Uneasy alliance

Okay. I studied politics. I'm not a utopianist. I know alliances are negotiated for strategic purposes. But this is huge. Hoover and May share a common border, like Russia and China, or India and Pakistan, or - and here's the more hopeful thought - Canada and the U.S. Let's just work it out. Lay out a framework for peace. Bring together the negotiators and push past any disagreements. After all, we can all agree, it's a little unsettling the way Alper has been making unprovoked incursions into Hoover territory. Sure, it's mostly restricted to the third floor right now. But without a show of Hoover/May unity, won't Alper get a little cocky? Aren't they just testing us? Before you know it they're going to occupy the study rooms.

The O-Book is here! The O-Book is here!

The O-Book has arrived. At least the digital version has. You'll get yours when you move in. The O-Book is the University of Chicago's annual guide to everything that will happen during your first week in Chicago. Well not everything. You're going to make some friends too. I don't think the O-Book mentions that. But the team of administrators, writers, students, media consultants, pop-psychologists, and shamans who assembled the O-Book don't know about the persuasive power of Hooverlove.

It's natural to feel a little intimidated by the prospect of starting a new life at a new school. But don't be worried. We'll have experienced staff here on move-in day to help everything go smoothly. Jonah and Ellie (pictured above) have been helping Hooverites move in their whole lives. And they'll be available to play in the halls afterward, to help you through any lonely moments. They are experienced at that too. In fact, given a choice between playing and reading difficult books in a sunless library for hours, they'll always choose to play. They're different than you that way. But that's OK. In Hoover, we love diversity.

Meet the RAs

Hoover has two RAs, or Assistant Resident-Heads. The abbreviation doesn't make sense. It should be ARs, but the problem is that might be pronounced "arse," and that's not right. Or maybe ARHs, and that sounds like pirate-speak. So leave it alone. They're RAs. We want to give them a chance to say hello.

My name is Caileigh Pudela. I'm a fourth year, and I'm majoring in biology/pre-med. On campus, you can find me hanging out in Hoover, playing sports, volunteering and working at the hospital, and trying to get people to participate in Relay For Life, a really cool fundraiser that I co-chair for the American Cancer Society. I guess I spend a lot of time in the library and the dining hall, too. My favorite Hyde Park places are the Medici Bakery, the point, and C-Shop, so you might have to join me in a trip or two there! I'm from Lombard, Illinois, but when I'm at school, room 322 in Hoover is my home. You will always be welcome to stop by to talk or hang out! I can't wait to meet you all!

My name's John Paul Thompson, I'm from Dallas, Texas, and I'm a third year majoring in Anthropology and minoring in Music. Speaking of which, hope y'all like music because I play guitar, piano and violin, and would love to jam! I also love to cook, so hopefully we can swap recipes once we all get to Chicago. Even if you don't play or cook, my doors will always be open so be sure to come hang out, chit-chat, play scrabble, or whatever. Can't wait to meet y'all! Safe travels.

Greetings to the new roommates *

Dear New Hooverites (As we like to call ourselves!):

Welcome to Hoover, the coolest house around! We’re the Hoover Resident Heads, Steve and Rebecca. We live on the second floor of Hoover with our two children: Jonah, (3 ½), and Ellie, (1 ½). This is our fourth year in Hoover and we love living here. Jonah and Ellie are particularly fond of playing in Hoover’s hallways and are always looking for Hooverites to hang out with them. Guitar jam sessions with Hoover friends are one of our favorite afternoon activities.

We’re excited that you’ll soon arrive at the University of Chicago. The University has played an important role in our lives. We met here. Steve earned his Ph.D. here. We got married in a beautiful historic building on campus. Jonah and Ellie were born at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Steve now works as an Associate Dean in the Graham School, the continuing education division of the University. Rebecca is Director of Events and Conferences at the Law School. We have spent many years in Chicago (Rebecca grew up in Hyde Park), but also have lived in Ann Arbor, MI; Oxford, OH; Cleveland, OH; Ithaca, NY; and Brooklyn, NY.

Hoover is a great house filled with spirit. Hooverites like to study hard and like to have fun. We enjoy going on all sorts of trips, whether it’s to a baseball game, the Art Institute, apple picking, or the north side for shopping. We like to turn-out for sporting events on campus and cheer for our Hoover athletes. We also like to play intramural sports: water polo, basketball, touch football, and broom ball to name a few, all of which are strongly encouraged but purely optional. Hooverites are also really fond of hanging out in our lounge for weekly study breaks and movie nights. Speaking of study breaks, it’s a good idea to bring a small plate, bowl or mug, fork, and spoon to campus. They come in handy for eating study break snacks.

Hooverites love to try all kinds of food and are big fans of traveling to Chicago neighborhoods to dine at different ethnic restaurants. Last year we visited Chinatown, Koreatown, and Devon Avenue for Indian and Ethiopian food. We also had Thai, Middle Eastern, and fondue dinners in our lounge. We’re seriously into fund-raising (and fun-raising!) for our House. Serf Auction is an annual tradition where we sell each other our labor and services. Several items for sale last year were a bagel and lox brunch, bathroom cleaning services (this comes in very handy right before your parents visit!), help with O-Chem homework, and lessons for ice skating, Irish dancing, swimming, and cooking. The t-shirts we designed with “Hell Does Freeze Over” emblazoned on them, sold out last year. (See the link to the right, where you can buy one!)

We throw annual Super Bowl and Oscar Night parties and we’ve been especially proud to claim our own independent Scavenger Hunt team. Whether that tradition continues will be a choice you'll weigh in on. The Hoover Concert is a spring tradition where Hooverities can show off
their many talents! Making s’mores at the nearby “Point” (a beautiful park along the lakefront) is also a favorite activity.

Hoover has two great RA’s (Resident Head Assistants): Caileigh Pudela and John Paul Thompson. Caileigh lives on the third floor, while John Paul’s room is on the first floor next to Hoover Lounge.

We're looking forward to meeting everyone (and welcoming returning Hooverites back)!

- Steve, Rebecca, Ellie and Jonah

* The title for this posting is a sly reference to a Billy Bragg song, Greetings to the New Brunette.

Greetings To The New Brunette ...

Vacation time!

Every summer we face the lonely silence of Hoover hallways emptied of Hooverites. One way we cope is travel. We hit the road, enjoy summer travel, as Americans have done for generations. Our vacations are pretty much like yours. We face delays at the airport.




We get stuck in vacation traffic.




But it is all worthwhile to enjoy the quiet, simple life of the country.

Jonah: Reality show star

Courtesy of Bravo. TV Cast members Camille, 17, and Jonah, 3, on Bravo’s new series, supposedly a real-life “Gossip Girl.”

June 4, 2009, 11:25 am

Born Rich A Preview of Bravo’s ‘NYC Prep’

Slumped down in the front few rows of an auditorium on Monday, the mostly teenage stars of the new Bravo reality television show “NYC Prep”, which will have its debut on June 23, looked anxious, like kids caught doing something naughty, unsure of the punishment that awaits them. They had been summoned for a media preview of the show, held at the Paley Media Center. They were in trouble, but they had no idea how bad it would get.

“NYC Prep,” which comes from the programming minds that brought you the “Real Housewives” franchise, is a documentary series that purports to be a real life “Gossip Girl.” Five of the six young principals live on the Upper East Side and all — except one — attend unnamed private schools. They lead the lives of, as Andy Cohen, Bravo’s unctuous executive vice president of programming puts it, “mini-adults.” He didn’t mean little people, big world (that’s a TLC show). He meant that his stars are adults stuck in the awkward (but fat-free) bodies of teenagers.

Since Bravo’s camera crew was understandably barred from filming inside the school, the action is all extracurricular. “My hobby,” says Jonah, a doe-eyed 3-year-old ladies’ man, “is playing ball in the hall with the girls from the second floor.”

The other preoccupation of adulthood-in-a-teenage-mind is shopping — a constant activity. Jessie, 16, is passionate about fashion and has had, she boasts, a personal shopper at Barneys since she was 13. But she’s also hip and with it and thus takes a trip to the Bowery boutique White and Blue, where she tries on a dress. “OMG,” says the saleswoman, “you look like you’re from Gossip Girl.” “Gossip Girl?, I hate that show,” says Jessie, before departing via Suburban back uptown to her red-velvet-wallpapered home. Jonah, too is obsessed about shopping. But his main targets are toys. “Right now I want to get all the cars from the movie Cars. My daddy says I need to be patient, but heckabagosh, you’re only little once. I mean, am I going to be playing with Mater when I’m 16 and old and boring? Nope. I’ve got to get a lot of playing in now.”

This play hard now attitude is something all the show’s stars agree on.

In a nutshell, these kids lead reckless, privileged, precocious lives, whipping small hiccups into stiff peaks and saying rash and ill-advised things like “I have my own credit card. I don’t know how much I use it” and “we’re the elite of the elite.” Jonah summed up the lives of these giddy kids: “I can make funny faces and I run really fast.” Then he issued a challenge: “Do you want to race?”

Et tu, Nate?

Nate? How could you do this? How could you say this about us? You were one of us.

Here's what Nate Silver said about the University of Chicago - heck, about us - in a recent posting on his blog:

Having attended the University of Chicago, where there are plenty of booksmart people that you wouldn't consider particularly bright, I can tell you that the correlation between intelligence and educational attainment is considerably less than one-to-one.

Huh? Not bright? Obviously Nate hasn't spent much time on campus lately. The folks here are so bright I have to wear shades. I mean, this past weekend a U of Cer created a hydraulic device that can shoot hot dogs into a crowd! No wonder we have so many Nobel prizes.

Nate take your dagger and go home. We are impervious to your attacks.