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Show Monday, February 14, 2005 'Daily Utah Chronicle •\ 20 -snmclliimj's j i i r ,)l fiicjinrj it uc love Love as a cowboy? in his 30s and Last Thurssingle. Coinciday I mustered dence? I don't the courage to think so. do something I had never ever I struggled to in a million years learn the pretwanted to do. zel, the butterfly, the cha cha I went country and the cuddle dancing. (my personal Tyler Peterson It probably favorite). The took more guts Columnist moves aren't for me to perform this abhorred action than easy. They must be performed it took for Romeo to deny his with precision. If there is a father and refuse his name. twist where there should be a But Romeo and I live in the duck, or a swing in place of a name of love. If sacrifice must brace, somebody could end up be made, love is more than a with a dislocated shoulder or a serious bump on the noggin. worthy cause. Lucky for me, my 'pardner' I'll admit. It was not easy. Visions of yeehaw-ing hicks line was a good sport. After I neardanced through my head dur- ly tore all of the ligaments in ing the hours leading up to the her arms and wrists during the event. I day-nightmared about learning session, she still had an endless Texas plain of boot- the patience to tangle appendstomping cowpokes, their ages with me out on the dance heels in seesaw motion with floor. their toes, their thumbs tucked Other gracious girls helped into their front me along pockets to call throughout the After I nearly attention to night. Friendly, their oversized familiar faces tore all of the belt buckJcs popped out in and undersized ligaments in her the crowd. It genitals. arms and wrists was not long before I made As I prepared during the (earning a bittersweet to head over session, she still had realization—I to the dance at Trolley Square, the patience to tangle was having fun. In at least our I wondered appendages with me town, country what to wear. I tried on a cou- out on the dance floor. dancing is a great opportuple of cowboy hats, looked in the mirror and nity to interact with attractive members of the opposite sex shuddered. I am not a cowboy, and I in unique ways. It is good excould not pretend to be one. ercise, it is not mindless, and But for some odd reason, I it is less raunchy than typical could pretend to be a gang- club dancing. ster. However, there is no reason I ditched the flannel and the to pull out the red-hot steel boots for a bling-bling chain and brand me a country dancwith a dangling "»i" and a vi : er just yet. sor that said "too sweet" across I have a sneaking suspicion the brim. I was ready to go. that once I learn the moves to It cost me $5 and all my per- the point they become second sonal information save my so- nature, I'll have to start listencial security number to join ing to the music. Songs like the club. I didn't mind the ex- "Save a horse, ride a cowboy" pense though, because a friend make me sick. of mine got in for free. Do me a favor Mr. Big & Mr. And though slightly embar- Rich, and while I'm at- it, all rassed by my pimped-out ur- you other country musicians ban wear, she became my in- out there: Save my ears, burn struction 'pardner.' your instruments. Immediately I focused on tpeterson@ 1 the instructor, a male probably chronicle.utah.edu LEGISLATURE continued from page 1 Attorney General's office. "We've heard the prosecution's case, now let's hear the defense," he said. Assistant Attorney General Bill Evans explained that because anyone, undocumented or not, who attends and graduates from a Utah high school can get resident tuition status, the bill does not, in his opinion, violate federal law. "It's the same opinion I rendered when the bill was originally passed in 2002," Evans said. By meeting's end, the com- Single awareness day Let's have a day for single people, celebrating not having a romantic evening planned Christina DeVore Columnist Ah, Valentine's Day, a day of chocolates, roses and the awareness that I'm single, again. So why beat myself down for not having a romantic evening planned, thus sucking myself into the vacuumlike world of love and romance? Valentine's Day is my Single Awareness Day, a day in which my shoulders are squared, chin upturned as I walk with pride knowing I don't have to carry the extra weight of a boyfriend. Boyfriends are trouble. They want to know where you are, what you are doing, who you are going with and why. As a single person, you yourself never have to answer any of those ridiculous questions. And it's on that rare occasion that I myself feel it necessary to answer the questions. Realistically speaking, do I really want to explain to myself half of the things I do and why? Of course not. WOMEN continued from page 1 manizing women and seeing them as criminals for their choices." By allowing others to dictate women's reproductive lives, society creates such a broad definition of what is acceptable policy that all pregnant women feel the repercussions, Paltrow said. "Any woman who creates a risk of harm to a fetus is then a criminal." For instance, even women who use methadone, a legal drug, to treat heroin addiction can have their babies taken away, she said. Therefore, women suffer repercussions even when they are working to rehabilitate. "Even the women who want to get help are being sent to jail," she said. Another factor that may explain society's perceptions of drug use and pregnant women is eugenics, Paltrow said. The only problem with single life is living in a culture where by the age of 22, I've already been classified an old hag. Don't fret, Utah singletons, plenty more opportunities abound in the world, and you shouldn't get down just yet. The pressure to get your true love and live happily ever after exists everywhere. More stars my age are getting married and walking down the aisle. Current examples include Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson or Britney Spears and Kevin Federline (though I'm not sure if we should count the latter as a second marriage). The point here is that people outside of Utah are getting hitched at 22 and 23 years of age. Why, just the other day I spoke to a guy who is just two years my senior. His daughter must have been at least 2 or 3 years old. Think of the extraordinary perks you get for being single. You enjoy adulthood lon- ger because you don't have to worry about looking after children. Kids age you, and, quite honestly, I enjoy being young. These are the best days of our life, right? That's what everyone screams and shouts about. Well, I'm going to make certain of that. Besides, several friends of mine are having kids and my brother (OK, so far just one) has kids but that's just another plus to being single. First, I get to be the "cool" aunt who buys things for my nieces (and soon-to-be nephew). Then, I get to teach them ways to act up for their parents. Finally, at the end of the day, I go home without them. (Sorry Douglas, ignore this part.) There's far too much hype about Valentine's, thus marking a specific day to realize what a wonderful relationship you have with your partner, when in all actuality you spend the remaining 364 days arguing. Today shouldn't be a day to feel "Society believes these people are genetically damaged and are passing it on. Therefore, people are against them," she said. "There are those that believe that by keeping certain groups of people from having babies, society will get better, but this is not true. We need social support and we need to keep asking until we get it," Paltrow said. As a result, people are divid1 ed by how they believe rather than what science asserts. The term "crack babies," for example, is especially harmful because research has not conclusively linked crack to mental retardation. This term hurts the children because it creates negative stereotypes of otherwise healthy individuals, Paltrow said. Drug use and pregnant women are not the only concerns of the government, Paltrow asserted. "Even women who have given birth to stillborn babies are being considered murderers, and women who chose to give birth at home are sometimes arrested," Paltrow said. There are also laws that prevent living wills for pregnant women, making their rights for decision non-existent. Furthermore, a woman's right to choose a cesarean delivery can be overturned due to a doctor's recommendation, even if the procedure is potentially harmful, Paltrow said. Therefore, proposed legis- lation that restricts any rights of a pregnant woman will ultimately affect the majority. "We need to emphasize science as the root of good decision making rather than cultural ideologies," said David Roach, president of the Harm Reduction and Public Health Association. A lot of women just want help, if someone will only advocate for them, Paltrow said. kjones@ chronicle.utah.edu down just because you don't have a boyfriend or a girlfriend, and because every couple is seemingly declaring their love. Look at the power that single life offers, go out into the cruel world and take control. Have some pride in not being caught somewhere up in the clouds amid the hype of luxury chocolates and plush teddy bears holding hearts. It's all about the Benjamins, anyway. cdevore@ chronicte.utah.edu mittee narrowly approved of her friends who otherwise a motion to study the issue couldn't afford college. more intently over the next At the same time, she said year and readdress it during she hopes lawmakers will renext year's Legislature. alize Kobach's trip was paid Irma Hernandez, a stu- by the anti-immigration group dent at Weber State Univer- Utahns for Immigration Resity, hopes that after further form and Enforcement. study lawmakers will realize jparkinson@ the law gives hope to many chronicle.utah.edu $ 7 students, faculty, seniors, $ 1 0 general call 581-7327 for more info ASUU continued from page 1 the same things over and over again, so if you're involved in ASUU it's no secret when election time comes around again. But if you're a student who is not that involved in ASUU or ASUU planning, how are you going to know unless The Chronicle is reporting on it or there arc fliers and other marketing methods used?" Taylor Morgan, presidential candidate for the People Incorporated Party, said that he felt the application deadlines for Assembly and Senate positions needed to be publicized more. "The issue at hand is that not enough students even know that they can run or know how to run," he said. "We want to reach as many students as we can, but it's too bad that ASUU isn't the one doing it instead of the parties." Ence agreed that most of the responsibility to fill seats for Assembly and Senate positions fell on the presidential candidates' shoulders. "I think a lot of people don't know about [studentelections], which is part of our challenge as election officials, to help others understand the process. Up until now we've relied a lot on the parties themselves." Morgan said he wished more time was spent educating students about elections. "We do so much to get students out to vote, let's do a lot in the beginning to get students to know they can run for office in the first place," Morgan said. Ence admitted that he thought ASUU could be doing more, and added that he hopes ASUU will be able to build on the success of previous years as each election comes and goes. "It's going to be a growing process that will be year by year." scosman@chronicle.utah.edu Patrick Muir contributed to this article. Monday thru F r i d a y ' 1 1 A M to 2 PM FAST LUNCH (Pizza By The Slice) Cheese, Pepperoni, Fresh Tomato r r I W ^ W ^ W ^ W ^ • mj or " T h e E x p r e s s Slice O f T h e D a y " . V o i i University Location 222 S. I3DD E. • 582-7200 Also at: 7000 S. State • 255-5800 PIZZERIA mj mj Offer Good With Chronicle Coupon Only. Expires 2/20/D5 ! BACON RANCH // Mn *"'"\ [Location) READY IN MINUTES! MM ! BURGER j With purchase of bacon ranch burger. 16oz drink, and fries. 1320 E. 200S. 582-5700 The Associated Students of the University o f Utah Present D RUSPY 22, SO KinSSBUPY H e Gener?3L p p u STuoen u of u SWeijfcr Call 581-7100. C A S T S ' 1-8S8-H.51-ARTS1 Tiekrt Off**. Weekly kuerFM90 |