Pulse Editor:
Jacquelyn Lewis
jacquelynlewis@dailyemerald.com
Tuesday, February 18,2003
Oregon Daily Emerald
On Thursday
It's queer, it's here:
The UO Cultural
Forum's Queer
Film Festival
Stingy boyfriend
needs to prioritize,
let soulmate fly to
personal growth
Dear Nat: My boyfriend is so stingy! We always split
the bill at dinner, even on special occasions, and he nev
er buys gifts for me. Yet he spoils himself rotten! (CDs,
DVDs, clothes, books, you name it.) I’m at my wit’s end.
Help!
— Stuck with a Cheapskate
Dear Stuck: Do you like cheap men? No. Is this man
cheap? Yes. Can you change him?
You can try until you’re blue in the face. Have an ex
tra generous friend explain to him that treating a girl
friend as if she is less important
than a stack of DVDs is not cool.
Then sit him down for your own tes
timony. Tell him how low you feel
knowing you’re in competition with
his luxurious collectibles. No re
sults? Refer to the questions listed
above. Then, remember that love
has a return policy: Spoil yourself
for a change and exchange your
boyfriend for a new model, satisfac
tion guaranteed.
Dear Nat: My girlfriend of a year
is planning to study abroad in Spain
for all of next year (our junior year).
I’m really freaked. I think she’s my soulmate, and the
distance might kill our relationship! What can I do to
keep her?
Natasha
Chilingerian
Ask Nat
Long Distance Jitters
Dear Long Distance: first of all, I think your girl
friend has a pretty cool academic plan and very ambi
tious career goals. She’s not in school to become a
“Mrs.” In other words, walking off a plane into a foreign
country is much higher on her to-do list than walking
down the aisle in a poufy white dress, which is how it
should be!
So why is there so much emphasis on commitment
and future in your brain? Freaking out could lead you to
a year of moping in your bedroom over tear-stained pho
tos of your girl, while she’s traipsing around Spain hav
ing the time of her life. Is that what you want? I didn’t
think so. When her plane departs, have your own time
of your life in good old Oregon. Go out with friends. Be
gin new hobbies. Take full advantage of the extra time
on your hands.
I suggest the two of you agree on a dating policy while
she’s gone, be it a green light to date others casually or
a vow to remain exclusive. But regardless of your
choice, if someone better comes along for either of you,
so be it. During the college years, twists and turns are al
ways around the corner. But remember, if your love for
each other is meant to be, nothing, not even time and
miles, can tear it apart.
Dear Nat: I recently had what I thought would be a
date with this cute guy. When we arrived at the restau
rant, he took out his Bible and began preaching that I
needed to be saved! I’m Christian, just not as fanatical
as he is. I was so offended. I see this guy all the time in
school — how do I deal with him?
— So-called Sinner
Dear Sinner: How about bringing a Feng Shui book to
class and preaching to him about rearranging his house?
Just kidding. But really, your beliefs are yours and
his are his. Pressuring someone to change should not
be part of the formula for any kind of relationship. I find
his actions very rude and intrusive. So what if you have
class with this guy? No one’s saying you have to be
buddy-buddy with him. Be nice, polite and civil. Re
spect his point of view and, hopefully, he will learn to
respect yours.
Contact the columnist at natashachilingerian@dailyemerald.com.
Her views do not necessarily represent those of the Emerald.
Send questions to advice@dailyemerald.com.
Words of wisdom
Poet Maya Angelou comes
to McArthur Court Feb. 23 to read
poetry and discuss issues such
as literacy, race and gender
Ryan Bornheimer
Senior Pulse Reporter
The unmistakable voice. The power
ful words. One line of verse uttered from
her legendary lips and people listen.
This is Maya Angelou. The
renowned poet, author and speaker
will appear at McArthur Court at 7:30
p.m. Feb. 23.
Angelou will read poetry and discuss
issues of race, gender and literacy fol
lowing a performance by the UO Gospel
Ensemble. She will also recite works by
famed poet Langston Hughes.
This event, produced by the UO
Cultural Forum, marks Angelou’s first
appearance in Eugene in five years.
Angelou spoke at the Hult Center in
1998, but her upcoming performance
will be a first for the University.
Cultural Forum Performing Arts Co
ordinator Windy Borman said the event
gives students a unique opportunity to
see this internationally celebrated artist
and promises to be a thought-provoking
evening for everyone.
“Her style of speaking is very acces
sible to poets and non-poets,” Bor
man said.
English Professor Karen Ford, who
is currently teaching an African
American poetry course, said the ap
pearance is a chance to see a truly
riveting reader.
“She recites poems — hers and
other poets’ work — from memory,
recites them movingly and dramati
cally,” Ford said. “I’ve always appre
ciated her attention to making other
poets visible even during her
own readings.”
Angelou published her first autobi
ography, “I Know Why the Gaged Bird
Sings,” in 1970 and became the first
black author to hold a record for the
longest run on the New York Times
Paperback Nonfiction Bestseller list.
The book recounted Angelou’s ex
Courtesy
periences growing up in Arkansas and
included reflections on her experi
ences with racism as well as the trau
ma of being raped at age eight by her
Turn to Angelou, page 7
Film exposes toxicity of synthetics
Danielle Hickey Emerald
Judith Helfand spoke Friday afternoon in Hendricks Hall about the effects past
fertility drugs have had on women's bodies.
Judith Helfend’s documentary ‘Blue Vinyl’
entices consumers and businesses to stop
using toxic products such as PVC
Helen Schumacher
Pulse Reporter
Filmmaker Judith Helfand screened her documentary
“Blue Vinyl” at the University last weekend as part of the
“My House Is Your House” campaign, a consumer organiz
ing and community education effort to increase awareness
of vinyl’s toxic implications.
The film portrays Helfand’s quest to learn more about the
vinyl siding her parents were putting on their home. After
she was diagnosed with cervical cancer at 25 — a malady
she said was caused by DES, a drug given to her mother
while pregnant — Helfand became skeptical of any sub
stance containing synthetic chemicals.
Helfand discovered the polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, used
in vinyl has a toxic life cycle. PVC releases the carcinogen
dioxin into the air during manufacturing and burning
processes. People who work at the manufacturing plants or
live near them are often exposed to unsafe dioxin levels.
Directed by Helfand and Daniel B. Gold, “Blue Vinyl” is
the winner of several film festival awards including the Ex
cellence in Cinematography in a documentary at the Sun
dance Film Festival in 2002. HBO also aired the film.
University assistant professor at the Center for Ecology
Turn to Toxicity, page 7