Sometimes I wonder if I'm just a little too paranoid.
I got to the library at a time when it was still "relatively" empty so I got my pick of seats. The desks are arranged in clusters of four, but they're sort of cubby-holed so that you can't see the people across from you. However, you can see the person beside you.
You know bathroom etiquette? You typically take every other stall and only start taking the next stall if the rest are filled. It's like desk occupation etiquette. If a lot of desks are empty, find your own cluster of four so you don't disturb anyone. If every cluster is filled, then start taking a desk at a cluster that is already occupied but that is opposite of the person who's already there so that he or she doesn't have to see you. And if the library is filled to capacity, well, then it's okay to take any opening that's available.
So I was a little surprised when someone took the desk beside me. It's a Wednesday (one would expect it to be crowded during Thursdays and Sundays instead and it's not even midterms) and the weather is rather horrible. I would expect most people to be in their own rooms yakking on the phone or playing with the computer.
You can imagine my annoyance that after working over an hour with someone metaphorically breathing down my neck I looked up and noticed a multitude of other empty desks which could have been occupied without a detriment to my own need for space. So why did this person choose to sit with me? If anything, previous experience has taught me that no one voluntarily sits with me. Did this person fear sitting alone? Do I look harmless compared to the other people in the library? Does this person want to sneak a peek at what I am doing? Do I bear an uncanny resemblance to someone this person knows?
Why do people choose to sit next to a stranger? Would it make a difference if I said what kind of person this was?
