Friday, December 2, 2005
Students love Christmas classics
As Thanksgiving leftovers remain in refrigerators and Black
Friday kicks off holiday shopping, everyone knows that it is time for
Christmas. With the Christmas carolers and Christmas cookies
come the Christmas classics. Many of us remember watching
Christmas movies from early childhood on and have developed a
media-oriented tradition of watching these films. Behrend students
love the Christmas classics just as much as anyone else and many
wanted to share their favorite memories of select movies.
Everyone's favorite reindeer made his annual appearance on CBS
this past Wednesday, Nov. 30. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer'
premiered on NBC Dec. 6,
1964 and is known as the
longest-running, highest-rated
holiday special. This clayma
tion (animation with clay fig
ures) stop-motion film was dig
itally re-mastered in 1998 and
maintains its status as a family
favorite. Freshman Justin really funny." She said that as
Baker's favorite Christmas she watches the movie again
story is "Rudolph the Red- this year, she will look forward
Nosed Reindeer" because he to seeing her favorite scene.
loves the Abominable She said she likes the Chinese
Snowman. Baker said, "My restaurant scene best especially
favorite part of the movie is when "the Chinese people try
when the Abominable to sing 'Deck the Halls. —
Snowman falls down and CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Sophomore Maggie Causgrove
everyone thinks he's dead, but Ralphie Parker takes aim with his prized Christmas present, a Red Ryder BB gun. also watches "A Christmas
he bounces back up." Story" annually because it is "a
"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" is freshman Nathan
Wendell's favorite Christmas movie as well. He explained that it is
his favorite because "It's claymation... Honestly, claymation rules!"
He mentioned that his favorite part is when Rudolph and Santa arc
"singing their butts off." Freshman Thomas Coyer has enjoyed
'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" since he was a small child. He
said that he enjoys the movie because "[he] remembers when Ihel
and [his] sisters and mom and dad would watch it all together
around Christmas time every year." Coyer said that he especially
enjoys the concluding scene in which "Yukon Cornelius and the
Bumble put the star on the tree because the Bumble is the only one
tall enough... Bumble rocks!" He also said that he hopes to receive
a DVD of claymation classics this Christmas.
Even though Rudolph is a great symbol of Christmas, who does
not love Charlie Brown? "A Charlie Brown Christmas" was
released only one year after "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and
won an Emmy Award for being an "Outstanding Children's
Program." This was the first of the Peanuts animated films and is
Fashion Column: Clothing makes the major
Obviously clothing and the things carried on a person make a
statement about their wearer. A uniform for one's job can easily
indicate what that job is and, in some cases, what that job entails. A
hooded sweatshirt with a college logo may indicate where one
attends school. In addition, I have come to the conclusion that one's
attire also holds the ability to tell one's major.
initially came to this realization while sitting in Bruno's with my
best girlfriend during the café's busiest time: lunch time. Between
the hours of noon and about two in the afternoon, a sea of students
floods the place and, in a Darwinian battle, all tight to the death (or
until they have to go to class) standing in line waiting for something
to eat. In that sea, students from each major offered are present.
Anyone even slightly acquainted with the laws of nature knows that
safety lies in numbers so, out of fear, students tend to stay close to
those in their specific major. My friend and I made a guessing game
out of observing this phenomenon. In watching the smaller herds of
students move within the bigger sea, certain clothing characteristics
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highly regarded in millions of hearts including those of Behrend stu
dents. Senior Pat Carver said that he loves "A Charlie Brown
Christmas" because "Charlie Brown is cool!" Carver said that his
favorite part is the happy ending. "'Charlie Brown] got this horri-
ble Christmas tree and then everyone makes it beautiful and... lives
happily ever after. - said Carver. Freshman Michael Ouellette also
enjoys Charlie's pitiful Christmas tree. He said he does not have a
favorite scene in particular, hut, "any scene with Snoopy in it is
always good."
"You'll shoot your eye out!" For millions of people, this excla
mation evokes memories of anxiety and participation as felt by
Ralphie Parker in "A Christmas Story." "A Christmas Story" was
first aired in 1983 and starred Peter Billingsley who played Ralphie.
Of course, no one can forget Ralphic's wish of an official Red
Ryder, carbine action, two-hun
dred shot range model air rifle.
This movie has special mean
ing to three Behrend students in
particular. Freshman Heather
Smith said that she has made
this movie a tradition to watch
every Christmas because "it's
good movie. - She said that her favorite scene is the one in which
"[Ralphiej is sitting in Santa's lap to ask for the BB gun and Santa
says 'You'll shoot your eye out, kid!' and kicks Ralphie down the
slide." Freshman Jamie Morgan said that she "always watched ["A
Christmas Story") during Christmastime - because she "also had a
BB gun when [she) was little so 'she) thought it was neat." She said
that she most remembers the leg lamp, and her favorite part is
"when fßalphiel heats up the bully and goes crazy."
These Christmas movies arc only a small representation of all the
wonderful films that have been placed in our hearts over the years.
As we love to solve the puzzle of - How the Grinch Stole Christmas"
with our families or at "Home Alone," we realize that Christmas is
the time of year for giving. So share those wonderful Christmas
classics with family and friends, and remember that "It's a
Wonderful Life. - When Santa finishes his job of supplying gifts to
all the children of the world on Christmas Eve, you can bet he will
say, "Merry Christmas to all. and to all a goodnight!"
can be noted that can aid in the determining of said herd's major.
For example, one of the easiest to identify are the male engineers.
This herd is one of the most prominent on Behrend's campus and
also one of the largest. While broken up into subcategories with
slightly different looks, there is a common trait that runs within
about two-thirds of this particular population jeans with brown belts
worn with tucked in shirts and brown shoes. This look is occasion
ally topped off with a baseball ca, or, on the chillier days, a hooded
sweatshirt.
Another easily identifiable group is the business students. The
alpha males tend to dress in higher name brand button down long
sleeved shirts or polo shirts. tailored denim jeans, sleek footwear
and a cell phone that is permanently attached to some part of their
bodies. Their counterparts, the alpha females, appear in a similar
manner sporting frilly dress shirts, primarily black dress pants and
black heeled shoes. Sadly, both have fallen victim to the popped
collar
Also easily spotted are the male communications students. To the
untrained eye, they can he easily confused with the engineering
males on account of a shared love of hooded sweatshirts. However,
the communications males are only pretending to present the laid
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Black Friday Blues:
S 1t I
The sun is barely visible, the temperature is freezing and there is
a line of people of all ages wrapping around every retail building in
America. Millions of bargain hunters wait outside doors of popular
stores with the hope of being one of the lucky customers to get the
good deals "while supplies last." This unique shopping scene is
what Americans have come to know as "Black Friday," the biggest
shopping day of the year. The National Retail Federation said that
nearly 46 percent of the American population was out Friday,
Saturday and Sunday spending more than $23 million.
Freshman Cara Jones made sure she was up in time to make it to
the Ross Park Mall in Pittsburgh to catch some early bird specials.
Unfortunately, because of the massive crowd, perpetual lines and
chaotic mess, she bought just a few clothing items at regular price.
Jones said that she tried her best to shop at her leisure, hut "the
crowd was just ridiculous, you couldn't even move" Fourth semes
ter student Brian Hutchinson avoided the department store disarray
Friday; rather, decided to try his Christmas shopping on Saturday. "I
knew there would be sales on Friday, but I didn't think it was worth
it for all of the craziness." He said that he too felt as though it was
just a usual trip to the mall, no special buys. no extraordinary deals,
just a lot of people in one place at the same time.
Cara and Brian are like millions of shoppers who hope to find a
break in the prices around the holiday shopping time but end up not
and sometimes shoppers spend more than they had intended. The
reason for this is strategic advertisement. Chances are you're not
going to find a brand new laptop for $4OO any other day of the year.
Shoppers will get up with enough cushion time before the store
opens, wait outside and when the doors are finally unlocked, they
bolt directly to the computer section to pick up their $4OO laptop.
They arrive only to find that the store's entire supply of s4t)o lap
tops are sold out, but...they do have in stock a comparable machine
for only $899.99. The buyer might then consider the time and effort
he or she put into obtaining a laptop, settle for this one and pay more
than double what he or she had planned.
A lot of stores do not offer any deals at all, but because of their
convenient locations inside malls next to the stores that do, their
sales also sky-rocket. In 2(X)4, Visa reported a 14.3 percent transac
tion increase and competitor Mastercard checked in with an 8 per
cent increase.
So what about those who avoided the jumble all together'? "Cyber
Monday" is a more recently developed epidemic for holiday shop
pers." Cyber Monday," traditionally the Monday after Thanksgiving
is the highest interim retail sales day of the year. Major retailers
such as Lillian Vernon, JC Penney and Chadwicks will bring in
close to 16 percent more on this day than any other day in the year.
back look of engineers. Closer examination will show that the let
ters "AERO," or the words "American Eagle" arc branded across
their chests.
Finally, I will take time to examine my home group, the creative
writing students. The writing students would he one of the trickiest
groups to identify if not for a kw subtle. hut very important, traits.
First, there is the means by which they carry their belongings. A
writing major's choice bag is the messenger hag. This is not done
for fashion reasons, but more so to distribute the weight of their
books so as not to strain the typical lanky and awkward body type
they don. Second, is their always stylish cyewcar. This includes,
but is certainly not limited to, thick plastic-rimmed glasses with
lenses tickled with fingerprints that resulted from failed attempts to
push the glasses up by their nosepiece.
In conclusion, the next time you are brave enough to venture into
Bruno's during lunch time, take that bravery to a new level. Step
away from the safe confines of your own group. Turn that sea of
students into a melting pot, watch business students and the engi
neers eat from the same deli line and take time from chomping your
chicken wrap to hold hands and hum "Kumhaya."
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