Last week I wrote a post about a lesson I learned post college. In typical LOLZ fashion, I always have more to say. I learned a lot of other things post college too. Since I like to keep it short and most students have actually started college, I decided to limit myself to five things.
1. While you can still wear leggings and sweats outside of your house post college, you will probably be carded for lottery tickets…it’s probably time to sell those baggy butt sweats on eBay.
2. Kids these days! I find myself saying “back in my day” and I “I remember college…”. Well back in my day those young whipper snappers didn’t wear those bare midriff tops to class and hooker heels. High schoolers wearing open back prom dresses like it’s no big deal. DadLOLZ still doesn’t approve when I leave the house with too much makeup. I find myself so judgmental and the youth and their crazy outfits. Kesha wasn’t joking when she sings the song Crazy Kids. Except I think Kesha is my age.
3. 9pm bedtime…living in a judge free zone. No one cares if you say, well kids it’s 9pm and my old lady senses are tingling. Time for bed. This is actually my favorite part about being out of college.
4. Similarly I wake up earlier than I did in college (and enjoy it). The morning and stillness is a beautiful thing.
5. I often miss the structure of having classes and things to do. Although at the same time, I don’t mind coming home and not having to work. I think I have more free time than college (and in colelge I had more free time than high school).
Questions for you:
What is one thing you’ve learned post college?
If you are in college now, what do you enjoy the most?
I enjoyed seeing my friends everyday. Is that not like the most typical school kid answer ever?
so weird..this week I’ve been thinking about how I really missed my last semester of college. I could care less about the others – but the last one was just so perfect. Nostalgia is kicking in…
ditto on the grandma bedtime. I think you know how I feel about my 8:30pm bedtime.
It’s a good thing I have my own dorm for how early I get up and go to bed!
I like being six hours from home and the freedom of college. Another thing I like is being in class so much less. Yes, I have a lot of homework but I can do it on my time, not during a certain class period like in high school.
Like you, I had more free time in college than in high school, but of course I worked and was so involved, that ate up the free time (but those were things I wanted to do). I also felt like my college courses freshman year were easier than high school, with the exception of calculus.
My husband went back to college, our same undergrad, for a second degree, and he noticed that college fashions changed there. For our first undergrad degree (03-07), people wore jeans, t-shirts, to class… but also pajamas were the “I don’t care wear” of the time period. Clay said for his second degree (2010-12) it seems like instead of pajamas, more girls would wear norts (nike shorts) and oversized t-shirts.
My grandma bedtime is 10:00! In college we used to stay up and watch Family Guy and Futurama and I always fell asleep during Futurama. That was before Family Guy was resurrected and the episodes were better then, I thought.
The other day I was thinking about how I miss classes/college stuff sometimes. Then again, life isn’t overly different for me than it was in college. My world revolves around Sleeping (although I get more now than I did in college), working (school work back then, on top of 2 jobs), and running (although I was on a team back then). So not a ton has changed. I just brush my hair more often and put on big girl clothes for work instead of running clothes to class.
Being over 10 years out of college, I’d say the biggest lesson learned might be not to drink so much so you can actually remember good stuff that happens 🙂
Great point Michele! Totally agree with you there … and I have only gotten drunk maybe twice in the last 25 years …
I always get nostalgic around this time of the year. I miss being in school! But I totally know what you mean about looking at “kids these days” and wondering what the hell the world is coming to… And I find it’s even worse when it’s junior high or high school kids. Like… was I that annoying too?!
Along those lines – It is funny listening to my kids (senior and junior in high school) talking about 7th graders on the morning bus … funny stuff!
Hahahaha. I 100% agree with that.
“3. 9pm bedtime…living in a judge free zone. No one cares if you say, well kids it’s 9pm and my old lady senses are tingling. Time for bed. This is actually my favorite part about being out of college.”
Definitely my favorite post-college thing, too! Last night I was in bed reading by 7:30 asleep sometime between 9-9:30. I’ve even started going to bed that early on weekends. I would just rather wake up early without a hangover for a long run in the morning!
I went straight from undergrad into a master’s program, which I finished up this May. It’s been kind of weird for me to get used to not having classes/reading/assignments/deadlines for school. So much of my identity was wrapped up in being a student for so long, it feels kind of like part of me is missing. I still can’t quite grasp that I’m “done” (at least for now!)
Any thoughts of phd? ;). That’s pretty awesome though and I agree. I enjoy waking up early and having that time to myself.
I totally understand the judgement about going to bed at 9pm thing. I’m usually in bed by 10:30, and I’m ALWAYS in bed before midnight – which most of my friends consider ridiculously early! I know some people who regularly pull all-nighters, and otherwise stay up until 3 or 4am most nights. I have NO idea how they do it. Sometimes I feel like I miss out on social events because I don’t like staying up. I went to a party at my friend’s fraternity the other night, which didn’t start until 11:30pm, and I was nearly asleep before then. It’s exhausting.
The thing I enjoy most about college right now is probably the amount of things there are to do. Although I would really like a bit more down time, I also like staying busy, and there’s no shortage of things to do when I’m at school. Most of the time I even have to pick among 2 or 3 events I want to go to.
I cannot even imagine staying up that late right now. I get tired so easily now. Last night I was up until 1-2am and I am feeling so terrible today LOL
For me I had an interesting discovery when we were bringing Danny’s girlfriend back to Cornell after having her for the weekend on Labor Day … no one will mistake me for actually belonging on campus anymore 🙂
Yeah, shocking I know … haha
But every time I have visited my old university it has been as an alumni, so there is definite nostalgia and people I am interacting with and so on.
And every time we have visited schools with the boys for campus tours there were very specific things going on, no time to think.
But at Cornell, aside from lugging boxes I had no real role … so I got to look and see that either of my boys could easily fit in as Freshmen … but I am very clearly ‘someone’s Dad’ … and it is funny how I am treated in that regard …
YES, old lady senses! Early to bed, early to rise … and early meals too. Sometimes I miss going to class, but I’m also really glad work can stay at work.
I love my early bedtime too! In college, “those kids” just didnt understand haha
I sometimes have nightmares that I am living in a college dorm again and can’t get any sleep! It would be my nightmare, for real. But I think the one thing I miss is that long, uninterrupted time with friends. Now we’re all so stinking busy and carving out even an evening is a monumental task!
Ahh! College dorm living gives me nightmares too. I do miss seeing my friends without having to schedule something as well!
I definitely get the ‘kids these days’ thoughts even though I’m in university myself! I guess I enjoy doing a subject I genuinely love and being surrounded by people who love the same things I do.
College was an amazing time but I don’t think I would want to go back…I am happy with my 9pm bedtime and early wake ups as well. I don’t think I could handle the “college lifestyle” anymore and I like having a salary so I can pay for things:)
I love that you call your dad DadLOLZ. Haha. I so agree about the clothes. I guess I wore short shirts but they weren’t meant to be midriff shirts! And no revealing prom dress either! Kids these days, so slutty. I’ve learned that I actually DO get hangovers… it just took me longer than 21 years on this planet to develop them.
OMG THE SAME OSWEGO ROOM!!!
I love that you used DadLOLZ.
I was the opposite of a morning person ALL of college (until I had to get to my internship at a 9AM senior year)! Before that, I schedule all of my classes to start at 3PM so I could nurse my guaranteed hangover.
NOW I absolutely LOVE the AM. I get so much done and there is so much day left 🙂