The Poor College Students' South Beach

Nearly every day they greet me on the way to and from art class, but they never say a word. And even while I walk far from them, I have the irrational fear that I’ll trip over them. It's not a daily hassle that I have to walk around them, but sometimes they situate themselves in a such a critical place that you just have to. I still wait, and fear, for the day when they cover the entire field, making my regular trek to the Rainbow Building even more difficult. Who wants to trip over nearly naked bodies on the way to class, especially if you are late? And how do you explain that to your professor?

Almost every single day, University of Miami students sunbathe on the Intramural Fields, when no teams play, usually sometime between ten in the morning to five in the afternoon. And let’s not even get started about Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays; unless it rains or it’s cloudy, they cover most of the fields. Lefebvre wrote about how a person’s leisure time is a reflection of one’s work, or more of diverging completely from work. And what is more opposite of doing anything at all than doing absolutely nothing at all? After a long week of exams and projects and labs and whatnot, it’s nice to just lie down in the sun and not think. I’ve heard from nearly everyone about how studying here is like being on a constant vacation with some studying in-between; this only enhances that idealistic image.

But is this even the end of it? Tanning serves one purpose: to match the standard beauty ideals, especially those of South Beach. Or to get skin cancer. So maybe this leisure is the first step in attaining a higher leisure: doing nothing on the beaches of Miami. After all, there is no greater spectacle on Miami Beach than those tan bodies in the sun. So, by doing nothing today, you can do even more nothing tomorrow! Of course, if tomorrow is Sunday, that totally changes the dynamic; every Sunday is Universal Homework Day, so you’ll have to wait until next Friday and tan even more.

So, lying down in the sun every day after class can get you steps closer to the ideal tan-thin-beautiful person, guaranteeing you a place on the shores of Biscayne. What a great deal! And let’s not forget the best part: it's FREE!