Get 'Lost'

By Mallory Medved - Copy Editor

During a boring weekend at home last week, my best friends from high school called to say they were coming home for the night, which was awesome. Even more awesome was that they were coming home to attend a “Lost” marathon at a movie theater near our town.

ABC's hit series “Lost” is, for those of you who have been living in a cave for the last year or so, about survivors of a plane crash, stranded on a seemingly-deserted island when their flight from Sydney to Los Angeles crashes somewhere in the South Pacific. The 48 survivors quickly learn they are not alone on the island, though, as there is something enormous lurking just out of sight.

To celebrate the Sept. 6 release of the first season on DVD, Hollywood Boulevard in Woodridge hosted a 24-hour “Lost” marathon Sept. 10-11. The theater is one-of-a-kind in suburban Chicago ; instead of dinner and a show, it serves dinner during the show. The theaters have office chairs set up behind long narrow tables and waitresses serve dinner and drinks during the movie.

When we got to the theater that would be hosting the marathon, the manager and waitresses laid down the law: No sleeping for more than 10 minutes during the show. After each episode, which ran roughly 44 minutes, we would get a 15-minute break to go to the bathroom or take a nap or whatever. During the break, there would be trivia questions and contests for such prizes as movie passes or DVD sets. Whoever is left by the end of the 24 th episode wins a DVD set and $200 to Best Buy. On with the show!

10: 49 p.m.: First episode down, 23 to go. My friend Carly is convinced that Vincent, the island's resident yellow lab, represents the devil. My friend Kristin thinks if anyone here is Satan, it's Carly. It's going to be a long night.

12:52 a.m.: After the first three episodes, the castaways are beginning to think that help isn't coming. I'm beginning to think the kitchen is going to close without our dinner, forcing us to resort to killing and eating one of the other participants. I already have the loudest and most obnoxious obsessive “Lost” fan picked out (and my eye on the DVD set she just won) when our meals come.

2:43 a.m.: The title of this episode is “White Rabbit,” and I have to say I feel a little like I'm on drugs. By now the kitchen and bar are closed, so we're stuck eating popcorn and the candy Carly's roommate Jamie won. Onscreen, people have been shot, sucked into jet engines and chewed up and spit out by a giant jungle monster. I love this show.

4: 40 a.m.: A few people have dropped out by this point. Hooray! But everyone else is in for the long haul. Smart participants wear pajama pants and walk around during the breaks. I, however, am in jeans and spend my break chatting about which castaway I'd most like to be marooned with.

6: 49 a.m.: Success! I win a DVD set by correctly identifying the tattoo on rocker-turned-heroin addict Charlie (Dominic Monaghan)'s shoulder: “Living is easy with eyes closed.” I am…a little embarrassed that I knew that, to be honest. And really, really tired. But I won!

8: 38 a.m.: I am dragging here. Apparently, I fell asleep at one point, because I jumped about a foot when Carly poked me to see if I wanted any more M&Ms, I jumped about a foot. I resolve to pay closer attention, watching the island's doctor and leader Jack (Matthew Fox) get smacked around by evil island native Ethan (William Mapother).

9:33 a.m.: OK, I'm out. I'm getting the caffeine shakes from all the Mountain Dew I've had. I pay my bill and stagger into the bright light of day. I only lasted 12 hours, but it was still 12 hours of one of the best shows on TV today.

The second season of “Lost” premieres at 8 p.m. tonight on ABC. Hollywood Boulevard is located at 75 th St. and Lemont Road in Woodridge , two miles east of I-55.

A 'Taste of UIS' music

By Gabrielle Wiegand - Feature Writer

Who knows the difference between a violin and a fiddle? I always thought one was just a little bit classier then the other, but now, thanks to the UIS Alumni Association and Dr. Sharon Graf I know there is absolutely no difference. The first program in this fall's Taste of UIS: Distinguished Faculty/Alumni Lunchtime Lecture Series featured Graf speaking on “Incorporating Fiddle and Folk Music into the 21st Century Classroom: Why It Matters!”

Graf, UIS assistant professor of ethnomusicology and winner of the 2004 Illinois State Old-Time Fiddle Championship, gave a truly interesting and entertaining demonstration Sept. 14 at a luncheon with roughly 40 people. Graf was joined by Demetrius Delancey on piano, Todd Cranson on tuba and Rose Schweigert on euphonium.

Together they played six different types of fiddle songs that engaged the audience and had us tapping our feet and singing along. Starting with a reel, Graf explained “humans have always had a need to socialize through music and dance.” Reels were performed in ballrooms, barns and pioneer camps.

“In Thomas Jefferson's day fiddlers collected tunes and supplied dancers with music to dance to,” said Graf.

Apparently fiddle music was so important in American colonial life, Lewis and Clark took two fiddlers with them on their expedition out west. (Talk about a Jeffersonian example of misuse of tax dollars.)

After the reel we learned about the jig, specifically one of the most well known jigs in British and American history “Haste to the Wedding.” According to Graf, the U.S. militia marched quick step to this jig during the Revolutionary War. Through her explanations we learned how Graf uses folk music in her teaching to introduce students to larger issues and ideas.

I always thought “Yankee Doodle” was just a silly little song, but when Graf began explaining its origins I realized just how big a part of our history music really is. Originally a Dutch folk song, in 1755 an English man wrote lyrics to the tune, mocking the colonists. The British troops would then play it loudly to taunt the colonists.

After our victories at Lexington and Concord , colonists took the song back as their own. One of the terms at the end of the war was that the British could never play “Yankee Doodle” again.

After Graf's explanation she played the song for us and we all joined in singing on a verse. There is nothing like a group of well-dressed alumni singing “stuck a feather in his hat and called it macaroni!”

Graf was extremely lively and animated when she discussed her craft as well as when she was actually performing. She broke the music down for us, first playing it part by part and then as a whole.

In her opening statements, Alumni Associate Director Mary Caroline Mitchell said, “I believe UIS is still one of the best kept secrets in the Springfield community.” With fascinating faculty like Sharon Graf I do not think UIS will be a secret much longer.

There are two more luncheons in the Taste of UIS program. To make reservations or if you have any questions, contact Alumni Relations at (217) 206-7395, or online at www.uiaa.org/spfld/ or e-mail alumni@uis.edu.

Get 'Lost'

UIS students celebrate their first week