It’s coming! It’s coming! The most glorious month of school is coming. Ladies and gentlemen, we are only 17 days from Tiger Tunes. Tunes practices are finally starting. I was hit with the memories of meeting some of my favorite people and practicing fun, pun-filled lyrics. Along with all of those great memories, I also remember being completely overwhelmed with balancing homework, Tunes and a million other things. With 15 hours of practicing a week, trying to get homework done can be super stressful, but here are a few ways that I survived Tunes.
1. DO WORK EARLY. If you know you’re going to have a paper or a big test, *cough cough Contemporary World map test*, while you are practicing or performing Tunes, go ahead and start working on it. You’ll be surprised how fast things like that sneak up on you and you’ll save yourself a lot of stress in the long run if you start working on things the minute they get assigned to you.
2. TAKE YOUR HOMEWORK TO PRACTICES. You get more breaks than you may think so take your homework to all of your practices and crack open your books whenever you get the chance. Even if you don’t get breaks you can leave straight from practice to the library.
3. STUDY WITH PEOPLE WHO ARE IN YOUR TUNES SHOW AND YOUR CLASSES. Study groups will save your life and your GPA. Bonding over classes and professors is how you’ll make a lot of your friends. I probably would have failed Contemporary World if it wasn’t for my fellow CM Stars who were also freaking out about the map test.
4. BRING SNACKS. Yeah, you’ll get hungry. Grab a granola bar, chips, apples or pick up some Chicken Express; whatever it is, you’ll be happy you have something. If you’re dancing and singing for 3-4 hours, you are going to want a snack. P.S. bring extra and make friends.
5. KNOW WHEN IT’S BETTER TO SLEEP THAN STAY UP. This goes beyond surviving Tiger Tunes but goes into surviving college in general. If it is 2am and you cannot keep your eyes open, GO TO SLEEP. You won’t be able to produce quality homework or remember anything you read. Get some sleep and wake up early if you have to.
6. LEARN TO LIKE COFFEE. Enough said. Truly a life saver. It was during Tiger Tunes last year when I discovered my love for Dr. Jacks. I have so much love for the people that work there and mad respect for their Americano making capabilities.
7. BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE PEOPLE YOU’RE AROUND. I had no clue who I saw standing beside in all of these dances and I thought it would be awkward to strike up conversation, but, guess what, you’re about to spends HOURS with those people, so just get past it and meet new friends. I clearly remember the people I stood by and I am good friends with them to this day.
8. UNDERSTAND HAVING A STRESSFULL WEEK OR WEEKS DOES NOT DEFINE YOU AS A STUDENT. This is another one that goes beyond Tunes and goes into college life. Your mental health is way more important than grades. Everyone has an off week here or there; don’t beat yourself up too much. Just get back on the horse.
9. RATIONALIZE WHEN YOU’RE FEELING STRESSED. Tunes is only for a few weeks. Its stressful and time consuming, but it is only a few weeks. The memories I made and people I met were worth every all-nighter and freak-out.
10. TUNES IS SUPPOSED TO BE FUN! Tiger Tunes is fun and do not let it be stressful. The practices, the rehearsals, the performances and the countless late night Waffle House trips after practice are all completely priceless to me and I cannot wait to do it all again.
Tiger Tunes is an incredible experience. The next 17 days bring the student body together like nothing else on campus. Not only is it an enjoyable show to be a part of but you get to help keep some of your classmates and very best friends stay at Ouachita. Raising student scholarships has never been so much fun.
