As clear as I made it about how much I loved my time at Cal U, like every college student on every college campus there are things that will annoy you during your time there. When you finally graduate, those annoying things become like little gemstones in a dull adult world. These are the annoying things that I will miss about Cal.
1. The walk to campus.
Seriously. The conditions were never perfect. You were either sweating by the time you got there or freezing the whole time.
2. The walk anywhere.
See above.
3. Making sure I got to the liquor store on time.
I get that the store closes at nine for a reason. I ended up getting most of my cardio in while trying to leave a meeting on time to get a bottle of Moscato on time.
4. Joe from the liquor store.
Joe is not annoying. I just wanted a reason to include him on the list. He's one of Cal students favorite townies to harass (in the nicest way possible, like your pap that sells vodka), right up there with Gene from Kwik Fil and Bernie from Moe's.
5. Having only four bars in the entire freaking town.
It seemed like a pain in the ass at the time, cycling the same four places every weekend. Seeing the same annoying people all the time. Those places became comfortable.
6. Having to turn away drunk people because of hours changes at Spuds.
Having worked at one of the only places in Cal that used to stay open past 2 a.m. when the bars closed, when the hours changed, Cal students took a hit. But when you're hammered muscle memory kicks in and you end up at Spuds, only for me to tell you that the hours changed and no, you could not get your Mighty Buffalo right now. Sorry. (Not sorry).
7. Waiting for the flyer.
This truly annoying thing is like a lesson in humility and punctuality for students of this Harvard on the Mon. It prepares you for later in life when you have to wait for the city busses, and then you realize the BS of public transportation never actually ends.
8. Having to find an alternate route to AKL because cops were on the prowl.
And that's fine. They were just doing their job. And we, as freshmen and pledges, we're just doing our job of trying to have a little fun and not get caught. I can give you at least six different way to get to AKL on any given Saturday night.
9. Freshmen Hill.
Freshmen Hill, affectionately named to the big hill splitting the edge of campus and the town. It was the gateway to a lot of parties. Cops knew about it. Everyone knew about it. It was a hell of a walk after a Four Loko, but I will never not love re-living the memories of watching people slip and fall on their ass trying to go up it.
10. Such a small Greek life.
Seemed awful then. And it still kind of is. But now it's comforting. Like a big extended family. You all have each other's back.
11. How expensive Campy's was. So good. So expensive.
Seriously, I didn't want to pay near $10 for a cheese slice of heaven. It wasn't even worth as much as it was charged for and nothing else on the menu was that good. But we all sucked it up for a little taste of saucy, gooey relief when we didn't feel like cooking Ramen.
12. Having two landlords to rent from in the entire town.
This isn't something I miss. It just needs to be said. The landlords in Cal charge too much and they know it. We know it. They should be ashamed of themselves.
And right now, two weeks out from starting a big girl job, these are things I wish I could be back to more than anything.