contests

According to Time Magazine, devoted fans are trying to turn the block of 121st (between Amsterdam and Broadway) into a street dedicated to the late comedian George Carlin. Carlin grew up in Morningside Heights, and he probably got plenty of material for his early dirty jokes from our neighborhood. The petition was started by Daily Show comedian Kevin Bartini, and has the full support of Carlin's daughter, Kelly. If you have never seen George Carlin's stand up, watch this video. If you'd like to add your name to the list of 2,800 and counting, just click here. Check the paper tomorrow for coverage of this petition.

Late last night, we at Spec went around campus hiding eggs and writing poems about where we hid them. There are 30 eggs in total, hidden across the Columbia and Barnard campuses. Each egg contains a piece of candy and a number. The numbers correspond to the clues below. Whoever finds the most wins an easter-related prize! (Note: Some of us were inebriated while writing these poems, so forgive us if the quality of a few rhymes is lacking!) Without further ado, the clues: 1. Too much candy can give you a cavity / walking back from EC, you might struggle with gravity. 2. Look in the area of the sign / naming the place where students like to recline. 3. This egg's easy to find, no need to cheat us / just look for the man who was third to lead us. more 4. Look to clue number five and twenty / 'cause in this room there are two eggs - that's plenty! 5. Beloved by generations of Columbia students / check him out if you're feeling prudent. 6. Here it can be hard to find a table / but if you study your options, you might be able. 7. Some of you must be prepared to wait / entry takes a while at this dorm's gate 8. In general, these students are old. / Look in the feet of their bird of gold. 9. When you're done with your Lerning, go ramp up the fun / you'll find me when you're yearning to buy a cold one. 10. To find this egg, you must be cunning / look for the torch-bearing lady who's running. 11. When SIPA students want some iced tea / there's no place to go except to me. 12. The sundial near me won't be quite right / when in the dark I turn on my bright light. 13. You don't need a passport to travel here / just open the doors, and all will be clear. 14. Go here and see a dearth of males; the building's namesake is a late princess of Wales. 15. Go here when you want to see a fresh face / look to your right and up the staircase. 16. A pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night / My name is ___ and look to the right. 17. Don't get a scratch trying to claim this egg "Mine!" / its finder will have a pocket full of sunshine. 18. The Sky's the limit when you are here / think of a lounge if that first line wasn't clear. 19. If you find this first, you won't be top of your class / but it's tucked in the robes of a sitting lass 20. To reach class you'll walk five floors / to smoke a cig chill out of doors. 21. Don't think too hard about where this egg is / it doesn't take a philosophy whiz 22. This statue is half-man, half-mutton / look within its belly button. 23. Freshmen get down in this party place / pick up a copy to beat the rat race. 24. This dorm is the place for bookworms to go / in a cabinet freshmen their books perhaps stow? 25. Hold fast to the spirit of youth / play the right note and you'll be a sleuth 26. For two or three days I am pretty in pink / the ladies sit under my branches and think. 27. To avoid the crowds, you must be nimble / I'm hidden near a certain phallic symbol. 28. In front of the building that's made of glass / look in my branches and you will pass. 29. Sleepy freshmen go here for meals / pancakes and fries, plus a staff with zeal. 30. If you like a song that is called Rack City, / in Lerner you'll find this egg sitting pretty. That's it! Tweet us at @CUSpectrum or leave a note in the comments when you find the eggs and we'll update the tally! Whoever finds the most eggs will get a prize!

Let's just admit it. We all love the Strand. Perhaps more than we love the Strand, we love our Strand tote bags. And now the Strand is giving us even more opportunity to make our love public in a tote bag design contest. Just imagine this conversation:more Hey, sick Strand bag. Thanks. It's the Art Spiegelman special edition. I also have the Adrian Tomine design at home. What's yours? Oh, this? Yeah, it just came out. The Strand asked me to design it for them. But yours is really cool too. This could be you! If the hipster cred isn't enough reward for you, they're also offering pretty substantial rewards:

Spec's "Show Us Your Columbia!" photo contest is almost over, but there's still time to submit your best photo of a Columbia landmark -- entries are due by midnight tonight. To give you a sense of what we're looking for, we've added some of our favorite submissions to this photo album on our Facebook page (that's one of them next to this post!). Here's the list of places we'd like to see in your pictures: