Almost Break

Why is it going to be so cold today? Can the weather just start warming up? Probably not. Well, I think that today will be a pretty good day. Not really. I have a midterm today and another one tomorrow, so I will be studying, taking a test, and then studying some more. Sounds like a fun life to me. Again, not really. However, there is the ever present hope of spring break in approximately one day in six hours. Although I don't have a ton planned over vacation, the point is that it will be a break from school. Unfortunately, it is only one week, but one week is better than nothing by far. I like the fact that I will not have a lot of homework except for edited a few papers and doing some statistics homework. On average though, I'll have less homework per day which is always good. What am I going to do with all of my free time? Probably enough so that it won't be free time anymore. I always tend to do that. I have free time, but then I fill it up just as quickly. So, wish me luck on my test today! Luckily it is all multiple choice.

Photo by konradfoerstner on Flickr

Global Management

Well, I think that this is the first blog post I have written in a shirt, tie, and Argyle sweater vest. The reason is not because I have gone through some amazing transformation right feel the need to overdress. I have a presentation today with my group about how businesses adopt and adapt to changing technology. Of course, none of you want to hear that right now, but I think it is enough to say that I feel pretty good about our presentation. My group mates know what they're doing, and I know what I'm doing, so it should go pretty well. Honestly, the hardest part is allowing all five of us to talk in 10 minutes. I have one PowerPoint slide on globalization, and it is very difficult to condense even that relatively small amount of information into one fifth of the time or two minutes. Even by putting the material on one slide, I am missing a lot of what really is the body of globalization. I realize that today is only supposed to give the rest of the class a broad overview of what we are doing, but there is so much to say because globalization is such a huge topic.

Photo by FlyingSinger on Flickr

Finally a Full Schedule

I think that I'm going to have an interesting semester. The reason I say that is because almost all of my classes have weekly assignments to do based on a lot of material. For example, my honors college class only meets once a week, but we need to read over 100 pages and write a short essay every week. Not that that is overwhelming in and of itself, but I have found that all of my classes have a similar setup. Therefore, I need to remind myself that although it might seem like I don't need to do homework all week, I really need to because that would be a very intimidating stockpile of work to do over the weekend. It is interesting because I've never really had my classes lineup like this, and I need to remember that fact. Now that I have had all my classes, I can say that it looks like it will be a good semester. I have a wide variety of classes, so I guess I am getting that liberal arts education that the honors college insisted that everyone desperately needed during our freshman seminar. Anyway, we will see how it goes, but it looks like fun.

Photo by zappowbang on Flickr

Background Noise

I think that Vermont weather is crazy. I also think that I have watched more college basketball this season than I ever have previously. The main reason for this is that doing homework becomes much more enjoyable when there is a basketball game on in the background. Many people say that multitasking doesn't work, but I haven't had a problem with it yet. Honestly, I don't really multitask because if I am doing my work, the TV might be on, but I am not paying attention to it. I use the game on TV in between working for a break, but it is otherwise just there. I know that even noise throws some people off, but I am lucky that I am not one of them. I would rather work in the Davis Center rather than the library at UVM. I think that maybe I have to work harder when there is noise to focus so I end up paying even better attention to the material because if I didn't I would lose all focus. Whatever the reason, I like having some noise around, and I think I do better because of it. If it is hurting me, well, I guess we will never know that anyway because I don't think that I will be changing it.

Photo by William Hook on Flickr

'Twas the Night before Final Exams

Here is what I am thinking about doing. How about rewriting 'Twas the Night before Christmas into 'Twas the Night before Final Exams"?

'Twas the night before my final exams and all through the room
I had no idea what was going on since not focusing would be my doom.
My accounting notes were set upon the table in a pile
And I leafed through it for a lot more than a while.

I turned on my computer and opened Microsoft Word
To reread the notes I had previously heard.
At one point I knew the material but now I feel
I need to study it again, and pay attention for real.

The material started sinking in, I began to remember it
Everything began to come together and like a puzzle fit
Every time I read I remembered a little more in stages.
So I figured I would finish up with one last look over the pages.

The one last read through always helped me secure
The important information and eliminate the impure.
It is good to reach closure when studying accounting material
Because there is always more to learn, especially in managerial.

Then finishing up the material, I had an epiphany
I had forgotten to write my blog so I did so swiftly
So I hope you enjoyed my abridged Christmas poem
And remember in one day we can all stay home.

Photo by xb3 on Flickr

UVM SGA Suggests Evaluation Boycott

Since it seems like this is a pertinent topic at UVM, I figured that I would throw my opinion in regarding the boycott of course evaluations. Sorry that it does not relate to sports. Honestly, I do not quite see the success that it seemed like the Student Government Association anticipated. Of course, with 769 votes in on Facebook (which is not a very large portion of the University of Vermont and possibly not very representative), there are more people who are not participating than those who are. That definitely will not make much of a difference for the administration. Do I think that they should be published? I do believe that it would be nice to see evaluations of a class. However, I think that a boycott is the wrong way to do it. As I have noticed on the Facebook event, it seems as if the SGA position is to boycott everything on the evaluation except for the comment section where students are free to answer in their own words. I guess my main problem is professors don't only read the comments. I would find it very weird if the professor did not look at the rest of the evaluation if he or she took the time to look at the evaluations at all. Perhaps some professors don't even look at or care about the evaluations. Giving us access to the evaluations will not change that. The evaluations will not change anything if the professors don't look at them. I do believe that most professors if not all do look at the course evaluations however. Therefore, I think that they are becoming a target to an issue that the SGA has with administration rather than with the professors directly. Most professors do not have a say over whether or not the evaluations are released. If I were a professor, I know any information that I could gather from my students, even those how much do you agree with this statement questions, would be coveted. And just one more sidenote I noticed on many comments, if ratemyprofessors.com is to polarized, go online and do something about it. Write your own reviews and make it a better site. Don't complain that other people have ruined it, make it better.
Photo by zappowbang on Flickr

A Bit Random

Well, I think it is time to concede defeat in the Vermont gubernatorial race. After spending no money and creating one amazing slogan, I guess it wasn't enough. I'm not really sure who I am conceding to yet, but I didn't want all of my supporters to be in suspense much longer.

In other news, it looks like Randy Moss has gotten himself kicked off another team as he was waived by the Vikings. Not a great year in Minnesota in terms of football. Brett Favre has been definitely less than stellar. Well, they had a good baseball team for the year. Also, speaking of waived players, former UVM standout Marqus Blakely is now playing for the Bakersfield Jam in the NBA Developmental League. Not quite the NBA, but since he was drafted 12th overall in the league, he should be one of the first players to get a call from the NBA at some point in the season. How awesome would it be to have a UVM athlete in the NBA? It has never happened before, but I think that this is the time. UVM has been improving every year, and Blakely was in the middle of it all.
Photo by Hotash on Flickr

8 Rules to Playing Power Soccer

Since we are one week away from our power soccer clinic at the University of Vermont, I thought I'd take this opportunity to go over some rules that I didn't really know existed. Just for your information, the rulebook that I am referring to is available on the United States Power Soccer Association website.
• We always talk about how power soccer is for all ages. However, on page 6, it says that you must be five years old to play. I guess I could not have played when I got my first wheelchair.
• Also on page 6, you are only allowed to have four substitutes unless there is an agreement made before the match. Again, we don't have this problem.
• On page 11, the rules say that a game can be called because of the weather. However, it is an indoor sport, so I don't really know what this is referring to.
• On page 12, half time may not be more than 10 minutes.
• The team must be 5 m away on the kickoff, but the two on one rule still applies to the team kicking off. (Page 13)
• On page 16, the two on one rule does not apply when one of the players is the goalie. However, if the goalie goes outside of the area, then he cannot double-team anymore.
• Apparently, on page 19, of all the bad things that you can do, spitting deserved its own reference for a red card.
• If there is a goal kick, any player on the offense can take it, not just the goalie. Also, the defense must be 5 m away, and the offense must respect the two on one rule. The ball is not in play until it leaves the goal area. (Page 25)
I hope you learn something from all of this, and then please either come out to play or support us at the University of Vermont, Patrick Gym, next Sunday from 1 to 4:30!

Izzo Stays at MSU

I am glad to say that Tom Izzo is staying at Michigan State rather than making the jump to the NBA. Personally, I think the college game is so much more intense than the NBA. I think that there is more intensity because the NCAA is sort of like the minor leagues for the NBA (I realize that there is the development league, but the NCAA also keeps track of players who are waiting to make the jump). Because everybody in the NCAA wants to make it to the NBA, they are trying to impress various coaches and general managers, the media, and the fans to support them in this venture. Once you're in the NBA, you don't need to establish your name because it has been established by being drafted and offered a contract. There are thousands of NCAA players who are all driving towards the same goal, so each one knows that he must step it up and outplay almost every other player on the circuit to advance. Also, the same goes for women's players and the WNBA; I'd much rather watch the NCAA for the same reason.

Being enrolled at a Division I university, I have known a number of athletes. I must say that I admire how they can study and be highly competitive athletes all at once. Once you're a professional, you don't need to worry about studying anything but your opponent. This ability to multitask also makes me more impressed by the college game. I know that if I were a coach, this is the level I want to be at.
Photo by Kind of Bruin on Flickr

Invitation to Compete

Today, I am thinking about the benefits of competition. I think that, at some level, we all need competition. Even people who don't like to lose need to compete every now and then. There's something about competition that brings out some sort of adrenaline rush that caused all the participants to rise to the level that they don't normally need to reach to. For example, if you don't exercise your muscles, they become weaker and weaker. On a similar level, I think it is important to exercise your mind and body in this hyped up state to make sure that you don't lose that desire to win. We all like to get things easily, but every now and then it feels great to say that you got something because you hardest worked for it.

So, that is what power soccer does for me. It forces me to use parts of my mind that I don't typically have to. For example, it's very unusual that in everyday life I need to worry about pushing a ball to a teammate without having it intercepted by an opponent. In fact, I don't think that has ever happened in real life unless of course I made a Disney movie where I spontaneously burst into power soccer mode at random times throughout the day and call it something like High School Power Soccer or something like that. Of course, then that's not really real life. Anyway, back to the topic. Anybody else out there who feels like they need some competition in their lives but use a power wheelchair, we would love to have you on July 25 at the University of Vermont's Patrick Gymnasium for a power soccer clinic. Registration is at 12:45, and the clinic runs from 1 to 3 with Jerry Frick of the United States Power Soccer Association. Following the clinic, you can see myself and my teammates on the Vermont Chargers meet the New Hampshire Power Cats again at three o'clock where we hope to bring our record to 2-0! All power wheelchair users who can independently drive their chair are welcome to bring their chairs, themselves, and we provide the rest of the equipment to play. I'd love to see any of you all there!

Hazardous Growth

It has finally happened; the NCAA has expanded the tournament field to 68 teams. I know that more basketball is always a good thing, but I'm not really huge on the added games simply because I feel like the only reason they were created was because the NCAA wanted to allow more at-large bids so that the power schools have better chances of getting in. Schools like UVM are going to be relegated to the play-in game, and some of them will never get to see the teams like Syracuse that beat the Catamounts this year. I realize that this is a business move because having more games will generate more revenue through advertising, ticket sales, etc. However, I feel like this usurps the power of each conference receiving a bid because some of these schools from non-basketball conferences won't even be able to make the field of 64 and not have that "one shining moment." I know that the little team never has much of a chance versus the powerhouses, but it's definitely fun to have that one try. Sometimes, upsets happen, and people like me get very excited. Now, all of these teams who have the opportunity to pull off the biggest upset will have to play one game before the one seed and already be tired. I love March Madness, but I think that we need to preserve the tournament as a showcase of the best from each conference and not allow all of these at-large bids to come in and more ACC or Big East teams.

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Money or Happiness?

I don't want to write about sports tonight. I know, this will probably be disappointing to many of you. However, I was sitting at the Honors College plenary lecture tonight where Matt Crawford was discussing his ideas concerning what is intellectual work. When Crawford worked as an abstract writer of scholarly articles, he claims to have felt very anti-intellectual because the work did not require much thought. He would skim the articles and then write a brief summary that was not necessarily representative of the piece. However, when Crawford dropped this job to become a motorcycle repairman, he said that even though the job of a mechanic is often seen as somewhat "simple," he found that it was much more satisfying and mentally stimulating than the supposedly intellectual job of reviewing scholarly articles. This got me thinking about my future career. What exactly is a job supposed to be in a person's life? If a job is just about making money, then I would perhaps become a plumber or electrician. Due to the fact that they would not have college expenses and loans along with the fact that master electricians and plumbers make quite a bit of money, it would make sense for me to become a plumber. However, would I be happy doing this? No, not really. Therefore, should my career only bring me happiness? If that were the case, I could make my career sitting at home and playing fantasy baseball. It is an activity I enjoy, so it would make a good career careers were all about happiness. Obviously, you realize that this is ludicrous because people simply need to make some money to survive. Okay, so if money and happiness cannot fully determine what career you should choose, how on earth should one decide? Personally, I think the enjoyment should take precedence over pay if you're only responsible for yourself. If I want to take a job that pays next to no money, I should do that if it only affects me. However, if I have a family, one sacrifice that I might have to make to make my family comfortable would be to take a job that will allow me to provide for more than one person. Each individual should be able to pursue his or her own passions, but I think that when other people are affected by your choices, these effects need to take just as much if not more precedence over your own. Maybe I'm old-fashioned, maybe I'm not consistent with the modern theory of "if it feels good, do it," but I think that you can pursue your own passions as long as they only affect your life directly. However, when you add the responsibility of providing for other people, one of the sacrifices that may need to be made would be overall love for work in return for overall love for family. I would hope that being able to make the ones you love comfortable would generate enough happiness to offset the happiness you might have to sacrifice if indeed finances demand it.

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Lady Cats Prowl

Before I start on anything else, I just want to say that no one listens to me. Of the two fantasy drafts I have been a part of this year, Joe Mauer has been picked second overall (ahead of Albert Pujols even) and eighth overall. Again, you know I love Joe, but there is no way I would take him over a guy like Albert.

Okay, thank you for letting me vent. Now, on to the real story as the UVM women are ready to take it to Notre Dame. Following their first-ever NCAA tournament win, they're looking to be more successful than the UVM men were when they knocked off Syracuse a few years ago for their first-ever NCAA tournament win before getting killed by Michigan State. I believe that UVM will be able to fight with the Irish simply because so far they're hitting their shots. As I said about the UVM men, if they hit their shots, they will be able to play with anyone. Upsets occur because the upper seed can't hit a shot and therefore are very vulnerable. It really does not matter how well you played the rest of the year; if that were the case, we would crown the Connecticut Huskies champions already and not bother wasting our time with a meaningless tournament. However, the joy of a single elimination tournament is that you only need to win once. This may seem a bit redundant, but any team can be unlucky on just one night. So, enjoy the night, cheer for the Catamounts, and hope that UVM will be able to secure Groovy UV its first Sweet 16 appearance!

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Comeback?

Hopefully, I am watching the first time a 16 seed will beat a one seed in NCAA history. All right, I may be dreaming about this, but imagine the pandemonium that would ensue in Burlington. The only two NCAA tournament victories and University of Vermont history would be against the dreaded Orange. However, as it stands right now, we are somewhat behind due to ice cold shooting. The only way Vermont, or any other 16 seed, will ever pull off the ultimate upset is if they're able to shoot well and consistently throughout the entire game. Lehigh played with Kansas last night simply because they were able to shoot for the first 30 minutes of the game. Of course, as the final score shows, they totally fell apart over the last 10 minutes and lost by 20, but they still showed that low seeds can be dangerous when they are hot. So, I don't really know how Mike Lonergan is going to remedy this right now. However, he needs his boys to start hitting their shots because UVM quite simply does not have the size to get any second chances against a very long Syracuse team. However, I am not going to say that this game is a lost cause; you never know what might happen in 23 minutes.

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Time to Turn It on!

Well UVM, it's time to pull off another upset versus the Orangemen. Personally, I think the Cats deserved a higher seed than that seeing how they were able to knock off Rutgers from the Big East on the road as well as almost beating Cornell, the Ivy League champions in Drexel, and by knocking off Buffalo in Buffalo who were able to knock off Ohio University who are also in the tournament at a higher seed than Vermont.

The Catamounts will need to rekindle the magic of Taylor Coppenrath and TJ Sorrentine to march over Syracuse again. This time, though, it will be even tougher because a game in Buffalo is basically a home game for Syracuse as Buffalo is only just over 2 1/2 hours from Syracuse according to MapQuest. For college students, a 2 1/2 hour drive is nothing; some high school fans even travel that far. UVM on the other hand is just about 7 1/2 hours away from Buffalo; that's a much harder drive to make. All I know is I don't like this draw for UVM; they were so much better than a 16 seed who drew just about the worst possible matchup they could have. However, there has never been a 16 seed to upset a 1 seed... until 2010.

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