Articles written by Katy Donaldson

Billy Ferris: a graduate student, loads luggage into his car in preparation for a road trip. Road trips are a cheaper alternative to airline travel, and a fun way for students to take a break from classes. Kyle Cooper

Taking a road trip is one of the oldest college traditions and greatest freedoms. You have weekends, breaks and even slow afternoons to just pack up and go.

Now that the weather is warm and the sun is inviting you outdoors, it is the perfect time for a trip to the beach. Auburn is in a great location for a beach get-away, with the sun and waves only four hours away.

According to Google maps, Gulf Shores is approximately four hours and 12 minutes away, and Grayton Beach is four hours and 23 minutes away.

Alyssa Rachels, a junior in graphic design said she and nine other girls piled into two SUVs and headed for Gulf Shores one Friday last fall.

“I loved staying in a condo that wasn’t big enough for all of us,” Rachels said. “Meaning that everyone’s together all the time, joking, laughing and having tons of fun.”

Rachels said she loves road trips and would do it again.

“It’s something to do out of the ordinary with people you love to be around,” she said.

If you are looking for something other than the beach, some students enjoy road-tripping to places like Charleston, S.C.

Leslie McClenny, a senior in interior design said she and two friends went to Charleston for a few days over spring break.

“I love Charleston because I had never been there and was able to enjoy the coast but sight-see,” McClenny said.

According to Google maps, Charleston is a six and a half hour drive.

Sophomore Melissa Koning: strides to return the ball at Yarborough Tennis Center court. The 20-year-old from Mount Eliza, Australia, finished her freshman year with an 8-3 singles record. JD Schien / ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

The 34th-ranked Auburn women’s tennis team upset No. 30 South Carolina at the Yarbrough Tennis Center on Sunday.

Auburn sophomore Jil Hastenrath sealed the 4-3 win in a tense match that improved Auburn to 14-6 overall and 4-6 in the Southeastern Conference.     

Senior Ty Akins: placed second in the 110 m hurdles during last weekend’s Tiger Track Classic. Akins, from Bainbridge, Ga., is the reigning national champion in the same event. Todd Van Emst/ MEDIA RELATIONS

The Auburn track and field team braved poor weather conditions and gave a strong showing at last weekend’s Tiger Track Classic at Hutsell-Rosen Track. Head coach Ralph Spry said he felt like the Tigers had a good performance, in what he considered to be the season opener.

The Auburn softball team defeated ninth-ranked Tennessee Sunday to clench the series 2-1. The Tigers are now 9-5 in the Southeastern Conference and 30-9 overall.

Auburn’s defense was stingy in the final game of the three-game series, starting with senior pitcher Brittany Day. Day pitched the first three innings, giving up just one earned run with three hits and four strike-outs.

Sophomore Anna Thompson tightened the defense, pitching the last four innings. She struck out seven and allowed one hit. 

Baseball team takes 2 of 3 from Kentucky

Freshmen outfielder Trent Mummey: hits a single off Kentucky’s Scott Green. Mummey scored on a Bianucci single in the fourth inning. Kyle Cooper / ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR

Auburn went 2-1 to beat No. 2 Kentucky in a series last weekend at Plainsman Park.

Auburn came out fighting to win the first two games. Sunday, however, Kentucky pulled out the win and stopped Auburn from getting its first series shutout since 2003.

Kentucky (20-2, 4-2 SEC) quickly took the lead in Sunday’s game, scoring seven runs in the first four innings. In the top of the seventh, Kentucky led Auburn 9-2. 

Auburn wasn’t going to go down without a fight and scored five runs in the seventh and one in the eighth, holding Kentucky to zero.

Justin Hargett’s (1-for-5) and Hunter Morris (3-for-5, 2 R) started Auburn’s comeback with singles followed by Brian Fletcher’s (3-for-4, R, 4 RBI) first career home run.

Matt Hall kept the momentum going with a triple, bringing the score to 9-7.

“We battled our butts off to get back,” Hall said. “It just didn’t happen.”

Hall said they started off slowly, but had the ability to come back.

When Microsoft introduced Windows Vista in 2007, its users were faced with a decision: to upgrade or not to upgrade?

Windows Vista replaces Windows XP, which was released in 2001 and has had several updated versions. According to Microsoft.com, “Windows Vista makes it easier, safer and more entertaining to use your PC.” The question is, do consumers agree?

Laci Fralish, a junior in secondary education, said she does not. She said she prefers XP and has not switched to Vista.

“XP is easier to navigate,” Fralish said.

Kristen West: washes Courtney Bryan’s hair at Studio One hair salon. Sarah Harriage / PHOTO STAFF

Everyone washes their hair, hopefully, which means everyone buys shampoo. Whether it’s straight from the salon or off the shelves of Wal-Mart, we all buy it.

People can choose shampoo based on price, scent, name or result. Shampoos are as different as the people that use them.

The question is, which shampoo should you buy?

There has always been a debate among buyers and stylists about whether name brand, salon shampoo makes a difference.

Dawn Spurlock, a stylist at Magnolia Hair Salon, said there is a huge difference between salon and generic shampoo.

“Generic shampoo is cheaper because there aren’t as many ingredients,” she said.

Spurlock and the other stylists at Magnolia agreed the ingredients are what matters in shampoo. She said generic shampoos are more diluted and may contain ingredients that can harm your hair.

Spurlock said even ‘salon’ shampoo brands have been diluted to go on the shelves of drugstores.

“Some generic shampoos contain an ingredient similar to dishwashing detergent,” Spurlock said. “The way to tell is if it is really sudsy when you lather your hair.”

eBay

eBay buyers and sellers are boycotting the auction site from Feb. 18-25.

According to CNN, eBay’s new CEO John Donahoe announced several changes including fee hikes and changes to the feedback structure. The three main changes, which are raising seller fees, allowing PayPal to hold a seller’s money for up to 21 days and deleting negative feedback for buyers, are scheduled to begin Feb. 20.

Because of an economic downturn, consumers are now choosing breakfast instead of Tiffany’s.

Luxury brands such as Tiffany & Company, Coach and Saks Fifth Avenue all experienced a stunt in growth this holiday season, according to the New York Times.

In a Jan. 11 press release, Tiffany & Company reported its revenue in the U.S. rose 4 percent since November. However, according to an article in the New York Times, “nearly all of that 4 percent growth can be traced to foreign consumers who capitalized on the weak dollar to buy jewelry.”