Destress Fest Fall 2019

Fall break is arguably one of the best weeks of the year: you get absolutely stuffed with a delicious Thanksgiving meal, you finally get some sleep, and when you’re not eating or sleeping, there’s usually a chance to see hometown friends!

However, fall break is but a cruel tease. Just when you’ve gotten comfortable with waking up at noon, your dreams are shattered by the impending return to campus after a far too brief hiatus.

Screenshot of tweet that reads, "going to school in between thanksgiving and christmas break feels like the last lap in mario kart where the music is all fast and gets really stressfull"

Returning from fall break is worse than all other breaks because the end of the semester is so close. And we all know what that means… finals.

gif of Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence, looking up from the ground somberly as she is chosen as tribute

Finals week comes with stress, long nights, gallons of coffee, and inevitable tears.screenshot of tweet that reads, "I've already cried 5 times in the past 14 hours and I haven't even had to say goodbye to anyone yet #FinalsWeek"

But never fear, the UGL is here to help relieve finals anxiety with Destress Fest! Our amazing reading day event!

Come to the UGL to study any time between 12:00 pm and 10:00 pm on Reading Day, Thursday, December 12th, and you’ll have the opportunity to take part in lots of fun and relaxing activities during your study breaks!gif of a scene from A Night at the Roxbury, where Doug (played Chris Kattan) comforts Steve (played by Will Farrell), and says,

Here’s the full schedule:

Schedule of Destress Fest 2019 hosted by the UGL

Looking forward to seeing you during Destress Fest 2019!!

Written by Annabel

Edited by Lauren

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DON’T DISTRESS, DE-STRESS AT THE UGL DE-STRESS FEST!

As the semester winds down, the intensity always ramps up. Don’t worry, the UGL has you covered. On Reading Day, Thursday December 13th, we have programming to help curb your stress with our semesterly De-Stress Fest! Choose your own adventure by looking at the categories of programming we have below. For a concise hourly schedule, see the image at the bottom, but be sure you stick around for 8:00p.m.…because you never know what Uggles has up her sleeves—er, paws.

Flyer for Destress Fest. Image shows a very distressed student.

It’s time to Destress!

Tackling that Final Research Paper or Project?

Starting at 12:00p.m. you can join the Writers Workshop in their “Long Night Against Procrastination” to fight the monsters that are your final writing projects. Research consultations will also have extended hours starting at 2:00p.m. until 10:00p.m. in the consultation corner. The Writers Workshop will close at 11:00p.m..

The Writers Workshop will also host several activities throughout the day in the UGL lobby for you word-nerds and grammar geeks (don’t worry, everyone at the library is one too!)

Need to take a break?

The graduate assistants hear you and we want to get crafty! Come procraftinate with us all day long from 12:00p.m. to 4:00p.m. and 5:00p.m. to 8:00p.m. in the new books section of the UGL. We will have coloring pages, pet rock painting, and button making.  If you don’t have time to craft, pick up a de-stress bag full of word puzzles and brain teasers that you can use to take a break between flash cards, math problems, or book chapters!

Feeling competitive?

Come to room 289 to participate in a variety of board games, party games, and an Illini trivia session. If you can pin the tail on Uggles or beat a team of friends/strangers at trivia, you can win a small piece of sugary motivation. (Candy, the motivation is candy.) You can also play one of the board games out of the UGL board game collection!

If you’re into video games, we have that too. From 8:00p.m. to 10:00p.m. in the gaming center, come test your gamer skills on vintage games with classics like Mario Kart, Dr. Mario-Tetris, Street Fighter, and more!

Need to vent or manage your stress?

The Integrative Health and Wellness Team will be in the UGL front lobby from 12:00p.m. to 2:00p.m. and the McKinley Stress Management Peers will have stress balls available for free from 2:00p.m. to 4:00p.m.

Want to escape the real world for a while?

We hear you, and we have just the people to help! Several members of the Pathfinder Society who know how to play the popular Dungeons & Dragons Pathfinder game will be around to answer your Pathfinder related questions from 4:00p.m. to 5:00p.m. in the UGL front lobby. Then you have a chance to use your new knowledge to play a beginners scenario in UGL Group Room 11 from 6:00p.m. to 8:00p.m.

See our full schedule below!

The Destress Fest Full Schedule. The schedule in the image is the following. From noon to ten p.m., Trivia and Board Games in Room 289. From Noon until two p.m., Integrative Health and Wellness Team will be at the Front Tables. From Noon to four p.m. and five p.m. to eight p.m., Pet Rocks, Button Making, and Crafts in the new books area. From two p.m. to ten p.m., Research and Writing Consultations outside the Writer's Workshop. From two p.m. to four p.m., McKinley Stress Management Peers at the Front Tables. From four p.m. to six p.m., Creating your own revision vision board at the front tables. From six p.m. to eight p.m., Pathfinder Beginners Scenario in Group Room eleven and Word Games and Writing Handouts at the Front tables. At eight p.m. there is a surprise, and from eight p.m. to ten p.m. there is vintage video gaming in the Gaming Center.

The Schedule of events

Written by Paige

Edited by Zander

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De-Stress Fest Spring 2018!

Feeling the pressure of finals? We sure are! Come spend Reading Day on May 3rd at the UGL and blow off some steam. Check out our schedule of the day’s events!

All Day

An orange UGL lanyard with homemade buttons of an avocado, tatiana maslany, a dog in a field, Uggles, BB-8, and tina fey

Make buttons of the things you love like avocados and Tatiana Maslany!

What: Crafts, origami, and button-making
Where: Upper level, front of the library
Spend your day making crafts with paper, pipecleaners, and pet rocks! Make a button for your backpack, lanyard, or jean jacket with the UGL’s button-maker!

What: Long Night Against Procrastination
Where: Writers Workshop
Join the Writers Workshop in the Long Night Against Procrastination. Get help from writing tutors all day long until midnight!

12:00 pm – 4:00 pm

A photo of Altgeld hall with the text "Illinois - University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign counseling center" overlaid in white text

The Counseling Center is here to help!

What: Counseling Center
Where: Upper Level, front of the library
Feeling the stress of finals season? The counseling center is there for you! Get help and resources from the Counseling Center all afternoon!

1:00 pm – 5:00 pm

What: Research and Writing Consultations
Where: Outside patio tables
If you’re still powering through those final research papers, the UGL is here to help! Bask in the sun and spend some time with a one-on-one research consultation at one of our outdoor research consultations.

What: Bubbles, games, and sidewalk chalk
Where: Outside the UGL
If you just need a break from the library, come outside and play games! Sidewalk chalk, board games, and bubbles will be outside the UGL on the patio all afternoon!

4:00 pm – 8:00 pm

What: Word Games with the Writers Workshop
Where: Writers Workshop
Exercise your brain and have fun with Bananagrams and other word games at the Writers Workshop!

6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Roll for Initiative!

What: Pathfinder Character Creation
Where: Undergrad Library, Group Room 11
Take your RPG playing to the next level and create your own custom character with the help of the UGL’s Game Masters in Residence!

6:00 pm – 10:00 pm

What: Research and Writing Consultations
Where: Consultation Corner

Cram in some last minute research and writing help at the Consultation Corner!

8:00 pm

SURPRISE! Show up at the UGL at 8 pm for a sweet surprise!

8:00 pm – Midnight

Yes, you can still play Street Fighter 2

What: Vintage Video Games
Where: UGL Gaming Center
Missing your old school video games? Come play with the UGL’s RetroN, a 10-system console capable of running SEGA, Game Boy, NES, Genesis, SNES and more!

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De-Stress Fest 2017

Dogged by a high-stakes final exam?

Donut know what to do to prepare for an essay test?

Tasked with a term paper and still wondering: “Button what should I write?”

Mitigate your distress and de-stress at the UGL’s Destress Fest! This Thursday, December 14th from 12p.m. to 11p.m. the Undergraduate Library is providing resources to help you relax amidst the calamity of finals week.

Highlights

Therapy dogs are back! They don’t judge, guilt, or grade you–PLUS they have fur and love to be petted.

Library staff will be running campaigns for the fantasy role-playing game, Pathfinder. Stomp out some goblins, cast a few spells, maybe even take a stab at fighting the fearsome Gelatinous Cube.

Come use the UGL’s new button maker! Bring in a favorite photo, inspirational saying, or other (paper) totem of good luck and punch out something you can wear around as you study and destress.

Here is the full list of events

12 to 2p.m. and 6 to 8p.m. Paper Hats, and Origami workshop in the New Books area

12 to 2p.m. Consultants from the Writers Workshop will be at the front of the Upper Level to offer tips and tricks on those daunting final papers

1:45 to 3:45p.m. Therapy dogs will visit the Upper Level!

2 to 4p.m. Stress Management Peers will be at the Front Table to talk about dealing with finals pressure

3 to 5p.m. and 7 to 9p.m. Button making in the New Books Area of the Upper Level.

4 to 6p.m. Representatives from the counseling center’s Integrative Health and Wellness Team at the Front Table on the Upper Level

4 to 11p.m. Writers Workshop Midnight Madness drop-in hours

4 to 5p.m. Breathe, Relax, Focus at the Writers Workshop conference room

6 to 8p.m. Pathfinder Campaigns in dungeon-ized Group Room 11

At 8p.m. there is a a surprise that will make its way around the UGL!

9 to 11p.m. Research and Writing drop-in hours with librarians in the Consultation Corner (back of Upper Level, by the Writers Workshop)

We’ll see you there.

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December Events 2017

December is often a hectic time with holiday shopping to do, travel plans to make, and finals to study for. Fortunately, there’s plenty to do around campus and Champaign-Urbana to help take your mind off things. From the performing arts to adorable therapy dogs, there’s hopefully something here that will keep you sane until that sweet and much deserved winter break.

The Nutcracker

Darrell Hoemann/Champaign-Urbana Ballet during a rehearsal of CU Balllet's production of the Nutcracker at Krannert Center on Wednesday, November 30, 2016.

Darrell Hoemann/Champaign-Urbana Ballet
during a rehearsal of CU Balllet’s production of the Nutcracker at Krannert Center on Wednesday, November 30, 2016.

Friday, December 8th – Sunday, 10th (Times Vary) at the Tryon Festival Theater in the Krannert Center. $20-45.

The Nutcracker returns to Krannert this winter, performed by the Champaign Urbana Ballet and the Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra. Performances started on December 1st, but run until Sunday, December 10th. Don’t miss your chance to see dazzling choreography and the enchanting music of Tchaikovsky this holiday season. Showtimes and tickets can be found by clicking the hyperlink above.

Destress Fest 

DeStress Fest Fall 2017

DeStress Fest

Thursday, December 14th, 12:00-11:00 pm

Do finals have you pulling your hair out? Have you resorted to doing mundane tasks such as folding your laundry as a form of procrastination? Do you like dogs, making paper hats, button making, or RPGs? Then Destress Fest is the perfect opportunity to be creative and let off some steam as we approach the end of the semester! Come to the Undergraduate Library on December 14th and take advantage of an entire day’s worth of fun, self-care, and maybe even some (tasty) surprises. Tune back in for another blog post with a detailed schedule next week!

Mottainai: Annual Japan House Bazaar

Japan House

Japan House

Saturday, December 16th 11:00 am-5:00 pm and Sunday, December 17th at the Japan House

“Mottainai” is Japanese for “what a waste” and is the title of Japan House’s annual bazaar featuring various Japanese and Asian goods from kimonos to tea equipment. The Japan House is also asking for donations of any Asian-related objects to help support the Japan House Internship Program. Come enjoy the crisp Winter weather and see the gorgeous Japan House and its gardens all while doing some last-minute holiday shopping and supporting an amazing cause.

University of Illinois Jeopardy!

Spurlock Jeopardy

Spurlock Jeopardy

Thursday, December 21st, 4:00-5:00 pm at the Spurlock Museum

How well do you know your school? To cap off its “Knowledge at Work: The University of Illinois at 150” exhibit, the Spurlock Museum is hosting a University of Illinois-themed round of Jeopardy! If you’re not confident in your U of I trivia, fret not because the Spurlock Museum started posting some facts on their Facebook page this month that just might help you claim victory. Admission is free and be sure to check out the “Knowledge at Work” exhibit before the game starts!

Hopefully we’ve covered most of the major events happening around Champaign-Urbana for the month of December, but if we missed anything, reach out to us on our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram pages, and stay tuned for an events post every month!

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They’re Back! Therapy Pets at the Library

Summer is almost here! Take a break from studying for finals and stressing about deadlines to play with therapy pets at the library! This year’s group of therapy pets is cute, cuddly, and ready to play. If you didn’t catch them at Grainger last week, therapy pets will be waiting to cuddle at ACES and the UGL on the following dates:

Monday, May 9th at ACES from 2-4 PM: Atlas, Maisey, and Wyatt the cat can’t wait to have their tummies rubbed.

Tuesday, May 10th at the UGL from 2-4 PM: Atlas and Beowoof are excited to see everyone!

Beowoof

Come see Beowoof!

Beowoof is a fashionable Saint Bernard. Beowoof loves to make people happy. The only thing bigger than his paws is his heart! He has a contagious smile and a way of making even your worst day better by simply being in the room. His favorite trick is to give high-fives and his favorite leisure activity is sleeping (or maybe eating homemade peanut butter dog cookies).

Atlas

Atlas Therapy Dog

Atlas is a 7 year old Rottweiler that was adopted from South Suburban Humane Society when he was a year old. He especially loves hanging out with kids at libraries and schools, helping them read. His favorite toy is his Kong and his favorite spot to be scratched is his “bow tie” on his chest.

Maisey

Come see Maisey!

Maisey is a 6 yr old Australian Shepherd-Retriever Mix that was adopted back in 2011 from a local shelter in Muncie, Indiana. Maisey participates in various therapy dog events, including visits to the Carle Foundation Hospital, kids read to dogs programs at local libraries and a number of school groups. When not doing therapy dog work, Maisey enjoys taking long walks, chasing squirrels, and squeaking her plush hedgehog toy.

Wyatt

Come see Wyatt!

Wyatt is six years old and loves to be pet and complimented. Wyatt is a very social cat and is a mix of Siamese, Maine Coon, and Persian. When Wyatt is not “on the job,” he spends his time as a typical cat – napping, playing and eating.

Have any questions about therapy pets? Want to express how excited you are to meet these animals? Tweet at us (@askundergrad) or contact us on Facebook (Undergraduate Library at Illinois)!

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