What is real?

I'm also taking Adolescent Development with Dr. Coyne (excellent), and I just finished reading my adolescent book this week, The Giver....

love

love

loved it!

Great book, fast read, and I would totally recommend it. After reading the book it really made me think about all the little things that we under appreciate in our world, the color, feelings, memories, the joy, the pain, the beauty. And I thought it really tied in with our lecture today when we talked about what is reality, and how real is media. 

Media is wonderful because it can portray reality or branch off into a fantastical world.....

Although this distopian book wasn't reality, it made me reflect on what makes my reality so great. Media allows us to capture reality and share it with others. The other day I was outside on a run, and the sunset was magnificent, so I took a picture- sadly this picture doesn't do the sunset justice, but it gives you a glimpse of what my reality was after that run. 

Reality is magnificent, beautiful, and full of happiness, and love. 

Reality can also really suck a lot of the time, some days we feel down, depressed, sad.

Reality brings pain, stress, and disappointment.

Reality is was makes us human, it is the human experience. We take it with all the good and bad because we own it, reality is who we are- right here, right now- the good and the bad. 

We each choose our own realities....no two realities are the same.

Example: The other day when it was raining, I was walking on campus, when I realized that I was also walking on a battlefield, where innocent earthworms were being slaughtered with no chance of survival. They only came on the sidewalks thinking they would be safe from drowning in the dirt, little did they know they would meet an untimely death from a careless giant's foot. I, being a very earthworm-friendly person, have always made sure to try my hardest not to kill tiny living creatures in their own environments (if they are in my house it's a different scenario  but  if I'm outside, then I'm in their turf). I was sad to notice that worm after worm was being stomped and didn't know what to do to help, besides make sure I didn't step on any of them. Perhaps you're like me and do the same thing? But perhaps you've never ever thought about caring about the stupid worm's life being taken under your foot.

My reality is different then yours, as weird as an example this might be (really this post is just to raise worm-death awareness at BYU during rainstorms).....but I'm sure there are things you think of that aren't currently part of my reality. By reading this post, maybe next time it rains, you'll look down and think about the poor helpless little worms underfoot......this is how realities are shared. 

What is real to you?

The Letter

In class we wrote letter to someone in the media about something we felt passionate about, first thing I thought about was Carl's Jr and their awful commercials....so here is my letter

Dear Carl Karcher Enterprises,

Your sexual advertisements for Carl's Junior are disrespectful, demeaning, and damaging towards women. After seeing your Carl's Junior Super Bowl commercial this year, I am firmly resolved to never purchase your products again. I am not a mindless consumer that will simply buy things that remind me of sex, so please do not assume we are all stupid. The moment your commercial aired, all my respect for you as a company was gone, and you should care about this. I find your advertisements offensive and crude. As I am sure you already know, women have 86% of the purchasing power in the United States, and believe me, we take this power very seriously.
Your commercials tell me you are not proud of your business, or confident in your product. Your commercials tell me that you do not respect women. Your commercials tell me to never buy your product, because it obviously sucks on many levels. Either you change the way you advertise, or your business will not last in the long run.
It's your future, take pride in the legacy you leave, and make your restaurant chain a family friendly place, where everyone can feel welcome. If the only idea your advertisement team can come up with to sell your product is a sexy woman, nearly naked, eating it....then they are not a very good advertisement team. In fact I'm pretty sure a cro-magnon could come up with a better idea. Ask yourself, where is the creativity? Where is the art?And how much are you paying these people to make garbage?
When I see a commercial I want to laugh and connect with the product. I do not want to see a message that says, "women are objects to be drooled over". I would much rather see a delicious burger, made fresh, that is healthier than the other burger places. Your commercials make your burger look like the slut of all the other burgers, so why on earth would I choose to eat a slut-burger when I could eat a family cookout burger that tastes like a summer breeze? It's a no brainier to me, as it is for many thousands who I know feel the same way.
I know you can come up with a much better advertising campaign, so please just stop with the lazy advertising, put your thinking caps on and be creative. Stop undressing women, and start impressing them.

Sincerely,
A Former Costumer

Les Miserables

If you have not seen this movie yet than something is wrong with you.

No serious, you need to take a looooong hard look inside you and ask "why have I put off watching this movie?"

There are no good reasons....

Then you need to cry a little because you haven't seen it yet and you've denied yourself of the viewing and listening experience of the decade.

If you have seen it- hats off to you- there is nothing wrong with you.

Last night I watched Les Miserables with my family for the second time, and I love it even more now- I defiantly consider it a masterpiece.

I also love the music and think it truly was written for the human soul.

So if you haven't seen it yet- get off your bum, rent it, and watch it with someone you love!

There she goes.....

That's right world! We have officially moved out of our first place....not that you care...


Here's my little story ...


So I wasn't completely fond of our old place to be honest, but after it was all cleaned out and I hate to leave it for the last time probably ever....I couldn't help but think about the last 2.5 years of memories we've made there, our first place.

As I longingly took my last look, I couldn't help but feel a little sad....but I didn't cry mind you.

When I got in the car to leave for good I started the radio, and the chorus lyrics of this song made it seem as though my old apartment was saying goodbye

It's a weird media story, but I'm sure we all have song that are associated with memories.....boyfriends, break-ups, summer road trips, weddings...rebellious periods, spiritual experiences, youth dances......songs can be such an influential part of our lives, I have like a million songs that bring memories to the surface.

Fakebook?

Facebook and I have a love-hate relationship. On one hand, I love that I can see updates from my friends, see engagement, wedding, baby photos.....and I especially love our family groups, where we can post things just to our family members. It's great.

But here comes the hate part...

I means I can sit home all day if I want, and feel like I'm connecting with people, when in reality I am not. I'm one of those people who can count her friends on one hand (sadly)....and even those friends I don't reach out to in other ways because "I can't just use Facebook ....no phone calls, no texts....what is wrong with me? But it's not just me, everyone does it to some degree.

I also hate that Facebook is sort of an individual advertisement page (especially for singles) and I get sick of people posting picture after picture of themselves in the mirror.

Gag me with a spoon already!

And that you can post anything you want- make yourself whoever you want....but it's never reality.

My Facebook page may brush the surface of who I am, but you can't really get to know someone through Facebook. Nothing will ever beat human interaction.....

As a counter to that argument you could say that you could get to know someone better online because perhaps they are more open then they would be in person....

My come-back to that is, THEN you're not really getting to know that person- just who they portray online.....isn't the point of being someone's friend is being able to talk and be with that person in real life?

When I was a kid I had a pen-pal, remember those? And I actually got to meet her in person, and when I did it was REALLY awkward....I had thought we would hit it off right away....but we didn't and we sort of don't talk anymore. It was weird.

My whole point here- is stop feeling like you have 500+ friends, because the fact is

YOU DON'T!

Which is exactly why we should reach out in our communities, to our neighbors and people that are actually around us and make friends!

Ghost

My husband and I watched this movie the other night- and honestly I didn't think I'd like it....but man was I wrong. Let's just say there WERE tears. It was such an intriguing story, and I LOVED Whoopi Goldberg in it! She was hilarious. She even won an Oscar for this movie.. The movie itself won an Oscar for best screenplay. I think this is a must see love story.

Have you seen this movie? What did you think?

Miss Representation

After watching Miss Representation ( you seriously need to watch this movie) I had so many different thoughts jumping around in my brain- so I'm going to try to write some of them out here and let me know what you think? 

First off- I need to get something off my chest.....

Here it goes.

I am a feminist- and I don't understand why in the Mormon culture we are so afraid of this word......

feminist, feminist, feminist, feminist feminist feminist, FEMINIST, FEMINIST, FEMINIST!!!!

See, it's not so scary. 

I think in in Mormon Culture we have a BIG misrepresentation of what this word means..

What is a feminist anyway? Well, according to good old Wiki,  "Feminism is a collection of movements and ideologies aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights for women.This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities for women in education and employment."

So being a feminist DOES NOT mean that I think that women are BETTER than men- it means I think men and women are EQUAL, and that they should have equal rights, equal pay, equal, equal, equal!

Sure, we have biological and physical differences...but we are still equal. My adopted brother has a different colored skin than me, and I'm sure you'd all agree with me that we are equals. Right? And you probably agree that women should be able to vote and have equal pay and stuff right? So what's the problem with being a feminist?

So really- you may not have thought you were a feminist, but the fact is you probably are. And you don't have to be a girl to be a feminist- boys can be feminist too. 

Now, why do I feel like this is important for me to point out???? Because the fact of the matter is, many women (especially in the church) aren't feminist.....I've known MANY that do "secretly" or not-so-secretly believe that men are better than women, and this is manifested in ssooOOOooo many ways in the world we live in, and also our religious culture...I'll let you fill in the blank. But all of these inequalities destruct a woman's sense of worse into a very simple paradigm making her think that her worth is in the way she looks, or the fact that she was born a woman, that's that. 

Do you want to know the secret have a good body image and self esteem????

Truly believing you are an equal, and just being yourself.....so BE a feminist for goodness sake!

We are ALL equal- I firmly believe this- but I still struggle in my brain everyday to apply it to myself. 

I think that if we all TRULY believed that we are all equal, we would have ZERO self-esteem or body image issues. 

That's my goal at least...to apply this fact to myself.

With the media's sea of lies we swim in everyday, as women (and men) but women especially- we need to arm ourselves every morning when we wake up- remind ourselves that we are important, we are special, we are beautiful TODAY. We need to stop wishing on tomorrow for that perfect self we have in mind, that's a size x,y, or z, and has that perfect hair and olive tone..... and we need to STOP LYING to ourselves that becoming that perfect shape or size will make us happy- because guess what- it won't. So just STOP IT!

As a disclaimer, this does NOT mean that we shouldn't try to be a healthy weight, or just eat chocolate all day everyday (like my natural woman I know would like me too).....but it does mean that we need to re-prioritize our lives, and really think about what is the MOST important thing about life. 

"What is the most important-thing-for-you-to-focus-on-for-your-entire-existence-on-this-planet????"

I never thought you'd ask....

The answer is simple.

Love. 

Yep, the Beatles had it right all along. Love is what life is all about. Love for family, friends, life, nature, hobbies, learning, laughter, cats - whatever floats your boat. But before you can love anything else, you have to love yourself.

So that's all I have for today..."and in case I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night!"

(5 million points for whoever can name that movie)

Here is the trailer for the movie we watched in class- I HIGHLY recommend watching this movie- it's well worth your time. 

Miss Representation 

Just for kicks and giggles....

Happy almost St. Patrick's Day everyone!

I know I've said this before- but one of my favorite ways to use media is for a good laugh. The internet is a great way to share a smile.

Here's a video I stumbled across that made me so happy inside. (I sort of not-so-secretly wish I had a pet penguin)

And here is another.

Well, anyways, hope you all have a great weekend, and share some smiles with others!

Web Log====> Blog

Did you know that the reason this thing you are reading is called a blog is because it was originally named a Web Log....then it shorted to Blog?

Learn something new every day.

You know- the internet- it's so great because you know why?

If you have a question you can just ask it....or if you want to laugh...you can can look up jokes in picture form.

Here are some of my favorites

 so...what do you think? hmmmmm???????????

Do you like internet jokes?

I sure do...I think they are very magical part of the internet world- and they make me laugh everyday pretty much...


And you know what they say...

"Laughter is the best medicine, for everything.....except abdominal surgery....it just hurts"

Something to sink your teeth into.....

Ok, prepare yourselves, here comes another confession....

This week I watched the whole first season of Vampire diaries....that's like 22 episodes in 5 days. I wasn't expecting that to happen...in fact before this week I hated the whole vampire love story...stupidity to me....

So I've been thinking about it and I think my little "massed practice" of TV watching happened for 3 reasons. 

#1. Midterms were last week, and I did school ALL day EVERY day for like 10 days straight..it was insane....I had 5 tests in 5 days and 2 projects and a presentation due then too. In other words I think I was feeling some serious chill time withdraws.

#2. I had nothing due the week after midterms, and didn't feel like doing work ahead of time.

#3. The Vampire Diaries was the show I had to watch to code for my media research project, so I got hooked then.

ok....maybe it's 4 reasons...

#4. The Vampire Diaries is like 100x better than Twilight- and I think it fascinated me that the whole Vampire idea could actually work. (I really hate the Twilight series....the acting is terrible and so is the plot...I've watched them so I can make fun of them-period.....sorry if you really like the Twilight series...no actually I'm not.)

ALSO- Stephanie Meyer TOTALLY ripped L.J. Smith's idea from him- the Vampire Diaries was originally a book series written by L.J. Smith published in 1991. Stephanie Meyer's Twilight was originally published in 2005....seriously Stephanie Meyers? I don't even know the right word I want to call you right now....

There are so many elements of Twilight that are similar to Vampire Diaries, but the later is 100x better....like I said before....now, I haven't read the either book series, my judgements are just coming from the movies and TV series....

boy vampire...girl not vampire....both fall in love in high school setting...she puts together that he is a vampire after seeing all the amazing things he can do....other boy that loves non-vampire girl.....

sounding familiar?

they're basically the same idea....only one is better than the other- as in the idea that came first is better.

Well...there I said it.... 

I feel much better now. 

Footloose

Here is a movie that I honestly didn't think that I would like....yet I gave it a chance, and I found myself really enjoying the film! It was even better than the original in my opinion- and the dancing is pretty awesome.

I think I enjoyed it mostly because Dennis Quad reminds me of my own dad, and Kenny Wormald did a fantastic Ren MacCormack! And I love the Boston accent- reminded me of my past love, Newsies, which if you haven't seen that- you are not an American. Period.

All in all I think Footloose had some really good themes in it- about control, doing the right thing, finding yourself, and living life to it's fullest.

I also loved the angry dance....here is the original one with Kevin Bacon 1984

Here is the 2011 version with Kenny Wormald

And here is a parody of the two by Flight of the Concords- golly I love them.

So....Have you seen this movie? What were your thoughts

Financial Tips at your Finger Tips

Being a college student on a tight budget, the internet can be a great way to get some financial tips on saving money! Like this Cool Article!

There are so many resources online to help people....

• DIY blogs for crafts
• webMD for your ailments
• Google for dumb questions
• YouTube for how to videos
• and so much more!

With such a great wealth of knowledge at our finger times- we would be stupid if we didn't use it. For the first time in human history, I (the consumer) can look up how to cut a man's hair- or what disease is ailing my cat. Being human is awesome, isn't it?

Pros, Cons anyone?

Cute, Fuzzy, and Cuddle-able

So recently when I'm feeling down or frustrated or bored... I've found myself look at the "animal" category on Pinterest, you know...to see all the cute baby animal pictures!

What can I say- It makes me happy inside!....I think it all started when I saw this special on Animal Planet about puppies, when we were down in St.George with family....and partially because my two sisters and parents are getting puppies in the spring! Now I really want a puppy (but that's not gonna happen for another 10+ years) so for now, I just have to enjoy pictures and videos.

What started out as a puppy frenzie has become an "anything-that-is-a-baby-animal" frenzie.

Here is some of my puppy collection....

And then it turned into all cute baby animals....

 I guess you could call me an animal lover....in the abstract. Wouldn't these guys be a cute addition to any family?

Perhaps I'm crazy, but hey- sometimes you just need a cute-fuzzy animal fix- Am I right?

Book Assignment

         In my childhood my favorite books were the Harry Potter series. Now, my favorite book is a Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl. In the Harry Potter series, Harry starts out as an orphan boy who is abused and neglected by his aunt, uncle, and cousin. On his twelfth birthday he finds out that he is actually a wizard, and he escapes from his relatives and goes to Hogwarts, a magical school for witches and wizard teens. In a Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor, a holocaust survivor, gives a cleaver retelling of his time in a concentration camp in Nazi Germany. Viktor gives many flashback type vignettes of his experience and the things he’s learned from life since. It is a chilling tail that really makes you think about the meaning of life, and the human experience.

            Both books are on the top of my lists for several reasons. When Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone came out, I was the same age as Harry and his friends in the book, which made it relatable to me. In my small school, I was considered a class-A nerd, so naturally, Hermione Granger was my heroine. I read and read and read those books, like no other book I had ever read before. I loved the series so much; I didn’t think that any other book would ever tickle my fancy. I was wrong of course, but there was something about escaping through a book, into a whole new world that was just fascinating and exhilarating to me. Plus, as an eleven year-old, I secretly had a crush on Harry Potter. (What 11 year-old girl wouldn't love this dreamy little guy, right?)

Altogether, I think the biggest impact these books had on me, was that they made me even more of a nerd than I was before reading- which I am so geekily grateful for. Wanting to be like Hermione Granger, propelled me to excel in school and get good grades.

            Now my favorite book is a very somber one. A Man’s Search for Meaning is very deep, and it isn’t what you would call light reading in terms of content. I think part of the reason why I love Frankl’s book so much, is because he suffered more than man should ever have to suffer, and yet he made it through. To me that one simple fact is simply inspiring. Though we all face challenges in life, sometimes we face challenges that we truly believe will break us- yet, as we are pushed beyond our limits we tend to find that we are stronger than we previously thought. Throughout his book he also gave many insights into life that I had never heard before that really made me think and value everything I have, especially my relationships. 

Downton Abbey....why oh why did you make me cry?

This post is about Downton Abbey

SPOILER ALERT! IF YOU HAVE NOT CAUGHT UP ON ALL THE EPISODEs

DO

NOT

READ 

THIS 

POST

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No, seriously, don't.....

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is a story of how they killed off my favorite character and I cried and cried afterward

like seriously...I bawled my eyes out.....Sybil, this one is for you

Ode to Sybil

Oh Sybil, how I adored you- the other sisters are annoying and selfish, but you were different. You were kind, loving, full or courage, and bravery! You will surely be missed, even though I totally called it earlier in the season that you would die....I should have known, yet I was still sad the writers didn't surprise me and keep you alive.

What's done is done....it's not like they can bring you back to life, like Sherlock (he's just that amazing...if you haven't watched the BBC Sherlock, you totally should!)

I'm beginning to realize that I'm an empathetic crier....I wasn't always this way you know- maybe it's the weather, or maybe it's because lately my TV series have been an escape from my real world that is full of unpleasant feelings currently- but isn't it funny how we sort of live these alternative lives through characters in a book or series we watch? 

I was most definitely Harry Potter...and Peeta Melark..and Jack Shepard....(I don't know why I always connect with the boy characters) but the point is I was many other characters long before I was Sybil! 

 I think some people live their lives through other (real) people too, like celebrities or children. 

Here's my theory about living through fictional characters, or even real people- it's really quite simple when you think about it....

Premise #1- Your life isn't everything you have dreamed it to be

Premise #2- You watch or see other's lives (real or fake) and you see something desirable about their lives (ex. youth,  health, happiness, wealth, time period, love)

Premise #3- Then you allow yourself to fulfill these dreams through vicarious persons

Thus= We live through other people

Why? Because we think it will make us happy?

Does it even do that? What do you think?

Superbowl Numbero Uno

This past Sunday was my very first Superbowl.....(well...my sister recorded it...and we fast forwarded the game and just watched the commercials and half-time show...lol)

So I guess that probably doesn't count.....but it's still a first for me


To my surprise the commercials made me laugh.....

made me really grossed out.....

and even made me bawl my eyes out.....

which I did not expect from a Budweiser commercial...

I realized the second time through watching it- and crying again (so embarrassing)- that it was the song in the commercial that tugged on my heartstrings (it is a song that reminded me of an emotional time in my past)

It's interesting how music can bring emotions so fast, even subconsciously! And I have always loved horses- if I was an animal I would be a horse!

But when it comes to commercials I think it is always important to realize that they are always trying to sell you something- and they will do whatever it takes to do just that. I think they can be good- they can share good messages, share laughs...and others can be the phantoms that haunt your dreams (like the kissing GoDaddy one- disgusting ) and several other commercials I really hated but wouldn't post on my blog- like the Carl's Jr. one, or the Calvin Klein one- I think it's gross to use sex to sell a hamburger, like seriously Carl's Jr- are your burgers really so bad that you feel the need to disgust women all across the globe- to sell your burgers to young horny boys?

Sicko punks....

I personally will- NEVER- buy a Carl Jr. ANYTHING ever again- (this is me, using my consumer rights)
They don't deserve my business.

Isn't it funny how just watching a million commercials can take you through quite a range of emotions?

Who says media doesn't effect us? I sure think it does.

Matrix and Movie Ratings

Ok- so my husband convinced me to watch The Matrix tonight.

My very first rated R movie...but he assured me that it wasn't that bad- and promised that it wouldn't be gore-y (i hate gore...like really hate it)

But let me just say- after watching the Matrix.....

My Mind= BLOWN!!

If you are adult, I think you should watch it- it is very well made, and the ideas are so crazy, but also awesome! And really makes you think- and it isn't gore-y gross.

It was filmed so well, and had really cool special effects, which I appreciate even in 2013, even though it was made in 1999! Now that is impressive!

I would say it isn't something I would want my teenage boy who is into guns watching, hence I think the rating is appropriate, but really, honestly..... I've watched PG-13 movies that were way worse on my rating scale than The Matrix.

Exhibit A: Twilight- barf.

Ok, just kidding about Twilight (no really I'm not)...

But anyway. As much as a part of me thinks this rating is appropriate, there is another part of me that says, well, why was this on my naughty list for movies for years and years....I mean in the Return of the King, there is all sorts of blood and guts and they catapult heads and stuff- yuck! (but I still love the Lord of the Rings trilogy)

I think the point is- not the amount of gore, but also the content and themes expressed- I can see how fantasy violence that is glorified violence (like in the Matrix) could have some very bad effects on the teenage mutant brain- like encouraging public violence (let's face it, teenagers are all mutants...some are turtles, and others are well.....I didn't think this thought out very well, did I..)

What I'm trying to say is that sometimes it isn't the content of the film but it is the theme that is an adult theme, and since adult brains are old enough and mature enough to think it through more complex themes, perhaps it is best not to expose our teenagers to movies like this ( i think so)

Even though this movie is pretty dang awesome.

Just sayin...

What are your thoughts on The Matrix, or the rating system in general?

My Dream Home- Thanks to Pinterest

I am an avid Pinner- no shame here....

One of my favorite things to pin are pictures of homes, rooms, and things that would compose my dream home...

Here are some samples..

I particularly want the aquarium bedroom...

Because that would be freakin' sweet!

I think the internet can be good for a lot of things- I particularly like Pinterest because it is a really cool way to share ideas! Although I know these pictures don't really portray what my future home will actually be like, it is fun to dream, and when we do build a house (20 years from now) I have a huge collection of ideas we can use in our design.

Perhaps I'm crazy though and in 20 years Pinterest will be completely obsolete, and the process of building a home will be totally virtualized so you can walk through the blueprints and see what your home will be like before you build...you never know?- But hey, in the meantime, what's the harm in dreaming a little bit?