Letter from the Editor
Dear Patriots,
It’s midterm week! I hope everyone is able to power through these last couple of days until fall break comes around. For me, it’s the halfway mark of my last semester of school, giving me a weird bittersweet feeling. Nonetheless, I’m still excited to bring you this week’s issue, the second installment of a project we started last fall semester called “From the Vault.”
While it’s our job to continually report important and recent news about the events around campus, it is also important to revisit the roads that got The Patriot to where it is now. We have a deep history filled with student writers that went on to be very successful, whether it’s in the journalism field or not.
This issue features articles from the archives of The Patriot, including pieces from Kristina (Smith) Medina, who works as a corporate storyteller for Ceasars Palace in Las Vegas, Jolina (Miller) Petersheim, who is a best-selling Christian-fiction author, and Ryan Reed, who has music journalism bylines in Rolling Stone and Revolver magazines.
As the editor of a successful student-led newspaper, as well as the leader of a very, very talented staff, keeping the tradition of “From the Vault” is important to me, as it shows young potential writers that their work can be timeless. I’m a music nerd who loves writing album reviews and artist features, so I’m a Ryan Reed fanboy. Should this yearly tradition continue on, perhaps a future student will look up to one of my staff members for what they will be doing and trace it back to the work they did while working here at The Patriot.
Remembering where you started is a very important value to me. I know my staff will do amazing things once they graduate from Cumberlands, and getting to have the time with them while they are doing work here that will be remembered forever through these issues means the world to me. So, enjoy these archival articles! And have a great fall break.
Fire it up,
Mike Krzyston,
Editor-in-Chief
Editor-In-Chief
Mike Krzyston
Managing Editor
Taylor Duke
Faculty Adviser
Jeremiah Massengale
Staff
Emilee Agee
Haley Bullock
Whitney Couch
River DePetris
Makayla Durham
Abigail Fletcher
Leanne Gregory
Alex Nunn
Jenna Rose
Sara Sherman
Elizabeth Spires
Maranda Young
Front cover by Mike Krzyston
Back cover by Brad Pearce from the May 2, 2014 issue of The Patriot
Email comments, concerns or tips to: thepatriot@ucumberlands.edu or call us at 606-539-4172
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The Patriot is the student publication of the University of the Cumberlands. Our goal is to provide timely and original content by highlighting campus news and views.
Award-winning member of the Associated Collegiate Press and Kentucky Press Association.
The new hot spot on campus
BY DANIELLE CRUM
In the September 2007 issue of The Patriot
Spring semester 2007 saw the addition of a beautiful new fountain in the front of the J. Charles Smiddy Learning Resource Center. One of the most aesthetically pleasing sits on campus, the fountain, has since become one of the more popular places for students to gather. Whether out for a morning jog, an afternoon sprint to class, or a evening stroll near the Smiddy Memorial Fountain, one can certainly expect to encounter a student or several sitting, talking, reading, playing guitar, or singing. In addition to the sheer loveliness of the fountain, one of the contributing factors to this surge in the fountain’s popularity is surely Welcome Week 2007’s Party in the Park, which was held on August 20th in the area around the new fountain.
“The sound of the water is relaxing,” Phillip Neely said when I asked him what he liked about the new fountain. Kellie Hatter agrees. “Yes, it’s sometimes peaceful to be there, and it’s so great that it’s on campus.”
Whether you’re meeting old friend or in search of new acquaintances, you may just find that the fountain is the place to be. Perhaps Jared Forgety sums it up best. “It’s awesome. It’s just a great place to hang out.”
An interview with Mrs. Temple: Her juggling act
BY MYRIAH SNYDER
She’s a wife and a mother of three, an editor for a publishing company; she works on the literary journal at UC, freelance writes on the side, and finds time to teach us.
This superhero’s name is Mrs. Jamey Temple. “Jamey (Mrs. Temple) is a gifted writer and fantastic teacher,” her colleague Dr. Laura Dennis said. “Whether she is helping students struggling to learn the mechanics of English or guiding students through the process of publishing a poem, she is generous with her time, patient and kind.”
She worked for what is now the multimedia department while in school and graduated from the University of the Cumberlands in 2003. Avfter graduation she worked in admissions. She began helping with a prospective student newsletter and taking on other projects and eventually moved to public relations. She stayed there until she began teaching.
She received her master’s
from Spalding University and has been teaching full time since 2008. She divides her time between journalism and English classes at UC.
Her students sing her praises. Former English major at Cumberlands Rebecca Branham said, “Mrs. Temple has and still is an amazing mentor. [She] really helped me find my voice as a writer and helped guide me while I tested my writing abilities.”
Branham added, “She is such an amazingly patient and understanding person who I think really connects with her students. I know for a fact that my writing and college career would not have been the same without her!”
Monthly. in her free time, she takes classes at the University of Wisconsin.
“I need deadlines because I’ll put everyone else’s needs before my own. So I need that accountability in my life,” Temple said.
She and her husband, Dr. BJ Temple who is a coach and teacher at UC, have three children: Jadon, 7, Chloe, 5, and Declan, age 17 months. Jadon and Chloe are both adopted from South Jorea and Declan is biological.
She describes being a mother, teacher, and writer as a “juggling act.”
“They’re a big part of me and it the dailies because they can’t really just fend for themselves. So I can’t be like ‘mommy’s going to write while you just stay over there.’ It can be difficult,” Temple said.
Temple began as the layout editor for Pensworth and now is the managing editor for the journal. In addition, she freelances for Kentucky
To find time to write she has started writing her stories down in notebooks versus typing. “I’ve been doing that because I have a 17 month old who is glued to me, and it’s hard to find time to type on a computer.”
“It’s hard for me to complete a story in one sitting just because of the craziness in my life so sometimes I just go by scenes—just jump in and out,” Temple saivd.
She added, “I guess you just if you want to be a writer you just have to make it work.”
The story she is working on now is different than her usual writing. “There was just this little memory I had when I was a kid. And you know how things just float in your brain, and you just don’t know how they’re going to come out? I just started writing in the voice of a child. I’ve never done that before it’s usually more adult so I’ve been writing that,” Temple said.
In the future, she plans on turning one of her short stories into a novel or novella. Also in the future, she wants to explore different forms of writing for her.
Her biggest project right now is editing an anthology for Hopewell Publications. “It’s a print anthology but it also has a prize for prose new best writing. Whoever wins that award would also be printed in the best new writing anthology.” She encourages any student who is interested in submitting their work to visit bestnewwriting.com
In the October 30, 2014 issue of The Patriot
Wendy’s: Beneficial or detrimental to student’s test scores
The season of stressing has come around yet again. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it is time for finals and, for some, the dread of that anticipated final grade.
Many students cram and pull all-nighters when preparing for big exams. Some students are even on a first name basis with the staff at Wendy’s because of all those late nights throughout the semester.
“The staff at Wendy’s, they love college kids, they’ll sit down and have a cup of coffee with you and they don’t hassle you or make you leave,” said sophomore Laura Kegan. Kegan has been an avid Wendy’s goer since her freshmen year and estimates that in a week she spends about 35 hours at Wendy’s.
Students study in many unique ways for finals, but what is the most effective way to study? Are those all-nighters at Wendy’s really helping test scores? Does cramming the night before a test keep the information fresh in your mind, ready to be recalled quickly the next day?
Professor of Psychology Dr. Eric Stephens has conducted seminars on studying habits and tips. Much to many students dismay, all-nighters and cramming are not effective. “I don’t think if you study four or five hours in a row that your brain is absorbing as much as you think,” said Stephens.
Though Kegan spent many hours studying at Wendy’s, she agrees that she did not obtain as much information as she thought. “Studying about five hours a night the only info I truly obtained was probably the first and last hours worth,” said Kegan.
Stephens has studied Psychology at three different
Professor’s Corner: Harnessing Study Skills Enhancing study skills to improve test grades
With finals quickly approaching, professors of Psychology Dr. Eric Stephens offered some wisdom about study skills. Using the acrostic APPLE CORE, Stephens has been able to convey many study tips.
Actively processing information conveyed in class will initially help students remember it more.
Preview the information you are about to study. It actually saves you time in the long run and it helps you organize your studying a lot better. Put the information in your own words. Without sacrificing the meaning or content of the material, it is best to put it in your own words.
Listen actively. Many times students get distracted. They can benefit from trying to truly
colleges and finally obtained his PhD. at the University of Kentucky in Experimental Psychology. After his freshmen year at Berea College, Stephens quickly learned that his study skills were not adequate for college.
“The majority of students going to college have less than adequate study skills. Part of that is because for many students in college, high school was fairly easy for them,” said Stephens.
Kegan agrees, “I don’t think they are very adequate, but that’s because I was never taught how to study or had to study until I came to college.”
So, what is the most effective way to study?
Stephens stressed that students need to find a system that works for them, but that paced learning is the most effective study method.
Instead of cramming all the material covered in the entire semester into one night, it is best to separate the material into “manageable chunks.” It may seem tedious at first but those final grades will reflect the work put into studying. It is also important to find the right environment for studying. Steohens suggests a quiet place with no distractions, which would not include Wendy’s.
BY COURTNEY HODGES
In the May 1, 2003 issue of The Patriot
listen to what their processors are trying to get across.
Eliminate distractions. Every student needs to find a study skills plan that works for them. Studies show that when in distracting environments, students absorb much less information than they think they do. For certain subjects, studying in a group setting is beneficial however.
Cramming isn’t effective. Students benefit so much from breaking the material into manageable chunks, or manageable units. It is a good idea to study for an hour or so and then take a half hour break. If you can pace out your learning for all your subjects, I think that will help you out a good deal.
Obtain help when needed. Even late in the semester, the ARC may be beneficial to you. Talk to upper classmen who have had the course or the professor of the course.
Repetition boost learning. Part of studying is that you have to put the effort into learning the material repeatedly.
Exams can be mastered. I know there is a lot of anxiety and a lot of stress, especially at final exam time, but if you have studied consistently throughout the semester, you will find that there is no need for a high level test anxiety or stress.
Lastly, if you have not studied consistently throughout the semester, hitting the highlights of your notes and text may be helpful in studying for a final.
Photo of Courtney Hodges
What to do when fall makes you sad
Tips on dealing with Seasonal anxiety disorder
BY SYDNEY FREEMAN
In the November 12, 2015 issue of The Patriot
The leaves are finally turning, and mountains look like gold and red works of art against the clear blue afternoon skies. The apples are bigger and sweeter than ever, and the air is finally just crisp enough to wear your favorites scarf and cozy sweater. It’s the time of pumpkin pies, warm cocoa, and spiced cider. So, why are you down? Maybe for the same reason I am.
Seasonal Anxiety Disorder (referred to by most doctors as Seasonal Affective Disorder) affects approximately half a million Americans according to Mental Health America. Do you feel down in the dumps or particularly anxious for seemingly no reason during the fall and winter seasons? You could be suffering from the effects of SAD. Now, take a deep breath and let these words sink in: you’re not crazy, you’re not alone, and you don’t have to be stuck in this rut.
So, how do you combat SAD? It’s not impossible. After doing some research when I discovered that the fall and winter seasons were negatively impacting my mood, I personally began making just a few minor adjustments to my lifestyle during those times to help prevent the disorder from keeping me down. Here are a few of the things you can do to lift your spirits in the cooler seasons.
1) Go outside.
“But it’s cold!” Yeah, well, according to WebMD, scientists have linked SAD with lower serotonin levels in your brain due to a lack of sunlight. The cold might discourage you from spending time in outdoors, but there are certain vitamins only the sun can give you. So, bundle up in your warmest coat, lace up your boots and go for a walk in the sunlight.
2) Exercise.
You’ve heard this a thousand times. Do you feel like exercise isn’t your thing? Make it your thing. There are just too many benefits to your health and overall mental wellbeing you’re missing out on when you avoid working out. According to the Mayo Clinic, exercise combats depression by releasing feelgood chemicals, blocking the chemicals that can increase the symptoms, and by raising your body temperature, which is thought to have calming affects. It’s by far the best way to boost your serotonin levels, which is the chemical in your brain responsible for your willpower. Exercising will also give you a sense of accomplishment, which directly correlates with your mood. Set apart some time for it. It doesn’t have to be every day. Find 15-30 minutes, three days a week and get your heartrate up. It’ll help.
3) Be with your friends.
Everybody needs their “me time”. I get that. However, there is a difference between taking some time for yourself and isolating yourself. You might feel
like being alone, but that’s a side effect of depression, and I hate to break it to you but people were created to be with people, Science supports it. Religion supports it. It is detrimental to one’s mental health to spend too much time alone. Every day Health states that rebuilding old friendships, expanding your social networks, or even joining a support group can help your mental well being. You won’t always feel like t, so don’t be hard on yourself if you can’t find the motivation. This step is the hardest, by far, for me; however, it works. I never feel better than when I am surrounded by people who care for me.
Pro tip: Combine all three things I just listed at once by taking a hike with some friends! You’ll get that sunshine benefit, raised serotonin levels from walking, and the enjoyment of the company of some people who care about you.
4.) Talk to your doctor.
This may be the last on the list, but it is by far the most important. Yes, all the steps I listed have helped me in the past, but I am not doctor. I cannot give you a surefire cure to combat SAD. If you try these things but you still feel the deteriorating effects of anxiety and depression, it is time to talk to your doctor. It’s not scary, and he or she isn’t going to send you off to the loony bin. My doctor prescribed me a low-dose antidepressant and made a few suggestions about my diet to ensure I take in some vitamins my body was lacking. I know the foods we take in have a huge impact on our mental health and can adversely affect out hormones, but I’m not a nutritionist either. Like I said, talk to your doctor.
Depression and anxiety are not an overnight fix, they can weigh down on you so heavily that it robs you of a relationship laughs, good memories and even your future. Don’t waste another moment if you feel those effects on your life! It’s a battle, but it’s a battle you aren’t fighting alone and are fully capable of winning, Also, enjoy some pie. Pie makes everyone happy.
Photo by Makayla Durham
Illustration by Haley Bullock
The leap of love
BY JOLINA MILLER
In the February 2007 issue of The Patriot
Love. Do we ever stop and ponder the word we spout so flippantly? Can Love be categorized –wedged into a shape and handed over as if it were a box of sorted chocolates or a globe of expensive perfume? Is that Love? To me, the beauty of love is the ambiguity wrapped around it; its lack of definition. In a world where all objects and ideas must remain as a constellation in a philosophical orbit, Love is an unfathomable entity that resides beyond the level of our menial comprehension. But even if we cannot understand the fragments comprising Love, we know that Love does exist. Faith. Do we ever stop and ponder the word we spout so flippantly? Can Faith be categorized – wedged within the confines of a thesis statement and expounded upon until no Faith is truly needed to understand its components? Is that truly Faith? To me, the beauty of Faith is the same as Love. It is the ambiguity surrounding it that makes Faith so incredibly beautiful. Faith too is an unfathomable entity despite our attempts to squelch it into a formulaic pattern. If we did categorize Faith, it would be like scientifically describing the concept of Love – it strips it of everything that makes it both a mystery and an answer.
Throughout our lives we will catch glimpses of Love in the unquestionable leap of a wobbly toddler into his father’s waiting arms, in a bride and groom repeating their wedding vows and in the tender caress of an age-spotted hand communicating to his ailing wife that he will remain despite what the future holds. Why do they provide this tangible example? For Love, yes, but also to communicate their Faith in the person they are becoming vulnerable to. To openly reveal your Love for your Creator is a step; no, a leap of Faith, not completely comprehensible nor formulaic. But we must take it, knowing that He will be there waiting to catch us if we fall.
Making enemies in your dorm
BY KRISTINA SMITH
In the September 13, 2013 issue of The Patriot
We’ve all been there. That brand new experience of a lifetime where you don’t really have a clue at what you’re doing. So you wing it. You say a little prater under your breath that you don’t come out looking like a moron and let out a huge sigh of relief when you don’t get a “what the heck are you doing?” look from the person closest to you.
Perhaps one of the most nerve-wrecking experiences I’ve ever had was that first month or two of dorm life. I mean, hasn’t everyone seen some Lifetime movie about a crazy roommate? My greatest fear was that I would make the wrong person mad over a silly rookie mistake and wake up one night with somebody hovering over my shoulder.
OK, maybe my imagination is a little overactive. But there’s no way I was the only freshman with those types of fears.
This year will mark my third year living in the dorms and I can confidently say I have done almost everything to aggravate those living around me. (Sorry!) However, I’ve also experienced my fair share of frustrations with dorm life. Combine these two experiences and I’ve got a great list of how to really get under the skin of the people you’re living with.
The Bathrooms
Let’s get real. Nobody likes sharing one bathroom with 20 other people. Yet, that still doesn’t give you the right to trash the place. Maybe you’re OK with it being messy and smelly, but I’m going out on a limb and say that 99 percent of those around you are not.
University of the Cumberlands student Jordan Johnson says that guys shouldn’t “shave their head and then just leave their hair everywhere in the bathroom” for instance.
The dorms have hard-working staff to keep these areas clean. Don’t make life more difficult on them just because you’re too lazy to clean up after yourselves. Not only are you being a nuisance to the cleaning staff but also to everyone who comes into the bathroom after you. Your neighbors will remember you as a slob. It will be a frustrating situation for all those involved. Just don’t do it.
Oh, and one more thing: flush.
Your Room
UC student Debbie Walters believes that the way to be a bad roommate is to “take my Butterfinger and mess with my things.” One virtue a bad roommate lacks is respect. Be sure communication lines are open and you talk to your roommate before borrowing, or eating, anything that is theirs. And remember, if you break it, you buy it.
However, what is perhaps even more frustrating is breaking your roommate’s concentration when they’re writing that 15-page paper that’s due tomorrow that they procrastinated on.
UC student Shannon Whittenberg asks that roommates don’t “play loud music when I’m trying to read or write a paper.”
The same goes for when your roommate is sleeping. Nap times are more valuable than gold to college students. Interrupt that and you’ve followed the one step process to a cranky roommate. “Nothings more annoying than having your roommates Shakira alarm clock going off at 6 a.m” says UC student Rhyana Barker. By the way, odds are your neighbors can hear that loud music…and Shakira alarm clock, too.
General Living Areas
The laundry room, the hallways, kitchens and lobby areas are places where you will actually have to interact with your peers as scary or mindblowing as that may sound. These are also the areas to really prove how tolerable, or annoying, you are.
Lucky for you though, it all comes down to what we’ve already discussed: respect. University of Kentucky student Claire Robb says it’s a major foul when “people take my things out of the dryer before it’s finished and replace it with their things.”
Western Kentucky University alumnus Daniel Richardson reminds everyone that “it’s not funny to set off the fire alarm at 3 a.m.”
Other things that it’s not cool to do at 3 in the morning? “Stop with the ridiculously lousy loud noises,” pleads UC student Jannica Brady. “We live in a dorm, not a zoo.” Lastly, UC professor Jeremiah Massengale encourages everyone, “don’t burn food.”
Illustration by Haley Bullock
Radiohead’s ‘In Rainbows’
BY RYAN REED
In the December 2007 issue of The Patriot
10.0 out of 10.0 Warning: I must get something out of the way: I am obsessed with Radiohead. Therefore, this review may come across as a equal ratio of objective criticism and biased fan-boy ranting. However, I assure you that this is not the case. While Radiohead is undoubtedly my favorite band of the last (let’s see…The Beatles split in 1970) thirty-seven years, I came into this album completely numb, waiting, in a way, to be proven wrong.
To be obsessed with one of the greatest bands to ever exist is to go beyond normal album pining. My anticipation for In Rainbows was biblical. It rivaled what I assume went through the heads of countless geeks waiting for the arrival of The Phantom Menace. I hope this is coming through clearly enough. What makes this anticipation even more striking is its duration. Radiohead’s last LP, Hail to the Thief arrived in 2003. Four years is a long time to wait, especially in the days of iPods and MTV, where most listeners don’t have the patience to listen to an entire song, let alone an album.
The general consensus amongst message board geeks and music journalists was that the new Radiohead album would not arrive until early 2008. Then, Radiohead dropped a bomb on Planet Music Geek. On their website, the details for In Rainbows were revealed. Along with the track list, the announcement was made that the album would be released digitally through their website on October 10th with a special deluxe “diskbox” priced at roughly $80 (yes, I bought it). I clicked, dumbfounded, on the “details” section, and discovered, along with the rest of the world, that Radiohead was letting their fans set their own price for this digital release.
The album was released, as promised, in the wee hours of the morning (keep in mind that Radiohead is from England, and this time was at a much more reasonable hour for Brits), and as a result of mid-terms, I was unable to stay up all night and listen. I did, however, turn off my computer speakers, download the album, and stare at the computer monitor in pure amazement as the album made its way onto my hard drive. I burned the CD, then attempted to sleep (and study for my exams), which was an exercise in futility. My mind was elsewhere. After sloppily finishing my mid-term exams, I found a friend, headed to my family’s lake house, popped the CD in the stereo, and hit play. Time slowed.
For the next forty-two minutes, I was in the astral plane. As the distorted programming beat of “15 steps” crunched through my speakers, I became absorbed in the sound. Frontman Thom Yorke laments, “How come I end up where I started? How come I end up where I belong? Won’t take my eyes off the ball again. You reel me out, then you cut the string,” and I begin to share the vocalist’s sense of déjà vu. I had felt this way before during my first experiences with Radiohead’s other masterworks: OK Computer and Kid A.
My warm feelings continued through the second track,
“Bodysnatchers.” This is a classic Radiohead song: Thom Yorke snarls and coos his words around gleeful whiplash electric guitars and the fuzziest bass snarl ever recorded. The song ends with Yorke wailing his head off and the guitars dueling like they did in the mid-90’s. Radiohead hasn’t rocked this hard since ’96, and it’s interesting that no one else has, either.
“Nude” comes next, which is a track that has been around since the OK Computer days, but had never made its way onto a physical release. This fan favorite originated with glaring organs and xylophone pings framing Yorke’s powerful vocal; in this stripped-down version, Yorke’s reverb-filled voice stands firm against a persistent bass/drum throb, and the overdone keyboard theatrics have been replaced with a much more tastefully played electric guitar and violin orchestration. It’s the most gorgeous track you’ll hear this year (or perhaps any other). Yorke tells the listener, “Now that you’ve found it, its gone; now that you feel it, you don’t; you’ve gone off the rails.” It’s so powerful, you can almost feel Coldplay preparing to steal it.
“Weird Fishes/ Arpeggi” starts with a close-mic’d drum kit before exploding into heart crushing electric guitar arpeggios, which multiply in volume and quantity as the song progresses.
“Everybody leaves if they get the chance…I follow to the edge of the earth and fall off,” Yorke States. These lyrics are just as haunting as anything Thom Yorke has ever penned- - more personal, without a doubt.
I would write a novel about this album if I had the opportunity, but alas, this is not a option. To not divulge the appropriate amount of descriptions for the album’s remainder is criminal, yet to save space, I will do so.
“All I Need” is pure romantic longing, riding waves of bass synth and a taunt drum groove to its explosive conclusion; “Faust Arp” is a delightful White Album-esque acoustic romp (think “Mother Nature’s Son” as interpreted by Nick Drake); “Reckoner,” the album’s emotional highlight, weaves delicate guitar plucks and reverbed tambourine through a series of tear-inducing, spine-shivering vocal harmonies. I defy you to find a more vocal in any piece of recorded music. “House of Cards” is the most lyrically and musically direct piece the band have produced since their early angst days, and it is perfectly representative of the album’s personal feel. “I don’t wanna be your lover,” Yorke laments, and boy, does he mean it.
“Jigsaw Falling into Place” is the second hardest rocking track on the album, riding, once again, waves of rhythm guitar and the persistent rhythm section of Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway.
“Videotpe” closes the album with Thom Yorke alone at the piano, pleading, “When I’m at the pearly gates, this’ll be my videotape. And Mephistopheles is just beneath me, and he’s reaching up to grab me.” It’s both frightening and reassuring, and this ironic tension is doubled by the contrast of persistent piano and drum delay experimentation.
The album eventually stopped playing. The experience lasted slightly over forty minutes. But I will tell you this: I still haven’t escaped its spell. It’s the greatest piece of recorded music since their OK Computer, back in 1997, and it probably won’t be topped until….let’s say…LP8. If you don’t own a good set of headphones, buy a pair. If you don’t own incense, purchase some.
