I am sitting at a desk in the college library. The college library, remember, is different from the Bodleian and other university-run libraries. This library is open 24 hours and is a rather small, 3-story library which is part of the old quad. There is a tiny basement with no windows or desks, only bookshelves. Then there is the ground floor which is where I normally sit. It's cramped and quiet and rather dark and dusty. There are only something like 10 desks down there. Unfortunately, people tend to "stake out" a desk with all of their materials and then leave, so I have had to come up to the first floor (in England, there's the ground floor, followed by the first floor, then the second floor is what Americans would refer to as the third floor).
I am sitting at a desk very close to a big, old window which looks out on the old quad. It's quite a lovely view right now. The sky is blue and quite clear (just a few clouds here and there). It's beginning to get towards sunset, but isn't there yet. Some of the leaves on the building are quite red, and the grass is very green in the quad.
Below me I can hear a band playing. They sound like a jazz band and they're playing in the college chapel, adjacent to the library. They are playing big band-style music - swing and jazz. It's quite lovely.
I guess because it's Saturday and not term-time, there's virtually nobody in the library and the folks on the quad are mostly passers-by. It's a bit cool out to sit on the benches or have a long conversation outside anyway.
Andrew is off at the college boat house trying out for the rowing team. We'll see how it suits him.
There's a guy in a football uniform (real football, not American) talking on a mobile phone in the quad and he keeps walking on the grass - a big no no.
Now I see Andrew coming along the quad, looking content. Cheers!
Posted by Erin at October 12, 2002 11:56 AM