Page 2-The Michigan Daily-Weekend etc. - February 6, 1992 Jonathan Chait Oh, give me a home... January. The time of year when students search for off-campus housing. Yes, I realize that it's not January any more. That's the point. It's now February and I have forgotten to search for off-campus housing. All the housing is gone, and I am beginning to look into some sturdy off-campus cardboard boxes. (Spacious GE Refrigerator box for rent - 10-minute walk from Diag! Parking included. Call 995-3819) Actually, I wouldn't say that all the housing is gone. Only the housing where the landlord will tell you where it is when you want to buy it. This is the best clue to look for when you call up a landlord about hous- ing. If the place is reasonably close, they will tell you exactly where it is. But by February, the landlords with poorly located property become des- perate and refuse to divulge the location to prospective buyers: "Hello, I'm calling about the apartment. The rent is low, and it has the right number of bedrooms. Where is it?" "It's in a very nice neighborhood." "And this neighborhood is ... ?" "Well, it's only a 20-minute walk from the Frieze Building." "But where is it?" "Just a 10-minute drive to central campus." "How about if you tell me one of the cross streets?" "And the property taxes are much lower in that county." But I have to find a house, because the only other options are staying in West Quad for a third year, and having to face cafeteria food with names like "Herb Baked Sole" (Just who is this Herb? And why does he get his name on the dish when he bakes sole, but you never see, say, "Ed Baked Pizza?"), living in a co-op, or living in a fraternity. The last two options are problematic. You don't want to be in the Greek system because everybody in it is a conservative, Champion sweat shirt- wearing, beer-guzzling conformist who knows all the lines in "Fletch." In a co-op, on the other hand, everybody is a politically correct, Birkenstock-wearing hippie who knows all the lines in "Heathers." So co- ops offer a lot more individuality. The basic problem with joining the Greek system is that you're putting your life in the hands of people who, if faced with a foreign invasion which forced them to flee to the mountains for safety, and they had a thousand dollars to spend on supplies to take with them and insure their survival, would spend it on printing up T-shirts to commemorate the event. As a result, members of the Greek system have no more individual free- dom than institutionalized mental patients. My friend, for instance, joined a sorority, and that was the last time I saw her. We tried to stay in touch; I'd ask her to come to a tailgate party before football games, but she would always come .up with sorority-related excuses: "I'd like to. come, but I don't think the sisters will let me go to the game," or, "Sorry, but we're not eating solid foods this week." The thing is, she was telling the truth. At first I thought that maybe her sorority was an exception, run by former East German secret police agents, but it turns out that they're all like that. So I never joined the Greek system, and now I spend my days wan- dering down random streets, my nose emitting a stream of mucous, in a hopeless quest to get complete strangers to let me inspect their homes and take their kleenex. So if you see me looking through your house, give some kleenex. Otherwise I'll wipe my nose on your furniture. Killing joke I've never liked clowns. There is something perverse in their painted smiles and bulbous noses that reminds me of nuns with grenades under their habits. All play as work makes Jack a whack-o. In Killer Cowns from Outer Space, alien jokers roped humans for fuel, wrapped them in cocoons of cotton candy which hung from a flying Big Top, Aa 4 o' Hubba, hubba. What a pair o' gains! Wherever you go, it's difficult to get there wit iout your legs. Show 'em some appreciation. Get them decked out in the brightest, the mightiest legwear this side of the Yukon. Fish Fish are important. They keep the plankton population under control, they provide recreation for lonely wildmen (See page 1) and if you eat them, they make you much smart. If you're having trouble catching some nice cold fish, we recommend - the fishnets. a Jungle Fever Men, find your inner hairy beast. Let it all hang out with the sporty well- I'm-not-going-on-an-interview-so-what-the-fuck-amn-I-supposed-to-wear look. To go with your snazzy sneaks, we recommend fuzzy tube socks with three green stripes encircling the calf area. "w f to"N Whe8Ye- b 9SN N.?Hj *I forming confectionary larva. Serious in deadly squirt flowers, twelve hundred emerged from a glowing toy car: death squad with a punch ( line for every hit. To read about Winky was not a shock: clown sentenced to a ten year sojourn from the ring for putting out a contract on his wife. To get caught by propositioning an officer-cum-hitman is something a clown would do. 06 After offering the man $10,000 and a free microwave 4 to make the hit, Winky was thrown into a circus of bars and stripes. While it is not so surprising that clowns have a thirst for blood, you have to wonder about Mrs. Winky. How many banana cream pies must she have baked, eaten, flung. How many palm readers' daughters could have predicted this'? SP tit TJ~ot4 tA Or'tSEN, PARTS. GA~PERA j4ce a 0 od (IOT- REALL TW'A-PAV, ~1-4LL 01 ARC,4t; ER011G TS WATt H AS Mteo~-oR- L(M~- LASS BELOW YC aPtDE.RM NFULL SKM SeMI- 4, A, ^F I .-LGSS! riNci INK ' , yout)riNK you'R NOT 11ue TATt00ASL2.-rTYPE? rTATw4 wuT T SE. CEJ tbME14 h A I o 1F k4i~o 24VA " '' UCJ1 - OF~ PRACTICE BAL wEy! IDAS ON oRz ESOIGNS ON YOUR CKiN IS OLD AND4 SAGGI1NG! I In A Book of Common Prayer Joan Didion wrote, "A banana palm is no more or less alive than its rot." Mrs. Winky asked her new suitor, Brimstone the Flamboyant, haberdasher of the shrunken head collection, why he had given her a palm tree instead of flowers to celebrate her divorce. He explained that cut flowers were already dead. Ile had wanted to give her something greening, like his love. And not just any palm, this was a true Jerusalem, what the palms they passed out at mass on Palm Sunday were supposed to be but rarely were, costs outweighing authenticity. "I lie at your feet. Please pass over my fronds, gently pluck my leaves from their stem with your toes. Bare me," begged. But Mrs. Winky found nothing funny in this. She'd received a letter from Winky in commemoration of the occasion of their official demise. He spoke indulgently of prison as toots and pants around the ankles. "Life's as hard as your head in here," he said, "but here's where it's really funny. Applause, applause, applause. They love me more than you ever did." Running a hand down her microwave, she thought, "If I'da known grease paint and a little honka honka's all you ever needed, I'd've offed you long ago. And as for hats and greening spawns, I'd as soon as have me a fly-trap with a firm grasp and quick snap as I'd have you. And my name's Hope, for Christ's sake. Winky ain't no kinda name for someone who's always got their eye open." - Leisha Jones r ,, ., it 'G <~ aT . M 2 ' (' V i r J ..ate ..' 'i 6V- oRE t J WJL Choa Quill EC r" I - r r I . Ry . r 1*"r _ .1 T' .ll ai r " - 'R pining and Drinking 01 Sze-CIbuao w es Cocktails - Dining ".Carry Out - Luncheon . Specials SZECHUAN - HUNAN - MANDARIN Hours: M-Th,11:30-10; F, 11:30-11 Sat., Noon-11 pm; Sun., Noon-10 pm Happy Hour: 4-7, M-Th 2161 W. Stadium (East of Liberty) Ann Arbor 769-5722 THANO'S LAMPLIGHTER -421 East Liberty I1 block west of State) 665-7003 Sicilian Pizza our Specially Beer, Wine, and Liquor Open 7 Days til 2:00 A.M. 1100 E. Catherine at Glen - 761-8996 Open 6 a.m. - 4 p.m. weekdays 6 a.m. - 3 p.m. Sat., 7 a.m. - 2 p.m. Sun. Serving breakfast and lunch all day. Featuring homemade raisin bread Favorites for over 30 years. L Chinese Restaurant Mandarin, Szechuan, and Hunan Specialties. Exotic Drinks, Full Bar. Carry out, Quick Lunch Special, Sunday Brunch. Open 7 days a week. 3535 Plymouth Rd.-665-3591 4905 Washtenaw Ave.-434-7978 Students Welcome GARDEN Szechuan, Hunan, and Peking cuisine Delivery, take-out, dine-in, cocktails, and Sunday buffet Hrs: Mon.-Thur., 11:30 am - 10 pm Fri., 11:30am -11 pm Sat.,'noon -11 pm Sun., noon -10pm 3035 Wash tenaw Ave., * 971-0970 t t s Italian Restaurant Homemade Pastas & Pizza 665-04449 Take Out 300 Detroit St. at Catherine (across from Farmer's Market) ISaI A inn A Di rr Custom Sandwiches, Italian Sausages, Mediterranean Cuisine, Fresh Salads, Fresh Pastries, Fresh Fruit Drinks, Plus Much More! Dine-In, Carry-Out, or Catering 715 N. UNIVERSITY - 663-0069 CHEF JAN is the TOP GOLD MEDAL WINNER of Detroit Cobo Hall National Contest CHEF JAN is the "Best Chef Award" winner, Washington, DC 1201 S. University * 668-2445 PARTHENON FINE GREEK FOOD Uifl~llflUIlIGYROS 8 SHISH KABAB W9.A"V'- SANDWICHES CARRY OUT SERVICES- CHICKEN PSTEAKS +-PASTA LAMB CHOPS.- LAMB SHISH KABABS ,MOUSAKA.- PASTTTSIO - DOLMADES. SPINACH PIE GREEK SALADS & PASTRIES - COMBINATION PLATES FULL COCKTAIL MENU 226 S. MAIN at ""a Liberty -Ann Arbor CALL 994-1012 Shehan-Shah Vegetarian and Indian Cuisine Great Chinese food DELIVERED fast & fresh! 625 S. Main N. Campus Plaza Next to S. Main Market 1753 Plymouth 741-9500 741-1600 FREE DELIVERY TM owned by The Provender Corporation km. I~f101 Ii4~t~ 9 01 A - A: S I I A m I 1111 11 i I 11