Hand
MANUAL
get some culture // WATCH A FOREIGN MOVIE
it's not all about fast food and beer pong.
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If you're tired of Hollywood movies and want to watch something else besides Michael Bay blowing up buildings, why not give some foreign flicks a try? The subtitles may be a bit daunting, but if you're willing to just give it a shot, the experience of watching a foreign film can be rewarding.
Brendan Costello, a 2007 film graduate who now works at Liberty Hall, says foreign films are often a step ahead of Hollywood in terms of creativity. That's because the makers of foreign
Photo by Patrick De Oliveira
films aren't under as many restrictions as movies done under big production companies, and can try risky performances — essentially, they're free from the Hollywood machine.
Overseas enjoyment: Pick up a foreign film and you can pick up a lot of cultural subtext, as well as possible previews to upcoming Hollywood trends.
Foreign films are full of cultural subtext, which may help broaden your understanding of a certain region. That subtext is lost in remakes, though, so watching The Ring and watching Ringu (its Japanese counterpart) are two very different experiences.
There is no specific country you should start
with. "Each country has its little charm," Costello says. But when it comes to new releases he has two recommendations: Let the Right One In, a 2008 Swedish romantic vampire movie, and The Class, a 2008 semi-biographical French film about a teacher's challenges in an inner city school.
A night with either of them would be well worth the time.
// PATRICK DE OLIVEIRA
essential life skills // SENDING FLOWERS
in case of emergency, read quickly.
So, you met your true love at Brothers last week. But how do you show her this week you're still interested?
Sending flowers can be expensive — the average price of a dozen roses in Lawrence is $60 still, a bouquet of roses will show her you mean business, and are not just interested in sex.
Photo by Francesca Chambers
Stacia Gudmonson, Independence junior,
says her boyfriend usually sends her an
assortment of flowers or pink roses.
But if you're about to spend this week's paycheck on flowers, make sure you know what you're sending.
"It would kind of send a red flag if he sent yellow," she says, "but then I'd remember he probably doesn't know what they mean."
Most people know red roses are symbolic of love and yellow roses mean friendship, but what if neither of those colors sends the right message?
Flower-dictionary.com calls pink flowers "red's youthful counterpart," saying pink roses are about "innocent happiness," which is more suitable for a new romance. If you are not feeling pink, try orange on for size. Flower Dictionary says orange exudes both passion
Flowers of friendship. Yellow roses signify friendship, so red or pink may better a better expression of your budding romance.
and extreme happiness.
Once you've selected a color and type of flower, it's time to pick a place to send them. Gudmonson says her boyfriend has always delivered them to her personally or had them delivered to her at home, but she would appreciate receiving flowers at work so she can show off not only the flowers, but also her boyfriend's generosity.
Gudmonson's last piece of advice to those sending flowers is to be sneaky. Her boyfriend was too obvious last week when he sent her flowers.
Don't call your girlfriend and ask where she is before you send them; she won't be surprised when the flowers arrive, Gudmonson says.
// FRANCESCA CHAMBERS
Lori Clark of Scotch Fabric Cleaners, 611 Florida St., says that coffee stains are really easy to get out of clothing. She recommends putting a spot treatment on the spill before you wash the garment and letting it soak in. Pre-treating the stain will increase your chances of getting it all out. Then wash the piece of clothing like you normally would, and the spot should be erased.
But don't forget another important step: once the garment has gone through the washing cycle, make sure you look at the stain before you put it in the dryer. If there's still a little bit left, use more spot treatment and send it through another wash cycle. When the stain is gone, go ahead and dry it.
Most pesky spills can be washed out using this method, but Clark says to remember not to rub or scrub the stain to get it out. This actually makes things worse, rubbing the fabric will change the texture and appearance of that spot once it's washed, making it look worse than it did before.
in case of emergency, read quickly.
You've done it again. You just spilled the coffee that was supposed to be keeping you awake all over your new shirt while pulling another all-nighter. But don't freak out just yet, you can still save it.
essential life skills // STAIN REMOVAL
Photo by Andrea Olsen
Instead of throwing that stained shirt into your laundry basket for your parents to take care of in a few weeks, next time try taking care
Getting it out! Combat stains with spot-removal treatments, careful washing and not rubbing the fabric.
of it yourself. Maybe you'll impress somebody special with your new domestic skills.
// ANDREA OLSEN