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THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER OF WASHINGTON UNIVERSIT Y IN ST. LOUIS SINCE 1878 Confused by all the new slang? Just trying to figure out where Blue Hill is? Check out our Wash. U. dictionary. Page A7.

Glow sticks, fashion faux pas, and more advice than you can handle. All that and more in today’s Forum. Page B1.

VOLUME 127, NUMBER 1

Justin Davidson is your Sports guru.

See the back page for a complete rundown of the local sports scene. Page C8.

Houseplants not your ideal dorm decor?

Scene’s got what you need.

See Page A11.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 27, 2005

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Debates and protests: the year at WU

By Helen Rhee Staff Reporter The 2004-2005 school year was one of transformation and change. From events of national importance, including the presidential debates and the election, to campus-centered protests like the recent Student Worker Alliance sit-in, St. Louis and the University spent the year in the spotlight.

Washington University embarked on the 2004-2005 school year as the host of the presidential debate between Democratic contender John Kerry and Republican incumbent President George W. Bush. Leading up to the big event, the University dismantled the floor of the athletic complex, installed state of art communication, and put in extra

security to prepare for the grandiose event.

At the last minute, though, Bush’s advisory team put the debate in jeopardy when they became hesitant to participate in the event. Following the announcement, Chris Heinz, Kerry’s stepson, visited the campus to assure the university that his step-father might still appear on campus even if Bush rejected the scheduled debate. Miraculously, news came from the presidential campaign debate committee confirming that both candidates had committed to participate in three debates, including the Oct. 8 debate at University.

During the week of Oct. 8, the campus transformed into a political campground, attracting media from MSNBC’s prime-time show “Hardball with Chris Mat-

thews” and CNN’s prime debate coverage featuring Paula Zhan, Anderson Cooper and Wolff Blitzer. Students witnessed the fervor of the 2004 election year on their very own campus.

Almost a month after the debate, on November 4, the nation re-elected President Bush. Yet while Bush took the state of Missouri, St. Louis remained a blue dot in the sea of red Missouri.

Washington University also experienced waves of theft on campus. In November, WUPD retrieved a stolen laptop through a covert operation and arrested the perpetrator, a student from another St. Louis university.

Later that week, a member of the housekeeping staff was caught stealing a laptop from Rubelmann Hall, while in April, several cars were reported stolen

from the Washington University property.

The fall of 2004 also brought new changes on Fraternity Row: no Greek organization could host events with alcohol until spring semester. A student initiated a brawl at Sigma Alpha Epsilon, which injured a police officer, leading to tighter restrictions on the presence of alcohol on campus.

Despite the alcohol ban, however, fraternities still experienced an increase in the number of students rushing to join the brothers on the row. The Greek Life Office lifted the alcohol ban in the spring.

Greek Life’s affair with alcohol continued until mid-March, when Alpha Phi sorority sisters

PHOTO BY DAVID BRODY | STUDENT LIFE

See YEAR IN REVIEW, page A2 Student Worker Alliance members storm the Admissions Office in Brookings Hall to begin their 19-day sit-in for a living wage for campus workers.

Registration questions?

We’ve got you covered

By Brad Nelson News Editor If you have questions about registering for classes, what classes to take, and where to start, you’re not alone. Student Life has been scouring Wash. U. message boards for concerns from incoming freshmen. The following is a list of the most frequently asked questions, followed by—hopefully—satisfactory answers.

Q: In a nutshell, how does registration work?

A: The Internet has made a lot of things easier—communicating, shopping, stealing music—and registration is one of them.

While our parents had to fight the crowds in the gym to sign up for classes, we have the benefit of doing it in the comfort of our own homes, right in front of our own computers.

The process is simple, and you’ll most likely go through it with your four-year advisor. Here’s the general run-down: log onto WebSTAC (https://acadinfo.wustl.edu) using the username and PIN you’re assigned at either at an ArtSci Weekend or during orientation. On the left-hand menu, click on the link that says “Register.”

You can add or drop a class in two ways.

One, by typing the course number into the registration screen. Two, you can open up the course listings on the very bottom of the left hand menu, and click “add” or “drop” next to the given course. If the class is full, you’ll be put on the waitlist.

Before meeting with your four-year advisor to go through the process, take a look through the University’s course catalog. You can pick them up from the Arts & Sciences office, located in Room 215 in South Brookings Hall, which is just upstairs from the Admissions Office. Writing down the numbers and names of the courses you’re interested will make the registration process run smoother, and it has the added perk of impressing your four-year advisor.

Q: What happens if I’m on the waitlist? Is it even worth doing it?

A: If you end up on a course’s waitlist it technically means that you have to wait for students to drop before you can enroll. Does it always work that way? It depends—some professors will make their classes larger and automatically enroll students on the waitlist. Other professors want to see that you’re interested in the course or majoring in the subject before giving you a seat in the class.

So if you’re dying to get off of a waitlist, attend the class on the fi rst day and talk to the professor afterwards.

Q: How many credit hours I should take my first semester?

A: The average courseload is five classes, for a total of 15 credit hours. The minimum course load for a full-time student is 12 credits; the maximum is 21. To graduate, you must take a minimum of 120 credits over your four years, which averages out to 15 credits per semester.

Most courses are three credits. But foreign language classes can be as many as five credits and science classes with a lab are usually worth four credits. So, it may not be possible

See REGISTRATION, page A3

PHOTO BY DAVID HARTSTEIN | STUDENT LIFE

Debris flies as old Koenig Hall is torn down to make way for construction of the new Liggett House. New Koenig House stands nearly completed at right, with old Liggett Hall still visible in the background.

Continued building shapes South 40

By Mandy Silver Contributing Editor Administrators say the South 40’s newest residence hall will be open by the time students return to school in August while plans come along on the other dorm construction projects underway.

Jim Severine, associate director and manager of building services for Residential Life, noted that the newest dormitory—currently referred to as Phase 4A—is on time with no major difficulties encountered, aside from the challenges posed by a “site that’s rather small for such a large project.”

Phase 4A, a new three-story residential hall that will be called Koenig House in the fall, is another step in the University’s 1995 plan to modernize the residential halls.

To make room for the new dorm, the “old” Koenig dormitory was demolished in July and Liggett, the neighboring dormitory, will soon follow suit.

“We were not able to renovate Liggett and Koenig because the building footprint would not accommodate the room sizes and bathroom configurations we needed,” said Ralph Thaman, associate vice chancellor of facilities planning and management.

“The buildings are the old style with gang bathrooms. Also the window placement in the buildings would not allow [the] room design required.”

Severine added that a renovation would be just as costly and would “handcuff” architects and construction workers to building within the existing structure.

With Phase 4A near completion, work will soon begin on Phase 4B, which consists of a new residence hall on the east side of the South 40 residential area. When finished, this building will connect to Koenig House to form an L-shaped structure.

“The new dorm will have the same amenities as the new dorms we have built over the past 5 years, common space, study rooms, computer labs, etc.,” Thaman said.

Phase 4B has already presented several pre-construction challenges. John Klein, the executive vice chancellor for administration, says residents of Skinker Heights have expressed concern with the initial plan for the second building, arguing that it was too big and too close to the property line.

In the final plan, approved by the Board of Aldermen on June 28, the eastern part of the building was reduced, decreasing the number of beds by 48. Klein said the compromise was important for going forward and may lead to modifications of future buildings’ designs.

Phase 4B is anticipated to open August 2006. In the phases that follow, the older dorms— Umrath, Rubelmen, Lee and Beaumont—will be torn down.

No timetable for the later phases has been set.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE SOUTH 40 v Initial Campus Housing -McMillan Hall (women) -Umrath and Prince Halls (men) -Fraternity Row

v Phase I (1958) -Post-WWII G.I. Bill increases need for housing -Liggett and Koenig Halls (men) -Rubelmann and Umrath Halls (women) -A dining hall (currently Wohl Center) -The Forsyth underpass

v Phase II (1961) -Hitzeman, Hurd, and Myers Halls (men), originally designated G, H, and I -Beaumont Hall (women)

v Phase III (1963) -The original Shepley Hall (women), a 12-story high-rise -Lee Hall (women) -Dauten, Shanedling, and Rutledge Halls (men), originally designated J, K, and L

v Phase IV (1964) -The original Eliot Hall, another 12-story high-rise

v Continuing Construction -1990: Park and Wydown Houses -1998: Old Shepley and Mudd Halls demolished, Wydown House renamed Mudd House, 11,000-square foot addition made to Wohl Center -1997-’98: Danforth, Shepley, and Wheeler Houses -1999-’00: Nemerov, Lien, and Gregg Houses, as well as the parking garage, baseball field, and IM fields -2000: Ursa’s Café and the Fitness Center -2003: Old Eliot Hall demolished -2003-’05: Forsyth, new Eliot, and new Koenig Houses -Source: Washington University Archives

A2 STUDENT LIFE | NEWS

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

The freshman housing process uncovered

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News: (314) 935-5995 Advertising: (314) 935-6713 Fax: (314) 935-5938 email: editor@studlife.com www.studlife.com Editor in Chief: Margaret Bauer Associate Editor: Liz Neukirch Managing Editor: David Tabor Senior News Editor: Sarah Kliff Senior Forum Editor: Molly Antos Senior Cadenza Editor: Laura Vilines Senior Scene Editor: Sarah Baicker Senior Sports Editor: Justin Davidson Senior Photo Editor: David Brody Senior Graphics Editor: Brian Sotak News Editors: Laura Geggel, Brad Nelson Forum Editors: Zach Goodwin, Daniel Milstein, Jeff Stepp, Brian Schroeder Cadenza Editors: Adam Summerville, Jordan Deam Scene Editors: Kristin McGrath, Sarah Klein Sports Editor: Joe Ciolli Photo Editors: David Hartstein, Pam Buzzetta, Oliver Hulland Online Editor: Dan Daranciang Copy Editors: Allie McKay, Nina Perlman, Kelly Donahue, Shannon Petry Designers: Ellen Lo, Laura McLean, Anna Dinndorf, Camila Salvisberg, Jamie Reed General Manager: Andrew O’Dell Advertising Manager: Christopher Kiggins

In the months between accepting the college of their choice and arriving on campus, luggage in tow, students find new brochures, opportunities, and paperwork on their doorsteps nearly every day. One of the more intriguing forms is the housing questionnaire, a document that will eventually decide who students will live with for the next academic year.

After filling out a few simple questions, such as a typical bedtime and how clean they prefer their room, students simply wait for the letter notifying them of their roommate selection.

The questionnaire, now in its third year of use without revisions, is based on a variety of questions used at other schools, and focuses particularly on what Rob Wild, associate director of Residential Life, calls the “greatest possible roommate concerns.” “We look at satisfaction results. We know that one of the biggest problems is the

condition of the room,” such as how clean or messy it is, said Wild He explained that a computer system does the initial assignments using a match score, an indicator of how many characteristics match on a given pair of students.

Roommates are matched before rooms are assigned. Eightyseven percent of freshmen receive either their first or second choice in housing, and even for those who don’t, there’s a very low occurrence of roommate changes.

“I would estimate that between 10-15 freshmen students request room changes during the fall semester,” said Wild, noting that students cite reasons for wanting to move ranging from conflicts with roommates to the desire for a different type of housing, such as a substancefree floor.

Student Union and Residential Life (ResLife) worked together to develop a survey that was sent to last year’s freshmen, asking many of the same questions that were on their housing questionnaire, to see how satisfied

they were with their housing assignment. The survey, which will be available in late August, also allowed for students to suggest other valid questions to put on the questionnaire in the future.

Fewer than 100 returning students go through the roommate selection process each year, and another 100 transfer students are also given room assignments, all of whom are matched in just the same way as the freshmen. Many students choose to stay with their freshman roommate and floormates even after freshman year, and some spend all four years living with these first friends.

The housing assignment process also offers specialty housing, including substancefree living. There are 300 substance-free rooms on campus.

If requests total more than 300, ResLife does its best to accommodate everyone. “If there are 305 students who want substance-free, we’re not going to make a whole floor sub-free for just five people. But we try to match [them] together,” said

Wild. If the number of requests is great enough, ResLife may create an additional substancefree floor on campus.

ResLife is also making a preliminary effort to help accommodate transgender students.

Students worked to raise aware-

ness about the issue this past year. “They just need to come and talk to someone in the office, the RCD [Residential College Director], or me,” said Wild. “We treat everyone on a case-to-case basis. If it’s reasonable, we’ll go ahead and do it.”

spring break due to a heart attack.

Student Union underwent a transformation when Vice President Katie Lekihim resigned.

Former speaker of the Senate, Pamela Bookbinder was elected as the new vice president after Leikhim’s resignation following a medical leave of absence first semester. The process of electing the new VP came under intense scrutiny when senators questioned whether reporters should be allowed inside the room to observe the voting process. In the end, the election took place behind closed doors.

Student also saw changes in financial loans and tuition. Parents were notified of an increase in tuition to approximately $31,000 per year. Students also received a shock when they heard that Pell grants and Perkins loans were facing elimination by the Bush administration. These fears later proved baseless, as Congress recently passed a budget approving both programs.

The year culminated with an unexpected twist as students, faculty, the administration and the nation watched the Student Worker Alliance (SWA) occupy the admissions office for 19 days in April. Starting on April 4, approximately 14 University students undertook a sit-in inside the admission office to demand a living wage for University workers.

During the protest, the administration sent multiple letters asking the protesters to leave the admission office, stating that their presence was violation of judicial code. The letter only fueled the students’ fervor, eventually leading to a hunger strike. Dozens of professors signed a letter in support of SWA’s fight for a living wage, while other students protested against their efforts, dubbing themselves “anti-protesters” and erecting tents alongside the SWA’s camp in the Quad.

The sit-in eventually ended on April 22 after 19 days of student occupation. The final

agreement reached between the SWA and the University included a commitment of $500,000 during the 2005-’06 fiscal year towards improving the living wages and the benefits afforded service workers on campus. It also included several other concessions to the SWA’s demands.

The Judicial Administrator later issued sanctions against most of the students involved in the sit-in.

The 2004-2005 year ended with the display of some students’ fight against injustice as well as displays by others who will face justice as a consequence of their irresponsible actions.

In world news, people responded with compassion while aiding victims of natural disasters, including the tsunami.

Nationally, Americans elected President Bush for another term, and on campus, students secured progress towards a living wage for service workers on campus.

PHOTO BY DAVID HARTSTEIN | STUDENT LIFE

Rob Wild, associate director of Residential Life, spends a busy afternoon in the office working to accommodate students’ requests.

YEAR IN REVIEW v FROM PAGE A1

Copyright 2005 Washington University Student Media, Inc. (WUSMI). Student Life is the financially and editorially independent, student-run newspaper serving the Washington University community.

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Student Life is a publication of WUSMI and does not necessarily represent, in whole or in part, the views of the Washington University administration, faculty or students. All Student Life articles, photos and graphics are the property of WUSMI and may not be reproduced or published without the express written consent of the General Manager. Pictures and graphics printed in Student Life are available for purchase; e-mail editor@ studlife.com for more information. Student Life reserves the right to edit all submissions for style, grammar, length and accuracy. The intent of submissions will not be altered. Student Life reserves the right not to publish all submissions.

If you’d like to place an ad, please contact the Advertising Department at (314) 935-6713.

If you wish to report an error or request a clarification, e-mail editor@studlife.com.

were kicked out of the City Museum during their formal after administrators discovered intoxicated sisters passing out in the women’s bathroom and vomiting in front of a visiting Girl Scout troop. When the Alpha Phi story broke the following Wednesday, hundreds of copies of Student Life were stolen and stashed in nearby trashcans.

In that week, Student Life discovered another alcohol related mishap, when several Lee 3 residents allegedly defecated in and otherwise vandalized their RA’s room. The news came as shock to the campus and administration, and Lee 3 was subsequently designated a substance-free area. The week’s incidents were seen by some to taint the University’s image, although some saw the incidents as an opportunity to spread awareness about alcohol’s detrimental effects.

Following Bush and Kerry’s debate appearance, the University invited various speakers to

lead the 2004-2005 Assembly Series. From Seth Macfarlane, the creator of Family Guy, to civil rights activist Robert Moss, the University offered a variety of lectures, covering topics from the sciences to the humanities.

Speakers included Chris Heinz, Robert Kerry, Piper, Sherman Alexie, and Anita Diamant, among others.

The school encountered difficulties in bringing two outspoken political activists in to speak: Michael Moore and Sean Hannity. Both speakers were scheduled to visit the campus, but Hannity’s demand for a private jet and Moore’s pneumonia caused them to miss their appearances.

Off campus and outside of St. Louis, this year also marked the death of Christopher Reeve, the original Superman; Yasser Arafat, the leader of Palestine; and Pope John Paul II, the head of the Catholic Church. On our own campus, students read the news that junior Jessica Campbell passed away during a

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ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | NEWS

Worshipping at Washington University

By Helen Rhee Staff Reporter Depending on where, when, how, and if a student wants to worship, organizations all over campus offer religious options as varied as the students attending the University. The Catholic Student Center, Hillel, the Muslim Student Association and College Central, the student ministry of Central Presbyterian Church, are four of the largest religious communities on campus.

St. Louis Hillel offers Jewish social, intellectual, and cultural programs. Located near the intersection of Skinker Boulevard and Forsyth Boulevard, Hillel offers a daily morning service, called a minyan, and hosts student-led reform, conservative, and Orthodox services at 5:45 p.m. on Friday evenings. A traditional Shabbat dinner follows the services at 7:00 p.m. Students can also attend Saturday morning services at the Hillel building or can choose to go to a nearby synagogue.

In addition to religious programming, Hillel organizes student community service programs, including Mitzvah Day on September 18, and an annual Jewzapalooza fair in the spring.

Over Labor Day weekend, Hillel will host an orientation program for incoming freshmen called Into the Wild. The program takes place in the Ozarks and pairs freshmen with upperclassmen who act as their mentors for the rest of the year.

“This program gives incoming freshmen the opportunity to meet and to interact with other freshmen, while allowing them to understand more about Jewish community,” said Margo Hamburger-Fox, the executive director at St. Louis Hillel.

Hillel also offers religious counseling for all students and career counseling for graduating students wishing to work in the Jewish community. Said Hamburger-Fox, “Our role is to help Jewish students live the

Jewish way. Hillel is not a religious school. It is created by students [and] is for students.”

Just a few blocks down Forsyth from Hillel, the Catholic Student Center also serves as a resource center for hundreds of students and community members. The CSC holds mass every Sunday at 11:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.

According to Father Gary Braun, the Catholic Student Center (CSC) is a place where students can come “to rest, study, and talk.”

“The Church can be a great resource. We are here to answer questions for students,” Braun explained.

Main events during the school year revolve around Lent and Easter. At all times, the CSC welcomes students of every faith, and Braun believes that it’s the welcoming community draws many non-Catholics to services.

“People feel a lot of love when they come to the service,” said Braun.

Off campus, the CSC sponsors community service trips, including an international trip to Guatemala, a national service trip to Appalachia and inner city tutoring in St. Louis. The CSC also hosts weekly retreats off-campus that, says Braun, “offer a time for students to search their souls and to learn more about their faith.”

The Muslim Student Association’s (MSA) aim is to provide resources for Muslim students as well as to increase awareness and understanding of Islam.

The group’s two main activities each year consist of the annual Ramadan Fast-A-Thon and Islamic Awareness week.

Each year, the MSA hosts a Fast-A-Thon to fight local hunger and poverty while celebrating the month of Ramadan.

“It is a day of celebration in which we encourage nonMuslims to fast. In exchange for their cause, we asked local companies to donate money for every non-Muslim who fasts,”

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The St. Louis Hillel, located near the corner of Skinker and Forsyth, offers a variety of programs for Washington University students. explained Tasmeem Ahmad, President of the MSA. “Last year we raised a lot of money and donated the money to Seed St. Louis.”

Muslim students can attend religious services at a nearby mosque. Graduate students and upperclassmen often offer rides to students without transportation.

Muslim students also have full access to Islamic Housing located in Small Group Housing. The community, called Alif Laam Meem, provides students with the opportunity to read the Koran and the Hadith in the Islamic Library as well as to pray in the prayer room.

“Everyone is very supportive,” Ahmad said, explaining that everyone, including nonMuslims, is welcome to join the club.

College Central, the collegiate ministry of the Central Presbyterian Church in nearby Clayton, is a gospel-centered Christian community. According to Darly Madi, the group’s campus minister, College Central “strives to be a loving community base [for the] message of God’s mercy and of Jesus Christ.”

The Central Presbyterian Church offers services at 9:30 a.m. every Sunday and can be reached via the University’s shuttle system. Alongside weekly sermons, College Central hosts weekly discussions on Tuesday nights at 9:00 p.m. at Ursa’s Fireside Lounge and social events such as volleyball and night-time Frisbee.

College Central will host a campus carnival picnic on August 29 to welcome new mem-

bers.

Apart from these four religious organizations, Washington University plays host to a wide variety of other religious groups. Every spring, ATMA, the Hindu Student Association, celebrates the Hindu festival Holi with a large water balloon fight on the swamp along with Indian food and music. Students involved with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints offer rides to a nearby church for incoming freshmen interested in joining the ward as well as providing weekly family night events.

While religion and politics may typically be treated as taboo subjects of conversation, campus ministers will take on the former during “So my roommate is of another faith…” on August 30 at Friedman Lounge.

Rabbi Avi Katz Orlow from Hillel, Sister Linda from the CSC and other campus ministers will come together to help answer questions for freshmen who may be either hesitant to ask their roommates questions or just curious about different religions. The discussion panel will not only answer specific questions about religious practices and customs but also give advice for how to make the most of new living situations.

Madi advises incoming freshmen who may have doubts about their new roommates to make the best of the situation.

“I would encourage them respect other people,” said Madi.

“I would encourage them to talk about their differences. I would encourage them to do their best to interact with them.”

A3

REGISTRATION v FROM PAGE A1 to take exactly 15 credits. You may end up taking 14 or 16.

You also may end up taking only four classes but taking as many credits as your friend taking five courses.

If you’re debating between taking a lower number of credits versus a higher number, say 12 or 15, register for the higher number. You’ll have until September 21 to drop a course without any mark on your transcript if you begin to feel overwhelmed. If you drop a course between September 21 and November 19, you will receive a “W” next to the course on your report card, meaning you withdrew. Doing that once—especially during your fi rst semester—isn’t a big deal. Just don’t make a habit of it.

Q: If I don’t do pre-orientation or an ArtSci Weekend and I register for classes at the normal time, will I get stuck with classes I don’t want?

A: Most introductory level classes, generally those in the 100s and 200s, will have plenty of open seats, since upperclassmen are primarily enrolled in advanced classes to fufi ll their majors. Some introductory classes have good reputations, however, which makes them difficult to get into even if you are a freshman. Cultural Anthropology, for instance, is very popular.

Also, a lot of introductory level classes meet in the late morning or afternoon. Students have the option of taking one night class per semester from University College, and that class can be used to fufi ll your requirements. So putting together a decent schedule isn’t too difficult.

Q: What about AP credits I earned in high school? How do those fit in?

A: You may have earned a lot of credits through AP exams and, as a result, you may get credit for the introductory level classes and want to take an upper-level course. If you’re in this situation, it may prove a bit more difficult to get into your desired classes. For example, taking general chemistry might be a wiser decision than jumping straight into organic chemistry. But it

really all depends on the department. Political science, for instance, is a very popular major, and most of the classes are full. Most of the upperlevel history classes, on the other hand, have several open spots.

You AP people will get your revenge this fall, when it comes time to register for classes for the spring semester. Class standing determines who gets to register fi rst, meaning seniors go before juniors. But class standing, strictly for registration purposes, is determined by the total number of credits you have, including AP credits, not by when you entered the university. That means if you accumulated a lot of AP credit in the past four years, you could potentially register in a sophomore time slot, even though you’re a freshman. And you’ll maintain that advantage over your fellow classmates throughout your college career.

Q: Are there any interesting classes I should look out for?

A: The freshman seminars, which limit class size to 15, usually get good reviews. One seminar offered this fall, “The History of Everyday Things,” teaches students “about modern society by literally examining its things.” Another seminar, “Race and Ethnicity on American Television” might just turn TV watching into studying. “Popular Music in American Culture” will explore the evolution of music in broader social and politcal contexts. But good luck getting in—the class, at the time of this newspaper’s publication, already had a 41-person waitlist.

There are also some unique upper-level classes to look forward to taking in a year or two. “Banned Books”—a class about, you guessed it, banned books—will try to understand why people feel so threatened about certain works of literature. “Economics of Sports” will take an intellectual approach to some of the bigger issues in the world of athletics today: taxpayer fi nanced professional sports stadiums, salary caps and big time college athletics.

A4 STUDENT LIFE | NEWS

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

A shoulder to turn to: a guide to on-campus counseling

By Elizabeth Lewis Staff Reporter While relocating to college and becoming acquainted with new faces may be a daunting experience for some students, the University has many resources to help deal with a new environment.

Students can turn to Uncle Joe’s Peer Counseling, a 24-hour hotline, for advice on any issue.

Counselors answering the phone at Uncle Joe’s Peer Counseling (Uncle Joe’s) have undergone eighty hours of training, including instruction in freshman adjustment issues, relationships, suicidal thoughts, and depression. A 24-hour paging service, resource center, and office hours

from 1:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. are available daily in the Uncle Joe’s location in the basement of Gregg Hall on the South 40.

“Students call to talk to a trained counselor, and there is always a female on duty in case the [students] have female problems,” said Patrick Weaver, co-director of Uncle Joe’s Counseling.

The Sexual Assault and Rape Action Hotline, a phone number staffed with counselors at all times, is a student-run organization that gives anonymity and confidentiality to its callers.

Senior Kristin Bibee, president of the Sexual Assault and Rape Action Hotline (S.A.R.A.H.), said that those answering the phone have all had training as counselors and are capable of helping

students deal with a number of issues.

“It is a place where someone can call to talk about sexual assault that occurred during high school and college, and [the issue] does not have to be just sexual assault,” said Bibee. “Other issues that can be discussed include emergency contraception and STD testing.”

Unlike other campus counseling services, S.A.R.A.H. conducts all interactions between student and counselor by phone.

Both S.A.R.A.H. and Uncle Joe’s are intended for one-time consultation, not continual treatment. University students are entitled to 15 counseling visits each year at Student Health and Counseling Services, though, with no

cost for the first eight sessions.

Counseling sessions, according to Thomas Brounk, the associate director of counseling at Student Health and Counseling Services (SHCS), may aid students with their transition into the University community.

“All of the counselors have extensive experience in working with college students, and all of them are trained and licensed,” Brounk said. “Some of the difficulties that new students can have are problems with roommates and the transition of moving from an environment full of family and friends to one where they might not know anyone at all. [Students] don’t have to struggle; they can talk with a counselor.”

From Service First to holiday gift drives: how to volunteer at the University

By Laura Geggel News Editor The Class of 2009 and residental advisors will get out paintbrushes, staplers, and rakes September 3 when they travel to an elementary school in the St. Louis area to help with renovations and other projects as part of the annual Service First volunteering program.

“Most of it is painting indoor and outdoor murals, [doing] yard work and [decorating] bulletin boards,” said Stephanie Kurtzman, the University director of community service.

Kurtzman began the halfday program in 1999. Approximately 600 students volunteered to help with trail maintenance that first year.

It was such a success that the National Association of Campus Activities named it one of seven “Exemplary Practices and Model Programs” in the country.

All participants involved in Service First are invited to the Community Service bar-

beque, a picnic on the South 40 “Swamp” where students can discover other ways to volunteer with the University. “[The barbeque] is really critical to staying involved,” said Kurtzman, explaining that most of the major volunteering organizations on campus will be commingling with students during the feast. Kurtzman also sends out a weekly e-mail titled “Community Service Connection,” which you can sign up for at communityservice. wustl.edu.

Students unable to participate in Service First will have a chance to find out about community service groups at the semiannual activities fair on September 7, Kurtzman said.

One such group, Give Thanks Give Back, which coordinates Washington University’s annual holiday gift drive, will be looking for new members to add to its ranks. For the past five years, Give Thanks Give Back (GTGB)—which works with 100 Neediest Families, a St.

Louis agency that conducts case studies on needy families and creates wish lists with their needs—has raised money and bought items from the lists of several dozen families.

“It’s been a very big success. [People can need] anything from peanut butter to a new table,” said junior Kate Lombardi, GTGB president.

“We’re hoping that the freshmen [class] will get really involved this year.”

The Campus Y also promotes volunteering through student groups. “[We have] 21 different program ways to get involved with this year, from tutoring kids in mentoring programs to working with animals and the elderly at a local nursing homes,” said Tiffany Newcom, the Campus Y program director. One of their new programs, Junior Achievement, will help kids in inner-city schools learn more about finances. “[Students will be] teaching lessons—like about how to work in the community and how the economy is

Counseling services are open from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., as well as by pager for emergencies at all times. SHCS also provides medical treatment for illness and injuries, and doctors are present on weekdays. Appointments with a surgeon, a dermatologist, an orthopedist, a gynecologist, or a psychiatrist are also available on a scheduled basis.

The Emergency Support Team offers around-the-clock medical service to all members of the University community. Comprised of student volunteers, all of whom are certified in CPR and Standard First Aid, each member of the Emergency Service Support Team (EST) is also an Emergency Medical Technician or in training to become one. EST is available at any hour and responds to situations ranging from minor to major emergencies within three to five minutes.

In addition to providing emergency support, EST completes training programs for students in conjunction with the Committee Organized for Rape Education, SHCS, and Clayton Fire and Ambulance.

CAMPUS RESOURCES: HOW TO GET IN TOUCH

v Sexual Assault and Rape Action Hotline (S.A.R.A.H.) 935-8080

v Uncle Joe’s Peer Counseling 935-5099

v Emergency Support Team (EST) 935-5555

v Counseling Services 935-6666

run. [It will be] getting kids to think about have to save money and spend money,” Newcom said.

On average, students who volunteer will spend around one to three hours a week, travel time included, working on their respective projects.

Many freshmen volunteer in groups, but individual projects are also encouraged.

“Part of the fun of community service is making friends,” said Kurtzman.

Each community service organization arranges methods of transportation, whether it be by carpool or Metrolink, if the program is not on campus. Getting out into the community and giving back, says Lombardi, is an important part of life at the University. “[St. Louis] has been recognized as one of the most poverty stricken areas in the country,” she said. “That’s why it’s so important for us to make a difference while at Washington University.”

Your health is your responsibility and it is our job.

By providing high quality medical care, prevention information and programs,

Student Health Services and Health Promotion Services help you make healthy decisions and manage your own health care needs.

Student Health Services include general medicine, physical therapy, nutrition, gynecology, orthopedics, psychiatry, counseling, stress management, smoking cessation, alcohol and other drug counseling, HIV testing, lab and pharmacy.

Health Promotion Services include resources and customized health education programs on alcohol and other drugs, mental health, sexual health and other topics of concern to students.

Umrath Hall, next to Graham Chapel Phone: 935-6666 Hours: Mon.-Thurs. 8am–6pm, Fri. 8am–5pm, Sat. & Sun. 10am–2pm.

Women’s Building, Room 2 Phone: 935-7139 Hours: Mon.-Fri. 8:30am–5pm

shcs.wustl.edu

wellness.wustl.edu

Don’t wait until you are sick or in crisis to use our services. Our professionals are here to help.

ALL SERVICES ARE COMPLETELY CONFIDENTIAL.

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ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | ADVERTISEMENT

A5

A6 STUDENT LIFE | NEWS

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Wash. U. by the numbers

By Brad Nelson News Editor Chancellor Mark Wrighton may be the top dog, but he doesn’t make the top dollar when it comes to Washington University employees. That honor goes to Daniel Riew, a professor of orthopedic surgery in the medical school. Here are some other Wash. U. facts and figures you may not have known: Numbers

student admissions committee

Endowment: $4 billion (Rank: #8) Federal research funds: $303,441,000 (#15) Volumes in library: 3,608,538 (#35) Tuition: $30,546 (Private, four-year university national average: $20,082) College Rankings (from sources other than U.S. News or The Princeton Review) The Times of London’s “Best Universities in the World” 2005: #74 (#31 in North America) Seventeen Magazine’s “Top 50 Coolest Colleges” 2002-2003: #7 The Atlantic Monthly’s “Top Undergraduate Programs” 2003-2004: #11 Journal of Blacks in Higher Education’s “Integrating African-American Undergraduates” 2002-2003: #4 People Top Five Highest Paid Washington University Employees: Daniel Riew Ralph Dacey Timothy Eberlein Richard Gelberman Roberta Sengelmann

Income $999,292 $864,594 $840,135 $840,135 $821,623

Professor of Orthopedic Surgery Professor of Neurosurgery Professor of Surgery and Pathology Professor of Orthopedic Surgery Assistant Professor of Medicine

Top Five Highest Paid Washington University Administrators: William Peck Mark Wrighton Edward Macias Richard Roloff Michael Cannon

Dean, School of Medicine Chancellor Dean, School of Arts & Sciences Executive Vice Chancellor General Council

Income

Natl. Avg.

$636,423 $636,243 $395,050 $322,576 $314,026

$320,852 $250,358 $152,500 $207,100 $141,251

Members give campus tours and presentations to visitors. A great way to have fun, meet people and show off your school!

Notable Members of the Board of Trustees: W. Patrick McGinnis: President and CEO, Nestlé Purina PetCare Company Bob Hernreich: Co-Owner, Sacramento Kings Jack Taylor: Founder, Enterprise Rent-A-Car Co. Notable Alumni: Mike Peters: 1981 Pulitzer Prize winner for editorial cartooning, creator of the cartoon strip “Mother Goose & Grimm” Harold Ramis: writer, “Animal House,” “Ghostbusters;” writer and director, “Caddyshack,” “Analyze This” Carolyne Roehm: fashion designer and author Jim Talent: current Missouri senator George Herbert Walker: founder of the Walker Cup in golf, grandfather of former President George H.W. Bush and great-grandfather of President George W. Bush William Webster: former director of the FBI and CIA Tennessee Williams: playwright, “A Streetcar Named Desire,” “The Glass Menagerie” Class of 2009: Size: Approximately 1,400 Location: 47 states, plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, and 19 different countries

New member selection begins in October.

For more information, visit http://uavolunteer.wustl.edu or stop by the Undergraduate Admissions table at the Activities Fair.

WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY POLICE 935-5555 ASSISTANCE IS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS ...FROM OUT OF THE BLUE There are over 100 EMERGENCY TELEPHONES strategically located on campus providing direct contact with the Police Department 24hrs a day for assistance or in the case of an emergency.

The Washington University Police Department invites all students to drop by the Police Station on the South 40.

We will gladly introduce you to our programs: ✔

“STOP”TAG COMPUTER SECURITY PROGRAM

✔

SAFETY WHISTLES

✔

“RAD” RAPE AGGRESSION DEFENSE TRAINING

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FREE BICYCLE REGISTRATION FREE HIGH SECURITY BIKE LOCKS (with a refundable deposit) OPERATION I-DENT SECURITY ESCORT SERVICES BEAR PATROL:

✔ ✔ ✔

Positions available for students participating in the Work-Study Program working with the University Police.

Free bicycle registration is available from the University Police Department. All members of the University Community are encouraged to register their bicycles. A decal and registration number are issued and provided for permanent attachment to each bicycle registered.

Kryptonite® Bike Locks are available through a “lend-lease” program. A twenty dollar deposit is required when the lock is picked up, but is refunded upon return of the lock to the University Police.

If the person decides to keep the lock it is considered purchased for twenty dollars and no penalty is assessed.

When securing bicycles place the lock through the wheel and the frame and around the bike rack. Take the front wheel and or seat with you, if removable.

For more information about Police Department safety programs, contact our Crime Prevention Office at 935-5084 or visit our website at www.police.wustl.edu.

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | SCENE AND NEWS

A7

The Washington University in St. Louis Dictionary for the Class of 2009

By Sarah Kliff and Sarah Baicker Student Life Staff

AC, The: n. An abbreviation for the “Athletic Complex.” A building at the west end of campus that houses the University’s athletic facilities and is open to all students. Also was the location of the 2004 Presidential Debate.

1. “I’m going to go play basketball at the AC with some guys from my floor, wanna come?”

ArtSci Weekend: n. A three-day period over the summer, lasting from Thursday through Sunday, during which incoming freshman in the school of Arts and Sciences visit campus, register for classes, meet other freshmen, and get really lost trying to navigate campus for the first time.

1. “That kid looks so familiar...I think he might have been at my ArtSci Weekend.”

BD: n. 1. An abbreviation for “Bear’s Den.” 2. v. An abbreviation for the phrase “eat at Bear’s Den.” Used less frequently.

1. “I think I’ve developed an addiction to the quesadillas at BD.” 2. “Do you want to BD in half an hour?”

pie at CC last night.”

Center Court: n. The buffet-style dining venue upstairs in the Wohl Center, on the South 40.

1. “I can’t meet up with you, I have a floor dinner at Center Court tonight.”

1. “Are you going to walk all the way to back to the Forty between classes? I don’t think you’ll make it.”

Clock Tower, The:

See also: South Forty, The. 40, The.

n. The tall, standing clock in front of Ursa’s. A common meeting place for students, a popular shuttle stop, and the location where all the cabs line up before breaks.

1. “Do you want to share a cab to the airport with me? It’ll be at the clock tower at 3:30.”

EST: n. An abbreviation for “Emergency Support Team.” Responds to medical emergencies on campus every day at any hour.

Crews providing support consist of three student volunteers, two of whom have Missouri EMT-B licenses.

1. “The guys on EST work crazy hours—my friend was hanging out in their office all Saturday night.”

Facebook, The:

1. “Anyone need anything? I’m going on a Bear Mart run.”

n. A website (www.thefacebook. com) for college students on which individuals post personal profiles and link up with people at Wash. U. and other schools by “friending” them. 2.

An online service that allows individuals to see who will be in their classes and stalk that cute guy from E. Comp. 3. v. To look up someone’s profile on the Facebook.

Bear’s Den:

1. “Mary, do you have your profile up on the Facebook yet?”

Bear Mart: n. A food venue on the ground floor of the Wohl Center, resembling a convenience store but containing an abnormally large section of specialty and organic foods.

n. The à la carte dining venue on the bottom floor of Wohl Center on the South Forty.

1. “I could eat the tomato basil mozzarella salad at Bear’s Den every night and be totally satisfied.”

Bosco Sticks: n. Cheese-filled breadsticks offered by Bear’s Den. 1. “For dinner tonight, I think I’ll have French fries, pasta, and three Bosco Sticks.”

Blue Hill: n. A restaurant on the Loop popular among students.

1. “It sucks that you have to be 21 to see Chuck Berry play at Blue Hill, or else I would totally go.”

CC: 1. n. An abbreviation for Center Court. A popular location for freshman floor dinners 2. v. An abbreviation for the phrase “eat at Center Court.” Used in the same sense as BD. 1. “They had the best pumpkin

n. A residential area south of the main Hilltop campus that contains all freshman dormitories.

Name derives from the 40 acres of land it occupies.

2. “Did you see that guy in The Amateurs? I’m so going to facebook him when I get back to my room!”

Fall Break: n. A three-day weekend in October during which students from the surrounding area go home while those a plane flight away spend a good deal of time sleeping.

1. “This campus totally shuts down during fall break. I couldn’t find food anywhere, and I even walked all the way to the Village!”

Forest Park: n. The park directly across Skinker Boulevard from Wash.

U. It is the second largest in the nation and is home to much free entertainment, including the St. Louis Zoo, Muny, Science Center, Art Museum, and History Museum.

1. “The half-hour walk to Forest Park is definitely worth it to see the penguins at the zoo.”

Forty, The:

Fro-yo: n. An abbreviation for “frozen yogurt,” a soft ice cream-like dessert with self-serve machines in Bear Mart and Center Court.

See also: frogurt, n.

1. Damnit! The fro-yo machine in Bear Mart is broken again!”

Galleria, The: n. The closest mall to Wash. U. Includes many popular stores, as well as a food court and movie theater.

1. “I’m so sick of Bear’s Den— how about The Cheesecake Factory at the Galleria for dinner?”

Hilltop: n. 1. The bakery in Mallinckrodt Center. 2. An abbreviation for “Hilltop Campus,” the main campus of the University.

1. “The smoothies at Hilltop are so good. I love the peachy banana one.”

2. “The med school is over on West Campus, not on the Hilltop.”

IFC: n. An abbreviation for “Interfraternity Council.” The governing body of the fraternity system.

1. “Sorry, I can’t do anything this weekend. I’m going on an IFC retreat with the whole board.”

1. “I think I’m going to run for a Panhel position next year.”

Res College:

1. “Do they seriously call soda ‘pop’ in Ohio and Illinois?!”

PF:

n. An abbreviation for “Residential College.” A grouping of two or three dormitories that sponsor events together and are unified under a specific theme.

StudLife:

n. An abbreviation for “prefreshman,” one who visits the University as a junior or senior in high school, takes a tour, and most likely spends the night in the dorm room of a current student.

1. “God, I hope the PF staying in our suite tonight doesn’t snore.”

See also: Pre-Frosh.

Pre-O: n. An abbreviation for “preorientation.” These four-day programs for freshmen are run by student groups and occur immediately prior to general orientation to acquaint students with specific campus activities.

1. “I think I met that guy back in the Leadership through Service Pre-O, but I have no idea what his name is.”

RA: n. An abbreviation for “Residential Advisor.” An upperclassman who lives in and helps supervise University housing. There are two RAs—one female and one male—on each floor in a freshman dormitory.

1. “My RA told me that Human Evolution is a really great class to take.”

RCC: n. An abbreviation for “Residential Computing Consultant.” A student who oversees a residential college’s computer lab and also as aids students living in that residential college with computer problems.

1. “Do you have the RCC’s number? My computer just froze and this paper is due in half an hour!”

1. “Did you see that hot girl at the res college social? I don’t think she lives in Lee. She must be from Beaumont.”

Quad, The: n. The quadrangle of grass at the east end of campus bordered by Brookings Hall, Ridgley Hall, Busch Hall, and Cupples I Hall where University students play Frisbee, study outside, bask in the sun, and generally look collegiate for admissions brochures.

1. “I almost got hit by a Frisbee walking through the Quad this afternoon!”

Row, The: n. Stretch of fraternity houses on the northwest side of campus known as Fraternity Row, or, more colloquially, “Frat Row.” 1. “I heard there’re going to be some wicked parties on the row this weekend.”

Ruby: n. Abbreviation for “Rubelmann.” One of the South 40’s oldest freshman dormitories.

1. “Dude, I think she’s hooking up with an RA from Ruby!”

SAC: n. An abbreviation for “Student Admissions Committee,” pronounced “sack.” This is a group of volunteer students who give tours and master the art of backwards walking. An individual member of SAC can be called “a SACer.” 1. “I’m going to the SAC information session later, ‘cause I really want to be a tour guide.”

J-Prog:

RCD:

n. An abbreviation for “January Program” or “January Scholar.”

A freshman who starts at the University in the spring semester.

n. An abbreviation for “Residential College Director.” An adult who oversees the on-goings of a residential college, as well as supervises the RAs and RCC.

1. “These two great J-Progs moved into the room next to mine after winter break.”

1. “My RCD organized this huge ice cream sundae thing for our res college, it was great!”

Loop, The:

Red Alert:

See also: sexiled, adj.

n. 1. A stretch of Delmar Boulevard north of campus that is not actually a loop, but rather a neighborhood containing restaurants, book stores, and music stores. Named for a former streetcar loop that traversed the area. 2. A common walking-distance destination for freshmen.

n. A student group that sponsors events to support Wash. U. sports.

SLAM:

1. “Free pizza from Red Alert before the swim meet? I’m so there.”

n. Acronym for “St. Louis Art Museum.” One of a number of free, public museums located in nearby Forest Park.

1. “I found the best bubble tea place on the Loop.”

n. A campus service that provides computer troubleshooting for students. They’re also WU’s Internet service provider.

Panhel: An abbreviation for “Women’s Panhellenic Association.” The governing body of the sorority system.

ResTech:

1. “If you call ResTech, will they tell you how to connect to the Internet?”

Sexile: v. To prevent a roommate from entering the shared room on account of sexual activity with a third party.

1. “I have this terrible feeling my roommate is going to sexile me again tonight...”

1. “That exhibit we saw at SLAM was so slammin’, don’t you think?”

Soda: n. Correct name for sugary, often caffeinated drinks like Coke, Pepsi, and Sprite, sometimes mistakenly referred to as “pop.”

n. 1. An abbreviation for “Student Life,” Washington University’s tri-weekly newspaper, which you’re now reading. 2. Common name for Student Life’s website, www.studlife.com.

1. “Writing for StudLife will make you the coolest new student at Wash. U.”

Sub-Free: adj. An abbreviation for “substance free,” meaning not allowing any drug or alcohol use.

Typically used in reference to specific floors within dormitories, along with the entire Beaumont and Rutledge dormitories.

1. “There’s no use looking for a party in Beaumont—it’s subfree.”

Swamp, The: n. Nickname for the recreational field located on the South Forty, which is often a location for pick-up Frisbee, football, and soccer games among students.

1. “Hey Andrew, you know you wanna come play Frisbee on the swamp...”

Thurtene: n. Annual carnival sponsored by the Thurtene Junior Honorary, at which fraternities and sororities build facades to put on theatrical performances; also a fundraising event that usually caters to the St. Louis community with an outdoor carnival located outside the AC, usually in April.

1. “Kappa Sig’s façade was easily the best one out there this year at Thurtene.”

Village, The: n. A residential area on the north side of campus that houses upperclassmen.

1. “I hear that the singles in the Village are massively large.”

Wash Ave: n. A street north of campus on which many upperclassmen own apartments.

1. “I heard from my roommate’s friend’s RA that there is going to be a great party down on Wash Ave this Saturday.”

WILD: n. An abbreviation for “Walk In, Lay Down.” A twice-yearly concert, put together by the student group Team 31, that brings wellknown musical acts to perform in the Quad amidst couches and much drunken revelry.

1. “I heard a rumor that Nelly is so going to play fall WILD this year.”

Sex, lies, and lucky charms: dating advice for freshmen

By Rachel Brockway Scene Columnist After my editor asked me to contribute to this edition of Student Life, I had to try to remember what it was like coming to college. As the weekly Wash. U. relationship columnist, I often fi nd myself dealing with—and consequently writing about—frat boys, sex and dating…subjects I will embrace within this column.

But let’s start at the beginning. You, incoming freshman, are either single and looking for hookups or a relationship, or you are like I was: in a “very serious,” long-term relationship. I would like to address you monogamous fools fi rst.

Leaving for college, I kissed my high school sweetie with rapture and vowed to stay ever-so-faithful at Washington University. I had dated this smooth football player for

three years and thought I was oh-so-in-love. I broke up with him three days later.

Once this breakup inevitably happens to you, (and yes, dear, it will) you will have several options in front of you: 1. Find a replacement boyfriend to ease your pain and possibly take your mind completely off of Perfect Joe from home. In my case, the RB (replacement boyfriend) was the cause of the big breakup.

Great deal for me, but not so great for high school boyfriend.

2. Hook up with other college kids like there is no tomorrow, a route often preferred and carried out by deprived yet eager young men.

3. Have a sizeable mourning period and become known as “that freshman who cannot stop crying and eating chocolate,” a tactic usually embraced by the poor dumpee.

4. Get over the high school

sweetheart at a “healthy” pace, make new friends at a “healthy” rate, and date again when the time “seems right...”

Okay, so as far as I’m concerned, this one is an urban legend made up by good-hearted parents who don’t like the idea of options one through three.

Again, I’m sorry if telling you that your high school relationship won’t last fi lls you with horror and rage. A good friend of mine came traipsing into college swearing that she and her beloved would last through anything and were defi nitely going to get married. To the surprise of all of our friends they lasted... for one month.

I’m not saying that Wash.

U.’s selection of men and women is so vast that high school relationships carried into college seem bleak in comparison. But do you really think that, after living with

thousands of intelligent, fun and exciting young men and women you will really be able to resist the temptation? Or want to resist the temptation?

The answer is no. College is way too unique and exciting to call good old Joe (who is probably getting plenty of ass at whatever institution he’s chosen, or at least thinking about it) twelve times a day just to say “I love you.”

Before I give you free reign to run around enjoying yourself (and everyone around you), I want to warn you about a couple options that may pop up and look like great ideas, but might not be in the long haul.

Say you meet a wonderful girl named Katie. She’s everything you ever wanted: so sexy, so fun, so smart. Amazingly, she lives on your floor, just two doors down from you.

Imagine you can either hook up with her (if she’ll let you),

or date her (if she wants to).

But stop right there for just a moment. Dating or hooking up with floormates is a very tricky thing. What if it gets awkward? What if you break up? What if Katie is an awful kisser but she keeps pining after you? Think about these things before you take the dive.

The RB I dated lived a few doors away. Luckily, we didn’t break up until the summer.

Unluckily, we were so into being with each other we didn’t meet many other people. Learn from my mistake: DO NOT cling to a new relationship— whether it be a boyfriend or a roommate—for the sole purpose of comfort or safety. Take risks; have fun. You are only a freshman once.

My last topic is sex. Sex sex sex. Please, please do not lose your virginity on a one-night stand while drunk. Please.

Although it might be alluring

for you young men, in the long run it’s not how you want to lose it. Even my macho, sometimes bordering-on-chauvinistic male friends who lost their virginity this way regret it. My advice is to wait until you—at the very least—have a meaningful relationship before you give it up. Then feel free to have all the porn-style sex you want and actually enjoy it!

College is not about partying, or sex, or staying up all night. It’s about relationships, learning, and being comfortable with who you are.

Embrace your individuality and be independent. As Saint Francis said, “be who you are and be that well.” You will inevitably have some great experiences, some weird experiences, and some funny as all hell experiences. And if you happen to have great sex with someone you care about, then I am so jealous!

A8 STUDENT LIFE | SCENE

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Campus Spotlight: Arts & Sciences Summer Weekends

By Kristin McGrath Scene Special Features Editor ArtSci Summer Weekends, which allow incoming freshmen to register early while spending two days on campus, also help Wash. U.’s newest recruits develop skills essential to their academic life here. These skills include navigating the cluster system, using campus resources and planning for a major.

This summer, thanks to karaoke competitions at Ursa’s, the class of 2009 became well schooled in another skill vital to the college experience: belting out songs and performing impromptu choreography for the amusement of people they’d just met. “I had to draw upon my early ‘90s roots,� Eric Fleischaker said of his passionate performance of an Ace of Base hit during a June ArtSci Weekend. “I was raised on such classics as ‘The Sign.’�

While Fleischaker took the stage, his audience cheered him on from Ursa’s velvety armchairs as they mingled

with their soon-to-be classmates. “This weekend is one big icebreaker,� said Tyler Rhodes. “You get to have a weekend at college...When you visit the campus and go on the tour, you see what the school wants to portray, whereas when you’re here with the other students, you see what it’s actually about.�

Truly experiencing the independence that comes with attending college, however, would have to wait until the fall. “Some of the rules are kind of ridiculous,� said Mary Ahmad, of the rules that ArtSci Weekend participants have to follow. Participants are not allowed inside dorms other than the one they are staying in, are not permitted to leave campus, and must wear their nametags at all times.

Still, Ahmad found the experience valuable overall. “Meeting your advisor is the best part, deďŹ nitely,â€? said Ahmad. “You get to meet them with your advising group, which is cool, because

you know you’re going to see each other again in the fall.�

At a nearby table, junior Brian Ponton and sophomore Jon Chen, both R.A.s for the ArtSci Weekend program, were poring over a list of songs available for Chen’s karaoke performance. Although “sadly disappointedâ€? that he had to settle for Enrique Iglesias’ “Heroâ€? instead of his favorite song, Vanessa Carlton’s “1,000 Miles,â€? Chen was glad to be part of yet another ArtSci Weekend. “I’ve been part of [ArtSci Weekends] multiple times unofďŹ cially,â€? said Chen. “I keep coming back because I like to get the freshmen pumped up for the coming year.â€?

After completing his duties as an ArtSci Weekend R.A., Ponton will continue bonding with Wash. U. newcomers as a freshman oor R.A. “I miss the freshman oor atmosphere,â€? said Ponton. “As an upperclassman you don’t get that. That’s one of the reasons I’m going to be a freshman oor R.A. this year. I want to foster that

same sense of community I remember from my freshman oor.�

Pamela Talley got a taste of dorm life during her weekend stay in Danforth.

Prior to the karaoke competition, she and her temporary oor mates threw a “hallway party.â€? “The dorms are massive, a lot bigger than at some other schools I visited,â€? said Talley. “I could have a Pilates session and invite a whole bunch of people to join me. I wasn’t expecting the dorms to be that big. And they’re very clean, too, and just super nice.â€?

What Talley is most looking forward to about life at Wash. U., however, are the experiences that will take place outside her dorm room. “[College] will be a chance to explore new sides of myself,� said Talley. “And that’s in terms of the extracurriculars that I get involved in, classes, and the diverse people I know I’m going to meet here. It’s also a chance to get away from home.�

Equally ready to throw

PHOTO BY KRISTIN MCGRATH | STUDENT LIFE

ArtSci Weekenders mug for the crowd at a recent karaoke competition in Ursa’s CafÊ. herself into life at Wash U was Jen Green, who has known for years that she wants to study history and

archeology. “I’m looking forward to the challenge,� said Green. “Finally, a challenge!�

Attention Parents!

Looking for ways to stay connected to your freshman student?

Parent Pak from Student Life is an excellent way to stay connected and remain involved with your student’s life after orientation ends.

Watch your mailbox for more information on Parent Pak in August!

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ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | SCENE

Homework: lighten the load

By Sarah Klein Scene Regular Features Editor Okay. So. Homework. The tutoring tool of the teacher and the scourge of the student. And yes, it happens at Wash. U. A lot. And often in big chunks (read: lots of readings, major papers, and too many tests.)

I don’t mean to scare anyone, since I love Wash.

U., but there’s really no getting away from the grind. At Wash. U. we all want the grade and the knowledge with the least amount of torture possible, so the only way to deal with homework is to work with it, not against it. It doesn’t have to be your enemy. I don’t claim to be an expert on the subject, but I am a seasoned veteran and semiworkaholic. Here are my suggestions: For long term papers there are several ways to avoid the agony of working on them in the short term. First and foremost, pretend the paper is due a week before it actually is.

It’s incredibly difficult to write a 10 to 20 page paper the night before it’s due. So if you write it the night before the pretend due date, there’s a little pressure taken off if you fall asleep on top of your computer at 5:00 a.m.

Along with the leeway, you will then have additional time to proofread and avoid stupid mistakes that make you seem like a complete ditz. Case in point: my friend in high school turned in a history paper that she had not proofread very carefully.

In class, when the papers were handed back, as the pages touched her fingertips, she noticed lots of red circles. Turns out every

time she had meant to write “opinion,” she had instead written “onion,” leaving our teacher quite bewildered until the second page.

For research papers, I know this has been said, but I’ll say it again: it’s really important to start your research early. I mean early-bird early, like it’s barely spring and the ground is still frozen and you’re digging for that worm with your sniffling beak. You want to avoid the embarrassment of calling your parents who have connections to a different university five days before your paper is due, whining that the school does not have the articles you need and you ordered them off MOBIUS or ILLIAD (interlibrary loan systems), but they’re not due to come in for a week and a half and you are desperate. We are independent, semi-adults and we do not need this cruel and unusual type of humiliation.

Wash. U. has a great library (the name is Olin, by the way, and believe me, you’ll come to know it and love it), but despite its many wonders, it does not have materials on every topic, and if you’re going to order sources, you have to do it way ahead of time.

You may find your articles two weeks before the paper is due, but that doesn’t mean anything unless the textual copies are in your hands or on your computer when it comes time to write the paper. Another alternative is to pick paper topics which can be fully researched at Wash. U., of which there are many.

As for readings, well, I’m going to take a chance at my professors’ rage here when I say you don’t have

to do all of the readings.

Even some professors admit that there is no way to complete all the readings they assign on their syllabi in addition to the work for your other classes. There’s just so much information in any given course that you must pick and choose what you learn. (Granted, you should try to learn what is going to be on the test.)

My advice is, especially for discussion classes, to at least skim through the readings enough to 1. learn a little something about the topic, and 2. be able to discuss something about them. You don’t have to eat the entire enchilada to know what it tastes like. If you have the time, by all means try to do all of them; for some courses the readings are fascinating and I actually wish I could read them all. But for those of us who enjoy sleeping, eating, and having a little fun once in a while, taste tests are much better than trying to wolf down five course meals.

For exams, all I have to say is that all-nighters are no fun—I can’t actually physically do them. Starting to study at least three days before, although it is often hard to make yourself do it, makes for a much less painful process, both before and during the test.

Plus, you’ll probably get that A or B because you slept some on the material.

And remember to have FUN sometimes. It comes in handy when you reach those rare studying moments when you can’t help but ask, “Whyyyyyyyy?”

A9

Roommates 101: how to deal

By Sarah Baicker Senior Scene Editor Undoubtedly, you’ve been awaiting it since the moment coming to Wash. U. became a reality. If you haven’t gotten it yet, it’s likely you’re the fi rst one out to the mailbox every morning, fastidiously searching through each batch of mail with your fi ngers crossed, hoping that today’s the day.

But once you’ve received it, a whole new bunch of anticipations arises: will you guys be the best of friends? Will he cheer for the Cubs, too? Will she be from the city or the country? The east coast or the west coast? A blue state or a red state? Or will you guys just want to kill each other in a matter of days?

That’s right: the letter from ResLife that notifies you of your freshman year roommate, the person you’ll be coming home to every day for the next two semesters.

The majority of us will have at least one roommate during our college careers, but—especially if you’ve had your own room growing up—getting used to sharing your space with someone is no walk through the park.

In retrospect, all the difficulties your roommate causes you will seem petty, and at the very least provide you with something to agonize about over beers with your friends. But that doesn’t mean you’ll enjoy all the bickering when there’s still a semester and a half left until you can say goodbye to him for good.

There are, though, a few things to keep in mind once you’ve arrived in August and fi nally met the person whom you’ll soon know more about than you ever wished to know about anyone, ever.

First and foremost, “set realistic expectations,” advises Karen Coburn, assistant vice chancellor for students. “You don’t have to be best friends with your roommate, [but] you do have to learn to live together, share your space

and respect each other.”

It’s important to remember that you are also someone’s roommate. Think about how you’d like your roommate to treat you, and try to follow suit when dealing with him.

If you’d appreciate it if he didn’t hit the snooze button 18 times every morning, he’d probably be grateful if you kept your pile of dirty underwear away from his desk.

Coburn suggests making a list with your roommate early on including ground rules— times you’ll need to study, whether or not you’re willing to share clothes, listen to music while you work, etc.

“If you set a tone of open discussion right from the beginning, you’ll be better able to discuss other issues as they come up,” Coburn says.

It’s also important not to let yourself become a doormat, though. For those of you who have been taught to always be polite and accommodating, college is the time to forget everything you’ve ever learned (oh, the irony!).

If there’s something your roommate does that’s just down right disrespectful, let her know! The bottom line is, don’t treat your roommate like your live-in servant, but don’t let her walk all over you, either.

“It’s important to compromise,” says Coburn.

Speaking of compromise, room set-up is a big one.

As tempting as it might be to let mom and dad do all the heavy lifting and set up your room for you, don’t let them! Coburn recommends using room decorating as an ice-breaker with your new roomie. It’s a great get-toknow-you activity, and doing it together will avoid potential frustration later on.

Whether you have a significant other or your roomie does, the desire for alone time with that special someone can lead to strains on the roommate relationship—trust me, I’ve heard every horror story imaginable. There’s no easy fi x to the boyfriend/girlfriend quandary, but if you’re

the one with the active social life, please, please, please heed this little rule: if you and your special friend are planning anything “romantic” in your room, let your roommate know! I’ve seen some students get creative in their notification (read: hanging socks or underwear from the doorknob), but it doesn’t matter how you give them the heads up. Just be sure to do it, and everyone involved can avoid embarrassment.

It’s possible that you and your roommate will hit it off right away and become best buds. Obviously, this would make your living situation much easier than expected, not to mention you’d have someone to eat dinner with and explore campus with you.

But even so, Coburn stresses the importance of meeting other people, and forming bonds outside of the roommate relationship.

“Even if you and your roommate do become best friends, be sure to branch out and widen your circle,” she says.

If your living situation is absolutely intolerable, remember that switching into a new room is an option.

ResLife wants your year to be an enjoyable one (and it should be), so if you dread returning to your room at the end of the day, speaking with an RA about your concerns is the fi rst step. He or she can then point you in the right direction, whether that means having a mediated discussion with your roommate or moving across the South 40.

When you’ve received your roommate’s contact information, go ahead and begin the relationship ASAP. Make a quick and friendly call, and be sure to keep an open mind. Ask about their hobbies, their potential major, their family. Getting a feel for you soon-to-be-roomie will no doubt calm your nerves. And chances are, you’ll both survive freshman year.

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A10 STUDENT LIFE | SCENE

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Our hometown

By Kristin McGrath

Q: What’s the weather like in St. Louis?

“In chronological order from early fall to early summer: hot and wet, warm and nice, cold and wet, really cold and dry, slightly warmer and wet, and then really, really nice, then hot and wet.

Generally, it’s not too bad.”

–Sarah Klein, Scene Editor “Imagine living in someone’s armpit, alongside other people, most of whom coincidentally also smell like armpits. And sometimes it rains.”

-Joshua Trein, Columnist “The weather in St. Louis is crazy unpredictable. I don’t think I’ve ever used an umbrella so much in my entire life (of course, I do live in the desert). To be completely prepared, always travel with an umbrella, a jacket, or sweatshirt of some sort, tennis shoes, and layered clothing so you can adjust to whatever temperature it decides to be.”

-Erin Fults, Staff Reporter Q: Do people really say “herre” and “therre” like Nelly and Chingy?

“Some do, but I’d say a lot of them are people from out of state who are trying too hard to sound like Nelly and Chingy.”

–Kristin McGrath, Scene Editor “Some people say that. I get the feeling that it’s getting a little old, though.”

and Sarah Baicker

necessarily involve drinking, like concerts.”

–Sarah Klein “The underage nightlife is much like the over-age nightlife, in that either way you won’t remember how you ended up covered in your own vomit arguing with EST that, yes, you can damn well stop anytime you want.”

–Joshua Trein Q: What are some places to avoid?

many menus and reviews, and often check out pics of the decor and food. The Clayton area, in particular, is a great place to go to eat.”

–Sarah Ulrey, Former Student Life Staff, Class of 2005 Q: What can I do for free?

“SLAM, the Zoo, anywhere in Forest Park, any number of art galleries, the Arch, the Museum at the Arch…”

“Just keep driving down Delmar for a little bit and you’ll see...it’s pretty self-explanatory. My friend was looking for a place where she could take meditation classes, and when she found one on the Loop, she called them up. They told her it was probably not what she was looking for, because this particular place specialized in criminal rehabilitation.”

–Allie Wieczorec, Staff Reporter Q: Where should I take my parents (and their wallets) while they’re in town?

“Go to Target, and get stocked up on all the stuff you could ever need for your room. Same goes for the new Trader Joe’s in Brentwood and Whole Foods. They’re a schlep to get to on the shuttle; much more accessible with the parents’ car and wallet.”

“Go people-watching on the Loop!

It’s more fascinating than the Forest Park Zoo (which is also free, by the way).”

–Kristin McGrath “Getting mugged is a favorite of mine, as long as you don’t carry anything of value. If that’s a little too exciting, you can always drive 64/40 during rush hour and laugh at the pathetically slow St. Louis drivers.”

–Aaron Seligman, Former Student Life Staff, Class of 2005 Q: Does St. Louis have a good concert scene?

“St. Louis doesn’t get as many concerts as larger cities, but two venues you should check out are the Creepy Crawl and the Gargoyle. The Creepy Crawl is easy to get to by MetroLink and typically hosts smaller indie rock concerts as well as some local music. The Gargoyle is right on campus, downstairs in Mallinckrodt, and brings really great bands to campus.”

–Sarah Kliff

PHOTO BY RAY WIGGINS | STOCK.XCHNG

“Go on www.saucecafe.com and fi nd a restaurant that serves what you’re craving. There are tons of nice restaurants in St. Louis, and with this website you can read

“Since freshman year, I’ve seen Bob Dylan, Pearl Jam, Our Lady Peace, and Ben Kweller, among a number of others—you decide.”

–Sarah Baicker, Senior Scene Editor

still refers to soda as ‘pop.’”

–Sarah Baicker

“Depends on where you’re from.

If you’re one of those annoying ‘I’m from THE city’ people, then no. But for the rest of us normal folks, it’s plenty big.”

–Aaron Seligman “No. Someone once said, ‘It’s like New York, except without the culture.’ Or size. Or good food. Or…”

–Oliver Hulland, Photo Editor

–Sarah Kliff, Senior News Editor

“As far as I know, the underage nightlife mainly consists of Wash.

U. parties or activities that don’t

Q: Does St. Louis feel like a big city?

–David Brody, Senior Photo Editor “You know when you see the sign that says, “Last Missouri Exit” fly by, and curse because you’re headed over the bridge to East St. Louis? Yeah. That’s where you don’t want to go.”

–Margaret Bauer

–Margaret Bauer, Editor in Chief Q: What’s the underage nightlife like?

Hometown: Greater St. Louis, MO Population: 2,603,607

Q: What are some good places to go on a date?

“Taking someone to the Botanical Gardens for a little picnic is very romantic. You could do the same thing in Forest Park. Or you could paddle boat and lounge by the fountains at the foot of Art Hill. There are also some great wineries out west of the city on Highway 94. But you have to be 21, so just store that tip away for later or for when you have your fake.”

–Sarah Ulrey

Q: What’s your favorite thing about St. Louis?

“Wash. U.! And the Loop. It’s really nice and very city-like. I love the musicians playing jazz in the streets.”

–Sarah Klein “Driving down Wydown Boulevard in the spring or fall with the windows down. It’s absolutely beautiful.”

–Sarah Baicker Q: What’s your least favorite thing about St. Louis?

“It’s 3-5 hours away from the next city, and it can get claustrophobic.”

–Oliver Hulland “The Cardinals.”

–Allie Wieczorec “People who say ‘Worshington’ instead of Washington.”

–Aaron Seligman

“Moolah Temple, by Saint Louis University. It’s got all those traditional fi rst date destinations (movie, bowling, and dinner) all in one building!”

–Kristin McGrath Q: What makes the Midwest different from the coasts?

“People here don’t know what you mean when you say ‘The City.’”

–Oliver Hulland “There is no ocean. For more information, contact someone in the Earth and Planetary Sciences department.”

–David Brody

“As you’ll soon realize, there’s a large Midwestern population that

Q: What makes St. Louis unique?

“It’s called ‘Bread Co.,’ not Panera.”

–Kristin McGrath “We’re not northern or southern, nor eastern or western. That might seem obvious, geographically speaking—but the culture really doesn’t adhere to a region, either. It’s one of the most liberal cities in Missouri, a state that votes ‘red.’ It’s composed of a lot of contradictions.”

–Margaret Bauer

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | SCENE

A11

SCENE Y I D Dorms T-shirt pillows

Old or new, the fact remains that at first glance, college dorm rooms are dreary, bleak, and hollow. It doesn’t take the finesse of Martha Stewart or the funds of Donald Trump, however, to quickly transform a dull dorm into a designer dorm with just a few do-it-yourself projects.

By Erin Fults Scene Staff Reporter

Can’t bear to make a rag out of that favorite shirt? Gain the infamous freshman 15 and find those old duds a little too snug? With a bit of stuffing and a rudimentary grasp of sewing, rags become designer riches as t-shirts are transformed into decorative pillows.

Access to a sewing machine will ease the workload, but a basic running stitch with handheld needle and thread will do the trick just as well.

Pillow sizes can be varied depending on shirt size or cutting of a desired logo. For a whole shirt, turn the shirt inside out and tuck the sleeves in to create a straight edge along the exterior and fold the upper part of the shirt in so that the neck hole is sealed off. Stitch around three of the four sides and part of the fourth side, and then turn the shirt so that the exterior is facing back outward. Pack the soon-to-be pillowcase with some form of stuffing (batter fluff found at a fabric store works well) through the gap remaining on the partially stitched edge. Stitch up the remaining opening and voilá, an old shirt is now a decorative pillow.

Smaller pillows can be created by cutting out a desired portion of the shirt and using the leftover shirt to obtain an equally sized piece as a backing. Line up the two fabric pieces, and follow the same edge stitching protocol.

Bulletin Backers Dorm rooms come equipped with a large bulletin board for each room occupant. These boards are soon adorned with pins and pictures to paint a picture of every student’s individuality. For empty spaces between pictures, however, it’s nice to have a colorful background to mask the dull gray board.

Wrapping paper stapled on top of the bare board adds design and flare, but a great place to find bulletin backers is the fabric shop. Fabric fragments can be found cheap or purchased by the yard and are easily trimmed to fit the desired space. I recommend at least two yards of cloth to completely cover the board. Bulletin backgrounds can be easily stapled or tacked in with push pins.

Window Picture Hangers Pictures of hometown friends or of new college experiences make fun ornaments for every room. With so many old memories and new friends, pictures and picture frames can easily consume large amounts of not so largely available space. There is a window of opportunity, however, even in this photo space crunch.

A window frame becomes a photo frame with a mere assortment of suction cups, string or wire, and clothes pins. Tie or glue both ends of the string, cord, or wire to a suction cup (easily purchased at a grocery store or Target, both accessible by University shuttle system) and the picture hanger is already basically completed. Just use clothes pins to clip over the wire and suspend a photo. The cord is also a fun place to drape sunglasses or even clip reminders for exams and homework.

Quick-’n’-EASY Decor Along with the above crafty projects, an assortment of minor dorm decorations may also come in handy: -Window/mirror markers: Fun for leaving messages or writing math and chemistry equations. Just think how much studying is derived from every glance in the mirror if each peek is accompanied by a flash of integrals or enthalpy equations.

-Rope lights/light strands: It doesn’t have to be a holiday to trim a room with light ropes or strands of lights. Fun to string around the ceiling, doorframes, or medicine cabinets, these bulbs can brighten the room and add a festive feel.

-Posters: A must to adorn otherwise bare walls. Washington University usually hosts a few poster sales during the year with a plethora of poster possibilities.

-Greeting cards: Birthday cards, postcards, and greeting cards from friends and family can be taped along the edge of the ceiling to create a fun, colorful border around the room. (Note: remove possibly enclosed cash from said cards prior to hanging.)

Closet Coverings (OlD Dorms Only) The closest of the old dorms are essentially niches in the wall with an overhead shelf and a bar to hang clothes. Unlike the new dorms, there is no door separating the private closet confinement from the rest of the room. No need to fret, old dorms are fabulous places to live. But to keep old skeletons in the closet, a degree of separation may be desired.

Shower curtains and expandable curtain/shower rods are popular closet “doors” but shower curtains do not always extend the full closet length down to the floor. Full coverage can often be found with window curtains and drapes instead.

If full coverage is desired, wait to get the exact measurements upon arrival at school and head to Target or Bed Bath and Beyond (both easily accessible by University shuttles) for an assortment of curtains and shower curtains.

Dorm Wall Doodles (Old Dorms Only) Drawing on dorm walls is prohibited, and destruction will be fined, but the plain concrete walls of the old (traditional) dorm rooms can be drawn on without destruction by using clear packing tape.

Put the tape on wall sections, advisably small sections, and use permanent markers to sketch or leave notes and reminders. *Warning: Author is not held responsible for accidental peeling of wall paint, so please test strength of tape on a bit of wall before covering large areas. Also note that the walls of new dorms are thinner and constructed of a different material and paint than the durable painted concrete of old dorms.

Tape on the walls of new dorms is unadvised.

What your freshman dorm assignment means to you

By Sarah Baicker Senior Scene Editor When I was a freshman, I lived in Umrath. Lucky for me, both of my parents are Wash. U. alums, so the moment I received my housing assignment, I was briefed on everything one could possibly need to know about the building. They told me exactly where Umrath was, what it was near, and even who lived there in the ‘70s.

But chances are, you’re not as lucky as I am. You’ve probably received your housing assignment by now, but know little-to-nothing more than the name of the building and room number you’ve been assigned.

Maybe you’ve found your way to ResLife’s website, but even the information listed there won’t tell you how far you’ll have to walk to get to class, or where your building is relative to all the important spots on the South 40.

But never fear, my new-toWash.-U. friends. Listed below you’ll find each freshman dorm, and the bare necessities for each that they won’t tell you in the official literature.

Danforth: Constructed in 1998, Danforth is one of the newer dorms on the South 40.

It houses 180 residents—all freshmen—on its four floors.

Danforth is a member of the William Greenleaf Eliot residential college, along with neighboring, upperclassman dorms Shepley and Wheeler. The three dorms are among the farthest from Wohl Center (the student center/post office/eatery) and from campus, so get those calf muscles stretched and ready before the school year begins.

All floors in the building are carpeted, there’s a computer lab on the first floor, refrigerators on each floor, and there’s even an elevator.

The obvious perk of living in Danforth is that, because it’s a new dorm, every two rooms are connected by a bathroom. This forms a sort of “suite” of four people, and let’s face it: private bathrooms are a luxury in college. Danforth’s second floor is substance free and generally quiet, but that’s balanced out by the notorious fourth floor, “D-4,” which—for as long as I’ve been around—has had a reputation for liking to party.

Umrath: Umrath is one of the oldest dorms left standing on the 40—it’s got a lot of history behind it. Built in 1958 to help aid rising student enrollment and need for on-campus housing, it’s seen a lot of wear and tear. It’s centrally located, one of the closest dorms to main campus, and a brief walk away from Wohl Center. Each floor has two male and two female bathrooms shared by forty-or-so residents— and be sure to beware of the low shower heads and occasionally dubious water pressure.

The building has three residential floors, and the first floor houses the Social Justice center, a pool table, big-screen TV and a kitchen. Umrath is paired with Rubelmann, another freshman dorm, to form the RubelmannUmrath residential college. Oh, and if you’ve been assigned Umrath 216, say hi to the old room for me!

Rubelmann: “Ruby” is Umrath’s sister dorm, also one of the oldest dorms remaining on the South 40. It’s practically identical to Umrath in every way

imaginable—same three floors, similar set up and size, shared bathrooms, and it’s located right next door. The third floor is often labeled as substance free, but that depends on the number of you guys who signed up for sub-free dorms.

Rubelmann was originally created to house only female students, but men have called it home, too, since the 70’s. The biggest difference between Ruby and Umrath is the “tunnellike” above-ground connection between it and neighboring freshman dorm Beaumont. I wish I could explain it to you better than that, and offer you insight into its original purpose, but quite frankly, I have no idea.

I do, however, know that it’s a handy way to stay partially dry when traveling to Danforth in stormy weather…

Beaumont: I spent a lot of time in Beaumont my freshman year, and not just because I was dating a guy that lived there. The people in this entirely substance-free dorm have a reputation for being quirky. Case in point: one Beaumont-resident friend of mine was mailed a gallon of pickles by his grandfather for no apparent reason, and ate all of them. Beaumont’s partner dorm is Lee, and the two face each other from across a small patch of grass. Beaumont, according to my mother, was one of the first—if not the first—dormitories in the country to go coed. As such, it’s obviously been around awhile.

Beaumont, nicknamed “Beau,” is built similarly to Umrath and Ruby, with three floors, shared bathrooms, and a common room/study room/TV on the first floor. It’s located sort of in the “heart” of the South 40,

with one side facing the Swamp and the other facing neighboring dorms Lee, Ruby and Umrath. It is, however, a slightly longer walk from campus—and an uphill one, at that. And, like all the other older dorms, only has one refrigerator, located on the first floor.

Liggett: Liggett is the oldest dorm remaining, and is the next one slated to be imploded as part of the university’s continual overhauling of the residential area. Its partner dorm, Koenig, was the most recent dorm to be taken down, and the newest addition to the 40 will take its place. Again, it’s from the same period as Umrath, Beaumont, Lee, and Ruby, so its mechanics are pretty similar—all the stuff that goes for them goes for Liggett, too. It has one kitchen, located on the first floor.

It’s located on the far side of Wohl center, but is still quite close. The walk to campus and to all the important areas on the 40 isn’t bad, and the people I’ve known who have called Liggett home thoroughly enjoyed their stays. Although, to be honest, I’ve heard something about the stairwells smelling pretty gross.

Lien: Lien is a newish freshmanonly dorm that’s set up similarly to Danforth, in that it has that two-rooms-to-a-bathroom plan, and both carpeting and an elevator. It’s location basically couldn’t be better—it’s the closest freshman dorm to campus, not far from Wohl (on its north side), and located right on top of Ursa’s, the South 40’s sort of coffee shop-like location that frequently has live music, and always has big comfy chairs and board games available to use.

Lien is partnered with Gregg,

an upperclassmen dorm that I called home last year, and has a computer lab inside.

My freshman year, the floors in Lien were really tight, and dorm room doors were always open. I couldn’t tell you what each of the last two years’ have been like, but it does seem that everyone looks back with fondness on their stay, and recollections are often about floor-wide parties.

Forsyth: Along with upperclassman dorm Nemerov, it forms the Wayman Crow Residential College. I will be honest, and tell you I’ve never actually been inside the building, but I’ve heard from last year’s residents that—while it may not have been completely finished at the time of their move-in—they enjoyed their experience and found the dorm to be clean, comfortable, and modern.

Its location, however, could be better. Forsyth House is located where the South Forty’s two towers, Shepley and Elliot, used to stand, which is all the way down almost alongside Big Bend Boulevard. This is an advantage if you’re walking to Schnucks to get groceries or to the Esquire to see a movie, but you’ll likely have to leave for class a few minutes earlier than will your classmates who call Umrath or Lien home.

Eliot: Eliot House is pretty unique, because—right now, at least—it’s the only dormitory on campus that houses both freshmen and upperclassmen.

Freshmen all live in rooms set up exactly like those in Danforth, and each floor is home to up to a few suites that house (usually) sophomores. There’s a small kitchen on each floor, but

only one oven, on the first floor.

The downstairs common room in Eliot is pretty nice, complete with attractive hard wood floors and staircases and a big screen TV. It often houses free events, like workshops, offered to any interested students, and has a pretty good location.

While it’s not the closest dorm to campus or to popular off-campus locales, it’s barely steps away from Wohl. This makes the journey to get food in the winter oh-so-much easier than for those who live on other parts of the Forty.

Lee: Lee has balconies! Lee is Beaumont’s sister dorm, and together they form the Lee-Beaumont (“Lee-Beau”) Residential College. Unlike Beaumont, Lee is not sub-free, but like its neighbor it has been around a while, and has seen its fair share of use. Many people love old dorms like Lee because they find them much more social and friendly than their new-dorm counterparts, but it is true that the floors in rooms aren’t carpeted, and there are shared bathrooms (two for each gender) on each of three floors. Lee’s location is pretty central, as far as freshman dorms go. On its east side are Eliott, Umrath, Ruby, Liggett, and the new dorm, and on its west are Danforth and Forsyth.

Its walks to class and to Wohl are both average, not extremely short, nor irritatingly long.

With the exception of last year’s “events” on Lee 3 (if you don’t know, don’t ask), Lee has a great reputation and its residents have been very close.

Koenig: You’re alone on this one: at the time this article was written, ResLife wouldn’t even verify its name!

A12 STUDENT LIFE

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

A whim.

I saw him in class and asked him out on a whim. Now it’s weeks later.

Still feels like that first day we met.

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ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

B1

FORUM A welcome to the Class of 2009

Mark Wrighton Chancellor I am pleased to welcome you, the Class of 2009, to what will be your home for the next four years. We are

fortunate that you are joining us, and I look forward to greeting you in person soon.

You come to Washington University at a wonderful time in our history. You have been selected from our largest and strongest applicant pool ever. Thank you for making the commitment to be a part of this community!

We are most fortunate to have you join us, because at the heart of every great university are its students, and we welcome you with enthusiasm as our newest community members. We are here to nurture your intellectual, emotional, and social growth. It is my hope that over the next four years you will learn and experience the power of a research university by taking part in

the creation and dissemination of new knowledge.

Your work will enhance your involvement with our great faculty and stimulate your own creativity. Even more important, this new knowledge can bring valuable benefits to society. Of course, you will be involved in learning what others know in your classes and other academic activities, but being a contributor to new knowledge adds to your intellectual development in vital ways and is a key element of the student experience at a research university.

Washington University is a community of people dedicated to a world of learning without intellectual bounds, a place where the

only limitations on ideas are those that you place on yourselves. The faculty and staff of Washington University, along with your upperclass colleagues, welcome you to this world and ask for your help in making it an even better place.

You will meet and establish rewarding friendships with many new people, and our diverse community will enhance your educational experience. Your education begins in our classrooms, studios, and labs, but it extends quickly to the many and varied opportunities for personal and social growth and service to the community.

Our students come from all across the United States and from around the world.

The student body is diverse in every dimension, and this diversity provides a better educational environment for all who come to learn and work here. You will learn a great deal from your classmates, both inside and outside the classroom. This is one of the rewards of a residential college experience.

The years ahead promise to be challenging and exciting, from defining your area of intellectual interest, to playing a role in one of many student groups, to being a participant or a member of the audience in musical programs, athletics, theatre, or dance. Early in the academic year we will be formally launching the Richard A. Gephardt

Institute for Public Service, providing many opportunities for student engagement in the issues of our day. Our immediate community is a rich one, and we are fortunate to have a vibrant St. Louis community around us, with great institutions such as the St. Louis Art Museum, Science Center, and Zoo nearby—all having free admission! You should plan to take advantage of all that we have to offer.

Again, welcome to Washington University! Welcome to the beginning of your future, and best wishes for continued success in our community of learning and discovery.

The great glow stick controversy

Ten things you should do when you arrive

able to fi nd out. In 1962, researchers at China Lake Naval Weapons Center in California began to develop a series of “non-fi re-producing chemical compounds with the properties of longlasting luminous intensity and efficiency in extreme temperature conditions.”

Glow-stuff.

The outcome of their efforts consisted of two liquids that are stored separately and glow instantly when mixed. The invention was originally used by the Navy for emergency lights, man-overboard float lights, target marking, helicopter landing zone marking, night parachute and paradrop operations, and other similar applications. Later it was put to more aesthetic uses, such as expanding the minds of drug-induced ravers. The inventors are Herbert Richter, Ronald Henry and Joseph Johnson. (U.S. Patent No. 4,626,383, entitled Chemi-

1. Introduce yourself to at least two new people each day. Start early to adopt this habit. Try this in the various lines you may find yourself---waiting to enter the Athletic Complex for Convocation, the first Thursday evening all new students gather; waiting for your breakfast burrito or chicken strips at Bear’s Den; waiting for class to begin.

Steve Givens Assistant to the Chancellor

I

want to take this opportunity to put to rest a bit of contemporary campus folklore. Despite what you might have been told by tour guides, RCDs, RAs, and even staff or faculty members, Chancellor Wrighton did NOT invent the glow stick. He did not invent the glow necklace, nor anything else that glows at raves, baseball games and county fairs. I’m sorry to put a damper on such a rich piece of campus speculation, but there you have it.

Like so much else in life, politics and E! Entertainment News, lore is often just so much more compelling than facts. The rumors evidently started shortly after he arrived in 1995 and presented each new freshman with a glow stick, telling them, “I hope the gift of knowledge will illuminate your path through life.”

In 1997 he had the freshman class spell out “WU” using glow sticks while standing on the football field during orientation.

Someone then made the faulty connection between the science that makes glow sticks work (chemical luminescence) and the chancellor’s own scientific work. Soon, students began suggesting that perhaps the chancellor’s penchant for the use of “glow-stuff” must have something to do with the fact that he makes money on every glow-thing sold.

Here’s what I’ve been

“Despite what you might have been told by tour guides, RCDs, RAs, and even staff or faculty members, Chancellor Wrighton did NOT invent the glow stick.” luminescent System Catalysts, and U.S. Patent No. 4,655,969, entitled Chemiluminescent Systems.)

Glow sticks, also known as light sticks, were standard issue for military personnel in the Gulf War, and current usage within the Department of Defense, according to one website, is about 15 million units per year. Not to mention the raves. The chancellor’s cut in all this technology transfer: zero.

Just to be sure, I recently asked the chancellor about his interest in and experience with chemical luminescence.

Q: Were you a part of that research group at China Lake in 1962?

A: I was 13 years old in 1962.

Q: Okay then. Do you know or have you ever met the inventors?

A: I have never met the inventors, but I have worked with people interested in the development and use of glow sticks.

Q: In 100 words or less, what does your own chemistry research have to do with chemical luminescence and did you ever use glow-stuff or its ingredients in your research?

A: Some of my work related to studying molecules that would exhibit a related phenomenon, electrogenerated chemiluminescence.

The work involved fi nding molecules which would be highly luminescent when their oxidized and reduced forms react with each other.

This work was really pioneered by a good friend, Dr. Allen J. Bard, at the University of Texas.

Q: Do any of your 14 patents have anything to do with chemical luminescence?

A: No, my patents relate to microelectrochemical sensors, electrochromic display materials, and semiconductor photoelectrochemical energy conversion devices.

Q: Do you earn any royalties from the sale of glowstuff?

A: No, none of my patents have led to a blockbuster commercial development.

Several of my patents, however, have been licensed, providing a small revenue stream.

Q: Have you ever been to a rave?

Jill Carnaghi Assistant Vice Chancellor for Students

L

et me be among the many to welcome you to Washington University in St. Louis! I’m Jill Carnaghi, an assistant vice chancellor for students and the director of campus life, and I am most interested in your becoming an active and involved member of the University community as quickly as possible. There are so many opportunities to get involved and so many activities planned for your arrival that it all might be a bit overwhelming.

I know everyone from your parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, high school counselors, friends and even strangers you meet as you shop for extra long fitted sheets are more than willing and ready to give you advice as you plan your trek to St. Louis. I am no exception. I can’t resist the urge because I, like others who care about you, want all your adjustments to be smooth and relatively painless. As I begin my ninth year here, I am still amazed at the role students play in making this a great place to live, learn, and work.

Here’s my top ten list for becoming a part of the community. Some of these items may not make sense until you arrive...

A: What’s a rave?

2. Ask someone to share a meal with you. Students tell me that they don’t want to eat alone and are always looking for someone to share a meal or snack.

Don’t be shy.

3. Do not pass “GO,” do not call home, before getting your academic life in order.

Take advantage of all the resources afforded to you.

Get to know your academic advisor. If you have a peer advisor, utilize him or her.

All of them can become resources and support for you.

“I, like others who care about you, want all your adjustments to be smooth and relatively painless” 4. Once you’re satisfied with your class schedule and have gone to your first classes, get in the habit of finding a quiet, comfortable place to study. I strongly advise that you visit Cornerstone: The Center for Advanced Learning.

If you’re living on the South Forty, you can make it part of your walk to or from the Hilltop. It’s located at the north end of Gregg House and offers great academic support.

5. Sign-up for Service First.

It’s a day of service in the St. Louis Public Schools, only open to new students taking place the Saturday of

Labor Day Weekend, September 3. You’ll have fun volunteering with classmates at one of the public schools and attending a BBQ and community service fair.

6. Get off campus—you don’t need a car. Shopping malls, movie theaters, grocery stores, and restaurants are readily available via the shuttle system and various busses. Not to mention what’s within walking distance—the Loop and all that Forest Park contains.

7. Log onto the Spark calendar and see what’s happening on campus and join a community. Bite your tongue if you are ready to say, “There’s nothing to do here.” It’s probably the opposite; there are so many options that you can’t decide.

8. Be sure and stop by the Activities Fair on Wednesday, September 7 from 4:30-6:30 p.m. in the Brookings Quad. The majority of student groups will have tables and will be recruiting new members. They want you!

9. Take care of your health—that includes SLEEP. Too many students think they will catch up on their sleep at Fall Break or Thanksgiving. Your body simply doesn’t work that way, no matter how hard you try.

10. And finally, take a deep breath, enjoy yourself and savor all of the newness of attending WU and having the chance to leave your mark on this place. Be confident of your choice and remember: we want you to succeed.

If there is any way I can be of assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact me at jill.carnaghi@wustl. edu or 314.935.5022. Safe travels.

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B2 STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Know this: time ies

David Ader Student Union President

W

hat can I possibly say to 1,400 18year-old, collegebound people from every region of the country without sounding trite? You’ve just been through your own graduations, at which people were most likely not shy about sharing their advice for life. Perhaps I could tell you where the best place to eat on campus is—that’s always useful. But I got something to eat and suddenly this idea lost its appeal.

What comes to mind is something that I heard over and over just weeks before at Commencement: time  ies.

Time  ies? These two words have seemed to be the most popular parting words that my friends, who started their journey at Washington University just four years ago, could give me. “These are the shortest four years of your life,â€? one brand new alumna told me this spring. “I wish I had realized that earlier.â€?

These are supposedly bright people, I thought to myself;

don’t they realize that time is constant?

So I’ll share with you their awed advice: time  ies. I realize that it’s cheating a bit to let you in on this profound revelation after thousands of past students had to spend four years of their life ďŹ guring it out. But hey—I like you guys.

The number of opportunities that you will be presented with are so numerous that four years won’t even come close to being sufďŹ cient. Upon arriving on campus you will be inundated with opportunities to do this, that and the other thing. Doing it all can often be as useless as doing nothing whatsoever, though.

Don’t rush into things—take

“These are supposedly bright people, I thought to myself; don’t they realize that time is constant?â€? the ďŹ rst couple of weeks to become adjusted to your new way of life and see the bigger picture.

But then again, who am I to say? I’m just one of the 6,000+ people you’ll possibly come into contact with while here at WU that will shape your life in some way, be it big or small, positive or negative, noticeable or unseen.

You’ll quickly learn that all of those activities from high school, all of those clubs and societies, will mean very little in college. It’s a bit depressing to think about, especially when you consider that after getting your ďŹ rst real job your

That famous feeling you get

college activities will mean just as little on paper as your high school activities. With this in mind, my only advice is to take part in activities which will help you grow as a person, activities which will give you the tools and experience to succeed in life, regardless of the situation. Cultivate your leadership skills, your analytical ability, and your understanding of yourself. Only then will your time spent here be worthwhile Whatever you decide to involve yourself with here, remember those two words: time  ies. The college environment is such an artiďŹ cial one—where else can you live where you work, share a building with your best friends, stay up until all hours of the night and start work at 10:00 a.m. the next day, receive funds to put on events and pursue your interests, have conversations with the top experts in your ďŹ eld of study, or even interact with such a diverse group of individuals as you’ll ďŹ nd here? It’s an amazing environment that you won’t ďŹ nd anywhere else.

Take frequent breaks to stop and think about that during your next four (or ďŹ ve) years and to evaluate and use what limited time you have here.

Be wiser than my nowalumni friends. Realize that time, contrary to popular belief, is not constant. Make the most of your time here, because you never know how fast it’s really going until it’s over.

Pamela Bookbinder Student Union Vice President

A

s a tour guide, I am often asked the question “Why did you choose to come to Washington University?� After I tell my tour my many reasons, I am then asked if I get paid to be a tour guide. From my own August campus tour in the 100-degree heat (not including humidity) with my mom, I was able to see why everyone who attended this school appeared to be so enamored with it.

When we checked in at our hotel, the concierge asked if we were here to visit the University, and when we told him we were, he immediately scheduled us on a special campus tour, courtesy of the Radisson. My mom and I had never been to St. Louis, so we decided to play along.

After checking in, a driver for the Radisson took us in a limo to campus and showed us around. This is my ďŹ rst

memory of the school. As we walked up the steps to Brookings, a picture so familiar from the mass mailings had ďŹ nally become a reality. And then, I got that famous feeling that everyone told me I would when I visited the school which was right for me. After going on a real campus tour the next day, I changed my application to early decision.

These past three years have own by faster than anything I have ever experienced. I have made my absolute best friends here. These are the people who I will be friends with for the rest of my life. They are the kindest, most giving, funny, dedicated people I have ever met. We have experienced everything that

“As we walked up the steps to Brookings, a picture so familiar from the mass mailings had ďŹ nally become a reality.â€? college has to offer together, and these are memories which will never fade.

My friends are the kind of people I cannot go a few hours without talking to, whether we are at school or at home for vacation. These are the types of people I dreamed of meeting in college, and since I came here, my dreams have become a reality. To my friends who are reading this: thank you for making my experience as unique and truly wonderful as it has been.

So now it is my turn to give you, the incoming class of 2009, some helpful hints and pieces of advice. My number one piece of advice is to get involved. A majority of what I have learned in college has stemmed from my involvement in my co-curricular activities.

I was fortunate enough to be elected to serve as a Senator for Student Union during my ďŹ rst semester here. Getting involved with this wonderful organization has helped shape my entire college career.

Throughout my involvement in Student Union, I have met some of my closest friends and have helped to make changes which make Washington University an even better place to be. I currently serve as the vice president, and part of my job is recruiting new students to run for positions. This is perhaps my favorite part of the position, as it allows me the opportunity to see underclassman grow, as well as get involved with and make their own something, which is very special to me. I hope that some of you who are reading this will choose to get involved with an activity that means as much to you as Student Union means to me.

I would give anything to be back in your shoes—to be an incoming freshman again, to meet all-new people, live on a freshman oor, and be able to experience everything that college has to offer for the ďŹ rst time. Freshman year was easily one of the best years of my life.

My one hope for you is that you can have as wonderful a time here as I have been fortunate enough to have.

Welcome to Campus!

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Red Line South 40 • Westwood Neighborhood • Hilltop Campus • Galleria • Target • Wal Mart Schnucks on Clayton • DeMun Neighborhood • Brentwood Square Academic Weekday First Trip: Service Interval: Last Trip:

Around 7am 30 minutes Around 10:30pm M-Th Around 12:30am Fri.

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Around 12 noon 30 minutes until 9:30pm 60 minutes after 9:30pm 12:30am Sat., 9:30pm Sun.

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Around 12 noon 30 minutes Around 1:45am

A Location You'll Love!

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For route maps and schedules, visit us online at

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ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

It’s game time!

Nicole Soussan Women’s Panhellenic Association President

open to all that was around me. I lost one of my best friends to suicide when I was fifteen years old, and ever since then I had built walls around me to keep people from getting too close, to keep myself from getting hurt.

But as I encountered more and more people at Washington University who were friendly, smart, and trustworthy, and as I found my place on my freshman floor, in my classes, in College Democrats, and particularly, in my sorority, I realized that I would be shortchanging myself if I chose to hang on to my

T

o the Class of 2009: Opportunity is inherent in the Washington University community, and it is important that we seek it out. We are surrounded by new people. We learn from the highest caliber of professors, who are as inspired by our intellectual curiosity as we are by their profound knowledge. And we are recruited, pushed, and bribed with all kinds of free food into finding those one or two organizations that will allow us to grow and realize the full potential of the passionate leader, member, activist, performer, or athlete that exists within each of us. All we have to do is open our hearts to what’s around us.

It isn’t easy to admit, but looking back, I don’t think I came to school with a heart

“Embrace the memories and people of your past, but do your absolute best to let go of your inhibitions.” personal baggage instead of opening up to the incredible people around me.

One piece of advice is to embrace the memories and people of your past, but do your absolute best to let go of your inhibitions. From classes to relationships, one lesson I’ve learned over the years is that the easy way out won’t stimulate you.

Take risks, and discover what is inside of you.

Currently I serve as

destination

president of the Women’s Panhellenic Association, and I am proud to say that my affiliation as a Greek woman at Washington University has been one of my most positive college experiences. College is a time to try new things and to truly commit yourself; whether you have no doubt in your mind that joining a fraternity or sorority is for you or if you have always thought you just weren’t “the type,” I encourage you to go through the Recruitment process.

Membership in a Greek organization is rewarding, fun, and worthwhile. The benefits range from lifelong friendships to participation in philanthropic endeavors, and the opportunities for leadership, networking, and—most important—finding meaning in what you do are unique and incredibly worthwhile.

Congratulations, Class of 2009, and welcome to Washington University. Opportunity surrounds you; don’t let it pass you by. Hard work and energy, tolerance others’ passions, sleepless nights and long hours, relying on the support of your friends and the patience of strangers, personal awards and personal defeat, tears of sorrow, many more tears of joy, and memories that will last a lifetime…The next four years will offer you all of this and more.

The question is, “Are you ready?” Get excited, Class of 2009: it’s game time!

B3

Thoughts from a senior

Eli Zimmerman Interfraternity Council President

A

s you’ve been reading this newspaper, I’m sure that everyone has written about how they’re having such a great time at Washington University, how they wish it wasn’t going by quickly, and for you to cherish the time you do have at this place. I could write an entire newspaper about those topics— but I won’t. Instead, as someone who has experienced a lot of what this campus has to offer, I will try to give you some advice that I tried to follow (or should have followed). In some ways, each of these small pieces of advice has contributed to making my time here so incredible.

Be nice. You learned it in kindergarten. Be nice to everyone—other students, professors, secretaries, food service employees, shuttle drivers, and landscapers. Everyone on this campus works as hard as you,

and just because you pay to be here while some people are paid to be here doesn’t mean they deserve anything less than respect.In fact, nothing made my mornings more than going to Holmes Lounge before class to be greeted by the women who worked there, and who already knew what I was going to order. All I had to do was be kind to them, ask them how their days were going, and then actually listen to what they said. I guarantee whoever you take the time to listen to will have an interesting story.

“Nothing is more important than taking time for yourself.”

Try everything. Fine, say what you will about this trite piece of advice. But it’s true.

This campus has so much to offer it’s almost unbelievable.

And if you don’t find something you would like to do, then make a new club, group, or team. It’s really easy. More important, don’t discount any potential activity based on what you think it might be like.

In the fall of my freshman year, I would have bet you my extralong twin bed that I was never going to be involved in Greek life. But I decided to attend some fraternity rush events in January (mostly for the free food), and I was shocked. The guys that I met weren’t the crazy “Animal House” types I expected to find. Instead, they

were people I knew I could be friends with long into the future. Nearly three years later, I have been the president of my fraternity and am currently the president of the Interfraternity Council. It’s amazing what happens when you allow yourself to be open-minded to experiences that might truly change your life.

Take time for yourself.

You won’t really know what I’m talking about until classes are in full swing (around the beginning of October), but trust me: as much time as you feel you might need to dedicate to studying, nothing is more important than taking time for yourself. Believe me, as a pre-med, I’m no stranger to difficult classes or to three tests in two days. But you never have so much work that it’s okay to forget about your friends or your mental health. Take care of yourself and find time to relax.

For me, that means watching “Saved by the Bell” or “Cosby Show” reruns and eating a long dinner with friends, but for you it might mean running, playing piano, or knitting. Do something to take your mind off classwork. The books can wait for you. Don’t forget about finding time for your friends or yourself. That can’t wait.

So that’s it. I’ve been here for three years, and this is all I’ve got. Seriously though, enjoy your time here. When people told me that my time at Washington University would speed by, I never really listened. These years will go by in the blink of an eye. Do what you can to make them as great as possible.

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B4 STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Enjoy yourself, relax: be a Toys ‘R’ Us adult

Liz Neukirch Associate Editor

P

lanning on avoiding Thursday night parties like the plague, studying dutifully on the weekends and making straight A’s your first semester in college? Ask yourself why. Not why you want good grades (half of the freshman class at WU every year intends on being pre-med, after all)—but why you need to study every night of the week to do it.

What people say about college coursework is mostly true. You can’t float by with an A—or even a C, in some cases—by simply putting in the half-assed effort you did in high school.

(Don’t shake your head, we all did it at some point.)

But that doesn’t mean you have to deny yourself even the smallest iota of fun in order to do your best work.

I’m not a partier. And even if I were, I wouldn’t suggest that you need to engage in illegal activities

in order to enjoy your time here. What I will recommend—nay, command—you do is try not to take yourself too seriously. Repeat after me: I will get a B+ and it will be okay; I will forget to do a homework assignment and my professor will not hate me; I will occasionally hit the “snooze” button too many times and be late for class. And I will then mosey over to class, perhaps admiring the overabundant squirrel population frolicking about in the sunshine (or ever-popular St. Louis sleet), smile when the entire lecture hall turns to watch me walk in, and

“Repeat after me: I will get a B+ and it will be okay; I will forget to do a homework assignment and my professor will not hate me.” promptly seek out a cup of coffee after the period is over.

I’ve always been somewhat of a control freak.

(Thank you for laughing, those of you that know me). Freshman year, I had a problem accepting the things I couldn’t change.

The best decision I made last year was to chill out.

Letting go of things that have already happened, whether you forgot an assignment or got thoroughly

beaten by an exam, frees up a lot of time you could spend doing more productive things. Like having lunch with your roommate, or that cutie that lives upstairs. Or enjoying the fact that you’re still not too old to act like a kid every now and then.

Remember how carefree you were when you were four? When Play-Doh tasted good and Snuffleupagus was the biggest word you knew? When Toys ‘R’ Us was your favorite place in the whole world? Allow yourself that kind of release every now and then. You don’t necessarily have to eat art supplies to do it—you just have to make time in your busy adult life to play.

Round up a few friends and go to the Saint Louis Zoo. It’s right across the street in Forest Park—and it’s free.

Go outside during a rainstorm. Without an umbrella. Sing and dance profusely. Or just go for a jog around campus. St. Louis weather isn’t all that bad.

Bake cookies. (The ovens in the dorms work, even though you “aren’t supposed to” use them.) Eat said cookies with a tall glass of milk.

You’ll still have that chem exam to study for, and those assigned readings, and that analysis paper for E. Comp.—but at least you won’t have to go at it with an empty stomach. And if you bring me some cookies, I’ll share my Play-Doh.

“Gosh, the StudLife staff sure seems smart/fun/witty/cool.”

But hey, you go to Wash. U.—you’re probably just as witty as we are.

Try writing for us. Send an e-mail to editor@studlife.com for details.

Just a few feet away

Sarah Kliff Senior News Editor

I

n the upcoming year, you will meet professors who will astound you, who have won Nobel Prizes, who are leading their fields, and whose names you see in the textbooks you read. But throw all of those professors, medical school researchers, deans of schools, and even the chancellor in one room, and they still probably couldn’t tackle an extremely common phenomenon that occurs year after year on our campus—freshman floor bonding.

It starts the day you arrive on the South 40 with two suitcases that barely made the 50 pound weight limit and contain everything you think you will need to survive the year. You drag them up the stairs and locate the room that you will apparently call home for nine months, even though right now it looks stark, bare, and

small—in particular, too small for you and this roommate you’ve been assigned.

And the awkward conversations start as people stop by and poke into your room during your efforts to unpack. What’s your name?

Where are you from? Who’s your roommate? And you have just one question on your mind—am I ever going to fit in with these people?

Your roommate, who you’ve talked to on the phone one time to figure out the fridge/microwave situation, arrives and the awkwardness escalates. You hope that the two of you fi nd something to talk about, or else it’s going to be an awfully quiet year.

First floor meeting, fi rst orientation event, fi rst meal, fi rst night and things are

“It even feels bizarre sleeping in a room alone over winter break without having a conversation before crashing.” getting a little bit better. You and your roommate go exploring the campus and get ridiculously lost. You have something to laugh about now, something in common.

And you start to feel a little more comfortable.

Somewhere—between the fi rst class, fi rst weekend, fi rst WILD, fi rst fall break—it

all starts to congeal. You ritualistically return home from class each day (within a month, it already does feel like home) expecting someone to hang out with. Plopping down on a floormate’s bed has become second nature—why go sit in your room down the hall?

And all of a sudden, that kid who sleeps in a bed four feet away from yours, who you did not want to share that crammed space with, is the best person to get late night advice from.

I think this would stump the professors—a group of fi fty strangers strangely turns into a group of fi fty friends, who miss each other over Thanksgiving Break and can’t even imagine surviving an entire month apart. It even feels bizarre sleeping in a room alone over winter break without having a conversation before crashing.

I’ve lived this whole thing and cannot explain when, where and how exactly it occurred; I can’t pinpoint how all the personalities, ideologies, and weird quirks blend together almost too perfectly when a group of 19-yearolds are randomly assigned to a living space. I can only report my experience and hope that you will have the same, living it, loving it, leaving a door open, staying up ridiculously late, and not letting the awkward introductions lead you astray—it’s not every year that you get to live 10 feet away from your best friends.

Are you interested in any of these subjects?

History • Politics • Feminism • Writing • Economics • Religion • Literature Disease • Evolution • Social Justice • The Holocaust • Baseball

If so, the Assembly Series has something to offer you.

Each week the University’s lecture series brings to campus some of the most intriguing voices and vibrant minds around today. Unleash your intellectual curiosity -- most Wednesdays at 11am in Graham Chapel.

Fall 2005 Assembly Series Schedule September 7: Tony La Russa St. Louis Cardinals manager, subject of the new bestseller, Three Nights in August Book signing to take place in the Campus Bookstore, 9:45am Chimes Lecture September 14: David Horowitz Multicultural critic, author of the controversial “Academic Bill of Rights” College Republicans Lecture September 19: Hernando de Soto (Monday, 4pm) Inaugural event for dedication of the Richard A. Gephardt Institute An economist and property rights proponent, de Soto’s revolutionary ideas for helping the poor in developing countries to prosper are the reasons Economist magazine ranks his Institute for Liberty and Democracy as one of the two most important think tanks in the world.

September 21: Lorenzo Carcaterra Bestselling novelist (Sleepers, Apaches), writer/producer for “Law & Order” September 28: Jon Butler Historian who writes about religion in early American history Thomas Fulbright Lecture October 5: Pamela Nagami Physician specializing in infectious diseases, author of Woman With a Worm in Her Head Olin Fellows Lecture October 12: Carlos Fuentes Mexican novelist, statesman and essayist; author of The Old Gringo and Inez Assn. of Latin American Students Lecture October 19: No Lecture October 25: Richard Burkhardt (Tuesday, 4pm, Rebstock Hall) Historian of biology, evolution and social thought October 26: Mae Jemison In 1992, Jemison boarded the space shuttle Endeavor and became the first African American female astronaut in space. Today she runs two technology companies and serves as the A.D. White Professor at Cornell University.

Black Arts & Sciences Festival Lecture November 2: Stephen Bright (4pm) Capital defense attorney, opponent of the death penalty November 9: Christopher Browning Historian, author of Origins of the Final Solution Holocaust Memorial Lecture November 10: Elizabeth Fox-Genovese Cultural and feminist critic Fox-Genovese writes extensively about the ramifications of modern society on the family, females and marriage.

®

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

From the University to a city of the same name

Zach Goodwin Forum Editor

W

hen I arrived, the man at the door was demanding five dollars. He was sitting casually, perched on a stool; his arms, which matched the rest of him, were like elevator cables—they each roughly resembled the circumference and heft of a fi re hydrant. He nodded vaguely in my direction, without a trace of a smile, and continued chewing gum violently. He had a scar that ran vertically from his right eye to the outer point of his lips, and to me, this seemed very cliché.

In fact, all of it was feeling very familiar: stand in line, flash identification of some form—real, borrowed or otherwise—and pay the ogre at the door. I was thinking to myself, I’ve traveled 838 miles for nothing. I was thinking to myself, I probably should have stayed in St. Louis.

But I had left Washington University for Washington, D.C., and like most of the city, I’d come to intern. In my imaginings, in my preWashington fantasies, I had pictured myself—sporting a stately three-piece suit—sitting alongside senators.

I invented scenes where I would contribute the crucial piece of evidence—such sage

advice for a young man—to a roundtable of rapt legislators. I would single-handedly rewrite the tax code, I would rework Medicare. And after a long day of nation-saving, I might share a martini—or whatever it is that powerbrokers drink—with the wellplaced Of course, my time in our nation’s capital has been dominated by copy editing and a poorly lit cubicle—but at that moment, standing toeto-toe with a mountain-sized bouncer, I was still unaware of the fate that await me: I had been in Washington for about three hours.

“I was thinking to myself, I’ve traveled 838 miles for nothing. I was thinking to myself, I probably should have stayed in St. Louis.”

With five dollars lost, I took a tentative step into the bar.

I was in search of my roommate, Ben, whom I assumed would be easy to spot. He, despite being a genuinely charming and worthwhile human being, has some regrettable features. He is, and I feel certain it’s something he can’t help, fratastic. His closet features a cornucopia of pastel polos, each adorned with a spirited little horse-and-rider pair. He wears seersucker shorts and linen pants, and does so with a remarkable earnestness. There is, inexplicably, not a trace of irony.

With this in mind, I confidently walked into the dark of the bar with my eyes peeled for turquoise and Lacoste.

What I found, as my eyes adjusted to the gloom, was more than a little disconcerting: there were Bens, of vary-

ing severity, in every direction. Before me was a small battalion of gentlemen under the dictatorial influence of fraternity and Southern charm.

There wasn’t a man above twenty-five in the bar, but I counted a handful of blazers. Every shirt was tucked carefully into khakis and there were scores of loafers.

I noted one young man, I kid you not, who was wearing a Burberry-patterned bowtie; if he had told me he traveled solely by yacht, I wouldn’t have doubted it. All at once I felt very unsettled: I had stumbled blindly into Ben’s territory, into a veritable orgy of tweed and Cole Haans, and it only took a cursory glance to realize I was very poorly camouflaged.

Now, as I see it, there are a few important lessons to draw from my adventures in Fratland. First, it should be pointed out that I had a marvelous time that night. Pink or primary colored, popped or un-popped, it was made abundantly clear that one shouldn’t judge a man by his polo alone. But perhaps more important, I was struck by the disparity between my experience in Washington, D.C., and my time at Washington University.

There isn’t a bar in St. Louis—at least not one populated

by Wash. U. students—that will present uniformity to that degree. Wash. U., to its credit, is a place teeming with diversity and individuality, a place where heterogeneity flourishes. This isn’t to say that you won’t see a healthy number of lavender colored garments, because you will; the difference is it’s a matter of fashion, a choice, not a uniform to be dutifully donned.

So, without reservation, I can say that we look forward to your contribution to the eclectic fabric of Washington University—no matter the shade or stripe of your polo.

B5

To do: get rid of the North Face jacket

Daniel Milstein Forum Editor

I

’m a Forum editor, and I’ve spent a year at Washington University. Therefore, I can only give advice to incoming freshmen based on my personal experiences and reactions—which would be pretty hard to duplicate.

Alas, I do have one nugget of wisdom to dispense to the newest group of people about to be brain-washed.

For the love of all things sacred (and by that, of course, I mean the new Clap Your Hands Say Yeah CD. Brooklyn represent, yo), do not bring a North Face jacket to campus in the fall.

Once the weather turns cold, many Bears decide to go into hibernation, with their big, puffy North Face jackets as protection from the frost—and for good reason. They keep you warm, and they’re oh-so-fashionable. I know this; I had one about four years ago. But when they’re more common than Starbucks, they defi-

nitely are not fashionable anymore.

Now, I can’t claim to know fashion. But I know annoying, and these North Face jackets defi nitely are annoying.

It’s almost a painful sight in the winter. North Face jacket after North Face jacket after North Face jacket.

The good news is that these jackets have the ability to unite people of all shapes and sizes. Everybody from prepubescent girls to mostly rich, preppy, college kids to the drug dealer I watched get convicted for dealing crack cocaine wears them.

“There are a lot of people who decry the lack of diversity on this campus...For now, let’s try to get more apparel diversity.”

The bad news is that it just gets so repetitive.

Conservatives on campus are more common than people who do not wear these jackets. There are a lot of people who decry the lack of diversity on campus.

We can deal with unimportant issues like race, socioeconomic background, and political ideology later—for now, let’s try to get more apparel diversity.

You, the incoming freshmen (ignore those last three words if you are not an incoming freshman) are

the ones who can bring this about. So please, I beg of you, leave the North Face at home.

Thanks to Forum’s length requirements, here are some more quick words of wisdom. Let’s call them “advice shots:” -If you’re pre-med, prepare not to be.

-Don’t think it’s mandatory to come into school with your career path already planned out.

-Buy the new Art Brut CD. You will be much happier as a result.

-Do not overload yourself with too many activities -If you get stuck on the ground floor, try to get off of it, unless you’re a very private person.

-In old dorms, you live on the second floor if you have to walk up two fl ights of stairs. (It’s the British system of floor numbering.)

For example, if you live in Umrath 291, you live on the second floor, not the third floor (and you should talk to ResLife about where your room actually is).

And now for the shameless self-promotion chaser: please submit stuff to us. forum@studlife.com. We want to hear your thoughts, no matter how crazy they are. Just make sure that you organize them in a coherent manner, and that your piece is shorter than 650 words and longer than 500 words.

You too can mercilessly critize others’ clothing choices.

You know you wanna. Try writing for us.

Send an e-mail to editor@studlife.com for more details.

B6 STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Take chances. Do crazy things. Now is the time.

Brian Schroeder Forum Editor

I

can remember with vivid clarity getting this edition of StudLife in the mail right before I was about to head off to college. All kinds of people that I had never met and didn’t have much of a connection with wanted to offer me all types of advice, most of which I didn’t take. I definitely regret not taking the advice of one columnist who advised me to break up with my high school girlfriend before we went off to separate colleges. It would have spared both of us a lot of heartache and a very nasty breakup over Thanksgiving. I wrote that column for last year’s copy of the newspaper, but I doubt that very many people took my advice.

That’s the great thing about advice: you only really appreciate it after you’ve ignored it and learned your lesson the hard way. Now that I’m older and wiser (but not wise enough to graduate in four years, or maybe just wise enough to know that college is much more enjoyable than the real world) I’ve stopped handing out advice to people like so much Pez. More often than not people have to learn things the hard way, things like how the girl/guy you met in high school probably isn’t the one and only person for you, or how mixing tequila and Red Bull is a bad idea—but such is human nature. Instead of trying to dispense advice like this,

the type of lessons that you just need to learn on your own for them to really have an impact on you, I’m going to give you a much broader message, something that I’ve learned from my four going on five years at Washington University.

College is a wonderful place and you really won’t begin to appreciate it until it’s almost over. For me, college was something that I’d always knew I would experience, but the realization of it didn’t really hit me until last spring, when I saw all my friends graduate. College is a very finite period of time, something I had always ignored, much to my current dismay. Time will go by so fast you will have no idea what is happening.

“You will not look back and think, ‘Damn, I wish I had spent more time in the library.’”

You only have eight semesters—that’s not much time for what a lot of people refer to as the greatest time in their life. Make the most of it while you’re there, because the memories you create and the friends you meet will truly shape who you become as an adult.

One thing that I learned to do while in college was to start taking chances. Do things that you’ve never had the opportunity to do back home—you’ll be surprised at what you might enjoy doing or learning. One of the reasons that I didn’t graduate on time is the fact that I’ve spent more time taking classes in the ArtSci school than in the b-school, the one I’m actually a student in. I took classes just because I liked the professor and really had no idea who the Pre-Raphaelites were, but I think I am better off for it. I took German on a whim, and it landed me an internship at BMW during my junior year. It’s good to

have a focus, but college should also make you an interesting person, and the more you know, the easier it is to connect with strangers.

That’s something that will help you out both professionally and socially.

Another thing to keep in mind is that college isn’t only about academics. Washington University can be a pretty stressful place—so make time for yourself. When you suddenly find yourself in the position I was last spring, you will not look back and think, “Damn, I wish I had spent more time in the library.” You’re going to think “Damn, I wish I had spent more time with my friends, doing crazy shit.”

If people on your floor are hanging out on a Tuesday night/Wednesday morning, join them for a while. Some of the best memories I have are from random late nights with my friends, nothing too special at the time but looking back I really miss it.

It will be easy to get stuck in a rut at school, with the same comfortable friends and routine, but don’t let yourself do that.

That routine will prevent you from making some amazing discoveries.

Take some chances and go places or do things or eat stuff that you might normally not do, things you might even be a little scared to do. Hunter S Thompson wrote the following about the people who settle into routines and wake up one day to discover that they never really lived: “They lacked the only true courage: the kind which enables men to face the unknown regardless of the consequences.”

Keep this in mind as you venture off into the unknown, and when you are in my position you will look back at your time here without a single ounce of regret and with countless fond memories which will sustain you during the dark days that exist in great numbers out here in the real world.

Everyone’s telling you to take risks, to put yourself out there.

College is not the last stand in your education

Jeff Stepp Forum Editor

Y

ou think you’re coming to college to get away from people telling you what to do. Your parents, grandparents, teachers, friends, imaginary friends, whatever, have all been telling you what grades to get, what classes to take, what the AP scores really mean, etc. Ad infinitum.

Ad nauseum. Ad clichéd Latin phrases.

You’ve come to college to escape all that. You’ve spent four years with your big rubber boots on wading through the mess of high school—the lunches in the hallway, the awkward slow songs at dances, the chaperoned dates, the UNchaperoned dates (fi nally!)—and you’re ready for the big time. The real world. You are fi nally on your own. No one is going to tell you what the hell to do with your time.

Except your advisors, your RAs, your professors, your floormates, and probably your wobbly reflection in the toilet bowl every once in a while.

Truth be told, you never escape people trying to give you their opinion on how you should run your

life. When to study, how to study, where to study, what to drink, what to wear, who to like, who to hate, what frats are cool, what sororities are cute, what music just totally rocks. College life, much like the rest of life, is saturated with this stuff, especially during the first year. And you know what? It’s really not that bad. In fact, it’s often pretty helpful.

Listen to everything.

Drunk people, sober people, old people, young people. Even Republicans.

There’s nothing that’s not worth hearing. That said, don’t be afraid to spill what you hear right out the other ear when you hear it. But at least make

“Hell, my mom was a French major, and today she writes books about adolescence.

Go figure.” the effort to understand.

Because somewhere, buried in all the bull, you’re going to find gems that make your first year remarkable.

Don’t be afraid to laugh or cry or do both, because what lasts are the memories you make, not the chances you never took.

Even for the most urbane of college freshman, college life is overwhelming. There are always going to be voices telling you what to do; it is now your job to decipher those voices and decide which ones you like best. Don’t be pressured into doing anything just because some-

one else wants you to. You know why so many people are pre-med first year, and non-pre-med second year?

That’s because they let someone else make their decisions for them.

College, contrary to what every guidebook will tell you, is not the last stand in your education. It is not the place where the very first track you take is the one on which you must finish. Hell, my mom was a French major, and today she writes books about adolescence. Go figure.

Explore everything you thought you never would like, take everything your parents don’t want you to take; there have been many times when a choice professor or TA has opened my mind to something I never would have thought of.

Now that you’ve listened to me, forget everything I just told you. Or don’t. It’s your choice. But at least be open to making that choice. Listen and learn and you will have the best four years of your life.

I’ll be writing a weekly column for Student Life, and I need to publish three other articles each week. I don’t write these articles myself, so where do I get them? From people like you! If you ever have anything to say, say it, say it well, and send it to me at jsstepp@wustl.edu. I’ll publish as much as I can that’s within the Forum guidelines. This section is your section, and this is your year. Fill it up.

Your Connection to Jewish Life on Campus!

2ULHQWDWLRQ :HHN +LJKOLJKWV Thursday, Aug. 25 - Free Bagels and Popsicles on move-in day!

Why not put yourself out there in a big way by writing for Student Life?

With a circulation of 13,000, we’re about as big as it gets.

Friday, Aug. 26 - Free Shabbat Dinner at Hillel for students and parents

Send an e-mail to editor@studlife.com for more details.

Sunday, Aug. 28 - Late Night with JSU (Jewish Student Union) Wednesday, Aug. 31 - Israel Beit Cafe (Free falafel and hummus!)

Friday, Sept. 2 - First Campus-Wide Shabbat Dinner

WE RE ON THE SHUTTLE LOOP RIGHT BEHIND THE ESQUIRE THEATER!

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7019 Forsyth Blvd St. Louis, MO 63105 lcm@restech.wustl.edu 314.863.8140

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

Welcome to a summer home from college

Anna Dinndorf Designer/Columnist

I

used to enjoy my summers. During middle and high school, summer was a time when I didn’t have to do anything.

I could sleep until 1 p.m., lie on the couch all day watching TV, and at night go out with my friends. The lazy days of summer were ones with no responsibilities, no firm plans, and no stresses.

Those days are over, my friends.

Welcome to a summer home from college: Your parents welcome you home with open arms and exclaim over how good it is to have you home, you spend one glorious, relaxing week settling back in and seeing old friends—and then, if you’re like many college students (myself included), you dive headfirst into a full-time job and don’t resurface again until August.

I’m all for summer employment. It keeps you productive while you’re out of school, and I’m not one to complain about extra

cash. Further, juniors and seniors can get some really great opportunities to work in the field they’re interested in.

But if you’re just entering college or have only completed a year, finding a summer job that both pays well and is interesting is next to impossible. I, for instance, am a psychology major, yet I’m working at a financial company doing menial tasks such as data entry and filing. Another college student at my office is a criminology major and is doing the same thing I am. A friend of mine is doing manual labor full-time at a garden. And I know people who couldn’t even find jobs for the summer.

Why is it so difficult for

“Unfortunately, many times a good salary must be sacrificed for the sake of doing something interesting.” intelligent, hard-working people like college students to find work that is enjoyable? Is it because of our youth and inexperience? Or because we can only work for the three months we have off? Is it too much to ask to be doing something beneficial and worthwhile to enhance our educations during the time we’re not in class?

Granted, some people are lucky. My boyfriend, who is prelaw, is working for a judge in New York. A friend

B7

Open up, and leave the drama back in high school

from home, a math and physics major, is working in California observing black holes. Another friend, a French major, got a job as a counselor at a French camp.

The opportunities are out there. Unfortunately, many times a good salary must be sacrificed for the sake of doing something interesting. And earning lots of money while time is plentiful is a priority for many Washington University students.

We should not have to settle for jobs that are beneath us for the sake of cash. Companies should be happy if students who are studying in their field are taking an interest in their business. College students working where their interests lie are generally enthusiastic and dedicated, which are qualities often lacked in full-time employees, and learning on the job is the best way to learn.

More organizations should have programs that reach out to college students, offering them the experience and money they need to be successful during and after college, and maybe even train them for jobs they can move into once they graduate. This way, students benefit by getting the opportunity to learn more about their field of interest, and employers can train potential employees while enjoying extra worker productivity.

Uh oh, here comes my boss. I’d better get back to work…

David Stein Class of 2007

W

hen I was in high school, I was a dork. Plain and simple, I was a nerd of momentous proportions. At least I was for my freshman and sophomore years. Then I met this girl who for some reason seemed to like me. I was on cloud nine. She was “so hot,” as my buddies would say.

We started dating, and suddenly I began to climb the social ladder. Her friends became my friends, and I was fi nally going out all the time. The corruption of this innocent nerdy little boy had begun. I was introduced to the side of life that all the “cool” kids were into. Alcohol, cigarettes, and a whole array of sexual experiences were thrown at my feet. I loved it for about five months, until I found out that my wonderful, hot, cool girlfriend had been sleeping with another guy the whole time.

I was devastated. How could this happen to me? I swore I would go on a personal vendetta against the female sex and never date again. I was going to hook

up with whoever I wanted whenever I wanted, drink and smoke myself into oblivion because I could, and nobody was going to stop me. All of my friends in high school were doing the same thing, and it kept me in the upper social circle.

I had fun this way for quite a while, and still managed to maintain my grades and get into Washington University. I was on top of the world when I moved onto Liggett 3 in the 100-degree heat two falls ago. I drank myself sick first semester more times than I should share, with many nights spent over the toilet clutching my stomach in pain, but I was ok with it. I had my share of

“Alcohol, cigarettes, and a whole array of sexual experiences were thrown at my feet. I loved it for about five months.” random (and not so random) hookups, and I was ok with it. As long as I could be reckless, worry about no one but myself, and keep myself from getting hurt again, I was doing great.

Until it got old.

About halfway through first semester sophomore year, I started thinking about how I was running my life. Should one bad relationship back in high school cause me to turn to heavy drinking and shut out the chance to ever be close to another girl? I finally decided I had to give myself another chance to

trust someone. That chance presented itself shortly after the beginning of winter break last semester.

I finally confessed to being head over heels for this girl I had been avoiding for almost a year and after a while, we started dating.

She has made me realize that the person I was acting as and the person I truly am are two totally different human beings. Puking my guts out every Friday and Saturday and going to parties with the mission of leaving with a different girl each time are not the things that make me happy in life. Far better endeavors are getting drunk with my buddies within my limits and having a girlfriend I know is and will be there whenever I need her.

My sappy advice as you enter upon your four years at this University is simple: leave the high school drama in high school and you will be much happier for it. Drink and go out on the weekends, but be responsible and have fun. Don’t be the obnoxious, angry drunk guy or girl. Don’t be afraid to let people get close to you, whether it is your friends, a girlfriend/ boyfriend, or a professor. You will be glad that someone is there when you go through the hard times.

Last, just enjoy your experience. You only get four years, so don’t spend them feeling sorry for yourself because of past problems that can be put to rest for good. I almost made that mistake, and am eternally grateful to the girl who made me realize that life is full of wonderful things.

Welcome to Washington University!

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free professional FACES photography session sept 26-28 (mon-wed) 9am-6pm women’s building formal lounge sept 29-30 (thurs & fri) 9am-7pm friedman lounge in wohl center

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B8 STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Learn how to handle your horseshoes

Eucapopylis Harlequin Rasbora

it is far worse than that.

You probably don’t know yet about the secret underground tunnels between the buildings.

Well, they were originally built by the engineers to create secret passageways to the business school for sabotaging purposes (sad times in the Old Republic…), but they were closed down after someone stepped on a rhino in one and exploded, or something like that. Well, if you do poorly in your classes,

“They never tell you what happens if you don’t do these things.

‘Fail out of school?’ you ask, but lo, it is far worse than that.”

S

o, ye be starting yer first year at Washington University, eh matie? Well, fortunately for you, Eucapopylis the goldfish (actually, I’m a harlequin rasbora, but that’s beside the point, and the point happens to be sharp) is here to advise you on what to expect out of freshman year here (“Beer?” Probably).

I suppose we should begin with the reason you’re (God willing) here: academics. You should probably do all the things they tell you to do, y’know: study, go to class (preferably sober), challenge yourself, all the things my owner tends to not do, yada yada yada…

But they never tell you what happens if you don’t do these things. “Fail out of school?” you ask, but lo,

the cultish professors have a tendency to take troublemakers in there and perform nasty bizarre experiments on them. Seriously.

So check yourself before you wreck yourself, aight? I hope that isn’t copyrighted (actually, I don’t care, BECAUSE I’M A FISH [evil fish laugh]).

Now don’t let the possibility of strange sadistic rituals frighten you, you’re still allowed to have fun!

You know what the favorite pastime of our students is?

No, wrong answer, everyone here abides by alcohol and drug laws. Try again.

Yes, you’re right, horseshoe tossing! Ask nearly everyone on campus what they’ll be doing this Friday night, you’ll probably get the same response. Of course, I must warn you about some of the risks involved with horseshoe tossing. Some people don’t know how to handle their horseshoes: they’ll toss too much, or toss too many too quickly and the next thing they know they need to call EST, who then need to call an ambulance, which takes they to a hospital where there’s a large strangely odorific nurse trying to hit on you.

Trust me, that is not a situation you want to find yourself in (unless you like the whole corpulent strange smelling nurse thing, but in that case, you’ve probably got bigger problems than horseshoes).

Hopefully that’s all the advice you’ll need, because frankly my eight-second memory is starting to hinder my ability to remember what the hell I already told you. Oh, one more thing: don’t pop your collar, it’s so flippin’ idiotic. And so I bid—OOH, HE’S FEEDING ME! Gotta run, ciao.

Everyone’s telling you to take risks, to put yourself out there.

Why not put yourself out there in a big way by writing for Student Life?

With a circulation of 13,000, we’re about as big as it gets.

Send an e-mail to editor@studlife.com for more details.

Forget hooking up: try tomfoolery instead spends entirely too much time trying to be something they’re not, so they can get something that really isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

What many of you may not realize, (probably because you have yet to experience three years of college) is that the best nights you’ll have in college are the ones where you’re doing the ridiculously stupid stuff and experiencing the many close calls you will have while attempting

Eric Triebe Class of 2006

H

ooking up is overrated. There, I said it. Now most of you are thinking right now, “Is this kid crazy?” Actually, I am. (I’m pretty sure that the male race is currently drawing up a statement professing their disappointment in me as a man. That should be aired at 5 p.m. CST for those of you interested.)

For those of you who are entering in the fall, you’ve probably been just itching to have your own room to bring a girl home to next year. It’ll be your freshman year of college, and there isn’t a person in the world that is gonna stop you from having a non-stop sexual escapade that may or may not involve whipped cream.

You’re thinking that this is the beginning of a new you. A you that almost no one at this school knows.

You may view this as the beginning of your sexual era, as millions of college students before you have.

What you don’t know is that this may all seem good on paper, but it will never pan out to be as glorious as you had hoped. I believe that the college student

“It’s stuff like this that’ll make you the person everyone wants to talk to at the party.” not to get caught.

We’re all in a rare situation right now. We’re in an environment where we are surrounded by 4,500 peers, at a time in our lives where we can afford to not care.

This is what separates us from the adult world. In the adult world, there are those horrible phrases like “financially independent,” “a 9-5 work day,” and “responsibility.”

In college, those are practically non-existent. I say that instead of spending those extra hours trying to “get some,” you should use the creative juices and cunning intellect that got you into this school and go out do something silly.

Take all of your friends’ underwear and make them into a block of ice in the freezer. Make contests with your friends (a lá Seinfeld) and see who can last the

longest. Play ridiculous childhood games like capture the flag, hide and go seek, or have a water balloon fight.

It’s stuff like this that’ll make you the person everyone wants to talk to at a party. Why? It will probably be because you’ve got an endless supply of entertaining stories and also because there’s always the potential that they could be involved in your next episode of highjinks and tomfoolery.

If instead of doing the aforementioned activities, you had spent that time trying to hook up, you’d probably have a lot less to talk about with that guy/gal from Umrath who you’ve got a crush on. Just try holding a conversation talking about some of your past hook-ups with the person. Yeah, that’s the way to spark an interest.

Now I’m not saying to completely avoid hooking up—absolutely not. My point is that you need to be well-rounded individuals. Aside from all that, if you follow my advice, I can almost guarantee that you’ll make some of the best friends of your entire life in the process.

And on top of all that, cherish your years in college, because trust me when I say this, the four years really do fly by (and they’re some of the best in your life).

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ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | FORUM

Five tips to avoid senior panic and unemployment the balls to come in and see what we’ve got to offer.

Kristin Nelson Career Peer

1

So maybe you’re too scared to admit that one day, you’ll be forced to leave the “Wash. U. bubble” and enter the real world. Well, while you’re in denial, and gathering up the courage to actually visit the Career Center, sign in to our website. Go to careers. wustl.edu, do the things I’m going to tell you to do, and then you can log out of reality for a bit.

Lots of seniors come in and complain that they can’t log on to their account…well maybe if you hadn’t waited til the last week of school to figure it out, you wouldn’t be freaking out right now.

So to log on, use your student ID number on your little Wash. U. ID plus the word ‘wustl’ as your log-on. (e.g.

123456wustl). Your password is the last four digits of your Social Security number. Easy schmeasy. Once you’re in, update your profi le, check out the calendar of events, as well as the jobs and internships database. That’s it—it takes two seconds. Do it. Then you can sign off ‘til sophomore year. We allow that.

2. Physically enter the Career Center. Yes, come inside. It’s not scary, we promise. Talk to whoever’s at the desk (especially if it’s me) and pick up a Calendar of Events and a Resume Writing Packet while you’re there. Basically, just have

3. Look at our library. No, not Olin. The Career Center has its own library, which a ton of Wash. U. students don’t even know about.

There are free computers for career purposes and tons of resources for internship hunting and career exploration. Instead of peeing your pants ‘cause you can’t bear to think of actually having a real job one day...come in and look around. You may actually get a bit excited once you see all the opportunities out there for you. Or maybe not…but at least give it a shot.

“You will probably be helped, but you will also be ridiculed extensively behind your back by our entire staff.”

4. Write your resume. I highly suggest getting your initial resume writing out of the way before the day before your first big interview. Rushed resume writing = no job for you. I understand that many students (like me) didn’t have a lot of work experience before college, but get a basic draft done. Think of any awards, jobs on the side, anything that you could put down as experience.

You will change it all later, but a basic template will help a ton in the long run.

Since you’ve already come in and picked up a Resume Writing packet, this will be really easy! But if you fi nd that you really suck at all this job stuff, you can even come in and attend a free resume writing workshop! Seriously guys, we hand you this stuff on a platter. Once you have a basic draft, bring it in to Quick Questions, Monday-Fri-

And that’s all! Five easy steps to becoming a Career Center groupie! I guarantee that if you do this stuff, come graduation time, you will be comfortable with the idea of the “real world” (well at least a hell of a lot more comfortable than you would have been without us).

Call us anytime at 9355930. All I ask is, please, please, please do not come to us two weeks before you graduate, never having been to the Career Center, never having logged in online, and ask us to find you a job. It happens a lot and it is not cool. You will probably be helped, but you will also be ridiculed extensively behind your back by our entire staff.

Feel strongly about something?

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Annoyed that someone else wrote about it first?

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How to avoid date rape: learn to be vigilant

day from 12-5 p.m., and have somebody edit and beautify your resume. That Career Peer who hands you a perfect resume can also answer all of your internship, cover letter, and interviewing questions.

No appointments needed, no waiting, no excuses.

5. And finally, speaking from experience, I can say that getting to know the super cool staff at the Career Center is a definite plus. Not only are they great people, but they can really truly help you. They are there because they love doing this stuff and they really know what they’re talking about. Appointments are available with our Career Advisors, and an even better way to get to know them is to attend workshops, which they run, and special events, which they host. Lunch with a Pro is a great series that allows you to enjoy a free—yes, free—lunch while listening to a professional tell you how to succeed in his/her field. Pretty sweet.

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Melissa Miller CORE Member

A

s a senior, I’d like to welcome the Class of 2009. I’d also, however, like to offer some resources and advice to both the incoming class and all other grades as a long-standing member of CORE, the Committee Organized for Rape Education.

National statistics say that between 1 in 4 and 1 in 5 women experience rape or attempted rape in college, with the statistic including verbal coercion and date rape. While I feel that Washington University is a supportive and safe community, I think that it’s important to recognize that rape still occurs here, particularly date rape, which typically occurs when one or both parties involved are intoxicated.

As someone who has spent three years of college trying to educate fellow students on how to both be and feel safer, I’m going to give you my advice for men and women of all sexual orientations on how to reduce the risk experiencing or perpetrating date rape: If you choose to drink, tell your friends that you’re drinking and tell them ahead of time how much you’re going to drink. This way they can keep an eye on you to make sure that you stay within your limits.

Friends: if your buddies don’t tell you, ask how much they intend to drink

if they’re drinking and try to hold them to it.

If you plan to “hook up,” know how intimate you’d like to get ahead of time so that you don’t find yourself in the middle of a situation three hours down the road, having to make a decision on the spot while not even knowing what level of intimacy you’re comfortable with. Don’t set some sort of “goal” that must be achieved, just know how far you would be willing to go if the opportunity presented itself. Knowing what you want, even how you want it, is a form of protection because you can distinguish what you don’t want, or what is hurting you.

“I think that it’s important to recognize that rape still occurs here, particularly date rape.”

Communicate with your partner in intimate situations! Don’t just assume that you’ll magically be able to read each others’ minds because lovers do it movies. Before getting more intimate, ask your partner if s/he is comfortable.

The vast majority of rape survivors freeze up instead of acting out to stop the perpetrator.

If your partner is not responding to you, you could be raping him/her; while you may not be actively trying to hurt the individual you’re with, by not actively trying to protect that person, you may wind up hurting them just the same—it’s abuse versus neglect.

You’re much less likely to hurt someone if you intend to care and attempt to give pleasure as opposed to simply receive (or take) it.

Friends: If you see your buddy or roommate walking off with someone, a

stranger or an acquaintance, and you’re worried about whether they’re going to be ok, but don’t want to butt in, just ask them where they’re going. Sometimes people don’t plan out where they’re going, especially after a party, so asking them where they’re going can get them asking themselves, “Hey, where am I going? Do I want to go there? With this person?”

It also gives your friend a way out because they can say that they’re going home with you. Also, if they give you an answer (“We’re going back to his/her place”) and you’re still worried, ask if you can come along with them, even if you don’t intend to come along.

This will get your friend thinking, “Wait, do I want my friend with me and if I don’t, why? What do I intend to do alone with this person that makes it impossible for my friend to be here with me?” Getting them to think ahead of time will help them set their limits and decide what they want.

If something should happen to you or one of your friends while you’re at Washington University, fortunately, there are a number of excellent resources available: -SARAH, the Sexual Assault and Rape Action Hotline: 314.935.8080 -Uncle Joe’s Peer Counseling: 314.935.5099 -Student Health and Counseling: 314.935.5980 -The Wash. U. Police Department (WUPD): 314.935.5555 -The Director of Judicial Programs, Tamara King: 314.935.4174 -Residential Advisors are also good resources A more extensive list of resources can be found at police.wustl.edu/links.html

If, on the other hand, you’d rather cover a controversy than start one, perhaps you should think about joining our News staff.

If that made you stop and think, you should send an email to news@studlife.com

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B10 STUDENT LIFE | ADVERTISEMENT

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | CADENZA

CADEN Z A

n. a technically brilliant sometimes improvised solo passage toward the close of a concerto, an exceptionally brilliant part of an artistic work

arts & entertainment

Meet the Cadenza staff Here they are. The Cadenza staff. The sometimes witty, always sardonic contingent of college students who have devoted the majority of their college careers to wasting away in Student Life’s basement office, surviving on nothing but NutriGrain bars and indie rock albums. Between their record store addictions and love of romantic comedies, the Cadenza staff is nothing but a well-oiled writing machine, ready to take over not only this newspaper, but the Subway in Umrath, the basement of Olin Library, and arts sections everywhere.

Laura Vilines, our senior Cadenza editor, is a senior studying a lot of different things and pursuing a variety of

Few people know that Adam Summerville is

majors and interests. Laura has spent her

a founding member of ABBA, but then, few people

summer teaching children to dance and

care about such things. Entering his senior year,

sing in Appalachia. She’s been spend-

he is a math/economics/computer science/(any

ing her spare time watching high school

other potentially dorky) major. He spent this last

Quiz Bowl competitions on television

summer doing research on the applied mathemat-

and eating large meals at the local Hud-

ics of flight in Kansas, and he now believes that

dle House. She looks forward to a year

flight is possible. He still doesn’t believe in inter-

filled with happiness, prosperity, and lots

nal combustion engines or computers, though, but

of non-Huddle House meals.

perhaps one day he will lose this extreme skepticism. As a math major, he has absolutely no skills for editing articles or critically analyzing movies, yet following a series of suspicious deaths he was named Cadenza’s movie editor.

Theater editor Robbie Gross was implicated in a leak involving the Teapot Dome Scandal in the mid-1920s. After completing several dozen Iditarods and bankrupting himself following three failed theatrical adaptations of the sledrace, he enrolled in Washington University to study the humanities and Spanish. His play about the 2004 Presidential Debate at Washington University won him significant praise, and a movie deal is currently in the works. He is currently a senior.

Music editor Jordan Deam is a senior English major and jazz studies minor. Earlier this summer, his car’s CD player broke down on a road trip from Minneapolis to Chicago. That left him the choice of dialing into Top 40 or Christian fundamentalist radio, both of which he believes to be vastly over-represented in the central Wisconsin radio landscape. As it turned out, he listened to one Jerry Falwell wannabe after the other for the next three hours...that’s how much he hates bad music.

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C2 STUDENT LIFE | CADENZA

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

FILM PREVIEW

What’s the frequency at WU? The semester in movies Sonic Reduction v Matt Simonton

By Adam Summerville Cadenza Movie Editor

You’re more than likely sick of hearing all the welcoming salutations, the endless administrative emails, the constant advice about academic choices, new opportunities, et cetera, so let’s get down to it: You’re in college. You’re gonna hear a boatload of great new music. And it could very well change your life just as much as that human evolution course everyone’s already talking about.

Don’t think that such a claim is an exaggeration, or that music (and the arts in general) isn’t an integral part of the college experience. Hopefully, before your time at Washington University is up, you’ll stay up having late-night dorm conversations about the Pixies and the latest Wes Anderson film, in addition to Shakespeare and the existence of God. You’ll have the time of your life at WILD, lose your mind at concerts, and listen to a CD that makes you cry.

“I heard a record and it opened my eyes,” goes a song by the band Pretty Girls Make Graves.

That’s my story, at least. I came to school with what I thought was a pretty decent CD collection; I was soon proved very, very wrong. All it took was a floormate on Koenig 1 with a copy of Neutral Milk Hotel’s “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea” to show me what music could be. (My eternal thanks, Rischall.)

Pretty soon I was trading with everyone—my roommate had the ska and dub, and my fellow writers at Cadenza turned me on to more good sounds than I could name in one sitting. And let’s not forget Direct Connect, or The Download-

ing Server That Must Not Be Named. It’s long since been dismantled, but before it went under I probably burnt 200 albums or more (hello, RIAA!).

DC may be no more, but seek and ye shall find a network.

Unfortunately, the musical opportunities at Wash. U. aren’t always fully utilized. Despite the smart crowds that assemble at Graham Chapel for freshman convocation every year, “musical adventurousness” is rarely a high priority compared to pre-med courses and discovering Frat Row. It’s hard for an old codger like me not to get all reactionary, but more and more it seems music appreciation is becoming music consumption, especially with the rise of the iPod. Rather than buying the new Coldplay or Common or Sufjan Stevens record, students are buying the singles on iTunes and adding them to their workout or party mixes.

Far from it that I should demand for everyone to become a nerdy record collector (although you can email mssimont@ wustl.edu for tips on where to get good vinyl), but good Lord, people, look at all the options you have: -Read Cadenza for the latest music news, reviews, and previews. Like what you’ve been listening to lately? Write a CD review for the paper.

-Listen to Wash U’s own KWUR 90.3 on your FM dial or streaming live at www.kwur.wustl.edu. The little station that could, KWUR has won awards for “Best Radio Station” from The Riverfront Times

despite its criminally tiny reception radius.

-Attend concerts at the Gargoyle, the little dungeon-esque venue in the basement of Mallinkrodt.

Shows are usually free for students, and past acts have included Broken Social Scene, DJ Scratch from the Roots, Q and not U, and the Wrens.

Welcome to college. As freshmen, the most valuable skill you will learn is how to manage your time properly, and with that in mind, this list shall give you enough information about the notable movies of the upcoming semester that you can adequately plan for when you should skip your classes.

only to find out that it is in fact the corpse of a murdered girl (Helena BonhamCarter), who now believes that they are married. With what looks to be the best claymation seen in a long time—or perhaps the only claymation to be seen in a long time—and a style very reminiscent of “A Nightmare Before Christmas,” Corpse Bride seems like it will be a fun, dark time.

October 21

-Hit up the Delmar Loop, where you’ll find Vintage Vinyl, one of America’s top 10 record stores, according to Rolling Stone, along with Streetside Records, the Pageant Theater and plenty of smaller venues, like Cicero’s and the Red Sea. -Start up a band of your own. The members of Wash. U.’s last successful group, the Hatch, have all graduated, so the title of “campus band” is up for grabs. Play your cards right and you could open for the act at WILD. And that’s just the tip of the ol’ iceberg. If the campus scene is not to your liking, there’s always stuff going on at clubs like the Creepy Crawl and Mississippi Nights. The music is out there; all you have to do is reach out and grab it by the lapels (or the torn t-shirt or spandex bodysuit, as the case may be).

Enjoy your freshman year.

“Sonic Reduction” is a weekly music column written by former Cadenza editor Matt Simonton. Despite its academic-sounding flair, its name comes from the Dead Boys’ punk classic “Sonic Reducer.”

Are your tastes obscure? Are you an eclectic musical genius?

Do you fight the good fight against ordinary music?

September 16 “Shopgirl” “Everything is Illuminated” Based on the critically acclaimed novel of the same name, Everything is Illuminated stars Elijah Wood as the grandson of a Holocaust survivor, who goes abroad to find the woman who saved his grandfather. Part comedy, part drama, this definitely looks be one of the more interesting movies coming out in the near future.

“Proof” An adaptation of the play by the same name, “Proof” follows the story of Catherine (Gwyneth Paltrow), who is dealing with the death of her once brilliant but mentally ill father (Anthony Hopkins). Hal (Jake Gyllenhaal), a former student of her father’s, comes to her and wants to look through all of the notebooks he wrote in his days of madness, hoping that some of the former brilliance remained. Starring some of the best actors in recent memory and based on one of the best plays in recent memory, “Proof” looks like a definite contender for the Academy Awards.

September 23 “Corpse Bride” As if “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” wasn’t enough, we are treated to a second Tim Burton/ Johnny Depp film this year.

The movie is about Victor (Depp), who places his wedding ring on what he thinks to be a finger-like stick and says his wedding vows,

Adapted from Steve Martin’s novella of the same name, “Shopgirl” is about Mirabelle (Claire Danes),a shopgirl, who is being courted by two men simultaneously. On the one hand she has the older, wealthier Ray (Steve Martin), and on the other she has the struggling artist Jeremy (Jason Schwartzman), who is closer to her in age. Eventually Mirabelle is forced to choose between these two very different men, causing her to evaluate what she is looking for in her life.

This looks like it has a very good chance of being this year’s Garden State/Lost in Translation/mainstream 20-something indie hit.

December 9 “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe” Adapted from the first of C.S. Lewis’s famous series of children’s Christian allegorical books, TCoN:TLTWaTW (which is undoubtedly the longest abbreviation ever) looks surprisingly badass. Sure, you have to deal with the fact that a talking lion is supposed to be Jesus, but there looks to be enough Lord of the Rings-esque action to appeal to even the most heathen people out there.

“Memoirs of a Geisha” Adapted from the critically acclaimed novel, “Memoirs” is the tale of Sayrui (Zhang Ziyi) as she rises from an orphan in a

That corpse bride is one goodlookin’ dead lady fishing village to the most celebrated geisha in Japan.

Also starring Ken Watanabe and Michelle Yeoh, “Memoirs” is shaping up to be another frontrunner for the Academy Awards this year.

“The Producers” Yet another adaptation, “The Producers” is drawn from the Mel Brooks play of the same name, which was originally adapted from the Mel Brooks movie of the same name. “The Producers” is the tale of producer Max Bialystock (Nathan Lane), his accountant (Matthew Broderick) and their get-rich-quick scheme.

Their plan? Producing the worst play in the history of the world, “Springtime for Hitler.” Featuring Will Ferrell as an eccentric fascist, Nazi pigeons, and Uma Thurman, “The Producers” seems like it might even surpass the award-winning play.

If so, drop us a line. E-mail cadenza@studlife.com.

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ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | CADENZA

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ALBUM REVIEWS

It’s murky in these ‘Woods’

Grand, epic, and even gentle

By Jordan Deam

By Robbie Gross

Cadenza Music Editor It’s been a while since an album has made me feel so conflicted as Sleater-Kinney’s “The Woods.” See, I tend to listen to music with two basic mentalities: as a music fan, “The Woods” contains some of Sleater-Kinney’s most confident and inspired performances.

But as an audiophile (or the cheap-ass collegiate version thereof), this record sounds like shit. Period.

Each track contains numerous overdubs that are audibly distorted. Not the rich, wooly distortion that an overdriven guitar amp produces, but the thin, raspy sound of a studio engineer asleep at the console.

This is the kind of distortion that will make you wonder if your car speakers have blown out the first time you spin the album.

While listening critically to “The Woods” is almost unbearable, Sleater-Kinney’s songwriting is more breathtaking than ever. Still a bassless three-piece, Sleater-Kinney have ditched the minimalist punk arrangements of their previous work and opted for a thicker, muddier sound. Corin Tucker unleashes her vibrato with little restraint, and every track contain a few guitars cranked up to 11. But beneath the textural changes, SleaterKinney’s sense of songcraft is undeniable.

It’s obvious that the console distortion that appears in some form in every track was an artistic decision and not an amateur mistake that managed to make it to the final pressing.

But it’s hard for me to listen to the increasingly clipped-harmonica part in “Modern Girl” and not think that something terribly wrong has happened.

Cadenza Theater Editor

Sleater-Kinney The Woods Sub Pop For fans of: The Pixies, Les Savy Fav, The Soviettes Grade: AFinal Word: A distortionsoaked, shit-smeared masterpiece

Old, new, borrowed, and Beck

By Flora Lerenman Cadenza Staff Beck’s ninth album is an all-you-can-hear Beck Buffet, full of tasty morsels of lo-fi, hip hop, techno, country, ballads, disco, etc., all reminiscent of various phases in his career. Dig in! But beware—some dishes are too saturated for one’s aural palette.

Gone are the days of nursing your Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) symptoms with Beck’s haunting vocals and somber string arrangements in his last album, “Sea Change.”

Now it’s springtime and you can put on your dancing shoes and convulse rhythmically to “Guero,” a stylistic throwback to Beck’s “Midnight Vultures” and “Odelay” days.

For his newest album, Beck has gone retro, partially ditching those undulating orchestral arrangements for his old, trusty harmonica, folksy hip hop, and infectious hand claps. No longer feeling like a “Lost Cause,” Beck

has moved onto seeing himself in a healthier and more realistic light as a Guero, or “white boy” in Spanish slang. “Que Onda Guero” (“Where Are You Going, White Boy?”) lends the record some Spanish L.A. flavor, taking Beck back to his “Odelay” stomping grounds as he dabbles in his trademark humorous pseudorap.

But don’t let the upbeat rhythms and Dust Brothers reunion collaboration fool you, this is no Odelay Beck you’re dealing with. With a bigger recording budget and a gig on The O.C.’s soundtrack, Beck is no longer confined to “two turntables and a microphone” but now has the kind of sound effect library of science fiction flick at his disposal…and in some cases, less is definitely more.

Some of the tracks sound particularly overproduced, as layers of industrial, percussion, and other sound effects and distortions overshadow Beck’s naturally compelling voice. His track “Emergency Exit” can

Beck Guero Geffen Records For fans of: The Eels, Johnny Cash, and Spoon Grade: B+ Download these tracks: “Rental Car,” “Hell Yes,” and “Farewell Ride” make a listener have an auditory seizure and run towards the nearest emergency exit. “Girl” has the danceability of “Mid-

Across the mighty river just east of campus lies a state that, perhaps surprisingly, inspires powerful and beautiful music.

“Illinois” is Sufjan Stevens’ second album in an absurdly ambitious project to record an album about each of the 50 states. While the state may seem to outsiders to represent little more than cold wind and losing baseball teams, to Stevens Illinois is cause for celebration. As with the first album of the series, set in Michigan, “Illinois” is a record that oozes with sound and imagery.

Yet, almost impossibly, Stevens has created a superior record: grand, epic, and astonishingly gentle.

At 78 minutes and with 21 tracks whose titles total around the same amount of words as this review, the album announces itself as well beyond the ordinary. And though “Illinois” does contain a 19-second track entitled, “A Conjunction of Drones Simulating the Way in Which Sufjan Stevens Has an Existential Crisis in The Great Godfrey Maze,” the album miraculously avoids the pretentiousness that characterizes so many of his contemporary indie rock experimenters—Ani-

night Vultures,” but consists of an overwhelming hodgepodge of electric banjo, Nintendo beeps, and Andre 3000esque catchy synthesized beats. Other tracks, like the overly ambitious “Scarecrow,” contain what sounds like mice noises and various screeches that emerge at distractingly random moments and add very little to the album other than a jarring effect.

A previously recorded but unreleased track, “Rental Car” finds a proper home in the eclectic Guero. Beck is a savvy sampler, borrowing some background vocals from “Chiribim-Chiribom” by the Barry Sisters, an old school Yiddish twin sensation.

The brief spurt of remixed la la la las and strangely out of place yet fitting Yiddish yelps in Beck’s

mal Collective being one that comes to mind. In its place are meticulously produced compositions and intelligent and thoughtful lyrics. From the soft piano featured on the opening track, “Concerning The UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois” to the bursting chorus and horns on “The Man of Metropolis Steals our Hearts,” the album expands pop music to its most orchestral boundaries. Lyrically, “Illinois” excels even beyond the name-dropping of notable Illinois people and kitsch—Abraham Lincoln, John Wayne Gacy, and the Sears Tower, to name a few. In the two-part “Come on! Feel the Illinoise!” Stevens effortlessly transitions from a track about the “entrepreneurial conditions” that spawned the Ferris Wheel and Cream of Wheat—complete with horns and a xylophone—to a deeply introspective song about art and death aided by the tasteful addition of violin. “I cried myself to sleep last night / And the ghost of Carl, he approached my window, I was hypnotized. / I was asked to improvise on the attitude, the regret, of a thousand centuries of death,” he sings, referencing the Illinois poet Carl Sandburg.

The range of emotion and sound captured in one song demonstrates the album’s com-

“Rental Car” harkened me back to my childhood days in my father’s car as he wore his Best of the Barry Sisters tape thin, snapping along off-beat and lecturing me on the joys of Klezmer music. Well 1950s Klezmer has never been more joyous than when juxtaposed with Beck’s darker lyrics and whimsical na na naaaaas in “Rental Car.” Guero seems to aim at capturing the magic of previous ones, borrowing beats, background rhythms, and instrumentals from Beck’s most notable songs, but the results are hit or miss. “Farewell Ride” and “Broken Drum” successfully contain beautiful fragments of the brooding and contemplative appeal of “Sea Change.” But while “Missing” is reminiscent

Sufjan Stevens Illinois Asthmatic Kitty Records Grade: A Good tracks: “Come on! Feel the Illinoise” and “The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts”

plexity, and Stevens’ own appreciation for the great heights and depths of experience: in both life and Illinois. With great maturity, Stevens holds together an album that features songs about both historic serial killers (Gacy) and fantastic Zombies. Rarely can an artist so comfortably appropriate and juxtapose the silly and the sublime. Rarely is the fruit of such a production so satisfying.

of “Tropicalia” with its poolside bossa nova vibe and carefree dooo doooo doo dooos, it fails to capture the energy of the original track, opting instead to add a heavy mood with a strings section. The dance-invoking “Hell Yes” best revives the spirit of “Midnight Vultures,” combining the right amount of synthesizer, rap, Nintendo effects, and distorted samples of Christina Ricci’s voice, but with a more polished and accessible appeal.

Guero also features Beck’s first commercial single since Odelay, “E-Pro,” a track with a base line suspiciously similar to “Devil’s Haircut,” but not as similar as Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby” is to Queen’s “Under Pressure.” If only old Beck could sue himself now…

C4 STUDENT LIFE | CADENZA AND SPORTS

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

Everything you ever needed to know about Washington University athletics Compiled by Justin Davidson Senior Sports Editor History Washington University has a long and rich history that has established itself as a pioneer in the field of Division III athletics.

In 1890, Washington University first started its men’s athletic program, which functioned independently of any conference affiliation.

It wasn’t until 1946 that the University enacted a policy which, at that time, was completely unheard of in the world of collegiate athletics. Prior to World War II, male student-athletes received specialized financial assistance for their participation in intercollegiate athletics. It was during this time that Chancellor Arthur Holly Compton adopted a policy whereby no athletes would receive financial assistance in the form of scholarships or grants based solely on athletic ability.

Chancellor Compton stated, “The same admissions and grading standards would apply to all students, whether athletically talented or not. No subsidies, financial inducements or support, or scholarships would be awarded on the basis of athletic ability alone. Students with athletic ability compete for scholarships on the same basis as other students.”

Despite the considerable publicity that this new policy encountered in the face of alumni opposition, much skepticism as

reported by the press, and a less than enthusiastic student body, the University set the precedent that no athlete may receive scholarships based on athletic ability; this would eventually become the basis of all school membership in Division III athletics of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

Since the mid-1970’s the Bears have competed as a member of the NCAA Division III. Washington University became a founding member of the University Athletic Association (UAA) in June 1986 when it joined eight other leading independent research universities (Carnegie Mellon University, Case Western Reserve University, University of Chicago, Emory Univesity, Johns Hopkins University, New York University, University of Rochester and Washington University) to compete in intercollegiate athletics at the varsity level for men and women. Brandeis University was accepted to the Association in Fall 1987 and has been an active member since. Johns Hopkins left the UAA after the 2000’01 season.

As for women, the earliest documented women’s varsity team played in 1909. The yearbook indicated that due to the lack of competitors on the college level this team competed against various high school teams. The women’s athletic program at Washington University

has taken many forms since, but has always had a solid place in the lives of its female students.

With the construction of Wilson Pool in 1921, swimming became a part of the athletic regimen.

By 1950, women’s athletics had become such a vital part of campus life that 70 percent of the female students were members.

However, for an unknown reason, the women’s intercollegiate athletic program was disbanded following the 1955 season and didn’t return for 20 years. In 1975 intercollegiate athletic programming was revived with the re-introduction of swimming, tennis, and volleyball varsity teams for women. In 1977 track was added on the varsity level and basketball began in club form. In 1979, women’s varsity athletics were granted access to the “Cage,” the Training Room, and the Field House. By 1980, all coaches for women’s sports were employed full time by Washington University. Throughout its history, the women’s athletic program offered the female student the opportunity to participate on different competitive levels ranging from club to intramural to varsity.

The UAA

Bear Sports Today The eight current UAA schools compete in a single round-robin format for football, men’s and women’s soccer, and a double

Tennessee Williams’ ghost: an intro to Wash. U. theatre

By Robbie Gross Cadenza Theater Editor Contrary to popular belief, drama and theater were not natural outgrowths of Freshman Orientation. Though the week is full of fine directing (“In this icebreaker, we’re going to sing!”), and fine acting (“Oh my God, it is so good to meet you!”), theater does exist at Washington University outside of calculated pageantry. Fortunately, its quality is often quite good, and everyone involved in producing, seeing, and assessing it is made immensely happy.

There is always the extraordinarily rare instance, however, when theater can go dreadfully wrong. The most notorious of such moments occurred in 1937 when a young and unknown Wash. U. undergrad wrote a one-act play. The young man was Tennessee Williams and the play, “Me, Vashya,” was so wretched that it placed fourth in a campus playwriting contest. The winning playwright, A.E. Hotchner, went on to become a successful writer and now has a campus playwriting contest and

studio theater named after him. Williams, however, did not take losing lightly. He left Washington University in protest and went on to become one of America’s greatest playwrights.

Williams, though, did not stop at simply leaving the school. Adding insult to injury in one of his best-known plays, “The Glass Menagerie,” Williams attempted to immortalize Washington University as a loser. When the protagonist Tom is asked by his mother to save up for a “night school course in accounting at Washington U.” by quitting cigarettes, Tom replies, “I’d rather smoke.”

“Me, Vashya”, meanwhile, was produced for the first time in history two years ago in the theater that bears the name of his defeater, the Hotchner Studio.

Reviewed by Laura Villines, it was called “mediocre” at best, with “characters [that] lacked depth and artistry.”

The quality of theater at Washington U. has not subsided since it lost Tennessee Williams in a fury of anger one day in the late 1930’s. Indeed, if anything, his example may have proven to be a great benefit

to the university. Just as Shakespeare’s theater was once a great democratizer of art, so theater at Wash.

U. has always brought the masses together to revel in drama and music.

From the cavernous Edison Theater, to the on-site performances of some of Wash. U.’s more alternative theater companies like Thyrsus, who have put on plays in bathrooms, classrooms, and tunnels—theater at Wash.

U. is the most popular artistic endeavor produced by the University and for the University. While films and music may dominate the lunchtime discourse, only at the theater can that girl in your anthro class be transformed into a wailing and mourning woman in a Greek tragedy. Only in the theater can a group of relatively privileged undergrads by day become proletariats in a Bertolt Brecht play about class struggle by night. Only in the theater, in other words, can Tennessee Williams be mediocre, and an amateur actor great. Who would choose cigarettes over Wash. U., anyway?

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round-robin format men’s and women’s basketball. For all other sports, the schools schedule league tournaments or championships at one of the eight UAA campuses.

One of the most unusual aspects of the UAA, however, is the geographic location of the nine institutions. To reach the Bears’ farthest opponent, Brandeis University, the team must travel 1,141 miles from St. Louis to reach them, and the closest opponent, University of Chicago, is 289 miles away. With these distances, the UAA is the most expansive athletic league in NCAA Division III. In explaining why the UAA was created with institutions hailing from such varying locales, Harry Kisker, then dean of student affairs and a chief organizer of the association, said, “Internal factors include such concerns as providing a consistent and challenging level of competition for both men and women in intercollegiate play, visibility of athletics programs among active students, alumni and the general public, issues of morale and institutional identity, and desire for association with institutions of similar, high quality.”

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Washington University boasts one of the greatest and most successful athletic programs in all of Division III sports today.

Contenders for national championships year after year in various sports, the University has displayed its prowess both as an excellent institution of higher learning and one with a diverse and talented athletic ability.

Easily the team with the greatest success has been the women’s volleyball team.

Along with a Division III-record

eight national championships and 17 of 18 University Athletic Association championships (including 16 straight titles), the squad boasts an all-time record of 64-11 in NCAA Tournament play. The Bears’ 64 wins rank as the second most in D-III history (Juniata College, 68) and their .853 winning percentage is tops in the NCAA Tournament record book. WU is also 30-2 at home in postseason play.

In all, the Bears have received 13 UAA Player of the Year awards and 12 UAA Staff of the Year awards while producing a 206-3 (.986) record in 18 years of conference play. Washington University has also tallied nine American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Division III National Player of the Year awards, 89 AVCA All-America mentions, 64 all-Central and all-South Region honors and 93 all-UAA citations.

However, the women’s softball team is making a run at the volleyball team’s glory. In just six seasons as a varsity program, the Washington University softball team has had a number of successes. Head coach Cindy Zelinsky, who just retired following the 2005 season, posted a 178-68 (.724) overall record, made four NCAA Tournament appearances, and won three University Athletic Association (UAA) championships in her six years with the Bears.

The breakout year for the Lady Bears came in 2003 when the squad finished with a 30-9 record and their first All-American was named in sophomore Liz Swary. The Bears improved in 2004, finishing with an outstanding 35-5 record and winning its second UAA championship in school history. WU made its third-consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament and placed third in the Midwest Re-

gional. But the true highlight of their campaign came just last season when the team posted a 47-3 final record. Heading into postseason play, the Bears were the no. 1 ranked team in the nation, but lost in the Midwest Regional final, slipping to #7 in the national rankings.

For the men of the football gridiron, the 1990’s marked the winningest decade in team history (66-35) since the inception of the program in 1890--one in which the Bears posted the second-highest winning percentage among four-year football playing schools in Missouri. Over that 10-year stretch, the Bears won 65-percent of their games--including 64-percent over the last five years (32-18)--produced 14 All-Americans, won five University Athletic Association titles, had seven players named UAA Player of the Year (three offense, four defense) and boasted four Academic All-Americans and 12 all-district choices. Last season the Bears finished the season, following a tough schedule, with a 6-4 final record, but posting a 3-0 mark in UAA mark.

Each and every team boasts its own uniqueness and quality of play that you will not find at many other Division III institutions. The women’s soccer, men’s tennis, men’s and women’s cross country and indoor track, women’s basketball, and men’s swimming are of particular promise in the upcoming year. All have come off of winning and successful seasons, and should prove to impress their WU faithful in the next year.

Information gathered and compiled via bearsports.wustl.edu.

Welcome, Class of 2009!

From the Department of Facilities Planning and Management

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | ADVERTISEMENT

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C6 STUDENT LIFE | SPORTS

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

STUDENT LIFE | SPORTS

Welcome to Division III sports v Drink it in–it always goes down smooth

By Justin Davidson Senior Sports Editor Picture this. It’s Friday night and thousands of fans in a packed stadium have donned face and body paint of their school colors. Emotions are running high and the student section is louder than a riot.

There’re two seconds left in the game, and you’re down by one point with your best shooter, a projected top 10 NBA draft pick, coming up to the line for two free throws. This is it—do or die, win or lose.

As your star prepares for his shot the crowd goes silent; not a sound could be heard.

The ESPN commentators are looking on eager to scream out with excitement. First shot.

Swish. The crowd goes wild, but just as quickly as the uproar begins, it ends just as suddenly. Second shot. It’s up, hits the back of the rim. One bounce. Two bounces. Not a heart is beating. It’s in! Within seconds the 10,000 plus fans storm the court and amidst the sea school colors tears of excitement are being shed and screams of joy can be heard.

Now what color is that face paint that you picture? Is it Tarheel Blue? Syracuse Orange?

Maybe Duke Blue and White?

Or perhaps it’s the Red and White of the Arizona Wildcats?

Whatever the color is, chances are it’s not the Red and Green of your Washington University Bears.

Welcome to Division III sports. You won’t see thousands of fans storming the Washington University Field House any time soon. Nor will you see your starting point guard drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers. And there’s no chance in hell that you’ll see

more fans at the basketball game than at your weekly Beirut tournament—that’s for sure.

Division III sports: Don’t knock it ‘till you’ve tried it Let’s face it—Division III sports teams, even your own school’s team, don’t hold a candle to your favorite NCAA sports team you go crazy for during March Madness. But that’s not to say that rooting for your Washington University Bears and attending games like you did for your high school football team should automatically be counted out because they’re Division III. Though the level of play isn’t up to par with future NBA players, and the biggest rivalry you’ll see in the Bears’ conference, the University Athletic Association (UAA) (a.k.a. “The Smart School Conference”) is probably with Emory University or Brandeis University, there are some unique features of Division III play that you won’t get anywhere else.

First, all D-III athletes must be students before athletes. No varsity athlete can have an athletic scholarship and, at least at Washington University, all athletes must fi rst be accepted to the school through the same process and requirements that all other students go through.

So what you see from our athletes proudly wearing the Red and Green is fi rst and foremost a group of people who actually attend class, something you won’t see from the likes of top NBA draft picks. In Division III, if a player’s GPA drops below a minimum requirement, s/ he is suspended from athletic activities until they can bring their GPA back, regardless of

who the player is.

The ironic thing about that policy, of course, is that for the overwhelming majority of these student-athletes at WU, keeping their GPA up is never a problem. The average GPA of all the varsity athletes was significantly higher than the average GPA of the rest of the student body last year. It seems like these talented people have the Superman-esque powers to balance a year-round athletic career with the demanding rigors of Wash. U. academia.

Being a varsity athlete is no walk in the park. A typical day can involve waking up at 5 or 6 a.m. to lift weights and train for a couple of hours, followed by five hours of organic chemistry lab, grabbing a quick bite to eat before a biology exam, then heading straight to a grueling afternoon practice. After that is a break for dinner, then it’s straight to the library for a couple hours of well-managed and focused studying. Next up: bedtime.

You have to really admire what a varsity athlete goes through during the year—their social life during the season is basically reduced to nothing.

Every day is an arduous battle just to get through it all, and yet, if you ask just about any athlete, not one of them would give it up for anything. Though many fans might not seem to give a hoot, every athlete here bleeds Red and Green through and through.

Bear sports: “These guys ain’t too f-ing bad!”

So here’s a group of Division III athletes who do better than most WU students in the classroom while also taking on the full responsibilities of

C7

So you think you’re a baller? v Club and intramural sports at WU

a varsity athlete—clearly the Bears have too much going on to win games, right?

Wrong. Year after year we have teams competing for national championships and winning conference titles, and we have players pitching nohitters and winning spots on All-American teams. Believe it or not, Washington University athletics is actually very successful across the board. When you have your volleyball team winning the National Championship what seems to be every year, or your softball team being the No. 1 ranked team in the nation before falling to the defending national champion in the Regional Finals, or when just about every other WU team wins the UAA Conference Title every year, it proves that not only are these excellent students, but gifted athletes as well.

Division III athletics may not be the most glamorous thing in the world, but they can definitely be something that will surprise you if you give them a chance. And even if you’re not that much into Bear sports, going to home games and events are a great way to get free food.

Red Alert is a student group that works to attract fans to go to home games by giving them all the free Dominos pizza they can eat. Add that to the potential prizes that can be won through raffles, and you just might have a great reason to show up.

Despite its relative smallness, Wash. U. athletics can be very exciting and worthwhile, and you would be doing a disservice to both you and our Bear athletes who put so much into representing the Red and Green by missing out.

By Justin Davidson Senior Sports Editor For those of you interested in sports, being active, or just fi nding an outlet to make a bunch of new friends while having a great time, club or intramural sports may be the way to go. From sports as physically demanding as ultimate Frisbee, flag football, and basketball to more leisurely ones such as billiards and bowling, to the more outlandish “sports” like arm wrestling and euchre (yes, euchre, the classic card game), there’s a little bit of everything for everyone.

If you’re the more serious athlete hankering for some competition and want to be actively involved playing in your favorite sport, club sports might be a good fit for you. Or for those of you who just enjoy playing sports with your friends and floormates in a less competitive game or for those who don’t have the time to put into playing on a club team, IM might be the best option.

Whichever you want to do, getting involved in club or IM sports is pretty easy. For those with the craving for club action, be sure to attend the Student Activities Fair on Wed., September 7th to sign up with club teams. Most teams don’t have tryouts, so as long as you are willing to be a dedicated member of the team and attend practices, being a part of the club team of your choice is well within your grasp.

Some of the most popular club teams include the men’s and women’s ultimate Frisbee teams, men’s and women’s soccer teams, and the ten-

nis teams, though there are more options for club sports than just those sports. Club athletes can expect to have practices two to three times a week for a few hours each practice, and have the opportunity to compete in games and tournaments against other schools from around the country.

Getting involved with IM sports will be one of the easiest things you will encounter during your time at WU. All you have to do to get a team together is go to the Athletic Complex, located near Big Bend Boulevard and Snow Way Drive, just past Fraternity Row, and pick up an entry form at the IM office on the second floor. Get some of your friends to sign up, and you’re set. Return the entry form to the IM office before the season starts with emergency health cards for each player, and you and your friends will be on the field playing another team once a week for the chance at winning the highly coveted IM Champion T-shirts.

If you want to get your floor together for a team, talk to your RA. He or she will most likely be more than happy to organize a team. For most sports there are both men’s and women’s teams, as well as co-ed teams that you can participate in. There’s really no better activity to do with your entire floor than getting together Saturday afternoon and playing a fun game of flag football, softball, basketball, or whatever sport strikes your fancy.

For a list of all IM and Club sports, visit the IM Web site, www.restech.wustl.edu/~im/.

You’re not in Kansas anymore v St. Louis is a sports fan’s dream come true

By Justin Davidson Senior Sports Editor Transforming into a whole new sports fan I’m a Yankees fan—always have been and always will. Until I actually came to Wash. U. two years ago, which boasts an 88% out-of-state population, my knowledge of Yankee hatred was basically limited to Mets fans and from what I heard on SportsCenter. Then I was given a strong dose of reality when I learned that Yankee hate ran deeper than I could ever imagine, in part because of the immense amount of diversity and number of people coming into WU from all corners of the United States.

It hit me like an oncoming train the moment Aaron Boone hit the game-winning home run in game seven of the 2003 ALCS against the Boston Red Sox. Following Boone’s blast, I remember literally jumping out of my seat and screaming at the top of my lungs with exhilaration, looking for someone to slap hands with and share my excitement. There were none. Not one person out of at least a dozen in the room was jumping and shouting with joy like me.

I was then smacked with the harsh reality that I was no longer in Yankee country anymore. I was among Brewers, Orioles, Angels, Dodgers and, of course, Cardinals fans.

While fi nding a friendly hand to slap was never a problem for me growing up, here the best I could get was nothing more than a “lucky swing” comment and a mass exodus to the door.

Where I am going with this story? Though it may seem that I’m trying to rub it into everyone’s face that the Yankees beat the Sox, that’s not what I’m getting at. My point is simple: here you are, a group of over a thousand freshmen moving into this new school where the majority of the students you will meet and befriend will come from states as far away as possible from your own, and all will have their own sport team preferences and biases. It’s to be expected, regardless of whether you’re from New York or Milwaukee or Chicago, but one thing that you will come to fi nd through meeting these people you once

thought of as your arch-rivals is your ability to appreciate other people’s sports preferences, as much as you might disagree with them.

Though I may hate to admit it, I admire Red Sox fans for their dedication to their team the past 87 years. And while I still hate the Red Sox with the fi re of a thousand suns come playoff time, I have become good friends with many-a-Red Sock fan even though it was

buffoon you once were, but will now be able to call yourself not only an elitist in the world of academia (hey, you got into WU, didn’t you?), but also an elitist in the sports world because you’ll be able to tolerate those awful Red Sox fans that you once despised more than anything.

The Spirit of St. Louis Another dose of reality that

an excellent range of sporting venues that few other cities can compete with, though, you should open up a place in your fandom for a city that has three top-tier professional teams, as well as a great lineup of amateur and semi-pro teams.

In case you haven’t noticed, we’ve got one heck of a baseball team and a football squad that can hold its own. Hockey’s going to be back next season, so look for the Blues to make

wisdom well: What to wear and what to say when in a St. Louis stadium: -Pack primary colors. Red for Busch Stadium, blue for Savvis Center and the Edward Jones Dome, and gold to accent all three.

-Applaud such things as a batter advancing a runner to third base with a ground

have been allowed to leave as a free agent.

-There’ll never be another shortstop like Ozzie Smith, and Albert Pujols is more god than man.

-The Blues’ season isn’t a success unless they make the playoffs.

-We need a basketball team more than Lindsay Lohan needs to eat a sandwich.

Things you should never say in St. Louis (and why): -“These umpires are good, but whatever happened to Don Denkinger? He was my favorite.” St. Louis fans are still testy about Denkinger’s call in Game 6 of the 1985 World Series.

-“I think Judge Edward Houston has handed down some kick-ass verdicts in his day.” Blues fans still think they were robbed in the summer of 1991 when the judge awarded Scott Stevens to the New Jersey Devils as compensation for St. Louis’ signing of Brendan Shanahan.

-“Georgia Frontiere sure is a funky owner, but I miss Bill Bidwill.” Virtually no one in St. Louis misses Bidwill, who took the NFL’s St. Louis Cardinals to Arizona after the 1987 season and left the city scrambling for a pro football franchise.

something I could never see myself doing before coming to WU. Keep an open mind. Feel free to argue as much as you want with a fan of your rival team, but in the end, just remember that being a student at Washington University gives you so much more, not only because you are given the opportunity to meet people from all over the world, but because here more than anywhere else you have the chance to meet sports fans from all over the world.

You will fi nd in a short amount of time that you have been transformed into a completely different kind of sports fan. You will no longer be the biased and uncultured sports

you will come to embrace rather quickly will be that St. Louis will be the second home for many of you for the next four years. That means that you must automatically become a St. Louis fan, whether it’s for the Cardinals, Rams, or Blues (since hockey’s back now!). In my opinion, unless you’re a Chicago Cubs fan (rivals to the Cards in the NL Central, who then have a legit reason to hate the Cards), you should be a fan of the St. Louis teams, even if they’re only your second-favorite teams.

I’m not saying that you should overlook your loyalties to your home city’s team, which should always come fi rst and foremost. As the residents of a new city that offers

quite a showing.

For those who may not be aware, this is the last season that our beloved Cardinals will call Busch Stadium their home; following the season the team will move into a new ballpark right next to the current Busch Stadium. This may be your last chance to visit the great Busch Stadium, so I suggest trying to make a trip downtown to the stadium (I-64/40E to Stadium exit) before the end of the season. You won’t want to miss it.

Now that you should all be avid St. Louis sports fans, here are a couple pointers about everything you will need to know to be a great St. Louis sports fan, courtesy, in part, of Leslie Gibson McCarthy of The Sporting News. Heed these words of

ball to the right side. St. Louis sports fans think they’re among the most knowledgeable in the country, and you’ll fit right in.

-Wearing Cubs attire is strictly forbidden, and doing so will result in death or mauling by angry fans.

The gospel according to St. Louis sports fans:

-“I hate soccer.” You might, but don’t say it out loud. While fans passionately follow the Cards, Blues, and Rams, their kids are playing soccer just as they played it when they were young.

-“It doesn’t matter if the Cards lose, just as long as Big Mac hits a home run.” That’s the perception among out-oftowners looking to knock St. Louis fans. The perception is wrong. (Comment outdated, but it still rings true.)

Pronunciation guide:

These doctrines (right or wrong) are held dear by St. Louisans: -Whitey Herzog is once, forever, and always a baseball genius.

-Brett Hull never should

-Missouri (miz-ZUR-ee).

Some folks say Miz-zur-rah— but those people don’t live in St. Louis and most likely voted for President Bush.

C8 STUDENT LIFE | SPORTS

ORIENTATION | JULY 27, 2005

SPORTS

Seven star players to look out for this year

Brad Duesing Senior Wide Receiver Football, #80

Rob Weeks Senior Forward Soccer, #17

Meghan Marie Fowler-Finn Junior Midfielder Soccer, #31

Scott Stone Senior Point Guard Baskeball, #33

Kelly Manning Senior Point Guard Basketball, #32

Andy Shields Junior OF/Pitcher Baseball, #2

Laurel Sagartz Junior Starting Pitcher Softball, #21

Last Year: 69 catches 1,011 yards 14.7 avg. yards/catch 5 TD 101.1 yards/game

Last Year: 8 goals, 3 assists 19 points, 37 shots .216 shot % 21 SOG, 6 GW

Last Year: 11 goals, 4 assists 26 points, 68 shots .162 shot % 4 GW

Last Year: 655 minutes 10.0 pts/game 18 assists, .407 FG % .383 3-pt %, .825 FT % 81 rebounds, 35 steals

Last Year: 723 minutes 15.4 pts/game 74 assists, .408 FG % .374 3-pt %, .871 FT % 130 rebounds 42 steals, 43 blocks

Last Year: .362 BA, 43 R, 8 HR 33 RBI, 89 TB .685 SLG %, 26 BB

Last Year: 24-3 record, 16 CG .81 ERA, 10 shutouts 1 SV, 19 ER, 183 K 41 BB, .134 B/avg

Calling all card sharks: The on-campus poker game

By Justin Davidson Senior Sports Editor It’s no secret that poker is the coolest thing since sliced bread, and everyone is trying to get in on a piece of the action, WU students included.

Yes, a frenzy of students are putting their $40,000 tuition to good use by protesting the age-old practice of sleep and staying up until the wee hours of the night with hopes of hitting the big one.

For all you poker addicts out there, it’s never hard to find a good game of poker to join in on. Those pretty seminar rooms in Danforth, Eliot,

and Forsyth buildings—you know, the ones that cost ridiculous amounts of money so that we can study and get a Top 10 education—are being put to great use as the favorite meeting places for poker enthusiasts from all over the South 40. Whether it’s a weekend night or hours before a big psychology test, there always seems to be a game going on.

Attractive to many students are the fundraising and charity poker tournaments held by student groups. Whether the Campus Democrats, Alpha Epsilon Pi, or another student group is hosting a semi-annual poker

tournament, the turnout is always good, and the winners always walk away with a good amount of money.

(Which will go right to the tutors, since they haven’t opened their Macroeconomics textbooks all year.) These tournaments are on the rise and we should see a steady increase in the number of large-scale organized tournaments on campus in the coming year.

Technology is also being used to promote poker playing. Junior Cary Adickman runs the AIM screen name WUPoker, which allows people to post ring games and tournaments so people know

where to go and how much to buy in for. For those eager to find a new table to play at or meet new people, you can just about always find at least five or six games going on each week, if not more.

Taking the obsession even further, the Facebook group “WU Poker Enthusiasts” boasts 143 members currently, and stands as an outlet for poker players near and far to join together to post games, discuss strategy, and basically do anything else involving poker.

So there you have it—Washington University is a haven for poker players. But before you jump right in, take heed:

WU poker players are no dummies.

Students here have won $10,000 tournaments, grossed over $50,000 in the span of one school year, and could probably make a nice living playing poker for the rest of their lives. So for all you beginners out there, look before you leap.

Remember, for every big winner you hear about, there’s a big loser.

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