Seniors, don’t moan about Barone

Ninety-nine percent of the time, I can be found catching a breath of fresh air outside the back door of the BCC. I spend about 35 hours a week in the Barone Campus Center, and I love every minute.

My strange attachment to the Campus Center is no secret and, as an off-campus resident, The Mirror office has become my home away from my beach home.

Living at the beach is decidedly the best part of the Fairfield college experience, no question about it, but what is the big problem with hanging out on campus?

The large cement fortress is not a throwback to my underclassmen days, but rather a central location away from partying, distractions and the general hustle and bustle of the Point.

Like opening the wardrobe to find the secret land of Narnia, I have found many hidden places while exploring the 40,000 square feet of Barone. Did anyone know that there is a fifth floor above the dean’s office?

And, BCC regulars have first dibs on all leftovers – plenty of high quality Sodexho catering just handed to us because someone always orders too much. In this building, extra food is never thrown out before asking the familiar faces of The Mirror staff.

Though my commitment to The Mirror heavily influences the amount of time I spend in the lower level of the BCC, arriving at 8:30 a.m. is my choice. I feel fortunate to have a quiet place where I can peacefully do homework or check e-mails.

Instead of relying on my car as a place to keep books, eat lunch, finish my homework or wait for class, I set up shop in The Mirror office.

Leaving my car in the BCC parking lot and walking to class is not the end of the world.

Campus, for me, is not the alien planet it is for most seniors who speed toward the beach as soon as class is over. And I don’t get extreme anxiety the way many do if they arrive a minute too early and actually wait in their car until class begins.

My roommate says she makes up errands just to avoid the awkward 20 minutes in between classes.

Imagine the gas mileage that would be saved if seniors made it more acceptable to stroll through the BCC and perhaps take a seat in the comfortable chairs. But for the majority of the class of 2008, chillin’ in the BCC is completely out of the question.

So is eating in the cafeteria.

Though my meal plan days are over, I have eaten breakfast about five times “upstairs.” I miss Barone; it’s a place that is able to satiate the day’s craving with its wide variety of foods. Most students attribute the freshman 15 to the Barone cafeteria, but Chef’s Table, La Salsa and Village Bagel take a much more serious toll on a woman’s figure.

Still a major part of my college experience, the back door of the BCC is my on-campus niche. Everyone I know passes through these doors at some point throughout the day, and I love that meet and greet period of my day.

After four years, it’s refreshing that some things never change – the BCC is still the place to see and be seen.

Whether it is early in the morning, lunchtime or ridiculously late at night, chances are you can find me chillin’ in The Mirror>/i> office or smoking a cig outside the BCC.