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Students chat on Libe Slope in May.

KIM | Picnics and Sunsets

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Waterfalls, luscious foliage and beautifully crafted gorges created by Mother Nature herself are all located within our college campus. We’re just a couple steps away from nature thriving in its prime time, flaunting its true colors. I’m not writing to advertise the Fall Creek Gorges or to convince parents and prospective students. Instead, I’m writing as an overthinking and overstressed individual telling you just how great flowing water and tiny dandelions can be. Over the weekend, I went on a Fall Creek Gorge Trail Hike, motivated to familiarize myself with the overlooked and neglected beauties I never took the time to deeply appreciate.

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SONG | Face Masks Turned Me Into a Masochist

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So junior year hasn’t exactly shaped up to be the hellfest I thought it would be. Instead, I think it turned me into a suburban mom. At different parts of the day, I now find myself being terrifyingly diligent about cleaning my room, color coding a Google Calendar and making gnocchi from scratch on a Monday night. I can be found brewing loose-leaf tea and doing concerningly middle-age yuppie things; I’m going to the gym for heaven’s sake, and I’m focusing less on toxic groups and taking more “me” time. By God, what happened?

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Sex on Thursday

SEX ON THURSDAY | Consent is My Biggest Turn-On

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I had my mind set to write about non-invasive sex toys, but considering current events, it’s critical we discuss sexual consent. Even though it seems like consent is all we talk about some days, it is clearly not in our heads. We talk about sex in terms of baseball, and never has anyone mentioned consent in that analogy. When I had health class in school, we talked about STDs and protection, but never about asking permission. Consent is something I think about a lot.

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Sex on Thursday

SEX ON THURSDAY | Your IUD Fairy Godmother

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As a sexually active woman, it my utmost priority to practice safe sex. There are a plethora of options out there to keep yourself baby-free. Personally, I have an Intrauterine Device, more commonly known as an IUD, and not to be confused with an IED (an improvised explosive device). Many women are so fearful of IUD “horror stories” that they may as well be walking in a minefield. My one mission in life is to debunk these IUD fears.

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Courtesy of Rachel Goffin

GUEST ROOM | ‘Did You Get a Return Offer?’

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“Did you get a return offer?” A question that I’ve been asked dozens of times upon running into friends and acquaintances since returning to Cornell last month. “Do you know what you’re doing next year yet?” A question that I know I am not the only senior to receive over and over again in the past month. “How are you feeling this week?” A question I’ve been asked rarely, if at all, in my time at Cornell. We spend a lot of time talking about how CAPS has a long wait time and not enough therapists, and how the mental health resources on this campus need to be improved. But I think Cornell’s mental health crisis starts a hell of a lot earlier than that.

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LIEBERMAN | There Is No End All, Be All

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When I open my laptop, to start writing about Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, it feels equal parts tired and tiring. Tired, because I’ve done this before — written this before — and so have so many others: survivors, supporters, some worn down combination of the two; we have done this before. This opinion piece is tired. And yet, somehow, despite having practiced and done all the necessary (more than the necessary) pre-writing, it feels beyond exhausting to do it, maybe because I can be sure I will have to do it again. I am so sick of writing about being believed.

Letters To
Letter to the Editor

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Re: ‘I Believe You, Brett Kavanaugh’

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To the Editor:

A casual stroll through the government department reveals an environment exploding with stress. Some of this, such as the stress attributed to upcoming prelims, is justified. The stress surrounding the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh and subsequent allegations is wildly misplaced. Cornellians are rightfully distressed about the prospect that an abuser could sit on the court. However, we seem to be ignoring the disturbing and rapid decay of due process in the United States as a result of this debacle.

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PINERO | I Believe You, Brett Kavanaugh

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Dear Mr. Kavanaugh,

Watching your confirmation process has caused me great distress. As the daughter of one father, it makes me sick to see a good, upstanding family man torn apart by baseless allegations. In hopes that it will help you navigate this crisis, I’ve formulated the following strategy for you and your team. First: deny, deny, deny. You’re doing a great job already, but you can’t let the pressure get to you.

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AHMAD | Who Am I?

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Countless times throughout my undergraduate career as a psychology major, I’ve been forced to memorize lists of psychologists’ names and their corresponding theories. These theories are sometimes fascinating and other times mortifying (yes, I’m looking at you, Freud), but they are almost never memorable. Sure, I can generally tell you what Kohlberg’s theory of morality is, or half-heartedly explain what Piaget’s deal was. I’ve never fully understood what was up with Freud, but I could still monotonously recite his psychosexual stages if you really wanted me to. My point is, none of the details of these psychological theories ever stood out to me.

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LAM | Social Media Firms Need to Provide Tangible Services to Live on Ad Revenue

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This past summer lacked one thing: a new social media fad. It seems that app developers have finally realized that an idea doesn’t cut it unless they figure out how to make money from it. Social media is a peculiar good or service in the economy. It adds some value like communications and entertainment, yet people are often unwilling to pay for access, unlike a bottle of water or a subscription to Netflix. This phenomenon is probably because of the demographics involved: teenagers or college students often don’t have a lot of cash to spare.