Members of the blocking group, composed of three high school “arch-rivals” and four Massachusetts residents, said they discovered that their shared sense of humor and hometown connections made them a natural combination.

“Dan is the guy that touches the statues in Annenberg to make them beep,” When said of his blockmate Hamovic. “He is that guy.”

While members of their blocking group were courted by three other groups, Golden said the restrictions on blocking group size—which was 16 until two years ago—made their decision easier.

“We’ve kind of known that we would block together since the beginning of the year,” Golden said.

While these first-years appear unfazed by the housing lottery process, they do have their preferences.

Golden praised the parties and people in Cabot, while Bilodeau said he liked the large rooms in Mather.

Whatever the envelope contains, the blockmates said they are more concerned with which House their other friends will call home come sophomore year.

“It matters more if we are close to our friends as opposed to the location of the House,” Golden said.

Flaming Boats, River Hopes

First-years in Canaday C planned to steer clear of the Quad by setting little cardboard boats on fire down the Charles River last night as they awaited their housing assignments.

The prefects for the entryway, Lorrayne S. Ward ’03, Peter P. Monteleone ’03 and Jordan D. Scopa ’04 sent an e-mail to the entryway with a poem to get the first-years excited about the housing lottery.

“After days of strife and nights spent sleepless, Your blocking forms having reached completeness, Your days in the yard are reaching their end, Your home at Harvard must change once again,” reads a selection from the poem.

The first-years and their prefects met at 10 p.m. and walked over to the banks of the Charles, where they set fire to the boats as a sacrifice to the “river gods.”

The tradition is two years old, but it was not so successful last year.

Scopa attributed the large number of the entryway’s residents who were lotteried into the Quad last year to some over-eager first-years jumping into the river.