Trip to the Incline.

Taking a short walk across the Smithfield Street Bridge is exciting to anyone who has never been there. Tuesday was my first experience with Station Square and the Monongahela Incline.
First, we went on the Mongahela Incline. This is one of two inclines left in Pittsburgh; the other being the Duquesne Incline. Opened on May 28, 1870, the Monongahela Incline celebrated its 140th birthday this past May. It costs $2.00 roundtrip. Make sure to have cash becaus it is the only form of payment accepted. Our class got on the incline and experienced the city at new heights. Once we got off, we paid our fee in the station at the top of Mt. Washington. There is an amazing lookout spot that one can see the entire view of downtown. Also, there is a sign that shows many arrows pointing in different dircetions that are points of interest. I would definitely reccommend going on the incline in the evening because the lights would be amazing.
After riding down, we were set free to explore Station Square. There aren't many store, but I was glad to see a huge Women's Hometowne Sports shop. There are some interesting eateries, such as: Buca di Beppo, Hard Rock Cafe, Joe's Crab Shack, and many other casual dining places. The last thing I took some time to see was the fountain in Besemer Court. Although there are light shows at night, seeing it during the day is still an awesome sight. There were many children running by the fountain because every so often the wind would blow and some of the water would give off a sprinkler afftect. So, anyone looking for a fun place to spend an afternoon should definitely look into visiting Station Square and the Monongahela Incline.

Harlan Cohen's Chapter 2: Resident Halls (Photos)

Here are a few pictures, of resident rooms, which go with the chapter on Resident halls! This is our CameraGirl Teresa!














This is Krissy, the Sidekick, and in her side of her room!






This is a picture of Teresa's bathroom. Lawrence Hall has bathrooms in the rooms as opposed to Thayer which has community bathrooms!




Just a couple more pictures of Christy, the "Super"Viser's room!

Harlan Cohan's Chapter 2: Residence Halls (Video)

On our trip around campus, we found out how much students' living conditions vary. We made our way over to Thayer Hall, where the rooms were air conditioned and of decent size. On the down side, bathrooms were located at the end of the hall and not in their rooms. Crossing over to Lawrence Hall we found that triple rooms are also a decent size and had their own bathrooms, but lacked air conditioning. Making our way to a double room, we noticed the room size was a great deal smaller but still contained a private bathroom inside.

Special thanks to Kelly Joy, James Tyler and Luke Minx for allowing us to interview them about their living conditions this year.

Chapter 8 Dating and Relationships By Alexis Pampena & Ciera Onley

There are many different types of love, which means there are many different types of relationships. We broke them down into four categorizes; single, in a regular relationship, long distance relationships, and open relationships. All of these have pros and cons depending on how you look at them.

Lets start with being single. Although, if you are single you are not technically in a relationship but it still counts. Your choice to be single is just as important as a choice to be with someone. Being single means that you are not seeing anyone. You are free to date people and go out and mingle. A defiant pro of being single is the freedom. You are free to date or kiss who ever you please. A con of being single is being lonely sometimes. You don't have that boyfriend or girlfriend to come home to or call late at night. There is you and only you.

The hardest type of relationship has to be long distance. Long distance relationships range from being in separate cites to being states away. Any time you can not be with the one you love its hard. Some high school sweethearts stay together even after they go off to college. Its a big transition from seeing someone everyday to only seeing them about four times a year. Distance does make the heart grow fonder. Being away from the one you love can strengthen the bond between you both. Strong healthy relationships are always a pro. The obvious con is distance. Communication is limited to phone calls, text messages, facebook and web cams. Days when you need a hug from the one you love will have to wait until the next trip home. If any one can survive a long distance relationship the love is truly strong and worth holding on to.

Open Relationships

Description: An open- relationship means a lot of different things to different people. In most cases it means you are in a relationship with another person but both of you agreed to not be exclusive or completely committed. Basically it means you can see other people.

Pros: Since you’re in college you are surrounded by a lot of new people. You might want to get to know and spend some time with them. But when you’re in a relationship, spending a lot of time with other people can create problems. Being in an open-relationship can be an easy solution. You can hang out with whoever you like and at the end of the day you still have that special someone.

Cons:  it’s important to remember that an open-relationship requires a lot of trust. If you can’t trust your partner you will end up fighting all the time, and questioning where they are or who they are with. (Especially if your partner lives back home) An open relationship can be very complicated; some might even consider it cheating. The best thing to do is to talk to your partner and establish what is and is not allowed. Another problem is if you ever decided to change from an open-relationship to a committed relationship, it might not be so easy.

In a relationship

Description: This simply means you are in a committed relationship with one other person, no one else.

Pros: Being a college student can sometimes be lonely.  You might not know that many people or you might not have close friends. But being in a relationship means you always have someone to talk to and hang out with. You’ll have that special person to spend Friday nights with, you can watch movies and go out to eat. You won’t have to be alone.

Cons: You spend all your time with just that one person, which means you don’t spend time getting to know anyone new. You won’t make new friends that way. You may depend too much on your relationship and it could break. And what happens if the relationship doesn’t last? You haven’t bonded with anyone at school so you may feel even lonelier than before.

Your college experience can depend on what your relationship status is. But being single or in an open-relationship doesn’t guarantee you will have more fun than someone who is in a relationship. It all depends on the type of person you are. If you like being in a relationship, even long distance, go for it!  It may require more work, but no one said college is easy.

The Social Reality of My Social Reality.

Most of my teenage life was spent in the realm of high school. The classes, the friends, and the good old fashioned teenage lapse of judgment were norms for me. That was my social reality for such a long time that it was hard to imagine any other life outside of my comforting walls of highschool-dom. As I graduated and began my post-high school life here at Point Park, I can truly say, my social life is entirely different in these confines. College is like a chance at starting everything fresh and new. However, as a commuting student who is still living in the same house, around the same people I’ve always known, I feel as if I’m caught in a social limbo of sorts. As one of the few from my high school who are attending college, ninety percent of my high school friends are busy working when I’m out of class, as I’m busy with class while they’re off. It has become rare to see these high school friends, but as a commuter, it has been difficult finding a group of college friends to spend my time with. Don’t get me wrong, I do have some new friends from college, but seeing them is mostly limited to while I’m on campus.

This is the crux of the commuter student. They’re not quite here, nor are they quite there. I came into this college not knowing anybody, but I do know a few people now, and that’s the positive. After a month of classes, I have gotten to know a few students, and learned the atmosphere of this college. In the end, it’s a process. My social life now feels like it’s in a freefall down a bottomless pit. I’m not quite sure whether I’m still in my high school state of mind, with all of the same that I’ve had for four years, or if I’m plunging into the college life. Though, in this month, I have worked towards moving on with my life, and escaping the drawn out high school experience. My social reality is one of two worlds right now, but I’m still pushing forward.

The Naked Roommate

The university Experience class is using Harlan Cohen's book The Naked Roommate and 107 issues you might run into in college.

As it is one month into the semester the class was asked to take a look at how they, as freshman, are doing after a month of the college life. The class was divided into six groups, and each group assigned one of the chapters of Cohen's book. Some of the chapters include living in the residence halls, dealing with roommates, drinking, relationships, getting involved, and academic life.
The blogs entries that follow will be one of a few installments. The students will do this once a month to see how life is going for the new students on campus after one, two, three, etc., months here at Point Park University. They will be looking at the transition between living at home and living on campus, dealing with stress (especially when midterms roll around), and making friends and getting involved. Stay tuned for more...

Chapter 4, Finding Friends: Your Social or Antisocial College Life

Month One: The summer after senior year, was the best summer of my life. All of my friends from highschool and me hung out everyday and night. We went to the pool, the river, camping, dinner, parties, and more. There was not one day of summer that we did not see each other. It was the most fun I've ever had. Our parents let us stay out later than past summers and they did not call our phones as often. At the end of summer, we had a big dinner where we reminisced all about our memories, mostly good, and vowed that we all would talk everyday. It was like our own little "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants". For the first two weeks, we talked almost everyday, still not as often we planned. We eventually came to the realization that because we all go to different colleges, it was inevitable that our schedules were going to be different. Everyone has a pretty heavy workload, so when we're not in class, at dinner, or at the gym, we're studying. This leaves barely anytime for Facebook or Skype at the same time. We still manage to talk at least three times a week, but it is not as often as we would all like. Of course, we're able to squeeze texts in here and there, but we know that the other are busy making new friends. Somehow, we know that on breaks, everything will go back to normal and we'll pick up right where we left off at the end of summer. Though it is important to make new best friends in college, you cannot forget the old ones.

Living in a residence hall, it is pretty easy to make friends. Especially, with your roommates. I've found all different cases of roommate situations. Some people are best friends with their roommate/s. Others, despise one another. And then there are some, who are in between. They don't mind living with the persom, but they are not best friends. I think it is good to like your roommate because you're with one a lot, and it's good to have someone to go to dinner with, as well. Though you might already be very close with your roommate/s, don't forget about your old friends!

Chapter 7

Managing your time and keeping on top of your academics can be a challenge as an incoming freshman. This can be especially difficult coming into the start of classes with a job. I am experiencing this first hand. In this first month, I have realized it is much more difficult to manage than I had initially thought. I am a server at a restaurant and I work Thursday through Sunday, starting at 5p.m. By the time I get out of work, I am tired and the last thing that I want to do is homework. All that this means is that I need to stay on top of my work and not get behind, so that my work does not pile up for one night. It is important to get enough sleep, as to not be too tired and sleep through classes. I have come into a nice routine after this first month, with my time being very well balanced between my workload at school and work. I need to keep this routine going, as the work load here at school will become harder as the year progresss. Time management comes down to even my morning commute on the Port Authority buses, as they are frequently late or are too crowded and pass me by. Taking the trolley is also a problem, you never know exactly when they are coming due to traffic or how many people are taking the trolley. Staying on top of the work load is hard to do, but very important.

Chapter 10: Drinking on Campus

"You might be an alcoholic if..."

How do you know if you're a college alcoholic? How about if every night of your weekend consists of going to parties? What about people who drink every weekend to fit in? This is a common problem found in college, especially when you have three-day weekends every weekend.

We all know that underage college kids drink, and we all know that when everyone leaves on the shuttle at 10 PM on a Thursday, Friday, or Saturday night that they're not going shopping. And this is where the trouble begins. All the freedom of college goes to their heads and they think that the only thing to do every weekend is drink and go from party to party in Oakland. One of my favorite weekend activities is sitting outside at night on the weekends to watch everyone who has been out partying come stumbling back in. The girls can barely walk in their high heels and the guys are loud and obnoxious. They're funny to watch, but the fact that they feel that drinking is the only way to have fun on weekends is not funny. When you live in the city, there's always something to do, even when most stores close by 6 PM.

Everyone knows that college kids are going to drink, even when there are other activities, but I think the party needs to slow down. The weekend shouldn't be about what parties to hit and how trashed you're going to get. What's the point of going to college if you can't even remember it in the morning?

By Leanna Indyk and Kaci Lewis

One Month In...Surprise Roommate!

One month into your Point Park Experience you may be realizing that your roommate may not live up to the high expectations or standards that you originally had. For example, I only spoke with my roommate a few times prior to moving into school. I was glad to learn that the entrance survey placed me in a room with a girl that had the same major as myself. It is nice to have a study buddy right there if we ever need each others opinion or notes on an assignment. I did not expect to have so much in common with someone I did not hand pick to live with. We had a good start when I moved in a day after her. She was all settled in and helped me move all of my bags and boxes. From the beginning we got along and had a respect and understanding for each others privacy and personal space.

It's good to keep an open mind going into a college where you know you'll be rooming with other people. Don't slash down a roomate because they have a certain band playing when you walk into the room, and definetly don't make a judgement of how awful your life will be now. If you stay open minded you might find out things you have in common, and a relationship can build from that. You shouldn't have high exspectations of what will happen and of what your roomate will offer to help out with. Be sure to 'Lay Down the Rules' before you need them too, the first week of school would be best, that way when a problem comes up you won't be saying "I'd rather you not do this-" when it's already happening.

An example of some rules could be sharing the grocery list;

• Will you share food?



• Will you split the bill?



• How do you decide who buys what?

My roommate and I had a fair plan for sharing food right off the bat. We keep our food on seperate shelves, but we share whatever we have. For example, I buy a case of water and the next time we need water she will buy it or give me the money to go to Sam's Club and get water. It is only fair that we split costs for food and water that we both enjoy. We also keep a running grocery list. Whoever uses the last bit of salsa or last few potato chips will write it on the list, so neither of us comes home to an empty jar of salsa.

Harlen Cohen Speaks at Point Park!

Few weeks back on a late Thursday, September 2, I was heading home for the weekend, but could not leave until I went to hear Harlan Cohen speak. Initially i went to his speaking as an extra credit assignment, and just wanted to get my book signed and that was it.. but i enjoyed him a lot more than i thought i would.
Harlan Cohen is the author of "The Naked Roommate: And 107 Other Issues You Might Run Into in College." As Cohen took the stage, started to speak and as he was speaking he grabbed his guitar and started playing, as he spoke. Right then, i knew he would be interesting. He continued his introduction on himself and then went right into a song about his roommate "Stew" who was a nudist, hence the title of his novel. So early on Harlan Cohen was very entertaining and captured my attention. He talked about just a few of the many issues we may face in college, such as long distance relationships (LDR), transferring, sex, not having sex, alcohol, drugs, ect. But this was not just a lecture on how to say "NO," it was more of him telling stories what he has been through and what stories he has gotten from other people and made it easier for us pay attention and really take in what he was saying.
What i liked the most was how enthusiastic he was about being at Point Park and having the chance to speak to us and give us his insight. He interacted with the audience, made us subject to his stories, almost like he was putting us in the shoes of whomever. He was extremely funny and very personable with us. He liked not only speaking to us but more so talking with us, getting our input and experiences to add to his speaking.
Lastly, he finished up with his well-known Syphilis song, which was very comical. I really hope Harlan Cohen comes back to speak at Point Park again, because i know i would love to attend another one of his shows!

First Time on the Incline by Ciera Onley

Who knew there was a whole other world up that mountain. At the top of Mount Washington a separate community sits over looking Pittsburgh. People who live there often work down in the city area, thus the incline was born. The incline, properly named The Duquesne Incline, is a way of transportation for the citizens of Mount Washington to get to and from work.
   I have always heard of the famous incline in Station Square but have never rode on  it. I find it amazing how the idea of a train car could be applied to going up the side of a mountain. It’s almost like an outdoor elevator that goes up and down a mountain, instead of a building. To my surprise the ride up was not very long. From a distance, it looked as if it would be a long ride but as soon I got inside, almost a second later I was at the top. The view from the top is perfect. You could look down and see every bit of Pittsburgh.
Atop Mount Washington, I could see all the buildings of Pittsburgh, the many bridges and the river. 
    If you are afraid of heights I do not recommend taking a ride on the incline. However if you are not afraid of heights, you must make it a goal to ride the incline. 

A View of Pittsburgh

How to get involved at Point Park

Point Park offers many opportunities for students to get more experience in their majors by offering a variety of clubs and student run media that anyone can join!

Here is a list of journalistic clubs students can join:

College Students in Broadcasting- provides students who are interested in broadcasting opportunities to get more involved by networking with professionals in the field. Contact Briana Miller at bmmille@pointpark.edu

National Press Photographers Association (NPPA)- A club that provides photographers with opportunities to network, receive portfolio reviews, and attend guest lecturers and peer discussions. Contact Kelly Cline at klcline@pointpark.edu

Society of Professional Journalists- This club is dedicated to enhancing and building the experiences of aspiring journalists. Contact Kristina Martin at kmmarti@pointpark.edu

Get your work published or get on the air with these university sponsored student media:

The Cavalcade- Point Park’s literary magazine. Send in your short stories, poems, photographs, or artwork. Contact Heather Starr Fiedler at Hstarr@pointpark.edu

To the Point- Point Park’s news, arts, and entertainment magazine. Send in news stories, fashion pieces, editorials, photographs, and much more. Contact Aldona Bird at ambird@pointpark.edu. Visit tothepointonline.net !

The Globe- Point Park’s newspaper. Go to a meeting on Mondays at 2:40 to get assigned to a story! Contact Tracy Taylor at tmtaylo@pointpark.edu

WPPJ- Point Park’s radio station. Learn more about broadcasting and maybe even get your own radio show! Become a news anchor, a talk show host, or go behind the scenes and become a music or production assistant. Contact Anthony Costulas at amcostu@pointpark.edu

U-View- Point Park’s student run TV station. Students in any major can get experience in TV production! Contact Michael Quigley at mdquigl@pointpark.edu