The cash register slides shut. Orders like, "soy vanilla latte" are shouted out casually. Nearby, ticking radiates off keyboards as they are put to work. Surely, Indie music fills up any dull moments when the shop quiets down in a slow peak during the day. If you listen close enough, concentrating, you can pick out hundreds of distinct sounds. However, if you focus your attention on your work, it all harmoniously fades together to form the perfect coffee shop symphony.

Whether you woke up earlier than your classes to finish something up or need a place to get a mid-day jolt, the local coffee shops are where you need to be. On campus, at Illinois State University, there are three coffee shops I like to shuffle between. The Coffee Hound is my go to when I'm looking for caffeine in the morning and a place to do some last minute studying before an upcoming test. The Coffee House is where I head when I know I'm in it for the long haul. Besides their coffee and tea selection, they have a full menu of food, making it perfect for when I head there in the afternoon and leave when they close for the night. Lastly, Fusion Brew is the ideal place when I want a fancier drink and place to stay later at night since it's opened the latest out of the three.

Despite which I settle on, the conclusion is always the same. I do my best work in the coffee shop. On almost every college campus, there's a place to grab a coffee or tea and spend some time working on assignments. There's a good reason for it too. Coffee shops fall in that unique capacity of being able to waver between being an ultra-productive area of work but also a place to be social with friends or dates. It's professional and casual. Busy yet relaxed. The atmosphere of a coffee shop is ideal for studying and working on assignments.

When studying in a coffee shop, the bustle of everyone in the background provides the perfect "white noise" effect. Despite being potentially louder than the library, the noise, to me, is easier to focus with. Since there are so many different sounds versus one group studying loudly next to me it's less distracting overall. Another wonderful aspect that knocks out the library for top study spot is the ability to easily order caffeine and food. I switch between tea and varying coffee drinks but local coffee shops often have a wide variety menu to be able to change up what you order, even if you don't drink coffee or tea.

I choose to work outside of my room because when in a public setting, the productivity of others influences me, positively, to stay on track working hard on my tasks. I find at the library I can be distracted by friends or my phone but I find I don't want to even be distracted when at a coffee shop, I'm there for a purpose and their closing time keeps me focused to finish before I have to leave. When in the library I feel confined, I'm unable to see outside or if the sun is still shining. When I go to the coffee shops, I can take a moment to look out the window. The natural light is more comforting overall versus the fluorescent lights beaming down in the library. I use the little shops as a place to hide away and work alone or with one other person where I won't be disturbed.

On the other hand, when it's the weekend, coffee shops are my favorite place to grab a coffee and relax with friends, catching up, and even grabbing breakfast. On chilly days, I grab my book to cozy up reading with a warm glass of tea. When I leave my college town on holidays, I find that my hometown is lacking one major thing. I don't have a local coffee shop to spend my time in. It fills the gap of where to go with friends or where to spend a lazy afternoon on break. For me, and clearly a lot of other students, the coffee shop is a staple.