Today is officially the first day of Caltech's Prefrosh Weekend 2002. I'm not kidding when people act funny. When the prefrosh began trickling in this morning, there was a noticeable lift in the "happiness factor". No, people did not suddenly start gushing about how Tech is so great, but everyone's attitude was a little more upbeat.
"I haven't heard anything good about this place!" exclaimed a prefrosh in exasperation. His brother is currently a junior here. No wonder he hasn't heard anything good.
"Yeah, most people aren't too positive," agreed an upperclassman. "But you can find a small number of people here who do like this place a whole lot."
Of course, the situation is perpetuated by the fact that a significant percentage of Techers are wearing the Crippling Depression Prefrosh Weekend T-shirt that says, "You're Doomed!" That'll scare away prospective students. All the nay-saying might backfire, though. Reverse psychology. They'll come despite what's being said.
Admissions, apparently, has also tried to counter the typical Techer's negative attitude by accepting more applicants this year than last year. That's because they had to dip into the waiting list last year. They didn't want to do it again.
I don't think I really care too much about the hoopla anymore. I'll answer questions and maybe say a little about my experience here, but that's it. I'm not going to try to influence anyone to come here or not. I'm assuming that they're going to be smart enough to decide for themselves.
Only one piece of advice though: If you're willing to get up even after getting kicked in the ass repeatedly for four years, this might be the place for you.
Some links: The Attractive Person. If you can't tell already, I like reading retellings of fairy tales. This one is based on Goldilocks and the Three Bears--with a different message. I sympathize with the "bears" in this story. If an attractive person ever took notice of me, I'd run screaming to the hills. Attractive people are scary. Rasputin. My friends recommended this song. Now I'm shamelessly listening to it over and over again. I must try to divert myself soon or I'll start singing the lyrics aloud.
