The first time of day i visited the library was around 9:30 am in the morning. Surprisingly the library seemed to be quite busy at this time. I stood at the top of the ground floor ramp leading up to the computer area in the central part of the library, which allowed me to have a good view of the entire floor. The majority of people i could see were simply sat at their computer monitors, working or about to start. There was one man listening to an ipod as the computer started up. Everyone seemed quite normal. The first group of people I became interested in were a group of three girls all sharing one computer. They seemed to be in their late teens or early twenties. These girls all appeared to be extroverts- loudly chatting and laughing, generally making quite a lot of noise. For this time of the morning, they seemed to be quite dressed up. I noticed Girl A was wearing red lipstick and seemed to be wearing a lot of makeup. She was the one making the most noise. Girl B and Girl C were laughing at most of what Girl A said. Girl B appeared to be looking around at other people in the library, almost embarrassed at the amount of noise they were making, she looked as if she thought they were making too much of a scene but she still joined in the conversation and laughed at everything Girl A said, let's call Girl A the leader here. Girl A and Girl B had a piece of paper in their hands. It looked as though they had an assignment or some work to do and they knew they had a deadline, but they didn't seem to be in the studying mood. At this point the library seemed more like their "hang out" spot rather than a place to work.
As the group of girls chattered and laughed, my eye moved to a slightly older French man. I know he was french because he was speaking on the phone, and i recognized the occasional word or two from my GCSE french class. He was speaking rather calmly and quietly on the phone, and the conversation didn't last long. When he ended the call, he put his blackberry on the desk in front of him and put his head in his hands as he looked at the computer in what seemed to be frustration. He stayed in this position for about three minutes without typing anything. Maybe he was having difficulty with his work. Maybe he was tired. Maybe he simply wishes Girl A who is now loudly talking about not being able to fit in to her new pair of jeans this morning, would kindly shut up.
The second time of day i visited this spot was about 12:15pm. I saw an Asian lady at one of the computers that I've seen around campus before. She looks about 40. She always has a pair of sunglasses poking out of her pocket even though it's not the weather for them. She had a Costa bag next to her that looked like it had some food in it. She is always alone, and she looks like she does a lot of thinking. I wonder what about.
At the other side of the monitors I saw a few people sat on their own working. A few people nearby were in small groups of two or three doing the same thing. A tall man wearing a hoodie and headphones was staring at his computer and eating a packet of crisps, and a lady was sat in a chair using the computer with a small child in the chair beside her. The child was restless and was humming to himself while he kicked his legs, he looked about 4 or 5. It occurred to me that even though these people and myself included were all in such close proximity- it felt as if we were in our own separate universes. I wonder why we don't engage with others even though we may be right next to them.
I noticed two girls talking at a table, talking about an assignment they had due. One of them walked over to a member of staff who was standing near me and asked her where she could print her work. The interesting thing was the girls voice had changed to a high-pitched, well spoken kind of voice that was almost like a new persona. It sounds like one my mum does when she's on the phone. It's like she's acting. I wonder why people change their voices when interacting with people they don't know. It's like an unwritten social rule.
Overall, some interesting observations today.
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