MY VOICE
The commercialized holiday season
MAR ISSA LANICH
staff writer
It's the most wonderful time
of the year... the happiest sea
son of all. However, from
where I've stood during the hol
idays over the past several
years, it hasn't looked like it to
me.
Although the holidays were
never a large part of my life
growing up, I hate to speak
negatively of the holiday sea
son. I particularly enjoy the
holidays, and I've had wonder
ful experiences celebrating
over the years with the families
of my friends and significant
others. But even these great
experiences can't negate the
greed and negativity that I see
every holiday season at work.
For the last several years I
have held positions in customer
service that have allowed me to
see people at their worst during
the holidays.
Last holiday season, I worked
'tll4
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THE EDITOR'S BLURB
Kick-start your Christmas spirit
It is widely accepted that
Christmas is the most wonder
ful time of the year. With love
filling the air as much as the
snow, how can it not? That
being said, as we grow older, it
is easy to find Christmas less
magical. With the
stress of finals,
loans, relation
ships, family, and
the cluster-cuss of
crap that clogs up
our daily lives, it's
easy to forget that
Christmas is even
approaching. And
when it finally
does arrive, it
lacks any of the
pizazz that it used to have in
the good old days.
So how do we restore this
once marvelous holiday to its
former glory? To be imagina
tive and blunt, Christmas is like
sex. The joy that you receive at
the crescendo is directly related
to how much you prepare and
work towards it. If you simply
roll out of bed on Christmas
Eve without doing anything,
you're not going to feel too
much. However, being proac
tive will reward you with the
unparalleled emotional orgasm
that takes place on Christmas
morning.
Here is a list of some ways
that I get geared up for the hol
idays:
• Music is key: You want to
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at the Millcreek Mall - the cra
ziest place to be during this
time of year. While I antici
pated a busy, stressful season, I
didn't realize how volatile the
holiday shoppers would be
Witnes
custome
day, ne,
pling otl
find
sales left
wonderii
where thi
holida'
spiri
was. Ob
se rvin,
shopper ,
who mw
their rel
tance any
sentm
apparent
buying
made me wonder if Christmas
cheer exists anymore.
This holiday season, I am
working in customer service at
get in the Christmas spirit?
Then load up your iPod and
pop in your headphones. There
is plenty of good music to be
had. Trans-Siberian Orches
tra's Christmas Eve (Sarajevo)
is always a winner. Also, Re
lient K's album, Let
it snow baby... Let
it reindeer, is my
new favorite.
• Mood lighting
isn't just for poon
tang: Nothing sets
the Yuletide mood
like some Christ
mas lights. I prefer
a classic red and
green, but blue
NEIL JAMES
opinion editor
gives a very cool
vibe, as well. But whatever you
do, don't attach them via Duct
tape. I spent 20 minutes last
year scraping residual crap off
my window before the RA
would let me leave for summer.
• Give to charity: If the spirit
of Christmas is giving, what
better way is there to kick-start
your limp spirit then giving to
charity? My personal favorite
is Toys-for-Tots. Just don't be a
tool and buy your toys from
Dollar General. Kids aren't stu
pid and they can differentiate
cheap crap from the good stuff.
So dig into you pockets and
spring for a legitimate Spider-
Man action figure at Toys-R-Us.
• Don't wait to shop: I'm not
saying to do all of your shop
ping in September, but waiting
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a grocery chain. While this has
been a considerably better ex
perience, I have still found that
the holidays bring out the worst
in customers. For every pleas
ant shopper, I encounter
ttive shop
mpossible
And of
there are
, d to be a
time of togetherness and gen
erosity. Although most might
agree with this statement, it
seems as if this togetherness
nL.MxI(
until Christmas Eve isn't a good
idea either. Spread out your
shopping during all of Decem
ber. Not only will you be forced
to think about the "giving" as
pect of Christmas, but you'll
also be immersed in the holiday
atmosphere the moment you
walk into any store. Can't get
the holiday spirit on your own?
Don't worry. Sears will shove it
down your throat whether you
want it or not.
• Master your Mistletoe: Sex
makes everything better (ex
cept family reunions). So why
not insert some sex appeal into
you holiday preparation? Hang
some mistletoe in varin.- -
and hope that
member of the
crosses its path
trip wire of lov(
a try! The
thing you have
to lose is any
chance of
them speak
ing to you ever
again.
• The holiday
movie marathl
You better ch
your TiVos,
cause December
the month of re
running old Christ
mas films. Have
you ever seen A
Christmas Story?
No? Well strap on
your Santa hat and
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and generosity has become a
chore for many rather than the
enjoyable experience it is
meant to be.
While this time of year cer
tainly can be busy and stressful,
it's essential to keep things in
perspective. We are lucky to be
able to put food on our tables
for the holidays, let alone buy
gifts for family and friends.
Many others are not so fortu
nate. Though holiday planning
and shopping may feel over
whelming, impatience and
rudeness are not beneficial for
anyone and certainly will not
make the experience any more
enjoyable.
the cus
ss who
oy venting
mut their
oliday
tress and
nger,
preading
heir
Tooge-like
;ery to
This is known as the most
wonderful time of the year be
cause of the cheer and the
goodwill that has long been as
sociated with it. Keeping this in
mind and treating others with
respect and kindness during
the holiday season will make it
a much more enjoyable experi
ence for everyone.
ne who
holidays
straightjackets because that's
all you are going to see for the
next twenty days. Yes, some of
these films can get old fast, but
just try to pace yourself.
Enough holiday cheer will fill
the airwaves to knock down a
satellite. That being said there
is one movie that will never get
old, and that's Chevy Chase's
Christmas Vacation. Trust me,
it's a holiday staple. I've
watched it every year since I
was twelve and I still run the
risk of wetting myself each time
I watch it.
I hope this list has helped. If
not, don't worry. The feeling
ou'll :et after finals are
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BEHREND BEACON
December 4, 2009
www.thebehrendbeacon.com
MY VOICE
The Final rush
BRANDON BOYD
In this last edition of the
Behrend Beacon for the semes
ter, you will likely read various
articles focusing on the many
joys of the holiday season.
However, before we leave to
celebrate, we have to suffer
through a painful time for stu
dents. That time unfortunately
involves tests. Lots of them.
Important, too. Finals cause
students to go through a self
named cleverly rhymed three
step process: worry, hurry, and
scurry.
No student wants to hear
about finals; trust me, I know.
That being said, they can't be
ignored. Well, actually they can
be, but then you won't have the
opportunity to read this paper
for free.
The first stage that students
go through is worry. Teachers
always tell students not to
stress about finals, but it's like
what occurs during a fire:
someone yells to stay calm, yet
nobody ever does. Stress tends
to spread like the bubonic
plague throughout students,
one person freaks and a whole
group of people follow. Hours
upon hours are spent with
notes, books, and just about
everything else students tend to
avoid throughout the school
year. However, worrying does
n't have to happen. I'm not sug
gesting that a student doesn't
study; what kind of journalist
would do that? However, tak
ing breaks, eating well, sleep
ing well, and staying confident
will reduce worrying and help
you to achieve success.
The second stage is hurry.
Nobody wants to take the tests,
and nobody wants to be seated
in one of Behrend's many un-
The Behrend Beacon
EctitoriaC staff wishes
aIC our readers a very
wonderful and safe
hoCiday season.
t i dikii
The good ol' days
Bill Downs, a correspondent
who covered World War II with
the likes of Edward Murrow
and Walter Cronkite, was well
known for his occasional quips
of wisdom.
After experiencing heavy fire
in France, Belgium, and Hol
land, Downs found himself
lying in a ditch next to
Cronkite. He
turned to his
friend and re
marked, "Just
think. If we sur
vive them, these
will be the good
old days "
Downs' bit of
comedy, while
about a much
more serious sub
ject, always pops
back into my mind
this time of year.
With finals quickly approach
ing, five or six class projects left
undone, and a heap of long
term projects looming, the
stress of school and student or
ganizations always makes for a
rather frantic December.
Around the beginning of win
ter, I think about what that
quote means. To me, it says that
the stresses of today may not
matter as much in the long-run.
Those eighteen goals that I am
trying to accomplish by the end
of the semester simply won't
mean as much when I look
comfortable chairs for nearly
two unbearable hours that
seem to equal the time of our
entire break. Because of this,
students tend towards rushing
through the test, not checking
over their answers and filling in
random bubbles towards the
end. It happens to the best of
us; the holiday breaks are ap
proaching, and everyone just
wants to leave for home. This,
of course, leads us to the final
step.
stall writer
Students end up choosing to
scurry. Students run out of the
testing room as quickly as pos
sible with their head in their
hands, knowing that things
could have turned out better.
Then, when students are all
done with finals, they quickly
scurry off of campus to cele
brate the holiday season with
their families. Of course,' if
they start to think about their fi
nals at home, this may result in
another stage of worrying.
This, of course, is just a sim
plified version of what finals ac
tually mean for students.
Finals are different for every
one. Some students devote
days worth of time towards suc
ceeding, and do. Others devote
the same amount of time, yet
crash and burn. Finals are like
going to Las Vegas and gam
bling. It's all a crap-shoot. You
can go in prepared, with thou
sands of dollars, and come out
in debt up to your eyeballs. Or,
preferably, you walk in with
some money, and come out
with more. Come finals time,
I'm going to walk into the class
room like it's a casino on the
Vegas Strip, with money and
will be looking to buy my way
out.
Unfortunately, I have a feel
ing these dealers will be a lot
less likely to take my money.
back on my college career.
If we survive them, these will
be the good old days.
How do we want to remem
ber these good old days? Will
we be old and wrinkled, think
ing about that time we pulled
three all-nighters studying for
finals? Or will we remember
the time we pulled the all
nighter laying on
the lawn outside of
Perry, the midnight
Sheetz runs, the
impromptu games
of field hockey in
the Lawrence hall
ways?
CONNOR
SATTELY
editor-in-chief
minutes to relax
and watch some Lonely Island
videos. There's light at the end
of the tunnel. To you, our Chem
major friend with five compre
hensive finals approaching,
take a little bit of time to enjoy
your existence.
Even though it seems that
everything is more important
right now than your enjoyment
or self-amusement, just think.
Someday, the days we're living
now might just be the good old
days.
I P• Ii
To you, the
engineer struggling
with two advanced
plastics courses
and a Physics 693 D
class, take fifteen