Kitchen

### History

Beginning at the old age of 1928, Barton residents were active in meal prep and cleaning. All residents were on a rotation for cooking and laundry, contrasting with other dorms like Friley (prema-donnas) which had cooks and cleaners. Though more work, this created a strong sense of community and made housing much cheaper.

### Now

Over the years, with the revolutionary addition of dining halls, the amount of required cooking has gone down drastically, being replaced with occasional baking and community meals. Cooking ranges from Friendsgiving to CHOAS/CHAOW (communal Chinese dumpling making parties) to breads, pesto pasta, stew, and many baked delights. In recent years, Egg Parties, in which students would cook eggs and eat them in the kitchen, were a common morning event for those interested.

### Improvements

Many renovations have occurred over the years as the kitchen transitioned from large scale meal prep to casual hobby baking. However, the floor is unchanged from the original. Stoves have come and gone due to silly fire laws, being replaced with toaster ovens and *almost* every other appliance you could want (dino waffle maker to crockpots). Another renovation included setting up the northern half of the kitchen akin to a family-living-room-reminiscent sitting area, starring a projector and encyclopedias. As of April 2022 there is a new stove, as well as a new microwave.

### Uses

* Cooking
* Baking
* Collecting BLF bucks from studying
* Studying
* Playing board games
* Creating art
* Listening to experimental music
* Listening to other types of music
* Watching movies
* Using the air conditioners

### Stove Controversy

After the spring 2020 early move-out due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the then-current stove was removed without notice, alarming residents when they returned the following semester. After some questioning, it was revealed that the stove was found to be in violation of certain campus policies, however these early claims also stated that a replacement stove would be coming "soon". Though most students found this early explanation reasonable, their patience grew thinner as no further communication was made from the Department of Residence (DoR). To make matters worse, the students of Barton had to put significant effort into getting in touch with the right people, in part due to the lack of structure in both the DoR and in BLF Hall Council. At some point it was found that the main obstacle in getting a new stove was price - supposedly, the ventilation systems had to be reworked before a new stove could even be considered. However, the students remained persistent - an initial attempt from the DoR at appeasement was made when multiple new kitchen appliances - including two toaster ovens and two microwaves - were installed. Finally, in April 2022, a new stove was installed in the kitchen - news of which made many people skeptical at first due to the overly long period of time that they had been waiting.

### Rivalry

The kitchen holds a minor rivalry with the parlor.

### Favorites

Blue leather reclining chair in the corner and the air conditioner. Honorable mention to the supposed secret entrance.

### Dungeon

A small room-like location exists underneath the west outer stairs; as the kitchen is located below ground level and directly next to these stairs, there is a point of connection between the kitchen and the Dungeon, as it is commonly known. The Dungeon also has a door leading directly outside, though regular use of this door is commonly discouraged and it is usually locked. Perhaps one of the most well-known areas of Inner Barton, those wishing to enter the Dungeon should be warned that the door from the kitchen is usually locked from the Dungeon-side - if alone, this can be quite inconvenient. It is somewhat of a right of passage for freshmen to get locked out on accident.

### Steam Tunnel

The ISU steam tunnels (the delivery system for building heat and other utilities) lace the ground across campus. Several of these tunnels can be found in the Richardson Court area where Barton resides. The majority of these tunnels are well-lit, frequently-used, and recently-renovated. However, there remains one of the original steam tunnel entrances directly adjacent to the kitchen dungeon's back wall. Still made out of brick, unlit, and *unlocked*, it is possible to hear people knocking on the dungeon's back wall from the steam tunnel.