The Quiet Campus

January 6, 1999

Late this morning I met with the University's Web Manager over in the Media Resource Center. They've recently assembled a digital video suite, and Bill and I got the full tour from Hil Scott. Very nice. I'm looking forward to using the suite, though I'm going to have to sit through some of the tutorials before I know what I'm doing.

Bill and I are particularly interested in the suite because we're planning to put the University's recruiting video on the web in RealVideo format. Once we've done that, I'll probably spend some more time in the studio working on other kinds of projects. I have to admit, I'm partial to audio over the web, since I can always listen but not always watch. Still, video can be fun, and the new studio can do more than anyone at the University can currently guess.

Heading back to my office after yet another meeting, I noticed again how quiet the campus is in these last few days before the students come back. It was late in the afternoon, so the sun was almost hitting the campus sideways. I walked through an empty quadrangle that's usually bustling. The only sound came from my shoes against the brick sidewalk.

It's not eerie when the campus is like this: while there is an intensity to the silence, it's more contemplative than ghostly. So much happens in even a year at this place. So much of my own history, both as a student and now as a staff member, has been in this place. Every building has its own character, and the people and departments in each building are a part of that character.

In just a few more days thousands of students will return, and the University will once again bustle with activity. It will be the same place then as it is today; I just won't have as much of a chance to stop and look.

Another pretty day. The clouds are starting to build up a little, though even through the afternoon they were only wisps against the blue sky. The forecast calls for flurries or perhaps even snow tomorrow. It would be nice to have one more taste of winter before school starts up again.

listening: First Symphony (Mahler); Piano Sonatas (Beethoven)

reading: 1 Maccabees; The Hobbit (Bumpy's Bedtime Book)

visiting: Campus Pipeline