Whee!

Jeanne Sawtelle remembers:

As I remember it, Derek, Andrew and I were having an IQP meeting in the
lounge on the 3rd floor of Fuller Labs. We were trying to get a serious
amount of work done. We were trying, really! So we're creating the outline
of the report, and get as far as Indroduction and Background, or something
like that, and we're trying to decide what to write next. Andrew says,
"Wheee!" so of course I write it down, since it's the only thing I had to
write down at that point. Derek and Andrew don't notice, and we spend about
5 minutes being wacky. How we managed to get serious again in only 5
minutes, I don't know. 

So the evening progresses, hours pass, and we actually get some good stuff
done. At the end of the evening we review the ouline we'd just invented,
with my reading my notes. With a completely serious and we're-all-tired-of-
this-so-let's-just-get-finished-and-go-home voice, I intone:

I  Introduction
2  Background
   2.1 Need for a Used Book Exchange Method on Campus
   2.2 Different Used Book Exchange Methods
   2.3 Our Choice for a Used Book Exchange at WPI
3  Wheee!

             ... 'cause that's what my notes said.

Derek breaks. Andrew's not far behind. I show them that that's what my notes
actually say, and we've totally lost it.

After that, I used "Wheee!" to break Derek just as easily as someone saying,
"Paraaade of Shoooees!"

Now how's that for a totally useless bit of lore?

Here are some comments from Andrew:

Now, just to put into perspective just how completely unfair this was, let
me point out that Derek had at this point been awake for approximately 36
hours, and was just barely succeeding in his struggle to maintain
consciousness, let alone composure.

Add to this the fact that the particular manner in which Jeanne chose to
shout the word "WHEE!" sounded just like the punch line of an off-color joke
which Josh had been using from time to time, which was a line from an
MST3K-style dissection of a _particularly_ bad piece of usenet erotica. 
To wit:
  Author: "And what did those probing fingers find?"
  Critic: "Candy corn!  Whee!"
Rather a disturbing image in and of itself.

Further note that Derek and I were pretty sure that Jeanne was unaware of
this joke, and thus of the fact that she was reminding us of such an image.

Even without all this excess baggage, this one probably would have broken
Derek.  But considering the circumstances, he didn't stand a chance.  KO. 
Match point Jeanne.
Benjamin D. Hutchins