beach days, now and then.
Make playlists often.
One of my favorite things to do now is listening to the music that I loved during fall quarter. Some songs include:
- Rockland by Gracie Abrams
- Hurricane by Kanye West
- Fue Mejor by Kali Uchis and Sza
- Jail Pt. 2 by Kanye West
and so many more. I think that the way that music can completely transport you back to a certain period in your life is really interesting. It’s a bittersweet nostalgia, but nostalgia nonetheless. It’s also really fun getting to know what kind of sound you liked at a certain time, and being able to compare it to what you like now.
Put yourself out there!
It’s really kind of ironic. I spent the whole year kind of bouncing around person to person, group to group, and I never really found my people. Now that it’s week 8 (!!!!!!) of the last quarter, I finally have. Terrible timing on my part. But the people that I have met I’ve met in circumstances that I easily could’ve put myself in the first quarter. I think that in the fall I was a lot more timid than I am now, and of course it’s normal to grow into a more outgoing person over the course of a college year, but if I could, I would tell little fall quarter me to be more outgoing and interested in meeting more people.