Experiment #1.2

This is my second experiment in Place.

I am currently at my local library, same time of day as for Experiment #1.1.

I don't like this. I am tense, I can feel it in my shoulders. I feel unpleasantly overlooked.

I've just been catching up on my Open University course on Forensics. It's been a really good course and I am sorry this is the final week of it.

I can't say I have found the student interaction terribly convincing, though. It's been limited to just a few postings online, mostly ignored by peers, and seemingly not reviewed or marked either. Interaction with the course tutors has been pathetic, li,mited solely to summarising emails at the end of each week, which contain just enough of a feedback to evidence that they have read at least of couple of the thousands of posts people have made that week.

Not sure how the writing course will be in this regard.

I have nearly an hour left on this computer, but I am so uncomfortable that I am going to quit and go home shortly. Definitely scratch the idea of working in the local library as being part of my 'Place.



Here's a bit of observation for you (if I can manage it):

The large room, with it's high ceiling and loud but ineffective air conditioning unit, held over twenty closely-packed computer stations. Every place was filled at that moment, with a very wide range of peiople all beavering away. Earlier a woman was sat to his left who smelled quite horrible; she had sworn and grumbled for over half an hour because she couldn't get the website she was on to work properly. She had been trying to do some internet banking. Bad idea, in James' opinion, to be doing such a thing in a public space.

To his left sat a man in an orange, high-visibility jacket. He had on a grey woolly cap and a matching dingy jumper over dark jeans. He wasn't in work boots though, so maybe he was a supervisor rather than a working grunt. Now he looked, James realised his jacket was clean too, even though a bit worn, so this bespectacled man definitely hadn't been digging up any roads lately.

Somewhere over the other side of the room a phone was ringing. Of course the library had some 'Please Turn of Your Mobile Phone' signs dotted about, but people rarely bothered to observe such rules, in James' experience. Inconveniencing other people was better, obviously, than being yourself inconvenienced. At least the phone owner did everyone else the courtesy of not answering the call there and then.

At the head of the room, nearest to the door, was stationed the librarian. James knew her slightly, having been in to use the public computers on other occasions which had coincided with her shifts. She was in her forties, with a pleasantly rounded face and long, well-kempt, curly brown hair. She wore nailpolish too, despite working with her hands a lot. James liked her, but was way too nervous to ever ask her out. He guessed she was probably married anyway. He decided to look for a ring when he next went up to the desk to collect his printing; that was why he was here, he still hadn't managed to buy himself a printer, so when he needed hardcopythe library was where he ended up.


Wow, I managed it! I even managed my good deed for today too, helping high-vis man spell the word 'interest'. It was the verb he wanted, because he asked first for 'interesting', then changed to the shorter form. Unlike smell-woman he wasn't doing his banking, apparently. Maybe he was applying for a new job. If he was, I hope he gets it if it would be good for him.

That's me done with this post, so I will catch you all again soon, though not from the library!