Moving to Tallahassee for my first semester at Florida State University (FSU) was a stressful ordeal for me. I was nervous about making friends, managing my time, and missing my family while I adjusted to a new environment. While I was excited about this new chapter of my life, I was worried that I would not be able to find activities that fulfilled me. After classes were canceled for Hurricane Idalia, I was given an opportunity to extend my exploration of campus. My favorite thing I did, and continue to do, by far has got to be rotting on Landis Green.
One day, my friend asked me if I wanted to grab some towels and lay out on Landis to watch the sunset. Seeing as I had nothing else to do, I grabbed my tote, stuffed a book and a towel in it, and headed out. She brought a hammock with her, and that was the first time I learned to set one up. We spent all afternoon lounging in the hammock reading, doing homework, and people-watching. I bought my own hammock that night, suddenly very excited to spend all of my spare time outside rather than curled up in bed.
In my own experience, in order to successfully rot on Landis, buying a hammock is a must. As of right now, my favorite hammocking spots are the three trees across from the FSU Innovation Hub and the group of trees across from Strozier. When it comes to how I pick a spot, I prefer the trees across from the Hub when the sun is going down because it gives me the best vantage point to watch everyone dilly-dally, and I like the Strozier cluster after class because there’s good shade accompanied by good people watching. Although I have yet to utilize it, Greek Park, across from Sorority Row, is at the top of my bucket list for places I yearn to hammock on campus.
When I’m in a hammock, all of my worries seem to evaporate. It doesn’t matter how my day is going; the moment I get to swing in my hammock on Landis, I feel like I am right where I’m meant to be. I have now carved out a time in my day I like to call “Hammock Time.” I get to lay there and stare up at the beautiful trees and watch all of these different people do things that make them happy outside.
As I type this, I am having my daily hammock time. The past 24 hours have been stressful for me; I finally had my first dorm cry since getting here. I’m still adjusting to college life. But as I sit in this hammock with the sun on my face and the breeze in my hair, it’s easy to remember how much I love it here. I love watching my friends laugh with each other, and the strum of the guitar one of them brought out to play. I love the intensity of Landis spikeball, the camaraderie of the football games, and the occasional dog being walked by me. I love rotting in my hammock, and I’m so glad I started doing this for my own well-being.
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