Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 20, 1982)
The Emerald fall fashion supplement Page 1B Wednesday, October 20, 1982 Oregon daily _ _ emerald Eugene, Oregon Volume 84, Number 33 LCC students fuming over odor controversy By Debbie Howiett Of th« Enwatd A twist of irony mixed with the frosty air Tuesday morning as Lane Community College students and pre-school aged children picketed the college's health building because of con cern about the children's health The protesters charge that "noxious fumes ’ in the health building are causing “neur ological disorders'" in some people and the building should be closed until proper testing verifies no danger exists The protest, in which the group focused on the problems the "fumes" might cause with children attending a child development" day-care facility located in the health building, was prompted by a student government meeting Monday night ASLCC Pres Paquita Garatea headed a group of student sen ators who organized the pro test The students say they decided to get involved after the LCC Board of Directors refused to close the building last Wed nesday night "The board seems to be more concerned with the cost of moving the children — not safe ty,” Garatea charges "We want them to move the children, im mediately — until all the tests are taken " But board chairer Charlene Curry says the board decided the best move would be to leave the building open “They've got a fair amount of (hard-data) already and it in dicates absolutely nothing," says Curry, who is also director of government relations "Our response in light of the information we have is that our responsibility is to keep that building open The thing that I'm concerned about is the level of fear Fear begets fear We need to reduce the fear," Curry says We re concerned about the health of everyone in the build ing, says Sharon Hagan, who, as coordinator of the dental hygiene program, has an office in the health building "The ad ministration is working hard at solving the problem ” And apparently, Hagan is correct As the students picketed and called for the closure of the building, two deans at LCC were meeting, directly across the breezeway. with National Insti tute of Occupational Safety and Health officials to determine what the best course of action would be Photo by David Corey Children join with LCC students to protest the presence of "noxious fumes" in the health building, which is where child devlopment courses are located They re here. they should be here most of the week," said Bill Berry, dean of administra tive services, Tuesday night of the NIOSH officials ' They've agreed to talk to a number of individuals working in the build ing "There has been no attempt to do anything but deal with the problem, that's evidenced by the fact the federal folks are here," Berry said But while the officials were deciding which route to take to resolve the problem, several parents expressed their anger Joann Moynier, an LCC student, says she is looking for alterna tive facilities and is bringing her son, Bela, to campus only once a week now. "My main upset," Moynier says, "is that they assume the responsibility, by making the choice of the health of my boy, without informing me." When asked if he's felt bad since he started day care, Bela pulls a red cap over the front of his face and mumbles someth ing that resembles "na " "I wouldn't expose my child,” Moynier says angrily "And they didn't tell me when they accept ed him as a student." Kesey divulges 'secrets’ to aspiring writers Reach out and grab readers by the mind’ By Marian Green Of the Emerald University graduate Ken Ke sey returned to the classroom Tuesday to talk about what he does best — writing fiction. Easing his large frame into a student-sized desk, Kesey of fered advice and philosophies to about 150 aspiring writers in a workshop sponsored by the University's Creative Writing Program He gave tips as basic as remembering to double space a manuscript and divulged such secrets as creating a villainous character In between, he sandwiched anecdotes about his novels, "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest and “Sometimes A Great Notion" and mentioned his la test project, "Sailor’s Song,” a novel set in Alaska Wearing a blue plaid wool shirt and a familiar leather cap, the soft-spoken Kesey said writing never gets easier "It becomes harder because you know more about it. It doesn’t get easier like roller skating," he said So the first page of a story must be ‘ smooth, with no jagged edges" and must lull the reader "You’ve just got to reach out and grab the reader by the Author Ken Kesey reaches out to ‘grab the mind' of an enraptured student audience. mind,’’ said Kesey. “You don't ever want to force the reader to shift down.” Tight editing is the key to good writing, he said. "The thing that distinguishes art from stuff is the things that get left out,' Kesey said. “We re up to our ears in stuff.” He said Hemingway’s sparse style made every word count. “You'll go through Faulkner because he’s Faulkner, but you can't expect to be Faulkner right off.” Kesey said writers lose their ' wallop" by developing a good idea or thought too much. “People undo what they’ve done.” His merry blue eyes shifting, Kesey said good writing must "uplift” the reader. "At the end of Hamlet, every body dies, but you're still uplifted,” he said. "What makes people interesting are the sur vivors. It's easy to find suffering, but to go inside these things and find the glory, that’s the writer’s job." When an author writes a pas sage that elicits strong emo tions from the reader, he or she better be ready for repercus sions. ‘ Writing is magic. You're reaching in there and twiddling with a person's soul and you want to be careful, said Kesey in a soft Oregon drawl. “If you have a character stick his thumb in a car door and mash it, You can just bet this year you're going to mash your thumb.’’ Kesey advised writers to “try not to make a villain a human being. Deal with evil in a larger way so all humans are against that thing." Kesey said he's extra careful when criticizing someone's work. “It doesn't matter how big or famous you get, when someone criticizes your stuff, it hurts just as much." When the words flow, Kesey said “write all you can. It doesn't come often. “I think of it like surfing. You’re always swimming out to a wave and swimming back . . trying to catch that big one,” he said. “But when it comes you know it. It’s thrilling.'' In a brief interview, Kesey said his novel should be finished in another year. “When I get the last kid into (the University of) Oregon, I can really be free in my thinking. It's a long and dif ficult time raising kids. A lot of the same energy that goes into writing goes into raising kids." He said the novel will take “Sometimes A Great Notion" one step further "... in Great Notion’ I took people from across the country until they ran into the Pacific Coast," he said enthusiastically. "Now they’re taking a right turn to Alaska because of something civilized chasing them."
