You never forget your first bursar. Actually, I have no idea if that’s true. I’ll never forget my first bursar, anyway. It was a glorious moment, really. I’ve always been obsessed with school supplies. Pens, pencils, index cards, folders and planners all hold a certain sheen to me and, growing up, the first weeks of school were the best of the year. But my parents would always limit me. I only needed as many notebooks as I had subjects and as many pens as could fit in my cheetah–print pencil case. Anyway, I was buying books and a few essentials with my roommate the first week of freshman year. When I went to pay, I realized I had forgotten my parents’ credit card and nearly put my stuff on hold. But then, my roommate uttered the six beautiful words that have become my life’s motto: why don’t you just bursar it? Those words changed everything.
I did go crazy with the school supplies at first, but I’ve evolved since then. Matured even. There’s so much more to bursar than that section of the bookstore. I found stationery, bookends, paperbacks, DVDs, CDs, board games. And then there’s the Penn gear. Don’t even get me started on the hundreds of dollars I’ve spent on shotglasses, mugs, bumper stickers and sweatshirts. It's like I can't show my Penn pride enough now. I even bought a Nook case. “That’s not that weird,” you might be thinking. No, it is. I don’t have a Nook. I have no plans to buy one. Ever.
I'm not addicted to heroin or meth. And I could be obsessed with something that costs my parents WAYYYY more money (at least, that's how I justify it to myself). I do feel guilty, though. I try to limit my spending, but sometimes the siren song of the bookstore is just too overwhelming. And I figure, I work hard at school; I deserve this new Penn tote bag. Sometimes you just gotta treat yourself, ya know? So you guys have fun with your Houston sushi and Gatorade from the Uncommon Market. That's amateur stuff. If you ever wanna go pro, you know where to find me.
