Though fish were again involved, none seemed to be devoured, as opposed to last year's carnivorous behavior. As an impressive upgrade from last year's easy-to-swallow guppies, these fish were full-grown, probably acting as a deterrent to the hungrier partiers.
Though their purpose remains shrouded in mystery, several people tried to catch the fish with their bare hands. Few succeeded-unless they caught one of the dozens of dead ones floating on the surface of the kiddie pool.
In the grand tradition of Amherst dance parties, people seemed more interested on chewing face than chewing fish. "At one point I looked around me, and I was surrounded by hook-ups," said Katie Alburger '03.
Chris Keane '02 applauded this behavior. "Overall, I think it was a terrific show of the abilities of people who want to get 'lei-d' at a luau."
Others were not so enthused for other reasons. Tim Baldwin '03 said, "The fact that security made me pour out my full beer really sucked." It sure did, Tim, it sure did.<br>-9/13/00
<b>Musical marathon</b><br>Save sleeping and tantric endeavors, when was that last time you did something for 12 hours straight? Last Monday, Tristan Moore '01E played the piano in the Campus Center Front Room from noon until midnight without stopping-not even for bathroom breaks.
Moore said he was in "a sort of trance state" during the performance. "After about three hours I was gone, zoned out," he said. "A tiny little fraction of my brain was there at the piano talking to my hands: 'Okay, now move that pinkie over there-no, the black note, you fool.' And the rest of me was zipping around some sort of mental no-man's land."
Moore's piano playing, which RJ Buenvenida '02 described as "very dreamy background type stuff," was the focus of Reverie, but the event itself was meant to be a celebration of all types of art, including interpretive dance performed by Kerry Schaefer '01.
"I thought it was going to be Tristan playing the piano, but there was a whole smorgasbord of artistic activities including painting, writing and dancing," said Eric Feder '02. "The last few minutes were especially exhilarating for me because I got to play the synthesizer."
Matt Eckelman '01E helped put together Reverie as a repeat of an event that was held four years ago. He described the goal of Reverie and its artist's playground theme as "to invite people into a transformed space and get them to open up to the art around them and their own art in particular."<br>-9/13/00
<b>Just another Saturday night</b><br>To several drunken partiers, it was the Apocalypse. To others, it was just a power outage. To The Student, it's news.
Details are sketchy, as all eye-witnesses were inebriated out of their minds, but around 2:30 a.m. Saturday night, two flashes of lightning lit up the sky, and then everything went black.
There were enough screams following the power outage that some were sure it was the Second Coming, but everyone remained intact-unless they were losing their dinner on the social quad-leading to quick recovery of mental equilibrium.
As Joe Tracy '02 astutely noted, "Even after the power went out, the kegs still worked, so everything was fine." Tracy was apparently not bothered by the attendant malfunction of the entrance code pads, though others pounded into the wee hours of the night to get into their dorms.
It seems everyone inside was passed out or otherwise engaged. They did not immediately-if ever-come to their friends' aid. This was curious, however, because many were kept awake by blaring fire alarms.
As usual, there were no fires, but this situation was quickly remedied as a cardboard box went up in flames outside Stone. "I think kids were so upset that there was an alarm but no fire, they just lit one," joked Erik DiNardo '03.
A resilient bunch, Amherst students managed to survive the blackout, though for the most part, they don't remember how.<br>-9/27/00
<b>Wuck filliams!</b><br>So we beat Williams, and obviously the only method to adequately display our glee was to tear down the goal posts. That'll show those cocky Williams players! Damn, we just ruined our own field. But no matter! We have an entire year until next season, and as no shards of metal managed to impale anyone as the posts hit the ground, it was an all-around good time, as most can attest. Except for maybe Scott Foster '01, who said, "I was having a great time until the post I was hanging on fell on top of me."
There was a surge of Amherst testosterone as people rushed to demolish the goal posts after the last whistle, but a good number of equally spirited men and women were out of commission, owing to heavy drinking since 10 a.m. at the numerous tailgates that lined the field serving everything from hot chocolate spiked with peppermint schnapps (delicious) to ice cold Natty lite (gross).
"I would have helped out but I was too incoherent at the time," said Suli Jenkins '03.
Thanks to the enthusiastic levelers, Amherst football players took away souvenirs of their historic win in the form of the most precious of metals: scrap metal. These innovative scrap metal hoarders are the true heroes.<br>-11/15/00
<b>Graffiti galore</b><br>Think the Amherst party scene lacks creativity? Well, not if Lindsay Thomas '01 and her friends have anything to say about it.
This past Saturday, they organized a "graffiti" party in Tyler House, which required partygoers to wear white t-shirts and write on each other. The idea came from one of Thomas' friends at UConn whose frat had a similar party last year.
Attendees unadorned with graffiti couldn't drink, which led to people writing on every body part imaginable, especially for those who were scantily clad.
"Some of the best [graffiti] I saw was: 'Boy bands make me come' or 'I love Ray Combs,'" said Thomas.
Partygoers were as excited as the planners by the results of the party."The whole thing was pretty cool. It's not every party that I walk into that has six girls run towards me the minute I walk in the door," said Ryan Whitmarsh '01. "It was disheartening to find out they just wanted to write 'I suck' and 'loser' on me in green marker."
"That kind of ridiculousness and debauchery is exactly what this dying college needs on Saturday nights," added Whitmarsh.
Thomas said she is feeling a little nervous about the next party she will plan. "We had a 'Sweats Party' last year which was a lot of fun too, but after this party I don't know how we are going to top it with our next theme," said Thomas.<br>-12/6/00
<b>Calling all Sarahs</b><br>The idea was simple: get all the Sarahs on campus together for one night to meet each other and have a party with an incredibly cute theme. Sarah Michelson '02 and Sarah Short '02 organized just such a get-together this past Thursday, inviting all 29 Sarahs and Saras at Amherst over to Stone for what they like to call "The Sarah Party."
The invitation read, "It sucks to have the most common name on campus, doesn't it? There's always at least three of us signed up to use the cross-trainer at the gym. There's three on the basketball team. There's three of us trying to free Tibet. There are three in English 79. And there are four living in Stone dorm."
The party was a great success, with about 15 of the 29 invited showing up at Stone for the pre-party. As Sarah DiLorenzo '03 explained, "We each got a little name tag to wear so that we'd know each other … except it only had our last names."
The party went off without a hitch-not even the Stone fire alarm could stop it. "It was an interesting way of meeting new people that you might not meet in any other way … it was fun," said Sarah Edelston '04. "We all said 'hi' to each other at parties later that night."
All of the Megans, Jessicas and Katies were green with envy that night, hearing of the fun they missed, including a group picture and cookies.
All Sarahs present thought it was an innovative way to meet others that share their name. "If you want a high-quality identity crisis, get almost 20 people with your name and jam them into one room," said Michelson.<br>-3/14/01
<b>*NSync</b><br>Ever wonder what some of your classmates look like without their shirts? This year's Lip Sync contest was a great place to entertain these curiosities, as contestants' performances ranged from slightly more choreographed dances to virtually naked displays. While only three groups ended up with the coveted first place in line for Room Draw, the debauchery that went down in Johnson Chapel last Thursday was certainly enjoyed by all.
The highlight of the evening in most people's minds was the performance of "I Touch Myself" by Ted Hertzberg '04. "I lost a bet during high school, which forced me to actually sing the song in front of my classmates ... but I only loosened my belt," said Hertzberg.
Hertzberg, a student who has maintained a very Republican and conservative reputation, mustered up the chutzpah to gradually strip down to a leopard print G-string, complete with a sign reading "small." As a result of the serenade to President George Bush, Hertzberg said, "I certainly feel a lot more comfortable now. I feel like I've created a whole new image for myself, one that is far more open."
The rising junior groups also put on a great show, with the winning group of eight performing a medley including parodies of "Dirty Dancing," "The Little Mermaid" and an SNL skit involving Chip 'n Dale's dancers, as well as a clip from Blind Melon's "No Rain," in which John Mackinnon '03 made a hilarious cameo as the little bumble bee girl.
But the top pick of Room Draw, #1 in the entire school, went to a group of senior girls that arranged one of two Michael Jackson medleys. Carrie Foster '02, a member of the now-envied group, said: "My roommates and I are huge Michael Jackson fans."
Even though many walked away losers that evening, all the groups involved had a great time.<br>-4/11/01
<b>Going once ...</b><br>"This is the closest my face will ever get to your chest," said Dean of Students Ben Lieber, as a T-shirt bearing his likeness was auctioned off for a hefty sum. The College's first auction for charity took place last Friday, lasting over two hours in Johnson Chapel.
The event benefited the Amherst Survival Center, which is located in North Amherst.
A MassPIRG event, with additional funding from SoCo, the auction was the brainchild of Pete Cymrot '03, Stacey Rossley '01 and Amber Young '01. "It was so much more successful than I had expected," said Young. The auction managed to raise about $2,000 for the Survival Center.
Items and services that were auctioned off ranged from car washes from the scantily clad track team and four freshman guys offering "anything you want" (for a price, namely $185) to serenades from various a cappella groups. "After those four guys were sold," said Young, "the attitude of the evening completely changed." After that sizable sale, people started getting really excited about the event, eager to empty their wallets for charity.
The most lucrative service up for bid, however, was a personal service tied to President Gerety himself. Purchased by Will Johnson '03, Gerety auctioned off a shampoo and haircut in his office. Exceeding average salon prices, Johnson shelled out a whopping $355 for the do. "Gerety came highly recommended and, as anyone can reasonably see, I am in desperate need of a haircut," said Johnson, who has a near-shaved head. "The fact that the money was going towards a good cause was also a big motivator," he added.
"While the bidding was going on, I was not really thinking at all to tell you the truth," said Johnson. "But after the bidding was over and people came up to me and were like, 'What were you thinking?' the whole thing started to set in."<br>-4/25/01