I try to accomplish a few things each day by setting small goals for myself. The goals always seem to be a variation of turning my work in on time, understanding the lessons and making it to each class without any injuries.

On a perfect day, I can find a clear path through the herd of students who gather beside the elevator, and on an average day, I am lucky if I can get past without a few scrapes and bruises. However, on bad days, I’m fortunate if I can get away with my life.

I can understand wanting to talk to friends between classes, but what I do not understand is the apparent need to all congregate in the same place. If the mob of students would just relocate only thirty feet north, there would be more room to “move about the cabin,” and I, along with the other innocent schoolchildren, would be able to get to class without the usual wounds.

The same thing can be said for the upstairs. There is a whole other side where students may assemble and/or get to class without harm. There is often talk of this school being “too small,” but really there is plenty of room. We just do not know how to take advantage of every inch of it. Instead, we decide to fit all of us into one 10×10 foot square.

In case you are not good at math, THAT IS NOT ENOUGH SPACE.

Hallways are also meant to be safe when used correctly. For those who can drive, think about the hall like a two-way road, and for those who cannot drive, take this as a lesson for when driver’s education classes begin. People drive on the right side of the road. Therefore, students should walk on the right side of the hallway. Driving in the left-hand lane often results in a head-on collision and probable injuries. Suddenly pressing the brake results in a rear-end crash, and stopping in the hallway to talk to a friend and/or engage in PDA (which, by the way, is gross) ends with someone colliding with your back and an awkward “sorry.”

If readers are anything like me, they would rather not weave through the masses and avoid uncomfortable interaction which comes from accidentally touching a stranger’s backside. The solution for this is as simple as finding a different way to the next period or agreeing with your friends to meet at a certain lunch table to talk in between classes. This way, people with claustrophobia will be at ease and the bruises on my shoulders will finally begin to fade.