Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (June 1, 1994)
Nebraskan Editorial Board IJniversitv of Nebraska-Lincoln Deborah D. McAdams....Editor, 472-1766 Matt Woody.. .. • • Features Editor Martha Dunn... - • Copy’ Desk Chief Derek Samson. .Staff Reporter Brian Sharp.Staff Reporter Staff editorials represent the official policy of the Summer 1994 Daily Nebraskan. Policy is set by the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board. Editorials do not necessarily reflect the views of the university, its employees, the students or the NU Board of Regents. Editorial columns represent the opinion of the author. The regents publish the Daily Nebraskan. They establish the UNL Publications Board to supervise the daily production of the paper. According to policy set by the regents, responsibility for the editorial content of the newspaper lies solely in the hands of its students. The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief letters to the editor from all readers and interested others. Letters will be selected for publication on the basis of clarity, originality, timeliness and space available. The Daily Nebraskan retains the right to edit or reject all material submitted Readers also are welcome to submit material as guest opinions. The editor decides whether material should run as a guest opinion. Letters and guest opinions sent to the newspaper become the property ofthe Daily Nebraskan and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions will not be published. Letters should included the author's name, year in sJfhool, major and group affiliation, if any. Requegs to withhold names will not be granted Submit material to the Daily Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St., Lincoln, Neb. 68588-0448. ANSWER TO PUZZLE Where are they now? ... The aimless wanderings of these students have finally brought them to campus. They still fervently desire friends, fortune and fame. You can join this elite group on their trek toward eternal bliss. Find this utopia at the... Nebraskan The Daily Nebraskan is accepting applications for news, sports and arts & entertainment reporting positions for the fall. Freshmen are encouraged to apply. Pick up an application today at the Daily Nebraskan office - 34 Nebraska Union. UNL does not discriminate in its academic, admissions or employment programs and abides by all Federal regulations pertaining to the same. Independence isn’t always glorious When I was seventeen, I dis covered the world. Okay, I discovered that there WAS a world. I realized that my parents had been right all along when they told me that I had my whole life ahead of me, that the world was my oyster, and various other helpful cliches. A line from a Guns’n’Roscs song legitimized and encouraged my desire to make an escape from Lincoln, Ne braska: “You pack your bags and you move to the city/there’s something missing here at home.” There was something missing here. In my mind, Lincoln was the most boring place in the world. As far as I could tell, our fair city had two distinguishing fac tors—football and com—neither of which were particularly interesting to me. I decided that I had to leave. The only remaining question was where I would go. I settled on moving to Omaha and left the “otherwise” to chance. Why Omaha? The reason was sim ple enough. While having the unfor tunate disadvantage of still being in the state of Nebraska, it was a favor able choice because it was simply big ger than Lincoln. I was excited to be moving to a city that was large enough to have three Younkers, radio stations that broadcasted “minute by minute” traffic reports, and a city-wide gar bage recycling program. Twistedly, I wasexcited that I would be living in a city that had “urban problems.” I imagined what it would be like to live just a few miles away from streets that 1 presumed would be filled with situations that resembled scenes from “Cops” or “Real Stories of the Highway Patrol.” Soon, 1 was nearly salivating at the thought of living there. When I look back on it now, I was pretty ignorant about the things I thought 1 would find. When I arrived at my destination, before I unpacked any box, I sat on the With such limitless possibilities and the satisfaction of getting what I had so desperately wanted, it took me about three weeks before I got bored. beige carpet in my bare living room and admired the blanknessof the walls and listened to the quiet. They be longed to me. I could change them in any way I could imagine. With such limitless possibilities and the satisfac tion of getting what 1 had so desperate ly wanted, it took me about three weeks before I got bored. I became bored with trying to find pictures to cover my blank walls. 1 became bored with eating ramen noo dles out of a styrofoam cup because I couldn’t afford a decent meal. I be came bored with being so tired when I got home from work that all I had energy to do was to fall asleep in front of the television. It’s easy to say what my days in Omaha were like because every one was the same: 1 woke up, I worked, I went home. With my earnings, 1 paid the rent that allowed me to live in this pitiable condition. 1 started to ask myself questions like: “How did I get here?” and “How do I get out?” I had built a cell, furnished it with lovely ornaments, and locked the door. I knew that there were only two people in this world who could rescue me and their names were mommy and daddy. So, almost nine months after I moved out of my parents’ house, 1 moved back in. It was quite depress ing. I felt like a failure. I had wanted lobe the “little girl who made it in the big city.” Instead, I was just a little girl. Just a little while be fore, I’d had my whole life ahead of qie and somehow, a few months later, I was washed up at eighteen. I had no job and no educa tion, but I could look forward to a future based upon the skills 1 had learned in Omaha—fl ipping burgers. My dad offered me a job helping him run hisbusincss,but commercial clean ing wasn’t what I pictured doing for the rest of my life. During this time, I occupied myself by going to movies and getting addicted to that master piece of television, Melrose Place. That was the low point. I’m the kind of person who starts something and has a hard time finish ing. I resolve that I absolutely must do something and then I mess it up through procrastination, loss of inter est, or whatever. And then I have the nerve to whine about my failure. Through a little self-examination, I learned of this nasty shortcoming and I decided to change it. 1 made up my mind that whatever I decided to do with my life, I was going to stick to it and not give up. (No, I did not plagia rize that from a Personal Power sem inar.) So far. I’ve been true to this goal. I’ve almost made it to my sophomore year and I’m still here. Hey, that’s no small feat when you look at the fact that a lot of students don’t make it that far. Sarah Is freshman political science major and a Daily Nebraskan columnist. The UNL Interfraternity / Counsel and Panhellenic ( Association invite you to become a part of our Greek System. Share in the traditions of academic excellence, philanthropic involvemenl and leadership development. Greek Affairs Office, 332 NU, 472-2582 Personal and property security is an issue deservingyour attention! We offer affordable, high tech first line defense products • Personal Attack Alarms • Dorm or Apartment Intrusion Security • Auto, Motorcycle, Bike Alarms & Anti-theft Systems