Heavy Books

[plumtreeblossom]

I (and my bad spine) intensely loathe carrying heavy things for any distance longer than across a room. Case in point: my three extremely heavy hardcover textbooks for my astronomy class. One of them is called The Illustrated Encyclopedia of The Universe,, so you can just guess how much that one alone weighs. All of them together are like carrying a loaded mini-refrigerator.

A mild deformity in my lower spine makes weight-bearing on my back mostly impossible. I can't use backpacks at all, so I'm left with tote bags. But even carrying that was extremely painful for my spine and should not be repeated. I don't know how the teacher thought we could just easily carry these stone slabs around. The average student age at Cambridge College is 42. Most of us aren't strapping young bucks and does, and especially, I'm not.

Also, these are beautiful, expensive, illustration-rich tomes and I don't want to drag them around in the snow and sleet and rain. They'll get ruined.

Considering that we did not crack the books even once during last night's class, I asked for (and received) permission to only bring one book at a time to class. She'll tell me each week which book of the three to bring next week and I'll bring that one. I am not a pack animal.

Comments

[bedfull-o-books.livejournal.com]

I'm glad that the professor was willing to work with you so you don't have to carry all the books every week. Frustrating when you don't even open them during class.

I once worked on a nursing fundamentals book that we tried to cut material from, only to have the author mark practically everything as "keep". The book ended up weighing 14 pounds. We had a betting pool.

It was ridiculous.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

Two semesters ago I had another heavy-as-lead textbook. Unlike these astronomy books, I bought it used and it was crappy and written-in. Since I hated the teacher and the class anyway, I tore the pages out and stapled them together as individual chapters. Then I just brought one chapter in at a time. Maybe the nursing students did that, too. :-)

[bedfull-o-books.livejournal.com]

I would have been tempted to do that if it were my textbook.

Working in publishing has made me much more willing to rip pages out of books. My mom gave me a Europe guide when I went travelling a few years ago. It was big and covered all of Europe, which I wasn't going to do. I tore out just the countries I was visiting. Much easier. :-)

[hammercock.livejournal.com]

That is kind of ridiculous. There are wheeled backpacks, though, that you could try using if you didn't want to carry a totebag and can't wear a regular pack. The downside is that dragging them around in this weather means they'll get icky pretty quickly.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

I do have a rolling backpack, and I considered that (and would have used it if I hadn't gotten permission to bring one book only). But yeah, these books are gorgeous and I want to keep them long after the course is over. The rain and muck will ruin them. For carrying one book, I have a smaller waterproof tote to keep it safe.

[treacle-well.livejournal.com]

Can't you put them in a plastic bag inside the rolling backpack?

(BTW, I obviously commented first before reading other comments.)

[gentlescholar.livejournal.com]

Big textbooks I will carry around often I cut into pieces. I took an exacto knife to my QM book and used book tape
to attach cardboard covers to the pieces.

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

Thank you, I feel vindicated! It's good to know someone else does that when needed!

[muffyjo]

I'm glad you're getting some good feedback from your professor. I am guessing such things will all be on iPads in the future and therefore much easier to read (and lighter to carry).

[minkrose]

Easier to carry, BUT the screen isn't as big for a full page photo. I love the concept, but I just know I'd miss the glossy illustrations in real books.

If any of my library classes had e-version textbooks I would buy an e-reader. But they don't.

[treacle-well.livejournal.com]

small rolling carry-on luggage, laptop case, or backpack (I love my rolling backpack that I got for $12 at Marshall's a few years ago and never actually wear on my back).

Yeah, less easy when there's snow on sidewalks or the clear part isn't very wide, but even just being able to mostly roll it, and pick it up to lug through the tight spots helps.

[minkrose]

Have you tried a frame backpack with a hip belt? This is what I use to avoid my shoulder pain and scoliosis issues. Most of the weight is carried on your hips once you buckle the belt. Granted, my feet and knees take a bit of extra pounding but they can take it better than my back. I have good shoes.

I'm sure you could try on out at a sporting goods store. If not, I do have one you could try (though I think both our schedules are super busy).

[squibbon.livejournal.com]

Ugh. I have the same problem, but due to arthritis in my neck and some muscle spasms.

My solutions have been 1) a lumbar pack, which rests on the hips rather than the shoulders, but depending on how low on your spine the issue is, it sounds like that might not help, and 2) a kindle and a roommate who works in assistive technology and can switch books not available into digital format into something I can put onto my kindle. If you'd like to try the latter, she would likely be willing to do a tech consult with you. Sadly, the kindle isn't so great for anything where the illustrations are important.

I also strongly recommend talking to disability services at your school. You shouldn't have to hurt yourself to do your schoolwork. It sounds like this particular professor is being more or less reasonable, but it's good to be on record with them ahead of time with documentation in case you run into someone who isn't. They might also have some ideas for other accommodations that would be appropriate.

[squibbon.livejournal.com]

... the third thing I've done, when I ran out of other options is unfortunately expensive but can be life saver. And hey, it's cheaper than increasing the amount of acupuncture I'm having done. For classes like Spanish where you absolutely need the book, in its original format and for every class, I got a locker on campus and a second copy of the book, meaning I only had to carry it from one floor to another. Most schools have commuter lockers that you can ask for, and even if they aren't widely available disability services should be able to get you access to a staff or similar locker if there are any that are empty and it's something that you need.