News & features about the Vanderbilt Commons from the students who live here
As our freshman year of college starts to come to a close, we like to think about all the amazing memories made over the past year. Going to university events, making late-night Munchie runs, living with your best friends. All of these things came together to make your first year of college what it is, and nothing will ever be quite like it.
Too bad we have to get through finals first.
Good luck with your finals, Commodores, and have a great summer.
Nobody:
Me: I’m gonna make another Top 5 about memes. Yeah, this is definitely a good idea.
At the beginning of the school year, I wrote an MCL Top 5 article entitled, “Top 5 Michael Scott Quotes that Capture the Life of a Vandy First-Year.” I now present you with the sequel; this time, in the style of Parks and Recreation‘s best boss, Ron Swanson.
1.”Not interested. Good day.”
Vandy freshmen walking past the club tables set up in Commons to get to the food faster.
2. “If there were more food and fewer people, this would be a perfect party.”
Frat parties would be so much more fun if they catered Chick-fil-A.
3. “There has never been a sadness that can’t be cured by breakfast food.”
If you don’t think that Commons has the best breakfast food on campus, you are lying to yourself.
4. “I like to not get involved in these matters, or any matters of any nature.”
The response to any question asked before noon.
5. “I regret nothing. The end.”
Vandy freshmen on Monday morning after spending the entire weekend sleeping, partying, and staying up until 4 a.m.
In honor of VandyRadio’s upcoming Valentine’s Day broadcast, we sat down with Ben Dabney, the student station manager, who is here to answer all of your burning questions about this student organization.
What is VandyRadio?
VandyRadio is Vanderbilt’s premier popular music station, playing all over campus. It is entirely student-run and operated, with shows covering everything from classic rock to live sports coverage to bad movie reviews.
What is your role at VandyRadio and how did you first get involved at the station?
I’m the Station Manager, so my job is to make sure all of VandyRadio’s moving parts are working properly. I work with an exec board to keep everyone’s shows running smoothly and collaborate with other student groups. I was…aggressively recruited my freshman year at the org fair and I’ve been involved every year since!
How may Vanderbilt students participate as DJ’s/hosts at VandyRadio?
Currently we have almost 35 students doing weekly shows, with 4 trainees in the works. This semester especially has had a lot of new people interested in [VandyRadio].
How can students listen to VandyRadio?
You’ve probably heard us somewhere already! We play in Rand, Commons, EBI, and the Pub. Off-campus, we have a livestream on our app and website (vandyradio.com), as well as an Alexa skill on the Amazon store.
Why should students tune in to VandyRadio instead of Spotify or other listening choices?
Unlike Spotify or Pandora, VandyRadio content is managed by college students, for college students. Everything from the music to the news coverage is designed to appeal to that audience, because it IS that audience! That level of involvement just isn’t there with a corporate streaming service.
Tell everyone about your upcoming live Valentine’s broadcast?
On February 13, from 6-9 PM, we are doing a show live in the Commons Atrium. We’ll be playing music and giving out chocolate, but most importantly we’ll be reading notes submitted by students for their special someone. If you’ve been looking to tell them how you feel, this is your chance! (We all know everything sounds better in a “radio voice.”)
How can Vanderbilt students be a part of this live broadcast?
We need your notes! There are heart boxes in Commons Center, Branscomb Lobby, EBI Lobby, and Local Java to collect them. Leading up to the broadcast, we should also have an online form for last-minute entries. The day of, you can come visit us or just tune-in for the show! And don’t forget to tweet song requests to @vandyradio, we need some good love ballads.
Does VandyRadio take requests all the time, or just for this live event?
We take requests at most live events, but we let hosts manage their own playlists. If there’s something you want to hear, you can always call into the station during a show, or maybe try the booth yourself! It’s your hour; what you do with it is up to you.
Any other special upcoming broadcasts or events that you’d like students to know about?
Most importantly I want everyone to know that VandyRadio is always looking for new hosts! Training is a year-round event, and no experience is required. You could be up and running in less than two weeks as part of the soundtrack of campus life. Coming up, we are providing the music for the VALE Awards ceremony, and we may or may not be planning something special for St. Patrick’s Day. Stay tuned!
Let’s be honest: there’s nothing that can make your day like a nice, wholesome meme. You’ve probably heard of the Facebook group, “dank new rand memes,” and unfortunately, most of the posts are pretty relatable. However, some are downright depressing, and we believe that Vandy first-year students could use some pure, inspirational memes to start their second semester off on the right foot.
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For more uplifting memes, see the bulletin board on the second floor of East House. Good luck with your second semester at Vandy, and as always, anchor down!!!
With Halloween quickly approaching, we’ve decided to share 5 of our favorite, most outlandish conspiracy theories. Most of these are just too strange to be believable, but it definitely makes you wonder what else might be out there, and what the truth really is.
But… but… it’s right there??? Yeah, we know. Theorists who do not believe in the moon’s existence allege that the world’s governments fabricated the moon many centuries ago, and now everyone just kind of goes with it.
Why did they feel the need to fabricate the moon? And how did they do it? This is where things get really weird. People speculate that the government is using advanced projection technology that the public has no knowledge of in order to make us believe that a false moon orbits our Earth. Everything we think we know about this supposed celestial object is just an extensive government cover up. Why they did it is contested among the theorist community, but some of the most popular theories are that the moon is covering up something else in the distance, like a planet that is on a collision course with the Earth.
The best “evidence” for this wild theory includes the changing appearance of the moon, a line from Romeo and Juliet, and the difference in density between the Earth and the moon. Yeah, we don’t think we could ever believe this one.
While most people think of the DIA as nice, pleasant airport, some theorists believe that this building is hiding something much more sinister beneath its surface. While a “gateway to hell” is a bit of a stretch, there are definitely some creepy things about the DIA that has people wondering.
First off, that scary horse (pictured above). We’re not gonna lie, this demon horse outside of the airport is more than a little freaky. Some say that the statue will provide transportation for a Horseman of the Apocalypse, but perhaps the creepiest thing about aptly-named “Blucifer” is that it fell on and killed its sculptor. Other mysterious features include, but are not limited to, gargoyles sitting in suitcases, some strange murals that highlight both community and death at the same time, and runways in the shape of a swastika. Though probably not a gateway to hell, we can’t help but question the decisions of whoever designed that building.
We all knew this was gonna be on here sooner or later, so let’s just get it over with. Like the moon hoax, believers of the Flat Earth Theory allege that the spherical nature of the Earth was fabricated by the world’s governments and space agencies long ago as a way to make people feel insignificant and therefore more likely to conform to societal norms. Believers call themselves the “Flat Earth Society,” and they even have their own website.
Many facts easily debunk the Flat Earth Theory, but followers are nothing if not persistent. They imagine the Earth’s true map to look like the image above, with the North Pole at the circle’s center and Antarctica as a ring of ice all the way around the edge (this apparently explains why people don’t fall off, for it is very difficult to get permission to travel that deep into the continent). This flat earth is allegedly moving upward at a rate of 9.8 meters per second, accounting for gravitational force. Many more elements to this theory (and we mean MANY more) are detailed on the official website.
Yeah, this is actually a thing. A survey in 2016 found that nearly twelve million people believe that world influencers are really highly advanced, lizard-like aliens in disguise with the goal of controlling and manipulating the Earth.
There isn’t much of an argument for this one, aside from videos of political leaders and celebrities supposedly “slipping back” into lizard characteristics for no more than a few seconds. Speculated aliens include Justin Bieber, the Clintons, Miley Cyrus, George Bush, and the Queen of England. However, we all know that video and photo can be highly manipulated, and frankly, this one just makes zero sense. We’re glad too, because lizard people sound pretty terrifying.
Of all the theories on the list, we think that this one might actually make the most sense (still almost none, but okay). According to theorists, the country of Finland doesn’t actually exist.
The story goes that Japan, having a large economic foothold in seafood, suffered as more restrictions were placed on the amount of fishing that could be done in international waters. As a way to maximize their product output, they created “Finland”, which is apparently a large Japanese fishing colony. People who supposedly live in Finland (less than 0.01% of the world’s population) are really just citizens of Eastern Sweden, Estonia, and Russia.
A piece of evidence sighted by believers is that Nokia, a Japanese company, does a lot of business out of Finland and through Russia, a nation that they have been very secretive with in the past.
With Halloween quickly approaching, we here at My Commons Life know one of the most vital elements of this spooky holiday: the scary movie. Below, we have detailed five of our favorite Halloween films, and as a bonus, each one is available on Netflix. Happy watching!
This animated Halloween classic may be rated just PG, but its overwhelmingly creepy nature and eerie stop-motion puts Coraline up pretty high on our scariness scale. This one gave our child-selves nightmares for weeks.
This one almost seems like a no-brainer. Apparently based on a true story, The Conjuring has received international acclaim since its release. With strong acting and classic scares, this film is perfect for those who love some good old-fashioned horror.
Here’s a true horror classic: Scream. Sure it spawned an entire franchise of films, some of questionable quality. But the original is a bona fide classic filled with inside jokes, self-aware characters, and some genuine scares, too.
The Sixth Sense was one of only four horror films to ever be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. Accompanied by strong performances and multiple jump scares, this is a film you won’t want to watch by yourself. And that ending!
Yes, we know that this one isn’t technically a movie, but we couldn’t resist. This Netflix original series has received high acclaim from both viewers and critics for its talented cast, special effects, and allusions to the 1980s. Though not as typically “horror” as the rest of the list, this series is definitely something to binge leading up to Halloween.
Sam provides this video highlight reel from the 2018 Commons Cup Ultimate Frisbee Tournament
Since I’ve started classes at Vanderbilt, there has been one thing that never fails to make me smile, even on the worst days: the small, furry woodland creatures. From squirrels to chipmunks to rabbits, it is hard to go anywhere on campus without seeing one of these little critters. (How you feel about that is up to you, of course. They can be vicious.)
Vanderbilt University boasts a 3:1 squirrel-to-student ratio, making for some interesting encounters and a few more great Instagram captions. We’ve determined the Top 5 kinds of squirrels you see at Vandy— and who knows, maybe you’ve run into them at some point during your time on campus.
All photos were taken by the author on the Vanderbilt campus.
Completely relatable. We wonder if it makes midnight trips to Commons for Uncrustables and iced coffee too.
It’s a little unsettling if you look into its eyes too long. But look at that fluffy tail!
It probably couldn’t find a functional Ofo.
Do you ever just want to isolate yourself in the middle of Commons Lawn, forgot about that chem test, and binge eat your favorite food? Us too.
It’s called a rabbit, John.
Thanks for reading, Commodores, and as always, Anchor Down!