In honor of recent events, I’m posting this speech. Professor Nikki Giovanni spoke these words at the Virginia Tech convocation.
~Casey
We are Virginia Tech.
We are sad today, and we will be sad for quite a while. We are not moving on, we are embracing our mourning.
We are Virginia Tech.
We are strong enough to stand tall tearlessly, we are brave enough to bend to cry, and we are sad enough to know that we must laugh again.
We are Virginia Tech.
We do not understand this tragedy. We know we did nothing to deserve it, but neither does a child in Africa dying of AIDS, neither do the invisible children walking the night away to avoid being captured by the rogue army, neither does the baby elephant watching his community being devastated for ivory, neither does the Mexican child looking for fresh water, neither does the Appalachian infant killed in the middle of the night in his crib in the home his father built with his own hands being run over by a boulder because the land was destabilized. No one deserves a tragedy.
We are Virginia Tech.
The Hokie Nation embraces our own and reaches out with open heart and hands to those who offer their hearts and minds. We are strong, and brave, and innocent, and unafraid. We are better than we think and not quite what we want to be. We are alive to the imaginations and the possibilities. We will continue to invent the future through our blood and tears and through all our sadness.
We are the Hokies.
We will prevail.
We will prevail.
We will prevail.
We are Virginia Tech.
Sock N’ Buskin will host it’s very first 24 hour festival this weekend. It’s a pretty neat idea - one that I’ve never heard of before. A team of writers will shut themselves in a room Friday at 8 p.m. and compose seven 10-minutes plays in a certain amount of time. Then, they hand off their work to teams of directors and actors who rehearse the pieces until show time Saturday at 8 p.m., when they will perform the sleep-depriven summation of the groups efforts. Anyone who wants to join in can contact Clayton Tune - Facebook might be the best means of communication.
~Casey
At the moment, I’m hungry, so I can’t think of any other blog-worthy subjects except food. Therefore, I bequeath unto the students of Murray State and the world, another microwave recipe. This one looked especially good.
~Casey
CHOCOLATE-CINNAMON ROLLS
1/2 c. chocolate morsels
1/4 c. chopped nuts
2 tbsp. honey
1 (9.5 oz.) can refrigerated cinnamon rolls
1. Mix together chocolate morsels, nuts and honey. Place one tablespoon mixture into 8 individual custard cups.
2. Place one cinnamon roll, cut into fourths, over chocolate chip mixture.
3. Microwave, four at a time, on medium high (70%) for 2 to 3 minutes, or until surface springs back when lightly touched. Re-arrange halfway through cooking. 4. Invert custard cups immediately onto a serving dish. Leave cups over rolls about 3 minutes, then remove. Serve warm. Yield: 8 rolls. Drink with milk or coffee.
-from Members.amaonline.com
What exactly is a “counterculture icon”? According to a press release from the English and Philosophy Department, it’s a former anti-war activist with disheveled hair who once wrote award-winning poetry from jail on pieces of toilet paper. I think I want to be a counterculture icon, too.
Today at 7:30 p.m., author Ed Sanders will read his poetry in the Freed Curd Auditorium as a part the annual Jesse Stuart Writing Symposium. He has written books of poetry such as “Poems from Jail” and nine volumes of “America: A History in Verse.” He also published a bestselling nonfiction book titled “The Family,” which investigates the events involving the Manson Family that lead to the Tate murders. He obtained the information for this book by disguising himself as a “satanic maniac-guru and dope-trapped psychopath” to infiltrate Charles Manson’s cult.
Those are just a few of his accomplishments. Sanders also started an avante garde journal called “F*** You: A Magazine for the Arts” (but his version didn’t have stars,) and he formed a satirical band called The Fugs. He currently lives in Woodstock, NY. Go figure.
Anyway, Sanders will be in Murray tonight, reading poetry that he probably originally penned in a cell. He’ll also be participating in a panel discussion called “The Writer and Social Activism” at 3:30 p.m. in the Freed Curd Auditorium. It’s all free, so check him out.
~Casey
n case you didn’t know, today is Dr. Seuss’ birthday. The man gave us literary masterpieces such as “The Cat in the Hat,” “On Fish, Two Fish” and “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” Therefore, in his honor, I post the following link. I haven’t decided whether or not it’s an abomination or a glorious internet find, but decide for yourself. Apparently, this is what happens when Dr. Seuss decides to write Star Trek:
http://www.seuss.org/seuss/seuss.sttng.html
The weather was beautiful yesterday. Warm sun. Gorgeous clouds. … I’m worried about the planet.
Today is March 1, so shouldn’t we still be lamenting the loss of feeling in our toes as we walk to class? This whole global warming thing has gotten to me, so now whenever we have a nice day, I think the ice caps might melt. I really don’t care to experience “Waterwold” first-hand. It wasn’t a good movie.
We’ve been taught all of our lives that Earth is suffering in numerous ways, not just from warming, but from pollution. However, recycling can fix help. Between 8 a.m. and noon on Saturday, students can take their aluminum cans, plastic bottles, cardboard and paper to North Farm for recycling. North Farm is located on North 16th Street, 1.5 miles north of Highway 121, look for signs on the left. If you have any questions please contact Dean Stutesman at 809-3183.
It’s like Captain Planet always taught us, together, we can save the world.
~Casey
Thanks to sports blogs, I’ll never go to ESPN.com ever again. I’m not sure the general population are aware of the Internet and sport’s best kept secret, but if they don’t then somebody needs to tell them.
I first disovered sports blogs when a good friend of mine introduced me to Deadspin (www.deadspin.com). It changed my life. With a combination of humor, sports and the audacity to drop the politics of the game and finally “go for it,” Deadspin showed me what writing about sports really means. Perspective, that meant nothing before I found sports blogs. It was like finding Jesus.
Then, I found Jesus like 10 or 11 more times. There are more amazing blogs out there than I can keep track of. The Fan House, Kissing Suzy Kolber, True Hoops, With Leather, these are all sites that I truly cannot get enough of and they offer more insight than ESPN could ever attempt (not including “Page 2″ on ESPN.com, Bill Simmons is too good for ESPN).
I love blogs so much that I even have one of my own (www.jimmyburch.com). It surely doesn’t see the traffic of Deadspin but just the thought that I could offer the same kind of insight and opinion to America gets me going. I could let my life waste away reading nothing but sports blogs.
Oh, and humor blogs, too. I strongly recommend What Would Tyler Durden Do (www.wwtdd.com) and I dare you to read Maddox (xmission.maddox.com) or Tucker Max (www.tuckermax.com) without laughing uncontrolably.
- Jim Burch
Actor Daniel Radcliffe has finally cast off his Harry Potter cloak - literally - and a group of Murray State theatre students will get to see it.
Theatre and Dance Lecturer Lissa Graham-Schneider will take a group of students to London during Spring Break, and in between sightseeing and shopping, they plan to see Radcliffe star in the stage show “Equus.” It premiered last week, and the young Hogwartz prodigy received rave reviews for his portrayal of a troubled boy who blinds horses. The show has create a buzz for a few months now, because the play requires the 17 year-old teen role-model to perform a scene completely in the buff. Soccer moms are up in arms.
Reviews are mixed, though. Critics boast on Radcliffe’s gutsy performance, but they say the play - written in 1973 - is now outdated and doesn’t support the actor’s talent. Graham-Schneider’s crew probably will enjoy it though, and I have to admit, even though I really never want to see Harry Potter’s magic, I’m a little jealous of their chance to witness the controversy.
~Casey
Friday, College Life will run a story about student opinions of the War in Iraq. The article will cover both sides of the issue, citing people who stand behind President Bush’s decisions as well as people who think believe the leader of the Free World is one crayon short of a full box (to put it nicely.) I want to give anyone who has something to say an opportunity to voice their opinion. If you want to give a shout out to G-Dub, comment on this blog, and we might call you for more quotes. Or, if your greatest wish is to camp out in a tree on the White House lawn until they bring the troops home - again, comment on the blog. The only catch is we lay out the paper on Wednesday, so you have to get your comments in before, say, 6:30 that night. Otherwise, you might have to limit your cheering or cursing of the war to Facebook notes.
~Casey
What characterizes Christmas for me - besides the birth of Christ, the presents and the crappy holiday TV specials - is puppy chow. It’s a dessert constisting of Chex Mix smothered in melted chocolate, peanut butter and butter, and covered in powdered sugar. (It might seem out of place to be talking about Christmas food in the middle of February, but I’m going somewhere with this - I promise.) This food is wonderful because it’s quick, it’s simple and it only requires a microwave, so hungry students can make it in their dorm rooms any time. Plus, it makes a great subject for Org Comm demonstration speeches.
Here’s the recipe:
Ingredients
3/4 cup peanut butter
1 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup butter
8 cups Crispix cereal
2 cups powdered sugar
Melt the peanut butter, chocolate chips, and butter together. Pour over the cereal in a large kettle or bowl and stir well. Pour the powdered sugar into a large plastic grocery bag and add the cereal. Seal the top of the bag with a twist tie and shake well to coat evenly. Enjoy.
Casey
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