Ah, August. The Sunday of summer. It's sort of one of those placeholder months; it's still summer, but also a wake-up call that the past season of doing nothing except sleeping in and relaxing at the beach can't last forever, and that a new semester full of new classes, new assignments, and new overly-difficult professors is dangerously close. If you've had any of these thoughts this past week, you too are just like the rest of us college kids who kind of forgot our twelve-hours-a-day Netflix marathons are soon to be a thing of the past.
1. Wait, it's already August?!
No, I swear last time I checked it was the beginning of July. This isn't possible. I'm still suffering from finals week PTSD.
2. There's no way summer is almost over.
I mean, really, it was just the middle of May and we were all at Myrtle enjoying ourselves and looking forward to all that glorious free time without homework or tests that lay ahead. I'm not ready to learn again.
3. What did I even do all these weeks?
If it really is August, I've been home for almost three months now...but I haven't done....anything. Everyone else has been off in Europe or the Caribbean, doing exciting and cool things, and I've just been living vicariously through their snap stories, lying in bed with my cat.
4. I guess I did finish all 12 seasons of Grey's.
That's an accomplishment, right? I know I worked a lot, hung out with friends, but other than that...it's just all one big, hazy, Netflixy blur.
5. Maybe I should start packing for school.
I'll use these last few weeks to be productive. Box up my clothes, relocate my backpack that's been MIA since May, maybe buy a mattress or something.
6. Oh wait, I never unpacked from last semester.
Except for my swim suits and flip flops, everything is still in a massive, chaotic pile in the guest room from where I dumped it all after moving out.
7. Okay, I'll at least buy some textbooks.
That's definitely productive. Very studious of me. I should reward myself with a nap or something for this valiant effort.
8. $150 for a French book?!
Alright, never mind. I probably won't need it. And really, professors, do you know how many trips to Bodo's I could buy with that? I'd rather have a solid semester of bagels for breakfast every day than a textbook.
9. LOL at my completely unsuccessful summer bucket list.
Ah, I was so young and naive, believing I would actually be healthy for once, train for a half marathon, make crafts for my future little, go on some adventurous road trip, and read books for fun this summer. All I did was eat Chipotle five times a week and binge-watch TV shows.
10. At least I'll get to be back in Cville soon.
Don't get me wrong, I love being home and getting to eat real, homemade food instead of scavenging for dinner every night, but I miss UVA -- living with friends, walking past the newly finished Rotunda (FINALLY), football game tailgates, even late-night Clem sessions that always end in getting Insomnia cookies or pizza at one in the morning.
11. But that also means goodbye to all my money.
I spend my whole summer working horrible, long shifts for minimum wage with the good intentions of saving for rent or a semester abroad...but really, no one can blame me when my bank account returns to empty by the end of September. Who can resist Pigeon Hole brunch and Arch's $5 froyo on Tuesdays?
12. Oh well. I'm ready for another year at the best school ever.
Peace summer 2016, you've been good to me, but it's time to be home with my people in our favorite place. (Until classes start, and then I'll be begging for you back as I'm drowning in homework and essays).