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(04/26/10 5:23am)
Last Sunday, two friends and I had lunch at the home of one our professors. She served us homemade gazpacho and chocolate chip cookies, and we sat around talking about literature and our time at U.Va. and what the future holds. Although this professor is one of the preeminent scholars in her field and someone her students hold in reverence, the lunch simply felt like a comfortable gathering of good friends. We lounged leisurely in her living room, listening to stories about her children and her childhood, and at one point, even leafing through old notes and love poetry she'd saved from college. Two hours passed effortlessly, and I left thinking that it had been the nicest Sunday afternoon I'd enjoyed in a while.
(04/12/10 4:37am)
Every Tuesday evening, I meet up with two of my closest friends to prepare dinner and catch up on our lives. A tradition that started almost two years ago, the Tuesday routine has come to occupy a sacred place in the structure of our week - a moment removed from the busy ebb and flow of daily life at the University that we look forward to with great anticipation.
(03/29/10 5:33am)
A few weeks ago, I went to Target to purchase some pantyhose for upcoming job interviews. I entered the store feeling optimistic, looking forward to getting my life in order. Forty minutes later, however, I emerged feeling dazed and confused, hose clutched tightly in my hand.
(02/22/10 6:16am)
By a random scheduling chance this semester, I start class every day after 12 p.m., get out at 3:15 and walk home around 3:30 - exactly like I did in kindergarten. Growing up, I was in "afternoon kindergarten," meaning that my mom walked me to school after lunch, where I enjoyed three-and-a-half hours of classroom time before walking back home again with my second-grade sister. There seems a nice symmetry in the idea that my last year of organized education looks somewhat similar to my first, in the way my day is structured, and I find that those afternoon walks home on Rugby Road have gotten me thinking back on my childhood more and more.
(01/25/10 6:50am)
I spent part of my Winter Break working at my dad's office. My official task was "information consolidation," which actually meant that I spent eight hours a day moving papers from one file to another file, and then shelving them in an enormous storage room. During the process, I got more paper cuts than I could count, consumed more caffeine than was probably wise and nearly died from boredom.
(09/07/09 9:28am)
I went tubing down the James River this past weekend with my two roommates. Lying in an inner tube as it floats down the somewhat brackish James, while mildly appealing in its own right, is also on the list of 110 Things To Do Before You Graduate - and my roommates and I are on a mission to check off every single thing on that list by the end of this, our fourth and final year at the University.\nAlthough I originally balked at the $20 charged by the rafting company to rent us a tube and drive us to the launching spot, I remembered that the company's Web site promised a two- to four-hour float down the river that would "relax us completely." The chance for total relaxation was, ultimately, too tempting to pass up, and we grudgingly agreed to give up a bit more of our rapidly dwindling summer cash.\nAlthough we had been promised complete relaxation, the day's journey turned out to be anything but relaxing. First, the rain - when we woke up to a steady drizzle Saturday morning, we briefly considered canceling our river adventure but decided to press on with our plans. We'd already paid up front to reserve our spaces and the reservation fee was non-refundable.\nA bit more money was spent filling up the car with enough gas to get us to Scottsville, and 30 wet minutes later, we arrived.\nDespite ominous-looking clouds, we signed the waivers releasing the rafting company from any responsibility should we be foolish enough to drown or otherwise maim, injure or kill ourselves while on the river. We piled into an old, rickety yellow school bus that eventually dropped us off at the muddy banks of the James River with our large, inflatable tubes.\nThe river's temperature was about 81 degrees, so we were pleasantly surprised to find - as we awkwardly clambered into our tubes - that we wouldn't be submerged in frigid water for the whole trip. The drizzling rain also let up as we started our float, giving my roommates and I hope that this would be a delightful little adventure after all. Five minutes into the trip, however, we realized this hope was in vain.\nOne of my roommates, it turned out, is extremely afraid of aquatic life. No sooner had our tubes begun to move than she begun to wonder, loudly, about the fish and other creatures that might be swimming beneath us. "Did you watch Shark Week?" she demanded of my other roommate and me. "You know that a shark got trapped in a river somewhere in Rhode Island and killed two children, right?"\nDespite our assurances that there were absolutely no sharks in the 3 feet of water flowing through the James, my roommate remained tense and jumpy the entire time. Each fish that we saw jump or tentacled plant that we floated over was enough to set her screaming. So much for the relaxing sounds of nature...\nRoommate fears, however, were not the only thing that sunk the relaxation ship. The lowness of the river, while strengthening my argument against sharks in the vicinity, also meant that the water moved very slowly. The 4-mile trip did indeed take nearly four hours. Four hours floating down a river is just too long. After about two hours, our stomachs began to growl audibly. Not having thought the entire plan through, and having left our apartment at 9 a.m., no one had packed any sort of lunch. And, not being the types to drink at 10 a.m., neither did we have the distraction of alcohol that many other tubers seemed to be enjoying.\nAdditionally, the sun had come out. At first delighted with the warm rays upon our skin, after a few hours we quickly realized that the failure to put on sunscreen was going to result in some rather severe consequences. As I watched my skin turn from white to pink to red before my eyes, I attempted to drape my soaking wet T-shirt over the exposed areas that seemed to be the most burnt. Unfortunately, one small T-shirt cannot protect one's entire stomach, arms, neck, legs and face, and I was reduced to moving the shirt frequently to new, burning spots in a failed attempt to beat the sun's rays.\nThree hours into the allegedly blissful trip, I'd had enough. I began paddling furiously with my arms towards the tiny speck on the horizon where the landing point was located - a vigorous upper-arm workout from which I have yet to recover.\nEventually, we made it out of the river and into the car. The drive back to Charlottesville found my roommates and I stinking of dirty river water, sunburned to crisps, exhausted from paddling the last quarter-mile, completely famished and unable to stop laughing. We giggled as we pulled weeds out of our bathing suits, laughed as we recalled our roommate's sincere belief in the possibility of a shark attack and eventually ended up in hysterics when the palest of us discovered that her formerly white skin was now neon pink. The float down the James River may not have been the relaxing morning we'd expected, but it was certainly not one that we were going to forget.\nUltimately, isn't that what the List of 110 Things To Do - and our time at the University - is all about? Not necessarily experiencing what you had originally expected, but creating memories with good friends that are going to last after our time here has ended? Fourth year, for my roommates and me, is going to be about experiencing everything Charlottesville has to offer together, regardless of where those experiences lead.\nStill, I hope they don't lead us back to CVS, frantically searching the aisles for aloe vera to slather on our sunburns.\nKeely is co-editor of the Life section. She can be reached at k.latcham@cavalierdaily.com.
(02/03/09 7:54am)
Forty-two students gathered eagerly in the Game Room of Newcomb Hall Wednesday to watch the season premiere of the hit ABC series “Lost.” The gathering represented the first official meeting of Hoo’s Lost, a club dedicated to watching and discussing the complicated and engrossing TV show for which it is named. The room was decorated with banners depicting scenes from the series and emblazoned with the club’s name. Members sat in lounge chairs enjoying pizza. “This is our first meeting,” said President Matt Sutton, who was sporting a T-shirt with the Oceanic Airlines logo, the airline featured on the series. “We’re very excited.”With so many students on Grounds who enjoy watching “Lost,” the Hoo’s Lost club provides a place for people to come together to theorize, analyze and view the show with other dedicated fans. Sutton, a first-year College student, came up with the idea for the club last semester with two friends, first-year Engineering student Matt Jungclaus and first-year College student Travis Dennis. “I’ve found people really enjoy watching the show together,” he explained. Although just watching the show with a small group of friends can be fun, Sutton said that the club makes viewing the episodes more of a “big event,” adding that it is a great way to reach out to the University student body. Sutton said he, Jungclaus and Dennis decided to make the club an official student organization after they discovered there was a lot of interest in the show from University students on Facebook. “We did a Facebook survey and found that over 500 people in the U.Va. network had [“Lost”] listed as their favorite TV show,” he said. Although he first thought the club would just be “a little thing with a couple of friends,” Sutton said the response has been very enthusiastic. “Interest [in the club] has been more than I expected,” he said, explaining that the club already had 40 official members before the first meeting Wednesday. In addition to Facebook, students heard about the club through the signs posted around Grounds and word of mouth. “I live on the same floor as the guys who started the club, so I was bound to hear about it,” first-year College student Rolfe Garcia said.Many attendees at the premiere came in large part for the group atmosphere, which was one of anticipation and high energy. First-year College student MacGregor Hall-Wurst, who was first introduced to the show by Sutton, explained that the club offered an “exciting environment” in which to watch the episodes. Garcia agreed, adding, “It’s a lot more fun to watch with other people who like ‘Lost.’” Some of the club’s success may come from the nature of the show, which seems to lend itself to group viewing and discussion. An extremely involved series with continual plot twists, “Lost” provides viewers with a large amount of material to explore. As a recent New York Times article on the show noted, “few if any shows have twists and turns as byzantine as those on ‘Lost.’” The many flashbacks and various plot lines can make watching the series confusing, and Hoo’s Lost gives students a chance to discuss details and voice questions. First-year College student Matt Diton said that the club offers a great forum in which members can “bounce theories off each other because [they] don’t really know what’s going on” in the show. Regardless of whether they understand all aspects of the series, the members of the Hoo’s Lost are addicted to “Lost” for a variety of reasons. “‘Lost’ is the best show on TV,” Ditton said, adding that he enjoys the mystery: “You don’t know where it’s going next. It’s like a roller coaster in the dark.” The intellectual level of the show also seems to draw in much of its dedicated fan base. “The show is rich with literary allusions,” Sutton said, explaining that he loves all the hidden details and references to pop culture. Hall-Wurst added that he’s intrigued by the “underlying theme of science versus religion.” Garcia voiced a simpler explanation. “It’s just an awesome show,” he said.For the rest of the semester, the club plans to meet every week to watch the new episodes of “Lost.” Sutton said he’s looking forward to expanding the membership base of the club, as well as ordering T-shirts. Those in the club are all looking forward to the new season, anxiously awaiting revelations that are sure to come. “Some [characters] have gotten off the island,” Hall-Wurst said, but explained that though they have seen flash-forwards, the audience doesn’t know all the details. “I want to see what happens in the intervening years.”
(09/29/08 4:47am)
Earlier this month, second-year College student Shankar Srinivasan was biking home from class near Monroe Hill when he was struck by a car. Srinivasan, who wasn’t wearing a helmet at the time, flipped over the vehicle. Luckily, he said, the heavy textbooks in his backpack made him land on his back, “saving my life.” Srinivasan suffered no broken bones, sustaining only minor bleeding. “The damage to the car was actually worse than the damage to my bike,” he said. While safety is a large concern for student cyclists, several factors are at play when students choose to bike on Grounds.While Srinivasan’s experience may be atypical, the dangers of riding the busy University streets do worry some. “Several times I’ve been almost run off the road by people who speed up to pass me,” Srinivasan said. “I try to be alert and constantly know what’s over my shoulder now.” Third-year College student Andrew Case, who rides his bike to class and around Charlottesville every day, said he’s also been in biking accidents on Grounds.These crashes, however, were not always due to others; “The main threat is my own recklessness as I’m hurrying to make it to class on time,” he said.Students who ride to and from classes at the University are part of an increasing trend around the country. Cycling has been on the rise nationally over the past few months, due in large part to rising gas prices. The New York Times reported in August that the number of people cycling daily in New York was up 77 percent from 2000.Srinivasan, who said he rides to and from class every day, emphasized this idea. “Every single commuter biker decreases the demand for gasoline,” he said.Gas prices are not the only reason students choose to ride. The University’s Department of Parking and Transportation Web site encourages biking, stating: “Cycling is a healthy, convenient and environmentally responsible transportation alternative.” Case reiterated the benefits of biking. “Biking saves so much time, and gives me the ability to enjoy the greater Charlottesville community,” he said.Third-year Commerce student Tracy Dunn, who said she rides her bike about six times a week, also enjoys biking for the time it cuts out of her commute. “Biking is a great way to get to class in half the time,” she said. “The buses aren’t reliable, so it’s been a lifesaver.”Despite occasional or potential accidents, Dunn, Srinivasan and Case expressed feeling safe when biking around Grounds. Dunn, who has never been involved in a biking accident on Grounds, said she’s really “not worried about drivers or other bikers” when she’s cycling.“Grounds is a safe [place to cycle],” Srinivasan said, adding that he sees his accident as an anomaly. “McCormick’s speed limit is 15 [miles per hour], and in most places the road’s wide enough for three cars.” Case affirmed this notion, adding that he feels safe on McCormick because it’s often blocked off to cars.Although not all roads around Grounds have bike lanes, students utilize those available. “The bike lanes on Emmet and Jefferson Park Avenue are great,” Case said. “The one on JPA is literally a life saver. Bikers always move faster than cars along University Avenue, so they sometimes have to ride on the far right, sandwiched between the traffic and the stone wall opposite the Corner.”Additionally, the dangers of biking around Grounds at night are lessened by laws requiring bikers to ride with lights. According to the Department of Parking and Transportation’s Web site, proper lighting entails a white light in the front and a red light in the back. Case, who said he frequently has to ride his bike after midnight, has been pulled over before for not having lights. “Almost all policemen let it go if you’re on Grounds,” he said, but noted that he has also been pulled over downtown for the same reason.Although some students may feel safe while biking on Grounds, there are other reasons beyond potential accidents that can make cycling unpleasant. “Way too many drivers honk at bikers,” Srinivasan said, whose also been cursed at. In addition, he said drivers get too angry when he coasts by them or doesn’t stop at stoplights.“People need to realize that when you’re responsible for propelling yourself, every little bit of momentum counts,” he said. “From an efficiency standpoint, coming to a complete stop is stupid.”Case, meanwhile, said he feels pedestrians are more worrisome than drivers when he’s on a bike. “They often don’t see me when the check the road to cross,” he said, adding, “I nearly hit two people crossing the street yesterday.”Nevertheless, students enjoy biking around Grounds and Charlottesville, and plan to continue despite dangers and annoyances. Srinivasan stressed that bikers, drivers and walkers can all share the road, if people are considerate. “Courtesy is the only thing that makes the traffic system work,” he said. “We should be able to share the road without fearing for our lives.”
(09/03/08 8:18am)
If you’re anything like the 34.2 million Americans who tuned into the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, you probably spent the last few weeks glued to the TV watching athletes dive, jump, spike and run. Although cheering for Michael Phelps when he won the 100-fly by a hundredth of a second or gawking as Nastia Liukin as she performed a near-perfect balance beam routine may have made for an exciting end to the summer, few University students’ Olympics experiences can compare to that of first-year student Yolanda Yixiao Min.Min, a native of Nanjing, China, did not only watch the Olympics in her home country: She marched more than 50 meters through the streets of Beijing with the Olympic torch held aloft in her hand. “The distance [was] really short,” Min said. “But [it was] the most meaningful running of my life.”Min, who attended Chaoyang Foreign Language School in Beijing, was nominated to be a torchbearer by the Beijing Educational Committee for her academic excellence and involvement in extracurricular activities. In particular, Min’s involvement with the Green Olympics was a significant factor in her selection. Green Olympics was one of three themes for the Beijing Olympics, along with Humanistic and Hi-Tech Olympics.According to the official Web site of the Beijing 2008 games, Green Olympics was designed to help China “prepare Olympic Games in accordance with the principle of sustainable development, which calls for the protection of environment, conservation of resources and maintenance of ecological balance,” as well as to “raise public awareness and leave rich environmental heritage for both China and the world.” These issues are crucial, Min said. “Green Olympics ... means building a greener city and a more environmental-friendly society to welcome the Games,” she said.Her interest in environmental awareness grew out of a field study she conducted in inner Mongolia about grassland degradation and its influence on social and ecological development. “We cannot make better living conditions with [the current] environmental crises, nor can we endure a truly economic development unless we figure out how to seek the balance between making development and protecting the environment,” Min said. “I’m not a policy-maker, just an ordinary student, but I can still use my knowledge to do something for the community around us.”Min submitted an essay to the Beijing Committee following her nomination that detailed her interest and efforts in this area. In fall 2007, she was informed that she had been selected as a torchbearer. Min said she was “almost crazy” with excitement. “I suddenly [realized] that it’s such a huge honor for me,” she said. As the Games grew near, Min underwent what she described as very “simple but important” training, including how to carry the torch in the correct manner and how to pass it to the next bearer. Two days before the official Aug. 8 opening of the Beijing Games, Min became a part of the longest torch relay since the tradition started in Berlin in 1936. Under the theme “Journey of Harmony,” the torch traveled for 129 days and across more than 137,000 kilometers on six continents.“I never imagined that I [would be] carrying a flame which was collected from the ancient temple in Athens and which can join the world’s attention together,” Min said. “That’s a magic power.” Aside from carrying the torch, Min also attended many of the Olympic events in Beijing. She saw tennis, swimming, gymnastics and diving, and said she loved them all. In regards to her opinion of the Olympics, “I am really proud of my country and my city,” she said. “People there did a wonderful job.”Although she has not yet chosen a major, Min is contemplating a double major in environmental science and international relations. Min said she fell in love with Grounds when she visited last spring, and she is excited about what the University has to offer. “I’m pretty sure this is the place that can provide me the best four years of my life,” Min said.Reflecting on her experience as an Olympic torchbearer, Min said carrying the torch was a dream come true.“For me, the most important thing I took away from this experience is the passion and friendship that this event encompasses,” Min said. “It’s something about building a brighter world with passion we have, and we walk together toward our shared dream.”
(04/15/08 4:00am)
Fourth-year College student Melanie Leinbach took the stage last Thursday in Old Cabell Hall to give a soprano voice recital as part of her distinguished majors program in music. The recital was composed of 16 songs, and Leinbach admitted before the show that she was worried about having the endurance to sing well throughout the performance. Her nerves stopped, though, at the notes she knew so well.
(04/14/08 4:00am)
If you've ever suffered through a dull class here on Grounds, chances are at some point or another you've picked up a crossword puzzle to help pass those monotonous 50 minutes. The man responsible for all those puzzles, The New York Times' crossword puzzle editor Will Shortz, came to speak at the University Wednesday.
(03/25/08 4:00am)
At the University, long papers, grueling exams and time-consuming projects are part of daily life for most students. When it is time to get to work, many students turn to one of the University's libraries, and one of the most popular spots is the McGregor Room on the second floor of Alderman Library. Furnished with beautiful rugs, dark wood, comfortable chairs and ambient lighting, the room offers a sense of quiet luxuriousness many students can't get enough of.
(02/21/08 5:00am)
On a dreary Friday afternoon, as most University students are heading home to unwind before the weekend, fourth-year College student Ryan Hurley and fourth-year Continuing Education student Pat Mellors are preparing to dive into the water for a two-hour swim practice.
(01/31/08 5:00am)
The start of another new semester means, among other things, a collective moan from University students about the cost of textbooks. For many students on Grounds, spending $500 or more a semester on books is not uncommon, and with large course loads and seemingly endless book lists, students find themselves having to allocate more and more money toward books each year. While many students are taking advantage of various programs offered by the University Bookstore, others on the same quest for low prices are turning to other vendors.
(12/03/07 5:00am)
Everyone knows the University draws some of the best and brightest students from across the country, and many alumni go on to achieve great things. One need only watch Tina Fey on "30 Rock" or recall Tiki Barber's impressive NFL career to appreciate the success of University graduates. Few individuals, however, can compare with 1970 graduate Francis Collins. Last month, Collins received the highest civil honor in the United States, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, for his work on the Human Genome Project.
(11/30/07 5:00am)
Most University alumni remember their alma mater as a place to study, party and meet friends, but for some, the University also brings to mind memories of white dresses and wedding bells. One such alumna is 2004 graduate Tara Smith. When Smith and her husband, 2001 graduate Konrad Sarosiek, were selected by lottery to be married at the University Chapel in 2006, they were thrilled.
(11/06/07 5:00am)
With Election Day upon us and a mere 12 months until we cast votes in the 2008 presidential election, political activism on Grounds is in full swing. On both the conservative and liberal sides of the fence, political organizations at the University are experiencing high student involvement, successful fundraising and exciting events that are attracting students and Charlottesville community members alike.