procrastination rules

“I am the biggest procrastinator.”

Famous quote. You hear it all the time. If you’re in high school, you hear it every week. If you’re in college, you hear it every day. And, if you’re in college and it’s finals week and you’re in your school’s library, you hear it every hour—at least.

I am not sure who’s won this title of “biggest procrastinator,” though I know I am certainly in the competition. Regardless, given that I’m now finished with my finals and about a week into summer vacation (!) and my home school, William & Mary, holds their last final today (good luck to those still finishing!), I am going hash out the highlights of my procrastination capabilities during this semester’s exams.

My main reason for procrastination was a philosophy paper. It was due Sunday night. By Tuesday, I thought I’d better start, but of course I didn’t. So, I promised I would the next day. But, Wednesday came around, and I had to make that same promise. Then, it became Thursday and then Friday… still no thesis yet. Friday evening I was determined to work, but procrastination came in to play big time when my roommate, Gabby told Catherine and I we had no choice but to go out with her. Now, when French fries from Elliot’s versus and empty word document face off, there is a clear winner.

We love Elliot's!

Procrastination rule #1: even if you have a deadline, a procrastinator never freely chooses to say no to a night out. Summary: Friends are greater than School.

Okay, but let’s backtrack. We covered Friday, but why wasn’t I working on the paper Thursday? Well, on Thursday, I was only thinking about shoes. After my Italian class, instead of heading to the library or the apartment to start writing, I chose to pick up my newly purchased package from Amazon: a pair of gray and pink extra-high top converses. After a purchase like this, I couldn’t just leave them sitting in the box as I abandoned them to my world of writing. So, I laced them up and tried them on and started outfit experimenting. Yep, that was Thursday.

Procrastination rule #2: always have a good outfit ready to study in because you should look good when you do schoolwork. After all, people see you during a test, and only you and your teacher see the grade.

Now, to my excuse as to why there was no progress on my paper before Thursday: I was sitting on our balcony reading Problem Solved, a design book by Michael Johnson. I wanted to finish it before I had to return it to the library when I left Rome. This made finals time not only crunch time when it came to classes, but also crunch time when it came to reading this book.

Procrastination rule #3: if you have something other than a textbook on your bucket list of books to read, the good procrastinator starts reading those books right as a big test day comes up. The point of studying is to learn, so as long as you’re learning something, you aren’t be a bad student, even if it is learning fonts instead of a foreign language.

However, my best method of procrastination this semester was by far climbing the dome of St. Peter’s, because, when you are studying in Rome, this kind of thing is readily available. The climb was more than 500 stairs (I didn’t count, but I believe the sign and my Lonely Planet guidebook), and it was more than worth it. The view of the city is fantastically 360° and after spending the last four months getting familiar with Rome, I could easily point out tourist landmarks, in addition to my apartment and other favorites. After I had spent a few minutes sight-searching, it started to rain, but I waited it out, continuing to soak up all the Roman goodness. Then, the most amazing thing happened, the rain stopped, and a rainbow appeared across St. Peter’s square. How often are there rainbows in Rome? I have no clue, but this one was the first I heard of during my four months, and I was atop St. Peter’s dome to witness it.

Procrastination rule #4: if you happen to be in the Roman vicinity: a visit to St. Peter’s is a must when it comes to procrastination. God will end up rewarding you.

A full rainbow forming over St. Peter's and the city; lucky I was outside and procrastinating instead of inside and writing a paper.

Of course, the Spring 2010 Procrastination List is much longer than those I’ve listed. The exhaustive list includes everything from baking bread to eating dinner out with Tommy and Catherine to Old Bridge gelato runs to visiting nuns and speaking with priests. Yet, despite all this nonsense, I did finish that paper; I am now a junior in college! Wonderful. I’d love to hear how you procrastinated this semester, or a favorite procrastination story from the past—I’m always looking for new ideas, and I still have half of college to get through. Happy summer, everyone!