Parking on campus can sometimes be a bother. There’s this sort of knowing fickleness and character of the various parking lots across campus. You need to know the schedules and routines of them or you won’t get a parking spot. A good rule of thumb is to just show up anywhere before 9am and you can usually snag a place.
But I’ve found that even though I could still easily park in the lot next to my building, I don’t. I don’t park in the 8-minute walk away lot either. Why? Because I enjoy the walk.
I park 13-minutes away so I can walk through the campus; through the hustle and bustle of the morning class change-up, the slung backpacks, trailing scarfs, and optimistically-chosen footwear. I love the people-watching and the constantly changing scenery of faces and textures. There are so many interesting ways to wear clothes, so many overheard snippets of conversation.
I like my commute because it gets me interacting with the community, no matter how small. I also spend so much time in my office/indoors/in class that it’s good to actually be out in the fresh air and get some sun.
Maybe some people would find it strange that I choose the longer commute, but when you think of all the things you’d miss otherwise, I still find I’ve made the best choice.
Laura Raquel 