The vanishing summer is becoming more of a reality as students sprint towards graduation, or in some cases like my own, slowly limp towards adulthood.

Gone are the summers filled with trips to the pool, meals of popsicle after popsicle and endless hours spent wondering what Daisy would be wearing at the MTV Beach House.

The closer a student gets to finishing up with school, the more responsibility the student takes on in the summer months.

And for me, the adjustment to responsibility was anything but subtle.

Instead of waking up around noon, rolling out of bed around 1 p.m. and eating what resembles breakfast (a bowl of Lucky Charms, perhaps) an hour or two later than most people eat lunch, now, we have internships or “real” jobs occupying our time.

Initially, I had a lot to learn about working 9-to-5.

An upgrade in wardrobe allowed me to rotate 10 different shirts with the same three pairs of pants for 12 weeks. The lesson – and it’s time tested – is simply that you need more than one pair of pants. Unlike in college, wearing the same pair for weeks at a time is apparently taboo in the business world.

Playing dress-up is just one part of a new, more responsible routine. Time actually becomes valuable in the workplace, where as in classes, time is best spent wasted.

And after making it through a strenuous eight-hour workday, nothing sounds better than hitting the town with your friends. Of all of the magical effects of booze, stress relief sounds most appealing after all that time spent in a swivel chair.

But here’s where the “real” world is cruel. After a long day of work, good luck trying to find the energy to make it to the bar. And if you manage to drag yourself out, just how fun is it to wake up at 7 a.m.? Do you know how long it takes to wash the stench of vodka out of your hair?

But, eventually, the complaints subside, and we settle into our lives. All of a sudden Dilbert is funny. And, for a moment, we’re comfortable.

No less than 32 hours later, though, we have to head back to school. And then, we settle into the routine of wandering around Charleston, looking for Natural Light or Chubby’s cheese sticks at 3 a.m.

But then, get this; pretty soon, there will be homework that needs to be done.

Alarm clocks will have to be set, books will need to be cracked, dishes will need to be done and bottles will need to be filled with water and washed out instead of opened and slammed.

Trips to Gateway or Marty’s will now need to be replaced by trips to Booth Library (OK – not replaced, but at the very least postponed).

But good news is on the horizon. We’ll get used to this routine, too.

We’ll settle into studying, taking notes and doing crossword puzzles in class.

It just so happens, as a college student, the “real world” gets to wait. The adjustment from summer responsibility to college will go relatively smoothly.

And then, that little slice of heaven will be gone.

Winter break brings on a whole new set of changes to routines, followed by more changes when the spring semester rolls around. This cycle continues, until we begin on our career path.

But after seeing what’s out there in the “real” world, I’m content in limping towards my future.

It’s not going anywhere.