The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the flowers are booming! After the harsh Indiana winter, spring has finally come to Butler. Students and staff are starting to recognize the new season in our own special bulldog ways.
1. Mother Nature's mood swings
The calendar might tell us it's spring, but the weather definitely disagrees. Temperatures changing from below freezing one day to high 70's the next is common during the spring here. Rainforest-like humidity, sudden pounding rain storms that last all of three minutes and hurricane-like winds are also expected. The best advice I could give would be to carry your umbrella, down jacket and sunglasses with you whenever you go outside.
2. Wearing shorts when it’s still 40 degrees
Along with the crazy weather comes the crazy fashion choices. The excitement and anticipation for spring is so strong that the second March hits, you can be sure to see people walking around campus in shorts. Even if it's still freezing. And snowing.
3. Everyone goes on the mall (even when it’s roped up)
The East and West malls regain their lush green grass in the spring, and it's a common sight to see people studying on towels or throwing a Frisbee around on it. Thanks to the construction going on this year, however, the malls have been roped off since August. That hasn't stopped us, though; students are either ignoring the ropes and risk falling in the sink holes, or becoming creative and tying hammocks between two trees.
4. March Madness
One of the most well known characteristics of Butler is our basketball team. The hype and school spirit grows in the spring when March Madness comes around. There is always support for the team with group viewings and a sense of unification on campus, no matter how far the team gets. Go dawgs!
5. ArtsFest
Every April, Butler hosts about 10 days of different art exhibitions unified under a certain theme. This year's ArtsFest, running from April 7th through April 17th, is themed Time and Timeless, and includes over 40 different performances and events, from music to dance, visual art to guest performances. Find a full schedule of ArtsFest here. This is a great chance to get any last minute JCA/BCR requirements (or all of them).
6. Beautiful Fish-Smelling Trees
Along with the malls, Butler's beautiful campus is coming back to life, with gorgeous daffodils, new mulch, and those breath-taking white trees. Literally, breath-taking. These trees, called the Bradford Pear trees, give off a fishy scent when its flowers bloom. As beautiful as they are, it might be better to admire them from afar.
7. Grapefruit Birds and Crazy Squirrels
And with the blooming plants come the animals. You can hear the birds chirping early in the morning, and you might be surprised that those beautiful noises are coming out of feathered grapefruits, the frail tree branches nearly snapping under their weight. And unless you forgot the behaviors of our famous Butler squirrels, keep your eyes peeled for the orange creatures jumping in front of your path or chasing you down the sidewalk.
8. Stress of Scheduling and Housing Selection
With the spring comes preparation for the new year in the fall. For most Butler students, that means a whole new year of academic requirements and a new place to live. Which results in even crazier and more stressed Butler students. Not getting a good lottery number or a class closing can make or break your upcoming semester, which can explain some of the extra tension you might be feeling from students.
9. Daylight Savings
Because Indiana is at the very edge of the time zone, the sun goes down in the evening and comes up in the morning almost a whole hour later than it does where I live. This can really help with your seasonal depression, but could also distract you from getting school work done. Instead, use the opportunity to go outside and study to both enjoy the sun shine and get work done.
10. Awkward Temperatures in the Dorm Rooms
The temperature confusion outside parallels the temperature confusion inside. If you live in on-campus housing, you know the struggles of going to bed freezing and waking up sweating (or vise versa). The dorm buildings take a while to adjust to the ever-changing spring weather, but by the end of the semester the temperatures both in and out should stay consistent (right around the time for everyone to leave for break).
11. Easter Alone on Campus
Unfortunately, we don't get any time off for Easter here at Butler. If you're far away from home, like I am, you know Easter is just another Sunday, with maybe a breakfast or brunch with your other non-local friends. Although we don't get to spend time with our families, we get to create new Easter traditions with out friends, and get all the things we need to get done for the upcoming week (thanks, professors, for assigning work Easter weekend).
12. End-of-Year Fever!
Spring usually means only about a month left of classes, and everyone has summer on their minds. This usually comes as a combination of excitement and stress, as everyone is freaking out overs finals, grades and summer classes/work/internships, but also excitement for the year to come to an end at the break to start. The hardest part about this time of year is keeping the excitement at bay and the stress away, and getting your piles and piles of end-of-semester work done. The best way to survive the final weeks of the semester is to focus on one task at a time. It'll calm your nerves and ensure you put all your efforts into making each assignment the best it can be.
We have about three weeks left of academics and about a week of finals. That's one month left! We've made it this far, we can definitely handle one more month! As you're finishing your essays, taking your tests and preparing for finals, think of these words to help keep you going strong from naturalist John Muir: "Spring work is going on with joyful enthusiasm."
