But then “Chuck” got renewed against all odds for a third season, and I fulfilled my promise to all the fans I would give it another go. And what do you know? I love it. And I loved this episode.

Probably the biggest event of the show was Morgan, Chuck’s best friend, finding out about Chuck’s spy life. I always loved their friendship, but as Chuck became more spy, Morgan was left in the dust. Keeping secrets drove the two life-long friends apart, and I’ve begun to miss their funny and dorky interactions. And after weeks of Morgan trying to find out the secret, we get a payoff. This wasn’t your average “I’m a secret agent” reveal for Morgan, either. He found out when they were both about to be tortured. This made for a far more excited and fulfilling reveal for the viewer.

Beyond that, the second biggest event to occur was the return of Jeffster, the wonderfully bizarre and 100% hilarious joining of Jeff and Lester in musical form. They did not disappoint with their gripping performance during the Buy More employee revolution. I loved the shots of the employees brandishing dart guns and taking up arms again the prospective buyers (they were actually spies, but the Buy More workers didn’t know that). Even though the show is primarily about Chuck and spying, I love the moments we get of the civilians and their lives. It’s a nice reminder that Chuck’s world isn’t always about his spy life.

Now that Morgan’s in the know, I have to wonder how he’ll handle keeping a big secret like that. If Awesome is any indication, Morgan will collapse like a folding chair. Captain Awesome is having a very hard time keeping up with his name. He is not being very awesome, bumbling with lies to Ellie. And now he’s freaking out and talking about going to Africa. Hopefully he and Ellie stick around, because I love them! Ellie and Chuck have the sweetest brother/sister relationship. Meanwhile Awesome is funny and is not unpleasant to look at. They probably will, but I have a feeling Ellie will soon learn about Chuck’s secret profession, now that Awesome and Morgan both know and both will try keep up Chuck’s lies. With the Ring closing in on Chuck’s real life, everyone he cares about is in danger.

As you may or may not be aware, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force came out with some pretty controversial guidelines for breast cancer screening at the end of last year. Instead of the previous standard-of-care yearly mammogram after age 40, the USPSTF now recommends beginning screening at age 50 and only getting screened every other year. This caused quite a stir in the medical community and is the topic of today’s Public Health Grand Rounds. At this talk, Professor Ruth Kouides, MD is going to talk about what the evidence shows for breast cancer screening.

Unfortunately, what I’m learning is that, for many cancers, the current screening available really isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. A lot of uncertainties remain from the various clinical trials testing the benefits and harms of screening for cancer. The problem is that, for diseases like prostate cancer and breast cancer, tumors may manifest that never would have caused any harm to an individual in the first place. By detecting these tumors through screening the problem of “overdiagnosis” arises. Patients are going through unnecessary treatments that may actually cause more harm than good — if not physically, then mentally. Also, the data are still unclear as to whether screening for breast cancer and prostate cancer is actually reducing cancer mortality.

Although there is concern about the effectiveness of some cancer screening, it is not fair to say that no screening should be done. For some people who are known to be at very high risk of cancer, screening is essential so that the tumor can be found at an earlier, less malignant stage. Also, screenings for other cancers, such as colonoscopies, have been very beneficial in preventing onset of disease or catching the tumor at a very manageable state.

Obviously, there is still a lot to be learned and discovered about cancer screening — if you’re interested in cancer, a large and diverse career path awaits you!

In Open Forum, we learned that if you fill out the Campus Climate Survey, you may receive free tchotchkes! Also, apparently some all-inclusive posters for Black History Month and Women’s History Month show what a united front UR has put up, and what a true community UR has become, according to University Intercessor Kathy Sweetland, via Speaker of the Senate Kierstin Hughes. One of the only things more exciting than the content of the preceding run-on sentence is that, by the way, it’s Women’s History Month! HOORAY WOMEN! (NOW MAKE US A SANDWICH!)

In other news, SA Treasurer Andrew Flack (FLACK!) announced that no, there were no supplemental funding requests this week. Flack also noted what remained in the supplemental funding coffers. The Programming Fund has $6,579 left, Equipment has $2,500 and Experience Eastman has $1,510 left. Unfortunately, most of that money will have to go toward a bailout of the Greek Students’ Association. HA HA! INSOLVENCY!

Communications announced that funds were secured for two suggestion boxes, which will be placed in either Rush Rhees Library, Carlson Library, Starbucks, Hillside or Connections (those last two still need approval as said locations). NOW THAT’S WHAT WE CALL A LUNCH BOX! (Mmm, clever.)

Newly appointed Elections Chair and Senator Lauren Sussman announced an overhaul of the SA Convention, the spring expo where governmental candidates attempt to get their achievements recognized — the lead achievement being that most students walk away having learned that there’s a student government. MAKE IT EXPO-NENTIALLY BETTER!

In Policy & Review Committee News, Chair and Senator Kristian Brooks announced that four groups came up for preliminary status, including Young Americans for Liberty, Transfer Students’ Association, Liberty for North Korea and Mariachi Meliora, which is definitely a scam, or at best, the worst-named group since NAMBLA.

To hear Projects & Services member and Senator Rohini Bhatia tell it, aided by Co-Chair and Senator Bradley Halpern and SA President Eric Weissmann, reducing the cost of double-sided printing is akin to passing a kidney stone the size of Alcatraz (there’s a joke in there, folks, for you culturally savvy). IT is running a $300,000 printing deficit to the amount and maintenance of printers, which are replaced every four years. There’s also a plethora of probably largely unused color printers, which are even more expensive to maintain. As Deputy Speaker of the Senate Dan Cohn put it: “I’m going to speak for everyone, and collectively call ‘bullshit.’” WILL THAT MAKE THE MINUTES?

In New Business, not only were last week’s minutes approved, but everyone in the world (of Senate) was nominated to be on the committee which would conduct a round of interviews for next year’s All-Campus Judicial Council nominees. Only six actually accepted the nominations. When the executive session dust settled, Sens. Sylvia Guerra, Ashley Haluck-Kangas, Andrea Sobolewski and Sneha Rath were triumphant. NOW THAT’S WHAT WE CALL A “SELECT” FEW.

The last item of new business was meant to be a motion to approve another senator to the Steering Committee, due to a vacancy caused by scheduling conflicts for Sen. Casey Slone. Sen. Jon Junig moved to table the motion indefinitely, stating that Steering did not need another senator at this point in the year. Guerra went toe-to-with Junig, whom Hughes sided with, and Weissmann noted that since Steering probably wasn’t meeting formally before the next Senate meeting, they could just delay the vote and do it later. In a 13-4 decision, the Senate went with that idea on a second motion by Junig. VACANCY OVER VACAY!

Speaking of Spring Break, there’s no meeting next week. Grab a sled and have some fun, or stay warm and watch “Cool Runnings” while reminiscing about the Winter Olympics. FEEL DA RIDDUM!

Adjourned!

The Center for Community Health is a joint effort between UR and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CCH’s mission is to develop and expand research and programs to improve community health. Specifically, it aims to do this by providing community members with support from researchers, centrally coordinating health issues, tracking community health data and implementing community health projects. The two main areas of UR’s CCH are the Communicable Disease, Immunization and Vaccine Efficacy Studies and the Cancer Services Program of Monroe County. Together, all the members of CCH work to improve the overall health and well-being of Monroe County and its surrounding areas.

What I find so great about this center is that it provides a way for community members and researchers to work together toward a common goal. CCH is the embodiment of Community-Based Participatory Research. It has the potential to significantly impact the Rochester community for the better, and I look forward to becoming a part of it.