I've noticed that certain spaces on campus have very different vibes depending on when you're there. For instance, it's currently just after 2:00 am, and I was, until very recently, in the library finishing a paper that I should have written before I actually did.
During the day, the first floor of the library is bustling, with students moving about and printing papers and articles constantly. You can go in there and see a few friends, maybe catch up and sit down and get some work done. In the early morning, it's relatively quiet because a college student that voluntarily gets up early is rare. When mid-morning rolls around, there is more activity because students are coming by to print their papers before class or make sure they did that reading for class that they had forgotten about. When lunchtime comes, the library quiets down again because students are at lunch, as one might assume, or in class. The afternoon is often a bit louder than earlier in the day because there are more people and the people there have more energy than they did before and are often under less of a time constraint. This means that there are more conversations and that those who want a quieter work space move up to the second floor, or even the third if they need complete silence. Dinnertime comes, and the library lulls again because students are socializing and setting aside their work in favor of friends. Which is good. After dinner, around maybe eight or nine, the library gets a bit busier again, sort of like mid-morning. There are people sitting with their friends doing work, but there is a significant amount of work getting done. When night falls, which actually begins around 11:00p, the only students left in the library either have something due the next day, at 11:59 pm that night, or are extremely dedicated to their studies- that last one is somewhat uncommon. Depending on when the library is set to close, this final stage may or may not come. For the days when the library closes at 10:00 pm, it never comes; the 1:00 am days allow this stage to begin, but it comes to fruition on the days when the library closes at 2:00 am. This last vibe of the library is very eerie and more than a little creepy. There is often no one at the circulation front desk, and never more than five people on the entire floor. This means that every little sound is heard, and you kind of want to leave as soon as humanly possible. However, you probably still have work to do and so you stay and brave the eeriness and silence.
I'm sure there are other places on campus that have a similar vibe in the early hours of the morning, but I haven't experienced it. Though the place itself hasn't changed, the way that it is perceived has done a one-eighty. I find this phenomenon fascinating, and am seeing it more and more.
