News Associate Editor
Everyone has a time for work and a time for play. But an increasing number of Choate students are putting the “pro” in procrastination. It is becoming harder and harder to pass through a day at Choate without hearing the mention of late-night Halo, Kristin and L.C., the whole cast of Lost, Wisteria Lane, or Seth Cohen.
“It’s better than homework,” said self-acclaimed Halo champion Chris Danner ’06. Halo, the popular video game follows the path of the Master Chief, its charismatic protagonist. After a Covenant flagship lands on the weapons platform orbiting Earth, the Chief tries to repel the attack on the city of New Mombasa. The game then follows the Chief to Delta Halo, where Master Chief kills one of the Covenant’s three High Prophet leaders, which starts a civil war. Master Chief and another character named the Arbiter then realize that the Prophets really just want to activate Delta Halo, which would cause every emotionally responsive organism in the galaxy to die. “It’s really just about killing people. The person who gets the most kills wins,” explained Danner.
Since Choate students play Halo on Xbox, they can enjoy the game with other members of the community even after lights out. Supposedly, coming up with the playing names is one of the most fun parts; some boys even play under the names of female students, or even teachers.
A more common form of procrastination for female Choate students is watching the television shows “Laguna Beach” and “The O.C.” Every girl on campus seems to be searching for her very own Seth Cohen and every guy dreams of having a Marisa. “The O.C.” follows the life of Ryan Atwood, a poor boy from Chino who gets adopted by his rich lawyer from Newport Beach. Atwood then becomes a member of the Newport Beach social scene with all of its joys and trials. Students have been obsessed with the television show since early last year and have since created groups on Facebook.com called “The O.C. = Obsessed Completely” and “Welcome to the O.C.”
MTV’s response to “The O.C.” is “Laguna Beach,” which is also very popular on campus. “Laguna Beach” is a reality show that follows the life of high school juniors and seniors in Orange County, who have spectacular parties, gaudy houses, and extravagant clothes. After several months worth of episodes, the words “gnarly,” “stoked,” and “dude” have slowly creeped into Choatie’s New England vocabulary.
Yet another popular TV show is “24,” the action- packed drama series following Jack Bauer, the head of a Counter Terrorism Unit. Bauer is faced with terrorist threats against the country, and saves the day everyday. “Jack is the man,” said “24” fan Sam Sabky ’07. “24 is ill...better than taffy. And I love taffy,” said “24” buff Anthony DePietto ’07, “There’s a lot of twists and turns, there’s betrayal, there’s love, there’s sadness, there’s suspense... there’s everything.”
Another drama that has attracted a large following is “Lost”, which Eddie Choi ’06 described as “a lot of hot people stuck on an island.” All the people trapped on the island seem to be connected by a mysterious number. “‘Lost’ is beautiful,” said Ben Mays ’06.
Since the introduction of iTunes 6.0.1., television veiwing has become even more prevalent on campus. Students can buy “The Office,” “Desperate Housewives,” and “Lost” all from the privacy of their own dorm room. “The Office,” the American version with Steve Carrell, might just be the best sitcom since Seinfeld. “Desperate Housewives” also has quite a following on campus and what could be wrong with affairs, murder, and arson all set on Wisteria Lane in suburbia?
With the help of our Xboxes, DVD players, and iTunes, procrastination has become a lot easier - and way more fun - to partake in. Whether it be a late night of Halo, or a Sunday afternoon filled with “24,” Choate students have found several forms of procrastination via entertainment.
