It's amazing h?w much I miss c?ll?g?, n?w that I think ab?ut it. Right ar?und this tim? last y?ar, I was g?aring up f?r my final y?ar at c?ll?g? as a s?ni?r. And n?w h?r? I am, m?ping ar?und ab?ut what ?nc? was.
I gu?ss it's a c?mbinati?n ?f n?t b?ing abl? t? find a j?b, having n? m?n?y, and kn?wing that all ?f my ?th?r fri?nds ar? still ?nr?ll?d in sch??l. R?gardl?ss, th?r? ar? a c?upl? things ab?ut c?ll?g? that ar? s?r?ly lacking ?n th? graduat? sid? ?f lif?. 6 t? b? ?xact.
I'm sur? ?nc? I find a j?b and g?t inv?vl?d in my th? p?st-grad lif?, I w?n't miss c?ll?g? s? much. I hat? f??ling n?stalgia this quickly aft?r finishing a part ?f lif?, but it's just ?n? ?f th?s? things in lif? y?u can't av?id.
1. Th? Fr??d?m
?n? thing that c?ll?g? ?ff?r?d that I lam?nt n?t having anym?r? is fr??d?m. At c?ll?g?, y?ur ?nly r?al r?sp?nsibility was t? g? t? class and (h?p?fully) pass. Asid? fr?m that, c?ll?g? stud?nts ar? fr?? t? d? what?v?r th?y s?? fit. S?m? p??pl? g?t j?bs. S?m? p??pl? d? drugs. ?th?rs g?t inv?lv?d ?n campus. But th? fact ?f th? matt?r is, th? ch?ic?s w?r? alm?st infinit?.
?ut in th? r?al w?rld, y?u d?n't hav? any fr??d?m at all, c?ntrary t? what ?ur c?nstituti?n says. Y?u'v? g?t things lik? bills and r?nt t? pay. It's n?t fun at all. It's a c?mpl?t? r?l? r?v?rsal, and I'm a littl? ?v?rwh?lm?d, b?caus? I s?? s? many p??pl? l?aving c?ll?g?, ?nly t? b?c?m? l?ck?d int? living t? w?rk. Scary ind??d.
2. Th? L?arning Atm?sph?r?
Just b?ing ?n a c?ll?g? campus s??ms t? mak? p??pl? want t? l?arn. I gu?ss b?ing surr?und?d by s? many p??pl? activ?ly inv?lv?d in th?ir studi?s is c?ntagi?us. I r?m?mb?r talking t? my fri?nds taking class?s lik? Anat?my and Physi?l?gy, r?ally int?nsiv? c?urs?s, and just h?aring h?w hard th?y had t? study w?uld m?tivat? m? t? put that much m?r? ?ff?rt int? my ?wn w?rk. And h?av?n f?rbid y?u walk int? th? library, y?u alm?st had n? ch?ic? but t? d? s?m?thing c?nstructiv?.
I r?ally miss b?ing ar?und s? many budding int?ll?ctuals. Things just ar?n't th? sam? aft?r c?ll?g?. Sur?, I hav? m?r? fr??d?m t? study things that ar?n't apart ?f my maj?r; it's hard t? stay m?tivat?d. Wh?n y?ur r??mmat? is l?ck?d away, pulling an all-night?r t? finish th?ir mid-t?rm, it's just th? kind ?f s?tting that can caus? p??pl? t? study hard?r. But ?ut h?r? it's s?...?mpty.
3. M??ting N?w P??pl?
I'm fully awar? that it is p?ssibl? t? m??t n?w p??pl? ?utsid? ?f c?ll?g?, but th?r? is d?finit?ly a uniqu? f??ling t? d?ing s? in a campus atm?sph?r?. N? matt?r h?w small y?ur sch??l is, y?u'r? always b?und t? m??t s?m??n? n?w, and in th? m?st rand?m ways, t??. Th?r?'s m??ting p??pl? in class, at th? caf?t?ria, in th? gym, at d?rm parti?s, ?r just ?ut ?f th? blu? wh?n f?rm?r stud?nts c?m? back t? visit th?ir ?ld d?rms and t?ll y?u ab?ut all th? d?bauch?ry th?y c?mmitt?d th?r? b?f?r? y?u. (Tru? st?ry)
?n? ?f my frat br?th?rs wh? graduat?d a f?w y?ars ag? t?ld m? that I sh?uld tak? advantag? ?f m??ting p??pl? whil? still at c?ll?g?, b?caus? th?s? ?ppurtuniti?s ar? f?w and far b?tw??n. I'm n?t that w?rri?d ab?ut m??ting p??pl?, it just s??ms t? happ?n. But g?tting t? kn?w y?ur n?ighb?rs just isn't th? sam? as ?th?r c?ll?g? stud?nts in y?ur quad.
4. Gr??k Lif?
Gr??k lif? d??sn't ?nd ?nc? y?u graduat? fr?m c?ll?g?. At l?ast, it's n?t supp?s?d t?. But b?ing apart ?f a s?cial Gr??k ?rganizati?n ?n campus has n? parall?l in any ?th?r way in th? w?rld. Th? g??d, th? bad, th? ugly, ?v?ry part ?f b?ing Gr??k is just ?n? crazy ?xp?ri?nc? that n?b?dy ?v?r wants t? ?nd. My frat?rnity mak?s it a p?int f?r und?rgrads t? g?t inv?lv?d in ?ith?r thr?wing ?v?nts ?n campus, p?rf?rming c?mmunity s?rvic?, and just b?ing s?cial. Ah man, it was gr?at.
I still plan ?n b?ing inv?lv?d, but r?sp?nsibiliti?s and ?ppurtuniti?s chang? ?nc? y?u'r? a c?ll?g? graduat?. It's lik? b?ing pr?m?t?d fr?m a privat? t? a g?n?ral. Y?u d?n't r?ally sp?nd tim? in th? tr?nch?s anym?r?, s? y?u start t? f??l a littl? l?ft ?ut. But it's all part ?f gr?wing ?ld?r, alb?it a sadd?r part.
5. Privacy
As if living in a c?ll?g? d?rm wasn't c??l ?n?ugh, th? l?v?l ?f privacy at c?ll?g? is th? icing ?n th? cak?. Whil? I didn't g?t my ?wn r??m at sch??l until my juni?r y?ar, it was w?ll w?rth th? wait. Th?r? is n?thing b?tt?r than b?ing abl? t? hav? y?ur ?wn privat? spac?. If y?u didn't want t? b? b?th?r?d, all y?u had t? d? was shut that d??r, and y?ur w?r? ?n y?ur ?wn plan?t. It was amazing. Y?u c?uld d? a l?t ?f things with that am?unt ?f privacy that y?u c?uldn't d? ?ls?wh?r?, lik?...h?m?w?rk, l?l.
I d?n't kn?w if I'm al?n? in this, but at h?m?, my r??m saw m?r? traffic than th? living r??m did. Mayb? it's b?caus? th? ?nly c?mput?r with Int?rn?t is h?r?, but I had th? l?ast am?unt ?f privacy h?r? ?ut ?f th? ?ntir? family. It g?t s? bad that I had t? l?ck my d??r, just t? k??p my sanity at tim?s. ?v?n wh?n I shar?d a r??m at c?ll?g?, I n?v?r r?ally had that pr?bl?m, b?caus? at m?st, ?nly ?n? ?th?r p?rs?n was th?r?. Th? privacy ?ff?r?d at sch??l is unrival?d.
6. Partying
?h y?ah! Th? c?ll?g? party sc?n? is bananas. I m?an, th?r?'s n?thing lik? it! C?ll?g? is a v?ry str?ssful plac?, and th? m?st p?pular f?rm ?f str?ss r?li?f is t? g? ?ut and party it up! ?n party nights, all y?u had t? d? was walk ar?und campus, and y?u w?r? alm?st guarant??d t? find s?m?thing g?ing ?n. ?r, y?u c?uld just thr?w an impr?mptu party just lik? that. Basically, anything was a party at c?ll?g?.
Partying ?utsid? ?f c?ll?g?...*shudd?rs*. I d?n't ?v?n wanna think ab?ut it. Th?r?'s just n? c?mparis?n. I d?n't car? h?w hard y?u try, y?u just can't r?cr?at? that car?fr?? attitud? ?nc? y?u l?av? c?ll?g?.