Back to the grind

UAB’S OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER

VOLUME 61, ISSUE 1

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2019

A bouncy holiday UAB Basketball victories and defeats Michael Calhoun Sports Reporter mcal37@uab.edu

PHOTO BY AMY LAWHON/ STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

See COFFEE Page 5

PHOTO BY LAKYN SHEPARD/ART EDITOR

OPINION - P. 4

BLAZERNEWS - P. 4

CITYLIFESTYLE - P. 5

Find your workout plan

New city-wide fitness trial program

Our role in helping the eco-system Why you should throw away your resolutions Students should start political change

While students took the break off, the UAB men’s and women’s basketball teams were still hard at work.

The UAB Women’s team participated in the Hilton Garden Inn-FGCU Classic in Fort Myers, FL. They first took on Coppin State where they defeated them by a score of 86-61 and hit a school record 18 three-pointers which surpassed their mark of 17 set last season against UTEP. This win also set the mark for the best start to a season in school history.

See BASKETBALL Page 7

PAGE 2

GLOBAL WARMING

opinion

Vote in favor of our eco-system The coral reefs have immense aesthetic value and are good for tourism, but do we have an existential reason to put any effort into reducing these effects?

Absolutely.

Coral reefs provide critical sea defenses In terms of damage, our coral reefs and against storms, flooding, and land erosion.

Antarctic oceans have been among those When Hurricane Irma hit Cancun, the impact who have suffered the most due to the was equivalent to that of 2 Atomic bombs. effects of man-made climate change, However, if not for the coral reef cover to and there are many reasons as to why soften the blow, the impact likely would we should care. have been closer to 20.

In his lecture on Nov. 30, 2018 entiAnd coral reefs are not the only ones tled “The coral reef: a model of a stable affected by ocean acidification as a result of insular community,” Dustin Kemp, Ph.D., of climate change.

In his Nov. 26, 2018 lecture entiUAB Department of Biology spoke about Rose tled “Neighborhood impacts of climate change the current condition of our coral reefs. in Antarctica,” James McClintock, Ph.D., of UAB Among one of the oldest ecosystems on earth, Department of Biology impressed me with some coral reefs have suffered intense bleaching due to grave problems facing Antarctic oceans due to ocean acidification caused by climate change. man-made climate change.

This coral bleaching is caused by warmer temThere has been a dramatic glacier peratures which kill off single-celled algae called recession in the last 50 years, and recently on July zooxanthellae, with which the coral has a symbiotic 12.

2017, an ice shelf broke off and became one of relationship. the largest icebergs in history, with a whopping When this relationship breaks down, it leaves 5,700 km land mass, comparable to the size of Delthe coral vulnerable as photosynthetic pigments aware, according to NASA. reduce thus giving them their “bleached” appearSuch events mean that it is becoming increasance. As a result, the coral experience reduced ingly difficult for animals living on the Antarctic growth and higher vulnerability to degradation and peninsula to find food and shelter, as so much of disease. their previous hunting land is literally floating out into the ocean.

The increasing temperatures have also caused land-faring Antarctic animals’ mating and nesting routines to become confused and disoriented.

The Adélie penguin has suffered loss of young as eggs are placed in ice which melts uncharacteristically fast due to drastic changes in temperature trends, causing the eggs to drown.

The reduction of biodiversity in Antarctic waters is just as much of an existential issue as is the reduction of coastal coral protection.

In recent years, extraordinary progress in cancer research has been made as a result of studying the organisms which live in our deep, mysterious oceans. However, acidification and warming will cause a significant decrease in our ability experience and behold these new findings.

Therefore, I think we have compelling reason to take action to reduce pollution and CO2 production in light of the damage it has done to our coral reefs and Antarctic oceans.

We as a society should address this issue by

Parker Rose Opinion Columnist pdrose@uab.edu

acknowledging the fact that our reefs and oceans are not simply part the environment upon which we act and inflict harm or not-harm.

We need to shift the rhetoric to show that reefs and oceans are members of our environment. They are living, breathing, sustaining things which have an effect on our lives in a more significant way than simply providing us with aesthetically pleasing scenery.

We can’t make people care about things which they see as external and unchanging, but if we make it such that the conversation is not about the environment as an external being, but the environment as a pact with ourselves and our community, it becomes a more meaningful conversation.

But even while changing our rhetoric is important, it’s also important to know that voting is a key aspect of how we will affect change in this world, and I’m not only talking about putting a ballot in box. You cast a vote every single day with what you buy and consume. Make sure you are doing so while keeping your fellow ecosystems in mind.

We welcome your opinions If you have an idea or opinion about something and would like to possibly see it featured in an upcoming issue, please email kribal@uab.edu Submissions must include the author’s name, year, major and daytime phone number. Phone numbers are for verification and will not be published.

The Kaleidoscope reserves the right to edit all guest columns. Guest opinions do not reflect the position of the Kaleidoscope Editorial Board.

Share your thoughts with us!

@kaleidoscopeuab

OPINION

STUDENT ACTIVISM ILLUSTRTION BY SAVANNAH DONALD/STAFF ILLUSTRATOR

RESOLUTIONS

New year, same me accomplish that.”

By creating too many resolutions, many people start to feel overwhelmed, thus creating a greater chance for failed resolutions. This will only cause even more feelings of insecurity once these resoluAs a new year approaches, tions do fail. The whole “New many people shuffle to find Year, New Me” methodology ways that will improve their is faulty because, realistically, lifestyle. New gym memthese choices only cause berships, healthier food more stress and feelings of choices and cutting out insecurity rather than feelings negative vibes are among of fulfillment. Instead of strivthe vast changes being ing for perfection through resmade. olutions, people need to accept Do not wait until the new Cravens themselves for who they are. year to start making changes Perfection is not real. Resolutions that better your life. The time is now, only amplify the notion that being not next year.

Most of these choices stem from “perfect” is accessible to anyone.

Making mistakes is a part of life one thing that not one single person and learning from these mistakes can gain: perfection. is essential as each new year apBy believing that these changes will make you “perfect” many people proaches. So, instead of running from them we should embrace begin to feel insecure and worththem. less when these unrealistic choices Eating a whole bag of chips on begin to feel impossible. the first day of 2019 does not make According to Stephen Graef, a sports psychologist at the Ohio State you a failure. Just like running a mile every day for two weeks straight University Wexner Medical Center, does not make you an Olympic gold one reason why resolutions do not last is because we create resolutions medalist.

Instead of relying on a New Year, that are too broad or too many. people should opt to change what “We might really try to shoot they do not like about themselves or for the moon too quickly and that their lifestyles now, but also be open doesn’t work out, or not only do we to the possibility of failure somewant to go to the moon but we want where along the way. to go to Mars and Neptune and SatSo, before you go buy an overurn,” Graef said in an interview with priced gym membership, think CBS News. “And if we try to do all about why you want the memberof those, we don’t have the mental ship in the first place. and physical resources to be able to

Destyni Cravens Opinion Columnist dcravens@uab.edu

PAGE 3

Creating change is your responsibility ing an activist. These people led sitins, marches and tried to soul of the nation in the face of racism before they were even old enough to buy a beer.

In a more recent act of As a student and an actrying to obtain justice, the tivist, there is always much students in the March for doubt that I am not ready Our Lives movement who for the world for activism led a march of students in because I am only 19. That the call for gun action. notion tries to extinguish a Even though these groups flame in young people. It tries are from totally different eras, to limit young people to speak Thigpen one thing that they have in out about a future in which they common is their fearlessness. will partake it.

There is no fear in their cause and If not for student activism, this they do not believe in there being a country would not be the same. The minimum age requirement. If we are progression we have made in femthe ones that will have to endure the inism or civil rights would not have wrath of the future, then we must been a great. The liberty that we speak out on the things that matter. should hold precious in our activism It is imperative that we increase is our free speech and the ability to young voter participation, educate do it as young people. the youth in politics. If there were The Civil Rights Movement, no activism, none of us would be for example, was led about at able to prosper with an opporfirst a group of students who tunity for equity in this country. were in the Student NonviAnd one of the great things olent Coordinating about activism is that it Committee. Fred never stops. Injustice is Hampton, an ima cycle along with opportant member pression and the voicof the committee, es that we raise will was only 18 continue when he also. startKameryn Thigpen Opinion Columnist cchs2017@uab.edu

ed be-

ILLUSTRTION BY SAVANNAH DONALD/STAFF ILLUSTRATOR

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2019

PAGE 4

citylifestyle COFFEE From FRONT

Filter Coffee Parlor opened on January 7 at Five Points South.

Myah Clinton BlazerNews Reporter mkc16@uab.edu James Little, founder of Coffee Parlor began what he calls his “coffee journey” as a young boy going with his mother to buy coffee from a shop in Central Plaza. For his next step, he and his wife Jill Marlar have opened their own shop Filter Coffee Parlor on Mon. Jan. 7.

Located on 11 Ave. S. Little said the shop’s name, Filter, has various meanings. The first one is that a filter is used to create many different types of coffee drinks. The second is that the logo’s filter has three points. According to Little, he, Marlar, and their daughter, Ruby, are the three points and the shop is what connects them.

Marlar said the couple’s vintage tastes led them to call the shop a coffee parlor.

“We like historical places, historical buildings, we live in an old house,” Marlar said. “We have an appreciation for things of the past and the way things were done.”

Filter is intended to appeal to everyone from casual coffee drinkers to coffee enthusiasts, Marlar said.

Little said the coffee menu is organized into four categories “based off the development of the drinks and based on milk amounts”: filtered, espresso, assembly and cubes.

But frappuccino lovers will have to broaden their horizons, according to Marlar.

“We really want to dial back to the basics of coffee and offer a simple menu of espresso-based drinks,” Marlar said. “We’re not going to do a pink frappuccino-style drink.”

Coffee beans will come from roasters Red Bike Coffee in Irondale and Prevail Union Montgomery, said Marlar.

There will also be a kids’ menu featuring hot chocolate and syrup steamers (flavored syrup and steamed milk), Little said. As for food, Marlar said the shop will offer pastries, baked goods such as scones and muffins, oatmeal, snacks such as cheese and salami trays and desserts for the night-time.

Marlar said Filter will also feature a retail section that sells products made in Alabama and serve as a venue for community events and children’s activities.

Both Little and Marlar said they want people to be able to gather in the shop.

“We wanted it to feel like a place that’s more of a community-based coffee shop, a place where people come to socialize, where they sit around and play dominos on the table, where they come in and it’s a vibrant atmosphere,” Marlar said.

Filter’s grand opening and ribbon cutting will take place on Friday, January 18.

PHOTOS BY LAKYN SHEPARD/ART EDITOR

Barista prepares a latte at Filter Coffee Parlor.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2019

PAGE 5

RECREATION

New passport for your fitness journey Discover new places to meet your health goals in Downtown Birmingham Myles Womack CityLifestyle Editor mjw3@uab.edu With over 50 gyms in the Birmingham area, all promising to be the place that guides you to your best self, setting your personal fitness goals choosing the best option can be difficult with the various workout locations and options.

The inaugural Downtown BHM Wellness Passport intends to help people seeking the perfect gym by providing an affordable deal and accommodating for people with all different types of schedules.

From January 21 - February 8, 2019, the Wellness Passport will provide access to 12 studios and special discounts to four “wellness-focused” businesses all located in the Downtown Birmingham area.

Passports are $49 and can be purchased online at bhmwellnesspassport.com.

“We wanted to foster a sense of community among the studios and gyms,” said Kaitlin Bentley, Owner of True40 Downtown Birmingham. “We wanted to give residents and people who work downtown access to all of their amazing options.”

“We received feedback that people wanted more time to experience the workouts and that it was hard to schedule a date that worked for people.”

Rodell said after brainstorming with Kaitlyn and Taylor Grater, Studio Manager of True40 Downtown Birmingham, the Downtown BHM Wellness Passport was born, giving people more opportunities to experience different types of fitness while celebrating the growth in Downtown Birmingham.

“We launched the Wellness Passport unsure of how it would be received,” Rodell said. “All we knew was that we were fired up about it. We are excited to build a sense of community with the Downtown Birmingham fitness community as we come together and educate the community on their fitness options.”

Bentley said Birmingham does not have programs like ClassPass, which allow you to pay a fee for access to multiple studios, so they decided to do a test run of creating a similar concept.

“Honestly, we had no idea whether this idea would take off or not,” Bentley said.

“We were so pleasantly surprised by the amount of businesses who wanted to participate, and the reaction for the public has blown us away. We would like to further this idea in the future by extending the timeframe, adding more businesses, and doing it more frequently.”

Club Pilates takes a contemporary approach to Joseph Pilates’s method. Pilates is a system of exercises designed to build core strength and leave no muscle overtrained or under-trained.

“Our low-impact workouts use the Pilates Reformer to build a strong body, create long, lean muscles and increase mind-body awareness so that you are able to show up better in all areas of your life,” Rodell said. “With nine different class formats and four class levels, our classes are designed so that you never plateau in your workouts. There are over 2,000 difPHOTO COURTESY OF TRUE40 FITNESS ferent exercises you can do in our studio.”

Nearly 600 calories can be burned during workouts at True40 Fitness.

True40’s Downtown Birmingham studio seeks to create a sense of community for everyone who walks in the door.

True40 Downtown Birmingham offers a challenging fusion workout that is safe on your joints but will get your heart rate pumping.

“You can burn 600 calories in a class,” Bentley said. “You’ll never get bored to a large library of exercises and our classes will improve your posture, balance, strength and endurance.”

One of the four wellness businesses participating in the Downtown BHM Wellness Passport is local café, Sprout & Pour Juicey + Café. Sprout & Pour is a health and wellness cafe, offering highly nutrient dense cold pressed juices, whole food smoothies and health foods.

Coile said the cafe offers a community gathering space and opportunities to grow partnerships with local farmers and Alabama agriculture. Sprout & Pour also offers all UAB students and athletes a ten percent discount off all purchases.

PAGE 6

blazer news GAIN MUSCLE Focus on Cardio / Strength training

Focus on a healthier diet

Do you like working out?

Do you find it easy to eat healthy?

no

yes

Are you good about holding yourself accountable?

Keep it up and add cardio exercises that are specific to your problem areas

LOSE WEIGHT

no yes

no Try to find a group of friends that can motivate you and keep you on track

yes Avoid the commute and stay at home; find internet workouts so you don’t get bored or distracted. Set a time goal that is easy for you to complete and work up from there

yes

Continue to do what works for you, but don’t be afraid to ask for insight from friends

Do you have a busy schedule?

no Use this opportunity to figure out what workout routine works for you. Try zumba classes, intramural sports, or even rock climbing

CONTENT BY JUWAYRIAH WRIGHT/CITYLIFESTYLE REPORTER DESIGN BY LAKYN SHEPARD/ART EDITOR

GET TONED

TUESDAY, JANUARY. 8, 2019

sports BASKETBALL From FRONT

The UAB Women’s team participated in the Hilton Garden Inn-FGCU Classic in Fort Myers, FL. They first took on Coppin State where they defeated them by a score of 86-61 and hit a school record 18 three-pointers which surpassed their mark of 17 set last season against UTEP. This win also set the mark for the best start to a season in school history.

“I was kind of frustrated with our defense and then I looked at the stat sheet and offensively we had a lot of positive things,” said Randy Norton, head coach for the UAB Women’s Basketball. “I look at the assist to turnovers and we had 25 to 11, and 18 3-pointers.”

Deanna Kuzmanic lead the team in scoring and rebounding with 17 points and 8 rebounds. This set up a showdown with Florida Gulf Coast for the Championship.

The Blazers claimed the victory over the Eagles to Claim the Hilton Garden Inn Classic Title by a score of 62-60 as the Eagles shot at the buzzer was no good. Kuzmanic scored 31 points and was named tournament MVP. The Blazers capped off their new years slate with an 83-58 win over University of Alabama-Huntsville.

This win capped off a 12-1 run through the non-conference schedule, the best start in school history.

One of the reasons for the success thus far is the Blazers ability to share the basketball as well as protect it as well. UAB ranks 14th nationally in total assists (238), 20th in assists per game (18.3), while committing the fifth fewest turnovers per game (11.5).

“I think that one of our biggest strengths is that we’re battle tested,” Norton said. “The game against Tennessee taught us so much about PHOTO BY AMY LAWHON/STAFF our team and what it’s like to face PHOTOGRAPHER that level of competition but also Women’s Basketball have the best start to I feel like we proved that we can their season in school history this year. hang with the best of the best.”

The men started off their holiday slate with a an in-state battle against Troy. Much of the game was a back and forth affair with neither team being able to gain the edge.

Zack Bryant, guard, hit a three with just under a minute left to give the Blazers a two-point lead. On the ensuing possession, Troy hit a three of their own to tie the game back up and then they fouled Bryant. After he and Lewis Sullivan went 1-of-4 at the free throw line Troy took the ball on their end and hit fifteen-foot jumper to give themselves a one-point lead.

On the final possession of the game, Bryant drove right and was blocked, which was then chased down by Jalen Perry and heaved towards the rim and went in, sending the arena into a frenzy. After taking a look at the replay the referees decided that the shot was a tenth of a second too late, waved it off and in doing so gave the Trojans their first win in school history over the Blazers in basketball with a final score of 74-73.

“Obviously it is very disappointing to go from thinking you had just won the game to being told that the shot didn’t count,” said Robert Eshan, head coach of Men’s Basketball. “ We won the turnover battle and we outrebounded them 36-32. . Overall I told my guys not to hand their head too much and that we had to refocus our attention on starting conference play.”

The Blazers also took on Arkansas-Monticello and was able to defeat them 75-67 on a day where Perry scored a career high 23 points.

Maktar Gueye had a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Most of the game was controlled by the Blazers as they used an 11-4 to end the half and a 15-9 run to close the game to hold off the Boll Weevils and claim their eighth win.

“I like when we pass share the basketball and today we did a good job of making sure everyone got involved. Four of our five starters were in double figures and they know that we need them to carry us a little bit when our offense is struggling and they were able to do that today,” Eshan said. “I think the biggest thing we need to work on heading into the conference part of our schedule is consistency.”

PAGE 7

PHOTO BY MICHAEL CALHOUN/ SPORTS REPORTER

Men’s Basketball have a score of 10-5 so far this season.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2019

PAGE 8

CROSSWORD

Editorial Board

1.. First name of the UAB Women’s Basketball Coach.

2. New Year, New _ _.

3. Strong black coffee made by forcing steam through ground coffee beans.

4. The feature of having firm and well-defined muscles.

5. The first culture to write down resolution at the beggining of a year.

6. An endagered arctic species as a result of global warming.

7. The policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change.

8. A full body workout that involves physically ascending heights..

9. An endangered marine invertebrate as well as the color of the year 2019, according to Pantone.

10. Cardio exercise involving terrestrial locomotion.

Spring 2019 Kristina Balciunaite Editor-in-Chief kribal@uab.edu Sufia Alam Managing Editor sufia@uab.edu Lakyn Shepard Art Editor layshep@uab.edu Myles Womack CityLifestyle Editor mjw3@uab.edu VACANT Blazer News Editor VACANT Opinion Editor

Corrections Corrections from previous issues will appear here.

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EVENTS CALENDAR Christmas tree recycling Birmingham Zoo 9 - 5 p.m.

Opening Day: Bullet Coffee 5299 US-280 5:30 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Fundaraiser: Laughs for Literacy Saturn 8 p.m.

Make a Wish Alabama interest meeting: officers needed HSC, room 316 6 p.m.

Concert: Roscoe Dash ZYDECO 10 p.m.

Bards & Brews Open Mic Poetry Birmingham Public Library 6:30 - 9 p.m.

West African Drumming Workshop w/Michael Taylor Alabama Ballet 1:30 - 3 p.m.

Screening: Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation Saturn 7 p.m.

Mayor Randall Woodfin's State of the Community Address The Boutwell Auditorium

Spring Exhibitions Reception and Lecture w/ Irene Grau Birmingham Public Library 6:30 - 9 p.m.

Scalici Alley Project TrimTab Brewing Company 8 - 11:55 p.m.

Exhibition opening: A Good Story, works by Ric Haynes Ground Floor Contemporary 1 - 4 p.m.

6 - 8 p.m.

Show&exhibition: Warts & All The Firehouse 9 p.m. Sunday 11 p.m.

Hair and Fashion Show: Raising The Foundation The Boutwell Auditorium 6 - 9 p.m.