LOST: one red umbrella in 702 hamilton during adv progamming course.

Today marks the dawn of a new Bwog feature: GonzoBwog, in which we embark on a quest to answer your questions through empirical means (rather than doing what we usually do and looking them up on Wikipedia performing extensive research on the subject). This time, Daily Editors Liz Jacob and Megan McGregor chronicle their journey to test the limits of carb consumption. If you have any suggestions, you know the drill: send ‘em in to tips@bwog.com.

We tried to do the impossible: eat solely free food for one entire week. We failed, but that’s okay. We learned about Columbia, ourselves, and how to acquire free food. What follows is an account of our adventures.

Friday, September 17 (Day 1): Potluck Pleasures

We were scared. Beginning such a Herculean task was daunting, to say the least. However, we decided to begin our journey at Potluck House on 114th and Broadway. We didn’t have it in ourselves to show up without a dish for the potluck, so we brought desserts from Westside. Upon arriving at Potluck House, we realized that bringing pre-prepared food to a potluck is quite unacceptable. However, we were still greeted with kindness. We decided to give the desserts as a gift. So, even though we had to purchase said desserts, we didn’t technically break our vow. Things we learned: 1. Our peers are much more skilled at the culinary arts than we are. 2. More people come to Potluck House than you’d think (including half of the Bwog staff and even an extremely friendly student from UChicago). 3. Brownstones are so much nicer than any other campus housing.

Saturday, September 18 (Day 2): Sometimes Platters of Bagels Fall From the Heavens

Megan: Saturday morning, Bwog received a tip that free bagels and pastries were being distributed at the Sundial courtesy of the Millennium Campus Conference. I dressed immediately and ran there within 10 minutes of receiving said email. Tip: If you want first pick of free food, you must arrive early! After grabbing for only one bagel, a kind stranger offered me (Liz was late—mistake!) an entire platter of bagels. Floored by this unbelievable generosity, I joyously shared the news with Liz. We received about 30 pumpernickel bagel halves apiece (we assume no collegiate leaders enjoy pumpernickel)! In case you’re in CC, that’s enough bagels for every meal for more than a week. And so began our bagel diet.

For lunch, we crashed a Columbia Political Review pitch meeting at the invitation of CPR Editor-in-Chief/fellow Bwogger/god Mark Hay. Basically, Mark held a meeting while cooking omelets for us (he had already made them for everyone else). Tip: Have nice friends that let you crash their meetings and cook for you! Mark Hay is a man among men.

Liz: Sans Megan, I headed over to Passport to Columbia in Roone Arledge Auditorium to sample the snacks provided by the multicultural groups on campus. Well-connected Columbian that I am, I managed to skip the long line at Roone’s entrance (see, it pays to come early!), and headed straight over to the food. There were samosas, dumplings, and sushi galore! I was in heaven. After eating to my stomach’s content, I will admit that I left before seeing a few (read: almost all) of the acts—which I hear were great! Note: Campus freeganism turns normal college students into vultures. Attempt it at your own risk.

More free food adventures after the jump.

Public Safety has just informed us that a student was robbed of her cell phone by two males last night at the Wien Gate. One of the suspects grabbed the student’s cell phone from behind, and as she struggled with him, she fell to the ground. The suspects then fled the scene to Morningside Park.
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Photo via Flickr“>The Hapa Club’s serving green tea cupcakes from 8PM-9PM in the Furnald lounge. YUM!!!

Photo via Flickr

The Theta Delta Chapter of Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority Incorporated will be giving away Gamma hugs from 4:30pm-6:00pm throughout campus — and they’re free!

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

You guys know the thing about the weather, right? It never sleeps.

Director extraordinaire Victor Suarez CC’11 (remember The Kitchen Cabinet’s “Dogwood“?) has directed yet another Columbia-themed production. This project features the music of Night Eyes, a group formerly known as sssen, consisting of Alex Klein (CC’12) and Anthony Natoli of NYU. The video was shot by Suarez and Laura LaPerche (CC’10) in Montauk last weekend, with Yoni Golijv (CC’12) as gaffer. Charlotte Kaufman (CC’11) stars as the “sea creature” and plays opposite Hico Oshiro from Japan. We’re told that the whole thing is only lit with flashlights (yeah, we can tell) and shot with a DSLR camera. Happy viewing!

Inspired by Night Eyes from Victor Suarez on Vimeo.

Rejoice! The lawns don’t look like this anymore.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons“>Yes, the weather sucks, but at least the rain is good for the plants! Most of the Greenmarket will still be out there bringing you your weekly supply of fresh local food. You can count on Samascott and Stannards Farm for their fruit and produce, and Meredith’s Bread for their baked goods. We’re hoping that the regulars will be there, but unfortunately we’ll have to do without Lani’s Farm or Buon Pan.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Grab your umbrellas and put on your rain boots! It’s going to be a wet and windy day.

Before you watch The Social Network, take note of a little Columbia history. Remember CU Community? Started by SEAS alum Adam Goldberg, it was what Facebook was to Harvard — except ours was better and came first.

On the list of most expensive NY neighborhoods, UWS does not disappoint.

Tormented Rutgers student who committed suicide was found at the Columbia boathouse.

Comedian and Columbia alum Greg Giraldo passed away yesterday.

Update: PrezBo has just announced that Gregory Mosher, the founding director of the Arts Initiative, is stepping down to work in professional theater, but will maintain his role as a Professor of Professional Practice at the School of Arts.

ESC has just officially reported the results of the freshman election. Congrats to the winners!

President: Akshay Shah
Vice President: Sheila Misheni
Class Representative 1: Siddhant Bhatt
Class Representative 2: Elizabeth Day or Tanya Shah (tied with 23 votes each)

But wait! That’s right, you’re reading that last line correctly. It’s another tie for class representative, and this time, it’s not because of a voting glitch. Due to the tie, ESC will hold yet another runoff election between Day and Shah. When will the madness end?

Best of luck to the two candidates remaining in round 3, and see below for the full breakdown of votes.

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Sometimes we leave our empties on trash cans. Sometimes we can’t be bothered. Other times we throw them at the wall in euphoric rage.

Al Gore lookin' good

Holy smokes! Barnard students just received an email from Dean Denburg, saying that the World Leaders Forum will host an event with Al Gore this Tuesday.

The full email is below. Columbia students still haven’t gotten the email, but this email says registration is open to Columbia, Barnard and Teacher’s College. Register tomorrow at 9 AM, we suppose!

Dear Barnard students,

Please see the following announcement regarding the upcoming World Leaders Forum. Note that registration
opens tomorrow, Thursday, September 30th, at 9:00 AM. Seating is limited.

Dorothy Denburg
Dean of the College
************************************************************************

World Leaders Forum is pleased to announce the following events taking
place on Tuesday, October 5, 2010:

9:00 a.m.
Enacting Sustainable Capitalism
Rotunda, Low Memorial Library

Al Gore, chairman of Generation Investment Management, will deliver an
address to be followed by a question and answer session with the
audience.

11:45 a.m.
The Sovereign Debt Problem
Rotunda, Low Memorial Library

George Soros, chair of Soros Fund Management LLC and founder of the Open
Society Institute, will deliver an address to be followed by a question
and answer session with the audience.

Both events are co-sponsored by Committee on Global Thought and
Sovereign Wealth Fund Research Initiative

Registration
Online registration is required and seating is limited. Registration is
open to students from Columbia University, Barnard College, and Teachers
College.

Registration for both events will open on Thursday, September 30, at
9:00 a.m.

To register, please visit www.worldleaders.columbia.edu
<http://www.worldleaders.columbia.edu/>

Think this witch cupcake, but red!

At 8 PM in the Dodge Room of Earl Hall, you’ll find red velvet cupcakes and people doing good things. The Student Global AIDS Campaign is letting cupcake-eaters know how they can get involved with the campaign against HIV/AIDS. Bring your friends!

UPDATE (9:30) FeelGoodCU is grilling cheeses in the satow room in Lerner!

Photo from Wikimedia Commons.

Janette Turner Hospital, an author and Adjunct Associate Professor at the MFA Writing Program here, really likes Columbia. Her school spirit is perhaps second only to that of Roar-ee the Lion.

Today, she wrote an email to her old students at University of South Carolina. She is, it seems, happier here than she was there. In many hundreds of words, she details everything that she loves about Columbia, and encourages USC students to stay in a nearby hostel (with linens provided!) so that they can just smell the Morningside (“Upstate Manhattan”) air. Gawker got hold of the email, and it is unreal. We bolded some true gems. The MIT and Matisse bits are our very favorites.

To those I’m supervising and to all other MFA students:

Forwarded below are a couple of emails sent to all of our Columbia MFA students. It’s the kind of invitation students here receive-and take up-at least once or twice a week in a cornucopia of literary riches. It seems to me that USC writing students should also know about these opportunities, since you could car-pool up to NYC very cheaply and stay at youth hostels on Manhattan (within walking distance of Columbia U and Central Park) for just $30/night (shared room) with linen, towels, and breakfast provided. MFA students from other states take advantage of this and visit in groups. Why not USC?

As for news from this very different MFA planet, I’m in seventh heaven teaching here, and not only because I have Orhan Pamuk (whom I hope to bring to USC for Caught in the Creative Act), Oliver Sacks, Simon Schama, Richard Howard, Margo Jefferson, etc., etc., as colleagues, though that is obviously part of it.

My students also live and move and write in seventh heaven and in a fever of creative excitement.Columbia’s MFA is rigorous and competitive but students don’t just have publication as a goal – they take that for granted, since about half the graduating class has a book published or a publishing contract in hand by graduation – so they have their sights set on Pulitzers.

This program is huge, the largest in the country. It’s a 3-year degree, with 300 students enrolled at a given time. Each year, 100 are admitted (in fiction, poetry, nonfiction) with fiction by far the largest segment. But 600+ apply, so the 100 who get in are the cream of the cream…

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