Lincolnite

Iowa's new locker rooms have taken on a unique hue.

Well, Chuck Hagel finally went and did it: he called the Iraq War Vietnam. (Upon hearing the news, Don Walton had a massive orgasm.) I remain convinced that Hagel is pulling these media-friendly tricks as part of an elaborate plan to gamble his way into the White House in 2008. Will the gambles work? Time will tell. I just hope Senator Hagel remembers Rule Number One of gambling: the house always wins. And he is going up against a pretty darn powerful house. Depending on how events play out, I see Hagel going down in history either as one of the most beloved or most reviled of all Nebraska senators. He has left himself very little room to leave a legacy anywhere in the middle. Update: Hit and Run is following this story and, as always, there are plenty of good comments to chew on.

I finally added a favicon to the site. Look up in your URL bar. I'n't it cute? And there was much rejoicing. (Yea.)

My first college soccer game is in the books. Laramie County Community College defeated Concordia University 5-2 in a scrimmage. The LCCC women almost won 6-2, but their last-second shot was still 10 yards shy of the goal when time ran out. The game was great as a first game. It was very low-key, slow-paced, and zero pressure. In fact, it felt a lot like a Class A girls high school game more than a college game. That gave me a chance to learn the routines college referees go through before, during, and after games. I have a couple upcoming games that won't be nearly so laid back, including AR assignments at Nebraska Wesleyan and Creighton. Those mens games will be much faster paced and the intensity will be much higher. I can't wait!

Steve carried through on his promise to write an article putting gasoline prices into perspective over at his blog. I just have one question for him: Where the heck does ribeye steak come in pints? [Homer Simpson]Mmmm, liquified ribeye steak ::drool:: [/Homer Simpson]

There's something very disturbing about this screen capture from CNN.com...

No you don't.

Gas prices are a popular topic of conversation these days. But there is at least one perspective from which gasoline prices aren't too shabby.

I'm starting a movement. A revolution, of sorts, one focused on a tiny pet peeve of mine. The mission: replace the word 'guys,' when used in certain situations, with a suitable alternative. I'm not anti-guy so much as I just think it's a poor word. It's sloppy. It's brusque. And it is arguably sexist. The most specific example of inappropriate usage is when restaurant personnel refer to entire tables of customers as guys. "How are you guys doing today?" "What can I get for you guys?" "Can I get you guys some refills?" And so on. My wife is not a guy. Neither is my mother. Nor are we the server's pals. We are happy to be pleasant and friendly with him. But he should not speak to his customers the same way he would speak to his buddies after a night of hard drinking. You might be thinking, "Mr. Wilson, you're making a mountain out of a mole hill." Probably. I'm good at that. But why use a word like guys when there are other perfectly suitable words just dying to be pulled from the thesaurus, dusted off, and put to good use? In fact, I have just the one in mind. Folks. That's right, guys should be replaced with folks. (For you computer geeks out there that's something like s/guys/folks/gi) It's friendly, it's pleasant, and it's extremely Nebraskan. Some folks use folks already, and that's great. I would like to encourage restaurant managers to deprecate use of the word guys by employees to customers. Then other businesses should catch on. Eventually, the demise of guys would be inevitable! Mwa ha ha ha ha! Ahem, sorry about that. There are limitations to the word folks, of course. A police officer wouldn't approach a group of troublemaking teenage boys and say "Pardon me, what are you folks up to this evening?" Nor would a group of guys watching a football game in a bar be referred to as folks; they are, of course, guys. There's a qualitative di fference between folks and guys. It's really quite easy to make the distinction once you know to look for it. All I ask is that folks be called folks and guys be called guys. I've heard servers refer to 80 year-old men and women drinking coffee at Village Inn as guys, for Pete's sake. If you think there's nothing wrong with that you probably also think it's ok to call the President "Head Dude" to his face. If that's the case, I really can't help you. Remember, folks, change begins with you. Join the pro-folks brigade today and stamp out guys overuse!

Three weeks after the AP first reported on Brice Mellen, the Lincoln Journal Star finally got around to featuring him in today's edition. Better late than never, I suppose, but c'mon, it's not as though the LJS had more pressing topics to cover in the mean time. Why so late?

I made a few updates to the website this evening. They include:

• Minor cosmetic changes
• Implemented a search feature (cosmetic modifications forthcoming)
• Implemented a few site membership functions (ditto on the cosmetics)

As always, your comments are appreciated.

Everybody who's anybody knows that the place to be on the Friday evening before UNL classes start is Memorial Stadium. Why's that? Why, it's the site of the post-band camp performance by your beloved Cornhusker Marching Band, of course! The annual exhibition gives new and experienced band members alike the chance to perform in front of a large crowd (in the 8,000 to 10,000 range, usually) in preparation for the upcoming season, and it gives band fans a chance to see the band's progress after only one week of rehearsals. The band usually performs Pre-Game and portions of their first half-time show, and they show off a few of the musical and marching fundamentals they've learned so far. The exhibition also features the famous Drill Down, a fun competition in which band members try to be the last to goof up as marching commands are thrown at them progressively quicker. Gates open at 6:30pm and the show starts at 7:00pm. Enter Memorial Stadium through Gate 3 or Gate 11. Both The Missus and I are band vets, so we try to get to the exhibition every year. It's a good time and it's free. You can't go wrong with that combination, right? Here's a tip: the band usually practices their warm-up and march to the stadium prior to the show. If you want to catch that -- I recommend it, especially if you haven't seen it before -- it will probably begin around 6:15pm or 6:30pm outside Westbrook Music Building, which is behind (West of) the Lied Center. On game days they typically begin their warm-up routine outside Westbrook approximately one hour before game time, with their march to the stadium 15-20 minutes later.

Matthew Koso doesn't stand a chance, now that Attorney General Jon Bruning has "leaked" that Koso has done the nasty with underage girls other than the one he married. In a fit of petty irresponsibility Bruning indicated that there are "many credible reports" to suggest Koso has mssed around with several young girls, and that such activity was "an open secret" in Falls City. I have two responses to that. First, why the heck is our Attorney General spreading hearsay and rumors? If he is going to charge Koso with crimes he should charge Koso with crimes. It is completely out of line for a major government official to engage in the equivalent of schoolyard scuttlebutt. If the rumors turn out to be false, I hope Koso nails Bruning to the wall. (And if they turn out to be true, good luck in prison Mr. Koso. You'll be there for a good, long while.) Second, it was an open secret? What the hell is wrong with Falls City residents?! If anything deserves a good WTF, it's that. That's right up there with the open secret in Crete that parents provide copious amounts of alcohol (and, erm, "more") to their teenagers and dozens of their closest friends on a regular basis.

It's official: West O Street is blighted. That shouldn't come as a surprise to anybody who 1) has noticed that Lincoln is on pace to declare every area of town blighted by 2010, and 2) has experienced the unattractive blandness that is West O. Of course, if unattractive blandness is our standard, then most of Cornhusker Highway should be next on Lincoln's blight list. Along with a good chunk of North 27th Street. And [insert your example here].

I received word today that I have been assigned as AR1 to my first college soccer match. Sort of. It's a women's scrimmage at Concordia in Seward. They are playing some community college from Wyoming, I believe. It probably won't be the most exciting game in the world, but it's my first college game, so I'm excited.