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Behind the scenes of what goes on the air waves

"It's like waking up with Bruce Springsteen in bed with me," I think to myself as I make a petty attempt to get out of bed and slap the "Off" button of my iHome all in one fluid motion, "...except less awkward and less creepy." After the first miss, I manage to finally silence "Devils & Dust" and open my door to trek down to the bathroom; it occurs to me that throwing some cold water on my face might help me overcome the fact that it is 4:45 in the morning.

'Harsh Times' offers a timeless flick with classically bad acting

David Ayer's newest film, "Harsh Times," provides the perfect setting for a film certain to reaffirm anyone's masculinity: Blood, guts and guns line the L.A. underworld, luring ex-Army Ranger, Jim Davis (played by Christian Bale) into its unrelenting grasp. Unfortunately, the plotline boiling over with testosterone might be somewhat engaging if the acting wasn't so poor, making every character seem like a ploy and every emotion or experience feel forced.

Police Briefs

Officers from the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) responded to a call that someone was laying in the back seat of a parked car in front of the Pearson Chemistry Building at 12:49 a.m. on Nov. 1. When the officers arrived, they found that the individual was conscious, but had also thrown up.

Olivia TeytelBaum | PhobiaPhiles

Sitting in the waiting room of the Cambridge Hospital, things happen in slow motion. A baby (probably a bastard child) cries off in the distance. A bitter man yells at the receptionist for being slow. Out of the window, I watch the sun slowly set over the disgusting abstract art, undoubtedly installed during someone's temporary lapse of common sense and good judgment.

Top 10 | Quitters in Sports

It was a rough week to be a Republican. Not only did the Democrats take back a majority of the states' governorships and control of both the House and Senate, but Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld also shocked the world by resigning Wednesday afternoon, just hours after the Democrats declared victory. That got us at the Daily thinking ... who in the world of sports is as cowardly as Rummy? Surely, athletes can be quitters just like high-ranking cabinet officials, can't they? Yes, as it turns out, they can. Take, for example, these 10 beauties:

Standalone | Tufts honors our veterans

Inside the NBA | Jazz jump out to early lead in Northwest Division

Good health has turned the Utah Jazz from mere preseason contenders into the real thing.

Men's cross country | 'Solid' race at Regionals not enough for team to earn a trip to Nationals

Knowing that they needed a top-five finish to be considered for NCAA Nationals, the Tufts men secured fifth-place at the Div. III New England Regional Championships. The Jumbos rallied back from a disappointing NESCAC finish two weeks before and beat several teams that were ranked ahead of them in the New England polls.

Inside college football | Rutgers delivers some Jersey pride, downs Louisville to stay undefeated

For years, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights languished in the basement of Big East football, but in the five years since they hired coach Greg Schiano, the program accomplished what can only be described as a football miracle.

Sam Dupont | Red Sky at night

Exciting though it may be to have my blog blocked by the Chinese media censors, this is hardly my first run-in with the authorities here. Last summer, I taught middle school English in Xiantao, a small city in central China. I worked with seven other Americans, and we had been teaching for a week when the police showed up at the school and had a chat with us. Perhaps, they suggested, they might find some trouble with our visas, unless we offered up a bribe of 20,000 RMB - about $2,500.

Athletes of the Week

Cat Beck, women's cross country A stellar season for junior tri-captain Cat Beck has included several first place finishes and an ECAC Player of the Week award. On Saturday, Beck continued her hot streak by leading her team to a fourth place finish at the NCAA Div. III qualifiers. Beck finished the race third place overall.

Women's cross country | Ohio-bound: fourth place finish helps qualify team for Nationals

A fourth-place finish by the women's cross country team at Saturday's NCAA Div. III New England Championships was enough to earn the team its third-ever bid to the Div. III NCAA Championships.

Awards | Ten Jumbos earn All-Conference recognition

The cards may not have fallen in Tufts' favor on the national stage when it came to NCAA Tournament bids, but there was no shortage of recognition at the regional level.

Will Herberich | Big Hitter, The Llama

I finally get it. As I was sitting in my seat at the Garden the other night, watching the Celtics struggle to beat the hapless Charlotte Bobcats, I had the epiphany I'd been waiting for. I realized that our 1-5 Celtics aren't trying to win. They're trying to get Greg Oden.

Super + Sunny + Speed Graphic = finally, a 'new' Ben Folds album

When looking at the new Ben Folds album, it is easy to dismiss it in its entirety, since it is really just a recycled production of old material. It would seem at first to be a marketing ploy to capitalize on his music without wasting any time actually making the music.

Fall NESCAC teams compete in NCAAs

Volleyball: Amherst's automatic bid earned them a trip to NCAA Regionals at MIT. The Lord Jeffs defeated Emmanuel College easily in the first round, (30-9, 30-10, 30-17) before falling to MIT in the semifinals 3-1 (27-20, 22-30, 30-25, 27-30),

Major: Undecided takes dorms by storm

In anticipation of their upcoming full-length show, Tufts' only sketch comedy group, Major: Undecided, will be performing mini-shows in dorms all week. As part of its "Dorm Tour '06," the Major: Undecided troop performed in South Hall last night and will take over Haskell Hall on Tuesday, Houston Hall on Wednesday and Miller Hall on Thursday. All performances are set to begin at 8 p.m.

Co-ops: They aren't just for hippies anymore

Student campus housing cooperatives are far from new to the college scene, but their popularity seems to be on the rise, with approximately 10,000 students in America now living in co-ops, according to a New York Times article published on Sept. 28 detailing the return of co-op culture in America.

Charlotte Steinway | SOS!

Dear SOS,

Cleanliness is next to godliness in the fight against AIDS

While she was working at the United Nations, a coworker once asked Dr. Ruth Bamela Engo if she would give $50 to support a child with AIDS in Uganda. Yes, "I could give $50," she recounted to her audience of Tufts students at a lecture on Oct. 23, "but then what?" How much would that money do for one child? And how much would it do for the millions of other children with AIDS or orphaned by the disease? Was it the best way to empower people?