Spring 2013 Newsletter #3

The Antler
March 12th, 2013
BIGS AND LITTLES REVEALED
Who’s YO Big/Little?
In this issue….
Check out this
week’s questions
and responses!
“Brownie Boasts!”
Musings from your
mascot!
Backpage
Crossword and
Scroll of Kindness!
Welcome to another issue of “The Antler”!
This week’s Q&A Themes:
Bigs and Littles united at last! Pledges, welcome to
your new families! And members welcome your
new additions!
Now, let’s jump together through our next hurdle:
Sectionals.
1. What would you do if you could plan an entire
excursion without any limits such as worries
about money, etc.?
2. What was your most memorable service
project?
1
Jenna Bottorff; Theme 1
Fall 2012- Maura Harty
Cassandra Thai; Theme 1
Spring 2013- Jordan Ondoy
If I were to plan an excursion anywhere I
wanted without any limits or money
troubles, I would definitely pick Hawaii.
We would leave around 10 a.m., and all fly
first class on Hawaiian airlines, where we
would each get to personally watch our
own movies, be served really good airplane
food, and get complimentary cocktails.
Some of us will get drunk on the airplane
just to enjoy the flight even more. Then, as
soon as we land around noon, we would get lei’d by handsome, muscular
beautiful guys and girls. We would have our personal drivers drive us to
our hotel and we would stay in Halekulani hotel in Waikiki, where they
have outdoor pools that ends with a clear wall underneath so it looks like
the pool ends in the air and you’re about to fall off. We would eat a bit of
the hotel food, then go to some white sand beach in Wakiki. After we tan
and swim in the water for hours, we would go get some shaved ice from
Waiola. They’ll give us any flavor combinations we want with unlimited
li hing mui powder. Then, we’ll go back to our hotels, shower and get
ready to go to a luau. But first, we would go shopping for nice clothes and
everything would be paid for us. Then, everyone would be dressed in his
or her nice outfits, and we would enjoy a beautiful night at the luau with
all the unlimited good food, especially pulled pork and poke. There will
also be hot ¾ naked guys performing for us, and some girls too. We
would be served all the free and unlimited shots, martinis, beer and
alcohol we want. Then, we would get drunk, have an amazing time, then
our personal drivers will have to drag us into the car and back to our
hotel. The next day, we will be personally served really good food in bed
as a hangover cure, and then head back to the beach for another fun day in
the sun. We would repeat this for the next 3 days, or maybe do some
different things like go to green sand beach or hike to a waterfall. After
the excursion is over, we would head back to sad, cold, San Francisco.
If I can plan any excursion without any
limits or money issues, I would plan for
all of the chapter to go to the
San Francisco zoo. I haven't been to
that zoo in a long time so I think that
would a fun place to go! Besides, we
would take muni to the zoo so
transportation and finding rides
wouldn't be an issue. I love animals so I
think the zoo would be a perfect place
for an excursion! I think it would a place people would enjoy to go.
We would see all the animals and see the wildlife shows. We would
split up into groups and explore different parts of the zoo and meet
back at the souvenir shop. Of course we all would have to buy a little
souvenir to remember the fun we all had at the zoo. Since the zoo
closes at 4, there would be time to do something else. We would all
take a trip to Berkeley to go to the famous CREAM! CREAM is so
good! They're ice cream sandwiches are amazing and get you full. If
anyone hasn't been to CREAM before, they will be in heaven when
they try it. After we eat our ice cream sandwiches, we would walk
around Berkeley and look around in the shops. When it gets dark, we
would go back to school to relax at someone's place and play some
games. Later after that, we would all go home from a long day of
having fun and adventure. I think the zoo and Berkeley would be fun
places to go to if money wasn't an issue because either they're places
people have never been to or places people haven't been to in a long
time. It'll be a fun bonding experiences to make us closer as a chapter
and it's places the chapter hasn't been to for excursions before. Those
would be my ideal places for excursions; seeing animals and eating! :)
2
Kingston Thai Ngo; Theme 1
Spring 2013- Jordan Ondoy
Stephanie Yu; Theme 1
Fall 2012- Maura Harty
What I would do if I could plan an
excursion without any limits is to have a
huge carnival in the afternoon through
night, by the beach. The weather is sunny,
warm, some clouds and the winds would
be soothing and calm. The excursion
would be blasting loud music and the
dance floor would be thundering so loud,
it could be felt miles away. There would
be a circus with all of its amenities, such
as brave men trying to tame aggressive
tigers, elephants balancing on balls, a Chinese lady that spins dishes at the
end of a stick while doing the Chinese yo-yo, monkeys dancing to a
music box, men swallowing swords and more. The carnival festivities
would also have a zoo of everyone’s favorite animal and would be
allowed to pet, touch, feed, or ride the animals. There would be a jet-ski
race, and we would scurry across the clean blue ocean water. The carnival
will have colorful paper lanterns that are laced across the sky. In the
distance, boats will ignite fireworks over the ocean, and all my pledge
brothers will awe at its beauty. The fireworks would consist of course the
average shapes, explosions of light and the ones that shriek into the night
sky. There will be bonfires to make smores and fire pits to barbeque all
the meat you want. The barbeque would have a huge roasted pig, columns
of steaks, giant trays of kebabs, dishes of beef/chicken/pork slices for
Korean barbeque, tri-tip steak, prime rib, rack of lamb and fried fish. On
the side there would be bathtubs full of all the fruit you can have. There
would be fresh pineapples to pluck from trees, watermelon wedges, and
tangy oranges. If people wanted to relax and settle down, there would be
a massage parlor, where everyone can distress or there would be soda
fountain where pledges can get milkshakes, ice-cream sundaes, and floats.
I think an awesome excursion would
be to go to the Wizarding World of
Harry Potter in Universal Studios in
Orlando. It would take something like
5 hours just to get there and another 5
hours to get back, but it would totally
be worth it because Harry Potter and
everyone loves Harry Potter!
However, that just means there is
more time to bond! There’s the rest of the park if they don’t like Harry
Potter, so there’s something for people who have different tastes, but it
pales in comparison to the section that is Harry Potter. We can spend a
whole day together at a theme park and take over all the seats on the
plane, just like how we take over all the other places we go to because
there’s so many of us. I’ve been there once and would really love to go
back! Going with my friends would be even better! It would be like a
Disneyland Gradnite that I didn’t go to, but EVEN BETTER. When I
went to Orlando, it was the first big trip I saved up for since getting my
first job, so I was really happy when I saved up enough to go. My
favorite ride was The Forbidden Journey. We can drink butter beer and
eat food at the Three Broomsticks. If there were no monetary
concerns, we should rent out the entire park just for us, as well. No
lines! While we’re already in Florida, might as well go to Disneyworld
and the beach in Miami because I like beaches. My only wish was that
Harry Potter was a separate theme park from Universal Studios, so
there could be more rides and things to do that relate to HP. I want
there to be more rides. I would spend so much money on all the things,
though, but it would be worth it.
3
Emilber Alexander DeLeon; Theme 1
Fall 2012- Maura Harty
Giee Lapid; Theme 1
Spring 2012- Melissa Dagdagan
Hey Mu Zeta! It’s Giee writing to you and if
I given the option to plan an excursion
anywhere in this world and without no
limits, I would have to say we would all go
to DISNEYLAND! I love Disneyland there
is so much going on there and that there is
so much to do that you will never run out of
ideas to have tons of fun. This excursion
would have to be a two-day excursion
experience because we all have to go to
both parks, Disneyland and California adventures, and look for clues
within the different sections of the parks of Disneyland to reveal the
bigger picture of the excursion. Thus, pledges would be in groups to
search for the hidden message I would give at the end of excursion. I
will allow for brothers to come and join the excursion for more
bonding. The water show, World of Color is played at California
adventures, which is played every night, shows the meaning of what
life is all about such as trial and errors, happy and sad moments, and
the challenges of life through the Disney characters that are played in
the movies. Then the groups of brothers and pledges will come
together to bond and share what they have thought the main message
of the trip would be. The ending message or the take home note would
be that no matter how old you are, we are all kids at heart. That
throughout the excursion along with trying to find the clues throughout
the park, you will forget to be an adult and to just have tons of fun
enjoying other brothers and pledges and of course Disneyland.
If I could plan an entire excursion without a
care about money issues I think I would do
an excursion to do a joyride all the way to
Los Angeles with a big group of us just for
the weekend. We would all leave late at
night on Thursday, then we would drive all
the way together in a caravan of cars just
like what we did when we went to Fall
Fellowship last semester at Kappa Sigma.
On Friday we would all check into this fancy hotel and everyone’s
[direct] line would share a room with each other. The first thing on our
agenda we would all go to Santa Monica and we would do an ice
breaker with one another and then we would all split up with our lines
and do whatever we wanted to do. For example, go shopping at Santa
Monica Row, Explore Hollywood, relax at the beach cause for some of
the people who drove must be tired from driving or even just visit
some of our families cause some us are from Los Angeles. Later we
would all meet up together again and have one big dinner with the
entire chapter. On Saturday, we would all go to Disneyland and since
there’s no limit to how much we would spend, we would reserve the
entire park so it would only be APhiO in the park. There wouldn’t be
any ridiculous long lines for us to wait in and also we would get food
passes for any food we wanted to eat, because Disneyland food is
freaking expensive! We would be able to get into Club 33, which is
known, for being super exclusive to the people who go in. At the end
of the night we would all watch Fantasmic and the fireworks. On
Sunday we would have the entire day spent at Disney California
Adventure. Just like at Disneyland we would have the park all to
ourselves. By the end of the night we would all watch the World of
Color! The next day we would all go back home after an exhausting
weekend.
4
Sheryne Oskoui; Theme 1
Spring 2013- Jordan Ondoy
Sylvia Banouvong; Theme 1
Spring 2012- Melissa Dagdagan
Hello everyone! Here’s a little introduction
of myself. My name is Sylvia Banouvong, I
am a senior and definitely nowhere near to
graduating yet  And I pledged during
Spring 2012 with the Melissa Dagdagan
class!! Yay!!! Okay, back to the topic. I
really love traveling so for my excursion, I
would get a private jet to take me anywhere I
want to go to. It didn’t say anything about
how long the excursion can be, right? Okay
then  So the first place we would stop at would be at Yasawa Island, Fiji,
because the water is as blue as the sky and we get to lay out on the beautiful
white beaches. Oh gosh, I sound like a tourist guide. Lol. Next, we would
probably go have a food tour of Europe and be like the show The Layover. I
love Anthony Bourdain!! Hahaha. Just saying. Since we’ll be dying of food
comas, we can rest on the jet while we head over to South Korea and meet
the Korean singers, of course. Be a typical Asian day. And boat over to Jeju
Island and relax there for a day or two. Japan is the definite spot for sushi.
Mmhmm. And I’m pretty sure I’d want to go race some cars, so we will have
a Tokyo Drift kind of thing. Then we would go back towards Italy and
definitely go do wine tasting and go grape smashing later in the day. After,
we can walk along the Tuscany roads and just take in all the beauty of the
culture there. I would want to go back to the states and be at Area 51, just
because I want to see what they’re really doing there. E.T Phone home,
probably. Road tripping will be a long time, so we’re going to have a tour
bus and drive all over the state. The one thing I want to do most, with
everyone, is skydive over Guam and look at the island from a bird’s eye
view. To end the whole trip, we can dock somewhere at the South Pacific
and watch the sunset/sunrise while we stay there. This would be my type of
excursion, just because I love traveling and doing adventurous things. OH! I
just wanted to say happy belated to my Biggggie Millie! That is all 
Hey Mu Zeta, I am Sheryne Oskoui and I
am currently in the pledging process of
being a member in Alpha Phi Omega. If I
could plan an excursion without any limits I
would plan a trip to Los Angeles. Los
Angeles has so much to offer and there is
so much to do. This excursion would have
to be a five day excursion. The first three
days would consist of going to Disneyland
as well as California Adventure. There would be a scavenger hunt between
the pledges and the three different families throughout both parks. No matter
what, we would all watch the World of Color together and ride California
Screamin’ until we barf! Just kidding, kind of. For dinner we would eat the
huge hot link corn dogs and turkey legs. On the last day, we would all mob to
Guppies and order their mountain of shaved ice. On the fourth day in Los
Angeles we would walk all get together and walk the trail to the Hollywood
sign and take a Mu Zeta group picture at the very top. After the walk down,
we would make a stop at Roscoes House of Chicken & Waffles. That same
night all of Alpha Phi Omega would attend the Laker game and all sit in the
sideline club. At the game we would all be wearing purple and gold and be
the loudest ones there. To give you a better picture, our whole group would
make it on the jumbotron and be on national television because the game will
be on ESPN that night. The last and final day we would get up bright and
early and drive to Pismo Beach. Even though the whole trip will be beautiful
and sunny the last day will be the hottest day which means it will be the
perfect day to go to the beach, go for a bike ride, wade in the water, and get
henna tattoos. One thing that is always a great thing to watch is the many
street performers and the infamous Pismo Beach basketball courts. To end
the excursion we would all eat dinner together at C&O’s and scarf down the
garlic balls. Overall this will be a fun filled excursion which will involve
adventurous activities and creating that bond with all the other brothers while
getting the perfect tan.
5
Emmy Luu; Theme 2
Fall 2012- Maura Harty
Jonathon Pak; Theme 2
Fall 2011- Charles P. Zlatkovich
My most memorable service project
would have to be, “SF Food Bank.” I
really like helping others especially those
that are lacking funds, shelters, or jobs in
order to eat anything. I really care for
those that lack food because I know it
must be really tough to survive without
food to sustain your body. I have gone
through a day without food and all
because of a busy schedule and it is really
tough sometimes as your body does not have the proper nutrition to
function at optimum level throughout the day and your energy starts to
deplete. During this service project, I packaged a lot of food such as
pasta and rice. I really felt like this was more than a service project to me
as I was touching lives while doing it. The whole event felt more like a
place where I can show my compassion, enthusiasm, and ingenuity to
really get out there in our community and to help others strive and never
give up, to keep fighting the good fight! The whole aspect of just being
there made me feel good and that I was doing great to people that really
needed food. I know there are a lot of starving children and adults out
there and the event makes me more grateful for food and blessed to even
have dinner on my plate. Events like these truly shape you as a person
and it did for me. I really did not expect what I experienced and I truly
believe it was life changing! This was by far a memorable experience that
I am grateful I got to take part of. I love giving back, especially those that
need it the most. This event really humbled me and helped me focus on
changing the world, being all I can be, and doing everything with a
passion and a focus. The project felt life changing and just every smile
when serving food and all really made me appreciate life more and how I
am thankful for the simple things in life. I think that the lack of food is
really important to address in our society. As a person that loves food
and cooking, I really got to experience and witness how precious food can
be to others. The project helped me do everything more with a passion
and for something bigger than myself. I know I made a difference and I
cannot wait to continue on aiding a hand in many future projects like this
one. If I could do it all over again the next day, I would not hesitate to
sign up. The service project was a great experience!
WASSUP MU ZETAAAA! Jpak here to
tell you which service project was the
hottest. I think that my favorite service
project was actually something I just came
back from! It was the Escape from
Alcatraz Triathlon. People that were
participating in the race were so beast…
They had to first swim one and a half
miles, and then bike 18 miles, and finally
run 8 miles. I would NEVER be able to do
that in my life. At first I was thinking of just not going to the service
project because when I woke up at 5AM, I was so tired I did not want
to get out of my bed! But I had to push through and actually go. When
we arrived, it was freezing! And it stayed that way all the way until the
end. It was so cold that some of the swimmers got hypothermia
because of the cold water they had to swim in. I thought it was my
favorite service project because I got to really see how badly some
people want something. They paid $400 to just be in the race and went
through pain and suffering to feel the immense joy from crossing that
finish line. I was glad I was able to experience that. On top of being
able to do service, we got free stuff! We got t-shirts, muscle milk, and
stuff that bikers just handed to us! The next best part was the bus ride.
Chena fell asleep in such a way that I would never be able to! It was
like a sitting down fetal position type thing. The event was not dry and
it radiated a lot of good vibes. Volunteering with some of my favorite
people and getting “thank you’s” from the athletes just made the whole
thing one of the best experience ever! :D
6
Kevin Gelasio; Theme 2
Spring 2013- Jordan Ondoy
Isabella Thompson; Theme 2
Spring 2012- Melissa Dagdagan
My most memorable and most valuable
service I had done for the community
was my senior project at el Camino
High. Since I was interested in making
something lasting, I looked for things
that needed change in the school
system. Through my observations I
realized that although there was
protocol for dealing with emergencies
was adequate, the teachers would be
overwhelmed by the sheer amount of
students. Luckily, I was introduced to the S.S.F fire chief through Key
Club and he told me about the Community Emergency Response
Team, or C.E.R.T program. I researched the program, and decided to
get mentored in order to create a teen C.E.R.T program at my school to
help out the staff. I was taught rescue techniques for various
emergency situations, such as dealing with earthquakes and fires. I
also took classes to get my A.E.D and C.P.R certification.
Additionally, I also learned how to use the emergency radio system to
communicate with other regions when the radio towers are down. All
throughout my training I slowly created the foundation to build and
implement Teen C.E.R.T . I arranged meetings with the school
principal and school board to try to integrate Teen C.E.R.T into the
school system. I also trained several underclassmen in order to
continue on the legacy. I’m glad that I was able to make a lasting
impact in my school and I hope to do the same in my future endeavors.
Hello, Hello Mu Zeta! Isabella here! I
pledged Spring 2012 Melissa Dagdagan,
exactly a year ago. [GAH. I’m getting so
old D:] Although I am one half of the
Finance VPs, I love doing service projects.
As a result, so many projects are
memorable to me; however one does stand
out in my mind. My favorite project has to
be Goblin Jamboree. This project is held in
the fall around Halloween time. As a volunteer, I dressed up as a witch
and became a teacher at Wizards School, making my life-long dream
come true. (RAVEN CLAWS ANYONE?!) Anyways, I love this project
because helping adorable kids with a “magical” science project is always
fun. But this isn’t the only reason why this project was one of the most
memorable. Not only was the project itself fun, but the adventure it took
to get there was fun as well—at least for me. :p Well, one of the drivers
for the project was Nate Dizon, who’s car I happened to be in.
Unfortunately for Nate and everyone else in his car, I had no idea where
we were going; and neither did they. Because I didn’t know where we
were going, and I’m terrible with directions, I turned on my iPhone’s GPS
before we headed out. What’s even more unfortunate is that Ricki
Hererra, who had a few of his MHarty pledge kids in his car, followed
closely behind us because he didn’t know where he was going either.
Long story short, because of me, we ended up missing only a few exits
and took the most gorgeous scenic route you could ever take on your way
to the Discovery Museum where the project was held. (Word to the wise:
Do not let me navigate your car, or you anywhere. We WILL get lost.)
But in my defense, we still arrived early and had more than enough time
to chill before we actual met with the volunteer coordinators.  Oh, and
did I mention that I’m terrible with directions?
7
Alyssa Madrid; Theme 1
Fall 2012- Maura Harty
Brownie Boasts!
If I were to plan an excursion without
any limit, I would fit everyone on the
magic school bus and go anywhere in the
world! Not only would we be able to go
anywhere in the world, but we can go
into outer space or shrink in to the size of
molecules and see what we are all made
of. There would be no limit where and
what we can do. It is only our imaginations that would limit us, well
that and if we have homework or an exam the following day.
Hello again, Mu Zeta. Have you grown since the last time I
saw you? You seem to have packed a few new pledges into your lines
over the weekend. I guess that means Revealing was a success!
Corny intros aside, it’s great to see all of you pledges finally
getting sorted into families and lines and all that good stuff. It’s also
great to see members being so receptive toward all the new additions.
Excellent work upholding the friendship. But of course, we all know
the main event of Revealing is indeed the revealing of bigs and littles,
and on that note I would like to extend my full congratulations to all
the proud new bigs as well as their littles. I’d also like to give a
special thank you to the Pledgemasters for putting it all together.
Awesome work, you two!
How we would begin, is first go to the normal hot spots in the
world: have breakfast in Paris, lunch in Japan, and Dinner in Italy. If
money was really not an option we would have our meals made by the
best chefs in the world. We would be living the life. In between we
would check out the sites in Rome and surf the waves of Hawaii. It
would be a full day of just relaxing and bonding with all our pledge
brothers. If the normal things are not exciting enough, we can blast off
into the skies and explore outer space. We can take our magic school
bus and visit the once planet Pluto and watch the comets as they pass
by. Everything is within our grasps. Too bad that it would only be for
the day. Anything can happen in this excursion. Of course the most
important part of excursion is the bonding and the memories we would
have with one another. I think being in space with your fellow brothers
is one experience that cannot be done with anyone else.
So, while we’re all still reminiscing about Revealing, I’d like to
take a moment to talk about bigs and littles. I’m sure I don’t need to
tell you how important this relationship is. As a pledge, your big is
your best friend. They make sure you’re meeting people, they make
sure you’re active in the chapter, and of course, they make sure you’re
cracking down on those requirements. Summarized like that, it sounds
like a pretty simple thing, but in reality, it is so much more. There’s a
lot of discussion on what specifically the role of a big is, but to me, if a
big is anything at all, a big is guidance.
A big is here not just to be your friend, but to be an example.
A big is here not just to help you study, but to educate you. A big is
here not just to help you cross, but to show you why you want to be a
member and why that means something. I would elaborate more, but I
want those of you reading to think about this, whether you’re a veteran
big of over two semesters or a pledge. I hope you see what I’m getting
at.
See you next week,
Brownie V.
8
9
By declaration of their peers within Mu Zeta, this issue’s
Scroll of Kindness
is hereby dedicated to the following recipients:
Anne Nguyen,
for driving up from San Jose to drive a car full of members to San
Jose to go to an IC even and back, so we all got our requirement
done! – Jamie Huang
Ryan Luh and the TPumps Gang (you know who you are),
for ordering our stuff while you were ahead in line so we didn’t have
to wait! And Ryan even paid- what a gentleman – Jason and the
True Superheroes
Ryan Luh,
for buying me water when I was dying of thirst – Chena Ngu
Jason Beresini,
for being an amazing Co and Twin – Chena Ngu
This Newsletter, “The Antler,”
on the date of March 5, 2013,
formally recognizes these recipients as distinguished
individuals, and models of
Leadership, Friendship, and Service.
APO
Congratulations!