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Well, the world is in a bit of a strange state at the moment, but what is there to do except roll with the punches? Not much, the way I figure. Personally, I’ve been enjoying spending time with my siblings that I normally never have during the semester. 

This time is also great for catching up on your to-read or to-watch list. For the record, if there is anything you want to share with the greater campus community, send an email to campuslifeeditor@etown.edu and we can plan to fit your review into the schedule. 

This is also a wonderful opportunity to explore new hobbies, learn new skills or maybe just get some cleaning done. My brother has repainted his entire room since we’ve begun this house arrest of sorts. 

Whatever you’re getting up to, I think most activities are improved with some good jams playing. We all have different ideas of what jams are though, and now more than ever I think I should be writing for as broad an audience as possible. So, here are some thoughts and tips regarding music streaming. 

Let’s consider how you are streaming your music. When was the last time you tuned into the radio? Maybe that’s an unusual question, but there’s something exciting about hearing songs with genuinely no way to know what will come on. Even the largest playlists you’ve curated have still been run over with a fine tooth comb, and you’ve likely missed some songs you really enjoy or decided they don’t make sense for the playlist. There’s something really fun about listening to the radio, though. Hearing songs you only vaguely remember, or that you really enjoy but just forget about. I suppose this doesn’t really apply to the top hit stations, but genre specific or even variety stations can be a lot of fun. I would give specific station recommendations, but we’re all scattered to the wind, so I won’t bother giving you tips that won’t help you. 

Radio sound square to you? Well, you’re entitled to your opinion, but whatever. Let’s move to Spotify. I think most people our age prefer streaming their music via Spotify, myself included. I know Spotify Premium has a student discount, which is helpful. If you’re taking advantage of that, good for you! I still really can’t be bothered to pay for a monthly service though. So, here’s how to work with the free version of Spotify. First, Spotify Mobile is the worst thing ever, so let’s just get that out in the open first. It only shuffles tracks, plays too many ads and more often than not plays recommended tracks rather than what you were trying to play. If you’re planning on listening to music for any length of time and don’t feel like putting up with that nonsense, just use the Spotify Web Player. You can queue your tracks, play albums or playlists straight through, scrub within tracks and start tracks over. Also, with certain ad blockers, you can even avoid the Spotify ads, which is fantastic.