Spring Planner 2014 - Vol. 72, Issue 1 by The Orion

SPRING PLANNER

PARTY HARD, STUDY HARDER DITCHING YOUR COMFORT ZONE EVENTS NOT TO MISS THIS SPRING ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT AROUND TOWN

2014

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WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22, 2014

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Last Information Night Thursday, January 23rd CCLC at 7pm

We encourage everyone to come check it out to get more information about going Greek!

Last Day to Sign Up For

Spring 2014 Formal Recruitment

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Wednesday, January 29th, 2014

Spring 2014 Formal Recruitment February 5th-9th

You can visit our website at www.chicosororities.com

Link to sign up :

https://csuchi.icsrecruiter.com/pan/enrollment/Registration.aspx?UID=CSUCHI

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Tracker • Identify your bus I.D. code

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• Text code to 27299 • Receive bus arrival time • Enjoy your ride! Chico State students ride for free with student I.D.!

For more information, visit www.blinetransit.com

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Breaking out of your comfort zone 5 activities not to miss this semester Moderate to stay sane through the spring Explore arts, culture around town

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contributors

what's inside

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22, 2014

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Whether it’s your last semester, or your first — don’t waste it. College is a beautiful experience.

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Ernesto Rivera

Ernesto Rivera is a junior journalism major with a passion for multimedia journalism. He is a transfer student from Southwestern College in Chula Vista, Calif. This semester Ernesto is the managing editor of The Orion and has the pleasure of working with a talented group of reporters, photographers, videographers and managers. He hopes to help the new and returning staff reach their fullest potential and produce high-quality journalism.

Liz Coffee

Liz Coffee is a senior business major, drawing extraordinaire, cat enthusiast and owner of a Costco Club card. Her hobbies include drawing pictures of cats and sarcasm. She gives great high fives and can do a spotless impersonation of every single one of her three roommates.

Risa Johnson

Risa Johnson is a sophomore journalism student who has written on the features and news staff of The Orion for three semesters. Risa wants the features section to be a place where readers can find something to relate to and find articles that are serviceable to them. When she isn't editing or writing, Risa can often be found running. She will study abroad next semester in Viterbo, Italy. Risa has hopes to one day write for National Geographic.

Liz Coffee Art Director

Nicole Santos

Nicole Santos is a junior at Chico State. Her major is journalism with an option in news-editorial and her minor is music. Nicole is the arts editor and this is her third semester working for The Orion. Previously, she wrote as an opinion columnist and features writer. She enjoys immersing herself in music, acapella singing and hiphop dance in her free time.

The Orion ∤ ILLUSTRATION BY LIZ COFFEE

The Orion ∤ PHOTOGRAPHS BY JAMIE STRYKER

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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• The Orion does not publish anonymous letters, letters that are addressed to a third party or letters that are in poor taste. The opinions expressed by The Orion’s columnists do not necessarily reflect those of The Orion or its staff.

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WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22, 2014

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Breaking out of your comfort zone Ernesto Rivera M ANAGING EDITOR

In my six months of living here I found a comfort zone and I found it fast. I spent all last semester between Plumas and Tehama halls because that’s what I knew. I had found my classes, I knew where to go to work and I never wanted to stray off the easy path I had created for myself. Even a trek to the Marketplace Cafe or the Bell Memorial Union felt like an adventure to me. Aside from a few small trips my whole last semester was spent at school, work and a daily standing appointment with Netflix. This semester I’m dedicating my short amount of free time to break out of my comfort zone and explore a town that still feels brand new. Here are a few ways I'm going to do that: Observe my surroundings Too often my eyes are glued to the place I’m going and I completely ignore the unfamiliar buildings that whiz right past me. Now I'll put my phone away and stop refreshing my Facebook feed to really observe my surroundings. I'll pay close attention to the details of my environment to enrich my experience. Walk more One of the best ways to explore what this town has to offer is leaving the car at home and taking a walk. The short walk to downtown Chico can introduce you to new stores. It wasn’t until the Christmas Preview that I found out about the cool independent bookstores so close to campus. A good way to do this is to pick a central location and take the long way. Choosing to walk to City Plaza and zig-zag through downtown will introduce me to places I’ve driven passed dozens of times. Another great way to do this is by not choosing an end location and to just walk around aimlessly for hours. Who knows what else there is to find in this quaint little town.

The Orion ∤ ILLUSTRATION BY RACHEL DUGO

semester I'll make more of an effort to take the long way home.

is the best way to know the town.

Socialize outside my major If I heard two engineering majors on campus talking about their ridiculously complicated classes, I'd run the opposite direction and whisper to myself, "It's OK, it's OK, you never have to take math again." Now I want to embrace more people outside my major. I love the people in my major, we share a lot of the same classes and interests so it's easy to become fast friends. But now I want to engage with more people who didn't choose the best major on this campus. They will offer unique perspectives and it'll help me learn more about other students at Chico State.

I know a lot of these tasks sound hard. Why would anyone walk around a scary new town when the comfort of Netflix is just a click away? During my first couple of weeks here at Chico State, I was glad to find a comfort zone and support group, something I didn’t think I’d find until much later in my college career. But now I know that if I don’t break free from it, I’ll never really see everything this town has to offer. After all, I’ll only be here two more years. OK, OK maybe three.

Even a trek to the Marketplace Cafe or the Bell Memorial Union felt like an adventure to me.

Bike around town Last semester I biked exclusively to two places: school and home. I can tell myself that the reason I didn't wear down my tires more was because I wanted to preserve my precious two-wheeled friend (even though it was later stolen). But in all honesty, I just wanted to get to class on time, even though I never did, and get home to the comfort of my pajamas and computer screen. Chico is a great city for biking and this

Talk to strangers Talking to strangers is often terrifying. Even talking to my own friends can feel exhausting. Most days I just want a barista to hand over my coffee and cut the chit chat but this semester I’m going make more of an effort to talk to people, especially those who have been here much longer than I have. Striking up conversations with other students and locals can be the best way to familiarise yourself with this town. Not only will people give you great recommendations but knowing the people

Ernesto Rivera can be reached at managingeditor@theorion.com or @ernestorivera on Twitter.

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WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22, 2014

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5 activities not to miss this semester for this one. If you’ve never swam in Bear Hole or climbed Monkey Face in Upper Bidwell Park, just go. Right now.

Risa Johnson FEATURES EDITOR

It’s time to put up the snowboard and bring out the hiking boots. This is my fourth semester at Chico State and I am determined to make it memorable. Last year showed me a lot of what Chico has to offer. It began to feel like home when I got involved in the community. But I want to see more. I found some activities to get me outside and relieve school stress this spring. Here’s what’s on my checklist: 1. Go on a trip with Adventure Outings. This semester I really want to go camping and learn to stand-up paddleboard. Adventure Outings is offering a three-day camping trip in Lassen for about $50 per student Feb. 14-17. On May 8, they are going stand-up paddleboarding on the Sacramento River for $15 per student. Trips fill up fast. Adventure Outings’ entire spring trip schedule is available at: aschico.com/advo/aotripschedule. 2. Visit Bidwell Park at least once a week. The recent weather of high 70s in January is the only explanation needed

3. Do some outdoor volunteer service. Community Action Volunteers in Education is one organization on campus that has multiple programs where you can work outside. Adopt-a-Park is one of them, where students clean up Bidwell Park. I participated in the Animal Connection program, where I mostly ran around with dogs all day — my personal heaven. See CAVE’s complete list of volunteer programs at: aschico.com/cave/ volunteerprograms. 4. Buy food from the market more often. We are lucky to have the Saturday morning and Thursday night markets. I regret not going more often, so I’m going to stop that right now and make time to go this semester. The Chico Farmers Market market takes place year-round from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays at Second and Wall streets. Thursday Night Market starts up again April 3-Sept. 25 from 6 to 9 p.m. 5. Participate in a color run. This is basically a huge dance party where everyone dresses up in white and colored powdered is blasted throughout the 5K run. The Color Run might come to Chico, guys. The list of stops on the tour is being made now. If you’re interested, sign up on the VIP list here: www.thecolorrun.com/vip-list/. I know that it’s easy to get caught up in schoolwork and

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE COLOR RUN

repeatedly say no to activities because we are “too busy.” But in the scheme of things, all of these activities are cheap, if not free and don’t take much time. So try something new this semester and get outside. I bet you’ll be glad you did. Risa Johnson can be reached at featureseditor@theorion.com or @risapisa on Twitter.

Moderate to stay sane through the spring Liz Coffee ART DIRECTOR

When I was 15, I knew everything. I was the smartest girl on the planet. Then I moved out and next thing I knew I was on the phone with my mother asking her how to cook rice. We have all had that moment, the epiphany that your parents were right. Mine occurred when I realized that I couldn’t do it all. Between the gallons of coffee, a full course load and two jobs, my mom kept appearing in my head and she would always say, “everything in moderation, Lizzy.” What a concept: everything in moderation. I’m young, I’m ambitious, but I’m only human. In my endless quest to be Super Woman, I was slowly losing my sanity. Maybe I can’t get the grades, party like a rock star and get eight hours of sleep every night. As I near graduation, I look back and see just how much stress I could have avoided. College is a delicate balancing act, and if perfected you can be a superhero and keep your sanity.

1. Get some sleep. Naps are your friend. You may have loathed them as a child, but as a college student they are invaluable. If you have a big project due, go ahead and make that pot of coffee at 1 a.m. Stay up late. Just make sure you make up for it somehow. I’m just useless without sleep and 10 cappuccinos simply cannot replace some good old-fashioned REM sleep. 2. Put down the cheeseburger. I’m not saying that you should give up on the wonderful people of In-N-Out, just try fit some vegetables in every once in a while. I’ve had many bad days that end with my two besties Ben and Jerry, but making a routine of it would only add to the stress. The better you eat, the better you will feel. 3. Party on, Wayne. I mean it. You’re awesome. You passed your accounting test and you listened to your younger sister talk about One Direction without strangling her. Reward yourself, you deserve it. Just don’t reward yourself every night; power hour will be there next week.

crawl, that guy in your anthropology class wants you to tutor him and your boss wants you to stay late and come early. There are 24 hours in the day, and you only have two hands. Be honest, they will understand. 5. Log off. Get off the damn Internet. Facebook, Instagram, Buzzfeed, Reddit or whatever you do. Seriously, you will look just as good tomorrow for a #selfie. No one wants to look back on their college years and think “Man, I sure got a lot of likes on that status.” No matter how #awesome you think your online life is, it's not nearly as awesome as enjoying it in the real world. These are some of the best years of your life; let's enjoy it without constantly posting about it. Go outside. Whether it’s your last semester, or your first — don’t waste it. College is a beautiful experience and you truly can do it all, just maybe not as much as you originally thought you could. Liz Coffee can be reached at

4. Learn to say "no." This might be the most difficult. Your roommate wants you to come to her little’s 21st birthday bar

artdirector@theorion.com or @lizthecoffee on Twitter.

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WEDNESDAY, JAN. 22, 2014

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Explore arts, culture around town Dance

Nicole Santos ARTS EDITOR

I’m thankful to live in a college town that appreciates the arts. Whether you’re interested in music, live performances, artwork or dance, you name it and I bet you can find someplace on campus or in Chico to show off and embrace your creative and artsy side. Nicole Santos can be reached at artseditor@theorion.com or @Iam_NicoleS on Twitter.

Open Mic and Karaoke

I’ve been involved with music my entire life. I’ve taken several music classes and performed in both band and choir ensembles so it’s great to be involved in a community where music is alive and playing all over town. I never knew there were ways to share my passion for singing outside of the classrooms on campus. Advertisements for open mic nights are something that caught my eye last semester and Chico offers many great places to belt it out if karaoke is more your style. If you are like me and would like to step outside of the shower curtain for once and sing in front of an audience or with friends here are a few places in town that can help you achieve that goal: · The Bear: Bear-e-oke every Monday night from 9 p.m. to close (21 and over) · The Maltese (21 and over) Open Mic: Every other Monday from 9 p.m. to close Karaoke: Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 p.m. to close · Other places that offer open mic nights include 100th Monkey Cafe & Books and Cafe Flo.

If you’d rather bust a move, our campus provides plenty of clubs you can join and the community offers plenty of places to take lessons and learn. On-campus dance organizations: · Momentum · ENVY · Ballroom Dance Club · Expressions Off-campus dance studios: · Chico Creek Dance Centre · Hype Dance Studio · Studio One Ballroom · Kinetics Academy of Dance Don’t forget the Wildcat Recreation Center offers Fuego classes, which are nonstop cardio classes that infuse Latin dance and hip-hop in one. I recommend these classes to anyone who wants to sweat their way through a fun workout. Also, for those who say they “can’t dance,” it’s a great way to let go of that fear and just shimmy while burning more calories.

Live Performances

If you appreciate the arts, but singing and dancing aren’t your cup of tea, there are plenty of live performances that take place on or off campus to enjoy throughout the week and on the weekends. Check out on-campus performances courtesy of: · Chico State’s music and theatre department · Chico Performances: held in Laxson Auditorium · Chico State's School of the Arts · Union Label Check out off-campus performances at: · 1078 Gallery · Cafe Coda · Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.'s Big Room · Cafe Flo · Senator Theatre · Chico Certified Farmers’ Market: Every Saturday · Thursday Night Market