'The Mothman Prophecies' puts movie-goers on the edge of their seats

by Gerl Lynn Utter A & E editor

"The Mothman Prophecies" is a newly released movie starring Richard Gere (John Klein) and Laura Linney (Sgt. Connie Parker.) The movie is based on a book written by John A. Keel, a well-known UFOlogist, in 1975. Klein's book covers a series of paranormal events that actually occurred in Point Pleasant. West Virginia from November 1966 to October 1967.

The intelligent life forms referred to as "mothmen'' are reported to be anywhere between eight and 12- feettall. From a distance, they appear as being extraordinarily tall with a broadbuild. However. what draws attention to them the most, is their bulging redeyes that glow in the dark and their large wings that enable them to fly. Director, Mark Pellington ("Arlington Road") abducts movie-goers with these extraterrestrial beings in "The Mothman Prophecies." PelHngton has a way of making the audience empathize and genuinely care for the characters in the movie, according to the Stax Report. dies. Shortly after her unexpected death, Klein finds pictures of a birdlike man etched by his wife and does not put much thought into this discovery until one year passes.

John Klein, the star-journalist for the Washington Post, seems to have it all, a promising career and a beautiful wife. Until, one day, Klein's wife gets into a car-accident. Viewers· watch in dismay as'Klein's life unravels in front of their eyes. Klein's wife is diag~ nosed with a terminal brain tumor and "-># 1,{ •.

During that year, Klein buried himself in his work and made little time for himself. While on his way to Alexandria to interview the governor, Klein's car breaks down and he finds himself knocking on the door of a rural home in West Virginia. Not real• izing he drove 4 hundred miles out of his way and arriving in West Virginia, Klein is greeted on the other end of the door by a riffle pointing at his head. Gordon Smallwood, owner of the home claimed that Klein had been harassing he and bis wife for three con,.:n,, ;• # ,-i secutive nights. Shocked and dismayed by the whole situati-0n, Klein explains his side of the story to Sgt. Connie Parker at gunpoint by Smallwood.

As the plot develops Klein and Parker begin to put together the cause of the bizarre behavior in Point Pleasant. The source of this odd behavior takes shape in the form of a man that possesses "moth like" features and is able to predict the tragedy that occurs in the small-quaint town of Point Pleasant.

"The Mothman Prophecies" is not the typical in-your-face extraterrestrial abduction flick. lt a11ows the audience to be frightful of the unknown.

,

by Alexis Strizziere assistant features editor

Set the scene to a crowded party on campus or possibly a bar. It's 2:30 in the morning. You're with all of your friends and you just finished off what seems like a case of Natural Ice. What do you do now? With one too many in your system, a hook-up may be the next oo the list of activities for the evening.

The term "hook-up" is defined commonly as a physical sexual encounter that doesn't necessarily develop into any further relationship. Hook-ups commonly occur at parties, dances, or in co-ed living arrangements. The term defines modem day romance for our generation, is everywhere. Usually influenced by alcohol, a hook-up could be just that and at times may develop into a typical college relationship, continued hook-ups.

According to a report by the fustitute for American Values on college dating, campus dating life has dwindled down from a love story to singles only. Also, relationship choices have begun to boil down to hooking-up, hanging-out, a fullfledged commitment or a very distant forth placed dating scene. "Dating does not really exist;' said Renee Daniels, a 2000 graduate of the University of Notre Dame. "Either you participate in random hook-ups or you are in a ultra-serious relationship. There is nothing in between."

In a study held by the fudependent Women's Forum, 91 percent of women believe there is rampant hook-up culture on their campus. "I believe random hooking-up goes on all the time on this campus. At some point in time though it gets old and you actually want a real relationship," junior Bern Hazel said. How do you term a real relationship though in college? The average college student just wants to have fun and well hook-up!

So what's the deal with all this hooking-up? Most people consider it normal to hook-up with people whenever the situation seem s fit. It's just harmless kissing after all. Who is to say there is anything wrong with a simple kiss? At times a kiss turns out to be a little

Two Cabrini graduates take part in some "extra-curricular activities.n a more than that and the repercussions can range from a broken heart to the evitable "walk of shame" home the next morning. Keeping this all in mind, we must ask ourselves then, where is this coming from?

Problem here is that according to census figures from October 2000, colleges are enrolling 100 female students for every 85 male students and the gap continues to grow. This decline leaves men in control of the dating scene and allows them to be very passive when it comes time to talk relationships.

Pia Nordlinger,. author of "Daughters of the Sexual Revolution," said, "Trouble is, hookingup generally follows drinking. In a boozy stupor, keeping your eyes open is tricky. Surprisingly, most girls, while defending the practice of hooking up, expressed concern about alcohol consumption. Several girls mentioned that the problem with booze is that it leads to hooking up."

But women shouldn't be concerned. They are not the only ones who feel this way. "Even though I don't really drink, from what I have seen it seems like alcohol just gives you that extra push to try to hook-up with someone you might not have approached while sober," junior Laval Pinckney said.

In fact most Cabrini students stated that various intoxicated hook-ups with the same person usually progressed into a relationship labeled "hooking-up." "Every relationship seems to start out because of a drunk hook-up. Not saying that you only like the person when you're drunk, but sometimes the hook-ups lead to a relationship between the two of you," junior Kristen Luft said.

If the atmosphere is good and the timing is perfect then the kiss is bound to happen. But sometimes feelings get in the way. Alcohol has a tendency to do that to people. "I think alcohol affects the hook-up depending on whether or not you want the hook-up or if it's a last resort," junior Mike Rennie said.

At times random hook-ups are just that, random hook-ups. For the most part hooking-up is just kissing but when a little more is involved sometimes feelings get sleepovers. I like to save that for someone special," senior Ricky Cruz said. hurt and hearts are broken. Both sexes expect a phone call within a few days if all went well. So what happens if it doesn't? "If she's cute, you have to keep in touch, if not, you deny it like it never happened. And everyone knows that's the truth," senior Tyquine Wilson said.

Times have changed, however, our generation finds nothing wrong in coed sleepovers and the name "walk of shame" is found to be quite humorous. "I think the name 'walk of shame' is really funny. I am not going to do anything I am going to regret so that it is considered a walk of shame home," junior Stacey Gregoretti said. "The awkwardness the next day is the worst though. I have seen people go as far as to not go to class, the cafeteria or even the Wig Warn just to avoid contact with that person. I think that people sometimes don't realize what they are doing because they are so drunk and end up questioning why they hooked-up the night before," Gregoretti said.

"People tease one another about walking home in the morning because it's funny. I don't think it's anything personal, it's all just a big joke," Luft said.

What happens though when your random hook-up turns into a sleepover? This changes the whole story. Picture this, you and your hook-up partner decide that one of you will be staying the night in the other's bed. The night goes fine and in the morning one of you is faced with the "walk of shame" home.

The term, "walk of shame," however is not too be taken lightly or is it? Originally the walk of shame was defined as the walk that women did back to their room after spending the night in a male's room. The idea is that you walk with your head down in shame, hence the name, "walk of shame." Modern times have told us different though. "I don't want just anyone sleeping in my bed. I don't like random hook-ups or

With all this kissing going on some may blame it on alcohol, while others say it's simply because we reside on campus. A lot of people had boyfriends or girlfriends before they came to college or did at one time while here then broke up and hook-ups are just a way to start over. "I think that after being in a relationship for so long, sometimes random hook-ups are a good way to meet new people," junior Meg Chipman said.

But what if you 're looking for something more then hooking-up and hanging-out? According to the report, out of the 1000 college women interviewed, 63 percent said they would like to meet their future husbands in college but on the other hand, half said they were not ready for a serious relationship now.

The fact is that women outnumber men on this campus and kissing a cutie is not uncommon. Whatever your reason or walk, just make sure you don't go out without your galoshes and are caught being a kissing fool.

by Jill C. Hindman features editor

At 4:30 a.m. on the button the bullhorn blows. She jumps out of bed and thinks to herself, "I have to get dressed, but wait I already am!" She throws on her shoes and lines up outside with the 56 other girls that she shares a room with. In formation they run five miles before the sun even lets off its faintest ray of daylight. Sweaty and out of breath she and her 56 roommates pile in the cafeteria where they eat what they can get their hands on, and it's definitely not Mom's home cooki!}g.After a little grub, she heads back to the showers where once again as a group, they shower. Between breakfast and 7: 30 a.m. she has one hour to get ready for class. At 7:30 a.m. she lines up outside of her room where she is picked up by her drill sergeant and marches to class in unison with her classmates.

The life of this 20-year-old Cabrini junior, Lydia Arnankwah, is not what most would call average. She is in the Army. "It happened by chance. It's actually funny because the recruiter called my house looking for my brother, but he wasn't home so I asked him to tell me about the reserves," explains Amankwah. "I ended up enlisting and my brother went off t to Ohio State. It's funny how things turn out."

In May of last year she set out for Fort Jackson, SC,' where she received her basic training and then went onto Ft. Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas, where she completed 10 weeks of Advanced Individual Training (ADT) to train to become a medical specialist.

"Boot camp is not like what they show on TV. It was fun. I made a lot of great friends. We were a team. Drill sergeants were not spitting in your face and screaming at you every five seconds, like the military is mostly portrayed. They were like our fathers. They talked to us and listened." Amankwah entered the Army weighing 179 pounds now she is a satisfied 149 pounds. "It was challenging both mentally and physically, but I have never been in better shape. I had to run five miles a day and I am not one to be running," she said.

"We were in class. A lot of people were crying. I just couldn't understand why anyone would do that. It was so sad," Amankwah recallt of the tragic events that took place on Sept. 11, 2001. After that happened, the base that Amankwah was stationed at in Texas, was on high alert lockdown. She was not al- lowed to leave post and had to show ID on the base. She had no civilian privileges. Her unit was activated and had to be prepared to go to war. "Normally on the weekends we were able to go out and shop. We could wear street clothes as opposed to our BDUs (Battle Dress Uniforms). On lockdown we had to be dressed in our fatigues at all times," Amankwah said.

When asked if she thought she might go to war Amankwah said, "There is a possibility. I am a soldier. I would serve my country."

Amankwah said that she asked her recruiter if enrollment had seen a drastic increase since the attacks. He told her that there were some people who were very patriotic and were signing up for that very reason, but for the most part it was pretty steady.

Originally from Ghana, Africa, Amankwah moved to the United States when she was 11. Her inspiration is her uncle who is the head doctor at the hospital that he works at in South Africa. "I want to help children," she said.

Amankwah is a bio pre-med major with a psych minor. In the

Army Reserves, which means that she has to go one weekend a month to the base, she is a phlebotomist, which means that she draws blood, gives IVs and does basic patient care routines.

After graduating in May 2003 Amankwah plans to attend Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Washington D.C. She says that she has always wanted to join the army, but was scared. "It was an amazing experience. Anyone who is afraid to join just has remember, everyone is in the same boat," said Amankwah.