IT'S ALMOST upon us. Twice a year, in our summer mail-out issue and then once again in the Orientation Issue, The Cavalier Daily Opinion page offers numerous columns providing advice to those naïve first-years who might not yet understand the many traditions and peculiarities of "The University." Included among these are "Eat a Gusburger" or "Don't sign up for 8 a.m.
G.I. JOE's famous line was "Knowing is half the battle." G.I. Joe never had to battle for the safety of college students, but the phrase still applies.
YOUR COURSE schedule shouldn't make you yawn. Many students are often less than enthusiastic about their courses.
THINK BACK to the days when your older sibling was left in charge for five minutes by your parents.
MY FIRST-GRADE math class often had a 60-second timer clicking at the front of the classroom. I was typically bent over my desk, quickly filling out a sheet of addition problems.
FOUR YEARS ago I arrived at this University with no idea of what I was going to do. As I graduate now, I still have no clue what I am doing.
TRADITIONALLY, the graduation edition of The Cavalier Daily has held two types of opinion columns.
SUDDENLY and without warning, four years disappear. It is the year 2000 -- graduation time -- and we fourth-year pseudo-journalists have been asked to impart some wisdom upon the loyal readers of The Cavalier Daily. Thus, I have included a total of 10 suggestions (five dos and five don'ts) for you to get the maximum benefit out of your short time here.
WE HAD big decisions to make. Sitting on the steps of the Rotunda after a quick trip to the Lucky Seven one night last month, my friend and I tried to sort it all out.
FREE, FREE at last. Four years was plenty and, believe me, one more might kill me. My love-hate relationship with the University of Virginia ends here.
I REALLY love even numbers. Odd numbers give me that uncomfortable feeling of unbalance, so I naturally welcome the safety of an even number when choosing things.
I'VE NEVER been the overly sentimental type. In fact, chances that I'll get weepy about some needless milestone (i.e.
U.VA. IS replete with sensory experiences: the sight of red brick, white marble, and green magnolia trees; the taste of a Bodo's bagel or the Louisiana shortstack at Southern Culture; the smell of the stuff they put on the grass so that it will grow in time for graduation.
I HAVE been writing this column for three days, and still it remains unfinished. It's funny -- I'm never at a loss for words.
A FEW WEEKS back, when I was being toasted in this very newspaper on an almost daily basis for an article on Alpha Phi's successful re-colonization effort, I got a call from my mom.
WHEN MY term ended at The Cavalier Daily, I still continued to write. Now, this will be my last "story" ever, and despite how many lead articles I have written about law suits, the Faculty Senate, and the honor system, this one always will be the most important to me, because it's a story about the people I care about most. Dad and Mom -- I love you very much.
I SPENT two years of my time at the University studying Japanese. I did well at first because I had had some Japanese in high school, but my grade continually slipped each semester.
THE LAST time I really talked with him, Mark Brzozowski was leaving my townhouse after an evening complete with conversation, music and a keg of Rolling Rock.
IT'S A MAGICAL place where Ernie dolls and toast dance from overhead mobiles and "the Love Train" is entertainment for the evening.
I'VE GOT A secret. It's something the American media doesn't want you to know, but I'm going to tell you anyway.
