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November 19, 2003

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Drawing Strength From Each Other

By wpengine | November 19, 2003

“Together we are strong, separate we are not as strong.”

This phrase, though simple, is a saying to live by this season for the equestrian team, which enters the season with its highest expectations in quite some time.

Winning is the first priority with this team, which head coach Chris Mitchell described as the most talented squad he has ever coached. From the Open category, the most experienced, and down through Intermediate and Novice, Mitchell has confidence in each rider’s ability to perform.

Although there is a core group of riders that the team will turn to first, Mitchell is most excited about the team’s depth this season.

“I can bring anyone in at any division,” he raved.

The Intermediate competitors are the strongest for the Red.

Based on the vast depth and talent, the Red has set some very high goals for the year.

“Our first goal right now is to win the Region,” said Mitchell.

In order to do this, the Red will have to overcome stiff competition from Skidmore, its arch-nemesis. Morrisville and Colgate also pose serious threats.

However, after finishing in second place as the Regional Reserve champion the past two years, the Red is focused on the overall title this year.

“I’m focused, the girls are focused, it’s just a matter of doing the job at hand,” said Mitchell.

Due to several strong individuals, the Red expects to place several riders in regional and national competition. Several of the team members are in contention for the Cacchione Cup, an award that goes to the rider in the region that scores the most points for her team over the course of the season. The Red has consistently had riders among the top five regional scorers.

Cornell has gotten off to a strong start. The team won the Hartwick Show on Nov. 8, and finished second behind Skidmore at the Morrisville Show on Nov. 15. So far this season, the team has earned 86 points. This puts the Red in second place in the Region, just three points behind Skidmore. The Red will look to climb to the top at the Skidmore Show on Saturday.

“This team can do it, wants to do it,” Mitchell said. “The determination and focus is there.”

Archived article by Olivia Dwyer

Related

The Cold Weather Blues: How to Beat Them

By wpengine November 20, 2003

They say Ithaca is Gorges, Cold, Gangsta and Long Island — but what about depressing? With the coming of the cold weather, many Cornell students say that life gets dreary, but it doesn’t need to be. How to avoid the cold weather blues then? An individual diagnosed with Seasonal Affective Disorder experiences depression, awkward sleep patterns, overeating, a crave for carbohydrates and a diminished sex drive for at least two consecutive winters. Most Cornell students who feel down about the coming of cold weather, however, do not necessarily meet this clinical criteria. “There is a clear distinction between real S.A.D and what most Cornell students have: your typical Ithaca doom and gloom,” explained James B. Maas, the S.H. Weiss Presidential Fellow of psychology. So what should the majority of students do to feel better? “Hang in there … and take weekends in Florida as often as possible,” Maas recommended. While the academic calendar might not be so forgiving of the occasional beach trip, students have made a valiant effort to bring the beach to them. “The background on my computer is a picture of the Bahamas,” said Michelle Lesser ’06. In the dead of winter, “I put up Tahiti lights, turn on some Bob Marley and dance around my over-heated dorm room in a bathing suit; it’s like I can’t even tell the difference,” said Alison Janoski ’07. Students have even brought sports indoors. While it may not be beach volleyball, “we play hockey in the hallway. It gets hot in here so the girls don’t usually feel the need to wear more than a sports bra; now it’s even more fun,” raved Matthew Estersohn ’07. “On a toasty winter’s night, why not toast some marshmallows? We bought one of those S’mores makers … and have a veritable campfire in our room when we want it to feel like summer,” said Rachel Wolf ’06. “Trips to the Pyramid Mall are always fun too,” Wolf added. Other indoor suggestions include making your apartment or room bright with lively colored walls, upholstery, bedding and lighting. For those students who do, in fact, suffer from S.A.D, it is important to note that it is the dark that leads to disorder; not the cold. S.A.D is caused by “a biochemical imbalance in the hypothalamus due to the shortening of daylight hours and the lack of sunlight in winter,” according to S.A.D’s website. Thus, students should get ready to “embrace the Ithaca winter,” if they really want to feel better, said Sharon J. Dittman, associate director of community relations at Gannett: Cornell University Health Services. Many students have found Cornell’s climate to be excellent for some uplifting, outdoor fun. “We really have enough snow for everyone on campus to build a life-sized snowman for themselves and their mother,” said Doug Schnebel ’06. “Grab a tray and go sled down Libe. Watch out for the trees!” advised Jahan Mohebali ’06. Cornell offers Greek Peak for skiing and snowboarding, and Lynah Rink for ice-skating. “There are vast areas of untouched snow that are perfect for snow angels, and if you’re running low on Big Red Bucks, there’s food all around you! I love eating snow, except the yellow kind,” said Inna Kleyman ’06. Other than through exposure to daylight, S.A.D is typically treated with light therapy. The National Mental Health Association recommends a “bank of white fluorescent lights on a metal reflector and shielded with a plastic screen.” High-powered light bulbs can be installed into dorm room lights for a similar effect. “If you feel that you are unable to remedy your winter depression on your own, consider consulting a psychologist or psychiatrist through Counseling and Psychological Services at Gannett,” suggested Greg Eells, director of counseling and psychological services at Gannett. “Get in the light, get a life,” Maas said. Archived article by Erica Fink
Updike Reads Work To Packed Statler

By wpengine November 20, 2003

Literary legend John Updike, brought by the Atkinson Forum in American Studies and the Department of English Program in Creative Writing, spoke to a packed Statler Hall Auditorium last night. Updike will take part in a question and answer session today at 11 a.m. in Barnes Hall, entitled The Craft of Fiction: a Conversation with John Updike. Updike was frist introduced by Prof. Lamar Herrin, director of the creative writing program, and then by Joel Porte, the E.I. White Professor of English and American Studies. “He has won nearly every award known to man,” Porte said. Updike has in fact been the recipient of numerous literary awards and is a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. “It is an awesome pleasure for me to welcome him to Cornell.” Updike then took the stage and recalled fondly on his own connections to Cornell: his second wife is a Cornell graduate, and he declined an acceptance to Cornell in 1949 although he said “it is a warm furrow in my heart … though the path not exactly taken.” Updike first read through selections of his early poems although he cautioned that, “I don’t want to … overdo these” drawing laughter from the audience. “I thought that the reading was really funny. The audience was laughing even when he wasn’t trying to make us laugh,” said Parker Pringle ’03. Updike’s readings continued to please the audience as he moved onto his short stories. He read “The Persistence of Desire,” a story included in the latest anthology of his early work, The Early Stories: 1953-1955, for sale at the Cornell Store. “It’s kind of an exercise in self-incrimination,” he said. “[When my editor asked me to compile my early short stories,] I don’t think she meant for me to find them all, but I saw no easy place to draw the line.” “Everyone in the audience was sharing some similar experience that he was giving us but it was different for everyone, because [with short stories] everyone takes something different away,” said Nate Smith ’06. The conversation with Updike being held today will be moderated by Herrin and Prof. Glenn C. Altschuler, the Litwin Professor of American Studies, who is currently teaching Updike’s novel Rabbit is Rich in his American Studies 102 course. Archived article by Logan Bromer