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NHẬP TỪ CẦN TRA VÀO Ô
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Words that help students understand all of the 44 sounds. (19 vowel sounds including 5 long vowels, 5 short vowels, 3 dipthongs, 2 'oo' sounds, 4 'r' controlled vowel sounds and 25 consonant sounds).
The following lists provides you with sample words for the sounds in the English language.
The 5 Short Vowel Sounds
- short -a- in and, as, after short -e- in pen, hen, lend
- short -i- in it, in
- short -o- in top, hop
- short -u- in under, cup
- long -a- in make, take
- long -e- in beet, feet
- long -i- in tie, lie
- long -o- in coat, toe
- long -u- (yoo) in rule
- long -oo- in few, blue
- -ur- in her, bird, and hurt
- -ar- in bark, dark
- -or- in fork, pork, stork
c, q and x are missing as they are found in other sounds. (The C sound is found in the k sounds and in the s sound in words like cereal, city and cent. The Q sound is found in 'kw' words like backwards and Kwanza. The X sound is also found in ks words like kicks.)
- -b- in bed, bad
- -k- in cat and kick
- -d- in dog
- -f- in fat
- -g- in got
- -h- in has
- -j- in job
- -l- in lid
- -m- in mop
- -n- in not
- -p- in pan
- -r- in ran
- -s- in sit
- -t- in to
- -v- in van
- -w- in went
- -y- in yellow
- -z- in zipper
Blends are 2 or 3 letters combined to form a distinct spelling sound.
The blends sounds:
- -bl- in blue and black
- -c- in clap and close
- -fl- in fly and flip
- -gl- in glue and glove
- -pl- in play and please
- -br- in brown and break
- -cr- in cry and crust
- -dr- in dry and drag
- -fr- in fry and freeze
- -gr- in great and grand
- -pr- in prize and prank
- -tr- in tree and try
- -sk- in skate and sky
- -sl- in slip and slap
- -sp- in spot and speed
- -st- in street and stop
- -sw- in sweet and sweater
- -spr- in spray and spring
- -str- in stripe and strap
- -ch- in chin and ouch
- -sh- in ship and push
- -th- in thing
- -th- in this
- -wh- in when
- -ng- in ring
- -nk- in rink
- -oi- in foil and toy
- -ow- in owl and ouch
- short -oo- in took and pull
- -aw- in raw and haul
- -zh- in vision
Friday, August 15, 2014
Why you might want to curb your ramen intake
Since Asian populations eat high quantities of instant noodles, Baylor University researchers looked at dietary information from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey IV from 2007 to 2009. They identified two major eating patterns: the "traditional dietary pattern" (TP), high in rice, fish, veggies, fruit, and potatoes; and the "meat and fast-food pattern" (MP), high in meat, soda, fried food, and convenience foods like instant noodles and ramen. Not surprisingly, the MP was associated with higher obesity rates and bad cholesterol levels, while the TP was associated with better blood-pressure readings and a lower risk of obesity—but neither showed a clear link to the risk of developing cardiometabolic syndrome.
However, when researchers examined the numbers for instant noodle consumption in particular, they found that consuming the noodles at least twice per week was associated with a 68 percent higher incidence of metabolic syndrome among women, even after adjusting for other factors like sodium intake, estrogen use, and waist circumference. Consuming noodles once a week was associated with a 26 percent higher prevalence of the condition. This relationship didn't exist in men.
Researchers think the increased risk is likely the result of the high calories, refined carbs, saturated fat, and sodium content typically found in instant noodles. Women in particular might be susceptible to these negative health effects because of hormones that affect women disproportionately and metabolic differences. For instance, the chemical Bisphenol A (BPA), found in the styrofoam containers frequently used to package instant noodles, messes with the way hormones signal messages within the body, particularly estrogen.
The study does have limitations, though. For instance, the numbers from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey didn't take serving size into account, only the number of times a person consumed a given food. That said, researchers hope the study will remind people to be more mindful of their food choices. It’s important to remember many packaged foods, like instant noodles, are more like fast food—nutritionally speaking—than a home-cooked meal.
Sunday, June 29, 2014
by Dan Lewis from NOW I KNOW
Presidents come and go, but one thing remains constant in the West Wing.
The Pens read "Silkcraft U.S. Government." And if you have worked for an American government institution, chances are you've used one. About $5 million worth of these pens are sold every year (with 60 percent going to the military), and they have quite a story behind them.
To start, they're assembled by the blind. In 1938, in the midst of the Great Depression, the government stepped in to help blind workers, who were already at a competitive disadvantage. Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed into law the Wagner-O'Day Act, which required that the federal government purchase specific goods manufactured by blind Americans. The law soon included pens.
The Silkcraft brand came to be a decade or so later, in 1952. Today, the company employs over 5,500 blind workers in 37 states, producing an arsenal of office supplies, with the pens made in factories in Wisconsin and North Carolina. The pens must be built to the specifications outlined in a 16-page document that was first promulgated more than 50 years ago. Among the requirements? The pens must be able to write continuosly for no less than 5,000 feet and in temperatures up to 160 degrees and down to 40 degrees below zero. You know, just in case.
Object of a Preposition
(Who/Whom, If/Whether, Between You and Me, Me and My Wife)
(Who/Whom, If/Whether, Between You and Me, Me and My Wife)
The Quick Answer:
- After a preposition, use whom not who.
- After a preposition, use whether not if.
- If you're going to say something like my wife and I, make sure it's the subject of your sentence, otherwise it should be me and my wife.
- You can't say between you and I. It's between you and me.
Object of a Preposition
The words that follow a preposition are called the object of the preposition.Examples:
- The cat ran under the car. (The words the car are the object of the preposition under.)
- Can you give this parcel to him tomorrow? (The word him is the object of the preposition to.)
- Can you give the parcel to him? (He changes to him in the objective case.)
- I went to the cinema with them. (They changes to them in the objective case.)
- Andy saw the scouts, at least one of whom was armed, through the mist.
- Against whom did you protest if there was nobody present?
As covered in the lesson on prepositions, a preposition usually sits before a noun (i.e., a word like dog, man, house, Alan) or a pronoun (i.e., a word like him, her, which, it, them). This is worth knowing because the object of a preposition is always in the objective case, and pronouns change in this case. (That sounds really complicated, but it just means that he changes to him when you say something like next to him, and she changes to her when you say something like It's for her. In general, native English speakers have little trouble forming the objective case.)
Examples:
Who and Whom
The problem seems to be with who and whom. These two words are no different from pairings like I/me, he/him, she/her, we/us, and they/them, but they are responsible for a lot more grammar mistakes.The word whom is the objective case of who, and this pairing causes some confusion.
Examples:
WHOM AFTER A PREPOSITION
Many are unsure when to use who and whom. One thing is for certain: Always use whom after a preposition.
Many are unsure when to use who and whom. One thing is for certain: Always use whom after a preposition.
should be "by whom?"
(street advertisement)
(street advertisement)
WHETHER AFTER A PREPOSITION
Some writers are unsure when to use whether and when to use if. After a preposition, only whether can be used:
- A decision about whether the elections were legal is pending.
- Will you raise the question of whether we are investing in the system or withdrawing?
YOU AND I / MY WIFE AND I
Too often, people use I in expressions like you and I or my wife and I when they should be using me.
- It is a present from my wife and me.
- It is a present from my wife and I.
- Keep this between you and I.
Remember, prepositions govern the objective case. Therefore, the word I must change to me when it is the object of a preposition (i.e., follows the preposition). The fact that it is preceded by you and or my wife and is actually irrelevant.
You should only use I in an expression like you and I when it is the subject of the verb. For example:
- You and I argue on this subject on a daily basis.
- My husband and I accept your apology.
If the terms objective case and subject of a verb are confusing, there is a neat trick to determine whether to use the you and I form or the you and me form. Simply remove everything apart from the I and try your sentence again. You will naturally use the correct version.
- It was proposed by my wife and I/me.
- It was proposed by my wife and me.
- It was proposed by my wife and I.
Question: I or me?
Step 1: Remove my wife and
Step 2: Try the sentence again.
Step 3a: It was proposed by I.
Step 3b: It was proposed by me.
Therefore:
The Quick Answer:
The following are all examples of prepositions: in, on, at, around, above, near, underneath, alongside, of, and for.
A preposition sits before a noun (or a pronoun) to show the noun's relationship to another word in the sentence. (If that explanation is too complicated, it might help you to think of a preposition as a word which describes anywhere a mouse could go.)
Prepositions
A preposition is a word which precedes a noun (or a pronoun) to show the noun's (or the pronoun's) relationship to another word in the sentence. (The word preposition comes from the idea of being positioned before. It is not true to say that a preposition always precedes a noun or a pronoun, but it does most of the time.)The following are all prepositions:
above, about, across, against, along, among, around, at, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, beyond, by, down, during, except, for, from, in, inside, into, like, near, of, off, on, since, to, toward, through, under, until, up, upon, with and within.
PREPOSITION? DOES IT DESCRIBE WHERE A MOUSE COULD BE?
It might not be the world's most grammatically sound explanation, but some people like to think of a preposition as anywhere a mouse could go.
It might not be the world's most grammatically sound explanation, but some people like to think of a preposition as anywhere a mouse could go.Role of a Preposition
Prepositions are important when constructing sentences. A preposition sits before a noun to show the noun's relationship to another word in the sentence.Examples:
- It is a container for butter. (The preposition for shows the relationship between butter and container.)
- The eagle soared above the clouds. (The preposition above shows the relationship between clouds and soared.)
Pitfalls with Prepositions
EXCEPT AND ACCEPT
Some writers confuse the words except and accept. The word except is a preposition. It has a meaning similar to not including.
- I know everybody except Tony.
- I accept.
- She will accept the decision.
The word past can be used as a preposition. However, the word passed cannot. The word passed is a verb that relates to the action of passing. For example:
- Jennifer passed the exam.
- She passed the salt.
A preposition:
- It went past the post.
- He believes he was a prince in a past life.
- It's all in the past.
INTO, ONTO AND UP TO
The word into is a preposition. It is written as one word.
- She turned everything she touched into gold.
Saturday, June 28, 2014
By Dan Wetzel Yahoo Sports
SAO PAULO – The halftime score was United States 0, Germany 0, which, if it held, would not only be the draw needed to advance the Americans to the knockout round but also a positive result against a high-class opponent.
Jurgen Klinsmann saw it differently. He was angry as he stood in the U.S. halftime locker room in Recife. Not at the score, but at the effort. His team looked intimidated against the Germans, particularly in the first 25 minutes, where, other than Jermaine Jones, almost no one was aggressive.
"Too much respect," is how Klinsmann puts it, but scared might be more accurate. And scared is absolutely, positively the last thing Jurgen Klinsmann has ever been – or will ever tolerate from his teams.
So he lit into his players, challenged them to stand up and stay strong, demanded that no matter the result they at least try to match the German intensity.
This is Jurgen Klinsmann, his players say, a guy who dresses and smiles like a suburban soccer dad but still burns with the competitiveness of the world-class striker he was – part of the unrelenting German machine (both as player and coach) that demands the furthest reaches of mental toughness.
Jurgen Klinsmann wants the U.S. team to know it shouldn't be satisfied with making the knockout round.
"Especially the first 20 minutes, you know, I was screaming my lungs off there," he said.
The game ended in a 1-0 victory for Germany, but the Americans at least showed something in the second half, made it feel a little like a competitive game and were able to reach the round of 16 anyway. Still, Klinsmann is focused on making sure such a tentative effort does not occur again, first against Belgium next Tuesday.
If nothing else, Klinsmann wants it engrained in the conscious of the team that the U.S. belongs in the knockout round, that it has nothing to apologize for, that if it is focused and tough and plays together, anything can happen. It's not some lucky upset.
No fear.
So once the team gathered Friday morning here at the U.S. base camp, Klinsmann laid out the expectations in no uncertain terms.
"I asked this morning, everybody, all the players, to make sure that all their flights are booked after July 13 [the day of the World Cup final]," Klinsmann said. "That's just how you have to approach a World Cup. No matter what happens now, you can always change your flights.
"So, it's better to start with the end in mind," he continued. "The end is July 13."
Prior to the World Cup, the New York Times printed an excellent and interesting Klinsmann profile. It included a comment that Klinsmann didn't believe the U.S. could win the tournament this year, which philosophically is correct.
It was taken by many, however – including most who didn't read the entire story or had ever met Klinsmann – not as a matter of fact or admission of reality well before the Cup began, but the idea that he somehow didn't believe in his team. Some went on to say he wasn't right for America.
In reality, there is no one who believes in the U.S. more than Klinsmann, whether it's the current team or the future one he'll take to the 2018 Cup, which his contract extends through. Cockiness, charisma, vision … berating his players for a lack of courage … demanding they change their flight plans … this is Jurgen at his best and at his core.
"He exudes confidence," U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati said. "You know the comments he made about 'we can't' … that's not what he ever believes, that's not the kind of guy he is.
"I walk into a room with Jurgen, and you come out of that room believing you can win the World Cup, but he never says you can win the World Cup," Gulati said. "He's just so confident about it, and I think that's extraordinary. And I think it fits the American mentality of 'we can.' …I fully appreciate that the moment we got the draw and got the tough group, he said, 'We are going to get through.' He believed. And not in the way we all have to believe we are going to do something, but intellectually, emotionally."
Belief is everything to Klinsmann. It's essential, he says, to surviving the knockout rounds, which he did as a German player (1990, champion) and coach (2006, third place).
"The key going into the knockout stage, is about understanding the dynamics of knockout games," Klinsmann said. "That means do or die."
Taken one game at a time, one opponent at a time, one challenge at a time, and it all seems manageable. So push back the return flights. The U.S. is here to be heard.
That's why the first half against Germany, despite the scoreless draw, drove him crazy. Tentative and intimidated doesn't speak to surviving do or die.
Klinsmann's message to his team Friday was about the urgency of the opportunity, and how even though he is contracted to be here for the long haul, it's the short term that matters – or should – to them.
"We want to be one day in the top 10, top 12 in the world," Klinsmann said. "So, if you want to be there one day, this is now the moment to prove it. This is now the moment to show it.
"I told the players that this is now the time you've got to step it up. Especially, I would say the players that are beyond 30, this might be their last moment in the World Cup. That's just reality. So, if I'm in that age, if I know that I'm approaching 30, 31, 32, I have to tell myself, 'Shoot, this is it now, possibly.' "
Attention: Clint Dempsey, Tim Howard, et al.
"I think if everybody goes to his own personal limits in context of the team, we're going to go further in this tournament," Klinsmann said. "But, you've got to realize that moment."
From a nervous, pressured halftime locker room in Recife, to the calm of a day after training with the elimination round achieved, the message is the same:
You're good enough if you believe it. If you don't, you aren't. And right here, right now, is the time to decide.
Friday, June 27, 2014
June 26, 2013 By
The following 10 basketball players are extraordinarily short by NBA standards, yet they refused to give up on their dreams. Even in the face of a significant disadvantage, they all went on to play professionally – and a few of them also became coaches after their playing days were over. These 10 stories are sure to motivate, energize and encourage us all to push the limits of what’s possible. Read on to find out about the 10 shortest players in NBA history.
10. Charlie Criss – 5’8”
In 1977, seven years after he left college, this dream came true thanks to pure determination and perseverance. The 28-year-old Criss became, in the words of Sports Illustrated, “the NBA’s smallest player and oldest rookie” when he joined the Atlanta Hawks as guard. His coach, Hubie Brown, said he chose Criss because of his speed and his ability to shoot and pass. “Charlie is dynamite,” said Brown. “When he gets on the court, things happen.”
9. Keith “Mister” Jennings – 5’7”
Jennings graduated from East Tennessee State University in 1991. In 1992, he joined California’s Golden State Warriors as a point guard and played for them until 1995. He was also a member of teams in Germany, Spain, Turkey, Russia and France. After his playing career, Jennings went on to become a coach at various schools and colleges in Virginia and Tennessee. Currently, he is the assistant coach at Bluefield College in Bluefield, Virginia and was inducted into the East Tennessee State University Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013.
8. Monte Towe – 5’7”
Fellow player David Thompson said that Towe “brought that attitude, that fight, that never-say-die attitude” to the team. He sped past the competition as though they were standing still, and despite his height disadvantage, he was extremely confident. Towe was drafted into the Denver Nuggets and went on to play for them from 1976 to 1977. After his playing career, Towe became assistant coach at NC State. He went on to enjoy an extensive coaching stint at a number of different colleges and is currently assistant coach at Middle Tennessee State University. In 2002, he was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
7. Wataru “Wat” Misaka – 5’7”
After college, Misaka played briefly as point guard for the New York Knicks between 1947 and 1948, becoming the first Asian-American (and first non-Caucasian) player to participate in the NBA, which was then known as the Basketball Association of America. In 1999, Misaka was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame.
6. Louis “Red” Klotz – 5’7”
In 1947, Klotz joined the NBA’s Baltimore Bullets as a point guard. Five years later, he bought the American Basketball League’s Philadelphia Sphas and renamed them the Washington Generals. In 1953, the Generals were asked to go on tour with the Harlem Globetrotters to regularly compete with them, and since then, Klotz’s team have become nothing short of legendary – if not for the reasons one might expect. The last time the Generals won a game against the Globetrotters was in 1971, and although they have lost over 13,000 games, Klotz always played for the win. In 1995, Klotz changed the name of the team to the New York Nationals to “change their luck,” though in 2007 it was reverted back to the Washington Generals. Klotz has been credited with “bringing out the best in the opponents.” Most importantly, he became an ambassador for basketball, spreading the love of the game across the world.
5. Greg Grant – 5’7”
Drafted in 1989, Grant spent a year with the Phoenix Suns before signing with the New York Knicks as a free agent in 1990. In December 1991, he joined the Philadelphia 76ers as point guard, playing for them until 1993, before signing with the Orlando Magic in 1994. Describing his time with the 76ers, Grant said that Lynam gave him the chance he’d “always wanted” and that it was a boost to his confidence. After his career, Grant started running a sports academy in his hometown of Trenton, New Jersey. In 2009, he published 94 Feet and Rising: The Journey of Greg Grant to the NBA and Beyond, which details his unlikely route to the NBA.
4. Anthony “Spud” Webb – 5’7”
In 1985, Webb signed with the Atlanta Hawks, and he went on to play with the Sacramento Kings, the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Orlando Magic. Webb is well remembered for winning the 1986 NBA slam-dunk contest – the shortest player ever to do so.
3. Melvin Hirsch – 5’6”
In 1946, Hirsch joined the Boston Celtics in the NBA – then still called the Basketball Association of America. Although the Celtics missed the playoffs, Hirsch played 13 games and scored 19 points for his team. Pictured above is Boston Garden, which was the home arena of the Celtics at the time when Hirsch was playing.
2. Earl Boykins – 5’5”
From 1994 to 1998, Boykins attended Eastern Michigan University, signing up with the Eagles basketball team, through which he became the second-leading scorer in the nation. The guard soon stood out for his uncanny court sense, his speed, his ball handling, and his shooting and passing skills. After college, he wasn’t drafted by an NBA team but still made his mark on the game through short-term contracts. In 2008, he even spent a season with Virtus Bologna in the Italian A League. But he was signed to the NBA’s Washington Wizards in 2009 and went on to play with the Milwaukee Bucks and the Houston Rockets in the following years.
1. Tyrone “Muggsy” Bogues – 5’3”
Bogues’ ex-teammate Larry Johnson said that the team fed “off his energy.” And Spud Webb remarked, “Muggsy is a spark on offense and a real pest on defense. There is no higher compliment.” Between 1983 and 1987, Bogues played basketball at Wake Forest University. After finishing college, he was drafted into the NBA and went on to play 14 seasons – most notably as guard for the Charlotte Hornets. Currently, he is the head coach for the United Faith Christian Academy basketball team.
(CBS) - In the world of sports, stars are usually born not made. Some players come to play with natural gifts that their competitors just can't match. In the world of high school basketball, no one is as gifted as Mamadou Ndiaye. The 17-year-old junior stands tall at 7-feet-5-inches, easily the tallest basketball player in the country - professional or otherwise.
The towering Ndiaye hails from Senegal, where he was discovered by scouts in 2010. Even though he is two inches taller than even the largest NBA players, Ndiaye plays for a small, private school in California - the Huntington Beach Brethren Christian School.
"Right now his game is basically catch, turn, drop-step, dunk," says coach Jon Bahnsen. "But this kid's going to play professionally someday. The minute Mamadou enrolled I became a much better basketball coach."
At his young age, Ndiaye is still developing. But even with his raw skillset, he averages 22.9 points and 13.2 rebounds a game. At his height, the 17-year-old is basically impossible to defend.
It is equally impossible for a high schooler that large to stay under the radar, and Ndiaye has reportedly been approached by Guiness World Records to determine if he is officially the tallest high school basketball player in the world.
The story of how a lanky Senegalese kid came to play ball in California is a murky one. Ndiaye is at his second high school in two years. The first, Simi Valley Stoneridge Prep, helped Ndiaye get a student visa as well as a physical exam, which discovered he had a large tumor in his pituitary gland. The disorder may account for his oversized growth, but could also lead to complications including blindness.
The school was unable to afford treatment for Ndiaye's condition. But a charity drive was able to amass the needed funds, and a married couple who lives near Brethren Christian became Ndiaye's legal guardians.
The family has remained unnamed, and according to coach Bahnsen, their only goal is for Ndiaye to have the life of a normal high schooler. When he's not imposing his will on the court, Ndiaye can be seen riding his oversized bike around town, and reportedly has become a big fan of Chinese food.
By Bruce Einhorn and Olga Kharif June 26, 2014
Cuc Duong is used to being the only female engineer in the
room. In 2012 the 24-year-old Vietnam native was the sole woman to
complete her electronics and telecommunications engineering program at
Da Nang University of Technology, alongside 23 men. But as she finished a
two-year program at Portland State University in June, Duong was in the
unusual position of having lots of female peers. She was one of 16
women and 5 men in this year’s class of Vietnamese students at the
Oregon school, the final class of a three-part program sponsored by Intel (INTC). If more Vietnamese women consider careers in engineering, she says, “I think there will be rapid change in the near future.”
Like South Korea’s LG Electronics (066570:KS), Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology (2354:TT), and other tech companies, Intel is starting to take advantage of Vietnam’s cheap workforce and its location in the heart of fast-growing Southeast Asia. Samsung Electronics (005930:KS) accounted for 18 percent of the country’s exports, according to the official Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper. Samsung says it will make more than 40 percent of its phones in Vietnam by 2015; the government in June approved its $1 billion plan for a plant in Ho Chi Minh City’s tech park.
The high interest from foreign tech companies puts a strain on the Vietnamese skilled workforce. The nation has about 250,000 highly trained IT workers and will need 411,000 by the end of 2018, the official Viet Nam News reported last July. Before Intel opened its facility, it tested 2,000 graduating students for general problem-solving aptitude—and only 90 passed. Of those, 40 had good enough English to make the cut, the company says.
Intel sponsored several scholarship programs to develop the skills of local graduates. “If we want to continue to grow the ecosystem, we need more qualified people in the market,” says Sherry Boger, general manager of Intel’s Vietnam facility. Since launching its Intel Vietnam Study Abroad Program in 2009, the $150 billion company has spent $7 million to sponsor 73 students’ bachelor’s degrees at PSU. With Intel now focused on ramping up production at the Vietnam plant, the company says it won’t be sending more students to Portland. “The program met our need to build a strong foundation of engineering talent,” says Trang Nguyen, Intel’s higher education program manager in Vietnam. “We are now turning our attention towards machine operators as we fill the factory.” Intel also offers scholarships to Vietnamese students at local schools and has sent students to Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology’s Ho Chi Minh City campus.
For its finale at PSU, Intel increased its efforts to recruit women, following the two male-heavy classes of engineering students it had previously sent to Portland. “It’s important to do everything we can to broaden the talent pipeline,” says spokesman Nick Jacobs. “Not addressing women specifically would be potentially missing an opportunity.” The company held recruiting events for women at Vietnamese universities and arranged for Intel employees to mentor the students sent to PSU.
Duong’s four-person team took second place in this year’s Cornell Cup, a nationwide Intel-sponsored design competition, with a model for a motorbike collision-avoidance system of sensors and cameras. That could come in handy in congested city streets back home. The PSU degrees may also open greater opportunities at Intel. Duong’s classmate Thanh Nguyen says she is glad to see women managers at the company’s Vietnam plant. “It’s a motivation for you to work,” she says.
Sunday, June 22, 2014
By Lisa Fenn from Espn.com
I went to meet these two young athletes for a TV story I was doing. I stayed because I could not walk away.
“Why did you stay?” he asked as we waited for the light to turn green. I always thought he knew. “I love you,” I answered. “That’s what I thought you’d say,” he replied. “But … why … why did you stick around and do everything you did?” The answer to Dartanyon Crockett’s second question was not as tidy as the first. Because life can be a knotted mess and, sometimes, love is not enough.
Dartanyon and Leroy Sutton found their way into my heart four years ago. As an ESPN television producer, I chronicled human-interest stories in sports. I covered everything from legends like Derek Jeter and Michael Jordan to disabled amateurs and terminally ill Little Leaguers. But what I found on the wrestling mats at Cleveland’s Lincoln-West High School in 2009 caused my spirit to sink and soar, all in the same moment.
Dartanyon was Lincoln’s most talented athlete. A winner in multiple weight classes, he was five-foot-seven, with muscles bunched like buckeyes. He was also homeless. His mama had died of an aneurysm when he was eight, then relatives took him to live in a crack house. Where it was Dartanyon could not say, because he is legally blind. Born with Leber optic atrophy disease, he can barely make out the facial features of a person a few feet away.
Perched atop Dartanyon’s back—yes, riding on his back—was teammate Leroy Sutton. Dartanyon carried his friend to and from the wrestling mats at meets because Leroy had no legs. When he was 11, he was hit by a train. His left leg was amputated below the knee, his right leg below the hip. His mother, ravaged by guilt, slipped into drug use and disappeared for stretches, leaving Leroy to care for his sister. His father spent nearly all of Leroy’s youth in jail. The boy learned to mask his torment with a quick smile.
The one with no legs being carried by the one who could not see. At first, I stayed because I simply could not look away.
Dartanyon and Leroy shared a handful of classes, always sitting side by side. Dartanyon would get up to sharpen Leroy’s pencils; Leroy would read the small print for Dartanyon. Yet each time I reveled in their tenderness, they reverted to teenage humor with a twist only they could share. “Did you guys do the homework?” the teacher asked. “Dartanyon tried,” Leroy said, “but he couldn’t see it.” “Leroy ran over,” Dartanyon said, “and read it to me.”
They barreled down the hallways together. Dartanyon kept a hand on Leroy’s wheelchair, in part as a guide for himself but also to act as a protector, a brother. Their teachers told me that they were “some of the good ones.”
Their cheerfulness stood out at Lincoln. Teens poured through metal detectors each morning, many stopped for pat-downs. Less than 50 percent would ever graduate. Yet Dartanyon and Leroy moved through the chaos with grace, with a refusal to have their hope tainted. Dartanyon scribbled on pages in his notebooks “Destined for Greatness.”
In order for their friendship’s nuances to unfold on camera, I needed to be a part of it. This was difficult at first because I grew up on the other side of Cleveland. My parents had scrounged up money for private school to protect me from “those people,” and I’d always silently wondered what was so bad about them. Now I realized their discomfort was akin to the uneasiness I wore in Lincoln’s halls.
But Dartanyon and Leroy eased me in. They taught me their lingo and poked fun when I used it. They opened up about their struggles—Dartanyon with eagerness, as I suspect he had waited all his life for someone to want to know him. Leroy’s revelations emerged more reluctantly. He had been abandoned too many times. But sharing his past became a type of therapy for him.
I stayed because I would not be next on the list of people who walked out on them. After wrestling season, Dartanyon and Leroy competed in power lifting, a sport in which they both excelled. Leroy held the state record in bench press, Dartanyon in dead lift. Immediately following a conference championship win in April 2009, Dartanyon discovered that all his belongings had been stolen.
That week, I drove him around to replace his items. A new bus pass. A cell phone. A trip to the Social Security office for a state ID, which required a birth certificate, which had been confiscated during his dad’s eviction. His was a cruel world, and how he endured it baffled me. I paid for his items, crossing a journalistic line. But this was becoming less about a story and all about soothing the suffering. Dartanyon later told me that that was when he grew convinced God had placed me in his life for reasons beyond television.
I traveled to Akron to film Leroy’s old neighborhood. This required a police escort. “Welcome to Laird Street,” a police officer said. “We call it Laird Country because once they’re born into Laird, they never leave. They just move from house to house, up and down, following those drugs.”
I stayed because my heart was too heavy for my legs to walk away.
That summer, I edited their story, “Carry On,” praying that one viewer would be moved to help. After the airings, hundreds of e-mails flooded my inbox, offering money and sharing how this friendship shook their souls awake. Dartanyon and Leroy were no longer invisible. I curled up and wept.
I responded to nearly 1,000 e-mails. Each time I shared exciting developments, Dartanyon gushed with thank-yous and hugs. But Leroy’s stoic posture never budged. “Leroy, if at any point you don’t want this, you need to speak up,” I said. “The last thing I want is to inflict my desires on you.”
“No, it’s all good,” he said.
“But usually when it’s all good, people smile or say something,” I said. “Each time I call with good news, you are so quiet. I’m not even sure you’re on the line.”
“No one’s ever called me with good news before,” he said. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to say.”
I stayed because I vowed then to fill Leroy’s life with a thousand good things until he burst with joy. In November 2009, thanks to viewers’ generosity, he moved to Arizona to study video game design at Collins College. I had doubts that he could manage on his own, but time and again, he disarms his skeptics. He was the first in his family to graduate from high school, and in August, he was the first to receive a college diploma, as Dartanyon and I applauded.
Dartanyon received his life-changing offer from the U.S. Olympic Committee in March 2010. Coaches invited him to train in Colorado to learn the Paralympic sport of judo. This was like winning the lottery: shelter, sports, mentors, school, medical care, and, as he proudly showed me, his first bed.
“Top judo athletes begin training at a very young age,” his coach confided. “We don’t know that he can make up the years by 2016.” But he worked his fingers into calluses and swiped a spot on the 2012 team. At the Paralympics in London, Leroy and I celebrated as a bronze medal was draped around Dartanyon’s neck. Once forgotten by the world, he stood on top of it.
“Things like this don’t happen to kids like us,” he cried that night, his tears soaking my shoulder. He’s right. Blind and legless kids from the ghetto don’t get college degrees and medals, but they should. And that is why I stayed. Because hope, love, and redemption can happen to kids like them. And people like me, people from the “other side,” who can soften life’s blows for them, ought to help.
Those who know the story heap a lot of credit onto me for dedicating four years to improving Dartanyon’s and Leroy’s lives. I’ve removed obstacles from their paths, exposing new horizons and piling on encouragement. I taught Leroy how to pay a bill. I sat with Dartanyon at the Social Security office to apply for disability, something he could have received all his life had anyone submitted the forms. I soothed the burn of Leroy’s broken heart and phantom limbs. Through it all, we grew into an eclectic family. We carried on.
When he visited the eye doctor, I asked Dartanyon to include me on the consent form so I could access his records. Later, the administrator called. “I just thought you should know what Dartanyon wrote on his form,” she said, somewhat undone. “Next to your name is a space that says ‘relationship to patient.’ He wrote ‘guardian angel.’ ”
I stayed because we get only one life, and we don’t truly live it until we give it away. I stayed because we can change the world only when we enter into another’s world. I stayed because I love you.
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