What about: 1. using 10:00 as default: 2. only check for *weekend* 3. you might replace `(str(day) in weekend)` by `(0 == day %6)` but it is harder to understand Code: def alarm_clock(day, vacation): weekend = "06" if vacation and (str(day) in weekend): return "off" else: if not (str(day) in weekend): return "7:00" return "10:00" The bit more cryptic version: def alarm_clock(day, vacation): if vacation and 0 == day % 6: return "off" else: if 0 != day % 6: return "7:00" return "10:00"