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Saturday, September 1, 2007

So I was reading through the Perez Hilton blog today and he actually blogged about the "scrumptious"ness of Off the Beat's cover of Sia's Breathe Me (For those of you Six Feet Under fans, this song was the music in the final emotionally powerful 10 minutes of the season finale)


Perez Hilton Player

Click to see more of my Off the Beat related stories

Click here to check out what Off the Beat alum Gabriel Mann (C'95) has been up to.
...And stay tuned because Gabe's new album comes out this week and I'm going to have some exclusive FANTASTIC(!) tunes from the album just for Dueling Tampons readers

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Posted by Matt | 1:08 PM | , , , , , | 0 comments »

"Oh, which part of Long Island are you from?"

These are the types of questions that will be buzzing around campus this week.

So I found this improv-type video online for the freshman's "NSO" (New Student Orientation)...which led me to think back to my own experiences as a freshman and two tips (for better or worse) which I may be able to impart to the class of 2011 for this week of "integration".

REMEMBERING NAMES

>When I went to school in the mid 90's, apparently I was one of a few who had a hologram of a "P" on my Penn card. I asked others whose name I had forgotten if I could see their Penn card to see if they too had that crazy P hologram on their card. Soon enough I remembered "Stacy''s name.

>When I rushed, I brought my friend Lauren to some of the earlier events and had her introduce herself first to the brothers. Once the brothers then mentioned their name to her, I suddenly remembered "Jon" and "Jason's" names.

Again, these are for better or worse.

Okay, worse.

What were some of your stories for getting to know people during that first freshman week? Click to comment below!

Click here to watch this C'11 video

Click to see more of my posts about the Class of 2011

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Posted by Matt | 8:59 AM | , , , , , , | 1 comments »

Friday, August 31, 2007

More and more photos of C'11 freshman on campus appear on facebook. This of Jessie Spellman (C'11) (she's the one on the left in the blue shirt).

Is it me or is that Penn Quaker costume a bit creepy looking?

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Posted by Matt | 1:20 PM | , , , , , , | 2 comments »

Thursday, August 30, 2007

Ikea can go a long way and according to Facebook, Jason Bernstein (C'11) (above in photo) is among many freshmen who apparently took that trip to the local Ikea center.

Click here to take a look at Jason's dramatic before and after photos of his dorm room

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Before

After






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Posted by Matt | 11:13 PM | , , , , , | 0 comments »

Producer Mike Karz (C89, W'89) seems to be doing lots of films these days in his new Karz Entertainment shingle.

The latest, reported today in Variety, is called The Catch, and is based on a true story about a 42-year-old who goes back to school and plays college football.

Per Variety, the story "is based on the life of Marty Reichman, who was on the verge of losing his job and his marriage when he decided to keep a promise to his father and return to college. He finds he's eligible to play ball and makes the team as tight end."

Make sure to check out Mike's next movie Good Luck Chuck starring Dane Cook and Jessica Alba, in theatres September 21.

Click to see my other posts about Mike

Click here to check out some of Mike's and other alumni films

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Posted by Matt | 11:00 PM | , , , , , | 0 comments »

More move-in photos have surfaced on facebook. ...This set from Sydney Fenkell (C'11).

Looking at her photos and other undergrad photos, I realized decorating your first dorm room is like decorating your facebook/myspace/friendster profile pages.

It's all about you.

Like your profile pages, your dorm room should display your friends, showcase lots of colors and (hopefully) contain a few "hugs" and "pokes" here and there.

Come on you creative quakers out there, how else are dorm rooms like social networking profile pages? Comment below!

Click here to see some more shots of Sydney's move-in.

Hey C'11ers, click here to upload your dorm photos to our "Dorm Room" gallery.

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What's been happening on campus? Click here to find out.

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Posted by Matt | 11:20 AM | , , , , , | 0 comments »

"Hip-hop ballet" sounds cool, doesn't it?

And it is ...thanks to Jennifer Weber (C'00, Strictly Funk Dance) who this weekend performs in Seattle's Bumbershoot (music and arts) festival.

Founded in 2000, Jennifer's all-female performance group called Decadance recruits women from the United States and Japan to perform hip-hop ballets that transcend the world of dance. Inspired by the urban folk culture found in clubs and on the streets of contemporary cities, the group tells stories through dance of the evolving hip-hop generation.

Jennifer is not the only Penn talent that will take the stage this weeknd. Also performing is singer-songwriter and Penn alum, John Legend (C'99)

Click to see hip-hop ballet in action!

Click to check out Jennifer's Decadance Theatre

Click here to see how Jennifer's "beginnings" and how she got her start

Click to see what other 2000 Penn grads are up to

Check out my posts about John Legend (C'99)

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Posted by Matt | 7:00 AM | , , , , , , , , | 0 comments »

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

I just got an update from beatboxer Adam Matta (C'96, Mask and Wig) and according to his website he will be "the new artist in residence at Cornell University's Risley Hall and will be providing programming for the students who live there based around music, performance and visual art." ...Maybe Penn will bring Adam back onto campus to teach some classes as well? : )

Adam also posted a great video of him doing his beatboxing thang with bass superstar Tim Lefebvre (Tim plays with the Saturday Night Live Band).

Check out what Adam does with a Bike wheel and a walkman! Even back in my undergrad days in Mask and Wig, Adam has always super creative...

Click here to watch his performance

Click to check out my other posts about Adam!

Click to see what other 1996 Penn grads are up to

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Posted by Matt | 8:44 PM | , , , , , | 0 comments »


Upenn
Originally uploaded by KarenaBaby.

So I see that user "KarenaBaby" posted the following photo today on Flickr of the Penn campus.

Does anyone know exactly where this is on campus? Somewhere on Walnut? Is this the block where the Inn at Penn is located?

Please comment below!

The campus is always changing.. which I guess is a good thing!

Click here to check out some photos of the campus "under construction" from years ago.
Can you tell what new buildings are there now?

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Posted by Matt | 12:09 PM | , | 1 comments »

What do America 's wives, wives-to-be, and ex-wives want?

National Magazine Award winning journalist and Penn alum Stephen Fried (C'79, 34th Street) thinks he knows and he's telling all in his new book, Husbandry:Sex, Love, & Dirty Laundry-Inside the Minds of Married Men, a collection of some 30 essays chosen from Stephen Fried's wildly popular column in Ladies' Home Journal.

From his website, "His smart, funny, touching pieces have America's wives talking to each other in a new way -- and talking, in many cases for the first time, to their husbands. Fried's Husbandry essays illuminate the mysterious and often maddening ways of married men, whether in love, in friendship, in the kitchen, the locker room, or the bedroom. Ranging from the sublime to the absolutely ridiculous, these pieces are wise, tender, and often laugh-out-loud funny."

Click here to read Stephen's first chapter

Click here to see Stephen's interview about the book!

Get the book here!

Click here to check out Stephen's other books

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Click here to check out Stephen's website

-------------------------
Husbandry
Chapter 1
-------------------------

EVERY JOURNEY BEGINS WITH A PAIR OF SOCKS

Let’s start with my socks. Not the ones I'm wearing, but the ones I wore yesterday. The ones I took off last night and plopped on the floor in the general vicinity of the laundry basket. Yes, those socks. Those size-thirteen socks that are the biggest source of discord in my twenty-year marriage.

When my wife, Diane, comes across my socks -- so close to the basket, yet so far from actually being in it -- the incredulity begins to bubble up inside her. And then we have "the discussion," which starts out about socks and ends up being about the evolution of the species. It's the same place the discussion about the dirty dishes in the sink ends up.

Now, this discussion about the evolution of the species is actually quite fascinating -- as long as you're not in the middle of it. As it begins, Diane, who has a high-school trophy on her shelf for "Best Negative Debater," poses this query: Are these socks (or dishes) left where they are because I don't remember she's asked me a million times not to leave them there, or because I remember being asked, but I just don't care that it matters to her?

While I'm trying to figure out which response would be better for the future of my marriage (or, as the guys in my regular half-court basketball game put it, "which answer gets me laid?"), my wife, a novelist who also reads a lot of science books for fun, asks a second question. If I don't remember (which is sounding more and more like the right answer here), is it because I wasn't listening to her all the times she asked, or is there something wrong with me physiologically -- an actual problem with the workings of my brain, some bad sectors on my mental hard drive? Then she notes that studies have shown that men's brains deteriorate faster than women's, and at forty-nine, my robust lobes have probably started shrinking to the size of raisins.

By this point in the increasingly one-sided discussion, the correct response is clear.

Okay, put me down for the brain damage.

If only it were that easy to escape the discussion. Usually, I am able to wriggle out of this inquisition because my wife knows that I wouldn't purposely do anything to make her upset. But I suspect she also privately takes comfort in the smaller brain theory, which is another example of the big lies women tell men about size not mattering.

What I would never tell her, of course, is that while I really don't remember that I shouldn't let my socks decorate the floor, I also don't really care. Sure, I care that it matters to her. But to be perfectly frank, I doubt I'm ever going to really care myself or even understand why it matters to her.

I know there are some men who undoubtedly remember to put their socks in the laundry and believe in that same-day dish-doing thing. One of my two brothers is actually quite neat (we refer to him as "the mailman's child"), so it is possible for a man to actually care about such things. But most men I know don't. And won't.

When it comes to socks or dishes, Diane knows I prefer a good, messy pileup and, after a week (or a month) or so, a really good cleaning. For situations where bacteria and decay aren't involved, well, what's wrong with tidying up once a year?

After all, isn't that where the term "spring cleaning" came from?

I know there are some men who undoubtedly remember to put their socks in the laundry and believe in that same-day dish-doing thing. One of my two brothers is actually quite neat (we refer to him as "the mailman's child"), so it is possible for a man to actually care about such things. But most men I know don't. And won't.

One friend of mine believes that the real issue isn't remembering or caring, but rather the sheer volume of wifely requests. "Well, they go on and on about so many things -- I mean, how can you tell which ones really matter, anyway?" he asks, exasperated. "I think women need to stop every now and again and say, 'This bit is really important, so you can forget the last four hours of stuff I've been going on about.'"

While I have some experience with what he’s describing, I still think the reason I can't just throw away a cereal box with five Cheerios left in it lies in the fuzzy area between remembering and caring. So I decided to dig up some of those studies Diane always throws in my face about men's and women's memories and brains. It turns out that the most current work focuses less on brain capacity and more on the gender differences in wiring, especially for cognition and memory. The research shows that women have better "emotional memories" and better "autobiographical memories" than men.

This would support a theory I like: Men are physiologically programmed not to remember that they are supposed to care about stuff like the final resting place of their socks. (On a more serious note, the researchers speculate that having a better emotional memory is one reason women suffer from depression more than men.)

I found another aspect of this study especially revealing. This particular research was done by showing groups of men and women the same series of images and then asking three weeks later what they remembered about them. Apparently, the women found four specific pictures the most emotionally intense. Dead bodies. Gravestones. Crying people. And a dirty toilet.

The women found a dirty toilet as emotionally intense as a dead body.

So, here's my query to Diane: It's bad enough that you're burdened with this horrific association; is it something you really wish on me?

Her answer, of course, is yes.

All Rights Reserved.
Copyright © 2007 by Stephen Fried


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Posted by Matt | 11:30 AM | , , , , , , | 0 comments »

Who Knew? ...that Penn had a Ryukyu Kempo Club?

What is a Ryukyu Kempo Club?

Click here to find out
(click on the image on the next page to get to the youtube page)

Check out my other "Who Knew?" posts



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Posted by Matt | 7:49 AM | , , , | 0 comments »

Another bunch of move-in photos finds its way onto facebook. This round from Michael Tomback (C'11), new resident of Hill House.

It's interesting to note how the class of 2011 is already so well connected. Over the summer I've noticed that these now freshman had already made facebook friends (in the hundreds!) with their new Penn classmates without even meeting them. In this evolving technology age, over this past week, it very reminiscent to see most of this class' facebook "status" messages echoing sentiments of sadness and anticipation for their new lives awaiting them in Philadelphia.

Hey C'11ers, click here to upload your dorm photos to our "Dorm Room" gallery.

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Click the "Read More" link below to see another shot of Michael's move-in.







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Posted by Matt | 7:05 AM | , , , , , | 0 comments »

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

"Why are you on a reality show if you're worried about your kids back home?' We're not afraid to hit that kind of stuff head on."

Click here to find out who said this!

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Posted by Matt | 8:09 AM | , , , | 0 comments »

In honor of the incoming C'11 freshmen moving onto campus this week, I decided to do some stories this week featuring some notable undergrads...

First up... At the age of 18, Drew Coblitz (C'11), the racecar driver of a 2001 Porsche 996TT w/465 hp, is one of the youngest in the Porsche Club of America (PCA). His first clubrace for the PCA is in October at Summit Point, West Virginia. Per Drew it will be "both an enduro (1.5 hr race where pacing is the key) and a sprint race (30 minutes where its balls to the wall for the whole time)."

Drew may be the youngest in the clubrace program (not verified...but he thinks the youngest after him is around 20). While he's sponsored by various vendors, he's currently working on a big sponsorship in which he will be given a car to drive from the sponsor.

Although he's a freshman, from the looks of his schedule, with an occasional "skipped" class now and then, he plans on continuing to race.

Click to find out how Drew got his start in the world of racing

Click to see some other Class of 2011 news I've posted

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Stay tuned this week for some upcoming stories relating to some noteworthy undergrads...

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Posted by Matt | 7:30 AM | , , , | 0 comments »

Mike Karz (C'89, W'89) has set up a new film with Intrepid Pictures called The Fourth Horseman.

Per The Hollywood Reporter, "The film centers on a young priest sent by his church's secret order to kill a teenage girl. She is believed to be the future mother of the Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse, destined to join siblings War, Pestilence and Famine in destroying the world. But when the priest becomes romantically involved with his target and she becomes pregnant, he's forced to face the possibility that he may have spawned the child from hell."

Make sure to check out Mike's next movie Good Luck Chuck starring Dane Cook and Jessica Alba, in theatres September 21.

Click to see my other posts about Mike

Click here to check out some of Mike's and other alumni films

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Posted by Matt | 12:56 AM | , , , , | 0 comments »

Monday, August 27, 2007

Image from Greenstreet Productions website


A slashfilm.com email I just received mentioned that one of the 65 "must-see" movies at the 2007 Toronto Film festival (September 6-15) is Bill, starring Penn alum Elizabeth Banks (C'96).

Here's the plot: "A guy fed up with his job and married to a cheating wife reluctantly mentors a rebellious teen."

From the images you see above, it looks like Liz may be playing the role of the cheating wife.

Click here to check out my past posts about Liz

Click here to check out Liz's (and other alumni) movies, books and music

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Posted by Matt | 11:44 AM | , , , | 1 comments »

As a result of the June Licensing International tradeshow in which Brian Yanish (C'95, Mask and Wig) participated (check out our posts here), Brian emailed me to let me know that The Scrap Kins have made their first major Licensing Deal!

From Brian, "We just signed a contract with Mighty Fine, an excellent Los Angeles based apparel company to produce T-shirts, sweatshirts and tops using The Scrap Kins artwork and characters. ...I'll keep you posted on details where and when product will hit stores. (Should be in a few months.)This is the first flag on the map for The Scrap Kins and we've got exciting things in the works."

Stay tuned for the launch of his 2nd animated short online this fall.

Click here to see his first short.

For more info about Brian, click here to check out his site!

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Posted by Matt | 10:45 AM | , , , , , , , , | 0 comments »

This weekend the class of 2011 moved in!

Sam Oldak, one class of 2011-er uploaded a picture of his Hill House dormroom (above) on facebook. ...A little smaller than my 5th floor-without-an-elevator lower Quad (Rodney 535)room, but same idea.

What was/is your dorm room like? Comment below.

Got a photo of your dorm room? Click here to upload it!

Click to see some related class of 2011 news I posted earlier this summer

Click to see other posts about what's has been happening on campus

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Stay tuned this week for some upcoming stories relating to some noteworthy undergrads...

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Posted by Matt | 7:00 AM | , , , , | 0 comments »

Sunday, August 26, 2007

I just found this video on youtube which was filmed with a camera phone during the course of a guy's day at work at Penn. Check out shots on campus and around Philadelphia.

Click here to check out this very artistic video

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Posted by Matt | 10:16 PM | , , | 0 comments »
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