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CD REVIEWS EKOFLO IS MORE OF A DRIP THAN A STEADY FLOW

They might have won the New York International Music Festival, but I remain unimpressed. The CD didn’t grab me or leave me wanting more. Frankly, I didn’t even want to finish listening to the first song, but I did. Listening to the next one and the next and the result was a bland imitation of 1990’s alternative rock. It’s not that I hated it or found it unbearable I just didn’t particularly enjoy it. My apathy partially stems from the CD’s low quality sound, making the music sound grainy at times. The songs are lyrically weak; track seven fooled me at first starting off pretty well lyrically and then just goes down hill. The instrumental intro to almost every song, with the exception of track three which starts off exactly like track one, are interesting and eclectic but after about the 15-30 second mark the song comes way off track. The lead vocalist doesn’t quite grasp his range and at times, especially in track six, he goes quite off tune. The drumming is usually off in most tracks and usually doesn’t go very well with the song, and the guitar-solos are quite pretentious. The band seems to make too much of an effort to sound like Incubus or Soundgarden, and doesn’t fully develop. The songs don’t follow a coherent path; they change sounds constantly and several times within one song. Overall they need work, but aren’t totally hopeless.

Margarita Varona can be contacted at m.varona@umiami.edu.

FASHION JUST DON’T!

Allow us to vouch for an invention called the mirror. Ever noticed how cavemen always look like crap in those little stick drawings? That ’cause it was before the times of this innovative, vertical, reflective surface. Even settlers where kinda hard up for them; that’s why all the characters in Oregon Trail were so horribly unfashionable. And died of cholera.

Anyway – we reside in a developed country in a day and age where mirrors are readily accessible not only in households and dorms, but in bathrooms, lockerrooms, and your closest retail store. But as the photos below show, some modern Americans still go whole days without seeing their own reflection. For these unfortunate folks, we offer some tips: no polo shirts with gym shorts, micro-sized minis with stiletto heels and above all, thong straps or boxer prints peaking out. Remember: Fashion is a blur of opinions and statements; however, there are some things that just don’t fly. Lucky for you, we’re protecting your identity with a big, black circle (always slimming).

A DECADE LATER KURT IS STILL ON OUR MINDS

In the fall of 1991, I was eleven years old, having just started sixth grade in a new town since my family had moved that summer. I was new to the parts and didn’t really have any friends so I would come home to the condo that was usually empty while my brother was off trying to fit in with the kids at his new high school. One day wasting time watching MTV a strange video came on, “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by the band Nirvana. While I watched the band tear apart a gym, I might have tapped my foot, but probably on first watch just stared blankly seeing that unlike most rock videos I had seen, people weren’t partying but angry and expressing their frustration by destroying everything around them. Subsequent viewing, I found myself tearing up the room, overturning chairs, jumping around and working myself into a sweat. A few months later my brother made me a tape of the Nevermind CD that he borrowed from a friend of his.

Thinking back I honestly don’t know why I liked the music. I guess I didn’t feel lonely when I’d listen to it, as well as Red Hot Chili Pepper’s, Blood Sugar Sex Magic and my favorite, Pearl Jam’s Ten. I had been occasionally listening to music before this time, but it was sort of a random occurrence, listening to Def Leppard, Guns and Roses, and the oldies radio station. It wasn’t till we moved that I really began to constantly lock myself away in my room, listening to these new rock groups with long hair that wasn’t frizzy, clothed in dirty shirts and jeans, and coming from the fabled land of Seattle- a place that became some sort of Mecca for me [which was why nine years later I’d travel on the Greyhound bus to live the summer there].

This music was loud, dark, and disjointed at times, but its inspiration was the beginning of a new level of consciousness for me, as I started to become aware of my emotions in a less childlike way. Obviously this music led me on a melancholic path, but looking back it was appropriate. It reflected the age I was growing up in. The indulgence of the ’80s had long since passed, there was war, recession, and the politically correct revolution was spreading a new era of repression across America- creating the dissatisfied climate the millions of new teenagers like myself would come to know all too well in their isolated islands of suburban wasteland. I grew up and watched in awe as I witnessed the peak of the so-called Generation X, the last generation to unite on a common level. I wondered if my generation would be able to bond on such a level, considering that the only consistency we have is the fact that so far we’ve remained silent. There’s still one hope however- we can all eventually turn our backs on the one common lesson everyone our age was taught and bred upon: cynicism.

The problem nevertheless comes right back to where I started, with a three-piece rock band from Seattle and their charismatic front man Kurt Cobain, along with the question- who do we have to look up to? Quite possibly one of the last larger than life icons in the rock genre, [the rest of the true icons in music have been rap artists] whose story can be laid out like all the great clich

Despite first-round loss, Hurricanes can still be proud

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Most Hurricane fans can agree that the women’s basketball team could have done some things differently.

A missed opportunity in the remaining moments of the NCAA Tournament game against Maryland has been the talk of the campus in the last week. But true fans of the team got over the last-second loss rather quickly. They know the battle the ‘Canes have fought all season long, and they’d be hard pressed to ask for a better outcome.

Yes, the team has had its ups and downs. But at the end of the day, making it as far as it did outweighs the disappointments.

Coming into the tournament as the No. 5 seed, the ‘Canes prepared for their sixth NCAA Tournament appearance (and their second consecutive trip). Last year they came in at No. 11 and lost to No. 6 New Mexico in overtime in the first round. But the journey to the tournament this year was a sweet one as the team suffered only six losses in its 28 regular season games.

The women appeared unstoppable as they raced to a 12-0 start stretching from November to early January. Their first loss (Villanova on Jan. 7) was but a blip on the radar screen as they cruised through their next four games. Perhaps the biggest trouble of the season came in a three-game stretch where they struggled against Big East rivals Notre Dame, Rutgers, and Connecticut. But again they bounced back from the darkest point of their season and entered the tournament with very few battle wounds. Even Maryland can’t say the same.

The ‘Canes started turning heads across the country when they climbed to No. 17 in the nation following their twelfth consecutive victory. It was the combination of strength and leadership on this team that enabled them to win against all odds. When people talked about Miami basketball, they were talking about the women. The coaching staff, led by Head Coach Ferne Labati, was instrumental in leading this team, as were seniors Chanivia Broussard and Shaquana Wilkins, along with Tamara James and key players Yalonda McCormick and Melissa Knight. Every time they spoke, win or lose, it was about forgetting the past and moving onto the next game.

The women possessed a brand of cohesiveness that is hard to come by for most teams. And every season, national championship or not, is a learning experience.

Anything less than a No. 1 finish is a disappointment on some level, as we all learned in the past two seasons of Hurricane football. But we should only be more optimistic about the women’s basketball team’s chances to advance even further in its first season as Atlantic Coast Conference members.

Despite the premature exit, it still has been a highly successful season. And after all, doesn’t it make the prospects for next season a little more exciting when the ultimate prize hasn’t yet been won?

Melissa Teich can be contacted at m.teich1@umiami.edu.

Women’s tennis remains perfect at home

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The women’s tennis team remained perfect at home after defeating Marquette University and the University of Central Florida this past weekend. The No. 15 Hurricanes remain 11-0 season at home and 13-2 overall.

The weekend of tennis began Friday when the Hurricanes challenged the Golden Eagles at the Neil Schiff Tennis Center. In doubles matches the ‘Canes dominated the competition, and due to injuries on the Marquette team, only two of the three matches were completed. Senior Sara Robbins and junior Staci Stevens defeated Veronica Briseno and Callan Smith 8-3. Freshman Audery Banada and senior Mari Toro also outplayed their competition, defeating Espinosa and Dabrowski 8-3.

The singles matches were also plagued by injuries for Marquette. Only four singles matches were completed and all resulted in wins for the Hurricanes. No.4 Megan Bradley defeated Briseno 6-1, 6-1. Sophomore Melissa Applebaum defeated Genevieve Charron 7-5, 6-1, and Toro defeated Smith 6-1, 6-3. Stevens also topped Dominika Dabrowski 6-3, 6-1.

Friday was only the beginning of a stellar weekend for the Hurricanes, however.

On Saturday afternoon the women hosted UCF at the Schiff. In doubles matches the Hurricanes again outlasted their challengers, winning two of the three doubles matches. Applebaum and Bradley defeated Amira Samara and Ola Luczak 8-1. Robbins and Stevens defeated Anna Westin and Kristina Lohmos 8-4. Unfortunately for Toro and Banada, they could not hold off their competition, losing 8-3.

“My game hasn’t been like it was at the beginning. I think it’s been wearing me down a little,” Banada said. “All I think I need is a little bit of rest and then I think I’ll be able to bring it back to the court.”

Banada played with fierceness against her singles opponent Megan Hunter. Banada was able to maintain her perfect season with a 6-4, 6-2 win.

“Though the wind was sometimes a factor, and most of the time it doesn’t make the matches look so pretty, I think this time we were able to handle it,” Banada said.

As for the rest of the single matches, Bradley’s opponent, Westin, defaulted in the second set. Toro’s opponent, Pam Fernandez, defaulted as well, resulting in a win for Toro. Unfortunately for Applebaum, a controversial call resulted in her defeat 6-1, 4-6, (11-9) versus Lohmos. Stevens and senior Sihem Bennacer also defeated their opponents in a clean sweep. Stevens defeated Luczak 6-1, 6-0 and Bennacer defeated Samara 6-4, 6-1.

This past weekend was a defining week for the women, defeating both teams and remaining with a perfect home record. When it came down to it, the Golden Eagles and Golden Knights weren’t quite golden enough to handle the Hurricanes.

This coming week, the women will have a much-needed rest before resuming action against their Big East rival Notre Dame on April 4 in Indiana at noon.

“I think we did really well this weekend, though we are a little tired,” Bradley said. “I think we were able to maintain our game and play at our level.”

Antoinette Cordova can be contacted at a.cordova1@umiami.edu.

Briefs

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Swimming and Diving

University of Miami junior Miguel Velazquez finished third with a score of 533.55 and freshman Derek Starks finished fifth with a score of 498.75 to earn All-America honors in the 10-meter platform at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships in East Meadow, N.Y.

Velazquez has now earned All-America honors in all three diving events this year’s NCAA Championships. He finished fourth in the 1-meter on Thursday and fourth in the 3-meter on Friday to earn All-America honors in both events.

The All-America honor is the first for Starks who earlier this season was named the Big East Most Outstanding Diver following victories in the 3-meter and platform at the Big East Championships.

On a sad note, former Miami swimmer Matt Gribble, 41, passed away Sunday, March 21 as the result of a fatal automobile accident near The Falls.

Considered one of the most decorated athletes to ever swim for the Hurricanes, Gribble, a native of Miami, was a two-time NCAA Champion (1982, 1983) and four-time All-American (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984) in the 100-meter butterfly while at UM and set four school records including the school mark in the 100-butterfly that still stands today. He was inducted into the University of Miami Hall of Fame in 1997.

A two-time Olympian, Gribble was a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Team, which did not compete due to an American boycott in Moscow, and a member of the 1984 U.S. Olympic Team. He won the 1982 World Championship in the 100-meter butterfly and held the world record in the 100-buttefly until 1984. He was also a member of the 1982 World Championships gold medal 400-meter medley relay team.

Track and Field

The University of Miami women’s 4×100-meter relay finished first with an NCAA Regional qualifying time of 44.33 seconds to highlight the final day of competition at the 61st Annual Coca-Cola Florida Relays in Gainesville, Fla.

The relay of sophomore All-American Dominique Darden, junior Chinela Davis, junior All-American Lauryn Williams and junior Wiande Moore improves to 2-0 this season.

The 4×400-meter relay of senior All-America Kitoya Carter, Darden, freshman Ginou Etienne, and sophomore All-American Charlette Greggs also qualified for the NCAA Regional Championships finishing third with at time 3:34.57.

On the men’s side, freshman Thomas Berry finished 20th in the 1,500-meters with a time of 4:04.85 to highlight the final day of competition at the Raleigh Relays in Raleigh, N.C.

Freshman Zachery Castiglione, also competing in the 1,500-meters, finished 47th with a time of 4:13.03.

The Miami men’s track and field team returns to action April 2-3 at the South Florida Invitational in Tampa, Fla.

Hurricanes complete three-game sweep of Penn State

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The baseball team rebounded from a Wednesday night loss to cross-town rival FIU in a big way by sweeping their series with the Penn State Nittany Lions, thanks to an 11-3 win in front of 1,528 fans Sunday at Mark Light Field.

The Hurricanes improve to 22-5 on the season with the victory.

Miami pitching was absolutely sensational all weekend long, silencing any doubts about the staff’s ability to perform without the services of Shawn Valdes-Fauli, who was kicked off the team last week.

Hurricane starters stepped up, giving up just four runs all weekend long and averaging 7.1 innings pitched, allowing the ‘Canes to keep their bullpen fresh for next weekend’s series against Georgia Tech.

“Pitching was really good this weekend,” Head Coach Jim Morris said. “You need four starters down the stretch in order to win ballgames.”

The ‘Canes jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first after a slew of seeing-eye singles that eluded Penn State infielders, giving starter J.D. Cockroft some run support early on.

Cockroft ended up needing the runs, as he gave up a home run in the second and another run in the third as PSU cut their deficit to 3-2.

The Miami merry-go-round continued in the third and fourth innings, adding two runs in each frame to extend their lead to 7-2.

Right fielder Brian Barton had a big day, going 3-5 with two runs batted in, two runs scored and a diving catch.

“We are playing with a lot of confidence right now,” Barton said. “We are all playing well on defense and defense is what wins ballgames.”

Cockroft would continue to cruise through seven innings before yielding to the bullpen, which finished what he started without a problem. With the win, Cockroft evened up his record to 2-2 with the win.

“The most important thing is that I hit my spots today,” Cockroft said. “When it comes down to it, I believe location is the most important part of pitching and good location keeps hitters off balance.”

The series was supposed to commence on Friday night, but Mother Nature proved to be the big winner, raining down on South Florida and forcing a day-night doubleheader on Saturday.

In the afternoon game of the Saturday doubleheader, starting pitcher Cesar Carrillo threw an absolute gem as the ‘Canes picked up a 6-1 victory over the Lions. Carrillo was outstanding, scattering just three hits over eight innings of work. The eight innings were the most pitched in one game by a UM starter this year. Carrillo remained undefeated as he improved his record to 4-0 on the season.

Offensively for the Hurricanes, Ryan Braun had a productive game, going 2-2 with a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored.

In the nightcap, pitching again took center stage, as the ‘Canes squeaked out a 1-0 victory on a shutout performance by Miami pitchers Brandon Camardese and George Huguet.

Gaby Sanchez drove in the only run of the game, plating Jim Burt, and that was all the ‘Canes would need.

Camardese pitched seven strong innings to improve to 3-0 on the season.

Huguet pitched two scoreless innings of relief for his sixth save of the season and more importantly the 37th save of his career, tying him with Rick Raether for the UM career saves record. Raether pitched for Miami from 1984-86, including as the 1985 national championship team.

The ‘Canes will gear up for what now becomes the toughest part of their schedule, with three games next weekend at Georgia Tech followed by six games in a row against bitter rival Florida State. Saturday’s game against Georgia Tech will be aired on the Sunshine Network.

Ryan Ellis can be contacted at r.ellis@umiami.edu.

Men’s basketball coach gets

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Leading candidates for position are Jarvis, Gonzalez, Cronin

A 65-54 record over four seasons at UM was not enough to save Head Men’s Basketball Coach Perry Clark’s job.

Clark was fired Friday by athletic director Paul Dee, leaving his job open for next season.

“Decisions like these are always difficult,” Dee said. “But after careful deliberation I have decided that it is in the best interest of the men’s basketball program to make a change.”

The men started out this season 13-5 before going on a long losing streak, dropping 11 of its last 12 games and missing the Big East Tournament. During the losing streak, they lost four games in overtime and in their last game they lost at home to West Virginia in a game where a win would have gotten them into the Big East Tournament.

Dee felt that it was a tough decision, since Clark did have some success at Miami. He won a school record 24 games in the 2001-02 season and took the team to the NCAA Tournament, where they lost in the first round as a five seed.

“This is very, very difficult because Perry Clark is a very good, honorable person. I’ve enjoyed working with him,” Dee said.

For Clark’s part, he will get 2.25 million dollars, which is the money that was guaranteed to him in his seven-year contract. This could put the school in a tough position when it comes time to look for a new coach.

“We have to see what obligations we have, and what we can afford,” Dee said. “There are some people today that we obviously could not afford.”

On Friday, CBS Sportsline reported that Mike Jarvis, the former coach at St. John’s, was going to be the next head coach at Miami, but Dee denied this report.

“We have not talked to Jarvis or his agent about the coaching job,” Dee said.

Clark came to the University of Miami in the 2000 after spending 11 seasons at Tulane, where he made three NCAA Tournament appearances. He compiled a 185-141 record at Tulane.

The team’s 14-16 record this season and its second straight losing season meant that it was time for a change at the University of Miami. Clark was 25-34 in his last two seasons.

Candidates to replace Clark are the aforementioned Jarvis, Manhattan’s Bobby Gonzalez, Murray State Head Coach Mick Cronin, and even Memphis Head Coach John Calipari. The school said it would conduct a wide-open search to find the next head coach.

Still, there is no animosity between the school and Clark.

“I would like to thank Perry for his hard work and dedication over the last four seasons, and wish him the best with his future endeavors,” Dee said.

The Hurricane will continue to follow this issue closely as the Hurricanes conduct their search for a new head coach.

Darren Grossman can be contacted at d.grossman@umiami.edu.

Muslim persecution serves as vindication for America

Around this time last year, our nation was looking for support, to no avail, from our supposed allies in Europe in the impending war in Iraq. At the time it was thought to be surprising that countries like France and Germany would be so vocal in their opposition to the war in Iraq and refuse to lend aid in what we thought was a necessary conflict. The recent anti-Islamic trends in France and Germany aren’t only horrific, but serve as vindication for our government ignoring their opposition and going to war in Iraq without them.

Recently, the French government passed a ban on the traditional Muslim head-scarf, and the German government is expected to follow suit shortly. The scariest thing about the ban is the overwhelming majority of French leaders that supported it. It passed both houses of their version of Congress by votes of 541 to 36 and 276 to 20. Reasoning for the ban, as stated by one member of France’s government, was “protecting (their) heritage” even while acknowledging that the law has “no ideological foundation at all.”

The blind and ignorant persecution of Muslims in those countries should serve as compliments to the American people and government, and redemption in our choice to ignore opposition to war. While we were the subject of attack from Muslim radicals in 2001, and those countries weren’t, it’s they who have taken the road of persecution. With regards to Iraq, how could we have expected to gain support from morally vacant governments such as France and Germany, in a war with the objective of liberating a Muslim people, when those countries push for the restriction of rights for Muslims that are their own citizens?

The lack of value on freedom and hypocrisy of the French and German governments has been made clear by their actions the past year. France, liberated many a time in its history, and Germany, full of people that know the terror of tyrannical regime firsthand, ignored a call to liberate a people that could not fight for themselves. The early stages of Jewish persecution in that region are closer to being a headline in newspapers than history books long forgotten, and yet they mirror the same persecution against a single religion in their current actions. Their actions are barbaric, and their morality is in great question. Until those governments begin to prove otherwise, writing them off, such as we did at this point last year is the only reasonable course of action our country should take.

Don Donelson can be contacted at d.donelson@umiami.edu.

Lies that matter: Did you hear the one about WMDs?

Now that I’ve had sufficient time to mourn for Howard Dean – though I still get a bit choked up when I see ads for the CNN special on his “improbable rise and spectacular fall” – it’s time to focus my energies on getting out the good on the man who will be known as the more liberal JFK and the absolutely infuriating on the man who has forever tarnished the initials GW. The spin the “liberal media” puts on stories about Al Gore saying he “invented the internet” (email me for the actual transcript, you sheep) is horrifying enough, but the fact that it lets Bush off the hook for the whole Iraq debacle is worrying at best.

Fun facts: The UN had serious doubts about Saddam Hussein’s nuclear weapons capacity and requested more time to follow up on this suspicion. By the time it was too late – by the U.S.’s standards, not the rest of the world’s – both the U.S. weapons inspector and the UN weapons inspector came back with the conclusion that Iraq hadn’t had any illegal weapons since about the end of Gulf War Act I. And, oh yeah, that faulty intelligence? The CIA did say Hussein was one killer badass, but they also made it clear that no illegal weapons had been found yet. Problem is, Fox News cuts to a doctored photo of John Kerry sharing a mike with Hanoi Jane or a clip of Howard Dean screaming just before George Tenet gets to that bit, so people head into the commercial break crying for war. Ah, creative editing.

We’re supposed to believe that Hillary Clinton and John Kerry suddenly became hawks and voted to invade Iraq when in truth they simply voted to allow military force as a last ditch effort. While a policy of containment could work – and, for that matter, was working – Bush had a go at the whole wartime president thing and took the number of dead civilians from 9/11 and more than tripled it. Bush seems at his best when his constituents are distracted from real issues at hand. You know what’s more pressing than a floundering job market and disappearing Social Security? Gays getting married!

It’s downright foolish to say that Bush had nothing to gain from a war in Iraq. Those 90% approval ratings were finally waning when people started realizing that a couple of guys in turbans were not the main threat to their accustomed way of life. It’s a lot scarier to think of a guy whose administration acts with utter contempt for the rest of the world or, indeed, the truth. But, you know, nothing rallies people like good old-fashioned scare tactics. And lying about a blowjob is worse than fabricating grounds for war, right?

Patrick Gibbons can be contacted at p.gibbons@umiami.edu.

Hormones race as birth control prices skyrocket

Recently, a good friend of mine informed me that the price of her birth control pills, purchased through the Student Health Center’s Pharmacy, had gone up in price from $13 per month to $25 per month. Ever so intrigued, I decided to trek over to our superior Health Center, where mono diagnoses are a dime a dozen, and do a tad wee bit of investigating.

Fact: Watch out ladies, your Ortho Tri-Cyclen pills have increased in price due to the recent availability of generic alternatives. Fact: The $12 per month price difference between the generic and the name brands amounts to an extra $144 per year. Fact: There is nothing you can do about it, but suck it up and pay the price, literally, or switch birth control pill brands.

We at UM should count our blessings that contraception – birth control pills, condoms and such – are even made available to students for a so-called nominal fee. Several of the conservative Jesuit colleges in this country tell contraceptive-hungry students that abstinence is indeed the best answer, forcing hormone driven co-eds to seek alternative sources for contraception or bear the consequences of risky experimentation.

Perhaps abstinence is the answer for our junior high school counterparts, although God only knows what oversexed adolescents are up to in 2004, but shouldn’t bright, young, drunk adults have access to the accessories that let nature run its course safely? Without a doubt, sex is merely one of the thousands of lessons just waiting to be learned during one’s college years, that is, unless you were a brilliant teenage Casanova, or a knock-your-socks-off high school seductress; I guess congratulations, or something, are in order. The bottom line is this: a college should do as much as they possibly can to provide contraception to every student, at the lowest possible prices. Enough said.

Not so strangely enough, the issue of insurance-covered contraception has been an issue of contention in the real world. If health plans cover Viagra, then why in the world will they not cover birth control pills? Don’t forget, Viagra benefits more than the user – just as birth control pills assist everyone involved. Yes boys, it would be a damn shame if your girlfriend couldn’t afford her monthly prescription – don’t forget, it’s just as much your problem as it is hers. Who wants to have to drop off their newborn at a makeshift UM student daycare before dashing off to Memorial? Certainly not me.

Vanessa Cutler can be contacted at v.cutler@umiami.edu.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

To the editor:

This is in response to Mr. Arauz’s article, “Crickets, Coffee, and a Side of Cockroach.” The thing that I found most surprising about it was the fact that everyone said it was the first time they had heard about the problem. I lived in Hecht Residential College last year and found bugs in my hot chocolate from that machine twice (why I went back a second time, I don’t know). My roommate also found roaches in hers, and I know that I heard about other people finding more creepy-crawlies. I also know that it was reported to the front desk. Why this problem was not fixed, I don’t know, and I only regret that this was not exposed. I only wish that more research had been done before publishing the article, such as asking students who had lived in Hecht previous years. Hopefully the machine will be fixed for real this time.

Sincerely,

Katherine Henry