A Nerd Who Loves the Grainger Engineering Library



Other than my own home, my favorite place in Champaign-Urbana is the Grainger Engineering Library. I go to Grainger so often that my friends say I’m heading to my second home. I used to go there occasionally throughout my high school career because my dad taught UofI classes in the afternoon. I’d head over and buy a hot drink from Espresso Royale and prop myself on a high table. My occasional trips to the cafe were nice. However, my obsession with the place started once I got my driver’s license during the 2nd semester of Junior year.

My brother, Jerry, is an UofI Alumna, and he taught me all the tips he knew about Grainger. The basement and the fourth floor are great places to have study groups. The first floor is great for grabbing an Iced Dirty Chai (a shot of espresso mixed with Chai) from Espresso Royale. The second and third floors have sets of small cubicles so I could have an isolated, dead-quiet place to work.

There was one cubicle on the third floor that used to be my go-to spot. I’d ping the elevator and start walking to the right. There’s a long corridor that I’d walk down until I got to the one cubicle with a window view of the Engineering Quad. I could look out the window and see the sky dim with warm hues of magenta and violet until it turned jet-black. There’s something about the vibe of a library that convinces you to be more productive yet makes you feel so calm at the same time. Unfortunately, most college students find Grainger to be a safe haven as well. The place gets so crowded that I now settle for any spot I can find. Yet, I’d stay at the library so long that the employees would give the warning that the building went on lockdown mode after 10 pm. The latest I’ve stayed was until 12 am. Nowadays, because of my worried parents, I always come back home by 10:30 pm.

I’ll admit that driving to Grainger is inconvenient. The trip takes at least 15 minutes and usually more because of rush hour. However, Grainger sits at a great location. It’s less than a block away from Uni and the library’s sidewalk feeds into Green Street. I remember getting a group of friends together during finals. We’d all go out to Green to get some fuel for our study session and then settle ourselves on the 4th floor. We’d spend the next five hours grinding away at all our unit material.

More importantly, Grainger is my getaway location. Sometimes, I just need to get out of the house so I can’t tuck away in my bed. Other times, I need solidarity. I’m most productive when there’s nobody to chat with or when I can’t hear what my parents are watching downstairs on TV. There’s a small disconnect from reality that a library provides. Everyone works at their goals like drones. They’re just a background, and you’re the main show. Nobody can nag you or distract you. It’s all on you. There’s something about realizing nobody is there to push you but yourself. That feeling of self-responsibility rejuvenates my motivation. So, call me a nerd if you’d like, but Grainger is one of my favorite locations in Champaign-Urbana. Try to convince me otherwise.

Comments

  1. locally locayleeNovember 8, 2019 at 7:16 PM

    I liked your drone comment lol. Also I think that's nice that you found your own spot in the library despite how you can't have it all the time. Also I vote for bed to be better than Grainger.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nil PatelDecember 15, 2019 at 5:46 PM

    Grainger works wonders in good and bad ways for me. When I'm by myself, I can just vanquish my work and then go home. If I'm with friends we will stay off-task and get work done sometime soon. Trying to find a spot to sit down is almost like a mission. It's just incredible.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Katie CDecember 17, 2019 at 3:08 PM

    I love finding a good, tucked away cubicle on Grainger's third floor. I'd rather work at home, but Grainger's great if you have tons of work and have to wait around on campus. This summer, I spent some time in the Undergrad Library's quiet level because its location was more convenient than Grainger's. The cubicles there are great if you need quiet, but it's much less aesthetically pleasing than Grainger. Grainger's upper floors are really pretty, especially with all the windows. I wish I had gone there more in the summer when campus was mostly deserted.

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