Anonymous voices offer future advice

Page 2
Nov. 4, 2009
OPINION
Anonymous voices
offer future advice
EDITORIAL
Brian Nelson
Managing Editor
Four. Four is the count of attendees who stopped by the library
Thursday night to listen to two different guest speakers. Among the
four, there were two students, a faculty member and a staff member.
The rows of empty chairs hinted at
a poor presentation. Those who attended would argue different.
The two men speaking were discussing the books they have had
published and were offering advice
to promising students. “I think our
hobbies can be our vocations,” said
the first speaker. Yet when students
think about their future profession,
they don’t consider their hobbies
as a potential strength. Instead they
choose a career that will land them
in a Florida retirement village before
their 50th birthday. The years up to
that point are long and dragging.
Working for a future retirement is
not living. One who does nothing,
but work, will allow their youth to
shrivel up and blow away. There
will be no time to explore the world.
There will be no time to walk the
streets of Spain, climb Paris’ Eiffel
Tower step by step, or adore London’s Big Ben at the north end of
the Palace of Westminster. There
will be no time to hang out with
friends or catch up with family.
There will be no time for anything,
but work.
College is a time in one’s life
where the future can be turned into
any direction. Thus, it is important
to seek direction. Students are given advisers to guide them, though
many students choose not to listen.
This is evident as seen in the library
last Thursday night. Two advisers
preached to four individuals and several rows of empty chairs. However,
there were other individuals in the
library doing homework, who closed
their laptops and put their pencils to
a temporary rest.
The words of the men drifted over
the tables and lingered among students who originally had no intention of receiving their advice. “It’s
ok to have several passions,” said the
second speaker. “I have this passion
for writing. I have this passion for
literature.” His several passions led
to numerous enjoyable careers. He
did not stick with the same occupation throughout his life, but instead
he followed his passions to different
careers. Once he was ready to move
on, he did so.
His voice stands as the voice in the
back of everyone’s head. That voice
has no name and no face, yet is familiar to everyone. Advice is always
being offered, and sometimes in the
last place ever expected.
So maybe it’s about time that students take some advice and move on.
Forget the money and the retirement
village in Florida. Instead, find the
perfect career path, no matter the
pay. The U.S. is reported to be one of
the unhappiest cultures in the world,
while some third world countries
prove to be the happiest. Maybe it’s
time to take their advice and drop the
materialism of money.
Brian Nelson is a junior majoring
in English. You may e-mail him at
[email protected].
Bowling for Soup sticks to classic pop, punk sound
By Benjamin Whitener
Staff reporter
They brought us “A Hangover You
Don’t Deserve,” “Drunk Enough
to Dance” and “The Great Burrito
Extortion Case.” Now, for our aural
pleasure, the Grammy nominated
band, Bowling for Soup releases
“Sorry for Partyin’.” Packed full of
power chord driven pop/punk riffs
and sweet harmonies this album is
right in line with classic BFS.
Bowling for Soup is a Texas
based quartet that formed in 1994.
The band members include Jaret
Reddick on lead vocals and rhythm
guitar, Chris Burney on lead guitar
and background vocals, Eric Chandler on bass and Gary Wiseman on
drums. BFS released their first EP
in 1998 on the Denton Texas label
FFROE. The album had sales of over
10,000 copies and helped the band
get picked up by major recording
label Jive Records. Since then, the
band has released eight other records
with “Sorry for Partyin’” being the
most recent.
MUSIC REVIEW
“Sorry for Partyin’,” released Oct.
13, continues the BFS tradition of
music that is fun and pokes a stick at
pop culture. The first single for the
album is titled “My Wena.” From the
title one might think that the song
is a musical tribute to the phallus.
However, when you listen to some
of the lyrics it seems like the song
might actually be about someone’s
girlfriend named Wena. It turns out
that the track is one big sexual innuendo. It is extremely hilarious and
the accompanying music video dispels any question as to what the song
is really about.
“I Don’t Wish You Were Dead
Anymore,” track number five on the
CD, opens with a 1950s style piano
intro and then breaks into a modernized version of a classic ‘50s chord
progression. The lyrical content exudes what makes BFS truly great.
After breaking up with his girlfriend
the protagonist of the story has a new
release on life and no longer wishes
that his now ex-girlfriend was dead,
something that many a guy can relate to.
What would a BFS album be without beer? Here, we don’t have to find
out. Sorry for Partyin’ includes the
BFS ode to beer, “Hooray for Beer.”
Without knowing the title to the song
one might be lost as to the subject of
the song. The first verse seems like it
could be talking about a special girl
or something that could be life altering. Then the chorus comes up and
we find that beer is the life altering,
song inspiring subject.
“No Hablo Ingles,” the second
single, gives every student the perfect excuse for why they can’t turn
in their homework. If you don’t understand English then you can’t do
your homework right? Just say no
hablo Ingles. Get pulled over by a
cop, no hablo Ingles. While the song
has a funny theme it would probably
be best not to test out its suggestions.
The rest of the album covers topics in the range of sex, dating, having a good time, bromance, answering machine stalking and hating Los
Angeles.
BFS brings the humor and the fun,
quirky lyrics with this latest release.
The album isn’t likely to be named
the greatest album of the decade, or
even the year for that matter, but BFS
delivers as they always do. Sorry for
Partyin’, despite its apologetic title,
bears no remorse for the crazy antics
and fun-loving spirit of the band.
The truly great thing about the album is that they once again get lead
guitarist Chris Burney to take off
his shirt and pose for the camera.
This time it’s for the cover art too.
Doesn’t sound like a big deal until
you consider the fact that Chris is a
very large fella. Chris totally represents for all the big people out there.
The album can be purchased
through the BFS website, bowlingforsoup.com, for $12 or on amazon.
com also for $12. It is also available
for digital download on iTunes for
$10.
Benjamin Whitener is a junior majoring in digital arts. You may e-mail
him at benjamin.whitener@sckans.
edu.
Relationships do not always result in fairytale endings
INGER
FURHOLT
How can you be happy with someone else if you’re not happy with
yourself, or by yourself?
Everyone has different views on
dating these days, and to be quite
honest I don’t know if we call relationships dating anymore, or even
relationships for that matter. Maybe
you’re “talking” to somebody, “seeing” somebody, or “fooling around”
with somebody. Times have changed
and the old ways of dating aren’t
what they used to be.
I remember the movies I used to
watch when I was little. The girl
found the perfect guy, he asked her
out on a date, he was a gentleman
and she was a lady. Together they
were perfect. Then they fell in love,
and lived happily ever after. As college students, we’ve hopefully put
thoughts of a perfect “fairytale” behind us. I know I’m not waiting for
someone to sweep me off my feet.
Some relationships seem so easy,
and everything seems to be perfect.
I envy those who make it seem that
way, so simple. Things might seem
perfect on the outside, but it isn’t
always like that once you get to the
inside. No matter how much you
care or love someone, there will be
bumps in the road. Yet this doesn’t
mean it is a bad relationship. It is just
the way life is.
Finding the right person is hard.
Once you think you find someone
you can trust, have a good time with
and feel comfortable around, they
show that one side you wish you had
never seen. I’m not talking about
little annoying things. I’m talking
about lying and cheating. Everyone
makes mistakes, but there is a difference between little white lies and big
fat lies, but in the end, lying is lying.
So does the person getting hurt sit
back and accept those things? Some
people do, because it’s easier to be
with someone, even if they’ve hurt
you, than to be alone.
We’ve lost the meaning of the
word “relationship.” In a relationship, whether with friends or someone special, honesty and trust are
the two most important traits. How
can you even rely on someone who
can’t seem to be faithful or trustworthy?
Word on the Hill
I am not the greatest person in the
world. I’ve done my share of dumb
things. I’ve lied. Everyone does, but
that doesn’t make it okay. I’ve realized that it is important for me to
treat other people the way I want to
be treated, even though it is difficult
sometimes.
It is about mutual respect. How
can you expect to be respected if
you don’t respect yourself or other
people? Respect in a relationship
means that each person values who
the other person is and tries to understand them.
A relationship to some might be
a receiving relationship, where one
person has to work so the other
person is happy, but for a relationship to have a chance of working it
is important to give and receive as
time passes. Communication is important. Tell the other part what’s
going on. No one likes whining, but
By Clint Dick
communicating is important so that
both people in the relationship feel
understood.
Some think that being in a relationship means that there is only time
for that one special person. They
tend to drop their friends and put the
girlfriend or boyfriend first, instead
of finding a balance between the
two. Being in a relationship doesn’t
mean you have to have a drastic life
change, and it doesn’t mean you
have to spend every second with the
other half of the relationship.
I always have excuses for why
not to get into a relationship with
people. I say I don’t have time, my
friends come first, or I need to focus on myself. I know other people
have excuses too, and they’ve become more of a way to keep one
from taking a risk, to keep from letting someone in. We don’t want to
get hurt again, because we all know
it isn’t fun.
Many tend to jump into relationships trying to find out who they are
in someone else. They might not
even know what they want from the
relationship, but it does seem convenient and less lonely at the time.
They don’t think about the fact that
there are worse things than being
alone.
Relationships can be great, and
they can be awful, but before you get
into one, at least think about what
you deserve.
I am not an expert on relationships, and I am not waiting for anyone to sweep me off of my feet. I live
in the real world where the meaning
of the word relationship and dating
has changed.
Inger Marie Furholt is a junior
majoring in journalism. You may email her at inger.furholt@sckans.
edu.
The Collegian Staff
“How soon is too soon to decorate for Christmas?”
“Right after Thanksgiving.”
“Before Thanksgiving.”
“A month and a half ago.”
Alex Loos
physical education
freshman
Aron Pfingsten
English
freshman
“November.”
“Day after Thanksgiving.”
“Ever, because I hate
Christmas.”
Chelsea Fort
biology
sophomore
Jason McCormack
sports management
senior
Justin Diggles
business administration
graduate
“Day after Thanksgiving.”
Dustin Gorden
chemistry
senior
“Anytime before December.”
Katie McNett
English
freshman
Hannah Podschun
English
freshman
“Before Thanksgiving.”
Jacob Tafoya
computer info. systems
junior
“Before Thanksgiving.”
“Before Thanksgiving.”
“Before Thanksgiving.”
Cameron Hines
undecided
freshman
Kelcie Parrish
marine biology
sophomore
Alicia White
elementary education
sophomore
Editor in Chief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Cameron Siefkes
Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brian Nelson
News/Editorial Editors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paige Carswell
Samantha Gillis
Staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...... Blake Carter,
Clinton Dick, Joshua Dolmage, Michelle Dreiling, Inger Furholt,
Katie Gomez, Lacie Holbert, Alejandra Rojas, Tysana Speer,
Benjamin Whitener
Faculty Adviser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stacy Sparks
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