BY AUSTIN RUSH | Guest Contributor | Trying to eat in the ballroom since returning from spring break has brought mixed emotions not only to me, but to most everyone else.
Originally, this piece was going to be about my anger and love/hate relationship with having to deal with weaving my way through the maze that is our interim Dining Center (DC).
I frequently found myself annoyed from having to squeeze by chairs trying to find an open table. It’s like trying to get through a labyrinth at times if you’re sitting in the middle of all the tables. The tables are very close together and it’s almost like you’re in the conversation with your table as well as the ones adjacent to you. There’s some interesting stuff that goes on here at UMD, not that I was listening or anything.
Also, I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say please bring back pasta Mondays—it’s greatly missed.
Then I received some statistics from Elizabeth Abrahamson, Associate Director of Dining Services, that completely changed how I think about the ballroom set-up.
I would encourage the freshman class or anyone with a meal plan to think about these statistics the next time you decide to speak ill of the current dining situation (which I have frequently done at almost every meal since being back).
Those big tables that we all loved and cherished during our time in the DC would actually substantially decrease the number of students the ballroom could seat comfortably by about 70. Currently, the ballroom can seat 340 students comfortably.
The busiest times to eat are at lunch from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and at dinner from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. If eating in the ballroom hasn’t been your cup of tea the last few weeks all you have to do is leave 20 minutes before these times.
We need to get to know each other at UMD. Branch out a little and sit with someone that has multiple spots open at their table. This is a major reason why there’s massive pile ups day in and day out. Sitting with someone new for one or two meals won’t hurt that bad.
If you’re sitting there discarding everything I am saying, that’s fine. You’re free to endure the remaining weeks of ballroom breakfast, lunch and dinner. However, I challenge you to keep an open mind about the current eating situation.
For those of you living on campus again next year or if you plan on purchasing one of the smaller meal plans, you can look forward to a brand new DC that will feature iPhone plug ins, individual high-tops and booths.