I need to be honest and just say the end of the school year while it is an exciting time because it is right before the joys of summertime, it is also the most grueling part of the year.

For most of the semester, we are able to mosey along relatively relaxed with some big projects or papers here and there. And then...BANG! Suddenly you have three huge tests, two group projects, some sporting events, some performances, maybe go home for like a weekend, maintain a social life and maybe sleep. And this is all before you get the hell week of finals.

It's great. It's a wonderful time. NOT. As college students, we are already stressed enough as it is, you know trying to figure out our lives. Because let's face it, not everyone knows exactly what they want to do for the rest of their lives when they are 18.

Don't get me wrong. I love the major and the minor that I'm studying and I love being part of a choir and doing the spring musical. And yes I bring most of this stress upon myself but we also live in a society where you are expected to be a well-rounded student so that employers can see different sides of you. They can see how you handle doing so many different things at once. But there comes a point when you just want to say to professors, "Hey, let's talk about this huge project that is due two days before the final. Why did you do that? Oh and remember that last big test we had you know, the one exactly two weeks before the final. Just why is all I ask."

I like my professors they are great. They really are. I just wonder sometimes why some of them (not all professors do this) put really big projects right before the final. Now some of them make the big project or paper the final and that is fine by me. However, there are those who just give more work right at the end of the semester. And then they say, "Man, I have all this grading that needs to be done in a week." Hey, let's help each other out. You give us a little less work, we won't be as stressed and will want to come to classes and then that way you have less to grade. That's a win-win situation for everybody.

Also, I don't really like it when my professor complains to me about their life choices. I'm sorry I was not the one who says, "Hey, you know this stuff pretty well, why don't you teach college students." Many don't really say anything but there are some who know you have a lot of work to do in a very little window of time and they go on and say, "Well at least you'll be done with this stuff in a year or two, I do this year in and year out." That's not my problem. You chose to become a teacher, what did you expect. Feel free to back what ever you were studying if you feel the need to complain to me that much.

I would just like to point out that most of my professors do not fit into some of these characteristics. Sometimes we as students need to vent. And sometimes we can't do that especially if it involves a professor. This is not an attack on our professors however it is the culmination of the stress of the end of the year, the near freedom of the summer, the kind of warm weather, and the stuffed up allergy infused brains of most college students.

I love learning new things and I love studying the major and minor that I chose. I loved making the decision to come to this school. And I don't mind the work because ultimately, the work is helping me to grow and learn new techniques. I have been taught by some amazing professors that have helped me to better myself in my field. But suddenly the end of the year feels like an influx of information and some gets lost from the page of a text or a powerpoint slide to the inside of your brain where you have to memorize three to four chapters of information for each of you five classes. This is all happening as you are asking yourself, "Why did I think five or six classes were great for the second semester? I thought it was a good idea in October." It's fine, everything is fine....ask me in a week if I'm still fine.

Happy almost finals and good luck!