As a subject, architecture is serious, exhaustive with all the redo’s you get in the beginning and later, you’re frustrated when you understand the unfairness and limitations in this field hence, you’re helpless. This subject is no fun in between. But as a student, I tried to break this focus-oriented subject and decided to enjoy myself as I study, design and work. There were humorous incidents with my classmates, conversations with lecturers and cracking up relieved me from the day’s stress. Let me share some of my fond memories and experiences in this field.
Trust in your skill
At the beginning of the 5th semester, our faculty informed us that our university was one of the top 50 universities selected in the Annual NASA Design Competition and we are eligible to enroll in all the Annual NASA competitions. Few of my classmates teamed up with me to enroll in the Landscape Competition. On the day of the documentation of our proposed site, one of our team-mates was late. I tried to call her but received no answer.
After getting delayed by an hour, there she was, driving towards us on her new yellow Scooty Zest wearing a matching yellow helmet, with a big frown on her face. As she parked and approached us, I sensed that she was unfocused and anxious maybe because she was late, so I asked her to explain her delay. Reminding myself of the reason she gave throws me into fits of laughter even now!
According to her, on her way to the site, she met with an accident. A guy hit her bike while driving in the wrong direction. Soon a crowd gathered with none defending her when the guy demanded money for his vehicle damage. She was apprehensive but still stood by herself and waited until a traffic police officer arrived. The officer suggested her to go to the nearest police station to book a complaint against the offender. She goes to the police station and explains her situation. The officer there then gave her a paper for her to write down her complaint.
As she started to write, her flustered mind couldn’t focus and formulate any words. So, she did what any architect would do with ease. She sketched! Yes! She drew the roadway, herself on her bike and the guy on his in a plan format. She drew another plan showing the next scene of the incident. And that she submitted as her complaint! Hilarious!
Overconfidence in your skill
The next incident was during a drafting studio. Drafting studios needed two mandatory scales (a T-square scale and set square scales), without that none were allowed to attend the session. The studio faculty strode in announcing that students without either one or both scales to leave the room. Almost half of the class had moved out, leaving the remaining to focus on the day’s task as she instructed them on drafting perspectives. The lecturer made stops at a few tables, to check their works. The studio ended with our submissions.
Later in the week, during another studio session, the lecturer handed over our previous sheets and asked everyone to gather around to give an example of one of our classmates to compliment him for his neatness. The lecturer asked the student to explain his smudge-free sheet. The entire class burst into laughter when he said that the neatness was because he used one scale (t-square) to draft his perspectives. That was the day most of us were punished, for not having the equipment. This guy arrived late to the class, unaware of the situation, submits his work at the end of the day and even gets complimented. What are the odds?
Atypical Comfort
This incident was during our university’s annual fest. Being the batch to host this fest meant focusing on every detail, struggling day and night without any flaw in arrangements. And the struggles were real. Few of my class boys volunteered to stay back at the university until the completion of the staff. It was past midnight by the time the crew left after completing the preparations. Realizing that it’s too late for their hostel gates to remain open, they thought it’ll be best to spend the night on the campus itself. They got a classroom unlocked by the gatekeeper and decided to reside there for the night.
It was December time, with a chilling winter breeze. The boys were shivering with nothing to keep them warm. They couldn’t tolerate the chill in the air any longer, and started collecting old drawing sheets left in shelves tied together with threads. They tied and re-tied the sheets in a way it represented a thin blanket. They realized that it was the best they could do to suffice the need and slept on the floor using the sheets to cover them up. That’s how I found them when I arrived early. I was impressed with their focus at that hour of the night to have thought of this remedy.
Everybody has responsibilities to take care of, and there isn’t a doubt about the amount of effort required to complete the task. However, one must find ways to have fun and enjoy what they do. And for me finding humour in silly situations, laughing my guts out absurd jokes and taking redo’s as challenges to prove my present-self better than my past-self. And as Horace injects “carpe diem quam minimum credula postero,” meaning seize the day, trust as little as possible in tomorrow.
