Small Town, Big Music

Panama City Beach will host UNwineD, featuring a Southern garden party with craft beer, spirits and wine tastings, this weekend, March 24-25, at Aaron Bessant Park. In addition to this event, The Avett Brothers will play at 5 p.m. Saturday, March 25. Tickets for the concert are only $10, which is music to a college student's ears.

The music choice at Aaron Bessant Park has always been open-minded and unpredictable. Locals beloved Heritage has played here many times along with other favorites like Alan Jackson, The Band Perry, Damian Marley, and Matisyahu. The best part about these concerts, other than location and scenery, is affordability.

Bay County has significantly grown in the past 10 years. The introduction of Aaron Bessant Park in 2012 continues to be a hit for all ages. Pier Park being a stepping-stone for Panama City Beach in 2008, locals now have outlet shops and musical entertainment at their fingertips. Events like concerts in the park are a long-awaited addition to the recreational aspect of Bay County.

For more information about UNwineD, visit the event website. Doors open at 2 p.m. if you wish to get there early. There is plenty of parking at Pier Park, but you may have to walk a bit so wear comfortable clothes and bring a blanket or some chairs to make yourself comfortable.

— Coralanne Emborski 

contributing writer

Diving the Jetties

On March 6, we had our second “out of pool” dive. We dove the Jetties at St. Andrews State Park in Panama City Beach. We dove twice with the first dive focusing on search patterns (the jackstay and the fan search).

The first dive was on beach side where only gets to about 15 feet deep. I know it sounds like this would be a piece of cake, but it most definitely was not. Now we know exactly what we are doing when it comes to the searches; now add in 5-foot seas and an outgoing current that will pull your regulator out of your mouth. It was brutal.

We eventually accomplished our mission and got to move on to our second dive of the day, which involved swimming over the jetty rocks. Once again, sounds easy, but keep in mind the outgoing tide. We each had to hold onto a line that our leader held onto in front of us. It was as if we were in kindergarten again and we had to hold a rope so we stayed single file. In this case, though, we had to hold onto the line so that we would not drift out into the gulf. It was quite the workout.

Once we finished that dive, we thought we could get out and finally have lunch. Nope. Professor Mike Zinszer told us to complete an 800-yard swim before exiting the water. We thought we were exhausted then.

When we finally were done and cleaned up our equipment, we had lunch together. We joked about how hard it was to get the most simple dive tasks done. Another “successful” dive for the books.

— Ashlyn Jernigan

Four Crossed Logs intern
professional communication major

Golf Invitational raises $60,000 for FSU Panama City

About 150 golfers participated in FSU Panama City's 27th Annual Golf Invitational benefiting FSU Panama City's Campus Enrichment on Friday, March 17, at Hombre Golf Resort. Golfers also were invited to campus Thursday, March 16, for a Pairings Party, which included a silent auction, food and drinks, and even a miniature golf set for the participants to practice their putting skills for big event the following day.

The golf tournament kicked off at 7 a.m. for all volunteers as the two-round tournament took way.

Thursday's silent auction helped to raise about $3,000 for the fund, which allows the campus to pay for events, student conference expenses and lab equipment. The campus has also recently used this fund to help students pay for textbooks when needed.

In all, the two-day event grossed in over $60,000.

FSU Panama City is grateful for all the sponsors, volunteers and participants who all contributed to another great year for the golf tournament.

— Nick Alexander

Four Crossed Logs intern

professional communication major

Netflix offers spring break escape for local students

With spring break quickly approaching, students at FSU Panama City are faced with an interesting decision: What to do when you already live where everybody else wants to spend spring break.

There are many different options, but a common one is to avoid the beach at all costs and just relax. This type of introversion will require an activity to kill some time. This is why spring break is a great time for FSUPC students to take a deep dive into Netflix.

College students using Netflix is not a revolutionary idea. Geoffrey Graybeal, a professor in the College of Media and Communications at Texas Tech, stated that his research found that 9 out of 10 college students regularly use the streaming service.

Since you are probably already using the streaming service, here are some recommendations of recent releases.

“Jurassic Park”

This Spielberg classic and its sequels have just been added to Netflix as of March 1st. With the incredible box office success of the most recent installment in the franchise, “Jurassic World,” now is a great time to get acquainted with the original classic or to relive some of those unforgettable moments.

“Nacho Libre”

If you are in need of a movie that comes jam packed with fun laughs and a heart of gold look no further than this underappreciated Jack Black cult classic. With a mix of slap stick and real heart, “Nacho Libre” gives us Jack Black at the height of his powers.

Safe Haven

Finally, there is the real crown jewel of the entire Netflix March release list. “Safe Haven” is the perfect Netflix movie. It has a superb mix of love, laughs, suspense, and an excellent twist ending. It is fun and heartwarming, but above all “Safe Haven” is extremely re-watchable. Need a good movie for a stay at home date night? Go ahead and turn on “Safe Haven.” Want to clean up that messy room with your extra vacation time? Just throw on some of that “Safe Haven.” This 2013 gem rises above all other Nicholas Sparks’ adaptations and enters the pantheons of the most re-watchable movies of all time.

Along with these three, there are plenty of other movies and TV shows coming to the streaming provider. With so many options, your spring break will, at the very least, be filled with great entertainment and much needed relaxation.

— Micah Lister

Four Crossed Logs intern

professional communication major

FSU Panama City hosts Fast to the Future career exploration event

On March 8th, the FSU Career Center and Gulf Coast State College will host Fast to the Future Career Exploration Event at Holley Academic Center.

In this event, around 30 companies and organizations from various fields, such as educations, law and justice, tourism and computer science, , will be available to talk to students who are seeking jobs after graduation.

It is not a regular job fair type event. Participated students will rotate through tables every 10 minutes with an opportunity to speak with a representative in each field. Five rounds will provide students a broad variety of options to explore in a quick amount of time. . Yes, it will be fast but also fun.

After meeting the representatives, the FSU Career Center, FSU College of Medicine and FSU College of Law will answer questions about jobs. FSU College of Law will also present information on the application process and host Q&A sessions for the participated students.

Though it is an informal event, make sure to dress properly as you go to a job interview. If you have further questions, contact advisor Catie Feeney at 850-770-2127 or email catie.feeney@fsu.edu.

— Kana Uptegraft

contributing writer

Spay-ghetti raises $22,500 for dog rescue

The Lucky Puppy Rescue’s Eighth Annual Spay-Day event, a Spay-ghetti with No Balls Luncheon, raised $22,500 for the animal rescue Saturday, Feb. 25, at the Barn at the Wicked Wheel.

Lucky Puppy began about 11 years ago, when founder Teri Mattson, a FSU Panama City business management alumnus, bought a farm. She began by taking in two stray dogs, and now has more than 100.

The mission of Lucky Puppy is prevention by spaying and neutering, but the organization also works to get the rescued dogs adopted. Every first Saturday of the month, March through December, the rescue holds a “Pawz day” in Callaway. Lucky Puppy grills burgers and hotdogs, and people bring their dogs out to play in the water, socialize, and run around the 5-acre property. 

Spay-ghetti, which first was held in a church parking lot in 2010, is held on last Tuesday in February, World Wide Spay Day. The day celebrates what was once only a national movement of prevention awareness. Mattson said, “Facebook has changed our whole world,” when talking about how Lucky Puppy’s operation has grown over the years.

Amber Champion, a full-time employee at Lucky Puppy who began volunteering about three years ago, said last year’s event raised $15,000 and three dogs were adopted. This year the event brought in $22,500, four dogs were adopted, and several more adoption applications were filled out. In addition, the sum of this year’s donated items totaled over $20,000, a $6,000 increase from last year. 

“I can’t wait to see how much we raise in 2018,” Champion said. 

Champion added that there are several volunteer opportunities. The rescue has a location in Bonifay and one in Panama City. The rescue also holds events and fundraisers throughout the year. Check out the Lucky Puppy Rescue on Facebook to find out what’s going on at the rescue.

— Phoebe Isaac

Four Crossed Logs intern

professional communication major