Dear Annie,

Today is the day. You are starting your new chapter, at only 16. There is so much I would like to tell you about college, but part of the experience is..well..experiencing it. There is lot that you will need to learn in your first months off on your own, so it is a good thing you have a rather steep learning curve. To name a few:

1. Your class schedule. Gone are the days that you have a set 8-2 schedule. The beauty, and the curse, of college is that you can make your own schedule. Make use efficient use of that freedom, it can come back to bite you (a.k.a. 8ams).

2. Everyone else's schedule. The absolute worst time to get your Starbs is right before class. I promise you will be late for class and you will probably be waiting for that dang coffee for at least 30 minutes.

3. Cooking saimen without a stove. Your microwave will be your bestfriend, but remember styrofoam is bad for you.

4. Laundry. Yes, yes, I know you know. But to keep some of your favorite items of clothing from going "missing", you are going to want to stay in the laundry room until it is done. Bring your laptop and watch a show (or do your homework...).

The list could keep going, but like I said the best part of the experience is actually experiencing it. This is a scary start, and you are not scared believe me I am for you. It makes me all types of emotional to "see" my big little sister go off to a new school in a new state.