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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (May 7, 1982)
staff photo by Peter Rocha Using common sense when taking pets home is the best way to get them there safely. Cool, fresh air and plenty of water will keep them healthy and happy. Pets need air and water, too by Cyndy Davis Battalion Staff If your pets are pals and you want it to stay that way, be sure you're careful when taking them home for the summer. Gerbils and Dogs may not seem to care when being moved to new headquarters, but two pet specialists. Dr. R.F. Playter, head of the Small Animal Clinic at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Billy Ingram, owner of Brazos Kennels say care should be taken. They offer a few tips to get pets safely home after finals: Dogs—Feed dogs a light meal the night before your departure, and nothing that day, but make sure they have plenty of water. Some dogs get carsick or nervous during car rides. Prescription medication is available to combat this so if you think your dog may become nervous or carsick, take him to see a veterinarian before traveling. Most important, make sure the temperature is always at a comfortable level. Never leave your dog, or any other pet, in the car unattended. The temperature gets high fast — especially in the summer. And be sure to provide plenty of fresh water along the way by taking a bottle or thermos with you. If you'll be on the road for more than one day, check ahead to see if hotels along the way accept pets. Many don't. To keep from having your dog run off when you stop for water and such, keep him on a leash. Cafs — Treat them similar to dogs, but Playter suggests they may be happier traveling in a container as they'll have something to crawl around in. This also will keep them from jumping out the window or crawling under your feet when you're trying to drive. Fish — Fish travel well in a cool, covered container. Place the container on a seat or on the floor, not in back window, where it could overheat for this reason, take them with you when you leave the car. Birds— Birds can travel in their cages, but cover them in the late afternoon and evening. Feed as usual and make sure they have plenty of water. Small animals — Gerbils, guinea pigs, hamsters and other rodents — should be kept in boxes or cages and out of the heat. Water should be available. If you would rather not take your dog or cat with you, two alternatives are available: Shipping is usually done by airlines, but this can be expensive — rates are high and special containers must be purchased. In addition, there is no way of knowing what kind of care your dog or cat is getting, Playter said. Another alternative is boarding your pet. Boarding facilities are available in the area for dogs and cats. Most facilities provide a clean bed and place to run, fresh water, food and necessary grooming and medical care while the animals are being boarded. Ingram says the best way to choose a facility is to look at it and check the boarding conditions and cleanliness. "The kennel shouldn't smell like a dog," she said. Study schedules may be the answer by Dana Smelser Battalion Staff Don't do it! There's no need to consider jumping off Rudder Tower just because you haven't memorized all 134 vocabulary words, 56 chemistry equations and read the 22 chapters you need to know for Monday's exam. Sure, the pressure is on and you have your work cut out this week, but by taking time to de velop a reasonable study plan, you will find that learning ev erything your professor expects you to know may not be impos sible, Ronald Lewis, director of the Academic Counseling Cen ter, says. Below are some helpful study hints to help you get through the week that many perceive as pure horror. First, analyze each course and determine what you need to do in preparation for the final. Then, make a study schedule which includes what subjects you must study and the times you are going to study them. The trick to making an effec tive study schedule, Lewis said, is to be honest with yourself and know your limitations. It's un realistic to think you are going to study biology for seven hours straight witnout leaving the table. Instead, divide your tasks into small obtainable goals, like studying one hour or one chap ter at a time. This way, you can see you're accomplishing some thing, as opposed to getting dis couraged when you feel your studying hasn't helped. The more results, Lewis said, the more motivated you'll be. After organizing study time, it's just a matter of sitting down and cracking the books. Howev er, even this isn't a simple task. During finals, scrubbing the toilet, eating a gallon of ice cream and cleaning closets seem more exciting, productive and important than working last month's calculus problems. If you are constantly finding excuses not to study, sit down and make a conscious effort to get the work done, Lewis said. This may require leaving your usual environment and entering one with no ringing phones, no talking roommates and no re frigerators. It doesn't matter where you hibernate, just as long as you decide to use your time effeciently to study. Even 15 minutes can be used effectively to memorize vocabul ary words, equations and to re view class notes. And by using the time you have now, the night before the final can be used for review instead of trying to learn a semester's worth of work in a few hours. If you are planning to cram, don't. But, if it's the night before the final and you have no other choice, take time to organize what little study time is left. Lewis suggests anticipating test questions and learning the over all concepts instead of worrying about details. It usually doesn't pay to stay up all night and study up to the last minute — your mind needs time to absorb the material. Another note, take care of your body. It's hard to function with out eating or sleeping. Now, if you really want to do a good job on your finals, it's time to put down Focus, take deep breath and begin. Gory, sexy movie purr-feet Cat People is a good horror movie, full of blood and guts strewn across the screen, yet it also is a cerebral feast. There is an exciting sound track, including a seductive title track by David Bowie for the ear, eerie cinematography for the eye and a convoluted plot for the mind. Cat People is a combination of erohea, occasional jokes and ter ror. However, the sexual scenes are used not so much to titilate the audience, but as director Paul Schrader says: " ... to ex plore its (sexual) magic, its dark ness." Nastassia Kinski plays Irena, a virgin long separated from her brother Paul, played by Mal colm McDowell of A Clockwork Orange fame. Irena and Paul are descen dants of an ancient tribe linked to black leopards. Because of this, they turn into leopards whenever they make love to someone other than another tribal descendant. Irena and Paul are the last of the tribe, thus necessitating an incestuous re lationship. The movie begins when Irena, who has no knowledge of her ancestry, comes to live with Paul in New Orleans. When Paul tries to initiate the incestuous re lationship, Irena rebels and falls in love with a zookeeper played by John Heard. The remainder of the movie shows Irena moving from a mental realization of her past to ward a physical acknowledg ment of her place as a "cat person." Kinski and McDowell both have an innate feline presence, especially McDowell, who liter ally exudes an animal magnet ism. Subtle gestures by McDowell, such as nuzzling Kinski's neck during a seduchon scene, further establish his phy sical resemblance to a cat. It's good he looks like the leopard because most of his screen time is spent in that form. Kinski, with her lithe figure and sensuous mouth, brings erotica to the screen. In her love scenes with Heard, she man ages to combine both human and animal passion with fright ening intensity. All of her nude scenes are presented as natural and instinctive, rather than poses suitable for Penthouse. Perhaps the best actor in the movie is the black leopard. This beautiful animal represents Paul and later, Irena, after they have transformed into cats. The leopard does everything from double-takes to winks and grins, all at the appropriate times. In contrast to the original 1942 version, this Cat People shows the actual transformation, in graphic detail, of Irena from woman to leopard. As for blood and guts, the movie provides plenty in the form of realistic dismembered limbs and an autopsy scene similar to the din ner scene in Alien. However, the cinematogra phy does not limit itself to prob ing anatomical shots. The opening scene is of a gnarled naked tree silhouetted against the golden sands of the desert. The scene is startlingly beautiful — yet terrifying — set ting the tone for the rest of the movie. The movie was obviously shot with a stylish eye, the same eye responsible for American Gigolo. Director of Photography John Bailey said: "Doing Cat People was like seeing the world through the eyes of a catlike character and capturing its reso nance with the natural world — the sets, the colors, the camera angles reflect the characters' be havior." The movie ends with Bowie's song, Cat People (Putting Out Fire), and this caps the evocative soundtrack. The score does what it should do — it reempha sizes the terror in Cat People — yet never forgets the raw sen suality of the characters. — Carole Baas and Nancy Weatherley