24 February 2005

Computer Lab Crazies

You know, it's often interesting to spend a lot of time in the computer laboratory, because there are all sorts of interesting people who come in. A lot of rather attractive young ladies come in, as well as people you know, people who are dressed in some way that's completely out of the ordinary, et cetera.

And then, there are the vagrants. Now, every college campus attracts a handful of nut jobs. There's the massive unshaven guy who wears sandals all year round (who used to be a professor, but decided that the academic world was corrupt and went on walkabout or something, then ended up back at campus, but not teaching). Then there's the guy who got a degree faster than you, in the same discipline, not because he has any semblance of an original or critical thought, but because he showed up to class half the time, usually late, and mainly on days when some assignment was due.

The most problematic, though, is the guy who claims to have just gotten an apartment near campus (could be true, could be bollocks) who you've seen sleeping in the twenty-four hour computer lab twice in the last two days upon arriving on campus in the morning. The first time, he was just laying his head on the desk surface. (Or counter? I don't know, there's these counters or something that the computers are on, not proper desks.) Now he's spread out across no less than three rolling chairs (because he's a good six-foot-five) and has his shoes off to reveal one sock that's rather intact, and another that's worn about halfway through. You know the guy; he's the guy who's not quite all there, but not quite nuts, who really doesn't belong at college, but it's a public university so the entrance standards are low?

Anyway. It pains me enough to see people wasting time and taking up a work station by sleeping in the computer lab; it really aggravates me to see someone using it as their personal sleeping porch. If you have a flat, go back to it when it's time to sleep. If college isn't right for you, get a job. Even people who are barely smart enough to make toast can pump gas, or take an order at McDonalds (since I don't eat there), or bag groceries, or something, and do it full time, and make enough money to live in what Americans consider reasonable comfort (just about everyone else consider it luxury).

Anyway. I really need to write this damned paper.

UPDATE: Well, the situation has improved. He's still asleep, but he's semi-upright and only taking up a work station and one chair, not a work station and three chairs. It's so nice to know that there's personal responsibility and accountability here at this respected institution of higher learning.

UPDATE: Now he's back on three chairs. And it looks like he may have done something, because his computer's not on power-saver mode, which probably means that he moved the mouse or something.

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