THE UNPRESIDENTIAL DEBATE

Danika Fatnowna and Jeremy Borrott ‘spill the tea’ (or flat white!) on what spot on campus is the most studious place to hustle and get that essay written: Rejuve or the library.

REJUVE, THE PLACE TO BE

I’ve always had an instinctual aversion to air conditioning, getting into trouble and quiet spaces. For this reason, I have developed some avoidance behaviours that lead me into only comfortable and familiar situations. These behaviours include diligently following rules, driving with the windows down, and studying in Rejuve instead of the library.

If you do not know, Café Rejuve is the Avondale University College watering hole. You can get your caffeine fix, socialise with your fellow peers, or put your headphones in and hustle on that overdue assignment. Need a cheeky 5-minute break? Have a friendly chat with one of the baristas, a lecturer, or a fellow hard-working student.

The library is Rejuve’s austere older sister. Rejuve will charm your socks off, take you on a date, and have you begging for more. The library will tell you to shush at the cinemas during the ads. It wasn’t too far into last year’s second semester when I attempted to make use of the library. Now, I understand the current climate we live in and that health and safety should always be the priority, but that silent scold I received from behind the desk when I did not remember to hand sanitise cut me too deep. I like to consider myself a reasonable person, so I didn’t yell out, “I literally just sanitised my hands in the foyer” in the middle of a silent library. Instead, I capitulated and subjected my hands to another spray of sanny. Overwhelming feelings of guilt and annoyance crushed my dreams of being a studious library girl.

I’ve never been reprimanded in Rejuve, but I have finished assignments, studied for tests, and had some of the best banter Avondale can offer. You may not always get the exact coffee you ordered, but you do get some good effort… keep trying Hobson. Our little college café may seem modest and quirky upon first glance, with its charcoal walls, orange accents, and plastic ferns, but a quote I read on Google sums up the magic of Rejuve quite well, “The big moments are the tiny moments. The breakthroughs are often silent, and they happen in the most unassuming places.” I’m gonna say that Rejuve is one of those unassuming places.

- DANIKA FATNOWNA

REJUVE, SCHMEJUVE

The human brain - not to be confused with the human, Brian - is capable of developing some of the most steadfast convictions, albeit seeded in utter lies. The mind boggles over trivial matters such as toilet paper orientation if sleeping with socks on is a trait of a psychopath or just straight insanity, and whether statements like ‘being alone is empowering’ is the encouraging mantra of a strong individual or the helpless cry of a recluse desperate for companionship. Regardless of who you are or the scientific facts you may have, your opinion will always be questionable to some and outright wrong to others. However, there is one topic that deserves more attention than it gets.

There is too much concentration on silly things, like whether you are supposed to indicate off a round-a-bout, and not the real issues of the world: studying in the library is far superior to studying in Rejuve.

I am a firm believer that the best defence is an even stronger offence. Thus, Rejuve Schmejuve. I can hardly comprehend one of the busiest and noisiest spaces on campus being an ‘optimum study environment’. Rejuve is just a place for perception management. The real reason people go to study in Rejuve is in the hopes that someone saves you from having to endure one more draining moment researching the bes ways to pass an exam you haven’t t

studied for. I imagine that the type of people that go to Rejuve to ‘study’ are the same types of people who go to Maccas for the ‘salad’…sorry mate, you’re not fooling anyone.

I pivot now to point out some benefits of the fountain of knowledge that is the Avondale Library. As soon as you walk through those glass doors, you are hit in the nostrils with a profuse smell of wisdom that can only come from a weathered compendium. Not to mention, the library provides many-a-study room with a range of seating so you can pick and choose those key people in your life you want next to you as you expand your brain and better your mind. Not to mention, the view from that middle study room…absolute stunner!

Few have realised that some of the books in the Library actually help with study. Studies have shown that studying in study spaces with books people have studied to write could assist in better study… at least I imagine. Good luck getting the answers to question 14 B from the inside of a coffee cup. I have also been told that you get a great vantage point from the quiet study spaces down to Rejuve to spot those newly formed couples that plague the campus. This means you’re not only learning about your field but also about your peers - #AvondaleXP. You’re getting the inside scoop on all the ‘haps’ before it gets leaked in an impromptu and not-so-secret dorm room get-together. If this has made you question your place of study, good! Support your local and grab that coffee from Rejuve but then make your way to the library. Wake up and smell the books.

- JEREMY BORROTT