Time-Killers and The Benefits of Having Them

Ways to Kill Time in College

Caution: Students with ambition and goals beware; reading of the article could damage work ethic.

College is a time for students to grow in both character and intelligence, but what happens when a student is either too tired to learn or simply “learned out” for the day. This is where he/she uses the ability to kill time to his/her advantage. Despite the fact that classes may be hard, everyone needs time to unwind and relax and killing time is the best way to do so.

The most common way that I have killed time to this point in the semester is to find a group of friends and to hang out with them. Having friends that have similar interests as me has made life on Virginia Tech’s campus exponentially easier and more fun. Whether it’s playing NCAA Football 2010 on the Xbox, or hanging out watching Transformers, some of the best times that I’ve had on campus have been with my friends. In the category of finding friends I suggest you find a clique and expand from there. I knew very few people entering Virginia Tech, being that I was from New Jersey, but I met some people when I got down here and through social networking I was introduced to a fraternity. I rushed the fraternity and was given a bid, which I quickly accepted. I was now friends with both the people I met back on campus and people in the fraternity. By finding a clique, gaining a larger social network becomes possible, and therefore the possibility to kill more time is present.

However, chilling with friends is very broad and therefore should be used to kill time while doing other activities. One of such previously activities was video games. Video games can chew through entire days, maybe even weeks if you find a good game. Some recent games have taken bites out of my schedule. NCAA Football 2010 has taken a lot of my time of late, simply because I wish to create an alternate reality in the video game where Virginia Tech is an unbeatable, unstoppable, and formidable collegiate dynasty. I also play a lot of FIFA 2010 which is simply a good game to play with my bros because of its exciting party sports genre. My game that I play at the fraternity house with fraternity friends is Rock Band, which I highly recommend for anyone looking to pick up playing a fake instrument. It is the best party game and is extremely fun when playing with a group of people. There are also other games which I don’t play such as World of Warcraft and Halo that are huge reasons why people can’t get work done on time.

Aside from video games, movies and television shows are also effective time killers. Popular television shows for young adults have been shown to be SportsCenter, Gossip Girl, Melrose Place, Friday Night Lights, and Greek. Although it has been known to be difficult for college students to keep up with the live showings of their favorite shows, technology has helped this problem. HULU.com is an internet site, completely legal, that allows people to watch previous episodes of their favorite shows that they may have missed or want to watch again. I have used this resource often this semester, most commonly to catch up on Greek. Instead of spending a ton of money on seasons on DVD (money which is often unavailable to college students) student should visit HULU, to save a few bucks and kill some precious time as well.

Listening to and playing music is a great way to pass the time. Music is both an outlet for emotional expression and a way to do/listen to something when there is nothing else to do. Music choices for people often depend upon a person’s background. Though, for me, I listen to a music genre and artist which appeals to my current mood. If I’m down I might go more along the lines of Coheed and Cambria, and other emo bands. If I’m upbeat and feeling good I might go with rock bands that play music about living life to its fullest. A perfect example is Poison and their song “Nothin’ but a Good Time”. When I just feel like chilling I listen to some deep hip-hop and rap beats. I recommend music to anyone looking for a way to kill time while walking to class or riding the bus to the Math Emporium. Aside from just listening to music, playing an instrument is also a great way chew up time. A couple of the more popular instruments for college students are guitars and harmonicas. Harmonicas are growing in popularity amongst students for primarily two reasons. One reason being that the harmonica is so small and portable that people can basically bring it anywhere with being over-encumbered. The guitar is popular because of its easy ability to pick up and play but also because of the amount of time it takes to master. Word on the street is that the ability to play an instrument is seen as attractive in the opposite genders eyes… so if you’re single but looking for a partner maybe it’s time to get playing.

Moving on to boyfriends and girlfriends; they are the most time consuming nonacademic factors in a college student’s life. BF and GF take tons of time and commitment. Whether it is walking to class together, or taking a significant other out to lunch or dinner, couples spend a ridiculous amount of time together. If you often find yourself looking for something to do, look into finding a BF/GF because all that precious free time you once had will go out the window in a hurry.

Sports and physical activity is a great way to get both physically fit and spend some time in a positive manner. Unlike most of the time killing strategies discussed, this approach has the best overall outcome in the long run. Working out can put you in a positive state of mind and help you get fit. Sports do the same thing as working out except for that fact that it is not as schedule flexible. Sports also help social networking related back to the friends’ aspect of killing time. Both sports and working out can both help you get in shape and eat up time.

The final way to kill time is definitely the least advised way to do so. You have the option to kill time by doing recreational drugs… but it’s not a good idea. Reasons against it include, possible loss of friends, failing out of school, running into trouble with the cops, possible arrest, and possible addiction. I strongly disapprove of the use of recreational drugs as time killers.

Overall remember the following ways to kill time and you’ll never find yourself wondering what to do at any point in time.
• Video Games
• Friends
• Television
• Movies
• Listening to Music
• Playing an Instrument
• Having a Boy/Girlfriend
• Sports and Physical Activity
• Recreational Drugs***

***Probable negative effects