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(09/27/00 9:00am)
On a Jaffa block in a kitchen in a row house just off campus in West Philadelphia, a bottle of Marsala cooking wine sits alone.
The bottle stands proudly, beaming at the cereals and the mac 'n' cheeses, knowing it is of a higher rank. The bananas aspire to achieve the pride of the cooking wine before their counted brown-spotted days come. Animal crackers quietly yearn to be thought of as something more than just an easy snack with a cool box.
But at the end of the week, the bananas have been eaten, the cereal has given its life and only the wrappers of microwaveable mac 'n' cheese testify to the artificial cheese massacre of the past week. The Marsala cooking wine remains -- alone.
When I bought Marsala cooking wine on my first trip to the supermarket this year, my housemate Stanislav mocked me for my purchase. "Why would you buy cooking wine if you never cook?" he jeered. "Do you even know how to use it?" he asked, as if it were some kind of weapon.
Foolishly, I thought that if I simply bought the ingredients that my mother used to make dinner at home, I would magically be able to whip up the meals she makes on a regular basis in an easy half-hour.
Somehow, purchasing that Marsala cooking wine made me feel like an adult, ready to take on adult responsibilities, make adult dinners and adult decisions, and do big, bad, smart adult things. That Marsala cooking wine was a metaphor for the journey I was willing to make into the adult world. I was an illegal immigrant; the wine was my falsified passport.
It is now four weeks since I have moved into my house. I have consumed more mac 'n' cheese than I'd like to admit, made enough veggie burgers to fill a small room and eaten more bananas than a monkey trying to satisfy a potassium deficit. But the Marsala cooking wine remains untouched, because despite the fact that I have the passport to go to the all-important land of Adulthood, I simply don't have the vehicle to get there.
Despite three years at Penn learning about everything from the Doppler effect and Wordsworth to Hellenistic Greece and Kant, I still do not know how to manage my life.
I don't understand what to do with my tax forms. I can't pay for my own tuition. I don't know how to cook anything that doesn't involve microwaves or grills. I don't fully understand insurance. I don't know how to manage my money.
And worst of all, I gave my pet Siamese fighting fish, Mr. Yappy, to a foster family because I couldn't handle taking him on the train from New Jersey to Philadelphia in a Ziploc bag. I am an unfit adult.
Despite years spent at Penn trying to become a worldlier, more educated individual who is most capable of taking care of herself in the real world, I find myself grossly inadequate in the department of caretaking -- especially when it relates to taking care of myself.
Where Penn has provided me with an education that can make me delightfully snobby at cocktail parties, intelligent in an office setting and eloquent as a writer and a speaker, I have been left on the side of the road when it comes to real-life skills.
At Penn I have learned one scary thing about the real world: Once you hit May, you're on your own, kid. There needs to be a way to make that real-world entrance less like jumping into a pool of your own phlegm and more like slipping comfortably into a warm Jacuzzi.
Admittedly, I am perhaps a little further behind than most in the everyday "taking care of yourself" department, but I don't doubt that thousands of students at Penn are just as clueless about the real world. To ameliorate the effect of sending thousands of recent alumni into the world knowing only about Nietzsche and artificial cheese, Penn should help us enter the real world by having a preceptorial, or a program during Senior Week, in which students could learn about all the things they didn't pick up while they were too busy reading Paradise Lost.
Because even though we may have all the ingredients to become adults, they'll just sit there untouched unless we learn how to use them.
(09/26/00 9:00am)
Silver or electric blue? Internet access or voice activated dialing?
Students at the recently opened Sprint PCS Store on 34th and Walnut streets are faced with a slew of dilemmas.
At the counter, a male student thinks over how many minutes of air time he could possibly use in a given month, while another contemplates the array of cell phones on the far wall.
In its very first weeks of business, hundreds have passed through the doors of this newest retail addition to campus. They are searching for the perfect phone, attuned to their every want and desire -- one that will be both utilitarian and chic.
What sharp electronic gadget should I whip out on in Econ 1, they ask themselves.
A technological revolution is sweeping the nation, and its latest converts are Penn students. Suddenly everybody who's anybody can be seen chatting on a red Nokia phone outside Steinberg-Dietrich while organizing their Friday night on a sleek little Palm Pilot.
With cell phones costing as little as $29 and Palm Pilot prices at around $150, it's getting easier to equip the Penn messenger bag with all the right hardware.
(09/13/00 9:00am)
Robbery
€ September 11 -- A male employee of Spruce Street Records & Tapes at 4004 Spruce Street reported that a man entered the store and removed $60 in cash from the counter at about 2:45 p.m. When the employee chased the man, the man pulled out what appeared to be a gun. The man was described as a 30-year-old black man with thin, balding hair and a spotty beard. He is about 6'2" with a thin build and a dark complexion and was wearing blue jeans and a green and black striped shirt at the time of the incident.
(09/08/00 9:00am)
By the end of October, the indie rock club at 4040 Locust Street will be packing up for relocation, and it's fair to say that a number of residents on the block will be more than relieved.
4040, whose present location was meant to be temporary since its opening, will be moving "about two blocks away at the most," according to co-owner Sean Agnew. University officials would not release the exact location of the club's future home.
Students living near 4040 said last night that they were relieved that the club will be moving, citing problems with noise, trash and loitering concertgoers that have plagued the area since the club's opening last spring.
Agnew said that despite noise complaints, the club's popularity has soared, with the last three shows selling out and advanced ticket sales on the rise.
And according to Tom Lussenhop, the University's top real estate official, "Hundreds of people have supported it. Lots and lots of students go to the shows, so I assume they're happy with it."
In response to noise complaints, Agnew had reported plans to install a theater curtain to reduce the noise level last March. But the plans fell through because it would have cost "several tens of thousands of dollars more than we thought," Agnew said.
Instead, guards have been placed by the door since the end of April to prohibit people from entering and exiting while bands are playing, Agnew said.
"Since that point, there have been little or no noise complaints," Agnew said. He added that if the new location is in a residential area, a curtain will be installed.
College senior Joanna Kasirer, who said she feels neutral about 4040 and its plan to relocate, agreed that the noise level has decreased.
"We actually haven't heard anything this past week. Recently, it's been pretty calm."
However, according to one resident who lived on Locust Street this summer, "It's been very loud. I don't think the noise has decreased."
Besides being unhappy with reportedly loud noise at night, residents on 40th and Locust have complained about harassment from concertgoers, loitering and trash left in the street.
"Students come at about 10 a.m. and stay till the concert and they make a mess. I don't understand why they're there all day," said a Wharton senior on the block, who wished to remain anonymous.
A household of College seniors, who also asked to remain anonymous, said they have called the police dozens of times in their two years of living on the street.
"They [the concertgoers] sit on our stoop. They chain their bikes to the front bars of our house. They leave beer bottles, food and bags in front of our house. This is a residential street, and is supposed to be a safe place, and we feel scared walking home at night."
But residents who are upset have emphasized that they are not against the club itself -- but its location.
"The club is a great place; it's just the location that's not appropriate. Penn students need to study," one student said.
"If there are people in the neighborhood who don't like it, [4040] should go somewhere else," nearby resident and College senior Jeremy Lawson said
(06/29/00 9:00am)
Robbery
(05/03/00 9:00am)
From Daniel Septimus', "I Know My Last Name is Septimus," Fall '00 From Daniel Septimus', "I Know My Last Name is Septimus," Fall '00During finals, life is anything but business as usual. We sleep less and at crazy hours. We look at computer screens for so long that our eyes go on strike. And of course, we eat -- a lot. If you want your studying to be as efficient as possible, it is essential that you have a well-developed ingestion strategy. Here are my suggestions for an effective and fruitful eating schedule: 8:57 a.m.: Consume your first cup of coffee. This is obviously the key to getting the most out of your waking hours. Your cup should be at least 20 ounces and should preferably be gulped down while watching SportsCenter. If you start your day now, you'll catch the "Did You Know?" segment. This way you'll be guaranteed to learn at least one thing today. 10:19 a.m.: Brunch time. Eat an Entenmann's Crumb Donut. It's still early enough to be overwhelmed by how good it tastes. Take 11 minutes to eat it and wonder how they get the crumbs on top of the donut. 10:30 a.m.: Eat half of another Crumb Donut; curse your addiction. 10:44 a.m.: Pour yourself a cup of Coke; this is critical for staying awake. Drinking a two-liter bottle of Coke over the course of several hours is the most effective way to put caffeine into your bloodstream. If you're still tired, chop up Vivarin and snort it. 11:21 a.m.: Time for your first real meal of the day. It doesn't really matter what you eat as long as it belongs to your roommate. This is no time to eat your own food. It's a good chance to "help" your roomy finish his food before the semester ends. If he does get mad -- and who cares? -- you're not going to see him for four months anyway. 11:43 a.m.: Drink another cup of Coke, eat half a Crumb Donut. Take six minutes to consider whether they make the donuts with the crumbs or whether they make the crumbs separately and put them on later. Search the Internet for a graduate program in pop culture. 1:06 p.m.: You haven't slept well the last few nights and you feel like shit. Take a multivitamin. It won't make you feel better, but it will make your pee turn a wacky color. 2:32 p.m.: Make your first food run of the day. Buy a box of Entenmann's Glazed Popems. Eat eight. Ponder the meaning of "donut hole." Regret not taking Physics. Eat nine more. 3:47 p.m.: You feel salt-deprived. Plan a reconnaissance mission to locate and invade your roommate's Jug-O-Pretzels. Stuff a handful of pretzels into your pockets. Quickly survey the room for the Jug-O-Animal-Crackers. 3:56 p.m.: Coke. Vivarin. 4:29 p.m.: Eat a Fruit? Rollup. It will remind you of how horrible fifth grade was and make studying for finals seem like a blessing. If the Fruit Rollup doesn't work, try Dipsy Doodles. Take a moment to think about what it must feel like being a corn chip in a potato chip's world. 5:54 p.m.: Stay in for dinner because you haven't gotten any work done yet. A tuna sandwich should work well at this juncture. If you only have Chunk Light, now is a good time to switch it with your roommate's Solid White. Watch the 6:00 SportsCenter. 6:19 p.m.: Your pee has regained its normal color. Chop up multivitamin -- snort. 7:13 p.m.: Congratulations! You've made it through the entire day on only one cup of coffee, so brew yourself a cup. Instead of waiting until the coffee is done, take this time to go out and buy an iced coffee for later. (Never drink hot coffee after 9 p.m., it'll keep you up all night.) While you're out, buy some tortilla chips and salsa. 7:38 p.m.: Eat chips and salsa, drink coffee. Regret not taking a class on South American culture. 9:40 p.m.: Your stomach is starting to feel the effects of a hard day's work. Drink some Pepto-Bismol. Wash down with beer. 11:23 p.m.: You've got a long night ahead of you since you spent your whole day eating. Drink your iced coffee and eat some ice cream. 12:08 a.m.: Decide that you'll get more work done if you go to sleep now and wake up early. You've wasted another day, but at least you're not hungry.
(04/19/00 9:00am)
From Ronald Kim's, "The Wretched of the Earth," Fall '00 From Ronald Kim's, "The Wretched of the Earth," Fall '00This past weekend, I participated in one of the largest recent demonstrations against globalization and socioeconomic injustice: the April 16 (A16) protests in Washington, D.C., against the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Aside from ways to protect myself from tear gas, I learned a lot. But most of all, I've been reminded just how little independent media exists in the U.S., and exactly whose interests are served by the current system of reporting. The television and print media have done an outstanding job covering their version of the protests last weekend. They covered up what really happened, what A16's goals were and what was accomplished. To judge from their coverage, Sunday's rally and march were either a dangerous threat to civilization or a ludicrous gathering of bored, clueless, misguided dreamers with nothing better to do than rail against the Brave New World Order. The mainstream media failed to give any respect to the protests' message, or ask intelligent questions about the significance of the protest and its undeniable effect on the meetings. Instead, they belittled and patronized the protesters, made unsubstantiated claims about their political ignorance and flocked around the pseudo-"anarchist" posers who wrecked a police car. IMF spokesmen were given plenty of time to rebut the protesters, but there was little to no air time for the protesters to speak their own minds. Complete silence on the growing anti-IMF, anti-globalization struggles now sweeping across Latin America and Asia. No mention of the blatantly undemocratic nature of the IMF and the Bank, or the massive humanitarian and ecological disasters they have wrought upon the rest of the world. Consider The Philadelphia Inquirer's article from Monday. Rather than highlight a quote focusing on the World Bank and IMF, or on police-initiated confrontations, the paper singled out the slogan "Free love, not trade" -- implying that A16 was nothing more than a nostalgic re-enactment of '60s-style lovefests. The Inky went on to misquote Ralph Nader, the Green Party's presidential candidate and a popular figure among many protesters. According to the article, Nader elicited applause when he claimed that the IMF "was responsible for more deaths than Soviet communism." A-ha! Our carnival of free-love hippies has been unmasked, their links to "communism," "anarchy" and other U.S. ideological shibboleths revealed! There's just one problem: Nader said no such thing. At Sunday's rally, Nader blasted the IMF for its record in Russia and lamented that "the Russian people, having suffered under criminal communism, are now suffering under criminal capitalism." Philadelphia's top newspaper was not the only offender. The Washington Post ended its relatively sympathetic interviews of A16 participants by poking fun at a dehydrated protester who had to buy a bottle of Coca-Cola because nothing else was available. CNN and other news channels shamelessly repeated the outrageous lie that 90 percent of the protesters had no understanding of "the issues." Even worse was Time magazine's piece, "The New Radicals." In it, Time staffer Walter Kirn cracks one snide joke after another about A16's "connoisseurs of chaos," their lack of a single leader, their supposed nostalgia for Seattle. He derides the "Anarchist Soccer League" -- in reality nothing more than a few punks kicking around a soccer ball -- and questions whether these spoiled middle-class kids stand for "socialism" or "vegetarianism." In the end, Kirn concludes, socioeconomic justice is "a remote, confusing cause.? Globalization is a big word and an even bigger enemy. Maybe for people with everyday concerns like paying the rent and keeping the car gassed up, it's a little too big." Go home, kids. Let us run the world. This weekend, thousands of citizens said no. We said no to the system of global injustice that allows wealthy nations and multinational corporations to bleed the impoverished Third World to death in the name of "progress" and "development." We agreed that it is possible to end the exploitation of billions for the profit of a few. We were supported and cheered from Havana, where the Group of 77 meeting of the world's poorest countries joined us in denouncing Bank and IMF policies. We chanted "Whose world? Our world!" and "This is what democracy looks like!" And we faced police provocation and media manipulation without fear, knowing what one jailed World Bank delegate himself admitted -- that "poverty and suppression of liberty go hand in hand and lead to further social injustice."
(04/11/00 9:00am)
SAS programs in FIJI SAS programs in FIJITo the Editor: It is true that 3619-21 has been temporarily allocated to the School of Arts and Sciences for academic use. However, as was made clear in our committee deliberations, no permanent decision has been made about the long-range use of the building. The University will not make a decision about the ultimate use of the building until at least 2003, when the Beta Chapter might begin to recolonize and the University could potentially consider the chapter's re-recognition. Robert Barchi University Provost The writer wass chairman of the Locust Walk Advisory Committee. To the Editor: I feel I need to reply to your article about University City's new show space, 4040 ("Neighbors say music club one big headache," DP, 3/31/00). I am the manager at the Video Library, located in the same building as and sharing an interior wall with the new club. When I first started working here almost three years ago, Urban Outfitters occupied the space next door. UO was one of the loudest neighbors for which anyone could ever hope. I need to say in 4040's defense that its noise level, while obviously loudest in my store, has never surpassed the noise precedent set by UO -- or by the Penn student parties that have taken place all along this block (several of which I have crashed in the past few years). The big difference between 4040's events and student parties, however, is that on the day after a show at 4040, the entire block is not littered with hundreds of empty plastic cups and broken bottles, the block doesn't reek of stale beer and there is no apparent property damage to the neighboring homes and businesses. Club owner Sean Agnew has been very professional and responsible in addressing any concerns we and the surrounding neighbors may have, and even brought a few to our attention before they arose. I, for one, am glad to have 4040 as a neighbor and a positive force in our community and feel that before anyone complains about them too loudly, they should first examine their own behavior and how they are perceived in the neighborhood. Don Layton To the Editor: Why is it that members of the UA represent a particular school at Penn? Why not allocate seats on the basis of residence? Given a long list of "College" candidates for the UA, I would recognize only a handful at most. Perhaps I have taken a class with one, or another lives in my college house. On the whole, I am voting for people on the basis of very little information and even less knowledge. Make seat allocation based on residence instead. Give "X" number of seats to each of the high rises and give a proportionate number to all of the other houses based on population. In other words, make candidates campaign for votes in an environment where individuals are likely to know them. Really know them. It's a more natural way to conduct campaigns and elections. Members of the UA will obviously form school-based factions when a particular issue affects one school at the University differently than another. It is an expected, natural reaction, and altogether inescapable. Let these factions form naturally, from healthy debate and reasoned positions. Don't institutionalize them, however; let representatives arise from the arenas where they are known best. Eric Lomazoff College '01
(04/10/00 9:00am)
Coach Demer Holleran snuck stars into the country, according to the INS. [NOTE: This article appeared in the annual joke issue.] Demer Holleran's house of cards has come tumbling down. According to documents acquired by The Daily Pennsylvanian, the national championship-winning Penn women's squash team and its wunderkind of a head coach have attracted unwanted attention from the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. It seems as if Holleran, in her maniacal search for a national crown, has violated nearly every immigration law on the books. "It looks as if we have two clear-cut cases of fraud on Holleran's part," INS spokesman Jim Morlock said. The substance of the allegations consists in the role Holleran played in the immigration of star players junior Helen Bamber, who came to Penn by way of Zimbabwe, and junior Rina Borromeo, a native of the Philippines. The INS alleges that Holleran, who apparently has established connections with unscrupulous customs agents, was able to smuggle Bamber and Borromeo into the country, provide them with fraudulent visas and keep all of this a secret while her Red and Blue squad managed to secure a title. "I love Demer Holleran," Bamber said. "I'd like to see you lightweights make it in Zimbabwe a single day. Look at our national heroes. Nick Price, for instance, he's got skin like leather. He's a mean brother. It's a terrible life down there. Demer took me away from all that, and I will be thankful for her until the day I die. They should make her a saint." Holleran could not be reached for comment. When a DP reporter arrived at her Wynnewood, Pa., home, Holleran refused to come outdoors. The reporter was then scared away by Holleran's loyal army of illegal-immigrant gardeners and endangered Komodo Dragons. "I'll let you in on a little secret," Penn men's squash coach Craig Thorpe-Clark said. "If I had half the balls that Demer did, I would do the exact same thing. Squash requires years of determination, something you Americans don't know. Fine, condemn squash coaches for doing what they do. But deep down in places you don't like to talk about at parties, you want us on that wall." If the allegations coming from the INS prove true, the ramifications for Holleran will be dire. She could face no less than 10 years of jail time, and the program that she built to prominence would be devastated. "What are you talking about?" Penn Athletic Director Steve Bilsky said when asked for comment. "I don't hear you. Steve's in his happy place, doesn't want to hear this. Negativity no good for AD." Holleran came to Penn eight years ago by way of Princeton. While at Old Nassau, she won national titles and earned All-America honors in 1989, her senior year. Her college boyfriend, former Princeton basketball center Kit Mueller, paints an intriguing picture of the budding coach. "Demer used to always push me around," said Mueller, who is now an attendant at the Penn parking garage on the corner of 38th and Walnut Streets. "She would always tell me what to do. Kit, go get me a hot water bottle. Kit, bring me my bunion eraser. Blah, blah, blah. She never loved me," Mueller said. "All she ever loved was winning."
(04/10/00 9:00am)
Alcohol monitors will be required to live in all IFC houses over Spring Fling. [NOTE: This article appeared in the annual joke issue.] Fraternity Spring Fling parties will be a lot tamer this year, according to Alcohol Coordinator Stephanie Ives. Ives announced yesterday that all 31 fraternities in the InterFraternity Council will have to house a live-in monitor for the duration of the Fling weekend to help prevent alcohol-related illnesses. She said that past attempts to curb alcohol abuse during Fling have failed because the administration has not done enough to regulate drinking among the Greeks. "We think fraternities need a little more supervision during this weekend," Ives said, adding that "hopefully it will benefit the entire University community." IFC President Andrew Mandelbaum, an Alpha Chi Rho brother, expressed concern over Ives' proposal. "It shows the University doesn't really trust us," the College junior said. "They're singling out the IFC." Mandelbaum also pointed out that, as Spring Fling is a mere four days away, it will be nearly impossible to find and hire monitors for all 31 IFC fraternities. But Ives has a solution for that problem as well, which would not require the University to hire any additional personnel -- relocating housekeeping staff to the fraternity houses for the weekend. "This will provide an opportunity for students to really get to know the people who work behind the scenes at Penn," Vice President for Facilities Services Omar Blaik said. "It's a very unique opportunity for all involved." University President Judith Rodin said yesterday she supports the decision, calling Ives' plan "resourceful" and "ingenious." "This may be just what we've been looking for," Rodin said yesterday. "We don't need to drive fraternities off campus, we just need to bring in a healthy dose of adult involvement." "Who cares anyhow," College senior and Daily Pennsylvanian columnist Andrew Exum said. "No monitor can separate me from my bottle of Wild Turkey, even if I have to climb a mountain to escape them. Giddyup!" Penn Students Against Monitors said they were shocked by the announcement and will hold an unsupervised rally at an undisclosed fraternity house tomorrow.
(04/07/00 9:00am)
Through the "Finding Philly" series, students sampled food from six Italian restaurants. There is an Italian saying: Appetite comes to those who eat. Eight residents of Harrison College House proved that to be true in a marathon tour of six Italian restaurants in a single evening. On Wednesday night, the sixth installment of the "Finding Philly" series kicked off when Art Casciato, dean of Harrison House, led a group of students to South Philadelphia's Italian neighborhood with the goal of eating six separate courses at six different restaurants, ranging from the "hole-in-the-wall" eatery to more high-profile establishments. Casciato said he had toyed with the idea of hitting six different restaurants in one night but had long feared that it would be a "logistical nightmare." At the first restaurant, the Desanka CafZ, the students whet their appetites on ravioli in brodo, or ravioli in broth. The group hurriedly swallowed up their soup, unaware that they would have to pace themselves as the evening progressed. After a quick walk, the second stop was made at Io e Tu, a more well-known restaurant in the area. Here three waiters, aware of the relay race the Harrison House members were running, brought antipasto to the still-hungry crowd. Roasted peppers, the famous Io e Tu marinated carrots, calamari and breaded portobello mushrooms in a tomato cream sauce were all offered to the hungry diners. On their way out of the restaurant, College sophomore Dyer Halpern asked Casciato, "Have we found Philly yet, Art?" The ready reply was, of course, "No." After all, four restaurants still remained. Next, Felicia's, in true Northern Italian fashion, served gnocchi in tomato sauce and thin spaghetti with pesto. The waiter offered wine to the group in a thick Italian accent. "I think it's barbaric not to have wine with dinner," Casciato joked with the students. He proceeded to order a bottle of Chianti. Casciato picked Ralph's for the meat course because it is the oldest family-owned Italian restaurant in the country. Its reputation did not disappoint. Veal parmesan, breaded flounder and grilled chicken in a lemon cream sauce satisfied those who were still hungry. By this point, it became obvious to Halpern and Engineering junior John Sinclair that what they had on their hands was a "battle of wills" -- a contest to see which one of them could actually eat all the food that would be served to them throughout the evening. Little Italy's Dante and Luigi's was the second-to-last stop, where the students had their salad course. It proved too much for Sinclair, however, who lost the eating contest when he could not finish his salad. Since Casciato found himself under budget, he opted to order another bottle of wine for the group. The waiter demonstrated his prowess by stretching the bottle's contents equally into each of the glasses, a feat met with great applause and shouting. The final stop was the renowned Victor CafZ at 13th and Dickinson streets, where the waiters are opera singers in training. After two arias -- one from I Pagliacci and the other from La Boheme -- and pistachio creme brulZe and canolis, the evening came to a close.
(04/03/00 9:00am)
Nationwide, fraternities are looking to de-emphasize the role alcohol plays in Greek life. There's more to fraternities than alcohol, and four fraternity chapters at Penn are putting down their beer bottles to prove it. The fraternities -- Delta Upsilon, Phi Delta Theta, Phi Kappa Sigma and Sigma Nu -- will all become alcohol-free beginning July 1, in accordance with policies mandated by their national organizations. And they are not alone. The move toward alcohol-free housing is part of a growing national trend aiming to reduce the role of alcohol in fraternity life. Seven other national fraternities -- which do not have chapters on Penn's campus -- will also go dry this summer. "Fraternities are about a lot more than alcohol and parties," said Interfraternity Council President Andrew Mandelbaum, an Alpha Chi Rho brother. "I don't think [this] will greatly affect the social scene." Also following the shift in Greek life, Penn's Panhellenic Council will no longer hold mixers in fraternity houses that are not dry, in accordance with a suggestion put forth by the National Panhellenic Council. While only five of Penn's eight sororities -- Alpha Phi, Chi Omega, Delta Delta Delta, Kappa Alpha Theta and Pi Beta Phi -- were required by their nationals to follow NPC's suggestion, Panhel decided to adopt the resolution across the board. "We're trying to be proactive," Panhel President and Sigma Delta Tau sister Jennifer Chanowitz, a College junior, said. "We want to make it a fair playing field for all houses." Panhel sororities will still hold mixers with non-dry fraternities at third-party locations. Sigma Nu National Director of Insurance and Risk Reduction David Glassman said there are many advantages to having an alcohol-free fraternity house. For instance, Glassman believes that de-emphasizing the alcohol aspect of fraternities will help to boost their sagging memberships by portraying fraternity membership as an asset rather than a liability. "The question now is, can students afford something they perceive will detract from their ability to compete?" Glassman asked. "They need something they can sell to a graduate school or future employer." Tom Balzer, project coordinator for alcohol-free housing at Phi Delt's national organization, agreed. Balzer pointed out that the Phi Delt houses that are already dry have experienced larger pledge class numbers. Glassman also said banning alcohol from chapter houses may help to reduce insurance costs. Fraternity members, he explained, typically pay between $70 and $120 each per year -- while sorority members, whose houses are alcohol-free, pay only about $20. According to Balzer, Phi Delt's decision to go dry reflected a desire to return to the fraternity's founding principles. "The question was, could our founders sit in any one of our chapter houses and be pleased at what they saw?" Balzer said. "And the answer, in many cases, was no. Our No. 1 problem is about the misuse and abuse of alcohol." "We don't want to be the entertainment center on campus," added Bob Miller, the national executive vice president of Phi Kap. "Besides, you have a better time when your feet don't stick to the floor," Miller said. Balzer said Phi Delt has a "zero tolerance" policy for blatant violations -- four alcohol-free chapter houses have already been shut down for major alcohol infractions. "If there were keg parties or minors drinking, we have closed the chapter down without question," he said. "But if a chapter member walks in with a case of beer and drinks it alone in his room, there will be no punishment on the entire chapter." Penn Greeks said they were positive about the changes. "It's a good idea for the houses to go dry," said Sigma Nu IFC Representative Erik Franks, a Wharton junior. "It's an attractive living option for those people worried about alcohol in the chapter house. It also puts more of a focus on brotherhood, on becoming good friends with a bunch of guys."
(03/29/00 10:00am)
From Ariel Horn's, "Candy from a stranger," Fall '00 From Ariel Horn's, "Candy from a stranger," Fall '00If you were anything like me when you were in the fifth grade, learning about drugs was a day in the park. As fifth-graders with about as much knowledge of drugs as what was written on the side of the Children's Tylenol bottle, drug education was little more than an easy-breezy day to watch no-brainer PBS specials in which "Cracked-Out Carrie" and "Doped Debbie" learn about the dangers of inhaling model glue. Sometimes "Heroin Harry" and "Smack Sally" showed up, too. In addition, the high school peer leadership program came to show us pictures of blackened lungs from tobacco, to talk to us about how doing drugs was bad, to perform skits for us about how to react in a pressured situation. Heads filled with such witty retorts as, "I'm not a chicken, you're a turkey," we all happily scurried home from school completely positive that we would never ever do drugs. And then, somewhere between fifth grade and college, our thinking grew clouded. The commercials grew quieter, and our desires to try new things and be reckless in our youth increased tenfold. A week ago at Trinity College, before the school's spring break, four college roommates fell unconscious as a result of combining prescription drugs, such as Xanax, Valium, migraine medicine and sleeping pills. Fortunately, three of the students recovered consciousness and are now doing fine, though they are being charged with drug possession and driving under the influence. Tragically, though, only three of the four roommates will return to classes when Trinity's spring break ends. The last room in their apartment will remain empty and silent -- the last roommate, Josh Doroff, died of a drug overdose. According to a New York Times interview with a family friend of the deceased, the student was "polite," "athletic," "intelligent" and "a man who did not, as far as anyone knew, dabble in drugs." Let's face it -- the student who passed away wasn't that different from the rest of us. Most likely, he was enjoying his college experience, hanging out with friends and doing what he thought were a couple of harmless drugs and drinking a little. Like millions of college students across the nation, he was "just having fun." For many of us, drugs are irrelevant in fifth grade. College, rather than the fifth-grade classroom, is home for many people who have decided to experiment with drugs. Rather than gasping at this realization, we've grown to simply accept that this experimentation is as typical of college life as taking your first midterm. Just as the caution, fear and anxiety that couple first midterms fade as students take more exams, so too does the cautious, careful questioning behavior of students trying drugs for the first timeEturn into carelessness and the "it could never happen to me" belief. However, maintaining that cautious behavior of the first-time trial is the only way to prevent tragedies such as the one at Trinity from occurring again. The question remains: How do we re-teach college students lessons they forgot, or chose to forget, in fifth-grade drug education within the confines of realistically understanding that college students, for the most part, won't always "just say no?" Programs have been created at universities to make students aware of the dangers of alcohol and drug use. Penn has devised extensive programming to educate students and to provide alternatives to drugs and alcohol. At Trinity College, administrators have sent out urgent e-mails, voicemail messages and letters to all in their college community about the recent tragedy. Trinity has even gone so far as to literally knock on the doors of every single room on campus to see if there were students inside and to see if they were doing OK. University authorities have done everything that they have in their power to do; they have made rules, enforced rules, provided otherEsocial options and educated their communities about the effects of drugs and alcohol. The problem is that it's just not enough. Sadly, these tragic life lessons about drug and alcohol overdoses cannot be taught in a fifth-grade classroom. They cannot be taught through buttons, on T-shirts, at after-school bake sales or in commercials. It can only be taught in seeing the tragedies of others. While the fifth-grade drug-free battle cry "be smart, don't start!" may no longer apply, it's still not too late to be smart.
(03/23/00 10:00am)
The Quakers went 2-3 in the Aloha State over spring break, but they had their chances. For the Penn men's tennis team, the story of its spring break in Hawaii is like that of the Buffalo Bills' bid for a Super Bowl ring -- a tale of near-misses. Penn (5-5) won two of five matches in the Aloha State. But the Quakers could very well have come home 4-1, as they lost one-point matches to both Hawaii and BYU-Hawaii. "We just didn't come up with clutch wins," Penn coach Gordie Ernst said. The Quakers were up 3-2 against BYU-Hawaii last Thursday and needed just two wins in the four matches left for a victory. All four matches went into three sets, but only No. 6 singles player Rob Pringle was victorious. Joey Zupan nearly sealed that key second victory for Penn at No. 4 singles, but the Quakers junior could not hold a 3-1 third-set lead over BYU-Hawaii's Logan Woolley and fell, 2-6, 7-6, 6-4. Penn played its last three matches in Hawaii -- including the BYU-Hawaii contest -- without its No. 1 singles player, sophomore Fanda Stejskal. Stejskal, who had surgery on his elbow in November, reinjured the joint following the Hawaii match. In that match against the Rainbows, the Quakers again took an early lead by winning the doubles point, but Hawaii took home a 4-3 victory after winning four of the six singles matches. Stejskal's contest with the Rainbows' Antonio Garcia, like the Penn-Hawaii match as a whole, started out well for the Red and Blue, as Stejskal took an early 5-3 lead. But Garcia broke Stejskal's next serve and stormed back to capture the first set, 7-5. The second set proceeded in an eerily similar fashion, as Garcia again broke a Stejskal serve to cut into a 5-3 lead. But this time the Penn sophomore did not fold, winning the next point to take the second set. Garcia was too much for Stejskal in the end, though, as the Hawaii No. 1 took the last set, 6-4, for the victory. "[Stejskal] shows flashes of brilliance," Ernst said. "They're like falling stars -- you see them only very rarely because of his injuries." Stejskal, who could not even hold a water bottle the day after his match against Garcia, has been practicing for several days now and is expected to return tomorrow against Temple. Also missing from the Penn singles lineup in Hawaii was senior co-captain Brett Meringoff. Meringoff also usually teams with freshman Ryan Harwood at No. 1 doubles, but Penn was able to overcome his loss at that position on the trip, as Pringle and junior co-captain Eric Sobotka teamed with Harwood to post a 5-0 record in Hawaii. Overall, Penn bested four of its five opponents in doubles on the trip. "Our doubles has improved drastically, which is huge," Harwood said. "The doubles point is what decides matches if it's 3-3 [in singles], and it also sets momentum for the match because that's how it starts off." The Quakers had singles success on two of last week's matches, as they bookended their Hawaii trip with a pair of 9-0 victories against Hawaii-Hilo and Chaminade. Only sophomore Brian Barki against the Vulcans and Zupan against the Silverswords dropped a set in the two matches. In between those victories, however, was a three-match losing streak, including a 7-0 loss to Hawaii-Pacific. Even in that match, though, there was another just-miss for the Quakers. The contest had already been decided, but that did not lessen the drama of the No. 3 singles match between Harwood and Filip Meijer. Harwood and Meijer split the first two sets and were knotted at two in the third set. But then Harwood was penalized a game after losing his temper and apparently swinging his racket against the fence. "It was questionable whether I should have gotten the game taken away from me," Harwood said. Nevertheless, Meijer went up 3-2 on the penalty. But Harwood won two of the next three games to knot the score. "By now, we're both dragging," Harwood said. "It was burning hot and everyone [else] was off the courts for two hours already." Even though it technically meant nothing, the three and a half hour match certainly did not mean nothing to Harwood and Meijer. But like the Quakers had throughout their trip in Hawaii, Harwood fell just short. The Penn freshman lost 7-6 in the final set.
(03/10/00 10:00am)
From Ron Lin's, "Intellectual Pornography," Fall '00 From Ron Lin's, "Intellectual Pornography," Fall '00Morning in and morning out, with their bold faces forward and their hands solemnly covering their hearts, hundreds of thousands of elementary schoolchildren recite grandiose words of submission -- or what is sometimes referred to as the Pledge of Allegiance.From Ron Lin's, "Intellectual Pornography," Fall '00Morning in and morning out, with their bold faces forward and their hands solemnly covering their hearts, hundreds of thousands of elementary schoolchildren recite grandiose words of submission -- or what is sometimes referred to as the Pledge of Allegiance. I was one of those children, and chances are, so were you. In fact, to my recollection, I recited this pledge every day of my more than 14 years in public school. That's more than 2,000 instances of coerced repetition and mindless prostration, words that passed straight through my larynx and off my tongue, but never quite through my head. It might as well have been gibberish; the Pledge of Allegiance loses its novelty and becomes somewhat of a chore, like brushing one's teeth. Innocently, we entrust our brains to the American public education system only to find that we've been brainwashed. Reciting the pledge of allegiance is an act of submission, a vow of loyalty that a citizen owes a government. At 6 years old, we begin vowing our eternal faithfulness to a flag, a supposed symbol of liberty and justice for all. It seems preposterous to ask young children to make such a laden pledge to a flag, an ideal, a government or such a flimsy piece of fabric. In fact, it seems putridly grotesque, reeking of the worst kind of socialistic indoctrination that I can fathom. Interestingly enough, a little research reveals the apparent origins of the pledge. It was a Christian socialist, Francis Bellamy, who wrote the Pledge of Allegiance to express the ideas of his cousin, Edward Bellamy. The latter Bellamy wrote socialist utopian novels about how the government could manage a peacetime economy much like the present military-industrial complex. Forget about the pledge's socialist undertones. After decades of supposed disillusionment with our flag -- even after Vietnam and Watergate -- we still subject children to this cruel, asinine ritual of socialization. After griping about the imposed uniformity of commercialism, parents barely blink when children are told to recite oaths of eternal allegiance to a higher power. While the American dream is worth striving for, submission to any authority that trumpets these values is counterproductive. I, for one, will always question the flag and the authority behind it. I don't pledge my allegiance to any flag, or any authority that I can neither smell nor touch. I never even pledged my allegiance to my parents, let alone la Americana. I'd rather arbitrarily pledge my allegiance to something more valid, like my libido. What's the point of loyalty to a piece of fabric, a cloth that wavers wantonly in the wind like a limp phallus? We're misleading children and contributing to the vast disillusionment of American youth. Even after discovering that blind loyalty to a nationalistic ideal is a dangerous and unfathomably meaningless idea, we force 12-year-olds to rant and rave the Pledge of Allegiance like a wild band of Bolshevik midgets. I, for one, firmly believe that America truly represents a beacon of freedom and equality unparalleled anywhere else in the world. With all due respect to the principles upon which this country was founded, I still don't believe it's appropriate or "American" to have children methodically recite a nationalistic oath. Let's face it: as American as we all are, we can't agree on anything. Why should we start with the Pledge of Allegiance? Let's get health care figured out first, maybe work out the kinks in campaign finance and perhaps help resolve the many conflicts and conflagrations around the world before we start telling our kids to pledge their allegiance to a shroud of red and blue nylon. Pledges are for the mindless. It is like committing to one particular brand of sneakers or bottled water. Before children have the gift of independent thought, I say we're better off having them pledge their souls to something more worthwhile than the impersonal stars and stripes. That is why God invented PokZmon.
(03/02/00 10:00am)
From Siona Listokin's, "Think Different," Fall '00 From Siona Listokin's, "Think Different," Fall '00Talk about a faux pas. I knew a girl who absolutely never smiled. Tired of her monotone responses to all attempts at conversation, I jokingly suggested a regular regiment of Prozac. She responded by promptly taking a humongous bottle of the prescription drug out of her medicine cabinet. When she saw how uncomfortable I was, she actually smirked. I had safely entered the world of foot-in-mouth. This is a dangerous stigma, especially in a student body whose demographic has its fair share of sufferers. A study by the National Institutes of Health found that prescription antidepressants are quietly becoming ubiquitous on the campuses of America's elite universities. And yet the perception of these drugs and the diseases they treat is still negative. We at Penn think we are so perfect. We are smart, but not geeky. We are personable. We are the people our friends' parents like. We can be involved in a dozen activities and still have it all under control. And we dress well all the while. Nowhere do we leave room for the weakness of depression. Mental health is a forbidden subject, both between peers and within ourselves. With the taboo of depression comes a misunderstanding of the disease and its treatment. There are many types of depression, but mild to severe depression has nothing to do with mental willpower. The sick cannot just snap out of it. Some things called neuro-transmitters are in short supply in their brains. The fact is that about 10 percent of all Americans will get a form of depression every year. That is about 950 undergraduate students here at Penn. And hey, Penn girls -- women are more than twice as likely to become depressed as men. Studies suggest that likely factors for the higher incidence among women include "the greater stress on women of maintaining multiple roles such as homemaker, professional, wife and mother." Where do you see yourself in 10 years? The most dangerous effect of the stigma attached to depression is that it discourages many from seeking treatment. Two thirds of those with depression do not seek medical help, most often because of misdiagnosis or fear of being thought of as weak, lazy -- or crazy. This is a tragedy because depression can be cured. Counseling and antidepressants help about 70 percent of those who seek help, and the remainder have other options that can work. If left untreated, there is a chance that depression will recur. And recur. And recur. What follows in cases of repeated bouts of depression can be horrible. How many times can one feel like he is on the brink of insanity before he begins to think about suicide? Suicidal thoughts in the head of an overachiever are scary. And hey, Penn dudes, your demographic shows particular savvy in this regard; there has been a recent increase in rates of suicide attempts among young males, and males are between two and seven times more likely to successfully commit suicide than women. (A distinction I gladly concede.) I had the happy opportunity to be educated about depression by someone close to me who was suffering through the disease. I took his daily regiment of Prozac once -- we figured that I might as well get a buzz out of the situation. The pills did not produce any noticeable effect in me. You can be damn sure they helped him out, though. These pills are not uppers, nor are they placebos. They are a form of treatment for a legitimate disease. We at Penn are not perfect, nor are we immune to all types of mental disorders. Some of us suffer from a form of depression and are seeking help to cure it. Most of us are friends with someone who suffers from depression, even if we do not know it. And all of us need to gain a better understanding and appreciation for depression and its treatment.
(02/25/00 10:00am)
Vinay Harpalani assertively asked the crowd of nearly 200 students assembled on College Green yesterday afternoon, "Have things gotten better?" "No!" they shouted in response. The Graduate School of Education student was referring to affirmative action and the fact that although 170 African-American students were admitted to Penn in 1970, only 152 were admitted in 1999. Harpalani was one of the chief organizers of yesterday's rally, which was part of "Call To Action 2000," a nationwide day of activism in support of affirmative action. This was Penn's second year participating in the rally, co-sponsored by the United Minorities Council, UMOJA, the Asian-Pacific Student Coalition, the Greenfield Intercultural Center and the Undergraduate Assembly. Discussing issues of racism and affirmative action, 11 students addressed the crowd, eliciting shouts and applause from the audience. The organizers also collected signatures for a petition in support of affirmative action at Penn. "Penn is a plantation of higher learning, not an institution," said UMOJA Public Relations Chairman Dan Cherry, a College senior. "Don't be fooled by the rhetoric." He added that affirmative action encounters opposition because it scared the people in power. "It's a fundamental challenge to the balance of power -- the status quo -- in the United States of America." Organizers handed out "Call to Action" T-shirts to the crowd during the rally. More than 100 people received the black shirts with affirmative-action logos emblazoned on them. Students at other schools -- including the University of Michigan and Florida A&M; University -- held rallies today as part of an ongoing initiative by the Coalition To Defend Affirmative Action By Any Means Necessary, a national organization responsible for organizing rallies on campuses across the country. The rally comes as institutions across the nation are re-evaluating their affirmative action programs. Michigan, the University of California at Berkeley and Florida A&M;, among many others, have reduced or eliminated affirmative action in their admissions process either voluntarily or as a result of law suits. "It's only a matter of time before this movement hits the Ivy Leagues," Harpalani said. This year marked the first time that the UA co-sponsored the event. UA Chairman and College senior Michael Silver said the group would continue to do so in the future. Kwasi Asare, a College junior and admissions co-chair of the UMC, said the rally's two main goals were "to counteract the movement of the Center for Individual Rights, an organization in support of repealing affirmative action, and to send a message to the University that affirmative action is something students here support." UMC Chairman Jerome Byam, a College junior, also spoke of affirmative action "leveling the playing field" for all people, not just African Americans, but also Hispanics, Asians, homosexuals and women." APSC Political Chair Jenny Yan, a Wharton freshman, emphasized the relevance of affirmative action to Asian Americans, particularly under-represented groups from Southeast Asia. But by far, the most heated speeches came from Cherry and College sophomore Jamarah Leverette. Leverette spoke of reparations for African Americans and recited a poem entitled "Break The Bottle," which symbolized oppression as a Calvin Klein fragrance. She ended with the a shout of "black power!" Other groups in attendance included members of Penn Students Against Sweatshops, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Alliance and the South Asian progressive activist group Sangam. Organizers accredited the impressive turn-out to good weather and a general increase in activism at Penn since the sweatshop sit-in. "I think the turnout was phenomenal," said Kimberly Noble, a College freshman and political chair of UMOJA. "As long as the numbers keep going up, we hope more people will hear our message."
(02/17/00 10:00am)
Geoff Owens is closing in on Penn's all-time shot-blocking record. You can't say they didn't earn it. Fresh off a heroic 55-46 victory at Princeton on Tuesday night, the Penn men's basketball team had its once-a-week mandatory day off from practice yesterday. Quakers center Geoff Owens, who pulled down five rebounds and blocked three shots in Old Nassau, was using his downtime to rest. "I'm pretty much enjoying the day off," said Owens, who has battled through a heart defect, a broken jaw and shin splints at Penn. "It's tough this time of year with all of the games and not having much time off. But we're playing very well right now." One might think that Penn guard Michael Jordan, who had 14 points and six assists at Princeton, would follow his housemate's lead and take yesterday off to sleep in and savor his squad's big win. Instead, the co-captain hit the weight room and shot around for a while this afternoon, already looking forward to this weekend's home games with Columbia and Cornell. · With four sterling blocks against Princeton, Penn forward Ugonna Onyekwe now has 32 for the season -- and he's not even the team's leader. With 34 rejections of his own, including three at Jadwin, Owens is at the top of the Quakers ranks, and second in the Ivy League. First in the league is Princeton's Chris Young, with 61 swats. But on Tuesday night, while Onyekwe and Owens combined for seven crowd-rousing rejections, Young and his unusually lethargic teammates were unable to block a single Penn shot. "We have two very good shot-blockers this year," said Jordan, restating what every Penn fan has seen over the course of 21 games this year. "It gives the guards more confidence since we're in there and can block more shots," Owens said. "They know they can be more aggressive on the outside." · With 132 blocks in two-plus seasons for the Quakers, Owens now stands second only to Tim Krug (138) on Penn's all-time list. And if Owens can maintain his torrid pace of late through the Cornell and Columbia games, a new sultan of swat may be crowned by Saturday. Owens, however, was humble about his ability to use his gangly appendages to prevent the rock from reaching the net. "I try to not look at those things," the 6'11" Owens said. · Blocked shots are only one part of what is arguably the most improved facet of Penn's game -- defense. The Quakers are allowing a paltry 48.7 points per game in their nine-game winning streak -- a testament to all-around defensive prowess. "We're playing great defensively right now," Jordan said. "We're getting good pressure on the ball, and we're helping each other out a lot this year." · The Quakers are halfway through their Ivy season, and have emerged unscathed thus far. There are no broken jaws or other debilitating injuries to speak of, and more importantly, no hard-to-swallow defeats. Winning their seven Ivy games by an average of 20 points, the Quakers have seemed to cruise at times. But, of course, Penn's players do not want to get ahead of themselves. "We're still going to take it game by game," Jordan said. "We're not overconfident at all right now." Comparing this season's Ivy competition to that of the past few years, the Quakers' seniors feel this year is an improvement upon seasons past. "Record-wise and playing-wise, it's very similar to last year," Owens said. "We're happy with the position that we're in now. But this is just the halfway point of the season, and a lot can still happen." Still, this year's crop of seniors can at least relish the fact that they stand 7-0 in the league for the first time while at Penn. · A clash of styles was evident two nights ago across the Delaware. Princeton successfully completed two back-door cuts at Jadwin, their first against Penn in the schools' past three meetings. In sharp contrast to Princeton's classic offensive attack, Onyekwe's crowd-pleasing 360 degree two-handed dunk with 10.3 seconds left made the first clip on SportsCenter Tuesday night. · Penn has won 14 consecutive Ivy games. This is the most since the Quakers' league-record 48 straight victories from 1992-1996. · So exactly how tough was it for the Quakers to play in the "Jadwin Jungle" two nights ago? Even aside from bottles thrown by Tigers fans following the game, the environment was surprising difficult for the Quakers. "It's pretty tough to play at Jadwin," Owens said. "There's this space behind the backboard, and the fans were kind of hostile. They were definitely into it, and I can appreciate it when fans get involved. "I just hope our fans will be that into it when Princeton comes here." Jordan, lurking in the background, heard this remark on fan support and immediately piped in his own opinion -- he hopes Penn fans will give visiting Tigers fans an even more hostile welcome to the Palestra on March 7.
(02/16/00 10:00am)
Opus 251 embodies artistry. Located in the Philadelphia Art Alliance, an old Italian building just off Rittenhouse Square, diners are seated next to galleries and head chef Alfonso Constrisciani's creations themselves are works of art. Though still a newcomer to Philadelphia's core of elite restaurants, Opus 251 has already claimed a devoted following -- filling up virtually every table on Friday and Saturday nights. The restaurant attracts a diverse crowd of working professionals who relax with a casual drink at the bar, and those who come to dine romantically in the new-colonial setting of the Gold and Blue rooms. The breadth of variety and sophistication of the wine list deserves special mention. Ranging in price from $28 to $190 a bottle, and region from Napa to Bordeaux, Opus 251 offers a wide variety of fine wine. A bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon's rich, bold flavor highlighted the Mediterranean based accents in the entrees. The restaurant is filled with artistic accents -- from the white, Italian arches framing the windows to the greyish mauve wind-swept trees painted on the walls. But Constrisciani's culinary creations bring art to the table as well. Each dish is elegantly prepared with careful consideration to aesthetic appearance. Constrisciani, an arrival from Brasserie Perrier, prepares a delicious selection of new-American food. The menu incorporates classic first courses, but it is not surprising to find unique creations such as a chili glazed shrimp or Oxtail soup. The basket of bread that accompanies every meal is freshly baked on the premises daily. Our selection included savory sun-dried tomato bread, a crisp french baguette and air-infused cheese puffs that were served with extra virgin olive oil, swirled with pesto. The selection for first courses is widely varied, ranging from a baby spinach salad with goat cheese polenta chips ($7.50) to a sweet onion flan with truffles ($9). We sampled the Salmon Gravalax ($12), which was accompanied by squares of tender raw tuna and caviar, lightly drizzled with a sweet coconut and wasabi sauce. Another deliciously unusual selection was the shoulder of wild Boar ($13) -- prepared with a southwestern flair and piled atop crisp corn tortillas and diced tomatoes. Michael Wightman, events coordinator of Opus 251, highly recommended the Seared Scallops and Lobster with beet cous cous, found on the main menu. We enjoyed a smooth, buttery Black Angus Steak, that came with a side portion of sauteed spinach and sliced Yukon gold potatoes. The Ahi Tuna, which Wightman and Constrisciani both suggest medium-rare, was thinly sliced and delicately laid over a bed of wild rice. Opus 251 has developed quite a reputation for their desert menu and the speciality -- the "Opus Lantern" -- is whispered about in culinary circles. This extravagant desert is actually a trio of sweets, with the crowning triumph a dense chocolate torte with a paper-thin cookie shell that encases a candle.
(02/16/00 10:00am)
When you take your first step into Fork, a stylish yet unpretentious American bistro in Old City, your eyes get busy in a hurry. Once you make it past the luxurious velvet curtains that stand guard at the late 19th century building, you immediately notice the welcoming lounge area to your left, the exposed duct work above the room, the crowded bar that sits dead-center and the kitchen visible off in the distance. It takes a few seconds for you to process it all -- but that's all it takes. It won't be very long before you feel comfortable in Fork and, by the time your meal is finished, your stomach might just want to call the place home. It's laid-back enough for a first date and more than tasteful enough for an anniversary supper. Executive chef and co-owner Anne-Marie Lasher crafts a new menu every day that reflects the best seasonal ingredients in the the marketplace. And each one offers American food that imaginatively incorporates a multi-ethnic flavor. Before you even start on Lasher's sumptuous offerings, however, you might want to take a long look at Fork's wine list. On a recent visit, there were 24 bottles listed, the vast majority of which could also be purchased by the glass. The list was heavy on French, Italian and Californian wines, with the average bottle costing about $35. There is also a globe-trotting sampling of lagers, ales and aperitifs. Partner and wine director Roberto Sella has won countless accolades for his selections, which, as he told Wine Spectator, are meant "not for special occasions but for drinking with meals." The first-course dinner menu at Fork is an admirable piece of work. With nearly every appetizer going for less than $8, it presents a heady selection of distinctive dishes. The bruschetta with black olive chevre, roasted zucchini, peppers and pecorino romano, which is a steal at $6.50 and served with baby greens, is an absolute delight. Its sharp flavor and fresh vegetables made for a dish finer than any I've had in an Italian eatery. Fork's organic salad greens with white balsamic vinaigrette were marvelously fresh and a must-buy at $4.50. The real treat at any stellar bistro such as Fork is, of course, the main course. And the sampling that we encountered did not disappoint. The sauteed salmon with red wine sauce, which was served over a bed of french lentil pilaf and sauteed savoy cabbage, was a very reasonable $16.50 and a joy to eat. The salmon was just perfectly past tender, and the dish looked wonderful. Another delicious, surprisingly homestyle main course was the pan-seared "free-range" organic chicken with honey mustard sauce, served atop heaping servings of mashed sweet potatoes and snow peas. It was $14.50 and could have been something Mom might have made -- that is, of course, if Mom were a world-class chef. By the time your courteously professional server presents you with your dessert or any one of Fork's myriad after-dinner drink options, your hunger will have long since passed. You may be done eating, but you don't ever want to leave.
