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June 20, 2014 Editor of the Week: Paul Van Hemel Table of Contents Alerts & Notices Special Event: A Day in the Life of a Meteorologist Check Out OLLI Illinois e-News Yolanda Nicely “Retires” as Chair of the Liaison Subcommittee Photo of the Month A Sad Note Poet's Corner Arts & Music at George Mason Mason Highlights Meetings & Clubs About OLLI E-News Alerts & Notices There are still spaces in classes R903 and L906, Papyrus–The Plant that Changed the World. The Washington Post did an article about the instructor last week. We will be publishing on July 3rd instead of July 4th. All articles for that week will be due at 6pm on Monday June 30th. The new member coffee is Friday June 27th at 10:00 in TA-1. All members are welcome to attend. Back to Top of Page Special Event: A Day in the Life of a Meteorologist By Stephanie Trachtenberg, OLLI Member Friday the 13th of June was a lucky day for OLLI members. Amelia Segal of Storm Team 4 / WRC TV presented a lecture called "A Day In The Life of a Meteorologist." Amelia majored in meteorology at Penn State University. A native of Frederick, MD, she always wanted to work in the Washington, DC, area and joined NBC 4 in March 2013.   Amelia told us what a typical day is like for her. She begins her day researching the internet for weather events. She visits sites like NOAA to see where the highs and lows and weather fronts are located. Although weather forecasting technology is improving all the time, predicting the weather is not an exact science and is based on more than just computer models.   Meteorologists must also apply their own knowledge to interpret the data, especially when different computer models predict different outcomes. A good background in science and math is essential and Amelia uses this knowledge to make her best predictions. Then she assembles graphics for her brief one- to two-minute on-air forecast. Working without a script, she tries to highlight the cities with the most potential for unusual weather since the Washington, DC, area weather forecast covers a very large geographic area. Amelia explained that she has a green screen behind her and watches three TV monitors to know where to point on the map we see at home.   NBC has a coach for all newscasters, who are advised on various factors (e.g., how to look at the camera, how to dress). Amelia graciously answered many of the nearly 150 attendees' questions with enthusiasm. She said she hopes OLLI and Storm Team 4 can do future sessions.   Everyone agreed that Amelia gave us a great presentation and we appreciated that she could fit OLLI into her busy schedule. Back to Top of Page Check Out OLLI Illinois e-News By John Woods, Past President, Board of Directors Members interested in the activities of other OLLI sites may want to take a look at the May issue of the bi-monthly OLLI Illinois e-News. To access it, click here. Back to Top of Page Yolanda Nicely “Retires” as Chair of the Liaison Subcommittee By Manny Pablo, Liaison Subcommittee Member and Former President, Board of Directors After managing the liaison selection and training process for a year, Yolanda Nicely has decided to step down as chair of that subcommittee (part of the Member Services Committee). Yolanda kept the committee members well informed and beautifully organized, and she laid solid groundwork for future management of the liaison assignment and communication process. With her guidance, the committee was able to find liaisons for every class, every term–despite a very short time frame between creation of class rosters and the beginning of classes. Martha Powers will be stepping into the position, with Yolanda graciously agreeing to be on call as needed. Please join us in thanking Yolanda–nicely!–for bringing her cheerful management style, terrific spreadsheet skills, and tireless dedication to this important OLLI function. Back to Top of Page Russia Discussion Club By Gordon Canyock, Russia Discussion Club Coordinator This ad hoc seminar meets weekly on Mondays at noon for an hour to discuss developments related to Russia in the news. Sessions will be held from June 23 to at least July 7, but may be extended if events continue to embroil the region and member interest continues.   Participants are expected to have read their favorite newspaper and other sources from lists provided by the coordinator in the club’s blog on the OLLI website. Specific topics of discussion each week will depend on who shows up, what they have read, and what events have unfolded during the previous week.    Topics under discussion have included Putin’s goal and strategy related to Ukraine, potential for similar actions in other countries of the former Soviet Union, the likelihood and potential impact of economic sanctions imposed on Russia, the impact of the current crisis in both Ukraine and Russia, as well as the development of the Eurasian Economic Union and the gas and oil agreement with China. Back to Top of Page Photo of the Month The June 2014 Photo of the Month theme was open (i.e., no theme). We selected member photo “Old_Old,” which may be viewed in various sizes at this page. To view other photos by members of the Photography Club, visit the Club's website. -- By Dan Feighery, Photography Club Coordinator Back to Top of Page A Sad Note The E-News team was saddened to learn of the death, on June 12, of Tom Kyriakakis, husband of Barbara Kyriakakis. Barbara was for many years our superb associate editor, giving freely of her time and effort to ensure that the newsletter was the best it could be. She stepped down last fall to care for her husband, and we have greatly missed her strength on our team, and especially her grace and wit. -- The OLLI E-News Team Back to Top of Page Poet's Corner Courtesy of the Poetry Workshop Reflection Confused by conscious thought the heart hesitates, unsure, beats a quick beat restores its rhythm.    As in a marching band when all step firmly to the beat save one, whose thinking syncopates his stepping.   Like love, disturbed by doubt, dims, before a surge of joy reveals its radiance. Helen Harvey Back to Top of Page Arts & Music at George Mason Performances, next two weeks By Shelly Gersten, OLLI E-News Staff Writer For tickets for either CFA or Hylton, call 1-888-945-2468, buy tickets online through the event calendar (see links below), or visit the venue's box office. For more information see the CFA ticket page or the Hylton ticket purchase page. At the Fairfax Campus Venues Alexandria Harmonizers & Ambassadors of Harmony Joint Concert Sat, Jun 21, 7:00 Admission: Adults, $42; seniors, $37 Center for the Arts The XVI Saya Caporal Dance Competition Caporales is a traditional Bolivian original dance from La Paz, Bolivia. Sat, Jun 28, 5:30                 Admission: Adults, $20; seniors, $18 Center for the Arts Back to Top of Page At the Hylton Center South Riding Dance Annual Show Sat, Jun 21, 2:00 & 7:00 Sun, Jun 22, 11:00 Admission: $30, $25, $20, $15 Merchant Hall  Global Music Academy's Annual Music and Dance Gala Sat, Jun 21, 3:00 Admission: $15 Gregory Family Theater Carlos Alcántara: ¡Asu Mare! El Show Thu, June 26, 8:00 Admission: $45-$75 Merchant Hall Hylton Performing Arts Center First Annual Juried Exhibit Continues through July 18 The Buchanan Partners Art Gallery is open to the public Tue-Sat, 10:00 to 6:00, Thur., 10:00 to 8:00 and two hours before performances. For more information about the current exhibit, visit HyltonCenter.org/gallery Back to Top of Page For further details on any of the above events, please see the CFA event calendar and the Hylton Center event calendar Back to Top of Page Mason Highlights Other Mason events, next two weeks By Helen Ackerman, OLLI E-News Staff Writer Dedication Ceremony: Alan and Sally Merten Hall. University Hall becomes the Alan and Sally Merten Hall at a dedication ceremony with reception to follow. Desserts and refreshments will be served on the terrace. Mon, Jun 23, 11:30. University Hall. RSVP to https://www.regonline.com/Register/Checkin.aspx?EventID=1567075. Back to Top of Page Meetings & Clubs The following list covering the next two weeks is extracted for your convenience from the master online calendar maintained by the office, with direct web links added when available. The list is accurate as of mid-week but to check anytime for the latest information, please view the latest forecast of upcoming events on our website (News/OLLI Calendar). Note: All OLLI members are welcome at, and encouraged to attend, meetings of the Board of Directors, committees and resource groups, Kickoff Coffees, etc. (bolded below). Sat Jun 21 10:30am   2:00pm Tai Chi Club–TA-3 Computer Club–TA-1 Mon Jun 23 10:00am 10:00am 12:00pm What’s in the Daily News cont’d–TA-1 Bridge Club–TA-3 Russia Discussion Group–TA-1 Tue Jun 24 10:00am   3:00pm Knitting and Needlework Club–Panera, Herndon Strategic Planning Committee–Annex Fri Jun 27   9:00am   9:00am 10:00am 10:00am   10:00am 11:00am 11:00am 12:00pm Recorder Consort–TA-3 Travel Club–TA-2 Craft and Conversation–Cottage Classic Fiction Book Club–Cascades Library Potomac Falls New Member Coffee–TA-1 Homer, etc–Annex Ulysses Club–TA-2 Photography Club–TA-1 Sat Jun 28 10:30am Tai Chi Club–TA-3 Mon Jun 30 10:00am 10:00am 12:00pm Bridge Club–TA-3 What’s in the Daily News cont’d–TA-1 Russia Discussion Group–TA-1 Tue Jul 1 10:00am Knitting and Needlework Club–Panera, Herndon Back to Top of Page About OLLI E-News OLLI E-News was created by Rod Zumbro, who served as its editor from 2005 to 2013. Current Editorial Staff Chief Editor/Technical Editor: Irene Osterman Associate Editor: Weekly Editorial Team: Paul Van Hemel, Sheri Siesseger, Leslie Vandivere, Proofreaders:  John West, Gordon Canyock, Susan Van Hemel Backup Chief Editor: Sheri Siesseger Submissions. Members are encouraged to submit letters to the editor, letters to Ms. Ollie Ettakit (on etiquette matters), OLLI-related news items, articles and photos. Submit material to: ollienewseditor@gmail.com. Deadline – 6:00 pm Tuesday for that week's issue (6:00 pm Monday for letters to the editor); early submissions are greatly appreciated. Please limit articles to about 250 words. Note: You can view past issues of OLLI E-News on the DocStore. To search the content of issues, use Search Our Site or put your search term in Google followed by "site:olli.gmu.edu/" without the quotes. Back to Top of Page