The goodbyes begin this morning. I wake up knowing that it's time to write my last column. It's the first of many goodbyes I'll make in the next two months before graduation, and I don't know if I'm ready yet. I lace up my New Balance shoes and pull my ponytail through the hole of my U.Va.
If this is my landlord reading, please disregard the following column. But for everyone else, I'll let you in on a secret. I have a dog. Yes, I saw the clause on the lease that said "No Pets," and I abided by it for a year.
TV is killing my social life. Gone are the Wednesday nights crowded around a table of friends and $2 margaritas. That same group is now huddled around a television set, watching the latest episode of the O.C. Trying to get together a group of classmates to go out after "Friends?" Forget it -- "The Apprentice" is on. Factor in episodes of "American Idol," "Survivor," "Real World," and "Newlyweds," and the week is over. If I'm reduced to drinking alone, it's not my fault. Reality TV is breeding a new generation of alcoholics. Maybe I completely missed the memo on this one, but when did reality TV replace ... well, reality? I don't know about you, but my reality has never been quite like the shows on TV. I've never lived in Paris under the watchful eye of MTV's camera.
Everybody hates fractions. That's what my professor told us on the first day of MATH 110 -- well, on my first day of MATH 110, which was about a week later than everyone else's first day. I had transferred in from MATH 120, after failing the first quiz. Everybody hates fractions.
What's for dinner? It used to be such a simple question, whether posed in a crowded supermarket aisle or by a hungry child coming home after a long game of basketball with the neighborhood kids. Now with mad cow disease, the no-carb revolution, mercury-laden fish and deadly pesticides on fruits and vegetables -- the pickings are slim. But Americans still aren't. Despite the growing popularity of no-carb or low-carb diets, Americans still can't seem to keep off the pounds.
I have tried to avoid the front page of The Cavalier Daily lately.I see the newspapers neatly stacked at the entrance to Monroe Hall as I come in every morning for my classes. I pass by the stack and walk quickly up the stairs, not letting my eyes catch the front of the paper. In class, when lectures start to drag or my attention wanders, I will reach for other sections of the Cav Daily that were left behind by students in the previous class. I will scan the Sports section for news of a big Wahoo win, or I will check Arts & Entertainment for reviews of a new album. Of course, I also devour the Life page, with its thought-provoking commentaries on student life -- not to mention its clever columnists. But I hesitate before reaching for the front page, and I honestly avoid it when I can. I don't want to see the headlines. As you are all aware, our University community was stunned and saddened by the recent violence that occurred right in our midst.
Although it may be hard to recall during this spell of beautiful fall weather, it was not too long ago that Hurricane Isabel blew through Charlottesville. In writing about the aftermath of the storm, I mentioned how refreshing it was to have a momentary break from the computer, cell phones and email. Apparently, I am not the only one who questions our reliance on technological devices to get through the day.
Nothing brings alumni back like a goodfootball weekend. By Friday afternoon, the cars start rolling down Main Street, waving their orange and blue flags.
Hopefully by the time you read this on Monday morning, you're not still in the dark. Well, it is Monday morning, so mentally it may take a while for the lights to come on upstairs. But I'm talking about the darkness imposed by our dear friend Isabel, who blew into Charlottesville a week ago and took our electricity with her. For some people, the blackout was temporary: My power came roaring back to life at 6:00 a.m.
With few exceptions, the University of Virginia is still a school of traditional values and social codes. Gentlemen will occasionally hold a door open for a lady or give up their seat on the bus for an elderly person. Women, especially Southern women, still consider it appropriate to wear pearls for every activity from dental fillings to debutante balls. And every polite Virginia student knows it is taboo to utter four-letter words in mixed company. There is one four-letter word in particular that U.Va.
