by Melanie Rodriguez

The majestic red curtain is closed. The buzz of the audience begins to die down as the last minute stragglers climb over people to reach their seats. The booming voice of the stage manager announces the show and kindly reminds everyone to please silence their cell phones, locate the nearest emergency exit, and refrain from using flash photography. Then, the lights fade to black.

by David Pulido

The urban environment is a complex and ever growing creature, one that cannot be easily understood or neatly categorized by city dwellers and scholars alike. The denizens of the conurbation must cope with the consequences of the coagulation, and each inhabitant must manage the modified conditions by living individually, independently, with consistent inconsistency in their approach to living in the city. Such is the world that Paul Thomas Anderson creates in his film, Punch Drunk Love (2002).

by Kelley Ambrose

Crying babies, sobbing mothers, cold, sterile exam tables, cold feet, needles a mile long, waiting in line too long, feeling crummy, and a scared feeling that aches where no doctor or medicine can reach—this is what most people anticipate as they approach their local doctor’s office or hospital. Up until about a year ago, I thought along these same lines.

by Kelley Ambrose

The mantra repeats in my mind as it did back in fourth-grade: “Reduce-reuse-recycle, reduce-reuse-recycle, Reduce-Reuse-Recycle!” The slogan is ingrained into all of us like initials carved into an oak tree, always there but only noticed or remembered when up close or when the tree is cut down.

by Cindy Dorn

The three of us were sitting on a brick wall. It was a low wall, short enough for my 9-year old brother to hop onto, yet tall enough that all of our feet dangled as we sat. The park that surrounded us was nondescript – a large grassy area, the street adjacent, homes on three sides. The evening was quiet, dark.

by Ashley Johnson

America has been invaded. We have been compromised from within. A deadly enemy has slipped its way into our society by gaining the trust of millions. It has deceived many by presenting itself as the most economically sound option. Many factors have contributed and still contribute to the U.S. obesity epidemic, but one cultural practice in particular has found its way into our society that seems to dominate as the most effective driving force towards a death-by-fat fate for most Americans: super-sizing.