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And more!

Back to school blues

» Combatting the real world

Cazzy Lewchuk
Sa Staff Writer
fter countless hours of
opening presents, eating
delicious meals, attending ugly
sweater parties, sleeping late,
and fighting the inevitable

  

and school is back in session.
For many of us, this also means
a return to our job, sport,
volunteer work, and other
extracurricular activities. It’s a
scary thought, but it’s a harsh
reality.

Nothing will ever compete
with the feeling of sleeping
until 2 p.m. under those warm,
fuzzy, and oh-so-soft blankets
and then watching Netflix the
rest of the day while sipping
arum and eggnog. That said,

These tips will help your well-
being, your work performance,

: and your relationships with
: those who have to interact with
: you.

Wake up, damn it! Sleep

: schedules wreak havoc with

: the rest of the day, and the

: holiday season is exactly when

: they get out of whack. Making

: the shift from rising at 7:30

: a.m. instead of noon may be

hangovers, the holidays are over ! one of the hardest aspects of

: January, and it’s also one of the

: biggest adjustments. Getting up :

: early jolts the body into being

: productive as soon as it’s awake, :

: and hopefully that productivity

: rubs off on the rest of the day.

: Do what you have to do to wake

: up on time. Set five alarms on

: five devices. Get a roommate,

: family member, or significant

: other to bang pots and pans.

: Dump a glass of water on your

: head when your alarm rings.

: Regardless of your method,

there are a few ways to make the escaping the sleeping-late rut
ws : : does wonders to get back in the

transition from holiday mode to :

. . : : groove.
reality mode easier and simpler. : ®

Have a proper morning.

Once youre up, be healthy.
: Actually eat breakfast. Shower

: fully. Take time to apply

: deodorant, make-up, hair gel,
: or other products that make

: you more appealing. Dosome
: exercise, even if it’s just a couple :
: of push-ups or yoga moves.

: Keepa routine going and the
: morning will stimulate your

: entire self into feeling happy :
: and prepared to take on the day. :

Enjoy the changes.

: Chances are, something new
has come into your life since the :
: holidays ended. New classes, —:

new professors, new clients

: at work, suddenly even colder

: weather—the New Year brings

: new things. Find out what the

: change can offer you. Maybe

: your new professor is the key to
: helping you find an internship.
: Maybe the cute guy whose hair
: you cut is now single. Even

: if you can't find anything for

: yourself, get to know the change :
: and find out its merit. Enjoy

: people or things for what they
: are—you'll probably learn to

: enjoy yourself in the process.

Take time to relax. Don't

: transition too quickly. Even if

‘The Hills’ and our lives

» Modelling life on not-real-life

} Natalie Serafini
B. Assistant Editor
op Massistant

PB @theotherpress.ca

  

: galore, but bear with me.

: There are layers to the

: appeal of this indulgence.

: To start, the characters are

: largely untethered by people

ver the holiday break, I

must confess, I got a bit
trashy. Throwback Thursday
kind of trashy, in that I spent

lutionary reality TV show of
bygone years, The Hills. The
show is a cesspool of catti-
ness, drama, and stupidity,
but the people (or more
accurately, the characters) on
the show display an almost
admirable reckless aban-
don—one that, to an extent,
Pd like to advocate adopting.
That sounds odd and
off-putting if you start reach-
ing back into the recesses of
your mind, remembering The
Hills’ penchant for backstab-
bing friends and bar fights

: and situations that aren't

: good for them. They know

: what’s in their best interests.
: Granted, there are those who :
hours marathoning that revo- :

hold onto something that

: isn’t working, or who hold

: grudges and refuse to move
: on; for the most part, though, :
: these characters are self-in-
: dulgent, self-interested, and
: self-serving. Sounds awfulin :
: acondensed version, I agree.
: Yet, in smaller doses, this

: attitude is good. It means

: that you recognize when

: something isn’t working

: for you and you move on

: from it. Myriad reasons

: exist for why we might hang
: onto a person, thing, or

: situation that doesn’t do us

: any good. Moving on can

: behard, but sometimes it’s
: what’s best, and it requires
: knowing what’s best.

Maybe this is because

: every weekly episode pre-
: sents anew drama—along-
: side ongoing past drama, and

the ominous foreshadowing

: of future drama—but the
: players of reality shows don’t
: sweat the small stuff. This

is very good; the small stuff

: isnot worth sweating. No
: one has to have everything

in control, or have their life

: figured out. Worrying exces-
: sively about inconsequential
: matters doesn’t solve

: anything, and in fact wastes
: time and energy. Regardless
: of what happens, life will

: move onand you'll move

: along with it. Since you can’t
: control everything and life

: marches on whether you like

: it or not, you might as well
: cultivate some laissez faire
: rather than worry unduly.

: it was trash with heart, as are

Have an idea for a story? Let us know!
Contact: Sophie Isbister, Life & Style Editor
Mlifeandstyle@theotherpress.ca

www. theotherpress.ca

1 eee dG
UT AT
eh Wh lhe

: January brings acrazy schedule :
: with it, do your best to schedule :
: a little bit of Netflix and blanket :
: time. The holidays are a time
: to relax, but there’s no reason
: tonot relax atall just because:
: they’re over. You'll wear yourself :
: out otherwise, so finda healthy :
: balance between adjusting and
: refusing to give up the old ways. :
: (metaphorically speaking,

: unless you're giving hugs) to
: everyone you interact with.

Be excellent to each

: other. Remember, everyone
: else around you is going
* through their own stuff. They're *

The Hills was trash, but

 

www.huffingtonpost.com

likely also tired, stressed,
hungry, hung-over, or cold.
Treating others with kindness is

a good idea in general, but the
: post-holiday winter is especially
: atime to remember this. Take

an extra second to remember
that everyone else is a human

: being worthy of respect

and you'll give off warmth

: that in constructive ways
: tothe people in your life.

Reality shows don’t

: always present the best
: aspects of humanity, but

: alot of contemporary reality
: shows. The people act with

: pure emotion and good (and
: sometimes shady) intentions. :
: Emotion and passion—which :
: most people in real life tamp
: downand ignore—make us

: human. As muchas ignoring
: our feelings is something that E
: real humans do, it isn’t real-

: istic. Admitting that you're

: vulnerable doesn’t make you

: weak. In fact, it can take brav-
: ery to be vulnerable. That

: doesn’t mean wearing your

: emotions on your sleeve, or

: sobbing when they get your

: order wrong at Starbucks.

: Perhaps just acknowledge

: that you’re human and

: emotional, and express

: they present self-interested
: humanity incarnate. True,
: the characters are condensed

and intense—but a mod-
erated, realistic version of

: what we see on screens might
: be more reasonable than
: what we currently present

to the world. It’s like how

: high-fashion runway looks

: get made into ready-wear

: pieces for the real world. The
: liberal and liberated attitudes
: we see in reality TV—of

: being self-interested, of not

: worrying about little things,
: and of displaying emotion

: inallits ferocity—could

: be made into “ready-wear”

: attitudes in the real world.