I eavesdrop. A lot.

I know you're not supposed to and you're certainly not supposed to admit to it, but I'm ready to stand up for my hobby. Some people have stamp collecting, some people have astacology (studying and collecting crayfish - look it up if you don't believe me); I listen to conversations I'm technically not a part of.

Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "Great minds discuss ideas, average minds discuss events and small minds discuss other people." She may well have added that the truly petty mind listens to strangers talk about other people and then subjects still more people to the whole affair by writing a column about it. [Read article]

"The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place." -George Bernard Shaw

Number of UA presidential candidates announced Jan. 18: four.

Days between announcement and first candidate visit: two.

Days devoted to public discussion on candidates: four.

Days between last candidate's visit and announcement that Robert Shelton is the next UA president: two.

Numbers don't lie. But apparently campus bigwigs overseeing the presidential search process do. [Read article]

Shelton the right choice for presidency

By now, the news that Robert Shelton will become the next UA president will have reached every corner of the campus. As a UA graduate, a former UA administrator and one of Dr. Shelton's colleagues here at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, I can tell you that the positive news you have heard about him is absolutely true. He is a wonderful scholar, a skilled leader, an adept manager and a good human being. He is a marvelous fit for the UA. Congratulations. [Read article]