For many, the winter break from college is a great time to relax and be with family, while for many it may be a time to work harder than ever to make some holiday money. I however have had a little of both. I work in the dorms where I live, and since my real home is only an hour away I volunteered to work over the break to allow the others who live over 3 hours away to go home for as long as possible. In that I live close to my hometown, I’ve been able to go home often enough to stay sane.
My school is a majority commuter campus. We have 30,000 or so students and only enough housing for about 3,000. Of those 3,000, I think only about 15 stayed here during this break. Needless to say, with only 15 people here life can be a bit boring. Working from 10-3pm and then kicking it back in the dorm gets old fast. There’s only so much tv one can watch and microwaves can only make OK food. Eventually one wants to venture out and be social and eat food that doesn’t come in a box or can that only needs water and to be microwaved. This is where I’ve suffered this past week or so. My only form of transportation is a bike and that can only be so safe when your only areas of travel are major interstate and local highways.
So what have I done to survive here? Some thing I planned to do were, work out at the gym and brush up on my racquetball game, go to the library and check out the media section for some music DVDs, and even chill at our on-campus Starbucks, but no dice. Come to find out our Rec Center was closed for two weeks and reopens tomorrow. Last night when I decided to go to the library to get some new entertainment for the dorm I found out they were closed on weekends…lame. And our Starbucks is only open odd hours which seem to align terribly well with my work schedule which makes it impossible to enjoy a caramel machiato anytime soon.
But here is what I have done. I’ve stocked up on some good snack foods including, but not limited to, Swiss Miss hot chocolate, Jones Soda, Pop-tarts, Easy-Mac, and some Cheeze-its. I also have some substantial food like soup and sandwich stuff. I also am able to walk across the street, like I did tonight, to Whataburger for some good fast-food. I’ve also got a few good books here that I’ve been wanting to read but never had the time…now I have nothing but time. Puzzles make good time passers as well. I’m a huge addict of Rubik’s Cubes, so I have several various puzzles like that so play with. My laptop provides a great way to do things like update my blog, email friends, play some CPU games, and even do some shopping with gift cards from Christmas. I’ve also been blessed with cable tv in my room which helps pass time, mainly when movies are on like Little Miss Sunshine or reruns of Planet Earth.
Some things I wish I had available to make life better would be some form of video games. As a guy I know I can pass hours with any video game. I considered bringing my Sega Genesis back with me so I could rock the Sonic and NBA Jam, but for some reason decided against it. I also wish I had some small dumbbells in my room so I could work out a little when the gym is closed. I’ve had to settle for push ups and sit ups, but if I had dumbbells I could also work more on my chest and arms. I also wish I had a car. A car, or a friend with a car, would make life more bearable here. I could at least then go to Walmart or the movies and not have to walk or ride my bike dangerously close to the “great” drivers of San Antonio.
All in all, this break has been hard though enjoyable at times. I wish I could have some company here at school, but I’ve been able to get by with what I have. If nothing else, its been a time I could use to plan ahead for next year when I’ll likely be in the same situation of having to work at the dorms.
