Kansas State University - Royal Purple Yearbook (Manhattan, KS)

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V; w M v A The reincarnation of recess Why the pilgrimage? In either direction, the prodding begins and ends with snow . Some can ' t get too deeply buried in the stuff or others too soon rid of it. Whichever, in the middle of March, book-badgered col- legiates pack it up for a spring break. The non-snow faction migrates south, using the sun for their guiding star. Sweeping through Dixie, a Kan- sas Yankee can pick up mouse ears from Florida, a drawl in Texas, or the quick-steps from Old Mexico. Regardless of the souvenir, the aches of winter are baked into memories, not to be remembered for at least eight months. Alas, if it were only true. As classes resume too soon, so does the blizzardous climate of Kansas. And the tanables must re-enter hibernation to await the second coming of spring. Now for those of opposite opinion, the sun is still admired but only if their feet, ankles, and knees are swamped with snow. And under all that, which is so often poetically called a blanket , lurks a pair of skis waxed and waiting for the show to start with a down- ward shove. And like their southern cousins, on the trip they may also pick up a few remembrances like bro- ken limbs, rearranged faces, or disconnected spines. But it ' s all a part of the package deal and the chance for the uneventful run is there. At the end of the week, the downhillers are forced to make a clean break with the marrow of Colorado and strike out across the Kansas plains. If riding on ice all the way home, the snow bunnies smile at the proba- bility of another chilly Easter. When the returning ski- blood is still too hot, majestic Mt. Bleu of Lawrence can bring cooling relief. Decisions, decisions. And all because of the snow. But returnees can take comfort in the thought that even Annette and Frankie were torn between the beaches and slopes. So when comparing third degree burns or thigh-high plaster casts, one conclusion can be drawn. It isn ' t always just like the movies. spring break 29

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28 spring break

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Cash deficit bounces dire needs by Paula Meyers Make checks payable to Kansas State University. That ' s the beginning of four more years of the same. The pained looks on those faces at registration as the checks are torn from the checkbooks aren ' t just for show. It hurts. The resident student pays a minimum of $1 0,000 ($2,500 a year) to spend four years attending K-State. Minimum means modest, but adequate providing for the necessities and limiting some of those desired things that aren ' t needed. But how is the student to know what is really necessary? The first step is to decide on your goals. Values come in here, Sandra Grey, family economics instructor, said. The most basic needs are food, shelter, and clothing, but even in these categor- ies there is a problem of making deci- sions, she said. How much and what kind may differ from one person to the next. Spending your money is really a series of decisions, Grey said. As you grow older, you don ' t have to constantly be making these same decisions. You ' ll gain expertise you won ' t have to go back through and re-evaluate each time, she said. Entrance into college life may very well be the first time many students have con- trol over their own money, Gerald Ber- gen, director of aids and awards, said. Part of education is to learn how to manage the funds, he said. Fees, books, supplies, room and board, trans- portation, and miscellaneous items are considered for all students, and for mar- ried students, we consider a 12-month instead of a nine-month period, and extra books and fees, he said. The aids and awards office has deter- mined that an allowance of $50 each month will probably be spent for personal expenses of the student. This includes items such as toilet articles, clothing pur- chase and maintenance, entertainment, and recreation. It isn ' t as much as a person might think until you figure that it includes the Cokes at the Union and recreation, Ber- gen said. Then there ' s lipstick, powder, and paint for the girls, and ... I was going to say razor blades for the guys ... but anyway most people can get by on it. Some wouldn ' t spend that in a month and others would spend that in shoes, he said. A tipping of the scales on the entertain- ment and recreation side is not difficult to achieve. Impulse spending is an espe- cially hazardous temptation to the stu- dent in a limited situation. Bad habits can be formed that take years to unlearn, Grey said. If you go down to a store at the beginning of the month and buy a sweater, you ' re going to suffer for it at the end of the month. Grey believes that although students may occasionally find themselves in eco- nomical dilemmas, these small-scale crises are, in the long run, helpful as learning experiences. These financial problems will prepare the person to plan future expenditures more wisely. You can grasp control of your budget. There isn ' t really any mythical hand that keeps coming down and flicking it away, she said. It isn ' t something that comes naturally. Obtaining it from your own past experience plus some kind of formal training is ideal. Possibly the most unnecessary spend- ing by students is tunneled into a posses- sion that many would hesitate to consider unnecessary the automobile. They probably buy better cars than they need, and could get by on more modest transportation, Bergen said. He cited upkeep, maintenance, gas, oil, and insurance as the areas of accumulated expense. However, Bergen does not believe that this applies to off-campus residents who rely on their cars as the only means of transportation. The unnec- essary auto expenses are incurred mainly by students living on campus, whose cars are largely a convenience. The over-spending of pocket money is also considered as unnecessary by Ber- gen. This includes between-class refreshments, snacks, cigarettes, and other items that don ' t seem to be costly or extravagant at the time of purchase. But, Bergen said, if students would keep a running account, they would probably be astonished at the amount of pocket money actually spent. Especially for off-campus residents, the probable source of most unnecessary expenditures ironically falls into the cate- gory of a basic need food. The prob- lem comes because of a lack of experi- ence on the part of students in purchas- ing and preparing the food. Food is sim- ply wasted, Bergen said. He attributed this to the fact that most off-campus residents, perhaps living in apartments, houses, or mobile homes, are novice shoppers and cooks. Usually, they are unfamiliar with the supermarket bargain and wise purchases. And when they take the food home, they inevitably prepare more than they can eat. The net result is waste of food and money, in addition to the expenditure of time pre- paring the meal. A popular myth is the idea that a mar- ried couple spends less than two single people. Wrong. Expenditures of a mar- ried couple are exactly double that of a single person. Marriage does not save money for students, Bergen said. He attributed this to factors such as a single person being likely to share living quarters with one or more other persons and dividing the rent among them. Mar- rieds can only divide the rent in half. And chances are that the couple is purchas- ing items such as a television, stereo, and furniture, whereas typical roommates do not make joint major purchases. Loans are available to students who wish to borrow. To qualify for the National Direct Student Loan, the need for addi- tional funds must be clearly shown, Ber- gen said. Bergen said there is an expectation that the student will contribute $400 from summer employment earnings. After the need is defined, undergraduates may borrow up to $5,000 on NDSL during the college career. A guaranteed student loan, the Feder- ally Insured Student Loan, is available without showing a need for additional funds. Up to $2,000 may be borrowed until graduation. Both NDSL and FISL require the student to begin repayment of loans nine months after termination of study, with a 10-year span in which to complete repayment. I 30 student spending