Thank goodness.  It is less than a week until Spring Break.  I don't know about you, but I've been under a hefty amount of stress these last few weeks.  Indeed, my stress has been such that I have intermittently forgotten to do things, such as write my Nota Bene article for this issue on time.  So, here I am, two days late, hoping that I can get this thing turned in to the powers that be in time for the next issue.  The excitement and suspense are killing me.  Softly.

Anyway, it's been a busy second semester.  This is the way of the world, however.  I don't really think there's any way around it, and there's not really any good way to beat the stress that comes with second semester.  I just sort of try to embrace it, recognize that often times stress makes me more productive (both in terms of quantity and quality), and try my darnedest to avoid obsessing over factors beyond my control (e.g., the passage of time).

Personally, I think the stress of second semester-or at least my stress-is entirely worth it.  Most of my recent stress has centered on the Law Revue show, just concluded last night.  I think it came together very well.  Perhaps I will reflect more on that in my next column, but for now it is sufficient to note that the stress associated with the show is entirely welcome, so far as I am concerned.  Even so, I'm ready for a break.  Thus, the prospect of boogiein' down to St. Maarten next Tuesday for five days of beach lounging and Heineken Regatta-watching sounds marvelous.

Ah, but now I'm rubbing it in, aren't I?  A large portion of my readers have other fish to fry upon commencement of Spring Break.  The whispers, murmurs, conversations, and flat out screams can be heard on a daily basis: the Journal Competition looms.

Not so long ago, this august publication ran an article about what journal membership may or may not mean.  I'm not entirely sure of my feelings on that question; I am uninterested in status symbols and flaunting my credentials, but I am also interested in doing what I can to help get myself a real job, finally.  I do, at some point, have to start acting like a grownup, at least in terms of pulling down a regular check.  Beyond that, I rather like how I've been living as of late.  Anyway.  Whatever the merits or demerits of journal membership, a bunch of you will be participating in the competition this coming weekend.  I would therefore like to unveil three tips for making the experience one that won't make you spit whenever it comes up in conversation down the road.

1. Don't be a hermit that entire weekend.  If you do absolutely nothing but the journal competition the entire weekend, your thinking will be completely clouded by Monday, or whenever your submission is due.  Take some judicious breaks.  Consider going out at least one of the evenings of the competition.  Be reasonable, of course, but don't be dully single-minded.  Your submission might end up reflecting that.

2. Don't go out every night of the weekend.  It is possible that I know someone who did live it up on the Thursday, Friday, and, to a limited extent, Saturday evenings of the competition.  That someone may still have made a journal, but that someone also was fairly miserable on Sunday night, when that someone stayed up until 5 a.m. finishing the competition because that someone had an early afternoon flight to catch on Monday.  If, however, you do find yourself in a position similar to that of this individual with whom I am acquainted, the Gelman library isn't a bad place to work in the middle of the night.  That Starbucks is open 24 hours on Sunday nights, so there are plenty of vanilla lattes to be had, if necessary.  Although this type of behavior is now the stuff of legends, I would again strongly counsel against behaving as this someone did.

3. Be wary of photocopiers and printers with low ink.  Those bastards will get you every time, if you're not careful.  Every technical problem will, in fact, actualize its potential during the course of the competition.  You might as well count on it now.  Go get your printer some ink the moment you are finished reading this column.  This assumes that you have read to this point, of course.  If you have already stopped, you have displayed great wisdom regarding time management, and you probably are all set when it comes to printer ink.  For those of you still reading, knock it off and go to Staples, already.