If you’ve read In Her Eyes, you may have noticed the setting takes place at my Alma mater, the University of Florida (even though I’m a die hard ‘Noles fan…but that’s for another discussion).
I thought it would be fun to talk about some of the places mentioned in the book, that I wrote mainly from my experiences at UF.
Springs Complex
I didn’t actually stay at the Springs Complex–I roomed at the Lakeside Complex–but I did have several friends that stayed there.
Here’s an excerpt from the book:
“Parker and Ben were suite mates at the Springs Complex. It was essentially a studio apartment, except no kitchen, and they shared a bathroom. They each had their own bed, desk, chair, and what the university expects people to believe is a closet.
Ben’s side of the room was mostly empty except for a black and white poster of Steve Prefontaine with words in thick white letters written on it: “Most people run a race to see who is the fastest. I run a race to see who has the most guts.'”
Here’s what the Springs dormitories look like
University of Florida Springs Complex Dormitories
And a picture of my closet from Lakeside:
My actual closet from the Lakeside dorms at UF
Shands Hospital
If you recall, Casey Taylor, or rather Dr. Casey Taylor, was a first year resident at Shands Hospital.
Without giving away too many spoilers, Benson also had a history with the hospital.
Here’s an excerpt from the book:
“Ben walked by several rooms that looked exactly how he remembered them. Eggshell colored hospital beds were covered with crisp white sheets, tucked neatly at every side. Teddy bears and other stuffed animals lined the beds, and colorful animal balloons floated in front of the health monitors. Most of them also had a navy couch with wood trim that folded into a bed just below the prison like windows. He hated those rooms.”
And here’s a picture that I drew some inspiration from:
James G. Pressly Stadium
Benson Wilder spent a lot of his time at UF’s track and field. I can still remember watching track events, along with soccer events at this stadium.
McCarty Hall
I never had a class in McCarty Hall, but I knew that I wanted Benson and Casey to meet on the North Lawn in front of it. It’s one of the oldest buildings on campus and just has that air of romantic academia about it.
Carleton Auditorium
I hate Carleton Auditorium. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but all I can remember is taking this class called “Wildlife Studies” while sitting in this dark, freezing cold auditorium.
Here’s an excerpt from the book:
“…all the lights were turned off in the auditorium full of about four hundred students. He found an empty spot towards the back left. Looking around, he noticed half of the students were at least making an attempt to watch the video about camouflage among animals in nature. The other half were either scrolling mindlessly through Instagram or drooling on their backpack as they slept. Wildlife Studies was probably the stupidest class in the history of college classes.
Everyone took it because it satisfied three of the required six “B” credits, which stood for biological studies. Most people think that colleges make some freshman classes difficult to weed out those who can’t cut it. The opposite is actually true. They make some classes so incredibly easy to weed out those who would be better off not wasting the best four years of their life learning about camouflaged frogs.”
And here’s a quick shot of what the inside of the room looked like:
Gator Dining
Burgers and french fries galore. If you wanted “fast food” style dining, this was the place to eat.
Broward Dining
(Note: I think they actually call this “Fresh Food Dining” now)
In complete contrast to Gator Dining was Broward Dining. If you wanted to eat healthy, fresh food, this was where you went.
The Creepy Guy
As a writer I do a ton of research. And for In Her Eyes, one of the places I needed to research was Shands Hospital. I’d been in and around parts of the hospital, but I wanted to really get a good feel for the place.
I turned to Google Maps, and this is what I found:
Perhaps he was writing a book that included Shands Hospital too…
But as I scrolled through Google Maps, this just seemed like a really weird place to be standing, especially with the Children’s Hospital right there.
Over to you. Let me know in the comments below what one of your favorite memories on campus (at UF or another college)?
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