Baby, it’s cold outside … so you should put a jacket on.
Even though recent Milwaukee weather has been a little unpredictable, there is no doubt that when winter hits and Lake Michigan throws its wind down Wisconsin Avenue, it’s going to be nippy.
Not to sound like your mother, but you are going to need more than a sweatshirt to keep warm. Milwaukee averages low temperatures of 13 to 19 degrees Fahrenheit in winter.
Brrr.
It’s hard to be stylish in the winter, but sacrifices have to be made if you want to stay warm and keep in good health.
There is such a thing as fashionable winter gear. Find some funky snow boots or buy a new hat and a matching scarf. Your hands will look better with gloves than with raw or frost bitten fingers.
And you know those large hand sanitizer bottles all over campus? They’re the easiest way to prevent spreading germs and possible colds.
Germs are everywhere on a college campus. They are lurking on the keyboards in the computer labs, living alongside you in the dorms and finding their way inside your body when eating in the cafeteria.
For those of you who decide to get the flu shot, it is available at the Student Health Center or free of charge at the Walgreens store on 16th Street and Wisconsin Avenue.
Stocking up on cough syrup (daytime and nighttime formulas), cough drops, tissues and orange juice will be very beneficial if you do come down with a cold and can’t get to a pharmacy.
Also, when you’re sick, give your body time to recuperate. If it means skipping that Friday night party or missing dinner and a movie with friends, so be it. It’s hard to be the life of the party with a hacking cough and runny nose.
Regardless, a sick student’s prime concern is what to do about those classes where attendance is mandatory. Some professors have strict absence policies that do not take into consideration the one or two times a student falls ill. But students should not be penalized if they are feeling under the weather, and professors should be lenient of their sick students.
And listen up, students who hate missing a class because they don’t want to fall behind. It may be a pain to make up the class or copy someone’s notes from that day, but your classmates won’t thank you for passing your cold on to them.
Just stay home. The best thing you can do if you’re sick is to take time to relax. Stress will inevitably make your cold worse than it is.
Speaking of stress, many students also suffer from seasonal affective disorder. SAD is a form of depression that occurs during the winter months when it’s darker outside, according to Marquette’s Counseling Center.
If you find your mood changing when the seasons do, make an appointment to see the counseling center. Treatment for SAD includes light box therapy, medication and counseling.
Unfortunately, your mother might not be close enough to campus to bring you hot chicken noodle soup or Vicks VapoRub, so it’s up to you to stay healthy — especially in the winter months.
Bundle up, Marquette. Winter can be a disappointment sometimes, but with the right attitude and patience, spring will be here again in no time.