I made a list and checked it twice. Now, one last wish remains: a Husker bowl victory. Let’s remind Steve Spurrier what happened the last time Nebraska met one of his teams.

Okay, I hear you. I’ll settle for a victory. No need to win by 40. Again.

Yes, let’s go bowling. I’m not talking heave-a-14-pound-ball-down-the-lane bowling. I’m talking about the road trippin’, Christmas vaca away from home kind of bowling, where trips to Dallas or Miami or San Diego or, yes, even El Paso are part of the fabric of my football fanatic life.

From the third weekend in December until the national championship game, I’m in football heaven.  Between bowl games and the NFL season wind-down to the playoffs, my football fix is satiated until Super Bowl weekend.

Once satisfied, the countdown to spring and fall conditioning, opening kickoff, and what I call “empty Saturday syndrome” begins.

The Husker holiday tradition stems from a 1941 Rose Bowl trip, where the scarlet and cream fell to Stanford 21-13. Since then, the Huskers have accumulated an impressive bowl record and rank fifth nationally with 47 all-time bowl appearances. And, if it hadn’t been for that coach who shall remain nameless (because I refuse to utter it aloud), the team would have increased its streak of consecutive bowl appearances.

Will anyone beat 35 consecutive bowl trips?

By the numbers, the ‘Skers have a 24-23 bowl game record. They’ve played in 14 different bowls, appearing in the Orange Bowl 17 times, Fiesta Bowl 6 times, and both the Sugar and Cotton Bowls four times apiece.

The Huskers have met 29 different teams, squaring off against Miami five times, LSU and Florida State four times each, and we’ve battled ‘Bama three times.

My first bowl experience was the 1974 Cotton Bowl. It was cold, but the atmosphere and adrenaline hooked me. I remember lots of funny (meaning ironic) signs spattered amongst the crowd. Unfortunately, I can’t repeat them here. I remember attending a pre-game concert by the UNL marching band before the game and singing along to “The Band Song.” Cue the trumpets. Dave Humm and company pounded the Texas Longhorns, 19-3.

There have been others, too, some with tough losses and some in places I don’t care to return to, but that first trip will always be my favorite.

If you are a football fan and you haven’t been to a bowl game, consider adding it to your bucket list. A bowl trip is about so much more than the game. Parades, great tailgate parties, and bowl-related events are just a few examples of the offerings associated with a bowl and its respective city.

My dad figures that 1974 trip cost our family about $500 to attend, including fuel, food, hotel, and events. Today, airfare may cost that much, and tickets for our family of four equaled the price of one Capital One Bowl ticket.

Unfortunately, I won’t be in Orlando for this year’s game, but I’ll be watching and getting my football fix.

Go Big Red!

            Out of curiosity, I Googled “top Christmas gifts 2011.”

            With a single mouse click, I remembered why this most wonderful time of the year doesn’t always bring enjoyment.

Overpriced electronic devices. Spikasaurus back packs. A drum-banging Elmo.

            Cheap. Impractical.

            Definitely not the reason for the season.

            I’m not saying “Bah, humbug” to the holidays. It’s just that I want Christmas to get its true groove back.

When airwaves and advertisements bombard us with a stocking full of unnecessary “must-haves” and prey on our psyches, making people feel like inadequate parents or grandparents or siblings or significant others because we didn’t go to “that” jewelry store or a certain major electronics outlet,  I draw the line in the yellowing Christmas snow.

            I dare you to show how the revolutionary, got-to-own-it item will make my holiday merry and bright.    

            No, this time of year, my mind drifts to writer Lawrence Ferlinghetti, who wrote a beautiful, truthful poem – “Christ Climbed Down” – about the holiday and how for many people, Christmas has lost significance because of the commercialization associated with the season that begins as early as July in some retail stores.

            Shoot, daughter Cassie made it on a CNBC report about early Christmas sales back in September because she snapped a photo of Christmas decorations in Grand Island’s Hobby Lobby in early August.

            Look at Christmas by the numbers supplied by the U.S. Census Bureau. Last year, retail sales for December totaled $27.2 billion, with five retail areas noting major increases: clothing stores, 33 percent; electronics, 44 percent; sporting goods, 58 percent; book stores, 92 percent; and jewelry, 113 percent.

            Online shopping and mail-order retail totals hit $34 billion dollars.

            What about decorations? Tree ornament imports – primarily from China – reached $983 million. And those tinseled or artificial Christmas trees, also shipped from China, had sales reaching $79.7 million.

            Staggering figures. Are you willing to bankrupt your bank account or max out credit cards so those you love have a holly jolly Christmas?

            If you think about some of your happiest holiday moments, I imagine it’s not the pile of presents you’ll remember most.

            No, I imagine for many of you, some of your fondest moments involve hope, faith and family.

            And, probably food. Definitely the traditional Christmas Eve pot of chili or oyster soup served at our annual get-together.

            All of us cousins may have begged our grandparents to let us open a present prior to Christmas Day, but it never happened. Nope. Instead, we’d put on our Christmas best, load up in cars and pickups, and follow the bright star to town for Christmas Eve service. We’d sing “O Holy Night” and listen to the Nativity story. When the lights would dim and only candlelight glowed through the church, we’d stare with wonder and delight at the promise of hope and love surrounding us.

            Suddenly, the premise of a pretty package paled in comparison.

            From the Schindler house, we wish you a Merry Christmas and joyful holiday season, filled with family and renewed hope.

            Detasseling.

            Such a simple word, but it brings back memories of early morning bus rides, clothes soaked from heavy dew on  the stalks, sweltering heat, and a hefty paycheck.

            I learned a lot of life lessons during those few weeks in the field: responsibility, hard work, pride in a job well done, and the value of money. I appreciated the tangibles I had been given. I started weighing the pros and cons of every purchase, discovering the importance of budgeting and money management.

            My daughters learned those same lessons when they spent summers walking through rows of corn, a baby step toward independence.

            But it’s possible that a simple summer job – and even farm work – may not be options for teenagers, thanks to updated child labor regulations coming from the federal Department of Labor.

            Based on proposed rules, persons under 18 would be prohibited from carrying out basic farm jobs, unless the worker is a family member; however, the exemption for family members wouldn’t apply if the farm is incorporated or a partnership.

            Those age 16 and under would face a laundry list of restrictions, including not operating power-driven machinery unless a parent or guardian supervises, bans handling non-castrated livestock older than six months, a cow with a newborn calf or sows with suckling pigs, and forbids involvement in any work where an animal may act unpredictably.

            Young workers would not be allowed in a grain silo or storage bin, they couldn’t work with pesticides, and they cannot perform any work at a height above six feet, including working on a ladder.

            Oh, and these young workers would not be allowed to talk on a cell phone or text while operating a tractor. Isn’t this particular ban common sense?

            Detasseling isn’t expressly listed in the proposed regulations, but prohibiting workers under 16 from toiling in extreme temperatures or grueling conditions is part of the suggested directives.  Sounds like detasseling fits the bill.

            The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health presented the recommendations to the Labor Department, saying child labor laws in the agriculture sector have not been addressed since 1970.

             It’s an issue of safety, according to the group. Statistical data reports that in the U.S., one child is killed in an agricultural work setting every three days. Daily, 41 young workers endure serious farm injuries.

            While I believe most of us would agree that safety of all workers should be a concern, there’s something disconcerting about the proposed laws. Primarily, how will the proposed regulations affect the family farm, the bread-and-butter of our agrarian-based society?

            What happens to the multi-generational family farm when children aren’t interested in farming because they never had the opportunity to work on the farm?

            How will the Department of Labor enforce the rules? Spy on every farm operation across the U.S.?

            Will we raise a generation that does not know the true meaning of work because they never had to help with chores?

            Smells like a steamy pile of manure to me.

            A bunch of hogwash.

                “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then just feed one.”

                Even though Mother Teresa’s words should resonate at any given moment, the need to feed friends, neighbors, and even strangers grows stronger during the holiday season.

                As unemployment and underemployment affect more families in the midlands, lending a hand – or in this case, any non-perishable food item or even a cash donation – to local food banks and pantries is one way to share a bit of holiday giving.

                Since 2008, when the financial and economic crisis crippled our nation, the ripple effect has caused a tsunami wave of hunger, leaving a path of unhealthy destruction in its wake.  Grocery prices continue to skyrocket. Families are forced to choose between healthy but expensive fruits and vegetables or inexpensive but dietary-poor foodstuffs. If money is tight, which would you choose?

Welcome to an era when one in seven households in the United States are tagged as “food insecure.”

What does “food insecure” mean?  Based on USDA reports, food insecure households are uncertain of having or unable to acquire enough food to meet the needs of all family members because they have insufficient money or other resources for food.

A recent study from ConAgra Foods Foundation, Howard G. Buffett Foundation and Nielsen reports approximately 20 percent of children in Nebraska and western Iowa under age 18 are at risk for hunger. That’s over 92,000 children from our state who don’t know where their next meal will come from.

Food banks and pantries across the state report increases in usage, with some agencies seeing as high as a 40 percent rise. Lincoln’s Salvation Army reports the organization has gone from assisting 3,000 families per year to over 13,000 in one year. Unfortunately, the trend appears that it will continue to grow.

Nebraska’s largest food bank, Food Bank for the Heartland is based in Omaha and serves 93 counties in Nebraska and Iowa. In 2010, the nonprofit organization supplied over 7 million meals. Over 300 food pantries, non-profit organizations, soup kitchens, and shelters depend on Food Bank for the Heartland for supplies. But, supplies can’t keep up with the demand.

The nation’s breadbasket is empty, and the crumbs won’t silence the pangs of hunger echoing through Nebraska.

It’s important to remember that hunger is not just a holiday season dilemma. It’s a year-round problem that needs to be addressed.

At some point in a person’s life, they’ve faced some type of adversity, needed assistance to recover. And in some instances, they may have let pride stand in the way instead of accepting any support.

But when residents must choose between purchasing medicine or paying the utility bill or spending money for health care or fuel to get to work versus putting food on the table for their families, how do they decide which priority ranks highest?

It’s time for action, especially as the holidays approach and shelves empty. Consider a donation to the local food pantry, even if it will only feed just one.

                From my notebook…

                Call it the Heroes Game, if you like, but if you were anywhere near Memorial Stadium on Friday, you know the game should have been dubbed “The Battle of the Bibs.”

                Granted, I grew up seeing Husker fans sporting the red and white vertical-striped overalls. Even on road trips, seeing Nebraska faithful bedecked like a peppermint candy cane is a common sight.

                But those black- and gold-lined bibs reminded me of a giant bumblebee buzzing around downtown Lincoln, b’gosh.  And, quite a few Iowa fans seemed to wear them.

                You have to admit, this game provides an interesting contest between neighboring state universities that have only met a handful of times. But, where’s the allure? Will the matchup ever reach the level of the “game of the century”? Will the hype measure up to a rowdy Ralphie the buffalo running across the field? Does Thanksgiving in Iowa City have the same ring to it as Thanksgiving in Norman or Boulder?

                I heard plenty of fans from both sides of the field talk about how this yearly meeting will turn into one of the sacred Thanksgiving football traditions. 

                Give it time.

-      -     -

                Last week, I shared my dislike of Black Friday shopping sprees. So where would you find me at the stroke of midnight?

                At Super Target in Lincoln. With Cassie. Staring at a line that wrapped the length and width of the building.

                I agreed to battle the surge of the crazed crowd because she promised we were only purchasing one item. “And mom, the price is right,” assured my oldest child.

                After surveying the massive line, we decided to try a different store. We ventured to a different Target and were pleasantly surprised to discover we wouldn’t have to stand in line to enter the store. No, we breezed in, grabbed a cart and found the item in question.

                Score!

                As we make our way to the checkout line, a friendly store employee tells us that we’ll need to follow the red arrows.

                The checkout line covers the store’s inside perimeter.

                After we’re told it could take ninety minutes or more to reach our final destination – the cash register – we calculate what our time is worth.

                Sure, she’s saving 75 hard-earned bucks, but moving at a snail’s pace while others push and shove to jockey for position is not worth it.

                Oh, and next year, someone please remind me why I’m going to tell her “no” to the shopping trip.

-      -     -

                District one-act competition heats up this week as local thespians take center stage, competing for a coveted spot at the state contest.

                District performances showcase months of preparation on stage and behind the scenes. It’s the finale, the culmination of every single cast and crew member working toward a shared vision.

                Northeast and North Central Nebraska are dramatic hot spots! Since 2005, schools from these regions have combined for 53 state appearances, with several schools bringing home the hardware.

                Break a leg!