Imagine our joy when, this morning, an "important update" dropped into our inbox from the Interfraternity Council: Greek membership has exploded from 550 in 2006 to an astonishing 823 today! That's over 50 percent growth in two years, to just about 10 percent of Barnard, the College and SEAS. There are comfortably over twice as many brothers as sisters, not counting members of the Multicultural Greek Council, which is composed of frats and sororities that carry an ethnic identity.

Curious to see who had cleaned up in fall rush, Bwog asked Interfraternity Council president Matt Heiman for the frat-by-frat membership breakdown, but was informed that the information was "not public." Heiman said that we "could try contacting the fraternities individually to get this information, but I think it will be difficult."

Heiman attributed the increase in membership to "strong leadership of fraternity and sorority presidents" as well as a more collective approach in increasing the Greek community's presence and involvement on campus. His own organization, the IFC, was only formed last year as a parallel to the girls-only Panhellenic Council (plus there's the overarching InterGreek Council...we know, it's confusing).

Bwog Editor Juli Weiner spent the night in the land of Brobdingnag. Names and details have been omitted to protect the innocent.

Last night, twenty of the largest people Bwog has ever seen stood assembled in suits outside Butler. Passersby stopped to stare at the group, as it is not often persons of this width or height are seen in one place, outside the context of athletics that is. The boys were instructed to yell that they were pledging the "best frat," PKA. But they weren't pledging PKA, this was a Test of Their Commitment.

Next, a similarly large person instructed the group that they then must collectively ask five girls for their phone numbers. It was at that moment that twenty of these man-giants looked upon your Bwog editor, who was the closest girl at the moment. We politely declined, and the group headed toward Lerner, toward the womenfolk.

Well, they moved quickly this time. As we wrote about before, the announcement of a joint appearance by Obama and McCain on campus next Thursday took student government and group leaders completely by surprise.

Just before midnight, though, the presidents of the student councils, club governing boards, and Panhellenic councils have sent an email to President Lee Bollinger, as well as fellow administrators interim Dean of Student Affairs Kevin Shollenberger, Executive Vice President for Student Services Jeffrey Scott, and Housing & Dining Vice President Scott Wright.

The email asks for two accomodations: "a fair share of the tickets made available are apportioned to undergraduates" and "arrangements, similar to those made for the Ahmadinejad visit, should be made for all students, including but not limited to the installation of a large screen on South Lawn." In other words, "make sure everyone gets an equal chance at tickets, and give us another jumbotron." The full letter will be printed in Thursday's Spectator, but you can save yourself from waiting outside a residence hall until noon and just read it below the fold.

Super Tuesday, almost as good as the Superbowl! Even better if you watch at 1020.

Super Tuesday, almost as cool as Wolf Blitzer's beard!

What more can you ask from the frats? More Nikolai and cheap beer please.

RA's, Chateau D'If style.

C'mon, who hangs their milk in a plastic bag outside of their window?

A Bwog tipster recently brought to our attention that the Alpha Delta Phi pirate flag has been missing from the 114th Street brownstone for awhile now. What happened? "It was apparently stolen by MIT's chapter of the frat last week," so says our tipster (although this has not been confirmed by ADP itself).

If so be the case: fraternal emasculation? Ouch.

As far as we know/have seen, though, the Swedish flag still proudly flies.

We're not sure what's more strange about the AAA poster: that they promote their event with a picture of Calvin Sun et al., or that they're touting Tokyo Pop as "Columbia's premier nightclub/lounge."

Also, Phi Iota Alpha felt the need to promote their rager with a glistening, curvaceous babe.

No party in the Lerner Party space is going to be that hot, guys.

Summer Columbians who are hungry, broke and puzzling over how best to commemorate the sacrifices of our men and women in unifor m are apparently welcome at the Beta house tomorrow.

CORRECTION, 11:33 PM EST: Former University Senatorial candidate Dan Free wrote in to let us know that "Um...thats NOT true. I'm hosting it and its for invitees only. CHANGE IT IMMEDIATELY!" And, in a second e-mail: "Also, make sure to CORRECT the error on Bwog. Thanks." Duly noted.

And speaking of sacrifices...regular Columbians puzzling over how best to worship the dread lord Cthulhu can seek out the Science Fiction society as soon as school begins next fall. Bwog apologizes for being a month or so late on this, but we're nevertheless curious as to how the Coed* Naked** Blood*** Wrestling**** went down. Survivors are invited to share their eyewitness accounts of the event--provided they've gotten over the trauma.

Dear Sig Ep,

A Global Warming party? How clever. At least the College Republicans were trying to make a statement!

Love,

Bwog

P.S. (We may still come anyway)

Fancy a bit of Greek this weekend? Then allow Bwog to present Mike and Sarah, representing Delta Sigma Phi and Kappa Alpha Theta in this week's Personals. If you want either of these two to help you write your own personal Odyssey, email bwgossip@columbia.edu and let us know. If it's a match, we'll spring $5 for a date. And remember: if you or anyone you know would like to be a Personal, drop us a line! We're forever accepting nominations.

Girl for tall, good-looking, well-rounded, nice guy	Guy for an easy way out of his seminar research

Bwog doesn't have the cash to "pimp your room," and we certainly don't want to raid it and then date you. So we bring you the semi-weekly feature, the "Cribs-esque" Room Hopping, continuing with...

It may be a brownstone on 114th street, but don't walk into the sorority EAT (Sigma Delta Tau) expecting Animal-House-caliber mayhem. Don't expect to hear the high pitched cooing of girls in pajamas having pillow fights. And certainly don't expect to smell that effluvia of sweat, beer, and vomit that always says "Go Greek!"

"It smells very much unlike the frats, which smell like death when you walk in," said Rachael, one of the lucky fourteen residents of EAT's brownstone. "We're a clean bunch."

Rachael (above, right) and her roommate Maxie, both C'09, say they are so glad to live in a clean-smelling (boy, does it smell clean!), wood-panelled, wood-floored brownstone, complete with a large and comfy living room, big screen TV, full kitchens, dining rooms and fireplaces. The house also has its very own laundry room, but Bwog was forbidden to enter it, since it is used as the 61-member sorority's "Chapter Room." "Only sisters are allowed in," Rachael says.

With such a nice house, the temptation to entertain and throw parties is great. But state brothel laws prohibit them from doing so. At least the law in New York defining women living together with alcohol as a brothel is not as prohibitive as brothel laws in in Winston-Salem, where Rachael says, "six women with their feet off the ground is considered a brothel."

Two boys in sweatshirts with Greek insignia, talking to each other in normal voices at the milk-and-sugar station in 212:

"Yeah, but you didn't hear it from me."
"Whoa, that's a REALLY big secret."
"Dude, i know, that's why i'm not telling you in front of the other guys. I'm telling you in private. So no one will hear and it'll STAY a secret."

and...

Sorry Carman kids! The biggest party you didn't need an invite for was shut down just as it got rolling, at about 12:30 AM. According to witnesses at the scene, KDR (a.k.a. the basketball frat) had packed its house and sent revelers spilling onto 114th st., prompting campus security to call the NYPD. In addition, AEPi had been forced to relocate AmJam from Mona to its brownstone, heightening the confusion. The cops managed to reduce the crowd of milling onlookers to the density of a typical Saturday night, with the help of beefy KDR guys, who hustled to avoid sanction by the university.

Oh, the pitfalls of success! Bwog wonders: are there not enough parties to occupy this freshman class?

Silly AEPi...Jewish boys can't play football!

greek week opening ceremony. There was supposed to be a Tug-O-War tournament, but the first match-up (sigma-chai vs. A-chai-O) was a mess. The rope broke immediately, cause that douchebag of a programming guy from IGC bought a 1/4" inch thick twine rope.

It's 10:55 p.m. There are, as I speak, four guys from Psi U performing an a capella rendition of "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp" in Butler Room 209, as a bunch of brothers sit around and watch. OK, they just left.