University of North Alabama - Diorama Yearbook (Florence, AL)

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Are you sure that curb is yellow? No Parking p ach day they were seen prowling the university. They would weave quietly through traffic, their eyes sharply focused and on the lookout for their prey. Who were these predators, and what were they hunting? They were the Public Safety Assistants of the university, and one ot their many duties was to ticket illegally parked cars. Parking rules and regulations, for some, were to be taken seriously and followed strictly. Junior Gerald Williams explained that Everyone knows where they are supposed to park, so there ' s really no excuse not to park there. Students buy a parking sticker color-coded to match the areas in which they are allowed to park. Residents are assigned to red spaces, commuters to white, and faculty to green. For others, however, parking was more than just a matter of red, white, and green lines. Students found that sometimes they had to make a choice between being late to class and parking illegally. Tickets were issued for parking on yellow curbs, parking over white lines, and parking out of zone. Fines ranged from ten dollars to fifty dollars, with five unpaid parking tickets resulting in a car getting ' the boot. ' The boot is placed on the wheel of a car to prevent its owner from driving anywhere before paying off any debts incurred through illegal parking. There was yet another group of students, those who viewed parking as a cat-and-mouse game of Create-a-Space. Freshman Nick Wiginton expounded on this attitude by saying If you can ' t find a place — make one! These students ' vehicles were found creatively parked all over campus: lined up on yellow curbs, in visitors ' and 15-minute business park- ing, and covering diagonal white lines that to everyone else meant no parking. The general consensus was that the unversity needed more parking available tor students. Junior Suzanna Ford thought that we need much more of a parking area. Junior Emily Brogdon agreed, saying I think that we need more expansion for the parking. Even though the students were doing everything in their power to increase the amount of parking, the Public Safety Assistants roamed confidently, knowing that no amount of expansion would stop students from parking illegally, and they would find their prey. by Kristin Burt 13

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WARNING, WARNING, (opposite) A vehicle is given a citation tor being parked illegally BOOTED! Kristin Burt ' s Create-a-Space is discovered, and her car is booted for the first time in the semester. S z. TICKETMASTER. ' Predator ' Ali Evren Oszoy makes sure that all vehicles are parked legally outside of Wesleyan Hall. ' THERE ' S A SPACE! Students find that the best time to get a parking space is at night. mmnnsiflliHlia tm 12

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Students Survive .. Culture Shock LEARNING THE LANGUAGE. International students take tutoring in order to learn the mechanics of the English language. UNA photo by Shannon Wells I ' m about to, over yonder, carry him to Wal-Mart. All are phrases that are often heard in casual conversation around the South. For many students at the universi- ty, however, they are unfamiliar and not easily understood. Nearly 200 students at the uni- versity come from over 40 different cultures. They come from countries such as Yugoslavia, Egypt, Turkey, Poland, Trinidad, Belgium, and more. Language is not the only cultural barrier for these international students. There are many aspects of the American culture that are quite different from what these students are accustomed to. Eating habits constitute one of the major differences from culture to culture. Turkish students eat dinner late at night, around 10 p.m. Brazihans are used to eating healthful, fresh foods. Sergio Russi, a student from Brazil, said, We have a good climate. We can have three crops a year, so our food is always fresh and healthy. Every country has its own way of preparing its food with differ- ent ingredients or spices, but, as Sergio point- ed out, it all depends on where the country is situated and its resources. Another aspect of culture shock is the musical tastes of the students at the uni- versity. The majority of students listen to alternative rock, or country music. Most of the international students, especially the Turkish students, enjoy techno, or dance club music. Most find it difficult to understand how one can listen to alternative, country, or rap music. Mying-Shim Kim, a Korean stu- dent, pointed out an interestin g difference between American music and the music from his home. Our music doesn ' t have profanity or sexual phrases. Fashion is an issue everywhere; what ' s in and what ' s out. The fashion state- ments seen around campus are a reflection of the person ' s culture. European and Turkish students bring with them a little bit of the European style most Florence citizens have 14 seen only in magazines. One particular differ- ence in fashion is in shoes. Sebastian Calisto said, Here, people wear tennis shoes every day. In Ecuador, we wear them when we need to, like when playing sports. It was also pointed out as somewhat surprising that many students dress up for a football game, but wear socks and sandals to a party. International students find many cul- tural barriers in the U.S. Someone may offer to fix dinner for them, but who broke it? When they don ' t understand the English idioms, they are expected to read between the lines. Many students are confused at first, but catch on quickly, and soon become an integral part of the university ' s cultural diversi- ty- Culture shock is a learning experi- ence for students who fmd themselves sub- mersed in a culture different from their own. It is making the best of living a foreign life. by Anne Beam