One night during Homecoming weekend, I was waiting for a friend outside Chuck’s when a stranger recognized me from my headshot in The Daily Orange.

‘I read your column,’ he said to me. ‘It’s sexist, misogynistic, homophobic and racist.’

My response: ‘But you read it.’

After three years of writing The D.O. humor column, when I reflect on moments like that, I can’t help but smile.

You see, readers, I can’t control how you react to my writing. I suppose this column could inspire anything from hearty laughter to burning hatred or even, in the case of one person who claimed to use my articles as toilet paper, anal chafing.

But when all is said and done, there’s only one thing that all you haters, fans and anal chafers have in common: You read it.

As a writer, nothing makes me prouder.

With that in mind, it saddens me to say that this will be the last column I ever write for The D.O. Next week, I will graduate from Syracuse University, and the real world has no place for a 21-year-old college grad who spends his days writing poop jokes while giggling like an idiot. At least, that’s what my therapist tells me.

For you, life will go on as it always has. Next semester, a new columnist will tickle your collective funny bone with his or her own brand of humor. Like your fall semester classes, I will be completely forgotten by March.

My life, on the other hand, will never quite be the same. You see, writing this column is more to me than just a weekly byline and headshot. It’s a superpower.

No, I can’t leap tall buildings in a single bound; yes, the real reason I dress like Batman on the weekends is because my thighs look great in spandex (too bad you can’t see my headshot from the neck down). But that’s beside the point.

The real mark of a superhero is having an alter ego whose powers and personality far exceed that of his normal identity. Every Wednesday for the past three years, I have communicated with you — not as the guy my friends all make fun of for thinking the missionary position was an internship with the Catholic Church, but as Danny Fersh: Funny Man.

Each week, I transform into someone more badass than I could ever hope to be in person. The Danny you know is a smooth-talking ladies’ man who gives dating advice to Justin Bieber, financial advice to Warren Buffett and roundhouse kicking advice to Chuck Norris.

The real me is a neurotic momma’s boy who takes dating advice from Herman Cain, financial advice from Occupy Wall Street and self-defense lessons with his mom’s yoga class.

Sadly, at semester’s end, I will be stripped of my awesome alter ego and left only with my lamer self. Every great hero’s journey must come to an end. And for me, that end has arrived.

No longer can I prance around campus in my tights and cape — at least, not on days without gay pride parades. I am now merely mortal, an average Joe who will walk among you henceforth as your equal.

I am forever grateful to the fans for whom my departure is a sad occurrence, but equally as much to the people who will rejoice at my absence.

Whether you loved my column or hated it, all of you had one thing in common that propelled me to superhero status:

You read it.

Danny Fersh is a senior broadcast journalism major and this is his last column. For an amazing three years with The Daily Orange, he would like to thank Kelly, RJ, Flash, Amity, Katie, Meredith, Steph, Katie, Amrita, Dara, Kathleen, Kat Kim, Sara, Danielle, Colleen, Becca, Erik, Karin, Abram, Carson, Schneids, CJ, Roarke, Mom, Dad, Rachel (aka the best cure for writers block who ever lived), David, Ben, Shay, Lu — for your smile, your friendship and your gift, Lena, Haley, Liz and AZD, Theta girls, Tex, NCC News and the best f***ing BDJ 465 news team ever, Bob Saget, professor Fought, Rakeem Christmas, Frank Currier, A. Randall Wenner, Dubin, BFG, the Dream Team, Bryan Kerrakpo, Ron Mexico, Bosa, Cameron Bakerstein, Robert Andino, the Syracuse Mashuganas, JaQuizz in my pants, the lovers, the haters and, of course, John Stamos. Email Danny at danny@inkwellstrategies.com, and follow him on Twitter at @fershprince.