My Senior Year College Bucket List

I am fairly awful at bucket lists. In fact, I touched upon it in my 19 things before 20 (revisited) post, where I essentially said I am garbage at creating vague, bucket-list-y lists and checking them off because I change my mind so often and have no idea what I want to do.

So, naturally, I created a senior year bucket list for my last year of college. I’m simply brilliant at sticking to what I say! But, my senior year bucket list is much more concrete and simplified. Plus, virtually everything on it is actually doable in the amount of time I have left of my senior year. In fact, I’ve already checked off a large chunk of the list. Here are just a few of the things on my senior year bucket list (most of them were food or coffee related but I’ve left them off because they’re super specific).

1. Go to Montgomery Book Exchange

I’ve visited most of the ones near my college but I recently discovered this one…definitely need to check it out! I love used bookstores, especially visiting them with my boyfriend. We’ve tackled some in the Hudson Valley, Connecticut and Delaware, but there are so many more to go. We both love reading and have a weakness for buying books, so really we just feed into each other’s vice. Whoops. Once we even came across a sign for a book sale and spontaneously visited it. We were the only people under the age of sixty but we ended up with a huge box of books for $10…I also found a rare, old Dorothy Parker book, which are books I’ve started to collect.

2. Go Pumpkin Picking

Check! I had a wonderful time pumpkin picking with three of my closest friends. We had apple cider donuts, picked pumpkins, sampled fudge and snapped lots of photos. We went on a Friday so it was nice and empty. Although the hayride and a few other amusements were closed, it was worth the peace and quiet and lack of screaming children. We also got to pet a bunch of animals, which is always exciting.

I ended up painting my pumpkin to match my blog logo because I’m extra. I hope to share pics of that soon over on Instagram!

3. Attend a First Friday Festival

Check! The nearby town does festivals the first Friday of each month so we checked out the October one. There was a ton of food and a lot of authentic Italian music. The night was full of dancing! I plan to go to the one in November, too.

4. Visit a Trampoline Place

Not yet! I think I’ll be pushing this off until the winter when I can’t quite complete the outdoor activities on the list.

5. Visit a Cat Cafe

Check! I absolutely loved visiting the cat cafe a few towns over. I fell in love with a cat named Nacho, who was so weird and lovely. He just held onto my foot at one point and just kind of sat there and chilled. I wish I could adopt him but, alas, I am not allowed to have a kitten on campus. There was also a litter of kittens that melted my heart. Nothing brings me more joy than kittens!

6. See a $5 Movie

Check! My college offers $5 movie tickets for the local cinema, so I definitely wanted to take advantage of that before graduating. My friends and I saw It. I was not scared nor was I impressed. Usually, scary movies make me jump or flinch, but the whole time I was fairly stone-faced and pretty annoyed with the plot. Needless to say, I won’t be recommending this movie anytime soon.

7. Visit the County Fair

Check! This local fair is always a favorite. The best part is the chocolate milkshakes, but there’s also plenty of games, rides and weird things happening. I went with the rest of the board of the main club I’m in on campus! We petted some cows and ended up listening to a band play a song about recycling. Wild.

8. Attend Local Oktoberfest

Check! It’s not the real Oktoberfest, but it’s a local version of it. My best friend and I tried a bunch of German food and listened to some upbeat German music. It was a fun time. I was happy to get a taste of my partially German roots, Germans really know how to make delicious cake and bratwurst. Maybe someday I’ll attend the real Oktoberfest…I’ve been jonesing to visit Europe again.

9. Visit the Jackolantern Blaze

Almost! My best friend and I have tickets for this week, so it should be exciting. You’ve definitely seen videos and articles on the The Great Jackolantern Blaze all over Facebook. Luckily, it’s only a few towns away and I snagged tickets before it sold out!

10. Attend a Hockey Game

Check! I’m not a sports fan at all, but hockey is one of my favorite sports to watch. I love how aggressive the sport can be and how it seems like the rules are really minimal. My college won the first game of the season, making the game even better!

11. Volunteer

I hope to volunteer with a local organization, preferably something related to food. The Hudson Valley has a lot of problems with food insecurity and availability, topics I’ve been covering often in my courses. Hopefully, I can find a way to give back this year!

12. Bike the Walkway over the Hudson

No more excuses! I brought my bike up and the Walkway is a fairly easy ride without hills or inclines.

13. Watch the Sunrise 

Check! My boyfriend and I went to the Walkway over the Hudson and watched the sunrise one Sunday morning. It was so beautiful although I was bummed that none of my favorite coffee places were open early enough. After the sunrise we went back to my dorm and took a nap. I think a sunset might be a little better for my sleeping habits next time.

14. Go Sledding

I’m not even sure there will be snow, but if there is I’d like to think I’d go sledding. There are some nice hills around campus to sled on, I just prefer staying inside whenever there’s snow on the ground. This year I’ll make an effort to embrace the snow.

15. Picnic by the River

River views are a perfect backdrop for a picnic. My friends and I have been talking about doing this since freshman year…it’s about time!

16. Visit Lake Minnewaska

This hike was way more intense than anticipated. My boyfriend and I did this hike and survived. It wasn’t the greatest idea because we went on a very hot day and while my toe was wrapped in gauze. We also didn’t pack water or snacks, which, also is not a great idea.

I also ended up getting hit in the boob by a squirrel who dropped a rock/nut out of a tree from a few hundred feet up. It really hurt and left a welt for about a day, though it did add some humor. My boyfriend kept the object that injured me and put it in his car as a lovely keepsake.

I also wore the weirdest outfit because I’ve got a rational/irrational fear of ticks, so I wore high fox-printed socks with leggings tucked in. It was so much.

17. Graduate with a 4.0 (or close)

I’ve been doing fairly well throughout my time in college and I hope to keep my grades up! So far, so good. Although I just declared a second minor in English Literature right before my last semester, so that’s a little bit risky but I love English classes. I probably should’ve been an English major but that’s a whole other story…

18. Have an Awesome 21st Birthday

It’s about time! In just two more months I’ll finally be 21 and no one can stop me. Hopefully my birthday will be full of friends and dancing. I also anticipate it will involve a lot of glitter and alcohol. Who knows?

19. Spring Break in New Orleans

Soon! The trip is all booked and I’ve already started making a Google Sheet (see my tips for planning a trip with friends for details). I have a lot of places I’d love to check out, let me know if you’ve ever been to NOLA and have some suggestions! I am so excited for this one, mostly for the beignets. I’m not so excited about the humidity and heat, a few people have warned me that while in NOLA you’ll be in a constant state of feeling sticky and moist. Yikes.

20. See Five Broadway Shows

In the summer I saw Dear Evan Hansen, 1984 and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. In the school year so far I’ve seen School of Rock and Anastasia! My school is really great about Broadway trips and I plan on going to a few more. This summer reminded me how much I love shows, I’ve still been listening to the Dear Evan Hansen soundtrack on repeat. It’s so good. It’s the first show where I’ve fallen in love with the soundtrack before even seeing the show or having any idea of the show’s plot.

21. Attend the Senior Formal

I’ve been dying to go to a formal since high school prom and it’s about time! I can’t wait to get all dolled up and dance the night away. A fancy dress will be required and maybe I’ll even bust out the false eyelashes.

22. Go to the Homecoming Football Game

Check! Surprisingly, our football team won. That was a great bonus, especially because our team isn’t always the greatest. It was very hot, but I was happy to finally put the tiny star glitters I had to use in order to appear more festive. I didn’t know what was going on for most of the game but I looked really into it.

23. Attend a Lacrosse Game

Aside from hockey, lacrosse is the only sport I enjoy watching. I’m excited about lacrosse season! Hopefully, our team will win the championships this year. We were so close last year!

So…

That was a bit less interesting than I anticipated. The bulk of my list really was food and dessert places (oops). I definitely hope to add more to this list! What are some things on your college bucket list?

What is your favorite dorm decor idea?