20 Minutes in Benson

Happy Monday, Deac families! It was a glorious weekend weatherwise, with temps in the mid 70s on Saturday and closer to 80 on Sunday. There was a big and spectacular Supermoon this weekend as well, plus men’s soccer took down #2 Louisville in Spry, while wearing fantastic pink shirts in support of the Susan G. Komen foundation. I was not able to get to the game but saw it via the ESPN live watch option. (Yes, I do know there were other sporting events, so no disrespect intended to all the other Wake teams; I send them all my love and a big “Go Deacs!” However, my Class of 2027 Deac is a giant soccer fan and there’s only so many hours in a day for sports, so that’s where most of our fan efforts are spent.)

This past Thursday I had 20 minutes to spend before a meeting, so I camped out in Benson outside the mail room and the food court areas.  Here’s a mini Five Senses.

I see…

The large open area near the mail room and the Dean of Students office has a bunch of seating areas – some tables and chairs, some more sofalike chairs.  There are 3 or 4 tables with students and open laptops, most are wearing headphones.

One girl in that area is on a chair with an ottoman and she is curled up, almost fetal position like. I’m worried something is wrong based on posture, as she is poised like an old-school movie heroine on a fainting couch.  Then I realize she is just scrolling leisurely on her phone, totally comfortable.

One guy with one ear bud in his ear, the other he is twirling around his finger, then he flips it back the other way. Continuously.

As I move up to the Food Court area, I see a professor who is one of my student friend’s favorite faculty members.  I kind of wish I could tell him he has a devoted fanbase, but I don’t.

An odd mix of clothes – everything from jeans and long sleeves and vests to short sleeves and shorts to a tennis dress.  Shorts are really short this year, it seems to me.

A girl bringing a box up the stairs from the mail room.  Looks like it could be a care package from home.

Ads scrolling on a flat screen TV in the lobby.  Fall Fest. United Way. Safety info. Charge: Emerging Leaders.

Several guys with beards, which is normally not something you see until closer to finals.

I hear…

Constant swinging of doors toward Tribble opening and closing.  It is a righteous squeak every time.  Needs oil.

Students at a table behind a big column. They are doing some kind of fundraiser, but I can’t tell what it is for.  There is steady foot traffic to their table.

A very wet sounding cough.  I have been told there is some respiratory gunk going around, and this guy sounds like he has it for sure.

A conversation between two girls at a table near me.  They cover a wide variety of topics – and I can only hear little bits.  In describing a male friend, one of them said “He doesn’t have a fitted sheet.”  (I imagine my own P’92 mother reading this and cringing at the notion that some poor boy’s bed is not properly made.)

A big increase in the foot-stomping sound that ushers in the change of classes right around 1:50.  Suddenly there are a ton more students passing by.

I smell…

Chick fil A.  A waft of hot grease every few minutes as students with to-go bags pass by me.

I taste…

Diet Pepsi, my bev of choice and one I don’t indulge in much anymore. It tastes fantastic.

There’s your Four Senses for the day.  Also for our P’20s, there is a new Message for First-Year Families today, about the Ups and Downs of the first semester.