Monthly Archives: May 2018

There’s a crazy amount of work that goes on behind the scenes to make commencement work. As it’s gotten bigger and more complicated the number of people who have tasks to perform before, during, and after the ceremonies has also … Continue reading →

I thought the 105th Rice commencement came off very well. There were five events over two days and the plenary ceremony on Saturday morning was all you could have asked for–intermittent cloud cover, a bit of a breeze, and a … Continue reading →

The most interesting thing I saw on campus today was the preparation for tonight’s fireworks: The guys could not have been more charming or more helpful–they gave me a pretty good tutorial on the technology of modern fireworks, which has … Continue reading →

I spend a lot of time reading old issues of the Thresher. Truly, that’s an understatement. I have stacks of bound volumes in my office at home and it’s a rare day that I don’t open at least one. They’re … Continue reading →

Times change but someone always has to set up the chairs. Baccalaureate ceremony, 1916: Two days ago: Bonus:

I was quite taken with this little article from the spring of 1958, when what is now called Beer Bike was still “the bike race.” I’m not interested in that at all, however. What caught my attention was Dr. Davies’s … Continue reading →

The week before commencement is one of my favorite times of the year. Things feel almost placid after the chaos of finals and I enjoy watching the preparations out on the quad and the anticipation of the summer. I took … Continue reading →

I’m not convinced these people know what an omelette is. Bonus:

Quite some time ago–years, in fact–I came across an image in a folder called “Temporary Sculpture.” Pretty striking, isn’t it? The reverse side gives us the titles of the sculptures. From foreground to back they are Spitball, Marriage, and The … Continue reading →

While browsing through some Sallyports from the early 1960s last night my attention was caught by a short article buried in the January 1961 issue. A long-serving maintenance man, Elias Ramirez, had passed away in December and was remembered fondly … Continue reading →