Volume 34, Issue 20 www.metnews.orgFebruary 2, 2012 Serving the Auraria Campus for 33 Years

TheMetropolitan

Old traditions bring in new year

A group of dancers perform a Chinese ribbon dance during Auraria’s Lunar New Year celebration in the Tivoli Turnhalle Jan. 27. More than 300 people gathered to watch various performances in celebration of the new year. Refer to page 11 for coverage of the event. Photo by Mike Fabricius • mfabrici@mscd.edu

http://www.mscd.edu/homecoming

Bonfi re &

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Thursday, February 9 • 4–8 p.m.Dogwood Parking Lot

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MetroState

Homecoming2012

Bonfi re

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MetroSpective“The Othello Project” puts

domestic violence on trial 12

MetNewsMetro State

Aviation and Aerospace Day

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Suncor pledges to clean local reservoirBenzene contamination levels remain elevated in Sand Creek

Chris Swaincswain2@mscd.edu

Metro’s Homecoming Planning Com-mittee is striving to improve upon a lackluster 2011 Homecoming when the 2012 Homecoming festivities kick off Feb. 6.

“We hope this year’s homecoming events will be the biggest and best ever,” said Matt Brinton, Interim Assistant Director of Student Activities and Chair of the 2012 Homecoming Planning Committee.

Planning for this year’s homecoming began early in March of last year.

“This helped us get everyone together and on the same page much earlier [than last year],” Brinton said.

Preparations for 2011 homecoming didn’t begin until late in the 2010 fall semes-ter, and resulted in problems coordinating the event.

Last year, participation in homecoming events was limited. Events that drew the least amount of people, including the Masquer-ade Ball and Valentines Dinner have been replaced with daytime activities in hope of garnering more student involvement.

“The main challenge we face has to do with the fact we are an urban, commuter campus,” Brinton said. “It is difficult to ask students who have been on campus all day for class to find dinner on campus or down-town and then stick around for events.”

For most of Metro’s 47-year history, there has not been a homecoming week.

“We didn’t have one because we don’t have a football team,” Cathy Lucas, Associ-ate Vice President of Communications and Advancement at Metro said.

In 2003, survey feedback from students and alumni indicated a desire for more school spirit events. As a result, homecom-

ing was created. “Homecoming is about building pride

and tradition on campus,” Brinton said. “Metro is one of the premier schools in the Rocky Mountain region. Just because we are a commuter campus doesn’t mean our students don’t still want to participate in events and activities they would find on residential campuses.”

The Homecoming Planning Committee, which is comprised of representatives from various Metro offices and organizations, receives $10,000 per year. Liberty Mutual

Insurance donated an additional $5,000.Last year, homecoming costs amounted

to nearly $17,000 — leaving the Student Gov-ernment Assembly to pay the $7,000 overage.

In addition to the $15,000 available this year, Saunders Construction do-nated supplies to set up the bonfire and help mitigate the costs to the school.

Story and photos by Jessica Wacker jwacker1@mscd.edu

Suncor Energy refinery has promised to fix the ground water contamination that caused increased levels of benzene in Sand Creek and the South Platte River.

Benzene is an evaporating hydrocarbon and carcinogen. It is a common component of gasoline. It is clear and colorless, making its detection difficult without testing.

“We will make things right,” said John Gallagher, Vice President of Refining and Pipelines USA at Suncor.

“What’s happening is the ground water which flows naturally under our proper-ties, has come in contact with some of the contaminated soil and is picking up small quantities of benzene,” Gallagher said. “It’s carrying it into the [South Platte] River, be-cause some of the ground water comes into Sand Creek.”

Sand Creek flows into the South Platte River north of Denver and is a major source of agricultural and drinking water.

The maximum benzene concentration for drinking water is five parts per billion. Currently, some areas of the Sand Creek are showing more than 400 parts per billion.

Auraria sources its water from Denver Water. None of Denver’s drinking water is received from Sand Creek. However, it does draw water upstream of the con-tamination site from the South Platte River.

“Our water comes from the mountains,” said Stacey Chesney of Denver Water.

That means that Metro students don’t need to worry about drinking tap water while Suncor works to resolve the benzene contamination in the ground water.

Suncor refinery produces jet fuel, gaso-line, diesel fuel and asphalt, mostly using oil from Colorado and Wyoming.

Jan. 23, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced its order to Suncor to prevent new off-site contamination.

“We are concerned that the petroleum contamination may begin to move from the Suncor property to the Denver Metro Wastewater Reclamation District property in a second location,” said Walter Avramen-ko, leader of the Hazardous Waste Correc-tive Action Unit.

The gasoline-like material spreading across Sand Creek was first noticed by a fisherman on Nov. 27.

By Nov. 30, both the Environmental Protec-tion Agency and Suncor were taking measures to stop the leak and protect Sand Creek and the South Platte River from further contamination.

The source of the leak was controlled, but extensive water sampling revealed trace levels of benzene still remained in the water, according to

Gallagher.Air is currently being

pumped into sites in Sand Creek to reduce the levels of benzene — a process

known as aeration.“We’ve added additional facilities in the

creek where we’re doing aeration,” Gallagher said.

Aeration will help the benzene to evaporate from the water, said Warren Smith, community involvement manager at CDPHE.

“Everybody is hoping that will have a positive effect on the creek, which will lead to lower levels of contamination,” Smith said.

Homecoming hopes to draw larger crowds2012 festivities highlighted by car smashing and bonfires

Workers contracted by Suncor Energy are seen walking next to Sand Creek, where benzene levels remain elevated. The Suncor refinery is located north of Denver.

Geese rest in the nearby Berlington ditch, which has tested negative for benzene. Ad-ditonal measures are being taken to ensure the ditch remains safe, including plans to construct a slurry wall.

“Homecoming is about building pride and tradition on campus.”

—Matt Brinton

Homecoming events are free to Metro students, and run from Feb. 6-11. For more information, visit www.mscd.edu/homecom-ing.

TheMetropolitan February 2, 2012 3

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4 February 2, 2012 MetNews TheMetropolitan

Day named to honor aviation departmentMetro’s Precision Flight Team awarded 2011 Loening TrophyKristy Chaparro kchaparro@mscd.edu

In the city and county of Denver, Jan. 30 will forever be known as Metro State Avia-tion and Aerospace Day.

Metro’s Precision Flight Team gathered at the Seventh Street Classroom to celebrate the honor and accept the 2011 Loening Trophy — often called the Stanley Cup of college aviation.

“It’s quite an honor to have a day named

after us,” Vincent Martis, a student in the professional pilot program at Metro and part of the flight team, said.

Institutions that have won the trophy in the past include Harvard, Stanford and Michigan State.

“It’s great to be in that kind of company, but at the same time, we do have a lot to work on as well,” Martis said.

Metro State is the second college in Colorado to win the award; the other was the U.S. Air Force Academy.

Named after Dr. Grover Loening, a key innovator in the aviation world, the trophy was designed by Tiffany & Co in 1929. It weighs 27 pounds and is made of pure ster-ling silver.

“The entire history of it makes it 10 times better — with Charles Lindbergh and Ame-lia Earhart,” Martis said. “They’re innovators of aviation, so just to have had them touch the trophy we received is awesome.”

Metro President Stephen Jordan hopes people take time to visit the Robert K. Mock World Indoor Airport located in the Seventh Street Classroom.

“Truthfully, we own and operate one of the finest collegiate aviation and aerospace

computer and flight simulator training pro-grams in the world,” Jordan said.

With the history of aviation education spanning roughly 100 years, Denver Interna-tional Airport manager Kim Day believes huge strides have been made and continue to happen.

“I think the teachers of those original flying schools, Glenn Curtiss and the Wright Brothers, would be awestruck by not only how aviation has evolved but also how edu-cation has evolved,” Day said.

Colo. Lt. Governor Joe Garcia said Metro’s Flight Team being recognized by the people who started the American aviation industry is good for the economy and will create jobs in the future.

“It’s important as we talk about higher education, about access, affordability, the jobs of the future that we not lose sight of the most important thing that higher education needs to provide and that’s quality academic instruction,” Garcia said.

Martis feels the whole experience brings a lot of positive attention to Metro State.

“I guess from here on out, we need to move forward and get better every competi-tion,” he said.  

Sean Bobicsbobic@mscd.edu

Chief Justice Michael Forrester swore newly appointed election commissioner Sara Dominguez into her position Jan. 27 during a meeting of the Student Government As-sembly.

This set the stage for the SGA to engage in lively debate on resolutions brought forth to the senate.

A split SGA rejected a resolution call-ing for a financial aid advisory committee. Those opposed said the advisory committee is beyond the reach of the SGA.

Members sent the proposed resolution back to the Student Voice Committee, where it originated, for further work.

Health care was the subject of two reso-lutions.

The first concerned whether the SGA

should attend a forum on health care.Those in favor of the measure said it

would educate the SGA on issues that affect the student body, those opposed believed it was nothing but a chance to hobnob with legislators.

The resolution passed with a two-thirds majority.

The second concerned whether Metro’s health care fee should be included in tuition statements.

Many students who have, or are current-ly serving in the armed forces, pay insurance premiums out of pocket because Veterans Affairs doesn’t factor third-party insurance costs into veterans’ budgets. The resolution will be brought before the senate for a vote next week.

Other resolutions read for the first time concerned the marketing of the assembly and committee meetings, and the SGA bud-

get for 2012 operations.Though the budget resolution was in its

first reading, the senate suspended the rules and passed a resolution requesting SGA

President Jesse Altum to provide a 2012-2013 operating budget.

There is concern among senators that Altum will veto the request.

Student Government resolution recapPresident Jordan speaks to the Metro State Flight Team, recipients of the Loening Trophy, Jan. 30 by the 7th Street Classroom. Photo by Ryan Borthick • rborthic@mscd.edu

SGA Parliamentarian Simon Ayesse shows frustration during a debate on Jan. 27. Photo by Jessica Wacker • jwacker1@mscd.edu

Wayne King peers through posters he designed to show the public Occupy Denver is still in full force Jan. 29. Photo by Christopher Morgan • cmorgan@mscd.edu

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Occupy Wall Street numbers have shrunk. After months of protesting, march-ing, petitioning and camping, occupiers have thinned across the nation.

Occupy Denver had more than 1,000 participants during its inital formation, but many people lost their enthusiasm as the months and various charges accumulated.

“It’s definitely gone to more of a dormant phase because of the winter. Not as many people are willing to come down and stand

in Civic Center Park for hours at a time in the winter,” Jason Ball, an Occupy protester and University of Colorado at Denver stu-dent, said.

Ball said the police presence has deterred many people from coming back to fight for what they believe.

“The police presence down here is abso-lutely ridiculous,” Ball said. “They just harass everybody and are basically just baby-sitting us.”

Other participants were detoured by an apparent lack of organization.

Denver Police Department has spent

more than $365,000 in wages for the officers alone in the past four months, according to the Denver Post.

Protests formally began last September when masses of Americans flooded Wall Street, vowing to camp out until what they called the “corporate greed” of America ended.

The movement quickly spread to other states and Denver thanks to the use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter.

“At the beginning, there was a lot of new-hype energy, it grew for a while,” Terese Howard, an Occupy protester and UCD student, said.

Ball remains hopeful for the future

despite the decreased amount participation and number of participants at Occupy.

“In the winter, we are focusing on getting things a lot more organized and structured and actually having better lines of com-munication,” Ball said. “In the spring, the weather will be nice which will bring people back.”

Howard said Occupy Denver is using the winter as a period of restructuring. Some of the harshest criticisms that the Oc-cupy movements faced were that they were unorganized and they had a lot of internal conflict.

“People have conflicts,” Howard said.>> Continued on page 7

Occupy cools down, spending heats up

Terry Burnsed, left, collects donations gathered by Tenner Spendley at the Occupy Denver general as-sembly Jan. 29. Burnsed teaches theater at MSCD and UCD and has been involved with Occupy since Oct. of last year. Photo by Christopher Morgan • cmorgan@mscd.edu

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New SGA appointee plans to climb highSean Bobicsbobic@mscd.edu

Metro’s Student Government Assembly appointed freshman Sara Dominguez to Metro’s Election Commission a� er careful questioning by senators Jan. 27.

“It was very nerve-wracking,” Domin-guez said on being grilled by the senate members. “But I was pretty con� dent when I went to meet with the senate.”

Dominguez, 18, � lls a vacancy on the commission. She is majoring in political science.

� e political bug bit Dominguez when she attended Denver’s West High School where she took a government class for the � rst time. She went on to join the debate team and was in the AP government class, where she served as president for a term.

A resident of Lakewood, Dominguez chose to attend Metro because of its proxim-

ity to home and Metro’s favorable reputation. She decided to get involved with student government when she received an email about the election commission.

“I was really excited for it because I worked for the state election,” Dominguez said, refer-encing her time as a poll worker.

Dominguez hopes to work in politics locally. For now, her plans are to work her way up in the student government.

“Eventually I want to run for senate and then president,” Dominguez said. “I felt like if I started with the election commis-sion, it would give me a good idea of what’s going on there.”

Dominguez’s work as the elec-tion commissioner will be about getting the word out. She hopes to inform more students and get candidates more involved on campus.

“We’re just trying to get people to vote,” Dominguez said.

When it comes to the gov-ernment’s presence on campus, Dominguez shares a similar view-point with the senate members.

“I feel most students don’t know much about it,” she said.

Typically, the turnout for student government assemblies and elections have been less than desired. Domin-guez told the senate that she would work to establish and grow an aware-ness of the student government.

Dominguez spoke highly about the classes she has taken so far, but noticed students aren’t being encour-aged to participate in their student government.

“I was thinking about speaking to some of my professors about that,” she said.

Dominguez doesn’t have a clear plan for a� er graduation, but she does have internships and graduate school in mind.

“I want to make [a] change, whether it’s here in Denver, in Colo-rado or the United States,” she said.

Dominguez said women in poli-tics are a big inspiration to her. She noted the lack of women in political careers and hopes to help correct that imbalance.

For now, Dominguez is excited about her new position. � ough she may not want to work and reside at the White House, she does want to make a di� erence.

Portrait by Steve Anderson • sande104@mscd.edu

“I want to make [a] change, whether it’s here in Denver, in Colorado or the United States.”

—Sara Dominguez

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Occupy stays slow at Auraria>> Continued from page 5

“When you are trying to be entirely open, transparent and you try using a leader-less model, there are some modes of decision making that very few people are accustomed to. Sometimes things don’t go the way they expected and they leave.”

Students at Auraria started their own chapter of the Occupy movement. � e initial meeting for Occupy Auraria had around 100 attendees.

Following its Denver counterpart, Oc-cupy Auraria has slowed down.

Ball, a former member of Occupy Au-raria, said he stopped going to the meetings because class got in the way.

“I was already sleeping down on the sidewalks for Occupy Denver,” Ball said. “I felt my time was better spent with them.”

Currently, there are an estimated hand-ful of Occupy protesters who remain active in the movement.

� e Metropolitan accepts submissions in the form of topic-driven columns and letters to the editor. Column article concepts must be submitted by 1 p.m.. � ursdays and the deadline for columns is 9 p.m. Sundays. Columns range from 500 to 600 words. Letters to the editor must be submitted by 5 p.m. Mondays to be printed in that week’s edition. � ere is 500-word limit for letters to the editor. � e Metropolitan reserves the right to edit letters for formatting and style. All submissions should be sent by e-mail to themetonline@gmail.com.

� e Metropolitan is produced by and for the students of Metropolitan State College of Denver and serves the Auraria Campus. � e Metropolitan is supported by advertising revenue and student fees and is published every � ursday during the academic year and monthly during the summer semester. Opinions expressed within do not necessarily re� ect those of Metropolitan State College of Denver or its advertisers.

Editor-in-ChiefMegan Mitchell: mmitch46@mscd.edu

Managing EditorDaniel Laverty: dlaverty@mscd.edu

News EditorJessica Wacker: jwacker1@mscd.edu

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Production Manager of Student MediaKathleen Jewby: kjewby@mscd.edu

MetStaffClass warfare: an honored American tradition To arms! To the barricades!! Class war-

fare is coming to a neighborhood near you!!!In this election cycle and the bu� oonery

that passes for Congressional inaction and Republican “debates,” hardly a day now passes without some clown sounding a “class warfare” alarm. � e warnings are becoming as tedious — and uninformed — as shrieks of “socialism!” in rants by the usual FOX “news” suspects and other right-wing water carriers.

If only they knew what they were talking about. But why bother with the substance of a sound idea when a simple slogan will serve as well – or better - for simple minds?

What “class warfare” means for most Republican blowhards — Democrats are the alleged perps — is that:

1. � e fast-shrinking American middle class is getting tired of being screwed to further enrich corporate fat cats and the top one percent, who are not creating new jobs, but socking away obscene pro� ts (see “Oc-cupy” responses). Concurrently, post-bailout banks that were too big to fail are sitting on mountains of money. But they’re not lending any out.

2. � e wealthiest Americans are being asked to pay more of their fair share – as in tax rates at least equal to that paid by their secretaries. Even billionaire Warren Bu� et agrees that he shouldn’t have to pay a lower tax rate than his secretary.

3. In the scariest specter of all, new taxes are proposed for the very rich to help level the � eld just a little. As in anyone making more than $1 million a year should pay an e� ective tax rate no lower than 30 per-cent. George W. Bush pushed tax cuts for that class. � ey’re still in e� ect. President Obama, in his Jan. 24 State of the Union ad-dress, again called for their repeal.

Republicans hooted. And Indiana governor Mitch Daniels, in the o� cial GOP response, said “No feature of the Obama presidency has been sadder than its constant

e� orts to divide us, to curry favor with some Americans by castigating others.”

� e GOP fallacy gets better — or worse — when one looks at the two front-runners in what has become a two-man race for the right to run against Obama this November. Mitt Romney, who tries and fails to come o� as just a regular guy (like multimillionaire “Pete” Coors a few elections back) by wear-ing jeans and no tie, is utterly unconvincing. So is Newt Gingrich.

Romney, whose total wealth was reported to exceed that of the last six U.S. presidents combined, reluctantly released his 2010 tax return. It showed that Mitt paid about $3 million on a $21.6 million income for an e� ective tax rate of less than 14 percent.

� e bombastic Newt, who’s very good at pissing people o� — including the party establishment — still can’t admit that he earned hundreds of thousands as a lobby-ist for the federally-subsidized Fannie Mae agency. He calls himself a “historian.” Real historians aren’t amused.

Mitt and Newt. Just as couple of regular guys who are keenly in touch with the folks they claim to speak for. Good luck, guys.

In a real sense, America was founded on “class warfare” when the thirteen colonies rejected the privilege, snobbery and class distinctions of the old British imperial system. � e U.S. Constitution celebrates initiative, hard work and “the pursuit of hap-piness” over inherited titles, lands, wealth and privilege.

In America, class distinctions were always with us — with the Republican Party its chief acolyte a� er the 1870s — but were never quite so blatant as in the Brit-ain we broke away from. � e First World War should have erased the British class structure of manorial nobility, servants (see the cerebral “Downton Abby” series on Masterpiece � eater, Sunday nights) and obsequious deference to one’s social “bet-

ters.” It didn’t and the Brits held on to class structure well into the 1980s, when Margaret � atcher — a good friend of Ronald Reagan, who was doing the same in America — tried to restore some of the old values; including Victorian ones. � atcher’s e� orts didn’t do Britain much good.

As late as the early ‘80s, you still had English pubs with separate entrances –one for “better” types and ladies; the other for “tradesmen.” When I asked the host of a B&B we stayed in outside London in 1979 why his favorite pub had two entrances, he — a well-educated teacher — replied “well, you wouldn’t want your wife to sit where a tradesman had been.” Little of that class superstructure remained when I was last in London two summers ago. By then, the classic “Englishman” in a striped suit and bowler hat was nearly impossible to � nd in heavily Middle Eastern London.

� e Brits — bless ‘em — will muddle through. � ey always have and we owe them more, at least in terms of democratic tradi-tion, with a small “D,” than we realize.

But with the American Dream now in tatters for a vanishing middle class, there are Americans, shrieking “class warfare,” who would like to see a restoration of a pre-First World War British model. And they’re not all Anglophiles who genu� ect when they hear a BBC accent. � ey’re not even that

Deborah Caruanadcaruana@mscd.edu

On December 1, Metro administrators announced their decision to separate from � e Phoenix Center at Auraria (PCA). � ey determined that Metro could provide the same services internally.

� e school has not been successful at providing the services, as of this date. � e persons responsible for this tragic experi-ment in student services maintain that the decision was solely about � nances — that they have the students’ best interests in mind and want to provide the same services at no extra cost.

I believe that this is not even remotely about fees. We pay fees for the Health Center as well as an immunization fee. From stu-dents I have spoken with, a student fee for the PCA has support. Why were we, the stu-dents, not given the choice to vote for a fee?

� e Director of the Health Center, Mr. Monaco, is quoted as saying he has “tried to prepare a program that stands as an equiva-lent to the Phoenix Center.”

� is is where I get angry, mad — no, I get really pissed o� .

I am a student seeking my degree in Human Services with a concentration in Domestic Violence and am pretty sure I don’t get that degree until I pass several classes and garner at least 120 credit hours in my speci� c � eld. I have completed more than 40 hours of specialized training de-signed to help me be competent as a Victim’s Advocate, as well as monthly trainings and debrie� ngs to help me be there 100 percent for anyone who gets up the courage to call PCA’s helpline.

As a volunteer for the helpline, I answer the phones at all times on the days I have it. It is hard enough to summon the courage to reach out to a stranger for help, but Mr.

Monaco would have you call his victims assistance program and speak to a “well prepared” sta� member.

What does “well prepared” mean? In es-sence, Mr. Monaco and Metro State admin-istrators are collectively telling me that I am wasting my time and money to earn a degree in a � eld that anyone can do as long as they are “well prepared.” I disagree.

� ere is a simple solution to this issue. Put it on a ballot and let students decide if we want to pay $2 per semester for a service that only the Phoenix Center at Auraria can provide. I am asking that you put the choice back into the hands of the people who need and use the service, the very intelligent and able student body of Metro State.

Deborah Caruana is a sophomore at Metro and volunteers at the Phoenix Center at Auraria.

Student Op-Ed

J. SEBASTIAN SINISIsinisi2@msn.com

8 February 2, 2012 InSight TheMetropolitan

InSight

Caitlin Sieverscsiever2@mscd.edu

A crowd gathered under red and yellow paper lanterns in the Tivoli Turnhalle Jan. 27 to celebrate the lunar new year, the year of the dragon on the Chinese calendar.

The various Asian cultures that observe the lunar new year believe that red and yellow bring good luck, according to the event’s emcees, Thanh Nguyen, a University of Colorado at Boulder student, and Andrew Yeh, a UCD student. Yeh also helped orga-nize the student-run observance.

The nearly 500 guests at Auraria’s second annual lunar new year event watched musi-cal and dance performances, including the American, Chinese and Vietnamese national anthems.

Students from Christina Yeh’s Chinese Dance Studio in Centennial adorned their hair with pink flowers and danced while twirling six-yard long pink, yellow and blue ribbons. The ribbon dance is around 900 years old and was originally performed at royal banquets, Nguyen said.

“I was astonished by the young ladies,” said Yazan Nsour, a UCD graduate student. “I never knew such dances exist.”

The dancers also performed a Chinese fan dance and an umbrella dance.

Chinese parents traditionally give their children red envelopes containing money for the new year, so everyone at Metro’s celebra-tion received a red envelope with a food and raffle ticket inside when they arrived. Some of the raffle prizes were red good luck charms and small stuffed dragons for good luck in the year of the dragon.

A table run by UCD’s Intercultural Club Beijing held small trinkets that one might find at a Chinese market. Some items on sale were water guns, “small fliers” (sticks with propellers on the end that fly in the air when spun), and bunny ears left over from the year of the rabbit.

Students from the Vietnamese Student Association showed off their modern dance skills and performed some traditional

Vietnamese dances. The show also featured Wu Lan, a group of five lion dancers that are thought to bring luck. Members of Denver Taiko demonstrated their skill in Japanese drumming.

Event coordinators were pleased and surprised at the turnout at the New Year celebration.

“We had a lot of support from the com-munity,” Andrew Yeh said.

Onlookers enjoyed learning about the different cultures that celebrate the lunar new year.

“The ribbon dance was a pretty incred-ible demonstration of Asian culture,” said Alyssa Welch, a graduate student at UCD. “It was a great experience for us.”

Members of the Asian Student Alliance, the Intercultural Club Beijing, the Chinese Students Scholars Association, and the Viet-namese Student Association planned and coordinated the event.

Year of the dragon takes wing at Metro

A dancer from Christina Yeh’s Chinese Dance Studio performs a ribbon dance during the lunar new year celebration Jan. 27 in the Tivoli Turnhalle. Photo by Mike Fabricius • mfabrici@mscd.edu

Above: UCD student Tim Tran relaxes before his dragon dance performance. Photo by Nathan Federico • nfederic@mscd.edu

Left: Performers from Christina Yeh’s Chinese Dance Studio perform the umbrella dance. Photo by Nathan Federico • nfederic@mscd.edu

MetroSpectiveTheMetropolitan February 2, 2012 11

A different take on ‘Othello’ at VisionboxRyan Smithsmitryan@mscd.edu

The connection between “Othello” and domestic violence is subtle and deals with societies’ views of gender and roles within them.

Domestic violence and gender roles were examined through “The Othello Project,” a reworking of Shakespeare’s classic “Othello” by the artists of Visionbox, Jan. 27 at the L2 Arts and Culture Center.

“Othello is a perpetrator, stealing a young girl from her family. Because of his status in society, it was seen as acceptable,” said Danielle Evans, head consultant to the play and a survivor of domestic violence herself. “The biggest [ally] of abuse is silence, and if nobody questions it, it continues.”

Jennifer McCray Rincon, artistic director and creator of Visionbox and “The Othello Project,” calls the play a chamber piece, fo-cusing not on fancy costumes and elaborate sets, and instead placing importance on the characters and their speech.

The stage consists of only a table and chairs — taking nothing away from the very powerful dialogue. The play switches back and forth between the classical telling of “Othello” and the story of a man being ques-tioned about the vicious murder of his wife.

Rincon researched the piece by reach-ing out to domestic violence survivors like Evans. Evans is a member of The Crime Victims Advisory Council, an organization that acts as an outreach center for victims of domestic violence and their families, provid-

ing them with shelter and support. Evans was born into a cycle of abuse as a

child and found marriage no different. Hav-ing sent her daughter to live with her grand-parents, Evans found herself in a potentially deadly relationship with no place to go. She was afraid to call the police at a time when domestic violence laws were rarely enforced.

Many years later, she is now part of a healthy marriage and enjoys helping others who were once in her position through proj-ects like “Othello.”

“The healing you give others heals your-self,” Evans said.

The progression of “Othello,” as re-imag-ined by Visionbox, has been a long process that began with Rincon’s reluctance to do a traditional take on the piece.

“As I started to work on the production of ‘Othello,’ I decided I didn’t want to do another [traditional] production,” Rincon said. “I thought, ‘I really want to work with the script and look at it through the contem-porary lens of domestic violence.’”

Her artistic interest was further piqued when she witnessed a domestic disturbance and was subpoenaed to testify. Through this process she met Margaret Abrams, program director for domestic violence in the Denver district attorney’s office.

Abrams, who works with domestic vio-lence survivors daily, believes projects such as the one Visionbox is undertaking with “Othello” will “help the community become more aware of the problem of domestic violence while giving survivors a sense of closure and community.”

Visionbox operates out of a newly reno-vated space. The theater company is in its second year of providing young actors, like Metro musical theater major Kayla Mor-rison, the opportunity to study and perform grassroots presentations.

Morrison has worked with the company on prior projects and describes the envi-ronment provided by Visionbox as highly educational.

“It’s nice to have an environment that I feel comfortable coming back to that provides me with room to grow, and I think I’ve found that here,” Morrison said. “Being

able to watch the progression of the play is something I value as educational.”

The play is very emotional and was designed to be difficult to watch, according to Morrison.

“Truthful behavior is not easily found without emotional connection,” she said.

The Jan. 27 performance was only the beginning of “The Othello Project.” The completed production is scheduled to premiere in the spring at the L2 Arts and Culture Center.

Winter veggies to kill the chill

Benjamin Cowhick (left) and Matthew Blood-Smyth, listen to Dwayne Carrington, give a monologue dur-ing Visionbox’s production of “The Othello Project.” Photo by Rachel Fuenzalida • rfuenzal@mscd.edu

Roasting is an easy and flavor-inten-sive way to prepare vegetables, especially the kind of dense root vegetables that are often abundant in winter. As an added bonus, the heat from having the oven on for so long can warm up your home.

You can vary the types of veggies depending on what you have. My favorite combination is beets, red onions, yellow and blue fingerling potatoes, celery root, brussels sprouts, cremini mushrooms, and apples.

Pick any of the following, up to about 5 pounds total:

Onions, red or green cabbage, garlic, brussels sprouts, mushrooms, leeks, potatoes (any variety), winter squash, and just about any type of root vegetable. Sometimes I even throw apples in here.

*Good root vegetables to use: red or golden beets, parsnips, carrots, celery root (celeriac), sweet potatoes, rutabagas, sunchokes, turnips (*don’t use: radishes, jicama, taro)

Preheat oven to 425°.

Prepare vegetables as follows: cut (peeled) onion and cabbage into thick wedges; separate garlic cloves and peel; halve brussel sprouts and mushrooms (cut into 1¼-in. cubes if portobellos); slice leeks down middle and then cut into 1½-in. segments; dice potatoes, (peeled) winter squash, and root vegetables into 1¼-in. cubes; and remove cores from apples and cut into quarters.

Toss all vegetables in ~3 tablespoons olive oil (enough to lightly coat); ~3 table-spoons of chopped fresh rosemary, sage, and thyme (you could use dried herbs in a pinch, but it won’t be nearly as good); and salt and pepper to taste.

Arrange vegetables in a single layer in a shallow 9-in. by 13-in. roasting pan, or two 8-in. by 8-in. pans, leaving space for tempeh in one end of pan (see below).

Roast for about 1 hour, until vegetables are browned and somewhat shrunken, occasionally stirring so they roast evenly. Exact time could vary widely depending on the vegetables used, so keep an eye on it toward the end.

Roasted Winter Vegetables

Kate Rigotkrigot@mscd.edu

Whether or not the groundhog sees its shadow, you’re likely to want some recipes for cold weather food to get you through the rest of the winter.

Far from being bland or lacking fresh-ness, winter food can be hearty, flavorful and comforting. These three recipes go together to make one meal.

I find the perfect foil to roasted veggies and whole grains to be tempeh — a chewy, nutty-tasting fermented soybean cake.

Long a favorite meat substitute for vegetarians, tempeh deserves a place at any table. It is cheaper than many meats, generally much easier to pre-pare, keeps a while and freezes well. You can find it at any natural foods store, or even most supermarkets. It generally costs about $2.50 for an 8-oz. package. Note that tempeh often has grey spots, which does not mean it’s moldy — this is a normal part of tempeh.

To prepare: Take an 8-oz. block of tempeh,

cut widthwise into 3 wide strips, and brush or rub olive oil all over strips until coated with a thin layer. Sprinkle on salt, pepper, and herbs, to taste (garlic powder, rosemary, or sage are good options).

Place tempeh in the roasting pan with the vegetables before they go in the oven. It should brown during cooking, but keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn’t get too dark. You can always take it out of the pan early or stick it back in for extra roasting time if necessary.

Tempeh can be pan-fried sepa-rately from the vegetables if there isn’t enough room in the roasting pan.

Roasted TempehYou can prepare just about any

whole grain in the hour or so it will take to roast the vegetables and tempeh. My favorites for this meal are quinoa, polenta, and kasha (hulled buckwheat groats). I’ll include instruc-tions for each — pick one or substitute your favorite. You could also use brown or wild rice, bulghur, wheat berries, or barley.

For quinoa or kasha pilaf:If using quinoa that is not pre-

rinsed, first rinse it in a strainer until water runs clear. Take ¾ cup quinoa or kasha and combine with 1½ cups wa-ter in a small saucepan with a snug-fit-ting lid. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes (for quinoa) or 20-25 minutes (for kasha), until water is absorbed. Fluff with a fork. Season with salt, pepper, and herbs, if desired.

For polenta, bring 2 cups water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat until water is barely boiling, and add ½ cup polenta (very coarse cornmeal) slowly and gradually, while stirring. It should take a few minutes to add all the polenta. Continue stirring for another 8-10 minutes, until mixture has thickened and pulls away from side of pan. Take off heat and let sit covered with lid for at least 10 minutes before serving. Season with salt, pep-per, and herbs, if desired.

Whole Grain Pilaf

Check out more winter recipes online at Metnews.org

MetOnline

12 February 2, 2012 MetroSpective TheMetropolitan

J. Sebastian Sinisisinisi2@msn.com

Ski and snowboard equipment sold next season will be wild, colorful, staid, sensible, badass and conservative, with all gradations between.

Th e evidence was seen at last week’s gi-ant Snow Industries America trade show at the Denver Convention Center, a few blocks from Auraria.

Like the price of lift tickets sans some sort of deal, next season’s ski and snowboard accessories won’t be cheap.

Since skiing in America became more democratic in the 1960s and ‘70s, its demo-graphics have been tilting toward the upper end. Alongside all the affl uent out-of-state skiers who clog Colorado’s slopes dur-ing holiday breaks, there are still plenty of snowboarders in jeans and baggy pants. And it’s this “youth market” that saved the ski industry, which had gotten “mature” years ago.

But as snow goes, so goes the ski season. And the snow, in Colo-rado and elsewhere, hasn’t off ered much this season, through all of December and most of January. Th at changed last week, when snow-starved Colorado ski areas — suff ering what some called the worst snowfall since the early 1980s — fi nally got some decent dumps in late January to raise industry spirits on the eve of the trade show.

Last season — with good snow nearly everywhere — set a record of $3.3 billion in U.S. sales for ski and snowboard gear and apparel, a total exclusive of that spent at ski resorts for lift tickets, lodging

and restaurants. Th e SIA show was held in Las Vegas

for nearly 40 years before Denver tourism eff orts landed a long-term contract to host the show that’s now in its third year and is lending a major economic boost to the area. Th e trade show drew an estimated 20,000 visitors from all over the U.S. — makers of ski and snow equipment, clothing and acces-sories vendors, retailers and their buyers — for the four-day show that ended Jan. 29.

Trade show visitors, according to Rich Grant at the Visit Denver convention and tourism offi ce, generate $30 million in direct spending. While last week’s visitors were nationwide, with some from Europe, Colo-rado alone has 565 snow sports stores, while Denver is the nation’s leading urban market for snow sports goods, posting $346 million in sales last year.

At the Denver show, 933 diff erent sports brands — including 109 Colorado-based

companies — off ered a cornucopia of “hard goods” with wider skis and boards done in eye-catching graph-ics that ran from tranquil seascapes

to menacing monsters and 1970s subway-style graffi ti.

Ski and snowboard clothing came in neutral earth tones

with some bright splashes on apparel designed for

easy movement and made of high-tech fab-

rics and lightweight insulation.

Compared with previous years, the 2012 show seemed more busi-

nesslike. While some display areas looked like disco fl oors, gone were the noisy DJs, along with the willowy women in bikinis and fi shnet hose.

Aspen-based Sport Obermeyer,

that dates to not long aft er founder Klaus Obermeyer arrived in Aspen from Germany in 1947, had one of the larger clothing dis-play areas. At age 92, Obermeyer — known as Colorado’s grand old man of skiing — greeted reps, buyers, customers and friends. If Teutonic stereotypes put some people off , the always-aff able Obermeyer represents the exact opposite.

“We’re very pleased to have business up seven percent in what has been an off -year for snow,” Obermeyer said while greeting retailers. Part of that boost, he explained, owes to his skiwear now made with a new insulation material made with carbon from coconut shells. “Something like this comes along maybe once in 15 or 20 years,” he said.

Ski industry people have a reputation for being party animals aft er hours. Th at mys-tique was again underscored, at the Denver SIA show, in any of number of photos, blogs and postings. Despite all the new bars, clubs and watering holes that have sprung up (especially in LoDo and uber-trendy LoHi to the west of downtown) in recent years, Denver can’t compete with Vegas for aft er- hours ambiance.

For business, maybe that was just as well. “We worked the Vegas show before and

this is our fi rst time in Denver,” said Clayton Quarles, of the Discrete ski accessories fi rm, based in Salt Lake City. “Th ere is a diff er-ence,” he said. “Here, people are more awake in the morning.”

Ski summit reveals forecast for season

Stories and poems: publish with your eyes openSteve Musal smusal@mscd.edu

So you’ve fi nished a creative writing workshop class in poetry or fi ction, or per-haps you have a draft from National Novel Writing Month or a similar program. You’ve always wanted to be published, but have no idea where to start. Now what?

“If there’s time, put it aside for a bit,” said Dr. Th eresa Crater, Metro English professor and published author. “Th en look at it with fresh eyes and revise.”

One of the biggest mistakes Crater sees new writers make is trying to publish some-thing before it’s ready.

“Go back to it and fi gure out what you are really trying to do with the piece,” agreed Dr. J. Eric Miller, also a Metro English pro-fessor and author. “Figure out where you’re succeeding, where you’re failing and get a truly strong rewrite in. You don’t want to send something in before it’s truly ready. Not only is that piece doomed forever with that editor, but you as a writer might not get full attention the next time you send something in. You don’t want to look like an amateur.”

While your work is set aside, Crater and Miller advise taking the time to become familiar with your genre from a publishing standpoint. For short stories and poetry, this is also the time to make a list of magazines for submission.

“You want to send your piece to some really big-name magazines, ‘cause it will change your life if you get it in,” Miller said. “But you also want to submit to more realistic, smaller, less-known journals, because the bottom line is you want people to read your work. Th at’s what it’s about: people you don’t know reading your work. Th ey’re not your parents, they’re not your friends, no teacher assigned it to them, nothing — they just picked it up and read it.”

Miller suggested narrowing your list down to about 10 magazines, journals, or, for novels, publishers. As for simultaneous

submission, Miller said, do it.“It’s the best problem you can have: more

than one magazine wanting to publish your work,” he said. “Not submitting simultane-ously is almost absurd — even if the piece is

really good, it’s got maybe a one in 10 chance of ending up with the right editor just when the journal needs it — and you’ll outgrow the story if you wait six months between submissions.”

Also, for short stories and poetry, it’s not realistic to expect to be paid

the fi rst time you submit — although a free copy or two of the magazine or journal is fairly standard.

“Even journals with really good circula-tion oft en can’t pay,” Miller said. “Th ey’re barely keeping themselves afl oat. What they are doing is helping you get to a place where you can make a bit of money.”

But when you’re looking for submission opportunities, Crater said, also beware of scam artists, who prey on new authors who don’t know the ins and outs of the publish-ing world yet. Crater recommended check-ing out the “Writer Beware” blog ( http://www.sfwa.org/for-authors/writer-beware/ ). “Poets & Writers” magazine off ers a similar resource at http://www.pw.org/top10_faq.

Miller just advises reading contracts with your eyes open.

For short stories, he said, “Every pub-lisher’s going to typically off er First North American Rights. Th at means they can print it one time, and then it goes back to you. If they’re doing anything but that, you prob-ably want to know why — you should be maintaining rights to your work.”

Th at’s the point for Crater, as well.“Don’t sign away your rights because

you’re so happy to have an off er that you don’t read the contract,” she said.

If it seems like publishing is a lot of work, it is, but it’s worth it, according to Crater.

“Th ose who get published are those who never give up,” she said. “Persistence is everything.”

But as snow goes, so goes the ski season. And the snow, in Colo-rado and elsewhere, hasn’t off ered much this season, through all of December and most of January. Th at changed last week, when snow-starved Colorado ski areas — suff ering what some called the worst

early 1980s — fi nally

— with good snow nearly everywhere — set a record of $3.3 billion in U.S. sales for ski and snowboard gear and apparel, a total exclusive of that spent

of “hard goods” with wider skis and boards done in eye-catching graph-ics that ran from tranquil seascapes

to menacing monsters and 1970s subway-style graffi ti.

Ski and snowboard clothing came in neutral earth tones

with some bright splashes on apparel designed for

easy movement and made of high-tech fab-

rics and lightweight insulation.

some display areas looked like disco fl oors, gone were the noisy DJs, along with the willowy women in bikinis and fi shnet hose.

Buyers peruse snowboards, offered in a variety of graphic designs, at last week’s giant Snow Industries America trade show that drew 20,000 to the Denver Convention Center. Photo by J. Sebastian Sinisi • sinisi2@msn.com

“Th at’s what it’s about: people you don’t know reading your work. Th ey’re not your parents, they’re not your friends, no teacher assigned it to them, nothing — they just picked it up and read it.”

— Dr. J. Eric Miller

TheMetropolitan MetroSpective February 2, 2012 13

TheMetropolitan February 2, 2012 15

AudioFiles

Wesley Reyna • wreyna1@mscd.edu

WR: How was it recording the new EP?JM: It was interesting and a blast, [but] two of the songs were recorded previously by Monroe Monroe, before I was in the band. “Tonic,” on the other hand, is a brand new song that we wrote in December and the first song that was built by our current line up. It is a proud song for us and [it] really came together in the studio.WR: Why did you record at The Blasting Room?JM: You know, I had never recorded there before and I was curious about the hype

behind it. Monroe Monroe had previously recorded there with Jason Livermore. It turns out The Blasting Room is fucking killer [with] amazing people working there. Andrew Berlin, who was our Producer/Engi-neer/Mixing guru, is a freaking genius/ such. He really brought out some new sides of Monroe Monroe and it really shines through on our first single from the EP, “Tonic.”WR: What is your favorite part about the recording process?JM: I love the learning process that happens during recording. You may think you have

the song down, in your opinion it’s out-standing, the best thing you have ever done. Then you step into the studio and notice things during recording that could be even better. You learn to make a true song when you are recording it. WR: Are you excited for the release show?JM: Man, anytime I can play a show and anytime I can get people to listen to some-thing that I’ve been a part of, is awesome. So I’m stoked for the release show. I’m defi-nitely stoked for all of the bands playing this show. In fact, this show is a cool mash up of

musical styles that would not usually play together. WR: Do you guys have any big plans for 2012 besides releasing this EP?JM: We want to get out on the road this year for sure [and] we booked studio time at The Blasting Room for September with Andrew Berlin again. We found a producer we re-ally like and respect and want to work with again. This most recent recording with him has showed us the style, or sound rather, that we are going for. We’re already digging deep into writing new music.

Just because Dr. Stefano Lorenzini played with sharks doesn’t mean Monroe Monroe will. Photo courtesy of Monroe Monroe

CheCk It out

Monroe Monroe EP set to blast off

SoundIng off

Tantric Picasso’s growing power

Interview by Ian Gassman • igassman@mscd.edu Perhaps flowers give Tantric Picasso the mystical power to write tripped-out rock songs.Photo courtesy of Tantric Picasso

In many ways, Denver’s premier psychedelic-rock quintet, Tantric Picasso, is trying to transcend what it means to make music these days. Not only does each member approach songwriting as a collaborative effort, but they also strive to play each other’s individual, genre-bending songs. And while their album, Make Your Love Bigger, will be a tad more cohesive, their third, 77-track album, Wavelength of Goodbye, will epito-mize Tantric’s experimental methods. The Metropolitan spoke to drummer Matt Tanner and bassist Pablo Cruz about both of Tantric’s new albums and why everyone should em-brace the loving power of music.

IG: What is the new album, Make Your Love Bigger, all about? How does it compare to your last album, Life’s a Bitch and Then You Die so Why Not Laugh Until You Cry?MT: We’ve been blending our souls and this album is a cohesive reflection of our articulation as a group. [We’re] expressing our songwriting and our emotion.PC: Our last album that we did — I liked it a lot, but it was all over the place. We really focused this album in terms of “let’s try and create this genre and make it cohesive.” IG: So would you say that this new album sounds more serious than Life’s a Bitch?MT: This is our absolute, pop, rock ’n‘ roll re-cord. We want this to reach masses, we want it to be approachable and [allow] people to hit play, not have to skip a song, and groove the whole time. Maybe you can put it on at a party? Maybe you can relax to it? Maybe you can meditate to it?IG: Why are you guys drawn to psychedelic sounds?MT: It’s all been a precursor to our next

album, which we’ve been working on for almost a year. It’s a 77-track record called Wavelength of Goodbye. The end of [Make Your Love Bigger] features a swell where the energy builds and it ends with a sign wave — a wavelength. That wavelength is what will begin the next record and it will blossom into 77-tracks, [blending] everything from electronica, rock ’n‘ roll, hip-hop, folk, psy-chedelia — It’s just all over the map. PC: Everyone in the band will agree that we write songs, we all have our own musical happenings, and Wavelength of Goodbye is kind of a way for us to do all of that and get it out. MT: It’s true artistic expression, and I don’t want it to sound overwhelming, but Make Your Love Bigger is a 10-track record and it’s 37 minutes. Wavelength of Goodbye is a 77-track record and even at three minutes a song, it’s about a four-and-a-half hour record. It’s meant to be a cohesive experi-ence fading in and out of itself [and] it’s completely indulgent of the psychedelia and

experimentation in our sound. IG: Who put together the video for Make Your Love Bigger’s first single “Rose Coloured Binoculars?” MT: Well, our friend Ryan Bell, who lives out in New York, we came to him and said, “We need a music video for this song,” and he literally went frame-by-frame and edited over 1,000 frames every second. Marco [Melnick], who was the writer of that song, requested that there just be “hot chicks” dancing [laughs]. So Ryan’s solution was to find some pretty girls, put some roses on their eyes and have them dance with the lights flashing. IG: What are you looking forward to about Tantric Picasso’s album release show?PC: Well, there’s one surprise regarding a cultural thing that’s going on. One of my friends will introduce us in [a different language] and I think that’s really fun. I love culture. I love studying it, so I’m very excited to incorporate everybody into everything.

You know, we’re all doing the same thing. We all like the same thing. So, let’s embrace each other. IG: Embrace each other through music?PC: It’s like, some people, they play music or they don’t play music, but either way, they love music. MT: I agree, and I would add that: everyone is playing music or performing in some way, whether they know it or not. Whether it’s a whistle, or how they articulate their words, it’s all there. People say they aren’t artistic and I just laugh, because everything they do is art. Once they realize that, they realize their own power and they cultivate it through their own medium. For us, it’s music, and in particular, it’s this album.

Monroe Monroe has been stirring up the Denver music scene for the past couple years and is slowly but surely outgrowing its cage. The group will release its newest EP, Ampullae of Lorenzini, Feb. 11, at the Marquis Theater with Novus Folium, Fierce Bad Rabbit and Sam Lee. Recorded at Ft. Collins studio, The Blasting Room, this EP contains three songs: “Tonic,” “Subject One,” and “We Been Had”. Bassist and backup vocalist, James Morrison, spoke to The Metropolitan about his experience recording at the legendary Blasting Room, the release show, and what else Monroe Monroe has in store for 2012.

Tantric Picasso8 p.m., Feb. 2 @ Bluebird Theater, $15

CliCK Hear

dOWnlOad THis

Open PortalsAlmost everybody has a blog. And that’s

why two of Denver’s biggest bloggers, Ryan Pjesky of Magic Teepee and Jake Martin of Speaker Snacks, decided to create a new website called Portals.

Portals celebrates the opinions of 16 dif-ferent bloggers from around the world and off ers a real sense of community. Aft er all, “Doing-it-together” is better, especially when it comes to seeking out cool, obscure music.

Although portalsmusic.com launched on Jan. 10, it looks like Denver’s offi cial “portal” will open Feb. 6. Intrigued music fans can start their journeys early by downloading Portals’ fi rst, free mixtape until more con-

tent is uploaded. Th e 16 tracks include some wonderful

singer-songwriterish tunes and upbeat songs like “Complete Me” by Beat Culture and “Migrants” by Medicine Hat that just fl ow through your ear portals (pun intended).

Ian Gassman • igassman@mscd.edu

WOrsT sOng eVer

Creed sucks. And since Creed has such a copious amount of songs that could be deemed as the “Worst Song Ever,” I have decided — in order to be fair to every poorly written lyric that lead vocalist Scott Stapp has ever uttered from his whiny little mouth — that the title of this column should be changed to “Worst Band Ever.”

Unfortunately, I’ve been explicitly told that I’m not allowed to change the name, which also sucks. Creed has yet to produce a decent album throughout their 11-year career and that makes them a terrible band.

So aft er manufacturing a wheel with each of Creed’s so-called “hits” and giving it a forceful spin, I landed on “What If.”

“What If” was released as the second single from the 1999 album Human Clay.

In the song, Stapp sings about hatred, people oppressing each other and he does it all while asking: “What if?”

Th e song starts off with the waltz-ing, cheezy twang of a guitar, then drops suddenly to some forceful drumming and wild guitar lead solos, while Stapp belts out the lyrics, “I can’t fi nd the rhyme in all my reason.”

Well, of course, you can’t rhyme, Stapp. Th at’s why the vast majority of your songs suck. Th e “lyrical masterpiece” continues as Stapp emotionally bellows, “Feel I’ve been beaten down by the words of men that have no ground.”

Maybe those men have more ground than you, Stapp. And that’s why they keep-ing beating you.”

Stapp continues to blabber about how “fork tongues in bitter mouths” hurt him, before asking that one magical question, “What if?”

Don’t you hate it when people can’t let things go and always try to live in the past? I know I do. Creed is too bent on subjects like “What if?” to realize that it’s a bad band.

Just remember, Stapp fi nds a way to pose his question for a massive 55 times throughout the song and it makes me wonder, “What if you guys weren’t playing music?”

I think the simple answer is that, if anything, the world would be a much more musically sound place to live.

Creed asks the wrong questionsLuke Powell • lpowel18@mscd.edu

Daytrotter.com

Ian Gassman • igassman@mscd.edu

Daytrotter, based out of Rock Island, Ill., is a music blog and website that hosts record-ing sessions with indie-rock acts that pass through town.

Most of these unique sessions produce four tracks, always recorded in analog, with no overdubs, giving them a raw quality.

A fair number of local musicians have been featured, including Slim Cessna’s Auto Club, who just recorded a session Jan. 20, as well as acts like Dovekins.

Many of the recordings are available to stream with a free 7-day trial. For $2 a month, members can access the archives, but the site also off ers access passes to live

streams of new recording sessions that can be purchased individually. Just be sure to visit the site to see if your favorite artists have hit up Daytrotter’s studios.

Wesley Reyna • wreyna1@mscd.edu

www.mscd.edu www.metrostudentmedia.com

Order Proactiv now by calling

When you make a new order at 1-800-494-5912, a portion of the cost beneets Metro State Student Media

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HELP YOUR SKINHELP YOUR SCHOOL

16 February 2, 2012 AudioFiles TheMetropolitan

Mile HigH and rising

The B.O.S.S. Boyz’ wordy business

Chris “Milk” Vasquez filps a big bird after migrating from Long Beach, California to Denver.Photo courtesy of The B.O.S.S. Boyz

Josh Gaines • jgaines8@mscd.edu

The B.O.S.S. Boyz used to rep “creez” in California, but now Chris “Milk” Vasquez along with his cousin, Rae “Hussle Boi” Vasquez, have made Denver their home.

The hip-hop crew, which was founded in Long Beach, Calif., takes a few cues from their hometown, the same place that spawned Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg and War-ren G. But for how interesting those timeless rappers are, The B.O.S.S. Boyz also have an advantage — they are the originators of the word “creez,” meaning swag or cool.

After crossing state lines, The B.O.S.S. Boyz made sure to keep up on their iden-tifiable slang term because, according to Vasquez, “The word ‘creez’ is a movement. A lot of us in Long Beach, we were all young and [began using this] hot, little word. People [in Colorado] are just starting to pick it up.”

In terms of “creez” and how it relates to the duo’s music, Vasquez knows it is a great marketing tool. After all, a singular word can represent a whole brand and, as Vasquez notes, “I am so crazy about the [new] track ‘My Creez,’ because it just fits perfectly with the story that I’m telling.”

“I’ve only been making it [in Denver] for about a year and I can say that, since I’ve been here, Colorado has shown me a lot of love.”

Vasquez said that he’s been building a “Cali-rado” rap movement since the move

and that’s why he can’t go back to Long Beach. “I’m trying to make this bridge from Colorado built all the way to California,” Vasquez said.

Along with new tracks, The B.O.S.S. Boyz — who’s acronym stands for “Business Over Stupid Shit” — plan to use their own “B.O.S.S.” clothing company to capitalize on the growing popularity of “creez.” So far, the line has launched a brand of shirts called “Creez Tee’s” and some “Chain Gang” neck-laces. However, these products will officially start selling online come Summer 2012.

“The website, coming out in 2012, will [also be called] Business Over Stupid Shit” Vasquez said. But this duo understands that fashion designing comes second to the hip-hop bangers that The B.O.S.S. Boyz strive to create. Singles like “Chucks Laced Up,” “Plush” and “Livin’ It Up,” feature various rappers, strong beats and allow the duo to be a part of concert bills, like the Top Flight artist showcase, taking place at 8 p.m. Feb. 17, at the Roxy Theatre in Five Points.

Fans of the duo can expect the group’s first release since moving to Colorado to come out later this year. Appropriately titled Colorado Business, the new mixtape will feature plenty of collaborations between The B.O.S.S. Boyz and Colorado-based rappers.

Through one word or a mess of songs, Vasquez makes it a point to be a part of a sub-culture and a musical scene. “We are

working with a lot of people,” Vasquez said, understanding that cultural anecdotes won’t be the only things helping out The B.O.S.S. Boyz in 2012, instead, “It’s going to be our

shows, clothes and [musical releases]. It’s just moving fast. This is the time for it to happen and we are going to get it done.”

THE METROPOLITANTHURSDAY: 02/025” X 7” SSALL.VOW-P.0202.METRO

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TheMetropolitan AudioFiles February 2, 2012 17

Metro Women outwork Western StateTimely shot lifts basketball team over MountaineersPaul Meyerpmeyer8@mscd.edu

Metro junior guard Brandi Valencia’s game-winning 3-point shot helped give No. 4 Metro women’s basketball the 73-67 vic-tory over the Western State Mountaineers in Gunnison Jan. 27.

Although Metro won, the Runners had a tough time executing their offense.

“We really struggled with the turnovers,” Metro head coach Tanya Haave said. “Some of it was us, but you [have] got to give [West-ern] credit. That is a really aggressive team. They force a lot of turnovers. They [came in] averaging 20 a game, we had 23.”

Western State played great defense in the first half — picking up 10 steals — and were up by as many as seven points in the first half.

“I’m really proud of our young ladies,” Western head coach Latricia Trammell said. “They fought for 40 minutes. I wish we would have made more free throws and blocked out a little better, but you got to give our players credit for working as hard as they did and giving Metro a challenge.”

The Roadrunners struggled to score, sinking their first field goal 5:23 into the game, but at halftime it was tied at 31.

“The biggest thing was to try and take care of the ball,” Haave said. “I don’t think, defensively, anything that they did bothered us other than they got more opportunities because we were turning the ball over so much.”

In the second half, Metro committed two turnovers in less than a minute.

The Runners didn’t let the Mountaineers take control of the game. Metro started hit-ting shots and handled the ball better.

“It was a pretty tough game. Everybody was really intense,” Haave said.

The game went back and forth down the stretch. There were 15 lead changes and the score was tied 12 times.

Late in the second half, Metro picked up the pace and started to make Western work. Five Metro players finished in double digit scoring.

With 1:14 to go, Valencia hit her 3-point shot. She finished with 11 points.

“I think the shot clock was going down so I had to shoot it. I’m so happy it went in,”

Valencia said. “Candice [Kohn], at the end, had that jump shot that sealed it.”

Senior guard Alyssa Benson finished with 13 points, hitting four 3-point field goals. Junior guard Kristen Valencia finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds.

“[I’m] really proud of the team for com-ing out to win on the road against a very strong team,” Haave said. “(Western State) is fourth place in the RMAC, and they’re a much improved team. I think they are well coached.”

Roadrunners run into roadblock on roadOnly four Metro men score in loss against Western State Story and photo by Matt Hollinshead

In the cold confines of Gunnison, the Metro State men’s basketball team received an unexpected wake-up call at the hands of Western State College.

That wake-up call was hot, timely shoot-ing, as the Mountaineers essentially exposed the Roadrunners’ tendency to let up defen-sively at critical times.

That hot shooting resulted in a big upset, as WSC beat Metro 70-66 Jan. 27.

While Metro fell to 17-2 (12-2 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference), Western State improved to 8-10 overall (6-8 in the RMAC).

“I thought they showed tremendous heart,” Western State head coach Mike Moskowitz said of his team’s effort. “We knew what our mistakes were the first time we played (Metro). We kind of got hesitant and got passive. So, we just told our guys to unleash the leash and attack the bucket.”

In the first half, Metro was sluggish defensively. They gave up many easy baskets, especially inside the post.

Western State garnered an early 22-6 lead, attacking the basket and hoisting numerous perimeter shots, with one outside shot resulting in a trip to the free-throw line.

Metro senior forward Paul Brotherson committed a foul, and WSC’s Alex Hart converted all three free-throw attempts.

Western State capitalized on virtually ev-ery mistake Metro made. Whether it was an easy two points Metro could have made or forcing turnovers, the Mountaineers played with great urgency.

However, WSC let up offensively, and Metro started fighting back. Down 16 points, the Roadrunners cut the deficit and trailed 39-30 at halftime.

The second half was intense. With Western State fans growing loud and sensing a mountain high upset, the Mountaineers continued scoring inside. However, Metro showed why perseverance is one of its most significant assets. The Roadrunners hustled and started hitting shots.

Metro junior guard Demetrius Miller nailed a critical 3-pointer and was fouled. After making the free throw to complete the four-point play, the score was tied at 62.

Hope turned into heartbreak in the clos-ing seconds. With the Roadrunners down 66-64, Miller had a golden opportunity to tie the game. He bolted from the left side toward the basket, only to have his layup at-tempt blocked by Western State junior center Charles Joseph, who had a game-high three blocks.

“We needed a big stop. So, I just headed straight up, waited for my chance to block it, and I did,” Joseph said.

Ultimately, that play sealed the upset.Four of Metro’s five starters scored, and

those were the only offensive contributions Metro received throughout the game.

“We had momentum, but it’s those little plays throughout the whole game,” said senior guard Reggie Evans, who scored a game-high 29 points. “(Western State) came out ready to play and we didn’t.”

Meanwhile, Western State’s offense was

balanced. All but two players managed to score at least one basket, and WSC guard Weylan Towns led the team with 14 points.

“They came out with a sense of urgency, and they established a pattern of play early in the game,” Metro head coach Derrick Clark said. “They were very aggressive, and I didn’t think we rose to the challenge.”

Metro junior guard Brandi Valencia shoots the game-winning, 3-point shot with more than a min-ute left at Western State College in Gunnison Jan. 27. The Roadrunners won 73-67.Photo by Matt Hollinshead • mhollin5@mscd.edu

Metro sophomore point guard Brandon Jefferson drives toward the basket past Dushon Carter at Western State College in Gunnison Jan. 27. Only four Metro players scored points in the game, and the Roadrun-ners lost 70-66.

Visit metnews.org/sports for all of these stories, plus extras from our staff. As-sistant sports editor Matt Hollinshead breaks down Metro men’s basketball, and MetSports columnist Nick Ohlig dis-cusses new Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio.

MetOnline

MetSports18 February 2, 2012 TheMetropolitan

Singing the Bronco bluesFor football fans, Super Bowl Sunday is

as legitimate as any other American holiday. It’s a time to reflect upon the previous sports year, drink, eat and drink some more, until the heart is content.

This year, for the big game, I will sit down with friends, reminisce about our be-loved Broncos’ magical season and enjoy the celebration that encompasses the last football game of any meaning until August.

So why does this holiday seem a little empty?

While watching highlights of the Patri-ots’ absolute domination of the Broncos in their playoff match up this year, tear-soaked tissues in hand of course, I realized the problem.

The holiday felt empty because the Bron-cos were not part of the celebration. Had the Broncos made it this far, which I know seems idealistic, the two weeks leading up to the Super Bowl would be a jubilant celebration for millions of Bronco fans.

“You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.”

Thanks Mr. Lennon.If the Broncos were in the Super Bowl,

Denver, and of course the team, would shine in the Nation’s spotlight for two consecutive weeks. Instead, more New York and Boston egos are fed. Great.

If the Broncos were in the Super Bowl, media outlets from around the country would line up to do interviews with old Bronco greats, and even non-greats who just

happened to be a part of one of six Bronco teams to make it to a Super Bowl.

Tom Jackson, Rod Smith, Steve Atwater — these are just some of the great Broncos we could be hearing from. Reliving these memo-ries would certainly brighten the holidays.

More fond memories would be recalled when different television shows played high-lights of old Bronco Super Bowls, a tradition among the media during the two week hype machine the NFL creates.

I, along with the rest of the country, would be watching John Elway’s famous first down dive from super bowl XXXII, a play which helped propelled Elway to greatness, and the Broncos to the first of their two Super Bowl victories.

Even highlights from four of the Bron-cos’ Super Bowl losses would be enjoyable to watch. Sure we got splattered 55-10 and 42-10 in two of those games, but watching the old-school bright orange and blue helmets run up and down the field on the grandest of stages sends chills throughout my spine.

Instead, I have had to watch the repeat of the Patriots against the Giants Super Bowl from 2007 over and over. And over.

During the actual breakdown of the Big Game that lies ahead, different analysts have been highlighting different players from both the Giants and Patriots as the reason their team made it this far.

Watching this has saddened me, as it becomes crystal clear just how far away the Broncos really are from making another

Super Bowl, or even having the talent to compete with Super Bowl caliber teams like the Patriots or Giants.

Obviously if the Broncos were in the game, none of these issues would be a prob-lem.

Cue Mr. Lennon. Maybe it’s just me being selfish. The

Broncos get their fair share of national atten-tion right, especially with Tebow? And the game should be good, competitive.

So I’ll enjoy the holiday, surrounded by friends and a few (lot of) Blue Moons, but I will also hope that next year the Broncos en-joy all of the accolades that come along with earning a trip to the Super Bowl.

How realistic is that?Unfortunately, Bronco fans, you can

fuhgettaboutit.

Runner Recap•Women

Metro’s women’s basketball team showed no intention of taking its foot off the gas pedal at Colorado Mesa University in Grand junction Jan. 28, beating the Mavericks 78-40.

Right off the bat, Metro jumped out to a 21-9 lead and continued to score inside and out as the game progressed.

To complement the offense, Metro main-tained their poise on defense throughout the game and cruised its way to victory.

Metro improved to 18-1 (14-1 in the RMAC). They moved up to No. 3 in the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Division II top-25 poll.

The Runners play their next four games at home Feb. 3-4 and 10-11, starting with Colorado Christian University, who beat Metro 67-59 in Lakewood, Jan. 7.

•MenDespite showing urgency early on

against Colorado Mesa University, the second half was a nightmare for the Metro men’s basketball team.

Tied at 24 going into the second half, the Mavs played aggressively in the post and took multiple trips to the free-throw line.

As a result, CMU beat Metro 64-47 in Grand Junction Jan. 28. Metro fell to 17-3 (12-3 in the RMAC), and dropped to No. 12 in the Men’s Basketball Coaches Association Division II top-25 poll.

Ben Bruskinbbruskin@mscd.edu

MARKET STREET LOCATION1533 Market | 303.629.1300

TheMetropolitan MetSports February 2, 2012 19

Paul Meyerpmeyer8@mscd.edu

Baseball season is just around the cor-ner, and the Runners welcome new head coach Jerrid Oates, who was hired last fall from Colorado School of Mines.

Oates’ vision for the team is to play smart, fundamental, disciplined baseball.

“It’s just doing all the right things offensively, hitting behind guys, moving guys over, stealing bases, playing solid defense and filling up the strike zone,” Oates said.

Expectations are high this season. “We’ve really come together as a team.

We’ve got a lot of young guys, but I think we’re going to put together a solid season. We have a lot of good chemistry, a lot of good guys,” senior catcher Robbie Nickels said.

The Roadrunners have been picked to finish third this season in the Mountain Division, and picked to finish fifth overall in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Confer-ence.

Returning to the team are seniors Nickels, first baseman Evan Claus, short-stop/pitcher Ty Jacobs and pitcher Ryan Hutchinson.

The Runners also return three juniors: third baseman Sean Reeves, outfielder/pitcher Forrest Carpenter and catcher Anthony Sylvester.

Metro lost a lot of offensive firepower from last season’s team, as players like

Brennan Brown, David Fox, Zach Krueger and Jordan Stouffer moved on.

“That’s a big hit for us to take. Obvi-ously with the new guys we brought in, we’re going to have to score in a more con-ventional fashion rather than hitting the ball out of the yard so much,” Claus said.

The Runners also lost a lot of pitching from last season, as Bradshaw Perry, Zach Cleveland, Corey Collins and Jake Dreager are also gone.

“We’ve got a totally different staff. But, it’s going to be interesting. We have a lot of guys that attack the zone and work down in the zone,” Jacobs said. “It’ll be a dif-ferent pitching style for sure. But they hit their spots, keep it low and change speeds, and that’s all you really need.”

The lineup and the rotation will look very different this season without all of the players mentioned.

“It’s still early for us. We’re still three weeks away and I’m big on competition, and so we’re going to let them compete through our scrimmages and through practices every day,” Oates said. “Once the week of our first game [comes], we’ll have a better idea of where we sit with all of that.”

The Roadrunners welcome freshmen shortstop Austin Hearne, outfielder Mitch Gibbons, first baseman/outfielder Danny Miller, pitcher Nick Hammett, pitcher/outfielder Tanner Roth, outfielder Jeff Levett, pitcher Mike Thill and catcher/first baseman Reid Thomson.

Metro also adds eight junior trans-fer players in shortstop Erik Cammall, outfielder Alex Schrupp, outfielder Gavin Purvis, pitcher Justin Arceneaux, pitcher Kevin Hand, pitcher Zane Watkins, infielder/pitcher Daron Schulthies and Venezuelan born pitcher Carlos Luzon.

“I think a guy you need to keep an eye out for is Mitch Gibbons. He’s a freshman. He’s going to be the player to watch in a few years to come,” Claus said.

The season begins for Metro Feb. 11 against the University of Nebraska at Ke-arney at Auraria Field.

Metro junior shortstop Erik Cammall turns a double play at practice Jan. 26 at Auraria Field. Photo by Jessica Cuneo • jcuneo2@mscd.edu

Baseball in full swing for 2012 campaign

RMAC preseason rankings (First place votes) points

1. Colorado Mesa (6) 8 2. New Mexico Highlands 19 3. Nebraska-Kearney (1) 21 4. CSU-Pueblo (1) 23 5. Metro State 29 6. Regis 33 7. Colorado Mines 43 8. Colorado Christian 48______________________________

Divisional preseason rankings (First place votes) points

Mountain Division 1. Colorado Mesa (7) 7 2. CSU-Pueblo (1) 15 3. Metro State 17 4. Colorado Mines 25

Plains Division 1. New Mexico Highlands (4) 11 2. Nebraska-Kearney (3) 11 3. Regis (1) 17 4. Colorado Christian 25

20 February 2, 2012 MetSports TheMetropolitan

Matt Hollinsheadmhollin5@mscd.edu

The 2012 Metro softball season is on the horizon, and the squad has quite a few new faces replacing their nucleus from last season.

However, the Roadrunners lost more than just their nucleus. They lost most of their offensive firepower in players like Jen-nessa Tesone, who played left field from 2008 to 2011.

Because Metro’s offense is in rebuilding mode, first-year head coach Kristi Lansford knows her team has a lot of work to do to return to the glory days of 2010. The Road-runners went to the College World Series semifinals in 2010, losing to Hawaii Pacific University.

After looking at statistics from last sea-son, something quickly caught her attention.

“I noticed there was only one sacri-fice bunt all year,” Lansford said. “That’s something we’ll use a lot more. I think that scoring runs is hard enough. So you have to manufacture them.”

Although Metro’s been successful at hitting home runs in the past, Lansford wants her team to bunt more often. When it came down to looking at her team’s current status at the plate, Lansford noted the lack of significant bats.

“In the past, (Metro’s) been real suc-cessful with the long ball. I don’t think we have the personnel to do that as much now,” Lansford said.

Lansford took over Metro’s softball program after a four-year stint at California State University at Bakersfield, in which she served as an assistant coach. Before CSU-Bakersfield, she coached San Francisco State University from 2001-2007.

At SFSU, Lansford took the Gators to the 2005 Division II College World Series and led them to a 41-win season in 2006.

“[My philosophy is] that we outwork everybody else,” Lansford said. “I just want to be that team that never goes away.”

Despite having few offensive weapons, Lansford does have another weapon back for 2012: junior pitcher Brittany Moss.

“I think it’s important for myself to come back and prove that I’m as good as where I was when I first quit,” said Moss, who redshirted last season after having a baby. “I came to a lot of the games [last year], and the toughest part was watching them and not being able to play with them.”

Moss last played for Metro May 27, 2010. Moss tallied an 11-1 record with 92 strike-outs during the 2010 season. She also posted a 2.73 ERA. She was the No. 2 starter for a Metro squad that also featured ace Christie Robinson. Robinson had a baby in 2008 before joining Metro in 2009.

Junior utility player Annalyse Garcia developed respect toward that pitching staff from her days at Colorado State University at Pueblo in 2010.

“If I remember correctly, that pitching staff was unstoppable,” Garcia said. “Christie Robinson, Brittany Moss and Julia [Diehl] all

together. No one could touch them.”Garcia especially remembered Moss’

dominating presence on the pitching mound.

“She keeps you on your toes, and you never know what to expect,” Garcia said. “She throws hard, the ball moves. She’s a tough pitcher.”

Senior center fielder Molly Clark is also glad to have Moss return.

“She throws harder than a lot of girls

in the RMAC. She’s got a wicked off-speed [pitch],” Clark said.

With Moss back in the rotation and new players intact, Metro is getting ready for the 2012 season, which starts Feb. 3. The Roadrunners will start the new campaign in Turlock, Calif. against California’s Domini-can University, with players like Clark lead-ing the new-look squad.

“I kind of do have a bigger leadership role this year, since everyone is getting ac-customed to a new coaching style, and the new girls are getting accustomed to college,” Clark said. “I embrace it.”

Metro sophomore second baseman Sam Talmich fields the ball at practice Jan. 26 at Auraria Field. Photo by Jessica Cuneo • jcuneo2@mscd.edu

Softball starting fresh going into 2012

RMAC preseason rankings (First place votes) points

1. Colorado Mines (7) 22 2. Regis (1) 42 3. Metro State (2) 51 4. Colorado Mesa (1) 52 5. Adams State (2) 54 6. CSU-Pueblo (1) 63 7. Western New Mexico 84 8. UC-Colorado Springs 91 9. Chadron State 109 10. Nebraska-Kearney 121 11. Fort Lewis 136 12. * Colorado Christian 136 13. New Mexico Highlands 147 14. # Black Hills State 161______________________________ * - This is CCU’s first year with softball. # - BHSU is an associate member of the RMAC in softball this year and is not eligible for the conference tournament.

1930 Blake Street, Lodo • 303-296-1930www.DenverSportsColumn.com

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TheMetropolitan MetSports February 2, 2012 21

TimeOut

2.2Out Figured7 – 9 p.m.Center For Visual Art965 Santa Fe DriveThe Center for Visual Art proudly presents ‘’Out Figured,’’ an exhibition where emo-tive interpretations of the human � gure are explored. Works in photography, paint-ing and sculpture help to reveal truths within human selfhoods.Free

2.3Nuggets vs. Lakers8:30 p.m.Pepsi CenterTicket prices vary

2.4Metro Basketball5 p.m. & 7 p.m.Auraria Event CenterWatch the women’s game at 5 p.m. and the men’s game at 7 p.m. as they take on Colorado Mines in this doubleheader.Free with student ID

2.5New Age, Old Ways9 a.m. – 5 p.m.Denver Botanic GardensNew Age, Old Ways presents a universal vision of spirituality in the form of the cross-cultural ceremonial drum and brings together indigenous artists from around the world.$9-$12.50

2.6Battle of the Bands10 a.m. – 4 p.m. St. Cajetan’sHomecoming week kicks off with a music battle! Come and hear some great live music as eight bands battle for the cov-eted title of Battle of the Bands Cham-pion. Free food and drinks will be provided

2.7Lunch with Lawmakers12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.Tivoli 320Join fellow students during an open forum on medical marijuana with local lawyer Sean McAllister. Free

2.8Stop and Serve10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.North Classroom AtriumGet involved with an on-campus community service program. Materials will be provided for various service projects that students can work on throughout the day.

This Week

Weird NewsShe was packing heat during her rob-bery of a Liberty Tax Service in Ohio. Wielding real steel, she entered the business with a curling iron wrapped in a towel.

Sonia Watson and her son, Antonio, burned the business for $280. It wasn’t hard for authorities to identify the duo since they had visit the busi-ness a few days before as customers.

During the heist, Antonio was hit with a chair, and the couple had a brief run-in with one more employee — the one outside dressed as the Statue of Liberty. Authorities are still in hot pursuit of the pair, which has yet to be found. Source: www.hu� ngtonpost.com

My Life Is AverageToday, I had � nals. I wore my super-man snuggie for all of them. MLIA

Today I realized that while I was eating, I was quietly saying “nom nom nom” to myself as I chewed. Interesting. MLIA

Today, while driving home from taking my brother to work I sneezed all over my front windshield. I then proceeded to turn my windshield wipers on to try and get it off. MLIA

Today, I was leading some fun games and exercises during a theatre camp, and I told the kids to pretend to be dinosaurs. One boy fell to the ground in a stationary position. I asked him what was wrong. His reply? “I’m ex-tinct.” MLIA.

Weird NewsShe was packing heat during her rob-bery of a Liberty Tax Service in Ohio. Wielding real steel, she entered the business with a curling iron wrapped in a towel.

Sonia Watson and her son, Antonio, burned the business for $280. It wasn’t hard for authorities to identify the duo since they had visit the busi-ness a few days before as customers.

During the heist, Antonio was hit with a chair, and the couple had a brief run-in with one more employee — the one outside dressed as the Statue of Liberty. Authorities are still in hot pursuit of the pair, which has yet to be found. Source: www.hu� ngtonpost.com

22 February 2, 2012 MetroSpective TheMetropolitan

Why was there a 1000 piece puzzle covered in hot sauce being cooked in the microwave?

How bad is it if you swallow a really small piece of glass? Be optimistic if possible I’m anxious about it.

No you never threw up but you did force me to take you to wendy’s be-cause you wanted “beef and ketchup”

Texts From Last Night

Across1- Castle ring 5- Article in Le Monde 8- Rubs out 12- Pre� x with meter 13- Pertaining to the small intestine 15- Actress Ward 16- Authenticating mark 17- Cool! 18- Arab League member 19- Thoughtful 22- Tina’s ex 23- Terre Haute sch. 24- Revenuers, for short 26- I’m all ears! 29- Medical 31- Hesitant sounds 32- Exodus origin 34- Echolocation 36- Drunkards 38- Bird that gets you down

40- Seine feeder 41- Move stealthily 43- Titles 45- Asian holiday 46- Termination 48- Spreads out 50- Antitoxins 51- Campaigned 52- Law enforcement agency 54- Birthright 61- Timber wolf 63- Brother of Moses 64- Dig like a pig 65- ___ breve 66- Snob 67- Gator’s cousin 68- Spy 69- Call upon 70- Biblical verb

Down1- Not fem. 2- Bread spread 3- ___ all-time high 4- Semihard light yellow cheese 5- Peter Fonda title role 6- Approach7- I could ___ horse! 8- Barcelona bear 9- Womanliness 10- Antiaircraft � re 11- All there 13- Gratify 14- Terra ___ 20- Aha! 21- CPR experts 25- Switch ending 26- Honeybee 27- Pretended 28- Dishonest 29- Units 30- Lawsuits 31- Double curve 33- Palm Pilot, e.g. 35- Emeritus: Abbr.

37- “No Ordinary Love” singer 39- Later edition 42- Soprano Te Kanawa 44- Bed support 47- Grannies 49- Revolt-leader, old-style 52- Flutter 53- Chadic language 55- Mandlikova of tennis 56- Archer of myth 57- Chess piece 58- Asta’s mistress 59- Codger 60- Draw with acid 62- Cask wood