University of Missouri Football Strike

[Cheerio]

A relative had a great mini vacation at the recent Winter Carnival put on by students attending Michigan Tech University.

To quote her: "I tell you, the students up there are so nice, polite, and friendly. It is very enjoyable to walk around the campus and downtown. We got to talk to some of them at the Rosza Center and the Hockey rink. Then when you see how they act at the restaurants etc. We were very impressed."

Kudos to the great students hosts of the MTech Winter Carnival!

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by Cheerio

A relative had a great mini vacation at the recent Winter Carnival put on by students attending Michigan Tech University.

To quote her: "I tell you, the students up there are so nice, polite, and friendly. It is very enjoyable to walk around the campus and downtown. We got to talk to some of them at the Rosza Center and the Hockey rink. Then when you see how they act at the restaurants etc. We were very impressed."

Kudos to the great students hosts of the MTech Winter Carnival!

I had heard a lot about Winter Carnival because we have some alumnae from Tech in our alumnae club. Everybody talked about the snow statue contest. The groups spend a month creating snow statues. In my head, I always pictured things like ice sculpture size. I went up there to do an officer training with our chapter there the week after Winter Carnival in 2009. The statues were still there. I was SHOCKED. These were massive snow sculptures, taller than their houses in some cases! They spend a lot of time creating intricate detail out of ice and each group has their "secret" method to doing this. I was in awe, truly in awe, of what these groups were able to do. Check out the pictures at these links- and understand that they can't even capture it all in pictures!

The winners with their finished sculptures
http://www.mtu.edu/carnival/gallery/results/

The process captured in images
http://www.flickr.com/photos/michiga...7632224249604/

ETA: They had challenges this year because it was warmer with a lot less snow than most years. The two feet they got on Wednesday this week would have been welcome in January!

[PhiAlpha05]

^Nice! One of my BFFs from home is an AGD alum from Tech. One of the things she misses most is the Winter Carnival (which I honestly don't get, being a beach bunny/cold weather hater from downstate...haha)

[SWTXBelle]

http://austinist.com/2013/01/22/i_wa...iter_stand.php


A waiter at the Houston restaurant Laurenzo's made international news when he did something both quiet and brave - he refused to serve a family of regular diners when the father complained about a special needs child sitting nearby.
Kim Castillo brought her son Milo, who has Down's syndrome, into the restaurant last Wednesday. She says, "We have been taking Milo out to restaurants since he was born. On the whole, he acts better than most typical children." But another family disagreed, asking to be moved. Waiter Michael Garcia complied, until he heard the dad make the following disparaging remark: "Special needs children need to be special somewhere else."

[Psi U MC Vito]

http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/w...m_medium=email

[pshsx1]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

SON OF A BIGOT -
His dad founded the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. Nate Phelps is dedicated to reversing that legacy of hate

Nate Phelps is the sixth of Fred’s 13 children, and he has the scars to show for it. He describes his father as verbally and physically abusive. When he was 18, Nate ran away from home and from the fundamentalist Calvinist religion in which he was raised.Now in his 50s, Nate finds himself publicly squaring off with his father and siblings to reverse their legacy of intolerance. He lives in Calgary, where he has become a public speaker who champions LGBT rights and raises awareness about the connection between extreme religion and child abuse. He is currently writing a book about his life and is the subject of an upcoming documentary.

http://www.salon.com/2012/09/25/son_of_a_bigot/

I actually heard him speak at Lawrence Tech. The story is somewhat horrifying. But, it's kind of funny that it literally all stems from his father. It gives the entire WBC even less credibility than it already didn't have. :P

[ElvisLover]

As the mother of an autistic child, I'm enormously touched and encouraged by these stories. Thanks for sharing.

[SWTXBelle]

No, no, I'm not crying . . . um, I'm, oh, cutting onions . . .

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_16...shot-at-glory/

"
Just wearing a jersey was enough for Mitchell, but what he didn't know -- what no one knew at the time -- was that the coach planned to play him at the end, no matter what the score.
Coach Peter Morales
/ CBS News
Morales says he was prepared to lose the game.
"For his moment in time, yes," he says.
With a minute-and-a-half left -- Coronado leading, but only by 10 -- Coach Morales put in his manager.
"And I just started hearing, 'Mitchell, Mitchell,'" Morales says.
But here's where the fairytale fell apart."

[thetalady]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

No, no, I'm not crying . . . um, I'm, oh, cutting onions . . .

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_16...shot-at-glory/

"
Just wearing a jersey was enough for Mitchell, but what he didn't know -- what no one knew at the time -- was that the coach planned to play him at the end, no matter what the score.
Coach Peter Morales
/ CBS News
Morales says he was prepared to lose the game.
"For his moment in time, yes," he says.
With a minute-and-a-half left -- Coronado leading, but only by 10 -- Coach Morales put in his manager.
"And I just started hearing, 'Mitchell, Mitchell,'" Morales says.
But here's where the fairytale fell apart."

This story really made my day brighter when I read it!

[shirley1929]

Originally Posted by SWTXBelle

No, no, I'm not crying . . . um, I'm, oh, cutting onions . . .

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_16...shot-at-glory/

"
Just wearing a jersey was enough for Mitchell, but what he didn't know -- what no one knew at the time -- was that the coach planned to play him at the end, no matter what the score.
Coach Peter Morales
/ CBS News
Morales says he was prepared to lose the game.
"For his moment in time, yes," he says.
With a minute-and-a-half left -- Coronado leading, but only by 10 -- Coach Morales put in his manager.
"And I just started hearing, 'Mitchell, Mitchell,'" Morales says.
But here's where the fairytale fell apart."

This story continues!

http://www.elpasotimes.com/newupdate...ous?source=pkg

[SWTXBelle]

YES!
(Texas Tech fraternities, are you paying attention?!)

[NinjaPoodle]

Yosemite Junior Ranger returns two sticks to the park
By Mike Krumboltz | The Sideshow – Wed, Feb 27, 2013

When visiting a national park, one should always leave things exactly as they were. Hats off to Evie, a junior ranger at Yosemite National Park, for living the motto. After returning home from a trip to the internationally known park, young Evie discovered that she had "accidentally brought home two sticks."

Honest Evie put the sticks in the mail and sent them back to Yosemite along with a letter that even the most jaded nature-hater would find completely charming.

Dear Park Rangers,

I am a Yosemite Junior Ranger. I went to Yosemite recently and accidentally brought home two sticks. I know I'm not supposed to take things from the park, so I am sending them back. Please put them in nature.

Thank you,

Evie

A photo of the letter was posted on Yosemite's official Facebook page with this explanation: "The rangers that answer the phone and mail in our public information office receive a lot of letters, but this might be one of the best in recent years."
read the rest:

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow...001225972.html

[angels&angles]

I'm bumping because something happened to me tonight. I signed up for a somewhat expensive couch-to-5k program, and then got laid off before it started. I'd originally planned to buy some new shoes, etc. but since the layoff, money's been really tight and I've been running in my "fashion sneakers" I bought for rush 5 years ago (flat-soled Pumas). It was okay for a while, but as we've been running more I started developing blisters. I tried to run them into callouses, but it was just agony. Eventually I went to my coaches and told them the problem and admitted that I couldn't afford the $100-some shoes they recommend and asked if what cheaper alternatives were still good shoes. They told me they would look into it.

Today they went ahead and had me fitted for some expensive new shoes "to see what sort of show will work best for you" and then the salesperson told me the shoes were already paid for.

Guys, I want to cry. I really didn't expect that at all and my run was so much better today because of these shoes! Someday I hope to pay this forward, once my life gets back in order.

[SWTXBelle]

Where is the "like" button? No, the LOVE button!

[AGDLynn]