Friday Snippets and Soundbites

• Power Chord Academy, a rock 'n roll summer camp for amateur musicians, announced this week that it had teamed up with the foremost girl-guitar manufacturer, Daisy Rock Guitars. Power Chord Academy began in 1999. Musicians ranging in age from 12-18 spend a week each summer at one of PCA's 12 nationwide locations. They will leave with a CD single recorded with an established producer, a video, and performance experience. This year, all girl guitarists who sign up during the first week of February will be eligible to receive a totally free Daisy Rock Stardust Elite Petite Rebel guitar. Rock on, girls!

• Legendary college basketball coach Bobby Knight stunned the sports world by announcing his retirement from coaching this week. Knight, the first men's coach to reach 900 career wins, resigned as head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders on Monday. Knight is well-known for his 29 years as head coach at Indiana University. He also coached for Army at West Point. Duke head coach and Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski (and one of Mandy Crow's, the editor of ec, favorite coaches) was one of his players at West Point. Read more about Knight's career and his many on-and off-court scandals here.

•Crowds marked Mardi Gras with parades and celebrations in New Orleans, La., on Tuesday. Mardi Gras is French for "Fat Tuesday" and is the last day of Carnival. It is always the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. New Orleans officials are reporting that crowds are back to pre-Katrina levels, based on the amount of trash left in the street after the parades.

• Bacon-wrapped hot dogs are classic Los Angeles street food, but are now apparently illegal. Find out more here.