spacesofutsc-blog

[spacesofutsc-blog]

It was 11 a.m. on Wednesday. It was a snow day with the strong wind. I just finished the first lecture of the day. The lecture was taken in SY110, there is only two ways to exit, the one is the campus road outside of the building and another one is the hall way inside of the building. Almost all of the students in the same class went out in the hall way because it was too cold outside. SY110 is not too far away from the SW meeting place, so I was ready to the Starbucks.

The Starbucks located in SW meeting places, when I went down stairs, I could see some student clubs set their introduction board. Some people asked question in front of the club’s tables, some people sit near the Starbucks and some people like me stand on the line to wait the order. I do not like coffee even though I felt the good smells of coffee around me, I prefer the cold drinks in Starbucks. I bought one cup of drink, I could feel the cold as the temperature outside, but it was warm inside of the building. And then I went up stairs to the SW student space, which is the area full with the tables and desks for students.

The study area always full, but I was lucky, I found one seat for myself. I do not like the library, because I think it is a place with over-quiet. The only thing we can see in the library is students work hard and keep quiet, it is a place which can help you forget the time. However, the student spaces in the buildings are such totally different, because people can walk through here, study, have a reset and they can talk. I dropped down my school bags and set my stuffs on the table, I prepared my tutorial work for the next class, it was near the lunch time. I could feel more and more students here and I could smell the food. When I was doing the reading, the two students from the organization which fight for the sexual violence, asked me to sign for the victims of sexual violence. I was very interesting about them, so we talked a little bit more, and I noticed that their data collection shows even though the most stable society in Canada nowadays, there still a lot of victims of the sexual violence, most victims are female, some of them are male and even children. After I signed, I kept reading, and listened music, the most favorite song for me is “Remember Me” from the movie COCO, it is soft and helps me to focus on my work. I found most students in this student space like wear the earphone, some of them watched the video, some of them played the computer games, and some others like me listened to the music.

There are some transparent glasses so that I could watch outside. The first time I came to UTSC, I noticed this area would be very comfortable for me, because I do my work and watch outside of the building at the same time. The snow fell down from the roof, it looks like the snow falls, and the wind rolled the snow falls up and down, it was beautiful. The snow like the elfin danced in the air. I saw two of the squirrels jumped from one tree to the other tree. It was cold outside, I thought they were trying to find the food for their families. Drawing is one of my favorite activities, so I decided to draw something use this wonderful scene. It was totally different scenes between summer and winter, I would prefer winter scenes more, the snow days are beautiful. 

It was almost one hour I sat there, and there are some labs for course’s tutorial finished. More and more students went out of the classroom. People talked to their friends, handled the books and most people watched their phones. It is interesting, people always watch or play their phones after the class. I think the cell-phone is not only the technologies but also kind of communication tools. The student space like the boiled water, it was getting noisy and crowd, I knew it would disappeared after the class begin, but I still packed my stuffs. There was one girl waited for my seat, she said “thanks” to me, and I said “no problems”, then I moved to the next class. The student spaces is a good area for me to relax, study and think about the lives and communicate with others.

[spacesofutsc-blog]

Meeting place, located on the centre of the official UTSC map (the map that includes Highland Creek and Pan Am Sports Centre) has already offered it a special meaning for being an important intersection point in the campus. Meeting place is the underground place if you access to it from Science Wing, but then it becomes the ground floor when come to the meeting place from library and Humanities Wing. The first impression that I had for the meeting place was just a place that connected to other buildings, therefore I could walk through it to reach other buildings when it is raining or snowing or extremely hot outside. After days and days, I experienced different atmosphere of the meeting place, quiet or noisy or busy or joyful. Just like other places, it has the power and magic to recall my memories and senses of place in UTSC.

The infrastructure of building is under a grey tone. The materials that used to build meeting place is fireproofing and anti-explosion, because it is connected to the numbers of laboratories, which create a certain safe environment for science students to do experiments. However, this grey tone and fireproofing material is creating and enhancing a sense of coldness and loneliness. The ground of meeting place is constructed with the mixture of three different colours of tiles, which are all in red-brown tones, thus, create a visual comparison with the overall grey tone to add colours to the place, so does a sense of warmness. 

I was there at 4:02 on January 30th afternoon, a normal Tuesday afternoon, when I had normal classes, and was having my personal relaxation time. But it was unusual that there were booths in the meeting places, people were selling things. Upon on my arrival, most of the booths were cleaned, which left a much more less busy atmosphere in meeting place. The uncleaned tables and chairs were the signals which were telling people that it was busy and noisy before, and now everything started to return to normal. It had recalled me other days of the space in meeting place. In some days, meeting place was empty without any tables or chairs; some days, there were students presenting their posters; on Wednesdays, the farmers’ market always turn meeting place a joyful place with people’s talking and smells of bakery and candles. All these events, and movement of people and air have make the meeting place become a place for people to “meet”, for activities to “meet” the students and staff. It has the energy to hold and embrace all sorts of atmospheres.

There are decorations just over the main floor of the place, I don’t know what the meaning is, but the flow of winds caused by people walking by, somehow make the decoration paper lines waving and swaying in the middle of the air. There are white, orange and blue three different colours of decorating paper, and I am curious about the meaning of them. But I never asked anyone about these decorations, and I knew that they usually have meanings.

Sitting near the window and seeing people go through the meeting people, have give me additional feeling of this place. Not like the fast peace and crowded atmosphere in morning and early afternoon, or maybe it is just because now I am sitting in middle of the crowed, and do need to be concentrated into observations, my senses are all activated to see, hear, feel and think. Maybe it is late afternoon, and most of the busy time of the day has gone, therefore, students are walking not so fast. The movement of people and time, now start to slow down and precipitate. There are staff pulls the carts to across the meeting place. And I can see on her face, it is tired after a whole day working, and people pass by me walking alone usually do not have a smiling face. They are quiet, walking by, turning their heads around to see the environment. Only the clock on the wall recorded the day, and the waving decoration ribbons memorized the movement of people, flows of air as well the changes in senses of being in the meeting place in different time with different feelings. 

[spacesofutsc-blog]

It was around 11:50pm when I decided to sit at the B-wing hallway, in front of Tim Hortons, which is located on the second floor with the big Tim Hortons. The hallway is designed with brown walls with benches which never seem to be empty because of the energy in the hallway. The atmosphere of the hallway is joyful, full of loud noises, and filled with many students. The B-wing hallway is observed to be the busiest hallway of UTSC because of the Tim Hortons that offers quick service, food outlets compare to the smaller Tim Hortons in H-wing.  

The benches in front of Tim Hortons in the B-wing hallway are busy at all times, the line for Tim Hortons never seems to be short. The students that sit in the hallway are meeting up there with their friends, or discussing their assignments with each other, while students set up their groups there, to aware people about their clubs.

The big Tim Hortons located in B-wing has big black and brown walls with a big glass window where students are able to see who is passing by in the B-wing hallway while enjoying their coffee and beverages. The biggest impact of the students who chose to sit there seem to be Tim Hortons. They come and grab their coffee with their friends, they sit on the chairs inside of Tim Hortons which are not always available. The workers inside Tim Hortons work as fast as they can to keep the line going. The noises of "next in line" or the call of numbers for your orders is always echoing. The smell of coffee with baked potato wedges and toasted bagels is spread around the hallway. The Tim Horton is now located where the old Book Store of UTSC was. The hallway seems more popular now because of the big space area to stand, sit, talk. or eat.

The time between 12:00 to 12:30pm is busy when the lectures from AC and HW are ended, students started to show up from both ends of the hallway. The line for Tim Hortons grew longer, the place started to feel overcrowded all of a sudden, some students started rushing to get to their next lectures, many students started to meet up with their friends, groups that were set up their stopped few students to play a little activity with them and discuss what their club is about.

I noticed few students sitting beside me feeling excited, they were excited to see what will come next for them at UTSC, maybe they are first year students. I overheard them talking to each other, one of the girl said "I cannot believe we are almost done first year, and I still do not know where most of the lecture halls are". This reminded me of when I was in first year and how fast my first year passed by and I realized at the end how different university is from high school. The lifestyle of university and how we adapt the environment in different ways changes us within our 4 years of university.

A group of students came and sat in front of me, they had balloons, gifts, cupcakes and one of the girl was holding a cake in her hand. Two girls walked near them and they all shouted "Happy Birthday" to one of them. She jumped with excitement, everyone started looking at them and clapping. The friends hugged her and gave her gifts and balloons. I noticed how students create memories with one another to look back at them when they graduate. Since the B-wing hallway is filled with students and it is always loud, students feel they are able to celebrate in the hallway.

While sitting in the hallway I noticed many details that I do not get noticed when I am rushing to my lecture or even sitting there with my friends. This time I noticed banners hanging off the balcony from the top that students probably have created to promote their clubs. The banners were colourful and big writing of red that said "Fairness for Students". As I was looking at the banners I saw students standing on the top looking down from the balcony and talking. One of them yelled a student's name out loud from the top to get his attention and told him to come up which was a nice way to communicate.

It was around 1pm when I noticed that the hour I decided to sit in the B-wing hallway passed by quickly. I had to go to my lecture and as I started to pack my bag, the hallway started to get even more busy, students rushing to their lectures again, line for Tim Hortons getting longer, I closed my laptop and headed for my lecture.

[spacesofutsc-blog]

The Meeting Place is situated within the ground floor of Science Wing, next to a Starbucks booth and corridors leading to the Academic Resource (e.g., library), Bladen Wing, and Humanities Wing Buildings. The Science Wing building is visible on the campus map; however, a marker for The Meeting Place is not available due to the campus map’s scale and level of details represented.

The Meeting Place is surrounded by a wall of grey concrete and topped with a glass ceiling (see figure 2). According to the UTSC website, “[t]he exposed and textured concrete carries through the interiors that feature careful detailing and durable natural materials, including floors paved in terra-cotta-coloured English quarry tile (see figure 1) and wood-paneled feature walls that provide warmth and contrast.” In all honesty, I have never paid attention to the paved floor until now. If anything, the contrast in that these concrete materials make the place solemn. The Starbucks Coffee Shop infuses this space with a stream of energy by becoming a point of attention with an eye-catching logo and a chic yet stylish modern design. It is also the reason that the Meeting Place overflows with a heart warming aroma of strong coffee and fresh baked pastries. The never-ending line of students is evidence for the café’s popularity, a familiar reminder that Starbucks has been welcomed by the students with open arms since its first day of operation. The decorations along the walls for past events also serve as remnants of the Meeting Place’s historical role as one of the most popular places on campus.

There are continuous streams of students walking throughout the area and the size of student groups grow increasingly large until it peaks at each 10 past the hour interval. That is when the final wave of late students scrambles towards their classrooms. There are constant sounds of chatter as students come and leave, leaving echoes of their conversation behind and enlarging the room’s apparent size. In contrast to the homey café atmosphere of Starbucks, the rest of this place is often filled with gusts of cold air as endless waves of students bring in the lingering winter breeze. Perhaps this is why students keep their coats on even if they decide to stay longer at this place.

The Meeting Place seems to be one of the center pieces of our campus, even beyond its geographic location as the intersection of several large buildings, this place has a full arrangement of tables and chairs perfect for group studying. It is a flexible place that embraces students from all walks of study and does not is not regulated by special rules such as a “quiet zone,” which limits student’s ability to talk at the library. However, because of the lack of regulation, students like me who are sensitive to sound may become distracted and find it challenging to concentrate on my observations. If I visited without the purpose of completing a collaborative observation assignment, perhaps I will have completely different feelings to the environment.

The Meeting Place has an abundance of activities. The most visible activity is that people are lining up for Starbucks, including professors, students, campus staffs and construction workers. As I look around, there are a great number of students around tables with friends, chatting and studying. Along the walls, there are a small number of club display booths. A girl approaches me and says, “Hi, I am from the badminton club and my name is xxx. Could you please move to other tables? We are going to set up here.” Unfortunately, I was unable to recall her name due to the noise at that time. After my friends and I move away, the girl starts to play badminton with another girl as a form of advertising to attract passing students. However, because they were in a busy area, the girls kept blocking off students and had to apologize time after time. Occasionally, a campus staff identified through their green T shirt would stroll by to collect garbage with a mobile work station.

Sitting at the meeting place, I notice that there are more females than males. I don’t know the reason and I have no idea whether it is an occasional phenomenon. Girls cluster together with big smiles excitedly talk to each other. Although I am unable to tell their countries, each cluster were clear made up of students with similar ethnicities. Notice that this is likely not due to discrimination issues as this campus is a highly multicultural mini society. Instead, it is likely since a sense of belonging is much more complicated than physical appearance and nationality labels on a passport.

To conclude, the Meeting Place is a great place to socialize with peers and colleagues. It contains a relaxing atmosphere unlike the stressful feel at the library and it is always filled with busy students entering and leaving, as well as more static groups gathered around tables. This place is also filled with the aroma of foods and can serve as a convenient hot spot to have conversations. However, it would not be recommended for people who are easily distracted and want to focus, because the surrounding noise will frequently interrupt their train of thought.

[spacesofutsc-blog]

The simplest emotion, the tiniest motion and the most minute change to a single space would have influenced the experience of each individual within that place. The way that emotions come and goes is strongly tied to bonds and experiences which an individual face based on their actions.

There is something aesthetic about landforms that has not been fully transformed into confined urban spaces where wild organisms are allowed to roam free while limiting the movement of human beings to change the space. It feels strange when emotions comes into contact with our definition and meaning of place as it can change in an instant. I realised that the reality of space and place becomes complicated because of the multiple experiences that we have accumulated in our lives that shapes our beliefs and the way we connect them altogether in a certain space becomes such that we may become repulsed or attracted to it whether it is by subconscious or unconscious means. It is really subjective when we try to include emotions and personal experiences when trying to find a definition that would summarize all sorts of idea and meaning into the place. Sometimes we can try to live in the space peacefully but it also means that a city is a space that is constantly undergoing changes to adjust the population growth that has been increasing rather than just with it being static.

The space on UTSC never let me feel a connection to it but after doing the writing space exercise. I have started to collectively gather my experience into something that is a result of the things that I have done as an undergraduate student. The emotions I relate to about a place is usually very complicated but there is something unique about me that I have come to accept is that I am a very random person and do things on a spur but I do plan out every movement that I make but will spice things up in my life once in awhile. Hence, I came to an understanding that this is who I am as a person and the need for me to further improve upon my potential would benefit people whom I have made a connection with. As a geography student the need for me to make connections to the different experiences that I have in life and particularly the events that happened in specific places become a guideline for how I should live as a person and what could be done to sharpen my skills and eventually become comfortable living  and surviving as a human being.

It was on a tangy Thursday, I was trying to focus on observing interactions that occurs in those spaces around the SY intersection corridor around 4 pm in the afternoon and sat down to observe people. However, it was really cold and snowy so the corridor was full of slush and dirty footprints. There is this machine and the janitor drives it to clean it away and it disrupts the lecture usually because the sound is just deafening. So I was observing the boundaries and exits of the research center in SY wing because it is useful in understanding the reason why the building was planned in such a way where the objects were found in subjective and exclusive places. The students look angry and tired and sick of the weather changing suddenly and causing all these disruption in commute and being late for lectures. Although, some students still remain somewhat happy for whatever reason, possibly the sign of free food by UTSC that is technically not free since we pay for their services in the school fees. There is random stickers and posters, also there is like the UTSC promotion for voting and saying how there will be free bubble tea is a few of the colourful advertisements. This is a major intersection between SW and SY.

So it gets very quiet at the beginning of the hour because that’s when classes usually start and that not many people would come to SY except for the labs at the basement or the ones doing their masters in the sciences like biology and psychology, they are usually T.As’ and I actually saw one of my T.A by coincidence as I haven’t seen him for a year. The only times it gets loud are the people finding spaces to eat at SY and SW and sit there chatting with their friends if they are not loners. When it gets really quiet you can hear the heaters trying desperately to warm up the air whenever a student open the door to enter the building or leave it. There is also the occasional resonance with door opening from the lecture hall and offices. We have now cross the fifteen minute mark and there is no sign of anything special or entertaining, just observing a few students. There were really nothing exciting that could occur but little did I know an unforeseeable event was about to happen.

All of a sudden, there are four deers grazing at the grass patch amongst the SY parking lot! I would describe them to have a brown body with a white tail. They just appeared. It was such a magical experience to me. However, no one seems to have noticed them. I don’t get it why are the students so unobservant, even if I was just passing by I would have seen those deers. I have then started to observe the movement of the deers from a distance. There’s always one or two that seems to be on the lookout for moving objects as they pick up sounds from their sensitive ears as the rest continue to graze. The people doing their work and they are not even observing their surroundings. Looking back at it now I am just so glad to have taken photos and videos of it. Unfortunately, one deer had their head up and it seems aware of some mysterious being and then it seems to start backing away, the others start to look up and follow in suit. A few seconds later a car arrived and it seems as if the deer had become aware of their surrounding from the sounds they picked up on their radius. The car came by which chased them away back into the highland creek. Alas, the special event has gone away. I guess it pays to be the outcast from the norm and to follow your instincts. The deers has gone and there is nothing special and the 30mins is almost finished.

The animals seem to connect the wild and urban and how we have become too used with the daily life of succumbing to societal expectations and the conformity of wanting to be normal that you just lose some sense of individuality. But if that’s you and it makes you happy, go for it, things aren’t working out for me and I am trying my hardest to be me. Somehow the wildlife at UTSC is very unique and it depends on your luck, chance and observational skills that helps to pick out on such details immensely and what it would bring about to your daily life. Just knowing there is four deers meant that there is life or maybe wild life on campus. I just appreciate the options and opportunities given to me and the ability for me to express the types of emotions that I feel and this course is the leeway for me to understand things better. 

[spacesofutsc-blog]

I sat on the bench in front of the council chambers and observed the space I was in. The hallway to the entrance of the AA building also had the registrar office, but I was oddly most interested in what was ugh in front of me. This was a space that students typically used going to the registrar, or the AA classrooms and not many people noticed the council chambers. It was like this prestige room available to higher authority of campus life. It felt as if you were important if you had a meeting or a discussion held within the room. These two doors that led to a higher level of power and I kept wondering what was behind it? I had seen it previously when someone opened the door and walked in. A sense of pride and accomplishment was within those four walls. I had never seen a student in there and I don't even think a student could book the room either.

What others that had thought was something of no use to them, intrigued me and allowed my mind to go places it didn't go before. This space, those doors, inside of that room was strangely connected to this idea of success and it belonged to complete strangers than our own very students. Many people envision the idea of a home with a house and success with money but this room connected to my idea of success. It disconnected itself from students and connected to strangers, complete strangers that had made it in life and disassociated it with students who were still struggling to bring up their grades.  It made me wonder, who were the people that went into the room and what their roles were? Most of the time, the people I would see walk in, weren't people who I had ever seen before. But I knew they were members of this school and made decisions on how this school runs. The people walking in looked very professional. Men wearing suits and women walking in heels and wearing dresses. Men and women walked with confidence and enlightenment as they stepped into the room. When these men and women walked into the rooms, there were carts and carts of food, coffee, water, and other refreshments waiting for them to be enjoyed. This room had become a topic of interest when space was talked about in all my geography classes I had taken over the years. This was a space that couldn't even be booked by students or student groups to be used as a resource. Though I pass by it on a daily basis, it does give a feeling difficult to describe, it was like a goal that could not be attained because of the schools restrictions but being possible in the future. But the reassuring feeling that there is a maybe factor that could contribute in gaining access to this room in the near future or far future, makes it worth it. I think it's the idea of boardrooms, council chambers, etc. that make me feel like it may be associated to my idea of success. To be apart of a group creating decisions that impact the lives of people within the campus, building, or any other place that contained purpose, being apart of something bigger than yourself that could improve others and create advancement in the world. The placement of the room is in the corner of the building and it also make me feel like this is another factor in it's exclusiveness and exclusion from other student and some staff around the campus. The space is like a stranger on campus and it further creates that image as other strangers walk in and out of it everyday. The placement of the space make me feel as if it is put to the side as something not as important when it comes to the majority, being the students of this campus. Since it wasn't so important for us, it could be placed on the side as if it was something to be hidden. For myself, I didn't even know that it existed till the beginning of my second year. For a whole year, where I constantly had classes in the AA building, I never thought to look on my right when I exited. I didn't even realize it was there till second year came along and there was a meeting taking place where people that didn't look like students were grabbing their name cards and entering the chambers. That first moment I realized that there was a room in the space I passed through daily had me interested in why I didn't notice it before and why it was closed the majority of the time. From that moment on, the more I saw people that didn't belong to the school as students, the more I wondered what went on in the room and who those people were. Nevertheless, it became apart of my story and makes me feel encouraged every time I pass by knowing that there will be a day that will come where I am formally invited to enter those doors to the council chambers and participate in the future of the schools decisions.

[spacesofutsc-blog]

It was 8:50 AM on a snowy day and I was in a rush to my first tutorial. Tutorials started at 9:10 am and I was really tired and in need of some caffeine in my system. I ran to a peaceful quiet building at UTSC named SW in other words Science Wing. By the time I ran to the building the time was 9:05. I only had 5 minutes and needed that caffeine in my system. 

I quickly ran to the Starbucks in SW which has no line due to the over priced coffee they served. I bought my coffee then ran into class 1 minute late. After class I observed the SW wing. It's really convenient, quiet and peaceful area to study, relax, and sleep in. I observed the area by sitting down on the sofas located near the entrance of the building. Observed many individuals who entered the building either to find a spot to study, running late to their classes and many individuals with lab coats running to their labs. Also seen individuals who came to heat up their lunches, sleep or relax, chill in this building. After observing many individuals who walked by me I realized that this building was really quiet compared to other buildings at UTSC. After observing many individuals that walked by me I looked at the area and realized there are many classrooms in this area and the study tables are located right beside the window so individuals who are studying sleeping or relaxing in the study spaces can also have a nice view of the window outside. Also really convenient to the marketplace where individuals can get food, student centre and tim hortons. Less than 5 minute walk to grab food or drinks.  It also very convenient to find a spot to study and relieve your stress out by sitting down in one spot and thinking about the problems and stuff your dealing with.

[spacesofutsc-blog]

The meeting place begins at the end of the hallway on the right hand side of the BV Tim Hortons.  When you pass by the Tim Hortons you will see a long line of people. You will hear some of them complaining about how long the line is, them going to be late for class. You will see facial expressions of annoyance, frustration, anger, fatigue. When you go down that hallway you will smell the sweet aroma of coffee and sugar mixed together coming from the Starbucks. This reminds me of being in a bakery which gives me a comforting feeling because I find sweets comforting. You will hear loud chatter coming from the people having conversations behind you and in front of you. At the end of this hallway you need to make a right to enter the Meeting Place.This place ends at CopyKats. 

It cannot be located on a campus map. It looks like a place where people gather and meet their friends. It looks like a dynamic space, like many things can occur here such as events, studying, work, promote things like events, schools, jobs, businesses. This place smells like a variety of different foods students are eating such as hamburgers, grilled cheese, coffee because both the Student Centre and Starbucks are nearby. This place sounds extremely loud I can’t focus on my school work. People walk in sync like they are robots. Being in this place makes me feel as though I am a part of the community. The people studying at the table beside me are wearing very strong smelling perfume. You constantly hear footsteps of people walking up and down the stairs. Campus police periodically roams this space. In this space you can see people running because they are late to class. In this space if you are studying at a table beside another group of students you will hear them zipping up their jackets. By the looks of peoples faces and the speed that they are walking at that I have observed, majority of the people walking in this space look like they’re in a rush. During their journey some people drop their papers. 

In this space you hear people having loud conversations from all four corners of the room no matter where you are standing in this space. You hear people talking in what seems to be the Starbucks eating area. You hear people talking in the in seating in the CopyKats corner.You see people reading. You see people looking lost, confused, like they do not know where they are sometimes when first entering this space. Most people in this space that are walking through it or sitting in it have earphones in their ears and appear to be listening to some sort of music by the bobbing of some of their heads, I could be wrong. This space is a loud space majority of the time, so people lean in closely to the people in front of them to hear them better during conversation. Most people that walk through this space walk by with their heads down looking at their phone.

Most people walk at the same pace in this space. People scream their friends names to say hello. People leave one person at the table when they get up to go somewhere. They bring their wallet and phone and they leave their laptop and backpack with at least one person at the table. Some people look at their feet when they walk.Some people have a bounce in their step. Some people are going to work in their uniform for example the EMS uniforms. People walk and eat. 

You will see couples walk holding hands.There are often different clubs in this space with their stands. 

This space gets quiet after 9pm. Someone fell down the stairs. It is very cold. People skip in this space instead of walking. The custodial staff works in this space. They do things such as dispose of the garbage. This space is poorly lit for studying, the lighting is dim. You can hear the sound of moving chairs and tables. 

It is dusty because I taste dust in my throat. It gets louder the later it gets because utsc workers in green and blue uniforms move the tables ground. They count by pointing with their fingers. People check the time of bus arrival, commence running when time is 2 minutes and under. They look like they are setting up for something. The “meeting place” is a space to meet people like the name of the space eludes to. It is a place to meet friends, community members and organizations when they have a table, and utsc club members when they have a table. It is a place to meet friends, community members and organizations when they have a table, and utsc club members when they have a table. 

It is a place of possibly new opportunities, a place where you can meet new people and join extracurricular clubs. UTSC is responsible for this space. UTSC workers manage it. Studying happens in this space. Socializing happens in this space. At least 20 people are in there. They are studying, socializing, working. It is a pretty large space. 

Copy Kats and Starbucks are represented in this space.The space is used for socializing, studying, presenting. This is communicated through the middle of the room being centre by students often avoid being there for long periods of time and studying there. Students often spend time on the corners of this space and leave the middle empty so the centre of the space seems reserved for clubs, organizations, events. The space can contain large events, presentations. The space can be changed by adding windows so more light comes in and it is a brighter and more inviting environment as opposed to its current gloomy, dim look and feel. It can include a quiet study area if a room is created within with doors.This space is mysterious and seems like in can be full of excitement and fun, community or full of seriousness, and everyone doing their own thing.

[spacesofutsc-blog]

Looking at the University of Toronto Scarborough, it is known for its diverse community and it’s beautiful infrastructure. The many buildings we have are very different and have things that make them make them so special and unique. Whether it be what it looks like on the outside or what it contains on the inside. For my part of the collaborative writing assignment I chose to observe the space of HW. I chose this place because, ever since I arrived at this school, it always been a space that has been busy every time I’ve been there. On campus it is known as one of the prime sources to get food. It includes various places to choose from. For example pizza pizza, spring rolls booster juice, Tim-hortons and etc. One thing I’ve noticed is that no matter what time you’re in HW it's always busy. One thing I had never noticed before is while sitting down, many strangers come through walking by the marketplace and even come in, to buy food and drinks. Strangers like peoples parents, construction workers and even bus drivers who operate along the route the come to UTSC. 

Also on the sides of this part of campus there are huge windows where you can see the path to the valley and I noticed that the many residents of the nearby neighbourhoods use this part of campus for their morning walks and runs for exercise. 

Another observation I noticed was many events are usually held in this part of the school. When you go out of HW and cross into SW there's always an event in the main hall. Which makes HW even more crowded as people are going back forth from SW to HW and vice versa. For example while I was observing, there was a job fair and it was packed. Then I recalled earlier in the year, there was an excessive amount of farmers markets that took place here as well as, the rainbow gala, mac n’ cheese mania and chili cook off’s. In terms of what this place looks like, it is pretty urban in terms of the seating arrangement, but in terms of looks its very modern as it is mostly concrete or brick wall laying. The brick/concrete style is very nice and laid back with lots of lighting and big windows. Closer to the SW side, it has a very aged look. Less brick and more concrete style, and lights very high in the ceiling almost like a prison. In terms of smell, on this part of campus, it mostly smells like food/coffee. 

On this side of campus, the marketplace carries many food places and also a Tim-hortons. In terms of sound, we hear many voices, from the students who walk the halls, to the professors, ou also hear the workers from the various food vendors, and the registers being clicked and opened/closed. The footsteps of people walking dominates the sound in this part of campus as its so busy, also people munching their meals away and sipping their beverages and also the sounds of computers typing and the flipping of pages. 

In terms of what it feels like to be there, it feels natural seeing that I am a student of this institution, but being totally honest, at times it felt unnatural because at times when looking sensory experiences. I found myself looking at certain parts of HW for long periods of time, which at times felt like i was staring at certain people. At some moments, I would be observing a certain part of HW and taking notes for a long period of time, and people would look at me like I was spying on them. The same goes for listening for certain sounds and rhythms of HW, it felt like i was listening in people's private conversations and i was hearing things that i shouldn’t hear. 

The Humanities Wing gets very quiet at around 7, and this is when the Marketplace closes for the day and students must acquire their snacks or dinner from somewhere else. Being there around 7 was a big change in from my point of view. Looking at when I was there around Midday, it was very busy, people were going back forth through HW at a very fast pace. I guess you could say the time I was there really aided in my observations, as people were in and out of the marketplace and people were going to and from classes to their next classes, there was never a dull moment there at this point of the day. However when I was there at about 7pm, it was very quiet and there was little movement. People at this time are either on their way to their places of residence, going to the library, Pan-am or maybe getting their food from the student centre as the marketplace in HW is now closed. Being here at this time really helped me get a better look of this place and helped me notice the little things about it. For example, when i mentioned the infrastructure above, I said how it had a concrete/brick layed style to the area, but after being there at this time i looked a bit deeper into the style and when you walk through HW past the Tim-hortons, there’s another level above where there are classrooms and students can look down at people walking. With the high lighting and the other level, it makes me think of a prison and the way it is set up so the guards can look at the inmates.

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On an early Wednesday morning, I find myself sleepily walking into the library with a coffee in my hand. Like most students, the majority of my time on campus is spent here in the library; I guess you could say It has become a second home for me here at UTSC. The library is located in the heart of the AC (Academic Resource center) and can only be accessed through the first floor.  I pull open the doors to the library while taking off my noise cancelling headphones that habitually reside on my ears and walk past the entrance. It is as if all my fellow students are in the dreamy lull I often find myself in in the mornings. When I walk through the second set of doors I am greeted by a significantly quieter space.

Although the room is quieter the colours in the reading room are quite loud. The vibrant orange stools and blue couches people sit on are the first thing I notice when I walk into the room. Walking around the main sitting area I find a spot to settle down on the end of a long desk shared by 6 other people. This is one of my favourite study spots in the library, the room is well lite and its noise levels are perfect for my concentration. This place has changed for me personally over time. In my first year, I would have never studied in this area as I tend to like the quiet and get distracted quite easily by noise. Over time, I’ve realized that if sounds are expected (like in the reading room) then it’s easier for me to not get distracted by them. At the moment, the library is silent enough to hear a pin drop, either there aren’t enough people in the library to make noise or those who are here are half asleep. Looking back now I think it may have been a combination of both. I open my coffee and settle into my chair to start taking notes on this familiar place. Going into this assignment I didn’t really think I would learn much about this space since I do spend the majority of my time here. The beeping from the course reserves, printers and the quiet hum of voices and bodies shuffling about are all familiar sounds that most times I am able to block from hearing do to their constant nature. But the longer I sit, watch and listen the more things I notice.

The first thing I jot down is about the reading room itself, it is both a place of destination as well as transition. People sitting in the room studying or in most cases procrastinating and those who come and go from the library merely using the reading room as a mode of transport. I also notice how the place itself has power over most individuals. Conversations quiet as soon as most individuals pass through the second door threshold. If people are having conversation be that with another individual or on the phone they tend to move out of the central room to the outskirts as to not break this social code of respectful quiet. I’m not sure what motivates most to be quiet, maybe it’s the authoritative position of the helper desk person who sternly shush’s most who go over the acceptable level of noise. Perhaps it’s the signs posted saying the space is intended for quiet study or maybe it is the learned knowledge to be quiet in the library setting. As time passes the amount of people flowing in and out of the library becomes more prominent. The front doors rarely close and if they do it is a matter of seconds before more people rush in or out. It is as if the library has woken up in the course of my short time sitting here observing. The noise that was once non-existent reaches high volumes only to be hushed by the librarian like waves coming and going from the shore. I note that it only takes a few people to start talking loudly before others follow suit. I can now hear conversations from the upper floor leaking down to the reading room and the library assistant frequently gets up from her post at the help desk to go remind them to be quieter.  

It’s fascinating that you could spend so much time in a space and not realize what happens without actively observing it for a short period of time. By taking off my headphones and fully immersing myself in the place I was able to fully experience it. I am pleasantly surprised to say I did learn more about the reading room.

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I remembered how I felt when I first got to UTSC, it was such a strange building, how there was this massive old building that barely have any windows in it that connected perfectly to a new building that is modern and aesthetically pleasing. I first entered the AA building to go to the Re gistrar office, as I entered the first thing I noticed is the glass offices that makes the building very chic and making this impression of cleanness and tidiness. The sun straight hitting the concrete floor, wiped out the anxiety of my freshmen minds, I told myself, “I will do fine in this school, the school will treat me good and everything going to be working just fine”.

As I going deeper to get to know all the buildings in this campus, I see diversity of architectural concepts. One experience that I will always remember was my very first exam at HW building, I had to go to the bathroom in the middle of the exam, there were two options; the door on the left or on the right, I choose the one on the left because it was closer to where I was sitting and right when I open the door, I felt like I was in the Narnia movie, I saw green and heard birds were calling my name, some was just laughing at me, knowing I picked the wrong door. I had to go back to the main entrance to HW building and go back to my exam class right away, forgot that I had to go to the bathroom.

Three years after that incident, here I am sitting at Tim Hortons at AC building, as I sat down at the corner of Tim Hortons, I started to realized how familiar I am with this place, how the tables are set up, the thickness of the smell of French vanilla, sweet smells of doughnuts and when all the chairs will be filled with students or even when it started to be empty again. Students came like a wave on the ocean, they comes with a flow, filling the air with laughter, some with confusion and desperate need for a space to sit. At this exact moment, half of the tables are empty; I’m guessing people are either in class or library. Some people asked where do I usually go to find quite places, there are two places that is on my list. The first one is the lounge in the third floor of MW building, it’s a quite room and thankfully people that goes there also want peacefulness that they will not get from sitting right where I am sitting right now; Tim Hortons. This place got a view, with nice sofas and the sunset will kiss you right in your forehead to say goodbye every 5pm. I only tell people I like about this place though. The second place I like to go is unfortunately only available during Spring, Summer and early Fall. It’s the park behind SW building, sitting on the bench and feeling the sun hitting the back of your head gives you closure and a sense of home and warmth. This place became a meeting place for the entire student, Tim Hortons will be less busy when it is warm outside, and in the other hand benches will be full of student.

Though, as I take another sip of my French vanilla, I also do enjoy studying at Tim Hortons, I like the smell of the coffee, sometimes if I stay here for three hours and when I get home my whole body smell like coffee, like it follows me. The more I sit here doing my observation, the more I enjoy and feel comfortable about this. Watching people trying to find spot to study or just to enjoy their meal or even just to sit with their friends without buying anything, but the flow is going fast, people come and go, people around me tend to sit for only 15 minutes maximum and leave.

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As I sit at the tables in the familiar space of Humanities Wing (HW) – Tim Hortons, also referred as the ‘Small Tims’, or the multi-tasking area, a sense of familiarity and home can be felt. Just sitting in the space for few moments, a long train of past memories passes by. Reflecting on my university experience from the first year to now my third year, the journey of the HW – Tim Hortons area is becoming a place from merely a space.

Humanities Wing is one of the foundation buildings of University of Toronto Scarborough. The then famous architect John Andrews, who also happened to design the CN Tower, designed the Humanities Wing building and as a result the building was sometimes referred to as the Andrews Building. The Andrews building is known as one of the classic examples of modern Canadian architecture, back in the days and till today it attracts many architect scholars and students from around the globe. The Andrews building is angled north south, adjacent with the Science Wing which is angled at west east, forming a stepped pyramid emerging from the natural ridge. The building illustrates a perfect balance of modernity, with a slight touch of the environment. The building is framed by woods and balanced above the ravine and river below. The exterior of the building has a rough and natural look, as it is made out of raw concrete, with a perfect balance of nature surrounding it. The interior also has a natural and detailed look in terms of the walls – some areas made with raw concrete and some with wood-paneled walls, along with contrasting terra-cotta colored English quart tiles.

Both the interior and exterior of the HW building reflect warmth, and work to invoke a sense of belonging and home. This used to be my ‘go-to place’, in the first year, as I felt the most comfortable sitting around the tables here in front of the Small Tims. Not only was the place comfortable in terms of the infrastructure – the lighting, the flooring, and easy accessibility to a variety of eating options, but also the fact that there was a tremendous amount of human activities taking place, and liveliness in the space. As I now, have entered my third year and familiarized myself to many other spaces on the campus, the sitting area in front of the small Tims in HW is still my absolute favorite place. 

As I sit here and observe, I am flooded with many memories as mentioned previously. As I recall this space is busy at all times - especially during the lecture transition time (i.e. times when lectures are about to start and or end). The hallway is filled with lots of chatter and laughter from the students waiting to enter the class or simply just walking by. On the contrary, you can spot many students simply waiting around, for a cup of coffee or a donut while chatting away, the Tim Hortons line increases vigorously, constantly keeping the two South Asian lady workers on their toes. Apart from the loud noises of people chatting away, I can hear the dance students pumping loud music, and dancing away on the floor above, as the loud thuds of their footsteps can be heard.

The tables are always occupied from 11AM onwards, until 5PM, and you can find many students simply enjoying their meals bought from the stores in the market place, or home. Apart from eating, you can spot many individuals trying to work in-group – discussing their projects and or ideas, while sharing a meal. Sometimes, some people like myself come here to study, and eat, as many of the study spaces on campuses do not allow food or drinks. But apart from using the tables as a study area, along with other students I often use it to meet up and chill with my friends. We can get annoyingly loud and joke around, and not even get dirty stares from others, allowing us to be ourselves. The table area was merely a space for me initially, but it slowly turned into a place, where I can multitask, as in eat and study, while still being surrounded by loud and chirpy people, making me feel safe and at home.

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I stopped as I was looking at the reflection of myself at the door of BV building, the same old me popped up, tired and hideous as usual. ‘Here we go again.’, I mourned as I pushed the heavy and bulky door open.

Chatter from students blasted into my eardrums the moment I stepped into the BV building. The building was loud, it was very loud. As I leaned against the balcony fence on the third floor, noises of chatter raised up from the floor below. They were cacophonous and bothersome.  

I sighed as I dragged my fatigued legs down the stairs.

I decided to get myself a nice cup of dark coffee. It is always distressing to wait in line at the school’s Tim Hortons. The line is always long and slow moving. Waiting in such a line always grinded my gears, especially on days which I felt tired and weak. As much as I hate being in line, I needed my coffee for the demanding day.

I carefully walked up the stairs, with the hot coffee on my hand. I told myself I could finally have a seat and start the devils’ work. I shuffled around the entire library with the blazing coffee in my hand, trying to find an empty spot which I could settle myself in, but the library had no love for me. As frustrated as I was, but I could do nothing to change anything.

I grumbled my way out of the library, without any purpose nor knowing where I should be going, I followed the crowd to the third floor.

I stopped at the front of the bookstore as I couldn’t find a satisfy spot to settle down. I glanced into the books on the book shelves, a naive thought flowed up on my mind, am I studying just because I was told to do so? As I was keeping my mind busy with the senseless questions, I found a sofa quietly sat on the right side of the bookstore. It was about 20 steps away from where I was standing. The small black couch was sitting alongside the pale white wall, humbly and quietly like it never existed. I jaunted to the sofa with a slight excitement in my heart. Without knowing why and how the couch was there, I rested my tired body on the black, cosy, single-seated couch.

I lost track of time and the surroundings until a lady with her food passed by. The delicious smell of her food dragged me away from my laptop and coursework. I looked at the clock, 2 hours had passed. Time felt much shorter than it actually was. As soon as my focus was loosened, my stomach instantly rumbled hard like the thunder of a stormy night.

I quickly opened my lunchbox and go-to-town with my sandwich. Instead of strolling through my phone like I usually do, the place interested me. I started to pay attention to my surrounds and the experience of place. Details and interesting thoughts came up as I dug deeper, this place was more than just a single-seated sofa.

The very first thing I realized was the sound of my surroundings. Despite of being inside of the BV building, the place I was sitting in was quieter than I thought. Although the couch was just 20 steps away from the balcony, the noises that I heard hours ago seemed to be buried deep underground. All I was hearing were the by-passers and the ‘squeezy’ sounds made by their shoes. Moreover, surprisingly, even though most of the by-passers were heading towards the corridor to my right, I could barely hear any chatter nor gossip coming from that direction. ‘Where did those by-passer go?’, I asked.

As I was wondering where all the by-passers were, I realized that the little black couch was sitting on an old, greasy, grey carpet. The carpet was small, barely 4m x 2m in size. The edge of the carpet was stuck with duct tape, making it impossible to remove the carpet with our bare hands. The carpet is boring, but it is how the carpet creates the place interested me.  

By placing a couch on the carpet, it created an illusion of an ‘isolated space’ in the open area. The duct tape not only secured the carpet, but also served as the boundaries of this small isolated space. Looking at the couch from steps away, the carpet clearly outlined and separated itself from the open space. When I was sitting in the couch, I was occupying this isolated space, making the space a private space. Correspondingly, by-passers tend to avoid stepping on the isolated area, as if this area was a forbidden land. In a like manner, throughout my stay, a student stepped on the edge of the carpet, immediately, I felt a strong sense that personal space was being invaded.

Although I turned this area into a private space by occupying it, due to its openness, interestingly, I somehow felt that I was in the private space and public space at the same time!

Why is the couch here?  Is it a study space? No, there were no chairs nor tables; is it a place for gathering? No, it is too small for more than one people to occupy it; or is it a place for people who wishes to have some alone time? No, it is too open for a ‘private space’. After thoughtful thinking, I still couldn’t come up with why the couch was here.

The isolated area was so small that I could easily ‘opt-in’ and ‘opt-out’. The private space was hardly recognizable as it was so humble and quiet. The couch sat alongside the pale white wall, trying its best to not draw any attention. Regardless of its size, a strong sense of place will be attached once you occupied the space. The last thing you would hope for was the space being invaded or disturbed by any by-passers.    

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It was 9:40 pm, UTSC library.

I was studying at the large silent study room located at the second floor. I went outside the room, with a bag of potato chips, and my notebook. It was quiet outside. 

It was late night. It is not that close to the exam season, so library close early at 10:30 pm. Students were starting to pack up. There’s only a few number of students still studying at the library. Most of the students already left the library. I feel familiar with this quiet scene. I always stay late at campus, procrastination always kills me. 

Located at the Academic Resource Center (ARC) of UTSC, the location of library cannot easily be found in the late night from the outside of the ARC building. Our two-floors library just sit silently in the building with the lights on. There are computers at the first floor, it’s always popular in the morning, but it was already 9:40 pm, so there’s only a few people left.

Near the computer area, it is reference help desk. Only two librarians were still working. The other librarian already left. There aren’t a lot of things librarian need to do at this time. There’s also fitness equipment near the help desk. But no one is using that.

It was late night, so it’s fine. It was quiet in the library.

I found somewhere at the middle of the study place outside the large silent study room and got a chair. I could only saw 8 people around the place.

Two girls were talking to each other, one of them was wearing an orange Emergency Respond Group (EMRG) hoodie, with her interphone on. It looked like she’s still on duty. EMRG is a 24/7 emergency medical response group at UTSC, so it can explain why she’s still at school.

While I’m writing this sentence, 9:46 pm, another girl started to pack up. After 30 seconds, she left.

I heard the noise from the first floor. Compared to first floor, second floor is much more quiet, only a few people sometimes walking around.

At the same time, a guy seated at the back start a phone call. He spoke a little bit loud: I could hear what he talks exactly--it is too quiet in the library.

A girl with black sweater came to the second floor with her earphone on, and then walked into the silence study room. 

9:52 pm. This girl went out of the silence study room.

9:54 pm. The guy seated at the back stopped his phone call.

The study space became silent again.

9:55 pm. The black sweater girl came back to the study room. A guy from the other side of the study space came to the area I’m sitting right now, threw a Tim cup to the trash bin. But there’s a trash bin at their side, why he came to this side? 

I looked around, and I saw a girl from the other side of the library is leaving.

9:57 pm. The black sweater girl went out the study room once again. What happened to her? Why is she goes out again and again?

9:59 pm. That EMRG girl packed up her equipment, left the study space while still using her interphone and talked to other people. It seems like a new shift will begin soon.

10:00 pm. A guy just quietly walked through my back, threw something to the trash bin, and then left the study space.

It was late. Everyone was leaving.

10:03 pm. The black sweater girl went back to the silent study room. She was smiling when she went through me, looks like some problems have been solved. A blue hoodie guy with a yellow backpack on his shoulder went into the silent study room. Then he quickly went out: looks like he is trying to find someone, but he failed.

10:04 pm. I stood up to count how many people are still in the study space as I cannot see anyone if I continue sitting on the chair. I found that there’s only a girl and a guy still studying.

It was quiet in the UTSC library.  Only two people were still staying here. Other people already left the study space.

10:09 pm. The last two people started to pack up. 

10:10 pm. They left.

It was late at night. Everyone’s gone. I was still there.

I finished my potato chips. I packed up and left the library.

It was just a normal night at UTSC library.

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I would like to call it a lazy day and stay home but unfortunately I had to be at University because I couldn’t afford to miss another lecture. As I got off the bus, droplets of rain ticked down my head. “Oh great, another distraction to the already distracted mind” I groaned while I dragged myself past AC. I suddenly stopped at my tracks at the sight of Tim Hortons. I couldn’t get past it because it is my favourite spot. It had too many memories that I wouldn't be willing to let go. I could sit there for hours on end doing nothing but observing and zoning out to what seems like another Universe. I quickly glanced at my watch; I could afford to sit for 30 minutes before my lecture starts, and that's what I did.  I quickly brushed past many people looking for a spot desperately. The empty table beside the glass walls overlooking MW caught my eye. The table was pointing at me to come sit; after all it was my favourite place to sit. I quietly stroll to the table silently not wanting to attract other students towards that one table which was empty. Tim Hortons is one of the famous spots in Campus for students to hang out and de-stress themselves. I sat there for the first 15 minutes observing everything that was going on keenly. 

Tim Hortons is located right at the centre of the main building of the Campus with huge windows on the sides overlooking the walkway, corridor and outside campus. Tim Hortons acts as one of the major meet up spots for buying/selling books within campus. It was a very busy day at the coffee shop, the line of students waiting to be served extended all the way to the female washroom, which is a certain distance away from the coffee shop. Some were chatting away with friends while the others were on their phone waiting for their turn to come. Most people who got coffee were in a hurry to leave to their lectures. It was a gloomy day and the aroma of Tim Hortons brewed coffee and freshly baked bagels and the comfortable seating was very welcoming. The staffs were working relentlessly to serve the never-ending students. They were busy asking students what they needed and always welcomed everyone with a smile. Most students could not find spots because it was full and headed out looking disappointed. I noticed the students who were seated, half of them had their laptops in front of them working on their assignments, while the other half were seated in huge groups chilling. There was this one guy who met up with another guy at Tim Hortons and exchanged textbook for cash. Far away at a small spot there was a girl seated all by herself looking around. She looked very sad and out of place constantly looking at her phone as if she was expecting someone to call/text. Another girl joined her after what seemed like a long time and they both were engaged in a hard-core conversation where it looked like the girl who recently joined the table was comforting the other girl. Suddenly the girl burst out crying. I assumed she was first year who was homesick. A guy approached me asking if he could sit on my table since everywhere else was already taken and I nodded in approval. There was a small commotion amongst the staff as one staff broke the coffee pot with fresh brewed coffee. The other staffs showed sense of disappointment while they cleaned up the mess. I shifted my gaze outside the window and saw a bunch of students smoking away even with a no smoking sign displayed. The walkway was very busy as students with their heavy jackets and bags paced up and down hurriedly.

As time went by, students slowly started disappearing from the coffee shop and the   busyness died down a little but in a matter of minutes it rose back up again. Most of the staffs changed into their normal wear and headed out as their shift ended while new staffs for the new shift replaced them. I stood in line to get my regular medium size French vanilla. I then packed up all my things and headed out as I was getting late for my next class.

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I am leaving the library, heading to my next class, and then I see it, the long, snake like maze of students, staff and facility, waiting in the Tim Horton’s line. Should I stay, or should I go?  Do I need that caffeine before I head to my next class? I sometimes ponder what class or tutorial that I am heading to, and that makes my choice a little easier, today I wait in line? This triangulated area between the various wings of the university, is a space of so much interaction, and yet so industrial and uninviting. I pass through this space often, crowds of people, sometimes stopping to speak with my friends, my spouse, and acquaintances, other days I just manoeuvre through the maze, continuing my journey to the next class.

Looking around the micro meeting place, I feel that it was designed as only a passageway into multiple tunnels to travel to the next corridor, onto your class, your locker, the athletics center in a past-time, or up-stairs to the various spaces above. Was it designed for the mass amount of people who travel and experience this place everyday? Was it made to be conducive for entertainment, socialization, organizational displays of information and engagement, or place to relax and fuel one’s body?  Depending on the day, there are many university associations and other organizations that set up tables in this triangulated space, they know there is a hub of activity, the passageway and meeting place for many students, they know this is where they can share their messages and meet the people. Today, I see them ahead, the groups that have set up their pop-up shops, free cupcakes, mini games, election information, I am approaching this gathering located in the triangulated place.

I must decide, do I fake a call, send a text, pretend that I am looking somewhere else, do I want to engage with this organization, do I have an interest, do I just want to get to class or stand in that Tim Hortons’ line?  Today is that day, my longest day at the university, I want a break before I move on, I choose to stand in the Tim Hortons’ line and get a tea, I also choose to bypass the organizations. My decision to bypass the organizations set up in the meeting place are my own, although I know that everyone has engaged in this type of avoidance!  I would rather pretend that I am busy than have to tell someone “no thanks”, avoidance seems easier than a let down.

The Tim Hortons’ order line is out the door, it travels past the multiple doors that lead to the library wing, and spirals like a snake into the triangulated space.  There is no designated structure to the line, it moves and winds and shifts, students moving through this location are trying to manipulate through the Tim Hortons’ crowd and move on to their next location, or find a tiny area to locate themselves. Tim Hortons’ has a limited seating area to accommodate the hustle and bustle of the university crowd and as you look around there are only a few benches along the walls in the micro meeting place, not enough spaces of relaxation and comfort, to accommodate so much activity.  There are vending machines and the microwave oven, located in the far corner, after getting my tea, I take advantage of my leftovers from the night before and heat up my pasta in the corner.

And now begins another adventure, to find a space to eat in comfort and relaxation. That space does not come, trying to find a space to eat this pasta, standing along the wall or sitting on the floor, does not add to the enjoyment of eating my leftovers or give me that place of relaxation and comfort. I should have packed a sandwich, I could have eaten it as I moved through the halls to my next class!  There is so much time spent at the university, the social interaction, the learning, but who designed this space? Where do these mass amount of people sit, relax, enjoy their leftovers from home and take a break from their studies?

This location is a hub of information boards, and various displays of information hanging attached to banisters from the floors above.  The lights are large stainless-steel dome like bells hanging from above.  There are two washrooms, access to the elevator, a staircase, in addition to the three hallways that move beyond this triangulated place. There are a small set of vending machines, with drinks and snacks, a microwave oven and a water fountain.  As the day progresses, this triangulated place becomes a busy hub of people and movement.  It has a constant noise during the day, a quietness during the morning and evening! To describe the actual physical description of this space, it is almost lifeless, but the people who enter this space on a daily basis change this industrial space into a place of experiences, part of their university life! This micro meeting place takes you to other locations above, the bookstore is located upstairs. I usually only need to visit that location at the beginning of each session, but some days, when I have had enough of studying, class and need some retail therapy, I head up to the second floor and wander around the store.  Taking some time to explore some new designs, books and other finds, that might entice me to open my wallet!  A relaxing shopping experience! Maybe more relaxing than finding a space on the first floor! 

I usually spend my early mornings in the quietness of the library. For the most part, my time at the university does not extend beyond the library, my lectures and tutorials, as a mature student, I balance busy home life and full time studies.  I head to the university in the morning with my spouse, we leave each other in the parking lot and move on to the rest our of day at the university, a return home on public transit.  My morning stop is the library, at 8am there is plenty of space, access to computers, desks and a space to sit and a quietness about the library, the day is only just beginning.  Finding a space in the morning, is such a relief, I can get some work done as soon as I arrive, and do not have to worry about the more difficult task of finding a seat or a space later in the day, when the library fills with activity. In the afternoon, the challenge of library and the micro-meeting place are very similar, where does one find a relaxing and comfortable space. The micro meeting place, a space that is filled with so much activity, movement, and continuous flows of people, challenges its intended design! Further research is required!

[spacesofutsc-blog]

I was never a big fan of coffee prior entering university. I did not like the bitterness and the aftertaste it left me. Also, I did not need the help of caffeine in High School to help me go through assignments and exams. However, once I entered university and experienced the first midterm I started to learn to appreciate the existence, the smell and the functions of coffee. Every time I walk past by Starbucks and sniffs the smell of coffee beans crushing and turning into delighted drinks in the hands of baristas, they acts as an instant “wake up “alarm for me to stay awake and on time. This is why I chose to observe the Starbucks open space area in between SW and HW during 2:00pm to 3:00pm in the afternoon. This space starts from the staircase of SW and ends from the narrow walking intersection connecting to HW. It is specifically located on the second floor of the Science Wing on the UTSC Campus Map. The exterior of the meeting place has a rough and earthy tone to it. With the walls and ceilings being the structure of this meeting place by grey colored unpaved concrete, floors paved in hard baked red lay tiles and woody colored walls which creates a sense of warmth and contrast.

This meeting place contains multiple components which fills up the open space. The Starbucks store is located against the wall on the right, near the gallery and the door to outside track. The lines of Starbucks usually take up a lot of space in the meeting space, sometimes extending it to the wall on the opposite side of the room. There are lots of seating areas in the meeting place, either on the side of Starbucks, or in the center of the meeting place, creating rows of tables and chairs for students to chat, study and eat their meals. The meeting place has plenty of daylight. The roof is made of a large piece of glass and pieces of cements in shapes of cuboid, so that sunlight can shine into the room through the cracks of the roof, not being too harsh on very sunny days. At the same time, there was a very large French window beside the rest area beside Starbucks, and it helped the lighting of the area as well. With the window-based ceiling in mind, natural light from sunroofs and broad windows enhances the connection to outdoors regardless the weather.

The open space in the middle could be used as a studying room with rows of tables and chairs. It could also be used for job fairs, club’s gatherings, farmer’s market and library sales for books. During the time I was observing the area, the open space in the middle was full of chairs and tables for students to use. The overall environment was very noisy. Mixed with chatters, keyboard typing, paper wrappers crumbling and music playing in the background from the radio. I was sitting beside Starbucks, in front of the big open windows, so I could see people walking past by, sitting in front or near me or lining up for food and drinks. The language spoken were very multicultural, some groups were speaking loudly, and some would chat quietly. However, I did realize that after 15-20 minutes of loud chattering, there will follow a 2-3 minute of quietness. This cycle continues for the one hour I stayed in that area.

The studying area was usually packed during midterms or final exams period. On the day I went for observation, the meeting space was filled with students studying for their exams. However, one issue I find with this meeting space for studying purposes is that with its loud volume, sometimes it is hard to focus on the actual content. While I was trying to observe while writing notes down, I found it really distracting because I am usually affected by the music playing in the background and chatters of other people. So, I think the overall environment is more suitable for a leisure time hangout, instead of a silent study session. The scent in the meeting place from Starbucks was also very memorable for me. Other than the smell of coffee beans that awoken me during the day, the toasting smell of bacon gouda and egg, which is my personal favorite, makes my mouth water every time I walk past by. The scents remind me of my freshman year in UTSC and ordering food with my best friend during breaks. Even when I am not with her, just by sniffing the smells of coffee and food, it instantly reminds me of the times and laughter I had back in the days when we were in first year.

Something that I tend to ignore but noticed this time during my observation is the room in the corner beside the door to the trial at the back of the school. It was a school gallery that shows student artworks. I was able to remember the name of this gallery and it is called Gallery 1265. The shape of this room was unique, and it was shaped in a polygon. There were not a lot of people in there, and people tends to ignore its existence because the main focus of this meeting place were to sit or to buy food. I think the lack of attention to the gallery is due to its physical location and how busy this area is. With the overwhelming surrounding in the meeting place, people tends to leave out the smaller context in a  larger space, and only focus on their intentions.

Overall, the meeting place is a central focal point of campus life and is suitable for any campus purpose such as studying, chatting or filling up the empty stomach.