6 Ways to Beat Finals and Holiday Stress on a Budget

By: Brittany Wojcicki

University of Illinois, Class of 2014

(Editor's note: Again, I know this is a little late, but it's a pretty good one. And besides, why should we not bake cookies and give each gifts year round?)

1. Eat the cookies that your friends and family give you during exams…you’ll need a glucose surge when you can’t remember the glycolysis pathway.

2. Regifting saves both time and money! If you can radiograph the present before opening, then you save wrapping too!

3. Buying gifts online can save time, but shipping can cost a bundle! Using gifts from your pantry saves time and money if you can whip up a fruit basket or cheese and cracker basket before it goes bad. Deliver before expiration date.

4. Christmas caroling doesn’t have to be a thing of the past. Change your voicemail to you and your dog singing “Silent Night” and you’ll carol to all your family and friends you ignore while you’re at the library.

5. Who has time to comb out the cat and your hair during finals to take Christmas card pictures? Facebook or twitter is bound to have one decent picture before you’ve gained finals/holiday weight. If not,www.elfyourself.com still hasn’t gotten old.

6. By now you’ve taken at least one of these tips to heart and won’t read past 5 anyways. Happy Holidays and good luck on finals!

Ready for Anesthesia

By: Melissa Baker

Ross University, Class of 2012

If only they could come to school and make all those dots for you!

Christmas Karma

By: Scott Dudis

Cornell University, Class of 2014

Remembering perspective is, perhaps, the best way to deal with stress. As exams were wrapping up this December, I was thinking about wrapping up presents and packing a suitcase as I bragged to “less fortunate” classmates whom I knew were scheduled in the clinic on the holiday. I boasted that I would be home, with my family, enjoying my time off. Instead of surprises in the form of many glorious gifts, I was visited by the Ghost of Christmas Irony as I, too, spent several hours at the emergency animal hospital with my own dog, all night on December 25^th. In short, she apparently decided it was Santa who had left her a small box of Dove Dark Chocolate Truffles under the tree, not one of my relatives who had, in fact, accidentally left it unattended while we were all away.

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Finals and Stress

By: Stephanie Silberstang

Cornell University, Class of 2013

(Editor's note: I know the holidays are long past us, but finals never are. Just remember to take time for yourself!)

In order to deal with finals and holiday stress, I have realized that I must focus on the little things. This idea took many years to come to me, I realized it halfway through my 4-year undergraduate education. I have never been one to go home for the four week break and relax, although I always want that. Instead, I somehow manage to overbook myself with too many plans that overlap and must be executed perfectly in order to work. For example, this winter break I went skiing, visited my friend for Christmas, went to New York City for a week and took a two week trip to Honduras to learn and improve my wildlife handling skills. These activities all took place within days of each other, and although they were all relaxing as separate activities, I was continuously  thinking of the next step and planning ahead. Not to mention this whirlwind of a winter break directly followed the stress that comes with the end of every semester: finals. They require hour after hour of studying, long nights in the library, and neglect of other areas in my life that would keep me happier and healthier.

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Veterinary Forensics Conference

Do you watch Animal Cops and wish there was something you could do to bring about justice??  Here’s your chance! Check out the International Veterinary Forensic Sciences Association annual conference coming up May 2-4^th, 2011 in Orlando, Florida. The conference is geared towards veterinarians (and veterinary students!), animal control officers, shelter workers, prosecutors, as well as those involved in human forensics. It is extremely informative and a great way to connect with people currently working in this new and rapidly growing field!!

Just a quick blurb about veterinary forensics: this is a collaborative field that integrates knowledge from human forensics with veterinary science in order to better substantiate evidence of animal cruelty. Animal cruelty laws are growing and gaining increased reputation, but law enforcement needs the help of veterinarians to prosecute cases of animal abuse. Think things will never change? Think again! During the Michael Vick trial, Vick's attorneys had a solid plan to plead not-guilty up until they received the veterinarian's report. It was so thorough that Vick’s attorneys knew they wouldn’t stand a chance, and thus decided to plead guilty! 

For more info about the conference, visit the IVFSA website at: www.ivfsa.org