One of ASWSU’s most recent initiatives will be a great way for students to improve both their social and financial wellbeing. The 30 Days of Pullman is a month-long event created by the Associated Students of Washington State University, which hopes to strength the connection between WSU students and the city of Pullman. ASWSU has partnered with 30 different local vendors to provide students with 30 days of discounts in February. When students present their Cougar Card at any of the local vendors on the day of the sale, they’ll receive a discount. According to an article on DailyEvergreen.com, the idea came from Virginia Tech in a brainstorming session during a conference in Denver. Some of the local vendors include Thomas Hammer Coffee this Friday, Black Cypress, Zeppos, Licks, South Fork and Crimson and Gray. For more information about the 30 Days of Pullman, check out this article in The Daily Evergreen or find the full listing of local vendors on ASWSU’s Facebook Page.

One of the great assets that WSU has for team building is the Challenge program. When most people think about Challenge, they think about the Student Recreation Center Backyard and all of the high elements like the Cougar Perch, the Giant’s Ladder and the Track and Trail. If you don’t know what any of these things are, you can visit the Challenge Website at http://challenge.wsu.edu/ . However, Challenge is much more than just the outdoor aspect of the course. Although the outdoor aspect is one of the major elements of what makes Challenge so appealing, when the weather gets colder, it can still be a great experience.  One of the goals for Challenge is the facilitate team building. One group comes to mind is the Greek community. Especially in January when most fraternities and sororities will be electing new executive board members, Challenge can be a great resource for a group to learn how to work together in the most efficient way. Our team, the marketing staff here at UREC, has participated in Challenge for the last two years that I’ve been a part of the team. For a group that hopes to accomplish a number of goals and often is required to collaborate in order to reach them, Challenge is a great way to establish a group dynamic and help each member find their own niche inside the group.

In honor of last week’s Set The Trend theme, I decided this week to write a post about the prevalence of sleep in our popular culture. As a culture, we talk a lot about the importance of adequate sleep but often we do not practice what we preach. Over the course of human history, sleep patterns have drastically changed despite the fact that our need for sleep has not. Our opinions of sleep seem to be running in one direction while our related habits simultaneously sprint in the opposite direction. For instance, in the past decade, a slew of new sleep medications like Ambien and Lunesta have flooded the market and are now used more widely than ever before. Recently, one of the most famous athletes in the world (Tiger Woods) entered a rehabilitation program to treat a sleep medication addiction. At the same time, as a college student, you don’t have to look too far to uncover the increased abuse of Attention Deficit medications like Adderall, Ritalin and Vivance in order to cram for tests. According to the UC Berkeley News Center, new research from the University indicates that “the use of psycho-stimulant drugs has more than tripled worldwide since 1993.” The increased prevalence of non-prescribed use of these drugs can be dangerous and can negatively affect sleep habits among other parts of your overall health.  From the phrase “pulling an all-nighter” to “the city that never sleeps,” we have clearly developed a fascination with the phenomenon of sleep. I wanted to compile some of the best movies and songs that feature sleep and hopefully gain an insight into the reason for this fascination. Please feel free leave any input on your favorite sleep movie/song. Top Ten Movies About Sleep: 1.       Inception 2.       Sleepless in Seattle 3.       The Wizard of Oz 4.       Eternal Sunshine of the Spot... [More]

If you’ve ever attended a triathlon, it can be a little intimidating. Road bikes made entirely of carbon and probably worth their weight in gold line the transition areas. A sea of black wetsuits engulfs the starting line, each priced between $100 and $500. And each toe that crosses the finish line is wrapped in about $100 of rubber. Although the average triathlete invests what could seem like an arm and a leg on a college budget, it’s not necessary to overspend in your first triathlon. Here are some tips to save you money and also some helpful motivation to inspire your first trip to the multisport finish line. Bikes and bike gear can be the most expensive and intimidating part of your first triathlon. The biggest way to save money is to stick with a mountain bike rather than a road bike. The amount of time you’d save in your first race on a road bike compared to a mountain bike is relatively insignificant. Once you’ve found a used mountain bike (usually they can be found for less than $70 depending where you look) your next step can be to replace your studded terrain tires with “slicks”. Slicks are basically tires designed for the road rather than for trails. This will add speed to your bike and cut down on your time without spending too much (B & L Bicycles in Pullman estimates about $35 including parts and labor). The next obstacle to tackle is deciding whether to drop over $100 on a wetsuit. Although a majority of triathletes will compete in a triathlon wetsuit, it’s really not a necessity for a first-timer. It comes down to a personal preference and each individual can decide how much the extra buoyancy and warmth are worth to them. As long as you’re competing in a race in August or July, the water temperature shouldn’t be lower than 65 degrees in most rivers and a little higher in most lakes in the area (Eastern Washington especially). The last large item on your list of gear is your running shoes. Ag... [More]

An impromptu voyage turned into an adventure this weekend when my girlfriend and I took a trip to Spokane and landed us on top of the beautiful and powerful Spokane Falls. Although I have been to Spokane probably a hundred times before, I had somehow never managed to see one of the most awesome natural sights in the city.  Among the many things to do in Spokane, a large portion can cost a great deal of money. This particular activity however is practically free if you exclude the fairly affordable cost of parking at the park in downtown Spokane. After paying $4 for a two-hour parking pass at the Riverfront Park, we walked along the small split off of the river and crossed a bridge to the main park where a battle of the bands was taking place. Although the band was pretty terrible and probably had some stupid name about how much angst they had, it didn’t take away from the atmosphere of the park. Right before their set began, the massive clock tower that looks down upon the park chimed four strokes and added some novelty to the scene. We then walked across the park to the footbridge which crossed over the raging Spokane River. Due to an unusually high volume of runoff from the mountains, the falls tore violently and powerfully under the bridge and sprayed mist over our heads. The sight provided an awe-inspiring and close-up view of what felt almost like Niagara Falls at the time. I couldn’t help the giant smile from breaking across my face with my eyes wide as I tried to take in all of the power and speed of this behemoth river under my feet. A tip for those who wish to experience this phenomenon for themselves: Avoid the $7 per person gondola ride on the SkyRide. On a college student’s budget, (or really on any budget) you’ll get a much more intimate experience with the lower falls area by just walking down the stairs to see for it on foot. Besides the fact that you’ll see the lower falls without the hindrance of a blurry glass wal... [More]