I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. I was really surprised the other day when I found out that this is going to be the last issue of Interrobang until the next term. I mean, I know what they say about assuming, so you don't mean to mention it, but it really didn't occur to me that the paper would stop while the students were gone.

Let's not talk about it like it's a bad thing, though; I could not be more pleased that the break is finally here, and I'm sure that if you've been as busy in your program as I have in mine, then this break feels long overdue. I've put in more all-nighters in the last couple weeks than I have all year, and I'm all wound up, just waiting to relax.

And that's going to be the hugest part, the part you need to make sure you do, too. I know that for a lot of people the Christmas break doesn't mean they get to shut down, but I really recommend making some time just for you so that you can really unwind. Make it a new tradition, even — not like this isn't the perfect time of year to do so.

I used to have this one tradition, when I was a kid: every year, my mom would put on this old Christmas record by Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton — called Once Upon A Christmas — and make me sing one of the album's duets with her. I can remember I wasn't crazy about country music, but this was all Christmas music, so there was no big deal.

At least once a year, the record would come out and I would be a mini-Kenny, singing The Greatest Gift or something similar. Until I was a teenager and I didn't want to anymore, that is, which she eventually accepted. A few years ago, though, I was spending Christmas alone, and got this urge to hear the record again —I found it online, available legally, though I now have no idea where that was.

The point is tradition is a powerful thing; like a magnetic force screwing up a compass, that feeling of tradition can go a long way to making your surroundings feel like home. So whether you're going back home for Christmas or stuck in London, separated from or smothered by loved ones, you should really try just chilling out in your room alone for as least as long as it takes to listen to one full album of your choosing. Make this a new tradition, I'd wager you'll find yourself much more relaxed when you come back in a month.

Some suggested chill listening: Carol King's Tapestry, Death Cab For Cutie's The Photo Album, Iron and Wine's The Shepherd's Dog, The Junior Varsity's Wide Eyed, Silverchair's Diorama.

Any or all of those will serve you real well over the break. Rest up and be safe, I'll still be right here in a month. I miss you already! Just kidding, I'm out of words.