With the end of the school year around the corner, students have a lot to focus on. This includes everything from summer jobs to finals to moving belongings home from the dorms.

For most students, moving out of the dorms is harder than moving back in. At the beginning of the school year, students and Community Assistants were available to help people move into their dorm rooms for the year.

However, when it comes to moving out, students only have themselves and the friends they can find to help.

Some students decide to pay for a moving truck to help move out of the dorm.

“Spring is the one of the biggest times for us,” said Barry Meyer, the manager of the local Budget Truck Rental. “With the graduates and the students moving out of the dorm we get about 100 inquiries.” The price depends on the destination, said Meyer.

“We have traffic lanes, which has a specific price from one place to another,” said Meyer. “You could probably move from here to Sioux Falls for less than $100, but moving to a small area will probably cost more.”

You need to think of it as a packaged deal, you get the truck and specific amount of miles for so many days, said Meyer.

Students have other options to help move their stuff home other than paying for a moving truck. “I packed most of my things the week before finals. I just keep the things I needed out for finals week,” said Vanessa Fischer, a senior dietetics major. “I went to local businesses and got boxes to pack up all my stuff to keep it organized.”

I think students need to look ahead on their schedule and pack ahead so they don’t feel so pressured during finals week, said Fischer. Moving out of the halls comes with a lot of hassles.

“It was an annoyance to get a car that would fit everything I had into it,” said Aaron Holland, a senior parks and recreation major.

Holland said he keeps a lot of the things he has gotten over the year and even took stuff his roommates didn’t want. He suggests keeping things organized and decide what kind of kind of car is needed to move all belongings.

“Make sure you organize with you roommate so that they can help you move out,” said Holland.

/>
“Make multiple trips back home, from about a month before the year ends,” said Jerame Bosma, a sophomore athletic training major. “You don’t want to wait to the last minute to move out.”

“I had my parents come up so that I had two cars to pack all of my stuff,” said Michelle Ellefson, a junior nursing student.

Some students choose to focus on schoolwork prior to packing.

“I am waiting to the last minute to pack,” said Kyle Baumann, a freshman pre-medicine student. “I want to focus on my finals first.”

The recent nice weather may have students excited for spring, but for some students on campus, spring doesn’t just mean nice weather and flowers; spring means the start of another allergy season.

“Symptoms of allergies are post-nasal discharge (runny nose) with a scratchy throat, itchy eyes, and a person can seem really tired a lot during high allergy seasons,” said Brenda Andersen, the service associate director for the Student Health and Counseling.

According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, “an allergy is characterized by an overreaction of the human immune system to a foreign protein substance (“allergen’) that is eaten, breathed into the lungs, injected or touched.” There are different types of allergies and different levels of severe reactions for allergies.

Some people who have allergies do not even have severe enough reactions to their allergens to know they have allergies.
“Allergies have a genetic component,” says the Asthma and Allergy Foundation. “If only one parent has allergies of any type, chances are one in three that each child will have an allergy.”

Pollens are a big problem for people who have allergies this time of year because of how windy it gets, said Andersen. Some SDSU students said they deal with spring allergies, as well.

“I have seasonal allergies to ragweed, some medical allergies, and I am also allergic to mold,” said Nathan Morrison, a junior economics major.

“I am allergic to fresh-cut grass and dust mites,” said Nikki Dietrich, a freshman pre-pharmacy major.

Other common allergies include animal dander, dust, pollens and hay.

Allergy symptoms are not just something people have to deal with in the spring.

“I have to deal with the dust mites in the winter because of how closed up all the buildings are that time of year,” said Dietrich. “In the summer I have to worry about the fresh cut grass when I am driving or walking around, my nose will itch or I will start sneezing.”

There is no cure for allergies, but if a person’s allergies are severe enough, they can get allergy shots to help ease their symptoms.

There are other ways to help prevent allergy symptoms, said Andersen.

“Keep things clean, shut your windows and doors; if you have pet allergies then try to avoid hanging around with pets, make sure you change out your air conditioner’s filters, and run a dehumidifier,” said Andersen.

To help with allergy symptoms, students could try taking an over-the-counter antihistamine like Claritin.

When walking around campus, it is easy to tell that a majority of the male population has embraced the latest male fashion statement: growing facial hair. What has caused part of the male population to grow a beard or other forms of facial hair?

“It is a winter thing,” said Brian Flynn, a sixth-year history major. “It is seasonally appropriate and can help with winter safety.”

That is not the only reason men will grow facial hair.

Nathan Robey, a junior athletic training major, and Aaron Holland, a senior parks and recreation major, both said they grew a beard because they did not want to shave every day.

“It is really simple,” said Arion Poitra, a senior graphic design major. “I only have to clean my beard up once a week.”

Girls have mixed emotions about facial hair.

“I hate facial hair,” said Kara Bleyenburg, a junior early childhood education major. “I think guys grow facial hair because they feel manlier, but I prefer a clean-shaven guy.”

Not all girls dislike facial hair, however.

“I don’t mind a guy with a little scruff,” said Tessa Bollinger, a freshman pre-nursing student.

Jordan Bettmann, a junior advertising major, has his own theory about girls’ preferences.

“Some girls say they do not like facial hair, but I think secretly every girl likes facial hair a little,” said Bettmann.

Some question whether facial hair looks professional. If a guy keeps his facial hair well-groomed he can look very professional, but if he doesn’t then he can look like a bum, said Flynn.

Holland said a beard needs to be well-trimmed and maintained to look professional.

Most college men are not growing facial hair to look professional.

“Every guy wants to grow a beard,” said Holland. “The ones that can do and the ones that cannot are usually smart enough not to try.”

So how long will this new male fashion statement last?

“I think beards will stay in fashion for a while,” said Poitra. “As long as celebrities like Brad Pitt and George Clooney have beards, then the rest of the male population will be tempted to grow facial hair.”

Bettmann said the decision ultimately comes down to the individual.

“It depends on the personality of the guy,” said Bettmann. “Some guys have a clean-cut personality and others have rugged personalities that want to grow facial hair.”

It is common for people to forget how fortunate they are when they have perfect physical and mental health. The SDSU Police Department is working to help remind the students how lucky they are and help raise money for the Special Olympics.

“SDSU athletics and the University Police Department are working on a fundraiser for Special Olympics, by selling raffle tickets for jerseys at the Dec. 13 game,” said Justin Swanson, in charge of marketing and promotions for the Athletic department.

“The Special Olympics is the law enforcement charity of choice nationwide,” said Cora Olson, corporal at SDSUPD. “So the money raised will go to Special Olympics locally and state-wide.”

The SDSUPD has been working for about three months to sell the tickets for the fundraiser, Olson said.

“We have a Web site that people can buy raffle tickets from,” said Olson.

To purchase raffle tickets, visit www.sosd.org and click on the link.

The tickets sell for $10 each, three for $25, five for $40, and fifteen for $100 said Olson.

The women’s basketball team will raffle off 15 jerseys, and the winners can have their pictures taken with the players at the end of the game, but it is not mandatory for the winner to be at the game, said Olson.

“I think it’s a great idea that UPD is encouraging students to reach out to the community,” said Marie Olson, a sophomore general agriculture major.

SDSUPD is looking into other fun raisers like a polar plunge and “lock up a cop”, said corporal Olson.

“We want to raise money, but most importantly we want to raise awareness,” she said.

Sometimes it is nice just to break the culinary routine and go off campus for a nice meal. Brookings has a wide variety of local restaurants that can offer various options to satisfy hungry appetites. Recently, the number of restaurants has grown, and some of the more established ones have expanded their options.

Many people are familiar with the seasonal restaurant Backyard Grill BBQ Shack, but most do not know that it is now a restaurant that will be open year-round.

“This is a great opportunity to quadruple our menu and business,” said Alan Elenkiwich, the owner of BBQ Shack. Elenkiwich said that the new menu would soon have 12 different buffalo wing flavors, stacks of French fries and much more. He is very excited for the growth in business.

The shack now has five booths and two stools for seating and can hold 25 to 30 people. Elenkiwich said that they have only been open a week and already they have had 72 people in the restaurant at one time.

“We have a country southern atmosphere,” said Elenkiwich. “I mean, we have peanuts on the tables.”

Once the BBQ Shack has been open for a while, Elenkiwich said he is looking forward to having different eating contests. Until then, the restaurant will be open from 10:30 a.m. in the morning to 7:30 p.m.

“It was really good,” said Beth Schmitz, a sophomore park and range major. “It is almost as good as the southern cooking my family makes.”

Not in the mood for BBQ? Want something maybe a little healthier? Consider Meals in Minutes.

“Call ahead and I will prepare a meal for you to pick up or you can come in and make it yourself,” said Marialene Lundie, the owner of Meals in Minutes. “I do all the chopping and cleanup – you just have to go home and bake it.”

Lundie is offering a 15 percent discount for any SDSU student that shows up with their ID and makes a meal. The only challenge for students that live in the dorms is that they need an oven to cook the meals. Meals come in half or full sizes. Meals in Minutes is located at 620 Western Ave.

“I would be more than happy to do any kind of fundraising with the SDSU clubs,” said Lundie. “I want to get more involved with SDSU students.”

Brookings is also receiving a new pizza place called Boss’s Chicken and Pizza. Boss’s already has a location in Sioux Falls.

“An opportunity arose and it seemed like a good time to expand,” said Darin Nagelhout, who runs the Boss’s in Brookings. “Boss’s Pizza is known for its great varieties in pizza and for delivering, carrying out, or dining in until 3 in the morning,” said Nagelhout. “The late-night pizza was not offered like we do it before.”

Nagelhout is hoping to open Boss’s Pizza on Dec. 2 or 3. The restaurant is located at 420 Main Ave.

Nagelhout said that he would love the idea of doing different challenges with the dorms on campus, once the staff is fully changed and the business has started.

“The customers will determine our growth,” said Nagelhout.

Since Boss’s delivers pizzas to their customers, they cannot accept Hobo Dough said Nagelhout, but he hopes that will not stop students from ordering Boss’s Pizza.

“It is good pizza. I remember last year Boss’s Pizza served free pizza on Black Friday in Sioux Falls,” said Beth Koletzky, a sophomore nursing major. “I think it is a more community-based business and I really like that.”

Echoes of contemporary war tales and first-hand accounts of experiences in Iraq filled the air in the Performing Arts Center on Oct. 27, as the Harding Distinguished Lecture Series and the South Dakota Humanites Council featured U.S Army machine-gunner Colby Buzzell.

The book My War: Killing Time in Iraq is a compilation of Buzzell’s blog posts while in Iraq.

“Buzzell brings a diverse perspective on the war,” said Laura Wight, assistant professor in Briggs Library and chair of the Harding Lecture committee. “Students don’t always hear a person with his experience from the war.”

Buzzell graduated from high school in 1995 and was one of the bottom-ranked kids in his class. In his opinion, college was not an option, so he got a number of odd jobs. He moved to Los Angeles and then to New York.

When the World Trade Center was hit, Buzzell was in New York. He took photos of the Twin Towers as the planes hit and the towers fell. At this time, he felt he was too old to join the military.

Buzzell decided to move back home, and this is when he first started to keep a journal. One day he read his journal and was not happy that every day was the same.

“I thought to myself, ‘This is pathetic,’” said Buzzell.

At 26, Buzzell went to a Marine recruiting office and was turned down. When he walked outside, there was an Army recruiter waiting for him. He signed the papers that day and went to Army boot camp.

Buzzell went to Iraq during the second year of the war, when it was no longer front-page news.

He was reading an article about soldiers blogging in Time magazine, so he went to an Internet café and started his own blog.

“It became therapeutic after a mission when my ears were still ringing, to let it all out,” said Buzzell.

One blog post Buzzell highlighted was called “Men in Black.” While running a mission, his battalion was hit with mortars, and he started to wonder what he had gotten himself into.

For Buzzell this was a long, intense day, and he thought that it had to be on the news. When he saw that there was hardly anything in the news about it, he wrote about it in his blog.

After he wrote “Men in Black,” he received hundreds of e-mails from people, and he even received several requests for an interview. The military then found out, and he was ordered to stop blogging.

After his presentation, Buzzell answered questions from the audience. One question asked dealt with his views on censorship in the military.

“I understand. If too much information is released, it could potentially cause trouble,” said Buzzell.

Students said they had different reasons to come listen to Buzzell. Emily Van Klompenburg, a freshman pre-pharmacy student was required to come for a class.

“I thought it was very interesting,” said Van Klompenburg. “I don’t know much about the war. I like to learn about it.”

Another student said that the lecture brought him new ideas.

“I walked away with the message that I need to get as much college experience as possible,” said Trevor Johnson, an undeclared freshman.

The Army machine-gunner and author said he likes to talk at colleges to educate students about the war. For him, the lesson to be taken from Iraq is all about education.

“Learn from other generations’ mistakes, and do not repeat those mistakes.”

As the hour of all Hallows’ Eve draws close, the ghosts and ghouls come out to play.

SDSU was founded in 1881, so are there any ghosts that haunt the halls of SDSU?

George is a local ghost who is said to haunt Doner Auditorium.

“George is said to either be a janitor who worked in the Administration Building who hung himself [off] the balcony or a little girl who fell [off] the balcony,” said Heather Slunecka, a senior communication studies and theatre major.

Slunecka has been a stage manager for plays for the past three-and-a-half years and has never had an encounter with George. But that does not mean that she does not believe in him.

One story in George folklore is the legend of the Elvis suit, Slunecka said.

One night, staffers were looking for an Elvis suit for Capers and could not find it. Later, during a thunderstorm, there was a loud crash and a container fell off a top shelf. The Elvis suit was found laid out perfectly with wig, jacket and all.

Geoff Nixon graduated last year with a communication studies and theatre degree. While he was here, the theatre program put on The Phantom of the Opera and had to remove one of the normal chandeliers and replace it with a chandelier that would come crashing down.

During the summer play practice for the show, the chandelier that had been removed and then later put back came crashing down onto the center of the stage. Some of the actors said the crash was George’s doing.

“I think it’s a bunch of foolishness, but I am willing to entertain the idea,” Nixon said. Ray Peterson, a theatre professor who has worked at SDSU for 39 years, has never been confronted by George, but he does believe in him.

“There used to be a pipe organ, but ever since it was removed, many of the run-ins with George stopped,” Peterson said.

Stories about George seem to come up every three to four years. Since the construction started on the Administration Building, George seems to have stopped spooking people. Peterson thinks the renovation could have scared George away.

While some people believe in the ghost, others do not.

“Personally, I have spent a great deal of time in Doner, and I have never had anything happen to suggest George exists,” said theatre professor J.D. Ackman.

To Ackman, Doner Auditorium is just a big empty room. Even though George is not real to Ackman, he does believe in ghosts.

Regardless of whether George is real, Slunecka said the theatre majors have fun blaming him for things that go missing.

#1.881311:2143730965.jpg:Front_Illustration.jpg::Brandon Van Westen
#1.881310:3681293350.jpg:Doner2.1.jpg:Doner Auditorium , shown here, is an SDSU site rumored to be haunted. “George” is said to be the auditorium’s own spooky character.:Daniel Arch

Want a good book to read in the spirit of Halloween? Then I have a wonderful book for you. It follows the theme of vampires and is the third book in The Vampire Chronicles collection by Anne Rice. In the last two books, the tales of Louis and Lestat were the main focus, but in the third novel, the focus is moved to a number of different characters.

The Queen of the Damned is one of the longest books in The Vampire Chronicles collection. This book, like its predecessors, takes a lot of concentration. The Queen of the Damned has the greatest number of characters’ and background characters’ histories. One of the first pages in the book contains an index saying where each individual story is located.

I believe that this book could not have been written or told at the high level that Rice has written the other Chronicle books without telling the different histories. Each new character brings new questions and new interests that are woven into the stories. The characters that readers thought they understood show new sides that make readers think about their original feelings toward that character.

One thing needs to become clear right away: the movie is very different from the book. One of the differences is the number of characters. For instance, Armand and Louis are not in the movie, but they can be considered important characters in the book. The story told by the movie does not go nearly as in-depth as the story in the book. Also, the book explains the relationships differently and more profoundly than the movie does.

While reading this book, there are times when readers may feel as if they are walking beside the different characters. Lestat, Jessica (one of the new characters) and Marius go through many adventures throughout the novel, and the readers may experience the scenes with each character. You seem to grow as Lestat grows as a character. The feelings of stress and anxiety felt by the different characters feel like the readers’ feelings.

Because of Rice’s unique writing talents, it seems easy to understand why the characters are so worried about what Akasha the Queen is going to do. It also seems easy to understand why Lestat was infatuated with Akasha. The power that Akasha shows Lestat can feel as intoxicating to the reader as it does to Lestat.

Rice did a wonderful job of writing the book. She describes each scene with a powerful ability that makes you feel like you are a part of the story by being another character in the book. A thesaurus is needed to read this book at different points in the story because of some difficult language.

I think The Queen of the Damned is a wonderful read. This book is a challenge and will make the reader think about what is going on. There is no way that a person cannot form an opinion about each character. It was impossible not to spend numerous hours reading this book that should have been spent on studying, because I could not put it down. The third Vampire Chronicles novel was an amazing work of writing that I thoroughly enjoyed reading and cannot wait to read again.

Most college students do not have very much money to spend on Halloween costumes. Many end up making their own get-ups.

Some of the usual costumes that can be seen on Halloween night are pirates, witches and gypsies. Depending on how into a costume someone gets, these costumes can turn out remarkably well.

There are other interesting ideas that a person can do. One idea from costumes.familyeducation.com is a rainy day costume. This costume is very simple and easy to make. All that is needed is a raincoat, rain boots, an umbrella, tinsel or silver ribbon, glue and sparkly body spray or paint. Attach the tinsel or ribbon to the umbrella to make it look like rain. Put the raincoat and boots on, and spray the sparkly paint on your body. Now you have a new and fun costume that most students have probably never thought of.

If you are a card player, why not dress up as your favorite card, such as the King or Queen of Hearts? To make this costume, all you need is two construction boards, a red or black marker, some glitter (preferably red or blue), red or black ribbons to tie the two boards together and some face paint. Have fun with being creative, but stay true to the royal nature of this costume.

How about going as a giant gumball machine? For this costume, all a person needs is to get a big, clear garbage bag and cut arm holes, leg holes and a head hole. Then blow up a variety of different colored balloons with air and fill the bag with them. Put a red cap on your head to look like the top of the machine. Try not to let your friends eat your balloons.

Another idea for a Halloween costume is dressing as a Dalmatian. Go to a thrift store and buy a white pair of pants and a white long-sleeve T-shirt. Using a black marker, make spots all over the pants and shirt. With black face paint, make black spots on your face and arms. Perhaps fashion a baseball cap or beanie into a spotted head with doggie ears.

A different idea would be going as a tourist. Everyone has probably seen that person wandering around with a camera glued to their hands, a loud T-shirt and a lost or amazed look on his or her face. If you dress like this, make sure to stay away from tourist traps or public attractions. You do not want to be mistaken for a real tourist.

If none of these suggestions are useful, then how about going as your favorite movie character, such as Edward Cullen from Twilight or a Disney princess.

Or, try going as your favorite book character. There are thousands upon thousands of different books that have been written. Most likely, it would be relatively simple to make a creative costume that still impresses your friends.

These are some affordable costume ideas for college students who want to be original but have minimal money for Halloween in the bank account. Whatever you choose, try to make it as original as possible. A big part of the fun of Halloween is standing out from the crowd in an exciting and unique costume that you designed yourself.

Another construction area was set up northwest of The Union last week in preparation for the upcoming Union expansion.

As part of the preparations, a fence, that blocks one of The Union’s entrances and part of the NFA parking lot, was put up around the northwest corner of the building.

Last year, The Union went under review, and it was found that The Union was short on space and the food services had reached its max on its ability to serve students, said Jennifer Novotny, director of The Union. Novotny said there will be an increase of 350 seats in The Union and that construction should be completed Oct. 1, 2010.

“The Union will add two new eating establishments, an extension on the Campanile Room, and will put the new Bummobile on display,” said Dean Kattelmann, vice president of facilities and services.

The construction should not have any effect on dining areas this year. However, during the construction, The Union will lose four meeting rooms, said Novotny.

The construction has been set to start at different times to help make the impact on students as minimal as possible.

According to Novotny, ARAMARK Foods provided $3 million for The Union construction and the University Food Services Account provided an additional $3.2 million for the expansion.

“Peska Construction Company from Sioux Falls contracted to do the construction at The Union,” said Keith Skogstad, assistant director of The Union. “With the weather being so bad, the construction has been slow, but hopefully the weather will be better next week, and work will start big next week.”

“I think it’s a good thing. The school needs to keep up with renovations to keep up with demands,” said Peter Noding, a sophomore general agriculture major and the representative for Hansen Hall for UFSAC, a group that evaluates campus dining.

With the new renovations, The Union should be able to handle the flows of traffic better, said Noding.

This new renovation should give The Union a better community atmosphere, said Noding. He said he believes that the construction was a timely decision.

“The remodeling of (Larson Commons) made the place seem friendlier. I hope that The Union will be like that remodel,” said Noding.

Next fall, the university will add a late night and sports grill type of eating establishment, said Novotny. Also, Novotny said that an Einstein Bros. Bagels will be added to the dining choices. The new bagel place will offer choices of healthy foods that are not currently being offered.

#1.881353:3210080868.jpg:16.1.jpg:Sidewalks and trees are being removed west of The Union in preparation for a new expansion to the building.:Ryan Robinson