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(11/15/06 5:00am)
Editor's note: The Daily Tar Heel has tracked four freshmen since August, gauging their health habits as they adjust to college life. Each month, the freshmen are weighed by the DTH, and answer questions concerning a featured health issue.
Halloween is done, Thanksgiving is creeping up, and Roy and the boys are hitting the court, which can only mean one thing: It's almost time for finals and the home stretch of fall semester.
Students across campus are working on term papers, finishing readings and getting ready for the approaching several-week study binge.
(10/18/06 4:00am)
Editor's note: The Daily Tar Heel has tracked four freshmen since August, gauging their health habits as they adjust to college life. Each month, the freshmen are weighed by the DTH, and answer questions concerning a featured health issue.
Campus is a dangerous place.
Or at least it can be, if students aren't careful to avoid some common health pitfalls, especially during flu season, which started this month.
Freshmen might be particularly at risk during flu season because of their lack of college-life experience, said Carol Kozel, nursing director at Campus Health Services.
(09/20/06 4:00am)
The Daily Tar Heel is tracking the health habits of four freshmen each month until April. This week each wore a pedometer to measure the distance they traveled on foot.
A Public Broadcasting System report says students should strive to walk five miles per day to sustain their weight.
The freshmen's August weights were self-reported, but they now will weigh in on an electronic scale.
Anand Dwivedi
Dwivedi, who lives in Hinton James Residence Hall, is staying active with intramural football and is looking forward to beginning intramural soccer in October.
Height: 5 feet 7 inches
August weight: 135 lbs.
September weight: 134 lbs.
Distance traveled: 5.55 miles from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday.
Emily Hylton
Despite a 17-hour course load, Hylton plays ultimate frisbee pick-up games and is on a flag football team. She also cooks many of her own meals.
Height: 5 feet 7 inches
August weight: 133 lbs.
September weight: 132 lbs.
Distance traveled: 5.33 miles on 7:45 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday.
David Luther
"I work out two days in the morning with (ROTC)," Luther said. "We do push-ups, sit-ups and running, and I do weights and running on my own."
Height: 5 feet 9 inches
August weight: 155 lbs.
September weight: Unreported
Distance traveled 6.81 miles from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday.
Kara Wynne
"I feel like it's easy (to stay in shape) if you walk or work out," said Wynne, who lives in Hinton James and works out in the Rams Head Recreational Center.
Height: 5 feet 6 1/2 inches
August weight: 135 lbs.
September weight: 134 lbs.
Distance traveled: 4.33 miles from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday.
(09/15/06 4:00am)
At a University where sports are not just a passion but a lifestyle, the beginning of a new season means a shift in the mood on campus. Franklin Street is stained blue, and Saturday afternoons are reserved - for football - on calendars across the state.
But for most UNC fans, tailgating options are limited, especially compared with neighboring schools such as Duke, Wake Forest and N.C. State universities.
At the last two football games, fans said parking space, drinking restrictions and subdued football enthusiasm made for lackluster pre-game celebrations in local parking lots.
For some alumni, the pre-game tailgate is like a ritual.
"We go to every game here, and everywhere," said Lillie Sapp, who was one of a group of about 30 in the Bell Tower parking lot before the Sept. 2 Rutgers game. "I've only missed five games anywhere since 1995."
Her husband is an alumnus, and her group came from as far as Virginia and New York to sip from blue Solo cups, offer around fried chicken and potato salad and brag about their dedication.
But for students such as Kellan White, Carolina Fever chairman, the tailgating scene at UNC could use some work.
"I have a lot of friends who go to Michigan and the tailgate there is a lot bigger than here," he said. "I think most of that is due to space because there's not a lot of room during football games."
White said that many students don't tailgate because of restrictions about drinking on campus, but that alcohol shouldn't be a necessary element of pre-football rituals.
"I can go out and make some burgers and hot dogs and get ready for the football game and not have to be drunk to enjoy the game," he said.
Randy Young, spokesman for the Department of Public Safety, said that for safety reasons, alcohol is not allowed on campus without a permit. Permits typically go to organizations such as the Carolina Club, which has a tailgate for members in the George Watts Hill Alumni Center.
"The basic premise with regard to alcohol on campus is that it's a non-tolerance policy," he said. "We cite any open containers that are not precluded by a liquor permit."
Other factors contribute to what some call an unsatisfying tailgate scene.
At a school where basketball is the biggest deal, football enthusiasm often is subdued.
But at Duke, a school also known more for its skills on the court than on the field, student tailgating is such a raucous event that university officials recently imposed new regulations. Still, at the first home game, Duke students continued to tailgate.
White said that because of the lack of a traditional UNC student tailgating scene, Carolina Fever will hold non-alcoholic tailgate events this season. He's planning tailgates outside dorms and is soliciting Franklin Street eateries for food donations.
"I think people need to realize that we're more than a basketball school," he said.
Which is why the senior class marshals also are looking to improve the student tailgate scene.
On Saturday in the Forest Theatre, the senior class will hold an event with all the traditional tailgate elements: music, a bean bag toss - which is popular in some areas - hamburgers, hotdogs and possibly poker games, said senior class marshal Daniel David.
"Duke and State have tailgates, but Carolina has never had a tradition of tailgating," he said. "We have better football than them, and I think it's a great way to support our team."
Alumni remain the most common tailgaters, but at the Rutgers game, many of them said the UNC parking-lot scene has a long way to go.
"I became a Carolina fan at birth," said Donna Hales, who was celebrating with Sapp.
"I don't like that you can walk through the parking lot and see Rutgers (fans)," she said."And although we are a state-funded school and any state-funded school should be dry, more people are learning to put (alcohol) in a cup when they're out here."
Sue Dupree coordinated the party Hales and Sapp attended, and has been doing so for 10 to 12 years. She's trying to uphold a tradition for younger Tar Heels, she said.
White said that he thinks more tailgating before big games - such as before the N.C. State game Nov. 18 - will add to the sports culture at UNC.
"Our football fans are quick to jump ship," he said. "I'm going to go out there and support them every time."
"I think that no matter what, there should be fans there to support the football team if they're 0-12 or 12-0."
Contact the Features Editor at features@unc.edu.
(08/29/06 4:00am)
Hark the sound of Tar Heel voices. All-male, all-female and co-ed a cappella groups around the University are warming up for a busy year with auditions beginning this week.
(08/23/06 4:00am)
With the summer before her senior year looming, Gabrielle Reynolds knew that to boost her post-graduation employment chances an internship was a must.
After several e-mails and a long phone interview, the journalism student found herself in the ultimate summer internship position - the newest employee of a well-known international public relations firm in Manhattan.
"I was looking forward to getting some great in-the-field experience, rather than just menial work, like photocopying," she said.
Reynolds, like many undergraduates, recognized a growing trend - a summer internship in the professional world as a necessary piece of students' education.
"We have seen companies that did not in the past have internship programs begin to create them," said Amanda Williams, internship coordinator at University Career Services. "Students have more opportunities for internships than they have in the past."
Jay Eubank, who coordinates internships for journalism students, said that these days students will find getting a post-college job almost impossible without relevant professional experience.
"That's the stark reality of it," he said. "The first thing about internships is that it's an investment in what your career is going to be."
But as Reynolds found out, not every internship experience turns out to be completely positive.
"My work hours were technically 9 a.m. until 6 p.m.," said Reynolds, who at one point worked a 17-hour shift. "But we were expected to be there by 8 a.m., and I never once got out of the office before six."
"Everyone in the office has a Blackberry, and the bosses send e-mails at three and four in the morning, expecting you to have completed the assignments by the time they arrive at the office," she said.
Like many students who spend their summers at internships, she worked for free. Interns said they take unpaid positions because they feel the jobs will benefit them when they graduate.
But often an unpaid internship is not an option for undergraduates who rely on a job to pay the bills.
"Most of the interns who worked with me lived outside the city," Reynolds said. "The cost of living, especially in a city like New York, so greatly outweighs the compensation."
She said that in Manhattan, finding a small studio for less than $1,000 a month is rare.
For Wes Jones, a senior economics major who worked on the trading floor for an international bank in New York City, intern abuse - long hours, errands and low compensation - was just something he expected.
"I got coffee a lot, set up Excel spreadsheets for the traders, did a lot of shadowing and searched CNN a lot," he said.
"They yelled at me constantly. I came in late one day, and they made me stand on a desk and read all the closing numbers and then sing the Carolina fight song with 400 traders watching me."
However difficult his workdays were, Jones, like Reynolds, said he believes his internship was a worthwhile experience.
Eubank said that interns often realize they have to do grunt work to get into their chosen field.
"And even if you're doing a lot of that grunt work, you can still make really good connections," he said.
Teresa Doring, director of human resources at NBC-17, said the station hires interns each semester and has offered entry-level jobs to former interns more than once.
Reynolds said that despite the 4 a.m. requests, she thinks she'd be at a disadvantage if she hadn't worked at the public relations firm.
"At one point one of my bosses stood up and said he'd hire all of us on the spot," she said.
"As much as you're everyone's mule, pulling all the weight, it opens doors because we all left with recommendations. . If you've really impressed someone in your internship, that can make or break your career."
Contact the Features Editor at features@unc.edu.
(08/19/06 4:00am)
May 25 - Take a stroll through Chapel Hill and you will see many sights.
But regardless of the time of day, one thing that you will undoubtedly see on a daily jaunt through Chapel Hill is handfuls of runners, walkers and bikers that sprinkle the town with life and movement.
Chapel Hill recently was designated a "Fit Community" by BlueCross and BlueShield of North Carolina and the N.C. Health and Wellness Trust Fund, among eight other state communities that are taking steps to improve livability and fitness for residents.
Many college towns share a tendency toward unhealthy eateries, and college students are not known for making physical fitness a priority.
But Chapel Hill is different, residents and town officials said.
"We are a community with a priority on health and fitness," said Reggie Hinton, director of the Student Recreation Center. "We work to make our facilities and programs as inviting and exciting as possible.
"Overall, it is a product of the University encouraging people to be well-balanced."
Hinton explained that UNC's physical education requirement and the attitude of the students attribute to that sense of well-roundedness fostered by the school.
The recently built Rams Head Recreation Center has added capacity for an additional 5,000 patrons per week. Coupled with the SRC, the two facilities have seen as many as 14,000 active students in one week.
"There are a lot of activities and equipment here, like classes and weight lifting," said senior psychology Margaret Craighead outside of the facility. "Plus, a lot of people come here, so there is a social aspect, too."
But the school is not the only player in the Chapel Hill fitness arena.
Bill Webster, assistant director of the Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation Department, explained that in the 1970s, UNC, who had been single-handedly sponsoring all of the city's activities, decided it needed to focus solely on its own initiatives.
Webster gives credit to the Chapel Hill Town Council for the substantial development that has occurred since then. One such development is Battle Park, whose trails snake behind the Forest Theatre and down the hill that runs parallel to N.C. 54.
"We've done a good job playing catch-up," Webster said of the 30 years Chapel Hill has had to develop a parks-and-recreation community.
Most states have taken much longer to produce a viable parks-and-recreation program to service their communities, Webster said.
Today the town of Chapel Hill boasts five open gyms, two public swimming pools and countless private gyms, yoga centers and personal training facilities.
Elizabeth Towe, owner of Balanced Movement Studio in Carrboro, added that the general attitude of the residents of Chapel Hill plays a major role in the lifestyle choices of the community.
"Because of the University, we have a more intelligent and forward-thinking community who realize that our well-being is tied to our mental health," she said. "This is a very physically active community that is open to alternative ideas of what wellness is to them.
"People are moving here from all over to be in a place that isn't filled with pollution and is more progressive about the development of the community."
Contact the Features Editor at features@unc.edu.
(07/20/06 4:00am)
MOVIEREVIEW
"You, Me and Dupree"
3 Stars
Although not the best of its genre, "You, Me and Dupree" joins the ranks of what has now become a successful series of films ("Old School," "Wedding Crashers") that deal with the same issues: grown-up men who don't want to grow up and the women who deal with them.
Fortunately, like its predecessors, the film is salvaged from its potential simplicity by clever casting decisions and overall comic appeal.
(07/20/06 4:00am)
When first-year students enter the University in the fall, they face an array of decisions.
More specifically, they face an array of costs, including, but not limited to, dorm supplies, computers, meal plans, notebooks, books - and, naturally, a bag into which said supplies may be put.
Until now, university bookstores nationwide have offered similar products to help students lug around their supplies. Experts say leather-bound black computer bags, backpacks and decorative but not very functional messenger bags rank among the most popular of purchases.
So when Penelope Manasco, former executive at GlaxoSmithKline and owner of startup company Penelope, asked her neighbor - University junior Rachael Ostrowski - to help her create an affordable, functional and stylish computer case for female students, Ostrowski jumped at the opportunity to help make students' purchasing decisions a little easier and a little more fun.
A business major, Ostrowski hit the streets when working on a design. She interviewed students at parties, in classes and around campus and asked them their opinion of the prototype bags that Manasco had given her.
"The bag has transformed tremendously," said Ostrowski, 20. "(Manasco) basically took my feedback and changed the pockets around, changed some zippers and made the bag wider so students could fit their books in there, as well as their laptops.
"She had me go with one model and then changed things and had me go with the next model."
Those prototypes eventually became the Go Girl Laptop Messenger Bag, which comes in various bright colors and also can be monogrammed or sequined to make them more personal.
Manasco, whose college-aged son, Travis, encouraged her to target a college market with her company, found her neighbor a perfect fit for her role as market researcher.
"I knew she was a business major and a go-getter," Manasco explained. "And she was very excited to do it."
The research taught Manasco exactly what she needed to know about the college market, from the average laptop size to students' color preferences.
"It was such a great experience because we learned that (what the college women wanted) was completely different than the business women," Manasco said. "They all wanted style, and they all wanted function, but there were definite changes made for the Go Girl bags."
The final product includes a spot for pens, an iPod and a water bottle, as well as a waterproof inside pocket for a 15-inch laptop and sufficient room for books.
Ostrowski said she thinks it will prove popular for co-eds all over the country.
"I think (Manasco) did a really good job with the style, using different fabrics and different designs," she said. "It's fashionable and is not your typical over-the-shoulder computer bag."
Both Manasco and Ostrowski mentioned that the biggest seller thus far is the polka-dot design, a specific request by women with whom Ostrowski spoke.
For the future, Manasco is thinking big.
"We are going to be getting distribution through electronic retailers," she said. "We'd like to get into the travel magazines and, for the Go Girl bag, a bigger collegiate market."
This season, Go Girl bags will be offered at UNC, the University of Virginia and N.C. State.
One design, Ostrowski mentioned, includes the Wolfpack logo as the design on the inside liner - a feature that, she thinks, will prove popular.
Manasco agrees.
"We hope, in two years, everybody knows about Go Girls - and they're carrying one."
Contact the Features Editor at features@unc.edu.
(06/29/06 4:00am)
MOVIEREVIEW
"Clean"
3.5 stars
"Clean" is for anyone who has turned over a new leaf, overcome temptation, struggled to make ends meet or accepted forgiveness.
It is a story of love and survival, of the highest highs and the lowest lows and of fighting for another chance.
"Clean" follows Emily Wang, an embittered heroin junkie whose failing rock-star boyfriend dies from an overdose, leaving her to fend for herself and for their son.
(06/22/06 4:00am)
MOVIEREVIEW
"The Lake House"
3 stars
This summer, romance is in the air. Or, in this case, the mailbox.
"The Lake House" is a drama-romance about a woman who falls in love with a past tenant of a unique house on Lake Michigan.
The catch? The lovebirds are living in parallel dimensions. He lives in 2004, she in 2006.
Although the time-travel, suspend-your-reality premise may seem tired and a tad silly, it is adapted from "Il Mare," a South Korean love story and audience favorite at the 2000 Pusan International Film Festival.
(06/22/06 4:00am)
Antique car owners carefully maneuver their showpieces off the grassy knoll where they were perched. A little boy holds a blow-up rifle with the stars and stripes across the side. Barbeque vendors fold up their lawn chairs and take down the lists of prices ($3 for a pulled-pork sandwich - Eastern North Carolina style, of course).
Such was the scene at the close of this year's "Hog Day."
Begun in Hillsborough in 1982, Hog Day is a celebration of all things summer.
The first of several summer celebrations in the Triangle, including Durham's Festival for the Eno and various Independence Day parties, Hog Day draws an eclectic crowd of barbecue lovers, bluegrass appreciators and local craft collectors.
On Friday night, barbecue masters from all over the state fired up their grills and began the process that Southerners all know so well by its distinctively sweet smell - the long-roasting of a pig.
Musical guests Chatham County Line and Mike Cross played to a crowd of more than 700, and visitors roamed the streets of lazy, historic Hillsborough, peeking into restaurants and reading the plaques that line the street like mile markers - reminders of the days of the Occoneechee Indians and the battles between North and South.
Emma Darling, a Duke University senior from Vancouver, attended Hog Fest for the first time this year, along with several friends from school.
"We have nothing like this at home, so that's why I wanted to go," Darling said. "It is uniquely Southern - a whole day to celebrate eating pulled pork!
"You definitely feel like you are in the South."
And although Hillsborough/Orange County Chamber of Commerce members encourage new Hog Fest attendees, part of the two-day festival's charm comes from locals who have made Hog Day a staple of their summer tradition.
"It's something for the people of Orange County," said Margaret Cannell, executive director of the Hillsborough/Orange County Chamber of Commerce. "There's a little something for everybody at Hog Day - antique cars, arts and crafts, music and all sorts of food."
Some of the most traditional visitors to the festival, as one discovers after several hours of roaming among ride operators and craftsmen and women, may be found just a little off of the main grounds.
What looks at first like a mirage, a wooded area acts as a garage to a vast collection of vintage automobiles.
The Carolina Classic Auto Club hosts over 100 vintage automobiles, dating from mid-20th Century to 1975.
Jim and Vicky Cliborne from Halifax County, Va., own one of the most popular cars this year, a 1949 Mercury, which, to the delight of some and the disappointment of others, they painted a dark but shiny kelly green.
"Fifty years," said Jim Cliborne, when asked how long he has been working on what is clearly his prized possession.
"We drove this to high school and have been working on it since then."
Whether visitors attended for the cars, the food, the music, the rides, the crafts or simply for the fun of people-watching, Hillsborough's 24th annual Hog Day was a success.
And the kind of thing that reminds us that, despite modern technology and the constantly-accelerating treadmill that is our day-to-day lives, some things never change.
Small-town America, at least in Hillsborough, is very much alive - and cooking.
Contact the Features Editor at features@unc.edu.
(06/15/06 4:00am)
University students trying to decide where to eat, drink or shop undoubtedly will pick from the heavy hitters of the Chapel Hill scene, but a majority of undergraduates rarely allow themselves to continue down Franklin Street - past Granville Towers - to hit the second heart of downtown Chapel Hill.
But the blocks between Mallette and South Graham streets - the West End - have served as the focal point of downtown's entertainment and shopping for many years.
This fall the area will undergo a major face-lift with the opening of The Franklin, a 66-room boutique hotel. The owners of that facility say they want to rely on West End restaurants and boutiques to attract visitors.
That's because the West End, business owners say, is emblematic of Chapel Hill as they remember it - and, even as it undergoes change, its appeal remains the same.
"This area feels more like a community," Penang manager Cameron Williams said. "If someone wants to go to Penang to eat, then they can go across the street and have a drink at Talulla's - each venue has a unique atmosphere and pulls a similar crowd."
But the area has been in flux recently. Business owners in particular have worried about crime downtown and have appealed to local officials for a larger police presence
Patio Loco, the West End's only Mexican restaurant, has hired private security guards because of the number of patron complaints about panhandling and several break-ins.
West End business owners also are now in the shadows of both the new hotel and Rosemary Village, the large mixed-use development near Breadmen's that features luxury condominiums and eventually will have shops at road level.
Despite the changes, however, business leaders have stuck together.
"I love it down here," said Jared Resnick, owner of the West End Wine Bar, whose restaurant's Tuscan-influenced d
(05/25/06 4:00am)
Take a stroll through Chapel Hill and you will see many sights: Franklin Street, with its landmark shopping and dining destinations; the University, with its rolling quads and colonial architecture; and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, which houses - among other things - Town Hall and the Chapel Hill-Carrboro YMCA.
But regardless of the time of day or location, one thing that you will undoubtedly see on a daily jaunt through Chapel Hill is handfuls of runners, walkers and bikers that sprinkle the town with life and movement.
Chapel Hill recently was designated a "Fit Community" by BlueCross and BlueShield of North Carolina and the N.C. Health and Wellness Trust Fund. The partnership lauded eight communities in the state for the efforts they are taking in improving livability and fitness for residents.
But what is it about the town that makes it a destination for physical fitness?
Many college towns share a tendency toward less-than-healthy eateries, and college students are not known for making physical fitness a priority.
But Chapel Hill is different, residents and town officials said.
"We are a community with a priority on health and fitness," said Reggie Hinton, director of the Student Recreation Center. "We work to make our facilities and programs as inviting and exciting as possible.
"Overall, it is a product of the University encouraging people to be well-balanced."
Hinton explained that UNC's physical education requirement and the attitude of the students attribute to that sense of well-roundedness fostered by the school.
The recently built Rams Head Recreation Center has added capacity for an additional 5,000 patrons per week. Coupled with the SRC, the two facilities have seen as many as 14,000 active students in one week.
"There are a lot of activities and equipment here, like classes and weight lifting," said senior psychology Margaret Craighead outside of the facility. "Plus, a lot of people come here, so there is a social aspect, too."
But the school is not the only player in the Chapel Hill fitness arena.
Bill Webster, assistant director of the Chapel Hill Parks and Recreation Department, explained that in the 1970s, UNC, who had been single-handedly sponsoring all of the city's activities, decided it needed to focus solely on its own initiatives.
And Chapel Hill responded accordingly.
Webster gives credit to the Chapel Hill Town Council for the substantial development that has occurred since then. One such development is Battle Park, whose trails snake behind the Forest Theatre and down the hill that runs parallel to N.C. 54.
"We've done a good job playing catch-up," Webster said, referring to the 30 years Chapel Hill has had to develop a parks-and-recreation community.
Most states have taken much longer to produce a viable parks-and-recreation program to service their communities, Webster said.
Today the town of Chapel Hill boasts five open gyms, two public swimming pools and countless private gyms, yoga centers and personal training facilities.
Elizabeth Towe, owner of Balanced Movement Studio in Carrboro, added that the general attitude of the residents of Chapel Hill plays a major role in the lifestyle choices of the community.
"Because of the University, we have a more intelligent and forward-thinking community who realize that our well-being is tied to our mental health," she said.
"This is a very physically active community that is open to alternative ideas of what wellness is to them - they're intelligently seeking what works for them from a long-term health experience."
Towe added that outsiders have realized the benefits of this area.
"People are moving here from all over to be in a place that isn't filled with pollution and is more progressive about the development of the community."
Contact the Features Editor at features@unc.edu.
(05/18/06 4:00am)
MOVIEREVIEW
Poseidon
2.5 Stars
Blockbuster director Wolfgang Petersen ("The Perfect Storm," "Das Boot") has shown he knows how to navigate water - or, at least, navigate his films through it.
"The Perfect Storm" showed film audiences the ugly side of the ocean and the toll it takes on ships, while "Das Boot," Petersen's first major release, explored the claustrophobic atmosphere of sea-faring vessels.
But his most recent attempt, "Poseidon," which manages to mold both aspects of the aforementioned, leaves only a lukewarm impression.