HOUSING GUIDE Gardens
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COLLEGE LIVING
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Cedar Park Apartments I, II, III, IV
sta rti perng at per ONL son Y $ 350 !
1145 W. 9th Ave 3 Bedroom Apartments
I-1143 N. Cedar- 4 bedroom townhomes II-1147 N. Cedar- 4 bedroom apartments III- 935 W. 4th Ave-3 bedroom apartments IV- 1050 Colombus Ave.- 4 bedroom apartments
849 Pomona Ave. (office) (530) 879-9222
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4 bed/2 bath town homes W/D Incldued • Attached Garage Dishwasher • Ceiling Fans Ceramic Tile • Heat & AC Pool • Back Patio Beautiful Landscaping Professionally Managed
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581 Pomona Ave.
849 Pomona Ave. (office) (530) 879-9222
Quiet, park-like setting.
Beautifully Landscaped apartments designed for privacy, comfort and convenience.
275 East Shasta Ave.
starting at ONLY $340 per person!
530-343-3957
ISM Management Company BACO Realty Corporation
Creek View
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Luxury Features: Completely Remodeled• 2 Bathrooms • W/D Ceramic Tile • 24 hr Fitness Room HVAC • Pool • BBQ Area • Ceiling Fans Basketball & Volleyball Court • Beautiful Landscaping
849 Pomona Ave. (office) (530) 879-9222
All 1 and 2 bedroom floorplans are SPACIOUS and OPEN! Renovated with 2 tone paint, ceramic tile, brush nickel finishes, new microwaves, new carpet, new dual pane vinyl windows, patios and so much more! Enjoy warm Chico days relaxing by our POOL! • covered parking • large laundry facility • 24 hour emergency mainenance
125 Parmac Rd. (530) 345-7377 • Four distinctive floorplans allow you to choose the apartment that will fit your individual lifestyle.
• Units include new dual pane windows, fully equipped kitchen, air conditioning, a private balcony or patio and much more.
www.ismrem.com
www.bacorealtycorp.com
HOUSING GUIDE Contents
Why cats make good pets
4
Ads create hometown nostalgia
6
Living across the street from campus
7
5 advantages to living alone
8
Couples ruin peace with fighting
9
The Orion encourages letters to the editor and commentary from students, faculty, staff, administration and community members.
• Letters and commentaries may be delivered to The Orion, Plumas Hall Room 001. Deadline is 5 p.m. Friday. Letters are also accepted by e-mail and go directly to the opinion editor at opinioneditor@theorion.com
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HOUSING GUIDE
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Ball of fuzz Trapper, Platt's rescued cat, looks up with feline adoration [left] and squints his eyes shut [right].
the orion •PHOTOgRAPHs BY Trevor Platt
Helpful cat-rearing rules for owners Trevor Platt Sports Editor
When it comes to choosing your living situation, whether it is by yourself or with five roommates, it is important to figure out how much you have in common. Are you similar people? Do you have the same tastes in sports, movies and music? The most important piece of information to find out about your potential roommates is whether they love cats. The main reason you should find out is because your new roommates are terrible people if they don’t like cats, which means you shouldn’t live with them. These little fuzz balls of love can be the absolute bee’s knees in your life, should you choose to get one. After living by myself for half of my junior year, I stumbled across a Craigslist ad offering free kittens. I had been living by myself and
realized it would be nice to come home to a little fluff ball every night. It was the day my new, better college life started. Before I continue, I would like to take a moment to clarify something. You don't have to be just a cat person. I love dogs as well and even have two back home. But most college students, including myself, do not have an adequate amount of time to truly devote to a dog. Cats, however, are easy. All I have to do is pet her twice a day, feed her and clean the litter box. Simple. In the winter, these little angels provide warmth. As you sleep, they will rest on your face to make sure you lose no warmth through your head. On days filled with sadness, they will come rest on your chest and stare into your eyes. That’s my cat’s way of saying, “I’m here for you, but can you fill up my bowl?” While I love my cat and am exceptionally happy with my
decision to save her two years ago, I have learned that cats, like Gremlins, come with rules. First you must never, ever give them milk. Having been raised on a steady diet of cartoons at a young age, it seemed like a logical decision to give my cat milk when I first brought her home. It was a treat, right? Wrong. What followed were some of the most horrid kitty farts and feline excrement my nose has ever had the displeasure of encountering. You should also avoid exposing them to the strips of plastic that come off of milk carton tops. They can be deadly, because most, if not all, cats will go into freak-out mode and play intensely with them to the point that they are unaware of their surroundings. Doesn’t sound bad? Wait until that top accidentally ends up near your toe and the clawed edges become sharp spikes impaling the side of your foot. The last and most important rule is not to acknowledge your cat after 3 a.m.
This is just as important as restraining yourself from feeding the Mogwai after midnight. Your new kitty is nocturnal and may have a tendency to go crazy after that hour. You can watch your cat's earlymorning shenanigans, but don't participate unless you want to be pounced upon in bed and receive kitten nibbles on the nose. While at first this is adorable, the "awww, cute" feeling stops after the fourth or fifth bite. So in conclusion, cats are awesome. If you don’t like cats, you probably enjoy punching babies and are a terrible person. But make sure that if you do make the decision to own a cat you do so responsibly. Take care of your fuzzy friends. This includes shots, neutering and spaying. If you take care of them and show them the utmost love, owning a cat is sure to be one of your most rewarding college decisions. Trevor Platt can be reached at sportseditor@theorion.com
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HOUSING GUIDE
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HOUSING GUIDE
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Ads remind students of home life Katie Akeson Opinion Columnist
Whenever I turn on my TV, I am greeted by a cheerful flow of familiar characters that entertain me during the commercial break, instantly reminding me of home. Whether it's the commercial’s mascot, the clever catch phrase or the catchy tune, these recurring advertisements attach themselves to us and become routine parts of our lives. Most of the time we begin with a reluctant dislike of the recurring character, yet over the years we find ourselves developing a bond with these personalities. By whatever technological means we use to watch TV, advertisements have a way of breezing into the space that rests between our favorite shows. Some of these are satisfactory while others remain dull, and the
majority are more or less forgettable. meaning of common phrases like The commercials that make us look “Can you hear me now?” which will up, however, are the ones that resur- always share ties with the previous face with memorability. Verizon Wireless commercials. Whether our favorite personality And how many of us have wished is Flo the Progressive girl, the Trave- that we could “do the jingle” and be locity gnome or the delinquent Sour saved by the State Farm agent who Patch gummy, the mannerisms of appears in our backseat? these characters become ingrained We don’t always get so attached in our minds. to these ads, because they are ingeChester Cheeniously clever. tah has served as Some of the The commercials that the Cheetos mascot commercials are make us look up are since the '80s, but so bad that we are has been recently the ones that resurface delighted to cut revamped to serve them up. My perwith memorability. as the cool instigasonal favorites to tor who recommends criticize are Aflac people use Cheetos in acts of ads. These obnoxiously catchy comrevenge. mercials keep us laughing between A couple years ago, I turned a our favorite shows and provide a welcold shoulder to the new FreeCred- comed oasis of family and home. itReport.com group after the original My theory is that these advertiseband I had become accustomed to ments encapsulate the same feelings vanished. of relaxation and gratification we Our favorite commercials can felt during the shows we watched. be credited for forever altering the Watching television serves as quality
time with our friends and family and allows us to temporarily forget about our troubles and release our stresses. Commercials remind us not only of home, but also of that awesome sixhour "The Walking Dead" marathon we indulged in last weekend. We unconsciously recognize these characters have been around for a while and will probably be around for a while to come, and this stability provides us with a sense of security. For college students, these commercials channel familiar faces into our unfamiliar surroundings and remind us of home in an unthreatening way. While we may convince ourselves that we will never be caught dead humming the “Who’s that Lady?” song from the Swiffer Sweeper commercials or that we'll never take a liking to the Aflac Duck, we may find ourselves a little heartbroken when they are finally taken off the air. Katie Akeson can be reached at kakeson@theorion.com
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6 pros and cons of living ridiculously close to campus Katrina Cameron Features Editor
I live so close to campus that I often roll out of bed 15 minutes before my 9 a.m. class begins. Although that doesn’t sound like much time, during those 15 minutes I brush my teeth, put a little makeup on, throw my hair in a bun and speed-walk to the third floor of Tehama Hall with a minute to spare. Living ridiculously close to campus was all I cared about when I signed my lease. But the longer I live with the Wildcat Recreation Center across the street to my left and the Student Services Center to the right, the more I question if I can deal with being in the center of downtown Chico. There are definitely a few pros and cons to my living situation, so take these into consideration when you go house-hunting. You might be interested in living this close if you’re a procrastinator or a party animal. Pros: Catching up on Z's I press the snooze button when my blaring alarm goes off at least five times every morning. I’d like to apologize to my boyfriend and my roommate for this.
As long as my bag is packed for the day ahead of time, I can catch up on as much sleep as possible right before class. Shoot, I even go home to nap between classes sometimes. If I have 20 minutes, I definitely have enough time to get a power nap in.
Cons:
Keeping a party small I will never throw a dance party at my house again, not after all the damage random partiers did to my backyard last semester. Downtown drunks mixed with inexperienced freshmen crawling out from the dorms sniffing Perfect attendance out parties were probably drawn Believe it or to the loud music not, I haven't and flashing lights missed one class before they made You might be last semester. the assumption interested in living I’m the type they could just this close if you're a of student who join the party and procrastinator or a needs to be prestrash my yard. ent in class and This is just a party animal. vigorously take guess, but I think notes during lecI knew about 50 tures, because I’ll of the 300-plus fall behind if I miss a day. guests who graced my shindig I’ll come to school equipped with their unwanted presence. with cough drops, tissues and Once a party gets that out of hand sanitizer before I take a sick hand and people don’t recogday. nize who lives there, there’s no turning back, and your house is Being more active automatically one of those "crazy With my busy schedule, I prob- party houses” with large, mysteably wouldn’t be able to find the rious stains on the carpet and no time to work out throughout the toilet paper. week if the WREC wasn’t literally right outside my window. It’s always loud I don’t have to worry about I figured the streets of downwalking home late at night, some- town Chico would be near silent one stealing my belongings from compared to the city noises I grew a locker or changing in the locker- up listening to in San Diego. room. Well, I was very wrong. Ironically, my laziness has If it isn’t the drunken obnoxmade me a more active person. ious shouts of “Yeah!” and “Woo!”
coming from patrons walking home from Riley’s or Madison Bear Garden, then it’s the crappy music coming from house parties or pedi-cab drivers. I’ve literally heard my neighbors play country music until 6 a.m. Sunday morning. I have also shouted at a pedi-cab driver at 3 a.m. to turn his distorted-sounding speakers down. Needless to say, I don’t get much studying done at home during the weekend without blasting my own tunes through my headphones. My house is old Sometimes I can’t help but wonder how old this place is, how many people have lived in these rooms and what has happened within these corridors throughout the years. I’ve come to the conclusion that my roommate and I have been the absolute cleanest and most careful tenants our humble abode has housed. Our upstairs balcony is tilted forward, most of our windows don’t lock, the ventilation is terrible and my bathroom is the size of a broom closet. We also don’t have any basic amenities like a clothes washer or a dryer, but luckily, I can do my laundry at my boyfriend’s newer apartment on Nord Avenue. Katrina Cameron can be reached at featureseditor@theorion.com
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HOUSING GUIDE
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Living alone provides several benefits Thomas Martinez Opinion Columnist
So you lived in the dorms and didn’t like it. Now you're thinking, “Let me find a roommate like me on Craigslist.” Six months pass after you move in with the one you find, and you're fighting constantly. That didn’t work. Have you consider living by yourself for a little bit? I've discovered firsthand that it's really affordable to live by yourself. Here are some reasons why you should re-evaluate your living conditions before next semester and try living by yourself in the fall. Privacy Everyone knows that living by yourself comes with privacy. But it doesn't become clear just how much
privacy you get until you move in. You get the privacy that lets you hang out in your birthday suit all day. You can do this sort of thing when you live alone.
claims, "Half of the front room is mine,” or the famous, “I pay rent here, too.” The solution to this problem we've all encountered is to live by yourself.
Studying Most hard-charging Wildcats settle for visiting the library to finish their homework. But what about when it’s raining and you have an extensive research paper to write? You can go in the rain and get wet, or you can write out that paper in the comfort of your gym clothes. You can also study in the nude if you prefer, because guess what? No roommates. Pursue relationships Have you ever had that annoying roommate who’s just always around in the living room when you're trying to seal the deal with the person you brought home? There's also the roommate who
Hobbies You might have nosy roommates who go into your room and get into your stuff. That can be really, really annoying at times. You might even consider not pursuing a hobby because of it. I have found that living by myself allows me to pursue a hobby free from any bothers. I can leave my house the way I left it, and when I come back I never hear, “Sorry, bro. I broke your Xbox.” Cleanliness This one is pretty self-explanatory: when you live solo, you can be as clean — or as dirty — as you want.
When you leave your dishes piled up for a couple of days and come home from a hard day at school or work, you might tell yourself that you'll simply do the dishes tomorrow. And if you live by yourself, you can do that. Whatever your living conditions might be and whatever the problems that come with living with roommates are, remember that you don't have to have roommates at all in college. If you don’t want to do your dishes one night, you don’t have to do them. And you won't have to come home to excuses about how there's something wrong with your laptop from a roommate who has been vegging all day. Thomas Martinez can reached at tmartinez@theorion.com
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HOUSING GUIDE
Noisy fights eliminate peaceful environment for schoolwork, talking overhear on the phone are the expletives being yelled across the hallway. A friend of mine who lives in University Village is constantly comKatie Akeson plaining about a couple that lives in Opinion Columnist the building across from her. Consider this: you are exerting On a few occasions they have every ounce of your energy toward put their own twist on a scene from unraveling the mysteries of quantum "Romeo and Juliet:" she screams physics when the couple next door vulgarities down at him from the balbegins arguing. cony while he scrambles around the As the argument escalates, the vol- lawn gathering whatever belongings ume rises and you hear every word she has tossed to the ground. being heedlessly expelled. My friends from Lassen Hall share Soon one of them is storming out similar — although less dramatic the door yelling obscenities, and the — stories of the endlessly feuding chapter you're reading is drowned couples that live on their floor. From out by domestic drama. what I’ve been told, it seems as if couEvery couple has a right to the ples tend to cross the border into the occasional argument, but not if they girl's side to launch their battle. fight in a way that broadcasts their Relationship drama is meant to problems to the world. And it seems stay within the relationship, and as though these rowdy couples pick shouldn’t be shared with neighbors the most inconvenient times to insti- or the general public. gate arguments. These arguments sometimes turn Whether I am trying to study, some of us into cheerleaders, rooting Skype with friends, or talking on for one side or the other. But I would the phone, the pestering noise thun- rather grab my headphones in an dering in the background makes it attempt to drown out the irritating impossible for me noise. to focus. Students No matter how These couple-scuffles have plenty of stress I cope, the fact wouldn't be so bad if without these pubremains: I have the volume wasn't at lic brawls pounding become a captive additional headaches audience mema level that affected into their lives. ber to the ongoing everyone around. These couple-scufdrama. fles wouldn’t be so Those who are bad if the volume wasn’t at a level about to slip into a screaming duel that affected everyone around. with their partner should be aware of If both parties kept their voices the people around them and keep it down, it would allow them to main- down. A low volume, sarcastic snarl tain a calm, rational mindset while can sufficiently replace screeching at communicating, and it would ensure an ear-splitting level. that the details of their personal lives would remain private. Katie Akeson can be reached at The last thing I want my mom to kakeson@theorion.com
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SPRING 2013
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