There's something to be said for peer pressure.

And there's something to be said for having brilliant friends who dare to deviate from the pre-medicine track. They obtain leadership positions in the creative arts (like the presidency of the Emory University chapter of the Odyssey), they flatter you a bit ("Oh Lydia, your Facebook posts are soooo funny!"), and before you know it, you're signed up to submit articles to a college-centric freelance crowd-sourced blog.

To quote the 1968 hit American Tribal Love-Rock Musical, Hair, "What a piece of work is man, how noble in reason!" (Also Shakespeare's Hamlet.)

But Lydia, you ask, how will you compete with the thousands of Odyssey articles out there, like "The Five-Step Solution to Peace in the Middle East As Told By The Sophomore Co-Captain of the Club Lacrosse Team Who Has Taken Exactly Two (2) Political Science Courses," or "Top Ten Reasons Joining a Sorority Has Made Me the Real Victim Here, So Get My Instagram Captions Out of Your Dirty Mouth"?

The answer is simple: I won't. I don't anticipate garnering the viewership of respected articles like "Jesus Made Women to Serve Men And That's What I Plan To Do, So Lay Off, Feminazis!" I don't plan on doing the backbreaking research required to write articles like "The Integrity of Tom Brady." Rather, I take this opportunity to put my writings all in one place and to practice writing jokes for a deadline. Additionally, what harm can come from immortalizing articles on the internet on whatever topic pops into my head, with my name and affiliated institution attached, before the complete development of my prefrontal cortex at age 25? I'm not planning on running for office, and besides, public opinion is famously forgiving nowadays.

My real motivation, however, is best articulated by Lina Lamont, the movie star antagonist of Singin' in the Rain. Addressing her adoring audience, she says, "If we bring a little joy into your humdrum lives, it makes us feel as if our hard work ain't been in vain for nothing!" I can only hope the same for my writing. If only I bring a little chuckle into your humdrum life, then I, too, will feel that the late nights and revisions have been worth it. (On an unrelated note, Lina Lamont remains my dream role in a musical theater production.)

So that's where I stand. I had avoided it thus far, but we all know that the Odyssey won't take "leave me alone" for an answer. The world has gone on long enough without my scintillating opinions-- "hot takes," as the kids say nowadays. (How long the world will go on with my scintillating opinions is highly tenuous, according to the recent climate change data.) But for now the planet is habitable, and I will productively use my time by writing articles for the fair rate of zero dollars. Stay tuned.

"Bless you all!" --Lina Lamont (and also probably Shakespeare).