Three weeks left in the semester with beautiful weather, and I'll be done - done with going to classes, doing homework and living as a constant slave to my Gmail account's inbox. My concentration levels are steadily dropping, and my feelings toward the library have shifted drastically from normal, unpleasant associations to a downright aversion to crossing Clemons' doorstop. In short, I am suffering from Spring Fever. The countdown on the remaining days of the semester has begun, and with each passing day, I become more anxious for the arrival of that incomparable state of bliss known as summer holidays.
Unfortunately, no one seems to have informed my professors that I'm just about done, so they are still piling work in a last-ditch attempt to cram as much knowledge into my brain as possible before I officially check out for the summer. It seems as if there is no end in sight to looming academic deadlines, and even on those days when I triumphantly leave Clemons, flushed with the success of a completed project, I never become too cocky - I know that at this time of year it won't be long before I am once again toiling away in the depths of the first floor.
In a cruel twist, even as I tick off the days until my school work is finished, I dread what the end of another semester will mean. As a second-year student, I will officially be halfway through my college career, which I am not especially thrilled about. It seems like just yesterday I was unloading the contents of the family truckster into my room in the Old Dorms and shyly introducing myself to hallmates. Since that day, I have come to love my life here. I've made my best friends and had some of the best times of my life at the University. So despite my constant complaints about my busy schedule and all my schoolwork, I am in no hurry to be on the downward slope of my time at the University. In fact, I frequently find myself wishing that I could slow down time and not have to think about leaving Grounds so soon. Luckily, I think I have found a way to do just that - without failing on purpose, of course.
Time is a funny thing. The more you want it to speed up, the slower it goes by, and the more you want it to slow down, the faster it races away. Luckily, in my desire both to be finished with classes and to cling on to my time in school, I seem to have inadvertently found a way to affect the space/time continuum. As this is such a momentous discovery, I should probably alert the Feds about it first, but in true Wahoo spirit, I will give you, my fellow Cavs, the 411 first. By wishing for time to speed up and slow down at the same time, I have managed to make everything in my life occur at a normal speed. Pretty amazing, I know.
OK, so I'm speaking conceptually. I haven't actually figured out how to affect the passage of time. I'm an English major, after all - not an Engineering student. I write about life; I don't break it down mathematically. So in sticking with my strengths, let me point out the moral of this story - no matter what, time marches on. Don't dwell on the monotony, because for every minute spent writing a paper or trying to pay attention in lecture, there will be thousands of other minutes later spent hanging out with your friends and enjoying the advantages of being young. That said, don't squander those fun minutes worrying about making them last. Life will go on regardless of your feelings about it, so all you can do is power through difficult times and live it up during good ones.\n\nKatie's column runs biweekly Tuesdays. She can be reached at k.mcnally@cavalierdaily.com.
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