From the managing editor’s makeshift desk: Saying farewell from afar

A couple weeks ago, I wrote nearly 900 words of eulogy for my loss of the final quarter of my final year at Rice. Like nearly everything I do, it was self-indulgent and entirely too in touch with my emotions. I submitted it to the Thresher (really I just sent our lovely opinion editor Elizabeth a Slack message) but very soon afterward, someone I love got sick and I decided not to go through with the editing process.

The Strokes’ ‘The New Abnormal’ brings the best of the past to the present

4-22-20 Crossword: "Amputated"

Weekly Screen: Week of April 20

For our lovely readers, you may know that “The Weekly Scene” is a regular fixture of the Thresher’s print arts and entertainment section that promotes local arts events both on campus and throughout Houston. However, due to campus and citywide restrictions on public gatherings amid the COVID-19 outbreak and our inability to print issues for the remainder of the semester, the Weekly Scene is sadly discontinued at the moment. Thus, to fill the gap in my heart left by my beloved little column, I’d like to present the Weekly Screen: a short list of TV programs, movies and videos to check out from the socially-distanced comfort of your home. 

375 minutes of music that defined my 3.75 years of college

I went to my first concert in college, first semester freshman year in September 2016. My high school friend Eric Shi came with me to see James Blake downtown at the House of Blues. There, under lights filled with haze and concertgoers way older than us, we listened to Moses Sumney over the chatter of the crowd. Eventually, the lights dimmed, and Blake took the stage. When the bass hit on “Limit to Your Love,” I knew I was hooked for a lifetime.

Cheesy movies to make you feel less lonely (or at least make you smile)

You know how a couple months ago I came out here to publicly shame the Academy for not sharing my impeccable taste in film? Over the past few years I’ve come out on the record on important cultural milestones, such as the second season of Narcos and this one boring movie that the Thresher got free passes to. But since I’m graduating, I thought I’d show my hand before I go with this confession: I love horrible, cheesy movies. Like, a lot. 

Moments alone: Another round of 50-word stories from isolation

As we all exist in isolation from one another, it can be grounding to take a moment to reflect on where we are and how we're doing, and hear the same from others. With that in mind, the Thresher asked for brief stories from the Rice community about what living in social isolation has been like. Here’s what people told us. 

Disappointing baseball season cut short

Though they did not know it at the time, the Rice baseball team played their final game of the 2020 season on March 10. A 6-2 loss to then-No. 22 Texas A&M University, their final game was representative of their 2-14 season as a whole in more ways than one. 

Erica Ogwumike drafted by Minnesota Lynx

Former Rice women’s basketball star Erica Ogwumike was selected in the third round (No. 26 overall) in the WNBA draft on Friday night. She was drafted by the New York Liberty, before having her rights traded to the Minnesota Lynx. 

Hanszen freshman continues sports podcast in quarantine

If you love sports and every topic surrounding the world of sports, being in quarantine may be pretty difficult. The sports world has ground to a halt, with the NBA and NHL suspending their seasons, March Madness being canceled and the MLB pushing back the start date of their season indefinitely. But don’t panic — Hanszen College freshman Sam DeCaprio has your sports addiction covered with his ongoing sports podcast, “The Roundabout.”

Pipe cleaner chemistry kits and 13-hour time differences: Students adjust to remote classes

For some students, moving back home two months earlier than expected to finish out the semester has meant the mixed blessing and curse of home-cooked meals and navigating impossible time differences for Zoom class; for others, it has meant trying to focus long enough to pass courses amid unstable internet access and the burdens of financial stress. For all students, the pandemic has posed unique obstacles to obtaining the education they had hoped to get out of the semester. 

Students, Faculty Senate propose and debate appropriate academic relief measures

After recently rejecting a proposal for the Double A grading policy, the Faculty Senate will deliberate over potential additional accommodations at their April 22 meeting. However, the Student Association released data from a survey of 34.6 percent of the student body on Monday which showed the majority of student support was in favor of the Double A policy.

Weekly Screen: Week of April 13

For our lovely readers, you may know that “The Weekly Scene” is a regular fixture of the Thresher’s print arts and entertainment section that promotes local arts events both on campus and throughout Houston. However, due to campus and citywide restrictions on public gatherings amid the COVID-19 outbreak and our inability to print issues for the remainder of the semester, the Weekly Scene is sadly discontinued at the moment. Thus, to fill the gap in my heart left by my beloved little column, I’d like to present the Weekly Screen: a short list of TV programs, movies and videos to check out from the socially-distanced comfort of your home. 

A playlist for quiet time: Songs to calm the mind and pass the time

As I found myself staring out the window last Tuesday listening to The Microphones album “The Glow, Pt. 2” (my go-to album for Feeling Very Small) for the millionth time over the past three weeks, I decided it was probably time to wash my sheets and make myself listen to some new music. I’m naturally a bit self-indulgent when it comes to surrendering to emotion — when feeling nostalgic, for example, I only listen to music that will leave me feeling decidedly more wistful than before. And while I’ve always stood by that self-indulgence on the grounds that it’s simply my nature to try and feel things as deeply as possible, listening to one album on repeat gets old after a certain point. 

The Rice Thresher presents the Quarantine Cookbook

Many of us are inspired to keep on the daily grind through small  interactions with the people that matter to us around campus — having to  spend the past month indoors and away from friends has likely made more  than a few Rice students stir-crazy. Plenty of those same people have  turned to stirring ingredients in a pot or pan, whether trying out  online recipes and cooking for the first time, or improvising a  traditional family dish.  Enjoy these nine recipes submitted by students  to the Thresher’s Quarantine Cookbook. 

Virtual prayers: Rice students celebrate religious holidays under lockdown

Religious festivals are times of celebration, shared in a community, when families hold both simple and extravagantly planned gatherings to catch up with each other and have a good time. Oftentimes, these festivals give religious communities the opportunity to gather as a large group to worship and celebrate together. Many of these festivals have deep spiritual or religious significance for students. The Thresher caught up with students celebrating Easter, Passover, Ugadi and Ramadan this year to discuss how they’ve managed to maintain the spirit of the festival even after the pandemic struck.

O-Week Coords, First Year Programs plan for O-Week with uncertain future in mind

Rice is planning for a full, face-to-face Orientation Week in August, but O-Week coordinators are preparing for an online O-Week followed by a possible Welcome Week when campus reopens if an in-person O-Week is not possible by August, according to Araceli Lopez, associate director of First Year Programs. 

Heroes on the front lines: Rice alumni fight against COVID-19 in hospitals

Rice students aspiring to become doctors do plenty of preparation in their undergraduate years  — prerequisite courses, Medical College Admission Tests and clinical experiences. But most students are likely not preparing to be on the front lines of the battle against a global pandemic. However, that’s exactly where a number of Rice alumni have found themselves in the face of COVID-19.

Owls trying to stay fit away from campus

One built-in membership, one three-quarters-of-a-mile walk, two door-pushes and a Rice ID is all it takes for a Brown College student to have access to the Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center. But separated now by space, time and a global pandemic, Kevin Ngo has had to get creative to stay fit while stuck indoors.

4-15-20 Crossword: "Double A"