The Funny Side Of Rivalry
By Aimee La Fountain
I grew up in New Jersey, which is a fine state except one aspect -- it’s full of Yankees fans. As a dedicated Red Sox fan, I have always thought that the strong Yankees following in Jersey is its fatal flaw.
Now, at this point you may be wondering how someone in New Jersey is a Sox fan. It’s simple really -- family heritage. My father is from Massachusetts and wanting to be a good parent, he naturally raised me to follow the Red Sox. What’s really inconvenient is that there are very few Sox fans in New Jersey. So, I have endured the jeers and various other challenges to my loyalty that come with living in New Jersey as a Sox fan. Yes, there’s nothing quite like the experience of walking into a classroom in a Sox tee shirt and getting banished from the room because the teacher is a Yankees fan.
When I came to New York, I hoped that the Yankees-Red Sox ratio would balance out a little more. I figured that between Mets fans and people form out of state, the presence of Yankees fans may be more modest than New Jersey. Turns out, it’s hard to escape the Yankees ghost. I was horrified to find that I was still surrounded by an abundance of Yankees fans. I soon realized that Red Sox fans are like a secret society in New York.
Whenever I spot a Sox fan in the city, it’s like seeing a long lost relative. And, on the chance that two Sox fans should cross paths there is a remarkable sight in that mutual look of admiration between two baseball minorities. Surely, you’ve seen one of us out there; we’re that one person in the bar that’s happy when the Yankees lose a game or the only people smiling the day that the Yankees lose the playoffs. And, if it sounds strange that a Red Sox fan should be in New York, I can offer you an example of the opposite effect and refer you to my friend, a Yankees fan, who lives in Massachusetts.
This brings me to the complicated issue of mixed relationships. Growing up in New Jersey I was exposed to Yankees fans at a young age and understood that I should respect people who may have baseball beliefs that conflict with mine. I’m always in favor of practicing tolerance and this is why I have many friends who are Yankees fans -- I’ve learned to accept them, despite their sports misjudgments.
The most horrifying phenomenon, however, is when you’re shocked to find yourself romantically interested in someone of a different baseball affiliation. Such was the case when I met an incredibly charming man who seemed perfect until the day I spotted him wearing a Yankees cap. However, I overlooked his weakness and we ended up dating. It didn’t work out in the end and I’m certain that it was our mixed baseball beliefs that cursed the relationship.
Life is funny. The harder you try to escape certain things the more you find yourself surrounded by them.
Aimee La Fountain won Honorable Mention in the 2008 Mortimer Levitt Essay Contest for Marymount Manhattan College students.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Special Report
“Life Is Funny”
By Priya Joshi
Sometimes, on a sunny, cool winter morning, while I walk around the Angel Fountain in Central Park, I become overwhelmed with sadness. Sometimes, on a beautiful summer afternoon with the most vibrant sunrays that I’ve felt in years streaming down my back, without a care in the world and only happiness ahead, I fall to my knees and cry so hard I have to stop and breathe. It’s just that sometimes, no matter how hard I try, I can’t shake the thought that all of the beauty around me is dwarfed by all of the madness.
I throw up every time I think about it. If you take all of the sick, repugnant, horrifically unspeakable things about society and roll it into a tight, hot mess and try to swallow it, that’s how I feel every time I think about it.
I picture a man on a December day. I picture him walking his dog through a park in Queens, N.Y., the grey winter light reflecting off his eyes and illuminating his smile. I picture him softly saying, “bless you” to a complete stranger as they sneeze into their rabbit fur mittens. I picture him as a child, walking to PS 116, stopping for a moment to give his milk money to the bum on the corner.
This man, this honest, hard-working, caring and contributing member of our society, who is a constant visitor to many Queens neighborhoods, has ruined more lives than he’ll ever know, and it’s all because of me. This working-class, father-of-the-year, giving individual has been a pawn on my chessboard for a decade.
For years this man has set his alarm for 4 a.m., gone out in the cold, rain, sleet in winter, and the unbearable heat in summer to deliver to me, my friends, my cronies, my clients and their mothers our packages of goodies. Never once did this honest, hard-working, caring, working-class father-of-the-year suspect that he was feeding the mouths, veins, noses and causes for each, and every sick addiction you could imagine.
Never once did he think as he drove his delivery truck that these simple, small brown packages he delivered to the sweet, young couple on 36th street contained enough morphine to kill a horse. Never once did it cross his mind that the innocent, always friendly residents of 45th Street and 30th Avenue were truly the ghouls and goblins that he spent his life trying not to become.
The funny thing is, no matter how many times a day you shower, and no matter how many good deeds you do, or how many sneezing strangers you give a sincere “bless you” to, you can never completely wash your hands clean of the scum from the underbelly of what we call our Great American Society. No matter how many anti-war protests you attend, people still die. No matter how many drug-addled youths sober up, there is still a kid passed out on the cold tile in a halfway house with a syringe a quarter of the way into his vein.
The funny thing about life is -- ignorance is bliss after all.
Priya Joshi won Honorable Mention in the 2008 Mortimer Levitt Essay Contest for Marymount Manhattan College students.
By Priya Joshi
Sometimes, on a sunny, cool winter morning, while I walk around the Angel Fountain in Central Park, I become overwhelmed with sadness. Sometimes, on a beautiful summer afternoon with the most vibrant sunrays that I’ve felt in years streaming down my back, without a care in the world and only happiness ahead, I fall to my knees and cry so hard I have to stop and breathe. It’s just that sometimes, no matter how hard I try, I can’t shake the thought that all of the beauty around me is dwarfed by all of the madness.
I throw up every time I think about it. If you take all of the sick, repugnant, horrifically unspeakable things about society and roll it into a tight, hot mess and try to swallow it, that’s how I feel every time I think about it.
I picture a man on a December day. I picture him walking his dog through a park in Queens, N.Y., the grey winter light reflecting off his eyes and illuminating his smile. I picture him softly saying, “bless you” to a complete stranger as they sneeze into their rabbit fur mittens. I picture him as a child, walking to PS 116, stopping for a moment to give his milk money to the bum on the corner.
This man, this honest, hard-working, caring and contributing member of our society, who is a constant visitor to many Queens neighborhoods, has ruined more lives than he’ll ever know, and it’s all because of me. This working-class, father-of-the-year, giving individual has been a pawn on my chessboard for a decade.
For years this man has set his alarm for 4 a.m., gone out in the cold, rain, sleet in winter, and the unbearable heat in summer to deliver to me, my friends, my cronies, my clients and their mothers our packages of goodies. Never once did this honest, hard-working, caring, working-class father-of-the-year suspect that he was feeding the mouths, veins, noses and causes for each, and every sick addiction you could imagine.
Never once did he think as he drove his delivery truck that these simple, small brown packages he delivered to the sweet, young couple on 36th street contained enough morphine to kill a horse. Never once did it cross his mind that the innocent, always friendly residents of 45th Street and 30th Avenue were truly the ghouls and goblins that he spent his life trying not to become.
The funny thing is, no matter how many times a day you shower, and no matter how many good deeds you do, or how many sneezing strangers you give a sincere “bless you” to, you can never completely wash your hands clean of the scum from the underbelly of what we call our Great American Society. No matter how many anti-war protests you attend, people still die. No matter how many drug-addled youths sober up, there is still a kid passed out on the cold tile in a halfway house with a syringe a quarter of the way into his vein.
The funny thing about life is -- ignorance is bliss after all.
Priya Joshi won Honorable Mention in the 2008 Mortimer Levitt Essay Contest for Marymount Manhattan College students.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Millennials In The New Millennium
I Want It All, And I Want It Now
By Roya Yazhari
Known as the “Echo Boomers” and “Millennials” this generation born between 1982 and 1995, myself included, is shaping the American workplace and its way of life. We want our dream job, our fabulous weekends off, and enough time to shop and take hot yoga classes as much as we please.
According to the November 11, 2007 60 Minutes news report, “The Millennials Are Coming,” this generation is “raised by doting parents who told them they are special, and played in little leagues with no winners or losers.” This generation is taught that whatever you put your mind to you can achieve. Nearly 80 million of them living in the U.S. today, this group of young people are the genetic offspring of their parents, the baby boomers.
Aired two years earlier, 60 Minutes said in its report, “The Echo Boomers,” that this generation is more diverse than ever, and is accepting of different cultures and groups.
A group of 21-23 year-old Marymount Manhattan College students, including members of student government, are not only committed to their studies, but are committed to their academic institution as well. This group of students, shown in the photo below, are able to study, balance their homework, and enjoy the New York City night life.
“I do not think the description of the Millennials in the news accurately describes our generation,” said Amy Markel, a junior studying political science and international studies, and a member of student government. “Yes, in college we work hard and play hard. However unless you take Sex And The City as your Gospel, you will realize life is going to be a bit more serious when we get out of here,” she said.
Celebrating her 21st birthday, Markel understands her responsibility as a human being in this country as well as her freedom to live a life that makes her happy. “My parents want me to be a lawyer. I however enjoy International studies. For them, they want me to be financially stable. I want the same, however I know I can reach my goals in a way I see fit to my personality and interests,” Markel said.
.jpg)
Amy Markel celebrating her 21st birthday with classmates
and friends at a New York City hangout.
In a poll in Business Week magazine by Universum this year, of the 37,000-plus undergraduates surveyed, the No. 1 career goal of these individuals was to “balance personal and professional life.” “Building a sound financial base” came in third. Many speculate this is because this generation of young people is waiting longer to buy homes, start families, and settle down.
This generation of young people has become one completely dependent on others. Without a cell phone or IPod in hand, many of us feel naked walking down the streets of New York City. We always must have something to do or something distracting us from the pressures of every day life.
In the past, the ability to land a job and stick with it for as long as possible was an accomplishment. Nowadays, changing jobs numerous times is not only acceptable, but also inevitable for most who are on their quest for the “dream job.” The job in which you can “roll into work with iPods and flip flops at noon, but still be CEO by Friday,” according to the report.
This image should be slogan for this generation of youth. We want what we want, and we want it now. When told this statement Amy exclaimed, “Yes, we want what we want. And in this technologically advanced day in age, we can get it!”
For the youth of today, the traditional 40-hour week is thrown out the window, and bosses must realize that a pilates workout at noon comes before a major proposal deadline, according to the Milliennial report.
Many companies are adapting to this new generation by creating work environments that will entice workers to want to stay and work hard. A party-like atmosphere is created in order for these young people to enjoy work and stay happy and cheerful.
In the Millennial report, Dorsey Healy who has written, in collaboration with his brother, how-to books on how to cope with work, said, “We’re not going to settle. Because we saw our parents settle. We definitely put lifestyle and friends above work. No question about it.”
In reality, only time will tell whether this view of life will work for our generation. Meanwhile, individuals will continue speculating and studying this fascinating generation.
By Roya Yazhari
Known as the “Echo Boomers” and “Millennials” this generation born between 1982 and 1995, myself included, is shaping the American workplace and its way of life. We want our dream job, our fabulous weekends off, and enough time to shop and take hot yoga classes as much as we please.
According to the November 11, 2007 60 Minutes news report, “The Millennials Are Coming,” this generation is “raised by doting parents who told them they are special, and played in little leagues with no winners or losers.” This generation is taught that whatever you put your mind to you can achieve. Nearly 80 million of them living in the U.S. today, this group of young people are the genetic offspring of their parents, the baby boomers.
Aired two years earlier, 60 Minutes said in its report, “The Echo Boomers,” that this generation is more diverse than ever, and is accepting of different cultures and groups.
A group of 21-23 year-old Marymount Manhattan College students, including members of student government, are not only committed to their studies, but are committed to their academic institution as well. This group of students, shown in the photo below, are able to study, balance their homework, and enjoy the New York City night life.
“I do not think the description of the Millennials in the news accurately describes our generation,” said Amy Markel, a junior studying political science and international studies, and a member of student government. “Yes, in college we work hard and play hard. However unless you take Sex And The City as your Gospel, you will realize life is going to be a bit more serious when we get out of here,” she said.
Celebrating her 21st birthday, Markel understands her responsibility as a human being in this country as well as her freedom to live a life that makes her happy. “My parents want me to be a lawyer. I however enjoy International studies. For them, they want me to be financially stable. I want the same, however I know I can reach my goals in a way I see fit to my personality and interests,” Markel said.
.jpg)
Amy Markel celebrating her 21st birthday with classmates
and friends at a New York City hangout.
In a poll in Business Week magazine by Universum this year, of the 37,000-plus undergraduates surveyed, the No. 1 career goal of these individuals was to “balance personal and professional life.” “Building a sound financial base” came in third. Many speculate this is because this generation of young people is waiting longer to buy homes, start families, and settle down.
This generation of young people has become one completely dependent on others. Without a cell phone or IPod in hand, many of us feel naked walking down the streets of New York City. We always must have something to do or something distracting us from the pressures of every day life.
In the past, the ability to land a job and stick with it for as long as possible was an accomplishment. Nowadays, changing jobs numerous times is not only acceptable, but also inevitable for most who are on their quest for the “dream job.” The job in which you can “roll into work with iPods and flip flops at noon, but still be CEO by Friday,” according to the report.
This image should be slogan for this generation of youth. We want what we want, and we want it now. When told this statement Amy exclaimed, “Yes, we want what we want. And in this technologically advanced day in age, we can get it!”
For the youth of today, the traditional 40-hour week is thrown out the window, and bosses must realize that a pilates workout at noon comes before a major proposal deadline, according to the Milliennial report.
Many companies are adapting to this new generation by creating work environments that will entice workers to want to stay and work hard. A party-like atmosphere is created in order for these young people to enjoy work and stay happy and cheerful.
In the Millennial report, Dorsey Healy who has written, in collaboration with his brother, how-to books on how to cope with work, said, “We’re not going to settle. Because we saw our parents settle. We definitely put lifestyle and friends above work. No question about it.”
In reality, only time will tell whether this view of life will work for our generation. Meanwhile, individuals will continue speculating and studying this fascinating generation.
Millennials In The New Millennium
Take It Easy, Life Is A Vacation
By Alejandro M. Fernandez
Baby boomers were born between 1946 and 1964 and their children, echo boomers, were born between 1982 and 1995. Since The Eagles, an American rock band, were active from 1971 to 1980 and again from 1994 to present, parents and children have probably heard many of their songs.
One Eagles song says, “Take it easy, take it easy; don't let the sound of them old wheels drive you crazy.” According to two CBS 60 Minutes segments, the echo boomers have definitely taken The Eagles’ advice.
The first segment aired on September 4, 2005. Correspondent Steve Kroft interviews a wide array of people with specific opinions on this generational issue. Doctors, professors, historians, and echo boomers themselves, all chime in.
In “The Echo Boomers” Dr. Mel Levine, a professor at the University of North Carolina, says that is not the only part of their cultural conditioning that’s going to require an adjustment in the workplace. After asking the CEO of a major corporation for a description of a typical young worker he says, “They can’t think long-range. Everything has to be immediate, like a video game. And they have a lot of trouble sort of doing things in a stepwise fashion, delaying gratification. Really reflecting as they go along.’ I think that's new.”
Historian Neil Howe makes a similar observation. “Sometimes, they don’t know what to do if they’re just left outside and you say, ‘Well, just do something by yourself for a while,’” says Howe. “They'll look around stunned. You know, ‘What are we supposed to do now?’”
Some echo boomers don’t agree with these assesments
“It’s not the majority of our generation,” says Meredith Spiegel, 21. A student at Marymount Manhattan College, Spiegel rejects the negative stereotype. “There are kids who actually work hard the old-fashioned way even though it’s a type of culture that is rare nowadays. It all depends on how people are brought up,” she says.
_edited.jpg)
Meredith Spiegel
believes gene-
rational
stereotyping is
inaccurate and
unfair.
In a follow-up 60 Minutes segment called, “The Millennials Are Coming” poses similar arguments. Aired on November 11, 2007, correspondent Morley Safer interviews corporate executives, consultants, and two working millennials and reports that, “Faced with new employees who want to roll into work with their iPods and flip flops around noon, but still be CEO by Friday, companies are realizing that the era of the buttoned down exec happy to have a job is as dead as the three-Martini lunch.”
Mary Crane, who offers crash courses for millennials entering the workforce, suggests this generation has been coddled. “You now have a generation coming into the workplace that has grown up with the expectation that they will automatically win, and they’ll always be rewarded, even for just showing up,” Crane says.
Kroft states echo boomers are the most watched-over generation in history. Most have never ridden a bike without a helmet, ridden in a car without a seat belt, or eaten in a cafeteria that serves peanut butter.
Jason Dorsey, a millennial himself, who was interviewed in the segment agrees. “Our parents really took from us that opportunity to fall down on our face and learn how to stand up,” he says.
Unlike their parents who value hard work, individuality, and achievement, millennials prioritize lifestyle, friends, and instant gratification.
Wesner Jules, a 20 year-old economics major at Georgetown University, agrees with this assessment. “Everyone feels like they are supposed to be handed shit in life. Like everything is supposed to be easy. And our parents just went with that whole idea,” Jules says.
But don’t simply blame mom and dad, or Mister Rogers as Wall Street Journal columnist Jeffrey Zaslow does in “The Millennials are Coming”.
“I think it’s a part of the American culture, that notion of being superior or special,” says Jules.
So don’t go around blaming millennials for wanting to start work at noon, for being tattooed lawyers, or wanting to be CEOs effortlessly. The Eagles, our parents, and our culture have told us to do so. And that’s what we’re doing.
“Life’s a vacation,” Jules says. So take it easy.
By Alejandro M. Fernandez
Baby boomers were born between 1946 and 1964 and their children, echo boomers, were born between 1982 and 1995. Since The Eagles, an American rock band, were active from 1971 to 1980 and again from 1994 to present, parents and children have probably heard many of their songs.
One Eagles song says, “Take it easy, take it easy; don't let the sound of them old wheels drive you crazy.” According to two CBS 60 Minutes segments, the echo boomers have definitely taken The Eagles’ advice.
The first segment aired on September 4, 2005. Correspondent Steve Kroft interviews a wide array of people with specific opinions on this generational issue. Doctors, professors, historians, and echo boomers themselves, all chime in.
In “The Echo Boomers” Dr. Mel Levine, a professor at the University of North Carolina, says that is not the only part of their cultural conditioning that’s going to require an adjustment in the workplace. After asking the CEO of a major corporation for a description of a typical young worker he says, “They can’t think long-range. Everything has to be immediate, like a video game. And they have a lot of trouble sort of doing things in a stepwise fashion, delaying gratification. Really reflecting as they go along.’ I think that's new.”
Historian Neil Howe makes a similar observation. “Sometimes, they don’t know what to do if they’re just left outside and you say, ‘Well, just do something by yourself for a while,’” says Howe. “They'll look around stunned. You know, ‘What are we supposed to do now?’”
Some echo boomers don’t agree with these assesments
“It’s not the majority of our generation,” says Meredith Spiegel, 21. A student at Marymount Manhattan College, Spiegel rejects the negative stereotype. “There are kids who actually work hard the old-fashioned way even though it’s a type of culture that is rare nowadays. It all depends on how people are brought up,” she says.
_edited.jpg)
Meredith Spiegel
believes gene-
rational
stereotyping is
inaccurate and
unfair.
In a follow-up 60 Minutes segment called, “The Millennials Are Coming” poses similar arguments. Aired on November 11, 2007, correspondent Morley Safer interviews corporate executives, consultants, and two working millennials and reports that, “Faced with new employees who want to roll into work with their iPods and flip flops around noon, but still be CEO by Friday, companies are realizing that the era of the buttoned down exec happy to have a job is as dead as the three-Martini lunch.”
Mary Crane, who offers crash courses for millennials entering the workforce, suggests this generation has been coddled. “You now have a generation coming into the workplace that has grown up with the expectation that they will automatically win, and they’ll always be rewarded, even for just showing up,” Crane says.
Kroft states echo boomers are the most watched-over generation in history. Most have never ridden a bike without a helmet, ridden in a car without a seat belt, or eaten in a cafeteria that serves peanut butter.
Jason Dorsey, a millennial himself, who was interviewed in the segment agrees. “Our parents really took from us that opportunity to fall down on our face and learn how to stand up,” he says.
Unlike their parents who value hard work, individuality, and achievement, millennials prioritize lifestyle, friends, and instant gratification.
Wesner Jules, a 20 year-old economics major at Georgetown University, agrees with this assessment. “Everyone feels like they are supposed to be handed shit in life. Like everything is supposed to be easy. And our parents just went with that whole idea,” Jules says.
But don’t simply blame mom and dad, or Mister Rogers as Wall Street Journal columnist Jeffrey Zaslow does in “The Millennials are Coming”.
“I think it’s a part of the American culture, that notion of being superior or special,” says Jules.
So don’t go around blaming millennials for wanting to start work at noon, for being tattooed lawyers, or wanting to be CEOs effortlessly. The Eagles, our parents, and our culture have told us to do so. And that’s what we’re doing.
“Life’s a vacation,” Jules says. So take it easy.
Decision 2008
Election 2008: Know Your Role
By Alejandro M. Fernandez
The 2008 presidential election has all the ingredients of a Hollywood action-thriller. This year’s blockbuster contains three main characters. Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona plays himself, the older man who represents the status quo. Though he is not the main villain, he seems to stand in the hero’s way. The hero is none other than Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois. He is young, charismatic, and handsome.
Of course, no hero would be complete without a sidekick, no male protagonist would be complete without the female gaze, and no good cop would be complete without a bad cop. Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York defies this multifaceted role, but the casting director will not budge. The director and main villain is, as usual, the media.
So why does this election matter? Why watch a remake of previous films?
Somewhere along the line, the casting director decided to improvise. For the first time a black man and a white woman share the spotlight with the usual White male suspect. Voters understand this. Young voters especially realize that their votes can affect this country’s future in Iraq, the fate of a diminished economy, and much more.
According to both Time Magazine and the Los Angeles Times, “the youth vote already has played a key role in earlier primaries. In South Carolina, 18- to 29-year-olds accounted for 14% of voters, up from 9% in 2004. And in Iowa, young voter turnout rose 135% from the previous presidential primary.”
Rita Biggers, a 22-year-old graduate student, did not vote because of scheduling conflicts. However, she has followed the media’s election coverage diligently. Biggers believes “the media’s need to constantly broadcast breaking stories, as seen through the creation of the new breed of 24-hour news stations like CNN, has caused the media to do more report now, confirm later type of journalism.”
_edited.jpg)
Rita Biggers says her
main concerns are
health care,
education costs, and
foreign affairs
Maria-Leonor Castilla, a 20-year-old Ivy Leaguer, exercised her right to vote for the first time by voting for Hillary Clinton. “I see myself in Hillary—a woman who is driven, educated and passionate with clear goals and plans to execute those goals,” she says. “Besides,” she adds, “we all know that it has been the first ladies that are the pillars, inspirations, and ultimate advisors of their husbands (many of whom have served our country well), so who better than a former first lady to lead our country?”
Pablo Guevara, a 21-year-old engineering student, voted for a fellow Hispanic. “Richardson is my boy,” he says. “He’s the only politician I’ve met that gave me good vibes. Plus, I have to represent the Hispanics,” he adds.
Like moviegoers, voters connect with candidates that make them feel comfortable and safe. William P. O’Neill, a 32-year-old U.S. Air Force Public Affairs Specialist, is no different. “I feel more secure and confident regarding the safety and future of America with Senator McCain as its Commander in Chief,” he says. Adding, “I agree with Sen. John McCain’s stances on the war on terror (especially regarding Iraq and Afghanistan), economy, and immigration.”
Some, like Marcello Pacheco, 21, an architecture student, are more critical of this year’s villain. “The media’s coverage is sickening. It is completely biased for Obama and tries to trap or demonize Hillary every chance they get,” he says.
.jpg)
Marcello Pacheco's biggest
concerns are education and
infrastructure spending
James Darley, a 20-year-old student at Holy Cross favors the hero. “I admire the courage that it took for Obama to not vote for the war in Iraq. He risked everything, including his political career by not jumping on the bandwagon.”
Unlike previous years, the 2008 presidential election appeals to many people, if not everyone. Men and women of all ages, races, and creeds have someone to root for.
How will the blockbuster end?
No one knows for sure. The only certainty is that everyone is playing a role.
By Alejandro M. Fernandez
The 2008 presidential election has all the ingredients of a Hollywood action-thriller. This year’s blockbuster contains three main characters. Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona plays himself, the older man who represents the status quo. Though he is not the main villain, he seems to stand in the hero’s way. The hero is none other than Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois. He is young, charismatic, and handsome.
Of course, no hero would be complete without a sidekick, no male protagonist would be complete without the female gaze, and no good cop would be complete without a bad cop. Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York defies this multifaceted role, but the casting director will not budge. The director and main villain is, as usual, the media.
So why does this election matter? Why watch a remake of previous films?
Somewhere along the line, the casting director decided to improvise. For the first time a black man and a white woman share the spotlight with the usual White male suspect. Voters understand this. Young voters especially realize that their votes can affect this country’s future in Iraq, the fate of a diminished economy, and much more.
According to both Time Magazine and the Los Angeles Times, “the youth vote already has played a key role in earlier primaries. In South Carolina, 18- to 29-year-olds accounted for 14% of voters, up from 9% in 2004. And in Iowa, young voter turnout rose 135% from the previous presidential primary.”
Rita Biggers, a 22-year-old graduate student, did not vote because of scheduling conflicts. However, she has followed the media’s election coverage diligently. Biggers believes “the media’s need to constantly broadcast breaking stories, as seen through the creation of the new breed of 24-hour news stations like CNN, has caused the media to do more report now, confirm later type of journalism.”
_edited.jpg)
Rita Biggers says her
main concerns are
health care,
education costs, and
foreign affairs
Maria-Leonor Castilla, a 20-year-old Ivy Leaguer, exercised her right to vote for the first time by voting for Hillary Clinton. “I see myself in Hillary—a woman who is driven, educated and passionate with clear goals and plans to execute those goals,” she says. “Besides,” she adds, “we all know that it has been the first ladies that are the pillars, inspirations, and ultimate advisors of their husbands (many of whom have served our country well), so who better than a former first lady to lead our country?”
Pablo Guevara, a 21-year-old engineering student, voted for a fellow Hispanic. “Richardson is my boy,” he says. “He’s the only politician I’ve met that gave me good vibes. Plus, I have to represent the Hispanics,” he adds.
Like moviegoers, voters connect with candidates that make them feel comfortable and safe. William P. O’Neill, a 32-year-old U.S. Air Force Public Affairs Specialist, is no different. “I feel more secure and confident regarding the safety and future of America with Senator McCain as its Commander in Chief,” he says. Adding, “I agree with Sen. John McCain’s stances on the war on terror (especially regarding Iraq and Afghanistan), economy, and immigration.”
Some, like Marcello Pacheco, 21, an architecture student, are more critical of this year’s villain. “The media’s coverage is sickening. It is completely biased for Obama and tries to trap or demonize Hillary every chance they get,” he says.
.jpg)
Marcello Pacheco's biggest
concerns are education and
infrastructure spending
James Darley, a 20-year-old student at Holy Cross favors the hero. “I admire the courage that it took for Obama to not vote for the war in Iraq. He risked everything, including his political career by not jumping on the bandwagon.”
Unlike previous years, the 2008 presidential election appeals to many people, if not everyone. Men and women of all ages, races, and creeds have someone to root for.
How will the blockbuster end?
No one knows for sure. The only certainty is that everyone is playing a role.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
City Life
The Bachelor Life Without Regrets
By Jenifer Carbonara
Grow up, get married, have kids. This is the default setting programmed into almost every child from birth, and one that your average person forecasts for his or her future. For Donald Choi, and so many other New York City bachelors, however, this is simply not the reality.
Choi, 40, is the now-retired former CFO of Diane Von Furstenburg’s fashion empire. By all accounts, this man is a catch: handsome, demonstrably wealthy, and extremely successful. Choi is lacking one thing, though—a wedding ring.
“I always thought I would get married,” says Choi, “but it just never happened. And I’m not sure that is a bad thing.”
.jpg)
Donald Choi says he doesn’t regret
the single life.
Choi is one of many men who have become life-long bachelors. Instead of a wife, kids, and the white picket fence, he chose travel, yachts, and the ultimate bachelor pad. He traded diapers for diamonds, and one woman “till death do they part” for 20-something models for “as long as it’s fun.”
His lifestyle is not the typical example of how a 40-year old man lives, but it is certainly one that is enviable to many. Like most bachelors, Choi is protective of the life he has established as a single man. His worry that marriage would not be “fun” gets trumped by his concern he would be robbed of the things he enjoys most.
“I like to be spontaneous, and being single affords me the ability to do whatever I want whenever I want to,” Choi said. “If I want to travel, I do it. If there is something I want, I buy it. Being tied down would mean I wouldn’t just be making choices for myself; I would be making choices for my family, too, responsible ones. I worked hard—I am always responsible. In my personal life, I would rather just be.”
Choi isn’t the only one who feels this way. The latest census bureau indicates a steady drop in married couples and in American families since the 1970’s. Married couples used to make up more than 40% of the U.S. population; they now are at 25%, a statistic even with single person households.
The number of American families dropped from over 80% to just over 70% as well between 1970 and 1995. By comparison, single person households rose from 17% to nearly 25% during that same period. And, of the men in that statistic, nearly three-fourths of them are men between the ages of 25-64 who have never been married.
Chalk it up to rising divorce rates? Or perhaps the fear of a messy divorce? Whatever the reason, the American bachelor is becoming a new breed of man that is on the rise. To cope with this rising statistic, the bookshelves at Barnes & Noble are flooded with quick-fix books to “Tie Down Your Man Now!” and other such remedies for the single life.
However, the likelihood of finding a fast and easy way to tie down the Hugh Hefner wannabes seems slim. In Choi’s case, nearly impossible. According to him, it takes more than a genuine smile and a good home cooked meal to ask these staunch bachelors to trade in their nights of hot, new club openings, days of idle relaxation, and apartments equipped with the latest gadgets, leather couches, and even a stock supply of blow dryers, razors, perfume, and feminine products.
“I never say never, though. All I am saying is that I don’t regret staying single,” said Choi. “I have had a great life! There are so many people who wish they could have experienced what I experienced—it would be rude to say that I have not had a very lucky life!”
Choi, like so many other men, are beginning to see the value of a life that might be non-traditional. He believes that finding love and having children should be a choice, not a requirement. Choi is an example of the changing values and attitudes of the average American.
Though many may question the fulfillment of a life that is devoid of a marriage and family, Choi responds that he is very close with his parents and siblings, and enjoys the company of many great friends whom he cares for deeply. “I have a lot of love in my life,” he says.
By Jenifer Carbonara
Grow up, get married, have kids. This is the default setting programmed into almost every child from birth, and one that your average person forecasts for his or her future. For Donald Choi, and so many other New York City bachelors, however, this is simply not the reality.
Choi, 40, is the now-retired former CFO of Diane Von Furstenburg’s fashion empire. By all accounts, this man is a catch: handsome, demonstrably wealthy, and extremely successful. Choi is lacking one thing, though—a wedding ring.
“I always thought I would get married,” says Choi, “but it just never happened. And I’m not sure that is a bad thing.”
.jpg)
Donald Choi says he doesn’t regret
the single life.
Choi is one of many men who have become life-long bachelors. Instead of a wife, kids, and the white picket fence, he chose travel, yachts, and the ultimate bachelor pad. He traded diapers for diamonds, and one woman “till death do they part” for 20-something models for “as long as it’s fun.”
His lifestyle is not the typical example of how a 40-year old man lives, but it is certainly one that is enviable to many. Like most bachelors, Choi is protective of the life he has established as a single man. His worry that marriage would not be “fun” gets trumped by his concern he would be robbed of the things he enjoys most.
“I like to be spontaneous, and being single affords me the ability to do whatever I want whenever I want to,” Choi said. “If I want to travel, I do it. If there is something I want, I buy it. Being tied down would mean I wouldn’t just be making choices for myself; I would be making choices for my family, too, responsible ones. I worked hard—I am always responsible. In my personal life, I would rather just be.”
Choi isn’t the only one who feels this way. The latest census bureau indicates a steady drop in married couples and in American families since the 1970’s. Married couples used to make up more than 40% of the U.S. population; they now are at 25%, a statistic even with single person households.
The number of American families dropped from over 80% to just over 70% as well between 1970 and 1995. By comparison, single person households rose from 17% to nearly 25% during that same period. And, of the men in that statistic, nearly three-fourths of them are men between the ages of 25-64 who have never been married.
Chalk it up to rising divorce rates? Or perhaps the fear of a messy divorce? Whatever the reason, the American bachelor is becoming a new breed of man that is on the rise. To cope with this rising statistic, the bookshelves at Barnes & Noble are flooded with quick-fix books to “Tie Down Your Man Now!” and other such remedies for the single life.
However, the likelihood of finding a fast and easy way to tie down the Hugh Hefner wannabes seems slim. In Choi’s case, nearly impossible. According to him, it takes more than a genuine smile and a good home cooked meal to ask these staunch bachelors to trade in their nights of hot, new club openings, days of idle relaxation, and apartments equipped with the latest gadgets, leather couches, and even a stock supply of blow dryers, razors, perfume, and feminine products.
“I never say never, though. All I am saying is that I don’t regret staying single,” said Choi. “I have had a great life! There are so many people who wish they could have experienced what I experienced—it would be rude to say that I have not had a very lucky life!”
Choi, like so many other men, are beginning to see the value of a life that might be non-traditional. He believes that finding love and having children should be a choice, not a requirement. Choi is an example of the changing values and attitudes of the average American.
Though many may question the fulfillment of a life that is devoid of a marriage and family, Choi responds that he is very close with his parents and siblings, and enjoys the company of many great friends whom he cares for deeply. “I have a lot of love in my life,” he says.
Millennials In The New Millennium
Like Father, Like Son, Or Not
By Alexa Breslin
Echo boomers, millennials, Generation Y. These are three terms given to the generation born between 1982 and 1995. Some are barely out of college, others still in grade school. However, we all have one thing in common; we are the children of the baby boomers.
In September of 2005, CBS’s 60 Minutes did a program titled, “The Echo Boomers.” As correspondent Steve Kroft reported we quickly learned the term echo boomers came from the demographic echo Generation-Y became of their parents, the baby boomers. The hour then consisted of interviews with doctors, a professor, historian, and two real, live echo boomers all discussing the most talked about generation to date.
“They are multitaskers, with cell phones, music downloads, and instant messaging on the Internet,” reports Kroft. “Through sheer numbers, they’re beginning to change society. They have affected school construction, college enrollments, product development, and media content,” he later added.
One of the most important unwritten rules regarding the very serious game called our lives is that things change. Unexpectedly, unwillingly, inadvertently, they change. In a world where society and the economy are facing drastic changes, so are its people.
“It’s naïve to believe generation after generation will continually follow in each other’s footsteps,” says Katherine Rimola, 21, a graduating Communication Arts student of Marymount Manhattan College who will receive her diploma with only three years of college under her belt. “We’re not spoiled,” she continued, “we’re just different.”
Nick Summers, then a college senior at Columbia University and editor of its newspaper, said during the 60 minutes interview, “my generation tends to be very overachieving, over-managed, very pressured.”
“I’ve always been an over-achiever, since I was in grade school. I knew I would be able to complete my BA in communications in three years, so I did,” Rimola said.
Two years after the first program aired, CBS decided it wasn’t enough and went on to do a second episode of 60 Minutes this time titled, “The ‘Millennials’ Are Coming.” As Correspondent Morley Safer reported this time around, the episode explored virtually the same things “The Echo Boomers” had but this time with an intent focus on the workplace.
“The workplace has become a psychological battlefield and the millennials have the upper hand, because they are tech savvy, with every gadget imaginable almost becoming an extension of their bodies. They multitask, talk, walk, listen and type, and text,” reports Safer. In other words, in “millennial” terms, we can do more than two things at once. What’s so bad about that?
Why yes, Mr. CEO, I can communicate with five people at the same time via internet thanks to AOL’s instant messenger. I can also type a paper, update my iPod, e-mail a professor and talk to my mother on the phone all while watching my homegirl, Oprah. This is what we, the echo boomers, call multitasking. It will become useful to you when we place our seven different assignments on your desk all a day before they’re due.
As for being “tech savvy,” we know we are. There is no denying it; Generation Y has been technologically spoiled. We have things the baby boomer generation never could have dreamed of having. Our parents have transitioned to getting up off the couch to the television and decide which program to watch between their five channels on their tiny black and white television, to now relaxing on their Lazy Boys while flipping through the five-hundred and then some channels on their 60-plus inch flat screen TV equipped with surround sound and something called high-definition that makes a football game appear as if it’s happening in their very own living room.
So what?
These technological advances do not mean we don’t work as hard as our parents once did in the workplace. It doesn’t mean we don’t have high goals and it certainly doesn’t mean we’re not willing to do whatever it takes to reach the point in our lives we have dreamed we would once be.
Jason Dorsey, an author of two how-to books for the twenty-something millennials, told Safer, “We’re not going to settle. Because we saw our parents settle and we have options. That we can keep hopping jobs. No longer is it bad to have four jobs on your resume in a year. Whereas for our parents or even Gen X, that was terrible. But that’s the new reality for us. And we’re going to keep adapting and switching and trying new things until we figure out what it is.”
“It’s a different world now,” says Ryan Donde, 21, a fourth-year business student at Montclair State University. “My dad has been at the same job for over 25 years. I can’t say I’ll ever want to stay somewhere for that long.”
This only raises the question, how exactly are the echo boomers a demographic echo of our parents, the baby boomers? What exactly do we replicate? Concluding everything we have heard from 60 Minutes we don’t play outside like our parents once did, we have things our parents never did, and we don’t work as hard as our parents have.
Here’s the bottom line, CBS: the echo boomers aren’t replicas of the baby boomers. Maybe we’re not like our parents, where’s the harm in that? Maybe we are clueless. Maybe we’d rather stay inside to watch the E! Network than go outside and run around. Maybe we think we’re more special than everyone else just because our parents told us so. Maybe we’re even crazy enough to believe our futures are in our hands, but the ones who are crazy enough to go after what they want are usually the ones who succeed.
By Alexa Breslin
Echo boomers, millennials, Generation Y. These are three terms given to the generation born between 1982 and 1995. Some are barely out of college, others still in grade school. However, we all have one thing in common; we are the children of the baby boomers.
In September of 2005, CBS’s 60 Minutes did a program titled, “The Echo Boomers.” As correspondent Steve Kroft reported we quickly learned the term echo boomers came from the demographic echo Generation-Y became of their parents, the baby boomers. The hour then consisted of interviews with doctors, a professor, historian, and two real, live echo boomers all discussing the most talked about generation to date.
“They are multitaskers, with cell phones, music downloads, and instant messaging on the Internet,” reports Kroft. “Through sheer numbers, they’re beginning to change society. They have affected school construction, college enrollments, product development, and media content,” he later added.
One of the most important unwritten rules regarding the very serious game called our lives is that things change. Unexpectedly, unwillingly, inadvertently, they change. In a world where society and the economy are facing drastic changes, so are its people.
“It’s naïve to believe generation after generation will continually follow in each other’s footsteps,” says Katherine Rimola, 21, a graduating Communication Arts student of Marymount Manhattan College who will receive her diploma with only three years of college under her belt. “We’re not spoiled,” she continued, “we’re just different.”
Nick Summers, then a college senior at Columbia University and editor of its newspaper, said during the 60 minutes interview, “my generation tends to be very overachieving, over-managed, very pressured.”
“I’ve always been an over-achiever, since I was in grade school. I knew I would be able to complete my BA in communications in three years, so I did,” Rimola said.
Two years after the first program aired, CBS decided it wasn’t enough and went on to do a second episode of 60 Minutes this time titled, “The ‘Millennials’ Are Coming.” As Correspondent Morley Safer reported this time around, the episode explored virtually the same things “The Echo Boomers” had but this time with an intent focus on the workplace.
“The workplace has become a psychological battlefield and the millennials have the upper hand, because they are tech savvy, with every gadget imaginable almost becoming an extension of their bodies. They multitask, talk, walk, listen and type, and text,” reports Safer. In other words, in “millennial” terms, we can do more than two things at once. What’s so bad about that?
Why yes, Mr. CEO, I can communicate with five people at the same time via internet thanks to AOL’s instant messenger. I can also type a paper, update my iPod, e-mail a professor and talk to my mother on the phone all while watching my homegirl, Oprah. This is what we, the echo boomers, call multitasking. It will become useful to you when we place our seven different assignments on your desk all a day before they’re due.
As for being “tech savvy,” we know we are. There is no denying it; Generation Y has been technologically spoiled. We have things the baby boomer generation never could have dreamed of having. Our parents have transitioned to getting up off the couch to the television and decide which program to watch between their five channels on their tiny black and white television, to now relaxing on their Lazy Boys while flipping through the five-hundred and then some channels on their 60-plus inch flat screen TV equipped with surround sound and something called high-definition that makes a football game appear as if it’s happening in their very own living room.
So what?
These technological advances do not mean we don’t work as hard as our parents once did in the workplace. It doesn’t mean we don’t have high goals and it certainly doesn’t mean we’re not willing to do whatever it takes to reach the point in our lives we have dreamed we would once be.
Jason Dorsey, an author of two how-to books for the twenty-something millennials, told Safer, “We’re not going to settle. Because we saw our parents settle and we have options. That we can keep hopping jobs. No longer is it bad to have four jobs on your resume in a year. Whereas for our parents or even Gen X, that was terrible. But that’s the new reality for us. And we’re going to keep adapting and switching and trying new things until we figure out what it is.”
“It’s a different world now,” says Ryan Donde, 21, a fourth-year business student at Montclair State University. “My dad has been at the same job for over 25 years. I can’t say I’ll ever want to stay somewhere for that long.”
This only raises the question, how exactly are the echo boomers a demographic echo of our parents, the baby boomers? What exactly do we replicate? Concluding everything we have heard from 60 Minutes we don’t play outside like our parents once did, we have things our parents never did, and we don’t work as hard as our parents have.
Here’s the bottom line, CBS: the echo boomers aren’t replicas of the baby boomers. Maybe we’re not like our parents, where’s the harm in that? Maybe we are clueless. Maybe we’d rather stay inside to watch the E! Network than go outside and run around. Maybe we think we’re more special than everyone else just because our parents told us so. Maybe we’re even crazy enough to believe our futures are in our hands, but the ones who are crazy enough to go after what they want are usually the ones who succeed.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
College Life
A College Education Or Just College Debt?
By Alexa Breslin
I can faintly recall standing online at Mrs. Field’s cookie shop. I was much younger and it was Christmas time; the mall was packed. I stood patiently on the never-ending line with my parents anticipating which cookie I would get. When we got close to the cash register, I pressed my face to the glass to admire the sweet selection.
The young man who had been standing in front of us asked the employee how much a cookie was. “A dollar seventy-five,” she replied. The young man looked down into this wallet and quickly looked back up. “It’s a sad day when you can’t afford a cookie,” he said sadly and walked away. I remember wondering where his mother and father were to buy him a cookie and why they hadn’t given him enough money. Now, I’m well aware. He was in college.
Going to college is no easy task, nor is it reasonably affordable, especially when you attend a school in New York City. Transportation prices are constantly on the rise, books can cost somewhere around $500 a semester, and just discussing tuition is a headache in itself.
According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, the most expensive college in the country is George Washington University, totaling a whopping $37,820 per year, or about 82% of the average middle-class family’s yearly income of $46,362.
“My college debt affects everything I do and every decision I make. I don’t have leisure thinking," says Jacqueline Massary, 20, a third-year student at New York University, one of the most expensive universities in the nation. "It makes me choose a major based on potential income instead of passion. It affects the jobs and internships I take, where I live, and how much money I can spend daily.”
In fact, not only does college debt affect the student personally, but family members as well. “I spend money, but it really affects the way my parents buy things because although the loans are in my name, they’re worried that because it costs so much if something happens, I won’t be able to pay,” Massary added.
With constant anxiety hanging over your head about the thousands of dollars you or your parents will one day have to repay, things that once seemed necessary turn into luxuries. For instance, getting a cup of coffee everyday before class can add up to fifty dollars a month. Add typical college habits such as smoking and drinking and you can easily surpass $300.
“I’m bad at saving money, but I’ve had to downgrade my expenses since I’ve been in college," says Janelle Jahnke, 21, a fourth-year nursing student at Villanova University. "In high school, I used to go to Starbucks at least once a week. Now I think I’ve been there three times since I started college. I shop at less expensive stores and I use my meal card as much as possible,” she added.
Between the endless expenses and barely enough money to make ends meet, you begin to give up things. “I used to go to a lot more concerts in high school,” says Ryan Donde, 21, a third-year business student at Montclair State University. “I haven’t bought a CD in years. It’s too much money. I need the money to pay for my car each month.”
I realize I don’t go out half as much as I used to. Between cab fare and beer prices, the amount of money you can blow on a Saturday night is downright unreasonable. Sweatpants, a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, and a pile of homework begins to look enticing as opposed to dreadful.
Because of the institution I’ve devoted a sickening amount of money to, I live in an apartment whose entire square footage is probably the same as a smaller sized basement somewhere in suburbia. I share just about everything, including a room, closet, and desk. I, luckily, managed somehow to get my own bed and toothbrush.
So what are we left to do? We depend on Christmas presents and birthday checks. We get jobs. We end up waiting tables, working in retail or some nine-to-five job we begin to loathe. Between paychecks, we skip meals and instead fill up on coffee or some other caffeine-induced beverage to get us through the day.
But what do we do in the meantime? Between the point where we are now and when we hope to be financially comfortable somewhere in the near future? Plain and simple: we have to ride it out. Somewhere between all the complaining and whining we eventually have to realize it doesn’t get us any farther toward where we want to be. We’ll still whine of course, if only for some sympathy. But the blunt realization that I’m a lot more fortunate than the homeless man down the street sure gives me some perspective.
I recently walked into my local Starbucks to get the largest cup of coffee possible that would be the motor for the eight to ten page paper I had to write that night. I stood behind the register looking at the menu. A venti was $3.10. I looked into my wallet and saw two measly dollar bills. Why had I emptied out all my change the other day?
“Can I help you?” asked the barista disrupting my thoughts. I looked up at him and smiled. “It’s a sad day,” I said, “when you can’t afford a cup of coffee.” And with that, I went home, to my teeny-tiny apartment, to make my own.
By Alexa Breslin
I can faintly recall standing online at Mrs. Field’s cookie shop. I was much younger and it was Christmas time; the mall was packed. I stood patiently on the never-ending line with my parents anticipating which cookie I would get. When we got close to the cash register, I pressed my face to the glass to admire the sweet selection.
The young man who had been standing in front of us asked the employee how much a cookie was. “A dollar seventy-five,” she replied. The young man looked down into this wallet and quickly looked back up. “It’s a sad day when you can’t afford a cookie,” he said sadly and walked away. I remember wondering where his mother and father were to buy him a cookie and why they hadn’t given him enough money. Now, I’m well aware. He was in college.
Going to college is no easy task, nor is it reasonably affordable, especially when you attend a school in New York City. Transportation prices are constantly on the rise, books can cost somewhere around $500 a semester, and just discussing tuition is a headache in itself.
According to The Chronicle of Higher Education, the most expensive college in the country is George Washington University, totaling a whopping $37,820 per year, or about 82% of the average middle-class family’s yearly income of $46,362.
“My college debt affects everything I do and every decision I make. I don’t have leisure thinking," says Jacqueline Massary, 20, a third-year student at New York University, one of the most expensive universities in the nation. "It makes me choose a major based on potential income instead of passion. It affects the jobs and internships I take, where I live, and how much money I can spend daily.”
In fact, not only does college debt affect the student personally, but family members as well. “I spend money, but it really affects the way my parents buy things because although the loans are in my name, they’re worried that because it costs so much if something happens, I won’t be able to pay,” Massary added.
With constant anxiety hanging over your head about the thousands of dollars you or your parents will one day have to repay, things that once seemed necessary turn into luxuries. For instance, getting a cup of coffee everyday before class can add up to fifty dollars a month. Add typical college habits such as smoking and drinking and you can easily surpass $300.
“I’m bad at saving money, but I’ve had to downgrade my expenses since I’ve been in college," says Janelle Jahnke, 21, a fourth-year nursing student at Villanova University. "In high school, I used to go to Starbucks at least once a week. Now I think I’ve been there three times since I started college. I shop at less expensive stores and I use my meal card as much as possible,” she added.
Between the endless expenses and barely enough money to make ends meet, you begin to give up things. “I used to go to a lot more concerts in high school,” says Ryan Donde, 21, a third-year business student at Montclair State University. “I haven’t bought a CD in years. It’s too much money. I need the money to pay for my car each month.”
I realize I don’t go out half as much as I used to. Between cab fare and beer prices, the amount of money you can blow on a Saturday night is downright unreasonable. Sweatpants, a pint of Ben & Jerry’s, and a pile of homework begins to look enticing as opposed to dreadful.
Because of the institution I’ve devoted a sickening amount of money to, I live in an apartment whose entire square footage is probably the same as a smaller sized basement somewhere in suburbia. I share just about everything, including a room, closet, and desk. I, luckily, managed somehow to get my own bed and toothbrush.
So what are we left to do? We depend on Christmas presents and birthday checks. We get jobs. We end up waiting tables, working in retail or some nine-to-five job we begin to loathe. Between paychecks, we skip meals and instead fill up on coffee or some other caffeine-induced beverage to get us through the day.
But what do we do in the meantime? Between the point where we are now and when we hope to be financially comfortable somewhere in the near future? Plain and simple: we have to ride it out. Somewhere between all the complaining and whining we eventually have to realize it doesn’t get us any farther toward where we want to be. We’ll still whine of course, if only for some sympathy. But the blunt realization that I’m a lot more fortunate than the homeless man down the street sure gives me some perspective.
I recently walked into my local Starbucks to get the largest cup of coffee possible that would be the motor for the eight to ten page paper I had to write that night. I stood behind the register looking at the menu. A venti was $3.10. I looked into my wallet and saw two measly dollar bills. Why had I emptied out all my change the other day?
“Can I help you?” asked the barista disrupting my thoughts. I looked up at him and smiled. “It’s a sad day,” I said, “when you can’t afford a cup of coffee.” And with that, I went home, to my teeny-tiny apartment, to make my own.
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Diversity Series
Welcome To America, Leave Your Voice At Home
By Alejandro Fernandez
Small adobe shacks. Unforgiving heat. Modest economy. Rampant corruption. Religious fervor. Compared to the world of HDTV, satellite radio, Starbucks coffee, Big Macs, iPods, and countless other luxuries, those descriptions appear insultingly gruesome.
Few Americans can imagine such living conditions outside of PBS documentaries airing on their plasma television screens. Even fewer Americans can dream of living under such conditions.
“When I tell people what life was like in Venezuela, many people feel sorry for me,” says Coralia Blanco, 69. “They envision a little, frail girl with dirty clothing and a sad face. They assume I am happy now in America, the land of abundance and choice,” she says, “and that I would never want to return to La Asuncion.”
Coralia Blanco enjoys a group hug
Blanco, a widow for two years, was born in La Asuncion, the capital of Margarita Island, the largest and most important island of Nueva Esparta, one of the 23 Venezuelan states. Margarita covers an area of approximately 410 squared miles. Its tropical climate, two mountain ranges, and countless exotic beaches explain its honorable nickname, The Pearl of the Caribbean.
“I left the Pearl of the Caribbean and all my people for the epicenter of concrete,” Blanco says. “It’s really difficult to get up and go outside sometimes, especially now that the heavenly father has taken my Manuel [her husband for 45 years]. It’s difficult knowing that clear blue water, salty air, and friendly smiles do not await me on the streets of Newark.”
Blanco’s gentle nature makes her an ideal
Nanny, one of her part-time jobs.
Blanco says she misses hearing the waves break, the birds sing, and the church bell announcing the time. "I miss sneaking off to the beach for a few hours after school before I had to go home and help my mother with the chores. You might think I’m crazy, but I even miss my mother punishing me for being late, or for ruining my Sunday shoes hiking. I miss it all,” she says.
Immigration statistics are often difficult to collect, and many times unreliable. In any case, it is safe to say that Coralia Blanco is not the only Venezuelan who misses her land. The U.S. Census Bureau’s 2000 census, lists the total Venezuelans in the U.S. at 126,000, while unofficial figures indicate that as many as 150,000 Venezuelans have moved to the U.S. under Hugo Chavez’s rule. According to The New York Times, the Venezuelan community in the U.S. has grown more than 94 percent this decade, from 91,507 in 2000, the year after Hugo Chavez took office, to 177,866 in 2006.
Other sources, like El Venezolano and El Nuevo Herald, two Miami-based newspapers published in Spanish, estimate as many as 180,000 Venezuelans currently live in Florida alone, whereas Census Bureau demographers believe 40,781 live in the Sunshine State.
If nothing else, these statistics reveal changing trends. During its oil boom in the 1960s and 1970s, Venezuela absorbed more than 500,000 Colombians and Caribbeans, and an estimated 1.5 million Europeans (primarily from Spain, Portugal, and Italy) between 1940 and 1970. Now, Venezuelans are the ones seeking social stability and financial opportunities elsewhere.
Coralia Blanco was born at a tumultuous time. In 1939, the Western powers prepared for what eventually became a long and costly war—in terms of both money and human resources. While Venezuela did not enter World War II, times where no less turbulent. Malaria was the biggest killer. Personal feuds and rivalries dominated political affairs. Marx, Castro, Betancourt, Medina, Chalbaud, and Contreras were household names. Foreign companies salivated over the prospect of Venezuelan oil.
“When I was six or seven years old, my brother told me stories about American and British businessmen who went to our lagoons and mountains,” Blanco explains. “They were very excited about a black gooey substance that came out of the earth. The children were awestruck by the men’s interest in it. Our mothers had reprimanded us for getting dirty, and yet here were these white men wearing expensive suits and smiling like little children.”
When narrating her country’s history and its current position in the world, Blanco diverts her round brown eyes. She is embarrassed and disappointed by the fact that the rest of the world seems to paint Venezuela in a poor light. Venezuela rarely makes it onto the pages, airwaves, or websites of The New York Times, CBS, CNN and other news outlets. When the news media does run a story on the South American country, it often revolves around Hugo Chavez’s corrupt government, border conflicts with Colombia, or crimes like kidnappings and murders.
Blanco yearns to be heard.
Blanco has tried to expand Americans’ knowledge of Venezuela since she first landed in Newark, New Jersey in 1969. Her first significant encounter was with leftist students from Rutgers University who embraced the Argentinean revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara.
“Che Guevara had been killed two years earlier in Bolivia. People thought I embraced his ideology simply because I fled a country—probably the only country in South America—that did not embrace Guevara or Castro and their ideologies,” Blanco says. “You can’t begin to imagine the reactions Manuel and I received when our neighbor’s son found out our stance on a lot of issues of the time. People thought that we would be Socialists just because we came from Venezuela. They did not understand that Venezuela had a very functional democracy at the time and that our reasons for emigrating were of a more personal nature.”
Herein lies the biggest problem all immigrants face. Their voices are not heard. Sociological “experts” often cite the difficulty of leaving loved ones behind and the need to adapt to new languages, customs, schedules, people, and lifestyles as the prevalent challenges for people moving to new countries, especially after childhood. But these problems are miniscule when compared to the solitude, helplessness, and repression that result from being mute.
“I do not dislike America. America has given me a lot more than I could have imagined," Blanco says. I send a good sum of money to my family every month. I live in an apartment bigger than anything I ever read about. I have a television set. I have all these great things and yet I feel sad at times."
Some people define such sadness as nostalgia, a yearning for one’s home. “Maybe it is nostalgia,” Blanco acquiesces. “I yearn for the days I spoke and people listened.”
By Alejandro Fernandez
Small adobe shacks. Unforgiving heat. Modest economy. Rampant corruption. Religious fervor. Compared to the world of HDTV, satellite radio, Starbucks coffee, Big Macs, iPods, and countless other luxuries, those descriptions appear insultingly gruesome.
Few Americans can imagine such living conditions outside of PBS documentaries airing on their plasma television screens. Even fewer Americans can dream of living under such conditions.
“When I tell people what life was like in Venezuela, many people feel sorry for me,” says Coralia Blanco, 69. “They envision a little, frail girl with dirty clothing and a sad face. They assume I am happy now in America, the land of abundance and choice,” she says, “and that I would never want to return to La Asuncion.”
Coralia Blanco enjoys a group hug
Blanco, a widow for two years, was born in La Asuncion, the capital of Margarita Island, the largest and most important island of Nueva Esparta, one of the 23 Venezuelan states. Margarita covers an area of approximately 410 squared miles. Its tropical climate, two mountain ranges, and countless exotic beaches explain its honorable nickname, The Pearl of the Caribbean.
“I left the Pearl of the Caribbean and all my people for the epicenter of concrete,” Blanco says. “It’s really difficult to get up and go outside sometimes, especially now that the heavenly father has taken my Manuel [her husband for 45 years]. It’s difficult knowing that clear blue water, salty air, and friendly smiles do not await me on the streets of Newark.”
Blanco’s gentle nature makes her an ideal
Nanny, one of her part-time jobs.
Blanco says she misses hearing the waves break, the birds sing, and the church bell announcing the time. "I miss sneaking off to the beach for a few hours after school before I had to go home and help my mother with the chores. You might think I’m crazy, but I even miss my mother punishing me for being late, or for ruining my Sunday shoes hiking. I miss it all,” she says.
Immigration statistics are often difficult to collect, and many times unreliable. In any case, it is safe to say that Coralia Blanco is not the only Venezuelan who misses her land. The U.S. Census Bureau’s 2000 census, lists the total Venezuelans in the U.S. at 126,000, while unofficial figures indicate that as many as 150,000 Venezuelans have moved to the U.S. under Hugo Chavez’s rule. According to The New York Times, the Venezuelan community in the U.S. has grown more than 94 percent this decade, from 91,507 in 2000, the year after Hugo Chavez took office, to 177,866 in 2006.
Other sources, like El Venezolano and El Nuevo Herald, two Miami-based newspapers published in Spanish, estimate as many as 180,000 Venezuelans currently live in Florida alone, whereas Census Bureau demographers believe 40,781 live in the Sunshine State.
If nothing else, these statistics reveal changing trends. During its oil boom in the 1960s and 1970s, Venezuela absorbed more than 500,000 Colombians and Caribbeans, and an estimated 1.5 million Europeans (primarily from Spain, Portugal, and Italy) between 1940 and 1970. Now, Venezuelans are the ones seeking social stability and financial opportunities elsewhere.
Coralia Blanco was born at a tumultuous time. In 1939, the Western powers prepared for what eventually became a long and costly war—in terms of both money and human resources. While Venezuela did not enter World War II, times where no less turbulent. Malaria was the biggest killer. Personal feuds and rivalries dominated political affairs. Marx, Castro, Betancourt, Medina, Chalbaud, and Contreras were household names. Foreign companies salivated over the prospect of Venezuelan oil.
“When I was six or seven years old, my brother told me stories about American and British businessmen who went to our lagoons and mountains,” Blanco explains. “They were very excited about a black gooey substance that came out of the earth. The children were awestruck by the men’s interest in it. Our mothers had reprimanded us for getting dirty, and yet here were these white men wearing expensive suits and smiling like little children.”
When narrating her country’s history and its current position in the world, Blanco diverts her round brown eyes. She is embarrassed and disappointed by the fact that the rest of the world seems to paint Venezuela in a poor light. Venezuela rarely makes it onto the pages, airwaves, or websites of The New York Times, CBS, CNN and other news outlets. When the news media does run a story on the South American country, it often revolves around Hugo Chavez’s corrupt government, border conflicts with Colombia, or crimes like kidnappings and murders.
Blanco yearns to be heard.
Blanco has tried to expand Americans’ knowledge of Venezuela since she first landed in Newark, New Jersey in 1969. Her first significant encounter was with leftist students from Rutgers University who embraced the Argentinean revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara.
“Che Guevara had been killed two years earlier in Bolivia. People thought I embraced his ideology simply because I fled a country—probably the only country in South America—that did not embrace Guevara or Castro and their ideologies,” Blanco says. “You can’t begin to imagine the reactions Manuel and I received when our neighbor’s son found out our stance on a lot of issues of the time. People thought that we would be Socialists just because we came from Venezuela. They did not understand that Venezuela had a very functional democracy at the time and that our reasons for emigrating were of a more personal nature.”
Herein lies the biggest problem all immigrants face. Their voices are not heard. Sociological “experts” often cite the difficulty of leaving loved ones behind and the need to adapt to new languages, customs, schedules, people, and lifestyles as the prevalent challenges for people moving to new countries, especially after childhood. But these problems are miniscule when compared to the solitude, helplessness, and repression that result from being mute.
“I do not dislike America. America has given me a lot more than I could have imagined," Blanco says. I send a good sum of money to my family every month. I live in an apartment bigger than anything I ever read about. I have a television set. I have all these great things and yet I feel sad at times."
Some people define such sadness as nostalgia, a yearning for one’s home. “Maybe it is nostalgia,” Blanco acquiesces. “I yearn for the days I spoke and people listened.”
Thursday, May 01, 2008
Campus Reporting
Marymount ‘Goes Green’ To Help The Environment
By Alexa Breslin
Marymount Manhattan College, a small liberal arts school located on the Upper East Side, has launched a year-long project hoping to raise environmental awareness within the college community.
Monday, April 14, marked the beginning of MMC’s “Year of the Environment,” a large effort within the entire campus to raise college and community awareness regarding serious environmental issues. Throughout the week, several members of the administration provided an example for students to follow. Fluorescent light bulbs were distributed while the art department led a recycled artists’ book workshop.
.jpg)
Professor Kurylo calls herself a 'paper
hoarder'
Continuing through Earth Day, Marymount had scheduled several events to launch Year of the Environment. Included was a panel, “Greening the Curriculum,” featuring three Marymount professors speaking out about environmental issues featuring methods to reduce pollution, an exploration of several academia environmental topics, and personal insights regarding these issues.
“They’ve been doing a great job with Earth Day and the events in the Black and White galleries. I hope it continues,” says Anastascia Kurylo, a professor in the Communication Arts department.
Beginning with a new environment-based curriculum, Marymount is now offering an Environmental Studies minor, as well as guest speakers and events regarding serious environmental issues and extra curricular activities such as the GoGreen club.
The administration may have created Year of the Environment and the activities to go with it, but they aren’t the only section of Marymount trying to green the school.
Many art students had energy-conserving artwork and presentations presented throughout the Black and White Galleries during throughout the week. Student clubs and organization representatives hosted activities such as raffles, giveaways, as well as arts and crafts all based around the environmental foundation.
Although there is little time left in the Spring 2008 semester, Marymount has fashioned opportunities for students to take part in turning green. The college’s annual Strawberry Fest will now feature organic strawberries as well as a GoGreen table to invite other students. There are still several opportunities for students to attend environmental awareness hearings.
While April 14 may have marked the beginning of a week-long effort to produce serious environmental awareness, it is only the start of a year that will be filled with ways to green the college and community.
“If greening the curriculum could be done more through classes and events that aren’t necessarily about being green we could weave it into the fabric of Marymount. For example, using Blackboard as part of a class. Then students have the option to print,” says Kurylo.
Marymount isn’t the only institution hoping to generate environmental awareness, many retail designers and stores have also been trying to gain an eco-friendly atmosphere. Stores such as Victoria’s Secret have started producing organic cotton t-shirts and tote bags. Each features the recycle logo or phrases such as “Make Green, Not War” and “Peace, Love, Green.”
It may not be easy transitioning from inorganic to organic food and clothing; but doing so will invite a greener community to follow over time.
“People have to be patient to be eco-friendly,” says Kurylo, “we’re on the right track.”
By Alexa Breslin
Marymount Manhattan College, a small liberal arts school located on the Upper East Side, has launched a year-long project hoping to raise environmental awareness within the college community.
Monday, April 14, marked the beginning of MMC’s “Year of the Environment,” a large effort within the entire campus to raise college and community awareness regarding serious environmental issues. Throughout the week, several members of the administration provided an example for students to follow. Fluorescent light bulbs were distributed while the art department led a recycled artists’ book workshop.
.jpg)
Professor Kurylo calls herself a 'paper
hoarder'
Continuing through Earth Day, Marymount had scheduled several events to launch Year of the Environment. Included was a panel, “Greening the Curriculum,” featuring three Marymount professors speaking out about environmental issues featuring methods to reduce pollution, an exploration of several academia environmental topics, and personal insights regarding these issues.
“They’ve been doing a great job with Earth Day and the events in the Black and White galleries. I hope it continues,” says Anastascia Kurylo, a professor in the Communication Arts department.
Beginning with a new environment-based curriculum, Marymount is now offering an Environmental Studies minor, as well as guest speakers and events regarding serious environmental issues and extra curricular activities such as the GoGreen club.
The administration may have created Year of the Environment and the activities to go with it, but they aren’t the only section of Marymount trying to green the school.
Many art students had energy-conserving artwork and presentations presented throughout the Black and White Galleries during throughout the week. Student clubs and organization representatives hosted activities such as raffles, giveaways, as well as arts and crafts all based around the environmental foundation.
Although there is little time left in the Spring 2008 semester, Marymount has fashioned opportunities for students to take part in turning green. The college’s annual Strawberry Fest will now feature organic strawberries as well as a GoGreen table to invite other students. There are still several opportunities for students to attend environmental awareness hearings.
While April 14 may have marked the beginning of a week-long effort to produce serious environmental awareness, it is only the start of a year that will be filled with ways to green the college and community.
“If greening the curriculum could be done more through classes and events that aren’t necessarily about being green we could weave it into the fabric of Marymount. For example, using Blackboard as part of a class. Then students have the option to print,” says Kurylo.
Marymount isn’t the only institution hoping to generate environmental awareness, many retail designers and stores have also been trying to gain an eco-friendly atmosphere. Stores such as Victoria’s Secret have started producing organic cotton t-shirts and tote bags. Each features the recycle logo or phrases such as “Make Green, Not War” and “Peace, Love, Green.”
It may not be easy transitioning from inorganic to organic food and clothing; but doing so will invite a greener community to follow over time.
“People have to be patient to be eco-friendly,” says Kurylo, “we’re on the right track.”
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
College Life
Prescription Drugs Aren’t Extra Curricular Activities
By Kat Piracha
.jpg)
Not your typical class requirement, or is it?
It’s your average college campus. A hallway of white walls, bulletin boards with campus activity dates, doors labeled with the names of the residents who reside within on carefully decorated construction paper. Who would suspect that behind these doors a group of co-eds has configured an intricate drug-trading scheme.
The whole dorm doesn’t get involved, but the few students who do get creative. This clique does not smoke crack or snort heroin. That’s too passé. History has taught these students that underground drugs like marijuana and crack are too complicated and dangerous to get. There’s a much simpler way to get high. These drugs have no smell to alert resident advisors, and they are completely inconspicuous. They are prescription drugs, such as Zoloft, Percocet, Adderol, and Demerol, to name a few, and on campuses across America, students are abusing them for recreational use.
In 2007, USA Today found that 51% of college students binge on drugs on an average of once a month. In 2006, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that 6%of children ages 12-17 try prescription drugs for the first time every month.
I followed a group of five prescription drug abusers on a college campus to observe their behavior. It all starts with their source. In this case, it was a 22 year-old senior named Erin, the daughter of two doctors, a surgeon and a psychiatrist. Growing up around doctors gives her easy access to prescription medication. Erin is in a lesbian relationship with Anne. (The names of the students in this article have been changed to protect their safety and privacy.)
Anne is a complex character, from an intense home. She has a bad relationship with her parents, and being a lesbian has only complicated it. Anne and Erin are full time students with C averages, no jobs and no internships. They spend a bulk of their time at the dorms, if not with each other, then with the other three people in their clique.
One afternoon in Anne’s room, I saw a loose pile of pills on her shelf next to her Ramen noodles, and Kraft’s Easy Mac. When I asked her about them, she simply replied, “from Erin.” She said she had back pain so Erin asked her father for some prescription painkillers for her girlfriend. Erin’s father, who hadn’t seen Anne in years, gave her a palmful of prescription painkillers.
.jpg)
A "gift" from a friend.
Later in the week, Anne needed money for groceries and to go out for the weekend. She called her friend Matt from the boys floor and offered to sell him most of her prescription painkillers. Matt paid her $15, and split them with two friends in his dorm. Later in the week, Anne gave Erin more money to get by.
I later found out that Erin was ignorant of Anne’s entrepreneurial skills. Very rarely did Anne take the painkillers. She was looking for a drug that could numb her emotional nerves. It was clear that Anne viewed drugs as the sole solution to her problems. She had been seeing the school’s counseling services to help her with the strain between her and her mother. One night she was complaining that her whole year in counseling had been a waste because her counselor hadn’t prescribed her any drugs.
Occasionally, Anne did take the prescription drugs. If she were with Matt and his friends they would all take them together, and sometimes smoke marijuana. The possibility of overdosing didn’t seem to alarm any of these co-eds. Perhaps they were paranoid about overdosing before they would take the pills, but after they took them, they didn’t seem to have any thoughts, on anything. Their ritual often consisted of popping pills, smoking marijuana and showing each other their favorite YouTube videos.
They did straddle the border of overdose and high a few times. It curbed their hunger for prescription drugs, but it didn’t diminish their amusement with drugs. At one point, Anne took nine painkillers before going to a bar with some of the girls on her floor who were oblivious to her habits. Later that night, after one drink, she squatted on the muddy floor of the bar.
While clenching her stomach she began to cry and said she was in too much pain to move. The group of girls seemed befuddled as what to do with her. Erin urged her to walk it off but Anne refused. A few girls insisted she go to hospital, but Anne resisted even more. Finally, she revealed that she was cleared of ovarian cancer a few years ago and lied that her pain was a side effect.
Some time later, I met an alumna of this clique named Ryan, who was a full time student with a full time job in an upscale retail store so he could pay for the housing portion of his tuition. He was so unlike any of the other co-eds in Anne’s clique. After sitting down with Ryan he further explained the dynamic of this group.
Anne and Matt had been friends in high school. They went their separate ways in college where Anne began a relationship with Erin. In Anne’s first semester of college, she was kicked out for drinking so she went home to her local community college and graduated with her an associate degree in psychology and a 3.8 GPA. Erin moved back home with her parents and commuted to school. Anne transferred to her current school near Erin and was reunited with Matt. Since then, the three and a few others, including Ryan, began experimenting with drugs Anne had acquired that her doctors prescribed her for "ovarian cancer." Later, Anne began acquiring prescription drugs from Erin’s dad.
It wasn’t long before all of their grades began to drop. Matt is currently on academic probation. Anne’s GPA has dropped to a low 2.0, and Erin keeps dropping classes that she's likely to fail so she can maintain her GPA. She’s scheduled to graduate three semesters late.
“I had to get out of there,” Ryan said about their situation. “Their lives are all on downward spirals and I knew that if I kept hanging around them I’d be failing out of college too.”
Ryan says he is looking looks optimistically to the future. He recently moved out of the dorms to separate himself from the toxic environment. For Anne, Erin, and Matt, only time will tell what will happen to them.
By Kat Piracha
.jpg)
Not your typical class requirement, or is it?
It’s your average college campus. A hallway of white walls, bulletin boards with campus activity dates, doors labeled with the names of the residents who reside within on carefully decorated construction paper. Who would suspect that behind these doors a group of co-eds has configured an intricate drug-trading scheme.
The whole dorm doesn’t get involved, but the few students who do get creative. This clique does not smoke crack or snort heroin. That’s too passé. History has taught these students that underground drugs like marijuana and crack are too complicated and dangerous to get. There’s a much simpler way to get high. These drugs have no smell to alert resident advisors, and they are completely inconspicuous. They are prescription drugs, such as Zoloft, Percocet, Adderol, and Demerol, to name a few, and on campuses across America, students are abusing them for recreational use.
In 2007, USA Today found that 51% of college students binge on drugs on an average of once a month. In 2006, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that 6%of children ages 12-17 try prescription drugs for the first time every month.
I followed a group of five prescription drug abusers on a college campus to observe their behavior. It all starts with their source. In this case, it was a 22 year-old senior named Erin, the daughter of two doctors, a surgeon and a psychiatrist. Growing up around doctors gives her easy access to prescription medication. Erin is in a lesbian relationship with Anne. (The names of the students in this article have been changed to protect their safety and privacy.)
Anne is a complex character, from an intense home. She has a bad relationship with her parents, and being a lesbian has only complicated it. Anne and Erin are full time students with C averages, no jobs and no internships. They spend a bulk of their time at the dorms, if not with each other, then with the other three people in their clique.
One afternoon in Anne’s room, I saw a loose pile of pills on her shelf next to her Ramen noodles, and Kraft’s Easy Mac. When I asked her about them, she simply replied, “from Erin.” She said she had back pain so Erin asked her father for some prescription painkillers for her girlfriend. Erin’s father, who hadn’t seen Anne in years, gave her a palmful of prescription painkillers.
.jpg)
A "gift" from a friend.
Later in the week, Anne needed money for groceries and to go out for the weekend. She called her friend Matt from the boys floor and offered to sell him most of her prescription painkillers. Matt paid her $15, and split them with two friends in his dorm. Later in the week, Anne gave Erin more money to get by.
I later found out that Erin was ignorant of Anne’s entrepreneurial skills. Very rarely did Anne take the painkillers. She was looking for a drug that could numb her emotional nerves. It was clear that Anne viewed drugs as the sole solution to her problems. She had been seeing the school’s counseling services to help her with the strain between her and her mother. One night she was complaining that her whole year in counseling had been a waste because her counselor hadn’t prescribed her any drugs.
Occasionally, Anne did take the prescription drugs. If she were with Matt and his friends they would all take them together, and sometimes smoke marijuana. The possibility of overdosing didn’t seem to alarm any of these co-eds. Perhaps they were paranoid about overdosing before they would take the pills, but after they took them, they didn’t seem to have any thoughts, on anything. Their ritual often consisted of popping pills, smoking marijuana and showing each other their favorite YouTube videos.
They did straddle the border of overdose and high a few times. It curbed their hunger for prescription drugs, but it didn’t diminish their amusement with drugs. At one point, Anne took nine painkillers before going to a bar with some of the girls on her floor who were oblivious to her habits. Later that night, after one drink, she squatted on the muddy floor of the bar.
While clenching her stomach she began to cry and said she was in too much pain to move. The group of girls seemed befuddled as what to do with her. Erin urged her to walk it off but Anne refused. A few girls insisted she go to hospital, but Anne resisted even more. Finally, she revealed that she was cleared of ovarian cancer a few years ago and lied that her pain was a side effect.
Some time later, I met an alumna of this clique named Ryan, who was a full time student with a full time job in an upscale retail store so he could pay for the housing portion of his tuition. He was so unlike any of the other co-eds in Anne’s clique. After sitting down with Ryan he further explained the dynamic of this group.
Anne and Matt had been friends in high school. They went their separate ways in college where Anne began a relationship with Erin. In Anne’s first semester of college, she was kicked out for drinking so she went home to her local community college and graduated with her an associate degree in psychology and a 3.8 GPA. Erin moved back home with her parents and commuted to school. Anne transferred to her current school near Erin and was reunited with Matt. Since then, the three and a few others, including Ryan, began experimenting with drugs Anne had acquired that her doctors prescribed her for "ovarian cancer." Later, Anne began acquiring prescription drugs from Erin’s dad.
It wasn’t long before all of their grades began to drop. Matt is currently on academic probation. Anne’s GPA has dropped to a low 2.0, and Erin keeps dropping classes that she's likely to fail so she can maintain her GPA. She’s scheduled to graduate three semesters late.
“I had to get out of there,” Ryan said about their situation. “Their lives are all on downward spirals and I knew that if I kept hanging around them I’d be failing out of college too.”
Ryan says he is looking looks optimistically to the future. He recently moved out of the dorms to separate himself from the toxic environment. For Anne, Erin, and Matt, only time will tell what will happen to them.
City Life
More Than You Can See
By Roya Yazhari
Look into her eyes. What do you see? A beautiful blonde girl without a care in the world? Or how about a young woman who must have a miraculous life with guys all over her? She must be a girl without a care in the world because in this society, if you have looks, you have everything, right?
Joy Fischer, a student from a small
Oregon town
Joy Fischer, age 20, grew up in the small, lower class town of Gresham, Oregon. She grew up living on “Snob Hill” because in this town, she was considered to be among one of the richest families. At age 15, before entering her freshman year of high school, Fischer moved to Lake Oswego, Oregon, one of the richest towns in the state. Here, she lived in an apartment with her mother and her brother and went from being the richest kid in town, to the poorest.
Students asked Fischer why she moved to Lake Oswego since Gresham was not very far away. She said her mother wanted her to be in a better school district. The truth was, her parents had began divorcing.
“My mom had my sister at age 18 and me at 21. It was not planned,” said Fischer. “My parents got married because it was the right thing to do in the Christian faith. When my sister Christine was born, she was diagnosed with a severe handicap, which meant she would never develop mentally passed the age of 5. This was so difficult on my family. When I was born shortly after, the responsibilities I was forced to take on as the second child were far beyond my years. I had to be my own mom.”
Fischer describes growing up in a household where she had to be mother to herself and her brother. She had to make her own breakfast, walk herself out to the bus stop every morning, and basically be as responsible as possible all the time.
“My father didn’t connect much with me. He never said I love you, and to this day he has a lot of trouble sharing his emotions.” This relationship with her father has led Fischer to be very cautious about any male she lets into her life.
According to the Americans for Divorce Forum, in 2002, 76 percent of the U.S. population had gotten a divorce. This is an alarming statistic. Single mother families increased from 7 million in 1990 to 10 million in 2000. Today, 13.8 million children live with just their mothers. Grimm-Wassil, in his book Where’s Daddy: How Divorced, Single and Widowed Mothers Can Provide What’s Missing When Dad’s Missing, states: “Female observation and perception is dependent upon whether they lost their father to divorce, abandonment or death, and at what age. How and why a father is absent will have an impact on the emotional and material outcome for the child.”
“I have met very few people that come from married, stable families. Those hardly exist,” Fischer says.
Fischer says her father was present for most of her childhood, however his emotional disinterest in her life has led her to feelings of emptiness she has been forced to battle in the last few years. “I am still dealing with these feelings,” Fischer says. “However, I am more in tune now with why I am feeling this why, and how to make it better.”
Fischer says she realized in the last year that it was not healthy to bottle up her feelings, and that she must express them in order to heal and move on. Fischer’s mother, Sonya, has always been very open with her. Fischer explains that what kept her from going down a bad path in life was that she had a great mom.
“My mom told me everything in my entire life. She talked to be about sex, relationships, friend groups, drugs, etc. I feel like I was educated at a very young age. My mom was always very open,” she says.
When asked if her relationship with her mother changed after the divorce, Fischer said, “I had to babysit all the time for my little brother. I think my mother felt that if she made me stay home, I was less likely to get into trouble. Little did she know, I was not the typical rebellious child. I didn’t drink, I got good grades, and my friends were nice!”
Fischer (right) with childhood friend,
Kelli
A study by the American group for single-parent households showed that children without a father figure in their life are more likely to not go to college. If this is the case, Fischer is the exception. She never let her life circumstances or hardships get in the way of her goals. Her father’s lack of support both emotionally and financially never hindered her from her fulfilling her dream of moving to New York City, going to college, and living the life she had always wanted to live. Most people get to this point in their lives with extreme amounts of help and support from parents. Fischer did it own her own.
Fischer (middle) at a formal event in
New York City
To this day, Fischer has issues with her father that need to be worked out. The fact that he recently remarried someone half his age, and his lack of emotional interest in her are among the many issues she is dealing with.
Behind the pretty face there is always baggage. The stereotype that pretty people have perfect lives must go away. There is no perfection in everything. Money can’t by happiness, and lack of money does not always hinder progress.
Fischer says, “If you have a goal in life and are motivated, you can be your own hero.”
By Roya Yazhari
Look into her eyes. What do you see? A beautiful blonde girl without a care in the world? Or how about a young woman who must have a miraculous life with guys all over her? She must be a girl without a care in the world because in this society, if you have looks, you have everything, right?
Joy Fischer, a student from a small
Oregon town
Joy Fischer, age 20, grew up in the small, lower class town of Gresham, Oregon. She grew up living on “Snob Hill” because in this town, she was considered to be among one of the richest families. At age 15, before entering her freshman year of high school, Fischer moved to Lake Oswego, Oregon, one of the richest towns in the state. Here, she lived in an apartment with her mother and her brother and went from being the richest kid in town, to the poorest.
Students asked Fischer why she moved to Lake Oswego since Gresham was not very far away. She said her mother wanted her to be in a better school district. The truth was, her parents had began divorcing.
“My mom had my sister at age 18 and me at 21. It was not planned,” said Fischer. “My parents got married because it was the right thing to do in the Christian faith. When my sister Christine was born, she was diagnosed with a severe handicap, which meant she would never develop mentally passed the age of 5. This was so difficult on my family. When I was born shortly after, the responsibilities I was forced to take on as the second child were far beyond my years. I had to be my own mom.”
Fischer describes growing up in a household where she had to be mother to herself and her brother. She had to make her own breakfast, walk herself out to the bus stop every morning, and basically be as responsible as possible all the time.
“My father didn’t connect much with me. He never said I love you, and to this day he has a lot of trouble sharing his emotions.” This relationship with her father has led Fischer to be very cautious about any male she lets into her life.
According to the Americans for Divorce Forum, in 2002, 76 percent of the U.S. population had gotten a divorce. This is an alarming statistic. Single mother families increased from 7 million in 1990 to 10 million in 2000. Today, 13.8 million children live with just their mothers. Grimm-Wassil, in his book Where’s Daddy: How Divorced, Single and Widowed Mothers Can Provide What’s Missing When Dad’s Missing, states: “Female observation and perception is dependent upon whether they lost their father to divorce, abandonment or death, and at what age. How and why a father is absent will have an impact on the emotional and material outcome for the child.”
“I have met very few people that come from married, stable families. Those hardly exist,” Fischer says.
Fischer says her father was present for most of her childhood, however his emotional disinterest in her life has led her to feelings of emptiness she has been forced to battle in the last few years. “I am still dealing with these feelings,” Fischer says. “However, I am more in tune now with why I am feeling this why, and how to make it better.”
Fischer says she realized in the last year that it was not healthy to bottle up her feelings, and that she must express them in order to heal and move on. Fischer’s mother, Sonya, has always been very open with her. Fischer explains that what kept her from going down a bad path in life was that she had a great mom.
“My mom told me everything in my entire life. She talked to be about sex, relationships, friend groups, drugs, etc. I feel like I was educated at a very young age. My mom was always very open,” she says.
When asked if her relationship with her mother changed after the divorce, Fischer said, “I had to babysit all the time for my little brother. I think my mother felt that if she made me stay home, I was less likely to get into trouble. Little did she know, I was not the typical rebellious child. I didn’t drink, I got good grades, and my friends were nice!”
Fischer (right) with childhood friend,
Kelli
A study by the American group for single-parent households showed that children without a father figure in their life are more likely to not go to college. If this is the case, Fischer is the exception. She never let her life circumstances or hardships get in the way of her goals. Her father’s lack of support both emotionally and financially never hindered her from her fulfilling her dream of moving to New York City, going to college, and living the life she had always wanted to live. Most people get to this point in their lives with extreme amounts of help and support from parents. Fischer did it own her own.
Fischer (middle) at a formal event in
New York City
To this day, Fischer has issues with her father that need to be worked out. The fact that he recently remarried someone half his age, and his lack of emotional interest in her are among the many issues she is dealing with.
Behind the pretty face there is always baggage. The stereotype that pretty people have perfect lives must go away. There is no perfection in everything. Money can’t by happiness, and lack of money does not always hinder progress.
Fischer says, “If you have a goal in life and are motivated, you can be your own hero.”
City Life
Citizenship Status Crushes Immigrant’s 2008 Voting Plans
By Sara Bauknecht
As the 2008 presidential election approaches, numerous men and women across the U.S. are eager to take part in an election that may bring about historic change for America. Mihajlo Spasojevic is one of those people—he values America’s political process and wants to be a part of it.
But for Spasojevic, a 34 year-old immigrant from Serbia, voting next November will likely remain nothing more than a dream. He is one of more than approximately 1.3 million legal permanent residents residing in America who will be forced to sit back and watch as others cast their ballots for the country’s next president. Although he pays taxes and has never committed a felony, his pending status as an American citizen prevents him from having a vote and, therefore, a voice in a country that is rooted in the principles of democracy.
Spasojevic, one of the more than 140,337 Serbian immigrants believed by the US Census Bureau to be living in America, came to New York City in 2002 in search of new career opportunities and a fresh beginning.
Mihajlo Spasojevic
Photo by Marija Vajs
“In Serbia, I achieved more or less everything I could have ever dreamed of accomplishing," Spasojevic said. "So when the opportunity came to move to America, I took it because it was a new challenge for me and a way for me to try to develop my writing career from scratch all over again.”
Upon settling in New York City, Spasojevic took time to explore America, a country he had previously never visited. “Although I had never been to America, moving here wasn’t scary because I had grown up under the influence of American culture. Even though I found some things different in America, nothing was shockingly different,” he said.
Spasojevic also did not find his relationship with his family and friends in Serbia to be too different once he had moved because he had always distanced himself from them due to his introverted personality.
“The transition went very smoothly. But I’m a very introverted, private person. So being separated from my family and friends isn’t as bad for me as it would be for someone who is more connected with the outside world,” Spasojevic said.
In the years following his immigration to the U.S., Spasojevic worked at a photo store and completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in English at Marymount Manhattan College. In 2007, he was accepted into the New York City Teaching Fellows program, which will allow him to begin working on his Masters degree in English Education in September 2008 while teaching creative writing in New York City public schools.
Because of these accomplishments, Spasojevic is pleased with the decision he made over six years ago to migrate to America. “I’m very happy that I came here, and I am becoming more and more happy about it all the time.”
Due to these positive experiences, and the life he has established in America, Spasojevic decided to apply for U.S. citizenship. “Since I want to stay here, I want to be able to be involved in the election process," he said. "As a permanent resident, you can do pretty much everything except vote. So, since I’m paying taxes, I want to be able to help determine how that tax money is spent through having the right to vote.”
When Spasojevic first applied for citizenship in September 2007, he was asked to resubmit his application because of a spelling error in his personal information that occurred during processing. After submitting his information again and waiting the required 45 days to correct such errors, Spasojevic learned that a similar mistake had been made when his information was rerecorded.
“It is definitely a frustrating experience," he said. "No one ever gives you a straight answer about what is going on, and there is always a cloud of mystery around the status of the situation. I’ve tried filing complaints, but I was advised to drop all of them since filing complaints slows down the application process even more.”
Now, almost eight months after Spasojevic first applied for naturalization, his citizenship status is still pending. “These delays don’t affect my daily life too much, but I was very excited to vote since I think this is going to be a crucial election in the future of America and the world. But it doesn’t look like that is going to happen due to the government offices being inefficient with handling immigration matters like mine,” he said.
Delays in obtaining American citizenship, like those that Spasojevic has experienced, are not rare. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the majority of naturalization applications can typically remain pending anywhere from 14 to 18 months. Furthermore, as the number of immigrants applying for citizenship continues to increase, the average time to become naturalized could grow longer.
In spite of the high volume of naturalization cases that remain pending for extended periods, the USCIS assures immigrants that steps are being taken to make its workforce more efficient. During 2008, USCIS plans to hire 3,000 additional employees to aid in processing citizenship applications, and to quadruple its funding for overtime workers. As a result of these efforts, USCIS Director Emilio Gonzalez, “expect[s] USCIS will have completed 36 percent more naturalization cases than last year without compromising national security or the integrity of the naturalization process.”
With between six million and eight million people expected to apply for American citizenship in the coming years, it is too soon to project whether the USCIS’s plans for improved efficiency will accommodate the needs of the country’s immigrants. “But we can only hope for the best,” said Spasojevic, “and just try to relax.”
By Sara Bauknecht
As the 2008 presidential election approaches, numerous men and women across the U.S. are eager to take part in an election that may bring about historic change for America. Mihajlo Spasojevic is one of those people—he values America’s political process and wants to be a part of it.
But for Spasojevic, a 34 year-old immigrant from Serbia, voting next November will likely remain nothing more than a dream. He is one of more than approximately 1.3 million legal permanent residents residing in America who will be forced to sit back and watch as others cast their ballots for the country’s next president. Although he pays taxes and has never committed a felony, his pending status as an American citizen prevents him from having a vote and, therefore, a voice in a country that is rooted in the principles of democracy.
Spasojevic, one of the more than 140,337 Serbian immigrants believed by the US Census Bureau to be living in America, came to New York City in 2002 in search of new career opportunities and a fresh beginning.
Mihajlo Spasojevic
Photo by Marija Vajs
“In Serbia, I achieved more or less everything I could have ever dreamed of accomplishing," Spasojevic said. "So when the opportunity came to move to America, I took it because it was a new challenge for me and a way for me to try to develop my writing career from scratch all over again.”
Upon settling in New York City, Spasojevic took time to explore America, a country he had previously never visited. “Although I had never been to America, moving here wasn’t scary because I had grown up under the influence of American culture. Even though I found some things different in America, nothing was shockingly different,” he said.
Spasojevic also did not find his relationship with his family and friends in Serbia to be too different once he had moved because he had always distanced himself from them due to his introverted personality.
“The transition went very smoothly. But I’m a very introverted, private person. So being separated from my family and friends isn’t as bad for me as it would be for someone who is more connected with the outside world,” Spasojevic said.
In the years following his immigration to the U.S., Spasojevic worked at a photo store and completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in English at Marymount Manhattan College. In 2007, he was accepted into the New York City Teaching Fellows program, which will allow him to begin working on his Masters degree in English Education in September 2008 while teaching creative writing in New York City public schools.
Because of these accomplishments, Spasojevic is pleased with the decision he made over six years ago to migrate to America. “I’m very happy that I came here, and I am becoming more and more happy about it all the time.”
Due to these positive experiences, and the life he has established in America, Spasojevic decided to apply for U.S. citizenship. “Since I want to stay here, I want to be able to be involved in the election process," he said. "As a permanent resident, you can do pretty much everything except vote. So, since I’m paying taxes, I want to be able to help determine how that tax money is spent through having the right to vote.”
When Spasojevic first applied for citizenship in September 2007, he was asked to resubmit his application because of a spelling error in his personal information that occurred during processing. After submitting his information again and waiting the required 45 days to correct such errors, Spasojevic learned that a similar mistake had been made when his information was rerecorded.
“It is definitely a frustrating experience," he said. "No one ever gives you a straight answer about what is going on, and there is always a cloud of mystery around the status of the situation. I’ve tried filing complaints, but I was advised to drop all of them since filing complaints slows down the application process even more.”
Now, almost eight months after Spasojevic first applied for naturalization, his citizenship status is still pending. “These delays don’t affect my daily life too much, but I was very excited to vote since I think this is going to be a crucial election in the future of America and the world. But it doesn’t look like that is going to happen due to the government offices being inefficient with handling immigration matters like mine,” he said.
Delays in obtaining American citizenship, like those that Spasojevic has experienced, are not rare. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the majority of naturalization applications can typically remain pending anywhere from 14 to 18 months. Furthermore, as the number of immigrants applying for citizenship continues to increase, the average time to become naturalized could grow longer.
In spite of the high volume of naturalization cases that remain pending for extended periods, the USCIS assures immigrants that steps are being taken to make its workforce more efficient. During 2008, USCIS plans to hire 3,000 additional employees to aid in processing citizenship applications, and to quadruple its funding for overtime workers. As a result of these efforts, USCIS Director Emilio Gonzalez, “expect[s] USCIS will have completed 36 percent more naturalization cases than last year without compromising national security or the integrity of the naturalization process.”
With between six million and eight million people expected to apply for American citizenship in the coming years, it is too soon to project whether the USCIS’s plans for improved efficiency will accommodate the needs of the country’s immigrants. “But we can only hope for the best,” said Spasojevic, “and just try to relax.”
City Life
An Unexpected Graduation Present
By Amber Gray
For most 18 to 21 year-olds, their daily world is all about the pursuit of fun. Weekends are filled with keg parties, flip cupping, beer pong’ing and bar hopping, and they often carry an attitude that they are entitled to these activities.
The right to wake up Monday morning still hung over from Saturday night, able to fulfill their aspirations and goals because they led the traditional high school life of applying for college, because they are told it is the only way to make it in the real world, graduating and going to that perfect school so they can get a diploma and that great job they “deserve.”
What makes these young people even luckier is that many of them have amazing parents who pay for the path to these dreams, and sometimes even slip a few $20s bills in their bank accounts to help contribute to their crazy weekends, just so they can have the best college experience ever.
But not all young adults take the conventional route. Christine Lewis, commonly known as “Chrissy,” is a 20-year-old Wethersfield, Connecticut native. I hadn’t seen her in nearly a year so when she walked into the local Starbucks for our interview, we ended up talking for hours. Dressed in a frilly pink skirt and a button up top, and sporting new chic blonde tresses, her face was glowing and she looked utterly happy.
Christine Lewis
When she was 17, and a senior in high school, she had similar dreams that many of us are working to fulfill now. She was a proud honor society member, varsity cheerleader, manager for the women’s treble choir and working a part-time job. With the world at her fingertips, she really felt the desire to take on college and continue her success.
“Chrissy was extremely well rounded and had, and still has so many goals she wants to accomplish,” says her sister, Claire Lewis.
However, these aspirations needed to be put on hold. Days before her graduation, Chrissy woke up with pains in her stomach, cramps and morning sickness. “I literally wanted to die. I didn’t know what was happening to me. It was nothing like anything I’ve experienced before,” says Lewis of her experience.
Lewis reflected on a night that happened just about a month previously when she regrettably spent a night with an old flame, Kyle, and found him lying next to her in bed the next morning.
Alarmed about her morning sickness, she immediately took a pregnancy test and when the two pink plus signs showed up, a calm and collected Lewis took responsibility. “I learn from my mistakes, I don’t just make them disappear,” said Lewis, who commonly could be found with a bible in her backpack at school, and morally, knew what she needed to decide. “Abortion was never an option for me. It works for others, but it’s just not in my faith. I attend church, I knew that God had this planned for me and I just knew my parents would be supportive,” she said.
According to The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, some 560,000 teenage girls give birth each year. Almost one-sixth of all U.S. births are to teenage women. The costs of teen pregnancy are staggering. Teen mothers are less likely to complete high school, less likely to get married, and more likely to go on welfare than their peers and be dependent on their parents.
Lewis’s relationship with her mother was quite different. “The day I told my mom I was pregnant was so nerve racking because she can be very rigid but very loving and understanding.” Lewis’s mother, Marie, said her daughter’s confession was “mature.”
“She told me she was pregnant and at first I was disappointed,” said Marie Lewis. “But we brought Chrissy up as a strong Catholic and when she said she wanted to take full responsibility and love this child, I was relieved she wanted to keep it because my daughter, to me, had made the right choice and would be a great mother.”
The only question that needed an answer was what would be the father’s role in the child’s life. “Kyle was back together with another ex-girlfriend when I found out I was pregnant,” said Lewis. “When I told him, he said when the baby was closer to being born, he would take full responsibility for it but wanted to concentrate on his girlfriend for now. Although it was selfish, I was just concerned about having the father be a part of the baby’s life and didn’t want to fight,” she said.
Finally, Lewis could rest knowing that all she could do now was be healthy and take care of herself. She followed the typical pregnant woman’s nine month journey, attending child birth classes (with her mom), many nights of McDonald’s Oreo McFlurry cravings combined with readings from, “What To Expect When You’re Expecting,” and shopping sprees at Kids R’ US for the best items for her bundle of joy.
It seemed Lewis wasn’t a kid anymore and she didn’t take it lightly. ”At my baby shower is when I realized I was losing my childhood. I had tons of my high school friends come and when they were leaving they started talking about their plans for the evening, to go out to a party with some new guys they had just met. I got really upset. I knew it wasn’t intentional of them, but I thought that I may never have that life back.”
But Lewis didn’t dwell on what might have been, and instead she regained her motivation. She finally entered into the final stretch of her pregnancy, eight months and three weeks, with a belly bigger than ever. “I hated being that fat. So gross,” she joked.
On January 31, 2006, she felt whopping pains down her back so bad that she couldn’t stand up. “I knew it was it,” she said. “Mother’s intuition I guess.” Her mother took her into the emergency room and almost immediately, her water broke. She was going into labor, at 17, so young and so strong.
“She was a champ. She fought off that epidural until she saw Kyle walk into the room. She knew she was going to slap him because he was late so she gave in,” Claire Lewis laughed.
Marie Lewis, with “Chrissy” and her son, Noah
After seven hours of labor, her son Noah James was born at 4:52 pm. “When he came out I was speechless. I couldn’t stop crying. He was so beautiful. We joked and said he was our future underwear model and he would make mommy lots of money.”
Noah, now 2-1/2, is a big, handsome boy for his age. Lewis and he are inseparable and all of her friends take care of him as if he is their own. “Everyone loves Noah. Often I will bring him to my work at the grocery story and just spend hours there. He is so popular and I always have a baby sitter.” Lewis says.
Lewis and son, Noah
Lewis is now back at school at a community college, working part time and still finding time to be with friends. “I’m 20 years old, there’s no way I’m letting these years get away from me. I still go out and party every now and then. But I keep Noah as the biggest priority in my life,” she said.
Lewis is truly lucky, and has overcome obstacles that many teenage mothers face. “I don’t regret a thing and I couldn’t imagine not having Noah in my life,” Lewis said. “Of course I couldn’t do it without the people in my life who give me the willpower to do so.”
By Amber Gray
For most 18 to 21 year-olds, their daily world is all about the pursuit of fun. Weekends are filled with keg parties, flip cupping, beer pong’ing and bar hopping, and they often carry an attitude that they are entitled to these activities.
The right to wake up Monday morning still hung over from Saturday night, able to fulfill their aspirations and goals because they led the traditional high school life of applying for college, because they are told it is the only way to make it in the real world, graduating and going to that perfect school so they can get a diploma and that great job they “deserve.”
What makes these young people even luckier is that many of them have amazing parents who pay for the path to these dreams, and sometimes even slip a few $20s bills in their bank accounts to help contribute to their crazy weekends, just so they can have the best college experience ever.
But not all young adults take the conventional route. Christine Lewis, commonly known as “Chrissy,” is a 20-year-old Wethersfield, Connecticut native. I hadn’t seen her in nearly a year so when she walked into the local Starbucks for our interview, we ended up talking for hours. Dressed in a frilly pink skirt and a button up top, and sporting new chic blonde tresses, her face was glowing and she looked utterly happy.
Christine Lewis
When she was 17, and a senior in high school, she had similar dreams that many of us are working to fulfill now. She was a proud honor society member, varsity cheerleader, manager for the women’s treble choir and working a part-time job. With the world at her fingertips, she really felt the desire to take on college and continue her success.
“Chrissy was extremely well rounded and had, and still has so many goals she wants to accomplish,” says her sister, Claire Lewis.
However, these aspirations needed to be put on hold. Days before her graduation, Chrissy woke up with pains in her stomach, cramps and morning sickness. “I literally wanted to die. I didn’t know what was happening to me. It was nothing like anything I’ve experienced before,” says Lewis of her experience.
Lewis reflected on a night that happened just about a month previously when she regrettably spent a night with an old flame, Kyle, and found him lying next to her in bed the next morning.
Alarmed about her morning sickness, she immediately took a pregnancy test and when the two pink plus signs showed up, a calm and collected Lewis took responsibility. “I learn from my mistakes, I don’t just make them disappear,” said Lewis, who commonly could be found with a bible in her backpack at school, and morally, knew what she needed to decide. “Abortion was never an option for me. It works for others, but it’s just not in my faith. I attend church, I knew that God had this planned for me and I just knew my parents would be supportive,” she said.
According to The National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, some 560,000 teenage girls give birth each year. Almost one-sixth of all U.S. births are to teenage women. The costs of teen pregnancy are staggering. Teen mothers are less likely to complete high school, less likely to get married, and more likely to go on welfare than their peers and be dependent on their parents.
Lewis’s relationship with her mother was quite different. “The day I told my mom I was pregnant was so nerve racking because she can be very rigid but very loving and understanding.” Lewis’s mother, Marie, said her daughter’s confession was “mature.”
“She told me she was pregnant and at first I was disappointed,” said Marie Lewis. “But we brought Chrissy up as a strong Catholic and when she said she wanted to take full responsibility and love this child, I was relieved she wanted to keep it because my daughter, to me, had made the right choice and would be a great mother.”
The only question that needed an answer was what would be the father’s role in the child’s life. “Kyle was back together with another ex-girlfriend when I found out I was pregnant,” said Lewis. “When I told him, he said when the baby was closer to being born, he would take full responsibility for it but wanted to concentrate on his girlfriend for now. Although it was selfish, I was just concerned about having the father be a part of the baby’s life and didn’t want to fight,” she said.
Finally, Lewis could rest knowing that all she could do now was be healthy and take care of herself. She followed the typical pregnant woman’s nine month journey, attending child birth classes (with her mom), many nights of McDonald’s Oreo McFlurry cravings combined with readings from, “What To Expect When You’re Expecting,” and shopping sprees at Kids R’ US for the best items for her bundle of joy.
It seemed Lewis wasn’t a kid anymore and she didn’t take it lightly. ”At my baby shower is when I realized I was losing my childhood. I had tons of my high school friends come and when they were leaving they started talking about their plans for the evening, to go out to a party with some new guys they had just met. I got really upset. I knew it wasn’t intentional of them, but I thought that I may never have that life back.”
But Lewis didn’t dwell on what might have been, and instead she regained her motivation. She finally entered into the final stretch of her pregnancy, eight months and three weeks, with a belly bigger than ever. “I hated being that fat. So gross,” she joked.
On January 31, 2006, she felt whopping pains down her back so bad that she couldn’t stand up. “I knew it was it,” she said. “Mother’s intuition I guess.” Her mother took her into the emergency room and almost immediately, her water broke. She was going into labor, at 17, so young and so strong.
“She was a champ. She fought off that epidural until she saw Kyle walk into the room. She knew she was going to slap him because he was late so she gave in,” Claire Lewis laughed.
Marie Lewis, with “Chrissy” and her son, Noah
After seven hours of labor, her son Noah James was born at 4:52 pm. “When he came out I was speechless. I couldn’t stop crying. He was so beautiful. We joked and said he was our future underwear model and he would make mommy lots of money.”
Noah, now 2-1/2, is a big, handsome boy for his age. Lewis and he are inseparable and all of her friends take care of him as if he is their own. “Everyone loves Noah. Often I will bring him to my work at the grocery story and just spend hours there. He is so popular and I always have a baby sitter.” Lewis says.
Lewis and son, Noah
Lewis is now back at school at a community college, working part time and still finding time to be with friends. “I’m 20 years old, there’s no way I’m letting these years get away from me. I still go out and party every now and then. But I keep Noah as the biggest priority in my life,” she said.
Lewis is truly lucky, and has overcome obstacles that many teenage mothers face. “I don’t regret a thing and I couldn’t imagine not having Noah in my life,” Lewis said. “Of course I couldn’t do it without the people in my life who give me the willpower to do so.”
City Life
A Tale Of Two Cultures
By Alexandra Kolbeck
Dressed in blue jeans and a grey and black, striped sweater, Alain Furcajg, a 26 year-old freelance filmmaker, appears to be your average, young New Yorker living in some hipster corner of Brooklyn. His English is almost impeccable. “The Golden Hour” is how he described the time of day during our interview in Union Square Park. Other than a few mistranslated American idioms, no one would guess that Furcajg grew up in France before moving to New York only one year ago.
Furcajg was born in raised in Paris, which is not only the capital of the country, but is also France’s largest city. France, with an estimated population of more than 64 million people, mostly speaking the French language, one can only imagine how difficult the language barrier between French and English must be. U.S. Census data shows that from 1981 to 1990, 23,149 people immigrated to the U.S. from France. From 1991 to 2000, the number of French immigrants rose to 27,444. But from 2000 to 2005, the number French immigrants fell to 22,177.
Although France has a high unemployment rate, the government offers French citizens social protections in employment, as well as affordable health care. These are only a few of the differences Furcajg spoke of when we met one recent Tuesday evening.
.jpg)
Furcajg, a transplanted
Parisian wants to make it
in New York.
The child of an American woman studying abroad in Paris and a Polish textile merchant running his family business, Furcajg comes from a unique background. His father was born in Poland and escaped during World War II to Normandy, France. His family found protection on a farm with two other Jewish families until the war ended.
Thereafter, the family moved to the outskirts of Paris where Furcajg’s grandfather began his own textile business. Years later, Furcajg’s father took over the business. A native of New York, Furcajg’s mother was studying French at the Sorbonne at the same time his father was studying philosophy there. After marrying, they moved to Paris and had Furcajg in 1981.
Furcajg grew up as most French children do with school as their main focus. “School in America is a piece of joke,” he said before he corrected himself saying, “or cake, is it?”
For him, school began at 8:00am and would run as late as 6:00 pm with an hour break for lunch. After school, he said children would go home and spend time with their family, eat dinner, watch an hour of television, if they were lucky, and then study for one or two more hours before going to bed.
“Not many children were able to play sports because you don’t have the time," he said. "On the weekend you have to devote at least one full day to studying so if you played a sport it was only one day a weekend, if that,” Furcajg explained.
Furcajg said that unlike America, colleges do not give scholarships, for sports nor does a college education cost as much. College is France is free unless you go to a private one, and even then, the most expensive college is around $10,000. He also said the level of difficulty in French high school is equivalent to that of an American college.
Furcajg said it is normal for about 90% of French children to fail at least one year of elementary education because it is so difficult. French students also must take the baccalaureate exam in order to graduate high school. For the 60% of those who fail, they must repeat the entire year and retake the exam.
"Finding a job once you do graduate college is very difficult in France because of the high level of unemployment," he said.
However, the French government offers social protection to its citizens for this reason. A full time position in France is 35 hours per week with a six week paid vacation and full benefits. When someone loses their job, they can claim unemployment for up to six months from the government.
“I feel that Americans are very money driven," said Furcajg. "That is not necessarily bad, but France definitely nurtures our people and takes care of them in ways America does not.”
When asked Furcajg what he felt were the main social differences between the French and Americans, he had much to say. “Americans are more of nomads where the French tend to stay at home. French people are also more introverted and conservative," he said. "The French intellectualize everything and complain a lot. They can be very critical.”
When it comes to women, Furcajg feels there is a huge difference in the way they are perceived. There is a French proverb that is well known about women in France. It translates to, “Be beautiful, and shut up,” Furcajg explained. “French women are very quiet. They will never make eye contact with you at a bar or make the first move. If they get drunk and crazy at a party French guys are totally turned off,” he said, adding, “American women are much more open and independent. They are more like dudes and are more open about their sexuality.”
Moving to New York City, of all the places to move in America, Furcajg said he definitely experienced a bit of a culture shock. However, it isn’t the shock you might expect.
“Parisians are bitter and cold compared to New Yorkers,” Furcajg said. “I have no regrets about moving here and have met some very interesting people.” As for the future, Furcajg hopes to continue his filmmaking career and establish himself in New York. He added, “I wouldn’t mind finding love in America if she’s willing to travel with me so I can surf all over the world.”
By Alexandra Kolbeck
Dressed in blue jeans and a grey and black, striped sweater, Alain Furcajg, a 26 year-old freelance filmmaker, appears to be your average, young New Yorker living in some hipster corner of Brooklyn. His English is almost impeccable. “The Golden Hour” is how he described the time of day during our interview in Union Square Park. Other than a few mistranslated American idioms, no one would guess that Furcajg grew up in France before moving to New York only one year ago.
Furcajg was born in raised in Paris, which is not only the capital of the country, but is also France’s largest city. France, with an estimated population of more than 64 million people, mostly speaking the French language, one can only imagine how difficult the language barrier between French and English must be. U.S. Census data shows that from 1981 to 1990, 23,149 people immigrated to the U.S. from France. From 1991 to 2000, the number of French immigrants rose to 27,444. But from 2000 to 2005, the number French immigrants fell to 22,177.
Although France has a high unemployment rate, the government offers French citizens social protections in employment, as well as affordable health care. These are only a few of the differences Furcajg spoke of when we met one recent Tuesday evening.
.jpg)
Furcajg, a transplanted
Parisian wants to make it
in New York.
The child of an American woman studying abroad in Paris and a Polish textile merchant running his family business, Furcajg comes from a unique background. His father was born in Poland and escaped during World War II to Normandy, France. His family found protection on a farm with two other Jewish families until the war ended.
Thereafter, the family moved to the outskirts of Paris where Furcajg’s grandfather began his own textile business. Years later, Furcajg’s father took over the business. A native of New York, Furcajg’s mother was studying French at the Sorbonne at the same time his father was studying philosophy there. After marrying, they moved to Paris and had Furcajg in 1981.
Furcajg grew up as most French children do with school as their main focus. “School in America is a piece of joke,” he said before he corrected himself saying, “or cake, is it?”
For him, school began at 8:00am and would run as late as 6:00 pm with an hour break for lunch. After school, he said children would go home and spend time with their family, eat dinner, watch an hour of television, if they were lucky, and then study for one or two more hours before going to bed.
“Not many children were able to play sports because you don’t have the time," he said. "On the weekend you have to devote at least one full day to studying so if you played a sport it was only one day a weekend, if that,” Furcajg explained.
Furcajg said that unlike America, colleges do not give scholarships, for sports nor does a college education cost as much. College is France is free unless you go to a private one, and even then, the most expensive college is around $10,000. He also said the level of difficulty in French high school is equivalent to that of an American college.
Furcajg said it is normal for about 90% of French children to fail at least one year of elementary education because it is so difficult. French students also must take the baccalaureate exam in order to graduate high school. For the 60% of those who fail, they must repeat the entire year and retake the exam.
"Finding a job once you do graduate college is very difficult in France because of the high level of unemployment," he said.
However, the French government offers social protection to its citizens for this reason. A full time position in France is 35 hours per week with a six week paid vacation and full benefits. When someone loses their job, they can claim unemployment for up to six months from the government.
“I feel that Americans are very money driven," said Furcajg. "That is not necessarily bad, but France definitely nurtures our people and takes care of them in ways America does not.”
When asked Furcajg what he felt were the main social differences between the French and Americans, he had much to say. “Americans are more of nomads where the French tend to stay at home. French people are also more introverted and conservative," he said. "The French intellectualize everything and complain a lot. They can be very critical.”
When it comes to women, Furcajg feels there is a huge difference in the way they are perceived. There is a French proverb that is well known about women in France. It translates to, “Be beautiful, and shut up,” Furcajg explained. “French women are very quiet. They will never make eye contact with you at a bar or make the first move. If they get drunk and crazy at a party French guys are totally turned off,” he said, adding, “American women are much more open and independent. They are more like dudes and are more open about their sexuality.”
Moving to New York City, of all the places to move in America, Furcajg said he definitely experienced a bit of a culture shock. However, it isn’t the shock you might expect.
“Parisians are bitter and cold compared to New Yorkers,” Furcajg said. “I have no regrets about moving here and have met some very interesting people.” As for the future, Furcajg hopes to continue his filmmaking career and establish himself in New York. He added, “I wouldn’t mind finding love in America if she’s willing to travel with me so I can surf all over the world.”
City Life
Discreetly, And Lavishly Working His Way Through College
By Brian Batista
It is another mild spring morning in the city that never sleeps. Just before 9 a.m., the rush hour crunch is at its peak, and the island of Manhattan is in full swing. As you walk down the major streets of New York City, it is literally impossible to predict the life of the people walking along side you the minute you step out into the crowded streets. It is what makes living in New York a special environment, when their concerns, are not your concerns.
Of these millions of people, one man, named “Alex”, whose real name is not used to protect his identity, is a 21-year-old aspiring fashion designer, attending Parsons School of Design. Like most college students, Alex works to make ends meet. However, he didn’t just go to the Gap and ask for a job application. He knew he needed a significant income to be able to pay rent, save money to start his own fashion line, and pay for other half of school that federal aid does not cover. Alex works as an on-call escort, and woke up one recent morning in the lavish hotel room of one of his regular clients.
“Sometimes, I look at what I do, and need to laugh," he said. "I never thought that I would move to New York and be involved in this field of work. But let’s face it, a retail job is not going to help me pay the rent, pay for some of my school, and keep up with my lifestyle. It was almost a no-brainer to fall into this kind of work. I chose to do it,” he added.
Alex, a native of Miami, landed in New York at 17, after being thrown out of the home of his highly religious family when he came out to them. He came to New York because his best friend had just moved here, and knew he could rely on him.
“He’s six years older than me, and at the time he had just moved into the place we share now, and needed help with the rent,” Alex said. He landed a position as a fast food worker just to make enough for the rent, but as he recalls “it was enough to help with rent and eat occasionally, everything here is so expensive”.
Shortly after arriving, Alex enrolled at a high school to complete his senior year, and that’s where he met the person who introduced him to the underground game of male escorting in New York City. It is a world filled with drugs, sexually transmitted diseases and disposable income to throw around. Upon graduation that summer, his mentor supplied him with fake identification, an online profile, and advice.
“He told me never to have sex without a condom, to never accept any drink or food from a client if offered, and to never give out my real name and address,” Alex said.
Alex would use his fake ID to attend the biggest parties where escorts would roam the dance floor for potential clients. He would also use his online profile to communicate with clients wanting services.
“When I started escorting at 18, I was not making any money at all," he said. "I wasn’t exactly sure what to do and how to go about it, and my (mentor) taught me techniques that would bring me a lot of money, and it did."
Alex described his mating strategy. "I always went for the well-dressed, clean-looking and sometimes older clients. They are usually the ones with the most money. I always went for the highest hourly, or daily, rate.”
The online escort game is an industry that pulls in between $10 million to $20 million annually, depending on the methods used, national locations and escorts, according to industry reports.
Alex has posted himself on a website where potential clients can contact and chat with him directly. In order to keep himself on the site, he must pay $50 a month so he can remain on the market. He has the liberty to post his own pictures and information for any client to see. After a client contacts him and they determine a time and a place to meet, Alex keeps all of his earnings.
The many risks Alex faces in doing this kind of work include sexually transmitted diseases, being ambushed by police and psychical abuse. Since Alex is independently posted, and hired out of a website, he has no means of protection by another person. He is putting his life into his own hands every time he meets with a client.
His clients usually hire him off the Internet because it is discreet and short. The Internet works as a springboard for those looking for no strings attached entertainment, often using fake names, renting out hotel rooms and never transmitting their photographs. Rates and services are posted next to the profiles of each escort, and the potential client chooses from there.
“The clients are scared they will get caught by the police, or that I will “out” them to their wives," he said. "Most of the clients I serve are married men with children, millionaire moguls, traveling business men and city workers. We will meet at a hotel or the home that a married client shares with his wife, during the day when no one is home. Some wish to experiment with drugs or drink before the act. But I never do it because it’s a rule of thumb in the lifestyle--never take candy from strangers.”
Alex said he has heard of some narrow escapes. “Another escort friend of mine almost died last night in the hands of a client who tried to rape him, steal his money, and stab him to death. It is a scary thought to know that could happen to me, and at times it makes me want to stop altogether. To turn to the police is a risk, because its either you will be charged and jailed for prostitution, or your luck will be that the cop you run to for help is an old client.”
Alex left his client at the Gansevoort Hotel that morning, heading for his shared apartment in Chelsea, before going to Parsons to debut one of his final collections for his advanced design class. He will graduate Parsons this semester with a 3.2 GPA and an internship with a major American designer.
“I feel like things are starting to fall into place," he said. "It will only be a matter of time before I land a secure position and I can leave this industry behind me. After having nine steady clients since the age of 19, I have made over $150,000. So much of that money went into school, and buying fabrics to make my own collection. I still live off the money, and am making more of it now. With the exception of my best friend and four other friends in the industry, no one knows what I do. Being discreet is part of the job, and I will soon leave the industry, and stop lying about how I make my money.”
By Brian Batista
It is another mild spring morning in the city that never sleeps. Just before 9 a.m., the rush hour crunch is at its peak, and the island of Manhattan is in full swing. As you walk down the major streets of New York City, it is literally impossible to predict the life of the people walking along side you the minute you step out into the crowded streets. It is what makes living in New York a special environment, when their concerns, are not your concerns.
Of these millions of people, one man, named “Alex”, whose real name is not used to protect his identity, is a 21-year-old aspiring fashion designer, attending Parsons School of Design. Like most college students, Alex works to make ends meet. However, he didn’t just go to the Gap and ask for a job application. He knew he needed a significant income to be able to pay rent, save money to start his own fashion line, and pay for other half of school that federal aid does not cover. Alex works as an on-call escort, and woke up one recent morning in the lavish hotel room of one of his regular clients.
“Sometimes, I look at what I do, and need to laugh," he said. "I never thought that I would move to New York and be involved in this field of work. But let’s face it, a retail job is not going to help me pay the rent, pay for some of my school, and keep up with my lifestyle. It was almost a no-brainer to fall into this kind of work. I chose to do it,” he added.
Alex, a native of Miami, landed in New York at 17, after being thrown out of the home of his highly religious family when he came out to them. He came to New York because his best friend had just moved here, and knew he could rely on him.
“He’s six years older than me, and at the time he had just moved into the place we share now, and needed help with the rent,” Alex said. He landed a position as a fast food worker just to make enough for the rent, but as he recalls “it was enough to help with rent and eat occasionally, everything here is so expensive”.
Shortly after arriving, Alex enrolled at a high school to complete his senior year, and that’s where he met the person who introduced him to the underground game of male escorting in New York City. It is a world filled with drugs, sexually transmitted diseases and disposable income to throw around. Upon graduation that summer, his mentor supplied him with fake identification, an online profile, and advice.
“He told me never to have sex without a condom, to never accept any drink or food from a client if offered, and to never give out my real name and address,” Alex said.
Alex would use his fake ID to attend the biggest parties where escorts would roam the dance floor for potential clients. He would also use his online profile to communicate with clients wanting services.
“When I started escorting at 18, I was not making any money at all," he said. "I wasn’t exactly sure what to do and how to go about it, and my (mentor) taught me techniques that would bring me a lot of money, and it did."
Alex described his mating strategy. "I always went for the well-dressed, clean-looking and sometimes older clients. They are usually the ones with the most money. I always went for the highest hourly, or daily, rate.”
The online escort game is an industry that pulls in between $10 million to $20 million annually, depending on the methods used, national locations and escorts, according to industry reports.
Alex has posted himself on a website where potential clients can contact and chat with him directly. In order to keep himself on the site, he must pay $50 a month so he can remain on the market. He has the liberty to post his own pictures and information for any client to see. After a client contacts him and they determine a time and a place to meet, Alex keeps all of his earnings.
The many risks Alex faces in doing this kind of work include sexually transmitted diseases, being ambushed by police and psychical abuse. Since Alex is independently posted, and hired out of a website, he has no means of protection by another person. He is putting his life into his own hands every time he meets with a client.
His clients usually hire him off the Internet because it is discreet and short. The Internet works as a springboard for those looking for no strings attached entertainment, often using fake names, renting out hotel rooms and never transmitting their photographs. Rates and services are posted next to the profiles of each escort, and the potential client chooses from there.
“The clients are scared they will get caught by the police, or that I will “out” them to their wives," he said. "Most of the clients I serve are married men with children, millionaire moguls, traveling business men and city workers. We will meet at a hotel or the home that a married client shares with his wife, during the day when no one is home. Some wish to experiment with drugs or drink before the act. But I never do it because it’s a rule of thumb in the lifestyle--never take candy from strangers.”
Alex said he has heard of some narrow escapes. “Another escort friend of mine almost died last night in the hands of a client who tried to rape him, steal his money, and stab him to death. It is a scary thought to know that could happen to me, and at times it makes me want to stop altogether. To turn to the police is a risk, because its either you will be charged and jailed for prostitution, or your luck will be that the cop you run to for help is an old client.”
Alex left his client at the Gansevoort Hotel that morning, heading for his shared apartment in Chelsea, before going to Parsons to debut one of his final collections for his advanced design class. He will graduate Parsons this semester with a 3.2 GPA and an internship with a major American designer.
“I feel like things are starting to fall into place," he said. "It will only be a matter of time before I land a secure position and I can leave this industry behind me. After having nine steady clients since the age of 19, I have made over $150,000. So much of that money went into school, and buying fabrics to make my own collection. I still live off the money, and am making more of it now. With the exception of my best friend and four other friends in the industry, no one knows what I do. Being discreet is part of the job, and I will soon leave the industry, and stop lying about how I make my money.”
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Millennials In The New Millennium
Millennials Or Extraterrestrials?
By Kat Piracha
“A new breed of (blank) is about to attack everything you hold sacred: from giving orders, to your starched white shirt and tie. They are called, among other things, "Millennials."
“American worker” is supposed to be in the (blank) in the above statement. But according to two specials from CBS’s 60 Minutes, "The Millennials Are Coming" and "The Echo Boomers," this is how young American adults in the workplace are. It almost seems like they are not speaking of human beings. It sounds like the description of an extraterrestrial attack.
New generations of “Millennials” or “Echo Boomers” are coming, and they are going to replace the baby boomers in the work place, run offices with the most up-to-date technology, and allow coworkers to perform in flip-flops on hot days.
I think I read about this in the Book of Revelation. This is surely a sign of the Apocalypse. First terrorists drove planes into our towers killing thousands of civilians, then the U.S. occupied Iraq, the country is sliding into a recession, homeowners are barely capable of covering their mortgages, and “Millennials” work with their ipods on.
Perhaps many young Americans do seem non-traditional in corporate America. However, many institutions do groom students in preparation for the work place. These “Millennials” go on to blend into corporate America. Is there going to be a 60 Minutes on them? Probably not. These shows are propaganda. The two episodes on young Americans not fitting in with Baby Boomers in the work place seems like a story done because of outraged employers, upset by the few employees that have shocked them.
Take the alumni of college preparatory schools from the Northeast, alumni from private and Ivy League schools and see if they conform to these “Millennial” behaviors. At Maria Regina Preparatory High School for girls in Westchester, New York, a seminar is offered every year for girls in their junior year about etiquette in the work place.
That means at the tender years of 16, these young women are taught that any piercing and/or tattoos they may get in the near future should be able to be covered up when they enter the work place. They are taught to arrive 15 minutes before a job interview, write thank you notes, and not use slang around their employers.
At Saint Gregory the Great school in Harrison, New York a private school for grades K-8, administrators take students from grade six and up on periodic dinners to demonstrate proper dinner etiquette and suitability for the future. These young students are taught to sit up, put napkins on their laps, use cutlery, among other courtesies. Where are these students on the 60 Minutes reports?
Tiffany Mayuga, a recent graduate of Manhattanville College, a private liberal arts and science college has just been hired to work as a part of a marketing company in the Mecca of corporate America, midtown Manhattan.
At the ripe age of 23, her work wardrobe consists of button down shirts and black power suits. She has no tattoos and only one piercing on each ear. “It's unfair to put that (prejudice) on us and assume that because we’re computer savvy we’re inefficient,” says Mayuga. It’s more than the way we dress to go to work, or whether we listen to iPods when we work. It’s about our ability to meet deadlines.”
_edited.jpg)
Tiffany Mayuga defies
the stereotype offered
by 60 Minutes.
Rest assured America. Historian Neil Howe and co-author William Strauss who were interviewed on 60 Minutes have spent a majority of their careers studying generations and have come to the grand conclusion that this generation of young adults will be different from the previous generation of baby-boomers. Shocking.
Both 60 Minutes reports seem incredibly biased. To dissect a generation under a camera lens is a waste of intelligent peoples' time. You don’t have to be a historian or an academic to realize that there will be personality differences between generations. It’s nature. Without progress, we would still be in a cave in Pangaea carving obscure figures on walls.
Perhaps the next time 60 Minutes does a report on an entire generation of Americans they should include every member of that generation, not just the few who conform to a stereotype.
By Kat Piracha
“A new breed of (blank) is about to attack everything you hold sacred: from giving orders, to your starched white shirt and tie. They are called, among other things, "Millennials."
“American worker” is supposed to be in the (blank) in the above statement. But according to two specials from CBS’s 60 Minutes, "The Millennials Are Coming" and "The Echo Boomers," this is how young American adults in the workplace are. It almost seems like they are not speaking of human beings. It sounds like the description of an extraterrestrial attack.
New generations of “Millennials” or “Echo Boomers” are coming, and they are going to replace the baby boomers in the work place, run offices with the most up-to-date technology, and allow coworkers to perform in flip-flops on hot days.
I think I read about this in the Book of Revelation. This is surely a sign of the Apocalypse. First terrorists drove planes into our towers killing thousands of civilians, then the U.S. occupied Iraq, the country is sliding into a recession, homeowners are barely capable of covering their mortgages, and “Millennials” work with their ipods on.
Perhaps many young Americans do seem non-traditional in corporate America. However, many institutions do groom students in preparation for the work place. These “Millennials” go on to blend into corporate America. Is there going to be a 60 Minutes on them? Probably not. These shows are propaganda. The two episodes on young Americans not fitting in with Baby Boomers in the work place seems like a story done because of outraged employers, upset by the few employees that have shocked them.
Take the alumni of college preparatory schools from the Northeast, alumni from private and Ivy League schools and see if they conform to these “Millennial” behaviors. At Maria Regina Preparatory High School for girls in Westchester, New York, a seminar is offered every year for girls in their junior year about etiquette in the work place.
That means at the tender years of 16, these young women are taught that any piercing and/or tattoos they may get in the near future should be able to be covered up when they enter the work place. They are taught to arrive 15 minutes before a job interview, write thank you notes, and not use slang around their employers.
At Saint Gregory the Great school in Harrison, New York a private school for grades K-8, administrators take students from grade six and up on periodic dinners to demonstrate proper dinner etiquette and suitability for the future. These young students are taught to sit up, put napkins on their laps, use cutlery, among other courtesies. Where are these students on the 60 Minutes reports?
Tiffany Mayuga, a recent graduate of Manhattanville College, a private liberal arts and science college has just been hired to work as a part of a marketing company in the Mecca of corporate America, midtown Manhattan.
At the ripe age of 23, her work wardrobe consists of button down shirts and black power suits. She has no tattoos and only one piercing on each ear. “It's unfair to put that (prejudice) on us and assume that because we’re computer savvy we’re inefficient,” says Mayuga. It’s more than the way we dress to go to work, or whether we listen to iPods when we work. It’s about our ability to meet deadlines.”
_edited.jpg)
Tiffany Mayuga defies
the stereotype offered
by 60 Minutes.
Rest assured America. Historian Neil Howe and co-author William Strauss who were interviewed on 60 Minutes have spent a majority of their careers studying generations and have come to the grand conclusion that this generation of young adults will be different from the previous generation of baby-boomers. Shocking.
Both 60 Minutes reports seem incredibly biased. To dissect a generation under a camera lens is a waste of intelligent peoples' time. You don’t have to be a historian or an academic to realize that there will be personality differences between generations. It’s nature. Without progress, we would still be in a cave in Pangaea carving obscure figures on walls.
Perhaps the next time 60 Minutes does a report on an entire generation of Americans they should include every member of that generation, not just the few who conform to a stereotype.
Millennials In The New Millennium
Mister Rogers Says “You’re Special”
Damn Right We Are
By Amber Gray
I remember being in second grade and embracing the feeling of the soft keyboard against my fingertips for the very first time. I sat in awe glued to the computer screen that read AOL 2.0 “Get Connected.” This began my love for technology. I held it in my arms like a newborn baby and waited for more.
The media is defining echo boomers as those born between 1982 and 1995. According to 60 Minutes correspondent Morley Safer, we have the upper hand. “They are the first to grow up with computers at home, in a 500-channel TV universe. They are multitaskers with cell phones, music downloads, and Instant Messaging on the Internet,” he said.
Is this such a bad thing? What’s bad is that my 45 year-old mother recently asked me to take a typing test for her so she could get that job she’s been yearning for, but is falling short because of her lack of computer skills. However, for Millennials, this is a great thing. There are about 80 million of us, and according to a 60 Minutes report on Millennials, that said, "we’re “rapidly taking over the baby boomers who are now pushing 60.”
While 60 Minutes, as always, tries to get all the angles for this story, I can’t help but be angered by the old wrinkly men who think they still know what’s best for the future. We are the future, not them.
It’s true, as a child I was taken care of. I could even go as far as to say I was spoiled. Catholic school on Saturdays, cheerleading on Sundays, basketball on Tuesdays and Thursdays, piano lessons on Wednesdays, ice skating lessons on Fridays. I did it all and I’m sure I’m not the only one. I was also brought up with good values and was taught that all of these activities were provided because of one thing: Money.
Dr. Mel Levine says it perfectly in the 60 Minutes report that parents put these kids into these activities to create stability and structure. “This is a generation that has long aimed to please. They’ve wanted to please their parents, their friends, their teachers, their college admissions officers.” Although I did live a childhood where I was treated like a princess, it was because my parents could afford to do it and that’s exactly how I want my kids to live.
This story does conflict when it comes to my life. Today, I know the right thing to do is be independent and work hard in school. When our parent’s were 20, they could live an all right life not going to college. It’s not like that for us, so it’s not as if we aren’t working hard. I have a job, pay for my own food, cell phone bill, clothes, hair, nails, and soon, my own apartment. All of my friends are the same way; they’ve grown up with parents who have more than enough money to continue providing for them, but all of them tense up with the sense of guilt when it comes to asking their mom or dad for twenty dollars.
The fact is we aren’t going to settle for anything less than great. I grew up with a father who from age 16 started at one company and continued with it for the next 25 years. Recently, he was demoted because a lot of college kids were flooding the market with revolutionized ideas for the future of his company. I don’t want to be my dad and maybe that could be why we aren’t sticking to one job.
As Marian Salzman reminds us in the 60 Minutes report, “I believe that they actually think of themselves like merchandise on eBay. If you don’t want me, Mr. employer, I’ll go sell myself down the street. I’ll probably get more money. I’ll definitely get a better experience. And by the way, they’ll adore me. You only like me."
I do agree that Millenials may sometimes be too distracted to look up from their cell phones during endless texting, and we may even spend just a little too much time on the Internet. But don’t say that we don’t work hard. More importantly, don’t doubt the genius Mister Rogers, who told us we are special.
Damn Right We Are
By Amber Gray
I remember being in second grade and embracing the feeling of the soft keyboard against my fingertips for the very first time. I sat in awe glued to the computer screen that read AOL 2.0 “Get Connected.” This began my love for technology. I held it in my arms like a newborn baby and waited for more.
The media is defining echo boomers as those born between 1982 and 1995. According to 60 Minutes correspondent Morley Safer, we have the upper hand. “They are the first to grow up with computers at home, in a 500-channel TV universe. They are multitaskers with cell phones, music downloads, and Instant Messaging on the Internet,” he said.
Is this such a bad thing? What’s bad is that my 45 year-old mother recently asked me to take a typing test for her so she could get that job she’s been yearning for, but is falling short because of her lack of computer skills. However, for Millennials, this is a great thing. There are about 80 million of us, and according to a 60 Minutes report on Millennials, that said, "we’re “rapidly taking over the baby boomers who are now pushing 60.”
While 60 Minutes, as always, tries to get all the angles for this story, I can’t help but be angered by the old wrinkly men who think they still know what’s best for the future. We are the future, not them.
It’s true, as a child I was taken care of. I could even go as far as to say I was spoiled. Catholic school on Saturdays, cheerleading on Sundays, basketball on Tuesdays and Thursdays, piano lessons on Wednesdays, ice skating lessons on Fridays. I did it all and I’m sure I’m not the only one. I was also brought up with good values and was taught that all of these activities were provided because of one thing: Money.
Dr. Mel Levine says it perfectly in the 60 Minutes report that parents put these kids into these activities to create stability and structure. “This is a generation that has long aimed to please. They’ve wanted to please their parents, their friends, their teachers, their college admissions officers.” Although I did live a childhood where I was treated like a princess, it was because my parents could afford to do it and that’s exactly how I want my kids to live.
This story does conflict when it comes to my life. Today, I know the right thing to do is be independent and work hard in school. When our parent’s were 20, they could live an all right life not going to college. It’s not like that for us, so it’s not as if we aren’t working hard. I have a job, pay for my own food, cell phone bill, clothes, hair, nails, and soon, my own apartment. All of my friends are the same way; they’ve grown up with parents who have more than enough money to continue providing for them, but all of them tense up with the sense of guilt when it comes to asking their mom or dad for twenty dollars.
The fact is we aren’t going to settle for anything less than great. I grew up with a father who from age 16 started at one company and continued with it for the next 25 years. Recently, he was demoted because a lot of college kids were flooding the market with revolutionized ideas for the future of his company. I don’t want to be my dad and maybe that could be why we aren’t sticking to one job.
As Marian Salzman reminds us in the 60 Minutes report, “I believe that they actually think of themselves like merchandise on eBay. If you don’t want me, Mr. employer, I’ll go sell myself down the street. I’ll probably get more money. I’ll definitely get a better experience. And by the way, they’ll adore me. You only like me."
I do agree that Millenials may sometimes be too distracted to look up from their cell phones during endless texting, and we may even spend just a little too much time on the Internet. But don’t say that we don’t work hard. More importantly, don’t doubt the genius Mister Rogers, who told us we are special.
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