The Wake

My world was carpet and tiles.
I could never see the floorboards
beneath: ascetics, prostrate under feet.
I asked my Mother questions and I
could tell it was Sunday by the way the sun
soared through the windows and landed
on the backs of the unreasonable
couches. Terry cloth capes,
plastic swords, and I was David.
The ceiling, the floor above it, the roof,
were held up by angles more than walls.
The Smiling Catholic, towering, always
coming home, never leaving.I saw the next one made.
I saw the cement, the timber,
the glass that went into it.
The walls, …

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So you hear it –
Do it until you hear it!He continued to band his head against
the trunk of a tree until he heard it, until
he heard nothing. For her he clenched the tree’s base, awaiting the eyelet’s
satisfaction, no cries came. Then he hovered until the spaceunderneath his fingernails bled.
She couldn’t yell loud enough;
he couldn’t impulse hard enough.

Once in the morning
When we pushed, pulled, and wiped
Her spotted yellow skin.Again in the afternoon
As we hoisted her fetal body
From chair to bed.And once more in the evening
While we stripped her,
Snapped on her gown, and bid her a goodnight.She didn’t work anymore.
I heard once that she had been a teacher
Years ago.She never played although I assumed
The faded black and white photos
Of a vibrant young girl were her.I hadn’t heard her talk much
Except, of course, to plead with God
Or to curse me as I wiped the feces from …

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The issues surrounding abortion rights highlight a more intrinsic problem with our society as a whole, according to the fourth annual Faith and Bioethics Lecture held on January 27 at the Moos Tower. The lecture, given by Dr. Robert Spitzer, president of the catholic Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA, was part of the MacLaurin lecture series whose goal is “dedicated to bringing God into the marketplace of ideas.”In his lecture, entitled “Toward a Philosophy of the Pro-Life Movement: Personhood, Rights and Purpose in Life,””, Spitzer said that the “violation of the silver rule,” which is “do not do harm to …

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When purchasing a sweatshirt or a pair of jeans, the majority of us completely ignore the “made in” label. What concerns us at the shopping mall is whether or not the article of clothing is flattering or comfortable, but the many people who worked to make the clothing rarely, if ever, cross our minds. It may seem surprising, then, that the trade of textiles and apparel is one of the most highly contested issues in the World Trade Organization (WTO). Many developing nations are dependent on the export of textiles to fuel their economies. According to the WTO’s …

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Ignore the script. Imagine that Marty McFly and his comrade Doc Brown, wacky inventor of the plutonium-powered, time-traveling DeLorean, could have traveled to any time period.Are you picturing them blundering around in the Middle Ages? If so, you might just be a member of the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA), also called “The College of Tor Aerie.” The student organization has been reenacting and researching the Middle Ages for over 20 years. “If there’s something that was done in the Middle Ages or medieval times, you can find someone [in the SCA] who does it,” explains Breena Stanton, the …

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Any student traveling from the East Bank to the St. Paul Campus on the transitway can see that industry is alive and well in Minneapolis. As you zoom to our rural neighbor campus you pass tall, ugly buildings shooting out steam. You look to the ground and see a mass of railroad tracks. The industry of private businesses and railroads north of University Avenue is not always a pretty sight to see, but this area shouldn’t be ignored. The University of Minnesota transitway was built in 1992 and the bike path that runs along the road opened on Oct. …

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Shhh…I have a secret: The U’s dance team is good. Really good. Four consecutive National Titles good. Despite being a dancing dynasty, the majority of students at the U are clueless about what the dance team has accomplished. While asking students around campus what they knew about their Gopher Dance Team, I was greeted with countless blank stares, puzzled looks and mystified glances. “I didn’t even know we had a dance team,” says Brenda Saxton, a junior nursing student. “The Wake” decided it was time to unveil the best kept secret on campus. So we let Tara Peckskamp, co-captain and …

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As technological advances allow for revolving stadium-ceilings and rubber-induced field surfaces, one campus venue has maintained its mystical sense without such changes.With its 79-year-old rafters and one-of-a-kind raised floor, Williams Arena has become an emporium of rich memories for countless fans, players, employees and visitors of all kinds.“I think it has that barn look to it,” says Chuck Mencel, Gophers basketball guard from 1951-55. “It’s a very visually appealing place and has been a popular place for Minnesota families to come to.”
Constructed in 1927, and first used in 1928, “The Barn,” as Williams Arena is commonly known was first …

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Would the world be a better place if Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri were no longer in it? Yes. However, terrorism will not die with the deaths of bin Laden or al-Zawahiri, as the U.S. government initially led the American people to believe following the attacks of Sept. 11th. The U.S. government made the two terrorists figureheads of world evil in the eyes of Americans. Both men are evil and so is the Al Qaeda organization they represent, but they do not embody terrorism alone.World terrorism is like a worldwide guerilla war—there is no real end and no known …

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As the United States and much of the world fretted over the elections in Palestine and Iran’s growing threat, Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz visited the White House Jan. 17. Aziz used American airtime to say all the right things, pledging to fight both “terrorism in all its forms” and the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, President George W. Bush hailed the U.S.-Pakistani relationship as “strategic” and “a vital friendship for keeping the peace.”Vital, certainly—but this “anchor of regional peace and security,” as Aziz boasts of his country, remains far from a dependable ally in the war on …

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I can’t imagine how many reviews of Cat Power’s new CD use the title as the heart of their arguments, so please excuse me if it has been done before. Cat Power has at last, after over ten years of recording, found its forte in the aptly titled The Greatest, their most comfortable CD to date.The confidence and pure soul of this album leads me to believe that the Chan Marshall who offered up nauseatingly nervous live performances was a farce. The woman who turned her back to the audience in order to force a note past her shaking vocal …

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Clocking in at 35 minutes, The Plastic Constellations’ Crusades is a ten-song disc with a single mindset. Complex guitar riffs, capricious song structures and the occasional hook cause the listener to drift through the CD, almost without noticing when one song ends and the next begins. The only problem: They all start to sound the same after about 15 minutes. A local success story, the Plastic Constellations have been playing and recording together since high school. They garnered national recognition with their second release, 2004’s Mazatlan. In their music, fast guitars meet unintelligible lyrics in a way that’s not quite …

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The undulating waters and serene sand-scape provide a breathtaking backdrop for this poetic tribute to the maxi-pad.“Beach Towels” by Paul McCartney - $3,000
Oh, don’t worry, Ringo, it’s really simple. Just click on that little icon there and drag it to the trash. Now let’s never speak of this again.“Help” by Ringo Starr - $2,000, on SALE for $1,650
Pretty much my favorite band…bred for their skills in magic.“Generations” by John Entwistle - $950

I love movies. That’s why I truly enjoy writing about them. Yes, there are many bad movies out there, but part of what I love is that every once in a while, a film so utterly astounding comes along that it lets me forget the rest of the crap released by Hollywood and reinvigorates my love of movies as both entertainment and art. Right now that film is The Constant Gardner.The story centers on Justin Quayle (Ralph Fiennes) and his relationship with a woman named Tessa (Rachel Weisz). It also involves countless deaths in Africa, pharmaceutical companies and government cover-ups. …

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