A sigh of relief

Students across campus geared up for Dean's Date by staking claim to quiet corners for days at a time, forsaking the usual comforts of food, sleep and showers. They camped out near electrical outlets in Frist Campus Center and pushed themselves beyond exhaustion in the Engineering Library. They slept on couches and slumped across desks, covering their eyes with the hoods of eating club and sports team sweatshirts.

With the passing of Dean's Date on Jan. 11, the biannual burden of reading period was lifted. But their celebrations in front of McCosh Hall and on Prospect Avenue were a well-deserved reward after days of deprivation.

"I had 35 pages due on Dean's Date," Sandy Zaeh '07 said. "I've basically been living in Firestone for the last few days."

Others, like computer science major Lev Reyzin '05, spent their days writing computer programs in the basement of the Friend Center. "I've been spending eight hours a day in the computer lab," he said. "But some people lived there for like three days straight."

One of the most popular spots for late night studying was Frist. Diana Zakem '06 and Jonathan Johnson '06 said they liked to spread their books on well-lighted tables on the A level.

"Sometimes," Johnson said, "we'll sit here for a really long time without moving."

"We've been studying here for hours and hours today, and I only moved to use another computer and to get food," Zakem added.

Zakem and Johnson's spot outside the Food Gallery gave them a good view of the line of students waiting for the free snacks provided by dining services at 2 a.m. during reading period. "People started lining up for the food at about 1:50," Zakem said.

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But Zakem and Johnson chose to buy pizza from Villa Pizza before it closed at 2. "Pizza is so much more exciting the standard muffins, fruit and coffee that they have here," Johnson said.

"Still, we'll probably end up taking advantage of the free food once the line gets shorter," Zakem added.

Ali Pritchard '08 was at the front of the line, but after eating one muffin, the varsity basketball player still wanted more but did not want to wait. "I'll get something once the line's gone," she said. "This is probably going to be my second all-nighter in a row, so I don't want to be hungry while trying to work."

As 5 p.m. on Dean's Date drew near, students ran down McCosh Walk under an orange and black "Run!" sign, hurrying to submit their assignments before the deadline.

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Relieved students were welcomed in the quad near McCosh Hall by the marching band and scores of exhausted classmates. To celebrate, the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students and all four class governments provided kettle corn, Taco Bell burritos, hot chocolate and coffee.

Students welcomed the passing of Dean's Date, though it was not the end of the pressures of the fall semester.

"It felt so good to finally be done with my papers and my orgo exam," Zaeh said. "Now I'll hopefully be spending slightly less time in the C-floor dungeon [of Firestone]."

"But I still have three more exams next week," she added.