Do you hear that? It’s the clock counting down the seconds until we leave school for nine glorious days. It’s almost like a miniature version of summer break. Whether you’re hitting the beach, heading home to see the fam, or binging your favorite Netflix shows while under a mountain of blankets (because it’s actually below freezing outside), we have you covered with this go-to spring break playlist! It’s a mix of fun beats and chill vibes to kick off your break the right way. I included some classics like “Island In the Sun” by Weezer and “Runaway (U & I)” by Galantis that are sure to get you in a spring mood, even if it doesn’t feel like it outside.
As far as arts events over break, the latest exhibit in Morlan Gallery, Lavish: New Work by Zoé Strecker will be on display now through Friday, March 30th. The exhibit will be a part of the Lexington Gallery Hop on Friday, March 16th, so if you happen to be in town, go check it out and appreciate some interesting art!
There will be a special event the Wednesday we come back on March 21st called World Voices Event: George Wakim, Evening of Arabic Music. This music event will be held in Mitchell Fine Arts’ Carrick Theater at 7:30p.m.
Don’t forget to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on March 17th and wear something green so you don’t get pinched. Legend has it, this tradition of wearing green began in the 1700s when Americans thought that wearing that color would make a person invisible to leprechauns, who were known to pinch those not wearing green. People still wear green today and pinch those who do not as a fun reminder about the leprechauns. May the luck O’ the Irish be with you.
I’ll leave you with this little piece of advice to mull over for nine days: Have fun, stay safe, and most importantly, listen to some chill music.
Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day, and yet so many people skip it. But why? Well, one reason is that people complain about not having time to make breakfast, especially in those early mornings when they are rushing to get to class or work. But no more! Overnight Oatmeal is the perfect meal to solve the early morning breakfast dilemma. This easy recipe made overnight is the perfect grab-and-go breakfast. Not only that, but it is vegetarian as well. I do not know if a vegan recipe is possible since one of the main ingredients is Greek yogurt, but the milk could probably be substituted for almond or soy milk. And the best part? It is packed with key nutrients like protein and iron to keep you energized throughout the day.
Photo by Moira Hedrick
I was skeptical of Overnight Oatmeal when I first found recipes for it. It sounded just like yogurt with oats and fruit in it. But through some experimentation and variation, I found that overnight oatmeal is actually rather delicious. It tastes just as good as a pastry, with all the nutrients you need. They key is making sure everything gets mixed really well. The first time I made it, each bite was either just Greek yogurt or a clump of oats. Fully mixing the ingredients is the best way to have an optimal breakfast.
Overnight Oatmeal is wonderful because it is ridiculously easy to make. All you have to do is mix ingredients in a jar and then stick it in the fridge. To start, you are going to need a mason jar. It does not have to be more than 2 cups. I start with the wet ingredients, but honestly it does not matter what you put in first. Pour 1/3 cup milk, ¼ cup yogurt, 2 tablespoons of honey, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 2 tablespoons chia seeds, and 1/3 cup rolled oats. Rolled oats are also known as old-fashioned oats by some brands. Essentially, you want to use oats that have been rolled, not steel-cut, and that are more whole instead of the papery type of oats found in instant oatmeal.
This is also where I added ¼ cup of granola. The kind of granola I used had a dark-chocolate almond blend, but it is really up to personal preference of flavor what kind of granola you want to use, if any. For me, it gives the oatmeal a bit of a sweeter and nuttier taste that I like.
Photo by Moira Hedrick
Now, this is the important part. Seal the lid tightly and then shake the jar really well. You want to be sure all the ingredients are well-blended in that jar, or you are going to have random clumps of yogurt or honey that will not taste good. The best way to tell is to open the jar and stir the mixture with a fork to make sure there are not clumps of anything.
For the next step, you add any fruit or other ingredients you want in your oatmeal. I used strawberries, but there are tons of possibilities here. Using blueberries was a popular choice on the internet, as was adding bananas. Just about any kind of fruit will work. Also, nuts would go well in the dish. If you want to be a little unhealthier to satisfy your sweet tooth, you can add some chocolate chips. It really just depends on what you want your oatmeal to taste like. Oatmeal by itself is rather bland, so the flavor is up to you. Experiment! Fold the ingredients into the mixture with a spoon. Fruit does not hold up as well with vigorous shaking.
The last step is to seal the jar and to stick it in a fridge for about eight hours. That is why it is best to make this breakfast the night before, so that when you wake up, it will be done. Take it to go with a spoon. It may not seem like much, but I made it and felt energized the rest of the morning. If you are a more active person it may not satisfy your hunger as long, but it is sure to give you an energy boost that you need to kickstart the morning.
Photo by Moira Hedrick
Overnight Oatmeal Recipe
Ingredients
• ¼ cup Greek yogurt
• 1/3 cup milk
• 2 tsp. honey
• ¼ cup rolled (old-fashioned) oats
• 2 tbsp chia seeds
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Any extra fruit, granola, or nuts you might want to add
Directions
1. Pour honey, yogurt, milk, oats, chia seeds, and cinnamon into a mason jar.
2. Seal mason jar with lid and shake ingredients together until completely blended
3. Fold in any extra ingredients you want to use to give the oatmeal flavor.
4. Seal jar with lid and refrigerate jar for about 8 hours
5. Enjoy!
“If people fall in love with something, they’re more likely to take care of it, so I thought, ‘what suggests care and love’, and I thought that embroidering was an interesting one because we embroider things we care about.”
Lavish!: New Work by Zoé Strecker is the latest exhibit on display at Transylvania University’s Morlan Gallery. Its purpose is to showcase the beauty of Pine Mountain, which is a natural community of the most biodiverse forests in Kentucky.
“It’s actually the second most biodiverse temperate forest in the whole world, like the entire planet, except there’s a spot in China that’s very similar but has greater elevation differences,” said Strecker, “This little treasure is just three hours from here and maybe unappreciated. I just wanted to do work about it and had started making notes, doing some writing, and it just was an idea that grew from how do I help other people fall in love with this place.”
Strecker gathered embroiderers, mainly volunteers, from various places around Kentucky and from across the nation. These volunteers stitched over top of images taken primarily by Strecker of the natural communities of Pine Mountain, which she also edited into a circular shape and printed out onto silk organza. The stitching enhanced the images by giving them depth with a 3D appearance. Some of the photos taken were close-ups of tree trunks that had moss or some sort of growth on them, and this is where Strecker or one of the volunteers would stitch to create an interesting effect for people.
Preparation in Strecker’s studio
“I imagine [the images] as windows into each of the types of forest communities,” Strecker said.
Good news doesn’t always spread quickly, but in this case, it did. Finding volunteers wasn’t difficult, Strecker said. “Here in Lexington, I just invited people that I knew, and people associated with Transy friends, and then they invited friends or posted to Facebook, and their friends said ‘that’s so cool, may I come stitch?’”
While the pieces themselves are stunning, the design of the exhibit is certainly something to be noted. The major, circular installation that holds the pieces measures 22 feet in length and 10 feet in height and is positioned off to the left side of Morlan Gallery.
Strecker stitching over image photographed on Pine Mountain
Strecker said she designed the space to help people feel as if they were surrounded by nature. “I made a bent wood frame and it has sheer walls and then these [panels] hang on it. Everything was done to be as minimal as it could be so that it has a very meditative, ethereal feeling in the space, and I also have audio of the forest; I have sounds of the background, water, wind, trees, and bird sounds and bird calls. I also have aroma in the show, so all of these things are gonna come together,” she said.
One of the most interesting things about this exhibit is that it will continue to evolve, even after opening in the gallery. “The project will continue during the exhibition; it will continue after the exhibition, so we will keep stitching. There will be at least three more images, and then there are lots of small ones also that are individual organisms. It’s a living work in progress” Strecker said, “It will continue at least through the end of the summer for the stitching part because there are three more big ones, but I’ll look for more exhibition opportunities that may include more stitching too.”
The process of putting this show together took place over a period of years and required extensive research and time. Strecker has been formulating the ideas for Lavish! since 2014, and she began to conduct the research and do the traveling over the following few years.
Lavish! is unique from other art exhibits with aromas accompanying the artwork. “I had spent a fair amount of time over the last few years on and off researching perfumers who dealt with non-traditional smells, in other words not just flowery types of perfumes you think about wearing, but smells that you connect to a place, and I found several different individuals and companies that do that, and in the end I was able to get some that were affordable that are separate accents,” Strecker said.
She visited perfumers in their spaces to explore and research the scents, but in the end, “I just had to smell them with my nose,” she laughed. “I have six separate things that will be emanating through the space and I have them in little miniature vaporizers that look like little humidifiers, and I mix a very little of the perfume with water, and it just sort of gently emanates through the space.”
Strecker is eager to see how the scents play out in the space she was given. “I’ve tested this all out in my studio, but to put it in that space which has a different square footage and a different heating system and has different objects in it, I’m just so eager to see how well it works, but it’s up for a month, so I can tweak it. I can start with how I think the scents will be most powerful and then increase or decrease things. It’s definitely a living project,” she laughed.
A display of images concealing a small vaporizer placed behind on a small shelf
It was easy to see that Strecker was eager to finally get the show open after all the work she and everyone else has put into this exhibit. “I guess what I’m really curious about is whether it creates this sort of meditative, contemplative space I think it will and because I worked on the parts separately and they’re coming together for the first time all in one space in the show. I personally want to see if it is creating that space the way I think it will. And of course I get a chance to see how other people react, and that’s the fun and also maybe the terror of putting something in public. But I feel that this has been so supported already by people involved in it that I’m not really afraid; I’m more excited.”
These pieces appear all around the circular structure, imitating how they would appear in nature.
The idea for this project originated almost twenty-three years ago, when a naturalist for the state, Marc Evans, discovered what he thought was an old growth forest while doing aerial surveys of the Pine Mountain area. Strecker said, “It was way bigger than he thought, and they saw that the massive tree crowns went further and further than he ever imagined, and they checked on the ground and found that it was true.”
Evans was in the same circle of friends as Strecker, and Pine Mountain sparked her interest when she heard about the discovery. “I’ve always loved wild places; I’ve always been a hiker and an outdoors person ever since I was tiny, so I just became fascinated and kind of got involved.”
Strecker said that besides taking the photos for the project, she loved being out in the secluded forest. “Being out in the forest for long stretches of time, just sort of getting to know the sounds and the visuals of the place and the smell—all of those things, I just love them so much.”
An image that was heavily embroidered to create a 3D effect
“For a few of the natural communities, I went with botanists who were doing fieldwork, so there were two people from the Kentucky State Nature Reserves Commission who were full time botanists, and they go out and do field work. I asked if I could come along, and they went off trail and they were counting species; I was just looking for photo opportunities. That was really fun, you know, we had to move by GPS and we had to wear snake gators because we were going way off the trail, and we carried bear repellent in case, so we were very far out there.”
In addition to the main pieces in the exhibit, there is also an exhibition within the exhibit on the other side of the gallery by artists who are a part of the Pine Mountain Collective, which is a retreat that lasts three days at Pine Mountain and is co-hosted by Strecker. The retreat has been attended by over 100 artists, some of whom have work displayed in Morlan Gallery.
The artists chosen for the Inspired by Wild Places exhibit were Brian and Sara Turner, Rebecca Allan, Erika Strecker, and Vallorie Henderson. “We have a show within the show and an evening of musicians and readers,” Strecker said.
Lavish! is on exhibit in Morlan Gallery through April 2nd. There will be an art talk with Strecker on Thursday, March 8th at 6 p.m. in the gallery, and Wild Things: Selected Artists from the Pine Mountain Sessions on Friday, March 23rd from 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. in Carrick Theater, which is also located in the Mitchell Fine Arts building.
Every Monday, the Rambler will release a 20 Questions Video. This series will feature a different staff member each week and we hope will allow the campus community to learn more about and feel more connected with our unique staff. This week’s video features the Writing Center’s Administrative Assistant Becky Mills.
I have been witness to Holocene unheard of.
Where we walk, dead flowers wane in wilt,
filling our footsteps with their shrinking corpses
like the marks of sacrilegious prophet:
leaving cloven hoof prints in the garden of once Eden.
I am perched,
like fading murmuration of bird, preening on barbed fences fraught with fallacy,
on charged cable bridges built from bones of collapsing home,
blood of churning factory workers, weeping,
on perverse pipeline of superfluous greed: garish.
I am coiled,
lifeless, coated in gloss of certainty unsatisfied,
the polish of unjust scales, seeping into salient black abyss of eyes.
I shiver forward, s-shaped, venom pooling in voluptuous teeth,
sinking but into shadows, sallow.
Feel me slouched,
at roadside, twitching toward tallow vultures, shuddering,
oh, my turkeyheaded nurses, oiled black with shame
of first kiss wrapped in burn of 18 wheeler rubber,
the smack of frail skull against asphalt.
I have screamed into the garbagestrewn winds,
clutching cellophane in crinkling fists,
roped by marleychain of plasticbottled corpse
and waste, their heave and sigh in the thickening heat
punctuating the extinction of my anguish:
the haunting chorus of my generation, dying.
T-minus one week until one of the best parts of the semester: spring break. Let’s face it, I don’t think any of us has ever been more ready for this break than we are right now. I’ve always felt like Winter Term drags on more than Fall Term, mainly due to the fact that there are fewer holidays and fewer breaks, not to mention the weather is gloomy and depressing for the first couple of months. But we’ve made it this far, and as long as we can survive the next seven days, we’ll be free at last….for ten days.
This week’s playlist reflects the need for a good break and party, with a mix of some brand new Tory Lanez beats and other songs that mix with his vibes. Hopefully this playlist will be enough to get you through the week. I’ll be back next week with a spring break playlist that’ll be good for whatever you’re doing over break.
Take it easy,
Taylor
Arts Event of the Week: There’s still time to see Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play if you haven’t had a chance yet! Although tickets are sold out, there’s a chance you can get some if you show up at the box office early and get on the wait list. The show will run three more times: Friday, March 2nd at 7:30pm, Saturday, March 3rd at 7:30pm, and Sunday, March 4th at 2:00pm. Also, don’t forget to put your Mr. Burns ticket to good use by taking it to the downtown North Lime Coffee and Donuts location for a free donut of your choice!
There will also be a guest artists recital featuring Dennis Bender, bass, and Jacob Coleman, piano, in Mitchell Fine Arts’ Carrick Theater on Tuesday, March 6th, at 7:30pm! The duo will be performing Schubert’s “Winterreise.”
After a team climbs the mountain that is winning a Super Bowl in the National Football League (N.F.L.), it is customary to yell, “I’m going to Disney World!” And why not treat oneself to a vacation to the happiest place on Earth? After all, the journey to the Super Bowl is considered one of the most brutal in all of sports, alongside that of the legendary Stanley Cup in professional hockey. For the Philadelphia Eagles, this is their first successful completion of this treacherous journey. The city of brotherly love, the rough and tumble city that gave us Rocky, cheese steaks, the Declaration of Independence, and the Fresh Prince (all of equal importance) was finally able to produce a Super Bowl championship team as well.
While the team is rightfully basking in their accomplishment (and perhaps headed down south to see Mickey and Minnie), there is one trip that some Eagles players will not be making: the customary trip to the White House to meet the president and to be congratulated on their achievement. This visit to the most famous house in the United States has been a tradition for Super Bowl champions that started in 1980 under President Carter’s administration, and it became a regular occurrence during President Reagan’s tenure. Generally the public regards this visit as a tremendous honor and privilege. So, naturally, one must ask: why would someone pass up an opportunity to meet the leader of the country in his or her own house?
Although this is a fair question to ask, it is first important to remember that the precedent of athletes skipping a visit to the White House to meet the president is not a new one, nor is it a partisan one. Matt Birk, former center for the Baltimore Ravens, refused to visit the White House in 2012, citing his disagreement over President Obama’s stance on Planned Parenthood. In 1984, Larry Bird declined a visit to President Reagan’s White House, simply saying, “If the president wants to see me, he knows where to find me.”
President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in support of Sen. Luther Strange, Friday, Sept. 22, 2017, in Huntsville, Ala. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
So, why is this year any different? Why write a story about something that happens almost annually? Well, the reason for this story is pretty simple; this year there has been direct and public disagreement between the President of the United States and athletes who play in the N.F.L.
If you’ve been living under a rock the past couple of years, I’ll fill you in on the nature of this disagreement. For the past couple of N.F.L. seasons, many players have been protesting what they feel is social injustice by kneeling, raising a fist, or locking arms during the pre-game playing of the National Anthem. These players are protesting the treatment of people of color in the U.S. by law enforcement officers. Although many citizens support these protests, many people have deemed them disrespectful, uncalled for, and unpatriotic. The most notable critic of these protests has been our current president.
President Trump has been very outspoken and unapologetic in his disapproval of these protests, often using Twitter to criticize N.F.L. commissioner Roger Goodell and players who have knelt during the anthem. He even expressed his disapproval during a campaign rally in September for then U.S. Senate candidate Luther Strange in Alabama saying, “Wouldn’t you love to see one of these N.F.L. owners when somebody disrespects our flag to say ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, out, he’s fired.’” In order to further demonstrate his point, he once more yelled, “He’s fired!” These comments sparked a new wave of protests the following Sunday, with entire teams kneeling during the playing of the National Anthem and other teams opting to remain in the locker room during the anthem altogether. Vice President Mike Pence went as far as to leave a Colts game when members of the teams knelt for the anthem before the game.
As the argument and disagreement have continued throughout the year, it’s become tough to say that sports and politics have been separate entities like they more often than not are, especially in regard to the N.F.L. For this reason, there are several members of the Philadelphia Eagles who are choosing to decline their invitation to the White House. Among those not attending is Torrey Smith, who raised his fist during the playing of the anthem and whose father served in the military. Smith stated, “We’re not protesting the anthem, it’s a protest during the anthem. I understand why people are mad, or may be offended when someone takes a knee. My father, when he dies, is going to be buried with an American flag draped around his casket, being that he served in the Army.”
Chris Long, who refused to visit the White House last season after winning a Super Bowl with the Patriots, will not visit this year with his new team the Eagles. He simply said he didn’t feel it was the right thing to do. Another player who won a Super Bowl last season with the Patriots and who now plays for the Eagles is LeGarrette Blount. Blount did not make the trip with the team last season but has not yet said if he will this year. Malcolm Jenkins has said he will not be in attendance at the White House either.
With these players choosing to skip this visit, they are once again choosing to practice their right to freedom of assembly that they are Constitutionally guaranteed. For whatever grievances either side may have, it is fortunate that both sides are allowed to express them however they choose. These players may not be visiting the White House, but we will certainly see them on the field next season. Or at Disney World.
What if someone gave you the chance to be a part of The Simpsons? There’s just one catch: you have to survive the apocalypse. Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play, by Anne Washburn, is Transylvania’s Theater Department’s latest undertaking, and it’s all about the post-apocalyptic Simpsons.
This production is unlike any other we’ve had, and this became clear before the play even began. As the theater doors opened, the ushers invited the audience to sit on the stage floor where there were orange and brown maple leaves scattered everywhere and a fake campfire in the center with miscellaneous seating around it. Director Drew Davidson explained this unique choice in the program with two reasons. First, he explained that it’s a reflection of a “more primitive version of Theater” when people gathered around fires and told one another stories. His other reasoning was “to immerse [the audience] in the world and get [them] as close to the action as possible.”The audience was given a choice whether they wanted to sit in actual seats or gather on the floor. Most students seemed to choose the floor, with most of the adults and community members choosing the actual seating.
This unusual seating arrangement lasted throughout the first act, entitled “The Very Near Future.” For those on the floor, the performance and actors were so close that it created a feeling of intimacy and actual involvement in the play. Unfortunately, it could be somewhat uncomfortable and a lot of audience members could be spotted constantly shifting around as the act went on.
Photo courtesy of Charlotte Stephens. Actors in the third act.
The seating was not the only interesting part of the pre-show, however. While some audience members were seated and more were being ushered in, several of the characters stepped out onto the stage and began to talk to each other in low tones. This peaked a level of curiosity and confusion within the audience about whether the play had actually begun. Since the hushed conversation of the actors already had the audience’s attention, the first act’s beginning was more natural and less abrupt than most plays.
The second act, called “Then 7 Years After That,” was, in our opinion, the best out of the three. This was also the act that had the best response from the audience with constant laughter and clapping throughout. The positive reaction was probably due to the high energy of the act, which is full of intense surprises, fun musical numbers, and a life-size convertible. Credit should be given to Dance Choreographer Savannah Lambert; the dance sequences were one of the highlights of the show and elicited the most laughter from the audience.
Actors dancing in the second act. Photo courtesy of Charlotte Stephens.
The third act, “Then 75 Years After That,” was when things took a much darker turn. This act features characters from The Simpsons in an intense, dark moment. This final part has a different mood than the rest of the play and has some fairly disturbing elements in it. Despite how weird and strange this act may be, it is worth watching for the actors’ performances. Although the entire company was full of talent and energy, there were two actors who deserve special notice, especially in this third act: sophomore London Dailey (Bart Simpson, Quincy, Businesswoman) and first-year Jordan Strouse (Mr. Burns, Matt, Homer).
Dailey, although not appearing until the second act, gave a stunning performance that showcased her multiple talents and vocal abilities. The characters are masked in the third act, which can give hindrance to some actor’s performances, but this did not hurt Dailey’s acting at all. She was able to carry and convey her emotion to the audience without facial expressions, which truly showcased her well-rounded acting abilities. During her musical moments, Dailey’s voice once again comes through as raw emotion and power and leaves the entire theater silent.
Jordan Strouse is pure talent. He brought an electric energy to the stage that made the play worth attending. What makes Strouse’s performance stand out is the amount of variety he delivers throughout the three acts. In the first act, Strouse gives us a very eccentric and damaged character obsessed with recalling an episode of The Simpsons, but then he moves to a more light-hearted and incredibly comedic performance in the second. Although not really the focal or main character in the second act at all, Strouse holds his own with his comedic timing and spot-on impression of Homer Simpson. Where he arguably shines the most is in the final act as the titular character Mr. Burns. His change in voice, mannerisms, and acting help set a completely different tone for the third act, and he leaves the audience feeling chilled.
Photo courtesy of Charlotte Stephens. Strouse as Mr. Burns in the third act.
While the play itself was a little on the strange side, we would recommend it based solely on the actors’ performances. It was very different from the Theater Department’s recent productions, but this play proved how good change can be. Mr. Burns leaves you confused, hopeful, disturbed, and impressed. Any performance that can make you feel that much in the course of two hours is a performance worth experiencing.
The show will run three more times: Friday, March 2nd at 7:30pm, Saturday, March 3rd at 7:30pm, and Sunday, March 4th at 7:30pm. Also don’t forget to put your Mr. Burns ticket to good use by taking it to the downtown North Lime Coffee and Donuts location for a free donut of your choice!
Co-written by Taylor Mahlinger, Arts Editor, and Aaron Martin, Managing Editor
Veganism is a popular trend on the rise, including among athletes, from runners such as Scott Jurek to basketball players like Salim Stoudamire. But how? Being an athlete takes a lot of nutrients and a stricter adherence to a balanced diet. One of the biggest issues most people have with veganism is accessing key nutrients like protein, most commonly found in animal-based products like meat, eggs, and dairy.
However, athletes such as Kendrick Farris, an Olympic weightlifter, bring up a good point in an interview with Men’s Fitness. It is possible to get too much protein, and much of the “protein” within meat and animal products ends up not getting used by the human body at all. Besides, the only reason meat is preferred for protein consumption is because it is more caloric-ally dense. Three ounces of a sirloin steak looks a lot smaller than 3 ounces of lettuce.
Photo by Moira Hedrick
There are actually multiple foods humans can eat for receiving protein that do not come from the animal kingdom. Beans, peanut butter, lentils, and milk alternatives such as soy milk and almond milk, are all great ways to get protein. For breakfast, instead of eggs and bacon, try having a bowl of oatmeal or quinoa instead. Not only do they both contain protein, but they are also much better for cholesterol, and they are rich in anti-oxidants. For an extra kick of protein, you can even add chia seeds, a superfood with 5 grams of protein in only 2 tablespoons. There are even new vegan workout supplements and other products aimed towards avid health and fitness vegans looking to consume their necessary protein and other nutrients to continue being healthy and energized enough to work out when needed.
Plant protein also keeps a human feeling full for longer than animal-proteins. This also means the energy derived from plants has the capacity to last longer, partly because plants are easier to digest than meat products. The human body will spend less energy trying to break down the proteins in vegetables than it will for meat. In other words, a plate of beans will give you more energy than a chicken breast will.
Veganism has also been reported to give athletes a whole new energy in their life. Venus Williams, an all-star tennis player, withdrew from the Olympics after being diagnosed with Sjogren’s Syndrome, an auto-immune disease. However, once Williams transferred to a raw, vegan diet, she found rapid improvement in her health, and she was able to return to playing tennis. But it is not just the athletes with diseases who found improvement through a vegan diet. Normal athletes like Barny du Plessis, a body builder, found the vegan lifestyle not only let them continue their rigorous lifestyle, but it actually provided a noticeable improvement in their physical and mental health.
Photo by Moira Hedrick
Now, a major problem that many people encounter with veganism is access to vegan food. So many commercial products and recipes call for animal products, even if it’s just a little bit of milk. It seems impossible to go vegan in a world so full of and dependent on meat and dairy. But it’s not impossible, and the pay off is worth it. Replacing pre-packaged snacks with fruit and replacing milk with soy milk are some good starting points.
Another thing to consider is looking up vegan recipes online. There’s a ton of them, and while they may not all be good, there are some delicious sounding ones. For example, consider trying Tikka Masala using beans and vegetables instead of chicken or looking for sandwich alternatives like falafels. I have had some amazing vegetable burgers that rival the real thing. (I have also had some veggie burgers that are awful, so sometimes it is the luck of the draw.) There are also plenty of stews and soups that can be made without meat. Try using vegetable stock instead of chicken or beef stock.
Becoming vegan seems like a daunting challenge, especially if you’re an athlete, but according to many athletes, the pay off is worth it. Some, like Kendrick Farris and Barny du Plessis, actively encourage athletes to go vegan. If you still get all the nutrients you need, veganism has a wealth of benefits. Even by starting off with a vegetarian diet, du Plessis says that an athlete will see a beneficial effect, both mentally and physically.
TED Talks are renowned for spreading ideas, whether they are about the hidden reaches of corruption or the impact of low confidence in one’s physical image. These presentations reach mass audiences, with some talks being viewed by up to 50 million people. TED Talks have influence, and they reflect the ideas of individuals, groups, and society.
With this in mind, TED Talk leaders often have to make sure that their presentations use state of the art audio-visual production elements. Putting on a visually impressive presentation is the best way to make a positive impact on an audience at a large event and therefore if you want to take your business to new heights, working on a presentation with an AV production team like Smart Works can make a huge difference.
Last Tuesday, Transy hosted a TEDx event, an independently organized series of TED Talks that reflects the innovation and ideas of a specific community or group. The TEDx event was organized by Dr. Adam Evans, Assistant Professor Of Business Administration, who, by searching for funding for his technology-based classes, found unique communities spreading their ideas – inspiring him to do the same with Transy.
“I have been shifting from just doing management classes at Transy to doing some technology type classes. I’ve been integrating technology into my classes. With that, I’ve just been looking at a lot of outside sources for funding, trying to get some for the projects I wanted to accomplish at Transy,” said Dr. Evans. “I started finding communities, just communities of people who had really cool ideas, and they wanted to share them. I think our campus does that really well.”
Dr. Evans found that Transy “is full of talent and ideas” and is “a hub for innovation,” making a TEDx event a simple way to share the ideas of Transy and to reflect the campus community.
“It puts us in the global vision, that’s the thing. I don’t think we give ourselves enough credit. We’ve got all this talent, we can put it out there in the public space because we’ve got a lot of really cool things that we do,” said Dr. Evans. “Changing the world, that’s the goal. Just to change the world.”
Debra F. Faulk, one of the speakers for the TEDx event (Photo courtesy of Transylvania University).
However, organizing a TEDx event means following strict branding and structural guidelines that limit the event in design and organization, which may impact accessibility.
“You have to understand the branding guidelines that go with it. Like what color the TED red is, the number of speakers you can have, and the way you create your program is very regulated,” said Dr. Evans.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, Transy has an open hour from 12:30-1:30, but the TEDx event was held from 9:30-12:30, occurring during most morning classes and right before open hour. “You can have an all morning event and you can have an all afternoon event. As much as I wanted to avoid it, one of the guides said that you have an event that’s a couple hours and those hours are right in a row,” said Dr. Evans. “It’s Transy, so everyone’s on two clubs, three committees, a partridge in a pear tree, and classes, essays, and tests…balancing, even for faculty, can be challenging.”
Following the recording of the event, Dr. Evans and Professor Kurt Gohde, who presented at the event along with Dr. Kremena Todorova, will edit the presentations for clarity and remove any verbal or technical errors. Once the videos are edited, they will be uploaded to the TED website, though an upload date has not been announced.
While the team is rightfully basking in their accomplishment (and perhaps headed down south to see Mickey and Minnie), there is one trip that some Eagles players will not be making: the customary trip to the White House to meet the president and to be congratulated on their achievement. This visit to the most famous house in the United States has been a tradition for Super Bowl champions that started in 1980 under President Carter’s administration, and it became a regular occurrence during President Reagan’s tenure. Generally the public regards this visit as a tremendous honor and privilege. So, naturally, one must ask: why would someone pass up an opportunity to meet the leader of the country in his or her own house?
