Speros, Volume 4, Issue 2

VOL. 4 ISSUE 2

speros ESTABLISHED 2011

SPRING 2014

Brandyland: Case Race to Rumdrop Mountain

TABLEOFCONTENTS

Martel owes the past two years of Beer Bike beauty on the sundeck to Alex Weinheimer (‘14) and Justin Montes (‘14). Photo courtesy of Humans of Rice University.

Starting in beer bike 2012 with the Mayan temple for Alepocalypse, Alex and I have embarked upon a largescale carpentry project for beer bike. This year we decided to utilize a lot of what we’ve learned; the Candyland board combines the scale of a Mayan temple facade with the utility of Spongebob’s pineapple. The four main structures are the Gumdrop mountain, a

two-story, 64 square-foot Lord Licorice’s Castle, Grandma Nut’s peanut brittle cottage, and a facade of King Candy’s Candy Castle that reaches to Martel’s fifth floor. As always, it’s been a lot of fun collaborating and working with Alex on this project and pissing off Jonesians who live by the Sundeck with lumber yard noises. Each year we’ve learned a lot about carpentry, scenic design,

power tools, different building materials, and which aisle exactly all of those things are located in Home Depot. Alex and I were super stoked about this year’s theme/project and are excited to have made most likely the first ever life-sized model of the original Candyland board.

--Justin Montes (‘14) Beer Bike CoCoordinator

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InternationalDinner

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PianoRecital

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LetterfromtheMasters Associates’Night

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CollegeNight BeachParty

MartelGoverns What-Ifs

LetterfromtheEditors

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Perseverance

Piano Recital

Date: February 18, 2014 Location: Martel Commons Host: Piano Committee and Maria Byrne

Masters should never have favorites of any kind, but the graduating senior class is always special, and one of our favorite traditions is Martel Senior Wine Tasting. We host this event at the Masters House, and one of the reasons we enjoy it so much is that it is our last chance to catch up with our wonderful seniors, as well as with many of their (equally wonderful) parents. And all this is in the presence of some very good wine! Justin Singer, a Rice alumnus and also one of our most involved associates, has graciously volunteered to lead our wine tasting this year. Justin enjoys a challenge, and so he had a new idea of giving our wine-tasting a theme this year. After some deliberations we thought that the theme that best captures our recent experience at Martel is perseverance.

This has been a rough semester for our college. One of our seniors has been missing since Spring Break, and Reny’s disappearance has affected everyone in the Martel family. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. Like them, we hope for his safe return. But life at Martel continues. Indeed, it is in times like this, when our college is challenged like never before, that we gain strength and comfort from each other. We are incredibly grateful for the support we have received from the university, from our associates and friends, from

This year’s piano recital was a great success and showcased our great pool of talented Martelians. The program featured the dulcet tones of Jonathan Rivera singing Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” and the incredible musical pyrotechnics of Eugene Bozza’s “Improvisation and Caprice” in the hands of saxophonist Chris Johnson. Furthermore, an appreciative and attentive audience of associates, donors, and students complemented the excellent program. I think it’s great that Martel has an event in which Musis and non-Musis can come together to create a great program in a relaxed and warm atmosphere.

--Wesley Ducote (‘16) Performer

International Dinner MCAs: Martel College Awards, Night of Stars

all members of the Martel community. Martel College is facing one of its biggest challenges, but we will persevere. We will be stronger and even more grateful than before for one of the most precious things we have: being members of a very special community.

Ted and Beata

Date: February 15, 2014 Location: Martel Commons Host: Martel Masters Ted and Beata and Martel Culturals Committee

Date: April 17, 2014 Location: Martel Commons Host: Martel Associates Committee

Tanya Rajan ‘16, Crystal Olalde ‘15, and Gracie Oribamise ‘15 pose for a photo while perusing an the Caribbean culinary options. Photo by Taylor Armstrong ‘16

Catherine Miller (‘17) and Melody Yip (‘17) share in some roomie love during Awards Night.

The elaborate centerpieces featuring sunflowers straight from the countryside brought the night to life.

Freshmen Megan Lewis, Winifred Tung, Ly Nguyen, and Anita Alem pose on their way to the event. Best suite award in the bag!

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Martel Commons is festooned with lights and Caribbean-themed centerpieces. Photo by Taylor Armstrong ‘16

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The Man, The Myth The Legend

Martel What-Ifs

El Presidente’s new Facebook page has gotten some ideas flowing. Here’s the top 10:

Every few centuries, there comes a person who is born to be a leader. We saw such greatness in Julius Caesar.

We were awed by Napoleon’s shining ego. And we bowed down to Beyonce’s fierceness.

On March 1, there emerged another such leader: Ravi Sheth, class of 2015, Student Association President.

Some of us know him as our lovably limping O-Week Coordinator. To others, he’s that one guy who’s OC and never at Martel. But the world

knows him as the man who swept the elections in an unprecedented WriteIn campaign. Here are a few words from the enigmatic leader himself: “I am so excited to have been elected as SA President. I am bringing so many incredible experiences and perspectives from being involved in Martel to the campus-wide level, and I am really excited for the accomplishments we have already made, and our year ahead.”

Hello Martel, I’m Fortino Garcia and I am Martel’s newest flavor of dictatorship. My main goal for Martel during my presidency is to really revamp and make Martel spaces more accessible and fun to be in. To get there, I’m adopting a “blow the budget” motto which the treasurers are forcibly ‘letting’ me do and which the Thresher thoroughly enjoyed throwing me under the bus for - to fuel improvements, bi-monthly keg floating committee meetings, Sandra Bullock ice sculptures, bigger events, and anything else the college (me) wants to do. In all sincerity, however, I want my presidency to be about each and every member of the college and it is of the utmost importance to me that everyone feels at home and that they can be a part of making Martel what they want. Let’s make this next year the best it can be!

MBYM Fortino Garcia (‘15) Martel President

El Presidente

1. What if Martel had a major non-alcoholic event?

(For the whole college, not just O-Week) 2. What if Ted and Beata stayed as masters forever?

3. What if Martel instituted a policy for What if Martel that stated that if XX number of likes appear on the status the office of the president (President Forty that is) must address it?

4. What if Martel invested in making the backyard (you know where the horseshoes and stuff are) a really awesome place to chill and have parties?

5. What if Martel had a large pair of guardian Greek-style stone lions (Nemean lions) flanking the Sallyport?

6. What if Martel had expo markers on the dryers and washers?

7. What if Martel had a cool fifth floor?

College Night: SKYY High!

Date: April 18, 2014 Location: Martel Sundeck Host: Martel Socials Look up in the SKYY! It’s a bird...

It’s a plane...No! IT’S COLLEGE NIGHT! Martelians came decked out in capes and masks for this year’s superhero themed college night. There was even a “Supersuit” contest with the Most Original going to Nneoma Elendu, Most Legit TEAM going to Emily Flood, Alura Vincent, and Elizabeth Baca, and Funniest (Most Pitiful) going to Chris Johnson. With Shipley’s donuts in the morning, Papa John’s pizza for lunch, and hamburger

cook-out for dinner, the day was filled with a super amount of food.

Martel Socials Brett Anderson, Veronica Johnson, Josh Masimore, and Jonathan Rivera catered to the theme by providing a water slide (cause ya’ know, Aquaman), puppies from True Blue Animal Rescue (dogs are super), and playing the Disney Classic Sky High in the commons at the end of the night.

Martel freshmen Emily Flood, Elizabeth Baca, Alura Vincent, and Laura --Veronica Johnson (‘16) Kessel are decked out in their superhero attire, easily cinching the Most Legit TEAM award. Photo provided by Elizabeth Baca ‘17 Martel Social

Beach Party Date: April 25, 2014 Location: Martel Sundeck Host: Martel Socials In celebration of the last day of classes and the anticipation of summer, Martel hosted the last public of the year. This year’s Beach Party’s theme was all about going to Hawaii, getting to know the locals, and getting lei’d.

With DJ Duke and tons of pizza, chips, soda, and lemonade on the sundeck, Beach Party was a great end to the semester.

--Veronica Johnson (‘16) Martel Social

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The Martel Sundeck once again became the life of the party, adorned with hula skirts, leis, and the Beer Bike Castle that has become a permanent fixture. The party continued on to the wee hours of the night, filling all of Martel with great music. Take that, Jones! Photo by Josh Masimore ‘17

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AbouttheEditors “What? Martel has a newsletter? Since when?”

Yeah, we know. We know that you don’t know us. We know you don’t see us lurking in the computer room, hunting people down for photos and blurbs, shaking our fists at the InDesign Gods. But here you are finally reading the Speros Martel Newsletter for the first time ever. Congratulations! Let’s be friends.

Speros has actually been published since 2011 and is sent out to Martel Alumni and Martel Associates, as well as emailed to the Martel listserv. As your new editors, our next goal is to have this newsletter not just on the small screen, but in real life, in your hands, printed out on some fine-ass glossy paper. #Fall2014 And the only way we’re going to reach this goal is if you help us out. Read Speros. Share it with your friends. And tell us how you feel-- what you like, what you didn’t like, what we could change. We want to hear what you want to see in a newsletter. Because now that you know we exist, the hardest part is over!

Love, Your Editors Anita Alem Catherine Miller Kevin Czachura Anita Alem Bioengineering Class of 2017 Hobbies: Arguing, being disgruntled, cooking, knitting. 65 yearold grandmother on the inside. Ask her for food!

Catherine Miller History and German Studies Class of 2017 Hobbies: Bad puns, spending too much time on tumblr, enthusing about the humanities, eating Lucky Charms

Kevin Czachura Biological Sciences Class of 2017 Hobbies: Being sassy but heartfelt at the same time, talking about critical tropical foodcrops, going to museums

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