Pavilion should reflect campus culture, waffles

I am not too upset about the big glass box being erected in the quadrangle behind Fondren Library. Really, it’s okay. I’m allergic to open spaces. And like all engineering majors, I thrive on the smell of concrete and glass and air conditioning. I’m not pounding my fists on the dinner table because I have to walk around said construction about twenty times a day, either — better exercise than the elliptical machines at Autry Gym, that’s for sure.

Heck, I do not even have the right to be mad about those things, so I guess it is good that I am not. I just happen to be attending Rice University during a transitional period, sort of like being an Iraqi in Baghdad right now. And just like in Baghdad, it is selfish and unrealistic for Rice students to feel like they are getting shafted by this transition. At least that is what we are all told. And like the people of Iraq, Rice students stand to benefit from their respective transition — at some point after we all graduate.

However, construction should not be the biggest issue on campus. Construction comes and goes, but glass boxes are here to say. And here is my problem: If you are going to stick a business inside the big glass box, it should be a 24-hour establishment rooted in the very culture of the American South. This establishment should offer a variety of delicious breakfast, lunch and dinner items at all hours of the day for reasonable prices. It should be a haven for all types of campus-dwellers, from the shaggy and tired-looking physics grad student to the prim-and-proper Jones School executive with the Bluetooth headset and the horn-rimmed glasses. Brace yourselves, because I am talking about a Waffle House.

Hear me out. Waffle House might as well be Rice’s Vision for the Second Century. Like any typical Rice student, Waffle House is cheap, kind of sketchy, but really fun on the weekends after a couple of drinks. And like the Rice administration, Waffle House is staffed by capable and hard-working normal folk who care about their jobs but deserve to be paid more money. If any chain of diner-style restaurants is a microcosm for this proud university, Waffle House is it.

What about Diedrich Coffee? Starbucks? It’s a Grind Coffeehouse? They are not Rice. They are fascist corporate entities headquartered in places like New York City and Seattle — the kinds of places that produce really great bands but really corrupt business. Why do you think people from New England and America’s West Coast come to Rice, anyway? Waffle House is based in Atlanta, Ga. When was the last time you felt threatened by anything from Atlanta? Heck, Atlanta and Houston are like sister cities, blue-collar to the core and chock full of bad drivers. I would contend that putting anything but a Waffle House in our new big glass box puts Rice one more step out-of-touch with Houston.

By the end of this academic year, the green fences will come down, the two most important sidewalks on campus will re-open and Rice will be the proud owner of an oddly-shaped, giant, transparent but otherwise ideal glass box. The question comes down to this: does Rice want to garnish this beautiful glass box with an offensive and destructive chain of businesses that actually closes at night? Or does Rice want to take a step towards reinforcing the homey charm that we all love about this campus?

Next time you’re craving an All-Star Special Breakfast at 3 a.m. after finishing that egregious last-minute assignment, you will know the answer.

Kyle Barnhart is a Will Rice College junior.

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