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(The next part is my story in a nutshell. I was speaking to a large conference of women I hadn’t met yet so I had to preface my remarks with my story. Feel free to skip if you already know me!)
I had been a pretty good girl…raised on fairy tales. I believed in happily every after. I grew up Colorado. I graduated from high school, attended college and married a charming, romantic and “good” man who, ironically, and as part of his marriage proposal, pledged his loyalty to me and our future. The day of my college graduation we returned to Colorado and began our life. We began our careers, we began our family. I focused my efforts on our home and family, we eventually had four children, and life was good. SO GOOD.
It was a life of family and faith. We loved each other, we went to church together, we prayed together, we served in the community as well, and as my husband became more and more successful in his career, we upgraded our home, our cars and our lifestyle. We enjoyed making family memories and traveling together. We got along well, we laughed and had fun together, we served and helped others. I thought we were on track for eternity.
Believe it or not, I had watched our investments and savings grow over the 20 years we’d been married, working hard (I thought) and saving…and I also thought I had 10 MILLION DOLLARS–thanks to compounding interest:) So on March 17, 2009, St. Patrick’s Day, my biggest worry was making sure everyone wore green, felt festive (I’d tried to do my part to contribute to that with green breakfast and a green dinner) and I took pictures of everyone in their leprechaun finery. What I didn’t know, was that I was documenting my family and the life I’d dreamed of and had worked so hard to create during my 20-years-of-happy marriage, in photos, for the last time.
At the end of the day, we went to bed. I slept–the last night I slept without anything to haunt me or give my nightmares about. And the next day, my husband shattered my world. March 18, 2009. He asked to meet me, told me he’d hoped to spend time with me.
Then he sat across from me, folded his hands and paused. And then, in a voice as calm and unemotional as I’d ever witnessed–NOTHING about his performance tipped me off as to what was about to happen, said, “My company, Market Street Advisors, is a sham.” One simple sentence, and the complicated web of choices, actions, and decisions of ONE person, the man I’d known since 1988 but apparently hadn’t known at all, shattered my world.
My first thought (always a party or holiday thought at that stage of my life!) was, “Is this an early April Fool’s joke? Doesn’t he remember yesterday was only St. Patrick’s Day?” And suddenly, despite my education and knowledge of English and vocabulary, I didn’t understand the world “sham.” He explained, “My company isn’t real. It’s a sham and has been from the very beginning. I’ve been running a Ponzi scheme for the past 16 years.”
I’d heard the term Ponzi scheme, but I didn’t know what a Ponzi scheme actually was. I’d heard the name Bernie Madoff, I knew he had done something illegal and I knew a lot of people were mad at him, but I didn’t understand what it was that he, or my spouse, had done. I got the condensed version. What I was told left me in complete and utter shock. But it didn’t stop there.
My husband told me he had hired an attorney, that he had turned himself in to government authorities and to our church leaders, and that they had all given him until that morning to tell me. He told me he would be going to prison and getting excommunicated from our church. He told me everything had been seized. He told me I would be left alone to raise our children. And he told me I needed to hire an attorney right away–but he’d maxed out all of our credit cards paying for his.
I, who had never cheated in school; who had never stolen so much as a grape from the grocery store without paying for it; who had always tried to live a life of honesty and integrity–wouldn’t even let myself indulge in “white lies”…needed an attorney? I was completely innocent! Like his employees, clients, family, friends and our church leaders, I’d never had a clue that he was anything but the honest, upright, family man and successful businessman he had always portrayed himself to be.
I had NO IDEA he’d been living a secret and double life.
All I could think of was that my parents were dead, I was left with NOTHING (no house, no cars, no food, no life, no savings, no job, no husband–TOTALLY alone in the world), I had four children who needed to eat, and I couldn’t get that movie “The Fugitive” out of my mind: the innocent husband, a good man, a doctor, who was convicted of killing his wife and imprisoned for something he hadn’t done and that he had no knowledge of. HOW could this be happening to ME?
I was shocked. I was stunned. I was confused. I was scared. I was devastated. And at the same time, I didn’t know what I thought or felt. All I knew was that I had been thrown out of an airplane…without a parachute. And as shocked as I was, for some reason, I had the presence of mind to ask, “Is that everything?”
Yet despite everything, I was not prepared for his response: No. After which he disclosed he had also betrayed me in the most intimate ways as well. And with that admission, he began to sob. To cry harder than I’d ever seen any man cry. And that’s when I knew it was real. It wasn’t early April Fool’s. It was some sick joke that everyone but me found funny. It was real.
As wave after wave of shock and grief washed over me, I didn’t know what to do. He had become an instant and literal stranger, yet on the other hand, I was still the happily married wife who, as I rushed to get up and to get away from him, actually felt guilty that I was abandoning him in a time of need. Despite my shock, I actually had the presence of mind to apologize for leaving him: “I’m sorry, but I have to get out of here.”
And I left. I jumped in my car and drove away, not knowing where to go, knowing no one could help me. I made it about 1/10 of a mile before I was crying so hard I couldn’t see anything and had to pull over so I didn’t accidentally hurt someone or myself!
I called my best friend. She was stunned, crying, as well and advised me to go to the bank and try to get some money so I could at least feed my children. I raced to the banks, got some cash, and eventually returned home because I didn’t know what else to do or where to go.
My husband’s attorney called. He apologized for the day I was having (he’d known it was coming–seems like everyone but me knew it was coming!), told me, again, that I’d need an attorney, and then said, “And whatever you do, don’t go near a bank. Don’t touch any of your bank accounts. Don’t try to access any money!” he warned.
Are you starting to tell I just am not cut out for the criminal life? My instincts are all wrong! The very FIRST thing I had done, the only thing, was to go to a bank and touch some money!
I was going to prison for sure, wasn’t I?
“There are many times when a woman will ask another girl friend how she likes her new hat. She will reply, ‘Fine.’ but slap her hands to her forehead the minute the girl leaves to yipe, ‘What a horror!’” (Marilyn Monroe)
Yes, I wish that’s all my horror entailed. Tune in tomorrow for the rest of the condensed version of my horror.
“You can turn painful situations around through laughter. If you can find humor in anything, even poverty, you can survive it.” (Bill Cosby)
Step three to surviving anything and living a thankful life: look for the humor in your misery—it will be there.
As Marjorie Hinckley said, “In life, you can choose to laugh or cry. I prefer to laugh!”
For example, the very night Shawn Merriman destroyed not just my world but our children’s world and we found out everything we’d thought was ours was gone and we’d be moving who-knows-where to rebuild a new life from scratch as the Five Musketeers (me, the mother, and my four children), my oldest son went downstairs and found a live mouse on the floor of his bathroom. (We lived on 3 acres, surrounded by fields; pests from the outside trying to get inside our home were an on and off again battle.)
He came upstairs to report the discovery and how he’d handled it—he’d scooped it up, dropped it in the toilet, and flushed! I brushed aside worries of what something like that does to the plumbing of a home—who knew how much longer we’d be inhabiting our home, anyway—and we looked at each other, laughed and said, “That’s one thing we won’t miss about this house and our life—MICE!” And chose to laugh at the “bright side” of our loss.
I also laughed several weeks later when my daughter gave her soon-to-be-single mother some advice about love and marriage. She told me I needed to get married to a good man so I “wouldn’t be alone forever.” Honestly, at that stage of the nightmare game we’d been forced to participate in, love was the least of my worries. I told her I wouldn’t marry again because I was an ‘old bag.’ She helpfully said, “Mom! Botox!” No disagreement with my assessment, just a helpful suggestion. I’ll never forget that one. In fact, I’m STILL laughing about it.
Turns out, we survived. And Bill Cosby was right: “Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it.” (Bill Cosby)
My youngest is the most indecisive trick-or-treater I’ve ever known. Every year it’s an ordeal to get him to commit to what he wants to be for Halloween. Every year he assures me his decision is final. And every year he changes his mind at the last minute and ends up being something different.
Funny thing, though, his approach usually works out quite well for him. Like the year he scrapped his real costume on our way out the door to a party and instead wore an old puppy costume from the dress up box…and ended up winning the costume contest and a really nice prize that went with it!
This year was no different.
He wore his “real” costume, a skeleton, the day before Halloween to his 1st grade choir concert and that was enough for him to decide he was going to be something else the next day: a superhero. “Which one?” I asked, and he didn’t hesitate a moment before responding, “I’ll just wear my ‘J’ cape.”
So he went as himself to school the next day, in ordinary clothing underneath his superhero cape, his hair three different, dazzling and bright superhero colors—blue, purple and green! And of course, by the time it was time to go trick-or-treating that night, he was wearing a different costume again…an old costume from the dress up drawer…another puppy.
Watching Superjake, just being himself at a time not many people were, inspired me. And it got me remembering, again, that everyone has the capacity to be a hero. We can do anything. We can endure and triumph over everything, including our challenges; the unexpected life.
“What I do is based on powers we all have inside us, the ability to endure, the ability to love, to carry on, to make the best of what we have—and you don’t have to be a ‘Superman’ to do it.” (Christopher Reeve)
It just adds to the viewing pleasure of others if we do it wearing a cape…and superhero hair. Never underestimate the power of a hairdo.
“Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music.” (Ronald Reagan)
Last month my husband took me to see Olivia Newton John in concert. Even if I hadn’t loved her music or aspired to be her during my childhood and teenage years (yes, I had the white dress from Xanadu and wore my hair like hers!) that concert was a trip down the memory lane of my childhood and life.
It was also there that something very unexpected happened—and I’m not talking about the Olivia enthusiast next to me who didn’t sit down once during the entire performance, who had what appeared to be choreographed danced routines he performed to every song and who didn’t miss an opportunity to call out “I love you, Olivia!” every time there was a pause or break in singing. (For the sake of my husband’s reputation and honor, I should probably clarify that although I love that he knows every word to every song, sang along with Olivia and I and enjoyed the evening as much as I did…I’m talking about the man on the OTHER side of me!)
While sitting on the grass and enjoying the concert, I was unexpectedly struck by the most powerful sense of complete and utter satisfaction and contentment; a feeling of joy, gratitude, happiness and a love of life. Not just about life itself, but about the life I am living today.
Honestly, it surprised me.
Because I still have an occasional moment of trying not to compare the “then” with the “now.” Yes, a materially blessed life with a beautiful home, a house cleaner, a gardener, luxury cars, vacations and everything else that was mine in a former life was easier, in some ways, than the life I struggle to provide for myself and my children now. Yes, I lived one life I loved until 2009 at which time I began living a new and very different life in which I’ve found much unexpected happiness, joy and satisfaction. But it surprised me to be struck, unexpectedly, by such a powerful sensation that despite its many, many losses and the heartache and grief I’ve passed through, despite the challenges of the past and present and the extreme changes in every aspect of my life including lifestyle, I not only have incredible peace and joy but also total gratitude and contentment in and for my new one.
It made me realize that not only do you have to triumph over your challenges, you must embrace what has happened to you, accept it as a part of you and your life experience, own it (make it yours) and the triumph will be that much sweeter. It was an epiphany for me to realize that is what I had unintentionally done and that the happiness and joy that is yours, when you do that, is indescribable.
Really, it is. I highly recommend it to everyone living an unexpected life. Because when you get to that point, I believe you really ARE experiencing, living AND FINDING JOY in your unexpected life. You’re living your “happily ever after.”
“Freeing yourself was one thing; claiming ownership of that freed self was another.” (Toni Morrison)
A final thing I realized after seeing the June 20, 2012 segment of “American Greed” is that watching a television show about your former life and the crimes of your former husband is not conducive to…romance with your new one!
My husband and I watched the show together. I don’t know what he was thinking or feeling during the whole thing, but a part of me felt sicker and sicker inside with every commercial break. It was a strange experience to “relive” portions of the Ponzi scheme nightmare and it was surprising to learn new things about my former husband, truths about aspects of our previous life, things I’d always believed based on what he’d told me—only to find out from a television show that I’d been lied to about something else! (Even before the Ponzi scheme started.)
My husband was unusually quiet throughout the whole program and when it was over, without a word, turned out the light, rolled over on his side, and was silent. I was stunned! I felt pretty sick inside myself, but I was surprised at my husband’s unfriendliness toward ME. The show hadn’t been about me; I hadn’t done anything wrong.
“Are you going to sleep right now?” I asked through the darkness.
“Yes,” my husband answered.
“Without even saying goodnight?” I questioned.
He replied, “Watching a TV show about your wife, her former husband, their life together—seeing the family pictures, vacations and everything else, isn’t exactly conducive to romance.”
I couldn’t argue with that.
I felt pretty sick myself.
So I willed myself to stop thinking—about the show I’d just seen, about the actions of the man I’d been married to, about the response of the man I am currently married to and about men in general (lets just say I wasn’t thrilled with any man, in general, that night! haha) But in the morning, I had a new and better perspective on the whole thing:
“A woman has got to love a bad man once…in her life, to be thankful for a good one.” (Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings)
Color me thankful.
And remind me to be more careful of the TV shows we watch together in the future.
“I’m a sappy mom now. I didn’t think I would be. I thought I’d be a cool mom who keeps everything in perspective.” (Katherine Heigl)
Not me! I’m such a sappy mom I had to step away from this blog for almost 3 months to get some perspective! And even when I did return, I couldn’t blog about the reason for my absence the first few posts. What in the world happened? My oldest left home.
Yah, sure, he went “away” to college last year (as in lived in the dorms of Brigham Young University so he could have the complete college experience) but I live 20 minutes away and could drive by his dorm and look at the window of the room he lived in whenever I wanted, talk to him on the phone, text, help with his laundry, see and feed him once each week at Sunday dinner and ask him for help when I needed him. All of which I did.
But no more. And now that the Band-Aid of his departure has been ripped off what seemed like emotional millimeter after emotional millimeter, and my heart has had 3 months to heal, I’m ready to talk about it. Or at least explain why I haven’t been around: my son, Elder Merriman, is serving a two-year Christian mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And although his missionary service is something I believe in and raised him to do, it didn’t make it any easier for this sappy mother to let him go.
I cried every time I even thought about him leaving. Even the day before he left when we were packing up his bedroom and had one of our infamous and impromptu dance parties, I broke with tradition and bawled while busting my finest moves, the memory of which had to last two years. My missionary son said, “You’ve got to be kidding me. Don’t EVEN tell me you’re crying again!” But I was.
Thankfully, I’ve got the sap under control these days. Now I live for Wednesdays, the one day each week when Elder Merriman is able to take time out of his busy missionary labors to contact home and let us know what he’s been up to during his current assignment in the Canary Islands. Every week’s report is filled with a new adventure, fun fact of information I didn’t know before, or a growing experience; I’m so grateful he is where he is, doing what he is doing. (I just don’t think about the fact that last time I saw him in person was June 20, 2012 and the next time I’ll see him, in person, will be some time in June 2014! I don’t need THAT MUCH reality or perspective! Lol.)
What a privilege has been mine to to be a mother. What a joy that son, now Elder Merriman, has been every day of his life. (Despite a few moments isolated moments in 7th grade during his long hair and “skater” phase where his, or my, behavior may have given the illusion of something to the contrary! Lol.)
Love your kids.
And if you have a child, and if you have the good fortune to see them in person or to be with them today, give them a hug. From you, their mother…and from me.
“Son, you outgrew my lap, but never my heart.” (Unknown)
“Sliding headfirst is the safest way to get to the next base, I think, and the fastest. You don’t lose your momentum, and there’s one more important reason I slide headfirst, it gets my picture in the paper.” (Pete Rose)
I’m talking about a different kind of slide: letting things go. (But don’t count on getting your picture in the paper for this!)
There are only so many hours in a day and I think all mothers, especially those that work full-time outside the home, could stay busy 24 hours a day if they had the energy or the ability to stay awake and work on their “to do” lists for that long! But not only would it be unhealthy, it would be impossible to do for very long. So let things go.
Let yourself let some things go…and don’t sweat it.
I’ve realized my children aren’t going to be scarred forever if there’s dust on the piano today, or this year (if we’re being honest.) And that our true friends will still like us (and won’t even comment, actually) if they walk by the open door of the laundry room and it’s piled up. Some things truly can wait for the weekend, or for an extra week (or more!) until you can get to them.
The only thing that can’t and doesn’t wait is…time. Put people ahead of tasks to be accomplished or work to be done and if you do that, you’ll have no regrets— and that’s the best way to live life, in my opinion: with no regrets.
Chat with your children and let other things go, if that’s how limited your time is. (That’s why sometimes I go a week, or a month, between blog posts! There’s just not enough time to do everything all of the time.) Finish up the rest of the dinner dishes in the morning if you have to. (I confess, I’m guilty of this on occasion. I just keep telling myself my children and my future children-in-law will be the better for my imperfections! I’ll never be the intimidating, “perfect” mother or mother-in-law; my children and in-laws won’t be able to do anything but look at me and feel better about themselves! Lol.)
As a new mother, some of the best advice I got came from a friend my own age, in my own situation and I believe it applies to mothers, especially working mothers as well. I’ve always tried to live by it. Even now, especially in the unexpected life. She said, “Make your list of things to do each day and give yourself credit, count the whole day as a success, if you accomplish just ONE thing on it!” As a working mother, words to live by, for sure!
Take your child to the park? Check. Your day was a success!
Make the bed, drive carpool, drop off at daycare, remember lunch money for children, commute, work for 8 hours, straighten a mess, cook dinner, do the dishes, fold a load of laundry, read to a child, pet the dog, go for a short walk or sit on the porch and watch your kids play, read for five minutes? Check. A SUPER SUCCESSFUL DAY! (Don’t let yourself even THINK about everything else that didn’t get done.)
And some days, if you just get out of bed and carry on? Check. That day’s a success too!
Be liberal with the credit you give yourself and your recognition of your day’s “accomplishments.” It’s actually simple to be successful, especially in my new world.
“If you want to be successful, it’s just this simple. Know what you are doing. Love what you are doing. And believe in what you are doing.” (Will Rogers)
I had the opportunity to speak at a women’s meeting for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ephraim, Utah this week. I was asked to speak on “Your Happily Ever After.” Here are excepts from what I said.
“I was raised on fairy tales: Cinderella, The Goose Girl, Snow White and Rose Red, Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, The Seven Ravens, The Little Tin Soldier, The Emperor’s Nightingale and others.
Every fairy tale began with the words “Once upon a time.” Each one detailed the life of the heroine—which always included extreme adversity. And somehow, despite every hardship and challenge the heroines endured, they were obedient; they were kind to others; they performed their labors with a smile; and while every heroine in the illustrations was always beautiful on the outside they also each demonstrated their true beauty, their inner beauty, as they humbly accepted their unjust circumstances and the wicked treatment of other characters in the story and endured to the end, eventually, enjoying a “happily ever after.”
Fairy tales are and always have been absolutely believable to me. My mom, grandmother, female ancestors and other noble women have all lived them: life stories filled with ups and downs, adversities and triumphs, and in the end, a happily ever after. Doesn’t every woman do that? I believe we do when we endure to the end of challenging plot developments in faith, although each of our stories are in various stages of completion and many chapters have yet to be written.
Now you know my background and what I believed in when I was handed my own, but unexpected, “once upon a time” opportunity: a story of adventure, overwhelming darkness, evil, obstacles, injustice, courage, hope, tender mercies, miracles, overcoming, romance, eventually everlasting love and, of course, a “happily ever after!”
My once upon a time began when I was born to goodly parents. Later I graduated from Brigham Young University, married and enjoyed a happy marriage for the next 20 years, had 4 children, served in our church and community and enjoyed many material blessings as well—a comfortable home, a swimming pool, a Sport Court, luxury cars, a second home in Yellowstone, a world-class art collection that was loaned to museums around the world, world travel and financial means. (Over the years, I’d watched our investments and savings grow to well over $10 million dollars. I thought I was on track for, and living, the happily ever after of my life.)
And then our life, marriage, family, world, everything, ended in one moment when my husband sat me down and confessed that his company was a sham. That in reality, all those years I’d thought he’d been going to work every day and running an investment company, he had actually been perpetuating a Ponzi scheme. He’d already hired an attorney, turned himself in to the government and to church leaders, and anticipated serving 5-7 years in prison. Our house, cars and assets were gone; I was left alone, the sole parent and support of our four children; and my parents were dead.
To this day I can imagine very few storylines worse than the one that was written in to mine! (I even had a friend whose young husband was dying of cancer tell me she’d take her life over mine any day! And sadly, I would have, too.) Oh, and on top of everything else, he told me I’d need an attorney even though I’d done nothing wrong and how sorry he was that he’d maxed out the last of our credit cards paying for his attorney!
I can’t adequately describe the despair, the darkness, the shock, the grief, the fear and the humiliation associated with my nightmare—I mean fairy tale. As an added bonus, my husband’s victims included neighbors, friends, family members as well as my closest lifelong friends, and the shock and rage at my husband and what he had done was extended to my children and me, but especially to me. The hatred was indescribable.
My world collapsed, my marriage ended and it all played out on national television and in newspapers nationwide. The stress was so great it led to what I like to call the felony diet—7 pounds GONE that first day! But the worst was facing my children and witnessing the destruction of their world, their childhood innocence and their fairy tale lives go up in flames (or out the door, courtesy of the U.S. Marshalls.) Shortly after my husband’s revelations, I saw my 9-year-old writing on a piece a paper: “There’s a hole where my heart used to be. My dad is going to prison.”
We lost anything, everything and more that had been paid for with tainted funds; we lost everything of worldly value. It’s hard to describe what it’s like to be thrown into a fairy tale like that. Everything I’d worked toward and built my entire adult life was gone. I didn’t know how I was going to live, to feed my children or survive. I didn’t know what was ahead.
I’ve been asked to get personal with you regarding my experience so I thought I’d share the first person account of what I lived through, a few of my journal entries, written in those dark days—mingled with the things I learned and the principles I tried to live by.
1. As you’re writing your life story never forget that the story may develop in ways you never expected, you may get to live some very unwanted chapters, but that doesn’t have to change the end of your story—or that you’re expected to get there anyway.
Right and wrong don’t change just because your life does. Don’t let yourself make excuses for doing or not doing certain things just because things have become “harder.” And contrary to what I was tempted to believe when I was thrust into my fairy tale opportunity, life doesn’t end just because your world does. You have to keep living. You have to keep striving for happiness and joy in it too, you just may have to get a little more creative or work a little harder to make your life is one of equal happiness and joy to the one you lost! Make sure you’re doing everything you can to triumph, keep on keeping on, let go of anger/resentment/fear, and in the end, you’ll become more than you ever thought possible.
2. No matter what you think you’ve lost, you are still left with something you just may have to look really hard to find it! Count your blessings despite your trials. Look for the good.
“I found out today there will be notices on our home that it’s seized by the government. Embarrassing? Maybe, but I’m counting my blessings that at least it’s a roof over our heads for a little while longer.”
“I realized today that while my husband has received hate mail from all across the country, I haven’t received one piece! Nasty comments in the public forum, public speculation, vilification by many but no hate mail! Each week I receive a few letters of love and support and good wishes from people, but I haven’t gotten a single piece of hate mail. THAT is a tender mercy. THAT is a blessing. Count your many blessings!”
Some days the only “blessing” I could see was that for some reason, I was still breathing. That’s ok if that’s all you can find to be grateful for.
3. As you’re enduring your fairy tale, keep walking. Keep pressing forward. Don’t quit.
Years ago, I read a story about a pioneer man who lost his wife crossing the plains, buried her and by that night had lost his infant son as well. He walked back to his wife’s grave, dug her up, buried the baby with her, then returned to the wagon train. He quit writing in his journal for awhile, but when he picked up again, he wrote only, “Still walking.”
“Like that pioneer man who quit writing in his journal for awhile during his adversities, I guess that is me. I haven’t had the time or energy or opportunity to write about my life lately. I haven’t been able to face what is now my life. And I’m not sure why it is my life. I know I shouldn’t ask why, but I am so alone and discouraged I literally can’t hold myself back. I am filled with grief for the many, many things I have lost. And I am so lonely. What did I ever do to deserve any of this besides love and trust my husband—which, I’m told that’s what you’re supposed to do in marriage. I feel so much grief I can’t express it. I hope I can get over it. I hope I can keep going. I hope. I hope. I hope. I guess I do hope, because if I didn’t, I wouldn’t keep trying every day.”
4. Realize how you react to adversity is a critical factor in whether or not you arrive at your own “happily ever after.” It’s up to us to make of our life and experiences what we will.
Dieter F. Uchtdorf taught: “You need to know that you will experience your own adversity. None is exempt. You will learn for yourself what every heroine has learned: through overcoming challenges come growth and strength. It is your reaction to adversity, not the adversity itself, that determines how your life’s story will develop.”
“Winston Churchill said ‘to every man [and woman] there comes…that special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a special thing unique to them…what a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.’ It hit me as I read that that I have an opportunity to let this time be my finest hour. It is a critical time. As daunting as it seems, I MUST make this time my finest hour. I don’t know what the future holds, but I have faith. I know there will be one.”
“It’s taking all of my faith and trust to hope the kids and I don’t end up homeless, on the street, living in a cardboard box. My heart ached all day yesterday and I didn’t know if it’s because my heart is broken or because I was having a heart attack! I’m being dealt so many injustices and there will never be any restitution to me for any of it. I guess I am the one who will just have to let go of it, forgive and go on. I have only one goal: to not hate. Ok, I have two goals: to be cheerful, happy and optimistic again somehow.”
Be of good courage. One day I came across the theme for my new life: “If you can’t jump over life’s hurdles, LIMBO under them!”
It’s all in what you choose to do with it. You can let your trials “ruin” your lives and become an excuse for every future challenge or failure you’ll have; or you can hang in there, get through them, and figure out how to use them for your good, to make you better, and you can learn to smile in spite of them.
5. Remember that your situation never ends up as bed, in the end, as you imagine it’s going to. Things are never quite as bad as they seem. Have patience until things settle. (That was true even for me!)
Jeffrey Holland, president of Brigham Young University when I attended college encouraged: “Every one of us has times when we need to know things will get better. On those days when we have special need… remember there is help. There IS happiness. There really IS light at the end of the tunnel. Hold on. Keep trying. Things will improve…Even if you cannot always see that silver lining on your clouds, God can.“
“It is another day of not being able to comprehend how I’ll make it through another day, but I have no choice. I have to try. Each time I think I am healing, or that maybe we can make it, or that everything will be ok, each time I start to feel even a tiny shade of peace or confidence, something HUGE happens to suck me right back in to the black hole I have been trying to crawl out of since March 18. I don’t believe God caused this calamity to come upon us, my husband did; but it doesn’t mean I don’t get to experience it, it means only that the Lord knew I was strong enough to handle this. It means God knows we can survive it if we choose to. It also means that we have to wade through the most incredible garbage I have ever seen! And I also have to hope it means things will, someday, get better.”
6. Recognize your challenges are opportunities for growth.
“I couldn’t help but laugh at the encouragement from my church leaders regarding tribulation at our recent conference. They always mention economic challenge OR job challenge OR family challenge OR marital challenge OR disappointment OR broken heart, etc…but they haven’t mentioned all of them together at the same time, and THAT is me! (If you add hatred and persecution from neighbors, friends, and many church members; orphaned and without parents; prison, crimes, divorce and everything else with it too!) HOW did I get so blessed? I have been given so many unimaginable opportunities for growth and all at the same time. Lucky me. I hope I can do it.”
You can do it. I did. I’m living proof.
7. Have a sense of humor during the hard chapters of your fairy tale. I firmly believe a sense of humor helps you get through challenges.
“In church today the teacher asked us to think of our 5 most valuable material possessions. Hmmm. I don’t have any anymore! I had nothing to think of. That struck me so funny I laughed. I always thought ‘you can’t take it with you’ applied to death, but it applies to 41-year-old, alive me!
Another funny thing: Today my daughter told me I need to get married to a good man so I’m not alone. I told her I won’t marry again because I am an ‘old bag.’ She helpfully said, “Mom! Botox!” (No disagreement on her end that her mother is a disgusting and old ugly ‘bag’, just a helpful suggestion to me on how to overcome it! P.S. to My Daughter: No shelter, no food, no job, no everything also means Botox IS NOT an option!)”
8. Realize that no matter what develops in your life your dreams can still come true—you just might get to them differently than you expected.
“My high school son dreamed his entire life of playing hockey at the college level. But then our life happened, we moved to Utah, we are literally in the depths of poverty—short of the needed money for our expenses each month—and initially thought every dream had been taken from us. And then today my son was asked, as a high school student, if he had any interest in practicing with the BYU team. Does he? It’s amazing, this experience called life; how things work out for us, and how the Lord moves in mysterious ways and truly can make all things work together for our good. When our world ended, I thought every dream we’d ever had was gone too. Yet, because of my ex-husband’s crimes and the way things worked out for us, we ended up in Utah, right where we are, and my son is probably in a better position now to make his college hockey dream come true than he ever would have been living what we thought was our fairy tale life in Colorado. It proves once again that you can lose your entire life, be gifted a cesspool, and you can still grow flowers out of the manure someone else created for you. That is why you never quit, you never give up, you keep pressing forward, you keep doing what is right and living as excellently as you can, and eventually, you create out of your new life all of the good things you were aiming for in your old one. You arrive at the same happily ever after, you just end up taking a different path to get there.”
Long story short, we survived our losses, my divorce, our move to Utah and everything else which eventually led to a total lapse of sanity on my part resulting in me, on a whim late one Friday night, signing up online for a single’s site; which led me to me re-entering the singles scene!
I wish I could report associations with many handsome princes—and there were a few of those—but the reality consisted of a LOT more frogs! (No disrespect to any men intended.) But I eventually (in fact, a lot quicker than I expected) I found a prince! We married in 2011 and recently celebrated our first wedding anniversary.
9. Lastly, remember every single life lesson will be worth it.
My 2011 marriage was one of the greatest moments of my life. All I could think was, “This is absolutely perfect. It was worth everything I went through to get here.” I was actually grateful for everything that had happened to me. Not only because of what I learned, but because my experience, MY LOSS, looking back on it, actually freed me.
My unexpected life freed me to find and receive what I’d always wanted, what I’d always thought I had but really hadn’t had—a true happily ever after with a wonderful man. And not that every story has to end with a handsome prince; but mine did! And I’m so grateful.
“Life is a precious gift as precious a gift as ‘once upon a time.’ It’s our own true story of adventure, trial, opportunity for greatness, nobility, courage and love. But happily ever after doesn’t come without a price. Sandwiched between ‘once upon a time’ and ‘happily ever after is great adversity. In stories as in life, adversity teaches us things we cannot learn otherwise. Adversity helps develop a depth of character that comes no other way. Your own wondrous story has already begun. Your once upon a time is now.” (Dieter Uchtdorf)
If you remember nothing else from my remarks tonight, please remember this:
Happily ever after is not something found only in fairy tales. You can have it. It is available to you. I am living proof—of that and that by seeking to not just endure but triumph in adversity, our challenges can make us better than we would otherwise have been. So keep living, reading and writing your own story with faith and courage regardless of the plot developments, creating your own happily ever after, until the day that you really do experience this phrase again: ‘And they lived happily ever after.’”
“An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered.” (Gilbert K. Chesterson)
Maybe I’m a know it all (or at least a woman who knows her own mind.) I admit, I have preconceived notions as to how I think things should be, how I think they should go and I confess, I’ve always had my own plans, goals and dreams I’m working toward. Maybe that’s why it’s such a struggle for me when things don’t go as planned. Hence, the “shock factor” of the unexpected life.
For example, I remember when my dad died unexpectedly in a plane crash when I was a teenager and I struggled to make sense of it. One thing I remember thinking over and over again was, “No, this can’t be. I love my dad. I was meant to have a dad—that’s why I was placed for adoption as an infant, because I was SUPPOSED to have a dad, that was the plan for ME.” Cut to 2009 when the Ponzi scheme was revealed to me. I had many issues with it, of course, but one was, “No, this can’t be. I’ve always been honest, I’ve always lived a life of integrity, I can’t be involved to whatever degree, to any degree, in something like this that SOMEONE ELSE has done!” But you don’t always have control over the situations you find yourself in, courtesy of life, do you? The only thing you can control is your reaction to those challenges and what you choose to do with them.
I say: do something good with them. I can’t think of anything worse than being handed something miserable and choosing to let it destroy you for the rest of your life. Create a triumph out of a tragedy. Pick yourself up and carry on. Look for the good you’ve got. And never give up on life, or being happy, through everything you’re required to endure. Endure to the end. Oh, yes, and while you’re at it—strive to be open to all of the “new” opportunities that come with it all.
For example, when I saw Notre Dame in Paris for the first time, I was unexpectedly overwhelmed. I went into it thinking it was just something to see because of its history. I expected I’d visit it, enjoy it, cross it off my list of things to see while in Paris and move on to the next sight. I didn’t expect to FEEL what I felt there. To walk inside and be literally overwhelmed by its majesty. To be so touched by the experience of it. To sit, to cry from the beauty of it all, and to soak it all in until my friend finally felt it was time for us to go!
I remember my first trip to London. My #1 goal was to see the Tower of London and the crown jewels; my friend’s #1 goal was to see Westminster Abbey. So we saw both, and guess what? The thing I most enjoyed from that trip ended up being Westminster Abbey, while my friend was unexpectedly impressed by, you guessed it, the Tower of London. By remaining open to the unexpected, we saw things we’d otherwise perhaps have missed. We might have missed our most cherished experiences; remaining “open” to new adventures, or things we didn’t expect, greatly enriched our travel experiences.
Apply that to the unexpected life and I guess that’s why I dared trust a man again, fall in love and remarry. Why I keep singing (occasionally!) Why I ALMOST auditioned for a show. Why I’ve tagged along to autograph signings when invited. Why I give speeches. Why I’ve dared expose myself to the potential for anything in a media interview. And even, to some degree, why I blog about all of the unexpected adventures.
Every life experience has something to distinguish it by, something to learn from or can be a new adventure in some way if you choose to allow it to be. I think it depends on you.
“An adventure may be worn as a muddy spot or it may be worn as a proud insignia. It is the woman wearing it who makes it the one thing or the other.” (Norma Shearer)


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Borderlands 3: How to Access Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC
The final piece of DLC content is now out for Borderlands 3. This expansion called Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck takes players into the mind of a psycho. Like previous expansions you will find new weapons, bosses, enemies, and areas to explore. Before you get to all that you first need to know how to access this DLC. Below is our how to access Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC guide.
Download the Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC
Before you can play the DLC you need to install the DLC and the most recent title update. This means buying the DLC ($14.99) if you don’t have a season pass. Once you have ownership over the DLC you will need to download the DLC content from your store of purchase. The Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC download is roughly 6 GB in size. Once the DLC is downloaded launch Borderlands 3 and head to Sanctuary.
Interact with Strange Device on Sanctuary then Head to Krieg’s Mind
On the Sanctuary ship make your way to Tannis’ Clinic (exclamation mark on your map/mini-map). In the clinic you will find a Strange Device in the corner on a crate. Interact with the Strange Device to start the Enter the Psychoscape mission. When this mission starts you will be tasked with making your way to Krieg’s Mind. Head to the bridge and make your way Kreig’s mind. Take the drop pod down to start the new DLC.

domain: hobby


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A focus group hired to review Rankman’s annual worst-to-best bowl picks concluded that this year’s guesses may be even better than last year’s guesses. Anyone using this list for wagering purposes has a serious problem and is probably never going get elected to the baseball Hall of Fame. The usual disclaimers apply: never use these rankings while operating heavy machinery. Children under 12 should be accompanied by an adult under 85. The use of these rankings and its contents, without the expressed, written consent of the author is strictly forbidden unless you really want to use them.
40: Cure, San Jose State (5-7) vs. Georgia State (6-6), Dec. 19, CBSSN
Forget the cure…we want to know the cause.
Winner: Georgia State
39: Arizona, Nevada (6-6) vs. Colorado State (7-5), Dec. 29, Amer. Sports Network
The Mountain West got its ridges in a bunch after two of its teams were forced to play again even though no one remembers the first game. The SEC would have adamantly opposed the rematch in 2006, but approved of it in 2011.
Winner: Colorado State
38: Motel 6 Cactus, West Virginia (7-5) vs. Arizona State (6-6), Jan. 2, ESPN
Arizona State was a top 15 preseason team many thought would end up in the Ritz Carlton Bowl. Instead, it joins a chain where every room has free HBO.
Winner: Arizona State
37: Quick Lane, Central Michigan (7-5) vs. Minnesota (5-7), Dec. 28, ESPN2
This college hockey round-up pairing conjures a lyric from that old Eagles song, “Life in the quick lane, surely make you lose your mind.”
36: Famous Idaho Potato, Akron (7-5) vs. Utah State (6-6), Dec. 22, ESPN
Terry Bowden has done a zip-bang job leading Akron to only its second bowl. It also doesn’t hurt for promotional purposes that he, sort of, resembles an Idaho potato.
35: Independence, Tulsa (6-6) vs. Virginia Tech (6-6), Dec. 26, ESPN
Celebrate Frank Beamer’s last game as Hokies coach in Shreveport at Strawn’s Eat Shop, or maybe Bergeron’s Boudin and Cajun Meats.
Winner: Virginia Tech
34: New Mexico, Arizona (6-6) vs. New Mexico (7-5), Dec. 19, ESPN
Rich Rodriguez thought he’d be in South Carolina so won’t have any new plays prepared for game this against a really good former ESPN analyst named Bob Davie.
Winner: New Mexico
33: Bahamas, Middle Tennessee (7-5) vs. Western Michigan (7-5), Dec. 24, ESPN
Player gift bag includes seven days, without food or fresh water, on deserted island with your pick of “Survivorman” Les Stroud or Bear Grylls.
Winner: Western Michigan
32: Heart of Dallas, Washington (6-6) vs. Southern Mississippi (9-4), Dec. 26, ESPN
This bowl game wasn’t randomly picked out of cowboy boot at the end of a long, boozy night of karaoke—but it could have been.
31: Liberty, Kansas State (6-6) vs. Arkansas (7-5), Jan. 2, ESPN
Bill Snyder’s team needed a miracle finish against Iowa State to get to this bowl against an Arkansas team that lost to “Holy Toledo!”
30: Poinsettia, Northern Illinois (8-5) vs. Boise State (8-4), Dec. 23, ESPN
Boise demanded a faraway bowl game on green grass after losing two straight on the blue turf against New Mexico and Air Force.
Winner: Boise State
29: Camellia, Ohio (8-4) vs. Appalachian State (10-2), Dec. 19, ESPN
Ken Burns returns to this lesser-known Civil War battle site to interview relatives of Shelby Foote for inclusion in the 25th anniversary box-set collection.
Winner: Appalachian State
28: Belk, N.C. State (7-5) vs. Mississippi State (8-4), Dec. 30, ESPN
A game with limited interest that makes you think the end of the year can’t get here soon enough.
Winner: Mississippi State
27: New Orleans, Louisiana Tech (8-4) vs. Arkansas State (9-3), Dec. 19, ESPN
How about that: the crummy Sun Belt team USC got criticized for scheduling, Arkansas State, ended up in a bowl city with better music and food.
Winner: Arkansas State
26: Miami Beach, South Florida (8-4) vs. Western Kentucky (11-2), Dec. 21, ESPN
This bowl in South Florida, featuring South Florida, which is actually located in Central Florida, is best paired with the films “North by Northwest” and “Krakatoa, East of Java.” Note: Krakatoa is actually WEST of Java.
Winner: Western Kentucky
25: Pinstripe, Duke (7-5) vs. Indiana (6-6), Dec. 26, ABC
This “Holiday Classic” at Madison Square Garden features programs with 10 combined NCAA hoops titles. Joe Lunardi’s latest “bracketology” report has Indiana as a 9 seed in the South Region opening against Georgetown in Des Moines.
24: TaxSlayer, Penn State (7-5) vs. Georgia (9-3), Jan.2, ESPN
You have permission to skip and watch a replay of the 1983 Sugar Bowl in which Penn State defeated Georgia to win the national title. Georgia would not win another SEC title until 2002, under Mark Richt, who was just fired.
Winner: Penn State
23: GoDaddy, Bowling Green (10-3) vs. Georgia Southern (8-4), Dec. 23, ESPN
Bowling Green coach Dino Babers is off to Syracuse where he joins Power Five ACC coaches Dabo and Jimbo.
Winner: Georgia Southern
22: Hawaii, Cincinnati (7-5) vs. San Diego State (10-3), Dec. 24, ESPN
San Diego State, while no one was looking, won the Mountain West and all the spoils that got dragged along with it.
Winner: San Diego State
21: St. Petersburg, Connecticut (6-6), vs. Marshall (9-3), Dec. 26, ESPN
In another time this game should have been played in the other St. Petersburg, preferably behind an Iron Curtain.
20: Sun, Miami (8-4) vs. Washington State (8-4), Dec. 26, CBS
Averaging 69 mph in a car, it takes 44 hours and 20 minutes to drive from Pullman to Miami. No one has ever made the return trip.
19: Music City, Louisville (7-5) vs. Texas A&M (8-4), Dec. 30, ESPN
Louisville lost its first three and then won seven of its next nine. Texas A&M won its first five before fading. Rankman thinks that means Louisville will lose the first quarter but win the last three.
18: Foster Farms, Nebraska (5-7) vs. UCLA (8-4), Dec. 26, ESPN
A winning record would have earned Nebraska a team hotel with access to the concierge level. All-you-can-eat “meatloaf special” on tap for Christmas dinner at “Tommy’s Joynt” on the corner of Van Ness and Geary.
17: Birmingham, Auburn (6-6) vs. Memphis (9-3), Dec. 30, ESPN
Auburn should have played Arizona State, or Georgia Tech, in the “Biggest 2015 Disappointment Bowl.” Wagering gauge: Auburn lost to Mississippi, which lost to Memphis.
16: Military, Navy (10-2) vs. Pittsburgh (8-4), Dec. 28, ESPN
Navy has a helicopter standing by in case quarterback Keenan Reynolds gets invited to the post-game MVP ceremonies.
15: Armed Forces, California (7-5) vs. Air Force (8-5), Dec. 29, ESPN
Part of package in coaxing Sonny Dykes to stay at Cal included getting a Berkeley protester removed from his front lawn.
14: Russell Athletic, North Carolina (11-2) vs. Baylor (9-3), Dec. 29, ESPN
Replays still show North Carolina was “on-sides” against Clemson in the ACC title game. Injury-depleted Baylor expects to start a former left tackle at quarterback.
Winner: North Carolina
13: Texas, Texas Tech (7-5) vs. LSU (8-3), Dec. 29, ESPN
LSU will monitor Leonard Fournette’s electrolytes in a game in which he could run for 600 yards in retaliation for Heisman snub.
12: Citrus, Michigan (9-3) vs. Florida (10-3), Jan.1, ABC
One can only hope Florida’s vitamin-deficient offense is loading up on the citrus provided by this bowl, otherwise we’re looking at a 5-2 final.
11: Boca Raton, Temple (10-3) vs. Toledo (9-2), Dec. 22, ESPN
These capital “T” schools deserve a warm-weather bowl reward after outstanding seasons in which Temple defeated Penn State and Toledo hog-tied Arkansas.
10: Holiday, Wisconsin (9-3) vs. USC (8-5), Dec. 30, ESPN
If your grandpa went to USC ask him about the 1963 Rose Bowl and then go to a movie. When you come back he’ll still be talking about quarterback Ron VanderKelen nearly leading the Badgers back from 42-14 deficit.
9: Peach, Florida State (10-2) vs. Houston (12-1), Dec. 31, ESPN
A Houston Chronicle sports columnist has turned this high-flying circus into his own line of jellies and preserves: “Phi Slamma Peach Jamma.”
Winner: Florida State
8: Las Vegas, BYU (9-3) vs. Utah (9-3), Dec. 19, ABC
Taking the “The Holy War” to the Las Vegas strip is like moving a Tupperware party to Sodom and Gomorrah. After Utah defeated BYU in 2004 a Utes’ fan held up a sign at Rice-Eccles Stadium that read: “Where’s your God now?”
7: Outback, Northwestern (10-2) vs. Tennessee (8-4), Jan. 1, ESPN
Northwestern has never won 11 games unless you count two or three seasons the school did it in basketball.
6: Sugar, Mississippi (9-3) vs. Oklahoma State (10-2), Jan.1, ESPN
The last time Ole Miss sweet-talked its way into the Sugar it had a Manning at quarterback. Eli? No, Archie.
5: Rose, Stanford (11-2) vs. Iowa (12-1), Jan. 1, ESPN
Rankman is reminded of L.A. Times columnist Jim Murray’s post-game recap after Iowa lost to UCLA in 1986. “These people are the salt of the earth. They feed the world. They just can’t play football…” Iowa’s governor shot back that Iowans were tough and “we’re coming back.”
4: Fiesta, Notre Dame (10-2) vs. Ohio State (11-1), Jan. 1, ESPN
Urban Meyer speaks about Notre Dame like an old girlfriend who got away, even though he had a chance to become coach in 2004 but chose Florida instead.
Winner: Notre Dame
3: Cotton, Alabama (12-1) vs. Michigan State (12-1), Dec. 31, ESPN
Michigan State will hold Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry to 154 yards on 153 carries in a grind-it-out game so dry it will leave everyone with cotton mouth.
Winner: Michigan State
2: Orange, Clemson (13-0) vs. Oklahoma (11-1), Dec. 31, ESPN
Clemson smoked Oklahoma. 40-6, in last year’s Russell Athletic Bowl. If that happens again, Bob Stoops may be working next year’s Orange Bowl as an in-studio analyst.
1: Alamo, Texas Christian (10-2) vs. Oregon (9-3), Jan. 2, ESPN
Remember this Alamo. It could have been a national title match up had these teams not suffered season-altering injuries. Trevone Boykin vs. Vernon Adams is the best QB bowl match-up this side of Deshaun Watson vs. Baker Mayfield.
Championship game, University of Phoenix Stadium, Jan. 11, ESPN: Oklahoma vs. Michigan State
Oklahoma reminds Rankman of last year’s Ohio State team, which lost early but rallied late to dominate the playoffs and win the national title.

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SEC Track and Field Weekly Notebook (February 13, 2013)
Alabama finished second in both the men's and women's standings on Saturday at the Mark Colligan Memorial Meet, hosted by the University of Nebraska at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. The Tide competed against Nebraska and North Carolina in the three-team competition. The Alabama women finished with 110 points behind Nebraska's 147, while the men ended the triangular meet with 102 points, behind the 138 points of the Huskers. Alabama athletes won 10 events and set 17 personal bests, in addition to one school record performance. Freshman Elias Hakansson broke a 15-year-old school record in the men's weight throw. The school record set by Hakansson came on a throw of 66 feet, 9 ¼ inches (20.35 meters) and eclipsed by 3 1/2 inches a 15-year-old mark set by Derrick Jones in 1998. It was Hakansson's second individual victory of the indoor season. Diondre Batson put together a remarkable day, winning the 200-meter dash with a 21.31 and also taking the top spot in the 60 meters as well, with a 6.73 which is a personal best. Both times rank just outside of the school's all-time indoor top 10 for those events. His 60-meter dash time established a new personal best by .06 of a second. Baton’s two victories, along with his leg on Alabama’s second-place 4x400-meter relay unit (3:11.56) accounted for 22 of the Crimson Tide’s 102 points in the team standings. All-American high jumper Krystle Schade kept her 2013 record spotless by taking home a victory with a mark of 5-10 ½ (1.79m). Schade has won all four high jump events this indoor season. Alabama takes this weekend off while preparing to compete in the SEC Indoor Championships on Feb. 22-24 in Fayetteville, Ark.
Men - The top-ranked Razorback men hosted the Tyson Invitational and posted three wins over the weekend with first-place performances from Patrick Rono at 800 meters (1:47.66), Caleb Cross in the 60-meter hurdles (7.65) and Anthony May II in the high jump (2.23m/7-3.75). Through the first five meets of the season, the Razorbacks have eight top-five national qualifying marks including an NCAA-best measurement of 16.38m/53-9 by Tarik Batchelor in the triple jump, and own six SEC-leading marks from Batchelor, Rono, Kemoy Campbell at 3,000 meters, Stanley Kebenei at 5,000 meters, Kevin Lazas in the heptathlon and in the distance-medley relay. Campbell and Kebenei established their conference leads this weekend at the Husky Classic in Seattle. The Razorbacks’ next competition will be the SEC Indoor Championships which will be contested Feb. 22-24 at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville. Women - The Razorback women—the new No. 2 team in the country—collected three wins over the weekend during the Tyson Invitational. At 400 meters, Regina George broke the school record, extended her NCAA lead and established the fastest time in the world with her 51.67 performance. Arkansas’ other wins came from Grace Heymsfield and Shannon Klenke in the invitational sections of the 3,000 meters and 5,000 meters, respectively. Heymsfield time of 9:12.25 was less than two seconds off the school record. Heading into the championship section of its schedule, Arkansas has six top-five national qualifying results including NCAA-leading marks by George and Makeba Alcide in the pentathlon (4,464 points). George, Alcide, Diane Robison at 5,000 meters and the Razorbacks’ distance-medley relay are also SEC leaders. Robison’s conference lead comes from her performance over the weekend at the Husky Classic in Seattle. The Razorbacks’ next competition will be the SEC Indoor Championships which will be contested Feb. 22-24 at the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville.
Auburn enjoyed a successful weekend with its squad split to three different meets … The Tigers competed in Birmingham, Ala., Fayetteville, Ark. and Blacksburg, Va. … Across the three meets, Auburn came away with four individual titles … The Tigers also had multiple personal bests set over the course of the weekend, including a pair by junior V’alonee Robinson … Robinson finished fourth overall in the women’s long jump with a long jump of 19-6.75 feet (15.96m) and also set a personal best in the 60 meters, finishing in 7.40 seconds, at the Tyson Invitational hosted by Arkansas … The four titles each came in Birmingham with Stephen Saenz claiming the shot put, Valentina Muzaric taking the women’s shot, Maya Pressley finishing first in the high jump and Niklas Buhner crossing the finish line first in the men’s mile … Stephen Saenz won his first shot put title in just his second meet of the season. The junior from Texas recorded a top mark of 62-10.5 (19.16m) to take the title … Pressley won her second title in as many weeks … The senior from Florida was the lone competitor to clear at 1.77m as she earned the title … Muzaric brought home her first career indoor shot put title with a long throw of 54-3.75 (16.55m), a new personal best … Auburn placed three men in the top four of the mile at the Samford Invite. Niklas Buhner won his third event of the season and second mile race with a new PR of 4:05.14. He was followed in second place by teammate Kane Grimster (4:08.35) … Senior Jeff Sanders also set a new personal-best time of 4:10.92 with a fourth-place finish … Three Auburn athletes rank in the top 10 nationally in their respective events … Sprinter Marcus Rowland is fifth in the 60 meters with his mark of 6.63 seconds from the Auburn Invite … Fellow sprinter Harry Adams is eighth with his run of 6.64 from the same meet … Saenz ranks eighth in the shot put with a long throw of 63 feet from Nebraska … A total of 17 Auburn athletes are currently projected to score at the SEC Indoor Championships, including Rowland (60m) and Saenz (shot put), who are projected as champions.
Men - The No. 2 Gator men put forth spectacular efforts at the Virginia Tech Elite Meet and Husky Classic last weekend. Sophomore Marquis Dendy became the new collegiate leader in the men’s long jump, leaping 7.99m/26-2.75 to win the event at the Virginia Tech Elite Meet. Joining Dendy in the Winner’s Circle was junior Eddie Lovett, who matched his school-record time of 7.66 in the men’s 60-meter hurdles to capture the event. Lovett is the two-time defending SEC Champion in the men’s 60-meter hurdles indoors. Sophomores Hugh Graham, Jr. and Dedric Dukes both had big weekends for the Gators, as Graham, Jr. claimed the men’s 60-meter title for the Orange and Blue in a personal-best tying 6.65. For Dukes, he won his first individual title in the men’s 400 meters indoors with a time of 47.22 and claimed the invitational section of the men’s 200 meters in 21.08. Junior Mark Parrish defeated a stacked field in the men’s open 5,000 meters at the Husky Classic, turning in a personal-best time of 14:02.46, good for third all-time in Florida school history. He topped his previous PR by over 23 seconds. The Bowerman Watch List candidate Omar Craddock launched himself to a 16.38m/53-9 mark, a new season’s best. Sophomore jumper Marquis Dendy continued his stellar weekend by turning in a personal-best leap of 16.10m/52-10. The Gators are idle until the SEC Indoor Championships. Women - The No. 6 Florida women turned in a strong weekend as they split for the Virginia Tech Elite Meet and the Husky Classic. Sophomore high jumper Taylor Burke had a career day on Saturday at Virginia Tech, one of many highlights from this weekend’s competitions in Blacksburg and in Seattle at the Husky Classic. Burke broke the school record in the women’s high jump at the Virginia Tech Elite Meet with her PR of 1.86m/6-1.25. Her mark breaks Maria Galloni’s 21-year-old record set at the 1992 SEC Championships, the same year the Gators won the SEC and NCAA Indoor Championships. Junior distance runner Cory McGee turned in a stellar performance in Seattle at the Husky Classic, racing to a career best in the invitational section of the women’s mile. McGee finished in 4:32.10, good for second all-time in Gator history and the top collegiate women’s mile. Sophomore jumper Ciarra Brewer leapt to a new personal best with her jump of 13.17m/43-2.50. Freshman Kyra Jefferson continued her phenomenal freshman campaign with a victory in the women’s 60 meters, crossing the finish in 7.35 and tying teammate Darshay Davis for fifth all-time at Florida. Fellow freshmen Destinee Gause and Shayla Sanders finished 2-3 in the event, crossing the finish line in 7.38 and 7.42, respectively. Four Gators finished in the top five of the invitational women’s 200, with Jefferson leading the way in a new PR of 23.43, finishing second. Junior Ebony Eutsey and Gause also turned in personal bests of 23.63 and 23.72 for third and fourth, respectively. Sanders took fifth in 24.21. Sophomore thrower Jayla Bostic set yet another personal best in the women’s weight throw, tossing a mark of 19.91m/65-4. It is Bostic’s third PR in five meets and the Gator sophomore has improved nearly 13 feet (16.03m/52-7.25 – 19.91m/65-4) in her first two seasons in the Orange and Blue. Pole vaulter Caitlin Schuessler jumped into the UF record books Friday night, clearing a personal-best 3.85m/12-7.50 in the open women’s pole vault. Schuessler is tied for ninth all-time in Gator program history. In the women’s open 5,000 meters at the Husky Classic, junior Callie Cooper finished in a personal best 16:30.66, good for fifth all-time in Gator program history. The Gators are idle until the SEC Indoor Championships.
Men - The Bulldogs had their final tune-up before the SEC Championships at the VT Elite Meet (Blacksburg, Va.) and the Husky Classic (Seattle, Wash.) over the weekend. Georgia was most dominant in the shot put, taking first through fourth with a trio of personal-best efforts. Sophomore Nick Vena, who is ranked 10th nationally, launched the longest throw of his career at 62 feet, 10 inches to win the competition and improve his fourth spot in the school record books. While junior Caleb Whitener took second (60-8.75), freshman Ashinia Miller bettered his indoor personal best for the third straight time and took third with a 60-5.25. Junior Petr Novotny rounded out the sweep with a sixth throw that measured a personal-best 58-11.25. Sophomore Charles Grethen won his second consecutive race in the 800-meter run after finishing his laps in 1:51.42. Freshman Kisean Smith trimmed three seconds off his personal best to take third in the 800 with a 1:52.43. A pair of Georgia freshman football players (both tailbacks) also debuted for the track team at Virginia Tech. Keith Marshall tied for the third-best 60 time in school history (6.75) to earn runner-up honors in his event. Incidentally, Marshall is tied in the school record books with fellow current football player Justin Scott-Wesley. Todd Gurley also competed in the 60 hurdles for the first time and took sixth with the seventh-best time (8.12) in Georgia history. Also on the track, the Bulldog 4x400 relay team won with a mark of 3:13.20. In the distance medley relay, Zane Coburn, Kisean Smith, Wade Voyles and Zack Sims, all freshmen, finished third with ninth-best time (9:58.83) in school history. Freshman heptathlete Maicel Uibo also won the open pole vault after clearing 16-0.75. In Seattle, sophomore Luke Baker finished with the ninth-best 5000 time (14:31.75). Georgia joins all of the other teams from around the league at the SEC meet in Fayetteville, Ark., on Feb. 22-24. Women - The Lady Bulldogs split up over the weekend, heading to Blacksburg, Va., for the VT Elite Meet and Seattle, Wash., for the Husky Classic. In Seattle, the Georgia women set a school record and made or improved on four other times on the school's all-time top-10 lists. Sophomore Carly Hamilton, who already sits atop the record books in the 3000-meter run, shot to No. 1 on the mile list after clocking a 4:36.06 to take ninth in the Invite section. 2012 All-American Megan Malasarte moved to No. 3 in the school record books in the 800 after battling for a 2:06.42, which have her seventh place in the 800 Invite. Also in the mile, junior Stella Christoforou bettered her No. 7 mark on the all-time list after taking fourth in the open race. Also of note, Bret McDaniel (16:45.06) and Nicole DiMercurio (16:49.01) moved to eighth and 10th in the school record books after taking 20th and 26th in the 5000. At the VT Elite Meet, freshman Shaunae Miller sped to the nation's sixth-best time in the 200 after winning with a 23.26. This is the best mark for the Lady Bulldogs since Debbie Ferguson set the school record of 23.17 in 1996. Fellow true freshman Chanice Porter walked away with her fourth consecutive victory in the long jump after reaching 20 feet, 9 1/4 inches. Junior Hilenn James had the second-best meet of her career in the shot put to win. James had a mark of 54-7.50 and remains tied for ninth on the national list. The Georgia women also went 1-2 in the 200 as sophomore Tynia Gaither registered a 24.29 and freshman Briana Vaughn ran a 24.51. In the high jump, senior Saniel Atkinson-Grier had her third meet this season over 5-10 after taking third with a 5-10.75. The Lady Bulldogs now prepare for the SEC Championships in Fayetteville, Ark., on Feb. 22-24.
Men - The Kentucky track and field team spent the final weekend of the regular season at the Tyson Invitational. Bradley Szypka finished second in the shot put with a PR-tying throw of 18.50m/60-08.50. The mark maintained his hold on the No. 4 spot in the conference. Isiah Kent also produced a PR mark of 18.20m/59-08.50 to take eighth. Keffri Neal placed second in the men’s 800-meter final with a PR, team-best time of 1:49.79. That time ranks No. 5 in the SEC. Keith Hayes produced a season-best time of 7.79 in the 60-meter hurdles finals to place fourth. Hayes’ time is third-fastest in the SEC this season. Ben Mason notched a team-leading 21.70 in the men’s 60 meters. Adam Kahleifeh ran a season-best time of 4:06.95 in the mile posting a time, which ranks No. 7 in the SEC. The Wildcats next compete at the SEC Championships in two weeks. Women - Cally Macumber won the 3,000 meters at the Husky Classic on Saturday in school-record time. Macumber’s time of 8:59.98 set a new Kentucky indoor record previously held by three-time 5K NCAA champion Valarie McGovern. The time ranks third in the nation, and leads the SEC. Further Macumber is one of just three collegiate runners to break nine minutes at 3K this season. Chelsea Oswald was alongside Macumber for much of the race, finishing eighth with a PR 9:06.64, the third-fastest indoor time in school history. The rest of the Wildcats spent the weekend competing at the Tyson Invitational on the Arkansas campus. Allison Peare ran a season-best, team-leading 2:09.04 in the women’s 800 meters to finish fourth. Joanne Imbert posted a top-five performance for the second straight week finishing fourth in the women’s high jump (1.72m/5-07.75). More than 2,000 miles from Macumber and Oswald, Anna Bostrom continued the strong women’s distance weekend for Kentucky with a career-best 9:48.35 in the Tyson women’s 3K to finish fifth. The Wildcats next compete at the SEC Championships in two weeks.
The No. 3-ranked Lady Tigers certainly positioned themselves for a title run at the 2013 NCAA Division I Indoor Track & Field Championships with a trio of top-five performances nationally during Saturday's finale at the Tyson Invitational held at Arkansas' Randal Tyson Track Center. Two Lady Tigers certainly solidified their NCAA qualification as senior Kimberlyn Duncan and junior Lynnika Pitts each set personal records with runner-up finishes in their invitational events. LSU's Lady Tigers also wrapped up the meet with a third-place finish in the invitational 4x400-meter relay while slashing nearly three seconds from their previous seasonal-best in the event and locking up a top-five national ranking in the event as they sprint toward the postseason. The LSU women emerged from the weekend with a total of 10 performances that rank among the NCAA's Top 10 for 2013. Saturday's finale at the 2013 Tyson Invitational also witnessed the end of one of the remarkable streaks in the history of collegiate track and field as Duncan saw her run of 18-straight collegiate victories in the 200-meter dash come to an end, despite racing to an indoor personal best in the event. Friday night certainly belonged to Tiger senior Damar Forbes as he followed a personal-best performance in the 60-meter dash with the NCAA's third-best mark of the season to win the Tyson Invitational long jump crown. After sprinting to a personal record of 6.73 seconds in the 60-meter semifinal, Forbes took flight in the long jump and soared to a new seasonal-best of 26 feet, ¾ inches on his very first attempt to lock up his second long jump title in as many weeks with the No. 3-ranked mark in the NCAA for the 2013 season. Forbes was joined on the winner's podium by Lady Tiger junior Denise Hinton, who finished just one inch shy of her own school record mark with a winning 69-8 ¾ to capture her fourth weight throw title in five meets this season by a comfortable three feet on the afternoon. With this year's Tyson Invitational now in the rearview mirror, the Tigers and Lady Tigers will return home next weekend to play host to the annual LSU Twilight meet being held Friday, Feb. 15, at the Carl Maddox Field House in Baton Rouge. They will then return to the Randal Tyson Track Center in Fayetteville for the 2013 SEC Indoor Championships as they kick off the postseason on Feb. 24-26.
Men - Ole Miss is ranked No. 16 in this week’s USTFCCCA poll after a good showing in New Mexico over the weekend. The Rebels have this weekend off before the Feb. 22-24 SEC Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. Senior Ricky Robertson had more outstanding performances in Albuquerque. He was runner-up in the Don Kirby Elite triple jump (52-2.75) and won the Don Kirby Open long jump (season-best 24-7.25). He is now the only NCAA athlete to rank top 20 nationally in the high jump (2nd, 7-6), triple jump (6th, 52-8.25) and long jump (19th, 24-7.25). Sophomore Sam Kendricks cleared 18 feet again in the pole vault to win the Don Kirby Open (18-0.5). He is the only Rebel to ever clear 18 feet and ranks fifth nationally this year (18-1.75). Senior Morris Kersh is 14th nationally in the triple jump with a personal-best mark of 51-8.5. Ole Miss placed sixth at last year’s SEC Indoor Championships behind Robertson, who tied for the most points at the meet and earned the Cliff Harper Trophy. This year’s NCAA Championships will also be held in Fayetteville, March 8-9. New this year is that there are no automatic qualifying standards for the NCAA meet. The NCAA will accept the top 16 athletes in each individual event and the top 12 schools in each relay for the championships. Women - The Rebel women had several outstanding performances in New Mexico last weekend, their final meet before the Feb. 22-24 SEC Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. Headlining the fine efforts was freshman Asia Cooper’s scintillating 60-meter dash at the Don Kirby Elite Invitational. She placed runner-up with a personal-best time of 7.29 (converted to 7.31 for altitude) and moved up to No. 8 in the NCAA rankings, which is best among all freshmen. The Jackson, Miss., native is the SEC’s top freshman and fourth overall, while she moves up to third place in school history and within striking distance of Teneeshia Jones (7.28) and Brittney Reese (7.29). Senior Jazmin Miller was runner-up in the Elite weight throw with a personal-best mark of 64-8.75 that improves her standing as the second-best weight thrower in school history. She moved up to 27th in the national rankings and third-best in the SEC this year. Junior Allegra Wells jumped 20-4.5 in the Elite long jump to move up to 12th in the nation this year and fourth in school history. Sophomore Taryn Hartfield clocked a time of 8.41 (converted to 8.43 for altitude) in the 60-meter hurdles to move up to 45th nationally this year and improve her standing as third-best in school history. Ole Miss placed eighth at last year’s SEC Indoor Championships. This year’s NCAA Championships will also be held in Fayetteville, March 8-9. New this year is that there are no automatic qualifying standards for the NCAA meet. The NCAA will accept the top 16 athletes in each individual event and the top 12 schools in each relay for the championships.
Friday saw action across the board for the Mississippi State indoor track and field team, as the Bulldogs competed in 15 events on just day one of the Tyson Invitational hosted by Arkansas. The men, entering weekend competition ranked 12th in the nation, proved why they belong in that coveted spot. Brandon McBride and Nathan Arnett both enjoyed top finishes in their events. Freshman McBride (47.02) seized a third-place finish in the 400-meter dash, while Arnett (7.85) finished fifth in the 60-meter hurdles preliminaries to land him a spot in tomorrow’s finals. Senior D’Angelo Cherry followed fellow Bulldogs in similar speedy fashion. With his fourth-place finish in the 60-meter dash, Cherry’s time of 6.68 seconds in preliminaries qualified him Saturday’s finals. Later in the day, All-American Jarrett Samuels (24-03.50) long-jumped his way to victory, finishing first in a field of nearly 40 jumpers. Distance veteran Katie Huston (4:55.78) and newcomer Fabienne Amrhein (5:02.28) also shined on day one, posting second-place and seventh-place finishes in the mile run, respectively. Mississippi State continued on Saturday to build on Friday’s campaign at the Tyson Invitational at Arkansas, while others started weekend action at the Samford Multi and Invitational. The Bulldogs completed their stint Saturday at the Razorbacks' Randal Tyson Track Center with five Top 5 finishes, highlighted by Alyssa Hall's first-place finish in the high jump (5-09.75). The MSU men’s distance medley team picked second-place finish. The foursome, which included twins Andrew and Patrick Monaghan, Jarrett Samuels, and Brandon McBride, turned in a time of 9.52 seconds to find themselves at the top of the board. The Lady Bulldogs also captured attention with Erica Bougrad’s third-place performance in the high jump (5-07.75), coupled with action by the 4x400-meter relay team of Ocian Archer, Jody-Ann Muir, Erica Bougard and Kanisha Carey. The quartet raced in 3:41.21 seconds to give the MSU women a fourth-place finish. Meanwhile in Alabama, MSU dominated the competition with top field performances. Sojourner Ewing (18-10.75) posted a third-place finish in the long jump, and Megan Walker (11-11.75) saw a Top 10 finish in the pole vault, as she earned a spot in eighth. Antavius McGhee (23-02.50) stood out for the MSU men, finishing fifth in the long jump, followed by A.J. Ward’s (23-00.50) seventh-place jump. Later in the day, Nathan Lewis ran the 3000-meter run in 8:31.47 seconds to reach a spot in fourth. The Maroon and White take a week’s rest before heading to Baton Rouge for the LSU Twilight Invitational on Feb. 15.
The University of Missouri split forces this past weekend, as a small group of distance specialists traveled to Seattle, WA, for the Husky Classic and another group of field event and sprint athletes drove down to Fayetteville, AR, for the Tyson Invitational. Both groups left their respective meets with, not only new PRs, but a pair of impressive new school records. First up was stand-out freshman Markesh Woodson, who continued to drop his school record performances in the 60m dash. After tying the record in his first meet, he nabbed the title in Kentucky two weeks ago with a 6.69 finish. He continued to drop that time in the prelims of the 60m dash at the Tyson Invite, racing to a 6.66 finish before shaving off another 0.03 in the final, ending the day with a 6.63 and third place finish against some of the toughest competition in the nation. Over on the west coast, senior Laura Roxberg also out-ran her own school record, finishing the mile in 4:34.59. This was enough to win her heat and give her 5th overall at one of the toughest mid-distance and distance competitions during the indoor season. Roxberg dropped her previous 4:39 school record from last year by five seconds. Both are currently ranked fifth in the nation for their efforts this weekend, and are in the top two for the SEC. Two more Tigers left their respective meets with new PRs, as Mitch Hatten jumped to a 2.06m (6-9) in the high jump at Tyson, and Merid Seleshi ran a new mile time of 4:08.48 at Husky. The Tigers are home for their final meet before the SEC Championships, with the Missouri Collegiate Challenge kicking off in Columbia at 2:00 p.m.
Last weekend, South Carolina traveled to the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., the Tiger Paw Invitational in Clemson, S.C., and the Husky Classic in Seattle, Wash. Freshman Kayla Lampe and junior Jeannelle Scheper both broke their own school records to highlight the weekend. Lampe bettered the 5,000-meter record that she set last weekend at the Armory Collegiate Invitational, running a 16:32.48 on Friday at the Husky Classic. Lampe placed 14th out of 82 runners in Seattle. Scheper cleared a height of 6’ or more for the fifth time in Garnet and Black, winning the invitational section at the Tyson Invitational with a jump of 6’3 ¼ (1.91m). The mark is the best in the SEC and stands as second in the collegiate ranks this season. With a throw of 52’1 ¾ (15.89m), senior Breanna Radford won her fourth shot put event of the season at the Tiger Paw Invitational. Redshirt sophomore Kaysee Sullivan finished second behind Radford with a throw of 46’0 ½ (14.03m). Redshirt senior Robert Razick set a PR and jumped up the Gamecock record book on Friday and Saturday at the Tyson Invitational. After moving to third all-time in South Carolina indoor history in the mile run on Friday with a 4:08.68, Razick followed up with an 8:23.39 in the 3,000-meters on Saturday. The new PR catapults him from seventh to third on the Gamecock top 10 list. Junior pole vaulter Petra Olsen set a new personal best on the way to third place at the Tyson Invite. Olsen cleared 13’10 ½ (4.23m), which ranks second in South Carolina indoor history. Olsen was not the only pole vaulter to set a new PR as freshman Austin Eckenroth also did so, taking seventh in Fayetteville with a mark of 16’3 ¼ (4.96m). South Carolina stays at home this weekend to host the Gamecock Indoor Invitational on Saturday.
For its final tune-up before the 2013 SEC Indoor Championships, the Tennessee track & field team split into three groups, sending contingents to the Tyson Invitational, the Husky Classic and the Samford Multi and Invitational. The Big Orange’s top performing group of the season, its pole vaulters, headed to the Birmingham Crossplex and swept the meet titles. A week after tying the mark, freshman pole vaulter Jake Blankenship broke a 20-year old UT indoor freshman record, leaping to his third-consecutive and fourth overall title of the season with a vault of 18-feet, 1-inch (5.51m). The vault, which came on his second attempt, puts Blankenship ahead of legendary Vol and Olympic silver medalist Lawrence Johnson, who set the previous mark of 18-0.5 in his rookie season in 1993. Blankenship’s new career-best now ranks seventh in the nation and second in the SEC. Among freshmen, he tops the SEC list and sits second in the nation. To date, his vault is also tied for 35th in the world in 2013. Blankenship’s teammates Chase Brannon and Tyler Porter took second and third place in the event, respectively. On the women’s side, Lady Vol pole vaulter Linda Hadfield, the school record holder in the event, picked up her first victory of the season with a mark of 12-11.5. In the Pacific Northwest at the University of Washington’s Husky Classic, Tennessee sent distance runners Peter Okwera and Hannah Davidson to one of the fastest facilities in the nation. Okwera came away with a seventh-place finish in the men’s 5,000-meter, crossing the tape in a personal-best 14 minutes, 7.22 seconds. The mark ranks seventh on UT’s all-time men’s 5K list. Davidson also performed well, coming in sixth place with a PR time of 16:22.74 – a mark that ranks fifth on UT’s all-time women’s 5K list. In the SEC, Okwera and Davidson rank third and fourth in the 5K, respectively. The majority of the squad attended the Tyson Invitational at Arkansas’ Randal Tyson Track Center – the site of the 2013 SEC Championships and NCAA Championships. UT came away with nine top-five finishes at the event, highlighted by a 1-2 finish from Lady Vols Nijgia Snapp and Kianna Ruff in the Olympic Development 800m on Friday. Snapp put forth her top time of the season in 2:07.08 – a mark that ranks fourth in the SEC this season – while Ruff finished just behind her in a personal-best 2:07.48. Junior Amber Zimmerman recorded a personal best on the oval, finishing in fourth place in the 3K in 9:47.31. A week after setting the school’s freshman record in the 5K, Vol Austin Whitelaw finished just off the UT rookie record pace in the mile, crossing the line in 4:08.51. On the field, junior Allison Outerbridge recorded her first-career jump over 40 feet in the triple jump. Outerbridge placed second with a leap of 40-4.75. For the Vols, sophomore thrower Matthew Hoty pushed the shot put over 60 feet for the first time this season, finishing in fourth place in the event with a mark of 60-3.25. Rookie Cameron Brown also bested his own UT freshman record in the weight throw with a toss of 62-1.25. Brown finished third in the event. The Orange and White will take a week off to train in Knoxville, before heading back to Fayetteville, Ark., for the 2013 SEC Indoor Championships from Feb. 22-24.
Texas A&M won both team titles in its final home meet of the season. The Aggie men scored 207.5 points while the A&M women totaled 198 points as they combined for 17 victories. No other team in the meet scored reached 100 points. The Aggies have a week off prior to the competing in their first SEC Indoor Championships. Men - Henry Lelei broke his school record in the 3000m with a 7:55.80 that also bettered the meet record of 8:08.17 set in 2010. Casey Strong achieved his sixth consecutive victory in the weight throw this indoor season, hitting a mark of 63-4 ¾. Freshman Chase Wolfle moved to No. 6 on the A&M all-time list in the pole vault with a winning clearance of 17-5 (5.31). Hector Hernandez led an Aggie 1-2-3 in the 800 as his 1:50.54 ranks as No. 7 on the A&M all-time list. Defending NCAA Indoor 200m champion Ameer Webb won the 200 in 21.00 while Michael Bryan finished second in a PR of 21.06. In the 60, Webb and Bryan both clocked 6.72 for second and third place. Bralon Taplin won the 400 in 46.85 and ran second leg of the winning 4 x 400 (3:07.77). Wayne Davis II claimed the 60 hurdles in 7.86 while Devion Harris cleared 6-7 ½ to win the high jump. Women - LaQue Moen-Davis improved her triple jump best to 43-7 ¼ (13.29) in leading an Aggie 1-5 finish. Moen-Davis tops the SEC in the triple jump and is second in the long jump. Nationally she ranks third in the triple jump and fourth in the long jump. Kamaria Brown also led an A&M 1-5 finish in the 200 with her winning time of 23.57 seconds. Jennifer Madu won the 60 in 7.41 over Brown’s 7.43. The Aggies also won the 400 with Janeil Bellille (54.65) and 800 with Aliese Hyde (2:10.82). Bellille was part of the winning 4 x 400 (3:36.82) as well. Brea Garrett hit a mark of 61-2 to win the weight throw while Jena Hemann cleared 5-8 ½ for the high jump victory.
The Vanderbilt track and field team competed for the third-straight week at the Samford Multi and Invitational on Saturday, February 9, as they continue getting closer to the SEC Indoor Championships. he morning opened with Allie Scalf finishing third in the 5,000 meters. Scalf crossed the line in 17:04.08. The 60-meter hurdles saw Faith Washington run 8.89, one-hundredth of a second shy of qualifying for the finals. In the 60-meter dash, Washington ran a time of 8.06. Amira Joseph finished 11th in the mile (5:03.30). One of the highlights of the day came in the 400-meter dash, where Washington finished fifth, clocking a time of 56.36 which is the fifth-best in VU history. Seven Commodores ran in the 3,000 meters, with five of them finishing in placed five-nine. Jordan White paced the black and gold in 9:45.21, followed by Lily Williams in 9:45.75, Vanessa Valentine in 9:57.29, Rebecca Chandler in 9:59.00 and Hannah Jumper in 9:59.08. Track action wrapped-up with Kristen Findley finishing fifth in the 800 meters, posting a time of 2:11.48. On the field side, Alyson Hasty and Morgan Toone competed in the pole vault, both clearing 3.50 meters (11' 5.75"). Skyler Carpenter finished 23rd in the long jump, posting a mark of 5.23 meters (17' 2"). Janetra Gleaves finished fifth in the pentathlon on Friday, scoring 3,146 points. This was the final tune-up for the Commodores before the SEC Indoor Track & Field Championships, which will be held February 22-24 in Fayetteville, Ark.

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(3158, 33 km E, Yarra Ranges Shire)
West of Belgrave in the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges, Upwey was named by the local Tullidge family who had migrated from Upwey on the River Wey in England. Originally the district was known as Mast Gully - in 1850 several masts had been cut in the vicinity for the barque Admiral. Selectors moved in during the 1870s. Later settlement increased the population, which became the first in the hills to organise its own fire brigade, formed in 1918.

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Importance of doing Online Mental Health Counseling Degrees
Mental health counseling is the thing that individuals regularly consider when they hear the word counseling. However counselors' real responsibilities may go well beyond what public think. Clinical counselors do not talk to people through issues. Much of the time they diagnose and also treat emotional instability or mental disease. Mental Health Counselors can help people to handle and defeat their emotional problems. By doing your Online Mental Health Counseling Degrees program, you can become an excellent mental health care professional. The mental health counseling field started to grow faster and thus many colleges started their Online Mental Health Counseling Course programs. Good quality mental health education with an importance on how to relate counseling assumptions and studies to present-day medical practice is a major coursework in Online Mental Health Counseling Degrees program.
During your Online Mental Health Counseling Course programs, you will get chance to communicate with highly qualified mental health counselors with lot of real-world experience. Mental health counselors will devotedly listen to people with mental disorders or emotional instabilities. And raise questions, to help the patients realize their troubles and build up smart plans to develop their lives.
Online Mental Health Counseling Course program is accessible at both open and private colleges. While Online Mental Health Counseling Degrees projects permit students to take most classes on the web. Online specialists likewise oversaw students with makeshift employments in the emotional well-being consideration field. These outfit students with the opportunity to develop their separating capacities or aptitudes, coordinating and talking capacities while collaborating with mates and instructors. Clinical supporters do unquestionably talk people through issues in a straightforward manner. In any case, they diagnose and likewise treat enthusiastic unsteadiness. Job of psychological well-being instructors and marriage and family advisors is anticipated to grow 29 percent from 2012 to 2022, much speedier than the normal for all occupations. Development is normal in both occupations as more individuals have psychological well-being directing administrations secured by their protection approaches.
Online Mental Health Counseling Course projects vary marginally. Most of the Online Mental Health Counseling College incorporates online coursework, and additionally face-to-face practicums. Online Mental Health Counseling Degrees in mental health counseling guiding can be as short as around 60 hours or the length of around 90 hours, yet most oblige a residency of around two weeks. Dissimilar to other Online Mental Health Counseling Degrees, online master's degree projects in psychological wellness normally permit students to pick a couple of particular classes in mental health care field, so students can concentrate on the details of mental health care that is most important for them. Some basic specializations in mental health care incorporate legal sciences, marriage and family, and injury guiding. In online mental health care graduate degrees students get online classes and assistance in workshops from online experts. Online Mental Health Counseling Course program advises most of the students to do their practical activities in mental health care at their nearby mental health care clinics.
The Department of Counseling and Psychology at Online Mental Health Counseling College is providing a Master of Science degree in Mental Health Counseling primarily online to worldwide students and US students. It is a 60-credit master's degree which meets the scholastic necessities for licensure in the Massachusetts state as a Mental Health Counselor for the individuals who complete an affirmed field position in the US under proper supervision. There are extra post graduate clinical experience prerequisites for licensure. For licensure in different states, students are encouraged to check with their state's leading Online Mental Health Counseling College for educational necessities. Students finish general counseling classes and courses at Online Mental Health Counseling College is getting psychological health care guiding and other supports to enlarge their knowledge’s. Moreover, students complete field practical works in mental health care settings through the practicum and temporary job. The field works may be finished in nearby organizations where students reside, and they are managed by means of online visits.

domain: psychology