Column by Katie Perkowski. E-mail [email protected]

About four months are left in 2010, and then it will be the year I graduate college — shucks.

This reality hit me the other day as I took a stroll through South Campus to get to the luxurious Commons with my roommate (we got lucky when her brother had some swipes he needed to use).

It was the first time I had made the walk from the “90” since my freshman year, and as I looked up at my place of residence my freshman year, Kirwan Tower, I became jealous of the hundreds of students who live there this year and get to start college from the beginning.

I remember growing up, my family members would always tell me, “College will be here before you know it,” and,

“Those four years are the best of your life,” but now that I’m actually in college and my days as an undergraduate are dwindling, what am I supposed to look forward to?

The public programs people growing up to think of college as the best time in a person’s life, but what about after?

I’ve never heard any of my friends say, “I can’t wait to get a real job and work a 9-5 everyday and then go home to cook for my family.”

Which reminds me: I am expected to act like a grown up — not someone who rolls around in a T-shirt and shorts Monday through Thursday as a part of the college species — and have colleagues and a boss?

I know my life won’t be over when I graduate, and it will be nice not to have to give an excuse about why I don’t want to go out on a weekend night, but I guess I’m just trying to figure out where the last three years have gone.

I always seemed to be doing something, but what? I joined a sorority that I became involved in and as I got into my upper level journalism classes, I became involved in the Kernel; and I had the opportunity to study abroad twice this summer, but I could have done more. I think I’ve only been to one K Week event (and it was in my freshman year), and I know a million other organizations and activities exist that I never even looked into.

Now here comes the lecture part. I know I still have a whole glorious year of college left, but freshmen, don’t let your four years at UK go by in a blur without making an effort to experience different environments and activities. A whole list of them is on UK’s website, and different events are always being advertised on campus that you could check out.

Just don’t let yourself get to my point and wonder what else you could’ve done.