The malaise of winter is hitting us all once again. Instead of trying to use one of those weird, insanely bright lamps that don’t seem to do anything, you should follow my suggestions for fending off seasonal depression. 

1. Cause controversy in your classes 

Bored? Looking for an easy dopamine hit? Raise your hand and drop a crazy take in the middle of class. You might get canceled, but at least you’re noteworthy. Another option would be to push GC’s lack of a dress code to the limit. How little can you wear till your professors start saying something? Who would be the first to confront you? 

2. Book a trip to Anchorage, Alaska 

Everything is relative. You think it’s cold and the days are short in Goshen? It could be a lot worse. After your trip to Anchorage, you’ll find Goshen warm and balmy. You can enjoy their specialty: reindeer sausage. 

3. Start a snowball business

It may not seem economically lucrative, but open yourself up to the idea that this could be the next big thing. The fact that they can melt makes them a scarce good. And I’ll bet people are willing to pay big bucks for the edge up in a snowball fight. 

4. Get enough emotional support animals to make a campus zoo 

There’s plenty of dogs and cats on campus, but we should all be thinking outside of the box. If we had a little more variety, a petting zoo wouldn’t be out of the question. What a great way to boost campus morale and supercharge the local economy! 

5. Run a marathon on the RFC’s 200-meter indoor track 

That’s a shocking 210 laps around the track, so it would be almost like a meditative activity. You can even practice building up your mileage beforehand … on the 200-meter indoor track. 

6. Enjoy an ice bath in Shrock Plaza’s fountain

Ice baths are known to promote recovery, so it’ll be the perfect pick-me-up after your RFC marathon. It’s also good to be in public where everyone can see you and be impressed by your mental endurance. 

7. Volunteer your time helping with the Westlawn renovation 

There’s nothing like a little manual labor to bring a sense of satisfaction to your life. You could also consider volunteer-renovating any other building on campus in whatever style suits your personal taste. 

8. Start making slime again 

It feels like 2016 again, so you might as well embrace it and make your own slime. I’m envisioning slime getting smashed into the Yoder carpets that will greet generations of GC students to come.