It’s that time of year again. The weather is getting bearable. The rabbits are getting busy. We’re all getting stressed from finals and Claudia’s getting depressed.

Yes, depressed with a capital D. What do you expect? It’s graduation time. Everyone’s depressed. Either they’re leaving and have to say good-bye to friends or they’re staying and have to say goodbye to friends.

Don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with graduations. Graduation is a great thing which I hope eventually happens to all NIU students, even me someday. The problem I have is with leaving.

When I first arrived in DeKalb three years ago and throughout my freshman year, I was as about as excited as Glumm on barbituates to be here, but it’s a completely different story now.

Over the past two years, I’ve met some of the most interesting, wonderful, fun-loving people I’ve ever met in a semi-rural midwest town, and NIU is what brought us all together.

Some of you might relate to this. I call it the “I’m Not Graduating But You Are Blues.” It’s all about that miserable feeling you get when a close friend of yours waves his hand for that final “Goodbye NIU,” and you slowly come to realize two things. One: next year is not going be the same without him or her around, and two: that’s going to be you someday, waving goodbye.

You see, there’s something about the “I’m Not Graduating But You Are Blues” that’s much worse than the standard “Graduation Blues.” All the places are going to be the same for us next year, but something’s going to be missing—the members of NIU’s graduating class of May 1990. And each one of them will be missed in their own way.

Well… that’s enough depression for one day. On with the goodbyes _

Goodbye NIU Residence Halls! Finally. So long and good riddance. (I got an apartment.) Gone are the days of nonsense policies and starchy, unrecognizable food.

Goodbye graduates. Congrats. Since I’ve never been there, I have no real words of wisdom to share about post-grad life. All I can suggest is to keep eating junk food, read plenty of comic books, play Nintendo daily, and listen to all the REM tunes you can. It will keep you young and healthy.

Goodbye Al Luckow. Thanks for all your help this year. It wouldn’t have been the same without your time, patience, advice, and hard work. What can I say? You are the Design God. Good luck in the jungle out there.

Goodbye Dan O. (Well, let’s hope it’s goodbye after this summer.) Your column brought life into dreary Monday mornings and that’s a tough thing to do. Thanks for showing us how to laugh at life’s many peculiarities and even at ourselves. Isn’t that what it’s all about? We’ll sure miss you next year.

And last but not least, goodbye to all of you who bothered calling me at home about my columns, leaving messages on my answering machine but neglecting to leave a name or number. I have only one thing to say—”I’m like rubber, you’re like glue. Whatever you say, bounces off me and sticks to you.”

Have a way cool summer NIU and see you next year!