I must admit, I first agreed to write this column with a very specific motive in mind. Finally, I had found a forum to complain about the serious lack of air conditioning here at Dear Old Dartmouth. Thankfully, however, I changed my mind. Perhaps the decrease in temperature over the past two days has loosened me up, but I suddenly realized, who needs to hear yet another whiny complaint from a pampered Dartmouth undergrad? Not me.
Of course this new, altruistic leaf I overturned left me in the frustrating position of having no topic on which to write. As I let my thoughts meander and my eyes scan the Green at midday, I realized the answer was right before me. It's summer! Why look any further?
Every Dartmouth student knows the social drawbacks of the D-Plan: four consecutive terms on campus, successive terms separated from your friends, and so on. But we've finally arrived at the renowned Sophomore Summer - the D-Plan's shining star! Everyone's back here together again, and what better reason to celebrate?
The way I see it, summer provides the perfect excuse for us to stop taking ourselves so seriously for a while. Let's face it, we're a bunch of 20-year-olds who really don't have much more time in which we can get away with being kids. So I've come up a few suggestions to help us all better enjoy this term:
Study in the Reserves. Orozco may no longer be with us, but he's the only one at the College who is guaranteed air conditioning! Having to look at those disturbing murals all year long is finally worth it in the summer, because they've forced the powers that be to provide us poor sophomores with a "climate controlled" study space.
NRO. Can't concentrate in the midst of the social traffic of Baker Reserves? Then don't study at all! These three little letters can make your life so much easier this summer.
We each get three NROs in our time here, so what better term to take a break? All you need to do is pass!
BBQ. Three more letters that can help make summer the best term yet. What goes better with outdoor pong than some burgers and dogs? And if the party's outside no one has to deal with that nasty smell in the basement.
Introduce yourself. Remember freshman trips and orientation week? Back when you didn't have any friends at all at the College on the Hill, and therefore had to smile incessantly while introducing yourself to 100 people each day.
Try doing that again. If you have to wait on line for the Food Court Grill anyway, why not strike up conversation with the person next to you? Hey, if he's a jerk you can swipe his chicken steak and run.
Be nice to DDS employees. Speaking of Food Court, did anyone else notice that it's about 100 degrees in there?
We just have to eat and run, the least we can do is smile and be polite to the people who have to work in that environment all day just to feed us. They deserve the Congressional Medal of Honor for surviving that heat.
Party! Enough said.
Use the river. Let Orozco keep his air conditioning. There's a beautiful, clear river out there for us to cool off in. Swim. Canoe. Jump off the rope swing. You won't even have to look at those ugly paintings!
Do it for your kids. C'mon now, you can't tell me that in 15 years you'd rather tell your kids that you got an A in orgo than that you had a blast during your Sophomore Summer term at Dartmouth. Let loose, put down the books, and let Sophomore Summer live up to its reputation!
