WEDNESDAYNovember 2, 2011Volume 97, Issue 39

WWW.T H E DA I LYA Z T E C .CO M

facebook.com/dailyaztectwitter: thedailyaztec

I N D E X :

SC

AN

C

OD

EF

OR

MO

BIL

EC

ON

TE

NT

5E N T E R TA I N M E N T

4T R AV E L &A DV E N T U R EGo wild on AztecAdventures NationalParks Road Trip.

W E AT H E R :

PARTLY CLOUDYHIGH: 78LOW: 52SUNSET: 5:52PM

S D S U ’ SI N D E P E N D E N T

S T U D E N T N E W S PA P E R

S I N C E 1 9 1 3

The Aztecs are preparing for their conferencetournament.

S P O R T S

Etched acrossthe Plexiglaswindow ... werethe eternalwords heintended to bewritten on histombstone:Cold Cruisin’.8

SDSU service brings IT innovation

Aztecs ROCK college food drive

San Diego State won first place atthe Colleges Rock Hunger FoodDrive award ceremony, whichoccurred yesterday at the Hard RockHotel downtown. The award cere-mony was the culmination of a 17-day food donation campaign spon-sored by the Jacobs & Cushman SanDiego Food Bank.

The food and fundraising eventencompassed local universitiesincluding Cal State San Marcos, UCSan Diego, Point Loma Nazarene andSDSU in a competition to see whichuniversity could raise the most foodduring the contest, which ran Oct. 5- 21. Of the four universities thatcompeted, SDSU collected the mostfood and took the top prize for thefourth consecutive year. In all, theuniversity raised 54,526 pounds,greatly surpassing last year’s total.

“I was extremely nervous … Aftertalking with some of the other

schools, it seemed like they hadsome really great strategies to winthis year. After we heard the third-and second-place winners, I knewwe had it in the bag. I was in shockwhen they told us we raised 54,000pounds of food. It seemed unrealbut I was so proud of the Azteccommunity and their willingness togive back to the San DiegoCommunity,” Associated StudentsVice President of External AffairsKrista Parker, who was among theSDSU representatives on hand toreceive the award, said.

SDSU President Elliot Hirshmanwas a guest speaker at the event. Hespoke of the commitment and deter-mination of SDSU students to make astrong impact in the community.

“I think about what our studentshave seen in their lives and they’veseen everything from 9/11, two wars,to significant environmental chal-lenges to the severe economicissues and it would be very easy forthem to become fearful, discour-aged and anxious. But what I seehappening every day on my campus

is that our students have becomeleaders. They have served ournation in our volunteer military;they’ve started environmental initia-tives on all of our campuses; theyare creating the entrepreneurialenergy that is going to move us intoan economical recovery. Our stu-dents are going beyond the class-room, applying the things thatthey’ve learned and really makingthe difference,” Hirshman said.

This year, A.S. and various partici-pating organizations and clubs useda variety of strategies to raise themost food. Vice President of FinanceRob O’Keefe spoke about the ideas,which were employed this year.

“This year we took a more proac-tive approach to getting the wholecampus community involved. Oversummer, A.S. collaborated withAztec Shops, the president’s office,Student Affairs and Student Life &Leadership, Cultural Arts andSpecial Events, Aztec Athletics, theAlumni Association, CollegeCouncils, Residence HallAssociation and Greeks to make

sure everyone was on the samepage. Each campus entity played ahuge role in our campus’ successthis year with Colleges RockHunger. We also focused on havinginternal competitions amongst thedifferent on-campus entities in anattempt to make collecting food afun and engaging activity. We didreally well with our “Two MinuteMadness” in the second quarter ofthe homecoming football gameagainst TCU, where we had severalstudent volunteers running downthe aisles collecting change fromAztec football fans,” O’Keefe said.

The Aztec community already hasits eyes set for next year’s challenge.

“With our efforts in this year’sfood drive we were able to create agreat sense of pride on campus inbeing an Aztec. Everyone that wasinvolved hopefully can see whatkind of momentum we can createwhen we band together to take onan ostentatious task. As for nextyear’s food drive, we definitely setthe bar high,” O’Keefe said.

AAnnttoonniioo ZZaarraaggoozzaaphoto editor

As part of an effort to gear the uni-versity toward overall student andfaculty success, San Diego State’sInstructional Technology Serviceshas created a program that increas-es student productivity throughsmart classroom resources.

On its website, the ITS programstates, “Instructional TechnologyServices provides support to SDSUfaculty and staff in the design, selec-tion, production and distribution ofinstructional media.” The program islocated in the basement of AdamsHumanities and is home to severalsmart classrooms, a learningresearch studio, video conferencingfacilities, video production studiosand several other multimedia andtraining facilities for faculty.

Director of the ITS program atSDSU Dr. James Frazee said it isdesigned to help students through

faculty with the use of technology.He also said the program is engag-ing and relevant for studentsbecause it lets them learn throughmixed modalities in the classroom.

According to Frazee, working intechnologically equipped class-rooms will also help students in thefuture because once they leave col-lege for a career, they may have touse the same technology imple-mented in their classes.

According to Frazee, about 93percent of the classrooms are smartclassrooms and, that statistic willincrease to 100 percent within thenext year or two.

The technology used at SDSUincludes Blackboard Academic Suite,Wimba, plagiarism-checking soft-ware such as turnitin.com andhandheld clicker keypads used inlarge lectures.

The ITS website also states theprogram teaches with “a process thatuses instructional tools in conjunc-tion with learning theories to

organize, sequence, present andreinforce information appropriatelyfor particular teaching and learningsituations.”

Frazee said Blackboard is in theprocess of being updated for thecoming semester and will allow stu-dents and faculty to be more inter-active with one another. The newBlackboard version 9.1 will allow forWeb 2.0 tools, blog posts and wikis,which can be made public or privateto enrich course experience. Frazeesaid it will also encourage faculty touse formative evaluations through-out the semester. This will allow stu-dents to rate the course and the con-tent during the semester rather thanat the end. This process will helpprofessors address student problemsand better explain the course to thestudents while still in session.

This new version of Blackboardwill also allow teachers to postgrades and course content fasterand allow students to track theirprogress in a more timely manner. It

will also include a student progresswarning system that will alert stu-dents about their progress in thecourse and provide them with feed-back on assignments.

“This makes instructors more effi-cient with their time in the class-room,” he said. “Teachers can postquestions and students can answerthem through Twitter by typing theiranswer and a predetermined hash-tag to the course’s Twitter account.”

Frazee is excited for the program’sfuture. Right now the ITS program isbuilding a new multimedia class-room in Adams Humanities that willpromote student success throughthe use of technology and studentinteraction with the content of thecourses there.

Frazee said the program is suc-cessful because of its “service orien-tation and single-minded focus onhelping faculty,” which will nurturestudent success and create an effi-cient learning community at SDSU.

More information about ITS canbe found at its.sdsu.edu.

CCaarrll HHeennsslleeyycontributor

ANTONIO ZARAGOZA, PHOTO EDITOR

2

B AC K PAG E

It was an up-and-down weekendfor the San Diego State men’s soccer team.

After beating Oregon State onFriday afternoon 3-0, the Aztecsentered Sunday’s match against theUniversity of Washington lookingfor revenge for a loss sufferedagainst the Huskies earlier inPacific-12 Conference play.

SDSU did not get its revenge.No. 19 University of Washington

(11-4-2, 6-3MW), led byJ a c o bHustedt’s twogoals, defeat-

ed the No. 20 Aztecs 3-0 at theSDSU Sports Deck.

The loss drops SDSU to 10-4-2overall and 4-3 in conference, aswell as into third place in the Pac-12behind UCLA and Washington.

“We just need to get our confi-dence back,” redshirt junior mid-fielder Chance Marden said. “We justneed to start working harder. Theyoutworked us the whole game, sowe just need to pick it up.”

Despite attempting corner kicks,5-2, the Aztecs were unable to finda rhythm on the offensive side ofthe field, managing only six shotscompared to Washington’s 17.

Redshirt senior midfielder andco-captain Pedro Adan led SDSUwith two shots, while midfielderJose Altamirano, forward MilesByass, midfielder Abraham Villonand defender Casey Meuser eachhad one attempt apiece.

“I think (the Huskies) just stayedpatient (on defense),” redshirt soph-omore midfielder Morgan Saccosaid. “A lot of our game is playingthrough the midfield; that is usuallywhere our strong point is. I thinkthey shut us down through therethe most and made us tired. Theydidn’t let anyone in the midfieldhave a free ball and just outworkedus in both the halves.”

With three games left in Pac-12

Conference play, the Aztecs willlook to finish the season strong inorder to help increase their chancesof advancing to the postseason.SDSU will travel to the Bay Area totake on Stanford and California next,before finishing the season at homein a highly anticipated matchupagainst UCLA.

“We need to figure out whatexactly it’s going to take to getthese last three wins,” Sacco said.“Obviously, this (game) doesn’t helpour chances to make it to postsea-son. We are going to need to doeverything in our power to getthese last games. These are must-win games.”

D A I L Y A Z T E CWednesday,

November 2, 2011 S P O R T S2

Advanced Test Preparation

BEHINDTHE NUMBERS

SPONSOREDBY

Advanced Test PreparationScore Higher, Aztecs!

0

8

2

34

14

1

Wins at home for the SDSU last season

Returning starter for the Aztecs

Wins for the Aztecs last season, a school record

Exhibition games to be played by SDSU

Tickets left for tonight’s game

Scholarship players who can play tonight

9 More days until the first regular-season game

21 Home games for SDSU this season

FOR SDSU MEN’S BASKETBALL

RRyyaann SScchhuulleerrstaff writer

MEN ’S SOCCER

Washington sweepsthe season seriesfrom SDSU

UW 3

SDSU 0

SAM SPARHAWK, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

As the Mountain West regular seasoncame to a conclusion last Saturday, theSan Diego State women’s soccer teambegan preparing for the Mountain WestConference Championship, scheduledfor Nov. 2-6 in Albuquerque, N.M.

“The goal each year is to win aMountain West Conference tourna-ment,” head coach Mike Friesen said.

SDSU, which rounded out the regu-lar season in second place with a 4-1-1league record and 10-6-3 overallbehind New Mexico clenched the sec-ond seed in the tournament afterdefeating UNLV, 2-1, in a double-over-time match on Friday.

“We’re taking it one game at a time.We are playing well late in the seasonso I’m confident,” Friesen said.

While New Mexico and SDSUnotched the top two seeds, Wyomingearned the third seed, followed byfourth-seeded UNLV and fifth-seededBoise State. TCU locked up the sixthand final spot in the MW Championshiptournament after defeating Air Force 2-1 on Oct. 14 to determine the head-to-head tiebreaker.

“I think it’s between us and NewMexico this year. It’s an even matchup.They have an edge playing on theirhome turf but I think it will be a goodgame to watch,” Friesen said.

Because of the Aztecs’ outstandingleague performance, they have earneda bye in the first round of tournamentplay and automatically advance intothe semifinals.

SDSU will play its first match at noonMT Friday against the winner of thefirst-round game between Wyomingand TCU.

Last year, the third-seeded Aztecsadvanced to the tournament semifinalsafter shutting out Wyoming 4-0 in thequarterfinal round. Unfortunately, theywere unable to advance any furtherlosing 2-0 against No. 18 BYU.

“Our format has changed a lot thisyear from last. The bye gives us a dayto rest and since we don’t have aquarterfinal match, we don’t have toshow up as early as the other teamsdo,” Friesen said.

The Mountain West Women’sSoccer Championship match is set fornoon MT on Sunday. The winner willreceive an automatic bid into the 2011NCAA Women’s SoccerChampionships.

“It’s ultimately going to be a teameffort to win the conference tourna-ment,” Friesen said.

WOMEN ’S SOCCER

SDSU ready forMW tournament

It’s been more than seven monthssince the San Diego State men’s bas-ketball team has played a game.

Players are anxious to get on thecourt and so are the fans, who havesold out tonight’s exhibition gameagainst Cal State San Marcos.

It will be the first chance for fansto catch the team’s new look. SDSUlost four starters from last season’steam and figures to be guard orient-ed this season.

The two exhibition games, theother next Monday against PointLoma Nazarene, will help headcoach Steve Fisher prepare his teamfor the start of regular season-games on Nov. 11.

The coach is ready to see histeam perform under the lights ofViejas Arena.

“I’m looking forward to putting acrowd in and seeing how we per-form with people watching,” Fisher

said. “It’s an exciting time for us, alittle bit nervous still.”

Fisher is nervous because of theteam’s lack of depth this season.

The team only has nine scholarshipplayers who can take the court thisseason and that number just took ahit.

Sophomore guard Jamaal Franklinhas been suspended for the two exhi-bition games and possibly more.According to The San Diego Union-Tribune, Franklin was suspended for“inappropriate behavior.”

Because of Franklin’s suspension,the team will enter its first exhibitiongame with only eight players. Fisherjoked about the low number of play-ers at a press conference yesterday.

“We have eight scholarship playersthat will be playing tomorrow,” Fishersaid. “So I’m going to have to have atalk with the officials before the gameto make sure we don’t have to ask forsix fouls.”

No matter the amount of players,Fisher will have the Aztecs readywhen they finally take court tonightand tip off the 2011-12 season.

AAnnttoonniioo MMoorraalleesssports editor

MEN ’S BASKETBALL

DDaanniieellllee GGaauuttstaff writer

FILE PHOTO

“I think it’sbetween us andNew Mexico thisyear. It’s an evenmatchup. Theyhave an edge ...”

Mike Friesen,women’s soccer

head coach

UW drops Aztecs again

SDSU awaits exhibition

D A I L Y A Z T E CWednesday,November 2, 2011O P I N I O N 3

Tax code heavy on courts

ver since I can remember,people have always beenstunned by how much I caneat. I am always the firstone at the dining table and

I’m always the last to leave — a cus-tom of mine that never ceases topuzzle and amuse my family. I amconvinced I have a gift: the gift ofputting food away in remarkable, andsometimes unexplainable, ways. Tomy dismay, most people I know donot share my seemingly rare ability.It’s for this reason the trash cans inour homes, and the ones lining thesidewalks outside, are always filled tothe brim with half-eaten cheeseburg-ers and last night’s lasagna.

Simply put, we are a country offood wasters. In fact, of the 243million tons of municipal solidwaste we generated in 2009,roughly 14 percent — or approxi-mately 34 million tons — wasderived solely from food scraps,according to the U.S. EnvironmentalProtection Agency. How disgustingis that? Even worse, less than 3percent was actually recycled.

There are two solutions to thissocietal problem: We can either startdigging through trash cans to deter-mine who among us is the mostwasteful and therefore deserves theblame, or we can be realistic aboutthis and acknowledge the fact we areall part of this shameful problem. I’mnot quite sure how or when it allstarted, but the “bigger is better” foodphenomenon has taken control ofmost restaurants, and has subcon-sciously motivated us to cover everysquare inch of our plates wheneverthe opportunity arises.

But where do you think most ofthose leftovers end up? In your trash,which ends up in the back of a dumptruck on its way to a landfill. I don’tknow if you’ve ever been to a landfillor seen pictures of one, but if youhaven’t, you need to. Massive heapsof cardboard, water bottles, plasticbags, food, yard trimmings and grimecover additional heaps of sludge andtrash beneath them. Somewhere inthis terrain of waste is the trash bagyou threw out last week, with yourhalf-eaten sandwiches and the waterbottles you should have recycled. Ona grander scale, roughly 132 milliontons, or about 54 percent, of themunicipal solid waste we generatedin 2009 ended up in landfills.

Aside from recycling, though, whatelse can we do to rid ourselves ofthis repulsive habit? Well, my envi-ronmentally conscious friends, it’stime to learn how to compost. Forthose who aren’t sure what a com-post is, it is a mixture comprisedmainly of decayed, organic materialthat breaks down under certain con-ditions and provides minerals andnutrients for plants, animals andmicroorganisms, according to the

EPA. The best part? You’ll never runout of things to toss in there. Fromfood scraps such as stale cereal,eggshells, plain cooked pasta andpizza crusts to bathroom items suchas toilet paper rolls, urine (if youdare) and hair from your comb orbrush, you can pretty much walk intoany room in your house and findsomething you can compost.

Of course, there are certain guide-lines one should abide by, whichonline how-to videos and step-by-step instructions can assist you with.Or if you’d like to observe theprocess in person, look no furtherthan the recycling program at SanDiego State, which is currently oneof 11 food waste recycling programsin San Diego. With the participationof West Commons, East Commonsand the Cuicacalli dining hall, SDSUcomposts around three tons of foodscrap every week at the MiramarGreenery composting facility.Because of that program, nearly 65tons of waste from the landfill wasestimated to be diverted through thefood waste diversion program,according to the city website and theOverview of SDSU Management. Iam proud to say that through theimplementation of such programs,we actively stand out as a modeluniversity for environmental con-sciousness and responsibility.

But what more can we do?Provide SDSU students the opportu-nity to attend regular workshopsabout food waste and composting.Perhaps students majoring in envi-ronmental studies would be willingto help host such an event wherethey can assist in providing a wealthof information on food waste, land-fills and the consequences of both.

The workshop could even offer ahands-on approach where studentscould actually create miniature com-posts they could easily duplicate athome. Informative booklets could behanded out. A food waste-basedblog or YouTube channel could becreated and updated by willing envi-ronmental studies students. Bottomline: We have to take initiative andmotivate others to do the same. Asmuch as we wish it were true, ourtrash doesn’t disappear into thin airafter garbage collectors pick it up.With every day you waste, theselandfills keep overflowing.Composting won’t singlehandedlyend food wastage. But it’s one stepagainst a huge problem that must beaddressed.

—Stacey Oparnica is a journalismjunior.

SSttaacceeyy OOppaarrnniiccaastaff columnist

MCT CAMPUS

Compost plansno wasted effort

E

n 1976, former PresidentJimmy Carter referred to thefederal income tax system as“a disgrace to the humanrace.” His Republican prede-

cessor, former President RonaldReagan, shared similar sentiments,and in 1983 described the tax sys-tem as being, “utterly impossible,utterly unjust and completely coun-terproductive … (it) reeks with injus-tice and is fundamentally un-American.” The Post-Reagan taxcode has only grown more complexand significantly longer throughoutthe years. The 2005 version of theInternal Revenue Code and FederalTax Regulations had more than60,000 pages and nearly 9 millionwords. To put this in perspective,the King James version of the Biblehas slightly less than 800,000words, making the tax code nearly12 times the length of that Bible.

According to the InternalRevenue Services, American taxpay-ers spend an astonishing 6.6 billionhours per year complying with tax-filing requirements, which includespreparation, planning and paper-work. This averages out to anastounding 21 hours of tax prepara-tion for every American.Furthermore the cost of this com-pliance, including the cost of anaccountant or software and allother economic costs, will surpassthe $400 billion mark next year.

With this serving as a backdrop,Republican presidential candidateRick Perry recently unveiled his flattax plan. Under Perry’s “Cut, Balanceand Grow” plan, Americans will begiven the choice to either pay a 20percent flat tax rate or pay their cur-rent rate based on predeterminedincome tax brackets. His plan alsoaims to abolish the death tax, lowerthe corporate tax rate to 20 percent,balance the budget by 2020 andplace a cap on federal spending at18 percent of GDP. Perry views theflat tax as a key to stimulatinggrowth; his support for the plan:“The way to stimulate the economyis not through temporary tax reliefor government spending. It’s tostimulate private spending. The flattax will unleash growth.”

The first major problem with hisplan, which guarantees failure, is theoptional nature. If the loopholes ofthe old system are more advanta-geous, then why would anyoneleave that system? In 2009, theaverage tax rate for all taxpayerswas 11.06 percent. In fact, only oneeconomic bracket, those in the top5 percent, averaged paying incometaxes of more than 20 percent, withan average paying rate of 20.46 per-cent. Perry’s plan almost guaranteesnone of the top earners will switch.

From an economic standpoint,the adoption of a flat rate wouldrequire a greater income tax pay-ment, which would seem financiallyunappealing to the gross majority ofAmericans who actually payincome tax. In contrast, there is asignificant percentage of Americanswho pay no income tax. Forinstance, in 2009, 51 percent ofAmerican household paid no

income tax because of tax credits ordeductions. These Americans wouldcertainly not sacrifice paying noth-ing in income tax in order to payingsomething. So where does thegrowth happen? Americans whoactually pay income tax .

Other aspects of his plan areequally unbelievable. Reducingfederal spending to 18 percent ofGDP is appealing but impractical,as it would require nearly an addi-tional $1 trillion in spending cuts.Our congress has lost traction,making a mere $100 billion in cuts;$1 trillion is entirely unbelievable.Finally, corporations are unlikely toflock back to America and bringtheir money with them, because a20 percent rate is still significantlyhigher than what many corpora-tions are paying abroad.

In the end a flat income taxwould almost certainly place amore significant financial burden onthe poor. This is because numerousregressive taxes already exist, suchas sales, sin (alcohol, tobacco, etc.)and payroll taxes. A regressive taxeffectively takes a larger portionfrom a low-income person, thansomeone with a high income.Adding in a flat tax to these regres-sive burdens would have a greaterfinancial impact on the poor.

While Perry’s plan may not beviable his intent is noble, as drasticoverhaul is needed. Last year, theIRS employed more than 94,000people, and had an operating budg-et in excess of $12 billion.Simplifying this system would be alandmark achievement and in theo-ry, a flat tax would have several

advantages. First, a flat tax has beenknown to foster economic growth,and is currently employed bynumerous countries around theworld. For instance, Estonia firstenacted a flat tax rate in 1994 andwitnessed double digit economicgrowth by 1997, with a steady 6 per-cent annual GDP growth thereafter.The U.S. economic growth ratenever surpassed 4.9 percent duringthe same time period. Russia, whichbegan employing a flat tax rate in2001, witnessed a 26 percentgrowth in the amount of incometax revenue the year after institution

of the flat rate. A second major advantage is the

direct simplification of the entiresystem. According to TheEconomist, “In a typical year, the IRSestimates that for every dollar it col-lects, another 19 or 20 cents isowed, but not paid.” This can leadto shortfalls in the hundreds of bil-lions of dollars. Simplicity of thesystem creates a standard rate anddirectly combats the blatant avoid-ance of tax responsibilities.

A final advantage of a flat taxwould be the reduction of loopholes,which would directly correlate to areduction in the number of lobbyists.Last year, there were 12,951 regis-tered lobbyists and a shocking totalof $3.51 billion was spent on lobby-ing. These lobbyists and the taxloopholes in our current systems areperpetually linked. Loopholes areexchanged for campaign contribu-tions and electoral successes. FareedZakaria, contributing editor-at-largeat Time magazine, sums thisexchange, “In other countries, thissort of bribery takes place under-neath bridges and with cash inbrown envelopes. In America, it isinstitutionalized and legal …”

In the end, as the percentage offederal revenues coming from indi-vidual and corporate income taxesdecreases, and the amount of feder-al spending increases, an overhaulof the system is desperately needed.

BBrrooddyy BBuurrnnssstaff columnistI

BBRROODDYY BBUURRNNSS IS

SEEKING A MASTERS IN

BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

MCT CAMPUS

The ... Internal Revenue Codeand Federal Tax Regulationshad more than 60,000 pagesand nearly 9 million words.To put this in perspective, theKing James ... Bible has slightlyless than 800,000 words.

D A I L Y A Z T E CWednesday,

November 2, 2011 T R AV E L & A DV E N T U R E4

Calling all nature enthusiasts andadventure seekers: The opportunity ofa lifetime awaits with the AztecAdventures’ National Parks Road Trip.Explore the wonders of the naturalworld while learning environmentalpreservation skills, making new friendsand experiencing cultures of localcommunities across the Southwest.

Aztec Adventures has served SanDiego State for more than threedecades, providing students withoutdoor adventure education andrecreation. Aztec Adventures offersbackpacking, camping, hiking,canoeing, cultural immersion, highropes, rock climbing and wildernessfirst aid training.

Among these excursions, this onehas been recognized as “world famous.”The National Parks Road Trip takesplace each year during Thanksgivingbreak and enables participants to expe-rience Zion National Park, BryceCanyon National Park, Lees Ferry,Horseshoe Bend and the GrandCanyon. The newest destination of theroad trip is the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah.It is Utah’s newest national monumentand is comprised of an impressive 1.9million acres. The group takes its timeexploring each park, stopping to takehikes to some of the most dramaticviewpoints along the way.

Carl Richardson, a backpackinginstructor and outings leader at AztecAdventures, has been involved withthe National Parks Road Trip for sev-eral years. He said some of the mostfascinating sites he encountered onthe trip were toadstools. Heexplained toadstools are mounds ofhard rock supported by much softerrock. The supporting rock has beeneroded away, leaving the appearanceof a mushroom.

“Each year you can see the differ-ence in the shape. That’s how quick-ly the erosion takes place,”Richardson said.

The primary goals of the NationalParks Road Trip are to experience themagnificence of the natural landmarksand to immerse group members inlocal communities to gain appreciationfor the cultural and physical geographyof each destination.

The five-day road trip is fun-filled

and adventure-packed, but not toworry, sustainability is also a mainfocus of Aztec Adventures. During theroad trip, the group spends each nightin a locally owned motel or hostel and

eats dinner in family-owned restau-rants. Food for breakfast and lunch ispurchased from small neighborhoodgrocers as well, and the group makesevery effort to benefit the localeconomies of the towns it visits.Each Thanksgiving Day the group

visits Grandma Tina’s restaurant inKanab, Utah for a traditionalThanksgiving dinner.

The views of the famous pristinelandmarks, the cultural immersion and

the preservation of local economiesprovide substantial incentive for stu-dents to embark on this invigoratingjourney. The best part of the roadtrip may be found not in the breath-taking scenery or skills learned, butrather in the relationships made

during the experience. “One of the best parts is that you

meet people,” Richardson said. “Youwill definitely come out of the tripwith friends.”

He met his best friend KevinBernstein, who also works for AztecAdventures, on the National Parks RoadTrip a few years ago.

“I would be going on these trips even

if it wasn’t my job,” Richardson said.

“Sharing the experience with others is a

passion we all have here.”

Bernstein agreed.“What matched the experience of

visiting these inspiring places was thecomradery and connection I madewith all of the trip members,”Bernstein said. “Sharing our timetogether and learning the history ofthese magnificent areas was the icingon the cake. I made lifelong friendsand memorable experiences that I willforever carry with me.”

Students at SDSU can now alsoreceive course credit for attending the

outing. Geography professor DianaRichardson created the trip as a specialstudies opportunity for students tolearn about geology and geography.Geography 499 will be offered thisspring in correlation with the road trip.

So what does an experience like thiscost? For $699, travelers receiveround-trip transportation in a 15-pas-senger van, five nights of motel lodg-ing, five breakfasts, five lunches andvan snacks. Also included are all parkentrance fees, group gear and anypersonal equipment outfitting thatmay be needed, such as a sleepingbag or rain gear. The fee also providesthe group with two highly trainedAztec Adventures leaders who assisttravelers during the trip. Paymentplans are available upon request.

Space is limited, so visit the AztecRecreation Center today to sign up orvisit aztecadventures.sdsu.edu andclick on National Parks Road Trip formore information about this andfuture trips.

KKaammbbrraa PPootttteerrstaff writer

Aztec excursion navigates natural wonders

THINKSTOCK

“I would be going on thesetrips even if it wasn’t myjob. Sharing the experiencewith others is a passion weall have here.”

Carl Richardson,Aztec Adventures backpacking

instructor and outings leader

Aztec Adventuresdrives alternative totypical holiday fun

D A I L Y A Z T E CWednesday,November 2, 2011E N T E R TA I N M E N T 5

UNDER THE SCOPE

LIVE AND DANGEROUS

Seattle-based Minus the Bear hascrafted some of the most intricatelylayered and rhythmically complexindie rock of the last decade. Inadvance of its 10th anniversary tourstop at Soma tonight, bassist CoryMurchy spoke to The Daily Aztecabout welcoming success, theimportance of proper lifting tech-nique and experiencing music theold-timey way.

TThhee DDaaiillyy AAzztteecc:: When most bandslook back at their careers nostalgical-ly and go on tour without supportinga new record, a farewell or hiatusseems to follow. Will Minus the Bear

fans have anything to worry aboutafter this tour? CCoorryy MMuurrcchhyy:: No, not at all. We’reactually going to be going in andrecording at what looks like the endof the year. We’re going to wrap upwriting when we get home andwe’ve got a bunch of songs ready torecord. So yeah, we’re going torecord and get a new record out.That’s our plan. Nothing to worryabout at all. We’re going to be busy.

DDAA:: For this tour, you are performingyour debut album (2002’s “HighlyRefined Pirates”) in its entirety. Hasyour perspective about these songschanged throughout the last decade?CCMM:: Yeah, totally. The thing aboutperspective ... just the way we feelabout them, yeah there was a longtime where I didn’t even listen to the

record just because there was otherstuff going on. At one point, a couplesongs here and there but we reallydidn’t look back at the record aspulling too much from. But it’s actu-ally been kind of cool to revisit someof the old songs that we’ve neverreally played live. And the perspec-tive that has changed has been thefact that this actually translates prettywell live. So it’s kind of cool to learn new things about songs.

DDAA:: This month, you’re releasing‘Highly Refined Pirates’ and yourdebut EP (2001’s “This Is What IKnow About Being Gigantic”) onvinyl. Does the way music is stored,whether its MP3, CD or vinyl, changethe way you experience music?CCMM:: Yeah, I think it’s changed every-one’s way they listen to music. It’s

pretty amazing to be able to havemost of your record collection on alittle device and be able to go wher-ever you want with it. But I think itstill remains a neat and cool experi-ence to open up a record or an LP orsomething and actually flip the sidesand kind of take time to listen to thelyrics and read along. Experiencing arecord like that. It has changed but Ithink with the resurgence of vinylsales, I think that’s a perfect exampleof the fact that people like to experi-ence music the old-timey way.

DDAA:: “Pirates” has a fun, almost absur-dist streak to it and your latest record“Omni” has sexual quality through-out. Do you write albums with atheme or concept in mind?CCMM:: No I don’t think so. Jake(Snider) takes care of all the lyrics. Idon’t think it’s set out as an actual,predetermined thing. It just kind ofturns into a certain thing dependingon where we’re all at. And theme-wise, I think a lot of the stuff ... Theonly thing absurdist really about“Pirates” and the early stuff were justthe song titles. All the songs’ contentwere pretty straight-ahead storiesand real life everyday things thathappen to people. Some of theabsurdist stuff is definitely in there but it’s also heartfelt love songs too.

DDAA:: With its glossier production andmellower rhythms, “Omni” soundsvastly different from your otheralbums. What influenced that changein direction? CCMM:: It’s just where we were at musi-cally altogether when the five of uswere writing and who we were aspeople. I think all our records weregreat snapshots of where we aremusically and personally. I think it

was the product of being togetheralmost a decade.

DDAA:: Speaking of influence, with theburgeoning success of bands such asTwo Door Cinema Club, mainstreamrock seems to be shifting toward thesound you helped pioneer. Do youseek mainstream recognition? CCMM:: We want to play to as manypeople who want to listen to us andbuy our records. I don’t think we’retrying to ... We’re just trying to playour music and get it out to as manypeople who want to hear it. If it goesmainstream, awesome. If we’re partof that, yeah why not? It’s not likewe’re going to say no to fans. I thinkif people like it, that’s awesome.

DDAA:: As the performer, what makes aMinus the Bear show memorable foryou? CCMM:: Just when I know the crowd ishaving a good time. Interactionbetween crowd and band is alwaysgood. Just as far as the energy thatyou get from people in the audience.I think that’s a real thing. Someshows are a lot more mellow andthere is not that exchange of energy.It’s fun to feed off the crowd and tojust get into it because everyone elseis. It’s pretty cool.

DDAA:: What do you know now youwish you knew 10 years ago? CCMM:: I would have paid attention tolifting with my knees and not withmy back. I blew my back out a cou-ple years ago so I would havestretched and taken better care of myback. That’s what I would have done.

Minus the Bear plays tonight at Soma.Tickets are $25 and the doors open at7:30 p.m.

As the houselights pulsated to the hi-hat splashes of “Where My Keys,” thecurtain in front of the stage fell toreveal dance music icon Deadmau5 inhis cartoon-mouse-helmet-festoonedglory. His disc jockey console depicteda rotating 3-D Rubik’s cube thatbecame an appropriate metaphor forthe challenge of enlarging club atmos-phere to stadium proportions.

Those challenges arose whenDeadmau5 moved the event from the2,500-person capacity venue Soma tothe 15,000-capacity field at Petco Parkthat subsequently led to an increase inticket prices to $90 — more than thecost of a one-day pass to this year’sElectric Daisy Carnival — before weaksales forced promoter Live Nation tocut prices to $65.

After waiting an hour in will-calllines and being subjected to a convo-luted system of barricades on the floorof the stadium that nearly caused mul-tiple fistfights, the audience struggledto respond to Deadmau5’s progressivefirst hour of heavy house. Instead ofdrumroll crescendos, Deadmau5favored slow, smooth transitions thatoften withheld bass drops for severalminutes. While these gradual transi-tions allowed the synth lines to soakinto the crowd, the momentum cameto a standstill, even on fan favoritessuch as “Slip” and “Some Kind of Blue.”With the exception of “To Play Us Out,”which featured the vocal line fromFatboy Slim’s “Star 69” and Bill O’Reilly’sprofanity-laden tirade was printedkaraoke-style on screen, there was littlecrowd interaction during the first hour.

The turning point of the set camewhen singer SOFI joined Deadmau5onstage for the electro single “SofiNeeds a Ladder” and the dubstep-driven “One Trick Pony.” Her infec-tious energy transformed the crowdinto a bouncing mass as she tradedoff lyrics with the audience and shift-ed the set toward a more bass-heavysound. The transition led to a livemashup of “FML” and “I Remember” asthe triplet beat pounded away at thedancing audience.

Another high point of the secondhour came with the Ed Banger-esqueunreleased track “Professional Griefers.”With its Daft Punk “Discovery”-era stylesynthesized guitar line, Deadmau5 fit-tingly dropped “Harder, Better, Faster,Stronger” and Justice vocal hits into“Griefers” to rapturous applause.

Deadmau5 finished his second hourby layering Rob Swire’s vocals with“Moar Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff” while dressedlike the ghost from the music video.Afterward, he launched into a three-song encore consisting of the chip-tune-inspired “Meowingtons HaxEnabled” and the electro-house track“Animal Rights” before closing out theset with an epic 11-minute version ofhis single “Strobe.”

As electronic dance music hits themainstream and more DJs becomearena-sized acts, each artist will haveto overcome the growing pains associ-ated with the increase in popularity.The change in venue created an ener-gy problem that took half of the set(and SOFI’s amazing vocals) to solve.As the last notes of “Strobe” rang out,the words “Game over” printed inarcade font across the LED backdrop.The game was done and Deadmau5pulled an upset victory.

AAnnddrreeww YYoouunnggeerrsenior staff writer

AAnnddrreeww YYoouunnggeerrsenior staff writer

COURTESY OF WILL MERYDITH

Deadmau5 overcomes hitches to rock Petco

Minus the Bear tour to celebrate 10 years

COURTESY OF DANGERBIRD RECORDS

D A I L Y A Z T E CWednesday,

November 2, 2011 E N T E R TA I N M E N T6UNPAUSED

The long-awaited “Battlefield 3” wasreleased last week and fans know thewait was well worth it. The wildly suc-cessful franchise’s latest installmentdoes not disappoint.

Technology-wise, “Battlefield 3” isstunning. Gamers will be hard-pressed to find anything that doesn’tlook meticulously textured. The light-ing in particular is breathtakingly real-istic, though at times DICE seems tohave gone overboard with J.J.Abrams-style lens flairs.

In addition to the graphics, DICE hasonce again proven how powerfulsound can be in a gaming experience.The studio has gone to great lengths toprovide top-notch sound effects.DICE’s approach to sound involvesgoing on location and recording high-definition audio; the effort has paid off.

DICE has crafted maps that takeadvantage of the destructible environ-ments the Frostbite engine is knownfor. This has contributed to combatthat is exhilarating and intense at levelsother shooters just can’t match. Tryingto hold out as tanks, helicopters, mor-tar strikes and infantry all converge ona single point elicits a feeling of beingat the Alamo.

In addition to the serious punch andrange of shotguns, gamers can use theweapons to rack up suppressionpoints, a new type of point bonusawarded when bullets hit near anenemy. The suppression causes theenemy to go into a suppressed state,reducing their vision.

Teamwork is more important andrewarding than in any previousBattlefield game. Bonuses from sup-pression, spotting, repairing, resupply-ing and healing teammates racks upquickly. Players can use lasers to desig-nate targets for planes and helicopters,a welcome addition to the franchise.

All four player classes feel necessaryand rewarding. Players have a pletho-ra of vehicles to choose from on thePC version’s 64-player maps, and thisis where the engineer really shines.Vehicles enter a disabled state for aperiod of time before blowing up, giv-ing the engineers time to repair if

opponents don’t keep up the pres-sure. Every class has numerousweapons and equipment to unlock,and each primary weapon has 10uniquely unlocked attachments.Vehicles have their own collection ofunlockable upgrades as well, allmeaning it will take a very long timefor players to wear out the levelingsystem this time around.

Vehicle upgrades have become amatter of some concern. Aircraft inparticular are very fragile and lightlyarmed until upgraded, and new play-ers may find it quite difficult to sur-vive long enough to do enough

damage to unlock the better options. The game does have some serious

issues that need to be addressed.Currently, playing on the larger serversis blighted by intense lag and rubber-banding for many players, making playalmost impossible at times. Attemptingto join a server with friends is difficult.Even when joining as a party, the gameoften splits groups into differentsquads or different teams entirely. Thelimited number of squads can alsomake it hard to form a group withfriends once in-game.

At times, spawning will force playersto appear right in front of an enemyplayer or in odd places far from thenearby capture points, leaving thecharacter open and exposed to enemyfire. The game’s co-op mode is filledwith bugs at the moment, with ene-mies not visible on both players’screens, events not triggering and anenemy artificial intelligence that oftenwill break missions by getting stuck inwalls. However, when these issuesaren’t occurring, “Battlefield 3” is a riv-eting experience.

Overall, the game is highly recom-mended for players seeking intenseteamwork, huge vehicle battles andintense infantry combat. A bug-freerelease is rare and DICE appears tobe working on the glaring issues.Already improvement to the beta hasbeen seen, when squads were farless functional.

When all aspects are working, therereally isn’t any other shooter that cancome close to the intensity, variedgameplay or sense-overloading great-ness present in “Battlefield 3.”

CCooddyy FFrraannkklliinnstaff writer

DICE has craftedmaps that takeadvantage of thedestructible environments ... this has contributedto combat that isexhilarating andintense at levelsother shooters can’t match.

MCT CAMPUS

‘Battlefield’ ravages rivals despite bugs

D A I L Y A Z T E CWednesday, November 2, 2011C L A S S I F I E D S 7

THE DAILY AZTEC DOES NOTENDORSE OR SUPPORT ANDHAS NO AFFILIATION WITH THEPRODUCTS OR SERVICESOFFERED IN THE CLASSIFIEDSSECTION.

SERVICES

College of Business

REVIEW589-9900 www.aplusreview.com

SCOREHIGHEROur entire purpose is to prepare and perform a “perfect” exam-review, whereby our students get the highest grades in the class. PERIOD.

We dumb down the material and spoon feed it to you. Together we work through every possible problem and every possible concept.

Econ101

Acctg201

Econ102

Stats119

Math120

MIS180

Acctg202

MIS301

MIS302

FIN323

FIN325

FIN329

ARRESTED? DUI? THEFT? Call Attorney Bradley Corbett for all Misdemeanors and Felonies. (619) 800-4449. Student Discount.

SERVICES SERVICES SERVICES

IF YOUR ADWAS HERE,YOU’D BERICH BY

NOW.

Contact us to advertise in the paper!6 1 9 - 5 9 4 - 6 9 7 7 • a d v e r t i s i n g @ t h e d a i l y a z t e c . c o m

PLEASERECYCLEYOURPAPERINARECYCLEBINORPERHAPSABIRDCAGE.

SEEYOUR

ADHERE!Place your ad in The Daily Aztec Classifieds section to hire an intern, sell your bike, or rent a room! Students and faculty of SDSU receive a discount on any classified ads they run, so what are you waiting for? The Classifieds section is available to all 36,000 students on campus, plus your ad will be displayed on The Daily Aztec’s website, which receives over 3,000 hits per day! With this kind of exposure, there’s no doubt you will find what you’re looking for. Call us at 619-594-4199 for more info.

D A I L Y A Z T E CWednesday,

November 2, 2011 B AC K PAG E8

Difficulty Level: 2 out of 4

Instructions: Complete the gridso each row, column and 3-by-3box (in bold borders) containsevery digit 1 to 9. For strategieson how to solve Sudoku, visitwww.sudokudragon.com

Solutions available online atwww.thedailyaztec.com

©2011, TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES INC.

AACCRROOSSSS1 Nice forecast5 Blatant promo-

tion9 Entertain

14 Shoppe modifier

15 Hoosier city16 Kitchen gadget17 Sachs20 Texas longhorn,

for one21 Shocked reac-

tion22 45-Down et al.23 Hai or oui25 Atop27 Sacks35 Detours, e.g.:

Abbr.36 Kitty37 “Awakenings”

actress38 Start to sing?39 Fawned over,

with “on”42 Uncertain word43 Warren Buffett’s

city46 JFK listing47

Matchmaker.com connection

48 Saks52 __ bargain53 Crunch targets54 Uffizi offering57 Couples with

clubs60 Comic pianist

Victor64 Sax67 Audibly68 Taj Mahal site69 “Yikes!”70 Sounds from

pounds71 Maintain72 Conifers with

elastic wood

DDOOWWNN1 Turns opaque,

with “up”2 Loads3 Run in place4 Late-night

flights5 Couples’s org.6 Clubber __,

nemesis in“Rocky III”

7 Bear in the sky8 Plaster of Paris

component9 Financing letters

10 Daytime fare11 Coffee hour

sights12 Ooze13 Misses the mark18 GI rations19 Date with an MD

24 Dirty Harry’sorg.

26 Resistance unit27 Refrigerant gas28 Announcement

at the door29 Took in again30 Pal of Tigger31 Playful aquatic

critter32 Actor Malcolm-

__ Warner33 Speak with style34 Tylenol alterna-

tive40 Summer on the

Seine41 Computer fod-

der44 Really enthused45 Buddy List co.47 Act rebelliously

49 Homeowner’soption, in brief

50 AncientEgyptian templecomplex

51 “Fernando” quar-tet

54 Sports schedulecolumn

55 Audition aim56 Word with box

or belt58 On __: nervous59 Calamitous61 Storm62 Eat away63 Actor Byrnes

and announcerHall

65 OED entries66 Suede feature

Solutions available online at www.thedailyaztec.com

TODAY’S BIRTHDAY (11/2/11) Your new yearbegins with opportunities to put financesin order. Don't mix friends with finances (atleast for now). Learn what you need. Putyour talents and sensibilities to work for agood cause. This is the work that feedsyour soul.

To get the advantage, check the day's rating:10 is the easiest day, 0 the most challenging.

ARIES (March 21 - April 19) - Today is a 7 -Take care of the basics, and plan an escapeas early as you can with someone dear toyou. Even if it's just to catch up overcoffee, you appreciate the heart-to-hearttalk.

TAURUS (April 20 - May 20) - Today is a 7 -Everything turns out, thanks to yourwisdom and charm. Don't get distractedfrom what's important. Surround yourselfwith people who adore you. You may notalways agree.

GEMINI (May 21 - June 21) - Today is a 7 -Tell your people how much you appreciatethem. Don't worry about huge productivityor results today. Put greater focus onhuman resources. Spread the love around.

CANCER (June 22 - July 22) - Today is an 8- Study the history before making adecision. Patience. Adventures and travelare better in discussion and planning thanactuality. Plot the itinerary.

LEO (July 23 - Aug. 22) - Today is an 8 -Romance and artistic creativity provide thecontext this month. Who could you inventyourself to be? What could you create?What fun? Make a glorious mess.

VIRGO (Aug. 23 - Sept. 22) - Today is a 7 -Beware of stifling your ambition byburying yourself in busywork. A strollaround the block or on a trail can revive.Breathe deeply and take peaceful breaks.

LIBRA (Sept. 23 - Oct. 22) - Today is a 7 -Your communication is at a peak untilabout the end of the year, while Mercuryand Venus are in your third house. Takeadvantage.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23 - Nov. 21) - Today is a 7 -It's a good time for home remodeling, butdon't spend more than you need to. Usewhat you have, with a dash of imagination.Get chores done, and play outside.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22 - Dec. 21) - Today isan 8 - Allow yourself to play with whatyou have, and don't take any loans. Venusand Mercury enter your sign today, givingyou an extra oomph in love andinteraction.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22 - Jan. 19) - Today is a9 - Seeds gestate deep in the ground.Privately prepare. Five minutes ofmeditation can increase your output. Enjoytime at home.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20 - Feb. 18) - Today is a 7- You might talk about distant places orwrite about them ... just don't go very far, ifyou can avoid it. Enjoy simple luxuries likea hot shower.

PISCES (Feb. 19 - March 20) - Today is a 7 -You may like the idea of travel ordiscovery, but getting moving is anotherthing. Diligence and thrift serve you wellnow. Write, and plan for tomorrow.

©2011, TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES INC.

BY NANCY BLACK,TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICESHOROSCOPE

BY THE MEPHAM GROUP,TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICESSUDOKU

BY RICH NORRIS & JOYCE LEWIS,TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICESCROSSWORD

LIKE SDSU news?LIKE SDSU news? / Daily Aztec

FICT ION

fter the funeral, Jimbo’sfamily joined hands andmade a circle around hisRocketcoffin’s launchpad. His casket sat

upright like a big black refrigerator, andthe engines beneath it began to growland spew out grey smoke in prepara-tion for the coming flight. Patti, theeldest, was in charge of the funeralarrangements. She’d opted for thewindowed model of theRocketcoffin9000, knowing her moth-er wanted the closest alternative towhat was once known as an “opencasket ceremony.”

In the cold wind, Patti clutched thesweaty hands of her two youngestbrothers, both gray-faced and silentagainst the light rain, their earsplugged with cotton balls to dull theimpending roar of the coffin’s engines.Her eyes were watery as she staredthrough the prelaunch smoke obscur-ing the body-length Plexiglas window,knowing these would be the lastmoments she would ever spend in thepresence of her father’s body. Thoughhis skin was gray and freckled withbullet holes, Patti had to admit theundertaker did a pretty good job, andher father would at least be comfort-able inside his Rocketcoffin9000.

Inside, Jimbo was clad in hisfavorite silk Hawaiian shirt adornedwith a tan, large-breasted womandrinking from conch shells. He worehis favorite knee-length swim trunksand hemp sandals, and Patti paid themortician an additional 30 credits tohang his favorite pair of yellow-rimmed sunglasses from his unbut-toned shirt. For an additional 150credits, the coroner formed Jimbo’scold hand into a shaka sign, andagreed to place it over the deadman’s bullet-filled heart.

“It’s just like the Pharos in theirtombs we read about, remember?” sheyelled to her bothers above the pre-hover boosters, “He’s got everythinghe needs for the trip in there.”

“Won’t he get hungry?” theyoungest of the Reeves twins Reggieyelped. “He has his clothes but whatabout food? Can’t we get him some

fiber pellets from Proto-Burger beforehe goes?”

“No, no don’t worry,” Patti saidsqueezing the boy’s bony palm.“There’s plenty to eat where he’sgoing, and we just wanted to makesure he had his comfy clothes on. He’sgot a long trip ahead of him.”

“I woulda wanted my jammies,”Corey squeaked, unheard by his broth-er and sister.

The wind whipped the mourners’hair into their eyes. Patti had almostforgotten to reveal the inscription tothe mourners. Since the outlaw ofearthly burials, Patti agreed to alsocover the finances for some sort oftombstone to be made. Her motherthought an actual stone to be an over-priced, entirely unnecessary purchase,so they agreed to have an inscriptionwritten directly on the Rocketcoffin. At88 credits per character, they had tokeep it brief. Patti peeled the waxpaper from the glass. Etched acrossthe Plexiglas window, in what Jimbocalled “That Old English, gangster-assfont” were the eternal words heintended to be written on his tomb-stone: Cold Cruisin’.

“Thank you all for coming to theburial, or whatever,” Patti yelled abovethe engines.

“We loved you, Dad, despiteeverything.”

As the primary engines began toglow green on the launch pad, the cir-cle of mourners disbanded then hud-dled in front of the Plexiglas windowdisplaying the dead Jimbo Reeves.Patti’s mother held a batch of inflatedred balloons in her spotted hands,passing out a balloon to each of herchildren as they took their places infront of the window. Their eyes beganto pour as they stared into Jimbo’sgray face obscured by swirls of enginesmoke and shiny Plexiglass, his armscrossed over his chest as if he wereabout to fly down a towering water-slide. Each of Jimbo’s nine children

tied the balloon strings through theirhands, eagerly waited for the launchtechnician to confirm when theirfather’s coffin would hit 30,000 feet.

The Rocketcoffin9000 slowly rosefrom the platform. Corey let his bal-loon go early to cover his wet face,not wanting the see the waxy skin onhis father’s cheeks pulled down by therocket’s force. The balloon exploded ina violent pop as it was sucked into thefiery engines, now humming 50 feetabove the scarved heads and umbrel-las and black clothes.

“The launch will commence withinthe next 15 seconds,” Father O’Malleyscreamed above the Rocketcoffin’sroar. He swallowed an enormousbreath, and began to shout,

“Forasmuch as it hath pleasedAlmighty God of his great mercy totake unto himself the soul of our dearbrother Jimbo, we therefore commithis body to the deepest regions ofspace; earth to earth, ashes to ashes,spacedust to spacedust; in sure andcertain hope of the Resurrection toeternal life, through our Lord, whoshall change our vile body, that it maybe like unto his glorious body.”

After another gulp of air, FatherO’Malley continued. “Now — say itwith me everybody, 10 ... nine ... eight…” the mourners began to chant.“Seven ... six ... five ...”

Patti thought of her father’s handson her shoulders, how he was alwayslate to pick her up from Counter-Strike8.4 practice. “Four ... three ... two ...”

She thought of the phone call thenight of the shooting, “One ... zero …”She thought. “Wooooo!”

Moments later, after the primarylaunch boosters had fired, the ushergave the family a firm thumbs up,confirming Jimbo’s body had beenlaunched to 30,000 feet. Jimbo’s familysent the cluster of red balloons spiral-ing toward him, unaware that as theylet out another ceremonial cheer, hisfingertips and eyeballs had begun tofreeze in the stratosphere.

— Conor Higgins is a creative writinggraduate student.

PLEASE NOTE:The views expressed in the written works of this issue do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Daily Aztec.Letters to the editor can be sent to letters@thedailyaztec.com. Story ideas can be sent to tips@thedailyaztec.com.

C O N TAC T :GENERAL INFORMATION

619.594.4199FOR ALL OTHER CONTACTS, PLEASE VISITthedailyaztec.com

CCoonnoorr HHiiggggiinnsscontributorA

Photo editor Antonio Zaragoza captured this photo of Educational Opportunity Programs Assistant Director

Cynthia Torres celebrating a haunting tradition with understated elegance.

DAY OF THE DEAD

LOOKING THROUGH OUR LENS

Commence cold cruisin’