"Snakes on a Plane," in a word, was ridiculous. Just as I fully expected, every snake attack, death and line of expletive-littered dialogue was laughable.Somehow though, the audience at my showing got the wrong impression from previews.

"I'm hoping it will be scary," 18-year-old Vanessa Recendiz said before the film began.

"If not, I want a refund."

Stacy Dickerson, 40, said the same thing.

"I want lots of scary stuff."

I recently noticed a disturbing trend among the college-age crowd. This trend is that, due to the proliferation of Web sites such as Facebook and MySpace, the national pastime of flirting as we know it, has become a drastically under performed sport. So much so, in fact, I would say it is becoming less like the Super Bowl and more like Backgammon."This is preposterous!" you might say. Well, let's review flirting as it once was. A guy goes with his buddies to a party and meets a few more of his friends who, in turn, introduce him to their friends. But alas, no sparks fly.

The construction going on throughout TCU, despite its good intentions, is a hassle for current students. Terrible parking has become worse and walkways across campus have been detoured or cut off completely. "Texas Construction University" is an apt nickname many students have adopted for our school.Upon completion, the more than $100 million main campus overhaul will be a fantastic sight to see: arcade walkways, amphitheaters and a five-story bell tower. In its current state, however, the main campus looks like some ugly mining expedition.

Not since "I'm Gonna Git You Sucka" came out in 1988 has there been such an enthralling movie title as "Snakes on a Plane."The film received huge Internet buzz when its title was first uttered in the media world.

The Internet frenzy then exploded when everyone heard Samuel L. Jackson had been cast in the lead role.

Bloggers from all over the globe showed tremendous interest in the film. My personal favorite being snakesonablog.com, which is a blog run by Brian Finkelstein.

First-year students congregated in Daniel-Meyer Coliseum on Sunday for the Chancellor's Assembly for the Class of 2010. All first-year students were encouraged to attend the assembly that served as a welcome to TCU's learning community and those who were present said they appreciated it.

"They kept it short and to the point," said Josh Dorman, a freshman pre-business major.

Freshman computer information science major Jeremy McKeever said he agreed.

"It made me pumped for classes and glad to be a Horned Frog," McKeever said.

How does it feel to make the Texas Collegiate League All-League team? That was a lot of fun. I was going in, I wanted to make the all-star team again. Up until the all-star break, I was kind of throwing well when it dawned on me that I was in the top two or three. Coming down to the wire, I got calls from the ladies running the league saying, "Yeah, you are in the hunt for pitcher of the year." That's when I really kicked it in, when I really wanted it. Not so much for me, but for Weatherford and Coach Lightfoot. He'd been really good to me over the last three years.

When three people broke into two cars in the recreation center parking lot June 13, they probably didn't know that somebody saw something that would ultimately lead to their arrests and the arrests of several others involved in a metroplex-wide crime ring.A partial license plate number recorded by a witness led TCU Police Detective Vicki Lawson to a rental car agency in San Antonio that would eventually lead to arrest warrants for four suspects involved in a Dallas/Fort Worth area crime spree, said TCU Police Detective Sgt. Kelly Ham.

United States citizens' right to free speech and privacy was reasserted when U.S. District Court Judge Anna Diggs Taylor ruled President Bush and his administration's warrantless wiretapping unconstitutional and ordered an immediate halt August 17.Taylor said the wiretapping and eavesdropping conflicted with the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which requires the government to obtain a warrant from a special intelligence court before it can intercept communications from Americans.

Traveling is usually stressful. Punctuated often by delays, missed flights and the hustle of weary nomads, airports provide anything but solace. Many would view increased security precautions merely as added hassle and hardly worth it. But the protection of countless people is of greater importance than bypassing a few safety provisions.Confused and harried air travelers are supposedly faced with tightened security and longer lines since the foil of a would-be terrorist attack just more than one week ago.

The defending Mountain West Conference champions, the Horned Frogs, finished last season (11-1, 8-0), including a win in the EV1.net Houston Bowl, and are now looking for a repeat performance this year."We have to play with energy to be great," said Gary Patterson, head football coach.

If the Horned Frogs are going to reach a BCS bowl this season, they will have to do so without some key players from last season. The Frogs lost a total of 11 starters, according to the 2006 Horned Frog football media guide.

Cowtown is traveling back in time - all the way back to 1950s Cuba with Embargo, a nightclub that opened downtown Thursday.Co-owners Brian Forella and Andrew de la Torre said they wanted to establish a unique atmosphere that is not found in Fort Worth.

De la Torre, a TCU alumnus, said Embargo is not going to lend itself to the fraternity and sorority scene. He said he was in a fraternity while at TCU, and he wants to establish a different vibe.