Yay school's in |
Tobie Depauw |
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I've always loved the first few days of school. Everyone is numb to the fact that they are actually back at school and it feels like a big party at first. Everyone is decked out in brand-new clothes and fading tans. Some things haven't changed since kindergarten. People wear shorts with sandals, socks don't exist for weeks, and some girls wear less than they should. Classes are always the most fun on the first and last days. The teachers are direct and usually don't keep you the whole class time. They know the summer crust is still built up on our brains and scraping it off is too intense for one class period. This article could be the first intellectual thing I've done in three months. Wait, I didn't mean intellectual, obviously. Maybe I meant productive. This column could be the first productive thing I've done in months. Teachers know they can't break the crust on the first day, so most teachers (or the smart teachers) keep it nice and short the first day. It's all about the syllabus, baby. Everyone has a summer story to tell, too. Maybe it's a story about the time they were in Florida and got stung by a jellyfish. And that guy's best friend is telling the story of how he had to pee on him to neutralize the sting. Now there's a story. I tried surfing this summer. Let me just say that I was born in the Midwest and standing on a 6-foot board atop a roaring water beast is no place for me. I felt ridiculous. I felt like my Midwestern-ness ebbed from me and everyone around me knew I was an impostor. Actually the only thing that ebbed from me was the sun's reflection off my hard-core farmer tan. Anyway, back to the column already in progress. There are some people who admit they are too old and indebted to have a crazy summer, but those people just have their priorities all mixed up. Wait, it's more likely that it's my priorities which are off kilter. I don't regret spending less time working and more time playing, but I've had more stress in the last week than I had all summer long and it's not that bad. Because I chose the "living life for the now" route, I now have to get financial aid and loans to pay the rent at my soon-to-be-found apartment. These kinds of needs are not conducive to a clear mind. Trying to deal with financial aid while taking a two-week summer class and attempting to find an apartment two weeks before school starts in a college town is ... fun. I actually like it. It makes me feel like a real college student: poor, ugly and happy. I don't know if it's faith or delusion, but I am sure everything will work out. For now, it's the floor for me. It's aching backs and waking up to my friends leaving in the morning to go on with their productive lives. I love it. This is the way it's supposed to be. I better get used to it, right? Hopefully in a few years, I'll be this well-off. Only I'll be sleeping on my own floor and waking up for my own productive life. Laughable, isn't it? Speaking of production, I need some help to produce the best Lifestyles section ever. If the status quo doesn't change soon, I'll have to change the name of the section to Tobie's Lifestyle. Some would say it already is, but those people should quit whining and start writing. I need some interesting and innovative writers who can help me out with feature articles about issues that affect us. I also need movie critics, music writers, art reviewers, and if you happen to know anything about layout and design, come on up. The Alestle is on the second floor of the Morris University Center. Stop by and ask for me, or send e-mail to tfdepauw@yahoo.com.. | |