Community Arts

Blue cheese: Moldy oldy but goody

"Mold" and "delicious" are rarely used in the same sentence. In an age of anti-bacterial obsession, blue cheese is the delightful exception. Hardcore blue cheese afficionados think that Swiss, Cheddar and Jack cheeses are for wimps -- if the cheese cannot be smelled from ten feet away, forget it.

This column has no point

We are starving here in Paris, my friend and I. We have not left our flat all day, in catastrophic fear that, if we do, we will embark on a disastrous spree of spending money we don't have. What we do have is this: a carton of Lucky Strikes, a jar of instant coffee, and a galaxy of Karma to burn. He is stone broke and I am skidding turbulently in that same direction. It is only a matter of time before I too am side-swiped with poverty. Cover your eyes children, the collision is bound to make priests wince with contempt and spur parents into rowdy protest as they pound on the doors of decency.

That's disgusting: Freddy Got Fingered

Grilling a perennial favorite

We live in an age of ever-increasing efficiency, when a five-minute wait at the nearest drive-through is considered four minutes too long.

Farewell to the 'Yanks'

So it's finally arrived. I'm almost done here, and it's become a time for reflection. I've began to realize the inevitable, I have to go home soon. I've found myself in a bizarre situation. I'm excited about the prospect of going home to all of my friends and family but at the same time I've experienced so much here and made so many great friends that I'm reluctant to leave it all behind.

War of future is virtual

The nature of how our military engages in war is changing, Michael Ignatieff convincingly argues in his book "Virtual War: Kosovo and Beyond" (Metropolitan Books: New York, 2000, $23). For all the talk we hear about investing in new technology and weapons by military brass and the Bush Administration, the 78-day NATO bombing campaign waged against Slobodan Milosevic's Yugoslavia during the Clinton years showed just how questionable such seemingly victorious action can be.

New theaters welcome addition

Five rows of bleacher-like seats, upholstered with red material comprise the seating of tiny T300 theatre, which senior Sara Bancroft, production manager of "Much Ado About Nothing," described as a "black box."

Cyclists prepare for time trials

Qualifications are finished and Little 500 weekend is 23 days away, but that doesn't mean the pre-race competition is on hold. Men's and women's individual time trials, one of the three spring series events, will be contested from 4 to 9:45 p.m. Wednesday at Bill Armstrong Stadium. "I think the series events are cool," Sigma Alpha Epsilon junior Dan Burns said. "They are something that gets people enthusiastic about the race and build spirit."

Don't subsidize abortion

This time of year in Bloomington has lately been the resuscitator for that much avoided, contorted abortion debate. For the last couple of years, the Bloomington city council members have voted to give the local chapter of Planned Parenthood a tax subsidy through their Social Services fund. The money, usually a couple thousand dollars a year, goes to an organization that performs abortions every Thursday and has already received over $8,000 in Bloomington tax money. This isn't just about a subsidy.

Beginning a life of opportunity

Charleston Sanders, a masters student, recently said, "The best job in the world is doing something you love and being able to pay the bills doing it. I want to make a difference in people's lives, and music will be one of the avenues through which I can make that difference."

Day off should still be day on

President's Day was high school. Students don't get the day off for Columbus, either.

Scrimmage begins season

The men's and women's swimming teams have their season openers this weekend with a scrimmage today and a meet with Evansville Saturday. Both events are at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatics Center, with the scrimmage starting at 3 p.m. today and the meet beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday. The men's team holds a 2-0 overall advantage against the Aces while the women defeated Evansville 186-108 in last year's opener. The women's squad is returning 15 letter winners while the men have 12 returning.

Cameron goes crazy

When a sports fan hears the term "Cameron Crazy", one thinks of college basketball and the Duke University fans who overflow Cameron Indoor Stadium to chant epithets -- to them, really clever epithets -- at the visiting team prior to an inevitable loss.

Think globally, spin locally

While searching for topics for my column, I have asked the Editor In Chief several questions about the content and quality of the newspaper. Many times, when I ask why a particular improvement hasn't been made, I get the response, "We just don't have enough staff for that." Now, this does not mean that the IDS doesn't have enough people to be a good twice-a-week newspaper. It does mean however, that it is lacking enough people to be a truly exceptional summer paper.

Community supporting activist in tree sit

"Dolphin" sits high above the ground, far from any ocean, perched near the top of a large red oak. "You learn to be really aware of your surroundings when you're up in a tree," Dolphin says. "You can hear every step in the woods." Tracy "Dolphin" McNeely lives on a tree platform as part of what Earth First! says is Indiana's first tree sit. Her goal is to avert development of 54 acres of woods on Bloomington's west side.

PLACE TO SPEND PAYCHECK • 1. Kirkwood

Victory in final event needed for narrow win in season opener

The IU women's track and field team opened the indoor season at home over the weekend. The Hoosiers treated the home fans to an exciting finish and victory by winning the final event: the 4x400-meter relay. The women's team used both experience and youth in an 81-80 victory over the visiting Michigan Wolverines.

IU best place for freshmen, 'Time' says

IU is the best large university in the country at helping freshmen adjust to college, according to an article in this week's Time magazine. The article cites IU's programs -- such as Groups, Intensive Freshman Seminars and Freshman Interest Groups -- that are aimed at making IU's 36,000-member student body seem smaller. Time also recognized three smaller colleges for similar efforts. The article's introduction says the magazine wanted to go beyond standard rankings to determine how well students learn and become engaged in their learning.

Pakistan sends warning to Taliban

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistan declared Tuesday that Afghanistan's Taliban rulers "don't have much time" to stave off U.S.-led military strikes, the clearest signal yet that the Pakistani government is washing its hands of the Taliban's fate.

IU choir performs with Indianapolis Symphony

The Pro Arte Singers, the premiere chamber ensemble of the IU School of Music, will perform Wednesday evening with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, under the leadership of the choir's conductor Paul Hillier. The concert is part of the Basically Baroque Series, sponsored by Barnes and Thornburg, and will be performed in Indianapolis at the Hilbert Circle Theatre. This is the first collaboration of the Pro Arte Singers and the ISO. They will combine their talents along with four IU soloists -- graduate students in voice Jolaine Kerley, Andrew Hendricks, Kevin Skelton and Seth Keeton, and the ISO's Concert Master Hidetaro Suzuki and principal oboist Roger Roe. "This is really a new opportunity," Tim Northcutt, media relations director for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, said. "It not only gives us an opportunity to present a wider range of music, it gives our musicians an opportunity to grow artistically." The ISO is currently searching for a new music director after Raymond Leppard, the music director for the last decade, has stepped down.