Road Trip To Widener, A George Saunders Reading

At 5:30 in the morning Dr. Dent drove the university van right up to the doors of our dormitory, and six of us writing majors sequeezed in a for the three-hour drive to Widener University, where we would get to meet essayist and short story writer George Saunders.

Saunders, whose quirky stories frequently appear in magazines like The New Yorker, Harper's, and Esquire, recently appeared on the Tonight Show with David Letterman promoting his newest book, a collection of essays titled The Braindead Megaphone.

Widener University is located in Chester, Pennsylvania, about nine miles south of Center City Philadelphia. Susquehanna connected with Widener through FUSE, the Forum for Undergraduate Student Editors, a burgeoning network of student writers and editors who share ideas and review student-run literary magazines.

The faculty at Widener graciously invited Dr. Dent and some of her students to come to their campus for the Saunders reading. Emphasis on "graciously." Not only were we able to attend the reading, we were also able to sit in on a class discussion with Saunders and eat lunch with the author. The students and faculty from Widener were just wonderful.

As was Saunders. When we pulled into the parking lot at Widener, I wasn't sure what to expect. Saunder's work is so quirky and surreal, like "The 400-Pound CEO," which chronicles the rise and fall of an overweight employee at "Humane Raccoon Alternatives," or "Sea Oak," in which Aunt Bernie returns from the grave. As it turns out, the man behind these stories is warm and thoughtful and very smart about writing.

At the reading, he performed a story he published about two years ago in The New Yorker called "Victory Lap." I say "performed" because he did a different voice for every character. The story is excellent, hilarious all the way through and deeply meaningful at the end. Rather than spoil it by summarizing it here, I'm simply going to recommend that you read the story for yourself. The entire thing can be found on The New Yorker website.

After the reading, we got our books signed and then piled back in the van for the three-hour drive back to Selinsgrove, exhausted, but grateful to have made the trip.

Below are two videos. The first is a Widener video of the actual conversation we had with Saunders during our time in Chester. Below that is a video of a short reading Saunders gave for a Minnesota Public Radio event. The story is "Pastoralia," not "Victory Lap," but it's still definitely worth checking out. It'll give you a really great sense of his voice as a writer.

A Conversation with George Saunders at Widener University


George Saunders reading from "Pastoralia"


Other Links:
"Victory Lap" by George Saunders
George Saunders on David Letterman
The FUSE Blog
The FUSE Website
The Blue Route - Widener University's Online Literary Magazine

Dig In

This past weekend, 100 students from campuses all across Pennsylvania met here at Susquehanna University for the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship "Dig In" conference, 24 hours of worship, scripture study, and socializing.

InterVarsity Christian Fellowship is not (contrary to popular belief) some sort of Christian athletes club. It's an international organization, started in Great Britain (where "varsity" is a common abbreviation for "university"), that is dedicated to creating communities of Christians on college campuses. Susquehanna's chapter currently has about 45 active members.

At the conference freshmen, sophomores and juniors from Bucknell, Penn State, Lehigh, Bloomsburg, Alvernia, Albright, and SU did an in-depth study of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Seniors like myself spent the conference talking about what it looks like to have faith after college in concrete terms.

After studying a few of Jesus' parables, we talked about how our faith can play active role in our jobs, careers, budgets, housing situations, and romantic relationships. We discussed the problems many twenty-somethings run into when they try to find a church and how we can actively seek out Christian community wherever we end up.

It was busy 24 hours, but I still found some time to connect with some old friends from Lehigh that I've gotten to know through other IV conferences. Susquehanna and Bucknell students opened up their rooms so students from the more distant schools would have a place to crash for the night.

At Susquehanna, a bunch of us ended up in a basement in one of the West Village buildings, spread out in front of the big screen TV, and we talked through all of The Italian Job. InterVarsity conferences are the only place where I've seen such vibrant community spring up so quickly among complete strangers.

The Diary of Anne Frank

Friday night I helped a friend cross an item off his senior year bucket list: attend this fall’s theatre department production, The Diary of Anne Frank. We arrived almost late (I tend to be almost always late for everything) and ended up sitting in the very first row because the show was almost sold out.

The set was sparse, roof beams above, floor boards below, and a few crates that sufficed for furniture. With the exception of a few cherished objects (a fur coat, a music box, the diary itself), there were no props. The actors mimed nearly everything. We watched the eight Jewish characters on the stage eat from empty hands, seek privacy behind invisible doors, and light Menorah candles that gave off no light.

After the show I learned that the tiny dimensions of the set that the eight actors shared actually matched those of the original rooms where Anne and her seven companions remained hidden for two years.  When the play ended, director Doug Powers joined the cast on the stage for a brief Q&A with the audience. The actors dangled their feet over the edge of the stage and discussed the challenges of acting in a tight space and bringing to life characters who were described primarily through the eyes of a young girl.

Sometimes people forget that Anne was just a girl, Powers explained during the Q&A. His aim in producing the play was to get his audience to see Anne not as a symbol of the Holocaust, but as a person. He said that by restoring her humanity, we strengthen her message.

More On SU's Theatre Department
Tickets and Upcoming Shows

SU Paranormal

The meeting opened with mostly mundane stuff—talk about budget hearings and homemade cookie fundraiser results—but when the club’s VP turned to me and the three-person student documentary team who were also sitting in on this SU Paranormal meeting and asked us if we had any questions, the group began to overflow with campus ghost stories.

They talked about “No-Face Girl,” a shadowy little kid who lives (if “lives” is the right word) in Seibert Hall and watches you from the foot of your bed; a big, dark figure with red eyes who can be seen staring out the door at the end of the hallway in one of the freshman dorms; the “evil hallway” in the basement of Weber Chapel where the group once had their flashlights flicker out.

“When all you can see are the exit signs, that’s what you’re running for,” said the VP, vigorously nodding her head.

The group takes its investigations seriously.  They have a strict no practical-joke-scaring policy and insist that no one goes off on their own. They also have a no-flip-flops rule (they make too much noise).  Through the cookie fundraiser I mentioned above, they're hoping to earn enough money to take a Gettysburg Ghost Tour trip. 

And equipment is important. On walkthroughs, the group carries EMF detectors for detecting electromagnetic fields, digital voice recorders for picking up EVP (“Electronic Voice Phenomena”), flashlights for obvious reasons, and digital cameras for capturing orbs of light that can’t be seen by the naked eye.

“The strangest thing I’ve ever encountered,” said Rob, “is capturing orbs on camera in Weber Chapel.”

Orbs, however, Angie pointed out, are contested as evidence of paranormal activity because they can be caused by dust particles in the air.

Whether you believe in ghosts or not—and even the club members range from firm believers to mild skeptics—SU Paranormal is a fun group to talk to, especially if you enjoy passionate storytelling.

“I think I might have to sleep with the lights on tonight,” I said as I closed my notebook, smiling even though, honestly, their stories had raised my heart rate higher than I’d like to admit.

The VP widened her smile, ready to tell another story. “What dorm are you in?”

“I’m not telling you.”

Fat Tuesday on Friday - aka Mardi Gras at Trax

Friday night Holly, Karen, Andrew, and I followed the railroad tracks to Trax, Susquehanna's on-campus student-run nightclub, for some drinks and some dancing at the Mardi Gras party.

Trax frequently has "wristband" nights throughout the semester, nights where Trax serves free alcohol to students 21 years of age and older.  Students of age receive a three-tabbed wristband upon entering Trax to ensure no one gets overserved.  Students who aren't 21 yet are also welcome at Trax on wristband nights; they just get their hands stamped instead of a wrist band.

So after showing off some of my (terrible) dance moves, I had a glass of Land Shark Lager.

The Mardi Gras party also included mask-making, a raffle drawing for a flat screen HDTV, and lots of dancing.  DJ Novocane, a student DJ, took requests all night—Shakira, Lady Gaga, the Black-Eyed Peas, "The Cupid Shuffle," that sort of stuff.  At one point during the night, there was even some spontaneous break dancing.  It was a good night, a good good night.

• More on Trax

The Sock Hop

I showed up at Trax a half-hour early to help set up, but by the time I got there everything was already done. “Here,” Collin, the VP of SU Swings, said as he dropped his hat onto my head. “You look good.” And then there was nothing left to do but listen to the band warm up and wait for everybody to show up.

The Sock Hop hosted by SU Swings was well attended (thanks, in part, to the free root beer floats and milkshakes). The student jazz combo played a great hour-long set that we all danced to, and then it was DJ’d swing music until 2 AM. There were beginner lessons upstairs by the pool tables and free-dancing downstairs in front of the stage.

It was really a great Saturday night. My girlfriend looked beautiful in her green dress, and I don’t think I looked half-bad in Collin’s hat (but judge for yourself). It’s always a huge amount of fun dancing with so many of your close friends. All in all, it was an awesome evening, full of inside turns, outsides turns, dips, leans, cuddles, milkshakes, barrel rolls, pretzels, and even a few never-ending loops.

• More on SU Swings
• More on Trax

Chilling at Charlie's

At 8:30 PM my long Wednesday was finally over—class, work, class, a meeting that ran long and made me late for dinner, and then I led an Intervarsity Bible Study. It was third long day in a row, and Thursday was promising to be even longer. What I needed was a break, some time to relax. What I needed was Zombieland.

Every Wednesday night (Friday nights too) Charlie’s Susquehanna’s student-run coffee house, plays a movie that’s left theaters but hasn’t made it onto DVD yet. I’d seen Zombieland at the Selinsgrove Cinema Center with Rob and Holly back in the fall and had been completely surprised to find that it wasn’t terrible like I’d expected it to be. It was actually really hilarious—especially for a zombie movie.

Anyway, Zombieland was just what I needed. I met Alice, Casey, and Eric at Charlie’s and for two hours completely forgot about how jam-packed Thursday was threatening to be.

Charlie’s is great. It’s home to both the best hot chocolate on campus and the university’s most comfortable couches (Get there early if you want a good seat!). They serve hot and cold drinks as well as all kinds of snacks. Occasionally they also do “mocktails,” and during football season, they have free wings. In addition to showing recent movies, Charlie’s also has live music, football games on the big screen, poetry readings, open-mic nights, and all sorts of other stuff.

It’s one of my favorite places on campus.

• More about Charlie's

"Faculty Lounge" Rocks Trax

I don't think it's at just any university where you can go out on a Friday night, shoot pool, and listen to your girlfriend's history professor belt out "Highway to Hell" while your literature professor backs him up on the guitar.

At Susquehanna, you can.

Saturday night we walked over the railroad crossing to Trax, Susquehanna's on-campus student-run night club.  Trax holds all sorts of events throughout the semester, including concerts, dances formal and informal, casino nights, wine tastings, even a gaming convention.  What drew my friends and I out on this cold Friday night was the chance to hear Faculty Lounge play a set.

It turns out that Dr. Roth is not only an expert on literary theory, he's also a great guitarist.

The band is made up of Dr. Long, my music tech prof, on the drums; Dr. Roth, my lit prof, on guitar; Dr. Winegar, one of SU's deans, on bass; and Dr. Imhoof, Holly's European history professor, on keyboard and vocals. 

The band played a good mix of original stuff and solid covers, including "Hey Ya."  After Dr. Imhoof jumped off the stage and did a lap around the inside of the building, he closed the set by singing "Now I'm a Believer" – in German.

This was definitely worth braving the cold.

Listen to Faculty Lounge.
More on Trax.
More on Faculty Lounge.

The Sound of Music at Susquehanna

Last Saturday at Susquehanna, the hills were alive with the sound of music.  Okay, not literally, but this past weekend the theatre department did put on The Sound of Music.

Every fall the theatre department teams up with the music department to put on a musical for family weekend.  In past years they've put on shows like Hello, Dolly!, Chicago, and West Side Story.

This year, because they moved the show from the Weber Chapel Auditorium, which seasts 1,500, to the much smaller Degenstein Theater, the theatre department doubled the number of shows, performing during family weekend and during homecoming.

Which was great for me because my younger sister was busy with marching band stuff during family weekend but was free during homecoming weekend.  So after my friends and I saw the Brian Regan show, we squeezed her into Holly's car and brought her back with us.  My sister's involved with drama club at school, and I thought she'd really enjoy the play.

The theatre department did not disappoint.  The student who played Mother Abbess really nailed her part, and of course the student cast to play Maria was excellent.  Four of the six Von Trapp children in the show were played by actual children, the sons and daughters of university faculty and staff.  The kids all did an amazing job.

What I thought was best about the play was the musicianship in the pit orchestra.  The music was fantastic.

The whole production was really professional.  I think it really made my sister's visit a memorable experience.

More on Susquehanna's Theatre Department

Pumpkin Carving with Intervarsity

Normally when a bunch of Susquehanna students from Intervarsity Christian Fellowship get together, the meeting involves a laid-back contemporary worship service or an in-depth look at a passage from the Bible.

But last Friday, that wasn't the case at all.  Last Friday involved vegetable and knives.  Intervarsity spent the night before Halloween carving pumpkins down in the common room of West Village G.

See for yourself:

Late Night Pancakes

There is nothing fun about studying for midterm exams.  But when you do find yourself stranded in the middle of midterm week, there’s something you can turn to for relief: pancakes.

Every semester during midterm week, Susquehanna’s chapter of Habitat for Humanity sets up an electric skillet in the lower level of the campus center, and from 8 PM to midnight, they cook pancakes.

"People just come right up to us,” Kenny, one of the Habitat volunteers, told me as my pancakes sizzled.  According to Kenny, the pancake sale relies primarily on word-of-mouth advertising around campus.

But the real secret to Habitat’s success has to be the warm smell of freshly made pancakes. The scent hits your nose as soon as you walk through the door. You can’t escape it. The campus center is filled with with that delicious smell. It’s no surprise Habitat sells about a hundred pancakes a night.

It’s only a dollar for two pancakes, and for fifty cents more, they’ll add chocolate chips to the batter. Every sale brings Habitat one step closer to building another house here in Selinsgrove. The money also helps supports the Collegiate Challenge, a spring break trip that puts students to work building houses for low-income families.

It’s a win-win situation.

88.9 WQSU-FM "The Pulse"

“You don’t have to keep backing up,” Kristen—that is, DJ K-Ri—tells me.

Sitting in a swivel chair behind the glowing mixing board in the WQSU control room has me feeling a little jumpy, but Kristen seems confident enough.

WQSU-FM is the 12,000-watt radio station in Susquehanna's campus center. The station broadcasts FM music and talk to places as far away as Bloomsburg and Williamsport and also streams its audio online.  I’ve walked past the place plenty of times—it’s got big glass windows that let you look in on the DJ as you walk by—but I’ve never been inside before.

The neon-blue clock in the corner is a reminder that everything has to be perfectly timed out. At the top of the hour, Kristen plays the station ID then the news report—which lasts exactly three minutes—before she goes on the air and gives the weather forecast.

Kristen is a creative writing/religion double major.  Her shifts at the station count as practicum for her broadcasting minor, but the station isn't reserved for communications students. The mic is open to any would-be DJs on campus.

After Kristen puts on “Poison” by Alice Cooper, she pulls off her headphones and turns to me. “Okay, we can talk now.”  The music plays softly through speakers that hang over our heads.

“So how do you make sure the news goes on right at 4:00?”

She smiles, nodding toward the paper and pencil sitting in front of her. “I use math.”

Once the music’s playing, things become more relaxed.  Kristen's friends pop in and out of the station, plopping down on the couch to talk to her for a few mintues before heading out again. 

Kristen mostly fills her two-hour shifts with contemporary, classic, and alternative rock with an occasional request mixed in. The station has two computers loaded with music: 15,000 songs on the one and another 18,000 on the other!

Half way through the Audio Slave track, a small strobe light above the telephone announces a call-in request. Kristen shakes her head as she hangs up the phone.  "I hate Bob Dylan," she says, but she cues up “Isis” anyway on the second Mac.  Bob Dylan is a step up from last week when she got a request for "Total Eclipse of the Heart." 

"Everyone walking by was looking at me like 'What are you doing?' and the song lasts like seven minutes."  Kristen shakes her head.  "It was awful."

Then as the Audio Slave song finishes up, she turns to the mixing board and fades the first computer out as she fades the second computer in.  A seamless transition.

Listen to WQSU-FM online.

More about WQSU.