On stress etc.

While in a practice room last week, I overheard one grade nine violin player say to another while struggling with tempo:

"Guys, we need to get our shit together!" 

I had a good giggle. Don't we all need to get our shit together around January.  

The more I think about this time of year, the more I am willing to believe that it is some type of cruel plot to suppress rebellion in late teenagers. You know, keep them so freaked out about their future and mountains of homework that they don't have time to go against the man like in the olden days. It certainly has worked on me lately. I'm much too tired for world domination. 

I was in a variation of this state around exam time last year, and I came up with a sort of backwards, nonsensical, yet useful mantra. It was something like:

"Everyone expects you to be stressed. People keep giving you all these things to do to make you stressed! However, being too anxious and obsessive keeps you from doing all the important things in life. Thus, to be overly stressed is to let them win, and to fight against the man is to be happy and calm." 

Yes, I am a philosopher. 

I learned a new word this weekend, 

equa·nim·i·ty

noun \ˌē-kwə-ˈni-mə-tē, ˌe-kwə-\

: calm emotions when dealing with problems or pressure

I think it's a word I should try to take to heart a bit better, this week especially.

Hope you all are surviving and not catching senioritis, internet,
E