Having served on the Membership Committee my most vivid recollections of disillusionment involved newcomers who were assigned a room, possibly during a busy move-in period, and not given sufficient warning about "bump night" and the possibility that they could be moved shortly after the quarter began.

Some friends who had a room in C-wing of Robinson - a room known for non-stop parties and epic drug use - found that S-12 in Essene would be open for the next quarter and moved over. They didn't need to fear bump night because they had lots of seniority. However, three young ladies who were newcomers were moved into their old room,which was a complete shambles, and spent the better part of a week cleaning, disinfecting, redecorating and generally making the place livable. Then they found out about bump night.

Their plea to Mem Con to be allowed to stay in the room they had worked so hard to restore to a livable condition was heart-rending. And they were able to stay there (most rooms in C-wing of Robinson weren't high on the desirability scale). Sometimes being a faceless bureaucrat is rewarding when you can help newcomers slip into co-op life.