Just Keeps Running and Running

Early into his presidency, critics regularly cited President Obama saying "he's spending too much time campaigning and not enough time governing."

That's Wittenberg in a nutshell.

When you come to Witt as a perspective student, you're given the grand presentation. Everything you'll ever need to want and even ever consider is presented to you by a smiling, self-assured student. After the tour, if you were told afterward that they were actually miserable and really hated Witt, you simply wouldn't believe them.

But once you get here, and you start to live the combination of the life they want for yourself and the life that the school has set out for you (and they have your deposit), you begin to feel that once they've hooked you, they can let you float around and figure things out for yourself. The continually surprising and inventive menu in the CDR or Post is gone in favor of the same over-cooked chicken, rice, and vegetable, bad pizza, and dry desserts.

The supposed community of closeness and togetherness is actually a catty group of snotty brats reenacting scenes from "Heathers," "Clueless," "Mean Girls," "Bring It On," and "Easy A."

To say that Springfield and campus have this litany of exciting and worthwhile events for everyone and anyone is simply not true.

Frankly, even the spaces that are available aren't for the right times or long enough. The "amazing" weight room and fitness center is always full and only open until 10. The library's only open until midnight!! Sorry this is becoming a rant, and I'm just saying that I occasionally feel like I've been sold a batch of goods that were never good to begin with.

This campus wants to make sure we get you into the door because they need your money more than the federal government does. Glad we all bought in.

Brown Paper Packages Tided Up with String: My Favorite Things about Wittenberg

Anytime someone suggests I have to name my favorite things, the familiar tune of "My Favorite Things" from "The Sound of Music." I'm a gay man with a taste for musical theater; it was inevitable.

But in this particular case, when I was asked to name my favorite things about Wittenberg, I didn't immediately think of cream colored ponies or crisp apple strudel, or doorbells, or sleigh bells or anything like it. My favorite parts of Wittenberg are far more abstract things that can't be held in the hands but rather things held in them mind.

My favorite thing about Wittenberg is its continued idealism. I may be a hardened and surly cynic, but I thoroughly appreciate it when there is still some groups of people that assume the best and brightest out of everyone and everything.

Wittenberg has people like those who faculty in the English department that give second, third and fourth chances. They genuinely believe in the people that they are teaching; they want the best for them. Wittenberg is a place that despite all of their best efforts believes in the common good of every student. They don't want to think that we can be racists or bigots. They still think that everybody can determine their future paths for themselves, and they think the current services around are the best available.

Maybe I'm mistaking idealism for naivete? Maybe, in the words of a professor of mine, I'm pumping too much sunshine out of their ass. Maybe I have my own glimmer of idealism that I didn't know I had. I think Wittenberg gave it to me. There's always so much talk about the "Bubble" and how much we don't know what's going on in the outside world, but the unwavering amount of integrity that this school tries to instill in us is certainly my favorite thing.

So, apparently this post is going to end up being a lot like The Sound of Music, hopelessly optimistic, old-fashioned, and something that's easily told in just a few short words. And that brings us back to do.

Journey to the Dark Side.

Over the years, we all have those moments when we feel we've done something bad. I don't mean in a dirty, immediately feel like confession kind of moment, but something you know has now altered either your day-to-day life or something you continue to have lingering sinking feeling.

I had one of those kinds of moments last week. I finally caved on something that I had been adamantly against for years. It went against my better judgment, it blatantly defied some basic things I hold as gospel. I...joined Twitter, and I love it.


I never would have thought that dispersing little 140 character messages into the world for a combination of complete strangers and some friends to read would be a worthwhile or satisfying endeavor. I can muse about my frustration with not being able to find a good job opportunity, a quick review of the my latest film, or even to just find solidarity about whatever feeling I may be having.

Comparatively to Facebook, where only my friends can really give commentary to the things that I put out there into the world, and frankly not all of them are things that my friends find interesting or that are even worth comment. But on Twitter, when I "tweet" (Believe me, I just cringed writing that word), there's a host of people who can respond, react and give commentary right back.

Secondly, I've actually found it can be a good way to promote myself and my writing. Let's say I just saw "True Grit" and I want to make sure I get my opinion out there in the universe as to make sure my opinion is the often read one amongst my now growing list of 75 followers. But then instead of merely leaving it at the 140 characters, I come home and write a fuller, more expansive review and put the blog link onto my feed so people can read the nuance and texture lost in a tweet.

I never thought I'd say this, but I am twitter-holic.

The Other Side of Spring Break

When my spring break begins in a week or two, I know many of my friends are going to be on their way to some of most envious places for any Witt student whose been hanging around the sheets of ice, snow, and weather long enough. Some of them are headed to Daytona Beach, FL, some are headed to sunny Los Angeles the land of Hollywood and the best surf on the main land, and some are headed to the calm and tranquil Virginia Beach for some R&R and the occasional dip in the Atlantic.

But for many, Spring Break isn't the same kind of free-for-all, fun in the sun experience it is for many. For many like me, I'll be packing up my month's worth of laundry and headed back to the enviable traveler's destination of South Bend, IN. For the last few years, the picture above (taken about 50 yards from my buddy's apartment) is what I've been used to. I have to be careful driving, bundled up in all my layers, and trying to avoid the icy patches on the sidewalks.

It's just as well too. Where in other years, I've didn't really have the excuses not to go to a warm place to really get down, I have too many to pick from this year. The real world is steamrolling down the tracks right at me, and I have to build a barrier before it creams me. Applications, portfolios, and the upcoming graduation are coming and barricaded in my house might be the only time it may get done. Weirdly though, many of my friends have already started to plan to bring a book along because they know they have something to work on, or they're going to look at the potential job opportunities in a particular city. The working break has arrived.

The Water Cooler's gone viral

I'm an avid fan of the award show. Yes, in many people's eyes they are overly-long, self gradulating, tedious waste of three hours. But I find them endlessly watchable and always fascinating.

So during last week's Grammy Awards, the celebration of the best in music, I found myself doing more than my usual watching and dvr-ing. I also found myself doing a whole new kind of interaction. I found myself constantly updating my facebook to address my opinions on different performances, clothing choices, and choices awarded.

I was in a mini-facebook war over the opening number featuring some of music's biggest voices as they tried to out-diva each other in a Aretha Franklin tribute. She ruined that song, she shouldn't have sung, etc.

Then as Lady Gaga emerged from her egg, I was commenting on the song versus her attire.

Then Eminem didn't win album of the Year, and there was surely a spike in conversation.

For the last few years, programmers, network executives, and television producers have been increasingly worried and aware that young people (18-34 is the demograhic) are not watching these kinds of large scale event television moments. But I would argue just the opposite. Special event TV has hit a high in terms of viewers over the last few years, and that's entirely because of this current Internet generation.

Instead of merely sitting and watching a show and having something to talk about in the halls or at the water cooler the next day, we talk about it as its happening. That's the kind of thing my mother would argue isn't really possible because she doesn't think multitasking like that is possible, but I think it's become a generational thing.

We've become so inundated with images, sounds, that we've learned to handle so many of them at once. We can text and listen to a conversation, do homework with the TV on in the background, and tweet and watch TV. Network programmers, don't fret, we're still watching your shows, we're just dealing with in a different kind of way.

Senior Athletes and how I feel like I'm turning into Barbra Walters

The latest story I'm working on for the bi-weekly stories is something that arrived very organically. I remembered of the many conversations my colleague Brian Alspaugh and I had on our mighty, long walk up to Wrigleyville on our first day in Chicago for the summer journalism symposium.

We were talking about what he was going to do when his year was over, when football was over, what do after graduation, how will you deal with being done etc.

It is these kind of conversations that led me to really think how special, exciting, and interesting the experience of being a college athlete and especially the ones at Wittenberg. I emailed 20+ senior athletes who are now finished with their seasons so I can ask about what makes them tick, how's it feel to be done, and what are the things they enjoy doing now that they're finished etc.

I've already conducted three interviews and have three more planned for today, and four this weekend. I've been recording them all on my FlipCam, more for the sound than the actual images. The responses have been so well versed, so beautifully articulated in a shocking and wonderful way. For some of these people, it's literally only been days since their career end; I love that they've been able to be so open and frank.

I'm definitely opening with an anecdotal lead and I have more than a few to pick from.

Any questions you think I should ask?

My Semester Story

For my semester-long story, I'm exploring the fact that there is serious lack of handicap accessibility on campus.
For years I've looked at this beautiful campus with the rolling hills, historical buildings, and attitude of trying to market itself as the perfect school for so many different kinds of students, that it's glaringly obvious that's not really true.

How is someone supposed to wheel up the hill, live in any hall other than New Hall, or even take classes in many of campus's academic buildings.

I'm looking into the actual specifics of where the laws the are supposed to be enacted throughout here at Wittenberg and who is in charge of enforcing them.

I'm also going to talk to John Paulsen the head of physical plant and see what can be done feasibly and realistically.

I'm also talking to Dave Wishart, a economics professor who is himself handicap. I want to know about his experience. Does he teach in Synod because it's one of the only accessible places?

I'm also going to talk to Admissions. Discuss with them the different counselors and see if they've seen problem with either students or parents who are handicapped. Do they think the different aspects of campus are preventing a whole new enclave of potential students by not having ramps or elevators.