small girl :: big city

2012

2012-01-04T15:57:00.001-05:00

Happy New Year

2012-01-01T19:21:00.001-05:00

Dance, Aurora recording today. Excited to post our take on some great pop hits.

Hot Fuss

2011-12-13T15:09:00.002-05:00

All These Things That I've Done

When there's nowhere else to run
Is there room for one more son
One more son
If you can hold on
If you can hold on, hold on
I wanna stand up, I wanna let go
You know, you know - no you don't, you don't
I wanna shine on in the hearts of men
I wanna mean it from the back of my broken hand

Another head aches, another heart breaks
I am so much older than I can take
And my affection, well it comes and goes
I need direction to perfection, no no no no

Help me out
Yeah, you know you got to help me out
Yeah, oh don't you put me on the back burner
You know you got to help me out
Yeah

And when there's nowhere else to run
Is there room for one more son
These changes ain't changing me
The bold-hearted boy I used to be

Yeah, you know you got to help me out
Yeah, oh don't you put me on the back burner
You know you got to help me out
Yeah, you're gonna bring yourself down
Yeah, you're gonna bring yourself down
Yeah, you're gonna bring yourself down

I got soul, but I'm not a soldier
I got soul, but I'm not a soldier

Yeah, you know you got to help me out
Yeah, oh don't you put me on the back burner
You know you got to help me out
Yeah, you're gonna bring yourself down
Yeah, you're gonna bring yourself down
Yeah, oh don't you put me on the back burner
You're gonna bring yourself down
Yeah, you're gonna bring yourself down

Over and in, last call for sin
While everyone's lost, the battle is won
With all these things that I've done
All these things that I've done
If you can hold on
If you can hold on

Dance, Aurora

2011-11-28T11:37:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone! Please visit my band's new Facebook Page here and like us to show your support!

If you are in the greater State College, Pa. area this Saturday, December 3rd, come check out our first gig at 10:30 pm at the Darkhorse Tavern. See you there!

Puppy Love

2011-11-27T22:03:00.001-05:00

Weep, Little Lion Man

2011-11-16T12:36:00.001-05:00

These days, it seems the only way I can get this out is through music. The words just don't come.

Miserable Day for All

2011-11-08T16:28:00.001-05:00

*these opinions are solely my own and do not represent the opinions of Penn State or any other Penn State related organization.

While I don't want to insert my opinion here too broadly based on the amount of speculation surrounding the Jerry Sandusky/Penn State investigation, I do want to say this: there is never an excuse for the mistreatment, abuse, manipulation or subjectivity of children. These individuals will forever have to deal with the pain that was pushed on them and they are the true victims in this situation.

I am saddened for my University. I am saddened for the current students. I am saddened for the alumni. I am saddened for the staff that have to take the brunt of this media onslaught. I am saddened especially for the families of those involved at all levels.

I am also deeply troubled by the actions of whoever was involved in covering up the true inhumanity of this situation. This has hit home with me and I hope that justice is served for those that broke both the law and the trust of these individuals and the University.

Animal

2011-11-04T08:38:00.004-04:00

I hope everyone has a great weekend ahead of them! I am off to my city, Philly, for a big surprise. Looking forward to some great new things coming up with band stuff...stay tuned.

PL&H,

D.

Fear

2011-11-01T17:50:00.000-04:00

"Fear is a sign of growth. If you're afraid, it means you are stretching; you are doing something you haven't done before." - Gloria Steinem

(shout-out to Sara N. for providing the quote on her PSU Brandywine blog guest post)

Meet Virginia

2011-11-01T16:21:00.002-04:00

[Compliments of Train]

She doesn't own a dress
Her hair is always a mess
If you catch her stealin'
She won't confess
She's beautiful.

Smokes a pack a day
Wait that's me, but anyway
She doesn't care a thing about that, hey
She thinks I'm beautiful.

Meet Virginia

She never compromises
Loves babies and surprises
Wears high heels when she exercises
Ain't that beautiful?

Meet Virginia

Well she want's to be the queen
And she thinks about her scene
Pulls her hair back and she screams,
"I don't really want to be the queen!"

Daddy wrestles alligators
mama works on carburetors
Her brother is a fine mediator
For the president.

Here she is again on the phone
Just like me; hates to be alone
We just like to sit at home
And rip on the president.

Meet Virginia

Well she wants to live her life
And she thinks about her life
Pulls her hair back and she screams,
"I don't really want to live this life!"

She only drinks coffee at midnight
When the moment is not right
Her timing is quite
Unusual

You see, her confidence is tragic
And her intuition magic
And the shape of her body,
Unusual.

Meet Virginia
I can't wait to
Meet Virginia,
Yeah.

Well she want's to be the queen
And she thinks about her scene
Well she wants to live her life
And she thinks about her life
Pulls her hair back and she screams,
"I don't really want to be the queen!
I, I don't really want to be the queen!
I, I don't really want to be the queen!
I, I don't really want to live this..."

Book Review :: One Day

2011-10-31T09:19:00.000-04:00

This was one of the best books I've read this year. I ambeyond impressed!

While it had serious hues of Nick Hornby (not that there isa thing wrong with that), I thought Nicholls did a great job coming up withthis creative way of story-telling. It fit the book's personality to a T.

Love stories always have their way of making the reader lookintrospectively at their own “situation” and One Day was no different. I’msure we’ve all had a night/day like Dex and Em had on that first St. Swithun’sDay in Edinburgh, Scotland and I’m sure some of us wish we had the luck thatthey had to keep bumping into each other afterwards.

I’m sure not everyone enjoyed the ending, but I thought itwas tragically fitting for this story and especially for Dex.

I’m looking forward to seeing the film adaptation when itcomes to DVD. I’m especially fond of Jim Sturgess and Anne Hathaway (although Ihope her accent is spot-on, otherwise it could be a mood killer).

I would like to get a soundtrack to this book as well. So ifyou’re a High Fidelity or A Visit from the Goon Squad fan, this will beperfect for you, too.

Book Review :: Mockingjay

2011-10-24T10:41:00.002-04:00

While I did enjoy the entire Hunger Games series as a whole, I really thought Collins rushed the ending in her last installment of the trilogy, Mockingjay. I don't want to include spoilers here so I won't get into it, but I really think she took a shortcut to the ending and that was pretty disappointing.

Overall I thought the series was great and I will look forward to seeing how it translates to the big screen. I think I'll be taking a respite from young adult genres for a while but I'm really glad I read this series. If you're looking for something fun, adventurous and quick to read...definitely check out Mockingjay and the entire Hunger Games trilogy.

Check out my full review on Good Reads!

21

2011-10-19T16:46:00.002-04:00

I know that I am super late to this party, but I just listened to Adele's 21 from start to finish and am absolutely, beyond a doubt, floored.

This all started when I realized that I used to listen to a lot more albums from start to finish. For example (in 2005 alone):

U2's How to Dismantle an Atombic Bomb (brilliant, inspiring, amazing tour)
The Killers Hot Fuss (a hipster classic before being a hipster was considered cool, or even relevant)
Gwen Stefani L.A.M.B. (does anything else need to be said)
Green Day American Idiot (a rock opera that literally chronicled much of my first 18 years of life)
Keane Hopes and Fears (Tom Chaplin has magical vocal chords)

There have been a very limited few in between and since then (Battle Studies, Speak Now, At Home With Friends), but listening to 21 has really inspired me to start doing this again. I truly believe there are real musicians out there making a comeback among the dance, pop, and digitally enhanced everything. Don't get me wrong, I like those from time to time, but nothing beats the thrill of listening to a talented musician.

If you haven't heard all of 21, I highly recommend it and you can get it here. Thank you, Adele!

Dropped you off at the train station
Put a kiss on top of your head
And watched you wave
And watched you wave
Then I went on home to my skyscrapers
Neon lights and waiting papers
That I call home
I call that home

Happy Homecoming!

2011-10-14T10:01:00.001-04:00

Well, the weekend that so many Penn State faithful look forward to is finally here...Homecoming 2011!

Parades, a football game, alumni returning from literally all corners of the globe. What's not to like?

In addition, my band In Good Company is playing a very special Homecoming show at the Darkhorse Tavern in downtown State College Saturday Night (Oct. 15th) at 8:00 PM. If you are in town please stop by to hear us! We play everything from Katy Perry to the Beatles to Dave Matthews Band and back. You will not be disappointed!

Hope you all can make it -- enjoy the weekend!

Theoretical Frameworks in Our Lives

2011-10-12T08:44:00.000-04:00

So in addition to my full time job, part-time music studio, part-time band, full time boyfriend and dog, I am a part-time graduate student studying Higher Education Administration. I am a masochist.

BUT, I do enjoy the given a heavy dose of academic and intellectual stimulation that I am given each Tuesday evening. This week, we are looking at how actions and behaviors predict the outcomes in a student's academic career. In other words, students develop psychological feelings about themselves that lead to behaviors in school whether it be academic excellence, social interaction, or even dropping out.

The one behavior theory that I'm sure many of you are familiar with is the idea of the Locus of Control. Allow me to explain.

There are 2 types:

Internal Locus of Control - related to how we can control the outcome
External Locus of Control - related to how everything outside our control affects the outcome

This led to me to think about how I could analytically use this information to predict not only my behavior, but those around me. Especially when it comes to Locus of Control, I feel many people can identify how they view work, personal lives, etc. by determining how they view their accomplishments: are they internally or externally justified? Do you slam the world for dealingyou a bad hand, or to you take the hand that’s been dealt to you and make themost out of it?

I suppose an internal locus ofcontrol is a fancy word for making lemonade when life gives you lemons, but it’sreassuring to know that there is some sort of psychological explanation for theattitudes that influence behavior and then, ultimately, outcome.

I like to think I have a veryinternal locus of control which grows stronger (nearly) every day. There aredays when all I want to be is someone that sees this externally, who can blameeveryone but themselves for the problems bestowed upon them. However, there isa great deal of empowerment from knowing that you can chart your own course inanything that you do. And that is something I have to hold on to, especiallynow, in order to be successful in life.

Inspiration

2011-10-11T14:43:00.002-04:00

"Each one of us holds the promise of greatness within our heart, minds, and souls. Our potential and where it leads us are as unique as our fingerprints, yet the way to access what is possible is universal. Affirm your life; find joy every day, even in the mundane; and embrace your strengths and use them better yourself and the world." -Marianna Olszewski, Live It, Love It, Earn It.

Goodreads

2011-10-11T09:36:00.001-04:00

Thanks to my brother, I have had the great fortune of stumbling upon Goodreads, a Facebook-for-book-nerds website that tracks what you're reading, what you want to read, and what your friends are reading. It is a great site that is easy to navigate, has a brand-new iPhone app, and keeps tabs on everything written.

I found that I had too many wish lists on Amazon and Barnes and Noble, etc. and wanted to compile them into one easy-to-find place. Goodreads is definitely that place. They also host group discussions, book clubs, reading challenges and trivia, and even host authors for exclusive chats and events. You can sync your updates and reviews to Facebook and Twitter so that everyone knows just how much of a book dork you really are!

So check them out here and let me know what you think! Also, if you join, add me (dmh5026)!

So, Where Do We Stand?

2011-10-10T16:49:00.002-04:00

After resorting to good ole pen and paper for the pastnearly 6 months, I’ve decided to come back to the web world and start my blogup again. On the tech side, I’m glad that Google Blogger has finally given usan interface that is easy to use for bloggers. Its clean design makes itcertainly a venture worth rediscovering for me, and discovering for the firsttime for many new bloggers.

Over the past several months there has been a lot of writinggoing on in my life, whether in 140 word blurbs on Twitter, in my journal, orfor graduate school where we have been encouraged to do more “reflecting” thesedays. Work continues to provide me with an outlet where written correspondenceis not only expected but preferred (a lost art in itself) and seamlesslyoverlaps with the technology used in higher ed administration today.

While my writing has been on hiatus, I continue to follow myfavorite blogettes (and one new male blogger) and am inspired daily by theamazing things my friends and family are doing in their lives. I am continuingon a path of incredible twists and turns in my career and welcome the newchallenges ahead.

But what have you all been up to? What do you want to hear from me this timearound? I am going to continue to post the book reviews and other entertainmenttidbits that keep my brain from completely imploding on itself! But I want to hear from you to see the topics of commentary that are most interesting to YOU.

I will leave you with this image, which is the newestaddition to our family. His name is Toby, and you can find his photo blog here.

Rerun/Revert/Rebound

2011-10-10T16:29:00.004-04:00

I'm not sure if it was the power of the new "Dynamic" layouts of Blogger (welcome and thanks for catching up!) or the inspiration of someone close to me to start a blog of their own, but I plan to be back on the blogosphere map very soon. I hope you all welcome me back with open browsers, as it were, and look forward to many new posts!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T08:37:00.004-05:00

Help My Friends To Help Others

2011-02-10T11:23:00.004-05:00

Three of my good friends are in a fundraising campaign for charities that are close to their hearts.

Take a look at their campaigns and please support them if you can! Nothing sends the feelings of Valentine's love like giving to people that really need your help.

Angie :: Because Everyone Deserves a Lifetime

Charity: Susan G. Komen "3 Day for a Cure" walk for Breast Cancer in Washington, D.C.

Website: the3daysite

What/why: "September 23 -- 25, I will walk sixty miles through Washington, DC, to fight breast cancer and take a step forward in the search for a cure. I will walk for myself, for my friends, for my family, and for women whose names I don’t know and whose struggles I can only imagine. I would walk a million miles if it meant curing this terrible disease, but, for now, I will walk sixty."

Fundraising goal: $2,500.00

Hannah :: I Am Helping to Create More Birthdays

Charity: American Cancer Society Relay for Life

Website: Relay for Life, Hannah's Page

What/why: "I am participating in the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life because I want to make a meaningful difference in the fight against cancer.Almost everyone has been touched by cancer, either through their own personal battle or through someone they love. Every day, the American Cancer Society is helping us stay well by preventing cancer or finding it at its earliest, most treatable stages. They assist families in finding the best resources to help their friend or loved one deal with a diagnosis and their journey to get well. The American Cancer Society is also rallying communities (like ours!) through events like Relay For Life, to fight back and find cures for this disease."

Fundraising goal: $500.00

Erik :: Beaver Stadium Run

Charity: Special Olympics, PA

Website: Team Bus

What/why: "Oh my god why did I sign up to run a 5K? Well, besides it being for a really good cause, it gives me an attainable goal with more than 2 months to prepare. I don't think I've run for anything other than to catch a bus to a bar in 5 years. And before that I think a bear was chasing me. 10 years before that I was on the cross country team in my middle school. So I've got that going for me. Let's face it, running sucks, but so does being lazy. Now donate some money."

Verizon iPhone 4: Already Hitting Roadblocks?

2011-02-08T09:44:00.001-05:00

Back in January I posted some preliminary concerns/fears for the new Verizon iPhone 4. I got some great feedback both from the skeptics and the believers.

However, this morning I woke up to a few ominous tweets and status updates regarding Verizon customers and their sparkly new iPhone 4 gadgets:

"Shock! Verizon iPhone has the antenna problem"

"Finally got my iPhone drama figured out... 12 hours later"

"Activated the #verizoniphone I got but it was someonelse's #??"

"Took all night to set up said iPhone 4. Verizon sure does know how to kill excitement."

"I was on the phone with Verizon for over 2 hours!"

Anyone else having problems? What is/isn't working? Did I make the right decision in waiting to purchase an iPhone on Verizon? Or is all the drama just some bugs getting worked out?

Performance Review :: Joshua Bell

2011-02-04T10:26:00.001-05:00

Last night the Center for Performing Arts at Penn State hosted "An Evening with Joshua Bell." Accompanied only by pianist Sam Harwood, Bell performed three sonatas in addition to two encore pieces that, in the simplest of terms, mesmerized the crowd.

In 2003, two days after my 16th birthday, my dad gave me a copy of Bell's newest CD, Romance of the Violin. Having been studying violin for nearly ten years by that point, I was curious to hear a new player. This has come to be one of my favorite albums of all time across all genres. Tracks like "O mio babbino caro (from 'Gianni Schicchi')" has proven to be the soundtrack to almost any romantic notion I've ever had. The sadness evoked from Chopin's "Nocturne in C sharp minor (Op Post)" still moves me in an incredible way. It is the essential collection of how a violin can evoke nearly any emotion and Bell's performance is truly breathtaking on the album.

Last night was my first time being lucky enough to see Bell live. I was thrilled that he would be playing an intimate concert featuring only himself and his accompanist and could hardly contain my excitement over the past week or so (if you don't believe me, just ask my boyfriend).

The performance was perfect in all meanings of the word. He performed Johannes Brahms’ Sonata No. 2 in A Major, Franz Schubert’s Fantasy in C Major, and Edvard Grieg’s Sonata No. 2 in G Major. All three were a lovely compliment to each other and proved to be the perfect length and mood for the evening. While I was only familiar with the Schubert, I greatly enjoyed the variety of style and skill that Bell showcased during the nearly two-hour concert.

Amazing moment!

At the end, Bell performed two encores. One of which, to my extreme delight, was the Chopin Nocturne. I almost yelped I was so happy to hear something off of Romance! But I didn't, of course, keeping in mind the faux-pas nearly committed in such a serious setting.

I have to give big ups to Sam Harwood, Bell's pianist. He was extraordinary. Thankfully the sonatas featured both violin and piano, and Bell and Harwood really played off and to each other.

Bell was gracious and kind enough to sign autographs and take pictures after the performance. I was honored to meet him. As a violinist, this was truly meeting an idol for me. It was a night I will truly never forget! I hope I am able to see him play in concert again soon.

On a fun note: Bell was later spotted at a State College downtown bar, Zeno's, after the show. Hey, we all have to unwind sometime, right?

You can listen to clips of Bell's Romance on Amazon here.

New iPad App :: The Daily

2011-02-03T13:39:00.000-05:00

Check out this new app built specifically for the iPad -- it's called The Daily and it was launched on February 2nd. I'm not currently an iPad owner, but this is very tantalizing! Wonder if other news outlets will follow suit?

For more information, visit http://www.thedaily.com/.

The Debate of Liberal Education

2011-02-03T09:55:00.002-05:00

In my new grad school course for this semester, we are studying curriculum in higher education. Boring, right?

It's actually one of the most interesting subjects I've ever studied in my 17+ years of education. Looking all the way back to the Middle Ages to learn from the classical curricula of the times all the way through our current post-modernist view of education. Specifically interesting to me is the concept of a liberal education: what it was formed to be, what it looks like today, and how it is reforming for the future.

An interesting article popped up on "Inside Higher Education" and was sent out on our class listserv. In "Ramping up Rigor," Dan Berrett writes about Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida. After revising their core curriculum, "Lynn's faculty and administrators agreed they wanted all the college's graduates -- whether they major in English or hospitality management -- to have a common set of knowledge and methods upon which to build as they move through their college careers and into their majors."

In addition, Cynthia Patterson, Vice President for Academic Affairs at Lynn University, stated that Lynn "really did want to bring back the notion that [graduates should] have an understanding of human history and experience."

A girl in my class said on Monday that her Gen Eds at her undergraduate institution were "fluff" and a "waste of time." She said she acquired all of this knowledge in high school (mind you, she was home schooled). Needless to say most of my class had to pick their jaws off the floor after this kind of statement from someone who now teaches at Penn State (and teaches a gen ed course!). I have a hard time buying her argument entirely. High School education is so all over the place with standards and what is taught and how well that I can't see higher ed institutions leaving high schools to teach these core general education principles. However, I can see that perhaps her general education curriculum was perhaps structured incorrectly. Maybe she didn't have the freedom to pick from a wide range of courses, and instead was prescribed a curriculum like you will read about later at Lynn.

General Education courses vary in their importance from public to private to liberal arts colleges and universities. For some, Gen Eds make up the majority of their first two years in college, seemingly prepping them to enter their major. For others, they hold high importance and continue throughout all four years. In even rarer circumstances, Gen Eds are a blip on the radar, focusing instead on a vocation-type curriculum that emerges the undergraduate in their major right away.

Lynn's view of General Education in a liberal arts setting is this: "it asks students to take the skills and means of inquiry taught in one set of courses and adapt it to another." In other words, it is learning across the curriculum. Taking the critical reading, writing, and analytical skills beyond the required general education credits that students tend to check-off on their way to their core courses.

The real question here is: what is a liberal education and how should it be structured? This is a question that I truly do not have an answer to. What I do know is the following:

Four-year colleges (and especially advanced degrees) are not for everyone. The stigma of two-year degrees and vocation schools needs to go away in order to build a population of determined high school students that take pride and responsibility in these kinds of educational programs.
Two-year colleges and vocational schools are not for everyone. I highly disagree with the generalization that Harvard's "Pathways to Prosperity Project" states in this Philly.com article: "“For an awful lot of bored, disengaged kids who are on the fence about completing high school, they need to see a pathway that leads them to a career that is not going to require them to sit in classrooms for the next several years." (Thanks to Nick T. for his tip on this).
Liberal education is not for everyone. Reading the Great Books, having four years of writing intensive-only study and no applicable or practical application of skills will not cut it for the large majority of the college-aged population.

So where does that leave us? My evolving idea on this issue is two-fold:

Our government needs to emphasize the arts, writing, and literature in its mission of education. Science, math, engineering, medicine are all important of course. But would it hurt the President to mention the humanities in his State of the Union addresses?
The classics cannot be lost in a revision of general education. It is assumed that those that go on to higher education are pursuing knowledge, and with knowledge comes a diverse view of the world. We cannot silo students into their major areas of study without facing the circumstances of a completely segmented society.

Lynn found some success in their review of their core courses (which included the same set of general education classes for everyone. An idea that I'm not 100% on board with). Lynn based their success of their revamped curriculum "on the higher level of quality that is evident in student portfolios and on reports from faculty that their pupils' analytical and writing skills have improved."

It is hard to argue that these skills don't transcend nearly every profession and are involved in our daily lives at some level.

What are your views of liberal education? What were the Gen Ed requirements at your school? What would you change?

Penn State Basketball: Still Fighting the Uphill Fight

2011-02-01T10:18:00.001-05:00

This post also appeared as a guest blog for Big10Rant:Penn State on Tuesday, February 1, 2011.

My boss sent me an email this morning with a subject line reading "yikes."

This type of email would prompt most people's heart rate to go up, sweat to form on their brow, and general panic to set in. Clicking to open it I found a link to an article regarding last Saturday's Penn State Men's Basketball win over then-#15 Wisconsin.

BJC

Wondering what the "yikes" was all about (we won, afterall) I opened the article. Yikes was an understatement.

David Jones contributed to PennLive.com yesterday to comment on the abismal state of the home of the Nittany Lions basketball teams: the Bryce Jordan Center. The Bryce Jordan Center (BJC) was built "as a 15,261-seat multipurpose arena" back in 1995 and has since become home to Nittany Lion Basketball. It's also home to most concerts that come to State College, Penn State's Dance Marathon (held every year for three days in February), job fairs, as well as monster truck rallies, rodeos, and WWE/F wrestling "matches."

In other words, there is no sacred ground on Penn State's campus for NCAA Division I-A basketball.

Rec Hall

Penn State used to play in Rec Hall, the 7,200-person capacity athletic building first built in 1928 and most recently refurbished in 1964. It's a hot, sweaty, compact, and intimidating atmosphere for wrestling, gymnastics, and volleyball teams to play opponents at home.

The average attendance for our men's basketball games is (roughly) 6,642 thus far in the 2010/11 season at home. If you take out the outlier (PSU vs. Wisconsin at home with the attendance at a staggering 14,292) we are still only at 6,005 average fans per game coming out to see Penn State play in the BJC.

Now, I'm no math whiz...but if we still held our basketball home games at Rec Hall, wouldn't that be close to a sell-out every time? Wouldn't we be able to get loud and proud in an environment that is conducive to that size of support?

But no. Instead, Jones tells us that Penn State pays nearly $20,000 in rent to the BJC for every game they play. That's right folks, Penn State Athletics does not own the BJC. It is actually run by Penn State's Housing and Food Services, who, let's be honest, doesn't give a damn about what event is in the BJC. They run it the same for Taylor Swift concert as they do for a game against a ranked nationally-contending program.

In even more bone-chilling news, Jones tells us:

"The Nittany Lions get to shoot on their own rims for four practices all month. They will practice in the auxiliary gym when they can, sharing it with the women's team. But when schedules conflict, they'll actually have to practice in PSU's dump of an intramural building...Can you imagine Joe Paterno putting up with this?"

No, David. No I can't. But this is the plague that ails Penn State's big-time teams: they fail to comply with the standards and expectations of their fan base and University and instead go off of what is internal. What works for them. What is easy for them. Basketball Head Coach Ed Dechellis isn't going to go pounding on anyone's door to complain about the lack of hospitality towards the fans or even his team. He follows the way he coaches: with pure ignorance and apathy.

So for the first time in at least two years we have a team that has a real shot at getting into the Big Dance (if we continue to play how we did against Wisconsin). But what is Penn State doing? It's deterring its fans from braving blizzard-like conditions to come to the game because they are made to wait in long lines to get in. Penn State is not preparing for the big games with the sellout crowds because Housing and Food Services doesn't look at what event is at the BJC. All they care about is the money.

And finally, if we want to finish the season strong, we need crowd support. We would be much better off selling out Rec Hall the rest of the season than only barely half-packing the BJC.

Smh, Penn State. Smh.

image via Google

Book Review :: The Gospel According to Coco Chanel

2011-01-26T18:40:00.001-05:00

This is an obituary of sorts. As I finished reading Karen Karbo's ode to Coco Chanel I happened to be en route to Los Angeles from dreary Pennsylvania. Not wanting to shuffle through my carry on to put the book back where it belonged, I temporarily tucked it into the pocket on the back of the seat in front of me on the plane.

Two days later, I realized that it was still there and I, sadly, was not.

The good news is I loved the book. The bad news is, I didn't get to finish it in its entirety. Therefore, this is an abridged review of a book that I enjoyed, for at least the first 3/4 of it.

Karbo takes a sarcastic wit to this part-biographical part-self-help read and (despite not ever having taken French myself) incorporates and translates the beautiful French language into a quick book about careers, love, success, and how Chanel struggled with the same thing women struggle with today: how to get what you want in a way that doesn't make you look like a bitch.

Now, let me say that Chanel didn't quite achieve this goal (she was hated by the majority of her competitors and loved by her clientele). However, her workaholic, inspiring, driven, and genius work is a product of her determination to stand out as someone who was something yet came from nothing.

Karbo makes an interesting point in relating Chanel's behaviors with those of the modern day woman. Why is it that when women ask for a raise, question authority, or simple say that they know best based on experience and seniority, that it is often-times in the Men's Club world we still live in, that we are not labeled as strong-willed, powerful, or superior, but instead...bitch.

I'm not going to get all bra-burning on all of you, but I do think the question in valid. Chanel did not have the success she had without making a few enemies along the way (and I think that is true of most uber-successful individuals). I'm just wondering why so many women take the fall here over men.

If you have competing ideas please, by all means, share them now!

So pick up The Gospel if you're interested in the following: fashion (duh), the French, business, how to know if you are not supposed to be a wife, and any miscellaneous "Chanelore" that you've been dying to uncover.

image via Amazon.com

5 Things That Happen When Your Boyfriend Moves In

2011-01-21T10:48:00.004-05:00

2011 dawned a new era in my life, personally, that was unlike anything I had done before but at the same time carrying over some principles from past experiences: my boyfriend and I moved in together.

Yep, we're living in sin, Mom and Dad. But in the age of college and universities these days, it's hard to look at our 2008/2009 senior year as anything but living together (minus the shared lease). So what's changed? What's the difference between this and having a roommate for the past five years between college and young professional life?

The answer: a LOT is different. Men just have a different idea of living and privacy (and what's allowed to be public) than women do. I've had loads of roommates in my time but they were all women. They varied in cleanliness and social preferences, but we shared the core competencies that seem to define women in the household.

So, dear readers, I give you my Top 5 Things That Change When Your Boyfriend Moves In list on this snowy Friday. For the women out there with live-in boyfriends (or husbands), feel free to add to the list. For you single ladies or together-but-detached couples let this be a lesson to you all.

Boys make bodily noises. A lot. When I say there is a nearly a constant symphony of noises coming from my boyfriend, I'm pretty serious. Not all are the gross ones I know you're all thinking of (get your minds out of the gutter!). They also include: random grunts, talking to the TV, and a general running commentary of what they are doing. For those that love white noise, this is a fantastic and energy-efficient alternative to running your flat-screen or Pandora on your computer.
Everything doubles. Laundry, grocery lists, clutter, bathroom time needed. But there are some great things that double as well: twice as much food to cook (never a bad thing in my opinion), another perspective hanging around for difficult decisions, and two people paying for the same bills.
Suddenly the TV you watch seems more ridiculous than before. Jersey Shore, Real Housewives of [Insert City Preference Here], Top Chef, Bad Girls Club and Glee. We love these shows. Some of us live and die by our DVRs recording these gems when we are out on the town or working late. Plop a man down in front of the tube to watch some of these and all of a sudden Sammi and Ronnie's fight seems super dumb and you catch your man looking at you like you have a Snooki poof perched on your head. Unfortunately, men don't see the value in these types of shows the way we do. The way that they make our lives seem just a little bit better, that they give us a glimpse into worlds that we probably will never (or would never want to) live. Men just don't get this.
The time you take to get ready before a night out becomes much more apparent. To everyone. Alas, the days of setting a meeting time and having the security and comfort of your own home to take as many hours as needed to get ready for your date are long gone. Due to the shared bathroom, communal closets, and lack of square footage, your man will now see just how long it takes for you to look how you do when you're out in public. Like many, they used to think we just wake up looking that way, but the truth is it takes blood, sweat, and tears sometimes to get your look just right. The illusion is over! You are no longer a woman of mystery! Sorry, gals.
Your secret weirdo obsessions have to go away. Even though men can now see into most of our routines, we still want to keep some things behind closed doors. I'm talking about your ritual eye-brow waxing/plucking every two weeks. Vegging out on the couch watching your Sex and the City DVDs with a tub of Ben & Jerry's during that time of the month. Spontaneous crying sessions for absolutely no reason whatsoever. You either have to have some sort of covert ops going on in your apartment, or you're threatening to let men into parts of your life that really shouldn't see the light of day.

Among all these things, some of which are great and some of which are a little unsettling, there comes the overall feeling that you are not alone. You have a partner in crime. You now never have to watch an On-Demand/Netflix movie by yourself ever again (and, yes, he will watch Twilight with you if you really ask nicely).

Living with your significant other is a beautiful thing (even when it's not really that beautiful). And I'm sure men have lists of their own that they can share about the things they can no longer do or that are speculated on more so now that before.

For me, I have no complaints. 2 months in and I feel fantastic about the living situation with my boyfriend. We have our moments, but what better thought than knowing you're coming home to your best friend at the end of every day.

Plus, I still need someone to reach the dishes on the top shelf.

image via eHow.com

FOXSports Blog of the Day

2011-01-21T09:22:00.000-05:00

First appearing on my blog as a guest writer here, now you can view Michael Barasch's post from his new website Big10Rant on FOXSports as their "Blog of the Day."

Congrats to Michael!

image via big10rant.com

Oh! You Pretty Things

2011-01-20T09:56:00.002-05:00

This past weekend I was in the lucky spot to witness a subculture that I had never before seen first-hand.

Le Poisson Rouge, a club in Chelsea, held a one-night-only birthday party for rocker David Bowie (and apparently his alter ego Ziggy Stardust). Our friend was playing in one of the tribute bands (Ambitious Orchestra) so we went out to support him.

Little did we know that when the invitation said that the dress code was "Classic Bowie, Weimar Decadence, Victorian, Futuristic Dandy, 70s Coke Chic" that it would be taken so literally. It was like a midnight showing of Rocky Horror Picture Show impregnated Ke$sha's wardrobe and had a baby in a strip joint. Unreal.

As you can see from the few pictures provided, they were dead serious. So there we were, in our jeans and button-ups, club tops and pumps, amongst this crew. When I said these guys let their freak flags fly that night, it is a true understatement.

I can see how this scene would make some people uncomfortable, but really, these are just human beings like you and I. They have day jobs. They have husbands and wives (they may just not share this particular side of themselves with said spouses). They probably even look "normal" in the day time. But then, what really defines anything as "normal," right?

So I embraced it. I met coked-out high school drop outs with glitter-covered chests and lost articles of clothing. I urged on the wild outbursts of dance parties and their participants. I even sang along to the two or three Bowie songs I actually know.

I would seriously encourage every one of you to take on an experience like this. (And do it sober, trust me on this one.) It really opens up an entire freaky-strata of our culture that you probably didn't know had such a passionate following.

In addition, a certain football coach was spotted at this shindig. Bill Cowher was in attendance (much to the pleasure of my Steeler-fan boyfriend who spotted him first!) and seemed to be friends with someone in the Bowie tribute band. Unfortunately he didn’t want his picture taken, but hey, can you blame him?

For more photos, head to Metromix New York.

photos via metromix

The Arizona Tragedy and Honorary Scholarships

2011-01-14T13:26:00.000-05:00

Since the terrible tragedy that happened last weekend in Tuscon, Arizona, there has been an outpouring of support to help the victims and the families get through this undoubtedly horrific time.

The AP reported that Christina Taylor Green, the nine-year-old girl shot during the rampage on Saturday, January 8th, had "wanted to attend Penn State and have a career that involved helping those less fortunate than her." President Obama in his speech during the Memorial this week stressed how much Christina had wanted to serve the public good, be a good citizen, and even become a politician.

Several friends have posed the question that memorial scholarships be set up at Penn State and other institutions to honor Christina and her wishes to help others. All those lost in the shooting have been memorialized in one particular scholarship set up at Pima Community College in Arizona, the College that alleged gunman Jared Loughner attended for a short time:

"Pima Community College's board of governors has ruled to establish a memorial scholarship fund to honor the lives of those murdered during the attack on Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, reports KGUN 9...KGUN 9 reports that the scholarship will be offered to students who commit to careers in public service or community building" (via Huffington Post).

Another act of philanthropy is happening at the University of California at Santa Cruz where a scholarship fund is being established by friends and family to honor Gabe Zimmerman, an alumnus of UC Santa Cruz, and other victim of the shooting:

"The scholarship would go to a student who shares Zimmerman's passion for public service...The friends decided to propose a scholarship to the university's Division of Social Sciences. The recipient would be a financially needy student committed to a career in public service or social justice. The department would administer the award...University leaders have been working with Klein and Clemens to raise money from staff and faculty members, and as of Thursday had received almost $7,000. Joop Rubens , associate director of development for the social sciences, said his goal is $50,000, the school's minimum for endowing the scholarship" (via Washington Post).

Both of these, while certainly no remedy for the broken hearts of the victims and their families, does encourage acts of selflessness and generosity in a time that seems to be so overshadowed by the greed of one person.

Being a development officer, this inspires me to continue to do the work that I do in the hopes that, should a tragedy like this strike at my institution, the flood of support would be the same (and I have good reason to think that it would).

To make a gift to Pima Community College, visit their website here.

To give to the Gabe Zimmerman Scholarship Fund, visit their Facebook page here.

image via Google.

Ridiculous People I've met in New York City

2011-01-14T09:57:00.001-05:00

We're heading up to The Big Apple this weekend to visit siblings, former co-workers, and friends and I thought it was a good time to look back, particularly to 2008, at some of the most ridiculous, fame-whoring, are-famous-for-weird-reasons people I've run into up there. View, and enjoy.

Let's start here. This is the dog from "Sex and the City: The Movie." As it turns out, this may be the least ridiculous celebrity (?) I met that memorable summer. The face that the dog is in a purse...I'll leave that up to you.

This picture is flat-out hilarious. Between my Mom's face, Donald Trump creepin' in the background, and his little security guard, life doesn't get much better.

You know life is playing a joke on you when you show up for an interview and Lauren Conrad is going for the same gig. Needless to say, I didn't get the position.

This is hilarious mainly because who thought I would ever meet Ben and Jerry? In addition, who ever thought I would meet Maggie Gyllenhaal at the same time?? What is this world coming to?

This is a gem.

Here's Trump again. And the way Billy Crystal is smirking is exactly the way he acted during this enter event. Charming, Billy.

The Housewives have arrived! Here are Alex and Simon stopping to let me interview them at a Nike event. . At first we thought they were weirdos...now they seem like the "normal" ones. Wow.

This dog clearly has no interest in being on this red carpet for Cesar. More NYC Housewives show up when Ramona and Avery Singer make an appearance.

I include this picture of Nikki Blonskly because, let's face it, she was American's sweetheart after Hairspray took off. What happened next, no one could predict. Fighting in an airport in Turks and Caicos, a deranged mother, weird cirumstances...what happened, Tracy?

Who knows what this trip is going to bring, but it's going to be hard to top.

P.S. As I was posting, I thought I should perhaps apologize for the absurdity and low-brow nature of this particular entry, but we all have to have some fun sometimes.

"The Chronicle" on the Ph.D. Debate

2011-01-13T12:31:00.001-05:00

I stumbled upon this article from the Chronicle about the ongoing debate of the worth of a Ph.D. and why (or why not) to get one.

Author Gabriela Montell writes:

People are talking about a recent article in The Economist on why obtaining a Ph.D. is supposedly “a waste of time.” The author—who confesses that she “slogged through a largely pointless Ph.D. in theoretical ecology” more than a decade ago—makes the usual argument that universities are overproducing Ph.D.’s (though some would counter that the problem isn’t too many Ph.D.’s but rather too few tenure-track jobs) and chastises universities for using doctoral students as “cheap, highly motivated and disposable labour.”

What are your thoughts on Ph.D. programs? Are you currently thinking about pursuing a Ph.D.? If you are already on track, what do you hope to get out of your degree?

I think it's safe to say a Ph.D. means a whole different thing now than it did even ten years ago, and it doesn't always mean a tenure-track career.

Why I'm Nervous for the Verizon iPhone 4

2011-01-12T10:39:00.002-05:00

Yesterday the news was announced that the iPhone 4 will be coming to Verizon on February 10th. This is the tech news that I have been waiting forever for since the iPhone came out and I am absolutely ready to say bye-bye to my Blackberry.

However, after an ominous Twitter mention from a friend that went along the lines of, "Wait until the iPhone 5 comes out on Verizon. TRUST ME," popped up on my tweet feed I started to get nervous. What did Ben know that I didn't? Should I doubt this treaty between Verizon and Apple? WHAT IS GOING ON?

Here are my concerns: Apple has always been "buggy" with their new devices. Second-gen iPhones have seen tremendous improvement from their older siblings and this may be another great example of this. The 3G /4G issue is also daunting. Reading article after article stating that 3G may be obsolete is seriously making me doubt the major bucks I'm going to be forking over to join the ranks of an iPhone owner.

Don't get me wrong. I am just aching to own an iPhone. The apps, the interface, the camera, the social networking, it all sounds amazing and I have lusted over my friends' iPhones for years. I just want to make sure that when it all comes to Verizon, they and Apple have their shit together.

If there was ever a time to comment, this is it. Friends! Please tell me your thoughts. Share links with more information, and give me your input! Also, check out the poll on the left asking, "Will you get the Verizon iPhone on February 10th?"

image via www.apple.com

Book Review :: Water for Elephants

2011-01-11T19:25:00.000-05:00

It's been a long time since I've read such a rich book in both setting and characters. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen actually manages to do both and even combine setting and character into one.

Please forgive me for the cross-medium link, but as New York City is the 5th character in "Sex in the City," the train is one of the leading characters that makes Water so amazing. It has a life of its own. It frightens you. It loves you. It thrills you. It even kills you. Gruen did an amazing job putting the setting so prominently in the forefront to make it a protagonist and antagonist in this great soon-to-be-feature-film novel.

I love reading books by authors that write in the first person of a character of the opposite sex. Gruen captures both the intense passion of a 20-something year old boy and the wisdom, loneliness and longing of a 90-something elder gentleman, Jacob Jankowski. ("I am ninety. Or ninety-three. One or the other.") She captures them so well so that I have to wonder if her husband went through a rigorous editing of her manuscripts to get them just right. It's either that or she is just that good.

The character of the elephant, Rosie, didn't need many words but what was written about her made an impact. I truly felt for this fictitious animal. You can tell Gruen did her research on elephants (as well as the circus, which she claims she had never been to before she wrote this book) in the descriptive and imaginative detail paid to Rosie.

If I had any complaints, it was that a few loose ends were left after the last page was turned. In all of Jacob's nostalgia about his younger years, we're left wondering what happened to his wife in the end. Very disappointing as his wife was so prominently featured but without as much detail and character as the rest of the cast.

I would highly recommend this book. I hadn't had any real interest in the circus lately, but this makes me want to delve into the same picture books that Gruen used to do her research just to take a glimpse into the past. The movie (starring Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon) comes out this Spring, so read it before it's out. The book is quirky enough that it will be easy to replicate the look and authenticity of a train circus in Prohibition- and Depression-era America, but the characters are so heavily layered that I hope director Francis Lawrence can live up to their written cohorts. Unfortunately I saw that a MAJOR character has been cut from the movie (Uncle Al). Very disappointing.

Pick up Water for Elephants now!

image via Google

The Value and Responsibility of Higher Education

2011-01-07T13:33:00.006-05:00

One of the best discussions we had in my higher ed administration grad class last semester was: is higher education a good? And if so, is it a luxury good? Established only for the affluent, the well-off, and for those privileged, lucky, or smart enough to take advantage of it?

The Chronicle of Higher Education posted an article by Nigel Thrift, vice-chancellor of the University of Warwick, in England, that aims to look at this discussion directly:

"Perhaps the paucity of thinking on the topic arises because many people instinctively shy away from thinking of higher education in this apparently economistic way but, equally, when you do, certain things become clearer. To begin with, it is quite possible that an observer could choose to consider certain kinds of higher education as a luxury good, with all that portends. And there is a large literature on the economic anthropology of luxury goods, full of insights.

Then, higher education is quite clearly caught up with what Avner Offer calls the challenge of affluence. If a sense of well-being has lagged behind affluence in many so-called developed countries, perhaps it is because higher education has not provided a compass with regard to the practices of choice that it should have as a key part of the social fabric."

Much of the interaction I have had with faculty members at the institution where I work are aggressive in promoting higher education as anything BUT a good. (FYI: I must preface that I am mainly relating to public universities here. Privates are another matter altogether.) They continue to strive for the archaic notion (although romantic and wonderful as well) that higher education is a petri-dish of sorts, molding the youth of the world to become critical thinkers, engaged intellectuals, and better citizens of the world. While I think a decent amount of this goes on at some level in higher education, we have to face it: higher ed is a business. And the sooner we start to think of it as one the more productive we will be and the more access we will be able to provide to perspective students.

The fact of the matter is that while perhaps the product we are turning out are these well-rounded, wonderful individuals, many of them are also coming to get something in return: a job. These majors (see: accounting, finance, engineering) cost money to operate and the government is just not providing the kind of support for public universities that it used to. Therefore a business model that will bring in dollars, both private and granted, is higher education's best option for survival in the upcoming decades.

Would love to hear your thoughts on this issue, so please comment away.

image via Google.

Book Review :: The Violin of Auschwitz

2011-01-05T16:06:00.003-05:00

The English translation of Maria Angels Anglada's beautiful short novel The Violin of Auschwitz recently debuted in paperback. I ironically received a copy as a Christmas gift and read it before 2011 was even in view. The book was originally written and published in 1994 in the Catalan language and was only translated to English in 2010.

The book inserts real-life documentation of Nazi concentration camps during World War II in the beginning of its chapters and follows a violin maker, Daniel, through his harrowing experience as an imprisoned and contracted luthier. What drew me to this book was both the unique perspective of the author's background and her interest in the Holocaust, as well as the violin-making.

Some of you know that my dad is a luthier himself (as a hobby, if you can believe it). He's made me two violins himself, in addition to the near-half-dozen mandolins and two guitars that he's made. Not to mention nearly all the wood furniture in our house is a JBH-original. He's really amazing.

I was very impressed with Anglada's detail of how a violin goes about being made. She must have either observed a luthier carefully or had someone in her family in the business. Her adept insight into the precise art of making a string instrument was so advanced.

Unfortunately this book was extremely short at just 128 pages in large print. However, it's a great little gem in its own right.

A great quick read if you are looking for some cultural pockets from the Holocaust that aren't often covered. Disturbing and haunting, anyone can pick up this book and get something out of it.

Next up: Water for Elephants.

image via Google, personal library

Guest Blog :: "History says major change ahead for Penn State after Paterno"

2011-01-03T21:08:00.003-05:00

Michael Barasch, a 2009 Journalism graduate from Penn State, guest blogs to discuss the upcoming and inevitable change in the PSU football program after the Joe Paterno Era. He examines the history of legendary coaches in NCAA Division I-A football programs and their successes and failures following the departure of said iconic coaches.

The 2010 Penn State football season started and ended in relatively the same way. There are questions about quarterbacks, leadership and coaches. These topics seem to be a recurring theme when it comes to Penn State football, but the one that has interested me the most has been the question regarding coaches.

This season saw more action than ever by Tom Bradley looking for a way out. It was always long perceived that Bradley would be the next head coach at Penn State. Being rewarded for his years of service and high level of achievement with the Penn State defense. After a season of inconsistent defense the most consistent name used in conversations about the next head coach disappeared. Bradley has interviewed with Pitt and Temple and he has been in the conversation for UConn as well this offseason. Many Penn State fans became deeply concerned when Ron Vanderlinden became tied in with Bradley possibly leaving for Temple if hired. Speculation further developed that if Bradley were to leave he would not only take members of the current coaching staff, but probably some current players as well. This would leave Penn State in unfamiliar territory. The mere fact that Bradley has been interviewing so feverishly has led me to believe that it is clear amongst the coaches: when Joe Pa goes, everyone goes.

This was not something that surprised me because when a legend like Joe Paterno does leave a program, the last thing a school wants is to live in that coach's shadow for 10-15 years. They want to and need to move on. They need to build new traditions and expectations. They need to expand recruiting to new areas and expect new styles of play and intensity. They need to bring in fresh faces and expectations. Or do they?

When the regular season and bowl season conclude in College Football the landscape for coaches always changes drastically. However, at Penn State things have stayed very quiet and consistent for 45 years. According to gopsusports.com, during Paterno's head coaching tenure there have been 874 coaching changes in Division I-A football. Penn Staters don't know what it is like to have coaching changes on a consistent basis like at the University of Pittsburgh, who has not had a coach for longer than 8 seasons since 1965. At the end of each season Paterno meets with Tim Curley to evaluate the season and prepare for the following year. The end of the 2010 season was filled with rumors of Paterno's retirement due to health concerns. The feverish momentum that these rumors built seemed unfathomable. Without any true credibility they circled the globe and pushed Penn State fans into a world of questions including, "What will happen after Joe?"

This question opens up uncharted waters for Penn State fans and it is easy to understand their concerns. I became interested in seeing what history tells us about life after a legend retires, is fired or resigns.

Penn State has always been compared to four programs: Notre Dame, Michigan, Ohio State and Alabama.

Each of these programs has had a legendary coach lead them to greatness for ten or more seasons, national championships and at least 100 wins. For Notre Dame we can compare the Lou Holtz era, Ohio State the Woody Hayes era, Michigan the Bo Schembechler era and for Alabama the Paul "Bear" Bryant reign.

All of these programs have seen these coaches leave and have experienced life in what I like to call the P.L.E (Post-Legend-Era). Penn State should take notes.

When it comes to finding a coach after a legend leaves, the number one term that is used over and over again is "expectations." The expectations for the first coach in the P.L.E. are always astronomical. Today's college football fans expect immediate results with new hires and easily become frustrated when they have to wait for results. Sound familiar? In today's world waiting is kryptonic. We need fast internet, immediate access to social media and news everywhere and will find the most efficient way possible to get what we want when we want it. College football is not immune to these demands.

When it comes to legends there are three coaches who are immediately named together in regards to winning: Joe Paterno, Paul Bryant and Bobby Bowden. The P.L.E. for Florida State has been quite easy for the Seminole faithful. A succession plan was put in place and executed. Bowden retired, albeit earlier than he wanted, but in accordance with the plan and the program has moved on. This does not sound like an option for Penn State. Up north of Florida State, Paterno's other good friend Paul Bryant finished at Alabama without a succession plan and the program fell into a downward spiral that led to nearly 30 years of underperforming teams and scandals. Bryant held the reins from 1958-1982 at Alabama and finished with a 232-46-9 record as head coach. Bryant would finish his career with 323 wins with all of his head coaching experience combined. Bryant led Alabama to six national titles and would leave football as the all-time winningest coach in Division I-A football until Joe Paterno passed him in 2003. After Bryant, the storied program collapsed and a coaching nightmare arose.

Ray Perkins was the first coach in the P.L.E for Alabama from 1983-1986. He lead the Crimson Tide to a 32-15-1 record. His first two seasons were tough for the Alabama faithful, a 7-4 and 5-6 record respectively. After Perkins came Bill Curry (1987-1989). Curry finished with a mediocre 26-10 record. Gene Stallings (1990-1996) took over for Curry and would finish with a great record of 70-16-1. However, the damage done by Stallings would later be felt. The NCAA sanctioned Alabama for falsifying the eligibility of Antonio Langham under Stallings' watch. The program was docked 30 scholarships, made to forfeit eight wins and a tie from the 1993 season, barred from post season play in the 1995 season and put on three years of probation. If you factor in the nine forfeit games, Stallings really finished with a 62-25 record. After Stallings came Mike DuBose. DuBose (1997-2000) finished with a 24-23 record and was fired after a terrible 3-8 season in 2000. The NCAA later hammered Alabama again for violations under DuBose. They lost 21 scholarships over three years, were given a two year bowl ban and five years of probation.

Alabama replaced DuBose with Dennis Franchione (2001-2002) who finished with a 17-8 record, but split to coach Texas A&M. The coaching nightmare for the Crimson Tide continued.

Mike Price was brought in after the 2002 season to replace Dennis Franchione. Price coached through spring ball and was then fired after an alleged evening out in Pensacola, FL that ended with an intoxicated Price and a woman he had met at a strip club returning to his hotel. A charge of $1,000 on room service was put on Price's hotel bill which was ultimately paid for by the University of Alabama. Sports Illustrated ran the story and Price was fired. Once again Alabama searched for a coach to bring back the glory of Crimson football. They rested on Mike Shula. Shula (2003-2006) underperformed and finished with a 26-23 record.

Alabama is now currently working with their 8th head coach in the P.L.E. Fortunately for the Alabama faithful the eighth time was the charm. The hiring of Nick Saban lead to winning the 2009 National Championship. How many coaches will it take for Penn State to find their own Nick Saban?

Penn State is compared to Notre Dame constantly and like Penn State their expectations each year in football are through the roof. Under Lou Holtz from 1986 through 1996, Notre Dame football dominated the collegiate landscape. Holtz finished with a 100-30-2 record which included nine consecutive New Year's day bowls, one undefeated season and a national championship. When Holtz decided to leave Notre Dame, the Irish faithful were left wondering what was to happen next? Notre Dame would go through a circus of coaches over the next thirteen years. After Holtz, Bob Davie was promoted from Defensive Coordinator to head coach. Davie (1997-2001) finished with a 35-25 record and two scandals under his watch. He was replaced by George O'Leary who resigned 5 days into his job after it was found that he had misrepresentations on his resume. Notre Dame quickly picked up Tyrone Willingham (2002-2004) who finished with a 21-15 record. His dismissal lead to the hiring of Charlie Weis (2005-2009). Weis lead Notre Dame to a 35-27 record during his tenure. Weis was released following last season (2010) as the Notre Dame coaching carousel continued with the hiring of Brian Kelly. After Holtz's 1994 Cotton Bowl victory, Notre Dame lost nine bowl games in a row. Would Penn State fans be able to swallow this type of productivity?

The names Hayes and Schembechler are synonymous with the Big Ten conference and Michigan and Ohio State have become historic national powers because of the work by those two coaches. When Penn State joined the Big Ten in 1991 it was clear that Michigan and Ohio State would have a tougher road to the Big Ten title each year, however, both schools would be without their legendary coaches while facing Joe Paterno in the eleven team conference.

Bo Schembechler coached Michigan from 1969-1989 and finished with a record of 194-48-5. Schembechler won thirteen conference titles and went to 17 bowl games in his 21 seasons as head coach for the Wolverines. More impressive he was named coach of the year six times. Life after Schembechler was not as rocky as life after Holtz at Notre Dame. Gary Moeller (1990-1994) lead the Wolverines to a 44-13-3 record and 5 bowls. Moeller was hired from within the Michigan coaching staff. He was then replaced by Lloyd Carr (1995-2007). Carr finished with a 122-40 record and one national title. Unfortunately after three Rose Bowl losses in four years, Carr was forced out and replaced with Rich Rodriguez (2008-present). Rodriguez has completed three seasons with a 15-22 record. Michigan had gone to bowl games in 33 consecutive seasons until Rodriguez's devastating first season where the Wolverines finished 3-9, the worst record in school history.

Ohio State has been the exception during their Post Legend Era. Their hires have consistently resulted in high expectations that were reasonably met through success on the field. Ohio State's hiring of Earl Bruce, their first hire after Woody Hayes, set the tone for all coaches to come and allowed Ohio State to avoid a major let-down in the beginning of their Post Legend Era. Woody Hayes (1951-1978) finished at Ohio State with a 205-61-10 record. He would amass five national titles and establish Ohio State as a force in college football.

Earl Bruce (1979-1987) was hired to replace Hayes and continue the winning tradition at OSU. Bruce was a former player and then coach for Ohio State before moving away to gain head coaching experience at the University of Tampa and Iowa State University. Hayes helped bring him back to OSU and take over the Ohio State program. Bruce lead the Buckeyes to an undefeated regular season in his first season and lost the Rose Bowl, which was the national championship that year, by one point to USC. Bruce would finish with four conference championships and a record of 81-26-1.

The University felt that even though Bruce was having success they needed a change to get the program back to the national championship. John Cooper (1988-2000) replaced Bruce. Cooper would finish with a 111-43-4 record at Ohio State. He won three conference championships, but had trouble winning key games especially versus hated rival Michigan. Jim Tressel (2001-present) was brought in to replace Cooper and immediately delivered with a national title and perfect 14-0 record in 2002. Tressel has won seven conference titles and has built Ohio State into a consistent national title contender. Can Penn State afford to wait 21 years to find the next Jim Tressel? That would mean 46 years between national championship seasons.

Post Legend Era by the numbers for coaches of Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan and Notre Dame:

3 - National titles won
4.8 - Average number of coaching changes per school
5.25 - Average number of seasons per coach before another change
8.5 - Average number of wins in first season under first new head coach
13 - Most seasons coached by one coach in the P.L.E. (Carr & Cooper)
19 - Number of head coaches hired in the P.L.E. combined

It is clear that finding the perfect formula for success after a legend leaves is not an exact science. Some schools hire from within the current staff, bring back old staff or look for a completely fresh face for the program. For Penn State alumni and fans the thought of football after Joe Paterno should be frightening especially if the university hires outside of the current coaching staff. What will football look like in Beaver Stadium? What new traditions should we expect? Who will even be the coach? We have never had to deal with big name coaches making huge promises and then breaking our hearts. We have never had to deal with failure that lasts for four years and is then recycled for four more by someone else. My biggest fear is a coaching carousel where alumni expectations are set through the roof with a big name hire. Can you imagine Penn State falling into a continual search for the "right fit"? We may resemble Notre Dame, Alabama or Michigan after Joe Paterno leaves, but hopefully our success will come quickly like that at Ohio State. If it doesn't come quickly those expectations for a national championship that are already 25 years stale may pull Penn State into an even worse decline than ever seen before at a historic football power.

Michael can be reached at mab3187@gmail.com or follow him on twitter @psuMB21.

Book Review :: Eat, Pray, Love

2011-01-03T11:39:00.000-05:00

I know I am late to get on (and off) this train, but I recently completed Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. In this NYT Bestseller, Gilbert takes all of us (and more importantly, all us women out there) on a fantastic and Odysseus-type journey away from New York City where she discovers her passions, her spirit, and love.

I didn’t see the Julia Roberts movie-version of this book for several reasons, the first obviously being that I wanted to experience the book prior to watching it on the big screen. However, I’ve also heard from many readers out there that the movie was very much sub-par compared to the memoir. After now completing the book I can see why.

I believe one of the reasons that I so deeply enjoyed this book (albeit not a huge fan of the third “Indonesia” part) was that I had never read an author’s words who so closely mirrored how I try to/imagine myself to write. Gilbert’s voice is loud and clear from start to finish in the 334 pages that comprise the book and it was simply refreshing to hear a woman bitch and complain and then fix herself from the inside out. Her writing is more than just being inside her head, you are inside Gilbert’s heart.

I read a lot of blogs and articles and what frustrates me a lot about the “I’m a young man/woman living in X-city and here is my column/memoir on my life”-type pieces is that it all sounds like hear-say. Rarely do I stumble upon a piece that sounds authentic (as I try to be but, alas, struggle with some/most-times myself). This was a total resurgence in my belief that you can sell books and still be yourself – and not your editor!

A couple wonderful quotes from this book:

On accepting a situation:

“True wisdom gives the only possible answer at any given moment.”

On “cultivating a measure of intelligent detachment”:

“…after reading about Vipassana meditation in the library one afternoon, I got to thinking about how much time I spend in my life crashing around like a great gasping fish, either squirming away from some uncomfortable distress or flopping hungrily toward ever more pleasure. And I wondered whether it might serve me (and those who are burdened with the task of loving me) if I could learn to stay still and endure a bit more without always getting dragged along on the potholed road of circumstance.”

Please go enjoy this book if you can. It’s a quick read (and you’ll want to devour more after it’s over). Yoga lovers: this book is for you! I got so much out of the "India" portion of the book because I study Hatha Yoga that it really made it all the better for my experience of the book. Don't do yoga? You may want to try it after this read.

I think this book is especially moving for women, as we all have days, months, years (?!) where we know we are crazy, but may need a little guidance in learning how to control it.

Returning

2011-01-02T22:13:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year, blogosphere! I hope you all had a great and relaxing vacation away from work, school, or whatever keeps you all busy during the workweek.

I'll be back this week with two book reviews and a look at the current Penn State football predicament (with lots of breaking news happening this evening, there's a lot to talk about). I'll also feature a guest blogger soon, which is very exciting.

Here we go, 2011!

An ad in a magazine for, well, magazines.

2010-12-22T11:12:00.002-05:00

I was browsing through my Mom's copy of Traditional Home over the weekend and stumbled upon this gem. It's an advertisement in a magazine FOR magazines. Sorry about the poor quality of this photo (thanks, Blackberry) but I think you can see just what I'm so perplexed by.

Who is responsible for this? An easy Google search will bring you to www.powerofmagazines.com, a site created to "dispel many commonly held myths about the state of our industry, and to share the exciting story of magazine advertising's outstanding value, unmatched recall and vast cultural impact."

Their newest ad is displayed:

It also lists some interesting facts about the magazine industry today, such as:

4 out of 5 adults read magazines (but they don't say how frequently)
Magazine readership in the 18 to 34 segment is growing (but they don't say by how much)
and this bizarre factoid: Magazines rank No. 1 at influencing consumers to start a search online – higher than newer media options (you'd think they were against sending people to the internet. Apparently not)

This is all amazing to me. As someone that was, at one time, committed to a career in the magazine industry, this isn't surprising that they are now taking up their own ad space to promote their own medium of communication. The development of the internet, the smartphone, and most recently the iPad or Tablet has significantly changed the way we receive our information, especially from magazines and newspapers.

I just didn't know it had gotten so bad (especially if the stats are so good, as claimed by The Power of Print).

What are your thoughts on these ads? Are they even effective, considering whoever is reading these ads already reads and continues to purchase magazines? Has anyone seen these ads on the internet or in newspapers or other forms of media?

I love my fair share of magazines, but usually just in airports, airplanes, trains, or waiting rooms. Rarely do I purchase or subscribe anymore thanks to the online websites my favorite magazines.

Are magazines a dying breed? And is this their obituary?

Old Fashioned

2010-12-21T09:55:00.002-05:00

An article in today's New York Times (Book of the Times: "A Marriage That Defied Separation and War") prompted this post when Michiko Kakutani took a look at a new book studying the relationship between John and Abigail Adams. In the book, "First Family: Abigail and John Adams," author Joseph J. Ellis "draws on those [1,200] letters to create a portrait of a couple forced to spend long months apart."

This prompted me to do some digging and read a few of these notes between the couple who has been described as America's first romantics. What I found was really incredible.

In a letter from their courtship dated February 14th, 1763, John writes to Abigail:

"Dear Madam

Accidents are often more Friendly to us, than our own Prudence. I intended to have been at Weymouth Yesterday, but a storm prevented. -- Cruel, Yet perhaps blessed storm! -- Cruel for detaining me from so much friendly, social Company, and perhaps blessed to you, or me or both, for keeping me at my Distance. For every experimental Phylosopher knows, that the steel and the Magnet or the Glass and feather will not fly together with more Celerity, than somebody And somebody, when brought within the striking Distance -- and, Itches, Aches, Agues, and Repentance might be the Consequences of a Contact in present Circumstances. Even the Divines pronounce casuistically, I hear, "unfit to be touched these three Weeks."

I mount this moment for that noisy, dirty Town of Boston, where Parade, Pomp, Nonsense, Frippery, Folly, Foppery, Luxury, Polliticks, and the soul -- Confounding Wrangles of the Law will give me the Higher Relish for Spirit, Taste and Sense, at Weymouth, next Sunday.

My Duty, were owing! My Love to Mr. Cranch And Lady, tell them I love them, I love them better than any Mortals who have no other Title to my Love than Friendship gives, and that I hope he is in perfect Health and she in all the Qualms that necessarily attend...Pregnancy, and in all other Respects very happy.

Your -- (all the rest is inexpressible)

John Adams" (via Adams Electronic Archive)

Will someone tell me...does anyone write like this anymore? Of course not.

In our age of texting, emailing, skyping, and instant messaging, letters are rare and beautiful thing. This time of year especially, I am reminded of the power of a hand-written letter. This isn't because we all get an obscene amount of holiday cards, but because people are still taking the time to do this when they could send an e-card. Or an e-mail.

Letters are unfortunately becoming obsolete in their basic form, which is general correspondence. Throughout my life I've had a series of pen-pals. At one time I had at least three or four going at a time, usually during the down summer months spent at the New Jersey Shore before email. How else was I to stay in touch with my friends about their summers? So I wrote to Katrina, and Jess, and Rachael, and we stayed in touch through the written word at age 9 or so.

As the years went on (and this thing called the Internet and AOL was invented) we started to write less and email more. But even that started to pucker out, especially when cell phones became something everyone had in their hip pocket or purse.

Recently I went through a bout with a friend where the only correspondence that we participated in were letters. One sent to me and one that I sent back. I haven't heard back from her, but something about the importance and significance of taking the time to hand-write a letter about our disagreements meant something. Not to mention I had to post it to England. So there's some weight there.

I know this argument has been brought up many times before, but aren't we all just getting a bit too comfortable with the lack of both written and face-to-face correspondence these days? In my profession, I can't thrive and succeed without face-to-face interaction followed by written correspondence. It just doesn't work. It's the personal touches that convey the seriousness and genuine appreciation for what my donors do that makes their experience in giving that much more memorable. For some it is the biggest decision they will make in their lives, so this kind of attention is obvious and necessary.

But I feel that this kind of special attention should be paid for the not-so-big moments in life. Aside from birthdays, graduations, weddings, and babies, people aren't congratulated enough through a card or just a nice conversation with a friend to catch up.

Ultimately, Ellis' book looks extremely fascinating and I may pick it up. I'm also going to peruse this collection of the Adams' letters from the database. Excited to see what else I can find in their letters back and forth to inspire me to do more writing myself.

D.

images via Adams Electronic Archive

Holiday Party - 2010

2010-12-17T09:50:00.001-05:00

Holiday Party - 2010 by dmh5026 featuring diamond jewelry

Saturday's get-up.

Book Reviews :: Higher Ed Introductions (with a side order of college sports)

2010-12-16T09:47:00.004-05:00

Two books that I had the pleasure of reading over this, my first semester of graduate school, have been incredibly helpful in easing me both into the work and ideas of higher education in the United States from the view of a grad student.

Philip G. Altbach, Robert O. Berdahl, and Patricia J. Gumport collaborate to bring together American Higher Education in the Twenty-First Century: Social, Political, and Economic Challenges. If the title sounds too broad to be true, it actually is. I got an immense amount of introductory history and background on (Northern) American higher education, but the opinionated research done primarily through the book overshadows its preface-type intention.

The book is broken down into three parts and 18 chapters, each giving a glimpse into the sectors of higher ed (the overly-segmented layout also bothered me). From "Challenges Facing Higher Education in the Twenty-First Century" (yes, I laughed when I read that title too, thinking, "My god! They're going to go over all the challenges. ALL of them! Hallelujah!") to more specific topics such as "Graduate Education and Research: Interdependence and Strain" the 558 page text is a good read even for casual observers of higher education. It played the role that my professor wanted it to: prompting good discussion, critique papers, and general all-over-ness. Its resistance to specifics was challenging for me, but the patience I had to take on to finish it leaves me feeling ready to now start narrowing down my focus for spring.

The second book that I focused on was an interesting textbook called The Game of Life: College Sports and Educational Values. Being the sports nut I am (and also being a University professional) this caught my attention. It is truly the first research-based, statistically-relevant and least-opinionated book about college sports that I have ever read and I'm glad I did.

Many a day is it that I get into arguments with people about the role of college sports in higher education. The debates range from calling universities profit-hungry-control-freaks to blaming athletics for poor academic performance and the degradation of the traditional liberal, moral and ethical values of a collegiate education. While there are certainly many specific cases in the past to support these arguments, overall college sports has brought money to institutions, helped them recruit faculty and all-star students, and should be critiqued justly: "In such settings, sports are seen as part of the school's core educational mission, and it is on these terms that sports programs should be judged...college sports programs emphasizes their impact on building a sense of community."

For any sports lover that wants to have the stats to back up their support of continuing collegiate-level athletics and student athletes, it's a nice tool for your tool belt.

I'm excited to start my journey into curriculum next semester with superstar faculty member Dr. Lisa Lattuca in mid-January. Working full-time and doing this graduate program part-time is a challenge, but I'm feeling so fulfilled that it is worth it. Just another perk to working at a University -- I am fortunate.

University of Insert-Profession-Here

2010-12-15T14:07:00.002-05:00

During a study group for my graduate course final exam, an interesting idea was brought up by a fellow classmate that really got me thinking. It may seem a bit obvious and it's probably been discussed to death already, but I have honestly never looked at undergraduate higher education in this kind of a format. So I wanted to share (thanks for the inspiration, Ford and Becky!).

Today in the Northern American Higher Education system, we have a pretty standard rubric for what an undergraduate process is like:

Enter as a freshman (either decided or non-decided on a major)
Spend the first two years or so obtaining prerequisites and general education credits
Start to specialize during your last two years, moving into a college or program of your choice
Graduate with a degree in that major
Start panicking and scramble for a job or go into graduate school

Seems like a tried and true method. And parts of it really work. It allows for the growth and expansion both intellectually and developmentally (social, mental, physical) of our country's 18-22 year old cohort. It opens up dialogues in diversity on race, gender, sexual orientation, politics, etc. in a safe and somewhat controlled environment. Research universities are able to employ these undergraduates to help their work progress and give the younger students a taste of graduate degree work and lifestyle. This system really puts in place a social experimentation of sorts where you can group these four-year-cohorts together, throw in a solid education, exciting activities, opportunities for leadership and growth, and let them have at it.

But the idea that I was thinking of was...isn't there a weakness here that is glaringly obvious? Aren't we losing focus that there are thousands of higher education institutions doing this same thing? Vying for the same resources? Competing for the same state funding/alumni dollars? Staffing? Star faculty? Aren't they all in cahoots competing with each other to be the best? And in the end, doesn't this hurt their programs and their students for all those that fall short in their respective arenas?

My idea is two fold: you have two separate kinds of Universities. For your first two years it would be more like a community college. An "entrance before the real thing" type of place that would do all your general education components.

The real difference then comes in the more specialty-focused institutions. What I'm suggesting is that instead of having 25 universities across the country who each have one or two of the top professors in a certain field spread out among them, why don't we create a university that is specifically for that field. Again, I know this sounds obvious. We have Law Schools, Schools of Medicine, Nursing Schools, Veterinary Schools, etc. I get that. Those are also graduate programs.

I'm talking about specified undergraduate institutions. There are many, many valid roadblocks here of course. Students at 20 years old may still not know what they want to study. Are two years enough time for a well rounded liberal education? Is this segmenting an already segmented population? Access and availability?

The way I see the pros are: you have the best faculty in a particular area lumped together at one institution. Shouldn't that provide a better ground for instruction and guidance in a particular field if that is what the student is looking for?

I don't know. Just a thought. Provoking for sure and I've definitely not done extensive research in this area (for all I know there are tons of undergraduate institutions that only specify in Public Relations or Creative Writing or Microbiology). But it's an interesting idea to entertain.

In other news, this weather is lowering my core body temperature at least a degree a day. It's freezing here! Hope you are all staying warm, finishing up finals and work, and getting ready for the bulk of the holiday season.

Cheers!

Money Doesn't Buy Champions

2010-12-14T10:13:00.005-05:00

Let me first say that I work with an office full of Yankees fans. Like, real Yankees fans. My boss is a Yankees fan.

My boyfriend is a die-hard Yankees fan.

Our intern is a Mets fan...but she still counts in there.

So today, I'm preciously the most enviable baseball fan in my little slice life. And boy does it feel good!

For years my go-to argument against brash and arrogant Yankee fans were that, "Okay, you're good. But you're just buying stars and using them in the clutch. You don't have a team. You have a squad of professional contract-negotiators with good arms and fast base-running." I would add a team full of "marital woes and a knack for the gossip pages" but we don't need to go there.

Finally my argument has been justified in the signing of Cliff Lee, Pitcher, to the Philadelphia Phillies, who turned down a cool $148 million bucks from the Yankees management.

Money will only get you so far in any sport, aside from maybe the NBA (but who really cares about the NBA? And with the new salary caps...let's not go there). Lee's commitment to the Philadelphia baseball franchise is a testament not only to his attitude as a professional athlete, which is one of graciousness and hard work, but also to the team here in Philadelphia. We didn't get to two world series in a row (2008 winner!) followed by a great playoff run in 2010 by stacking our team with big-money contract deals. Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino. These are now standard Philly names to be heard around the dinner table, and have been for years, but it didn't happen that way overnight with cash. These are home-grown, work hard and be rewarded, solid players and individuals. Bringing Lee back into this fold was obviously what he was to return for: a team with spirit, identity, and pride in their program.

I love the article referenced earlier from ESPN by Ian O'Connor purely for his last few lines: "The Yankees thought Cliff Lee was theirs, even if some of their fans had been rude to his wife. So this one hurts. It hurts to the bone. It hurts more than LeBron."

As much as I love New York City, this is their typical attitude getting in the way of their proverbial swagger, and it really just makes me laugh.

I do have to say that I admire Lee for his loyalty. Philadelphia did, in fact, send him to Seattle and left Lee and his family "heartbroken." He could have easily said "F-you" (in a, oh yeah, New York kind of fashion) and have sworn off the Phillies all together. But did he? Nope.

I am so eager to hear all the complaints and boo's from the Yankees, Mets, Rangers fans. Bring it on. I'd be jealous, too.

*Update: just to show that I'm not exhaggerating on the whole "how much do these MLB teams actually pay their players" thing, here's it in writing (just the top ten in 2010):

1.	New York Yankees	$206,333,389	$8,253,336
2.	Boston Red Sox	$162,747,333	$5,611,977
3.	Chicago Cubs	$146,859,000	$5,439,222
4.	Philadelphia Phillies	$141,927,381	$5,068,835
5.	New York Mets	$132,701,445	$5,103,902
6.	Detroit Tigers	$122,864,929	$4,550,553
7.	Chicago White Sox	$108,273,197	$4,164,354
8.	Los Angeles Angels	$105,013,667	$3,621,161
9.	Seattle Mariners	$98,376,667	$3,513,452
10.	San Francisco Giants	$97,828,833	$3,493,887

via CBS Sports

*Update #2 (thanks, Brian)

"Just heard on Colin Cowherd's show that Cliff Lee's son is in remission for leukemia and that his decision was going to be based off of more than money. He also mentioned that Philadelphia has the #1 childrens' hospital in the country which may have played a major role in his decision. To me this guy epitomizes everything that Philadelphia is: humble, hard-working, focused on his family, not all about the money. Here's a toast to you Clifton, may you get a few rings during your second time here." via The700Level.com

image via Google

Top 5 Holiday Dishes

2010-12-12T10:29:00.000-05:00

Since I am still unable to eat solid food (read: own personal purgatory) I've decided to post my Top 5 Holiday Dishes, both inspired by the chefs of the world and my own family & friends. I hope you all can try one or two of these delicious treats before the holiday season ends!

In no particular order...

Pumpkin Fluff

1 tub (16 oz.) frozen whipped topping
1 can (8 oz.) pumpkin
1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
1 box (5 oz.) vanilla instant pudding mix

Dippers:
Nilla Wafers
or Ginger Snaps

Combine all the ingredients into a bowl and mix with an electric beater until smooth. Add more or less pumpkin spice to taste. Delicious dessert or snack that keeps really well in the freezer if you have leftovers! (Thanks to Melissa Melnick for the inspiration!)

Sweet Potato Casserole

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup melted butter

Topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup melted butter
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup crushed Ritz crackers (THIS IS KEY!)

Combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl. Pour into casserole dish. Mix remaining ingredients together and sprinkle over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes (recipe via Ashley Sneft). Super yummy both in a sweet and savory way. Delish!

Lemon Smashed Potatoes

6 medium Yukon gold potatoes
2 to 3 cups heavy whipping cream
2 to 3 cups whole milk
Kosher salt
2 lemons, zested
Freshly group black pepper

Put the potatoes in a large saucepan with the cream and milk. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then add 1 teaspoon of salt. Reduce the heat and simmer until the potatoes are very tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove about 2 cups of the liquid and reserve. Add the lemon zest and season with salt and pepper to taste. Use a potato masher to break up the potatoes while adding about 1 cup of the reserved liquid, to just 'wet' the potatoes. Add more, for desired creaminess. Spoon the potatoes into a serving bowl and serve immediately (recipe via Tyler Florence). This is a great twist on traditional mashed potatoes and really lightens up anything that you serve with this side-dish.

Mom's Beef Stew

5-7 lb. chuck roast
6-8 oz. frozen peas
3/4 - 1 lb. carrots (sliced)
1.5 - 2 lbs. red potatoes (sliced in half or quarters. Add as many or as few as you want)
1 large white onion, finely chopped
1 beef stew seasoning pack
Beef bouillon cubes
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
4 - 6 cups warm water (eyeball it, just fill so that everything is pretty much covered in the broth)

You can trim off excess fat from the roast and cut into quarter/bit-sized pieces. All you do is throw everything into the Crock Pot, set at high, and cook until everything is tender and cooked through (check the meat carefully). I always like to add some horseradish sauce when serving so that you can add a little kick to this if you like spicy. This has got to be one of the best recipes for cold, snowy, nights when you need to warm yourself up! Love every time Mom makes this.

Hot Buttered Rum

(Preface: okay I know this isn't a "dish" but it certainly goes along with any of the previous recipes. Just be sure to take it easy while you're cooking...they can be a little strong!)

Mount Gay Eclipse Rum

Batter:
1 lb. light brown sugar
1/2 lb. unsalted butter (softened)
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
2 tsp. vanilla extract

In a preheated coffee mug combine 2 heaping tbsp. batter with 1 1/2 oz. Mount Gay Eclipse Rum. Top with boiling water and stir well to mix. Serve with a spoon.

Hint: It is best to make the batter in advance so the spices have an opportunity to mingle. Be sure to remove batter from refrigerator at least 6 hours prior to serving to allow it to soften. In a mixing bowl beat together softened butter, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and spices until well combined. Refrigerate in an airtight reusable container for up to a month, or place in your freezer until ready to use (recipe via Marie Claire).

I hope you all can try one or two of these festive dishes -- I'm hoping I can soon, too! Take care on this awfully rainy/snowy Sunday!

D.

images via Google, Marie Claire

"Tips from an Adult"

2010-12-09T21:33:00.001-05:00

This was part of an email subject line that was sent to me by a colleague when I told her I was having my tonsils out last week. Funny thing is, this whole process reduced me down to a very child-like state, full of parental TLC, lots of laying around, and well, some tears.

Well world, I'm back (kind of).

The reason I'm writing this blog post is because before my surgery I found so much useful information from blogs like this from other adults (or, really, anyone over the age of 14 who was getting their tonsils out) that prepared me for this awful experience. Now, I want to share my experiences in order to a) give back, b) be able to inform anyone out there who may be getting ready for this same surgery, or c) to dissuade anyone from getting this done unless absolutely necessary.

I have wanted my tonsils out since I was eight years old. Strep 4-5 times a year plus a wicked case of tonsillitis every now and then literally drove me mad for years and years of my life. However, many family doctors are not prone to removing the lymph tissue that are your tonsils unless completely necessary, so I suppose I never qualified as being "completely necessary" until I switched doctors at age 23.

I knew I was having this surgery done about three months ago. My brother had his out a few years ago, several friends in the past few years, some acquaintances even before that...all warning me that it was going to be a tough road. Lots of skeptics (many of whom have never even had a throat infection...aka the demon of all sicknesses) think that this is an easy procedure. And they're right. However, with an easy procedure comes the worst and slowest kind of recovery I could have ever imagined.

But here am I am, exactly one week since surgery, and I have survived and am feeling okay. I want to share some details on my day-to-day recovery as a way to update, en masse, the many people who probably thought I dropped off the face of the earth and to also hopefully provide some insights to future tonsillectomy patients. (Side note: an interesting side effect of all this was that I stayed away from social networking of all kind for nearly a week. A week! A long time for this lady and in today's world for sure. But it certainly was refreshing.)

Ready, but scared, for surgery.

Day 1 - Surgery

This was my first time going under anesthesia and being the naive girl I am, I was most afraid of the IV and the drugs. Something about an irrational fear of waking up in the middle of the operation, etc. Knowing what I now know about the recovery, this pain was miniscule compared to what was ahead. My experience "going under" was very odd. They tried to drug me up before entering the operating room, but in what would come as a repeat motion later on, the drugs had literally no effect on me and it wasn't until the anesthesiologist gave me the really good stuff that I was completely knocked out. I remember all the normal operating room scenes: big lights, cold, table, lots of people, heart monitors, etc. But then I woke up and it was all over. Surgery done - bap. Emotionally bawling my eyes out was a weird and embarrassing side affect of coming out of anesthesia, but hey what's a girl to do? Her throat was just removed from her neck!

When we returned home, the rest of the day was pretty much me being a lethargic mush pile. It took the rest of the day and part of the next day for all the anesthesia to leave my body and I was happy for that. Because things were about to get a lot worse.

Flowers from the BF.

Day 2 - "Slight discomfort"

These are the words the nurses used to describe the pain that I would be enduring for the next two weeks. "Slight discomfort" barely even began to describe it. I woke up this morning with the feeling of having swallowed razors, been hit repetitively in the jaw by a 2x4, and drank lava for breakfast. Oh, and the worst chapped lips of my life! In addition, I had to drink a slew of concoctions: antibiotics, liquid pain killers, liquid Advil, and then try to get some water into my system. This was not happening.

I received such nice flowers and gifts from all areas of my life: work, class, friends, family, etc. They were all beautiful and wonderful and brought such a bright spot during the pain!

Day 3 - "By today, you should be able to eat a cheeseburger"

Ah, more inspiring words from the nursing staff at MNMC. When she told me this in the recovery room at the Surgery Center, I wanted to laugh and ask her if she was an actual certified nurse. Turns out, this is was "standard directions for all tonsillectomy patients" regardless of whether they are 2 or 200. This is not practical. Nor truthful. And really, kind of insulting.

The many, many drugs I had to take after surgery.

Today was the worst day of my recovery. Trying to down all the pain medication felt like swallowing acid that was lit on fire and to add to it, I had to double my pain medications because they were having zero effect. This, mixed with literally having eaten nothing for almost 3 days and maybe taking in about a cup of water over the same time left me severely dehydrated. So much so, in the end, that my parents had to take me to the ER.

The actual transit of going to the ER is a complete blur and I hardly remember going. I do know that as we entered the ER there were two women about to give birth and all I kept thinking was "please don't confuse me with them." That was about the extent of my thinking at this point. My parents described me as "comatose" and they were really pretty worried as they she should have been. I had to be rushed into a room, pumped full of two bags of saline liquid to reverse the dehydration, and given different pain meds plus a dose of steroids. What I did discover is the best drug on the face on the planet: Fentanyl. This is the most relaxing, wonderful, powerful, "I've had three drinks and feel fantastic" narcotic I had during this whole production. If I were a junkie: this would be my drug of choice. And it did the trick.

Overall the ER experience went from me being very sick to being completely revitalized. Needless to say the pain was still there in a severe way, but the switch in my medication made me able to take in fluids and even some jello. Eureka!

Couldn't have recouped without these guys. Love.

Day 4 - Significant changes

This day was a big change. While I was still very weak, the pain had gone down some during the day and I was finally having some relief. Mornings and overnights were bad, but I could at least function around the apartment during the day.

I have to say my parents were saints throughout this entire thing. In addition to just living in my one-bedroom apartment for a week, they cooked, cleaned, pampered, and took care of my every need. They are the best and I couldn't have recovered without them.

Day 5 - Outside world

Today my parents ventured me out into some daylight and it did me good. I was shocked at how weak I had gotten in the five days since surgery, but a steady diet of water and jello isn't exactly a stout menu. My parents noticed that I had lost weight but I couldn't at this point and still am having a hard time seeing it.

I only lasted for about an hour outside the apartment doing some light holiday shopping, but it was enough to both energize me to move forward another day and to also go home and get a lot more rest. Today I started checking emails again from work and got a glimpse at all I have to catch up on. Thankfully I have wonderful colleagues who have had my back big time in the past week.

Day 6 - Best day yet

Today was incredible. I was able to go out for more than an hour with my parents to run some errands and I felt like my strength was starting to return. After a bad night and morning, the days are getting better and I am declining off of the steroids and pain meds slowly. I am not skipping any doses (rule #1) and am still getting as much rest as I can. Big progress was that I was able to eat the whites of a hardboiled egg today...real food! Amazing! I miss food, but am not as hungry as I thought I would be at this point.

Day 7 - Today

And that brings you all up to speed. I still feel like I can't quite word exactly how bad the pain and the loss of energy has been, but it's a very foreign concept to be in this kind of shape. I kept trying to do things and help out, but I never knew how hard surgery (of any kind) can be on the body. On top of it all, having open wounds in your throat is not exactly an easy place to heal, so I can certainly tell that the 100%-me will not be back for some time (neither will my appetite).

My parents left today so I am here to fend for myself. On tap: online shopping, updating myself on the happenings of the world I live in and the world around me, and hopefully starting a new post that isn't so self-centered! I hope for those of you who have had this surgery can commiserate with what I went through and hopefully yours was not so bad. And to those of you that think you need your tonsils out because of the occasional bought of a scratchy throat: think again. This is a serious decision that takes a long time to heal. My doctor put it best in saying that only those that have been through the worst cases of throat infections will be able to handle the pain of recovery. He's certainly right!

Hope you all have had a productive and nice week. It's been beautiful to watch my town have its first snow fall and I am eager to get back outside on a more consistent basis soon.

P.S. This neck pillow saved my life!

Final note: good luck to both my baby brother and my boyfriend on their concerts this weekend! I'm so sorry I won't be there. I know you'll both be tremendous.

Here's to another week of recovery! Back to work on Monday, but at a slow and steady pace.

D.

Marching Bands and Hazing: A Real Problem

2010-11-30T20:39:00.006-05:00

My Dad told me to watch an On-Demand episode of Bryant Gumbel's "Real Sports" segment titled: Band Hazing. In the piece, reporter, journalist and former Sports Illustrated writer Frank Deford takes a look at the hazing going on the the NCAA, especially at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Deford specifically goes to two different schools, Southern University and Jackson State, two HBCUs known for their popular halftime show routines highlighted by dancing, popular music, and energetic crowds. People come to see the show on football Saturday, not necessarily the football team. Every fall I watch the Grambling vs. Southern football game purely for the halftime shows that one of the major networks airs. As a former NCAA Division IA marching band member, it's exciting just to see the bands on TV. But these bands are so exciting and so crazy compared to the Big Ten marching band shows I was used to, that I am glued to the TV every year.

Deford interviewed a former Jackson State marching band french horn player that was hospitalized with kidney failure after being beaten with a 2x4, shoes, belts, and anything else the upperclassmen could get their hands on. Those doing the beating of the freshmen (or "crabs" as they are nicknamed) had gone through this hazing before, and one upperclassmen said that he keeps hazing because "it's a competition thing. The first person hits him, then the second has to hit him harder."

20-45 members of Jackson State's band were expelled in one year for hazing. The story, as reported by Jackson Mississippi's Channel 3 WLBT, shows that in a prior incident that took place in 2006 no action was taken for the hazing of freshmen and that the University has "no policy [that] requires automatic suspension or expulsion if a student is found guilty of hazing." The problem here is that, according to Deford, no HBCU has ever suspended an entire band for hazing. Sections or groups of people had been suspended or expelled, but the Universities will not suspend the entire band.

Why? They provide the show, and therefore the audience, and therefore the money for their football programs.

NBC covered the full-band suspension of Wisconsin's marching band in the fall of 2008. The band had been suspended in 2006 for similar allegations along the lines of physical and sexual hazing of freshmen band members. Wisconsin's band director Mike Leckrone said "it involved only a small number of band members, but it was significant enough to warrant the suspension."

So here we have a case of a university suspending a marching band that didn't put anyone in the hospital, a la Jackson State, but deemed it serious enough to suspend the entire band. There is a serious disconnect between the disciplinary actions happening at schools like Jackson State and Wisconsin.

The point has to be made that no matter if it is a HBCU or Big Ten university, if it is a school where the football team brings in the revenue or the football show brings it in, hazing should never, ever be tolerated.

This story really hit home for me. The traditions, memories, relationships, and pride I learned from my time in marching band could never be replaced, and I can't imagine having it be stained by something as ruthless and brutal as hazing. This idea of sacrificing for what you love and that these "rituals" are about gaining power and pride as an upperclassmen is a detriment to our society during a time in a young adult's life where they are becoming the person they will ultimately be forever.

This fall there has been a lot of attention paid to the teen suicides due to bullying. This band hazing should be taken just as seriously as it is causing so many people pain and is ruining the spirit of the great college football tradition of the marching band.

This year and every year until these universities make it a priority to condemn and stop this hazing, I will not be tuning in for the Grambling vs. Southern halftime show. How could I continue to support these universities and the cable networks that air their band performances and therefore promote and ignore this kind of behavior when I know what is going on behind the scenes?

If you see hazing going on: take a stand and put an end to the violence.

D.

image via Google

Restaurant Review :: Westside Stadium Bar & Grill

2010-11-29T10:44:00.004-05:00

It's not often that a new restaurant opens in State College, Pa., but recently a new place popped up on my many drives down West 26 and I decided to stop in with my boyfriend and his brother after the last Penn State home game this weekend.

The Westside Stadium Bar & Grill is located probably a half mile outside of the far west edges of "town." Its location seems to serve more of the local scene than the students because of its inaccessible distance away for walkers, but the place has plenty of parking and is surrounded by a strip of car dealerships, shops, and is close to the Penn State Golf Courses.

The Westside replaced an old lounge called Links (I had never been) and is a bar and grille, as the name suggests. It's pretty roomy with a 125-person occupancy and even a bottle shop. The closest bottle shop to Westside is at least a drive away, so that is sure to draw some people from the west side of town out to frequent the restaurant to at least take advantage of their beverage selections. Aside from the Four Loko they are selling, I was very impressed with their beer variety and accessibility.

We sat in the main dining room that features nearly a dozen flat-screen TVs, a nice wooden bar area, and Pennsylvania sports memorabilia stuck to the walls. The decor is very warm and natural and not nearly as tacky as they could have mistakenly made it.

We were there for dinner and the three of us really went to town. Considering we had been outside in 20-degree weather for the past eight hours, we feasted on piping hot french onion soup, a nice fried mozzarella appetizer, and then an assortment of sandwiches, wraps, and burgers. The food came out hot and in a very timely manner. Westside makes their own chips which were out of this world and hot out of the deep fryer. For a football Saturday, the restaurant had all the hot games going and was decently populated for an awkward 4 PM late lunch/early dinner. They offer Trivia and good draft specials on Sunday nights and according to our short talk with the manager and our server, they have been doing pretty good business.

Overall the food was definitely the highlight of this new eatery. It was seriously outstanding and made with obvious attention. Check out Westside Stadium Bar & Grill if you're in town as you're sure to be satiated with some very yummy (albeit pig-out style) eats!

Thanks to MAB and DAB for their insights and help with this review!

Reunion

2010-11-28T16:57:00.003-05:00

This weekend marked various walks down memory lane both with family and friends reuniting over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Coming home to my teenage room in the house I grew up in (for the most part), I was charged with the task of helping my high school class officers submit photos for the slideshow that was going to run at our 5-year reunion taking place the Friday after Thanksgiving. Reliving memories of class, extra-curricular activities and everything in between, it was a pleasure to look back while at the same time looking forward to reconnecting with so many friends.

Rereading signatures in my yearbooks had to be the most nostalgic I've been for a reunion since we graduated in 2005. I was shocked at some of the signatures that pledged undying friendship (and who, by now, I have had no contact with since high school ended) and other mundane signatures that were from acquaintances that I've now gotten closer to. Of course there were the steadfast few that haven't changed their promises, and for them I was very thankful over this little holiday.

Reconnecting with so many familiar faces is an eerie episode. It is hard to think that, at one point, you spent nearly all your waking moments with these people and now you barely know them. But then you get to chatting and it's as if not a day went by. I could feel the little phenomena of this exact expression happening all over the room during our three-hour soiree.

In the end, I was glad for those I got to say hi to and hear what they are up to (many are engaged, most have jobs that aren't careers but are paying the bills, and a lucky few are very promising in their personal life and careers already). One classmate, always the performer, even got engaged during the evening!

A once close friend texted me later that night saying something to the effect of how much he had forgotten the level of cool, if you will, of our friends until he saw them again on this night. To downplay his apparent feeling of guilt, I told him that I thought we had all grown significantly in our "coolness" since the days of GVHS, or maybe perhaps it was there all along and we had just masked it with our teen angst and rebellion. He didn't respond, but I think he got the picture (in addition to both of us pledging to staying in touch more often). Our class of 2005 were all the same people five years later, but our outer layers of protection and walls had been folded down for some, allowing true character to show through now in our young adulthood.

Sadly, some people I may never see again or may only see in another five years. To them I say good luck and hope to hear of your successes in the future.

Reunions are a very interesting and exciting breed of nerves and happiness. I encourage everyone to attend theirs, regardless of their status as a jock, band geek, ditz, or nerd way-back-when. Some people may really surprise you.

D.

"Academe has a culture of ingratitude."

2010-11-24T11:10:00.001-05:00

I stumbled upon this article on the Chronicle of Higher Education's website titled "On Gratitude in Academe" and had to read it as soon as humanly possible. Gratitude? Academe? In the same sentence?

The title itself suggests the basic view that we, as a society, should be grateful for the role that academe and higher education play: educating, developing, and providing opportunity for the next generation. Author Thomas H. Benton (William Pannapacker), an associate professor of English at Hope College, in Holland, Michigan, goes on to explain what he is grateful for in his life as a tenured professor (the list should be never-ending!).

But it's his preface to what he is grateful for (in the "spirit of the season"), he is clear that the reason faculty members are so crotchety, irritable, and largely unhappy even in the most cushion-y of tenured jobs is that they are always striving to be better, to get ahead, and if they are satisfied...well, that basically means they aren't doing their job. In the spirit of the season, I say this is a big flaming pile of rotten pumpkins.

Let me first say that I work for an institution of higher education that is jam-packed with amazing faculty, thoughtful administrators, and wonderful support staff. I have had the opportunity to work with phenomenal researchers who are leading their fields into the frontiers of the future and have made gigantic strides in their work. I've seen professors influence their students in class beyond the lecture hall and integrate themselves into the culture of this University. These are amazing feats.

However, there is also a fair share of complaining that goes on at any university, on any campus (including this one) that stretches from inside the offices of faculty members into the community, and into my daily grind. And their excuse is that they are simply not satisfied with the job they are doing? Here I was thinking it was because of the freeze on salary raises, administrative "control" on them, and students being (as Benton puts it), lazy?

Benton explains, "And our professional drive toward higher standing can lead us to accomplish more than we might if we cherished contentment over advancement. But there is a price for all those advantages: Academe has a culture of ingratitude...After all, gratitude suggests satisfaction, and we are not supposed to be satisfied. If we are grateful, then it means we are accepting the status quo, which is, almost by definition, always intolerable"

Is this guy for real?

I understand that, especially when it comes to academics, artists, and the like, that there is a certain amount of insatiability or, to be honest, workaholic tendencies, that come with creativity . While this emphasis on continuing to innovate and be new and, as a result, be begrudged at the same time (often taking it out on administrators, staff, students) cannot be tolerated. Leave that within your lab, your office, your study, and instead focus on projecting the positives outward. We are in the business of shaping young minds. The last thing we need is a streak of ingratitude or irritability highlighting their academic career.Faculty members could take a course or two about working with other people, as their introverted desires to be great are often projected as outward presumptuousness.

I think Mr. Benton is a bit of a Thanksgiving Grinch, to be honest: "a stern command to be grateful with one's meager portion and not to question, for example, the increasing extremes of wealth and opportunity. In that context, gratitude is for suckers."

Lighten up!

Book Review :: The Help

2010-11-24T09:24:00.009-05:00

"Maybe I ought to keep writing, not just for the paper, but something else, about all the people I know and the things I seen and done. Maybe I ain't too old to start over, I think and I laugh and cry at the same time. Cause just last night I thought I was finished with everything new."

A while back a friend of mine tweeted about a book she had read called "The Help" by a woman named Kathryn Stockett. I had it on my BN.com Wish List for a while and I finally picked it up. Turns out, a) I was way late to the game to read this one b) my brother's roommate had done the voice of the white narrator for the book on CD and c) they are making a movie out of this novel. Hm. Good to decision to read? I think so.

The fact that this book was written by a white woman and that it is her first novel is astounding. Reading the first part of the book, narrated by one of two African American narrators, you would think it was Tony Morrison writing in her "Beloved"-like voice. Smooth, velvety, sultry, real, and just a bit sad. I was instantly drawn in by the descriptions of 1963 Jackson, Mississippi and the stereotypes, racial stigmas, injustices, and brutality that went along with it.

Stockett's ability to draw emotion out of all of her characters, both good and evil, is a quality well beyond her young career as a novelist. She is calculated and strategic but not sterile. It's an art form. I appreciated her descriptions of the mundane in the lives of these black maids in the South...their chores and cooking are transformed into larger-than-life episodes, much the way these fictional women would see them and why they would put so much energy into polishing every piece of silver. Because that was their world.

The heartbreak and tragedy suffered in these black communities, especially in Mississippi, must have been copiously researched. The details and descriptions are not contrived or predictable. They are so cleverly thought out and premeditated (as many of these civil rights crimes were) gives the book such an authentic feel. Without the cover or knowledge that this is a work on fiction, one may think these are real-life accounts of what happened during this dark era in our country's history.

Without giving away too much, I really value Stockett's ability to merge her life with her fictional world. It's nearly seamless.

Please, please pick up a copy of this book for no other reason than for an exercise in acceptance, race relations, and the absorption of the wrongdoings that have occurred much too frequently and continue to happen. The lines between black and white, religions, and politics are still too deeply drawn in the 21st Century.

Enjoy this one. You'll feel good doing it.

D.

UPDATE: For an interesting take on segregation, integration, and a real-life look at what "The Help" references, check out this article by the Chronicle of Higher Education "Diverse in the Heart"

image via Google

NCAA Football Fail

2010-11-19T13:00:00.006-05:00

When the decision was made a year ago to hold two Big Ten football games in non-Big Ten stadiums, I was both dumbfounded and angry. The push to hold these games on "neutral" sites is against the whole idea of college football: school pride, school tradition, quirks and differences in one student body versus another. It's enough to make you crazy. As my Dad so eloquently put it, "Money talks, nobody walks."

A few things to think about heading into this NCAA Football weekend in mid-November that would support my argument against these stadium switches:

Let's first examine Penn State vs. Indiana at FedEd Field

Granted, it's wonderful for all those Washingtonites and Virginians to be able to not have to travel so much to see the Nittany Lions, but here are some things we will miss having it not be on Indiana's campus:

Hoosier gameday traditions
A true "home team" advantage by Indiana (what were they thinking?)
Tailgating -- no one seems to notice that we will not be able to tailgate after the game as long as if we were at Indiana (as far as I know). PSU fans are in for a rude awakening
Putting our boys in a "hostile" environment where their locker room, field, and comforts aren't the same as at home. Both Indiana and Penn State will be in completely neutral environments. This spells out b-o-r-i-n-g to me
No word yet on whether Indiana's band will have the chance to be there and perform

And then there's the Northwestern debacle which, at this point, is now laughable.

Northwestern was slated to take on Illinois at Wrigley Field this Saturday. There were even rumors that the ballpark's infamous sign was going to be painted purple. However, a mere 24 hours before the slated game, Big Ten officials have had to call off the use of an ENTIRE ENDZONE! Are they kidding?

Nope. ESPN reported and continues to update us on the dangers of the one endzone being too close to the stands on the one side, so they will only be playing towards the East endzone.

Now, these people are Big Ten athletic officials. They should know something about the size of the field and the size of the stadium they are trying to fit it into BEFORE THE WEEKEND OF THE GAME! Geeze, this just blows my mind.

And on top of that, what if there is an interception and a return for a touchdown in that "dangerous" endzone? What, will time be called and everyone will do musical chairs to get to the opposite but corresponding sides of the field? This, at this point, is one big joke. Well done, entire State of Illinois.

These are my gripes. Despite this I will be down in D.C. for the Penn State vs. Indiana game (more to see my closest friends and spend time with them than anything else. The $30 ticket value also didn't hurt).

But please, NCAA, don't make these exceptions the norm to our regular season college football Saturdays that are so cherished and heralded as days of tradition. You would be making a huge mistake.

image via Google

Things I'm grateful for heading into the holiday season...

2010-11-16T08:33:00.006-05:00

I am probably the biggest advocate for restraining from the yule-tide cheer and New Year's Eve plans until after Thanksgiving, but an article on Yahoo's Shine site got me into the spirit of thinking about what I'm grateful for as I look ahead to the holidays.

Where I live, there is a certain calm that comes over our town once Thanksgiving hits. With a home game the day after Turkey Time this year, it may take a couple more days for this to really become evident, but our town becomes more like a village. Lights go up, illuminating downtown, and there is more room to breathe. Don't get me wrong, I love our football Saturdays as much as the next die-hard fan, but I am grateful for the days to come when I can stroll down College Avenue and not have to navigate the waters of an additional 80,000 people inhabiting our town.

This a version of one of Shine's items, but the Pumpkin Spice Lattes at Starbucks have to be my favorite seasonal drink. I'm savoring as many of them as I can, in moderation, especially as I wrap up 2010 with a busy work schedule, the final few weeks of my first graduate school class, and lots of traveling.

Movies from my childhood always seem to pop up during this time of year. Just two days ago I saw "Harriet the Spy" on HBO. Remember that flick? I was obsessed when it came out, and I still remember some one-liners and nuances that I loved when I was ten and still love some dozen-plus years later.

Cinnamon, apple, pumpkin, sugar cookie, or evergreen candles. Enough said.

Potluck lunches and dinners both at work and with friends never get old. I know some people get freaked out that (SHOCKINGLY!) other people are preparing food that you are going to eat, but I find it pretty heartwarming. And to those people I ask: do you eat at restaurants? Who do you think is back in the kitchen making your food? Kitchen elves?

One of the best traditions that I am grateful for is Black Friday spent shopping at the King of Prussia Mall with my mom. We mainly go to observe and people-watch (trust me, it's not until you see two women fighting over one Smelly the Dumptruck toy that you really can see into human persistance). Also, our occasional divulsion of Auntie' Anne's cinnamon and sugar pretzels and hot chocolate isn't bad either.

I love being able to pull out all the throw pillows and blankets that have been in storage during the warmer spring and hot summer months. Cuddling up in a nice, soft, blanket warms the heart and is a wonderful luxury to come home to after a long day at work. Look into Restoration Hardware's Luxury Plus Throw ($29) if you really want to feel comfy and cozy all holiday season long.

And of course, being surrounded by wonderful family, friends, and significant others is one of the best and most grateful parts of looking forward to this holiday season. Gathering around food, love, and laughter is the best remedy and vacation that we could all take.

So get those turkeys ready, pies baked, houses cleaned, and stock the bar...holiday season 2010 is going to be a good one.

D.

Classism in the Workplace

2010-11-15T16:53:00.003-05:00

As part of my professional development, I ran for and was selected to participate on the Diversity Committee for my department at the institution where I'm employed. It's been a great experience and although I feel I bring only a small amount of diversity to the group, I really like sharing my ideas, thoughts, concerns, and initiatives in an open environment. It's nice to see an institution of higher education take such a strong position on enhancing our diversity.

Today we had our annual Diversity Committee-sponsored staff meeting (of about 350 employees) where a representative from our Affirmative Action Office was going to do a session titled, "Climate Control: Promoting Mutual Respect in the Workplace." I was instantly a) proud of our sub-committee for programming to pick such a wonderful topic and b) enticed by what was to come.

Overall the presentation was interactive and well-delivered. It touched on how to take a look at problems in the workplace more as challenges and put into perspective how to handle sensitive situations at work. To be honest a lot of it was "best case scenario" types of amelioration for conflicts at work, but not for lack of effort of explaining how they could be the most accessible solutions.

I was hoping that there would have been more discussed about what kinds of problems arise, and not just how to deal with them.

At my institution, the leadership is comprised heavily of males. While the field of development now has more females than males in active roles, this has just become the norm. In the past, development was almost entirely dominated by men. It is encouraging to see some more equality in this field (even though the men are still being paid more than the women), but with how I work on a day-to-day basis, I would like to see a bit more equality in the leadership breakdown of male and female.

Now, let me also say that I believe in our leadership and feel motivated, empowered, valued, and excited for work every day.

There are some aspects of work, though, that come from outside employee-to-employee relations. Working in this field I am put in touch with and collaborating with volunteers and donors every single day. As you may expect, most of these people are significantly older than me and are either at the pinnacle of their careers or have already retired after a fulfilling and successful run.

Tomorrow marks my One Year Anniversary in my current role, and it has truly taken nearly all 12 months to prove my ability as a development professional to a certain handful of volunteers I work with. No stranger to having to prove myself, I have tried to see this as a challenge and not an obstacle, but some days are harder than others. There is a sense of classism and ageism that goes on for sure, but as a young woman just starting her career...I suppose it is to be expected. Luckily I have a supportive and encouraging work environment that is there to both listen to my challenges and help me overcome them.

So I pose these questions to you, my readers: What is your experience with classism, ageism, sexism in the workplace? Does your job have offices where you can mediate these concerns and confront possible roadblocks? Do you feel valued in your work?

All of these are very interesting and probing questions for me. I believe we all deal with some obstacles of unfairness in our daily work routines, but it's how you understand and deal with them that move you forward in your career.

Review :: Juliet, Naked

2010-11-12T09:00:00.002-05:00

"That seemed like an ambition, of sorts: to get to a stage where she wanted to hang herself because putting a T-shirt on a child's bed seemed indicative of the slow and painful death of the spirit. At the moment, she wanted to hang herself because it seemed like the first tiny glimmers of a rebirth." (pg. 376)

As I was perusing the book stands last weekend, I stumbled upon Nick Hornby’s latest novel, Juliet Naked. An avid High Fidelity fan (both the book and the movie), I was eager to pick up Hornby’s new book and devour it immediately.

Juliet, Naked is so essential Hornby that you could pick it up with the author’s name scrubbed out and still know it was him. His writing is straightforward, thoughtful, and easy. But isn’t easy to be confused with lack of depth, because in his easy writing comes alive three characters fleshed out to their basest level, giving readers a look into the lives of very different people with one thing in common: Tucker Crowe.

Tucker Crowe is the focal point of the book. Crowe is a former 80’s rock star with a cult following due to his twenty-year disappearance. As with many Hornby novels, he describes Crowe’s music, lyrics, and sound with such authenticity that you start to believe that Crowe was an actual musician, with Hornby writing the biography. I’m continually amazed with Hornby’s ability to stay within a particular few genres of music from book to book and still maintain a level of curiosity in his characters. It’s almost sad that there wasn’t a soundtrack to go along with this of Crowe’s music.

The essence of a good book, to me, is the internal struggle that a character feels. However, the genius comes in when the author doesn’t make it hard to see into that while at the same time not dumbing anything down. Hornby is a master at this, especially one-liners that are so basic but are packed with pounds of meaning. A cousin of this are his statements of profound insight, presented in a non-pretentious and warm way:

“But then that’s what art is, sometimes, he always felt: something that confers advantages” (pg. 347-348).

Hornby’s English wit comes across like a siren on a fire truck, but is also masterful in his American comedy, making the transition between the two seamless and natural. And, as he is known, he can portray the thoughts and actions of a child in some of the most realistic situations, providing a wonderfully realistic landscape for relationships with all the supporting roles.

Overall it’s a great read for fans of Hornby’s writing. I hate to think this, but unfortunately some of his writing may be seen as overdramatic and pompous if you don’t view music as a vehicle for change or a heavy instrument producing significant life lessons. What I’m saying is that you have to love music to appreciate his writing, plain and simple.

Pick it up if you can. It’s a quick read at 406 pages and I finished in about three days. Up next: The Help.

Frosty

2010-11-11T08:52:00.008-05:00

The day we brought Frosty home, I remember our inability to settle on a name. At just a few months old, she was practically bald and looked like a pinky-white rat. When we got to the shore house to show her around we threw around names like "Oreo" (even though only her nose was black) and some others that I just can't remember.

When my Dad came down to the shore the next day, he kind of looked at the new puppy like...what is that?? She was a Westie, but at that time she didn't resemble the poofy, fur-covered fluff-ball that we had all pictured in our minds.

From day one, Frosty was very special.

We decided on the name Frosty and quickly came up with a litany of nick-names: Froddy, Froddy Doggy, Queen Frostine, Frosty-tina, Frostini, The Great White One, Baby Girl, Abba-abba Doggy, and so on. She knew all of these were her and she fit each one depending on her mood.

Frosty LOVED the shore down on Long Beach Island. She sat four hours looking out our front windows at the neighbors that passed and they all loved to greet her when she was sunbathing on our front stoop. My mom took her for countless walks on the beach where Frosty would sprint through the sand at a lightening pace. We even took her swimming in the bay once (but that didn't work out too well). The shore was definitely her favorite place.

During the time at home some of her favorite pastimes were the Frosty 500 (a series of laps that she would run around the downstairs rooms, darting from one end to another and even hurdling over me when I would lay down in the middle of her track), chasing after and finally destroying plastic bottles of all time, squirrel (and later possum) hunting, playing with "the girls" next store of neighborhood dogs Coco and Chanel, playing tug of war, and of course watching dad slice apples in the hopes that she would get a piece (which she always did).

Frosty came home with us when I was 12 years old, so she has pretty much seen every major milestone in my life up to this point: teenager years spent crying over mean girls and boys and using her as my personal cuddle toy for consoling purposes; junior and senior prom (and the drama that came after each); late nights studying with her on the couch next to me; my departure from the nest to attend college, and then later for my first job; and even my grandparents passing away.

When my Dad went through some trying times in his health, Frosty was his loyal accomplice. She would sit with him for hours and hours while he recovered in our house and provided such joy and peace to him. I truly believe she is the reason why he made such great recoveries andkept in such good spirits throughout the ordeals. Even when her final moments came, he was by her side to keep the promise that she kept to him: never leaving when the going got tough. They were best friends or even more. My family has always considered her a member of the family, but my Dad repeatedly said in her final moments that she was like a third child. She really did mean that much to us.

We didn't know Frosty was getting sick. In her past she tore BOTH of her ACL's and recovered on her own (miraculous. I'm telling you she was a champ). She had a couple bouts of stomach viruses and even had a blood condition that she triumphed through. On their way down to the shore yesterday, my parents noticed that she wasn't moving as much, barely at all, really. They took her back to Philly immediately and we found out that the prognosis was not good.

In the end, we put our little baby girl pup down last night in one of the saddest, precious, and moving moments of my life. I was a coward and didn't say in the room while she was there...a decision that I'm not sure if I regret or not. But I was able to give her the best goodbye and I will always remember how soft she felt and the kisses I got. She was just groomed on Monday, so she looked like a princess.

My parents stayed with her throughout the entire process and my mom said that it was very peaceful. The vet was wonderful and guided us through everything. We had to put our first dog down 13 years ago, when he was just 7 months old. His name was Augie and we loved him, but the feeling of loss is so much greater when you spent 12 years with the same pet. We lost a member of the family last night at 11 PM.

I know some people will say, "it's justa dog" and I know that this is the reality for dogs when they get older. Frosty was not going to make a recovery and we made sure we knew that for certain before we made any decisions. We would have never wanted to put her through treatments and procedures if it extended her life but did not improve it. She was in so much pain that, in the end, we were able to do the right thing for her and we take solace in the fact that she is in heaven now and will forever be a happy, good dog...just as she was here on earth.

Trying to hold yourself together for your parent's sake is a hard thing to do at 24, but I really needed to be strong for them. Since my brother and I left, Frosty had been the kid left in the house, providing so much joy and happiness. No dog will ever replace her. I have the feeling, though, that her memory will live in the next dog to come into our family. I'm not sure if my parents will be the ones to have another dog. Maybe it's my future dog or my brothers, but whoever it is, the love and kindness we show that puppy will be a reflection of Frosty forever.

Now more than ever I am glad to be a volunteer at Center County PAWS and to care for animals in need. I will always be a dog lover and keep my memories of Frosty alive for the rest of my life. She meant so much to me that I don't think I will ever get over her loss, but I will learn to cope and keep the joy she gave us alive in our family.

She was the best dog in the world. We could not have been luckier.

To say I am sad is an understatement. I didn't think a pet could have this much affect on me, but looking back she was so much more than a pet. She was a best friend who always listened, a companion who was loyal no matter the circumstances...and I like to think she had a pretty awesome life with us.

Frosty -- we will miss you more than you know and I hope you are happy and at peace now. Please keep us in your hearts, too.

Review :: Peter Pan

2010-11-10T08:35:00.002-05:00

Last night I had the great fortune of taking in the Penn State Center Stage Musical Theater's production of Peter Pan.

My parents have a home video of me singing along with Mary Martin in the televised version of the 1960 production of the musical. I was addicted to the musical and would sing along to songs like "I Gotta Crow" and imitate Martin dancing like Peter. I must have been only 3 or 4 at the time, but I loved that show.

Seeing this production in 2010 was the first time I had revisited those songs and choreography in a very long time and it brought back a flood of amazing memories, transporting me back to my child-like self and truly escaping my adult world.

I have to give tremendous credit to Musical Director Dan Riddle, a friend of mine and fellow colleague at Penn State. He is a bit of a Broadway legend himself (having played in the pits for such shows as Titantic, Les Miserable, The Light in the Piazza and others) and has truly brought so much to the PSU Theater program since he came in 2005. The pit sounded full, bright, and spotless. Bravo!

Next, Audrey Cardwell (Peter) deserves a huge standing ovation for her portrayal of this iconic character. She made you believe and she made you smile from very the depths of her heart. When she is first brought out on stage on her harness...it was a magical moment on stage. She is an aerial ballerina and provided the grace and beauty that is needed to make flying look like just a hell of a lot of fun.

What makes a great stand out character is inevitably the supporting cast around her. The Lost Boys (comprised of local State College kiddos) were dead-on. Hook's pirates provided the comic relief needed when there wasn't a dry eye in the place after Peter, Wendy, John, and Michael's first flight together. The dancing was spectacular.

The set designs were superb and some of the best that I have seen at Penn State. They transported you to Neverland and you didn't want it to end. The prompt 2-hour performance ended all too soon, in my book, and I was sad to leave the magic of the theater back into the cold November air.

If there is any criticism to this show it's that it was far too short.

There are times when theater can truly take you away and make you believe you are riding right along with these characters and this production certainly accomplished that.

I believe all the rest of the shows are sold out, but if some tickets free up I highly, highly encourage you to go see this show. More information on the performance and ticket sales can be found here.

(image via The Penn Stater Magazine)

HSP: Are you one?

2010-11-09T10:31:00.008-05:00

In an interesting article from the new edition of Marie Claire, Helen Kirwan-Taylor writes about a condition she suffers from and has research to believe many others do as well. This condition is called HSP (Highly Sensitive Person) and was first researched by clinical psychologist Elaine Aron, Ph.D. in the 1990s when she identified people who have the "uncommon ability to pick up on the subtleties that others might miss -- a look, a feeling, a message embedded in a seemingly straightforward statement."

Another professional is cited looking into HSP. Ted Zeff, Ph.D. recently published The Strong, Sensitive Boy and described a disorder that isn't mainstream because "...It's just in America where sensitivity is not valued and where we think of it as a weakness."

Kirwan-Taylor outlines the various methods of self-protection, a characteristic of large proportion in people with HSP:

minimizing,
blaming,
overachieving,
inflating,
projecting,
and choosing not to compete

She counters this by explaining how those with HSP can use these hinderances to their strengths, by choosing to be self-selective in their environments, doing stress-reducing activities such as exercise, and by choosing who to spend time with.

This all, to me, sounds like a bit of a crutch. I agree with Dr. Zeff to a point: those viewed as "sensitive" in today's society in America are viewed as weaker, with a less competitive edge and hardly a backbone. If you choose to characterize HSP as a disorder, these could just be symptoms of an over-arching larger problem.

My problem comes in that, if there is such a thing as HSP, is it self-inflicted? Are we diagnosing ourselves? Or are we using it as an excuse to scrutinize? It is nearly impossible to pick your environment and those who surround you 100% of the time. If we rely on avoiding undesirable places and people as a "cure" for this disorder, a large population will be highly disappointed.

What else was interesting was that HSP was found in 15% of people, with an equal split between male and female. Interesting, no? So why is it that most people, when they think of someone being over-sensitive and over-analytical, have an image of a Stage Five Clinger of a woman come to mind? Probably because of societal norms and familiarities. This double standard, if we take this disorder seriously, means there is a certain percentage of the male population that are not owning up to or showing signs of HSP. And all this does for me is downplay its legitimacy.

While I tend to over-analyze (much less now than in the past) I'm not sure anyone can truly be diagnosed with something as selective as HSP. I obviously need to do more research here, but don't you think this is an easy out for a certain amount of individuals (behavioral disorder diagnosed patients aside)?

I'm just struggling here with this type of medical reasoning for a behavior that can be easily turned off or on.

What are you throughts? Are you an HSP? Do you know any? Is it a legitimate disorder?

Only a hop, skip, jump, wireless internet connection, and skype downloading capabilities away

2010-11-08T10:18:00.001-05:00

This morning (at the glorious hour of 5:45 AM) I was lucky enough to Skype with two of my best friends. One lives in Scotland and one in Australia, so unfortunately we aren't able to see each other more, but they are nonetheless some of the sweetest people around.

Skype is an amazing thing. According to my Skype widget, there are currently 19.7 million people online using Skype at this very moment! Never before has it been so easy to connect with loved ones, friends, business partners, you name it.

I know this is all old news and the internet has been changing the face of how we communicate for years now, but it still blows me away at the ease and availability of access to some of these great tools.

I'm reading a novel now that has the narrator stating this about the leading female protagonist, Annie: "And now here she was, allowing her day to become gloriously colored by a communication from a man she'd never even met" ("Juliet, Naked" // Hornby). If that doesn't describe internet dating, I don't know what does, but it makes me think that sometimes are excitement over access to all these people is too easy. That iT just doesn't make sense, or make sincere, the communication we put out.

Now obviously I am being a hypocrite. I am writing this blog and disseminating it through out the inter-webs, hoping that one or two people care about what I have to say.

However, a lot can get lost in the translation of friendship through Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, Tumblr, etc.

So, in addition to your internet addiction, I give you this challenge for the month of November:

Write one person a letter. I mean a real letter. Send it to them and see how excited they are to get a piece of mail that isn't a) a bill b) a catalog or c) junk.
Get up early and go to breakfast with a friend before work. You'll be amazed at how refreshed and energized you will feel afterwards. You'll be prepared to take on the day.
Lastly, make time for you at night without technology. Your relationships are only as good as their weakest point, and if that's you not having enough time to befriend yourself, then your relationships will suffer.

With that, I hope everyone has a fantastic Monday!

D.

You Are the Only Exception

2010-11-08T10:14:00.002-05:00

(image via The Daily Collegian)

Four Hundred

2010-11-07T16:15:00.005-05:00

As said this morning by the Big Ten Network, these three digits standing alone don't mean too much. But put together to help define a career...they mean a lot more.

To watch Joe Paterno clinch his 400th win as a Division I FBS NCAA Football Coach was historic to say the least, and magical to say the most. Nothing is quite like watching someone's life hit a milestone in front of your very eyes, and something like this was certain to capture even the biggest critic's heart (I'm looking at you, Mark May).

Watching the various sports recap shows this morning, I was thrilled to see just how much attention was being paid to Penn State and our legendary coach. So often when Penn State succeeds it is a story of, "Isn't Joe Paterno great?" However, it's also usually tainted with us (at least in the past 20 years) not being able to quick make it all the way, and criticism ensuring. Not to mention there is a general media bitterness towards Penn State that I will never quite understand, but I'm pretty sure it's a case of jealousy a la how one might feel as a teenage girl who just lost out in the competition for the attention of the quarterback of the high school team.

But when we are bad, say with a "bad" bowl bid or the like, the media is so quick to jump on Paterno for his age, his detachment from 21st Century football, and that it is time for him to retire.

All this flip flopping is enough to drive a person crazy, if it weren't for nights like November 6th, 2010.

With a complete comeback win against the Northwestern Wildcats, Penn State put an exclamation point on what could have been a blow-out game against a mediocre team (but hey, who's complaining there?). Whether it was the setting sun that put into motion an otherwise absent first-half defense, or the quarterback switch to walk-on Matt McGloin, the Nittany Lions began to taste that 400th win right before half time, and they completed the meal for the duration of the game.

On a personal level, I was able to attend this game with my mom, who is very special to me. She hadn't been to a home game in Happy Valley in nearly two years, and she was as if not more excited that I was to be there to witness this amazing night. Her enthusiasm started even before kickoff, with her love of the Penn State atmosphere, tailgating, and the Blue Band (she even asked the team at one point to win it for the Band. That's a true band-mom right there). She was louder than me at times, and in her style, she was quick to make friends with the Lion Faithful around us in our seats in the north end zone.

All in all it was a fantastic night that I can now say my mom and I were a part of. Never again will this type of achievement come about in a lifetime of a single coach at one University (or at least I think so).

When Athletic Director Tim Curley gave the microphone to Joe, he said, "People always ask me why I've stayed here so long. To them I say, look around."

And he had 104,000 family members there with him to make that point. Period.

"The Dilemma of Presidential Leadership"

2010-11-05T13:37:00.003-04:00

In my graduate school class this morning, we discussed the role of a university president. A hot-button topic for sure (and so timely, the PSU Board of Trustees were meeting at the same time our class had convened) it sparked a lot of great discussions about the role, the responsibility, and powers of a president in higher education.

Some interesting parallels were certainly drawn between a university president and our United States leader as well (in general, not just Mr. Obama). One particular selection of our reading stated, "incumbents who see the presidency as a role can give primary attention to the needs of the institution rather than of themselves" )Birnhaum, Eckel, "American Higher Education in the Twenty-First Century) Can you say, term limits anyone?

A particular life lesson that inadvertently came out of this reading from Jeffrey Pfeffer, "Successful leaders are those who can separate themselves from organizational failures and associate themselves with organizational success." Seems too good to be true, and easier said than done for sure. But really, when you go home at the end of the day there are usually more conflicts that solutions (in the short term). However, a successful leader concentrates on the long-term successes that should carry over every day to promote their organization. This is something I need to work on.

While balancing work, life, and graduate school has proven to be as hard as everyone told me it would (and harder than I believed it could be), it's little bites of life lessons learned that usually makes it all worth it. This time, it just happened to come from a textbook rather than a peer, professor, colleague, or mentor.

But, it's the little things that make the days go by.

I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend. Good luck, Joe Paterno...400 wins for the record book (hopefully!).

Peace, love, and autumn wreath yankee candle smells,

D.

Rainy Thursday

2010-11-04T14:23:00.003-04:00

Lately I've been in a creative slump. Whether it's the rush of the fall season, with thousands of people flocking back to where I live, or the weather turning cold and the colors disappearing. I'm not sure.

I'm also stuck on the same book that I have been reading for the past two months and I can't seem to finish it -- and not in the "it's so good I don't want to finish it" kind of way. It's just unpredictable and decides from page to page on whether or not it's going to be engaging or not. But my rule is to never start a book without finishing the one I am working on.

It's a kind of purgatory at the moment.

I'm going through a huge transition in my life right now. Between work (where I'm currently writing one of the biggest proposals of my career), graduate school (I was officially accepted into my program...very exciting!), and my personal life...it's all a bit overwhelming.

I've been so lucky to have so many friends who have returned here for the fall months. It's been wonderful to see everyone together again and, at times, I forget that we're not all together all the time anymore.

We attended the most beautiful wedding I have ever been to a few weeks ago. Two of my best friends were married in an extraordinary ceremony and it seemed, at least from a guest POV, to be the perfect day. It made me realize all that we sacrifice for those that we love and also all that we gain.

In order for me to grow, I need to be more creative. I need to post more often. I'm going to start writing again. Get through more books. Listen to more new music.

Here's to that.