Art with a cause

Posted on November 22, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

City College artist Tim Tiff brings home top prize

Originally published in the Nov. 22, 2011 print edition of the Sac City Express

A selection of Tim Tiff’s work won the Best of Show award at Folsom Lake College’s Students with Disabilities Art Show. Photo by Evan Duran.

A City College student’s art took best of show at the Students with Disabilities Art Show held at Folsom Lake College Oct. 27 and presented by Disabled Students Programs and Services.

Tim Tiff, 51, is an art student at City College who entered the art show for the first time this year. Tiff’s best of show award was based on all six of his submitted pieces of artwork, for which he received a $300 scholarship.

“I’m thrilled,” Tiff said. “I’m actually surprised, really. It’s kind of like if you have a wife that gave birth. I mean, what do you say? I’m kind of like speechless right now, which is unusual for me. I’m very thrilled. I think my instructors will be very happy for me, too.”

Tiff said he was going to enter last year’s show, but something came up and he didn’t end up entering. He gave it a shot this year after being encouraged by his art professor, Anne Gregory.

“I think he’s smart and talented and that it was terrific that he won,” Gregory said. “I’m very happy that he won. He deserves it.”

DSPS coordinator for Folsom Lake Tim McHargue said that this year’s show was a huge success with over 160 pieces of art submitted.

“I don’t have exact numbers, but more people attended than I’ve ever seen,” McHargue said. “We were thrilled to showcase student art and to celebrate their accomplishments, and we look forward to next year’s event.”

McHargue said he was very happy with the overall outcome of the show and proud of the students who entered. He also said it was great to see so many people come to the show.

“It was the biggest and best show so far,” McHargue said. “It was a wonderful evening.”

Gregory said she encouraged Tiff to enter the art show after she saw him downtown one day and approached him.

“For a lot of younger students, their work is more shallow, but his work is very deep,” Gregory said. “Not only that, he worked hard to make the medium work for him, so he could say what he wanted to say with his work. I thought his work turned out to be beautiful, so I wanted to encourage him [to enter].”

Nocturnal Dance by Tim Tiff. Photo courtesy Folsom Lake College DSPS.

Nocturnal Dance by Tim Tiff. Photo courtesy Folsom Lake College DSPS.

Tiff said he got into doing art as a way to express himself after he was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder from his time in the military. In addition, Tiff became an amputee after he collided with a hit-and-run driver while riding his bike in Oak Park.

“I tried to save the leg for three years and nearly died on the operating table,” Tiff said. “After all the surgeries, when they told me they would have to take the leg off, I decided I would rethink my life and make some changes and not let this hold me back. So I thought I’d get more into artwork, which has been very helpful to me emotionally.”

Tiff said that artwork is an outlet for him to get rid of the anger and frustration that is caused by the depression he deals with due to his PTSD.

Tiff said right now he’s just a beginner, but he puts a high level of effort into his art. The City College campus is full of great students, teachers and opportunities to express himself, he said, which makes him feel like a kid again.

Though Tiff is undecided about his major, he said he one day wants to do something with his art. He’d also like to become an English literature teacher, he said, and is interested in political science. He feels that art is a good analogy to the current Occupy movement of which he’s a big supporter.

“If [young people] don’t [make changes now], then you’re going to miss out on a lot of things. And that’s how I see art, too,” Tiff said. “It’s a tool to make changes.”

Tiff said he wants to encourage students to keep working toward their dreams and pushing to do the best they can at what they are passionate about. “Get into life and get into art because they all combine into one,” Tiff said, “whatever the art may be for you.”

Gregory said Tiff is a great artist and that he can do anything he wants in the world of art.

“I’m very impressed by his courage, ability and depth of spirit which he expresses in his artwork,” Gregory said. “Tim doesn’t have to exhibit only in disability shows. He belongs to the wide world of artists in history and today.”

This article appeared on the cover of the Nov. 22, 2011 print issue of the Sac City Express. It was the first cover story I had published in the Express. 

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Super Mario 3D Land review

Posted on November 18, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

Mario is back, not better than ever

Originally published Nov. 18, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Super Mario 3D Land

“Super Mario 3D Land” is the newest addition to the most famous video game series of all time.

Since his original appearance on Nintendo’s first home console, Mario has done it all. He’s competed in the Olympics, dodged barrels from a gorilla named Donkey, had his own Saturday morning cartoon, collected a ton of those elusive gold coins and, of course, saved Princess Peach more times than there are days in the year.

“3D Land” released on Nov. 13 exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS. The game starts off like every other Mario game with Princess Peach captured by Mario’s seemingly invincible nemesis Bowser.

Adventure ensues as Mario tries to save his kidnap-prone girlfriend. While Mario navigates through obstacle after obstacle and enemy after enemy, he probably thinks to himself, “Mamma Mia! Why do I even bother? She’s just going to get captured again when my next game comes out.”

Like all Mario games of the past this one starts out fairly tame and easy and works its way to the harder levels. There are eight worlds in “3D Land” each with anywhere from five to eight levels, including the ever popular boss battles.

A throwback to “Super Mario Bros. 3,” the non-Bowser boss fights—which occur in the last level on all the worlds except for worlds one, six, and eight where you’ll face Bowser—take place after the player works his or her way through a flying pirate ship.

Three stomps on the head of the boss and it’s on to the next world. Along the way players will need to collect three-star medals per level which are the giant coins that debuted in “Super Mario Galaxy 2” for the Wii. Similar to “Galaxy 2,” these star medals are needed to move on to certain levels.

All of the gameplay and lovable enemies and obstacles are back in “3D Land” including the return of another fan-favorite from “Mario 3,” the Tanooki Suit which works very well and is a ton of fun to use.

Making its debut is a new suit that allows Mario to throw boomerangs. This is a great addition to the series as it also allows the player to grab hard-to-reach objects like the star medals and coins.

There is also another power up that turns Mario into a box with a propeller on top, which allows the player to jump higher and to glide from platform to platform. The best part about this new power up is that players can still use the Tanooki tail while using the propeller box.

Unfortunately, all of the flaws of the Mario games are present in this title. The “A” button sometimes seems unresponsive as a jump attempt can lead to walking to certain death off the side of a cliff. The 3DS’s directional nub can be a bit loose at times, sending Mario in an undesired direction. It would have been nice to have the option to simply use the directional pad.

There is also the classic Mario issue of camera angle awkwardness and because Nintendo aimed for the 3-D effect in the levels, the perspective is difficult to handle at times.

The biggest issue with the game is one that has plagued many of the Mario titles, which is that the difficulty ramps up far too quickly at a certain point in the game. The Bowser battles and all of the levels in the second half of “3D Land” are some of the hardest yet and can be very frustrating.

Nintendo did include a couple of special power-ups to help players through the harder parts of the game. There is a special Tanooki suit which renders players invincible and if that doesn’t work, there is a warp power up which sends players right to the end of the level. These become available after a certain number of deaths on the same level and are definitely a welcomed addition. However, it would be better if they just balanced the difficulty so it didn’t feel like players have to cheat to win.

Nintendo has a rich history of using its systems to the fullest and “3D Land” is no exception. The 3-D effect works very well in this title. There are secret rooms accessed by the legendary green pipes that are perspective-based puzzles and require the 3-D effect to be able to figure out what boxes to jump on to get the star medal. There are also a few levels that the 3-D effect definitely helps on but for the most part the 3-D just feels like a gimmick and doesn’t add much to the gameplay.

Overall, “3D Land” is a ton of fun and it’s definitely a great game full of familiar faces, objects and obstacles, along with a lot of new, innovative gameplay. Whether it’s good enough to warrant the purchase of a copy of the game along with a 3DS is undoubtedly a question of how big a Mario fan players consider themselves. Unlike must-play titles like “New Super Mario Bros. Wii” and “Super Mario Galaxy 2,” “Super Mario 3D Land” is a bittersweet experience that honestly should be passed up by the average gamer.

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SCC student takes gold at Disabilities Art Show

Posted on November 13, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

Originally published Nov. 13, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Beast in the Mirror by Tim Tiff.
Photo courtesy Tim McHargue of the Folsom Lake DSPS office.

A City College student won first place at the Oct. 27 Students with Disabilities Art Show at Folsom Lake College.

Tim Tiff, 51, entered the art show for the first time this year. He took home the top prize for “best of show” based on six of his submitted pieces of artwork. Tiff received a $300 scholarship.

“I’m thrilled, I’m actually surprised, really,” said Tiff, major unknown. “It’s kind of like if you have a wife that gave birth, I mean, what do you say? I’m kind of speechless right now, which is unusual for me. I’m very thrilled I think my instructors will be very happy for me too.”

Tiff said he was going to enter last year’s show, but something came up and he didn’t end up entering. He gave it a shot this year after being encouraged by his City College art professor Anne Gregory.

“I think he’s smart and talented,” Gregory said. “I’m very happy that he won. He deserves it.”

Disabled Students Programs & Services coordinator for Folsom Lake Tim McHargue said that this year’s show was a huge success with over 160 pieces of art submitted.

“I don’t have exact numbers, but more people attended than I’ve ever seen,” McHargue said. “We were thrilled to showcase student art and to celebrate their accomplishments. We look forward to next year’s event.”

Gregory said she encouraged Tiff to enter the art show after she saw him downtown one day and approached him.

“For a lot of younger students, their work is more shallow, but his work is very deep,” Gregory said. “Not only that, he worked hard to make the medium work for him so he could say what he wanted to say with his work. I thought his work turned out to be beautiful, so I wanted to encourage him [to enter].”

Tiff said he got into art as a way to express himself after he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder from his time in the military. In addition, Tiff became an amputee after he collided with a hit-and-run driver while riding his bike in Oak Park.

“After all the surgeries, when they told me they would have to take the leg off I decided I would rethink my life and make some changes and not let this hold me back,” Tiff said. “So I thought I’d get more into artwork which has been very helpful to me, emotionally.”

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Uncharted 3 wows players

Posted on November 9, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

Originally published Nov. 9, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception

“Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception” released on Nov. 1 and is the third installment in the “Uncharted” series developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony, exclusively for the PlayStation 3 and this entry proves that the series is still going strong. This trilogy is very impressive.

“Drake’s Deception” is the follow up to the hugely successful “Uncharted 2: Among Thieves” which won over one hundred “game of the year” awards along with many other awards and the critically acclaimed, “Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune.”

“Drake’s Deception” takes place approximately four years after the events of the first game. Nathan Drake and his friend Victor Sullivan, or “Sully” for short, once again set out on an adventure to find the riches left behind by ancient explorers. Their journey is fueled by the fire that burns inside of Drake to find the true path of Sir Francis Drake’s quest for a lost city known as the Pillars of Iram.

“Drake’s Deception” explores the origins and importance of the ring that Drake has worn on a necklace since the first game and its connection to the lost city of Iram. Along the way, some old friends join the quest, and portions of Drake’s past are revealed as the history behind Drake and Sully’s friendship becomes more apparent.

With their sights fully set on an unbelievable fortune, Drake and his friends head to the Rub’ Al Khali desert to find the treasures that Sir Francis Drake seemingly failed to find. That is, if they can make it to the lost city before a foe from the past, Katherine Marlowe and her right hand man, Talbot stop them from attaining their goal.

The gun play in “Drake’s Deception” is for the most part, the same as in previous games with a few minor tweaks to the aiming. The hand-to-hand combat has been fleshed out with many new moves and enemy take-downs, as well as some new one-hit kills. The game focuses on hand-to-hand combat and the use of stealth a lot more than the previous games, which is a nice addition to the exploration, puzzles and gun play.

“Uncharted 3” is a far more diverse game play experience that the first two games in the series. The interactive movie feel is back and better than ever. Naughty Dog truly stepped up their game in this respect. The graphics take the stunning beauty of “Uncharted 2” quite a few notches higher and there will once again be times you’ll want to just stop and admire the settings that surround the characters.

Drake’s half-tuck is in full force and everything from the lighting to the color scheme to the background textures, the breathtaking music and sound effects fully immerse the player in the beautiful world of “Uncharted.”

“Drake’s Deception” does still feature a lot of the game-play hiccups that made that immersion lose some of its effect in the previous games. Issues like stumbling over and bumping into the environment, randomly jumping to your doom, and poor balance of the artificial intelligence still make the experience frustrating at times.

“Uncharted 3” also feels much less polished than its predecessors as graphical stutters and bugs are a bit more noticeable. There are even times when an AI character will just randomly run around until you blast him in the head and end his misery.

But despite its minor technical issues, “Drake’s Deception” is ripe with amazing sequences and super fun game play. While it starts out slow, the story and game play have moments that really draw players right back into the action. Similar to the train ride scene in “Uncharted 2” which was a fan-favorite.

There are some great moments in “Drake’s Deception” that have the player jumping from moving object to moving object while fending off enemies and trying not to go tumbling toward a quick death. The pirate ships, the horseback ride and the rooftop chase scenes are some of the most awesome moments in the entire series.

“Uncharted 3’s” online component is very similar to “Uncharted 2” but disappointingly, the rewards menu, which featured skins and unlockable cheats in the previous games, is gone from the single player and is now a part of the online experience. Players earn money for killing enemies and completing multiplayer objectives to buy new skins, weapons and unlockables for the online modes in the game. A split-screen co-op feature as well as many new maps and modes bring the online playability full circle.

Overall, the eight-to-nine hour single player adventure in “Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception” is what makes this title a must-have and a definite game of the year candidate. The third installment in the “Uncharted” series brings the trilogy to an epic end, but also leaves it wide open for future incarnations.

Naughty Dog has outdone itself for the second time with this series and delivered an experience that goes above and beyond its previous title. “Uncharted 3’s” simply amazing gameplay and story make its missteps forgivable. The “Uncharted” series is definitely a trilogy that should be experienced by everyone.

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Student government branches out

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

New Student Associated Council reforms into three committees

Originally published in the Nov. 6, 2011 print edition of the Sac City Express

The constitution, structure and name change to the former Associated Student Government were decided after changes to the requirements of student governments were made by the Los Rios Community College District for all the schools in the district, according to faculty coordinator Kimberlee Beyrer. Photo By Evan E. Duran.

The constitution, structure and name change to the former Associated Student Government were decided after changes to the requirements of student governments were made by the Los Rios Community College District for all the schools in the district, according to faculty coordinator Kimberlee Beyrer.

City College bid farewell to the Associated Student Government Nov. 1 and welcomed the new Student Associated Council after the student government decided to change its name along with structural changes and the election of new board members.

According to Kimberlee Beyrer, faculty coordinator for student leadership and development at City College, the constitution, structure and name change were decided on after changes to the requirements of student government were made by the Los Rios Community College District for all schools in the district.

“The constitution was rewritten because the student association needed to comply with the new policies of the district,” Beyrer said. “The student government liked that Student Associated Council as an acronym is SAC.”

Debby Dixon, former ASG secretary and current region two chairperson, said that the first meeting under the new structure was held Nov. 2 and that the council discussed the goals of the semester and the year to come.

“We’re excited about the transition,” Dixon said. “It will allow the senate to focus more on advocating for things like lower tuition for students.”

According to Chris Torres, student affairs specialist for student leadership and development at City College, under the new SAC structure, student government will break into three separate committees each with its own president, vice president and other positions of leadership.

The Student Senate is similar to the former ASG committee in that it deals with advocating and resolution writing for district, state and federal levels, Torres said.

The second group is the Committee for Activities and Events Board, which is in charge of student life and deals with aspects like clubs, events, homecoming and other such activities. CAEB also works directly with clubs to help raise money, getting clubs to collaborate with one another on events that pertain to more than one club, and in some cases with the approval process for certain speakers or events, Torres said.

The final group, the Joint Budget Committee, handles all of the budget issues and concerns for the Student Senate and CAEB, Torres said.

According to Torres the best thing about the change is that it will make it easier for students and clubs to get their ideas and needs addressed by student government.

“Overall, the change is good,” Torres said. “It’ll give students a bigger voice and more opportunities for students to get involved in the legislative affairs on campus.”

According to Dixon, student involvement will be increased not only because the number of senator seats is increasing from 15 senators to 20 but also because the separate councils can focus more on their own goals.

Husham Haroun, secretary of technology for SAC, said that the constitution has been in the works for a year and that City College was the first in the district to get a new constitution completed but that it isn’t without its flaws.

According to Haroun, the constitution for SAC was voted on by students and then ratified and approved last spring, but it will need to be voted on again after edits are made to the many contradictions that were found in the new constitution.

Shinesh Prasad, former inter-club president for ASG, said he would not be involved with the new structure but that he thinks it will make an impact on the student body as a whole.

“I think it will be really good,” Prasad said. “It allows each body [of SAC] to focus on each thing they are working on and for them to separate out their duties.”

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Student Senate president called out for his campaign speech

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

Originally published Nov. 8, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Students campaign for roles in the City College student government, now called the Student Associated Council. Former ASG President Leedell Williams is running for president of SAC. Photo by Evan E. Duran.

Newly elected Student Senate President Kevin Kayhanian found himself in the hot seat over comments he made in his speech during the student government forums last month in the Quad.

On Oct. 14 Kayhanian introduced his C.L.A.S.S. initiative — Care, Leisure, Athleticism and Social Synchronization — at the forums. Some students said they had issues with portions of his speech.

“Not everything can get worse, but everything can get better,” said Kayhanian during the ‘C’ part of his candidacy speech. “’C’ is care for students, and the majority of people just come here, manipulate others, manipulate teachers, cheat and go on. That cheats yourself, cheats everybody else. We can easily get along with one another and easily learn.”

Nursing major Savannah Perman was one of the students who disliked the way Kayhanian portrayed City College students. She said she doesn’t think Kayhanian’s comments were appropriate and his arguments were invalid.

“We come here to further our education, not to manipulate people and cheat,” Perman said.

Kayhanian explained the meaning behind his speech at an Oct. 28 ASG meeting, where a few members of the board raised concern over the comments.

“There are classes I have attended where I have seen individuals blatantly cheat,” Kayhanian said. “There are times when teachers turn a blind eye and there are times when students turn a blind eye. I’m not saying this happens on a regular basis, but it happens in general and it needs to be addressed.”

Kayhanian said that he meant well with the comments and were intended as generalizations than they may have come across.

“When I said these comments, I didn’t mean any one student nor did I mean all students,” he said. “There shouldn’t be cheating. If there is no cheating, there will not be problems. If there is cheating, I will address it. I believe that this case may have been taken out of context far more than necessary.”

Concerns by members of SAC were also raised over Kayhanian’s comments in his speech on the explanation of the ‘A’ in C.L.A.S.S, in which he talked about City College students not getting enough exercise.

“’A’ stands for athleticism. Not enough people are moving around like these great cheerleaders over here and everyone else who works out,” Kayhanian said. “It’s very important to get some sun and move around. It makes you healthy.”

Kayhanian said he was merely felt more students should partake in daily cardiovascular exercise and it’s important to be healthy.

City College student Manuel Alvizar, major undecided, said he felt that maybe people were upset with Kayhanian’s comments because they hit too close to home for some students.

“If the shoe fits, wear it,” Alvizar said. “If you’re offended, maybe there’s a reason. If you’re working hard even if you’re getting C’s, it shouldn’t offend you.”

Despite Kayhanian’s comments he was still elected into office during the Oct. 18-19 elections. He said when it comes to student approval of his comments; he would just let the numbers speak for themselves.

“I addressed the members [of the ASG] who felt that my thoughts were incomplete and needed to be clarified. I’m thoroughly under the impression that the issue has been absolved and moved on from.”

Kayhanian said he wants anyone who has concerns over this matter or any issue on campus to feel free to raise those concerns to him directly.

“I am available for students that want to come speak to me personally and raise any concerns they may have,” said Kayhanian. “I encourage that.”

View Kayhanian’s speech here.

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‘Batman Arkham City’ game review

Posted on October 27, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

 Justice will be served

Originally published Oct. 27, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Batman: Arkham City

When “Batman: Arkham Asylum” debuted in 2009 most gamers expected another mediocre experience like most Batman games. But “Arkham Asylum” swooped in like a Batarang and captured the hearts of gamers everywhere.

The announcement of a sequel, “Batman: Arkham City,” put high hopes in Rocksteady Studios and Warner Bros. to deliver on the promise of another blockbuster title. “Arkham City” launched on Oct. 18 for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 with a PC release slated for November 18.

The game starts out about a year after the first game and “Arkham Asylum” is gone. A portion of the city has been quarantined and has become a prison dubbed “Arkham City.” The opening shows Bruce Wayne holding a press conference to express his concerns with the new prison and that he plans to shut it down. However, the villains of Gotham City, led by Hugo Strange, foil his plans and he finds himself a prisoner.

After a brawl or two, Wayne’s faithful butler, Alfred, sends him the famous bat suit. The Dark Knight takes to the streets on a mission to stop Strange from revealing the Bat’s true identity and to stop the mysterious “Protocol 10.” Two-Face, The Joker, Penguin and Mr. Freeze also play major roles in the game, as well as quite a few surprise characters.

With a little help from the unlikely partner of Catwoman, who is usually a foe of the Bat in black armor, Batman ensues on an adventure like no other.

For those who have played “Arkham Asylum,” most of the gameplay will be familiar. The combat is largely the same, aside from the addition of some new moves and gadgets. Perhaps the best new gadget comes courtesy of Mr. Freeze. The freeze blast is especially helpful with some of the harder enemies in the game, as it allows players to freeze enemies before taking them down.

To navigate the open-world prison city, Batman uses his famous grappling hook as well as his ability to glide. The Riddler trophies are back this time around, as well, and are more challenging to collect.

All of the World’s Greatest Detective’s investigation tools are back, including detective mode, though Rocksteady has thrown in some new elements to make enemies a little wiser to Batman’s tricks. Rocksteady did a great job of keeping the player immersed in the experience, so much so that sometimes it can be difficult to remember it’s just a video game.

“Batman: Arkham City” has an amazing story full of twists and turns, tons of action and surprise villains and allies, some of which are in the main story and others in the side missions. The ending is a huge shocker as well and definitely shouldn’t be easily predicted. The main game lasts approximately eight to 10 hours with additional content adding at least another six to eight hours to the game.

“Batman: Arkham City” isn’t without its flaws though. The map can be confusing and frustrating at times, as it can be unclear where the player is supposed to go next. The GPS system doesn’t help much either.

The graphics are stunning for the most part, and like the first game, Batman’s suit becomes worn out throughout the game. The reversal button used for combat can be unresponsive at times as it must be pressed at precisely the right time and players can expect to die a lot during combat because of failed response from the game when countering enemy attacks.

Enemy bullets sometimes feel unbalanced as well. The gliding can be clunky to control and the artificial intelligence is sometimes too smart, but at other times no smarter than the average fifth grader.

Despite its flaws, the game’s pros far outweigh the cons. It would have been nice to see the game play a little more polished though.

In addition to the main single player game, there is a “new game plus” mode which is the single player game, but with harder enemies and no combat reversal prompts. There are a ton of unlockables, challenges, and Rocksteady has a plethora of DLC which will be available for download in the coming months.

All of this will keep players coming back to “Arkham City” for a long time.

In the end, when the sun sets on Gotham City and Batman finally gets to take a nap after a long night of villain-beating mayhem, “Batman: Arkham City” is certainly one of the best games ever made.

Warner Bros. and Rocksteady have created a formula for success and hopefully for gamers and Batman fans alike, this is a series that continues to deliver justice for a long time.

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Artists’ minds, creative hands

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

Folsom Lake College students prepare for art show

Originally published Oct. 13, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Art show, Sac City College

Photo provided by Folsom Lake College.

The fourth-annual “Students with Disabilities Art Show” will be held Oct. 24 – Oct. 27 at Folsom Lake College, presented by Disabled Students Programs and Services, a group that provides accommodations to students with disabilities.

According to Christy Pimental DSPS assistant coordinator, the show is open to all Los Rios Community College District students with disabilities including those attending City College. On Oct. 27 a free community reception open to the public will run from 5-7:30 p.m. at the Falcon’s Roost on the Folsom Lake campus.

Pimental said art is submitted and displayed digitally on monitors at Folsom Lake College and that awards presented at the community reception include: a $300 scholarship for the student voted “best of show” and two $100 scholarships for honorable mentions.

“It is to show the achievements and success of students with disabilities,” said Pimental. “It’s going to be a big thing this year, I can feel it now.”

Folsom Lake’s DSPS coordinator Tim McHargue created the show at Folsom Lake College when he saw it done at UC Berkeley and thought it would be a good way to showcase students’ abilities.

“So many times, our students in the school environment are struggling and deal with negative stereotypes and we found that sometimes they have exemplary artistic abilities that don’t often get called into play,” said McHargue.

Pimental said in the first three years DSPS had trouble raising money for the show. She says that isn’t the case this year because DSPS won a $2500 grant from the Los Rios Chancellor’s office.

“That was just amazing,” Pimental said. “This year we were able to focus more on publicity and getting the posters and everything out. It’s a staff of about five of us that run the show so suddenly we don’t have to be struggling for donations now and can focus on how to make the show better.”

Pimental said that Folsom Lake’s DSPS is working to get the art shown at the other Los Rios campuses but currently it is only shown on the Folsom Lake campus. City College students have participated in the show in the past and according to McHargue, have been welcomed to participate this year as well.

“We post the fliers and encourage students to participate,” says City College DSPS coordinator, Gwyneth Tracy.  “I think it encourages students with disabilities to express themselves through art and to be validated in their talents. Certainly we have several students with disabilities at SCC who are talented artists and transfer—sometimes with full scholarships—to the various art schools in California.”

Pimental said that students really enjoy the show because it gives them an outlet to show off their talent.

“It helps take me out of the style I’m doing and see that people with disabilities are capable of creating art work as well as anyone else,” said Richard White, a participant in this year’s show, majoring in art and media at American River College.

According to Pimental, the number of art entries has ranged from approximately 60 – 160 over the last three years and she hopes to see the number of entries surpass 200 this year.

“To give us an opportunity to put [our work] out there is phenomenal,” said White. “It gives people with disabilities a chance to put their work out there. It’s a great thing, and I love being a part of it.”

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Sweet anthropology

Posted on October 8, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

Chocolatier Michael Grofe’s journey to becoming anthropology professor

Originally published Oct. 8, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Photo copyright its respective owner.

The ancient Maya are often credited with predicting 2012 as the end  of the world. Some feel that the end of the world is an outrageous idea  while others are scrambling to experience all that they can before the  end of time.

Michael J. Grofe, 41, a Philadelphia, Penn., native, is a City College  anthropology and archaeology professor who went from chocolate  factory owner to Mayan culture expert.

After starting his undergraduate work in marine biology at the  University of Miami and completing it at the James Cook University in Australia, Grofe says he went on to earn his master’s in anthropology at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco. He decided to get his master’s in anthropology after he became interested in how indigenous cultures perceive nature, says Grofe.

“I had become an apprentice to a chocolatier, my friend’s chocolate company. I actually found myself owning the chocolate business,” Grofe says.

Grofe says he wrote his master’s thesis on the history of chocolate.

“I was very interested in how to make my company successful, but that also led me to the Mayan history because they were very much a part of the domestication of chocolate,” Grofe says.

Grofe’s days as an ultimately unsuccessful chocolate factory owner led him to become further interested in anthropology. After dipping chocolates one day, he realized that they reminded him of Mayan hieroglyphs. He decided to make a box of Mayan-inspired chocolates. His idea developed into incorporating information on each of the hieroglyphs found in one of many Mayan calendars called the Haab calendar, but when he found there wasn’t much known about the hieroglyphs, he gained more interest  in learning about the Maya.

Grofe went on to write a manuscript about the Haab calendar, which he used to apply to the UC Davis doctorate program, where he earned his PhD in Native American studies.

“I’m really interested especially in the ancient Maya and ancient cultures in terms of how they wove together their scientific abilities with their astronomical abilities, religion and their mythologies,” Grofe says. “I feel like I have found exactly what I’m supposed to be doing in this life and that is being an anthropology teacher.”

Students of Grofe say they can definitely see his passion in the way he teaches.

“I think he’s very interesting,” says Omar Gonzalez, a biology major currently enrolled in Grofe’s Anthropology 320 class. “He’s a good professor and he really seems to be into his work.”

In addition to teaching several courses at City College, Grofe works with the Maya Exploration Center, a group that leads trips to ancient and living Maya sites in Central America, as well as to non-Maya sites like Machu Picchu in South America.

“One of my favorite things to do is use my green laser and go out at night and look at the stars as ancient people looked at them,” says Grofe. “We’re starting to understand how building alignments and hieroglyphic texts incorporate all this astronomy.”

Grofe says that the Mayan calendars were set up as time cycles within larger time cycles, similar to our decades, centuries and millennial, and that the 2012 prediction is actually the ending of a cycle.

“I think what they’re saying is that time is infinite,” Grofe says. “I think it’s a way to relate humanity to time and to really allow us to reflect on what this is all about, what it means to live within our short lifetimes that are situated within that infinite amount of time.”

Grofe, who recently published a chapter in a Cambridge University Press book about 2012 and other Maya astronomical calculations into the distant past and future, says that it’s important to take ancient texts as they are and to be careful how we interpret their meanings.

“We often take things very literally in our culture,” Grofe says. “I think it’s really dangerous to think in those literal terms. Instead, if we can think symbolically as kind of a suggestion of how to live in a balanced way, that’s a really powerful way to interpret various religious stories from around the world.

The emphasis is not to be afraid that the world is going to end but to reflect on what these mythological stories mean in order to maintain balance.”

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Until Tuesday

Posted on October 4, 2011 by Daniel Wilson

Veteran’s heartfelt book chronicles how dog saved his life

Originally published Oct. 4, 2011 by SacCityExpress.com

Carlos Luis Montalvan gives his speech with his dog, Tuesday by his side. Photo by Shalisha Jones.

The relationship between a man and his dog is unique, but for a disabled  person with a service dog, that bond can mean a world of difference.

Luis Carlos Montalván, 38, a 17-year Army veteran from Manhattan, has  such a relationship with his dog, Tuesday.

Montalván, who retired from the military after his second tour of Iraq in  2007, brought Tuesday to City College Sept. 28 to talk about his physical  and mental disabilities and their long journey chronicled in his book,  “Until Tuesday.”

The event was presented by the Voices of Hope club, a group dedicated to  empowering students with disabilities to advocate for themselves.

Montalván’s book tells the story of Montalván’s struggle with Post  Traumatic Stress Disorder and how he went through a period of substance  abuse until he was partnered with Tuesday, a 2-year-old Golden Retriever,  in  2008 by a non-profit organization called Educated Canines Assisting with Disabilities.

Montalván says during the time he was away from active military duty, he isolated himself from his family and friends and turned to alcohol to help mask his issues.

“I fought for a while the thought that I was wounded both physically and mentally,” Montalván says. “Over the course of several years, my health deteriorated. I realized it was more symptomatic of PTSD and found that finally I had to get out of the military.”

After leaving the Army in 2007, Montalván says he continued to drink during that dark time.

A little over a year later, Montalván hit his turning point when his father told him that he felt his son had hit rock bottom and that the younger Montalván was in a bad place. Montalvan says he felt he lost the respect of his parents and knew it was time to make a change.

Montalván made that change in 2008 when he was partnered with Tuesday. In addition to helping Montalván with physical issues like back problems and vertigo, Montalván says Tuesday makes him laugh hundreds of times a day.

“Tuesday changed my life in ways I never could have imagined,” Montalván says, who at one point in the speech asked Tuesday to sit and then thanked him and told him he loved him.

“We literally go everywhere together, except for maybe the bathroom. He sleeps with me— every minute of every day, we are together.”

According to Montalván, “Until Tuesday” is slated to be released as a major motion-picture sometime next year.

The main focus of Montalván’s mission is to inform people about the importance of having a strong support system of friends, family and community members and for mentors, teachers, communities and government officials to better recognize those with mental disabilities.

Montalván says that these people often have a harder time in life because so many others don’t seem to understand hidden disabilities.

“I think that there will be a day, maybe within the next 15 years—we’re living longer with advancements in medicine and technology—that there may be more people living with disabilities than not,” Montalván says. “By virtue of that we’ll have a society that’s more compassionate and more understanding of people with our similarities and differences and our strengths and weaknesses.”

Lincoln Scott, vice president of the Voices of Hope club, says the speech really helped get a strong message across.

“I thought it was very insightful and very inspirational,” Scott says. “I could relate to what he was saying because my dad fought in Vietnam.”

According to Montalván, anyone who is called into combat in the military will return home as a changed person.

“Eighteen veterans commit suicide, and another 1,000 attempt it every day,” Montalván says. “It’s sad to say, but there are plenty [of veterans] that will party hard, become alcoholics or substance abusers, and I encourage them to get help.”

Montalván stressed that not only can it be difficult to find help from military, medical and community organizations, it can be even harder for people to admit to themselves that they have a disability.

“A lot of veterans don’t identify with being disabled,” Montalván says. “There is still a machismo with getting help—that only women go to therapists—but 2.2 million men and women served in Iraq. A little less than 1,900 are amputees so the vast majority [of veterans] are dealing with invisible disabilities.”

Janet Lee, faculty adviser for the Voices of Hope club, says she enjoyed seeing Tuesday run around the room to greet everyone after Montalván finished his speech.

“He spoke with passion,” Lee says. “I thought in terms of advocacy of these issues, that his speech really touched home on the disabled community with both hidden and physical disabilities. It exceeded my expectations and to have a writer come and be able to be so poignant was an amazing experience.”

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