Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Study Spots

As all students living in Ann Arbor know, it's getting to be exam time. Some students have already started their exam blitz, I know I have. Studying for exams is one of my least favorite things. Not because it's particularly painful, I just get bored. I hate being told things twice, and I feel like studying it telling myself the same things over and over again. I get antsy, and end up studying for 5 minutes, and taking a 30 minute brake before resuming for another 5 minutes. However, I have come up with a system to help with this: Studying at the bar.

Now, this gets me weird looks from the general populous, but I'm telling you, it works wonders. Having a beer or so an hour does enough to relax me that I can focus on my studies without getting bored, or letting my mind wander. Most Ann Arbor bars, have WiFi access to patrons, so if internet access is needed, it's available. Also, food is always a waitress-flag-down away, too.

Not all bars are good for this study technique, but the following provide a good atmosphere (fairly quiet, WiFi access, etc.):

BTB Cantina: Food, WiFi, fairly inexpensive (but terrible) beer. Other than nights (post 10pm) Thursdays and Fridays, this is a pretty good study spot, otherwise, it get's pretty loud, but there are nice couches.

Good Time Charliey's: Food, WiFi, very cheap food and drink during one of the longest happy hours in Ann Arbor (2:30-6) all throughout the week. It's super quiet until around 8pm.

Scorekeepers: Food, WiFi. I really only would go on Wednesday. NO ONE is there, and they have a great deal for $6, you can snag a good burger, fries, and any pint they have on draft. This fits in nicely with the 'Study Day' for students this Wednesday before finals.

Grizzly Peak: Food, WiFi, a bit more expensive. Unless you're planning on rolling through for the post-11pm study session, this can be pretty expensive, but it's generally not too loud, and you may run into your prof, so you could always just ask questions about the material to them (especially if you're taking 'History of College Athletics').

Places to Avoid:

Mitch's, Heidelberg, Conor O'Neil's, Rick's (honestly, if you needed me to mention that, you should probably euthinize yourself), GTC's in the evening, the list goes on.

I wish the Tap Room in the Union was still a tap room. Life would be so perfect if that were the case. Oh well, curse our country's founded-by-prude-ness.