Random Ranting: Trying to find a place to read at school is hard!

[fashion_piranha]

Why is it so hard to find a good spot to read?

My current school schedule has me on campus all day Monday and Wednesday, with three long breaks.   Two are for one hour, and the last one is two and a half hours long. So ever since the first day of classes, I have been on a quest to find a nice place on campus to read.

Since I live in California, the

Comments

[ms_geekette]

While I was in college, sometimes I hung out in empty classrooms when I needed a quiet place to study. Of course if your school doesn't have many extra classrooms that wouldn't really work, I guess.

[fashion_piranha]

The school is pretty impacted, so I doubt there's a lot of extra rooms, but the biggest issue is security. They don't allow students into rooms without teachers, for fear we'll go around wrecking stuff, and few teachers want to stick around in an empty classroom for no reason!

[ms_geekette]

I guess at my university they didn't care too much, since usually the most you could steal from a classroom was a bulky desk. ;-)

[katemacetak]

I live on a really small campus, but there's actually a lot of nice reading spots. My dorm building actually has a veranda/balcony thing, so I go out there to read in the summer. One of the academic buildings has a wraparound porch with chairs and no one cares if you sit there to read. There's also a really nice lounge in the main academic building, with the comfiest couches ever. It's usually quiet when class is in session. Plus the library is a satisfactory reading spot.

But enough about my campus! Have you been in all the academic buildings? Maybe you could find a nice lounge in one of them. You could also try looking for a little sub library somewhere. My campus has a "Women's Resource" library, which is basically just a room with couches and books. It's usually really quiet and empty in there.

[neon_spades]

aren't there any green areas on the campus? you could just take a cover with you and sit down on the grass - no?

[neon_spades]

oh and I myself used to look for an empty staircase in school to sit down and read, wasn't very comfortable. Nowadays I hardly read in school because I spend most time with my friends but if I do, I just do it in the half-crowded classroom (which stays open during the break), I'm not that bothered by the buzz around me.

[fashion_piranha]

There are some grass areas, but you have to compete with the frisbee-throwers for them.

[neon_spades]

Guess you'll just have to win the competition, snatch the frisbee and the grass area will be all yours, quiet and peaceful :D

[ext_117086]

I wish I had a nice solution for you. (Hmm--what about your car? My cars have usually been a good place to read.

When I was an undergrad, the newest building on campus had several student lounge areas planned into its abstract corners. The couches were just comfortable enough that spending an hour sitting there in the sun (they were windowed areas, mostly) was pretty enjoyable, even if you were studying. It was one of my favorite buildings...

We didn't have places like that in my grad school though--unless the on-campus Starbucks counts. I had a desk in the dept GA office, but I spent a lot of time at home between classes; I felt fortunate to live just off-campus. An easy 15-minute stroll in nice weather.