Didn't go anywhere for Spring Break? Neither did we.

Didn’t go anywhere for Spring Break? Neither did we.

 So you managed, by choice of course, to avoid the Woodstock reminiscent crowds, overpriced drinks and that painful burn (which, by the way, won’t even have time to turn into a tan as soon as you set foot back on the likely snow covered campus). Well, don’t worry; you’re certainly not alone. Lots of people don’t make it to Venice, Cali. or PC Beach but that doesn’t stop them from making the most of the best week of the year.

Citizens of New Orleans spent their break by participating in the annual New Orleans Literary Festival, which this year featured the Tennessee Williams, dare I say, “sporting-event” in which participants compete in the “Stell-Off.” The event is the finale of the literary festival in which individuals take the stage by yelling “Stella” as loud and as long as they possibly can, along with any theatrics or improvisations they choose. In doing so they imitate and pay homage to Williams’ scene in “A Streetcar Named Desire” in which Stanley calls to his wife, Stella (no brainer). As seen below, contestants go as far as ripping off their shorts in an attempt to win the grand prize: eternal glory and bragging rights. So next year forget about those overcrowded beaches, grab an economy flight to New Orleans and try your hardest to get Stella to come home.

Source and Image: http://www.nbcnews.com/travel/itineraries/stellaaaaa-shouting-contest-tears-nola-lit-fest-1C8985286

Screaming at the top of your lungs in front of hundreds of strangers not your thing? Perhaps you would fare better across the pond. Well, a little further than that, all the way to Sweden. Here you can spend your spring break with man’s four-legged friend competing in some agility– but you won’t find any Border Collies on this course.

Image: http://sandiegorabbits.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/bunhopping.jpg

Kaninhoppning is a popular sport in Sweden in which the handler and their… bunny… run through a course of jumps and hoops in hopes of being the fastest, floppiest and fuzziest. While the sport (this term seems to be used more and more loosely) is popular mainly in Sweden, Britain has been showing more and more support for the long-eared athletes and it is only a matter of time before the trend reaches the United States (probably the next event at Coachella).

Literature and lagomorphs still not your cup of tea for SB 2014? Perhaps you’d rather go check out the SPAM museum in Austin, Minnesota. I’ve been there myself and when the museum promises you the most “meaningful and meaty-filled” experience of your life they are not kidding. Short for spiced ham, SPAM is one of the forgotten delicacies of the free world, and perhaps just as convenient for college students as ramen noodles. Stop by and make sure to pay your respects to your life sustenance. As if you needed any more convincing, the museum is free! Minnesota might be the opposite direction as most spring break destinations, but that cool northern air means a toasty museum, and who’s to stop you from showing off that New Year’s body in a two-piece? Certainly not the SPAM museum.

Source: http://www.spam.com/spam-101/the-spam-museum

As spring break ends and classes resume, trust me, you’ll be glad to get back to school with clean laundry, cash in your wallet and no doubt a head start on your academics for the week! All the while those unfortunate souls who went south for the break will have a hard time adjusting to the lack of lobster and sun available at the University of Illinois. Who knows, maybe you’ll even become the next president of the rabbit agility RSO with your newly found passion. Now wouldn’t that look good on a resume?

-Nicole Moore     March 23rd, 2013