A Reflection of a Busy Day

Yesterday may have been the busiest day of my life.

It started at 7:00am on the dot to the sound of my alarm clock (I’m starting to hate that sound). I got out of bed and looked at a schedule I had written for myself the night before. From 7:00-7:30am I had to look over some things for my biology exam. From 7:30 to 8:00am I had to take a shower. From 8:00 to 8:30am I had to go to the dining hall to eat breakfast (I never miss breakfast!). And then at 9:00am, it was game time: bio exam.

I got into the testing center, waiting in line like an item on a conveyor belt, swiped my ID, and got to my assigned desk. I turned the computer on and the resolution was completely blurry, what I imagine computer screens looked like in the prehistoric age. Frantically I went over to the testing center window, like a confused customer, and told them the problem. The fix: turning the computer on and off again.

After my test, in my head I did some calculations. I had just enough time to go to my dorm room, get my books for my next class, take a sip of water, and carry on.

I made it to Biobehavoral Health 101 at 10:15am. After, I had fifteen minutes to make it all the way across campus to Thomas 100 (the biggest lecture hall at PSU) for Human Development and Family Studies 129. Then, Statistics 200, but, before I could even start thinking of bootstraps and correlations, I made a quick 2-3 minute detour to Au Bon Pain to get a Napa chicken with avocado wrap.

After Professor Philtron lectured the class on hypothesis tests and, after I successfully ate the wrap and took notes simultaneously, I made my may over to Mueller for biology lab, which normally ends sometime around 5:30pm. Luckily it ended early. It gave me enough time to walk to my dorm, empty my backpack, and take a thirty minute rest on the bed.

Then, in what felt like no time at all, I made my way to a 5:30pm meeting at LaunchBox downtown. Happy Valley LaunchBox is a no-cost, accelerator, network, slash co-working space. This semester I am working with one of the LaunchBox’s most successful student start-ups: Moichor. It’s a health technology start-up that allows chemotherapy patients to monitor white blood counts from home, small clinics to cut costly lab subscription fees, and pharmaceutical companies to streamline data collection.

After the productive meeting, I made my way to Atherton Hall to learn about the Scholar Assistant position. Scholar Assistants do a variety of things. They run programs, serve as encyclopedias, and also as ambassadors to the college. Even though I was late, I was glad I went.

Then I ate some dinner. And from 8:00 to 9:30pm, I studied for my statistics exam, which was the following day, and did some homework.

My question is: Are days like this good? How much “busy” is really healthy?

The simple answer: just like with food, the key is moderation. I think some days should be busy and other days should be whatever the opposite is; maybe picture a Sunday in the middle of summer.

Overall, busy is good. Busy means things are happening. Busy means you are being productive and taking full advantage of the short time we have on this green and blue little planet.

It does come at a price unfortunately: a headache, maybe anxiety, possibly feeling a bit overwhelmed.

In conclusion, there will be busy days here and there. Take a deep breath through them and remember to eat.  Don’t be scared of busy.