Hallelujah, it's summer. Time to sleep in til 2 in the afternoon, spend all day lounging by the pool or the gulf, catch up on your favorite TV shows, and all that junk. That is if you're not taking summer classes or working or something :)

But having all this time to do nothing (or look for things to do) often gets me to reflecting on the past, and more specifically, this past year. As y'all know, I've just finished my freshman year of college. I know that I spent the entirety of my senior year of high school mentally preparing for the huge transition from having home-cooked meals, everything I need at my disposal, etc., to being away from those I love, making new friends, adjusting to larger classes and a larger student body in general, and all that cliche stuff. But to my surprise, there were things I learned that I really wish were emphasized in high school so that I could have been better prepared.

So I'm going to keep a list of stuff that I wish I had done/been prepared for during my first year of college. What I'm about to list isn't necessarily on there because I made that mistake. These are just some observations that I made at my university, and everyone will obviously have a different experience. Hopefully, incoming college freshmen can put this to good use :)

You don't need to pack ten cereal bowls.

If you're living in a dorm (like I did), please don't bring everything you own. It will not work out well, especially if you have to share one room with another person (LIKE I DID).

Pay attention to this next part, it's extremely important!

Don't. Bring. A U-Haul.

Again.

Don't bring a U-Haul. Well, don't bring a full U-Haul. That stuff ain't gonna fit in that tiny little dorm room.

Instead, make a mental note about everything that you decide to take with you. Do you really need the entire set of Tupperware cups with the matching set of bowls? I honestly used the same two bowls the entire year that I stayed in my dorm. Dish soap, people. Dish soap.

Know your financial aid and spend/save it wisely.

Most of you will probably apply for financial aid, which is a smart thing to do. If you don't know much about finances or loans or taxes or interest and all that stuff, you will more than likely feel overwhelmed by all those meetings about financial aid. Don't worry, I'm still pretty uncomfortable when it comes to that. When you receive your financial aid refund, you're going to be like WAIT WHAT HOW DO I EVEN WHERE AM I SUPPOSED TO PUT THIS MONEY. In your bank account, that's where! That money is for you to use!

Make yourself a budget.

With the above being said(!), make sure you know what you NEED to buy and how much each item is. Do your research before you go to the store and throw twenty of everything into your shopping cart.

Spend your money on books first.

The first things you SHOULD research are book prices. Obviously, those are going to cost a pretty penny. I'm not sure how it is at other universities, but at mine we are able to know what books we need ahead of time, so I took to Chegg to compare prices. Renting is the easiest and cheapest, buying used is a little more expensive and riskier, buying new is obviously the most expensive but it guarantees you a book in good condition.

Don't mistake free time for leisure time.

This one's an important one! The majority of my first semester was spent alone with "nothing" to do. You remember that financial aid money I talked about? You know where mine went? Craft supplies. (And concert tickets and gas money and a whole lot of food, but I digress.) What did I do instead of getting my assignments out of the way? Crafts.

Just because you're not in one building for seven hours at a time doesn't mean that that time should be spent doing nothing. Designate times for studying, and set aside a couple of hours for some TV, eating, crying, or a nap. Definitely a nap.

GO TO CLASS.

Need I elaborate? Missing class is no bueno. End of story. Seriously, just go to class. That way when you're taking your midterm, you'll know all the answers and get out of there in ten minutes rather than stare at the paper for an hour or two.

Don't be afraid to leave your comfort zone.

Odds are, you're leaving a lot of high school friends behind. Your little freshman that you've been mentoring for a whole year; your fellow senior friends that you won't get to see every day anymore; and if you're in a large organization, like I was, an entire family of people that you worked hard with to achieve a common goal.

To make up for a lack of the band family that I was used to, I joined the marching band at my university in hopes of having something I could take comfort in even if my band family was 5 hours away. Plus, I'm a band geek like that. It definitely made up for it. With this organization, I find that I'm having a lot more fun than I did with it in high school. That may be, of course, due to the fact that we don't have to compete for anything, but it's still fun.

Through friends that I made in marching band, I was introduced to Kappa Kappa Psi, a fraternity for band members. I participated in the 8-week-long membership education process, and I became a Brother of KKΨ in Spring 2013. I am excited to get to experience brotherhood this coming year, and I am fully prepared to show this fraternity what I can do.

The point is, never in a million years would high school me have thought that I would be in a fraternity. But because I stepped out of my comfort zone, I discovered that I truly enjoy it. I'm sure you will find that, in most cases, this will prove true. That cute girl sitting next to you in your MWF 9am's? Talk to her! There's a club for hula-hooping? Go for it! Don't rule everything out before you've had a chance to try it first.

I'm going to go ahead and cut it off here, but I want to go ahead and wish those of you that are heading off to your first semester of college good luck. It is scary, but you shouldn't be worried. As long as you keep your priorities straight, your goals plausible, and your head clear, you'll be fine. If you have any questions, leave a comment or send me a message on one of my social networking sites! I'd be more than happy to help, from one college student to another :)