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(01/20/11 5:05am)
This fall, Otter Creek Bakery, located at 14 College Street, joined the town’s green efforts and installed solar panels on top of its roof. Growing up in eco-conscious families, both Ben and Sarah Wood, the bakery’s owners, have wanted solar panels for years. With the current tax rebate incentives, the two were recently able to make their green dreams a reality.
Using a company called Gro-Solar, the Woods decided to install photo-voltaic panels, which generate power that contributes directly to the bakery’s total energy usage. To see how much energy these solar panels are generating, visit Otter Creek’s website. Though solar panels are an expensive investment, the Woods are confident that the payoff is worth the cost.
“It’s really not all about the money,” said Sarah Wood.
As one of the town’s pioneers in the installation of solar panels, Otter Creek Bakery is now encouraging other companies to follow suit.
“We’re hoping that other businesses will join our efforts in making an impact in their own usages and taking advantage of the greenest power available,” she said.
The Woods also hope their new solar panels will not only reflect their passion for nature, but will showcase their building, situated in the center of town.
Otter Creek Bakery’s solar panels, however, are just another part of the shop’s environmentally friendly attitude. Ever since the Woods started their business 25 years ago, they have been avid recyclers, supporters of local producers, and careful not to waste.
“We never put food scraps in our dumpsters. They all go to local farmers for animal food or compost,” said Sarah. “We did this [composted] ourselves for many years, but found it more efficient to supply others.”
The bakery also conserves power by concentrating their cooking times to minimum time tables and keeping close watch on thermostats and water usages. Furthermore, the Woods also own a big home garden that produces flowers, herbs and vegetables.
“We do a lot of canning,” said Sarah. “I made a number of the baskets in the shop and Ben has done the majority of the woodworking, as well as all of our own maintenance and upkeep.”
As if this is not enough, the Woods also have free-range chickens, and occasionally forage for mushrooms, wild berries and leeks to use in their food. Care is the key. Trained by European chefs, the couple was instilled with this unique sense of care from their foreign advisers.
“[It’s about] caring where your food comes from, how it’s grown, raised and prepared, as well as using as much of it as possible from start to finish,” said Sarah.
As the Otter Creek owners have illustrated to the College and to the town, caring is an important model to live by, both in terms of the environment, as well as in every day life.
(01/20/11 4:59am)
If you make your way over to Johnson Lounge, you might be surprised at what you’ll find. This month, the Winter Term class “Vermont Waters” has taken over the lounge and converted into a boat-building workshop, where they are building reproductions of two historic boats from the Lake Champlain valley.
The class, co-taught by Assistant Professor of English and American Literatures Dan Brayton and guest professor Douglas Brooks, a local boat-builder and researcher, examines the waters of Vermont through two sources: literature and material objects.
“I’m trying to introduce students to working with material objects and trying to show them what clues they have to history,” said Brooks.
Along with reading various types of literature looking at Vermont in its broadest sense — not just the lakes, but the watershed, rivers, even the water in the trees — Brayton is helping the class learn to use objects as sources. In the process, they are analyzing and documenting two historic boats and replicating them.
“It’s not just artifacts,” Brooks said. “I facilitated interviews with two local muskrat trappers. One was a man who’d been trapping every year since 1964. Ten years ago, he took a 12-year-old boy trapping with him, and that boy, now 22, came with him to our class. It was a really interesting interview.”
In the Lake Champlain area, trappers have traditionally built their own boats, which is unusual and offers a different view on the history.
“It turns boat-building into a folk art — a sort of untutored craft,” said Brooks.
One of the two boats that the class is building is a replica trapping boat. They will also be taking a field trip to interview Bud Smith, a man living in Middlebury who trapped 50 years ago.
“Part of the reason I picked muskrat trappers is that they are the furthest removed person from a college student here at Midd,” said Brooks. “But the kids have come to realize that there is common ground between them.”
“Interviews with the trappers were informative,” said Christian Woodard ’10.5, “though I think we could have learned more by walking on a piece of property with them.”
“The oral interviews are showing the students what a resource people are,” said Brooks. “A 68-year-old muskrat trapper knows incredible subtleties of the environment. The students were blown away by the wealth of knowledge these men have about the natural environment. What you learn in class and books is knowledge; what these men offer is wisdom.”
But it is a two-way street. The local people give to the students, sharing their experiences and wisdom, and the students give back in return, even if they do not realize they are doing so.
“Talking to the trappers was a powerful experience,” said Pier LaFarge ’10.5. “At the end of the interviews I went up to talk to Scott, the younger trapper who had been learning from his grandfather, and he told me that our comments and perspectives on trapping had taken him entirely off guard. He had been expecting opposition, and was even worried that some hippie would throw paint on his furs. Instead we were fascinated, totally wrapped up in their stories and their deep knowledge of these animals and the ecosystems they inhabit. I think the experience was eye-opening for both sides.”
“Bud Smith stopped me on the street and began to tear up,” Brooks said. “He told me how moved he was that those students cared about his life. The students have a powerful role to play. They can really impact the lives of the local Middlebury residents.”
And it is not just the personal connections — the students’ end of the term projects, many of which encompass more local interviews, will be archived at the Vermont Folklife Center, where they will be available for anyone to view.
“Most of these projects are completely original research,” said Brooks. “I told the students, this project has a life beyond the paper due in this class. It’s an amazing and powerful thing for Middlebury students.”
And of course, do not forget the boats in Johnson Lounge. The students are completely replicating, to exact measurements, a historic trapping boat and another historic boat from Panton, Vt.
But they need help — the class is asking the college community to suggest names for their boats. To submit a name, just e-mail the name and explanation to LaFarge at plafarge@middlebury.edu. The class plans to collect the entries and pick two names for their boats.
The boat building would not have been possible without the help from two local businesses: R. K. Miles Lumber in Middlebury and Lathrop’s Maple Supply in Bristol.
“The class has been really amazing, and I’m learning a lot of the hands-on woodworking skills that I wanted to when I signed up,” said LaFarge. “Dan and Douglas are both incredible teachers, and bring a lot to the classes and labs. Both of them are just doing what they love to do, and that makes all the difference in a class.”
(01/13/11 7:22pm)
Top 10 Films of 2010
Simran Bhalla:
The annual moment for our greatest cultural argument — the cause of many divorces and probably some religious schisms — is here: the Top 10 movie list. My judgment is admittedly insignificant (though I imagine my recommendation for Black Swan will send legions racing to the theater) and it is subject to mood and moment. It may say something about the state of cinema today that I found it difficult to think of 10 movies that deserved a Top 10 distinction, but it may also say something about which movies garner the attention of a few important critics and producers, and thus, our viewership. So, tentatively, and only kind of in order, my Top 10:
11) A Single Man: This honorary eleventh spot is an endorsement for a film that came out in 2009, but deserves more praise. It was constantly confused with its (also excellent) fraternal twin, A Serious Man. It takes place in Southern California in the sixties, drenched in deep colour, and is maddeningly stylish — I would want to be in it if it weren’t a deeply sad story of lost love and friendship. In the new canon of highbrow gay cinema, it is more devastating and less obvious than Milk or (bold claim coming up) Brokeback Mountain, and more honest and far less obvious than The Kids Are All Right.
10) Four Lions: A slight work, very rough around the edges, but with bold purpose — a reversal of the fear instilled in us of terrorist masterminds lurking in tricked-out Bond villain caves near Marja, with a reminder that terror can be perpetrated by ordinary buffoons in modern metropolises. Carried out with gleeful insolence, it’s difficult to say whether Lions is actually good or just unabashedly offensive in an enjoyable way. It was reminiscent in its British political cynicism of last year’s In the Loop. I always knew jihadists were hilarious.
9) True Grit: Though far less inventive than the better half of the Coen brothers’ output, True Grit is a solid, well-told story (almost too traditional in its narrative) with another fantastic performance by Jeff Bridges. The Dude keeps knocking it out of the park, though he can also currently be seen in Tron: Legacy, which will not be making an appearance on this list.
8) Toy Story 3: This film was undeniably great; heartwarming and truly touching, even for someone who spent their childhood identifying with Woody Allen and not Woody the cowboy action figure.
7) Inception: Though Inception is emotionally cold and its puzzle problematic, the discussion it provoked rages on, and its visual dreamscape is more sophisticated and — this is the only appropriate word — awesome than anything most of us can conjure for ourselves when the lights go out.
6) I Am Love: Prepare for my description to sound like a commissioned blurb, but: this lushly filmed, unapologetic melodrama brought the word “prawnography” into my vocabulary. Every shot overflows with sensation, heightened by John Adams’ fantastic score.
5) The King’s Speech: Obvious Oscar bait? Yes. That doesn’t negate the fact that it’s tightly crafted, perfectly acted and ultimately uplifting — something that can’t be said for the shaky-cam high art aspirants about “Important Political Issues” that clutter our theaters today (though some of them are good, and on this list).
4) Black Swan: Lurid, campy and viscerally affecting: bad taste done well. I thought I was going to have a heart attack. Go see it!
3) Winter’s Bone: This incredibly bleak thriller about inbred criminals in the Ozarks had one of the best performances of the year, by Jennifer Lawrence, and presents rural American poverty in a way that has rarely been shown on screen.
2) The Social Network: Dispassionate and thrilling at once -— Aaron Sorkin may not get Facebook, but he gets ambition, power and betrayal. Guess what’s more interesting?
1) Exit Through the Gift Shop: So much more than a mockumentary (if it is one) or a grand art prank. Exit is a fascinating, as-yet-unsolved mystery about the true nature of art, imitation and reality.
I’m still waiting to watch these, and expecting them to be good: Restrepo, Sebastian Junger’s Afghanistan documentary, the depressing marriage breakdowns Blue Valentine and Rabbit Hole, Ben Affleck’s The Town, finance industry exposé Inside Job and the French prison thriller A Prophet. Sofia Coppola’s Somewhere looks good, but in my experience, all her films ever do is look good.
Overrated: The Kids Are All Right, Greenberg. Upper middle class angst, overtly referential humor and unpleasant oral sex? Over it. Some congratulated Kids for portraying a lesbian couple just like a straight one — that didn’t make their relationship any more interesting, nor did it make the social observations of the film particularly profound.
Props: Easy A — a revelation for a high school rom-com with fresh humor and a protagonist I didn’t want to punch in the face. Keep an eye out for Emma Stone in 2011.
Brad Becker-Parton
After the New Year, movies get about as quiet as a snowy winter night. The Oscar darlings all came out in December, summer blockbusters seem like centuries ago and a new crop of indie darlings are right around the corner at Sundance. For the first few weeks of January, it’s movie dry season or, The Season of the Witch. Luckily, with a plethora of great films to see over winter break and it being the time of year for lists, we can reminisce on the best films of the past year while we wait for this year’s good ones. A top 10 list, why not?
10) Tiny Furniture: The epitome of mumblecore, Lena Dunham does everything she can to make you hate her by playing a terribly grating version of herself in this post-grad dramady. However, considering she made this when she was 22, right out of Oberlin, for only 50K and with a cast and crew of her friends and family and then won SXSW, I’d say it’s an incredibly impressive feat and one that I am terribly jealous of.
9) True Grit: When armed with a good script, beautiful scenery and great actors playing quirky characters, the Coen Brothers are unstoppable. Jeff Bridges shines as Rooster Cogburn, but until the last minutes of the film I felt as if I was almost lulled into liking this movie. It took very few risks both visually and within the story but as an homage to the Western it is definitely an enjoyable movie experience albeit one that I wanted to be a bit grittier.
8) Exit Through the Gift Shop: Often referred to as “the Banksy movie,” this film was the headliner in a year where documentary and reality were constantly blurred. It is still unclear what the trick is in this movie but either way, Banksy captures an endlessly interesting character in Thierry Guetta, and Guetta captures the process of some of the most interesting street artists.
7) Inception: The highlight of the summer’s blockbusters, Inception seemed to take everyone into its dreamy labyrinth. It was one of those movies that I loved while I was in it but that broke down every time I thought about it afterwards. That said, Christopher Nolan’s almost airtight control over one of the most complicated stories ever and the endless amount of theorizing this movie allowed for makes it a perfect big-budget film experience.
6) Toy Story 3: I’ll say it: besides Black Swan this was the most affecting movie I saw this year. Decidedly not a kid’s movie, it perfectly captures the experience of growing up in a way only Pixar possibly could. The fact that I truly believed that it was possible Woody and the gang were actually going to end the movie by getting incinerated in a garbage dump is a testament to the quality and maturity of this film.
5) Animal Kingdom: The Grand Jury Prize winner for World Cinema at Sundance last year, this Australian crime drama was a pleasant end of the year surprise for me. Centered on a powerfully creepy performance as the family matriarch by Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom shows a stark difference from American crime movies in its slow pacing and long, lingering shots. It is successfully both intense and moving in its portrayal of characters in the Melbourne underworld.
4) The Town: Full disclosure: I’m a huge sucker for heist films so The Town didn’t have to do much to win me over. That said, it did do a lot, lead by its surprisingly competent director Ben Affleck. For those of you who have yet to see this or his first directing turn Gone Baby Gone, let me tell you, Ben can direct. In a complicated, multilayered action film that could have spiraled downward any second, Affleck maintained a vice-like grip on the film keeping it tight, to the point and visually pleasing. This is a movie that just works.
3) Winter’s Bone: With any name recognition whatsoever, this story of meth addiction and deep familial bonds in the Ozarks would have been the critical darling of the year and the far and away Oscar favorite. Relegated to indie darling territory, this film is receiving tons of attention (and rightfully so) for the performance of its lead, Jennifer Lawrence. Armed with one credit to her name (The Bill Engvall Show, I’m serious), Lawrence dominates the viewers attention for the entirely of the film, carrying it on her back as she does her family in the movie. Desaturated and bleak, Winter’s Bone beautifully captures a terrifying slice of Americana.
2) The Social Network: My “I told you so” movie of the year is maybe this high on the list because I expected it to be. Long before the critics took over and “the Facebook movie” was the still the butt of many jokes, fellow Reel Critic Simran Bhalla and I both were correct in predicting the success of this film. Great directing, acting and writing go along way in making a film enjoyable, obviously, but what was most impressive here was how engaging and accessible this film was without being pretentious or overly self-important (and it definitely could have been)
1) Black Swan: The year’s best movie, in my opinion, was certainly a divisive one. Some people were very put off by Aronofsky’s over-stylized and over dramatic foray into the world of ballet. Rather, this film is a nearly flawless character study into a world of incredibly flawed characters. Unlike in some of his other films, Aronofsky knows when to dial up the style to best serve an engaging plot. Working with a below average script, he and the actors were both able to turn this into a gripping, intense and heavily affecting story.
(01/13/11 4:54am)
On Jan. 9, citizens of South Sudan began the seven-day process of voting for their independence. The vote represents the culmination of a desperate 50-year struggle of South Sudanese citizens to secede from their neighbors to the North. Government officials from both sides will continue to discuss the terms under which the largest country on the African continent might be divided in two.
South Sudanese liberators have had to overcome a series of unthinkable obstacles. In the earliest days, the freedom fighters clashed militarily with much more heavily trained soldiers from the North. They had no money for proper equipment, as many in the region live on less than 75 cents per day, so they began fighting with their hands. As the unlikely rebel force continued to regain territory from the Northern government, they amassed machetes, Molotov cocktails and guns. This guerilla warfare resulted in the death of over two million Sudanese citizens.
While the independence vote became popular cause in recent years, for many decades the international community largely ignored the plight of the South Sudanese liberators. Though humanitarian groups attempted to provide aid to the struggling citizens of the region, diplomatic aid remained largely absent.
This tide has shifted in recent years however, with American government officials, Christian rights groups and celebrities alike taking up the cause.
In 2005 the Bush government mediated negotiation between North and South officials. The talks proved successful, and a peace treaty was signed. Such diplomatic actions have halted the fighting between the two opposing forces and paved the way for current talks.
Christian rights groups worldwide have also taken up the cause of the South Sudanese people. Citing the religious persecution of their fellow spiritual devotees, they have called on the primarily Muslim, northern population to cease fighting with their Christian neighbors from the south. Though the religious and ethnic lines throughout the region seem much more blurred than Christian rights groups claim, such pressure has proved successful in bringing attention to the cause of the South’s liberation movement.
Celebrity involvement has also helped bring this issue to the attention of a wider audience. As The Globe and Mail noted, “Film star George Clooney flew into Southern Sudan this week to monitor the referendum, with moral support from Hollywood pals such as Brad Pitt and Matt Damon.”
In order for the north to recognize the legitimacy of the vote, there must be a turnout of at least 60 percent of registered voters. The majority of these citizens must vote for secession.
In order to try and encourage south Sudanese people to vote, their government officials have tried to make the process as simple and accommodating as possible.
The majority of possible voters are nomadic herders for whom it will take over one day to walk to a polling station. In light of these facts, South Sudanese officials have decided that the vote will occur over seven consecutive days.
Political officials have also tried to simplify the actual process of voting to combat illiteracy. Ballots are not written in English, Arabic or any native dialects, but will instead use symbols to illustrate state unity or schism. The first symbol shows two hands clasped together in solidarity, representing a unified country; the second symbol will show two hands open, with one hand directed away, as if weaving goodbye. In order to voice their option voters need only dip their finger in ink and draw a circle over the symbol they wish to select.
Although this vote for independence has generated much excitement, many remain unsure of the fate of the Sudanese people if they are successful in the secession movement.
The Southern half of the state has a much less developed infrastructure than its northern region. There are very few roads within the South’s territory, and levels of sanitation and education are lower than in the North. On average the southern part of the state also has higher levels of infant mortality and greater food insecurity.
The unequal distribution of natural resources has also been a point of contention in recent years, as the two sides have struggled to reach consensus during peace talks. Though the South contains more of the oil fields within the state, the North claims that 50 percent of the resources within these reserves are theirs for the taking.
The former rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) government that has taken control over Southern Sudan is largely inexperienced. Evidence of this fact was seen last year when the government unveiled plans for new southern cities shaped in the form of animals and fruit. As one BBC report seems to sarcastically note, “The reason for these shapes is not entirely illogical — they match the symbols that appear on the flags of southern Sudan's states.”
If initial plans are carried out, the new capital city of Juba will be shaped as a rhinoceros, with the office of the regional president situated where the rhino’s eyes should be.
Humorously, the BBC also noted, “In Wau, the sewage treatment plant is appropriately placed under the giraffe's tail.”
While a vote for the independence African citizens, so illogically grouped together during de-colonization seems progressive endeavor; such actions could spell disaster with such a weak infrastructure in place. Intervention from abroad, though effective in certain instances, must be wary of being heavy-handed. This vote represents a movement undertaken by south Sudanese citizens for their own independence — the popular will of the people must be allowed to decide the nation’s fate.
(11/18/10 5:05am)
A new museum is bringing an old tradition to Middlebury residents. The National Museum of the Morgan Horse, located at 34 Main St., tells the story of the beloved Morgan horse, a breed known for its illustrious place in American history and characterized by its strength, endurance, arched neck and solid build. Excited horse lovers, many of whom also attended the yearly meeting of the American Morgan Horse Association held in Burlington, Vt., came to the museum’s grand opening celebration on Saturday, Nov. 6.“[The event] was really successful for us,” said Amber Broderick, who became director of the museum after having worked as an archivist at the museum’s previous location in Shelburne, Vt.
Broderick, who has an MA in Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University in Toronto, Canada, found out this August that the Shelburne space, which was also home to the Morgan Horse Magazine, would be sold. The organization then offered to hire her full time as a director to “help make that happen in a positive way.”
According to Broderick, the museum has benefitted from its proximity to the UVM Morgan Horse Farm in Weybridge, Vt., as people who stop by the museum can easily be directed to the nearby farm to see the real Morgan horses.
“The prospect of having live animals in close proximity to the museum is a wonderful synergy that can be developed,” said Steve Davis, director of the UVM Morgan horse program, who believes that the farm is an integral part of the museum’s mission. “It can be a win-win for both entities.”
In addition, this prime location brings in foot traffic. Whereas in Shelburne the museum was located on Route 7, the new space now allows people to stop by, even if they are simply strolling down the street.
“I thought I would drop in and get a feeling of what is displayed,” said Bristol, Vt. resident Linda Feiss, who stopped by the museum after shopping at the Middlebury Farmer’s Market. Fiess has experience with the breed, as she has purchased and driven two Morgan horses from Vermont to Alaska to help her sister.
Feiss enjoyed the exhibit, which consists of an array of oil paintings and bronze sculptures of the Morgan horse spanning from the late 1800s through to the 1960s. The exhibit’s goal is to illustrate how similar the Morgan breed has remained over time. Broderick said other horse breeds may boast a similar continuity, but one can best see how Morgan horses have retained their characteristics because it is such an old breed.
An important part of the Morgan story is its history. The museum’s website, http://www.morganhorsemuesum.org, as well as the plaques at the museum itself narrate the story of Figure, the founding sire of the Morgan breed, who belonged to Justin Morgan. After Morgan’s death, Figure took on his owner’s name and passed along valuable traits, including his strength, endurance, speed and temperate nature, to his offspring.
“They [Morgan horses] are prized for their disposition, their work ethic and their hardiness,” said Davis.
Thus, the Morgan breed has remained an integral part of American equestrian history, and it is deeply valued by many who ride.
Yet Broderick hopes to “peak interest in this collection beyond the Morgan world.”
“People involved with Morgan horses see this stuff and are exposed to it,” she said. “I would like for regular people in Middlebury to see it too.”
For the museum to achieve this aim, however, it relies heavily on revenues from its gift shop, which sells a variety of goods ranging from notepads to jewelry to chocolate to glasses with the Morgan horse emblem engraved on each. While admission is free, there is a donation box near the front of the store, and people are encouraged to support the museum through cash donations.
The museum itself is inviting and bright. The light blue walls still smell of fresh paint, and large windows at the front let in natural light. At the front of the museum, there is also gallery space. Though Broderick said the Shelburne museum was bigger, she appreciates the gallery and that the space is now dedicated solely to the Morgan horse, as the Shelburne building was also home to offices that didn’t pertain to the museum. Past the gallery, the gift shop offers visitors a chance to bring a piece of the Morgan horse history home with them.
The primary donors of the museum are Henry E.I. and Martha Verge duPont. Plaques near the front entrance honor the couples’ work and provide museumgoers with a brief history of the breed. There are also plaques with names of the various other donors who helped to fund the museum.
Andrew Wentink, curator of the Special Collections and Archives at the Davis Family Library, was approached by Broderick, and she asked him to hold the archives. This felt appropriate because of the strong connections between the College and the Morgan horse, as Joseph Battell, who dedicated much of his life to the breeding and preservation of the famous American breed, was a valuable member of the College community.
“I feel that it is very appropriate that we would hold these archives because I feel that they have great research value,” said Wentink.
Wentink also noted that the College library’s membership in OCLC, an international library consortium, “enables all people around the world to be aware of the presence of these materials.”
Broderick plans to have quarterly rotating exhibits, with materials from the College archives, as well as from contemporary artists’ work. When the current exhibit ends, Broderick and others will move the portraits to the special collections section at the College’s library, and transfer new works to the museum in town.
(11/18/10 4:59am)
In the HBO series, Bored to Death, Ted Danson’s magazine-editing character hears that the board of his publication has voted to cut his column — to which he responds, “I am my column. I mean, I’m writing it in my mind, all the time.” Similarly, I too write my column in my mind, all the time. However, most of it has to be edited out for lack of clarity and common appeal. And for this reason, I’ve taken a hiatus these past few weeks, only to return more powerful than you can possibly imagine and with a more precisely edited and logically progressing take on life. In the meantime, as you might have inferred from the previous sentence, I have been watching a lot of Star Wars clips on YouTube. My column is as follows:
As a kid I was invariably told an adaptation of the following aphorism: “you can do anything you want, if you put your mind to it.” Probably true for some people (despicable people). There is a loophole for humanity, however. There exists one day of the year when you can be anybody, or anything, that you put your mind to (note: as long as you have a credit card and order the costume at least a week in advance). And on this day, you are also rewarded for your efforts with candy. Of course, I am talking about Ash Wednesday.
Halloween costumes are divisible into three categories that I refer to as the following: standard, comical and wish-fulfillment.
A standard is the prototypical Halloween costume such as a pumpkin, witch or demon. Standard is often worn by children and adults. Comical is also self-explanatory. It is the most popular dress among college students. There are a number of overlapping subcategories within comical which are, among others: self-deprecation, group, celebrity, media characters and foodstuffs. Each of these can be worn with varying levels of offensiveness and sexuality. Wish-fulfillment entails a costume that is worn for personal satisfaction alone. Often these outfits convey the wearer’s childlike desire that, normally hidden from view, is extricated to the public. Additionally, the wearer can play it off as a “comical” suit when in fact it really is the wearer’s secret fetish. There also exists a hybrid between comical and wish-fulfillment. This occurs when a wearer of a comedic outfit, say as Tom Cruise from Risky Business, looks in the mirror and says, “wow, I look good.” Comedy is a formal practice premised on pure acts of self-deprecation. Respect this institution, dammit. To satisfy the ego in this way is unacceptable. Give it up. Furthermore, Risky Business is only original in the levels of its unoriginality.
As a kid, my alternate persona was the X-man, Wolverine. In retrospect, I find this choice of hero odd because I never really read X-Men comics or watched the show. I did, however, own a plastic cup from which I drank orange juice every morning with a drawing of Wolverine bearing his claws on it, exhaling a frosty breath. I blame this cup for all my flaws and insecurities. I wore that tight Wolverine outfit frequently. I enjoyed the alternate reality of a world in which I was an exceptional being with unimaginable strength and predatory amenities. It was an easier and more enjoyable life as an immortal man-wolf, certainly one much better than the average human child. Initially it was my parents who informed me that I could not go to school daily in that outfit. A few years later, I came to realize why this made sense for social reasons. It was a somber day that I packed my Wolverine leotard, mask and claws and went to the bin to place it in my building’s basement for storage. As I recall, I held the costume up. The bare bulb behind the yellow fabric cast an ethereal glow across the shadowy 10-foot-deep, 3-foot-wide room. I said to it, “we’ll always have Halloween,” and walked away. I am positive that’s how it went.
Of course, I do not still wear Wolverine. Obviously this is because I am over the anthropomorphic thing (and maybe partly because I outgrew the costume). And I certainly have not considered going to Anthrocon, the annual conference for people who like to dress up like animals. Instead I prefer wearing a variation on the comedy costume.
But there is still a little bit of me that really wants to be Wolverine. I suppress my id, however. Freud would have had a hay-day for this holiday. Is it just a coincidence when an overweight person dresses as a skeleton? Or when a disgruntled and socially dejected individual dresses as an all-powerful, justice-dealing villain? I will not be too specific here, out of respect to a number of individuals of the Middlebury student body. But consider it as you peruse the Halloween Facebook albums.
(11/18/10 4:57am)
The College community mourns the tragic death of recent graduate Jeff Klein ’09 on Nov. 9 near his home in Chappaqua, N.Y. A line of loving friends and family went out the door and down the block at the 23-year-old’s wake on Nov. 12 in Pleasantville, N.Y., and many gathered again at Klein’s funeral on Nov. 13 at the Church of Christ the Savior in Rye, N.Y.
Klein may be best remembered for his great love of sports — playing them, watching them and writing about them. During his four years at Middlebury, Klein spent two years as a Sports Editor for The Campus, wrote a sports column called “J.K. Rollin,” avidly covered the men’s basketball beat and played intramural basketball and doubles tennis. Even after college, Klein maintained his passion for sports writing with a blog which he called “Talkin’ Sports.”
“Jeff was generally a pretty easygoing guy, but you could tell by how animated he got when he talked about the teams he loved that he had that kind of devotion, and he was such a good writer that he was really able to relay that through his articles, so that anyone reading could really feel all the suspense and energy and passion of a particular game,” said Tess Russell ’10, a fellow editor of The Campus with Klein.
Aside from his passion for athletics, Klein was also deeply invested in his studies. A history major with a minor in economics, Klein completed an honors thesis called “The Ghetto Riots and Black Power Movement in 1960s America” and graduated Magna Cum Laude.
“A very able student, Jeff Klein was also a very nice, friendly person,” said Klein’s adviser, Dean of Faculty and Rehnquist Professor of American History and Culture Jim Ralph. “As a historian, he was fascinated by American race relations…He was a pleasure to work with. He enjoyed the intellectual challenge of putting together the pieces of the past…As with so many others, my thoughts at this moment are with his family.”
While many knew Klein for his sports writing and academic prowess, his affable nature and kind heart reached out to many more. An active member of Kappa Delta Rho, Klein greatly valued time with his friends.
"Jeff Klein was one of the kindest people that I've had the pleasure to encounter,” said Patti Gomez ’11. “A fellow Kappa Delta Rho brother of mine, his stories were always a source of amusement and his support was unwavering… An incredible person to the core, his passing is a great tragedy."
“His sense of humor, above all, is what made him stand out for me,” said Hussein Alramini '09.
“Jeff was on a mission to instill laughter in the life of those around him. For the rest of my life I will have a memory of him that will put a smile on my face. Thank you Jeff and rest in peace my friend.”
After graduating from Middlebury, Klein worked as a paralegal and took the LSATs in preparation for law school. He is survived by his parents and two younger brothers.
(11/11/10 5:05am)
In March of 1991, Laurence Miller brewed his first Copper Ale. The owner of Otter Creek Brewery, Miller opened his business at 616 Exchange Street, the current location of Vermont Soapworks. Four years later, the brewery expanded and moved down the road, where it resides today. With a 40,000-barrel capacity, Otter Creek Brewery distributes its year-round and seasonal beer to states across the country. Long Trail Brewing bought Otter Creek Craft Ales and Wolaver’s Certified Organic Ales, both of which are brewed in Middlebury, last January and has since invested $1 million into the brewery.
The partnership between Wolaver’s and Otter Creek formed in 2002 when Morgan Wolaver bought Otter Creek. Wolaver, who worked with fresh food, sought to brew quality beer, and he became the first USDA-certified organic brewer. At first a satellite brewer without a brewery of his own, Wolaver knew Vermont’s organic lifestyle fit the product he envisioned, so he bought Otter Creek. He worked with the organic barley and farmers in the area, and together they created an “organic beer market.”
Dale Becker, the assistant manager of the Visitors Center at the brewery, said that Long Trail beers rank as the fourth best selling brand of beer in Vermont, following Amstel, Busch and Miller Lite. In addition to the brewery’s four year-round ales (Copper Ale, Pale Ale, Solstice Ale and Stovepipe Porter), it also has seasonal varieties. This year’s fall flavors include Oktoberfest and Will Stevens’ Pumpkin Ale. Becker said the winter ales will be Otter Creek’s Alpine Black IPA and the Wolaver’s Alta Gracia Coffee Porter. At the Vermont Brewers Fest this July, Becker said everyone loved the Alpine Black IPA, as do the college students who have tried it; however, the ingredients needed to make the beer are expensive.
The four ingredients in any beer are water, malted barley, hops and yeast. If a beer is five percent alcohol, then the other 95 percent of the drink is water. Otter Creek uses the township water, which it later purifies and softens.
Malt (a type of grain that has been allowed to sprout) forms the basis for 80 percent of beer. Specialty malts, like roasted and de-husked barley, give some beer its burnt, smoky flavor and dark coloring, according to Becker. By de-husking the barley, the beer spice, commonly called hops, is not overshadowed.
Ales, first created by the British, are fermented at warm temperatures, so the yeast can rise. Said to have been a German improvement on an ale, lagers are fermented at cold temperatures, allowing the yeast to fall. These beers are cold-stored for long periods of time before being bottled or kegged.
A native Floridian, Becker enjoys the heartiness of the ale because it fills him up faster, but he prefers a lager when it is hot outside because of its “crisp, clear and refreshing” taste.
Otter Creek, located at 783 Exchange Street, is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Complimentary tours are also available to the public.
“We want more interaction with the College,” said Becker. “The students are diverse and politically-minded. The other day a group of girls were in here drinking beer and arguing about politics.”
This is an especially appealing idea because the brewery plans to open a restaurant in the next year. With a 90-person seating capacity and more than 21 bar seats, the eatery will start small and serve appetizers like chili and, of course, beer.
Becker admits that beer is more sophisticated and complicated than he ever thought, and the brewing process certainly reflects this complexity. First, the barley must germinate before it is kiln-dried and coated with sugar or caramel. The barley is also milled, which means that the husk must break open to expose its natural enzymes and starches. Becker said that up to five batches of milled malted barley are produced each day.
To start the brewing process, 148-degree to 154-degree water is mixed with the milled malted barley in the mash mixer for 60 minutes. The barley’s enzymes begin breaking down the starch into simple sugars. Next, the mixture is moved to the lauter tun, or settling tank. Here barley falls into the natural filter bed at the bottom of the tank, and the remaining liquid is easily pulled out. This substance, called “wort,” is a brown sweet liquid. If someone drank a cup of this clarified liquid, Becker said they would go into “sugar shock.” The remaining barley is picked up by a local farmer twice a week and fed to his cows, as the animals love the sugary taste of the grain. As much as 10 tons of barley are left over each day.
The wort is then transferred to the brew kettle where it sits for 60 minutes. Here boiling water is added to the wort, so it can be sterilized. If anything touches the wort while it is transferred from one tank to another, it becomes hard to contain. Hops pellets, which give the beer its bitter taste, are also added to the brew kettle. Otter Creek Brewery uses hops grown in Middlebury. Finally, the mixture is sent to the whirlpool tank where the solids move to the center and the liquid beer can be easily pulled out from the sides of the tank. The leftover solid is used as fertilizer.
“This is a trick on nature,” said Becker, who studied marine biology in college and has done much retail work in fly-fishing. “The process highlights our dedication to the company’s organic and natural label.”
The brewed beer is cold-stored at 32 degrees and generally bottled on the 19th day after the brewing has begun. This ensures fresh quality beer.
The visitor’s center is the “face of the brewery,” and Becker has several goals he seeks to accomplish here. He hopes to create an enjoyable experience and entice first time customers enough so that they will be more inclined to buy Otter Creek the next time they go to the grocery store, for example. Beer enthusiasts often embark on the Vermont Brew Tour, where they visit breweries, including Otter Creek, across the state. Becker challenges himself to find ways to make the Middlebury brewery the best spot on the trip.
“I have three textbooks with 700 pages of information each [on beer],” he said. “I want to learn everything.”
He yearns to make the visitor’s center a place all can enjoy because Becker believes Otter Creek customers are buyers for life.
“I have Middlebury alums that call me three to four times per month because they want Otter Creek beer at their weddings,” he said.
Stay tuned for events and activities at the brewery, especially as it gears up for the restaurant’s grand opening next year.
(11/11/10 4:31am)
Though I am a firm believer in the flexibility and personalization of fashion, there are certain things that will never be in style; socially blacklisted trends most commonly created in the name of comfort that may only ever be worn with the self-awareness that they break all the rules of mainstream well-established visual aesthetics. Mullets, jean on jean outfits, hats with animal ears or faces, overmatching, sweatpants, Crocs, mid-calf socks with shorts, socks with sandals, clothes that don’t fit, spandex, white after Labor Day — some things just don’t ever work, no matter how hard you try.
Three weeks ago I was at the airport when I saw a man in a blazer wearing shorts and sneakers. It was like his torso was going to a wedding and his legs were going hiking in the Adirondacks. Consistency and subtly are key, if you’re going to make a conspicuously unconventional stylistic choice, you want it to represent you, your personality and authenticity, instead of making people double-take out of sheer confusion.
My black list consists of two main categories of clothing failure — the first being the quest for apathetic comfort (Crocs) and the second being conspicuous counter-cultural or mainstream ignorant choices (the mullet).
Now comfort and practicality are a huge part of fashion; clothes are, first and foremost for keeping us warm and sufficiently modest. There are of course, many instances where we sacrifice our comfort in the name of looking good. High heels, corsets, short dresses in the dead of winter, skinny jeans — we like to feel attractive, expressive and true to ourselves in order to project outwardly what we feel, or wish to feel inwardly. But there are just as frequently times when we feel gross, tired and apathetic towards our appearance, or perhaps we just don’t have enough time in our busy schedule to care. This is when the sweatpants come out.
Before heading off to Middlebury I asked my dad if he had any advice for me to put into practice as I ventured out in the world. “No sweatpants,” he said. I paused. “Wait … what?” I finally asked, confused beyond words. He explained to me that sweatpants had the potential to be my archenemy over the next four years — you get lazy, he said, you get busy, gain the “Freshman 15” and you don’t even realize it because you’re never wearing real pants. Then you can’t fit into your real pants, so you keep wearing sweatpants till your apathy has crept over you and you own 10 pairs. Et tu, Sweatpants? Apparently, apathy can stab you in the back.
Now I’m not saying don’t wear comfortable clothes. I own a pair or two of secret sweatpants, and a pair of emergency jeans for those long stretches of winter laziness where I’m not quite skinny enough for my skinny jeans. Comfort is a beautiful thing, but just be careful to not let it define your style. Caring and creation are also equally as important when it comes to fashion. Expression doesn’t have to die in the name of cold weather or lack of sleep. It’s all about balance.
The second category of black listed trends is a little harder to pin down because style is subjective and should be a very personal form of expression. However, when something is generally accepted as being unattractive, it doesn’t hurt to listen. Take Uggs, for instance. You can wear them — as long as you realize how ridiculous they look with a jean skirt. Crocs fall along the same lines; they look like middle-aged woman gardening shoes. A mullet, unless it’s ironic, will always make you look like your name is Jed and overmatching makes you look like you’re in middle school. Clothes should fit; no one wants to see your underwear, and contrary to popular belief, its painful to see a girl wearing pants that look like they’re about to cut off her circulation. Just be self-aware, fight the desire to be lazy! As in all things, effort pays off when it comes to clothes — look good, feel good, do good.
Mary-Caitlin Hentz is a super senior from Dover, MA.
(10/28/10 4:06am)
During the afternoon after the first snow of the year (well, okay, flurries- but it still counts), a small group of students met on Battell Beach for the opening event of the Cameron Cup.
Huddled closely around the hot apple cider and hot chocolate dispensers, students sipped on warm beverages as they listened to Cameron Cup Commissioner Ashton Coughlin ’11 explain the rules.
After splitting into teams by commons (each commons had a showing except Brainerd, who apparently decided that it was too cold to venture out to the event), the competition began.
The challenge was a sort of obstacle course, beginning with a Gallon Challenge. Teams had to drink an entire gallon of whole milk before they could advance to the next leg of the race. Obviously, this was easier for larger teams, like Cook, than it was for teams like Ross, who had only three members.
Still, each team persevered.
Next, the teams ran through Battell 3-legged race style. After making a loop, they ran outside to answer a riddle, and then dashed off to do Dizzy Bat, which required each team member to spin around five times with his or her head on a whiffle ball bat.
Teams then sprinted across Battell Beach to pick up cans that had been strewn on the No Mow Zone then, from there, they ran to Pearsons. There, one member from each team climbed a tree in search of the animal representing their commons (a pig for Cook, a squirrel for Wonnacott, etc.).
Finally, teams faced their final challenge. Everything came down to a run in which all members of the team save one had to carry that one member of their team around the bottom floor of Forest and then up the hill of Battell Beach to the Award Ceremony Zone.
Tensions were running high.
While teams were inside completing this part of the race, Eliza Wallace ’14, expressed what most observers were feeling about the event.
“It’s really cold, but it’s also really fun.”
The first team to make it up the hill was Cook. Jessie Lussier ’13 and Hilary Crew ’13 summarized how it felt to win:
“It feels normal for us, because we are in Cook, and we are the best commons to begin with.”
Cook was followed closely by Wonnacott. After a delay, Atwater crossed the finish line and then, finally, Ross finished the race.
Because the Cameron Cup is a year-long event, each commons received points for their showing in Friday’s event. First place received 50 points, second received 40, and so on.
Coughlin ’11 explained the goals of the Cameron Cup as “events designed to foster community and competition around campus with a secondary effect of promoting democracy and capitalism and a tertiary effect of creating smiles.”
The Cameron Cup was started in the early 1990s but, after lasting a couple of years, it stopped.
Now, the Cup is regulated by the Inter Commons Council and is affiliated with MCAB. The tri-chairs hope to foster community around campus by having events for the Cup that establish connections between upper- and lower-classmen within each commons.
This year, the competition will consist of five or six major events in which each team can earn up to 50 points at each event.
While tentative, some possible events are an Iron Chef Tournament, a talent show, a campus-wide relay and a trivia night, according to Coughlin.
The chairs are also considering a way to incorporate smaller events into the points-earning scheme, allowing a small number of points to be awarded for things like winning an intramural soccer game.
They are also going to implement a system of demerits for the Cup in which points will be subtracted from commons for things like getting high numbers of citations from Public Safety.
While the schedule for the Cup’s events is still uncertain, students seem to be excited about it.
“I can’t wait to see what other upcoming activities will be,” said Bo Kim ’11.
(10/14/10 4:07am)
Here at Middlebury, we pride ourselves on our quest for carbon neutrality, our compost piles, our organic garden and overall awareness and attentiveness to the importance of environmental sustainability. We petition for change, we protest abuse and we try to set a good example in the way we live and interact with our limited resources. But what in the name of electric cars and solar energy does any of this have to do with fashion?! EVERTHING. Okay… I exaggerate, but still.
The way I look at it, “Stylistic Sustainability” can be broken up into two categories — Material and Historical. On one end you have the material — clothes made out of recycled textiles, hemp and natural fibers — clothes whose production doesn’t exhaust resources or pollute the local environment. This extends beyond the basic makeup of the textiles and into the structure and practices of the companies themselves. Now I’m not saying you have to research the environmental responsibility of every company you purchase a piece of clothing from, but if you are a consistent patron of specific stores, look into it. For all you know your clothing is being made by seven-year-old orphans with TB who get a dollar every six months, or perhaps your favorite designer is the leading killer of rabbits in Eastern Europe.
So clearly I’m hyperbolizing here, but you get my drift. If we’ve learned anything from this wonderful liberal arts education, it’s that we need to be aware of our consumption.
Now here comes the fun part: historical sustainability, or clothes that were made before (or shortly after) you were born. It’s my belief that any item of clothing that has been in circulation for over fifteen years is fair game on the green front; thrift stores, vintage boutiques and the “take it or leave it” at the dump are treasure troves of forgotten beauty. Often times thrift store chains also contribute a portion, or all, of their proceeds to charities: Second Time Around in Burlington donates to breast cancer research and Planet Aid in Boston helps provide medical supplies for those with HIV/AIDS in Africa. So not only can you be green by buying old, but you can also make a small social difference as well.
Now clearly this isn’t the case in those pricey high-end vintage stores on Melrose or in SoHo, who sell sequined Vivienne Westwood dresses and 1960’s Chanel blazers for hundreds upon hundreds of dollars — but you can still be a conscientious consumer, especially when it comes to our little furry woodland critter friends. Now I may get some backlash for this but my motto with fur is that if it died before I was born, and is being sold by an independent shop owner, and not a corporate affiliate — it’s recycling. Product testing on animals, the destruction of wildlife habitats for logging and urbanization, the pollution of our air and water, climate change, over-hunting and -fishing; these are all problems that threaten our environmental stability and morality far more than a single leather jacket — and while I don’t like supporting the contemporary killing of animals for clothing, I also don’t agree with the way our farm animals are pumped growth hormones and kept in cages all their lives. There are bigger issues at hand, so let’s try and keep that red paint at bay. Your grandmother’s fur coat will appreciate it.
Moral of the story? Almost everything comes back in fashion eventually, so buy old or consume current styles with critical awareness.
Mary-Caitlin Hentz ’10.5 from Dover, MA.
(10/07/10 4:04am)
A bark-off, an agility course, homemade treats, music and blue skies are just some of the reasons why Woofstock 2010, Addison County Humane Society’s annual fundraiser, was by-and-large a successful event. Approximately 75 dogs and their owners came to the Middlebury Recreational Park on Saturday, Oct. 2, to support the ACHS, a no-kill shelter in Middlebury, Vt. Many attendees and their pets participated in the approximately 2-mile walk around the back of the Davis Family Library before returning to the park to participate in a multitude of activities, including agility and freestyle competitions, frisbee demonstrations and costume and trick contests. The event is the ACHS’s biggest fundraiser of the year, with last year’s festivities reaping in around $14,000, according to Susan Nelson, an ACHS volunteer.
“These events are huge for us,” said Mike Picard, treasurer on the ACHS Board. “Every penny is from members and events like this. We get no state or government funding.”
Woofstock 2010 participants raised money for the ACHS in the weeks leading up to the event. Some, like Middlebury resident Debbie Bird, used Facebook to encourage friends to donate to the cause.
“They [ACHS] provide a service no one else can,” said Bird.
Others created webpages on http://firstgiving.com to raise funds. Brenda Ellis, the Reference Instruction Librarian, Cynthia (Pij) Slater, the Computing Specialist and Mack Roark, the Senior Technology Specialist, formed a team of Middlebury College employees from the Library Information Services (LIS) and raised over $1,300 for the ACHS.
Ellis was also a volunteer for the event, and spent the day with Walker, a two-year-old Walker Hound, for whom the ACHS is trying to find an owner. In addition to connecting strays with people looking to adopt pets, the ACHS also focuses on educating the public about the well-being of pets and helps to investigate animal cruelty issues.
Picard noted that the money generated from the event was particularly important this year. Due to the recent economic downturn, he said, people are bringing in more pets that they are not able to care for. Though it is far better to surrender your pet to the humane society than to abandon it, the ACHS is stretched thin and there is a usually a waiting list for animals, especially cats. This makes events such as Woofstock all the more significant, as the money raised is needed to feed and care for an increasing number of animals.
Local vendors also raised money for the cause. They each donated an item to the grand raffle and many donated a percentage of their profits earned that day to the ACHS, as well.
Kristin Bittrolff, co-owner of Green Go’s Burritos, sold fruit, homemade brownies, muffins and wraps at her stand at Woofstock. Though her 16-year-old Dalmatian, Waldo, was too old to participate in the event, Bittrolff still supported the cause. She said a portion of her proceeds would go to the ACHS.
Cindy Kilgore, owner of Sacred Spirit Dog, a company that makes scarves out of dog hair, always gives 30 percent of her profits to rescue groups. Kilgore began the unique idea of spinning dog hair into yarn five years ago.
“It’s way too simple in an unsimple world,” said Kilgore.
Since, customers have been sending her extra dog hair that they brush off their pets. At Woofstock, Kilgore was working on making yarn from dog hair sent to her from California. The scarves, which are 80 percent lighter and 67 percent warmer than wool, also give customers something comforting to help them remember their lost pets.
“It’s a way to have something when your friend’s not there,” said Kilgore.
Other companies selling and giving away items at the event included Petco and Wagatha’s Organic Dog Biscuits.
While some pet owners meandered through the tents of vendors, others competed with their dogs for a variety of prizes. Events, like the obedience competition, chose winners based on which dog sat down the fastest on command. Notable outfits in the costume contest included an angel, a turtle, an aristocrat and even a hot dog, complete with mustard on top. There was also a play area sponsored by Jackson’s on the River, where dogs of all sizes and ages socialized.
Still, some attendees used the event to highlight their dogs’ hard work.
Ann Kowalski’s one-year-old Golden Retriever, Murphy, had been working on his agility training and freestyle, commonly known as doggie dancing. Murphy showed off his routine, set to the tune of “I Love You” by The Persuasions. Though Kowalski wanted Murphy to follow the routine they had practiced, she was not too nervous.
“There’s no judging, no stress,” she said. “Sometimes their routine is better than ours.”
Even those like Peg Cobb, owner of Hand-in-Paw Training and Boarding Kennel, who has trained and bred dogs for nearly 25 years, said the routine she had planned with Murphy’s dad, Oliver, a five-year-old Golden Retriever, was just for fun in the spirit of Woofstock.
“Oliver has thrown in some moves of his own,” said Cobb.
No matter what the level of competition, all attendees came to Woofstock with a common goal: to support the ACHS.
Bruce Zeman, host of 92.1 WVTK’s morning show, “The Wake-Up Crew with Bruce Zeman and Hobbes,” couldn’t agree more. Zeman considers himself a passionate animal rights activist. His three-year-old Dachshund, Hobbes, is a victim of domestic violence. Once Zeman saw Hobbes at the humane society, he knew he had to take him. Hobbes is now a co-host on the morning show and, according to Zeman, is “arguably the most famous animal the state has ever had.”
For the past few weeks, Zeman promoted Woofstock on the radio. Picard said this had a big influence on the increased attendance and success of this year’s event. On Saturday, he was broadcasting live from the Middlebury Recreational Park and helped judge some of the dog contests.
“We speak for them because they can’t speak for themselves,” he said.
(10/07/10 3:59am)
This season, the one question on the minds of the Panther football team is not the win tally for the fall or the number of records QB Donnie McKillop ’11 will break, but when was the last time Dola got a haircut?
Defensive lineman Chris Dola ’12 is not only distinguished by completing the second-most sacks on the team last season, he unquestionably wins the best hair award with a stellar flow 14 months in the making. The Campus set up an epic showdown between his roommate and number-one fan Edwin Nuñez ’12 and fellow linebacker Patrick Downey ’12 to see who can better see beyond the flowing brunette locks and into the mind of “Diesel D.”
The competition proved to be an absolute blowout, with roommate bonding far outweighing time spent on the field, the bus and in the football locker room. Sensing that Edwin represented a formidable opponent (he seems to know Dola almost better than Dola knows himself), Patrick Downey apparently decided to opt for the tried-and-true tactic of throwing his teammate under the bus.
While his answers were in many cases drastically far off the mark –– it’s hard to think of two animals more different than a gazelle and a sloth –– Patrick’s responses offer an entertaining perspective on the linebacker. Let’s be real, when you think of a 6’3”, 230-pound football player, a gazelle is not the first creature that comes to mind, and both Patrick’s and Edwin’s answers hold some grains of truth. Nevertheless, Dola stuck by his pick in the face of this blatant ridicule, retorting, “Have you ever seen me run? It’s graceful.”
Despite being thrown off by this surprise twist in Dola’s personality, Edwin remained spot-on in most of the rest of his answers, even reminding Dola what his favorite girly music was. Patrick, meanwhile, attacked Dola’s personal hygiene and dated his hairstyle back to the questionable fashion styles of the 60s. Furthermore, he essentially accused Dola of stealing as well as of being a closet Backstreet Boys aficionado. It became clear that Patrick was not taking the competition seriously, however, when he put down Dola’s least favorite player on the Redskins, Andrew Haynesworth, as opposed to the favorite, Portis. Dola does not joke about the Redskins.
The multi-talented Dola’s aspirations of being a country singer were also unknown to both competitors –– apparently he’s not one to sing in the shower. On this one, Edwin joined Downey and took his first dig at Dola in his response that Dola wishes he could dance (having been to a Costa Rican salsa club with his roommate, he knows this is a pipe dream).
At the end of the day, though, Edwin ran away with the sure victory, while Patrick can take comfort in the fact that he wins the most entertaining answer award. The future of Dola’s hair, however, remains uncertain, as he lost a bet with a friend on the Colby team about last week’s game in which his hair and eyebrows were the stakes. Although he intends to preserve the flow, Edwin is threatening to shave his head and donate the hair to Locks of Love.
(09/30/10 4:02am)
At its very core, fashion is about three things: practicality, authenticity and risk. Practicality is the most objective of part of the equation: you don’t wear ballet flats to your environmental studies lab or a neon unitard to a wedding — these are rules of common sense and need no further explanation within the contents of this column.
Authenticity on the other hand, is as subjective as it gets, this is what stylistic label(s) you place or refuse to place upon yourself, it’s where you shop, don’t shop, the type of people you admire and the trends you refuse to partake in. Authenticity in fashion discourse usually comes in the form of self-describing adjectives: relaxed, preppy, crunchy, athletic, euro, non-conformist, whimsical, feminine, classic, vintage and so on and so forth. Authenticity is taste, it’s liking what you like, because you like it – the why is irrelevant, it’s far more feeling than rationality. Because stylistic integrity is so inherently personal, it is impossible, and even downright mean to try and quantify and compare the value of respective sub-cultures over others — none is better than the rest, for the real success or failure of fashion exists in the final piece of our equation: risk.
“You wear things that people shouldn’t … but you always pull it off” is something I hear from friends almost relentlessly. Given not everyone might agree with them, for I feel a certain level of understanding about my personality is key when trying to comprehend why I’m wearing a Native American headdress in the middle of the day, or spent an hour in the morning putting my hair into 1940’s pin curls, but regardless, my response is always the same: “pulling off” a look is confidence supported by a strong foundation of authenticity and just the right amount of practicality. I’d say it breaks down 50-25-25; if you’re being true to yourself and dressed with common sense, a fair amount of risk taking is palatable, even by the most monotonous of clotheshorses.
Point being, you CAN pull off animal print, or skinny jeans, or lime green kicks as long as you don’t second guess yourself. Think of your wardrobe as a neutral starting ground, the clothes you always wear are like a security blanket, they are safe and warm and sentimentally recycled throughout the week over and over again. Now take two steps away from your favorite boots, to the shoes you have always envied on other people, but could “never pull off” in real life. Now subtract 5 percent of your practicality and act on feeling. This is where you want to live from now on, a safe distance from boring in the realm of the comfortable challenge.
Life is all about pushing yourself: your intellect, your truth, your emotional capacity, your creativity, your endurance, your confidence — and while you may not consider clothing to be one of your top priorities or perhaps not even a point of interest, why not let your inner growth shine through the “superficial” layers of the outside? Regardless of how much you personally care about fashion, we all like to feel good in our own skin, and nothing feels better than balance between all of our facets, inside and out. So put on the bright red pants. Wear heels out to the bar even though you’re already 5’10. Put away the sweatshirt and try something new. Every day is an adventure. Play dress up.
(09/30/10 4:01am)
From painting to literature, sculpture to drama, Japan has always been an innovative nation when it comes to the arts, so much so that they have often ended up creating their own school of a particular art form. Naturally, the Japanese also have their own unique dance form, but one that is vastly different from Western dance.
Professor Bruce Baird, associate professor of Asian Languages and Literatures at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, visited Middlebury on Sept. 27th. Baird, who received his Ph.D in Asian Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, is an expert on Japanese Butoh dance. Early in the lecture, he showed the audience two clips of Butoh performances. The first one consisted of a dance that involved several athletic men running back and forth across traditional tatami mats and then playing baseball. The second was of a single man in very sparse light. I could barely make out the actual dynamics of his movements but I did notice a giant golden phallus strapped to his groin. The performers were all nearly naked.
Butoh is a theater movement that was started in 1959 by choreographer and dancer Hijitaka Tatsumi. The characteristics of Butoh movement include tension, contortion, changes of direction and being off-balance. Hijitaka took inspiration from watching the movements of all sorts of figures, from animals to prostitutes, from farmers to handicapped people. Baird even threw in a few demonstrations in which he would pose in a way that his upper body was contorted around one axis and his lower body around another.
According to Baird, the purpose of Butoh is for the performers to access “a transcendent, primal reality” and to “yield authentic movement.” It is based on the “particularities of the Japanese body.” He also made the point that the movements in Butoh are incredibly restricted. Much of this restriction comes down to the performer controlling their body. What was most interesting, however, were the restrictions imposed by the imagination. Not only might a typical dancer imagine a bug crawling on their neck while doing a move but also he or she would have to consider how that movement would be affected with an extra bug — or an extra hundred.
Central to Baird’s lecture was the ability of Butoh to mimic the movements in pieces of visual arts. An example was the notes for creating the figure in English illustrator Aubrey Beardsley’s “The Peacock Skirt”. Professor Baird included Hijitaka’s actual notes on how to create this figure. The directions were fascinating and unconventional. One of the notes, for example, calls upon the performer to imagine that they are made of nerves and that they have a nerve extending out of the back of their neck. Another called for the performer to imagine a deer was nearby. Baird himself said he didn’t know how one achieved this but that it would allow the performer to mimic the figure in “The Peacock Skirt”.
The origin of the “grey grits” idea is confusing but an amazing concept. It comes from a story in the collection A Certain Lucas by Argentine writer Julio Cortazar, in which a scientist discovers that it is possible for humans to swim in grey grits. The discovery becomes a phenomenon, particularly in light of a Japanese swimmer, who sets a world record for swimming through a five-meter long pool of grey grits. One of the lines in the lecture mentioned how the swimmer who could dive further over the grits than the next would have a crucial advantage of centimeters. Baird further linked this to Phelps beating Cavic in 2008 Olympics and how the difference came down to millimeters. This hits home at the central point of Butoh: complete control over the tiny movements of the body. With this control comes freedom and with freedom comes catharsis.
Baird said his goal was simply to examine dances and try to figure out what is going in them, perhaps so that he might come closer to defining this form that Japanese consider indefinable. Overall, the lecture did well to provide a thorough insight into this fascinating form of dance. Amidst all its restrictions, Butoh challenges the audience to reconsider the nature of movement altogether and the dancers to reinvent it.
(09/30/10 4:01am)
My second to last third Monday of a Middlebury semester began much like most of its predecessors: with a delirious 7:15 a.m. breakfast. Damn chemistry classes. Anyway, I was having a blast pacing back and forth in front of the Ross drink station trying to decide whether I wanted skim or two percent — all the while devoting most of my attention to something apparently very interesting on the ceiling — when I heard something weird. Someone much livelier than me had sat down and appeared to be having an animated conversation ... with absolutely nobody. YES! For once, the sleepwalking ginger doing some indoor stargazing was not the most awkward person in the room. A few seconds later, I realized that he was just a theater major reciting lines for a play, but I felt accomplished nonetheless.
As awkward as it is, the solitary conversation is not a huge issue around here. Aside from my dining hall encounter, the last time I heard a legit one-sided conversation was in Central Park at 2:00 a.m. Yet a different type of self-talking happens every day and carries with it an endless supply of awkwardness: leaving voicemail messages.
Leaving a voicemail is actually not inherently awkward. In an ideal world, the message-leaver briefly states their business concisely, leaves their number, says a nice/courteous/cute goodbye and hangs up the phone. If this is how your messages usually go, then you can probably stop reading now and move on to Birnbaum’s column to vent your anger at me for wasting your time. But if I’m correct in assuming that not everyone has reached such titan levels of eloquence, then let’s commiserate. That shit’s hard! When we call someone, we are prepared to have a conversation with that person, and when they don’t pick up, we have a measly, inadequate 10 seconds to change gears before that dreaded “beep.” Brevity is the first thing to go, resulting in a two-minute long rambling mess. Hanging up the phone is an even more serious issue, as failure to do so appropriately turns the sloppy two minutes into four even less comprehensible minutes. The listener must then listen to and decipher the entire rant to finally get the message that it is, after all, not going to work out between us.
The main cause of these issues is, of course, that leaving a voicemail ends up being a conversation with yourself. As a frequent perpetrator of inbox gluttony, my first bit of advice is to leave all conversation at the door — rhetorical questions and jokes should be strictly avoided. No matter how clever you are, the answering machine will not reciprocate, and you will just be talking to yourself like any old schizophrenic or theater major (oh snap). Good indicators of success in this department are the reactions of people who witness the message. If their response is “Wait ... was that a message?” you’re doing it wrong.
Second bit of advice: remember to HUTPI. And by that I mean, hang up the phone, idiot! In normal conversation, closure is reached when both parties have said “bye.” Again with the reciprocation issue: the machine will not tell you goodbye! This may seem obvious, but many times I have ended messages with “bye ... and yeah ... um ... yeah ... click.” Gross. Also, after a while, some answering services will ask if you need more time. If you have made it to this point, the answer is NO.
Finally, remember that voicemail messages are the most persistent and uncertain of all embarrassing social interactions. Rest assured, if you call your high school girlfriend on her house phone to notify her that, after your most recent encounter, she should probably get herself tested for strep throat, bad things will happen. Like her conservative grandparents coming home early and listening to the message before she does. And knowing that you will never escape that first impression. Crap.
(09/22/10 4:04am)
When pondering retirement, many couples may think about upcoming travels, spending more time with family and picking up new hobbies. Carol and Cass Tillman, owners of the Moonlit Alpaca Farm, took a different approach. Uprooted by Hurricane Katrina, the two former business consultants moved from Louisiana to Cornwall, Vt. in 2005 and decided to do something radically different after retiring.
Although the Tillmans arrived in Vermont with little more than a few suitcases, they were quick to rebuild a new life for themselves. When Cass read an article in Forbes Magazine about alpaca farming, the family quickly took to the idea. Only months later, the Tillmans purchased the Moonlit farm.
After seeing the farm, it is hard to believe that the Tillmans knew so little about alpacas only five years ago. Except for a slight lag due to the recent economic downturn, business at the farm is booming. The Tillmans own approximately 100 alpacas, four miniature horses and one llama.
Much of the work at the farm is centered on breeding the alpacas. Females can have one baby, or cria, per year. The Tillmans often breed a female only 14 days after she has given birth. Until breeding time, however, male and female alpacas must be kept apart, because alpacas are apparently “very frisky.” Carol explained that they had several “breakout, or unplanned, babies” last year. In addition, Moonlit Farm sells alpaca breeding stock to other farms. A breeding alpaca can go for as much as $10,000.
Alpacas, which originate in South America and are related to both the camel and the llama, are highly valued for their fur, known as fiber. Alpaca fiber is soft and incredibly warm. The alpacas at Moonlit Farm are sheared once a year for their fiber, which the Tillmans sell to companies across the United States.
Yet the farm is more than just a business for the Tillmans.
“Each alpaca has a very distinct personality,” said Carol, who, along with farm manager Josh Kennett, is not afraid to show her attachment to the animals. At the farm, each alpaca is introduced by its name. Carol even picked up a cria, and whispered “hello gorgeous” to it while holding it like a baby. The alpacas at Moonlit farm are clearly seen more as members of the family than just moneymakers by the Tillmans.
After going through the difficulty of Hurricane Katrina, the Tillmans know the importance of community giving. In response to the oil spill in the gulf coast earlier this year, they were ready to mail many bags of alpaca fiber to affected communities, where the fiber would act like a sponge to soak up oil. Although the communities did not need the fiber from the Tillmans, Carol said she would be quick to try to help again, if necessary. In addition, Moonlit Farm also works with Middlebury High School’s “Diversified Occupations Group,” teaching job skills to high school students.
Moonlit Alpaca Farm is located only a few minutes from campus going north on Rt. 125 and has visiting hours every day. If school is stressing you out, a trip to the farm could be just the relief you need; alpacas are known to be soothing, and are even used as therapy animals.
(09/16/10 4:07am)
Unprompted, Fifelo Aganga ’13 turned to me and declared, “If I had to sum myself up in three words I would have to say black, British – and I’m torn between two words now: drunk or lackadaisical.”
More than a tad off-color, Aganga definitely gets noticed at a place like Middlebury, a place he says shocked him with its apparent homogeneity upon arrival.
Known as one of a few resident Brits on campus and in town as well, he complains that the crew down at Dunkin Donuts is still struggling to understand his pronunciation of the word “doughnut.” Aganga grew up a deathly shy kid in London with Nigerian parents.
“If two people were in the room I couldn’t talk. It slowly got better over time and then around 16 I was touched by a priest,” Aganga said adding that this did not really happen. “People don’t like when I make comments like that. It gets very awkward.”
While most of us have come to know him as Fif or Fifelo, neither of those names will help you find him in the college directory as his birth certificate spells his name with two “I”s rather than one. Fifelo is also know as Pip, Fil (pronounced Phil), that “drunk British black guy” and Baba Dudu. The last one, which comes from his aunts, leaves him lamenting that “even [his] own family is racist toward [him].” Although he voices his outrage with good nature, Aganga doesn’t shy away from admitting, “I attribute a lot of things to the fact that I’m black.”
Perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that a European would come to the U.S. and make note of American race relations but it seems that Aganga feels his time is better spent misinforming people about European traditions.
“I once convinced an American that we don’t have telephones in London and that we use carrier pigeons to communicate, or shout,” Aganga said.
Nonetheless, Aganga feels he has overcome any racial barriers that may exist at Midd and has carried on several interracial “bromances,” with such characters as Brendan Scully ’13 and his old roommate Nathan Rudd ’13. “We [look] totally different when we’re together because he’s a ginger and I’m black,” says Aganga. “He’s muscular and I’m scrawny.”
However, Aganga would like to confirm that though it may come as a surprise, he is straight. Too bad his mother still has her doubts after finding his yellow “Legalize Gay” underwear, one of a now-retired pair that he and a friend debuted over spandex at last year’s 80s Dance and then took to wearing around campus all year.
“I have three sisters,” Aganga said. “That’s why I’m so feminine.”
At the close of our interview Aganga was off to work on his costume for this year’s 80’s dance and fill out medical forms for soccer try-outs. Other current projects include turning his single in Forest Hall into a “pink palace” and picking up a Southern accent.
“If I could go anywhere I would go to the moon or Alabama,” Aganga said. “The moon, so if I ever meet Buzz Aldrin or Neil Armstrong I don’t want them holding it over me that they’ve been to the moon and I haven’t, or Alabama ‘cause I love the way they speak.”
Aganga is currently studying Chinese with hopes of returning to China for study abroad. Before coming to Middlebury he spent a gap year in China, where he enjoyed being so gloriously different that a crowd of people watching a show of performing bears stopped to turn around and watch him instead of the animals. Completely baffled by his presence a little girl asked simply, “Why?”
Although Aganga claims to be “a very simple person with a simple mind” most would agree that his gears are turning just a little differently than the rest of ours. Being this unique individual that he is I figured that Aganga would have some very poignant life advice to offer, maybe along the lines of how to learn to embrace one’s true self, but the most he would say was, “When things get hard, have a drink or take naps. You get the best naps in class because you feel naughty.”
Quick Facts:
Signature item: The thing around his neck, which he likes to call an opium container, but whose contents shall be kept secret.
Found Middlebury: via word of mouth during his gap year in Beijing.
Favorite place in Middlebury: The Stone Leaf Tea House.
(09/09/10 4:15am)
The Wright Theater will soon be looking a little more colorful than usual. This fall, the theater’s eastern wall will be decorated with a 1,300 square foot mural depicting a new and dynamic image by Vermont artist Sabra Field ’57.
The image, entitled “Cosmic Geometry”, is a grid-like piece of art comprised of cellular, plant, animal and architectural patterns grouped in themed quartets. The message behind the artwork is that the human and natural worlds are connected by the same forms and patterns, though it can also be interpreted as a call to action; for humans to re-examine our connection with nature, and to help preserve it for future generations.
Wright Theater’s makeover is part of the Middlebury Mural Project, which is the brainchild of Kate Lupo ’10. She started the project in September 2009 after gaining approval from Field, President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz, Middlebury College Committee for Art in Public Places (CAPP) and the Town of Middlebury. Lupo, who was an art history major, a Middlebury mamajama and the head of the SGA Environmental Affairs, also helped raise a 100-foot mural in her hometown. She sees murals as educational tools that can teach viewers valuable, unspoken lessons and was also inspired by public murals created during the Great Depression, which, Lupo said, “provided hope and inspiration during a dark time in America’s history.”
Lupo said she specifically chose the eastern wall of the Wright Theater because of its potential as a canvas. “I walked by the Wright Theater so many times and it was just a big beautiful blank wall that could become a gorgeous work of art. I said to myself, ‘I think I can do this.’”
At its completion, the project’s total cost will be $25,000. CAPP, a committee of Middlebury staff who are responsible for the creation and maintenance of all public art on campus, has committed to pay for half of the costs. Lupo also won a $500 grant from dosomething.org, an organization that gives financial aid to young people with large nonprofit projects. The rest of the costs will come from fundraising done by Lupo and Peggy Smith ’57, a friend of Field’s.
Lupo said that, initially, she was considering using another image by Field that would feature windmills and her iconic Vermont imagery, but “Cosmic Geometry” seemed more exciting and had a different design than most of Field’s other artwork. “It’s also [Field’s] favorite and she’s really happy we chose it,” Lupo said. She also said that since Field is an alumna of the College and a local Vermont favorite, the mural would help unite the college and the town. As a mural aficionado, Lupo enjoys working primarily on murals with environmental themes, so “Cosmic Geometry” was an ideal image to display on the theater’s blank wall.
“Cosmic Geometry” will be painted by Colossal Media, a professional mural company based in New York City, and will be completed by mid-October. The mural is slated to last for up to five years in the current agreement with the Middlebury CAPP Committee for Art. After completion, it will be one of the largest murals in the state, and there will be an opening celebration later on in the fall that will include both the town and college communities.
After the finalization of her project, Lupo will be working as the Coordinator of the Westport Youth Film Festival in Westport, Ct. She would like to thank all those who collaborated with her on the project, including Liebowitz, Richard Saunders (the chair of CAPP), as well as her mentor, Special Assistant to the President Dave Donahue.
(09/09/10 4:08am)
Welcome back, Middlebury. After browsing through the photos you submitted to The Campus’ Summer Photo Contest, I know that many of you did some really spectacular things this summer. You traveled, you spent time with family, you made new friends. You soaked up beautiful vistas, you met exotic animals, you pushed yourselves to your physical limits. Middlebury, you enjoyed some serious adventures this summer.
I am excited to say I had some adventures of my own over the break, and I learned a valuable, albeit simple, lesson: adventures are important. Really, really important. So important that I have pledged my last three semesters at Middlebury to adventures.
What makes an adventure? Loosely defined, it could be anything that gets your heart up over its resting rate, but then work-related stress tends to do that, and stress is the anti-adventure. More specifically, I think adventures are deviations from the norm. They are trying something new, doing something spontaneous, facing a challenge, overcoming a fear, allowing yourself to be vulnerable. Talking to that person who makes your palms sweat and staying up irresponsibly late with friends instead of homework — those are adventures. Taking a class on a subject you know nothing about or starting a club so other people can share your passion with you — those are adventures, too. For me, spending as much time outside as possible usually leads to adventures. They don’t all have to be grand — I just want to have lots of them. I am a much happier person when I have lots of them, I’m learning.
I have pledged my remaining time at Middlebury not only to my adventures, but to your adventures, too. You, the entire Middlebury College community, have so much potential for adventure, and this, your favorite weekly news rag, is ready and waiting to write about it. Any student, staff or faculty member, townsperson or alum has the potential to grace these pages (both print and web pages) with his or her exciting exploits, and I am so glad the privilege of documenting them is mine.
Pardon me while I get all misty-eyed about college journalism, but the last Editor-in-Chief, Brian Fung ’10, always used to say that The Campus is the first draft of history, and that really stuck with me. We are making history — The Campus is the first, though likely not the only, place our adventures will be recorded, our achievements lauded and our letdowns lamented. As the new team of dedicated editors and I set out to print that first draft — an adventure in itself — I expect to be nothing less than inspired by the stories that come out of this community, mostly because that is the precedent you have already set. I am already inspired. That’s why I took this job.
So I am dedicating my time at Middlebury and my time at the head of The Campus to adventures: yours, mine and everyone else’s. The other editors and I will do our best to provide a reliable source for discovering upcoming adventures and learning about adventures past. You just have to get out there and give us something to write about.
