A Day Flipped

Lillian Makeeff-Stetson | 3m read

Sometimes forensics is full of success, laughter, and memories, but other times?

A typical tournament day looks different for everyone. Some come with their papers stapled, all their highlighters color coordinated. Me, on the other hand… I like to let the night before a tournament act as an episode of Procrastinators Under Pressure because nothing motivates me quite like peer panic. 

Have you ever been prepping for hours on end, cramped up in a bus, thinking of the moment you’ll arrive at your hotel room and order greasy food from the cheapest Door Dash place? Me too. Then you remember all the speeches that must be done before satisfying any hunger. The minute you arrive in the hotel and finish stretching out all the cramps from the rocky school bus ride, you hit the bed and all you can think about is catching major Z’s. Say goodbye to all the prep you were supposed to do. 

On “accident” you fall asleep. Buzzzzzz. Buzzzzzzz. Buzzzzzzzzzzzz! 

“OH NO.” You look over at your alarm clock, whose neon red numbers inform you that it is 3AM.

3AM? Only the beginning. You chug Red Bull number one of five. You’ll smear on some mascara and call it a day before you begin finishing all the work you said you’d do last night. Blocks, check! Case, check! Then, your computer dies. You dig through your backpack, only to find that your charger is missing. What do you do? You frantically run down to room 302 to bang on your coach's door until she wakes up, but of course, she doesn’t carry around a printer. 

Now, you’re stuck doing the forbidden. Reading your case off your phone. 

It’s six am, so you head down to continental breakfast, but the waffle machine is out of mix. Soggy oatmeal it is! Everyone has eyebags covered with cakey concealer, and the lobby reeks of Axe Body Spray. After force-feeding yourself oatmeal with mystery chunks within it that you hope are raisins, you hop right back on the freezing school bus. 

Shivering from the cold, you think about how all the hard work you put into your cases has been singlehandedly ruined by your forgetfulness, until–

”Is this anyone's charger?“ Your coach yells from the front of the bus, startling students awake. 

You jump up, gleefully snatching the charger out of her hand. Your day has been saved!

When you get to the tournament, you see goodie bags on a table. Fruit snacks, hair ties, DEODORANT? Whoever made these bags must’ve been heaven-sent. You pick a cafeteria table and your team practically moves in, throwing bags and paper everywhere. Everyone’s digging through their goodie bags when you hear someone yell. 

”POSSSSTTTTINNNGGGGSSSS!!!!!“

It’s like a jungle gym, with everyone racing to read the singular piece of paper taped to the wall. When you get there, you’re met with a pleasant surprise.

“Makeeff-Stetson, LD1, BYE”

You know, debate might not be that bad after all, when you have the debate gods on your side.