Royal Wedding 2011

LONDON (AP) -- An elegant, tiara-bedecked Kate Middleton swept down the aisle to marry Prince William at Westminster Abbey as fans packed the streets of London, hoping to snatch a glimpse of a historic royal wedding expected to revitalize the British monarchy.

Some 2 billion people across the globe were believed to have tuned in as the future king and queen of England started their lives as husband and wife with the two simple words "I will." The couple looked nervous but happy and recited their vows without stumbling before Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams.

A million well-wishers - as well as some protesters - flooded into the areas surrounding Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey and other London landmarks. Crowds were up at dawn waving flags for television cameras under steely gray skies and cool temperatures. Cheers erupted as huge television screens began broadcasting at Trafalgar Square and Hyde Park.

"Will, it's not too late!" said one sign held aloft by an admirer dressed as a bride.

Middleton's ivory wedding gown with lace applique was designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, while her hair was half-up, half-down and decorated with a tiara. William wore the scarlet tunic of an Irish Guards officer, sending a strong signal of support for the armed forces and reinforcing his new image as a dedicated military man.

Against all odds, the sun came out as Middleton emerged from the Rolls-Royce in her wedding gown.

William and Kate received their first royal wedding present from the queen on Friday: the titles duke and duchess of Cambridge.

Maid of honor Pippa Middleton wore a simple column dress and naturally styled hair, while best man Prince Harry was dressed in formal military attire. The flower girls, in cream dresses with full skirts and flowers in their hair, walked down hand-in-hand with Pippa.

The iconic abbey was airy and calm, the long aisle leading to the altar lined with maple and hornbeam trees as light streamed in through the high arched windows.

Plumage of Amazonian variety filled the cavernous abbey as some 1,900 guests filed in, the vast majority of women in hats, some a full two feet (.6 meters) across or high. Some looked like dinner plates. One woman wore a bright red fascinator that resembled a flame licking her cheek. A BBC commentator noted there were some "very odd choices" in fashion walking through the abbey door.

Most men, however, looked elegant and suave in long tails, some highlighted by formal plaid pants and vests. Others wore military uniforms.

All the clamoring over every detail - the wedding dress, her hair, their titles, the romantic kiss on the balcony, the honeymoon - was finally being answered. But the biggest question won't be resolved for years: Will this royal couple live happily ever after?

Will their union endure like that of William's grandparents - Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, now in its 64th year - or crumble in a spectacular and mortifying fashion like that of his own parents, Prince Charles and Princess Diana?

Recent history augurs badly: The first marriages of three of the queen's four children ended in divorce. But William and Kate seem to glow with happiness in each other's company, and unlike Charles and Diana they've had eight years to figure out that they want to be together.

Still, the fate of their marriage depends on private matters impossible for the public to gauge, since any wedding is fundamentally about two people. Will their lives together, starting with such high hopes, be blessed by good fortune, children, good health, productive work?

Much will depend on whether 28-year-old William and 29-year-old Kate can summon the things every couple needs: patience, love, wit and wisdom. But they face the twin burdens of fame and scrutiny. Money, power, beauty - it can all go wrong if not carefully nurtured.

These are the thorny issues upon which the fate of the monarchy rests, as the remarkable queen, now 85, inevitably ages and declines.

After the church ceremony, the royal-couple will travel from the abbey to Buckingham Palace in an open-topped carriage for two parties, one hosted by the queen for 650 guests, and an evening dinner dance for 300 close friends.

Queen Elizabeth II and her husband Prince Philip have promised to go away for the evening, leaving the younger royals free to party the night away- and Harry to make his best man's speech away from his octogenarian grandparents' ears.

Hundreds of street parties were underway as Britons celebrated part of the heritage that makes them unique - and overseas visitors come to witness traditions they've admired from afar.

Brenda Hunt-Stevenson, a 56-year-old retired teacher from Newfoundland, Canada, said there was only one thing on her mind. "I want to see that kiss on that balcony. That's going to clinch it for me. I don't care what Kate wears. She is beautiful anyway."

The celebration was British to the core, from the freshly polished horse-drawn carriages to the sausages and lager served at street parties. Some pubs were opening early, offering beer and English breakfasts - sausages, beans, toast, fried eggs and bacon.

A number of famous people were left off the guest list, including President Barack Obama and Britain's last two prime ministers, Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, in a snub to their Labour Party, which is not as strong a backer of the monarchy as the ruling Conservatives. The invitation for Syria's ambassador was rescinded because of Britain's unhappiness with the bloody government crackdown there.

The public festivities reflected Britons' continuing fascination with the royal family, which despite its foibles remains a powerful symbol of unity and pride.

"It's very exciting," Prime Minister David Cameron said before he entered the church. "I went on to the mall last night and met some people sleeping on the streets. There's a sense of excitement that you can't really put a word to ... It's a chance to celebrate."

The royals fervently hope that a joyous union for the second-in-line to the British throne will rub out the squalid memories of his parents embarrassing each other and the nation with confessions of adultery as their marriage slid toward divorce.

And there is no small irony in the sight of Americans waking up before dawn (on the East Coast) or staying up all night (West Coast) after their fellow countrymen fought so fiercely centuries ago to throw off the yoke of the British monarchy and proclaim a country in which all men are created equal.

Brenda Mordic, 61, from Columbus, Georgia, clutched a Union Jack with her friend Annette Adams, 66.

"We came for the excitement of everything," Mordic said. "We watched William grow up. I came for Prince Charles' wedding to Diana and I came for Princess Diana's funeral. We love royalty England and London."

Check out the article at The Advocate.

It's always cool to see history being made!

Be sure to check out Fox News' Royal Wedding feature

Check out today's Google art:

Late Mardi Gras meets Spring Break for Rowdy Fete!

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Gray skies couldn't dampen the spirit as Mardi Gras revelers partied on Fat Tuesday in waves of parading, costuming, drinking - and political commentary.

Some bared flesh and threw beads on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter, while others wore costumes lampooning the BP oil spill or other headline-grabbing events. Overall, this year's Carnival season has been among the most raucous since Hurricane Katrina, partly because it overlaps with many colleges' spring breaks.

Clarinetist Pete Fountain kicked off street parading shortly after dawn with his marching group. The traditionally African-American Krewe of Zulu and the parade of Rex, King of Carnival, followed. Mayor Mitch Landrieu led Zulu on horseback before dismounting at the antebellum-columned Gallier Hall for champagne toasts with Mardi Gras royalty.

The party would go on until midnight, when Carnival is replaced by the Christian season of Lent.

For many, the fun came in watching costumed partiers - and their themes.

A troupe of black-clad skeletons known as a Bone Gang paraded through the streets in a tradition dating from the 1800s that has voodoo overtones.

"The idea is it's kind of a warning for people in the neighborhoods, for the children in particular, to live right because we're all going to die," said Michael Crutcher, a Bone Gang member and college instructor.

In the Treme neighborhood, Ashley Scharfenstein, 24, dressed as a peacock with a black corset. She was jiving to the music at the street party, then strolled off to the French Quarter.

"Wherever the music takes us, we're going," she said.

Other costumed groups added political barbs to their revelry.

In Bywater, walking clubs gathered for the annual saunter to the Quarter known as the St. Anne's parade.

"This is what Mardi Gras is all about, lampooning," said Pat Kent, a retired hospital executive clad as a gun-toting priest. He and a friend were going as the "krewe of guns in church."

"Today I'm packing for Jesus," he said. Kent said his costume was in protest of a new Louisiana law allowing people to carry weapons in church.

Nearby, the occasional clown, a Moammar Ghadafi lookalike, women in flowing dresses and a Roman soldier gathered.

In the French Quarter, satire was in bloom as maskers took aim at last year's BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Allen Logue, 58, was clad as a one-man oil spill clean-up crew. The oil field consultant from Barataria, La., didn't have to do much shopping to build his costume. He already had a hard-hat helmet and BP-branded sweat shirt from work he did for the company in Alaska.

"The only thing I had to shop for was the Jim Beam and that was to ease the pain of the oil spill," Logue said.

Logue also carried super-absorbent kitchen napkins to clean any mess he might encounter, though the most likely spill on Bourbon Street would be beer and not crude oil.

For Paul and Amy Maudive of Long Beach, Calif., coming to Mardi Gras has been a tradition since 1976. Each year they dress in an Elvis-themed costume. After Hurricane Katrina they wrapped themselves in the blue tarps that covered so many blown-away rooftops, and last year they billed themselves as Elvitar, in tribute to the movie "Avatar."

This year, they were all oil spill.

Dressed in oil-stained jumpsuits with Elvis-style capes, they'd glued plastic birds and crabs to their costumes.

Sylvia Beyer, 57, of New Orleans led a group of 5 women in grass skirts and hats with the BP logo. On the back of their shirts were slogans, such as Broken Promises, Brazen Polluters and Bloody Pathetic. As they walked along, they passed out makeshift voodoo dolls with a photo of former BP CEO Tony Hayward pasted to each.

"We just wanted to stick it to BP. We put more time into these costumes than BP did in their disaster plan," Beyer said.

Hal and Sharon Moser of New Orleans mocked the new national healthcare program with their outfits. Hal Moser strolled along Bourbon Street dressed in a hospital gown with bloody bandages and a fake ax pasted to his head. "I've got a split-open headache from it," Moser said. His wife dressed as a nurse.

The Transportation Security Administration also took hits. One group outfitted as TSA inspectors carried signs referring to body cavity searches.

John Chapman of Mandeville, La., tried a different approach. He dressed as a Chilean miner, complete with an escape pod attached to his back.

Locals were in a triumphant mood, and not without reason.

New Orleans - America's poster child of disaster - has come a long way since Hurricane Katrina. Its beloved New Orleans Saints won the Super Bowl last year and it has largely overcome the disaster of the BP oil spill.

This year, the timing of Mardi Gras helped. It fell later than usual and coincides with spring break for college students. Students have been out in force - giving more punch to the annual pre-Lenten celebration.

Two friends on spring break from Wilmington College made a 12-hour drive from Ohio.

Garret Lingoe, 21, a junior, clutched a beer at midmorning Tuesday as he talked in awe of Mardi Gras. "I didn't know I was coming here until about 5 days ago and I'm sure happy I did."

Seth Howard, a 23-year-old senior, echoed his sentiments. "Everybody down here is just so nice and laid back."

Ali Miller, 23, an early childhood education major at Southeastern Louisiana University, was jubilant as she walked Tuesday morning after a long night of drinking in the French Quarter.

"There is nothing like New Orleans," she said. "I would never ever want to grow up anywhere but here! And Mardi Gras is the craziest time you could ever have in life - I don't know what else to say."

Mardi Gras was being celebrated across the Gulf Coast, in cities including Mobile, Ala., and Biloxi, Miss. In the Cajun country of southwest Louisiana, masked riders on horseback continued the tradition of riding from town to town making merry along the way.

Check out the article at WAFB.com.

Happy Mardi Gras!!!

Spanish Town Mardi Gras 2011

The Spanish Town Mardi Gras Parade is always full of surprises, even for its organizers.

“I don’t know what to expect sometimes, and that’s the neat thing about it,” Bruce Childers, president of the Spanish Town Mardi Gras Association said last week. “It’s not the pomp and circumstance that you might find in a New Orleans big-time parade, the real nice floats, that’s great and everything, but we’ve always wanted to gear this parade to the working guy, the average Joe, let’s say, and leave it up to the imagination. We give them a theme to play with, and the talents take it from there.”

The ever-popular and often politically incorrect parade pokes jabs at everyone from politicians to big-name corporations, this year’s target being British Petroleum. The theme is “BP Blows and Wiki Leaks.”

“We chose this year’s theme because it was more or less a current event, but we certainly haven’t lost sight of the fact that there was a loss of life in there, so we’re not trying to minimize the effects that the BP disaster had on family members and friends,” Childers said. “Our hearts go out to them, truly, we wish we wouldn’t have had this theme, to be honest with you.”

The parade, which will roll through downtown and Spanish Town Saturday, will honor Zappe Endeavors (Zappe’s potato chips) founder Ron Zappe, who passed away in June.

“He was such a supporter of ours,” Childers said. “He played a big role in the parade, of course, was in the parade every year, and helped us in some financing from time to time.”

Childers also explained that in the midst of all the carnival mayhem, this is a charitable event raising money for local causes. The money is generated from parade float entry fees and tickets to the association’s annual ball.

“And we had a very successful ball this year, so we’re ending up with a little more money for the charities. We did well.”

Childers also had some advice for where not to catch the parade.

“I don’t think you want to get on Spanish Town Road, because that’s pretty much standing room only. We do have an area by the St. James (Episcopal) Church on Convention Street that is the alcohol-free family zone. And also, they’re doubling up with the Smoke-Free America. We’re actually the first in the state, maybe in the nation, to provide a zone such as the alcohol-free zone, and now this is the first year that the Smoke-Free America has gotten involved with that area.”

Childers said that barricaded area is very popular, and there haven’t been any problems with people conforming to the rules for that space.

With the parade only a day away, Childers is looking upward.

“I’m wishing and hoping and trying to dial up a good day weather-wise.”

Check out the article at The Advocate.

Looks like it's gonna be a wet one... but, who cares? Party on!!! =D

Challenger Shuttle Disaster: 25 Years Later

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — For many, no single word evokes as much pain.

Challenger.

A quarter-century later, images of the exploding space shuttle still signify all that can go wrong with technology and the sharpest minds. The accident on Jan. 28, 1986 — a scant 73 seconds into flight, nine miles above the Atlantic for all to see — remains NASA’s most visible failure.

It was the world’s first high-tech catastrophe to unfold on live TV. Adding to the anguish was the young audience: Schoolchildren everywhere tuned in that morning to watch the launch of the first schoolteacher and ordinary citizen bound for space, Christa McAuliffe.

She never made it.

McAuliffe and six others on board perished as the cameras rolled, victims of stiff O-ring seals and feeble bureaucratic decisions.

It was, as one grief and trauma expert recalls, "the beginning of the age when the whole world knew what happened as it happened."

"That was kind of our pilot study for all the rest to come, I think. It was so ghastly," said Sally Karioth, a professor in Florida State University’s school of nursing.

The crew compartment shot out of the fireball, intact, and continued upward another three miles before plummeting. The free fall lasted more than two minutes. There was no parachute to slow the descent, no escape system whatsoever; NASA had skipped all that in shuttle development. Space travel was considered so ordinary, in fact, that the Challenger seven wore little more than blue coveralls and skimpy motorcycle-type helmets for takeoff.

In a horrific flash, the most diverse space crew ever — including one black, one Japanese-American and two women, one of them a Jew — was gone. The name of NASA’s second oldest shuttle was forever locked in a where-were-you moment.

"You say ‘Challenger’ and then we see that figure of smoke in the sky," said Karioth, who teaches death and dying classes.

There has been a growing list of calamities since then.

Waco. Oklahoma City. Columbine. 9/11. Shuttle Columbia. Katrina. Virginia Tech. And now, Tucson.

With so much carnage, another space catastrophe wouldn’t have the same impact as Challenger, Karioth noted. "We’re used to everybody dying now," she said.

Surly bonds of Earth

The death of a young, vivacious schoolteacher, combined with NASA’s stubborn refusal to share information about the accident and the realization that America’s space program was fallible, added to the nation’s collective pain.

President Ronald Reagan’s poetic tribute soothed the day’s raw emotions.

"The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives," Reagan told a grieving nation after canceling that night’s State of the Union address. "We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and ‘slipped the surly bonds of Earth’ to ‘touch the face of God.’"

NASA safely had launched shuttles 24 times before, and a sense of routine and hurry-it-up had crept in. The space agency wanted to pull off 15 missions in 1986. Repeated delays with Columbia on that year’s first flight and then with Challenger were spoiling the effort.

The first federal Martin Luther King holiday had just been observed. NASA’s Voyager 2 probe, flying farther than any previous spacecraft, had swung past Uranus, discovering 10 new moons. "That’s What Friends Are For," the AIDS charity anthem, topped the music charts. And a 37-year-old schoolteacher from Concord, N.H., was about to rocket into orbit.

"Imagine a history teacher making history," McAuliffe observed before the flight. She got an apple from a technician atop the ice-encrusted launch pad, before boarding Challenger one final time.

In the 20s at daybreak, the temperature had risen only into the mid-30s by the time Challenger blasted off at 11:38 a.m. "Go at throttle up," radioed commander Francis "Dick" Scobee.

What happened next was unthinkable, his widow says.

"It was really a shock wave that went across our country and around the world," June Scobee Rodgers said in an interview this week with The Associated Press. "People witnessed the loss of Challenger over and over on their televisions."

Dick Scobee. Michael Smith. Ellison Onizuka. Judith Resnik. Ronald McNair. Christa McAuliffe. Gregory Jarvis. The first of the shuttle astronauts to die on the job.

Columbia and beyond

Seventeen years later, almost to the day, seven more astronauts were killed, this time at the end of their mission. Instead of booster rockets and freezing launch weather, fuel-tank foam insulation was to blame. The similarities between Challenger and Columbia, though, were haunting. Another multiethnic crew lost, more poor decision-making, an intolerant work culture, drum-beating pressure to launch.

This week, as NASA observes the 25th anniversary of the Challenger disaster, the shuttle fleet is grounded once more. Fuel tank cracking is the latest culprit.

NASA hopes to get Discovery flying by the end of February. Endeavour — Challenger’s replacement — will follow in April. It will fly with or without commander Mark Kelly, who’s tending to his wounded wife, Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot Jan. 8 in Tucson. Atlantis will close out the 30-year shuttle program with a summertime flight, No. 135.

Shuttle program manager John Shannon prefers not "to compare and contrast" the Challenger era and now. But he points out that he’s felt "zero pressure" to rush the remaining flights, even though "we kind of get beat up a little bit" in some quarters for all the delays.

Roger Launius, a senior curator at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, says: "When we look back 50 years from now on the shuttle program, we are going to view it as this remarkable technological achievement. The one and only reusable human space vehicle in the world. And it had a remarkable run for 30 years. Some tragedies along the way, but enormous successes as well."

For their part, the families of the lost Challenger crew dwell on the good that came out of the accident: a network of education centers. The 48th Challenger Learning Center opens Friday in Louisville, Ky.

Widower speaks out

On Thursday, Steven J. McAuliffe, the widower of Christa McAuliffe, said in a statement that remembrances by people across the country are "both comforting and inspirational to our family."

McAuliffe, a federal judge in Concord, N.H., said, "Christa confidently and joyfully embraced life, no less than her friends and colleagues on Challenger, and no less than the crews of Columbia, Apollo 1, and all of those people who courageously follow their own paths every day. I know Christa would say that that is the most precious lesson — ordinary people can make extraordinary contributions ..."

He said she would be especially pleased by the Challenger Center for Space Science Education. Dick Scobee’s widow, June Rodgers, is an educator and founding board chairman of the center.

As she has on every Challenger anniversary, Rodgers will visit a learning center to watch the children in action. First, she will take part in NASA’s public memorial service Friday morning at Kennedy Space Center, some 10 miles from Challenger’s grave. The remains of the spacecraft — what was retrieved from the ocean — are buried in a pair of abandoned missile silos on Air Force property.

"I wonder if it’s because the image is so ingrained in our brains, that it seems like yesterday," Rodgers said.

Almost as many years have passed since the accident, as the span of her 26-year marriage to Dick Scobee.

"Isn’t it interesting about the number 25?" she asked softly. "Challenger was the 25th mission. This is 25 years."

A full generation has come and gone.

Check out the article at MSNBC.

25 YEARS??? Has it really been that long? I remember very well sitting in my fourth grade classroom watching on TV... what a sad day that was.

I found a very interesting article worth reading: 7 Myths about the Challenger Shuttle Disaster.

Optimism Building for 2011 Tiger Football!!!

In the LSU football history book, the 2010 season will be remembered for a lot of things.

An 11-2 record that included single-digit road losses to two BCS bowl teams and ended with a convincing victory against Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl followed by another top-10 national ranking, the conclusion of the careers of a handful of players who etched their places in Tigers history, a head coach reaffirming his commitment to the program and an embattled offensive coordinator walking away and opening the door to a new beginning.

Now with his LSU tenure entering a new phase and a new offensive wingman at his side, Les Miles is ready to move onto a new season.

And 2011 — while there are questions and uncertainty to navigate — sets up as another potential watershed season for the Tigers and Miles.

Miles didn’t shy away from those expectations Friday when he made reference to big games in New Orleans and LSU playing in them recently. The BCS title game will be in New Orleans next January — and LSU won the 2003 and 2007 BCS national championships in the Superdome.

Is there reason for Miles to set lofty goals for his team that next fall has to replace three starters on offense, four on defense and three primary contributors on special teams?

Apparently so.

Writers from CBSsports.com and SportingNews.com have pegged the Tigers No. 1 in preseason polls.

And after affirming his ties to Baton Rouge after the chance to coach his alma mater at Michigan passed for the second time in four years and by hiring Steve Kragthorpe as the new offensive coordinator, Miles seems emboldened when he talks about the future.

It doesn’t hurt that the Tigers head into this offseason of high hopes off one of their best performances since the 2007 BCS national championship game, a 41-24 win over Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl.

“Our team plays (well) in big games, and that was a big game,” Miles said.

Now the transition begins, with several young players poised to jump into new roles and Miles ready to adjust to Kragthorpe as the two take aim at reinvigorating an offense that has been a rusty wheel most of the last two seasons.

Kragthorpe is emblematic of a fresh start, but Miles said his philosophy is the same. He said an optimal offense would generate 250 passing yards and 200 rushing.

The last two seasons, the Tigers have been off-kilter on what Miles desires. Last fall, LSU rushed for 185.7 yards per game and passed for 155.6. In 2009, those numbers were reversed and worse overall: 122.8 rushing and 181.8 passing.

“I have always had an offense that had balance, both the run and the pass,” Miles said. “In every meaningful down and distance, it’s always been, for me, the opportunity to throw and to run.

“It was never about run first, and throw second. I’m going to be the first one to tell you, when you’re down 14 and it’s late in the game, we’ll throw damn near every down. And when we’re up 14 and it’s late in the game, many times we will use the clock and eliminate the opponent by running the football. Those are the things a quality offense has the ability to do.

“In a season where you win 11, I think the opportunity to close out some games like we did running the football probably skews the view a little. I am a balanced run-and-pass guy, and it shouldn’t be looked at any other way.”

For the Tigers to approach the 250/200 goals Miles set, Kragthorpe’s role will be key.

The new coordinator and quarterbacks coach will have veterans to work with, but veterans Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee have been inconsistent and newcomer Zach Mettenberger has yet to take a snap at the FBS level.

“I think it’s a great hire,” Miles said about Kragthorpe. “I talked to an offensive coordinator in the NFL (Friday) morning and he said ‘Man that’s a great hire. He’s a guy that has a great reputation for the ability to improve your quarterback.’ Now that is just what we need.”

Jefferson has started 27 of the last 28 games and has thrown for 3,996 yards and 28 touchdowns. Lee produced 1,873 yards and 14 TDs in 2008 and contributed 573 yards in spot duty this season. Mettenberger, who began his college career at Georgia, spent the 2010 season at Butler County (Kan.) Community College and passed for 2,678 yards and 32 scores in 12 games.

“To me, there’s going to be some competition at the quarterback spot; there’s no question,” Miles said.

“I think I’ve always been a guy who enjoys competition. I do recognize the experience that Jordan Jefferson has. … We’re going to go into the spring to improve our football team at quarterback and at every position.”

It’s also possible LSU could again operate with a two-quarterback system.

“The issue becomes is that quarterback that stays on the field the entire time giving you all the abilities to win the game, period?” Miles said. “And is it best for your football team to have him to take every snap, period? Those are the questions we have to ask and then answer as we move forward in the spring and then next fall.”

Quarterback isn’t the only focus for Miles and Kragthorpe.

With Stevan Ridley’s early departure to the NFL draft, the running back position is wide open.

Ridley plowed for 1,147 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2010 and when the Tigers needed tough yards — and when the defense knew a running play was coming — he was almost always the ball carrier.

Now that role is open, with rising sophomores Michael Ford, Spencer Ware and Alfred Blue in the running. Incoming freshman Kenny Hilliard will also get a shot.

“The tailbacks that are on campus will have a great opportunity to play, including those guys in the freshman class that are coming in,” Miles said. “The need for a quality back to step in there and come out of the freshman class is very sincere.

“It’s going to be interesting to see who the best tailback is.”

Revamping a defense that loses Kelvin Sheppard, Patrick Peterson, Drake Nevis and Pep Levingston will be a different challenge. But having the defensive coaching staff intact for a third year in a row is a benefit.

Miles’ eyes lit up when he rattled off the names of the next wave of defensive leaders, many of whom jumped into the thick of things this season: Ryan Baker, Sam Montgomery, Mo Claiborne, Tyrann Mathieu, Eric Reid and Tharold Simon.

One of the players who has moved on understands Miles’ excitement.

“I’m going to be watching those guys,” Peterson said earlier this month when he announced he was leaving for the NFL. “They’ve got a chance to be really good. When you lose guys like Shep and Drake and Pep and me, that’s tough. But they have a chance to be just as good or better, because those are some talented guys.”

Talented guys ready for the next challenge, just like their coach.

Check out the article at The Advocate.

Can't wait 'til next season!!! GEAUX TIGERS!!!

Tigers and Aggies finally meet in Cotton Bowl!

ARLINGTON, Texas - LSU will be after its fourth 11-win season under head coach Les Miles tonight when the 11th-ranked Tigers face Texas A&M in the 75th AT&T Cotton Bowl here at Cowboys Stadium.

Kickoff between the Tigers and the Aggies is set for 7:29 p.m. and the game will be broadcast to a national audience on FOX with Kenny Albert and Daryl Johnston on the call.  The game can be also heard on the LSU Sports Radio Network as well as in the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net with Jim Hawthorne, Doug Moreau and Jordy Hultberg calling the action.

LSU brings a 10-2 overall mark into the contest, while the Aggies are 9-3. Tonight's meeting is the first between the teams since 1995 and the 50th overall between the schools. LSU leads the overall series 26-20-3, but the Aggies have won five straight and six of the last seven games between the teams. LSU's last win over Texas A&M came in Tiger Stadium in 1990 by a 17-8 count.

LSU is making its school-record 11th straight bowl appearance with six of those coming under Miles. The Tigers are 4-1 in bowl games under Miles, which includes a pair of victories in BCS bowl. Miles ranks second in school history in bowl appearances (6) and bowl victories (4), trailing on Charles McClendon, who led the Tigers to 13 bowl games and seven bowl wins during his 18 seasons in Baton Rouge.

Tonight marks the end of a week that has seen the Tigers enjoy great hospitality from the Cotton Bowl in a city that has rolled out the red carpet for LSU.

"This has been a great week and a tremendous experience for our team and the fans," Miles said. "The Cotton Bowl has gone out of their way to provide a great bowl week for the players and families. We are grateful for the wonderful hospitality that we've been shown this week by the Cotton Bowl and the city of Dallas.

"Now it's time to go out and do what we came here for and that's to play well against a very good Texas A&M team"

Tonight's game marks the culmination of a month's worth of preparation for the Tigers, one that has seen LSU practice five times in Cowboys Stadium.

"We've had really good preparation," Miles said. "I like our game plan and I think the players are ready to go out and execute our plan. The focus this week has been really good. I think our players are focused and ready to go out and lay it on the line for victory in the Cotton Bowl."

If the Tigers are going to have success tonight, they will have to do it with balance on offense and with a defense that must be ready to stop a high-powered Aggie offense. The Aggies go in to tonight's game having won six straight, which includes victories over Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska, Texas Tech, Baylor and Kansas.

"This Texas A&M team is very good in all phases of the game," Miles said. "On offense, they can throw it and run it and on defense they are very physical and do a good job of getting to the ball. We are going to have to be sound in all three phases of the game to have success."

Offensively, the Tigers will likely look to running back Stevan Ridley to set the tone early as the junior leads the team and ranks fourth in the conference in rushing yards with 1,042 and 14 touchdowns. Ridley and the rest of the Tiger runners should get a boost from the offensive line as Alex Hurst (ankle) and Will Blackwell (ankle) are both back at full strength after missing time late in the year due to injuries. Hurst will start at right tackle, while Blackwell and T-Bob Hebert will split time at right guard.

Quarterback Jordan Jefferson will make his third consecutive start in a bowl game tonight against the Aggies. Jefferson, who also started bowl games against Georgia Tech and Penn State, has thrown for 1,253 yards and four scores this year. He's also added 383 yards and six rushing TDs for the Tigers.

Jefferson and the Tiger offense will face an A&M squad that is allowing just 20.3 points and 357.5 yards per game.

When the Aggies have the ball, they will face a Tiger defense that ranks in the top 10 in the nation in three categories - scoring (17.8), total defense (301.7) and pass defense (165.8).

Linebacker Kelvin Sheppard, a first team All-SEC pick, leads the Tigers with 108 tackles, while second-team All-America Drake Nevis is first on the team in both tackles for losses (13.0) and sacks (6.0). LSU's all-everything cornerback Patrick Peterson has 36 tackles, four interceptions and six pass breakups to his credit as he's the leader of the LSU secondary.

The Tiger defense will have to find a way to slow Texsas A&M running back Cyrus Gray, who has rushed for 1,033 yards and 12 touchdowns. Aggies quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who started the year at wide receiver, has flourished since changing positions midway through the year. Tannehill has thrown for 1,434 yards and 11 scores in leading the Aggies to a 5-0 mark as the starting quarterback.

No LSU game would be complete without some type of special teams highlight. Kicker Josh Jasper, a first team All-America, leads the nation with 26 field goals and he's also successfully executed three fakes - one field goal and two punts - this year.

Peterson, who also doubles as LSU's return specialist, has returned two punts for touchdowns and ranks among the national leaders with 16.1 yards a return. Peterson set the LSU single-season record for kickoff returns yards with 851 and a 29.3 average.

"We excited to finally get the game here and play," Miles said. "It seems like it's been forever since we last played a game. I know that our team is ready to go out and finish this season with a strong performance."

Check out the article at LSU Sports.net.

GEAUX TIGERS!!!

One Year in Forty Seconds!

What an AWESOME compilation!!! Be sure to check out Eirik's post on how he made it!

Engineering Marvel!

Workers carefully lowered the final girder into place Wednesday for the John James Audubon Bridge over the Mississippi River, linking Pointe Coupee and West Feliciana parishes with a ribbon of steel and concrete rather than just a ferry crossing.

Opposing spans of the bridge gradually have extended from the east and west banks for most of this year and finally neared each other within the past week.

“We set one girder last night, so we know it fits,” Project Manager Frank Daams joked as workers prepared to lay the girder on the downstream side of the span Wednesday morning.

Bridge workers paused for photographs in front of the 45,000-pound steel beam before a crane moved it into place with guidance from a construction crew on the deck. The girder was decorated with a large banner noting the milestone.

The main span — 1,583 feet in length — is the longest cable-stayed span in the Western Hemisphere.

“It’s an engineering marvel,” said Richard Savoie, chief of the state Department of Transportation and Development’s engineering section.

Savoie said the key features of the bridge are the two 500-foot-tall towers built a short distance from each bank and their foundations, which extend deep into the river bottom. The massive cables that hold the bridge deck and girders in place are anchored to the towers.

The cable-stay design allows the bridge to cross a busy waterway without causing any hindrance to the barge traffic passing beneath, Savoie said.

“It doesn’t hinder commerce at all,” he said.

Motor vehicles now cross the river between New Roads and St. Francisville on a ferry that will cease operations when the bridge opens.

Louisiana voters approved the bridge and 15 other projects in 1989 in a package called the Transportation Infrastructure Model for Economic Development, known as TIMED, and funded by a 4-cent-per-gallon gasoline tax.

Audubon Bridge Constructors, a joint venture of Flatiron Corp., Granite Construction and Parsons Transportation Group, won the competition to both design and build the bridge.

Work began in May 2006, and Louisiana TIMED Managers, consultants for DOTD, now estimate the project will be finished in late 2011, spokesman Bill Grass said.

Grass said the most recent cost estimate for the bridge is $409 million.

Although the spans are now connected about 130 feet above the middle of the river, the bridge still is not accessible to vehicular traffic because additional work is needed to complete the deck.

Now that the spans are connected, “a lot of adjustments” will be needed to the alignment, Daams said, and the remaining opening between the two sections may not be completely bridged until next week.

“The east span has been pulled back a bit. We’ll let it come back tomorrow,” Daams said.

While crews worked to tie the spans together, other workers were busy preparing the additional cables that will be attached to the new girders.

The total length of the bridge and its approaches will be 2.44 miles, consisting of four lanes with 8-foot outside shoulders and 2-foot inside shoulders, according to an LTM news release.vThe project also includes 12 miles of new roadways that will connect U.S. 61 in West Feliciana Parish to La. 1 in New Roads. The route required construction of seven smaller bridges on the east bank.

The new 9-mile La. 10 connector in Pointe Coupee offers better access to three existing roads, La. 1, La. 10’s business route and La. 981, an LTM news release says.

The Pointe Coupee section may open for local traffic in January or February, Grass said.

“I think this is fabulous. This is a big moment for West Feliciana and Pointe Coupee parishes, and really the whole Zachary Taylor Parkway,” said Scot Byrd, economic development director for the Greater Pointe Coupee Chamber of Commerce.

The bridge is the centerpiece of the proposed parkway, for which supporters envision having La. 1 and La. 10 widened to four lanes between Alexandria and Interstate 59 in Mississippi.

The Audubon bridge is the eighth Mississippi River crossing wholly within Louisiana, the LTM news release says, while bridges also cross between Louisiana and Mississippi at Natchez and Vicksburg.

The Louisiana Legislature named the bridge after John James Audubon, who painted 32 of his “Birds of America” series while residing at Oakley Plantation in St. Francisville in 1821.

A movement is under way to rename the span in honor of Lt. Gen. John A. Lejeune, of Pointe Coupee Parish, and Gen. Robert H. Barrow, of West Feliciana, the 13th and 27th commandants of the U.S. Marine Corps, respectively.

Check out the article at The Advocate.

What an impressive display of engineering this is! I can't wait to drive across it once it's completed!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas has had a long and varied history. It was been celebrated for centuries by different people, at different times, in different places, and in many different ways. Here you will find links to information about the different ways that the holiday we know as Christmas has been celebrated, or not celebrated, over the years.

Check out The Real Story of Christmas at History.com.

Regardless of the very interesting origins and history behind it, Christmas is a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. While we're enjoying all of our gifts and traditions, let us not forget the real reason for the season!

Merry Christmas!

Rare Lunar Eclipse on Winter Solstice!

Monday night or early Tuesday morning, depending on your location, many around the world were able to witness a phenomenal and rare total lunar clips, watching as the Earth passed directly between the sun and the full moon, shrouding it in shadow and transforming the white image into a stunning deep red glow. The event was especially significant as it coincided with the winter solstice, something that hasn't occurred in 372 years, and won't come around again until 2094.

Check out the article at The Huffington Post.

Well, I'm not sure how the cloud cover affected our local area, cuz I crashed before midnight! =( Oh well, the pics sure do look cool!

A Date Which Lives in Infamy

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii – As a gentle breeze binds the scent of oil and tropical air, Paul Rom rises from his wheelchair and grabs hold of the rail. The sky and water nearly match in brilliant blue and just feet a way an American flag whips atop the mast of ship still watching over the harbor. With a little help Paul gazes just to his left, the front gun turret rusted, but visible above the water and the smells from 'the tears of the Arizona' drift up from below. For Paul, a native of the Bronx, this is his first and likely last trip back to Pearl Harbor since his service so many years ago and he has come at a time many in this dying club will say their final goodbye's.

They all have stories. From swimming through oil infested waters ablaze from explosions, to serving on other parts of the island...watching in horror as the Japanese surprise attack 69 years ago killed more than 2,400 of their friends and colleagues, including children and other civilians. For so many the years have gone by so fast and you can literally see the memories on their faces as they go into a near trance while looking over the site. All around the island and around this harbor bombs fell and gunfire ripped through everything in site. Two hours and two waves of Japanese planes later, 188 U.S. aircraft and 21 ships were either destroyed, or severely damaged and we had been brutally thrust into the war in the Pacific.

We have come here for the 69th commemoration at Pearl Harbor for two reasons...the obvious is the memorial that will be attended by about 100 survivors and their last official visit here, but also to witness the dedication of a brand new facility to remember their fight and America's resolve. You see four years ago when we came for the 65th anniversary, our crew noticed the visitors center had seen better days and that's putting it lightly. Big chunks of concrete had fallen from numerous areas and parts of the center were literally sinking back into Pearl Harbor. A fund had been established and every effort was being made to raise 50-million dollars to replace a museum and site that had seen much better days. We pitched the story idea and planned a return.

Just a few months later, we would be back at Pearl Harbor and tell the story and the efforts being made to rebuild before the last survivors were gone and many of you donated money to see that the project would be finished in time. Thankfully the money came in and the center was replaced, so we get another humbling opportunity to meet the survivors and their families as they come to see the new place and remember those lost. First and foremost this is all about seeing the men and women of the great generation and secondly to see the site that will ensure their efforts and fight will not be forgotten. As Park Ranger Candace Francis says "If we don't remember what happens, we do lose our past."

I will say this...if you haven't been here to see this amazing site before, the new World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument/Pearl Harbor Visitor Center is more than a must-see. If you have been here, you will not recognize the place on a return trip. The facility is downright beautiful and open and gives the visitor the feel of a modern, yet nostalgic trip through time. The new Museum is interactive and spectacular, boasting artifacts from the attack like a ripped open Japanese torpedo, or a door from inside the USS Arizona. There are theaters, pictures, interviews with survivors, a research education center and openness that allows all who come here to peacefully reflect. The site couldn't be more impressive for a group of men and women that witnessed one of the most horrifying, yet historic events in American history.

Check out the article at Fox News.

Never forget what our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers went through for this country! Learn their history, or it will fade away...

Check out the Pearl Harbor Multimedia Map and Timeline at National Geographic.

Check out the article at Wikipedia.

Get the historical facts surrounding Pearl Harbor at The Naval Historical Center.

LSU to go Cotton Pickin’

What was rumored for a week and considered almost a foregone conclusion once Texas A&M snared the opposite spot finally came to fruition Sunday.

LSU and the Aggies are ready to renew an old gridiron grudge match that has sat dormant for 15 seasons.

The 11th-ranked Tigers (10-2) and No. 18 Texas A&M (9-3) will tangle in the 75th Cotton Bowl at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Jan. 7. The game kicks off at 7 p.m. that Friday and is the only bowl game on that date.

Played at the home of the Jerry Jones-owned Dallas Cowboys, the bowl game is the renewal of a series that dates back to 1899 but hasn’t been played since the 1995 season opener.

LSU and the Aggies have played 49 times, but the series stopped after 1995 for a variety of reasons — and depending on who you ask about it.

There have been rumblings for years that LSU officials not only backed out of the series after losing a fifth straight game to the Aggies, but also have not paid a beefy withdrawal fee contractually required to end the series.

Regardless of what bad blood might remain, the Tigers and A&M don’t have to worry about contracts or money owed 32 days from now. The only thing on the menu will be football in a stadium considered one of the largest and most opulent in the world.

Cowboys Stadium is also the site of Super Bowl XLIV on Feb. 6 and is where LSU will open the 2011 season when it tangles with Oregon on Sept. 3.

“This will be a wonderful setting to showcase our talents in prime time with two really good teams,” said LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson, who will likely play his final game for the Tigers. He is projected as a top-10 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. “It’s going to be a lot of fun, especially with our fans coming into ‘Jerry World.’ I am looking forward to it, and I can’t wait until we get down there after New Year’s. I want our fans to come out too. It will be a blast for them.”

Tailback Stevan Ridley added: “Playing in the Cotton Bowl in Cowboys Stadium is going to be an awesome experience. Any time you play a team outside your conference, especially a team the caliber of Texas A&M, it gets you fired up. They come from a competitive conference in the Big 12, and I’m sure they will pack the place with their fans nearby. I hope our fans can grab up some tickets too. It’s going to be a special experience playing in a stadium that size.”

LSU is in the Cotton Bowl for the fifth time overall and the first time since losing to Texas 35-20 on Jan. 1, 2003. This is the Aggies’ 11th appearance, their first since a 38-7 drubbing at the hands of Tennessee on New Year’s Day in 2004.

The fact both tradition-rich programs were available made the matchup irresistible to the bowl organizers.

“This was one of those years where everything really fell into place,” Cotton Bowl Chairman Tommy Bain said.

“I can’t wait to see the atmosphere at Cowboys Stadium in prime time on Jan. 7.”

The anticipation began building among LSU fans for a potential Cotton Bowl bid after the regular season ended with a 31-23 loss at Arkansas, halting the Tigers’ hopes for a BCS bowl berth. Then when A&M officials announced last week they had accepted a Cotton bid, the anticipation turned into a frenzy.

Brian Broussard, LSU’s assistant athletic director of ticket operations, said last week that Tigers’ fans had requested about 15,000 tickets for the Cotton Bowl — 2,500 more than each school is allotted.

“We sold every ticket we had to this game, and they went quick,” Broussard said. “There is obviously a lot of excitement about going to play in the Cotton Bowl against Texas A&M.”

Cotton Bowl President Rick Baker added: “We formally announced Texas A&M last week, and the phone lines started to light up like a Christmas tree. With the announcement of LSU and the game now being a sellout, I couldn’t imagine a better way to celebrate 75 years.”

The excitement certainly isn’t limited to the fans who figure to flock to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.

LSU coach Les Miles takes a second team to the Cotton Bowl. His 2003 Oklahoma State club squared off with an Eli Manning-led Ole Miss team in 2003 with the Rebels claiming a 31-28 triumph.

Miles is taking LSU to a sixth bowl game in a row, part of a school-record 11-year bowl streak. The Tigers are 4-1 in bowls under Miles after a 19-17 loss to Penn State in the Capital One Bowl last year.

“The Cotton Bowl is one of the all-time great college bowl games, and to be able to participate in what is the 75th anniversary of this legendary game will be special for our team,” Miles said. “The hospitality is second to none, and the atmosphere is no different than if you were playing in the national championship game.

“I’m excited, and I know that our players are excited about this opportunity. Texas A&M has an outstanding program, and we are looking forward to renewing our longstanding rivalry with them.”

This will be the 50th meeting between the two programs in football. LSU leads the series 26-20-3 and won the only other bowl meeting: 19-14 in the 1944 Orange Bowl.

The Tigers have won 10 or more games for the 10th time in school history and are seeking a fourth year with 11 wins or more under Miles.

Texas A&M is coached by Mike Sherman, who spent six years as the coach of the Green Bay Packers (2000-05) before returning to College Station, where he was an assistant three times under Aggies’ coaching legend R.C. Slocum.

A&M’s 9-3 record is the best of three seasons under Sherman, and the Aggies are seeking to end a five-game bowl losing streak that dates back to a 28-9 triumph against TCU in the 2001 Galleryfurniture.com Bowl in Houston. They have lost their past three bowl meetings with SEC foes, with Independence Bowl losses to Mississippi State (2000) and Georgia (2009) sandwiched around the loss to Tennessee on their last visit to the Cotton Bowl.

The Aggies shared the Big 12 Conference South Division championship with Oklahoma State and Oklahoma this season despite a rough midseason stretch. The Aggies’ three losses came consecutively Sept. 30-Oct. 16 to Oklahoma State, Arkansas and Missouri — three teams that take 10-2 records into their bowl games. Texas A&M bounced back to notch wins in November against both Oklahoma (33-19) and Nebraska (9-6), the two teams that played for the Big 12 crown Saturday.

Texas A&M finished the regular season with a sixth consecutive victory by outlasting bitter rival Texas 24-17 on Thanksgiving night, a win that helped punch a ticket to the Cotton Bowl.

“The matchup with LSU presents a great challenge against a very talented and well-coached opponent,” said Sherman, who was an assistant when the Aggies played in three straight Cotton Bowls from 1992-94. “Our players are very aware of the Tigers’ success and look forward to this game.

“Playing in the same stadium which will host the Super Bowl soon after our game allows our players to experience a unique national spotlight in one of the best venues in all of sports.”

Check out the article at The Advocate.

It's going to be a very exciting game… I can't wait!!! Be sure to check out LSU vs. Texas A&M: At a glance and the LSU Bowl History for all the numbers.

I think the best part about LSU playing the Aggies again is that we can bring back all of the old Aggies jokes!!! Such as…

• Did you hear about the Aggie terrorist who tried to blow up the LSU team bus? He burned his lip on the tailpipe.
• What is the difference between the Aggies and Rice Crispies? Rice Crispies know what to do in a bowl.
• How many Aggies does it take to screw in a light bulb? One, but he gets 3 hours credit.
• Did you hear about the skeleton they found in a closet in one of the dorms at A&M? It was the 1963 hide-and-go-seek champion!
• Why don't Aggies eat barbecue beans? Because they keep falling through the holes in the grill.
• How many Aggies does it take to eat an armadillo? Two. One to do the eating, and one to watch for cars.

GEAUX TIGERS!!!