Valley House (Pace University Dorms - the Briarfcliff Campus)

Valley has the largest rooms on campus and the most storage space. Rooms have built in closets with lots of shelves, storage bins by the window and a ceiling light for the room. The building houses about 100 students and some lady that lives in the basement. She has her own entranced so she comes and goes unseen. Since very few people know she lives there many think the sounds coming from her room are either rats or ghosts. Luckily Valley had no ghosts. Rats however do come into the building. There are floor level windows in the basement that invite creatures from the woods when they are left open.

The basement is pretty nice. It has a pool table and other things to help pass time while on campus. The basement rooms are pretty spacious but have no built in closets. Some rooms have a fluctuating heat ranges from scorching hot to freezing cold.

For the most part the above covers the good. The bad things about Valley include: a run down appearance, unknown specifies growing the the carpet, traces of asbestos around the building, hot windowless bathrooms with poor circulation and dust that appears out of no where. I am not sure if the paint chips off the roof or what, but there is an outrageous amount of dust the builds up. If I didn't dust once a week, my parent would draw pictures on my tv screen using their finger. Regardless of what I said, my mother didn't believe I dusted on a regular basis. That was pretty easy to deal with compared to the termite and bed bug infestations though. The luckily the bed bugs did not make their way to my room but the termites were everywhere. The termites are the most obvious cause for the dust however, other dorms buildings with termites are no nowhere near as dusty.  

Gourmet Coffee - Pace University Style

By no means am I a die hard coffee drinker because I only drink it when I am very tired or cold. Therefore, I am not a hard customer to please. I only two demands for my coffee.

1) I want it hot. Not lukewarm, par boiled, sun warmed, elevated room temperature, JUST HOT!
2) I want to know that French vanilla will always taste like French Vanilla.

I passed about a dozen Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts and fancy coffee shops between the subway station and Pace Plaza but for some reason I decided to wait till I got on campus. I reach for a large cup. I don't recall the brand but it said "Gourmet Coffee Since . . .". I make my coffee light and sweet, realize there is no seam to blow away, then take a sip. I couldn't tell if I was drinking French vanilla or Russian Crude Oil. I was tired so I gulped it down pretty fast.

So about a week or 2 later I find myself nodding off in the computer lab while typing a paper. I decide to get a quick cup before my next class. Once again instead of going down the street, I headed to the good ol' Pace cafeteria. Regardless of being skeptical about the French vanilla I attempt to pour a cup. FRESH OUT! I was running late so I decide to try Broadway or one of the other flavors. After one taste I felt like I was drop kicked in the throat. As the taste wasn't bad enough, I had to spit out a mouthful of ground coffee beans. If this is gourmet, McDonalds serves the world's finest cup of coffee.  

Are Pajamas Fashionable at Pace University?

Before going to a school many students want to know whether a school has a "pajama campus". There are those students who wake up an hour early to style the hair, do the make up and coordinate outfits basted on the day's weather. On there other hand there are those that just wipe their eyes, roll out of bed, hop into a pair of slippers and gargle on their way to class. Both cases are the extreme cases but, many student entering college want to know if its "cool" to wear pajamas and sweats to class. At Pace University it depends which campus you attend.

Pleasantville is more laid back and less fashion sensitive. Its easy to identify freshman because they are dressed from head to toe with matching accessories. Most upperclassmen wear "bummy" clothes to class and save their good outfits for after hours and the weekend. Commuters don't have the luxury of rolling out of bed and into class rooms so they are a little more fashion conscious. In contrast, the New York City campus is mascara heaven. It is totally different. The newest styles and trends are showcases, outfits are always accessorized, the nails are well maintained, the hair is always done. . .and the ladies are equally as fashionable.

Which is better? It depends on the individual. Pace New York is not the place for you if you don't care about how you look at 9 in the morning. However, you will love it if you are the type of person that believes you should always look good because you never know who you will meet.

New Dorm (Pace University Dorms - the Briarcliff Campus)

New Dorm is one of the most fun places to live, has A/C, is arranged in four person suites, comes with a fridge, has its own bathrooms, a lounge and a balcony and decent closet space but I think its a little over rated. The rooms are the smallest on campus, the beds are the old spring beds that rattle, the bedroom furniture is built into the walls so there is little room for modification and the singes look like prison cells.

One of the highlight is the lounge area. The lounge would be awesome if we could take out those nasty couches and bring our own furniture but its against to rules to take out furniture. Most people just throw a sheet , towel or a duvet over the couch. The smell and look funny so no one wants to sit on them with out a cover. Who knows how many people have had sex on them, thrown up on them or whatever else over the years.

Another highlights about living in New Dorm is having your own bathroom. This is great if you and your room mate are willing to clean regularly. The thing I hate most about it are the showers. The showers are so small that I three is a very high chance of bumping the walls on the way out the shower. Its not too bad if your room mates keep a clean shower but depending on the condition of the shower it can be nasty. After spending all that time to get clean, it can be ruined on the way out the door.

Is it crazy to think that a building called "New Dorm" would be top of the line? Maybe thinking anything at Pace is top of the line. There is no need for the building to be as outdated as it is. The least the can do is change the name to "Not So New Dorm". There are water marks, stains, and unknown orders everywhere. Walls that have been practically torn down in drunken rages are poorly repaired. By tapping the walls you can estimate how much liquor was consumed in an area. Some patches are covering body sized holes.

Not having a elevator is another drawback. The stairs suck while moving in and out but I don't mind getting a little exercise while climbing 5 flights of stairs. The only time it suck is when running for the bus or when you have to get something really fast. Sometimes when it rains the floors get really slippery but I have never fell. I have thought about taking a dive though. I wouldn't free tuition after a nice settlement form a lawsuit.

Hillside (Pace University Dorms - the Briarfcliff Campus)

Hillside houses about 100 students. The rooms are not too bad. They are the 2nd largest on campus, are pretty clean, but have no built in closets. The wardrobes are the only thing I really hate about the room itself. It is ok if you don't have a lot of clothing but it doesn't work for the fashion conscious. The iron was my best friend while I was there. I don't have a ridiculous amount of clothing because I hate to shop but I have a decent amount. All my clothing was bad crushed. Long clothing suffered the worst because it was pressed by the things around it the was crush upward because there wasn't enough clearance to hang freely.

The biggest problem I have is the bathrooms. There are no windows so all stenches and odors stay there. I don't know if there are fans circulating the air but it sure doesn't feel like there is any fresh air coming in. I hate the shower rooms. It is really hot, steamy, sticky and water always backs up on the floor. Its really nasty. I have dropped my towel or wash cloth on the floor a few times and it ruined my day. I just left them there because that water is like sewage. Its discolored and there is a funny odor to it.

I am not afraid of spiders but they are everywhere. Some spiders are so large they look fake. Once during Halloween I saw a huge spider on the wall. I thought it was a part of the decorations so I went to pick it up. It ran off while I stood in shock. I really thought it was plastic. Spider bites and strange skin irritations are common. Its as if the spiders wait for people to fall asleep then ambush them while they sleep. I'm not afraid of spiders but its crazy how many of them live there. 

One of the most annoying this about the building is the construction. The building is basically two separate buildings joined together by a hallway on the first floor. If you are on the second floor of either side you have to go down the stairs , cross over to the opposite side then go back up to the second floor. There is no way to get there directly. Also to get to the basement yo have to go back to the main area then go down the stairs. Its really awkward.

The last thing about Hillside is its location. Its in the back corner of the campus so it sucks if you have to catch the bus. Sometimes you can cut around the Howard Johnson building and catch it as it pulls off campus but there is a high chance that the driver will miss you before you come around the corner.

Lackman Can't Cook Cultural Dishes (Pace University Food)

Everyone who has been bold enough to try Lackman's cultural dishes knows they have no clue what they are doing. It is not fair that all food at school events must be catered by Pace (through Lackman Culinary Services). Not only is their food grossly overpriced and it makes it 10x harder for students to throw events but it tastes horrible. Their soul food passes passes with a C+ but their Caribbean food, Latin food and Asian foods are disgusting. For example, CSA will have foods such as jerk chicken, curry chicken rice and peas or a variety of Caribbean foods at their events. Everyone comes hoping for great food and are disappointed to see a surprise from Lackman. They cook pale chicken that looks like it could get up start running if a fork comes near it, oxtail with so much fat that it makes one think the cow died of a massive heart attack and rice that tastes like pebbles.

Ok, sure Lackman wants to maintain a monopoly on campus and charge and arm and a leg for a burger. That's cool, anyone can cook a burger but why would they try to monopolize something they cant cook? Pace University and Lackman are just selfish.