College Life: Balancing work and play

Jessica Giannone
Another semester arrives. The alarms go off, the work piles on and the late nights dominate college life once again. The question is, do those “late nights” consist of endless studying or endless partying? At 12 a.m., are you drinking beer or coffee?
Whether you’re a freshman or a senior, you can’t help but wonder if the further you go into college, the more privileges and fun you’re going to have, or if it’s just the opposite. Is the excitement supposed to increase over the school years or die down?
You’d think by the time you’ve reached your junior year or so, it’s the ideal time to let loose. Most students are 21 by then, you figure that is when the “festivities” really start. All those days of underage fun can finally be legally fulfilled.
However, it seems as though your junior year is the time to start cracking down (or at least it is for me).
As I entered into my freshman year at Southern, I naïvely anticipated four fun-filled years of partying, chaos and excitement. I would be hanging at a dorm or a party having the time of my life, but still viewed the upperclassmen as the epitomes of typical college kids; typical meaning legal. I guess I was oblivious to the fact that the age on a license has nothing to do with the level of fun a person will experience.
Now, those expectations of mine weren’t way off, but I have a feeling they’re going to fall short a year or two.
Of course, I knew college was going to be a lot of work and dedication (believe it or not, achieving good grades was and still is my top priority). Although, I never thought I’d see the day when leisure time wasn’t included in the agenda. This semester I’ll really be “getting down to business.”
I assume many students’ schedules correlate with their stress levels. Although, we all have our days. Sometimes the work is endless, and other times there is actually a chance to breathe. Regardless, I’ve come to the conclusion that you start “cracking down” whenever you feel like it.
There is no defined time when you’re supposed to let loose in college or start focusing. I think everyone has their own reality check when the time is right. I just hope I’m ready for the responsibilities that await me after I graduate.
Whether we’re freshmen in college or heads of companies as adults, we will always make assumptions about how our experiences are supposed to go. The balance between fun and labor can be a dilemma at any age.
As I tell myself I’m going to have to be prepared for the “real world,” I can’t help but wonder, do they drink beer or coffee there?