This past weekend I went home to New York City, ready to experience all of the urban pleasures that make it my favorite place on earth. The only thing it’s missing is Ursa’s, with its moonlike mirrors, TVs, smoothies, friendly scoop-wielding ice cream people, endless toppings, scrumptious wraps and…!!!!

Ok, back to New York City, where gossip girl(s) rule and debutantes prance out of stretch limos into the nearest designer store with their Pomeranian poof balls plopped into their purses that probably cost more than 1,000 southwestern steak wraps and a couple of hot fudge brownie sundaes at Ursa’s. (Ursa apparently has a strong desire to make her name known among the Washington University populace. I’ll try to prevent her from name-dropping any further.)

For me, home is that New York, the Upper East Side exaggerated and parodied by the aforementioned “Gossip Girl,” which I have to admit is a fantastic show. It’s a world away from college, and I have found that, now, I have two homes, albeit very different ones.

What all of this brings me to ask is, “Why is fall break only one day?” I am a freshman, and when I saw fall break on my schedule I thought, “YAYYY FALL BREAK,” only to realize that I would only be receiving a measly Friday off. As far as I am concerned, fall break should be a substantial break, a chance for students to make that long journey home to balance the two worlds, the two homes, that they are living in.

Schools across the country on semester schedules often receive two days off, giving students time to really take a break and enjoy not being bound to class and schedules. Furthermore, after discussing this with multiple friends, I’ve heard that Friday tends to be an easy day. Many students organize their schedules so that they have limited or no classes on Friday in an effort to extend the weekend. I know that I have two hours of class on Friday, minimal amounts of time compared to the rest of my week. It seems to me that this fall break is essentially missing the point of a break. It is giving students what they already have. What would be a logical way to resolve this? I say student-wide revolt! No attendance until we get an extra day! Take it to the man, show Wash. U. who’s boss. When I get home, I want time to indulge in the superficial plasticity of my neighborhood and the vivacity of New York City and spend time with my family, dog and friends who are also making the trek home for the weekend.

Simply put, we students need a legitimate break. We work tirelessly striving for greatness at an institution that inspires greatness. But, unbelievably, we are human beings, not number-crunching, paper-writing machines. I’m sure no one would complain about an extra day to recuperate. This is a matter of utmost emergency! Screw the economy—what about travel days? People of Wash. U., and yes, you too Ursa, make a statement! Go to your senators; ask them to whine to the administration for you. This is a humanitarian issue. Fix it before it’s too late and you’re already back on that plane or jumping in the car to return home and you realize…it’s too soon; you’re not ready. You would love an extra night’s sleep in your own bed or delicious Chinese takeout (because your mother never cooked for you). So students, I implore you, jump on my bandwagon, quickly, before your enthusiasm fizzles out in five minutes.