NCAAbbs

I'm curious: Who wears their Rice ring daily, occasionally, or not at all?

I wear mine every day. Occasionally I get comments about it. I have received a few comments that struck me as funny, including one about it being an Army ring and one about it being a Mason's ring.

30 years and counting, and I still proudly wear the Rice ring whenever out in public.

I wear it every day except those where I am doing manual labor of a type that is likely to damage it or if I am in an environment where it could be hazardous to have any jewelry on. And I have gotten the same comments about it as you have.

I travel around a lot for work, and when I'm in the state of Texas or the South in general, I always wear it, but when I'm in other places like the Northeast, I don't, since nobody up there wears college rings.

It does generally bring out comments. Usually the "oh you went to Rice? Which college?" type of thing

I always wear mine.

I wear mine everyday. The only exception is on the golf course - tends to pinch my fingers. I've also had about half a dozen people think it is a Masonic ring as well - something about the shield.

I suddenly feel the need to stand up in my cubicle and belt out "All for Rice's Honor..."

I never purchased a ring. Should I hide my head in shame?

Ditto.

Second ditto. Also when I'm running.

Third ditto.

I wear mine every day, except when working a lot of grunt work with my hands... which I'm doing a lot of recently.

I don't want to pinch, damage or lose it.

I've gotten comments in airport rental car busses in DC, in line for the tram at the San Diego Zoo, and in board meetings in NYC.

Every day. On very rare occassions I will go with the 1994 SWC Championship ring instead (not as often since my grandfather passed, as he liked the "big ring")

Every day, as I'm still concerned that the school may figure out that they mistakenly gave me a degree and will want it back. Like everybody else, I've had lots of comments about it, but I guess the most obscure might have been in a boardroom in Finland. It turns out that a Finnish client's daughter had gone to Rice, so he recognized the ring, and then showed me his from MIT. Believe it or not, there's a beaver on it, and when I asked, "Is that a beaver?" He nodded, shrugged, and responded, "Nature's engineer."

I weighed 150 when I graduated, and was as much as 189 a year and a half ago (unfortunately I didn't get any taller) so it's been a while since my ring will fit on my ring finger. Fortunately, I'm pretty close to my fighting weight, and I'm looking forward to wearing my ring again.

Two stories

I lost my original ring after having it for about 6 years after working out at the downtown YMCA. The next week I saw a sign on one of the walls "Class Ring Found" with all the pertinent contact information. I called the number and asked about the ring. The guy told me it was an eATMe ring. I said no thank and hung up.


A few years later, I went to the campus store to order a replacement ring. I was surprised I had to fill out all the same documents to get the ring....including the certification and authorization. I certify that I've completed or will complete within X days all the requirements for the Rice degree and I authorize someone important to verify my records to make sure I'm telling the truth.

I swear to you, my hand was shaking as I signed that document as much as it it the first time I signed that document 10 years earlier.

What's the statute of limitations on Rice taking back your degree?.....Just curious

I have a very similar story---I lost my Rice ring after 30 years! I also added some (read "a lot of") weight through the years after graduation, plus I injured my hand 15 years ago. Bottom line, my original ring no longer fit my slightly crooked ring finger and as a result I was wearing it as a somewhat loose pinky ring. I lost it somewhere in the confusion and excitement of my daughter's wedding day in July 2006.

I ordered a replacement ring earlier this year, and also had to fill out all the paperwork certifying that I was eligible for a Rice degree. While the replacement is now properly sized for my chubby ring finger, I wear it mostly for special occasions now.

I assure you it is with no envy at all that I say- "Show Off!!"

BTW- I think we were in a similar position in 1992 (that year we were in a 4-way tie for 2nd with UT, Tech, and Baylor)- but A&M (who was 12-1) was not on probation in 1992 (zing...)

Oh and I wear my Rice ring every day.

I quit wearing mine daily about 14 years ago. It become coated in a thick white film everytime I had to bend someone over and "glove-up". Now, I only wear it infrequently. Not many people commented on the ring around here except for those who could feel it.

You using both hands there doc??

couldn't resist

As kids today would say, "TMI! TMI!"

I quit wearing my rice ring in medical school. I hated to, but it was impractical, what with the frequent washing, gloving, etc. It sits proudly on my dresser, and I see it every day. Occaisionally, I will wear it to a Rice event. I am always proud to wear it and it frequently draws a curious comment or two from others.

i didn't get one....i don't really know why. I probably should have, but I wear a ring all the time already and I didn't know if I'd wear it.

EDIT: apparently I can still order one. Must look into this, I'm thinking I want one.

Every day for 30+ years. I can't count the number of times somebody asked me about it, usually in the most obscure or distant spots from Houston -- London, Rome, New York, and recently in a liquor store in a tiny town in Wyoming. The proprietress was a Shepherd School grad!

I lost my original ring (class of '71) in the mid-70's when our home was burglarized--the thief took my Rice ring and left my wedding band. Go figure. I replaced it a few years later and had to do the paperwork all over again myself. I wear it everyday. Also, I bought my son-in-law his Rice ring when he got his MBA at the Jones School this year--with the caveat that he must wear it everyday too!

I wear my ring every day that it fits. I made the mistake of assuming my hands were the same size and not actually measuring my right ring finger when I ordered it, so on humid days when my fingers are exceptionally fat it won't go on.

Every day. I was on a Danube riverboat last week and it was recognized by George Spellissy whose son graduated in '78 as I recall.

At one point, Balfour's would resize them for free which I had done to mine a few years after graduation. I'm about ready to go find out if they still do since mine seems to have shrunk.

I still proudly wear my ring except when golfing or working out. Class rings are not very common in Canada so when people comment on it, they usually think that it is a masonic or family ring.

I do have an amusing anecdote about my ring:

When I got engaged a few months after I graduated, my future wife asked me what kind of wedding band I wanted to wear. I replied that I wasn't intending on wearing one because my dad didn't, and besides, I am not much of a jewelry person. She then asked, "What about your Rice ring?" To which I replied, "That's different." (Hey I was young!)
I am happy to say that my wife married me anyway and I have a very nice wedding band to compliment my Rice ring. Truth be told though, I am afraid that it is the Rice ring that is more important to me. After all, anyone can get married, but not just anyone can earn a Rice degree.

I have this feeling your post would read differently if your wife read the boards. :)
(The key for simplicity's sake is to have your close friends or sig. others at least reading and preferably posting...one repeats oneself much less often!)

Yeah, I am pretty much basing my future health on this premise, although she has occasionally commented that she suspects as much. The advantage to not sharing the same alma mater with one's spouse.

I lost my ring about 7 years ago. How hard is it to buy one back?

Ditto to everything above.

I never bought one. Rings are for chicks, man.

I do have a SWC Indoor Track championship ring, but I only wear that as a joke when I have to get overly dressed up. It's way too big for my puny lil hands (and uncomfortable too). The fact that the rest of the people reading the boards contributed almost as much as I did to the win doesn't help. It's like a shiny participation ribbon.

I collect class rings (mostly HS) but the thing is just too unattractive for me to buy one.

i'm actually surprised that i might be the only one so far on this thread who has his ring and very rarely wears it. i just find it too uncomfortable to be wearing constantly (i also stopped wearing a watch awhile ago).

incidentally, i was recently showing some family from abroad the rice campus and we ran into president leebron and his wife ping, and i really wish i had been wearing it.

But can anyone marry your wife? That seems to me to be a more exclusive club!

Wear the ring all the time. The only time I take it off is when doing chinups/pullups/other weight work, as it pinches (it's actually flattened out at the bottom a little bit, making taking it off a touch snugger). I wear it when I run/bike/etc. though. It gets cruddy, but then I just soak it in some jewelry cleaner and then clean the crevices.

I've noticed that I think the Rice ring is more likely purchased and worn by male alumni than female alumnae. (I guess those adjectives are redundant, now that I look at it, but I'll leave it.)

And my Dad still wears his after 40+ years. His is rounded off even more than mine - the sharp edges around the insignia do get "worn" over time. He's had many more run-ins with people recognizing his ring in the oddest places. For me, it's often people from Texas who come east (often for work/projects) that see it and recognize it. It really is unique.

I wear it everyday to work. I usually wear it out on the weekends. It is something of great pride for me, knowing that I have been privileged enough to earn a Rice degree and call myself an Owl.

I very seldom wear mine except on special Rice occasions. Was too dangerous while on active duty - lots of stories of ring fingers "degloved" convinced me to put it away. Lost it somehow and bought a new one in '85. Cost was 10x the original cost.

That said, my spouse wears hers all the time.

I will be getting my ring for this year (my senior year) and plan on wearing it every day. I've worn my HS ring pretty much every day since I got it, and now I'll replace it with my Rice ring.

As of a couple of years ago, they still did. I gained about 30 lbs. post-school (something about eating on an engineer's salary vs. a student's) and wasn't able to wear it anymore. They resized it and now I wear it all the time.

I wear mine almost every day (i.e. work days, and when I go out -- usually don't wear rings around the house). I do take all my rings off for ballet class, though, so they don't clank on the barre.

Fun fact: My Rice ring is a size 2 and fits inside OwlJacket's one. (Mine is a left-hand pinky ring; his is normal, right-hand ring finger.)

After losing my first two rings, I find I can take much better care of this one by never taking it off (except for golf/baseball/soccer). When I do take it off, however, the skin underneath has become kind of mangy.

I lost mine several years ago because I actually managed to lose weight after I graduated & the ring fell off my finger. I got a new one in a smaller size, though, and I wear it every day.

I wear mine whenever I can. That is to say when I am going out, but not to work. Jewelry in the kitchen is a big no no, so it has to stay home. When I am not working and going out, I wear it. The same is also applied to my wedding ring.

Wear it every day, and have it on as we speak. I'm on ring #2, after losing the original playing a pickup soccer game on campus a few years after graduation. And it migrated from my left hand to my right a few years ago when I added a wedding band.

pretty easy, you have to call the bookstore but they're obviously readily available.

I wear mine every day, too; neither it nor my wedding/engagement ring bothers me when playing tennis or golf (watch does, though).

My sophomore year, we tied SMU in the second half and were controlling the game, and as I stood on the sideline I started to ponder whether I'd wear my Rice ring or my conference championship ring, or get one sized for a different finger to do both. Needless to say, SMU scored on a counter-attack in the last minute of that game, so I didn't ever have to make the choice. I have found, though, that my teammates (they won C-USA two years later) and other athletes (including guys from the national championship baseball team) almost exclusively--I can't think of a single exception, actually--wear their Rice rings rather than conference/national championship ones.

I look at it almost every day but I can't stand wearing it. I have never worn my high school ring for the same reason. They are too uncomfortable. And the heavy big part of the ring always moves around to the palm side of my finger, so I find myself constantly fiddling with it to get it back to where it needs to be. I wear only one ring, my wedding band. Sometimes I have to take it off also, for working on the car and things of that nature. My wife asked me if I wanted any diamonds or anything in it when we were getting married. I declined anything other than a simple round band with rounded edges on it.

I had the same issue until my wife's jeweler added two small beads on the bottom inside of the ring, and that keeps it from moving around. It looks like it would be uncomfortable, but you don't even feel them.

In a slightly related topic, I have a Rice watch. It is gold with a blue R on the face in the lower half. I can't tell you the number of times I've heard the following: "Dude, that's a cool Rolex. Can I have a closer look?" The watch I wear almost daily.