Adventures in the Light Rail (version two)

The doors of the Sacramento light rail opened as my friend Jayne and I hopped on board. Gold Line, heading towards Folsom. We were at University/65th and our destination was Butterfield, only six stops away. It was going to be a relaxing and easy trip, a great alternative to walking six miles in the 95 degree afternoon weather.

It was quite pleasant on board the train as we started moving. There was a business man sitting across the aisle with his elementary-aged son, reading him a Dr. Seuss book, enjoying their pleasant time on the light rail. It was all simply pleasant.

And then she got on board.

The doors opened at the Power Inn station, and an uniquely dressed woman sauntered in with an unattractive man, who was looking as happy as can be. The two of them plopped down in the empty seats that were directly facing me and Jayne.

Judging from the way she dressed, it was apparent why she was with this guy. High heels and knee-length fishnet stockings. Dyed red hair and excessive makeup. Strategically placed tattoos and creatively positioned piercings. Top it all off with a black miniskirt and a blue tank top so tight and revealing that her abundant breasts became a pair of prisoners that couldn't wait to bust out of their cotton cage to wreak more havoc on society.

This guy she was with just had to be paying her for company. He looked like your typical southern hick, complete with the trucker hat, dirty jeans, plaid shirt, and of course a mullet. He wouldn't have looked out of place at a mangy flea market in backwoods Alabama, but here he was, in Sacramento, with a woman who was only attracted to his wallet.

They decided to get a little friendly.

The train started moving and within mere seconds of them sitting down, she leaned slightly over and wrapped both arms around his neck, all the while smiling and giggling. She slid one of her legs onto his lap and used it to gently caress him where it counts. Of course, still giggling. The guy, smiling, tried to say something to her, but mumbled so carelessly that any possible comprehension of his phrase was lost. She kept giggling. Who knows. Maybe she thought it was funny.

"Next stop, Watt/Manlove." Only three more stops to our destination.

She started to play with his hair, continue to giggle, and rub a little more. Her companion was smiling like an idiot, obviously loving every minute of it. The lady drew her lips close to his face, and began to whisper to him. I turned to Jayne to quietly mention my feelings of awkwardness, but as I turned back, it got out of control.

She was now totally licking his ear!

This wasn't a "I'm a kitten trying to get water" type of lick. This was a full on "your face is a melting ice cream cone and I happen to be Gene Simmons" type of lick! Right in front of me, not even five feet away, is Miss Tongue giving Alabama Joe an ear-waxing while rubbing his junk with her leg and giggling, while he is looking heavenward with a huge grin on his face and chuckles dribbling out of his mouth. Looking around I could see that everyone was as equally horrified as I was. The business man across the aisle had even repositioned his body somewhat to keep his young son from witnessing the dirty deed. Yet there they sat, either completely oblivious to their surroundings or entirely apathetic to the fact that there were many people who could see and hear their pre-game festivities.

For about two more minutes the giggles, chuckles, slimy ears, and intentional leg movements kept going, and they kept getting a little louder, totally offending everyone on board. Finally, just when his chuckles became too loud and unbearable, the voice of an angel penetrated through the love-sounds, much like her tongue was penetrating his ear canal!

"Next stop, Butterfield." Oh Yes! Yes yes! Oh what sweet relief!

Jayne and I wondered how much better walking would have been as we grabbed our things and ran from our seats to the exit, waiting eagerly to hop off the train and leave the two lovebirds, and that memory, behind.

The light rail slowed. The light rail stopped. Through the windows we could see Butterfield station, our land of freedom. Finally, the doors of the Sacramento light rail opened, and we hopped off the train. Those doors couldn't have opened any sooner.

Adventures in the Light Rail

The doors of the Sacramento light rail opened as my friend Jayne and I hopped on board. Gold Line, heading towards Folsom. We were at University/65th and our destination was Butterfield, only six stops away. It was going to be a relaxing and easy trip. Both of us were thankful that Sac State students receive free light rail passage, because otherwise we would have had to walk six miles in the scorching 95 degree afternoon heat.

It was actually quite pleasant on board the train as we started moving. The cozy temperature was pleasant, the bright sunshine was pleasant, and there was even a business man sitting across the aisle with his elementary-aged son, reading him a Dr. Seuss book, enjoying their pleasant time on the light rail. It was all simply pleasant.

And then she got on board.

The doors opened at the Power Inn station, and an uniquely dressed woman sauntered in with an unattractive man, who was looking as happy as can be. The two of them plopped down in the empty seats that were directly facing me and Jayne.

Judging from the way she dressed, it was apparent why she was with this guy. High heels and knee-length socks. Dyed red hair and excessive makeup. Strategically placed tattoos and creatively positioned piercings. Top it all off with a miniskirt and a tank top so tight and revealing that her abundant breasts became a pair of prisoners that couldn't wait to bust out of their cotton cage to wreak more havoc on society.

This guy she was with just had to be paying her for company. He looked like your typical southern hick, complete with the trucker hat, dirty jeans, plaid shirt, and of course a mullet. He wouldn't have looked out of place at a mangy flea market in backwoods Alabama, and yet here he was in Sacramento with a woman who ranked infinitely higher than him on the scales of attraction.

Despite that, they decided to get a little friendly.

The train started moving and within mere seconds of them sitting down, she leaned slightly over and wrapped both arms around his neck, all the while smiling and giggling. She slid one of her legs onto his lap and used it to gently caress him where it counts. Of course, still giggling. The guy, smiling, tried to say something to her, but mumbled so carelessly that any possible comprehension of his phrase was lost. She kept giggling. Who knows. Maybe she thought it was funny.

"Next stop, Watt/Manlove." Only three more stops to our destination.

She started to play with his hair, giggle even louder, and rub a little more. Her companion was smiling like an idiot, obviously loving every minute of it. The lady drew her lips close to his face, and began to whisper to him. I turned to Jayne to quietly mention my feelings of awkwardness, but as I turned back, it got out of control.

She was now totally licking his ear!

This wasn't a "I'm a kitten trying to get water" type of lick. This was a full on "your face is a melting ice cream cone and I happen to be Gene Simmons" type of lick! Right in front of me, not even five feet away, is Miss Tongue giving Alabama Joe an ear-waxing while rubbing his junk with her leg and giggling like a banshee, while he is looking heavenward with a huge grin on his face and chuckles ricocheting out of his mouth. Looking around I could see that everyone was as equally horrified as I was. The business man across the aisle had even repositioned his body somewhat to keep his young son from witnessing the dirty deed. Yet there they sat, either completely oblivious to their surroundings or entirely apathetic to the fact that there were many people who could see and hear their pre-game festivities.

For about two more minutes the giggles, chuckles, slimy ears, and intentional leg movements kept going, going, going, slowly crescendoing, louder, louder, louder, until finally! Piercing through the deafening shrieks of mutual and disgustingly public pleasure came the voice of an absolute angel!

"Next stop, Butterfield." Yes! Oh Yes, yes, yes! Oh what sweet relief!

Jayne and I wondered how much better walking would have been as we grabbed our things and ran from our seats to the exit, waiting eagerly to hop off the train and leave the two lovebirds, and that memory, behind.

The light rail slowed. The light rail stopped. Through the windows we could see Butterfield station, our land of freedom. Finally, the doors of the Sacramento light rail opened, and we hopped off the train. Those doors couldn't have opened any sooner.

Jet Set Radio and the Dreamcast: A retrospective

For gamers everywhere, September 9, 1999 is a special day. On that day, the Sega Dreamcast breathed new life into the video game industry. The console wasn't around for long, as Sega was unable to fight off the hype surrounding the upcoming Playstation 2 and systems from Nintendo and Microsoft. Despite lasting for only two years or so, the Dreamcast was home to many original and exciting games. It also has a special place in my own heart: the Sega Dreamcast was the first product I ever worked for to buy. Seeing the in-store display of a Dreamcast made me so incredibly excited, I sold every item I could sell, saved whatever money I could find, and worked to get as much money possible. My brothers and I pooled our resources and saved over $200, even at the age of 12. Then, on the highly advertised Dreamcast launch date, 9-9-99, my dad drove us to our local video game store to purchase the object of our affection. We loved every minute of it. To my parents dismay, it was the Dreamcast that truly fueled my hobby of video games beyond casual sessions of Sonic the Hedgehog or Madden to hours of playing with friends and keeping track of important industry players, such as developers and producers.

The ten year anniversary of the Dreamcast has come and passed, and with it many retrospective and analytical articles have been posted by a majority of websites dedicated to the industry, including quite informative ones at IGN and 1up. This, however, is a retrospective seen through the eyes of one game: Jet Set Radio (released in North America under the name "Jet Grind Radio.") Jet Set Radio symbolized the type of quality and originality the Dreamcast became known for, with such amazing titles such as Soul Calibur, Sonic Adventure, Phantasy Star Online, Space Channel 5, Power Stone, the 2K sports games, and Shenmue. None, however, are still as good or still as original as Jet Set Radio.

The game has you roller-blading around Japan in a world where self-expression has been outlawed. You fight the powers that be by spray-painting graffiti on everything as you're being chased by the policemen. It may sound a little weird, but the game itself was nearly perfect. Jet Set Radio was dripping with style and substance all at once. The soundtrack was amazing and completely fit the mood, as it was played through the in-game radio station named "Jet Set Radio." The graphics were new and revolutionary, like a cartoon come to life, and they were perfect for the game. The game was about tagging and graffiti art, and you could feel the passion of those who worked on the game as you played through it. It was new, it was fresh, it was completely unique, and it was only on the Dreamcast.

In reality, it probably couldn't have been on anything else. The Dreamcast seemed tailor-made for people who really loved video games, but games like Jet Set Radio, despite near-unanimous praise from the gaming press, never caught on with most gamers, and as such never sold well. Experiments like these, even with a huge amount of critical praise, are often costly for the developers. The Dreamcast suffered financially from many of these games, such as Shenmue (whose budget was rumored to be in the $70 million range but never came remotely close to recovering those numbers), and these poorly performing games helped the Dreamcast dig its grave into an early demise.

Jet Set Radio was something special, though. The only other game like it was Jet Set Radio Future, a sequel released on the first Xbox that was absolutely stellar but never picked up any steam in the marketplace. The Dreamcast truly was home to ingenuity in gaming, and this becomes especially apparent when you compare the Dreamcast lineup to the upcoming schedule of games to be released for the consoles currently around, such as the Playstaton 3 or Xbox 360. Almost every new game release is either a sequel or a game licensed after a movie or TV show. Another Halo, another Splinter Cell, another Assassin's Creed, another Mario, another movie tie-in, another Call of Duty, another God of War, another music game with plastic instruments. It gets a little tiring. The Dreamcast was home to originality, where new ideas and stellar gameplay seemed to spring out of the console every time you put a new game in.

While the Dreamcast is no longer being produced, it is still easily found today, even ten years after its debut. A quick search on craigslist or eBay comes up with quite a few results, with the cost of the system itself ranging between $30 and $50. Jet Set Radio itself can be found for $10 - $15, and then, for the price of the new Halo game, you can enjoy a game that still stands up to today's releases, and still feels fresh and new. Go ahead and relive some great memories. Or, if you've never had a Dreamcast, definitely pick one up, and you'll experience the same joy I did ten years ago on 9-9-99.

Students and Faculty Gather for Anti-Fee Protest, Nothing Significant Happens

Around 200 students and faculty gathered in the library quad of Sacramento State on Wednesday to protest the recent student fee increases and employee furloughs, and while the voices were loud, the action was silent.

The protesters made it obvious what their issue was: paying more and receiving less from our state-run university. The solutions to this problem, though, were not very good.

Members of the Peace and Freedom party were holding a banner in the back that read "Free Education For All, Tax The Rich." In addition, the speakers themselves frequently mentioned Assembly Bill 656, an oil severance tax that would tax oil companies pulling oil from the shores of California.

And...

that was about it. Yes, that's right. According to those who spoke at the protest, the best options are to 1) tax the rich, and 2) tax the (rich) oil companies. "They're not going to be hurting" was one reason given to tax those groups.

From the looks of the Sac State campus, it doesn't look like many students will be hurting either. As previously stated, there were about 200 people at this rally. 200! Sac State has around 28,000 students, with hundreds of faculty and staff. This means that less than one percent of the total campus population showed up for this event. Sure, a lot of students and faculty had classes to attend, but either way, the total number that showed up for this rally is so minuscule, their presence is rendered nearly irrelevant. If these cuts really affected students, shouldn't at least 10 percent of the student population show up? Five percent? Even two percent?

To really solve the problem of the campus budget cuts, though, there needs to be a more creative solution than simply taxing the rich. Simply raising taxes is a short-term fix only. AB 656, the oft-mentioned bill that taxes oil companies to give higher education some extra funding, would have only provided enough funds for this year. What happens when student fees increase next year? Are we going to tax oil again?

A real solution is not to ask for more money, but to see where money is currently being spent and redistribute existing funds in a more efficient manner. President Gonzales makes almost $400,000 a year? Really? Can't someone else do that job for cheaper? Is every tax dollar the school already receives wisely spent?

The frustration of the student population is valid. No one likes to realize that their fees were just increased again. But the students need to suck it up. If college is supposed to prepare you for the real world, well, students, welcome to the real world. In the real world, when a business is going through a hard time, they cut programs. They fire people. They lower their costs because they know that no one is going to bail them out (well, usually). And oftentimes good people get screwed. That is what we students are experiencing right now. It's not fun, but life in the work field generally isn't either.

Besides, the state is already funding the majority of the student's education. Do students really think that $2000 is going to fund an entire semester? Reality check: it doesn't. The State of California picks up the rest of the tab. Let's not get too flustered when the State is asking for a little help when they're $20 billion in the hole. The whole state is suffering, and the students who are already freeloading off the system should look at the whole picture and realize that they are a tiny part of it.

This doesn't mean that nothing needs to change. The CSU system is full of fraud and needs to be changed for the better. But in the meantime, the student population needs to suck it up instead of calling Chancellor Reed and complaining. Complaining only repeats the problem, and it doesn't solve any problems.

Suck it up. Pay the bills. We'll find a way to deal with the issue. Until then, when they say cut back, you say "good idea!" It's actually quite a catchy jingle when you get used to it.