Coming to Berkeley from Southern California, I was surprised by how cold and rainy it gets here, even during the springtime. Last week, as I desperately tried to hold onto my umbrella for dear life, I realized I don’t think I will ever get used to the rain here in Berkeley.

April showers make the campus even more gloomy and depressing, exacerbating the already present despair in the air with finals season coming up. Waking up to rain never fails to ruin my mood for the day, especially because I’m extremely susceptible to the cold. The rain just makes me want to stay inside, curl under my blankets and hide in my room — not the best course of action to take this far into the semester.

Rain also makes a trip to class horrible in general, since water usually gets everywhere and makes the floor of any building completely soaked and slippery. Because I wear glasses, masks already fog up the lenses — with rain, it becomes even worse. Even when I try to clean my glasses, it’s completely useless if I go out into the rain again. Most of the time, I just give up. My trips to class become a  blurry quest to desperately find my way to Wheeler without slipping and falling.

Don’t even get me started on umbrellas. I always find that those clunky things weigh me down and are a hassle to carry around. Especially considering the wind that usually accompanies Berkeley rain, umbrellas always end up getting violently tossed around in the wind, whipping you around like a rag doll as you grip on. I also run into people with my umbrella all the time, which always makes for an awkward encounter. Admittedly though, this may be because I can’t use an umbrella properly, especially because I never had to use one back home.

Unlike heat, the rain completely ruins any plans you have outdoors and makes the grass impossible to walk on. Especially in April — when people expect the sun and good weather —  rain completely ruins the jubilant mood of the spring season. I obviously expected the rain here during the winter months,  but with this being my first spring semester on campus, I’m already getting tired of the April showers.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I know all about the iconic saying “April showers bring May flowers” and how beneficial rain is for nature and wildlife to grow and flourish. Yet, I still can’t help but be upset when it rains here during the spring, especially since we’ve had more than enough rain here in the winter. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that for the rest of April, we will have no more showers to inundate us.