A Campion Safari

Campion Dining Hall. You never really stop and really think about a place until someone stops and makes you. When you do, sometimes you find yourself laughing at just what it is you see. And considering just how often I visit campion, It's hard to believe I missed it.

Around 7:00 A.M., Most people in Campion are the staff, cleaning and preparing food. However, you catch some grogy early birds trudging around, waiting for the doors to the dining hall to open. Most of these early risers can be found in the small common area near Campion's rear exit, sitting in the worn out old couches and fighting the urge to slip back to sleep. The steady hum of the vents make this struggle all the harder, putting people out with their constant, droning hum. Some have books and laptops out, putting some final touches on whatever work they had been doing from the night before. No one ever talks to eachother. It seems to be an unspoken rule that before 8:00, no one is allowed to say anything above a whisper.

By 7:15 A.M., the doors to Campion open and these grogy, silent morning folk trudge through the open doorsto the dining hall. Once they have their food, they all spread out as far as they can from each other. No one's interested in conversation this early in the morning, and by spreading out as possible, the risk of facing it is nearly nonexistant.

Around 8:00 A.M., the rest of SJU comes streaming through. Most keep their eyes locked to the ground or a phone to avoid having to make awkward eye contact with anyone. The greasy food smell have returned and the murmer of voices grows to a loud buzz. Some more extroverted people strike up conversation with the staff, while others talk with friends or still try to maintain their privacy by keeping their heads down and their eyes locked on their food.