Christmas Photos

Here is a picture of the table set for today's meal as well as the centerpiece, a bowl filled with ornaments.

Wynton Speaks...

Here's a little video (yes, another, they seem popular these days, aren't they?) of Wynton Marsalis talking about the wind instrumentation of a big band jazz band. I'd say I agree with most of what he says, except maybe his last statement...that might be a little questionable.

Inspiring Story

Snow Totals

So for everyone who is trying to comprehend why I'm making such a big deal about a little snow, here is why:

Several of my friends this was the first time they had ever seen snow.
Others this was only the 2nd or 3rd time they had ever seen snow.
Many others said that they have never seen as much snow as we got.

Remember, I am in south Louisiana, right by the gulf coast. Directly due west of the Florida panhandle. Just the thought of snow is a huge deal down here. Here are some snow totals for the area and their relative locations to LSU:

Zachary, 5.5" (a little due North of Baton Rouge. I think maybe about a 15-30 minute drive once you get out of the city itself?)
Baton Rouge, 3.0" (where the LSU campus is, where I am)
Mandeville, 2.5" (about an hour or so West of here. Mandeville is on the northern shore of Lake Pontchartrain)
New Orleans, 1.0" (about and hour West-Southwest of here. It is on the southern shor of Lake Pontchartrain)

So as you can see, this was by Canadian standards, not too big of an event. A few inches, nothing too much to worry about. By Virginia standards, it was about average. The Zachary total being above average, but not extremely rare in the DC area. However, down here, this is unheard of. Snow is rare down this far south. The chances of a white Christmas here are practically zero. The chance of snow at all from the beginning of December until the end of February, again, close to zero. That is why it is such a big deal down here. A snow event like this is extremely rare, and makes a lot of people who never see snow, but want to, extremely happy.

I must say, it was very nice being woken up at 6AM to a door opening and closing and knocking on doors in the room next to mine to see snow piling up in the grass. I wasn't expecting to see it, either, because I know how rare it is down here. Even though it is something that is so normal for me, I still am making such a big deal out of it, just like everyone else. I guess its because its something so rare here and its cool to see it. Death Valley with snow in it? No way! But it did!

Something amusing: in one semester here at LSU you could practically say I've seen everything that one needs to see. The semester started with a hurricane, Gustav. And now it ended with a nice pleasant snow "storm" in the middle of finals (which are going very well so far)!

Snow Pictures

Here are some pictures that I was able to find from friends of the snow here at LSU.

This is the Memorial Tower with the Christmas tree in front of it

This and the next one are of Tiger Stadium. Obviously, snow filled. Its so weird to see it filled with snow!






















These are of Mike VI in his habitat in the snow.



































And this is a picture from just outside my dorm building. The closest door is the stack I'm in.

Snow

Guess what? Its 6:35AM right now, and it is snowing in southern Louisiana. And it is accumulating, as well. Too bad my camera is broken, or I would have pictures to show, but I don't, since my camera is broken. I've never been so happy to be awake at 6AM ever. Seriously. And if you were wondering, right now it is 34F here, and at home in Virginia it is 40F and all they are getting is rain. I definitley think I'd rather be here in the snow.

Quick Video

Here's a short video, that is kind of funny when you're not expecting it. Make sure you have your speakers and sound on when you watch it. Its short, so don't blink or you'll miss something!



Question. Which Panda was it?

Weather

Right now, it has been raining off and on constantly for the past 36 or so hours. It was in the mid 70's yesterday, and today it was in the 40's most of the day. Big change in temperature, huh? Well, just to let ya'll know, we're forecast to have some winter weather of our own in the early hours of the morning into tomorrow early-mid morning.

The Award

My Dad awarded me with this award. I have decided that I will award it to my cousin Krista. I enjoy her frequent updates about what is going on in the lives of her and Campbell. Since I rarely get to see them, her blog is a good way of keeping me informed as to what is going on in Campbell's young life. Congratulations, Krista! And now, as has been going on, you are challenged to award someone else with this award.

35 Years and Counting...

So I was looking for a different video when I came across this one and was like, hey, this is pretty cool! Thought I'd share it with everyone.



One thing to note in the video is the series of pictures where both Crossmen and Spirit are together. These were taken during the age-out ceremonies. Spirit and the Crossmen have a special bond between the two corps dating back to the late 70's (Crossmen were formed in 75, Spirit in 77). It is a bond that exists through to today. I'll write more about this in a later post.

This coming season is the 35th year for the Crossmen, the longest surviving merger of two smaller corps.