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(02/25/13 5:31pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The spooning wall, a low limestone wall near the law school, was a favorite meeting spot for lovers.But as Howard Hoagland Carmichael sat there, he realized just how alone he was.In 1927, at 28, he had returned to his alma mater and his hometown of Bloomington. All his friends were graduated and gone. The girl he loved was gone, too. And the campus lacked the vibrancy it seemed to have during his college days.But then, as legend has it, he decided to stop feeling sorry for himself and started with a tune. A melody popped into the songwriter’s head, and it was so compelling that he ran to his favorite hangout, the Book Nook on Indiana Avenue.It was closed, but he pounded on the door anyway, and the owner let him in.Inside, he rushed to the piano to compose what would later, once its tempo was slowed to a ballad, become one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century.“Sometimes I wonder why I spend the lonely nights dreaming of a song.”The song was “Stardust.”***A photo hanging in the Book Nook, now known as The Gables, depicts Carmichael at the piano with a circle of friends around him.Students regarded the battered upright piano in the corner as Carmichael’s. He even charmed the workers of the Book Nook into allowing him to stay after hours and play as they washed dishes. Carmichael was known as a charismatic and humorous performer.“It was the Kilroy’s of its time,” said David Johnson, WFIU jazz producer and systems coordinator. “A Kilroy’s without booze.”The energy of the Prohibition Era created a counter-culture where Carmichael could follow his creative impulses and become an unpredicted success.And people, especially on college campuses in the 1920s, thought hot jazz was exciting, Johnson said.Hoagy loved to attempt to play the trumpet all around campus.“Hoagy, shut up!” people would yell.But he didn’t listen.***After graduating from law school in 1926, Carmichael had to find a real job, so he accepted one as a lawyer in Florida and hated it. He did the bare minimum every day just to get by and not be fired.But as legend goes, Carmichael was sitting at his desk in the law office one day when, through the open window, he could hear the notes of a familiar song coming from a nearby record store.But the song seemed more than familiar. He realized it was not just a song he knew but a song he had written.The song was “Washboard Blues,” and he was listed on the record as the composer.“That’s it,” he thought. “I’m a songwriter. I don’t have to be a lawyer. I quit.”He returned home to Bloomington and was in the right place at the right time.Gennett Records was in nearby Richmond, Ind., making Bloomington a stop on the jazz circuit along the way to Chicago. Big names of jazz, such as Louis Armstrong, stopped by, and Carmichael met them.His career as a jazz singer/songwriter, and later as an actor, took off. The rest was legend.
(06/13/12 11:58pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The field beneath his feet helps define who he is.Green football turf means he’s the head coach of the Bloomington-based Indiana Cutters, a semiprofessional football team.But before he was head coach, the desert sand beneath his feet meant he was an infantry soldier. During his nine years, five months and five days in the Army, there were three desert deployments — one to Kosovo and two to Iraq.He’s been out of the Army for nearly five years, but reminders of his definition as an infantry soldier are everywhere. The Army is how he met his wife, and he deployed with her in the same unit to Baghdad. The Army is why it’s not a smart idea for him to play football after several improvised explosive devices exploded too close, causing a brain injury in addition to a slew of other physical injuries. And the Army is why his eyes are extra sensitive to the sun after so much time in the desert.So, instead of putting on a helmet and running onto the field, he wears sunglasses and a baseball hat whenever he’s outside. At practice, the 31-year-old hangs a whistle around his neck and carries a practice plan in his left pocket.His name is Jay McCool.It’s his actual last name, and he carries himself the way someone with the last name McCool would — slightly intimidating, yet open and friendly. He coaches with a stern attitude and a dry sense of humor. But that, along with earning an IU degree, is how he plans to move from an Army career to a permanent football coaching career.***“Alright, men. Today we hit.”McCool stands with his team in a huddle at the center of Bloomington South’s football field. It’s a Tuesday evening in May and for the Cutters, this is the first practice in full pads, the first practice where they can actually tackle and make full contact. And it’s exactly one month and one day before the first game on June 16 against a new Interstate Football League team: the Kentucky Xtreme.McCool wastes no time. He tells the team to pair off and watch as two of the captains, Nick Land and Bob Magiera, demonstrate how to tackle.“Any questions on how this is going to work, men?” McCool says. “Let’s go. On the 40. On the whistle.”He puts the whistle to his mouth and blows. The sound of football pads crashing together follows.Semipro football players have a variety of experience from high school to NFL teams. Most players are in their 20s and 30s, but some are in their 50s. They balance football with jobs, families and other obligations.Official team practice began in April, but the captains have been running weekly conditioning and drill sessions since February.Early on, who came to condition with the captains changed from week to week. But since official practice started, a core group of 20 to 30 players have attended each week, in addition to the occasional stragglers or new players.If players pay the fee, they’re on the team. It’s not like a high school or college team where the guys both want to be there and are required to be there, McCool says. But he knows who’s put in the work. Every practice, he marks attendance in his red binder. The men at the most practices are his starters.When practice ends a little after 8 p.m., the sun that was once beating down on the players is now setting.The team meets for a final huddle. McCool tells them they need more heart, more intensity. He knows they have it.“This is becoming our core group. ... Men, you gotta get that intensity up,” he says. “You think the Kentucky Xtreme are gonna take it easy on us?”***It’s a Sunday afternoon, and McCool is killing bees. He has already killed five in the kitchen window. Because of the bees, all the apartment windows are closed, making it a bit warm. But the weather can be so back-and-forth in April, it’s not worth turning on the air conditioning.McCool stands at the second-story window, looking outside to his left where the bees are swarming by the wall and the edge of his patio deck.Cursing the bees from behind his clenched teeth, McCool says he called maintenance, but the man said there was nothing he could do, except maybe come spray.So, McCool goes to check it out for himself, leaving his wife, Desiree, along with their English golden retriever, Loki, and two ferrets, Salt and Pepper, inside the two-bedroom apartment.Both veterans, the couple attends college with help from the G.I. Bill. Desiree graduated in December 2011 with a degree in art history, and McCool plans to graduate this December with a degree in recreational sports management.As part of his degree, he has a summer internship at Iron Pit Gym Fitness Center, which is also a team sponsor for the Cutters.McCool comes back inside. “The bees, they’re right here, honey, on this wall,” he says to his wife and points to the wall of their apartment with the doors to the deck, a bookshelf and the kitchen window.“I know they pollinate the world, but they can do it somewhere else,” McCool says.It was the week before 9/11 when McCool became an Army sergeant. Besides three deployments, he’s been stationed at Fort Drum, N.Y., and Hohenfels and Heidelberg, Germany.When he was deployed to Fallujah in 2003, he was anonymously quoted spewing cuss words as rocket-propelled grenades hit on page 202 of a book called “Among Warriors in Iraq.” When he was in Heidelberg, so was Desiree Vanderkleij. They started dating, and two weeks later, they were engaged.After they deployed to Baghdad from December 2005 to December 2006, they took leave from Heidelberg in 2007, flew to McCool’s hometown of Houston and got married in a courthouse. On the wall of the second bedroom — McCool’s “man cave” — are team photos from the Cutters and from when he played semipro in Germany and helped coach an American High School team, the Heidelberg Lions. Around the room are medieval swords, video games and military honors. The closet is filled with the couple’s Army gear.Here is where McCool plays Battlefield 3 on his Playstation 3 and lets his ferrets run around. A night owl, McCool doesn’t go to bed until about 4 a.m. and wakes up around 9 or 10 a.m. He’ll stay up playing video games or working on ideas he has for the Cutters, adding to the playbook he digitized last season.But on Sunday evenings, McCool and Desiree watch “Game of Thrones.” Loki, named for the Nordic god of mischief, likes to stay close by and will sometimes lie with them on the couch.“We’d been through so many life-changing things before we were married,” Desiree says. “If we can make it through mortar attacks and just the stress of being there, we can make it.” ***Semipro football is a summer sport. There are 10 Saturdays of games beginning in June, all played in the heat.But on the first day of practice in late April, it’s cold. The sky is overcast, and the wind whips the chill. The Cutters are at Brown Elementary, where they played during their first season in 2007, and the field isn’t much. The grass is uneven and no chalk paint marks the yards or sidelines. McCool has his arms folded against his chest and is watching as the offensive players move from formation to formation. The title of head coach means nothing to McCool unless his team wins championships. “Twins right,” he calls out, wanting the two receivers to line up on the left and the tight end on the right side of the formation. Like reading a textbook, it’s the twins first and then the tight end is right.“Right twins, right twins,” one of the players says in a singsong voice as the men find their spots.“Twins right,” McCool corrects. “Twins right,” he repeats slowly. “It’s twins right because if I drew this on a piece of paper, the twins would be on the right,” he explains. “This isn’t Arabic. We read left to right.”McCool doesn’t like to repeat himself. It’s a waste of time. He credits his military experience for that philosophy. “You don’t have time to sit and debate. You have to go on first command, first action,” McCool said. “Essentially, that’s football. Give a command and go.”But the similarities between football and war only go so far. Some, like McCool’s predecessor John Shean, now the team president, say football is a way to release a desire to combat. McCool knows some terms are the same. Yet to him, “blitz,” “battle in the trenches” and “bomb” just happen to translate to both football and war.***After a review of formations and basic game strategy, the first practice picks up speed. After a quick jog and stretches, the players then break into three groups to do stations McCool and the captains have picked to work on footwork and the short distance sprinting.McCool keeps time on his cell phone, five minutes for each set, and moves from station to station, watching. As he crosses the middle of the field, a player calls out to him.“Blow the whistle, we need it.”“My phone says you don’t,” McCool says, holding out his phone.“Your phone’s lying.”“You’re saying my stopwatch is lying? If you knew how much time has gone by, you’d feel weak. It’s been three minutes and you’re crying.” McCool says and keeps walking.Later, when players pretend to be shocked that they have water breaks, McCool tells them it’s not the Army, although he knows a guy who he can put up in a tower to shoot rounds at their heels to make them work faster. One player says it might help. McCool laughs.The first day is the hardest, but it can be fun, too.After several rounds through stations and water breaks, McCool calls the players in. The first half of the day is finished. Only two more hours and the rest of the season to go. He tells the players to take a 15-minute break.McCool raises his arm into the middle, and the players do the same.“Cutters on three,” he says. “One, two, three.”“Cutters.” McCool’s voice is above theirs.“Do it again,” he says. “I shouldn’t be louder than all of you.”The cheer booms from the circle.“Cutters.” INDIANA CUTTERS vs. KENTUCKY XTREMEWhen 7 p.m. SaturdayWhere Bloomington South Football fieldMore info Season opener for the Cutters, tickets are $5
(06/07/12 6:04pm)
Regardless of where students come from — in-state, out-of-state or
international — by the time they leave, Bloomington is a second home.
But before leaving there are a few things that are a must-do for any
Hoosier.
(04/25/12 8:02pm)
Just call him the
puzzle master. After all, it’s his job title at NPR. Alumnus Will Shortz is
also the crossword puzzle editor for the New York Times, and he’s even featured
in a 2006 movie, “Wordplay.” With those credentials, he must have some
amazing puzzle skills.
(02/17/12 4:49am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>At nearly midnight Monday, freshman Zach Jones walked into his girlfriend’s dorm room and told her to put her shoes on right away.Becca Foote, also a freshman, was already in bed, wearing her pajamas. She looked at him and asked if she could wear her flip-flops.“No, put on real shoes,” Zach said. “We’re trekking through the snow.” Once they were outside Collins Center, Zach knew they needed to hurry, so he started running with Becca close behind. The snow had started to fall about an hour before, and there were fewer than 10 minutes until Valentine’s Day.Becca didn’t know what her boyfriend was planning, but as she saw the gazebo on the edge of Dunn’s Woods, she realized the tradition unfolding.Midnight at the Rose Well House is a more-than-century-long campus tradition of romance and a single kiss. While the tradition lives on, dating in college has changed.“People don’t know how to express romance,” said Justin Garcia, a research fellow at the Kinsey Institute who studies topics such as uncommitted sex and hook-up culture in emerging adulthood. For college students, Garcia said, first dates of dinner and a movie are rare, and the media glorifies casual sex, making it look fun-filled and without consequences. Nationally, more than two-thirds of college students have had at least one sexual hookup, meaning anything from kissing to sex, yet most walk away with a negative reaction, Garcia said.They walk away, yet the desire for love, one of the strongest in the world, still lingers. Garcia has found in his research that 50 percent of college men and women admit they are looking for a relationship.In June 1998, Brian Boyle, then about to start his senior year, wanted to propose to his girlfriend. She had just graduated and was moving to Atlanta for work while Brian finished school.“I thought that year would be more bearable if we had something to look forward to,” he said.Brian’s first plan was to go to Showalter Fountain, but then he realized how public it was. At the last minute, he opted for the secluded and traditional well house. When he proposed, his now-wife, Jeni, said she was speechless as she nodded yes.“It was perfect and not a public spectacle,” he said. “It was a private moment.”Tradition states for a female student to be a “true coed,” she must be kissed by an upperclassman in the well house at midnight. The kiss must continue until the Student Building clock has chimed 12 times. The well house, built in 1908, was named for then-member of the Board of Trustees Theodore Rose. He had it built over an old cistern as a way to save limestone portals from a building on IU’s first campus. The house became a popular spot to give fraternity pins or engagement rings. As a fourth-generation IU student, Zach grew up hearing about the tradition of taking someone important for a kiss at the well house. But when he made his plans, he didn’t tell his family. He said he’d rather wait and tell them the story in person when he sees them this weekend.When Valentine’s Day neared its last hour, the snow had melted and crows peered down from the treetops at the few couples in the well house. The air filled with the sound of wings flapping and crow poop splattering on the sidewalk.But the night Zach and Becca were there, the ground was covered in a layer of white, and the air was quiet. Six other couples were in and around the well house, quietly talking and playing in the snow. It was Zach and Becca’s first Valentine’s Day together, and Zach had plans to make it special. On a college campus, causal hookups can be acceptable because obligations are few. Becca said some of her friends are happier single because they think they might be missing out on someone else.But for her and Zach, it’s about simple things — hanging out in a dorm room, watching “The Big Bang Theory” and a first date at Collins’ brunch. Inside the well house, they found a spot and watched Zach’s phone for the countdown. As the clock changed to midnight, the chimes of a clock tower didn’t toll. But as the snow fell, seven couples stood kissing. Tradition lived. And Zach and Becca shared a kiss.
(02/16/12 5:49pm)
But her first summer at Camp Kesem, she stood up in front of
everyone and talked about what people told her was her “invisible disability.”
She acknowledged that she can’t play sports because once when she did, she was
hit in the head by a softball she couldn’t see. As she spoke, her story turned
into raw emotion.
(02/01/12 3:28am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>“She’s got everything she needs / She’s an artist / She don’t look back.”Julia Livingston’s curly hair bobs and her legs bounce in her seat as she strums her tenor ukulele. As the rest of group catches on to playing the song for the first time, they chime in, singing.“She never stumbles / She got no place to fall.”Surrounded by walls with a faint gray strip, the Monroe County Public Library meeting room holds a sound that is the opposite of the drab walls. The Bloomington Ukulele Club fills the room with the sound of happiness.“The ukulele can do nothing but make you smile,” says Livingston, a Bloomington resident who is also a clinical social worker in the IU Health Center.She brought the song “She Belongs To Me” by Bob Dylan for the group to try at its Sunday meeting. The table is covered with thermoses, loose sheet music and binders of music. As the meeting goes on, more players join to bring the group up to 11 people. They are bunched together, sharing sheet music and teaching each other. Some are meeting for the first time.“They haven’t met yet, but the ukulele brings people together,” Ellen Campbell, a founder of the group, says.***The ukulele wasn’t always in vogue. Often written off as a toy instrument, it first gained a hold in the continental United States in the early 1900s. Some sheet music for the Charleston included parts for both the piano and the ukulele. But, as time went on, the instrument dropped out of favor and was less popular in the second half of the century. In the past decade or so, the ukulele has made a comeback. Now celebrities such as George Clooney, Zooey Deschanel and the Rock all play the ukulele. Campbell said she loves several famous ukulele players, such as Jake Shimabukuro, a Hawaiian musician, and the United Kingdom Ukulele Orchestra, which she stumbled upon when searching for ukulele videos online. They are serious musicians who sing well and are funny and talented, Campbell said.Though the instrument is versatile and can be used for a variety of music, such as country, pop and folk, it’s still known as a staple of Hawaiian music and culture. Robert Green, a visiting retired music history professor who plays mostly Hawaiian ukulele music, said he’s watched the ukulele grow in popularity during the past decade. Although he’s never played with the club, he’s attended ukulele workshops in Indianapolis and other cities — which would have been unheard of 10 years ago, he noted.The Bloomington Ukulele Club began after the three founders — Campbell, Reina Wong and Linju Chen — took a beginner class together at the People’s University of Bloomington, which is a part of the city’s parks and recreation department, in 2010. On the last day, they didn’t want to stop playing together, so they formed a club and started meeting twice a month. They’ve had different meeting sites, but the idea is always the same. The group welcomes players of all levels. They share music and teach each other. The musicians play what they can and sing only if they want. “You jump in when you can,” Campbell said. “It’s laid-back.”***A few minutes into the meeting, senior Mimi Yong walks in, and the group already knows what she’ll want to play.“Now that Mimi’s here, we have to play ‘Leaving on a Jet Plane’.” The other players laugh.It’s her favorite — a song she learned the harmonies to at summer camp in Wisconsin, she says. As one of the younger group members, Yong says, she introduces the club to music by Ingrid Michaelson and Mumford & Sons.Later in the meeting, Yong suggests “That Thing You Do.” “It’s my jam,” she says. And the group is quick to agree to play it again.Sometimes, members bring songs to try. Other times, copies of the music are posted to the club’s website. As long as everyone has a copy to read or share, they’ll try a song. At the meeting Sunday, the songs included “These Boots are Made for Walkin’,” “Vincent” and “Crocodile Rock.”Almost all of the club members sing along as they strum. Their fingers bounce on the strings, true to the meaning of the ukulele’s name in Hawaiian: dancing flea.Campbell says she plays almost daily because the ukulele is infectious. She says it’s an easy instrument to pick up because it only has four strings. And it’s hard to find a song that actually sounds sad on the ukulele — melancholy, maybe. But not sad.“It’s a sound that’s totally bright,” Campbell says.
(11/29/11 1:23am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Empty. Despite it being our first night in the Indiana Daily Student newsroom in almost a week, despite the extra people who were usually not there on a Sunday, that’s how it felt without Brian Maibaum, our night supervisor: empty. Every time the door opened, every time we walked over to look at a page design, we expected Brian to be there. Because he always was. And we never thanked him enough for it.The news hit hard Sunday when we learned that Brian passed away during Thanksgiving break. He had been at the IDS for about four years, advising the staff as we designed the newspaper and making sure everything was done and sent to the printer.“Backshop Brian,” as we all called him, was a father figure, always calm and knowledgeable. Subtly, he made a difference and taught us something everyday. On the surface, the IDS is a college newspaper. But to us — we’ve spent countless hours in the newsroom creating a family. It’s a family that supports each other’s passions and remains together through the good times and the bad. Every night, Brian was there for whatever the day had thrown at us. He was there to make the comics page and catch typos. To help with headlines and spacing. To chat on a smoke break. To put up with our silly YouTube videos, radio stations and homework as we stayed in the newsroom until the early morning hours.Even though Brian had years of experience on each one of us, he rarely voiced his opinion without being asked. When he did make suggestions or offer ideas, it was worth listening. Brian was always conscious of social connections that could be made and the things we didn’t see in our own work.He also had a special ability to make each one of us feel welcome and important. Every designer and editor knew they could turn to Brian for help. When the design staff was feeling overwhelmed, he offered to teach new staffers who had no experience. The staff knew we could stop and chat with Brian, who offered a friendly “hello” as we came and went from the building.Brian was the epitome of leading by example. He was always there to help and support. He recently told me he stayed calm simply because freaking out on deadline does no good. He was willing to stay past deadline on a rough night or hold the newspaper just in case the late-breaking news should need to go in print. Compliments from Brian were flattering and always genuine. We got through Sunday by trying to do what we saw him do every night. We checked the details on finished pages, saying “That’s what Brian did.” And we’ll be doing that for the rest of the year. It won’t be easy to finish the semester or start the next one without him.Losing a family member is never easy. It will be a while before we remember he’s not just on a smoke break or running errands, and we’ll miss the wit and good nature he brought every night. But we’ll never forget the things Brian taught us. Brian, thank you for everything. We’ll miss you greatly.— mslaby@indiana.edu
(08/11/11 10:06pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The spooning wall, a low limestone wall near the law school, was a favorite meeting spot for lovers.But as Hoagy Carmichael sat there, he realized just how alone he was. In 1927, at 28, he had returned to his college campus and his hometown of Bloomington. All his friends were graduated and gone. The girl he loved was gone too. And the campus lacked the vibrancy it seemed to have during his college days.But then, as legend has it, he decided to stop feeling sorry for himself and started with a tune. A melody popped into the songwriter’s head, and it was so compelling that he ran to his favorite hang out, the Book Nook. It was closed, but he pounded on the door anyway, and the owner let him in.Inside, he rushed to the piano to compose what would later, once its tempo was slowed down to a ballad, become one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century.“Sometimes I wonder why I spend the lonely nights dreaming of a song.”The song was “Stardust.” Its melody became wildly popular, making Carmichael famous and rich.***A photo hanging in the Book Nook, now known as The Gables, depicts Carmichael at the piano with a circle of friends around him. Students regarded the battered upright piano in the corner as Carmichael’s piano. He even charmed the workers of the Book Nook into allowing him to stay after hours to play as they washed dishes. Carmichael was known as a charismatic and humorous performer.“It was the Kilroy’s of its time,” David Johnson, WFIU jazz host, said. “A Kilroy’s without booze.”The energy of the prohibition era created a counter-culture where Carmichael could follow his creative impulses and become an unpredicted success.And people, especially on college campuses in the 1920s, thought hot jazz was exciting, Johnson said.Hoagy loved to attempt to play the trumpet all around campus.“Hoagy, shut up!” people would yell.But he didn’t listen.***After graduating from law school in 1926, Carmichael had to find a real job, so he accepted a job as a lawyer in Florida and hated it. He did the bare minimum everyday, just to get by and not be fired.But as legend goes, Carmichael was sitting at his desk in the law office one day when through the open window he could hear the notes of a familiar song coming from a nearby record store. But the song seemed more than familiar. He realized it was not just a song he knew, but a song he had written. The song was “Washboard Blues,” and he was listed as the composer.“That’s it,” he thought. “I’m a songwriter. I don’t have to be a lawyer. I quit.”He returned home to Bloomington and was in the right place at the right time.Gennett Records was in nearby Richmond, Ind., making Bloomington a stop on the jazz circuit along the way to Chicago. Big names of jazz, such as Louis Armstrong, stopped by and Carmichael met them.His career as a jazz singer/songwriter and later, an actor, took off, and the rest was legend.***Some visitors walk quietly to the back of Rose Hill Cemetary.They leave pennies and Crown Royal bottles. Bob Dylan even made a pilgrimage there to pay his respects to the man who was a singer/songwriter before the label became popular.Some even make a wish on the pennies they leave.It’s a tribute to the man from Bloomington who made a name for himself.“Howard Hoagland Carmichael 1899 – 1981.”
(06/02/11 5:39pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Today, it’s picking up an issue of Orienter, but soon it will be memories of freshman year. And then, the memories of the years that follow. Regardless of where students come from — in-state, out-of-state or international — by the time they leave, Bloomington is a second home. But before leaving there are a few things that are a must-do for any Hoosier.Go to a basketball game at Assembly HallIU fans believe that Hoosier basketball is the best, no matter the team’s record. And as an IU student, it’s an obligatory move to also believe this. So, go to a game and marvel at the power of IU fans in Assembly Hall. Plus, games can include big head posters, entertaining cheers and indoor (yes, indoor) fireworks.Discover another sportSpeaking of sports, IU has many free sporting events, so go to a baseball game, swim meet or tennis match. Or for athletes (and non-athletes) who aren’t Division I, join a club sport or intramural team. There are various levels, from serious competition to just having fun, along with a slew of sports to try.See IU’s treasures at the IU Art Museum and Lilly LibraryThat building with the red circular sculpture and multicolored lights at night is the IU Art Museum. Check it out at night when the lights are beaming into the night sky. Then during the day, go back to see the floors of artwork. Follow that with a short walk toward the IU Auditorium to also see the student work at the School of Fine Arts gallery and the rare books and treasures at the Lilly Library.Live at the Indiana Memorial UnionSeemingly large and confusing at first, the Indiana Memorial Union can become a second home. Eat lunch at the fancy-looking Tudor Room (with a student discount, of course). Print homework in the computer lab. Sleep between classes in one of the lounges. And best of all, use the union to pull the classic college all-nighter to study or write a paper.Travel abroadAlthough a little counter-intuitive to a bucket list for IU, it’s a great way to not only appreciate what is possible in Bloomington, but also to explore or find a passion as well as bring back a new perspective.Visit culture centersThere are several culture centers on campus, and they are places to meet and connect with people on campus who share similar traditions and viewpoints. The centers also serve as resources for information about different cultures and a home for various student groups related to the center. Check out these centers to learn about culture from peers and venture outside the classroom.Look up to someoneWith more than 40,000 students plus faculty and staff, finding someone on campus to look up to won’t take long. Maybe it will be a favorite professor or a student leader in one of IU’s 650 clubs and organizations or maybe someone totally different. Regardless, college includes building connections, and finding someone to help through the stress of classes and celebrate the victories is crucial.Explore BloomingtonAs a freshman, it will be really easy to stay on campus where food can be bought with meal points, your friends are down the hall and there is plenty of stuff to do. (See above list). But Bloomington as a town is amazing too. Start the exploration small and venture through the Sample Gates to Kirkwood Avenue, which is technically off-campus, but close. For food, go a block to the north and try an ethnic restaurant on Fourth Street. There’s food from all around the world, and there’s bound to be something delicious. Then move even farther outward, and explore your new home and all it has to offer. It’s only four years, and it will be over before you know it.
(04/26/11 6:51pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>After two weeks, senior Matt Luedeman finally convinced his roommates to watch “A Clockwork Orange.”The three of them sat down to watch the 1971 movie about a futuristic, experimental aversion therapy that goes astray.It was a strange physiological movie, but he loved it, said senior Jeff Caldwell, one of Luedeman’s roommates. He added that Luedeman had very different tastes in movies and loved both 1970s and black and white films.Luedeman, 22, suffered from a brain tumor and died Thursday. He went to class last Monday. On Wednesday he had the seizure, that would cause him to come home to Indianapolis and eventually led to his death, said his mom Carla Putnam.Luedeman was originally a direct admit to the Kelley School of Business, but switched to journalism wanting to pursue a career in public relations, Putnam said. She said that from the moment he stepped into the School of Journalism, he knew that was what he wanted to do.“He really pushed himself,” she said. “It was an amazing thing to watch.”Shortly after that switch, he was diagnosed with the brain tumor. But he was determined to stay in school, and he would have hated that he didn’t finish with only three weeks remaining, Putnam said.He never complained and never whined. He was just approaching the diagnosis as he thought anyone would, Putnam said.“I had to explain to him, ‘Honey, you don’t know how amazing you are.’”The one thing that did bother him was that after the diagnosis, Luedeman wasn’t allowed to drive. But Caldwell and senior Kyle Leiendecker, his other roommate, were always willing to drive him anywhere, so he never had to take the bus, Putnam said.The roommates said they loved to hang out, play “Mario Party” and watch sports — Luedeman loved the Chicago Cubs and the Indianapolis Colts.One summer, Leiendecker said he and Luedeman just decided on a whim to buy golf clubs and play.“We weren’t very good,” Leiendecker laughed and added that Luedeman was a fun loving and smart guy who he’d never forget.Luedeman also had a dog named Stu, a mutt that Leiendecker said resembled both a Beagle and Doberman. After freshman year, Luedeman decided that he wanted to live alone and get a dog, so he went to the shelter and rescued Stu, Putnam said.“He and Stu were buds from that moment on,” she said and added that his roommates loved Stu and knew that if they lived with Luedeman, they lived with Stu.Growing up, Luedeman played baseball and was a pitcher in high school. Putnam said the team and his friends took up all his time. The visitations on Monday and Tuesday for her son were a fanfare that she said celebrated his life. Putnam added that Luedeman was very independent and she thought his friends admired that about him.“He would have soared,” she said. “He just would have.”
(04/25/11 1:46am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>It seemed silly for Laury Flint to go back for May graduation.She’d been working at the IU Police Department since January, but there was no such thing as winter graduation when Flint, the new IUPD deputy chief for the Bloomington campus, finished her degree at IU in December 1981. So she never went back for commencement.Now it’s high on her priority list. A big part of her job as an administrative lieutenant and something that she will continue as deputy chief is coordinating IUPD for special events that range from controversial lectures, which might have one officer in plain clothes, to commencement, which has about 50 officers.When she received her degree in criminal justice, Flint said she wanted to go to the Los Angeles Police Department because it looked like the kind of place where you could spend your whole career. So she applied.“Everybody has big dreams when they graduate,” Flint said. “But I was broke.”After she applied, she needed to go to Los Angeles for testing and a physical. But she’d never been there and had no way to get there. As she was trying to figure it out, she was offered a job at IUPD. She took it and wrote a letter to LAPD and said she wasn’t coming. Flint said she thought IUPD would be a stepping stone for two or three years, but then she made friends and became attached to the department. Flint is now in her 30th year at IUPD.“I grew up here,” she said about the department.When the deputy chief position opened up, Flint said she knew she wanted to move up. She works days, when people are active, calling in and stopping by with questions. Flint also keeps an open door policy so that anyone in the department can stop by, too.On her desk was a wooden paper tray with a stack of folders that overflowed into a second stack. The folders were red, manila and even dark brown. Flint said she spends her morning classifying cases, which can sometimes take an hour, sometimes longer. Then there’s the planning for special events. Most are planned in advance, such as the football games that every officer works. But others can come up last minute and she helps to schedule officers for those events, too.“One of the beauties is you never know what you’re going to get,” she said.As deputy chief, Flint said she hopes to help with policies such as uniforms. She said the policies need to be more universal across the campuses, regardless of their size. This would help with everyone knowing the officers are a unit. It also helps to have the rules written down, she added. Soon Flint will relocate her office from the one she shares to one down the hall that is all her own.She wistfully said she’d love to add a treadmill to her new office since she spends so much time there. But right now she has to see what else she needs for the office and continue to plan big upcoming events like commencement.“It won’t be until after graduation that I move in,” she said.
(04/20/11 2:19am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A man was arrested at about 3 a.m. Saturday after he was found stealing from cars in the Jordan Avenue parking garage.The man was on the top level of the parking garage and it seemed that he was only entering unsecured vehicles, IU Police Chief KeithCash said.He was holding three Nintendo games, a car charger and several batteries when arrested, Cash added.It appeared that the man entered at least five vehicles and took various items, some of which were found in the parking lot.
(04/15/11 3:40am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A handgun that was reported stolen was found after IU police officer Brice Teter stopped a car in the area of 1600 N. Jordan Ave.The gun was loaded and reported stolen in Marion County in 2010, said IUPD Chief Keith Cash.Teter stopped the vehicle at about 1:09 a.m. Thursday for a moving violation because the driver didn’t have the headlights turned on, said Lt. Craig Munroe of IUPD.The driver, Ronald Nix, 23, was arrested for driving with a suspended license, Cash said. Teter then searched the vehicle and found the stolen gun under the driver’ seat, Cash added.Two other men who were also not IU students were in the car and Nix, who is from Danville, Ind., claimed to be in Bloomington for a party, Cash said.
(04/12/11 2:54am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>As the week of Little 500 festivities kicks off, here’s what you need to know about the law enforcement on campus.Who exactly will be on campus?The police will be in high visibility all week, including IUPD and the Bloomington Police Department.Additionally, there will be Monroe County sheriffs, Indiana State Police and the Indiana State Excise Police.Heightened patrolling began last week and will last through the race.What should I do if the police approach me?Don’t draw attention to yourself to avoid being approached by police, IU Police Chief Keith Cash said. If an officer does approach you, just be calm and respectful.What happens if i get a ticket?There will be two remote booking locations — one at the IUPD station and the other at the BPD station — to speed up the process of jail bookings.Cash said the most common charges during Little 500 are public intoxication and drinking tickets.The Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office has a Sunday court at 8 a.m. April 17 for the pretrial of those who get a minor alcohol or marijuana charge this week. Those who go to the pretrial have charges that are not combined with a misdemeanor, such as driving under the influence or damaging property, Cash said.What could the punishments be?Sunday court allows for all of the pretrial items to be done in one weekend, which is convenient for out-of-town students and guests. Most charges include a fine, community service and an alcohol information class. Cash added that if the person gets in trouble once more within a year, the charges could be brought up again.
(03/28/11 3:51am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Above the murmur of voices, the sounds from a string quartet filled the Whittenberger Auditorium in the Indiana Memorial Union. The music was the beginning of the first student remembrance event, which honored the 10 IU students who died during the current academic year. Among the students, parents and community members were Eric and Marilyn Behrman, whose daughter Jill was abducted 11 years ago. The Behrmans helped to organize the event with Karen Burnett, who brought the idea to IU. Burnett’s daughter Kari was a 19-year-old Purdue University student when she was killed in a car accident. Burnett said she has attended every student remembrance event at Purdue since and wanted to bring a similar event to IU.“As a parent, it meant a lot to me that she was recognized, that the university acknowledges the fact that my daughter was important to the school,” Burnett said.Several speakers offered words of comfort from a podium behind a bouquet of white flowers with red carnations mixed in. To end the ceremony, the full name of each of the 10 students was read aloud. Attendees then crossed the hall to the University Club where they continued to offer support and share memories.“It’s really powerful when you see the University stop and pause,” said Jackie Daniels, who works for IU and attended the event. “It’s really touching.” The event was a chance for people to come together and share memories, Dean of Students Harold “Pete” Goldsmith said. Burnett said the event is almost a type of closure because her daughter started a college career that she expected to finish, but instead Burnett said she found herself cleaning out a dorm room and receiving reimbursements for tuition and Kari’s parking tag.“I don’t want the money. I want my kid to still be going to school,” Burnett said.The Behrmans said they agreed and added that everything changes into a new normal, making everyday things such as getting the mail different. The Behrmans said they still receive mail in Jill’s name, even though it’s just junk mail.“It’s her name, her address,” Marilyn Behrman said. “It’s supposed to be for her.”She added that when she hears about a student death, she often feels she should reach out to the family so they know people notice the absence of their student, even on a campus as big as IU.The remembrance event provides a way for parents to meet and share with each other and surviving students, Eric Behrman said. He added that he likes to keep in contact with Jill’s friends as they grow up, although to him Jill will always be 19. In the University Club, a group of students gathered around a table to look at photos on a laptop, and another group stood around a table to look at photos of Brian Macken, an IU student who died in January.His parents, Laura and Tom Macken, traveled from their home in Connecticut to be at the event and spent time talking with their son’s friends and meeting other parents who offered words of comfort.Laura Macken said she was especially touched during the ceremony by Chancellor Ken Gros Louis’ words about honor and tradition at IU. She added that Brian’s youth hockey jersey was being retired at the same time as this event, but she and her husband knew they needed to come to IU for Brian.“We’re really happy that we came here today,” Laura Macken said. “We felt our place was here.”
(03/25/11 3:21am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU senior Logan Houlihan remains in stable condition in the intensive care unit at Broward General Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., after he was struck by a train March 16.He is making progress in his recovery, according to updates on a website for Houlihan created by Theresa Coonan. Coonan said on the site that Houlihan and her son have been best friends since junior high school.The website was created through CaringBridge, which allows users to create free websites during times of medical need so friends and family can receive updates and leave messages.Houlihan was struck at about 1:30 a.m. March 16 at a train intersection in Fort Lauderdale’s entertainment district, Fort Lauderdale police detective Travis Mandell said.Houlihan had waited for a southbound train to cross. Then he walked around the down gate that prevented traffic from crossing the tracks and was struck by the northbound train, according to the city’s police.Mandell added that this is not the first time a pedestrian has been struck by a train at this intersection.For Houlihan’s recovery website, visit www.caringbridge.org/visit/loganhoulihan.
(03/24/11 8:42pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU senior Logan Houlihan remains in stable condition in the intensive care unit at Broward General Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., after he was struck by a train March 16.He is making progress in his recovery according to updates on a website for Houlihan created by Theresa Coonan, who said on the site that Houlihan and her son have been best friends since junior high school.The CaringBridge website allows users to create free websites during times of medical need so that friends and family can receive updates and leave messages.Houlihan was struck around 1:30 a.m. March 16 at a train intersection in Fort Lauderdale’s entertainment district, said Fort Lauderdale police detective Travis Mandell.Houlihan had waited for a southbound train to cross and then walked around the down gate that prevented traffic from crossing the tracks and was struck by the northbound train, according to the city’s police.Mandell added that this is not the first time a pedestrian has been struck by a train at this intersection.For Houlihan’s recovery website, visit www.caringbridge.org/visit/loganhoulihan.
(03/18/11 7:23pm)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Logan Houlihan, a 23-year-old IU student, remains in the hospital in stable condition after he was struck by a train in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on March 16.He is in the intensive care unit, and it’s not clear when he will be able to leave, said junior Drew Morris, president of Kappa Sigma, who was also in Fort Lauderdale but not with Houlihan when the accident happened.Morris added that Houlihan, a member of Kappa Sigma, had a broken ankle and a 15-inch gash on his chest. He has also had two liver surgeries since the accident.The accident happened at about 1:30 a.m., Fort Lauderdale Police Detective Travis Mandell said.Houlihan was struck by a northbound train when he walked around the railroad gate at the intersection east of Southwest Second Avenue and Southwest Second Street in Fort Lauderdale, according to a press release from the city’s police.Houlihan waited for the southbound train to cross the intersection but then walked around the down gate that prevented traffic from crossing the tracks, according to the release.The area is the city’s entertainment district and is filled with restaurants and bars, Mandell said and added that this is not the first time a pedestrian has been struck by a train at this intersection.The police found Houlihan had injuries, and he was taken to Broward General Medical Center. But he was awake and talking when Mandell saw Houlihan the day after the accident.“I’m surprised his injuries aren’t worse,” Mandell said.
(03/09/11 5:09am)
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>IU police failed to find the driver and vehicle that struck a pedestrian Tuesday at the intersection of 10th Street and Fee Lane, according to IU Police Department Chief Keith Cash.The pedestrian complained of pain to his left foot but declined medical treatment, Cash said. The 20-year-old IU student was crossing the crosswalk on Fee at about 6 p.m. when he was struck in the left leg, causing him to fall.An off-duty IUPD officer who witnessed the incident described the vehicle as a newer model gray or dark blue Acura, Cash added.The vehicle was traveling westbound on 10th Street and was stopped in the right turn lane. Drivers are not allowed to turn right on red at this intersection, but the driver did, struck the pedestrian, then accelerated and fled the scene traveling north on Fee, Cash said.