Shit Palace: An Empire of Dirt

A suitcase full of dirt, cans on a wheel, water bottles, and more. I mean, it’s in the name: Shit Palace is definitely not some glamorous warehouse. 

Senators Safi Zenger and Margot Becker, as well as Megan Simón, the Office for Student Engagement Coordinator, continue their adventure through the rooms of Shit Palace as they clear out old junk and make room for new storage. Hopefully, this will be enough to provide much-needed storage space to the many clubs on campus who require it. 

Photo by Anshu Kotha

With entryway lights that have never turned off, even during Reed’s shutdown at the beginning of the pandemic, Shit Palace’s eerie aura can be felt as soon as you unlock the door. It’s hard to imagine students and staff walking down the ODB steps to access financial aid or tuition information as they would have if the Business Offices were still located there.

While scrounging through the mess, you can see the home of many eloquent and luxurious art installations that Reed students have created throughout the years, as well as random storage from around the school. Gathering everything into one place allows Senate to go through what's necessary and what's not. Many objects that are found will most definitely end up in the garbage. Many art installations that are found are either broken or incomplete. Many would not be of any use today, since they were all special to their own Renn Fayre. But some, like decorations, can be reused for upcoming events, such as last semester's Winter formal.

Although Shit Palace contains a wealth of potential, it continues to house cobwebs and dust from over the years. Many rooms have a mysterious aura, filled with relics of Reed's past, seen through the spooky tinted windows that seem to plague every room. The space itself goes unnoticed by today’s Reedies, but a title like “Shit Palace” makes you wonder what lies beneath Doyle’s wooden floors.

In a way, Shit Palace seems to be a place lost to time and interest. After Renn Fayre, no one seems to care where their projects or club items end up once they serve their purpose. The lack of care seems to be the main reason why Shit Palace has achieved its name. Some seem to view the memorabilia as just meaningless “shit.” Although the memories these curios hold are priceless, their stories disappear as soon as their creators graduate, and so too does their apparent value to the community. Instead of being put on display, they are locked away in a basement that receives no visitors and no attention. Thankfully, Student Senators and Megan Simón are helping to clean and clear out that space, and with help from the community it could become a place for clubs to store their items instead of the forgotten storage units it currently houses. Once the space is cleaned out, we look forward to seeing what potential it holds!