wicket awesome

Every Thursday evening around 10 p.m., the participants of Mr. J's Midnight Croquet gather in the MAC Quad. While the windows of Kirkland, Lowell and Winthrop flicker from the televisions within, the croquet players set up their wickets.

Mr. J's Midnight Croquet became an official organization with UC funding last fall. Founder Rebecca Reider '00 deems the weekly croquet session a "Competitive but friendly gathering." Though recently participation has decreased because of the weather, some students opt for croquet over "ER." The strange name of the organization comes from Reider's past. "There's this park called Party Park near my house. One night, I saw this man setting up wickets. I used to watch him play by himself. One day, I thought he couldn't see me when I fell, and when I looked up he was there. He said `Mr. J. knows you've been watching.'"

The players interviewed don't find the British pastime a pretentious college student recreation. Chris J. Soto '00, who plays every week or two, explains, "I don't think it's an inherently snobby sport, I think that's the stereotype. I think it's more of a function of the people than the sport itself. Get past the stereotype. It's a fun, laid back activity."

Chris Wang '99 feels somewhat less militant about croquet. "I think it's fine if they think it's snobby. It adds to the mystique of it being a snol y sport."

Despite the mystique of croquet, members say that Mr. J's has a decidedly laid-back atmosphere. But not everyone can be convinced. Early on in Mr. J's history, an on-looker left supposedly muttering, "Only at Harvard..."