The Michigan Daily/New Student Edition - Thursday, September , 1989 - Page 4
Sr,-- !Studying38
r4
An epic
saga
unfurls
- " - fy
rThey may look like they're studying, but who really can get any work
+done outdoors? No, you need to go to the library to truly study.
by Tarneh Shafii
Daily Staff Writer
It's 4:30 pm on Monday. I just
spent two days biting my fingernails
down to stubs stressing over my
exam, quiz, and two papers due to-
morrow - it's time to get to work.
My roommate is blaring
Bachman Turner Overture's "You
Ain't Seen Nothing Yet" again so it
looks like I'm off to the library, but
which one?
A lot of thought goes into the
decision about which library to visit
each night. It depends on if I'm
studying for an exam or writing a
paper, what class it's for, what mood
I'm in and most importantly who I
want to see.
This afternoon I feel really moti-
vated. I've got to ace this Cale exam
to pass, so no socializing for me -
I'm off to the Taubman Medical
Library.
Choosing a library is not too
stressful, it's the decision-making
that comes once you walk through
the door that is crucial.
Every choice can affect the suc-
cess of your studying: which floor to
go to, which side of the room to sit
on, which table to sit at, and which
chair to sit in - that's a biggy.
Do I want a chair with a view or
don't I? And what kind of view -
the window, the stacks, or the guy
in the stripped oxford?
Since I'm really serious about
my math 1 opt for the window view
- not too boring like staring at
books and not too distracting like,
well, you know. Besides, the Med
library is known for its view of Ann
Arbor.
I work on problems until the si-
lence is deafening and my stomach is
grumbling.
It's 6:30 pm, off to the
Undergraduate Library, where I
can rattle my cellophane wrappers
and pop my pop cans in peace.
Luckily, I stuck my hibachi, a fresh
trout, and candle sticks in my back-
pack before I left.
After dinner I'm ready to plunge
into my poly sci paper so I head for
the reading room of the Harlan
Hatcher Graduate Library.
I stake a claim on a chair and
start for the labyrinthine Stacks with
a bag of rice leftover from dinner. I
always leave a trail behind when I
enter the Stacks. You just can't be
too careful.
Actually, I've heard Elvis was r
cently spotted in there. He's a trans-
fer from Kalamazoo County Col-
lege.
By the time I emerge from the
bowels of the Grad it's 10:30 pm.
Time for a quick snooze before
close. The carols are luring me like
the Sirens drew Ulysses' men to the
rocks. Each floor is color coded -
my best sleeping is done on the red
one.
I pick a carol with lots of graffiti.
I like to read before bed. I close the
blind and use my books as a pillow.
Somewhere in the distance some-
one drops their change.
Suddenly: "May I have your at-
tention. It's now 11:15 the north and
south circulation desks will be clos-
ing in 15 minutes. T he library will
be closing at 12 midnight. Building
lights will be turned off five minutes
before closing. Safewalk, a night-
time safety walking service is
available in the lobby of the under-
graduate library until 2:00 am. The
library will reopen at 8 am tomor-
row.
Shucks! I was stranded on a de-
serted tropical island and I just ran
into the guy in the stripped oxford.
Bleary-eyed I grope my way out
of the library.
BLEEP! BLEEP! BLEEP!
My worst nightmare come true
- I forgot to check out my books
and set off the security device.
All heads snap towards me. The
librarian looks at me accusingly. I
shrink until I'm about two inches
off the floor. If I had a tail it would
be between my legs.
Outside, the smell of coffee wafts
through the air. I still have to write
an English paper and study for a
geography quiz.
I follow my nose to The Mug
in the Union. I skim the spatial rela-
tionships between Liechtenstein and
Quatar. The lighting is terrible, but
the coffee is great.
I have my English paper to worry
about so I set off for the reading
room of the classic Law Quad.
Settling down between a Med and
a Law student, I crack open the
books.
By 2 am, my eyes barely open,
I'm ready to call it quits. I realize
though that I still have to type up
my papers.
Off to the computing center -
but which one ...? U
JESSICA GREENE/Dolly
I give up! I'll just beg my TA for an extension tomorrow. Now to dream up
a good excuse. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
a
That paper needs to be typed, this is college. All-nighters are the norm,
rather than the exception at the computing centers.
Of all the decisions you must make as you prepare to
proper chair is perhaps the most crucial.
Daily File Photo
When the Grad closes it's on to the Law Quad. The University's most
exalted library, this has become the new place to see and be seen.
Daily File Photo
A rare scene at the UGLi, billions of empty seats. Security is known to
be relaxed here, so bring those B-BQ's inside when the weather turns.
DAVID LUBLINER/Doily
The Graduate Library (left) is home to those infamous insomnia cure-
all's the Grad carrels. Come early to get one with a nice view. Don't
venture into the stacks without a two-way radio. Elvis was recently
spotted in Burh South, sub level 3A.
JESSICA GREENE/Doily
The most often ignored sign around the University, next to perhaps the
fnes in the bars that say "Patrons must be 21 to drink alcohol."
4u
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A new world awaits those who
choose to seek it by studying abroad
by Tarneh Shafii
Daily Staff Writer
Imagine skipping off to Switz-
erland for a long ski weekend after
class. Or living and taking classes in
an Italian villa. Or studying for
finals stretched out on the deck of a
cruise ship, sipping papaya juice.
Each year many students ex-
change football games, nights at
Rick's, and weekends at the Grad for
an adventure abroad.
Twenty overseas programs are of-
fered through the Office of Inter-
national Programs. While most of
these are in Western Europe, the list
of countries has expanded to include
Japan, the Soviet Union, Armenia
and soon many others.
"There is not a country in the
world that does not have a (study
abroad) program," said John Heise,
director of the International Center.
Three to four thousand univer-
sity sponsored programs in North
America are available, said Kathy
Davis, administrative associate for
the Office of International Programs.
And credits through other schools are
usually transferable to the Uni-
versity.
Recent graduate, Christy Wheeler
earned twelve credits by spending a
semester at sea, sponsored by the
University of Pittsburgh.
Wheeler spent four months trav-
eling around the world on a cruise
ship with about 400 other students.
Their ports of call ranged from
Yugoslavia to Egypt to Japan.
About half the time was spent at
sea and the other on land.
"When the ship was docked there
were no classes," and we were free to
go where we wanted, said Wheeler.
She remembers, while hitch hik-
ing with a friend to a monastery in
Japan, a family picked them up and
'adopted' them for four days. They
were fed, given clothing, and were
even allowed to participate in a
Buddhist ceremony held for a de-
ceased parent.
By going abroad you are able "to
understand your culture a little better
by looking at another" and realize
that "the whole world is not like this
country," said Wheeler.
LSA senior Lisa Marion who
also participated in the semester at
sea program, said that the experience
taught her a lot about the world and
everyday life.
"I probably learned more in that
semester... than in one semester at
Michigan," she said.
"You learn a lot outside of class,"
said LSA senior Liz Borock who
spent a semester in Florence, Italy
through a Florida State program.
Borock was in class four days a week
and spent the other days traveling
around Europe.
"You learn about the culture from
an insider's point of view rather than
a tourist's," said Borock.
One advantage of going abroad
I
The Start of School
Can Bring All Sorts of
Pressurese. .
" Leaving home
76-GUIDE
76-GUIDE isananonymous, confidential, peer
counseling telephone line on campus, open
throughout the academic year (September
through April). 76-GUIDE also presents
workshops centering around various issues
1
.