miercuri, 28 octombrie 2009

24 hours awake in school


Good morning dear mister door keeper!

Good morning dear teachers and dear fellow students from the Technical University in Cluj-Napoca. I wish you a wonderful week with useful and practical experience!

It’s 4:41 in the morning now and I can’t sleep because I don’t have a bed or at least a warm flat surface to lie on. I’m in the amphitheater A117 on Muncii Avenue in the Faculty of Mechanics. Trust me, I don’t like school so much to stay in during the nights but this time it happened. I’ve talked with the door keeper to let me in and study something because it wasn’t possible in the dorms. He agreed but he didn’t said that I have to evacuate the building at a specific hour so I guessed that he will be there, on his chair when I’ll finish the studies. This didn’t happened the way I thought so at 23:30 I found myself alone in the dark locked inside the Technical University. Shit happens.

With nothing in the backpack except the laptop and some chocolate I decided to spend the night here and sleep some hours if I can. To keep myself cheerful and in good mode I decided to share my experience with everyone who was online that time. Facebook and Twitter were my means of communication with the exterior. I twitted 14 times in about 5-6 hours sharing my activities here. I was looking for a way out but with all the alarms on and with millions of Euros in equipment I guess I was a wise decision not to exit through a window or try all the keys from the guard post. Maybe, a one man room with metal bars in the Police Office could have been warmer but it was funnier here.

The most difficult part was the uncertainty concerning the door keeper. Is he inside, sleeping somewhere or is he at home, outside the University? I really didn’t knew that shouting and playing music loud was ok and I was the only listener. In the end I convinced myself and got the radiator and started the online fiesta at 4 am. Warm fingers, warm toes and warm people online. Yes, they weren’t from Europe. A friend of mine from the States asked me ”What’s going on with you? Are you really inside the University”. Later on, she told me in a very poetical way: “stiam ca esti dus dar nici chiar in halul asta”. Ok, Dragos can handle any situation!

Finally, the guy with the key came opened the door of freedom! Don’t imagine me running towards the door keeper and then begging him for the key. “Good morning” “Good morning to you to. Did you slept here?”. In fact I got a quick nap on the chair watching Milk with Sean Penn, so I didn’t slept there. At 5:30 I was back in my bed at the dorms and then at 6:30 already awake, ready for 3 new laboratories and a seminar.

School was fun. I told the teachers where I slept last night and they understood me. During the first lab, my eyes kept on closing themselves but afterwards I was fine and full of energy. No coffee involved in my waking-up.

Suggestion no1: try this experience and stay one night in a factory, in a school, in a museum or everywhere you want. You will find more about yourself and about your friends online.

Suggestion no.2: get some warm clothes and some food with you. I might be useful but not really necessary :D. Go for the real thing!