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Tuesday, March 31, 2026
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Holla, gurlz

By The Observer · Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011

I know, I know, there's no way we could ever forget, but I'm just so excited I had to write in about our favorite day of the year! No, it's not dorm dance season, even if that is a great excuse to get all dressed up. It's not all those winter birthdays that give us an excuse to have some liquid birthday cake and make that South Bend temperature feel a little warmer. It wasn't even this past Sunday with all the talking baby commercials, although those babies are totes adorable! Especially http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEXZ2hfD3bU! Whoops, this isn't an e-mail. That totally isn't going to work. Come on girls, we all know our favorite day of the year is Siegfried Hall's Day of Man!

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Retired numbers in Purcell Pavilion

By The Observer · Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011

Last year, the numbers of Luke Harangody and Ruth Riley were retired in the rafters of the Purcell Pavilion. I think this was a good idea, but I believe there are two more numbers that need to be retired. Those are the numbers of Austin Carr and Adrian Dantley, because they both were really good. I could do some research and throw in some of their statistics from when they played at Notre Dame, but I don't want to.

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Your college = your personality

By The Observer · Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011

As you all know, the University of Notre Dame boasts five colleges, which collectively allow any given student the opportunity to pursue something they love. Housed in these five colleges are several fields of study, facilitated by many professors who are passionate about their work and teaching (and well, some not so much for the latter). So on and so on. Let's be honest, though. Much like the dorms on campus seem to have fitting stereotypes, so too do the five colleges. While I cannot argue that the same is true for other universities, I can say that at Notre Dame, your college says a lot about who you are. I am not writing to argue whether the college makes the student or the student makes the college; that is up to you to decide. What I am here to argue is that your college = your personality.

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Thank you, "Snow Essential Personnel"

By The Observer · Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011

Thank you for your dedication. While thousands of students, including myself, had the chance to step out of their hectic lifestyles for an entire day, you came to work. Because of you, I was able to admire the snow on beautifully cleared sidewalks, enjoy leisurely meals with friends at North and South dining halls, and even grab a cup of coffee at Starbucks to sip while reading a book. I wish I could have personally thanked every member of the "Snow Essential Personnel" team today. In fact, my sincerest gratitude goes out to every employee who makes living at Notre Dame such an honor and a privilege. As far as I'm concerned, you are the Fighting Irish.

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Thank you, North Dining Hall staff!

By The Observer · Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011

This morning my roommates and I woke up to the great news of class cancellations due to the snowpocalypse that had reached South Bend overnight. After going back to sleep for another hour, we then got to work on deciding what to do with our newly found freetime. First order of business: eat some food. We wanted nothing more than to go to North Dining Hall and enjoy some hot brunch after the long snowy night. Unsure of whether NDH would be open as a result of the storm, we trekked across north quad and made it there without too much trouble because of the efficient snow removal. The even better news was that NDH was open! The card swipers were there, smiling at us as usual, the dessert bar was being restocked as we took our seats and the food was hot and ready. We certainly didn't expect such a scene! The men and women of North Dining Hall (and the snow removal crew and the LaFortune workers and various support staff) made it to campus safely, all for our direct benefit. We cannot thank you enough for all that you do for us! While we slept in and lounged in our pajamas, all of you were out and about, braving the brutal road conditions and making your way to Notre Dame. It really says a lot about how much we need to appreciate the staff on campus. Don't take your clear sidewalks, clean dorms, hot lunch and Starbucks for granted. Many people came to work this morning despite the blizzard so take a minute to say thank you and appreciate how good we have it here. Thanks Notre Dame for the snow day and thanks NDH for the best brunch we've had all year!

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Please, no further help necessary!

By The Observer · Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011

For fear of sounding cranky like CBS commentator Andy Rooney, I am hesitant to complain about the substandard level of global technological instantaneous communications still wallowing in some quarters of cyberspace. Naturally, like most, I want my e-mail to pop into my box a split second after it was sent from halfway around the world. I remain wild about language command software that allows my PCU to reply back at me like the infamous super computers such as HAL in the movie "2001, A Space Odyssey" or WOPR of "War Games." I would accept refusals of my requests so long as their methods of communication were either mechanical or monotone. "Would you like to play Global Thermonuclear War?" could be poetry to my ear.

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Snow day magic

By The Observer · Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011

I grew up dreaming for snow days. I cannot count the number of nights I slept with a spoon under my pillow and my pajamas inside-out. If my prayers were ever answered by some miracle, I scraped together all the snow in my Atlanta lawn to build a snowman.

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Thank you

By The Observer · Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011

I would just like to say thank you to the dining hall workers and support staff who came in to work. We got a day off, but they had to come to campus even through the blizzard conditions. Thank you!

The Observer

A new tradition

By The Observer · Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011

Snow days in college are a surreal experience. With the apocalyptic tones of meteorologists ringing in their ears, Notre Dame and Saint Mary's students started to get a little ridiculous on Tuesday night.

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The new digital revolution

By The Observer · Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011

While I was basking in the Carribean sun, jet-setting the world and such over break, I had an epiphany. At the airport, on the bus and aboard the boat, children were playing with their parents' (maybe even their own) iPhones and iPod touches. Not the New Moon crazed tweens, but 4- to 8-year-olds who barely grasp the concepts of basic arithmetic. It is difficult to impossible to teach anyone over the age of 65 how to use a computer, but these little rugrats can operate quite a complicated technology with ease. Then it hit me, as it has hit other financial analysts and tech gurus. We are entering the next great tech boom.

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Super Bowl storytime

By The Observer · Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011

Somewhere, there is always a story to be told. As an aspiring journalist this is something that I hold dear. I could write a feature story about any one of you reading this column (yes, all five of you), because there is something interesting that makes you tick. So here in this space, as America's unofficial holiday approaches (aka Super Bowl Sunday) I will tell the stories of people that I have never met, so that you feel like you just did.

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Kudos to Transpo

By The Observer · Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011

I've gotta hand it to the transportation "services" that are at our fingertips here in the Bend for Saint Mary's and Notre Dame students. What other school provides a "personal van service," so dearly known as Blinky, to usher you from the ice rink of a parking lot to your dorm doorstep at 1 a.m. just so you can avoid the tundra known as South Bend? Kudos.

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Engaging hearts to affect change

By The Observer · Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011

Progressive Student Alliance has put every effort into getting sexual orientation added to Notre Dame's non discrimination clause (NDC), and every year it has failed. Insanity is doing the same thing and expecting different results; the petition has not worked in the past, and it will not work this time. In a time where there are countless other things that need to be fixed, including at Notre Dame and Saint Mary's, it is time for the Progressive Student Alliance to move on to something that actually has a chance of success at Notre Dame and thus make a difference. Don't get me wrong — as a lesbian, I am forever grateful for the unwavering support and courage that allies here show in their everyday interactions.

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Stress relievers

By The Observer · Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011

We need some stress relievers. Notre Dame students work hard, so we need a way to let out that stress in a fun (maybe not safe) way. I propose three ideas that, if watched over, could provide a good way to relieve that stress, along with a new way of speeding up the walk to class.

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Higher standards

By The Observer · Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011

At work this past Friday covering the front desk at the Gug, I received not one but three calls in the course of an hour from a guy bemoaning the state of Notre Dame football. (Because clearly, a freshman answering phones in the football office has a lot of pull when it comes to fundamentally altering a 120-year-old program.)

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The one about the dictator

By The Observer · Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2011

Hosni Mubarak is on his death bed. An aide comes to his side and asks if he plans to deliver a farewell speech to his people. Mubarak looks up and replies, "Why, where are they going?"

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The arsenal of democracy?

By The Observer · Monday, Jan. 31, 2011

The propagation of Democracy has been the driving force of U.S. foreign policy since the end of World War I with Woodrow Wilson's calls for national self-determination around the world. In the past 10 years alone we have toppled regimes and governments in Afghanistan and Iraq and have replaced them with democracies. George Bush stated, "[We] are committed to a strategic goal of a free Iraq that is democratic, that can govern itself, defend itself and sustain itself." The promotion of democracies has been significant to most modern presidents and has been part of the justification for the sacrifice of American lives in Iraq and Afghanistan. Despite this apparently pro-democratic foreign policy, the Obama administration has failed to promote democratic movements in Egypt and has been embarrassingly ambivalent, infusing the crises with political rhetoric. Is this a departure from America's promotion of democracy, or are these policies simply political rhetoric?

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Welcome to 'real life'

By The Observer · Monday, Jan. 31, 2011

Friday's article, ("#isthisreallife", Jan. 28), was an incredible embarrassment to me as a Notre Dame student. I am amazed that such a simple thing as shoveling the tiny amount of sidewalk associated with one's house could be such a big deal. Furthermore, the self-centeredness shown in the article is astounding.

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It's the climb

By The Observer · Monday, Jan. 31, 2011

It's scary to think that this is my last ever first column of the semester. We seniors have had a number of these realizations within the past few weeks, and only then has it really started to hit home that, in a few short months, our experience here on campus will be over. Last home football game. Last time returning from break. And, worst of all, last first week of class (it's all downhill after syllabus week.)

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