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Homeless student lived in library for seven months

A homeless New York student says he slept for seven months in a university library without being caught.

Steve Stanzak, 20, says he set up home in New York University's main library because he couldn't afford housing costs on top of his tuition.

He was finally discovered by shocked administrators last week, reports the New York Post.

They found his website, www.homelessatnyu.com, in which he chronicled his undercover life in the Bobst Library on New York's Washington Square.

Stanzak said he washed himself in the library's toilets, had an occasional shower at friends' dorms and kept his clothes and books in lockers.

"It was kind of interesting at first and then it became part of the norm, part of the routine. It was getting quite comfortable," he said.

The creative-writing student said he gets no financial help from his parents and works about 30 hours a week to make spending money.

NYU spokesman John Beckman said Stanzac had now been provided with free housing for the rest of the semester.

Asked whether the school believed the student had lived in the library for seven months, Beckman said, "I don't know; we've taken what he said at face value."

"The library is open 24 hours for a reason; there's a demand for students to study around the clock," he said. "And it's not unusual to see someone who's fallen asleep."