A Place You Can Love

Alright I'm kicking things off with this Houghton writing project. If you were looking for something deeply spiritual I'm sorry I'm all thought out for today. Today I'm just going to tell you about places I love. Starting of with Java 101 and why it is pretty much fantastic, amazing, and twenty other synonyms of awesome that I don't know.

There is a huge list and so many reasons why I love Java and neither are expressed or felt every time I visit; it's a different experience each time. The one constant is that Java's is always comfortable. It's homey and peaceful to me. I doesn't matter if there are two couples sitting at a table and one person on the couch, or if the place is jammed packed because of some art expo. Salsa night, or live music. It isn't about the design or the feel of it (though I love the ambiance). There is no real identifiable characteristic why I love it, it just is a sort of sanctuary for me. A place where I can enjoy so many things like friends, a good cup of coffee, or a meaningful conversation. I can do homework, write, and concentrate well. I always seem to get my best thinking done in Java. I've had so many positive experiences in their that I just love it I guess. Even though coffee shops kill me in general, (I'm a complete sucker for them). Java isn't awesome merely because it is a place where they serve all drinks associated with coffee, play poppy, enjoyable music, and is relaxing. It is just a place I love, which makes it special. However it is not the only coffee shop I love.

Back home where I live there is a coffee shop, tucked in the corner of a building that houses a bunch of different businesses. It has rough red brick walls, and you can see part of the village through the windows, and there's lots of comfy well worn furniture. Live music is frequented there along with all sorts of delicious cakes and sweets. There are cool posters behind the counter and chalkboards colorfully depicting the desert or dinner specials. If you sit in one corner you can see down into the foyer or where the counter is and where coffee shop starts, and if you look outside the lift bridge sits there like a dull giant waiting to the command of to raise or lower. This is my favorite spot, I can see everything, it is the Fairport Village Coffee shop, or among my peers FVC. I've been to plenty of coffee shops because it always struck me in some way other coffee shops haven't. Again it is a place I love.

Though I love both Java 101, and FVC and I spend a lot of time there how much time you spend somewhere doesn't determine if you love a place or not. Heck I've stayed a week in Ghiroda and Ibalcia Romania each and I love both of those places. I didn't spend the majority of my time there during those weeks, but I love them anyway. If you love a place it is special, it does something more for you than just house you or provide some service. Starbucks provides me with some good coffee; Java 101 and FVC give me a way to enjoy my evening even though I do nothing more than drink coffee or talk with friends. There is some enhancement of my life in these places.

I love Java 101 be it quiet or loud. It serves excellent drinks, and is awesome for a good pondering sessions, but that is only one gem in Houghton. Houghton has many gems, but I love Houghton in it entirety. I could write pages about that, but we will leave it the fact that I love it and I belong here. Nothing is perfect, and every places has its downfalls, but at the end of every day Houghton is a beautiful place. If you love Houghton like me I don't think you need to realize why you love Houghton, but analyze away is you wish. The important thing is a place you love is more than a building, it the existence of it as a whole, made up of many parts. A place is the people there, the physical building(s), the ambiance or mood it gives, the community it creates, and much more. The part I love most about Houghton is the people. Loving people doesn't make me love Houghton, but because my friends are here, because they interact, experience, and contribute to what Houghton is they are part of Houghton. Whether you love one part of Houghton, or many parts you get something back, it enhances your life.

So I hope that it is more than an academic institution with a good Music or Biology program. That is a place you love, that enhances your life and make your time here worth it. And if you haven't fallen in love with Houghton or have fallen out of it I urge you to look as to why, and that looking makes a difference. Whether it be realizing Houghton isn't the right place, or that it is. My ultimate wish and hope is that if you are here you can love Houghton, and enjoy your life here to the fullest, and if you can't (because Houghton doesn't fit everyone), then you find a college you can love.