I The Behrend Beacon Free movie rentals o By Samantha Cibula It's another Wednesday night at Behrend, a little to early to start on thirsty Thursday activities or a weekend of drama, fun and complete craziness. Unfortunately your play station took a beating Monday night and no longer is functioning. So you are stuck in the confines of Perry hall without a car and no cash How. You could go hang out at Bruno’s for the night, but your meal plan has dwindled down to its last dollars and sipping on the free water isn’t as appealing as it might seem. Boredom has got the best of you. However there is a source of free entertainment for those that love drama, action, com edy and more. You might be thinking where? Has someone been holding out on me all year? Why not just go check out a DVD or VHS right down at our library. That’s right our library has about 300 DVDs and approximately 800 videos. They aren’t all new releases, and some are educational, but there is a wide range of popular DVDs and movies along with great classics. The best thing about the collection of videos and DVDs is they are com- Little ketchup packets expire - who knew? By Jeff Elder Knight Ridder Newspapers Q: I’d be willing to say that nearly everyone has at one time or another saved the ketchup packets that fast-food places dish out. What is the shelf life of this stuff? - Alan Beckley A: Alan, when I got my current newspaper job, 1 pulled open a drawer of my new desk and discovered: Dozens, maybe even hundreds, of ketchup packets. Moses parted the Red Sea. My predecessor parted with it. I threw 'em away, even though fast-food is one of the five journalist food groups. (Hops, vending machine stuff, free bies and "you gonna eat that?" make up the rest.) I just didn't know how long those packets had been in there. And like you, I felt uneasy. The people at Heinz told me you can keep those ‘lil red squeezers for a year to 15 months. Ketchup doesn't go bad quickly, because of the acidity of tomatoes and its vinegar content. (Mustard and relish packets can last up to TWO years, Heinz said.) "We have heard of consumers eating ketchup that was more than a decade old and enjoying it," Robin Teets of Heinz told me. There’s nothin' like a full-bodied, 1994 red. But how do you know how old packets already are when Trio in desert make 'Sahara' hot KRTCAMPUS.COM (Left to right) Steve Zahn as A 1 Giordino, Penelope Cruz as Eva Rojas and Matthew McConaughey as Dirk Pitt in the new movie from Paramount Pictures, "Sahara." By Mike Szymanski Zap2it.com (KRT) They all knew they had to become close for the big-budget movie "Sahara." After all, Matthew McConaughey's character has known Steve Zahn's character since they were 6. "These guys have been together since kinder garten, which is kind of crazy," Zahn says. "I mean, that's like beyond married." And then, Penelope Cruz's character falls in love with McConaughey's roguish Dirk Pitt, and the trio unites as a team of reluctant adventurers. What no one planned for is that the two actors would actually fall in love off-screen, too. "I think it was unexpected for everyone, especial ly them," says director Breck Eisner about McConaughey and Cruz. "It wasn't 'til we were done that I learned about it. I love it. They seem so happy together." The director points out that his stars' relationship may not help the movie at the box office. "Often it hurts," he notes. "I doesn't drive people to the movie if they're not interested." Cruz remains careful about discussing her new relationship, having already been through a media whirlwind after her fling with Tom Cruise just after he split with wife Nicole Kidman. She never met McConaughey before filming and she says she was captivated by his sense of humor. "I think that he's the perfect person to play this character because he has a charm that the character sports co-editor (KRT) r\r o I'UDENT LI pletely free to rent. As long as you have your Penn State ID the collection is free to your disposal. From “Pretty Women" to "Star Wars" and “8 Mile" the library has some thing for everyone. As long as you have the movie back on time it's completely free. The library is also open to suggestions for movies to add to the collection. The staff uses lists from award winning movies and the Library of Congress to make suggestions. If you would like to view all of the movies you can scan the binders located at the front desk of the library or check them out right on CAT or the libraries web page which can be found by going to pserie.psu.edu and then clicking on the library link. From there click on the 'what's new link’. This link will bring up a list of all the popular DVDs/and videos. There you have it - your very own movie rental service right on campus. Next time you find yourself broke with no place to go, take a walk down to the library and check out the video collection. Surely you'll find something for your enjoyment. You have to admit, sometimes there is nothing better then a good chick Hick or reciting all of the lines from “Scarface” with your roomies. CVCOFFEE.COM According to Heinz, ketchup packets expire after 15 months, but relish and mustard packets last up to two years. you get them? Don't worry, experts told us. Restaurants move packets quickly. Anyplace that's holding onto ketchup packets for years probably presents far larger health issues. I hate to point this out, but you could just BUY a whole bottle of ketchup for a buck and a quarter. (1 know, I know ... That takes all the SPORT out of it.) Catch up on the very latest trivia -Getting the last ketchup out of the bottle? Don’t hit the bottom, tap the neck. (YES. you still have to hold the bot tle upside down.) -You one of those who thinks ketchup packets are too small? Me too. Heinz now makes Twice As Much packets at 18 grams. Yes, they are double normal size. needs to have," Cruz says. "On the set, it was the three of us together everyday for five months. We laughed a lot, but we had to be very focused." The actors each have their favorite moments while filming in Morocco. Cruz taught the guys some Spanish - especially swear words - and says, "We played a lot of charades." McConaughey recalls strumming his guitar around the campfire as desert nomads joined them. Zahn says he enjoyed the competitive nature between them as they learned tricks from a Navy SEAL instructor. "We knew that you couldn't rely on some com puterized wizardy, you had to believe these people and their friendships," says Zahn. "Sometimes you see friends do movies and they don’t seem like friends. It’s some weird artistic thing that happens." "Sahara" is based on treasure-hunting characters in Clive Cussler's series of books. The guys are looking for a Civil War battleship, which they find in a West African desert and along the way they meet a doctor, played by Cruz. Bad guys are con stantly shooting at them, and they don't always know why, so they're always on the run. That caused a few scrapes for the stars. "One time I ripped my calf muscle pretty bad, I was running across this gully to get away from a sniper," Zahn says, rubbing his leg. "I had to learn how to ride a camel," adds Cruz, who was scared of the big animals at first. "I ended up galloping next to a train at 40 kilometers per hour. I became best friends with my camel." The director confirms: "Of the three, she was the best rider. She didn't want to stop." ered Crossword ACROSS 1 Cop’s ID 6 Belgian border city 10 Complexion woe 14 Hunter of stars 15 Sailor’s hello 16 Bank deal 17 Large sailing ship 19 Musical group 20 Coll, residence 21 Swiss canton 23 Homeless feline 27 Cyrus il’s empire 28 Feathery scarves 29 Fond du Wl 31 Longhorn 32 University treasurer 35 Trunk 37 Annex 38 Sweeper's accessory 40 _ Na Na 43 Wandering calf 44 Original copy 46 Up and about 49 AMA members 51 Poi source 52 Brings up 54 Smiled coyly 57 Fixed attitude 59 Short-tailed, diving bird 60 Pond growth 61 Limited in perspective 66 Knish store 67 Melody 68 Funeral song 69 Yemeni port 70 Crystal gazer 71 Icy rain DOWN 1 Ship’s forward section 2 Jackie’s second 3 Noisy clamor 4 Isis or Minerva 5 Relish 6 Man or mandrill, e.g. 7 Resistance unit 8 Coward of note 9 Maple product r; r; r'jj Hacker tips can help you make the most of your PSP Sony's PSP may not have achieved the total launch-day sellout die compa ny was undoubtedly hoping for, but die device is living up to its billing as a technological wonder. While the games so far have ranged from the sublime (the puzzle game "Lumines") to die forgettable ("NBA”) there's no doubt die PSP has a healthy future as a game device. What's been more fascinating to watch is the emergence of a cottage indus try of hackers discovering all sorts of cool things that can be done with a PSP. For example, TiVo shows can be downloaded to your PSP (learn how at ZatzNotFunny,com), or iTunes music can be synced to it (PocketMac.net). But the most interesting development was the news that there's actually a small Web browser embedded in the PSP game "Wipeout Pure." Learn how to access it at Base2.org. With a couple of easy changes to the network settings on the PSP, you can hop onto any wireless network to browse die Web. I tried it and got it to work, but it's not flawless. Browsing is a Mt-and-uuss affair, rince sorae sites work and others don't, and the connection is not always reliable. But it's a neat little trick, and it's dumb that Sony didn’t offer an official Web browser right out of the box. That could have gone a long way toward convincing casual buyers to shell out $250 for a system that doesn't come bundled with a single game. A Web browser might also have stimulated some interest in Sony's online music store, Connect, if music could be downloaded to a PSP directly with out having to plug it into a PC. In fact, Web browsing capability for the PSP opens the door to all sorts of nifty stuff, such as being able to download free demos of PSP games, as well as movies, TV shows and other applications. An official browser is almost certainly in the worts for just those reasons. But if the developers of "Wipeout Pure," an excellent racing game that all PSP owners should check out, could find time to throw one together while they were making their game, then Sony has no excuse for being so pokey. Fans of older handheld systems might be feeling a little left out. The PSP is the new kid on the block, while Nintendo’s DS is still a pretty swank piece of hardware. But there is a fun add-on technology out now for the relatively venerable Game Boy Advance and GB A SP platforms. Majesco's Wireless Messenger ($29) plugs into the expansion slot on the back of a GBA and allows gangers to transmit instant messages and e-mail through die air with a similarly-equipped QBA. The text editor fe aadif youVe ever played with the sim ilar PictoChat software on the Nintendo DS, you'll really wish your GBA had a touch screen to d«*wpictures or sMbble messages. All rights rstsrvsd. 10 Writer Moravia 11 Lacking refinement 12 Nursemaid 13 Make beloved 18 Circle segment 22 Big name in small planes 23 Swedish pop group 24 Excessively showy 25 Rendered fat 26 Ragged clothing 30 Fuzz person 33 Worships 34 Obvious toupee 36 Ewe’s mate 39 Comic Caesar 40 Texaco trademark 41 Presentl 42 SS Alex Rodriguez 43 Aloof contempt 45 Lettering device 46 Fleet of warships Friday, April 15, 2005 By Victor Godinez The Dallas Morning News (KRT) Solutions 47 Put out to sea 48 Prickling sensation 50 Stevenson’s Long John 53 Clan divisions 55 Me, in Paris 56 Wannabe lakes 58 Verifiable 62 Small bill 63 Anger 64 Ripen 65 Do-over tennis service
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers