Thursday, November 22, 2007

How to have the perfect tailgate at The University of Alabama

Imagine sitting in an area with thousands of Alabama fans prepping up for the game. It is hot yet breezy and your with your family and friends, enjoying a meal along with many finger foods before the big game. Tailgating has been a tradition at The University of Alabama for many years. It is crucial you can put on the perfect tailgate on a hot fall Saturday before the crimson tide football game. How can you have the perfect tailgate?

Step one: You must make a list of items you need a couple weeks in advance so you can later add items as they come across your mind. Items that are a must include trash bags, utensils, paper towels, napkins, plastic plates and cups, band aids, a couple tables to serve food and drinks on, table clothes, bowls and plates to serve food, bottle opener, and a portable grill. The grill is not a necessity but it is a big hit at a tailgate. Remind friends to bring lots of chairs.

Step two: Deicide what foods you would like to serve at your tailgate. Some recommendations for your main meal are hamburgers and hotdogs, or a chicken nugget plate from Chick-Fila if you lack a grill. You will also want to have lots of finger foods out during the entire tailgate; not everyone goes to the game and they will get hungry while cheering for their team. Make sure you include some fruits and vegetables, I enjoy having, berries, carrots and celery with ranch dressing, different kinds of sandwiches cut in fourths so they are easy to eat, pretzels, chips, cookies and brownies. Be creative with your foods!

Step three: If you are over the legal drinking age plan on the alcoholic beverages you need. Try to stick with beer, it is easiest and cheaper. Also use aluminum cans instead of glass bottles to prevent injury incase one brakes. A keg is probably easiest depending on the amount of people attending. If it is a morning game and it is not a large group of people try a mimosa or a bloody Mary, both are very popular drinks especially for early in the day.

Step four: Find a large tent to put the food under incase of rain, this will also provide shade for some people.

Step five: Plan to have your tailgate set up hours before the game and then stay a couple hours after depending on the time and weather. Everyone is going to be having a great time so do not have a set time to leave or rush them out, estimate when the tailgate should be taken down by when people are starting to leave.

Step six: Go one day early to the tailgating spot and switch off with friends sitting there until tailgate time. The quad, located on University Blvd., is the most popular place to tailgate and there is a big screen to watch the game, incase you do not plan on going to the game. The quad gets packed very quickly so go as soon as possible. Find a spot with lots of grass so you can leisure about your own activity.

Step seven: Make sure on game day you are decked out in crimson and white. You will get looks if you’re not wearing the team colors. I would also advise you to bring lots of shakers, flags, and crimson decorations. If you are in college it is popular for girls to wear dresses and if this is the case team color does not matter. Boys and the older girls, team colors are a necessity.

Step eight: When you get there have the finger foods set up on the table and a radio playing other popular games that are playing on that same Saturday. Meet your tailgating neighbors! The kids can throw the football or kick the soccer ball and the adults can mingle. Your tailgating neighbors can grow to be your good friends!

Step nine: Have the main meal ready about an hour and a half before kick off. This gives those that are going to the game time to eat and get to the game to find their seat.

Step ten: When the game starts make sure people know the TV is in the quad and they can find a seat near the TV. Also make sure your radio is turned to the Alabama game for those who want to relax at the tailgate.

Step eleven: After the game do NOT rush people to leave. Let everyone have fun talking about the game and hopefully the big win. The men will also want to discuss the scores to the other college football games.

Step twelve: When people are starting to leave ask them to take food, you do not want the rest of that food sitting in your kitchen.

Step thirteen: Once the food is gone, begin taking down tables and throwing all trash away. Next take down the tent.

Step fourteen: Once everything is in the car, make sure all trash is picked up around your area. Leave it just as you got it.

Now that you have had your first perfect tailgate, begin planning for the next big game. Mix up the food and beverages next time or invite new people. Have fun with it and be creative!

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Prevention of Laziness

Webster defines lazy as being disinclined to perform any activity or exertion. All college students suffer from some form of laziness at some point in there life; however, some cases can become much more severe and can lead to multiple social problems. This essay’s goal is to focus on identifying the most common and the worst forms of laziness and will attempt to alleviate and prevent the sufferer from undergoing life altering symptoms. Extreme instances will need to be handled by a expert in prevention. Warning, the author of this essay is not responsible for the symptoms of any person that attempts to imitate any of laziness mentioned. Some symptoms of severe instances of laziness are poor grades, angry parents, missed class, possible obesity, and anything else that might be a result of a lack of motivation. The three most common college sources of laziness that will be covered are TV induced laziness, video game induced laziness, and alcohol induced laziness.
TV induced laziness is by far the most common form of college laziness and also the easiest to identify. This case involves a person that watches a long and unhealthy amount of TV for a majority of the day, often hindering sleeping patterns and more than likely causing the individual to miss class. Reports indicate the sufferer might even go as far as to refuse food, drink, and potentially female interaction to watch their favorite show. An unanimous sophomore witnessed such a case of sloth unfold her freshmen year to a friend. She noticed that immediately upon waking, the victim would turn on the television with no particular preference to the channel and beginning watching it until starvation overwhelmed her. Since no class is being attended during this period of time, it is understood that no homework is being completed either; resulting in poor test and semester grades. The most common and well known form of intervention would be to unplug all the televisions or hide the remote control. This act would force the college student to move and search for either the cord or remote. By moving, the laziness should begin to shake off and another activity should in sue. If effectively performed, the laziness will complete vanish and the individual may be allowed time periods of TV viewing. More extreme cases would require assistance from a PhD in laziness prevention.
Another form of college student laziness is video game induced laziness. It is hard to date when this laziness became a major problem, but it is believed to have begun around the time online gaming became available. The two most common games to avoid are The World of Warcraft, also known as w.o.w, and Halo 3. I can personally vouch that I have witnessed these two games in particular ruin relationships, careers, and grades. The major problem associated with game play is the student never moves from one location. Typically, a student with a type A personality, or highly competitive personality, will begin playing and be defeated by more experienced victims. Unable to cope with their inferior game play, the victim will become consumed with either growing levels or perfecting their aim. This results in long hours of playing and will cause school, friends, and other hobbies to become a thing of the past. Real life friends will be replace by other online players that are obsessing over the game.
Just as abstinence is the best prevention for STD’s, the individual should just not purchase either one of these games to experience best results. However, some friends might already have been ensnared in this trap and an alternate method is needed. One method would be to take the game away and begin playing another game with a large group of friends so as to prevent them from obsessing. Yet, this method is optimistic at best, because upon playing most students will not relinquish their system for a natural disaster much less a friend. If this is the case, a much more drastic approach is necessary. The friend will need to hack the gamers account and change the password, thus preventing them from signing on and playing. Another method would be to uninstall the game or remove the game from your dorm. As mentioned earlier a much more extreme case would need a much more qualified person’s expertise.
The final most common form of laziness is alcohol induced laziness that is most common among fraternity and sorority men and women. Normally, the person will party on most nights of the week regardless of homework, class or even test. The partying will cause a lack of much needed sleep that often results in either sleeping in class or oversleeping the class in general. Victims might experience blackouts and memory loss and can be easily identified as the individual with an alcoholic beverage in their hand for the entire evening and sometimes during the day. While it is not the view of this author for people to not party, it needs to be done in moderation. The most efficient method of self prevention would be to party on nights that the individual has a late class. If your friend is to stubborn to impose self-moderation, it might be necessary to help them. Asking them to stay in and assist you in some activity that will take the entire night or even lying that the party is cancelled are the best methods to help solve this form of laziness.
Doing any of the afore mentioned activities is not an excuse to be lazy. Nor is it viewed as a health practice. All of forms have one major thing in common: everything should be done in moderation. Obsessing over one activity so that it prevents living a safe and productive life is unhealthy and should be avoided. By following those simple explanations, most forms of laziness should be cured, but is not true for more extreme scenarios.

How to Throw a Proper Curveball

Baseball is known as America’s pastime and has been around for many years, and over these years has come various changes and additions to the game. In the pitching aspect of the game, new pitches have been invented which in turn make the batting aspect of the game change its approach. One of the most important pitches a pitcher will ever learn, besides his fastball, is the curveball. A curveball is an excellent way to throw off a hitter’s timing, force the hitter to hit a dinky ground ball or pop fly, or to simply get another strike on the count as the hitter freezes up and you sit back and watch your sneaky work. A common problem with the curveball is that it is taught improperly and/or too soon to young pitchers. A properly thrown curveball causes enough stress on the elbow and shoulder, so learning the proper technique is imperative to minimizing the chance of injury. In this article addressed to the mediocre to higher level of pitchers who have already learned the basics of pitching mechanics, you will learn to throw a proper curveball if you follow these steps.

First off the only materials needed are a baseball and a baseball glove (two if you have a catcher.) Now you cannot exactly throw a curveball if you do not know how to hold the ball, so the grip is the first thing you will learn. Take the baseball and hold it so that the red seams you are looking at looks like a “horseshoe.” With your throwing hand take your index finger and middle finger and place them on the inside of the horseshoe while applying pressure and keeping your fingers as close as possible to increase that pressure. Have your ring finger and pinkie finger resting underneath the ball for support, and the side of your thumb resting directly on top of the seam diagonally across on the ball. Now that you know the proper grip you may begin to practice the pitch.

Before ever pitching from a mound you must warm up your arm! Begin by slightly tossing the ball back and forth with a partner to warm up your arm, gradually increasing distance and velocity of the ball to avoid hurting your arm. Once warmed up you may now attempt the motions of throwing the curveball. The mechanics of throwing a curveball do not differ much from those of throwing a fastball. You wind up normally as if you would throw a fastball, and you do not slow down your arm speed which is a common misconception (doing so will cause the pitch to “hang” and most likely results in the hitter kissing the ball good bye.) After winding up, your throwing arm must form a c-shape with your palm facing inwards and the ball over your head. Once your arm is in the right position, you move it in a similar manner to that of pulling down a window shade which should feel like you are “throwing the ball over a barrel.” With the mechanics down, you may now move on to the actual delivery of the curveball.

It is extremely important to keep your arm angle the same until the ball has been removed from your glove and is ready to be released, or the batter might be able to pick up on the incoming pitch. When releasing the ball, keep your wrist cocked and rotated toward your body, keeping the ball and the palm of your hand facing toward you. Keep your elbow from dropping below your shoulder as this will cause not only unnecessary strain on your elbow but also the ball to land straight in the dirt well before home plate. Continue with the motion of pulling down a lampshade, keeping the pressure on the ball that was discussed earlier, and turn your wrist down as you release the ball out in front of you. DO NOT snap your wrist! This is also a very common misconception and is easily the fastest way to earn your spot on the disabled list. Some say the ball will not curve without the snap of the wrist, but it is actually the arm motion and pressure on the ball, which create topspin, that causes the ball to “curve.” It takes a lot of time and a lot of practice to find the correct release point of this pitch, but once perfected the ball will drop below the hitter’s bat as if it dropped right off of a table. Picture a clock and the positions of 12 o’clock and 6 o’clock; great curveballs are described as “12 to 6,” meaning the ball falls directly from 12 to 6.

The final step to the curveball is the follow-through. The follow-through is important for three things: it safely stops your arm from the acceleration used to throw the ball, it keeps you from slowing down your arm too soon and allowing the ball to “hang” high in the strike zone, and it positions your body in the perfect fielding stance. After throwing the ball is when the follow-through should be executed. Your arm should continue its motion downward and slightly across your body, allowing for your torso and hip opposite your throwing arm to stop your arm. While doing this your back leg (the one touching the pitcher’s mound) should swing forward, squaring your shoulders up to home plate, and your back should also be bent over, putting you into an athletic stance and your glove hand out in front to field any ball hit back to you.

The curveball is a very easy pitch to learn the concepts of but takes much practice to perfect. A single flaw in the grip or mechanics can cause the pitch to hang or dive straight into the dirt. It can also pose serious injury to the shoulder, elbow or wrist, so it is extremely important to learn the right way to throw the pitch. Once perfected though and used at the right times, it can make a pitcher literally unhittable, therefore being one of the pitcher’s most valuable tools.

What's Golf All About

Jeff Aycock
What’s Golf All About
Have you ever played a round of golf? If you have you know what kind of equipment you need and how difficult a course can be. If you have no idea what golf is, what equipment you use or where the game is played, let me try to inform you.
Equipment? Generally this consists of twelve to fourteen clubs but not exceeding fourteen clubs due to this being the legal limit. The most common set of clubs consists of a driver, three wood, five wood, two through nine iron, pitching wedge, sand wedge, and finally a putter. You also need a golf bag to store your weapons of choice and of course your golf balls. There are almost as many manufacturers of golf clubs as there are stars in the sky, so pick you poison and let’s go.
Where? To a golf course we go. A normal course contains eighteen holes, which consist of four par fives, ten par fours, and four par threes. Each hole has a tee box, fairway, and a green. Also for your enjoyment there are hazards, sand traps, and water that are there to do nothing but add difficulty to the course and strokes to your score.
Now that you have a basic understanding of equipment to use and what a golf course is let me explain to you how to play the game of golf, starting with a par five and then going to a par four and finally a par three.
A par five is generally about four hundred and fifty to five hundred and fifty yards long. Your first stroke will be from the tee box to the fairway. From there you are not going to be able to hit the green so you will probably hit a mid to high iron. This shot should leave you anywhere from one hundred to one hundred and fifty yards away from the green, which would necessitate the use of a mid to low iron. Successful use of this club would put you on the green. However if not so successful you will probably need to use a low iron, a pitching wedge or sand wedge to reach the green. Once you have arrived on the green the club of choice will be a putter. This club will allow you to roll the ball and end your journey by sinking the ball in the hole. The goal is to complete this adventure in five strokes.
Next is a par four which is played similar to a par five. These holes are normally about three hundred to four hundred or more yards long. The sequence of shots is about the same as a par five, except for the fact that you want to eliminate one shot. This will successfully put you ball in the hole in four strokes.
Par threes require a very different approach as to how you are supposed to play them. The biggest difference in playing a par three versus a par four or par five is that the fairway on this type hole should not be used. Your goal here is to reach the green from the tee box. Once you have successfully hit the green in one shot you will be able to putt out in two strokes to finish the hole in no more than three strokes.
This routine of shots is repeated until you have played and completed all eighteen holes. Should you finish exactly as I have explained you would have just completed the course as it was designed. Most golf courses are designed to be played in seventy two strokes which is commonly known as “Par Golf.” In most rounds of golf this is not the case. Usually you will finish above or below par.
What I have just explained is a perfect round of golf with no mistakes and no penalties counted against you. There are many areas on and around the golf course that can cause your score to rise. For example on the course there are areas that are marked with white stakes, this indicates that the area behind the stakes is out of bonds. When you hit your ball in an out of bounds area you are charged with a stroke and are required to hit another ball from the previous spot; you are not allowed at any time to hit out of a white staked area. Another example would be an area that has red stakes in front of it. Red stakes are different than white stakes. First of all when you hit a ball into a red staked area you have two options. Your first option is that you can play the ball as it lies. The second option if you do not have a shot is that you can pick the ball up and drop it outside the red stakes where the ball entered. If you were to choose the second option and take a drop, the drop will cost you a stroke. This means if you hit your first shot in a red hazard area the drop counts as your second shot and the next stoke is your third shot.
If you talk to any one that has actually played the game of golf they will all tell you the exact same thing. “The game of golf is not as easy as it sounds or looks and it takes many many years to master the game and you are never too old to play the game.” Golf is definitely not an easy sport to play and to be a good golfer you need to play and or practice a great deal. So my advice to you if you want to be a very good golfer is to practice, practice, and practice some more. My final words to you are good luck, practice, never give up, practice, and happy golfing and practice some more.

How To Make The Perfect Pumpkin Pie

What do you think of when you think of your favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal? Some people think of the turkey, some people think of the sweet potato soufflĂ©, and others think of the stuffing. Personally, I think of the pumpkin pie. Maybe that’s because I love how it tastes, but I also love making it from scratch with my mom every year since I was a little girl. I think everyone should know how it make this delicious dessert, so here my recipe and directions on how it make it.

Before you begin making the pie, preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. To begin making the pie, you first make the pie crust. My mom uses an old recipe from a cookbook from her hometown of Buena Vista, Georgia. You can use any pie crust recipe, or even be lazy and use a pre-made refrigerated pie crust. For the homemade recipe my mom uses, the ingredients are:

1 1/3 cup of plain flour
1 teaspoon of salt
½ cup of Crisco
3 tablespoon of ice water
*1 ¾ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice may be substituted for the cinnamon, ginger and cloves, but the flavor may differ

Once you have all your ingredients out on the counter, you need to get out your bowl, your measuring instruments, your pastry cutter, and a rolling pin. If you don’t have a pastry cutter, a fork may be used. You will mix the 1 1/3 cup of plain flour, ½ cup of Crisco, and 1 teaspoon of salt in the bowl for a few minutes until it is crumbly. Next you add the ice water, which will make it smooth and not crumbly anymore. After you have added the ice water, you need to get your rolling pin and cover it in flour. Now take the pie crust out of the bowl and roll the crust out on a flat nonstick surface such as your countertop. Once it is flat and thin, place it in an ungreased glass 9 inch pie pan that holds a volume of 4 cups. Press the crust firmly against the sides and bottom of the of the glass pie pan. You are going to trim the excess crust even with the pan edge and press the edge with a fork to prevent shrinking. Place the pie crust aside and get ready to make the pumpkin filling. The ingredients for the filling are:

¾ cup of sugar
½ teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon of ground ginger
¼ teaspoon of ground cloves
2 large eggs
1 can of 100% pure pumpkin
1 can of evaporated milk

When you have all those ingredients out on the counter, the tools you need to get out are measuring instruments, a small bowl, a large bowl, and a spoon. First, mix the ¾ cup sugar, ½ teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, ½ teaspoon of ground ginger, and ¼ teaspoon of ground cloves in a small mixing bowl. You will mix all those ingredients together with a wooden mixing spoon. Next, take the two eggs and crack them against the edge of the large mixing bowl. Then you will beat them with either a whisk or a power mixer. Now take the pumpkin and sugar-spice mix you just mixed together in the small bowl and stir it into the large bowl that contains the two large beaten eggs. You are going to gradually pour in the can of evaporated milk and mix it into the rest of the filling. Lastly, you mix all of the ingredients of the filling up very well and slowly and carefully pour the filling into the pie crust you made earlier.

Once all the filling is inside the pie crust, it is time to put it in the oven. You should have already preheated it to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, so it should be ready to go right in. Put it on the top rack of your oven for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, reduce the temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. It will bake on this temperature for 40-50 minutes depending on how your oven cooks. If it cooks quickly, set it for closer to 40 minutes, and if it cooks more slowly, set it for closer to 50 minutes. You might even want to set it for a lower time, even if your oven does cook more slowly so you make sure your pie doesn’t overcook. When the timer goes off, check the pie by sticking a knife or other utensil through the center of the pie. If it does not come out clean, put it back in the oven for a short amount of time, checking it regularly. If the utensil does come out clean, you know the pie is finished and it can come out of the oven. Now let it sit out and cool on a wire rack for about two hours. After two hours you can either serve it immediately or cover it with saran wrap and put it in the refrigerator.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family and I do. This pumpkin pie recipe serves about 8 people, so you may need to make more depending on how many people you serve at Thanksgiving dinner. It is great when served with a dollop of cool whip and some vanilla ice cream. It is also good left-over, which is convenient since everyone is usually too stuffed with all the other Thanksgiving food to eat much dessert, but I guarantee they will want some pumpkin pie the next day!

How to get along with your roommate

How to get along with your roommate

So as everyone knows, picking the perfect roommate is a very crucle process. It is almost as important as living in the “cool” dorm as a freshman. But what you don’t realize is living with that person for a year can be very difficult. It is very challenging to live with someone in a 10’ by 20’ foot jail cell like room having a different background them you. I have a few tips I can give you to help you live a very peaceful life with your roommate. This might apply to only girls.
First thing you have to do is know your roommate. You can’t just look at his or her facebook picture and know for a fact that you could live with that person. Pictures lie and you could find that out the hard way. Many people do random then find out who their roommate is and then stalk them on facebook to see if they are compatible to them. That is not the right way to go about it. Know who they are! Once you know your roommate pretty well, now you have to organize your room. I find it a lot easier if you don’t organize your room with the same theme as your roommate. Everyone has different tastes so you might not agree on the same thing and fight will result from that. I’m pretty sure this only applies to girls but I’m just letting everyone know. Next you have to be understanding. This person you are living with might be the same age or form the same place but when it comes to cleanliness they might as well be a different person. For example my roommate is from the same place I am but the girl cannot keep her side of the room clean for the life of her. You just have to be understanding and ignore the mess. Another tip for getting along with your roommate is do not let them borrow your clothes. You never know when you will see that top again. It might be on the floor with the rest of her closet. Only let them borrow your clothes if you know you will get it back fast. Next if you are going to buy food make sure you keep it in separate boxes. For example if she buys food she keeps in on her side and if you buy food you keep it on your side. It just makes it a lot easier when it comes to who spent what and who ate what. Another key thing to do is talk to your roommate. Communication is key with any relationship and you and your roommate have a very important relationship. Ask how her how her day is and how things are going. Be civil and life will be great. You also have to have respect for your roommate and her feelings. You cant just stay up all night doing your work when she can not sleep with the lights on. For example my roommate cant sleep with the lights on so when I’m staying up late to finish my work, I go into the common room so I have light and she can go to sleep. Also you have to have respect for her things. If you borrow something give it back return it the way you found it. This is will help avoid any fights. Help each other out. When she has a problem sit there and talk to her be genuine with her give her good advice and vice versa. I think this is very important because you are living with this person, this person is almost like a family to you and your family is always there if you have a problem so be there for them. It’s a great thing to know you have someone there who always has your back.
All of these steps will lead you to a great year with your roommate I know this because I follow these rules and I love my roommate and we get along so well. It is hard at times but that will happen to anyone. Freshman year is such a big part of your life and if you have a great roommate to share it with its one hundred times better.

12 steps to hit the curveball

From the time I was born until the time I graduated high school, the game of baseball was my life. Most children’s first word is either “mommy” or “daddy.” My first word was “ball.” I lived, slept, and breathed baseball. I found out the hard way that in order to be successful at the game of baseball, I had to be able to hit a curveball.

I was 11 years old and my Dixie youth baseball team was playing in the district championship game. I was the best hitter on my team so I batted 3rd in the lineup. Early in the game I had hit a two run homerun to give us an early lead. It did not last long though because they put in their best pitcher in the 4th inning. It wasn’t because he could throw a really hard fastball. I’m convinced that almost anyone can hit a fastball. It was because he threw a curveball. I had been playing baseball for 8 years at that time and had never faced anyone that threw a curveball before. People usually do not develop this highly skilled pitch until high school. He started striking out all of our players. It just so happened that the only time I faced him was in the bottom of the last inning with two outs and we were down by one run. I stepped into the batters box and got in my batting stance. The first pitch he threw was coming straight at my ribs so I jumped out of the way. To my surprise the umpire called it a strike. It had curved back across the plate. I was determined not to jump out of the way again. Here came the second pitch. As soon as he threw it, I had lunged way out and was in front of the pitch. The next pitch was right down the middle. I waited back on it this time. I swung as hard as I could because I knew I was about to hit another homerun. But instead of trotting around the bases with everybody cheering, I ended up walking back to the dugout ashamed with my head hung low. The pitch ended up in the dirt and I missed it by a foot. At this point I had an epiphany. I realized that if I was going to succeed in this game, I had to learn how to hit the curveball, aka “A pitchers best friend.”

I do not want anybody to feel the shame and disappointment from striking out on a curveball. After playing the game for 15 years, I have developed 12 crucial steps to hit the curveball.

Step 1. Step into the batter’s box and get your feet shoulder width apart. This gives you good balance and should help set up the following steps.

Step 2. Dig your back foot’s big toe into the dirt about an inch deep. This gives you good traction and a base to push your weight into the baseball when you swing.

Step 3. Line your middle knuckles up when you grip the handle of the bat. This will give you maximum bat control.

Step 4. Get into a comfortable batting stance. Everyone’s stance is not the same. You do not want to be tense when you are batting. Get Relaxed.

Step 5. Shift your weight balance to your back foot. With the weight on your back foot, you will be able to hold back and not be in front of the pitch when you swing.

Step 6. Lock your eyes on the pitcher and keep your head still. This prevents and distractions and keeps you focused. You also do not want your head moving because it moves your eyes off the pitch.

Step 7. Take a deep breath. Taking a deep breath helps keep you relaxed.

Step 8. When the pitcher releases the ball, focus on the rotation of the ball. This will help you discern the fastball from the curveball. A fastball rotates straight up and down. The laces on a curveball rotate off center to either side.

Step 9. Once the pitch is confirmed a curveball, hold your weight back with all your might. DO NOT LUNGE! Everyone’s natural tendency is to stride way too early because they are used to a fastball getting to home plate quicker. This is the most important step.

Step 10. Anticipate the break of the pitch. If you know where the pitch is going to break, you will have the best chance of making contact with the ball.

Step 11. When the pitch is half way to home plate, stride out with your front foot about 3 inches towards the pitch, but make sure you keep your weight and hands back. Once again, DO NOT LUNGE!

Step 12. As the curveball breaks across the plate, swing through the baseball. Keep your head down and watch the ball hit the bat.

By practicing these steps, you will have the best chance of hitting the curveball and becoming a great hitter.

How to Devise a Winning Excuse for Your Losing Team

As a sports fan, my life has been spotted with many great moments. There was the surprise run by my Panthers to Super Bowl XXXVIII, Duke’s three NCAA basketball championships, and the White Sox finally capturing the World Series after an 88-year drought. However, for the ups we experience as fans, downs are almost a guarantee, and nothing is more disappointing than a losing season. When that occasional underachieving season (or two, or three…) rolls around, there’s nothing a fan needs more than to be well equipped in the art of making an excuse for their losing team.


1. Injuries. Injuries are the oldest, most foolproof excuse in the book. Why? Sports, for the most part, involve contact. Someone, anyone, is bound to get hurt. If a star player gets hurt, your job here is easy.
Ex. Team: 2006 Carolina Panthers.
Record: 8-8 (failed to reach postseason)
Key Injuries: WR Steve Smith, QB Jake Delhomme, LB Dan Morgan
Excuse: With big-play threat Steve Smith out for the first game, no other receivers stepped up, and the sputtering offense sent the Panthers to an 0-2 start. Backup Chris Weinke couldn’t step in serviceably for Delhomme, who missed three games with ligament damage in his thumb in the middle of a late season playoff push. The defense was hampered by the loss of linebacker Dan Morgan, a vocal leader on and off the field, who was injured in the opener and out for the season.
Additional Tips: Mention plays that the star athlete would have made had they
been healthy enough to play. Throw around the stats of the no-names who couldn’t fill their places. It especially helps if you can mention how low on the depth chart the player started the season, i.e. “He was our sixth string running back in the preseason. SIXTH STRING!”


2. Coaching. Whether it’s the head coach, an assistant, a coordinator, or any other member of the coaching staff, someone has to take the blame for your team’s poor play. Whether they aren’t making proper adjustments, starting the right players, or even motivate their team enough, every couch coach knows there’s always something that could be done to make this team better. Forget the years of experience, success, and accolades; every coach can morph into a virtual Neanderthal in his particular field overnight.
Ex. 2006 Alabama Crimson Tide (football)
Record: 6-7 (lost PetroSun Independence Bowl)
Ineptitude: Head Coach Mike Shula
Excuse: Have you seen him coach? Shula had no control over that locker room. Sure, he was a nice guy, but he displayed a complete inability to make halftime adjustments. Don’t get me started on his recruiting capabilities, or lack thereof. Who cares if he was under NCAA restrictions? He should be able to bring in talent! Brodie Croyle just made him look good!
Ex. 2001-2002 Carolina Tar Heels (basketball)
Record: 8-20 (4-12 ACC, failed to reach postseason)
Ineptitude: Head Coach Matt Doherty
Excuse: Matt Doherty had no clue how to run a team. The “climate” he created at Carolina was unhealthy at best, and he didn’t have the experience to win games or respect from his players. Doherty couldn’t get along with his staff or his team. He didn’t have it in him to win…
Additional Tips: Experience is key here. Lack of experience means the coach can’t deal with pressure or difficult circumstances. Adding in a “I knew we shouldn’t have hired (insert name here)” proves that you are, in fact, an expert at sports management and should be in line to be the next manager/director/team president.


3. Attitude. When the going gets tough, the tough get tougher. The weak fall apart. We’ve all seen these teams. Whether spoiled by success or broken by years of underachieving, players are simply moving through the motions with no drive or motivation. Lack of heart can usually be traced back to the head coach, but it can be the result of other things. For instance, a big contract extension can cause a player to be less motivated. Once he gets his money, he’s cruising to retirement. It could be a bad attitude, or a player ready to move on to something bigger and better.
Ex. 2005 Philadelphia Eagles
Record: 6-10 (failed to reach postseason)
Attitude Problem: WR Terrell Owens
Excuse: Owens started the 2005 season off on a bad note after a lengthy training camp holdout in hopes a better contract. Then, he spent most of the season sparring with QB Donovan McNabb and blaming him for the Eagles’ loss in Super Bowl XXXVIX. T.O. caused rifts in the locker room and his selfish attitude caused the Eagles to lose focus, especially after he was suspended for “conduct detrimental to the team”. He was egotistical! He wanted more money! He told reporters, “People hated on Jesus too!”
Ex. 2005-present New York Knicks
Record: Bad
Attitude Problem: Point Guard Stephon Marbury
Excuse: Marbury is all about himself. He recently missed a series against the Lakers because he flat-out refused to play! He was upset with his head coach about playing time, and left the team in Los Angeles. Then, Marbury told ESPN his coach couldn’t bench him because of the dirt he had. Marbury showed an inability to get along with his ANY of his coaches. He single-handedly chased former coach Larry Brown out of New York…
Additional Tip: Bring in the working class fans if you can. Bring in locker room drama. Bring in anything that might suggest the player doesn’t have team spirit. Your audience needs to know that the player’s attitude paralyzed adults from doing their jobs and destroyed your team!


4. Officiating. When all else fails, it’s because the refs hate your team.

How To Survive Black Friday

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How to Survive In Alabama by James Webb

In Alabama there are few people who won’t pay attention to football and that is why anyone in the great state of Alabama that love football love to tailgating. In order to live in Alabama you must master the craft of tailgating. The art of tailgating has few questions to ask yourself when doing the tailgating. Anyone knows that tailgating you must either tailgate before the game or through the game and will you have a large group of guest that will come or small group of close friends. These two questions are the first to ask before all other actions in tailgating take place.

When you have decided to tailgate before the game and not through the game you have chosen right and I didn’t mean to confuse the reader by posing the trick question but the question is to weed out the weak. Let me explain a true Alabamian would tailgate before sed game and go to watch the game because why eat and not go watch football, your in Alabama where football is life. Now that you know you must tailgate before and go to the game you can realize your guest list is the only real importance.

First you want a small group of pals that way you won’t have much to bring to your tent, you have to have shade. The tailgate party needs a shaded area you are in Alabama where the heat has humidity. In the small group you will need a main course, finger foods, and chips there isn’t much to food prep in a small group. A good choice of food would be burgers, chicken fingers and golden flake potatoe chips, golden flake chips are key in that there is a factory here in Alabama. The burgers are big and there needs to be all the fixin’ that goes with a burger: lettuce, tomato, sliced onions, pickles, and cheese. Beverages to be consumed at your tailgate should be soft drinks, water, or beer if your guests are of proper age. Now that everyone has filled their guts with food and drink they need to have some kind of entertainment before the game.

If your guests have children then bring a football kids don’t need much to entertain them. As for adults and teenagers you will need a radio that needs no power outlet to run it. Tune the radio to a rock station, plenty of stations play rock and everybody loves rock and roll. If your guest are smiling, dancing and eating then you are doing good so far, but the hard part of tailgating is about to come.

Maintain, maintain, maintain your tailgate this can not be more crucial to your awesome tailgate party. The trash can at your tailgate need to be bagged when the trash is above the rim of the can or it becomes stinky. It is a smelly job but you as the host must perform this vital task of bagging trash. The food will be eaten up and the serving plates will sit on the table until you the host pick them up and put them away. Just as a small note don’t bring the fine china plates; any cheap dixie plates from a grocery store will suffice. When the plates are cleaned from the guest gobbling up your good cooking and you must be a good cook in Alabama, take the serving plates and throw them away. When your guest realize that the food is gone and the game time is coming up soon the guest automatically know that the tailgate is about over.

The guest at your tailgate should communicate that the tailgate was fun, the food good and they are heading to the game. Good guests have eaten, keep the area clean, and are going to the game. You might have a problem getting guest if you are new to the state, but don’t worry tailgate in good time don’t expect to be able to tailgate within the first six months of living in Alabama. A tailgater needs friends to come and how can someone have a good set of friends to come to your tailgate within a few months, but if you have a group of guest that you know then go ahead by all means tailgate.

Since you know how your tailgate should go the list of items you will most likely need is this

  • Table
  • Chairs with cup holders built in
  • Tent
  • Dixie plates, cups, and napkins
  • Food
  • Play football
  • Trash can
  • Radio or TV if you want to bring a generator
  • Grill

A good way to survive in Alabama is to tailgate and in turn your guest will see that you understand football and understanding tailgating before a football game means you’re an Alabamian. This suggestion of tailgating is to help those who might want to better adapt to your new life while in Alabama. Tailgating is fun for all and you will be the host of something everyone can respect in Alabama.

The Language of Gamers (and you)

Everyone has seen those cell phone commercials that include such phrases as “idk my bff jill?” and “omg rly?” Gamers and texters alike love to use such internet jargon or “1337 speak”. Abbreviations and complex acronyms abound when cruising the net. All of these terms and jargon-like languages tend to have a steep learning curve and even a few months of living under a rock would put you back in the dark, but there is help in sight. If you’re stumped by these few examples this helpful guide will teach you the “l337 $p3@k” basics and convey a deeper understanding of some of the simpler terms of common AOL instant messenger or gaming jargon.
The first step to successfully understanding the way people text or type is to realize the meaning of an acronym. The dictionary definition of Acronym is: “a word formed from the initial letters or groups of letters of words in a set phrase or series of words, as Wac from Women's Army Corps, OPEC from Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or loran from long-range navigation.” After reading the definition of an Acronym you must also realize that the acronym is the core of common internet jargon, you must always try to work typed words or phrases into acronyms. A common example would be the word ROFL. ROFL stands for “rolling on (the) floor laughing” some people may add variants of the word such as ROFLMAO which stands for “rolling on (the) floor laughing my ass off”. Another core word combination used is OMG or OMFG standing for “oh my god” and “oh my fucking god” respectively. A key element I have neglected is that I have capitalized everything so far, many times this is not the case. Capitalization in most cases is used as emphasis, and to convey yelling or anger.
Now that the mysteries of the acronym have been revealed I will now give the beginners a simple chart-like list to reference when attempting to decipher acronyms or the common abbreviations.

OWNED(PWNED)-
A term used when making fun of someone’s folly or when defeating them in some type of internet combat. (The P is used for emphasis and can also be shortened to PWNT)


ORLY?- Oh really?
YARLY!- Yes really!
FGSFDS- This is a term simply used to convey confusion.
ROFL (ROFLMAO)- Rolling on (the) Floor laughing. (my ass off)
OMG (OMFG)- Oh my god. (Oh my fucking god)
IDK?- I don’t know.
BFF- Best friend(s) forever.
TTFN- Ta-Ta for now.
PPL- People.
IMO (IMHO)- In my opinion. (In my humble opinion)
BTW- By the way.
LFG- Looking for group.
NOOB- Derogatory term for any novice.
AFAIK- As far as I know.
YTMND- You’re the man now dog.
BRB (BBL)- Be right back. (Be back later)
GL- Good luck.
OIC- Oh I see.
PLS (PRZ)- Please (Preaze-accented)
TY- Thank you.
IRL In real life.

This simple chart is meant to give some of the more common examples of internet speech to a novice but has not gone into the more complicated language of “1337 speak”. I will merely touch upon 1337 speak because it is a language that can be manipulated as anyone sees fit and is for more experienced users. Many of the letters, numbers and signs on your keyboard are interchangeable when using leet speak, or 1337 $P3@K. The origins of 1337 speak were just a few people wishing to have a language of their own to communicate unbothered by other internet intruders but it eventually became a widely used language at least in a more simplified form. The actual1337 speak alphabet is as follows:
A = 4
B = |3
C = (
D = |)
E = 3
F = |=
G = 6
H = |-|
I = |
J = 9
K = |<
L = 1
M = |v|
N = |/|
O = 0
P = |*
Q = 0,
R = |2
S = 5
T = 7
U = |_|
V = |/
W = |/|/
X = ><
Y = `/
Z = 2

As you can see, it is terribly complicated and most people when using it use it in a pseudo form by including many actual letters instead of their 1337 counterparts.
The last and final part of this guide is to inform you of the pronunciations of internet language when actually spoken. I would like for you to picture any acronyms as completely phonetic. LOL would be spoken as “lawl” or ROFL would be spoken as “roff-ull”. Actually speaking with internet terms is usually met with confusion but recently has started to take hold on the youth or more tech-savvy people of this generation at least with simple terms. Hopefully this guide has helped you to further your understanding of two or three different internet languages and will continue to be a tool for beginners in the future. One last thought I would like to leave you with is that internet jargon is constantly changing so always remember to read it with an open mind.

How to Shoot A Basketball

Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson, all three of these men are famous for playing the sport of basketball. More than these men just being famous for playing basketball, they are famous because they know how to properly shoot a basketball and they do it very well. People that do not know how to shoot a basketball see basketball players like these three on television and assume because they rarely miss a shot, that shooting a basketball must be easy. The truth is, there is an art to shooting the basketball, one that requires many hours of dedication and practice if one is to have a good basketball shot.

The basketball shot has almost as much to do with the placement of the ball, your arms and your hands as it does with actually shooting the ball. The first step to shooting a basketball is to position the ball in your shooting hand. If you are right handed you most likely will shoot with you right hand, likewise if you are left handed. For teaching purposes I will demonstrate with my right hand because I shoot with my right hand. First you place your right arm straight out in front of you with your palm facing the sky. Place a basketball onto your palm and let the ball rest on your fingertips. It is important not to let the ball sit solely in your palm or solely on your fingertips otherwise your shot will be thrown off completely. The next step is to raise your arm and hand so that your forearm, elbow, and bicep form an L shape. At this point the ball should still be sitting on your fingertips and to be sure that your placement is correct you should be able to put two fingers from your other hand in between the basketball and your palm. Now rotate your wrist ninety degrees so that your palm is facing out in front of you. The last step of the placement of the ball is to gently place your left hand onto the left side of the basketball. Your thumbs should come together to almost form a right angle. Your left hand is used primarily as a guide hand as it has no real function when it comes to shooting the basketball.

In preparation for your shot, the key is to keep the ball and your hand and arms about nose level and keep them all steady. Remember to also keep your elbows tucked into your sides because when your elbows drift from their vertical position it causes your shot to be off target either to the right or to the left of the basket. When picking your focus point on the rim so the ball goes in the basket, always aim for either a point on the back of the rim or a point right on the front of the rim. In other words, when you are about to shoot, keep your gaze fixed on that one spot that you are aiming for so that it is all you are thinking about when you release the ball.

The actual shooting of the basketball is the hardest part to master. Begin by thrusting your arm smoothly skyward as if you are reaching for something on a shelf above you. As you shoot do not propel your arm too vertically or horizontally, try to maintain an evenness of the upward and outward movement of your arm. In addition remember not to let your arm sway to the right or left side when you shoot, but to shoot the ball straight and true. As you thrust your arm upward it is necessary to jump or hop off of the ground one or two feet into the air. This jumping will give you the right angle for the ball to travel into the goal as well as an extra boost to get your shot into the air. The most important step of shooting a basketball comes as you release the ball at the height of your jump. As you release the ball it should roll off of your fingers and your hand and fingers should go into a position called following through. The following through motion resembles reaching into a cookie jar. While reaching into a cookie jar is a good example of how to follow through after you release the ball, if you remember every time you release your shot to snap your wrist down, you will never fail to follow through. This should be done every time you shoot, as it is key to the ball going where you want it to go. Once the ball is released, hold your follow through and watch the ball drop through the net. If you master all of these steps and practice, practice, practice, maybe you will be shooting like MJ someday.

How to Survive the Snake

In Alabama, and in many other areas of the United States, the presence of a snake causes fear in the minds of those who come in contact with him. A look back into our history reveals that the snake was the4 evil creature that beguiled Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. As we read in Genesis, the snake was sentenced to crawl on his belly because of the evil way he influenced Adam and Eve. The majority Alabamians believe in this Bibical creation of man, so surviving this evil serpent means more than a medical emergency. Alabama Christian denominations teach that the serpent comes into our midst when we least expect if and tries to destroy our belief in the God of our understanding. A true believer will cast off the serpent as an evil sent to try the beliefs of the faithful Christian. This is the moral reason for making sure that the serpent does not overtake the mind and soul of an accepted way of life. With these teachings in mind, I will carry my reader through the reason why knowing how to survive snake bites is important and how to do it.


Snakes show up everywhere in Alabama. They can be lurking in your shrubbery, in your barn, on your walking path, around your pond, in your canoe, in trees, even in your house! I remember a story about a store. She was plundering through a deep box of fabric (sold by the pound) and was bitten by a rattlesnake hiding in the bottom of the box. To make matters worse, when you see one snake you know others are close by . It is the accepted way of life in Alabama to kill any poisonous snake you see. You can shoot him, mow over him, run over him with your car, cut his head off with a hoe, or throw rocks at him.( These methods of death are the most common in Alabama).


On a hot summer’s day, two of my friends and I headed out to beautiful Lake Martin for some fun and sun. The day haunts me still. Little did I know that serpent would be waiting to join our picnic. As we eagerly unpacked our car, the crystal blue water beckoned us to jump in. Lunchtime came, and we decided to lounge on the shoreline with our feet in the water, while we enjoyed a variety of sandwiches, chips ,ice tea and coke. As I eagerly ate my meal, I felt a vibrating sensation under my “booty . Little did I know that “johnny no-shoulder” was waiting to crawl from under the rock I was comfortably resting on. As quickly as the blink of an eye, a large cottonmouth moccasin slithered by my leg that was dangling in the water. It felt like a hosepipe touching my leg. My eyes caught sight of this venomous monster, and I screamed loud enough to awaken my dead ancestors that fought in the Civil War. Mr. Cottonmouth turned and looked me square in the eye. It was as if he wanted me to know that I had escaped a deadly bite only because he chose to allow me to live another day. As this monster gave me one last look, I can still imagine the4 frenzy that my friends and I would have been in when trying to save my life from a monster already carrying out the sentence of God’s wrath. Why did I survive? Only a divine intervention from a higher being could have delivered me from the sting of the viper’s fangs.


As I thanked my God for sparing me, I realized that I must know how to survive the bite of a poisonous serpent if I were an unfortunate victim. As I studied the ways to react, I came to the following conclusions on how to survive the bite of a snake. First, always respect the creature that God has cast a spell on. If you respect the power that this evil monster possesses, you will never be caught off guard by his deceitful ways. If you are respectful and still get bitten by the viper, you should remain calm and get yourself to the nearest medical treatment facility. Remaining calm is easy to say, but hard to do. As your heartbeat races, the poison of the viper will travel throughout your body as a very fast pace. The calmer you are the better your chances of survival. Haste in getting to the Doctor is most important. Don’t wait, go immediately. The trip will be much easier if you have someone to drive you there. To prevent a snake bite death, do not go camping, hiking, hunting, fishing, or any other outdoor activity during the warm months when the snake is still active, unless you have a partner that can give adequate care to you in case of an emergency. The snake is a cold-blooded creature that will hibernate when the temperature drops below the point where he can survive. This will allow you to participate in outdoor activities in the winter months in Alabama and not be afraid of encounters with Mr. Snake. When you arrive at the medical center after being bitten by a snake you will need to be able to identify the type of snake that bit you. It is of utmost importance that everyone becomes familiar with the snakes of the area. There are several snakes found in Alabama that posses hemo-toxic poison. This poison will attack your blood cells and could result in death if not treated. Snakes that posses hemo-toxic poison in Alabama are rattlesnakes, copperheads, and water moccasins ( a form of cottonmouth). One should also be able to identify the coral snake. The coral snake venom will break down and paralyze your nervous system. A rule of thumb to remember in identifying this small, but deadly snake is “red touching yellow will kill a fellow”. This refers to the markings on a coral snake.


Look up the snakes just mentioned and study their coloring and markings. You will need to be able to inform the Doctor of the type of snake that bit you. Guess work can lead to death. When you arrive at the hospital or medical center, you can be given anti-venom that will kill the poison of the snake bite . This anti- venom has been grown within the blood of horses, and it can bring on allergic reactions, but hopefully not.


Where the snake bites you makes a difference also. If an artery is pierced by the snake’s fangs death is a strong possibility even if you get medical treatment. Other things not to do include, never cut your body in an effort to drain the poison, never place restricting bands or tourniquets above the wound, never drink alcohol, never put ice on the bite, and again, never panic.


In order to survive the bite of a snake you should follow the steps presented in this paper. Be prepared, and you can survive----to fear the reckless and ruthless guile of the serpent as he waits to destroy your world.

How to Prevent and Survive a Shark Attack

Jim McKenzie

Since 2000 there have been thirty-seven shark attacks along the Pacific Coast. Only two of these attacks have been fatal. This says a great deal about sharks. There are thousands of sharks that reside in the Pacific Ocean and if there have only been two fatalities and thirty-seven attacks in seven years, I would say that that is a pretty good ratio. If people, shark hunters in general, look at this statistic then they should realize there is no need to be killing sharks. People need to understand that when you enter another being’s domain you have to be considerate and careful of that being. Humans do not live in the ocean, sharks and many other marine life do. We have to understand that when we enter the water we enter the shark’s territory not the other way around. Swimming in the ocean is a risk that you have to be willing to take. If you are not willing to take the risk of being attacked by a shark then it is very simple – DO NOT SWIM IN THE OCEAN!!! It is a very easy concept to grasp. Even though people enter the ocean they should be wary of sharks and I still think that it is necessary for us to know how to defend ourselves if we are being attacked by a shark.

There are many steps that you must first consider before you enter the sharks realm. First you want to do a couple of safety checks. One of the most important things to do is to check to see if you have any open wounds. A shark can smell one drop of blood from one mile away. That is pretty amazing. If you do have open wounds then you are going to want to bandage them up thoroughly. Next I would go ahead and recommend that you do not wear a wet suit. Sharks can easily mistake a person in a wet suit as a seal. And one of a shark’s favorite meals is a seal. Also before you enter the ocean you might want to go ahead and think twice about surfing or boogey boarding. When you are out in the water laying on a boogey board or surfboard, from underneath you look exactly like a seal. There is no doubt if a shark sees you from underneath then you are most likely going to be attacked. Then go ahead and think if you are out in the ocean all by yourself and there is a shark you are most likely going to be the one who is going to be attacked. Make sure you go into the water with a big group of people. It is much more unlikely that you will be the one who gets attacked. Even if you do see a shark, which is extremely unlikely, the best advice is not to swim to the shore. Go underwater with the shark and do not move. Many sharks are attracted to movement. Just make sure that you are underwater and that you can see every move that the shark is making. Now that you have thought about all of these safety tips, you are ready to enter the water – if you DARE!!!

Now you are in the ocean with the predators of the deep. You are in their realm. All of a sudden you feel a huge tug on your leg. At first you have no idea what it was because you have already gone into shock. Most people do not understand that when you are first bitten by a shark it does not hurt. The pain is so intense that you go into shock and you cannot feel a thing. Once you realize that a shark has bitten you, this is when most people start to freak out. I know it is extremely hard not to freak out once you realize that a massive shark has attached its mouth around your leg, but you have to try and remain calm. The first thing you need to do is go underwater with the shark. If you can, hit the sharks nose as hard as possible. If you do not learn anything else from this essay make sure that you understand that this is the most important step in surviving a shark attack. Once you hit a shark’s nose they automatically open their mouths just long enough so that you have time to pull yourself out of the sharks grasp. If this step does not work, which is a one and a hundred chance that it doesn’t, the next best thing to do is to try and rip the sharks gills. This should make the shark open its mouth from pain and you should have enough time to escape. Another good tip is to try and gouge out the sharks eyes. These are the main steps that will help save you life if you are the unlucky person who is being attacked by a shark.

Now that you have read this essay I just want to go ahead and point out that you have a better chance of being hit by a car than being bitten by a shark. It is very unlikely that you would ever have to even worry about being attacked even if you see one. Also you must remember that sharks do not know if you have families or friends. They are just like us. We kill food everyday so that we can survive in the world. If sharks do not eat then they will not survive either. We need to realize that when we enter the shark’s domain it is possible that we can become their dinner.

How to Survive Rush

When entering into any college or university one question is how the student is going to get involved. One of the most popular organizations attached to multiple colleges and universities is greek life. Each fall the week before school starts the University of Alabama has a weeklong event of something called Rush. Rush is the process of how a girl enters into a sorority. There are a few main steps in order to survive rush and it begins the spring before your rush week.


In the spring semester each sorority will host rush parties. These parties consist of day and night get-togethers that current sorority members hold for girls who will be rushing in the fall; also known as future pledges. The day parties are parties such as cookouts, luncheons, and craw-fish brawls. While the night parties are parties with guys and girls where people are able to branch out and meet new people. Through these parties future pledges are able to meet girls also attending Alabama in the fall. The future pledges are also able to get to know the girls currently in the sorority. By getting to know the girls in the sorority, the future pledges are able to develop an idea of what the sorority is life and if they would be able to fit in with the girls.


After attending the rush parties in the spring, the girl then is able to have an idea of if she really wants to rush or not. If the girl decides yes then there are a few steps she must take in order to prepare herself for rush week. First, the girl must go to the panhellenic website and sign up for recruitment. Panhellenic is the organization pertaining to all of the sororities and fraternities. By signing up on this website, the girl is letting all of the sororities that she will be participating in the upcoming rush. Once she has signed up on this website she must create a resume for herself. The resume consists of everything she has completed in high school. This would be made up of extracurricular activities, awards, community service, jobs, internships, test scores, gpa, and a picture of herself. The importance of the resume is to give the sororities an opportunity a chance to get to know her. The resume is also given to many women who are alumnus of sororities. With this resume the alumnus write a letter or a recommendation to their sororities as to why that sorority should consider this girl. A letter is written to the sororities that the girl is mostly interested in by an alumna who will speak about the great qualities of the girl and why she would be an important attribute to pledge class. A recommendation is a sheet of paper that consists of the important basic information of the girl. It is important that a girl has both of these because it shows the sorority that she is extremely interested in becoming a member. It also gives the sorority a good idea of how important she is to have in the sorority by the number of people who care for her to be added to the sorority. Once the women have written to the sororities the resume, letters, and recommendations are sent to each of the sororities the girl is interested in.


A week before school starts the girl moves to school to start rush that week. There are four chances of narrowing down sorority choices. First every girl is divided into groups alphabetically. Monday and Tuesday of this week are based on each girl going to every sorority house with her group where she will wear sundresses. At each of these houses the sorority opens with a door song. This is a song that promotes their sorority that the sorority sings at the door while all the pledges are lined up outside of the house. After the song is over each pledge enters into the room and is escorted by a center member to an area of the house where they create small talk. This is when it is good to think of conversation starters. Each girl is at each of the houses for forty minutes. Sometimes the girl is with the same member the whole time but usually more members come up to speak to her. On Wednesday morning the girl goes to the computer lab with her group. She logs onto the computer that will show her which sororities would like her to come back to the house and spend more time with her. The girl can choose up to twelve houses to return to on Wednesday and Thursday. If a girl is not asked back by an houses she will be notified and rush will be over for her. If a girl is nervous about a house dropping her it is important that an alumnae calls the house to speak about how important it is to have that girl in the pledge class. This way the girl will have a better chance of getting into that sorority. When the girl returns to those houses on Wednesday and Thursday she must wear a t-shirt that is provided by panhellenic and shorts. This is because at the houses during these two days the girl will learn about each of the houses philanthropy and create an arts-n-craft for them. On Thursday, the girl returns to the computer lab where she will once again see who has invited her back and narrow her list down to at most seven. During this day the girl goes to the houses that she has left to watch a skit. Each house performs a skit so the girl can see what the girls personalities are like inside the house. These is one of the most important days for a girl to attend because it is suppose to help the girl see the most if she would be able to fit in the house. On Saturday, the student heads back to the computer lab where she will narrow her list down to three. Today is “Pref Day”. This means that the girl attends the houses that she likes the most. Each house goes and speaks to the girl one on one. Some houses like to speak about their experiences about being a member of a sorority while others like to just speak to the girls normally trying to allow them to feel comfortable with them. At the end of the day every girl lines up and returns to the computer lab where she will put her “Pref Day” houses in order of the one she wants to join first. Sometimes a girl knows what sorority she wants to be in but most times a girl must weigh out the pros and cons of sororities to help her choice her pref. After this point the girl is to return to the dorm where she will wait until Sunday Afternoon.


On Sunday afternoon, every girl goes into the stadium and sits in their groups. The group leaders pass out an envelope to each girl that has their name on it. When a leader says go every girl in the stadium opens their letter that has a bid on it from a sorority. At Alabama eight-nine percent of girls get their first choice of sorority but if not a girl must still act excited because most times a girl ends up loving her sorority. After opening their letters, every girl then runs out of the stadium area where members of each sorority will be holding the sorority letters. There the girls will sprint with each other to the house. At the house, these jerseys with the sororities’ letters will be given out and pictures with the sorority will be taken.

How to keep your car in good driving condition

How to keep your car in good driving condition

Most people while driving their car will not think twice about the condition it is in until there is a noticeable problem in which they will take their car to mechanic to find out their problem would have never happened had the proper care been given to their car. The best thing that you can do to extend the life of your car and potentially save yourself some money is to service your car on a routine basis which could possibly lead to a prolonged life for your vehicle.

1. The first thing to do when servicing your car is to check the fluids. The fluids include the antifreeze, transmission fluid, oil, power steering fluid, and brake fluid which can all be checked by popping the hood of your vehicle and checking the respective levels of each and add or remove to reach the recommended fluid levels.

2. Second, you must make sure to change your oil regularly which will improve your gas mileage and also help protect your engine. It is recommended that you have your oil changed every 3,000 to 5,000 miles or every 4 to 6 months. To check your oil you should remove the dipstick which is a yellow ring with an oil symbol on it. If the oil is a black color it should be changed the ideal oil color is relatively a clear color.

3. Another thing to do while under the hood is to change or replace the air filter every 50 to 75 thousand miles which will also help to improve gas mileage. The air filter can be found in the air box, a large open ended plastic box clamped together. Remove the clamps and the lid to remove the old air filter that will be replaced.

4. Rotating the tires twice a year or every 6,000 miles will help to reduce the wear on your tires which will help to prolong the pricey tires. To rotate the tires jack up one side of the car and swap the front and rear tire and then do the same for the opposite side.

5. Keeping the tires aired to their recommended tire pressure will increase the tire life and also help to improve gas mileage. The recommended tire pressure can be found on the outside of the tire that will include a # followed by the letters psi.

6. Another thing to help prevent the wear and tear of your tires along with a much smoother ride is to maintain front end alignment in your vehicle by taking it in for a check up if shaking or wobbling begins at higher speeds. This will also keep the tire tread even for increased safety.

7. Make sure to keep an eye on your brake pads and do not let the pads wear down to the metal because this will not only damage the rotors but if it gets to serious it could damage the brake calipers as well. If your rotors or calipers are damage you should take the car to a mechanic for proper maintenance which can get expensive so changing the cheaper brake pads can be much cheaper.

8. Using your parking brake regularly can help decrease the strain on the brakes in the rear especially if on an incline which will make your rear brakes last longer.

9. Finally the thing that most people neglect quite often especially if during pollination months is washing your car. Without the regular cleaning of your vehicle it may begin to have the paint start to peel off and possibly begin to rust along the bottoms of the doors or at the joints which can eventually lead to thousands of dollars of body work.

If these steps and suggestions are applied properly towards the maintaining of your car it is very likely that you will have a reliable car for many years more than expected when your car was purchased. These steps can also help to save you much money dealing with your car and help with money spent due to the constantly rising price of gas.

Monday, November 19, 2007

How to do your laundry

How to do Laundry


How to do your laundry? Some think this is a really easy task and everyone should know how to do their laundry, but others have no clue what to do first. Some may think that you just throw all the clothes together and turn on the washing machine and the rest is done from there. That is not how it happens though. Washing the clothes is only one step in doing laundry. Washing the clothes is only the first part. You cannot just throw your clothes in the washing machine and think the rest is going to be done for you by the machine. It takes about and hour and a half to do one load of laundry. Before you just throw all your dirty clothes in the washing machine you must go through a few steps. Doing laundry consist of separating the darks and lights before you ever put them into the washing machine. Then you have to know what size load to put it on, if it should be hot or cold water, how much detergent to use, and how long to put it in for. You also have to know if you should put it on delicates or normal. Every washing machine has different setting, but they are all similar. If you are washing light colors then you can use detergent with bleach, but if you are washing dark colors you do not want to use detergent with bleach. Usually the clothes wash for thirty to forty-five minutes. Then you take the clothes out of the washing machine and put them in the dryer. Not all clothes can go in the dryer, so you should hang those up to dry. Then you set the timer for fifty to sixty minutes. Before you turn on the dryer you must check the lent screen and clean it out. This makes the clothes dry faster. Also for the best effect you should put one dryer sheet in with the clothes. This makes the clothes softer. After the clothes are dry you need to take them out immediately, because if you do not your clothes will get wrinkled. Then for the best outcome of your clothes you should fold them right when you take them out of the dryer. Doing your laundry also consist of maybe ironing your clothes. Not all items of clothing can or need to be ironed, but to make the clothes that can be ironed look the best your should iron them. Some clothes that you would not iron are items like wool, some silks, and some others. When all the steps are complete you are finished with one load of laundry. However, just because you did your laundry at your home or at a laundry mat, there are other alternatives to do your laundry. Some items of clothing cannot be put in the regular washing machine and wash the normal way with most of the other clothes. This is why you take them to the dry cleaners. All you do is take the clothes that do not need to go in the washing machine and drop them off at the dry cleaners. They will ask you if you would like starch or no starch. If you get starch, your clothes is will be really stiff when you come back to pick them up. It depends on what dry cleaners you take your clothes to, but most places usually have your clothes finished in two days. Another reason to take your clothes to the dry cleaners is if you have a stain on your clothes. The dry cleaners can usually get out just about any stain. The dry cleaners is a more expensive way to wash your clothes, but the clothes you usually take to the dry cleaners are more expensive. In conclusion, washing your clothes is only one part of doing your laundry. Once you know what steps to do, it is not that hard to do your laundry.

Sunday, November 18, 2007

How to make a gumbo

When the temperature first drops below 70 degrees, we claim gumbo weather. It is almost a mark of the start of winter even if we know the next week will be in the upper 80’s. Making gumbo is all part of the change in weather and is much more than making any other food. Every family makes it differently both in ingredients and in the way the process they use. It is necessary to set aside an entire day if you are to actually lead this cooking adventure. In actually cooking the gumbo it is necessary to decide which type of gumbo you will make: duck, chicken and sausage, or seafood, to name a few. Next you have to decide to begin with a roux or make your own. For the sake of this paper and because it is my own favorite we will make chicken and sausage, as well as our own roux. The ingredients used in the roux are simple oil or butter and flour. Both should be added in equal parts for example, one cup of oil or butter means you add one cup of flour. It is best to use white flour as it gives you the desired copper penny color. You want to heat the two ingredients stirring constantly until your desired color is reach at least the color of the copper penny but you can go darker as well. It is best to work on this step as a family or around company because you cannot rush the roux and will sometimes take hours to get to the desired color. Some people may argue that a roux will come out just as well if you pop it into the microwave for about seven minutes but by doing this you do not only loose flavor but a feeling of tradition as well. It should be a fairly think nearly toothpaste texture when it is finished cooking down. A darker roux seems to be more popular in the Cajun areas, usually a chocolate milk color, and a lighter. Peanut butter colored roux more popular in a New Orleans style roux.
Gumbo brings people together before they eat it; it is not a dish to make in a little amount of time by one person. Gumbo requires an almost team effort sharing the cutting and stirring since after only making the roux we have already been working for over an hour. This could get very lonely. Now to begin with the actually gumbo you will want to remove the roux and add water until desired thickness. The ingredients to the actually gumbo are far more complicated. A typical chicken and sausage gumbo may include the following:
• large onions, chopped
• bell peppers, chopped
• ribs of celery, chopped
• cloves garlic, minced
• quarts chicken stock
• bay leaves
• teaspoons Creole seasoning, or to taste
• teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• Earls seasoning to taste
• large chicken (young hen preferred), cut into pieces
• pounds andouille or smoked sausage, cut into pieces
• bunch scallions (green onions), tops only, chopped
• cup fresh chopped parsley
• FilĂ© powder to taste
The amount of each ingredient has not been included because I actually have no clue as to how much we use, neither did my mom. It’s always been something just done by feel.
Before adding any ingredients you must season the chicken, it is always more satisfying to use the whole chicken and is my family’s own tradition. Seasoning is another place where family comes into play; some may use salt and pepper, or “Tony Chachere’s”, my family uses “earls” a seasoning only available at a small family owned meat shop in Lafayette. While this is marinating everyone should pick an ingredient and begin to chop. Everything needs to be diced by hand down to nearly unrecognizable pieces; you do not want to have a strange mix in textures. The sausage also needs to be cut into pieces usually between1/2 inch and 2/3 inch thick. In a very large pot should be at least a foot tall, the kind that seem like a small child could be cooked inside, mix the ingredients slowly allowing each flavor to be released into the stew. The entire time ingredients are being added you must keep stirring as to not allow a skin to form on the top. The chicken and sausage should be added last and then brought to a boil. Allow for it to cook at least an hour then remove the fat layer that has formed from the top of the gumbo. A good sign to tell if the chicken is cooked enough is it should be almost in strings and have fallen of the bone. Now it is time to go fishing, use a ladle with holes in the bottom to begin fishing out the bones, the last thing you want is someone getting a bone lodged in their throat. It may be necessary to have more than one person check for bones. Everything should now be in the gumbo, now just wait for it to cook down the longer you can resist the more flavorful it will be.
Eating gumbo is a completely different experience and everyone does it different ways but if you are sure to serve it over good Cajun rice and with plenty of French bread no one is bound to complain.
The conversation of gumbo always seems to be more relaxed than any other meal, perhaps it is that there is often a little bit being spilt on the table or on laps perhaps even running down someone’s face. Whatever it is when the weather gets “cold” it is sure to be a good way to get family together to make it and friends together to eat it. The only way serving size can be restricted is by the size of the pot.