Still need to get into the season? Check out these local events that will up your cultural karma without breaking the bank (even if you're a grad student).

The National Museum of Mexican Art hosts La Vida Sin Fin every Tuesday - Sunday until December 14. On Saturday, November 1, from 6 to 8 PM, the museum will hold a Dia de los Muertos community night. "Remember your lost loved ones on this Day of the Dead and enjoy the exhibition, hot chocolate, day of the dead bread, art making, and more."

Check out the Irish American Heritage Center's Samhain/Day Of The Dead...thinking About Persephone Exhibit. "Samhain/Day of the Dead...thinking about Persephone is a mixed media group show that celebrates the festivals, Samhain and Day of the Dead. Both festivals participate in the birth, death and resurrection cycle. This year's exhibit again includes similar traditions of other cultural groups, including the Greek culture. The art will be presented by sculpture, paintings and installations." This free exhibit is open from 1-4 on Saturdays and Sundays.

Look out for rats at the 12th annual North Halsted Halloween Parade -- this year's highlight is the Rat City float. The parade starts at 7 PM on Belmont & Halsted and continues north to Addison. A costume contest is open to those who register at 5:30 before the event, with mad cash prizes for the most creative.

If you're not familiar with the Japanese film genre of Pinky Violence, Tokyo Gore Police might be the best introduction you could hope for. Facets Cinemateque is playing the film from October 31 to November 6 at 7 and 9:15 for $9.

Yesterday's Chicago Marathon drew 33,033 runners from around the world to its 26 mile course through nearly 30 neighborhoods. The first to finish was Australian Kurt Fearnley at 1:30:16 in the men's wheelchair division. The first men's runner to finish was Kenyan Evans Cheruiyot in 2:06:25, the first women's runner was Russian Lidiya Grigoryeva in 2:27:17, and the first women's wheelchair placer was Amanda McGrory from Champaign in 1:55:12.

Not sure you could match these times? This product promises to improve your (and your children's!) odds.



Warning: Watching video in a workplace may cause your supervisor to wonder if you've got anything better to do with your time.

"A national organization of radicals who work in, around, and in spite of institutions of higher education."

One of the least-appreciated but most fantastic resources on campus is the Special Collections Research Center in the Reg. Among its many resources are thousands of documents, rare manuscripts, letters, photographs, and ephemera that have been collected since the University's founding in 1892. Presidents' papers, students' notes, yearbooks, student publications, and assorted RSO paraphernalia are all easily accessible, and can provide more nuance to history than a secondary account ever could. The archivists and librarians in Special Collections are tremendously knowledgeable and helpful in turning the myriad resources into usable material, making primary research an absolute pleasure.

Last winter, I was enrolled in the Chicago 1968 course, which involved a good deal of archival research. I focused on student activist groups in the late sixties, and turned up a surprising number of parallels to current activist RSOs. The New University Conference organized a walkout at Billings Hospital that was uncannily similar to the battle SOUL (Students Organizing United with Labor) and campus and hospital staff waged last year to secure a fair contract. The Chicago Women's Liberation Union and Chicago Women's Union held a conference with workshops that prefigured several of the Feminist Majority's events from spring quarter 2008.

Below I've summarized some of my findings about one student group, including citations to the relevant archives in Special Collections. Check out the finding aids to see if the RSOs you're involved in have precursors. Were they working for the same things your group is today? Was membership similar? Were their hairstyles particularly ridiculous? All good questions.

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