College is a time where you have to reset your entire schedule. Whereas before you went to bed at a reasonable time like a normal human being, in college you are suddenly thrown completely off balance and find yourself staying up until we early morning hours finishing papers that should've been done days ago. Even if you do get a Headstart on them you're basically going to be written g them until 3 in the morning. So with so much time spend doing so much work, it's natural to want to have a little company, and this is where TV comes in. Whether it's cable, Netflix or some other kind of streaming service, television is a college students best friend. And these are the five television shows that got me through some tough times.
"China Illinois"
If you're a college student, then like me, chances are good that adult swim was your best friend. Staying up late at night to finish a paper that was due at midnight and eating God knows what. You need some company around. Adult swim is the ideal late-night block of television for any hard-working-procrastinating college student. China IL takes place in the fictional town of China revolving around its university. It follows a group of incompetent professors and students alike as they get into all kinds of bizarre and more often than not hilarious hijinks. College life can sometimes feel like a bizarre and otherworldly experience, so it's great to have a show that pretty much dials everything to 11 and shows just how absolutely insane things can feel. You're unlikely to even have to fight off an infestation of boars or have to deal with the ethical quandaries of taking care of 100 foot baby, but in college, sometimes it feels like you'd rather.
"The Simpsons"
Everyone grows up with the Simpsons. They're a phenomenon that is virtually impossible to miss. And with more than thirty years worth of episodes, you pretty much have an endless supply of things to watch while working (i.e.: procrastinating) on your school work. The Simpsons is not only a fun show, it's a familiar one, with characters, locations and running gags that you've known for most of your life. There's an element of comfortable nostalgia connected to the Simpsons. You know these characters, and you know what to expect, and yet it never feels boring or passé. Watching the Simpsons go through life is one of those things that never seems to get old, and watching them deal with life's absurdities can sometimes help you make sense of your very own absurdities in your life. Whenever I felt homesick or I just needed to forget my trouble, I could always turn to The Simpsons to make me laugh.
"Friends"
One of the most stressful parts of college is leaving it, and the biggest fear a college student has when they leave is the fear of falling out of touch with all the wonderful people they've come to know. What's great about watching Friends is that it ensures us that friendship doesn't end after college. That the people we've come to care about the most will always be there for us and that all of those future adult responsibilities won't keep us from the people we've grown the closest too. It's also one of those things that, like the Simpsons, provides a sort of television equivalent to comfort food. There are so many episodes, and it's so formulaic that despite not always being the best television, it's always the most watchable. Just don't expect to ever own a Manhattan apartment of that size ever in your lifetime.
Anything on HGTV
I have absolutely no idea where this channel draws upon its dark power, but somehow, anything that is on HGTV is completely mesmerizing and time wasting perfection. The great thing about HGTV is that it's OK to not pay attention to whatever's going on screen and just do your work, or you can make time fly by actually paying attention to it. If there is one thing that HGTV has taught me, is that no matter how much you fix up the kitchen, you will never have the right kind of kitchen. And also that there are a million different shades of blue, but none of them will ever go with green. What is it about watching eerily happy couples and real estate agents buy, sell, and fix up homes that's so mesmerizing? I have no idea. All I know is that they're doing it wrong and that none of these made up colors ever go well together.
