The Road to Farley is Less Traveled

This week, I attended a Hancher performance of Take 6  with two of my favorite peeps: Liz and Katie. Fantastic concert! If you haven't heard of Take 6, you should check them out. Six "brothas" who sing a capella -- everything from gospel, to Michael Jackson, to Earth Wind & Fire, to Miles Davis. What they can do with their golden voices is amazing. (Which makes me wonder, what happened to Mr. "Golden Voice" Homeless Man??? That sure was a less than 15 minutes of fame moment earlier this year, wasn't it?) Of course, the event wasn't really at Hancher because Hancher has been closed ever since the flood of 2008! C'mon U of Iowa...this is getting a bit ridiculous. It's been three years, and I still see no movement on getting Hancher rebuilt. Anyway, for years, I have saved my tickets to events that I attend. I don't know exactly why I started this, but I have a big glass jar with one of those hermetic-sealed lids that I toss all of my ti...

I typically do not watch the ABC reality show "Secret Millionaire" because it airs in the same time slot as the CBS reality show "Amazing Race." (Yes, I admit that I do like my reality shows.) But, tonight, I tuned in because the secret millionaire was visiting Gary, Indiana.   The media typically portrays Gary as a rundown crime-infested city with a high unemployment rate, high poverty rate, and and a declining population.They make it seem as if the city has no hope. I worked in the heart of Gary from 1997-1999, and I was able to see a different side of Gary.  Gary was once a thriving city on the shores of Lake Michigan, built on the backs of the major steel mills. At one time, it was the second largest city in Indiana and was the major retail shopping area in Northwest Indiana. You can drive down Broadway and see the shells of what were once fancy department stores and boutiques. Driving through some of the city's neighborhoods, you can envision what wer...

I went to the gym today. Yes, you read that correctly! I bought a membership to the University of Iowa Rec Centers this week and tonight was my first official night to go. If I go at least 8 times per month, my company reimburses me $20/month for the cost of the membership. This is good, there has to be some kind of incentive for me to go besides just trying to be healthy. That's boring. Tonight seemed like a good night for my first foray into the CRWC...that's Campus Recreation & Wellness Center to the uninitiated. It's a beautiful new building in downtown Iowa City that just opened in August 2010. It has everything you could want in a fitness center: an abundance of fitness equipment and weights, a rock climbing wall, an indoor track, a gym, and the prize jewel in my mind...a natatorium, which is a fancy word for a pool. But, oh, what a pool. It's the home of the UI swim team, so it's an Olympic sized pool complete with diving platforms. I picked tonight to ...