Photo courtesy of Occupation Gifts

If you’re looking for extraordinary gifts for people in your life, then the 2010 City College Holiday Art Sale may just be the place to find them.

These one-of-a-kind pieces, created by both City College art students and staff, will be sold in the Quad on Dec. 2 to Dec. 7 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will also be extended hours on Dec. 2 and Dec. 6 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

For more information about the 2010 Holiday Art Sale, contact Jennifer Griffin at 558-2559.

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/12/02/creative-holiday-gifts-for-sale/

Photo by Jesse Charlton

It’s just another part of the average college-aged woman’s day: classes, work and a GCB.

GCBs, or gourmet coffee beverages, are sweet coffee drinks with an avalanche of whipped cream and caramel on top. They’re the source of the queston, “Hi, would you like some coffee with your cream and sugar?”

But experts warn all that sugary sweetness could pose significant health threats.

Among female college students in their 20s, GCBs contributed to weight gain in those who habitually indulged in them, according to a 2004 study conducted by Simmons College Department of Nutrition in Boston. In the study, participants consumed at least 2.5 GCBs a week, with calories
ranging from 180-500 calories per beverage.

Jeff Christian, a registered nurse at City College, says that it’s no surprise that drinks such as Starbucks Frappuccinos are tied to weight gain because they increase a person’s recommended caloric intake for the day.

“There is limited nutritional value, and individuals who drink a GCB [and] then go have breakfast or lunch are potentially taking in more calories than they are expending,”
Christian says. “Those nutritional choices can lead to an increase in weight if the individual is not balancing the calories they take in versus the calories they burn through exercise.”

GCBs not only contribute to increased weight gain, but also leave people over-stimulated from a caffeine and sugar high, according to Nadine Kirkpatrick, a City College nutrition instructor.

“The main danger of overindulging in coffee drinks is probably exceeding your body’s need for calories per day and then storing the extra calories as fat,” Kirkpatrick says. “A secondary point of concern is caffeine content. You may be overdoing it and feel jittery, or you may feel a headache coming on when you don’t get your caffeinated drink. A third item may be the massive sugar load you are taking in.”

Even though dessert drinks are loaded with calories, they aren’t the only factor for weight gain among female college students, says Charlene Bondoc, a City College kinesiology major.

“Coffee alone can’t be the reason why women are gaining weight because there’s so much fast food out there, there’s no time for us [college students] to go work out every day,” Bondoc says. “A lot of [students] aren’t eating right either. There’s a bunch of [students] living off of Cup of Noodles.”

Instead of these GCBs, the best foods to consume are something organic and homemade, according to Christian. He also recommends that exercise be incorporated into a woman’s lifestyle if these drinks are in her diet.

“Purchase a blender, go to a farmer’s market and buy some fruit, get some low fat milk, ice and make a fruit drink,” Christian says. “If you are going to use some of your daily caloric intake on a drink, then make sure to burn those calories with some form of exercise.”

Christian says when it comes to GCBs, remember the golden rule of all things whipped, creamy, and delicious: Everything in moderation.

“Life is short, and it is important to do things that make you happy,” Christian says. “But it is important to find happiness in making choices that also bring you health.”

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/11/10/would-you-like-coffee-with-your-cream-and-sugar/

Nov. 1, 2010

Photo courtesy of Sac Film and Media

City College’s film club, Sac City Film and Media, and its production team will be hosting a casting call on Nov. 5.

Sac City Film and Media’s House of the Talented (H.O.T.T.) will produce their first film production called “Student Body.”

Dwight Taylor, the president of Sac City Film and Media and a member of H.O.T.T., is the screenwriter for “Student Body.” Taylor says he hopes that this will help him become a part of the horror film industry.

“I wrote the screenplay and [I’m also] an actor,” Taylor says. “I’m a horror [film] fan, and I wish to grow among those we see in the movies and excellent stories we read.”

Not only is Sac City Arts and Media looking for nine actors and actresses between the ages of 18-24 to cast as its main characters, but it is also looking to cast roles for a female reporter and a male professor between the ages of 27-50.

Aside from the main cast, Sac City Arts and Media is looking for lots of volunteers to play zombies.

Since the director is from the Art Institute of Sacramento and the school is collaborating with “Student Body,” casting will be held on Nov. 5 from noon to 3 p.m. at 2850 Gateway Oaks Drive, Suite #100. Auditions may be held at City College by appointment only. Call backs are on Nov. 6 to Nov. 12 and will be alternating locations between City College and the Art Institute of Sacramento.

For those with experience in film or acting and is interested, send your headshot or resume to notjustfilmclub@gmail.com.

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/11/01/join-the-legion-of-the-undead/

Along with teaching students to play guitar, City College guitar instructor, Matthew Grasso, has even managed to record an album on the side called “Past, Present, Future.”

The album, which was released Oct. 18, contains 18 tracks of Grasso’s original recordings of classical guitar pieces, and took 16 months to create with recording in the summer and between teaching guitar classes.

“For a finished CD product, it took 16 months of on and off (more off than on) running around to complete it,” Grasso says. “During the summertime is when I do most of my creating of music.”

Grasso is hosting a record release party for his new album on Nov. 5 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Davis in Davis, Calif.

For more details on Grasso’s music and concert dates, visit http://www.matthewgrasso.com

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/11/01/guitar-hero/

For example, when young people are asked why they’re voting for Proposition 19, some will say they’re for the legalization of marijuana because it’ll free up space and put real criminals, like rapists and murderers, in jail as opposed to marijuana offenders. Another reason a young voter might lean toward the proposition is because taxing marijuana would create revenue for a state in deep need of money. Unfortunately, many young people won’t vote for the proposition to help the state budget or put people in jail for real crimes, but simply because legalization will make it easier to smoke pot without facing prosecution.

It’s this way of thinking that leads to blind voting among young people because they don’t take the time to educate themselves on how the proposed law will affect policy. Young voters will vote for or against issues that relate to them—legalization of marijuana, higher education, gay marriage, and abortion—looking at the issues from a personal perspective instead of taking a larger view.

In addition to often failing to grasp the full extent of what’s being voted on, when it comes to midterm elections, the turnout shrinks because young voters are not as interested in local and state races. Is this an indicator of how the “Generation Me” tends to vote and stand or not stand behind causes?

According to USA Today, 22 percent of voters in the 18-29 age demographic are regular voters, which means they vote in both the midterm and presidential elections. Though the presidential election is important for governmental change, the midterm election is just as important because there are many issues that deal with state and local governments, which often are just as impacting, if not more so, than national policy.

But people in this age group tend to not be interested in those less high-profile issues. Kristen Melamed from The Aegis, a Maryland newspaper, feels that lack of information is to blame.

“I was recently talking with someone in her 20s and she said that she wouldn’t vote this November because she didn’t know much about anyone on the ballot. She just wasn’t interested and shrugged [off] the idea of voting,” wrote Melamed.
More than likely, casting an uneducated vote is just as bad as not voting at all. Some people’s reasons for voting for a candidate or proposition sometimes just scratch the surface and do not look at the bigger picture that involves all the problems of society. John Sakata in a cbs.com article said that more young people than older people lean towards the Democratic Party because of current events, as well as social issues.

“Although overall college students tend to tilt toward Democrats, their loyalties on politics are widely shaped by current events—juxtaposed with older voters who will have grown increasingly entrenched in their political views over time,” Sakata wrote.

Blind voting begs the question of quality versus quantity. Which is a better election: a large number of votes with people not knowing anything about what they voted for, or a smaller number of votes from people who understand and have thoughtfully considered the issues?

Voting is almost like a revolution: regular people getting together to make a change in how things are run. When young people don’t take the time to educate themselves about how a proposed law will affect their lives or give into voting apathy during midterm elections, it negates the idea of change for the better.

Young people should know what they’re voting for and should know that their votes do make a difference. When they don’t, their votes are about as good as aimlessly throwing darts at a board.

With the advent of YouTube, the website didn’t just bring people millions of videos within their fingertips, but it created one of the greatest inventions to come with the website: the video mash-up.

Even though the videos tend to lean more on the silly side, the art of the mash-up is a little more intricate than it looks. Timing and mood is everything and if one part doesn’t fit, the intended joke falls flat, thus losing the audience, and most of all, the video pretty much ends up sucking.

Here is a countdown of the Top 5 video mash-ups that did it right:

5) The Dark Knight Trailer Recut – Toy Story 2
What works with this trailer is that the video is edited so each character is synced up to one character and not numerous characters like the “Inception”-“Toy Story 3” mash-up. Plus, Morgan Freeman as Mr. Potato Head….I find that a classic moment. To watch this clip, click here.

4) Rick’s Rager…probably not happening
This clip features a very short scene from the 2001 independent film, “The Debut” interjected with Ridge from “The Bold and The Beautiful”. The video confirms it: Ridge’s royally pissed off and Rick’s rager really isn’t going to happen. To watch this clip, click here

3) Carl Sagan – “A Glorious Dawn” featuring Stephen Hawking (Symphony of Science)
What can I say about this music video? It has Carl Sagan and Stephen Hawking giving you a lesson about the universe and how complex everything really is. It’s like an episode about cosmology from an adult, ambient version of “Schoolhouse Rock”. To watch this clip, click here.

2) Panda Boy Swag
I will say this: I have a serious affinity for pandas, but I despise Souljah Boy and all his songs. Despite the latter fact, I don’t know what it is about this clip that I like. Maybe it’s how the panda moves with the song and shows that it really does have some swagger. To watch this clip, click here.

1) BIEBER, NO!
All 39 seconds of this video is glorious. There are no words to describe how great the combination is of Justin Bieber’s “Baby” and Will Arnett without ruining the video. Everyone needs to see this video at least once…or maybe five times if you really want to. To watch this clip, click here.

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/10/11/the-power-of-the-mash-up/

Oct. 23, 2010

Photo courtesy of Tamara Knox

When I think about a canned food drive, I usually think about the competition between classes in elementary school where the class with the most cans won a pizza party.

When I heard about the canned food drive at the cosmetology department at City College, however, there was no competition or pizza party involved.

From Sept. 29–Oct. 6, the City College cosmetology department held its semi-annual canned food drive, with all proceeds going to the Sacramento Food Bank. With this drive, a can got you a free haircut or manicure.

As a person who has no problem blowing $35 on a haircut, I must say that hearing “free haircut or manicure” and “canned food drive” reeled me in for a couple of reasons.

First, I heard from a friend that the cosmetology department charges $2 for a manicure and that I should try it out. Secondly, I had some cans that I wanted to get rid of.

I immediately made an appointment for a back-to-back haircut and manicure.

After checking in with the receptionist and handing over my can of Progresso’s clam chowder, I walked into the salon and met with the two cosmetology students, Kelsey Escolar and Dominique Temple, who were going to cut my hair.

As I looked around the salon, I saw swarming students and clients, as well as mannequins, as Dorothy Moore’s “Misty Blue” played over the radio.

“It’s good for business because you get a good haircut and the student learns,” Escolar said.

Escolar explained that when the cosmetology department has these types of deals, clients come in droves, and, she added, it continues to be a big success.

“We were swamped during the last drive,” Escolar said. “We were giving free haircuts. It was great because no one really knows about the program.”

Cosmetology Chair Marcia Bonawitz said that the semi-annual canned food drive is also a win-win situation for all those involved.

“It benefits the student because they get to practice,” Bonawitz said. “It benefits the community because of the food donated to the community and the client because they get to save money. It’s also a relaxing and enjoyable service.”

After an hour, my hair felt lighter, and I would agree that this is probably the best canned food drive tactic because if this were elementary school, all the participants would have invited to the pizza party at the end of the drive.

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/10/14/can-do/

A three-alarm fire broke out in Midtown in the early morning of Sept. 30 near J St. and 27th St. The fire severely damaged an apartment building and the recording studio that the famous Sacramento-based rock band, Tesla, used to record.

According to the Sacramento Fire Dept., the blaze, which was reported around 1:46 a.m., damaged three out of the four apartment units in the building. The fire spread from the apartment building to the recording studio, which was located in another building behind the apartments. While putting out the fire, firefighters managed to save most of the Tesla memorabilia, which were instruments and tour memorabilia.

No one was harmed, but four residents of the apartment building have been displaced.

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/10/02/fire-in-midtown-destroys-apartment-building-and-famous-recording-studio/

Sept. 23, 2010

Textbooks, course materials and tuition not covered by financial aid can be counted as tax credit, according to the National Association of College Stores (NACS).

Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the newly instituted American Opportunity Tax Credit allows college students to claim their textbooks and other costs in their annual taxes, making them eligible to receive a tax credit of up to $2,500.

City College student Shelby Ignacio feels relieved for the tax code change, saying it will help students with the brunt of buying course materials for future semesters.

“For us struggling students, it lowers our stress levels just a tad bit.” Ignacio said. “At least we don’t have to worry about how we’ll pay for out textbooks the next semester.”

For more information about the textbook tax credit, please visit www.textbookaid.org.

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/09/23/more-textbooks-more-credits/

Sept. 23, 2010

Photo Courtesy of City Theatre

The first City Theatre play of the fall semester is “Something Wicked This Way Comes,” opening on Friday, Sept. 24.

“Something Wicked This Way Comes,” directed by Lori Ann DeLappe-Grondin, is blended with both aspects of horror and fantasy. The play is about two boys and the strange traveling carnival that stops in their town. Like the title, many wicked and weird things begin to just as the carnival tents go up.

Since there is on-going construction at the auditorium where City Theatre usually hosts its plays, “Something Wicked This Way Comes” will be staged off-campus at California Stage, located at 2509 R Street. The play will be running from Friday, Sept. 24 to Sunday, Oct. 17.

For more information about showtimes and ticket prices, visit the City Theatre website at www.citytheatre.net.

http://saccityexpress.com/2010/09/23/weird-things-are-out-and-about/