Samantha Donisi
Asst. Editor It's that time of year again when eager holiday shoppers swarm the local malls and outlets, frantic to find that special gift.

It's also that time of year when those of us who work in retail strap on our riot gear and wonder why we ever decided to take a job in this business.

I hear plenty of complaints from people who dislike having to shop for the holidays. They complain about crowds, lines and disgruntled employees.

Well, I am here to speak for the disgruntled employees, and explain to you exactly why we dread the holiday season.

Once Thanksgiving hits, holiday shoppers become filled with the ÒChristmas Spirit." By that, I mean they want everything done two minutes ago and heaven help the retail sales associate who can't get them what they desire.

I was under the impression that this is the time of year when everyone is supposed to concentrate on loving one another, and celebrate the joy of the season. Hah! Anyone who has worked in a mall during this time of year can tell you that holiday shoppers on a mission are anything but loving and joyful.

Holiday shoppers fall into three categories: the greedy, the rude and the inconsiderate.

The greedy people are the easiest ones to deal with. They are the people who take advantage of holiday sales, and want as much as they can get for the least amount of money. For example, I work at a store where the customer can get a promotional item for free if the customer spends $30. We seem to always see at least one person who spends $200, and demands a free item for each $30 spent.

Obviously, we can't do this, and it causes the shopper to rant and rave and threaten to walk out. It's a maddening situation because the employee can't do anything but sympathize, and that is the last thing most customers deserve in this situation.

The rude customers are the people who assume that everything is the employee's fault. Listen up: Just because the item someone wants is not available, that doesn't give the customer the right to yell at the employee.

Most sales associates are the lowest on the totem pole, and we have no control over what is sold.

We certainly don't hide items from customers just so they can't buy them, although that seems to be the consensus reached by many cheerful holiday shoppers.

The inconsiderate customers are my favorite type. They are the ones who rush into the store two minutes before closing, and then browse for half an hour. It's even more amusing when they ask you what time the store closes, you tell them, Òin two minutes," and they still stay longer.

People like this obviously have never worked in retail. After keeping us on the job late, these people want everything wrapped and they get impatient when it is not done as fast as they would like it.

Employees are told that the customer is always right, and we have to abide by that to keep our jobs. This means we can't tell the customers to leave, or refuse to wrap a gift for them fifteen minutes after the store has closed.

Don't get me wrong; retail is normally a wonderful place to work. But this time of year the customers seem to lose all regard for anyone but themselves.

So the next time the ÒChristmas Spirit," threatens to grab you, take a deep breath and remember that the employee on the other side of the counter feels exactly the same way.

And whereas you can walk out of the store when you are done, we have to keep on smiling and waiting on customers who may not always be right, but who sure think they are.

Bah-humbug!

Dan Sherman
Feature Editor

In the words of Bon Jovi, "Oh, we're half way there. Whoa oh, livin' on a prayer."

We are halfway there; halfway through the school year, that is.

For many of you, this fall term was your first experience at NIACC. However, for some of us, this spring term will be our last NIACC experience.

I know some students may be struggling to cope with this, and that's understandable. After all, it's the final stretch, and questions need to be answered.

Questions like, "Where do I transfer?" "What will I study?" "Have I made the right choice?" Or "Do I want to keep going?"

But do not let these questions get the best of you. Do not give up when the end is in sight. After all, you never know what you could have if you only go halfway.

To prove this, let's take a look at what would have happened if certain people had only gone half as far as they did.

Columbus: Imagine if Columbus had only gone halfway. Well, bad one to start out with... He did only go half as far as he was hoping, and that turned out pretty well for him. Okay, so forget Columbus.

Michael Jordan: If MJ had only given half, then the world would have never seen the greatest basketball player in history gracing the courts of the NBA. Lucky for us, he did, and the game was changed forever.

The Union Army: If not for the Union Army fighting to the bitter end of the Civil War, this country may still be engulfed in slavery. However, the North won, and slavery was destroyed.

George Washington Carver: What would the world be like if GWC had decided that peanuts and butter were better off being left as separates? Granted, he did discover peanut butter on accident, but that's not the point. The point is, he did combine the two separate elements, and he did give us smooth, creamy peanut butter. And chunky. But that doesn't count. Chunky PB is really just smooth only giving half the effort, but that's supposed to be a secret.

Last, Will Smith: Did Will Smith only go halfway when the aliens invaded Earth? Nah. Will Smith, as always, went all out and destroyed the aliens. But he didn't just destroy a few of them. Oh no, he went above and beyond the call and took the fight directly to the Mothership. Lucky for us; otherwise we couldn't celebrate our Independence Day, and the movie would be a moot point.

Speaking of points, let's get back to mine. While it might be easy enough to give up now and call it good enough, the end is close, and you might as well go all out. I don't know where that might take you, but at least it will be somewhere other than a world controlled by aliens and one that doesn't give us peanut butter.

Brandon Watson
News Editor

I won't say the word, because I'm confident you know what it is.

Not naughty, notorious or nasty, but rather a word that also begins with the 14th letter in the alphabet. It's a word that one race exclusively is permitted to use, yet another is ridiculed for even coming close to pronouncing it.

If you're still confused by the word's anonymity (which is under my discretion), I'll give you a hint: It rhymes with an element contained on a firearm.

It's a word that is commonly heard at NIACC.

It's a word derived from Spanish dialect, said to define one of ignorant character. It's a word whose usage became frequent centuries ago when millions were snatched from their homes, tossed to the toxic pits of colonial vessels and religiously called this gory epithet.

Mr. Jim Crow is familiar with the word. Remember Jim? 1960s. Civil Rights. Snarling Dogs. Riots. Well, this word is a staple of the period in which old Jimmy's law was prominent.

Fast forward to the year 2005.

Depending on what enclave you visit and your ethnicity, in America, saying this quarrelsome and culturally accepted word can either get you a handshake of embracement or that same hand's fingers can unite to strike you.

And you ask why admission tickets to utter the word are only sold to one group, whereas others can't step near the ticket booth? Well, the ticket holders weren't always so happy about the tickets.

But over time, the ticket holders decided to alter the pronunciation of the word and implement it into their culture. This was a tactic to soothe their bitterness, a tactic to give the word a positive feel.

It's a word excessively used in a particular music genre.

It's used so much that many advocates of all backgrounds - in the past and still today - organize rallies simply to scrub out this thought-to-be blemish from the pages of America's slang lexicon.

Many musical artists bellow this word while hanging out of luxury vehicles, draped in jewelry.

Coincidentally, some decades ago, the same musicians' ancestors were also called this word, as they hung from tree limbs, their noses saturated in blood and carcasses charred.

So why would these musicians repeat a word that their forbearers suffered to?

Good question.

They continue to say the word because it's therapeutic in a sense. You could even say it's reverse sarcasm.

Unfortunate as it may be, the word is here to stay.

Oh, by the way, if you haven't figured out the word yet, don't worry; it's not that important.

Benjamin J. Buck
Editor

Two quizzes over chapter one and three in psychology class. Three tests over chapter four in government and chapter eight in Spanish. A midterm in biology and then six finals in other classes. Not a bad list if spread out over the course of a semester, but when they're missed and have to be taken at the end of semester in a four day period, it can add up and make you not even want to be a college student.

I have never had this problem, but some students do because of a lack of attendance during not only test days, but also during the whole semester.

Sure, it is easy to cut class because a student may be tired, lazy or even hung over. However, when class is missed, trust is lost, and everybody knows how hard it is to gain trust back.

Occasionally, missing class is justified.

A student might miss a class because of a doctor's appointment, illness or funeral. However, often students miss too many times because of petty reasons.

I will admit I have not been to every class in my time at NIACC, but I have not cut class just for the fun of it, and certainly not on a test day.

With so much going on during the week, missing a day puts me behind for about a week.

It is also extremely hard to make up a test when the material was covered 14 weeks ago. Another reason I cannot afford to miss class is that I receive money from the federal government and receive numerous scholarships. When instructors report the attendance lists to financial aid, students risk losing all that money.

Teachers respect students who attend class as much as they can. It is probably the reason why so many give points for attendance.

In one of my classes, 30 percent of the total grade is based on attendance. Some instructors at big universities may not care if students attend class because the class size exceeds 400 people.

However, the instructors at NIACC do care if students are there and want them to succeed in every way possible.

That is why they went to school for so long and come to class every day, hoping their students will do the same.