Mount Hood

Change is coming

Natalie Dean | Freelancer

The 2018 Womxn’s March took place on Jan. 21 in the heart of Salem with the area surrounded by all walks of life. There were men, women, children and dogs pressed close together to support women’s rights and have a frank conversation of the continuous oppression of minority groups.

The choice to name it the Womxn’s March was a conscious one. After the 2017 Women’s March, many community members felt that it wasn’t inclusive to minority groups. By renaming it the Womxn’s March, it encompasses the full spectrum of women everywhere; those who identify as queer women, trans women and women of color.

The men that participated stood in support of their sisters, mothers, wives and daughters who have faced oppression. Signs were held by many, sending direct messages to those in power. Some reading, “Listen to me as I stand,” and “Beware; for I am fearless and therefore powerful.” There were little girls with their own homemade signs, some dressed as the Statue of Liberty, Rosie the Riveter and Wonder Woman.

Sophomore Jamie Norr was among the hundreds marching in Salem. “The Womxn’s March this weekend was humbling,” Norr reflected. “There were so many people who just wanted peace and equality and it was amazing to be a part of something so positive and impactful …  In our country’s current state, women, people of color, the LGBTQA+ community, and so many others are discriminated against and having our voice out there, loud and proud, is the only way to end all this hate.”

During the event, emcee LeAnna Thornton asked everyone in the crowd to participate in an exercise. She spoke, “There’s a lot of hurt and shame and guilt around sexual assault. We’re asking everyone to raise their hands if you can say, ‘me too.’ And to look around at the faces of those who have experienced an assault or harassment, and to not be ashamed. To let the guilt, and the pain, let it go. Work through it. Heal.”

Then, with knitted pink hats and signs in hand, they marched.

Contact the author at ndean17@wou.edu

Photo by: OPB.com

Traveling on a budget

Caity Healy | Lifestyle Editor

It may only be week three, but with all the rain in the forecast, the only thing my mind can go to is spring break. While it still is a while away, now is the best time to start planning your trips.

You may be thinking that as a college student, on a college student budget, there is no way you can afford to travel anywhere. However, with some proper planning and research, it’s actually a lot cheaper than you’d think. Here are some tips on how to prepare yourself for a trip that won’t break the bank.

 

  1. Start planning ahead of time

The best time to plan when prices are usually the lowest is about three months before you’re trying to travel. So if you’re planning a trip for spring break, now is the time to do it.

  1. Utilize apps such as Kayak

They help you search for flights to and from wherever you’re trying to go, and it also will denote certain days that have better deals. For instance, it’ll tell you whether you should purchase your tickets then or wait. You can also look at Google Flights, which will give you the price for every single day for any destination at the best price.

  1. Use social media

Follow accounts on Twitter such as @airfarewatchdog and @theflightdeal, as they will tweet when there is glitches or good deals regularly.

  1. Break your trip down into shorter legs

Rather than flying straight from home to your destination, you may find it cheaper to make stops and connect from one airport to the next. It’s important to do your research and check all of your options.

  1. Think about where you are staying

There are a lot of cheaper ways to lodge than staying in a hotel. Airbnb offers international stay for a lot less, and often will have full kitchens so you can even cook for yourself instead of eating out every night- which obviously will get expensive. You can also look into hostels if you are open to a shared space with others.
6. Pick the right destination

When planning your trip, think about where might be a cheaper place to go. The location will play a huge part in the price. You can still fly internationally and do so on a budget, but some places are far more expensive than others.

  1. Pack light

Bringing that extra suitcase will cost you more than you’d think. Save yourself the hassle of bringing a checked bag, and just bring the necessities.

  1. When you’re there, live cheap

Do things that cost you very little or nothing at all, and try to limit how much money you’re spending on different activities. Rather, go for a walk around the city, a hike, a walk on the beach or listen to some live street music. There are ways to enjoy your time traveling at very little cost.

 

Contact the author at chealy16@wou.edu

Mixing it up with protein shakes

Caity Healy | Lifestyle Editor

Protein is an incredibly vital component to any healthy and balanced diet. Your body uses it to build and repair tissue, and it’s an important building block in your muscle, blood, skin and more. Unlike many other nutrients, our body has no protein stores that it can go to when you need it. For that reason, you need to supplement this through your choice of foods.

A really convenient and useful product to help get your levels where they need to be is protein powder. However, if you’re similar to many, you have trouble finding any protein that doesn’t taste and smell absolutely awful. Through trial and error — and more error — and eventually success, I’ve been able to find some recipes that actually make protein enjoyable — mostly due to the fact that all the other ingredients overpower the taste. So, if you’re looking to get that boost of protein to your diet, try out some of these recipes that will have you questioning if there’s really any of the supplement actually in it.

Total protein count for each recipe may vary depending on brands used.

 

Mixed Berry Smoothie:

-Combine one-half cup of frozen mixed berries (I like using strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries) with one-fourth cup of vanilla greek yogurt, one-fourth cup of orange juice, and 1 scoop of vanilla protein. Blend until well mixed. If you need more liquid to reach desired viscosity, add water.

Total Protein: 22 Grams

 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Smoothie:

-Combine 1 cup of sweetened almond milk with 2 tablespoons of natural peanut butter, 1 scoop of chocolate protein, 1 teaspoon of honey and 1 frozen banana cut into small pieces. Blend together, and if you want it thicker, add more ice. If you would like, add a teaspoon of dark chocolate syrup.

Total Protein: 34 Grams

 

Orange Cream Smoothie:

-Combine one-half cup of vanilla ice cream (for highest protein, opt for brands like Halo Top), one-fourth cup sweetened almond milk, one-half cup orange juice, 1 scoop vanilla protein, one-half teaspoon vanilla extract. Blend, and add ice if it needs to be thickened.

Total Protein: 22.5 Grams

 

Contact the author at chealy16@wou.edu

Photo by: Caity Healy

Confront your consumption

Paul F. Davis | Photo Editor

Most people in the United States know that our shared over-consumption of the Earth’s resources is fundamentally changing our air and ecosystems. It’s hard sometimes to not feel downtrodden about our failure to be stewards of the Earth, but don’t feel down; you can make a difference through changing a few habits and being aware of the things you are using. Together we can make a drastic difference in the Earth’s future just by eliminating our use of a few consumables.

If you haven’t heard, there has been an uproar on social media about our use of straws — believe the hype. Straws are one of the many wasteful and unnecessary things our culture prides itself on consuming. When going out to a coffee shop or eating at a restaurant, just get in the habit of saying, “Thank you, I don’t need a straw” or bring your own reusablez one.

But straws are not the only wasteful thing we consume, they are only the tip of the metaphorical iceberg. While eating or drinking ask yourself, “do I really need that?” Because how often do you really use those plastic utensils, napkins or bags after you’re done giving into your human needs?  Change your habits, change the world.

Another unnecessary consumable that our culture loves to use are tubes in the middle of our rolls of toilet paper? The tubes make it easier for the paper to turn around the pole in the center. This use of tubes, however, isn’t even necessary. Toilet paper still works to the last sheet without a tube in the center and they sell it for a lower price as well. So college students, go out to the store, Waremart or Roths, and buy some tubeless and more affordable toilet paper.

Ever stop to think where all your night-out glitter goes after your evening of debauchery? It often enters our waterways. Those microplastics, any plastic smaller than a fifth of an inch, are one of the worst things for waterways. These microplastics take one of two paths when they enter a river or where ever our waste water enters. This glitter is either mistaken as food by our aquatic friends, any river dwelling animal, or as the microplastic lands on river beds where it slowly leaches out chemicals that are not advantageous for any living creature and sometimes even carcinogenic. So once again, ask yourself, do you really need to use that glitter?

Together let’s change our habits and start to ask do we really need this or that, and apply that thought process to everything we use. When we develop this skill, we will use less. When we use less, we have all made a decision to work towards the betterment of our Earth’s future.

Contact the author at pfdavis14@wou.edu

Photo by: Tiia Monto

 

Harmonica player steals spotlight in jazz performance

Stephanie Blair | Staff Writer

Under a wash of colored lights — which would shift throughout the night, from reds and purples to blues and greens — four men took the Rice Auditorium stage on Jan. 19 for one purpose: to play jazz.

The quartet was composed of: DJ Ginyard on bass; Shedrick Mitchell on keyboard, organ and piano; Nathaniel Townsley on drums; and headliner Gregoiré Maret on harmonica. The group were old friends, Maret explained after their introduction.

But the four were not the only musicians on stage that night. For a few songs before the intermission, the quartet was joined by vocalist Christie Dashiell.

“An incredibly talented young woman — I honestly think she is one the most talented singers of her generation,” Maret said of Dashiell, just before she took the stage. “I feel really honored … that she accept the invitation and she’s going to be here performing with us tonight.”

The group played songs off of Maret’s newest album, “Wanted,” which was released in April 2016. In the performance program, Maret is quoted as saying, “There’s a lot about this record that is about my past to where I am now. I wanted to acknowledge not just who I am but how I came to be what I am now.”

Part of that story is growing up in Geneva, Switzerland to an African-American mother and Swiss father. Part of it is going from studying at the Conservatoire Supérieur de Musique de Genéve to New School University in New York. Part of it is transitioning from a student and a backup musician to taking the spotlight.

Maret has received praise from critics at The New York Times, The Daily Beast, Zeal NYC and many others for his melodies and ingenuitive harmonica compositions. And critics aren’t the only ones who love him. Though Maret was the focus of the Smith Fine Arts stage on the night of the performance, he’s built a strong career out of working alongside legends both in the jazz world and out: Herbie Hancock, Marcus Miller, Elton John and Sting, to name a few.

Maret’s music is available on iTunes, Amazon, sunnysidezone.com and Soundcloud.

 

Contact the author at sblair13@mail.wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

New exhibits come to Hamersly

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

For Hamersly Library, the beginning of term means the opening of new second and third floor art exhibits. The exhibits officially opened on Jan. 8 and Jan. 5, respectively. “Painting for the fun of it,” a watercolor display by local business owner Larry Sykes, is located on the second floor and “Beyond Watching,” a mixed media exhibit by visiting professor Xianzhu Tu, is located on the third floor.

The work shown in “Painting for the fun of it” is the result of Sykes being hesitant to learn how to paint. Before he and his wife moved to Monmouth, she bought him watercolor lessons. His artist’s statement describes the initial hesitation he felt towards the craft, “he knew nothing about painting watercolors but eventually gave in and found he had a knack for it. After a couple lessons his teacher said, ‘no more lessons, you get it, just paint.’”

As the work on display showcases, Sykes has an affinity for near-photorealistic pieces. His sense of detail is what initially drew Jerrie Lee Parpart, Archives and Exhibits Coordinator, to his work, “I see the exhibits program as a way to teach outside of the classroom … to spark interest in things that you normally wouldn’t have in your classroom, or to augment that which is already being taught in a class,” she said. “Specifically with Larry’s work, it’s a different way of looking at the world. He has an eye to look at mundane things … to just see the details.”

In Tu’s “Beyond Watching,” the artist has chosen to display multiple digital and ink images, as well as sculpture and installation pieces. One installation involves a bunch of small heads arranged in a pile, while another utilizes a large, square display case to show sand-made mountains atop a mirror.

“The exhibition shows a series of art practices based on my personal cultural experiences of self-reconstruction from observation, perception, questioning, reflection, and awakening. Beyond watching, returning to one’s real self is the ultimate appeal of my artistic expression,” explained Tu in her artist’s statement.

While the foyer of the third floor gallery is used to display the aforementioned pieces, the two gallery rooms are arranged with Tu’s digital and ink images.

“With her work, I was very excited about the idea of combining both communication and art,” said Parpart.

In addition to these two exhibits, Hamersly Library is also hosting a smaller exhibit on the second floor for the Polk County Historical Society. In February, the library will also house a 22-panel collage that traces 3,000 years of disability history.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

 

Cannon Gallery highlights digital magic

Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

On Jan. 17, artist Ryan Woodring came to the Cannon Gallery of Art for the reception of his installation, “Unveiling World Tour.” The installation has been up since Jan. 11 and will remain in the gallery until Feb. 9.

In his series of projected pieces, Woodring performs a digital magic trick — he alters pre-existing video clips from the various unveilings of the replication of the Triumphal Arch of Palmyra. The recreated arch was made into a 3D model and then sent around the world on an unveiling tour. In Woodring’s altered clips, rather than the cloth being lifted to reveal the recreated arch, it’s lifted to reveal nothing.

“Unlike most monument unveilings, the recreated Triumphal Arch is not aimed at permanence. It is meant to be disassembled and reassembled for the purpose of unveilings and digital dissemination,” says the artist’s statement. “Woodring’s act of removal looks to isolate the magic trick, allowing the fullness of the unveiling spectacle to circulate while making room for emptiness, hypocrisy and loss to be revealed.”

Woodring’s clips — the unveilings from New York City, London and Florence — are projected onto the walls of the Cannon Gallery.

“This is the first show we’ve ever had that is only projections and video,” noted Paula Booth, Director of the Cannon Gallery. In the past ten years, the gallery has featured five exhibits that use projection as a focal point.

Solely using projection in this exhibit may allow viewers to extract more meaning from the collection of pieces. “You can almost think of it as one artwork, like the gallery itself becomes the artwork. You can look at it really superficially, just watching the video and seeing what’s going on … it’s captivating just to watch. But then when you read his statement and realize that there’s many layers to what’s happening visually,” said Booth.

The next exhibition in the Cannon Gallery will open on Feb. 21 and will feature hanging relief sculptures by David George Andersen, the late Chief Preparator for the Hallie Ford Museum of Art, “I think it will be a slightly challenging exhibit for some folks. His work is commentary on politics, on religion, on all those things that make us uncomfortable to talk about,” said Booth.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

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