by Ava Stringer ’28 on November 6, 2025
Opinion
Halloweekend has come and gone, the glitter has settled, and campus feels like it’s collectively waking up from a three-day fever dream. The costumes are back in closets, the pumpkins are caving in, and somewhere in the distance, Mariah Carey is beginning to defrost. The holiday season is officially upon us, but unfortunately, so is finals season.
This stretch between midterms and Thanksgiving is its own kind of limbo. The weather is gray, the days get shorter, and motivation levels hover somewhere near zero. It’s too early to blast Christmas music without irony, but too late in the semester to pretend we’re not exhausted. Professors are assigning “just one more paper,” and the library feels like a second home for those of us pretending to be productive.
Still, there are small ways to survive this November slump. Start by touching grass, literally, before it freezes over. Go on a walk, drink water that isn’t from a Dunkin’ cup, and maybe even open your notes before midnight. Reset your space, change your sheets, or finally deal with the pile of laundry you’ve been ignoring since midterms. Most importantly, remember that you’re allowed to rest before you burn out.
In a few weeks, we’ll be home eating mashed potatoes and pretending we didn’t cry over a group project. Until then, take it day by day and assignment by assignment. Defrost slowly. Finals will come and go, but so will this gray, caffeine-fueled blur of November. And when it does, Carey will be ready.