Indiana

OPINION: What 3 a.m. talks have taught me about life

Published

2 years ago

February 8, 2024

OPINION: What 3 a.m. talks have taught me about life

I can say with honesty that some of the best moments of my college years happened well past midnight, surrounded by friends. What I love even more about these late-night moments is that even when the clock is ticking and the hours are passing, everybody stays. So deep in conversation, so lost in stories and relatable moments, nobody notices the time, and nobody cares. Another cup of tea, another piece of pizza, another moment together.

Those are my favorite moments, and moments that I’ve learned so much from. Sometimes it’s with close friends, sometimes it’s with people I’ve just met. No matter who they’re with, I’ve found late night talks with others to be beneficial — if not a cure — to feelings of loneliness. It’s a moment in time where the rush of the day is over, and no one has anywhere else to be but asleep, so why not stay longer?

There’s something about late night talks that feel so much more fulfilling than conversations during the day. Deeper topics seem to be brought up, and I find myself sharing things I didn’t think I would. Sleep researchers and psychologists found that our emotions become more dysregulated and we become more impulsive at night than during the day. This could be a factor in why we decide to share our deeper thoughts with others when it’s something we weren’t planning to say, or never would have said in the daytime.

Listening opens up the world and shows our love for others.

Connecting with others for a long period of time at night is so rewarding in many ways. Not only is connecting with friends beneficial to our mental and physical well-being, but it can also help you build more trusting relationships with others. I’ve learned so much from talking with my friends and taking time to connect with them, and it’s made me feel much less isolated in this huge world.

Embracing the small, unexpected moments is one of the things I’ve learned from 3 a.m. moments. Sometimes, after a long night, I’m ready to take a shower and nod off. But as fate would have it, my roommates came back at the same time, and we get to talking. First about our days, then about our weeks, then about life as we know it. Next thing you know, hours have ticked by and our conversations have either become so deep or crazy we all mutually agree to get some sleep and pick up the conversation at our next 3 a.m. talk. I now live for these unexpected moments of connection and laughter, moments that you weren’t expecting but completely changed your day and made you go to bed with a heart fuller than it was when you woke up that morning.

The late-night talks have also taught me how to build trust with others, because I’ve found it’s crucial for a relationship of any kind to have trust. To be able to know that whatever you’re going to say about yourself, whatever fear you’re going to confess to, you can trust that your friends around you will not judge you. Having this trust that you can be wholly yourself with them is comforting and reassuring. Also, acknowledging that your friends are putting this trust in you as well; that when they share about themselves, they trust you will not make fun of them either. Practicing trusting others and managing others’ trust has helped me become a better friend and person overall, and it’s a skill I continue to practice during our late-night conversations and in every aspect of my life.

As flawed humans, we tend to think we have all the time in the world.

One of the most prominent things I’ve taken away from the late-night talks is that the fear of loneliness is much more commonplace than I’ve realized. Oddly enough, speaking about loneliness with others makes me feel less alone, if only because we are connected in this shared fear. After realizing this is a shared and common feeling, I have personally vowed to wear my heart on my sleeve as best I can when meeting new people, because you never know if loneliness is a fear that plagues them too. This is something I most likely wouldn’t have prioritized if it hadn’t been for those late-night talks that exposed that common shared fear and inspired me to make a change in myself.

Those unexpected but always welcomed 3 a.m. talks will forever hold a special place in my heart. I am a huge sleep enthusiast, but I will happily pass up a few hours of sleep for the bonding experience that comes with a night of opening your mind and talking with others.

Caitlyn Kulczycki is a sophomore studying media advertising with minors in psychology and creative writing.

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Indiana

Freshmen from Indiana show potential in UConn-Butler game: ‘Heck of a player’

Published

3 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

Freshmen from Indiana show potential in UConn-Butler game: ‘Heck of a player’

Former UConn forward, NBC Sports broadcaster Donny Marshall knows a thing or two about talented UConn guards.

The former Husky played for legendary coach Jim Calhoun and was teammates with the fifth pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, 10-time NBA All-Star Ray Allen. Watching UConn play against Butler on Tuesday night, Marshall said he sees a lot of Allen in reigning Indiana Mr. Basketball Braylon Mullins.

Mullins made the second start of his career against the Bulldogs. The former Greenfield-Central star missed UConn’s first six games of the regular season with an injury, but the 6-foot-6 guard is quickly coming into his own and showing why he’s a projected lottery pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

Against Butler, Mullins showed off his sweet jump shot, going 2 for 5 from 3-point range. He finished with 12 points, three rebounds, two assists, two blocks and one steal.

“He’s a scorer,” Butler coach Thad Matta said of Mullins. “He’s got a scorer’s mentality. He gets his shot off quick. They move him around and create some angles for him. Obviously, he’s a heck of a player.”

Mullins did most of his damage in the first half, scoring eight of his 12 points before halftime. The former five-star recruit was the highest-ranked player in UConn’s 2025 class. Butler’s top-ranked recruit, Azavier “Stink” Robinson isn’t the NBA prospect Mullins is, but he held his own after a shaky start to the game.

Robinson has been thrust into the starting lineup with starter Jalen Jackson out for the season with an ankle injury. Robinson looked out of sorts at times in the first half, going scoreless with two assists and a turnover. In the second half, Matta moved him off the ball, giving him catch-and-shoot looks, and opportunities to drive to the basket without worrying about running the offense.

The former Lawrence North star responded with one of the better halves of his career, scoring 10 points on 3 for 6 shooting, including 2 for 5 from 3 to go along with two rebounds, one assist, one steal and one turnover.

Facing a veteran team like UConn, nothing comes easy. UConn’s guards harass ball handlers and getting into an offensive set is not easy. This time last year, Robinson was still in high school and, on most nights, the most athletic player on the court. Playing a UConn team where the goal is a national championship, Robinson was forced to grow, and he did not back down from the challenge in the second half.

“He’s coming along,” Matta said of Robinson. “That’s the first Big East road game of his career against maybe the best team in the country. It tells you how tough he is. He’s resilient. He keeps going.”

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Indiana

Indiana's Curt Cignetti becomes the first back-to-back winner of AP coach of the year

Published

15 hours ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

Indiana's Curt Cignetti becomes the first back-to-back winner of AP coach of the year

Curt Cignetti has been named The Associated Press coach of the year in college football for the second consecutive season. He is the first coach to win the award back-to-back since it was first presented in 1998. Cignetti has led Indiana to unprecedented success, with a 24-2 record over two seasons. The Hoosiers are 13-0 this year, Big Ten champions for the first time since 1967, and the top seed in the College Football Playoff. Cignetti received 47 first-place votes. Texas Tech’s Joey McGuire and Vanderbilt’s Clark Lea received two each, and Virginia’s Tony Elliott got one.

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Indiana

Central Indiana schools announce closures, delays planned for Tuesday

Published

1 day ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

Central Indiana schools announce closures, delays planned for Tuesday

INDIANAPOLIS — Some schools in central Indiana are planning to close or delay the start of their classes on Tuesday.

The closures and delays come in the wake of a difficult weekend of severe winter weather in the Hoosier State. On Saturday, a wintry system dumped more than six inches of snow in some portions of the state.

Points north of Indianapolis like Lafayette received between three and four inches of snow. Towns south of the Circle City like Seymour saw similar snowfall totals. As for Indianapolis itself, more than five inches of snow were recorded in some portions of the city.

After Saturday’s snow, frigid temperatures took hold in the area. A Cold Weather Advisory was issued for much of the state as wind chill values dipped well below zero.

The cold and snow triggered a bevy of school closings and delays for Monday. Schools began to announce delays and closures for Tuesday late Monday night as snow removal crews across the state continued to try to keep roadways clear.

Though some schools plan to close or delay the start of classes on Tuesday, temperature improvements are forecasted. High temperatures are anticipated to exceed the 32-degree freezing threshold and hit 36 degrees. The warming trend is expected to continue on both Wednesday and Thursday, with high temperatures forecasted to reach 40 and 50 degrees, respectively.

Precipitation is forecasted for Thursday, though temperatures are expected to remain warm enough for Indiana to get rain instead of snow.

FOX59/CBS4 is tracking the closures and delays schools plan to implement on Tuesday. Check out the latest available list of closings below:

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