The Freshman Experiment

Guys, thanks for indulging my nosy behavior and telling me about your first days. I want to respond to everyone in an entry so…here we go!

GoodbyeMidnight – I wish I was moving in on Thursday. I don’t get back to LAC until Saturday and I’ve been anxious to go for awhile now. I think it’s great that you found some place that’s close to home. I actually was accepted to a college that’s literally two minutes from my house and I just couldn’t envision myself going there. I wanted to be the first person in my family to get out of our home-state, but I have to admit, I am sometimes envious of my siblings. They can just drive home, do their laundry instead of shelling out $1.25, and get a home-cooked meal. One of my brothers went to a school about 45 minutes from home and he said it felt like he was a world away! So, you never know, it could feel like “you went away” for college.

Mizzie – You question whether being excited and terrifed is normal…of course it is! When I shoved my luggage into my mom’s car last August I wanted to simultaneously be driving on the highway towards LAC and walking to Spaz’s house so we could sit on her front porch. Basically, I wanted to go as much as I didn’t want to go. I’m not sure if that makes sense but it’s just a mess of conflicted feelings that is perfectly normal. :)

Ahh, I think you’ve brought more stuff than me. Just remember that it’s your dorm for only a year, so packing up in May or June, whenever you get out, could be a hassle if you’ve brought your whole world with you. I didn’t bring a ton of stuff with me to college but I ended up accumulating a lot and packing to leave was a bitch. My bags were a good 75 pounds each.

I thought my school was small but 17 people in your graduating class?! Is it close to a city or bustling town?

Saramaile – Honestly, it wasn’t until my mom asked me offhand near the end of my senior year in high school whether I wanted to take a gap year. The thought never occured to me at all. The high school I went to boasted the traditional path of going to college immediately after graduation and then getting a job. If a gap year had been an option for me I think I would’ve been really interested in doing it. How is Paris and where are you going next? You have no idea how jealous I am of you. I’ve wanted to travel all my life but a big family means no big vacations. After language school are you staying in Europe for the year or another year? Do you plan on going to college? Sorry, I’m being nosy again.

Gringa – Wow, you guys start late. I have to admit I am really ignorant of the university experience across the pond. I can relate to having too many options though. My first month at college I had wanted to join five or six clubs but I quickly realized it wasn’t going to happen. I hope that the people you’re sharing your flat with are nice. I didn’t have a roommate, thank God, but I did have a loud neighbor that I wrote about here. My friend, Spaz, had a triple and she didn’t get along with one girl but her second roommate was really great. They didn’t have the same close friends but they genuinely liked each other.

Well, I need to do laundry, clean my room, pack, pack pack and then start saying goodbye. This is going to be a long, hectic week.

Mizzie, Chellybean, and any other FreshX users who are starting their first year – TELL ME HOW IT IS SO FAR? What kind of college are you going to, big or small? What orientation activity are you doing? Does your roommate seem nice? Come on, guys, you lived vicariously through me for a year , now I wanna live through you!

Music: The Twilight Singers – Underneath The Waves

Last night the three other girls who make up our entire “group” were finally home from researching at college, camp, or vacation. We gathered at Spaz’s house, the new one she’s been moving into all summer. We’ve all been hoping that her parents would change their minds and stay at her old house because it’s where the four of us would spend the most time, especially in her backyard. It’s jampacked with little moments of us eating Chinese food on her hammock, sitting around her dining room table laughing at nothing, and trading book recommendations on her front porch. It was strange and upsetting to unpack her things and put up old pictures on new walls.

The cardboard boxes and piles of duct tape were obnoxiously literal signs that we’re moving on. Pretty soon we got tired of staying inside so we grabbed a bottle of vodka and ran down the street to Spaz’s old house. We sat cross-legged on her overgrown grass and chased our alcohol with Gatorade and orange juice. The conversation traveled back to college, of course, and how strange it is to know that we’ve put an entire year between us and high school. I’ve never seen half of the kids who go there now, and by this time next year, my old high school will be filled with new kids who have probably never heard my name. And while I’m eager to get back to LAC and see all of my friends, I’m getting jealous of all the new freshman with Facebook statuses saying “So-and-so is packing for her first year of college!” or Mizzie’s exuberant post on the forum. A small part of me wishes I could travel back to this time last August when I had all those nervous, anxious feelings.

Drunk on poorly-mixed drinks and our own conversation, we walked around the neighborhood for awhile. We started talking to each other, at each other, over each other. It was a mess of sloppy words and a desperate need to tell one another that this summer was incredible – that our friendships are incredible.

I can’t say this about everyone, but although the four of us were certainly changed by our freshmen year, we managed to grow up and grow towards each other.

Music: The Magnetic Fields – All My Little Words

Summer is officially winding down and I only have ten days left at home. I wish I was at LAC already because my days consist of nothingness. Yesterday, I slept until 11:45, stayed awake until 4:30 and then took a nap until 8:00. That type of laziness is making me hate myself, but there is literally zero options. I’ve done everything – gone into the city, fucked around with friends, read tons and tons of books, taken up a hobby, shopped for college, etc, etc.

I wish I could sleep for ten days straight and wake up inside the car on the way to LAC.

All the Phelps Mania may have gotten annoying but eight medals in one Olympics deserves more praise than he’s gotten already. That was an incredible race.