THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 30,2007
PHILANTHROPY
Café gets charity from campus concert
ROC-THE-MIC
BY COURTNEY CONDRON ccondron@kansan.com
A concert benefiting Jubilee Café tonight will feature three local bands, and 100 percent of the profit will go toward the café.
Andrew Wacker/KANSAN
ABOVE, Cameron Casady, Lawrence freshman, looks on as bandmate Nick Garret, Burlington freshman, raps some of his lyrics during the Battle of the Halls last night. Both are members of a four-piece band called Seven South, named after the floor and wing they live on in McColum Hall. The band took second place and won the biggest fan support and a Nintendo Wii for their residence hall.
LEFT, Megan Pasley, Olaate freshman, performs an original song at the Battle of the Halls music competition. The audience voted Pasley the winner of the six-act battle, which got her the $100 first prize.
11. 29.07 = JAYPLAY
Bryan Marvin, Jayplay designer
Back when my family was smaller—only ten or so cousins as opposed to the 25 or so of today—my grandma used to have all of us over to her house on Dec. 23 to decorate dozens upon dozens of cookies for the Christmas Eve Extravaganza that she hosts. The older children would go over earlier to help cut and bake them. I remember what it was like to be too young to help with the baking; I'd finally get dropped off and there would be dozens of cooling racks covered in piping-hot sugar cookies. That was when the fun started. There were bags of sprinkles and tubs of icing in all the colors of the rainbow. Sugar-cookie men became Santa, Batman and Spiderman. Less-talented, or rather younger, children preferred to stop on as much cicing as possible, topped off with handfills of sprinkles. It was a madhouse; when the sprinkles settled you were a lucky person to not have copious amounts of toppings in your hair and on your clothes.
On Christmas Eve, our parents would praise us for our creativity even as they cringed from all the sugar and tried to figure out how to deal with ten sugared-out miniature snot-nosed kids. Some were limited to only one cookie, while others gorged themselves and were too stuffed to be hyper.
The problem with making that many cookies, however, is that the Christmas Eve cookies quickly became New Year's Eve cookies, then eventually Easter paperweights.
Dani Hurst, Jayplay associate editor
I'm Jewish, but some of my favorite and most vivid holiday memories have nothing to do with Hanukkah. Sure, we gussied up our house—my favorite decoration was the add-a-flamage-a-day menorah window decal—and spun deirdels, an chocolate Hanukkah coins and opened presents, but the stories I tell year after year center around my inability to fully function in a predominantly Christmas-y setting. I've never actually ruined Christmas for anyone, but I've come dangerously close. Most of my holiday memories deal with Christmas mishaps, which almost always occur because of my limited experience with Christmas traditions.
For instance, just last year I was helping a friend set up her family's artificial Christmas tree. We made piles for each set of brooches and attached them to the central pole. My friend and I were on.
But minor accidents like that don't compare to my ultimate Christmas catastrophe. I was in middle school, and my friend and I were fencing with candy canes. We were locked in eternal battle
opposite sides of the tree, putting the branches in their corresponding holes to make sure the tree wouldn't topple over. After many pricked fingers, the task was complete. I was so proud, because despite my lack of experience, I had successfully aided in the erection of my first Christmas tree. Everything was great until my friend's dad, who had been taking pictures to document our progress, pointed out later that my side of the tree was, in fact, completely lopsided, and close to falling over. I offered to help them fix it, but they opted to leave it as a testament to my Christmas cluelessness.
until I jabbed at her, breaking the stalemate and sending her reeling backward. I felt triumphant. I was still celebrating when I realized that as she had fallen backward, she had tripped on most of the presents that were under the tree and crashed into their huge, already fully decorated tree. Presents were ruined, ornaments—some as old as we were—lay shattered on the floor, and the angel had flown off the top of the tree as it had toppled over. I was asked to leave immediately. I can still hear the screams at night.
To make up for the lack of Hanukkah content, I'm including a recipe that my mom used to cook for us on Hanukkah mornings.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY SARAH LEONARD
FRIED MATZO (SERVES 4)
3. Heat oil in a skillet on medium-high heat, then spoon matzo mixture into hot oil. Brown on one side, flip. They're done when both sides are golden.
1. Soak each piece of matzo in boiling water until completely soft. Let sit for 3-5 minutes, then squeeze the matzo between your palms and place in a dry bowl. Matzo should be in small pieces. 2. In a separate bowl, beat the
Jaime Netzer, Jayplay editor
FRIED MATZO (SERVES 4)
4 matzos
4 eggs
boiling water
4. Place fried matzo on dry paper towel to drain excess oil.
5. Enjoy with syrup.
a separate bowl, beat the eggs, then add to matzo.
The first time I tried to ice skate, I ended up with black knees and a bruised ego. I was thirteen years old, at the height of adolescent awkwardness, and desperate to fit in with my peers. On the day of the seventh grade ice skating field trip, I did far less blending than falling, scraping and, yes, crying. From the moment I stepped onto the slippery ice, I was either on my knees or clinging to the edge of the rink, using my arms rather than my legs to propel me around the rink. My more experienced peers zoomed by me, the girls I longed to be friends with held hands and laughed, and I thought to myself, "This is just another thing I can't do." The following day I nursed my knees and babied my pride, feeling sorry for myself.
I avoided the rink successfully for years, until last Christmas. My family was visiting my hometown, and some aunt or uncle had the bright idea to have everyone—that is, my dad's six brothers and sisters and all of their children—go ice skating together. My sister and I looked at each other and exchanged an eye anmoan. She had never mastered skating, either. But as I sat in the cool lobby of the rink, lacing up my skates and pulling on my jacket, I noticed an unfamiliar feeling: confidence. I've never been a particularly athletic person, and I have countless embarrassing memories tied to dodge ball or running or tennis—but all of a sudden, I felt ready. I could do this. With some advice from my dad ("Don't look down all the time!" "Push your feet out diagonally!) and a few laps around the rink securely attached to the edge, I slowly got the hang of it. As I pushed my blades into the ice and tried my best to hold my head high, I laughed at my younger self: ice skating was as much about believing you could do it as was about any actual skill. I didn't fall once that day, and I eventually let go of the side and held my dad's hand. And this year, I can't wait to make it back on a rink.
Looking to skate this season? Check out the outdoor skating rink at Crown Center in Kansas City, Mo. Holiday music fills the air, admission is $6 and skate rental is $2. Not a bad price for a little self-pride. Visit www.crowncenter.com. Happy Holidays!
best gift you never got
A kitten. "Santa" said my mom was allergic and I couldn't get one. Santa's a bitch!
Chris Horn
Kyle Gray
most you've spent on a holiday gift
most disappointing gift you got
$400
A gift certificate to Wal-Mart; always a bad choice,
always
Shopping Card
WAL·MART
walmart.com
Ashley Thompson
favorite reindeer Medium rare
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