RPDC

Sorry for the disappearing act since Thanksgiving, but now I have time to get back to writing. Let me give you an inside look, and possible recruitment, of RPDC or the Rutgers Performing Dance Company, since that is what has consumed my life for the last week.

First off, let me answer the basic question: What is RPDC? It’s a student run dance company that puts on a show at the end of each semester. The dances are student choreographed, and we work for weeks to perfect the dances for the end of semester showcase. It’s open to anyone who wants to give it a try, even if you’ve never danced. Dances vary in style and level, so there is something for everyone.

My week, however, because it was the show, became what is known to dancers as “hell week”, or more properly known, tech week. Rehearsals went from 8:30-11ish Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. It completely wiped me out, leaving me with so many bruises that it seriously looked like someone took a bat to my knees. But it was all worth it in the end when we had our show this past Friday and Sunday. We performed at Nicholas Music Hall, dancing our hearts out. All the hard work was worth it. It is so nice to finally get a chance to breathe, relax, and let my legs heal. Check out our group on facebook if you are interested and come see the show in the spring!!

What I’m Thankful For

Thanks Rutgers for not screwing us over this year and just cancelling Wednesday classes. I still left at the same time that I probably would have on Wednesday, but it let me have an awesome Tuesday night with my Rutgers family. So thank you Rutgers, I’m thankful that you finally got something right.

Happy Thanksgiving!

What Happens When One Students Causes Another A RU Screw??

I don’t like being a gossip queen, but I just find this to be extremely interesting. There was a lot of drama on my floor this week at the Crowne Plaza, and I couldn’t believe how fast Reslife was able to fix a RU screw. A basic summary of what went down- Two roommates. One roommate’s ex- girlfriend lives on the floor underneath.  All three are from the same hometown. The other roommate has been secretly hooking up with the ex-girlfriend for 2 weeks. The roommate found out. All hell has broken loose. 

Because now these two can’t be in the same room together because of the fight that will most likely break out, the other roommate went toReslife and explained the situation. In a matter of an hour and half, the other roommate had a new room on a different floor. They even told him that if things weren’t resolved that he could stay there for the rest of the year. I don’t understand this. If the University screws its students over day after day and doesn’t do anything about it, how come they are so quick to respond when a student screws over another student? That doesn’t seem very fair to me. They should have to suffer like the rest of us getting RU Screwed.

Buses and Cars and Tickets… OH MY!

 

So I got a parking ticket the other night for parking on campus without a permit.  It’s a long story, but wrapped up I had been told a month ago by a police officer that if I had a hangtag in the car I wouldn’t get ticketed. I took that information and had been hanging my friend’s tag in the car the 3 hours a week I have dance. Needless to say I wasn’t happy when I got the ticket, and have since appealed it. But what really got me angry was when I called the office the other day to ask why my financial hold had been removed. The man on the phone (who said he was the DIRECTOR) told me that it was because I was appealing and asked why I was appealing. I explained the story to him, calmly and politely, saying that I didn’t feel it was fair because I had been given wrong information. The following is pretty much how the conversation went:

director: Well, you don’t have a permit

me: Yes, but this is what I was told

director: You clearly didn’t get this information online. Wouldn’t you say it was your responsibility to get this information?

me: Like I said, a person, one of your police officers told me this.

director: You can never park anywhere on campus at any time without a permit. I see that you had a warning given to you?

me: Yes, it was on a Sunday, and I thought it was okay to park in a lot on the weekend because that’s been the rule for the last 3 years.

director: You can never park on campus…

me: A friend of mine’s father parked in a lot all weekend and didn’t receive a ticket.

director: It does not matter the system in which we ticket, when we ticket, or how we ticket, you can’t park on campus without a permit. How difficult is that to understand?

(at this point, I’m pretty mad. It only gets worse)

me: Um, okay…

director: You can just buy a parking permit.

me: Here’s the issue I have with that. I was told all summer that I could have a permit for whatever campus I wanted, and then at the end of the summer I was told that I wasn’t allowed to have one for College Ave.

director: Housing told you that, not us.

me: Actually, no. My parents went to a transportation meeting where they were told that I was only allowed on Livingston or Busch.

director: That is correct.

me: Well, I’m not going to pay $175 for a permit for a campus that I don’t have class on.

director: There are buses then.

me: As a female, I’m not very comfortable walking around Douglass at night by myself to a bus.

director: Most of the students feel comfortable so this is the system we have in place.

me: But I don’t.

director: Then you can pay for that privilege.

Needless to say I really despise the transportation department. I’m planning to appeal this ticket, and bring up how I was disrespectfully spoken to on the phone. And what makes it even better, the Targum had and article yesterday on the front cover discussing, that’s right you guessed it…. STUDENT SAFETY AT NIGHT ON CAMPUS, SPECIFICALLY DOUGLASS AND THE LACK OF LIGHTING.

Thursday Night Lights

I have to say, that as I write this, I know that I’ve become that student. The one who goes to games and gets mad at those who aren’t there or those who don’t stand and cheer. I’m one of those students though, who goes when the weather is nice. And honestly, I feel kinda bad for the team. The Targum said how the players said the crowd brings magic to the stadium on Thursday nights. I know though that so many people won’t be going to the game. I bet there will be girls who don’t want to go out in the cold weather, which I know is stereotypical, and believe it or not, guys aren’t going to want to go either. Case and point- the 4 guys I’m sitting with right now aren’t going because it’s too cold and rainy out.

 

Rutgers Fans Anticipate Pandemonium in Piscataway Part 3

 

 

I feel like a bad fan, especially because I was there 2 years ago on that infamous Thursday night when Rutgers overthrew then ranked #2 South Florida. I was one of the crazy fans who jumped over the fence and rushed the field just like everyone else, jumping in front of the cameras, screaming RU!! And now, I’m sitting on the couch getting ready to watch the game on tv because I can’t handle the cold. So what I’m trying to say is, Tom Savage, there’s alot of pressure on you tonight to repeat history for Pandemonium in Piscataway Part 3. While the stands might not be that full tonight, just know, the whole school is rooting for you. GO RUTGERS!

Blue Light Special

Yesterday in the Targum, there was a block on the front page that said that a student had been assaulted outside of his appartment, which is on one of the side streets.  The student was in critical condition at first, and now is is stable condition. This isn’t the first time that a student has been attacked on the side  streets, as most students know from the crime alert emails we get from time to time. What I’m finding strange is why the University hasn’t done anything to make these areas safer. While the area is under New Brunswick authority, I think it would be beneficiary for students if the University decided to work with the town to make the side streets that so many students live on much safer.  My suggestion to the University is work with New Brunswick in order to place blue light security boxes on side streets from College Ave all the way down to about Lewis Street. Students live there, and many students walk the streets alone at night.  Blue ligths would make the area safer and provide a place for students to turn to if they feel they are in danger. So Rutgers, look into it. It could protect so many more students.

Outsider Voice

I appolgize for ont updating in a while but sickness had struck me for about a week. Now that the feeling of death has passed, I and RU Serious are back in business.

 

So the other day when I was at work, I was in charge of walking around with hors d’oeuvres. I struck up a conversation wth some of the gentlemen who were at the job fair. They asked if I lived in the area, ad I explained how I was a student at Rutgers and actually lived in a hotel. Surprisingly enough, the men found that to be extremely intriguing and somewhat jealous. One man even said, “I clearly went to the wrong school”. That caught me off guard. Someone, jealous, getting to live in a hotel? Why would anyone be jealous of that?

 

I hadn’t known what to say, and I just smiled and nodded to the man and walked away. That one sentence has been stuck in my head since then. Maybe there are some perks to living in a hotel rather than the dorm. The rooms are nicer, we get heating and a/c, and we have access to a pool that’s 3 floors away. I’m not saying that the man was right, because hey, I’ve dealt with some unnessary things while living here, but it was nice to be reminded of the good that is here too.

Tanfastic Advertisement?

Is Promoting Tanning Okay?

I was reading the Targum today during lunch, doing my usual flip through before pulling the puzzle pages out, when I came across an ad for a tanning salon. The tagline for the ad said “Ghostly White is a Frightful Sight” and then offered a bunch of coupons for tanning. Now, I am as pale as a ghost, and I’m okay with that because I know at 40 I won’t look like a old wrinkled leather sack. But what I find interesting is that a few months ago, a huge story broke revealing that it had finally been scientifically proven that tanning causes skin cancer (not like that was a completely shocking discovery) and the school is running ads for something that is proven to cause a disease that leads to death. I have to question then, is it ethical for the school to be running ads, that not only suggest that being pale is ugly, but promote a “hobby” that can ultimatley kill you?

I feel that the newspaper, while needs to run the ads to keep money, perhaps run some that aren’t that directed at suggesting that the natural look, not baked dark, is ugly. It is not the best ad to be running in a college newspaper, while there are still girls in school who are uncomfortable and aren’t completely confident in the way they look. If there is a female who is that insecure and reads this may feel that being tan will make them prettier, and then risk their own health. So I’m just suggesting, perhaps the Targum checks its ads out a little closer before they run them as a way to promote a healthier lifestyle for its student readers.

Breathe In, Breathe Out, Stand Up, Stand Out

So have you ever seen that episode of ‘The Office’ (Beach Games I think it’s called) where Pam runs across the hot coals and then stands up for herself like never before? Well, I rewatched that episode yesterday and I have been inspired by Pam. I have decided to stand up for what I think is wrong, fully speak my mind, and say what I feel I need to say. The hotel better be ready for me because I’ve arrived and I’m not going anywhere.

I took my first step yesterday in this new Pam-like lifestyle. If you recall, back to my post Privacy Please, I revealed how there was a cleaning woman who eavesdropped on a private phone conversation. I saw the cleaning lady, finally again, in the hallway yesterday just like the day a few weeks ago. Now knowing how to describe her to the front desk, I went down to talk to them. The guy at the desk couldn’t have been much older than myself and the other students living at the hotel. He was full of shock when I told him what had happened and immediately appologized, handed me a complaint sheet, and told me that it would be taken care of in the proper manner. It was amazing to see how boggled the front desk was that an employee would do such a thing. It may have only been one small thing, filling out that complaint sheet, but it was a step. Not only a step for myself, but for all the other students in the hotel. It’s time we started being treated the right way and the ball is now already rolling.

 

oh, and i’ve got to say this because it’s something that needs to be said…. GO YANKEES!

Play the Numbers

Lottery Costs Students Housing

So the Daily Targum yesterday ran an article on the housing lottery and the forum to discuss possible changes. (I’d post the link but the site is down. If it goes back up I’ll link it) They mainly talked about the sign back process for the appartments on Cook, Easton, and Rockoff. As an SAS student, it was important that they raised the issue that the school doesn’t have a set campus, so how is it possible for SAS students to sign back onto a campus when they don’t actually belong to any set one. An SAS junior put it best:

 

“It’s only a priority system for those who are lucky enough to get the lottery number… Why should SEBS hve priorty over any other school?”

I completely agree. It is unfair to have a sign back system for students who already get the advantage because they are in SEBS, and then even more so if they recieve a high lottery number. Living in the hotel because I had a high lottery number is proof that it isn’t fair. I didn’t even have a shot at housing with my number. SAS students really do not get a fair deal, espcially because the appartments on Cook are more or less saved for the SEBS students, leaving the rest of us homeless until we get somewhere to go.

 

The last thing that irked me in this article was the comment about how there was a low turnout at the forum, and the committee said that they had sent out an email and fliers, and then said “What more can we do?” I doubt it is a lack of caring of students because you know what, I would have gone if I had access to internet to receive any emails, or if I actually lived on campus and it was easier to get around. I think the housing committee needs to really fix the lottery system for the time being because they would never have had these problems if they had spent the money for the stadium for new dorms instead.