Mastering the Art of E-Week

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E-Week 2019

A complete guide to help thrive during e-week by one who has done far too many event weeks to count.

Holy cow lentils and gentles E-WEEK is approaching hella fast! Now I know many of you are embarking on your first adventure and you are filled with excitement and a little bit of anxiety from the unknown. Fear not we’ve all had those thoughts… “will my body survive so many events” “am I going to get lost in Montreal” “what if I lose my phone” “holy shit I got too drunk last night how will I ever survive century club” “will I fail all my classes” “my shirt is going to smell so bad by like day two” “what the hell is a boat race”... and if you didn’t my apologies for putting them in your head… BUT FEAR NOT!!! Some of us have done a E-week or too many and have acquired some EXTREMELY helpful tips over the years. Trust me, I have tried to not listen to these and when I do I realize how great they are. I have done my research and conducted many trials and am ready to release my recommendations.

XOXO yours truly,
Sammy

Tip 1: Fanny Pack

This tip is by far the most important, a fanny pack will help you not lose anything and makes dancing easy peasy! Don’t have a fanny pack? Ask to borrow one from a friend or check Ardenes (or apply for frosh leader next year). Still don’t have one? Fear not try to carry everything in your pockets, a cloth backpack or a small purse/bag. Essentials: What to put in your fanny pack that you now have? Don’t worry I’ll tell you!

1. Try not to over pack! This will make it hard to take things out and you’re more likely to drop things!
2. Plastic baggie- great to put your cards and money in rather than your bulky wallet, great place for your phone when it gets a little wet n wild

Portable phone charger/ charging cord- during e-week days away from you home are longer and you won’t have as many chance to charge your phone. You don’t want to be stuck with a dead phone trying to call an uber! This is also something you can share with friends so you don’t all have to carry one.

1. Snack- Eating can be hard when you’re out and about and it’s easy to forget i will stress this a lot (especially for girls) DO NOT FORGET TO EAT! You will be more tired and lose energy fast! A great way to help this is carry something tasty such as a granola bar, gummys, gold fish or any small pre packed snack that you can grab and go
2. Lip chap- Your lips and wheels will thank me later. Trust me dehydration and the weather will wreck them.
3. Oral rehydration tables or packets- This might be one you haven’t heard of but I swear by these! They are essentially concentrated electrolytes that you mix with water. Essential when you are out and about forgetting to drink water, it’s better than gatorade and worth the money! (disclaimer: they taste salty because that’s what rehydrates you) If you are prone to dehydration I really encourage you try these, they help fight that hangover)

Print off schedule- This is another one that most people don’t think of, having a copy of the eweek schedule AND your class schedule (if you plan to go). This helps keep you from having to check your phone which kills the battery faster!

1. Customize to your needs- Long hair? Bring hair elastics. Always have hangover headache? Bring advil. Are you sweaty? Bring a mini deodorant. Sleeping at someone else's? Bring a mini toothbrush. Lose you voice a lot? Bring cough drops. Do you or a friend sometime drink too much / you are the mom? Bring a plastic bag (the uber driver will thank you). This is your fanny pack afterall!

Tip 2: Eating

This may seem like it isn’t something you have to prepare for or think about but TRUST me it is. Beer gives you calories which tend to fill you up so it’s really easy to forget to eat! It also gets really expensive when you go to chef on call every night of eweek. Now it is technically possible to live for a month on only beer but your body will absolutely hate you.

1. PREPARE FOR EWEEK! I cannot stress this enough, you need to prepare. You need to go grocery shopping with eweek in mind. Meal prep!
2. Don’t buy produce- Alright let me be real here “new year new me” yeah fuck that. Don’t even try, that cucumber WILL GO BAD before you get a chance to eat it. I myself try this every year and it doesn’t work. Buy that cucumber the week after e-week. If you must buy produce buy stuff that doesn’t go bad quickly like apples or carrots or things you can freeze like bananas or things that pack easy like clementines. Now if you attempt to be that instagram goddess during eweek and eat your kale props to you and I hope if goes well.
3. Meal Prep- Take the day before eweek to make some food that you know you can eat good examples are:
   • A fuckton of pasta: Make a batch and reheat it as you need, put some veggies in it to stay a little healthy.
   • Chili: This reheats well and is easy to eat
   • Soup: I owe my life to soup. It has kept me alive in some rough times and I wholeheartedly stand by that. Brothy soups tend to be best for a hangover because of the salt, try chicken noodle, italian wedding or pho.
   • Remember as the week goes on eating gets a little harder so make sure it’s stuff you enjoy.
4. Think like you’re on day 4 when buying- This has probably been the best tip I’ve ever gotten, think about how you feel after you’ve been out / drinking a lot, that is what you should buy. If after a long night out you don’t like kale salad you probably won’t after four days of being out. You also have to think that you won’t have a lot of time to prep so you need things that are fast and to go! Try to get things that keep well. Some good suggestions:
   • Dumplings
   • Kraft Dinner
   • Canned soup or lipton soup packs
   • Microwave meals
   • Chicken nuggets
   • Frozen Pizza
   • Bagels
5. Snacks- Grab some food that you can take to go or put in your fanny pack. Like oranges, apples, gold fish, granola bars, crackers and anything you’d want in your lunch as a small child.

Eat when drunk- You know when you’re drunk and you’re so fucking hungry? Make sure to eat then! Don’t try to just sleep and eat in the morning because it will be real hard to eat with that hangover.

1. Drinks- Stock up on gatorade or gatorade powder or even better pedialyte. As someone who’s really suffered from dehydration you gotta keep those kidneys happy and healthy. PRO TIP: pedialyte makes freezies and they are the greatest thing ever when you wake up with a hangover.

Tip 3: What to wear

I get it you’re trying to look cute for that person in your calc class who you’ve had your eye on all year but listen comfort and practicality is key.

1. Wear comfy clothes: leggings are great (even for guys). Athletic wear like lululemon is the best, you’ll see me living in my lulus during e-week. The best are ones with phone pockets.
2. Comfy shoes: You’ll be on your feet all day so make sure to wear something that doesn’t hurt your feet. Also don’t wear shoes you care about because they will get dirty. Crocs are GREAT for century club and cost 2$ at dollarama.
3. Wear your shirt in the shower: Your shirt will get covered in beer and start to smell sometimes, if you can’t stand it wear it in the shower at night and let it dry overnight.
4. Dress warm: Remember you will have to coat check so make sure you have somewhere to put your hats and mittens. There is a chance that your coat could get lost so try not to bring one that is too valuable. Make sure to check the forecast and dress accordingly.
5. Power hour

Tip 4: Getting home

This for some people seems like common sense but I’m going to cover all the bases here.

1. Have a buddy- Doesn’t have to be your best friend just someone you trust and lives near you. (talk to a captain if you don’t know anyone)
2. Avoid walking alone: use drive safe / walk safe- McGill provides these services to keep you safe so use them!
3. Plan before you go out- knowing how you’ll get home early can be really helpful if you drink too much. Make a plan and stick to it.

Tip 5: Other random shit

Save the schedule as photo