1 shot of Pinnacle Whipped Vodka

1 shot of Peach Schnapps

1 part orange juice

1 part 7-Up

Fill a chilled 16 oz. glass with ice and add the shots of vodka and schnapps. Fill the rest of the cup with equal parts of orange juice and 7-Up. If you prefer to have a more carbonated beverage, then add more 7-Up than orange juice. This drink can also be made in a shaker in order to mix all ingredients together if you choose.

A Creamcicle has a citrus taste that does not overwhelm the unique taste of whipped vodka and schnapps. The colder the drink is, the better it tastes, so be sure to add plenty of ice and chill your glass.

Please drink responisbly.

Pomegranate Soda

10 oz. Pomegranate Cocktail Mixer

6 oz. Club Soda

1-2 cups of ice

Lime for garnish

A  pomegranate soda is a unique and refreshing drink. Use a 16 oz. glass, chilled if you prefer. Add one to two cups of ice and the pomegranate cocktail mixer. The glass should be a little over half full at this time. Add the six ounces of Club Soda. Give the drink a quick stir and add a lime for garnish.

The great thing about this drink is its combination of the tangy taste of pomegranate and the carbonation of club soda which thins out the strong taste that pomegranate cocktail mixer has and creates a delicious and healthy treat.

The conference will include a total of 16 universities and will span the nation from North Carolina to Hawaii. The 2013 football season is the date set for this conference to be active.

As of now, this conference will be comprised of the University of Alabama Birmingham, East Carolina University, William Marsh Rice University, Marshall University, the University of Southern Mississippi, the University of Tulsa, Tulane University and University of Texas at El Paso from C-USA.

Members joining from the Mountain West Conference will be the University of Wyoming, University of Nevada Las Vegas, University of New Mexico, Air Force Academy and Colorado State University.

The Western Athletic Conference will be contributing Fresno State, the University of Nevada Reno and the University of Hawaii. Hawaii will be joining for football only.

“This new conference will provide stability for the teams involved, as there is strength in numbers,” Tom Burman, head athletic director of the University of Wyoming, said.

With all of the changes that have been happening in college sports regarding conferences, he said it was important to be involved in a stable league to remain Football Bowl Subdivision-eligible, which requires that a conference have at least six members.

“With a conference that spans the nation as well as a greater number of teams, the league might hold more broadcasting value,” he said.

The broadcasting could serve as a potential financial benefit for the conference.

“The league will be made up of 18-24 teams,” Burman said.

As of yet, no agreement has been reached on how many teams will be in the conference.

He added that other teams have expressed interest in joining the conference; it is up to the athletic directors to decide how many teams will be admitted.

One of his only concerns for potential downsides to this merger is the unlikely event that regional rivals such as CSU and UW, for example, would not get to play one another every year. Aside from that, he said everything else from the merger would be positive.

Neal Smatresk, President of the University of Nevada Las Vegas, said this league is a counter to the power play of conferences, such as the Big East, in recruiting San Diego State University, for example.

He said the new league would be a wide-spanning conference as well.

However, the teams would be competing in their respective regions to reduce travelling expenses, Smatresk said.

He said that a two-tier playoff system involving East and West regions has been discussed for conference championship playoffs.

This is a huge move for all of the universities involved. Burman said many of the details have to be ironed out.

“We are going to do it; it’s just time to figure out the logistics,” he said.

As of now, it is undecided what will happen to the MWC and Conference USA once this new conference is active.

Burman said he supports current MWC commissioner Craig Thompson to become the commissioner of the new league. Burman said Thompson has done great things for the MWC.

The Aztecs came to town as the first-ranked team in the Mountain West Conference with a record of 10–1 in the MW and 20–5 overall.

SDSU spoiled the Cowgirls’ final home game of the season, defeating UW by a score of 68–55. With the win, SDSU clinched the Mountain West Conference regular season championship by pushing their conference record to 11–1. Wyoming meanwhile falls to 7–6 in the conference.

University of Wyoming forward Ashley Sickles jumps for the shot during the game against San Diego State University Tuesday night. The Cowgirls lost the game 55–68. (Photo: Brian Schueler)

“I don’t think we came out as strong as we could have,” junior Ashley Sickles said. “But I think throughout the game we played a lot better than last time.”

San Diego struck first in this contest with two baskets to make the score 0–4. The Cowgirls responded with a 7–0 run, led by Sickles who had five of the seven points, to make the score 7–4 in favor of the Cowgirls with 17 minutes left to play. The Aztecs and Cowgirls traded hoops for the next nine minutes, until the Cowgirls established a 17–12 lead with eight minutes to go.

The Aztecs began to chip away at the lead, finally taking it back just shy of the six minute mark. The teams scored evenly for the remainder of the first half, ending with a score of 29–30 in favor of SDSU.

The first twenty minutes of play ended with 14 lead changes. Freshman Alison Gorrell led scoring eight first-half points. Three other players finished the half with four rebounds. The Cowgirls shot 44.8 percent (13/29) from the field and 60.0 percent (3/5) from the free throw line and made one of two three-point attempts.

San Diego scored the first four points of the second half to push their lead to 34–29. The Cowgirls stopped the mini-run of the Aztecs with a basket from Gorrell, who scored six of the next eight for UW. SDSU held their lead until the ten-minute mark, when the Cowgirls brought the game to 42–43.

SDSU’s Courtney Clements sank a three-pointer to up the lead to four points. The Cowgirls were not able to take over the lead during the second half, and the game ended with a score of 55–68, the Aztecs coming out on top.

Gorrell led in scoring with her career-high 16 point effort, shooting 6/7 from the field and a perfect 100 percent (4/4) from the free-throw line. Junior Chaundra Sewell led in rebounds with a total of seven.

UW shot 38.5 percent (20/52) from the field, 18.2 percent (2/11) from three-point land, and 81.3 percent (13/16) from the free-throw line for the game.

SDSU’s Clements, who is the front-runner for MWC Player of the Year, scored a game-high 25 points and shot 75 percent (3/4) from the three-point line.

“She puts a lot of pressure on a defense,” head coach Joe Legerski said. “We didn’t have an answer for her.”

He expressed his gratitude for the support this season, and congratulated San Diego State on their clinch of the MWC championship.

The Cowgirls will now hit the road for their final two games of the season. They will play at Boise State on Saturday and wrap up the regular season with a game at Texas Christian University on Tuesday.

David Demic

Some of my fellow international students could rightfully call me a “sell out” for so completely immersing myself in the American culture and language.

But my question: Why come to a country—any country—and not immerse yourself fully?

See it from an anthropological standpoint: A scientist would not go to another country to teach them his/her customs, traditions and values without also learning their respective culture. Frankly, it is a bit rude to visit a country and completely ignore the rich cultural experience one could receive.

However, it would be too simple to blame only foreign students (or immigrants in this country) for the separation that happens between the cultures.

First, it comes naturally. When one does not know anyone in an unfamiliar place, you will gravitate toward people one can more easily identify with. Even without international students, the University of Wyoming would still be a prime example of this. Just think of all the freshmen high school cliques of Americans that form in the first semester of college.

Second, I do not think that language is our biggest barrier. A student can take a decade worth of English as a Second Language classes and still not feel comfortable interacting with Americans. Plus, stylized textbook language will never be able to convey culture the way attending a Wyoming rodeo for the first time ever could.

If the solution to this dilemma is not apparent yet, I will write it plainly: we must interact more directly. This requires both international students as well as Americans to put in the effort to bridge the cultural divide.

Personally, having been in a host family tremendously shaped my cultural experience. Being forced to speak English every day, beyond saying “How are you” and “See ya,” really helped me focus on improving my English. Plus, my host family was already involved in the community. Making friends and learning all the weird things that Americans do—like not locking the bathroom—was that much easier. It is much more humorous to mess up in front of someone you call your “host sister” rather than people you have met for the first time.

I propose American students go out there and become friends with a foreigner. We can teach you some stuff, might be an awesome couch to crash on when you come visit us and generally have very entertaining accents. International students, be open to the experience. It is entirely too easy to hang out with people from your country or other international students.

Do not fall in the “Library Bar” trap, where after your semester or year here, all you remember is hanging out with that girl from France in the bar for three months, only to realize she actually liked the Australian guy.

Finally, people of Laramie, adopt some international students into your family. Heck, invite out-of-state students, too. Some might have never shot a gun or ridden a horse. Transform Laramie from a miserable as an icicle experience to a city they fell in love with.

Whatever you do, do not isolate yourself from other groups of people. That’s just so Hollywood American high school.

ASUW spent the rest of the Recognized Student Organization events budget during Tuesday’s senate meeting. In response, each budget was decreased by three percent due to lack of funds.

Sen. Katie Drumhiller said, “There are a few groups that will not receive funding, which is extremely unfortunate. However, we have funded a variety of RSO events this year. Of course there are some events that were not well received. But then there are others that had great success.”

When debate ensued over whether event funds should cover floral decorations, senate settled that RSO events were restricted from the budget when flowers are to be used for gifts. However, the allowance of the use of flowers decorations will be at the discretion of the RSO funding board.

Senate Bill #2346, ASUW Finance Policy Revisions, Part II, stated flowers are a gift and a decoration. The amendment to stricken flowers as a gift passed. With the new amendments, the bill as a whole passed unanimously.

ASUW senators argued on the issue of micromanaging RSO events. Through the money allocated to RSO events, senators’ quarreled with the breakdowns of how the money would be used.

“I think the way were doing it now is a good way. You can’t really tell an RSO to just lower their funds. When an event requires to be good, spending money is necessary. We should not put a cap on how much an event is worth,” Drumhiller said.

Mortar Board representative and president asked for $645 for the annual Torchlight Moral event.  The members made a list of where the money would be used.

Sen. Jordan Perry agreed for the money to be allocated to Mortar Board. She said the detailed budget was well thought out.

“I would urge a yes vote,” Perry said. “Clearly the representatives have worked hard.”

The Mortar Board representatives stressed the disappointment of not receiving money from other grants they have applied for.

Perry said, “Mortar Board has worked really hard in terms of fundraising to raise money.” She said the lack of funding from outside sources and their dedication to decreasing their costs shows their interest in this event.

“Torchlight Morals is an important special event to recognize students,” Perry said.

Senators debated whether or not ASUW owns the rights to determine exactly how much money is allowed for each aspect, including how invitations are sent out and what food is necessary for the event.

After the debate, ASUW passed the request of $645 to Mortar Board with an 18-12 vote.

In other business:

The Muslim Student Association was allocated $6590.34 for their annual awareness week

The Potter Law Club was allocated $3,187.42, which will be used for travel and hospitality for the lawyers speaking at their event.

Friends of Nepal was allocated $5,319.29 for its dinner event in April. The money will be used for speakers, dancers and singers.

Freshman Senate and Residence Hall Association raised money for the student recently hit by a car in White Hall’s parking lot.

A senate bill requesting $125,000 for the purchase and erection the ASUW 100th Anniversary Prexy’s Pasture Western Artwork Statue received its first reading.

Wyoming Department of Health Spokesperson Kim Deti said the weeklong campaign, which will end Saturday, is designed to bring attention to the issue.

Wyoming typically has a higher user rate than the national average for youth and adults, Wendy Braund, state health officer and senior administrator of the Wyoming Department of Health’s Public Health Division, said.

“No one, including our state’s young people, should consider smokeless tobacco as a safe or acceptable alternative to smoking,” she said. Braund said the Department of Heath has continued the search for strategies to stop the use of smokeless tobacco, especially in high schools.

Rates for high school adolescent men dropped in the last few years from 24.7 percent to 22.1 percent, but the rate for high school adolescent women rose from 6.9 to 7.8 percent., according to Braund. Deti said she believes Wyoming has a higher rate because of how residents are raised.

“We (Wyoming residents) have both a tradition of [using] smokeless tobacco product through the years and it is part of the culture,” Deti said. “It is something that is being marketed as well.”

Tomorrow is the Great American Spit Out Day. Deti said the day will challenge smokeless tobacco users to quit for a day to see if they can do it. Similar to the event the department supports in the fall, the “Smoke Out,” the main purpose of tomorrow’s challenge will be to encourage users to attempt quitting before they say they cannot.

“Studies have shown that [employing one’s own resources] is the most effective way to quit,” Deti said.  Different types of support increase the effectiveness of the program. The Wyoming Quit Tobacco Program offers free online, over-the-phone and in-person counseling for individuals.

A truck rests along the banks of Westbound Interstate 80 from Cheyenne to Laramie. According to the Wyoming Department of Transportation, the weather will likely continue to be a threat to vehicles until Thursday morning. (Photo: Seneca Riggins)

The Associated Press reported that strong winds are expected to continue in parts of Colorado and Wyoming through Thursday.

Nearby, a high wind warning is also in effect in Colorado through 5 a.m. Thursday for the eastern slope of Front Range mountains and foothills, with peak gusts of up to 100 mph.

Both eastbound and westbound portions of Interstate 80 Laramie were closed throughout the day toward Cheyenne, as well as parts of Highway 287.

Stretches of Interstate 25 from Colorado to Wheatland, Wyo., were closed to light, high-profile vehicles Tuesday evening.

Roads in southeast Wyoming have been closed for a significant amount of time and weather forecasts indicate another storm is moving into the state.

In a statement, the Wyoming Department of Transportation said snow moved into the western portion of the state and will develop in the state’s mountains (Big Horns, Sierra Madre and Snowy Range) and in the northeast later today and tonight.

WYDOT said because of weather conditions, very strong sustained west winds and gusts from 65 to 75 mph will develop across much of the state. This will be a prolonged wind event with the very strong, gusty winds continuing through at least Thursday morning. Several high wind warnings and watches are in effect.

As of Tuesday evening, vehicle blow-over potential was considered extremely high for high profile, light weight vehicles, if not imminent along Interstate 80 and Interstate 25 in south-east Wyoming over the next 48 hours, according to WYDOT.

Winds will increase today and some blow-over threats will be increasing later today and tonight but it will be Wednesday and especially Wednesday night and Thursday morning where winds will be at their worst.

As she systematically dropped one piece of clothing at a time, the crowd’s cheers became louder until, finally, the tassel twirling began and the crowd’s cheers turned into a deafening roar of approval.

Tropes Burlesque, Wyoming’s only burlesque troupe, is based in Laramie and was founded by Jennifer Dunn, also known by her stage name, Madame Ginny Woolf. The troupe started in August 2010 with nine members and now boasts more than 30, including a few male dancers and tomcats, the male counterpart to kittens.

The troupe performed Saturday night at the Gryphon Theatre. The two-hour show was filled with burlesque dancing by both male and female dancers, as well as singing and several other spectacles.

Gina Gomez, Tropes Burlesque dancer under the name Dominae Trixy, said Saturday was the first time she had actually performed an act on stage for the group. Previously, she only performed as a kitten, a term used for the female stagehands who help clean up between acts, she said.

Brandy Stossel, also known as Vanity Sweet, said 534 tickets were sold at the show, more than any prior show. The proceeds from Saturday’s show, as well as the troupe’s previous show, will be donated to the Laramie Downtown Health Clinic and Laramie Reproductive Health.

They have performed approximately six or seven shows since the troupe’s inception, Stossel said.

Last summer, the troupe performed at the What Fest in Clark, Wyo. They had to perform atop a flatbed truck, which was very tricky, Stossel said. She said the festival was empty until they began to perform and then all of the hippies began migrating toward the truck.

Stossel said each member “picks her gimmick.” This includes everything from choosing the music to dance to the costumes to wear. Stossel’s gimmick is dancing with two giant fans.

Gomez said she loves the creative ideas that people come up with for the show. Everyone is supportive of the members and they tend to cheer for each other from offstage, she said.

Many of the dancers Saturday had very creative acts, some incorporating hula-hoops and brassieres stuffed with tissue paper.

Stossel said her favorite part of burlesque dancing is being able to be a different person on stage than she is offstage. She said she enjoys having both creative and professional sides.

Stossel said Dunn got the idea for a burlesque troupe after attending a bachelor party that featured burlesque dancers.

Jade said there are two types of burlesque dancing: American and British. The American version focuses mainly on the female form and incorporates more comedy than the British version, she said.

One important fact is burlesque dancing is not a strip club, Johnny Knockers, Tropes Burlesque host, said. There are a few rules. Those rules include telling audience members to show their appreciation for dancers by cheering loudly and often.  However, excessive rowdiness is not tolerated and Knockers makes sure that audience members knew there were several burly security guards present at the show.

Tropes Burlesque’s next show will be April 21 at the Gryphon Theater.

Joe Plante threw for a distance of 66-1 in the 35-pound throw, placing him in tenth in UW history.  Also in the heavy toss, Ashley Hutchinson threw for 65-4 3/4, which is second in all-time UW history.

As this will be Plante’s and Hutchinson’s last performances in the War Memorial Fieldhouse, these were both remarkable finishes, as both earned first place.

Junior Brandon Douglass finished first in the 55-meter hurdles with a time of 7.55 seconds, followed by Colin Herold at 7.65 seconds.

Also claiming a first-place finish was Travis Gunderson in the 55-meter dash with a time of 6.48 seconds.

On the women’s side, the Cowgirls claimed the top three places in the women’s long jump,  Emily Moore took first with a jump of 17-4 1/4, Karen Koritnik in second with 17-3 1/4 and Jenna Mann in third with 17-3 1/4.

Mann claimed another first place spot in the 55-meter hurdles in another 1-2-3 finish with a time 8.1 seconds, followed by Erin Kirby finishing second with 8.17 seconds, and Maggie Oschner in third with 8.42 seconds.

The next competition for the track and field teams are the Mountain West Indoor Championships, which are set to begin on Thursday in Albuquerque.

Each starter chipped in for the first 10 Cowboys points as they jumped out to a quick 15–7 lead. The Rams battled back to within two but the Cowboys pulled away again to take a 28–21 lead into half.

The first half for the Pokes was led by Luke Martinez and Francisco Cruz who each had six points. The Cowboys shot 52 percent from the floor but was nearly matched by CSU who shot 47 percent.

In the second half, CSU put together an 11–2 run early to grab the lead from the UW. Their next 18–6 run finished the game.

UW’s shooting percentage for the game dropped down to 38 (17 of 44) while CSU raised their percentage to 51 (19 of 37). Martinez was the game high scorer with 15 points, all coming from behind the arc.

“I thought we played with the heart of a champion (Saturday),” UW head coach Larry Shyatt said. “We couldn’t get enough shots to fall in the last few minutes to salvage a win, but I told our guys afterward that they played with the heart of a champion.

The Cowboys will travel to San Diego to take on the San Diego State University Aztecs on Wednesday. The game is scheduled to tip off at 8:30 p.m.