Finding Joy at Dawn

When I came back to Auburn this fall I made a goal to do better about finding time to exercise. I don’t mind exercise, but usually it is the thing that gets put off at the end of the day when other appointments run long and other things “come up”. My freshman year I was a lot more consistent in my exercising because I worked out before school.  So I have decided to start getting in bed earlier and getting up earlier. This has been hard, because we college students seem to be almost nocturnal. Last year I would typically get in bed between 12-1 in the morning so that has had to change this year to more like 10:30 or 11.  So far I have done very well getting up at 5:30 to go to the gym. it is not always easy (this morning being a prime example), but I am always glad I do it. Unlike most of my classmates in my 8am class, I am actually awake and ready to go.

It was a little more difficult to get up this Friday morning and I was not in the best of mood as I drove toward campus, so I decided that I would find reasons to be joyful. The list went something like this:

-Another day of life

-The ability to get up and exercise

-Food in my kitchen,

-Being here in Auburn

-Quietness of campus that time of the morning

– It is Friday

-I am getting to go home to Athens for the weekend

-The beautiful sunrise

Just the fact that we have another day on this earth should be enough. The Psalmist said it best in Psalms 118:24

“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

Each day we are here we have the opportunity to exist in God’s creation, a blessing I too often take for granted. Some of my friends are journeying to Atlanta this weekend to attend the funeral of a friend, she leaves behind a husband and four children. While they are celebrating her walk on this earth, she will also be very missed.

So every early morning from now on, instead of thinking about how early it is and how I could still be asleep I will be joyful that God has given me another day of life.

I believe the song we sing at church, I Will Wake the Dawn With Praises will be my new anthem in the mornings:

“Dawn and sunset, fierce and joyful, each reflect his mighty ways. With the sea and sky before me I will praise Him all my days.

*Since there is no home game this weekend there is no Tailgate Treats this Friday, there will not be another until October 4*

Auburn Traditions 101: Live By the Creed

Today’s Auburn tradition is not something we as Auburn fans do on game days or game day eve, but something we believe in and strive to carry out every day: The Auburn Creed.

To be honest before I actually started school here at Auburn in the fall of 2010 I am not sure that I was even aware that Auburn had a creed. Once you come to Auburn, it becomes important, and is referenced very often in conversation and in class.

You hear many references to the Auburn Creed, even on cookie cakes.

From my research, creeds are not extremely common, but we are very proud of ours, it is more than a cheer or song it doctrine at Auburn. The Auburn Creed was written in 1945 by George Petrie. Petrie was the first Alabamian to receive a PhD and was Auburn’s first football coach.

The Auburn Creed mentions several things I am a firm believer in: God, hard work, America and human touch.  Auburn is a very conservative university, the student body was actually recently ranked by the Princeton Review as  The Most Conservative Student Body in the Nation, however regardless of your political views I believe you can agree the Auburn Creed is a set of guiding principles for Auburn students that all of us can believe in and strive to live out here at Auburn and beyond.

The Auburn Creed

I believe that this is a practical world and that I can count only on what I earn. Therefore, I believe in work, hard work.

I believe in education, which gives me the knowledge to work wisely and trains my mind and my hands to work skillfully.

I believe in honesty and truthfulness, without which I cannot win the respect and confidence of my fellow men.

I believe in a sound mind, in a sound body and a spirit that is not afraid, and in clean sports that develop these qualities.

I believe in obedience to law because it protects the rights of all.

I believe in the human touch, which cultivates sympathy with my fellow men and mutual helpfulness and brings happiness for all.

I believe in my Country, because it is a land of freedom and because it is my own home, and that I can best serve that country by “doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with my God”.

And because Auburn men and women believe in these things, I believe in Auburn and love it.

–George Petrie

Mississippi State: One of Those Nail Biters

Last time Mississippi State was in town in 2011 the game ended on a very exciting and super close play. Auburn stopped Mississippi State from scoring a touchdown that would have allowed them to win on the one yard line as the clock expired. It was crazy.

Tonight was another one of those crazy games.

The day started out normally with tailgating and thousands of hopefully Auburn fans coming to the Plains hopefully for our first SEC in over a year. (Last year was rough to say the least). I was fairly confident Auburn would come out on top at the end of the day, but it was not an easy win for us at all. The first half was back and forth. The second half Auburn was behind most of the time and things were not looking too good for us. However it worked out that we gained possession of the football with just a few minutes left and drove down the field. It was so exciting and so nerve wracking all at the same time, all 85,817 people in attendance were on the edge of their seats.

 

We were all just praying that Marshall played smart and didn’t throw any interceptions. When it came down to the last few plays QB Marshall threw an 11-yard game-winning touchdown pass to C.J. Uzomah with 10 seconds remaining on the clock. Instant relief. Our conference loosing streak is over.

A year ago today my friends Heather, Tyler, AJ and I went to Mississippi State and watched Auburn fall in Starkville so I didn’t feel too bad for their fans as they journey back to Starkville. I have made that long ride back after a loss, no fun there.

Games like tonight are the ones you remember the most, you scream and scream until you can scream no more. Shake that shaker until you can hardly raise your arm. When you cheer your team on to victory, its worth every minute of the 6 hours we students spend standing in that stadium on Saturdays. Every splotch of sunburn, every drop of sweat, and every raw throat from screaming. Its what we do during 12-0 seasons and 3-9 seasons. Win or loose we stand together and sing that alma matter at then end of the game with pride.

After the alma matter is sung then of course go to Toomer’s Corner, victory in Auburn is celebrated no other way.

Chipotle You Are Serving More Than Burritos

Oh Chipotle,

I thought you had topped it with your 2011 Super Bowl advertisement featuring Willie Nelson’s “Back to the Start” song, but I was wrong. This morning between classes I watched your new Scarecrow Video.

After painfully watching your three minute video I felt a range of emotions. The feeling that hit me the most wasn’t anger, but sadness.  Erica who must work doing social media for @ChipotleTweets didn’t get it. It appears that she assumed I was sad because of the “bad food” found in the barren grassless, cropless, treeless land the video portrayed, I was sad because this is not at all the way we treat and raise our animals and produce our nation’s food supply. I was also sad because people out there will watch this video and assume that is the way things are.

The ways food production was portrayed in the video is what made me sad, sad because myself and 2.2 million other Americans work so hard grow food for our families and yours and it looks NOTHING like what Chiptole says farming today looks like. I have NEVER seen anyone raise cattle in a metal box with flashing lights.

All the dairy farms I have ever been to do not use such housing for their cattle. I always enjoy seeing Will Gilmer (@GilmerDairy on Twitter) of Sulligent, Alabama’s pictures on Twitter, Instagram, Vine etc. of his Holsteins enjoying green fields and sunshine. Chiptole if you have visited a dairy farm where cows are raised in such a container please share with me, I’d like to see it.

Gilmer Dairy: Follow Will on Twitter to see what he does on a daily basis on his farm in North Alabama

I’m also not sure why you show chickens being “pumped” with hormones.

Don’t you know that giving chickens hormones is illegal? It doesn’t happen. According to my poultry science professor Dr. Wallace Berry hormones do not even benefit chickens not to mention it would be too labor intensive. Don’t believe me? The University of Georgia has a great article on 7 Reasons Why Chickens are not Fed Hormones https://www.poultryventilation.com/tips/vol24/n4.

Chiptole if you believe in “honesty” and “integrity” why on earth would you make a video and a game filled with such false and misleading information. To be honest if I didn’t know any better I would probably jump on the band wagon with you. However, I am smarter than that, I am not going to fall for a marketing stunt and I would hope the American public wouldn’t, but in today’s society that would be very wishful thinking.

I have never and will NEVER eat at one of your restaurants. What a wonderful opportunity as a seller of food  you could have to give people a glimpse of how their food is raised, people are curious, more and more people are living off the farm today than ever before. You could make advertising campaign into a positive one instead of one using fear. Considering you sell food I would hope you have been to a farm, but from your video I would guess you haven’t. Myself and many others would love for you to visit a farm (I can find you one anywhere in the country to visit you just let me know). If you were to see what REAL agriculture is like, I think you would agree it looks nothing like your video or your app.

Tailgate Treats: Week #2 “Zesty Pizza Casserole”

It is week 2 of the college football season and my Auburn Tigers are taking on Arkansas State this Saturday  This week we have another night game which are my favorites because it allows more time for tailgating. Last year our first 3 games were at 11am, which was rough, because students have to be at the gate typically 2 1/2 -3 hours before the game and who wants to tailgate that early?

This week’s tailgate treat is a great go-to dish when you need something fast and are possibly limited on kitchen facilities. This recipe can easily be made in a dorm room, or anywhere you have a microwave. I recently made it when I had friends over for dinner, when I made it again a day or two later I gave some to my brother Brady and told him to put it in the microwave to cook it. He asked “can’t I just put it in the over” I told him he could, but I always made it in the microwave, and he couldn’t believe it!

First thing you do is bring 6 ounces of elbow macaroni to a boil.

While your macaroni is cooking, be cutting into halves or fourths 4 oz of pepperoni slices, or if you would rather you can buy the mini pepperoni from Hormel.

After you chop up the pepperoni into pieces combine the pepperoni with 8 oz. of pizza sauce, 8 oz. of cottage cheese, 4 oz. of mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup onion chopped, and 1/2 t. dried basil.

Then after you noodles are done cooking combine them with your cheese/ tomato mixture.

After you combine the noodles and sauce, pour into a 2 quart casserole dish, cover and microwave for 7-9 minutes and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Then it is time to enjoy!

Zesty Pizza Casserole

Ingredients:

6 oz. shell macaroni cooked (I typically do it on the stove top but I am sure you can do it in the microwave as well)

8 oz. jar pizza sauce

8 oz. cottage cheese

4 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese

4 oz. pepperoni’s halved or quartered (I usually use my kitchen scissors to cut them, much easier)

1/2 cup onion chopped

1/2 t. dried basil (you can also use Italian seasoning, pizza seasoning, garlic etc)

Parmesan Cheese

Steps: In a 2 quart microwave safe dish, combine all ingredients except parmesan cheese. Mix well and cover and cook in microwave for 7-9 minutes. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. This serves 4-6 people, I usually double the recipe. No one will ever know it was cooked in the microwave!

Auburn Traditions 101: Eagle Flight

Photo taken by Auburn University Photographic Services

Before each home football game Auburn has one of the what I believe to the be coolest traditions. The flight of our eagles. The eagle flights have been part of Auburn’s pre-game festivities since the Auburn vs. Wyoming game in 2000.

Photo taken by Auburn Photographic Services

The eagles are used to promote wildlife conservation through a partnership with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Southeastern Raptor Center. The eagles are unable to survive in the wild, so that is why the Southeastern Raptor center has them. The animals are like royalty and are given the best care available to them.

The eagle flight happens just a few minutes before kickoff. The eagle is released from the upper deck from a carrier and does a flight around the stadium.

Photo taken by Auburn Photographic Services

It is not usually a complete circuit around, however the one we had Saturday night for the Washington State game was a great one.  When the bird is released the whole stadium shakes their shakers in a circular motion above their heads, and yells WAAAARRRR until the eagles is ready to land at the center of the field then the WAAAARRR is finished off with EAGLE HEY! I have a video below, it is not the best quality, but you can get an idea of what it is like.  It definitely gives you chills and it is amazing to watch such a majestic bird make its way around the stadium. I have yet to see anything else like it. It is definitely breath taking, and is known across the country. Our eagles were even used in the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City a few years ago.

Photo taken by Auburn University photographic services

*Disclaimer photos in this post were taken by Auburn Photographic Services, not Anna Leigh Peek*