Eff it, it’s nice out

This morning I awoke to a swooshing sound from outside. I pushed away the blinds, revealing light green poofs, full of life, swaying at me. I smashed my arm through the window, grabbed a branch and investigated. Looks like your classic average case of leaves. It was finally time to go outside again.

I felt naked wearing just shorts and a T-shirt, but I stepped out to soak it all in. It appeared all the trees around the apartment building were budding leaves and flowers were sprouting up in so many embarrassing places: between sidewalk cracks and in potholes.

Suddenly, I had an urge to start walking. Northward bound, I passed some old men sitting in front of the halfway house. They smiled and were significantly less creepy than usual. They said hello to me for the first time this year and I made a mental note to stop making fun of them. They seemed like all-right guys.

I couldn’t remember the last time I ate a stack of pancakes, so I sat down at a picnic table outside of The Village Deli. I brought a small jar of Dillman Farm’s grape jelly — I’m not into those prepackaged tabs of Smucker’s.

While I enjoyed my meal, I watched people walk down Kirkwood. Girls wore sun dresses, and bros, their best polos. Everyone was more relaxed and less broken than a month ago. Instead of darted glances, I got wide smiles.

With my arteries blocked, I paid my bill and decided to buy a pair of sunglasses. For the first time in a while, the sun was almost too bright. I stopped by Haley’s to pick up a pair of sick, white Oakleys to let people know I have money, but I still like to buy ugly crap. Then I strutted toward Dunn Meadow like a boss.

I was ready at any moment to catch a Frisbee. There must have been five or six different discs flying in the air, which made the clearing somewhat of a battlefield. I got into a pickup game of Ultimate Frisbee with some chill looking dudes from Collins. And I must say I was doing well until about halfway through the game, when I caught a Frisbee with my face and everything went black.

While I was knocked out, I thought about all the things I should have been doing.

I hadn’t registered, let alone even looked at, classes for next semester.

And wasn’t rent due last week? Probably shouldn’t have bought those sunglasses. Could it slide until I get paid next Friday?  

Hell, I still haven’t found out where I’m living next year. It’s probably too late to find an apartment close to campus by now.

Then I woke up, in the grass, with a bunch of onlookers standing in a circle around me. My shorts vibrated. It was a text, “u missed the stats exam btw.”

Eff it, who cares? It’s nice out.
 

E-mail: nicjacob@indiana.edu