As summer nears, we've got a bumper crop of offerings

Sat, 22 Mar 2008 11:04 CDT

By GARY HARDEE

Spring arrived Thursday, March Madness is in full bloom, and snakes are slithering out of winter hibernation and into vodka bottles -- all of which means it's time to think about ... summer.

More precisely, summer camps.

Here's a look at some of our new features at Star-Telegram.com, starting with a searchable list of summer camps.

The 2008 Summer Camps & Classes Guide will be published in the Your Life section Thursday, and this year we will provide parents a handy online research tool to help them compare camps across the state.

At star-telegram.com/ summercamps, you'll be able to search a database for details on hundreds of camps, from arts and sports, to learning and more traditional camps. Select the type and location from drop-down menus, click on search and you'll see camp descriptions, deadlines for applying, costs, dates, and age specifications for participants.

In addition you'll find a Q&A, and a quiz to help match your children with the perfect camp.

Even though summer may seem like a long way off, many of the camps close applications as soon as they are full. It's not too early to start the search.

Also right around the corner ...

... is Mother's Day. We've got a great way for you to let Mom know how wonderful she is.

Sing it.

Write an original ode to Mom and sing it for us. Send your song on a tape, CD, MP3 file or video and we'll pick finalists to feature on our Web site. Best part: You have a chance to win a $100 gift card to iTunes. Go to star-telegram.com/living for details. The deadline to enter is April 11.

Back to the Madness

If you're stuck at the computer all day and can't get to a television, you don't have to miss the NCAA Tournament.

Go to star-telegram.com/ marchmadness and click on our link to NCAA.com to watch games. (The best feature of this link is the "Boss" button. When you click it, the game screen disappears behind an impressive-looking spreadsheet, and the game webcast is muted. When the boss leaves, click on the spreadsheet and you'll be returned to the webcast.)

If you can't watch from the computer screen, our bloggers will keep you up to date on all the tournament doings. Star-Telegram college basketball writer Wendell Barnhouse will predict outcomes as matchups evolve during each round. And our printable tournament bracket is updated after each game.

For a good time ...

... tune in to The DaFoWo Show at star-telegram.com/ dafowo. You're guaranteed a laugh.

Star-Telegram.com staffers Kristin Campbell and John Metz host this four-minute webcast, with new episodes each Thursday that take a lighter look at the week's news, like the story about snakes found in vodka bottles seized in Palo Pinto.

For more truly bizarre news ...

... set an RSS feed to the Crime Time blog (http://startelegram.typepad.com/crime_time). Our crime blog has had more than 1 million page views since it was launched in late July. Little wonder with headlines like these: Police charge boyfriend of woman who sat on toilet for a month. Teen mom arrested after kids eat crack cocaine.

star-telegram.com: Gary Hardee

As summer nears, we've got a bumper crop of offerings