While the majority of Cornell students were asleep this past Saturday morning, 150 members of the Cornell Tradition and a handful of staff and faculty helped take part in a Community Clean-up in Collegetown.

Although the hour was early, members of The Cornell Tradition had good things to say about the program.

“I’m really happy to be a part of such a great organization as The Cornell Tradition,” Lauren Cohan ’11 said. “Not only do I receive scholarship money, but I also take part in some wonderful activities with some wonderful people.”

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It’s 3 a.m. on a Saturday in Collegetown. After a night of debauchery, Cornell students flood the area streets, staggering toward home up the Ithaca hills. Suddenly, a student turns to his friend. “Are you hungry, man?” he asks. Lo and behold, his friend is famished. Unfortunately for the pair, late-night food is tough to come by in the Collegetown neighborhood. With no all-night eateries and only a handful of restaurants open past three, students in C-Town are often left hungry at the end of the night.

Can you believe the nonsense: when R was in high school, she spent the summer of her 16th year doing what all nerdy-nerds do. She took some classes. Sure, she chilled too, but she took some classes. She did some homework. She studied her nerdy little heart out, took some mad hard tests and sacrificed suns and funs, all in the pursuit of one aim: earning college credit.

The other day, on one of my rare jaunts through Ho Plaza, a girl was asking people if they were interested in consulting and, to the yea-sayers, handing out quarter-cards. One poor, fellow behind me asked, “What is consulting?” The surprised girl tried to explain what consulting is.

If you’re in the shoes of that fellow, allow me to explain: Consultants are paid to come in and advise companies or municipalities (such as, say, Ithaca) on certain matters to help their client earn more money, or do a better job in some way. Consultants usually have specific areas of expertise (such as, say, urban planning and development). And, given that consultants are paid a lot, their clients usually listen to them. Consultants benefit from giving good advice — and so, good advice they give.

Imagine you’re walking down the street, minding your own business when suddenly it approaches: something between the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man and Will Ferrell with a tranquilizer dart in his neck, leaving behind a trail of booze, sweat and drool in its path. What a horror! You exclaim, as it slowly gets bigger and bigger, crying “mmmmmf I waaan sanwichesss! And peeeezzaaaa!” and as you dive to avoid its pale, blubbery, annoying wrath, you see it, and then you know: side boob. What we have here is a big, fat, mess.

In a joint meeting of the Ithaca Planning and Economic Development Committee and the Planning and Development Board that lasted well over three hours, Ithaca civil servants attempted to hash out the details of Part 1 of the 2009 Collegetown Urban Plan and Conceptual Design Guidelines, as it is now called. This plan will guide the development of Collegetown for the foreseeable future.

As the Planning and Development Board has to recommend a proposed plan to be considered for adoption by the Common Council, this meeting was an effort to further the process by bringing council members of the Planning and Economic Development Committee together to discuss the shortcomings and merits of the newest version of the Collegetown plan with the Planning and Development Board.