We have all been in that awkward situation where you are walking around the beautiful Paly campus and come across an acquaintance or peer whom you are friendly with, but not quite friends with.

I believe there is some innate human desire to feel acknowledged and loved when in the intimidating atmosphere of a high school campus. The connection shared between two human beings when exchanging a friendly wave, or a gleaming rictus, or even just that nonchalant head-nod is one that leaves both parties feeling fulfilled and cheerful.

So I present to you the art of the hallway greeting.

The first rule of the handwave is, when in doubt, acknowledge the person first. Despite all teenage insecurities, few decent human beings would ever ask themselves, "Ew! Why is he/she waving to me?"

Secondly, unless you have sat at home in front of a mirror and made sure that you don’t look like an idiot when you try to execute the effortless head nod, it is not advisable to try one in the real-world environment. A poorly completed head nod tends to look more like a twitch and leads the recipient thinking you are trying to rid yourself of a neck crick rather than greeting them in a friendly manner.

The hallway high-five is a personal favorite of mine, as it tends to create a kinesthetic interaction, which involves both parties. A high-five has an incredibly positive connotation and gives the involved assemblage a memento from the encounter.

However, sometimes obstacles and technicalities arise which prevent the perfect handwave from occurring. For example, quite frequently you are a long-distance away from the person to whom you wish to wave. This poses a problem. To overcome this, you may obnoxiously scream the name of your friend. This may be effective in causing your friend to realize you wish to salute them; however, it may also completely embarrass them, and cause other students to grumble about you.

Another technique for overcoming the long distance awkwardness is perhaps ignoring the peer until you are a safe short-distance away. This prevents unnecessary lengthy eye-contact, yet still accomplishes the task of acknowledging your friend. If you forget to do this, you may be rudely awakened by running out of salutations and small talk with which to greet your friend.

By remembering these three rules you are sure to evade any and all hallway awkwardness (another factor that helps is the fact that Paly doesn’t actually have halls), and possibly create a more comfortable Paly community. So remember, always holla at a playa when you see them on the streets.