Natalie Barletta – Special to the Southern News
Spring break cannot come any faster. With tons of snow and homework piled high, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of a break. Whether it may be a road trip with friends, catching on our sleep and television shows, or just getting more hours in at work, every student is counting the days on their smartphone for Mar. 15 to arrive. Then they can turn off our alarms and tune into a week to charge their batteries.
In popular culture television shows, such as Gilmore Girls, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, and Boy Meets World spring break is being shown as a time to get away from the cold weather, and the stresses of college by going on a trip to somewhere tropical such as Florida or Hawaii. However like in most cases, things are very different than how they are being portrayed on television.
In real life, according to businesswire.com, 50 percent of college students are spending their spring break studying or doing homework. “I’m going to be working during break because I can’t afford to go on vacation”, says Southern Connecticut State University student, Heidi Duchaine. In addition to that, many are cashing in on getting extra hours at work, or making a visit to our home towns to spend time with family and friends if you’re a resident. Another popular thing that students do is get around to these things that they normally don’t have the time for, such as that hobby that they really enjoy, or just getting around to becoming more organized. Some are even using this time to give back to the community, and spending their break volunteering. But many, myself included, will be going on Netflix binges, where we will use this time to catch up on our favorite television shows that we’ve been too busy to watch because of our hectic college schedules.
As a little kid watching those shows, I thought that’s how college actually was. In the hit television show Gilmore Girls, it was perceived as being a right of passage of some sort, and one of the most important aspects of the college experience. But as I grew older, I realized that it was a big myth. Unlike the shows that I dutifully watched, spring break wasn’t as interesting as I thought that it was going to be. Last year, during my first college spring break, all I did was my homework, and hanging out with a few friends. Not as exciting as going to a tropical island where snow would never think of finding me. This is what happens when you’ve spent a lot of time watching a lot of 90’s sitcoms as a kid.
Despite it’s hype, I think that spring break is something that I look forward to every year as my career as a college student. As students, we work hard at school, have a social life, hold down a job, and other countless responsibilities. It can get extremely overwhelming at times. Spring break is something that gives us that down time, which is very important. Whether you’re going to an exotic island, working some extra hours, doing some hobbies that you otherwise don’t have the time for during the year, or just hanging out with your dog watching Orange is the New Black, it’s still an overall good time.
popular thing that students do is get around to these things that they normally don’t have the time for, such as that hobby that they really enjoy. Some are spending their time visiting their hometown and their families.