It’s easy to get caught up in the Class Marshal talk, raps, and discarded pies of it all and forget that we have an expiration date looming over our heads: Thursday, May 27, 2027. Bonus points if you’re a thesis-ing senior who is already stressing over their mid-March deadline, struggling to plan out last-minute editing sessions in between visits to museums and local beaches in whatever city your spreak will take you to (don’t be basic and go to Cancun, please). But instead of continuing to prematurely spiral, it’s time to be a bit more glass-half-full. In an effort to practice what I preach and not measure our last year on campus in GCal deadlines and weekly Grensdays, here’s a round-up of the senior bucket list items I think we should all partake in to hold onto the whimsy and joy we will inevitably begin losing as the semester goes on…

Actually Get Lunch with People

I am highkey calling myself out here, but it’s time. Look, we’re all guilty of running into someone in the Yard or near our houses and throwing out the obligatory “we should get lunch sometime!” It’s not like we don’t actually intend to catch up with our beloved acquaintances over some HUDS local catch—life just gets busy sometimes. But after three years of consistently falling into this trap, it’s time to switch things up and spend what limited time we have left with the people we will probably only see again at reunions (that is unless you move to NYC and run into your opps on the daily in FiDi). This is why I will be forcing myself to grab a meal with someone I haven’t spoken to in ages on a monthly basis #exposuretherapy #letskeepourpromises. At some point this year, we’ve got to abandon our roommates and the safe haven of our house dhalls. We’re in this together, I hope (translation: I will only accomplish this task if I have an accountability buddy).

Cambridge Crawl

Yeah, yeah, bar crawls this and bar crawls that. Let’s be a bit more inventive, shall we. I don’t know about you all, but every time I walk through Harvard Square, I’m shocked at how many places I didn’t know existed. You’d think that after three-plus years of living in a small city outside of Boston, there would be no new sights to see or fun restaurants to try, but somehow I still haven’t dined at IHOP, Tenoch, The Sea Hag, and the list goes on. Hopefully, our fabulous Class Marshals can get on this while the pressure is still on, but if not, I say we take matters into our own hands and devote an entire week to big backing our way through this town. Bonus points if you and your friends decide to spice up your evening and take on fake names, constructing outlandish backstories for your waiters to gasp and oo at.

Six Flags

Guys, this is just a personal bucket list item, but you can join in if you choose. Just because we are on our way to becoming washed-up uncs, it does not mean that we cannot act childish every once in a while. That’s where Six Flags comes in (pretty please sponsor me if you see this). As long as you have a friend with a license (#ditchyourNYfriends) and another friend who moonlights as a Zipcar ambassador, the hour-and-a-half ride to Western Massachusetts isn’t half bad. Think about it: in roughly the same time you spend counting down the seconds in your Sever section, you can instead be in line for the Wicked Cyclone. A worthy trade-off, huh? If this is too much of a hassle, just go to Dave & Buster’s, Level 99, or any other amusement/arcade arena that lets you be a kid for just a bit longer.

Match 27

Oh, boy. This one is a doozy. And while we’re so far out from actually having to jot down the names of people we’d like to match with in the Class of 2027, it’s better to be overly prepared than freeze the day the submission form closes and only remember the people who were on your FOP trip or in your Ec10a section. Seniors, as much as you can, start jotting down the names of people you may feel inspired to reference in a few months. Start with section crushes, LinkedIn connections, and the Canvas people page. Then move on to IRL sightings, AKA the perfect way to keep your days fun and exciting.

Say Goodbye to Your Freshman Dorm

Well, only if you have fond memories there; I’m not trying to rehash any drama or roommate issues you may want to leave in the past #protectyourpeace. But if you’re overly sentimental like me and truly enjoyed living in that cramped double where you couldn’t debunk the beds, I say senior year is the time for taking a walk down memory lane. Reflect on all the late nights spent yapping in the Straus common room, exploring the Holworthy basement, and attempting to cook up a Friendsgiving spread in the Thayer kitchen. Better yet, knock on your old dorm and talk to the current residents; what better way to use your unc status than to impart some sage advice to the Class of 2030. Consider it the epilogue to your story here at Harvard!

Okay, that got a little sappy at the end, but my main point in writing this article still stands: senior year is the time to say yes to anything that is thrown your way. Stay out an extra hour, go on that sidequest, continue beating all those dead horses, go to that hockey game you’ve been meaning to attend, get as much Berryline as possible, and take an Amtrak somewhere unexpected. And never, ever stop adding things to your bucket list. The possibilities core memories are endless.