True, to many, Fall Break is a time to relax, travel and enjoy some downtime as a reward for a half-semester well done. But for the first time in my four years here, I've decided to remain in Princeton to work on a number of projects, academic and otherwise. Since I have a lot I need to get done, I thought it would be a good idea to plan out a day-by-day schedule for break, which I fully intend to follow. Ha ha! Of course, that won't actually happen, as I am a notorious slacker, but what the hell. Here's my plan for Fall Break:
Today: I awake around noon with a pounding headache, still wearing my Hannah Montana Halloween costume. While brushing my teeth, I check my phone's outbox to perform damage control on any potentially regrettable 4 a.m. text messages. At some point in the day I recall that I have a computer science assignment due at midnight. Dammit.
Saturday: At precisely 9:30 a.m., I wake up ready to jump right into the work I plan to do over break. At precisely 9:32 a.m., I go back to sleep for the rest of the day.
Sunday: Since it's still the weekend, I figure it can't hurt to wait another day before starting work. I check out the new Point and discover - get this - it's in a totally different font from the old Point! Consulting Point's restaurant reviews, I choose a few places on Nassau Street I'd like to try. Consulting my wallet, I head for the 'Wa.
Monday: I wake up bright and early, ready to attack one of my many projects. Unfortunately, I cannot decide whether I should start with my senior independent work, which I need to do to graduate, or with reclassifying the "genre" category for all my iTunes music, which I need to do to distinguish between "post-new wave" and "post-post-new wave." Unable to choose, I instead begin watching the entire DVD series of '80s television cult classic "Twin Peaks" that I borrowed from a friend.
Tuesday: As I'm heading to the E-Quad lab to work, some friends call and invite me to come to New York with them. I figure, what's one more day? We have a fun time at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, though the others become annoyed when I keep complaining, "Why are we looking at pictures? Boooring! I wanna go see ‘Wicked'!"
Wednesday: Before starting on my work, I run an errand to CVS for a few necessities: shampoo, detergent and large bags of Halloween candy. On the way back I stop, for a minute, at the Princeton Record Exchange, where I spend the rest of my day looking through every single bargain-bin CD just to see if something catches my eye.
Thursday: After several consecutive days of WaWa food, my body begins to say "no" to blue raspberry Icees, cardboard-cup mac'n'cheese and even the salsa chicken flatbread, regardless of how new, delicious and only $4.99 it is. I take it easy for most of the afternoon, and by evening I feel hale enough to tackle the iTunes genre reclassification project.
Friday: On my way to another gallant attempt to do work, I stop by a friend's room (to return the "Twin Peaks" DVDs). Nine hours of Rock Band later, I call it an early night.
Saturday: It's been a hectic week, so I sleep in most of the day and spend the evening watching old "Saturday Night Live" clips on the internet while I eat most of my CVS candy. At some point, I recall that I have a major report due for my independent work on Monday. Dammit again.
Sunday: I spend the entire day shoddily completing several weeks' worth of research and design in mere hours. Exhausted, I slide into bed, realizing I still haven't worked on two problem sets and a major project due this week, not to mention the extensive list of things I'd planned for my "spare time." Oh, yeah, and I have class again tomorrow. Did I really have only seven days off? Weak.
Brandon Lowden is an electrical engineering major from McKees Rocks, Pa. He can be reached at blowden@prnceton.edu.
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