Board Prep Day 4--Or, My Kingdom for a Library

You know, you wouldn't think it would be that hard to find a quiet place to study in a town this big. Part of the problem is that I usually study at home. For the past two years, I've really not spent much of any time anywhere but my own couch or desk working on flashcards or reading notes. But when it came time for boards study, that just didn't seem like such a grand idea. For one, D is off work on Mondays and Tuesdays, and a blaring TV is just not conducive to efficient work. For another, if I studied at home there would just be no boundary between "studying" and "not studying" and I would probably end up just studying (or feeling like I should be studying) every waking hour of the day. I also (as stated in the previous post) knew that I did not want to be studying at school so as to avoid my dearly beloved fellow classmates as well as the time and money spent on gas to get there.

So initially, my plan was to head down to my local county library to study. It's right across from my dad's office building, which meant that I could make copies and such easily, and could have a space to store cold food for lunch right nearby. So Monday morning, I got up bright and early and headed down to the library right at 8 to get started...only to realize that the library doesn't open til 9. Oops. I started to drive over to school instead, but basically realized that by the time I drove all the way there, found a place to park, and walked into campus, it would be close to 9 anyway. Instead, I sat and read a little in my car til the place opened. Yesterday, I had to study at school because of a meeting. Today, I decided to try something different and go down to the library at the local community college, which is only about a five minute drive away and opens at 8. When I got there, it was perfect. This place is quiet (practically abandoned, actually), full of natural light, and has tons of desks and carrels with plugs for my laptop. Unfortunately, it also has locked wi-fi, and it took me twenty minutes to get help to figure out how to log onto it. Luckily, a helpful IT person was able to assign me a guest account (which only lasts for 3 days, but I can renew. A lot.). So now it's settled. I have officially found my study space, and will be going back there pretty much every morning from now on. Hooray!