Hello, lovelies! It’s official. I am done with college. I’ve written reflections throughout my college experience since starting this blog, and I guess it’s time to write the last one. This school year was already irregular before the pandemic, so there’s a lot to talk about. You’ve heard a lot of this before in bits and pieces throughout the year, but I hope you still enjoy.
Previous Installments:
- What Commuters Should Expect Their First Week of Freshman Year
- 1 Month Into College Update (Freshman Year)
- Mid-Year College Update (Freshman Year)
- Reflecting On My Freshman Year Of College
- The Glorification Of Busy | One Month Into Sophomore Year Update
- What It’s Like To Move Out For College | One Month Into Junior Year
- What It’s Like To Transfer To Another College | Mid-Year College Update (Junior Year)
- Reflecting On My Junior Year Of College
- What The Last Year Of College Is Like | 1 Month Into Senior Year Update
//My Parents Went To Bangladesh
This alone made my senior year out of the ordinary. My brother has autism and my mom had never left him before. In August, she went to Bangladesh for the first time since before I was born to see her family, which was a pretty big deal. I drove back and forth an hour every day to help take care of my brother.
It was honestly the most exhausting and overwhelming month ever. I still had school so I had to study, I drove back and forth, cooked for everyone, got my brother ready for school, fed him medicine, etc. Everyone helped, but I did the brunt of the work.
The beginning of the semester was fine, but she went a second time at the end of the semester when I had finals. That was exhausting, but I think I managed it well. I’d still get enough sleep and spend time with friends. It definitely solidified the fact that I can handle taking care of my brother after my parents pass away, and it’s nice to know that with certainty.
So yeah, that was six weeks out of the fall semester. My dad also went to Bangladesh earlier this year, but that didn’t impact my life too much because I didn’t have to go back and forth every day. I’d just stay till Monday morning instead of driving back to my dorm on Sunday night to be with my mom. She was supposed to go back to Bangladesh in March (The reason we’ve all been making sure she can go frequently is that my grandmother is very old and we don’t know how much time she has left), but she cancelled her trip in February because of Covid-19 (long before America was concerned about it). That’s definitely a concern now because we don’t know the next time she’ll be able to go back.
That time was honestly the most productive I’ve felt all year. I was talking to my friend about it recently because I’d rather be busy than have nothing to do. The first weekend was the worst, but we all got our acts together after that. My senior year started being “normal” three weeks after classes started. I remember meeting my roommate and telling her that she probably wouldn’t see me for a month.
Related – 5 Things To Do When Life Gets Hectic (+ What It Was Like Taking Care Of My Special Needs Sibling)
//My Microwave Set Off The Fire Alarm
I don’t remember what month this happen, but I’m pretty sure it was October. I was heating up my dinner in the microwave and had started a movie on my laptop when I smelled smoke. I was shocked to find that the smoke was coming from my microwave. I opened it to let the smoke out and unplugged it immediately, but the smoke eventually set off the alarm.
The thing is that it didn’t set off the alarm for the entire building. Only half of the ones on the first floor, so me and two of my suite mates went outside (my roommate was out, so I texted her) and we ended up being the only ones who went outside. We talked for five minutes then went back inside since no one came out. There were a few people in the lobby, but the main problem there was that the fire alarm didn’t go off in the whole building. My microwave was the catalyst for getting it fixed, which is good thing since the fire alarm went off two more times before we went into quarantine. (Once in November and once in January. I wasn’t at the dorms at the time because the majority of my classes were canceled the two days before Thanksgiving Break and the other one happened on a Sunday, so I was at home).
I threw out the microwave immediately then bought Subway for dinner. Our room smelled like smoke for a few days, but that eventually went away. I started laughing when I remembered that my roommate junior year started a fire in our dorm kitchen on Halloween (like there were actual flames and they had to replace the stove), so I told my roommate that the curse would probably be passed to her since anything that happens twice always happens a third time.
In hindsight, there probably wasn’t a problem with the microwave. It was likely a fuse in the plug since the building is pretty old and the one the microwave was plugged into was already funky. Even so, I kind of panicked about microwaving my food for the next few weeks (I didn’t have a meal plan, so I used it a lot).
//I Lived Alone At One Point
This was something that I never mentioned on the blog. I didn’t even tell my parents because my mom would’ve been afraid, but I didn’t have a roommate last semester after Halloween. I don’t really want to put her business out there. I really liked my roommate. She was going through a lot mental-health-wise, and I don’t know the full extent. I honestly don’t she knew much about me because most of our conversations were about her family life, which was fine with me.
Anyway, she left, and I had the entire room to myself. It was honestly really great, but my room slowly descended into chaos. Ever since I moved out my junior year, my side of the room was always clean. I was super diligent about cleaning up and vacuuming every week. Once my roommate moved out, all of my stuff just started spreading across the room. I realized the reason my side of the room was always clean was that there was always someone there to see it. That held me accountable. Since no one would see my room, it didn’t really matter if I cleaned it. The only one who really saw it that way was my friend Cindy, one of my best friends from middle school who lived upstairs. Eventually, her coming over more regularly motivated me to tidy up a bit more.
I started using the other side of the room a lot more often. I would switch off between desks whenever I was tired of sitting in that one spot. Her bed was lofted, so I would climb up from time to time for fun. I remember once, Cindy and I pulled her mattress down to the floor and watched a movie on the floor while eating snacks. It was great.
I feel like I couldn’t enjoy living alone that long because my mom had left near the end of the semester and I was driving back and forth a lot. It was great because I didn’t have to think about another person being in the dorm whenever I was on campus. I could actually have some alone time and listen to music out loud instead of on headphones.
I noticed that I texted my friends a lot more often when I lived alone. Before, whenever I had a thought, I’d just talk with my roommate and vice versa, but now I had to get regular socialization elsewhere. I originally thought that I wanted to live alone post-grad, but now I realize that all I really need is my own room. Having roommates was a lot easier than I thought, and I can see myself becoming a bit of a hermit if I lived alone for too long.
//I Became A Coffee Person
I’ve never been a coffee person. I never wanted to become the type of person who needs it to function in the morning, but I would have it from time to time with friends. I like the taste, but it makes my legs shake. When I went to Europe, one of my favorite things was going to cafes, hanging out and people watching. I wanted to emulate that feeling in the states, so I decided to start going to coffee shops once a week.
I don’t like spending money, so I rarely eat out. It’s almost always with another person. Over the past few years, I’ve overcome a lot of the guilt I’ve felt about not saving every single penny I have, which made this a lot easier. Those $3-$5 per week were well worth it. Half the time I wouldn’t even get coffee, I’d get a pastry and sit in the cafe for hours doing homework, blogging, or reading. Sometimes I wouldn’t buy anything at all and just sit at one of the tables. Only at the student center Starbucks though because they had more than enough customers. I wouldn’t do that at a restaurant. The sitting area was behind where all the students ordered coffee, so it honestly wasn’t that crowded. I really liked the ambiance and it was a great way to spend the two hours I had in between classes.
This was one of my favorite parts of this year. Sometimes, my once a week coffee date was with a friend, but some of my favorite times were when I went alone and got things done. It was a nice change of pace (and I’d regularly get chocolate croissants because they reminded me of Europe and I had never tasted one till I went to France)
//Typical Fun College Stuff
This year was really great. 2019 as a whole was my favorite year of college. The spring semester of my junior year and the fall semester of my senior year were just the most fun. I had gotten used to my new university at that point, I lived on my own, I met new people and went out with friends, and really just enjoyed everything. There were a few times where I wished that I had moved out or transferred earlier so that I could have enjoyed typical college life a little longer because I had a great time this year. I’m not really a party girl and I went home every weekend because of my brother, but my idea of a good time is hanging out at my friends’ apartments till 2 AM talking or eating dinner together. And I did that multiple times a week.
//I Didn’t Take Any Trips On My Own
This makes me feel kind of sad because traveling during breaks has been one of my favorite parts of college. Part of the reason I didn’t travel was that I really didn’t feel like it. Last summer scratched my travel bug away for a little bit and I was happy about staying home and saving money. The second reason is that my mom went to Bangladesh during Thanksgiving and the first part of my winter break, so there wasn’t really a time I could go anywhere.
An amazing opportunity to do and internship/job shadow at a special needs school in India fell into my lap. I minored in anthropology, and one of my professors told us that her mother-in-law had started the first school for special needs children in India, and she could connect us. I told her that I was interested in volunteering or doing something there, and within two weeks I was told that the school could set something up for me, got a recommendation from UGA’s anthropology department, and was applying to scholarships to go. My professor sent me numbers of people I could do home stays with. Everything came together surprisingly quickly and it was kind of overwhelming. Unfortunately, the timing didn’t work out. I had a two week window between my finals ending/my mom coming back and a family trip we were taking after Christmas, and it just wouldn’t have been worth it to go for such a short time. When I do do something like that someday, I don’t want to rush it.
I was glad I didn’t go because it would’ve been too much. I wouldn’t have had a sing break. I’d have had finals and take care of my family for three weeks, gone to India, then immediately drive down to Florida, go to Mexico for the first time, then drive up to Michigan for a family wedding, and finally go to Canada to visit two of my cousins who had just immigrated there before coming back to school. I’d have burnt out. Now, I sometimes wish that I had gone because I probably won’t be able to travel internationally anytime soon, but I had to set boundaries somewhere, and that trip was the only thing within my control.
The final trip you all already know about. I was supposed to go to New York in March for Spring Break, but cancelled my ticket the day before my flight because of Covid-19. It’s a good thing I did because the state was on lock down by the end of the week.
That’s pretty much why I didn’t travel on my own this year. I did take a trip in December/January with my family, which was nice, but I’m excited about traveling on my own again once this is over.
//Quarantine + Online Learning
I already wrote an entire blog post about how my senior year and post-grad plans have been derailed just like many other 2020 graduates, so read that if you want more details. Basically, I was sad about leaving school early, moving out, not getting to say goodbye to my friends…stuff like that. I processed everything, cried about it, and was able to move on. I let myself be sad about it because it was something to be sad about.
I personally thrive in a classroom environment, so online classes were a real adjustment for me. It would’ve been better if my professors posted videos or led Zoom lectures, but all of my classes were self-study or discussion based. I pretty much just read my textbook, wrote essays, and read twenty pages worth of articles every day for discussion responses. It was a lot of work, but I was able to keep up with everything. I also wrote a post about how I organized my classes and schedule, so I’ll link that below. Needless to say, I passed all my classes and have graduated college. We had a virtual graduation on May 8th, where there was a slide show of pictures. My actual graduation was moved to October. I doubt this will be over by then, but one can hope. All we can do is stay safe at home and continue social distancing.
Related – Tips For Taking Online Classes In College // Quarantine Edition
So yeah…that was my senior year. Very full and crazy, but also fun. I had a list of things I wanted to do in Athens before I graduated, but I unfortunately wasn’t able to. I have no regrets though. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in college and made the most of my time there. The next chapter of my life has been postponed for a bit considering we’re in a global pandemic, but I’m going to try to enjoy the quiet. After this, I’ll be working and won’t have the luxury of staying at home all day.
I probably won’t post anything anytime soon because I have to finish my graduate school application. Tomorrow is this blog’s 4 year anniversary, which is crazy to think about. I won’t say it feels like yesterday since I started this blog because it feels forever ago. I will eventually get on a blogging schedule again. Just bare with me.
(Also, I was in Women’s Glee Club this year. I didn’t know where to shoehorn that in, so I’ll just include it here. I sang in a few concerts, met a bunch of girls, and went to rehearsal twice a week all senior year.)
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Were you also in your senior year in 2020? How did that go for you?