Vol. 56, Issue 12-May 5, 2014

Plainsman Press
South Plains College
1401 S. College Ave. • Levelland, Texas
Clothesline Project
helps raise awareness
of sexual and domestic
abuse.
Vol. 56 • Issue 12 • May 5, 2014
The South Plains
College Ballroom Dance
Team hosts second
Dancing with the Texans
competition.
Rodeo teams conclude spring season with
rodeo in Stephenville.
see page 5
see page 3
see page 23
Students build Mars Rover prototype at NASA competition
by JOSH HAMILTON
editorial assistant
tation coordinator for the Green
Team, said, “I think, what made
(the rover) stand out was that
we used a sound sensor,
Robots will not take
instead of a timing or
over the world. They will
light sensor.”
help us explore others.
Representing the
The South Plains ColBlack Team were, Race,
lege students who attendPaul Aguirre, rover arm
ed the perennial Commudesigner & technician,
nity College Aerospace
and Thiess Brown, rovScholars Program (CAS)
er chassis lead designhave firsthand knowledge
er.
about the robots that are
Students competexploring our neighbors
ing on the Blue Team
in the solar system.
were: Mateo GrimalRobert E. Plant II,
do, a rover designer;
an assistant professor
Kyle Jennings, the preof mathematics at SPC,
sentation coordinator;
along with Dr. Sheyleah
Landon Lynskey, the
Harris-Plant, an associate
presentation spokesprofessor of mathematics,
man; and Robert (Sterwere the faculty sponling) Simpson, a syssors for the CAS program
tems/rover engineer.
when the group headThe winning
ed down to Houston on
Green Team includMarch 31 to participate
ed Jimenez, Mitchell
in a Mars Rover building
Kennedy, the project
competition that lasted
engineer, and Cathuntil April 2.
erina Ramos, a rover
SPC has had repre- Robert E. Plant II and Dr. Sheyleah Harris-Plant were joined by 10 South Plains College students at the Community-College Aerospace
engineer.
sentatives at the CAS pro- Scholars Program, which was held March 31 - April 2 at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The students not
gram since its inception in JOSH HAMILTON/PLAINSMAN PRESS
only competed in the
the 2001-2002 academic
competition, they
year, according to Plant,
also were taken on
with 119 students having partic- were made up of students from the five teams, the Black, Blue, Engineering, or Math
a guided tour of the
different colleges. South Plains and Green teams.
(STEM) majors.
ipated through the years.
Johnson Space CenOne of the students,
ter.
Matthew Race, was a
“They were taken
procurement manager,
by the Saturn V Rockthe highest student poet,” says Plant. “That is
sition on the Black Team.
a huge rocket.”
“It really blew me
The tour is essenaway, with what kind of
tial for the students
experience it was,” says
“It isn’t just cocaine, pot, heroine, she was as a sophomore in high
who compete to get
Race. “Being on site, and
you know, the obvious things. school, but her story goes much
to know each other.
working with other team
But prescription pills are also deeper. She had never tried
“It made it more
members, in a competidrugs.”
anything other than alcohol, and
relaxing,” explains
tive, high-stress environIt is just as easy to get your ended up popping painkillers
Jimenez, “to get to
ment, really gave me a
hands on prescription drugs, as in school.
know people before
taste of what it would
it is the common street drugs,
“I knew a lot of people who
we got to work with
be like to work at NASA.”
according to Lindsey. All you smoked pot, and I just never
them.”
The point of the
have to do is walk in a doctor’s had any interest in trying it,” says
Some of the
competition,which had
office and memorize symptoms Lindsey. “The most I did was try a
students who have
multiple parts, was to One of the rovers South Plains College
to get the right type of pills you couple of beers at a small party
competed in the CAS
have each team make students helped build in a competition at the
want, whether it’s uppers such one time. Then I started meeting
program have gone
a working prototype Community-College Aerospace Scholars Proas Adderall or downers such as more people outside of my circle
on to gain internships
of a Mars Rover out of gram in Houston in April.
Vicodin.
of friends who were popping
with NASA. There are
lego building blocks. Photo courtesy of Robert E. Plant II.
“ Things have definitely pills, and at first it really freaked
even some former
The first part was the
(Editor’s note: This
changed with drug use, and me out.”
SPC students who are
planning and cost evalstory is the ninth part of a
because pills are as easily accesLindsey says she never
Then came the building and employed by NASA.
uation stage.
multi-part series, “Doped
sible as marijuana, alcohol and considered trying pills until it
“All in all, the students rep“Each piece of the lego set rover competition. Each rover
Up,” examining the issue
cocaine, teenagers and people occurred to her that it could be
had a different million-dollar had to be built so that it could resented SPC well,” says Plant,
of illicit drug abuse that
a good escape.
price value on it,” Race said, “and perform certain tasks. The teams “and it was an honor to be their
begins in Issue #7 and
She was outyou had a limited budget that were judged on how well the sponsor.”
concludes in this issue.
going and had
rovers worked, as well as on the
was $750 million.”
Students interested in joinSeveral staff members took
a lot of friends
After planning and cost ingenuity behind each design. ing the CAS project next semesit upon themselves to inbut at times it
evaluation, each team had to The Green Team, which had ter have to be STEM majors. Also,
terview, take photographs
felt like she was
present to a NASA board and three members from SPC, ended Race suggests that students “exand conduct research. The
wearing a shell.
prove to them that their rover up winning.
press interest to their teachers.”
results of their combined
She was exNeiba Jimenez, the presenwas cost effective and sturdy
efforts follow.)
tremely introver ted when
by ASHLEIGH WOLBRUECK
dealing with
staff writer
her problems,
struggling with
Addiction is a disease that
depression and by JENNY GARZA
consumes the entire life of the
students participating out of the
Members of Phi Theta Kapher overpower- editorial assistant
user.
1,676 graduates.
pa who are graduating will be
ing emotions.
Most often, the only hope
“I think, with this graduation wearing gold cords, tassels, or
For the first time in the
“I was goof freedom is through recovery.
being split up, it would be better even the Double Honors Cord.
history
of
South
Plains
College,
i n g t h ro u g h
However, recovery is different
for everyone and comfy,” says Pe- All students will be provided
a rough time commencement will be split terson. “The students can have with a cap, gown and tassel at
for every user. Everyone has his
into
two
ceremonies.
with some famor her own journey to find a way
The first ceremony, which more of their visitors to support no charge.
ily issues that
to beat an addiction.
The ceremony will be phowill
begin
at 9:30 a.m. at Texan them on graduation day.”
I didn’t really
Some addicts find comfort
To receive a diploma, stu- tographed and videotaped by a
Dome,
will
be
for
students
with
t a l k a b o u t ,”
in support groups such as Nardents must have completed professional photographer and
Lindsey recalls. the last names beginning with A 45 college-level hours toward SPC faculty. Students will be
cotics Anonymous and Alcoholthrough
L.
The
second
ceremo“I just never
ics Anonymous. Others spend
an associate’s degree, or 10 able to order these before and
knew how to ny, for students with last names college-level hours toward a after the ceremony. Family and
enough time in a rehabilitation
beginning
with
M
through
Z,
will
express myself
program and come out ready to Photo illustration by
Certificate.
friends will also be able to phow h e n I w a s take place at 1 p.m.
move on. There are also those ALLISON TERRY/PLAINSMAN PRESS
“Some of the students will tograph the graduates during
“It
(last
year’s
ceremony)
growing up,
who find their own way to rebe finishing up in the summer,” the ceremony, but must stay off
and would just was a fire hazard,” said Shannon adds Peterson. “They will also the floor level for safety reasons.
covery, without using a specific
Peterson,
graduation
clerk
at
program or list of instructions of our age are getting into stuff bottle everything up and ignore
be able to participate in the
Graduates are encouraged
that is a lot more dangerous it. Things were starting to build SPC. “The fire marshal told us ceremony. They will not receive to join the SPC Alumni Associhow to get clean.
it
was
too
crowded,
and
since
Lindsey, a student at South than they realize,” says Lindsey. up, and I didn’t know where
we are getting more and more their degree or diploma till they ation so they can stay in touch
Plains College whose name has “These are chemical drugs that to turn. Looking back, I know I
with the friends they have made
(graduates) each year, we decid- have finished all their courses.”
been changed to protect her mess with the entire balance made decisions that would hurt
Honor students will also through the years at SPC. To find
ed
to
see
how
this
would
work.
”
anonymity, recalls her struggles of your body, and then people me later on in life.”
This year, 745 students are be recognized during the cere- out more information about the
Finally, she broke down and
with addiction and her path to mix them with alcohol or othexpected
to participate in the mony. Students who have a 4.0 Alumni Association, contact Juer drugs and could easily kill asked one of her friends to let
recovery.
commencement
ceremonies GPA will graduate with Highest lie Gerstemberger, director at of
her try some painkillers.
“I think something that themselves.”
out
of
the
1,670
students
who Honors. Students with a GPA the SPC Foundation, at jgerstenShe recalls that her first enpeople forget is what defines a
SEE “FORMER” PAGE 2
applied
for
graduation.
The between 3.85 and 3.99 will grad- berger@southplainscollege.edu.
drug and drug use,” says Lindsey. counter with drugs came when
2012-2013 ceremony had 593 uate with Honors.
This year, there were five
teams (Red, Gray, Black, Blue,
and Green) competing that
entered 10 students into the
competition. Those students
were chosen to be on three of
The students who travelled
to Houston are all sophomores
who have Science, Technology,
enough to be worth the time
and effort that goes into building it.
Student finds road to recovery
from prescription drug addiction
Commencement to be split with
growing number of graduates
2
News
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Former addict shares experiences with relapse, recovery programs
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
“I gave my friend some
money for a couple of pills to
try between classes,” Lindsey
recalls. “I ended up buying Hydrocodone and loved the feeling
when they kicked in.”
Her pill popping went on
for a few months, and the drugs
became stronger in a short
amount of time.
“I loved Hydrocodone and
began buying anything I could
get my hands on,” Lindsey says.
“I took various painkillers, muscle relaxers, Xanax and then
Oxycodone. At the time, I didn’t
realize what I was doing to my
mental health and how serious
the drugs were I began to abuse.”
Eventually, her parents
found out from a concerned
teacher. They had a very strict
watch on her for a long time
until she earned their trust again
and got clean. That was the last
time Lindsey abused any substance until after high school,
she says.
“I switched schools for the
last two years and graduated,”
says Lindsey. “Honestly, my family was so concerned and I didn’t
want to hurt them, and I realized
how stupid everything was I was
doing. I never explained why I
started taking pills, though, and
just moved on like everything
was fine.”
Everything was fine until a
few months after she graduated.
Lindsey didn’t really know what
she wanted to do and didn’t take
school seriously at the time, so
she dropped out of the community college near her home.
“At first, I felt like the possibilities were endless,” Lindsey
explains. “But I couldn’t find a
specific focus. So I decided I
would just work and take time
to figure things out.”
However, her depression
started to return and took a toll
on her. She drew further away
from her family, as she went out
and partied with her friends,
always trying to stay busy to
avoid thinking about her worries
or becoming consumed by the
depression.
“I was really young and just
doing what other people my
age were,” says Lindsey. “I wasn’t
doing hard drugs, but I drank a
lot and would smoke weed socially. Looking back, everything
is kind of a blur, and time feels
like it passed so quickly, and
I can hardly remember what
happened in those years.”
The partying only helps
deal with problems to a point.
It doesn’t take them away, according to Lindsey. She tried to
make herself feel better through
sex, alcohol and avoiding any
real responsibilities other than
showing up for work.
“I was starting to really hurt
and become afraid of life almost,” she says. “I went from
partying, sleeping around and
being super social all the time, to
gradually pushing myself back
into isolation.”
From age 18 to 19, Lindsey recalls partying hard and
pretending to be content, to
feeling consumed again by her
depression. She began smoking
marijuana every day, all day.
“One thing I do remember
is that I was stoned all the time,
and it seemed pretty harmless,” she popped a day to snorting herself in for an outpatient reLindsey recalls. “I was able to them, which makes the addic- habilitation program. She recalls
work, and the times I was around tion worse.
being in the program six days a
my family, I was able to hide that
“I honestly can’t tell you week, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
I was stoned and it didn’t seem how many people I screwed
“It was the most terrifying
like a big deal. Then, it wasn’t over during those couple of thing to me when I was signing
enough.”
years and how many lies I told, the paperwork for the program,”
L i n d s e y s o o n b e c a m e including the lies I told myself,” says Lindsey. “I knew I needed
friends with a really big drug says Lindsey. “I felt in control of help, but it scared the hell out of
dealer in her area who could get my life and my drug use, that I me. My addiction and emotional
his hands on almost anything. could maintain, and that I was issues became a reality, and I was
This was easy access to all the still doing great, but I was so going to have to face them if I
pills and more that she knew she wrong.”
wanted to get better.”
shouldn’t touch, but didn’t care,
All of this led to an emotionThe program consisted of
she recalls.
al breakdown that would land daily group therapy, individual
“Growing up isn’t easy,” her in a rehabilitation program. therapy, art therapy, meetings
Lindsey says. “Responsibilities, Her body and mind could not with the psychiatrist every day
work, school, thinking of the handle all the substances any- to check medication doses,
future. Then there is love, rela- more, according to Lindsey.
and an educational class about
tionships, sex, pain,
addiction
fear, heartache and
and menevery other emotion
tal health
in between. I was an
disorders,
only child, and I had
Lindsey rea good family. But the
calls.
communication was
“It was
terrible, and I ended
very strucup learning how to do
tured,” she
things on my own and
says. “I was
deal in the only way I
drug testlearned how.”
ed almost
Lindsey was sufevery day.
fering from years of
I was also
repressed emotions
diagnosed
and feelings that acwith Bipocumulated on top of
lar II disorher depression. She
der and sereverted back to what
vere anxishe knew worked for
ety. I ended
her.
up learning
“I started using
that my unHydrocodone again,
diagnosed
at first, thinking if I
health
just took a few here
problems
and there it wouldn’t
factored
be a big deal,” Lindsey
into my
recalls. “That escalataddiction.”
ed quickly, and after
Living
a while, I didn’t care
with undiwhat pills I took or
agnosed
how many I took as
mental
long as it did the job.”
disorders is
Lindsey became
a big reaa functioning addict
son for her
very quickly. She says Lindsey has had many battles with drugs, and having finally drug use,
she was able to get overcome her struggles, speaks out about addiction
according
whatever job she ALLISON TERRY/PLAINSMAN PRESS
to Lindsey.
wanted and keep her
The doc family and friends
tors confrom finding out about her
“It got really bad before my veyed that many addicts are
drug use.
family supported me in getting just self-medicating, and mental
“If I wanted or needed up- help,” she explains. “I was drink- health, along with genetics, plays
pers, I popped those,” Lindsey ing until I would blackout, on top a big part. Getting her system
says. “If I wanted to feel numb of the pills, and my appearance clean and being put on the
or needed to relax, I popped got worse and worse, as did my right medication helped almost
whatever downers I had. Your behavior. I ended up being just a immediately, she recalls, but that
body builds up tolerance quickly hollow shell, instead of a person. doesn’t help you stay sober.
to any substance, and then you I was sexually assaulted during
“I started to feel kind of
need something stronger and one of my blackouts, and that normal again, and it made me
more of it to get the high you is what sent me over the edge.” able to focus on the program
want. Then it is all about hiding
Lindsey says that she be- better,” Lindsey says. “Thankyour behavior from everyone gan having panic attacks daily fully, the medication I was put
else. You turn into a really good that were hindering her work on was helping my withdrawal
liar.”
and her ability to function. Her symptoms. After I got over the
This routine went on for family had raised concerns, and
a long time, she recalls. Weed, the very few good friends she
painkillers, muscle relaxers, had left knew that something
alcohol, anxiety medication, was very wrong. It wasn’t until
sleeping pills and the random she finally saw for herself what
party drugs.
she had become that she asked
“I really didn’t care what for help.
it was,” Lindsey recalls. “I just
“I honestly could not recneeded to feel something. It’s ognize myself when I looked in
funny, though, because I was the mirror,” recalls Lindsey. “I had
actually trying to make myself lost so much weight, and my
feel nothing or not care if I was depression was worse than ever
really happy or sad. It didn’t mat- before. I was popping Vyvanse
ter what it was. If it was in front during the day to get through
of me, I would try it.”
work, and then snorting Oxy to
Abusing drugs catches up relax and sleep at night. I finally
to people. For Lindsey, the big- went to my family and told them
gest problem was the painkillers I needed help.”
and Oxycodone. She went from
Lindsey stayed at her parlosing count of how many pills ents’ house when she signed
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fear of being in the program, I
slowly embraced it and learned
a lot from the doctors, the other
patients and myself.”
After, the six weeks went
by, aided by the intense therapy
and strict routine of the program, Lindsey was released. She
continued seeing her therapist
and psychiatrist regularly.
“By the time I was released,
I was feeling great,” says Lindsey.
“I learned about my mental
health and dealt with a lot of
issues I had never dealt with
before, at least not dealt with
in healthy ways. I was clean,
became more confident and
started to feel like myself again
for the first time in years.”
Th e ro a d to re cove r y
doesn’t end there, though. You
have to learn to live again in the
real world, not in the comfort
you find in therapy, Lindsey explains. You have to take the tools
you learned to deal with the
problems and to fight the urge
that will still be there to use.
“I was feeling so good when
I got out that I believed I would
never use again,” says Lindsey.
“I brushed off all the problems I
dealt with and moved forward,
but a little too quickly. A few
months after I left the program,
I ended up relapsing.”
Relapse is actually fairly
common in recovering addicts,
which is why support is extremely important to the process. Lindsey says that she didn’t
use drugs for very long because
her family was more aware of
the problem and helped get her
back on her feet.
“I ended up going to Narcotics Anonymous, something
my therapist wanted me to do
as soon as I wasn’t an outpatient
anymore,” says Lindsey. “It was
a completely different environment, being surrounded by tons
of other addicts.”
Narcotics Anonymous follows the traditional 12-step
program for recovery and is run
by addicts. The environment
provided a new perspective and
a new kind of support than what
she had before.
“You are surrounded by
people who are all connected
solely through addiction, but
people who were working the
program and wanted to be sober,” Lindsey says. “I embraced
it and got a sponsor so I could
begin working the 12-steps.”
Lindsey continued her therapy and attended NA daily to
help keep her on track. While
NA was a great support system
when she was really struggling
Editorial Staff
Charlie Ehrenfeld / Advisor
Jayme Lozano / Editor-in-Chief
Sierra Taylor / Photo Editor
Zach Hollingsworth / News Editor
Nicole Trugillo / Opinion Editor
Allison Terry / Feature Editor
Caitlin Welborn / Entertainment Editor
Derek Lopez / Sports Editor
Aaron Gregg / Online Editor
Devin Reyna / Editorial Assistant
Josh Hamilton / Editorial Assistant
Jenny Garza / Editorial Assistant
to stay sober, it also ended up
causing other issues, she recalls.
“The meetings are great,
but your life can be so wrapped
up and confined to NA that you
aren’t living in the real world,”
Lindsey says. “You go for help
and not to feel judged and are
welcomed with open arms. But
every time you go, the focus is on
drugs and addiction, of course. I
started to stray from going to so
many meetings, because I felt
like the 12-steps were outlining
my life for me and not allowing
me to be my own person.”
The programs and meetings
have to be strict and set up with
a routine for order and structure.
It also has to be a system that
could work for everyone, which
is why having a sponsor is important to have a close relationship to deal with your specific
issues, according to Lindsey.
“I just got to a point where I
felt like I needed to find my own
way,” says Lindsey. “I needed to
find my own strength to be able
to combat my addiction and
move forward with my life. We
all deal with our problems differently, and I felt it was time for
me to move on and actually live.”
Lindsey spent a few more
months working to save up
money and move to Lubbock
so she could work to get into
Texas Tech University. She was
22 when she moved in 2012
and has been a student at SPC,
working to transfer to Tech.
“I had to have faith in myself
that I would be able to stay clean
and get my life back,” Lindsey
says. “I finally had goals I was
reaching and was becoming my
own person. I took everything I
learned from the rehab program,
NA, and my past experiences, to
remind me why I never wanted
to look back.”
The road to recovery is long
and hard, but filled with many
types of support to help an
addict seek recovery. The key
to recovery is that you have to
want it, Lindsey says. There will
always be challenges, but there
is a way to recovery for everyone,
if they want it.
“I never want to be that
person I was for all those years,”
says Lindsey. “I lied to everyone. I
stole money from my family. I did
things that I don’t want to share,
and to this day, I don’t recognize
myself in photos from when I
was using. I found my own way
to recovery and have learned to
deal with my problems, take care
of my health and learned what I
want in life. I won’t let anything
take that away from me.”
Staff Writers & Photographers
Ashleigh Wolbrueck Brittany Brown
Wesley Frick
Rachel Gililland
Skylar Hernandez
Randi Adams
Faith Constancio
Paisley Arredondo
Katherine Sommermeyer
3
News
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Former heroin user recounts life of dealing narcotics, eventual recovery
(Editor’s note: This story
is the tenth part of a multipart series, “Doped Up,”
examining the issue of illicit
drug abuse that begins in
Issue #7 and concludes
in this issue. Several staff
members took it upon themselves to interview, take
photographs and conduct
research. The results of
their combined efforts follow.)
by ZACH HOLLINGSWORTH
news editor
It was when he passed out
in front of the school where his
mother worked after a threeday heroin binge, with his body
shutting down, that his wake-up
call finally came.
He couldn’t breathe. He was
“dope sick,” withdrawing from
years of heroin abuse. After this
latest binge, his lifestyle could
no longer continue. As he puts
it, “that was the day I got clean.”
After being rushed to the hospital, and being strapped to a bed
for three days while detoxing,
he finally agreed to go to rehab.
But his journey to sobriety
was a long, painful affair.
Andrew (whose name has
been changed to protect his
identity), had used heroin, along
with other drugs, off and on for
four years and four months. He
had sold OxyContin, shot up
every day, dodged police, lived
in other people’s homes, lost
friends to overdoses and prison,
lost a fiancé, a house, seven cars,
and alienated his family.
Looking at Andrew now,
one couldn’t tell that he used
to shoot up heroin every day, or
that he used to sell dope. One
only sees an average 20-something man. He spoke with the
Plainsman Press in a recent
interview, recounting his days
as an addict.
His story is like so many
others. Heroin has a ravaging
effect on any life that it touches,
and stories like Andrew’s, which
actually has a happy ending,
are rare. It began, however, like
any other.
“I graduated in 2006… (I)
started smoking weed and was
drinking almost every night,”
says Andrew. “I hurt my shoulder,
so I started taking oxys (OxyContin), buying them from a guy
there (at my job).”
Andrew explains that when
his dealer ended up having to
go to prison to “sit out some
tickets,” he gave Andrew his connection. This was when Andrew
started dealing OxyContin. By
this point, he was taking up to
eight 80-milligram OxyContin a
day, and spending large sums of
money on his habit. But then Andrew discovered heroin, which is
much cheaper than prescription
pain pills.
“I tried heroin three times,
then started shooting it around
Christmas,” recalls Andrew. “I
started shooting up right before
I turned 19. It was one of those
things that…I liked the way oxys
felt. One (reason) I’d use a whole
lot was just the way my dad had
divorced my mom…it was a big
ordeal when I was 14. I didn’t
know how to tell people I wasn’t
OK. I didn’t have to think about
all of that when I was high. I felt
great. I was happy.”
The first time Andrew shot
up, he decided, “I want to do this
every day, forever. And I did until
I gave out.”
He later attended Amarillo
College and then West Texas
A&M University but after a while
of this, he got “fed up” with the
experience of college. Andrew
says he didn’t see the point in
going to college in order to earn
$30,000 or $40,000 a year, when
he was making all the money he
needed from selling drugs.
“I was selling dope on the
side, and $1,000 could pass
through my hands in an afternoon,” says Andrew. “I was engaged, (but) I didn’t know what
I was doing. I was flying by the
seat of my pants, every minute of
every day. I’d been with her since
I was 18, (we) got engaged when
I was 20…and she left me when
I was 22, because I was never
home. I wasn’t in school. So
that…year, I just kind of gave up.”
After his fiancé left him,
Andrew’s life was a downward
spiral into heavy use and dealing
drugs.
“I went full-time dealer,”
says Andrew. “(I was) jumping
from house to house, and couch
surfing…I eventually ended up
going to Denver, and going back
to Amarillo (to) sell. I didn’t want
to do anything else.”
Andrew says that during
his time spent dealing and as a
heavy user, he somehow avoided the pitfalls many other addicts face, both from the law and
from the dangers of heroin itself.
“I had close run-ins (with
the police),” recalls Andrew.
“The day before my birthday, I
ran a stop sign, and a bike cop
stopped me. I had a backpack
full of needles, scales…25-to-life
stuff. But something made him
not search my car.”
In addition to this close call
with the bicycle cop, there were
other run-ins. Andrew recalls the
day his fiancé left him.
“I flipped out, (and) told
her to get out of the house,”
says Andrew. “I came back after
I went and picked up a bunch of
stuff, and the cops watched me
shoot up through a window. I
had seven cops kick in my door,
because they were called on a
suicide attempt. (They) found
a crack pipe, a meth pipe, weed
pipe, needles, heroin, scales….I
thought ‘Oh, it’s over.’”
But, miraculously, the police
simply made him get rid of all
the drugs. Andrew acknowledges how bad the scene must have
looked, especially to the police,
who were there attempting to
stop what they thought was a
suicide. Based on the scene, the
cops, Andrew recalls, thought he
was suicidal. But, by that point,
this kind of scene was “every day
to me. I’m just having a one-man
party.”
There was the time he nodded off and planted his car firmly
into a tree after running into
three parked cars and a street
sign, with “a couple of 8 balls
of heroin” stashed behind the
speaker of the car. He escaped
the law then, after ditching some
contraband down a nearby ally,
and got away with the crashed
car due to the police thinking his
blood sugar levels were too high
(Andrew is a diabetic).
Aside from the issues with
the law that every drug addict
faces at some point, there was
the ever-present danger of overdosing Andrew had to contend
with. During his time as a heavy
user, he overdosed four times,
and survived. Andrew recalls all
of this with a sense of disbelief.
“I’ve dodged so many bullets,” says Andrew, “between
that (the law) and overdosing.
There are people that used…
less than me (that) I know are
dead. There’s people that sold
less drugs than me, like a onetime deal, get caught and go
to prison…I shouldn’t be here,
I shouldn’t have all of these
amazing things. It’s because I got
clean and got busy.”
The story of how he actually
got clean began with an ugly
three-day binge in the wake of
the death of a friend.
“On March 17, 2011, I had a
friend of mine who had just adopted his little brother from his
abusive mom,” recalls Andrew.
Clothesline Project brings awareness of
domestic, sexual violence on campus
by ALLISON TERRY
feature editor
eggs,” and simply “Don’t,” were
displayed April 22 to April 25.
“It’s two parts,” explained
Urisonya Flunder, associate
dean of students, who originally
brought the idea to SPC. “The actual process of making the shirts
can sometimes be very cathartic
for individuals who dealt with or
have been involved in any type
of situations dealing with assault
or intimate partner violence.
And it’s also very educational
and affirming for people who
have been in the process as they
see the shirts.”
its own display of shirts,” said
Flunder, “and we have enough
shirts now that we can do that.”
Chelsea Carlton, women’s
housing director, has been put
in charge of the project and has
watched it grow since last year.
“We want it to get bigger
and bigger,” says Carlton. “…
We were able to fill more of the
courtyard than last year, and
we weren’t even able to use all
of them because we ran out of
room, which was hilarious. It
wasn’t something we expected,
for it to get this big.”
most underreported crime in the
United States, and in the world,”
says Carlton. “We really want to
Shirts painted with phrases
raise awareness so these people
such as, “I am not alone in my
know that there is tons of suppain,” “No means no,” “3 out of 4
port out there: tons of programs,
that see this shirt will experience
24-hour hotlines, chat rooms,
abuse” and “Cherish her” hang
Women’s Protective Services…
on clotheslines.
We just want to get the word
These recycled shirts hangout there that they have support,
ing in the courtyard between
and they have resources, and it’s
the Administration Building
not something you should be
and the Student Center are not
silent about.”
merely decoration, but a stand
One student who made a
against violence and rape.
shirt
welcomed the opportunity
The original clothesline
to
grow
and learn through the
project began in Cape Cod, Masproject.
sachusetts in 1990 to raise
“I wanted to
awareness about the grim
participate
because
statistics of domestic and
the
project
is such
sexual abuse in the United
as
eye-opening
exStates. Several of the core
perience
to
what
group of women were
some people have
survivors of abuse who
been through and
wished to take a stand.
just showed how
With the act of creating
many people are
a shirt against violence, it
willing and ready to
educates onlookers and
help when domescreates unity for those
tic abuse happens,”
affected. Since the initial
said sophomore
movement, more than
Avery Bouffard.
500 projects have been
The student
created.
p
a
i
n
te d a s h i r t
One of those 500,
that
had
the words
S outh Plains College
“
L
o
v
e
D oesn’t
began its own annual
Hurt”
displayed
on
clothesline project, enthe
front.
couraging students and T-shirts on display in the Quad area on the Levelland campus display the need for
“ The event
faculty to paint donat- awareness about sexual assaults and domestic abuse during the second annual
was
amazing,” said
ed shirts with anti-abuse Clothesline Project.
Bouffard.
“It lasted
ASHLEIGH WOLBRUECK/PLAINSMAN PRESS
phrases.
all
week,
and we
This year, more than
had
an
amazing
100 t-shirts furthering
This is the school’s second
Carlton explained with a turnout. It made me proud to
awareness of sexual and domesyear
of
participation,
and
inlaugh
that they always run out be a part of the SPC community.”
tic violence were decorated in
volvement
and
the
number
of
of
shirts
to decorate at the end.
For more information on
the Student Center mall area on
shirts
completed
have
doubled,
She
hopes
that
the
ever-growing
the
clothesline
project, visit the
the Levelland campus on April
according
to
Flunder.
multitude
of
shirts
will
speak
to
websites
www.clotheslineproj15 and April 17. Many messages,
“We are going to try next survivors of abuse.
ect.org and www.facebook.com/
including “Stop the abuse,”“Hapyear
to
have
each
campus
have
“The
big
thing
is
it’s
the
clotheslineSPC
pens everyday,” “Real men beat
“He went to the methadone
clinic to try and quit (heroin). He
had severe trauma as a kid, and
was prescribed Xanax, and the
first dose killed him.”
Andrew was “shaken up.” He
didn’t feel like what had just happened was real, he explained.
Standing at his friend’s funeral,
he knew “it was over.” Ferrying
drugs back and forth from Denver to Amarillo was a “terrible ordeal,” due to the constant threat
of jail time. It was also made
worse by the fact that he had to
go without insulin during these
runs, exacerbating his diabetes.
“I knew I didn’t want to sell
anymore, because I was afraid
I was going to go to prison,”
explains Andrew. “I didn’t know
what I was going to do, but I just
knew I didn’t want to quit. So I
spent the next three days just
getting messed up.”
This binge culminated in
Andrew waking up unable to
breathe, dope sick, and broke.
In a panic, and delusional from
the dope sickness, he went to
the school his mother worked
at, thinking, “I could somehow
convince someone to give me a
breathing treatment from one of
the kids. I figured I can’t breathe,
so I need a breathing treatment.”
After receiving this treatment,
Andrew says, he planned on
finding some money and getting
back to his binge.
However, this wasn’t meant
to be. Andrew collapsed in front
of the school. EMTs soon arrived
to rush him to the hospital. According to Andrew, the prognosis at the hospital was not that
hopeful.
“ The reason I couldn’t
breathe,” Andrew explains, “was
my body was shutting down.
I had next to no potassium in
my system. They weren’t sure
if I was going to make to make
it through the night, (but) if I
made it through the night, I had
a pretty…good chance.”
Andrew says he doesn’t
recall much from his stay in the
hospital, only vague pieces. He
was told afterward that he got
into a fight with eight orderlies,
threatening them with the IV he
had ripped out of his arm.
“I told them I wanted to
get high,” says Andrew, “and if I
couldn’t go get high, I was going
to burn their houses down with
them inside of it. So I earned
myself a 72-hour hold.”
When he woke up, Andrew
recalls, he thought he had been
out for a day, when he had actually been out for three. At some
point during this haze, he says,
that he agreed to go to rehab.
“I left the hospital, and I was
supposed to go to Dove Tree (in
Lubbock),” says Andrew. “(But)
I wanted to get high one last
time, because who wants to go
to rehab sober? I was like ‘I’m not
doing this.’”
He explains that, when he
and his mother, who was taking
him to rehab, stopped at a red
light, he told her, “I’m not doing
this, I’ll see you later,” and got out
of the car. His mother warned
him, “If you close that door, I’m
done with you forever.” He apologized and closed the door.
“I started walking, (and) that
was the first time something
clicked,” recalls Andrew. “(I) was
walking along the highway…
realizing that it was the first day
in four years I hadn’t woken up
hurting. I could stand up kind of
straight…and I was about to go
walk back into hell.”
This moment of clarity lasted until he got to his friend’s
house, where, he explained, his
mother knew he was going.
“She called in a couple of
traffic warrants I had, and had
the cops arrest me,” says Andrew.
“So I got to go sit in jail for five
days…right out of detox into
jail. (I) had a lot of time to sit
and think.”
Andrew says he got out of
jail the day they came to get him
for rehab. He went to Dove Tree,
and went through the program
there. He says he “played the vic-
tim” during his time there, only
to have the counselors there tell
him that everyone deals with
terrible things. They told him
“You’ve got to find a way around
it, or it’s going to kill you.”
Andrew explains that even
though he did well in the program and got healthier, he was
still holding out, thinking he
would “just go use a little bit.”
He says he reasoned this out
because of the level at which he
had been using was so high that
he thought if he simply didn’t
go back to that same amount
he would be alright. However,
about a week before he left the
program, Andrew received a
visit from an employee of Dove
Tree who changed all of that. The
employee asked him if he knew
a girl named Kelly.
“I was like, ‘Yeah,’” recalls
Andrew. “Kelly was a girl that
I cared about…She’d gone to
Dove Tree…and got out while
I was still using…she had gone
to treatment, met a guy, and
moved down to Austin. She
disappeared, and they found
her dead in her apartment from
a heroin overdose.”
Andrew says this news
sparked something in him, forcing him to finally decide that he
couldn’t go back to the life he
had been living.
“I didn’t want to be back in
that spot where my brother was
saying, ‘Well, if he dies, at least he
won’t be fighting anymore,’” says
Andrew. “You know, to hear your
brother saying that (if I) died, it
might be a good thing…finding
out I kicked my mom in the face
(while detoxing)…That’s (expletive) up.”
After rehab, he moved to a
sober living home in Lubbock,
and worked as a dishwasher
at an area restaurant. During
this time, Andrew explains, he
was afraid of his surroundings,
finding himself afloat in a place
that was dangerously close to
the ugly world he used to live in.
“I got really scared of the
world,” Andrew says. “I (had) sold
in Lubbock. I knew where to get
it (heroin) in Lubbock. I knew
people that lived here…I know
where heroin is, and I have a car.
I basically just went from work to
home. So I’m doing all of that,
and I finally (called) my sponsor.”
Andrew says he and his
sponsor when through the steps
of recovery, and that he got
heavily involved with meetings.
He went to AA meetings “every
day for… the first nine months.”
After this initial shaky period, Andrew’s recovery truly
took off. Since the early days,
Andrew had gotten involved
helping other recovering addicts through their own difficult
recoveries while working at an
area sober living home.
“I get to help guys (who
are) straight out of treatment,”
says Andrew. “It’s been a huge
part of my life…just watching
other people grow…It’s what
makes the hell I went through
worthwhile. I’ve OD’d four times,
I’ve lost a fiancé, a house…I’ve
watched my friends die…But I
can say, despite all that (stuff ),
I’m helping other people.”
Andrew says he has to be
careful and watchful over his
own sobriety, while keeping
a positive outlook on things.
He acknowledges that he will
“always have that part of me
that’s raring and ready to go,”
but he realizes that getting high
is simply not worth it. As he puts
it, “that’s the last thing I want for
my life.”
Taking a sip of his coffee,
Andrew looks into the distance,
as if optimistically into his own
future, and shares a final thought
about the life he has now, after
three years of sobriety.
“I’m not Andrew, that person in recovery,” he says. “I’m just
another dude on the street…but
I have to remind myself…who I
am. I’ll never be the ‘have a beer
after work’ guy. But I’m cool with
that. What I have now is better
than that.”
4
News
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Former inmate rises above drug addiction, assists others in rehabilitation
by ALLISON TERRY
feature editor
In and out of jail, running
with gangs, and selling and
using drugs. Most people wish
to simply write these troubled
men and women off.
But one individual is proof
people can turn their lives
around with reform and rehabilitation.
Currently the program
and reentry coordinator for
the Lubbock County Detention
Center, Sam Hontz admits his
career path has been a long
journey.
“I oversee the program on
the religious and secular side
in our facility,” says Hontz, who
has worked for the prison for
about five years, and served
as a chaplain before his promotion.
But before his career at the
prison, he was on the other side
of the bars.
“Before I was a teenager,
I started using drugs,” says
Hontz, explaining he grew up
around his father, who was a
user.
Coinciding with his drug
use, from a young age he was
involved in gangs.
“I kind of really believed
in the gang side of it and sold
drugs,” Hontz told the Plainsman Press in a recent interview.
“…I moved up in the ranks in
the gang world and selling and
using… I would sell whatever I
could get my hands on. I would
sell ecstasy, pot, meth, coke.”
Hontz notes that when he
went into the “biker world,” marijuana and meth were the drugs
of choice.
“The meth kind of screwed
me up real good, and the pot
would slow me down from the
meth,” says Hontz. “And then
there was always alcohol involved. I made it up the ranks of
the organization. Then I found
out there is no honor amongst
five from California. “It wasn’t
really a racist thing. It was more
like being proud of who you
are. And they changed everything for me. I was able to stand
up, and I wouldn’t get messed
around with.”
After being a part of this
gang, another extremely large
remembers running across the
nation from the law.
“I was an inmate in New York
and Colorado, and for a little
bit, in Fort Worth,” says Hontz,
noting at the time he had also
paid his probationary fines off
with money he had received
from selling drugs. Yet he never
“But I kind of felt like I hadn’t
lived enough,” explained Hontz.
“You know, I hadn’t experienced
life enough. I wasn’t ready to
be some Christian who doesn’t
have any fun.”
Yet, when the World Trade
Center was destroyed in 2001,
he lost everything and moved
ing them, and I finally got my
shot at it.”
In the ‘90’s, it was a fad
among young men to sag
their pants and wear their hats
backwards. Knowing his father wouldn’t condone his conforming to these actions, Hontz
avoided such dress and attitude.
As a result, he often got into
fights with those who acted
differently.
“I met these kids from California that actually stood up
for being white,” says Hontz,
referring to a group of four or
and influential gang took notice
of Hontz.
“They took a liking to me,
and I felt like I was graduating
college and I was ready for my
career,” says Hontz. “But as I made
it up in that structure, I realized
it wasn’t anything but junkies or
daddy issues, didn’t get hugged
enough or whatever, and there
was no real honor in it. All the
glamour and stuff you see on TV
don’t exist, and then you just end
up in places like this.”
From age 17 to 21, Hontz
was charged with drug offenses.
“A lot of things I did were drug
related, you know, because they
were things I wouldn’t have done
if I was sober.”
Despite crime and incarceration, Hontz reached a turning
point in his life.
“When I was 25, I cried out
to God, and from then until now,
my life has been transformed,”
says Hontz.
At age 18, he had been living
in New York City when friends
had taught him about God.
thing that shows what we do,
something that people can take
home with them,” McNutt said.
“We have already been doing
performances forever, but we
needed something ‘physical,’
something people could have.
We think it’s an awesome thing,
“The top students [who
were chosen for the CD] are the
ones who are attentive, always
showing up to class, the ones
that have skill, and really work
hard are the ones who get to
be part of the project,” McNutt
explained.
back to Colorado, where his
mother was and began selling
drugs again.
“I had a little boy, Sammy,”
says Hontz, pointing to a photo
of a cute child on his shelf. “…I
had this little boy in front of me,
and I was losing my temper with
him because he wouldn’t stop
crying. He was an infant, and,
I mean, it doesn’t work to lose
your temper with an infant, and
it just kind of pushed me back
from it because I remember my
dad being physical toward me.”
Soon after, at a bar with
his close friend, “Irish Dave,”
Hontz reached a moment of
realization.
“I said I can’t raise this boy
this way, and I started crying out
to God real heavily, and he was
faithful to me,” says Hontz. “…I
mean I had a refrigerator full of
drugs selling it, and he faithfully
came and kind of just lifted me
up out of it.”
Rising up far from the place
he was once in, he said just two
weeks ago, Lubbock County
Sheriff Kelly Rowe gave him a
badge.
“Things like that don’t just
happen,” says Hontz. “It’s all
God…And it’s not like it was
changed overnight…It’s been
a long road, full of bumps and
twists and turns…I just didn’t
want to do it anymore, and I was
tired of it. I wanted to see if there
was anything else out there, and
there is.”
After he quit dealing drugs,
Hontz had worked construction
and manual labor jobs.
“It was scary,” admits Hontz.
“I had to dig ditches for a living,
instead of dealing drugs. So I
had to work hard for my money.
I also found out that not everybody works hard. So as long as
you work hard, they are going
to promote, and you’re going to
go further than everyone else.”
Later, he moved to Lubbock
for construction work, for a position as an electrician that he had
discovered online.
One day, he was working
outside on Highway 1585, and
was approached by a small,
Hispanic man who tried to sell
him drugs. Hontz refused, but
the matter weighed on him.
“As he was walking away,
all this stuff hit my heart and my
head about where he grew up
and what caused him to be this
way,” says Hontz. “…I got really
pissed off at God, and in that
moment, what’s the trip is that I
started crying. I’m not a big crier,
but I couldn’t stop, and I was
real frustrated and I was mad
because I couldn’t stop crying…
thieves, and there’s holes in the
politics.”
Though wishing to refrain
from providing the names of
the gangs he was involved with,
Hontz recalls his initial attraction.
“It was a biker gang,”says
Hontz. “I grew up really admir-
New student performance CD showcases talent
by NICOLE TRUGILLO
opinion editor
fessional song writer, one of our
song writing instructors, and do
rewrites on the song and get it
In the music industr y,
to a point where we think it’s
it’s hard to make a name for
professional.”
yourself, especially if you don’t
McNutt continued, “If that
have much experience when it
makes it through, then we
comes to writing and producing
schedule a recording session,
your own
and only the
songs.
top students,
M any
top recording
aspiring
students, top
musicians
performing stulook for
dents get to be
that one
part of the projoppor tuect. They get
nity for
asked specificaltheir tally for each song,
ents to be
so we do a redisplayed.
cording session,
Fortunateand from then
ly, South
on, it comes toPlains
gether.”
College is
“ The Cre providing
ative Arts Expethat oprience” will be
portunity
sold for $10. The
for stuprofit from the
dents to
CD will be recyshowcase
cled and used
their musifor the next
cal talent.
project. Any
T h e
T-shirts or merCommerchandise will be
cial Music
put toward the
Departnext project as
ment is
Students who are part of the new student performance CD, “The Creative Arts
well.
releasing
The Coma new stu- Experience.”
mercial Music
dent per- KATHERINE SOMMERMEYER/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Department has
formance
big plans for the
CD, ‘The Creative Arts ExperiThe songs on the CD were future. Since the first CD only
ence,’ which features eight songs and we’ll also be sending it to our
from all different varieties of advisory board members who all written by the participating has eight tracks, the next CD is
include Grammy Award-winning students. There also was a selec- expected to have 12 to 15 tracks
music.
“It will be all the way from songwriters. So you’ll never tion process that each of them in the future. They hope that next
semester the video production
bluegrass to alternative, kind know if a song might get picked had to go through.
“The students had to turn program will make music videos
of pop-like stuff,” said Wade up, and all of a sudden a student
McNutt, department coordina- goes from being here to having a in the songs, and then a panel to go along with the songs on
listened to them,” McNutt ex- the CD.
tor, in a recent interview with hit song. You never know.”
There were only a select plained. “After that, we decid“Hopefully, raising enough
the Plainsman Press.
The Commercial Music De- few of the students who had the ed which songs weren’t good money off of this as well, we want
partment wanted to produce a opportunity to be part of the CD. enough, if they needed to re- to send some of our groups to
student CD to present what the The students who worked the write, or decided that they’re Austin, or national, to go and play
students do in the Creative Arts hardest and showed the most good how they are. So if the and meet up with alumni that are
dedication were those who had songs needed a rewrite, the there,” McNutt said. “I have really
program.
students had to get with a pro- big hopes for it all.”
“We wanted to have some- a chance to part of the CD.
I was driving home that night
and I just started screaming at
God. I was mad about how he
could let this go on.”
The next day, he went to
work and the exact situation
happened again. After consecutive days of being offered drugs
and the emotional rebound
from it, Hontz called the
company owner, Jay.
“I told him I couldn’t
work for him,” says Hontz.
“…And I say because I’ve
got to go do something
about the world and how
bad it is.”
The next week, West
Texas M inistr ies was
formed, and Hontz became a part of the spiritual
group. Soon after, Captain Finley in the Lubbock
County Sheriff’s Department called Hontz and
offered him a job as a
chaplain.
“You’ve got to take
care of everyone’s religious needs,” says Hontz.
“Whether you’re Buddhist
or Christian or Muslim… A
lot of them have a special
diet, so you’ll take care of
that through the kitchen.
You distribute religious
material.”
Five years after being
hired at the prison, Hontz
helps inmates, some with
backgrounds not unlike
his own, find recovery through
programs within the detention
center.
“I get to kind of think it up
and have it built,” says Hontz.
“…I’ve got these two guys under
me that are on fire, and my assistant out there… Everybody’s real
proud of what we’re doing here.
We are growing tremendously.”
Now, Hontz has a chaplain,
with about 150 volunteers and
an education and rehabilitation
coordinator, who has a team of
counselors. The chaplain takes
care of the religious programs,
and the education and rehabilitation coordinator handles the
secular, sometimes mandatory
programs. The prison also contains an incentive pod, or area of
cells, that’s fully programmatic.
Once inmates earn their way into
the HOPE (Hard work and Opportunity Producing Excellence)
pod, they are introduced to even
more educational programs.
“It’s a pod that’s filled with
programs,” explains Hontz. “It’s
filled with counseling. It’s filled
with NA (Narcotics Anonymous),
AA (Alcoholics Anonymous),
educational programs. We have
right around 1,200 inmates in
here. We find these inmates that
really do want to take advantage
of everything, and we put them
in that pod… As hard as they
work is as hard as we’ll work for
them.”
Aside from the HOPE pod,
one specific program called
“Save A Life” allows a church to
“adopt” an inmate.
“The whole church body
will surround that inmate with
all the resources they would
need from start to finish,” says
Hontz, mentioning First Baptist
and Aldersgate’s involvement.
“…When they’re released and
they’ll come out there with a
career-style job, with a place
to stay, transportation if they
need it.”
Through this program and
others similar to it, many willing
inmates become rehabilitated
during their time spent in the
prison.
“I think that people are open
to recovery once they come in
here, because they are forced
into sobriety,” says Hontz. “And
then they start thinking about
the things that they’ve done,
so spiritual needs…so we get
a really captive audience, and
I would say it’s huge for people that are seeking God. I’m
a Christian myself, so I go that
route, and I did go that route in
my own life. So it’s everything to
me, and for some people in here,
it’s everything.”
5
News
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Mother, son dance team jive to victory in ‘Texans’ competition
by SKYLAR HERNANDEZ
staff writer
Family members, students,
and the community all crowded
around to watch the South Plains
College Ballroom Dance
team with their “students”
to do the jive, waltz , and
jitterbug and many more
exciting dance routines in
this year’s Dancing with
the Texans competition.
On April 17, the
South Plains College Ballroom Dance Team hosted
the second Dancing with
the Texans evening in the
Sundown Room in the
Student Center on the
Levelland campus.
The night included
performances by Christian Cantu and Denise
Tarango, Matthew Race and
Lauren Strong, Peter Ongolo
and Krystal Torres, Jose Hermosillo and Adriana Anaya,
Ariel Deleon, and Melissa Padila
and Darwin Mendez, along with
group dances between acts the
floor was open to whoever felt
like dancing.
The competition featured:
Mike Harrison director of the
natatorium and instructor in
physical education, and Samantha Infante, dancing the cha
cha/Viennese and the waltz/
jive, who were the returning
champions; Lathe Tucker and
Kade Corley, dancing the Fox
trot and East Coast swing; Jesse
Day, assistant professor of computer information systems, and
ual Escalante, dancing the East
Coast swing.
Also competing were Sharon Race, assistant professor
of English, and Matthew Race,
dancing the fox trot; Sammy Vil-
Danielle Ayala, dancing the cha
cha and East Coast swing; Keila
Ketchersid, associate professor
of information of nutrition, and
Jonathan Baca, dancing the
country two-step, and triple
two-step; Tim Winders, associate
dean of information technology,
and Calin Clay, dancing the East
Coast swing; Shirley Davis, assistant professor of mathematics,
and Nick Salinas, dancing the
cha cha and jitterbug; and Lou
Ann Ellison, secretary to dean
of arts and sciences, and Man-
larreal and Krystal Torres, dancing the East Coast swing, tango
and merengue; Nancy Smith,
assistant professor of anthropology, and Jake Quintanilla, dancing the Viennese waltz; Yancy
Nunez, dean of the division of
arts and sciences, and Adriana
Anaya, dancing the fox trot,
cha cha, and East Coast swing;
and Laura Franks, instructor of
mathematics and engineering,
and Jose Hermosillo, dancing
the salsa and West Coast swing.
Sharon Race and Matthew
Former professor retires from
vice president post after 33 years
by JAYME LOZANO
editor-in-chief
Regents, Riley was also involved
with a lot of big technological
changes made during the course
of his career.
“When I first came here in
‘93,” recalls Riley, “we were kind
of a technological backwater,
compared to the Lubbock campus. They were much more
ahead technically there than
we were.”
Riley explains that while
there were other people who
had developed the college, there
pus,” says Riley. “First of all, you
have to be connected to the
Internet. Second, anybody that
In the 33 years that Tony
works there that needs a comRiley has been at South Plains
puter has to have one. Third,
College, he has experienced a
you have to have someone to
lot of change.
oversee it all.”
Now that Riley is retiring,
Riley came back and exhe is looking back on his time at
plained
his experience with then
SPC that started in 1981.
president
Dr. Gary McDaniel,
Riley first began his assowho
told
him
to start setting it
ciation with SPC as an adjunct
up.
That
is
when
Riley hired Tim
professor in accounting at the
Winders,
the
current
dean of
Reese campus after he met Don
information
technology.
Yarborough, the academic dean
Riley also
at the time. Riley
changed
the calling
was working at the
system
at
the
college,
denim plant in Litwhich
he
says
was
tlefield, but thought
pretty
primitive
when
he would like to try
he got here.
teaching.
“When I was
“I told him, ‘I’ve
on
faculty,
I bought
got a CPA, and I’m an
my
own
telephone
MBA, and I’d like to
receiver with an anteach some classes
swering machine,” Ripart-time if anything
ley explains. “I could
ever comes up,’” Riley
take calls by students
recalls.
when I wasn’t there,
Yarborough got
because otherwise
in touch with Riley
they wouldn’t do it
three weeks later, as
and you didn’t know
the professor at the
what was going on.”
time was in the Air
Riley adds, “We
Force and was being
set
up
a switchboard
transferred out in the
to
answer
the phone
middle of the semesand
transfer
it, and
ter. While Riley jokes
now
we
have
one
opthat it wasn’t the best
erator,
and
that’s
all
way to start his teachwe
use
campus-wise.
ing career, he made
it work and found his Tony Riley, vice president for finance and adminis- Everything goes from
there.”
first love.
tration is retiring after 33 years at SPC.
Being involved in
“I don’t think I’ve JAYME LOZANO/PLAINSMAN PRESS
all
these
changes has
found anything that
been
an
enjoyable
is more personally
was
a
stage
when
it
became
part
of
Riley’s
time
here,
espesatisfying than to teach,” Riley
harder
to
find
a
solution
to
outcially
now
that
he
sees
where
the
explains. “You start out with
dated
technology
problems.
So
college
was
and
where
it
is
now.
a class where nobody knows
While Riley is looking formuch, and at the end of it, I Riley, along with then-president
Dr.
Marvin
Baker,
helped
set
up
ward
to taking a cruise to Anthought they knew a lot. I’ve had
the
main
frame
system.
chorage,
Alaska, he is going to
people tell me that they didn’t
“Registration,
registrar,
remiss
the
relationships
that came
want to take it and didn’t want to
cords
and
the
business
office
with
working
at
SPC,
from the
learn anything, but they ended
weren’t
connected
to
each
othtwo
assistants
he
has
had
in Staup learning something anyway.”
er,
because
we
didn’t
have
the
cia
Doshier
and
Debbie
Britton,
Riley continued teaching
Principles of Accounting part- hardware to run it,” says Riley. to having a friendship with Dr.
time for nine years before teach- “So I talked to some folks and Kelvin Sharp, president of SPC.
“Tony Riley has been a solid
ing full-time for three more. He ran around to three or four colleges
and
universities
that
had
part
of the administration for
then accepted his job as the
enrollment
like
ours
that
used
many
years and has done a
vice president for finance and
the
same
type
of
hardware
we
terrific
job,
” says Dr. Sharp. “I apadministration, reporting to the
would
have
to
use
to
figure
out
preciate
his
friendship, as well as
Board of Regents.
what
to
do.
”
his
professionalism
towards me.”
“It was a good opportuniThe
next
thing
Riley
helped
The
only
part
of
his career
ty,” says Riley. “I had done it for
with
was
setting
the
Internet
up
Riley
says
he
would
change
is
awhile, and I thought maybe I’ll
on
campus,
which
he
realized
not
starting
at
SPC
sooner.
take another look at something.
“SPC has always been really
I really enjoy this job because of the campus needed after going
to
a
conference
in
Houston
good
to me,” says Riley. “I enthe challenges I have, and I enjoy
called
the
League
of
Innovation.
joyed
the
people and the camahaving to deal with those and
“Someone
said
these
things
raderie
and
everything. This is a
getting through them.”
you
have
to
have
for
your
camreally
good
place.
Other than reporting to the
Matthew Race was filled could dance with faculty, I knew I
Race, a mother and a son, won
the competition and admira- with joy when the announcers wanted to dance with my mom,”
tion of the
he said. “I love being a
crowd. The
part of this team and
two were
how supportive they are.
extreme They’re a great group of
ly happy,
people.”
since it is
Vanessa Moffet said
Matthew’s
that she was very imlast sepressed with how the
mester at
night turned out.
SPC and
“We had a few techhis first senical difficulties in the
mester on
beginning,” Moffet said.
the dance
“But it all turned out
team.
good in the end.”
“ This
“I think it’s awesome
is
my
experience that they got
son’s last
to dance together and
semester
ended up winning,” Mofhere, and I’ve been here for 21 called out their names. He says fet added. “I would like to thank
years, ”Sharon Race said. “And that he loved that he had the
for him to be here
for two years while
I’m here and get the
opportunity to do
this with him In his
last semester is really
special!”.
Sharon Race
said that she was
impressed with ever ything and had
many good things
to say about Vanessa
Moffet, who is the instructor and chorographer.
“ There is so
many good things,”
Race said. “I’m so impressed with their Matthew Race and Sharon Race, winners of ‘Dancing with the Texans’
professionalism, and are interviewed over their win on April 17.
very impressed with SIERRA TAYLOR/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Vanessa Moffet. She
is just wonderful and
has such high expectations for the team. She is so so- opportunity to dance with him the students and faculty memphisticated with how she pulled mother.
bers. I could not have done this
“As soon as I found out I without any of y’all contributing.”
this together.”
Kirby leaving nursing program after memorable career
by JENNY GARZA
editorial assistant
field, so has her brother, sisters, and nieces. Both of Kirby’s
daughter are nurses as well.
“Medicine has just been
something a lot of the family
members have been involved
in,” continues Kirby.
According to Kirby, she enjoyed interacting with families
and seeing the patients get
better.
“I enjoyed trying to help
families understand what is
for being a nurse and the trials
that come with the job.
SPC is a place that creates
many possibilities for its students, and Kirby helps students
find out those possibilities and
conquer obstacles that the students will enjoy.
“I love teaching my students
by sharing experiences, if I am
teaching a class,” says Kirby, “and
to make a situation come to life,
I paint a picture for my students,
When retiring from a job
that you’ve worked at for a long
time, some people fear what
happens next.
Ruth Kirby had been active
in the medical field of nursing
for more than 30 years before
coming to SPC in 1999 as an
assistant professor of nursing.
She will be retiring at the end of
the semester.
“My work experience before coming to
SPC involved working in
critical care, an ophthalmologist’s office, and in
operating rooms,” says
Kirby.
Kirby is originally
from Maine, where she
graduated Mapleton
High School in Mapleton, Maine.
“I grew up on a farm
in Maine, and some may
wonder how I got here,”
said Kirby, jokingly. “Well
I took a wrong turn at
walk and don’t walk.”
When she reached
a certain age, Kirby decided that when she got Ruth Kirby ,assistant professor of nursing, is retiring after serving in
older she didn’t want to the medical field for more than 30 years.
be doing anything else SIERRA TAYLOR/PLAINSMAN PRESS
besides nursing.
“When thinking about high- going on with the patient, and and some students love it.”
er education, I thought, ‘Maybe explaining to them what is the
Kirby says she believes that
I have enough experience to matter with that person,” says SPC is a great place to work bebegin teaching this stuff,” recalls Kirby.
cause of the community and the
Kirby. “I started out as an LVN,
With medicine continuing amazing work done here.
and then went back and got my to change and improve, it is
“South Plains College has
associate’s, bachelor’s, and then very different from what Kirby really been a place where I really
my master’s.”
learned when she was practicing enjoyed working and enjoyed
Kirby and her two daugh- medicine.
the staff that I work with,”Kirby
ters received their bachelor’s
“Some of the things that I says.”I see our board pass rate,
degrees together.
did over 40 years ago and what and I know we put out a pheShe earned an associate’s we are doing today, what we did nomenal program here, and the
degree from Eastern New Mexi- back then was state-of-the-art fact that I am a part of it and very
co University. She also graduat- medicine through research and proud of it. So yeah, it is great.”
ed with her bachelor’s degree monitoring, which Is what we
Kirby says that she plans on
from West Texas State University, do all the time in nursing,” says working part-time after retiring
before earning her master’s Kirby. “We found that it wasn’t and spending time with her four
degree from there when it was the best.”
grandchildren. She says that she
changed to West Texas A&M.
According to Kirby, students will be living in the country and
She grew up around medi- must really think about if they working at her place with her
cine, so it runs in her blood. Not want to go into nursing, because cattle, as well as working in her
only has she worked in a medical they have to have compassion garden.
6
News
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Brown retiring after 40 years of taking care of business
by ALLISON TERRY
feature editor
the age of 31. “…When I
decided what I wanted to
do, I kind of looked at all
Smiling at a classroom of the classes that I thought
students, Cindy Brown lectures would benefit me for
about how laughter can reduce life and get me want I
stress levels in a lecture about wanted.”
nutrition and asks those in the
Despite her planroom if anyone knows a good ning, life still had a coujoke.
ple of surprises in store.
Along with her interactive When she first began her
teaching style, she will be re- teaching career in 1974,
membered for her charm and the young instructor did
wisdom in the classroom, as she not realize she was pregretires from teaching at South nant with twin boys, Chris
Plains College this year.
and Chad.
After graduating from Texas
“It’s been kind of part
Tech University, with a merchan- of my life,” says Brown,
dising degree and a clothing reminiscing about her
and textiles degree, Brown has boys who grew up in the
spent the past 40 years educat- community and evening students in a variety of busi- tually attended South
ness classes. The list of courses Plains College and Texas
she has taught includes busi- Tech University, as well.
ness math, supervision, human
Brown recalls sponrelations, marketing, retailing, soring and setting up for
sales, financial advising, small dances during her time
business management, prin- spent at SPC. Elaborate
ciples of marketing, principles fashion shows were held
of management, and fashion in the dorms. She even
merchandising.
once had an outstanding Cindy Brown, program coordinator and professor of merchandising, will be retiring from SPC after
Before teaching, Brown had student recognized, with 40 years of service.
contemplated what career she Nancy Reagan as an honthought would be a good fit for orable guest. But through ALLISON TERRY/PLAINSMAN PRESS
her and her family.
all Brown’s experiences,
“You have to market your- she says she treasures
people, and you get to know ple, and I tell my students, if you demically prone, particularly in
self your whole life,” says Brown, personal connections with stu- them in four months,” says Brown. work at your hobby, you’ll never my area,” says Brown. “…I think
speaking of business courses dents and faculty above all.
“And the ones you like the best, work another day in your life.”
the students are more focused.
and the struggle her mother had
During her years of service In ’75, there was a difference
“The thing I think is the most you get to continue on the relaexperienced when widowed at fun is that you get to meet new tionship… I like meeting the peo- at SPC, Brown has seen many in what people thought was
changes in the students, faculty, important.”
and campus itself.
Aside from student dedica“I’ve seen a transition from tion, Brown mentions the lifethe college becoming more aca- long friendship of several staff
by BRITTANY BROWN
great things he has been a major not clearing up very much at all.
staff writer
part of during his time on the He plays in three symphonies
in Roswell, Lubbock, and Big
When most people retire Levelland campus.
Spring. He has gigs every night,
“What
I’ve
enjoyed
the
most
from a job after 30 years, they
due to the many bands he is a
would
have
to
be
getting
to
hire
have more time for napping and
part of, including a jazz band,
great
faculty,
”
says
Dr.
Keeling.
other stress-free activities.
Dixieland band, jazz combo, by JAYME LOZANO
can reach people through any
Dr.
Keeling
recalls
that
But for Dr. Bruce Keeling,
and church jobs, to name a few. editor-in-chief
means, then we feel it’s a good
when
he
first
came
to
SPC,
the
that is not the case.
He is already booked for every
music
program
was
made
up
of
Domestic abuse is a problem thing to try.”
Dr. Keeling, professor of muweekend this summer.
Castillo explains that the
three
people,
and
he
was
able
that occurs all over the world, but
sic, has been teaching low brass,
“Retired,” Dr. Keeling said not enough people pay attention videos also aim to emphasize
to
watch
it
grow
into
what
it
has
jazz band, and brass ensembles
with a laugh.
that domestic violence and
become today.
to it.
on the Levelland campus.
Dr. Keeling also plans to
Dr.
Keeling
says
that
he
origNick Castillo is an officer in partner violence are not always
Dr. Keeling attended Arkancontinue the SPC Police Department and male on female. It can be female
sas State Univerteaching a member of a task force on cam- on male, two male partners or
sity, where he ret h r e e t o pus that is currently working on a two female partners.
ceived his bachefour high domestic abuse prevention pro“Any type of dating violor’s and master’s
s c h o o l gram called “Break the Silence.”
lence
applies here,” says Castillo.
degrees, both in
sections
“It
happens
across all genders
Castillo, along with some
music education.
a week at deans and dorm directors on and all people.”
He then attendCoronado, campus who are also in the
The group is starting with
ed the UniversiFrenship, task force, started the program six scripts and looking for as
ty of Oklahoma,
and Level- to raise awareness about the many people as possible to act
where he earned
land.
campus Save Act. Rather than in them so that they can use
his doctorate in
“ M y using traditional methods, such different people for different
trombone perforg o a l i s as pamphlets, to get people’s videos.
mance.
t o k e e p attention, Castillo suggested
“We just need anyone that
After receivM o n d a y shooting short videos and post- wants to help and doesn’t mind
ing his bachelor’s
and Tues- ing them online.
being on camera,” says Castillo.
degree in 1980,
day free,”
The group is also working
“It came to my attention that
he taught two
added Dr. we could reach more people if with Billy Alonzo in the Commuyears of middle
Keeling.
we made some videos about nications Department to help
school band
H a v - (domestic violence) just to draw with filming and production so
while attending
i n g o n l y their attention to the informa- that there can be better quality.
college at night
two days tion,” says Castillo. “So, what I’m
Castillo says the videos
to get his masout of the doing is some quick, Vine-style will be posted on the SPC webter’s degree.
week free videos. Some of them are funny, site and myspc. But he is also
Dr. Keeling
m a y n o t some are serious. It’s just kind of looking to post them on other
knew early on
sound like an attention-grabber thing, just outlets such as YouTube and
that he wanted
m u c h o f to get people’s attention and Facebook.
his career to be
a r e t i re - draw them to the website.”
“We want to get it out to
music based.
ment to
as
many
outlets as we can,” says
Castillo adds, “We don’t want
“I knew
many, but to make light of domestic vio- Castillo, “to where if a student is
when I was in
it is music lence or sexual violence, but if we just browsing something, playhigh school that
to Dr. KeelI wanted to play,
ing’s ears.
and that I prob“ I t ’s
ably wanted to
all enjoyteach,” says Dr.
ment, it’s
Keeling.
a l l f u n ,”
He initially
s a y s D r.
thought that he
Keeling.
would just con“If it was
tinue to teach
work, you
middle school
would
band until the
n e e d
University of
to find
Bruce
Keeling
has
been
teaching
at
SPC
since
1984.
Oklahoma called
some and offered an SIERRA TAYLOR/PLAINSMAN PRESS
thing else
opportunity for
to do.”
him to be a part
D r .
of their doctoral
Keeling emphasizes that he
inally
planned
to
teach
until
he
program. He decided to get his
has enjoyed every aspect of his
doctorate in performance, since was 60 years old. But at age 53,
career at SPC, from the lectures
he
had
to
undergo
back
surgery
he already had two music educato directing the Jazz Band. He
that
caused
the
extremely
busy
tion degrees.
vows to never grow up, but once
lifestyle
of
a
professor
and
muHe began teaching at SPC
he truly retires, he plans to travel
sician
to
catch
up
to
him.
So,
at
in 1984 and has been a huge
with his wife, enjoy his Corvette,
age
55,
he
says
that
he
is
ready
part of the Fine Arts Department
and go home to Arkansas to fish
to
pass
the
torch
to
the
next
ever since. Dr. Keeling says he
and hunt with his brother. His
candidate.
feels that getting to restart the
larger-than-life personality will
Although
Dr.
Keeling
is
reJazz Band and starting the brass
Photo illustration by
be missed on campus.
tiring
from
SPC,
his
schedule
is
ensembles are just a few of the
JOSH HAMILTON/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Music professor retiring on high note
members at SPC. At a recent
retirement party, Brown says her
cousin who had taught at Texas
Tech University noticed how
close the SPC community was
and voiced that she wished she
had taught at SPC.
“South Plains College is a
wonderful place,” says Brown.
“It’s like a family.”
Brown remembers cookouts in the backyard at the
home of the former president
of the college, Dr. Marvin Baker,
a Santa Claus personally giving
children presents at Christmastime, and pot luck meals with
the faculty members.
“10:30 was called ‘activity period’ and there were no
classes at 10:30 on Mondays,
Wednesdays, and Fridays,” recalls Brown, of a policy many
years ago that allowed students
and teachers to bond. “Everybody would go drink coffee
together, and you would kind
of get to know everybody that
way.”
As she works on packing up
her college office, as well as her
Levelland home, Brown says she
would not be retiring just yet, if
not for her wish to be closer to
family. After a recent discussion
with her sons, the professor has
decided to move to Dallas to be
closer to her family, especially
her six grandchildren.
“It’s been a wonderful place
to work,” says Brown, explaining
she will miss SPC. “I would stay
here until I was 100, if I could. I
really love it.”
Campus looking to raise awareness of domestic abuse
ing around on YouTube or Vine
or anything like that, they might
see these videos, and, at the end
of the videos, direct them to the
SPC website where resources
and all that information will be.”
Knowing where to find
resources is important, according to Castillo, because some
people in situations of domestic
violence don’t get out of the
relationships because he or she
doesn’t know where to go, or
what options he or she has.
“CASA is an organization
that helps victims,” explains Castillo. “There’s a lot of organizations out there to assist people.
A lot of people don’t get out of
situations of domestic violence
because they don’t have money
for a new place or the resources
to get out of that situation. But
there are organizations set up
that we can do to waive certain
fees for new housing and allow
them to get into areas of safety.
We want to make that information available to them all in one
place.”
Castillo adds, “If you have
anything to offer, if you want to
write some scripts or be in any
videos, we would love the help.”
If you are interested in helping, you can contact Castillo at
ncastillo@southplainscollege.
edu.
Opinion
Plainsman Press
7
May 5, 2014
Back Alli Review: Apple Tree serves up satisfying sweet treats
by ALLISON TERRY
feature editor
Fresh pies cooling on the
counter. A welcoming group of
close-knit customers.
No, it’s not a country song;
it’s a local bakery.
Being a lover of all things
bread-related, when a friend
suggested a bakery I had never
been to, Apple Tree Café & Bakery, I knew it had to be my next
destination.
Walking into the restaurant
located in a shopping center
near Indiana Avenue and 50th
Street in Lubbock, I was met shopping center, and the inevi- expecting a simple sandwich from the grocery store. Fresh
with a wave of friendly greetings table dust storm raging outside. from this small bakery, it was lettuce and tomato were sandwiched
when I walked through the
b e door. Not only the staff weltween
come me to the bakery, but
t h e
also several customers who I
heavassumed were loyal regulars.
e n l y
Though the interior was
bread.
nothing particularly special,
Swiss
it was quaint in its simplicity.
cheese
The most noticeable detail
w a s
was a mural stretching across
slightly
the east and west walls. It
melted
was painted to look as if mulon to
tiple windows were situated
the surwithin the wall, and resting in
prise of
each windowsill was a type
meltof baked good, presumably
in-yourcooling. These treats includmouth
ed cookies, muffins, pie, and
tender,
a few other options.
juicy
I placed my order, a Calchickifornia chicken club sand- California chicken club sandwish served on croissants at the Apple Tree Café & Bakery.
en. All
wich, and listened to the
of this
friendly chatter of customers ALLISON TERRY/PLAINSMAN PRESS
w a s
and staff. Large windows at
topped
the front of the bakery let in
with a
pleasant light and also allows
A waiter delivered the sand- so much more. Soft, delightful, spread of fresh, delectable guaguests to watch cars roll down
50 th Street, customers at the wich with a smile. Though I was and almost flaky croissant halves camole.
It was served with a side of
served as the bread. Once I took
my first bite into the croissant, chips, which I guessed to be RufI questioned the need for ever fles potato chips, or something
purchasing sliced loaves of bread similar poured from the bag.
Inflated grocery prices unafforadable for students
by WES FRICK
staff writer
As our country goes further
into debt, the grocery store’s
price skyrocket.
After recently going grocery
shopping with $75 at
Walmart, which is usually always the cheapest store, I could only
get 10 items. These
items included two
bags of chips, cat litter,
cat food, two packages of sandwich meat,
two packages of fajita
meat, and two salsas
for the chips. Most of
the supermarkets have
prices that are generally the same, but
this is outrageous for
a college kid.
The meat aisle is
the definition of bittersweet. The aisle has
the best things in it.
However, everything in
it is expensive. It takes
$20 to make spaghetti, because
the ground beef prices are so
expensive. The nasty meat that
is in the plastic package for 5
pounds is around $12, but the
meat is loaded with fat. The only
meat that’s good to me is the one
that is in the saran-like packages,
which is around the same price
but is enough to use for two
dinners for two.
For bigger families, this
aisle will put a hole in the pocketbook. Great Value chicken
breasts, which are usually the
cheapest, sell in a 5-pound bag
for $11. Five pounds of chicken
for $11 isn’t too bad, and the
chicken also doesn’t taste bad
at all.
In the pet section, I like to
get my cats a better food and
good litter so that they don’t
stink up the house. However,
Fresh Step Crystals, which seem
like the only thing that has ever
worked to reduce odor, is $12 for
a medium-sized bag. I put those
in my other cat litter, which is
$12, and then I get good food so
that they can grow healthy and
don’t have bad breath, which is
also around $12. So three items
for the cats came to a total of
around $36, plus tax. I’ve tried
using cheaper brands, but let’s
just say that it makes the house
stink.
Almost every store in America now has bags of chips that
have a ton of air inside them and
not enough chips. The terrible
economy has made Tropicana
orange juice that used to come
in a 64-ounce carton resize to a
59-ounce carton. Kraft cheese
sneaks two cheese slices out
of their 24-slice package, and
Chicken of the Sea salmon replaced its 3-ounce container
with a 2.6-ounce can. Many
companies are now cutting back
on how much
product they put
inside the bag,
or the containers
that the product
is carried in. That
makes me pay
more for nothing,
which also makes
me get fewer groceries in the long
run.
On average,
I can spend $75 a
week on groceries and cat food.
Along with gas,
car payments,
rent, etc., it adds
up in a negative
way. While $75 a
week is normal
for most people,
if the economy keeps going the
way it is, I can’t make a living
working on minimum wage or
with help from grants. Almost
everything at the store is way
too expensive.
Man on the Street
After thoroughly enjoying
the sandwich, I knew I couldn’t
leave a bakery without trying a
baked good. Yet I had felt the
need to hurry, as the restaurant
is only open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.,
Monday through Friday.
The bakery had a variety
of goods and flavors, with pies,
turnovers, cookies and the like.
While there were flavors such
as cherry and chocolate, there
seemed to be a definite emphasis on apple. Taking the hint from
the selection and the name of
the bakery, I ordered an apple
turnover. It was the best decision
I had made all day.
The “shell” of the triangular
pastry was impossibly soft and
flaky. While fairly messy, it felt
barely there as the sweet apple filling fills the soul. I would
guarantee these apple turnovers
would be the solution to any
bad day.
Accounting for the hospitable environment, delicious sandwich, and turnovers to die for, I
give Apple Tree Café & Bakery 4
out of 5 stars.
Golden Ratio divides life into natural symmetry
by PAISLEY ARRENDONDO
staff writer
Phi, or 1.618, is more notably known as the Golden Ratio.
It is a sequence of numbers
that defines nature, galaxies, and
the human body. The Golden
Ratio is a measurement that is
used in architecture and even
in the Bible.
Leonardo Pisano was known
as the greatest European mathematician of the Middle Ages.
He would later be known as
Fibonacci. Fibonacci’s contributions included the Hindu-Arabic
number system in Europe, and
the Fibonacci numbers, which
would turn into a sequence
leading to the discovery of the
Golden Ratio.
The Fibonacci sequence is
the foundation for the mathematical relationship behind Phi.
Essentially, the Golden Ratio
is a number that that makes
up everything we know, from
flowers, plants and animals, to
planets, galaxies and humans.
Phi, or the Golden Ratio,
was even mentioned in various
parts of the Bible. God instructed
Moses to build the Ark of the
Covenant with certain measurements that were equivalent to
the golden ratio of 1.618. He also
instructed Noah to build the ark
using the same measurements.
I have a hard time believing unexplainable phenomena
because people make things up
every day for attention. But the
Golden Ratio is something that is
hard to argue with. Many mathematicians of different eras have
come to the same conclusions
and have discovered many new
things about the Golden Ratio.
T h e
Golden Ratio is in the
shape of a
spiral that
is calculated into the
n u m b e r
1.618, and
it is ever yw h e re yo u
look. If you
were to go
outside right
now, pick a
random flower out of the ground
and calculate the measurements
inside of the flower, it would be
equal to 1.618.
You can’t really argue with
the certainty of mathematical
equations and formulas. They
are exact and perfect. Phi is a
perfect ratio that applies to almost all nature and the universe.
The Golden Ratio also appears in the human body, and
actually sets the standard for
beauty. I find it so interesting
that a number, better yet, a ratio,
could have so much meaning
and can uncover so much about
our world and universe.
Whatever your beliefs are
about who or what created our
universe and all that inhabits it,
you cannot deny the numbers.
I personally believe that it is
entirely too extraordinary that
almost all of nature has the exact same measurements. I don’t
find that to be a coincidence
whatsoever.
Anyone having a hard time
believing in anything out of the
ordinary should
definitely look
into the history
of the Golden
Ratio and the
Fibonacci sequence to better understand
the strange, yet
extraordinary,
phenomenon
that does exist
and has been
proved. You can
call it whatever
you would like. You can say it’s
just a strange number sequence
that doesn’t mean anything, but
the facts are all there.
The Golden Ratio is something that should definitely be
looked at more closely, and I
think more mathematicians
need to do further studying on
the topic in order to get a better
sense of Phi and what it means
to us humans and our universe.
compiled by Jenny Garza and Nicole Trugillo
What is the most awkward experience you’ve ever had?
“When I was at the gym and I
totally tooted, and a lady was
right there. I walked off and
I could feel my face turn red,
and that was awkward to me.”
Alex Rodriguez
Dental Hygiene
Sophomore
Wellman Union
“When I asked a woman if she
was pregnant. Her response
was, “No,” and she walked away.”
Joshua Winfield
Sports Broadcasting
Freshman
Arizona
“We were at the National Junior
College Athletic Association
Basketball Tournament in Kansas. We were cheerleading for
the guys, and while I was cheering, I did a jump, and when I was
landing I slipped on a pom-pom
and fell. It made a loud sound,
and everyone stopped and
looked at me and laughed.”
Melissa Martinez
Occupational Therapy
Freshman
Slaton
“There was this one time I sat
down at the Technology Center
and this girl sat down next to me.
I didn’t know what to do, so I just
got up and left.”
Victor Madrid
Business
Freshman
Amherst
“When I got detained for a
dance contest on the streets
of LA. Apparently it starts
gang wars.”
“I was walking on the sidewalk
and I fell in front of everyone.”
Casey Contreras
Respiratory Care
Sophomore
Brownfield
Geoffrey Nauert
Broadcast Journalism
Freshman
Lubbock
8
Opinion
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Photojournalist experiences growth through time spent on staff
over the new
assistant rodeo coach.
I was not
thrilled, nor
did I k now
anything
about rodeo. This was
about how
most of my
articles went
that first semester. But it
allowed me
to learn how
by ASHLEIGH WOLBRUECK to write difstaff writer
ferent types
of stories and
The first day I stepped into inter view a
the newsroom, I wanted to turn variety of peoand run out screaming.
ple.
It was my first day back in
Toward the end of my first
school after taking a few years semester, I signed up for a feaoff, and I signed up for three ture story about a couple inclasses to take it easy my first volved in evangelistic ministries
semester to get back in the who had recently released a
hang of it.
book about their life and strugI didn’t realize that one
of those
t h r e e
classes
I signed
up for
meant
that I
would be
on the
newspaper staff
for South
Plains
C o l lege, the
Plainsm a n
Press. I
declared
photojournalism as
my major
because
it was
geared
toward
my interests, but I hardly had gles. The story ended up changany experience.
ing as the woman passed away,
So you can imagine my and I ended up interviewing a
panic when I realized what I man who was grieving his wife.
had gotten myself into. The That interview changed my
first day was brainstorming for perspective of journalism, as I
the first issue of the semester, shared one of the most intimate
and everyone had to sign up conversations with a stranger
for stories. I had never written and was honored to tell his story
a newspaper article before in and the story of his wife.
my life, but I just kept quiet and
I have been on the staff for
tried to remain unseen.
four semesters now, and I am
When the class was over, I getting ready to graduate with
went to my car and called my an associate’s degree. That is an
aunt to tell her that I needed
to drop this class because I had no idea
what I was doing. I
thought I was in way
over my head and
didn’t have the confidence or skills I needed to be a part of the
staff at the time.
I took a long
break after I graduated from high school
because I wanted
to work and figure
things out before I
went to school without an end goal. I
learned a lot about
myself in those years
and gained a lot of
life experience. I still
didn’t know what I
wanted to do exactly
when I moved to Lubbock, but felt ready to
get back into school.
I chose to declare
photojournalism as
my major because I
had become interested in photography
and have always been
a writer. I grew up
writing poetry, short
stories and screenplays, but nothing
like a news article.
achievement I didn’t think would
After I panicked on the ever happen, and it has given
phone, my aunt reassured me, me the drive to want to go all
like she has my entire life, that the way and get my bachelor’s
it would be fine and I was there degree.
to learn. So, I showed up at the
I joined the staff as a quiet
newsroom again next class and inquisitive person who just
period and did the best I could. didn’t want to screw anything
My first story I took was up. Since then, I have grown
confident in my writing ability
and have continued to develop
my skills in photography while
working on the things that I
enjoy.
SPC was where I was supposed to be to help me find my
passion and grow as a student.
My professors have been amaz-
ing and made school enjoyable
for me, which has helped me
excel in my classes.
Charlie Ehrenfeld, my advisor and professor, has played the
largest role in my growing as a
journalism student. He pushed
me in my writing, pushed me
to think bigger and take on
more stories, pushed my level
of critical thinking in the field of
journalism and has always been
there when I need advice.
Charlie and I have not always seen eye to eye on every-
thing, but I respect and admire
him. I am grateful for everything he has done to help me
get through school, and he is
a big part of the reason I am
graduating. He saw the drive
and passion I have to succeed,
along with the things I want for
my future. He believed in me as
a writer and helped sharpen that
part of me.
It wasn’t just Charlie who
got me through my time here
at SPC. The entire press staff
helped me in ways that I
guarantee most of them
don’t realize. I am not
very emotional, and I
am not always good
at casual conversation.
I can be strange and,
apparently, frightening,
according to some of my
fellow staff members.
However, the press staff
made me feel welcome
and feel like I belonged
somewhere.
I have worked under
a great editor-in-chief,
Jayme Lozano, who I
respect tremendously,
and at times has been a
mentor and a friend. She
has helped guide me in
my writing and has always been
there to help when I needed it.
There are many of you on the
staff who I have enjoyed getting
to know and have developed
some good friendships with.
You have all made my college
experience enjoyable, and I have
had a lot of fun amidst all the
stressful deadlines and newsroom shouting.
I am definitely ready to continue my education, and I feel
ready to handle the opportunities that will be presented to me.
I have loved and also, at
times, hated, my time on the
paper. But it has all helped me
grow, and I am thankful for the
time I have spent here. I will
miss being able to see all of your
faces every day and freaking out
about deadlines together.
Good luck to everyone else
who is graduating and high five
that we survived! To those of you
who will be here again in the
fall, don’t mess anything up, and
have fun. Learn as much as you
can, and do as much as you can.
May the force be with you.
9
Opinion
May 5, 2014
Plainsman Press
Friendships, experiences bring young journalist out of shell
by KATHERINE
SOMMERMEYER
staff writer
It’s hard to believe that I’m
graduating and finishing my
second year at South Plains
College when it feels like just
yesterday that I took my first
step into the newsroom.
The first day of class, I
walked into the newsroom and
saw a group of people sitting
around a table and another person sleeping on the table. I was
put off by the setting, and even
asked if I was in the right place.
It was then that I found
my way to a corner seat and
patiently waited for class to
start. I didn’t really know what
to expect of the class, because
it seemed like everyone already
knew each other and there were
only a few new people. I signed
up to write a fashion opinion because I love fashion,
and when the editor-in-chief
asked if anyone wanted to be
an editor, I thought I would try
it at least once and then decide if I wanted to keep doing
it. After my first paper night, I
knew I was in the right place.
Being my shy, awkward
self, I didn’t really talk to any
of the other editors. When
family dinner came around,
I was nervous because I was
basically seated around a
table full of strangers. I also remember being so shocked by
the way our advisor, Charlie
Ehrenfeld, talked to everyone,
because it seemed so strange
that a professor was more like
a friend or family to this group
of people. Knowing Charlie
now, everything makes sense.
I don’t think I said much at
dinner or the rest of the Tuesday
paper night,
and at that
point I was
still unsure if
I would become an editor. That first
Thursday
paper night
after dinner is when
ever ything
changed. I’d
like to thank
the current
photo editor,
Sierra Taylor,
for spilling
ketchup all
over herself
and ruining
her sweater, because if it wasn’t
for that moment, I don’t know
if I would’ve became an editor.
I busted out laughing, and for
anyone who knows me, they
know when I start laughing at
someone, I cannot stop laughing. I remember trying to hold
in my laughter so hard, because,
in my head, I kept telling myself,
“you don’t even know these
people that well.” But I swear, I
laughed until I cried.
After the first paper week,
I started getting more comfortable around the entire staff and
could act like myself around
though we had some rough
5 a.m. paper nights, everyone
in my life. I probably would’ve
moved back home after one
semester if it
weren’t for the
people I met in
the newsroom.
Charlie is
one of those
people. Before
I met Charlie,
I never had a
teacher who I
looked up to
or really even
cared about.
I’ll never forget the paper
nights when
Charlie and
I would be in
sync and would
always had a fun time.
I’ll never forget
the moments I’ve
s h a re d w i t h s t a f f
members and Charlie,
when we would hear
something and just
look at each other and
already know what
we were thinking.
When you basically
live in the newsroom,
you develop a secret
language with just a
glance.
Graduating high
school early and mov-
everyone. I loved laying out
pages as the opinion editor. Even
ing from Las Vegas, Nev. to
West Texas was a huge change
Although I never expected I
would be spending four years
here, I am certainly glad that
I have. I have met such a vast
group of interesting people who
would forever
change my
life. A majority of these
people I met
on the staff of
the Plainsman
Press.
It has
been such an
honor to be a
part of such
a successful
n e w s p a p e r,
and to have
met all of the
wonderful
people who
make the paper possible. I was lucky enough
to be chosen to be the photo
editor for a year, and I vastly
improved my design capabilities.
This also introduced me to the
bi-weekly event of paper night!
Paper nights were the most
interesting nights of my college
life, full of laughter, hard work
bounce jokes off each other and
just laugh. Even when life got
tough and confusing, Charlie
was always there.
Someone I became really
close with during my time
on the staff is the now editor-in-chief, Jayme Lozano.
We really understood each
other, and we both knew how
each other acted. It was great
when we could tell if the other
person was about to lose it
or burst out laughing. She’s
probably the only person who
cared when I would almost
die laughing, while others
stared at me like I was crazy,
and the only one I could vent
to about little things that I
found annoying. I’ll always cherish the car rides to pick up dinner
when we could talk about any-
thing, and the laughs we
shared when no one else
understood. Also, our
Pizza Hut dates were perfect, even when I spilled
my water or threw ice
on the waitress almost
every time. Jayme’s the
one who nicknamed me
“Young Katherine,” and
the one I have to thank
for the countless happy moments when we
couldn’t stop laughing.
Tory Landers, a former feature editor, is
another person I can’t
imagine never having met. She’s
my fake sorority sister, and is
the person I can be obnoxious
around because she’s
goofy too.
I’ll never forget the paper nights
when everyone hated
us because
we were
overly loud
and couldn’t
stop laughi n g. S h e’s
also the one
who introduced me to
Tricia Walker, who can
always put a
smile on my
face.
There
are countless other
memories
with each and everyone on the
staff that I’ll never forget, such
as learning how to do the hand
motions for the “Cups” song
with Sierra, or exchanging Drake
jokes with the sports editor,
Derek Lopez. I love everyone I’ve
met on the staff and wouldn’t
have wanted to spend the past
two years anywhere else.
Wherever I end up during
the next chapter of my life, I’ll
always hold a special place in
my heart for the people I’ve
met on the Plainsman Press, and
will continue to cherish all of
the memories I’ve made at this
special place.
Student reflects on time spent in newsroom, looks forward to new beginning
by RACHEL GILILLAND
staff writer
Life is full of new beginnings and changes as time
progresses.
As this semester comes to
an end, I am realizing that this is
a time for a lot of change for me.
For the four years I have been at
a two-year college, I have developed a home away from home.
My time spent at South
Plains College has
been a
very special time
of
my
life, full
of learning and
stress, the
good and
the bad.
Overall, it
has been
a time
of self
growth.
and really, really late nights.
There were moments of stress
and tension in the newsroom,
but in the end, we were all still
one big family.
I must also thank everyone
for dealing with me, and especially my loud outbursts of my personal views on politics and the
world. I
will miss
Charlie’s
disapproving
“Rachel!”
whenever I
would
s a y
something a
bit too
explicit. I will
miss the
jokes,
cigarette
breaks
a n d
climbing trees
with my fellow staff members,
as well as the
unique relationships we
all shared.
I will
also miss our
family dinners, where
we would all
come together for a break
and really
connect with
each other. Overall, I
will miss everyone who
was a part of
this “family,”
for they all
touched my life in one way or
another And, of course, I will
definitely miss Charlie. Charlie
was always there for me during
my entire college career at SPC,
and extremely helpful for a confused student like me. Charlie
pushed me to be better than
I ever thought I
possibly could be,
and I will miss him
terribly.
Now that my
time at SPC has
come to an end,
I will be moving
forward to the next
adventure of my
life. I do not know
where life will take
me, but I embrace
the mystery with
open arms. I know
the journey has
just begun. I will
never forget the
impact the Plainsman Press and the
staff have had on
my life.
10
Opinion
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Photojournalism student finds passion, makes lasting memories
by SIERRA TAYLOR
photo editor
There are a million ways
to say goodbye, but that still
doesn’t make farewells any
easier.
I have been a staff member of the
Plainsm a n
Press for
two years
n o w ,
and after many
l o n g
hours and
sleepless
nights, it
is finally
time for
me to say
goodbye.
While
you read
this, I just
want you
to know
that leaving the staff is the
hardest choice I have ever had
to make. While I will continue
to attend South Plains College
during the
fall semester, I made
the choice
to step
away from
the staff
and turn
down a position that
I have always wanted. This was
not an easy
choice to
make, but it was the right choice
to make.
I am not only stepping
away from a college newspaper,
but away from a
family.
The first
person I met in
the newsroom
was Jayme
Lozano. Jayme
intimidated
me, to say the
least. She was
a go-getter, an
amazing journalist, and had
a sense of humor that made
anyone who met
her fall in love with her immediately. I’m not sure if she
knows this or not, but Jayme has
taught me
s o m a ny
things in
our two
years tog e t h e r,
not just
a b o u t
being a
journalist,
but about
being a
friend.
I know
that when
you are
J a y m e ’s
friend,
she will be
there for
no matter
what. Even if you have
done her wrong, she is still
going to be there when
the dust settles. Jayme is
also the only person in the
world who understands
why I love/hate my job
so much, and for that we
will always be bonded
over family breakfast and
yelling over Charlie to get
our points across. Thank
you for everything, Jayme.
Durring my second
semester, I met two of the
greatest people I have ever
known. Samantha Rodriguez
and Gabby Perez took me as
their own as soon as they met
me. I have never bonded with
two people quite as fast as I did
with them. Samantha showed
me that, no matter what, it’s
possible to stand up for yourself
and be a decent human being
at the same time, Jon Wolfe is
an amazing man, and no matter
what the score, you still shake
their hand at the end of the
game. Gabby is probably the
happiest person I have ever met
in the whole world. No matter
what she is going through, she
always has a smile on her face.
She taught me so much about
being my own person and smiling through the worst days. I had
so many great memories in the
short semester we were all on
staff, but I look forward to being
friends with both of them for a
very long time.
Caitlin Welborn, aka Haitlin,
aka Grumpy-Cait, who joined the
staff the same
s e m e s te r a s
me, has been
a constant reminder that
I ’m n o t t h e
only person
who hates the
whole human
race. Without
Caitlin and her
listening to me
rant and rave
about people,
s to r i e s, a n d
life in general,
I would have
completely lost my mind a long
time ago. Caitlin is an amazing
writer, and I always looked forward to reading her stories. I
know I will continue to enjoy
everything she writes as she
pushes her career in ways no
one would ever imagine. She
is everything I want to be in
a journalist and a person. She
is adventurous, willing to do
anything, and compassionate
to those who deserve it. Anyone
who gets to be on the same staff
as her is incredibly lucky.
Devin Reyna joined the staff
at the beginning of my second
year and instantly became one
of my favorite people. Whethe r I ’m
t h rowi n g
tiny toy
Army
men at
her, or
singing the
newsroom
version
of “Tiny
D e v i n”
to her, she always puts up with
me and my antics. Whenever she
walks into
the newsroom, she
never fails
to make me
laugh. But
her drive
for photography is
what really
made me
l o v e h e r.
S h e ’s a n
amazing
photographer, and
an even
b e t t e r
friend. I’m so
glad to have worked with Devin,
and for her to be filling the spot of
photography assistant and photography editor when I leave. So,
hold me close tiny Devin, count
the headlights on
the Lub bock highw a y, l a y
me down
in the photo closet,
you’ve had
a busy paper week.
Skylar
Hernandez is another passionate woman who I
met this year. When I met Skylar,
she barely spoke. But
after many photography
assignments, countless
long talks, and one run
in with an angry hobo,
we have a weirdly great
friendship that I hope
never ends. She is a fantastic photographer and
one of the strongest
people I have ever met.
I am so glad to have her
in my life.
I have met many
other people on staff
who I have been lucky
enough to spend time
with and get to know
like family. Jenny Garza
is a wonderful person
who might be the happiest but klutziest person I have
ever met. I spent many long paper nights with Katie Sommermeyer laughing and singing at the top
of our lungs,
and who I always will look
at for someone
who actually
knows how to
dress. Brittany
Brown makes
me laugh every
time I see her in
the newsroom
a n d d o e s n’ t
judge me for
my random
snapchats I
send out in the
middle of the night. I admire Nicole Trugillo for being herself and
having a smile on her face every
moment of the day, even when I
call her Nicholas. Josh Hamilton,
the McGuyver of the newsroom,
makes dealing with long nights
a n d
stressful
people
just a
little bit
better by
telling
me bad
jokes
this question was exactly what I
wanted people to ask me, since
and playing 4 NonBlondes for
me.
B i l l y
Alonzo is
the worst
professor I
have never
had. While I
never actually took a class with
Billy, he was one of the best
people I have met
during my time at
South Plains College. Whether I
was running down
the hallway barefoot, or stressing
out in the newsroom, he always
knew how to make
me laugh. When I
was going through
rough patches in
my life, he always
took the time out
of his day to make
sure I was alright and
would give me some
much needed advice.
I’ll say it one more time… Go
home, Billy.
Last, but not least, is Charlie
Ehrenfeld.
Describing the relationship
I was in that class because of my
passion for photography. Charlie
says that I had him at the word
“passion,” and when he heard me
say this, he knew automatically
that I was the person that he was
looking for to be his photography student assistant. I walked
out of my first college class with
I have with Charlie has always
been a little difficult, because
there is no one else in the world
like him. Charlie’s favorite thing
to talk about with me is how we
first met, or rather how I came
to be his
student
assistant.
During
my v e r y
first college class,
Charlie
made the
w h o l e
c l a s s
stand up
one by
one and
tell our
names,
hometown, and
why we
were taking his photography
classes. Many students brushed
off this questions by saying it
was required, or their coach had
just signed them up for it. But
a job, and now when I look back
on that day, I know that was a
moment that changed my life
forever.
The next day was
my first day on staff, and
Charlie quickly began
pressuring me to join
the editorial staff. By
pressuring me, I mean
he really
gave me
no other option,
and quickly started speaking of
me being photography editor
in upcoming semesters. I didn’t
know it at the
time, but Charlie
was pushing me
in the direction
I needed and
wanted to be
going in. This is
when I learned
that Charlie is,
first and foremost, a professor. But when you
get to know him, he is a loving
person with the desire to push
his students to their extremes.
“This room will change your life
if you let it,” is Charlie’s famous
line about the newsroom which
he tells
to n e wcomers
at the beginning
of every
semester. This
statement is
true. But
something that
m a n y
people
do not
realize is
that Charlie will change your life if you let
him. He is an amazing person,
and anyone who is lucky enough
to cross his path knows this.
When someone asks about my
job as Charlie’s assistant, I usually
roll my eyes and tell anyone who
is asking about how much of a
handful he is. However, between
the stress he puts on me and the
random
odd jobs
I do for
him on
a daily
basis, I
created
a bond
with an
advisor
that I will
never
break. It
makes me incredibly sad to
think that after this semester is
over I won’t be seeing Charlie
every day, that I won’t be able to
have family breakfast with him
and Jayme on Friday mornings,
and that some other person is
going to be the one he yells at
for leaving the photo closet a
mess. I love
you Charlie, and I
am more
thankful for
you than
you will
ever know.
I will
miss you
most of all,
Scarecrow.
When
I came to
SPC I knew
that I had
a passion
for photography, but I had no
knowledge of what it actually
meant. I wasn’t excited to be a
part of a newspaper until my
second issue
on the staff
when I had
the chance to
cover a lecture
by Steve McCurry, National Geographic
photographer,
at Texas Tech
U n i ve r s i t y.
My whole life
I have loved
McCurry’s photography and
have looked up to him for doing
exactly what I wanted to with
my life. Before the lecture, I had
a chance to sit down with him
one-on-one and interview him.
This was a life-changing experience. To be able to sit down with
my hero and have a conversation
about his photographs was
something that didn’t happen
but once in a lifetime. But the
best thing about the whole
situations is that I
was able to do it
through the Plainsman Press.
While on staff,
I have taken photos of everything
from blood drives to
rock stars. But every
time I took a photo
for the newspaper,
I wa s re m i n d e d
that I had this great
passion for something I could use to
change the world.
I might not be the
best photographer,
and many people may never see
my work, but I know that I will
never stop loving photography
and trying to better myself. I
owe that to Charlie for pushing
me to do my best, even when I
was lazy and the assignments
were boring.
11
Opinion
May 5, 2014
Plainsman Press
Student finds academic niche in journalism
ter, lengthier, and I wasn’t afraid
to take chances with whatever
was handed to me.
This semester, I also competed at TIPA, learned many
valuable skills, shared technical
difficulty woes with the rest
of the staff, and also decided
where I am going from here,
which is the University of Texas
at Arlington.
You guys are the reason I look
forward to going into the newsroom each day.
Also, thank you for introducing me to coffee. I was never a
coffee person until this semester
in the newsroom. Coffee helped
us out during those stressful late
paper nights. And maybe one
day I will learn how to operate
the coffee pot.
To all the friends I made in
the newsroom, thank you for
the friendship. You guys made
Lastly, I would like to thank
Charlie for believing in me and
pushing me whenever I was
being stubborn. You
probably already know
this, but you are an
amazing mentor and
teacher, and I’m going
to miss those five-minute papers you made
us write at the end of
your classes. Thank you
for teaching me ethics
and how to properly
use AP style when it
came to writing dates.
To the staff next
semester, I wish you all
the best of luck. Drink
lots of coffee, don’t
be afraid to take risks,
have fun, and as my
favorite author says: “Adventure
without risk is Disneyland.”
Thank you guys!
by AARON GREGG
online editor
Returning to school after a
two-year break was one of the
most difficult challenges I have
faced so far.
But I would have to say the
break helped prepare me for
what was to come, because it
was a roller-coaster ride full of
fun, friendship, frustration and
triumph.
And coffee, lots and lots of
coffee.
I’ve always been a writer.
I wrote stories that coincided
with the “Star Wars” universe
when I was 5. When I was 10, I
made an anthology comic
series with a bunch of stick
figures. At 17, I wrote my
first full-length novel, which
will eventually see the light
of day. And during my first
years in college, I helped
some friends I met over the
Internet with a website and
a podcast. I would do video
game reviews, among other
things.
It just didn’t click that I
could do this as a profession
and make more money than
what I was originally going
to school for.
The inspiration came
during the summer of 2012.
I was reading the “Millenium Trilogy” by the late Stieg Larsson,
and I realized that journalism is
something that I would like to
do for a living.
After the terrible summer
job of 2013, I managed to enroll
at South Plains College with the
help of Billy Alonzo.
I remember my first day of
class. I was incredibly shy, and
Charlie had fun making me
introduce myself to his various
classes. I’m used to speaking in
front of people, because I previ-
ously pursued a theatre degree
before I switched to journalism.
My first class was News Photography, and I remember being
approached by Allison Terry
and Megan Perez. “You look like
a newsy type person,” they said,
motioning toward the black
studded beret that I always wear.
And from there I made my
first friends on the staff.
The next class was News
Writing, and I told myself I was
going to make some more
friends. I made friends with the
person who sat next to me. His
name is Zach Hollingsworth (we
would eventually get “Grand
Theft Auto V” placed on the
dreaded ‘Banned Topic List.’) The
class started, and Charlie had us
do this group project where I got
to know Megan and Zach better.
I eventually met the rest of the
newspaper staff and was handed
my first assignment.
For the first issue, I reviewed
a popular video game called
“Saints Row 4.” I also reviewed
Daft Punk’s newest album, and I
wrote an article about the new
Cosmetology Building.
I’m not going to lie. I was
initially intimidated by Charlie. I
first met him during my father’s
retirement party before the summer began. He shook my hand
and was interested to have me
on staff for the fall semester. I
get incredibly shy when meeting
staff, especially when they are
introduced by my father because
he likes to make a scene.
Needless to say, when I
turned in my first articles, the
fright was evident.
The feedback from those
articles was positive, and they
had positive notes written from
those dreaded blue pens. I knew
from then on that I chose the
right major.
My first paper night was
scary, because I didn’t know
what was going on. InDesign
was one of the most frustrating
computer programs I have ever
used, and Macs never liked me.
Caitlin Welborn was there to save
the day whenever I needed help,
and she was a good teacher.
Caitlin was the first to tell me
“Remember, InDesign hates
you.” And there was one paper
night in particular, the one that
was on my birthday, when they
bought me a birthday cake and
we celebrated the occasion.
In the Fall of 2013, I would
go on to write more great articles. I wrote mostly entertainment articles, because they
were my strong point, although
I wasn’t afraid to dabble in features and news
o c c a s i o n a l l y.
One of the articles I wrote that
semester won
me an “Honorable Mention”
award from the
Texas Intercollegiate Press Association (TIPA).
That was
the proof I
needed that
this ambition of
mine was going
to be a success.
This semester, I was made
Online Editor, and I learned how
to use Dreamweaver, which is
the dastardly cousin to InDesign.
My articles this semester got bet-
this an awesome year for me.
Thank you for putting my with
my strange quirks that I blame
on theatre and color blindness.
Student encourages making changes, says farewell to West Texas
by RANDI ADAMS
staff writer
As a former Army brat who
attended 12 different schools
in 12 years, I am no stranger to
change.
I’ve almost always looked
forward to it. When you move
to a new location, everything
changes: your home, your
friends, your entire environment. I have also moved on my
own several times since I left
home to attend a private university at the age of 17. Why stay
somewhere that you don’t like?
I’ve packed up my car several
times and hit the road.
“When I see birds I think,
‘You have wings and can go anywhere, why do you stay in the
same place?’ Then I ask myself
the same question.” This is one
of my favorite
quotes.
I have very
often questioned my decision to move to
West Texas. I am
not going to lie;
it was a last resort. My mother
had moved to
Lubbock , and
a f te r r u n n i n g
around Baton
Rouge, La., for a
few years, I realized that I was
not making any
real progress in
my life. I decided
that I could use a
safety net. Plus,
the cost of living is way lower
in Lubbock than
Louisiana.
“I still don’t
know what I was
waiting for, and
my time was
running wild.
A million deadend streets every
time I thought I’d
got it made…”
-David Bowie, “Changes.”
It was a change made out
of necessity, not desire. I have
made the best of my decision
that I could. I continued my
education and tried some new
things. I learned a lot about
myself, as well as about my environment. But let’s be honest,
I don’t believe anyone has ever
dreamed of moving to West
Texas to attend a community
college. If they did, well, they
need to dream a little bigger.
Which brings me to my
point: why choose to stay somewhere that makes you unhappy?
Change your situation. You can
do it anytime
that you want.
Don’t wait until
you are “ready.”
I can promise
that no one is
ever completely ready for a
big life change.
“I watch the
ripples change
their size but
never leave
the stream of
warm impermanence . And
so the days float
through my
eyes, but still
the days seem
the same…”
So this is
my farewell to
West Texas. I am
moving to Austin this summer
to continue my
education and
pursue opportunities for a
career in journalism. While I
am grateful for
continuing to
explore my interest in journalism with my
time at SPC’s very own campus
newspaper, the Plainsman Press,
I’m not going to sit here and
reminisce about my brief time
in Lubbock, Texas, at South
Plains College, and as a blocker
for the West Texas Roller Dollz
roller derby league. That would
be boring. Plus, it’s just not my
style. I’ve always been someone
who looks forward. I don’t like to
spend too much time looking at
the past.
“And these children that you
spit on, as they try to change
their worlds are immune to
your consultations. They’re quite
aware of what they’re going
through…”
I accept the fact that I had
to sacrifice at least three years
in West Texas for whatever it
was I did wrong in my life. But I
think you’re crazy to expect an
essay telling you who I think I
am. You see me us journalism
students as you want to see us,
in the simplest terms, in the most
convenient definitions.
There are several people
who I will be leaving behind that
I will deeply miss. I will not sit
here and name names, because
they know who they are. I’m not
accepting an Oscar, so I’ll save
the thank you speech. I have
always been one to be upfront
with the people in my life, so
if you actually care enough to
have read this far, you are likely
one of those individuals and will
probably receive a hug from me
in the very near future.
In closing, to quote Sir David
Bowie, it’s time to “turn and face
the strange.”
12
Opinion
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Change in major helps student find true passion
by JAYME LOZANO
editor-in-chief
My experience at South
Plains College has been incredible, but that is all because of my
experience on the Plainsman
Press.
Before joining the staff, I
was a pre-nursing major. But
my heart wasn’t in it, and that
showed in my grades.
Unfortunately, I did so badly before changing majors that
I couldn’t sign up for my classes
and actually had to talk to my
advisor, which I had never done
before. I called my mom to
ask her what to do, and, most
importantly, who this Charles
Ehrenfeld person was. She told
me to just go talk to him and he
would fix everything.
Right away, Charlie tried to
joke with me, and I nervously
laughed and awkwardly avoided eye contact. I told him I was
interested in photography, and
we talked briefly about my other interests, such as how I love
going to the movies. He told
me I couldn’t get my degree in
photojournalism without being
on the newspaper staff, so he
signed me up.
My first day on the staff was
a little overwhelming because
I didn’t know what to expect.
I sat at the back table in the
newsroom as Samantha Rodriguez, my editor-in-chief, gave
her First Day of Publications
speech next to Tausha Rosen
and Gabby Perez.
I watched nervously as
everyone around me signed
up to write this story or take
this photo. So I figured I had to
as well, so I signed up to take
photos. I was fine with just that,
literally the bare minimum. But,
Charlie wasn’t OK with that, and
he encouraged
me to write a
movie review.
By encourage,
I mean looked
at me and
said, “Jayme,
why don’t you
do a movie
review?” And
before I could
argue, he did
his little Charlie
nod and said,
“Yeah, you’ll do
a movie review.”
I must have rewritten that
stupid review for “Apollo 18”
a dozen times because I was
stressing out about it. But when
I got my rough draft back and
saw this blue note scribbled at
the end from Charlie saying he
was happy to have me on the
staff, I felt better.
I slowly started signing up
for more things and building
up my confidence enough to
join the editorial staff, which
changed everything.
I became entertainment
editor my second semester and
learned as much as I could from
Sam and Tausha before they
graduated that May. I not only
learned from them, but also
became great friends with them,
especially during the annual
TIPA trip. There couldn’t have
been a better editor-in-chief for
me than Sam, who, for whatever
reason, thought I
could do all of this
just like she did.
I was
also blessed by
k n o w i n g Ta u sha. Everything
I’ve learned and
carried with me
during my time
on the staff has
been from her.
And that’s a great
thing.
My next
semester, I was
blessed to meet this incredible
group that changed my life:
Caitlin Welborn, Sierra Taylor,
Katie Sommermeyer and Tory
Landers.
Caitlin has always been
someone I knew I could turn to
when things got rough. Some of
my best memories on the staff
are from when I would build a
newspaper fort on the table and
we would get in and just talk
about our lives.
Sierra has this really weird
way of seeing right through
me. So any time I was upset or
angry or whatever that day, she
knew what to do to fix it, which
was basically get me apple juice
and make other people leave me
alone. We went through a lot
together. Whether it was coming
over at 4 a.m. because I sent her
a sad text, or nearly leaping over
a security gate at a Blue October
concert to help me get Justin
Furstenfeld’s guitar pick, she
was there. We’ve had our ups
and downs, but she is, without a
doubt, one of the people in my
life who I know I can depend on,
and, hopefully, she knows she
can depend on me too.
Katie is amazing. She’s pretty, smart, talented, fashionable,
and hilarious. I was lucky enough
to get to know her past the
quiet, shy and reserved girl in
the newsroom, and she became
my best friend. A day without
talking to Katie felt like such a
drab and boring day because
she could lighten up your day
with ease.
I have so many great memo-
ries with her. From trying to find
Ryan Gosling in Lubbock to taking selfies throughout the entire
Texas Rangers game we went to
after TIPA one year because we
were bored, I always had fun
with Katie. Life with her became
even better when we started being able to have a conversation
with just eye contact. Someone
could say something ridiculous
and we would just give each
other the same “really?” look and
start laughing.
She was there for me
through every hardship I went
through since I met her, and
each time she could just say
the most random thing and
put a smile on my face. To put it
simply, she was my rock. I love
you, Katie. You mean the world
to me, and being friends with
you was by far one of the best
choices I’ve ever made.
Tory is the second person
I’ve met here to make the most
change in my life. From the day
we met, she treated me as a
mentor and a friend, and that
was the first time in my life that
I’ve felt like I could really make
a difference in some way. She
has seen me at my best and my
worst, and, at the end of the day,
she stills looks at me as if none
of that matters.
Tory also helped me become friends with this amazing
group of people, including her
roommate Tricia Walker.
Katie, Tricia, Tory and I
all became so close that we
could all get together at
Tricia and Tory’s apartment
and just sit there and do
homework, and we would all
make each other laugh and
be happy. These three girls
are all friends
I’ve been
blessed with,
and friends I
could never
forget.
Josh Harris was with
me from the very
beginning, and
being inexperienced wasn’t so
scary when I realized he was
too.
There
were so many times when
I would go to the newsroom in a bad mood, and
Josh would just know by
the look in my eyes and
open his arms to hug me.
There’s no way I could have
survived this chaotic newsroom without him.
There also is Ashleigh
Wolbrueck. To say that I
needed her is an understatement. She came into
my life at the perfect time
and understood me in ways that
most people never will, and I
couldn’t be more grateful for just
knowing her.
I can’t forget Megan Perez,
who caught me on one of my
bad days on a paper night, and
she just sat outside with me and
listened. Then, she told me what
was going on in her life, and I
didn’t feel so alone. I never felt
alone with Megan.
I’m going to miss
sitting at the table
with Derek Lopez
on paper nights and
pretending like we’re
working on our articles when in reality
we’re having heartto-hearts. Derek is
one of my favorite
people in the news-
room, even if he’s constantly
talking trash about my Mavericks and making me wear
this awful Kobe Bryant jersey
on the bus ride to TIPA last
year. I can’t even begin to
describe the impact he has
had on me.
As I write this, I see
Zach Hollingsworth walking
around the newsroom wearing a makeshift “Ninja Turtles”
mask, and it’s for moments
like this, among many others,
that I’ll miss him greatly.
When I met Zach, he was
as socially awkward as me
and saw through the game
face I put on to hide my nerves
when I had to stand in front of
the class. He saw right through
me a lot, so much so that it
became a running joke that he
needed to make a pamphlet
for how to tell when I need to
be left alone and what not to
say to me on a bad
day. There were
even times when I
would be mad on
paper nights and
pout in a corner
and once he would
notice, Zach would
join me and make
me feel better just
by being there. I
love Zach. He’s hilarious, thoughtful
and honest, and him being in
the newsroom made my life unbelievably easier. He is definitely
someone I will never forget.
These past two semesters
brought new people in my life,
such as Devin Reyna, Nicole
Trugillo, Skylar Hernandez, and
Jenny Garza. It also brought
someone back into my life with
Aaron Gregg, who I went to high
school with.
Having Aaron back put me
at ease a little bit, because I had a
great friendship with him in high
school that got even better with
him being on the staff.
Nicole and Devin brought
life into the newsroom when
they joined the editorial staff. It
was great to see how they grew
on the staff and learned to start
ignoring it when Charlie would
be sassy. It was even better when
they finally got sassy back.
My friendships with those
three and Skylar grew at
this last TIPA in San Antonio. On one of the nights
there, we all got together,
with Geoffrey Nauert, a TV
kid who turned out to not
be our mortal enemy after
all, and it was amazing.
For starters, Geoffrey
was the only guy with a
room full of emotional
girls, and he handled it
like a pro. But as I said, it
was a room full of emotional
girls, meaning there was a lot
of bonding with a lot of tears.
Another memorable night
on that trip was when Sierra,
Devin, Skylar and I snuck into
the pool at the hotel where
the conference was being held.
After a lot of convincing, and
hearing Sierra repeat, “It’s our
last night in San Antonio!”, the
four of us ended up jumping in
the pool and swimming around
in our clothes. It sounds crazy,
but that is one of the best memories I’ll ever have.
There’s Allison Terry, one of
the most talented
writers and photographers I’ve
met here, who
can put a smile
on anyone’s face.
Josh Hamilton, the
Macgyver of our
newsroom, kept
me entertained
on paper nights
with his various
talents and constant need to
pick fights with
me. Jenny always
had this positive
energy that she
brought to the
newsroom, and she refused
to accept the fact that I’m not
a morning person, which I’ll
miss. And, of course, there’s Billy
Alonzo who isn’t even my teacher, but I’m going to miss having
him pop up in the newsroom
randomly and making me laugh.
What this all comes down
to, though, other than amazing
experiences and friendships,
is how right Charlie was. On
the first day, he always
gives his “This room
will change your life”
speech, and I remember hearing that and
thinking, “I doubt it.”
C h a r l i e w a s n’ t
completely wrong, but
he was in the sense
that while this room
changed me, Charlie
changed me more.
Charlie saved me.
Some people may
never understand the
impact Charlie has on
all of his students, not
just me. But speaking
for myself, Charlie is the
only reason I’ve been
able to accomplish all
the things I have.
When I met Charlie, I didn’t
even want to be in college.
Now, I’m crying because I have
to leave. Charlie has helped me
through every problem imaginable and made me believe that
I can do this. He has been the
reason I have confidence again.
Not just that, but Charlie is why
I have a voice.
Thanks to Charlie, my photos have been seen, and my
voice has been heard. He’s more
than a professor or an advisor,
he’s my mentor. He’s the reason
I can say I have a future. He’s
the reason this newsroom has
become my second home. I’m
leaving here knowing that there
will never be another Charlie in
my life, and that’s OK, because
no one could ever compare to
him.
So while leaving here breaks
my heart, I can do it and know I’ll
be OK because of what Charlie
has taught me, both about journalism and life.
So thank you, Charlie. You’ve
taught me so much, and I love
you, even when you make me
want to rip my hair out. I’ll miss
you the most, and I can’t begin to
explain how grateful I am that I
met you when I did. You took me
under your wing and changed
everything.
There will never be another
place that is as impactful to me
as this newsroom has been. I
will never forget the people I’ve
met and the experiences I’ve
had. Even if it’s a 5 a.m. paper
night or having to rewrite a lead
20 times, I’ll cherish everything
this room has brought to me.
So thank you to all my printies.
In one way or another, you’ve all
made a difference in my life, and
I love you all. Allons-y!
Feature
Plainsman Press
13
May 5, 2014
‘Ivory and Ash’ find success through friendship, love for music
by CAITLIN WELBORN
entertainment editor
Local bands start in many
ways. One guy knows another,
who knows another guy who
can play or sing, and so then the
band forms.
But for some, they may have
known each other for a while
ready playing together whenever I stepped into the situation,”
says Seaborn.
When it came to the last
member of the group, Chris Beatty, he didn’t join the band until
after he had met Seaborn when
they both played in a previous
band, “Elk and Armor,” together.
“Chris was one of the first
“It’s just kind of hard to
describe, and Indie is kind of a
broad term,” Seaborn says. “So it
just kind of fits there.”
But by the time the group
began to play together, they
were all already out of school
and into their own career fields.
“Jon and Chris both lived
here in Lubbock, DeVon lived
before ever playing together.
For the band members of
Ivory and Ash, this was the case.
“ R a ce ( H e n r y ) , D e Vo n
(Fields) and I are all from the
surrounding towns of Abilene,
and I had known of them for a
long time,” says guitarist Jonathan Seaborn.
But as far as actually meeting his band members, Seaborn
says that they met later on in a
sort of convoluted way.
“I didn’t actually meet Race
until 2005,” Seaborn recalls. “We
met because we were both going to South Plains at the time.
DeVon and I have had mutual
friends for quite some time, at
least since I was 16 or so.”
Despite having mutual
friends, Fields and Seaborn
didn’t actually meet until Seaborn met up with Henry in
college.
“But we met because he
knew Race, and they were al-
people I met when I moved to
Lubbock,” says Seaborn. “Then
when Race talked to me about
playing with them, he mentioned to me that they needed
a bass player, and I said ‘Well, my
buddy Chris can play.’”
Although Henry and Fields
had met Beatty once or twice,
they hadn’t ever played together.
When the band talked about
their sound, they were all in
agreement that they weren’t
looking for a specific sound to
happen. They just sort of went
with the sound that came to
them.
“It was just sort of the natural thing,” says Fields drummer
for the band. “We didn’t really
want to force any particular
sound. I think even the term
‘Indie’ is kind of just by default.”
The rest of the band agreed,
saying that they just kind of
wanted to play loud rock and roll
and have fun with it.
in Abilene, and I lived in a
small town outside of Abilene
called Cisco,” says Henry. “So
we would alternate on practice days. Like, one Sunday,
DeVon and I would carpool
to Lubbock, and then the next
Sunday, Chris and Jon would
come down and practice near
Abilene.”
Overall, the commute to
and from Abilene or Lubbock
every week would be around
six hours round trip.
“So we did that for a
long time, until eventually
Race and DeVon moved to
Lubbock last February,” says
Ivory and Ash practice in the home of guitarist Jonathan Seaborn on April 27.
Seaborn.
ALLISON TERRY/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Henr y, who went to
school for music-related career fields after finishing at
South Plains College, moved
Seaborn goes on to say that bies, they really love their band, then tell them to check it out.
back to the Abilene area.
he hasn’t broken into print jour- and are very dedicated to their And then if they want to buy it
“I initially went for the nalism and has gone in a slightly music.
later on, that’s up to them. We’re
sound engineering program, different direction.
“We love playing and were just doing what we love.”
but ended up finishing in the
“Charlie (Ehrenfeld) would very dedicated to it, even when
Live sound reinforcement program,” explains Henry, guitarist
and vocalist for the band.
From there, Henry got a
job with a company called Live
Sound, and then moved away to
start a career with them.
“I didn’t realize at the time
that I really just wanted to play
music,” says Henry, “and I didn’t
want to have to set up everybody’s stuff to play.”
Fields, who played in marching band and jazz band in college, admits that those were the
only classes he really went to,
because it was what he enjoyed
doing.
Seaborn, on the other hand,
didn’t go to SPC for anything
related to music.
“I took one or two classes
for fun, but I was never in the
program,” says Seaborn, who
went to SPC for print and photo
journalism.
hate that I’m saying this, but
print journalism is dead,” says
Seaborn. “The college side of it
is awesome, and I wouldn’t trade
the experience for anything.
But I got into it because I really
wanted to work for an actual
newspaper, and I found out real
quick after graduating that that’s
not going to be around.”
Seaborn went on to explain
that even though it is cool that
print is evolving into the Internet, it is also very easy to just
start a blog.
“I mean, anyone can set up a
blog and start writing,” Seaborn
says, “and to me, it almost degrades journalism to a degree,
and same goes for photo and
video for that matter. Anyone
can pick up a camera and think
that they can be a photographer.”
Although the band members have other jobs and hob-
two of us were living in a different city and we had to commute,” says Fields.
The members of Ivory and
Ash said they believe that this is
what sort of makes them stand
out, aside from their sound, because even when things were
tough because two of the members lived in a different city, they
were still very loyal to their art.
“I even encourage people to
go out and listen to our music for
free,” says Henry. “Yes, they can
buy it on iTunes. But I don’t want
them to have to pay for music
that they may not know whether
they like or not.”
Henry and the other members say that they give fans
websites where they can listen
to their music for free so the fans
can find out whether they like
the music before buying.
“I just tell them where to
find our songs,” says Henry, “and
Riggs rocks Lubbock with honest country, stage presence
by BRITTANY BROWN
staff writer
It’s not everyday that you
get to experience Sam Riggs
and The Night People live in
concert.
A Florida native who moved
to Austin in 2007, Riggs has
performed in Lubbock multiple
times and says he has always
had a good experience playing
with the crowds he has performed in front of. Riggs and
the band entertained a packed
crowd at the Office Sports Bar
in Lubbock on April 11, when
they opened for Cory Morrow.
Riggs says Morrow knows how
to have a good time, which gave
the show a lot of excitement.
“It’s always a good time
when we make it out to Lubbock,” says Riggs. “There was a
really good crowd out.”
The band performed most
of the songs from their most
recent album, “Out Run The Sun,”
that includes, “Long Shot,”“Come
Back Down,” and “Collide,” which
had a music spot on the ABC hit
drama “Nashville” in January. The
show also included songs from
their previous album, “Lighthouse,” which included, “Lighthouse,” “When the Lights Go
Out,” which had a number one
hit music video on CMT Pure 12Pack, and “Six feet in the Ground,”
which was number 1 in Lubbock
for about four months and had
a really good response from the
crowd during the performance.
The band played an all-original
set of just their songs.
Lubbock does not appear
on their list of stops very often,
so Riggs says he is always sure to
make the best of the experience
whenever he and the band are
able to put on a show there. The
band will have the opportunity
to return to Lubbock in early
June. After a successful show
Friday, Riggs is excited to come
back.
“Lubbock is very fun,” says
Riggs. “I always have a little too
much to drink when I go there.”
Sam Riggs and The Night
People have opened for acts
such as Chris Knight, Joe Diffie,
The Eli Young Band, Randy Rogers Band, Ray Wylie Hubbard,
and many more. The band recently returned from County
Rendez-Vous, the largest running French country music festival in Crappon, France. The band
played for a crowd of 8,000 fans
and had the longest autograph
lines of any other artist performing at the event.
Riggs has received recognition for his talent from many
legends in his profession.
“Sam Riggs wears a legacy
of honest country, makes good
rock, writes lyrics that matter,
and straps on a stage presence
second to none,” says Ray Wylie
Hubbard.
Riggs says Hubbard has
been a mentor to him and
opened his eyes to songwriting,
as well as what it means to be a
great songwriter.
The band’s tour continues
with stops in Longview, Stephenville, Refugio, and San Antonio, before making their way
back to Lubbock.
Make plans to catch them
on June 6 at the Office Sports
Bar.
14
Feature
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Student shares experiences of life in Afghanistan
by ZACH HOLLINGSWORTH
news editor
There’s a part of the world
that a great many people live
in that Americans will never be
able to understand.
These are war-torn countries where the things many take
for granted in the “first world,”
such as electricity, television,
and even running water, are
not a given, but a rare luxury
which many don’t have access
to. Bullets fly through the air, explosions shake neighborhoods,
and people are told how to live.
Those who come from
countries and regions like that
can perhaps appreciate the
things Americans take for granted every day, such as the ability
(and ease) of getting a good
education.
Sayed Azizi, an economics
major enrolled at South Plains
College, is one such a person.
Originally from Afghanistan,
Azizi has been living in America
off and on during the past two
and a half years. He has been
intently pursuing his higher education since arriving in Lubbock
to attend Lubbock High School
in 2011.
“I got a chance to come here
through an exchange program,”
explains Azizi. “(It’s) called the
Youth Exchange and Study, or
YES…I was in Lubbock for six
months in 2011. I went to Lubbock High, then went back to
Afghanistan because my program ended.”
Azizi says that he stayed in
Afghanistan for another year
while finishing up his junior year
in high school. He later had the
opportunity to come back to
the United States to finish high
school, during which time he
attended Christ the King High
School in Lubbock as an international student. After graduating,
he began attending SPC. The
time Azizi has spent here has
been, in his words, different.
“When I first came here, I expected…different behavior from
people,” says Azizi. “The people,
the culture; everything is different, but it all comes (down) to…
we are all human, we all share
interests. When I came here, I
thought I was going to make zero
friends; (I thought) it’s going to
be so hard, so difficult, because
there are so many differences
(between Afghanistan and the
United States).”
Despite his initial fear, Azizi
says he has made “good friends,”
during his time here, and has
found success in school through
hard work.
Azizi has been, with a little
help from family back home and
his own heavy work schedule,
paying his way through school,
with little assistance from financial aid.
“(My) school is not fully funded by scholarships,” explains Azizi.
“I worked during the summer. I
did construction, and my mom
helped a little bit… so it’s (funding) from every possible source.”
Where he is now is a long
way from where he came from, in
his childhood in Afghanistan. The
specter of constant warfare, civil
and otherwise, along with terrorism, has had its negative effects
on Afghanistan for decades. Azizi
says he witnessed these ravages
first hand.
“I was born in Mazar, which
is a city in north Afghanistan,”
says Azizi. “I was born during the
war period. There were so many
conflicts going on, because of
the civil war, and the Russian
invasion. After (Russia) left, we
still had civil war. (There was)
fighting between different
groups who fought against
Russia…they started fighting
with themselves over power.
Taliban, but they didn’t destroy
them totally. They weakened
them, and then left them for
four or five years. So the Taliban
had all the time to strengthen
themselves. Then they started
this series of attacks which is
going on to right now.”
When the Taliban came
back, they did so with a vengeance, according to Azizi.
“ That was when it
started getting crazy,” says
Azizi. “(There were) suicide
attacks everywhere. The
worse place to be in was
the south, because Taliban
have more influence, and
there are a lot of U.S., Canadian…and English soldiers
in the south. So (the Taliban)
always target those.”
Against this backdrop,
Azizi started his educational
career, beginning in second
grade. During his fifth grade
year, his family moved to Kabul. The move was made for
the educational opportunities available in the Capital.
Education, and the opportunities it provides, was all
important in Azizi’s life. This
Economics major Sayed Azizi poses outside the Science Building on the Levelland campus on April 30. was driven home for him
through the hard work his
JAYME LOZANO/PLAINSMANPRESS
parents insisted on.
“They really made us
understand our priorities,
Then the Taliban came, and it no export, nothing, so obviously because it was pretty rough. We and study really hard,” explains
just got worse.”
the economy totally crashed.”
couldn’t really play outside that Azizi with a chuckle. “That’s all
Because of this constant
Azizi explains that these much, because they were always we did, so we hated it. We didn’t
state of unrest in the country, tough years were made worse around. I was really scared of have any other thing to entertain
and due to extreme levels of by the fact that there was a large them, because all of the big ourselves, so my dad would just
poverty, Azizi explains that he draught at the time, and he lived turbans and long beards, and (say), ‘alright, just go to your
and those around him grew up in a “pretty hot spot” as it was. the guns. They would walk in books.’ I hated it, but I had to
with no electricity, or many oth- He describes having to use fire, groups…they had nothing such because of my dad. He was really
er things that are the hallmarks candles, and gas for cooking, as as dignity, or emotions. They charismatic, so I couldn’t (really)
of life here.
well as for sight during the dark didn’t care about other people.” disobey him. And I knew that
“It wasn’t like people here nights. Television, in particular,
Azizi describes having to this was the right thing.”
(in America),” recalls Azizi. “We was an alien luxury.
hide out in his family’s basement
Azizi credits this with helpdidn’t have electricity, I nev“We never had interest in while American military units ing him do well in his educationTV, because we didn’t have the “bombed and bombed” the area, al pursuits, not only in the past,
electricity to watch (it),” says all night long. The next morning but also going into the future. It’s
Azizi. “But once it came, we just proved to be an entirely different a future he says he’s still in the
went crazy! What is this thing? scene than the previous night’s process of figuring out.
real passion for music and has I watched TV so much that I chaos.
“I’m stuck in between just
even participated in a few of learned two languages. We
“I went to sleep for two or doing economics and finance,
the music programs on campus. didn’t have our own stations, three hours that night,” recalls becoming a stock broker, or go“I’ve been playing violin so (we received signals from) Azizi. “Then when I woke up in ing to law school after (getting
and viola since I was 11,” Ste- stations from other countries. the morning, they were like ‘well, my degree),” says Azizi. “I want
phenson explains. “I was ac- We watched it all day…We didn’t they (the Taliban) are gone,’ so to be an international lawyer.
tually part of the commercial even know what was going on in I (said) ‘hell, yeah,’ and walked Some of them work in the UN,
music program and fiddled in it. We just liked the picture, and down the street and saw all of and that’s (their) base. They deal
some of their bands. And then movement, and all of the sound.” these people on top of their with really big war criminals, like
I joined the string ensemble in
Meanwhile, the unrest and cars, walking and dancing and Saddam (Hussein) or (MoamFine Arts.”
warfare was raging in other parts happy. That was one of the best mar) Khadafy.”
Ultimately, Stephenson of Afghanistan. Azizi explains days I’ve ever seen. Celebrations
Regardless of which cathinks her award shows that that while the area he grew up everywhere. It was crazy!”
reer Azizi chooses, he is unsure
just because SPC isn’t as big of in in northern Afghanistan was
Unfortunately, the excite- whether he will try to remain in
a school as Tech or LCU, it’s still a relatively peaceful due to the ment over the Taliban’s toppling the United States, or move back
great school and a smart choice Taliban not having that strong didn’t last. During a quiet period to Afghanistan.
to attend.
of a hold on the region, he still during the early years of the
“It really depends on what
“It’s smart to come to SPC,” experienced the effects of the war on terror, the Taliban was happens back there,” explains
says Stephenson. “You can save unrest. In particular, he recalls knocked down, but not entirely Azizi. “If it’s safe, I’ll probably go
the events surrounding the out.
back. If not, I’ll stay here. (All) I’m
American invasion of Afghani“In 2007, they (the Taliban) thinking right now is getting out
stan during the fallout from 9/11, were so weak, they couldn’t of college, getting a degree, and
and the members of the Taliban do anything,” explains Azizi. getting a job here. I’ve (got to)
who roamed his area.
“NATO and all of the internation- see what happens.”
“I remember the night they al forces…they weakened (the)
Stephenson wins poetry award
by JAYME LOZANO
editor-in-chief
Winning an award is a huge
accomplishment for any college
student, especially when he or
she wins it in unfamiliar territory.
Stacy Stephenson was a
participant in the Sigma Delta
Pi Annual Spanish Poetry Competition at Texas Tech University,
where she represented South
Plains College in the undergraduate division of the contest and
placed first.
Stephenson wouldn’t have
participated if it weren’t for
her Spanish professor, Arnold
Sanchez, offering it as an extra
credit assignment.
“He gave us the sheet that
had all the requirements on
there,” Stephenson explains.
“I never heard back until one
morning when I heard a ding
from my email. At first I thought
they were going to have us
read it in front of people, and
I thought, ‘Have you heard my
Spanish?’ But luckily we just had
to go up there and tell them
about our inspiration behind
the poem.”
Inspiration for the poem
hit Stephenson while she was
in her car. She revised it several
times, but the meaning behind
it stayed the same.
“It’s a poem about the night
my mom died,” says Stephenson.
“It came from the heart, and I
think the most beautiful things
come from the heart.”
Stephenson says that because she’s a musician and already in touch with her artful
side, the meaningful poem
poured out of her.
“It translated to ‘Full Moon
Night,’” says Stephenson. “Basically, it talks about how, under
the full moon, I feel these sad
emotions about the night my
mom died. But, at the same time,
I feel protected and safe. It came
straight from the heart.”
Getting the award was a
different and rewarding experience for Stephenson, as she says
it was a big induction ceremony
for the Spanish Honor Society
at the Texas Tech University
campus.
“It was cool, and it really
hadn’t hit me that I beat out
all these people,” Stephenson
explains.
At the ceremony, the winning poems were framed, and
the winners were presented with
plaques, which Stephenson is
especially proud of having.
Stephenson says that because the competition was held
at Texas Tech and Lubbock Christian University and she won, her
and Sanchez are proud of what
she accomplished.
“He was excited,” says Stephenson. “It made him look really
good, and it made SPC look really
good too because you have Tech
Stacy Stephenson recently won an award during the
Sigma Delta Pi Spanish Poetry competition.
SIERRA TAYLOR/PLAINSMAN PRESS
and LCU, these two big schools,
and I beat out all of them.”
Stephenson is a physical
education major, but she has a
so much money and make such
good, strong relationships with
people in the smaller classes. I’m
glad I can represent us.”
er went to kindergarten…We
didn’t have music. We didn’t
have a lot of things. There was
so much poverty. Not just us (his
family), but everyone living in
the area… There was no import,
(the United States) attacked,”
says Azizi. “We were listening to
the radio, and my mom (said),
‘They are going to attack (the)
Taliban tonight.’ I was happy
they (Taliban) were leaving,
Feature
Plainsman Press
15
May 5, 2014
Lubbock resident overcomes consequences of harrowing drug use
and on for the next
seven years.
“I had just started
doing meth sporadically,” says Bretz, “just
on the weekends…
or if somebody had
it at school, we’d post
up in somebody’s van
and do it. After that,
it became a matter
of… ‘OK, I’m going to
do this all the time.’
I was doing it all the
time, but I was (also)
(Editor’s note: This sto- doing everything else.
ry is the final part of the Cough medicine, momulti-part series, “Doped tion sickness pills, coUp,” examining the issue of caine, alcohol…just
illicit drug abuse that began everything.”
This period endin Issue #7 and concludes
ed
with
Bretz getting
with this issue. Several
kicked
out
of school,
staff members took it upon
and,
in
search
of a
themselves to interview,
change,
he
moved
to
take photographs and conLubbock
to
live
with
duct research. The results
of their combined efforts his mother (Bretz is
originally from Odesfollow.)
sa). It would prove to Chance Bretz maintains a positive outlook on life after his time as a daily meth addict.
by ZACH HOLLINGSWORTH be the first of many
news editor
moves and “fresh ALLISON TERRY/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Life as a true drug addict starts” in his life.
In Lubbock, he
is an ugly one, full of dark viand that’s when it got worse. I But, for some reason, she had a bumps… within 45 minutes of
gnettes straight out of a horror found a new group of kids to just started getting really hot, change of heart, and took him doing my last ridiculous bump.”
do drugs with, and went into and my…body just started lock- back to Lubbock, to his mother’s
film.
Shooting up every day led
Or, in the words of Chance a tailspin involving drugs and ing up on me. I just started home, far removed from the to a series of events that ended
Bretz, a former meth addict, it’s various other issues. He was crying and wailing. It felt like danger in Odessa.
with Bretz sitting in the back of a
dangerously thin, suffering from something had me…and finally
a “hay ride from hell.”
“That drug doesn’t leave police car, facing jail time.
Bretz, a resident of Lubbock, an eating disorder in addition to just let me go.”
you with anything, (or) any emo“This girl I had been messhas survived it all. There was the his drug use.
For an unspecified amount tion,” says Bretz. “I didn’t know ing with had given me a half an
“I had gotten to a real un- of time, Bretz was a prostitute, what made her say, ‘OK, he’s still ounce of dope to come (to Lubtime he went into cardiac arrest
from smoking a large amount healthy weight,” explains Bretz. a topic which, in contrast to his my friend. I’m going to take him bock) and get rid of,” says Bretz.
of meth, or the time a hit was “(It got) to where I was just usual forthcoming nature, he home to his mom’s house.’”
“She had given me a hot shot
put out on him for the ounce of blacking out all the time, be- doesn’t go into too much detail
In less than 24 hours of re- (a syringe full of an unknown,
meth he had “burned” off with cause I wasn’t
dangerous subfrom his dealer. There was the eating. I just
stance) the week
time he crashed his van firmly had all kinds of
before…I woke
into an oak tree, transforming issues at once.
up in nothing but
his vehicle into an accordion I…got to where
my underwear,
with him inside of it and then I was losing my
all ripped up…
waking up from a coma in the mind.”
(I was) bloody
C o n hospital, suffering from brain
down to my anbleeding. Or the time he showed c e r n e d , h i s
kles in my dad’s
up at his grandmother’s house m o t h e r g o t
front yard. I reat 7 a.m., bloody and dishev- him admitted
member tying
eled, with no memory of what to a rehab prooff, and I barely
happened, after shooting up a g r a m . B r e t z
tapped (the sywent through
bad batch of meth.
ringe) into my
Bretz, whose story of addic- the program at
vein…I put my
tion begins at the age of 15 and Canyon Lakes,
finger on the
culminates with him sitting in a facility which
plunger, and imthe back of a cop car at the age is no longer in
mediately felt
of 21, withdrawing and facing a operation. He
sick and blacked
heavy distribution charge, has explains he was
out.”
been clean for almost two years. “kind of clean”
When Bretz
“Since that day, September for a time. It
w o k e u p, h i s
2, 2012, I haven’t touched it w a s n’ t l o n g
belongings had
(meth),” says Bretz. “I couldn’t before he went
been scattered
go back to it. I’ve worked my back to using,
all around him in
(expletive) off, just doing what however.
his father’s front
“I got bustI’m supposed to be doing…not
yard and porch.
running off whenever I’ve had ed on my 16th
Unable to get
an argument with somebody… birthday, high
into the house,
(wanting) to go get high. I’m not on meth,” Bretz
Bretz collected
says. “My mom sent me back on. He was a dope runner for a turning to his mother’s house, his things, and limped across
using it as a crutch anymore.”
To arrive at this point, ac- (to rehab) for the second time short time, helping his dealer however, Bretz returned to town to his grandmother ’s
cording to Bretz, it has been a in four months. I got out (then), by playing the middle man in a Odessa with another group house.
“long, long…process,” but, he and stayed clean for three and a meth ring, living out of a motel of friends. His desire for meth
“It was like 7 in the morning,”
admits with a wry smile, “it’s half years.”
room. He learned how to “cook” outweighed all other consid- Bretz says, “and she opened the
During this bout of sobri- meth. And it was during this pe- erations, according to Bretz. By door…looked at me, and just
been a fun ride.”
This statement might seem ety, Bretz graduated from high riod that he began shooting up. this point, he was shooting up started crying. She said, ‘what’s
strange coming from anyone school, and gradually got health“I just remember banging to a frightening degree.
going on?’ I said, ‘please just let
else. But then Bretz is not like ier. But this didn’t last. He had dope all the time,” recalls Bretz,
“I was banging it all the me in.’”
most people. He handles life been taking prescribed medica- “and just getting myself into time,” recalls Bretz. “I had even
In the wake of this incident,
enthusiastically, even when re- tion while attending high school stupid situations with stupid quit smoking (and) snorting it. Bretz says he was more than
counting the worst stories from in Lubbock which helped him people. There’s just so many I just about had needle fever willing to take his “friends’” meth
maintain his sobriety, but he quit things that happened out there so bad. I was high all day, every and disappear with it.
those dark days.
“I started using drugs in taking it, because “it was making that I still have never even told day. I would do ridiculous size
“I said, ‘Yeah, give me your
general whenever I was in the me fat, and I didn’t want to take to this day. Just horrific things
fifth grade,” says Bretz. “I just it anymore.” He moved out of his that I…went through that I
tried it a few times. During PE, mother’s house and quit taking thought I would never have to
me and this one girl used to post all of his medication at once.
go through.”
“I was all crazy for a while,
up behind the dumpsters and
One of these things was
smoke weed…but I started do- and I ended up moving back to getting a hit put out on him by
ing it regularly…in the summer Odessa,” says Bretz. “(I) relapsed his dealer, from whom Bretz had
within three or four weeks of stolen an ounce of meth. Shortly
of my seventh grade year.”
During this time, Bretz says, being there. I started smok- after, Bretz recalls, the dealer
he and his friends would sneak ing weed again…I had gotten sent out a mass text offering
away with whiskey acquired drunk first, and within a matter “$500 dollars to whoever brings
from his father’s liquor collec- of weeks, I was popping pills. me (your) head.”
tion, drinking that and smoking By that summer, I was smoking
“He (the dealer) said, ‘don’t
marijuana. By the time he was meth again.”
think that your best friend won’t
From there, he went into do it,’” Bretz says. “So I was posted
13 years old, he had also tried
cocaine, but, Bretz explains, he a period of usage which didn’t up at somebody’s house who I
didn’t start heavily using until he end until he quit for good sev- knew for a fact…didn’t ever talk
eral years later. He came close to him, and knew nothing. My
began high school.
“That’s where I just start- to death more than once, but best friend…called me at the
ed everything,” recalls Bretz. he recalls one example. After apartment I was staying at, and
“Ecstasy, acid, shrooms…all of smoking a batch of meth, he (asked), ‘where are you at?’ I had
the psychedelics, pain pills… felt like his heart was “popping” been up…at least eight (or) nine
whatever, throughout my 9th inside his chest.
days…I ended up telling her
“I was a goner,” recalls Bretz. where I was. I went out on a limb.”
and 10th grade years.”
Two weeks into his 10 th “I was trying to roll a blunt of
Bretz explains that his
grade year, however, Bretz first weed, and it took me two and friend, who was also on meth,
encountered the drug that half hours…because I was so was planning on taking him to
would effectively run his life off jacked… I went in the shower, the dealer to collect the reward.
dope. I’m about to go (expletive) off in Lubbock, and get
high by myself,’” says Bretz.
In Lubbock, he only sold a
small portion of the half-ounce
he was allotted, shooting up
the rest. It was then, after
about a week, that he received
a phone call from the woman
who had given him the drugs.
Bretz says he made it clear
that he didn’t have her money,
taunting her about it. This was
not well received, according
to Bretz.
“She (told me) she was
going to come get me, and
take me back to Odessa,” says
Bretz. “(She) came and got me,
and was taking me back…I remember her swerving all over
the road. I told her to watch
the road.”
It wasn’t long before Bretz
says he noticed a police officer
behind them.
“Sure enough, we pulled
into Brownfield (Texas)…and
there’s this cop pulling us
over,” remembers Bretz. “She
pulls over, and doesn’t even
wait for (the cop) to get out
of his car…she tells me, ‘put
your seatbelt on, because I’m
running.’”
The chase, says Bretz, did
not last long. They drove down
a residential street, attempting
to escape from the police officer,
and hopped a bump before being blocked and forced to stop
by a moving train. The dealer
told Bretz, at this point, that she
had 18 grams of meth in the
vehicle, alongside a handgun.
“I said…here we go,” recalls
Bretz. “(She) wanted to get out
and run, but I said, ‘we’re not
going anywhere. We’re done.’
I…remember just laughing the
whole time. It was just something laughing inside of me.
That drug had just completely
taken me over at that point. I
was not myself. I was that drug
by that point. I’d done things to
people…I’d offered my body for
money to get this drug… (and) it
was finally all coming to an end.”
Bretz spent six months
locked up in the Terry County
Jail. He says he needed that time
to get clean, and that if he had
gotten right back out on the
streets, he wouldn’t be where
he is now, going on two years
sober. His initial clean period was
somewhat shaky, at first.
“At first…it was still up and
down,” says Bretz. “I was thinking the craziest things…I’d get
the worst paranoia known to
mankind.”
Since then, however, Bretz
says staying clean has gotten
easier for him. He acknowledges that there will always be the
danger that he may use again,
which all drug addicts face. But,
for now, he says he doesn’t worry
about it.
“I know that as long as I
(keep) doing what I’m doing
now…then I will be OK,” says
Bretz. “I’ll keep on doing even
better things…and just keep
improving every day. Some
days are better than others, but
you’ve just got to work with it.”
16
Feature
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Trauma surgeon shares slice of experiences in medical field
by CAITLIN WELBORN
entertainment editor
A patient is lying on the
surgical table. Music is playing in
the background while a surgical
team is at work on the patient.
Dr. John Griswold, a surgeon
for Texas Tech University Health
Sciences Center and for University Medical Center in Lubbock,
has been performing surgeries
for more than 21 years.
“I have a couple of titles,”
explains Griswold. “I am the
chairman of the Department of
Surgery for the Health Sciences
Center, and chief of surgery and
medical director for the Level
One Trauma Center and Burn
Center for the hospital.”
Griswold started working
at Tech and the Health Sciences
Center in 1992. He explains that
his specific patient care focus
is on the injured patients who
come through the Trauma Center, such as those who have been
involved in car wrecks and suffer
from gunshot wounds.
Griswold started his journey
to becoming a surgeon at the
University of Notre Dame, where
he did his undergraduate work.
Then he moved on to Creighton
University for medical school.
Griswold came to Tech for the
first time for his general surgery
residency.
“After I finished my general
surgery residency here, I went
and did several years of fellowship training in burns, trauma,
and critical care in Seattle, Washington,” explains Griswold.
After finishing all of his
training, Griswold went to work
at the University of Mississippi.
“I was there for about four
years, and then Tech asked me
to come back and take over the
Trauma Center,” says Griswold.
He says that he knew he
wanted to be a physician when
he was an undergrad, and once
in medical school, he decided
that he wanted to be a surgeon
and started to apply to programs.
“About halfway through my
residency, I began to get very
interested in burns and trauma,”
explains Griswold. “When I was
done with my residency, I de-
cided I wanted
more training,
and so I applied and got
accepted into
the University
of Washington.”
G r i s wo l d
says this was
very fortunate,
because the
University of
Wa s h i n g t o n
was one of the
top training
programs for
treating trauma and burn
patients.
“ I t ’s b e cause they
h ave a ve r y
unique environment there
w h e r e t h e y Photo courtesy of University Medical Center
take care of
those patients,”
from Lubbock, and it wasn’t
says Griswold. “I was very fortu- even a decision, because my
nate to be able to be part of that family wanted to come back to
experience for the two years I Lubbock because they loved it
was there.”
here so much.”
Griswold says that his resGriswold says that he has
idency in Lubbock was deter- had other offers to work elsemined outside of his control.
where. But he hasn’t taken any
“The way a residency is de- other jobs because his family
termined is you apply to a certain loves living in Lubbock so much.
number, and then there is a com- It is such an easy and wonderful
puter system that matches the place to live.
medical student with program,”
Before he even got started
he explained. “So you rank one in school and working toward
through 10 of your best choices, his medical degree, Griswold
and then the college ranks their says that he originally got instudents, and the computer sys- terested in the medical field
tem matches you with the right from somewhere outside of the
program.”
operating room.
He explains that this is how
“I had some injuries playhe was first introduced to the ing football in high school,
atmosphere at Tech’s program.
and so I became very inter“So it’s kind of like the com- ested in surgeries while I was
puter brought me here for the going through surgeries in
first time,” says Griswold.
high school,” explains Griswold.
Griswold says that it was “Most of us, when we enter
perfect timing when Texas Tech medical school, tend to bond
called to offer him a job.
with the type of medical care
“It’s interesting, because that we’ve had the most expowhenever Tech called me to sure to.”
come run the program here, I was
Griswold includes himself
actually about to accept a job in in that category, explaining that
North Carolina,” recalls Griswold. those students who have gone
“They had recruited me because into the surgical field have eiof my expertise. I was about to ther been through multiple sursign the contract when Lubbock geries or had a family member
called me. So I went home and who had to go through surgertold my wife about the call I got ies. He goes on to explain that
Former student releases EP with traditional country sound
by SIERRA TAYLOR
photo editor
Trying to compete in the
music industry is difficult.
But for Chris Gougler, nothing is difficult when you are
pursuing your dreams.
Gougler, who attended
South Plains College in the
2009 fall semester and 2010
spring semester, says from a very
young age he had
two passions in
his life, music and
baseball.
“I did my
music as more of
a stress reliever
than actually doing it like a musician, and I never
could figure out
if I wanted to do
music or baseball,” said Gougler.
“I wrestled back
and forth with
that for a while,
and in the last couple of years,
I just decided I was going make
a record and put it out, and so
I did.”
Gougler went to Nashville
in 1997 when he was in the 11th
grade and recorded a threesong demo.
“I never really did anything
with it, because I was always so
focused on playing baseball,”
Gougler said. “Music was just
something that I did for my own
piece of mind.”
For years, Gougler was
involved in the Texas country music industry in different
ways, even working merchandize
booths for a few bands.
“I’ve been around Texas
country singers forever, from way
back when there was no Randy
Rogers and none of these bands
even existed,” said Gougler. “That
was in the early days of like Pat
Green, and I was around Jason
Boland and Cross Canadian Ragweed when they were unknown.”
Gougler says that he was
always just there doing nothing
with his music until one day he
thought to himself that he could
do what every other musician
was doing, so he set out to make
another EP.
While most Texas country
musicians are finding their own
unique sounds, Gougler is focusing on what he knows and loves.
“I know I can be anything
I want to be, so I’m going to do
what I love to do, and that’s traditional country,” said Gougler.
“Whether it will make me a big
star or not, I don’t worry about
that kind of stuff.”
He says that he understands and enjoys all types of
country music. But he leans
more toward the traditional
classic country, like George
Jones and Merle Haggard.
“I remember vividly when
I lived in Lubbock when I was
in the first or second grade,”
Gougler recalls. “My grandpa sat
me down one day and showed
me George Jones, Merle Haggard, Hank Wiliams. As far as he
was concerned,
those were the
only ones worth
anything.”
To this day,
Gougler says he
still enjoys these
artists. When he
set out to create
his latest EP, he
reached out to
some Nashville
song writers who
he looked up to.
“I thought
I’d send them an email and
see if they had anything,” says
Gougler. “And they ended up
giving me a song or two, and
if I didn’t like it, they’d give me
a few more until I finally got to
the one. I’d try to weed out and
get to the best six that I possibly
could. Some of the songwriters
write songs for major big hits,
for huge acts, so it’s quality
songs. It’s very good quality
songs.”
Gougler released his self-titled EP in March 2014. It is available for purchase on iTunes and
Amazon.
there is evidence that people
have gone into the medical field
for completely different reasons.
Griswold says that people
who have come from large
families or have played in
a team sport are actually
the most successful in the
medicine field.
“The reason for this is
because, compared to 20-25
years ago where a physician
sort of did the surgery by
himself, where it was just
the patient and him, now
it is a very team-oriented
process because everything
is so complex,” explains
Griswold.
He also says that this
is why people with large
families, or those who are
athletes, do so well in the
medical field, because they
know how to act within a
group setting and know
when to play their part.
“For the most part since
most of us are specialized in
a certain area we want to
have the same team,” says
Griswold. “You want to know
what to expect and be prepared
for what’s happening. It makes it
easier to understand what’s going on and it prevents any confusion or having to be trained on
the spot by the surgeon.”
From the nursing staff and
the techs who give them the
instruments they use during
surgery the teams are normally
the same.
“The people who rotate
through the teams are normally
residency students who are
learning the aspects to the different surgeries,” says Griswold.
Because Griswold is the
chairman of his department he
often times helps students find
their right path in the medical
field.
“All of us that work here
at Tech are also professors and
we all have teaching responsibilities. So about once a week I
give a lecture and teach students
about the different aspects to
surgery,” says Griswold.
He says he loves his job and
what he does and could not see
himself doing anything else.
Psychology professor retires
following prodigious career
by AARON GREGG
online editor
He shook his head and made a
scene about him not belonging
there because he wasn’t writing
Mnemonics is a learning
anything down.
technique that helps informaAfter the classes, Dr. Ritchie
tion retention.
would take the tape recorder
Dr. Bill Ritchie, professor
back to his trailer, transcribe the
of psychology at South Plains
notes and study. He aced the
College, uses these unique techtests in Neuroanatomy.
niques to aid the success of his
In graduate school, Dr.
students.
Ritchie received one B+ and
Dr. Ritchie was born in Seatthe rest of the grades consisted
tle, Washington. He graduated
of A’s.
from Renton High School in
“I eventually got my PhD,
Renton, Washington.
and the school said, That’s it.
After graduation, he worked
You’re out of here,” Dr. Ritchie
as a custodian at a swimming
said.
pool, and he entered supervised
He says that he decided
skill trades, working for the largto go on to teach instead of
est parks department in the state
researching, and South Plains
of Washington. Dr. Ritchie said
College was the first school to
he made quite a bit of money
interview him. He got the job to
doing what he did, and he also
teach psychology.
drove a Porsche 911 Targa at that
“I look at teaching as a pertime.
formance,” Dr.
During a visit
R i tc h i e s a i d.
to a neurologist,
“My job is to
following a nose inmake the day
jury due to a diving
interesting for
accident, he was
the students. I
informed that he
entertain and
had dyslexia. The
get them enneurologist didn’t
thused about
define what exthe concepts
actly dyslexia was
they are learnand told Ritchie to
ing, and how
look for the definithe concepts
tion on his own. He
relate to their
found out what the
everyday lives.”
condition was and
Dr. Ritchie
decided to go to
is retiring afcollege.
ter 21 years of
At the age
teaching. He
of 33 he applied
plans to continand got accepted
ue to exercise,
to Spokane Falls
be active and
Community Collive life to the
lege in Spokane,
fullest.
Washington. He
Last year,
started as an art
he competed in
major.
a several world
“At that time of
championship
my life,” Dr. Ritchie
triathlons. He
said, “I learned to
has competed
memorize well.”
all around the
He got A’s in
world, includcourses such as
ing in a triathgovernment and
lon in China.
histor y. He was
Dr. Bill Ritchie overcomes dyslexia in order to become
He also recentalso a very comsuccessful in his field.
ly qualified for
petitive person,
a triathlon in
and he took that JENNY GARZA/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Canada.
vigor and applied
Dr. Ritchie plans to go back
despite his techniques he used
it to his classes.
to art and writing. He also owns a
He acquired his Associate of to study for the test.
Dr. Ritchie got accepted into house in Amherst, Texas, that he
Arts degree and was contacted
by a counselor, who told him to the PhD program at Washington is in the process of remodeling
attend a four-year university to State University. He didn’t have and selling.
“I will probably eventually
his master’s degree yet, but the
further his education.
Dr. Ritchie attended East- university figured he would earn move back to Seattle, where my
85-year-old mother can take
ern Washington University in that along the way.
Dr. Ritchie remembers care of me in my old age,” Dr.
Cheney, Washington. He was
given a choice that he could showing up to his first class, Ritchie said.
He says that he pictures
either major in experimental Neuroanatomy, with a tape
psychology, or continue with recorder and nothing else. Ten himself living on a beautiful
art. He decided to major in ex- minutes into the lecture, the pro- lakeside or on an oceanside
fessor stopped and noticed that property living in a tent, adding
perimental psychology.
Dr. Ritchie did well in all of Dr. Ritchie wasn’t taking notes. “it’s cheaper that way.”
his courses and also expanded
on his studying techniques by
using mnemonics.
“I had images for the numbers one to 100 in my head.” Dr.
Ritchie explained. “So if I had to
remember 50 things for a test, I
would just number them and associate an image with each item.”
He learned these techniques during his first introductory psychology classes.
“It made classroom work a
breeze, and it was fun to study,”
Dr. Ritchie said.
After graduating with his
bachelor’s degree, a counselor
contacted him and told him that
he needed to go to graduate
school.
He had to take a difficult
timed test, though, in order to
get accepted to the master’s
program. It proved challenging
Plainsman Press
Entertainment
17
May 5, 2014
Dalle slays inner demons on solo album
by RANDI ADAMS
staff writer
Brody Dalle is the most
punk rock mother-of-two you
will ever come across. The self-described “mommy-rocker” formed her first punk
band, Sourpuss, at the age of 16
in 1995. She released her first
major album with her alternative punk band, The Distillers, in
2000, and achieved commercial
success with the band’s third
album, “Coral Fang” in 2003.
In a very brief amount of time,
her music made an impact that
has not been seen in the punk
scene since The Distillers disbanded a couple of years later. The world would not see
Dalle again until her follow-up
project, Spinnerette, which
released its self-titled album in
2010. It was quite a departure
from her punk rock past.
On Dalle’s solo debut album, “Diploid Love,” she is finally showcasing her vocal range
and seems to have found a
happy medium between pretty
and polished, and her infamous
punk snarl. Dalle seems to have
shed her hard-partying ways, as
well as her infamous jet-black
hair. “Diploid Love” is an album
about transformation, as well
as laying some demons to rest.
The album takes off like
a shot with “Rat Race,” a fastpaced, grungy track which
begins with clean vocals from
Dalle and a heavy bass line. The
powerhouse vocals on the chorus make this track one of my
favorites on the album.
Dalle screams “I’m gonna
burn this city down! ‘Cause this
city run me around,” on the chorus. “I’m gonna burn this town to
the ground. Ain’t no worry, I’m
all fired up.” You can’t help but
believe her. Dalle also sings, “I’m gonna
cut the cord.” Pregnancy and
birth are main themes on “Diploid Love,” in case the album title
didn’t initially clue you in. Dalle
gets back to her Distiller’s roots
on the punk-driven track, “Underworld.” The song opens with
the lyrics, “I got a place in the
underworld, that’s where I’ll go
when the map runs out.” Dalle is
the queen of the underground
music scene, but “Diploid Love”
may very well reacquaint her
with the mainstream.
“I wanna go down to Mexico, hear the horns sing in Jalisco,”
Dalle sings as mariachi horns
blare in the background. Trust
me, Dalle makes it work. She
even closes the song out with
serious Latin flare for the final
it, a la The Cure. Dalle’s smokey
vocals accent the track very well.
The overall sound is a risky move,
but it pays off well. “Put on your
dreams and let’s go,” Dalle sings.
“Never let yourself give in when
you’re trying to start again.” It
sounds like Dalle is trying to inspire while also psyching herself
the track a danceable vibe that
would not be out of place in
an EDM club, and I would not
be surprised if it gets the remix
treatment from club DJ’s in the
near future. “I’m getting closer
to something, I don’t know what
it is,” Dalle sings. “I am ready.
Free from the past, let it all go
and move
on.” Again,
this sound
is new territor y for
Dalle. Is
she considering
moving
on from
her punk
origins?
“ Will you
be there,
waiting for
me? Can
we start
again? Can
we c a r r y
on?” “Meet
The Foe tus/Oh
the Joy”
sounds
dark and
brooding
in the beginning,
rockers Shirley Manson of the
band Garbage and Emily Kokal
of Warpaint join in on vocals. The
track is, as Dalle has described,
two songs in one. As it picks up
the pace, the track transforms
into the raucous “Oh The Joy.”
You should also check out the
music video for this track. It is
worth five minutes of your time. I
opens with an anime-style video
and switches over to Dalle and
Manson rocking out together.
Dalle deals with abandonment issues and “squandered
love” on the track, “I Don’t Need
Your Love.” She softly repeats
the lyrics “I don’t need your love”
over and over. It’s a bittersweet
tune about moving on, and it’s
nice to hear this register in Dalle’s voice. Her vocal chords seem
to have recovered from years
of screaming in her previous
bands. Dalle has said in recent
interviews that this track was her
way of sending the message to
her biological father about how
he will never get to be around
Dalle’s children, whom you can
hear playing in the background
halfway through the track.
“Blood In Gutters” might be
the grungiest track on the album. Paired with soaring vocals,
it’s an unbeatable combination.
“Out of the guts and onto the
earth. Under the sky, back into
minute of the track.
“Don’t Mess With
Me” is fast, raw and powerful. “Here they comin’
with their guns, guns,
guns,” Dalle sings. “See
the news, take them
on. They really think I’m
gonna run, run, run. You
don’t wanna mess with
me.” Dalle isn’t backing
down.
“I love anything
bad standing in my
way,” Dalle sings during
the chorus. “You’re the
reason I can stay, and
fight you to the death,
‘cause where I stood I
will not give up.” Dalle proves she’s a lover AND a
fighter.
“Dressed in Dreams” has an
airy, ‘80’s college rock vibe to
up to follow her own dreams.
“Carry On” opens with a
piano and is quickly accompanied by a techno beat. It gives
but this song’s lyrics are a celebration of new life. Dalle tells her
“perfect parasite” that “I’ll always
love you forever.” Fellow female
the dirt.” These lyrics struck me
as being very reminiscent of Nirvana’s track, “Very Ape,” off their
album “In Utero.” Dalle has stated
that bands such as Nirvava and
Hole were early influences, and
it shows. Dalle’s music has always
had a grungy feel to it, so much
so that for years she described
her sound as “grime.”
“Find your weakness, go
on, kill it,” Dalle sings on the
chorus. She’s summoning her
inner strength on this track,
and it flows with dark imagery.
“You are the secret deep down
inside. And I know a horror to
tell, a nightmare to hide.” This
song sounds like it’s coming
from a place of pain. Dalle has
always used music to wrestle
her demons. If you’re not familiar
with Dalle’s divorce track, “The
Hunger,” off The Distiller’s “Coral
Fang” album, give it a listen. This
track could have easily closed
“Diploid Love,” yet there is one
more track that demands to be
heard…
“Parties For Prostitutes” feels
like a siren calling to a distant
lover. “Across the ocean, a thousand seas cannot disguise your
unfaithful deeds.” It’s accusing
and haunting. Dalle is sending
a message.
“Loose lips do sink our ship.”
The track’s organ and drum
beats are overtaken after the
three-minute mark with driving
guitars and drums, getting her
point across. It feels as if Dalle
still has some unfinished business.
“Diploid Love” is an impressive solo effort by Dalle, who
played almost all of the instruments on this album, including
guitars, drum machines, synth,
bass, and even wood sticks
(with a little help from some
friends here and there). Some
die-hard fans may be tempted
to scream, “Sell-out!” due to her
more mainstream sound. But it
still has some sharp edges. I applaud Dalle for taking
risks on “Diploid Love.” She keeps
it interesting, and I’m certain that
the songs will really jump out
in a live concert setting. Dalle
has matured, and hopefully her
longtime fans will have matured
with her. Hopefully, she will attract new ones as well.
All hail Queen B. I give this
album 5 out of 5 stars.
Inspirational story adapted into movie warms hearts
by FAITH CONSTANCIO
staff writer
A 4-year-old boy gets the
opportunity to visit heaven
while he is being operated on.
That is the foundation of
“Heaven is For Real,” a movie
based on the true story of a
4-year-old boy who had an encounter with Jesus and Heaven
during an operation. The amazing story of Colton Burpo was
first told in a book, and now it is
in theaters everywhere.
The book touched a lot of
people, and the movie will impact a lot of people who don’t
really like to read. Everyone
who saw the movie before me
kept saying how
amazing
it was. Every time I
would try
to g e t a
ticket, the
movie was
always
sold out.
T h e
m o v ie came
out at a
perfect
time, right
before
Easter.
Director
Randall
Wallace did an amazing job
capturing what Colton saw, as
he really brought the book to
life. “Heaven is For Real” was released on April 16 and earned a
little more then $22.5 million at
the box office the first weekend.
The movie opens with a
young girl who appears to be
painting, which is only foreshadowing until the end of the movie.
After about five minutes, most
everyone in the audience was
sniffling, including me. Colton’s
dad, Todd Burpo, is introduced
as a preacher who is making
minimum wage and trying to
make a better life for his wife
and children.
Colton has his dad, mom,
and older sister all by his side
through his entire journey. The
Burpo family decides to take a
having a high fever. His mom,
Sonja Burpo, didn’t know what
to do, so they take their son to
the emergency
room at a hospital.
When they
get to the hospital, the doctors
quickly run tests
and find out he
has a ruptured
appendix. The
doctors quickly
take Colton into
the operation
room and question if he is going
to live.
Todd is test-
she knows to pray for her son.
This is really touching and had
everyone in the audience with
remarks to his dad about Heaven, but Todd quickly questions if
what his son is saying is real or
trip to Colorado and visit the zoo.
When they come back, Colton
becomes ill, throwing up and
ed on
his faith
and if
he is really living what he preaches. He yells
at God for letting this happen,
while his wife calls everyone
tears running down their faces.
Colton lives through the
surgery, and when he sees his
parents, he has a whole other
outlook on life. Keep in mind he
is only 4 years old. He tells his
dad that he had nothing to be
afraid of. Colton keeps making
fake. Colton knows things that
no one could possibly know.
Todd had been out of the church
for some time, and the congregation is looking for someone
else to preach at the church.
Colton is interviewed by the
newspaper, and his family gets
a lot of teasing by people of
that town.
Not only did Colton have an
experience, his dad
did also. Todd Burpo finally came to
realize Colton is just
an innocent child
and couldn’t be lying about things he
didn’t know of. He
preached on how
God is love, and
how Colton did go
to Heaven.
The movie
does not compare
to the book, but it
was still fantastic. I
don’t think any director or producer
could capture what
Colton really saw
through his experience, but it was well
done.
My overall experience with this
movie was nothing but good. I enjoyed all the emotions I was feeling
t h ro u g h o u t t h e
movie. I give this
film 5 out of 5 stars.
It is really
touching and offers different
outlook on everything. I also
recommend reading the book
to understand more of what
he saw.
18
Entertainment
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
‘Devious Maids’ grips audience with drama, complicated plot
by NICOLE TRUGILLO
opinion editor
Being a maid is probably
one of the most horrible jobs
someone could ever do. But
if they work for interesting
families, there
can be some
surprises.
“Devious
Maids” is an
American television comedy-drama
series that follows a closeknit group of
maids who
work for the
rich and fancy
families in Beverly Hills, California. They all
have one thing
in common, as
they were all
fr iends with
Flora Hernandez.
Th e f i r s t
season premiered on June 23, 2013. In the
first episode, the viewers get
to witness a maid named Flora
Hernandez being killed by an
unknown person. She had been
working for Evelyn and her husband Adrian Powell, who had
a close relationship with Flora.
After the shocking murder
of Flora, Marisol Suarez begins
investigating the murder because someone has framed
her son, Eddie Suarez. Marisol
changes her last name and pretends to be a maid. She becomes
the maid of the newlywed couple Taylor and Michael Stappord.
The season also introduces
the four other maids in show.
Rosie Falta works for actress Peri
Westmore and her husband,
soap star Spence Westmore.
Carmen Luna, who wants to be
a singer, is the maid to a Spanish singer, Alejandro Rubio. She
also works alongside another
maid, Odessa, and butler, Sam
Alexander. The other two maids
are Zoila Diaz and her teenage
daughter Valentina. They both
work for Genevieve Delatour
and her son Remi Delatour, who
Valentina is madly in love with.
Marisol ends up becoming
friends with the maids to find
out information on Flora. The
for money so her lawyer can
bring her son to California. Peri
declines, but Spence says otherwise. He gives Rosie the money
and admits that he has feelings
for her, while the feeling is mutual with Rosie. Peri doesn’t pay
Later in the season, Peri
wants to clean up her act and
be the best wife to Spence after
he has a heart attack. Spence has
other plans. He wants to marry
Rosie. Rosie agrees after Peri hit
a man with her
car and didn’t
go back to
save him. She
believes that
‘e v i l s h o u l d
be punished.’
Peri decides to
do something
nice for Rosie,
so she brings
Miguel to California, and
Rosie states
that she will be
grateful to her
for the rest of
her life. Since
Peri brought
her son, Rosie
can no longer
marry Spence.
During the season, Carmen has a relationship with
her co-worker, Sam. Eventually
he wants to leave to become a
music producer just for Carmen.
During his departure, Odessa
and Carmen become close since
Odessa is battling cancer. Alejandro and Carmen become close
as well, because he reveals to
her that he is gay. Carmen is the
only one who knows about this.
Sam comes back, but Carmen
tells him that she doesn’t want
to be a singer anymore.
In the Delatour household,
Genevieve is depressed because
she can’t keep a husband. Remi
comes and lives with his mom
because he knows it will make
her feel better. Valentina tries
to become close to Remi, which
Zoila forbids because she believes that ‘Rich boys never
fall in love with the help.’ She
believes this because the same
thing happened to her and
Genevieve’s brother, Henri. Later
maids don’t want to discuss the lifestyle of Flora
because of her secrets, and
because they don’t know
Marisol very well. Later on
in the season, the maids
share some interesting
facts about Flora. Flora
was pregnant and she was
threatening the father to
give her a certain amount
of money to keep quiet. But
the problem is that nobody
knew who the father was.
The maids don’t have
time to worry about who
killed Flora, because they
have other problems in
their personal lives.
Rosie is trying to bring
her son, Miguel, to the
United States from Mexico. During the season, the
viewers see a hate relationship between Peri and Spence.
The viewers see that Peri is a
self-absorbed actress who is fame
hungry, while Spence is a loving
man who doesn’t let the fame
get to him. Rosie tries to ask Peri
attention because she is having
an affair of her own. But later,
she becomes suspicious of her
husband, thinking that he is
having an affair with somebody
else, not knowing that it’s Rosie.
Carmen
tries to make
Alejandro listen
to her demo CD,
which Odessa
doesn’t allow
because she is
trying to protect
Alejandro. Carmen eventually
finds a producer,
Benny Soto, who
will produce her
CD. In one episode, Alejandro
has a dinner party, and it turns
out that Benny
is invited. She
begs Alejandro
for her to not
work the party,
and he agrees
which makes
Odessa upset.
Odessa later
talks to Benny
and reveals Carmen’s real age, and he drops
Carmen as a client.
in the season, the viewers see
that Remi starts doing cocaine
HBO mini series ‘Doll and Em’ lacks substance
by AARON GREGG
online editor
Being an assistant to a celebrity is a difficult job.
The assistant has to schedule meetings and drive the
celebrity to various events.
Some would even go as far as
to say that celebrities are spoiled
children.
Af ter a fight
and break up with
her boyfriend, Dolly
(Dolly Wells) calls
her best friend, Emily (Emily Mortimer). And from there,
Dolly, her childhood
friend, becomes her
assistant.
“Doll and Em”
is a comedy mockumentary series that
sheds some light on
how celebrities go
on about their lives.
Dolly learns
about how difficult
the celebrity lifestyle is, and how
she adapts to it. In
the second episode,
Dolly meets Susan Sarandon
and is tasked with babysitting
her son. The task becomes a
failure whenever Dolly makes
the son cry because she scares
him during a game they were
playing. In the next scene, Emily
is looking for Dolly and eventually finds her smoking marijuana with Susan Sarandon and
having a great time. The whole
episode is pretty comical.
Dolly isn’t the only person
who has issues with the lifestyle. Emily is struggling as well.
Emily is given an important role
in a movie where she has to go
above and beyond with her emotions. She struggles with a scene
where she has to cry because the
character’s dad has died. She is
told to remember how her own
father had died, but the tears
aren’t shed. All of a sudden, Dolly
is sobbing behind her, and all
the attention is focused on her
and she is commended for her
performance.
Dolly starts to learn more
about the lifestyle as she is invited to audition for movie roles and
gets to be in front of the food line
with the rest of the actors.
Tension starts to boil between the trio. Emily starts to
think that she has peaked with
her roles, and she starts to fear
that she has become overvalued,
overhyped, used and discarded.
She starts to fear that her job
security is at stake.
Needless to say, the tension
ends with a verbal argument.
I’m not going to spoil the ending, but the plot has some
resolution.
Overall, “Doll and Em” surprised me. The series tells a
humble story about how two
friends should never live with
each other. It tells how two
friends with different lifestyles
go through dramatic
changes just from their
interactions.
I wouldn’t say the
acting in the show is
great, because all the actors were acting as themselves. But the overall
product was great.
“Doll and Em” is not
for everyone. The series
does get boring after
awhile. If you’re expecting something of HBO
quality, you will be severely disappointed. The
series is short, being six
episodes long, so it can
be completed in one
sitting.
I don’t think HBO
is picking “Doll and Em”
up for a second season, which
doesn’t upset me. The ending
wrapped up the overall plot
without a cliffhanger.
If you’re looking for a quick
series that’s easy to follow, then
I recommend “Doll and Em.” If
you’re looking for something
with more substance and comedy, I recommend “Veep.”
I give “Doll and Em” 3 out
of 5 stars.
and tells Valentina not to tell
anybody. Feeling hopeless, Valentina tells her mother, and they
send Remi to rehab again. He has
previously been there before.
Felipe, Genevieve’s ex-husband and Remi’s father, brings
Remi home from rehab. He
then persuades Genevieve to
have dinner with him, and she
agrees. Remi thanks Valentina
for saving his life. They end up
dating because Zoila changes
her mind. Valentina then quits
her job so Remi won’t think of
her as the help.
Since Marisol works for the
Stappords, she finds interesting
information about Flora. She
learns that Flora was a prostitute who worked for Adrian
Powell. Evelyn never liked Flora
because she would sleep with
her husband for money, as well
as with anybody who Adrian set
her up for. Marisol starts working
for both the Stappords and the
Powells, until Evelyn fires Marisol
because she couldn’t keep their
secrets. Marisol later on finds
out that Flora had a discussion
with Michael Stappord, who is a
lawyer, about the baby and her
proposition.
The season ends with cliffhangers and some shocking
discoveries. Peri finds out about
Spence and Rosie, and Peri
deports Rosie to Mexico to get
even. The press finds out that
Alejandro is gay, and he makes
a proposition to Carmen. He
offers Carmen a record deal.
But in return, she has to stay
married to him for at least two
years. Remi decides to leave
the country because he feels he
needs to do something good in
his life. Valentina has the need to
go with him, giving up her plans
for college. Zoila forbids it and
tells Remi to write a fake note,
stating that he wants
Valentina to stay here.
Valentina reads the note
and is crushed. Later on,
Zoila tells Valentina about
the note, and she packs
her bags and plans to
follow Remi.
Genevieve and Felipe are engaged for the
second time, and they
have a party at the Powells’. During the party, the
viewers find out some
discoveries. They get to
finally find out who killed
Flora Hernandez.
I’m not going to spoil
the finale for anybody,
but believe me, it will
shock you. Season two of
Devious Maids premiered
on Sunday, April 20, and
it was beyond amazing.
As for the storyline, well,
you’re just going to find
out for yourself. As for
me, I will be on my couch,
in front of my TV, every
Sunday from 9 p.m. to
10 p.m. to find out more
devious secrets.
19
Entertainment
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
‘True Blood’ sucks audience in with great adaptation of book series
by JAYME LOZANO
editor-in-chief
Before Bella Swan and Edward Cullen, there was Sookie
Stackhouse and Bill Compton.
“True Blood” is a television
drama series on HBO based on
Charlaine Harris’ series of novels,
“Southern Vampire Mysteries.”
Humans coexist with vampires
after Tru Blood, synthetic bottled blood, is created and marketed as an alternative blood
source for vampires, meaning
they don’t have to feed off of
humans anymore.
The show follows Sookie
(Anna Paquin), who, at first
glance, seems to be just another
waitress at Merlotte’s Bar and
Grill in Bon Temps. But Sookie is
also a telepath and struggles to
control her ability, sometimes
invading the privacy
of the people around
her.
For the most part,
Sookie lives a simple
life and is happy with it.
But everything changes when Bill (Stephen
Moyer) walks into the
bar where she works.
She immediately falls
for the brooding vampire, but it’s never that
simple. Bill brings a lot
of complications into
her life, complications
that go by the name
Eric Northman (Alexander Skarsgard).
Eric is a cold, calculating and merciless
vampire that won’t hesitate
for a second to rip someone’s
heart out just to prove a point.
He owns Fangtasia, a bar that
has become the hangout for
vampires, as well as for “fangbangers.”
The only person Eric seems
to actually care about is his
progeny Pam (Kristin Bauer van
Straten). The two are extremely
loyal to each other, and she
will obey his orders even if she
disagrees. But, she’s just like Eric
in the way of not caring about
other people, and she is very
blunt when she is dealing with
people. She has a dark sense of
humor. She’s also cunning and
absolutely hates everything
about Sookie, especially her
name.
As if dealing with bloodthirsty vampires wasn’t enough,
Sookie also has normal complicated people to deal with,
including her moody best friend,
Tara, her boss, Sam who has
feelings for her, and her moron
brother, Jason.
For the most part, Jason
(Ryan Kwanten) causes nothing
but trouble for everyone he
comes into contact with. To put
it simply, he makes a lot of selfish
choices to get what he wants,
and it works because he has a
charming attitude that makes
him a magnet for the girls in
shows the real manipulative and
violent side of his personality.
Jessica (Deborah Ann Woll)
also is a main part of Sookie’s life,
as she is Bill’s progeny. At first,
she’s bratty and annoying, purposely trying to rebel because of
how she hates being a vampire.
But she starts to mature as she
adjusts to her new life and actually becomes one of the more
insightful characters on certain
parts of the show.
Then there’s Alcide (Joe
Manganiello), a werewolf. When
Alcide first meets Sookie, he is
asked to protect her as a favor to
Eric because she’s determined to
go on a dangerous mission. The
two are quickly annoyed with
each other, especially since she
ignores his advice, leading him
to get into a bar fight.
town. He has a small-town
innocence about him that
is endearing when he lets
it show. But for the most
part, he doesn’t think before acting, which puts him
and his loved ones in binds
constantly.
Tara (Rutina Wesley) is
one of the more annoying
characters on the show.
Like Pam, she has a cynical
sense of humor and is blunt
with people. But she is also
very confrontational as a
way to protect herself. This
wouldn’t be a bad thing if
she directed it at the right
people. But we often see
it directed at Sookie more than
anyone else if Sookie disagrees
with her.
Sam Merlotte (Sam Trammell) seems to actually care
about her. However, that innocent nature is quickly ruined by
how jealous he gets when Bill
co m e s i nto
her life. Also,
Sam has a secret of his own
that complicates Sookie’s
life when she
finds out.
T h e r e ’s
also Queen
Sophie-Anne
(Evan Rachel
Wood), who
carries herself
in a manner
fitting of a
queen, but
quickly throws tantrums and
will make people suffer for it, and
Russell Edgington.
Denis O’Hare portrays Russell, the vampire king of Mississippi. He is charming and polite
when he first appears on the
show, but that quickly changes
when the wrong buttons are
pushed. When he’s angry, Russell
But as the two start to
bond, Alcide switches from the
quick-tempered werewolf to
being lovingly protective over
Sookie, even if he hates how
attached she is to the vampires.
Because of the topic, the
show had a really good chance
of failing. It went with the vampire craze that got out of control.
But the reason why the show has
been so successful and actually
stayed around is because of
creator Alan Ball.
Ball has done a brilliant job
of adapting Harris’ work for TV,
and he has even expanded on it
by adding more story to the major characters, making each one
have more of a life in the series.
It also helps that the casting
is incredible. Each actor and
actress in the show actually
fits the characters described in
the books. All give entertaining
performances, especially Paquin,
Moyer, and Skarsgard.
One of the greatest performances in the series so far was
O’Hare’s performance of Russell
Edgington. There was something very dark and menacing
about his character that no other
actor could have
pulled off. In one
scene in particular, Russell is
so grief-stricken
and angry that
he pulls one of
the goriest stunts
in the entire
show on national
TV just to prove
a point that humans and vampires can never
coexist because
humans will always be weaker.
“True Blood”
will be airing its
seventh and final season on
HBO, starting on June 22. The
show not only does justice to
Harris’ work, but also brings a
new, bloody definition to the
vampire craze. The great storylines and performances by all
the characters are enough to
get the bad taste of glitter and
sparkles out of your system.
‘Oculus’ mirrors mistakes of bad horror movies
by JAYME LOZANO
editor-in-chief
Stare deep into this mysterious mirror and you will start to
see horrors that no one should
be subjected to.
One of those horrors will
likely be the movie the mirror
comes from, the new film “Oculus.”
The events in “Oculus” take
place in the present, but also
11 years before, which is told
through a series of flashbacks.
Eleven years ago, Kaylie
(Annalise Basso) and her younger brother Tim (Garrett Ryan)
witness a disturbing chain of
unexplained events when their
parents move into a new house.
Their dad, Alan (Rory Cochrane),
purchases an antique mirror for
his office. The catch is that when
you look at it, “you see what it
wants you to see.”
The hallucinations range
from eerie to disturbing, such
as the dad thinking he is pulling
a band-aid off when he’s really
ripping off his fingernail, and the
mental stability of both parents
quickly deteriorates as a result.
The kids see the violent effects of
the mirror, and it leaves Kaylie on
her own and Tim being checked
into a psychiatric ward.
Coming back to the present time, we see Tim (Brenton
Thwaites) being released from
the psychiatric ward. With the
help of extensive therapy, he
is anxious, but ready to move
on and come back into society.
Then he has
lunch with his sister.
Kaylie (Karen Gillan)
very conveniently
works at an auction house and has
spent years obsessing over the mirror
and all the deaths
related to it.
She wastes no
time trying to make
Tim remember the
very memories
that took years of
therapy to repress.
When she realizes
that he recalls what
happened differently than her, she
pressures him into
staying the night in
their old home with
the mirror to show
him that she’s right.
From the outside looking in,
“Oculus” seems like it has every
element needed to be a pretty
decent horror film. You have the
creepy, mysterious object that
radiates this ominous energy.
You have the parents going
crazy as a result, leaving the female lead to become strong and
determined enough to figure all
of it out. You even have the mind
game of not being entirely sure
of what’s happening. It was even
released by Blumhouse Productions, which is becoming one of
the more reputable studios for
horror films.
It should all add up so easily that it should be difficult to
screw it up. But wow, did this
film find a way.
For starters, it is executed
in a very sloppy manner. It can
be added to the list of horror
movies that focus around one
specific object, and the idea of
the mirror making the characters
in the film question reality is
genius. So was the idea to have
Kaylie document everything
that happened that night with
recordings. But that doesn’t
change the fact that the transitions in time were a bit too rough
around the edges, and way too
boring for viewers to want to
keep up with, which leads to the
next point.
It was boring. People watch
horror films to be scared. You
want that hair-raising, chillsdown-your-spine, anxiety-inthe-pit-of-your-stomach feeling
that will pull you to the edge
of your seat. But if you fail to
provide any original scares that
we haven’t seen in similar films
about a family member going
crazy and hurting his or her family, such as “The Amityville Horror,” you have ultimately failed at
making an actual horror movie.
I’m looking at you, Flanagan.
The same goes for the gore
factor. You can have your characters see one disturbing and
bloody scenario through the
mirror after another. But a film
can’t depend on that alone. It
was way overused in “Oculus” as
a scare tactic and to push buttons, but there is no correlation
between the gore on screen and
the point trying to be shown. It’s
completely senseless.
If you’re going to have one
strong lead, don’t make the
other lead character seem so
flat. Gillan was incredible, the
only notable thing about
this film. The minute she
comes on screen, it is clear
her character has been
obsessing over this mirror
in such an unhealthy way
that you want to question
if she should have been
the one in the psychiatric
hospital instead of her
brother. Gillan delivers a
very driven performance
that brings out the intensity the script called
for. She easily stole the
spotlight anytime she was
on screen, especially the
moments when her character was flirting with the
thin line between insanity
and reality.
As great as Gillan was,
Thwaites couldn’t keep
up with her performance.
The writing is mostly to blame
here, as Tim is written to be a
fragile and scared character who
spent years trying to repair the
damage his childhood caused.
So in scenes where we see Kaylie on the edge of sanity, it is
hard to let Thwaites even have
a chance of keeping up, when
all his character can do is stare
and try to piece together what
is happening.
“Oculus” was released on
April 11. It was a great idea, and
definitely could have been the
best horror film in a really long
time. But it quickly becomes a
random series of disturbing clips
just thrown together. Ultimately,
it loses speed early on the film
falls flat. I give it 2 out of 5 stars.
20
Entertainment
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
‘Silicon Valley’ takes byte out of tech industry with witty, relatable characters
by JAYME LOZANO
editor-in-chief
A tall, skinny white guy. A
short, skinny Asian guy. A fat guy
with a ponytail. Some guy with
crazy facial hair, and then an East
Indian guy.
It sounds like the making
of a joke, but instead it is how
groups of programmers are
described in Mike Judge’s new
show, “Silicon Valley,” by a main
character, who adds, “It’s like
they trade guys until they all
have the right group.”This quote
alone is the best way to set the
tone for the highly satirical view
on the technology developer
world.
“Silicon Valley” opens with
Kid Rock performing at a party
where no one is listening, before
the host climbs onstage and rips
the microphone out of his hand.
“We’re making the world
a better place, through constructing elegant hierarchies for
maximum code reuse and extensibility,” the host boasts, seeing
as how Google just purchased
his company for more than $200
million, while the partygoers act
as yes-men, clearly not caring
about what he is saying because
they are really only there to
boost his ego.
No one at the party seems
to grasp how ridiculous all of
this is except the show’s main
group of nerdy techs. They walk
around being both disgusted
and amazed at the displays of
character around them and the
expenses taken out for the party,
including liquid shrimp.
The show’s main character
is Richard Hendricks (Thomas
Middleditch), an introverted
programmer who seems to be
the most awkward of the group.
He stumbles on his words as
Elrich (T.J. Miller) tells Richard
he has become deadweight in
the “tech incubator,” what Elrich
calls the space where technicians
work on apps in his house.
Elrich is an arrogant, somewhat successful programmer
who sold his startup Aviato,
such as “I Know H.T.M.L. (How
to meet ladies),” and comparing
himself to Apple founder Steve
Jobs, he makes Richard believe
he is wasting time on his app,
Pied Piper.
which he pronounces with a ridiculously fake, snobby Spanish
accent. Now, he exchanges room
and board for a piece of whatever
apps the techs in his incubator
create. While he walks around
wearing shirts that say things
Pied Piper was designed
to help musicians search music
to see if they are unknowingly
infringing on anyone else’s
copyright. His coworkers at
Hooli, a massive Google-esque
company, mock the program
until they test it and find that
the app, mediocre as it may be,
has an impressive compression
algorithm.
While they are realizing this,
Jared (Zach Woods) is amazed
by the quality
of the algorithm. He has
Gavin Belson
(M att R oss),
the head of
Hooli, a look at
the program,
and they immediately seek
Richard out to
purchase the
product. Be fore any deal
can be set in
stone, investor
Peter Gregory
(Christopher
Evan Welch)
also wants
the product, and the
t wo e n g a g e
in a bidding
war, shouting
numbers that
Richard never
thought possible for something he created. He has to
decide whether to build his
own company
with his housemates, or go
for the $10 million offer from
Belson.
During
the next few episodes, Richard and his friends
go through all the complications
of having a successful startup,
including Richard having to
choose which of his friends are
actually valuable to him and
which are useless. While each
friend has his own savvy tech
skills, he can’t keep all of them.
The friend he seems to be
closest to is Nelson (Josh Brener),
who the group calls Big Head.
Big Head is the most rational of
the group, next to Richard, and
offers him actual advice and insight through all of the madness.
There is also Gilfoyle (Martin Starr), Aly (Aly Mawji), and
Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani), Richard’s other roommates and
friends. Each one brings his
own charming kind of awkward,
especially in one episode when
Elrich hires a stripper and each
guy finds a reason to leave the
room instead of watching her
dance.
The exception to that is
Starr’s Gilfoyle. As Gilfoyle, Starr
tends to own every scene he’s
in because of how he carries his
character. He knows he’s a bit of
an outsider because of what he
does, but it doesn’t phase him.
He doesn’t see himself as a nerd.
He sees himself as a guy with a
genius bottled up inside him.
He brags about how he could
hack the NSA in high school and
was the push of a button away
from causing a war. When the
stripper comes up to him, he
simply says, “I don’t pay for it,”
and walks away.
Woods is also one of the
characters whose presence practically demands to be felt. Woods
has a knack for being funny
without pushing his jokes, something he had when he joined the
cast of “The Office.” He nonchalantly tells them that his name
isn’t really Jared, it’s Donald.
But when he worked for Belson,
Belson called him Jared, and he
never had the nerve to correct
him. This ties in nicely with how
his character likes angry people,
because, as he describes it, angry
people relax him.
Of course, the star of the
show is the main protagonist,
Richard.
In a matter of a few episodes, we see Richard transform
from the shy, awkward app
developer into a more assertive
version of himself just so he can
have the chance to survive in a
world of alpha males. Elrich bullies him into being a jerk because
he says being successful and being decent don’t go together in
Silicon Valley. While it backfires
because of how Richard starts to
stand up against Elrich, it proves
the point that Richard does
have that potential in him, and
it shows more and more, especially when he fights to keep the
name he wanted simply because
it’s his app.
The best part about “Silicon
Valley” is how Judge brings the
same style that he had in other
works, such as “Office Space.” It’s
a clever comedy, but the writing
doesn’t waste any time by having to remind you of that.
As a matter of fact, while
Judge offers an insider-view
on the world of successful and
failed startups, which is apparently realistic enough that
Google chairman Eric Schmidt
agreed to appear in the pilot,
Judge also sets out to ridicule
and mock every aspect of the
subject.
“Silicon Valley” premiered
on April 6 on HBO. So far, it
seems like a promising show.
There is great character development, a witty storyline and a
lot of appeal for every audience,
whether it’s people in the tech
world who are actually experiencing this, or anyone who
can just relate to the different
workplace dynamics and relationships it can create. This is
easily one of Judge’s best pieces
of work and is guaranteed to get
better from here.
‘Orphan Black’ delivers exciting plot, dynamic characters
by AARON GREGG
online editor
Clones.
The mere mention of that
phrase can make any science
fiction fan squirm in excitement.
BBC America made every
sci-fi fan’s dream come true with
the creation of “Orphan Black.” The
show premiered
last year and became a huge success, garnering a
massive fan base.
It was instantly renewed for a second season one
month after the
first episode aired.
The second
season premiered
on April 19, and
has continued
adding more plot
elements to the
already addictive
storyline.
“Orphan
Black ” follows
the story of Sarah Manning. She’s
a con artist, drug
dealer, thief and a
mother. Manning
is an orphan, as the
show implies, and little is known
about her childhood.
The first episode begins
with Manning encountering
someone who looks just like her,
not a doppelgänger, but a clone.
The clone goes by the name of
Elizabeth Childs. The encounter
is brief, because shortly after
that, Elizabeth jumps in front
of an oncoming train and dies.
Elizabeth leaves behind
her purse and identity, giving
Manning the opportunity to
take on that identity. And while
this is happening, she enlists the
help of her best friend, Felix, to
convince the world that Sarah
Manning is dead and not Elizabeth Childs.
Posing as Childs, Manning
learns first hand how hard it is
living someone else’s life. Childs
worked as a detective for the
police department, and she had
her own personal demons she
encountered before her death.
Childs was investigating a case
which leads to a civilian casualty
Allison Hendrix, who is a soccer mom living in a suburban
neighborhood. She’s married
and has two children. Hendrix
is my favorite character, mostly
because of how dynamic her
character is. Living in the suburbs takes its toll on Hendrix’s
tempts to make amends with
her foster mom, Mrs. S, and
daughter, Kira.
The clones also find out
that they are being monitored.
At first they don’t find out who
exactly is monitoring them.
But eventually details surface,
caused by her. She experienced
emotional problems due to this
dramatic event and alienated
herself from her co-workers,
as well as her boyfriend, Dylan
Bruce.
Manning slowly starts piecing clues together as to what
Childs was investigating and
encounters another clone. This
clone goes by the name of Katja
Obringer, and the clues start to
unravel about this entire conspiracy. Obringer ends up getting
shot, and Manning is tasked with
acquiring Obringer’s suitcase.
After acquiring the suitcase,
Manning starts to meet more of
the clones.
The next clone she meets is
mental sanity and often lashes
out at people. Plus, she makes
hilarious rash decisions. But in
the end, she serves as the voice
of reason whenever things get
hectic, and she always puts
family above everything else.
Manning also meets Cosima Niehaus, another clone. Niehaus, the dreadlocked beauty, is
a graduate student attending
the University of Minnesota.
She’s majoring in evolutionary
developmental biology and is
currently trying to figure out
the secrets behind them being
clones.
Manning, Niehaus and
Hendrix start gathering clues.
On top of that, Manning at-
and there are instances when
the clones fall in love with their
monitors.
The rest of the series consists of Manning struggling with
the double life, her findings on
who Childs really killed, trying to
maintain a relationship with her
daughter and trying to help out
Niehaus and Hendrix with their
problems.
“Orphan Black” is also full
of many plot twists to keep
viewers glued to their seats.
They happen without viewers
even realizing it at times. It’s also
addictive to watch. I managed
to watch the entire first season
within the span of a two-day
weekend.
“Orphan Black” has won numerous awards from the Critics
Choice Television Awards and
Canadian Screen Awards for
its unpredictable plot and unforgettable characters. Tatiana
Maslany does a wonderful job of
playing the many clones of herself. Maslany
even goes as
far as learning different
accents for
these particular characters. In the
first couple
of episodes,
she portrays
Manning trying to perfect
the American
accent. For
t h e s h ow,
she learned
different dialects, such
as American,
German,
French and
Russian. The
fact that she
can act as
these different characters and stay
in those characters shows that Maslany is a
phenomenal actress.
It’s from her performances
that Maslany has won numerous
television awards as well.
Maslany has won the EWwy
Award for ‘Best Actress in a Drama Series’ and the Young Hollywood Awards for ‘Breakthrough
Performance-Female.”
Overall, if you’re looking for
a new show to get into that will
leave you wanting more after
the episode credits roll, I recommend you give this show a shot.
There’s a little bit of everything
in this series that will appeal
to someone. There’s romance,
drama, action, guns, clones,
plot twists, cringe moments
that make you gasp and more
romance.
The plot does get a little
cliche at times, and there are
instances where plot development suddenly halts and the
series makes up elements to
waste time. But those instances
are rare. After those scenes, the
plot picks back up at full speed.
I highly recommend this
show. From beginning to end,
it was a roller-coaster ride full
of every genre. I stayed up late
watching this show, and after
the end of an episode, I would
tell myself, ‘OK, just one more
episode, until I finished the first
season.
I give “Orphan Black” 5 out
of 5 stars.
Plainsman Press
Sports
21
May 5, 2014
Newsroom gives journalism student direction in life
by DEREK LOPEZ
sports editor
I can’t believe my time here
at South Plains College is nearing its end. It seems like just
yesterday I was going to registration for my first semester.
The Notorious B.I.G. said, “ It
was all a dream.”That’s how I feel
about my time at SPC, because
during the past four semesters
my life has changed drastically.
It’s kind of
a crazy story of
how I ended up
on the Plainsman Press newspaper staff, because when I first
came to SPC, I really didn’t know
what I wanted
to do.
When I left
Texas Tech Universit y in the
spring of 2011,
I w a s n’ t s u r e
what was going
to happen to
me. I didn’t really know what I
wanted to do or where I wanted
to go.
Then I stumbled upon SPC.
I didn’t know it at the time, but
this place would change my life.
I still wasn’t sure what I wanted
to do, so I used my first two semesters to complete my basics
and earn my first degree, an
Associate of Arts degree with a
major in business.
Though it was just an associate’s degree, I didn’t care. I was
the first person in my family to
earn a degree. It was definitely
one of the proudest moments
of my life.
I returned to SPC in the fall
of 2012 to pursue a degree in
broadcast journalism, but that
path would not last long. Not
knowing what I was getting in
to, I signed up for a News Writing
course with Charlie Ehrenfeld.
I thought it would be interesting and beneficial to
me in the career path I had
chosen. If only I knew then
just how life-changing and
vital that class would be to
where I am today.
I walked into class on
the first day of classes with
my music bumping. I didn’t
know anyone, so I just kept
to myself, listening to my
music.
Then our professor
walked in dressed in a suit
and tie, and my first thought
was, “This guy’s going to be
tough.” But, that was not the
case. Charlie walked right up
to me, introduced himself, and
asked me if I was a fan of Notre
Dame, since I had a jersey on.
In this class is also where I
met Jordan Irvine, Jayme Lozano
and several other people who
were on the newspaper staff
with me my first semester.
It took me a while to open
up, but I finally started to late
in the semester and became
friends with Jordan. Like me,
Jordan was a big sports fanatic,
and he was a sports writer for
the Plainsman Press. One day, he
told me, “man, you should come
be a sports writer for the paper.
You would be good at it.”
I said, “Thanks,” and didn’t
really think much of it at the
time. But advising for the spring
2013 semester came around,
and this is when I met another
guy who has become a good
friend to me as well as a professor, Mr. Billy Alonzo. Really,
if it wasn’t for Billy, I probably
wouldn’t have ended up on
the newspaper staff. I went in
for advising, and he asked me,
“What do you want to do with
sports? Do you want to write
about them or talk about them?”
And I told him, “To be honest, I
don’t know.” I got a taste of both
aspects and liked talking about
them, but I also liked writing
about them because I got to be
more detailed with my stories. So
he enrolled me in Publications I,
which is the class that produces
the campus newspaper, and he
enrolled me in his TV
Production class.
I was excited to
get the opportunity
to write for the school
paper and get some
great experience. But
I had no idea that one
class could change my
life so much.
On the first day of
class, I walked into the
newsroom
and saw
Jayme and
Jordan, along with some other
familiar faces that I had seen in
News Writing, so at least I knew
a few people. It always feels
good to walk into a class and
not be a stranger to EVERYONE.
They were all very welcoming,
but something I
will never forget is
when the editors
stood up to introduce themselves.
Every single one of
them, and Charlie,
said the exact same
thing, “this class will
change your life if
you let it.”
At the time, I
was like, “ Yeah,
right, that isn’t going to happen.” But
crazy, awesome, loud self saying
something off the wall and keeping us laughing on paper nights,
to going and eating Chinese
food with Jordan every Tuesday
and Thursday.
That spring semester, I
found a home away from home.
Whether I knew it right away or
not, I did.
Someone who became very
close to me during my time on
the staff was my editor-in-chief,
Jayme. She has been the edi-
tor-in-chief during my entire
time on the Plainsman Press
staff.
My first TIPA experience in
Ft. Worth, Texas, was something
I felt brought a lot of us closer together, allowed us to break
out of our comfort zones
and be crazy and goofy
as the semester went
on, I slowly began to
realize what they were
talking about. On the
last paper night of my
first semester on staff, I
stood there watching the
girls who would not be
back next year hug each
other and start crying as
they gave Charlie a hug. I
realized not only had this
class changed my life, the
people around me had
become like family to me
and to each other.
Even though it was only my
first semester on staff, as I stood
there watching everyone hug
and cry, I found myself nearly
shed a tear just watching them.
Many memories came out of my
first year on staff from the very
first day when Jayme pulled out
her tazer and I let her taze my
arm because I wanted to see
what it felt like, to Kati Walker,
our former news editor, coming
into the newsroom with her
sports editor after only being on
the staff for a week. I accepted
the position, though I had no
clue what I was doing, and had
to miss the very first paper night
because my good friend, Francis
Forbes, was in the hospital.
The fact that both of them
had enough confidence in a
guy who had never written an
article in his
life, didn’t
know how
to work In-
around each other. Jayme had
to wear my Kobe Bryant jersey
the entire bus ride to Ft. Worth
because she lost a bet to me.
Also, family dinners and
paper nights were something I
will never forget, staying at the
school laying out the paper late
Thursday nights and early into
Friday mornings.
But, the memory that sticks
out the most to me is the day
when Jayme and Charlie came
to me and asked me to be the
Design, the editing and layout
software, and just really had no
idea what I was getting into,
for them to put their faith and
confidence in me, meant
more to me than either
of them will ever know. I
will be forever grateful to
both of them for giving
me the opportunity to be
the sports editor for the
Plainsman Press.
In my first semester
on the staff, Kati and former editorial assistant
Gabby Perez were a big
reason why I caught on to
InDesign so quickly. They
helped me out and gave
me some tips. Before I
knew it, I was on my way
to designing newspaper
pages.
I guess Jayme made
a good decision, because
here we are, three semesters later, getting
ready to graduate from
SPC. We’ve been on this
journey together, reigning as
editor-in-chief and sports editor
for the past three semesters.
We’ve been through the
good and the bad together, from
getting out of paper night at
6:30 a.m. to getting out at 12:15
a.m., to my first TIPA convention
in 2013. I’m going to miss our
heart-to-heart conversations we
used to have on paper nights.
I think that something that
has helped me be successful as
the sports editor is that Jayme
gave me free range to do whatever I wanted with the sports
section, as long as I got everything in.
I also remember Charlie
telling me after he found out I
was going to be on staff, that
I couldn’t write all of my opinions about Notre Dame. But the
Manti Te’o story broke around
the same time
our first paper was due,
and Charlie
came up to
me and said,
“You’re going
to write about
it, right?” And
I s a i d, “ Fo r
sure.” I think
because that
was my first
article, it
gave me a lot
of self-confi-
dence, as I knew
a lot about the
subject, which
allowed me
to write a solid article. And
then I just took
off from there,
volunteering to
write three, four,
even five articles
an issue.
Another
person who
helped me get
through paper nights my second
semester was our then-entertainment editor, Megan Perez.
Megan had to leave school this
semester for personal reasons,
and I can honestly say that paper
nights weren’t the same without
her. When Megan was in the
newsroom, it didn’t matter what
she was going through. She
always seemed to have a smile
on her face and was always saying something to make people
smile. I know there were times
when I walked into the newsroom in a terrible mood, and
Megan would give me a hug and
tell me I looked, “on point.”Then I
would hear her say “scandalous,”
or “trifflin” for no reason, and we
would just bust out laughing.
Someone else who started
on the Plainsman Press the
same time Megan and I did was
our news editor, Zach Hollingsworth. Zach and I have been
friends since the very first day of
Publications I, and he has been a
good friend and become a great
a writer.
Caitlin Welborn, our entertainment editor, I met in Charlie’s
News Writing class, but we didn’t
really talk until I joined the newspaper staff. Our conversations,
and arguments, always seem to
escalate quickly. But we always
end up laughing in the end. She
is making me a paper mache
beanie, and it will be awesome.
I can’t wait to see it.
Two people who joined the
newspaper in the fall of 2013 are
Devin Reyna and Skylar Hernandez. I didn’t know it then, but
these two girls became extremely close to me, and I look out
for them like family. They have
helped me out so much with the
sports section by taking most of
the sports photos. I never really
had to ask them to do anything.
They asked when games were
and told me what they wanted
to cover, and I’m so thankful for
that because it was a weight
lifted off of my shoulders.
I’m going to miss these two
so much. I wish they had joined
the staff sooner, so I could have
met them sooner. I have a lot of
faith and confidence in them,
and I know they will continue to
get better. Hopefully, we won’t
need any “pamphlets” when I
leave in a few weeks.
Working on the Plainsman
Press opened up so many doors
for me, including one that led to
my current job at the Hockley
County & Levelland News Press.
Their former sports editor, Joe
Gonzales, found me when I was
working at Walmart. I was stocking a shelf, and he happened to
walk by and see my nametag.
He asked if I was the Derek Lopez from the Plainsman Press.
I said, “Yes, sir,” and he told me
he needed a sports writer/photographer ASAP. I jumped at the
opportunity. Never in a million
years did I think I would be doing
my “dream job” at the age of 22.
I remember
my first
week on
the job,
when Friday came
around and
Joe, who is
a former
sports editor for the
Plainsman
Press, asked
what team
I wanted
to cover
for football
that night. I had never covered
a game before, but I ended up
at Smyer for their game against
Morton. I got thrown to the
wolves, and eight months later
I’ve come out a better writer and
photographer.
I thank Stephen and Pat
Henry for the opportunity to
work for their newspaper. I’ve
enjoyed every minute of it. Also,
it has been a pleasure working
with Joe, Paul Pinkert, Michelle
Davis, Javier Lopez and John
Rigg. It’s nice working in an environment where I can laugh and
joke with my co-workers.
College hasn’t exactly been
smooth sailing for me. I’ve had to
bury my grandparents. I had to
change schools. I’ve had to work
multiple jobs while enrolled
full-time in school. But I firmly
believe that everything happens
for a reason, and I feel that SPC
and this school newspaper were
the best things to ever happen
to me.
I’ve made some amazing
friends who I would never have
thought I would get close to,
and I have had a great mentor
and advisor in Charlie, who has
looked out for me since he met
me in his News Writing class.
Charlie, you have helped me
become a better writer, photographer, student and person.
I’m truly blessed to have walked
into your classroom three years
ago. You have been not only a
great mentor and professor, but
a great friend.
My amazing girlfriend, Marisa Rodriquez, who supports me
in everything I do, has been my
rock. I’m extremely blessed to
have her in my life. I love you
baby.
And most of all, I have to
thank my parents, who have
supported me since day one.
They taught me work ethic, and
that if I want something, it’s not
going to be given to me. I have
to go out and get it. Through
everything I have been through,
they have been right there supporting me and encouraging
me. I know we don’t get to talk
everyday, but I love you guys and
thank you for everything you
have done for me. I wouldn’t be
where I am today without you.
Thank you for teaching me how
to be a man.
As the late Tupac Shakur
once said, “Through every dark
night, there’s a bright day after
that. So no matter how hard it
gets, stick your chest out, keep
ya head up and handle it.”
22
Sports
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Track teams dominate UTSA Invitational, preparing for championship meet
by DEVIN REYNA
editorial assistant
The South Pains College
Track and Field teams recently
competed at the UTSA Invitational, continuing to show improvement with 13 season-best
performances as well as 16 firstplace finishes.
Freshman Diamond Gause
placed first place overall in the
100-meter dash at the April
19 meet in San Antonio with a
time of 11.56. Freshman Eboni
Coby placed second with her
season-best time of 11.66, while
freshman Royal Cheatman finished fifth with her time of 12.05.
Freshman Odean Skeen
place first and led a 1-2-3 sweep
for SPC in the 100-meter dash
with a time of 10.16, his best
Williams placed fifth with a time
of 51.23.
Freshmen Isaac Clark and Jacob Clark placed first and second,
respectively, in the 800-meter
run. Isaac Clark had a time of
1:51.50, and Jacob Clark had a
time of 1:51.72. Sophomore
Anderson Charles finished
fourth with a season-best
time of 1:51.80.
J’cee Holmes competed
in the women’s 1500-meter
run and placed fifth with a
time of 5:25.03.
Kennedy Chumba highlighted the men’s 1500-meter
run with a time of 3:59.75.
Jose Martinez placed fourth
with a time of 4:02.94, and
Cordaryl Whitehead placed
fifth with a time of 4:03.11
Shanicka Newell placed
Richards, Roland, and Gayle placed first in the men’s
4x400-meter dash with a time
of 3:07.78. Brian Smith, Renard
Howell, Isaac Clark, Jacob Clark
placed third with a time of
3:13.11.
In the women’s high jump,
Shaquan Burris tied a school
record by clearing the bar at
5-8.00 to place third. In the men’s
high jump, Steven Barze placed
second after clearing the bar at
6-06.75.
in the long jump with a season-best jump of 19-05.50.
In the men’s long jump,
Earnest Mosheleketi placed first
with a jump of 24-05.75. Barze
placed third with a jump of 2307.50.
fourth in the women’s javelin
with a throw of 129-00.
The Texans will attempt to
win their eighth consecutive
NJCAA Outdoor Track and Field
Championship, while the Lady
Texans will be vying for their fifth
Sophomore Cordaryl Whitehead and freshman Jose Martinez practice the
1,600-meter run as they get ready for their final meet at Texas Tech on May 3.
SKYLAR HERNANDEZ/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Ali Ahmed and KB Handsborough practice their exchange for the 4x100-meter relay
as they prepare for their final regular-season meet before the Outdoor Championships
which will be held in Mesa, Ariz.
SKYLAR HERNANDEZ/PLAINSMAN PRESS
time of the season. Sophomore
Ahmed Ali placed second with
a time of 10.24, while freshman
Brian Smith placed third with a
time of 10.53.
second in the 400-meter hurdles
with a time of 1:02.41. Kyle Robinson placed first in the men’s
400-meter hurdles with a time of
53.33. Robinson also competed in
Freshman Odean Skeen practices his starts as the track teams
get set for their final meet of the regular season.
SKYLAR HERNANDEZ/PLAINSMAN PRESS
In the women’s 200-meter dash, Domonique Williams
placed second with a time of
24.23. Cheatham finished fifth
in the 200 with a time of 24.75
Jereem Richards placed
first in the 200-meter dash with
a time of 20.99. Sophomore KB
Handsborough placed third with
a time of 21.10.
Freshman Chrisann Gordon
dominated the competition in
the women’s 400-meter dash
with a time of 53.09 to place first.
Steven Gayle placed first in
the men’s 400-meter dash with
a time of 46.71. Lestrod Roland
posted his season-best time and
placed second with a time of
46.87. Fred Kerley placed third
with a time of 47.70, and Michael
the 110-meter hurdles, placing
first with a time of 14.55.
In the 3000-meter steeplechase, Atara Segree placed
third with her season-best time
of 11:54.13. Antibahs Kibiwott
placed first in the men’s 3000-meter steeplechase with a season-best time of 9:18.87.
In the 4x100-meter relay,
Shun-Shana Mason, Gause, Atarah Clark, and Eboni Coby clocked
a time of 45.82 and placed first.
In the men’s 4x100-meter relay,
Ali, Handsborough, Roland, and
Skeen placed first with a time
of 39.52.
In the women’s 4x400-meter
relay, Gordon, Williams, Gause,
and Brittany Letts placed first
with a time of 3:41.12. Kerley,
In the women’s
pole vault, Celsey
Randolph placed
fourth with a season-best vault of 1107.75.
Janeil McDonald placed first place
In the men’s triple jump,
Elton Walcott placed first with
a season-best jump of 51-10.50.
Mosheleketi placed second with
a season-best jump of 50-07.50.
In the javelin, Reid Thormaehlen placed third with a throw of
163-09. Marlena Lopez finished
championship in six years. With
the season winding down, the
teams have only one more meet
left to prepare for the National
meet, competing at Texas Tech
on May 3, before traveling to
Mesa, Arizona.
Tubb receives NJCAA Appreciation Award
by NICOLE TRUGILLO
win awards by doing it, well, it’s master’s degree in physical letic Director of the Year twice,
opinion editor
education from Sul Ross State. in both 2006 and 2010, by the
a heck of a deal.”
He returned to SPC as athletic National Association of College
Tubb
was
part
of
the
SPC
Joe Tubb recently was hondirector in 1983. He has also Athletic Directors.
men’s
golf
team
in
1966.
After
ored during the ceremonies of
rd
been a high school football and
He has also received the L.
completing
his
bachelor’s
dethe 73 National Junior College
basketball
coach.
William
Miller Award in 2012.
gree
in
mathematics
at
West
Athletic Association Annual
Tubb
has
been
named
Ath“The
L. William Miller Award
Texas
A&M,
Tubb
received
his
Meeting in Colorado Springs,
is
an award from twoColorado.
year
colleges,” Tubb
The director of
explains.
“They have
athletics at South
their
own
organization
Plains College reoutside of sports. The
ceived the NJCAA
organization is called
Appreciation Award.
the National Alliance
“They couldn’t
of Two -Year Colle find anybody else to
giate Athletic Admingive it to,” Tubb said
istrators (NATYCAA.)
jokingly in a recent
The L. William Miller
interview with the
Award is their award
Plainsman Press.
for achievement. They
He continues,
consider it their high“Awards are always
est award, and again,
special if they are
it’s nice to receive the
given by your peers
award by my peers.”
and people that you
A t S P C , Tu b b
work with, and that
serves
as the coordiwas an appreciation
nator
and
director of
award for my serall
intercollegiate
athvice. It was very nice
letics
and
intramurals.
for the organization
“I’m in charge of
to honor me that
all
athletic
or intramuway, because it came
ral
or
physical
facilifrom the people that
ties,
which
includes
I worked with.”
the grounds, track,
Tubb is in his last
intramural fields, the
year of a three-year
complex, Dome, plus,
term as president of
I deal with all the budthe NJCAA. He pregets that support all
viously has served
of those facilities and
as vice president of
sport programs,” Tubb
the NJCAA, and has
explains. “Then I’m in
served the NJCAA in
charge of developsome capacity for 17
ing and up-righting
years in all.
a booster club in our
Since Tubb becommunity.”
came athletic diTubb says he feels
rector in 1983, SPC
that
he has many acteams have won
complishments
be33 NJCAA Nationcause
he
works
at
a
al Championships,
great
college.
including 31 by the
“Our facilities are
track team.
nice,”
Tubb says. “Our
“I feel that
instructors
are full
championships are
time,
very
dedicated
m o r e i m p o r t a n t Joe Tubb, director of athletics, was recently honored with the NJCAA Appreciation
than awards,” said Award during the 73rd annual NJCAA meeting, which was held in Colordado to students. We are
lucky because we have
Tubb. “If we can ed- Springs, Colorado on April 8.
a good place.”
ucate people and DEVIN REYNA/PLAINSMAN PRESS
23
Sports
Plainsman Press
May 5, 2014
Texan, Lady Texan basketball players ink national letters of intent
by DEREK LOPEZ
sports editor
his senior season, scoring a career-high 28 points against Lake
Mary Prep.
During his sophomore
season at SPC, Lawrence averaged 13.1 points per game,
the NJCAA Tournament, he averaged 16 points, 6.67 rebounds
and 1.67 assists.
Lawrence says that he plans
to major in business.
K arena, the 6-foot-10,
had decided to play her final two
years of collegiate eligibility at
Northwestern State University
in Natchitoches, La.
During her sophomore season, Moore started all 28 games
for the Lady Texans.
She also led her team
in rebounds this season with 199. She
averaged 7.37 rebounds through the
regular season, along
with 14.89 points,
3.67 assists and 1.33
steals.
In their lone NJCAA Region V game,
Moore had 17 points,
11 rebounds, five assists, two steals and
a block.
During her
freshman season,
Moore helped lead
the Lady Texans to
basketball for the University of
The Amarillo native started
Arkansas at Little Rock.
in each of the 59 games the Lady
Dawn, the daughter of Mi- Texans have played during the
chael and Corina Dawn, is the past two seasons. She earned
second SPC player in as many All-Conference and All-Region
years to join
the UALR program, joining
former Texan
point guard
DeVonte
Smith, who is
now a senior
guard for the
Trojans.
“I like
the atmosphere, the
teammates,
the coaches,” Sophomores Michael Karena and Roderick
said Dawn. “I Lawrence pose for a picture with Texans head
was also be- coach Steve Green after their announcement
ing recruited ceremony on April 29 in the T-Club Lounge at
by Incarnate Texan Dome.
Word in San SKYLAR HERNANDEZ/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Antonio, New
The South Plains College
men and women’s basketball
teams are sending multiple players to the next level,
following a trip to the
NJCAA Region V Tournament for the Lady
Texans and a trip to
the NJCAA elite eight
for the Texans.
On April 22, in
the T-Club Lounge at
Texan Dome, sophomores Roderick Lawrence, Michael Karena
and TaSheena Moore
announced where
they will be continuing their collegiate
careers.
Lawrence was
considering Rhode
Island, Bradley, Creighton, Gonzaga and Ole
Miss, but ultimately
honors in both of
decided to make the
her seasons at SPC,
From left: Sophomores Michael Karena, TaSheena Moore
move to Oxford, Miss.,
as well as a WBCA
and Roderick Lawrence make their college announcements
to become a Rebel
Honorable Menon April 29 during a news conference in the T-Club Lounge
and attend the Univertion All-American
at Texan Dome. Karena inks with Wright State, Moore
sity of Mississippi.
award this past
with Northwestern State University and Lawrence with the
Andy Kennedy,
season.
University of Mississippi.
head coach at Ole
“She’s been a
SKYLAR HERNANDEZ/PLAINSMAN PRESS
Miss, says that he is
huge part of our
excited to welcome
success the past
Lawrence to his team.
6.2 rebounds, two assists and 2 4 0 - p o u n d
t w o s e a s o n s ,”
“Rod is an athletic wing who 1.13 steals through the regular for ward, from
said Coach Wyatt.
possesses a skill-set that will season.
C h r i s t c h u rc h ,
“Freshman year, we
add versatility to our returning
In the NJCAA Region V Tour- New Zealand,
won a conference
backcourt,” said Kennedy in a nament, he averaged 8.5 points announced that
championship and
press release. “We needed to get and 4.5 rebounds per game. At he will be conwon 25 games.
more athletic on our wings, and
tinuing his colThis past season,
Rod will bring
legiate career
we finished 16-12
a play-makat Wright State
and finished third
ing abilit y to
University in
in conference play.”
our team. He
Sophomore guard Alexius Dawn signs her National Letter of Intent to play basketball
Dayton, Ohio.
S h e a d d e d,
showed tre“I definite- for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Mother, Corina Dawn left and South Plains “She’s probably
mendous leadly picked it be- College head women’s basketball coach, Michelle Wyatt watch as Dawn takes a step t h e b e s t p o i nt
ership in helping
cause it seemed toward the next level.
guard in the
guide his junior
like the best sit- DEREK LOPEZ/PLAINSMAN PRESS
league. We’re sucollege team to
uation for me,”
per excited about
the quarterfinals
Karena said,
her continuing on
of the National
adding that the university re- a Western Junior College Ath- Mexico State, Dixie State, Weber to UALR and us getting to watch
Tournament.”
minded him of his home.
letic Conference championship, State, UTA and Georgia State.”
that journey for her.”
L aw re n ce,
Karena averaged just 2.6 where they went two rounds
“We got a lot of calls late,”
Through her sophomore
the son of Rodpoints and 1.53 rebounds deep before being defeated by said Michelle Wyatt, women’s season, Dawn averaged 13.78
erick and Stephthrough the season, but came Midland College.
basketball coach at SPC. “People points, 4.11 rebounds, 4.1 asanie Lawrence,
on late and made his impact felt
Moore helped the Lady Tex- saw her, especially in the Region- sists and 2.7 steals per game.
graduated from Lady Texan Head Coach Michelle Wyatt and
in post-season play, averaging ans to an overall record of 25-6 al Tournament. Point guards, you She posted 15 points, eight
Dr. Phillips High sophomore wing TaSheena Moore pose for
10.5 points and 3.5 rebounds and a conference mark of 11-3 can’t get. Everyone’s looking for rebounds, three assists and one
School in Orlan- a photo after an announcement ceremony in
through the NJCAA Region V during the 2012-2013 season, a great point guard. As teams steal in the Lady Texans NJCAA
do, Fla. in 2012. the T-Club Loung at Texan Dome on April 29.
Tournament, and 7.3 points and an overall record of 16-12 went back and started watch- Region V Tournament game
He averaged 18 SKYLAR HERNANDEZ/
and three rebounds per game and a 10-4 record in conference ing our games online, we really against Collin County Commupoints and seven PLAINSMAN PRESS
through the NJCAA Tournament. play during the 2013-2014 sea- started getting a lot of calls. nity College.
rebounds during
Moore announced that she son.
Those teams that she mentioned
The 5-4 Dawn said she inSophomore guard Alexius were the ones that stuck with tends to major in physical eduDawn announced on April 30 her all year. It was important for cation and wants to become a
during a small press conference her. She had already built that coach. She also intends to play
in the T-Club Lounge at Texan relationship with them, so she overseas after graduating from
Dome that she would be playing picked from that group.”
UALR.
Rodeo teams conclude season at
Stephenville, qualify one for CNFR
day total of 16.9 seconds was
sixth in the average.
Tate Teague competed in
The South Plains College
both the tie-down and team
men and women’s rodeo teams
roping events. Teague and his
closed out their season
partner, Murphy Black of
in Stevensville at the TarTexas Tech, earned a time
leton State University Roof 6.7 seconds entering the
deo, with one member
final round and tied for the
qualifying for the College
third-best time overall.
National Finals Rodeo.
The teammates went
SPC had six competon to finish with a shortitors qualify for the short
round time of 11.0 seconds
round, tying for the most
and a two-day time of 17.7.
qualifiers of the season.
Both times were fourth
Shay Spitz finished
best overall.
sixth in barrel racing with
Teague finished just
a time of 16.13 seconds
outside the points of the
and seventh in breakaway
first round in the tie-down
roping with a time of 15.95
event with a time of 10.20
seconds. She will qualify
seconds, putting him in a
for both events at College
tie for seventh. Teague also
National Finals Rodeo, afwent on to finish the short
ter finishing as the reserve
round with a time of 14.2
champion in all-around
seconds. His overall time
standings with 580 points
of 24.4 seconds was sixth
between the two events.
in both short round and
J.W. Ery, a national
average.
qualifier a year ago, turned
Spitz qualified for the
in the fourth-best time
short round in barrel racin the qualifying round
ing, but failed to add to her
of steer wrestling with
season point total.
4.8 seconds. In the short Texan rodeo team member Shane HanThe CNFR will be held
round, he turned in a time cock practices his calf wrestling before June 15- June 21 in Casper,
of 7.6 seconds, finishing the Tarleton State University Rodeo, Wyoming. Competition for
seventh in both the short which was held on April 24-April 26.
the SPC teams resume in
round and the average.
ALLISON TERRY/
the fall.
Freshman Siera Mot- PLAINSMAN PRESS
by CAITLIN WELBORN
entertainment editor
ley finished in a four-way tie
for second after posting a longround time of 7.5 seconds. Motley finished her final round with
a time of 9.4 seconds. Her two-
24
May 5, 2014
Spotlight
Plainsman Press
Students submit secrets anonymously through social experiment
solutions that the sender was “We’ve seen that happen with this would get them the atten- crets anonymously is a tempting still have the same problems.
by JAYME LOZANO
hoping for.
cyber bullying and people shar- tion or help they needed,” Inmon one, especially for those who You just don’t have the responeditor-in-chief
explains, “and someone in that struggle with the harder secrets sibility.”
“I think any time you’re ing deeply personal things.”
It has always been said that
By staying
This is an idea that Robyn frame of mind
letting a secret out is good for breaking the silence,” says Awanonymous,
brey, “and become willing to Inmon, assistant professor of isn’t thinking all
the soul.
that clearly
you also don’t
B u t ,
anyway. So it’s
have other peowhat if no
like they post
ple holding you
real help
this cr y for
responsible for
comes from
help and put
what you are
sharing your
it out there
saying or the
secret?
for the world
choices you are
Postto see, and
making.
Secret is an
nobody does
“ I t ’s l i k e
ongoing
anything?”
quitting smokcommunity
Inmon
ing,” Awbrey exart project
is also conplains. “You can
created by
cerned with
decide to quit
Frank Wargiving advice
on your own. But
ren where
or help if it
if you tell everypeople mail
isn’t in the
body, now you
their seright area of
have people to
crets anonexpertise.
hold you responymously on
“It never
sible for that dea postcard
hurts to tell
cision.”
decorated
somebody
Putting
in a way that
that if they
secrets out on
represents
are suicidal
the Internet
“I told her i was studying when I was actually cheating on her.”
the meanor think ing
could also have
ing of their
of harming
a s k e we d re secret.
themselves
sponse because
No restrictions are made as
of how people
far what secrets people can sub- talk about something that’s psychology at SPC, agrees with. in some way, to
tend to put ev“I can see the initial re- tell them what
mit, which has led to some very eating you from the inside out is
“I had sex with a girl and her sister in the same night.”
erything about
sponse,” says Inmon. “It might is out there,” says
open subtheir lives on sobe just putting it out there Inmon. “But, my
missions
cial media anymakes it like, ‘I’m not hav- concern would
that range
way.
ing to hide it from anyone be that I can see
from sex“There’s a huge shift in peoelse and be guarded, and at where it can be very beneficial from experiences of sexual
ual abuse,
least I was able to express for some people as long as abuse or domestic abuse. But, ple’s thinking with social media,”
criminal
Awbrey says Awbrey. “We’ve gotten into
myself in one
a c t i v i t y,
t h i n k s this collective narcissism. We put
way.’ But then,
suicidal
it could kids’ pictures and all this stuff
on the other
thoughts,
b
e out there and share so much of
hand, it’s like,
addictions,
h a r m - ourselves online, and we kind of
‘well, all my
and even
ful too expect people to see us and look
secrets are out
wishes for
for not at what we’re doing. So it’s really
there.’”
a brighter
making hard to pin down whether it’s a
Inmon
future.
a r e a l good thing or not.”
adds that anWhile
human
But part of what helps
onymity may
the idea
c o n - someone heal and move on
protec t the
seems as
nection from the painful experiences in
person with
though it
w h e r e life is sharing it with other peothe secret. But
is benefiy o u ple, which is why Awbrey says
if it’s a heavier,
cial and
can talk counseling can help.
and potentialcould help
about
“If a person is sharing somely life-threatpeople
y o u r thing,” says Awbrey, “and they
ening secret,
break the
p r o b - don’t have someone there to say
then the
silence
“I have had three abortions by the age of 18.”
lems.
it is really not that bad, or you
project fails
a b o u t
“ I can get through it, if they don’t
to really help
whatever
t h i n k have someone that cares about
people.
secret may
“If somebody did reveal whoever is running (the web- its cathartic sometimes to vent,” them and helps them, that’s
be hurttheir secret,” Inmon explains, site) doesn’t go beyond their says Awbrey. “But venting is only what counseling does. We help
ing them
“and they are feeling suicidal credentials or area of expertise.” a temporary feeling. It doesn’t people look at things in a differto keep,
“Is it bad that men are making me want to
Inmon
ent light.”
or thinking about suicide
some peochange my sexual orientation? “
Awand made plans, do you just a d d s, “ E v ple wonbrey says
not do anything about that?” eryone can
der if there
that by
Inmon continues, “If you use a shoulis any real
talking
a good thing. But where do you were a licensed professional, der to cr y
effectiveness from the project.
about
“It’s really hard to say what go from there? Is there anybody you would be required to report on, a hand to
y o u r
would help a person and what listening with the ability to help that. If they’re not, they aren’t re- hold, someprobwouldn’t,” says Brandon Aw- you? What would people do with quired to. But at the same time, one to just
l e m s
and you would probably never listen, and
brey, an adjunct instructor in that information?”
through
Another concern would be even know, but what if that per- y o u d o n’ t
psychology and a counselor at
counselSouth Plains College. “They say the possibility of cyber bullies son, after doing this, committed even have
to say anying, it can
suicide?”
help fix
As par t of a thing spe the false
way to help with cific back .
reality
some of the darker T h e y ’ r e
that peosecrets about issues n o t e v e n
ple build
such as suicide, looking for
around
mental health, or advice, bethemself-harm, PostSe- cause some“I’m cheating on my girlfriend with her best friend”
selves.
cret has expanded times it’s just
“ I f
to include a world- h e l p f u l to
someone
wide directory of say what you
suicide prevention want to say and get things out.” solve the problem. It doesn’t is just venting, they can create
The idea of sending your se- make any real connections. You a reality,” says Awbrey. “You can
hotlines, online
sit there and stare at yourself in
chats and
the mirror and say, ‘I’m ugly. I’m
o t h e r re fat,’ but that doesn’t make it true.
sources.
But, if you say it often enough,
B u t
you believe it’s true.”
this could
Awbrey adds, “It’s the same
be where
thing if you’re venting and
the idea
no one is there to hold you
is flawed,
accountable to what you are
because of
saying, and to say you’re not as
the possi“I was once caught getting down and dirty in the teachers’ lounge in
bad as you think you are, and
bility that
my high school.”
this isn’t the end of the world.
the person
There’s no human connection to
who sub that, and the human connection
mitted the
is how people heal.”
confession is good for the soul, and a backlash from what the question carried out
with their plans to combut is it productive? Is it solving secret may say.
“Would it cause more trau- mit suicide because of
any problems?”
Awbrey, who works in the ma if you put it out there and the lack of response
Photo illustrations by
Counseling Center, says that then had a bunch of Internet they got.
SIERRA TAYLOR and
“What if they had
letting secrets out can be help- trolls stomping and causing all
JOSH HAMILTON/
“My best friend’s son isn’t his, it’s mine.“
PLAINSMAN PRESS
ful. But it may not lead to the kinds grief,” Awbrey wonders. mistaken the idea that