This past weekend was bid day, and now I fully understand the definition of the “senior scaries.” Watching 50 fresh faces running down the hill into the arms of my sorority sisters while I stood there crying with the other seniors really hit me with a case of nostalgia. Oh, how I long to be a freshman again. Reminiscing back on my college experience, I can’t help but think about how I’ve come in this chapter of my life that’s about to end in a short three months. Let’s make a few comparisons from freshman year to senior year:

Outfits:

Freshman year: You have the perfect first day of class outfit along with many other options so you’re never caught wearing the same outfit two days in a row because you know your class crush is going to notice.

Senior year: Gym clothes and sweats all day every day. You’ve seen these people way too many times to care about whether you look good or not and to be honest is it even worth waking up half an hour earlier to look “presentable” anymore?

Class:

Freshman year: You get to class early so you can get a good seat and come fully prepared with a notebook, two pens and a pencil. You take extensive notes and make sure you complete every reading beforehand so you don’t fall behind.

Senior year: You roll into class right as your professor is about to start the lecture and sit wherever there’s an open seat. You automatically pull out your computer and make sure the sound is off so your teacher doesn’t hear a “ding” from your messenger app.

Going Out:

Freshman year: You’re super excited to go out with all of your new college friends. Drinking is cool and fun and you don’t have to worry about coming home to your parents interrogating you. You slip on minimal clothing even though it’s 30 degrees outside and dance on elevated surfaces until 2 in the morning without stopping.

Senior year: Your friends somehow to convince you to get out of bed and go out. You manage to throw on a long sleeve top and jeans and call it a day. Two glasses of wine later you make you roll to the party and stay for max 30 minutes before heading home with Dominos already on the phone.

Working Out:

Freshman year: The gym is amazing. You no longer have to follow your high school coaches’ workouts and crazy schedules. You’ve got so much energy and can’t wait to sweat off Tuesday night’s alcohol consumption so you can steer clear of the freshman weight gain.

Senior year: The gym is horrible. There are too many people there that you are trying to avoid while struggling to work off that pizza you thought would be a good idea to order at midnight last night.

Friends:

Freshmen year: There’s so many people to meet and so many friends to make, it’s almost overwhelming. You’ve settled in with your hall mates and you know who you call when you want to have a fun night.

Senior year: By this point you’ve got a solid squad of girlies to call your best friends. They’re with you constantly whether you’re all having a wine night or you need to cry about a boy.

Food:

Freshman year: An unlimited meal plan? What more could you ask for? The dining hall food might not be the best food, but hey you’re able to find a well-balanced meal and there’s always cookies and cereal available if you can’t find anything you like. Having a kitchen would be nice, but you’re also fine with eating pizza from the D-hall every night because you’re speedy high school metabolism hasn’t slowed down yet.

Senior year: It’s not the freshman 15, it’s the senior 50. Especially after going abroad and convincing yourself that it was okay to eat pasta every night because it’s all about the experience. You come back from abroad without a meal plan and struggle to budget with a tight grocery budget. Ramen it is.

Hangovers:

Freshmen year: You wake up Saturday morning ready to day drink. The five shots you took the night before have no effect on how you feel today. Mimosas? Sure thing.

Senior year: “I’m gonna keep it low key tonight,” said your sober self last night. Next thing you know it’s morning and you’ve got a pounding headache. You can barely move and immediately begin to google hangover remedies in search for some relief.