The Epigram

Sunday is our honesty hour day but instead of questions, today we’ll once again be doing the following meme (again, because why not?) from thatotherrpmeme:

Nonsexual acts of Intimacy - Select from the following for my muse to respond to...

♔ : Finding your muse wearing their clothes

♕: Holding hands

♖: Having their hair washed by your muse

♗: Your muse falling asleep with their head in my muse's lap.

♘: Cuddling in a blanket fort

♙: Sharing a bed

♚: Head scratches

♛: Sharing a dessert

♜: Shoulder rubs

♝: Reading a book together

♞: Caring for each other while ill (specify which party is which)

♟: Patching up a wound

♤: Taking a bath together

♧: Your muse playing with their hair

♡: Accidentally falling asleep together

♢: Forehead or cheek kisses

♠: Your muse adjusting their jewelry/necktie/ etc.

♣: Back scratches

♥: Your muse crying about something

♦: Slow dancing

Location: Loft rooftop deck

Was he avoiding the room? No. He wanted to think he was instead avoiding this city that smelled bad and was too busy. He’d grown up in a city and hopped from city to city on his way to Boston, but there was a reason he’d gone right past New York City. It was too expensive, too dirty, and he didn’t understand the parking rules.

With a six-pack of beer resting in a small cooler next to him, he was content to stay alone and do some schoolwork. He was trying to fill out his final required literature elective and it was honestly a worse experience than some of the toilets he’d had to plunge at Turing. When he heard someone else walk on the deck, he was eager to close his book and actually be the one to start a conversation. “How’re your lectures and shit going?”

Ines was recording some ideas on her phone, speaking about some of the highlights of the lectures she’d attended on the first day of the retreat as she made her way to the rooftop deck. “Oh, hey,” she stopped on her tracks as she saw Sal and ended the recording, slipping her phone into the back pocket of her jeans. For a moment there she felt like maybe she was interrupting something, stepping into a private time and space Sal had sought for himself up here. But then he asked a question and Ines felt her presence was welcomed. “They were pretty interesting. They offered good material for interviews of the attendees,” she mentioned with a smile. Just like last year, she participated in the retreat to get to write a piece about it and share with Turing Academy what it had been like and what were the takeaways from those that were there. “I’d like to interview you and get your point of view, but I think The Epigram readers might begin to think I have a preference here,” she half-joked. Last year, Sal had been one of the attendees she’d interviewed for her piece about the UCLA retreat, after all.

Ready to take New York City by storm? Because here we go!

The flight leaves on Wednesday afternoon and the NYU Retreat begins on Thursday. The academy has arranged for all its participants to stay in a loft in Lower East Side:

LOFT DESCRIPTION:

Main bedroom - Two beds & full bathroom: Sal Rizzo & Ines Sari

Second bedroom - Two beds, one bunk bed & full bathroom (Available spots: 4 people)

Third bedroom - Two beds & pull out couch (Available spots: 1 person): June Maslow & Shadia Abassi

Guest bathroom

Kitchen

Laundry area

Living room area

Dining area

Roof deck

As stated before, workshops, lectures and dynamics will take place at NYU from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. The rest of the time, the group is welcome to go around the city or return to the loft, but curfew is strictly at 10:00 PM, so all participants must be back in their cabin at that time.

NYU Retreat

Date: Thursday March 18th to Sunday March 21st Location: New York University & Airbnb loft in Lower East Side

To continue fostering great collaborative relationships with other universities across the country as well as bringing eclectic groups of people to develop innovative ideas, Turing Academy as well as other nine universities have been invited to participate in a student, staff and faculty retreat. This year the host is NYU and the dynamics as well as the workshops will be focused on cross-disciplinary explorations of AI and its social implications.

The group’s flight for New York City will leave on Wednesday March 17th, so they are ready to take part in the retreat’s activities starting on Thursday, and they will fly back to Boston on Sunday evening. They will stay in the designated loft in the Lower East Side, which is only a 23 min. away from the university (walk to Allen St/Hester St and take the subway to 2 Avenue & East 3 St). Workshops, lectures and dynamics regarding the retreat will take place from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Attendance to all is mandatory. The rest of the time, the group is welcome to go sightseeing, to museums, plays and Broadway shows, etc. but they are expected to be back to the loft by curfew. The curfew is strictly at 10:00 PM, so all participants must be back in their cabin at that time.

June: oh yeah? What am I allergic to?

“It’s no problem,” he insisted quickly. He looked at the tied on tarp and shook his head. “No, I’m all set.” He moved to open the passenger side door for her, trying to get off the topic of what he was hauling as soon as possible. “Staying late for The Epigram?”

A smile quickly graced Ines’ lips and she found herself reaching out to briefly touch his arm. “Thank you”. She pulled her hand away before it could get awkward, trying to keep it casual. She hopped on the passenger seat after Sal got the door for her, which earned him another little smile from her. Ines put the seatbelt on and set her bag on the floor mat. “Yeah, it’s becoming a bit of a ritual,” she half-joked. At this point, it really seemed like a habit for her to be the last person to leave The Epigram’s office. “And you? They got you moving all the dump from Turing Laboratory?” she mentioned, figuring that with the upcoming demolition and renovations all the old garbage that had been stored there for who knows how long would be moved and possibly disposed of. “It’s none of my business-” she suddenly said, shaking her head and chuckling softly as she glanced in Sal’s direction. “You really need to start telling me to stop, I’m always asking you questions”. Man, she was such a cliché journalist sometimes.

“Uh, just some old stuff,” he replied vaguely. He tugged a little tighter on the tarp to make sure it would stay in place before looking around the parking lot. “Do you need a ride home?” It was late enough that he was concerned about her walking home or even taking public transportation. He figured what he had could wait a little longer before he dropped it off at Jonah’s, and the tarp would keep it secure - and hopefully out of Ines’s view enough that she didn’t ask more questions. He wanted to talk to her, wanted to help her, but he didn’t feel comfortable giving her any details on what he was helping with. He couldn’t. 

Ines quickly took a peek at her phone to see what time it was and she discovered it was actually later than she thought it was. It shouldn’t have surprised her, since it happened more often than not, especially nearing publication day. “Uh- yeah, if it’s not too out of your way,” Sal already knew her apartment on Phillips Steet after he helped her with her Christmas tree, but Ines still had no idea where he lived. She appreciated his offer for a ride but she didn’t want to make him drive around the city if he happened to be heading in an opposite direction. “Or, you know, I could give you a hand with this stuff. As a thank you for the ride,” she offered, tilting her head to whatever bulky stash of things was under the tarp. Sure, she wasn’t nearly as tall or strong as he was, but an extra pair of hands might be helpful to him.

Sal was trying, his absolute best, to be discrete. But one could only be so discrete with old computers that needed to be handled gently. He was just pulling the tarp over the back of his truck when he noticed a familiar face that brought a flush to his cheeks for more than one reason. “Hey,” he greeted, as simply as he tied on the tarp on the side of his truck.

@the-epigram​

Christmas with Sal had been lovely, even with the not so subtle comments from her aunts that ‘her friend’ was a looker and she really shouldn’t let that one get away. It hadn’t been toom embarrassing, she supposed, because even after being expose to Ines’ family, he had still reached out a few times for them to get lunch or coffee when he had some free hours to spare from work and his studies. And honestly, every new time she met with him, it was further confirmed for Ines that she liked him. She didn’t just like him as a person, she liked him liked him. It was a little unnerving and exciting, because- goodness it had been quite a while since she last felt this drawn to someone else.

She worked the late hours, as usual, making sure everything was ready for the next issue of The Epigram, which would be printed and publised online in just two days. After all those final revisions were done, Ines walked through an empty Turing Academy, ready to head home. That was when she spotted Sal, hauling something large into his truck. From where she was she couldn’t quite see what it was, and then he just covered it, tyding a tarp to his truck. “Hi,” she greeted with a smile. “What are they making you move now?” she asked with a soft chuckle, not envying whather he’d been tasked to do. It looked bulky and like it was a lot of stuff.

ELLIOT MOSS - “99″

Turing Academy’s board has approved renovations

We say goodbye to Turing Laboratory

Turing Laboratory has been a staple of our beloved academy since its inception. Back when the history of the academy started, Turing Laboratory was home to the three available science programs while Weber Humanities Center housed the rest of the academy’s educational offerings. Generations of students owe so much to Turing Laboratory: lectures and debates, great findings, a sanctuary of education and friendships. In one word: memories.

This old building served a better purpose in past times, however. These days Turing Laboratory serves mostly as a storage place while the science programs have been moved to better-equipped new homes: the ASC and the Hawking Science Building.

Today we officially announce that Turing Laboratory will be demolished and start renovations in late February.

Sal was already starting to worry. He took a deep breath when she reached out to touch his arm, almost missing in the moment her touch. “I don’t know what that is, but sounds good,” he admitted. He reached out to grab the trunk of the tree she’d been eyeing. “If you need help hauling it, I’ve got room,” he told her. If she was offering her family’s home on Christmas, he figured he should offer something in return.

Before he’d even looked away from the tree, a new worry gripped his mind. It’d be impossible to set aside, he knew it. “Do they, uh, read what you write? In The Epigram? Your family?” His worries tumbled over themselves so much he found himself trying to catch up with them. Maybe he should come up for an excuse to not show up later. He didn’t want her family thinking he was some loser she was bringing to the holiday out of pity.

“I’m not going to spoil it by explaining what it is, you’ll have to try it and see for yourself,” Ines told him with a grin, content that he had accepted her invitation. Too content. She didn’t want to fool herself into reading too much into this, but it did feel nice to know that she would get to spend at least one day of the holidays in Sal’s company. Christmas didn’t particularly mean much to Ines, it usually was a day made meaningful only by the company of people she appreciated and cared about. And well, she knew Sal fell into that category now, so she was beginning to look forward to this year’s Christmas.

Ines thought for a second before responding, and it didn’t take long to know that his offer was the better solution against her not-so-well-thought-out-plan to carry a good, ol’ Christmas to the T to bring home. “Oh, yes. Thanks. That would be really helpful,” she told him with a nod. And with that she turned to the vendor and paid for the tree she selected. “No, not really. I send it to my mom and dad, but there’s always this or that. They say they’ll read it when they’re less stressed and they just don’t get around to doing it,” she said in a tone that gave away she’d heard that speech countless times. There were no hard feelings, just resignation that that was how things were. “I mean, they support what I do,” she felt the need to add, getting back her change before she glanced in Sal’s direction. “Just not in that way”. Hopefully she wasn’t coming off as ungrateful. She was privileged enough to get to study in the university of her choosing and get the education she wanted, even if veered off slightly from what her mother and father might have picked for her. She was still lucky. But Ines knew she couldn’t take any praise from her parents when they told her they were proud she was a good writer and a good reporter, because they didn’t really know. “It’s okay. They’re busy people,” she said graciously, shrugging a little.

Sal smiled slightly as he looked from a tree back toward Ines. “Uh, I read some of the stuff from the Epigram this semester. It was really good.” He didn’t have a very good or critical eye when it came to writing, but he did like that the newspaper seemed a little less…gossipy. He nodded as she recalled her family picking out a Christmas tree, letting out a quiet sigh of relief that he wouldn’t disappoint Elena if he brought home a tree he didn’t accidentally realize was a horrible choice. 

He’d just picked up a tree that looked promising when her invitation caught him off-guard. He didn’t look at her at first, not wanting to see some telltale sign that she was just asking as a courtesy and didn’t mean it. He hoped she meant it; but if she did, it came with a whole other slew of questions and concerns that holding a Christmas tree wouldn’t help him answer. “That’s really nice,” he said, pulling the tree a little closer. “So’s this tree, I think?” He looked the tree over before looking at Ines. She was smiling. That was good, right? “That would, um, that would be nice. If it’s okay with your family. I won’t stay long.”

Ines smiled in response, giving a little nod. “Thanks. I had a great team this semester,” she mentioned, as it was in no way only her doing. There was both new talent and older members of the newspaper that had been accepting of the new direction in which Ines wanted to take The Epigram. It might take a while to completely erase the legacy Juliet left behind and the gossipy nature of the things that were published then, but at least things were going in a better direction now, at least according to Ines.

Her invitation had obviously taken him off-guard, though she hoped it wasn’t in an entirely negative way. She examined a nice medium-sized tree, absentmindedly running her fingers over the pine needles, waiting for a reply. She’d messed up, hadn’t she? Asking him to come with her to a family thing was probably a bit much, and he was just trying to think of some polite way to say no. She turned to him when he spoke and she quickly assessed the tree he picked. “A very nice tree,” she nodded, chucking a little because both of them were more on the clueless side of ‘Christmas tree picking’, and were kind of just playing it by ear here. “It’ll be okay, don’t worry about that,” Ines assured him, momentarily reaching out to touch his forearm. “The more the merrier, right? And you can stay as long as you want, Sal. My aunts serve a second round of desserts and the ponche around midnight and trust me, you wouldn’t want to leave before that,” she told him in hopes that he wouldn’t feel like he would be unwanted there. Being Ines’ guest, she was certain her family would be welcoming towards him.

Sal smiled slightly and nodded. “Thanks, uh, don’t want to tell you what we spent on wreaths this year.” Considering all the shit - often quite literally - he put up with in maintenance, the holidays and decorating was often a nice respite from it all. When Ines started to walk more along the trees, he followed after her. “So do you have any idea what makes for a good tree?” he asked. His phone service could be spotty sometimes, and he didn’t want to be stuck standing looking between a tree and his phone, obsessing over the smallest thing. When she turned the question about plans back on him, he shoved his hands in his pocket and looked toward the ground. “Uh, just staying in. No family around here.” Sometimes he tried to go out to see his aunt, but his mother was still there. 

Ines couldn’t help but chuckle a little. Seeing the decorations around campus she could only imagine. “Maybe I should cover that story,” she joked, glancing towards him before her focus returned to the trees around them, casually looking around, not really paying enough attention to each one to begin the selection process. “I don’t know if there’s like- I don’t know, ‘a method’” she air quoted, “I think we just choose the one we like, shape-wise”. If there was more to the criteria behind picking a Christmas tree, she had no idea. Based on what Sal had told her about himself it didn’t surprise her much to hear he didn’t have family in Boston. Ines rolled her lips and for a moment there she could nearly hear her own heartbeat in her ears, but she dared to ask what crossed her mind at that moment. “Would you maybe want to spend Christmas with me?”. She turned to Sal, gauging whether or not it had been a screw up to ask him that. “We’re having a small get-together. I won’t cook so I can assure you the dinner will be good,” she smiled, hoping to make light of the situation even though she was feeling some internal nervousness coursing through her whole body because, well... she was kind of putting herself out there for a guy she liked and his rejection would be a disappointing outcome. “I hope it’s not weird of me to ask, since holidays can be this big thing or are about family and whatnot. I just- I don’t think you should spend them alone”.

Sal held his breath for a moment, unsure if she’d heard him or if she would respond with more than a wave and a nod. Just because he had time didn’t mean she did. Maybe she would be annoyed with him for losing contact with her, no matter the explanation. But she said hello back, and Sal felt some of the tension release from his shoulders when she asked him a question. “Uh, yeah, and this is my first time picking out a tree more than a foot tall,” he admitted as he ran a hand over the branch of a tree next to him. “Are you staying here for Christmas?”

Ines smiled and nodded, figuring the decorations she’d seen around Turing were his doing to some extent. “The academy looks lovely, by the way,” she mentioned, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. Who knew if anyone had praised his work or even thanked him for the holiday atmosphere he and the other staff members of Turing had created. “Yes. Some of my mom’s family is coming over and they do celebrate Christmas, so” she finished with a little shrug. Most of the Sari family was Muslim and Christmas wasn’t something they celebrated when they spent this season together, but her mother’s side of the family was another story. They lived for Christmas season, for the food, the drinks, the gifts and the family get-togethers. “Kind of a nice excuse to have some fun decorating”. Ines ambled towards the rows of trees, waiting for him to join her. “And you? What plans do you have for Christmas?”.

For the last three months, Sal had been going nonstop. When he had a rare free weekend, he found himself usually just going to bed early. He’d joined the community college business honor society, suffered his way through a literature class, and started the process of eventually transferring to get his bachelor’s degree. All on top of getting a promotion. Once again, he’d been a second choice, but he’d take the higher pay as manager with the way tuition was sucking his savings dry. Despite the sudden collapse of his personal life, he didn’t have any regrets. but he could start to feel the strain of lacking personal relationships now that his exams were over and Turing was winding down.

It was the earliest he’d been able to get home in probably two months. There was no library or class to get to, and no extra hours to pick up. He was driving home when he saw the herd of people around some Christmas trees. He’d spent hours helping to decorate Turing, but there wasn’t a single Christmas decoration he’d contributed to the new apartment.

After parking, he texted Elena to tell her he was bringing home a Christmas tree. Without any real idea what to look for in a tree, he started to just pull some trees out and then set them back. There were so many people there, he wasn’t expecting to suddenly notice a familiar face in the crowd. “Ines?” So maybe he did have one regret about his diminished personal life.

Hearing her name called by the familiar voice, Ines felt a little jolt of excitement. It had been quite a while since she had last seen or heard about Sal, with the exception those scattered times they saw each other at Turing and waved at each other from afar or the occasional text. But he’d been busy, she’d been busy, and their mobile conversations had a way of slowly dying out. Frankly, she’d never been too good at keeping in touch via texts or social media, but she’d given it a shot and try to stay connected with him.

 “Hi,” she grinned, stepping away from the tree she had been checking out to go over where Sal was. He looked good, with the confident aura of someone who had been doing well. Ines hoped she wasn’t wrong in her reading of him and that he had been gathering successes from his hard work. “Late to the Christmas decorating too?” she asked with a soft chuckle. It seemed like most people had gotten their holiday decorations almost as soon as the spooky Halloween theme ended, as every house, school and business in Boston started to look more like some winter wonderland both inside and out since November. “It’s so nice to see you,” she admitted. The part that she wasn’t sure she should admit so candidly was that she’d missed him.

He nodded, though he had a feeling he wouldn’t think it was “good” in a couple months when exams started up or he was stuck covering a bunch of holiday shifts at Turing. “As long as you bring some beer, that’s helpful,” he said honestly. “Are you free this Saturday? By then I might be too tired to cook, so if you see takeout boxes, don’t say anything.”

“Alright, I’ll take care of that. Any beer in particular you like?” she asked, unable to not smile a little as she spoke and then she nodded “Yes. Saturday works for me”. Good thing the academic workload wasn’t that heavy for her just yet because she really wouldn’t have wanted to skip on the chance to have dinner with Sal just because of some damn homework or project. “If I see them I’ll play along, don’t worry” Ines told him with a chuckle.