Summer slaves

The reality of the summer holidays for students is not often reflected on their Instagram posts. Pic Getty

I have no research to back this up, but I'm pretty sure summer is the most loved season by everyone - especially students.
I say students in particular because we have more than just a two-week Christmas holiday to look forward to. We university students get four months of summer vacation, and the dream of endless sandy toes and sunny days gets us through the year.
For us, summer is the light at the end of the tunnel, the red tape at the end of the race, the shiny trophy at the end of the Rugby World Cup.
Yet for many, it's a massive let down as instead of jandals and nostalgic smelling sunscreen, many students have to find whatever work they can and slave their summers away.For students who live away from home and are too busy studying to work during the year, summer is the only time to make money.
Everyone knows going to uni is expensive and summer gives people months to save for mandatory costs like rent, food, textbooks, booze, caffeine, and other student necessities.
But even if people know they have to work all summer, it's still a massive let down, especially when you can't find work and end up with a terrible odd job.For example last year a bunch of my friends went out to the bush and spent their summer trying to wipe out unwanted ants. For eight hours a day they walked three meters, bent down to squirt out some poison, then did it again, and again, and again.
Although they earned enough money to buy months' worth of cereal and potatoes, their summer of ant baiting sounded more gruelingly repetitive than a Katy Perry song, so I'm glad I didn't have to join them. Instead I spent my summer dying - dying tie-dye t-shirts, that is, then selling them at markets.
Through this rather quirky experience I got to meet hundreds of new people, travel around the entire country, and attend events I never knew existed.
Even though the money was inconsistent, it was still a 'totally radical' way to work and enjoy summer at the same time.Although a traditional retail job would have provided a more stable income, I do not envy those who were stuck in malls all summer.
Working in a stuffy, fluorescently lit, overcrowded environment full of crazy Christmas shoppers is probably lower on my list than ant baiting.
One of my friends said working in retail was so bad, he continually checked social media during his long shifts as a form of escapism. Unfortunately, his idea backfired, as scrolling through endless pictures of sunset beaches and fruity cocktails just made him feel worse.What my friend was experiencing is a common phenomenon I like to call "holiday envy".
Although holiday envy has likely existed for an extremely long time, social media has taken it to a whole new level. Now the highlights of every person's summer are right in front of our eyes 24/7, and no matter how cool your summer is, it can never compare to the highly constructed and edited photos on social media. Heck, even my own summer seems lame compared to how awesome my photos made it appear. So to avoid getting driven completely mad with holiday envy, let me remind you that not everyone is out there having fun in the sun.
Some students have to brave the unthinkable and endure months of, dare I say, summer school. Studying and sunshine are two words that should not be in the same sentence - unless it is the one I just wrote which is why summer school is a concept that shouldn't really exist. I suppose I understand if someone failed a paper and absolutely has to catch up over the break.
But for those who for some reason actually want to study in summer, I will never understand you. I guess not everyone gets their dream summer. Some students have to work instead of travel or study instead of surf - it's the cold reality of people's sunny desires.
However, some lucky beach bums have summer holidays filled with adventure and gold-tinted selfies. If you happen to be a part of the latter category, try not to rub it in all the ant-baiting, tie-dying, retail working people's faces.
But feel free to rub it in the faces of those who choose to do summer school - they deserve it.
Julie Cleaver is an AUT journalism student.