Over the course of this semester, I am sure I have upset and pissed off a number of people on campus. This column, however, is not an apology to these people—if something earned my scorn, I won’t be sorry for any of my honest emotions that I have displayed.
No, I am writing to my wonderful professors, in this semester and the previous ones as well.
I am apologizing because I have not been a good student lately. Instead of writing down notes from the board, odds are I was counting out the days until the end of this semester and/or until I graduate. If I was on the computer in class, I definitely wasn’t looking up slides from Canvas—I have been looking up flight prices to various places for Spring Break next semester before they get expensive.
The only concrete I am currently concerned with is on Interstate 80, the road that will take me back to Michigan in roughly 10 days, and Steel is cool and all, but the stresses on paper have started to infiltrate my brain. The only things I want to be surveying is waves on the beach or the grade of a hiking trail, and the only fluids I want to learn the mechanics of are various drinks I wish to consume.
So I am checked out mentally, and will soon be physically.
The holiday break soon begins, and with my exceptionally light schedule next semester, I fear I may never fully return to academia.
Senioritis, the most prolific of afflictions, has infested my very soul. Until I graduate in May, I think my mind will be completely unable to handle academia correctly.
It is strange. What used to be a font of willpower and determination to learn all sorts of new things has been replaced with a mental void that I occupy with thoughts of World of Warcraft, Minecraft, Game of Thrones, and various anime that I intend on watching. The desire to do homework is abysmally low. The time I spend studying for tests has dropped to a small cramming period before the exam itself, and any presentations are usually just rehearsed mentally.
So, yes, I apologize to you, my professors. You have done so well to train and teach me, but over the past few weeks, my brain has slowly been deactivated, preparing for the inevitable graduation that I know will happen sooner than tomorrow.
Additionally, I am sorry that you have to deal with me for another semester! I won’t be much better next semester I think.
Of course, I know I’ll manage just fine. My grades are usually high, even with minimal effort on my part. It is very likely that I’ll still get all of my homework in on time, just not as good as I could have done if I was really rearing to go with all of the academics. Once I finish my Financial Engineering Exam in January, I’m sure to relax a lot more in class.
In the mean time though, we’re pretty much wrapped up with this semester (of course, I will be by the publishing of this column), so there is only the future to look forwards to. The Final Exam period, which is always fun to watch, and the eventual vacation that follows are my two primary objectives. I can’t wait to go home with the snow and my family. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen either.
Sorry, my dear professors—I have prioritized things much higher than academia.
