Spring 2015 Issue 5

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GRADUATE STUDENT CREATES ART FOR THERAPEUTIC HEALING PAGE 6

February 25, 2015 ISSUE 05 VOLUME C GOLDENGATEXPRESS.ORG

Serving the San Francisco State community since 1927

App users look for love in the digital era EVA BARRAGAN

evbarrag@mail.sfsu.edu

VACCINATION NATION AVERY PETERSON

averylp@mail.sfsu.edu

Cassidy Napolitano knew that when she started using the well-known dating app, Tinder, it would be an interesting experience, but in an age where the average person spends 162 minutes on their mobile device per day, according to a study done by Geek Wire, she had no idea true love may be as easy as swiping left or right.

“I was embarrassed to say I met my current boyfriend on Tinder,” said SF State communications major Napolitano.

Napolitano’s love story is just one of the thousands Tinder’s VP of Corporate Communications and Branding, Rosette Pambakian, said was prompted by the social app that was originally launched on college campuses in 2013.

“The purpose of Tinder,” Pambakian said in an email, “is social discovery.”

Napolitano said she originally downloaded Tinder as a joke.

“My roommates and I just got it to see what kind of responses we would get from boys,” she said. “I was skeptical to go out with Keoki Murphy (current boyfriend) because

MOBILE Continued ON PAGE 5

MARLENE SANCHEZ / XPRESS

SYRINGE: Registered Nurse Mira Medan preps the MMR vaccine at the Student Health Center Tuesday, Feb. 24. A service offered to students on specific days.

Over the past decade, America is the only region in the world that has seen an increase in measles cases, according to a World Health Organization report The recent measles case on BART and the multistate outbreak may indicate developing problems with vaccination levels, according to public health officials.

Measles cases in the United States reached a 20-year high with more than 23 outbreaks and 600 individual cases recorded in 2014, according to a press release published Jan. 29 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is a tenfold increase compared to the yearly median documented by the CDC from 2001-2010.

“This is not a problem with the measles vaccine not working,” said Anne Schuchat, assistant surgeon general and director of CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease, in a press release. “This is a problem of the measles

vaccine not being used.”

Due to high immunization rates during the past decade, North and South America were on track to become the first region in the world to be formally declared measles free, according to a press release by the Pan American Health Organization and World Health Organization. The eradication of measles is now in jeopardy with 125 confirmed cases in the U.S. from Dec. 28 to Feb. 8, as indicated in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report released Feb. 20.

Gaps in immunization accounts for the reemergence of vaccine-preventable diseases like measles, according to the PAHO/WHO. Ramon Castellblanch, professor of health education at SF State and public member of the California Board of Pharmacy, is passionate about this issue.

“People see (not getting vaccinated) as a personal decision, but it is not,” Castellblanch said. “It is a decision you are making for your community.”

MEASLES Continued ON PAGE 3

Student dies in canoe accident TIMOTHY SMITH

tsmith@mail.sfsu.edu

Trudging through the backcountry areas of San Mateo county with Search and Rescue Explorer Post 830, SF State student Luis Rubalcaba spent much of his late teen years working with the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office participating in search and rescue missions. Head held high wherever he went, Rubalcaba caught the attention of professors and peers with his positive attitude and indomitable work ethic.

“His main thing was work beats talent every time,” Juan Rubalcaba said of his younger brother. “If you put enough work to it, you can achieve

STUDENT Continued ON PAGE 3

COURTESY OF RUBALCABA FAMILY

REMEMBERED: Portrait of Luis Rub-

alcaba, who studied criminal justice at SF State.

Professor creates treasure from trash

A

DRAKE NEWKIRK / XPRESS

IMAGINATION: Assistant professor Michael Arcega concentrates on some finishing touches on an art project using tweasers at the SF State Fine Arts gallery Thursday, Feb. 19.

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FARNOUSH AMIRI famiri@mail.sfsu.edu

s artist Michael Arcega sorted through a mountain of disordered garbage and inhaled massive amounts of dust, he kept only the most sentimental items: a framed photo of a wide-eyed dog, a fully packaged Matrix VHS tape, an obscene amount of unopened wine bottles and a king-sized mattress tarnished with stains. While these items were once considered too mundane to keep, they are the inspiration behind Arcega’s immersive installation, revealing that one’s man trash is another man’s treasure.

Arcega was one of six individuals chosen for the Artist in Residence Program at the recycling and waste company, Recology San Francisco. Arcega began working on the project in February, but his curi-

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osity for recycling and reusing materials spawned at an early age.

“So I guess this whole concept has always been in the back of my mind,” Arcega said. “When I was in elementary school and they asked you what you want to be when you grew up, I said I wanted to tap the resources in the dumps because I knew that methane and tons of resources were coming out that could be harnessed and reused to mine the dumps.”

The artist will continue to rummage through the dump areas at the recycling yard until the May 22 debut of his exhibit proposal, which explores the meaning behind what the things people discard.

ART Continued ON PAGE 4

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FEBRUARY 25, 2015

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Students reflect on 1968 strike

ANGELINE UBALDO aubaldo@mail.sfsu.edu

Hundreds of students cried "On strike, shut it down," fists raised to the sky as they marched through Malcolm X Plaza while they passed police officers donning riot gear. This is what SF State looked like from November 1968 to March 1969.

Nearly 50 years have passed since the 1968 strike, but current Black Student Union members still continue to organize against relevant issues that affected African-Americans and other people of color in the past.

"History repeats itself," BSU member Andranee Nabors said.

"Racism used to be blatant and out front and in your face. Now, it’s behind closed doors and behind contracts and work ethics that no one can prove. It’s so hidden but yet, so out there at the same time. It’s the same situation but different circumstances so it has to be approached in a different way."

The BSU and the Third World Liberation Coalition went on strike November 1968 at what was then called San Francisco State College. Students demanded the creation of a college of "third world" studies and proper funding and employment of the black studies department. By March 1969, the strikes ended and the College of Ethnic Studies

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PROTEST: Stephen Shames, George Murray, leader of the S.F. State Student and Teacher Strike 1968.

was created, according to the 2009 documentary Activist State.

"These were students, whether they were in the Black Student Union or in the broader Third World Liberation for that matter, also radical whites and Students for a Democratic Society, who were attempting to not only want to study the world but really seeking to transform it," said Jason Ferreira, director of the Race and Resistance Studies program in the College of Ethnic Studies.

SF State is the only institution in the country with a dedicated College of Ethnic Studies.

The College consists of the Africana studies department, the American Indian studies department, Asian-American studies and the Latina/Latino studies department.

One of the original strikers, Daniel Phil Gonzales, helped create the curriculum for Asian-American Studies in 1969 and has remained at SF State as

an AAS professor since then.

"I decided 'yeah, I think I’m doing okay here,'" Gonzales said. "'Let’s make sure that I’m making a contribution that’s worthwhile,' and that’s how it went."

Throughout the years, Gonzales said he has seen the difference between students 47 years ago and now.

"It (1968) was a very interesting time," Gonzales said. "It was a lot more intentional building of relationships across ethnic

lines which is something that’s lacking, I think, nowadays."

BSU was instrumental in creating the original curriculum for what was then called the black studies department and was involved in other community efforts to combat land redevelopment in the Fillmore, Ferreira said.

Nabors said that the organization was still doing community work by participating in programs that help African-American youth. She said she was glad to be part of the legacy that BSU members in 1968 established, though she was not proud that organizations like BSU needed to exist.

"I feel like me being educated and me being black, it’s part of who I am," Nabors said. "To get to know the people who were here before me and figure out how to help and how to progress things that they have already paved before I came."

Ferreira said that events like the Black Lives Matter movement and the police brutality protests are valuable reasons why being privy and sensitive to social issues is vital.

"Ethnic studies is not something marginal, on the side, not something that is really just an elective," Ferreira said. "It is as fundamental to an educated person as math is or critical thinking."

Organization gathers books for political prisoners STEVE CALDERON snc@mail.sfsu.edu

Recalling his visit to the Philippines last summer, biology student Jordan Ilagan remembered the clusters of up to 30 prisoners crammed in 5-by-10 meter cells too small to stretch an arm or leg.

“They weren’t like traditional American prisons where you get like a cell, you get like a bed,” Ilagan said. “These were a bunch of women crammed, like ten, fifteen people into a small room.”

Ilagan visited a prison in July 2014 during an exposure trip with a church group to experience what conditions were like in Philippine communities. There he met political prisoner Andrea Rosal, a Philippines native who gave birth to a daughter while detained. Ilagan said he gets goose-bumps when he thinks about Rosal, whose baby died soon after she was detained.

“She wasn’t allowed to mourn her baby after she was arrested illegally, after she gave birth and she lost her child because of it,” Ilagan said of Rosal, who is still imprisoned today. “Just the look

in her eyes, it was just like this fire in her eyes that, you know, still sticks with me to this day. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that as long as I live.”

Ilagan is a member of the League of Filipino Students, whose cooperation with prisoner-support organizations helped coordinate a book drive Feb. 11-18 to collect reading material for political prisoners in the Philippines.

The goal for LFS at SF State was to collect 200 inspirational books, which will arrive at the prison libraries in March.

Pyxie Castillo, chairperson of LFS at SF State, said political prisoners are often community organizers targeted by the Philippine government and arrested under false charges.

“Because of the culture of impunity in the Philippines, the number of political prisoners is rising,” Castillo said.

Patrick Racela, a political science major and member of LFS who helped with the book drive, visited a remote countryside community in the Philippines called

Surigao Del Sur last summer.

Racela said that while traveling, one of his guides was illegally detained. ”Very much in the same fashion as these political prisoners, he was taken in on trumped up charges of murder and arson." Racela said. "Fortunately he was able to be freed because of local national and international pressure, but he’s currently in hiding because of threats against his life."

The instillations of the libraries at two prisons in the Philippines were negotiated through former political prisoner PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY ZHENYA SOKOLOVA / XPRESS alliance organizations SELDA and Karapatan.

"For them (the prisoners) the most Ilagan believes projects like the book important thing is having people there drive show a solidarity to the prisoners to listen to them,” Ilagan said."You can't who are getting support from people thou- place a monetary value on that. That goes sands of miles away. beyond any sort of monetary donation.”

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NEWS 3

Measles outbreak triggers vaccination debate

TWO DOSES OF TH MEAS LES V ACCIN E E PROV ES STATISTIC FROM THE CE

NTERS FOR

ILLUSTRATION BY JOURDON AHN / XPRESS

Continued from the front Vaccine coverage in the U.S. fails to meet targets like the 95 percent coverage for two doses of measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine set by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Healthy People 2020 program.

California vaccination rates are lower with a median coverage rate of 92.3 percent for the MMR vaccine compared to the national median at 94.7 percent for the 2013-2014 school year, as reported on the CDC website.

The vaccination rate for students at SF State is currently unavailable according to SF State Medical Director Alastair Smith, who said that the school does not track this.

The American College Health Association National College Health Assessment emailed to students earlier this month may soon give the school an idea of this percentage.

Smith said he believes the vaccination rate at SF State is below recommended levels.

“A lot of students have forgotten, because they have never lived in a world where these diseases were serious,” Smith said. “My parents’ generation can remember people that died of these diseases. If you talk to students, they don’t know anyone who has had polio or any of these diseases, so they tend to forget how

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serious they are.”

The two vaccinations required at California State University’s by state law or executive order are Hepatitis B and measles, mumps and rubella. Due to an elevated risk, the California Department of Public Health recommends three additional vaccines for colleges with student housing: varicella (chickenpox); Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap); and meningococcal conjugatet (meningitis).

“We require proof of (the vaccines),” said Jason Bowen, who works in the department of the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management.

“We require a signed document from the health care provider. Students not proving that proof are not allowed to register for classes.”

Smith said the CSU’s sets requirements on immunization for all 23 campuses. Students can opt out of these requirements with a waiver for medical, religious or personal reasons.

Castellblanch said he questions the exemptions offered at SF State and other CSU campuses.

MARLENE SANCHEZ / XPRESS

INJECTION: Registered nurse Mira Medan gives Lattrice A. Robinson Jr., a finance major, an

MMR vaccine at the Student Health Center Tuesday, Feb. 24. The MMR vaccine protects against measles, mumps and rubella.

“My bottom line for SF State students on MMR vaccines would be that persons who are unvaccinated without medical exemption unnecessarily put others at risk for these diseases and related complications,” Castellblanch said.

Adam Burke, a professor of health education and the director of the Institute for Holistic Health Studies at SF State, values the vaccination policy.

“It is a sensible policy, encouraging good public health practice but allowing room for individual differences,” Burke said. “America places a significant value on personal freedom, freedom of speech, freedom to worship as you see fit. It is part of the culture.”

English major Logan Smith said religious belief exemptions are an excuse, despite his support for religious freedom.

“The religious community has been negative toward vaccines for the wrong reasons,” Smith said. “Medical exemptions I can see more, but still if you just have one person infected it can spread.”

SF State Medical Director Alastair Smith said that it is a student’s duty to get vaccinated to stop the spread of preventable diseases.

“To protect others in the community is a reason to get vaccinated,” Smith said. “From a public health perspective everyone should get vaccinated not only for their own health, but for the health of their fellow students, faculty and staff.”

Students can receive several immunizations on campus Tuesdays and Wednesdays at the Student Health Center’s vaccination clinic.

Student remembered by family after untimely death Continued from the front anything you want.”

Rubalcaba, was found dead last week after a boating accident in the South Bay with his father Guillermo Rubalcaba and his fiancee Larissa Castañeda. The trio left Oyster Point Feb. 16 for a day trip in a 12-foot canoe purchased only weeks prior, but did not return.

Search and rescue crews discovered Castañeda crying out for help in the open water off of Coyote Point in San Mateo around 1 a.m. Feb. 17, according to a statement from the United States Coast Guard. It was almost an hour later when they discovered Guillermo Rubalcaba floating in the water nearby.

Juan Rubalcaba was just getting off work when he got the call from his mother that his younger brother, father, and brother’s fiancee had not returned from their fishing trip. Rubalcaba said the discovery of Castañeda and his father, who was alive but unconscious at the time, gave the family hope that his brother would be okay.

“Thirty minutes later, my brother called me again and said that my dad passed away at the hospital,” Juan Rubalcaba said. “From there it was all downhill. We were just praying that Luis was still alive.”

After being pulled from the water, Castañeda was transported to Daly City Hospital for evaluation, according to the press release.

The body of his younger brother wasn’t discovered until 9 a.m. the following morning near the San Mateo Bridge, Juan Rubalcaba said.

“Our family will never be the same,” Juan Rubalcaba said. “The pain will never go away, but you have to stay strong. It was their day, and we all have that day coming.”

Rubalcaba, born July 27, 1992 in the town of Nochistlán, Mexico, moved to the United States in 1997 with his

family where they eventually settled in Daly City seven years later.

Rubalcaba’s cousin and close friend Jose Pulido, 19, said that they did everything together, even deciding to study criminal justice and pursue desire to work in law enforcement. According to Pulido, his cousin applied for a job with the California Highway Patrol before his death.

“When we spoke recently he was telling me how he had applied somewhere down in Merced for CHP dispatch,” Pulido said. “He said they had contacted him about finalizing an interview. That was the last thing we spoke about before this tragic event.”

During his time with Explorer Post 830 , Rubalcaba worked closely with Patrick Lucy, a correctional officer with the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, to help at-risk teens to make a better life for themselves. A run-in with the police and a short stint in juvenile hall when he was 17 lead him to Lucy, and their friendship continued as Rubalcaba became interested in law enforcement as a career path.

COURTESY OF RUBALCABA FAMILY “He was a kid that lived a cinderella story, for lack of a better word,” Lucy said. “He ELEVATED: SF State student Luis Rubalcaba repels during a climbing exercise. had some struggles in life, and he overcame those struggles to become an amazing young man with a dream that was not selfish, that wasn’t about him– it was about others.”

A viewing was held 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday at GarA friend of the family started an online crowd-fundden Chapel Mortuary in South San Francisco. There will ing page to help pay for funeral costs and “whatever the be a mass at Holy Angel’s Catholic Church Wednesday at family may need as they move forward,” according to the 10 a.m. in Colma and burial services will be conducted at page. As of noon Tuesday the group had raised $1,690 of nearby Holy Cross Cemetery. their $5,000 goal.

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

4 LIFESTYLE & CULTURE Concert to celebrate alumna’s life

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KELLY SODERLUND kls10@mail.sfsu.edu

As Elinor Armer’s fingers jauntily transversed the keys of her vintage Bösendorfer, musical notes from the revered Austrian piano manufacturer conjugated with the diffused sunlight of her warm Berkeley Hills home.

Music proliferated the front room, settling comfortably among the artifacts of a well-lived life.

“This was written by an old boyfriend of mine from my old heterosexual days,” Armer said with characteristic amiability.

A world-renowned classical composer, pianist and teacher, the SF State alumna is in the midst of a series of Bay Area Jubilee concerts in celebration of her 75th birthday, one of which will be held at Knuth Hall Feb. 26.

“I decided to throw a big bash for myself,” Armer said. “I thought, ‘I’m going to be 75. I should do something about that.’”

Born in Oakland in 1939 and raised in Davis, Armer comes from a family of well-known Bay Area artists. Her father, Austin Armer, was an engineer who invented stereophonic sound reproduction before turning to agricultural engineering. Her mother, Alberta Roller Armer, was a writer of children’s books with a love for the piano.

Armer fondly recalls sitting alongside her mother while she played, transfixed by her alto voice. “I’d sit on the bench while she sang from songbooks for children.

I couldn’t have been happier when we were doing that,” Armer said, who has been trying to recapture her childhood musical experience throughout her life and career.

Armer has performed and lectured throughout the country, and her works are performed regularly in the U.S. and abroad. In May, Armer will travel to China to teach a master class at the Shanghai Conservatory.

KATIE LEWELLYN / XPRESS

MUSICAL BLISS: Classical composer Elinor Armer writes down a few notes on sheet music while she plays piano in Berkeley Sunday, Feb. 22.

After graduating from high school in Davis, Armer returned to the Bay Area to receive her bachelor’s degree from Mills College and obtained a Master of Arts in composition 10 years later from SF State.

In 1985, Armer founded the San Francisco Conservatory’s Composition Department, served as its chair for 11 years and is still currently on faculty.

Armer is also a founding member of the Bay Area non-profit Composers Inc., a nationally known organization whose annual Lee Ettelson Composer’s Award competition draws 250 to 300 entries each year.

It was 30 years ago, through Composers Inc., that Armer met SF State professor Victoria Neve, who spearheaded the Knuth Hall event.

“She is wonderfully intelligent, witty, warm, and generous– all the things everyone wants in a friend and teacher,” Neve said. “She has taught generations of young musicians, and her influence has spread everywhere they have gone. Her music is as full of wit, cleverness, precision, and warmth. As is she.”

Armer’s many reference works include the Elinor Armer Archive in the University of California Berkeley Music Library and Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians.

Armer has also fostered a longtime collaboration with writer and folklorist Ursula K. Le Guin, daughter of famed anthropologist Alfred Kroeber and his wife Theodora Kroeber. Their best known collaborative work, “Uses of Music in Uttermost Parts”, is an amalgam of Le Guin’s poetry and Armer’s music.

In her 50s, Armer and her former domestic partner raised two children together. While Armer’s sexuality was never an issue in her professional life, as she’s older Armer said she has felt it increasingly necessary to think of herself as a role model for both female composers and lesbian composers in a field dominated by men.

“I’ve always said that I wish there were a feminine counterpart to the word ‘mensch’ (a person of integrity and honor), because that would be Elly,” Neve said. “She deserves all the praise we can give her.”

Exhibit showcases repurposed materials Continued from the front Since beginning the residency with Recology San Francisco, the Stanford graduate has consciously tried to distance himself from the former owners of the reused items and the overall American culture.

The theme of his exhibit will center around the given anadrome ‘Nacirema’ to create a fictional realm where the discarded items stand on their own instead of for what they were previously utilized.

“The overall project is based on an anthropologist named Horace Miner, he wrote about the ‘Nacirema,’ which (spelled) backward is American,“ Arcega said. “I’m trying to make things about, for and maybe from the Naciremans, so it’s a kind of fiction; there is a little room for play in there.”

The curator for the Artist in Residence program and SF State alumna Sharon Spain said she saw Arcega’s exhibit proposal as a possible look into society and how it is identified through discards.

“I think Michael’s work dealing with the concept of the ‘Nacirema’ is really a perfect fit for this residency,” Spain said.

“It’s a strangely democratic reflection of the community at large.”

The residency program will provide the sculptor and installation artists with a studio, a monthly stipend and unlimited access to the dump area for materials. In

DRAKE NEWKIRK / XPRESS

RECYCLED-TRASH: Artist Michael Arcega ponders whether or not he can use a scavenged mirror in his studio at Recology SF Saturday, Feb. 21.

addition to the time dedicated to the program, Arcega will also teach three classes at SF State and has recently debuted three pieces in the on-campus exhibit Hydarchy: Power, Globalization and the Sea. Program director of the Artist in Residence Program and SF State alumna Deborah Munk aided Arcega’s search for hidden gems in the vast hoards of unusable appliances and family albums.

“(Michael) is wonderful to work with, very smart and dedicated artist and I think a little overworked too,” Munk said.

Arcega said his work for the residency does more than create an immersive experience through reused materials; the project poses as a philosophical aspect for the artist to explore and to ask questions.

“There is a kind of memory that accompanies the objects and you can

kind of create narratives around how a person lives their lives through what they throw out,” Arcega said. “That’s one of the perks– that you get to go through the debris of the culture you participate in.”

Since 1990, the Artist in Residence Program has given Bay Area artists access to create pieces with discarded materials through their unique art and education program. The recovery resource company hopes to encourage individuals to reuse and reapply materials in order to create and promote the innovative ways of thinking about the environment.

“I think the project that he’s working on is a completely different take on working with reused materials,” Munk said. “Nobody has ever even suggested anything like that and I think it’s a very specific project that will incorporate the materials in a different way.”

Arcega begins each visit to the dump with his hardhat, a shopping cart and with no expectations of what finds he will uncover that day. After 20 minutes of rummaging, the artist said he could end up not using any of the things he found or using them all. For Arcega, the search is not just about the materials he finds but about the cultural significance they hold.

“Art is more of a philosophical endeavor (for me),” Arcega said. “Its posing questions, exploring and being inquisitive – it’s a philosophy in objects.”

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FEBRUARY 25, 2015

LIFESTYLE & CULTURE 5

Mobile app fuels love Continued from the front I don’t ever go out with people I don’t know.”

Napolitano said that what made her comfortable meeting with Murphy was that he would attend a lot of the same bars she frequented.

On Tinder, photos of real people in the same area as the user will show up on the app’s display screen. The user can then indicate level of interest by swiping right or left to rate whether or not there is any sort of attraction.

When two people indicate mutual interest for each other by swiping to the right, it’s a match. The two will then be prompted that they have been matched and unlimited messaging between one another can begin immediately.

“I’m sure we crossed paths before we matched on Tinder,” Napolitano said. “I just got lucky.”

Knowing the person she met on Tinder made Napolitano feel at ease using the app, but the same could not be said for marketing major Jennifer Chavez.

“The first time I downloaded Tinder was back in September during a trip to LA,” Chavez said. “I deleted the app because my worst fear came true. I matched with my ex.”

Chavez, 24, has since ventured into another dating app, Wyldfire.

“Wyldfire takes the creepiness out of Tinder,” Chavez said.

While anyone with an active Facebook account can log onto Tinder, Wyldfire requires an invitation from a female user to join.

Wyldfire conversations with matched profiles are limited to 20 exchanges per person to expedite meeting people in real life. “(Wyldfire) is definitely not a casual dating app,” Chavez said. “I went on one date with someone I met on the app and things escalated very quickly.”

Chavez said she downloaded Wyldfire because she thought she was ready for a serious relationship but later decided she didn’t want something so serious after all.

“As of right now I prefer a relationship that develops organically versus the one that I found online,” Chavez said.

For business marketing major Alex Diaz, Tinder’s “fun and easy to use” platform is exactly what steered him away from gay dating app Grindr.

“Grindr is less of a dating app and more of a ‘let’s hook up and have sex’ app,” Diaz said.

According to Diaz, having a Grindr profile is often frowned upon in the gay community because of its sexual component.

“Users will send each other dick pics to start a conversation,” Diaz said. “I look down on people who use it.”

Marketing major Tyler Broadland echoed Diaz’s sentiments towards Grindr.

“I know 100 percent Grindr is purely

physical,” said Broadland. “That’s not my main interest with using these things.”

Broadland said part of the reason why he thinks Tinder is so popular among students and millennials is because they like to have choices.

“I don’t think matching someone automatically means I’m interested,” he said. “Everyone uses it for their own reasons, that’s why I found it interesting.”

Although many students at SF state use Tinder for dating, the company does not define itself as a dating app.

“Tinder is used for a multitude of reasons - whether looking for friends, romance, or business connections, the app simply provides an introduction between two mutually interested users,” Pambakian said in an email. “Whatever results from that connection is up to each user.”

Hospitality major Jane Lively said she uses Tinder whenever she needs an “ego boost.”

“Tinder makes it easier for people to rebound,” said Lively. “It’s like, ‘oh you just screwed me over? Let me just go on Tinder and match a ton a guys who think I’m the coolest thing since sliced bread.’”

Pambakian said meeting “the one” on Tinder is not as far-fetched as some may think.

“Tinder does not collect data on the

John Doe, 24

ILLUSTRATION BY JOURDON AHN / XPRESS

long-term development of connections made via the app,” said Pambakian in an email, “(we) know of thousands of success stories that our users have emailed us with, from engagements to weddings to even Tinder babies.”

On average, users log on to Tinder 11 times a day and every week one million new people join, according to Pambakian.

“Ten years ago people would think it was creepy or bizarre meeting someone online,” said Broadland. “Now it’s the norm. Tinder can be seen as an ice breaker.”

6 SPOTLIGHT

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

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WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU

LEMONS

Dried out citrus skins and a spool of blue thread lay scattered on a table in the Fine Arts building. For Laura VanDuren, a fine arts graduate student with a concentration in sculpture, the process of creating art is her therapy.

VanDuren’s fascination for all types of skins stemmed from their representation of the scars and wounds in her past life. As she picks up each citrus skin and uses a needle to thread each to another, she heals from her former marriage of 26 years.

“I want to show the wound and the repair because in our lives we have things we want to heal,” VanDuren said. “The sewing part is the healing of the wounds, it will always be there but we can repair it.”

VanDuren said she experiences a

ORANGE: (Counterclock-

wise from above) Laura VanDuren, 55, first year fine arts graduate student holds her new project of sewn together citrus skins in front of her face in the sculpture studio at SF State Tuesday, Feb. 17.

VanDuren constructs her art piece of citrus skins at her work station. Blue thread is used to sew pieces of dried-out skins together in the sculpture studio. VanDuren jokingly wraps her new project of sewn together citric skins around her head in the sculpture studio.

PHOTOS & STORY BY EMMA CHIANG echiang@mail.sfsu.edu

spiritual connection to each piece of skin as if the rinds spoke to her. She purchases giant pomelos, oranges, limes and lemons at the campus farmer’s market. After peeling and eating the fruit, she dries the skins out until they are ready for mending.

VanDuren earned her bachelors degree in fine arts from Carnegie Mellon University and is a founding member of the Mercury 20 Gallery in Oakland.

Four years since her divorce, VanDuren is dating and plans to add to her skin series by taking thousands of pictures of people’s stomachs and inserting a narrative over the image that tells the person’s story.

“My work has always helped me float my boat, it has carried me through life,” VanDuren said.

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FEBRUARY 25, 2015

SPOTLIGHT 7

LEAN:

(LEFT) Dance artist Alice Sheppard goes through one of her dance moves with her wheelchair during a rehearsal before her performance in the Humanities building Tuesday,

DANCE-POSITION: (BELOW)Dance artist Alice Sheppard moves towards the floor while she rehearses her performance in the Humanities building Tuesday, Feb. 24.

PHOTOS BY MARTIN BUSTAMANTE / XPRESS

Dance artist redefines capabilities KALANI RUIDAS

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he dancer raised one arm and held it in the air to meet the pinch of sunlight creeping through the window. The slow piano music resonated out of the speakers, but it did not move her, she moved on her own terms.

Her contoured muscles were redefined with each new line, using her wheelchair as a part of her emotional expression.

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"The movement tells me how to feel," Alice Sheppard said. "If you do the movement, emotion comes with it."

Dance artist Sheppard expresses motion using her wheelchair, challenging what people think about disability, dance and the body. Sheppard spoke on how she envisions dance at the 2015 Paul K. Longmore Institute on Disability lecture “Movement Is The Movement: Art, Activism, and Disability Aesthetics" in the Humanities building Tuesday.

"A dancer’s body is always subject to judgment, but when reviewers focus on what I physically can and cannot do, I am reminded of how much more there is to accomplish." Sheppard said in her artist statement.

After she saw a performance renowned dancer Homer Avila, who had his leg amputated due to cancer, Sheppard was inspired to experience her body in a new way. Prior to her life as a dancer, Sheppard earned a doctorate in Medieval Studies from Cornell University and eventually earned tenure in English and Comparative Literature.

“It was a risk to give up that job security to do something completely new, but it was such an incredible and amazing feeling to find myself in dance,” Sheppard said.

Sheppard began her dance career with lessons with AXIS Dance Company in Oakland, a physically integrated repertory

kruidas@mail.sfsu.edu

dance group that features distinguished choreographers and composers who showcase the talents of dancers with and without physical disabilities. Sheppard began dancing as an apprentice in 2006 until she was invited to perform as a member of the company in 2007.

The company’s artistic director, Judy Smith, recognized Sheppard’s interest in disability culture beyond the work she did with the dance group.

“She shows dedication and diligence in her craft,” Smith said. “She takes advantage of every opportunity to educate herself outside of the studio to incorporate that understanding into dance.”

Sheppard left AXIS in 2012 to do freelance performances and choreography work, giving her the opportunity to work in Atlanta, New York, Chicago and the United Kingdom.

“For the first four or five years, I didn’t know I had anything to say with dance,” Sheppard said. “Now, I recognize that I can express complex ideas and work through societal questions and problems in dance."

Along with her work in the arts, Sheppard is involved in a number of non-profit projects. She has been on the Board of the Society for Disability Studies and is currently a board member of Brooklyn-based dance company called Urban Bush Women.

Sheppard is also on the advisory

committee for SF State's Paul K. Longmore Institute on Disability. The institute was established to continue the disability studies work of its founder, former SF State Professor Paul Longmore. The program's assistant director, Emily Beitiks, has worked with Sheppard to promote the mission of the Paul K. Longmore Institute as it seeks to find new and empowering ways to view disability culture, according to Beitiks.

The disability arts and culture movement is a blend of creative expression including all forms of visual art, music, dance, performance and poetry that emerges from of a diverse community of disabled people.

“Our long-term goal is to combine academic study and community involvement to execute projects that open up a dialogue about the lives of disabled people,” Beitiks said. "We asked Alice to join the community because of her ties to the community and interests that align with our mission."

The lecture featured a performance by Sheppard, after which she discussed how and why dance happens and how she envisions the future of art and culture within disability studies.

"Dance, for me, is the fullest expression that utilizes the movement potential of my body," Sheppard said.

The movement tells me how to feel. If you do the movement, emotion comes with it.

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-Alice Sheppard

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

8 SPORTS

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Gators earn first win of the season VINCE FAUSONE IV vfausone@mail.sfsu.edu

Coach Dennis Cox looked upward and away from the camera, blinking back tears in the midst of an poignant postgame interview before collecting himself emotionally and recalling the moments of the victory that finally broke the spell of a winless season.

“I have never wanted anything more for a group of people,” said SF State women’s basketball head coach Cox. “This is all about them, but as I told them in the locker room I’ve been a part of a lot of big wins. None of them have felt any better than this.”

As the chances of a Chico State Wildcats comeback slimmed during the final minutes of Saturday’s game, a marked change swept over The Swamp gymnasium.

Frantic expressions on the faces of furiously defending SF State players faded into cautious optimism and then melted away altogether into uninhibited elation. The home crowd seemed to fear the consequences of sitting down and fans were visibly slow to accept that this game would end differently than any other this season.

On a night that would be the last SARA GOBETS / XPRESS home appearance of the team’s four seniors, SF State players and fans were EXCITEMENT:The SF State Gators women’s basketball team celebrates after winning their last home game of the season against the Chico State Wildcats during senior night Saturday, Feb. 21. finally glad to watch the game clock as time expired.

Kristian Juarez, Leti Galarza, Miguard and forward. “The fact that it was State team that fought for its first win. chelle Sutton and Liz Wyrsch collectively on our senior night made it that much Chico State tried desperately to keep time expressed the significance of a win in their better.” on the clock as the game neared its final final game at The Swamp.

The Gators secured an early lead and moments, fouling the Gators five times in “We wanted to get at least one win never regressed, leaving no doubt that the last three minutes. SF State responded at home,” said Sutton, SF State’s senior the Wildcats were outmatched by an SF by shooting a perfect 10-10 from the line,

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I love my sqaud.

The coaches have always believed in us. If it had to end, I’m glad it happened like this.

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-Liz Wyrsch

punishing the Wildcats for testing their focus.

“I wanted to cry,” said Galarza of the game’s final stretch. “That buzzer going off was the highlight of the night.”

Sutton, Galarza and junior Jasmine Flanagan combined for 42 of the team’s 61 points, with 24 of those coming from beyond the three-point arc where the three collectively sunk 40 percent of their shots.

“We played with a lot of intensity,” Sutton said. “I think that was missing from some of our other games, and it made a difference tonight. We just played a lot harder than them.”

The Gators’ seniors were quick to show appreciation for their teammates and coaches.

“I love my squad,” Wyrsch said. “The coaches have always believed in us. If it had to end, I’m glad it happened like this.”

The team will look to carry the momentum of its first win into an upcoming road trip to Los Angeles, where the Gators will close out the season against Cal State Los Angeles and Cal State Dominguez Hills.

Pitcher returns from brutal surgery JOHN MONTOYA jmontoy1@mail.sfsu.edu

Under the parched and sweltering desert sky, Gators’ pitcher Peter Reyes could feel the strands of his ligaments tear with each heave of the ball to home plate.

Ignoring the pain only made matters worse for the junior pitcher and eventually his elbow gave out. It was inevitable that he would have to endure Tommy John surgery, a reconstruction of the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow with a tendon from elsewhere in the body.

“I think it was torn for a while then it kept getting worse,” Reyes said. “When I played summer baseball in Palm Springs I completely tore it (and) when I came back to school that year I couldn’t throw at all.”

Ulnar collateral ligament damage is one of the most common injuries in baseball and the surgery has one of the most challenging recoveries, which can take anywhere from one to two years on average.

“The recovery process is long,” said

SF State head athletic trainer Bryce Schussel. “It’s an injury that after a few months might start to feel good like you can throw, but there’s a lot of times that we have to wait to let that ligament heal before we put any stress on it.”

Common causes of UCL damage are repetitious movement paired with throwing mechanics and the type of pitch.

Following the surgery, Reyes went HELEN TINNA / XPRESS through a slow rehab process and was SURGERY: Gators’ pitcher Peter Reyes shows off his scar at Maloney Field Tuesday, Feb. 24, following his recovforced to spend his junior year as a red- ery from tearing his ulnar collateral ligament. The pitcher underwent Tommy John surgery, a reconstruction of shirt, meaning the dormant year will not the UCL in the medial elbow with a tendon from elsewhere in the body. count toward his four eligible years to play college baseball competitively.

“His attitude during all this has been best performance coming from a game “We have a rehab progression that awesome,” Cummins said. “He’s worked against University of California, San we do with the athlete,” Schussel said. his butt off to get back. He had the operDiego where he pitched 5.2 innings, only “It starts with general range in motion, ation in November 2013, and he’s back gave up three hits, had no earned runs and to strength, then to doing more complex throwing full strength now in just over a struck out two batters. exercises before he can actually start to year. Sometimes it takes 13-18 months Coach Cummins is confident Reyes throw a baseball.” and he’s back throwing after 11 (months) will continue to make strides going forReyes said being away from the sport and it’s because he’s worked hard at it.” ward and that his better days are ahead of was the worst part of the recovery proPrior to his surgery, Reyes pitched a him. cess. He never doubted that he would not solid sophomore year, appearing in 18 “He’s kept a positive attitude and

Baseball has pretty be back on the pitcher’s mound again. games and starting in three, with a 2.97 he’s a great kid,” Cummins said. “He’s

much been my whole “My motivation was to keep playing earned-run average with five saves. The worked real hard and with guys like that life and I couldn’t imagine baseball,” Reyes said. “Baseball has pretty Gator pitcher also struck out 16 batters in you love to root for them.” much been my whole life and I couldn’t 33.1 innings on the mound.

The Gators are returning from dropnot playing the sport imagine not playing the sport I love.”

This season, the redshirt junior is ping three straight games to Fresno Pacific I love.

Baseball head coach Mike Cummins coming onto the mound pitching at full University and are now preparing for said he saw how much work Reyes put in strength and pain-free. He has already their upcoming home games this weekend -Peter Reyes during his 11-month rehab process. pitched in three games this year with his against Cal State Los Angeles.

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FEBRUARY 25, 2015

SPORTS 9

DRAKE NEWKIRK / XPRESS

PAIN: SF State’s Sam Alnassiri puts a leg hold on Cal Baptist’s David Dill at The Swamp gymnasium during a match Friday, Jan. 30.

Regionals to test Gators’ mental toughness

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ELIZABETH CARRANZA ecarranz@mail.sfsu.edu

he SF State wrestling team has endured an up-and-down battle this season with tough losses to ranked teams in the nation. As the team heads to the 2014-2015 NCAA Division II West Super Regionals hosted at Colorado State University-Pueblo this weekend, their minds are set in securing a ticket to Nationals.

Fourteen teams will participate at Regionals this year including six of the top 20 teams in the nation including Colorado Mesa University, Western State Colorado University, University of Nebraska at Kearney, University of Central Oklahoma, California Baptist University and Fort Hays State University.

“It’s going to be very tough,” said wrestling head coach Lars Jensen. “We haven’t competed

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I’ve been working on a lot of mental toughness and pushing myself to exhaustion.

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-Andrew Reggi

against Nebraska-Kearney, which is always a powerhouse or Central Oklahoma, but we’ll be ready. We’ve had a hell of a week training and it doesn’t really matter about rankings, we just need to win matches.”

The Gators go into Regionals with a 9-5 overall record and are returning from a 22-16 victory over seventh ranked Menlo College.

The Gators have had their fair share of obstacles this season with tough losses to nation-ranked teams including Cal Baptist, Western State Colorado and Colorado Mesa. Despite the rough patches on the their journey to Regionals, the Gators will focus on mental toughness to get them through the two-day event.

“I’ve been working on a lot of mental toughness,” said sophomore grappler Jordan Gurrola.

“I’ve been making sure that I’m ready for the end of the season.”

Gurrola leads the Gators with the most wins

at a 26-9 record and 10 pins. The sophomore grappler’s most recent win comes from an 8-3 decision over Menlo College’s Brian Ha at the 133-weight class. The young Gator also placed third in his class at the 39th Annual California Collegiate Open, and said he hopes to continue to improve as the tougher matches of the season approach.

“I didn’t change too much,” Gurrola said as he reflected on his freshman year. “I just improved on what I did last year. I’m a starter this year, so I’m in more matches and I’m trying to improve on that.”

At Regionals, the top four placers from each weight class will win a ticket to St. Louis, Missouri for the 2014-2015 NCAA Division II National Wrestling Championship to face off against some of the best wrestlers in the nation.

The Gators placed sixth at Nationals last season and hope to place higher collectively this year if given the chance. Gators’ senior wrestler Andrew Reggi placed third at Regionals, and had the opportunity to attend Nationals last year.

Reggi, who is ranked third in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference and eighth in the nation, said working off the mat has made him more hungry to advance in Regionals and return to Nationals.

“I’ve been doing a lot of stuff just outside of the practice,” Reggi said. “I’ve been working on a lot of mental toughness and pushing myself to exhaustion. Just really trying to mentally prepare for how difficult this is going to be because I really want to make the trip back to Nationals this year.”

The line-up for Regionals will remain the same for the Gators, which includes grapplers Gurrola, Reggi, Brandon Vu, Alex Abono, Calvin Nicholls, Johnny Costa, Vincent Aboytes, Daniel Flores, Dylan Furtado and Sam Alnassiri.

Despite the grueling teams the Gators will match up against at Regionals, Jensen said the grapplers remain focused to secure a spot at Nationals.

“We have to take it one match at a time,” Jensen said. “Wrestle with a lot of toughness and aggression and go from there because it’s a lot of mental challenge. We want to qualify as many kids to Nationals as we can, and we should have at least five or six guys to Nationals.”

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

10 OPINION

x FRANK LADRA

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF fladra@mail.sfsu.edu

NASHELLY CHAVEZ

MANAGING EDITOR nashelly@mail.sfsu.edu

MICHAEL DURAN

ONLINE SUPERVISING EDITOR michaeld@mail.sfsu.edu

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PRINT SUPERVISING EDITOR sportela@mail.sfsu.edu

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CREATIVE DIRECTOR kandaya@mail.sfsu.edu

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ONLINE CREATIVE ASSISTANT ecaicedo@mail.sfsu.edu

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PRINT CREATIVE ASSISTANT COPY EDITOR jahn@mail.sfsu.edu

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PHOTO EDITOR danielep@mail.sfsu.edu

JENNAH FEELEY

NEWS EDITOR jfeeley@mail.sfsu.edu

TIMOTHY SMITH

NEWS EDITOR tsmith@mail.sfsu.edu

CALLA CAMERO

LIFESTYLE & CULTURE EDITOR ccamero@mail.sfsu.edu

NICOLE PARADISE

OPINION EDITOR nparadis@mail.sfsu.edu

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STAFF EDITORIAL

Parental rights merit support We live in a world where modern medicine has cured diseases, extended life expectancy and overcome hurdles that were once considered science fiction, but with the stigma that continues to surround vaccinating children, living a healthy life has become less about choice and more about keeping up with the Joneses.

It is pretty safe to assume that most parents want to do the right thing when raising a child.

Decisions are often made at a moment’s notice but most choices, particularly those concerning health and well-being, are given deliberate and meticulous consideration not only for the benefit of survival, but in many cases because the child is not developed enough cognitively to make the decision on his or her own.

One example of this parental influence is the decision whether or not to immunize children. In recent years, this hot button topic of discussion has polarized opinions, leaving well-trained scholars, religious zealots and stay-at-home moms divided in thought on whether vaccinations are ultimately harmful or beneficial to human beings.

Scientific studies indicate vaccines are highly effective in treating and preventing a variety of infections, many of which have been eradicated permanently. The measles vaccine alone has a 95 percent efficacy rate of immunity in individuals over the age of 12 months according to reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But when a well-known celebrity like Jenny McCarthy takes a very vocal stance on the medical dangers of immunizing at a young age, the public not only listens. They react.

Investigated media reports from respect-

ed news sources trickle down the journalism pipeline, losing valuable information as they float from blog to blog, getting watered down or restructured for readership reaction. And suddenly a celebrity’s personal vendetta holds more credibility than years of scientific research.

New parents who may be seeking the advice of medical professionals or even their own parents face the risk of being shunned by peers for trying to make the best choices for the safety and health of their offspring.

Fifty years after the measles vaccine was introduced, the viral infection has surged its way back into the population What was until recently a standard medical practice by doctors is now a bartering act for parents to wager—one that balances the health of a child against the acceptance of a community.

But regardless of what each parent decides, it is still his or her choice. And that choice should not be mocked or ridiculed, especially when that negativity is directed toward the child who had no part in the decision-making process.

SF State requires declaration of vaccination status before it allows a student to register for classes, but any student can waiver this requirement for medical, religious or personal

reasons. The responsibility of health then rests in that person’s decision to minimize risk of infection, which is even more amplified in a school environment where thousands of people come and go each day.

With California vaccination rates now below the national average, unimmunized students put themselves at risk more and more each day. Nine out of 10 people who are not immune to the airborne disease and come into close contact with someone who is infected will catch it, according to a study by the Public Health Foundation. Those who received vaccinations are almost entirely immune.

So why the continued stigma around vaccinations? It seems no matter what you choose, there is always somebody to contradict your decision. So make your decision with pride and stand behind it with conviction.

One of the great things about the human condition is the ability to make one’s own choices. People smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol and consume processed sugar, despite countless medical reports that layout the dangers in undeniable proof. And although the consequences of such actions are variable in each circumstance, those decisions are ultimately each person’s to make.

So when a parent is faced with challenging child-rearing decisions—Should I pierce my daughter’s ears? Is circumcision right for my son? Can private school really a better option?—we should encourage them to research the facts and make the choices on their own accord, without the fear of community criticism.

ELIZABETH CARRANZA

SPORTS EDITOR ecarranz@mail.sfsu.edu

HANNAH MULLINS

SOCIAL MEDIA EDITOR hmullins@mail.sfsu.edu

PETER SNARR

MULTIMEDIA EDITOR psnarr@mail.sfsu.edu

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ASSISTANT MULTIMEDIA EDITOR ddunaway@mail.sfsu.edu

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PRINT ADVISER kanigel@mail.sfsu.edu

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ADVERTISING & BUSINESS echarles@mail.sfsu.edu

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STUDENT GRAPHIC DESIGNER smperk@sfsu.edu

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ABOUT XPRESS

The Golden Gate Xpress is a student-produced publication of the journalism department at San Francisco State University.

For more information or comments, please contact Frank Ladra at: fladra@mail.sfsu.edu

Sexual objectification dehumanizes women NICOLE PARADISE

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nparadis@mail.sfsu.edu

ver the years, sexual objectification has sadly become subconsciously normalized in our culture, and needs to change if our society ever wants to reach gender equality. There is no justification for objectifying women, or any human for that matter. It is

sexist, discriminatory and goes against everything we strive for as a country that promotes equality for all.

Objectification not only dehumanizes women, it can lead men to consider us as objects rather than as human beings. Sexual objectification is when a person’s body or body parts, usually a woman’s, are singled out and separated from her to be viewed as a physical object of sexual desire, according to the American Psychological Association.

This type of objectification can be seen in the popular men’s magazine Details, which once promoted an advertisement for men’s apparel that featured a woman posing naked with shoes, briefcases and belts draped over her. The image was accompanied with a title that read “Girl not included” so readers would not mistake the woman as a pur-

chasable object as well.

Women are often judged in terms of physical appearance while men are generally measured by their success. I feel upset when I see female actors play the weaker character or when they are portrayed as dependent of men in film and television. Only 15 percent of the top films put women in the leading role in 2013, according to the New York Times.

Women should be empowered in the media, not put down or seen as a the weaker gender.

Studies prove exposures to sexually explicit video games and music videos are linked to men’s acceptance of rape myths and sexual harassment, according to the award-winning documentary “Miss Representation.” Video games like Grand Theft Auto constantly show extreme misogynistic views by glorifying talking down to female characters or hitting them. Exposing how the media constantly misconstrues women, “Miss Representation” is a catalyst for cultural transformation and challenges society to overcome gender stereotypes and injustices.

Sexual objectification is also constantly seen in music videos and advertisements. Robin

ILLUSTRATION BY KATRINA ANDAYA / XPRESS

Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” music video caught a lot of attention for the explicit objectification of women. Throughout the video, three women parade around almost completely naked, acting as Thicke’s accessories.

While these are just a few of the many examples of sexual objectification in the media to get more viewers, it is still discouraging to see women agree to appear like this because it sends the message that women are inhuman and have no purpose other than for sex or visual stimulation.

In reality, there are many successful women who have strayed away from these stereotypes such as Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg who is an advocate for women in leadership positions and is also the author of the bestselling book “Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead.” A woman that most can recognize, Beyoncé is a self-made musician, actress and entrepreneur who sends uplifting and empowering messages to women through her songs.

Even though there are many women of power in the world, the media is still saturated with images that sexually objectify women. Whether it is seen in advertisements, video games or music videos, the way women are portrayed has sadly become normalized in our culture and most of the time goes unnoticed.

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FEBRUARY 25, 2015

OPINION 11

Unattachment brings inner strength

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itting in my bed staring at the wilting flowers I bought for myself on Valentine’s Day, I realized I recently started dating myself and I really, really love me. Knowing this now, I see how many great things happen when you’re single. Don’t get me wrong, everyone loves to be loved, wants to be held or yearns for a touch, but there is something so much more rewarding knowing I don’t need someone by my side to make me happy.

Throughout high school and the beginning of college, I considered myself a serial monogamist. I would date men of all ages for extended periods of time and once we broke up, it was on to the next one. But after my last breakup, something inside me changed. I don’t know if it was the inspirational quotes I read across the Internet or the large amount of time I spent by myself doing things I like to do, but the sadness of my breakup began to dissipate.

I wake up with a smile on my face knowing I don’t have to answer to anyone but myself, each and every day.

I began to love myself for who I am and for those with whom I choose to surround myself. There are no more fights at 3 a.m. the night before a big exam, or the division of friends and possessions after a big breakup. I began referring to my situation as dating myself and I love every minute of it.

When I sat and pondered all of the supportive things my dad and friends have said to me when I was feeling down, I pieced together the many reasons why being single is so rewarding. I’ve always been attracted to the wrong type of men– men who want to tell me how to dress, men who think that my paycheck is their paycheck or men who come with baggage they can’t escape.

Being single, I can be picky and I don’t have to put up with anyone else’s problems but my own.

I’ve learned to buy myself drinks, wear the clothes I want to wear and style my hair and makeup to my own taste. I never go out with the intentions of impressing

HANNAH MULLINS hmullins@mail.sfsu.edu

others like I once did. Now when I get all dolled up, I want to look in a mirror to prove to myself I’m beautiful without someone on my arm reassuring me.

There has always been a stigma surrounding single people. Single men are considered bachelors and therefore eligible. But for women, there is the constant struggle to stand in a bar with the “single and proud of it” stance, or search for a partner she might not really want.

I’ve never abided by this rule. I have no problem saying no to someone who I don’t think would benefit me in any way or standing around a bar with friends having a beer.

Not having someone hold me back from my true potential has let me immerse myself into things I wouldn’t

have time to do previously. I spend time making the food I want. I save money by going out with friends and not someone who depends on my checkbook and I get to sleep in my bed alone, which is spacious and warm with my body pillow wrapped in my arms. Being on my own has helped me obtain a huge level of life skills I wouldn’t have otherwise, especially if I was in a relationship and had someone there to do the things I didn’t know how to do.

Some could say that I’m protecting myself from potential heartache by being noncommittal and others might think it’s because being single is my only option, but neither of those apply to me or other singles like me. Being alone is a lifestyle, one where I can immerse myself into other things that make me happy, like reading, writing and enjoying all that life has to offer.

Since I’ve been single, my grades have improved along with my fitness. I no longer have spells of sadness after an argument, because there are none. I’ve reconnected with friends that I had previously overlooked and my social life is now booming with relationships of friends I love. Worrying about the ambiguity of an undetermined relationship and letting things get to your head is so overrated, especially when in college.

When you’re in your twenties, the world is still shiny, bright and new. As I continue to learn who I am as an individual, I’ve watched friend after friend marry the “love of their life” after only a few months of dating. I started dating myself about seven months ago and despite a few distractions, I’m still learning more and more about myself each day. I want to spend my younger years with myself, learning all my unique quirks and hobbies before I get to know someone else inside and out. As a single independent woman, I’ve developed a unique confidence in myself, in my surroundings and my capabilities as a weed with no gardener.

I’ll grow just fine.

ILLUSTRATION BY JOURDON AHN / XPRESS