Although college is great, there are just some things you find yourself missing at 2 a.m. on a Monday.
1. Your own bathroom.
Communal bathrooms are probably the grossest thing about living in a dorm. Some of the people on your floor will not know how to flush the toilet after they're done, or not flood the bathroom from the shower. If you are lucky enough to live in a dorm with your own bathroom or a suite, then you are truly blessed.
2. Your family.
This one is a given. Having your parents (and siblings if you have them) to comfort you or guide you is something you can take for granted. When you get to college, you're on your own and it can sometimes be really hard to get use to that.
3. Your pet.
I know I miss a dog greeting me when I get home or a cat rubbing up against me on a rough day. Animals are the best and leaving behind your childhood pet is extremely hard, almost as hard as leaving your family.
4. Home cooking.
The cafeteria is good for the first week of your first semester in college, but after that it's gross. The same old (literally) food served day after day gets old quick. Sometimes you just miss that delicious meal your mom or dad would cook for you.
5. Your own room (if you had one).
Sharing a room if you never did before is a weird experience. Sure, you can find a best friend in a roommate, but sometimes you just want to have your own room and some peace and quiet. This is one especially for those with a roommate from a nightmare.
6. Adjustable AC.
The dorms are hot, even in winter with 2 fans blowing. I miss being able to go down the hall and changing the temperature if it was way too hot in the house.
7. Being able to sing in the shower.
I mean, you can sing in the showers in a communal bathroom, but you know there might be that one person who is not okay with it and will say something.
8. An oven.
After a while, you really get sick of those nasty microwave meals or canned Beefaroni. Sure, there's a community oven, but a lot of the time the kitchen is occupied.
9. A bigger bed (if you had one).
Twin XL beds are really small. Like unrealistically small. If you have a full-size bed or bigger, the adjustment is very hard; especially if you're tall.
10. A full-size fridge.
Mini Fridges don't hold anything, especially between 2 people. There are dorms that have full sized fridges, but those are usually the more expensive ones. No more Blue Bell 1/2 gallon ice cream for you.
11. Parents paying for meals.
It's always a treat to have your parents pay for your meals every once and a while on a night out. The responsibility is on you whenever you want to go out to dinner with some friends. Sometimes, you may have to eat before hand and only get dessert at the restaurant.
12. And groceries.
Buying your own groceries blows.
13. Your hometown friends.
Friends that have been in your life forever suddenly aren't around and may be too busy to hang out when you go home for a weekend. After high school is when you figure out which friends are real and there to say and which ones were only for high school.
14. Actual utensils that aren’t plastic.
I can't tell you how many plastic forks have broken while I try to pick something up. Something as simple as a metal fork can make my day. However, cleaning the metal utensils with no kitchen sink is another challenge.
15. Not fighting over washing machines.
Sunday nights in the dorm are the days where every single washer and dryer is taken. It's a mystery if you'll get a washer when you walk into the laundry room, all you can do is hope.
16. Privacy.
Changing in the room for a shower is a struggle. I don't want to flash a boob to my roommate who is trying to do homework and I don't want to change in the shower and get my clothes wet. Also, sometimes you just want to cry over how stressed you are, but you can't because your roommate is in the room watching a movie.
17. Carefree attitude.
I cannot remember the last time I was able to go to sleep at night without thinking of a list of things to do. Even when I finish my to-do list, I feel like I have something else to do. There is always something to do in college.
Even though I miss everything on this list every day, I wouldn't change my college experience in any way. I am lucky to even be in college and have family and friends supporting me back at home. Just think, one day you can tell your kids that you ate mac & cheese for dinner 4 nights in a row.
