Procrastination: Sport of Champions

As a master procrastinator, I've always been great at finding ways to put off doing work. It might be interesting, though, to hear about people's favorite methods of wasting time on the internet. Post JP, it's hard to find motivation for those other three papers and two exams, so I'm always looking for new ideas. Here are a few of mine, please feel free to post your own:

-http://www.addictinggames.com/bloons.html - this one was entirely responsible for the all-nighter I pulled on the Monday before Dean's Date last spring...
-www.freerice.com
-www.abc.com and www.nbc.com for Ugly Betty, Grey's, and/or Scrubs (and, when those don't work, www.surfthechannel.com)
-www.postsecret.com
-www.questionablecontent.net - I'd recommend starting from the beginning

Good luck this week, and don't forget about Mother's Day!

Merchandise...

The other day, I went into the new U-Store on Nassau and made a discovery: they are now selling residential college T-shirts (including one for the Grad Student College). This, right after the barrista at Starbucks asked me if “Butler College” was around these here parts. (I swear, that happens to me way too often; and then of course, I have to explain to the person that Butler College is part of Princeton University—No one’s ever heard of Butler College. Princeton, on the other hand…)

But, in addition to the question of buying a less-prestigious-looking T-shirt, I have to wonder, why in the world anyone would buy a Whitman College T-shirt, when we have so many branded products for free. (Same goes for the other colleges, though of course, to a lesser extent.)

Look at all the things Whitman College has given out:

• Dorm T-Shirts

• Sweatshirts

• Baseball Caps

• Stadium seats

• Sweatpants

• Towels (My understanding is that there were actually two types of towels)

And I’m sure there were plenty of other things which I missed. I mean, they even had Whitman cookies...

The point is, unless they’re selling Whitman footwear, I’m really not interested. Though the darling people in the College Office, please take note: Next, please, please, pretty please give us Whitman flip-flops. It’s all I need to complete My Whitman outfit!

But seriously, is anyone actually planning on buying the residential college T-shirts? Has anyone done so already?

Interviewers ask the darndest questions!

Interviews are stressful enough as it is, but some interviewers can be sadists. This post in the Chronicle of Education "On Hiring" blog really brings to mind some of the bizarre and bewildering interview experiences I'm sure we've all had. There are a ton of questions everyone dreads, so I've broken them down into several categories.

1) Questions that we knew were coming but that we still don't have a good answer for.
Examples:

• Name your greatest accomplishment. Besides being able to name all 150 Pokemon? I can't think of anything else. ...Oh well, hope you're a fan.
  
• What is your greatest weakness? So you want me to tell you why you shouldn't pick me? I don't think so.
  
• Why are you interested in this school? Because it's ranked #1 in the nation? Because your brochures are 50% glossier than than that other school's? Because... wait, which school am I interviewing for again?
  

2) Questions that ask you how to do things you don't actually know how to do.
Examples:

• How do they get the sugar coating on M&M's to be so smooth? And how do they print that tiny m on millions and billions of M&M's? They have little elves to do it for them? If I knew, don't you think I'd have opened up my own plant by now?
• If you wanted to get more students interested in computer science, what would you do? [I actually got this one. Gave a totally flustered answer. She pointed out some quite obvious flaws. I didn't get in.]
• What problems do you see with the world today, and how would you solve them if selected for this program? Okay, that's it, I'm leaving.

3) Questions that supposedly test how we think on our feet... but really just prove that interviewers get bored too.
Examples:

• If I gave you an elephant right now, what would you do? Uh. Leave?
  
• So... tell me about your childhood. Actually, can we skip straight to the inkblots?
  
• Teach me how to do something, step-by-step. Well you go like this, and the rabbit goes through the hole... I think...
• Describe yourself with a single four-letter word. Is it important that I keep this PG? How about... 'sane'?
  
• What would you like to see on your tombstone? Dearly beloved. You will be missed by family, friends, and your pet elephant.
  

Jumping from balconies: prohibited for college athletes!

So this Tyler Hansbrough guy jumps off a second-floor balcony. According to this Yahoo article, you just can't do that when you're a college athlete!

...at the end of the day college athletes aren't, and never will be, normal college students. Most college students don't get a full ride to play a sport. Most college students, unless they're journalism majors, don't take laughably easy courses designed to keep their GPAs high. Most college students don't attain celebrity status, no matter what that latest "Van Wilder" spinoff told you.

So, what, you got a full ride to college and celebrity status while you're here... and in return, we own your body?

And does this mean that it matters less if we normal college students injure ourselves?

I guess in some sense this is reasonable. Students should take care of their brains. Pianists should protect their hands. Plus college sports are kind of a big deal for the entire university (or so I'd infer). It's kind of like the reputation of the entire school is resting on you, young athlete, and more pressure on your jerseyed back if you happen to win a lot, because then we start actually counting on you...

But still, seriously, no leaping off buildings?? What's the point of living anymore?

The Late Meal - 05/07

Last Friday, Team Rocky-Mathey battled Team Frist in the first ever Iron Tiger cooking championship. After a heated contest lasting more than two hours, Team Rocky-Mathey ultimately prevailed over Team Frist. Their secret to culinary success? Not poisoning the judges with salmonella.


From the Senior Survey at the Annual Check-Out Fair: (this is no joke, btw)

Mark one for each item using the following scale:
A: Strongly Disagree, B: Disagree, C: Agree, D: Strongly Agree, E: Not Applicable

39. Alcohol is a significant part of Princeton's student social culture
40. My academic work has suffered as a result of my alcohol use
41. I did not take full advantage of University resources and opportunities because of my alcohol use
42. I have missed classes as a result of my alcohol use.
43. I have interrupted others who were studying as a result of my alcohol use.
44. I have interrupted the sleep of others as result of my alcohol use.
45. I have mistreated or destroyed others' property/belongings as results of my alcohol use.
...
51. Think back over the last two weeks. How many times, if any, have you had five or more alcoholic drinks at a sitting?
a. 0 Times
b. 1 Time
c. 2 Times
d. 3 Times
e. 4 Times
f. 5 or more Times

For a University which prides itself in scholarly research and the virtue of backing evidence with sound methodology, I find this survey laughable for a few reasons. Firstly, is this the best that the Administration can do to monitor and combat high-risk drinking on campus? Secondly, could the Administration even trust the results of this survey? I mean, what's the difference between 'strongly agreeing' and 'agreeing' to whether you "mistreated or destroyed others' property/belongings"? And if you've had more than 5 alcoholic drinks in more than 5 sittings over the last two weeks, how on earth are you supposed to remember performing any of those actions, or do this survey? Also, keep in mind that the 'last two weeks' includes Newman's Day and Houseparties Weekend, so the results are likely to reflect the most extreme cases.

As the first and last class to go through the infamous Alcohol.edu before coming on campus, the Class of 2008 must truly find this survey to be a fitting bookend to our Princeton education.


In the recent Class of 2009 election, incumbent Grant Bermann defeated challenger Alec Williams by 11 votes. This is not unprecedented. In the 2004 USG Presidential Elections, outsider Leslie Bernard Joseph '06 defeated sitting VP Shaun Callaghan '06 by only 11 votes as well (Perhaps Nassau Hall was involved?). There are a few lessons from this current election that can be learned by future campaigners:

(1) Sometimes, having more Facebook friends matters. I'm Facebook friends with neither Bermann or Williams, but I'm sure Bermann wins the Facebook popularity contest as well. (And wouldn't it be funny if Grant had 11 more Facebook friends than Alec?)

(2) 'Change' may be the buzzword of the 2008 election season in America, but change (at least in terms of 'departure from tradition') isn't always welcomed at Princeton. One can argue that the Administration has already introduced a number of 'changes' over the years - from grade deflation and the four-year residential college system to the new alcohol policy and the rezoning of Spelman - all 'changes for change sake' that have yet to be explained rationally to, or enthusiastically embraced by, students. For Williams to use the bland (and blind) 'Change is Good' mantra as his campaign slogan is an unfortunate reading of the campus climate.

(3) Stay on campus. According to my Junior friends, Williams spent the fall studying abroad in Oxford. While I do not dispute the value of studying abroad (I went off twice) or gathering new ideas from other universities as to how to improve student life, it may be counterintuitive to say: "I love Princeton so much and I love my class so much, that I spent the last four months away from both of them."

If the Admissions Office did its job, we're all DOOMED!

According to the New York Times, learning is deadly.

Finally, a good excuse to put off studying for finals. When those lovely C’s start rolling in, you can just tell Mom and Dad (if they still care about your grades), that at least you’ll live longer and healthier than the schmucks with the 4.0 GPAs. I’m sure Goldman and Merrill and Lehman will all be delighted to hear about how you optimized your resources by not learning. Apparently, learning is so costly that “humans’ oversize brains require 20 percent of all the calories burned at rest.”

Except, of course if they’re smart, your parents or your interviewers will read to the end of the article, only to be told that what may be true for fruit flies probably isn’t true for humans: “ ‘If you’re using your intelligence to outsmart your group, then there’s an arms race,’ Dr. Kawecki said. ‘So there’s no absolute optimal level. You just have to be smarter than the others.’” Cue the hyper-competitive toolishness which got us all here in the first place.

Lawnparties FYI

Band Schedule for Sunday

Cap & Gown: Milf N Cookies ……………..…………… 1:00

Charter: Gonzo’s Nose ………………………..…….…...1:00

Ivy: Sticky Fingers (Rolling Stones Cover) ……..………. 1:00

Tower: Fountains of Wayne …………………..………… 1:00

Cloister: Sister Hazel …………………….……………... 2:00

Cottage: Snackbar Jones ………………….……….......... 2:00

TI: Fools and Horses ………………….…………. 2:00 – 5:00

Colonial: Eve 6 …………………………..………. 3:00 – 4:15

Quad (USG Event): Howie Day ………….….…………. 3:00

Terrace: The Walkmen …………….……….……........... 3:00

Quad (USG Event): New Found Glory …..……… 4:20 - 5:45

What's it like to be an admissions officer?

Well, it turns out that admissions officers LOVE their job! Over 75% of those surveyed were either "mostly" or "extremely" satisfied with their jobs. The only reason given was that, if you're in the admissions business, people schmooze up to you at dinner parties, trying to get the inside scoop on getting in. No mention of the heady rush of power that comes of holding in one's hands every child's hopes and dreams, their very futures and their fragile, fragile egos. Odd.

Of course, it's not for everyone. There are the 75%, and then there are those that quit after a few years, sick of working 50 hours a week, traveling constantly to high schools across the country (globe?), and never getting a break in the Sisyphusian cycle of recruiting and then reviewing applications and then organizing events for the accepted students and then back to recruiting again. Oh, and plus it looks like we're almost out of college applicants, so that kind of sucks too.

Don't worry, valiant admissions warriors, we feel for you! Well, expect no sympathy from the ones who landed in the reject pile, but the rest of us are all here for you!

The End of an Era

Professor Paul Miles' last HIS 380 lecture

"In the last century, we've developed doctrines, taken new approaches, fought wars, and negotiated foreign policy. I congratulate you for staying the course" - Professor Miles

Today marked Professor Miles' last HIS 380 lecture; he will continue to teach here, but his much-beloved "The US and World Affairs" is a fixture of the Princeton experience. Nearly everyone in the class takes it because someone else encouraged them to do so, and the last lecture today in McCosh 50 was filled to the brim with current students of the course as well as those who had taken it in previous years. Lecturing for 30 minutes, then raising his hands in Churchill-initiated peace signs, Miles left the room to a standing ovation that continued after his departure.

Miles is one of the professors who students will remember fondly years from now, his accent, Vietnam anecdotes, and wry sense of humor making him a symbol of what we will consider quintessentially Princeton at reunions in years to come. His class is one of the best in a department which I consider to be absolutely stellar (as a History major, I am a bit biased, but there are good reasons to support my decision). Post some of your favorite classes and professors! HIS 380 will return in the fall with another professor, so don't worry if you missed out this year - but do try to take a class with this vaunted professor of American foreign affairs.