Author: woodaf22

February 9, 2023

Dungeons, Dragons, and Podcasts

If you ever wanted to experience the world of Dungeons and Dragons but haven’t had the opportunity to join a campaign, then listening to a D&D podcast might be the solution for you.

For those of you who are new players:

Dumb-Dumbs & Dragons is a podcast hosted by Tom McGee who is also the dungeon master of the game. McGee takes three improvisers (Tyler Hewitt, Laura Hamstra, and Ryan LaPlante) who have never roleplayed before through a wild adventure. Although the humor may be cheesy, it never fails to make me smile or to blurt out a laugh. You never know where the roleplay story will go and how the improvisers will react to each situation, keeping you hooked in order to find out what happens next.

Every so often, the team (DM and players) will add a special guest is added to the group to keep things fresh and interesting. It is fascinating watching the group respond to each new group member, as their chemistry makes you laugh along with them. Not only are the players learning the ways of D&D, but you are joining their journey and learning as well. The story and plot are easy to follow as well as the episodes being short and easy to digest. You can listen for free on Spotify watch them in video format on Youtube. I highly recommend you check them out.

For those of you who are more experienced:

Critical Role is a podcast hosted by Matthew Mercer (the dungeon master or DM) who leads a team of fellow voice actors through fantastical D&D roleplay campaigns. The players draw you in with the unique and talented voices they give their characters. Each player has their backstory and why they are all united together in the first place..The characters (and the players) also have great chemistry and know how to work well together. Although the story can be a bit confusing as you watch because there are six players, it is still fascinating to see the individual stories unfold within the bigger plot of the campaign. The DM knows how to spin fascinating and compelling campaigns keeping you engaged through each episode. There are three different campaigns that are out at the moment, each one having their own unique set of characters and stories. Each campaign gets more and more chaotic and has the added bonus of an increase in the production value, such as microphone quality and sound effects. The podcast is free to listen to on Spotify or to watch on YouTube or live on Twitch as the third campaign is still ongoing.

—Emma Krueger, Podcast Editor

February 9, 2023

Romantic Dramas for Valentine’s Day

Everyone needs a movie night once in a while. Whether it’s hanging out with all your best friends or laying low at home with some popcorn, we’ve got you covered!

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Everyone has that one ex. Things were great; then they weren’t. You wish you could get all the time and energy you spent on them back and forget them entirely. When Joel Barish discovers that his girlfriend has gone through a revolutionary procedure to do just that and purge any memories of him from her life, he decides to do the same. But as Joel feels all his greatest experiences slipping through his fingers, he instead fights to remember his past. Starring Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet with appearances from Elijah Wood and Mark Ruffalo, this cult classic asks: If we refuse to learn from heartbreak, will we ever stop getting hurt? I found the film alternatively heartwarming and bittersweet, feeling like a story of everyday people despite the very out-there premise. Is your interest piqued? You can stream it for free with an Amazon Prime subscription or rent it elsewhere. 

Out of Sight

When explaining romantic conflict to wannabe romance authors, a lot of writing instructors will fall back on the “one is a firefighter, and the other is an arsonist” example. The screenwriters of Out of Sight took that example to heart, but in this romantic-suspense drama—helmed by Steven Soderbergh of Ocean’s 11 and Magic Mike fame—she’s a federal agent, and he’s a wanted criminal. 

Based on the book by bestselling crime novelist Elmore Leonard, the film begins with U.S. Marshal Karen Sisco (Jennifer Lopez) arriving at Miami’s Glades Correctional Institution, just in time to catch notorious bank robber Jack Foley (George Clooney) as he finishes tunneling out of the prison. Determined not to let her foil his escape plan, Jack tosses her into the trunk of his getaway vehicle and then joins her. His accomplice shuts them in and drives off, and sparks fly as Jack and Karen spend the uncomfortable trip verbally sparring with each other. After managing to escape, Karen gets a hold of herself and immediately launches a federal pursuit of the charming fugitive, and the cat-and-mouse chase at the center of this film is on. But every time they connect for a moment and quickly ricochet apart, the two can’t help but wonder what if?—even though both know they have no future. (Or do they?) Highly improbable as it is, Out of Sight is still a step up from the average romantic drama due to the likeable leads’ whipsmart banter and crackling chemistry. Ignore your internal film critic’s complaints about how “this would never happen in real life” and just enjoy the ride. Available on Peacock and to rent on other streaming services. 

—Tracy Fernandez Rysavy, Driftwood Advisor

February 9, 2023

Indie Rock Picks

Tired of listening to the same old top-40 songs? Try these alternative rock albums from two bands who might be new to you. 

Nonagon Infinity
by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

“The Concept Album that Never Ends” 

Nonagon Infinity is the album that really put King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard on the map. The Australian-based psychedelic rock group had always defined themselves by making the music they wanted to make, bending and breaking norms to create a catalog of music that only they could, perfectly showcased in 2017’s Nonagon Infinity. A concept album, for those who don’t know, is an album that’s driven by a core idea whose influence can be heard throughout. The “secret” to Nonagon Infinity is hinted at in its name; the album itself is composed of nine tracks, each song transitioning into the next and the last song looping back to the start. It truly is an album that never ends. Musically, the album is active and intense, never lingering in one spot and always keeping things moving. The band had seven members when this was recorded, and as such, there is a lot going on in the soundscape. Motifs and melodies get repeated in new and interesting ways, keeping everything together. Despite the cohesiveness of the album, each song still feels unique and stands out on its own. It’s clear that the band took a lot of time in nearly every aspect of the album, and as a whole is definitely one of King Gizzard’s most defining albums and an album that you should listen to at least twice.

The Slow Rush
by Tame Impala

Whether you have a busy schedule or time to spare, there are those free moments in between your tasks. The album, The Slow Rush (2020) by Tame Impala is the type of music that can fill those moments with an opportunity to recharge. Like a breath of fresh air, this psychedelic rock album is filled with synth waves that include energetic songs such as “Breathe Deeper,” and “Is It True.” This 57-minute album blends genres such as electronic, dream pop, and soft rock to provide an overall sound that is perfect for creating the motivation to get through a task. The different moods within this album make it possible to feel both tranquility and inspiration. I recommend listening to this album on the drive home, with friends, or while cleaning.

February 9, 2023

Golf and Garbage

Here are two great games for when the internet is down! All you need is a deck of cards and the determination to crush your friends.

Golf (2+ players)

Alright, Tiger Woods. We know you’ve tried the sport, but have you tried the card game? Like the actual sport’s rules, the goal of the card game Golf is to accumulate the least points possible.

Scoring
 Each numeral card scores face value (Ace = 1, Two = 2, etc.)
 Each Jack or Queen scores 10 points. (Gross! You don’t want points.) 
 Each King scores zero points.
 Each Joker subtracts 13 points. (Me-ow! The lower your score, the better.) 

Each player will be dealt six cards face down and will set them up in two rows of three cards, while the remainder of the deck sits in the middle, along with the discard pile. The player to the left of the dealer starts, and play continues clockwise.

Everyone begins by flipping two of their cards face up. Each round, you may replace a card from your hand. You can do this by either drawing from the middle or taking the top card off the discard pile. NOTE: You are not allowed to look at the card you are replacing if it’s face down! No sneak peeks, Tiger. If you decide that you don’t want either card from either pile, you can take a chance and take neither—but you must flip one of your own face down. If you have double of one card in the same column (example, a queen on top and a queen beneath), their collective points cancel out. This is good! They equal zero and won’t count toward your score.

The game ends when one player has flipped all their cards face up. Once they have, everyone else gets one more turn to replace their cards or be forced to flip. NOTE: Going out first does not mean you win! Tally up your points, and voila, you’ve Golfed!

Garbage (2+ players) 

Otherwise known as Trash, this popular and easy-to-learn card game doesn’t involve any actual trash. The goal is to be the first person with a complete sequence of Ace to 10. Every time you complete your run, your next hand will have one less card. The game continues until a player makes it completely down the line and only needs one card to win!

Scoring

 Each numeral card scores face value (Ace =1, Two = 2, etc.)
 Each Jack or Queen is worthless to your sequence. (Garbage, some would say)
 Each King and Joker can be a stand-in for ANY card in your sequence.

Each player begins with 10 cards and lays them face down, while the remainder of the deck sits in the middle, along with the discard pile. The player to the left of the dealer starts, and play continues clockwise.

On your turn, you may choose either a card from the middle or from the discard pile. If you draw a card that can’t go anywhere, place the card in the discard, and your turn ends. 

If you draw a card that can fit, place it in the correct spot and see if the card you’re removing fits somewhere else in your sequence. (For example, I replace a facedown card with an 8. The facedown card was a 3, and I use it in my sequence. My play continues until I can’t replace anything else.)

Once the first person has completed their sequence, everyone else has one turn to replace and try to finish their own. Any cards still face down must be flipped at the end of your final turn. And that’s it! Now you know how to take out the trash.

February 9, 2023

Monster Prom 3: Monster Roadtrip

In this latest installment of the Monster Prom franchise, work together with your friends to not get stranded in the desert as you bumble through wacky hijinks and meet quirky creatures. Where earlier games had a competitive focus to romancing your favorite characters, this recent installment turns up the teamwork: Players must work together to survive crazy shenanigans and get through this trip in one piece! And if you wish the game would have a little more to it behind the jokes and gimmicks, just chat up a character at a rest stop where the dialogues feel like deep, soulful conversations past midnight with a close friend. If you want to spice things up, take turns reading dialogue in accents and funny voices! With in-person or online multiplayer anywhere from one to four players, this game has it all: adventure, friends old and new—wait, bears?—and maybe your one true (fictional) love! Available on Steam. 

—Henri Lepak, Gaming Editor

February 9, 2023

Calling All Writers, Artists, and Photographers!

The submission windows for the Spring 2023 editions of Sheepshead Review and Northern Lights Literary & Arts Journal are now open! Sheepshead Review and Northern Lights are print/digital journals published by the English department at UWGB. Both feature fiction and creative nonfiction, poetry, art, photography, and digital works.

“The difference is that Sheepshead is published three times a year on the Green Bay campus and is open to anyone from around the world. Ergo, it’s highly competitive, and they reject excellent content from time to time for space reasons,” says Professor Tracy Fernandez Rysavy. “Northern Lights is published annually from the Marinette campus and is only open to students, faculty/staff, and alumni on all four UWGB campuses. So while it’s still competitive, you have a much better chance of getting published. I encourage students to submit to both!”

The deadline for Sheepshead Review‘s spring 2023 issue is February 26th. The deadline for this year’s Northern Lights is April 2nd.

View past issues of Sheepshead Review and get details on how to submit at the Sheepshead website. You can still get copies of last year’s Northern Lights in the Marinette campus library, in Student Services, or from Professor Rysavy. Read content from past issues of the journal and submit your work on the Northern Lights website. 

Contact Professor Rysavy with questions.

February 9, 2023

Marinette Campus Photo Contest

The library is looking for photos that capture the Marinette campus and the surrounding area. If you have pictures in, on, or around campus, send them in!  Submit your photo here.

Photos entered will be posted anonymously in the library commons display case for voting, and the winning photo or photos will be made into posters for the library study rooms. 

The contest runs from now through March 10th, with voting beginning after Spring Break.

(Photo by Kaitlyn O’Claire)

February 9, 2023

Romantic Reads

Celebrate Valentine’s this year by settling in with one of these romantic reads and a cup of tea.

The Love Hypothesis
by Ali Hazelwood

“You can fall in love: someone will catch you.” —The Love Hypothesis

This adorable, tropey romance follows graduate student Olive Smith, who finds herself roped into a fake relationship with Stanford’s grumpiest young professor. It starts when Olive needs to convince her best friend Anh that she no longer wants to romantically pursue their mutual friend Jeremy, so Anh can feel comfortable dating him. So naturally, she lies, saying she’s dating the attractive, yet cold, biologist, Dr. Adam Carlson. After working out the details, they both agree to fake-date, yet as it goes on, Olive finds she may actually be catching feelings. 

This lighthearted novel has the feel of watching a cutesy rom-com play out in book form. Think The Proposal but set in the world of academia. This book really just allows the reader to sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride. Its ease of reading also makes it a phenomenal study-break activity. I found myself laughing and gasping through the whole thing, always drawn back into the pages!

A Room with a View
by E.M. Forster

“By the side of the everlasting why, there is a yes.” —A Room with a View

What happens when a young woman in Edwardian England has to choose between buckling to societal pressures or following her heart? A Room with a View answers that question through the story of Lucy Honeychurch, a wealthy English woman who travels to Florence, Italy, chaperoned by her uptight older cousin Charlotte Bartlett. The two stay in a pensione (a small hotel), where they meet a motley assortment of fellow Brits, including lower-middle-class Mr. Emerson and his handsome son George. Mr. Emerson shocks Charlotte and company by mentioning the word “stomach” in conversation at breakfast, following up that unforgivable faux pas by offering his and George’s room to Charlotte when he overhears her complaining that they were promised a room with a view that didn’t materialize. Charlotte flatly turns him down, not wanting Lucy beholden to such a crass man (though it’s clear his greater sin is not being rich). But a clergyman in their party intercedes and talks her into accepting. And so begins a tentative friendship between Lucy and the rough-around-the-edges but exceedingly kindhearted Mr. Emerson, and her occasional bewildering interaction with brooding, taciturn George.

Though haunted by her attraction to George, especially after a thunderbolt of a kiss they share in a Tuscan field, Lucy follows familial expectations once back in England and becomes engaged to rich, rather pretentious man of leisure Cecil Vyse. But guess who happens to move to Lucy’s neighborhood? That’s right—the Emersons. It’s a crazy coincidence, but just roll with it, as it’s also a delight. As her wedding date draws nearer, the Beethoven sonatas she pounds out on the piano grow more overwrought, and Mr. Emerson is the only one to notice something is amiss. He sweetly exhorts her to embrace life, even if that means flying in the face of class concerns and uptight convention. Because, he famously tells her, “By the side of the everlasting why, there is a yes.” But will Lucy say yes to George and to happiness? Or will she be left asking herself why she married damp, overbearing washcloth Cecil for the rest of her life? A Room with a View is a wonderfully written romance that, though published in 1908, still holds plenty of wisdom, charm, and gentle humor for today’s readers. 

The Song of Achilles 
by Madeline Miller

“We were like gods at the dawning of the world, and our joy was so bright we could see nothing else by the other.”  —The Song of Achilles

The Song of Achilles is a story woven through the fates of The Iliad, following the heroic and tragic tale of Achilles, the greatest of the Greeks, and Patroclus, the disgraced prince, in their fabled deeds in the renowned Trojan War. The tale follows Patroclus, a young man troubled by circumstance who finds himself under the care of Achilles, the prophesied hero of the Trojan War. It tells of their budding companionship, their unbreakable bond, and their imperishable love for one another. Yet, their inseparable relationship is threatened as they are sent to fight in a decade-spanning war across the Aegean Sea with the city of Troy.

I absolutely love this book. It is a perfect blend of romance, Greek mythology, conflict, drama, character-driven narrative, and of course, Greek tragedy. While it is a heavier read, it provides an excellent perspective on a Greek classic. As it is written from the point of view of Patroclus,  Achillies’ lover and closest friend, it shares a different standpoint than we normally associate with Greek literature. It does take its own liberties with the story, however. The relationship between Achilles and Patroclus is implied to be more than close friends, but some scholars disagree. Yet, at its core, the book is about the connection they had. It is not about the glory that can be won in war, but rather, what can be possibly lost in it. The Song of Achilles is a story of two men trying to break the weaves of fate, but how far are they willing to go to break them?

Art by Kim Holm, used here under a Creative Commons license.