8:00 a.m. Wake up to the sound of an alarm buzzing. Snooze for about a half-hour because class isn’t till 9:25. Stumble out of bed, check the closet and realize, “Who cares what I look like this early,” and stay in flannel PJs and sweater and simply whatever footwear requires the least effort to put on. Goofy slippers? Sneakers? Reefs? Reefs will work-it’s Miami, after all. Get backpack and CDs and drive to school, using the time to wake myself out of a sleepy slumber and get ready for class.
9:00 a.m. Pull into school parking lot. Silently congratulate myself for scheduling classes this early. Contemplate parking in the Ponce Garage, and use the few minutes the shuttle takes to get you to class to get a few minutes of extra shuteye. Go to class still feeling very much like a zombie.
10:40 a.m. Class is over, and I’ve still got an hour and a half to kill before my next class. Make some use of that time, instead of sleeping at a nearby dorm. Study in the library, catch up on reading or have lunch in the food court with friends or go back to the library and take a power nap.
Noon. Go to my car before class, and pick up some books that I didn’t feel like carrying around all day. As I walk to my spot, I shake my head that I’m not leaving to the cars that are stalking me, hoping to take my parking spot.
1:30 p.m. Class is over, but I’ve got two hours till my next one. Just enough time to hang out at the ACS-the Association for Commuter Students -go to a club meeting, or leave campus and go to the mall.
3:30 p.m. Go to class-same as usual, except with fewer sleepy people. When a project requires your group to meet outside of class, everyone picks your place over the dorms.
4:45 p.m. The day is over but the options are endless. Visit friends in their dorms, work out at the Wellness Center, or go home, lie down in a nice couch and remember my dorm days without a regret in the world. Later, much later, go to sleep. But don’t forget to set the alarm clock.
Natalia Maldonado can be contacted at
n.maldonado@umiami.edu.