Opinion

Summer plans shot by SARS

Jim McCormick
Opinion Columnist

I can hardly believe the semester is almost over. Iim used to going all the way through May before being let off the hook. I guess thatis what you get from 13 years of desensitization by the public school system.

I am now forced to turn my thoughts to the summer. I really donit like thinking about what I will do during the summer, as I prefer to let summer just happen around me and take me where it will. However, as my previous plans for the summer fell through courtesy of SARS (I was planning a trip to China), I now seem to be in a predicament. I must find something to do during the month of June. So, I have decided to maintain a holding pattern here at The Daily Cougar through the summer.

I am planning to do two things this summer: read and visit family. I have a lot of reading to catch up on, as Human Situation has taken up all of my spare reading time. If you know of a good title for me to attack during the summer, tell me, please. The more unique and different, the better. Iim a huge fantasy fan, and I find childrenis novels have more original plots than adult titles do. Iill also be checking with my mother and sister, who seem to have impeccable taste in literature. A bit of Shakespeare might also find itself on my summer reading list.

As for my family, Iill be gone in late June and early July to visit my aunt in Iowa. Visiting her place is always fun; sheis the best cook in the family (she once worked for a catering business), and I have some things I want to do up there. Iowa is the only place I know of where I can get fresh sauerkraut (my aunt makes the stuff from scratch), pork cutlets (donit ask, but theyire really good when fried) and a proper bowl of bean soup. Thereis also a little candy store that has the best fudge Iive ever tasted.

Iim also looking for a few tunes to enjoy on the road. Iive already decided that I need to add some Jimi Hendrix and ZZ Top to my collection. For some reason, Iive been in the mood for some rock lately, and the mood doesnit seem to want to pass. But now I digress. From what, I donit know, as I donit really have a point (do I ever?), but Iim digressing all the same.

On another note, I missed my chemistry test on Friday. That ruined a good part of my weekend, but luckily Iill be able to make it up. I was ready for the test, but a situation arose. Unfortunately, I didnit have a method of instantaneous transport or time travel to get myself out of the situation. I just wish this hadnit happened to me at this point in the semester.

Speaking of academics, I have come to the realization that biology is probably the weirdest thing for me to major in. I know Iim actually a better liberal arts student (barely), and among the sciences, biology is my worst. Itis funny how things work out so that my worst subject turned into my major.

And in the world of updates, the Student Government Association is still a sideshow; I still donit have a girlfriend and I have become content with my activity level. You already know about the shoes. I know some of you wanted to know how a few of the endeavors Iive discussed in my column turned out, and now you know. And no, I havenit so much as seen a beer since that time I got drunk earlier this semester. However, my love affair with the Internet has reached new highs, as Iive discovered a few more message boards that are right up my alley. However, I desperately need to get a new graphics card in my computer, as mine is shot.

Now, Iid continue, but Iive got to find out whom I need to call about getting the temperature in my dorm room above 0 degrees Kelvin. Yes, Iive discovered that the third law of thermodynamics is a fallacy. Just come into my dorm and youill understand.

McCormick, a freshman biology major, can be reached at rantman_2000@sbcglobal.net