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Nat’s Back

When Australian pop star Natalie Imbruglia’s first album sold six million copies, driven by the overwhelming success of the international hit single Torn, I remember telling my friend, “You’re my buddy and all, but I’d sell you to a band gypsies for a date with that hottie.”

Four years passed between Imbruglia’s debut album Left of the Middle and the release of her sophomore collection White Lilies Island, have no fear. One thing remained constant: I’d still sell my best bud to the gypsies.

Oh, but how could I forget the music? This is an album review, after all.

The former Australian soap-opera actress’s first album, Left of the Middle, had a distinctly harder feel to it, with heavier guitars and vocals. Imbruglia sang the tracks on her first album with a pent up anger. It was more of a grunge-meets-pop album.

In contrast, White Lilies Island falls more into the pop category with smoother, airier tracks. It’s like riding the teacups last time the carnival was in town and this time only riding the ferris wheel. You still have fun, and this time you see the park, but it doesn’t get your heart going.

Also, unlike the first album, Imbruglia wrote or co-wrote every track on White Lilies Island.

“I couldn’t put myself in a position where I had another hit with someone else’s song,” Imbruglia said in an interview with Bill Prince of GQ magazine.

Of the 64 tracks that Imbruglia wrote over the four years between albums, twelve made the final cut.

Several sources reported that Imbruglia, who lives in Windsor, England, with her dog Charlie, was threatened with a fine of one million English pounds by her record label if she didn’t finish her second album soon. That’s a lot of American clammies.

She finally finished the album and its songs run the gamut of emotions that Imbruglia went through while making it.

Wrong Impression was the first single released off of her newest album and was the number one most added song at Top 40 radio in its first week.

The acoustically spiced Satellite has a get-up-and-dance and sing-along feel to it. It has Top 40 potential written all over it, even despite sharing its name with the famed Dave Matthews Band track.

Songs Beauty on the Fire and Do You Love? showcase the inner turmoil that the gorgeous Imbruglia went through as she tried to wrap up the album.

And if you thought she was a cutie in the last album’s liner notes, wait until you see the liner notes for White Lilies Island. (Charlie, you lucky dog.) My only complaint was that there simply weren’t enough pictures of her.

In conclusion, if anyone has Natalie Imbruglia’s phone number, I have a friend ready to work for gypsies.

‘Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN’

The period between January through mid-March is usually a time when Hollywood dumps its most unattractive movies into the theatres, hoping to make some money to cover their hinnies. This is not altogether a bad thing, sometimes it’s a blessing in disguise. There lies the perfect chance for a little independent or foreign film to break out, make some money and maybe even a profit. This film will probably be one of them.

Shown at the Bill Cosford Cinema this past Thursday by the Center of Latin American Studies as part of Communication Week, Y Tu Mama Tambi

A slice of Guatemala in Miami

A few months ago, a moderate case of homesickness triggered severe hunger pangs for Guatemalan food. The mere sound of the words enchilada, chuchito and rellenito launched my saliva production into maximum overdrive. Intent on satiating my craving, I called the consulate hoping someone at the diplomatic corps could help me. There, I was referred to a Guatemalan travel agent who, in turn, referred me to Antigua Guatemala, a quaint little restaurant just west of West 27 Avenue on Flagler Street.

The external impression may make some wary. The place looks like a hole in the wall; a somewhat run-down structure in a shady area of town. But the interior of the eatery, named after the first Guatemalan capital that was once a famous colonial hub of the Spanish empire, is an upscale version of a small-town Guatemalan restaurant.

The d

American playwright visits UM

At one of last week’s performances of The House of Yes, part of the American Playwright Series celebrated at the Jerry Herman Ring Theater, the audience was presented with the a special guest– the American playwright herself, Wendy MacLeod.

The House of Yes is about the ultimate dysfunctional family, centered on the insane sister who goes by Jackie O. and reenacts the assassination of JFK with her twin brother, with whom she has had an affair.

MacLeod answered questions from audience members, who asked questions ranging from what her life is like to what inspires her to write plays with controversial topics.

“I’m inherently interested in plays that cross borders,” MacLeod said. “I like to sort of attack difficult subject matter in an unexpected way.”

The idea for The House of Yes is based on a family she knows that lived near the Kennedy’s with a daughter that looked like Jackie O.

“The family is still speaking to me,” MacLeod said with a laugh.

The title for the play came from graffiti she saw on a bathroom wall, which she used because it made her think of how Jackie was spoiled because nobody said “no” to her.

“It reminded me of a porn movie title, which is right,” MacLeod said.

When asked about writing one act plays, MacLeod said she thought The House of Yes would not have worked as well if it were longer.

“You don’t want to give the audience a chance to leave, frankly,” MacLeod said.

MacLeod also talked about the film that was adapted from The House of Yes. She believes that while movies give a more realistic feel, live performances are larger than life.

“Theater can be provocative in a way the other forms can’t,” she said.

MacLeod started off as an actor, but then became interested in directing. She said she directed A Midsummer Nights Dream with Kathleen Turner, but soon found it too stressful.

MacLeod then focused on writing, using her background in acting and directing to help her incorporate visual aspects into her work. She also attended the playwriting program at Yale.

“Getting into Yale is like getting into heaven. You don’t say, ‘no, I don’t want to go to heaven.'”

After her discussion ended and she received a standing ovation, people from the audience and cast members from both of her shows huddled around her, asking her more questions and getting autographs. Members of the audience seemed to be in awe of her.

“Just hearing her talk is fantastic,” said one woman while she was waiting to meet the author.

The cast was more apprehensive than usual knowing she was going to be in the audience.

“Having the playwright coming makes you more meticulous, and, for me, more nervous,” said Josh Fiedler, who played the younger brother, Anthony, as his fellow actors shushed him for reminding them of their own fears.

However, the actors enjoyed doing the show, partly because it helped them grow as actors to play such odd characters.

“It’s really challenging,” said Christina Valo, who played Jackie O. “I like to think I’m not insane and I get to play someone who is.”

Brett Friedman, who played the twin brother, believed their nerves would actually help them, because the cast feeds off each other’s energy.

“With five people, the connections are important,” Friedman said. “We’ve gotten along, like a nice, dysfunctional family.”

Greek Week ‘Mystery Event’ shows off ‘Nerds’

Last Friday, the Greek community gathered on the University Center patio for another exciting event celebrating Greek Week. The ‘Mystery Event’ was different from all the others, as participants did not know what the event was about, or what it entailed. Thus called a mystery.

Heather Davis and Pinar Alper, from Kappa Kappa Gamma, were very excited about the ‘Mystery Event.’ They had previously participated in the ‘Organized Cheer’ and ‘Olympic Day,’ as well as many others, and were looking forward to the dance-a-thon on Saturday. “We have worked hard on all of the events, especially the ‘Organized Cheer,’ which was my favorite”, Davis said. “My favorite was definitely ‘Olympic Day'”, added Alper.

The ‘Mystery Event’ began at 6 p.m. as the fraternities and sororities met on the UC patio.

Food and drinks were set up on the side of the patio, while a movie screen was set up in the pool area. After a nice dinner with friends, the crowd moved towards the pool area to watch the featured movie: 1984’s Revenge of the Nerds, a movie about nerds who form a fraternity to battle against the bullies in the Alpha Beta Fraternity.

Everyone gathered around the screen, either in chairs, or stretched out on the ground wrapped in blankets to keep warm on the cool, windy night.

The event was an overall success, despite the cool weather. It was a very relaxing evening; a great relief to many. A nice dinner and a movie outdoors surrounded by family and friends seemed to be the perfect ending to the week.

Greek Week began on Friday, February 22 and concluded on Sunday. There were many exciting events through out the week, including a dance-a-thon, ‘Organized Cheer,’ and ‘Olympic Day.’ All of the money raised will be given to the many charities to which the sororities and Fraternities contribute.

excruciatingly bad

This past Tuesday, the CAC showed a sneak preview of a film. Or, for lack of a better phrase, an excruciatingly bad movie. Said movie was Sorority Boys, which is really just another attempt from Hollywood to make money off the young male audience.

This movie brings to mind the age-old question: Is Hollywood making crappier films or are audiences just getting dumber? Whatever the answer is, it must be identified and rectified soon, because there can only be so much garbage playing at the theaters at once.

The film, if you have the nerve to call it that, centers around three frat rats: Dave (Barry Watson), Adam (Michael Rosenbaum) and Doofer (Harland Williams). That’s right, two actors from WB shows, 7th Heaven and Smallville respectively, and a mediocre stand-up comic.

It starts with them throwing a party at the frat house, where some of them entertain themselves by sling-shooting vibrating dildos into a sorority’s house. The sorority in question is the Delta Omicron Gamma (D.O.G. Get it?), the sorority that houses the rejects of other sororities.

After the party, the three find out their stash of money is damn near gone, and they now have to look for a place to live. D.O.G. is in a program that offers free housing, so guess what the three boys decide to do? That’s right, not look for jobs or crash at a friend’s place, but dress up like women to stay at the sorority as Daisy, Adina and Roberta.

It all follows the Hollywood formula from there.

Dave falls for Leah, the head D.O.G, Adam/Adina realizes how much of an ass he was in his treatment toward women, and Doofer, well, is Doofer.

There are some good scenes in the film. One of them is shown in the trailer, where Doofer, dressed as Roberta, sits in a circle of girls as they’re revealing secrets about each other. When it comes to Doofer’s turn, he professes his addiction to porn. Realizing what he just said, he picks up a pillow, yells, “Pillow fight!” and cold clocks the girl next to him in the face.

The only other one is when Doofer has to clean the bathroom at the sorority, takes out an anaconda of hair from the drain in the sink, and starts to make Chewbacca noises. That’s as smart as this little piece of celluloid gets.

The movie also does have some good qualities. For example, when the three dress up as girls, they start to think like girls. When Dave has to paint Leah’s toenails, he almost covers her foot with nail polish. The three boys start hitting department stores for size 8’s and Adam wears high heels because the “make my legs look slimmer.”

Instead of playing on these little things, the movie tries to go into Animal House territory, which it doesn’t come close to. It can’t even be as entertaining as PCU. Oh, and for the sex factor, Dave gets to shower with a girl.

This movie just isn’t worth watching. It’s not worth talking about, writing about, nor even thinking about. There is nothing new here; it’s a formulaic college-aimed movie that stars two WB actors with a first time director at the helm. Is there any wonder why it’s being released in March, one of the worst months for movies?

Not only is it sad that this movie was made, but that it was made by Disney. Oh, and let’s not forget that this week, Disney picked up the rights to make a sequel to this trash.

Disney, stick to animation. And Watson and Rosenbaum, stay on TV. Harland, don’t do film and stay on Comedy Central.

That way we won’t have to witness you guys dress up like ugly women again.

Howard a constant threat in UM lineup

Most college players begin their career without many expectations. Facing competition in college is a big jump for even the most talented high school stars. They are only expected to progress as the years go on.

Miami’s shortstop Kevin Howard did not start off like most freshman ballplayers. As Miami’s starting third baseman in 2000, Howard put up numbers that some college stars never reach in a career.

Howard finished his opening season with a team leading .413 batting average and an on base percentage of almost .500. That earned him the Freshman of the Year honor given by Baseball America, which he says is his greatest accomplishment at UM.

There was one downside to Howard’s great freshman year – his success would be expected for the rest of his college career.

In his sophomore year, Howard’s batting average was the team’s second best and all of his other statistics remained constistent with his previous season.

In the summer of 2001, Howard was selected to play for the USA National Team. He led the team with 18 RBI assisting them to a 21-7-1 record.

“It was the best experience,” Howard said. “Its great playing against guys who are really good and at your level of play.”

Miami baseball coaches noticed that Howard was hitting the ball a lot better when he returned to collegiate competition, according to former teammate and current assistant coach Greg Lovelady.

Howard was named a Preseason Second-Team All American by Baseball America and Louisville Slugger and has been recognized as one of college’s top ranked players.

Now as a junior, it could be said that his roles have changed dramatically. Becoming older and wiser requires him to become more of a leader and model for younger players – hitting successfully off of college pitchers as a rookie changes his current role on offense, and playing defense well from the start makes him available to other positions in the infield.

Entering his third year as a starter, Howard has made an impact on younger teammates because of all his experience.

“Everyday we see him getting better as a baseball player and a leader,” Lovelady said. “He always has confidence that he’ll go out there and do well. Everyone else, especially the young guys, look up to him because of that.

“He did very well his freshman year. But he’s more mature now and more relaxed out there.”

Even after a great rookie season, head coach Jim Morris thought Howard was capable of more.

“In his freshman year we talked about him getting stronger so he could become a more complete player,” Morris said. “But it’s tough to say you expect more from someone who is hitting .413.”

Howard has stood up to the challenge so far, already hitting more home runs (5) than he hit in each of his previous two seasons.

Despite Howard’s increase in home runs and strength added from years of working out, Lovelady still doesn’t classify him as a power hitter.

“He sprays the ball all over the field better than anybody,” Lovelady said. “He’s in there to knock guys in and drive the ball from gap to gap like he always does.”

Howard’s defensive skills have also been outstanding throughout his career at UM.

A diving double play against FIU his freshman year earned a spot on ESPN’s Plays of the Week and this season he started Miami’s first triple play in 20 years during a game against Tennessee.

Howard primarily played shortstop during his high school career, but started third base his first two years with Miami. Recently in a drastic change in the Hurricane infield, Howard returned to shortstop. It is unclear of how long he will remain there, but either way, Howard is content with the Morris’ decision.

“I’ve played both positions so long that I feel comfortable at both places,” Howard said.

Not only does Morris expect Howard to continue his success at Miami, but he also has high expectations for Howard after college.

“It’s good that he’s played both [positions] in college. This will help him out in pro ball.”

Tennis a confident squad

When the No. 25 Hurricanes’ women’s tennis team takes the court in Tallahassee today for a match against rival Florida State, it will be only five days removed from a tough loss against William and Mary.

But the Hurricanes have in no way lost their confidence.

“We’re going to win,” senior Marcy Hora said. “Guaranteed.”

Hora and the rest of the Hurricanes embark on a weekend of tennis, beginning at 2:00 p.m. against the Seminoles. Tomorrow afternoon, Miami faces off against the Harvard Crimson.

Hora may be confident, but head coach Paige Yaroshuk sees some things Miami needs to work on.

“In order to get to the next level, we are going to have to work on attacking,” Yaroshuk said. “We need to continue working on shortening our points, from one to six.”

Last weekend, Miami suffered their first two losses of the season, falling to No. 44 Virginia Commonwealth 5-2, and 19th-ranked William and Mary, 4-3. In the latter match, the Hurricanes were on the short end of a 10-8 tiebreaker in the third set of the deciding match.

“William and Mary was just one of those matches where you come up just short in every big point,” Yaroshuk said. “It happens to every team and I’m glad it happened to us now than further down the line.”

Sophomore Mari Toro continues to be a bright spot for the Hurricanes. The sophomore transfer, ranked No. 63 nationally, won her No. 1 singles match in straight sets over Jessyca Arthur 6-3, 7-5.

“We knew, coming into this season, just how good Mari was,” Yaroshuk said. “We believed in her and she continues to do great things for our program.”

With her squad’s record now at 6-2, Yaroshuk hopes that Miami can put the William and Mary loss behind them and concentrate for Florida State. Hora, however, has already done just that.

“We always look forward to playing Florida State,” Hora said. “However, we’ve worked on our conditioning and that has made us stronger and better prepared, and we’re going to win, it’s that simple.”

The men’s squad, ranked No. 35, received mixed results last weekend. On Saturday, the Hurricanes had no trouble dismantling Western Michigan, 6-1.

But Miami then had to face seventh ranked Notre Dame, and were soundly defeated, 6-1. That loss dropped the men’s record to 2-3, and has caused the team to alter some of its expectations, at least for right now.

“Right now, we needed to come back and focus on our practices, and take it one match at a time,” said senior Jose Lieberman. “We want to get back in the top 20 eventually, but right now, we can’t focus on the rankings.”

Tonight, the Hurricanes return to the Neil Schiff Tennis Center, as they host Florida A&M at 6:00 p.m. Lieberman is looking for strong play from the team, right from the beginning.

“We need to come out and be really intense, right from the get-go,” Lieberman said. “This should help both our singles and doubles play.”

Seniors shine in regular season finale

It was a fitting end to Sheila James’ final game in front of the Knight Sports Complex crowd.

James, the Hurricanes’ second leading three-point specialist in school history, blocked a three-point attempt by Amber Jacobs with six seconds remaining, and the Hurricanes held on to upset No. 18 Boston College, 60-57, on Tuesday night.

The 5-5 senior, who scored only five points on 1-of-7 shooting, hit two key free throws with 4.9 seconds left after Jacobs made one of two foul shots to bring the Eagles within 58-57. Jacobs was put on the line after Chanivia Broussard’s fifth foul of the game. Clare Droesch missed a desperation 30-footer for Boston College as time expired.

“You never want it to come down to that,” James said. “It’s definitely not what I expected but if that’s the way it ends, that’s the way it ends.”

James, Martha Bodley and Kathryn Fowler were honored before the game, and all three had a hand in the win. Fowler led Miami with 11 points and nine rebounds and Bodley added six points and three rebounds in 17 minutes.

“On the floor at the end of the game were our three seniors Martha, Sheila and (Kathryn),” UM coach Ferne Labati said. “We just felt we were just going to either win it or lose it with those three seniors, and we won it.”

The win was Miami’s third over a ranked opponent this season, the others coming against Texas on Dec. 9 and Virginia Tech last Wednesday. The Hurricanes solidified the No. 5 seed in the Big East Tournament that begins Saturday in Piscataway, N.J. Miami will take on the No. 12 seed Georgetown in the first round on Saturday. Despite the loss, Boston College is the No. 3 seed and will have a first round bye.

“We look at it as an entirely new season,” Labati said. “We got our 17 wins in the regular season but the Big East season starts all over again. You have to play it really tough. You have to be really really excited to go up there and I think our kids are.

“We’ve had a lot of success in the Big East Tournament as a program. Our goal is to get to the finals.”

The Hurricanes led by five early in the second half before Rachel Byars hit a layup with 17:08 to start a 15-5 Boston College run and give the Eagles a 43-38 lead. Miami countered with a 6-0 run to take a 44-43 lead with 12:02 remaining. The second half went back and forth after that, with five ties and eight lead changes.

Broussard struggled, shooting 3-of-14 from the field, but other Hurricanes picked up the slack. Alicia Hartlaub scored six of her eight points in the second half, and Meghan Saake added 10 points and five steals to give her a school-record 110.

“In order for us to win against Boston College, we couldn’t have just one or two players have a good game,” Labati said. “We had to have everyone have a good game, especially the kids that came off the bench. That’s been the problem all year. We hadn’t been able to put two good halves together.”

Labati knows the Hurricanes will have to play all 40 minutes if they want to advance in the conference tournament. Miami most likely needs two consecutive wins in order to garner an NCAA Tournament berth. That would be Miami’s first trip since the 1997-98 season.

“Everybody wants to go to the Big Dance,” Labati said. “This year, there are a lot of teams that are on the bubble. We have to prove to the NCAA Committee that we’re worthy of getting a bid.”

‘Canes pick up much needed win at Providence

Providence guard John Linehan got his steals record in front of the home crowd, but after losing three out of their last seven games, the Hurricanes got a much-needed road win.

Darius Rice dropped a game-high 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as No. 18 Miami ended its two game losing streak with an 81-65 victory over Providence Tuesday night.

”It was more than a must-have game for us,” UM coach Perry Clark said. “We couldn’t have lost three straight. I would have jumped off the nearest bridge.

“This was a game we had to have. Kids can be fickle. They couldn’t afford a third straight loss to their confidence. It could have broken us heading into the Big East tournament and the NCAAs. We bounced back nicely and returned to doing the things that won games for us earlier in the season.”

The Hurricanes (22-6, 9-6 in the Big East) need to beat Virginia Tech tomorrow, and have St. John’s lose its next game to secure the second seed in next week’s Big East Tournament. Miami loses a tiebreaker with St. John’s due to its league record.

The top two teams in each division receive a first round by in the conference tourney.

Miami can do no worse that the No. 3 seed with its victory over Providence. Connecticut has already wrapped up the top seed.

”No one wants to back into the postseason,” said Rice, who scored 32 earlier this season against the Friars. “We had to have this game more than we needed to eat tonight.”

The 22nd victory is the most in the regular season since the Hurricanes joined the conference in 1991, and is one short of the team record of 23 set in 1959-60.

In the defeat, Linehan had five steals to become the NCAA all-time steals leader with 378. The record was previously held by Friars guard Eric Murdock (1987-91) at 376. Linehan’s 132 steals this season leads the nation.

”We rebounded, we played defense,” Clark said. “Darius shot well and rebounded 10. We were active, we challenged shots and offensive drives. This was a Miami team no one had seen in at least three weeks.”

Elton Tyler’s 11 first half points led Miami to a commanding 45-27 lead at the break.

Providence cut UM’s lead to 69-59 with 3:43 left, but Rice and James Jones rallied their offense back to an 18-point advantage in the closing minute.

Jones added 15 points and grabbed six rebounds, as Miami evened its Big East road record at 4-4.

”Our effort was not there the past six or seven games,” Jones said. “We found the swagger that was missing. This was a very important win for us. Playing like this, we can say that we are ready for the postseason.”

Miami wraps up the regular season tomorrow at 2 p.m. at the Miami Arena vs. Virginia Tech.

Letter to the Editor

To the Editor,

I was rather upset last Tuesday when I picked up a copy of the Miami Hurricane. Senior linebacker Chris Campbell was one of the major stories that appeared on the front page. But the primary purpose no longer seemed to commemorate his memory, but to tarnish his image for the rest of eternity. The headline that caught my attention “Alcohol factors into fatal crash”. Of course it did, but what about the other factors, are they any less important in what caused the crash that fatal night?

Just the simple mention of alcohol suddenly causes an outcry from MADD, even though Campbell was a mere .05 over a legal limit that is set extremely low to begin with. I in no way agree with individuals driving drunk, but on the same token I know that everyone functions at their own level. Two drinks would put a 130 pound female over the legal limit, but that does not necessarily mean that person would be unable to safely get from point A to point B. Every person has a different reaction to alcohol. Just because alcohol was involved does not mean the accident would not been prevented without it’s presence. Fatigue, excessive speed, unfastened seatbelts, and other factors also caused the accident. Some may say the excessive speed was because of impaired judgment, but as many like myself know, when you are driving home at 4 a.m. you tend to go a little bit faster than you probably should.

The focus the media is putting on the alcohol content is absurd. It is not fair to tarnish a young man’s memory when so many other factors were in place. Chris Campbell was a good student, son, fianc

Students need more study areas

My mother always tells me that I am in college to study, not to fool around. If she only knew what it is like to go to school here, I’m sure she’d change her tune.

I mean, after all, studying just doesn’t seem to be much of a priority at this university, and our campus gives poignant testimony to this ironic fact. Think about it. How many quiet places are there on campus where students can go and read, or meet with a group of friends and quietly discuss the poetry of John Milton over their frappucinos? I can name only one: the Otto G. Richter Library.

The University of Miami is currently going through a major face-lift. An ambitious plan is in place to create new parking, a new patio has been created in front of Eaton, and more patios may be put in around the music school and the other dormitories so that students can have more places to hang out.

However, in all of these big plans, I see no provisions for the most important part of student life, the reason we are here: studying. Maybe they figured that with all the “hanging out” that we will be doing around these new patios, we won’t have much time to study.

Feeling unable to deal with such a huge problem by myself, I once again put my faith in the student body. I asked a simple question: Are there enough places to study on campus? The answer I received was an overwhelming “no!”

Numerous times I heard students complain that the University Center is always too loud to concentrate because of the television and the constant stream of students passing through. The patio and the cyber cafe faced the same criticism.

These aggravated students further explained that the study rooms in the dormitories were satisfactory if they were alone, but once other students came in, even those rooms became cramped and noisy.

The library, and especially the study rooms in the library, seemed to be the only place to go to get some peace and quiet.

All of these student testimonies led me to ask one question: If the university feels such a strong need to create multiple patios where students can hang out, why don’t they feel as strong a need to create more quiet places where students can study in between hanging out?

Why does the social aspect of student life seem to take such heavy precedence over the academic aspect?

I personally cannot answer these questions. However, I would like someone to answer them. What do the bigwigs have to say about such a mix-up of priorities?

I challenge them to make more places for us to study and eagerly await their answer as to why they haven’t done so already.

Travis Atria is a sophomore majoring in English literature.