Finale

For one thing I can say that my blogging experience has been a pleasant one. It was really nice to just vent about certain things or get my thoughts into print. I'm not one to share things over the internet but since I received responses back from people it made it more enjoyable because I knew that people were actually reading what I was writing and were interested. I don't think for the time being I will keep up with it but I think as I get older and facebook popularity decreases, blogs will become more popular. A final thought I'd like to think about is how as a society we have shifted to electronic writing when it seems a little more than a decade ago people weren't even bothering with emails. At a time the way to get information from one person to another was to either call them on the phone, write them a letter, or to physically go and see them. Then there was a spurt of new technology. People started buying computers, cell phones, and MP3 players. Our communication changed from letters to email and then from email to AIM. From AIM to myspace and facebook. Its an evolution of communication that the older generations never anticipated. I foresee in the future that blogs will become the new trend as the fad with facebook dies down. But I can't be 100% because these computer whiz's come out with new programs all the time. And while our form of communication has changed, communication itself has changed. Instead of calling on the phone we text them. Instead of saying "hi" to people on the street as we pass them by we remain straight faced because we have ear buds from MP3's in our ears. The main idea is that communication is lacking a personal level and now is indirect. I hear my dad yelling at me all the time to get off my phone while I'm texting my friends. But its a norm for me. I just wonder what the future holds for my children and if I'm going to be yelling at them for some currently uninvented technology?

A Change

Upon coming to Normal I was totally unfamiliar with the area. I had never really gone anywhere else in Illinois besides the towns in my surrounding areas. If you ask me about Chicago I could tell you things to do and where to go like the back of my hand. Driving up to Bloomington- Normal the corn fields, factories, and random housing developments were very foreign to me. However, after quite a few months of being here I have become more familiar with what Normal has to offer. Unfortunately, there is a limited selection of options. If my friends were to visit I would initially start their visit by showing them the campus. The idea of something so large and centralized being in the middle of nowhere is very hard to fathom. On campus I would show them the quad and walk to perimeter because it is pretty and nice to walk around. Then I would venture off ISU property. There are a few stores that I have come to grown fond of. The first one is Gordmans and the second is Rue 21. At both places you can find pretty cute clothes for a very reasonable price. Continuing with our shopping endeavors I would introduce them to every college students dream store, the dollar store. Everything in the store is seriously a dollar! Then I would proceed to take them to a nice sit down lunch. Here they have restaurants such as Flat Top, Biaggi’s, or Outback. However even there are limited options of things to do during the day, the night life is different. Depending on your age the bars for night life are a popular to congregate. Also, no matter where you go some sort of Frat or apartment complex etc. is having a party to attend. While it is different than the clubs in downtown Chicago my friends and I usually go to, it’s always nice to do something different. Hopefully after an eventful night I would take them to my favorite breakfast place; Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Although this wouldn’t necessarily be a super eventful weekend I would do exactly what I usually would. I think going to campus events or packing too much into one day can be overwhelming. The point is to do something different than what my friends are used to.

An interesting collection

So I recently met a very interesting person, a collector so to speak. Now I have heard of the usual collector items ranging from bottle caps to snow globes but never in all of my 19 years on this earth have I heard of someone collecting this; rims. Yes, car rims. It was an early saturday evening and I ventured off with my friend to another girls dorm. I walked in only to be blinded by the light hitting off the shiny silver items which took up a very large portion of one of the walls. No one of them was the same. Some were cracked, some were dirty, and in fact some looked pretty nice. Dumbfounded I just stared. I must not have been very discreet about hiding my awe because the girl turned to me, giggled and told me the story behind the wall art work. She said that when her and her roommate had come to ISU they had nothing to put on the walls, as an art major posters weren't going to cut it. She had to be creative, unique, and one of a kind. On one of the first days of school in August they were walking and saw something sparkling from across the street. Excited at the prospect of what it might be they walked to the other side of the street. Although their imaginations had escaped them with ideas of jewelry or something along those lines, they were very surprised to see a a broken car rim. She pointed to the dirtiest, ugliest one on the wall. Taking it under her arm she carried it back to the dorm, mounted it on the wall and called it art. Now after 9 months of searching she had a whole collection and she was proud of every single one. While it isn't my cup of tea she did achieve the uniqueness factor. So although it isn't my choice to have something like that hanging on my wall it did put a new perspective on "junk." But I guess it is true what they say. "One mans junk is another man's treasure."

Crowded

The event I am going to talk about wasn't necessarily a planned event. Well call it a "go with the flow" sort of thing. I was sitting in my living room with my roommate doing homework and sitting around. It was around 10 and the elections were going on the counts were high and as time went on it was announced that Barack Obama had won. Seconds later we look out our window. A mob of people of every color, ethnicity, and gender were screaming and yelling in favor of the election. Since we were Obama supporters we decided to join the late night parade. Running in our pajamas my roommate and I after about a 10 minute chase finally caught up with everyone. Finding mutual friends passing video cameras and news reporters we screamed and yelled for joy. The crowd proceeded to walk around the whole campus in a circle finally leading to the quad where several people added a word in about the results of the election. No matter how stupid or how intelligent the little speech was, the crowd all cheered. With everyone there it was like a rush of adrenalin. We finally made it to the fountain near the front of quad and stepped on it just to get an idea of how many people there were. Looking out there must have been hundreds and more coming from every direction! It was a joyful, crazy atmosphere. For these few hours no matter who you were, you were united as one. The crowd could feel the hope emanating from every person. I didn't learn a particular lesson other than reiterating that there is hope for the USA and one day no matter what race, ethnicity, or gender we are, someday we will be one.

A Music Generation

Over break I was helping my mom sync her Itunes. The playlist was made up of predominantly “oldies” with a splash of a few modern hits. I asked her if she liked all the songs from her young adulthood. Surprisingly, she said at the time she hadn’t. She went on to tell me that now the songs over the years had grown on her and even though at the time she wasn’t fond of them, they connected her to her past. She then noted how different my music was, so many different genres, beats, and even words she had never heard of. She often commented on how she couldn't understand what the the man on the radio was rapping about and how the music of this generation lacks the depth hers did. I argued that she was wrong, but at the same time I knew to an extent she was right even though my pride wouldn't let me say it aloud. Music is my life and commonly in our generation its what characterizes us. I know personally that I can't go anywhere without my ipod, music is on when I do homework, music is on when im in the car, and music is even on when I sleep. Its become a buffer to take us away from our stressful thoughts and instead mirror what our mood is. When I go out with my friends I blast self-praising songs, optimistic songs, when I break up with my boyfriend, sad songs occupy my mind. Experts say that this generation has a difficult time expressing their emotions but I beg to differ. I think we express our emotions differently. And even the songs that are degrading with no meaning are songs that are fun and we enjoy with friends. Take "crank that" by Soulja Boy. This song was a huge hit and even I knew the dance that went along. However, ask me about the meaning and I'd be almost clueless. But its not songs like these that our generation should be condemned for but songs like these remind us of the fun silly times we had. It just a different generation of music.

money money money!

First, if for some reason I knew I could make it without a college education then I would expect me to be very smart and have a job waiting. As a result, I would probably attend a specialty school. I have always been interested in hair. I have been dying my hair for the last three years. Since beauty school doesn’t fall under a college education then some money would be invested in my learning at the best possible beauty school. Also, with this talent for hair I would be able to get a good job. As a result, my pay would be higher than other workers. I would save this money along with the money I have left. After I have acquired a good amount I will start my own business. Location and skillful beauticians would be a top priority, anticipating success. Once I have established a reputable business I will invest any money I have left into creating a beauty named none other than “Emilie.” It would include products from perfume to shampoo and conditioner. Hopefully these products would be a hit along with the salon so it would be an attraction for celebrities. Hopefully, I will have a attracted a very good looking and wealthy business man or celebrity. Putting our money and endeavors together we would be able to build a very nice life for ourselves. I would want to have kids and devout a lot of my pay check to their college education. So many times I see today parents unready to pay for college education. I want my children to be able to go to any school in the country and pursue any career they want. Although, hypothetically I was extremely successful without getting a college degree the truth is especially in today’s economy it is going to be very hard for those without a higher education to find a job. It is a standard in many businesses to have a degree. However, with in this scenario if proper investment measures are taken then you can be successful without receiving a college education.

Wanna Survive in College?

Rule # 1:
Always make sure you know who you are rooming with beforehand.
There are always the classic cases of best friends rooming together. While some of the time it works out, it doesn’t all the time. In scenario make sure you know that you are “livable” with your best friend. Find out his/her pet peeves. What are their study habits, sleeping schedule, are they clean and neat or dirty? Once you know these things you can make a decision on whether this is a proper living arrangement. But there is also another scenario. One that is more common; “random roommate.” When we talk to people who have graduated college they seem to talk on and on about the lifelong friends they made and how crazy dorm life was. Unfortunately, this is not always the reality. During the summer if you have a chance to meet with your roommate before jumping into a commitment with a total stranger, get to know them. That’s why they provide the name! So you can meet the person before that hectic first day of college! Similarly, to the best friend scenario assess them and how you think you’d get along with them. If you need to get personal then do it, no one wants to find out the hard way that a scarf on the door means “busy.” Once you’ve retained enough information then you can make a decision of whether this stranger is a friend or a potential enemy.
Rule # 2
Don’t walk alone at night time
We’ve all seen the movies, the damsel in distress walking alone at night and then being attacked by a random perpetrator. This isn’t just in the movies though, this can happen anywhere even a college campus. So no matter if you are a girl or a boy don’t walk alone! It won’t matter if they are looking for action or money, if these people want something they are ruthless and sick. So with another person in the mix it decreases the chances. Also, carry pepper spray it will serve you well!
Rule # 3
Take advantage of health services
There is a service for students called Health Services. There are doctors, nurses, etc of all kind there to help you. With a college campus comes an ultimate amount of germs that at any moment could strike you with anything from a cold to the flu. Also, there are also circumstances that are more serious that you can go to ask questions about instead of sitting in your dorm freaked out. It will make you feel better if you consult a professional, so replace mom and dad with the insurance card and go to the doctor!