I Can't Look at the Stars.

Disclaimer: Don't read this blog post if you want to read something coherent and uplifting.

I'm furious. Absolutely fuming.
This is the most stressful time of each semester and once again I'm finding myself dealing with things that are not only external, but pulling me in every direction away from my academics.
Granted, academia is a LARGE portion of the stress that is pushing me to pull away, but honestly? No one likes finals. No one likes the end of the semester. No one is social, no one is themselves. Nothing is rational; sleeping patterns are thrown out the window (even more so than usual), the library becomes home, and time becomes entirely irrelevant as every day blurs into the next.

That being said, with all the rules of finals life splayed for all to see, I'd like to take the time to vocalize some boundaries, some guidelines if you will, to how I operate in demoralizing times like this.
1) If I am in a bad mood, I am in a bad mood. Do not try to rationalize it, do not take offense to it.
2) Do not try to present new information or attempt to converse with me on anything of life-altering importance. It will not take precedent and I will not respond to it with my regular zeal.
3) I am not a real person. Do not treat me like I am and expect that I will act like one. This entirely includes number 2 on this list as well as conversation in general.

I am Brandesian. I am neurotic. I am not perfect. I am not a role model. I am not a trail blazer. And most importantly, I am human.
I try my best, and you know what? My best is often not quite good enough.
I've accepted that, and now you should too.



live simply.