Before I start, I must say I am not a person who is adverse to change, but sometimes I have to wonder what others are thinking when they tamper with things that were not broken in the first place.

Several faulty ideas throughout history have seemed like good ones when first dreamt up. Giving us our text books already packaged together when we arrive at the textbook rental building sounded like a great, more convenient way to pick up those big old tomes. At least, on paper it seemed more convenient. 

In reality, it has only made things even more inconvenient for this university’s students, adding even more hassle to the already hectic beginnings of the academic semester and extra aggravation.

I went to claim my textbooks before the semester started, and I can say that the “more convenient” process was a total mess from the moment I arrived on the scene. The poor staff members were rushing about all over the place, trying to find certain boxes, giving students their textbook box before realizing there was yet another box that went with it.

Under the old system, it took me 15 minutes tops to fetch my books on my own and then have them checked out. This semester I had merely three books to pick up, and it took half an hour for my box to reach me. My sister had to wait even longer for her seven textbooks, and since she had to add a class last minute, it will be worse. Altogether, we waited about 45 minutes, and there was barely anyone else waiting alongside us.

I understand that the book rental system has been overtaken by a different company this year, but why should they find any reason to mess with the normal way of distributing text books here? I have heard from a friend of mine that the system has improved some, but to me, this still seems like a flawed manner of distribution. Not that procuring textbooks has ever been entirely painless here, but this box nonsense just feels unnecessary to me. Most of the people I know have voiced similar complaints to my own, so I don’t believe I am being unreasonable with my disappointment in this matter.

I earnestly do hope that in the future this new manner of distribution, if not done away with altogether, will have its kinks ironed out and its gears running smoothly. As is, it is a nightmare that could have easily been averted with better planning.