Working in Murphy: A Senior Thesis Day Special

If I’m being honest, I don’t have many exciting stories from working in Murphy hall’s video equipment room. Shocker, I know. Not many people come up to ask for anything during my shifts, so I have played a lot of Pokémon Go and Cookie Run Kingdom on my phone. So, I was concerned about writing a piece about working here because I don’t think the general public wants to hear about my frustrations with beating certain Cookie Run levels or catching certain Pokémon.

Then, I have a shift the morning of the media and communications senior thesis presentation. I sat in the computer lab, as the people going in and out of the equipment room made me incredibly nervous, and watched from the sidelines as people set up their presentations. Well, I couldn’t really watch since my back was facing them all. I was listening as I sat there not doing much of anything.

My focus was directed to Pokemon Go and Cookie Run, as per usual. I am a creature of habit and, even with all of these people around me, I didn’t want to change that. Occasionally, I’d take my laptop out and make it seem as though I, too, was doing important work like the seniors around me. As a junior, I felt silly just sitting there as everyone worked their asses off.

Then, I heard panic set in. People began having trouble putting up their pieces or making some technology work or printing something out. They didn’t have very long before the oral part of their presentation began, only a mere few hours. I was too scared to turn around and see what was happening beyond my personal bubble, but from what I was able to hear things sounded intense. Without looking or even participating, even I began to panic.

That was going to be me in just a year. In only a year, I too would be sent into a frenzy of printing and presenting and panicking. It was a stunning realization. I could only sit there and listen for now, but in the blink of an eye I would be in their shoes.

The thoughts grew. What do I even do for my thesis project? What do I do for my paper? Hell, where am I even gonna look for an internship? How do I survive all of this at once if I’m hardly managing everything as it is right now?

The panic and stress behind me only got worse, which left me to worry more about the panic that was in front of me. It was becoming difficult to even pay attention to my silly little games or pretending to do homework. This former stable would be my grave one day, it seemed, and there was nothing for me to do about it. Failure, stress, and turmoil seemed inevitable with the approach of my senior year and the daunting presence that is senior thesis. What was I supposed to do?

The stress of everyone around me shifted as the hours passed. All of the sudden, panic turned into focus and fear turned into readiness. I began hearing more people say “This looks good!” and “I’m okay with how this turned out!”. The anxious stomping in and out of the lab began to feel more like the steps of people who were ready for whatever the day had to throw at them. Obviously, the nerves weren’t gone. They were still very much there. But they felt okay. Things were going to be okay. They had done so much and it showed.

I was overcome with relief for them. Not only that, but I relaxed at the thought of my own senior year. I would be okay, too. My work would get done and I would also eventually be ready to show it. I don’t need to know what I’m doing just yet because clearly whatever it is will strike me one day and it’ll get done. It won’t be easy and I may also have a breakdown in Murphy myself, but it will get done. If I can see that they’re okay, then I, too, will be okay.

As I sat and reflected on everything I had heard and basically the whole character arc I had gone through in 3 hours, everyone left to do their oral presentations. I was left alone to look back at my phone. Nothing there had really changed. There was still no work done on the blank word document that I had opened. But that word document has now become this article. What once was nothing now is something. Quite a touching story, if you ask me.

Thank god I worked on senior thesis day. Not completely because I feel slightly more at ease for what’s in store, but because I was given more content to work with in this piece. I’m eternally grateful for that.

Anyways, who wants to hear about my Cookie Run Kingdom team?

(Belle and Justina)