Fixated on Finals

The fuss that comes with finals is at an all time high and tensions and stress levels are soaring throughout campus

Feeling anxious and uneasy?

Are the palms of your hands starting to sweat as

your heart beat rises to an all time high?

Here's some news that might put your stress to ease, some news to uplift your spirits and to excite you for whats to come. Finals start Monday! Put you at ease? Oh well, it was worth a try.

The week before finals is inevitably stressful, possibly even more stressful than the week of finals. Papers are due and students are getting all their last minute work situated. For all those procastinators out there, the week before finals, otherwise referred to as the "week of hell" is of equal or greater stress than that of the night before the SATs.

The stress is overwhelming and different students have different ways of coping with said stressors. Freshman Skye Bernardo says, "this week [the week leading up to finals] has been so incredibly overwhelming. I've lost so much sleep cramming and finishing all my work that I feel as if I'm almost going to be more exhausted come exam time next week, than well rested as I should be going into a final exam."

With stress comes anxiety and an overall feeling of uneasiness which has let suicide rates on campus to drastically increase over the years. In 1990 suicide rates on college campuses were roughly 80 deaths per year according to a study done at Edinburgh University. In 1999 the suicide death toll sky rocketed to approximately 140 deaths per year. It is now 2011 and the suicide death rate has reached 350 deaths per year.

Stress is undeniable but here at the University of Mississippi there are many reasonable ways one might go about coping with anxiety and stress leading up to final exams. Here are some examples of stress relief available on campus:

1) The university counseling center is available Monday - Friday 8 AM - 5 PM to help students work through stress. During finals week and the week leading up to finals the counseling center offers as much help as possible.

2) START STUDYING EARLY TO AVOID CRAMMING

3) Try to taking a break and exercise to relieve built up stress and clear your head

4) START STUDYING EARLY TO AVOID CRAMMING. I'm not sure if I've had yet to mention that one yet.

As the "week from hell" comes to a close I leave you with one thought, a sense of optimism if you will and hope for the future, a bit of a pep talk: GOOD LUCK.

That's Not Fair! Or Is It?

Do football players have it made at Ole Miss?

That’s a common conception or misconception as some students put it, at Ole Miss. There are preconceived notions that athletes (the focus here will be football players) at Ole Miss have advantages over regular students.

There are some students who could care less about the topic while there are some people who feel like the players are being spoon-fed. There are also some students on campus that are attending on full-paid scholarships who think football players have advantages.

There is the talk among students that football players get cheat sheets for exams and quizzes from the free tutoring that they receive. And being that they have full rides while some students are going to school out of their own pockets or no scholarships at all grinds their gears as well.

Grant Robertson, a sophomore Criminal Justice and Journalism major at Ole Miss believes that the football players have advantages but in a lighter, more positive sense. He believes that they have earned their so-called “advantages” through hard work.

He also adds, “They worked to earn those scholarships through athletics just as another student might have earned a scholarship through academics. The purpose of a scholarship is to reward you for your talents. If their talents lie in athletics, I see not fault in taking full advantage of that.”

Asked about if football players have advantages over regular students, upcoming sophomore offensive lineman Evan Swindall says there aren’t so much advantages as they are responsibilities. “It’s a year-round job for us as athletes”, Swindall said, “While other students can go out on weekends during the (football) season we can’t. We lift weights throughout the year and even lift at times like 5:30 in the morning.”

He also added that players have to attend tutoring sessions weekly at the Fed Ex Student-Athlete Academic Support Center on campus to log in 20 tutoring hours a week as well as attending class everyday. “Coach (Houston) Nutt is very strict with class attendance,” Swindall explained, “If we miss one class we have to run for punishment that afternoon or that very next morning.

Ole Miss Senior Associate Athletics Director for Compliance David Wells agrees with Swindall about football players having responsibilities. He also says that football players along with other athletes are just the same as students except that they play a sport. “The athletes don’t have any dining or residence halls just for them, they share with the regular students. The NCAA issues it illegal to have on-campus institutions just designated for athletes.

All in all, the Ole Miss football players are like regular students, but students with extra responsibilities and who go up against the rough and tough bunch of the South Eastern Conference on Saturdays.

Troubadour Lounge Concert Series Set to Rock the Powerhouse

Kevin Williams

The Troubadour Lounge will kick off a concert series at the Powerhouse on Tuesday, May 3 from 7-9pm. The concert will feature the Oxford-based group Dirt Road Sages, Arkansas band Cletus Got Shot and local singer/songwriter, David Shirley.

Admission cost is $5 at the door.

Sponsored in part by the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council, the Troubadour Lounge series seeks to showcase local musicians and songwriters in a family-friendly environment, according to group co-coordinator and Ole Miss psychology student, Donovan McCain.

“We like to focus on more acoustic songwriting and things of that nature”, McCain said. “We tend to feature a lot of local artists.”

Although Troubadour Lounge usually features acoustic and folk music, Arkansas band, Cletus Got Shot, will sing a little different tune in Tuesday’s show.

“The group [Cletus Got Shot] is a fusion of folk, protest songs, and punk rebellion, so we are looking forward to seeing how they will do that”,

McCain said.

A Different Atmosphere

By emphasizing local artists and a musical genre that leans more towards acoustic song writing, folk songs, and an almost coffeehouse type atmosphere, Troubadour Lounge strives to create a concert experience that focuses on what they feel is most important: the music.

“We want people to be able to come in and appreciate some of the more subtle genres of music, such as acoustic song writing and really be able to sit and listen and hear the quiet spots and not have to compete with other people having conversations”, McCain said.

According to McCain, the idea for Troubadour Lounge emerged from his love of the Oxford music scene and a desire to provide an atmosphere that would best showcase some of Oxford’s local musicians.

“It was just an idea”, McCain said. “When you go out to a bar it’s louder and it’s usually electric [music] and that’s fine, that’s great, but also I was thinking it would be really neat if we had some more venues.”

Although Tuesday’s concert may seem to start and end sooner than most (7-9pm), the earlier time is to make it easier for people with tight schedules, hectic jobs or family responsibilities to be able to attend.

“It’s just a very relaxed atmosphere and we hope people just come in and enjoy listening to some new music”, McCain said.

Bartenders at the library

Full time students working part time jobs...

Part time jobs can be considered good character builders for full time students. Students often neglect their studies to engage in social activities; however some students neglect their studies to keep their dreams of a lucrative career alive. These students hang out at the local bars or restaurants as employees in order to gain the needed financial help to pursue their dreams. Not only does this allow them to interact in the nighttime social activities of a university town, it also gives them the opportunity to gain much-needed financial assistance to achieve their ultimate goal of getting a college degree. Ashley Dean, a bartender at The Library Bar and Grill, says, "It can be difficult giving up my Friday and Saturday nights, but bartending lets me be a part of the social scene while making money." Working students learn to budget not only money but their time as well. They must work carefully to schedule work hours around exams and classes, often trading shifts with friends who experience the same difficulties. Trey Horne, a manager of a restaurant on the square in Oxford says, "Because we have so many student employees, it can be difficult to work around each person's school schedule. Recently we started using online scheduling on schedulefly.com which allows employees to easily trade and request off shifts. This is convenient for our student employees, because it allows them to work together to keep up with their studies and work." Stress can play a major role in all of the juggling involved here. It becomes a never ending cycle of working to finance school while studying instead of sleeping to make sure that school remains a priority in this vicious cycle. Students sometimes wonder if the energy invested in this is truly going to be rewarded with the ultimate goal of a degree that entitles them to a career that has been their goal from the start. They may be more determined than ever to achieve that goal after experiencing the hardship associated with working for minimum wage/tips while trying to maintain GPA's that are acceptable. Perhaps this experience prepares them for what lies ahead. It could give them the incentive needed to work harder for those jobs in the future. Somewhere down the line these part time employees/full time students will be better tippers and share encouraging words to those who wait their tables.

Who will be the starting QB for Ole Miss?

Has Coach Nutt even decided...

With spring semester coming to an end, the Ole Miss Rebels are in need of naming a starting quarterback. At the beginning of the 2011 spring semseter, the Rebels had four prospects in the running for the starting quarterback position-- Senior Nathan Stanley, junior Randall Mackey, junior college transfer Zach Stoudt, and sophomore transfer Barry Brunetti. After the last week of spring practice, senior Nathan Stanley decided it was his time to go, leaving Ole Miss with just three scholarship quarterbacks.

Realistically, the real competition lies between Brunetti and Mackey. Brunetti and Mackey are both valuable players;The problem that comes into play is their age and ability when it comes to making certain decisions on the field. They are both very young players and need time to mature and become familiar with fielding decisions.

Brunetti has great speed to his passes but shows little consistency. Mackey on the other hand has great contact with the ball and patience during plays, but struggles with communication in the huddle. Although, Coach Nutt has made it clear that Mackey is overcoming his communication problems; Nutt said, "I've been proud of him for a couple of reasons, No. 1, first and foremost, huddle etiquette, as we all know, that was an issue. I don’t think it’s going to be an issue. So I’m excited about that.”

After only 13 spring practices, it is difficult for Coach Nutt to predict the starting quarterback; However, Nutt said that Mackey was in the lead for the quarterback position leaving spring training and that he was very pleased with his progress. Heading into the annual Grove Bowl game, Randall Mackey and Barry Brunetti both served as the appointed quarterback leader of the red and blue teams. Unfortunately, the spring game ended in a tie, leaving us with even more anticipation of our future quarterback.

What these young men do from here on out until fall practice will be the true test. These boys have all summer to practice and improve their skills for preseason camp at the beginning of August. Everything they do must be on their own, without the coaches help. This is the last chance to prove themselves and fight for their starting spot on the field. Coach Nutt has made it clear that he intends on naming his starting quarterback at the start of preseason camp. Let the competition begin boys...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diNHyQqpdS4

Red, Green, & Blue

The Colors of Ole Miss

Rising electric bills and the cost of gas are not the only things making people want to start saving energy. It pays off to reduce, reuse, and recycle. And at the University of Mississippi, students celebrate this idea with Green Week and their Green Initiative.

Stated as part of the University’s policy on conserving energy, “We will look for opportunities to collaborate with the community, the state, and the region because we can achieve more by engaging in partnerships than we can achieve by our individual efforts in the pursuit of environmental progress.”

During UM’s Green Week, Oxford and the Ole Miss community have come together in an attempt to “go local” and better the community. Buying food and goods locally puts money back into the pockets of the town and its residents.

Recycling bins are scattered across the Ole Miss campus, as well as various drop off locations throughout town. Programs such as Rebel Pedals, Power Down for the Planet, and the Green Grove Campaign encourage students to contribute in reducing waste, power, and pollution on and near campus.

Ole Miss has recently partnered with energy company, SmartSynch, in efforts to monitor and utilize energy throughout campus in several buildings such as The Lyceum and J.D. Williams Library.

UM director of campus sustainability Jim Morrison says, “Being environmentally responsible is an integral part of the Ole Miss culture and having SmartSynch on board with our sustainability efforts by supplying its SmartMeters significantly strengthens our ability to optimize our operational efficiency.”

Studies show in 2010 that the city of Oxford had an air pollution index of 94 compared to the national average of 92 in Mississippi and 100 in the United States.

This year’s Spring 2011 Green Week inspired students and faculty to be conscious of our waste. Many pledged to start practicing habits that make a difference such as riding a bike to class, turning off the water while brushing teeth, or even putting a rain barrel outside your house.

Many people today carry the stigma that their individual effort to be green will go unrecognized. But it is the actions of individuals that form the bigger impact on our communities and our ecosystems.

The smallest actions are the biggest actions.

Going green doesn’t have to mean changing your life. Ole Miss knows going green means changing for the better.

Wonder Where Some of Your Friends were at this Weekend

Should Have Joined them at Memphis in May

The Beale Street Music Festival starts off the month long celebration of what is popularly known as Memphis in May. It falls on the first weekend of the month every year, promoting tourism on a high scale with numerous bands of all kinds of different music creating a pretty diverse crowd. Not only would you expect to see Memphis locals, but plenty of students from University of Memphis, University of Tennessee, and yours truly Ole Miss.
Only being a little over an hour away, a lot of students took interest in getting out of small town Oxford this weekend to attend the three day concert. Despite the "o so famous" Double Decker that had all of Oxford stirred up, one band "Old Medicine Crow" could not compete with the 60 plus that played in Memphis. Accounting Major Danielle Crawford said "I wouldn't miss John Mellencamp for the world, who knows how much longer he'll be around for!" Mellencamp, along with Jerry Lee Lewis, Stone Temple Pilots, and Buckcherry were among some of the legends that performed this weekend.
Even Ludacris made an appearance drawing Ole Miss Atlanta students to the huge event! Hospitality Management Nicole Ressy said “what kind of an Atlanta supporter would I be if I didn't see Ludacris?" He made sure to give fans the show they were looking for playing classics like "Stand Up" and "Area Codes."Kesha would be sing after the rapper and wrap up Saturday's Memphis in May.
Being one of the last weekends for students before finals, many took advantage of staying the third day until the artists left regardless of classes on Monday. Bands like Saving Abel, Godsmack, The Avett Brothers, and Sublime with Rome would end the huge festival. As for Oxford locals and University of Mississippi students, Memphis in May was a nice get away for music lovers this past weekend.