![\"IMG_3992\"](\"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/IMG_3992.jpg\")
<\/a>Let\u2019s go underground<\/strong><\/p>\n Next time you\u2019re walking between Ewing and Young, stop for a second and look at the ground. What you can\u2019t see is that underneath the concrete there is a tunnel connecting the two buildings. It\u2019s not exactly a decorative feature on campus, but Camosun supervisor of building services Graham McKinnon says that it\u2019s been in use since Ewing was built, in the 1960s.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s used for services,\u201d says McKinnon. \u201cThe heating water for the boiler runs through the tunnel; that\u2019s the heating for Ewing as well. Then we\u2019ve got domestic hot water that goes over there, too, and then there\u2019s some electrical pipes as well. There are all sorts of different services that go through there.\u201d<\/p>\n If you\u2019re thinking of going on an adventure, you\u2019re out of luck (uh, not that we tried, really): it turns out the tunnel is only accessible to workers through the Young boiler room. And it sounds like getting through it is quite an adventure.<\/p>\n \u201cYou could physically get through it,\u201d says McKinnon. \u201cIt\u2019s not like it\u2019s just big enough for the pipes; you can walk through it. From Young, you\u2019re standing up, and then you can walk probably three-quarters of the way down, and then you\u2019re kind of on your hands and knees, but you can get over to Ewing.\u201d<\/p>\n McKinnon says there has never been a serious incident regarding the tunnel in the 18 years he has been working at Camosun, and he answers the question on everyone\u2019s minds: no students have ever been stuck in it.<\/p>\n Is that… a turtle… in Fisher?<\/strong><\/p>\n Yes, you read that right: there is a live turtle in the foyer of Fisher, outside the cafeteria. The turtle must like watching the world go by from the cozy confines of Camosun\u2019s little indoor pond. Well, we\u2019re guessing that the turtle likes it; we really have no idea.<\/p>\n Arts and Science student Navjot Singh says it\u2019s nice to see a turtle there on his way to class.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s not a bad thing. We feel good. We\u2019re just going by the Fisher building and we just see a turtle there. It\u2019s a good thing. We are not hurting them.\u201d<\/p>\n Many students were shocked that a turtle was being kept inside the school, but first-year Social Work student Sydney Cordero says it is okay, as long as the turtle is \u201ctended to regularly.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know its real living conditions,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n We can reveal that its real living conditions are not the inside of a college in Victoria, BC, but it appears that the majority of students are okay with a turtle keeping an eye on the happenings of first-floor Fisher (Camosun does ask that people do not throw coins or other objects in the water, for the health of the turtle). Oh, and the turtle\u2019s name? Bubbles.<\/p>\n A hospital on campus<\/strong><\/p>\n It might be covered in scaffolding and best approached with a hard hat these days, but the Young building is actually a historical monument, and it\u2019s right here at Camosun.<\/p>\n \u201cI heard it was an old school, and then a hospital,\u201d says Singh. \u201cIt was used as a hospital during the war.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s true: what is often regarded as the nicest building at Camosun was once used to treat wounded soldiers who had returned from the war. Next time you\u2019re sitting in Young stumped on a multiple-choice question and wishing you didn\u2019t have to sit in front of chalkboards all day, try imagining some soldier lying there all wrapped up in bandages. Maybe class isn\u2019t so bad.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s cool that we have something historical on campus,\u201d says Early Learning and Child Care student Tatianna Mattrick.<\/p>\n Cordero agrees, adding that it\u2019s good that it\u2019s still being used.<\/p>\n \u201cIt kind of serves as a monument, and that in itself is pretty cool that we haven\u2019t demolished it.\u201d<\/p>\n The secrets on Fisher\u2019s roof<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s not exactly in your everyday line of sight at campus, but there\u2019s a weather station on campus; it lives on the roof of Fisher. According to Camosun Geography and Environmental Technology instructor Chris Ayles, the data it gathers are transmitted wirelessly to the geography classroom. Camosun then sends the data to UVic, where they are posted on the school-based weather network. But don\u2019t think just being a Camosun student gives you access to the weather station.<\/p>\n \u201cThe students who want to work directly with the weather station need to take one of my classes in Environmental Technology or Geography,\u201d says Ayles.<\/p>\n With a station set up on a roof comes unique problems, which Ayles knows all too well. \u201cI had to replace it recently because it broke,\u201d he says. \u201cSometimes the wind knocks it over, which is kind of sad. Some workers took away the cinder block that I had holding down the base.\u201d<\/p>\n Most students don\u2019t know such a station exists at Camosun, and reaction is mixed on whether it\u2019s a good use of money and resources.<\/p>\n \u201cIf it\u2019s put toward certain programs, maybe,\u201d says Cordero. \u201cOtherwise, not so much. It\u2019s just information for them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s good to know about the weather,\u201d says Singh. \u201cIt\u2019s not a waste of money.\u201d<\/p>\n The ghosts of exams past<\/strong><\/p>\n Some people roll their eyes when they hear the words \u201cparanormal activity,\u201d but others are not surprised to hear that some of the patients from when the Young building was a hospital might still be roaming the Young halls.<\/p>\n Second-year English student Chad Hartley says he has a friend who is a former Camosun student who swears he saw \u201ca white mist shape close a door at the end of the hallway\u201d on one of the floors of Young.<\/p>\n Singh prefers logical explanations to the possibility of ghosts in Young.<\/p>\n \u201cStudents are always coming in and out of there; even in the night there are classes. Come on. If it were haunted, it would be haunted 24 hours a day. Why only night? That would mean that the ghosts always have a watch.\u201d<\/p>\n Cordero is not so sure, but she does not shoot the idea down entirely.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not in there too much, but I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever seen any paranormal activity there. It would be cool, though.\u201d<\/p>\n Either you want to believe that some old war vets are still in Young, watching us all go about our days, or you don\u2019t. But if you\u2019re curious, go for an evening stroll in what is possibly Camosun\u2019s most haunted building, and let us know if you come across anything otherworldly (hop on over to the Richmond House for an extra dose of ghostly activity; there has been much alleged paranormal activity in the building on the edge of campus over the years).<\/p>\n Sneakin\u2019 smooches<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s nice to stop for a breather during the hustle and bustle between classes, but in this case, it\u2019s not to marvel at the historic beauty of the school. To be frank, it\u2019s nice to sneak a smooch in sometimes. And Lansdowne\u2019s got a ton of good spots to do just that.<\/p>\n Students we spoke with said that some of the best spots to get some lovin\u2019 are Fisher\u2019s stairwell and the main grassy area in front of Young.<\/p>\n Back at the Nexus <\/i>office, managing editor Greg Pratt says that while he would obviously never encourage such behaviour, he does remember his time at Camosun being punctuated with a smooch in, yup, the Fisher stairwell, and that story ended well: the recipient of that kiss so many moons ago is now his wife. It\u2019s a Camosun love story, and one that doesn\u2019t just involve manic, hushed groping in the library.<\/p>\n What shape is the pond?<\/strong><\/p>\n Wait, we have a pond at the Lansdowne campus? We sure do, and it\u2019s in the shape of a figure eight.<\/p>\n Numerous plants and shrubs grow around this totally hidden feature of Lansdowne, and there\u2019s also a bench to sit on and enjoy some peace and quiet if you do decide to track this spot down.<\/p>\n So where is it, exactly? The pond is located in the Garry Oak patch behind the Wilna Thomas building. If you\u2019re feeling overwhelmed with your workload, or in need of a quick catnap in the spring semester, this is a perfect secluded place to catch your breath. Or at least it was, until we went and told everyone about it. Oops.<\/p>\n Parking problems<\/strong><\/p>\n In a recent issue of Nexus<\/i>, <\/i>Camosun student Thomas Nicolson called parking fees \u201cmore of a stab in the face\u201d than tuition fees. Sure, even though gas prices are comparatively low now compared to how they have been in recent months, having a car is a luxury that many students simply can\u2019t afford, and parking just adds to the financial strain.<\/p>\n Robbins Parking is the company that takes our cash for the privilege to park at various spots throughout the city, including the college. So where does all your parking money go to? At Camosun, Robbins\u2019 cut is less than 12 cents of every dollar students spend on parking. Five cents goes toward student U-Passes, and 83 cents goes toward education and student and administrative services.<\/p>\n University Transfer student McKenzie Loggin thinks student complaints about the parking prices are \u201cpretty warranted\u201d but says that it\u2019s one of the things the college just \u201cneeds to do.\u201d (Both Camosun College and Robbins Parking declined to speak with Nexus<\/i> about parking on campus for this story.)<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s one of the things that they can probably capitalize on, because students have to find a way to get to school,\u201d says Loggin. \u201cIt\u2019s not like they can really not come to school; for a lot of people it\u2019s a large commute, so I think it\u2019s probably their way of saying, \u2018Okay, this is something we need to do, so we could probably amp up the prices.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n