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Berkeley bathroom crawl

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KRISTEN MCFADDEN | STAFF

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MAY 01, 2013

This week we decided to take a look at some of the bathrooms around campus. We found some charming ones, but others left something to be desired. Cal has more bathrooms than we could ever cover, so we took a wide selection from around campus. If we missed a bathroom you especially love/hate then feel free to show and/or tell about it in the comments!

VLSB bathroom across from Micro Yali’s – Kristen McFadden

Unless you have class in VLSB near this bathroom, there are no advantages to using it. Both the men and women’s bathrooms are awkwardly located directly across from classrooms and easy to overlook. It took us three times to get a picture of this bathroom because there is always a line (in the women’s bathroom, at least). The messages written in the bathroom stalls are unimpressive and boring, and we’re not even going to begin to describe the overall cleanliness of the bathroom — it was not pretty. The mirror is also against the wall where everyone waits in line, so accessing it is a huge inconvenience. Plus, you’re in the way of the line if you try to use it, so you inconvenience everyone else as well. Overall, our experience in this bathroom involved awkwardly squeezing into the small space that holds a long line (in addition to people using the mirror), worrying about whether or not we just contracted a disease from the disgusting stalls and getting sprayed by the overly-powerful sinks. Only use this bathroom if it is absolutely necessary.

Evans – Sabrina Werts

Evans Bathroom

Why should you trek up to the Hearst Mining Circle to use the Evans bathrooms? You shouldn’t. While the bathrooms located in Evans have some charming existentialist wall art, other bathrooms do it better. And the Clog doesn’t think that a mirror in front of every sink makes up for the slightly weird smell — though that could just be Evans in general. Plus, there are at least four vending machines filled with your favorite beverages just around the corner, which when consumed will only make you need to go to the bathroom. Don’t fall prey to the vicious cycle.

Third Floor of Wheeler – Jessica RognessWheeler Bathroom

Why would we go out of our way and use valuable lung capacity to use the third floor bathroom? Well, compared to the bathroom on the first floor of Wheeler, this one is impeccably clean. And it’s just … cute. Students have dubbed it the “Harry Potter” bathroom because of its wooden and marble stalls and old-fashioned sinks. It may not be filled with graffiti that serves as reading material, but we think that’s a nice change from the typical Cal bathrooms. HempCon didn’t get that message though: we did find their mark scrawled in Sharpie in one stall.If you’re willing to take a hike, there is a charming bathroom waiting for you. Located two doors down from the English Department, the bathroom is there for you whether you’re meeting with your adviser or turning in last-minute applications. Not that it’s exclusively for English majors though. We have heard that students from other majors went up to that bathroom just for the bathroom.

Bathrooms between FSM and Moffitt Library – Chase Schweitzer

FSM Bathroom

The awkwardly placed bathrooms between FSM and Moffitt Library make us wonder who came up with the layout of the building.

Sure, it might be nice to have a place to lock the door and fix our hair in the mirror without anyone else around, but as soon as the door closes, there is always someone else pulling on the handle to get in.

Yes, the walls serve as nice forum for political debate and the bathroom is centrally located, but individual bathrooms plus a lot of people means a lot of use – the bathrooms definitely get dirty fast. Honestly, anyone wanting a clean and private experience should look elsewhere. 

Dwinelle – Jordan Henigman

Dwinelle Bathroom

For those of us Common Grounds-ers, Level F is affectionately associated with semi-annoying stair-climbers and coffee guzzlers. Yes, to get up here, you’ve got to trek past the point where the stairwell narrows and darkens (okay, it’s not that eerie). Not many people are around. We assumed these bathrooms were probably going to be pristine. And, guess what, they pretty much are. Not only are they well-kept and graffiti-less (stalls are painted black, what a concept!), but the bathroom itself is, well, quite polite! A “wet floor” sign warns students to be careful; yet, the floor isn’t really wet. Level F is just looking out for us, we guess. The one sign of human life is a single cry for help. Penned in baby-blue ink, this letter claims that its author is willing to pay someone to retrieve this umbrella. Talk about altruism.
Contact the Clog Staff at [email protected].
LAST UPDATED

APRIL 30, 2013


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