Letter from the Editor: That’s a Wrap!

Hello avid reader! Here in front of you is Issue 5 of The Iron Warrior – the last issue for the Winter 2013 term. Hidden among these fine pages of dead tree skin, you will be able to find The Tin Solider. This component of the paper boasts many satirical, humorous, and outlandish articles which will make even your dullest day a little more entertaining. Alongside The Tin Soldier, we have provided you with the regular columns you have come to enjoy this term.
My favourite article of the issue goes to Erin Matheson for “Infrastructure Isn’t Sexy: Why Campus WiFi Will Always Suck.” This article provides good insight as to why our society is consistently hindered in progress due to aging infrastructure. Runner up of the issue goes to Kevin Veloso for “The Graduating Warrior: Done Is Better Than Perfect.” This issue has to be the most painful issue I have put together, but overall, I think it turned out pretty good for your visual consumption!
Now that we have reached the last issue of the term, it is time to reflect on my experience as Editor-in-Chief of The Iron Warrior. Coming into this role I had very high ambitions. My main goals were to get new people writing for the paper; have the draft paper ready by Sunday at noon; get paper racks installed in E5, E6 and the QNC; and bring in a decently-sized account surplus for the term. I can honestly tell you that only the latter was accomplished this term. I was completely naive coming into this position about the amount of work required to make this paper happen and as a result my ambitions were thwarted. Even still, I was able to bring in a surplus from advertisements and, as a result, we will be looking at purchasing new computers to help improve the production weekend process. Otherwise, I pretty well kept the same people involved in the paper, finished the drafts Monday morning at 6:00 AM (if not later) every issue, and never got the racks put up. Although this is only a 25% success rate, if you multiply that by the amount of awesome my staff team contributed (which was 400%) then I think we were pretty well off with a 100% success!
There were some new columns that were introduced this term which I would like to highlight. The first is Modernist Mixology by Luke Van Oort and Dave Parth. With a beer column in place, it was only a matter of time until a mixed drink column was introduced. I felt this column fit the bill quite well as the drinks in the articles were actually original concoctions by the authors. Pretty cool, eh!? New to this term was also Mommaknowsbest by the trio of Krisitna Lee, Megan McNeil and Catherine Declaro. This column did a great job filling in the gap of fashion and general life skills in a very humorous way. I hope to see this column continue in future terms!
This term had a lot of shining stars when it came to the staff who helped put this paper together. The Editor’s Awards were given to Kevin Veloso and Nancy Hui. These awards recognize staff members who went above and beyond their required duties. Nancy took on many extra articles when asked, consistently copy edited even the wordiest of articles, and even was able to topple Stuart Linley’s reign as crossword contributor. Kevin also took on many extra articles, and stayed extra late into the wee hours of the morning to help finish the layout of the paper.
Other honorable mentions go to Farzi Yusufali who I made write the Point vs. Counterpoint articles for every issue. At one point she even wrote both sides of the arguments! There is a nice article playing off of this in The Tin Soldier this issue. I would also like to thank Jacob Terry for his much needed guidance throughout this ordeal. He was the one who got me into this position in the first place and he definitely was there the entire time to ensure I didn’t royally screw up the paper. Despite his constant ramblings and words of support which include “I’ll be late, my landlord is raging at us about his personal life…”, “One time I spent a couple hours on their website because it was so bizarre…”, and “I just finished working on the ESSCO stuff so I’m all yours now”; he was a huge asset to have around and I definitely would not have been able to pull this term off without him.
I’d like to take the time to thank the rest of my staff. You were all rockstars! Thanks to Natasha Phidd for your help with layout at the start of the term. To all the copy editors, I appreciate your dedication, especially when editing my last minute editorials (this one was no exception). Thank you to Jessica Keung and Kyla Rodgers for providing the comics for the paper this term, and to Yola Harsono who took on the role of photo editor and Iron Inquisition-er. Thank you, Kevin Liang, for your help with advertising, especially for securing the full page colour ad from Queens University!
Mary Bland, the EngSoc Business Manager, did a great job helping me with the ins and outs of the paper’s finances. Her words of wisdom were highly appreciated! Thanks for the great term, Mary!
At The Iron Warrior, we also give out the Iron Pen Award which recognizes the person who wrote the most number of words for the paper. This term had a very strong battle between three people: Jon Martin, Jacob Terry, and Kevin Veloso. Each posted over 10,000 words written for the paper which is over five full pages of solid text! In the end however, it was Jon Martin who prevailed with a total 12 967 words! Close behind was Jacob with 11 496 words and then Kevin with 10 416 words. To put this into perspective, their contributions alone made up 23% of all words written this term! For those who can’t do that math, this term’s paper presented 151 120 words through a total of 227 articles on 116 pages. Be sure to take a look at the masthead on the right of this page to see the great people who helped make this happen!
Now that I have been able to reflect on the past, its time to see where the paper is headed for the future. At this time, I would like to take the opportunity to announce that the next Editor-in-Chief for the Fall 2013 term will be…Alex Lee! Alex is currently in 1B Nano and will be going into 2A in the fall. He has helped me out with layout during a few of the production weekends, helped with the paper distribution, and attended all of the general staff meetings. To some, he is considered the next Roy Lee (EIC of Fall 2010) due to the last name, Asian background, and being a Nano; but lets not jump to conclusions quite yet. WAIT! That’s right, I said he is in Nano. For some reason, I have allowed the Nano legacy within the paper to remain alive. Either way, I have full confidence that Alex will do a fantastic job bringing you the wondrous paper know as The Iron Warrior.
By the end of this term, The Iron Warrior will also be moving locations! Our office will be moved from its current location to just down the E2 hall to room 2347. The new location provides us more space, is brightly lit, doesn’t feel like a dungeon and is carpet free! Our old office space will be utilized by the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. Be sure to stop by the office next term to take a look at the new digs!
Overall, this paper has been a phenomenal experience. I have become a master of InDesign, can write more than 1000 words in one sitting, have improved my speed reading, and developed some great friendships.
To wrap up this editorial, I want to put aside The Iron Warrior, and say a big thank you to the Engineering body as a whole. As an upcoming graduate this year, I am very thankful and privileged to have been a part of the culture within Waterloo Engineering. It has been a great five years with many laughs, stories, and adventures. I am very sad to leave this all behind, but at the same time, am excited to see what new experiences lie ahead. To all of those graduates this year, I hope to see you out in the field, passing by on the city streets, or at the local bar swigging back a cold brew. I would wish you all good luck, but as Larry Smith best said,”I won’t wish you luck, you only do that for idiots – they have nothing else going for them – I wish you success.” To my comrades in the class of 2013, let the world know you have arrived, and let all the success be yours!