Sunday Success: The Five Tabs Up on Your Computer Right Now

Editor's Note: Sunday Success is a weekly blog dedicated to documenting the frustrations, difficulties and humor in developing ridiculous amounts of success in college.

The five tabs up on a laptop can reveal quite a bit about a person. Perhaps more than any leaked diary could ever tell. Think I’m lying? Well, think back to the last time your friend invoked on a journey but on your computer. They slowly reach for your lappy as if they’ve suddenly transformed into an infant in need of their pacifier, eager to slap their sick, slobbery juices all over it. Okay, so I’m a bit more territorial than others, but we’ve all faced the semi-panic attack of someone seeing what we look at all day long. 

You’ll have the good days. Those usually involve some form of research lingering on one of the first two tabs. This is where you once had full intention on accomplishing everything you’ve ever included on the past two months' to-do list. That tab is a bit dusty, of course, as you have (at least) four more tabs you’ve explored since then. But by keeping this academic tab that has grandfathered it’s way into each “interweb sesh,” you’ll feel satisfied for the rest of the time surfing.

The next tab to your right will fall under the “need to know” category. This includes an immediate form of social networking: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and maybe Tumblr if you’re feeling like never touching tab one again. You’ll create a reward system by telling yourself to only revisit this tab whenever you’ve accomplished something in your life. You may even feel super in control by removing the tab altogether for a whole five minutes. 

The third tab may be a music source, you know, for your studying session probably. You felt guilty for revisiting tab two entirely too often and not tab one enough, so the silence must have been the reason for your laziness, right? This could include Pandora obsessively nagging you to “keep listening” or 8tracks or Youtube (because of that one music video you just wanted to listen to but now you’re watching it and oh, no, now  this cat is doing this supposed really funny thing with it’s little cat paw and now laughing babies).

So, you might have taken a prolonged break from all of the hard work you’ve accomplished and now it’s time to get serious. Opening your email on tab four is a sure way to feel up-to-date with the latest correspondence between your professors, recent Onion articles you’ve sent to yourself, Urban Outfitters 60 percent off sale….and now you’re slapping the number pad on your keyboard as fast as you can to make a credit card purchase for this wooden watch you saw on Pinterest and you don’t even wear watches also why are you doing this?

Tab Five. Tab Five has been lingering. Ready to be used for anything in the world. Anything! “New Tab” it reads. What will you do with this blank canvas? You obviously opened it for something, right? Now you forget, but you keep “New Tab” up for security purposes. The last four tabs have taken the reins from you and now with “New Tab” you feel in control over the situation. You glance over at the latest tab, reminding yourself that it’s only right to be using it to further your education/complete literally any assignment. Tab Five identifies you. It simply hands you some self-actualization of the day that says, “Let’s try this again.”