There are these awesome study nooks on the 2nd floor of Cook Library. I love them. They’re on the north end of the building, situated between the recessed windows. There’s a small desk, and a lamp, and a chair, and a coat hook. I’ve been here for a little over two hours — photo to be posted later — and I can’t believe I’ve been here this long. My Arabian Nights paper is coming along quite nicely. I hope I’m making some points that won’t have been covered by any other students in my class — my topic is the “Use of the Frame Story”.

This paper, however, doesn’t matter. My grade in Folklore is at least on the border of an A/B (depending on how I did on the slide quiz last week). Even an average grade on this paper won’t hurt me as much as a bad grade on my Chaucer paper will. That’s the paper I’m worried about.

Did I say worried?

I meant terrified.

(Especially terrified after the midterm!)

It’s always the little things that trip me up, like the “hold” on my Towson account that prevents me from registering until I meet with my department advisor. Thankfully, online information is able to tell me who that is, so now I just have to track down Prof. Jack Carneal, who I know is teaching classes but never seems to be teaching them on days when I’m on campus. Failing that, perhaps I can convince Dr. Duncan — the chair of the department — to sign on to be my advisor (we’ve already discussed my requirements as he is, aforementioned, chair of the department), remove the hold, and allow me to register.

Should’ve checked on this sooner. Alas.

Paying $220 for a year parking permit, a red tag hanging from my rear-view mirror, I love when I’m driving or walking in or out of the Towson Town/Linthicum or Glen Parking Garages and seeing individuals in reflective vests walking from spot to spot making sure every car has a proper parking permit. Parking has always been a valuable commodity at, I’m sure, any school, but especially (in my experience), Towson.

Parking isn’t such an issue at night (parking is very easy at night, I don’t know why they bother ticketing), but I burn up when I pull into the garage in the A.M. and I see vehicles without permit tags. I think of the two-hundred and twenty bucks I spent, and I think, “Gosh, I hope that person who didn’t pay for a tag gets a big fine, and a lot of ‘em, too.”

Here’s the trick to finding parking spots at Towson:

1. Schedule early classes. Seriously. Why does any commuter student schedule an 8am or 9am or 9:30am class? Parking. No lie.

2. If you’ve got a permit, get to one of the garages at least twenty minutes before the current class gets out. (I.E., if you’ve got a 12:30 Tuesday/Thursday class, be at the garage by 11:55, since the class change begins at 12:15). Most people don’t get on campus until right before classes dismissed, and your chance of finding open parking — always check the roof deck! — is highest.

3. If you don’t have a permit, there is on-campus free parking. Metered parking on the lowest level of Glen Garage, and a whole lot for Bateman’s between 7800 York Rd. and Stephen’s Hall. (You might have to actually walk to Bateman’s, then make a feint the long way around the building to trick the lot attendant).

So, finally, thank you, enforcerers of Towson University Parking Permits. Thank you for walking through the dreary cold concrete decks of the parking garages. Thank you for scowering the parking lots. Thank you for going out in the heat and the cold, the rain and the wind and the snow to ensure that those who paid for their parking permits did not pay in vain.

White suburban housewives should not have “spinners” rims on their soccermobiles, even if said soccermobile is a giant Cadillac SUV.