Monthly Archives: November 2011

Ed Asner as FDR

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On October 22nd, the Richard Stockton College Performing Arts Center hosted Ed Asner as he portrayed one of America’s most beloved presidents, Franklin Delano Roosevelt.  During the performance, the audience traveled back in time to the Great Depression and World War II.  The audience had the opportunity to watch some of the most important events and decisions of FDR’s presidency unfold, as if given complete access to the Oval Office.  Asner’s impressive acting ability truly made history come alive in this memorable performance.

Ed Asner became famous during the 1980s, when he played Lou Grant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show.  Since that time, he has acted in many films and television shows.  Although, my generation may not be familiar with some of his early work, Asner is certainly recognizable in the recent film, Up, in which he was the voice of Carl Fredericksen.  Asner’s years of acting experience were truly present in his performance as FDR.

In this performance, Asner depicted the presidency of Roosevelt from his first election in 1932 to his death in 1945.  The performance began with Asner rolling out on stage in a wheel chair because FDR was paralyzed from the waist down.  FDR became paralyzed from the waist down, and in one powerful scene, FDR stood for the first time without the support of any object.  It was a powerful scene because of the determination FDR exhibited, and it set the stage for how he would conduct himself throughout the rest of his presidency.

For the majority of the performance, Asner was busy portraying FDR as being busy talking to people or making plans at his desk in the Oval Office.  FDR spoke with a variety of people including his trusted advisors, world leaders, and family members.  One of the challenges Asner had was in letting the audience know who he was talking to.  Since he was the only actor on stage, he had to work extremely hard and be very creative to make it seem as though he was speaking with another person on stage.  The telephone on FDR’s desk served as a tool to introduce new people.  Before a new person would come into the Oval Office, Asner would make a call asking for so-and-so to be sent in.  This kept the audience informed to what was happening during the performance.

The conversations that Asner had reflected the important decisions and events that FDR faced during his presidency.  Asner displayed the wide range of emotions that FDR exhibited from his cunning in packing the Supreme Court with new justices, to the charisma of campaigning in elections, to the indignation following Pearl Harbor.  The success of the performance rested on Asner’s acting ability.  His ability to effectively convey the mannerisms, decisions, and speeches that defined FDR’s presidency truly this performance feel like a trip back in time.

Preserving Local History on Stockton’s 8th Annual Day of Service

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Atlantic City has had a rich and varied history for the past 150 years.  From its beginning as a small seaside community, to the glitzy gambling and shopping destination it is today, the city has been reinvented and reimagined many times over.  Since 1857, one constant has remained.  The Absecon Lighthouse quietly stands on Pacific and Rhode Island Avenues, keeping an ever watchful eye on the sea.  For Stockton’s 8th Annual Day of Service, a group of students including myself had the opportunity to learn about and preserve this historic structure.

The Day of Service started on the morning of September 10th with a gathering of participants to listen to an opening address by President Saatkamp, and a speech by Charles Uhl, an EMS responder on September 11, 2001.  Their remarks set the tone of the day by focusing on the 10th Anniversary of 9-11, and the meaning of service.  After this, everyone was dismissed to their various projects.  Roughly 25 students boarded a school bus that took us to the Absecon Lighthouse.

Upon arriving, we were greeted by Alice Stryker, a member of the museum staff, who split us into several groups and assigned each group different tasks.  Our first job was picking any weeds that had grown around the base of the tower.  Next, we worked on cleaning the windows of the tower and their sills.  After this was completed, we climbed to the top of the lighthouse and took in the impressive views of Atlantic City and the ocean.  Our final job was sweeping and wiping down the walls of the Oil House.  The Oil House had to be cleaned with extra care.  We wore gloves because the oils from our hands could damage the mortar of the walls.  That day, I learned that the Absecon Lighthouse was built in the 1850s and was used until 1933.  It is the tallest lighthouse ever be constructed in New Jersey, and it is the third tallest lighthouse in the United States.

Volunteering at the Absecon Lighthouse gave me an appreciation for the local history near Stockton.  Structures likes this deserve the attention of the local community.  I am especially grateful to the Office of Student Development for making this day possible.  It is important for college students to give back to their community, and I look forward to next semester’s Day of Service.

 

Blog 8: Campus Clean Up

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On October 25 the Water Watch club held a campus clean up.  We were divided into teams and cleaned up different areas of the college campus.  My group had to clean the trails in the woods that run around Lake Fred.  We found tons of glass bottles and aluminum cans to recycle.  We found a lot of cigarette butts too.  We also found tons of weird things.  We found a deer antler separate from the rest of the deer.  We found some socks and a hat.  We found a plastic sand bucket by the side of the lake. We found a razor blade.  We even found a truck’s mud flap!  We also found a metal sign pulled out of the ground.  We found so many interesting things and had so much fun while cleaning up the campus.  It was a fun and easy way to help make our beautiful campus look even more beautiful.  I would love to help out the next time a campus clean up is held.

 

Pale Kid Raps Fast

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Written by the one and only Horace Leung.

“Oh, hai

I’m that guy

Built so fly in a silk bow tie

Don’t know why I’m built so fly

But I am no lie”

–         George Watsky

What can be a better combination than a FREE dinner and a show by Stockton Entertainment Team? With over fifteen million hits on his video, “Pale Kid Raps Fast”, George Watsky has and performing his poems to colleges all around the United States. Lucky for us, we were able to see him from beyond the videos that he makes. George Watsky is a poet and rapper and his inspiration comes from the frustrations of modern life and politics.

Even though the food was spectacular and could have been the event, having George Watsky recite his poems was just a nice bonus. Of course, he recited “Letter to My 16-Year-Old Self” and sang “Pale Kid Raps Fast,” however, he also recited original poems that have not been posted on YouTube. He brought to light the issues of global warming, heat, and the ambiguity of religion. His poems were insightful, impressive, and straight-out funny.

All in all, it was very interesting to see George Watsky and hear him give his perspective on various issues. He is a talent that should not be ignored. Nonetheless, this event appeals to everyone. If you are a fan of George Watsky to liking free catered dinners when you are running out of meal swipes due to the fact you’ve been over eating at the Campus Center, then these are opportunities here at Stockton for YOU. However, if this event will never happen again, I suggest you watch his videos on Youtube to see what everyone is talking about.

 

Blog Post Two – The Four Bitchin’ Babes

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“You know the movie American Graffiti, and the part where Terry says to Debbie, that gorgeous blond honey, “What a babe…what a bitchin’ babe,” well that’s us, that’s how we chose our name.” On October 16, 2011, I saw the show, “The Four Bitchin’ Babes.” This particular act they were presenting was called “Diva Nation.” The performance was fantastic from the very beginning. A man came onto the stage, introduced the ladies, and then cut a big ribbon to initiate the start of the show. The four women started with a very funny song all about the items people frequently lose, such as, one’s glasses, the television remote, the money to pay the pizza man, and a purse. This song was a perfect introduction as to what the whole show would be about. The women sang songs about real life events, but made them hilariously entertaining by “letting their inner diva come out.” Their show was definitely aimed towards older women, so some parts I did not understand or find as funny as the other members in the audience did. Nonetheless, “The Four Bitchin’ Babes” was an awesome show performed by some very awe-inspiring babes.

Each of the four babes, Christine Lavin, Patty Larkin, Megan McDonough, and Sally Fingerett, put on a unique performance. One of the babes introduced the other and her accomplishments, then that lady spoke and sang a song she wrote. Their songs were personal, yet everyone could emphasize with them. The ladies had such a great view on life and a wonderful spirit about them. For example, one of the songs the audience and I found extremely amusing was one called, “The Boob Fairy.” They each went back and forth singing their own songs until the end of the show, when they said, “Thanks for coming; it would have been different if you hadn’t.” The last song they sang together, which summoned up what “The Four Bitchin’ Babes” and their shows were all about, “happiness, love, laughter, singing, and women.” (The show also inspired me to check out their website for more information about the babes at – http://www.fourbitchinbabes.com/).

REGISTRATION ADVICE

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To all my fellow honors kids out there who have not yet registered for classes. Here’s some advice. Get all the CRN numbers for the classes you want. When you first click on register, a banner comes on and you have to have the CRN numbers ready if you don’t want to waste time looking through the catalog again. Let me warn you…IT WILL BE STRESSFUL. I was personally freaking out! Like my hands were shaking…and I agree that’s a little overdoing it but I cant help it when I’m stressed…so have your stuff ready to go.
I cant repeat this enough, and I’m sure you’ve all heard it a bazillion times: but make back up schedules and have those ready to go too. Make sure you visit the website and see how the seats are filling up the morning of the your registration day at least so you have the most updated information and keep looking until your time to register comes. Make sure you get that secret website from Widjaja just in case the network crashes. It’s even a good idea to register in the honors center so that you have some honors kids there helping you out. Don’t use the wireless connection, its more likely to crash…have a wire connecting your computer to the internet.
Make sure there are no holds on your account and that you have all the POIs (Permission of Instructor) if you need them. Talk to the professor you want to take the class with to get the POI, send them an email AND visit them….it gets you brownie points and its more professional.
Make sure you have access to a computer at least one hour before you have to register just in case there is a problem in the system again and you can register early. It would totally suck if you lost your chance to get in early when everyone else is doing it so be prepared. And that’s all that I can think of…except for one thing: DON’T FORGET TO BREATHE.
Luv ya all! 🙂
<3 Kimia

Letters Home

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The show was nothing like what I thought it would be. I figured it would be letters from one soldier in the three stages of his military career but instead there was 15 or so soldiers just recalling the letters from their career. There was one mother also talking about the letters she wrote and about her sons who were in the war.
I loved the beginning of it. All the performers run on to the stage and just say random things. Everyone is left confused until after a few of them step into the spot light and recall the letter. Then you realize, the random things they were saying was just the beginning of the letter. The soldiers were all very different and so it was a great way to get to see different perspectives on the military life and the challenges they had to face. The one solider that I was rooting for the entire time was a father. His wife and had just given birth to their daughter and he could not wait to see her. He had been deployed only days after his daughter was born and in his letter he kept talking about how much he missed her and how proud of her she was and how much he couldn’t wait to see her again. He felt sorry that he had to miss out on even part of her childhood and was telling her how he knew she’d grow up to be a wonderful person. Out of all the other letters, I feel like his was the most touching to me. Then for his last letter, he was saying happy birthday to his daughter on her first birthday. It had been a year since he had seen her and was expressing how he could not wait to see her soon. Then a slide came on that said he died only two days after his daughter’s first birthday. The part really hit me hard and I felt extremely upset. I feel like it was a good play because even though I’ve never had anyone close to me be in the military and I have been lucky enough to have my father in my life through every stage of my childhood, the play still managed to move me. It let me relate to someone I had nothing in common with and feel upset about losing him, even though I had only gotten to know his character for about an hour and half.
The letters were actually from real soldiers and in the end they showed the pictures of the true soldiers. Most of them died but few survived the war and are busy doing other things today. I wish more honors kids had came because it was actually really good and I enjoyed it.

Four Bitchin’ Babes

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I am 18 years old, but enjoyed that show. Maybe it was filled with jokes directed towards older women, (and no I did not understand some of them), but that didn’t stop me from laughing anyway. I’m sure I’ll understand in due time. What did enjoy was that these four ladies were just full of charm. You couldn’t help but to love them and the music they played was happy and cheerful. It made me smile even though I was having a really bad day. They sing about real life things. About teenagers, and chocolate and personal problems, but they have a good sense of humor about it.
That’s the way we should be I think. I think life is too short for us to take it seriously and the four bitchin’ babes just confirmed it for me. The stuff they sing about, is stuff that every woman has to deal with. Sometimes it can get frustrating not being as young as they used to but, it is what it is. That’s when you have to start laughing at life and enjoying it more instead of feeling upset over things and getting all angry and having wrinkles show up on your face.
This is the type of show I would take my mother and grandmother to see. It’s a great thing for women, I wouldn’t suggest to men, but if you want to go, I do recall seeing a few male heads from my seat all the way in the back. They also sell their books and CDs. I have to admit I was very tempted to buy a book. It has a page in it, dedicated to gum. You know how sometimes you want to throw out your gum, but you cant find anything to wrap around it? Well they had pre-cut pieces of paper that you could rip right out of the book dedicated to helping you throw out your gum when you need to. Because it is at times like these when the four bitchin’ babes can be there for you. This is the charming and awesome sense of humor that ran through the entire show. And I have to say, I actually enjoyed myself.

Mutter Museum

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The Mutter Museum Trip was a lot of fun and filled with excitement regardless of the horrible weather. Forget about it being cold, but it was snowing…in October!!! The museum itself was smaller than I expected it to be but there was a lot of interesting stuff. I think some of my favorites included the skeleton of the giant. It was so crazy to think that a man was actually that tall. Can you imagine standing next to him? I wonder what the world must have looked like to him. To him, we were all a bunch of kids, and kids were infants and infants were just pebbles. The twins joined at different spots was very interesting as well. There were lots of drawers of stuff that people had swallowed. Objects like pins, bones, jewelry, or buttons that had been recovered after a person had swallowed it. People are amazing! There were lots of skulls. I think the best part was that they had written the ethnicity of the skull on a card next to it, so then we could all look for an ethnicity similar to ours and be able to compare our head to the skull on display. I didn’t find an Iranian one, but it was cool nonetheless.
They Mutter Museum also had Day of the Dead festivities going on. We had the chance to decorate our own skull cookie and make flowers. After all that, there was a gift shop. It was small but they had a section for stuffed animals that represented different diseases. I have to say that was awesome. I would so want to buy every single one and just have a display in my house showing off the different diseases. It would be such a fun way to learn about them. I really wanted to buy one but they didn’t seem worth the money. Instead I bought two pins. One for me and one for my brother. I always buy something to bring back with me as a memory and I figured the pin would be nice. It has a “U” on it representing the “ooo” sound in “Mutter.” Overall, I feel like the trip was very interesting and a great learning experience and getting to explore Philadelphia a little bit, even if it was in the worst weather possible, was definitely an incredible way to top it all off.

Pop Lloyd Event Blog

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I am personally not a big baseball fan. Actually it’s not just baseball, I just don’t follow supports. Even reading Shoeless Joe was too sporty for me to enjoy very much. So when our professor, Dr. Lenard told us we had to research Pop Lloyd I wasn’t very excited. Even after my research I still had not found anything exciting about him that would make me want to go to the Pop Lloyd event on that Friday. We were supposed to go see a speaker who was going to talk about Roberto Clemente.
Friday comes and we are sitting in the PAC. The speaker starts speaking about his personal relationship with Roberto Clemente and how he was inspired by Clemente. He talks about how at a very young age he was touched by baseball and it was such a big part of his life. He told us about the many things that Clemente did. Even as unenthusiastic as I was about the event, I still enjoyed it. I couldn’t figure out why I was actually able to keep my focus and follow his speech, but I did. Mid-way through the speak, I realized I was sitting behind Clemente’s son! His actual offspring! I have to admit, that part did excite me a little. I felt like I was feeling a part of history, and it was sitting right in front of me.
That’s when I realized why so many people were crazy about baseball, or any sport in fact. Sure the game is exciting and getting home run or a touchdown is absolutely worth the cheer it gets. More importantly though, there is a human aspect to it. It’s the thrill of being around thousands of other people cheering for the same players. It’s the joy of believing in someone, supporting them and seeing them pull through. That is something that everyone can relate to, and in any situation. Then I remember the speaker telling us about Clemente’s background in helping people and how he died. I feel like the part about his death was the most powerful part for me, but not because I was a fan of him. Before that day, I didn’t really know Roberto Clemente. His death, and the way he died, really upset me because he was trying to do something noble. He was doing something that I would do in a heartbeat if I was given the chance, and seeing him be a type of person that I can relate to, and then dying while he was trying to do something good, that touched me too.