You have probably heard the line from Robert Burns: "The best laid schemes o' mice and men/Gang aft a-gley." But what does "Gang aft a-gley" mean? After Spring Break I now know that the correct English translation of Burns' line is, "The best laid schemes o' mice and men/Can end in a car fire."
That is how my spring break plans ended -- in a car fire at 17th and Broadway in Manhattan. Whether it was a gas line leak or an electrical short circuit no one knows, but the end result was unquestionable: the car was totaled.
While I was trapped in New York, I was determined to make the best of the situation. I tracked down three '94s who share an apartment and were willing to put me up and show me a good time.
New York turned out to be a great place to be trapped, especially on St. Patrick's Day. But perhaps even more valuable than an entire day spent listening to Irish bands while drinking Irish brews was the opportunity to get a look at life after graduation.
I realized mine were not the only schemes that had been a-gleyed.
All three '94s hate their jobs. One was heavily involved with this newspaper while he was at Dartmouth. Now he is working as a paralegal in order to earn money for law school.
He told me to never be fooled by paralegals. If one tells you he is busy putting together an important document, it means he is literally collating, stapling and filing an important document.
The second of the roommates was a high ranking class officer during his time at Dartmouth. In New York he is working for a Civil Rights group. While he was tight lipped about the reasons for his dissatisfaction, I got the impression that his day-to-day job had very little to do with the idealistic goals of his employers.
Finally, and perhaps most depressingly, there was the '94 who had been a student leader and activist while on campus. This graduate had dreams of breaking into the magazine industry, either through writing or publishing.
Now he is working for a big firm. I still haven't figured out what kind of firm it is, but it doesn't matter because it has nothing to do with this '94's job. He has worked himself out of the mail room and into recruiting. Now it is his job to find people to fill the positions that do the real work.
The best thing about his job, he says, is the ease with which he can take a day off. That's exactly why our St. Patrick's Day festivities were able to start so early in the day.
While this shakes my faith in humanity, it is not lost completely. These '94s are making their first steps into the real world. They were bound to hit a few bumps. I still believe they will eventually find their way to satisfying employment.
But the reality is that the idyllic vision they saw for life after Dartmouth has been dashed against the rocks.
Ironically, for both the '94s and myself, the solution to spoiled plans was the same: make the best of New York City. Not only did I celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but I also took the time to check out much that the city had to offer.
Like everyone else, I will continue to make plans. I have plans for life after graduation as well as plans for my next spring break. But I won't forget that an occasional car fire can render any plans meaningless.
