A head-and-shoulders illustration of Hala. She has long, sleek dark hair, medium-toned skin, and is smiling. She is wearing a green sweater and a gold necklace with a cedar tree hanging from it.

LIVE BLOG: see MIT through my eyes by Hala K. '29

On a very normal, inconsequential day

Hi guys, welcome back to the channel – it’s Hala! I’ve been wanting to do a “day in my life” blog for a while, but kept waiting for the perfect day. A day when I had a blogger meeting or plans to go out for ice cream with friends. But then I thought about it more and realized that makes NO sense. I should be showing you a normal day in my life – not some rare one that creates this amazing, out-of-this-world version of college life.

So, here it is: a random Monday. Monday’s aren’t my busiest day of the week (I hate Wednesdays) but they’re not my most free either (I love Fridays)

Side note: I originally wanted to make this like a game of “Episode” where you guys could make decisions for me throughout the day. But, I don’t expect enough people will be stalking this blog to interact with it that much. HOWEVER, if you are reading this – PLEASE comment things you would want me to do. You will make my boring Monday a lot more fun.

Anyways, without further ado…

10:34 AM: I just woke up. I usually would not wake up this late but I slept at 2:00 AM last night, after submitting an essay, facetiming a friend from home, and doomscrolling. This also means that I did not set an alarm… But it’s okay because my first class of the day is at 12:00 PM.

View from a dorm bed looking toward the ceiling and window. Red hanging decorations and small photos are strung from the ceiling light. Morning sunlight is coming through the window, showing buildings outside while the blankets in the foreground suggest the start of the day.
GOOOD MORNING + peep the ramadan decorations

11:09 AM: Okay so I just finished writing that intro plus my 10:30 AM description (the future ones will be written at their respective times) and now I NEED to go shower and will probably be late to class… wish me luck

Dormitory bathroom area with several shower stalls covered by white curtains. Wooden cubby shelves line the right wall, holding personal items and toiletries, while sinks are visible on the left side of the room. Bright overhead lighting illuminates the tiled and carpeted space.
McCormick showers... they're actually better than a lot of others I've seen - no complaints.

11:35 AM: THAT WAS THE FASTEST SHOWER EVER!!! Okay so time to Get Ready With Me. I need to get dressed, brush my hair (I will need to leave with it basically dripping but it’s okay), do my makeup (all of two items), and make my bed (not the olivia rodrigo song).

Person standing in a dorm room wearing a light beige button-up shirt layered over a pink top, blue jeans, and sandals. The photo is taken from above, showing the outfit and part of the room floor and closet area.
all dressed up! the weather app told me that it should be 50 - 60 degrees farenheit outside
Wooden desk with everyday getting-ready items including a perfume bottle, Vaseline, blush compact, hairbrush, eyelash curler, lip gloss, and gold jewelry laid out neatly.
what more could a girl ask for
Simple dorm room with a neatly made bed on the left and a small wooden desk on the right. The desk holds flowers, small decorations, and a laptop, with a plain wall behind it and shoes on the floor nearby.
BED MADE! also look how cute my lego flowers + roommates duck collection is

11:55 AM: Walking to Physics now! THE WEATHER IS SO SO SO GOOD. This blog is kind of manipulating all of you because two days ago it was freezing. This walk was so peaceful I’m so excited for spring.

Sidewalk on a sunny campus day with trees casting shadows across the pavement. Cars are parked along the street near a large curved-roof building in the background.
just outside of McCormick - i swear i heard birds chirping
Gravel walking path cutting through a grassy campus lawn with bright green outdoor chairs nearby and a large concrete building in the background.
hypotenuse it!! i walk this way to the main building because it's significantly faster to walk the diagonal (thanks pythagorean)
Covered outdoor walkway between campus buildings with several students walking through the corridor.
entering the outfinite (basically the parallel line of the infinite but outside)
Wide pedestrian walkway lined with modern buildings and bare trees, with people walking toward campus buildings on a clear day.
this is always my favorite part of the walk - i love the stained glass bridge. no matter how cold it is, i almost always take this path

12:35 AM: Currently in 8.02 – electromagnetism. I forgot to do the homework last night and am not paying attention as I write this… so look at the sacrifices I make for you all. We are currently learning about magnetic fields with the slide titled “How Magnets Work” (as I’m not paying attention, I do not know how they work. explain to me in the comments if you do). BUT I guess the homework wasn’t posted last night (not why I didn’t do it…) so they’re giving an extension. I’M SO LUCKYYY. Another side note, when I walked into class today, my friends all gasped and said “YOU’RE WEARING COLORRR!! Spring is truly here” since most of my clothes are all monotoned black, brown, or navy. They’ve now agreed that rather than following the groundhog, they should just follow my decision on when spring starts.

Student standing at a rolling lab workstation in a classroom, working with equipment mounted on a wooden cart.
EXPERIMENT! I tried started a clap after this but he was still talking and it was really embarrassing
Classroom projection screen displaying a physics group problem about angular motion, with students seated at tables working on laptops and notes.
8.02 works as groups of 3 going up to whiteboards throughout lecture to do practice problems. here is one of the problems we solved!
Four students sitting together at a classroom table with laptops, smiling toward the camera during a group work session. Headphones rest on the table in the foreground.
FRIENDS!! there are 9 sections and I somehow ended up in the one with ALL of my friends so I love this class!

1:56 PM: Physics ended at 1:30 PM and my next class 6.1010 (Fundamentals of Programming) starts at 2:00 + MIT Time (5 minutes extra). In the 30 minutes between, I usually walk around with friends or get some quick work done. I had a reading summary for one of my classes due at 4:00 PM so I finished it up really quick in The Lodge. The Lodge is a study spot along the infinite which makes it so convenient to work in between classes + I think is overall good vibes for a quick lock in. Okay attaching a photo of the lodge and going to class or I will be late!!! no phones in next class so will update you all at 3:00 PM.

Quiet study lounge with orange couches and a small round table near a large window with partially lowered blinds. A whiteboard on the wall contains handwritten math and physics equations, while a laptop in the foreground shows the Google homepage.
i like the color scheme

3:05 PM: BACK IN THE LODGE! 6.1010 was fun today – we learned about generators in code which is something I’ve actually never even HEARD of, which made it fun. I have heard that the pset for this week is absolutely terrible so I am not excited for it at all. Also, I hate recursion.

Okay I have ONE MORE class for today at 4:00 PM. It’s a recitation for 17.20, Introduction to the American Political System. The recitation is usually especially interesting because we talk about real-world current-day politics which right now, there is a lot of! Today, it’s my job to present a news update that relates to our reading so that’s what I’m working on for the next hour! Wish me luck…

3:20 PM: A friend visited me – look how cute!

Person standing indoors wearing a long black winter coat and holding a phone while showing an ID card toward the camera. A green wall, recycling bins, and a small glass room are visible in the background.

stole my identity

3:50 PM: All done with my little report and I think it sounds good! I have to get to class so here are some fun pictures from my walk