A College Essay, Madness Unveiled.

One of my college essay questions is simply "What would you do if you had a free weekend?" I have to answer in under 25 perfectly crafted words, hitting that subtle balance between quirky and unique, yet still demonstrating my charisma, big fat heart, and innate desire to improve the delightful planet we call Earth.

My first thought is to make this as over-the-top, insane as possible, yeah, I will totally stand out.
"I shall soar to outer space on Virgin Galactic, see God and My Soul amongst the twinkling stars, fly back down, and cure cancer."

 I cannot deny that my honest answer is "Walk around the house in my underwear, fuzzy socks and penguin snuggy, eating heaping spoonfuls of Nutella while simultaneously watching old Sherlock reruns and reading the Outlander Series."

I feel like I would be attacked by a vicious mob of sharp toothed, flesh shredding college admission officers for the truthful answer, and my application would be flushed down the gleaming red toilet of "You Suck" compared to what I am imagining my competitors would say,
 "Win my national violin competition, then donate overwhelming piles of money to the fund to end the homelessness of cats everywhere, then volunteer for 24 hours at a soup kitchen"

I HIGHLY doubt that any response like this is genuine. Ask any one of my try-hard friends what they genuinely would like to do in a period of free time, their (usually narrow) eyes become huge and whimsical and they utter unthinkable phrases like "have friends" or "Go out to dinner" "Find a boyfriend" or "Walk my dog, Biscuit."

It is not wrong that most of us want to just veg out and wallow, satisfied and warm, in life's delightful creature comforts. Our lives are insane mountains of homework, daunting college apps, and all kinds of extra-circulars, volunteering madness.

Instead of submitting my pho-philanthropic, what-I-think-colleges-will-want-to-see answer "Build a library for the starving children of Peru" I think I will just be honest, and say what I am positive nearly everyone who is writing this essay is subconsciously thinking. If the snooty college can't handle a slice of reality and truth, it's their loss.