HOW TO MAKE ANY MEAL USING ONLY POTATOES
TIPS FOR SAVING EVERY PENNY!
PLASTIC VIOLINS REVIEWED
PENGUIN SPOTLIGHT: LUMPY THE PENGUIN
THE SLPC WE’LL NEVER SEE
THE PENGUIN
ISSUE 66B
APRIL 1, 2015
N E C ’ S S T U D E N T- R U I N E D N E W S PA P E R
WWW.NECPENGUIN.COM
Grey Is The New Black!
MEET LUMPY – THE NEW PENGUIN NEWSPAPER MASCOT AND LOGO!
We’re so excited! NEC’s new building, the SLPC (does anyone know what it REALLY stands for?) will have it’s groundbreaking in just over a month, on May 5th. As construction of brand new, state of the art buildings is expensive, NEC is siphoning money from various sources to covers the costs. Here at The Penguin, this means we can no longer afford to print full-sized, color issues in more than four pages – so meet the new economysized issue! In addition, we’ve redesigned our
logo to more accurately portray our mental and physical state here in the newsroom. We’ve done our best to stay upbeat through this trying period, but we may need your help. If you haven’t liked us on Facebook yet, please go ahead an do so. Those sweet, sweet likes are like candy for us. You can find us at facebook.com/penguinnewspaper, and while you’re there skip over to twitter.com/ thepenguinnec and follow us there, too! Normal penguins don’t tweet, but we sure do.
Construction 2015: A Closer Look COOL FEATURES OF THE NEW BUILDING
by NICK TISHERMAN Third-Year BM Oboe
The wait is finally over – construction on the new Student Life and Performance Center is about to commence this April. While we’ll miss all the great memories from the St. Botolph parking lot (‘welcome back’ barbecues in the fall, SAC-sponsored carnivals in the spring, writing messages in an empty parking lot blanketed in snow for the whole ResHall to see in the winter), we sure are excited to see the results of years of planning and development. We all know that the new building will feature a black box theater seating 210 people which will connect to the opera department’s little corner of the current St. Botolph building, as well as the “theater commons” (a space to serve as the lobby area outside of the new theater), a small ensemble room (doubles for a recital hall), large ensemble room (the new home of the Philharmonia, perhaps), and a new library. Everyone has heard that the building will have a dining hall (Bistro 34?), residences for students, and a sweet student common area. However, we at The Penguin have been looking over the blueprints, and would like to share with you some of the cool features in the design of the building the NEC website won’t tell you about: An entire room dedicated to wax sculptures of NEC’s past and president directors and presidents, from Eben Tourjeé to George W. Chadwick, Gunther, Tony, and beyond. A passageway connecting the Jordan Hall basement to the new dining hall, so no one practicing in the basement will ever have to go outside. A practice room hidden under the common area that, prior to the printing of this article, would have always been unoccupied. A statue of Beethoven identical to the one in Jordan Hall in every detail … except it’s a hologram. A trap door leading from the large ensemble rehearsal space to the stage of the new theater connected by a slide. A rooftop Jacuzzi and mini-golf bar for post-concert celebrations, or just a nice break in-between classes. Any way you look at the sketches, the new SLPC will be an exciting and welcome addition on the block, improve on-campus student life, and help the school retain its edge with its performance and rehearsal spaces. We will be counting down the days until it opens for business in the far-off year of 2017. 2
APRIL 1, 2015
One Too Many Snoozes AN ODE TO CLOSE CALLS
It happens at least once a semester for me, usually towards the end of it. You have a busy weekend filled with assignments, over-practice, and perhaps a little too much Netflix, and subsequently your Sunday night bedtime leaves a little to be desired. You remember to set an alarm for that 9am rehearsal you have in Jordan Hall tomorrow morning, but maybe you’re just a little too optimistic about the timing. “Let’s see, it’s 3:12am now. If I set my alarm for 7:42am that means I’ll get at least four and a half hours sleep before orchestra tomorrow ... More than anyone needs!” you think to yourself. Wrong. So wrong I can’t even. (Yes, I went there!) 7:42am comes and goes that morning. Maybe the alarm actually wakes up you, if you’re lucky. Or maybe the dreaded nine minute snooze-loop has ensared you! 7:51am ... snooze 8:00am ... snooze again. You’ve got loads of time. 8:09am ... “Ok, I’ll get up after the next alarm. Still plenty of time for me to be warmed up and in my seat by 9am.” Scientists can’t quite explain the phenomenom, but all we know is that the lost minutes of frankly purely blissful sleep between that final snooze and what happens next seem to act mysteriously like black holes – it’s only possible to observe
by ANDREW NISSEN Second-Year GD Trombone them by observing the things around them, but not the minutes themselves. All that sleep is lost, like tears in rain. “Hrrng. That dream was great. Let me look at the time ...... 8:51am. Hmm. That’s odd. What do I have to do at ... uhh, orchestra! In nine minutes! NINE MINUTES! It takes me nine minutes just to condition my hair in the shower the first of three times.” Jump into action. PJs off. Socks and underwear on. Going well so far! Clean shirt? No. Use the one you wore three days ago: no one will remember. Pants on – no hope for a belt. No time to brush teeth. Will have to mask the smell with mints. “Can I get a coffee?” – the sign of a true optimist. Somehow you make it out the door within three minutes of waking up. Now, to get to school. If you’re lucky, you live in the res hall or close by. If you’re unfortunate, it’s Uber or Lyft for you. Whatever the case, those next few minutes on your way to school are crucial! By a miracle you make it. Somehow the Jordan Hall building elevator works first time, and you get your instrument out of your locker and into your seat by 9:02am. Don’t ask me how, but you’ve dodged a bullet this time! It’s a cathartic experience. It’s freeing. You vow never, ever to do that again. Until next semester, at least ... WWW.NECPENGUIN.COM
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penguin PHOTOS In keeping with our new mandate to pinch every penny, we’ve had to scrap our usual back page color photo feature. Instead, please enjoy these selections of our favorite shades of grey below!
Dark Grey
Light Grey
Grey Grey
Misty Grey
Haughty Grey
Blue Grey
Penguin Grey
MacBook Grey
White Grey