Since the Student Union Building was torn down this summer, commuters like myself have resorted to sitting in our cars in between classes.
The SUB was the cool, casual, on-campus home for commuter students without the luxury or desire to drive home between classes. It allowed students to minimize driving while providing a comfortable environment to study in.
Since the SUB was taken down, the furniture, computers and ATM have been moved to the Ahmanson Science Building foyer.
The quick, grab-and-go food that was once in the SUB is now in the food trailer by Jamba Juice, but the selection has decreased considerably.
The issue is that no one seemed to know that this was going to be happening. I didn’t get an e-mail notification, and if I did, I sure didn’t read it.
Senior Katie White is one of  many who didn’t know about the move.
“I just saw [the furniture] here,” said White. “They just moved it around.”
White was here during the summer when the old SUB was being torn down and didn’t know how  it was going to change her fall semester.
I met White in the Ahmanson Science Building working on some science work and seeming a little stressed. She said the biggest change is that she is forced to go to the Centrum to get food. She doesn’t like waiting in line for the food.
“It’s not convenient,” said White. “It needs more grab-and-go [items], so you don’t have to wait for it to be prepared.”
Andrea Huvard, on the other hand, doesn’t mind the move.
“I think it’s great there is furniture here now,w” said Huvard. “I used the computer the other day.”
We will see how much she likes it when the monthly commuter luncheons are held in the foyer. The first one will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 13.
For junior transfer student Tiffany Hajjar, losing the SUB was not a big deal. As this is her first semester, she didn’t know what she was missing. She often drives home to Augora between her morning and afternoon classes.
“It’s not too bad. It’s still annoying though,” said Hajar.
She said she would like to have a convenient place on campus to hang out and work on homework between classes.
I don’t feel comfortable hanging out in the science building. Maybe it is because I am not a science major. I’m a communication and global studies double major.
The science building just feels too stale and I can smell the dead animal closet on the second floor. It creeps me out.
The missing SUB forces commuters already estranged from the normal on-campus goings-on to go off campus for a decent lunch and some real coffee. Well, maybe that’s just me being picky. The lack of decent coffee is a whole other story.
I end up going to Starbucks instead of being productive and doing homework. There is something about being in a real social environment rather than a school environment that distracts me from doing work.
The old dining commons will become the home of the SUB when construction on the new dining commons is finished. The new dining commons is projected for completion in spring of 2014. I cannot wait for the new dining hall to be ready for move in. Too bad I will have graduated already.
For more information on the progress of the building and the plans to come, check out callutheran.edu/construction. There is even a live cam in case you’re interested in the progression of the dirt piles.

Miles George
Staff Writer
Published Sept. 26, 2012