Big v Small Universities

It's 10.45. I've got a meeting in 15 mins, haven't read the paper for the meeting yet and I've just reached the front door of the University. Fine I think. I can brew a nice cup of tea, skim read the paper, and give the impression that I'm a hard-working, efficient student who cares very much about my thesis.

EXCEPT...

This would have been the case at the University of St Andrews - a small quiet town which, even in the throes of freshers week, is small and quiet. Enter the University of Central Lancashire, which has a student population a factor of 10 larger than St Andrews.

It took me seven (SEVEN!) minutes to get from the entrance of my building to my desk. I had to dodge around students who think standing as a group of ten in the middle of the corridor is acceptable. I had to duck through the line of 30 people waiting in line for a lift to go up one floor. After climbing two flights of stairs I spotted another student waiting for the lift to go up ONE MORE FLOOR!!! And even when, breathless and hot, I arrive on the floor to my office, there are more students milling around the corridor, making it impossible to dodge into my own office.

I don't mean to rant. But I really wanted that cup of tea. My only question is - why can't undergraduates behave like normal people? Why do they walk at half the speed we do? Why are they alway consistently in the way? And why, oh why, are they always ALWAYS in front of me???

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