Dear Fellow Ex-Freshman,
In the midst of waiting for sophomore year to start and reuniting with old friends, let’s step back and reflect on freshman year of college. It was a journey filled with bumps and bruises, long uninterrupted study sessions, and the pondering of major/career decisions on those occasional deep reflection nights. Here are some of the top lessons we learned during freshman year.
1. You learn to appreciate home cooked meals
Having to live with the reused dining hall menu was torture considering we paid around $9 for an uncooked pizza with a side of cereal. The minute decent food is presented to us, it’s like nothing else in the world matters. We once again love food and our taste buds can recover.
2. Friendships come and go…
College opens up an abundance of friendship doors. Some may be temporary, and that’s totally fine. You don’t have to stay friends with every math homework buddy. Not everyone is meant to be your friend.
3. …But when you find your core group, you’re Gucci
They make every get together another inside joke, another silly Instagram, another Snapchat video worth constant rewinds. They make college the best time of your life by daring you to step out of your comfort zone and live a little.
4. We’re here for a good time, not a long time
In four short years, it’s tough to cram all the adventures you want to check off your list. With that said, there’s little to no time to waste. Be courageous!
5. First load of laundry is always tough, but it gets better
Doing adult stuff sucks when you’re in the dark and don’t have your mom to do it step by step for you, but with time you’ll be an average laundry user. You’re nowhere near a pro just yet, though.
6. Switching majors isn’t the end of the world
College is a period of alterations and finding out your likes and dislikes. Don’t sweat the change in interest, but don’t go around switching every two seconds because of a new hobby.
7. YOLO is the motto
No worries in letting loose a few times. Just make sure you have friends to have your back by the end of the night.
8. It’s all about the connections
The people you know and relationships you create in college are EVERYTHING. During college, it may just be for the address to this week’s frat party or a great study guide for your Spanish midterm, but in the future it may be for your first job reference.
9. Disagreements happen.
In the town of college, we all have opinions and some don’t mind vocalizing them to the world. Tensions will rise and you just have to agree to disagree sometimes. Occasionally arguments don’t end up working themselves out. Just give it time. If it fails again, move on and good riddance is the attitude you go forward with.
10. If it was a good time, Instagram it.
Have no shame in your strong Instagram game. If it’s quality, it’s quality. Make sure to give it a kickass caption, add a classy filter, and avoid the aggressive hashtagging.
11. Adopt your friends’ catch phrases
It happens, you use your friends’ vernacular on accident from always hearing it. Too much time spent together makes you start to become one.
12. Technology sucks!
What’s college without technical difficulties, especially when you need it the most? Yes, I’m talking about the moment they’re about to announce who Gossip Girl is on Netflix! Doing online homework wouldn’t be complete without having to do the same assignment twice because it didn’t save or realizing you missed a bracket on your math equation. We can all agree on one thing, the Wi-fi sucks!
13. Nothing gets done in study groups
The Pandora music is on a dimmed volume, but you either hear everyone singing along or a debate arises to change the song. Basketball with the trash bin, taking a Snapchat break, looking at funny animal videos, and just staring at the ceiling all occur within the halls of the designated study room. Then when you actually start buckling down and trying to make progress, everyone’s hungry! Everyone crams for 15 minutes and then a late night snack run is a reward for those 15 minutes. It makes no sense, but it keeps us sane.
14. Finals drive you crazy, just accept it
The library becomes home, coffee is your only meal, and you never see your bed until 3 a.m. Our lives suck in preparation, but just remember you gotta run the marathon to get the shiny medal. Cross your fingers that your notes are still legible from lecture, stock up on highlighters, and when in doubt circle C.
15. Your laundry is always is in danger on laundry day
Sunday is the worst day to stock up on clean clothes. Everyone has that same idea roaming in his or her head the last day of the weekend. If you’re late by just a minuscule amount of time, your clothes may end up chilling on top of the washer or on the bench by an antsy resident.
*Be on the look out for part two!*