"A Million Ways" to do a Film Project

For the film project, Erin and I got brainstorming on creating a music video. When deciding on what song to use, I thought we should try for a song by an independent band and avoid mainstream music (and copyright issues). Erin found a French song “Étienne d'Août” by Malajube, and it seemed to fit our idea perfectly. We had a few ideas about how to film and the kind of shots we wanted to take. Our ideas required more people, so we decided to invite Josie, Katrina and Laura into our group.

We decided to begin the video, we should do something all out fun with parts of dancing. I told my group we should do something neat, like the backyard video the OK Go did for their song “A Million Ways”. I have known the dance for over a year now, so I took it upon myself to teach small bits of it to the rest of the group. Whoever said media students were great dancers? It was a lot of fun doing small parts of the dance, and we were able to do the whole dance with cutting inbetween. After that, we proceeded with some more choreography done on the spot at different angles. We also rotated each other around to take turns to film so everyone else could be in it (we didn’t exactly want to trust anyone else with the camera we rented from Humber).

We thought the footage we filmed was great, but after a while we decided to have fun. I played around with the different special effects features while filming students walking up and down the Guelph Humber spiral staircase. Imust say, the angle shot I took was pretty neat, and none of the students noticed me filming their feet for a good 2 minutes.

When we were done filming, we decided to upload the footage to Erin’s laptop using firewire. We tried to fiddle around with special effects and neat film designs, but when it came to saving the video, the file wouldn’t save at all. We tried to change it into pieces, but that didn’t work either. We concluded it was probably the size of the file that would not allow us to save with the amount of memory on Erin’s laptop, so we have no final product to show =(. I must say we did have a great time though filming, it’s just a shame we didn’t get to save it.

"Sex and the City"; Guelph Humber Version

I am sitting in the middle of Guelph Humber on the second floor outside of William’s Coffee Pub with a few of the most amazing women. I have had the pleasure to make friends with these three women throughout the duration of this course, and we have become close thanks to our activist project, Project Burma. Erin, Katrina and Laura are my new “Sex and the City” soul mates.

We just attended Mark Lipton’s lecture, where we discussed different technologies invented and even watched the first few minutes of the Zeitgeist movie. I watched it this past summer when my friend linked me to it, so it wasn’t as if it was something unfamiliar to me. I’m surprised that a lot of the people I sat with, including the ladies I am sitting with now have never heard of it.

I see Erin as the one with the thickest skin out of all of us, as she hasn’t seen the Zeitgeist movie before. Erin has a very open mind and is always willing to hear other people’s idea, which is what I like the most about her. One day, I was trying to find a seat in Mass Communications when she and I were only acquainted with each other. I didn’t want to look like an idiot and sit all by myself for 20 minutes before class, so I tried to find a spot where I could throw my backpack on the side to make it look like I was with somebody. She looked up and saw me wandering around the rows like the fat kid who doesn’t get picked for dodge ball. She was kind enough to push her jacket off to the side and welcome me to the seat beside her.

Katrina is a very gentle person, but when she saw the Zeitgeist movie, she decided to view some of it on her laptop afterwards. I must say, she was offended because she is Catholic and did not like some of the ideas portrayed in the movie. I told her it was just a movie, and she tried to put it at the back of her mind. I told her that if she was going into public relations like me, she shouldn’t be bothered and accept that there will be ideas she will not like but have to face, it is all part of the industry. She told me that I’m the ‘advice girl’ and felt better within seconds.

Laura has got to be the one I consider to be the one I bonded with the most at Guelph Humber. She and I coincidentally live in Mississauga, so we now go home together and talk about almost everything. When the Zeitgeist movie was up on the projection screen, her mood did not change at all. That’s funniest thing about Laura, she keeps the same face and until you actually talk to her, you know what kind of mood she is in. She’s not shy; she is just quiet and knows the right time to speak. To me, she is my ‘advice girl’ where I can always go to if I need her.

What have I learned from these three girls? I learned that we all agree we work the hardest in our Mass Communications class. I learned that we probably put the most effort into the same things. I learned we all have seen every episode of “Sex and the City” (except for Laura). I also learned I made new friends I can rely on. I always thought that university would be about studying and being a social hermit, but now I know I can relate to people experiencing the same situations as me; I am grateful =)

"Wouldn't you be upset if it were Bingus?" "..."

Circus animals? Seriously?! I feel like a jerk as I am typing this but I did not understand that group’s presentation. Bingus, formerly known as Bingo Falafel, even got a mention in their presentation. Mistreatment of animals in general could have been a broader topic for them, in my opinion. It was an alright pitch for the spokesperson that did all the talking, but I have no place to judge. I don’t even live on res so I won’t even see these posters put up.

We discussed technology today and went up to the white board to write down what our group feels to be technology today. The alphabet and the printing press were a couple of my ideas, and since they were recognized by Mark Lipton, it just gives me a tad bit more confidence in the timeline project I did with my group, WHOO HOO!

So we talked about distractions in our daily lives and how our ideas get interrupted. I get distracted by the slightest things when I am working; food, movies, music, and the Internet. Though like most of my peers, I resist from these distractions and hope to get my work done. This is why my school is priority number one and I am willing to bust my butt for what I want to achieve. Mark told us, “Unless you are going to work for it, you will not get it.” This is why I am attending university...I want a stable job, I want to make something of myself, and I want to finish school so I can have a future.

Media Timeline

My group members and I got thinking of the media timeline, and it didn’t take too long on what we felt to be considered an accomplishment to today’s society. We felt that electricity, the printing press, the Internet, the alphabet, and the telephone to be effective forms of media communication in today’s society.

Our lovely timeline begins with the alphabet.

The alphabet doesn’t just create itself over night, but instead it took a series of steps. It began with the use of symbols as a form of written communication. As far as we’re concerned, the very first use of symbols between each other was through early caveman paintings, where pictures and symbols were drawn out. Progressing after that, the early Egyptians used hieroglyphics to communicate. This was around 3200 BC, and the Ancient Egyptians were able to establish the first pictographic writing.

Next in our media timeline is the printing press. The printing press was invented in 1440 by Johannes Gutenberg. He established to turn our language into a form of communication technology. This gave everyone the new ability to learn how to read rather than resort to verbal communication. This form of communication created the means needed to learn how to visually teach ourselves a different way to learn. The Catholic Church had a bittersweet encounter with the Gutenberg’s invention. The upside to Catholicism at the time was that numerous Holy Bibles were printed, enough for almost every family to have in their home. The downfall was when indulgences were printed and stacked ready to be signed by priests. At the beginning stage of the printing press, there was very limited knowledge they were able to print at the time (only the Holy Bible and indulgences). Today, the printing press has evolved to providing us with newspapers, magazines, pamphlets, and books filled with knowledge. Since the invention of the printing press, we were able to teach ourselves to read and write the alphabet and turn our speech into a visual means of communication

Electricity can be transformed into light and heat, as it is a form of energy. Alessandro Volta is responsible for inventing the battery. The battery was the first source of continuous electric current that was contained within an object. This form of energy source evolved into detachable energy providers to portable devices, such as automobiles, telephones, laptops, and cameras.

Our next remarkable invention is the telegraph. Samuel Morse invented the first telegraph in 1837. He created a way to travel signals through wires to reach a lengthier distance between two people. This form of communication. It was only until the late 1870’s where Alexander Graham Bell found a way to transmit verbal speech through what was called the telephone. Just a year later, Thomas Edison improved the quality of the sound in the telephone and made it popular to have.

The Internet now closes our media timeline. In1969, the Internet was first invented through the use of modems and a phone line. Today it has grown into the popularity where we use it as a source of information, entertainment purposes, email, instant messengers, and even blogs =).

"Electricity." Canada Science and Technology Museum. 10 Nov. 2007 http://www.sciencetech.technomuses.ca/english/schoolzone/Info_Electricity.cfm.

"History of the Printing Press." The Great Idea Finder. 1 May 2007. 10 Nov. 2007 http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/printpress.htm.

"Telephone History." Private Line. 10 Nov. 2007 http://www.privateline.com/mt_telephonehistory/.

"The Birth of the Alphabet." CedarSeed. Joumana Medle. 10 Nov. 2007 http://www.cedarseed.com/water/alphabet.html.

Project Burma; Successful!!

Consider this a night to remember! I just got home now from our event and I can honestly say I don't remember the last time I had this much fun.

All of our hard work, input, and efforts for the past month and a half have finally paid off. Not only did we get the word out about our cause, but we raised a total of $985.82!! I am so proud of myself and the rest of my group members, I could not have asked for a better team to make this event as amazing as it was. I believe that the money we raised says something about how much awareness we caused as well as the people we got involved. Raising almost $1000 is a high accomplishment, but we were also able to get our audience to sign a petition and a banner as well to help Burma. All proceeds and money are going strictly to Burma. We would like to donate our profits to a U.S. campaign and organizations that support Burma, but we will have to discuss it as a group on how we should approach it.

I am also very pleased with the videotaping we got done. We got a filmographer to film the entire show including our in between video presentations and clips about Burma. We will be getting a copy of this tape and sending it to Muchmusic to reach a higher audience to gain awareness about Burma. Hopefully it all works out.

For the most part, the bands were amazing and insanely generous with helping us out. Near the end when wrapping up our event and cleaning things up, members from Explosure, the Lunateers, and Mouthful of Strings emptied their pockets and gave us some donations for our cause. I can’t find anything sweeter than talented band members who donate from the heart; we were definitely not expecting them to do so after the great show they put on for us.

It is amazing how I began this project with just Erin and I. Erin was very passionate about this subject, and after doing some research, it looked like an amazing cause for us to pitch. This was definitely too big of a task for us two to handle, so we decided to send out a group e-mail to all the students in our class asking anyone who would like to be interested, in joining the group. After rallying all of the confirmed group members, I decided to take it upon myself to schedule and hold the group meetings so that each one of our members was informed with our updates. I also took part in choosing the musicians with Katrina and narrowed it down to the final six. The band I was responsible to keep in close contact with was "Mouthful of Strings", a Mississauga band I was able to constantly keep tabs on in terms of their song choices they had prepared as well as the technical stage equipment needed. The bands who agreed to play for our concert were very generous and cooperated to play for our non-profit cause.

Katrina, Jeremiah, Josie, Elisha, Robert, Laura and I showed up two hours ahead of schedule to assure all the equipment rented was functioning as well as the sound system and powerpoint. After doing sound checks with a couple of the band members, the rest of us decided to put up our posters of Burma with awareness facts and how we could help. When Erin arrived, we set up a banner and petition for all our audience members to sign to help support our cause throughout the night.

I am still shaking from this evening and I cannot believe the overwhelming sensation I am getting. Maybe this is a rush of achievement. Maybe? I’m not too sure but I can’t stop smiling like a fool =D

A huge thank you to my group members (Erin, Laura, Katrina, Josie, Jeremiah, Robert, Meghan, Mandi, Elisha) because without them, we wouldn’t have made our night as memorable as it was. Not only has this experience bonded us closer together, but I feel as if I belong to something incredible. I never felt that I could be a part of something before, and for once I feel included.

They are all talented individuals and I am so happy I have had the pleasure to work on this special project with them. This project would honestly not have been as successful without you all, so I believe we should all be proud of ourselves for the amazing deed we have done.

Overwhelmed =/

I hope it is natural to feel this way, because I feel that assignments are getting thrown at me left, right, and center. My older sister tells me it is normal and the feeling will eventually pass...once winter break is here *raises eyebrow*.

I just handed in my essay, and I feel proud of myself. Who knew I could write so much on something I actually care about. I think I speak for the 120+ students in this class when I say high school was a joke. I felt like a clone; always told what to do and constantly keeping at a pace where they would poke at random flaws. I felt 'babied' in high school, but as I said earlier this year, I finally feel a sense of independence for once. I was always told what to write about, how I was able to approach it, and then explain. Mark Lipton was right when he said, "You are all so used to being conditioned that the freedom I give you will certainly scare you." Once again, he was right.

I hate that I was ‘sheltered’ in high school. I never had a choice, so when I did this essay it felt amazing. It was as if I broke curfew with my parents for the first time. Sure I chose to write about The Truman Show, but I actually feel I broke down the main pieces of it (and even the little things people don’t catch at first glimpse).

This week is going to fly by, but I want to catch every moment of it. I’m glad my classmates and I got up in front of the class today and presented our activist project on Burma. What makes me even more happy is that we are recognized for reaching a larger audience outside of Guelph Humber. It’s located on Reilly’s on Dundas and Yonge St. The location was important, and as Erin and I were trying to find an available venue, we thought this would be the best choice (who wouldn’t want to come to Toronto for a independent concert?) I hope a lot of people can make it. The current amount of audience members we are expecting so far stands at 74 (hooray for facebook events!)

Earlier this week, I had to reassure my essay was good enough as well as finish the final touches to this Friday’s Activist Project with my group members.

Major essay + Burma Activist Project = one hell of a week; feel the overwhelming atmosphere much? Of course I do.

We the Media

To be honest, I wasn’t too motivated to read this We the Media. I eventually finished it, but it wasn’t too encouraging.

Mainly because all the articles were all over the place and the layout showed several ideas at once on a page. It could also be that it reminded me of a textbook where I thought that I could not concentrate. The readings so far I have enjoyed, but when it came down to We the Media, I did not feel as much of a willingness to learn. It could also be because midterms has just ended and I have also been all over the place with my subjects trying tomake sure every assignment is handed in and every test is completed to the last end.

It wasn’t the context of this book that turned me off, but rather the presentation of the context did not keep me interested. I know I say I am a visual learner, but a layout similar to the one used in We the Media only discouraged me to keep reading. It took me about two weeks to finally finish this book, and by finally finish I sound relieved to have completed this book.

Hazen, Don and Julie Winokur. We the Media. New York: The New P, 1997.

Media Map

My group members Laura, Katrina and I decided to do our Media Mapping Project on CanWest Global Communications. When we met, we didn’t know whether or not to do big companies like Disney ©, so we decided to stick to our Canadian roots instead. Laura, Katrina and I mapped out the company and the different branches they own on a Bristol board. Here is what we got:

CanWest Global
Broadcasting/Cable
Global Television Network
DejaView
Fox Sports World Canada
Mystery TV
TVtropolis
X-Treme Sports

Internet
CanWest Entertainment
Canada.com

Publishing
Calgary Herald
Edmonton Journal
Montreal Gazette
National Post
Ottawa Citizen
Vancouver Sun

We decided on this information to be used, and as we printed out all the necessary company logos and information for our web, Laura volunteered to take the poster home and put it all together on a Bristol board. We learned that major companies are owned by even bigger companies who take earn a portion of their shares. We also learned that a company is never really alone and is linked to some of familiar names in the industry.

Smoke and Choke

My current classmates actually don't know this, but I am a virgin. Shocked much?

I turn 19 in less than a month and out of all my close friends from high school, I am the only one who has not engaged in sexual contact in any shape or form. Am I nun; of course not. That’s just pure ignorance speaking. I have morals, and I don’t want to make mistakes I will regret. I am not ready and don’t feel the need to be in a relationship with someone who is a ‘sex fiend’. That’s another thing I am staying away from, becoming a “sex demon”, as Jon Heder would mention it.

When the subject of AIDS was brought up in class today, it did not occur to me to ask my friends if they ever thought about getting tested. One of my guy friends has had numerous sexual partners, but he seems so confident and sure of himself that he is ‘clean’.

It’s the same with cigarettes and drugs; I am a virgin. I never lit up a cigarette or ‘smokes a spliff’ as people would call it today. There are a couple of reasons why I chose not to smoke, my health and a personal family-related matter.

Not only is it a dirty habit, but I lost my great-grandfather (not my grandfather, my GREAT-grandfather) because of tobacco. He had a tumor in his lungs, and rather than follow through with an operation procedure my mother kept begging him to do, he asked her to let him be and move on. I cried a lot that month, and I think this is as close of an emotion I can get to Mark Lipton’s feelings on how he lost two of his partners to aids. My deepest condolences to you Mark, I’m sorry you had to live through a traumatic experience in a day where AIDS was not as controlled as it is today.

Blades of Glory. Dir. Josh Gordon and Will Speck. Perf. Will Ferrell, Jon Heder. DVD. Paramount, 2007.

Believe Me; Toxic Sludge is Good for You

Mmm Sludge. Delicious?

I’m going into public relations as my specialization, so it was a relief to see the down falls to the public relations industry. I honestly found this book to be direct and straight-forward; I didn’t have to go all loopy with observations in trying to understand what was being said.

When talking about the tobacco industry, I could not help but think of the movie Thank You for Smoking. The spokesperson for the tobacco industry in this movie persuades his audience as well as his enemies, to believe the messages he projects on cigarettes. The same message is portrayed in Toxic Sludge. The tobacco industry makes it their responsibility to market their product with health warnings on the results of smoking. Even though they take it upon their responsibility to show these caution warnings, they still make money off of the addictive products they are distributing. If a company has such a damaging product, why do they keep it on the market? The answer is money. Money makes everyone go crazy, and they will do just about anything to get as much as they can; even if it means killing their consumers to get it.


Stauber, John and Sheldon Rampton. Toxic Sludge is Good for You; Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry. Monroe: Common Courage P, 1995.

Thank You for Smoking. Dir. Jason Reitman. DVD. Paramount, 2006.

Project Burma; preliminary stages

For our activist group project, we wanted to raise awareness about the protests in Burma. There are monks rallying together to raise awareness of their fight for democracy and freedom of speech. The monks in Burma are peacefully protesting in order to spread the concern of the mistreatment of fellow Burmese citizens.

I discovered that this began August 19, 2007, less than two months ago. The Burmese military and the government shows no mercy and does not publically speak of what has occurred. They are told to shoot anyone on sight if they appear to be escaping. Children are now recruited to fight in the military because adults will no longer be a part of it. A boy told Human Rights that he was forced into the military at the age of 11. He was unable to resist or else they would kill him and the rest of his family. Children are now forced to fight and it is unfair as to how far the Burmese government will go.

Thousands have already been put behind bars and are constantly tortured and mistreated.

On our first official group meeting, we ran a couple of ideas amongst our group members and decided to do a form of a fundraiser. We did not know what would be the best solution to raise awareness, and decided that a concert will be the best idea. We are currently getting ideas together and everything else is still in the preliminary stages, but hopefully we can make this work within the month =)


http://www.witness.org

Follow the Yellow Brick Road!

Where Am I Going? Where Did I Come From? How Will I get There?

These are the three questions Mark Lipton says will be the most important ones that we want to know in life. As far as I am concerned, things aren't written in stone; Dorothy didn't know how to find Oz without being told to follow the yellow brick road. No offense to Dorothy, but she had it easy. The people of Munchkinland told her where to go, where as I have to follow my own path.

I know that my ancestors came from China, moved to the Philippines where my parents met, and then to Canada where I was born and raised. That covers where I came from.

The direction I would like to go is obviously a media dominated field. I am specializing in public relations, where I would hopefully like to promote companies to the public. I am comfortable with talking to strangers on just about anything, so I hope to achieve a career where my position has me socially interacting with people. That is as far as I hope to be going.

On the concept of how I will get there, I am currently taking the steps to achieving my goals by attending university. I stayed back a year at high school for a “victory lap” because I was unsure of whether or not I wanted to go into Theatre Arts (my previous choice one year ago). As I attended school, I realized I wanted to go into the media field to fulfill my need to be happy in life. I believe in order to get to a career I will be satisfied with, I have to receive an education and make my contacts as I go along. University was the giant leap I took in order to go into the direction of my choice. Although my journey has just begun, I am still having fun as I go. To be honest, my mother was not too happy with my choice of going to Guelph Humber rather than other popular school names. I told her in order for me to specify into what I like, I needed to go to Guelph Humber to obtain a better learning experience. A month and a half into the semester, my mother still believes I am ‘wasting my time’, but I decided in order to get to a destination I want, I have to follow my own yellow brick road.

I can also say I finally have a gist of semiotics! I don’t think I ever laughed so hard in class as I did yesterday with my classmate Erin. After Mark Lipton mentioned Missy Elliot “crawling out of a back door hole behind the scenes,” Erin and I burst with laughter at the very image. In all seriousness though, Mark Lipton did touch upon a serious topic on how the attractive, Anglo-Saxon female dominates the African-American female figure. I decided to do my own personal research and searched the GAP jeans commercial on YouTube. After watching and analyzing the points Mark Lipton told us to pay attention to, I typed in a new search in YouTube. This time, I searched ‘Madonna, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Missy Elliot performance’. I got 2 links on the famous Britney-Madonna kiss and 3 links on the actual performance as a whole. What I noticed in the performance is a mirror image of what was seen in the GAP jeans commercial, only with two additional Anglo-Saxon women to the performance. Madonna wore a chain on the side of her leg and dressed as the groom in this wedding-themed performance. As soon as they were done with Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” they then introduce Missy Elliot for her rap solo. What I carefully analyzed about this bit was Britney, Christina, and

Madonna each rose from the very top of the wedding cake respectively. As soon as the ladies were upfront on stage, the cake was gone and half a gazebo frame was placed in the center of the stage; Missy Elliot opened the door and crawled out just like it was rehearsed in the GAP commercial. Her clothes were also out of uniform and not in a traditional sense as they were a mixture of white, black, and sparkling glitter (definitely not what you wear to a traditional wedding). ANother similarity I found was when either Britney or Christina would dance separately with Missy Elliot, they danced as equals. Whenever they would dance with Madonna, Madonna would be the dominant dancer leading. The same situation occured in the GAP jeans commercial when Missy Elliot's dancers would dance as equals, whereas Madonna's dancers would have her as the dominant figure.

I was shocked that even on public television, the producers decided to have the white women appear on top as the superior and the African American woman appear beneath them with not her clothes not as decent and singing speech nowhere near an equivalent amount to the other three ladies.

It just goes to show that racism definitely exists today through subliminal messages in the media.

I Eat Books!!

Okay so my blog title is a lie. I don't eat books, but I do enjoy them. Here are a list of books I have enjoyed and some I have yet to read;
Books I have Enjoyed
1. Where Rainbows End by Cecilia Ahern
2. P.S. I Love You by Cecilia Ahern
3. Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner
4. Empire Falls by Richard Russo
5. The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
6. Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
Books I want to read
1. Persuasion by Jane Austen
2. True Believer by Nicholas Sparks
3. If You Could See Me Now by Cecilia Ahern

My tastes range from mystery to girly chick flicks. What can I say? I’m a sucker for the sappy love stories.

Choices and Voices

My perspective on voting has changed after an hour and a half discussion on rights. It began with how voting for our provincial election in the upcoming week has a massive impact, seeing that a small percentage [22%] of Ontario citizens participate. According to The Daily on Statistics Canada, “Four in ten high school graduates delay post-secondary studies by at least one year. By age 20, two in ten high school graduates have still not enrolled in a post-secondary program”. This was published in July 2003, so the number of students postponing enrolment has surely increased in the past four years. I find this statistic to be interesting as I was unaware of the amount of Ontarians who partake in elections. This matches with the analogy made in class that those who are 18 years old can vote; young adults with post secondary education are eligible to take part in our provincial election. The fact that very few individuals contribute to our elections and chose not to continue their election says a lot about their personal beliefs.

Mark Lipton spoke about the importance of voting as well as the significance of education. In every home, young adults have a certain perspective on education. We discussed how most families value education where others imagine education is not a necessity. As Mark Lipton repeated in class, for me “education was a responsibility”. It was set for me to go to school and get a good education, for my parents were not as fortunate to have as many opportunities. I appreciate the chances given to me because of my knowledge on how my worked hard to give me a better life. Most importantly my parents gave me choices, similar to how I have the choice to vote in next week’s provincial election. My choices are influenced from the environment I have been raised in as well as the values I grew up on. Education has taken a huge role in how I perceive the world, so when I voice my opinion, I know I can be grateful for speaking up for myself.

"Paths to Post-Secondary Education Among 20-Year-Olds." Statistics Canada (2003). 3 Oct. 2007 http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/030704/d030704a.htm.

Podcasting Value Village =)

One trip to Value Village earlier today turned out to be a lot more fun than I expected. This has been my second time at going into a Value Village, and my group member Erin and I decided to view all of the things we found interesting.

Our main focus was set upon the shoes and accessories, since that had to be one of the largest selections to choose from. Erin and I decided to have some fun with our podcast and took turns trying on some extravagant items. It was a lot of fun but we showed how creative a person can be with the items they can find at their local thrift shop. Some of the items we tried on were super retro, but it made us feel good about ourselves that we were having fun in such a simple location. Another perk about shopping at a Value Village is those low on money can find decent clothing to wear for all seasons at a fraction of the price.

My best friend Nicole shops at the local Value Village near her home in Oakville all the time, and unlike me she is able to find the neatest pieces of jewellery and shoes to make it into a combination of her own. My first time in a Value Village was with her this past summer when we decided to do some ‘thrift shopping’. Even though it was the middle of July, I was searching for a comfortable sweater to become a part of my ‘bumming out at home’ outfit. I was in need of a new sweater I could wear at home while I did housework, cooking and even some homemade baking (I’m a rubbish cook, but at least I’m not afraid to try!)

As luck may have it, I was able to find a medium sized white zip-up I can proudly say I wear around the house and for my early morning jogs on a casual basis. I ran out of money since this school semester began, and I am certainly glad of my summer purchase that saved me about $30 at a shopping mall.

I told Erin of my first trip to Value Village, and she and I decided to talk about our own personal expieriences shopping for our podcast. As university students, we know we are under a budget and cannot afford neat accessories and clothes (all our money mainly goes to gas, bus tickets, and food). Erin and I thought our interesting finds around the store made us feel happier since we were able to purchase used goods at an affordable price. As a result, we accomplished to look through used goods and make them useful for us.

A person’s trash definitely can be another person’s treasure at Value Village =).

One Month Later

Only a month into this school semester, and I feel so different.

If I had stuck with my old study habits, I surely wouldn’t have survived this month. I used to treat my green highlighter as my soul mate whenever it came down to studying for tests and exams. Now, I don’t even know my green highlighter. A lot of my work is done online or typed out on a word processor. Honestly, I love this new adjustment. High school looks like a playground now that I look back at what I have done. I can do that work in my sleep. Now, I feel so much more independence entitled to me, and I love it.

I don’t have anyone badgering me to get things done at a certain time; I get to be my own boss. Mass Communications and Media Writing are the courses where I found my study habits have matured the most. In my Media Writing course, we have to read through chapter readings in order to progress in the course. I have read and taken notes on everything I have read so far, and absorbed the material better by reading a portion every night. In Mass Communications, I have weekly readings and books assigned for me to read throughout the course. I have accomplished to be on time so far, and I have surprised myself and did not think I could time manage as well as I have. I have a part-time job, and I clock in about 20+ hours a week on top of my fulltime school schedule. I am so glad I’ve learned how to time manage my schedule better than I thought, I just hope I can keep up with this practise and make time to rest.

Imperfections in Perceptions

So my writing sucks. I just got my assignment back and I am less than pleased. Thankfully, Mark Lipton gave us an opportunity to hand in a paper on why we feel we deserve a better mark.

My creativity grade is fine; my writing grade hurt my feelings. Seriously, I wanted to run out of class and cry today. 2.5?! SERIOUSLY?! Well I can’t do anything about it now except look over my paper tonight and start on my new one. Hopefully it will be an improvement and put me in the category of getting a better mark.

The student advisors came in to speak with us, and until today I was only previously familiar with the program advisor, Jael Richardson. The other advisors talked about our writing skills and how at the writing center, students learn how to further improve their writing on their own. Another step at independence, after receiving my paper back, I feel that maybe I should have taken the time to do just that.

Today, we discussed how humans are imperfect, infallible creatures. As humans we are unrealistic and always strive for perfection. I admit that I aim for the best and absolute perfection, but who doesn’t? We are human and this is how we react at a time where we feel we need to prove ourselves to be superior.

Number 3 on Postman’s 10 Theories states “We are not born perceiving. We learn to perceive and not to perceive.” I agree with this statement as our environment shapes how we think. We are told how to think and how to feel about the actions of our everyday lives. I believe that the friends we make, the material we read, the sitcoms we watch on TV, and the videogames we play make up the kind of perception we have. This is how we learn how to perceive certain messages and turn away others.

I also think our selective perception gives us selective hearing. It is sad that we only listen to what we want to hear such as entertainment gossip, and what we don’t want to listen to, such as the amount of garbage we are dumping into our Ontario waters.

Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art

We are a very self centered and conceited race (McCLoud, 32)

After reading this book, I totally worship Scott McCloud. I love comic books and I think that this was a brilliant piece to pickup. Not only did he talk about all aspects of comic books for those on unfamiliar ground with it, but he also taught us how to really understand the concept of comics. Now I have a better understanding of comics and how they’re not just simple illustrations, but images that grab our mind because of detail and colour choices.

I remember Mark Lipton telling us about the success of the show “The Simpsons”. I always thought the success came from Matt Groening’s simple detail in the basic skeletal drawings of each character as well as the script written by the show’s writers. Mark Lipton explained to us that it was because of the basic colour choices used in the show. Apparently, Matt Groening’s animators use the same consistent colours rather than having various shades of the rainbow. Mark told us this was because of our perception as humans; if we saw all the colours of the rainbow in the show, it wouldn’t be as successful because our attention would be all over the place. I never thought colours could play such a crucial part to a television show until I finished reading Understanding Comics.

Scott McCloud has a chapter about colours where he explains if he had used colours in his text; our attention to the context would have a different perception than it would if he left his book in black and white. There was also another portion McCloud talked about when he was explaining about detail. If he detailed so many features in his facial expression, he claims we probably wouldn’t take him seriously. Further speaking into detail, Scott also said we see ourselves in just about everything; cars, automobiles, electric sockets, and even in cartoon illustrations. He simply replied, “We see ourselves in everything...and we make the world over in our own image” (32, 33). McCloud was right when he said this; we are self absorbed. The way we see ourselves in everything shows we think of ourselves as a dominant outline for everything around us.

I’m currently researching some more of Scott McCloud’s other books and want to purchase Reinventing Comics, which apparently was published after Understanding Comics. This has got to be my favourite text so far as the visual context kept me interested and also because I love comic books.

McCloud, Scott. Reinventing Comics. New York: HarperCollins, 2000.

McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art. New York: HarperCollins, 1993.

Media Presentations

Today’s presentations were an interesting experience. I presented a media mobile that displayed several aspects of the media that influence my everyday life. I volunteered to be one of the first people to present for the sake of getting it over with and not waiting around for my name to be called. I got up there and presented what was in my head and I tried not to think what was on my paper. Usually what happens in my presentations I remember what is written on paper rather. This time around I presented what was there and what I had planned rather then what was written in my essay. It turned out that maybe I was talking too much because Mark Lipton cut me off =S It’s not a big deal though because I understand we were under time constrictions and he was only trying to get everyone in the class the chance to present their media creations

I realized that more than one person had come up with a media mobile like mine, and I admit I was a bit discouraged for not being more creative. However, my project was different in the way that it did not center around a specific strand of media but rather several branches of the media.

I also found it ironic how I was slightly nervous when presenting but once I got into it, it was a piece of cake. The factor that it’s a new class and I don’t even know the neighbour sitting next to me played in to the part of whether or not what these students will think about me.

All in all, it was a rather interesting experience. I think that in order to improve my presentation skills, I should be strictly to the point rather than build up an explanation. Mark Lipton wanted it to be brief, and I tried to have an explanation for everything. Next time, rather than beating around the bush, to the point is best.

How do you See me?

Men survey women before treating them. Consequently, how a woman appears to a man can determine how she will be treated. (Berger, 46)

When I saw this book, my first impression was it looks quite different than Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death. Since Ways of Seeing has pictures throughout the context, I felt I was given a better sense of understanding since I am a visual learner. My greatest interest in this book was when I came across the chapter with the collection of all the female ads displaying women’s body parts and the woman portrayal in art. Women were used as figures to look at rather than appreciated. Women were definitely not taken seriously, and instead were viewed to be seen and not heard.

Women did not get a significant role in the pre-renaissance era, and nudity was used as the audience would perceive it. “The surveyor of woman in herself is male: the surveyed female. Thus she turns herself into an object – and most particularly an object of vision: a sight.” (47)

The message I basically got from these quotes was that women feel they should always be concerned with their physical appearance. Today, the majority of women are still insecure with their body type because of the kind of women they view in the media. Back when art was appreciated, a woman would pay attention to their audience, and how they are looked at is determined but how the audience sees her.

I admit that when I see Evangeline Lily in a magazine, I wish I looked like her in a bathing suit. I think I have more control on what I see in terms of female appearance, as I acknowledge how the media tries to make me feel. I believe my personal eating habits and self-esteem has not been impacted from the images of women I see in the media. I also believe that men treat me a certain way because of a sense of confidence I have in my persona. I know I won’t be able to look like women I see in the media, and I definitely don’t look like a piece of meat for men.

I think if a woman has enough confidence, she does not need to feel insecure about her body in anyway. If a man sees a woman in a particular way, she allows them to judge her. Women should not be used as an object for a man’s eye candy, but should take pride in her other intelligent strengths that truly make her a beautiful person. The point I am getting at is physical appearance is nothing compared to who a person really is.

Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. London: Penguin, 1972.

Image Distortion

For the group project with Mandi and Meg, we chose image distortion. At the stages of the discussion process, Mandi, Meg and I thought we should run by a topic reflecting upon women’s sexuality, exploitation, or patriarchal societies. It came down to an image shown in John Berger’s Ways of Seeing that we finally made a decision. In Chapter 2, there are exquisite photos of women in all different body shapes and forms. In my opinion, each woman is potentially beautiful because of the confidence they portray in their poses. The pose on page 45 made us think that we should talk about how images are made to influence our emotions, on body image.

When we saw this image, we saw what the definition of natural beauty used to be. If you look closely, you see a male figure watching the woman through the window like a piece of meat. Today, this is how the media displays women as, objects for the public to gaze at without appreciation of who she is.

This is where we brought image distortion into our image slide show. Our slideshow is a collection of various pictures and images we distorted ourselves to display just how much manipulation can be put into a photo in order for it to be called beautiful. Being beautiful like these women will make you a "happier" person.

It is not only women, but men are also viewed in a way where they appear “just for show”. Predominantly, our focus was on how anything in the media can be altered to fit the writer’s perspective.

We also learned the alteration of images in the media have a strong impact on the general public in terms of what we purchase, what we consume, and the different messages we absorb (hidden or not). No one realizes that a simple advertisement can change our spending habits almost instantaneously and input ideas into our heads; ideas marketers do not want us to recognize off the bat.

Amongst my group members and I, I found that I probably consume a lot more from the TV than the two of them. Mandi does not have cable in her room at res by choice, and the only show Megan assures she tunes in to is her Tuesday night "Gossip Girl". Since I commute from my home in Mississauga, I'm guilty for tuning in to about three TV drama shows a week, which is evident on how many coffee and clothing advertisements I am exposed to. On the comparison of advertisements, it is relatively the same since billboards splash across the same distorted images. The media affects our ideas on body image when we see these images. We either see someone we adore or someone we envy and want to become; no matter what, these distorted images will always toy with our emotions.

Berger, John. Ways of Seeing. London: Penguin, 1972.

Post on Postman!

Last Thursday, I finished up my last class for the week and had to wait about an hour for my friend to come out of class so we could get home together. To bypass time, I decided to open up Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman.

As I sat down and began to read, I became drawn to what the book was about. Even though it was just the introduction by Postman's son Andrew, as well as a Foreword, I paid attention to the context. This occurred as I knew of the references to George Orwell and Aldous Huxley, thanks to previous knowledge in my academic career. I felt proud to have this previous knowledge with me as I had a better understanding of what the ideas presented.

Saturday evening rolls around, and after an evening with several close friends, I opened up my copy of Amusing Ourselves to Death to read of several referrals to Sophists, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle; a few of the many key points found in the Philosophy course I took in my graduating high school year. Again, I am once more fascinated with many of the elements the book has had to portray, but I do admit there were other factors that I did not understand until I had to look them up.

One of the quotes I read from Postman made me think about what television really does to us. "Television does not extend or amplify literate culture. It attacks it...What is television? What kinds of conversations does it permit? What are the intellectual tendencies it encourages? What sort of culture does it produce?" (Postman 84). Television redefines its purpose according to our behavioural changes, rather than providing messages we receive as ‘knowledge’. In other words, television definitely plays a part in terms of how we act, our self motivation, as well as attitude.

Before I finished reading, I disagreed with Postman on our world being similar to Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World rather than George Orwell’s 1984. The Orwellian world portrays the government to be in control, where everything an individual does is conditioned. The dominance of the government in 1984 convinced me that our modern society can turn into this limited dystopia. It was not until nearing the end of the novel that I realized present day is more of Huxley’s Brave New World after all. “The President does not have the press under his thumb...Lie shave not been defined as truth nor truth as lies. All that has happened is that the public has adjusted to incoherence and been amused to indifference...Huxley grasped, as Orwell did not, that it is not necessary to conceal anything from a public insensible to contradiction and narcoticized by technological diversions” (110). Television presents what we want to see, and the media pays attention to society’s demands; it works both ways on how television and society function. Postman presents evidence by paralleling Huxley with Orwell on their views of society portrayed in both novels. Huxley had the more accurate type of dystopia whereas Orwell’s dystopia features the government taking over our lives completely by feeding continuous lies. I believe Postman was right in a sense that television provides us with entertainment which we see as “news”. This shows the media and television provide us with our demands (our entertainment). This becomes a part of the information we believe to be actual news.

I enjoyed this read about media culture and how society gets a dosage of corruption and manipulation. Corruption in our society only goes as far as we allow it to happen, similar to how far we let television feed us our information.

Postman, Neil. Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business. New York: Penguin, 1986.

First Day, First Post!

So we received our course outline and syllabus, and I must say I am excited. This is a new start and finally a chance for me to do something I am interested in. This is the second class to ask me to create a blog as a part of the course (the other class is my Internet Survey and Research course). This blog however is different. It is an account I get to make on my own with my own name whereas the one for my other class is somewhat of a forum-type of format.

I haven’t blogged since my early teen years and I am so excited to do it as a part of the course, mainly because I talk too much and it is what I do best? We also got a list of books we need to purchase, thank goodness my sister goes here or I would be lost without her. Even though she is graduating from the Business program, she showed me the book store in Humber and the Media section where I will be purchasing my books.

Mark Lipton is an interesting person, and I think he is a really funny guy who knows when to be serious; a Jack of All Trades. When I saw his syllabus, I saw the group tasks we have to do, the assignments throughout the semester, the books and online readings we have to read, and of course the neat blogs. I began reading Postman, and I like it so far. I've only bought it earlier today at the book store, but it's really good. I'm going to continue it in the car ride home today and hopefully have it done this weekend.

This rushing feeling is like adrenaline; I think it’s because I am now in a new environment and I’m ready to dive in with all the new possibilities. I don’t know what to expect, but I feel ready. Is this normal? Probably not, but only halfway into the week and I find this new experience interesting.

Whoo-hoo for the first blog post of the semester!!