Tomorrow is my last day of classes ever (unless I decide to continue my studies at some point in my life). It's weird. You go to classes every day for seventeen years and finally it's over. That's it. There are finals, sure. But I don't have finals.

With graduation less than two weeks I'm still freaking out. I still don't have a job. And I'm super sad that I have to leave UMass Dartmouth and the friends I've made over the last four years.

I feel like I'm in the final, flashback episode of a TV show that's going off the air. I can't help but think about all the good times, the bad times and the inbetween times. I've learned so many things and changed so much, as have my friends and the other people who I have interacted with over the last four years. I feel like we're the beloved characters on some show that has gone its course, but you still want more.

I reminiss back to moving in my freshman year. I had the roommate that everyone fears they'll get, the one who parties all the time and has a live-in boyfriend. Then, when she breaks up with that boyfriend, has random ya-dudes over all the time.

Then I think about my experiences with my friends and all the adventures we've had over the years. For the good things I think about the movie nights, beach trips, parties, my semester in Washington D.C. and working at The Torch.

For the bad times I think about my slutty roommate, my hermit roommate, all the stressful days and nights and working at The Torch.

I think finishing with The Torch has been the most difficult part. It's one of the few things that's been in my life since I started school here, when I was a freshman. I can't believe that I'll never see my name on the front page again.

In my mind there is this huge montage of these moments going through my mind to all kinds of cheezy going away songs. I feel like there's a new one every day. Some of them aren't even going away songs, they're just catchy tunes that get easily stuck in my head. I can't make them go away.

I know that in two short weeks I won't be a student any more. This show is almost over. Hopefully there's some chance for a successful (or at least entertaining) spin-off.

The fears of a soon-to-be college graduate

I cannot tell you how nervous the thought of graduating college in just over a month makes me. I haven't found a job. I don't know where I'll be living. It's a crazy time, and thinking about it takes up a lot of my time.

I wish the idea of graduation day was happy, like in the movies and on TV. I would really like to say that everyone will be super happy and throw their caps into the air at the end of the ceremony. And maybe some people will. But I just keep thinking about what happens after that.

I have been sending out resumes, writing samples and cover letters like a mad woman. And so far, it hasn't done me much good. Thinking about not finding a job makes me extremely nervous. I don't want to end up like one of those movie bums who lives on his or her parents' couch until they're thirty. That's not my style. Another fear, similar to that, is that I will end up working in retail or as a waitress. I didn't go to college for four years to end up waiting tables.

If that does happen, or if it looks like it will happen I do have one last idea. Maybe it's a little bit crazy. And this also sounds like something out of a movie or TV show. In fact, it's a fairly common scenario. It goes something like this: Small town girl moves to the big city to make something of life. I could absolutely pick up my life and move somewhere, probably New York or Washington, D.C. (as of right now, it's not like I have anything else to do). There I would search for the perfect job (which will involve writing) and find a sweet apartment (or a broom closet, if need be) to live in with a roommate or two. While I'm looking for that great job I can work at a restaurant or in a store (as long as I'm not living at home and working at one of those places, I'm good). I could also take out loans to help afford my apartment.

Can you tell that I think about this a lot?

My Addiction

Somewhat recently I discovered a new way to procrastinate--the "Missed Connections" page on Craigslist.org. When I get tired of homework, Torch work or job hunting I simply go to Craigslist and click on the Missed Connections link.

A lot of people use Craigslist to serch for jobs, housing, used furniture and other things like that. I admit, a lot of the time I use it for those things, too. But lately I've been using it more for laughs on the Missed Connections page, where people leave messages for others who they found attractive when they saw them, but for one reason or another did not speak to or meet. Or they leave messages for people who they did meet, but they did not exchange contact information.

They hope that these individuals who they write about will see what has been written to them. But I highly doubt that most of them ever do. I don't know why people write these posts. But I'm glad they do. On a good day Missed Connections can provide hours of entertainment.

Many of the posts on this site are similar, saying things like, "I saw you at Starbucks on [whatever street] last Saturday morning and thought you were cute," or "You were the hot waiter/waitress at [whatever restaurant] on Sunday night. We exchanged glances. I really liked you and I think you liked me too. Tell me what I was wearing."

But every now and again you run across a gem. Over the weekend I was looking at jobs in Washington, D.C., when I found a delicious little treasure on Missed Connections. It read: "You were the pretty girl walking east on M Street. When I said 'nice purse' you maced me. I guess I should have just said "good evening" or something along those lines. Either way now I can never say I've never been maced before. Thank you." Who the hell thanks someone for macing them? People are crazy. I hate it. But I love it. I really don't know how I feel about it. But I am definitely addicted to Missed Connections on Craigslist.

Tonight

Tonight is the night I have been waiting for since probably late November or early December. New episodes of The Office and 30 Rock are back on TV!!!!

I'm hoping that since the writers had such a long "break" that they had time to come up with new hilarious ideas for these two shows. After being deprived for so long I don't know if I can handle mediocracy. I want hilarious, pee-your-pants, stitches-in-your-side-popping comedy from both shows. No, I don't want it, I need it.

When my roommates, friends and I sit down to watch 30 Rock at 8:30 tonight we want to be astonished with the show, staring Tina Fey, Tracey Morgan and Alec Baldwin. We hope to laugh out loud at the ridiculous things that characters say and do while they make fun of SNL in this time slot.

We also hope that The Office doesn't disappoint. My roommate Joanie is so excited. As am I, but she is the most excited about this mocumentary of office life. Although, if you ask me, having worked in an office environment, it's not that far off. Ridiculous things happen in real life offices as well. Although, most bosses aren't as crazy as Dunder Mifflin branch manager Michael Scott (Steve Carrell).

Last night, when I was done with my homework, I decided to watch TV with two of my roommates and one other friend of mine. What was on? Flavor of Love 3. Why, why, why? Did I get up and leave, return to my cave? No, I wanted some human interaction so I stayed and I watched that awful, awful show.

The episode I watched (I don't keep up with the show, so I have no clue how old it was) featured Flavor Flav's "Flavorettes" putting on a play about his past and his future. They did not just speak in the show they put on, but they rapped. It was painful. Oh, God it hurt.

At one point in the show, Flav asked the "new girls" who he invited into the house to pick out one girl to save from elimination at the end of the show. They ended up picking a girl named Thing 2. Thing 2 was there with her twin sister, Thing 1. Before they had been considered as if they were one person. After making a mistake when marking the Twins's clock, to separate them, Flav makes a mistake, he crosses out the wrong twin. So he gives her his clock, which he claims he has never done for anyone.

After this one of my roommates asked, "Does this mean we can wait until Flavor of Love 4 to see this again?"

I responded, "Does there need to be a Flavor of Love 4?"

She retorted, "Did there need to be a Flavor of Love 1?"

Ugh, I hate reality TV!!!!

When most people think spring break they think of sun, warmth and the beach. They think of tropical places, bathing suits and drinks with little umbrellas. I spent my spring break in Montreal. It was cold. I found myself bundling up and wishing I was in Massachusetts where it was warm(er).

But my friends and I decided to go to Montreal anyway. It was it was frigid outside. But I figured, since I've never done anything exciting for spring break (freshman year I stayed home and did nothing, sophomore year I had my wisdom teeth out and junior year I was doing an internship in Washington D.C. and I did not get a spring break), I would leap at the chance. What I thought would be a wild week of partying and clubbing turned out to be something much more

Most nights my friends and I opted out of going to bars and clubs because A - we didn't want to go out in the cold and B - some of the cover charges were high ($75 high). We discovered the latter online. Some of the clubs did not list charges and we did not want to walk 45 minutes in the cold to find out that we could not afford to pay.

We probably saved a lot of money that way. By staying in and drinking our own alcohol and juice mixes we managed to bond, enjoy each other's company, tell ridiculous jokes, and play drinking games including Kings and Never, ever have I...

We still did spend a lot of money on food and shopping, but by staying in most of the nights we saved a lot of money. The nights we did go out, we spent a lot. One night I ended up spending way more than I would have paid in the U.S.

So, if you do want to go away on spring break, even if you don't have a lot of money, you can save a lot by bringing your own fun. All you really need are good friends, a sense of humor and enough money to make sure you don't die from starvation.

A hedgehog just beat up a dinosaur? I must be dreaming. In what universe could this happen? Well, I'll tell you how this strange event can occur. It's Super Smash Brothers Brawl and the hedgehog is Sonic and the dinosaur is Bowser.

About two days ago my life was taken over by this new video game. I didn't ask for it to take over my world. But I guess because my apartment houses a functioning Wii and the newest, fanciest, widescreen, High-Definition TV I don't really have a choice.

While my roommates, friends and some people who I don't even really know battle it out in my living room, I'm busy fighting my immune system. While they stay up until 5 a.m. playing, I lay in my bed thinking, "I wish I could breathe through my nose." While my friends duke it out to open as many new characters as they can, I guzzle orange juice so I can be healthy for my spring break trip to Montreal.

But the thing that irks me the most is this: Why have my friends forsaken sleep for a video game? It'll still be there in the morning. More importantly, why do they need to disrupt my sleep? I'm sick. I'm tired. And IT'S MY APARTMENT!!!!!!! I just want to be healthy and well rested. But for the past few days that has not happened all because of this obsession.

I will admit that the game is fun, and some of the levels are pretty to look at on that new TV. But still, what's the big deal? I did grow up with some video games. But I never played as much in a day as some of my friends do now. I am bewildered. And I just don't get the need to purchase the game at midnight when it comes out, be back on campus playing it by 12:15 and then staying up playing until 5 a.m. AHHHHH!