Fall Break-itis
What to do when you realize fall break is over?
We all feel it. That impending sense of doom when you realize that you spent your entire fall break at your house in front of your TV and consistently binging on anything that grabs your attention, refusing to acknowledge the fact that you still have midterms to study for and papers to write. If you were lucky enough to have all of your midterms before the break, well, then from the rest of us you deserve a big “you suck.”
Fall break isn’t as long as Thanksgiving or Winter Break, but at the University of Michigan, the bright students have hailed the importance of the time off by dubbing it the “suicide prevention break.” An apt description if you consider that while sanity is always a good thing to have as a college student, when midterms come around many times sanity is pushed to the back of peoples agendas. The more relevant thoughts of “is it too late to find a tutor,” or “what friends took this class last year that can possibly help me,” occupy all space for rational thoughts of actually studying on time.
So how do we gain back our sanity and stay calm as we thrust ourselves back into our schoolwork? I tend to rely on small intervals of Netflix binging and venting to my roommate, who has more tests than me and is never in the mood to hear it. Other people participate in the lovely and highly attended activity of “going out,” in which students force themselves to believe they do not need to study and earned themselves a night off to hit the fraternities, bars, or even Insomnia. Side note: if you do not know what Insomnia is, then you really are insane and should heed my advice to get checked out. Rumor is the University of Michigan has some pretty good hospitals if you want to stop by.
For those dutifully trying to study, the task becomes near impossible when you realize that all 100 libraries the University has are filled to the brim. You like studying in libraries for exams? Not after Fall Break you don’t. Finding a chair with enough elbow space to turn the page of your textbook is like that cliché saying of finding a needle in a haystack. For those of you brave enough to withstand the stares and glares while you loudly walk up and down each aisle and floor to find a lone seat and unzip your backpack in the dead silence: may the force be with you. I also hope you find a nice person to watch your stuff when you have to pee. Remember, the library is not responsible for lost or stolen items, aka your food that everyone is watching you eat, computer and/or life line notes you are depending on to pass a class.
There is also the option to try one of numerous coffee places on campus, but oh wait, those are always filled by 8 a.m. too. This leaves you down to the final choice: your room. Whether it is that tiny dorm room, nice furnished apartment room, or a house, it is best to lock yourself in your room until you have memorized every number in pi. Grab a coffee from one the coffee shops first though; falling asleep on your all-too-comfortable bed is the worst enemy the day before an exam.
At this rate, it may be best to just wing it. Your GPA only matters for grad school, your first job, internships, and to your parents, right? And I mean, what is 25% of your grade anyways? Just keep telling yourself you’ll make it up on the final.