Payton Mitchell
Staff Writer
Christmas break is a time to forget about grades, classes and exams and is a time of family, celebration, eggnog and ugly sweaters. For some students though, there are circumstances that prevent them from returning home.
Cody James is a former ISU student who stayed in Turner Hall over Christmas break last year.
“It was pretty quiet. Everyone was pretty much gone. I had to stay because I was working at Fred Meyer’s. Pretty much everything shut down,” James said.
For students who stay on campus over the holidays, the break is like an extension of Dead Week, emphasis on the dead. There are no special events planned to keep the students occupied, and they have to rely on themselves to make merry. There are however, a few events for individuals to attend.
The Rotary Club of Pocatello is putting on a production of the ballet “The Nutcracker.”
The production will take place in Frazier Hall on the Idaho State University campus. It premieres on December 17 at 7 p.m. with performances following on December 18 and 19. There will be a 2 p.m. matinee on the nineteenth along with the regular 7 p.m. performance. Tickets are on sale now, with prices of $14 for adults and $8 for children.
Another issue for students over the dormant nature of break is the reduced hours of the campus dining commons. This leads to people having to go out to eat as opposed to having dinner in such places such as Turner Hall or Rendezvous.
University Housing’s Residence Hall & Dining License Agreement Terms and Conditions states, “This Agreement does NOT provide dining services between fall and spring semesters. Meals will not be served during the Fall break or Spring break.” The terms and conditions can be found in full at isu.edu/housing/manual.shtml.
Having some down time to oneself is a great opportunity to relieve school-related stress and to also take the chance to tie up loose ends with finances or planning ahead for next semester. There is something special about having some time to get things done or to just have a personal break to yourself in order to recharge and rejuvenate for a new semester.
