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Volume 29, Issue 1
Editorial
The only reason I came back to Hampshire College was to be the editor of the Omen. Read more...
An Open Letter from the Student Trustee
Dear Students,
Welcome back to Hampshire! This is an exciting year for the school. For one, we have the search for the Dean of Students-as you know, Michelle Green signed up for two years while we got our shit together, because back then we had just hired Ralph, and the college wasn't read to undergo another search of that magnitude.
Read more...
Lift Thine Eyes
Apparently Pavarotti died today of cancer. This is not so much a cause of woe and concern for me personally as it is for ye olde mass culture and the archetypes upon which it relies. Dead Beatles, dead Johnny Cash-es, dead Elvis-es, dead (someday) Stephen King-s, and even dead Crocodile Hunters. Surely some of us feel a profound psychological trauma - to that point I will in good faith concede, in particular as concerns the Croc guy and the spat of retaliation taken against sting rays on the Australia coast. Take that, you svelt aquatic zeppelins! - but by and large losing an archetype is akin to losing a relative whom you didn't really know but whose death you feel should be upsetting. Instead the only real reaction you feel is expressed to that irritating acronymical imposter 'wtf?', as you swig your pulped-up oj over the morning SLATE.COM because we're too clodhopperly and agitated to properly handle a newspaper on the subway. Read more...
The Omen Loves You
Greetings and Salutations, my fellow Hampshire Students. Welcome back to School, or in the case of our many First Years, simply welcome. Your Ability to read this Article indicates that you have managed to not die for another Year, an impressive Feat under many Circumstances. Perhaps under your Circumstances, it was not so impressive, but regardless, I wish you Luck in continuing your Trend of not dying. Read more...
Azvy
It's a comic! Let me see it!
Crenshaw
It's a comic! Let me see it!
Duck and Cover
It's a comic! Let me see it!
How I Spent My Summer
It's a comic in 4 parts!
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Nate Vs. The Second Year
It's a comic! Let me see it!
An Ode to That "Fucking Guy"
This past May, I saw many of my friends graduate after four years of Hampshire College. There were the former residents of A1 long from my epic first year. There were many friends I met through theater and film/video projects. And of course, many students I came to know just from wherever. But none of those friends, classmates, and etc. people had as profound an impact on me as someone I only knew as "that fucking guy." Over my past three years at Hampshire, I have seen that fucking guy as a rival, an enemy, a friendship doomed to fail, and maybe even as a soul mate. I never really learned his name. I know I heard it a few times, and read it at least once at the commencement ceremony, but it never sunk in. He will always be known to me as 'that fucking guy.' Our paths first crossed in February of my first year. Even though I never met him, I disliked him instantly. He had jeans that were too tight and looked like a bland and obnoxious wash. He wore either leather or denim jackets which pissed me off even more. His hair was goofy looking and ridiculously curly, and his posture and gait implied to me that he was a simpleton. I was convinced that if he opened his mouth, he would sound like a confused idiot. So for most of three years, my feelings of hatred towards him were based solely on his appearance. A few of my friends had met him once or twice and told me he was a nice guy, but I knew better. That guy, that fucking guy, was a jackass who hated me just as much as I hated him. Earlier this year, I got drunk and tried to introduce myself to him. I didn't want to go up and say "Hey, I hate you," so I said he was a cool guy and I liked his jacket. I told him my name, but then he gave me some fake fucking name, playing me for a fool. Read more...
Dear Hampshire, Could We Have Better Sex Please?
Article removed at the request of author.
David's Wisdom Nook
David Mansfield is the author of four self-help books: Babies Don't Like Everyone, Finding Connections In A Reclusive Society, Making Marriages Last, and The Great Big Book of Trains. He currently lives in Amherst, Massachusetts with his wife and three kids. A professor at Hampshire College, he teaches classes solely about Roald Dahl's Matilda. Read more...
I Could Never Get the Hang of Thursdays
Hello once again, fair readers. It's been awhile, hasn't it? I hope that everyone has had a good summer, and that your worlds have not been torn asunder due to not having read my column in the past four months. But before I get back into writing my usual collection of various ramblings that are almost always at least two days late, I wanted to mention a few changes that have been made to this column, pertaining primarily to the by-line. Read more...
