Yesterday was the first day of my staycation and I used it to take care of some errands as well as do some tasks that have been on my to do list for quite some time. Two of these tasks definitely warranted retelling here on the blog. We’ll do the positive first and then the negative.

In July I uploaded an entry about how the new Multipurpose Activity Center (MAC) was almost completed at Monmouth University. Since I was on campus yesterday doing some last minute paperwork before the new semester starts, I stopped by the new MAC building and it is really amazing. First of all, the building is gigantic – much bigger on the inside than it looks from the outside. Part of this visual illusion is due to a portion of the building being located behind the existing Boylan Gymnasium. However, once you are inside of the building you’re able to walk around the entire perimeter (which I did not do, but was told so by a fellow employee).

The new bookstore is very nice and if I’m not mistaken it looks like there are now runners to grab the students’ books. That’s what a lot of the bigger bookstores at the bigger campuses have been doing for a while and it’s nice to see Monmouth making that improvement to their system. I walked down to the new fitness center and it was very impressive. For those of you who live in the area – the floor space in the new fitness center is comparable to the first floor space of the workout area in the Gold’s Gym on the beach in Long Branch. The walls are all still white and bare, but I’m sure that they have some plan to doll the place up a bit.

Outside of the MAC building is a different story, though. A gigantic portion of the commuter lot is in the process of being paved over, so I hope that the paving is complete in time for the Freshman and upper class move-ins. If not, it could get pretty messy…

All in all, I was very impressed with the new MAC building. The introduction of this building along with the still relatively new Plangere Center and McAllen Hall position Monmouth, I think, with a much more academic and student-friendly atmosphere than it has been in the past.