Northwestern College, Iowa NWCommons The Beacon, 2019-2020 The Beacon student newspaper 2-21-2020 The Beacon, February 21, 2020 Beacon Staff Follow this and additional works at: https://nwcommons.nwciowa.edu/beacon2019 BEACONNORTHWESTERN COLLEGE February 21, 2020 Volume 93 - Issue 12 Mead retires from NW after 20 years A LOOK BACK NW’s online database subscriptions. AT LIBRARY LIFE While Mead is not from around here, she has fit into the midwest BAILEY BANWART of NW. She was born on the East SOCIAL WORK Coast and for a time, she worked at a small university college library in Anne Mead has been a staple in New Jersey to support her and her the Northwestern Dewitt Learning husband, Jim. She followed him Commons for some time now. She to Orange City, and they’ve lived has been at Northwestern for 20 here ever since. Not only has Mead years, and at the end of this academ- worked in the library, but she has ic year, she will be retiring. also given talks about marriage in If you’ve spent a good chunk of the women’s dorms, and she’s en- time in the LC, you have probably joyed being able to experience all seen Anne. She has been involved in the college has to offer, such as con- a lot on campus, and within the LC. certs and sporting events. “There’s a lot you can do in 20 One thing Mead will always re- years,” she said. member is the big move from the Mead has helped numerous de- Ramaker library to the Dewitt partments set up their subject Learning Commons. guides throughout the years, help- “We had a lot of fun [moving ing students and faculty generate to the LC], but it was hard work,” new knowledge and access new she said. ways of acquiring information. She People lined up along the green to has also helped professors decide on pass books from Ramaker to the LC PHOTO BY ABIGAIL MOODY what books to offer in class, having and it was, as she says, “very sym- Anne Mead poses in front of her office. She will be retiring after 20 years at Northwestern College. been a library liaison. In the past, bolic.” Mead admits that she’ll miss she was the government documents the intellectual stimulation that ademic environment, but more than working with the NW students. dents is a privilege, and we have such librarian, and she has also managed comes from working in such an ac- that, she will miss her colleagues and “Just being around college stu- wonderful students here,” Mead said. CONTINUED ON PAGE 4 Simm’s culture-debating, talking-stick podcast TAKE IT release new episodes on Tues- TO HEART days and Fridays. “The Take it to Heart podcast BREANNA CARR is a micro-pod with episodes no ENGLISH TEACHING longer than 15 minutes,” Simm said. But while it may be shorter Podcasts are gaining popu- than other podcasts, Simm still larity these days. With their entertains his viewers. Take it many different topics – from to Heart is a space for people to murder mysteries to financial be passionate about day-to-day advice to economic or Chris- things. The tagline for the pod- tian topics – podcasts give in- cast is “A podcast for hot takes, sight into how our world works moralizing preferences, and and allow ordinary people to feeling deeply on the mundane.” make an extraordinary impact. Simm said that he started Considering podcasts are from TITH after listening to a pod- all over the country, wouldn’t cast from The Ringer, a website it be awesome if there was a and podcast network he enjoys. podcast in our neighborhood? The Ringer covers a lot of sports, Well, right here at Northwest- culture and tech-type infor- ern, there is a podcast hosted mation. The podcast that gave by Michael Simmelink, the Simm the idea to start TITH was Hospers resident director. “The Hottest Take” where mem- Simm’s podcast series “Take bers of The Ringer staff spout off PHOTO SUBMITTED it to Heart” launched in No- their hot takes. Michael Simmelink talks to Kyle Zimmerman on his podcast, Take it to Heart. vember 2019 on Black Friday. “I liked the idea, and have bla- There are currently around 29 tantly ripped it off,” Simm said. it to Heart does better, but that’s Simm really enjoys podcasts consuming them. episodes of TITH. Simm tries to “I think there’s some things Take our model.” and spends too much time CONTINUED ON PAGE 5 beacon.nwciowa.edu 2|Downhill 4|Caucus Results 7|Softball Northwestern College - Beacon INSIDE 3|Language Program 5|Unsung Heros 8|Winter Carnival @NWC_Beacon ARTS & CULTURE 2 Skiing “comedy” leaves viewers thoughtful MOVIE REVIEW MOVIE THROWS posite side of the table. At the penetrate far deeper. the viewers are left to draw YOU FOR A LOOP site of the impending disaster, This movie caught me their own conclusions: does he grabs his phone and quickly off guard. Starring actors the couple stay together? Do MORIAH WITTENBERG runs for cover, leaving his wife such as Will Ferrell and Julia they not? What steps do they NURSING and children behind to face Louis-Dreyfus, I anticipat- take moving forward? the snow slide on their own. ed a movie filled with many In most movies, viewers are Advertised as a drama/ This incident raises feel- one-liners and frequent situ- typically drawn to a certain comedy film, “Downhill” is a ings of doubt for both Bil- ational comedy. But the hu- character and quickly become movie that prepares viewers lie and Pete as to what their mor was kept to an extreme set against another. However, for a delightful blend of in- relationship means and how minimum with the focus be- throughout this film, I found my- tense and engaging relation- they feel about each other. ing primarily on the couple’s self both understanding where ships and relieving comedy. The rest of the movie is spent marital struggles. each spouse was coming from However, that is not what watching the couple navigate In this case, the adver- but also hating both of them for this movie delivers. The movie these uncertainties. tising was misleading. But their blindness and their stub- demasks what we imagine as From the opening scene, the while the comedy was sparse, born mindsets and attitudes. a stereotypical nuclear family Staunton family is portrayed as the movie did portray the The prod ucers, again, de- and shows the struggles that an average American family: struggles of marriage and pict a very realistic story: in are faced behind the facade. vacationing in the Alps, hav- family incredibly w ell. many relationships, there will And in this way, this movie is ing fun, with the occasional It is tempting to paint a be wrong committed on both incredibly impactful. bickering here and there. Billie sugar-coated image of marital sides, and relationships are The film is set in the Alps is protective of her children; struggles. Yes, many stories not as black and white as one as the Staunton family takes a Pete wants to make everyone and characters have conflict, often hopes for. much-needed vacation. While happy; the boys simply desire but these struggles are often While I think “Downhill” pausing for lunch, an artificial to do what sounds most excit- minimized, and the story al- was mislabeled as a comedy, avalanche begins to rumble ing to them. The light-hearted most always has a happily-ev- it broke many common ste- down the mountain toward and bouncy music even sup- er-after ending. reotypes in t he film indus- the family, sending them and ports this image. However, “Downhill” de- try. The Staunton family, and everyone in the vicinity into a However, after t he inci- picts the difficulties of rela- specifically, Billie and Pete’s state of panic. dent with the avalanche, the tionships and the downward marriage, was shown in all its Billie (the wife) and her two viewers begin to see that trajectory of Billie and Pete’s beauty and rawness. The film PHOTO COURTESY OF IMDb boys are encased on one side what initially seemed as sur- marriage. Further, it is tempt- forces the viewers to honest- of the bench, unable to escape. face-level, inconsequential ing to leave the viewers with ly reflect on their own lives, On the other hand, Pete (the cracks in the family’s façade resolution and with a sense of making this a moving and husband) is sitting on the op- are actually divisions that comfort. However, in this film, impactful film. “The Slow Rush” is a meditation on time and change MUSIC REVIEW NEW ALBUM, SAME no more delayin’.” “On Track,” is another pleas- A revised version of the sin- ant layering of synths, elec- CLASSIC SOUND gle “Borderline” appears next tric piano and guitar. Despite on the album. Smooth drums Parker’s fear of the future and EMMA VAN DRIE and groovy bass loops juxtapose change that manifests in the POLITICAL SCIENCE with lyrics describing a rocky other tracks, with the release of relationship on the verge of col- The Slow Rush, he says “Strictly Tame Impala, aka Kevin Park- lapse, “caught between the tides speaking I’m still on track, and er, released the greatly anticipat- of pain and rapture.” all my dreams are still intact.” He ed album “The Slow Rush” five A mournful guitar riff opens is where he needs to be. years after “Currents,” which “Posthumous Forgiveness,” an “Lost in Yesterday” examines brought him into the spotlight.