School gets out for Thanksgiving in four days and I am about ready to yank my hair out. Projects, articles, homework, papers: You name it, I have it due this week.

I understand where my professors are coming from wanting to get it all done before break, but I have got to admit, I am currently a mess.

Not to mention holiday preparations. Don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas, Thanksgiving and all the food goes with it. But what I don’t like is how early all of the preparations start.

I was shopping for my Halloween costume barely three weeks ago and they already had Christmas decorations out. The day after Halloween, I heard Christmas music. My sister was at the mall last weekend and they were already setting up their “Santa’s Village,” complete with fireworks. This past weekend, my mom asked me what I want for Christmas and my birthday (10 days before Christmas).

Seriously? Is all of this really necessary? What’s the rush? Last time I checked, Christmas is still nearly a month and half away. Not to mention there isn’t even snow. How can anyone even think about the holidays when the grass is still green and people wore shorts last week? Yes, I know the Midwest is one of the few parts of the country that actually has snow during December, but for me, snow has always been a part of the holidays

I know this sounds bad, but I am going to compare all the Christmas advertisements to all of the election ads from last week. It is a constant bombardment and I fear I am suffering from sensory overload.

It’s frustrating and makes it difficult to focus. As I mentioned earlier, I don’t have time to lose focus.

How am I supposed to focus when Christmas carols are being played and men dressed as Santa Claus are parading around town?

So here is my plea—do not ask me about my holiday plans until this Friday or the Friday of finals. This is as much for my benefit as it is yours. If you do not ask me, I cannot get distracted and not do my work. Also, if you do not ask me I will not snap at you, because until Dec. 13 at 2:30 p.m., the end of my last final, I will be in work mode.

So go ahead, call me Scrooge, but Christmas isn’t until December and I will wait until then to celebrate.

Amy Wywialowski is a junior history major. She can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].