791 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(03/16/11 2:10am)
OK, so I admit, I have a biased opinion. I’ve been on board with the Gender Council idea since it was first floated at a MOQA meeting many moons ago. And like, if I had to pick a social issue that I was most passionate about, I’d probably put identity, sexuality, and LGBTQ activism right behind world peace and poverty (you know, the universals). So, I’m far from reporting on this bit of news from an objective angle. BUT, in case anyone was wondering about the status of the proposal submitted by Lark Mulligan and Viveka Ray-Mazumder, I’ve got the deets (that’s details).
The college decided that a “gender” council was too narrow (which like, don’t they realize that gender and interlocking systems of oppression and privilege encompass pretty much every aspect of our day-to-day identity and hit upon almost all student activity from the mundane, like going to the bathroom, to the more complicated, like the interplay of education, athletics, and school funding…but I digress). President Liebowitz, Vice President Spears, and Dean Collado have instead adopted a Community Council proposal that recommended the creation of an “umbrella” council that would be more “broadly reflective of diversity, identity and inclusion rather than specifically gender.”
In response, the original gender council supporters, while appreciating this institutionalized approach to social justice, have decided to go ahead with a grass-roots approach to the gender council that will lack the formal, administrative recognition and permanence, but will perhaps retain its singular ability to “deal with gender and its intersections.” To do so, they have solicited applications to join this student-run council and will soon “re-imagine grassroots activism and…what it means to push for empowerment, community support, and radical transformation at Middlebury.”
OK, now I know that when I use the words social construct, gender boxing, or identity in a conversation, I usually see a few eye rolls. And I know that even The Campus, a Middlebury institution, which I adore, wasn’t completely supportive of the Gender Council proposal. And I know there is a bit of hesitancy with regards to gender-neutral housing (particularly amongst tour guides who have no idea how they will reassure parents that this isn’t a heathen institution full of sex-crazed twenty-somethings sharing dorms with their boyfriends and girlfriends).
That being said, Middlebury College has the opportunity to take unprecedented steps toward supporting, protecting, and empowering the entire student body. And maybe some wouldn’t wear the labels of “progressive,” “LGBTQ friendly,” and “leader in institutional equality and recognition of the plurality of the human experience” as badges of honor, but I know I would.
And guys, queer theory isn’t scary or stupid. It’s enlightening. Which is all a round-about way of saying I’m super happy that there will be an official “social justice” council, as well as a Gender Council; that this college, its students, faculty, and administrators, are recognizing the beauty of diversity and the necessity of a liberal arts community where all of its members are appreciated. (When I wrote that, I immediately imagined a rainbow-colored paradise where Lady Gaga music blasts from every street corner, but I’m open to color-scheme suggestions.) But seriously, throw aside your reservations, because if this new Gender Council only achieves one of its goals, or develops a single policy to make this campus a little more open and a little more understanding, it would have been worth it.
(03/16/11 1:50am)
Over the past few years there has been an overwhelming surge in the popularity of the cupcake, a mini bite of deliciousness that combines the pleasures of cake, frosting, and filling into a seemingly innocent and adorable package. Perhaps it began with the depiction of Carrie Bradshaw savoring a cupcake on “Sex and the City”, or with the opening of the first cupcake only bakeshop – “Sprinkles” in Los Angeles – a few years back. Either way, it cannot be denied that recently, we’ve seen a tremendous surge in the availability and varieties of the mini morsel. Today almost every major town in the U.S. features a gourmet cupcake bakeshop, often with intricate flavors that range from sweet (think raspberry cake with champagne butter cream frosting) to savory (dark chocolate cake with cayenne pepper and chili frosting) and push the boundaries where no cake has ever gone before. And yes, this occurrence is undeniably both fantastic and monumental, and one that every cake lover and foodie around the world has appreciated and savored.
But, as we rejoice in our sugary butter cream induced coma, we mustn’t forget about the other foods that come from a bakery and live in a paper wrapper. I am indeed guilty of a baked goods addiction and a vast lover of the gourmet cupcake, but its presence has jaded food lovers and made us forget about its simple yet delicious cousin – the muffin. And this is a terrible thing indeed.
The muffin is a little creation of brilliance that has no reason to be ignored, but seems to be currently living under the shadow of its dressed up neighbor. Where are the gourmet muffin shops? Why is there not a “Muffin Wars” show on Food Network? Why have we not yet raised the muffin to the level of romanticism that it deserves? For who can resist the smell of fresh blueberry muffins wafting through the kitchen, the tender escape of steam and aroma as one cuts though the middle, the melting of butter onto the halves, and the glorious first bite of sweet dough and plump berries? Muffins have tantalized taste buds for centuries and provided the perfect venue for many fresh and flavorsome fillings. Raspberry, banana, morning glory, chocolate chip, lemon poppy seed– the muffin comes in every variety imaginable and provides a delicious mini snack or accompaniment to a meal or coffee.
From my extensive research (consisting of visiting bakeries and eating as many baked goods as possible), the decline in muffin popularity is a relatively new phenomenon. And perhaps this can be attributed to America’s growing infatuation with foods that claim to be healthy but are still packed with sugar and fat – the cupcake being the prime example. Many people enjoy a cupcake because it is delicious and mini, and thus consumers believe it is a healthy alternative to other larger baked goods. In reality the average cupcake packs a whopping 650 calories and the main ingredients are sugar and butter. And, while muffins cannot be considered the pinnacle of health (the average muffin tallies in at 300 calories), they are an improved alternative to the sugary and deceptive cupcake.
So, as we salivate over the delightful treats that modern baking can whip up, let us not ignore the innocent muffin. Next time you enter a bakeshop, a coffee house, or even Proctor dining hall, don’t forget to consider a muffin as an option. We should not discriminate simply because it does not have a seductive coat of glaze and a sugary center. It is time these treats saw their glory days and weren’t hidden under the shadow of the cupcake.
Best Blueberry Muffins
Servings: 18
Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter or 1/2 cup margarine, at room temp
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries or 2 1/2 cups frozen blueberries
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
For Topping:
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1. Heat oven to 375°.
2. Grease 18 regular-size muffin cups (or 12 large size muffins) or place paper muffin cups into tin
3. In bowl, beat butter until creamy. Add sugar and beat until pale and fluffy.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each.
5. Beat in vanilla, baking powder and salt.
6. With spoon, fold in half of flour then half of milk into batter; repeat.
7. Fold in blueberries.
8. Spoon into muffin cups and sprinkle sugar and nutmeg onto each muffin.
9. Bake 20 to 30 minutes, until golden brown and springy to touch.
(03/10/11 5:14am)
An ideal liberal arts education provides a broad-based academic curriculum with the purpose of cultivating individuals who think critically, communicate well and realize potential. Such an institution, like Middlebury, must offer a diversity of subjects in a limited number of classes, which both interest students and expose them to areas they might not find comfortable. Although Middlebury offers a great quantity of quality classes, the curriculum does not address many important subjects, despite, I believe, addressing subjects of lesser import. Furthermore, in my experience, the course offerings dictated my academic path, rather than my academic passion directing my learning experience — an unfortunate state of reversal. In this column, rather than opine, I have just copied five class descriptions from the spring 2011 course book that I find particularly odd choices for a liberal arts education. Ask yourself whether these promote the aforementioned tenets of a liberal arts education.
Clam Chowder and Modern Society HIST 0338:
In this course, we will examine the mollusk — in its edible, soupier manifestations (more specifically, as chowder) — in the context of social resistance both historically and contemporaneously. From factory workers to activist sex workers, we will look at the changing roles of New England and Manhattan clam chowder as they pertain to humanoids in global sites of work, family and political activism. As a class we will attempt to answer the following questions: What types of chowder advance universal gender standards? And, is that cumin I taste? 3 hrs. lect.
Heritage and Identity: Lost Commodities INTD 0303:
In this course, we will examine identity and where it resides in society, specifically as it concerns where I left my wallet this morning. First we will discuss the significance of the wallet in many contexts, ranging from the discriminatory policies of prevented building entry as a result of lost access cards, to the dystopian, government-imposed monetary repercussions for replacing driver’s licenses. We will venture to on-site locations such as Shaws, that Mobil, the Movie Theater in town and the recesses of my suede couch. 3 hrs. lect./3 hrs. lab.
Muppets and Transgender Identity WAGS 0231:
In this course, we will critically investigate television as it enabled the category “transgender” to emerge in contemporary society. We will specifically examine the role of prominent Muppet and cartoon characters as they influenced the perception of gender among children. We will ask hard-hitting questions about the intersections of sexuality and the theoretical constructs of communication and meaning-making and other smart things that other academics usually allude to in their course descriptions. More specifically, we will attempt to answer the following questions: What gender does Elmo most associate with? Why is it a common assumption that the goofy, one-toothed dragon, Magellan, featured on Eureeka’s castle is “male?” For that matter, are mythical beasts even gendered? And, what’s going on with Dr. Bunsen Honeydew? 3 hrs. lect./disc.
Being Politically Correct HIST 0234:
In this course, we will study political correctness and its developing role in society. This is not to imply that you aren’t politically correct, though. We will examine the rhetoric of several politicians, and we won’t place our value judgments on them, but it’s not because yours aren’t correct. We will start by learning how to be humble and to thank people, that’s not to say that I am humble or that I know more about being humble than you, though. Thank you for your understanding. Then we will learn how to acknowledge the importance of the things other people might want you to consider, like how what you’re saying might not be in the interest of someone, somewhere, but also not that that person there isn’t more important than other people, elsewhere, or anything anywhere, wherever it is, or whoever it might be, whenever it occurred to whomever or wherever he she or whatever it is that was, if you think about it. I mean not that you haven’t already thought about it, though. I don’t mean it like that, or anything really. Thanks. 3 hrs. lect.
Easy A AMST 0171:
I take it that you discovered my class perusing the course book, and its description set your academic passions afire. (You heard about it from your friend who did — literally — no work in that class and got an A.) Expect a heavy workload consisting of nightly readings and essays; class participation is paramount. (Blah blah blah, you only have to write some poetry or something, and discuss that movie you already saw.) My students are passionate about the issues, and revere my intellect. (You are a genius for taking this class.) 3 hrs. sem.
(03/10/11 3:59am)
Harvard brings Navy ROTC back
Following the repeal of the controversial “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” law that banned gays from openly serving in the military, Harvard University has decided to bring back the Navy portion of the Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC). The program was previously banned from the Massachusetts campus because it violated the University’s non-discrimination policy.
“Our renewed relationship affirms the vital role that the members of the armed forces play in serving the nation and securing our freedoms,” University President Drew G. Faust said at the signing ceremony.
Opponents of the program remain, however, arguing that the banning of intersex and transsexual individuals from serving still violates the University’s policy.
— The Crimson
Post-college job prospects bleak
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and Department of Labor findings, unemployment among recent grads remains as high as twice that of the general population, with the highest numbers among young men. While the national unemployment rate fell last month, the rate among young people — 20 to 24 years old — rose during the same period.
The number of “discouraged” workers — those who have stopped working because they believe they will not find a job — is currently one million, though has fallen by nearly 200,000 since this time last year. The survey also found that 43.9 percent of those unemployed had been without work for over 27 weeks.
— UWIRE
US teens and college students having less sex
Teens and young adults are having less sex, a government study has found. Twenty-seven percent of young men and 29 percent of young women polled reported no sexual contact. Possible explanations for this change abound, from effects of sexual education to more busy schedules.
“It’s not even on my radar,” said 17-year-old Abbey King of Hinsdale, Ill., the Vanderbilt Hustler reported. King’s schedule is too packed with sports, school and volunteering to have time to get down and dirty.
Yvonne Fulbright, a D.C.-based sex educator, says this change is not surprising. “This generation is very focused on their future and not necessarily getting laid,” she said.
—UWIRE
(03/03/11 5:10am)
Hookups. Like Natty Ice, beer pong, chemically-aided all-night cram sessions and crippling addictions to Facebook, hookups are one of the most iconic symbols of what it means to be in college. This is not to say that everyone has them, or even should — but for better or for worse, they happen to be one of the most visible and most talked about aspects in the sex life of a college student. So how exactly does one go about navigating these fuzzy waters? For that matter, what does a hookup even mean?
First off — definitions. For the purposes of this article, assume “hooking up” means more than just locking lips — that manual, oral or penetrative, something outside the realm of clothed life happened. Chemically-aided or not, the fun is done and now you two are looking at each other awkwardly and trying to ask, obliquely, (without resorting to cliché) “Hey, what are you thinking? What does this mean to you?”
It’s a valid question, and one that speaks to the nature of what a hookup is, and what makes it problematic. Hookups mean something different to everyone, and everyone brings their own motivations with them to the bedroom. The reasons for having sex with someone range anywhere from fulfilling a long-time crush, to simply being really bored. It can be a desire to get your rocks off, or a desire to connect. It can be empowerment, an affirmation of attraction or it can be an ego trip by way of adding another notch to the headboard.
Whether or not these reasons are valid is not this column’s place to judge. And probably, it’s too much to realistically expect that everyone who unzips their pants is also opening their heart at the same time. That said, a certain amount of politeness is certainly warranted if you’re going to be spending the next few moments getting to know each other intimately — like asking “Your place or mine?” Adding in a disclaimer that “This is just for fun” or “I’ve liked you a long time” or some simple summary of your feelings for your partner is simple basic courtesy. And yeah, like grabbing a condom, you risk this being a turn-off for some — but like grabbing a condom, it’s also a really good way to avoid sincere regret later. Think of it like the birth control of the heart.
It’s honesty — which, admittedly, is difficult to express while fooling around with a near stranger. The bedroom is one of the most difficult places to maintain a clear head — buffeted by hormones, desire, doubt, guilt, chemicals, anxiety and expectation, it’s ground zero for bad decisions, like playing hopscotch in the DMZ. So perhaps you forgot, in the rush of things, to mention what it is that all this meant. It happens. Now what?
The protocol on spending the night is that generally, the person whose room it is gets to decide whether or not the other sleeps there. That said, it never hurts to ask. Similarly for a guest, sneaking out before the other person wakes up as if you’re stealing their kidney can come off rather rudely — a simple “Thanks for last night” either spoken or written in note-form, is basic courtesy. For an especially good hookup. Consider having breakfast and getting to know each other a little better while clothed.
Bottom line, there’s no real need to be awkward. Hooking up with someone doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to engage in deep conversation every chance you get — but saying hi if you happen to spot your one-night-stand in the Proctor line is harmless. A relationship can and sometimes does grow from a hookup, but mostly they’re just for fun. Like beer pong, it’s all in choosing the right partner. Like beer pong, usually it’s just for the night.
(03/03/11 5:03am)
There is only one humane society in Addison County, and lucky for Middlebury students, it is in town. Off Route 7 South on Boardman St., the Addison County Humane Society is currently home to 75 animals. Most are cats, but there are also dogs, rabbits and guinea pigs living in the shelter and hoping to be adopted. An additional 50 animals are associated with the society but do not live in the shelter. Since opening in 1975 it has helped over 16,000 lost, abandoned, abused or donated animals.
On each of the cages in the shelter is a description of the animal residing in the kennel. The signs include the animal’s name, age, breed, sex and comfort level interacting with other pets or children. There is also a short story about its personality, how it came to the shelter and the type of home the shelter is seeking for it. The signs are an easy way to learn about the demeanor of each animal so that families can find the best pet to adopt. Although there are most definitely cuddly cats and loving dogs, the shelter takes care of special needs animals that have special dietary restrictions as well. No animal will ever be turned away, and every animal receives as much care as the shelter can provide. There are newborn kittens and twelve-year-old cats, all waiting for a loving home.
Jennifer Erwin, shelter manager, dedicates most of her time to finding homes for the animals. Because there is limited space at the shelter itself, the Addison County Humane Society has developed a foster care program for families.
“The animals need space. Reasons may be medical or behavioral, but for the most part it’s kittens who spend their first 8 weeks with a family,” said Erwin.
Families are invited to come in and fill out an application. After a brief interview, they are given an animal to take home and care for. The shelter helps with veterinarian care, but the family provides the animals with food and other necessities. Although the foster care is not permanent, Erwin said that, “about half the families adopt the animals they were caring for.” In this way, the foster program not only eases the overflow of animals in the shelter, it also unites families with a potential new member.
Addison County Humane Society also has a “guardian angel” program, as not everyone can adopt a pet or keep one in foster care. The guardian angels of the shelter donate a certain amount of money to sponsor a kennel, paying for the space, food and care of the animal for however long they choose; there are rates for one month, three months, six months and up to a year.
“We aren’t funded by any other humane society,” said Erwin. Consequently, the shelter values any donation immensely.
Recently, the humane society developed a new orientation program for those who volunteer. Twice a month for one hour the public is welcome to come and learn how to properly care for the animals. The orientation covers basic care for dogs during a walk, including how to calm the dog, handle the leash and keep it from getting away or hurt. The humane society also offers a complete tour of its facilities so that the volunteers can come back and help whenever they please.
Porter Knight, a resident of Bristol, Vt., and her son Bryson both began volunteering at the humane society one year ago.
“We adopted a dog six years ago,” said Knight, whose son added, “We come to do dogs and cats on Saturdays.”
Knight and other volunteers have discovered that helping the society is also a lot of fun and a great way to spend any afternoon.
Still, the humane society could always use more help, particularly in March and April when it receives an influx of newborn kittens. Even a quick visit to the animals on a day off from work or in between class can help.
(02/24/11 5:15am)
I am in the process of learning an important lesson, and at the risk of embarrassing my boyfriend, it’s a lesson I would like to share with you. Since we are college students, I think it’s fair to say that dining hall conversations pretty frequently revolve around sex and alcohol, but as one of my good friends recently complained, we also talk a lot about our stress. Sometimes I feel like my friends and I are trying to one-up each other:
“Oh man, I have to write a paper and a lab report for next week. This weekend is going to suck.”
“Oh yeah? I have to read two books, write two papers and finish a chapter of my thesis by this Friday, and I picked up a work shift today.”
“Ugh. I have to get 30 more subjects for my study in the next few days, and I have rehearsal every night. And I want to go to the Spring Symposium.”
We go back and forth with all of our commitments and to-do lists, impending deadlines creeping ever closer. It’s a way of confirming a common experience, probably — we’re reaffirming to each other that each of us is not alone in being overworked and under slept, or maybe we’re comparing the Middlebury version of battle scars. Whatever we are doing, I can tell you one thing it’s not: sexy.
Sex and stress just don’t mix. Maybe it’s just me, but when I’m at the end of my rope stress-wise, I don’t even really want to think about sex. I don’t feel sexy — if I’ve been working towards a tight deadline, I probably haven’t showered in a few days, my skin gets pallid, my eyes sink down in my sockets from lack of sleep and I probably haven’t had time to go running or eat regular healthy meals. I smell like day-old deodorant, coffee and stale gummy worms from MiddExpress. Mmm — come and get it, folks. Nothing’s hotter than an irritable stress gremlin.
At this point, I feel I should commend my boyfriend for still wanting to be close to me even in my most gremlin-tastic state. By some miracle he’ll forget to wear his glasses or be fairly bleary-eyed himself and he still tells me I’m beautiful. I have a patient and loving partner who doesn’t pressure me, but I have noticed that sometimes the stress gremlin I become gets even more stressed out because she feels like she should want sex as much as any other 20-something with a willing partner. I know my body is often too tired to prioritize sex — all it wants is decent sleep and 10 minutes just to stare at the wall and not think about anything — but I still think, “I’m 21 years old and full of hormones! I write the sex column! Why do I feel like I need to talk to my doctor about Cialis?”
I want to be the sexual being again that prompted me to write a sex column, and I realize that I need to give myself a break, both from being stressed about sex and from stress in general. I’m mentally cock-blocking myself, and I have found a solution in the advice my adviser gave me for writer’s block: lower my expectations — of myself, of my partner and of the sex itself. It can be wham, bam and thank you, ma’am with none of the usual bells and whistles. It can be a study break self-love session that becomes more of a power nap. Sex is important, but if anything it should be stress relief, not stressful. Keep to-do lists and homework out of the bedroom, but don’t keep sex off the to-do list — just list it under “self-care.” Self-care time might be taking a shower or going to the gym, but sexy time, whether by myself or with my partner, also fits the bill.
So to all of you other stress gremlins zipping through the dining hall or dozing over textbooks in Bi-hall: do something good for yourself today. Take a walk or call your hook-up — hang out with friends or have some special alone time. We all work so hard, but we can’t keep it up if we don’t make time to get it up, get down or just take a break.
(02/24/11 5:03am)
Blue Valentine
Blue Valentine, directed by Derek Cianfrance, was notorious well before its release: after screening to high praise at both the Cannes and Sundance Film Festival, the MPAA bestowed an NC-17 rating on it, the most restrictive rating short of that reserved for pornography (the rating is considered box office poison — most major theater chains don’t show NC-17 films). Harvey Weinstein, who produced the film with the Weinstein Company, and who is known for his pugnacious approach to marketing his movies, appealed the decision with a legal team that included David Boies of Bush v. Gore fame. Blue Valentine is now rated R and has also successfully garnered the curiosity of everyone who wouldn’t have been interested in seeing it until they heard that it was rated NC-17. Well played, Weinsteins.
However, if you go to see Blue Valentine expecting sexy time with Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, prepare to exit disappointed and deeply pessimistic about love. It’s not that it doesn’t deliver on its promise of sex, nor is it a disappointment as a film — in fact, the opposite — but every image of the thrilling and wonderful aspects of being with someone is countered by a stronger image of the anger, sorrow and despair that a failing relationship can bring. As the lead couple Dean and Cindy, Gosling and Williams bring alive, with startling realism and intense detail, both the core personality differences that are eventually impossible to overcome, as well as the little, annoying quirks and habits that escalate until they’re unbearable. Cianfrance uses an inventive non-chronological structure to show the audience, with equal weight, the halcyon days of falling in love and the slow, painful dissolution of a marriage. The scenes switch without notice from past to present, and it is difficult at first to tell immediately what time period we are in. Soon, though, you become attuned to the slight changes in the color palette: brighter in the past, bluer and colder in the present.
We are more sympathetic to Dean at first: he is goofy, compassionate, a wonderful father to a daughter, Frankie, that isn’t biologically his, and uncomplicated in his desires. Cindy is less endearing, even in flashbacks — where she was once only cautious, she is now dismissive and cold. Gosling and Williams’ painstaking and complex performances tell us much more than what is in the script. Soon, we see Dean drinking more than he should, and is entirely ignorant of his wife’s emotional state. His connection with daughter Frankie is strong in part because of his own childishness. In an early scene, Cindy throws together just-add-water oatmeal for Frankie, and Dean criticizes her for not making real oatmeal, oblivious to the fact that she’s late for her thankless job and he’s at home. He tells Frankie she doesn’t need to eat the oatmeal and makes breakfast into a game. In a single, sustained look, Michelle Williams conveys everything Cindy is feeling: upset at the injustice of her daughter thinking her father is more fun, annoyed at Dean’s undermining of her parenting and frustrated at working harder for their family than he does, but less visibly so.
There is genuine drama in much of the plot, but the quick cuts between years focus on how the mundane and quotidian details of Dean and Cindy’s lives develop into a pattern that eventually destroys them. This is what is so affecting, and frightening, about Blue Valentine — the idea that it could happen to you, no matter how little you share in common with its protagonists or the world they inhabit. The problems they experience are the problems of every relationship, and neither character is especially unreasonable or difficult. The scenes of the early parts of their relationship are so joyful and affirming that it is all the more brutal to see minor disaffections begin to consume them. The first day that Dean and Cindy spend together, running around Brooklyn, eager to know every single thing about each other and only slightly shy to tell, is the kind of memory that we want to cling on to forever, just as the couple (especially Dean) does. But Blue Valentine is never sentimental or nostalgic, just unflinchingly honest.
It may have the outward appearance of a paint-by-numbers Sundance indie, with its casting of Williams and Gosling, score by Grizzly Bear and Brooklyn setting, but Blue Valentine belongs more to the school of fictional cinema verité. To return to the infamous sex scenes that have brought Blue Valentine attention — though no more explicit than most R-rated films, they’re frustrating and sad and deeply uncomfortable. In other words, they are real — something much scarier and sometimes more thrilling than what we expect when we read the MPAA label.
(02/17/11 5:13am)
In the fall of 2008, I arrived on Middlebury College campus to learn, with some disappointment, that I would be living on an all-male hall for the duration of the year. My friends at other schools expressed sympathy for me, as I bemoaned the constant “sausage-fest” that would surely comprise my first year at college. As I settled in to the basement of Allen, lovingly dubbed “The Dungeon” by past residents, I prepared myself for a year devoid of the coed excitement promised to me by years and years of college movies and TV shows.
By the end of the first semester, you couldn’t have paid me to live anywhere else on campus. While the initial thrill of coed hallways was wearing thin for my friends at other schools, the good times in the Dungeon were just starting. Our rooms weren’t spacious and our hallway was narrow and dark (some would even say dank), but it didn’t take long for the Dungeon to feel like home. Unassaulted by internal drama and unspoken friction, the bonds built in the Dungeon were made to last. By the end of the year, we weren’t just friends — we were brothers. Nine of us made the transition together to one Coffrin hall, in an attempt to replicate the magic of our freshman year. This year, despite being scattered across campus by Middlebury’s dismal excuse for a housing registration system, my best friends at this school (and one who isn’t here anymore) remain former Dungeonites.
I have recently heard that the College may pursue the idea of making the “Grungy Dungy” a co-ed hallway. I’ve heard of several potential reasons behind the switch: 1. The College is moving away from all single-sex hallways in connection with the new gender-neutral housing policy. 2. More citations are written, and more dorm damage is incurred, in the Dungeon (and all male-only hallways in general) than any other first-year hallway on campus. 3. The College receives more negative feedback from people living in the Dungeon than from any other hallway on campus.
I don’t want to be misunderstood: I am 100 percent in favor of the gender-neutral housing option for all students, and I think it’s downright foolish that until this year, the option for consenting members of the opposite sex to live together was off the table. For such a heteronormative policy to persist for so long at a school with such a liberal pedigree as Middlebury is astounding, and I commend Elizabeth King and Joey Radu for breaking down those walls once and for all.
But what’s the point of going from one extreme to the other? Surely if we can choose to live with the opposite sex, we should be able to choose to live without the opposite sex as well. Providing a new option while taking another one away is not progress, and it’s not acceptable. This isn’t about sexism or misogyny. It’s about making sure that every single person on this campus has a living situation that they feel comfortable with, and that they have some modicum of choice as to the gender of the people in their immediate environment.
It’s not that I don’t like women, or even that I don’t like their company. I really do — some of my best friends are female, and they are some of the funniest, most intelligent, creative, outspoken and inspiring individuals I’ve ever met. It’s just that we get along so much better when we can choose when to be around each other. Men behave differently when there are no women around — that’s just a fact — and I believe the chance to be socially unrestricted in that way is what allowed for such tremendous bonds to form in the Dungeon.
As for the second potential reason for un-Dungeoning the Dungeon, several ideas come immediately to mind that would cure the hand without chopping off the arm, so to speak. Although I’m limited in this forum by space, I would be thrilled to engage in a discussion of alternative solutions to the Dungeon’s disciplinary problems that do not involve gender desegregation. In regards to the final potential reason, my experience, and those of my fellow Dungeonites, seems to indicate that while the Dungeon may be a negative experience to some, it is felt by many others to be quite beneficial. I believe that all perspectives should be considered in this decision, not just a select few.
In the end, the fact is that there is something inexplicably beautiful about the Dungeon tradition, and to break it would truly be a shame. Please, Middlebury, I implore you to reconsider this decision. Let the boys play! Dungeon forever!
(02/17/11 5:01am)
We live in a world often starved for touch. There are occasions that are generally acceptable: a hug between friends (or a kiss, depending), a handshake between acquaintances. And then there are the more specialized times when we make contact — in football tackles, rugby scrums, bar fights, in dance or theatre classes. By and large, almost always it’s only lovers and intimate friends who get to touch each other as much as they want — and for better or for worse, it’s almost always in the bedroom, and either by sex or by cuddling. This, though, is about cuddling.
So what’s the difference between the two? While there’s overlap, naturally, sex usually focuses on the building of pleasure; cuddling, on the building of intimacy. This intimacy, by the way, means that it is possible to sleep with a close friend non-sexually — and also why you run the risk of angering your significant other if you do. The words that are exchanged while laying in someone else’s arms carry with them the trust that they are meant for only one pair of ears. Ever wonder why “pillow talk” is one of the deadlier weapons in a spy’s arsenal? This is why.
Like sex, the intimacy of sleeping together is both terrifying and seductive — like sex, requesting to hold or be held by someone should be a question, not assumed. After all, people carry with them their own ideas of what sex means — it is possible to be perfectly fine with having sex with strangers, and uncomfortable in sharing your bed with them.
And especially these beds. Anyone who’s ever tried to fit two (or more) people on a bed in college knows this problem. The lovechild of a cot and the kind of hard wooden pallet normally reserved for Oliver Twist, the mattress turns every attempt at being sociable into a surprise anatomy exam. What do you do with two pairs of arms and legs in a space designed for one? How in God’s name do you get comfortable enough to sleep? Where did the blankets go?
Obviously, body type either helps or compounds these problems, as do a number of other factors: snoring, sweat, drool, roommates, contagious disease, what sleeping position you prefer and whether or not you want to open a window. Those who have space, time, money and luck can invest in a queen- or king-sized mattress — but frankly, if you have that why have you even read this far?
Perhaps for this: spooning.
“No, big spoon, I don’t really know what to do with the bottom arm.”
There is a Nobel Peace Prize waiting in Norway for whoever figures that one out. Under the neck? Parallel to the body? Over the head, Superman-style? Whatever works for you.
Know, though, that even though this article opened illustrating the drought of contact, that you don’t have to sleep clinging together like magnets, molecular bonds or campers in Vermont. The way you cuddle each other doesn’t have to be the way you sleep — so don’t take it personal if someone chooses to cuddle, but not spend the night. Classes are long and twin extra-longs are tiny and seriously, sleep? It is a damn good, painfully rare commodity.
Also, as previously mentioned, the fact that a sex columnist is discussing cuddling does not mean that you have to be having sex to be cuddling, or vice-versa. That said, the “just-friends” cuddle presents its own unique thorny issues, similar in many respects to having a friend with benefits. Physical and emotional intimacy combined can run combustion risks, especially if one party has a compatible sexuality. Complicating that, if one or the other party is in a relationship, engaging in emotional infidelity is a risk — do ask permission, in other words, of your significant other before you do. To sleep with someone doesn’t mean what it used to, in the 18th century. Maybe nowadays it means more.
(02/10/11 4:59am)
Valentine’s Day is coming up — don’t everyone get excited at once. In all honesty, though, I do get excited for Valentine’s Day, and not because Valentine’s Day has even gone well for me historically. There was that time in seventh grade when I had the flu but I sent in valentines for all of my friends anyway. When I called my homeroom teacher to ask if anything had been left for me … well, that was a heartbreaker, especially at the emotionally fragile age of 12. And why is it that Valentine’s Day usually portends an approaching break-up when I’m in a relationship? The holiday rubs salt in all of the old love life wounds, eroding fairly stable relationships or serving as a glaring reminder that you are SINGLE. Not just in a lull between casual dating partners, but all-caps, seemingly semi-permanently SINGLE. It only adds insult to injury that down to the last box of Russell Stover, Valentine’s Day seems to amount to nothing less frivolous than candy hearts and cutout cupids.
My point is that in spite of the many good reasons to hate Valentine’s Day — it has rarely brought me much joy, it generally causes a lot of anxiety for everyone, it can feel cheap and superficial and I don’t really like those little Necco candy hearts — Valentine’s Day still reminds me of the possibility of romance, and believing in that possibility is definitely exciting. Perhaps like a big kid continuing to believe in Santa Claus, I put on my red dress and heart-shaped earrings, bake heart-shaped brownies and invite friends over to make valentines for each other because I am hoping for a little romantic magic. Sometimes we do get the valentine we long for, the tiny paper confirmation that we are loved by the people we want to love us, and those times are more likely to happen on Valentine’s Day.
I am all too aware that many haven’t yet received that specific valentine and accompanying affirmation of worth, and, actually, this column is for you. I don’t know if I will succeed, but I want to do my best to share the hope I still have every Valentine’s Day — and every day, really — with all of you who may be starting to lose it. These paltry paragraphs are for the “nice guys” and the “like a sister to me”s and the “just friends.” The people who get up the courage time and time again to express their affection for someone, only to be let down as nicely as possible. There is something particularly painful about being told how great you are — just not great enough to take on a date or bring back to the bedroom. I am also writing for those handsome people who get plenty of invitations for sex, but few for meaningful conversation. All of those “yeah, the sex is great but we don’t have much in common”s. It’s not just about getting valentines — it’s about getting the right valentine, and the longer we go without, the harder hope is to muster.
But these are things you know already. What someone hasn’t told you, maybe, is how much courage you have for staring a history of disappointment in the face and saying, “Next time will be different.” Random sparks become blazing fires more quickly when there has been a drought, and if ever there was a day for fire safety, Valentine’s Day is it. Statistically speaking, and cutesy metaphors aside, every opportunity to be with someone is completely independent of the last ones. Every time you meet someone new, it’s a fresh start. How can you not have hope? More importantly, what other choice do you have? I don’t deny that Valentine’s Day is an obnoxious reminder of the state of our love lives, but it’s also a tribute to new chances, and I would rather risk disappointment to revel in the excitement than give up. Wouldn’t you? Here’s to a happy (and hopeful) Valentine’s Day, Necco hearts and all.
(01/20/11 5:09am)
The 24-Hour Play Festival, which began at 8:00 on Saturday and ended with performances at 8:00 and 10:00 on Sunday, was a definite highlight of this week. Full disclosure: I acted in the festival, playing an unemployed and promiscuous Princess Belle. It was mad fun, and I got to say, “I did it with the Beast on the teacup ride.” Saying something along those lines has been my dream ever since I was five. In the spirit of such a successful outpour of creativity, I have decided to write an extremely short play for my column this week. Although it doesn’t feature a mysterious Communist, Aladdin, a snake or an Awkward BJ (Bachelor Jestee), I do rely on cheap Middlebury jokes to make you laugh, which is all you really expect from me anyway.
Love Me Tender
Scene opens at the Grille. It is a Monday, around 11 p.m. A young man sits alone in a booth, nursing a large Mountain Dew and picking away at a half-eaten Love Me Tender. He stares off into the distance, his mind obviously occupied by very important things. This is an unnecessary thing to note, because Middlebury students think of nothing but important things, like saving the world and constantly translating their thoughts into different languages, just because they can. He takes a gulp of the Mountain Dew, and begins to speak in iambic pentameter (Sometimes…).
Nick Jansen: My name is infamous, my name brings cheers
There’s no debate I’m the best of my peers.
Take a straw poll of all the desks in class,
“Nick Jansen,” they say, “kicks everyone’s ass!”
At Middlebury, despite my great fame.
It’s nigh impossible to snag a dame.
The Bunker on Friday, After, Batell,
Even first-years don’t fall under my spell.
Romance woes, is there no panacea?
Is there love out there not wrapped in tortilla?
Nick Jansen looks down at his Love Me Tender, completely beaten. Meanwhile, Tim Spears, Jyoti Daniere and Dr. Peluso slide into his booth.
Tim Spears: Nick Jansen there is no need to despair
At Midd, passion can be found everywhere!
Your Proctor crush and that babe in Orgo,
Even that girl you spotted in Chateau!
We three are here to make your life easy
We’ve solutions without a bun, but still quite cheesy.
Dr. Peluso: By day I’m no mender of broken hearts,
Merely a physician of liberal arts
By night, I’m not Batman, or Robin Hood,
But now you can call me Dr. Feelgood!
No medication for your lovesick heart
Can I prescribe,
But Jyoti can give your romance a head start.
Jyoti Daniere: Your problem is not a lack of selection
Instead the tactics you’ve chosen to find affection
You’re dumb to think love comes from one night stands
Dating’s the answer and holding of hands.
Nick, you should count yourself lucky tonight.
Let’s Talk About Sex Month, love will ignite!
“Take Me drunk, I’m home: Hook-up Culture at Midd”
A panel showing why fetes ought be forbid.
For you, the key to finding love and fame,
The Find Me Someone to Love Dating Game!
Bring double-entendres and your fiery wit
We’ll get you a girlfriend lickety-split!
Scene changes. Nick Jansen is lying in his bed in LaForce, slowly waking up.
Nick Jansen: I should’ve known a dream was my luck
at finding a date,
On Mondays the Grille’s never open past eight!
(01/20/11 5:01am)
The silver screen has a long and sequins-smattered history of facilitating the perpetual stylistic dialysis of the masses. No, not in what Blake Lively or Uma Thurman wears to the Oscars — for as inspirational those shimmery stars may be, I'm talking about the celluloid and digital, the magic of the movies themselves. Films don't exist as isolated cultural experiences. They are instead half-hazy reflections of the time and context in which they are made, mirrors of the ideals within a particular cultural moment and the dreamily projected aspirations of their audience. Okay, okay. So I'm a film major, you caught me, but it's true: film is art, and art is inspiration.
Anthropology aside, 2011 is already proving to be a brilliant year for fashion. Likewise, the last few months before the New Year saw an incredible influx of poignant and well-crafted cinema, much of which has influenced the latest tactile trends. However, mainstream-cotton candy-fluff with terrible execution and pedantic writing is just as likely to inspire a runway revolution as any Cannes nominated film. The inspiration the entertainment industry has to provide is not in its critical acclaim, but in its visual lexicon, the inherent stylistic palate that seeks to permeate both runway and sidewalk.
So what did the filmic frames of 2010 set the stage for? Feather and lace. Femininity with a hearty side of psychosis. Alice and Wonderland and Black Swan now serve as the inspiration for the trend that mixes Victorian delicacy with just the right amount of madness. Unlike Mia Wasikowska's unfortunately bland, perhaps even sedated portrayal of Alice in Tim Burton's film, Lewis Carol's Alice is a curious, ingeniously creative and dangerously adventurous girl with an obsession with the absurd. For me, the costumes in the film were the only thing that mirrored this duality of feminine experience, the embrace of beauty and fragility with an equally necessary hardness and resilience. Black Swan, with costume design by the brilliant team at Rodarte, furthered this idea with a powerful fragmenting of the female identity. The result? Pale blues and pinks, layers of lace, delicate beading and feathers, gray and black, tulle and full length skirts paired with plunging necklines, pale lips and dark eyes, thigh high socks with heels and boots. Dress up lingerie for day wear with an undershirt and jeans if you feel like channeling Emma Stone in Easy A. It's all about balancing your inner tea drinking socialite with your lusty badass ballerina on ecstasy. The best combination out there? Alice + Olivia's Francesca pink feather skirt with a grey tank, black stilettos and a chunky necklace. Add a leather Jacket if you want even more Black Swan than White. Take risks. Me? I'm still attempting to garner up enough courage to wear pointe shoes as flats.
And then there was Tron. Yes, Tron was a horrible movie, but just like Alice and Wonderland, it was a complex and innovative visual experience. On the other side of the sci-fi genre comes Inception, which with its exploration of the subconscious is a minefield of creative inspiration. Add them together and what do we get? For one, form fitting and monochromatic cut-out dresses are gracing the racks of Versace and Urban Outfitters alike, shifting sex appeal away from the traditional hemispheres and to alluring peeks of skin elsewhere. Get out your protractors, people — geometry is making a huge comeback. And for the true daydreamers out there, Christopher Kane's "Galaxy Dresses," which are prints of actual photographs taken in space, were sold out nationwide at the end of last month. So how does this translate for the average girl who doesn't have two grand to drop on a glorified piece of fabric? Think shapes and space, light and sparkle, sequins, rhinestones and constellations; if you don't believe me just look at Louboutin's Marlene heels from this years Winter collection— the declared "it shoe" of 2011 is aflame with glitter (cue consumerist drooling).
Last but not least I give you True Grit. With fourteen year-old Hailee Steinfeld as the boyish Mattie Ross, the power of the runway rough-and-tumble returns; it's the official comeback of the tree climbing Tom Boy. Yes, it takes a two second walk around campus to be reminded that feathers and tight black dresses aren't exactly every girl's cup of tea (or shot of whiskey in this case) and True Grit offers a glorious alternative to classical gender constructions of the cloth. The Wild West begs us to wear more neutrals, beige with browns and rusty desert reds, Native American/New Mexican style prints and slouchy boyish trousers. Bowlers and combat boots ala A Clockwork Orange are on the rise, as are suspenders if you feel like going a little Annie Hall.
As always, there's something for everyone, and always room to make it your own. Grab some popcorn and let the transformations begin.
(01/20/11 4:59am)
Do me a favor. Take a moment, wherever you are, to take stock of your body. It’s a beautiful thing, isn’t it? Skin over muscle over bone, tendons thrumming like strings, the blood rushing through veins — the human body is a gorgeous, complex, intricate bit of architecture, a construction that practically sings to be inhabited. It is also, to put it lightly, a huge bastard to live in.
So let’s talk about dysfunction. For the vast majority of us, 90 percent of the time, everything is just gangbusters. We walk, we talk, we dance, we party, we study our sorry frost-bitten bums off and we trudge through snow like studious Shackletons trying to make Queen and Country proud. There are mostly no complaints. But, similar to the way that sometimes when the ice is just right it’s damn near impossible to climb that Battell Beach hill without some serious Spiderman sh*t, sometimes your body doesn’t do what you want it to do. Sometimes, despite all desire, there are problems.
Most people who’ve been around the block once or twice are familiar with some of these problems — for instance, inability to reach orgasm (and yes, this happens to men too) or conversely, orgasming too quickly (and yes, this happens to women too). There are the anxieties associated with wetness for ladies: far too wet and far too dry are the most commonly heard worries that women have for themselves. And for men, it’s those snickering demons of “erectile dysfunction” and “premature ejaculation” that lurk in even a college-aged mind.
When I say “dysfunction,” though, it’s really a Dr. Evil air-comma word; not to get all patchouli, but think of a dysfunction as something the body hasn’t learned to deal with yet. So while I’ll run through a few common solutions to some common problems, remember that it’s not me, it’s you, and some things just might not apply. Take the problem of wetness, which oddly is one of those things that I think (as a whole) tends to bother women a lot more than it bothers men. Now, if the South Pole ice melt raises the sea level, so to speak, lay down a towel or invest in black sheets — but most men, I think, don’t mind. Conversely, if despite all desire your lady is desert dry, try investing in some quality lube (some great ones can be found at quality sex-toy sites like Babeland or Good Vibrations). Incidentally, this is not an excuse to skip foreplay, but for one of those times when, “Seriously, I totally would, but my body’s sometimes weird this time of the month.” It’s oil for the engine to make the drive a little better — not a shortcut to speed it up.
Hardness, similar to wetness, scares a lot of men more than it scares women. The same thing that makes Pfizer millions of dollars is what makes Samson mutter, “I’m sorry Del, I had a hard day at work.” Sure, there are medical problems that cause the gun to fire early, or the barrel to droop (and do seek medical attention, if you believe you have a medical issue) but by and large, fear and anxiety tend to be the biggest causes. (And it becomes a self-fufilling prophecy — you worry that you will, and so you do.) In this, seek alternative modes of transportation other than the time-honored vehicular: travel by hand, perhaps, or by mouth — for the more advanced, a toy is often welcome. Like a roadblock: not an impediment, but a call to adventure.
I’ll address orgasm in another column (and if you simply cannot wait, my lovely co-columnist has writ on it) but here’s a concluding thought that goes for this all: No one knows but you what gets you off. If lube is engine oil, communication is Google Maps. It takes knowing where you live before you start the tour.
(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 7:17pm)
Top Games of 2010
2010 has come and gone and we are all one year closer to the end of existence as we know it. Silly pseudo-science aside, 2010 was an amazing year for gaming as a whole, as we saw blockbuster titles flooding the market from the very start. This is no “Top 10” list; just some gems that I particularly enjoyed, some of which are now less than $20 at the local Gamestop.
Mass Effect 2
The sequel to the widely successful Mass Effect, part two of Bioware’s trilogy finds Commander Shepard trying to recruit an elite squad of specialists to take out the “Collectors,” a race of insect-like beings who like to kidnap entire cities of humans. The game brought a great story, its now-iconic dialogue tree system and memorable characters to create a good bridge between the first and third installment of the series. One of the few games that literally kept me at the edge of my seat on many occasions.
Limbo
This downloadable title tells a dialogue-less story about a boy searching for his sister. The boy finds himself in a starkly beautiful monochrome world. This absence of color is merely a reflection of the ugliness and (more often than not) violence he lives in and it’s not afraid to kill you in distressing ways. While a bit on the short side, it is one of those of those titles that stays with you long after you’ve played it. Easily the best indie game this year.
Bayonetta
Bayonetta is a third person action adventure game with a story which makes absolutely no sense — but who cares when a game is this much fun? Cobine the sleek and theatrical gunplay of the Devil May Cry series with the combo system, the swordplay of the Ninja Gaiden series and add a dash of sex-fueled magic, and you have Bayonetta in a nutshell. Its fast-paced, challenging design (not to mention the fact that it was an original game) made it one of my personal favorites of 2010.
9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors
My favorite game of the year is, interestingly enough, on the Nintendo DS. 999 tells the Saw-esque story of Junpei, a college student who finds himself on an abandoned cruise liner filled with puzzles. Junpei and the others he meets all have one objective: find a door marked with a “9” in order to escape. Filled with clever puzzles, amazing writing (the game feels more like an interactive novel than anything else) with multiple endings, this game will keep you glued for hours. While I usually do not care about multiple endings (as I will usually finish a game a maximum of two times), 999 actually had me impatient to discover what other paths the game had for me. With a relatively affordable price tag of $35 I cannot recommend 999 enough. 999 is my game of the year.
(01/13/11 5:06am)
The subject of this month’s column is misinterpretation facilitated by technology. Now, I’m sure you all have saved every one of my past columns and reread them every night before bed, so I’m sure you’re thinking: “Ben you repetitive hack! You talked about Facebook and other forms of electronic communication in your last column two weeks before winter break!” If anyone fails to remember my last column (a.k.a. everyone except me), I talked about how interactions via Smartphones and social networking hamper understanding of all but the simplest communications. I didn’t really do it justice, though, as I ended up complaining mainly about my inability to convey complex emotions with Gchat smileys. Luckily, that very week something happened that demonstrated my point better than I could ever imagine.
It began, as many disasters do, with a prank. “Ken” and “Jerry” (names changed to conceal identity of those involved) were tired of the same old Facebook pranks — such as changing a profile picture, birthday or the “Interested in” tab. So when their friend “Beyoncé” left her profile logged in on Jerry’s computer, they decided that it would be pretty funny to make a series of status updates intended to inform the Middlebury community of an inflammatory yet totally ridiculous event.
Several ideas were tossed around for a possible story, including a hostage situation at Carol’s or an interdepartmental sex scandal. They ultimately decided that a fictitious member of the Middlebury community named Delilah Dess was enraged over the College’s use of Aunt Des to promote the dish return initiative, and had taken the matter to court.
The joke was based on the fact that Beyoncé is the Managing Editor of The Campus, and thus breaking news from her Facebook feed would carry more weight than random posts on most others’. Given this extra credibility, Ken and Jerry took care to make sure the story was too ridiculous to be taken seriously. Over the course of an hour, Jerry made no more than five status updates on Beyoncé’s account, spreading the word that Delilah Dess was suing the college for libel, copyright infringement and defamation of character. These charges themselves are preposterous; unless Aunt Des was instigating hate crimes against Ms. Dess involving dirty dining hall dishes as projectiles, defamation of character was unlikely. Another key part of the Facebook story was the possible impeachment of our President of the College. Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr. Liebowitz, but I don’t think any college president has or ever will be impeached. The cherry on top was Delilah Dess’ official statement that the college was run by “a bunch of sloppagees.”
Over the next hour, Ken and Jerry marveled at the success of their prank, enjoying the confused comments and frantic chat messages they were receiving while still logged in. However, they soon were made aware of a Middblog post written concurrently to “officially” document the imminent end of the Liebowitz era. Reactions to this post (which can be seen at go/dess) caused a cascade of panic throughout the campus. Phone calls were made to Tim Spears, college lawyers and even the county courthouse in attempts to verify the Facebook status claims. A stressed out Beyoncé, who beforehand had been frantically putting finishing touches on her thesis, stormed into Ken and Jerry’s headquarters to inform them that she had been trying to sort through the chaos since almost the instant they made the initial update. The situation finally ended with a personal call from Beyoncé to President Liebowitz, reassuring him that he would not meet his demise at the hands of Ms. Dess.
Luckily, thanks to the quick actions of Beyoncé and the good humor of the administration, ‘Dessgate’ ended without permanent repercussions. But it caused significant awkwardness for all parties involved, for which Jerry and Ken (whose name almost coincidentally resembles my name) apologize. Still, this illustrates what can happen when people take online communication too seriously. If in doubt, do it in person. Don’t worry, Beyoncé, your Facebook is safe from us this April 1st. Just make sure we don’t know where your clothes are.
(01/13/11 4:52am)
Study sheds light on effects of being dumped
According to a recent study by the University of Michigan, being dumped has a negative effect on a person’s attractiveness to the opposite sex.
The study, published in the scientific journal Evolutionary Psychology, tracked how 198 U. Michigan students reacted to various advertisements for potential mates. Each advertisement specified whether the person had been dumped by his or her last partner, done the dumping or preferred not to say.
Women, the study found, felt more strongly than men about not dating a person who declined to share how their last relationship ended, and were more sexually attracted to those who dumped their past partner. Men did not show greater desire to have sex with women who dumped their previous partner, though did show a lower desire to have a long term relationship with her.
--U Wire
Survey shows “helicopter parents” too involved in college admissions process
Parents are increasingly involved in the admissions process, a survey by Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions found. The survey also stated that the greater role played by parents in the process may not be in students’ best interest, either.
Wren Singer, director of the Center for First-Year Experience at U. Wisconsin, believes that allowing children to speak for themselves and ask their own questions is important. She emphasized that the primary role of parents should be that of supporter.
For those students who felt their parents were hovering a little low, Singer recommended they give friendly reminder to their parents saying gently but firmly that they need independence in the process, but still would like their parents involved.
—U Wire
Repeal of “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” leads colleges to consider reinstating ROTC
After the recent repeal of the controversial “don’t ask don’t tell” legislation banning gays from openly serving in the military, elite universities are considering welcoming the military back to their campuses now that the armed forces do not violate the universities’ respective antidiscrimination policies.
Since the Vietnam War, universities including Harvard, Yale and Columbia have outlawed the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC)
The repeal alone, many observers comment, may not be enough though to bring the military back to these institutions. As these institutions cost as much as double their public counterparts, the military may not be able to continue to afford to offer scholarships that cover as much as the entire tuition of participants, but it raises the issue.
— The Chronicle of Higher Education
(12/02/10 5:06am)
There are fantasies, and there are fantasies. There is the fantasy where your loving partner sweeps you off your feet to your favorite restaurant, where you eat by candlelight, whisper sweet nothings and later return to a flower-strewn room where you make sweet, sweet love on the bed you share together. That’s a totally fine fantasy, and also, most likely, a desire that you can communicate with a few well-placed hints and maybe a wink or two. And then there is the fantasy that involves your partner on all fours wearing a dog collar. This is also fine, but probably not something that you can communicate with a wink. This would probably require a bit of a talk.
Fantasies that involve degrading your partner, or being degraded, are actually fairly common. They also tend to be incredibly uncomfortable and awkward to discuss. There are unavoidable questions of respect, and rightfully so — there’s not much more personal and vulnerable than sex. But there’s also not much more personal than a fantasy, nor more vulnerable than expressing one that may or may not be well-received. After all, having a partner confess a fantasy that may be extraordinarily outside personal boundaries is something that should be appreciated as well. It’s a level of trust most people give only to furtive Google searches, regularly-erased histories and prostitutes. Thus, admitting one to a significant other is to be valued as a sign of trust and respect.
Still, the idea that your boyfriend or girlfriend really, really, really wants to use you like a prostitute is hard not to take personally. Don’t. A fantasy executed is sexual theater — parts being played and acted-out for a singular gratification. In the same way that we don’t (usually) hold Kenneth Branagh liable for killing half the royalty in Denmark, once all is said and done and the chains, latex, schoolgirl skirts, marmalade and DVD of Hamlet have been put away, you and your dearly beloved are pretty much back to where you started. (Though perhaps slightly stickier.) Once the acting is over and done with, life goes on.
As an actor, a fantasy-facilitator, there are still a couple of lingering questions. Did you just get used? Of course you did, and hopefully, you were fully aware of that and committed to it. It’s just like a more elaborate form of unreciprocated oral sex — just like you are (hopefully) aware that often a gent or a lady would rather bliss out and pass out than return the favor, so the execution of a fantasy is, at its heart, a gift. There is pleasure from pleasing your partner, sure — and hopefully, you have a partner grateful enough to pay you back on a later date with an executed fantasy, or a bit of home cooking, or a lengthy massage or whatever the coin of the realm is. A more complex and protracted question is: Is this what s/he always thinks of when we’re having sex? Is this what they really want, and just have never been able to tell me? What implications does this have on their personality, on who they are and how much I know them?
Honestly, I don’t know the answer to that. For the last question, at least, (and this one goes out to you furtive fantasizers, too) I will say that fantasies occur in the most unlikely places, to the most unlikely people. Just like the stereotype of the driven, powerful, controlling gent or lady just loves being tied up and submissive, sometimes even Bambi longs for a bit of bondage. But, just as in theater, there’s a vast gulf between a fantasy, even an executed one, and a reality. Bringing to life a fantasy involving a cop rarely requires more than a change of wardrobe and a pair of handcuffs, not enrolling with the local police department. But it still means a willingness to don a collar, at least.
(12/02/10 5:04am)
This past week, Middlebury joined Williams and Bowdoin as the third NESCAC institution to enact gender-neutral housing legislation. Starting in Fall 2011, any sophomore, junior or senior will be allowed to live with whomever they choose, regardless of either party’s gender. While College policy already allowed suites and bathrooms to be mixed-gendered, the recently approved proposal expands the policy to include doubles and connected singles. The proposal received unanimous support from the SGA and was approved at the Nov. 22 Community Council meeting, also by a unanimous vote.
While some students might cite the potential conflict that could arise between members of the opposite sex sharing the same living space, and parents might be uneasy about the prospect of their child being forced to live with a student of a different gender, it is important to remember that only students who specifically request a mixed-gendered room will be placed in one. This is an important step toward breaking down the heteronormative attitudes that exist under the surface of our institution and society at large, and achieves the more direct goal of providing a comfortable living situation for every member of our community.
Besides the gender-neutral housing proposal, Community Council also heard, and tabled, a proposal to form an official Gender Council, which would address all issues of gender on campus, report directly to the Presidential Council and have policy-making power. While we are pleased to see that gender issues, often the most pervasive, subtle and overlooked, are receiving the attention that they clearly deserve, we question whether the addition of more red tape is the appropriate way to bring these issues to light at Middlebury.
Giving any committee policy-making power should be a carefully considered and meaningful decision — in this case, we are not sure that the goals of the would-be Gender Council necessitate an autonomous council. After all, the issue of gender-neutral housing was addressed fully and efficiently by the Community Council — it was only last spring that this proposal began taking shape. While subtle instances of sexism can often be the most harmful, they are also uniquely resistant to sweeping policy changes. Thus, we question whether a policy-making committee is the best solution to the problem of sexism at Middlebury.
Closely examining gender dynamics at Middlebury is fascinating, at times horrifying and almost universally undervalued as a legitimate source of frustration and outrage from all sexes. Such examination is also performed far too infrequently, and often takes a backseat to issues of racial diversity and discrimination. We are excited that gender-neutral housing has been approved, and by no means are we attempting to keep gender issues on the back burner by suggesting that a Gender Council would be excessive. Rather, we would simply like to see the cause of gender equality taken up more fully in the actions of already existing councils and committees, such as the Sexual Assault Oversight Committee, or the Institutional Diversity Committee. We feel that the goal of gender equality would be better served by a universal increase in watchfulness and consciousness of the issue, rather than by a single policy-making committee.
