NEWS

Podcast reshapes Indigenous media representation

MIKIALA NG

Sunni Parisien ’25 is changing the way media organizations approach Indigenous stories.

BY BRIAN ZHANG STAFF REPORTER

“I can feel myself searching for the answer that I’m running away from. Its truth feels too big to carry from one generation to the next.”

So begins Sunni Parisien ’25’s podcast “Following Our Fire,” which arrives at the intersection of her ongoing self-discovery journey and a desire to centralize Indigenous hope and love in American media. The first episode is available for download on Apple Podcasts and Spotify as of Nov. 4.

The podcast, which has been in the works since last November, is still in its budding stages. Future episodes, Parisien said, will focus on conversations with Indigenous leaders, journalists, youth and teachers about spirituality, colonization and history.

“I realized that most media for Indigenous people is about trauma and struggle, which is a very real thing,” she said. “[But] there should … also … be a space for Indigenous hope and the good in our lives that have been left to us, because there is a lot. It shouldn’t be just trauma porn.”

Parisien’s project, she said, is rooted in family and her tribe, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. She emphasized seeking inspiration from her people’s Seven Prophets story, which she first heard as a junior in high school. Every prophet had something to say about what was going to happen in the future, she explained.

When it came to the seventh fire, which is “the time of right now,” the prophets discussed that despite the loss and devastation confronting the tribe, there will come a people who will retrace the steps of their ancestors and reclaim the identities, teachings and practices that have been lost through colonization and assimilation, Parisien said.

Parisien, who also serves as a peer liaison at Yale’s Native American Cultural Center, hopes that the podcast will be a medium of a “radical imagination” that breaches the colonial framework and lens through which many Indigenous stories are currently seen in modern pop culture and media.

By inviting the original narratives of Indigenous community members and being an endeavor separate from the Yale institution, Parisien’s podcast returns sovereignty over tribal affairs to their rightful owners and creators. The decision to separate the project from Yale was a conscious one, with Parisien noting that the University should not receive credit for cultures and stories that it historically did not play a part in creating or supporting.

She frequently encountered this idea of “sovereignty” in an Ethnicity, Race and Migration course that she took with postdoctoral associate and soon-to-be associate professor Tarren Andrews, who is also an advisor on the project.

For Andrews, the podcast will hopefully serve as a “model for how other students who have personal, political, and cultural commitments to communities … within [and] beyond Yale” can make use of the resources at Yale to make their impact on communities where change “matters most.”

Andrews’s own introduction to Indigenous media at the University, she said, was through an opinion piece published in the News by Oscar Turner ’24 that called on Yale to introduce a Native American and Indigenous Studies major.

Amplified representation in a place like Yale is critical for shaping the way Indigenous peoples are then able to engage outside of this institution, Andrews said. She looks forward to supporting Parisien and helping her secure funding from both University-affiliated and community-based organizations.

In the past few weeks, Andrews has also put Parisien in contact with national writers and members of her own community on the Flathead reservation, who are working on language and cultural revitalization.

Part of what makes the podcast unique, according to Ethan Estrada ’25, a friend who helped with some of the audio editing in the project, are the many additional voices across disciplines and Indigenous backgrounds that will find a home in it. They echoed Andrews’s excitement as to where the project will take itself in the future.

“Our generation is full of changemakers and people who are really willing to take on systemic and intergenerational challenges,” Parisien said. “That’s kind of what I was inspired by, and I’m looking forward to highlighting that in future episodes of [Following Our Fire].”

Yale occupies Indigenous land, among whose owners include the Mohegan, Mashantucket Pequot, Eastern Pequot, Schaghticoke, Golden Hill Paugussett, Niantic, Quinnipiac and other Algonquian speaking peoples.

Contact BRIAN ZHANG at brian.zhang@yale.edu.

Happiness class leaves students unhappy

BY ALEX YE STAFF REPORTER

The science of learning how to be happy has left some students feeling rather unhappy.

When Psychology and the Good Life was first taught in Spring 2018, the course made national headlines as one of Yale’s most popular classes of all time.

Taught by professor Laurie Santos, a celebrated cognitive scientist and psychologist, the course utilized psychological insights to teach students how to live a better, happier life. At the time, 1,147 students were enrolled in the course, roughly one quarter of the undergraduate population.

In Spring 2022, the course was offered again, but with an enrollment cap of 461. The course was once again met with high demand, with over 700 students considering the course – making it the most “shopped” course for undergraduates.

Despite the popularity, the course received an average student rating of 2.9 out of five by students in Spring 2022, a nearly onepoint decline from the 3.7 rating in Spring 2018. Anonymous course ratings and evaluations are available to students on the University’s online course registration system, Yale Course Search.

“I was a little surprised [by the rating] but I guess it made sense once I thought about it,” said Micky Rose ’25, who took the course in Spring 2022. “I think some people were annoyed to find that to do well grade wise, they actually had to try, so they gave it low ratings. I obviously don’t know if any of that is actually true, but I feel like there was a perfect storm of individual and social expectations that led a lot of people to rate it lower than it deserved.”

Psychology and the Good Life explores scientifically-validated strategies for living a better life. According to the class’s syllabus, the course begins by introducing misconceptions about what makes for a satisfying life, then proceeds to cover psychological biases and psychological research in order to identify what is truly important for leading a better life and concludes by asking students to think critically about how to make a difference in their communities.

According to Andy Jiang ’25, another Spring 2022 student, Psychology and the Good Life felt like a “must-take” because of its high popularity and because of its relevance for his personal life. He added, however, that the course often covered topics too quickly.

“Oftentimes it felt that a lot of the content was presented as ‘you should know this’ with a citation or two and we quickly moved on,” Jiang said. “Despite the relevance of the material, the way it was presented oftentimes wasn’t as engaging.”

Justin Li ’25, who also took the course in Spring 2022, explained that he felt certain conclusions were “stretched to fit a narrative,” which he believes took away from the legitimacy of the class.

For Rose, the decision to take Psychology and the Good Life was motivated both by a need to fulfill a social science credit and an interest in happiness and mental health. He added that the scientific studies made the course particularly engaging.

“I’m a STEM major and it’s kind of my overall personality type to question claims that I find not very believable,” Rose said. “Obviously the class made a lot of claims about money, grades, happiness, that are counterintuitive to most people and to Yale students especially. So my favorite part was that everything was cited, everything had a credible source and study to back it up.”

Psychology and the Good Life has no prerequisites and can be taken by any student at Yale. Over the course of the semester, students are graded based on quizzes, a midterm exam, a final exam and a research project proposal.

In addition to developing Psychology and the Good Life in 2018, Santos also founded the Good Life Center in Silliman College, which also opened in 2018. The center serves as a wellness space that also offers programming and events to promote mental health.

In February 2022, Santos announced that she would take a one-year leave from Yale in the 2022-23 academic year to address her own feelings of burnout.

Santos did not respond to a request for comment.

Despite the drop in overall course rating, Santos has main-

KAREN LIN/SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Laurie Santos’ Psychology and the Good Life saw a nearly one-point drop in course ratings this past spring.

tained a 4.1 professor rating out of five both times that Psychology and the Good Life has been taught. The workload rating was 2.1 out of five in both 2018 and 2022.

Overall, students interviewed by the News described the course content as engaging and relevant. Jiang explained that he particularly enjoyed assignments that applied psychological topics to daily life.

“If you put aside the expectations that come with the popularity of the class, I do think anyone can leave Psych and the Good Life with one or two useful things they can implement into their lives,” Li said.

Psychology was Yale’s fifth most popular major in the 202122 academic year.

Contact ALEX YE at alex.ye@yale.edu .

Students demand a cap on insulin prices

BY BEN RAAB CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

Yale students gathered on Cross Campus on Sunday to rally in support of “Insulin for All,” a movement seeking to place a cap on insulin prices.

Arden Parrish ’25, the founder of Yale’s chapter of the “Diabetes Link,” organized the rally in anticipation of World Diabetes Day, observed on Nov. 14. A few minutes into the rally, a crowd had assembled around Parrish, who spoke into a microphone on the steps of Sterling Memorial Library. Students held up homemade signs with slogans like “Patients over profit,” “Insulin is a human right” and “Health is wealth.”

“Insulin costs 49 cents a vial to produce, yet I pay $300 a vial with insurance,” Parrish told the News. “It’s inhumane. I’ve known people who have had to ration it, and I myself have rationed it. I’ve known people who have died from rationing it.”

Rationing insulin is the practice of underusing the prescribed dosage needed to maintain safe levels of blood glucose. It can result in a deadly condition known as diabetic ketoacidosis.

A 2022 report found that an estimated 1.3 million adults with diabetes rationed insulin in the past year, making up 16.5 percent of all diabetes related insulin prescriptions.

Parrish, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at the age of seven, was forced to ration insulin in high school after their father lost his job.

“Eight doses a day was suddenly cut to two,” they said. “Losing your job means losing your insurance, and we live in a country where losing your insurance can mean losing your life.”

In 2020, 49 percent of Americans received health insurance through their employers. Roughly 10 percent were left uninsured.

Spencer Greenfield ’25 attended the event in support of reducing insulin prices.

“Healthcare is broken in this country,” Greenfield told the News. “I’m a fundamental believer in healthcare as a human right, so the bare minimum they could do is put a price cap on it, but ideally it should be provided for free.”

Parrish expressed frustration with Congress’s inaction regarding the insulin affordability crisis. They reflected on a time they testified in front of a Senate panel expressing support for capping insulin prices, but were “unable to actually get it done.”

Tony Li ’26, who is not diabetic, saw a flyer for the rally and decided to attend.

According to Li, “This is a cause you should advocate for regardless of if you have diabetes or where you stand politically. The price of insulin is way too high considering what it costs to make.”

World Diabetes Day is observed in commemoration of the birthdate of Dr. Frederick Banting, who discovered insulin and its applications in 1923. Notable for his refusal to put his name on the patent, Banting declared, “Insulin does not belong to me, it belongs to the world.” The patent was sold to the University of Toronto for one dollar.

Coincidentally, the rally was held a day after insulin producer Eli Lilly saw a five percent drop in its stock price after a fake tweet announcing that “insulin is now free” went viral. Eli Lilly released an apology for the message, drawing criticism from many.

“We have been demanding apologies from [Eli Lilly] for years, apologies for our friends and loved ones who have died due to their criminal inaction, and instead they apologize for a tweet that lowered their stock price,” Parrish said.

In June, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Susan Collins, R-Maine, proposed a bipartisan “Improving Needed Safeguards for Users of Lifesaving Insulin Now (INSULIN) Act,” which would cap insurance co-pays at $35 a month. The act has yet to be put to a vote.

Parrish expressed support for the INSULIN Act while commenting on their personal experience lobbying before congress.

“I was young enough to be surprised when it didn’t pass, old enough to know better,” Parrish said. “This is a long fight. And we are taking it one step at a time.”

WHEN 24 HOURS AREN'T ENOUGH

// BY MAYA ASHABOGLU

It’s 1:45 a.m. on a Sunday night (well, technically, a Monday morning) and you hear the much-dreaded announcement through the Bass Library speakers telling you to “make your way towards the exit.” “Have a good night,” they tell you. “Good night?” you ask yourself, thinking of all the lectures you need to catch up on in order to complete your pset. Does it make sense to complete all the readings first, or should you study for your quiz and then try to finish your book in bed? Oh shoot, you also need to find time to do laundry. Trying to keep your eyes open, you pick up your books and let your feet drag you to your residential college’s common room: the sixth different study spot of the day.

It’s that time of year again. When 24 hours in a day does not feel like it’s enough. Midterms, papers, the sudden fall in temperatures, the never-ending extracurriculars, all accompanied by the constant headache and coughs that prevent you from getting the already limited sleep you’re trying to get. It’s a weird feeling, a combination of physical and mental exhaustion. At least you know everyone else is in the same situation. Misery loves company.

I believe what makes midterm season even more challenging is that it roughly marks the three-month period of being at college. With Thanksgiving break coming up, most students have been away from home for a very long time. As the orange leaves disappear and the temperatures begin to fall, students are left with a feeling of nostalgia. For me, my first three months of college have been the longest, and farthest, I’ve ever been away from home.

Nov. 5, the weekend before all of my midterms, marks the first time I’m not with my sister on her birthday. She turns 16. I remember my 16th birthday — it was right before COVID-19 hit. I remember tearing up during my surprise birthday party and coming back to my room only to see the balloons my sister had blown up. One of the toughest parts of college has been being away from her; not being in the same time-zone, not being there to help her get through any minor inconvenience. I face the reality of distance as I see photos of her blowing out her candles sent to the family group chat.

Nov. 10, the Commemoration of Atatürk, the founder of the Turkish Republic. I guess this is where I need to explain I’m from Istanbul, Turkey. I’ve at school we have a ceremony, if you’re in traffic you park your car and stand on the sidewalk. Whatever you’re doing at 9:05 on Nov. 10, you stop and stand for a minute, fighting goosebumps and tears, as the siren all over the country sounds for a minute. This year, when it was 9:05 in Istanbul, it was 1:05 a.m. here and I was at the Stiles library solving a practice midterm for my math exam. It felt weird that life around me was normal, that nobody

// ARIANE DE GENNARO

lived in Istanbul my whole life. Every year, we remember the first president of the Turkish Republic in respect, gratitude and awe; we stand for a moment of silence at 9:05 a.m., the exact time of his passing. I’m used to life stopping at that time: even knew what that day meant for my country, my home.

Both days, however, I didn’t have time to dwell upon such emotions; I knew I wouldn’t be able to teleport back home, and I knew I had work to get done. Overthinking wasn’t going to bring me success. I needed to stay productive.

What I am trying to get at through these personal stories is that I think burnout is caused by more than academic work. I love all of my courses, I love writing for the YDN, I love my volunteer activities, I love spending hours in the library with my friends and going to the buttery to get a milkshake. Yet, I still can’t shake off the feeling of vulnerability that this time of year brings. Maybe it’s the constant worry of failure, the imposter syndrome that kicks in from time to time or maybe it’s just that glimpse of homesickness I usually try to fight off by reminding myself how grateful I am to be here. But something doesn’t feel quite right as I force myself to finish my 8-page cognitive science paper. I feel burnt out.

It helps that I love cold weather and that I absolutely adore our campus. Whenever I step outside, I’m filled with peace. I also try to change my study spaces: the Gilmore Music Library, Trumbull Common Room, Silliman Acorn, some reading rooms in residential college libraries, the lower level of Bass and more. I’m having trouble deciding on how to end this piece, because I’m just a first year who’s still trying to figure out college life. There will be highs and lows, and I’ve realized the cycle will always continue. I think I’ve decided the only way around it is by accepting burn out, while making sure you know what makes you feel better and doing your best to fit that into your 24 hours, as well. I genuinely love being here and intend to make the most out of my time at Yale.

Now that it’s officially 12:45 a.m. and I’ve finished writing my piece, I can close my laptop and go to sleep, hoping that I’ve made my way through my first college “burn out.”

Contact MAYA ASHABOGLU at maya.ashaboglu@yale.edu.

IMPERCEPTABLE CHANGE, CAPTURED IN TIME CAPSULES

// BY ANDREW CRAMER

Recently, I found myself worrying that my personal growth was nearing its apex. Thinking that my identity was starting to solidify scared me. I worried that my writing was growing boring, that I was out of fresh ideas. I’m too young to be washed up, I told myself. But I just couldn’t shake the feeling.

My friend coerced me into looking through old photos the other day. As painful and embarrassing as it was — very — it made me notice something strange. In every image, I looked essentially the same. Except suddenly, we were looking at stuff from 2015, and we saw a geeky middle schooler: bowl cut, braces and all. Oddly enough, however, there didn’t seem to be any photos of the stages between that young, scrawny, middle-schooler and the Hulk of a man I am now.

That obviously can’t be true. I didn’t just abruptly go from a seventh-grade boy to a college sophomore. But the changes were so small that you couldn’t differentiate from picture to picture. It triggered the mindset shift I didn’t realize I needed.

The changes in my life are almost always imperceptible on a day-to-day basis. The only way to notice them is to zoom all the way back out.

Returning to my current crisis of stagnation, I tried to compare my present to my past. It’s easier said than done, considering how difficult it can be to truly separate different versions of self. The lines are blurry. That’s why we need time capsules. And I realized I’m lucky enough to have built two more in addition to those photos: writing and Snapchat.

On Nov. 15, 2021, I published the first game recap of my sports beat reporting career: “Bulldogs prevail against Northeastern in second consecutive overtime thriller.” Exactly one year ago to the day, I wrote my third article for WKND. I couldn’t have imagined then that I would be editing for sports and writing weekly personal essays today.

Beyond the difference in the amount of content I’ve produced at the News, however, I found myself actually reading those old pieces and thinking to myself, “Wow, these are not as well written as I thought they were.” I remember thinking the same thing as an eighth-grader reading my seventh-grade personal essays, or as a high school senior reading my junior year reflections or even as a first year rereading my Common App essays.

Every time I look back on my old personal writing, I scoff at how smart younger Andrew used to think he was. Current me would never be so dumb. Except, in a year, I know I will laugh at this article, too. Instead of being as embar rassed as I probably should be, I find that knowl edge comforting. Because as stuck as I feel now, I know that I’m still growing, and I just can’t notice it. The other way I remind myself of change is perhaps less poetic: Snapchat’s “One year ago, today” feature. It reminds me that the things that seem like the biggest deal today will in fact fade.

Last November, I was letting people know that I was stressed about my first college exam in Math 115 — not stressed enough, as it turned out. Last November, I was wondering if I was going to get blown up by 40 bombs scattered across the Yale theaters —

// ARIANE DE GENNARO

too stressed, it turns out. And last November, I had to frantically call my best friend’s parents to pick him up from a Thanksgiving party I hosted while my parents weren’t home — I would say I was appropriately stressed about that one.

Two Novembers ago, I couldn’t stop watching Election 2020 coverage. Three Novembers ago, I scored my first points on varsity basketball. Four Novembers ago, I was worried that I was going to mess up in our jazz band performance. Five years ago, my Snapchat content was not very good at recording the biggest happenings in my life.

In the moment, those dramas all seemed like the most important thing that was ever going to happen to me. Now, they’re ancient history. They belong to the old Andrew. They’re stories to tell while reminiscing. They were moments that mattered in my life but ultimately seem relatively insignificant to who I am today.

So I don’t think I’m stagnating as much as I thought was. The dramatic changes this year are few and far between compared to starting college last year. But I’m still growing, still changing, one incremental day at a time.

Future Andrew, cheers to your laughter at my current naïvete, cheers to how far you’ve come and cheers to our continued growth.

Cheers to one year from now, today.

WKND Hot Take:

Handsome Dan is not the cutest dog.

// BY ASHLEY CHOI

The Silly Saybrook strip

I first received the name of my residential college while walking down the graduation aisle last year in a scratchy, distasteful and non-Yale blue gown. Yale had meant to release room pairings earlier on the morning of June 16th, but at the last minute, the website crashed, and I, along with 1,557 enrolled firstyears remained deprived, nervous of who we were going to live with and where we were going to live. The cosmic game of waiting finally ended as I walked up the steps of the graduation podium, when my phone, hidden under my shapeless blue tarp, dinged. My hand reached for the phone, the entirety of my being ready to assimilate into that Yale person, the one who swore and died by their college.

I admit, despite my lack of knowledge on most Yale residential colleges, I knew then what type of college I wanted to be in. I had dreams of dorms with big courtyards, beautiful finished basements, white walls and sunlight filtering in through black rimmed glass windows (hint, hint Silliman).

Instead, I was greeted by Saybrook’s blue and yellow coat of arms.

I turned to my friend beside me and whispered in her ear “I got Saybrook” in the way someone who knew nothing about Saybrook would say. “Oh,” she whispered back, and her blue painted nails typed the word into Google; her eyes scanning Wikipedia.

“You have to strip,” she said.

And like a fool, I stared horrifi ed.

Months later, I learned more about the Saybrook Strip when I received an email from the head froco of Saybrook College, with the bolded words, “IMPORTANT: SY Strip Chant — study up because I do not want to be embarrassed at Harvard if y’all don’t learn the chant.”

The Saybrook Strip is infamous, questionable and almost elusive — the whole concept of attending an elite private college and stripping for tradition seems almost high-end; fun for some, but unaffordable by most. Only a Logan Huntzberger type would post Huntzberger type would post the Strip on Instagram with a slightly confusing, extremely exclusive caption that caption that only only is more convoluted than my concern with being naked, cold and afraid in a sea of blue and red (strange thoughts of patriotism (strange thoughts of patriotism is a time-tale tradition and not limited to the Saybrook Strip; friends at UChicago have talked excitedly about the Polar Bear Run, Dartmouth’s slightly concerning Ledyard Challenge is cerning Ledyard Challenge is an eye-opening revelation an eye-opening revelation about the college and about the college and even Saturday’s even Saturday’s losers have losers have the Primal

him and six others would understand. The absurdity of the event earns the disapproval of my second-wave feminist mother and even annoys me at times when Saybrook fi rst years open conversations with, “are you going to strip at the game?”

The history of taking one’s clothes off on college campuses have filled my mind as I’ve written that). Streaking in colleges

// CECILIA LEE

Scream. At Yale itself, nakedness is embraced. Whispers of naked parties linger in corners and tales of the Naked Run infiltrate first-year suites. The extensive history of nakedness at Yale leaves readers with the idea that “the Saybrook Strip has been a site of generational conflict as well as a product of generational change.” It seems plausible that an anthropology class at Yale might say these traditions reveal the human desire to revert back to primal instincts: to run around naked, adrenaline-pumped and screaming. Despite being a fan of anthropology, I’m not sure where I stand on the matter.

As to whether I will participate in the tradition — that remains to be seen. The shackles of high school embarof high school embarrassment have only rassment have only recently come off. recently come off. Is there really a Is there really a need to encapneed to encapsulate myself within the within the nudist circles of Yale? Perhaps this makes me a fake Saybrugian, but the gian, but the past week’s weather has been an indication that temperatures below 60 degrees below 60 degrees and I are the coldest of friends. To be naked on top of that would be a level of masochism on par with taking 5.5 credits as a STEM major. For all those who are planning to strip at the game this weekend, know that you have my support when we (really, the Yale’s when we (really, the Yale’s

Men Football team) crush the Pilgrims. As the tradition of stripping lives on, Saybrugians, know I love you, cherish you and will forever be grateful that we remain one of the best parts of the Harvard-Yale Game.

Contact ASHLEY CHOI at ashley.choi@yale.edu .

// BY HANNAH MARK

For a sunny week in November, Rachmaninoff is my undoing.

In the frosty, see-yourbreath morning, I stroll past the graveyard. As yet another tree sheds the last of its leaves, the intense opening chords of his Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor build into the swell of an orchestra. A statue of an angel bends its gray head in salute. Then the piano begins a low rumble of arpeggios as the entire string section joins in a broad, mournful melody. I recognize the sound — Rachmaninoff and I belong to the camaraderie of the broken-hearted.

In the slanting midafternoon light, I squash myself into a shuttle seat next to well-bundled strangers. The cellos pick up the melody briefly before the piano sends it flinging into a rapid, dancing tune. The orchestra answers with a furious pizzicato, like the sound of rain on a tin roof. As the shuttle lumbers along between stops, the swell of the orchestra builds, layering timpani and brass until the full orchestra reaches that same desperate intensity of the opening chords. Abruptly, the melody ceases. There is a heartbeat of quiet. I forget about the bus entirely. I am not here. I am floating somewhere above time and reckoning, somewhere in a dazzling soundscape of Rachmaninoff’s creation.

In the newly-dark evening, I trek down Science Hill, mourning the premature loss of daylight. Into the pause of music and dusk, the violas enter in a delicate theme that is altogether sweet and sad. The piano answers, weaving its own rich melody as I pass a warmly glowing street lamp. Cellos join the piano, then strings. I remember for a brief and glorious moment what real living tastes like. It tastes like this, like passion and power, like a raw, hungry yearning for beauty, meaning and pain.

Rachmaninoff gets it. He’s full of drama and pure, needless decadence, but he knows something about beauty too. Listening to him is like eating chocolate in bed on a Saturday morning — entirely indulgent.

Let’s be clear: I know basically nothing about classical music. I spend more time listening to Taylor Swift than Franz Liszt. Even my discovery of Rachmaninoff

Rachmanino ate my soul

street lamp. Cellos join the piano, then strings. I started in the most sacrilegious of all internet corners: TikTok. I’m also not sure that it’s acceptable to describe a piece by a 19th century Russian romantic composer as a “certified banger,” but it’s true.

I haven’t had an interesting thought all semester. I spend ter. I spend most eve- bay. Even seasonal depression takes on a grand and cosmic meaning. Rach-

nings in the library, whiling my life away on psets and papers. Sometimes, for a change of pace, I schedule crying into my GCal. But Rachmaninoff makes me want to write sloppy poetry and call my mother and eat cantaloupe with an unwarranted vigor and bury my heart under a granite angel.

The weight of midterms and looming final projects and vanishing sunlight and onset of winter is held, momentarily at bay. Even seasonal depression takes on a grand and cosmic meaning. Rach-

maninoff quenches the thought that I shall be vastly ordinary until I die. He demands greatness or nothing at all. After all, what grade could matter as much as the capacity to feel passion and fury and artistic angst?

Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor. Go and listen to it right now. I like the Yuja Wang recording on YouTube. If you don’t have time for the whole thing, at least listen to the first 30 seconds of the Moderato to hear those dazzling opening chords.

I don’t care if you don’t like classical music. I don’t care if you’re suffering from

the yague and I don’t care if you’re studying in the stacks and I don’t care if you’re in the middle of a pivotal physics exam. These 35 minutes and 25 seconds of your day are more important than anything else in your life at this moment. Possibly more important than anything in your life ever.

And if you see me walking the sidewalks, headphones on, beaming and crying all at once, just know that it is because Rachmaninoff ate my soul.

// ELIZABETH WATSON

Contact HANNAH MARK at h.mark@yale.edu .

WKND Recommends

Kicking pilgrims.

SPORTS

STEVE KERR GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS COACH

VOLLEYBALL: Bulldogs beat Harvard, winning Ivy League Title

BY TIFFANY HU AND HENRY FRECH CONTRIBUTING REPORTERS

The Yale women’s volleyball team (21–2, 13–1 Ivy) is the 2022 Ivy League regular season champion.

This weekend, the Bulldogs beat Dartmouth College (16–8, 8–6 Ivy) and Harvard University (5–17, 4–10 Ivy) to finish the regular season at the top of Ivy standings. With the victory, the team secured the right to host next weekend’s Ivy League playoffs as the No. 1 seed.

“I’m honestly just so proud of the team and how we have worked all season,” Audrey Leak ’24 told the News. “I think our championship is just a reflection of all the work that we put in practice every day … Both Harvard and Dartmouth are super solid teams and I’m just happy that we were able to trust in each other and fight to the win.”

On Nov. 11, the Bulldogs beat the Big Green in three tight sets. During the first set, both teams battled with back-and-forth wins and kept the score close. However, the Blue and White ended the set with two attack errors from Dartmouth to take the period by a score of 27-25.

Dartmouth opened the second set with a competitive spirit and fought to stay close in score. With a narrow 9–7 lead, Gigi Barr ’25 landed a kill that shifted momentum in favor of the Bulldogs.

The Elis went on to nab an eight-point streak with 4 kills and a service ace before comfortably winning the set with a 25–19 victory.

The third set followed a similar script to the second as the Big Green remained competitive before the Bulldogs swung into another winning streak of eight points. The Blue and White racked up six kills from Fatima Samb ’25, Leak and Lauren Kellen ’26 and a service ace by Mila Yarich ’25. This time, the Blue and White took the set by a score of 25–18 to claim a 3–0 victory.

On the following night, the Bulldogs kept to their dominant ways and swept Harvard during their senior night to clinch the conference title.

Leak started the first set with two kills in a row. Yale shot out to a 13–5 lead before Harvard made it 17–10. The Bulldogs went on a run which ended with a kill by Amelia Brown ’24 and a first set victory of 25–11.

“I just thought we did a really great job of defending our own court and coming out aggressive from the start.” said Maile Somera ’24. “We’re a young team so there was the potential to … play with nerves and be tentative knowing what was on the line, but I thought we came out and went for it 100 percent the whole time.”

In the second set, the Bulldogs rode their momentum to a 25–12 victory. Cara Shultz ’25 had six kills and Carly Diehl ’25 had 11 assists in the set.

In the third set, both teams won back and forth points until late in the set, when the Bulldogs pulled away to win 25–19. Their third set win capped off a regular season in which the team had an overall winning percentage of .913, the best out of any Yale volleyball team on record.

“We’ve been working hard each week and it’s certainly been paying off, but we’re not done yet.” said captain Renee Shultz ’23. “I’m thrilled we can host the Ivy tournament next weekend. Until then we’re going to celebrate this regular season championship and keep working hard for the playoffs. ”

The playoff bracket is set. Yale has the number one seed, Princeton (21–3, 13–1) has the second, Brown (14–9, 10–4) has the third and Dartmouth the fourth.

The Bulldogs will play Dartmouth on Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. for the first round of the tournament. That game and all other Ivy playoff games will be at John J. Lee Amphitheater in Payne Whitney Gymnasium.

Contact TIFFANY HU at tiffany.hu@yale.edu and HENRY FRECH at henry.frech@yale.edu .

JENNY LIU/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

The Yale women’s volleyball team beat Dartmouth and Harvard this weekend, capping off a historic regular season.

Yale sailors become Match race national champions

PALOMA VIGIL/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

A team of four Yale sailors won the 2022 ICSA match race championship this past weekend for the second-straight year.

BY PALOMA VIGIL STAFF RERPORTER

Four of Yale's coed sailing team members snatched first place at the ICSA Match Race National Championship for the second year in a row and the second time in program history.

Jack Egan ’25, Megan Grimes ’24, Christophe Chaumont ’23 and Nicholas Davies ’24 competed together for the second year in a row at the match race championship at the San Diego Yacht Club this past Sunday. Under leadership from coaches Thomas Barrows and Hall of Famer Dave Perry, the team coordinated in unison to beat out the University of Charleston and Brown University and win the match.

“It felt really special to win this event with this team, especially for the second year in a row,” said Chaumont, who will leave the team of four when he graduates. “Couldn't have asked for a better way to end my senior fall season.”

The team's skipper Egan, was the overall brains of the operation as the one making a lot of the stressful decisions as commander of the vessel. He mentioned that there were a couple of times he put the team in a bad situation, but the group’s teamwork was able to "bail them out of it." "Being able to defend the title is a special feeling,” Egan told the News. “The field this year was certainly tough, but we were able to overcome it.”

The team opened the three-day race weekend with a win against Tulane and then Georgetown in the semifinals. Then, in the final round, the team swept the waves and defeated Charleston 3–0.

Although not the match race coach, head sailing coach Leonard commented that, since the team has worked together for two years now, they have "really gelled into a cohesive unit." He said the great result was a way to repay the sailors' hard work.

Grimes, one of the three crew members, said that the win meant a lot to the group of four because this was Chaumont's last year of racing. It was the last time the four wo u l d b e a b l e to co m p e te together, making the two-year win even more meaningful.

Chaumont said that although they didn't have much practice in the boats they raced in as they did for nationals last year, the team "did a good job of taking each race as a learning opportunity and improving as the event went along."

Grimes also attributed most of the success to Egan's "composure under pressure” as a skipper.

According to Davies, the three days had champagne conditions, a light wind condition typical of San Diego. This allowed for more stands and less time pressure than the regattas in the past. "We proved ourselves to be resilient in close matches in the knockout stages and adaptable to the J22s, boats in which we had only been able to practice for a day prior to the regatta," said Davies.

The sailing season willresume in 2023.

Contact PALOMA VIGIL at paloma.vigil@yale.edu .

MEN’S BASKETBALL: Yale dominates at Rainbow Classic in Hawaii

BY BEN RAAB CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

The Yale men’s basketball team (4–0, 0–0 Ivy) made the 5,000mile trip to Hawaii this week.

The trip was not a vacation. The Bulldogs took care of business at the Outrigger Rainbow Classic, bringing home a trophy after emerging victorious from all three games to remain undefeated for the season.

Head coach James Jones described his takeaways from the tournament as “all positive.”

“We were tested in a number of ways and came away unblemished,” Jones told the News. “Our defense was very good, and we maintained a great team focus.”

They began the trip with a convincing 74–60 win against Eastern Washington (1–3, 0–0 Sky). In their second game, they trounced Mississippi Valley State (0–4, 0–0 SWAC) 80–51. And in the championship game, the Blue and White topped Hawaii (2–1, 0–0 West) 62–59 in an overtime thriller.

Forward Matt Knowling ’24 was named the tournament MVP, building on his 20-point opening night with a series of strong performances, averaging 21.3 points per game on 58.7 percent shooting for the tournament.

Knowling, who averaged seven ppg last season, credited teammates for his strong performances as the team’s primary scoring option.

“I give my teammates a majority of the credit,” he said. “They did a great job of finding me when I was open and trusting me to make the right play. So this role has come naturally thanks to the support and trust I have from my teammates and coaches.”

In their opening matchup against Eastern Washington, the Elis ended the first half down 33–32, but came firing back in the second, scoring 19 unanswered points to blow the game open 57–38 with 10 minutes remaining.

Knowling finished with 26 points, hitting 10 of his 15 shots from the field, while guard John Poulakidas ’25 added 13 points of his own.

Against Mississippi Valley State, the Bulldogs got out to a hot start from the field, powered by guard August Mahoney’s ’24 three first half three-pointers to give the Blue and White a 35–21 heading into the locker room. Yale cruised through the second half to finish the game 80–51, securing a berth in the championship game. Knowling contributed 20 points while forward Yussif Basa-Ama ’24 had 12 off the bench.

The Elis came into their final matchup against Hawaii as fourpoint underdogs, their first time not being the favored entering a game this year.

Both teams struggled early, with a completely scoreless first four minutes of play. At the half, Yale held a 17–16 lead in the low-scoring affair, with both teams combining for 28 percent shooting from the field and just one made threepointer on 14 attempts.

“We were getting good shots for the most part, and we needed to have confidence that they would fall in the second half,” Jones said regarding the slow start.

The scoring picked up after the break, but neither team could pull away. Samuta Avea hit a three to put Hawaii up 38-33 with 10:42 left, but the Bulldogs tightened up on defense and forced the Rainbow Warriors into missing their next 10 shots, allowing the Bulldogs to climb back into the game. A layup by forward EJ Jarvis ’23 put Yale back up 39–38 with 6:44 to go.

As the final minute of regulation was winding down, the Rainbow Warriors seemed to be in control. Guard Bez Mbeng ’25 — one of the team’s best defenders — fouled out with 32 seconds left, and Noel Coleman then hit two free throws to give Hawaii a 51-49 lead. Mahoney answered back for the Bulldogs, however, drawing a foul and hitting two free throws of his own to tie the game with 18 seconds left.

Hawaii had the chance to win it on their last possession, but Jarvis switched off his man to come up with a game-saving block on Coleman’s drive to the basket with 3 seconds left on the clock, sending the game to overtime.

“I saw him drive baseline and knew there were only a few seconds left on the clock,” Jarvis said. “He tried to maneuver around me, but I was thankful I got a finger on it. Once we got the game to OT, I knew we would win.”

The game came down to the final minute once again in overtime, but the Elis broke through as guard Yassine Gharram ’25, filling the role of the fouled-out Mbeng, got a long defensive rebound and threw an outlet pass to forward Isaiah Kelly ’23, who threw down a slam dunk to gain a decisive 58–56 lead with 54 seconds remaining.

After another key defensive stop for Yale, Mahoney hit four more clutch free throws in the final seconds to seal a 62–59 victory.

The win marked Yale’s second time winning the Rainbow Classic title, also doing so in 1969 after beating LSU in the final game. But the successful tournament also came with a cost for the student athletes, who took several days off from school in order to make the 14 hour-long trip from New Haven to Hawaii.

“With long trips like these, it is very tough to balance school and sports,” Jarvis said. “We had to email teachers in advance to coordinate how to handle missing sections, classes and even deadlines. Being an Ivy League student-athlete is not easy at all, but as a senior, I have developed a routine for when we travel — which includes doing work on the buses and planes.”

During the Ivy League’s media day, Jones expressed reservations about going to Hawaii, saying, “The only reason we’re going to Hawaii is because we had three teams at home drop us.”

Jones also mentioned that ever since the Bulldogs’ upset victory over UConn in 2014, he has been unable to schedule a single game with another Connecticut team.

“I think that most teams try to schedule teams that they feel that they have a good chance at beating. There are enough teams to play without taking a chance at playing Yale,” Jones said.

Despite playing in the Ivy League, generally considered a relatively weak conference across Division I basketball, the Bulldogs have amassed a number of upsets over top-tier teams in recent years, including wins against Baylor University, University of California and University of Miami, each of whom play in “power five” conferences.

“The thing that makes student-athletes so special is that we perform at the highest levels in the classroom and in our sport,” added Jarvis.

Yale’s toughest test this season will come against the University of Kentucky on Dec. 10, a team ranked No. 4 in the nation.

The Blue and White, back from Hawaii, will return to the John J. Lee Amphitheater on Sunday, November 20th for a matchup against John Jay College.