JACC State 2010

On Thursday afternoon, I hopped on a bus and headed to LA for the Journalism Association of Community Colleges conference at the Grand Wilshire hotel with the rest of my news team. This was the first weekend I've had off since I can't even remember. It was a really nice mini vacation. Sure there were workshops and meetings, but compared to a shift at McDonald's this was Disneyland. I entered the editorial cartoon on the spot competition. Though I lost, Mt. SAC took home the Pacesetter award and a few others in first place. It was a great experience that I won't soon forget.

Congrats to Evan, Adam, Mo, Sabina, Raul, Isai, and everyone else who took home something this weekend. I'm proud to be able to work with you guys!

My Life in a Nutshell 02

Pretty interesting day.

Woke up at 7 to find that someone had charged my bank account for $80 in unauthorized purchases. I promptly went to the bank to cancel my card, then called the claims company to dispute the charge. So that's $80 bucks I won't see for a few weeks.

Went to lunch with some friends and listened intently as they had a spirited debate over the passing of the new Health Care Bill. Then I was unexpectedly told I would be working construction today. Fellow blogger Somewhere In the Silence took me to a house and we promptly began to take measurements of the kitchen.

Upon doing so, we took a hammer to the damn thing and kept at it for three hours. Here are some pictures of the whole process.

It was pretty therapeutic, to be honest. Got out a bunch of aggression I never knew I had. Even made some money today. All and all, it was eventful. So here I am, fresh out of the shower washing at least half a pound of dust, grime, and cement off my body. Tomorrow should be just as interesting.

Thanks Mr. Caesar Chavez!

My Life in a Nutshell 01

Went trap shooting yesterday with my friend Tony for the first time. It was pretty damn fun. Zombie Survival training lesson one: It's all about the stance. Work in the morning I'm not looking forward to. New phone though, which is pretty cool. Broke as hell. Need to lose some weight. All and all, I have some stuff to work on. But the plus side is I was able to beat the High Caliber level on CODMW2 Spec Ops in Veteran. In five minutes. Took me two days though. 

I've become the thing I hate the most.

Another F***king Reboot?!

 

Are we really running out of ideas Hollywood? In the last five years, we've gone through too many remakes, reboots, and re-imaginings. Here is to name a few:

• Dawn of the Dead
• Alice in Wonderland
• Fun with Dick and Jane
• Disturbia
• Halloween (I & 2)
• 3:10 to Yuma
• The Wicker Man
• Friday the 13th
• The Hills Have Eyes (I & II)
• My Bloody Valentine 
• The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
• The Stepfather
• The Wolfman
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Those are just a handful of the better known ones from the last five years. Out of that list, only about three of them turned out to be any good. Yet, with the new trend of adding fresh dialouge and advanced special effects into an original classic, studios are going crazy getting their hands on any old property they think that they can "Redo" in order to make a profit.

Don't get me wrong, there are some upcoming one's that peak my interest (Karate Kid, Red Dawn, A Nightmare on Elm Street, TR2N) But reallly, is there any originality left in Hollywood? Sony just dropped Spider-man 4 in favor of rebooting the genre to fit a more teen audience. Really? The franchise has been around for less than ten years and they're already set to start over?

There are rumors floating around the internet that they're planning on remaking the Police Academy series as well as Casablanca even! Do we really need either of those to be remade? Russel Brand as Drop Dead Fred? That'll be a blockbuster.

There is one series, however, that I would gladly welcome back. It's actually the only thing I've been waiting for since all this business of reviving old classics.

D4.

As in, D4: The Mighty Ducks.

Seriously, I will flip my shit with excitement if they ever do it.

The Meat Baby

Ingredients:

• Ground beef (About a pound)
• An egg
• 1 Cup of Bread Crumbs & Herbs
• Marinara Sauce (A Cup and change)
• 2 Cups of Shredded Cheese
• 2 Capers 
• A Baking Dish
• 1 1/2 Cup of Sun-dried Tomatoes 

The Which Way Back North version of the famous Meat Baby.

First, throw the ground beef into a mixing bowl. Crack the egg, and mix thoroughly. Pour in the bread crumbs slowly while mixing.

You then want to mold your meat into the form of a human baby. I do not recommened doing it to scale, unless it's one of those prematurely born babies.

Next, layer the sun-dried tomatoes into the form. Place it all around the frame. It should look like this.

Now that the intestines are intact, you'll want to put in your second layer of skin. Before you do so, you can add ketchup or barbecue sauce or whatever. That's optional. Now begin carefully molding the top layer of your Meat Baby. Take the time to make sure everything looks naturally. Be creative.

Top it off with the two capers as eyes. Then layer the bottom of the pan with the Marinara sauce. Bake for about 15-20 minutes under 350 degrees. Once it comes out, layer the entire baby with cheese and then bake again for another 10 minutes. Your Meat Baby is done!! Take it out of the oven and...

Edward Bernays and the Many Faces of Truth

Edward Bernays, the father of PR, claimed that the concept of “truth” did not exist- reality is only in the mind of the beholder.

To emphasize the way in which a concrete event or activity can be portrayed in any number of different ways, write about the following evens (1 paragraph each) from each character’s perspective, trying to communicate to an audience his/her point of view.

Scenario #1 A patron of a restaurant slips on a banana peel as she walks past the kitchen on her way to the restroom. (Characters: Woman, Restaurant Owner)

• As I slipped on the banana peel I felt my body fly back. I hit the ground hard as I felt a sudden rush of anger and embarrassment. Why didn't they take better care of this resteraunt? I thought to myself. I should sue them. I could have broken my neck.
  
• I was in my office when I heard a loud crash outside. I exit to see that a woman has fallen and the culprit to be an old banana peel a few feet away from the crash site. My initial instinct is to see that she is alright and to make sure she gets comped for her meal and t taken care of to the best of my ability. I hope she doesn't sue.
  

Scenario #2 In response to a controversial bill just passed by Congress, thousands of angry demonstrators swarm the streets of Washington DC, slowing traffic and impeding commerce for hours. (Characters: Senator who voted in favor of the bill, Demonstrator opponent of the bill, Shopkeeper.)

• The Senators would feel as if the bill must be passed. It was hard enough to decide to vote for the bill, but the constant reminders of the protesters make would make them second guess their decisions.
  
• The protesters feel strongly opposed to the bill. They feel that if they all band together as a united group, go to Washington DC, blocking everyone's way, they will get what they want. All they will probably get during the day is the self satisfying feeling that they angered alot of people (some who didn't even deserve it) and a sun burn.
  
• The shopkeeper is looking out the window at all the protesters. Because of their demonstration, his store has been empty for hours and could possibly be empty for the rest of the day. He needed today's income because he recently found out that his daughter needed to get braces. The shopkeeper is upset at the protesters.
  

The American View of the World Through the Eyes of Television

Americans are often criticized for their lack of knowledge about foreign cultures and places. One tool that could help people learn more about foreign places is television, since we often learn about our world through entertainment programming as well as news. But what does television really teach us about different ways of living, different people, or different places than what we are used to in the US?

Choose one major television network and tune in for its prime time programming (try 8-10pm) for three nights. Answer the following questions.

• I chose the CW network.
  

How many foreign people were depicted in the hours you watched? Where were they?

• Throughout the three nights, the only foreign people I saw was a single asian girl and an elderly indian man. These were on two seperate nights and it was a split second of screen time for each of them.
• One star was of Middle Eastern descent.
  

Were any foreign languages spoken? What were they?

• There were no foreign languages spoken. The best that came up in the three nights was a somewhat thick indian accent.
  

Were people shown speaking English with a foreign accent?

• Yes
  

Which foreign countries, if any, were represented?

• No foreign countries were represented.
  

How were foreign people represented? Were they good or bad characters? Heroes or villains? Comedic figures or serious characters? Men or women? Adults or children? Were only foreign places represented? Describe.

• The Asian girl that I saw was a part of a clique of mean girls and the Indian man was just a minor character who hated his job and complained alot. Although the man added a sort of comedic relief through his complaints he could have been treated better.
• The Middle Eastern star got much screentime on the night that his show was on but was depicted as a white washed American teenager.
  

If you saw NO foreignness, does this finding surprise you? Why? Why do you think this network did not choose to include depictions of foreignness in its programming?

• I saw no instances of foreignness in the the commercials. Everything took place in America. The rare times that an actor with a different ethnicity is on a commerical, he or she will be speaking with a perfect American accent.
  

Explain why you feel you saw what you did. Draw on some concepts you have learned about media industry to support your answer.

• I think if I tried harder, I would have noticed more foreign things in the commercials. As a teenager growing up in America and raised here, I am more accustomed to American traditions.