Harkness House

(Redirected from Harkness)

Harkness House seen from the southeast.

(This is about the living co-op; for the dining co-op, see Harkness Co-op.)

A living co-op with a decades-old reputation for being the "dirty hippie" co-op, despite it being the second-cleanest co-op in fall 2006, behind Old B and contending for second with Keep in spring 2007.

The building has a porch on the south end (which has been turned into a partial green roof as of 2008), and a small balcony on the front above the door (only accessible through the windows of two rooms on the second floor). It is located at 113 West College Street, across from Dascomb.

It should be noted that though most well-known for its filthy hippies, it has also had eras of filthy punk-rockers, most recently those associated with Spunk in the late 90s, early 00s.

Harkies identify with pirates (as opposed to Keep's vikings), and are organizers of such awesome events as the Bike Derby and some good (official and unofficial) parties.

1 Opinions
- 1.1 From LiveJournal
2 Dining
3 Shows
4 Rumors and Legend
5 Administrative Relations
6 Images
7 External Links

[edit] Opinions

Harkness is either extremely awesome or extremely awful depending on your persona. As a community it has probably saved as many people from the mundanity of mainstream Oberlin culture as it has scared away--though one might note that all whom it scared away were mundane, and probably normies.

Harkness functions somewhat as a litmus test for the alternative culture at Oberlin, and to some extent the residents, both willingly and unknowingly, feel obliged to fulfill that role. Streaking of tours by Harkies is an extremely common occurrence, and the administration turned a blind eye to it until recently when an email announcing an organized tour streaking--the first streak ever with any prescience, most likely--was unfortunately forwarded to administrators by an unknown blackmailing Harkness co-oper on the email list. (You will never hear this author refer to this snitching Benedict Arnold as a Harkie. That word is reserved for the deserving.) The reaction from the College upon hearing the revelation that the Harkies were--streaking! Goodness, the horror! Mine eyes are bleeding!--was typical bureaucratic pomposity and ballyhoo. The more maligned aftermath was the interior dialogue, which was the typical walking-on-eggshells-let's-not-offend (see COPAO) crowd versus the beatnik-free-loveite-freak-flag-flying crowd, which together comprise 98% of the Harkness community.

To those within, who understand Harkness, it is the last bastion of "alternative" (whatever that means) thinking on a campus of increasingly homogenized culture. One finds behind the walls of Harkness a delightful brick building with a litany of scrawled art and graffiti on its walls, an extensive book collection organized by color, a diverse and raucous collection of the most fascinating students on this campus, and more musical instruments than you can shake a bong at. All covered in a healthy layer of dirt, of course.

Your reaction to the previous paragraph will to some extent determine your propensity for being a Harkie. In short, if you are more disposed to Ginsberg than Grisham, to absinthe than abstinence, and to hedonism than health, Welcome! my good friend, to the inner folds of Harkness, and may it be yours to enjoy and discover.

Yet for the rest of you who thumb your haughty noses at a little weirdness and debauchery, there are plenty of boring dorms full of boring people waiting for you. Or perhaps you'd do better to transfer to a state school--I hear they have droll, uninspired studentry in spades.

This is not to imply that Harkness is a paradise by any means. As the largest co-op, it suffers--and I do mean su-FFER--from the brooding bureaucratic inefficiencies that all direct democracies do. Frustration and resentment abound over arguments propagated primarily in dining, mostly over petty issues. Whether or not there is a cure for this is yet to be seen, as the bloated nature of discussion tends to be a byproduct of having such a large populace. Nevertheless, Harkness Dining has seen its share of creative and inventive customs over the years, ranging from some of the most outlandish special meals ever (such as Redwall special meal, which included the creation of a paper-mache badger that was paraded around campus before a Keep raid) to the Wheel of Death as a missed job policy (a bicycle wheel with punishments on each spoke to add a jeopardy-like swagger to the shame of getting missed-jobbed).

Yet having the largest housing and dining co-op produces its share of headaches for the community. Perhaps as a result of such a large populace living in proximity to the kitchen, Harkness is perpetually the dirtiest, busiest kitchen, and even crews and commandos every eight hours can't seem to tidy it. Somehow, Harkness still manages to pass inspection by a hair every time.

But for all its faults, Harkness still manages to be consistently inspiring, hilarious and awesome, which is more than can be said for much of campus. Indeed, this is what keeps the old Harkies coming back.

[edit] From LiveJournal

“I would say that Harkness is a dorm you should maybe visit before deciding to live there. The decision is basically weighing the awesomeness of the Harkness community with the general uncleanliness of the co-op. (Sorry guys, but it's true.) I think most Harkies will tell you it's worth it. If it sounds like it might be your thing, I would recommend trying to get into the dining co-op to get a taste of the atmosphere. Oh, uh, also, if you are uncomfortable with drug/alcohol use, I would say Harkness is a no (as we found out this year with an unfortunate prospie experience). It's not like they're going to force you to smoke weed or drink alcohol, but if you don't like having that around you, then you might not want to live there. I would say the same goes for the freshman dorms (see below). Also, the other co-ops are also great and are significantly cleaner.” --freesiayourmind, June 2008 [1]

“I lived in Harkness between '02-'03 (lived/dined in Tank my first two years, off campus and dined in Hark my senior year) . I don't self-identify as a hippie, I don't smoke weed, and I thought, considering that it was (and still is) a house run entirely by about 100 college students, it was reasonably clean. Then again, I'm also not as squeamish as some people, so mileage may vary. Pardon me if I think that some stories of the place I lived in seem a bit exaggerated to my eyes.

The Harkness I lived in (in the view of some folk who lived there for the previous two years) was tamer than it had been in the past, and this trend seemed to continue into my senior year. One infamous party my junior year was actually made far worse not by the residents but by outsiders wandering into the co-op and acting out their fantasies of the "Harkness lifestyle."

It is true that Harkness tends to attract so-called hippies (as well as other people), but I think you're going to get that to some extent all over Oberlin.

It's also true that the physical layout of Harkness makes it very likely that co-ed showering makes a lot of sense (not enough bathrooms per floor). When I was there, you could always "change" the gender of the shower by rotating a sign and the community would respect that.

If you're the sort of person who can't deal with the honest presence of weed or beer, or if seeing someone naked occasionally will freak you out, you probably should pick another co-op. At the same time, I think these are things you will see all over Oberlin to some extent (unless the college has really done a crackdown since I was there)...it's just that Harkness, as I have known it, seemed to somehow have a concentration of these elements.” --mirrizin, June 2008 [2]

"contrary to years of built-up stereotypes, Harkness is actually one of the cleaner co-ops this year. The people are fantastic, the food is great, and there's Story Time every Wednesday." --jude [3]

"Though known for its way-out-there hippie contingent (which still does exist), what really defines Harkness is its lively community. Lots of people, lots of socializing, both with and without mind-altering substances. Excellent vegetarian/vegan food comes forth from the co-op kitchen thrice daily. The close-knit community can generate a bit of drama at times, but overall it's a very warm, comforting place, especially if you're a left-leaning, community-oriented person. Harkness (and co-ops in general) are a good reason to choose Oberlin - few other places have such a great thing going on." --pseudoyoink [4]

"Harkness is definetly dramatic, and a bit intimidating as well. But, there probably isn't a nicer group of people on campus. Harkness is right in front of a beautiful quad-ish area, perfect for frisbee throwing. They have story time in front of a fireplace. In all ways, Harkness promotes a feeling of complete relaxation and freeness. That said, more Harkness people probably like to relax by running around naked and getting high than in most other dorms. But that shouldn't take away from its charm. I've eaten in the co-op a few times, and have been very satisfied. There's less food options than in Stevenson, but the quality is SO VERY MUCH better. It convinced me that I need to join a co-op right away." --rchicken [5]

[edit] Dining

(Main Article: Harkness Co-op

Harkness House is also the home of the Harkness dining co-op, which is vegetarian with vegan options, has 112 members, and one of the best-equipped kitchens in OSCA. Since at least 2004, it has been known for the quality of its cooks and the food they produce, winning the first two All-OSCA Iron Chef competitions at the Local Foods Festival (and placing second in 2007). In addition, Harkness' pizza night every friday is a campus attraction, drawing a large number of non-Harkies and helping to "bridge the gap" between OSCA members and those on CDS plans.

[edit] Shows

Harkness has been the venue for music shows for a long time, and not just campus bands:

2004 Apr 28: Fooled by April [6]
2002 Mar 10: Regatta 69 [7]
2001 Oct 5: Tristan da Cunha and Words for Snow [8]
2001 Apr 7: The Slip [9] [10]
1999 May 2: The Slip [11]
1996 Apr: The Crucifucks [12]
1996 Feb: Anti-Flag [13]
1993, May 8 & 9, Rocket Queen Rampage: festival of women in rock (Bands: Scissor Girls (fronted by Azita)[14]/Chicago, The Curse/Columbus, Pet UFO/Columbus, Mello Death/Columbus, Misery Index/Chicago, Bloody Discharge/Cincinatti, Gojira/Cincinatti and the following Oberlin College Bands: Little Switzerland, Plug, Speed Queen, Succubus, Shevil, and Sweetness) I [15]organized it after being inspired by Riot Grrl in 1991.
1978 May: Ned Rothenberg [16]

...and more, I'm sure.

As far as campus bands go, The Bucketkickers and The Inevitables are both somewhat affiliated with Harkness.

[edit] Rumors and Legend

Harkness is home to some interesting rumors: one says room 311 is haunted; another says a person once visited the room on the first floor that he/she had been born in.

There was a flaming desk in room 201 in 1989. The Gus was here. Do a google search on "The Gus" and Oberlin and "Big Fun"

At one point, a wedding (yes, an official, legally binding one) was performed in Harkness. Approximate date is the mid to late 1970's.

According to a College official, someone died in Harkness during the 80's or 70's. So the entire life cycle has been completed in this house (though not by one person) - birth, death, eating, sleeping, growing up, marriage, and so on.

During the 90's, the elevator shaft was converted into a rock-climbing wall. At about the same time, a potato-gun turret was installed on the roof. These reports (inspirations? shh...) came from College disciplinary files, so are probably a bit more than rumors or legend.

Since the Fall of 2006, there have been numerous reports of scurvy within the members of Harkness Dining.

[edit] Administrative Relations

Due to its cooperative nature, Harkness has no official leader and HLEC's serve to facilitate discussion not impose college policies. Not surprisingly, the college has had trouble understanding the structure of co-ops and officials have confronted HLEC's in much the way they would approach RA's. Unlike dorms, residents also tend to more openly disagree with college policies, indeed smoking in their rooms and other parts of the house, climbing on all parts of the building and adorning it with art, or in the case of the Viking raid by Keep with partially fermented Okara cakes.

In the spring of 2008, Harkness-College relations took a major turn for the worse when around 15-20 Harkies decided to streak two tours in full body paint (see Opinions above). The large and organized nature of this incident as well as the alleged presence of a teenage (NOT 8-year-old) girl on one of the tours attracted administrative attention, and Harkness House was subsequently removed from all official tour schedules. This incident and the College's reaction to it sparked overlong debate within the co-op. Consent and observance of house policy were major issues for some, and others were more concerned with the way that the College's reaction to the incident seemed to reflect the desired change in Oberlin's image recently embraced by the College (see Fearless), seeing the administration as hostile to the vibrant and free student culture that Harkness represents. Still others lamented what they saw as the erosion of body-positive attitudes in Harkness and hostility towards a long tradition of public nudity. Some student opinions on the issue can be viewed here: [17]

[edit] Images

Taking general feelings at a house meeting in Harkness, February 2005.

The Bucketkickers playing on the Harkness porch in 2005.

A "snowhenge" in front of Harkness.

A tasty Harkness pizza for the eponymous friday night consumption. Photo by Ma'ayan Plaut

A Harkness snowperson.

The giant igloo constructed in front of Harkness in February '08. It was built by ten people, had a maximum occupancy of 12, and lasted for 5 days before Safety and Security tore it down.