Top 5 Tips for Not Being a Shitty Person

Finals week brings out the ugly in some people. I know I tend to get grumpy and eat poorly, so I'm no better, but after talking to my college 101 class, here are my top 5 tips for getting through finals week and still having people that will miss you over vacation.

1. Finals Week is not a competition. If I say "I got two hours of sleep last night" the appropriate response is something like "I'm sorry, take a nap!" or "I didn't get much sleep either, we should skip How I Met your Mother tonight!" The appropriate response is not "At least you got two hours! I only got one!" or, even worse, "I wish I got sleep last night!" There is no competition here. Everyone's major has different requirements, we all have different commitments, and there is no winning in finals. There just is not. So if you feel yourself wanting to prove how much harder you have it, how much more tired you are, or how much longer you've gone without eating, go write in your diary.

2. It's even easier to not make it a competition if you don't complain. There is not one person in your university who doesn't have finals week when you have finals week. So whining on facebook or shrieking about how you JUST CAN'T is not going to win you any sympathy points. Everyone is just too damn busy dealing with their own finals week to feel bad for you about yours.

This is not to say you can't share your concerns with your friends, and celebrate your successes. There's a big difference between "I'm so tired, I'm so hungry, wahhh" and "I'm worried about my American Lit test because I haven't memorized all the Antebellum authors."

3. It is even easier not to complain when you take care of yourself! I know that eating poorly is my vice, so I make a point to get enough sleep and take vitamins. I don't function without sleep, so I make sure I get enough. If you're someone that can handle an all nighter and not be cranky the next day, more power to you! But if you also know you need to have your veggies, then make sure you get them. Just know your limits, and value your body enough to not push them. Yes, it is harder this week compared to most days, but we are all adults. In my case, complaining I didn't get enough sleep really translates to "I'm not grown up enough to take care of myself".

4. Keep perspective. No matter how well you do, you will be done with finals by the end of the week. You will forget what grade you get, or which questions you missed, or what you wrote in your essay. It's much harder to forget if someone was rude to you. Especially in a small college like mine, people are always around, and always watching. If you give the barista attitude, when interviews come for RAs, Orientation Leaders, or anything else on campus-- I guarantee she either will be a part of the process, or will know someone that is. And even if you don't remember why you were so cranky that day, she'll remember that you were, and be less inclined to give you the position. Finals week only has to last 4 days, if you don't do anything that will affect your reputation the following semesters.

5. Be kind. All these rules? We break them. We get irritated with each other, we're extra sensitive, and it's easy to snap at people when you don't mean to. Do your best to remember that everyone could use a little slack right now, and assume that they will feel better tomorrow. I think this is the one thing I don't appreciate enough in my new group of friends; when I'm feeling bitchy and tired, they just laugh at me. There are no grudges, just understanding.

I'm off to study some more. In only 4 days, I'll be home for Christmas!

Finals Week

I think I can. I think I can.

Christmas Gift Exchange!

My english major friends got together and did a Christmas party, complete with a secret Santa. I made Kayse a bouquet of flowers out of comic books (I wish I had taken a picture of it. I went through 9 episodes of 30 Rock while making it-- that's my unit of time now). Mitch got me a Kurt Vonnegut book and some sexy bookmarks:



My gentlemen.

There were some other awesome presents that went around, but I might steal the ideas to make gifts for other people that read this so I'm not revealing until later. The basic premise of every gift was some type of nerdy fandom, which further solidified that I've made the right friends.

Holy Matrimony, Batman

I promised myself I wouldn't become one of those bitter people that complain when their friends get married, and this isn't about to be that. But it's impossible not to be aware of the fact that it is candle pass season.

(For all you nongreeks, candle passes are a ritual that reveals either a lavaliering, engagement, sweethearting, or occasionally other "big news")

There have been multiple engagements this week, and my roommate is one perfect date away from coming home with a ring. I think in the back of my mind, I always kind of assumed I would graduate at least knowing who I would eventually marry, even if we weren't engaged. Not because college is some type of bachelor collecting environment, just because once I graduate I don't know how I'm going to meet anyone. Not that I won't, or I can't, just that it seems much more likely that I would do it in college rather than a coffee shop.

I don't dream about my wedding day, or the perfect wedding dress, or plan out my bridesmaids. When the time comes that will be fun, but for now I'm not daydreaming about it. I'm watching some TLC wedding dress show right now for the first time in years, and it all sounds very stressful.

[Although, note to Barbara: this girl just got a white dress with white polka dots on it, and I thought of you.]

Anyway, I'm mostly focusing on what's next, which for me, isn't getting married. I've finally decided where I want to be next year (Chicago! If I'm not teaching abroad, of course. Still getting those applications out.) and so instead of searching through dream dresses, I've been searching for apartments.

Not exactly candle pass worthy, and I don't think anyone outside of my immediate family cares, but I'm excited for me.

Meyers-Briggs

I retook the test after taking it freshman year, and I went from an INFJ to an INTJ, which came as very little surprise to me.

Some fun facts about my personality type:
- Only 2% of Americans are INTPs; only 1-3% of Females are INTJs. The woman who administered the test said specifically it is the T and the F (thinking vs feeling) that makes the difference; gender roles generally dictate men be thinkers, and women be feelers. Of the 15ish women in the room that had taken the test, only myself and one other sister were thinkers.

-Fictional Characters According to Pinterest: House, Sherlock, and Basil [all pretty much the same characters from different franchises] and Draco Malfoy

- Known as "The Mastermind" or "The Planner"

-Sometimes has trouble showing affection and can come off as arrogant due to their need for space and objective thinking

-When under a great deal of stress, the INTJ may become obsessed with mindless repetitive, sensate activities, such as over-drinking. They may also tend to become absorbed with minutia and details that they would not normally consider important to their overall goal

Etsy Loves of the Week: Nerd

Halloween

This is what I ended up with. You can't see it in the picture very well, but there was a gash across my throat and some pretty ugly eye makeup going on. Zombie Janis Joplin. Done.