Bailey Shea
It’s Tuesday night, and I have a very busy day tomorrow. Though I should be getting ready for a good night’s rest, I’m filling out one of those Buzzfeed quizzes that tells you your ideal major based on your fast food preferences and your dorm room décor (because “finding yourself” through a Buzzfeed quiz is a totally legitimate use of your time). As a Communication, English, and Women’s Studies triple major (yikes!), I figured the algorithm would have ideal odds of getting my major right, yet my results guess me as engineering or business or medicine instead. While Buzzfeed just totally doesn’t get me, no one seems very surprised when I tell them my major. As I’ve sunken deeper into my undergraduate career, I’ve realized that my days clearly reflect my obvious stereotypical tasks and my not-so-obvious ones. Without further ado, come follow me on my typical day:
7:00 AM
After an unfortunate six hours of sleep, I’m awoken by my alarm. I inevitably hit snooze for an extra 15 minutes of rest before I get up and start getting ready for my day.
8:00 AM
One of my favorite parts of any day is breakfast at Whitney Dining Hall. I’m a vegetarian and breakfast is the best meal of the day. Today, I eat two egg white sandwiches, potatoes, and cantaloupe. I may or may not sneak a powdered sugar donut on my plate. I check my emails, Twitter, and Instagram in between bites of food and sips of my first coffee of the day — a hot cup of black UC Bold, a UConn favorite. After I finish, I hop on the trusty Orange Line to the Bio-Physics Building on the other side of campus. I usually avoid the busses at all costs, but I can’t resist a quiet bus ride to work in the morning. Plus, seeing the cows and horses while driving past Horsebarn Hill isn’t too bad either.
9:00 AM
I arrive to work at Up and Atom and get to work brewing coffees and steaming milks for lattes. Somehow, everyone seems to want to talk to me, and my phone is constantly buzzing through my shift. As I run to the stockroom for more coffee beans, I check my phone: new likes on my Insta post, my friends asking to have dinner later, and this week’s Long River Review blog submissions wait for me when I get out of work. I drink my second cup of coffee, this time iced with a shot of espresso.
1:30 PM
I clock out of work, quickly change into gym clothes, and run to the Austin Building. On my way there, I scarf down a bagel and get started on my third cup of coffee, another iced coffee.
1:45 PM
While finishing the last bites of my bagel, I arrive at to Dr. Forbes’ office for the weekly staff meeting for UConn’s Creative Writing Program. I am the current intern, and report on my work creating posters and press releases for upcoming author visits. I finish off my coffee. Hopefully, I won’t need another one before the end of the day.
2:30 PM
I slip out of the Creative Writing staff meeting to go to my only class of the day: the training class for the Violence Against Women Prevention Program. Today, we discuss language and how our words can shape the world around us. As usual, we get very deep in our conversation, and class runs over our time limit.
4:10 PM
I don’t have much time until my next activity, but I’m going to squeeze in a quick workout anyway. I am an aspiring powerlifter, and today is leg day. It’s no surprise I’m one of the only girls in the weight room, but I’m too focused on my squats and deadlifts to care. Though my quads are tired, I must charge on to my next activity.
5:00 PM
Back in the Student Union, I sit down for a SUBOG (Student Union Board of Governors) concert committee meeting. We talk about our upcoming UCONNIC Music Festival, and put some last-minute details together. I wish I could say more, but I suppose you’ll just have to go to the festival to find out what we’re up to.
6:00 PM
I finally get to sit down for a meal. I happily eat a huge bowl of pasta, and contemplate all the reading that I have to do before the night’s end. With the stress of homework looming over me, I scarf down the rest of my dinner and get back to my room.
6:30 PM
I stare at my planner, overwhelmed by how much I have to do. The stress is so much, that I inevitably spend the next hour or so performing “self-care” by mindlessly scrolling through my phone. When I’ve finally come to my senses, I get started on my reading (lots of it), note taking, and essay writing.
12:00 AM
I peel myself away from my reading and force myself to take a much-needed shower and brush my teeth before bed. I’ve been running around so much all day, yet my three (or maybe four or five) coffees have only just decided to kick in. I’m wide awake for another two hours.
2:00 AM
I’m finally tired, and slowly fall asleep, knowing that in five hours I’ll be up again for an equally eventful day.