Does anyone else notice how the whole mood and atmosphere of campus changes once the temperature gets above 55 degrees and the sun comes out? All the avid frolfers crawl out from their places of hibernation and suddenly everyone on campus has a dog and an Eno to hang in the Hollow. Everyone is just in a better mood, despite stressful end of the year obligations.
Year after year the sun comes out just in the nick of time to cure seasonal depressions and boost the overall morale on campus. This year in particular, the winter season has just seemed to drag on longer than it normally does which has students itching to catch any available rays.
During the winter months, on the other hand, students dread going to class, and more so than they usually do. Class now requires wearing about five layers of socks and shirts just to get wind burn walking to class. Once you get to class, you realize you’re unable to write for the first 10 minutes because your hands can’t seem to do their job while they’re frozen. The closest thing to warm weather morale in the winter is when groups gather to sled down the Hallow. Even if the cold weather does bring Christmas, a ton of turkey and cheesy potatoes, it’s just not the best, and you can take that one to the bank.
Warm weather Witt is the best kind of Witt, in my opinion. Witt is a totally different campus when the weather’s nice. All sorts of people come out of the woodwork to sit outside and regain some of that lost vitamin D over the winter months. Students break out the red Adirondack chairs, have a couple brews with the boys, lay out in the Hollow to see if they can spot any dogs or cute frolfers and ignore any and all educational obligations. It’s a great time.
But, one downfall about the warmer weather that often goes without recognition is how expensive this time of year is. For some reason, and maybe this is just me, the warm weather makes everyone want to do stuff: go out to eat, go try new things or explore new places, drink during the day more and so on. All of this adds up. Quickly.
Is anyone else also not really ready for campus to be a million degrees again? The beginning of the school year is always the worst time of year for me, solely because of how hot it gets. Walking up Myers Hill or along Bill Edwards at 9 a.m. to make it to your 9:15 class is brutal. By the time you make it up to the building and up the three flights of stairs in Hollenbeck, you’re sweating and winded.
Oh and the chafing, don’t even get me started. Ladies, I know y’all understand what I’m talking about when I say the chafing during the hotter months at this university is just wild.
With all that in mind, if we could just somehow transfer the morale and campus activity that exists when the weather is warm into the cooler weather seasons, I think campus would be this great this time of year.
