I've never been very good at goodbyes. Especially when they're to people I've known for seven years.

Okay fine, so maybe I don't know the characters on Gilmore Girls, but I sure feel like I do. When you watch a show for seven years, it becomes a chapter in your life. And when that chapter ends, it's downright sad.

I remember (in no particular order) Rory's first day at Chilton, when Rory and Paris were enemies, when Lorelai was still immature, when Lane hid CDs in her floor, Rory's first kiss, when Lorelai was engaged to Max Medina (remember all those daisies!), Richard's first collapse in episode 10, when Dean told Rory he loved her in the car he built for her, the Dean and Rory saga , the Jess and Rory saga, the Logan and Rory saga, Lorelai and Max, Lorelai and Jason, Lorelai and Christopher, and Lorelai and Luke (my favorite), when Sookie first asked Jackson out...

Click here to read the rest of A Tribute to the Gilmore Girls

Over the course of the past eight months or so, I've written sixteen different articles about Gilmore Girls for this site. That's a total of roughly 10,169 words. There was a marriage and a divorce, a proposal and a breakup, a heart attack and a few nervous breakdowns. In the final episode alone, there was a long awaited kiss, a new job, a united town, and a World's Greatest Reporter thermos. All those months, all those articles, all those words about all those events...so what do I have to say now, after the final episode of Gilmore Girls has aired?

Ever since it was on my vocabulary sheet in ninth grade English, I've wanted to use the word "penultimate" in a non-test environment. Finally, here's my chance: This week was the penultimate episode of Gilmore Girls! Too bad the English-nerd thrill doesn't outweigh the sadness that this show will be over in just one more week. We're not here to talk about that (yet) - we're here to talk penultimate!

"Announcing the final season of 'Gilmore Girls' is truly a sad moment for everyone at The CW and Warner Bros. Television. This series helped define a network and created a fantastic, storybook world featuring some of television's most memorable, lovable characters. We thank Amy Sherman-Palladino, Dan Palladino, Dave Rosenthal, the amazing cast led by Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel, as well as the producers, writers and crew for giving us this delightful gem for the past seven years. We would also like to thank the critics and 'Gilmore' fans for their passionate support and promise to give this series the send-off it deserves."

GILMORE GIRLS finale airs Tuesday May 15 on The CW at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

First, I laughed. Then, I teared up (just a little). Next, I sighed and said, "Awww." Finally, I jumped off my couch and yelled, "Are you freaking kidding me?!"

Just another Tuesday night with the Gilmore Girls.

Things started out a little strange, with Rory in dreamland getting kicked out of Chilton, being left behind by her Hawaii-bound mother, and witnessing Paris playing desperate housewife with Doyle and their dream children. I'm not quite sure of the symbolism here, except that Rory is clearly frustrated and bewildered by others' lives moving forward while hers is standing still. Her lack of a job or any clear notion of a future have started affecting her academically as she returned to Stars Hollow with an unfinished blue book and her head under the covers. Lorelai makes it her goal to cheer Rory up, but not before reminding her that Rory has pretty much gotten everything she's wanted (not without trying, of course) up until now, so she was due for a setback.

The perfect cure for the I-don't-have-a-job blues? If macaroni doesn't work, try karaoke. In case you haven't guessed, the laugh I mentioned earlier came the moment Kirk sang his first bars of "Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?" by the Culture Club. Whoever in the writers' room thought of that one, my hat is off to you. It was what they call on American Idol a perfect song choice.

Have I ever used this space to explain just how much I love Paris? Not Paris, France. Paris Geller. The character has been underused on Gilmore Girls so far this season, but this week's episode made me fall in love with her all over again.

Karen Valby at EW.com complained about the scene in which Paris opens her numerous acceptance letters to law and medical schools, but it was one of the highlights of the episode for me. Liza Weil didn't just squeal a girly "hooray" when she reacted to the acceptances, she shouted like a man, pumped her fists, and of course became neurotic about eventually making a choice among the schools. The contrast between Paris and Rory's problems was interesting here. I went through the same thing at the end of college, and then again at the end of grad school - I felt like everyone had their futures totally planned and I was the only one trying to figure things out. I didn't know what I wanted to do (and wasn't lucky enough to be choosing between Harvard Law and Harvard Medical School) and envied my friends like Rory who seemed to have everything set in stone. As crazy as Paris is, I identified with her.

Gilmore Girls finally returned this week after being gone for 67 weeks (or at least that's what it seemed like). Honestly, I thought the episode was a little uneven. High point: Lorelai putting Logan in his place. Low point: surprisingly, it was the "reunion" of Luke and Lorelai in the middle of the hay bale maze.

Let's get the low out of the way first. I learned a lesson in my first college creative writing class: show don't tell. Basically, it means instead of talking about something that happened, show it happening. Things I wish I'd seen more than heard this week? Rory's interview, Lane's babies, and Luke and Lorelai's encounter in the maze. Why couldn't we have seen at least a snippet of Rory's incredible interview? Though the newspaper-train moment was nice, hearing about the interview wasn't the same as seeing it first-hand. The same thing happened with her informational interview with the guy from the New York Times a few episodes ago. What, no budget for a no-name guest actor to play the interviewer? Apparently there was no budget for twin infants either. I did love how one twin is named Steve - not Steven, not Little Stevie, but Steve. It makes it sound like he's already one of Zach's band buddies. Again, I wish we could have seen Lane and Rory together. These two are allegedly best friends since childhood and we barely see them talk anymore.

Now for Luke and Lorelai.

Heartwarming scenes? Check. Mother-daughter-grandmother interaction? Check. Smart, funny dialogue? Check. This week's episode of Gilmore Girls was a perfect example of all the things that make this show great. On top of all the road trip and wedding fun, Rory finally stood up to Logan! I almost got up and cheered, but my couch is really comfortable.

I loved that the cold open showed Lorelai and Rory buying Rory's interview suit. I remember having the same experience with my mother back when I graduated from college, and let me tell you, Rory held herself together a lot better than I did. I was freaking out because of how grown up I looked, but two hours in Ann Taylor will do that to a person. Anyway, buying your first suit is a rite of passage rarely shown on television, so I thought it was great that the show included it.

Each week when I email my columns to our illustrious editor, Jacki Garfinkel, we chat a little bit about the shows I've written about. As you can probably guess, the one that gets us going the most is Gilmore Girls. This week, I asked Jacki what she thought and I couldn't have said it any better myself, so I'll let her do the talking: "I honestly felt like this week's Gilmore Girls was a filler episode." It's true - not much happened in the plot development department, but as far as filler goes, this one left me wishing I were pregnant with twins and having a baby shower thrown by Lorelai Gilmore with all of Stars Hollow in attendance. Okay, maybe not the pregnant with twins part, but the episode did make me wish I were part of the Gilmore world.

In the past few weeks, Gilmore Girls has been emerging from the funk it had itself in during the first half of the season. The climax took place last week when Lorelai and Christopher ended things, and the most recent episode was a little lackluster in comparison. I don't have a problem with that though; we needed a less strenuous episode this week. My heartstrings can only be tugged so far.

Critics have been crabbing up a storm this season about Gilmore Girls, complaining that the show isn't as sweet and dizzying and wonderful as it once was, and all but calling for The CW to put it out of its misery. Much of their venom has been directed toward the storytelling of new showrunner David Rosenthal, a long time Gilmore scribe who took the reigns of the show this season after series creator and executive producer Amy Sherman-Palladino chose not to continue with it.

Click here to read the rest of Gilmore Girls: A New Beginning?

Ding-dong, the impulsive marriage to your daughter's father who you thought you loved but really turned out to be an inconsiderate jerk... is dead!

Click here to read the rest of Gilmore Girls: Breaking Up is Hard to Do

I was pleased with this week's episode of Gilmore Girls. The scenario could have easily taken the "very special episode" route, but instead of getting too sappy, the writers remained true to the characters in their different reactions to Richard's heart attack. Also, I should mention that I'd very much like to strangle Christopher, but that will come later.

Click here to read the rest of Gilmore Girls: Poor Richard

No matter how much the fans complain about this season of Gilmore Girls and the absence of Amy Sherman-Palladino, they'll always have Paris. And Sookie and Jackson and all the other unique characters that brighten up any episode. This week, Paris was on top of her game, designing Operation Finish Line, a series of whiteboard charts outlining every fellowship application, final exam, and career fair that she and Rory would have to contend with in order to be gainfully employed by graduation. My favorite part? She made a portable mini-version of the charts and set it up on their table in the dining hall. This plotline was classic Paris, and I'm glad Rory went along with it (with a narrower focus - declining to apply for a marine biology fellowship was probably a good call). Rory has been a little bit lost lately so it was good to see her back on track.

Click here to read the rest of Gilmore Girls: We'll Always Have Paris