Ruffner

Had anybody asked me earlier today how I planned on spending Friday night I would not have said any of the following:
1) with my head under a recliner unwedging a power cord from a spring;
2) attempting to get my phone charger from my friends' house, only to be locked out with everybody gone for the weekend;
3) stealing internet in my car with a big-ass bug crawling on my computer screen;
4) watching TV alone in my apartment because my roommate failed to tell me he wasn't coming back tonight;
5) coming close to making myself vomit in order to feel better;
6) sitting on a couch in Ruffner Hall, home of the Curry School of Education, at 1 a.m.

I've never thought of the Education School as a refuge. I've rarely even thought of it as my school to be honest. But I guess I spend enough time here that it's become a second home to me. I know the building too well. I know the people well enough. I can predict when the Curry Cafe vending machines will be accepting Cav Advantage money and when you can only use cash.

My UVa ID gives me after-hours access to this building which is magnetically locked after 9 p.m. or so. This isn't the first time I've come here late at night, but it's the only time I've been here this late and had nothing to do inside. No last minute lesson plan changes to turn in, no scrambling to finish a series of podcasts...it's just me being bored and lonely and using the school's internet.

The Ed. School, by the way, is one of the ugliest buildings on Grounds, both inside and out. This building is a remnant of 1970s architecture that directly clashes with everything else at the University. It pleases me to say that this morning I attended the dedication of Bavaro Hall, the NEW Ed. School building. The massive complex dwarfs Ruffner and hides its older partner from being seen from the street. Its new brick and white exterior shines in contrast to the dull and fading façade (although nobody really knows what side of this building is the front) of Ruffner.

We've been told that classes during the Fall should be in Bavaro for the most part unless the filling of the interior takes longer than planned and then a transition period during the Fall or even at the beginning of Spring semester would occur. Either way, I've been guaranteed to have at least one class in Bavaro, even if I have to wait until my final semester at UVa.

In the meantime, though, I've been relaxing on a couch in front of a first-floor entrance to the old Ed. School looking at pictures of the new Ed. School scrolling on a television in the Office of Admissions and Student Services. I may take a walk bare-foot around this building tonight....just in case I never get an opportunity to do it again.