After years of a presumably permanent, potently persistent puddle passively plaguing the passageway under the southern stairwell, a satirical instagram account has surfaced mocking its mere existence.

On March 7, 2018 an Instagram account surfaced under the profile name @Lake_McQ. The account began posting pictures of the southern stairwell floor, mocking it.

But why?

Since the construction of the Leon J. Hogenkamp, S.J. Auditorium in 2001, a waterproofing issue having to do with the building’s foundation has gone unremedied.  For 17 years, the school’s south stairwell underneath the Fr. Hogenkamp Auditorium has been home to a year-round puddle.

“Independent of rain, snow, heat, it’s always there,” said music teacher Mr. Kevin Karnisky, whose office offers close proximity to the stairwell. “It’s dangerous. If you’re walking down that stairwell in the dark and you slip, you could seriously hurt yourself.”

Though the school has been made aware of the issue, the puddle remains. Once they attempted to use caulk to seal the leaky cracks, but this over the years has proven to be ineffective. Another attempt made was to store a wet-vac in the stairwell and vacuum up the water every morning.

“It only lasts for an hour or two before it comes back,” said Mr. Karnisky.

“They’re working on it,” said music teacher Mrs. Franca Shelly.  But the issue seemed to have hit a standstill when the infamous Instagram account appeared last spring.  Armed with pictures of the puddle as well as witty captions, the anonymous admin of the aforementioned account has been posting sporadically ever since. The account is presented through the puddle’s personified first-person perspective and gives itself the name “Splishy.”

Some teachers and students had their own opinions of the account.

“It’s for a good cause,” said junior Jack Taylor.

“It’s …unique,” said Mrs. Franca-Shelley.

“It’s hilarious,” said Mr. Karnisky.

Despite anyone’s opinion of the account,  it has shown no signs of stopping until the puddle is forever expunged from the school.  Very few disagree, coming forward with strong opinions of the puddle itself.

An attempt at an interview over the platform of Instagram was made, but all Splishy had to say for himself was 22 consecutive splash emojis.

Whether or not the puddle will remain is a mystery, but until that day, @Lake_McQ looks as if it’s here to stay.