It's not easy being orange

There are certain questions that we make a habit of asking small children, if only because it is rather difficult to have a sprightly, original conversation with someone who still wets his bed on a regular basis. Children know this, and quickly learn to offer rote responses to such formulaic questions. When asked, for example, "What is your favorite color?" I, for one, would automatically answer "Orange." It was the early eighties, bright shades were in, and I was a big fan of the very orange Ernie (of Ernie and Bert fame) at the time.

Years later, when I arrived at Princeton, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself ever surrounded by this ultra-aggressive hue. For a lover of orange, there is no sight more enchanting than the annual P-rade, with countless alumni marching past in their infinite variations on the tiger-pelt sports coat. Upon first seeing this magnificent display, I could hardly restrain my infantile glee, and began giggling mischievously, like old Ernie himself.

In recent days, however, Old Nassau's beloved orange has taken on rather menacing connotations. This previous Friday, I was surprised to find an email in my mailbox from Princeton Public Safety, informing me that "Secretary Ridge" and "Attorney General Ashcroft" had raised the nation's official color-coded terrorist threat level from "yellow" to "orange."

Now, as any Ernie-loving infant could tell you, orange is half way from yellow to red. And code red is bad. Very bad. So I was rather concerned that things were now orange, and even more concerned that Public Safety felt it necessary to inform me, personally, that things were now orange. There was no information about what this meant, or what I was supposed to do about it. They just wanted to make sure that I was aware that things were, at this point in time, most definitely orange.

Somewhat perturbed, and unsure what I should do, I turned to that ever-reliable source of information: the Internet. And, sure enough, there was CNN.com's special orange page, offering helpful answers to the question "What should you do?"

First was "MAKE A PLAN for contacting family members in an emergency." Considering how my mother always complains that I don't call her often enough, I thus decided that, in the event of an emergency, I would give her a ring. It's always good to have your mom to talk to when there's a terrorist emergency going down, particularly if there are weapons of mass destruction involved.

Second, "LEARN about different types of attack so you will know what to do in case of an emergency." Luckily, if the Graduate College is attacked in any way, Princeton has already informed me what to do. Just the other week, three burly men entered my room without knocking and pasted a map of the GC to my wall. On this map, there's an arrow directing me to the nearest exit, which I am instructed to use in case of emergency. It's a very short arrow, and it directs me to use the door right outside my room, which I always use to get in and out of my hallway anyway. Now, however, I'll be particularly sure to exit the GC as I always do, should disaster ever strike.

Third, "DO NOT cancel events or travel plans." That's an easy one. Hardly takes any effort at all. Especially since you don't have to stage any special events or head off on new journeys or anything. You just have to be sure not to cancel what you've already planned.

Finally, "BE ESPECIALLY AWARE of your surroundings and the events happening around you." I actually enjoyed carrying out this one. After living here for over two years, it's easy to forget just how lovely a town Princeton really is. But with my newfound awareness of my surroundings, as well as the recent snowfall, I am ever conscious of all the beauty to be found here. I've also become especially aware of bicker, which seemed to be the main event happening around me this past weekend.

My new, orange life has thus turned out to be not all that different from my old, yellow life. In many ways, it's better. I'm more confident in my travel plans, more appreciative of collegiate gothic architecture, and my relationship with my parents has improved dramatically. Thank you, Public Safety, for letting me know that things at Princeton are now more orange than they have ever been before. You really can't have too much of a good thing.

Mike Frazer is a graduate student in the Politics Department. He is from the Bronx, N.Y.