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Photo by Nick Roth |
By Ryan Donada, December 2011
Fine Arts Editor
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” — Henry David Thoreau’s “Walden”
Part I: The Separation and Departure
In the coast of Some-where, Oregon, I’m holding a cardboard sign that reads “Portland,” and have my thumb sticking out on the side of the road, bedraggled from sleeping in dirt for the fourth time this week. My friend, Nick Roth, 23, is stealing energy bars at the convenience store across the highway because we have reached destitution, and because our legs and backs are numb and sore from a 15-mile trek with our 25-pound backpacks along the beach against biting gusts of wind.
“You know, after having to steal food in order to move on,” says Roth, “society isn’t the bullshit I thought it was.”
On a road to nowhere lurks a spiritual experience. We left our homes in Arizona looking for adventure, something different. So we grabbed a backpack full of necessities — clean pairs of clothes, a tent, a sleeping bag, water, a first-aid kit and a can of American Spirit tobacco — and immersed ourselves into the life of backpacking.
By Raechel Van Iwaarden, December 2011
Staff Writer
Have you tried to lose weight recently? Did you get the results you wanted? We try diets, gyms, vitamins, and protein shakes, but sometimes they do n’t work. Well, here is something you might not have tried: combining solutions to fit your personal needs with inexpensive professional guidance in a competitive atmosphere.
Once a year, independent personal trainer Javier Hernandez of Tempe holds a Beasty Competition. Following his slogan to “get beasty,” Hernandez offers participants the opportunity to lose weight and gain muscle through the motivation of competition and a cash prize for the winner.
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Stock photo courtesy of AHS |
Arizona Humane Society Hosting "Home for the Holidays"
By Rosalie Capri, December 2011
Contributing Writer
According to the Arizona Humane Society, at the end of the year, they will realize a record high number of animals admitted. During these challenging times, AHS reports that they continue to face the overwhelming problem of pet overpopulation, but still continue to offer leading-edge programs and services to rescue, heal, shelter and advocate for animals.
In hopes that AHS can provide homes for the hundreds of animals at their shelter, AHS is hosting a holiday pet adoption and supply drive.
This holiday season, you can help save the life of a homeless animal by participating in AHS “Home for the Holidays : Give the Gift of Hope Drive.” AHS is hoping you will help them combat this community crisis by supporting its goal of finding a “forever home” for the animals waiting at AHS.
Simple stretches go a long way
Improve flexibility, avoid injury
with quick, easy stretches
By Michelle Milan, December 2011
Staff Writer
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Photo illustrations
by Casey McSpadden |
Do you ever feel like you are 20 going on 80? Your whole body feels tight all the time, you have no energy, you feel weak and constantly tired? The average college student endures many hours of sitting at a desk, hunched over, whether at school, at home doing homework, or at work. Most students lead sedentary lifestyles because they don’t have the time to exercise or even stretch, which can lead to complications in your muscles.
Lack of stretching makes you feel old and stiff and increases the chance of injury. Injuries can be over silly things such as “bending over to pick up a sock,” says David Authement, a Pilates and Gyrotonic instructor at Kinesphere Studio in Phoenix . Healthy, simple stretching doesn’t have to be a complicated, time-consuming activity in your busy, stressful life.
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