Reading Week on Campus

For many students here at StFX, the reading breaks we are afforded each semester are valuable time to visit home and spend time with our families after a few grueling months of schoolwork. For others, it is a perfect time to catch a flight somewhere tropical and sit back on a beach as Nova Scotia suffers from winter. This is not the case for everyone, however; for some of us, it is time to enjoy the quiet stillness of the StFX campus and get ahead of the remainder of the semester’s academics. 

So, what does one do on campus during reading break? The place is frankly empty; most residence buildings have less than a dozen student’s hanging around. There are seldom any major events happening, and this time around we do not even have Piper’s Pub to mitigate our excessive boredom amid study sessions and spending a copious amount of time in bed. I personally chose to spend this extra free time writing this article in between writing a thesis and spending half the break surviving a light cold. 

I’ve asked a few folks around campus how they’ve entertained themselves during the break, here is what they had to say. 

Naima, a Community Advisor in FX Hall, explained, “The first two days, I was doing my CA shift, so I was watching movies as I did that. Then Monday and Tuesday I didn’t do anything because I got sick, I was in my room for almost 24 hours (…) I watched movies the whole time. I had to do two projects; I have to do a counselling project where I have to meet someone. That’s the one that took most of my time,” 

I asked her how FX Hall is, “It was very quiet. Few people were staying (…) we had a fire alarm, not fun.” 

Movies are certainly an effective way to pass time, especially since we are living in an era where a theatrical release averages on two and a half hours long. Naima seems to be in a similar situation as myself, bouncing between November’s usual sickness and schoolwork. 

Adam, an off-campus student, was in town for most of the break. “It’s been what I would like to call a ‘healthy mix’, I’m trying to find a healthy mix of balancing academics while trying to do some mental recouping. I did the semi-regularly deep-ish clean of my apartment, because come exam season the apartments and res rooms just fall into complete disarray. Dishes stacked to the ceiling, couldn’t see the ground in my room because the clothes made a nice carpet. Its been a good amount of time trying to get my living space clean. Music has helped fill a lot of time as well, that’s the main thing I do to relax. (…) It is kind of tricky, reading break is supposed to be you catching up on stuff, right? A lot of my profs assigned a bunch of stuff due after the break so instead of catching up on stuff, I’m trying to do these workshops and papers and this midterm that’s coming up immediately after the break. I’m trying to balance those tasks while cleaning my living area and still trying to get some social time in and do some of my hobbies.” 

Adam notes the importance of using reading break to stay on top of your studies whilst also taking time to relax. This is especially important where our reading break falls so late in the year, leaving many months of foot-on-the-gas schoolwork prior. 

One of The Xaverian’s writers, Khiara, says “We went to the Clayfire Café, we also watched some movies.”  

The Clayfire Café, which just opened on Main street in the former spot of the Curious Cat bookstore, is a great way to spend time making pottery. 

A Bishops Hall CA, Tamara, said “I attempted to study but didn’t study. I actually went to Halifax for the first weekend. I cooked a lot of grilled chicken, nothing very interesting” 

Halifax is a popular spot for folks with time to kill on reading break, in fact, it is probably the most popular destination for StFX students who want to leave town but also not go home. The city affords much more to do than Antigonish does, be it shopping or entertainment. 

When interviewing these students, I noticed the common sentiment that everyone was enjoying the quiet of campus. I think there will be a mix of disappointment and excitement as we get back to classes. The long boredom will end for those who stayed in town, but the usual chaos of the academic year will resume unimpeded. For those of you that are dreading the end of the break, just remember: this is the final stretch of the semester before the holidays.