With finals coming up, most students see College Library as the ideal spot to absorb temporary knowledge for its peace and privacy—just you and your books. But as you sit in your little cubicle reviewing old lecture notes, let me make one suggestion: do not look up. No, do not look up because the words, numbers, symbols and drawings inscribed in the wood around you will suck you in. It always happens to me.
Of course there are expressions of hatred toward exams, various Greek symbols of sororities and fraternities and remarkable observations such as ""Megan is hot."" Japanese characters, certain ""anatomical"" drawings and claims like ""your mom goes to college"" also adorn the second floor cubicle walls.
But some writings provoke more responses than these, which result in the use of overpowering red Sharpies in rebuttal. Debates range from politics, Qdoba vs. Chipotle and opinions of various musical artists. More interesting than telling hippies to go hug a tree, I couldn't help but smile when someone wrote his or her distaste for the band Boston, which led to the large ""‘More than a Feeling' Rules you Little Shit"" nearby.
Then there are some students who see these desks as places to play entrepreneur by giving out their numbers for specific ""services."" Some are clearly jokes, while others sound uncomfortably serious, and they all pretty much have nothing to do with studying at the library. But don't forget to call Brent in case you ""want some good bud"" (more information available on the northwest corner desk of the second floor).
Others see this as the time to express their emotions—one commonly being love. These include loves for Danielle, graffiti, Jesus and the Smashing Pumpkins. But my favorite writing on the topic was ""LOVE HURTS"" and scrawled next to it was an honest ""yep... so does being hit with a baseball bat or punching yourself in the face."" Point taken.
Some sentiments are a bit more self-reflective like ""The Devil & God Are Raging Inside Me,"" in scribbled pencil. But the evidence of frustration is where the humor lies in desk writing. It's safe to say an angry student's words of ""I hate Bob's Copy Shop. I WILL burn it down, uhh metaphorically,"" takes the cake.
Words of advice are also provided for those interested in seeing the world in a different way, literally. I recently found a very enthusiastically written ""expand your mind!"" accompanied by a drawing of a joyful mushroom. Another writer made sure to quote those famous and timeless words of ""Damn the man, save the Empire."" Sometimes messages of warning are even given. I remember reading what not to do on the weekends if visiting the clinic for an STI screening didn't interest me. I'll leave it at that.
But after glazing over all my surrounding inscriptions then giggling and muttering to myself, I usually realize an hour and a half just passed. And although these distractions may consume my time and damage my grades, tears will be shed if they were ever to be erased. I think we can all agree these personal makeshift discussion boards give opportunity for self-expression, sessions of ""Dear Abby"" and certainly entertainment. Plus, it's refreshing to know people still actually write things out by hand these days—and by people, I mean librarians. Hey, they know how to keep us coming back for more.
