Osprey Fall 2022

O sprey

Psychedelic Renaissance

Liam Gwynn | p. 40

Students living at the Comfort Inn

Eddy Guzman | p. 50

Ukrainian Connections

Jillian Wells | p. 10

Local MMA Fighter

Michael Estrada| p. 36

Body High Pole Dance Studio

Karina Ramos Villalobos | p. 24

Otters in Humboldt County

Daniel Kazules | p. 29

Local band: Los Amantes del Mañana

Alex Lozica | p. 16 Climate

Conversations

Gabriel Zucker | p. 19

Behind the Rise of Book Banning

Dobby Morse | p. 33

Seasonal Depression

Christina Mehr | p. 4

Claudia O’Niell | p. 44

We, the staff of Osprey magazine, acknowledge that Cal Poly Humboldt is located on the present and ancestral homeland and un ceded territory of the Wiyot tribe. In the Wiyot language, Arcata is known as Goudi’ni, meaning “over in the woods” or “among the redwoods.” It is vital we use language that reflects the present tense when speaking about Indigenous peoples, while we identify the traditional land of the people we also emphasize that these people are still here today.

We acknowledge the larger Humboldt County area is made of approximately 15 different federally and non-federally recognized tribal nations. These nations include Wiyot, Yurok, Hupa, Karuk, Mattole, Tolowa and Wailaki.

We are privileged by the presence of Indigenous culture on our campus and community. We encourage readers to learn more about Indigenous lands and cultures and find ways to directly support Indigenous communities by donating to Indigenous-run organizations, supporting Indigenous artists, creators, and authors, and learning from and working with Indigenous communities in your area. Find ways to directly support Indigenous communities by donating to Indigenous-run organizations, and supporting Indigenous artists, creators and authors.

Osprey

When I became editor-in-chief for Osprey, I welcomed the opportunity as a new and exciting challenge for personal growth. I also decided to utilize this platform, and leverage my role as the leader of 11 enthusi astic staff members, to focus on telling stories that expand the repre sentations of people of color and marginalized communities, as well as local political and environmental issues. These topics are often under represented in mainstream media. That is why it’s important for me to expand storytelling and guide others onto that wave.

Each story in the magazine will inform you about something that is reflected widely throughout Humboldt County: the power of communi ty. These stories examine a wide variety of topics, from body-empower ment and a supportive skate scene, to the collective impact that we can all have on climate change. These are real stories about the people and places that shape our community. I hope readers will share this issue with friends, family and peers to continue to amplify these stories and their prevalence within our own community and beyond.

I want to congratulate and thank my team of 11 talented and passion ate people who worked non-stop through the semester to produce this issue of Osprey.

To our readers and supporters, I hope you enjoy the fall 2022 issue of this award-winning, student-run magazine.

Osprey Staff 2022

ALEX LOZICA

CHRISTINA MEHR

CLAUDIA O’NEILL

DANIEL KAZULES GABRIEL ZUCKER JILLIAN WELLS

LIAM GWYNN

JESSIE CRETSER-HARTENSTEIN

MICHEAL ESTRADA

EDDY GUZMAN

Seasonal Depression in Humboldt County

By Christina Mehr

Your mood darkens, you can’t get out of bed and hopelessness surrounds you as you lose touch with your friends and loved ones. This is what depression can feel like for some.

Seasonal affective disorder, also known as SAD, affects many stu dents, especially at the collegiate level. Seasonal or “winter” depres sion occurs in the wintertime due to the lack of sunlight and vitamins the body receives. Why do our bodies go into hibernation mode when we are not exposed to sunlight as often? Is there a link between seasonal depression, the drop in tempera ture and increased cloud coverage, and if so, why does it hit students so hard?

Think of your body as a plant. Plants can’t flourish to their full beauty and potential without a little help from

the sun. Dr. Scott Carroll at Ayna Neuroscience Institute said that

The degree we feel these symptoms differs from person to person, but this issue affects us all.

“Students diagnosed with depres sion are more at risk to fall victim to the chemical effects of the weather changing,” said Carroll. It can affect motivation, study habits and produc tivity, all things that are critical to the success of a college student. Carroll

also believes that places farther north with persistent cloud cover, like in Humboldt County, are linked to lower energy levels as well as sad and irritable emotions during the winter.

Diving deeper into the stories of some current students from around California, allows for an inside look at how seasonal depression affects them and their workflow.

Em Woods, a student here at Cal Poly Humboldt struggles with depression and bipolar disorder, and the cold weather can increase certain emotions.

Colder weather makes me more sad. I have less motivation to do simple tasks including homework or things that would benefit me,” Woods said.

Originally, they came to North ern California for the beautiful scenery, but explained that since coming here from the central valley, they have felt more depressed to a certain extent.

They knew the weather here in Hum boldt was going to be mostly rainy, but didn’t fully understand the effects it would have on their mood until they got to Humboldt and experienced it for themself.

Cal State Channel Island student Kevin Costello, stated that the weather made him feel “Very unmotivated and like I have no drive,” and said that it made him “stumble into laziness and feeling stuck within myself.” To Costello, when the fall season begins, he feels a sense of depression which can last about one to two months.

Others like Arvin Nooshi, a Cal State Northridge student, shared his lack of energy and motivation and depression when the seasons change.

“Starting as it gets colder, maybe late October to the start of Novem ber, I think there is a decrease in the

amount of energy I have,” Nooshi said. “It attributes to what I’m willing to do or not. It affects my mood be cause of the lack of energy.” Aisha Candrian Morten is a marriage and family therapist as well as a staff psychotherapist at Cal Poly Humboldt Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS). Morten explains what season al depression symptoms can look like in students.

“It’s all the depressive symptoms right, usually when I see people with sea sonal depression, with SAD, is on the days where the sun’s not out, they can barely motivate themselves to do anything,” Morten said. “It’s harder for them to get out of the down in the

dumps kind of feeling where they feel sadder or more negative about things.”

Morten said that students tend to dive into more negative thinking with the changes in the weather, but that the emotional changes are natural. She instead suggests that the darker times may be meant for more inward time, for quiet reflection and healing.

What students can do to help navigate through dark thoughts and emotions

As the weather changes, so do our chemicals. The lack of sunlight we’re receiving is shown to reduce produc tivity in the part of the brain called the hypothalamus. In turn, the production of melatonin and essential vitamins may be affected. Students affected by seasonal depression often end up sleeping in and not getting enough Vitamin D. According to Madeleine O’Keefe at Boston Univer sity, seasonal affective disorder occurs in .5% to 3% of individuals in the general population and affects 10% to 20% of people with major depressive disorder.

“We can treat any sort of depression, whether it’s seasonal depression or not, with things like working on some of our thoughts and behaviors, like how we are treating ourselves and how we are talking to ourselves makes a really big differ ence,” Morton said.

Morten believes that community in volvement in clubs and student activities makes a difference in treating the symp toms caused by seasonal depression, as well as activities like getting adequate ex ercise, eating well and changing the way we think about ourselves. Morten encour aged getting cognitive therapy and taking advantage of support groups through CAPS services, and in more severe cases, prescriptions for antidepressants or other medications to treat the chemical imbalance.

When it comes to treating ourselves, the most helpful thing we can do is increase our sunlight exposure.

“Perhaps the simplest treatment is to in crease your sunlight exposure by opening your curtains first thing in the morning,” said Carroll.

Things like how you’re nourishing your body are important in treating seasonal depression. Different vitamins and min erals help in making sure you’re getting things like Vitamin D, which comes from the sun.

“Everyone should take Vitamin D in Humboldt County, especially in the win ter, and there’s a lot of scientific evidence around that,” said Morten.

Other treatments for seasonal affective disorder and its symptoms include light therapy. It can work to treat seasonal affective disorder by causing a chemi cal change in the brain to improve your mood. Spectrum light mimics outdoor light, something that sufferers struggle to get in the winter.

“Specifically for seasonal affective disorder, something that I really recommend is getting one of those full spectrum lights,” Morten said. “Put it on your kitchen counter where you eat breakfast every morning because the morning is a really good time to get the light in your eyes.”

It is important for students to remember they are not alone and that there are resources available. For students that are struggling, get involved within community spaces on campus like student-run clubs, activ ities, support groups, class mates, and/or advisors.

Virginia Stockton, a sophomore here at Cal Poly Humboldt said she copes with her seasonal de pression by inviting her friends over for quality time.

It is essential to create a support group of people to help you cope with the winter blues. If you or someone you know is struggling, please don’t hes itate to reach out for help. There are

It is important for students to remem ber they are not alone and that there are resources available. For students that are struggling, get involved within community spaces on campus like student-run clubs, activities, support groups, classmates, and/or advisors.

Virginia Stockton, a sophomore here at Cal Poly Humboldt said she copes with her seasonal depression by inviting her friends over for quality time.

“When I start to get into the habit of isolating myself and sleeping in, I know it’s the weather affecting me, so I usually try and get myself out of that mindset by surrounding myself with my friends.”

multiple resources such as individual therapy and group sessions available through CAPS services to help you manage.

It is essential to create a support group of people to help you cope with the winter blues. If you or someone you know is struggling, please don’t hesitate to reach out for help. There are multiple resources such as individual therapy and group sessions available through CAPS ser vices to help you manage.

Ukrainian Connections

Local perspectives on the effects of the Russian-Ukrainian war

By Jillian Wells

The war between Russia and Ukraine that erupted in February of 2022 shocked the world. The war has had disastrous effects for civilians and international economies that can be seen in many parts of the world, including Humboldt County. This isn’t the first time Russia has tried to claim Ukraine, it took only until 1991 for Ukraine to become an independent nation. Western cov erage of the war also highlights one of the most dominant ide ologies in the world, white supremacy.

More than 14,000 people have lost their lives in this war. Refu gees have had to flee their homes and move to neighboring coun tries to escape the violence and bloodshed. Many refugees have had their homes destroyed by the missiles. The effects of this war

can be felt all over the world, even in small rural towns and cities in Northern California.

Anastasiya and Yevhen Rudma nenko, a Ukrainian couple living

injured people or people with dis abilities you can’t bring with you. It’s just a really sad situation,” Anastasiya Rudmanenko said.

The Rudmanenkos stated they have family members whose very own city had been bombed by Russian missiles. Yevhen Rudmanen ko’s mother, who is a 50-year-old nurse, lived five minutes away from a large shopping center in Kremenchuk that was hit by a Russian airstrike.

in Eureka CA, say that the war has had devastating effects for their family and friends still living in Ukraine.

“It’s really tearing the families apart, the war, because you have to leave some of your family members behind and you can’t all leave. Sometimes you have

“She fell on the ground because of the shock wave it was so big. She was home and when the shock wave hit she fell over, and she was really scared. She was getting into the underground and she got in jured. She fell and started bleed ing and she didn’t even know, and the cut got infected,”Anastasiya Rudmanenko said.

“It’s really tearing the families apart, the war, because you have to leave some of your family members behind and you can’t all leave.”

The Rudmanenkos said that the Rus sian missiles fly dangerously low in order to avoid detection by Ukrainian defenses. “They can’t shoot it down because they were so low, right by the houses, right over her roof,” Anastasi ya Rudmanenko said. They added that sometimes their families don’t have electricity or water because the power lines get shot.

The Rudmanenkos have friends who have fought and died on the frontlines of the war. They also still have family members that they can’t get a hold of.

Even being thousands of miles away from Ukraine in Humboldt County California, the Rudmanenkos asked that some of the more personal infor mation they gave was redacted for fear that Russia would retaliate against their families.

But this isn’t the first time Russia and Ukraine have been at odds. Dr. Robert Cliver, a Historian and professor of history at Cal Poly Humboldt, said history is repeating itself.

“The war that is happening now is a story that has been played over and over with different actors involved,” Cliver said.

Ukraine gained its independence in 1991, but prior to that, Germany, Russia, and Poland had all wanted to claim Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine have been intertwined for hundreds of years and they have a long-standing history together. In fact, the Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians and other eastern European countries have very close historical ties.

Cliver also added some insight as to why Russia is initiating this violence against Ukraine, from the point of view of Vladimir Putin.

“Putin has been very active in trying to bring the Russian lands together, and this is a pattern that goes back centu ries and centuries; Russia is parentally insecure,” Cliver said.

Anastasiya and Yevhen Rudmanenko, a Ukrainian cou ple were at an informational meeting on the Uniting for Ukraine sponsorship program in Eureka, CA.

Cortney Copeland, a member of The Returned Peace Corps Volun teers Alliance for Ukraine, spoke at an informational meeting on the Uniting for Ukraine sponsorship program in Eureka, CA.

Ukraine is also considered to be the breadbasket of Europe, and because of this, Ukraine historical ly has been exploited to the fullest extent. Cliver said it has resources like coal, iron, oil, and other types of wealth that no empire would want to give up.

“Ukraine is very wealthy and pow erful,” Cliver said. “If it’s a part of Russia, it makes Russia much more wealthy and powerful. Ukraine is a rich prize and that’s why Putin wants it.”

Not only is Ukraine valuable in resources, but it’s also incredibly important strategically for Putin in regards to international relations.

“He [Putin] also doesn’t want a hostile enemy in Ukraine. Like NATO, if the Americans are putting air bases and naval bases in Ukraine, that’s very dangerous for Russia. From a real politique perspective it makes sense, he’s not just a madman or power hungry, he is doing what he thinks is in Russia’s best interest.” Cliver said.

Not only has the war greatly im pacted Ukrainians and Russians, international markets have also taken a significant hit. Even here at home we have seen these effects, such as gas prices skyrocketing, as well as prices of most other ameni ties rising.

Cliver stated that one of the larger effects of this war so far is the rise in the price of gas and oil. Russia is an oil producing country, so rising prices are always good for them.

“It highlighted the limits of Eu rope’s morality in this that a lot of European countries have been imposing sanctions on Russia crit icizing Russia. But they’ve stopped short of cutting Russian oil because they need it,” Cliver said. “So that’s a powerful ace in the hole that Putin always carries.”

For the Rudmanenkos, dealing with this war has been very difficult, but they said that they stay optimistic and try to keep themselves busy.

“We try to live more positively, be cause being positive is healthy when it’s so hard, and when you want to cry, be positive and everything should be fine.” Yevhen Rudmanenko said.

They stated they feel supported by their community. “Humboldt is a re ally friendly place and people are very welcoming here,” Anastasiya Rudma nenko said.

Cortney Copeland, a member of the Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Alliance organization for Ukraine, said people can help support Ukraine by finding ways to volunteer and donate, but one of the biggest ways to help is to learn about Ukraine.

“There is a narrative that Ukraine is not a country, that the Ukrainian people are not a people, and so even just learning a little bit about Ukraine,

learning that yes there is a distinctive Ukrainian language, there are dis tinctly Ukrainian traditions, there’s a history that goes back millennia,” Copeland said. “Even just learning about Ukraine is in and of itself an act of resistance against the attempt to erase the Ukrainian people.”

Ukrainians aren’t the only people who have faced violent atrocities of this magnitude in recent times. Many countries and civilians have faced sim ilar violence, but are often overlooked by the media. The main reason for this is racism.

“My point is why do we care about the Ukrainians and not the Yemenis or the Ethiopians or other people?” Cliver said. “Because they’re white people. This is white supremacy at work. Once again it highlights how racism is one of the dominant ideologies on Earth, in my opinion. I think one reason is the Ukrainians are white people like us, we can imagine if it’s happening to them it can happen to us.”

According to an article by the Center of Preventative Action, the war in Yemen has been going on since 2014. The article stated, “The conflict continues to take a heavy toll on Yemeni civilians, making Yemen the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. The UN estimates that 131,000 of the estimated 233,000 deaths in Yemen since 2015 are the result of indirect causes like food in security and lack of access to health services.”

Even though Yemen has been at war for the last eight years, there has been little media coverage and discussion about it. In an article by Triumph Kerins, they stated “Despite these pervasive horrors

in Yemen, Western media has re

Cliver added, “One other thing I think is important in this is the hypocrisy, which is very highlighted in this. There have been wars going on all over the world for years. Where is the media coverage, the money, for Yemen? Does anyone give a shit about Yemen?”

mained relatively silent on the matter. According to one media watchdog, mainstream American media has aired a cumulative 92 minutes of coverage since the onset of the conflict.”

The same principles that Copeland listed about how the average person can support Ukraine can be applied to countries like Yemen that are largely neglected by the media. People can help by volunteering or donating, but one of the biggest acts of resistance is to learn about these countries that are at risk of losing their sovereignty.

There have been wars going on all over the world for years. Where is the media coverage, the money, for Yemen? Does anyone give a shit about Yemen?

“ ”

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Los Amantes Del Mañana

By Alex Lozica

The clock hit seven at Blondies, a local venue in Arcata, Calif. The small room began to fill up with a handful of audience members, with a lingering crowd still outside with their drinks. The first band played late, allowing for the small venue to draw a crowd over the first set.

After the first band played and the lights turned back on, a group of five young men began to fill the stage with their equipment. Three had guitars, one had a saxophone, and another person was on the drums. To every one’s surprise, some of the band was missing that night. But when they be gan their first song, it filled the small venue and electrified the audience.

A sound that could only be described as harmonious anarchy blared from the speakers. Each instrument was played with precision, yet there was a raw edge that can only be found in new bands. They call themselves Los Amantes del Mañana, or “Lovers of Tomorrow” in Spanish.

It’s hard to compare this band to any others because they are so different from anything else you have heard. It’s clear they draw inspiration from the sounds of 70’s psychedelic rock in their guitar riffs and the smattering of so-called kangaroo jazz and Chicano punk. The band has quite a presence on stage as they jam out with this

This group of rising stars in the small Arcata music scene is com prised of five members. Kaveh Khajavi and Joey Aguilar are on guitar and vocals, Marc Ortiz is on the bass, Jayce Burniske is on the drums and Brandt Porteus is on the keyboard. These five young musi cians are full of talent, and when they get together, they create unique combinations within their music.

Kaveh and Joey are the frontmen, and they possess a lot of energy and drive because they feed off each oth er. You see them whisper something to each other while simultaneously playing the guitar, and then there is a sudden eruption of organized chaos in the form of music.

They say they are usually talking about which song to do next. “I feel like half the time we’re like ‘let’s do this song next!’ We don’t ever make a set list,” said lead sing er, Khajavi. “Recently we have been trying to call out the first two songs to organize it a little more. For the most part, it is completely spur of the moment.”

Although their organizational skills may be lacking, their connection is like no other, which is remarkable since they only met around a year ago.

“

unique sound.

“We did go through a phase over the summer where I was working a lot at my summer gig and it was just like one show after the next; just nothing but chaos, and it got to be a bit too much and I took a break from it, like put things on ice for a little,” Burniske said. “Definitely took some getting used to, to figure things out and these guys are a little hard to follow sometimes. They get a little chaotic and now it’s just a matter of trying to find my chaos within good reason. Gotta be what you play I guess.”

Their origin story is that of co

incidence. According to guitarist Aguilar, “I was juggling! I was jug gling right over there somewhere (gesturing to a spot on a trail in the community forest) and I had my guitar case with a patch on it and he [Kaveh] said ‘Oh! Sick patch’ and played my guitar for a little bit and then was like ‘alright, peace.’”

They did not see each other after that until Valentine’s Day and start ed to jam together, playing the likes of Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead in the art quad. They then decided to play open mic together at Blond ies, their now regular venue.

The pair met Burniske and Ortiz in a jam session shortly after, and they were up and running as a full-fledged band by early spring of 2021.

Los Amantes del Mañana is a unique band because all of the members are college students. Many of their songs are inspired by their experiences as young people. Khajavi and Aguilar write all their original songs. Their songs make it evident that they are still a group of guys who just want to play music.

One of their songs, “Parking Po

lice,” was fueled by Khajavi’s angst and animosity towards the parking police that patrol Cal Poly Humboldt’s cam pus. He received three tickets within just a month-long period, a relatable experience for many students.

“We’re just trying to get a college degree and you’re out here fuckin ticketing me!” Kaveh recited on the art quad steps on the Cal Poly Humboldt campus.

They also play a handful of covers that tend to really get people dancing. They have their own renditions of “White Rabbit” by Jefferson Airplane, “Don’t Let me Down” by the Beatles, “Beast of Burden’’ by the Rolling Stones, ‘’Wish

you were here’’ by Pink Floyd and “La Bamba” by Los Lobos. Their most pop ular cover is “La Bamba,” and when they play it there is this amazing sense of community. It’s a song everyone can enjoy and sing along to.

At Los Amantes del Mañana’s most re cent house show in late July in Arcata, the crowd was jumping around while singing the catchy tune and ended up moshing to it because of how charged the performance was. Everyone left that night with a smile on their face because of the utter release they were able to feel in the mosh pit.

“We’re all college students, we all got our problems, and I like to think of the pit as an outlet for people to get out

all this pent-up energy or like what ever they are going through. It all gets expelled in the pit,” Ortiz said.

This band’s mission is to make sure people have a good time and to make them dance. Whether it’s a chill, intimate performance or a packed house show, the community that attends each show has “the ultimate good vibe” said audience member Zea Wherling, whether it’s a chill intimate performance or a packed house show. These guys have you covered for a good time. Going to see one of their all ages shows at Blondies, only a couple blocks away from campus, is definitely a memorable experience that will be worth your time.

Climate Conversations

By Gabriel Zucker

Every day more and more people are waking up to the realities of climate change. This environmental phenom enon has been a topic of conversation among scientists and climate experts since the 1960s. The main difference between then and now is that everyone else is finally starting to see and ex perience the effects of climate change firsthand.

“Climate change is a problem today, it’s not about the next generation or down the road. It’s the challenge we’re facing right now,” said John Meyer, head of the Environmental Studies Department at Cal Poly Humboldt.

Meyer has spent his life in both academic and political circles and is educated in governmental policies and how they relate to the environment.

“The substantial majority, for example,

of U.S. citizens when polled consis tently will tell you that they believe that human-caused climate change is real,” Meyer said. “They believe it’s a problem and a substantial percentage except that it’s affecting their lives in their communities. That’s true in con servative parts of the Midwest and the South as it is in places like California.”

The environmental movement is a multifaceted machine. Eco-activists come from a multitude of backgrounds and walks of life, using their individ uality to push the movement further. Encouraging sustainable practices or and spreading knowledge to the next generation is critical in continuing the movement to stop climate change.

Having a positive impact despite the odds

Raelina Krikston is an Arcata resident

who ran for city council, coming in third. She focused on affordable hous ing. Individually, Krikston is trying to make a difference in the world and un derstands the truth about how deeply damaged the world is.

“Running for City Council at a time when our city’s growth is very impact ful in the environment and the future of our local community, that’s some thing that I individually am working towards,” Krikston said.

According to Krikston, the “majority of global emissions are from three really large players and consumer actions really have no impact on them whatsoever. It’s the inner cogs of this machine that we’ve built our society on,” Krikston said.

To save the world, it takes more than individual actions. Meyer understands

the importance of community but more importantly, the impact one person can have with a community behind them.

“The most meaningful thing that one person can do in the climate move ment, is join together with others in pursuing those kinds of broader col lective and communal shifts,” Meyer said.

Anyone affected by the COVID-19 pan demic has a universal understanding of what it means to be alone to some extent, giving a greater appreciation of community. Krikston and Meyer both witnessed positive changes in the world during the COVID-19 pandemic. Krikston experienced how big of an impact shutting down the world can be, while Meyer saw a government actively catering to its citizens.

“We collectively shut down the world for two weeks, and look at how much improvement was made just by leaving it alone,” Krikston said. “It seems like a large part of the solution is just slowing down, finding ways to be self-sufficient and self-reliant in our local communities.”

Meyer, on the other hand, was in Germany during the summer of COVID-19. There he witnessed the German government take action to help their citizens. The German gov ernment gave subsidies to drivers to reimburse them for rising gas prices. The second thing the government did was make public transportation very accessible, by charging only nine euros a month.

“They created a policy that meaning fully reduced the amount of cars on the road that meaningfully addressed climate change in terms of the amount of fossil fuels being consumed,” Meyer said.

How and why students are individually taking action

A lot of students are gearing up for the future by educating themselves, learning the skills they need, and networking with other like-minded individuals.

Kristina Feibig is one of these stu dents. She is an environmental studies student at Cal Poly Humboldt focusing on recycling.

“I really want to work on industrial composting, just because plastic is such an issue and if we can create all food packaging into industrial com postable materials, then we could really reduce just what is being a one-use thing lasting longer than your lifetime,” Feibig said. “People don’t exactly care if it’s plastic or industrial compostable. People couldn’t care, it’s just a material. All they care about is the single use, the easability of it.”

Even though the system is set up against her, it gives her hope. The sys

tem is built up to push people down, but the silver lining for her is that the system can also be used for good.

“We just need the right people in pow er to change it,” Feibig said.

Bryan Ellison, an environmental studies student focused on media, has spent much of his life in nature. He went camping a lot as a kid, and even in his youth he still noticed the climate changing.

“As I got older, hearing about climate change I guess I first started noticing that we would have a lot more hot days than when I was a kid. We used to have a lot of fog and a lot more rain,” Ellison said.

After taking some time away from school, he finally decided to come back to find his calling in the world. In doing so, he discovered a new outlook on life.

“This may be a little bit out there, but some people could call it a higher

power, but to me, it’s almost like the thing grounding us that we all have in common, like Mother Nature you could call it,” Ellison said.

Communication and Conversation

John Meyer’s has been a part of the environmental movement for decades. One thing that he is appreciative of today, is the evolution of technology, especially how it’s related to commu nication.

“The way that the media environment has changed and the way that com munications through social media and other forms allows for a lot of prob lems, but it also allows for more kind of horizontal communication rather than just from the top down, and so arguably create space for a greater diversity of leaders, but not the sort of one great individual who’s leading the movement,” said Meyers.

The bad thing about the spread of information is that a lot of it can be false. This phenomenon has given rise to misinformation. The problem now is how can we reach out to individuals

more questions rather than proselytize to them about it,” Krikston said.

What Now?

The environmental movements is an interconnected movement that relies on commu nication and com munity to keep fighting. Without that an individual environmentalist is lost.

who have been exposed to these echo chambers of misinformation.

“For someone uneducated or in denial about it, I would really want to ask

The odds are stacked against the world surviving, but that is okay. It should not take away from the individual and communal changes happening in every local community, everything matters. Without that mentality we are lost.

“ We just need the right people in power to change it. ”

by Karina Ramos Villalobos

Photos by Abraham Navarro

Feeling liberation can come from different creative and unique outlets. Pole dancing is one. Dancing on a pole and embodying your inner somatic liberation is sexy, empowering and beautiful.

Natalie Abeja, a former stripper and pole fitness instructor, began to gather people in different places to teach private pole dancing classes to groups of eager students. During this time in 2015, the clos est thing to pole fitness in Arcata was aerial silk acrobatics. At one of the sessions her friend and business partner, Naomi Leitu, returned to town to find her dance pole in use, and at that moment Leitu saw the potential for this to become a business. Leitu helped Abeja organize and transform the vision into a fully operating business now known as Body High Pole Dance Studio (Body High).

Body High officially opened in March 2017 with a mission to provide a safe space to learn, practice and explore your sensual, sexy self without the risk of experiencing sexual harassment or trauma.

“I intend in creating this space to have other people have access to places where they can feel they can explore, where they can play, where they can find their own bodies wanting to be sexy without consequences,” Abeja said. “Without punishment, they can

develop that muscle and even when they go out in the world that punishes us for being in our full liberation they can have that in their back pocket, [and] be more whole.”

Abeja (37) and Leitu (33) are former strippers who met pole dancing and developed a bond that blossomed into a busi ness partnership natu rally. They both brought different strengths to the process and were able to help share responsibilities to grow their community in a safe space.

“We’re Black and Lati na-owned,” Abeja said. “We are former-stripper owned and so we are able to offer those things that are kind of rare to come by in Humboldt.”

Owning a studio as people of color in a predomi nantly white rural area is expanding the rep resentations of diverse locally-owned businesses. Body High has made history by being the only local pole dance fitness studio in Humboldt County.

“Humboldt needs diverse voices, they need creative energy, they need people who are doing and bringing something new and different to the community,” Abeja said. “Even if folks aren’t ready for it, there’s plenty of us who are.”

At Body High, people can explore dif ferent ranges of classes from beginner classes to intermediate and advanced levels. Each class teaches unique pole and body style movements along with floor work motions, all with positive support from instructors.

A highly demanded class at Body High is ‘Dirty Filthy Flow’. This is a core class where students get to experi ence floor and pole work together. Floor work is performing pole dance movements on the floor with or without the assistance of a pole. Pole work is beyond upper body strength. Upper body strength is needed in all as pects of pole dancing to help pull yourself up and down on the pole. Pole work helps build strong core muscles used in this art. People’s abdominals and lower back muscles are used to perform moves where people need to climb on the pole, lift their legs and support their body weight while dancing.

“Once I realized I could dance, I felt it was important to show other adults that you can dance, you can be sexy and you can be beautiful,” Abeja said. “This is available to you no matter what age, no matter what size you are, no matter what gender you are.”

Abeja has been pole dancing for 13 years and has been teaching since 2015. She first learned the art of pole dancing at a club; before that she did not consider herself a dancer.

However, through this industry, she has found a somatic liberation, meaning she is able to embody liberation through the work she does in pole dancing.

Leitu has been pole

dancing since 2011 and her favorite class to instruct is called ‘Twerk.’ “It’s high cardio,” Leitu said. “I like to see people move their butt in a way they didn’t think they could.”

“Some goals that we have for next year and this year are to host more events in our space that cater to the community,” Leitu said. “A few of our instructors were in Northern Nights and I got so much positive feedback so I would love for us to host or actually have a set at a festival next year.”

A regular class session allows for time to warm up the body, cool down and for people to enjoy and perfect their pole practice. A rec ommended class for people who have an interest in learning how to pole dance is ‘beginner pole.’ In this class, students learn basic pole tricks and transitions.

There are about 8-11 in structors at Body High, most of which were people who first started as dancers at the club where they collectively worked. All the in structors offer different classes and techniques because everybody works differently and people want to learn various tricks, styles and movements.

“I was a student for about a year and a half,” said Angela Spellman, the studio manager and an instructor at Body High Dance Studio.

“Natalie and Naomi are wonderful, they were giving us opportunities to do showcases and

I got a taste of performing, I was so hooked. I was here all the time. I got my own house pole so I could keep practicing, it definitely became some thing that was a ritual, that was a part of my everyday life.”

Spellman (37), originally from Brook lyn, New York, discovered Body High in 2018, after having a recurring dream about her pole dancing. After that dream, she told a friend and got encouraged to go and attend a class for the first time. Spellman’s first experi ence in pole was out of curiosity, yet it manifested into a career and grew into a new passion. There was a need for something new in her life and pole dancing was another outlet for creative expression.

Before Body High, Spellman was working as an artist creating window displays for businesses. According to Spellman, anything where she is able to create and feel stimulated is the val idation she needs to continue. When she found pole dancing she immedi ately recognized it as an art form. Pole dancing was something that Spellman realized she can be a long-life student and share her knowledge.

“As a mother, for a while, I was only in

that role and pole dancing has brought me back to myself as a woman and in touch with my sensuality more,” Spell man said. “For me, I’m going to be pole dancing until I’m old and gray.”

Spellman became a regular skilled student and danced her way up to her role now. As the manager, Spellman is in charge of communicating with the staff, scheduling, instructing classes and maintenance around the dance studio.

“I feel really confident with all the in structors we have now,” Leitu said. “I always get positive feedback. I’m hap py it’s still thriving without me being actually there. I still do the paperwork and everything behind the scenes.”

Co-owners Leitu and Abeja have moved away from Humboldt County and still manage the business from where they live now. Leitu is in Atlan ta, Georgia and Abeja lives in Oakland, California. They both consistently travel back and forth to Humboldt to be in their studio and occasionally instruct a pop-up class.

Abeja’s favorite class to teach is sensu al movement and floorwork. Students learn how to embody their own sexu

“You can dance, you can be sexy and you can be beautiful.”

ality in acrobatic movements both on the floor and on the pole.

“All of those are kind of deep move ments,” Abeja said. “Moving around in a deeply sensual way just like you’re this exotic animal. You’re just exist ing. It’s less about [choreography] or hitting a rhythm, it’s about thinking of yourself as a big jungle cat that looks gorgeous no matter what you’re doing.”

Community members are encouraged to organize any form of workshop or event at Body High Pole Dance Studio. People can rent out the space hourly for certain events as a venue. More in formation on this can be found online through Body High’s website or social media platforms.

“Black Humboldt has rented out the space a bunch and has hosted events,” Abeja said. “People can also host any kind of party, bachelorette party, divorce party, birthday party, any of those things they’re welcome to host.”

Body High has allowed people to blossom, heal and discover different elements about themselves through the art form of pole dancing in a space

that empowers and supports individu als with community.

Students like Ali Metcalfe, who just started becoming a regular student at Body High in Aug. 2022, described how she appreciates the community aspect that Body High has created. She feels that by instructors allowing time for their students to introduce them selves and share names, pronouns and anything else that promotes personal connection, it embodies the security of the space.

“I love the instructors and all the girls are really nice,” Metcalfe said. “Ev eryone is really supportive when you mess up or when you do something right, everybody is on your team. I’ve also made a couple of friends here. I carpool with one of the girls here whenever we go to class, which is nice.”

Body High will help new students that are fascinated and intrigued by this art form. It’s a place where one can grow, transform and find somatic liberation within community, dancing and creat ing future possibilities or opportuni ties from these skills.

“I’m going to be pole dancing until I’m old and gray.”

Otters in the Waters

By Daniel Kazules

The rivers, marshes and bays of Humboldt county are filled to the brim with fish, waterfowl, amphibians and crustaceans. If you’re lucky, you also might be able to spot a river otter playing in the water or running through the brush.

The sighting of a river otter in Humboldt County is a wonderful experience, but they are seldomly seen due to their small popula tion. These beloved semi aquatic mammals have played and hunt ed in the rivers, marshes and bays of Humboldt for thousands of years, but for decades they faced extinction in America due to the pollution in its rivers.

Through the effects of the Clean Water Act and efforts from orga nizations like Northcoast Envi ronmental Center (NEC) to clean the rivers and lakes, otters have begun to repopulate Humboldt’s waterways.

According to the research and analysis of wildlife Professor at Cal Poly Humboldt and founder of the North Coast River Otters Initiative, Jeff Black, there are an estimated 44 river otters living in Humboldt Bay, from Hook ton Slough to the Arcata Marsh. Although the amount is stagger

ingly small, these otters are not considered endangered, largely due to the widespread habitats of the North Coast river otter.

“It has more to do with how widespread they are on the land scape. They exist all the way up to Alaska, and all the way across Canada and so the water pollu tion never affected Alaska and never affected Canada,” Black said. “It was only in the lower 48 states that we really destroyed our river’s waters. And so the river otters always existed up North.”

Otters’ widespread habitat and the lack of water pollution in Canada throughout the years made the North Coast river otter the only species out of the 13 ot ter species in the world that isn’t endangered.

How the pollution of America’s rivers endangered the river otters

Otters rely on the health of their entire ecosystem. They are used as a bioindicator, a species scientists look at to determine the health of a habitat as a whole. Since the clean water act, the health of the rivers has been improved enough to support the river otter.

River otters have been repop ulating in Humboldt County, bringing the population to a stable level living in the county’s bays, marshes and rivers today. Although the increase of otters is encouraging, experts like Black still worry for their stability in the future.

“They are actually living on a tightrope. They’re not okay,” Black

said. “Every individual’s trying to find enough to eat, and if we disturb them here in Humboldt Bay they’re going to die …the ones around here are living on the edge. There’s not much for them to eat.”

River otters are the apex predator of these rivers, meaning there’s nothing that preys upon them. They need to eat the fish and crustaceans in the river, who rely on the microorganisms in the wa ter, who in turn rely on the purity of the river’s water.

If a river becomes polluted, the microorganisms die, which starves the fish and starves the otters. When creatures lower on the food chain start dying like fish or microorganisms, the whole food chain suffers. As this hap pens, the apex predator who relies on the entire food chain becomes endangered or can even go ex tinct because their food source is dwindling. River otters’ presence as the apex predator keeps their habitat in balance. Without the top predator, the prey begin to overpopulate. Fish would increase in abundance, as well as frogs, crustaceans, waterfowl and small mammals.

“If they go extinct, it’s an indica tion of unclean water; unsuitable habitats,” said Em Harvey, former intern at North Coast Otters. “It would lead to a lot of different diseases spread amongst water fowl species and probably would

even affect other species of birds and animals in the area as well.”

How the waterways are being monitored

With otters in such a fragile situ ation in Humboldt’s ecosystems, the health of Humboldt’s water ways need to be monitored and maintained. Organizations like the Northcoast Environmental Center (NEC) strive to improve the health of the environment and keep companies environmen tally accountable, which includes the cleanliness of the waterways.

Caroline Griffith, Executive Director at Northcoast Environ mental Center (NEC), says Hum boldt’s water purity is actually beneficial to local industries.

then I think that will bene fit the bay. If it’s in their best interest, they make it happen,” Griffith said, emphasizing the importance of encouraging en vironmentally friendly indus tries in Humboldt.

Unfortunately, keeping the wa ters clean may not be enough. With global temperatures on the rise, sea levels are also at risk of rising. Since Humboldt is at such a low sea level al ready, lots has to be done to en sure as little damage as possible occurs in the coming years.

The main risk to the otters comes from landlocked sources of pollution being swept away in the rising tides.

“We currently have very, very clean water here,” Griffith said. “That’s one of the reasons why we have an oyster nursery. This is one of the few places on the west coast where they actually have seed oysters, and so they need incredibly clean water for that.”

Because of industries like the oys ter industry in Humboldt County, environmental organizations don’t have to fight against corpo rations as much, and are instead able to work with or alongside them.

“If we are courting industries here that rely on clean water in the bay,

“There is a risk that with sea level rise, if those [landlocked pollution] spots aren’t cleaned up, they could be inundated with water, and then that pol lution that is currently land locked could then contaminate the water,” Griffith said.

The work being done and how to help

The otters of Humboldt are thriving, but their future, if left unaltered, looks bleak. Individ uals like Black and Harvey are working to monitor the otters and their situation. Organiza tions like NEC are striving to keep the environment a suit able place to live in, but there’s still lots of work to be done.

North Coast Otters relies on reports from citizen scientists to keep track of otters. Citizens can report the amount of otters, along with location, activity, new born pups and more to otters@humboldt.edu.

NEC is also looking for more trash trackers, who pick up trash and keep records of where trash is being dumped.

Griffith says the best way to help is stay in formed, “pay attention to local government and what they’re doing. It is one of the best ways to know how the wheels are turning, you know, in the community and what’s happening. That’s how you can make a difference when it comes to alternative transportation and

reducing emissions. That’s all through local governments.”

Humboldt’s otters are growing their popu lation, but they are on the precipice of danger. If they’re going to keep enriching Humboldt’s citizens, we need to keep the waters clean and make sure they stay that way.

“If they go extinct, it’s an indication of unclean water.”

Silencing Ideas:

Behind the Rise of Book Banning

By Dobby Morse

In the 1600s, books were banned for reli gious hearsay. In the early 1800s, books like Uncle Tom’s Cabin were banned for expressing pro-abolitionist sentiments. In the 1920s, books were banned in Boston for obscenity and bans became so rampant that authors would intentionally try to get banned for the publicity.

Yet, 2022 is set to have the highest number of book bans in American history. Between January and August of 2022, The American Library Association received 681 challenges for 1,651 books. In 2021, there were a total of 729 challenges on 1,597 books. In 2019, it was only 377 books.

Conservative groups have started to

distribute lists of books they want banned, making it possible to ban several books with one challenge. A challenge usually consists of a parent or other “concerned citizen” approach ing a library with a complaint about a book and demanding it to be removed from the collection. Many libraries have a set review process for when this happens, but not all. The challenger fills out a form describing the book’s content and why it should be removed, essentially forcing them to critically read the book.

The American Library Association (ALA) provides support for librar ies that are dealing with a new wave

of challenges. They also host the annual Banned Books Week in late September, as well as give out sever al book awards.. Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada, president of the ALA, has been faced with the challenge of navigating this crisis.

“What’s happening now is that libraries and books are being used as a political wedge by a small minority of individuals who want to control the ideas that are out there, as well as con trol people’s access to materials and stories about people or ideas that they may not agree with,” Pelayo-Loaza da said. “So we’re kind of stuck in the middle of folks who just want to

“What’s happening now is that libraries and books are being used as a political wedge by a small minority of individuals who want to control the ideas that are out there, as well as control people’s access to materials and stories about people or ideas that they may not agree with,” Pelayo-Loazada said. “So we’re kind of stuck in the middle of

Moms For Liberty, one of the main groups running book ban campaigns, formed at the start of the pandemic to oppose COVID-19 restrictions. They are a 501(c), meaning that they have tax-ex empt status despite having close ties to the Ron DeSantis campaign. These types of organizations are usually “Corpora tions, funds, or foundations that operate for religious, charitable, scientific, liter ary, or educational purposes,” according to Investopedia. They cannot be used to promote political campaigns.

Moms For Liberty claims to have 100,000 members in 37 states, with the main chapter located in Tampa, Flor ida. Their group and others like them have threatened librarians, run protests against drag shows, and in some cases, caused libraries to lose their funding.

Michigan’s Patmos Library lost 84% of their funding when a group called the Jamestown Conservatives pressured residents to vote against the continu ation of a property tax. The library is currently operating on donations until they can pass a levy in November. If the levy does not pass, the library will likely shut down.

“The interesting thing about book banning is that it’s across political party lines. The majority of people oppose book banning, 71%,” Pelayo-Lozada said. “We did a poll at the beginning of 2022, and it found that across party lines, red, blue, Independent folks, most folks were against book banning, so this is just a very small minority of individuals.”

Despite the fact that most Americans are not in favor of book banning, the levy proposed for the Patmos Library did not not pass, as 55.8% of voters said “no.”

Patmos has received complaints about

Gender Queer, Spinning, and Kiss Number 8, all of which have queer protaginsts and themes. Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe was the most chal lenged book in 2021, for depictions of queerness and sexuality.

The challenge against Gender Queer “was saying that there were illus trations of children having sex with each other when it was between two consenting teenagers, and that graphic novel is intended for teens and adults. It’s not intended for young children to be reading,” says Pelayo-Lozada.

According to PEN America, 33% of books are being chal lenged due to depictions of queer experi ences, and 41% have protag onists of color.

Melissa by Alex Gino is about a young trans girl trying out for the role of Charlotte in the school’s production of Charlotte’s Web. It was the #1 most challenged book from 20182020. All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson is a powerful memoir

about growing up queer. It was the third most banned book in 2021 for LGBTQIA+ content and profanity. The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta is a book told in verse about a biracial gay boy as he tries drag for the first time. Matt Krause, a politician in Texas claimed it would cause “guilt, discom fort, or anguish” in one of the largest mass challenges to date. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is a bestseller following a Black teenager during and after a cop murders her friend in front of her eyes. It is banned for “perva sive vulgarity and racially-insensitive language,” as Lance Hindt, a Texan school official phrased it. Books have an intan gible but indisputable influence over our ev eryday lives. They influ ence our politics, our freedoms, and our very right

to exist. Book banning is an attempt at control by parents who cannot stand the thought of their children being different from themselves. It’s an at tempt by politicians and other leaders to push an agenda that will get them reelected.

“We’re kind of stuck in the middle of folks who just want to silence diverse people and ideas.”

- Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada

folks who just want to silence diverse people and ideas.”

Must Read Banned Books

Now that you know why books are being banned, it’s time to read them. Here are some top-tier reccomendations to check out.

The Black Flamingo

by Dean Atta

Atta wrote this book in verse, making it an extremely fast read despite its slight bulk. While still identifying as a boy, the protagonist questions gender boundar ies and joins a drag club when he enters university.

Pet by Akwaeke Emezi

In a world without monsters, a creature crawls out of a painting. It asks Jam to bring it to the monster living as an ordinary human in town. It challeng es the idea that monsters always look like monsters- that by labeling them as visible and obvious, you let the real monsters hide.

All Boys Aren’t Blue

by George M. Johnson

This is a memoir-manifesto by journal ist and activist George/ Mike Johnson. He recounts growing up in a supportive family that doesn’t always get everything right. He recounts how he desired to break gender norms while maintaining his identity as a boy- something that led to confusion in his family after an older cousin came out as trans. It’s quite an emotional book- despite the distance in time and experience, he recounts them as if the reader is a young queer sibling coming to him for advice.

Annie On My Mind

by Nancy Garden

This is a sapphic YA published in 1982, and reads like it. Set in New York City, Annie and Liza tour various museums and have a queer tendency to reenact whichever era they find exhibits in. I was dreading that something terrible would happen, as it often does in older queer books. One of the love interests in Maurice suddenly and inexplicably turns straight, and in Brokeback Mountain (short story and movie) the more inter esting character dies for no thematically relevant reason. Annie does not die, al though it does have a bit of a bittersweet ending.

Soft Songs of Rough Upbringings

The Life of a Local MMA Fighter

By Michael Estrada

Envision yourself at the start of your day. Ignoring your phone, brushing your teeth, washing your face. Mak ing your way to the yoga mat you laid out the night before to spend the first 10 minutes of your day connecting your mind and body, being in tune with your emotions, with yourself. You might be surprised to find that such a peaceful start to the day is how someone prepares for the demanding world of mixed martial arts (MMA).

This is the routine of a Cal Poly Hum boldt student Paige Marie Cato.

Growing up in Yuba City, Califor nia, her life wasn’t easy. She was confronted with hardships at a very young age. Both of her biological par ents were alcoholics and her father left the family following her mother’s drug use. At just seven years old, Cato was figuring out how to raise herself in an environment where she was neglected.

“I had a really unhealthy lifestyle,” Cato said. “I wasn’t going to school, I was taking care of my mom. Be tween seven and 10, it was just really bad years that I pushed away be cause they were pretty painful to go through.”

At the age of 10, her grandparents, Steve and Jackie Cato, obtained guardianship of her. Both of her grandparents were involved in the education system. Steve was a profes sor of Mass Communications and a Dean at Yuba City College. Jackie was a high school AP Spanish teacher at

MMA Fighter

Yuba City High School.

They attempted to stay in Yuba City, but after multiple instances of her mother attempting to retrieve Cato and having social services involved, they made the decision to retire to their vacation home in Dillon Beach, which Cato describes as an off-thegrid beach town.

“It was a very hippie household, they’re all about the yoga and the meditation, and that’s a huge part of me and my life,” Cato said.

She found it difficult at first, living with grandparents from a much older generation, but was able to connect with them in unique ways. With her grandpa it was sports, specifically basketball. She enjoyed it, and later impressed her high school coach enough to earn herself a spot on the varsity team as a freshman. Cato saw how happy it made him and found it was a way for them to connect.

“I remember having to shoot 100 free throws every night before dinner,” Cato said. “I got good, and that was really cool for me.”

In contrast to sports, she connected with her nana through the arts, and through a love of music. She de scribes her grandmother as the most beautiful pianist she has ever seen.

Cato first jumped on the keys herself at just three, and at age six her grandparents gave her a keyboard of her own, which she remembers as the

only thing that made her happy when living with her biological mother.

“I had a little keyboard in my room, in our janky ass apartment in the ghetto of Yuba City. People would be coming in and out and I would just lock myself in my room so people couldn’t come in and I would just be playing music. I didn’t know how to read music, I didn’t know chords, I just heard. I heard everything and I felt what sounded right. I love to write, and I would just write out what I was feeling and then I would hum and start putting it all together,” said Cato.

While MMA is something that she shares with the world, her music has become something that is truly hers. Something that she creates or changes at her own desire.

While life in Dillon Beach was an improvement, it still wasn’t without its problems. It was a very small town where everyone grew up together, and being the new kid in an environment like that presented its own challenges.

She still has some good friends from the town, but she was also bullied by other girls in school. After middle school, both Cato and her grandparents weren’t too keen on her going to high school in Dillon Beach. That’s when she got an offer to stay with someone who would become one of her big gest influences in MMA, her Uncle Jeff Cato.

Jeff, who she considers more of an older broth er, was living in Orange County. She had visited before during summers and had a fondness for Southern California.

“I felt instantly at home... I remember I looked to the left and women were kickboxing and sparring.”

Paige Cato working on her striking with her Muay Thai coach Schlomo Guetta.

Jeff would be watching UFC and it was around this time that Ronda Rousey and women’s role in MMA were really taking off, and Cato thought her jiu-jitsu and judo were really cool. When Jeff offered to take her to the local UFC gym, she went. As soon as she walked in, she got chills.

“I felt instantly at home,” Cato re called. “I remember I looked to the left and women were kickboxing and sparring. On the other side, there was a kid’s jiu-jitsu class and I just thought, ‘this is so cool.’”

She fell so in love with jiu-jitsu that she ended up quitting the basketball team to train and compete, which wasn’t the easiest thing to explain to her grandparents.

That led to her meeting Jane Teixeira, who Cato considers her adopted mother.

“She became a huge mother figure in my life, someone I really clicked with,” Cato said. Teixeira mentored other kids at the UFC gym and would later become a huge reason that Cato moved up to Humboldt County.

After graduating from high school and while she was attending community college, Cato found herself wanting and needing to get out of Orange County. This led to a move to New Mexico on her own to study Ayurveda, a holistic form of alternative medicine with roots in the Indian subcontinent.

While living there, the COVID-19 pandemic started and she found herself unable to keep her apartment. At 20 years old she didn’t want to move back with her grandparents, but Teixeira was living in Humboldt and asked Cato to come live with her since

her schooling had transitioned fully online. Once again, Paige packed up her things and moved her life to a new place.

Now, Cato is a Cal Poly Humboldt student studying Kinesiology.

While at the Club for Fitness in McKinleyville she was talking with Teixeira about how she wanted to check out the Institute of Combat, when someone happened to overhear

one win and one loss.

At the same time, she is pursuing her passion in education. Cato hopes to teach health and physical education after earning her bachelor’s degree.

“Seeing that degree, having that teaching credential is huge and so im portant in my life. I want to empower young females,” Cato said. She recalls her fourth-grade teacher bringing her breakfast and lunch and helping her finish her homework after school as being a huge influence on her pursuit of that goal.

“Just being a good influence on kids and showing them what they can become in their life, that’s something I had which I was so grateful for, and it didn’t come from my family life,” Cato said.

her. That person was Ross Lopez, a fighter from Lost Boys MMA in Arca ta. He invited her to come train with them. That was the start of Cato be coming a member of their MMA team. After her most recent fight at the Bear River Casino, she owns a record of

Pursuing either education or sports are tall enough tasks alone, and if you’re wondering why anyone would pursue the additional challenge of getting in the cage at the same time, Cato’s answer is well put. “It just makes me so happy,” Cato said, “There are things in your life that just make you a better person, and the journey of mixed martial arts is so fulfilling.”

Seeing that degree, having that teaching credential is huge and so important in my life. I want to empower young females.

“ ”

Paige Cato goes for an arm bar submission while training with various members at the Lost Boys Gym.

Coffee Spots for Caffeine Fiends

Top 5 cafes in Arcata that you should try. We compared the price of a regular coffee and a vanilla latte, the walking distance from Cal Poly Humboldt, and the overall atmosphere.

Regular Coffee Vanilla Latte

Northtown Coffee

Northtown Coffee has a cozy yet lively atmosphere. The cafe itself was very quaint and had good music playing. Northtown Coffee is open from 8 a.m. 5 p.m. all week.

$2.75 $6.00

It also has a wide array of food options like breakfast burritos. It is only a six minute walk or a two minute drive from campus.

Cafe Mokka

Not only does it serve coffee, Cafe Mokka is also a Finnishthemed cafe that has hot tubs and saunas. The cafe’s interior is a cozy Finnish style that has a warm ambiance. The cafe is conveniently open from 11 a.m. 11 p.m. Sun. Thurs. and 11 a.m. - 11 p.m. Fri.Sat. They only accept cash.

$2.00 $4.00

In terms of food, the cafe has pastries and chocolates. It is about a 20 minute walk from campus or a four minute drive.

Cafe Brio

Familia Coffee Roasters Cafe Brio is located in the Arcata Plaza. It offers indoor and outdoor seating and is open everyday from 8 a.m. 3 p.m.

$3.00 $5.10

This cafe also has a wide variety of meal options and quite an impressive pastry selection. They also have a student discount. Cafe Brio is a 12 minute walk and five minute drive from campus.

Cafe Phoenix

Cafe Phoenix is a serene cafe that has a beautiful outdoor seating area with a garden that is tranquil. They’re open from 9 a.m. 3 p.m. Tues. Sat.

$2.50 $5.00

It is another conveniently located cafe, only a six minute walk from campus or a three minute drive.

Familia Coffee is a great option if you are looking to get a drink to go because it doesn't have a dine-in option. It is bright, open and has a decent amount of meal options. It's open from Mon. Sat. 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. and Sun, from 9 a.m. 3 p.m.

$3.00 $5.00

Familia Cafe is about a four minute drive from campus or an 18-minute walk.

The psychedelic community is blos soming and expanding in new and innovative ways after a resolution was passed in Arcata, Calif. In October of last year, the Arcata city council voted unanimously to decriminalize psyche delic entheogens in Arcata. This de cision lessened the police effort spent on controlling these substances and in turn allowed those knowledgeable in psilocybin mushrooms to start their own legal gray-area brands through Instagram.

The difference between one of these Insta gram organizations and your typical drug dealer is the presence of branding and intention behind the product being sold. The product is stored in official packaging with ingredients and nutritional facts on the back. They look like products from a wellness store, despite the fact that selling them is still legally dangerous.

Psychedelic Renaissance in Humboldt County

By Liam Gwynn

Decriminalization is not the same thing as legalization, and selling psy choactive substances for the purpose of consumption is still illegal. Even so, several passionate mycologists have taken the first step outside of the black market and created branded products that are easily accessible and open to the public. This legal precarity makes it a dangerous game, yet there isn’t a rush toward full legalization. Instead, there is concern about the possibility of legalization because of the potential over-commercialization and taxation that could follow.

Concerns of the future aside, decrim inalization has brought the psyche delic community into the light. From semi-legal Instagram brands to new organizations hosting community events, people are now much less scared of sharing their beliefs and

experiences without the fear of legal retribution.

“Psilocybin mushrooms are awesome at creating new neurological pathways in your brain,” said the founder of the Humboldt Mycology profile. For them, the benefits are profound, serving as a creative boost and helping with mental health in a spiritual and physical sense.

Humboldt Mycology @humboldtmycology

Humboldt_Mycology is one of the forerunners in this burgeoning field. They offer a variety of products in cluding exfoliating soaps made from non-psychedelic mushrooms, psilocy bin microdose pills, the Magic Carpet Truffle, and the Magic Carpet Bar.

The founder graduated from Cal Poly Humboldt with a degree in Biochem istry and was previously involved with the marijuana industry before switch ing gears to mycology. They asked not to be named due to legal concerns so we will refer to them as HM here.

“It’s very common right now for a lot of cannabis people in the industry to move towards this psychedelic groove and medicinal mushrooms,” HM said.

These projects aren’t just involving psychedelics. HM mentions how one of their associates is currently working on a form of mycoremediation that allows mycelium to absorb cigarette butts, and another who is developing planters formed out of mycelium.

“It’s kind of turned into like a family in a sense,” said HM referring to the mycology community. “I have a lot of different friends in this community and industry that are just doing so many different projects.”

To HM, mushrooms of all types are an overlooked medicine that are often overshadowed by the pharmaceutical industry.

“A big thing with mushrooms, medic inal and psychoactive, is using these mushrooms as medicine and alterna tives to our basic lifestyle that we’re kind of brought up in,” HM said.

HM believes that the occasional strong dose of psilocybin can have serious benefits for people, but they under stand that there is a stigma that keeps people from trying it out. The solution to HM is to start people out with small microdoses to help break down their preconceived notions of what the experience is like.

“You ease people into it and then they see like ‘oh wow, this actually has a benefit to my life, and my whole life I’ve been taught that all that shits bad for me,’” HM said.

Humboldt Fungi @humboldtfungi

Humboldt Fungi is another Instagram brand offering psilocybin mushrooms. Their goal is to educate people about mycology and provide a safe and pure way to access psilocybin mushrooms. We’ll refer to the founder as HF here. Humboldt Fungi started off as a pro file through the app iNaturalist. They transitioned into their current plat form after decriminalization passed in Arcata.

“What I’m trying to do is use the psy chedelics to get people interested in all the other mushrooms,” said HF.

They hope to draw people in who are interested in psychedelics and provide them with a jumping-off point by pro viding information about a multitude of mushrooms along with the psycho active ones.

Humboldt Fungi posts pictures of a variety of mushrooms they find forag ing in the area and gives information on them. On top of that, they grow psilocybin mushrooms and package them in small jars with branding that they distribute online.

“The cubensis and the psychedelics I grow, I’m growing on a small scale, I’m making sure everything is super

clean, and I’m focused on genetics,” HF said. “So I’m focused on all dif ferent genetics, I wanna see different morphologies and shapes and sizes of shrooms.”

HF is working at mixing the genetics of different mushrooms in order to create different strains of psychoactive mushrooms.

“The effects of these mushrooms with each strain is going to be different, and now we’re getting into that with the testing of these cubensis’,”said HF.

HF isn’t concerned with the safety of this experimentation since psilocybin cannot be overdosed on regardless of the strain.

“You’re not going to overdose on mushrooms(psilocybin mushrooms). It might be mentally overwhelming for a few hours, but if it’s a cubensis mushroom, you’re not going to over dose on that,” said HF.

HF was also originally in the canna bis industry before switching over to mushrooms.

“In that world, it was like super in tense, high stress, like always looking over your back,” HF said. “So after like years and years of living that way, the stress starts to build up, and so I

found going out in the forest to be like a therapy.”

In the forest HF started to become more and more interested in mush rooms and through foraging would find an escape from the stress of the cannabis industry. From there they began to research and transition their focus to mushrooms.

HF was originally skeptical of psy chedelic mushrooms until they got into a serious car accident and started to look for an alternative solution to western medicine.

“After the car wreck I could tell my brain wasn’t functioning like it used to, so I kinda got into the psychedelics as like a last resort,” said HF.

They didn’t think it would necessarily work at first because of the stigma they once had towards psychoactive mushrooms.

“Once I started taking lion’s mane with a microdose of psilocybin, my brain started to come back and I started to think quicker and things were connecting. I could physically tell a difference, and I didn’t believe it would work. I thought it sounded like hokey or was like, you know, bullshit,” said HF.

Despite HF’s enthusiasm around the benefits of psychoactive mushrooms, they also have concerns about full legalization and commercialization.

“There’s this rush I think of people that think mushrooms are going to be the next big money maker, and I think that’s pretty sad and I don’t think it’s really realistic,” said HF. They believe that mushrooms should be kept in the decriminalized state despite the legal trouble this could cause for them.

Community

Camryn Hanf is a Cal Poly Humboldt student who runs the social media for the Humboldt Psychedelic Society and Decriminalize Nature Humboldt. She

has similar concerns regarding legal ization and believes that psychedelics should remain in a decriminalized state.

“In Humboldt County, we can see kind of what went wrong with the canna bis industry, in terms of the access barriers for small farmers and the big corporations swooping in and taking hold of the whole industry, and that’s what we don’t want with psychedel ics,” said Hanf.

The Humboldt Psychedelic Society is an organization founded after decrim inalization was finalized in Arcata last October. They hold integration circles where like-minded psychonauts can unpack their experiences together and equinox socials where they have live music and trivia. They are also advo cating to get psychoactive entheogens decriminalized in Humboldt County as a whole.

For Hanf and others in the Humboldt Psychedelic Society, the threat of pharmaceutical companies and gov ernment entities intervening is more detrimental than the benefits that would come from full legalization.

“There’s plenty of people, especially indigenous cultures that have been using them (psychoactive entheo gens) for millennia, who are really the knowledge keepers of these medicines, so we believe that they should not be barred access to them with legaliza tion,” said Hanf.

Decriminalization has expanded the psychedelic community in Arcata and allowed for new groups to form and for people to be more open about their experiences. Problems remain, how ever: anyone distributing faces a cloud of legal threats, and without federal restrictions, people must place all their trust in a person they likely know very little about. To hopeful community members, decriminalization is still the best outcome. There’s no easy answer to the problem. Legalization brings its own host of issues and many in the community would prefer the

risk of facing the law over the threat of psilocybin falling down the path of cannabis.

“Once it goes legal like Cannabis it turns it into something with no love basically,” said HF.

Key Terms

Entheogen:

A chemical generally derived from different plant species, that when ingested produces an altered state of con sciousness for a religious or sacred context.

Psilocybin: An alkaloid with hallucinogenic affects found in some species of fungi.

Mycromediation: The practice of utilizing fungi as a way to purify a contanimated environment.

Mycelium: The root-like structure of a fungus made up of white filaments called hphae.

One Foot Foward

By Claudia Thyrone O’Neill

Natalie Krishna Das dropping into the deep bowl at Eureka’s Cooper’s Gulch skatepark.

Humboldt County is home to a prominent skating community, not only because of the great dudes at the local skate shops, but also largely due to women and queer skaters. Community means differ ent things to different people, and to the local skaters, this means deep purple bruises, falling on your ass and cheering each other on through the ups and the downs.

Local skate boarder and Cal Poly Humboldt student Fabiyani Santos de scribed the local skate scene fond ly. “I love the skateboarding community,” Santos said. “You can be of any age, any gender, come from any where, and you all have something in common.”

skaters must “prove themselves” at the park. There is an expecta tion of tricks in the skater world, and this is just another situation where women are supposed to perform for the typically male au dience.

Similarly, femme-presenting skat ers also have to deal with male

ently from one another but still support each other. From derby girls to skatepark rats, everyone is on some form of wheels.

Santos started skating six years ago while living in Santa Cruz. Af ter moving up here for school, she was pleasantly surprised by the warm welcome from the skating community as a whole. She de scribed the local parks as inclusive and motivat ing.

“I love the skateboarding community. You can be of any age, any gender, come from anywhere and you all have something in common.”

Although the skate community exists on a global scale, Humboldt County is unique in many ways. Carolina Amezola, a skater of six years, has lived in Humboldt for more than 10 years. She shared the experience she had while visiting a skatepark in Southern California.

“When I first went to a skatepark, I was on a skateboard and I couldn’t even drop in and I kept falling trying to drop in. These two old er dudes kept laughing at me and making fun of me… but this real ly cool guy, a good skateboarder, comes up to me and was like ‘Your friends aren’t very nice!’” She told him that she didn’t even know those men, and after some time talking, her confidence was back up. The most amazing part is that the man she talked to was from Humboldt!

Stereotypically, women and queer

attention. Although many of the male skaters within Humboldt are accepting, it can be hard to approach people you don’t know. Local roller skater and Cal Poly Humboldt art student Bee Lang holz described their experience skating around some men, even here in Humboldt.

“I’m a stinky gal and I like to wear a tank top, and then it’s just like, ‘oh boobs woah,’ you know what I mean — I don’t like the attention. I just want to skate,” said Langholz.

Nevertheless, the lo cal skate scene is a breath of fresh air and that’s because of the people within the community. Ev eryone is accepting of almost all, as long as you follow skate etiquette. Many local women and queer skaters skate differ

“Sometimes when I’m sad, I’ll just go to the park and I know there will be peo ple there I can talk to and feel bet ter,” Santos said. “Everybody here is really nice.”

The femme and queer community within the overarching skate scene is incredibly encouraging and ev eryone hypes each other up. Another inspiring and inclusive

Fabiyani Santos in that perfect moment right before a frontside disaster at Cooper’s Gulch skatepark.

set of local skaters is the Hum boldt Roller Derby team. They were founded by Jennifer McHa don in 2007 and officially became part of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association in 2010. This allowed their team to be nationally ranked. It has grown to be a popu lar community-run non-profit that encourages women ages 18 and up to join their training camps and try out for the team.

Jessica Smith, known to her der by teammates as Sass-A-Thrash, started skating as a little girl. She joined derby in 2016 after being inspired by a cohort in graduate school and has found it an ex tremely rewarding experience.

“Derby is one of the few places I can be having the worst fucking day, I can be so angry, so sad, all up in my feelings, but the minute I step on that track, ready to prac tice with my people, it’s all gone,” Smith said.

An important part of derby is the community aspect. Whether skat ers were on a board or two skates, this was a repeated sentiment. Krishna Das said that everyone should “...find a crew of friends to skate with. You guys just push each other and inspire each other

and that’s what makes it fun.”

Langholz agreed wholeheartedly, “Call me to skate, skate with me, go with a pal.”

Krishna Das and Langholz also en courage folks to learn the rules of the park, which is generally sharing and awareness of the space.

Rollerkskaters and skateboarders alike talked about how Eureka’s Cooper Gulch skate park is the most popular local park. Langholz de scribes Coo per Gulch to have a “smooth transition, the mini quarter is really fun to learn a trick and then you can take it to the bigger bowl.”

This park is suitable for both sea soned and newer skaters. Langolz

said that “There’s a sneaky corner with ledges where I can go flop around and no one will see me.”

The Garberville halfpipe comes in at a close second, and there is a fun DIY park some odd miles away from here. The Garberville ramp was a community funded project started by Adam Neil and Dave Grant. The ramp, constructed in 2000, was built in only three days and has stayed a popular spot for 22 years.

The DIY park is being built from the ground up by skaters within the community, pouring concrete to create skate elements such as ramps, planting herbs, and paint ing artistic graffiti.

Derby skater Jessica Smith says that “We build community through skat ing, but we also do stuff outside of skating, and I think we all push each other to be better.”

Humboldt Skatepark Collective, founded by Charlie Caldwell and

Bee Langholz airs out at Eureka’s Cooper’s Gulch skatepark.

Trey Cartier rallies the team at the end of their practice.

“Call me to skate, skate with me, go with a pal.”

Pat Henson in the 1990’s, has been working on installing a skatepark in Pearson Park, Mckinleyville for over 20 years. This location was chosen as it’s the center of town, making it extremely accessible for all McKinleyville residents.

Humboldt Skatepark Collective is a non profit organization that helps skate projects establish support and funding before they become their own independent initiative. They have helped to get

many notable parks off the ground, some recent ones being Rampart and Blue Lake. Laughing, Caldwell said, “We figured out how to allow people to take their dream and make it reality, and I don’t have to run it when it’s done.”

The McKinleyville skatepark will also be built from the ground up by those within the community. Caldwell said, “We’re hoping to community build this… the goal is to use volunteer help. Volunteer

equipment, volunteer help. The more volunteer equipment and help we use, the more skatepark can be built.”

Notably, in November 2019, the Tony Hawk Foundation awarded a $10,000 grant towards the con struction of the park.

Finally, on June 24, 2021, the McKinleyville skatepark construc tion permit was approved. Cald well said that they should start

Carolina Amezola lands a fakie cartwheel at Eureka’s Cooper’s Gulch skatepark.

construction by mid 2023, adding, “We’re just trying to get something in that’s skate-able for the kids.” This is only the first phase of con struction.

The skateparks in the area stay popular year round, and it’s easy to see how another skatepark would be welcome here in Hum boldt. Hopefully, the two-decadelong project will soon become the fourth successful local skatepark.

In addition to these communi ty-organized spaces, there are local skate nonprofits that partner with larger nonprofits. Natalie Krishna Das, a local pro skater, has been working closely with Skate Rising for over five years. Skate Rising, founded in 2016 By Calli Kelsay, is a free skate clinic for girls ages 4-18. She was backed by the um brella company Exposure, which founded The Exposure Annual Skate Competition. This was cre ated in 2012 by Olympian Amelia Brodka after it became clear to her that women, queer and transgen der skaters did not have the same opportunities as their male coun terparts. The competition, held in Encinitas, California, has grown from just 32 participants to over 230 participants in the eight years since it began.

Krishna Das was first hired as the social media intern for Skate Rising and worked her way up to becoming an event coordinator while living in Arizona. When she moved to Humboldt two years ago she brought the event with her. Thanks to Natalie, Skate Rising Eureka was recently able to part ner with the city of Eureka to host free clinics designed to empower girls through skateboarding, teach them hands-on service activities and how to give back to their com munity through service work.

“She’s great, she’s done so much in the short time she’s been here.

Fabiyani Santos flies out of the quarter transition at Eureka’s Cooper’s Gulch skatepark.

She’s done skate lessons for kids.,S she’s organized all sorts of skate events and fundraising,” Santos said.

Krishna Das’s mission is to inspire and empower girls to have fun and to push their limits. “It’s really positive and empowering and epic to be a part of,” Krishna Das said.

The incredible impression she’s had on the communi ty is made possible because of the inclusive and friendly skate community that Hum

boldt has fostered over the years.

There has been a conscious group effort to make the Humboldt skate scene what it is today. Local skate shops hold non-skating events to connect both those who skate and those who don’t. The skate clin ics are made to be inclusive and support young girls just getting into skating. The community has worked together for years on end to set up accessible skateparks. Most everyone at the skatepark is a welcoming, familiar face who just wants to shred.

Must Eat Food Trucks

LoCo Fish Co:

LoCo Fish Co. serves Humboldt as a pub-style fish restaurant. Their most popular dish is their fish and chips, which is a large platter of fried fish and fries with a deli cious tartar sauce to compliment everything. They also serve fish tacos, seafood dishes like calamari strips and a Korean rice bowl and fish sandwiches, as well as a small selection of land based food if you’re not feeling fishy. The fried fish is always moist on the inside and crispy on the outside, the fries are a perfect consistency and well seasoned and the extra tangy tartar sauce is to die for. If you’ve got a craving for some fish, this place is sure to give you a delicious meal. They are located in McKinleyville at 1980 Central Avenue, by the 76 gas station.

Big Island Kine:

Big Island Kine brings poké to the people! They have been serving up fresh Hawaiian-style ahi tuna bowls to the fine folks of Humboldt County, and their Sweet Heat tuna flavor has melted its way into our hearts as the fan favorite. They also serve other flavors of ahi tuna and sides of seaweed or crab salad, kimchi cucumber, and mac salad. Everything is fresh and the flavors blend together very nicely to make a superb and pretty healthy meal. Although a bit pricey, the extra expense is defi nitely worth it. They have one truck that you can find in Eureka at 1648 Myrtle avenue, Arcata by 10th street and N street and McKinleyville at 1300 Central avenue, depending on the day. Their schedule can be found on their Facebook page.

Roman’s Kitchen:

Roman’s Kitchen specializes in burgers, sandwiches and fried food. Their large variety of items leads to many popular dishes, includ ing (but not limited to) the Mexican guey, the barbecue western sandwich and the mushroom provolone burger. All of their food has rich and diverse flavors that complement each other. They also serve an array of Mexican items like jarritos and tres leches cheesecake. The ex cellent food and the range of diversity in their selection make this food truck a must-go. Their truck is located in Arcata on D street.

Hotel Housing

Problems Arise for Cal Poly Humboldt Students

By Eddy Guzman

Living with roommates and suite mates forces you to learn critical life lessons about sharing space and responsibilities. However, 69 stu dents attending Cal Poly Humboldt (CPH) for the 2022-2023 school year live in a Comfort Inn in Arcata. The students were unable to find housing due to on-campus residency encountering maximum capacity.

Moving into dorms or apartments can be overwhelming for some col lege students because they have to adapt to new locations and socialize with new people. Student’s social

lives evolve and that allows commu nities to emerge.

“Last semester I had to take off [leave for the semester] because I couldn’t get housing, so at the start of this semester I had to get housing no matter what, so I got into the waitlist for on-campus housing,” said CPH student Julian Barrera who is housed at the Comfort Inn.

CPH previously known as Hum boldt State University, has a history of housing insecurity. They have attempted different housing strat

egies over the past three years with options like emergency housing and working with various property man agement that are local to Humboldt County.

Efforts to help students with food and housing insecurities were prominent in 2019 after a book, Ad dressing Homelessness and Housing Insecurity in Higher Education, was published. This book was co-au thored by Ronald E. Hallett, Rashi da M. Crutchfield, and Jennifer J. Maguire. Maguire is a professor in the Social Work department at CPH.

This book presented a study of food deficiency and homelessness across the entire CSU system. Accordingto Hallett, Crutchfield, and Maguire, 19% of students attending Humboldt State University reported housing difficulties and 46% reported strug gling to afford food.

“We were aware that we had more students coming in than readily available housing, so we created a bridge housing program, and we know that’s going to be until 2025 when our new building becomes online [available],” said Stephen St. Onge, Associate Vice President of Student Success. “Housing put effort into resolving the housing crisis by leasing the local Comfort Inn. So our first option was working with the Comfort Inn, and the owner has been great to work with and we made those beds avail able.”

Housing put effort into resolving the housing crisis by leasing the local Comfort Inn. All of the stu dents residing at the Comfort Inn are upperclassmen and transfer students.

“I filled out my application in February and when I went back to look at my application, I noticed that I didn’t hit the submission button which led me to end up on the waitlist,” said CPH student Taylor Sanchez.

Sanchez remembers the moment of frustration that many other students have experienced at CPH. Housing availability is on a first-come, first-served basis, forcing students to compete for spots on campus. Submitting an on-campus housing application early gives you a higher chance of getting a room. It also allows you to have more options regarding

whom you want to live with. If availability is at maximum capaci ty, then the rest of the students are placed on a waitlist. St. Onge explains that the “Loca tion, Amenities, and the willing ness of the owner to work with us,” was why the Comfort Inn was chosen over other hotels in the area.

The Comfort Inn is located 2.7 miles away from the school, amplifying transportation issues. Many students can’t afford a vehi cle and must continuously rent out a vehicle whenever they need one or rely on public transportation.

“Taking the bus is fairly straight forward except the bus doesn’t come late at night. My friends and I like to hang out at SAC (Student Activities Center at CPH) and I spend a lot of time there either do ing homework or playing games,” Sanchez said.

According to Jannick Baur, an international CPH student from Germany, “I use the bus twice a week. I take the shuttle for my ear ly morning classes and the shuttle is provided to us by the university, and it is free,” Baur said. Trans portation is detrimental to stu dents who are living at the hotel and there are some alternatives.

Mitsuki Takamatsu studying in the lobby of the Comfort Inn.

The problems regarding transportation have been recti fied according to St. Onge, “There are options for students. First, they bring their personal vehi cle, second, they can use public transportation, the pickup is right across the street, third, the Uni versity Police De partment (UPD) has been running shuttles back and forth just a call away on demand.”

Baur feels com fortable living at the Comfort Inn. He has all his weekly meals on campus because the hotel doesn’t serve food during the week. Living at a hotel can affect how students consume their daily meals because hotels don’t typically have kitchens for their guests, unlike dorms. The dining locations on campus consist of The J Dining Hall, College Creek Marketplace, The Depot, Bigfoot Burg ers, Library Cafe and The Cupboard.

Meal plans are available for students living on and off campus and have different options at varying price ranges.

Students at Comfort Inn live in pairs of 2, sharing a bathroom and shower, but it does have its benefits. The Inn comes with the following amenities: free breakfast every day, an indoor heated pool and hot tub, free Wi-Fi, elevators, a fitness room, free parking, a coin-operated laundry room, a walk-in shower, a mini refrigerator, a work desk, a closet, an armchair, a microwave, a plasma TV,

Residing at the hotel narrows your options to microwaving food or buying fast food because hotels aren’t made for perma nent residents. These current CPH students get affected further by how remote they are from campus and other activities in town.

“Every Sunday the school comes here, and they feed us from 5-7 p.m. whatever they are serving at the J,” said CPH student Dylan Harrison. “They bring that here and make us still feel part of the school, just as students on campus walk to the J, we also walk down to our lobby for our food.”

Harrison is another student who appreciates the Comfort Inn’s low cost of living and trans portation resources the school has provided.

“I usually go to campus to eat or I go to Peppers,” Sanchez said. “You can go there and use your meal ex change or flex points for a limited menu, which is only a 5-minute walk from here.”

However, for some, transitioning from living in a home to a hotel was difficult in the beginning. Bar rera explains, “The first two weeks here the Wi-Fi was really bad so we had to all stay at the library on campus for the Wi-Fi and I would spot several residents from the hotel on the last bus at night on the way home, but this issue got fixed.”

“Living at a hotel can affect how students consume their daily meals because hotels don’t typically have kitchens for their guests, unlike dorms.”

A altar remembering loved ones who have passed away lays in the lobby at the Comfort Inn giving a sense of community by CPH students.

The ideal situation for these students would have been to live on campus, eat at the CPH dining locations and have more local resources. Adapting to the situation has become the only option for these students, even though they were expecting the on-campus experience.

The obstacles that students encountered at the beginning of the semester at Cal Poly Humboldt were overcome with ambi tion. Students are using the resources from the institution to their advantage to push through their hefty academic year.

Students who are unaware of the housing situations at any college campus end up struggling because of inexperience liv ing on and off campus. Not knowing the resources that are available through the institution can cause struggling students to go astray and become homeless. To counteract this situation, CPH offers Emergency Housing and Funds, food pantries like OhSnap, CalFresh Outreach, mental health re sources and health services.

Not everyone is in the same boat, which is why these students have to learn to empathize to empower each other. St. Onge explains the Comfort Inn can be reserved for students in the upcoming school years, “For sure this academic year, and we have an agreement at the Comfort Inn that it would be offered there until 2025.”

Students at Cal Poly Hum boldt are learning to build communities within their living spaces and ease their transitions when they move away from home, even if it’s out of the norm for a college experience.

“Not knowing the resources that are available through the institution can cause struggling students to go astray and become homeless.”

Opening Pandora’s Box

By Liam Gwynn

AI Art is a new trend taking the internet by storm and it’s terrifying. New programs have been developed that allow users to put in text prompts and the AI turns those prompts into art. Frequently, the art the AI comes up with can be unsettling, bizarre and distinctly inhuman. AI often doesn’t know how to replicate faces or other human features and can create some freakish alien-like depictions of humans that looks like they came from kindergarten drawings rendered in CGI. What you are viewing on this page, are multiple different AI programs interpretations of the fall 2022 Osprey magazine stories. (If you can’t figure out which image goes with each story look for the page number in the corner.) I did this using the titles of the articles, a brief description of what the stories were about and occasionally a sample image from the respective stories for the AI to draw inspiration from. This resulted in a fascinating and bizarre amalgamation of art that captured some of the themes of our stories while also creating some head-scratching pieces that makes one wonder what the hell is going on in the “mind” of these computers.

Students Can Enjoy & Visit Sequoia Park Zoo

For a Cal Poly Humboldt student, visiting the zoo can be an expensive investment, $24.95!

Luckily there are ways to bring that price down.

EBT: $4 (up to five people per card)

Humboldt County Library Card Holder: One day free family pass (up to 2 adults, and 6 children)

Comparing Grocery Prices

Ray’s Food Place

Average Price: $3.03 Distance: 1.9 Miles Safeway Average Price: $3.23 Distance: 0.7 Miles Wildberries Marketplace Average Price: $4.05 Distance: 0.4 Miles North Coast Co-op Average Price: $3.96 Distance: 0.7 Miles

Murphy’s Markets

Average Price: $3.46 Distance: 1.2 Miles Target Average Price: $3.08 Distance: 5.9 Miles WinCo

Average Price: $2.39 Distance: 8.3 Miles Walmart Average Price: $1.90 Distance: 8.8 Miles