Co-Feature Editor | Spring 2016; Copy Chief | Fall 2016 and Spring 2018; Editorial Editor | Fall 2017

Deciding what campus publication to get involved with was never a hard choice for me. Actually getting hired at The D.O.? That was a bit harder.

I made three failed attempts at working in house, which left me bitter and ready to give up on The D.O. for about a minute. And then, magically, I was shoved into a head editor position with a stranger-turned-best-friend named Rachel.

Flash forward through many Slack reacts, tears, memes, photo requests, AP Style mistakes, Annie Palmers, edit boards, last-minute FOB pieces, clingy columnists and attempts at moving the rock, and it feels like I’ve been here a lot longer than three semesters.

Oh wait, it was. Thank you for making me come back, though no one had to ask twice.

Annie: That first read we did together gave me enough confidence to last another six semesters. Thank you.

Clare: Our musical singalongs kept me sane during In the Paint productions. Also, Rachel and I thought about not hiring you.

Mara: You terrified me for the first half of the semester — and then I figured this whole D.O. thing out. Thank you for pushing me and Pulp to be our best.

Justin: Your compliments were hard to come by, but getting one meant the world to me. Even to this day, your ambition never fails to encourage me to work harder.

Alex E.: There was nothing better than finding out you thought I was funny, instead of just incredibly weird. 

Archie: I’ve blocked out all the passive aggression from our semester and simply remember what an incredible person you are.

Lizzie: I’m so glad you came back to The D.O. and found where you could really thrive — and earned your name on the wall.

Satoshi: I know you don’t believe it, but you love journalism more than anyone, and it’ll take you far.

Jacob: Thank you for bringing me into this institution, and for trusting me and Rachel to carry on the Pulp legacy you established.

Stacy: I missed your sunshine-y everything this semester. You are so passionately, wonderfully you, and it’s always been an inspiration.

Haley & Taylor: Shoutout to somehow balancing the most healthy lifestyles and amazing style with being some of the most talented journalists I’ve ever seen.

Graham & Schafer: Thank you for making Sports such a lovely place to hang out and for being such wonderfully talented people.

 

Ally: Thank you for your random compliments and big smiles. They brightened even the darkest of productions.

Colleen: I sometimes treat Pulp like my baby, and under you, it was in such good hands. Thanks for the long Slack rants and quickly becoming so dedicated to this weird institution.

Brigid: Our weekend in NYC will live on in my memories. You’re hilarious, beautiful, kind and oh-so-talented. Never change.

Delaney: My hometown girl and the only person with as much Buffalove as me. Keep being a reporting badass — you’ll go far.

Emma: With your incredible style, sass and design talent, you’re the closest thing I’ve found to a perfect person.

Andy: You’re bound to become a legend both at The D.O. and in the world. Keep being an absolute savage and an incredible designer/social media rockstar.

Tomer: Our dance parties were the only reason I survived In the Paint productions. Your self-deprecation gives me life, but I hope you know that none of it is true.

Burke: Concept: An editorial board series on your top four conspiracy theories. Let’s go.

Caroline Colvin: Thanks for being a surrogate Pulper so we could discuss podcasts and jam to emo throwbacks. Keep being the outspoken journalist you are.

Sam Fortier: I’ll miss yelling at/with you every time you walked in the house. The only reason I do it is because you’re so talented, and you need someone to criticize your every move so you don’t get too cocky.

Kennedy: Thank you for being the brightest ray of sunshine in the newsroom and the world.

Sam Ogozalek: If I had any doubts about you leading this paper (I really didn’t), they were smashed to pieces after this wild end of the semester. You have that rare talent of being calm and calculated in the face of anything, paired with an unmatched talent for journalism as a whole.

Jordan: You’re already a meme legend and a reporting powerhouse at The D.O. Keep your wonderfully dry sense of humor (that’s a compliment) as you continue to dominate the journalism world.

Ali: You’re the dankest person I know, and I loved watching you become a true leader at this paper and in life. Thanks for laughing at everything I say even when it was way too weird to be funny.

Allison: I wish I had half the sense of humor you do when I was a freshman, or even now. Your taste in men and fictional characters is questionable, but you own it.

Kelsey: Sometimes you can just tell a person is going to be awesome before you meet them. And when I did, you were even more amazing than I expected. I always knew the Op porch was waiting when I needed a good rant or to laugh long enough to waste an hour of production. I can’t wait to read your writing again in Pulp and for many years to come.

Aishwarya: I’m so glad you landed in Op and are coming back to the job you were definitely destined for. Thank you for laying down the law with some strongly worded emails, for ranting about every writer and for keeping Op popping beyond my time here.

Lucy: I’m so glad I got to spend much more time with you this year. You’re a true meme queen and far too modest for your incredible design talent.

Rachel S.: I didn’t know anyone when I started working at The D.O., except for you. Thank you for making me feel welcome and for being my go-to girl whenever I needed to go off on anyone or anything.

Alexa T.: You were wearing this awesome dark lipstick when I first met you, and I knew you were a badass. We’ve shared some amazing memes, uncontrollable laughter and a love of Elton John and Michael Bublé Christmas songs.

I loved when someone was stupid and we flashed each other an exasperated look — yours with that wonderfully sassy eyebrow, which you should embrace.

You’re fearless and unflappable in every situation, yet unbelievably kind to those who need it — speaking as someone who has needed it many, many times. I’ll never understand how you do it, but I know that it’ll take you far.

Alexa D.: You are a beautiful human being, inside and out. Thank you for creating an Opinion section with high standards, and thank you for all your help as I tried to live up to your legacy.

You probably don’t remember it, but you saying I had the most unique personality of anyone you’d met was the best compliment I’ve ever received. Your unprompted doses of encouragement have such a big impact on everyone you share them with. You deserve so, so many more of them yourself.

Sara: Thank you for living with me so I could get to know you even better. You’re so incredibly caring and never failed to make me feel better when I needed it. And somehow you’ve found the perfect balance of hardworking, talented, humble and sassy. I love it all.

I’ll never forget singing on our delirious late-night walks home. I live for your laugh whenever I say something downright stupid. And I’m thankful that we’re always ready with Slack DMs whenever someone needs to be dragged.

Rachel: When I actually met you in NEW 305, I thought there was no way you’d be my friend. You quit the riding team after a split second, and I thought you were way too good for me. But then I was told we’d work together, you made me squash soup, and my life immediately got a million times better.

Somehow, we became closer after that semester. Best friendship creeped up on us as you led Pulp and I tried to keep my thoughts to myself. I left you for a while, you left me for a while, we went through some bullsh*t, absence makes the heart grow fonder, blah blah blah.

Anyhow, thank you for coming back to the U.S., if only for a little bit. I truly miss you every day, and I can’t wait until you’re back here for good.

Mom & Dad: Thank you for donating more to this paper than I’ve made working at it. Thank you for making it possible for me to be here at all. Thank you for being the human forms of stability and unconditional love. Thank you for everything.

This is too long. It needs some in-text graphics.

Published on May 1, 2018 at 2:39 am

Contact Kathryn: kjkrawcz@syr.edu | @kathrynkrawczyk