Changes to the Great Room

There were a lot of changes to the Great Room decided a few months ago that I never reported on due to laziness but the most important one is that you will no longer be able to swipe in friends. This really sucks, a lot. I think this was one of the best ways to foster community on campus.

Swiping - v - The act of purchasing two meal entries into the Great Room with a single student I.D. card. Generally younger students swipe in older students (who have smaller meal plans) or visiting friends/lovers. "Hey...would you mind swiping me in? You have way more 'blocks' than you could ever use."

I know that personally I got smaller meal plans every year, and by my senior year I didn't even get a meal plan. Instead I would rely on younger folks to swipe me in. It was a great system, I get food, and they get to eat with someone old/cool/knowledgeable. I made a few friends this way, and it definitely helped me to bond with the younger members of my club sports team.

In most every society eating is a social activity (anthropology majors back me up, there is even a anthro course that is all about food), and the swipe system really helped to facilitate this. It can be hard for First Years to feel comfortable interacting with seniors, but the simple act of 'swiping' the two are suddenly on the same level, a symbiotic relationship, trading food for booze and parties.

I definitely see Bon Appetit's point of view on this. No one is supposed to actually use all those blocks. That's how they make their money. If everyone buys meal plans that exceed what they plan to eat, then they make a profit. If not, they will probably lose money.

The end of an era. I really wish I was eating in the great room right now (via making your own lunch every day sucks sometimes).

If the administration is serious about improving "community" on campus, then hopefully they will realize that this will only further divide the campus.

The Return of Kohler's!

Do yall remember Kohler's?  Kohler was some dude who sold pizza out of the Great Room on the weekend nights (also may have been a bit of a creep via unconfirmed rumors)!  He hired a bunch of kids to ferry the pizzas across campus and it was the greatest thing ever.  Especially the buffalo chicken pizza.  It was the best way to end a wonderful Saturday night.

Anyways, Kohler's graduated/died in '09 and so did the business.  Some clubs tried to revitalize it, but ultimately it never made much money and it was a hassle for Bon Appetit.  But this weekend Habitat for Humanity is going to be selling St. James Pizza (which I can confirm is completely delicious) for $10.50!  Only from 7-9 though which is kinda lame, but overall still cool.

Pretty coooooooool stuff (but seriously 75cent wings is absurd).

Crabs in the Great Room

After some intense investigative journalism (via going to the Bon Appetit Menu page and searching for 'crab') it would appear that tomorrow the Great Room will be serving crabs!  Probably at lunch, maybe also at dinner.  Personally I'm all crabbed out (via there are still a dozen sitting in my fridge and all my fingers have small cuts on them) but this should be exciting news for many of you.

Great Room generally does this once a semester, and the day that they do it is often mysterious (I think).

When I was a young child I wanted to have a pet crab.  I remember once we bought some live crabs to steam later that evening, and I spent the afternoon following one of the crabs around my yard (via using a stick to get him out of the crab pot).  It was a grand affair, and I miss Chadwick to this day (Chadwick is the obvious name for any crab, but some prefer Charles [these people are incorrect]).

Reusable To-Go Boxes

What do you guys think about these? You take one, and have to return it before you can get another/if you don't return it you get a hold put on your account/you get charged.

I am trying to garner (maybe gather is a more appropriate/correct word?) support for these things to show to Bon Appetit so that they implement them. Radical.