You know what happens too often? Professors assign papers.

Yup. I mean, I get it. Writing a paper is an excellent paper. But, deadlines? Deadlines during finals week? That's what's cruel.

I am a firm believer that no paper should be due after Thanksgiving. Sure, give us a research paper. But for the love of all things holy, don't give me an excuse to put it off until the end of the semester.

Because, fun fact, that's exactly what I'm doing right now. I have a several-page paper due tomorrow. Do you know what I've done so far?

I've selected a topic.

It is, thankfully, pretty straightforward. It's not going to be too painful, I don't think.

But I still don't want to do it. Why do you think I've got HGTV on in the background? Why do you think I fired up Odyssey to finish my work for the week?

Why do you think I'll be up until 2 a.m. putting together a bibliography and begging for mercy?

Because papers that are assigned early on and not due until the end of the semester are the worst part of college, by a wide margin.

Guys, I'm procrastinating writing by writing about procrastinating writing. That's how much I don't want to do anything.

You see, when you have a paper that's due at the end of the semester, it hangs above you, like the Sword of Damocles.

It's there, it's intimidating, but it hasn't. fallen. yet. There's time. There's so much time.

And then midterms are done and you keep moving forward. Maybe you finish a project. Maybe you ace a test. But that paper is still there, dangling over your head (and GPA).

And now, on the eve of finals week (and of the due date of my paper), that hair holding the sword is starting to tear. It is time, despite my earnest wishing and procrastinating, to move -- and write a paper.