Good to see ya wall! It’s been a minute since I have been here. I am approaching second semester senior year and want to know if you know of any randomly fun adventures? I’m talking random like a scavenger hunt, secret room, or any other cool little trinket of a memory I can hold onto amongst unemployment.

You can roam the world to your heart’s content on Google Earth in satellite view and street view. Add a gaming aspect to your explorations with GeoGuessr (the free version has become very limited, though). Add audio with a radio station from anywhere:bit.ly/RadioOptions.

It’s very hard to choose. I have to say Vision’s aptitude for problem solving and lifting moods is very easy to appreciate.

Best? Objectively? Difficult to say. You might be interested in this discussion of objectivity and taste in Hume and Kant: bit.ly/ObjectiveTaste. But I will put it out there that there’s a WALLa WALLa Cheese Company. Long lost cousin of mine….?

Genetic research indicates that Australia’s greater glider is actually three species, so there are two new extremely cute flying marsupials. https://bit.ly/bc-gliders

Pasta Fagioli 
Laaa-sagna!
Chicken sorrentino 
Vodka rigatoni 
Al—-fredo! 

al fresco!  (or else Quarantino!)

of course it can be nearly impossible to say a person who has murdered babies and laughed at them has “good” in them. So, what type of good do you think lays in the midst of murderers, or people who have impacted others negatively? Also, what makes something good and something bad?

If you believe humans have the capacity to change, then everyone has the capacity to be a better (or worse) person than they once were, and shouldn’t be defined only by the worst thing they’ve ever done. It’s an open question how societies respond to destructive behavior, which is one way of defining good or bad. Once upon a time, it was commonly accepted worldwide that a nation had the authority to execute people; now that’s relatively rare, though it’s still a legal remedy in some US states. IOW, opinions differ. Here are 800 books at BC Libraries on the topic of capital punishment: bit.ly/bcl-capital-punishment

As long as I can remember, I’ve had trouble shutting off my mind to get to sleep. One night, for some reason, I tried to die by willing my heart to stop. I didn’t die. But I went right to sleep. Since then, I’ve been doing the same thing to get to sleep almost every night. I’ve never slept better. I promise I’m NOT suicidal. I’m happy and productive during my waking hours. But I worry. Am I harming my psyche, could I actually induce depression or real suicidality by doing this?

Yikes – as you say, sounds ominous. I’m very glad you’re not suicidal, but since you are worried about harming your psyche (and I am, too), why not contact University Counseling Services (bit.ly/BC-counseling) and run it by them. Discuss your sleep problems, too. They may have some good suggestions for you.

Just to make sure he is straight. I know I can just ask him, but, well… no. If it is fine, and legal, to check his hystery, then I will do that. (I know that looking at somenes pornography hystery is kinda..you know…creepy… but I really want to be sure.) And he might as well be a maniac who deletes all traces, so then this question may be un-needed.

I can understand the urge to reduce your emotional risk, but, it is none of your business whether he is gay or not, so any sleuthing to determine that is inappropriate. Your motivation to know seems to be because you’re interested in dating him. If that is true, you should just tell him you’re interested in more than friendship, and let him respond. Regarding searching his phone, that’s a really bad idea for a few reasons. It’s almost certainly illegal in several ways. Even if it weren’t, it would be an invasion of privacy to snoop through someone’s phone for anything, much less something as personal as their browsing history. Hard to see how doing that as the first step in a possible relationship makes any sense.

Woodchuck is not into hypotheticals. Woodchuck is getting psyched about hibernation right now. The “wood” part of the name comes from the Native American name, anyway. More fun whistle-pig facts: bit.ly/woodchuckfacts

I’ve been struggling a lot with my sexuality lately– trying to be straight, failing at that– and I’m just kind of afraid of being out on campus. I know I’m not supposed to care about what others think, wall, but it’s difficult when you’re already viewed as a quirky girl to slap ‘openly queer’ onto your image. I’m afraid that my friends will treat me differently, because there’s still a lot of casual homophobia floating around. I don’t want to be different, I just want to be myself, wall. How do I build up the confidence to do that? xo

You are right, the outside weather doesn’t matter much to me, but I’m very attached to a wall that cares a lot about the weather. More importantly, it’s understandable to be concerned about coming out on campus and how your friends will react. It sounds like this is new to you as well. My advice is to give it the time it needs, both to feel comfortable with whatever sexuality you decide fits you and for you to let others know. There is no deadline for doing this, and you may decide that some people never need to know. When you’re ready to start telling others, one helpful strategy is to begin with those who you think are most likely to be supportive. They can help build your confidence. Once you have a few people on your side, it is easier to start talking to more people.

Do you think Bryson’s grip-it-and-rip-it strategy will fare well at Augusta?

It’s impossible to stay competitive in the Master’s without being able to keep up with those “grip-it-and-rip-it” shots, which Tiger Woods showed when he changed the way golf was played by doing just that. As long as he can maintain his short game, he’s got a chance. CBS Sports has some good analysis of what it could look like, hole by hole. http://bit.ly/bc-augusta.

I’m in medical school during fine, but I feel so stressed all the time, I don’t enjoy anything

Times are tough, and med school is no picnic, especially if you’re attending remotely. I’m sorry you feel so stressed and confused. Yes, I do feel like that from time to time. I hope it’s helpful to know that feelings like that are temporary. Here’s a helpful twitter thread by a crisis doctor about hitting limits: http://bit.ly/6-month-wall. Wherever you’re at med school, I’m sure they have a counseling center. Use it. And talk to friends and family to get grounded. If there’s a way to get together with other med students, even if it’s zoom dinners, do that, too. Connections with other people are vital.

I exist as a collaboration between you and my library helpers. Your question is filtered through my experience and that of my helpers, and I can only speak through them. Because I have lots of help I have lots of perspectives, but never all. That’s why I try to cite my sources, so you can help assess whether I’m missing something.

Students need the spring break in between a long semester, and I want to spend my birthday on campus (which is usually the first week of spring semester …)

The University’s revised calendar was set to try to minimize the possibility of bringing infected students back to campus after breaks. It’s going put a dent into plans and require some (continuing) sacrifice; you have my sympathy!. I suggest you declare that your pandemic birthday is a week later this year, so you can celebrate here.

I’m sorry you’re on the struggle bus. Many are there with you. Keep in mind that he basis of stability during uncertain times is *not* certainty: it’s building trust and connections with others, so you can share your burdens. Do whatever you can to maintain connections with others and build trusting relationships. If you’re not sure how to do that or have some mental or emotional barriers, seek counseling. If you’re part of the BC community: bit.ly/BC-counseling. Here are some additional resources at BC: bit.ly/BC-stayconnected. I have faith that you’ll find connections and that they’ll help.

I got a 151 the first time and waiting on the second score. Should I take a year off and study for it again (even if it makes me very unhappy)? or should I just focus on the other aspects of my application and apply?

I’m not a lawyer, so I’ll answer it two ways. First, it looks like the score you need to have depends a lot on what program you’re applying to. http://bit.ly/bc-lsat and http://bit.ly/bc-lsat2. Second, and this is a little more my area. Take a close look at what makes you feel dumb and depressed about the test and think about what’s bothering you about it. Make sure it’s the test and not something else. I’m a little concerned about the idea of intentionally spending a year doing something that makes you unhappy, but you know best what’s right for you.

It wouldn’t make much sense for international students like me to travel all the way back home and quarantine for 14 days (or potentially in isolation longer if you test positive) then come back to quarantine for another 14 days in Boston… That means being locked up for the entire winter break… Neither the flight ticket nor booking an airbnb off-campus for a month seem very cost-efficient. Actually, being locked up in a psych ward seem to be more economy (with the insurance coverage)and potentially gives me slightly more freedom (at least patients are entitled to outdoor fresh air time) than all the other options (quarantine + rent or flight ticket)?! The only problem is that I seem to have terrible relationship with the people/system who facilitate that process. E.g. Neither the officer nor the hospital people seem to be happy about me at all … It would be really amazing if students can stay on campus, or maybe I can try to hide on campus?

I totally understand the problems with coming and going & quarantine. These questions quickly get into the weeds of immigration policy and BC residence policies, so this wall has to refer you to the OISS office bcis@bc.edu and Office of Residential Life: reslife@bc.edu. It might also be worth contacting the Office of Student Outreach & Support: student.support@bc.edu. Good luck! I hope you can make arrangements that work for you.

Sounds like a great plan. And ps. The officers on campus are super nice and very chill. I once spilled my skinny latte on their cruiser and they had zero resentment. But hey maybe down the road pay a visit to your ol mom she would enjoy seeing you.

Spilling your skinny latte sounds like its own punishment to me. I do plan to visit Mom, the seawall, some day soon when the winds, tides,and waves are all favorable. Fortunately, it’s all outdoors and distanced, and I don’t think there’s any evidence of wall to wall transmission.

Our country grows so divided while it seems like neither party actually cares about anyone. Both sides are equally guilty and equally inept. Everyone says a third party vote is a vote for Trump, but how can we ever break out of this horrible system unless people have the courage to vote third party? Seems like circular logic to me.

Third parties have a tough time in American politics. There are lots of them, but the two major parties write the rules. Massachusetts’ ballot question #2 is whether to approve ranked choice voting, which is one common suggestion to allow people more freedom to vote for their preferred candidate rather than the best one they think can win. There’s a detailed explanation of how it would work here: http://bit.ly/bc-mass-voter. Please don’t take that as an endorsement, there are pros and cons to it (see coverage here: http://bit.ly/bc-question2), but your question is a timely one. And vote in local races–third parties are often very significant locally. That’s how you start to make a national case for your ideas.