2012 Iowa Swim and Dive Thanksgiving

Operation Team Turkey Dinner was a success...I'm keeping this short and sweet.
We ate nearly if not all three 25 lb turkeys, I didn't get to taste my own casserole (it was all gone by the time I got to it while in line), there were leftover (which is rare), and many of us voiced our opinions on what we think our fellow teammates are thankful for. What a riot. Great food and great people. I love this team. Go Hawks.

Team Thanksgiving Preview

Today, the Team is continuing its Thanksgiving dinner tradition. A sign up sheet was placed in the Team Room this past week, and many of us signed up to bring our favorite dishes. Several women's team members are making festive desserts and other classic Turkey Day dishes, like cheesy mashed potatoes and stuffing. For those who aren't kitchen savvy, their was a financial contribution option that will help to pay for the three 25 lbs. turkeys! Yum!
I'm very much looking forward to tasting everyone's creations and revisiting my own cooking abilities. I might be a little rusty because it's been a year since I Iast made green bean casserole...good thing I have a very detail recipe to follow. I was told to make two batches of my casserole, so I need to go get the ingredients for one more.
What's so wonderful about this occasion is that so many teammates are willing to pitch in and participate. Among many other things, I'm thankful for my college team, in that they are willing and eager to schedule events that all team members can join in on. Even though our group is nearly 70 people, we have strong bonds with one another, which has definitely created a family-like atmosphere. Today will be a fantastic opportunity to continue strengthening our ties.
Please check back later this evening and tomorrow to read my blog about how the dinner turned out!
Go Hawks!

Throwback Thursday: Halloween Edition

Although October 31st has come and gone, Halloween festivities are still prevalent on campus. This year's holiday has fallen at the middle of the week and is bracketed by two weekends with equally great opportunity to celebrate. Many people that I've talked to don't know which weekend to celebrate on, so they've extended it to a week-long spook-fest. Even though I didn't purchase or wear a costume or even eat a single piece of candy during "Halloween Week," I was reminded of an article I wrote while on the student newspaper at Ames high school. Hopefully this can make up for my lack of Halloween spirit this week. Enjoy your Throwback Thursday...

"Unsanitary Halloween"

October 29, 2010

On a rather chilly night, great festivities will soon begin. Jack-o-lanterns are lit, the candy bowl is full, the haunted-house music is playing, and Halloween spirit is swirling in the air. Giddy trick-or-treaters put on their costumes, smear make-up on their faces, grab pillowcases from their moms, and head out the door to load up on sweets. One trick-or-treater, dressed as Ron Weasley, hasn’t been feeling his best lately. Actually, he missed school earlier in the week because of flu-like symptoms. He has been feeling better recently, but his nose has been running a lot.

The group of trick-or-treaters arrives at the first house. One kid rings the door bell, an annoyed teenager opens the door... “Trick-or-Treat!” The boy realizes that he forgot his tissues back at home, so before reaching into the candy bowl, he wipes his snotty nose on his hand and puts his hand into the bowl. The last trick-or-treater grabs some candy and decides to eat it now. Not noticing that the chocolate bar that she has chosen to eat and her hand are covered with snot, the girl rips open the wrapper, and the candy is gone in an instant.

I have few memories of having a “Happy Halloween”. One visual that sticks out in my mind was from second grade. I was standing in front of my closet looking at my “Pop-Star Diva” costume that my mom and I bought together. A feeling of sadness came over me because I wasn’t going to have the chance to wear it. I was too sick to go outside. In fact, I was sick most of the time when I was younger. Since then, I have adopted many good hygiene habits, practice them daily, and have gotten better at keeping myself healthy. Most importantly, I have avoided a number of unsanitary Halloween traditions.

            Trick-or-treating has come to a close, so same group of kids goes back to the house this story first began at. The moms have put together lots of activities for the trick-or-treaters to participate in, so they go out to the garage to begin the fun. The first station is bobbing for apples, and what a way to start out this party with dunking your face into a bucket of bacteria and viruses! According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, water-borne diseases include MRSA, mononucleosis, and many others. It isn’t likely that these diseases can be transferred after only having the head in a bucket of water for a few seconds, but it could happen. The classic Halloween tradition of carving jack-o-lanterns is another activity in the garage and this is what these kids are most excited about. However, pumpkins have a history of being infected with Salmonella and E. Coli bacteria. Let’s hope that these pumpkins are carved using wand-power, not kid-power.

The parents of three of the kids from this trick-or-treating group have something better to do than take care of their children on this night, so these three must walk home from the party. The first kid takes a route that leads him into a haunted forest, and while dodging branches, one hits him in the eye. A few weeks later, this kid ends up in the hospital because a parasite is living in his eye. The second kid walks through an open field. She suddenly trips over a rock, or at least that’s what she explained to her parents in her recovery room after a long series of shots to prevent the rabies virus from spreading through her body from a Werewolf bite. The last kid also walks through the same open field, and wakes up in a hospital bed after a blood transfusion due to a Vampire bite.

            The following morning, one kid wakes up and begins to scratch her head. She tells her mom that her head itches. Her mom then goes into “Mommy-on-a-Mission-Mode” to seek out what’s wrong with her daughter. She checks her head, thinking all it is is a dry scalp, but she finds a louse in her hair.

            Perhaps being sick a lot wasn’t bad after all. It seems like I didn’t miss much. Of course, I will carry out my healthy habits, but I’m considering participating in Halloween this year. Maybe I can go trick-or-treating for some leftover Ames High band candy.