You sit down at the dining hall, your phone’s dead and your friends bailed on you, so you accept that your only source of entertainment is to look at people. We’ve all done it. So, before you start judging me and calling me a “weirdo” or “psycho,” I want to explain myself. I find it completely fascinating how people interact with each other: how they walk, how they talk, how they move their hands when they speak, and how they dress, are all very interesting things to me. (Also, my apartment doesn’t have a TV.) There’s a difference between people watching and judging. I want to make the distinction before I get jumped. What I do is observe the behaviors of people because it’s amazing to me how different we all are. I don’t simply stare at people to judge their clothing and whatnot. That being said, I’d like to share some of the things I saw:

1. We’re pack animals:

If there’s something that’s really evident when you people watch, it's that people prefer to walk with someone than to walk alone. Why is that? It’s like we’d prefer to starve and wait for our friend to come back, than to get food alone from the dinning halls. I don’t know whom, but someone convinced us that being alone to do anything is toxic and we should avoid it at all cost.

2. Some of us strut and some of us skip:

I think it’s very interesting and quite entertaining to see how different people walk. Some skip, some mope, and some power walk, but the interesting aspect is that you can perceive that every single person has a determined destination they want to get to. So, whether you skip or jog, you’re heading somewhere because why else would you be so focused?

3. Phones are a huge part of walking:

Ever since smartphones were invented, people tend to use them as a shield against awkward situations. I’ve noticed that out of 10 people that pass me by, six have their phones out. Whether it’s texting, Facebook, Instagram, or just actually talking on the phone with someone, the majority of people walk while doing something with this device.

4. Beauty comes in all shapes and sizes:

Another thing I can say is that there’s always something nice about a person that walks by. Who ever tried to convince you that you have nothing that makes you pop is a dirty liar. I’ve seen a couple of people walk past me and if there’s something that I’ve learned is that everyone has a special feature that makes them unique and, dare I say, beautiful. Don’t listen to those people that say otherwise, because when you look from a detached perspective, you realize that it’s all a way to make you feel bad about yourself. So, continue to be you, because you’re rocking it!

5. Confidence can be perceived from a ninth floor away:

Along the same line as the previous point, I can tell you when someone doesn’t feel comfortable in their own skin and when someone does. It’s not a method of judgment, but a series of empirical observations. People that tend to look to the ground as they walk or slouch their shoulders when they strut depict a sense of insecurity. So, as the eye in the sky (which some people call stalking) I say, you have nothing to be ashamed of. You are the only person like you on this entire planet, shouldn’t that be a reason to keep your head held high and strut like you own the world? I sure think it is!

So,even though you may be the observer sometimes, you will be the one being observed at some point. So just stay: