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A Far Out Comedian

A Far Out Comedian

by Michael Acker

Matt Farley poses. Photo by Michael Acker

Lights glare in his face and the microphone screeches to life. The crowd quiets down. Matt Farley starts another comedic routine.

“I used to be really awkward in front of people like most kids that had braces growing up on their legs!” says Matt Farley. “When I got them off I really came out of my shell!”

Matt Farley is a junior pursuing a political science degree with a minor in English at the University of Oklahoma. But at the moment he is proud he is the first ever comedy series director for OU’s Union Programming Board.

Matt grew up in Edmond Oklahoma. He was the class clown in every school he attended. Many of his friends would characterize Matt as a funny guy. When attending his local church he was the fun-loving teenager that many younger kids enjoyed. Matt has an unusual relationship with a NFL head coach. He met the coach of the Washington Redskins Mike Shanahan through his dad. He has become friends with Shanahan, and this sparked his interest in the career of a sports agent. But at the moment he continues to do standup.

He never thought of doing standup, but enjoyed watching comedians on television. Matt started school at OU with no intention to do standup comedy as a hobby. He joined Sigma Phi Epsilon, and learned about a coffee night event they have to showcase talents. He practiced at comedy routine, and was met with applause. He then signed up for last year’s Comedy Fight Night, and took home third prize. This sparked Matt’s idea to continue his hobby of standup comedy.

“I was once told, Matt, you are kind of a smart ass, and I took that seriously and turned this into a comedic routine. I’ve been able to use my outlandishly amazing skills at being as funny as I am and turned that into a position that I could put onto my resume.”

Matt went to apply for a position in the Union Programming Board last year. He read over the application, and found many of the positions generic. As a joke he had an idea to write in “comedy chair” at the bottom of the application. The board interviewed him anyway, and impressed by his pitch and gave him the position.

Matt has planned several UPB events this year.

“I started the year by putting on a comedy concert with Michael Palascak as the headliner and I opened for him,” said Matt. “The big event I put on was the Comedy Fight Night, which is the OU standup comedy competition.”

The Comedy Fight Night has 350 people in attendance, and was hosted by the Last Comic Standing finalist Taylor Williamson. The event is part of a two day event at the Oklahoma Memorial Union; this year Comedy Fight Night was followed by a concert from musician Ben Kweller. The Comedy Fight Night competition rewards scholarship money to the top three contestants. The crowd votes on who gets the top three spots and who is the crowd favorite.

OU junior Wesley Jackson attended Comedy Fight Night.

“Matt performed really well as did the other contestants,” said Jackson. “Last year was good, but since Matt has taken over the level of good comedy has increased.”

Matt is working on getting more funding for the Speaker’s Bureau to bring a big name comedian to OU next semester. The Speaker’s Bureau has a larger budget than the UPB, and Matt could offer comedians more to come to OU. Matt wants to get comedian Bo Burnham as a headliner. Matt continues to pursue his degree, and plans to attend law school.

Here is audio of Matt Farley's latest comedy routine.

Crimson and Whipped Cream

Opening sign in front of Crimson and Whipped Cream

Photo by Michael Acker & Tyler Aljoe

Crimson and Whipped Cream

by Michael Acker & Tyler Aljoe

Looking for something sweet to eat? Are you craving a cupcake? Want to sit down and have a latte made personally from the owner himself? Norman's own Crimson and Whipped Cream offers a wide variety of baked goods. Just located on the north part of campus on Campus Corner next to Victoria's. Crimson and Whipped Cream offers freshly made cupcakes and baked goods daily. From red velvet to pumpkin or to the original chocolate cupcake topped with several different icings. Other baked goods are available like the Ginger Snaps, Cookies, and seasonal baked goods.

"We try to do as much local and quality bake goods as possible and bringing something back to this community that we were apart of. We want to help out and try to grow the culture of Norman and what it has to offer," says co-owner Johnny Chappell.

Johnny Chappell is from Norman, and wanted to grow a business in the college town. With his friend Ashley Barnett he helped create a new staple of Norman baked goods.

Customer Jason Bigaouette gives his opinion on the new bakery. "I’m pretty big on sweets. I heard about the grand opening and I came out for that. They have really great product," says Jason Bigaouette.

Ashley Barnett is the co-owner, and head chef of Crimson and Whipped Cream.

"I pretty much only make things I like. I get scolded for that because I forget other people like different things. I really enjoy all fall flavors, pumpkin bread, pumpkin whoopie pies, anything pumpkin, anything that has the spices that make me think of the holidays, that’s what I like."

One of their most popular items is the Snicker doodle.

"You scoop them then I freeze them so they will hold their shape. Then when I take them out of the freezer before I put them in the oven I roll them in a cinnamon sugar mixture, then bake them," says Barnett.

Not only are there fabulous baked goods but Crimson and Whipped Cream offers its very own coffee bar. Coffee, lattes, espressos, and tea are all the available. Johnny shows how he makes the latte. First, he takes the small amount of espresso, and packs this down. He slides this into the espresso machine. At the same time he heats the milk up to steam it into a frothy foam. He then mixes both of the ingredients together with a flower design made with the steamed milk.

Crimson and Whipped Cream is enhanced by popular board games in the back. Customers can sit down and play a board game to socialize in competition.

Crimson and Whipped Cream is closed on Sunday and Monday, but open from 7am to 8pm Tuesday through Thursday, and 7am to 10pm on Friday and Saturday.

See the video below for a look at Crimson and Whipped Cream

Matched Audio

Oklahoma Muslim Project

Justin Moore, OU Senior and Outreach Chair of MSA. Photo by Michael Acker

Justin Moore is a 21 year old student at the University of Oklahoma. He was born and raised in Kansas City, Mo., but recently moved to Oklahoma City. Moore is a senior at OU and a double major in Spanish and English. Other than school, Moore is involved in an on-campus organization called as the Muslim Student Association.
The Muslim Student Association is a religious organization on whose members gather together for the sake of Allah, to show the true meaning of Islam, and to undo any misconceptions and stereotypes people might hold about the religion. Moore is the organization's outreach chair, a job that requires him to contact several religious organizations in the area. He also interacts with students at the Oklahoma Memorial Student Union every Wednesday by giving out the Qur'an and answering any questions about Islam.

This open forum helps students of the University of Oklahoma and the Norman community understand more about the faith of Islam.

Moore converted to Islam in April of last year. Moore converted to Islam after approximately a year and a half of interfaith dialogue with friends and religious scholars. He read the Qur'an and did soul searching. Moore said it was not a strict and continuous affair; at times there were periods of intermissions. Moore said the Kalima, or testimony of faith, was the most important decision of his life, which he made at the age of nineteen.

"I feel at home in my faith because I believe it to be the truth," Moore said. "I feel at peace with every tenant of Islam because it is a moral guide, a reassurance, a benefit."

Moore said he was attracted to Islam because there was very little room for ambiguity in the religion. He became intellectually interested in all things relating to Islam.
Moore believes that OU has been very accommodating to Muslims. He thinks that some Oklahomans are uninformed and do not understand Islam in general.
Moore wants people are not familiar with the Muslim to better understand what it means.

"The etymology of the word Islam comes from the word salaam, which means peace, so a Muslim is one who submits him self peacefully to God," said Moore.

Moore said that when people find that he is a Muslim they are very shocked. Many people try to conceal their surprise, but some are more embracing to the idea. Moore said that the biggest problem he runs into is that people can not distinguish between the religion and culture.
After college, Moore plans to attend graduate school outside the state of Oklahoma and continue to practice his faith. He would like to become a professor of literature. His interests include translation, cultural differences, and finding identity through language.

Watch the video interview below.

Alison Thompson: Architect

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