The 1880

Emm Tee, Eh?

Uhhh... Wha?

Have you ever had trouble with the T? You know, shuttles on the Blue line, slow trains on the Green line, delays due to icy tracks, etc? When you first arrived here, did you ever get on the wrong outbound Green line train accidentally? Well, next time something bad happens, just thank your lucky stars you’re not in New York.

I, like many others, had previously been under the impression that the New York subway was glorious, efficient, and convenient. I was proven hopelessly wrong on one fateful evening.

My girlfriend, Grace, and I were on our way back to Boston from DC after break. We elected to take Chinatown buses to cut down on expenses. After taking a bus from DC to NYC, we found (much to our dismay) that the last bus to Boston had already left. We were, officially, stranded in New York City with about 800 pounds of bags. After walking to a Popeye’s that was open late, at about 12:00 am, we decided to call my friend Marissa. She was the only person we knew in town, and she very graciously let us come over to wait out the 8:00 am bus. (Thanks again, Marissa!) There was only one small problem: we were on Canal Street, in Chinatown; Marissa lives in Astoria, way at the end of the N/W lines. No big deal, right? Just hop on the subway at Canal street, get an N or W train, and ride it to the end. Piece of cake, eh?

Well, as we would soon find out, not really. See, the New York Subway system is bogglingly large. Unlike most subways, it is organized by letter, number, color, AND shape. If that wasn’t enough, All of those things change depending on the time of day and day of the week. Also, the names of stops are not distinct - for example, there are THREE Canal Street stops, all in close vicinity to each other. (Yes, there are “St. Paul’s St” stops on both the B and C lines, but it’s understood that on those lines the stops are named after cross-streets of Commonweath and Beacon, respectively.)

Upon entering the station, we discovered the turnstiles are almost impossible to enter with bags. They look like something from a high-security prison. I know they used to have problems with turnstile jumping in the past, but COME ON. I was almost trapped in one when my bag wouldn’t fit through. Thankfully, a nice man came to help us. Jeesh.

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A Response to Hand-Me-Down Night Brouhaha: Lucy Goldberg

Lucy Goldberg is the Elections Commissioner for the SGA and is “not a voting member and [does] not have a constituency to represent.” She’s e-mailed us this response, which you, our readers, are more than welcome to do by sending it to the form on the lower left.

I would like to applaud those students who have expressed their interest in the Student Government Association of Emerson College. This is partially in response to the controversy that has erupted over the budget allotted to the 2008 Hand Me Down Night Committee, but it is in response to something larger that plagues the nation at large as well as our own direct democracy- the utter lack of communication.

Until now, we have not heard many individual voices with a genuine complaint or concrete concerns as to how our small government is run. As the board gathers every Tuesday in between class schedules and work schedules to discuss the newest appeal or the ever-present business of dealing with Aramark’s services without comment, it becomes difficult to remember that anybody actually cares about the decisions we make. Even the staff reporter from the Beacon becomes ambivalent as we all fill in our governmental roles, nothing more than practice for the day when we will become professionals in the real world.

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Fed Up With Hand-Me-Down Night? Take Action TODAY!

This is a topic that hasn’t been taken lightly around Emerson’s campus.

As John Tyson says in the Facebook group, Official Hand-Me-Down Night Boycott:

Every year, the SGA spends progressively more and more money (this year, nearly $40,000) on, essetially, a giant one-night catered party for themselves and their friends. It’s a giant “pat yourself on the back” fest. To put that amount in perspective, it’s about the same that FPS or EIV receives for their budget for a whole year.

Despite efforts on the parts of many voting members this year to decrease the expense and scale of the event, it’s cost has only gone UP. This is in direct opposition to the general consensus of students, who, when surveyed, mostly agreed that they were not interested in the event, wouldn’t want to go again, and thought the expense was too great.

In light of this argument, the SGA has asked that any students who would like to state their case about the brouhaha can come to the meeting TODAY at 2PM in the upper lobby of the Little Building.

Here is the Facebook event for the SGA Student Initiative on Hand Me Down Night.

Of course, this post is open to any comments in support or against the SGA meeting, Hand-Me-Down Night, or the SGA as a whole, but keep it relatively clean– any lecherous fuckery will be taken care of.

If anybody is interested in writing a full statement, they are encouraged to do so in the comments/concerns box on the lower left corner of the main page.

Disclaimer: John Tyson, former VMA Senator in the SGA, is a staff member of The 1880.

The Wing-girl Seven Commandments

A lot of praise has been given these days, with the help of some congratulatory beer commercials, to the wing-man. He is a guy’s guy. A bro’s bro. He’s always there to buy a round, to build up a dude’s self-confidence, and to keep a fugly girl busy while his best bud macks on her damn-fine friend.

In the midst of all this manly high-fives and rough pats on the back, a very vital part of the dating scene has been overlooked. I am of course talking about the indispensable wing-girl. To bring this ignored art form to light, I will share with you the seven commandments of every good wing girl.

1. Thou shalt let thy girlfriend look hotter.
This might be one of the hardest commandments to follow. No girl wants to be the drab one but if you friend is truly feeling down about themselves, one night out on the town wearing “capris” and a scrunchy isn’t going to kill you. If anything, let her at least appear hotter to the guy she is scoping out, otherwise you missed the point of your job completely: setting your friend up with a grade-A hunk.

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An Open Challenge To Josh Samataro

I’m not going to lie. I’m a big deal around these parts. Did you read my Securitas feature? It was down right incredible. People tell me I’m funny all the time. Hearing it bores me. You know what I’m also bored of? This no talent hack named Josh Samataro. Josh has made a career out of ripping me off. We both go to Emerson College. We both have late night talk radio shows. We both cried when The Patriots went 18-1. Now he follows me to The 1880? Enough is enough. I’m drawing the line in the sand.

Listen up Josh! I’m sick of your shenanigans and the fact that your last names has three A’s. You think you’re the new funny guy around these parts? Time to bring it. I’m issuing an open challenge to you. Try and beat me in any of the following:

-Lazer Tag
-Mini Hot Dog Eating Contest
-Go-kart race
- First Blood Match
- Home run derby
-Clue
- Evening Wear Fashion Show
- Hand Stand Contest

If Josh is man enough to face me in any of these events, The 1880 will provide full in-depth coverage. The ball is in your court Samataro.

An Open Letter to the MBTA

MBTA riders: We're in this together.

Dear MBTA,

We have always had a volatile relationship. You rarely give me my space, you’re messy (your Metros are everywhere) and sometimes you smell a little. You’re always saying you’re going to change, but things never seem to get any better, and you’re not a cheap date either. Quite frankly, I don’t know if I can take it anymore, so I will confront our issues point-by-point.

1. Riders: Sometimes, you just really irritate me. How many times does the driver have to say, “move into the train,” for you to release your death grip on the pole next to the door? And do me a favor: don’t sit on the outside seat when the T is full and the window seat is empty. What an obnoxious thing to do. Also, turn your iPod down, because “Crank Dat Soldier Boy” does not settle well with me at 8:30 am.

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Always a Bridesmaid, Never a Bride

To the cutie walking across the street ;)

I started reading missed connections on craigslist out of curiosity after a friend greeted me with their ecstatic screaming of “I WAS MISS CONNECTED.” After said friend explained to me that missed connections is a section on craigslist.org that allows people to post a description of the pretty girl they saw walking down the street who they were too shy to talk to. They then cross their fingers hoping that this person will see it and reply. Love will then ideally blossom. Before this I only knew that craigslist was home to the junk that people are trying to give away and the apartments people need to sublet. So later that day I found myself browsing missed connections.

Since my first time at the site I have found myself addicted to reading the listings on a fairly regular basis, mostly for entertainment value. It’s usually the subject lines that draw me to click on the listing, “we danced, we drank, we kissed, you puked, I love you…” or, “Your Hair…awesome reminds me of a hotrod I had.” But as I frequent the site more I find myself seeing the subject line such as, “Tall brunette on green line at 11:00” and clicking on it because I am tall, have brown hair, and was on the green line at approximately 11:00. I come to find out that the tall brunette was wearing a green jacket, has long luscious locks, and it was the B line, not the D. Nothing is applicable. The disappointment of another day of being sans a missed connection passes relatively quickly.

I wonder how many missed connections are responded to and how many are correctly responded to. I for one probably wouldn’t respond. So, despite the creepy factor of missed connections, if for nothing better, it is a good way to let the hottie on the T know that you noticed them. A little self-esteem boost always does a person good.

Soapboxery

Photo by Steve Rhodes">

Get on the box and VOTE! Photo by Steve Rhodes

This is the first year of my life I have been eligible to vote in a national presidential election. If you’re under 21, odds are your situation is similar. I’m not trying to pull the MAKES AMERICA GREAT soapboxery — hundreds of millions of people all over this planet have the right to vote. But it is still a right, and more people our age should take advantage of it. I only recently registered, missing out on a few years worth of local and congressional elections. I don’t really have an excuse. It was plenty important, but my flawed rationalizations led me to think that there were better things I could be doing with my time.

Regret sucks! Whoever you end up voting for will be helping to shape legislation that will directly effect your life once you get out of college. That’s some important shit right there. And if that isn’t reason enough, even if your candidate doesn’t win and the country goes to hell, you can declare “Well I voted for [blank]!” and sport the newest NOT MY PRESIDENT t-shirt.

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