"Back From Reality"

3/3/02 11:51pm
Every year, near the end of March, I flip on the T.V. to watch some MTV punks enjoying their spring break in a party atmosphere full of sand, sun, and hot college girls in bikinis. I think to myself, "what the hell, how come my Spring Break looked nothing like that?" The geniuses at Baylor University insist on having Spring Break a week earlier than every other school in the nation. That means we can`t enjoy Spring Break with the rest of the party schools like UT and A&M. Who needs those Big XII snobs anyway?
So I`m sitting hear in my Houston apartment, all too familiar to the snooze of a Winter Break I`d had a couple months back. The ideal scenario in this situation would be to take a Spring Break trip with the Baylor crew, but having visited my parents 0 times during the current semester, I thought I`d owe it to them to stick around for once.
There are plenty of things to do in H-Town. I just don`t do any of them. I can`t enjoy the bars because I come home looking redder then a can of Coke. I can`t really go clubbing because I try not to stay out too late. I don`t really eat out because I have no friends in Houston. And damn, what`s with this weather? Its friggin March and I`m freezing my ass off.
Perhaps it`s the absence of the annual visits from the JPs that is weighing me down. It serves as a bitter reminder that we are all growing up - less time for friends, vacations, and fun. With each passing year, my life becomes less innocent and more complicated. The JPs were the one consistency that I`d had since back in fifth grade, where our worries included nothing but the latest videogames, basketball, or crush.
Lately, it has seemed like there`s been nothing but problems, issues, heartbreaks, tensions, and regrets at Baylor University. I, too, have gotten lost in deep thoughts of concern about my career, future, family, and the predicted outcome of living life with no one to share it with. I`m sure these thoughts are common; the trick is to not let it get to you. Quit dwelling on unnecessary emotional baggage that`ll just slow you down. It is always hard to write about life, because of the futility in attempting to capture all our emotions in a few paragraphs. But I can say thisabout life and growing up:
There will be good days, and there will be bad days.
How you decide to deal with the bad days measures how soon the gooddays will arrive.
Never worry too much about a particular issue or problem, just learn from it and/or avoid it in the future.
Don`t let it obstruct you from completing your work, studies, or social time.
Always appreciate the simple joys in life, always appreciate what you have, and always appreciate your friends (you`ll need them during the bad days).
High expectations only lead to big disappointments. Things rarely turn out the way you expect it to, so save yourself the heartaches and learn to accept things as they come.
Lastly, always make an effort to laugh and smile. Check your local listings for the next episode of Friends / Simpsons / Southpark, partake in a game of Taboo, joke, or even toke it if necessary. Do whatever it takes, because laughing is the cheapest euphoria there is.
Now, I`m no Stuart Smalley, but I know its not healthy to sit around and be miserable all the time. Come on now, Its all about constant vigilance... Have a fun-filled Spring Break, people (I know I won`t).