Anderson/Hatgidakis/Nelson/Metcalf: Newsletter

Old news: August 2011

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Gma
8/31/11

Happy Birthday, Livy!!


The Hatgidakis Family
8/31/11

Happy Birthday Olivia!!!!!!!
Gary
8/30/11
Countdown to the first Husker game stands at only 4 days.... In the meantime, here's a good article John sent in from the Minneapolis Star Tribune. You can read it here on the StarTrib site, but I'm also including the whole thing below. Thanks for sending it!

By the way, John, your custodianship of the Oscar trophy is drawing to an end. Can you arrange to get it to Tristen, so she can display it next to all her dance trophies?

Nebraska heritage meets Big Ten tradition

The beasts were enormous, frighteningly magnificent. Mammoths and rhinos once roamed the plains of western Nebraska, and the lineage of these monsters, complete with fearsome life-size replicas, is on display here in a small museum at the corner of 14th and Vine.

Oh, and also a block away. At Memorial Stadium.

Sure, the history housed there is a little more recent, but it's no less revered by the state's 1.8 million inhabitants. The exhibits are labeled "Rimington" and "Rozier" and "Suh," and bespeak a bygone era -- and one Nebraskans believe may be dawning again.

"We love our history at Nebraska, no question," said Tom Osborne, the courtly athletic director who doubles as an icon of Cornhuskers history himself. "That's what made this a little bit difficult."

He means leaving the Big 12, not joining the Big Ten, which the Cornhuskers do this season. Nebraska has played Kansas in each of the past 105 seasons, the longest continuous streak in college football history -- and that's not even the rivalry that Huskers fans regret leaving behind.

"When the Big 12 was formed and we lost that annual game with Oklahoma, it did put things in a little different complexion. It wasn't why we left, but it was a factor that was sort of in the background," Osborne said of the annual Oklahoma-Nebraska showdown, which was played for 70 consecutive seasons until 1998. "Had we still had that annual game, we might have made a little different choice."

Instead, the choice was to move all that tradition, that 311-game sellout streak that dates to 1962, the "Blackshirts" defense and the five national championships and three Heisman Trophies, and become the 12th member of the Big Ten.

A new challenge

It's like they were meant to be part of it all along.

"Everybody seems very excited about seeing new venues and people. And I think they do sense that the Big Ten is a good fit for us in terms of culture," said Osborne, who scrapped his plans for a Cornhusker Cable Network in order to join the new league. "The way we see things, and do things, is probably more similar to the Big Ten. Every business, every family, every league has its own culture, and we feel pretty good about what we see here."

Of course, he doesn't have to coach the football team anymore. Bo Pelini does, in the shadow of Osborne's 255 victories and 84 percent winning record, and while he supports the move like everyone else in Lincoln, the coach admits it has made for a long offseason.

"We're the only team in our league that has to prepare for 11 new opponents this year," said Pelini, himself an Ohio State alum. [Nebraska's only repeat opponent from last year is Washington, in a nonconference game.] "We started watching film, putting our work in, getting ready, last February. Our staff had to learn a whole new league, and it wasn't easy, but they did a good job of it."

Little will be easy for Nebraska this season, beginning with the schedule. The Huskers' first conference game, at Wisconsin's Camp Randall Stadium on Oct. 1, is already being touted as the most anticipated Big Ten game in history, outside of the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry. Nebraska follows that challenge by welcoming Ohio State to Lincoln the following week, and the Huskers also take road trips to Penn State, Michigan -- and Minnesota.

Might that matchup of the league's westernmost campuses, scheduled for Oct. 22 at TCF Bank Stadium, evolve into an annual grudge match? "Minnesota has not talked to us about it, but it could very well be," Osborne said. "We'll play them every year. So who knows? It may happen."

Of course, a rivalry requires competitiveness, which the Gophers haven't demonstrated lately. Though Minnesota leads the all-time series with Nebraska 29-20-2 -- only Oklahoma and Missouri have beaten the Cornhuskers more frequently -- the Gophers have lost the past 14 games, dating back to 1960, and have surrendered 111 unanswered points.

Tough on defense

For now, the Huskers will settle for a trophy game with Iowa, to be played each year on the day after Thanksgiving, as the Oklahoma rivalry, and later the Colorado game, always was.

"Frankly, the [Colorado] rivalry wasn't really my favorite. People started telling Nebraska jokes that week on television stations, and some of it came from people involved in the program," Osborne said. "It got to the point where some of our fans wouldn't go out there to the game because of the way they were treated. ... But I think people will be pleased with they way they are treated in Lincoln. We have a tradition of being very hospitable to visiting fans."

Not so to visiting football teams, though. Nebraska had the nation's top defense just two seasons ago, and while the offense fizzled at times last season, the Blackshirts appear formidable once more. "It's the best defense I've ever played on," said defensive tackle Jared Crick, and while he is one of the biggest reasons that's true, he's not alone.

Alfonso Dennard "is as good a corner as there is in the country," Pelini bragged. Linebacker Lavonte David, who broke the school record for tackles last season, "scares me sometimes the way he gets in on every play," Crick said. "It's great knowing he's always back there."

That defense has made Nebraska the favorite to become the first Legends Division champion in history. But even if the Huskers don't dominate from the start, they are already delighted with their new home.

"When I think of the Big Ten, I think of class. I think of tremendous tradition. I think of integrity. That's what the Big Ten has represented for a very long time," Pelini said. "I think it serves as a model for the rest of college football. That's why it's such an honor for us as an institution to become part of it."


Karen
8/29/11
Wow, the photorecent.html>bathroom looks great! I really like the counter top and the new flooring. Sure you are enjoying it..... thanks for the pictures.
Gary
8/29/11
New photos up.
Donna
8/26/11
I've really enjoyed the moving pictures this week. My favorite is the rain picture.

Tristen and Teghan helped me make the selections when they were visiting my office last week. Tristen and Teghan both liked the guy with the newspaper best, and Tristen also liked the subway and guy reading a book. These are standard animated gif images, so you can save them (right-click and "save as") for later viewing. Or I can email them to anyone on request. --Gary


Karen
8/25/11
Wow, already a week of school done. Going well so far. Erika is settling into college life. We got her moved in her dorm on Saturday. Has a very nice roommate and they are getting along well. Yesterday was her first day of classes. Anxious to see pictures of the remodeled bathroom.
Gary
8/25/11
MMMmmmmm.... s'mores keyboard....
Gary
8/24/11
Couple of quake notes from Washington DC:
1) Three of the four pointy spires atop the National Cathedral's tallest tower fell off. And it looks like a long drop.
2) The Washington Monument has been closed after a large crack was discovered in the structure up near the top. No word yet on how long repairs might take.
3) Several minutes before the quake hit, some of the animals in the National Zoo went into what animal experts call "danger mode." The smaller primates climbed up the trees as high as they could, the ducks all got in the water and clustered in the middle of the pond, the lemurs started howling, and the flamingos all flocked tightly together (which is their response to nearby predators). And it's especially interesting that none of these animals would have ever experienced an earthquake before.
Gary
8/24/11
Two new photos up today -- just some cool shots of San Francisco fog. I'll get some shots of Grandma's remodeled bathroom up soon, hopefully this weekend.
Donna
8/23/11
Wow, 5.9 earthquake in DC.

Just upped to at least a 6.0. And it was felt up and down the east coast, from Connecticut down to Virginia and as far west as Ohio. No damage reported yet, though lots of buildings in Washington -- Capitol, Pentagon, Union Station among them -- were evacuated. Even to California residents, a 6.0 is a moderately hefty shake -- so to all the easterners who'd never felt one before, this must have been something. Also I imagine very few if any buildings in the east are built to the quake-safety standards required on the west coast, so evacuation and inspection is a wise course. I can't wait to hear the Republicans blame this on Obama. :-) And I guarantee Michelle Bachmann and Rick Perry will start talking End Times and Day of Judgement. --Gary


Gary
8/22/11
It's weird, but just a few days ago I was thinking about the fact that in all the years I have worked for the University I had never seen any of the coaches -- Osborne, Solich, Callahan, Pelini -- out and about on the Campus. I would have thought that once in a while they would be going somewhere and I would be going somewhere and we'd cross paths. But no. Until today, that is. I had just parked my car in the lot across the street from my building, and as I got out Coach Pelini ran past me. He made the light at the corner without breaking stride and headed on down 14th Street. I kind of projected his route backwards and forwards and it looked like he was running a big circle across Campus, starting and ending at the Stadium. Anyway, it was my first ever sighting of a Nebraska coach "in the wild," and I took it as a good omen. First game only 12 days away. Go Big Red!
Gary
8/19/11
A couple of technology notes:

If anyone out there has been tempted to buy the HP Touchpad, you might want to save your money! Even though they are still running commercials for it (the one where the girl holds the Touchpad over her face and sings "Let Me Entertain You"), HP announced today they are discontinuing the Touchpad and no longer supporting it. I have read reviews of the Touchpad calling it a clunky knock-off that does less than the iPad but costs about the same. It was a flop on the store shelves. Individual stores (like Best Buy, for example) dropped the price by $100 and then $200 on their own initiative, and they still wouldn't sell. So you might be tempted by some really good deals on it, but there will be no upgrades and if you ever have to call tech support, no one will be picking up.

The other note is about Amazon.com. This may not be news to you but I was surprised to learn it only yesterday. You know the Wishlist feature, where you can keep a running list of books and items you might buy one day by ticking the little "add to wishlist" box whenever you see something you like. Very handy, right? What I learned yesterday is that your wishlist is easily accessible to anyone who simply types in your email address -- or even just your name. Which I guess is nice if you want to leave hints for Christmas or birthday gifts, but less desirable if you don't want everyone on earth knowing what your interests are. This "feature" can be turned off so your list is private (if you comb the page for the small print that does so), but it defaults to "open to the world." Eff why eye....


G'Ma
8/18/11

Happy Birthday, Zach!!
Donna
8/18/11

Happy birthday, Zach!
Gary
8/17/11
Today is back-to-school day for UN-L, too. Going from a nearly empty campus on one day to having an extra 25,000 people around on the next puts a certain buzz in the air. Quite a picture driving up 16th Street at noon today, with all the get-acquainted rituals. The fraternities seemed to be partying -- including one with a huge soapy homemade slip-n-slide, and about fifty guys in knee-length swim trunks covered in suds. The sororities, on the other hand, are all having open house -- so you see group after group of girls in dresses and heels and name-tags going from house to house. As for those students going to class, you can almost always spot the freshmen: They're the ones looking down at the maps in their hands, then up at the building names. :-)
Dad, Mom, Sunny & Glenn
8/17/11

Happy 30th Birthday Zach!!
Karen
8/17/11
My last day off! Stopped in the school yesterday afternoon to get my schedule. Wow, lots of stressed out teachers and the kids haven't even arrived yet! Should make for an interesting year. Tristen how is high school?
Nelsons
8/17/11

Happy 30th Zach
Marsha
8/16/11
We have at least 3 roundabouts and I love them! If people aren't totally stupid, they are easy to use and much faster than a traffic light or stop sign. One of ours is at a very busy interchange with 4 lanes and was plagued with accidents with the stoplight, now it goes really smoothly and quickly (it's a two lane roundabout). I say give them a try.... beats waiting for the light to change. Best of luck to all of the back to schoolers (that includes you too Karen).
Amanda
8/16/11
Tristen & Teghan go back to school today! Today is freshman only at LNE & they have an orientation/pep rally that Tristen is a part of, so no before school pictures as she's in uniform & she has to be there at 7, where Teghan's alarm isn't even set to go off until 7:15! We'll get them after school though.

Did you hear they are putting in a roundabout at 14th & Superior? One of the bigger ones with the inside lane. Eek. I cannot imagine it there, lots of traffic, semis, etc. Wow, wow, wow.....

Yeah, unless I'm totally not getting the idea about roundabouts, 14th & Superior seems like a bad place for one. --Gary


Karen
8/15/11
Down to final days of summer. Start back on Thursday. Running errands trying to prepare. Actually just got new brakes on the car, yeah..... Tristen, Teghan when do you start? Emily is in Columbus for a few days. Said she went to the horse races yesterday. Gary, I had my hopes up for one of the extras, but no plans to move :) Just put the Conspirator on my queue after Moms recommendation. Brent checked out the new roundabouts on the map -- professionally speaking he didn't think it was a good idea. The city council voted some down here in SC a few months ago, not very popular. Brent is finally beginning to feel better, although he still has several hives that look awful. Has a doctors appointment this afternoon to get them checked out.

Our city council has apparently gone crazy for roundabouts. They're popping up all over the place here. Hopefully we'll get used to them, like they have in Clovis, New Mexico. --Gary


Gary
8/12/11
With the first Husker game only three weeks away (woo-hoo!), the city of Lincoln has chosen this time to put in not one but two traffic roundabouts -- right in the center of the football traffic area. Check it out. That's the stadium at lower right. With thousands of out-of-town boozed-up fans on the road, this shouldn't be any kind of problem, right? The roads open tomorrow if anyone wants to take a practice drive. :-)
G'Ma
8/8/11
We did have a storm last night!! Picked up branches all over this morning, Paul stuffed the garbage cans tonite and will saw the bigger ones later on, was lucky not to lose power. The bathroom made pretty good progress today, have walls again and that is really nice. Plumbing and wiring is done, and hopefully the tile will start tomorrow. He is working on a different opening for the laundry chute and wants to 'skim coat' the ceiling so may not. Anyway, I am beginning to think there may be an end to it. Hope everyone is feeling better! UMM, cheesy rolls, betcha Erika won't get those at the Dorm.

No supper tomorrow nite!


Karen
8/8/11
The cheese rolls were a big hit. All gone -- I did hide a few for Ema when she gets off work. Think I'll have to make another batch soon.....

Excellent! --Gary


Karen
8/8/11
Wow, Lincoln must have had quite a storm. I guess we had rain last night, but I slept through it. Gary -- Erika is so excited -- I am making those little cheesy rolls tonight. Finally remembered to get the tapioca flour. Poor Brent is home again. His nose was feeling pretty good, but apparently he is having a bad reaction to his antibiotics. Woke up this morning, dragging and covered in hives. So after a quick call to the doctor he is now on new meds and resting. Mom, do you have the bathroom finished yet?

I will answer on the bathroom, as Mom can't usually get to her computer during the day because the work guys use that room as a kind of staging area. So the answer is: No, it's not finished yet. Hopefully Mom can provide some details when she sees this. Enjoy the cheese rolls! --Gary


Gary
8/8/11
So all the talk today is about Saturday night's storm. On my drive in this morning, I saw tree limbs piled up everywhere, some as thick as your leg. The storm started around 8:15 Saturday night with a quick heavy rain. Within a few minutes we knew we in for something unusual because the wind picked up and started whipping the trees around and causing the rain to come in almost horizontally -- we could see it spraying past the roofline of the house across the street. Then the rain lessened and the wind dropped to nothing, and the sky got as green as I've ever seen it. I was going to say "the air" got as green, because that's what it seemed like -- the whole atmosphere was a very eerie green. But eeriest if all was this constant low-pitched rumble of thunder, which lasted for at least twenty minutes. It sounded like distant thunder, but it never varied in pitch or intensity -- just a constant rumble that you could actually feel through your feet on the floor, or if you laid your hand on a table. And it just didn't stop. There were moments when we kind of nervously wondered if it was thunder -- it sounded suspiciously like the famous "freight train." I have never heard thunder like that, if indeed it was thunder. By this time the rain had stopped so we went out to Grandma's front yard where we saw one of the strangest skies I've ever seen: Very dark clouds in the north, blue sky in the south and west, and a rainbow in the east. And overhead some purple-orangey clouds with huge forks of lightning shooting through them. Then on the drive home a few minutes later, a beautiful sunset. I drove through a couple of neighborhoods with no power, and many intersections were on the honor system as the stoplights were out. As I got closer to home I crossed my fingers hoping I would have power. As close as two blocks from my house the area was dark. Luckily my block had power, though I could tell it had gone off as all my electronics had been re-set. I just now heard that there are still 2000 people without power here in Lincoln, 36 hours later. A wild storm!
Karen
8/8/11
Geez, no way I was even close to getting the answer.

It was tough! --Gary


Gary
8/8/11
Okay, what do these nine people, places, and things have in common? Champion crossword-solver Grandma hit it when she noticed the frequency of the letter A. Each of them has three A's ("Alan Alda" actually has four) and no other vowels in their name. That's it!

almanac
lava lamp
Mama Cass
Alaska
Pat Sajak
lasagna
Alan Alda
Taj Mahal
Alcatraz


G'Ma
8/6/11
[Answer deleted.] However, I don't recognize the lady, maybe an opera diva?

Your answer was so close that I'm calling it a bulls-eye. You'll see what I mean when I post the answer here on Monday. The lady, by the way, is Mama Cass, of the '60s vocal group the Mamas & the Papas. --Gary


Karen
8/5/11
Gary you are working my vacationing brain today. Have no idea what even two of those pictures have in common. Quiet day here, Brent had his nasal surgery yesterday and is home resting. Went much better than expected and should be a much faster recovery. Just two more weeks off, then back to school. It will be strange not to have to take anyone to school this year. Erika is pretty excited to move into her dorm. She had lunch with her new roommate yesterday.
Nelsons
8/5/11

Happy Anniversary Marsha and John
Donna
8/3/11
OMG, front page is hilarious.

I know! Cracks me up every time I read it. :-) --Gary