Ethnography

Ethnography

November 16, 2014

Socializing on a breezy Friday afternoon


There is a nice breeze in the air while I am walking in to the building. The parking lot is quite full. I enter the building and the first thing I see is the Nook tablet, which is a device used for reading. Which explains why there is a decrease in people buying paper books because most of the books and articles are now offered online. I enter the Starbucks area and I am surprised to see that there are a lot of people and I have some trouble finding a table. I order a cookie and have a seat in the back right corner.
There are two middle-aged women, Susie and Renee, sitting to my left. They both have Frappuccino’s in hand. Susie is wearing a dark green sweater with dark colored boots. Renee is wearing a bright orange sweater, which is appropriate because it’s just in time for the fall season. They are two friends having a conversation about their children and how they are starting to date. Susie is talking about how her daughter is growing up so fast and that she wants to be independent. I am guessing that her daughter is in the teenage years because that is the age period were most teens seem to think that they have independence to do whatever they want. 
Both ladies suddenly change their conversations to how the corn maze was great this year. Susie is talking about how going to the corn maze used to be difficult when her children were young because she had to struggle through the crowds with the stroller and such. She said that going to the corn maze is now more fun that her kids are grown up and could take care of themselves. Renee suggests that they should get their kids together next year so they could go to the corn maze.
A small boy around the age of 12 comes to the table where Susie and Renee are at and he is Susie’s son, Troy. Troy whispers into his mother’s ear and suggests that they should head home now. I conclude that Susie and Renee have been here for w while talking. Susie tells Troy that they will head home in a bit and Troy just stands there by the table patiently waiting. As both women continue their conversation there is young lady sitting behind me on her laptop doing homework. She is alone and seems really concentrated on her homework.  She doesn’t have a drink or a pastry on her table, which tells me that she came here for a specific reason and that is to do work and not socialize.
This environment is divided into two categories I would say and that would be to both drink coffee and socialize with another person or to have coffee and work or read a magazine and keep quiet to yourself. This place has a very calm atmosphere. The music is not too loud were you cant concentrate. As time passes by the noise level calms down because more and more people are finishing their business here and heading out towards the exit. In those people would include Renee and Susie and their kids because next time I look again they aren’t there anymore. Although they have left the young girl is still here in her laptop. I finish my cookie and head out into the breeze of nature. 

No comments:

Post a Comment