2008 Woodie Awards
Culture
The Console Wars
Post-apocalyptic action and music mania round out fall videogame lineup
Now that another school year is upon us, hallways are clogged, lines in the SUB are long and everywhere a bicyclist goes, nervous-looking freshmen are freezing in place and causing collisions. In the interest of easing congestion, this latest edition of Console Wars is dedicated to the forthcoming games of the fall - after all, the more freshmen there are playing these games, the less people there will be clogging up campus when spring comes around.
Jujutsu class teaches discipline, tradition
Andrew Yiannakis wants to make UNM the mecca for classical jujutsu.
"There's a bunch of martial art here in Albuquerque," he said. "You have Brazilian Jujutsu and variations from other systems. These systems are sport- or competition-oriented. They basically severed their moorings, their roots, and they no longer reflect the original philosophies and traditions from which they came.
Local T-shirt shop offers outspoken apparel
Travis Parkin said if he'd opened his T-shirt shop in 2002, officials might have strung him up under the Patriot Act.
"But now people realize the war was a sham and was based on a lie, and they're starting to - even on network TV, people are outspoken about this," he said, "so we feel it's 'safe' to express ourselves, as well.
Comic specializes in the abstract
Comedian Chris Clobber answers his phone with a long sentence in French when he doesn't recognize the incoming number. "I just do that to throw off people," he said. His brand of comedy is the same way. To get a laugh, he freaks out the audience instead of trying to relate.
Band's music fuses upbeat, melancholy
The Handsome Family's music comes from the gallows. Their lyrics stand alone as poetic works, artfully twisting tragic tales into epic epitaphs. You could imagine each song as a long posting on a gravestone. They keep it simple with guitar, bass, banjo and autoharp.