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HEALTH
good for you/bad for you // SLEEPING WITH sometimes it's hard to tell. THE TV ON
Photo illustration by Jerry Wang
After a long day at school and work, you're exhausted, but can't stop tossing and turning. You decide to grab the remote and turn on the TV. But could watching Letterman or Conan be contributing to your insomnia?
Snooze tube. Leaving the TV on while you sleep could leave you restless
Leaving the tube on while you fall asleep could be unhealthy for you. During the first few stages of sleep, you can be awakened very easily. "The flickering light or noise from the TV can disrupt your sleep," says Gary Carder, director of The Sleep Center at Pulmonary and Sleep Associates in Topeka.
If you continue to lose sleep or repeatedly wake up while sleeping, you begin to accumulate sleep debt or lack of sleep. When sleep debt starts to build up you feel睡ier during the day and may have more difficulty concentrating on that Western Civ. lecture. If you still can't hit the sack without your late night TV fix, Carder suggests setting a timer for the TV to go off, so it doesn't stay on all night and interrupt your sleep.
Just watching the tube before bed isn't necessarily unhealthy for you, but it could make it more difficult to fall asleep. Everyone should
have a routine before going to bed, Carder says. If watching a little TV is part of your routine, it's OK, so long as you click it off before falling asleep. What TV show you're watching could contribute to insomnia, though. Watching an action film or horror movie that gets your adrenaline pumping isn't a good idea before bed. Try to watch something quiet and relaxing to get a good night's sleep.
VERDICT: BAD FOR YOU
// KIRSTEN HUDSON
that's disgusting dude. gross.
You might not let Rover cuddle up next to you before going to sleep if you knew what he was bringing into your bed.
Fleas and ticks attached to your dog can spread to your bedding and to you. If you notice itchy, red bumps on your skin, it may be from fleas or ticks. Pets can also spread skin mites and ringworm. Ringworm will look like a little red circle on your skin, sometimes with fungus inside the circle. "Spreading infections is just a risk you take on if you're letting critters in your bed," says Dr. Robin Michael, a veterinarian at Clinton Parkway Animal Hospital in Lawrence.
Unless you bathe your pet regularly, chances are Fido is pretty filthy. "If they've been outside running around, they're going to get any beds or furniture they get on dirty," Michael says. The amount of grime also depends on the pet. "An indoor cat probably isn't going to be as dirty as an outdoor dog," she says.
If you're allergic, letting your pet into
LETTING YOUR PET SLEEP ON THE BED
your bed isn't a good idea. Pet fur and dander can accumulate in bedding. Also, according to the Mayo Clinic, if your loveable canine is a drooler, saliva may be sticking to your bedding and clothes. Yuck!
// KIRSTEN HUDSON
Photo illustration by Kirsten Hudson
Pooch on the pillow? Your pet could be bringing more company than you want.
REVIEW
music review // 'WATCH ME FALL' — JAY REATARD KJHK music staff's guide to tasty sonic consumption.
Reatard is back! With his unceremonious garage sound, fuzzed out vocals, and blitzkrieg style. Reatard brings back the same punk sensibilities that make him accessible and fun.
This album, however, takes those punk sensibilities and tries to split them with the great pop sound that he has been growing into. It gives a more introspective listen, which makes sense, as Reatard is still growing up. Not yet 30, Reatard is still young, and this album shows that he's still learning.
The previous Matador Singles Collections that he released don't quite have the fluidity that this album has. They don't delve into his personality as much, which gets more and more interesting the deeper the songs get. Songs like "Man of Steel" and "Before I Was Caught" are more like the Matador Collections, but then the album has
songs like "Faking It," which show a different side. They still have the driving guitars, but the mood doesn't seem as youthful or carefree.
The long and short of it is that this album contains all of the fantastic punk sounds that made Reatard what he is, but matures in that this album is a melding of his punk roots and pop future. Reatard,says that people look too much into his newer sound, stating "I think it's just noisy pop music." That's the basis of it, but what he apparently doesn't realize is that people grow up. Even noisy pop-music makers.
// LOGAN NICKELS,
kjhk station manager
Tolstoy once wrote "happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." In some cases, the same thing could be said about movies. While one could very reasonably argue that good movies are good for a variety of different reasons, it can just as easily be said that bad movies can also be uniquely bad.
movie review // 'THE INFORMERS'
Hollywood hits, indie flicks, and everything in between.
Such is the case with "The Informers" (out Aug. 25 on DVD), an amazingly dull movie about a group of beautiful people living in 1983 L.A. behaving vapidly and despicably. Now, this is a movie adapted by Bret Easton Ellis from his short story collection of the same name. Ellis has made a career for himself by crafting stories about beautiful people behaving despicably, and the movie adaptations of his books have usually managed to make this subject matter fairly interesting (see "Less Than Zero" and "American Psycho"). But not so with "The Informers." This
is a movie about rich, pampered Californians overflowing with ennui, and getting it out of their system by having lots of sex with each other, getting drunk and taking drugs. That's all. Not even the subplot, in which a bellboy (Brad Renfro, in his final big-screen role) has to put up with his degenerate uncle (Mickey Rourke) and his criminal exploits, can divert from the boredom.
Perhaps what's really missing from "The Informers" is satire. At least "American Psycho" had the good sense not to take itself too seriously. Unfortunately nobody, not even Ellis, seemed to realize this with "The Informers." Every inch of the over-the-top plot and each unsympathetic character is taken so seriously that the audience is left with a character study of characters it is impossible to be interested in.
09 18
03
09
// ABBY OLCESE
★☆★★