I do enjoy strolling through the Union building in my
travels on campus. On Mondays and
Wednesdays, I march from the GAB, through the Union Building’s broad corridor
that perpendicularly intersects the main concourse, to reach the BLB to teach my sections of
1010. The weather inside the Union is comfortable;
predictably cool and dry. I like the welcoming,
densely urban din of the Union—the environment reminds me I am not actually in the middle of
nowhere! Someone is usually playing the
piano and singing in the broad corridor.
#pleasedo
The Union is like a tiny port town. Everything is there – a huge post office, a
real Barnes & Noble, with an entirely separate Starbucks, so much food, and
a richly diverse population! Traversing
the Union, I continue my trek across campus out-of-doors; it’s strangely silent. I am met by the peculiar sight of hundreds of
students mutely hurrying along the foot paths.
Eyes – averted. Ears –
plugged. Determination – on.
Along my pedestrian voyages across campus, I was delighted
to discover the quiet “eating lounges” in the Union. Interior glass doors lead to quiet havens “away”
from the loud, inefficient 4-top tables (usually hosting one occupant and
three vacant seats), are separate, quiet areas.
I refrain from calling these monastically secluded dining areas “lunch
rooms” because the term connotes the bustling socialization that usually occurs
in a university dining hall.
Denizens of the eating lounges are usually solo, there simply
to ingest food and knowledge. Silently. Audible masticating, the shuffling clink of
ice in disposable cups, the punctuating rasp of a page turn, and the faint
cochlear sound of music leaking through headphones are the only sounds that go
unnoticed in this bookless library with long lunch tables instead of
shelves. The sounds of solitude peopled
by scholarly thoughts. Any other noises,
even the resounding echo of a chair scraping the floor, are not welcomed and reticently
side-eyed as an intrusion.
Occasionally, an intrepid pair of explorers will unwittingly
trespass into a deafeningly muted eating lounge with a clatter of belongings
slammed onto a table. Our tentative pioneers
are suddenly and starkly aware that it IS quiet. They may loudly comment upon the silence,
“How awkward—let’s go!”; “They’re eating and they’re not talking”;
or positionally ejaculate:
“There is something wrong here!”; before fleeing to the cacophony
of the main dining areas. We “silent
majority” will inhale a relieved nasal sigh and return to our scholarly
pursuits.
More observations on hostile nonverbals in future blogs. #pleasedont
The picture you paint of the Union makes it sound so inviting! I've only been in there a couple of times but it makes me nervous. I want to eat there more often than I do (which has only been twice) but everyone seems to know what's going on and where to go and how to do the things they are doing. I'm afraid of embarrassing myself by walking around aimlessly around the same places trying to figure out what is what and where things are.
ReplyDeleteRowdy, I agree! Ruth, you definitely have a way with words. Like Rowdy, I'm new to UNT and have the fear of embarassing myself walkinng around aimlessly. Funnily enough, I did just that while trying to find the Starbucks to meet my Quantitative research group. I only know where three buildings are on UNT's campus, and one parking lot. The GAB building, the union and the library. Other than that, I'm like a deer in the headlights, wandering around and asking students for directions like a lost baby freshman. Anywhoo.... while trying to find the Starbucks in the union, I managed to wander upstairs and was uncessessful, so I went downstairs to find literally all of the food you could ever want, right at arms reach, but no Starbucks. Again, I didn't want to seem like an idiot so I didn't ask anyone for directions. I managed to find the bookstore, which is actually pretty cool.. At this point I was about to be late for our meeting and caved, and asked for directions. Who'da thunk that the Starbucks would be tucked away in the corner of the Union...
ReplyDeleteAt least I know how to (semi) get around the union now...