Another Tournament, Another Champion

I took the speech team to Oregon State U in balmy Corvallis this past weekend. Memorable moments include:

1. AshAttack (aka "Pine-dough") winning "Best Overall Individual Events Speaker of the Tournament" for her second tournament in a row. This is HUGE! She was in finals of five events - earning two first places, two second places, and a third. And another student has formed a "bridesmaid complex." Nice.

2. The best Chinese food I can remember having. And, yes, it was in Corvallis.

3. Observing strategic, fast-paced shoppers (aka some of my team members) in action.

4. Right before judging a round, I unwrapped a piece of gum. Instead of putting the gum in my mouth, I put the paper in my mouth. Four competitors watched. Three looked away as the other one laughed. The laugher was my favorite.

5. Being honored with the "best critic" award, which was determined by students voting at the tournament. I've received several comments and emails from coaches and students from other schools, which have been quite nice. I'm guessing that those students who saw me eat paper didn't think I was so sharp.