Studying = Student Dying

There are a lot more people than usual in the Coffee Shop tonight. John and Lee, however, are not among the patrons. All around, students furiously work on their homework.  By the fireplace sits a group of three girls. I’m not sure if they are working together or separately and are just sitting near each other. All of the students around me have books open next to them.

One girl next to me sits in one of the recliners and balances an I-Pad in her lap. She must expect a long night of studying as she has brought her own snacks.

In a recliner across from me, another students reads a textbook, using her lap as a table.

The group of girls obviously know each other. From where I am sitting, I can hear them talking as if they do know each other.

I wonder if they are all studying for midterms. Those are coming soon if they are not here already. For some students, that is the case.

The talking in the Coffee Shop is sporadic, stopping almost as soon as it starts. The most talking comes from the baristas as they interact with their customers. Though, the music keeps me from hearing some of their conversation.

I wonder what works better, studying alone or with a group. I’ve seen both types everywhere I go. The groups are usually brought together because of a single class or a single teacher. Personally, I’ve always studied alone, like most of the students here. Alone and listening to music is sometimes the best way to study. That’s another thing that keeps eating at me. Why do students study here instead of in their rooms or at that library? Is it because the easy access to drinks, such as coffee and tea, laced with caffeine? Is it the free Wi-Fi? Or is it just because it is someplace different where there are very little distractions such as pets or roommates?

Another student has arrived, laptop in hand. Not being able to find a table near a plug in the open area I am sitting in, she is forced to a small hallway type section of the shop. There is another student at the register who has a laptop.

That’s another think that I have noticed in the few weeks that I’ve been coming here. There are often a lot of female students who come here to study. John, Jimmy, Lee, and a few others are the only male students I have ever seen come in here and study. I am sure there are others, but they have yet to show themselves to me.

A student in front of me takes her leave, either done or the battery on her computer is dying.

The girl forced to the hall and the one who was just at the counter are here together, another study group. The girl behind me is joined by a young man. I can only guess another study group of sorts. He has brought an I-Pad.

As one student leaves, the barista, Jane, creates a coffee drink for another. Though, being alone at the register, Jane has a line of students waiting on her.

Nap time for the textbook reader to my left, at least once she gets off the phone. It is painfully obvious that these students are preparing for test for this week or the next. I know their pain even if I don’t have exams of my own.

Some of the students must be regulars of Jane’s. A student in front of me ordered a double shot expresso and Jane seemed shocked, or at least surprised.

Studying isn’t only inside. Outside the window, the tell-tale glow of a computer screen catches my eye.

The student who brought her own snacks is not a student at all, but a nutritionist and trainer. She looks like a student though.

I guess this isn’t the place for a nap. The student who was falling asleep behind me has left.

More seeming students come in to find some source of caffeine. A never ending cycle.