10 Signs...it's wintertime

  1. You went partying in Uggs and a North Face last night and blended right in.   2. You can't shower in the morning because your hair will freeze the minute you step outside.   3. You don't look forward to the end of class anymore. What's waiting outside is even worse.

'Nova Underground: a final farewell

  It was around this time, four years and seven broken, stolen and lost phones ago, when I turned 18 and sobbed my eyes out. As if December birthdays don't already have it bad enough, what with getting jipped on gifts and not being able to throw a party because you have an exam the next day, I realized I was old and legal and that the fun would be sucked out of life from then on out.

Buzzkill: Merry Christmas

  Every Christmas season, Americans allow their stress levels to reach new heights. This period normally starts the Wednesday after Labor Day and continues until around the observation of Martin Luther King's birthday. While the true catalyst of this Christmas madness is unknown, it is rumored to have been kick-started by a race of beings known as "Furbys" at some point in the past millennium.

10 totally random questions for Robert McHugh

Pasta chef, Donahue Hall

  1. If you decorated a gingerbread person to replicate someone, whom would you replicate?   The Grinch.   2. What's the meanest thing anyone's ever done to you?   In culinary school, someone threw hot beans down my back at like 300-something degrees.

Website offers textbook trading option

  Each new semester inevitably brings the stress and anxiety associated with spending your savings on new books. Especially for liberal arts majors, a new, cheap alternative is available in addition to the myriad well-known options like Amazon.com, Chegg.

Guide to holiday shopping on a dime

  The holidays are a double-edged sword. Time off from school means sleeping like a raccoon and familiarizing yourself with old friends. But you also get to familiarize yourself with Mom's old rules and have time to spend a lot more money than you usually do.

Saving Sudan: Standing in solidarity

The last part of a miniseries about a local Lost Boy and what Villanova is doing to help his country

For years, older generations have been commenting on how lackluster today's youth is — how we don't seem to care about pertinent global and local issues as much as they did in such decades as the "Turbulent '60s." It's true that we don't make angry picket signs in our spare time and that the most talked-about rally of late was hosted by two comedians.

10 signs you need more sleep

  1. On more than one occasion you went to sleep as your roommate was waking up. 2. You have not heard the words "good morning" since high school. 3. You hate getting up "early" for your 1:30 class. 4. The last time you got up for breakfast was for a "Kegs and Eggs" extravaganza.

Buzzkill: What makes a winner

  Part of becoming an adult is being able to make tough choices. In adolescence, one can often take shelter in the gray area between two sides of a decision. However, once one becomes an adult, having a final answer for life's big questions can become far more pressing.

Saving Sudan: part II

Coming to the U.S.

    While Malual Deng Duot, a Villanova graduate student and Lost Boy of Sudan, has a hard time recalling dates and details from his days in Sudan, his memories beginning from his first day in America are quite vivid. After he passed the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education exam and wooed the interviewers, it was established that he would soon be living in the United States.

'Nova Underground

Formal stands for formally sober

  You know that the end of the semester is coming to a close when people start to get irritated and irritating. No longer patient, you can't tolerate any more of that token peer's absurdly stupid questions. You want to slam your books on the desk and answer him, "Of course you can cancel out the zeros!" then smack him across the face with your furry winter gloves.

10 totally random questions for Pat Keenan

Senior, Accounting

  1. If you could be one for just 24 hours, what cereal box cartoon character would you be?   Count Chocula –  chicks dig vampires nowadays.   2. What do you keep in the trunk of your car?   Beach chair, half of a wardrobe, 64 bottles of water, 1,000 sheets of computer paper, wire hangers and Eli Manning's autobiography.

Shooting social justice

documentary classes head to Philly

  While most of us have been writing papers and taking tests, some Villanova students have been making movies. They've routinely traveled to Philadelphia's toughest streets armed with nothing but cameras and microphones, and in doing so, they've captured two incredible stories about life in the City of Brotherly Love.

No. 1 Fan

VUHoops.com writer, alumnus Brian Ewart vies for Big East Conference's biggest fan title

  Brian Ewart is not your typical Villanova athletics enthusiast. Few can make the claim that while a senior, his lottery weight exceeded three million, ensuring a ticket to any basketball game he wanted. Even fewer dedicate more of their time researching and writing about Villanova basketball, football and other varsity sports on a daily basis.

10 signs...

You’re Ready for the Midnight Premiere of ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

  1.You have your costume ready to go — complete with wand and robes.   2. You put more thought into your costume for the midnight showing of the movie than for your Halloween costume.   3. You've had your ticket pre-ordered since September.

10 Totally Random Questions for...Dennis Miller

Dining Services

  1. What do you want to know about the future?   I want to know the truth about aliens and why they won't take me.   2. Do you like your eggs scrambled or sunny side up?   Always sunny side up…but not runny. My father ate them that way with toast.

Buzzkill

Four-day weeks

  Villanova's work output is certainly considerable. We live in a highly driven, intellectually stimulating environment. This does not mean, however, that our population is invincible. Monday through Thursday, I'm doing my best Cal Ripken impression: fighting through a blend of classes, "Deal or No Deal" episodes, and Chris' Grill to get to the weekend.

'Nova Underground

Traumatic Travels

  As I book my plane tickets for the holidays, I shutter in remembrance of the most embarrassing moment of my life. It was freshman year, and I was returning home for Christmas. I sat in the waiting room creepin' on my possible future seatmate, fingers crossed for the cute Marine standing in the corner instead of the young child sticking quarters up his nose (that must have made getting through the metal detector hell).

Saving Sudan

A three-part miniseries about a local Lost Boy and what Villanova is doing to help his country

  Malual DengDuot is anxious. In less than two months, the history of his home country will change completely. Though he is in the process of attaining a master's degree in political science at Villanova, the 28-year-old's heart is over 6,000 miles away in Sudan, Africa's largest country and the site of bloody conflict since its independence from the British in 1956.

3 alumni, 3 success stories

Villanova graduates share stories of what their education helped them accomplish

Losing hope

Student grapples with family struggles in Haiti, pursues the priesthood at Villanova

The e-mails are in our inboxes, the signs are in the Quad and the banners are tacked on the outside of our campus' most prominent buildings: It's Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. Some of us have probably given over our banner IDs to donate a meal to those who cannot afford one, but for the majority that's as far as we take awareness. 

10 totally random questions: Jake Black

Freshman, undeclared

  1. What is the most embarrassing thing that you have on your iPod?    I have the "Aladdin" soundtrack.   2. Who is your favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle?    I'd have to go with Leonardo.   3. What do you think Villanova does with all the illicit items it collects from students?   It probably has raging professor parties.

Buzzkill: Anti-bullying crusaders

  Getting made fun of sucks, but it's something that everyone experiences. With the exceptions of Stone Cold Steve Austin and Lou Reed, no person can avoid being brutally ragged on once in a while. It doesn't matter if you are overweight, a ginger, Egyptian or what have you.

'Nova Underground: the NASA regiment

  When you think about all the time you waste in your life: sitting in traffic, playing minesweeper, watching "True Life," taking Facebook quizzes, reading "Eat, Pray, Love," Googling yourself or participating in group projects, one specific thing seems worst of all — sleeping.

A local princess

More commonly known as Princess Grace or The Princess of Monaco, Patricia Grace Kelly was born in Philadelphia on Nov. 12, 1929. Tomorrow would have been the princess's 81st birthday. Kelly's glamorous life began in the East Falls neighborhood of Philadelphia.

O-Town transforms campus

Megan Hansler

  While most Villanova students love their school, the athletes of Special Olympics have a unique appreciation for the University.  Every November, the campus transforms into the place of dreams for the Special Olympics Fall Festival. The Quad becomes Olympic Town, which is filled with activities, food and music.

Buzzkill: Don't be a Halloweiner

  One of the best aspects of Halloween is the emphasis it puts upon the celebrator. Unlike other holidays, where one can be subjected to awkward family dinners or forced into going to church, All Hallow's Eve is all about gluttony and self-satisfaction.

'Nova Underground: Déjà Boo

  It started off with a night of pure terror. The victims came in costume, approached the door, asked, "What is that cardboard truck doing on the porch?" and then bam! "Megatron!" Some peed their underpants, others ran for cover, but most just screamed bloody murder.

Founded 5 years ago, Villanova Cricket team continues to grow

  Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world after soccer and currently the fastest growing sport in America. Though still growing, in recent years the Philadelphia area went from having five cricket clubs to 30.  Harish Koduri,'06 undergraduate alumnus and '07 masters alumnus in electrical engineering, took the initiative to bring the sport to Villanova in 2005.

Shear inspiration

The shop may be old, but the barbers who work there are doing as well as ever

The smell of Barbasol and hairspray lets people know that they have arrived at the right place. Nestled in Dougherty near the west stairwell to the Pit is the campus barbershop. Stepping into it is like traveling back in time. The old-fashioned vinyl chairs and the well-worn tiles suggest that the shop may have seen better days, yet the people who work there are just the opposite.

A growing voice

on-campus network of artists Amendment One has a strong student following, big future plans

In 2008, current Villanova students Ryan Conway, Tyrelle Kelly and David Shaheen decided to create a "network of artists" to showcase the artistic talent that the University has to offer. What came out of this idea was the foundation of the group Amendment One, which has continued to grow since its creation. 

10 signs...you watch too much 'Jersey Shore'

  1. Your hair has started to poof itself in the mornings.    2. Your cleavage has become a necessary accessory.   3. You were so focused on your fist pumping last night that you didn't realize your date was on the floor, crying with a bloody nose.

10 Totally Random Questions for...Nick Benenati

  1. If you had to be a ninja or a pirate, which would you be?   I would be a pirate to get that booty.   2. If you were in charge of giving Villanova a new mascot, what would you make it and why?   The Radnor Cops because they are intimidating and scary.

'Nova Underground

Flip Cup Failures

The recent event of Homecoming was a humbling reminder that I still don't know jack. This realization dawned on me at the tailgate as my fellow undergraduate peers and I were, to our own horror, continually destroyed at a series of flip cup matches by post-graduate students. 

Buzzkill

Shoots and Misses

One of my all-time favorite episodes of "The Office" is the sixth-season classic, "Scott's Tots." The plot follows Michael Scott as he scrambles to make up for a ridiculously bold claim he made during the Clinton administration: that he would fund the college educations of a classroom full of underprivileged youth. 

Beating breast cancer

The statistics go on forever. Breast cancer is the second most common type of cancer. It's the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women in the United States. According to the National Cancer Institute, one in every eight women born in the U.S. will be diagnosed with breast cancer at some point in their lives. 

A growing voice

on-campus network of artists Amendment One has a strong student following, big future plans

In 2008, current Villanova students Ryan Conway, Tyrelle Kelly and David Shaheen decided to create a "network of artists" to showcase the artistic talent that the University has to offer. What came out of this idea was the foundation of the group Amendment One, which has continued to grow since its creation. 

10 signs...you're growing up

  1. Your parents made your room into a yoga studio while you were away.   2.  When people want to pass you in a row, you have to stand up, rather than just contorting into a ball in your seat.   3. Declining Facebook friend requests is something you would actually do.

10 Totally Random Questions for...David Schindler, Professor of Humanities

  stuck in your head?   Dan Zanes' "Sea Music" CD has some traditional folk songs that I cannot stop singing.   2. If there could only be one season all year long, which would you want it to be and why?   Definitely fall. There's something storming and dramatic about fall.

Made in China: a note or two about Chinese music

The sound of pounding rain outside the room set the mood; the musician sat at her guqin, poised to play. Taped to nine of her fingers were odd-shaped picks, each bearing a striking resemblance to that of a guitar. 

'Nova Underground

Break Zombie

Back to school, after fall's tease of a break, the professors expect you to be able to use that sun-fried margarita-marinated mush that's left of your brain. You should have spent the week catching up on sleep or studying for that midterm that your professor so daftly decided to put off until you came back. But of course, you did neither. Ironically, if you were smart, you wouldn't have even bothered to pack your books. 

Buzzkill: I like it

One of the most effective ways to make progress on an issue is to help the public gain awareness of it. If you really want to make an impact, start an obscure Facebook trend. If you can make yourself look promiscuous and moderately clever while doing so, your probability of success will increase exponentially.

’Nova embraces Fair Trade Month with products, presentations

Fair Trade  —  everyone has heard the term, seen it on his or her coffee cups or had someone tell him or her to buy the chocolate, but, with the exception of a few Holy Grounds regulars and the savviest of ethical consumers, Fair Trade seems to be an unknown to the average Villanova student.