by The Cowl Editor on December 6, 2022

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FriarTire

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Hey Tiff and Earl!

As much as I love my family, I’m really nervous to go home for Thanksgiving. My family is going to ask me a ton of questions about everything, and I really don’t know what I want to do with my future/life. Any advice to help me feel a little better?

Sincerely, 

Quarter Life Crisis Victim

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Hey QLCV, 

As cliché as this sounds, you still have plenty of time to think about what you want to do. People change their careers all the time, whether they’re 20 or 50! If you want to ease your family’s worries, you can always tell them you’re considering a few options like grad school or working after you finish your degree. Everyone’s path is different, and I’m sure you’ll find your niche eventually!

Best of Luck!

Earl

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Dear Victim,

My deepest sympathies, but it’s time to make up the lie of your life. Say you want to be a snake charmer in the CIA; say you’re the real Jerry Seinfield; say you want to donate all your organs and have porcine substitutes installed. Whatever it is, stick with it until everyone believes you. It’ll blow up in your face eventually, but that’s another Thanksgiving’s problem.

 

Sweet turkey dreams,

Tiff

by Claudia Fennell '24 on November 17, 2022
A&E Co-Editor

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Arts & Entertainment

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The Best Thanksgiving TV Episodes of All Time

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, many of us will make the long venture back home to stay with our families for the long weekend. While spending quality time with family can be fun, there will inevitably be lulls in each of our breaks. To fill uncomfortable silence with extended family, here are some fantastic episodes from iconic television shows beloved by many. Thanksgiving brings forth feelings of togetherness, love, and family—feelings these shows beautifully and comedically exemplify. 

1. Gilmore Girls,“A Deep-Fried Korean Thanksgiving” (Season 3, Episode 9): Available on Netflix

With the backdrop of picturesque Stars Hollow, Connecticut, the mother-daughter duo Lorelai and Rory Gilmore are the best of friends. Lorelai runs a local inn and Rory spends almost all of her time studying and reading. This Thanksgiving, the girls are expected to appear at four different Thanksgiving dinners. Lorelai’s parents, their friend Luke, their friend Suki, and Rory’s friend Lane are each hosting their own Thanksgiving celebration and expect Lorelai and Rory to be in attendance. With a packed schedule, the girls attempt to make appearances at each of the events, lighting up the room in every place they go.

2. New Girl,“Parents” (Season 2, Episode 8): Available on Netflix

The comedy hit New Girl follows the life of Jessica Day, a teacher who broke up with her boyfriend and moved into an apartment with three single guys she met on the internet. The four of them end up spending all of their time together and become best friends. In this holiday episode, Jess attempts to get her divorced parents back together over Thanksgiving dinner at her apartment. Despite her best efforts, her plan ultimately fails, but it still makes for a lighthearted and fun episode.

3. Friends, “The One with All the Thanksgivings” (Season 5, Episode 8): Available on Netflix

The classic sitcom from the 90s, Friends, portrays the life of six friends in their twenties living in Manhattan, New York City. One of the friends, Monica, hosts Thanksgiving in her apartment, where her brother, Ross, complains about how he is having the worst Thanksgiving of his life. Subsequently, the friends recall the most horrific Thanksgivings that they have each suffered through, and amusing flashbacks are shared.

4. Modern Family, “Three Turkeys” (Season 6, Episode 8): Available on Hulu

Modern Family tells the story of Jay, wife to Gloria and stepfather to her son Manny, and father to Mitchell and Claire, who each have their own families. The comedy series offers a sincere depiction of family dynamics, while always ending each episode on a happy note. This Thanksgiving, Claire prepares a secret Turkey (Turkey #2) after predicting her husband will fail at his task of preparing the family turkey (Turkey #1). After turmoil ensues, a third turkey gets thrown into the mix and fingers are pointed.

5. Bob’s Burgers, “Turkey’s in a Can” (Season 4, Episode 5): Available on Hulu

Bob’s Burgers follows the life of Bob Belcher, the owner of Bob’s Burgers, which he runs with his wife Linda and their three children, Louise, Tina, and Gene. Bob has decided to take the preparation of the Thanksgiving turkey very seriously this year and starts the brine three days before the holiday. Somehow, the turkey ends up in the toilet. Over the next three days, Bob buys several turkeys that all meet deplorable ends. In an attempt to solve the crime of who is ruining each turkey, Louise tries her best to be a detective. Filled with a family-made Thanksgiving song, this funny episode is quick and a perfect option for the family.

All of these episodes are family-friendly and are available on either Netflix or Hulu. 

by The Cowl Editor on December 11, 2021

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Arts & Entertainment

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Recap: Six Gents’ Thanksgiving Show

Student Performers Make Audience Thankful for Laughter

Grace Whitman ’22

On Tuesday, Nov. 16, Providence College students made the trek down to the Smith Center for the Arts for Six Gents’ second show of the semester, “A Six Gents Thanksgiving.”

Since auditions for the comedy group were held last month, the show started with personal introductions for the new members of the club. Instead of simply introducing them, however, the group performed a skit written in the style of an interrogation. President Sydney Cahill ’22 and Vice President Jack Grosso ’22 led the questioning, trying to figure out if Emma Harrington ’22, Christina Charie ’25 and Andy Belotte ’25 were ready to join the group and determine if they could get Six Gents more funding for their budget. Cahill, Grosso, and audience members discovered that, as a member of Student Congress, Belotte was perfectly positioned to obtain some additional funding from Congress. 

One of the most memorable skits was a play on the Lifetime show Dance Moms. On the show, dance teacher Abby Lee Miller regularly ranks her dancers, pyramid-style, based on their performances from the previous weekend. Harrington, who played Abby Lee Miller, ranked Maddie Ziegler (Aidan Benjamin ’23) on the top of the pyramid, per usual, and choreographed an interpretive dance for Maddie and JoJo Siwa (Katie Vennard ’22) to perform inspired by the wreck of the Titanic. When JoJo and Maddie’s moms didn’t approve of the number, Jill Vertes, played by Belotte, thought it could be a perfect opportunity for “her little Kendall.”

Growing up, most students probably watched Bill Nye the Science Guy’s videos on rolling TV carts in elementary school and smart boards as they grew older to learn about science topics ranging from the phases of matter to static electricity. The next skit played on the idea that as students grow up, Bill Nye, played by Benjamin, has some mature topics to teach them about in the new and improved Bill Nye the Science Guy program. 

Six Gents was originally created to serve as a Saturday Night Live-style sketch group so, for the Thanksgiving show, Cahill and Analisa Pisano ’23 paid homage to the show by doing a Weekend Update skit pretending to be Michael Che and Colin Jost. In the fictional news program, the hosts cracked some jokes about Dean Sears’ emails and “new Ray.” They also brought in special guest Grosso to play a game of Taylor Swift Trivia. With Red (Taylor’s Version) recently released, Pisano and Cahill asked Grosso to finish the lyrics of her songs. He was able to nail “I Knew You Were Trouble” and “You Belong with Me,” but the crowd let out an enthusiastic “boo” when he didn’t know the lyrics to “All Too Well.”

In between each of the skits, Six Gents members asked the audience for words to substitute for blanks in a story before reading aloud in a game of Mad Libs. When asked for a store, “PC Mart” was thrown out, and some funny nouns included “Jake Gyllenhal” and “bowling ball.” To wrap up the show, the gents read the hilariously random mad lib that the audience created together. 

Students looking for more laughs were able to enjoy Six Gents Holiday show last night, and the group is  sure to have more amazing performances next semester.

by The Cowl Editor on November 12, 2020

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Campus

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by Nicole Silverio ’22

News Staff

As Thanksgiving approaches, the student body is preparing to return home for the remainder of the fall semester. After the unusual experiences of mask-wearing, remote classes, and a lockdown, the Providence College community celebrates a successful end to the semester, being sent home as planned rather than sooner. 

In early July, president Father Kenneth Sicard, O.P., sent an email to all students and staff announcing the College’s reopening on Aug. 31. The email mentioned that all students would return home for Thanksgiving break and would finish finals at home. This decision was made largely due to students’ travel plans over the Thanksgiving holiday, which could have increased the risk of rising cases if students were to return to campus after the break. 

Over the past week, The Office of Residence Life staff sent all students a sign-up time slot on Sakai for students to indicate when they intend to leave campus for break. Residence halls close on Nov. 20 at 5 p.m., meaning that by the evening of that day, all students will have left campus to enjoy the holidays with their families. Students are required to leave within the time slot they signed up for, within 24 hours after their last in-person class, and soon after their last COVID-19 test.

 On Nov. 5, an email was sent to all students stating, “During the week of Nov. 10, you will receive a Bookings App prompt asking you to schedule a pre-departure COVID-19 test. You should schedule this as close as possible to 72 hours before the time you plan to leave.” All students must be tested for COVID-19 before leaving to assure that it is safe for them to return home to their families. 

Should a student test positive, the College will continue to provide isolation spaces for quarantine. The Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) is working alongside the College to ensure that students with positive test results can safely return to their homes. Top medical experts have recommended that students who test positive for COVID-19 should quarantine on campus rather than at home. 

Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, recently told NBC News, “Don’t have them [college students] go home, because they can be spreading it in their home state.” Some reports show that out-of-state college students have caused cases to rise in many states, which is why PC will continue to hold isolation spaces and likely keep positive-tested students on campus if possible. However, it will likely depend on where the student lives, their family situation, and most importantly, the Department of Health’s feedback to determine what will happen. According to RIDOH’s portal, many states require a person traveling from Rhode Island to that state to have a negative test result 72 hours prior to their arrival. 

While the majority of the campus will be in isolation, student-athletes currently in competition season are allowed to remain on campus, while a small number of other students may also remain in their residence halls.

Residence Life concluded by telling the campus, “Thanksgiving break is in sight—we are all looking forward to it, and we have a lot to be grateful for. We appreciate your attention to these details, and your cooperation throughout this entire semester. We should all continue to feel good about the progress we have made, working together as a community of Friars.” The majority of campus will leave thankful that we made it to Nov. 20, given the challenges we faced in the early portion of the semester.  

by The Cowl Editor on November 12, 2020

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Features

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Dear Tiff and Earl,

My family wants to play socially-distanced football at Thanksgiving. How do I learn it in ten minutes?

Sincerely,
I Was a Theatre Kid

 

Dear Theatre Kid,

Sports can be hard. Luckily, it seems like these socially distant modifications can play to your advantage. My advice: once the whistle blows simply run inside. No one will be able to stop you since they cannot come within six feet of you. Next, go to the television, log on to Disney+, and turn on Hamilton. This will keep you from feeling “helpless” out on the football field.

Satisfyingly,
Earl

 

Dear Play Boy,

Your theatre skills might actually help you here. Faking out your opponent is really big in football, and that has got to take some serious acting skills. Think of the deep cut as an over-dramatic exit stage left. And if all else goes wrong, fake an injury (although you might want to watch some soccer players for tips on how to do that). The field is a stage and all the players are merely actors.

Hikingly,
Tiff

 

by The Cowl Editor on November 19, 2018

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Features

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Dear Tiff and Earl,

I do not want to go home for Thanksgiving because I know my pesky relatives will ask what I am doing with my post-grad life this spring. Truth is I have no idea and I will probably not make it to graduation because I failed so many exams in the past couple of days (SRW did me dirty). Please send me some help and Pedialyte.

-Soon to be
Unemployed & Unenrolled

 

Hi Unemployed and Unenrolled,

First of all, love your name, is it French?

Second of all, I for one love Thanksgiving because it allows me to pester my nieces and nephews about their future plans to make myself feel better about the place my own kids are in! So, I say suck it up and help your Aunt Karen feel better about her own daughter’s bull-ring nose piercing! But, if you really are worried about disappointing every single member of your immediate and extended family in one fell swoop, try and get the topic onto politics so you can slip away to your siblings and your fun cousin.

Gobble, gobble!
Tiff

 

Dear Uninteresting,

Just find that weird uncle at Thanksgiving who did the same thing when he was in college. He’ll help you understand how to use your white male privilege to succeed despite your lack of dedication! Then just conveniently take large bites of food anytime another relative asks you about post-grad life so you can just chew until they lose interest and move on.

Regrettably,
Earl

by The Cowl Editor on November 19, 2018

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Features

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Reenact Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

Hunt squirrels on electric scooters

Go on a ghost hunting expedition in the tunnels under Howley

Jump in piles of leaves

Feast on Ray cold cuts

Listen to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You” on repeat

Buy mace, in preparation for Black Friday

Ball out in Peterson

Play ding dong ditch at Father Shanley’s house

Sneak onto the roof of Harkins

Slide down the shiny railings in the new science complex

Grade DWC exams

Carve the turkey with Dot and Fran