“”And even if he’s a lazy man, and Dude was most certainly that: Quite possibly the laziest in all of Los Angeles County, which would place him high in the running for laziest worldwide.””

— Sam Elliot as Stranger, “”The Big Lebowski””

If you break down the word “”freshman”” into its very components, you’d be able to summarize my feelings as to what a high school graduate experiences when initially stepping on to a college campus for the first time.

“”Fresh,”” as in the wide-eyed first year is “”fresh meat”” for the intimidating world of all-night studying, cooler-than-thou frat bros and looming career prospects to pounce all over. I was fresh off the farm where I lived off the fat of the land of my parents’ generosity and my cushy paycheck, an equation that practically spelled out how I was going to spend my college career.

Sure, Dude was lazy, but in the context of a campus ridden with O-chem and straight-A students, I am pretty certain that I was one of the laziest people on the face of the earth during my freshman year. I wholeheartedly embraced the idea of an unsupervised life where I could play wiffle ball instead of going to class or partake in Century Club activities in my living room without the threat of any real consequences if I were to be caught — all while “”preparing”” for the real world by being enrolled at this acclaimed university.

Too me, I was the laziest guy at UCSD. Even nihilism was too exhausting for me, and changing these ways was not a priority.

It seems as if there should appear somewhere in this soapbox that there was some sort of distinct moment where a light bulb was switched on in my head, as I reconciled my laziness only to immediately dawn on me that I should become the editor in chief of the most regularly produced student newspaper on campus. Well, I wouldn’t necessarily define it as a moment, but perhaps as a process that started immediately after the 9/11 attacks. I made a point of learning as much as I could about American and world politics following the attacks and the only real source I could find to answer a lot of my questions was the newspaper.

I really began to admire the newspaper for what it is: a snapshot of history. You could go into the microfiche library at Geisel and pick up the reel containing the June 6, 1934 issue of the New York Times and more or less learn about the important issues, culture and political sentiments affecting people on that particular day. To me, history is made every single day. Its coverage in the media validates its importance to the average person. Hell, even the Dude learns about the world around him every now and then by what he reads in the paper or watches on the news.

So, I tried my hand as a news writer at The Guardian. My curiosity as to how issues and events at UCSD were covered was piqued, and I could spare a few hours from my rigorous schedule of darts, beer and bass playing to learn a little more about a field I found interesting. After a quarter, I became the associate news editor, and from there on, I became engulfed in the news-making process. I loved it and still do.

This past year, I served as news editor. I tried hard to produce a news section that was representative of what was newsworthy to the UCSD community, and I like to think that I succeeded.

In the coming year, I will be charged with not only providing a snapshot to the readers of what is happening on the news front of the UCSD campus, but to ensure that each section is doing its best to cover, issue by issue, the contemporary discussion of politics, college-student life and culture and, of course, the events and issues that shape the campus.

I’ve learned from only the best: Josh, Lauren, Charlie, Carrie, Jeff, Alison, Geoff and Vince — I have learned so much from all of you about the ins and outs of the journalism world. Thank you for the guidance and education you have bestowed upon me. I am confident that I am more than capable to carry the torch and produce a publication with the quality that you have put so many hours into yourselves.

To the new staff: next year is going to be awesome. I hope you make the most out of the coming year. I know I will.

To the reading public: We will be putting out a paper next year that is intended to serve your interests. Let us know what you think of our fine publication. Please feel free to comment by contacting me at [email protected] or by writing a publishable letter to the editor at [email protected]. I am welcome to suggestions and criticisms.

The Dude abides.