0 0 "
--o-
r r
S 9
1
Thursday, " 2009 Daily - The Michigan
Breaking the habit in 2009
A look at the more exotic spring
break options offered this year
through the 'U' and other programs
By BEN VANWAGONER
Daily Arts Writer
College can be a terrible drag. It can also become over-
whelming, especially when you're struggling to learn how to
calculate the present value of assets, running linear regres-
sions on Chinese arms trade data or conducting grinding
research on hallucinogenic chemicals. Don't think an occa-
sional game of racquetball will be the panacea to the deso-
late wastes of academia either - no short-lived distraction is
going to save you from the realities of class. The sickness can
become so dire that, even during spring break, students can
do nothing but huddle, fearful, in dorms or apartments across
campus. Even if you don't meet this description, you probably
know someone who does. Not only is this submission to fear a
huge mistake, it's just unnecessary.
Thankfully, the University is a force for good as well as
occasional evil, and there are a couple programs either run
by the University or affiliated with it that offer spring break
options allowing students to be both adventurous and socially
productive.
Q Outdoor Adventures is one such program. Part of the
Recreational Sports program, OA has the goal of providing
students with the resources and guidance they need to get
outdoors for a little longer than the 10-minute walk to class.
OA runs a rock wall, a well-stocked rental center complete
with tents and snowshoes and also organizes adventure trips.
This spring break, they're sending out three groups: one to Big
Bend National Park in Texas to hike in a desert basin, one to
the Florida Everglades for sea kayaking and a third to Costa
Rica. According to LSA sophomore Lauren Davies, who man-
ages the trip programs, all but the Costa Rica trip have been
filled, and that closes Monday.
The programs are appropriately adventurous: The Costa
Rica trip sets students river rafting, rappelling down water-
falls and backpacking through cloud forests - the ambitious
student's spring break, so to speak. For everyone who just
hunkers down over break and for those who complain about
walking through the snow on the Diag, these trips should be
mandatory. Their spirit of exploration is motivated by the
spirit of the OA staff, according to Davies.
"All the staff has a huge passion for being outside," said
Davies. "Trip leaders try to pass on their skills and that pas-
sion."
Although not run by the University, Alternative Spring
Break has become something of an institution. It's somewhat
less adventurous, but it has built a strong reputation by appeal-
ing to the selfless spirit on which the University of Michigan
student body has historically prided itself.
ASB is hardly the campus's.best-kept secret, but the scope
and the real personal value of the program may be. ASB sends
out teams of ambitious, benevolent students to 35 different.
sites each year, mostly in large cities and all within the United
States. The projects are easy to associate with tame, familiar
church group trips, but according to members, ASB offers alot
more variety and perhaps much greater depth of experience.
ASB offers students an option to change people's lives,
according to School of Education senior David Metler. Metler
visited St. Louis with ASB last year and will return this year as
a site leader in Detroit.
"Seven out of the i4 of us (who went to St. Louis last year)
became site leaders this year," he said. To Metler, this is a sign
Spring
Break
Reading List
Bethanv Gibbons For the Daily
1. "Dreams From My Father" by 4. "The Girl with the Dragon Tat-
Barack Obama too" by Stieg Larsson
In case you've Originally pub-
been living in lished in Sweden,
a sound-proof "The Girl with
closet for the last the Dragon Tat-
three years, this too" has swept
is Barack Obama's the globe with its
first book, written engaging charac-
10 years before he ters and incred-
was a presidential candidate. It ible suspense. It might not bring
was highly regarded even before you to question your life or leave
Obama was popular, but now it's you pondering your own personal
especially relevant. Fascinating in journey, but it will definitely keep
its own right, it's also meaningful you entertained - what could be
and emblematic of Obama's own better than serial killers and cor-
multifaceted character. porate crime?
popular, vvi <-
is Collins is an
author from the
mid-19th century
that is undeserv-
ingly forgotten;
"The Moonstone"
is the best of his many novels. It's
an intriguing mystery with engag-
ing characters and a stunning -
albeit unlikely - conclusion. It
-follows the theft and subsequent
quest for recovery of the famous
Moonstone, a mythical object
of such significance that Hindu
priests, among others, would do
anything to get it
7. "American Gods" by Neil
Gaiman
"American
Gods" is real,
fantasticandeap-
tivating. It fol-
lows Shadow, an
ex-con, and his
interaction with
ancient Norse
gods who enlist him in their fight
against the New American gods,
deitys that embody technology
such as the internet and media. It
redeems science fiction/fantasy
as actual literature. Read it.
8. "The 'Brief Wondrous- Life of
Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz
Probably (and
The Br f hopefully) the
Wo most depress-
Li ing book most
Oscar ao people will ever
read, "The Brief
Junot Diaz Wondrous Life
Li i' "11'and the role of
individual and society. And if
that's not enough, it's also impos-
sible to put down. The quotes are
-poignant and enduring: "We may
be young, but we're not powerless.
We play by their rules long enough
er's look into life on the wrongside
of the tracks. Alternating between
the monotony of daily life and
stunning and violent occurrenc-
es, it offers a new perspective on
criminals and making a living in
difficult circumstances.
The University provides several exciting opportunities for spring break throughout the United States.
that people are motivated by their experience. "It nurtures
the spirit of service that is inextricably tied to being a demo-
cratic citizen."
But it's not all roses. ASB has been accused of invading
communities, spending a comforting week of comparatively
effortless pseudo-service and leaving with falsely assured
consciences onlyto finally return to a fully and carefully sepa-
rated existence. According to LSA senior and ASB leadership
team member Sarah Crane, that's exactly what ASB tries to
avoid.
"We aim for empowerment," she said. "We come into these
communities asking'What resources do you have? Where can
we be of help?"'
The goal, she said, is not to show off how much students can
do, but to emphasize the ability of communities to enact their
own change. ASB tries to play to the strengths of the site.
"It's an asset-based approach rather than a need-based
approach," Crane said.
Though two very different programs, the ultimate goal is
similar.
"It leads to future passion," Metler said of ASB. Outdoor
Adventures, too, offers students an opportunity to learn a bit
more abouttheir own abilities and build an adventurous spirit
outside of that "Hey, let's go to the CCRB!" attitude.
Whatever the case, both options are certainly better than
just sitting around moping about exams.
2. "The Time Traveler's Wife" by
Audrey Niffenegger
- Please, ifyou're
going to read
chick lit, make
it good chick lit.
"The Time Trav-
eler's Wife" is the
unlikely but irre-
sistible story of
modern love that begs the ques-
tion of how life and love change
over time, and how a relation-
ship can possibly endure. And
the ending is one so bittersweet
5. "How to Be Alone" by Jonathan
Franzen'
This is the kind
of book that read-
JONATHA FRANZEN ers can finish in
one afternoon and
then think about
for the rest of their
lives. It's Fran-
zen's masterpiece.
He explores, among other things,
the dichotomy between private
and public; the book forces read-
ers to reexamine their public cell.
phone conversations and question
Why not Europe?
Spring Break or Summer Expedition.
Amsterdam, London, Paris, Prague, Rome.
Details on trains, rail passes, electricity, the
metric system, currency exchange, luggage,
your packing list, travel clothes, guidebooks.
Have more fun with fewer funds.
Before you go, visit
www. eniov-eurove.com
The original do-it-yourself travel guide to Europe.'