{shortcode-ecd97686a0e497837d3f8d5f60d197b40215d3d3}BANGALORE, India—The summer has begun to feel like spring break, but in the opposite way. Instead of who’s having the most fun, it’s who’s doing the coolest job—my never-ending envy goes to every travel writer. Remember in April, when you’d run into people during the semester and they’d ask, “What are your summer plans?” You hate that question, but you manage an answer, and they tell you what wonderful thing they’re up to.

Come June, you’ve forgotten the polite exchanges about all-important summer plans. But Instagram will remind you. Facebook will remind you. Summer envy isn’t about working; it’s about looking like you’re working, in the most glamorous way possible.

There is very little that’s photogenic about working from home. I spend most days on the couch with my laptop, reading in sweatpants. But at the risk of sounding cheesy, the couch is rewarding in its own way. Free time is its own heady thing, and my goals are now reading, writing, and staying hydrated—not necessarily in that order. And with all the time to think—which is so rare during the semester—I remember that I’m lucky for the time to think. I’m lucky in that I don’t have to work a summer job; lazing around my living room only risks my mother’s annoyance. So I try not to pull up LinkedIn, and instead I give myself over to that slow daze.

Plus, the couch is really comfortable.

Stuti R. Telidevara ’20, a Crimson Blog Chair, is an English concentrator in Cabot House.