Beaver's Digest Vol. 7 Issue 1 | Nov. 29, 2021

FALL 2021

AFTER HOURS

THE NIGHT LIFE ISSUE

LETTER FROM

THE EDITORS After Hours is the direct product of the entire Beaver’s Digest team’s love and passion for telling stories, uplifting voices, entertaining readers and, above all, serving our community.

We have poured so much time, energy and love into this issue—BD’s first of the 202122 academic year. Personally, this is the first magazine to have been published under my leadership, and I couldn’t be more proud of my team, colleagues, and this magazine. The concept of the nightlife issue arose from the hidden wonders of Corvallis when the sun goes down. Corvallis nightlife goes far beyond what one may assume—from local house shows and stargazing, to the science of sleep, we hope to open your eyes to all the possibilities! I want to thank my assistant editor Luke Reynolds, our wonderful copy editor Jeremiah Estrada, as well as BD’s entire contributing staff for their hard work and dedication to this publication, and for keeping me grounded during the creation of After Hours—you all are the heart of this magazine. I would also like to thank Paulina Le, Alan Nguyen and Chloe Jameson with the Orange Media Network Creative Team for turning this issue into something so spectacularly beautiful. Shoutout to the OMN photo team and former photo chief Jess Hume-Pantuso for bringing our words to life. Thank you OMN professional staff, especially journalism advisor Jennifer Moody for the advice, encouragement and support throughout the publication process. Finally, a huge thank you to our readers for supporting Beaver’s Digest and inspiring the content we produce—we couldn’t do it without you all.

Best,

There seems to be a unique duality with night time. As the world becomes enveloped in what seems like a never ending shadow, the thought of what could be lurking in the dark tends to frighten me. Places that are usually bustling with people tend to be empty as an eerie stillness can be felt in the air. However, that darkness makes the lights that illuminate the streets I drive on even brighter. The noise of the day to day hustle has faded away. All I’m left with is the soothing music coming from my car stereo, in a feeling in what I can only describe as a dream. The night seems to exaggerate the quirky qualities of life, whether that be driving to Taco Bell at 3 a.m., getting ready to go to the airport for a new adventure, having a party with your best pals or staying up until you can see the sun rise— all because of a great conversation you will never forget. After Hours is an issue we have worked very hard on and are proud to present to you. All these stories are about different aspects of the night around the Oregon State University campus and the greater Corvallis community. I want to thank everyone who worked on this issue, from our excellent writers, photographers, designers, copy editor, social media team and a special shoutout to our editor-in-chief, Jaycee Kalama!

I also want to thank all of our readers, you make these issues possible. Stay safe out there!

Best, Luke Reynolds, BEAVER’S DIGEST ASSISTANT EDITOR

Jaycee Kalama, BEAVER’S DIGEST EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

FRONT & BACK COVER PHOTOGRAPHER: Haydon Holgerson

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Safety in the Dark

How Corvallis residents stay safe when the sun goes down

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6 Nightlife

CONTENTS

Happy Hour

TA B L E O F

corvallis bars and pubs offer drink specials, lively atmospheres and live music

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when the stars shine and the lights blind

18

Game Night In

20

24

Your Smartphone Does Not Wish You A Good's Night Sleep

Stargazing

the night sky unites us, transcending space and time

how sleep affects the brain

The Science of Sleep

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Help Wanted

32 40

how the labor shortage is affecting your favorite late-night dining spots

Man with a Crystal Ball:

Dinner Date Night

Add a Touch of Mindfulness to Your Nighttime Routine

50

Four home remedies to help you sleep

students recommend their favorite date night locations

Get Your Snooze On

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photo-philosophy in an after dark corvallis with christopher trotchie

42

46

House Shows

BANDS ROOTED IN CORVALLIS PERFORM AT LOCAL HOUSE SHOWS

3

MEET

T H E S TA F F

Jaycee Kalama

Luke Reynolds

BEAVER’S DIGEST EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

BEAVER’S DIGEST ASSISTANT EDITOR

Paulina Le

SR. CREATIVE ASSOCIATE

Alan Nguyen CREATIVE LEAD

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Chloe Jameson

CREATIVE ASSOCIATE

Jess Hume-Pantuso

PHOTO CHIEF

Jeremiah Estrada

COPY EDITOR

WRITER

Flora Li

Hope Green-Brooks

Larissa Prince

WRITER

WRITER

Jessica Li

WRITER

Luke Brockman

WRITER & PHOTOGRAPHER

PHOTOGRAPHER

WRITER

WRITER

Kayla Jones Jakob Jones

Colin Rickman

Agrizha Puspita Sari

PHOTOGRAPHER

WRITER

Teresita Guzman Nader

Tarsa Weikert

WRITER & PHOTOGRAPHER

Solomon Myers

PHOTOGRAPHER

Emma Simon WRITER

Sam Misa

WRITER & PHOTOGRAPHER

Taylor Bacon WRITER

Matthew McKenna

PHOTOGRAPHER

5

IFE

EXPERIENCE

NIGHTLIFE

when the stars shine and the lights blind WRITER: Tarsa Weikert PHOTOGRAPHER: Solomon Myers

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A night out on the town doesn’t always have to be filled with loud, intense music and blurred vision. There are plenty of fun activities that night owls can explore once dusk hits the horizon.

Instead of joining a typical bar crawl, open up your mind to other opportunities that Corvallis, Ore. nightlife provides!

Grab some friends and check out Escape Corvallis, a local, family-owned business since 2016. Escape Corvallis is located at 301 SW 4th St. #280.

The escape room is owned by Michael McCusker. During the day he works as a physician's assistant in internal medicine but when the moon comes out McCusker turns into something else. Specifically, a puzzle designer, escape room builder and chief bottle washer.

Escape rooms provide a perfect climate for groups of people to collaborate and accomplish challenges together. Escape Corvallis is open most nights until 9:30 p.m.

“They’re a very fun thing to do with a group of friends, family or co-workers and teammates,” McCusker said.

You may even learn that one of your teammates has a talent you did not know about.

“The biggest appeal is getting exposed to the unexpected, whether that’s being surprised that an action you did in one part of a room caused something to happen in a different part of the room,” McCusker said.

The average price of a regular room is $25 per person. Escape Corvallis does offer a 25% discount to all students. For $17 a person, they offer small rooms for smaller groups, perfect for a date night with that special person.

They also have a new happy hour room, where your group gets separated and you have to find a way to reunite. For more information on each escape room, visit the Escape Corvallis website.

“I’m not going to lie, I think sometimes my staff and I have as much fun watching you all, as you do inside the room,” McCusker said. “People do some interesting things sometimes.”

NIGH NIGH NIGH 7

NIGHT

ARTICLE TYPE Hannah Lancy is a second-year kinesiology student at Oregon State University and game master at Escape Corvallis. She participated in her first escape room after being hired at Escape Corvallis.

“I was able to do one with some friends to make sure I enjoyed it,” Lancy said. “All of our rooms are extremely fun and everyone who did them with me had a great time. It was even fun to fail at them.”

Another activity perfect for a group of people would be bowling at Highland Bowling located at 2123 NW 9th St. On Friday nights from 10 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., the lights go out and cosmic bowling begins.

Highland Bowling offers both day and night services.

However, from 6 p.m. to closing time, rates are $3.95 per person or $20 an hour for a lane. Shoes can be rented for $1.50.

As the fun hunters begin to prowl the town, a nice cinema might be perfect for those seeking a latenight thrill.

Paul Turner, co-owner of Darkside Cinema, located at 215 SW 4th St., started independent cinema with the Avalon in 1997 and opened Darkside in 2005.

“We are a local establishment that has been part of the community for 25 years,” Turner said. “This means you are more than just a ticket sale to us. We are glad you’re here. We are a good value for your entertainment dollar.”

Darkside Cinema offers movies that are not usually shown in major theaters. They typically play indie, documentary and international films.

"We have small, intimate rooms and a variety of movies,” Turner said. “We are a funky arthouse cinema that provides something for everyone.”

In addition to new COVID-19 guidelines, Darkside Cinema is offering people the opportunity to book a private screening with their household. Depending on the day, it is only $200 for a two-hour private screening.

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NIGHTLIFE

NIGHTLIFE NIGHTLIFE NIGHTLIFE “{Cinema} is a cultural bonfire we as a culture gather around to share an emotional experience,” Turner said.

Another Corvallis adventure lies within the Majestic Theatre, located at 115 SW 2nd St., a performing arts and culture destination. The Majestic Theatre is currently celebrating 108 years in Corvallis and is a part of the City of Corvallis Parks and Recreation department.

Jimbo Ivy is the theatre supervisor at Majestic Theatre and thinks the theatre is a perfect destination for those exploring Corvallis nightlife.

“It's a place that our community has dedicated to support the arts and culture dreams of everyone in Corvallis and beyond,” Ivy said.

They offer shows from concerts to dance productions.

During the pandemic, customers are required to wear masks and show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test.

"We have everything you could want; theatre, concerts, improv, dance, comedy, movies, you name it—and some amazing local group is doing it here on our stage,” Ivy said.

Next, if you are looking for something to get you excited, those who wander at night can create their own arcade passport and check off each arcade in town!

To start, you can hit two birds with one stone by checking out the arcade when you visit Highland Bowling. The Angry Beaver Grill and the Squirrels Tavern in downtown Corvallis also have a few arcade games to play while you grab a bite to eat.

Exploring the town definitely will cause you to work up an appetite! At Common Fields, a local food truck pod and taproom also located downtown, offers customers fireside warmth beside multiple food trucks.

However, if you look hard enough, there are plenty of tasty food trucks tucked in secret places around Corvallis.

For those seeking an activity that is not indoors, you can rent an electric bike from Corvallis Electric Bicycles, located at 1945 NW Kings Blvd., and take a ride under the moonlight by the Willamette River. You can book the bike for 24 hours for $100.

Thinkers, explorers, art enthusiasts and couch potatoes can all find a nightlife activity to entertain them in Corvallis.

“I’d encourage people to look for the things that make this small town unique,” McCusker said. “Those independent ‘mom-and-pop' places that you won't find in big cities. Folks should try to ‘think outside the box’ every now and then and try something that is extremely fun and truly is an interactive experience.”

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FOOD & DRINK

Students are always trying to save money, but when it comes to drinks in Corvallis, Ore., where can you get the biggest bang for your buck?

Corvallis is a small town with roughly 59,000 people and best known for being the home of Oregon State University. As the student population is large, the nightlife offered here is crucial, as well as its affordability.

Although Corvallis is not known for its nightlife in clubbing and massive bars, it has made a name for itself with smaller, more intimately-set bars such as Bombs Away Cafe, The Downward Dog and Clodfelters. Each of these bars are unique. Bombs Away prides itself on having live music weekly, Clods has a lively atmosphere and Downward offers different drink specials each day of the week.

They all offer affordable drinks to college students. With a variety of drink specials on different days. The Downward Dog offers “Micro Madness” on Mondays

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WRITER: Hope Green-Brooks PHOTOGRAPHER: Kayla Jones 11

with draft pints, “Tiki Tuesday” with tiki drinks, “Whiskey Wednesday” with whiskey and any mixer, “Thirsty Thursday” with well drinks, “Frisky Friday” with blackberry vodka tonic and blueberry vodka lemonade, “Saturday Kamikaze” with kamikaze’s of your choice of five different fruity flavors, and “Sunday Funday” with mimosas and house bloody marys. Monday through Saturday these specialty drinks are $3.50 from 4 p.m. to midnight and on Sunday the specials are $4.

“This bar has gone to great lengths to adjust to the local market and try to make drinks as affordable as possible since the main market is students,” said Ryan Anderson, bartender at The Downward Dog. Unlike many other bars which are much more popular on the weekends, Anderson mentioned that one of their busiest days is Tuesday.

At Bombs Away customers are offered both affordable drinks and local entertainment. Bartender Taylor Sistek said, “Bombs Away is completely free of TVs and relies on live/local art and entertainment to guide the cool vibes. Bombs Away is a small music venue—but this also means there isn't a bad seat in the house!”

Bombs Away has drink specials every day of the week. On Monday margaritas are $5, Tuesday is $2 tequila shots, Wednesday is $4 well drinks, Thursday is $6 moscow mules, Friday is dealer’s choice and Saturday and Sunday they offer a $10 bloody mary buffet and a $12 mimosa flight.

“This bar has gone to great lengths to adjust to the local market and try to make drinks as affordable as possible since the main market is students.”

- Ryan Anderson, bartender at The Downward Dog

Clodfelters does not offer specials every night but they are known for their shots and glass giveaways if a birthday is being celebrated. On Wednesdays Clods offers a special “pint night” where if you purchase the beer of the night, you get to keep the special pint glass.

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“I feel like this bar is pretty affordable for college students,” Bartender Noah Hyatt said.

“I think the atmosphere is what really brings people here. It’s always lively, with music playing and people mingling.”

All-in-all, these bars are special to Corvallis and they all have some sort of drink special while staying relatively affordable. The issue is knowing where to go and on what nights as senior graphic design student Emma Binstein pointed out.

“I think if I knew where the deals were at and all of the days and times they are present, I would be more inclined to go to those places,” Binstein said.

With all these bars being on Monroe avenue, it is easy for students to walk to one or all of these places on any given night. Remember to drink safely, responsibly and now, affordably!

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safety in the dark COMMUNITY

How Corvallis residents stay safe when the sun goes down

WRITER: Colin Rickman PHOTOGRAPHER: Solomon Myers 14

Third-year Oregon State University student, Rebekah Jones, was the only worker on the afternoon shift. When her shift ended, she locked the doors of her workplace and scrambled to her car. Jones had keys gripped in hand, bag tossed over shoulder and leftover pastries overflowing in her arms. When she got to the driver's side door, that's when she noticed him.

A strange man had followed her and was now less than an arms distance away. She could feel his hot breath swarming around in the air. Her heart began pounding in her chest and her hands were visibly shaking. “Hey girl, where ya going? You gotta boyfriend?” asked the stranger.

“Yes, he’s meeting me here right now,” Jones said as she fumbled to unlock the car door. No one was coming, it was just her, the stranger and an empty parking lot. Thankfully, the stranger didn’t know that. He lingered for a few more breaths, then let out a huff and stormed off.

Jones jumped through the car door, immediately locked the doors and began to cry.

Situations like this, the ones that no one likes to bring up when talking about how much fun the nightlife in Corvallis, Ore. can be, happen more often than we think. However, this story should not dissuade students from going out, meeting friends and enjoying everything Corvallis has to offer. To enjoy the nightlife here while avoiding walking into a bad situation, there are a few things that every student should try to do to keep themselves and the people around them safe.

Staying in a group is one of the best strategies to live by when trying to stay safe. Use the buddy system, if you came with a group, leave with a group and let people know where you will be or when you will be home. It might sound childish but us students have to look out for each other. First-year OSU student Lesly Rojas always makes sure she has someone with her while out at night.

“I walk with someone so I have a buddy, usually my roommate or a friend, if we are going somewhere and it's dark outside,” Rojas said.

The Beaver community has never been one to shy away from helping out our fellow students, so if you want someone to walk with at night, all you have to do is ask.

Knowing the location is also key when it comes to personal safety. Lieutenant David Sweeney with the Oregon State Public Safety Department thinks it is important to get your bearings of a place before going there.

“If you are going to a place that’s out of the way and others don’t know where you are and you’ve never been there before, you might be advised to get a lay of the land before heading to a place like that,” Sweeney said.

You don’t have to stake the place out or interrogate anyone, just check it out beforehand if possible. Know where the exits are.

Know what the best routes are to get there and to get home.

Choose well-traveled roads to walk down, stay off the side streets that aren’t lit as well and don’t see as much activity. If you see other groups of students walking on the street as well, that is usually a good sign.

Another great strategy for keeping yourself safe while out at night is to not get too intoxicated. While it can be fun, alcohol impairs judgment and can become a barrier to keeping yourself safe. Fun should never be measured in drinks. It is all about the people you are with and the environment that surrounds you. If there are good people and it is a good environment, it is going to be a fun night regardless. Another precaution is to not drink and drive, ever.

“We live in a time where there are more options to get home safe from a bar than ever before, yet we do not see a decrease in DUI arrests,” said Lieutenant Ryan Eaton of the Corvallis Police Department. “It is still a constant. Even if you are doing everything right, you have a designated driver, a rideshare, a taxi or walking; recognize that you are still sharing the road with people who choose to drive drunk.”

When you are out, there are certain red flags to look out for that can tell you if a situation is going south. “Red flags I keep a lookout for are people acting unpredictably, or being in a location that doesn’t make sense,” Jones said. “I try to always make sure I have an escape route away from them. I look out for items that a person could use as a weapon or dark places people could hide.”

Behavior like people acting erratically or aggressively is something to watch for and to be wary of, but there are also signs to watch for in the environment. If a bar or restaurant doesn’t seem to care about who comes and goes, about overservice or how people conduct themselves, they probably don’t care about the safety of their customers either.

Now, what if you have tried to do everything with your personal safety in mind but still find yourself in a bad situation? There was no one to walk with, you got separated from the group or you just needed to get out of there immediately. What should you do if you have to walk home alone?

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First of all, awareness is key. While Corvallis can be a very safe town, crimes still occur. As students, it is important to recognize that we could be victims of those crimes.

“Just by being involved in the student community, you might be a target for crime,” Eaton said. “So be aware that there are people out there who are going to try to do harm. Don’t get complacent, people like to think that bad things just won’t happen to them. Have that awareness, put your head on a swivel, take a look around and you will be amazed at what you see.”

This might seem like a no-brainer, but being surprised while walking home alone at night is something no one wants to experience and simply being aware of your surroundings can help combat that. Don’t be buried in your phone, keep your eyes up and listen to the world around you. It could save you from walking into a horrible situation.

If possible, call someone to let them know where you are and stay on the phone until you get home safe. If you don’t have someone to call, fake it. Just hold the phone to your ear or have 911 dialed and ready to call. It can make a huge difference in the end.

“One person walking by themself is far more likely to be targeted than if they are in a group,” Eaton said. “If there is someone wanting to victimize someone, they want anonymity and even if they see someone on the phone in contact with someone else, it is much less likely that they will act.”

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If you are confronted or feel threatened and there is no time to alert law enforcement, there is self-defense equipment that can be kept on hand discreetly. Cans of pepper spray that can be kept on a keychain or flashlights that double as a taser can be highly effective tools when it comes to self-defense. But, they are only as effective as you are familiar with them.

“If you go into the store, buy the pepper spray, put it in your bag and you have never used it or it is not readily accessible it is not going to be an effective tool,” Eaton said. “Buy two, go home and practice with it, even if it is empty you can still use it for practice. In a high-stress environment when seconds are going to count, being familiar with the tool and having it readily accessible is the key.”

In the end, what you choose to do to keep yourself safe comes down to what you are comfortable with. “Everyone has different levels of personal safety that they are comfortable with,” Sweeney said. It is up to you to find where that level of safety is and stick to it.

If you want to feel safer while out at night, OSU offers free services like SafeRide, a ride service like Uber that will come pick you up and drive you home safely free of charge from any time between 8:30 p.m. and 1 a.m., and the DamSafe Bluelight app, which offers a one-click alert to law enforcement officers in the area and is available on Apple and Android.

“what “what you you choose choose to to do do to to keep keep yourself yourself safe safe comes comes down down to to what what you you are are comfortable comfortable with.” with.”

It’s more than just a grocery store...

It’s a growing community.

Two Corvallis locations open 7am - 9pm daily

2855 NW Grant Ave. & 1007 SE 3rd St. www.firstalt.coop • @firstaltcoop

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the night sky unites us, transcending space and time

stargazing OUTDOORS

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You’re laying on the ground where the cool grass gently caresses your skin, and you glance up at the clear night sky scattered with countless shimmering stars. The vastness of space invites you in. You suddenly feel weightless in the depths of infinity, and no matter what’s beyond, you are a piece of this puzzle that contributes to a larger natural force of setting the universe in balance and in motion.

Perhaps you’ve experienced these sensations from stargazing before. Magnus L’Argent, a third-year student studying physics and mechanical engineering at Oregon State University who is also an officer for the Astronomy Club, describes serenity and reflection as reasons for enjoying stargazing. “[Stargazing] can be very peaceful and calming, just sitting outside under the stars,” L’Argent said. “It also lends some perspective to how small but precious humanity is.”

The Astronomy Club is an inclusive social and educational organization that offers such stargazing opportunities, including on the roof of Weniger Hall.

“The OSU Astronomy Club is a place for anyone and everyone who has a love of astronomy and space to meet up and explore the cosmos,” L’Argent said. “No previous knowledge is required to join the Astronomy Club, just some curiosity about the cosmos surrounding us!”

There are biweekly Astronomy Club meetings on Thursdays at 7 p.m., weather permitting. Telescopes are provided for members to observe planets, the moon, stars, galaxies, constellations and nebulae. Activities in addition to stargazing include astrophotography, field trips to observatories, spacethemed movie nights and trivia nights.

As for educational and career development, the Astronomy Club hosts lectures by professors and researchers in fields of astronomy, astrophysics and astrobiology; connects students with astronomy and astrophysics-based career and internship opportunities; and holds workshops on applying for and increasing one’s chances of acceptance into a National Aeronautics and Space Administration internship or job.

Phia Morton is a second-year student studying physics and nuclear engineering and another officer of the Astronomy Club.

According to Morton, stargazing is one of the oldest activities that translates across cultures around the world, and most of the 88 scientifically-recognized constellations originate from Greek mythology. But with advancements such as the invention of the telescope, humans can come to better view and accurately define their observations. Nevertheless, some links still exist between ancient myths and current science.

Morton references Agol to illustrate this idea.

“For example, Agol (a star in the constellation of Perseus) noticeably dims and brightens over a period of about three days, which was explained as being the eye of Medusa by the Greeks, [and it] is now known to be one star blocking the light from another star in what we call an eclipsing binary system,” Morton said.

Fortunately, there are locally-accessible areas in Corvallis, Ore. for stargazing. Rosalyn Fey, a Ph.D. student studying biochemistry and biophysics who also serves on the Astronomy Club officer board, recommends finding a dark sky area such as the Irish Bend Covered Bridge on campus. Morton suggests driving 20 minutes away from any city lights for stargazing; although most constellations will be visible within the city of Corvallis, deep space objects such as the Andromeda Galaxy will be harder to see.

In terms of timing, Morton says it is ideal to view stars when there is little to no moon, but the moon itself can be seen through binoculars. Furthermore, Morton’s other tip is that once you find a dark spot, let your eyes adjust for about 20 minutes before scanning the central band of the Milky Way with binoculars, in which you may stumble across star clusters and nebulae. Free stargazing apps including StarWalk2 and Planets can be helpful resources as well.

While stargazing, Fey also reminds us to be mindful of safety.

“Stay safe by going with a friend or letting someone know where you’re going and when you plan to be back,” Fey said. “This is good practice anytime you’re stargazing in a remote spot alone.”

Moreover, L’Argent advises bringing warm clothing like gloves and a hat to prepare for colder weather.

As you venture on your stargazing journey, don’t forget about the opportunities and resources available to you in the Astronomy Club. Whether your stargazing intent is for physical admiration or spiritual connection, it’s extraordinary that the night sky unites us, transcending space and time.

“Stargazing allows us to look into the past and see the universe as it once was,” Morton said. “It also allows everyone to look up at the same sky and see something different but beautiful at the same time.”

WRITER: Jessica Li PHOTOGRAPHER: Alex Reich 19

EXPERIENCE

WRITER: Agrizha Puspita Sari PHOTOGRAPHER: Kayla Jones Your agenda for the night is empty and it’s the weekend. Well, a game night might be the perfect way to shake things up at home with your pals, especially during the wet months here in Corvallis, Ore. When the rain hasn’t let up and you’re itching for some social interaction after a long, busy week, gathering with friends or family at home and doing some game night activities with some beverages and nibbles can be an awesome way to end the week with wonderful and fun memories.

Gamagora Geek House (temporarily closed at the time of publication) and Pegasus Game Store in Corvallis are the ideal places to find card games and board games for your next game night.

Marc LeRoux, the owner and operator of Pegasus Game Store, said game night is a great social activity that brings people together to actually interact with other human beings.

“Regular game nights are really a personal choice.

It may work for some social groups but not others,” LeRoux said via email. “You don’t want to force people to play games. But organizing a game night that is optional is fun.”

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Jack Wegrich, a fourth-year student studying business management at Oregon State University and president of the OSU Gaming Club, said game nights are prevalent on campus because there's a huge portion of the community that doesn't want to participate in sports, partying or many of the other ways students find friends in college.

“It's a way to make connections outside of your major but inside of a hobby,” Wegrich said via email. “Plus, in Oregon it rains enough that it really pays to have an indoor hobby.”

Wegrich continued, “I think game nights are things that happen naturally—you have to have a group before you can organize a game night, and different groups play very different games. I personally prefer games lasting upwards of ten hours, which take multiple days of dedication to play.”

Elena Marie Connelly, a second-year student studying mechanical engineering at OSU, said having a game night provides the opportunity to find other people to play our favorite games with, because it can be difficult to find other people who enjoy playing board games. Having a scheduled game night encourages social interaction and makes it easy to find time to play games.

“I currently am the Board Game Officer of the [OSU] Gaming Club, so I run a weekly game night for the club,” Connelly said

via email. “My favorite thing about game night is the connections people form.

Board games aren’t a super common hobby, so being able to connect with other people is a rewarding experience.”

LeRoux said he has noticed positive effects while or after hosting game night activities on a regular basis—that being the new friendships that are forged.

“I game with a group of people who know each other very well—I would say that in other groups you observe a kind of deep learning about others and how their minds function, since board games are a kind of collective problem-solving exercise,” Wegrich said. “It is a way to spend time with loved ones without stretching family bonds.”

Connelly said that game nights lift peoples’ spirits and give them something to look forward to.

For those of you who have never hosted a game night yourself, LeRoux and Wegrich have some tips for putting on a successful game night.

LeRoux said that the most important thing about activities like ‘game night’ is to make sure that everyone wants to play the games you have picked.

“Game night is supposed to be fun for everyone,” LeRoux said.

“There are so many different types of games that it shouldn’t be hard to find games that everyone would enjoy.”

As the president of OSU’s Gaming Club, Wegrich said that all students and Corvallis community members are always welcome at all Gaming Club events.

Hosting a game night really is as simple as inviting people over and having a bunch of games.

“If you need games, you can borrow them from [University Housing and Dining Services], the Gaming Club or the Valley Library,” Wegrich said. “It helps to have food, but isn't necessary. Gaming Club meets every Thursday at 5 p.m. [to 12 a.m.]. We also have specific games at other times throughout the week.”

The OSU Gaming Club board game event is the largest and most organized of its kind on campus. According to Connelly, the club owns a large selection of games and provides a meeting space with plenty of tables.

“My job as the host is to organize the location and to answer people’s questions about the event,”

Connelly said. “Anyone can join Board Game Night on campus just by showing up!

We meet in the Sackett basement. It’s a bit tricky to find the right room, but there are instructions on how to get there on the OSU Gaming Club Discord server.”

Finding the finest partner for your first board game does not have to be complicated.

LeRoux said that the best gaming partners are the people who have a common interest in the type of game to be played.

“Don't make the mistake of trying to invite everybody you know,” Wegrich said. “Board games are not magic for everyone, and especially if they're not used to it, playing a new player with a group of experienced players can be very unpleasant.”

Connelly thinks the best people to play games with are those who are passionate and excited about it. Enthusiasm makes the entire event feel fun and upbeat.

In terms of game recommendations, LeRoux has many but that is on a person-by-person basis. According to LeRoux, every type of game makes good game night options. It totally depends on the people involved, the amount of time they have to play the games and the space they have available.

“I would think that co-op games would be great for many groups,” LeRoux said.

“But, some people don't like the co-op games. I don't try to fit a game to people, I like to get to know the people and suggest the right game for them.”

Wegrich recommends Settlers of Catan for the best game night. “Settlers of Catan is the best game if you want something longish (2-3 hours),” Wegrich said.

He also recommends Secret Hitler or The Resistance as a great short, social game. “One Night Ultimate Werewolf is also a fun social deduction game,” Wegrich added.

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- Jack Wegrich, president of OSU’s Gaming Club Connelly recommends One Night Ultimate Werewolf, Telestrations, Sushi Go and Coup—those being four of her favorite games for game night because they’re easy and fun.

“They’re great icebreakers that don’t take too much time or effort,” they said.

According to Wegrich, he believes that game night is a board-game-only thing—that there are other things such as a cards night or a [Dungeons & Dragons] One Shot. “Those are fun too, but they require a different group of people with different goals,” he said.

“The best games for community game nights are board and card games that aren’t too difficult for new players to learn,” Connelly said. “It’s important to include a variety of game types (abstract strategy, party, deckbuilding, etc.) to avoid getting bored and to make sure everyone gets to play the kinds of games that they love.”

Wegrich shares that the coolest thing from game night activities, whether on campus with OSU Gaming Club or at home, is that game night offers a chance to connect with people who share some hobby or enjoyment, but are very dissimilar from you. “Don't shy away from the experience of playing games with total strangers,” he said.

When hosting a game night at home is not yet possible for you, or you are unsure of how to properly host a game night, or you are simply looking to make new friends, the OSU Gaming Club on campus has your back. When you're prepared to host a game night independently at home, Pegasus Game Store is ready to help make that happen. Good luck and have fun!

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WELLNESS

WRITER: Flora Li PHOTOGRAPHER: Jakob Jones

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any people can testify that their whole lives are compacted into one small device. Social media, texts and games are all formatted into little apps that people use on a daily basis.

Over 300 million people use technology in the United States.

However, technology has detrimental effects on sleep routines, wiring it’s way to negatively impact sleep quality and habits.

Electronic devices are so easy to use. Press one button and you can connect with someone across the world. Press another button and you can capture a priceless photo. Press a few more buttons and now you have ten alarms that yell at you to wake up.

That’s the useful part of technology, but when the sun sets and the air gets colder, the smart phone you own can actually negatively impact your health, specifically your sleep condition.

Your body needs REM sleep, which stands for Rapid Eye Movement.

“This is the stage of sleep where dreaming is most likely to occur, and it plays an essential role in learning and memory consolidation,” according to Dr. Jessee Dietch, an assistant professor in the School of Psychological Science at Oregon State University.

The average REM sleep needed is around 20-25% for most adults, but staying up late can deter people from this goal.

When students were asked what they did before bed, the majority of them answered along the lines of scrolling on their smart devices.

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“I typically go on my phone before bed and scroll through TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram,” said Nessa Hurliman, a freshman at OSU. John Lewis, an environmental science major at OSU, said, “I usually watch a movie before bed and if I don’t fall asleep watching that, I’ll go on YouTube to fall asleep.”

Social media became popular in the early 2000s and has only grown in popularity since. Instagram gathers around one billion monthly users and apps like Snapchat acquires approximately 293 million users daily.

Students that use social media before bed may find themselves having trouble falling asleep since the content is so engaging.

Dietch also said that social media may, “hook us and keep us wired during the time that we should be winding down,” affecting the time we choose to go to bed.

Young adults may find themselves sleep deprived because of what they choose to do before bed.

Instead of winding down, they may engage in thrilling activities on their smart devices which prompts them to delay their bedtime.

Raena VanderHoek-McDonald, who is a freshman at OSU majoring in biohealth sciences, said, “Snapchat is one that I use consistently throughout the day, but even more so at night. I use these honestly to help forget about my stressors throughout the day and to escape for a while.”

Some may think that blue light is detrimental to not only the human eye, but also your sleep. However, blue light is not just emitted from LED (light-emitting diode) technology, it’s also emitted from the sun.

Nonetheless, opening up your phone after being in the dark for a while can affect your sleep as bright lights are intended for the daytime.

Others may push their sleep back because of revenge bedtime procrastination.

Revenge bedtime procrastination is when one may go to sleep unnecessarily late due to the lack of free time they may have in the day.

Many factors play into why people may participate in revenge bedtime procrastination.

One factor may be because of the lack of time for themselves during the day which can interfere with getting quality sleep.

Low self-control and self-discipline is another likely factor that plays into revenge bedtime procrastination.

The behaviors associated with revenge bedtime procrastination are inherently harmful on account that shortened sleep duration not only increases fatigue, but may also correlate with the many health problems related to lack of sleep such as mood changes, weakened immunity and trouble concentrating.

If you find yourself participating in revenge bedtime procrastination, you may try “intentionally setting aside a break for yourself earlier in the day, even if it’s just 10-15 minutes at first, to have some free, unstructured time,” Dietch said.

Try doing all the thrilling activities you would do before bed earlier in the day to make time to calmly unwind before you choose to go to sleep.

You may want to scroll on your smart devices before bed, but remember that quality sleep is needed to charge your battery in order to get the most out of your day.

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BUSINESSES Two years ago now, during fall term 2019, if you wanted to get something to eat at two in the morning it was very easy to find a place to go. There were options even in the middle of the night. Students had their pick of the litter on where to satisfy their late-night cravings. Restaurants close to campus recognized that there was a huge market of students who stayed out late, went to bars until closing time or just had to pull an all-nighter for that bio-chem midterm on Monday, and they capitalized on it.

Today, it is a different story. Restaurants continue to close their doors early despite COVID-19 mandates concerning allowed business hours having been lifted. Is it because that market of night owl students has faded? Take a walk down Monroe avenue on a Friday night and you can answer that question yourself. If the market is still there, then why are restaurants still closing early?

The answer lies in a nationwide labor shortage that is affecting some of the cornerstones of late-night dining on Monroe avenue. Places like Domino’s, which used to be open until 1 a.m. on the weekends, now have to close at 10 p.m. entirely due to not having enough staff to man the ship.

Places like Subway, which used to be open 24/7, now close their doors at 3 a.m. due to understaffing.

“We were hoping we could do a 24-hour schedule once the school year started up again but we just don’t have the manpower, is literally where it’s at,” said Rhonda Stephens, Subway manager.

They currently have around 20 people employed at the Subway on Monroe avenue, and they run nine shifts per day

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p l d e H nte a w y ing t c e f s af ots i e g orta ning sp h s i r abo night d l e th eh ow r i t e l a t f avo

our

WRITER: Colin Rickman PHOTOGRAPHER: Eli Smart 29

H to cover their operating hours. Nine shifts means that they need nine different people to come in on any given day, and when there are only 20 people in total they are always stretched thin. If someone calls in sick or can’t work, the supply of workers to cover shifts runs dry quickly.

“When someone calls in sick, because we don’t have anyone to cover their shift, our nighttime closers are just getting hammered on thirsty Thursdays, Friday night, Saturday after the game and all those crazy nights when we need more workers here but we just don’t have the people to cover,” Stephens said.

At Domino’s, morning manager Jordan Mingus couldn’t reveal the number of workers they have employed because it is against corporate policy. That said, it is far from enough.

Mingus is currently trying to hire an additional 10 delivery drivers to help with the order loads they experience on busy nights.

“Everyone we can put on the schedule is on the schedule,” Mingus said. “I would like more people to put on the schedule but there isn’t anyone. Basically, everyone works Friday and Saturday. If you have ordered pizzas from here at night, you will see those three-hour delivery times. Most nights we are sitting at around two hour delivery times after six. Last night, I got back from the last order past midnight and we stopped taking orders at 10. Then, we still have to clean and shut down.”

That long wait time on their deliveries is a monument to how hard the employees have to work to keep up with the massive amounts of orders pouring in at night. If they had more employees maybe they could keep up, but the problems don’t stop there. There have also been issues with the supply chains that keep restaurants stocked with fresh food to serve to their loyal, possibly intoxicated, late-night customers.

At Subway, Stephens reported that they had experienced deliveries of food that were unservable. Boxes of tomatoes that had been dropped, bruised and ruined or bags of lettuce that were not properly sealed and were beginning to wilt. There have also been instances where the supply chain has been unable to keep up with the demand for everyday items like spinach, lettuce and the forever cherished chipotle sauce.

“We have had food supply issues where we keep running out of food and our distributor, U.S. Foods, put a cap on how much food we could order,” Stephens said. “We could only order 106 cases per week, and we go through double that amount of food.”

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Help wanted Similar issues have been occurring at Domino’s. Domino’s issues have been linked to food distributors dealing with confirmed COVID-19 cases. If a food distributing factory is infected with the virus, most of the food has to be thrown out, causing a shortage of food that needs to be delivered to locations like the popular Monroe avenue Domino’s. These issues with getting food from distributors into restaurants on top of the already understaffed work force make it difficult to supply the demand of our hungry students, let alone be able to stay open as late as they used to be.

So, why are places like Subway and Domino’s that have been sturdy establishments for what seems like forever here in Corvallis, just now struggling to find employees?​​ Kathryn Duvall with the economic development department within Corvallis, reported that the labor shortage is not only affecting the food industry, but job markets for education, health care and manufacturing in Corvallis as well. She thinks that COVID-19 could still be a factor behind the shortage.

“One theory I’ve heard about the low labor supply is that people are actually choosing not to go into those jobs right now because of the risk of COVID-19 and they either have savings or maybe they have a partner that’s making enough money for one of them to stay out of the labor force,” Duvall said.

That is definitely one factor on the issue, but the hard truth of the matter is that there are multiple factors all acting together. What is more important, is how our beloved restaurants are combating these challenges and working hard to serve our community.

Over the summer, American Dream Pizza on Monroe avenue experienced a large shortage of workers as students left for home during the break. American Dream Pizza is no small operation, manager Valerie Obermeyer reported that they need to employ close to 50 people in total. From delivery drivers to prep cooks to bartenders, they were hurting for some fresh blood to roll in as backup.

“With fewer people on the line tickets would pile up because fewer people are making [the pizza]” Obermeyer said.

“Everyone just had to work hard and try to work faster and customers kind of got shafted which is terrible and wasn’t our goal but when we are understaffed every night there’s no choice.”

However, they did not cut hours in the end. They buckled down and pushed through the shortage. Obermeyer turned to job seeking services like Indeed to find extra help, and she got it. Recently, American Dream Pizza is running at an almost complete work force and is operating smoothly.

Hopefully, this is a sign that the labor shortage is coming to an end, and our favorite late-night food spots will soon be operating at their previous hours and serving our community as well as they always have. If you find yourself out at night looking for a bite to eat, know that the employees at the restaurants you love work harder than people think. So, remember to always treat them kindly and try not to puke on their floor after a long night of fun.

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WELLNESS

THE SCIE SCI ENC NCE E OF SLEEP SL EEP How sleep affects the brain WRITER: Larissa Prince ILLUSTRATOR: H. Beck

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leep, the time when we are most unaware of the world as it goes dark—in what feels like a skip in time—the light returns and our eyes flutter open once again.

Sleep is a necessary break from the waking world that offers the chance to feel refreshed and energized—sometimes just as groggy and heavy as the day before.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, sleep is defined as “the natural state of rest in which your eyes are closed, your body is not active and your mind is not conscious.” But sleep is much more complex and important to your overall health than a simple moment of rest.

Awake NREM1

NREM2 Sleep Spindle K-complex NREM3

REM Sleep is split into four different cycles: N1, N2, N3 and rapid eye movement, more commonly known as REM. N1 stands for the first Non-Rapid Eye Movement stage, when you first close your eyes and start to drift between consciousness and unconsciousness. In this stage, you may feel like you’re not quite asleep and can be easily woken up.

N2 is when you slip fully into unconsciousness and your muscles relax, your breathing and heart rate slows and body temperature drops. About half of your time asleep is spent in this stage.

N3 is known as the deep sleep stage, or slow-wave sleep, and lasts for about 20 to 40 minutes as your body further relaxes.

Finally, REM occurs—lasting for only a few minutes but gradually increases up to an hour as the cycles continue to repeat throughout the night. In this stage, your body experiences atonia, or a temporary paralysis of your muscles (excluding the eyes and diaphragm), and brain activity increases, which incites dreams.

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It is this brain activity that shows the different stages of sleep.

According to Dr. Mark Reploeg, M.D. Sleep Specialist and medical director of the Samaritan Sleep Center in Corvallis, Ore., brain waves are measured by their shape and form, amplitude and frequency. In the N2 stage, our brain waves have k-complexes, characterized by rapid, sharp waves.

Slow-wave sleep (N3) has more monotonous, large waves that move slowly. In contrast, the REM brain waves move in quick, short waves much like when we are awake and our eyes move back and forth laterally, hence the name.

“The entire brain is active during sleep, not just one part or a general area,” said Dr. Raechel Soicher, an instructor in the School of Psychological Science at Oregon State University.

This activity is measured using electroencephalography (EEG), which tracks the electrical movement across the hypothalamus, brain stem, pineal gland, basal forebrain, thalamus and the amygdala.

The hypothalamus receives information about light exposure from the eyes, signaling you to sleep as it becomes dark outside. The brain stem works in partnership to control the transition between wake and sleep while also causing the paralysis experienced in the REM stage.

The pineal gland is responsible for signaling the release of the sleep hormone, melatonin. Adenosine, a chemical that signals you to sleep, is released by the basal forebrain. The thalamus, which usually transmits information based on your senses, goes quiet, ceasing the processing of information, so you can sleep undisturbed. Finally, the amygdala becomes active during the REM stage as it processes your emotions.

It is these last two parts of the brain that contribute the most to the formation of dreams during REM. The thalamus actually becomes as active as it is when we are awake, allowing the brain to process images, sounds and other sensations. And the amygdala also increases its activity during this stage, possibly attaching the strong emotions we feel to the dreams we remember when we wake from REM. “Our brain has been filtering through all these things we’ve been exposed to throughout the day, and humans are good at making narratives out of things, so you kind of put a story to it,” said Jessee Dietch, assistant professor within OSU’s School of Psychological Science. Dietch notes that there isn’t much research on what dreams really are.

The body experiences two processes that lets it know when to sleep. One is the circadian rhythm, a 24-hour cycle that follows the light-dark cycle of the day. For college-age students, it tends to be shifted to later in the day, allowing us to stay up for longer but requires the need to sleep in later each morning.

REM

NREM1

REM

REM

REM

NREM2 NREM3 0

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The second process is known as sleep drive, meaning the longer it’s been since you’ve slept, the sleepier you become.

Dietch stresses that it’s important to listen to these signals in order to maintain good sleep health.

Dietch said sleep health comprises five main dimensions that include sleep duration, timing of sleep, efficiency of sleep (how long it takes you to fall asleep), satisfaction with your sleep (how rested you feel) and overall alertness throughout the day (mood and concentration).

Some questions to ask yourself to determine your sleep health include: How long does it take me to fall asleep? How often do I wake up throughout the night? How is my mood or concentration level during the day? Recording these answers in a sleep log over a period of two weeks can help determine what your sleep patterns actually look like. Sleeptracking devices aren’t very accurate and relying solely on our memory can be misleading.

Getting enough sleep consistently and letting yourself cycle through all the stages of sleep for around eight hours per night, as recommended by Reploeg, is key.

“The range of sleep needed in adults is four to 10 hours a night,” Reploeg said. "Although sleep needs vary, a four-hour night sleep is quite rare. The amount of sleep you need is when you wake up without an alarm, and feel great during

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the day with no tiredness or impairments in your daytime function. Once you get into adulthood, the amount of sleep you need should stay the same through the rest of one’s life.”

One of the most important benefits of good sleep is memory consolidation. This occurs during the REM stage when your brain is most active. Your brain is storing information from the day, transferring it from short-term to long-term memory. It’s processing the things you learned like facts or motor skills.

So, when you decide to pull the inevitable all-nighter, you may be causing more harm than good to your brain.

“Missing a whole night of sleep is pretty rough on the body and it probably gets rougher as you age,” Dietch said. “You can’t ever fully make that time up. We can eventually get back to equilibrium, but the damage that it does, [does] happen, and you aren’t making it up by getting sleep later on.”

College life can be tough to balance. Early 8 a.m. classes clash with our body’s natural wake-up time, and late-night study sessions or a long night out cuts into precious sleep time that can’t be reclaimed. Taking a moment to consider what your sleep patterns look like and understanding the importance of cycling through each phase will help you take care of just one more aspect of your health.

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PEOPLE

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Setting out to embark on a night’s work can take a multitude of forms if you live in Corvallis, Ore. You might find yourself holding up in the library to siphon information into your brain with a deadline approaching fast. You could be getting into something party-related with your fellow hooligans, or maybe you’re driving to Riva’s for a vegan burrito at 1:06 a.m.

For others, walking around campus after dark is a technique for destressing, finding curiosity in the new forms of activity taking place at night. A photographer might take on a mindset similar to this when a more challenging experience presents itself after the illusion of the sun going down finally occurs, grabbing a tripod and a camera and going looking for inspiration pouring from the lights that come on after dark.

Maybe some of us just work best after a certain time of day—but that’s not to say that photographer Christopher Trotchie’s best work is in low-light settings. Take a look at his portraiture, and that subjectivity is left up to the discretion of the viewer. But his work with that sought-after ambient light certainly makes a run for its money.

Trotchie—pronounced “troe-chee”—is freshly 40 years of age and currently based out of Klamath Falls, Ore. He has a warm, off-beat intensity about him that reminds you of something like a poem from the beat generation (and it’s not surprising that he listed Bruce Gilden as an inspiration of his).

If you look at his Instagram (@_Trotchie) where he maintains around one hundred posts as a summary of his most recent body of work, what you’ll notice are intimate portraits of the people he encounters throughout his days: a wellrounded body of street photography that leaves you with an emotional impression of the American condition, resonating from beautiful compositions of both human face and place.

From a family that moved around a lot during his childhood, Trotchie found a soft spot for Corvallis during his years at Western View Middle School (a school that was demolished in 2007). While his step dad was getting a master’s degree from Oregon State University, Trotchie was busy doing what 90s kids do around town: skating spots on campus that have since been lost in development, and exploring the nooks and crannies around the county like it was “Stand By Me.”

WRITER: Luke Brockman PHOTOGRAPHER: Luke Brockman CONTRIBUTED WORK: Christopher Trotchie

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“I think as humans, it’s part of our condition to be the center of hurt. All of these things are happening to us, and we feel beat down a lot,” Trotchie said. “I think a way to combat that is to have human interaction.. The further we get into technology and the more homogenized our ideas become through mass media, we lose the sincerity of the individualism. When you look somebody in the eyes, I can’t look another person in the eye and get the same impact.”

Trotchie looks at photography as something of a responsibility to him—both as a career, and in a more psychological and humanistic way. Photography is the medium through which he’s figured out what makes people human, and what connects people with each other and the environment they inhabit.

A non-traditional student, Trotchie got a degree in photojournalism from the University of Oregon just a few years ago and is working freelance as a photographer in Oregon. Through the program there, he connected with Julie Fischer, principal with a public involvement firm that operates in Eugene’s public sector, called Cogito.

“Looking back through the work he did for us, I was like, how did he do that?” Fischer said. “His ability to capture their essence in a photo and through the words he chose to represent them… it’s uncanny. It’s intuitive. Almost in a mystical way.”

The work that Julie is talking about is in reference to a transportation project that Trotchie used photographic essays to contribute to, telling the stories of community members in the Lane county area who were in need of transit routes to reach their neighborhoods on the outskirts.

On another plane, the mysticism she mentioned is spot on, almost ironic if you can tap into some imagination and consider the nature of analog, or film photography itself: light is “captured” or emulsified by means of silver halide crystals dispersed in gelatin, kept hidden from the light, and then later processed using a combination of chemicals to produce the reflection of the light emitted in that previous moment in time.

If you can look at it with curiosity, photographic chemistry is something like magic and the camera is a crystal ball.

“mike”

“neon side”

“robots”

“super”

“birdman”

“crater”

It’s Trotchie’s belief that you don’t have to go somewhere exotic to produce a quality photograph—but any photographer might tell you the same thing; that it’s not the streets of New York that are necessary to evoke an aspect of wonder, it’s about the way you approach the craft itself, the people and the environment you’re in.

Trotchie carried a large format Graflex 4x5 camera around Corvallis, Ore. setting up in front of spots like Superette Market on Monroe Avenue with a sense of certainty that made his place on the street as natural as the telephone pole right next to him.

“They’re photos that are found, as opposed to photos that are made,” said Dennis Anderson, a photographer from the San Francisco Bay Area who met Trotchie at Leo’s Camera Shop in Klamath Falls, Ore. where they both now reside.

The style of photography that emerges in Trotchie’s work, whether you call it street or not, is what attracted Anderson when he heard Chris talking the talk in Leo’s.

“I’m personally interested in whether or not there really is a resurgence in film, because it sort of goes along with the kind of photography that… really embodies an impassioned search for reality,” Anderson said. “It’s like most of the time, everybody’s sort of looking at everything through a curtain or a veil, and every once in a while, the veil parts and you get to see stuff very directly. The colors are more intense and everything is not commonplace anymore–you can be in a commonplace place, but you’re seeing it in a different way… so if you are lucky, you can pull a camera in there with you, and snap a picture or two and sometimes they’ll resonate so much with that experience that you can have it over and over and over and over again.”

FOOD & DRINK

DINNER Students recommend their favorite date night locations.

WRITER: Teresita Guzman Nader PHOTOGRAPHER: Solomon Myers

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re you looking for the perfect date-night location in Corvallis, Ore? We have created a list of local restaurants, bars and pubs for a date-night full of good vibes, fun memories and excellent food and drinks.

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CASTOR KITCHEN & BAR Castor has a laid back atmosphere filled with houseplants, low lights, a thoughtfully-curated playlist and friendly service, according to Evan Deffenbacher, general manager of Castor.

One of Castor’s most popular drinks is the “Love for Sale”—a sparkling grapefruit martini, made with local vodka, grapefruit liqueur, grapefruit wine, fresh squeezed grapefruit juice and zest, and sparkling wine.

Castor also offers old fashioned drinks and other classics, offered at recess for $7 from Wednesday to Saturday, 4 to 5:30 p.m., and all night on Tuesdays. Castor is located at 458 SW Madison Ave., Corvallis, OR 97330.

“We have an extensive selection of wine and spirits at Castor and are very particular about using the best ingredients in all of our food and drinks,” Deffenbacher said via email.

“Our menus change with the seasons and feature quality products and seasonal produce from local farms.”

Castor is open Tuesday through Saturday from 4 to 9 p.m., and has take-out available Tuesday through Saturday from 4 to 8 p.m. Same-day order and pickup is available.

“The majority of our food menu is designed to be shared,” Deffenbacher said. “Our Castor Board in particular is a great option for date night. It's a meat and cheese board to be shared with all the accoutrements.”

You can also access Castor’s full menu on its website.

BELLHOP Nathan Schomer, second-year master’s student in robotics, said he recommends Bellhop.

“Their food is delicious and the environment is casual enough for even a first date,” Schomer said via email. “It may be a bit [pricey] for students but their serving sizes are big, so it’s easy to split [an] appetizer and an entrée.”

Bellhop offers dinner Tuesday through Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m. and brunch Saturday through Sunday from 9 a.m to 2 p.m. Bellhop is located at 150 SW Madison Ave., Corvallis, OR 97330.

“From Bellhop, I highly recommend the peach caprese if they still have it (it’s seasonal), along with the roasted pepper mac and cheese,” Schomer said via email. “The peach caprese is delicious and the mac and cheese is big enough to share.”

BAGUETTE VIETNAMESE SANDWICHES Baguette Vietnamese Sandwiches is a Vietnamese cafe with vegan options, salad rolls and a banh mi menu. Banh mi is a Vietnamese sandwich with a crisp crust filled with savory ingredients.

In an email, Schomer said he recommends Baguette Vietnamese Sandwiches if you are looking for an affordable place for a date. He said the sandwiches are delicious and they wrap them up so they’re very easy to take to-go, ideal for a date in the park.

“From Baguette, you have to get the beef lemongrass sandwich,” Schomer said via email. “I initially ordered it after asking the owner what her favorite sandwich was.”

Baguette Vietnamese Sandwiches is open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and it is located at 121 SW 3rd St., Corvallis, OR 97330.

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THE BIÈRE LIBRARY The Bière Library is a craft beer bar and restaurant in an atmosphere reminiscent of a comfortable library. Their food and beers are inspired by Belgian cuisine.

Natalie Harris, fourth-year graphic design and creative writing student, said The Bière Library is hers and her boyfriend’s favorite restaurant for date nights in downtown Corvallis.

(Disclaimer, Natalie Harris is a member of Orange Media Network)

KINGFISH LOUNGE

“We like to go here for more celebratory occasions because we always want to get a drink, an appetizer, a main entree and a dessert,” Harris said via email. “Everything is so tasty and well made! We’ve never been disappointed with our food and drink suggestions, and if you follow their Instagram you’ll see what new menu items they add.”

Kingfish Lounge offers cocktails, beer, wine, house-made pizza and cinnamon rolls.

The Bière Library’s new menu items can be seen at their instagram page or on their website.

Schomer said he and his friend are on a quest to drink at every bar and restaurant in Corvallis.

“The staff is also very kind and welcoming, and while you eat you get to be surrounded by books,” Harris said via email.

“Even the tables are covered in pages! It’s not a place where you would need to dress up to fit in with the crowd, but if you wanted a classier evening, you could wear something nice and it wouldn’t look out of place.”

You can also access Bellhop’s full menu on its website.

“We downloaded the list of liquor licenses in Corvallis and are working our way through the list,” Schomer said via email.

“I can say without a doubt that Kingfish Lounge has the best cocktails of the places we’ve visited so far. The bartender is very good and the environment is great, especially on a Thursday night when it’s not very busy.”

Kingfish Lounge is open Thursday through Saturday from 4:30 to 10 p.m. and is located at NW 1st St, Corvallis, OR 97330.

The Bière Library is open Sunday from noon to 8:00 p.m., Monday and Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 10 p.m. The Bière Library is located at 151 NW Monroe Ave., Suite 102, Corvallis, Oregon 97330.

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WELLNESS

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Creating a more mindful nighttime routine can lead to improved sleep and stress reduction. A lack of good sleep and pervasive stress can have harmful impacts on one's mental and physical health.

Kerin Konkler is a nurse practitioner at the Corvallis Clinic.

Close to a third of the primary care visits nationwide are sleep related.

Konkler treats patients for a wide variety of sleep disorders from sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome to narcolepsy and more.

“A good way to think about it is that there are physical, psychological and environmental reasons why you may not be sleeping well,” Konkler said. “[Some problems] include increased risk for dementia, heart attack, and stroke.”

Simple actions like not exercising hard or drinking caffeine three hours before bed are examples of what to avoid to ensure you get a good night's sleep.

The Corvallis Clinic offers tips on their website for those looking to improve their sleeping habits. Konkler suggests starting a nighttime routine by giving yourself a minimum of an hour to wind down at night.

WRITER: Tarsa Weikert OGRAPHER: Tarsa Weikert

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“Letting your brain wind down in a predictable fashion helps to get into a rhythm,” Konkler said. “Having a fairly consistent routine then allows the brain to hold onto that and ‘fall into line’ if something else starts happening, like extra stress during finals.”

Many may wonder how to begin to create a more mindful nighttime routine. Diana Hulet, a mind/body program instructor within the Physical Activity Course department, teaches yoga on Fridays at Oregon State University and encourages people to begin by engaging in mindfulness.

“When we are not focused on the past or the future, and are immersed in the present, we feel a sense of aliveness that is not burdened by wanting things to be different than they are,” Hulet said.

Mindfulness is about cultivating an awareness of the self and the breath, which is always occurring in the present moment.

Those interested in creating a more mindful night routine may consider combining both yoga and a mindfulness meditation to end their day. It can be a way to tune in with what the body needs, while slowing down the mind.

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“It’s important to remember that yoga is far more than just the physical practice of postures,” Hulet said. “It’s an entire system for wellbeing. The practices help us to feel calm and grounded, while engaging our parasympathetic nervous system, the driver of our capacity to rest.”

Hulet advises that those seeking to incorporate yoga in their nighttime routine select a consistent time for their practice.

Jessica Mylan, a first-year graduate student at OSU, teaches yoga in her spare time. She dedicates her time exploring yoga on a physical, spiritual and intellectual level.

“I think that yogic philosophy offers a lot of accessible wisdom and options for practice to cultivate peace and a better relationship with the world around us,” Mylan said.

Mylan practices yoga and mindfulness every day and finds that it works for her.

“As far as asana goes, I try to practice twice a day, this can be slow, mindful stretches or a more active sequence,” Mylan said. “I have just started implementing a longer meditation routine to calm the mind during these anxious and busy times.”

Short and simple breathing practices, or pranayama, tend to calm the central nervous system and provide a feeling of ease.

“Now that many of us are getting back out into the world far more than we were last year, taking time to rest and relax

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is essential for our physical and mental health,” Hulet said.

“Giving space for self-care also has an effect on our family and friends, because we are less stressed and reactive, and more compassionate and supportive to their needs.”

Consistent practice of yoga and meditation is beneficial for personal wellbeing in addition to the wellbeing of the community.

“I think a nighttime routine is so important,” Mylan said.

Mylan starts her nighttime routine with multiple steps such as slowing down, dimming the lights, reading, doing yoga and more.

Hulet, Mylan and Konkler all endorse avoiding screen time an hour before bed. If you do decide that you cannot live without screen time before bed, Konkler advises purchasing special glasses that block the blue light that is emitted from devices. These glasses are usually orange or amber in color.

Konkler encourages bathing as another technique that can be implemented into your nighttime routine.

“The act of our bodies cooling down is a biological trigger that starts the sleep cycle,” Konkler said.

To further stimulate feelings of relaxation, gently clean and massage your face as this promotes skin health and reduces signs of aging. Becky Maddox, has owned a private licensed massage practice in Corvallis, Ore. for the last 17 years and believes massages have health benefits.

“Massage in general stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, bringing on relaxation and a decrease in the release of stress hormones,” Maddox said. “Facial massage in particular increases circulation and collagen production, reducing fine lines and redness, as well as removal of lymph, decreasing puffiness and sinus pressure.”

Special tools such as a frozen jade roller or a gua sha stone are useful tools to increase circulation in the face and to massage lymph nodes. In the head and neck alone, there are over 300 lymph nodes.

“I had numerous gua sha treatments when I was in school, primarily on my neck to really break up multi-layered fascial restrictions from accidents in my youth,” Maddox said. “It was pretty intense, but the results were profound.”

These tools are meant to improve circulation, release toxins from lymph nodes and reduce inflammation. Remember to sanitize your tools or you may end up clogging your pores!

Lymphatic massages are thought to stimulate immune system functions and are best accompanied with coconut oil when using your hands or tools. Coconut oil has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial action and encourages skin hydration.

If you are seeking an extra step in your nighttime dental routine, you can also engage in a coconut oil pulling session to improve your gum health.

Coconut oil pulling is where you take a spoonful of unrefined organic coconut oil and swish it in your mouth for as long as possible. That’s right, if you have time to swish it around for 30 minutes, do it! The oil is ‘pulled’ and forced in between all the teeth by swishing it around.

Coconut pulling is meant to be used in addition to your daily dental routine, not as a substitute. It is widely debated about the benefits but some studies have recorded that it can significantly reduce gingivitis.

One study by the Journal of International Society of Preventive & Community Dentistry, concluded that it has similar effect at preventing streptococcus mutans, a common organism that creates cavities compared to chlorhexidine, which is used to treat gingivitis.

If you still have some energy after completing these mindful self-care techniques, there are other activities you can do to get ready for bed. For example, you can drink a warm cup of kava tea, accompanied by a book to further relax your mind.

Mylan often makes herbal tea like chamomile or Ayurvedic ginger tonic to fire the digestive system.

“My advice would be to start small and create a routine you can do at least a few nights a week to start,” Hulet said. “Begin by constructing a peaceful space with minimal distractions, even if it’s a corner of your bedroom.”

Mylan believes a nighttime routine is essential for her and anyone experiencing anxiety and depression.

“It is so easy to neglect your body with the demands of a busy life, but your body is your best tool,” Mylan said. “Rest well, breathe, move and feed your temple with nutrition.”

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ARTICLE TYPE CREATE

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or many students at Oregon State University, live music means one long drive to go see the big performers in Eugene or Portland, Ore. What some of us tend to forget is that music can be found anywhere, and a great source of that music can be found here in Corvallis, Ore. in the form of house shows.

Depending on the time of year, these events can occur as often as every weekend within walking distance of campus. There’s a ton of talent out there, you just need to know where to look!

Nick Murdach, who helped organize a house show for the first time this past Halloween, said house shows are simply local and visiting bands or groups that come together and perform.

“I would say that there isn’t really a method to choosing who performs, as it is more about who wants to perform and provide attendees with some seriously great music,” Murdach said. “All of the groups in the area are fantastic and it's great to get the chance to see all of them.”

According to Murdach, the best way to get involved with the organization of these events and potentially hosting one is to just start attending them regularly.

“I’d say that attending house shows is a great opportunity to have a great time with friends and to support local artists and groups in the community,” Murdach said.

Along with Mothra, Marigold, The Deans and Candy Picnic, one of the performers at the Halloween event was the band Onion Machine, whose music is punk Americana, indie Americana or alternative rock, according to Jackson Price and Nick Fryer of Onion Machine.

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t o o n e thing?”

Fryer, who is Onion Machine’s vocalist, did not have a specific reason to move to Corvallis, but he is glad he did anyway.

“I’ve met some of the best people I know,” Fryer said. “It’s more just a coincidence of being in a town that has such a mixture of like, you know, academia.”

“It’s such a tricky question to answer always because it's like, how do you pin d o w n ? ,” Fryer said.

“How do you pin it down

On the topic of the house shows themselves, Price, who’s been a drummer for a decade, said, “depending on the style of music, it could get rowdy, but we also definitely stress safety big time at our shows. And we know that a lot of unregulated house shows tend to spiral into physical activity or unsafe circumstances, because of certain people.”

Fryer agreed with Price, stressing the safety aspect in creating an enjoyable environment.

“We want to create that atmosphere where people feel safe to go out and see these amazing bands.” Fryer said.

“If they're being unsafe, throw them out.

It’s good to have fun, but it's bad to put yourself in a dangerous position.”

Donovon Horst, Onion Machine’s bassist said, “I think it's like, just a dynamic relationship like we do. We try really hard. Jackson does a really good job of engaging the audience and it's just nice.

We both feed off the energy. I think there really is a musical movement right now in Corvallis and Eugene, and it feels like it's growing.”

One message the band wanted to give about the importance of house shows was summed up by Price.

“This outlet—this musical outlet—is a product of my passion. And I put a lot of time into this. It means a lot when other people are able to respond positively to my work that I put out. I produce the music using the drumming machine, I drum for them and everything. That's the main thing that I'm passionate about.

So therefore, I hope to impart some sort of that passion into them as well,” Price said.

For more information on Onion Machine, you can find them on Instagram under @Onion.Machine, and follow their Facebook page @mechanicalonion. For more information about up and coming house shows, make sure to keep an eye on their social media accounts.

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WELLNESS

FOUR HOME REMEDIES TO HELP YOU SLEEP

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Have you ever laid awake in bed, your phone screen flashing the unfortunate time of 3:30 a.m. in your face, wondering what the point of sleep is if you aren’t actually tired in the first place?

The endless tossing and turning, sheets tangled around one leg, but both feet still tucked in, your eyes closed but somehow still seeing the pure darkness. Or perhaps you’re glued to your laptop screen, turning in one last assignment at the deadline before hopping into bed only to get on your phone for some more steady scrolling.

Sound familiar? Well, you’re in luck. We’ve compiled a list of tips—from habits to actual tools—that will hopefully help you fall asleep in no time.

Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response (ASMR) A gentle pattering rain, the soft click-clack of a keyboard or the breathy whispers of a product review. ASMR offers a variety of sounds to trigger you into a relaxed state.

ASMR stands for autonomous sensory meridian response and refers to a feeling of well-being combined with a tingling sensation in the scalp and down the back of the neck, as experienced by some people in response to a specific gentle stimulus, often a particular sound, according to Oxford Languages.

Although backed mostly by anecdotal accounts rather than science, a Sleep Foundation study showed that 82% of people who use ASMR listen or watch it before bed to help them relax and fall asleep. The Sleep Foundation explains that ASMR “appears to activate regions of the brain associated with calming, sleep-inducing hormones like dopamine and oxytocin.”

However, not everyone can actually experience ASMR. Your first step would be to find videos that interest you.

Experiment listening to ASMR videos or playlists in a quiet environment to see which ones cause chills or spark some deep satisfying excitement within you, like when you listen to your favorite song.

scan this QR code to listen to a soothing ASMR playlist on Spotify:

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Bedtime Teas If sound isn’t your jam, try a steamy, soothing mug of some sleepy time tea.

Chamomile and passionflower tea have shown to reduce anxiety. Both contain chemical compounds like apigenin and flavonoids that bind to receptors in the brain causing a calming effect. Chamomile has a mellow, delicate floral flavor while passionflower has a mild earthy taste.

Lemon balm and lavender tea are known to also help with anxiety and restlessness before bed. According to the Sleep Foundation, a study compared lemon balm to an antidepressant and found that participants who consumed it reported improved quality of life. With a tart citrus flavor and notes of mint, lemon balm offers a lighter, more refreshing taste compared to other bedtime teas. On the other hand, lavender presents a more varied range of flavors from sweet and floral to earthy and woody. An article on Healthline explains that while lavender hasn’t proven to improve quality of sleep, it has shown to help many people unwind with its relaxing aroma.

Weighted Blankets A weighted blanket is stuffed with a variety of fillers like plastic poly pellets or glass beads and comes in different weights from 5 to 30 pounds. You want something that gives you enough pressure to be lulled to sleep but isn’t so heavy as to restrict your movement or cause you to overheat. Clinical psychologist Micheal J. Breus explains on Psychology Today that 12 pounds has proven to be the ideal weight for sleep.

The effectiveness of these blankets is believed to come from the powerful psychological and physical effects from touch and gentle pressure, much like when you hug someone.

This deep pressure stimulation can lower your heart rate and blood pressure while increasing relaxation. It is possible that this stimulation can activate the release of oxytocin, the hormone that contributes to generating a sense of calm and typically increases during sleep.

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"The effectiveness of these blankets is believed to come from the powerful psychological and physical effects from touch and gentle pressure, much like when you hug someone."

Yoga A practice that began over 3,000 years ago, yoga still shows physical and mental benefits that have proven to improve your quality of sleep. The Sleep Foundation reported that a national survey showed “over 55% of yoga practitioners report improved sleep and over 85% report reduced stress.”

There are several types of yoga, with Hatha and Nidra being common in routines to help with sleep. Hatha uses gentle body postures paired with breathing techniques that promotes relaxation through deep inhalation, holding the breath, and slow exhalation. Nidra yoga involves positions involving lying down and breathing awareness. This deep breathing technique is called Ujjayi Breath, or Ocean Breath, because as you exhale through your nose it’s like you’re saying “ha”, like the waves of the ocean, according to Harvard Health.

Here are some poses to get you started: • Uttanasana (standing forward bend) - From a standing position, bend at the waist slowly forward, letting your hands rest on your shins or the floor.

• Supta baddha konasana (reclined butterfly) - Lying on your back, press your feet together and let your knees fall to the side.

• Viparita karani (legs up the wall) - Find a wall and lie on your back with your legs straight against it, your body forming an “L” shape.

• Savasana (corpse pose) - Lie flat on your back, legs straight and arms at your side with palms facing up.

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