Life. Smile.

Friday, November 9, 2012

Unpopular Culture

Has anyone else noticed the crazed fad of ......vampires? Is there any problem with this? Okay, so it basically started from very popular books written by Stephanie Meyers, "The Twilight Saga". Seemingly wholesome books, how can they have a negative affect? The first came out in 2005, in our recession time. Stress levels are/were high for everyone. Yes, parents had it bad, but life changed for teenagers/ children as well. There was an escape ( "I don't know what it is about them. The writing isn't very good, it's pretty elementary, but it's a page turner," Kuehn said. Kuehn speculates the intensity between the two main characters is responsible for drawing readers in. The first book, Kuehn said, is about the beginnings of new love, which everyone can relate to, regardless of his or her age. Readers continue through the series because the author illustrates the compelling volatility of a bond between a vampire and human. The plot of each book keeps fans feeling insecure about the stability of that relationship and wanting to know more. Read more at: http://phys.org/news175891178.html#jCp ) through this fantasy life. They could put themselves in the shoes of these characters, just like reading any good book.
Teens have become unrealistically attached to the idea of Vampires. It is an epidemic in my eyes! ha. Don't get me wrong.... I think I used these books as an escape. It was awesome. But there is a point where it needs to stop. I do not consider myself a fan of the novels. I just thought they were good, simple books to get my mind off of other things.

Not only was it an obsession of fantasy that has grown and no one wants to face the real world, but it has created an unrealistic view of love, romance.
Teenage girls are going to be sorely dissapointed when they realize that they are not going to find the perfect, protecting, man. Edward the vampire was placed on a pedestal. Untouchable... and yet she (Bella) got him.
Not only did the images of a vampire change drastically, but for teenagers it is being ingraved in them that absolutely nothing is certain, trust nothing. There are mythical creatures all around us.
yes, as children....Anything was possible....SANTA , the TOOTH FAIRY. But there soon came a time that our eyes opened up to the simple complexity of reality. Problems were big, fun was small.

So is there really a problem with this fad, obsession? There are going to be huge let downs when reality hits.....it was not as bad when we went through that natural change as children but for those clinging to the imagination and want for that to be reality, I hope they are prepared. That last link is a bit of an eye opener...though it is taken out of context of the book, but to break down the actions of Bella and Edward's relationship and see the things that in society we view as inappropriate and yet in this book you only see this as an amazing love story. It is not likely you will find someone just like Edward, but should you try? Because I know if I ended up with a man with a few of his qualities I feel as though I wouldn't be as happy as expected.

"You will likely not find a perfect person, and if you did, there would certainly be no interest in you." ~Richard G. Scott

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

MQ: Pop Music Website Analysis

Website for: Brantley Gilbert music: known as BG Nation

http://www.bigmachinelabelgroup.com/artist/Brantley_Gilbert

Brantley Gilbert portrays himself as just another country boy through his music. He is unique in the way he sings country, as he takes a southern country rock approach. A little rough around the edges …..which shows through his website with the “rough” font of his enlarged name. The site is pretty plain, simple but just shows true of how they portray him.There are no tricks. The website has an easy layout that anyone can navigate with clear sections listed on the side.

His newest album, “Hell on Wheels” is a sign of his rough man side. It may sound weird that I am saying simple and plain and then rough…..But that’s just the country way. It’s about “cutting the crap” and ……… getting back to you and me. It’s personal. One on one… He wants his fans to feel like they know him. He doesn't want to leave anyone out. Like most artists, he has a song that anyone can relate to in a way.

It can sound silly, but …get attached to music, lyrics, and songs from an artist and tell me that you don’t feel like you know them in some way or another? On the website, there is a “biography” section and it says pretty much that……. Listen to his music, and get to know him! Other than that, it tells ya’ll a little back ground about where he grew up. They say, “listen to his albums, and feel like family.” Country music group often refers to themselves as “the Family of country music”. The musicians are a sort of support group… Different artists will go on tour together. Brantley seems to be tightly strung to his record company, “Big Machine Label Group”, as his website is a sub-site of theirs, while many other artists seem to have it under a more private deal. He is fairly new and has a lesser fan base than other artists that have been in it longer or that get more attention. Looking at youtube views………… For Brantley Gilbert’s song, Kick It in The Sticks, as of today, November 7, 2012 at 8:30pm, (posted: October 4, 2011), has 7,392,478 views.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ve8sNTqrzCw Toby Keith’s song, Red Solo Cup, as of today, at 8:31pm, (posted: October 10, 2011), has 18,231,720 views.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKZqGJONH68 Then there is ……Carly Rae Jepsen’s song, This Kiss, as of today, at 8:33pm, (posted: October 28, 2012), having 7,201,615 views already.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf78alvpxRM So clearly he is still climbing the latter to claim a place in mass “popular culture”. (Not to mention, Carly and Brantley are in a relationship). Though they have "kept it secret". ha! If you are into following "celebrities" that way. Not.

One could definitely argue that the website it very matter of fact and too “straight to the point”, but I think that is the perfect message that is supposed to be relayed to the viewer. Like I mentioned previously, No surprises. Just a good ole' American boy. What you see is what you get with Brantley and there is no B.S. Grew up as a small town boy, didn't he? I view it as completely complimentary to his relayed style and who I know him to be as a “fan”.

When you follow the link to his Tour dates the background changes to a sort of swirled red/yellow that in a way reminds me off fire or heat, which is perfect for the Hell on Wheels tour.

http://www.bigmachinelabelgroup.com/tour/Brantley_Gilbert

I also know it is very common and just something that artists do, but Brantley as I have already said is a down to earth, people person. He goes and he does concerts for soldiers as they ask for him and he supports them. He does the “City of Hope Softball Game” for children with Cancer……….For example……Him with 11 year old John Cloer here.

These last two photos taken from the Brantley Gilbert Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/BrantleyGilbertMusic?fref=ts

It's more than just liking him for his music, it is how he presents himself. His website shows it. He isn't in to just trying to be the big shot ...JUST to be the big shot. He is going to be himself.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

Everybody Googles

The first document is the Resignation letter of Eleanor Roosevelt for the Daughters of the American Revolution to Mrs. Henry Roberts. For my search I typed: “February 26, 1939, Daughters of the American Revolution Resignation”. The first thing that came up on the search was from the fdrlibrary. I find this to be a credible source. It gives a short back story…shows the same document and a column that Eleanor wrote, “My Day”. The next hit I got for this document was for the government archives. I know this is credible as we discussed .gov’s being completely official and it is an archival site with official documentation. I believe the most credible source for information is the government archives. I believe that is as official as it gets.

The second image I was at a loss of what it was so for my search I typed in: “jailed background map”. The very first thing that came up was from the Virginia Memory: Iibraryof Virginia. I believe this is a very credible source first off because it is an official library but the Links it had for reference were to the Library of Congress. This is the most credible source that I found and I think it is very good. Funny, but the second one that came up was to ……….. zombiegirl500.blogspot.com/.../im-googling-right-now.html Kudos! …….. haha!! She’s in our class??!!!! Good job Zombiegirl500….! You did so well it came up for me…. Ha.

The 3^rd document I searched for by: “City of Montgomery 12-1-55 police department document”. The first 3 that came up went to Historical Thinking Matters. It had information talking of the police report …the same information that the document contained including such things as: Warrant #14254. I find it credible and yet I believe the better choice for credibility would be from the AlabamaDepartment of Archives and History. This is a .gov site in which it gives links to different documentations of the event. I had to go to the second page to find The National Archives account which is definitely our most credible source. Not only was the document shown but others including Rosa Parks fingerprinting, and an illustration of the bus and where Rosa sat.

Inquiring of the 4^th document, I first searched: “Roll Call 88th congress February 10 1964”. There were quite a few different things that came up with …okay information but nothing that I wanted to choose as credible. The first that showed up was from jofreeman.com . My second search run I used: “Passed 290 - 130 Roll Call February 10 1964”. I incorporated more of what I thought would be key words and it worked out better this time. The first few hits were more archival.gov websites. The second being credible as it was Treasures ofCongress. It contained hyperlinks to different photos and documentation corresponding with this given photo. The second I believe is the most credible as it is the official archive site.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

MQ-Find your Tweeps!!!!!

For my twitter, I decided to follow Ann Coulter as well as Special Education @Education_IEP.... My junior year of High School I go really involved in government topics, economics and just really researching both sides to any argument and thinking critically to come to my own conclusion. I started to watch/listen to Ann Coulter speak and just really understood her points. I am a huge fan of her books and think she is a brilliant and eloquent woman.
She graduated from Cornell University and then went on to obtain a law degree from University of Michigan Law School. Coulter's occupations include: Lawyer, U.S. Representative, Radio Personality, Television Personality, and Journalist. She Really knows her stuff, and yes, she is quite the......loud mouth??...probably not the best way to put it.....Many people don't like her because of how straight forward she is.....I love it. She is well studied and yes she is very strong conservative to a point where it is very overwhelming...But I don't have to be as crazy as she is. That is the best part of critical thinking...I can take what I want from it... I decided because of Ann Coulter that I wanted to be a lawyer.....and of course I have changed my sails course....but maybe I will come back to that just from a different path.
This brings me to the next group that I decided to follow on Twitter. This topic is close to my heart because of the time I have spent with special needs people. It is so wonderful because they are just the purest of people. They really don't havee any bad intentions and are always so compassionate. I learn so much from these great friends. I decided to follow what I found to be a credible source of information on the topic of Special Education....I tracked through to the main website where they talk about many issues in special education. The goal is to help parents and teachers of Special Needs children. I have decided that I am going to major in Special Education and I am finding that it is increasingly helpful everyday to find different sources such as this to find new ideas or methods of doing things because every child is different and responds in different ways. Also, there are so many different issues that there are it is seemingly impossible to be an expert on all of them and so resources are a lifesaver!
The people featured and sharing information are doctors connected to certain specialties. For example....on their page there is a youtube video that is form the National Parkinson Foundation featuring Michael S. Okun, MD.
At the bottom of their site it is also super helpful that they have categorized folders of ways they tag things....hashtag...? yeah, That!
I finally see one reason why a twitter account is at all cool or something worth my time. With how busy life gets, it's nice to have information you are interested in organized so neatly through this system...and having it on a widget on the side of my blog for quick access right to the important stuff on my twitter......and from there i can just go on.

Monday, October 15, 2012

SKITTLES......love them.........

SKITTLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's about "tasting the rainbow", isn't it??? Why would you need another candy when skittles has every flavor you could want? They are colorful and you can literally taste the different colors. The ads are letting people know that there is one candy for all. Also, there is the commercial here that shows that.....you will get friends........if you share the skittles off your eyebrows!!! haha Or just that they are an easy treat to share. In most of the campaign videos a focus is on sharing.....are you sure you don't want any??? it's your last chance....(BEFORE I devour them all!!!!!)

Love

^^^^^ Click on love and see my Glog!!!

http://www.glogster.com/ycmicah/skittles/g-6l7iqo43cesfmctamvu25a0?s=imgglog