The Final Meta

Wow.  Contradicting what Fish said in her meta post, this year has flown by.  It actually has been the fastest year so far in all of my school career.  And though I can't wait for summer, I'm sad that this class is coming to an end.  The people, teachers and students alike, have made this class so memorable.  I have met so many wonderful people with different thoughts, ideas, etc.  The class itself has been challenging but interesting and I have really enjoyed it.

Now let's get back to blogging.  I have really liked blogging.  Not gonna lie, I was skeptical at first, but I've come to really enjoy it.  It is a way for me to share my thoughts and opinions to a wider and different audience.  It is a way to have discussions at any time you want.  It's really open ended and freeing.

This semester I moved a little away from my "music theme".  I didn't choose to do this, it just kind of happened.  Instead of coming up with musical connections, I found myself analyzing different types of media like an AT&T ad, a car commercial and a piece someone entered on Gives Me Hope.  I've explored different ideas in my posts.

Please read: "The luxury car for people who can park themselves"

Thanks for a great year B'Oc 2010-2011!

Uniquely American

The other day I was looking through the new advertisements made by AT&T.  It is hands painted and positioned to represent different countries while holding an AT&T phone.

Check them out here.

 Each one represents a different country to show how AT&T covers the nation, not just the US.  There are so many of them, as you can see here, but none of them were for the United States.  But then I started to think about what the one for the US would even look like.  Unlike France that has a known image like the Eiffel Tower, we don't really have one defining structure.

Some ideas I thought of to represent America...

-The Statue of Liberty

-A baseball scene, as baseball is "America's Pastime"

-A bald eagle

-The White House

-The Capital Building

These were all I could think of for uniquely American symbols.  That is probably why AT&T didn't include America in the campaign.  Also, the audience is directed towards Americans and showing them the international side, so maybe some "American hands" were not needed to effectively draw consumers.

Memorial Day slips people's memory

Today is Memorial Day.  A day to honor those who have lost their lives serving our country.  A very "American" day so to speak.

But for a lot of people, today was a day off of work, school, typical activities.  I feel like many people treat it as a day to relax or run errands, etc.  It is supposed to be a day to commemorate, to honor, to remember.  We celebrate the Fourth of July decked in red, white and blue with fireworks soaring, yet Memorial Day seems to go unrecognized by many.

What does this say about our nation?  People always say the support the troops, but then why don't people take the time to honor the troops that have given their lives serving the nation?

"Happiness hit her like a train on a track"--Florence and the Machine

Today in class we were talking about goals we had.  As we discussed, we realized that most of our goals served a greater purpose, that purpose being our pursuit of happiness.  Whether the goal was to earn a PhD, to start a family, to climb Mount Everest, they all led towards this idea of being happy.  Tonight, I was reading some of the posts on Gives Me Hope, a website that compiles people's stories that are hopeful and touching, and came across a happiness related excerpt.

"I was reading about a little kid whose mom told him the key to life was happiness.  When he was in school the teacher asked them to write down what they wanted to be when they grew up.  He said happy.  They said he didn't understand the assignment.  He said they didn't understand life.  My generation GMH."  --An Entry from "Gives Me Hope"

For this kid, happiness was his goal.  Though we don't realize it, this is all of our goals.  If someone said they wanted to be an astronaut, it would be because they thought that it was interesting and essentially would bring them happiness.  If someone wanted to be a successful businessman so they could be rich, they would want to do this because they would think it would bring them some sort of happiness.

Personally, I think that everything we do in life is to bring us to this sense of "happiness" whether we realize it or not.  For example, doing homework.  Though homework does not, scratch that, CANNOT bring anyone happiness directly, completing it could bring some joy.  Maybe it will increase your grades and you will be rewarded.  Maybe you believe it will lead you on the right track to the career you choose.  Maybe it will make your parents happy, in turn making you happy.  Everything we do is essentially attempting to bring us more and more joy in life, whether it is long term, or short term.

This boy had it right when he said "they didn't understand life".  They didn't understand that his goal was the summation of everyone in the worlds goals.

"The luxury car for people who can park themselves"

This commercial is for the Audi A4 (not that I can tell you anything about cars).  In the commercial, the company makes fun of the self-parking Lexus when it says that the Audi A4 is "The luxury car for people who can park themselves."

This reminded me of something we have been discussing in class.  In class we are talking about class (hahah), as in social class.  One thing we talked about was how a lot of people say they are in the middle class when they are in fact upper class.  They do this as to not fulfill the snobby upper class stereotype.

In the commercial, the A4 is still described as "luxury" as to draw in consumers, but is trying to seem more average rather than over the top.  They describe the car differently to make it appeal to the people who are upper class, who say they are middle class.  Just as people try to seem modest, so does the Audi A4.

The Tea Cup Ride

Ok, I'm going for junior theme random analogy number two.  I feel like I'm on the tea cups ride at an amusement park.  It spins by itself, but then you get it spinning faster and faster.  Everything around you starts to blur.

This is what I feel like.  I feel like this whole process is flying by and I have no way to slow it down.  Yet at the same time, I feel like I am making it move even faster, but don't have the power to stop myself.  It's all a blur.  Though I must say, the blurriness is probably due to sleep deprivation.

All I can say is, this is the home stretch!  Overall I think I've enjoyed the process...well maybe I'll enjoy it more looking back, when I have a second to catch my breath!  Regardless, I've really enjoyed learning more about my topic and have found my research interesting.

Driving on the wrong side of the road. Blindfolded.

As Chloe blogged about, I am also having trouble deciding what to focus on in my junior theme paper and what to cut completely out.  Each time I read an article, conduct an interview, listen to a radio piece, I uncover a new path to take my paper.  There are so many ways to go and I have written my into over and over to fit all my different ideas.

Another difficulty is in some of my body paragraphs, the information is overflowing.  I have to make cuts left and right, which is difficult but isn't a bad problem to have.  In a few of them on the otherhand, I have found that I have some information, but not enough evidence to back it up.  In those cases, I have to go back and refocus some of my research to find fitting evidence.

At some moments I feel like I'm driving a car, on the wrong side of the road, blindfolded, as I write this paper.  I think I'm starting to get back on the road, but hopefully I can do so before I total the car.

High 5 on NBC

Here is the promised Making A Difference segment on NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams!

Watch now!

Please Watch!!

Tomorrow, on the 5:30-6pm NBC nightly news, High Five Choir will be featured.  Brian William's "Making A Difference" segment will focus on what we do in the choir, and what message we try to spread to the world around us.  Please tune in!

Starbucks: Pulling a TV Tokenism

As of a couple of weeks ago, Starbucks changed their logo.  The company removed the writing from around the image of the mermaid.  To me, this seemed like an odd change for a company to make.  It seemed quite insignificant, so I decided to do a little research.  I came across an article by Elizabeth Fuller with some information on the switch.

Fuller wrote; "'Is it a strong enough icon?' asks Laura Oswald, director of Marketing Semiotics, a marketing research company in Chicago. 'Would you identify that mermaid as absolutely Starbucks the way you identify the golden arches as absolutely McDonald's?'"

This reminded me exactly of what we discussed about TV Tokenism.  We discussed how many TV shows will bring in a character of a different race, as a main role, once the show gets off its feet and is well-recieved.  Once the show has a solid fan base, it can afford to take risks.  Starbucks has done nearly the exact same thing.

Starbucks has been around since 1971, and since then, has made a name for themselves.  They are known worldwide.  Now that they have built an empire, they can afford to take a risk, like changing their logo.

Before                                                                                        After

 

Stand By Me

My mom sent me this video of the song Stand By Me, that is a montage of street performers performing the song.  It seemed fitting for my "musical" blog (though there hasn't been a lot of music lately!).  It really emphasizes how music can tie people, as it shows people of all different backgrounds, ethnicities, abilities, etc. performing the same song.

Stand By Me (Video)

The lyrics show support and help of others in a time of need, as they say; "I won't be afraid just as long as you stand, stand by me".  Japan is now in a time of need after a devastating earthquake and tsunami, so let's "Stand By" them.  To help, visit The Red Cross, and find out different ways to support and help Japan.

I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For

We started the junior theme process yesterday, and I feel like I have already changed my topic ten times.  Every time I think I have my "why" question pinned down, something stands in my way, whether it's trying to explain it and finding that it makes no sense or whether it's not relevant to an issue today.  I started taking a look at the book Gang Leader For A Day by Sudhir Venkatesh and hopefully will get some good ideas from it.  So far (I'm on page 10, it's interesting and thought-provoking).

But, as of now, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (U2).

Post Secret: Violations of the First Amendment

As I was reading Post Secret, as I do every sunday morning, one of them stuck out to me.

Isn't the US supposed to be a melting pot of religions, races, ethnicities and ideas?  Why is it so hard to switch religions then?  Religion is often a topic that causes conflict because people, for what ever reason, don't seem to want to coexist peacefully.  Also, I think that since 9/11, people have been paranoid about religions like Hinduism and Islam, that stem from the east.

We tend to think of America as a "free country" that lets you practice whatever religion you choose.  It is even outlined in the first amendment as it says we have "free exercise of religion".   Yet today there is still religious oppression, as seen in this post secret.

Can an audience relate to a CIA agent or a skin color?

Today in class we discussed TV tokenism.  One point that was brought up was that not many network dramas include black main characters.  As we all thought this over, very few shows came to mind, one of which, The Chicago Code, just premiered a few weeks ago.  


I decided to do some research and see if I could find any more shows, when I came across this fascinating NPR called The Root: Is There A Place For Black Actors On TV?.  It highlights reasons why we don't see many black leads in television, many of which we discussed in class, as well as thoughts on if they will be a lead in the future.


The article, by Marcus Vanderberg, focuses on a network drama called Undercovers, which premiered, and ended, in 2010.  Undercovers was supposed to be a hit running on NBC, with a great actors and an interesting plot line following two CIA agents, but instead, it flopped.  But Vanderberg said; "When you throw in the fact that the show was in a bad time slot, featured subpar writing and two lead actors who were (gasp!) black, it's not surprising that NBC pulled the plug after less than two months."  Yes, some of the issues he noted were "time slots" and "writing", but he puts a sarcastic "Gasp!" when noting that the two leads of the show were black.  Vanderberg later states that television stations think airing a show with a black lead is a "gamble".

What's interesting it the fact that networks seemed to have "abandoned most of their black programming in order to appeal to a more mainstream audience".  Clearly, television, like society, often pushes aside minorities for the "mainstream audience".  But if we really wanted to relate to the audience, wouldn't being a CIA agent be more far off from the normal person, than a skin color?  To really relate to the people, shouldn't shows focus on normal people?  Why do we only see shows about top government officials, CIA agents, neurosurgeons and defense attorneys?  Shouldn't there be shows about teachers, salesmen, waiters or plumbers?

Oh, the Months of the Year

February is Black History Month.
This is a pretty well known fact, as we have been reminded about it every February since kindergarten.  But what are the other months for?


I did a little research and apparently, other months have "history" too. 


I found it strange that some months, were not recognized as anything, like April, while other months, like May, had more than one "History" to be acknowledged.  What does that say about our values as a nation?  Are some issues less important that they can share a month with another issue?  


Black History Month was a definite necessity, but today, should it still be a primary focus, or should the nation focus on a topic like Gay and Lesbian Awareness Month?


An blog post from the Chicago Tribune News Blog, opened discussion on this very issue, and had many interesting responses.


Personally, I think that Black History Month is important, but all the other "months" deserve equal recognition.  If we are trying to create a perfect world in which everyone is equal, one type of history cannot take precedent over another, they must all be focused on equally and draw similar attention.

Perception of Danger

In class we discussed the poem "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke.

My Papa's Waltz

The whiskey on your breath
Could make a small boy dizzy;
But I hung on like death:
Such waltzing was not easy.

We romped until the pans
Slid from the kitchen shelf;
My mother's countenance
Could not unfrown itself.


The hand that held my wrist
Was battered on one knuckle;
At every step you missed
My right ear scraped a buckle.


You beat time on my head
With a palm caked hard by dirt,
Then waltzed me off to bed
Still clinging to your shirt.


We discussed how the poem used to be read as a poem about love in a father-son relationship, but today, the first thing people think of when they read this poem is an abusive father-son relationship.  As we discussed this, I started to think, why has this perception changed so much?  Has the US really become a more dangerous place, or is it just that we perceive the dangers differently? 


On one hand, the advances in technology has made people's lives more accessible.  It is easy for a person to get information about someone else, track locations, etc.  But on the other hand, technology also increases safety.  Now that people have cell phones, it is easier to call 911 from any location, and a lot faster to get ahold of people in times of need.  On this one I'm pretty split, but my gut instinct is that as dangers emerge, disappear and evolve as time goes on, so do our perceptions of danger.  The US has not become a more dangerous place, just dangerous in different aspects.  We just perceive out dangers differently.

A Depiction of Huck Finn

In class, we looked at different depictions of Huck and Jim.  Here is an interesting, to say the least, depiction.

Why do you think the author/artist created this comic and portrayed the characters in this way?

Meta-Post Numero Dos

This quarter, I included a LOT more music into my blog.  Some of the songs were just relating to an issue, as in Make That Change!, while others were complete lyric analysis such as in Is there life in America?.  Another way I incorporated music into my blog was referencing something about music and a subject that is very near and dear to my heart.  In my post High Five Chorus!, I mentioned briefly how music can have such a positive impact on people and then posted an article and a video explain what High Five is.  (If any of you have a few minutes, I urge you to watch the video and read the article.  It is quite inspirational.)

Also, when I was looking through my blogs from this last quarter, I realized that a few of my posts are MEGA post.  Some of them are so long, that I would even question reading them, and I wrote them!  For the next semester, I definitely want to work on the conciseness of my posts.  As I said in my first meta-post, I'm a ranter, and it definitely comes through in my blogging.

I tried linking to other sources as well this semester.  In one of my posts, Make That Change!, I linked to Olivia, another girl in my class' blog.  Another post, Post Secret: Childhood, I decided to post a "Post secret" that seemed to fit in with out discussions of childhood.

Also, I should probably work on spreading my posts throughout the quarter, as this one became a little cramped at the end.  This quarter though, I became almost obsessive with commenting.  I'm pretty sure I commented multiple times each week.  I would log into my account with full intent to put out my own blog post, and next thing I know, I'm commenting on my fourth post of the day.  I don't know what it was about commenting, but I sort of became addicted to it.

**Please read A Day in the Life

This post was one of my favorite ones to write.

Post Secret: Childhood

I was just about to write my meta-post, when I found this post secret.  

I found it very fitting, as we have been discussing what age a person becomes an adult at.

See more at http://www.postsecret.com/.

Make That Change!

I just read a classmates post, and found it really interesting and wanted to write my own blog about a similar topic.  Check out Olivia's blog!


Her post was all about what prayer does for a person.  Olivia wrote; "It won't make your life better in any way unless you do something.  Take action and make your situation change."  This first of all immediately reminded me of Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror".  The lyrics go; "If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, and then make a change".  Both the post and the lyrics say the same thing.  If you want to change something, do it yourself, make the change.  I agree with this, if you want something fixed, you have to do it yourself.  If it is something that you can fix, don't mope, get up and go.


For me, I don't go to temple for the service (and to be honest, I rarely go to temple).  But I see it as more of a community.  When I think of Judaism, I think of faces.  I see the faces of the people that I have met because of it, and the people that will always be a part of my life.  I don't think of the prayers or Torah passages and honestly most of the things I learned in Hebrew or Sunday school I can't remember.  I think  of how everyone came together when there was a terrifying situation for one of the families in the community.  I think of the support I got and kind words when I butchered a Torah portion I chanted on Yom Kippur one year.  No one cared that I messed it up, they just were happy I tried.


These are the things I remember from my temple community.  These were times that we came together to help out another member of the community.  I don't really pray because as Olivia wrote, I believe more in fixing something and getting it done rather than praying for it.

I do think that prayer can be a healthy outlet for people though.  I'm not really a religious person, but in hard times, people need to find whatever they can to help them get through it and for some people it is religion that they turn to.  If there is stress of a sick family member, it can really weigh on a person and each person must find what it is that can help them.  For my mom, she starts cleaning.  For me, I go run until I can no longer run anymore (not run away, go for a run).  Each person has his or her own way of dealing with things, but at some point, we all need to stop trying to deal, and start trying to fix.

Are Kohlberg and Maslow linked?

The other day in class we were discussing Lawrence Kohlberg's Moral Stages.  These stages he created explain moral reasoning development.  There are six stages, but eventually he stopped using the sixth stage to categorize people into, because it was such a rare stage to find a person at.  The sixth stage, universal principles, included people like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr.

Kohlberg's Moral Stages

This idea of moral development levels reminded me of another set of stages I learned about in my freshman english class, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.  It has four levels that must be in tack to make it to the top level of the pyramid, or "self-actualization".  The first thing listed under the self-actualization section is "morality".  Are Maslow's and Kohlberg's ideas linked?  If so, do you have to be at a certain one of the stages to reach self-actualization?  Though Kohlberg's stages do not have a hierarchy, the sixth stage is clearly the stage Kohlberg found hardest to reach, and those who did were extraordinary people (so there is some sort of hierarchy).

This being said, can a stage one person, if they have all of Maslow's basic needs covered ever reach self-actualization?  Or is self-actualization as difficult to reach as Kohlberg's sixth moral stage?

Sunny Days and Rain

In class we've been talking a lot about childhood and when does childhood end.  We've also discussed the "myths" of childhood.  Some examples of the myths are that childhood is the same for everyone or that childhood is carefree.  The consensus seemed to be that there is no certain age that makes someone an "adult".  Yes, legally 18 makes someone an adult, but that doesn't necessarily make someone "grown up".

The song "Still Fighting It" by Ben Folds tackles the myth that childhood is carefree.  The song says; "Everybody knows it hurts to grow up".  This obviously goes against the idea of a carefree childhood by saying, it does "hurt", it does "suck" to grow up.  (The lyrics change later in the song from "hurts" to "sucks" to grow up).  Later in the song, Folds says; "It was pain, sunny days and rain".  Like anything else in life, there are ups and downs, good days and bad days, sunny days and rainy days.  Childhood is not an endless time of sunshine and butterflies.  In growing up you need to experience everything, and learn how to navigate for yourself once you become this so-called "adult".


I think this has a lot to do with the idea that the grass is always greener on the other side.  When you are in the present, you feel the good and the bad, and experience both.  But when looking back, your mind sort of has a way to forget pain, or block it out as a defense mechanism so the main memories will most likely be a "sunny day".  That's why people sometimes want to revert to their childhood, or an earlier part of life.  The song says "the years go on and we're still fighting it".  As each year passes, there is more time in the past that contains the sunny day memories, and so some people may never feel they have reached that greener pasture.

Is there life in America?

The other day, I was listening to one of my favorite songs, "Life on Mars?" by David Bowie, and realized I had never really thought about the lyrics before.  I could sing them backwards, forwards, practically in my sleep but didn't ever think of what I was listening to.  As I thought about it, the song is really commenting on what America has turned into.  Let's take it line by line. (Lyrics are in blue)

It's a god-awful small affair
To the girl with the mousy hair
So far there is a small problem involving a ordinary or "mousy" girl.
But her mummy is yelling "No"
And her daddy has told her to go
But, even though it was a small affair, her parents seem to be blowing the incident out of proportion.  It is showing how in America we focus too much on little things, rather than the big picture and over react to unimportant situations.


But her friend is nowhere to be seen
Now she walks through her sunken dream
Not as she envisioned it.
To the seat with the clearest view
And she's hooked to the silver screen
I think here she is watching her life.  She is watching everything around her go by, and is not really apart of it.


But the film is a saddening bore
For she's lived it ten times or more
We live in the age of anxiety, because there is so much going on around us, that we tend to get bored extremely easily.  She is watching her life, but starts to get bored and distracted and doesn't want to stay on path.
She could spit in the eyes of fools
As they ask her to focus on
Has to be told what to do.

Now here's where it gets interesting.  This is really when it starts to talk about how our nation is run.
Sailors fighting in the dance hall
This is saying that we are really fighting ourselves.  We are our own enemy.  And by saying fighting "in the dance hall", it makes it seem like a foolish fight.  A dance hall isn't a place to fight, and it makes the fight quite insignificant.
Oh man! look at those cavemen go
Cavemen. Just let that one sink in for a second.  The connotation of calling someone a caveman is that they are uncivilized and incapable.  It is saying that Americans can't do anything for themselves, and act without regard of their actions.
It's the freakiest show
A country that takes so much pride in itself is made up of cavemen?  Freaky.


Take a look at the lawman
Beating up the wrong guy
Unjust.  Punishing the wrong people, fighting the wrong nations, entering the wrong wars.  Still very relevant to today.
Oh man! Wonder if he'll ever know
He's in the best selling show
But what do the people do?  They stand around and watch.  They put their money into these efforts or issues, but don't do anything to stop them.  As a whole, there is a lack of a stance.  No questioning of authority.
Is there life on Mars?
America is Mars.  There is so much talk about what is and isn't on Mars, but what about what's here.  What about Earth.  Maybe we should focus more on fixing our own planet before tainting another.


It's on America's tortured brow
That Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow
Mickey Mouse, a little mouse, growing up as a huge cow clearly resembles obesity in America.
Now the workers have struck for fame
Everyone seems to be out for the money and fame.  Just think about baseball.  Originally, players got paid very little and were required to have another job, aside from baseball.  Not only was it financially necessary, but it was required.  Also, players usually spent their entire careers playing for the same team. Now, you see athletes turning down multi-million dollar contracts and switching teams every couple years.  Baseball, like many other aspects of America, has become less about the love and the passion for the game, and more about the money and the fame.
'Cause Lennon's on sale again
This song was released in 1971.  Lennon married Yoko Ono in 1969.  Fame can be rekindled by an event, like a controversial marriage.  Controversy can stir many emotions.


See the mice in their million hordes
From Ibiza to the norfolk broads
There are millions (well actually billions) of people all across the globe.
Rule Britannia is out of bounds
To my mother, my dog, and clowns
But people still remain powerless.  Some will never be able to have control.


But the film is a saddening bore
'Cause I wrote it ten times of more
It's about to be writ again
History writes and rewrites itself, but nothing ever changes.  The script stays the same.  Mistakes keep reoccurring.  We are not learning from our past.
As I ask you to focus on
And again, people don't care.  Mistakes reoccur but people turn a blind eye and let them happen again.


And then the song finishes with the chorus once again.  This song shows such an interesting view on America.  It shows disappointment with how things have become.  Maybe one day, there will be another song called "Life on Mars" with no question mark, when people actually live on Mars.  Hopefully by the time that song is released it will be commenting on how much things have improved.

High Five Chorus!

High Five Choir was recently featured in the Chicago Tribune.  Since my blog is a sort of a musical blog, I thought it was fitting, because the article, and video, show how music can have a such a positive impact on people.  It shows the way that music connects people, as it does everyday in High Five.  It is truely an amazing experience to be apart of such a diverse and accepting group.

Here is the article

Here is a video of High Five.  The girl who is speaking is Angela, my co-facilitator in High Five.