Finals week. The two to three week period spanning the end of a semester that is the subject of every college student’s nightmares. For many of us, finals mean groufits, overstuffed backpacks, and alternating Red Bull/coffee diets. Not to mention the overwhelming amount of sleep lost each night where you try to re-learn a semester’s worth of information for each of our classes. However, the moment you walk out of your last final, turn in that last paper, or finish that final presentation; the rush of it all hits you. You’re done. What happens in the initial period after the semester ends can only be described by a whirlwind of contrasting emotions and sentiments.

1. Sunlight

From my personal experiences of arriving at the library early in the morning and not leaving till at least 2 a.m., spending more than your commute between academic buildings outside reminds you that there’s a world outside of finals.

2. Packing

The walk back to your dorm is glorious, as you feel liberated from all of the previous stresses the semester bore upon you. However, getting back to your room and realizing that everything in it must fit in one car is both exhausting and headache-inducing. You’re going to have to do some serious spring cleaning before you can close that car door. Here’s where all of your childhood Tetris skills come in handy.

3. Unpacking

Just as you’ve managed to fit everything neatly into your car, all of your stuff has since migrated back home and now resides in piles around your room (unless you’re really killing the game and have managed to avoid unpacking your car, entirely). As long as there’s a clear path to your bed, everything else can wait.

4. Sleep (and how wonderful it is)

Oh, that thing you never did during finals week? Your body is finally telling you that maybe pulling all of those all-nighters wasn’t the best idea. You sleep at all possible times, including several designated nap times, if you’re lucky enough.

5. Real, delicious food

Along with sleep, eating quality food is something you probably didn’t do much at the end of the semester. Whether it was your bank account’s dwindling balance that kept you from taking a lunch break or your refusal to leave your library cubicle, most of us avoid keeping up a balanced diet with the pressure of finals (hello, midnight Domino's deliveries). Now that finals are over, you either indulge in all of your favorites or pick back up on that diet you said you’d start in January. Regardless, the world is your oyster.

6. Actual human interaction

What are friends?

7. Clean clothes

This is only applicable for those who do not subscribe to the "dress well, test well" attitude. (For example, I think I wore the same combination of leggings and a sweatshirt to the library for at least three consecutive days.) Students would do anything to minimize the size of the growing pile of laundry in their hampers, even though it's guaranteed not to be done until after finals.

8. The dreadful day final grades are posted

It's mid-July and you're still working the classic, "No Mom, grades aren't out yet!"

9. Starting a summer bucket list (that you'll never actually complete)

Every summer you make an effort to start a summer bucket list, filled with activities or places to visit before the fall semester starts. Maybe you'll pick up that hobby you've always wanted to try, or even go on a long road trip with your friends. Of the 20 items on the list each summer, you'll complete two, at most. Maybe this summer will be the year you really do it all. (Or, you just give up and resort to your Netflix queue.)

10. Boredom

You've caught up on sleep, possibly started to unpack your things, and now reality hits. You're looking for any source of entertainment if you don't already have a summer job or internship lined up. Being home definitely has its perks, but you've already begun to miss your school friends and independence. How many days until fall move-in day?