Life

Strange tales from the heartland

Ah, Ohio. My home state, my pride and joy -- as long as I'm not living there. Ohio, because of its atomically similar shape and geographic placement, has the nickname "The Heartland of America," which, by the way, is so much better than Indiana -- "The Crossroads of America." While I'm absolutely overjoyed to be back in Charlottesville, sometimes there's just not enough exiting news here.So, if you've been wondering what goes on in Cleveland, which no doubt you have, I can happily announce that I'm here to help that situation.

Political pit stop

By Michelle Jamrisko Cavalier Daily Associate Editor With just one day's notice, students flooded the Newcomb Ballroom to catch a glimpse of 27-year-old Vanessa Kerry, daughter of the Democratic presidential candidate, as she fielded hardball questions voiced by University students yesterday morning. Not all students heard about the event in time to attend.

Summer lovin'

My favorite movie growing up was Grease. I would watch it all the time and can sing every song, hum each harmony and recognize every costume as well as any nursery rhyme.

The start of a new school year means many things to many people. It's all about new classes, old friends, hopes for the football season, even anticipation of the upcoming presidential election.

Real help from the 'real world'

Despite having over a year of schooling ahead of me, a creeping sensation of fear had already begun to form in my mind: I am graduating in May, and I will have to find a job. In high school, the effects of "senioritis" had caused an irritating condition of impatience as graduation approached.

Sept. 1st impressions

It was back to the books at the University yesterday, as students exited that summer-fall limbo and entered their first day of classes. A sizeable slice of students were new to the University, whether as first years, transfers or graduate students, and had their first chance to see the academic side of student life. First-year College student Elizabeth Gamino said she was eager for her classes to begin, and after finally attending them, she said they met her expectations. "I think it'll be a lot more writing and reading than I did in high school, but I knew it would be more difficult," Gamino said. With increased difficulty comes narrower focus, and that particular aspect appealed to first-year College student Sonny Duong. "I'm excited about going to all these new kinds of classes," Duong said.

Remnants of a summer abroad

Her name was Amparo. Short, stout and sporting the ever-popular and revealing "nightgown-as-a-housedress" and that fiery, red dyed hair-look so prevalent among elderly Spanish women -- from the beginning she was none too easy on the eyes and quite critical of our large suitcases.

Framed

Passersby on Rugby Road typically are scurrying to on-Grounds sites by day and off-Grounds parties by night, with little time or attention paid to the University Art Museum that fills a plot across from Mad Bowl.

TV is life.

A new school year allows us to reflect on the past, present and future. It dawned on me that it being 2004, we're much closer to the future world (2015) Marty McFly visits in Back to the Future than the 1985 from whence he came.

Bice-ing it up

"Once a crumbly, dilapidated building," according to the information packet given to new residents, Bice reopened this semester after an approximately $7 million renovation, according to Burt Joseph, assistant director of housing for facilities. Bice was closed for the last two semesters while the Housing Department replaced everything from appliances, furniture, paint, carpets and windows to essentials like the fire system and exterior bricks. "It's actually new," Joseph said. The new accommodations generally have received approval from incoming residents. On Monday Bice's newly-trained Resident Coordinators sat in the lobby, greeting their new residents, as second-year Engineering student Mike Pilat took his 10-second walk from the front door of Bice to his new apartment, number 101.

Furnishing frenzy

It's the start of a new year, and the student body faces many challenges. In the midst of buying books, trying to get into classes and surviving the humidity, some students are also dealing with furnishing apartments and houses. "I never knew how much there would be to buy for a two bedroom apartment" second-year College student Lindsey Horne said.

Should I Stay Or Should I Go?

One subject that is on everyone's mind at one point during their career at U.Va. is handling life after college.

The Prosaic Mundane

There are no cigarette breaks at U.Va., but working in an office makes me want to start smoking. True, I find cigarettes pretty disgusting (even though I will have one from time to time as my drinking dictates), but the idea of going outside to "take a break" from a job not requiring much stress in the first place sounds quite agreeable.

Free for (almost) all: Duke gives iPods to incoming freshmen, other schools sign with Napster

Incoming first years who chose Virginia over Duke are no longer missing out on just a superior basketball program. Incoming Duke freshmen this fall will be given free iPods courtesy of a deal between the private university and Apple, according to the Duke University Web site. School officials said the MP3 music players can be used for educational purposes as well as entertainment. The iPods will come preloaded with orientation materials and an academic calendar.

Global Fashion

Macro and Micro. They're not just words you learned (albeit painfully) in your econ class. They are terms that can be used to describe both local and global movements in fashion.

Summer: Not so hot anymore and why that's okay

As we grow older, we find that the summer is no longer just a time for tee-ball and swim team, for ice cream and vacations.

Grief and Rememberance

The loss of someone we love is always difficult to deal with, especially when that person was still on the verge of realizing his potential. The University sustained two such losses in June, one a recent alumnus and one a current student.

Lunch with the Stars

As every incoming first-year student currently making their first stay on Grounds knows, one of the main reasons to attend the University is its distinguished faculty and the access undergraduate students have to it. That access will be demonstrated today as Kathryn Thornton, former astronaut and professor in both the Engineering School's division of technology, culture and communication and its department of mechanical and aerospace engineering, has lunch with students as part of University Program Council's Picnic with Professors series. The goal of the series, according to the Student Activities Calendar Web site, is to bring students and faculty together in an informal setting. Thornton is also an alumna of the University, graduating with a Ph.D.

Instantaneous Media Filtering

As luck would have it, 90 percent of my friends are in Europe indulging in cultural benefits such as excessive binging and yelling at people that don't understand the American dialect, the elegance of which is improved greatly after three or four shots of absinthe in Prague.

Seeds of Greatness - Humayun Khan

HUMAYUN KHAN People who knew 2000 College graduate Humayun Khan through the Army say his heroic death is in line with his theory of service. Captain Khan was killed in Iraq on June 8 when Jordanian suicide bombers detonated a car bomb in front of the forward supply base where Khan was stationed. Khan was welcoming Iraqi workers to the base in the morning when he noticed a suspicious car approaching.