There’s a lot of chaos going around, but the number one advice for everyone at this point is to stay home. While introverts rejoice, even they will soon be feeling a little stir crazy. It is critically important to slow the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19 because hospitals cannot handle everyone falling ill at the same time and resources are limited, so staying indoors and self-isolating is everyone’s best bet.

Because this is a global crisis that we are in, a lot of things are happening. Children are off school all over Michigan and Tech students, bless our hearts, are stuck with virtual classes. Some of you may be excited about not having to get up for your early morning classes anymore while others are panicking about what this means for labs, presentations and assignments. Between the, likely, increased workload, and the hysteria that fills every empty supermarket shelf, you may be wondering what exactly you’re going to do for the next several weeks as people are encouraged to self-isolate and even self-quarantine.

I’m going to start off with the most obvious. Do your homework. I mean, really, you have to stay at home, you have to be isolated, you might as well get all that work done. Think about it, Tech is closed through the end of the spring semester and is trying to find a way to do a virtual graduation ceremony — if you really put your mind to it, you might be able to get all those assignments done well before they’re due and then you can do whatever you want — early summer!

This brings me to my next point, doing all of your homework in the first week of quarantine is a pipe dream because there are loads of other things that you can be doing. Playing video games is, of course, on the top of most people’s minds. Kids are playing everything from Fortnite to Pokemon, and I for one don’t see why college students should be any different. Video games are a great way to maintain your sanity for the foreseeable future, but don’t let them get in the way of other things you might still have to do, like sleeping and eating. 

If video games aren’t your style, or you’ve been giving yourself far too many screen-headaches, there’s always books that you can read. While the libraries might be closed, there are Kindles and e-readers, as well as a novel you probably have tucked away somewhere in your room or house. Now is the time to read all those books you’ve been putting off!

If you really don’t like reading, or you don’t have any books (what kind of monster are you?) there is, of course, our ever faithful crutch, Netflix. Between Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime (sorry, Hulu, your ads bother me) we have plenty of content to choose from. Binge an old favorite TV show, binge a new favorite, watch all the Disney movies in order of release! No one can stop you!

Play with your animals. Whether you have an animal of your own or you’re planning on going back home to your family pets, show them a little love! Being home with nowhere to go is a dream for any number of household animals — they’ve literally been waiting their whole lives for this. Play ball, give treats, teach them some new tricks. They will love you forever.

Finally, learn a new hobby! Learn a second language, Duolingo is free to download and my only criticism of it is that it takes too much time for me to play every day when I want to be doing other things. Now there’s all the time in the world! Sitting at home with nothing to do? Learn how to crochet! Learn how to knit! Drawing, painting and writing are all creative endeavors that can be done for pretty cheap.

Among all the things that you can do, cleaning, staying healthy and being prepared are the most important, everything after that is just a boredom buster. I certainly don’t recommend making this pandemic more difficult on yourself or those around you, so keep the boredom at bay and stay on top of things! This’ll be over before you know it.

Personally, I have always found the spring semester to be one of the most difficult. It’s winter when it starts and the gaps between breaks are long and wearying. I think that the spring semester offers less options than the fall semester as well, which can be discouraging to students who are looking forward to those classes coming around again. We are nearly half way through this semester — some students are almost finished with their first full year of college, some are graduating in May. Some will leave or transfer. Some are just trying to get through another cold, Keweenaw winter. No matter where you fall in this line, you may be experiencing some winter blues.

The days will be getting longer again and the world will start to wake up from it’s sleepy snow-covered cocoon, but before that we have the treacherous inbetween. It will be sunny and bright, and the snow will melt, and then a heartbreaking snow storm sweeps through and undoes all that springtime progress. It happens like this every year and makes February and March feel like survival.

Whether you’ve knocked this semester out of the park, or if you’ve really struggled to stay on top of the school work and never-ending assignments, you aren’t alone. There’s also more than just school in life. The Michigan Tech Student Health and Wellness organization seeks to help students not only with the transition from high school to college, but also with the ongoing demands of college and life.

Next Tuesday, March 3 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Library, this organization will have an event about rethinking failure. When plans change or intense setbacks get in the way of you achieving your dreams — there are ways to handle that kind of disappointment, but there are also ways to capitalize on the gift of failure.

Maybe they won’t talk about why failure is a gift — but it can be. And it should be. Failing here and failing now gives all of us the opportunity to do something new, to learn how to be adaptable. It can help push us along the path that we were always meant to be on. Failure doesn’t mean giving up — sometimes it just means a change of plans.

If going to an event on failure seems a little too much to deal with, then maybe what you’re really facing is a problem of motivation. On Wednesday, March 4 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the library the same group will be having an event where students can come and learn skills ot improve motivation and prevent procrastination. The winter might be a time of rest before the active growth of spring, but not for humans.

These events teach life-long skills that can help change your path and make you a stronger, better you. You might not be interested in staying for the whole thing, but even attending for a little while is a step in the right direction. These events are completely free for students to attend and will hopefully have a big impact. We hope to see you there!

If Valentine’s Day has left you feeling sour, or you’re looking for something to spice up the monotony of mid-semester life, a thrilling escape room might be the event to take your mind off it.

Endless adventure, prison breaks, sci-fi missions — everything comes down to this. An escape room is a real-life adventure that requires teamwork, speed, creativity and patience.

It is a timed challenge to link the clues and escape the room before the hour runs out. They are wonderful event for family vacations or for corporate team-building. This is a great way to spend time with friends or learn how to cooperate with other people in general. To play, attendees enter a themed room and have to put together clues, solve puzzles and accomplish the main mission to escape.

Escape rooms began with first-person point-of-view video games like Myst and Crimson Room. These video games served as the inspiration for what would become a real-life one-hour adventure story.

Elements like interacting with your surroundings, solving puzzles and having a goal-centered plotline were transferred from the digital realm of video games to real life escape rooms.

The first escape room was created in 2007 by a Japanese company called SCRAP, and it quickly picked up in popularity. It spread across Asia and into Europe. Escape rooms first came to the United States around 2012, and they’ve been a hit ever since. This thrilling form of entertainment is sure to get your thinking gears turning.

Most escape rooms cost between $25 and $30 for a one-hour game, but if you don’t have that kind of cash (or you don’t even know where to find such a company to play the game at), you may want to check out the MUB’s escape room.

The MUB Board is putting on its own escape room this Friday, Feb. 21 from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. This timed event puts the pressure on as you and your team of five battle your way to freedom by finding the clues, linking hints and eventually finding the secret key to win the game and escape the room.

Teams of five are able to sign up at the MUB Board desk in MUB 106 all day on Feb. 21 to reserve a spot for this event. The event will be held in the MUB Ballroom and is sure to be an exciting game to play with your friends.

If you don’t solve the puzzle, don’t worry, you certainly won’t be trapped forever. Besides, it’s good practice working with your friends, or even strangers, to figure out how to leave the room. Your problem solving skills will certainly thank you, and your midterm-addled brain will also enjoy the relief of doing something — anything — other than studying.

This event is free to attend, and will certainly be an exhilarating, fascinating break from studying.

Michael Waite is a singer-songwriter who will be returning to The Red Jacket Jamboree to record two episodes for the radio show “Red Hot Lava” and “A Valentine Show.” These episodes will be recorded in front of a live audience on campus at Michigan Tech. Michael Waite lives with his family north of Marquette and delivers songs influenced by the jazz trombone and brutally honest, thoughtful Americana. John Churchville, a tabla master and grammy-nominated educator says, “His velvet voice, smooth finger-picking acoustic guitar style combined with honest, beautifully crafted songs will touch your heart and bring a tear to your eye. Songs about friendship, love, bad habits and the good life.”

Waite exudes rustic, sun-warmed truth and his music is sure to open up your heart. With a voice like taking a hike through these Northern Michigan woods and songs that bring you back home, this is sure to be a fantastic live-show that you won’t want to miss.

Red Jacket Jamboree is a new radio variety show that shares stories, songs and history from Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. It is hosted by Lena Dorey and performed and recorded in front of a live audience. It will also feature Martin Achatz, Poet Laureate of the U.P. and professor at NMU whose poems are intense and visual but clear as day, the meaning behind them echoing loudly. Also performing will be the Red Jacket Actors and music by the Copper Cats with Jerry Younce on guitar, Bill Carrothers on piano, Harry South on bass and Zach Ott on percussion.

These episodes will be recorded on Friday, Feb. 14, Valentine’s Day, and will certainly make a heart-warming and entertaining show as a part of your Valentine’s date night. The show costs $20 for adults, $5 for youth and $5 for Michigan Tech students when they present their IDs. The show will be performed and recorded at the Rozsa Center starting at 7 p.m.

This will be a great opportunity for students and community members to enjoy and support a striking and memorable performance by a fantastic local musician as well as local actors and bands. The show is produced by the nonprofit, Real People Media which receives financial support from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.

The smell of snow, hot chocolate and love is wafting through the air. It’s nearly Valentine’s and while there’s a lot of hubbub going on with Winter Carnival this weekend, don’t forget about the holiday of love next weekend! Valentine’s Day is the perfect Hallmark holiday to shower your significant other in kisses, sweets, expensive dinners and stuffed animals — like you need any other excuse to show them how much you care, right?

In case this holiday snuck up on you (Feb. 14th is a Friday this year, make your reservations now!), I’m here to let you in on a little Tech tradition that makes this holiday extra special.

Every year the MUB board puts on a build-a-bear style event called Stuff-a-Husky. If you’ve been at Tech more than one year, you’ve probably heard of it, for all you other people, welcome!

Every year the students for the MUB board order a few extra stuffies to try and make the supplies last, but every year they sell out fast. Along with the trademark husky, they also offer a variety of other animals to choose from including foxes, bears, moose, and even sloths. While we don’t know yet what kind of animals will be available for this year’s event, it is almost certainly going to be an adorable collection.

The animals are stuffed by participants by hand so you can decide how fluffy or firm they are. Additionally, it makes a great free date night — just plan on getting there with your date so you don’t have to wait on opposite ends of the line!

As always, Stuff-a-Husky will be packed with people desperate for a soft, stuffed friend of their own, so we highly recommend that you get in line as early as possible and bring something to occupy you while you wait. The line for Stuff-a-Husky often stretches up the stairs of the MUB and supplies are limited.

This is a great event for you to do with your friends or partners and it is free and on campus so if you don’t want to or can’t travel too far, this is the place to go. This low-cost date idea will not only save money, but it’s a wonderful opportunity to make some fluffy memories with your loved ones.

This year, Stuff-a-Husky will be held on Feb. 11 at 8 p.m. It will be in the MUB Commons near the dining area. Participants are required to bring their ID cards as they cannot receive a stuffed animal without one. The event is free with your student ID card.

As January rounds out, the much revered tradition of Winter Carnival begins to rear its head. Already events are happening all over campus designed to invigorate, enthuse and entertain. As we have all seen from the snow piles and structural supports rising into the sky, the month-long statue building portion of Winter Carnival has already begun. This year’s theme is “Discover what shines from prehistoric times” and it already is promising to be a fantastic carnival of out-blown proportions. Month-long statue building began on Jan. 10 and will go until 9 a.m. Feb. 6.

Saturday, Jan. 25 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. is snow volleyball, where teams of 12 have a match of volleyball played on snow at the Recreational Sports Fields. From 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. participating organizations will enjoy curling matches at the Calumet Drill House.

Sunday, Jan. 26 has curling from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and snow volleyball from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. From 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. teams of five will compete in soccer played on snow at the soccer fields behind the SDC.

Tuesday, Jan. 28 and Wednesday, Jan. 29 will both have ice bowling from 9 p.m. to midnight in the John MacInnes Ice Arena. Ice bowling consists of using a team member on a sled as the bowling ball who is slid down an ice lane to attempt to knock down as many pins as possible.

Saturday, Feb. 1 has curling from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., snow soccer from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., speed skating from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the John MacInnes Ice Arena and the Winter Carnival Queens Coronation from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Rozsa. The Queens Coronation is where the Winter Carnival queen is crowned and chosen and the winners of Blue Key’s Winter Carnival raffle are revealed. The Coronation is $10 to attend for the general public, but it is free for Tech students.

On Sunday, Feb. 2 there will be broomball from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the broomball rinks outside Walker.

Wednesday, Feb. 5 is when the all-nighter kicks off and Winter Carnival recess begins at 10 p.m. All-nighter statue building begins at 4 p.m. and goes until 9 a.m. Feb. 6. From 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. the ROTC All-Nighter Pancakes can be located in Fisher Hall. From 8 p.m. to midnight, the MUB Board projector will be outside the Van Pelt Library and there will be giveaways to be had. From 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. the MUB Commons will host karaoke.

Thursday, Feb. 6 starts off at 9:30 a.m. with statue judging for both the month-long and all-nighter statues. At 11 a.m until 4 p.m. there will be broomball in the broomball rinks. From 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. the Beards Competition will take place in Fisher 135. For the beards competition, a group of men shave in early december and are given two months to grow their beards out in the category of full beard, goatee, and sideburns for a chance to win while presenting their impressive facial hair growth through skits. From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. there is a crash course in dancing available in the DHH ballroom. Form 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. the women’s basketball team will be playing against Purdue Northwest in the SDC. From 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. the Bigfoot Glowshoe, a glowstick, snowshoe hike will take place at the tech trails across from the SDC. It costs $5 for students to register and the price includes snowshoe rental. If that isn’t your style, from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. the Winter Carnival Stage Revue Show will be taking place in the Rozsa Center. The Stage Revue is when organizations from all over campus come up with themed skits to pay homage to the Winter Carnival theme of the year. They are comedic and hilarious to watch. From 7:30 p.m to 10:30 p.m. the men’s basketball team will be taking on Purdue Northwest in the SDC.

Saturday, Feb. 7 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. will be an intense game of Tug-O-War taking place on the recreational sports fields. From 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. there will be horse-drawn sleigh rides from outside the Walker building. From 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. there will be Downhill skiing at Mont Ripley and from 12:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. there will be cross-country skiing at the recreational sports fields. Also at the sports fields there will be human dog sled racing from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. From 2 p.m to 5 p.m there will be dog sled rides available outside of Walker. From 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. there will be snowboarding on Mont Ripley At 5:30 p.m. St. Albert’s Ice Chapel will have an ice mass and chili after the service. From 7:07 p.m. to 10:07 p.m. in the Ice Arena the men’s ice hockey team will be playing Lake Superior State. At 9 p.m. Aaron Kominos-Smith, this year’s Winter Carnival comedian will take the Rozsa stage.

Sunday, Feb. 8 will feature the Winter Carnival book sale from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. From 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. the women’s basketball team will be playing Parkside in the SDC. From 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. there will once again be horse-drawn sleigh rides outside the Walker building. At 2 p.m. the men’s basketball team will be playing Parkside in the SDC. From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. there will be dog sled rides available outside the Walker building. At 2 p.m. the Winter Carnival awards ceremony will take place in the MUB Ballroom A1. From 5:07 to 8:07 the Men’s Ice Hockey team will be playing Lake Superior State at the John MacInnes Ice Arena. At 8:45 p.m. the Torchlight Parade and Fireworks will begin over the Mont Ripley Ski Area. At 9 p.m. the Winter Carnival Snoball will commence in the Rozsa Center.

Friday, Feb. 7, Saturday, Feb. 8 and Sunday Feb. 9 the MTU Film Board will be playing Jurassic Park in celebration of this year’s prehistoric theme. Hopefully one of these events (or all of them) will get you out into the cold, revitalizing air of the Keweenaw to celebrate some good, old-fashioned snow.

Easter as we know it is a pastel, colorful wonderland of plastic eggs or decorated hard-boiled eggs and chocolate candy delivered by bunnies. It has roots in Christianity, representing the rebirth of Christ and takes place 40 days after Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. Easter is considered a movable holiday and takes place on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox.

For Christians, Easter celebrates the resurrection of Jesus Christ and is a religious event with the 40 days preceding focusing on self-reflection and time of preparation for the resurrection. During this time, many Christians will fast either by giving up something that they love dearly, a favorite food or hobby for example, or by committing to the betterment of themselves, taking up a new exercise regimen or a more rigorous study habit. Many families will also refuse to eat meat either throughout the entirety of Lent or only refusing meat on Fridays which lends itself well to the Fish Frys which are popular gatherings for Christians during Lent as well as specials that go on in restaurants which cater to those who give up meat during Lent.

In addition, throughout Lent, Roman Catholic churches do not sing the ‘alleluia’ which is a praise and exclamation of joy. Because Lent symbolizes the 40 days that Jesus spent suffering in the desert, it is a time of reflection and sacrifice rather than one of joy and this is reflected in the songs that are sung in Mass. On Easter, the alleluia returns to Mass and everyone celebrates its return as it means that the sorrowful period of Lent has ended and the joyful season of Easter is begun.

This holiday is not only a religious holiday, however. It also has roots in pagan rituals which we see in both the placement of the date as well as the traditional forms of celebration within.

Some of the traditions that follow Easter include easter eggs that are either part of a hunt, usually for children, or given to children in an Easter basket by the Easter bunny. The eggs may have money, candy, or small toys within them. For Christians, some traditions include Palm Sunday which commemorates Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem and palm leaves were laid on the ground to greet him when he arrived.

The date of Easter traces its roots back to the pagan celebration of the spring equinox which occurs when the amount of time that is day or night is equal. This is a celebration of the goddess of Spring, known as Ostara among other names. Hers is a spirit of renewal. The goddess was often depicted with the hare which represents the arrival of spring as well as fertility. Thus, bringing along the idea of the Easter bunny.

The egg represents fertility and renewal as well as Spring. The egg finds its place in our tradition alongside the rabbit because the Germanic mythology states that Ostara healed a wounded bird in the woods by turning it into a hare and the bird-hare showed its gratitude to the goddess by laying eggs for her as gifts.

Coloring eggs is associated far back as it had been used as a symbol of fertility when the ancient Egyptians and Persians would color and eat eggs during their Spring festival. In ancient Egypt, it was a symbol for the sun, and the Babylonians saw the egg as hatching a goddess of theirs, Venus Ishtar. Christians color and share eggs at Easter to celebrate new life because an empty shell represents the empty tomb after Jesus was resurrected.

Easter also shares its holiday with the Jewish festival of Passover which commemorates the liberation of Jewish people from slavery in Egypt when the plagues came through, the final one being a passing over of a dark angel-like figure who slaughtered the firstborn sons unless the blood of a lamb marked the doorway of the home.

These markings protected the Jewish families and the death of the firstborn sons convinced the Pharaoh to send away all the Jews out of Egypt with Moses. Passover maintained its significance as Jewish people repeatedly found themselves oppressed by foreign powers and turned to this day as hope for liberation.

It is from Passover that the tradition of eating lamb for Easter dinner comes from. In some cases, cakes are decorated with lambs or in the shape of a lamb. Lambs were often the choice of sacrifice in the Old Testament and were used to mark that the Jewish people were not to be harmed by the angel of death when it passed over Egypt. In Christian sects, lamb is the symbol for Jesus in the “lamb of God” and is used in this way to celebrate Easter.

While Easter is celebrated by people all over the world, it is also a marketable holiday with greeting card sales, chocolate sells, and the manufacturing of bunnies and colorful plastic eggs rising. A market has arisen for Easter themed toys as well as kits for dyeing eggs. As a result, it is increasingly easier to celebrate Spring.

It is good to look back on the roots of these holidays as we prepare to welcome warmer weather and the rebirth of nature once again so that we can better understand where these traditions and holidays come from, and maybe even pick up some new traditions along the way.