In addition, with more and more student services met through the fully automated system of Crimson Cash/Board Plus/Greenhouse Greenbacks/Whatever The Hell They Call It, students on break will have to resist the temptation to reach for a swipe card when wishing to open a door, take a Coke from the fridge or run a load of laundry. And there's no need to "term-bill" anything while at home; Mom's purse is only an arm's length away (too bad it's often accompanied by Mom).

Furthermore, it goes without saying that there is a whole vocabulary of vulgar words and phrases that are commonplace in college conversation but are less than appreciated in the daily interactions of home life. Terms like "response paper," "UC elections" and "Loker Commons" come to mind most immediately, but there are a host of others. Nor will your parents be particularly receptive to tales of college life involving wild nights of debauchery and hedonism. So tell your sister from Duke or Georgetown or whatever real colleges are out there to tone it down, or perhaps you can at least offer instead to recount (once again) the story of that one crazy night at Pinocchio's when they put cheese on your hamburger sub and failed to charge extra. Whooo, that was quite an evening.

Yes, living at home, even for the shortest period of time, can be quite a trying and uncomfortable experience after time at college. If the Thanksgiving break wasn't enough to convince you of that, just wait until winter break. In closing, I leave everyone with one piece of advice. Avoid referring to college as "home" in front of your parents--their reaction will be less than positive.

George W. Hicks '99-'00 is an economics concentrator in Winthrop House. His column appears on alternate Fridays.