December 2008 Archives

It's December and college students around the country have final exams.  For several grueling days students spend countless hours in libraries and dorm rooms brooding over notes and books, trying to cram every significant detail they can to memory.

Ryan, Austin, Texas, junior, needs to focus.

He takes some Adderall, a prescription drug used primarily for people diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.  Getting the drug from friends with prescriptions, Ryan is able to achieve what he calls complete mental focus.  Gaining energy and ignoring distractions, Ryan studies for his final.  Almost all his friends take the drug before tests and he is not worried about becoming addicted.

"I just take it for tests," Ryan said.  "I don't take it on a daily basis where I become bad."   

KU students have shown an increase in the use of prescription drugs, and the Wellness Resource Center at the University of Kansas plans to devote more time and effort next semester toward the topic.

Jenny McKee, a health educator and the grant coordinator for the center, said when it comes to drug use, the staff's main focus is alcohol and marijuana, but the staff members have seen such a strong trend in the increase of prescription drug use among students that the center needs to give the topic more attention.

Funded by student fees and housed within Watkins Memorial Health Center as part of its Student Health Services, the Resource Center will use the National College Health Assessment to help refocus the center's messaging, McKee said.

The National College Health Assessment is a data set collected every three years by universities around the country.  The assessment uses student surveys to provide statistics about drug and alcohol use.  McKee said the assessment, which next occurs in 2009, would be vital in comparing prescription drug use at the University with that at other colleges around the nation.

"It's very difficult to stay ahead of the learning curve," McKee said.  "We have excellent providers here and we will try to help students discontinue that drug use."

Ken Sarber, a health educator for the Resource Center, said it was important for the Resource Center to understand why students were turning to prescription drugs. 

Sarber said students could be using prescription drugs for a variety of reasons.  He said some might take drugs to help them study and focus while others might use them as an appetite suppressant.  Sarber said because this trend was so new, it was hard to determine exactly why students were using the drugs.

"A national statistic says that about one out of five college students has at least tried prescription drugs," Sarber said.  "Whether they take it on a continued basis or just to study is unknown."

Sarber said for now the Resource Center will just have to monitor the situation and continue to research the topic.  He said the Resource Center will turn to the Centers for Disease Control, drug companies and pharmacists to gather more information. 

As of now, Sarber said, he had done only one lecture devoted to prescription drug use but that he had seen a considerable increase in the requests for lectures about the topic.

"This is a topic that more and more students are becoming concerned with," Sarber said.  "This is something that we usually don't get a lot of requests on."

Sarber expects to have more lectures on the topic next semester.  Like the other topics covered by the Resource Center, Sarber said he would offer as many talks as the students needed.

Sarber said the Resource Center would rely on the Peer Health Educators at the center, resident assistants at residence halls, health chairs at scholarship halls and fraternity and sorority leaders to help educate students on the matter.

Bridgette Heine, St. Louis junior, is a Peer Health Educator for the Resource Center.  Heine said because prescription drug use was hard to monitor and there wasn't a lot of information on the subject, the next best thing would be to provide information on addiction.

Heine said lectures were good but it was important to get students involved.  She said the best way to accomplish this would be to provide students with examples of other students with prescription drug problems. 

"People think that they are young and that nothing will happen to them," Heine said.  "Well, something can happen to anybody."             

           

by Adam Schoof

Jeff Neumann said he has Obama's presidential win to thank for doubling sales at his shooting range and firearms store, The Bullet Hole.

He said he is nearly sold out of AK-47s, SKS and AR-15s; guns that have faced regulation in the past when the Democratic Party has had power. Neumann said most of the buyers had never owned a gun before.

Since Obama won the presidency, background checks for gun sales have increased nationwide. 

"It's not a phenomenon that's just here," Neumann said. 

The rush for guns is in large part due to the election of Obama. The last Democratic administration enacted many gun regulations, including the Federal Assault Weapons Ban and the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act. Gun buyers, Neumann said, are fearful that despite Obama's claims, he will enact gun regulation like his Democratic predecessor Bill Clinton.

"The paranoia is that the last time the Democrats were in power, the Brady Bunch took over," Corey Pederson, an employee at The Bullet Hole, said.

"Get your pencils ready!" DJ Jared, a man dressed in a referee's costume says, as the clock approaches nine p.m.. He begins to slow down his speech. He speaks in a sports announcer like tone, " It is now time for Xtreme... Team... Trivia! Are you ready?"  The lights dim, the TV's are all changed to channel 101, paper ballots are passed out.

           John O'Neal and his team, Team Boob Job, have been gathering at the Yacht club off of sixth and Wisconsin since about 8 p.m. to guarantee a large enough table for his group, and an ice-cold beer tower.  

          "My team started coming about 5 weeks ago and we have been every week since", O'Neal said. "It not only gives us an excuse to go out on a Wednesday, but it also makes my group of friends a little bit closer".

         The Yacht Club started trivia with the intention of boosting revenue, but soon realized this game could do more for them than make money. With team names like Just the tip, Fuzzy Blumpkins, and Boom goes the dynamite it's easy to see how the game became so popular among young adults here in Lawrence.

         For trivia you don't have to be 21 to play, just 21 to drink. Allowing people who are not 21 to be involved is something that makes this successful according to Yacht Club manager Sadie Kursh. That way, trivia has the opportunity to bring together groups of students and doesn't exclude underclassmen. Though an age is not specified, the evening is clearly aimed more toward adults. From it's questions, to it's team names this evening would easily be "R" rated. 

         "I am a junior, but i think I am the youngest junior I know", Team Boob Job member Daniel Cuevas said. "I don't turn 21 till August of next year so at least I know I can go out with my friends on Wednesdays."

        The atmosphere of the Yacht Club allows for dinner, drinks, and conversation. Much different from that of the infamous Hawk or Cadillac Ranch.That fact alone could add to the trivia's appeal. 

      "People in Lawrence focus a lot of what they do during the night on alcohol." O'Neal said. "Yeah there's alcohol at trivia, but we're there to play and win. Well try to win. At any other bar all we would be thinking is, what shot should we order next?" 

        The Yacht Club first began hosting Xtreme Team Trivia about three months ago.  Since the first round, the Yacht club has seen a slight increase in profits, but it's not the profits that have the manager planning another 10 weeks of trivia for the spring.

       "We've always had a large turn out on Wednesday's just because of our drink and wing specials", Kursh said. "We've just seen a huge increase in the number of regulars since the trivia started. When you have regulars, you know you are doing something right."

       Xtreme Team Trivia is a company that was started by Mike Shortino and is used to help boost business at bars or restaurants. Xtreme Team Trivia costs around five hundred dollars per ten weeks of trivia.  Each ten round game lasts any where from two to three hours. At the end of ten weeks there is a championship round between Xtreme Team Trivia players from all over the Kansas City, Lawrence, and Topeka area.

       In the championship, players are given the opportunity to compete for a one thousand dollar cash prize. Kristin Petrick is a member of team Carney Cats, who is going to the championship round in Topeka this upcoming weekend.

       "To be honest, we do it because it's free" Petrick said. "We're in college and none of us have a lot of money so it's nice for a bar to do something like this for us. Even if they do get us to buy a few extra beer towers. It's worth it."

       As Petrick's team heads to the finals, O'Neal and his team, team Boob Job will remain in Lawrence hoping for another chance next time around.

       "I said we went every week, I didn't say we ever won" O'Neal said. "We might be out of the championship this time, but in the spring, it's on."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beautiful scenery, vibrant downtown atmosphere and the nearness to the hustle and bustle of Kansas City are all perks the city of Lawrence can offer visitors but no factor draws as many people to the city as the University of Kansas.
  
Nancy Longhurst, the general manager of the historic Eldridge Hotel in Lawrence said the city's uniqueness diminished the possibility of a recession severely affecting the hotel industry in Lawrence.

"We're in a little bubble here in Lawrence. I think the University is a major factor for all of the hotels' success. The University is our biggest employer and they bring people into this town everyday," Longhurst said.

Many cities don't have the luxury of housing a major public university in their backyard. According to Smith Travel Research, a leader in benchmarking and researching for the lodging industry, The U.S. hotel industry posted declines in all three key performance measurements in October. However, many hotels in Lawrence stated they were unaffected by the trend.

STR reported that the primary factors used to determine the industries success - the average daily rate, revenue per available room and occupancy -- all dropped from their October 2007 levels in 2008. One of the most telling statistics was the 0.5 percent decrease in the average daily rate. The decline in the ADR was the first in over five years. Occupancy rates also took a big hit and fell from 66.5 percent in October 2007 to 62.1 percent in October 2008.


So far the 'bubble' provided by the University has protected Lawrence from the needles that have punctured the industry on a national level. Hotel managers said Kansas football games, business conferences, alumni loyalty and campus visits by potential KU students made October a successful month.

"Usually the place and the city of Lawrence in October is a really busy month," said Dave Owens, manager of the Holiday Inn Holidome.

Erica Potts, the manager of the Marriott Springhill Suites, said the Springhill has done very well in October. According to Potts, the hotel sold 2,748 rooms in October 2007, but sold 2,831 rooms in October 2008.

An increase in business could be very strongly correlated to the success of Kansas Athletics. Kansas hosted two football games in October and one game on November 1. The October 25 game against Texas Tech was one of five sellouts for Kansas this season in just seven games. The University also set an attendance record this season averaging 50,907 fans per game. This average is 836 people more than Memorial Stadium's 50,071-person capacity level.

The impact large crowds like these can have on a city is tremendous.

"Football can cause city-wide sell outs where you bring in additional 20,000 or 30,000 people to Lawrence. It causes all the hotels to fill up," Owens said.

Judy Billings, Director of the Lawrence Convention and Visitors Bureau, agreed with Owens and said home football game weekends generated some of the greatest revenue for the city.

"We typically have said that football weekends are million dollar weekends for Lawrence," Billings said. "Football is a big impact on our community."

Billings said that it wasn't only Jayhawk fans that brought revenue to the city, but also the opposing team's fans, players and coaches. Television crews and special events also bring in a lot of people. Both the Kansas-Colorado game on October 11 and the Kansas-Texas Tech games were covered by an ESPN channel and were played in association with special events. The Jayhawks game against Colorado was play on K-Club day and the Texas Tech game was Homecoming.


"Whether it is team reunions like the K-club or class reunions or homecoming or parents' weekend. Those kinds of things drive people to stay more than one night. Events scheduled along with football games really help," Billings said.

Sometimes when events, athletics and national coverage mix together the city's hotels aren't able to accommodate all of the visitors.

"We have a finite number of hotel rooms and that's 1,100 -- stretching it. So we don't have the ability to hold a lot of people here," Billings said.

The success of football has even crossed into another activity that helps fill up hotel rooms - campus tours. Jenny Hout, Visitor Coordinator in the Office of Admissions and Scholarships, said because of the recent football success many students have paired a tour on Friday with a football game at Memorial Stadium on Saturday. This usually results in a weekend stay for the visitors.

"It's kind of a normal thing through the basketball games, but now we see it happening for football too," Hout said.

According to Hout 10,000 people have toured the campus so far this semester through Jayhawk tour days and senior days, a slightly larger number than last year. It shouldn't be a surprise hotels did well in October. Hout said October, along with March, is the biggest month of the year for tours. Coincidentally, March is the climax of the college basketball season and also a big sports month in Lawrence.

When prospective students aren't visiting Lawrence, the city is able to rely on a loyal and dedicated base of Kansas graduates to keep hotels booked up. Athletics, reunions and retreats all call KU alumni back to the hill.

"They love Lawrence. They love the University. There is a big draw to the Lawrence community itself. It's very interesting. They want to come back to Lawrence. They might have meetings here because they went to school here. That's a big drawing card for all of us," Longhurst said.

Mike Davis, the Senior Vice President with the KU Alumni Association, said it's his job to get Alumni back to their old stomping grounds.

"Through our chapter, certainly through our athletics program, we're working consistently to get alumnus to come back to Lawrence," He said. "We've put in a lot of effort and resources to get alums to come back to campus."

Part of Davis' job is to help coordinate football tailgates and KU reunions. He said the tailgates have gone from generating 200 to 250 people per tailgate when they started four years ago to attracting well over 350 people per tailgate this year.

Even if special events aren't coordinated Davis said the Alumni come back from wherever they reside to cheer their school to victory.

"We have a really strong contingent of alums who come nationally for every home game as well. They have season tickets," Davis said.

Brad Korell, a graduate of the Law School at the University and a member of the KU Alumni Association Board, is an attorney in Austin, Texas but holds season tickets for KU football.

"It's the best way I know to spend a Saturday," Korell said.
Korell, grew up in St. Joseph, Mo., and received an undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri, but has always been a Jayhawk fan. He's been living in Austin but returning to Lawrence for Saturday football games for 11 years now and said he tries to stay at a variety of hotels when visiting Lawrence.

While some alumni have just recently jumped on the KU football bandwagon, others like Korell, have been coming to games for years.

"You know it's funny we've had our tickets even through the bad years. This isn't something that has just started since we started winning. I've been coming back for games ever since I left and now it's paying off," Korell said.

Korell said even if all alumni haven't been dedicated to the football team, they are dedicated to other Kansas alumni and the University.

"The Alumni Association and just KU Alumni in general do a fantastic job of keeping people connected," Korell said. "Anytime you're wearing a KU shirt or sweatshirt and you run into somebody at the airport or the grocery store there is always a rock chalk and I don't think you see that with other schools."

With all of the action hitting Lawrence the city's hotels don't fear for their future. One must only look down a block from the Kansas Student Union and take a gander at the massive Oread Inn structure being established to realize that.

Davis who works in the Adams Alumni Center, located directly between the two buildings, realizes there is no need to fear as long as Kansas Athletics stay around.

"Try to get a hotel room and a game weekend. It's hard to do. They're sold out."

By Adam Samson

Within minutes of the KU v. Colorado football game being over, campuscloth.com employee Alex Kane saw a rush of people coming downtown.  After a win for the Jayhawks over Colorado, the Jayhawk faithful remained loyal to the downtown businesses.  Fans filtered through the bars, restaurants and stores giving business to all that were open.

During the football games, the bars and restaurants with TVs broadcasting the game would receive steady business, but stores like campuscloth.com consider it dead time while the game is underway.  As soon as the game is over is when campuscloth.com awaits the stream of customers.  The bars and restaurants also anticipated the rush of fans to pile down to Massachusetts Street.

"We have a lot more business on game days because a lot of people are from Kansas City and Topeka," Kane said.  "Barring the weather, they usually come here to buy gear after a win.  When we beat Colorado was our best weekend for sales."

Students, Lawrence residents and out-of-town visitors poured into Memorial Stadium on Saturdays for home football games and downtown restaurants and stores looked for those fans to pour into their downtown businesses before and after the games.  The city government is even pitching in a few dollars to bring more business to downtown on game days.  One factor that affects some businesses is the start time of the games.

One of the new additions this year that the city provided was a free bus shuttle to Memorial Stadium from downtown.  City Manager David Corliss said the goals for the shuttle system were to bring more people to downtown Lawrence after a game and to reduce neighborhood congestion closer to the stadium by using downtown parking.

"Enhancing our downtown is always a priority policy for City government," Corliss said.  "With large football crowds, we want to increase the opportunity for visitors who may not eat or shop in Lawrence to experience our downtown."

In a Channel 6 newscast earlier this year, they stated that the city spent about $13,000 on the shuttle system to try boosting the revenue for downtown.  Jo Shmo's restaurant and bar owner Josh Mochel doesn't think that having a shuttle bus affected the businesses one way or another.

Mochel said people come downtown to the restaurants and bars no matter what and if new to Lawrence, chances are the people would find their way downtown anyway.

"I think it's a waste of time and money," Mochel said.  "On game days, you need to close off Massachusetts to the bars and have trollies taking people from Free State to the other end of Mass Street."

A trolly system would definitely be unique to downtown Lawrence and create a different downtown atmosphere.

Tim Agnew, general manager at Buffalo Wild Wings, said that it's hard to tell if the bus shuttles brought more people downtown and that it would take a lot of research to tell whether the bus shuttle money could be spent more wisely elsewhere.

The city government is still evaluating the impact of the free bus shuttle to Memorial Stadium.  Corliss said they plan to evaluate the shuttle program after all the bills are paid will look for feedback from the users of the shuttle and downtown businesses.

"Our bus shuttles had fewer riders on the early start games and I know some businesses see more traffic and some see less," Corliss said.  "We will consider its use in the future and we may recommend that riders pay in the future."

    Photo illustration: Kelly Gibson     

Adam Fiedler wanted to go into social work when he first started college. Growing up in a small town and experiencing foster care, Fiedler wanted to offer a voice in what he called a "flawed system."

            But his passion for physics and math overruled his passion for helping foster families, and he changed his path to education, hoping to be a mentor in schools rather than devote his entire career to child welfare.

            "I've been there, I've done that," said Fiedler, former president of the Kansas Youth Advisory Council, a board consisting of kids who have been or are currently in the foster care system. "I'd like to end up being a foster parent myself one day and maybe go back and get another degree in that area."

One of the biggest challenges the School of Social Welfare faces is getting students to consider child welfare as a career. According to the fall 2008 registrar headcount, the School of Social Work is one of the smallest schools, with only 525 students enrolled.  That is eight less than what was listed in 2007.

Michelle Levy, director of the Workforce Initiative, cites low wages, long hours, and tough work as some of the reasons why students don't consider a job in the field.

Enrollment in the school isn't the only disparity the social work field faces. There are constant vacancies in agencies across the state and the nation. With long hours, tough work and little pay, the turnover rate in the field is very high.

 "Most social workers have upwards of 30 cases," Fiedler, KU junior, said. "Because of paperwork and everything, they can't treat the cases with as much care as they should. The turnover rate is huge."

The average length of time a social worker stays in the field is two years, according to Bruce Linhos, executive director of the Children's Alliance of Kansas, a privatized, non-profit organization working to facilitate foster and adoptive care. It's three years for a supervisor.

"It's not just a Kansas problem; it's a problem everywhere," Linhos said.

In order to boost enrollment in the school and encourage people to pursue careers in the field of child welfare, the University of Kansas recently received funding from the Workforce Grant.

The Workforce Grant, one of five nationwide grants, will help fund program changes in the child welfare field at nine universities around the state of Kansas, including KU.  Approximately $2.5 million will be disbursed over the course of five years. The grant was given by the Department of Health and Human Services.

"We are doing this grant because social work education at the undergrad level has always been a generalist degree," said Alice Lieberman, co-principal investigator of the work force grant. "With this grant, we hope to provide some specialization in child welfare for undergraduates, and some additional training in child welfare for graduate students."

The funding will help institute specialized courses for child welfare undergrads and offer an opportunity to experience real-world situations through field work. They are also working on a traineeship program, where students will be offered a scholarship in exchange for them working in Kansas after graduation.

On top of boosting enrollment for traditional students, the grant will also help with a distance learning program for people already associated with the field who live in smaller towns.

"We're trying to find somebody already living in that community and giving them the tools they need to further their education," said Michelle Levy, project director and co-principal investigator for the grant. "It's harder for folks out there to get to school and complete their degree. It's a great way to further their education and a great way for us to get good workers in the field."

Other agencies have implemented traineeship programs and have been successful. Linhos said nine out of 10 students stick around when they receive a stipend while in school in exchange for working in the field.

            "What is interesting is that each grant has a different component," Linhos said. "We hope to create a quality improvement center to act as a repository for all of the information gathered. That way the other places can benefit."

            While it is still unclear whether the changes will boost enrollment or stabilize turnover rates in the field, Lieberman has high hopes that the grant will help prepare students for the field.

            "Research shows that when people feel good about their work, though, and have good supervision, they are likely to stay longer. And of course, the longer one stays, the better one gets," Lieberman said.

 

The best part about Christmas is opening presents. On Christmas morning, children all over the world rush to find gifts under their trees. But not all children are fortunate enough to have presents to open. With the economy in a rut and wallets tightening, many families struggle to give their children something to make their eyes sparkle.

To help those needy children local woodworkers, artists and students in the Wichita area come together for what is known as the Toy Project. The Sunflower Woodworkers' Guild heads the Toy Project by collecting spare wood from local businesses to make handcrafted toys.

A member of the Sunflower Woodworkers' Guild and an original participant in the Toy Project, John Belt makes over 100 toys each year for the project in his backyard workshop.

"One of the things we discovered was that there are an awful lot of poor people in the community," said Belt. "It's an enormous undertaking."

The project started in 1996 as a side project of the Sunflower Woodworkers' Guild partnered with a Boeing employee club, who provided the wood and helped in making some of the toys. During the first couple years, the project produced around 100 toys.

It was a small scale operation and just a fun thing to do said Belt.

It was in 2002 that the project really gained momentum. The 9/11 attacks hit the aviation industry hard and left 18,000 unemployed. The city fathers called for help to save those left unemployed from a bleak Christmas.

 

"We made a goal to make 1,000 toys that year. High quality toys, heirloom quality, something that you could pass down from generation to generation," said Belt.

The toys would go to the families of those who had lost their jobs.

To accomplish such a task the project would need a lot of wood. Belt and others went around to all the millworks in town to beg for spare scraps.

The main contributor of the wood for the project comes from Holtzen Woodwork Inc.

photo by Michael Bontrager

One of the bosses at Holtzen Woodwork, Peggy Buck said that she is happy to provide the wood because her father used to make his own wooden toys when he was young.

"He made tractors similar to the ones that they (the Sunflower Woodworkers' Guild) make," said Buck.

Most of the wood is scraps with knots and other imperfections that the company can't use and would normally be used for firewood.

Bill DeGarmo, president of the Sunflower Woodworkers' Guild, believes this brings a green aspect to the project.

"Wood that would normally be burnt up as firewood can be used to make something that brings joy to people's lives," said DeGarmo. "We find ways around those knots to make a unique, one of a kind gift that lasts a lifetime."

With the wood supply, the woodworkers form an assembly line and piece the toys together, each doing the same task over and over to manufacture the toys.

"There really is no other way to do it if you're trying to make 1,000 toys," said Belt.

Once the toys were assembled, the woodworkers felt that the toys were still missing something. The toys needed some flavor, an element of originality, some paint.

"We started painting them ourselves, which was a total disaster," said Belt. "We needed someone who knew what they were doing."

The woodworkers asked local artists to turn their work into a one of a kind toy. Belt emphasizes that the painters are just as important as the woodworkers and their job is just as difficult.

When the 1,000 toys were complete, the woodworkers gave the toys to the Union to distribute, but this caused problems. The toys were only distributed to those who were in the Union.

 

The following year the Sunflower Woodworkers' Guild made the same goal, to produce 1,000 toys for Christmas. They work year round to achieve their goal said DeGarmo.

The project has grown to include local high schools with art programs around the area to help paint the toys.  Wichita State University and Friends University both help paint as well. This year Larksfield Place, a retirement community, also contributed by painting a large amount of toys.

The toys are now donated to the Salvation Army instead of the Union, as many of the unemployed workers returned to their jobs. The Angel Tree program distributes the toys to needy children 14 and younger.

To find out which toys kids liked most, Belt and others took the toys to a local elementary school to see which toys the kids played with the most. Some of the toys that are most popular are the cradle, locomotive, airplane, and ducks that waddle when you pull them on a string. 

"There's something about a wooden toy that captures the imagination for these young kids," said Belt.

photo by Michael Bontrager

After the program started, Belt worried that the toys would start turning up in garage sales, but this is not the case.

"It's so interesting to watch people play with the toys. Kids don't want to leave," said Belt. "We are making these toys as nice as we know how. They really are something special."

Belt said that he has been offered hundreds of dollars for certain toys before, but has never accepted an offer.

"That's not the point. I mean we could make these toys for a lot of money, but that just isn't the point," said Belt. "But kids get that to; the toy that someone wanted to buy."

Christmas has become very materialistic. Holidays such as Black Friday appear to showcase deals, which demoralizes Christmas down to a matter of how much someone spent on a gift, rather than the importance of giving one.

 "This year we are expecting a lot of needy children," said DeGarmo.

Even in harsh economic times, the Toy Project finds a way to spread the joy of Christmas through the donations of others. From the mills who provide the materials, to the woodworkers and artists who dedicate their time to the project, everyone involved contributes something to make someone's Christmas brighter.

Belt finds the project extremely gratifying and takes great pride in his work, "What sustains people to keep doing this is the idea that on Christmas morning, those who probably wouldn't get anything, they get a really special toy. This is a child that never had anything anyone envied, now has a one-of-a-kind toy that most people would die for."

License to Wed

Standing at the end of the aisle stood Brooke's future husband, Kyle Ramsey, and former KU journalism professor, Malcolm Gibson.

Gibson conducted Brooke Hesler and Kyle Ramsey's wedding ceremony on August 6, 2005 in Liberty Hall.

"We both wanted Malcolm to officiate our wedding.  It went back to an old joke the three of us had when Brooke and I worked at the Kansan and Malcolm was the adviser.  Brooke and I didn't always get along as co-workers, and Malcolm joked we would someday get married," Kyle Ramsey said.  "Not believing that would ever happen, Brooke joked that Malcolm could perform the ceremony."

Image by: www.wcm.org

Gibson is a perfect example of the online ordination trend, receiving your ordination certificate through the mail.

Kansas law states that not only can a marriage be performed by an officiant from any religious denomination or society, but the two parties can even conduct the ceremony themselves.  Online ordination can legalize a friend or even family member to conduct a ceremony between two parties that is recognized by the law.

Ordination, online or in a church, makes it possible for a ceremony to be conducted by a friend, relative, or even former teacher.  Gibson became ordained in 2004 to conducted a students wedding, and is performing his sixth ceremony in May.

"I interview people who've had a part in their lives, and I tell stories...that sometimes surprise the bride and groom!" Gibson  said.

Since it is increasingly easier to obtain an ordination online to conduct ceremonies, some people like the simplicity of it.

 "We wanted a ceremony that was less focused on religion and more focused on the celebration of our marriage.  We knew Malcolm would be happy to accommodate.  Instead of reciting versus from the Bible, Malcolm had gathered stories and memories from our friends and family to use in the ceremony," Ramsey said.  "It was both touching and embarrassing."

Although it is easy to obtain a do-it-yourself ordination certificate, there are other ways, for example through a church, to become ordained.  Ministers ordained either way can conduct weddings, funerals, and even ceremonies to share their beliefs.  But, some religions and countries have a much more thorough process in order to conduct ceremonies that are recognized by the church.

"For example the United Methodist church has many levels of ministry and I wish that weren't true.  It requires an ordained minister to have an undergraduate, a master's degree, and several years of appointment continuing education," religious lecturer Sherry Wright said.  "There is a high education expectation."

All religions have restrictions and regulations about the acceptance of an ordained ceremony, but the process to obtain ordination through the church is not always an extensive process. 

"Some people are just called to ministry and they are not extensively educated but some churches allow less rigorous level of education," Wright said.

While many weddings conducted in the United States are considered religious ceremonies, other cultures and countries do not focus on religion in the ceremonies.

"I do know that in countries that aren't particularly religious,  for example in China, weddings are not religious ceremonies," Wright said.

Traditions vary from culture to culture, but the customs and traditions are strong within that culture. In China there is a giving handkerchief and wishing good luck tradition while in Columbia there is a candle ceremony.  In India the focus is on the marriage of the families versus the marriage of the two people.

Although the legality of an online ordination varies, wedding ceremonies are still sacred traditions in religions societies and cultures as the union of two people ceremonially and legally. Law professor Robert Casad believes the law-even internationally- can set certain  formalities, but they are still not very restrictive.

Image:KS Legislature

"I can say that in the United States, state law determines the legal domestic status of persons, except for the D.C and federal territories. I assume a state can determine by legislation or common law what formalities may be required to achieve marital status, including who may be married, who may officiate and what media may be used for the rite," Casad said. I assume the same is true of every civilized country."

While many religions and countries have different traditions and customs to ceremonies, the option of online ordination is still just a click away. 

"For us, it was a simple way for Malcolm to be able to officiate our wedding within the framework of Kansas law," Ramsey said. "Malcolm's ceremony felt more personal than most weddings I have attended."

Back of the store, isle five, middle shelf. There's only one of the hottest children's toys left and it's ten feet away. One week until Christmas and this is the number one item on your child's list for Santa. As you rush toward the item with hope and excitement, another dedicated parent beats you to the punch. You freeze and your heart drops. The hope and excitement drains from your body like water through a faucet and is replaced by the feeling of failure.

Today, stores are using layaway as a solution for this common occurrence. A few years ago, layaway was becoming a selling method of the past.

"No offense, but I used to think that layaway was something older people did years ago, I never thought that it would be something that people did in this day and age," Larissa Stewart, layaway shopper, said.

In 2006, Wal-Mart Stores discontinued its use of the layaway program because of declining use and increasing costs. Customers had turned to other options such as online shopping, gift cards and no-cost credit alternatives. With this year's economy, retailers expect the worst holiday season in decades. Kmart, Sears, Marshalls, Burlington Coat Factory and T.J. Maxx are some of the stores using the layaway program in an attempt to make shopping easier for customers. At least one of these bargain superstores is betting that people with debt are ready to push their shopping carts down the isles.

"Looking back, I think that we should have kept the layaway program." Conor Grier, Wal-Mart manager, said. "I don't think that we have necessarily lost business but I do think that the commercials for layaway that some of the other businesses are running are definitely helping their holiday season with today's economy."

Layaway is actually an old-fashioned purchase plan, which had its heyday in the '20s and '30s but declined when easy credit options came around. Layaway lets shoppers who can't afford full price at checkout pay as they go. Instead of adding items to a credit card, shoppers can leave items on hold at the store until they are paid in full. This program also benefits shoppers by allowing them to put items on layaway starting at least a month before the holidays. This way, they don't miss out on that special item at the top of the wish list.

Kmart has continued its layaway program for decades after most retail stores axed similar programs. For the first time in years, Kmart started promoting the option of layaway. Thus far, the results have been positive. Some shoppers said they think bringing back the layaway program is a good idea in the currently tough economic environment.

"I think it's a great idea for people to be able to make small payments to get the item's they want and to be able to pay as you go," Tami Sasek, layaway shopper, said.

Of course, in this day and age, there is an option that is almost better than going to the store and putting items on layaway. At eLayaway.com shoppers are allowed to buy the products and services that they want by paying for them through manageable monthly payments that they set. They even have a calculator that will let you figure out the purchase price over 3 to 13 monthly payments. Once you've paid for your items in full they are delivered.

"Layaway has become my credit card during this holiday season. With the economic decline and three children to purchase gifts for, layaway has been a lifesaver," Sasek, said.

The stores with layaway seem to be bustling and quite busy despite the recession. Managers from Sears, Weavers, Kmart and Marshalls all agree that having layaway as a sales method this holiday season is definitely improving sales despite the economy.

In 2006, when stores such as Wal-Mart discontinued the use of the layaway program, it was because of the steady decline as consumers turned to options such as online shopping and gift cards. These stores began relying on new payment options such as special deals for in-store credit card holders. This holiday season, those stores might be paying a price for discontinuing the layaway service.

"We don't have statistics yet but as of now we have had success with layaway for this holiday season. The program has definitely made some sales business that we otherwise wouldn't have had. It has definitely been positive for this holiday season with the economic situation," Beau Sellers, Sears Grand central manager, said.

The buy-now-pay-later culture is a popular one; credit cards allow consumers to purchase items while not having to worry about actually paying for them until a later date. Layaway has the same concept but is easier in the sense that with today's economic slump, consumers don't have to worry about being charged interest if they can't pay in full. For many consumers, layaway seems to be the best option for shopping this holiday season.

Layaway has made a comeback. Living within your means can once again become a popular way of life.

Susan Cade, Lawrence, knows how dangerous a snow-covered sidewalk can be. Last January, Cade walked from her front door to the edge of her driveway to get the mail. On the way, she lost her footing and fell. A trip to the hospital revealed a sprained left wrist, but nothing more.

"I'm a healthy person, but at my age, I'm getting frail," the 83-year-old said.

As the winter season bears down on Northeast Kansas, the city of Lawrence has teamed up with Douglas County Senior Services to make sure the elderly and disabled have their sidewalks cleared of snow and ice. The Safe Winter Walkways program is intended to make winter conditions safer, as well as reduce the chances that those who can't shovel their property aren't at risk for city fines.

Dacia McCabe Maher, student intern for Douglas County Senior Services and director of the Safe Winter Walkways program, said many elderly people are not able to shovel their sidewalks for a variety of reasons.

"Some of our clients come to us because they are just too weak to shovel the snow, while others have an illness or disability that prevents them from getting out of their house," she said.

This year, the program has 12 returning clients from last year, in addition to eight new clients. However, there are only five returning volunteers from last year, so at least 15 more volunteers are still needed to remove snow. The deadline to apply for the program, either as a client or volunteer, is January 1, 2009.

McCabe Maher said that the program is operated solely on trust. Douglas County Senior Services doesn't run any background checks on the clients who have applied for the service. Instead, it trusts that the people who claim to need the assistance really do need help shoveling their sidewalks.

Men and women of all ages have have helped with the program in the past, but one demographic has been missing: college students. McCabe Maher said some students have expressed interest in the program, but none have officially signed up to participate.

"I think this is a really good opportunity for college-aged kids. Most students are physically able to handle the cold for half an hour, and I know a lot of students are looking for philanthropy work anyway," she said.

If the program doesn't get enough volunteers, then the employees at the Douglas County Senior Services center bundle up and grab a shovel. One way or another, McCabe Maher said, all the clients' sidewalks are shoveled so they don't face fines.

On December 2, city commissioners approved plans to make a new and stricter city ordinance regarding the timeliness of snow removal. The current ordinance, 7456, gives property owners six days to shovel snow from the sidewalks that go through their property before a $20 fine is issued. Under the new ordinance, owners will only have 48 hours to clear the snow before receiving a fine. McCabe Maher said the new ordinance creates more urgency for the program to get more volunteers.

"It's important that the sidewalks are shoveled. The elderly are some of the most susceptible to suffering an injury on slippery sidewalks," she said. "One of our new clients this year, her husband died last year while shoveling his driveway. This program is important."

Cade is new to the program this year. She said her accident last winter was the main reason she applied for the service. She considers herself a relatively healthy person, but she doesn't want to take anymore chances when he sidewalks are covered in snow or ice.

"I'm excited about it," she said. "It will help me save energy and allow me to stay away from the cold weather, but I will also be able to get my mail without worrying about slipping."

Bill Scott knocks on Ruby's door as he had every Thursday for the last two years. After a few minutes, the frail 80-year-old woman slowly opens the door. Wearing her nightgown and slippers with her gray hair tightly pinned in curlers, she greets Bill with a stern look on her face as she leans on her walker for stability.

"You're late," Ruby said in a distraught voice, "I thought you had forgotten about me."

"I know, I'm so sorry Ruby," Bill replied, "I had a huge order to deliver to the hospital before this."

Ruby is one of nine Hy-Vee customers who get their groceries delivered to them weekly at the Drury Place at Alvamar Retirement Home.

Scott has been delivering groceries for Hy-Vee's grocery delivery service for two years. He said that he enjoys being able to bring people food who otherwise could not get to the store.
"I think that it's a great thing for the community," he said, "and I am glad that people take advantage of it."

Grocery delivery services are available through several different businesses in Lawrence. Both Hy-Vee and Checkers grocery stores offer the option of transporting food items to homes, as does the Schwan's Home Service Inc. food company. Although all three of the businesses offer the same service, they all have different qualifications and costs in order to receive the delivery.

Checkers grocery store has been doing home grocery delivery for eight years, but their service is not available to just anybody. Jim Lewis, owner of Checkers, said that they have a current list of thirty customers that they deliver groceries to, and do not add a person to that list until someone else is taken off.
"We would love to be able to provide this to everyone who needs it, but we just don't have the time," Lewis said.

Even though Checkers does have a limited number of customers that they deliver to, they still provide their service free of charge.

"I know that most people probably charge for delivery groceries, but I just can't," Lewis said, "I don't do it for the money."

Hy-Vee on the other hand has no guidelines as to who can or cannot be delivered to, but they do include a charge to all orders. Debbie Barnett, who packs up the items that people order at Hy-Vee every day, said that Hy-Vee does not have any regulations because they want to be able to help as many people as they can.

"Anybody can order groceries from us, Barnett said. "A majority of our customers are homebound and elderly," she said, "but we do have some customers that want their groceries delivered because they have a broken leg and can't drive or are expecting mothers or something."

Hy-Vee charges customers an additional $15 for all orders taken over the phone, and $20 extra for orders placed over the internet.

Schwan's Home Service food company also has no rules on who orders their product. Any person can make a purchase through their catalog. Schwan's does not charge a delivery fee to its customers; they just add the Douglas County tax rate of 6.3% to each order.

"Our services are available to any customer who wishes to purchase our product," said Delvin Smith, local Schwan's Home Service manager, "and our customers are not just the elderly, young people take advantage of the convenience, too."

Donna Ginther, Economics Professor at the University of Kansas, said that the United States is currently in a broad based recession. She said that of the areas being hit, only a few are spared.

"Almost every part of the world's economy is being affected," Ginther said. "Only a few areas are not being as hurt by this, one of which is grocery stores," she said. "People can't quit buying food, and as for home delivery services I think that most of the people that use it are elderly that live on fixed incomes and are therefore not affected by the recession."

All three home delivery providers said that they were surprised that the lowering economy has not affected their sales that greatly.

Lewis said that Checkers' grocery deliveries have not slowed down, even though the economy has. He contributes this to the fact that most of his customers are on fixed incomes. He said that even when the gas prices were up, his company did not enforce a delivery charge.   

"I was definitely losing more money on delivering when gas prices went up, but I couldn't seem to justify having to charge the customers when I never had in the past," Lewis said.

Although Hy-Vee's delivery business has stayed steady with the 10 to 15 customers per week, Barnett said that their delivery charges have in fact increased. When the economy began to go down, she said that Hy-Vee decided to raise their phone order delivery charge from $10 to $15 dollars and their internet order delivery charge from $15 to $20 in order to try to compensate for some losses that they were experiencing.

"Hy-Vee stayed strong during the rising gas prices and didn't up our charge then, but with as bad as the economy is right now we almost felt as though we didn't have a choice but to raise our prices," Barnett said.

Schwan's manager, Smith said that he was happy with the fact that his business has not been affected by the economy, and that their business had actually been increasing. However, Smith did say that when the gas prices began reaching record high numbers Schwan's did have to take some action. Although Smith said that the prices increase was only an extra $1 to $2 per order, he felt that he had no choice.

"Due to increasing gas prices we had to raise our prices ever so slightly, but we did send out letters to each customer letting them know that there would be a price increase and why it had to take place," Smith said.

Although Smith said that Schwan's business remained steady, some customers have in fact been cutting back.

 Kara Perry, Lawrence resident and Schwan's customer, said that the lowering economy has definitely affected her food delivery purchases. Her husband used to own a home-building company in the area but said he could no longer stay open due to the declining economy.

"Our family absolutely loves the food that the Schwan's company provides, but since we are having to cutting back on all of our expenses I don't see how I can justify continuing to buy frozen meals," Perry said, "although I will definitely miss the convenience."

Illustration by Cat Coquillette

Editor's note: Dancers preferred to use only their first names or their stage names for this story. 

   Before anyone can enter the heavy metal door, a man pokes his head through the front window and checks identification. If a customer is of age, he or she will get a neon-colored wristband. These customers will help the business' profits when they buy the club's watered-down drinks. Those who are 18 and can't legally drink can still put money into the business as well: They can throw dollar bills on the stage -- or they can hold them in their teeth so the women in the Lucite heels can take them personally. The only problem is, most of them don't have as many bills to spare anymore. 

   The economic crisis that the United States of America is in is affecting every industry. It's affecting the newspaper industry -- it was just announced that The Miami Herald is up for sale -- the automobile industry -- three of which asked the government for billions in a bailout -- and one that hasn't ever historically been hit when in rough times: the adult entertainment industry. In the past, it has been said that sex, booze and tobacco were recession-proof. Now, the adult entertainment industry doesn't seem to be omitted from the financial crisis most Americans are feeling. 

   Nationally, adult entertainment companies like Playboy have been hit hard. In November of last year, Playboy's shares sold for $11.40 each. This November, shares sold for $1.12 each.

Locally, adult entertainment in Lawrence has also felt the crunch. Jessica, a dancer at All Stars Strip Club, 913 N. 2nd St., said she used to bring home $300 a night, and now she only brings home $100. Kitty, a dancer at Paradise Saloon, 1697 N. 1802 Road, also said she wasn't bringing home as much money as she was before. 

   "It got bad toward the end of October," she said. "I would make half a grand, and I never left without less than $200 or $250." Kitty said lately if she makes more than $100, she considers that to be really good. She also said she has left with as little as $25. 

   "Some nights we have quite a few guys, but I don't make shit because they don't tip," she said. 

   Some strip clubs around Lawrence offer interesting economical alternatives to their customers. Jeff Wallace, owner of The Outhouse, 1837 N. 1500 Road, said his business was doing better than ever because his club was BYOB (Bring Your Own Beer). The cover charge is $20, and any amount of alcohol is permitted inside the club with no extra fees attached. Wallace said the cover charge was a reason his business was thriving and that it also made his club cheaper than other clubs. 

   "Economically, we're a lot more affordable," he said. "When other clubs are charging $5 or $6 a drink, I'm only charging $20 for cover," he said. Wallace also said he had since seen a change in the clientele of his establishment. 

   "We don't have as many business men as before. We have more college-aged kids and construction workers." 

    Zach Snyder, one of the owners of Paradise Saloon, said that his club wasn't feeling an economical impact as a business because it was a private gentleman's club. He didn't comment on what his dancers were making individually. 

   "We're a lot different than our competition. We're one of the few private clubs left around," he said. "We're very particular about who we let through the door." Snyder said his club has more older generation members and only a few of the younger generation.

   Still, Kitty said her salary at the end of the week wasn't near what it used to be. She said the club was low on dancers and that there were more when she started last summer. "They're all quitting because it's so slow," she said. 

   "Now, we have all these skanky bitches." 

   Aside from the strip clubs in Lawrence, other facets of adult entertainment are feeling the pinch, also. In an article from Wired.com dated July 21, 2008, Steve Orenstein, president and founder of Wicked Pictures (an adult film company) said after being in the adult entertainment industry for 29 years, this was the first time he could say his company was absolutely feeling the effects of the economy.

   "There was a line we used to use about this business being recession-proof. When people talked about the economy, we'd say our business is fine. But look, now you'd have to be blind and deaf not to see that there are problems." 

   An employee, who did not want his name printed, at Miracle Video, 1910 Haskell Ave., said that the numbers on adult films were down a bit in both sales and rentals. 

   "I think people are tightening their belts," he said. 

   Gerry Kaufhold, principal analyst at In-Stat, a market research firm, said that adult DVD rentals were absolutely going down, and that Internet porn sales were, also, in part because many videos could be viewed for free. 

   "The Internet was very good for porn from 1997-2007," he said. In regards to the adult entertainment industry being known as recession-proof, Kaufhold said that now people are starting to see that's not the case anymore. 

   "Part of it is technology, because the DVD doesn't degenerate with use," he said. The other part, he said was that people had tighter money, and they needed to buy gas and food, so interest in buying new adult DVD's has gone down. 

    Because of the strain on the economy nationally, the once sure-fire industry of adult entertainment has finally been hit -- as seen in companies like Playboy, in strip clubs and in video stores. Kitty said she's on a tighter budget now, and that she has to think more about how she is going to support herself and her three beloved snakes. 

   In Lawrence's strip clubs and throughout the country, dancers -- like Kitty who said she has to think more about how to support herself and her three beloved snakes -- and consumers alike are strapped for cash and trying to find alternatives to the plunging economy. Whether it's skipping a video rental to buy lunch or missing out on tips, each side of adult entertainment is feeling the strain -- whether they're gripping a pole or a wallet.

Angel Goodrich is seated so far down Kansas' bench that sometimes a teammate's high-five won't make it to her. That's okay. Goodrich is often so lost in thought, most of the time dreaming about getting back on the court, that she doesn't notice anyone around her.

In Kansas' season-opening triumph of Sacred Heart on Nov. 14, Goodrich was yanked out of her spell by teammate Sade Morris. An elbow cut bloodied Morris' jersey earlier in the game, so she had to put on a new one.

No. 23. Angel's jersey.

Morris poked Goodrich and flashed her new threads. The pair chuckled. Then Morris went into the game, while Goodrich stayed right where she sat and drifted back into thought.

Bloody injuries marred the Jayhawk victory that night. In addition to Morris' elbow, sophomore forward Nicollette Smith's nose cushioned an elbow. The result left James Naismith Court a bloody mess and dealt Smith a deviated septum.

But the worst Kansas injury this season occurred two days after Late Night in the Phog and didn't involve a drop of blood. That was when Angel Goodrich, a true freshman, tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in her left knee.

Reports as early as 1982 suggest that ACL tears, and knee injuries in general, are more common for females than males. Countless studies since have proved that fact, and added that female athletes are four to six times more likely to suffer a knee injury than a male athlete. The most discouraging part about the situation is that none of the research or studies has led to better knee protection for female athletes.

In the last 10 months, two KU guards and one forward signee suffered ACL injuries. None of them knew any way to prevent it and all will push through at least six months of rehab before playing again.

 

KNEE SCIENCE

Kansas basketball fans owe a lot of gratitude to Dr. Jeff Randall. That's because Randall is the team orthopedist for the men's and women's basketball teams.

When guard Brandon Rush injured his knee playing pickup basketball, thus forcing him out of the NBA draft, it was Randall who performed the procedure. Rush returned to the court and helped the men win their fifth national championship.

Rush's injury was the same as all three women: torn ACL. Also, all four suffered non-contact injuries.

"A lot of people assume that knee injuries come from a hit," Randall said. "In reality, almost all of the ligament tears that I see occurred when the person's knee just gave out."

Coach Bonnie Henrickson has been around women's college basketball since 1982. She said she can't remember how many ACL tears she's seen, but she knows how many involved contact.

"One," she said. "When our point guard my junior year crashed into her defender and landed awkwardly. Every other time the player has been all alone and just come down wrong."

The ACL is one of four ligaments that hold the knee together. Its placement in the center of the knee makes it the most susceptible to athletic injuries. The ACL is crucial for movements such as pivots, cuts and jukes.

According to Athletes Acceleration, a company that studies strength and athletic training, women are more likely to suffer ACL because they "have a delay in muscle recruitment, poor hamstring recruitment patterns and less joint stiffness."

What that means is the female knee can't brace as well as a males. Thus, normal landings will more often turn into season-ending catastrophes.

 

PREVENTION

In sports, the way to prevent an injury is also the way to become a better athlete. Simply make yourself bigger, faster and stronger. The more fit you are, the better you perform and the less likely you are to suffer an injury.

When it comes to the knee, that's simply not the case.

"There are some stretches that you can do, which focus on keeping the muscles all around your knee loose," Randall said. "But really, we haven't found much proof that those work."

Athletes Acceleration says that female athletes face another disadvantage because they have slower muscle reaction times. Thus, not all joints arrive at the same place at the same time.

"In order to keep the body in the right place at the right time, nervous system adaptations must occur," said Patrick Beith, writer for Athletes Acceleration.

Randall agrees, but adds that it's not as simple as that sounds. For starters, how does one adapt their nervous system? Don't ask Henrickson.

"I have no idea," she said. "But if you figure it out, let me know."

"Repetition is key," Randall said. "Forcing muscles to react just how you want them to. That's the idea, but some people's bodies simply don't react the way they want them to."

Randall pointed out that the prevention tactics are equally questionable for men, but their bodies make up for most missteps.

Knee braces are a common suggestion for injury prevention. Like everything else with the knee, though, it's not that simple.

A plethora of ligament-support knee braces are available, but players refuse to wear them. The two most common responses were 1. They limit my mobility and 2. If you think you need one, then you're too concerned about getting injured.

Pride and toughness.

The answer to a full brace is a knee strap, which is commonplace in men's basketball. A knee strap goes just below the kneecap and helps stabilize the knee without the resistance of a full brace.

Still, no one on Kansas' women's basketball team wears anything on their knees. Only one player, guard LaChelda Jacobs, said she ever wore knee straps of her own will.

"I thought they'd make me feel more secure, but I always ended up taking them off during the game," she said.

With no confirmed way to prevent a knee injury, the oft-questioned tactics are viewed as a crutch. Kansas' players, for better or worse, choose to walk on their own despite three season-ending injuries in the last 10 months.

 

ANGEL

Though they had little time together, Goodrich and departed guard Chakeitha Weldon were fast friends.

In February, Weldon became Kansas' first knee victim. Since then, the Atlanta native transferred to Appalachian State to continue her recovery and career closer to home.

On the day Goodrich crumpled to the court, she received a text message from Weldon.

"I was like, 'How'd you hear so fast,'" Goodrich said. "And she said, 'Hear what?'"

The irony of a well-wishing message from Weldon on the day Goodrich tore her ACL wasn't lost on the freshman.

"I think her knee could tell that I was hurting," Goodrich joked.

Either way, Goodrich found a kindred knee closer to home less than two weeks after her injury. That's when Tania Jackson, a Lawrence High senior who has since signed to play at KU, tore her ACL playing pickup basketball.

"I still don't know what happened," Jackson said. "One second I'm fine, and the next I can't stand up."

Jackson broke away for a lay-up and, like Rush before her, landed awkwardly. She's had surgery and is now working through the same rehabilitation plan as Goodrich. The only think that makes it easier is their ability to rely on each other.

"I told her, we're going to have four years together," Goodrich said. "That's what we think of anytime rehab gets tough."

The future still shines for them, but once they return to the court it could be a different story. Randall said it's impossible to predict how an individual will respond once they are cleared to play.

"Some players can jump right back into it," he said. "But for others there's a mental block that won't let them cut and pivot like they once did."

Sitting at the end of the bench, Goodrich said she dreams about coming back bigger, faster and stronger. But when asked if she'll really be able to make the same lightning-quick moves that made her a highly-touted recruit, reality streaks across her face.

"I don't know," she said.

  Photo: www.ecopromogifts.co.uk Illustrated: Vicky Lu

Three hard-cover text books, a 5-subject notebook, a planner, a make-up bag, a lip gloss, a compact mirror, a cell phone, an ipod, a purse, keys and sometimes even a laptop--it's the 15 pounds Allie Krukowski can't leave her house without.

 

"The bag actually varies day to day," Krukowski said, "But it has never gone below 15 pounds."2

 

Allie Krukowski, Chicago sophomore, like many other college students, carried a single-strap tote bag to school and work. Krukowski noticed she got compliments on her tote bag, because it made her look more professional at work. However, what she didn't notice the potential long-term health concerns with using single strap bags.

 

Karen Loudon, physical therapist at Watkins Memorial Health Center, explained that the problem with carrying a heavy bag was that while it might not cause an immediate injury, it had a cumulative effect.

 

While carrying a tote bag, the distribution of weight becomes asymmetrical compared to carrying a traditional double-strap backpack. As a result, back muscles are unevenly exercised. In a parallel example, women who carry their baby with one arm for two hours every day would end up having one hip slightly higher than the other.

 

       Krukowski's 15-inch by 12-inch Vera Brandley tote bag has two straps that are thinner than one of her fingers. Krukowski complained that sometimes the bag was so heavy that the straps would leave her shoulder with red marks. Krukowski was also concerned when her friend reminded her that she had a tendency to walk leaning to her right side--the side where the tote bag was.

 

In addition to the uneven distribution of weight on the back, extremely thin straps can also cut blood flow from the back to the shoulders. According to a research done by the department of orthopedic surgery at the University of California, San Diego, adults wearing backpacks with loads of 26 pounds for just 10 minutes will experience a reduction of 50 percent in blood flow from larger vessels to small vessels in the upper body. The research concluded that straps can obstruct blood flow significantly, and contribute to shoulder fatigue, and lower-back pain.

 

It's still a bit too early for the owners of traditional double-strap bags to laugh. Loudon noticed that even people who carried traditional double-strap bags were not doing it correctly, which would result in the same lower-back pain that single-strap bags could cause.

 

"I know college students care about their appearances, and style is important to them." Loudon said. "But people are carrying backpacks way too low."

 

Double-strap backpack relies on shoulders, back and hips to work together to share the total weight. While wearing the backpack too low might actually leave all the pressure on the shoulders. Because the human lower-back naturally curves inward, when the backpack is too low, the backpack can't distribute any horizontal weight onto the lower-back. Instead it'll leave all the pressure on the shoulders. Eventually, the vertical pressure from shoulders will transport onto the lower-back.

Watkins Memorial Health Center has been treating all kinds of muscular and skeletal injuries. The majority of the injuries treated at Watkins are sports injuries, such as sprain ankles and knees from playing basketball and football. Lower-back pain is very common too. Loudon estimated that the number of bag-related injuries and pains she treated has risen 10 percent in the past year.

 

Loudon suggested that students shouldn't carry a bag that is more than 15 percent of their body weight. When carrying a single-strap bag, Loudon recommended to actually loop the bag around the body to distribute weight.

 

Despite the tiring shoulders, Krukowski's having trouble abandoning the huge bags. She recently bought herself an larger tote bag, which she describes as "very functional and can fit an elephant." She never thought about taking any items out of her bag to reduce her burden. She felt having her things in her bag gave her a sense of security. She was more prepared for any occasion with her make-up bag. Besides, she said a tote bag made her look more professional and mature, which helped her distinguish herself from other college students. Krukowski felt fashion was a very important factor when choosing a bag.

 

One of the biggest fashion trends of 2008, giant bags are becoming more popular in 2009. Some of the largest bags, shown on the runway or by stars, go as big as two feet in length. Yet the trends of tote bags that are hot on the coasts are not quite hitting the mid-west. Kathy Schoenwandt, merchandise manager at KU Bookstore, said the best-selling schoolbag was still the traditional double-strap bag since they can double as laptop backpacks. Being able to carry a computer on campus is important for students who want to be able to do an assignment or get online while on campus whenever they want.

 

It was a habit for Krukowski to stuff her tote bag with books and girl's necessities. While walking on her way to class, Krukowski tucked her hand under the taut straps and said, "This bag is never full. But I hope the least thing I'll add to my bag, is a bottle of asprin. "

    Sara Schwener's new engagement ring catches the brightly lit law school study room.  The large deep blue sapphire is surrounded by smaller diamonds and set in a white gold band.  She casually rotates it around her finger as chats with two male friends about her upcoming wedding.

    "I am totally using that online ordaining thing, the church pastor is not for me," she said turning to her friend, "Sebastian, actually you should get ordained and conduct my wedding."
   
    All three of them grin in response.

    "That would be the most blasphemous thing ever, I totally will do it, and then wear one of those white things the preachers wear," he replies and the laughter spills out of the room and down the quiet hall. 

    Sebastian Orosco and Joseph Jarvis, law students at the University of Kansas, are both gay.  Schwener is straight. 

    In Kansas Schwener's friends can attend weddings, but cannot have their own.

    All three of these friends belong to the law school's organization called OUTlaws & Allies, an outreach group for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transsexual students (GLBT).  Schwener is the president of OUTlaws & Allies and sees it as a chance for students to have a platform to discusses issues.

     One of those issues this semester the students discussed was the campaign in California to outlaw same-sex marriage. The church campaign was successful, leaving same-sex couples across the U.S. discouraged that such a liberal state would ban homosexual marriages.  Even in the liberal atmosphere of Lawrence, the homosexual community continues to struggle for acceptance within the town's Christian community. 

    Lawrence is acclaimed for its progressive ideals.  Historically Lawrence was founded as community that disagreed with slavery.  College towns like Lawrence tend to follow the example set by the university, and the community has adopted the academic mentality of KU in pursuing knowledge and truth. 


    "I feel more comfortable here in Lawrence than in western Kansas.  There are other heterosexuals who support homosexuality like me," said Schwener.

    Unlike some communities Lawrence has made a slight effort to combat the 2005 same-sex marriage ban that Kansas passed, Jarvis said.  Lawrence allows domestic partnerships. 

    A domestic partnership is an agreement between two people who live together and are not related. This information becomes public record and can be useful to employers as proof of living situations.  It costs $75 to register, but provides no legal rights such as Social Security benefits.

    "Unfortunately we have a long way to go in this highly conservative state. I feel that as the country starts progressing, it will move Kansas along; however, it is likely that in order for the changes to be made in Kansas it is probably going to have to require a federal (constitutional) amendment or decision handed down by the Supreme Court," Schwener said.
 
    Some conservative Christian churches in Lawrence feel they have to be cautious about being critical of homosexuality for fear of turning away some members, said Chad Donohoe, Grace Evangelical Presbyterian Church college youth pastor.

    "I definitely believe that KU has influenced the culture of Lawrence as well as the churches within Lawrence," Donohoe said. 
    Even typically liberal states like California face a controversy over the issue of same-sex marriage.  On the November 4th ballot the citizens of California approved Proposition 8 that prohibited same-sex marriage.
 
    "When Proposition 8 was passed, it was almost a grieving session in California and around the U.S. for gays," said Jarvis, "This discrimination should not exist."

    Jarvis' extended family choose to get married before election day.

    The homosexual community felt that Proposition 8 took away civil rights from them.  Many same-sex couples who were married before Proposition 8 passed, questioned if their marriage was still considered valid, Jarvis said. 

     "Proposition 8 is an example of the majority oppressing the minority, the homosexuals in this case," Orosco said.

    Many people believe Proposition 8 was passed solely due advertisements that the Knights of Columbus and the Church of the Latter-Day Saints put together, said Jarvis.
 
    "Over $75,000,000 went into advertising to pass Proposition 8, and the ads were pretty much like propaganda where they said anything in order to get votes," said Jarvis.

    Professor Paul Zimdars-Swartz of the Department of Religious Studies with a specialty in Christianity agreed with Jarvis' ideas on the effects of the advertisements for Proposition 8.  He said that the black churches in California raised large amounts of money and placed it towards advertising.  Not only did Proposition 8 have the financial support from the black Christian community but more importantly it had their vote.
  
    The outcome in California was discouraging to Lawrence homosexuals who fear if liberal California won't do this than conservative Kansas never will, Zimdars-Swartz said. 

    Conservative church leaders in Lawrence supported the ban on same-sex marriage.

    "When given the chance to vote, I would vote to ban gay marriage," said Seth Davidson pastor of Vintage Church, "I do not want to live my life protesting gay marriage or any other singular issue.  I want to raise the banner of Jesus for all those who are sinful and far from God myself included."

    Christian leaders in Lawrence who oppose same-sex marriage and supporters of same-sex marriage seem to both agree that church and state should be divided.

    As a law student, Schwener said she felt like she understood the legal foundation of the nation and the tradition of church versus state.

    "Marriage to this day is one of the few times when religion and state overlap, and that is unconstitutional," Schwener said.


    Although Christians would prefer the law to follow their Biblical laws, church leaders understand this is unlikely, said Davidson.

    "I'm for the separation of church and state because when the church and state are married, the state wins and the church loses.  We as Christians are peculiar people, and therefore, I think we should stand outside of the state and politics," Davidson said.

    Zimdars-Swartz says the real question when it comes to same-sex marriage in relation to state is if same-sex marriage is a civil right.  If you believe that same-sex marriage is a right then the Supreme Court should not outlaw it he said.
 
     "My personal belief is that same-sex marriage is definitely a civil right.  And as a liberal Christian myself, that is not a view you typically hear a Christian say," said Zimdars-Swartz.
   
    Stephanie Thompson, Lenexa, junior feels torn between her Catholic ideals and her family member's choices.

    "I guess it is hard for me, I know what the church teaches in regards to homosexuality, but my aunt is a lesbian.  Do I think she should have more legal rights? Yes I do. But I believe God says homosexuality is wrong," she said.

    Only Massachusetts and Connecticut allow same-sex marriage.  Although these two states allow same-sex marriage the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) passed in 1996 under President Clinton's administration says that states that oppose same-sex are not required to recognize same-sex marriages conducted elsewhere.

    It seems ridiculous that some states allow same-sex marriage but yet other states do not, Orosco said.
 
    "It's a weird niche to be gay and a law student.  We're specializing in how people get rights and coincidentally we need them as well," said Jarvis.
 
    Schwener said she understands the difficulty religious people face when considering the issue of same-sex marriage.

    "I consider myself lucky," she said, "I am not split on religious ideas and personal thoughts.  Although I consider myself closest to agnosticism and I believe that religion and state can coexist."

    Pastor Davidson likes the separation.  He tells Christians to consult God first, and not be consumed with the ideas that society presents on an issue.
 
    "My faith informs my political beliefs, and not the other way around," he said, "I am first a citizen of heaven and then a citizen of America."

    The law can state one thing about homosexuality, but the conservative Christian Church  still turns back to scripture for the answers on controversial issues.
 
    Pastors Donohoe and Davidson believe that marriage is an institution that God created, and defined between one man and one woman.
 
    "Though I don't agree with the lifestyle nor with gay marriage, I don't think I can stand in the way of civil unions for homosexuals.  Humans are given free will, and those who do not have faith in Christ are not under His yoke or commands," Davidson said.
 
    However, Zimdars-Swartz says the liberal Christian viewpoint is different.

    "Liberal Christians, like myself who support same-sex marriage, do not have as much of an opportunity to speak in the public eye, simply because we are more tolerant," he said, "You don't get good publicity by being tolerant."


    Historically monumental church leaders like Augustine and Luther affirmed that marriage is between a man and a woman, but rarely discussed how the church should respond to homosexuality.
 
    Zimdars-Swartz studies' of sexuality within Christianity has lead him to the conclusion that Christians really object to male homosexuality because they are concerned that it feminises one of the males and this goes against nature.

    Depending on what scripture you use you can defend the liberal or conservative Christian viewpoints, Zimdars-Swartz said.
 
    "For the churches, this is such a hot topic in our day, and the culture in Lawrence is so quick to label you as a homophobe or bigot if you disagree with gay marriage," Donohoe said.

    "Sadly, the Christian church doesn't seem to be very accepting of gays and lesbians.  We accept fornicators, gluttons, and the prideful, but not homosexuals.  There is a difference between acceptance, approving of homosexuality, and accepting the people who are involved in the life-style.  We need to love and accept homosexuals and encourage them in their faith," Davidson said.

    Gays and lesbians tend to put a barrier up towards religious people due to the lack of acceptance.
 
    "After awhile I assume that a religious person will just not agree with me.  I can't tell you how many times I have been told I am going to hell because I support same-sex marriage," said Schwener.
 

   Different beliefs on homosexuality have caused a schism between church denominations, in Lawrence and nationally.
 
    For instance the Unitarians, and the United Church of Christ typically support same-sex marriages, according to Zimdars-Swartz.

    In the next few years Zimdars-Swartz believes that the Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians, and Episcopalians will all split internally over this issue.  In fact one  Episcopalians church already has a gay preacher, said Zimdars-Swartz.
 
    The differences within congregations on issues such as same-sex marriage are dividing members and causing large church discussions. 

    Donohoe believes that many members of his own congregation may not know what they really believe when it comes to homosexuality.

    "There's tremendous pressure to give in to the culture and the culture is very much in favor of gay marriage.   Some Christians look at the passages in the Bible and see the verses as being culturally conditioned and that they don't think sexual orientation is mandated for all people in all time," Davidson said.

    Students who support rights for homosexuals, see the potential for change. 

    Jarvis, who once lived in a gay community in Washington D.C., returned to Kansas with the hope of shaking up the uptight views on homosexuality, he said.

    "I mean honestly what I could I do, surrounded by all of my gay friends in Washington.  They all already support same-sex marriage," Jarvis said.