Nooks and Crannies

I present to you a scenario: You have a class that is far away from your dorm, and then a half hour hole in your schedule, and then another class that is close to the last one but still far away from your dorm.  What do you do?

Find a nook and/or cranny.

A nook/cranny is defined as any place where you can sit at do homework or read or listen to music or practice witchcraft where no one will disturb you and you have relative privacy.  It also helps if your nook has internet access and comfy seats.

You will discover that you often have holes in your schedule like the one that I forced you to imagine above - times when it would be inconvenient to return to the dorm but you still have time to kill.  The solution here is to find a nook and do a chunk of homework (or some last minute studying for the class that you have next).  Nooks are easy to find on college campuses and it is best to have a stash of a dozen or so places where you know you can work if your roommate suddenly decides to watch cat videos for hours at a time.  (or you could stop being such a peaker and watch the cat videos with her)

To find nooks:
- Look on the upper floors of buildings: there is less traffic there and you can usually find an armchair by a window or a comfy bench tucked into a corner.
- Start exploring the humanities buildings: these are usually older than the rest and will have random student lounges or unused offices that no one will care if you train porpoises in.
- Pay attention to the scenery: nooks also exist outside (actually, the best nooks are the ones that are outside), if you can find a shady bench or a dry patch of grass or a hidden flower garden with adirondack chairs, you are golden.
- Point yourself at big windows: anytime there is a big picture window in an atrium or hall, there will usually be couches and other such nonsense there.
- Libraries are king: some of the best nooks are the ones that you decide exist in the middle of a row of books.  Sit down opposite some copies of Whitman poems that haven't been checked out since 1987 and you will get more done than you ever have before.

For some reason, people who make signs and door plaques for college halls are unaware of the word "nook" (I mean really people, read my blog dang it!), so be on the lookout for these codewords that mean nook: study lounge, student lounge, computer lab, coffee shop, cafe, loft, practice room, studio, and *blank door*.