Mr. Steingraeber would like to thank...

I need to do some shout outs, thank yous, hip-hip-hoorays and give out some pats on the backs for everyone that has contributed to my learning experience throughout this semester.

I may not have excelled at school like I normally do because of my "tenacious" involvement in the Apprentice program, but I think that is because this whole program was such a huge stepping stone down the right path for my career.  

 

So allow me to get started....

I absolutely must thank my team, the one & the only.....

5280 CLOSERS

YOU ALL ARE ROCKSTARS!!!!

DAVID

 

My hombre! Sir...these challenges would not have been the successes they were if it were not for you and your great dedication. I always could rely on you, no matter what! You were the backbone of the team and  you were always there sticking it through the thick and thin! Whether it be in the boardrooms, eating some grub, drinking some brewskis (or free "organic" margaritas @ La Loma!), listening to me complain about life, or just being the rock solid of a leader that kept me focused while we were running around downtown talking with restaurant owners to keeping kids from smacking each other during the science day (or from breaking $500 femur bones) and even keeping me alive on numerous death defying occasions (Snowboarding follies and scaling buildings with rickety old ladders). 

You were always there to lend a hand my friend. As silly as it may sound, I definitely consider you as a brother from another mother!  No more staying up till 5AM working on projects or getting lost in underground parking garages (Dude! Where's my car!), but all the work has paid off sir...3 wins & 1 loss = one hell of an inaugural Apprentice Challenge season!! We almost sweeped'em! You got MVP in my book sir and I know that we would not have been nearly as successful if it wasn't for your contributions. Thank you! I appreciate you and all your efforts because without you, I know we would not have been nearly as successful as we have been. 

GIEDRE

Where do I start with you, my crazy, yet favorite Lithuanian! You have done it, you have accomplished the Apprentice Challenge and with flying colors! I congratulate you on your win and I am very happy for you. I definitely do not mind coming in second place because you are one HELL of a woman to compete with! I swear you are either part machine, a cyborg, or an android from some secret Lithuanian government agency lab that engineered/created you. Maybe my imagination and creativity are taking too much control over my thoughts, but I can vouch for your great work ethic, dedication, involvement and overall commitment to always doing the best you can.  You always keep trying your best, even though you achieved it long ago. It boggles me how much you continue to impress me with your un-human-like determination. YOU are a ROCKSTAR!

I guess you were truly more hungry for victory then I.  It makes me question my hefty appetite for success, but it is always good to be kept on your toes, so I thank you for that. You have taught the team and I what perseverance is all about and to never lose sight of the goals we were trying to achieve, even if we were constantly disagreeing with you. That is something that many people cannot do, charging past all the criticism and barriers that may block your way to the point or goal you are trying to reach. You gave us all great support and I cannot thank you enough for that. You were motivating and supportive, in essence- you are kind of like a female Tony Robbins with a Lithuanian accent. Crazy comparison, maybe, but you are a motivator and a true leader. Know that everyone is very proud of you for your accomplishments. I know I am. You are a TRAILBLAZER and I congratulate you on being Metro State's 1st APPRENTICE!!

HEIDI

Oh little Heidi...you may have been unseen the past few months, but little did everyone know of the great things you were doing behind closed doors and into the wee hours of the mornings. The best way I can explain it is comparing you to Santa's little workers, better known as elves. (bare with me, this should make sense)...Santa would not be recognized as the gift giving saint that he is, without the help of his thousands (maybe millions) of elves working behind the closed doors slaving away over all the toys. Thus, our team - the 5280 Closers - would not have been as successful if it wasn't for the all the hard work you did while you were awake during the graveyard shift, behind closed doors. You are dedicated to working and that has been evident, especially with the team not being around when you were chugging away at the projects due to us sleeping.  Your organization and focus kept us on the straight and narrow whenever we began to weeble-wobble in the projects. (Weeble wobbles, you know... the little kids toys that, well, weeble and wobble??) I appreciate that along with your contributions and joining in on my sillyness when we were trying to focus to get stuff done. 

You are heading down a great path and I thank you for sticking it through to the end with the program. I hope you get a great score on your MCATS and I know that you will make a great and wonderful doctor someday. Always remember to wiggle your toes in your shoes when you are presenting. No one ever looks at your shoes when you speak. Oh, and no puking... people don't like that so much, especially when you are presenting on/or about food. I further promise to stay far away from any form of COMET. (inside jokes people, sorry if you do not get them, ask Heidi to fill you in). Skiddly- DOO!

ERIN

First things first...Don't worry, your dog is not defecating all over your house just because you have not been there in the last 20 minutes. Besides, everyone and everything poops. Also, make sure to never move your car ever again from that perfect parking spot you got right in front of your house! It will never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever be available again because God has decided that you are only allowed to park there once in a lifetime (yeah, God and I talk and that is what he told me). I appreciated the time you were able to contribute to the whole program. It was a difficult thing to participate in throughout the hectic semester.  Great job Erin and I know you will go far with your many skills. I really appreciated your cheery attitude throughout the whole program. It was always nice to see a smiling face. 

Aye carumba...What a challenge

We have just wrapped up our 4th and final project! It is kind of exciting to be done with everything, but sad as well. 

This 4th project was quite an experience. To start it off the teams were switched up slightly with Ben Gillespie being traded to the 5280 Closers for Giedre Stasiunaite. It made things awkward and slightly upsetting to have this switch occur since the 5280 Closers had a pretty good mojo going, but it was a great experience to get to know Ben better and to interact with a different kind of mind set. I must say, I was concerned because I was unsure of Ben's work ethic, but I can state now that he was awesome and helped us through the project. Not all individuals on Team 5280 Eco Closers were able to help out as much, but they all tried their best and sometimes that is all you can do, is your best.

I can admit that when I heard the other team won I was both happy and upset. Happy that they won and upset that we didn't. I know the other team had done quite an excellent job on their project and you can definitely tell with their presentation. I think that is what it boiled down to, the presentation. The 5280 Eco Closers had an excellent presentation and Ben definitely pulled through with the enthusiasm in the end. Thanks for finishing strong for us in the end on that Ben. I know I was struggling with the lack of sleep we all got and my crazy "red" eye

ball probably freaked out the judges a little bit.

 

We conducted an Eco audit on Tamales by La Casita, a Mexican restaurant and tamale production facility located off 36th and Tejon. An Eco audit basically consists of analyzing a business to identify their water and energy usage and how much waste is being generated. It is a measurement of how big their carbon footprint is. After getting all that info figured out we had to do  a lot of research and come up with solutions that provide a return on investment. 

We tried to focus on the ROI a lot since our owner was focused on it.  Our restaurant was definitely not involved with the whole process in any way near the other teams (Kate's at 35Th), which created two completely different dynamics to be judged. The reason for that is due to the current expansion Tamales by La Casita is in the process of with their building a new location at DIA. 

I feel that the Eco Closers did a fantastic job in dealing with all the obstacles and road blocks that we encountered, both internally within the team and externally with the restaurant. We did after all open Mr. Paul Sandoval's eyes to how he can green up his business while gaining better profits. 

This project truly tested us with the barriers it put up along with school coming to a close for the semester. Everyone had projects due, tests, jobs and their own personal lives to deal with on top of this huge task of conducting an audit, finding solutions for the results and putting together a huge report. I really have to thank David and Ben for their huge contributions and Heidi coming to the rescue in the end along with Erin's graphic design skills. 

Now I am off to begin my last project...finishing out the semester!

I must also thank: 

Ms. Diane Dandeneau from the Green Heart Institute

(www.ghici.org) Find out what you can do to make the world a better place, get an eco audit!

Professor Darrin Duber-Smith and President of Green Marketing    (www.greenmarketing.net) Got marketing strategy? Go green in order to make the green with your business!

Mr. David Steele of Enduring Energy  GO SOLAR! It just makes sense to.

(www.enduringenergy.com)

Mr. Vince Curran from Pedro's Planet

(www.pedrosplanet.com) Need office supplies? Get green ones from a local source, call Pedro!

Mr. Derek Anguilm of Denver Investment Advisors 

(www.denveria.com) Not sure what to do with all that $$ you have? Invest it with Denver Investment Advisors and make your $$ work for you. 

 

Mr. Paul Sandoval and Gabe Sandoval of Tamales by La Casita 

Go try their delicious and great tasting tamales. I dare you to have just one. Triple dog dare you. 

Ms. Kendra Sandoval of Alliance for Sustainable Colorado 

(www.sustainablecolorado.org) 

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Without their help, our project would have not been anywhere near what it was. I must thank Stella's coffee house and my girlfriend, Kimberly, for our caffeinated energized project cram sessions as well.

**Losing market share or need to redefine your business? Get Green Marketing to standout amongst your competitors!

www.greenmarketing.net

**Get all your office supplies from Pedro's Planet because they provide free recycling for

 your office and they are a completely sustainable business. All $$ made from their recycling goes straight to Community Shares of Colorado, their vehicles are powered by bio-diesel and they try to source everything from local suppliers that are also sustainable. A true example in having as small of a carbon footprint as possible. www.pedrosplanet.com

***Don't go to Starbucks people, go to Stella's for your coffee and place to study, they are a local business with fair trade coffee and they have FREE wireless internet. Not only that, but the atmosphere is much more conducive to studying or meeting with your teammate/classmates.*** 

sesame street - its not easy being green

Kermit knows what he is talking about. It is not that easy being green. People tend to you pass you over because you are not standing out like flashy sprakels in the sky, or the stars in the sky. Green can be cool and freidnly like. Green is as important as a mountain and as big as an ocean...according to Kermit. It's beautiful.

This video is for my Spanish speaking Apprentice teammates...I think it is Spanish..maybe Portugese.

OUCH! 3rd Project Reward rattled my noggin!

The Closer's reward for winning the 3rd project kicked my butt!! We were given ski train tickets to Winter Park, all-day lift tickets and free equipment rental.

Before I continue on with my blog, I must take a second to thank Kaleigh for 

teaching everyone how to snowboard and helping us get down the mountain safely. We appreciated it greatly. Now Kaleigh may not be the saint you are imaging her to be because she was one of the ones that was constantly laughing at us. I think she took the falls of all the 5280 Closers as an extra bonus for, but I am sure it was pretty silly to see us all acting like some goofy footed goobers on the slopes of Winter Park. 

I think that the equipment is at fault for my spills and clumsy actions on the mountain, but I am sure others may disagree. I think being dehydrated and my not being used to the altitude played a significant part as well in my abilities of snowboarding. I am usually quite coordinated, but I did fall multiple times both backwards and forwards and I somehow fell to the right and left as well. It was a very long day for me and some of the others except for David and Erin.

David was snowboarding as well, but Erin skied. David has never snowboarded a day in his life (to my knowledge), but his Krav Macaw? Mcgraw?...Krav Maga - his Israeli martial arts training - helped out in his learning curve. Since I have not been too active with my Aikido (Japanese martial art) training, actually not at all since the start of Fall semester, my learning curve was not as great as his. David got snowboarding down pretty quickly

Erin was skiing the majority of the time, which she is fairly proficient at, so she was constantly looking up the mountain at all of us falling down everywhere. I am sure it was a site to see all of her teammates tumbling down the slopes going all over the place. I think I almost log rolled a 5 year old boy, but luckily the kid was tethered to his father who quickly pulled him out of the way of his demise. 

By the time of the last run I was pretty unsure of myself in getting down the mountain safely. The reason why is due to the fact that I had fallen back extremely hard once while going through this small tunnel on one of the green slopes where someone else had previously  fallen creating a huge divot, or hole in the snow. This caused my board to catch and send me flying backwards, whacking my noggin and popping my helmet off my head like it was a bottle rocket shooting into the sky. This was the just the first time that I fell that hard. There was a second time with similar results of sending my helmet off my head and into the sky, but luckily this last fall was right in front of the lift to take us to the bottom of the mountain. Thank the lord! I was off the mountain and into the train in a flash. 

I am surprised I remembered all of that after the falls I had. Nonetheless, it was a great time and I look forward to utilizing my new found skills the next time I hit the slopes, but I may revert back to skiing. Practice makes perfect though, as long as I can get a board that can accommodate my frame. 

MEAN GREEN!!

YEAH! THE ULTIMATE GREEN MACHINE!!!

I wish I was the Incredible Hulk to POUND the common sense into people about the conservation of energy, recycling and being less wasteful. It just makes sense to be mindful of the reosources we use in our day to day activities. The Earth is a finite piece of property that we cannot re-manufacture another version of.

I truly feel that to have a sustainable and thriving business today you must conserve your resources. By conserving you save money, by saving money you increase your profits. Not only conservation will increase your overall profit, but reusing durable goods and eliminating as much waste as possible will also bump up the money being made because you are not wasting it on new goods, or high trash bills. Of course these ideas are just the very tip of the ice berg in how businesses can operate efficiently in todays economy. By being green will allow you to make the green ($$), but with the added benefit of feeling like you are making a difference in your local community.

I pose this question to you...what are you doing to lessen your impact on this Earth? What simple things can you do on a daily basis to help improve the world we live in? Think about it....and I will come back with some answers for you to implement in your day to day life to help reduce your impact on the Earth.

Dreaming the big dream. Getting middle school aged children excited about math and science

THE 3RD PROJECT...Aye, aye, aye! I got whacked over 1,000 times with the reflex hammers that your doctor uses on you to test your knee reflexes! No bruises, but I think I know why Heidi chose me to be the teacher at that station in our Dreamers activity day...I am the biggest one in our team, so OF COURSE the big guy can take the hits. Some of those little middle schoolers have some strength! 

If you have not read the other blogs of the other participants in the program, then I will give you a quick rundown about what it is exactly I am talking about. 

On this project CH2M Hill and the Colorado "I have a Dream" Foundation came together and collaborated a plan for us (Apprentice Teams) to expand on to get young children (middle school aged) excited about science and math. CH2M is a private engineer

ing corporation owned by the employees and the Colorado "I Have a Dream" Foundation is a nonprofit organization that helps underprivileged children succeed in school from 3rd grade up through their graduation from high school. These children are referred to as "Dreamers". I need to b

e frank with you...I hate math and I am a business major, so there is a minor co

nflict there especially with me being a Marketing major. After meeting with CH2M and the Dreamers Mentors my team got off to a huge start with our teams two project leads, Heidi and Erin. The activity day we set up for the Dreamers had 3 sections: Biology, Physics, and Chemistry. Biology had 5 separate sections in its own.

 

Heidi set up a great biology section for the Dreamers to participate in with a lot of hands on activities. Little did I know that I was going to be a big part of the hands on participation by being hammered on with the little rubber reflex hammers that Heidi had found in some dark dungeon of torture. the five stations are detailed below:

1. There were dead cats that the kids got to dissect
2. a bone scavenger hunt
3. how the heart works station
4. sheep brains section where the kids learned how the human brain works along with the ability to touch and poke the sheep brain. 
   
5. Whack-a-Noah section. Actually, it was a knee-jerk reflex section discussing how it takes only 51 milliseconds for the reaction to occur along with other reflexes of the human body, but mainly a way for the kids to exert some pent up energy by whacking me with the hammers.

The 2ND section of the day was held in the MSCD physics lab with Physic

s Profess

or Doug Howey. Professor Howey taught the kids velocity, acceleration, and other types of movement by utilizing cars on a track with a motion sensing device that graphed the speed and movement of the car. The kids had fun with this activity, especially with launching the cars off the track! Made me almost make me dirty my knickers and trousers until Professor Howey showed me that the cars were designed to take a beating. Thank the lord!

The 3rd se

ction consisted of Chemistry experiments. There were 5 stations as well in this section that Dr. Eric Ball from MSCD's Chemistry experiment helped us out with. They were:

1. Collapsing cans with David and I. This demonstrated how atmospheric pressure and temperature can cause a can to implode and crush itself when heated then dropped into a cold vat of water
2. Slime and silly putty with Giedre, the French teacher. I say French because the Dreamers thought she was from France. This was the most fun station for the kids because they got to understand how polymers, when put together, can form certain products like Slime. 
3. Intro to Stem Kits - The STEM kit is a kit my team put together to further the Dreamers interest by enabling them to conduct experiments at home with household products. Heidi demonstrated the Cartesian Diver and Chromatography experiments that were included in their kits. 
4. Erin taught how acids and bases interacted by utilizing cabbage juice as our base and dropping in different types of acids ranging from ammonia to citrus juice.
5.  Dr. Ball demonstrated the "screaming Gummy bear" and other experiments that required a protective window and ventilation to be demonstrated. The Dreamers really liked this station due to the fire, noise, and explosions. Pretty cool stuff

The Dreamers really enjoyed their day at Metro with my team and I. They were engaged and had expressed an impressive amount of interest in the experiments we conducted. I remember one of the Dreamers, Tracy, expressing that he wanted to be an Astronomer. I thought that was pretty cool for him to want to learn more to possibly become a future scientist of the stars. 

Blog, blogger, bloggy, blogacious, blogtacular, blog, blog, blog...

I feel as though I need to clear up some very minor things prior to starting my blogs going forth.

I know that my blogs are not of a serious nature and they may lack some educational or wisdom sharing content, but I think I laid some ground rules earlier on when I stated that I was going to have fun with my blogging. It is all about the entertainment, what America is known for now days. I was thinking about outsourcing my blog to India, but I thought that may not really show, or illustrate, who I am to you- the reader, the audience. I hope you have had some fun along the way, but the end is near and approaching quite rapidly. Chris Wilcox stated:

"The end is just a Hop, skip, and jump away"

as he wrinkled his painted bunny nose at me when he was in his bunny costume this past Easter. Kidding, Chris does not dress up as the Easter bunny...maybe in his spare time in private, but not in public. Ha ha ha...jsut another example of me not taking things completely serious.

I was chatting with my teammate Giedre about her Blogs and how informative, intelligent and reflective her blogs are. I think she called my blogs those of a "silly boy", which does somewhat encompass who I am, but I consider myself a silly "MAN", not a boy (Many may argue with me on that). Giedre does really tell the reader about what is going on in the Apprentice quite well. I seem to touch on it here and there.

SO..with that said, I am going to try and have more blogs dedicated to the program, but with my off-the wall ones mixed in. I have already accomplished this task so far, but I am going to try and stick to it the best I can.

I will try to post blogs on a daily basis, but this may be more of a challenge for me then the actual Apprentice Challenge. I must continue on though with my blog about the 3rd Project in the Apprentice Challenge. Until the next Noah Blog...Cheerio!

HAPPY EASTER! ....It was until I found this out about the Easter Bunny!

AS I was surfing the web for Easter information to further my knowledge about Easter, how others in different countries celebrated Easter, etc. I came across several images of the Easter Bunny. I was never aware about Chris Wilcox's other hobbies or interests, in addition to his Air Hockey activities, but...Chris Wilcox highlights as a SHOPPING MALL EASTER BUNNY! Uh, is that Benjamin 's Easter photo from 14 years ago? Kaleigh? What is going on here! I think we have entered the TWILIGHT ZONE!! DOO-DEE-DOO-DOO-DOO-DEE...


Sweet Baby Jesus Wilcox! Tell me it isn't true..just tell me it is not true Chris!

How do you like 'dem Apples Chris!

Yowza! Benji..is that you?

Benji - I never knew of a man as happy as you for winning a pink iPOD nano and how much the women would despise you for it. But that is okay, because you are engaged now.

CONGRATULATIONS! Good luck young sir on your new venture.

Some fun in spirit of project 3 and our science experiments

I was just messing around while doing some research and came across these videos on You Tube that are somewhat related to our science day on campus for the Dreamers....you will have to click on the links provided. If they do not work, then copy and paste them into your internet browser. Have fun!

An ode to the mentos and coke experiment...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJsDfLndlKU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKoB0MHVB

This one is a commercial that is somewhat graphic demo of the mentos and beer...but it is fake:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAcc8CPhlO4

This one is just for fun and has no scientific attributes...but it kind of involves how some interact with nature..kidding of course:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_VlVckrUgY

3rd project just starting to REV it up!

Hello my patriots of the Noah-Blog following!


To fore warn you...it is late..and I am tired..with no caffeine presently in my bloodstream this blog could get ugly and sloppy...sorry for any oddities in the upcoming paragraphs.


Please forgive my uniqueness during the witching hour. I just watched a monster/ghost/scary reality series on TLC, or discovery channel about the Spanish chupa-cabra and it has me thinking that these little ghoulish things are in existence and possibly tapping on my window attempting to get into my basement to gnaw on me while I sleep. Jeepers that gives me the Creepers! It is silly for me being how large and in charge I am to be afraid of a 4ft mythical creature that eats goats at Mexican farms. Silly INDEED!



ANYWAYS....

I just wanted to give you a quick run-down on what the 5280 squadron is cooking up...

• FUN, FUN, FUN
• SURPRISES
• BEING THE SOLID & CONFIDENT TEAM WE ARE!
• and last but not least...our team LARPEL membership - Live Action Role Playing Entertainment League with Chris Wilcox from the A-Team (ask him about his 5th level wizard standing in the gnome forest)
• Kidding, I just got that recently off of the CW TV show "Beauty and the Geek", I figure Chris might be the only one understanding of what it is all about since he plays with computers for a living, or anyone that may be aware of dungeons and dragons/warcraft. I think you have to have a ponytail, or have previous work experience at a computer or electronics store to truly grasp what I am speaking of here. Its a geek thing...which of course, I am most certainly not! I am a 7th level gnome king with magical healing potions from the land of Wintersun of the Elf kingdom...like I stated earlier...it is late and I am in oddball land.
• Ha ha ha!..check these links out to grasp what is being discussed above, you'll have to copy and paste them:
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1OBjjBxHto
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W36rqvcUD6E
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oWAb5NVALw
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQukoByxKEg
  

I think that sums it all up. Prepare for another successful campaign that proves what us Metro State gladiators on TEAM 5280 CLOSERS are capable of! It will be a THRILLING adventure!

Later Gators!

-Noah

Just some quick shout outs and thank yous for the 2nd project...its a little random, but random keeps things fun!

THANK YOUS:

• I want to thank my team, 5280 CLOSERS, for doing a fantastic job in our collaboration and individual efforts in achieving this reward.
• Thank you Cherrelyn, Janell, Josh, Stefanie, Gini, Melissa and Kim (the alumni office squad!) for always supporting us students through out each project. Especially for dealing with my daily stomping up and down the stairs constantly (I swear that I am going to put my size 12.5 right through one of those ancient stairs!)
  
• MY MEDIA PEEPS! Thank you Mr. Franklin, the man with a camcorder stuck to his face - thank you for your last minute filming on our projects and Ms. Johanna, the woman with the photo skillz to thrill! THANK YOU!
  
• Derek Anguilm, Tara Tull and Kelly Felice - Thank you all for your guidance!
• Carol and DCIL - Thank you for your time and stories, you touched us all.
• Steve Barry (Barry Web Designs) - your contribution will make a world of difference for DCIL (www.dcildenver.org)
• UMB Bank and Denver's Road Home for the opportunity that provided us with great experiences.
• Altitude Sports - Behind the Scenes tour rocked!
• Key Bank for the suite and Avs tickets!
  
• Thank you Mr. Jim Garrison (my Apprentice Mentor) for the Sunday afternoon lunches and brewski's that accompany our chats on life, projects, and all things manly men talk about.
  
• Metro State student Larry Schmeiding Jr. and his family for their GI-NORMOUS (really large) donation of food.
  
• Of course, my supporting cast, my Family (Mom, Dad, Jo-Jo, & Captain along with Kim (My GF... a shout out gets me more brownie points right?) & Cody. Also...mi amigos for rooting me on!
• Mr. Jason Brodlieb (JB Media & Metro State Management student) for making the 5280 Closers website, which will be up and running soon (unfortunately the explosions I chose were too explosive, the techno music too entrancing, and the car chases to long to put on the site, sorry!)
  
• Lastly, I want to thank my step father,ED, for showing me the determination and strength he always had in not letting his mental illness keep him from achieving the many goals he had set in his life. Thank you Ed for opening my eyes to the things that every human being can do, no matter what they are faced with on a day to day basis. Motivation, determination and setting goals can allow you to accomplish many things in life.

If I failed to mention someones name or organization, sorry! There are so many people that we meet on a day to day basis that it gets overwhelming at times. Shoot me an email (ssteingr@mscd.edu) to give me an e-smack to get my memory jump-started.

GOOAAALLLL!!!!

WOW! What an event it was Tuesday night @ the Pepsi Center watching the Colorado Avalanche play!

This reward for our second project was spectacular! I was so excited to have the chance to go to an AV's game because I have never been before. We were able to kick it VIP style in the Key Bank suite that was stocked full of food and refreshments. It was AMAZING! Not only did we get to fill our faces with tons of great food and enjoy the game in style and comfort, but we also got the chance to get a behind-the-scenes tour of the Pepsi Center!

The behind the scenes tour was pretty awesome, especially seeing how Altitude puts together these sporting events for you the viewer at home. There are so many individuals running around, pushing buttons, controlling cameras, giving video direction...it is just mind boggling. I do not know how they keep things flowing so smoothly all the time. I had troubles walking up the stairs to one of the production trailers (yeah...I some how have the amazing ability of tripping UP stairs and not down like normal clumsy people), so how these people do it without injuring themselves on all the exposed cabling and monstrous stairs I cannot figure out. It must have something to do with cat-like reflexes and not being clumsy like myself. Luckily for me..no one really saw my mishap on the stairs (except for the security lady that let out a slight chuckle...darn her!).

I was really glad to have this wonderful opportunity awarded to us. At the end of the game we were able to get autographs thanks to one of the AV's players donating some VIP passes for us to gain access of where the players come out when they are leaving.

The Highlight Reel:

• AVS GAME = AWESOME!
• FREE FOOD AND BEVERAGE = AWESOME!
• VIP SUITE = AWESOME!
• BEHIND THE SCENES TOUR = AWESOME!
• AUTOGRAPHS = AWESOME!
• Being able to take a significant other (GF) to the game= Brownie points (hopefully enough to counteract all the times I have been away working hard on these projects!)
• Hearing Giedre and her dad yell at the Canucks in Lithuanian = Interesting, yet AWESOME!
• FREE DESERT = Sample plate of everything...thus, concordingly, ergo, vis-a-vi = AWESOME!
• Having a memorable time = PRICELESS!

How sweet it is to do great things for great organizations with Roadrunner Pride!

Project 2 was a great project for both teams involved. I feel that both teams were victorious in the amount of work they all put into their organizations. Working with the Disability Center for Independent Living (DCIL) was such a great experience for my teammates and I and truly touched our hearts.

The A-Team worked with El Centro Humanitario para Los Trabajadores (The Humanitarian Center for the Workers) and contributed so much to that organization. I must admit that I was worried about winning this round because I know how determined the A-Team was with their hard work. The assiduous A-Team definitely put some effort into their collaboration with El Centro Humanitario. They pulled off a very successful campaign. GREAT WORK A-TEAM!

Both non-profits benefited tremendously from great efforts that each Apprentice team put forth. These projects helped in getting tools for El Centro workers, food & personal care items for DCIL's clients (THANK YOU MSCD Student LARRY SCHMEIDING JR. and Family for your donations of over 35 cases of non-perishable food items and AAA of Colorado!), a website for DCIL (THANKS STEVE BARRY OF BARRY WEB DESIGNS), and the many other accomplishments by both teams.

This 2nd project really showed off the abilities that Metro State's students have and what we students can do when we are put to the task of helping the Denver community. I am truly honored to be able to showoff the many talents and skills I have acquired while attending Metro State, but also by having the chance to use them for such a great organization, DCIL.

Working with the non-profit organizations, DCIL & El Centro, within our communities has opened our eyes and hearts to the many people that need our skills and assistance. I strongly urge you (the reader) to take action and locate a local organization that you can donate to with your time, skills, money, food, or other items because it will truly show who you are and what you are made of. If you contribute just once, or on a continual-recurring basis. People need people. Please get involved within your community and help out.

___________________SIDE NOTE________________________

This project was not only tedious, but dangerous as well (personally for me at least). A-Team members (and colossal participants in the Apprentice Challenge), Kaleigh Braun and her comrade Cyndi Cervantes, threatened to "shank" me on multiple occasions. Yeah, that's right - "SHANK"

(Shank (weapon), a slang for a makeshift knife usually crafted from scrap metal, or (as a verb) the use of such a weapon.) Watch the video with the link provided to gain further insight into the matter: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYL3xTXHgdE

I must admit that being a 6ft. 3in tall, man of stature and having these constant "shank" threats thrown at me every time I crossed paths with these vicious little ladies, struck me with a heart pumping fear that only a squirrel would know of while being chased by a pack of hungry dogs, or by the AHEC facility maintenance crews on campus. At times, due to the amount of duress I would encounter, I would confine myself to the security of the men's restroom stalls of West Classroom and stand on the toilet seat to conceal myself when they were searching for me.

It was scary people. Scary like Brittany Spears' parenting abilities( I know, not the best analogy) or Scary like vivious man-killing spidermonkeys hyped up on Mountain Dew. Be wary of these two when they are hyped up on Mountain Dew, Monster Energy drink, or Starbucks (basically anything consumable with a caffeine content of 10 milligrams or higher):

The wanna-be "shankers" - Kaleigh Braun & Cindy Cervantes of the "A-TEAM"

_____________End Side Note______________

SPECIAL THANKS TO: Steve Barry of:

, Larry Schmeiding Jr. & family, Kelly Felice (Human Services Professor), Tara Tull (Womens Studies), Derek Anguilm (CFA & Metro Alumn) and of course everyone @ DCIL!

5280 CLOSERS and DCIL NEED YOUR HELP!

Everyone that reads this post between Mon. Feb 25th and Thurs Feb 28th, please contribute to my team's Canned Food Drive for the Disability Center for Independent Living. See info below Please:


Attention Students, Faculty, and Staff of the Auraria Campus:

Lets all UNITE for the “People Need People” Food and Personal Care Items Drive for the Disability Center for Independent Living (DCIL) and bring a canned donation or personal care item.

Please bring any and all canned or non-perishable food and personal care items between this Monday Feb 25th and Thursday Feb 28th to the following drop-off locations:

• Tivoli SE & SW entrances
• The Alumni House (by Einsteins in 9th St. Park area)

**Please place items in the marked boxes**

The food and personal care item drive is being sponsored by TEAM 5280CLOSERS of Metro State’s Apprentice Challenge for their support of DCIL.

DCIL’s mission is to fully integrate people with all types of disabilities, both physical and mental/cognitive, into all aspects of community life. They provide programs, services and support that allow people with disabilities to make choices for their lives and to enable them to be self-sustaining.

If you cannot donate any goods or items, please donate your time and services by volunteering at DCIL. Contact Carol Reynolds (Executive Director) at the following:

4821 E. 38th Avenue
Denver, CO 80207
303.320.1345
TTY: 303.322.2330
Fax: 303.320.1355

The 5280CLOSERS and DCIL THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP AND DONATIONS!

Project #2 hitting home with me.

We have officially started our second project with the Apprentice Challenge.

The 5280 CLOSERS are working closely with the nonprofit/grassroots organization Disabilities Center for Independent Living (DCIL). This organization helps people with mental disabilities ranging from alcoholism to Schizophrenia and physical disabilities (paralysis, etc. ). Our fearless Lithuanian Leader, Giedre, has given us good direction on guiding the team to another "W".

Do not worry our dedicated fans and followers, 5280 CLOSERS are hard at work chiseling out our master plan to help out this wonderful organization with an excellent needs assessment plan that will help them out in ensuring their continued help in our local and statewide community.

I was extremely glad to be assigned to the DCIL organization because I had a step-father with Bipolar Disorder along with being Manic Depressive. I know what issues he faced in dealing with his disease and day-to-day life because I was there during the good times and the bad times. I say "had" due to my step-father passing away 2 years ago from a terminal brain tumor that grew at an exponential rate. His name was Ed Uhl and he had an Accounting degree from Metro after which he acquired his CFP (Cerified Financial Planner) and CPA (Certified Public Accountant). He is part of the reason for my attending Metro. So this project is somewhat personal because I know how important it was to him to donate and help out similar organizations like DCIL, such as Bayaud Industries, to help in showing the world that people can be very successful even when challenged with a mental, cognitive, or physical disability. With that said, prior to starting this competition I dedicated all my efforts and successes I have in this program to him and his memory, as well as the rest of my family because without them, I would not be where I stand today. I have seen what my step-father has done with his degree from Metro and I plan on being as successful as him with my degree.

On a lighter note...

To my team, The splendiforous (copyrighted -Noah, All rights reserved), the great, the magnificent, the glorious, the fantastic, the glowing, THE 5280 CLOSERS!- Lets get crack-a-lackin and show this heavily CGI-trained-espresso making-break dancing-Spanish-speaking-Rock climbing A-team what we can do...AGAIN! Lets go for a repeat on success and bring the hammer down on them! I am breaking out the big guns for this project and calling in MacGyver for some fancy creativity utilizing only a Tube sock, paper clip, slice of moldy bologne, a watch battery, and a 3-inch threading of dental floss to design our team a website that will be ridiculously good looking with explosions and car chases along with techno beats to shake-it-like-a-salt shaker too! We will see how fancy-schmancy A-Team's website will be when ours is done. Coo-coo-ka-choo!

Skiddly DOO!..I'm outta here!

- Noah

(**CAUTION** I think Kaleigh (member of A-team) may be supplementing the A-team with unusually high doses of caffeine in the form of espresso shots - this may be an illegal infraction on the terms and rules we all adhered to- but really it could be a safety hazard for the campus and the CLOSERS due to their over-excitement and caffeinated "jitters". I have personally already received threats from Kaleigh about being attacked by spider monkeys hyped up on Mountain Dew and I am seriously beginning to think that they may have acquired spider monkeys. Aren't they indigenous to South America? and the majority of the team is bilingual in Spanish...hmmm... )

I want a team website...

I just saw that Chris from the A-Team had created a website. This makes me sad:( Why does this make me sad you ask? Because I do not have the technical knowhow to make one and that my friend is the reason. I guess I can maybe bribe Chris to make us one, but he probably will make my team and I look like spider-monkeys or something exotic (within the animal kingdom you dirty minded people!).

Hmmm....time to collaborate my resources and get the Closers a fancy website with explosions, car chases, and techno music up for us. It is all about the flash animation. I like to try and give the viewer a Wham-bam, thank ya mam! experiance.

(The A-Team's New Eco-Van)

Dang that Chris Wilcox! Dang him to darnation! He is a tricky one that lil rascally rabbit. Sorry Chris, but I must bite your style sir and up the ante to keep you on your toes. I may not have the computer hacking skills you do sir, but I will personally hand pick my nerd herd to design the biggest, the bestest and most excellent team website EVER!

- Noah

Oh my GOODNESS GRACIOUS!

It is yet another early morn, or late eve, that I began my 2nd blog. I got quite the kick out of reading some of the comments from the 1st blog I wrote. Touché Benjamin and touché Kaleigh. You two must be cackling at your comments you left me, but this is only the beginning of your end(s). Of course I am just kidding, but if we were in the medieval ages then there would be jousting and sword fighting, maybe even some archery action. I would surely get you both with the battle axe. I honestly do not know where I am going with this, so let’s move on before things get too vivid.

So about my experiences with the 1st project, the Smart Meal Challenge...

The 1st project was laborious in time and footwork. I sent many emails to many restaurants on our list (which I have so generously listed below) that was handpicked by COPAN (Google it...but in case you must know right now it stands for the Colorado Office of Physical Activity and Nutrition AKA COPAN) to try and set up meetings for us to present the program to them. After very little success with that, my good ole buddy and pal Mr. David Foos (I like to call him "Davey" for short) were running loose all over downtown Denver trying to make contacts with the restaurant owners or GM's. David was our team leader for the project, so I was chosen to be his executive taxi...kidding. After spending close to $50 in parking fees downtown we made some headway (I apparently decided against reading any parking lot signage that stated the hourly rates of over $4.00 an hour, ridiculous just like the parking at school).

The presentations to these restaurants took only about 15-20 minutes at the max. La Loma's took a little longer, but that is just because we had a very hospitable host that insisted we try a round of organic margaritas, which were delicious (yes we are both over 21). We tried to refuse (maybe....), but the GM, Jorge, insisted we try them. An organic margarita? Yeah, everything is organic- the limes, sugar, salt, ice, and apparently the tequila. I have a hard time thinking that tequila is organic though, but either way. it was a delicious tasting of what La Loma has to offer. Then Jorge talked with us about where tequila comes from and how it differs from region to region. This dude knows his tequila and probably should be on the TV show "Three Sheets" on the MOJO HD channel. On a side note, La Loma has great food, so try it. To begin to sum things up and to not drag this blog on any longer, my team closed the deal with 3 AWESOME restaurants (I included some shout outs):

1. Queen of Sheba (Ethiopian food - awesome owner Zewditu!)


2. Imperial Chinese (Chinese food - Thanks Johnny Hsu!)
   
3. Qdoba (Mexican food - Giedre thanks for going above and beyond the pre-approved list by COPAN and thanks to Doug Thielan!)

We also had many other potential participants and 2 other restaurants in the works to join up with the Smart Meal Program:

1. Illegal Pete's (Pete Turner (owner) is getting the whole menu evaluated for nutritional content)


2. Jack-N-Grill (Jack Martinez (owner) is revamping his menu to include nutritional options and the food is all locally sourced, so he is being lean and green in his operations!

I honestly would try to dine at all the restaurants listed below because David and I tried to. After gaining an additional 10 lbs from dining everywhere we attempted to contact or presented to, we learned that we were not promoting the Smart Meal program in the appropriate light with the gorging of our bodies with trying all the food. Now, luckily for us, we know which places have nutritional options for us to select and nosh on without any worries because TEAM 5280 CLOSERS have been able to gain more participants in the wonderful Smart Meal Challenge.

Since the gorging of food sampling and tasting, David and I have both dropped the weight. My motivation was the USA Olympic Training facility tour we had as our reward for winning the challenge. There were these little guys that were ripped like mini-Conan the Barbarians and they were flipping, swinging, back-axle-toe grabbing-iron-cross holding monsters. Being 6'3 and an unmentionable manly weight, I felt that these guys could hold their own if I were to charge at them. America - we are looking pretty solid at gaining some Gold in the gymnastics area of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Oh, and our Olympic Pentathlon host and tour guide, Mr. Eli Bremer, is ready to shock the world with his skills in shooting, fencing, horseback riding, swimming, running, and overall badass-ness (is that a word?, it should be..). I got his limited edition Olympic trading card, signed...oh yeah! Its going on Ebay to help pay for my overly priced books this semester...kidding, it is not, unless I see someone trying to bid on one for over $1000 (hey, remember I am still a business man).

Anyways, it is getting late. Ben and Kaleigh, I will send some future shout outs your way soon in my future blogs. Everyone else, dine at the list below and enjoy the pictures. HUGE thanks goes out to Kaiser Permanente, COPAN, LiveWell, Metro Alumni Association, Mr. Derek Anguilm, Mr. Jeffrey Howard, Eli Bremer, and my TEAM, the 5280 CLOSERS! **please que music from Queen, "We are the Champions"

Skiddly-DOO!

· Imperial Chinese
431 S Broadway
Phone: (303) 698-2800

· La Loma
2527 W 26th
Denver, CO 80211
Phone: (303) 433-8300

· Queen of Sheba
7225 E Colfax AveDenver, CO 80220(303) 399-9442

· Las Delicias
439 E 19th Ave
Phone: (303) 839-5675

· Zengo
1610 Little Raven StDenver, CO 80202Phone: (720) 904-0965

· Illegal Pete’s
1530 16th St. # 101
Denver, CO
Phone: (303) 623-2169

· Jack & Grill
2524 Federal Blvd
Denver, CO
Phone: (303) 964-9544

· Paramount Café
501 16th StDenver, CO 80202Phone: (303) 893-2000