Culture

ARRAY | We Still Need Arts

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Kids in the liberal arts and social sciences get a bad rap. They are derided for their “easy” majors, lack of relevant job opportunities after college or for ending up in careers that aren’t related to their degree. Engineers and other “skilled” workers, on the other hand, are increasingly valued in our culture, and many economists claim that the future of America lies in technical jobs that require specialized degrees. This is reflected in the fact that the number of business, engineering and health degrees received has exploded since 1970, while the number of history and liberal arts graduates has remained relatively stagnant, or in some cases dropped. This fits quite well with the way Americans perceive themselves.

Life

BANDI | STORIED WALLS

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I’m in Gannett to get some blood work done on a Friday afternoon. No biggie—I’m hoping to get in, get it done, and get out. It’s late November. Finals are coming up, the weather is getting chilly and I’ve been using a large portion of my brainpower during the past couple of weeks to block out the constant barrage of news. Exhaustion has set in and it’s here to stay for the rest of the semester.

Life

TRAVELIN’ WITH JACQUELINE | Portland – Part 2: Winter

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As you all know, this week’s blog post will be focused on the winter portion of my trip to Portland, Oregon this past mid-December. For the sake of not being repetitive, I will gloss over the minutiae of how I arrived at the train station and boarded the train because the schedule was almost exactly the same, with the exception of my parents and I deciding to leave for Portland on a Friday as opposed to a Saturday. Unlike my first trip to Portland, I took so many more photos of the scenery the second time around because it was more stunning. Most of the ride mostly resembled what you see above–brown-green hills with slush near the tracks–but a third of the ride made me feel like one of those professional photographers that only shoots in black and white because the landscape was covered with snow as far as the eye could see:

I wish I could convey to y’all the elevation at which these photos were taken and the extent to which the snow covered all that land, but since (1) I have practically no idea how to take good photos, (2) the train was moving so quickly and (3) you have no idea how challenging it is to attempt to eliminate your reflection from a photo, these pictures will have to suffice. After the train had descended from the mountains back to civilization, we were getting closer to Portland.

Life

POLITICS & STUFF | A FOOD REVIEW OF HAI HONG

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The Sun hired me as a politics writer but my blog is called “Politics & Stuff” so I’m technically allowed to write about the “Stuff” part! Here’s a food review of Hai Hong!! First, a little about the restaurant: Hai Hong is a family-owned Asian restaurant on 208 Dryden Road in Collegetown that’s been in business for 21 years. I will be reviewing 6 dim-sum foods based on 3 criteria: taste, presentation, and the “wow-factor”. 1) Water

Taste: Tasted like water

Presentation: In a nice glass so it couldn’t have been tap water

“Wow-factor”: Wow!

Culture

ARRAY | LOOKING PAST THE PRESIDENCY

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We’ve all heard stories from our friends and family members about their reactions to Donald Trump’s election. Election Night 2016 has already, in our imaginations, reached the status of a defining cultural event, a “where were you when such-and-such happened” question along the lines of “Where were you when Kennedy was shot?” or “Where were you on 9/11?” or “Where were you when Obama was elected president?” These are the types of questions by which we measure our personal histories. I was in my dorm; after shelling out ten or so dollars to view Stephen Colbert’s broadcast on Showtime, I watched as the comedian failed to find anything witty to say as the results poured in. My own emotions before and after Trump’s declared victory were the same: frustration, distaste and a mild indifference towards the election. Some people cried, a few people in the suite next to me were rejoicing, but there was little else anyone could say or do.

Life

SAVING FACE | LUNCHTIME

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Lunch was probably my least favorite part of elementary school. Now don’t get me wrong, I wanted a break from school as much as everyone else. When asked what my favorite class in school was, I would always cheekily respond with “Recess.” Yet, without fail, five minutes before the bell would signal the end of fourth period, a knot in my stomach would begin to form. During school, I felt like all my other classmates. We all took the same classes, we all struggled over the same homework, and we all played the same games.

Travel

BANDI | RIO DE JANEIRO – OLYMPICS, ART, AND A STROLL THROUGH THE STREETS

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As our Uber weaved its way through the busy streets of Rio de Janeiro, the signs of the recent Olympic Games were littered everywhere. Although the banners had been taken down a month prior, logos announcing “Rio 2016” were still stamped across roads; huge signs strung across souvenir shops boasted their Games-themed merchandise; freshly-painted murals covered building walls. Along one line of storefronts, a series of circus-style paintings illustrated the Games—Athens, Beijing, London, Rio and, finally, Tokyo.  

After five years of preparation and over 500,000 visitors, you’d think the city would be ready for a break. But the citizens of Rio are used to the spotlight, and it seems like they barely have time to take a breath before plunging into their next world spectacle: the annual Carnival.

Culture

MANGA MONDAYS | Spring 2017 Preview

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I hope everyone had a wonderful break, filled with family, friends, food and anime binge-watching until some ungodly hour of the night. I know mine was. I also got some new anime and manga, which is always exciting. In other news, I’m back from Japan at long last (though I can’t say that I really wanted to leave). Hopefully I’ll be able to continue incorporating my experiences there into posts here on Manga Mondays.

Life

TRAVELIN’ WITH JACQUELINE | Portland – Part 1: Summer

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This past August and December, my parents and I traveled to Portland, Oregon, where we ate like kings, dressed to kill and took a myriad of photos like the tourists we were. Due to this last fact, I am dividing my account of our Portland adventures into two blog posts–one about our summer exploits, and another about our winter shenanigans. The summer weather in Portland is very pleasant and reminds me of San Francisco: either sunny or overcast, but never hot. But before I get into what we actually did in Portland, I should tell you how we got there. In late June, my parents were talking about how they wanted to take Amtrak somewhere, anywhere really, to see beautiful landscapes while relaxing on a train.

Life

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR | Dear Julie

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Dear Julie,

How have you been? I hope the winters in NY haven’t been too harsh on you – you’ve always had cold hands and I hope you’re coping well. It’s been awhile since we last talked. It feels strange because I can’t remember many days where we didn’t talk at all. Ever since our relationship ended, our communications have been sparse and overly polite.