Show SO f'arch Friday Cgden 13 1337 Weekend Retired teacher had right idea on choosing teams By A3:GA1 VAN BUREN DEAR ABBY: My heart ached for the little boy whose teacher appointed two captains to choose up teams and he was always chosen last I'm 67 now and when I read that letter all the feelings of humiliation anger and anxiety came flooding back like it was yesterday I was always one of the last to be chosen for sports because I I was small and poorly coordinated wanted to die when teams were chosen because when it got down to the last two I kids was always one of them Once I sneaked out of the room and went to the restroom and cried Another time I forced myself to throw up so I could go to the nurse's room to escape this cruelty I'm amazed that this humiliating system of choosing teams is still going on I Dear Abby hope teachers every where will see this and realize how damaging it is to a child's and put an end to that brutal practice — CHOSEN LAST DEAR CHOSEN: I hope so too I heard from teachers ever) where who offered unique (and ways to choose up teams Here's a letter from a retired school teacher who had the right idea years ago: DEAR ABBY: Re choosing up teams: I taught school from 19 14 through 1963 beMy method: The last one chosen comes captain of the next team No one was ever last more than once — MURIEL LINK AGE 90 SPRINGFIELD VT Short Creek a study in polygamy By BECKY CAIRNS start For a young girl growing up in the community of Short Creek the future holds three options — to marry as a teenager to graduate from high school and then marry or to leave town That perspective of life in the small funbordamentalist town on the der voiced by a woman resident was one of the many facets of Short Creek addressed in a public lecture Wednesday at Weber State College Not many girls pursue the third option — leaving town — because it brings disgrace to their families and shame to themselves said historian Martha Bradley who recently completed her docBradley torate in history at the University of Utah spoke about "The Women of Short Creek" seduring the weekly Brown Bagger lecture ries sponsored by the Women's Educational Resource Center For three years the historian has researched the town 75 miles southeast of St George and interviewed residents there Short Creek commonly known as Colorado City was settled in the 1930s by fundamentalist Mormons who believed in the Artist-in-residen- DEAR ABBY: This is the first time I've written to you' I don't know where else to turn Our daughter who has just turned 8 has informed me that she and her boyfriend arc planning to go camping together with friends this summer I'm not naive and I don't for one moment believe that they will be sleeping in separate tents My problem is this: Do we as parents have a right to forbid her to go? We are still supporting her and are paying for her schooling — NOT NAIVE DEAR NOT NAIVE: You have every right to forbid her to go since you are supporting her and she is living under your guardianship However if you suspect that is already sexually active — or is about to be — I hope you have discussed with her the importance of "safe church's abandoned doctrine of plural sex" in order to protect herself from an unwanted pregnancy andor venereal disease If you have not you must Let her know that you are not condoning premarital sex but as a responsible parent you do not want her to risk her future her health and possibly her life because of carelessness or ignorance DEAR ABBY: Please say something to those people who have the disgusting habit of coughing without covering their mouths The other night my husband and I attended a play for which we paid $37 a ticket but we could not enjoy the play because this woman behind us coughed on our necks repeatedly We got results (temporarily) after we turned around and glared at her I recently quit a volunteer job that I really enjoyed — delivering Meals on Wheels Why? Because the driver never The town has been raided three times by government officials Bradley said the most significant incident occurring in 1953 when Arizona law enforcement and welfare officials stormed the town and arrested and 39 men All of the town's 88 women and 263 children were uprooted from their homes and jailed moved to foster homes in other Arizona communities Bradley told the story of the 1953 raid were takthrough slides of the event which en by a photographer who accompanied welfare officials on the raid and through comments from a polygamist woman who was among those moved out of the town Eventually many of the women were located by their husbands some as much as two years later But Bradley said the raids have never been forgotten and have taken on a "mythical significance" "This is what makes (Short Creek residents) special and unique" the historian said "This is their part of history where they were noticed" Creek has always Martha Bradley a woman's life "In Short it was only as a mother that a woman could exert influence and power" Bradley said blessing" of been patri- archal and tradition-bounBradley said Although the fundamentalists talk a lot about "free agency" she said "In reality these women have very few choices to make as adults" Creek While polygamy has its unique problems Bradley said the practice is not without advantages She talked about visiting a polygamist home where five wives and their children lived happily The women share a "comradeship" or "sisterhood" she said and support one another and their children "They're friends they're buddies" Men are born to lead while women are born to follow the historian said Women are encouraged to develop predictably feminine characteristics: kindness gentleness cheerfulness Motherhood is deemed the "ultimate applications being accepted ce Applications are being accepted from schools and community organizations wishing to sponsor an artist in residence in The Utah Arts Council's Artists in Educa 60 percent sponsor40-percen- t council ratio for residencies lasting anywhere from 10 to ISO days Application deadline is April For more information call the Artists in tion Program allows artists to provide workdemonstrations performances shops d seminars teacher training workshops and local arts events The Arts Council will match sponsors at a Education Program at Examiner sta't Michael Gallagher scenic designer at Weber State Theater never attends opening night performances He's too superstitious "Unless I'm working backstage I never go If I do the worst always happens Doorknobs come off and actors get locked on the set" Gallagher recently reaffirmed his superstition when he went to see the opening performance of "She Stoops to Conquer" because a friend had designed the costumes beehive "A performer's off" he said wig fell If Gallagher's sounds irrational he's not alone Superstition is almost a social custom among theater types Tradition says you don't whistle backstage Don't talk about other shows And don't under any circumstances utter the word "Macbeth" backstage Ronald ladwig a professor of theater arts at Weber State says cast and crew can only call Shakespeare's macabre tragedy "that Scottish play" or they'll conjure up oil spirits Some superstitions grow out of common sense Karen Nielsen an acting student at Weber State iccites a passage from "Hamlet" befoic going on stage — a ritual that warms her voice up Jayne Luke of Salt lake City's Luck From ID "I don't like Friday 'he 13th" Kingston said "On that Jay drive straight to wotk and drive straight home afterward I don't evm hke to drive I try to get my wife to dnve mo to wotk on that day" Pat Wiggins Ogdcn has been Poet W ig mailing bad luek lor years fins r wner of a dance studM his been livirgand walking en Hth Street Since 954 with little or tin jdvuM' t Ileus ' We've (the neighbors on 13th Street) laughed about it a lew times but I don't think anybody on the street really worries about it" Wiggins sud "I've been very happy here and the svhool has been very suaessful so I ian't sis I've been unhakv 01 euurse then iigain vo'iUI fall over dead t IN MAUI: will speak Thursday SALT LAKE CITY — Leslie w ill talk of grow ing up in Wales Norris a poet and Brigham end read from his work Young University visiting writer Tickets for the evening with will speak Thursday at the Do- Norris are $35 the cost is tax delores Chase Fine Art Gallery ductible The price will include for The event is a an autographed copy of Norris' Writers at Work a creative writlatest book "Selected Poems" in ing conference held each June in addition to refreshments and live Park City to start the evening The jazz Norris has published a number event begins at 7 pm of books of poetry and short Tickets arc available at the stories in addition to having Chase gallery located at 43'j work featured in several prominent magazines and journals He Pierpont Ave in Salt Lake City he'd intentionally miss his last shot "to make me work harder give me something to improve on" From 1D in TO RUSS SALT LAKE CITY — Submission deadline for the Writers at Phyllis Barber president of Writers at Work says the 1987 Work writing competition in ficis tion poetry and competition kicks off a literary arts event April 10 The winner in each category "We're pleased to have such will receive a $300 cash prize and talented and distinguished judges publication in Quarterly West for and look forward to meeting the fiction and poetry or Utah Holiwinners in Park City and introWinners will day for ducing them to the conference also receive free housing and fees participants" for session two of the Utah writWriters at Work Conference ers conference in Park City sponat the Resort runs June sored by Writers at Work Submit three poems one short Center in Park City The faculty story or 20 pages of a novel or there will include Charles Wright artiRita Dove Mark Strand Ron an essay or magazine-lengtcle All work must be previously Carlson Frederick Busch Charles unpublished and you may submit Johnson and Joy Williams Editors participating in the in any or all categories Each submission must include conference include Rust Hills (Esa $5 reading fee quire) Alice Quinn (New Yorker) stamped envelope and telephone and Shannon Ravenel (Best Send to Writers at American Short Stories) Agents number Work PO Box 8857 Dept PR and publishers also will be featured Salt Lake City Utah 84108 For more information call diJudges will include Alan Cheuse for fiction Stephen Dunn rector James Thomas in Salt for poetry and Will Baker for Lake City at successful remedies the team finally called in a woman who worked in "acupressure and mind work kind of a shady thing" according to Furgis She told Furgis his mind had fixated on the nums ber 13 being unlucky and the company refuses to read reviews wrong at any time It's not like the movies where you can do several outtakes until you until after a show closes spasms had resulted from wearing that number on his chest and get it right" Others superstitions are purely personal back Michelc Rusinko director of the Weber Marlene Harper a regular at Heritage Comwith Furgis had another run-iState dance program makes a distinction bemunity Theater in Perry says she likes to insuperstition in high school Out traditions and her to tween dedicate performances superstitions formally of the blue a friend of the family someone Sometimes it's a friend sometimes called and said she felt the "evil "I'm not very superstitious But I do beit's a family member Once she told herself eye" was affecting Furgis perforlieve in establishing company rapport so you she was performing for Britain's Prince mance Furgis admitted he'd been she "You like a says can perform company" Charles "dead tired" the past few weeks never hear 'break a leg' in dance circles beand she told him that to counter"You know the old saying that it's better to cause of the serious connotations You do say cigive than to receive It just makes it more fun 'merde (a crude French word) and hook act the evil eye's influence he for me It's a way of giving my performance them on the knee and kiss them on the ther had to wear something old on his uniform or turn an article away so it's not so selfish" cheek Wherever you go in the dance world of clothing inside out He began that's the good luck greeting" InHarper also ascribes to an old tradition wearing one of his socks inside stead of wishing fellow actors good luck she out a ritual which carried over Whatever sou call them — superstitions into his college playing days tells them to "break a leg" — the theater traditions rituals or rubbish — theater folks luck "Psychologically if I'd stopped admit their tricks of the trade don't always community's most commonly used good putting the sock inside out can wotk getter you imagine what that would "It's sort of like Murphy's Law Whatever have done to me at the foul In the opening night performance of "West can go wrong will So if you wish someone line?" Furgis said "I think superSide Story " at Weber State last month a gun good luck the opposite will happen" Harper stition is used as a crutch in athfailed to go off on cue in the play's final drasaid "Sometimes for extra luck I'll say Galletics" matic scene — just the kind of Break your neck'" Larry Farmer men's basketball lagher worries his prcsensc will cause coach at Weber State College has Does luck really matter if a play is well reBut Gallagher wasn't in the audience that had a few superstitions of his hearsed? In a risky business like theater most own over the years night And if you ask him what happened people say yes As a player whenever Farmer he'll remains firm in his superstitious convic"There's a great deal of chance involved in live theater" Gallagher says "You're creating tions: "Somebody else must have been would leave the basketball court after a practice or pick-uworld and things can go jmu-da game Theater types put trust Standard CONFIDENTIAL It's not always better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all It depends on what you've lost Sports ©ED By MARILYN ABILDSKOV How would you handle this situation? Would you hand the person a tissue? Or just courteously say "Would you please cover your mouth when you cough?" It w ould "be embarrassing to me to have to do either On the other hand if the person is so rude he deserves to be reminded of his manners — I'VE HAD IT DEAR HAD IT: Why not do both? Hand the offender a tissue and request that heshe use it while coughing It's not what you do it's the way you do it Writing competition deadline is April 10 mar- riage Life in Short covered his mouth when he coughed My son complains that a girl who sits next to him at work does the same thing the traditions tonight" Wiggins' story pets spookier Not only does she live on 13th Street but her house numbers add tp to IV An J get this Total the last four dibits of her phone number and thev add up to 13 as Wiggins doesn't like black cats crossing her path "I'll turn atound every time" she sass well Only recently Wiggins was driving on Jackson Avenue when a feline crossed the road ahead of her Wiggins does admit she's a little HijvlstitiouN She'll throw i't over her shoulder when slit spills a little leery of it and sh' the 3th Hut most of all "I stopped and pulled in a driveway" Wiggins said "I was jj'oiri to turn around and fit wa but said 'o myself "No I'm in a hum don't have I When he got to college there was an immediate clash of w ills since legendary UCLA coach John Wooden had a superstition of his own — his players had to make their last shot in practice Farmer had a simple solution to satisfy both philosophies "The varsity and junior varsity practice courts were separated by a curtain so at the end of practice I'd make the last shot on his (Wooden's) side of the curtain then go over on the JV side and miss one before I left" Wooden had a few other superstitions Farmer said Before the start of every game Wooden would go through the same routine "I'll probably get this wrong but it went something like this: He'd sit on the bench tap his assistant coach on the leg pantomime a spit on the floor step in it get up turn around and find his wife in the crowd and blow her a kiss He did that before game" Farmer said Strange? Perhaps but it's difficult to argue with a man who won an unprecedented 10 national championships — including seven in a row Said Farmer: "Coach Wooden used to say "I'm not superstitious just careful' " And apparently cither very very good or very very lucky around' I had an aptune 10 pointment and was going to be late so I just drove on and said I'll suffer the consequences So far nothing has happened" Anna Maria Preston in contrast believes black cats mean good luck — perhaps because the Ogden resident owns a black line who is still going strong at age 19 "nd a luekv to me Friday the 3th day" Preston said won't put up with that superstitious nonsense" Preston believes good luck comes from the practical power of positive thinking "We're the captains of our own ships you know You just have to find that little think of light" And on this Friday the 13th U'l nice to know there are still sane rational people around who have not yet become enslaved to silly is superstition "I Knoik on wood t 4 |