2011-11-04

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THE TUFTS DAILY

TUFTSDAILY.COM

Friday, November 4, 2011

VOLUME LXII, NUMBER 40

Where You Read It First Est. 1980

Kenzaburô Ôe kicks off Japanese literature conference by

Brionna Jimerson

Daily Editorial Board

Internationally acclaimed Japanese author and Nobel laureate Kenzaburô Ôe last night engaged in candid conversation with Tufts Professor of Japanese Susan Napier about his personal history and the inspirations for his work.

The dialogue served as a kickoff for the 2011 Association for Japanese Literary Studies (AJLS) Conference, titled “The Poetics of Aging: Confronting, Resisting and Transcending Mortality in the Japanese Narrative Arts,” which is to be hosted on the Hill this weekend.

The event last night, “Kenzaburô Ôe in conversation with Susan Napier” was sponsored in part by the Center for Humanities at Tufts. The conversation focused on Ôe’s background: growing up in post-World War II Japan, his firsthand experiences with both natural and man-made disaster and the inspiration for his work.

Napier began the conversation by asking for Ôe’s opinion on and experience with the Japan tsunami and earthquake last spring. Ôe, an outspoken advocate for marginalized populations in Japan and throughout the world, highlighted the reporting inaccuracies of the international press during the tsunami and earthquake.

“The victims are small children, school boys in Fukushima,” Ôe said. “They are affected, with very great contamination.”

He noted that those people most nega-

Misako Ono/Tufts Daily

The 20th annual Association for Japanese Literary Studies (AJLS) Conference kicked off last night with a discussion between Professor of Japanese Susan Napier and author and Nobel laureate Kenzaburô Ôe. tively impacted by the nuclear contamination were not the same people who were benefiting from the nuclear plants.

“Japan is very important in the creation of power companies and intellectuals,” Ôe said. “When it was happening, the people of Fukushima didn’t use the energy from the nuclear plants. We Tokyo people used the energy.” Ôe cited several novels, including “The

Latino Heritage Month concludes by

Patrick McGrath Daily Staff Writer

Tufts last week concluded its celebration of Latino Heritage Month, commemorated through a variety of campus events, including a gallery exhibit, a salsa dance event and a poetry slam.

The month concluded with a poetry reading by National Poetry Slam champion Mayda del Valle and an open mic night sponsored by the Association of Latin American Students (ALAS) and the Arts, Sciences and Engineering Diversity Fund on Oct. 27.

Del Valle’s presentation featured a variety of poems, including some from her days as a teenager on the South Side of Chicago. Del Valle said she wanted to inspire the audience to pursue their goals.

“Sometimes we are not encouraged to do what we like,” del Valle said.

The open mic evening took place, as it has in years past, during the Voices of Tufts event for prospective students, many of whom attended it, according to Director of the Latino Center Rubén Salinas Stern.

ALAS President Gabriela GuchoOliva helped plan the event, which she thought appealed to a wider audience this year.

“We’re truly working on trying to reach the bigger student body than just our small niche group,” Gucho-Oliva, a senior, said. “And with certain events like Mayda del Valle — having a poet come instead of just making it an open [mic night] type of thing — I think that really helped bring in other people, because usually people aren’t really open to just coming in and then performing, especially for a really small community.”

Other events held throughout the month included an exhibition of

sculpture busts by artist Ken GonzalesDay and a dinner discussion titled “Multicultural Connections: Impact of Race in the Workplace,” according to Stern.

Another prominent event called “Latinos Take Over Hotung” featured a salsa band and a DJ performance.

Gucho-Oliva was very pleased with the turnout, explaining that the event attracted a more diverse crowd than normal.

“We just had a really huge crowd, at least for the salsa part,” she said. “We reached capacity within the hour, and those same people stayed for at least more than half the night.”

Latino Heritage Month takes place nationally between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15, as the independence days of eight Latin American countries fall during this period. Tufts traditionally celebrates the month a little later to facilitate planning for events, according to Stern.

The month-long celebration is designed to honor Latin-American culture across the United States. “[Latinos] have a history here; they have a culture here,” he said. “This is not a foreign focus. This is part of U.S. history, U.S. culture. I don’t want to see it separated.”

Latino Heritage Month was more successful this year than it has been in years past, Stern noted, and he expects to see it continue to grow.

“I think that it’s changed in the sense that I think it’s a little more established,” Stern said. “People know about it.”

Stern hopes to see more students of different backgrounds attending the month’s events.

“We always want a diverse group of students to come to our events,” Stern said. “We’re not invested in only having Latino students attend Latino events.”

Inside this issue

Adventures of Tom Sawyer” and “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” as his inspirations for navigating the themes of identity and modernity in an everchanging Japanese social and physical landscape. Ôe explained that among his greatest inspirations was his son, Hikari, who has suffered from brain damage since birth.

“For years, my son didn’t speak. He

can listen to music, the voice of mother or father, but we could not figure out the problem in his ear,” Ôe shared. Today, at 48 years old, Hikari is a famed and wildly successful classical music composer.

One of his novels, “Rouse Up O Young Men of the New Age,” (1986) focuses on Ôe’s personal struggle within his family.

“The stories are based on some very typical situations between the relationship between my family and my son,” Ôe said.

The three-day conference, which begins this afternoon, brings to campus scholars and writers of Japanese literature from across the globe.

With more than half a century of experience under his belt, Ôe, at 76, continues to challenge both the artistic and political systems through the constant evolution of his writing.

“Mr. Ôe is more experimental, pushing the envelope in his own writing. That’s what he represents — he’s still very energetic, very lively,” Napier said.

The Japanese Program at Tufts has been preparing to host the 20th annual meeting of the AJLS since 2009, according to the Chair of the Department of German, Russian and Asian Languages and Literatures Hosea Hirata.

“As we began thinking about the possible theme for the conference, we began talking about how Japan had produced some superb literary works dealing with aging,” see ÔE, page 2

Tufts earns silver star rating by

Audrey Michael

Contributing Writer

The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) awarded Tufts’ Office of Sustainability (OOS) a silver rating for its efforts to improve environmental sustainability on campus.

STARS, a program run by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), rates colleges and universities based on self-reported data to measure their sustainability performance.

At the 2011 AASHE annual conference early last month, the OOS received a silver-star window cling to display, according to Program Director for the OOS Tina Woolston.

The OOS submitted data to STARS for a ranking on Aug. 1, the first time that the OOS had competed for a ranking, according to Woolston.

Tufts received a score of 62.73. The next highest rating, a gold star, would have required 65 points.

STARS uses three categories, Education

and Research, Operations and Planning, Administration and Engagement to rate colleges and universities. A school can also receive innovation credits in recognition of exceptional development in an area.

Tufts received 61.01 percent of possible points in Education and Research, 36.30 percent in Operations, and 78.88 percent in Planning, Administration and Engagement, along with four innovation credits.

“The rating pinpoints where we’re doing well and where we’re lagging behind,” senior Rachael Wolber, an intern at the OOS who worked on gathering the data for the STARS report, said.

College sustainability experts spent three years developing the STARS rating system, Woolston explained.

STARS makes all data submitted to it from colleges and universities public, making it easier for other organizations publishing rankings to rate the schools as well, according to Woolston. She noted that in the past Tufts has chosen not to submit surveys to see SUSTAINABILITY, page 2

Reminder

Shuttle Service to Harvard to start this weekend Due to weekend Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority Red Line closures north of Harvard Square, Tufts will offer a shuttle service beginning this weekend between campus and Davis, Porter and Harvard Squares.

The shuttle will run on Saturdays and Sundays between 10 a.m. to 1:30 a.m.

It will pick up students at the Mayer Campus Center every hour on the hour and at Harvard Square at half-past each hour.

On the way to Harvard, it will stop at Davis Square five minutes past the hour and at Porter Square 10 minutes past the hour.

On the way to campus, it will pick up riders at 45 minutes past the hour at Porter Square and at 50 minutes past the hour in Davis Square.

Service will commence this Saturday and continue through March 4, 2012.

Today’s sections

Students share their stress-release secrets during Midterms Week.

The Daily reviews Drake Doremus’ ‘Like Crazy.’

see FEATURES, page 3

see ARTS, page 5

News & Features Arts & Living Comics

1 5 8

Classifieds Sports

11 Back

The Tufts Daily

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THE TUFTS DAILY Carter W. Rogers Editor-in-Chief

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Editorialists

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News & FEATURES

Friday, November 4, 2011

IR diplomas open many doors for Jumbos by

Munir Atalla

Contributing Writer

It’s often said that the importance of a college graduate’s specific undergraduate degree melts away in the real world as graduates find their fit regardless of what they spent all those hours in Tisch madly memorizing. Future liberal arts graduates can take comfort in the story of the English major that opens a restaurant or the Political Science major who spends their post-graduation years happily at the head of a preschool classroom.

For majors in one of Tufts’ most popular academic spheres, International Relations (IR), the future is even more unencumbered by expectations.

One of the most tricky things about finding a way to fit an IR degree into a practical career plan, according to IR Program Administrator John Taylor, is how truly diverse the field of study is. An IR major can study economics, history, international law, philosophy, geography, social work, sociology, anthropology, psychology, women’s studies or any mix of the above — and the list goes on.

“With IR, the door is wide open. It’s kind of a blessing and a curse,” Leslie Ogden, a senior and IR major, said. On the one hand, Ogden said, the major allows for expertise in a diverse range of topics.

“It’s helping to shape so many people’s

minds in so many different areas, regardless of your specialization, you are learning to make connections,” she said.

Taylor echoed the interdisciplinary nature of the program.

“IR is the study of international relations, but we have over 18 affiliated departments.

[Students] take courses in many different subject areas around Tufts, it is an interdisciplinary major that connects multiple different fields,” he said.

Because of this flexibility, IR alumni have the skills necessary to make it in a wide variety of jobs.

“The IR major really prepares students to pursue a wide variety of potential career paths,” Taylor said. “From the class of 2011 alone, we had students end up in the federal government, the Peace Corps, Teach for America, finance and management consulting, and we’ve had students work for newspapers and other publications all around the world.”

Rather than prepare students for one or a handful of occupations as an education in chemical engineering, for example, IR strives to provide students with the necessary skill set to take on an impossibly wide range of challenges and occupations. Teacher and blogger Karl Fisch infamously stated that “We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist, using technologies that haven’t been invented, in order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems yet.” This is the

goal of the IR field.

Justin Ferranti, a senior, hopes to apply his IR degree to a career in international business.

“I’m hoping to use the skills and knowledge I have gained and apply it in the international business realm,” Ferranti said. “[Through IR] I have learned to interact with multiple cultures and I believe it could be put to good use in the world of entrepreneurship.”

Ogden has specialized in security studies, and said she hopes to apply this in tandem with her interest in sustainable development.

Ogden said the prestige of an IR degree specifically from Tufts opens the window for post-graduation opportunities. “First of all, there’s [the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy] right there next to us,” Ogden said.

“It’s great to be able to take advantage of their facilities and professors alike,” Ogden said. “I actually came to Tufts because of IR,” she noted. “There’s an automatic degree of respect that comes with a Tufts degree.”

While IR majors may seem to be dime a dozen on the Hill, the truth is that with such a wide variety of possible specializations, no two IR students are alike. IR majors have a world of opportunity ahead of them, and paired with a Tufts reputation, there are sure to be some Jumbos in the headlines of the future.

Sustainability office considers ways to improve green rating SUSTAINABILITY

continued from page 1

other well-known organizations like the Sierra Club because of the time it takes to complete the surveys.

STARS’ method of publicizing its data also allows schools to see what programs other colleges and universities have implemented, according to Wolber.

“We can look and see what programs [other schools] have and see how we could adopt something similar,” she said.

Hannah Kahler, a senior OOS intern, identified Tufts’ focus on educating both students and faculty as one of its greatest strengths.

“We do a really great job of having leaders in the community that can help answer any questions for sustainability efforts on campus,” she said.

Woolston noted that Tufts scored lower in certain areas that judge improvement because STARS uses 2005 as a base year to measure certain data.

“Because Tufts has been recycling since 1990, you didn’t see a big difference, but some of these schools were not recycling at all before 2005,” Woolston said. “Tufts is at a disadvantage because we started doing stuff early.”

She added, however, that a newer version of the STARS rating system, version 1.1, will address these shortcomings. Tufts submitted its data under version 1.0 this year.

Woolston and Wolber have begun to brainstorm ways to improve Tufts’ STARS rating next time.

“One of the easiest things to do, and what one might argue has the largest impact, is to reduce our carbon footprint, which is tied to our burning of fossil fuels,” Woolston said. “That’s a very large impact of ours, so that would be where we want to focus first.”

Woolston stressed that student and community participation in sustainability efforts is extremely important in reducing Tufts’ environmental impact.

Virginia Bledsoe/Tufts Daily

Tufts’ Office of Sustainability, scoring high in the area of planning, administration and engagement, earned a silver star for its green efforts.

“We hope that students and the Tufts community can see how they fit into the plan, and how they can help Tufts achieve its goals,” she said.

Despite the new silver award, Woolston

noted that there are many additional things that Tufts can do to improve its green efforts.

“We still have a long ways to go in order to become truly sustainable,” she said.

Japanese author Ôe discusses past, inspirations

ÔE

continued from page 1

Hirata said. The conference’s theme of aging as represented and dissected in the Japanese narrative arts thus took form.

“Suddenly I realized that there was no one else except Ôe who could address the relationship between literature and aging in a most profound way because his later work all dealt with that very The Tufts Daily is a nonprofit, independent newspaper, published Monday through Friday during the academic year, and distributed free to the Tufts community. EDITORIAL POLICY Editorials represent the position of The Tufts Daily. Individual editors are not necessarily responsible for, or in agreement with, the policies and editorials of The Tufts Daily. The content of letters, advertisements, signed columns, cartoons and graphics does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Tufts Daily editorial board.

topic,” Hirata said.

Napier echoed Hirata’s sentiments, adding that Ôe, who will deliver the keynote address tonight, was the perfect choice for a speaker.

“It’s very special that he should come, as someone who has been thinking about the politics of aging, how we change as we grow older and express it in literature,” Napier said.

Clyde Samson, a Japanese Studies student from Bates College, trekked to Tufts for the conference and attended the event last night.

“I made the trip from Portland to Medford to hear Ôe and attend the conference this weekend,” said Samson.

“I’d be doing myself a disservice by not hearing the man who has informed my college career.”

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Friday, November 4, 2011

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News & FEATURES Chelsea Stevens | Loud Noises

Campus Comment: Midterm Stress

Late October and early November is a time usually plagued by midterms and papers, but that does not mean that there isn’t a way around it. Here are some way that Jumbos cope with the stress of midterms without resorting to competitive complaining.

For me, I usually try to stick with my workout schedule, because it’s important for me to work out two to three times a week to cope with stress.

I basically try and clear out my schedule first the day before, like if I have work the next day I try to skip that ...

I also change where I study; if I’m in Tisch early in the week I move to Ginn during the crunch time.

— Rachel Kornetsky, junior

— Jason Cheng, senior

Take a deep breath and think — there’s always graduate school.

— Kenneth Cohen, sophomore

I listen to music, I try to plan out a study schedule and I try to adhere to it. If you do that you’ll be fine.

— Eric Shaw, sophomore

I take five-minute workout breaks to take my mind off school.

— Anya Kaufmann, sophomore

Breathe in, breathe out.

— Melanie Rubin, sophomore

—compiled by Jon Cheng

Police Briefs Lighting up Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) at 2:12 a.m. on Oct. 25 responded to a fire alarm at the Sigma Nu fraternity house located at 92 Professors Row. When the officers arrived at the house, the brothers who lived there said the fire alarm was triggered by cigarette smoke. The officers could smell marijuana, however, and went to the second floor to investigate. The scent of marijuana was very strong on the second floor near where the alarm had been activated. It was determined that marijuana was the cause of the smoke and a report was sent to the Office of the Dean of Student Affairs.

Not so sneaky TUPD at 3:38 p.m. on Oct. 23 went to Hill Hall to investigate a report of the smell of marijuana. The smell appeared to be coming from the first floor, and the officers knocked on the door of the room where the smell was the strongest. When the students opened the door, there was a strong smell of marijuana. The officers also noticed a window air-conditioning unit and an air freshener. TUPD asked the students about the unit and learned that the Office of Residential Life and Learning had already asked the students to remove it. TUPD could not prove the smell of marijuana originated from that particular room.

Stolen and found A thief on Nov 1 broke into a student’s car parked on Capen St. Extended. A window of the car was broken with what appeared to be a rock, and the student’s GPS and pocketbook were taken. Later, a Medford resident found the pocketbook in his yard and returned it to the Medford Police Department (MPD). MPD gave the pocketbook to TUPD, and the officers are now attempting to locate the student and return her pocketbook. The identity of the thief was never discovered and the GPS is still missing.

IGone TUPD at 4:40 p.m. on Nov. 1 responded to a call that an off-campus house on Fairmount Street had been broken into. The house’s residents left their home at 1:00 p.m. and returned at 3:40 p.m. to find a window of the house broken. Inside, somebody had evidently gone through the occupants’ things and stolen a small amount of cash and three iPods. MPD also responded to the scene and is conducting the investigation.

—compiled by Marie Schow

It’s coming

A

s I’m sure even the sun-kissed Californians were able to glean from last Saturday’s storm, New England has boarded a one-way direct flight to winter and believe you me, we’re going to be here till mid-April “weather” you like it or not.

As a Northern New Englander myself, seeing snow before Halloween is by no means rare, and in my New Hampshire stomping grounds, trick-or-treating with long johns and neck gaiters is not only condoned but encouraged.

Nothing says “Happy Halloween” like the wailing scream of a frostbitten sugar-high four-year-old on Oct. 31. Around Tufts, those picturesque rust-colored leaves that are painting the campus beautifully will soon be replaced by a brownish slush, and if you, unlike me, made the terrible, terrible blunder of not joining the ski team, you’re in for a long couple of months.

But back to Halloween for now. What a great holiday. It’s like Christmas for college kids, except with more booze, fewer clothes, less composure and no presents.

My Halloweekend kicked off on Friday night with probably one of the top ten most wholesome costumes for a girl that night. A friend and I dressed as the twins from “The Parent Trap” (1998), and it was a real hit as we pranced around quoting the movie. However, in light of an inexplicable bout of amnesia, that seems to be all I can remember from Friday and will now move on to Saturday night’s observations.

Let’s recall: Saturday night was a f--king blizzard. Thus I made the executive decision to preserve my remaining shred of dignity by skipping round two of Halloween parties and settled for a relaxing night — after a hasty cost/benefit analysis, I remembered that Tufts frat parties aren’t, like, soooo fun that they are worth freezing my toes off. Around 10:30 p.m., I left South with a friend to go back to Wren. Handily, I had been doing errands earlier so I got to drive my car the .55 miles that I’d become so accustomed to walking, which was great given the inclement weather.

As I was unlocking my car, I noticed what must have been two baby prostitutes clad in short dresses and highheel shoes standing in six inches of snow outside of South. As I was in the midst of deciding which emotion — pity, or second-hand embarrassment — was more prominent at this sight, they confirmed that it was the latter by stumbling and slurring “HEY can you give us a ride to 123!?” Feeling uncomfortable and pretending not to hear, I jumped in my car, warmed it up and cleaned it off. About five minutes later when I got going, I laughed at the hilariously small amount of progress the two snow bunnies had made in their quasi-NQR trek to Packard Avenue.

So readers, winter is coming. Don’t let this week’s sunshine deceive you, because before you know it you’ll be trudging to Tisch through a foot of snow and then slipping on the ever-wet floor upon arrival. Every weekend girls will be faced with the winter-party dilemma of either hustling through the cold halfnaked, or running the risk of having their black North Face Denalis mixed up with someone else’s in a drunken stupor — see TuftsLife for examples.

Other than that, I know very little about the party scene in the winter, but from what I hear there’s a tangible lull as everyone realizes that holing up in their beds with a movie is the stronger play than fratting. I for one will survive by going skiing every weekend December through March, but to the rest of you suckers, good luck and godspeed. You’re gonna need it.

Chelsea Stevens is a sophomore who has not yet declared a major. She can be reached at Chelsea.Stevens@tufts.edu.

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Friday, November 4, 2011

Bummed about Red Line construction?

Hop on the HARVARD SHUTTLE! Effective Saturdays & Sundays 11/5/11 through 3/4/12 INBOUND Campus Center Davis Porter (Professors (Mass. Ave. Row) (Tedeschi) @ Mt. Vernon St.) 10:00 AM 10:05 AM 10:10 AM 11:00 AM 11:05 AM 11:10 AM 12:00 PM 12:05 PM 12:10 PM 1:00 PM 1:05 PM 1:10 PM 2:00 PM 2:05 PM 2:10 PM 3:00 PM 3:05 PM 3:10 PM 4:00 PM 4:05 PM 4:10 PM 5:00 PM 5:05 PM 5:10 PM 6:00 PM 6:05 PM 6:10 PM 7:00 PM 7:05 PM 7:10 PM 8:00 PM 8:05 PM 8:10 PM 9:00 PM 9:05 PM 9:10 PM 10:00 PM 10:05 PM 10:10 PM 11:00 PM 11:05 PM 11:10 PM 12:00 AM 12:05 AM 12:10 AM 1:00 AM 1:05 AM 1:10 AM 16 Runs

OUTBOUND Harvard Harvard (Eliot St. @ (Eliot St. @ Bennett St.) Bennett St.) 10:25 AM 10:30 AM 11:25 AM 11:30 AM 12:25 PM 12:30 PM 1:25 PM 1:30 PM 2:25 PM 2:30 PM 3:25 PM 3:30 PM 4:25 PM 4:30 PM 5:25 PM 5:30 PM 6:25 PM 6:30 PM 7:25 PM 7:30 PM 8:25 PM 8:30 PM 9:25 PM 9:30 PM 10:25 PM 10:30 PM 11:25 PM 11:30 PM 12:25 AM 12:30 AM 1:25 AM 1:30 AM

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16 Runs Note: All times are best estimates and subject to traffic and weather conditions.

Arts & Living

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tuftsdaily.com

Movie Review

Organic writing process gives ‘Like Crazy’ refreshing twist by

Charissa Ng

Daily Editorial Board

“Like Crazy” isn’t your typical small indie film. Unlike most art house films that fall under the radar, director Drake Doremus’

Like Crazy “Like Crazy” may actually have the rare poten-

Starring Felicity Jones, Anton Yelchin, Jennifer Lawrence Directed by Drake Doremus tial to win over mainstream audiences with its honest, no-frills characters and poignant story of young true love.

“Like Crazy” follows the whirlwind romance between British college student Anna (Felicity Jones) and her American classmate, Jacob (Anton Yelchin), in Los Angeles. When Anna overstays her student visa and is banned from returning to the United States, the couple is forced to maintain a long-distance relationship that neither one of them truly knows how to handle at such a young age.

Frankly, the plot of the film isn’t anything new. Two young people who fall in love and are forced apart by uncontrollable circumstances is the basis for any Nicholas Sparks movie. But “Like Crazy” is not your typical romantic drama, and Doremus makes sure of it. “Like Crazy” is different from other films because of the organic process by which it was produced.

The semi-autobiographical “Like Crazy” loosely portrays the director’s rollercoaster relationship with a woman in London that was also riddled with visa issues, time differences and thousands of miles of land and sea. Most people won’t know this before going to see the film, but none of that really matters. Within the first 15 minutes, viewers immediately get the sense that this isn’t just a fictional tale; it reads like a page out of someone’s life story.

Doremus’ execution of the film is even

more impressive, especially considering the film didn’t even have a script.

With nothing but a detailed 50-page outline to go by, the director and actors devoted time to do some soul-searching with the characters by delving into the depths of their emotions, back stories and subtext. After a couple of weeks of rehearsal, the film started rolling and Jones and Yelchin improvised all of the dialogue. Yes, all of it.

Yelchin is a natural at improv; he makes it easy for Jones to follow his lead. As for Jones, the intimate vulnerability and openness she brings to the character of Anna rightfully landed her the award for Best Actress at the Sundance Film Festival this year.

Similar to Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy’s characters in “Before Sunrise” (1995) and “Before Sunset” (2004), Yelchin and Jones have an incredible knack for improvisation that makes viewers feel like they’ve accidentally walked in on one of their private conversations. As Jones expressed in the pre-screening Q&A session, some of the best kinds of movies are the character development films seeped in dialogue — just two people talking with nothing to distract them but their own thoughts and feelings.

In one of the most powerful scenes in the film, the couple visits Catalina during their last days together before Anna has to return to London. The pair sits on a porch overlooking the ocean, and an American flag in the distance divides them on either side of the porch frame. The beauty of the scene lies in the casual innocence of Anna and Jacob’s conversation about tuna fish, as they fail to acknowledge the foreshadowing of their relationship — a symbol of the U.S. government is quite literally coming between them in the backdrop. Although the two are connected in the present, the flag still draws a barrier between them.

While the story follows Anna and Jacob’s relationship from the ages of 19 to 27, the conversations and scenes in “Like Crazy” often appear sporadic, but therein

MCT

‘Like Crazy’s’ organic and off-the-cuff dialogue gives its characters a realistic dimension lacking in many romances. lies the point Doremus is trying to make with this film. Real life isn’t about continuity; it’s about piecing together snippets of moments and conversations.

Originally, the film included timecards before every scene. Luckily, Doremus got rid of this technique because he found the timecards distracting. Instead, Doremus decided to use the film’s jump-cut style scenes to compel the audience to figure out the characters’ progression for themselves. While this might frustrate some moviegoers who are used to being spoon-fed timeframes so as not to be confused with plotlines, “Like Crazy” proves Doremus has a slightly higher respect for the competency of audiences than do most people in the film industry.

Studios were hardly put-off by Doremus’ bold techniques. In fact, the day after it was screened for the first time at Sundance earlier this year, “Like Crazy” was such a hit that Focus Features, Fox Searchlight, the Weinstein Co. and Paramount Pictures all jostled to snatch up the rights to the film. Ultimately, however, it was Paramount Pictures who acquired the art house film for a cool $4 million.

The film’s incredible truthfulness and organic, off-the-cuff dialogue recreate both the passion and pain implicit in a long-distance relationship. With its genuine, candid portrayal of two people in love, “Like Crazy” will hopefully be one of those few art house gems that draws both indie and mainstream audiences to the theaters.

Interview | Drake Doremus and Felicity Jones

Director Doremus and actress Jones chat at the Kendall by

Charissa Ng

Daily Editorial Board

“Like Crazy,” which won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Picture at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, explores the poignant, honest realities of a whirlwind first love. After a pre-screening at the Kendall Square Cinema, director Drake Doremus and actress Felicity Jones held a candid Q&A with the audience that touched upon everything from the impressive improvisation of the two lead actors (Jones and co-star Anton Yelchin) to Doremus’ personal ties to the film’s characters.

Question: How much of the film was scripted versus improvisation from the actors?

Drake Doremus: We worked from a very specific 50-page outline, and all of the dialogue was improvised by the actors from that outline. We worked from delving into the characters — understanding their back-story, the emotional beats of the scene and the subtext injected into the characters. We knew all of the parameters in which the scene was going to function, and then the dialogue and the blocking came out of the process of experimenting and finding the scenes.

Q: Was it scarier going into filming without the dialogue written out?

Felicity Jones: The most frightening thing was that I didn’t meet Drake [Doremus] or Anton [Yelchin] before I got to Los Angeles.

It is quite daunting, but [not] after that first week of spending every minute of the day together and making that decision to throw yourself in. With this style of filming, you forget that the camera is there. It’s actually a lot more exciting and interesting than a more conventionally shot film.

Q: What made you want to be a part of this film?

FJ: Apart from slight madness, when I read the outline it was just so truthful. There’s no tricks to it, no gimmicks. It’s just about people, and those are the kinds of films that I like to see.

Q: Working in this improvised fashion, how does that affect the way you shot the film and maintained the continuity of the scenes?

DD: I’m not as concerned with continuity, to be honest. It doesn’t bother me. The camera’s constantly moving in the middle of a take, too, so it’s not like we’re shooting one piece of coverage and then moving to another piece of coverage. It’ll just move around when I want it to. Since it’s a jumpcut style, not everything had to be the same every time we did the scene. And that was what was magical about it. It would never be exactly the same. We didn’t want it to be.

We wanted it to function how it needed to every single time in a fresh, new way.

Q: How did you come up with the setting of the United Kingdom?

DD: I’d spent a lot of time in the U.K., in a relationship actually. I was really familiar with London, and I wanted to show my experiences with the city. I was in a relationship with someone from a different country, but then going to London. So, to make it simple, we just made it British.

Q: Regarding the characters’ problems with visas, how did that part of the story come about?

DD: Unfortunately, I went through that, so it’s a very personal thing. It was no question about telling this story — we had to have that come in the way of the romance.

Q: Are you still bitter?

DD: No, no, no. What’s really special about making the film — making the film was hard, but now, sharing it with audiences is really exciting, because I find that so many people have been through similar circumstances, oddly enough. And that’s what really touched me. Not bitter, just grateful to have lived life to the fullest.

Q: How difficult was it to get funding for this film?

DD: It’s really difficult to get funding. It’s hard to convince people when they don’t see it on the page that it’s going to end up on the screen somehow. It was almost written like a short story. There would be little quotations, and you’d learn a lot about the characters’ thoughts, but you wouldn’t really understand how that comes to life on the screen. I did, but some financiers didn’t, and now they’re sorry. The movie was made for only $250,000. We only shot for 22 days and kept it really small, contained and intimate, so it wasn’t that big of a risk, but it was still a risk.

Q: How was it working with the challenge of having to portray the development of a relationship when you didn’t shoot the scenes chronologically?

FJ: Originally there were year cards over seven years where they go from 19 to 27 years old. Having the separation-of-year cards really helped and enabled us to chart their progression through costumes and changes in development that we wanted to show. But eventually, Drake took them all out.

Q: Watching the film you see that it really is up to the audience to figure out what the time period is. Why did you decide to take out the year cards?

DD: When we watched the film with the

cards in, it was distracting. I found myself asking more questions than I wanted to be asking about what I had missed. When it jumped that much time, I was like, “Well, what happened in the last six months?”

Whereas without them, you feel like, “OK, this is where they are emotionally” and you don’t have to think too much about what you’ve missed. They just felt lame, to be honest, so we took them out.

Q: Felicity, how were you able to create an intimacy with Anton [Yelchin] so immediately?

FJ: It was partly that we naturally got on as friends and had very similar ideas about our characters. But it was also just the way it was filmed. Drake [Doremus] gave us the space to do what we wanted to do, and to have complete freedom. The combination of that style and the willingness to throw ourselves into it added to our chemistry.

Q: What were some challenges you faced?

DD: We moved a lot of things around.

Streamlining and getting the exposition correctly in the first 15 minutes, I find, are always the most difficult to construct in the editing room, because you’re constantly trying to figure out the best way to expose what you’re going to be watching.

Q: Can you share some of your festival experiences showing this movie?

DD: It’s been really fun. Our first screening was at Sundance earlier this year. We hadn’t shown it to anyone before that, and we thought this movie was drama-only. Then we started getting some laughs, and we were like, ‘Uh-oh, is this good?’ And then we realized it happened at every screening, so that was a good surprise. But festivals are fun. It’s like Disneyland for filmmakers.

6

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Sports

Jumbos must contain Mules’ dynamic offense

FOOTBALL

continued from page 11

tri-captain Luke Lamothe said.

“Personally, I think he’s worked very hard and he deserves it.

He’s going to take this program somewhere where it’s never been before.”

Another reason why the Jumbos and Tufts football fans alike should be optimistic for the rest of the season is the fact that Tufts has just completed the most difficult portion of its schedule. Coming off three straight losses to teams with a combined 16-2 record, the Jumbos should have brighter days ahead. The rest of the Tufts season consists of games against Colby and Middlebury, who both stand at 2-4 thus far.

Tufts, however, should still expect stiff competition from Colby. The Mules have been hot lately, riding a two-game winning streak into Saturday’s contest, including an offensive explosion against Bates last week, in which Colby put a season-high 37 points on the board.

The outpouring of offense can be attributed to two players in particular, both of whom Tufts should be prepared to counter in Saturday’s game.

Senior tri-captain quarterback Nick Kmetz has been extremely efficient passing the ball this year, and is a threat to run on any given play. This year has been just part of a successful collegiate career for Kmetz, who last week surpassed the 5,000 all-purpose yard mark, and is only 420 yards shy of 5,000 passing.

Kmetz’s favorite target is a dynamic wide receiver by the name of Connor Walsh.

Walsh, also a senior tri-captain, ranks among the top 10 in the NESCAC in both receiving yards and receptions per game, but that’s not all he does.

Last week against Bates, Walsh put on a dazzling display of offensive talents, throwing for a 26-yard touchdown — his second of the fall — catching a 64-yard touchdown throw from Kmetz and running one in for a score. Walsh’s performance earned him the NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week award.

“Offensively, Connor Walsh has had a heck of a career …

Nick Kmetz, the quarterback, that kid’s just a winner; if you look at our game last year he made some amazing plays,” Civetti said. “Walsh and Kmetz, those are two guys we have to keep an eye on.”

In the 2010 game Civetti referred to, Kmetz threw for an impressive 392 yards and three touchdowns as the Mules completed a thrilling fourthquarter comeback and won 42-41 at Zimman Field.

This matchup with Colby will be a big test for a Jumbos defensive unit that has shown glimpses of greatness, but lacked consistency.

“We’re concentrating on stopping the run. Always defensively, [when we] stop the run, good things happen,” senior tri-captain J.T. Rinciari said. “We’re going to play fundamentally sound football, and just keep working hard like we’ve been doing.”

Though the Jumbos are coming off a very frustrating loss to Amherst, they look at that game as a learning experience, and believe that they have ironed out the mistakes

that put them in an early 21-0 hole against the Lord Jeffs.

“We can only improve after how we played last week. We didn’t come out strong in the first quarter, or the first half,” Lamothe said. “We picked up steam in the second half and did a little better, but we learned that you can’t take any snap for granted, every snap counts.”

Meanwhile, the issue of who will play quarterback for the Jumbos has been clouded with uncertainty, and it is unclear how that problem will be resolved this week. Senior Johnny Lindquist was the starter for the majority of the season, but was sidelined last week due to a separated shoulder. Junior John Dodds, sophomore Matt Johnson and freshman Jack Doll all took snaps in the loss against Amherst, with Dodds starting and getting the majority of the playing time. Dodds had a disappointing outing, though, throwing two interceptions and connecting on only 11 of 24 pass attempts.

Apart from finding continuity at the quarterback position, the biggest key to winning this week for Tufts will be to stop the run while containing the dynamic duo of Kmetz and Walsh. On offense, establishing the running game will set up play-action opportunities for the aerial attack, which are vital to success in Civetti’s West Coast-style offense.

“From an offensive stand point, and really the whole team, we’ve shown that we can [play well] at times, but now it’s time to draw the line,” Civetti said. “It’s time to execute and put together a complete game, one play at a time.”

Friday, November 4, 2011

Rematch with Bowdoin could loom in title game

Volleyball

continued from page 12

the week, Isabel Kuhel, who — along with Spieler — are atop the team leaderboard in kills, recording 309, 273 and 166, respectively. In addition, Kuhel leads the conference with 115 blocks, 15 more than the second place player, Bowdoin senior Kristin Hanczor.

“We had so many younger girls, so people doubted us,” senior tri-captain Lexi Nicholas said. “But they stepped up to the plate completely. They worked hard to get better every day and tried to be the best they could be.”

The No. 7 seed Ephs stumble into the NESCAC championship having lost their last four matches, finishing the regular season with a record of 16-12, and 5-5 in the conference.

Williams’ standouts are senior co-captain and libero Aly McKinnon and freshman outside hitter Claire Miller.

McKinnon leads the team with 36 service aces and 368 digs, while Miller has recorded the most kills with 300 and is second with 24 service aces and 275 digs.

The Jumbos will look to counter the Williams attack by maintaining their dominant net game, which is fueled by their focus on communication and teamwork.

Many of the Jumbos’ victories during the regular season were a direct result of their chemistry on the court, especially during important points.

“Our mouths get our feet moving. That’s something we’ve proved all year,” head coach Cora Thompson said after the team’s victory over Emerson College last week.

Nonetheless, it is important for Tufts to stay hungry and not try to do too much, something that has, at times, been a problem for the Jumbos.

“This year when we got in trouble it would be because we’d get too comfortable when we got a lead,” Spieler said. “It is important that we maintain a sense of urgency and not relax when we get ahead.”

If they beat Williams and then win their semifinal match, the Jumbos could potentially force a rematch with No. 1 Bowdoin, which enters the tournament with a 23-2 record and a flawless 10-0 mark in NESCAC matches. During their regular -season showdown, Bowdoin defeated Tufts in straight sets, and many members of the team are eager to play them again and earn their revenge.

“We want [the opportunity] to play Bowdoin again and beat them this time,” Spieler said.

But before they look forward to playing Bowdoin in the championship, the Jumbos must concentrate on winning their quarterfinal and semifinal matches.

“It’s a match by match process as far as I’m concerned, but we are very excited,” Nicholas said.

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Football

David McIntyre | The Beautiful Game

Jumbos take on Colby this weekend, looking for first victory of season

The Story of Levante

W

Quarterback situation remains uncertain by

Zach McGowan

Daily Staff Writer

Following a tough 30-0 loss to Amherst at home last week and a frustrating 0-6 start, the Jumbos are hoping that they can finally turn things around tomorrow when they face Colby on the Mules’ home turf in Waterville, Maine.

One reason for optimism is the removal of the interim tag for head coach Jay Civetti. Tufts Director of Athletics Bill Gehling announced on Oct. 28 that Civetti will be the permanent head of the Tufts football program. This vote of confidence from the athletics department not only provides security to a coach who has faced the unenviable task of motivating and preparing a winless team, but also helps with recruiting and building the future of the football program.

“I think it brings great validation to our plan and our focus and where we’re headed with this program,” Civetti said. “It says a lot about the staff, it says a lot about the players in the program, and I think it says a lot about the commitment from this university, to understand that while our record is nowhere near where we want it to be, there is noticeable effort on the part of the players and staff and that we are getting better. Personally, it’s just a great honor, and I’m very lucky to be able to have this opportunity.”

Players fully supported putting Civetti at the helm of the program for the long haul. Having a stable coaching staff helps the team

Alex Dennett/Tufts Daily

Junior John Dodds (middle) got the start at quarterback last week, but turned the ball over twice in the 30-0 loss. focus on the task at hand, rather than dealing with an uncertain future.

“It means a lot, and to see

someone work from being offensive coordinator, to the offensive line coach, to interim head coach and

then to head coach, it’s pretty special to him,” senior see FOOTBALL, page 10

Athletes show support for fellow teams Swimming

continued from page 12

team said. Their presence is especially welcomed by the swimmers, whose main fan base is often their families.

“Tufts lacks fan support for certain teams. There are just certain sports that are neglected in terms of fans.

Pretty much no one goes to swim events,” Debbaut said. “You can’t fit that many people into the pool; I don’t expect anyone to come out.

But so it’s really great when the volleyball team comes and supports us.”

For Grodkiewicz, the fandom is a way to bring together teams that sometimes tend to stick to themselves.

“It’s nice when people cheer us on, so I like to do the same.

It gets you going when you’re playing your sport, whatever

Daily File Photo

While preparing for their upcoming season, members of the swim team have taken the time to support the volleyball team. that may be,” Grodkiewicz said. “I think it brings the teams closer together. I feel

like sometimes there might be divides between the teams, like everyone has their

own cliques, but when you go out and cheer it brings us all together.”

ith the arrival of November, most of the major professional soccer leagues in the world are heading into the second quarter of the season, with about 10 games played in the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A. Accordingly, it’s the perfect time for teams to look at the table to see where they stand, and what their expectations could be for the rest of the year. And in the Spanish league, one team will take that glance and be pleased beyond its wildest dreams: I’m talking, of course, about Levante of La Liga.

For a league so prominently defined by the two giants that are Barcelona and Real Madrid, no other team came into the 201112 season with even a prayer of challenging for the top spots — in fact, no other club has won the league title since 2004. But on Oct. 26, the league standings had Levante on the top, then Real Madrid and Barcelona.

How could this happen? How could a team with only three players under the age of 30 lead a league after nine games played, while the rest of the league includes the defending Champions League winner?

How could a team that was relegated in 2009 and finished 14th last year be enjoying such a run, which included a 3-0 victory over Villareal, and a 1-0 decision over Real Madrid?

Without a doubt, Levante has enjoyed a good bit of luck in the first 10 games, including just one red card and a run of good form from the team’s goalkeeper, Gustavo Munua, who has allowed just seven goals in 10 games. Meanwhile, nine teams in La Liga have suffered from at least two red cards, while all but two teams — guess which two — have allowed more goals than the Valencians.

Whatever the outcome of the season, Levante’s early run has proven something that very few believe is possible in the modern game: with the right combination of good fortune, disciplined management and a determined squad, teams without billions of dollars can reasonably compete at the highest level. A team that came into the season with expectations of avoiding relegation has soared to the peak, while the big clubs are wondering what happened.

For all that hopeful language, this isn’t the end of the season, and there are 28 more games left for all the other teams to catch up. Already, Levante has slumped to third with one loss to Osasuna, and, in the blink of an eye, Real Madrid and Barcelona have moved back to the top. Alas, I would rate the likelihood of Levante even finishing in the top eight as slim, because there are at least eight other teams with far more talent than Los Granotes.

But that’s not the point. Levante already has 23 points, meaning that they probably only need about 20 more (from 28 games) to ensure survival. If they can do it, it will be a triumph of the little over the big, even if Real Madrid and Barcelona end up dominating the league as usual. Just the brief presence of Levante at the top of the table has provided a breath of fresh air for the jaded soccer fan, who has gotten used to seeing two teams duke it out at the top of every league.

So what Levante has really provided is a break from all the cynicism. With teams like Manchester City and Barcelona trolling the world for the best footballers and paying whatever price is necessary to buy them, it’s easy to believe that no small budget team has a chance. But for a brief moment in the 2011-12 season, Levante proved one thing: expectations aside, they still have to play the games, and when that happens, anybody can come out on top.

David McIntyre is a sophomore who is majoring in political science. He can be reached at David.McIntyre@tufts.edu.

Sports

12

INSIDE Football 11

tuftsdaily.com

Swimming

Volleyball

Jumbos to face Williams in quarterfinals tonight

Energy, consistency key to Tufts’ success in tournament by

Alex Baudoin

Contributing Writer

The volleyball team enters this weekend’s NESCAC championship tournament on an impressive streak, having won seven straight matches and 15 of their last 16.

After winning their final three contests last weekend at Conn. College, the Jumbos finished the season with an overall record of 24-4 — including 9-1 in the NESCAC — clinching the second seed in the tournament, behind only the undefeated Bowdoin Polar Bears.

Tufts will face the No. 7 Williams Ephs at Bowdoin in the quarterfinals on Friday, a squad the Jumbos defeated in four sets on Sept. 17 and in straight sets on Oct. 22.

With a win against Williams, Tufts will move on to the semifinals to face the winner of the matchup between No. 6 Conn. College and No. 3 Middlebury.

The Jumbos’ recent success can be attributed to an increase in energy and an emphasis on consistent play throughout every match.

“We focused on being steady and just playing how we know how to [play] without overdoing it,” senior tri-captain Cara Spieler said. “Our last run of wins can be credited to keeping our energy really high.”

Another reason for the continued success of the Jumbos has been the strong play of their freshman class. Coming

Scott Tingley/Tufts Daily

Freshman outside hitter Kelly Brennan led the team with 309 kills during the regular season. into the season with eight freshmen on the roster, the returning players have done an impressive job integrating them into the program. Leading

the way are Kelly Brennan, Hayley Hopper and the team’s most recent NESCAC player of see VOLLEYBALL, page 10

Making waves for fellow Jumbos by

Ann Sloan

Daily Editorial Board

A common complaint from athletes on some teams at Tufts is that crowds here are often lackluster.

The varsity swimming squads are here to help.

In an effort to drum up more support for their fellow Jumbos, the members of the men’s and women’s swimming teams have been attending volleyball games in droves, showing off their school spirit and bolstering the atmosphere in Cousens Gymnasium.

The fanaticism began a few years ago when the team decided to take all of their swimming recruits to a volleyball game one weekend.

Since then, the swimmer spirit has spiraled into a fierce team tradition in which they go to as many volleyball games as possible together. They have started to spread their cheer to other Tufts teams as well.

“I’m not even sure when it started, but ever since I was a freshman it’s been a tradition to go cheer volleyball on,” senior Travis Grodkiewicz said.

“This season we’ve also gone to field hockey games and soccer games. It’s been a really fun thing to do during my whole time at Tufts.”

At a minimum, there are 20 swimmers at each game they organize to attend, members of the team said. But on the two main recruiting weekends, there are upwards of 60 fans in the swimming section, half of which are high school recruits.

Their presence and enthusiasm at the sports games do not go unnoticed or unappreciated.

“They are so enthusiastic and they come to every one of our games. They make up most of the student section,” junior volleyball setter Kendall Lord said. “It makes home games so much fun and they’re so loud.

They have this rollercoaster cheer, and it really pumps us up to play.”

Lord, in fact, had heard that the swim teams were huge fans of the volleyball team before she was even a Tufts student.

“Ever since I’ve been on the Tufts volleyball game, the swimmers have always been going to volleyball. Actually before I came, I even heard about how much support they show for the team,” Lord said.

“In the offseason, they come and practice with us during open gym. I think they must realize through watching the games that volleyball is such a fun sport.”

The swim team is encouraged by the positive reception from the teams that they support.

“The volleyball team always thanks the fans at the end of the games. And the coach has even acknowledged us at some points,” senior Peter Debbaut said.

Volleyball always returns the favor and attends at least one swim meet every winter season, members of the see SWIMMING, page 11

Editors' Challenge | Week 9 Grab a stick, a milk carton and head outside; it’s time for Eds Challenge Backyard Baseball edition, where your esteemed sports editors hope to blast a grand slam into Ms. Hendrickson’s dining room window two houses down the road. Balls will scream, lunge and sometimes stop in mid-air — it’s going to be Humongous Entertainment.

Leading off our cherubic team is Daniel “Pablo Sanchez Ramon Secret Weapon” Rathman, who wielded his fashioned-out-of-the-skin-of-haters stick to a gaudy 10-3 record last week to stay in first place. Looks like the secret is out — all hail Rathman, or feel Rathman’s wrath.

Close behind is David “Tony Delvecchio” McIntyre. McIntyre’s got the lithe moves of a swan and has smoked most of the opposition so far this season, though perhaps it’s time the nicotine buzz wore off and he fell back to his rightful place in the Eds Challenge cellar with ladies whose names rhyme with “moan” and “temp.”

In the middle of our order is the 3-4-5 punch of Aaron “Marky Dubois” Leibowitz, Lauren “Pete Wheeler” Flament and Kate “Luanne Lui” Klots, all tied for third place. Leibowitz might be slow around the bases, but he’s really showed some hustle out there on the Eds Challenge field and is now looking to catch a hay ride to the top echelon of the standings.

Flament’s dazzling speed has paid off, as she remains in the top half of the standings despite knowing very little about football due to her schedule of running places fast for long periods of time. Seriously, dude, invest in a bike.

Klots, one of the youngest members of the crew, has held onto her spot in the standings almost as tightly as she grips her pink teddy bear.

OVERALL RECORD LAST WEEK

Daniel 84-32 10-3

Seattle at Dallas Dallas Miami at Kansas City Kansas City NY Jets at Buffalo Buffalo Tampa Bay at N. Orleans New Orleans Atlanta at Indianapolis Atlanta Cleveland at Houston Houston San Fran at Washington San Francisco Cincinnati at Tennessee Cincinnati Denver at Oakland Oakland Green Bay at San Diego Green Bay NY Giants at New England New England St. Louis at Arizona St. Louis Baltimore at Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Chicago at Philadelphia Philadelphia

David 80-36 8-5

Aaron 78-38 8-5

Lauren 78-38 9-4

Kate 78-38 9-4

Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Kansas City Kansas City Kansas City Miami NY Jets Buffalo Buffalo NY Jets Tampa Bay New Orleans New Orleans New Orleans Atlanta Atlanta Atlanta Atlanta Houston Houston Houston Houston San Francisco San Francisco San Francisco San Francisco Cincinnati Tennessee Cincinnati Tennessee Oakland Oakland Oakland Oakland Green Bay Green Bay Green Bay Green Bay NY Giants NY Giants New England New England St. Louis St. Louis St. Louis Arizona Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Baltimore Philadelphia Philadelphia Philadelphia Philadelphia

Moving along ... We’ve got Alex “Vicky Kawaguchi” Prewitt and Ethan “Reese Worthington” Sturm tied together at the part of the standings where we get tired and go home for an orange-slice break.

Prewitt’s soft features and puff pieces of leotard can only get him so far, as while other players are focused on the game, “Vicky” is too often distracted with describing the texture of the opposing shortstop’s hair.

Sturm’s friendly demeanor gets him far in games like Quidditch, but on the battlefield of Eds Challenge the rules of the game dictate that he’s far behind.

Still, the Sturminator is ahead of the hardly dynamic duo of Ben “Dante Robinson” Kochman and Annie “Kimmy Eckman” Sloan.

Kochman might be the most talented kid in the crew, but he’s too busy munching on applewood smoked Vermont cheddar hamburgers with habanero pickles and garlic aioli to bother himself with focusing on NFL picks. Perhaps he can draw upon the mighty powers of his Jew-fro this week to make a leap back up the standings before dinner time. Sloan, the “candy monster,”is well-liked but a liability out there in the field.

Next is Matt “Dmitri Petrovich” Berger, whose freakish mathematical abilities have not amounted to a catapult out of the Eds Challenge basement.

In last place is Claire “Gretchen Hasselhoff” Kemp, who can’t talk her way out of an abysmal picking season. Get it together, Kemp.

Joining us this week is former executive sports editor Ethan “Kenny Kawaguchi” Landy, who has dominated the field in a way that only he can.

Alex 75-41 8-5

Ethan 75-41 9-4

Ben 73-43 7-6

Annie 73-43 9-4

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Matt 72-44 8-5 Dallas Kansas City NY Jets New Orleans Atlanta Houston San Francisco Tennessee Oakland Green Bay New England Arizona Pittsburgh Philadelphia

Claire 70-46 8-5

GUEST Ethan Landy

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