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Show ,4^ 4 U y TAjflsTiTESJAN FRIDAY, MARCH % 2005 Contact: Take Note: 797-1769 features@statesman.usu.edu Don't even think about school for one entire week. Spring Break rules. Destinations and safety tips abound as students prepare for Spring Break BY SARAH WEST Staff Writer hether students are going out of Logan, somewhere exotic or just going home, Spring Break will give students a rest from the daily grind of school. "Spring Break is the most important part of spring semester" Jeremy Salzetti, junior majoring in family, consumer and human development, said. "By the time it's spring break everybody's at their nerves end and needs a break." Salzetti is going to start out in Las Vegas, then go to California and then jump on a plane and go to St. Louis for his nephew's graduation from Army basic training. While in California, he'll concentrate on the beach and just do whatever he feels like, he said. However, safety should be on stu- dents minds while having fun. Jescee Bennett, a graduate student majoring in community health education and a health educator for the Student Health and Wellness Center, said they have been putting up signs with safety tips on campus to educate students to be healthy not just at school, but on spring break too. "Our main objective is to educate students and give them a heads up and say you're going on spring break to have fun, but you have to remember to be safe," she said. Some signs around campus have informed students about drinking and driving, driving while drowsy, wearing sunscreen, dating responsibly, safe sex and date rape. Kathy Teeter, staff assistant with the Wellness Center, said they are trying to educate students about safety before they go on Spring Break because the national average of incidents increases during Spring Break. She said after studying so hard for midterms students "just want to let loose." Teeter said the Wellness Center encourages rested drivers and discourages driving between 2 a,m. and 6 a,m. She also said that if students are going to be drinking, they should drink responsibly. The Wellness Center has been providing condoms, chapstick and brochures to keep students informed. Since good and bad things can happen in clubs, Teeter said, peer pressure can become an issue for students on spring break "They do things on spring break that they normally wouldn't do," Teeter said. As for her Spring Break, she said she'll be working. Katey Stroud, a sophomore and volunteer at the wellness center majoring in social work, said a lot of students forget about safety because when they get in a different environment they forget about the major and the minor things. "Utah's so conservative that when they [students] go to a different place, they want to try something new and that's when safety becomes an issue," she said. Saying "one drink is not going to hurt," can be dangerous, Stroud said, especially when students don't know their limits. Alcohol isn't the only thing they warn against Stroud said since spring break is usuSPRINC. BREAK See Page 6 Soak up the sun during Spring Break with a good book Let's face the bitter fact people: You haven't had time to read anything of your own free will since Christmas break — if then. You're sick of textbooks, forced reading, and anything that even remotely resembles homework — including medical prescriptions and calculators. Truly, you DESERVE a break, but before you set your brain on autopilot for the next week or more (some people never quite make it back from Spring Break), take a chance and pick up a good book. Trust me, if you're reading for fun, ifs an entirely different experience. The following suggestions, taken from a few different genres, should have something to keep you occupied while working on that tan (and that's-a kind of work anyone can enjoy). Book Reviews Matt Wright Fantasy/Science Fiction "Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell/' by Susanna Clark: Don't let the size of this book (700-plus pages) scare you away from one of the most interesting, funny, eerie and all-together otherworldly English novels to appear in the past several decades. In the novel, Clark recounts the state of magical affairs in England a couple cehturies after the last practicing magicians passed away and follows the reemergence of practical magic (not just magic scholarship) practiced by Mr. Norrell and Jonathan Strange. With polished prose and an uncanny attention to detail, Clark almost convinced me there really is magical history in London — in addition to Hogwarts, or course. "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Trilogy/' by Douglas Adams: With a new movie slated to come out this May, there's no better time to become acquainted with Arthur Dent, Ford Prefect, Zaphod Beeblebrox and the rest of Adam's zany miss-fits on their romp through time and space (following the worst Thursday in the history of the world). All five books (yes, tnere are five books in the trilogy) are available in one volume, or inaividually, at any major bookstore. "Harry Potter and / ' by J.K. Rowling: Book No. 6 (Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) comes out in July, folks. Whether you're looking to join the international obsession, or merely want to re-enroll at Hogwarts, Spring Break is a perfect time to meet the wizard destined to save the day. Every day. Miscellaneous Fiction "Straight Man," by Richard Russo: This one's hilarious, especially if you have any connection to the ins and outs of university politics, though it's funny even if you don't. Following the tale of a man who, midway through the novel, threatens to kill a goose a day until he gets his English department budget, Straight Man pokes fun at the crises of middle-aged manhood. Despite Russo's wit, he doesn't give much to look forward to. "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas/' by Hunter Thompson: Called the "best book of the dope decade" by the New York Times Book Review, I'm throwing this one in just because so many of you are headed down to sin city anyway. According to my roommate, this one's about a trip — think about that one — to Vegas. ' Apparently, Thompson got past the "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" rule. Go figure. A Few of the Unknown Classics (WARNING: these books may cause inordinate amounts of thought) "Collected Fiction of Jorge Luis Borges": Grab your mate and sit down to experience the collected short fiction of an undisputed master wordsmith. An Argentine native, Borges' BREAK ROOKS See Page 6 |