A Practical Guide to Life at Harvard: Part III — Just Remembered That Mom’s Birthday is Tomorrow!

Far away from the comforts of home, many of us are flabbergasted when confronted with the basic requirements of acting (and looking) like civilized human beings. This guide will serve as a roadmap to navigating the challenges of taking care of yourself in Cambridge.

In the third part of this four-part series, we will be covering last minute gifts and where you can send them out, so you can return for the holidays in your parents’ good graces.

SHOPPING

The Coop
1400 Massachusetts Ave
Offering everything that you can imagine with “Harvard” embossed on it in some way, the Coop (a tourist landmark since 1882) offers you a convienent, if overpriced, source for swag. Since we know that you have been there, we provide a challenge: find a key chain for under $9 or a sweater for under $40.

Hidden Sweets
25 Brattle Street
Though not as crowded (or Harvard-oriented) as the Coop on any given day, Hidden Sweets is stocked with a wide variety of cards and generic Boston memorabilia. Plus, they sell candy—time to reward yourself for finally getting around to buying that belated birthday gift.

Black Ink
5 Brattle St
For your friends who actually go to Harvard, Black Ink offers quirky (though not quite hipster-level) offerings for the lovers of desk ornamentation and office supplies that you like to party with.

MAILING AND SHIPPING

United States Postal Office
125 Mt Auburn St #1
Offering Priority Mail for a higher fee, this USPS office provides you with boxes and envelopes on location, which will save you valuable time—you won’t have to track down a cardboard box. Don’t forget to pick up stamps while you’re there so you can send out internship applications from your House mail center and save the trek out to the post office.

FedEx
1 Mifflin Place
A stone’s throw away from the Post Office, this FedEx offers lab-quality digital photo printing, poster printing, and copy and print services options in addition to options in packing and shipping—you can commission a life-size cut-out of President Faust while you send that package out to Mom.