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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 22, 1993)
ARTS@ENTERTAINMENT ■Taco bar tasty, tough on stomach I<i%ASY By Shannon Uehling Senior RegortSLv ' __ Paul Phillips. Buffalo wings. Atmosphere* The Watering Hole has it all, but best of all is the FREE TACO BAR! Every Wednesday from 9 p.m. to midnight, a person can walk in to the Hole with less than $1 in change, and walk out with a tummy churning with a cheap, spicy and somewhat greasy taco-type sustenance. When thrifty diners enter the Hole, they will be greeted (assaulted?) by the battery-acid scent of buffalo-wing sauce hovering in the dimly lighted tavern. However, patrons first must make it past the fake-I.D. hounds — usually this means the friendly, long-haired Carl, but occasionally owner Ben will throw his customers a curve by watching the door himself. For those not acquainted with the Hole, it is located at 1321 O St., and exudes a quaint, rustic and oddly eclectic aura. Its patrons arc as varied as the beverages served there. So, what does a hungry patron have to do to partake of the free munchics? The best way I’ve found of procuring the gratuitous grub is to say “Hey Tony! I’ll have a (insert name of favorite beverage)” and do a 180-degree turn to hop on the gravy train. In other words, you can use a soda (beer, shot, mixed drink) as your ticket to taco hell. Don’t get me wrong, the spicy food bar is quite tasty, but a word of warning: Watering Hole tacos are not for the faint of stomach. The taco meat is very savory, but a bit on the greasy side, so unless you can manage to squee gee off the majority of the grease, prepare to feel the wrath of heartburn. The shcllsarc tiny—definitely one-handers. One of the more productive ways to cat them is to crunch them up into small chips and make a David Badders/DN taco salad out of them. Diners arc provided with all the traditional trimmings — lettuce, tomatoes, onions, hot sauce and cheese that is reminiscent of the kind the government gives away. In all, it would be difficult to beat the taco bar at the Watering Hole, but if free tacos aren’t what you’re looking for, there’s always pop corn. Heading science fiction makes sense in era of technological, societal change r When my editor conceived the idea for this column, it was envisioned as a blend of science fiction and science fact. His logic behind the title was simple: “We are living in the future.” For the non-metaphysically minded, this may be puzzling. But chew on it fora while, and it makes perfect sense. Consider what we see as commonplace in A.D. 1993. Space travel, desktop computers, v CRs, and all those streamlined, scientifically designed autos coming out of Detroit arc a few of the best examples. Compare this with what was commonplace in, say, 1980. The Shuttle hadn’t flown yet, desktop computers were a rarity, VCRs were primarily used by the military, and autos were still pretty box-shaped. One wonders at the advances in store for the next 13 years. virtual reality will be an everyday affair, computers will become even smaller and more powerful, and cars may run on electricity or solar power. Space travel will almost certainly be more routine than today, with at least one space station in orbit, and permanent bases on the moon and Mars in advanced planning if not actual construction. For anyone who lives in it today or tomorrow, the future holds wonders beyond belief. This neatly segues into the Sci/fi part of this column. Note that 1 say science fiction. I care fully omitted fantasy tor a reason. Booksellers often lump the two together; a major long-running magazine is titled Fantasy & Science Fiction. However, to link the two together is erroneous — like comparing sili con- and carbon-based life forms. SF is for ward-looking and adaptive; fantasy is back ward-looking and static. SF is based on the premise that the future is worth exploring and living for. SF writers being an impatient lot, they try to predict the future and occasionally get it right. H.G. Wells’ r‘The World Set Free" foresaw nuclear power and nuclear war in 1914. Robert Hcinlein wrote about an atom bomb so convincingly in .1940 that the FBI was sent to investigate him and his magazine. SF is never better than when it takes some current trend, fad or technology and extrapo lates it into the future. Larry Niven’s "wirchcads” appeared in the ’70s and served as -■ ». ----- ^ ■> — «—>- — - j a warning against addiction to Virtual Reality (or video games). Cautionary SF talcs arc the genre’s (and society’s) conscience against the careless use of the wonders science bestows. Up to the late 1980s, the post-nuclear war story was an admonition against doing the unthinkable. They have been replaced by the cco-disastcr talc, whose popular beginnings lie in Gregory Benford’s 1981 book‘‘Timescapc.” The themes possible in SF arc as varied as the future itself. First contact, space travel, space wars, genetic engineering, computers running the world, alternate history — all arc fair game. Fantasy, by contrast, possesses none of this originality. It is a static, unevolving genre, much like the feudal past it wistfully signs for. It is as much formulaic writing, as are Harle quin romances. Fantasy writers have only three settings available to them. The first is a throwback to the medieval era, with knights and dragons and wizards and demons and... you get the picture. The second is the “Conan” world, peopled Bnan Shellito/DN by heavily muscled barbarians wearing fur , loincloths. The third is a blend of the two. There I «ms to be a fourth emerging, personified by <£ rcedcs Lackey, using contemporary settings , — but it’s still hamstrung by the old formula. You must havdmagic, you must have wizards, and — most importantly — you must have some kind of heroic quest. Don’t get me wrong — I’m not personally knocking fantasy and those who read it. Hcck, at least they’re reading. But to me, once you’ve plowed through Tolkien, you know all there is to know about fantasy. I would even encourage die-hard SF nuts to read The Lord of thyRings trilogy, and even a couple of his related books. I would encourage anyone, regardless of what he reads, to occasionally pick up some classic Hcinlein or Greg Bear’s latest, or to buy the latest issue of Analog magazine. Look at it not merely as pleasure reading, but as home work. Those who do their homework will be better adjusted to, and feel at home, living in the future. — Kcpfkld Is a die hard Sct/fl nut and a real sweetheart of a guy. 1 -man portrayal brings Malcolm X to campus By Mark Baldridge Senior Editor Darryl Van Leer will portray the late Malcolm X in a one-man show based on “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” and “Malcolm X Speaks.” “Rated: Malcolm X” will be performed Xin the Nebraska Union Centennial Ballroom on Monday at 7 p.m. The 65-minute pre sentation is a trip to the past and the heady days of the civil rights movement. * In Act I, “Message to the Grass Roots,” Van Leer, as Malcolm X, says, ‘‘Our religion teaches us to be intelligent, be peaceful,obey the law, rcspcctcvcryone; but if someone puls his hand on you, send him to the cemetery.” In Act II, “Ballot of the Bullet,” Van Leer delivers the following spqpch: “It’s the ballot or the bullet. It’s liberty ^or death. It’s freedom for everyone or free dom for nobody.” The 32-year-old Van Leer specializes in portraying black leaders. He has also performed as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Frederick Douglass. The Show, presented by the Univer sity Program Council, has a S3 admis sion. It is free to UNL students with ID. Vocalist to sing at Lied Center From Statl Reports 1 l Bobby MeFerr in w ill play at the Lied \ Center again this season. A nine-time Grammy winner, MeFerrin is best known for his quirky and original vocal style. Using only his voice and the rhythms he generates on his body, MeFerrin often imitates musical^instru mcnts and accompanies himself/ I Last year, however, he began his career as a classical music con ductor, appearing be fore the National, New Jersey and San Fran _ . cisco orchestras. MeFerrin MeFerrin has re corded with Yo Yo Ma and Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Brandford and Wynton Marsalis, as well as Jack Nicholson. His unforgettable “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” rocketed him to stardom four years ago and sparked explosions of mer chandising. “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”briefly be came the theme song of a nation. MeFerrin’s last appearance at the Lied Center for Performing Arts was well re ceived, and plans were made almost im mediately for his return. His Saturday show starts at 8 p.m. Pre performance talks by Kit Voornces, co ordinator for cducation/outrcach for the College of Fine and Performing Arts, will be given at 7 and 7:30 p.m. Tickets arc still available at the Lied Center for $22. Solution to last week's puzzle: Be6! Threatening both BxKtd5 and Qg6, follwed (note: last weeks King and Queen symbols were reversed) _