Mind Tricks

There is this new website that I found that has gained much attention nationwide. It is called stumble upon. It is a website that is a collection of random websites that are aimed at your preference. You click your focused interests such as beauty or music or animals etc... and then each time you click stumble it takes you to a new website. It allows you to discover websites that you never knew existed. I played around with this website and found it so interesting!! Not only did it direct me to websites of interest and help me gain knowledge of things I never knew about but it is also very enjoyable. One of the points of interest was optical illusions. I decided to check it out because I had never been on websites with optical illusions. I found these websites so interesting. It boggles my mind how your eyes can play such tricks on your mind. An optical illusion is a visually percieved object that is different from the reality. I thought these were so interesting and cool and deicded to share some with you.

ENJOY!!

there are all the same

can you find the hidden pictures?

ALSO, if you would like to see stumbleupon for your self, the website is

http://www.stumbleupon.com/

Soul Surfer

When I first saw the trailer for this movie, I had deja vu. This story looked so familiar...and then the words "based on the inspirational true story" came on the screen and then it clicked...I remember watching the news with my dad and reporters were doing a story on an surfing accident. When I watched it it had just happened. Although I was in my early teens when I saw this video, I remember the girls face appearing on the TV vividly.

This is her story...

I recommend everyone to go see this movie. It is truly inspiring and first handedly shows you how to never let anything get in the way of your dreams. This movie will more profoundly affect people because it is a true story. There are many movies that share this same message, however it is hard to find one that is real. Because the events of this movie actually happened, I believe that this movie will spread this message in a stronger way than most movies. I, personally, am very excited to go see the movie this weekend!

Most Interesting Man in the World

This youtube video is a collection of all the tag lines used with Dos Equis Beer campaign The Most Interesting Man in the World.

My friend showed me the commercials of the Most Interesting Man in the World. When I first saw these commercials I realized how powerful this campaign was. It is brilliant!! It gives personality to the brand and leaves everyone with a desire to drink something that the most interesting man in the world drinks. People's reaction will be "If he can have try to have an awkward moment just to see how it felt, then I want to drink the beer he drinks" The one liners are so original and outlandish that you can't wait to hear what comes next. I truly believe that this campaign will go down as a legendary campaign as did Think Small campaign for Volkswagen or the more recent Just Do It campaign for Nike.

Race for the Cure

This Friday is Race for the Cure at SMU. I think that is such a great thing that SMU puts on an event that is for a great cause. Although I know that Race for the Cure is a fund raiser for people with breast cancer, I began thinking and realized that I do not know that much about it…how it was started, the motivation behind it etc… Race for the Cure was founded by a loving sister who lost her sister to the battle of breast cancer. That victim was Susan G. Komen. She fought her

battle and throughout her treatment tried to make life better for other women battling the same disease; she was less concerned with her self. As Susan came closer and closer to the face of death, her sister promised her that she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer. This promise became the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. It has invested more than 1.9 BILLION dollars since its origin in 1982 and is the world’s leade

r of the breast cancer movement. Moreover, it hosts the largest network of survivors and activists, worldwide.

Their mission: to find a cure. Progress over the years has led researchers to make major breakthroughs. Because of this non profit program there has been advances in understanding the biology of breast cancer and its cell division, more

efficient early detection of breast cancer, what reduces the risks as well as advances is preventing the disease all together. Today the program has invested over 450 million dollars in over a thousand research projects.

Personally, I am so excited to participate in this fundraiser this weekend. Not only is it a great cause but also when I participate, I will think of my friend’s mothers who have been affected by this disease. I am doing it for them.

I presented the research portfolio to more clearly identify all the focus points of research.

A Liability

The incident that occurred over Labor Day weekend made me realize that there are consequences in being a third party; third party liability. As naïve as I was, I still had hesitations at first about doing this. However, I listened to my friends and trusted their word. I am in no way blaming them; I was as in the wrong as they were. After meeting with the conduct board, the lady realized that this was my first time getting in trouble with the school. She realized that I was punishing myself and that in itself is a far better punishment than anything she could have assigned. I decided to do some research on third party liability because that is what I was accused of; being a third party liability. I have gained a better knowledge of the consequences that are applicable in this situation that were previously unknown. Third party liability is defined as one’s legal obligations to a certain person, or entity. In essence, one can be held responsible for another’s actions even if they are not directly associated with the incident. Although there are many forms of third party liability, such as third party liability dealing with Medicare, insurance and with corporations, mine was a result of alcohol violation with Southern Methodist University. In cases specific to alcohol violations, one can be held accountable if a guest becomes intoxicated and causes damage to himself, others or property.

Lawsuits can be filed against a third party should they have an indirect relationship with damage caused to the innocent victim, or damage caused to others. Lawsuits that are filed can result in paying fines ranging in all amounts. The amounts can be in the range of the thousands to even millions of dollars. Civil law suits can be based upon three categories known as dram shop laws, common negligence, or social host.

The dram shop laws are as stated: “Specific statutes that address liability issues only for liquor license holders. These statutes are intended to promote responsible alcohol service and provide a means for third parties to file suit for injuries and for fatalities resulting from a liquor law violation.” In other words, this civil law suit is directed towards liquor license holders. It is enforced in order to keep bar owners or liquor storeowners in line with the law. The law protects minors from being over served. This way liquor storeowners will not serve to minors as a means to get more money because this law enforces responsible service. If so violated, one can be sued under the circumstances.

Another civil law suit is the common negligence law. This law is as stated: “These laws, although not specifically defined, address negligent behavior with negligence being defined as not doing what any reasonable person could be expected to do under a certain set of circumstances. With regard to alcohol, it is assumed that a person (server/seller) can be expected to follow a set of procedures and if he/she fails to do so, the server/seller has acted negligently.” In other words, one may be sued if a server or seller of alcohol does not follow the proper procedures that are needed under the circumstances. Servers and sellers of alcohol have to uphold to a certain standard. If so violated, they may be sued in the court of law.

The last civil law suit that can be filed against someone is known as the social host law. This law is as stated: Specific laws stating that social hosts (hosts of a party, function, etc.) who provide alcohol to their guests can be held responsible for the actions of their guests if alcohol has been served improperly. In essence, the host of a party (serving alcohol) can be held accountable for another person’s actions should he cause damage or harm to himself or others.

Although there are three types of civil liability, there are also forms of criminal liability as well as administrative liability. Criminal liability deals with the criminal aspect of a person’s actions whereas administrative liability concerns the actions of a server of alcohol with a permit.

Criminal liability is applicable to the actual crime of the incident.

This law brings back a dark memory from my high school. It was my senior year and a person from my high school was having a huge graduation party. Fortunately for me, I was out of town that weekend so I was unable to attend. At the party, a person in my high school became increasingly intoxicated as the night went on. without anyone noticed, he managed to get his keys and drive home. His judgment was so impaired, leading him to crash into another vehicle, at ninety miles per hour, that was stopped at a red light. The stopped car swung around and hit another car. The passenger who was directly hit was killed instantly and the passenger in the other car who was indirectly was sent into the intensive care unit. I came home to learn the a classmate of mine had been arrested for the incident. Although his case went to trial, the family members of the victim also sued the parents of the house that had the graduation party. After doing research on third liability, I have come to the realization that this family is a real example of a third party liability. Although, the parents did not directly kill the victim and cause harm and pain to others, they were at fault indirectly by supplying the alcohol. At first it was hard for me to understand the reasoning behind the parents’ fault. After all, it was the actions of my classmate that cause the death of an innocent man as well as the pain and suffering of his family. However, after researching third party liability I have a clearer understanding of the parents’ involvement in the incident.

As I thought about my classmate’s actions I realized that I was not familiar with the laws of third party liability in Florida. I decided that it would be in my best interest to research the laws of third party liability. More research was conducted in order to better understand the consequences that can occur as a result of a third party. I did research in the state of Florida and found many cases in which a third party member was convicted of a crime.

In the case known as “Ellis v. N.G.N. of Tampa, 586 So. 2d 1042, 1044 (Fla. 1991). This common law principle was first attacked by the Modern Jersey Supreme Court in Rappaport v. Nichols, 31 N.J. 188, 156 A.2d 1 (N.J. 1959).” In this case an owner of a tavern sold alcohol to a minor. The minor became intoxicated and was involved in a car accident. The car accident resulted in the death of an innocent victim, a stranger to the intoxicated minor. The tavern owner knowingly served alcohol to this minor and therefore the tavern owner was held civilly liable for the damages. This was the first time, the owner was held liable instead of the person driving the car. He was convicted because it was felt that if the owner had responded honoring his duty, the damages done to the victim and family could have been provided.

In another case known as Prevatt v. McClennan, the cause of the injury was the sale of alcohol rather than the consumption. From this point forward, alcohol related convictions would be handled differently. Third party liability have become increasingly important as they are viewed on a heavier basis.

One of Florida’s laws states: “a person who willfully and unlawfully sells or furnishes alcoholic beverages to a person who is not of lawful drinking age or who knowinglyserves a person habitually addicted to the use of any or all alcoholic beverages may become liable for injury or damage caused by or resulting from the intoxication of such minor or person.”

After my doing research on third party liabilities, I have gained a greater knowledge of the importance of a third party’s involvement. Although, you can be indirectly related to the damages and harms of others, you are still held accountable for your actions. One needs to uphold a moral understanding of what is right and if that it is broken consequences will occur. More and more people are becoming aware of this responsibility, therefore, making our everyday lives safer.

Don't Make the Same Mistake I Did

It was Labor Day Weekend. An attempt for a friends gathering resulted in consequences I wish I were never involved in. The Saturday before Labor Day Monday, a friend and I purchased kegs for a friend’s event. I used my fake ID to purchase these two kegs that were taken by SMU PD later that evening. Consequences soon followed after that. I was at home when I heard I was potentially in trouble and immediately cut up my fake ID. I have never been in trouble before, not with the law or at school so I was very scared and nervous, and just disappointed with my actions.
After meeting with Mrs. Ashley, I thought about the actions I performed that Labor Day Sunday and was disappointed in my poor judgment skills. I should have thought about all the consequences that could occur using poor judgment skills. After I came home from my meeting I remember sitting in my bed and just thinking about the worthiness of a few seconds of feeling cool. One of the primary reasons my friend and I did this was to look cool in front of older people, which now seems so minuet in the grand scheme of things.
Although, I was very nervous and disappointed in my actions, I am also confident that I learned my lesson. I will never again do something to potentially hurt everything I have worked for this far. Using poor judgment skills could throw away everything you have worked for, whether it is concerning college, your relationship with your family or even your relationship with your friends. I am still at the point in my life where I have a lot going for me, but at the same time I am very vulnerable to certain situations. I know that everyone makes mistakes (literally everyone) but one still has a responsibility to uphold their moral duties and one is still held responsible for their actions.
After researching the laws about Fake ID’s I realize how serious the consequences can be. For example, in the state of Florida, if you are caught with a fake ID multiple consequences can occur. For one, you can lose your driver license privileges for up to one year. It is also considered a third degree felony, not a misdemeanor. If you are a convicted of a third degree felony one “shall be punished by imprisonment for any term not more than 10 years or less than 2 years.” However, if you are charged with a misdemeanor it results in a fine ranging from five hundred dollars to four thousand dollars. The amount of the fine depends on the severity of the crime committed. Also, one can be sentenced to a certain amount of days in jail, less than a year. There is also the inconvenience of cost. Not only is there a court cost, but there is a probationary cost as well as an attorney cost. All these costs make it very expensive and very inconvenient. Costs that is hugely unnecessary if one just upholds their responsibility. Finally, you will be a convicted felon that can haunt you later in life. A convicted felon loses certain privileges such as losing the right to vote and losing the right to bear arms. All rights that are protected by the constitution and that make us citizens of the United States. To think, that all this can happen as a result of one day or night trying to have fun or be cool? Also, in the state of Texas, if you are caught with a fake ID you will be charged with a class B misdemeanor. This states that “An individual found guilty of a Class B Misdemeanor shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $2,000.00 or confinement for a term not to exceed 180 days.
Although I have learned my lesson, I wanted to share this story with others so they do not make the same mistake I did!!

Real Estate

A few weeks ago my parents came to dallas to visit me. My Dads good friend, David, came along with them. One night I went out to dinner with them and began talking to David about his career path. Not only is he an inspiration to me as I learned about his determination and will to succeed in the business but he is also a role model for many children who have dreams to be successful in business. He exaplained that he worked his way up from basically nothing. David is in the commercial real-estate business. David owns and manages commercial and industrial real-estate buildings in Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida. He graduated from Georgetown and began his career. He said that he got where he is today because of his motivation, ambition and the mentality to never give up. The real-estate business has its ups and downs he began to explain to me. When the economy is good, business is great, however, when the economy is bad, business is terrible. When the economy is good people want to buy office spaces and invest but when the economy is bad people have trouble keeping their office rent and no one wants to buy office spaces. After he told me about the affects the economy has on his business he began to tell me all the hard work put into it. He told me about his hours at work, which are a typical five-day week at the office, but sometimes he finds time to work at home. He works from usually eight until six or seven at night!! He told me that the business is very competitive so to be successful in that line of work, you not only have to love what you do, but you also have to be very ambitious and want to be the best. If you do not take responsibility for yourself and do not take action, he explained, you would get nowhere just because of the competitiveness of the career. Fortunately for David, he absolutely loves his career. I found this career and his ambitious work ethic very interesting and was surprised at how little I knew about real estate. I was unaware at how much the economy plays a role in the real-estate business. The economy’s position is the difference between life and death in the real-estate world. Although I was preached to about this when I was younger, I re-learned the value of hard work and the driving will to be successful. David’s last words were “If I can make it in the real world so can you.” Those were very comforting words to here as I am essentially about to enter the real world.

Pamper Diaper

A very effective commercial spot that I recently saw was a Pamper Diaper commercial. The commercial featured different scenarios of babies and then later on facing these scenarios/problems as adults. The tag line: “Do what’s right for your baby’s development” One scenario included a mom telling her baby not too climb up the stairs. Then later on as an adult he was unable to climb any type of stairs because he never did it as a baby. Some scenarios included the swimming pool ladder, the steps in a work out class and many more. These scenarios were also comical and funny to watch which is effective with consumer popularity. One of the most important strategies of this campaign was that it put guilt on the mother. The commercial was shot in a way that made the mother at partial fault for their child’s dilemma as an adult. As he developed into an adult he was never able to complete these simple tasks, such as not being able to participate in a step work out class because of the steps. For mothers, their baby’s proper development is crucial. Therefore they will do anything for their baby to have the proper upbringing and develop properly and maturely. I believe that because mothers will do anything for their baby to be healthy and have a proper upbringing makes this commercial so effective. This commercial insinuates that Pampers diapers will ensure that a child will not face a dilemma like scared of the stairs a problem, their will have a proper development not only with their “potty skills” but in life in general. After seeing this commercial I realize how effective advertising can be. It can make a product seem essential and desirable at the same time. The commercial also attracts popularity, as it is hilarious and very relatable to evey human being, especially those in their target audience. The commercial creates a sort of short story and the every day consumer can relate to it because it reminds them of a problem they have overcome in the past, it reminds them of their youth, or the consumer can relate because they have a baby and are looking out for their best interest.

Modern Family

I recently started watching a show called Modern Family. It is a comedy often in shown in a mockumentary form that follows three families that are connected in some way. It has been named the best new sitcom and funniest new family comedy of the year. This show is will leaving you falling out of your chair with laughter. I believe that one of the main reasons why people love this show is because they can relate to their family in someway. People can relate to the situations and characters in the show. No ones family is perfect and this show just emphasizes that and essentially pokes fun at every American home.

I cannot stop watching this show and wanted to share my new found interest as I think everyone will enjoy this television series with a two thumbs up!

Pure Beauty

This past weekend I went on a road trip with a couple of my friends. It was my first long roadtrip, a nine hour car ride. When we were driving we came across a side of nature that I had never seen before. I had never seen open fields of green grass with cattle feeding. I was unexperienced to green nature as we are all accustomed to real estate and buildings taking over every inch of the country. It got me thinking about how much we take the beauty of nature for granted. Nature is one of God's greatest creations and we are destroying it. As I looked out into the fields of grass, and the beautiful trees I realized how much we were missing out.

Nature really is beautiful.

We Thought We Were Safe

Most of feel that we are safe in this SMU bubble that we live in? However, a recent scandal has brought the attention of many as an SMU police officer was accused of sexual harassment of a female policer officer. He has recently been fired by the University. It was after this that female freshman began to step forward about their problems with officer Hightower. Female residences of Boaz said that the police officer would not stop texting them. After investigation of this issue, he is now being prosecuted.

This recent allegation has many parents besides themselves as they thought their children were in a safe environment. But are we? Are police really here to protect us or do they just want to destroy our lives?

Not only is there a concern of safety throughout the student body (especially female) but there is also a distaste for SMU PD's consequences. Last year, tickets and parking citations given by police officers generated half a million dollars in revenue!! Police officers are also not very popular among the freshman as they give out unnecessary and an immense amount of alcohol violations (a mark on your record) that lead to consequences.

For example, my friend Joey last year was in his dorm room after a night of going out with his friends. He had been drinking but was conscious, alert and back and safe in his dorm room. He was by no means acting as a classified DRUNK COLLEGE STUDENT. He walked out of his room to go to the bathroom when a cop stopped him and asked him if he had been drinking. He responded by telling the officer that he just came out of his room to go to the bathroom and had been in his room sleeping. The officer demanded to breathalyze him and my friend refused to take the test as he knew that it would not be a 0.00. The officer then preceded by throwing him against the wall, handcuffing him and putting him in jail for the night. When he was released the next morning, he felt sick and that week was diagnosed with bronchitis. I was disgusted when i heard what my friend had gone through. Aren't police officers there to make sure our student body is safe? My friend Joey was safe sleeping in his room and consequentially came out of his room at the wrong time. He was in no means hurting himself or anyone around him. He even ended up getting sick from it as well as probation on his record.

To me, SMU PD is not looking out for our best interest, they are just on a massive power trip.

Advertising at its Effect

My favorite holiday is Christmas. When people think about this holiday they most always automatically say Santa with his red-suit, plump body, white beard and his reindeer sleigh, RIGHT?

Okay so, I love everything about it from the music to the climate to. From the time I can remember, Christmas has been such a joyous time for everyone, adults and children. Children love to leave things out for Santa and his reindeer. It is hard to believe that the Christmas I know and have grown up with can be credited to the advertising industry.

To move product out of the store, you first need to move it into the consumer’s imagination and that is the very thing Coca- Cola did with their product.

Image of Santa Claus was originally created by Thomas Nast in 1822 as a tiny elflike creature. By the end of the 19^th century this image was everywhere. BUT THEN...

Early advertisements of the Coca-Cola company drew him as jolly and plum, wearing his red coat, big black belt, and black boots. The color selection was no accident, black and red are Coca-Colas corporate colors. This was in response to Coke's trouble selling the drink during the winter. Therefore, the started show Santa relaxing after traveling around the world with a Coke and showed kids leaving a Coke for Santa instead of milk. This implied gifts coming from Santa were in exchange for the Coke

Coke’s Santa was starting to “own” Christmas

AND THATS NOT ALL...Everyone knows Rudolph the red nose Reindeer. Another result of the advertising industry on Christmas' tradition. Soon after Disney’s Bambi was made, a fawn was worked into the ads, which became a reindeer. The most famous reindeer was Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was created for pure commercialism.

The advertising industry made the Santa that we know today. It is crazy to think how the industry can make an attempt to market their brand and increase sales and turn it into a tradition.

In essence, Christmas was made by Coca-Cola.

Class Divided

A 1970's TV documentary that reveals the prescence of racism in young children. This TV documentary shows how parents instilled the practices of racism in their child. Ms. Elliot was a teacher who experimented with this issue. She separated the kids by their eye color. The class was split between brown and blue eyes, each day one eye color having advantages the other did not. This video amazes not only to see the effect of the experiment but also to hear the amount of racist comments that came out of the children's mouth.

Initially, the children believed that they were superior to blacks, saying that blacks were "dirty" and "stupid." However, at the end they realized that they should not judge anyone by their color of skin. The way Ms. Elliot accomplished this task was by putting the children at disadvantages, putting them in a black child's shoes. One day brown eyed people were able to have advantages and then next day blue eyed people were able to have certain advantages. The outcome was amazing! The children who were at disadvantages each day took longer to learn their lesson for the day. One day brown eyed people were "better" and they were able to get through the task in a shorter amount of time than the blue eyed people. Then the next day brown eyed people were considered "the lesser" and took longer than the previous day to get through the task; and vice versa for the blue eyed people. This demonstrated that when the children were looked down upon they were not able to learn as well. Another effect of the experiment was that when the children were divided they felt taken away from their friends, they felt stupid and worthless. They saw what this separation did to them, to their friends and their class as a whole. They learned never to judge a person by their color of skin (or eyes). They realized how everyone is equal in this world.

When I saw this video I was amazed at the words that came out of the children's mouths. They felt "superior" and one even said he felt like "King." I have to believe that their thought process has come from their parents as they are innocent children listening to their parents. I was disgusted to think this was coming out of A CHILD's mouth. This video even took place after Martin Luther King died and the thought of this topic as still being an issue is hard to believe. I showed you this video not only to show you that racism was still out there even after MLK's death but also to show how this teacher's experiment taught these kids the meaning of equality.

I am inspired by this teacher as she has taught the next generation not to judge people by their color of skin.

Interpretatoin

Can you guess the word?

1. desktop

2. headphone

The Issue of Big Brother...Becoming a Reality?

In one of my clases at SMU, I read an article that focused on tracking technology. I found it so interested and found so many similarities between our technologically advanced world to the phrase “Big Brother is Watching You”

This issue focuses on the use of new technology that enables people to know your every move. This article has an unbiased opinion as it touches on the pros and cons of this technology. The article begins with a magical touch as it incorporates Harry’s Potter’s magic (technology) and makes it a reality. Students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology became fascinated by Harry Potter’s Marauder’s Map, a map that showed where every student was in Hogwarts, and created their own tracking map. Privacy is very important to every human being and the potential threat of people’s personal lives becoming available to the general public has gotten the attention of many. Location privacy can be defined as the ability to prevent other parties from learning one’s current or past location, however this new tracking technology has the ability to make a significant impact on our daily lives. Government corporations, criminals, and parents may use these tracking devices to monitor the every day lives of people. I cannot help ignore the question of this tool becoming Big Brother or an ultimate safety device. Devices that focus on a person’s location are tracking chips that can be carried in many things ranging from clothing to passports. Location devices include the GPS that uses satellite signals and are usually in vehicles; cellular networks that use antennas; and RFID which uses radiofrequency to locate a position.

A global positioning system, GPS, uses three or more satellite signals to get a location position. It is a one-way technology in that once the signal is transferred it does not transmit its location back to the satellite. GPS systems are more commonly used in automobile tracking services to help people find restaurants, find their location of interest more easily. However, the location of GPS can be sent out over a different network, wireless network or mobile device, and sent over to another network giving access of its coordinates to a third party.

Cellular networks use antennas to determine their location. Although, locations can only be determined within range of the antennas they broadcast to, they can also transmit a location back to a station base. These devices, that are bidirectional, are used in 911 calls to help locate people that are in need of help, parental tracking systems as well as in the form of advertising. Colin Bates, chief technology officer at location services company Mobile Commerce said "All the big four operators now offer a commercial service so you can send them a telephone number and they will tell you where it is" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3012170.stm).Moreover, cell phones now carry bidirectional tracking devices where parents can supervise where their child is at all times. Law officials are trying to gain access to these bidirectional-tracking devices to track the location of suspected criminals. However, these devices are also stored in rental cars to determine the speed limit and if the car goes over the speed limit as well as to track unauthorized cars traveling across state borders.

RFID technology is a computer chip with a microscopic antenna embedded in it. It receives and replies to radio frequency signals to form a location position. This technology was originally used for retail stores to keep track of clothing. To many “it's simply the next logical step from bar codes: providing a cheap, easy way to keep products on the shelves, consumers happy and companies making money” (http://www.alternet.org/rights/29890/). Moreover, RFID technology can be used for the safety of children. An experiment was done on a grade school's program requiring students to wear RFID-enabled badges to track their on-campus. movements.” However this technology can also be used with cruel intentions. Hijackers can track a person’s movement by picking up these signals. In essence, a person can be watched and located just from her clothing.

Tracking technology can be used in many ways, in good and bad ways, just as shown above. There have been laws put into place regulating the extent of the information that is known, hoping to put a stop to the foul practices of this technology. Only time will tell if people’s private life and this new tracking technology will be able to co-exist in this world.

A Living Legend

Elton John is a living legend and an inspiration to many artists out there. Over spring break I attended his concert with my family at Madison Square Garden in which he performed for two hours with no intermission. This past concert was his 60^th time playing at this famous auditorium. This is an amazing accomplishment and this astounding number gives him the title as performing the most concerts there. The next runner up is Billy Joel, playing there twelve times. The concert sold out at Madison Square Garden in thirty seconds! Elton John said him self at the concert that he loved playing at Madison Square Garden and refers to it as “playing it in his living room.” This has been his favorite venue, which is probably the reason why he chose this place to perform on his birthday. He put on an unforgettable concert.

His concert playlist was:

1. Funeral for a Friend
2. Saturday Nights alright for Fighting
3. Levon
4. Mad Man Across the River
5. Tiny Dancer
6. Philadelphia Freedom
7. Yellow Brick Road
8. I guess that why they call them the Blues
9. Rocket Man
10. Best Part of the Day
11. Your Never too old to Hold Somebody
12. Dreams Come True
13. Sad Song
14. Take me to the Pilot
15. Don’t let the Sun Go Down on Me
16. Candle in the Win
17. Burn Down the Mission
18. Bennie and the Jets
19. Bitch is Back
20. Crocidile Rock
21. Your Song

He also played songs with Leon Russel from their new album.

I have been listening to Elton John all my life and certain songs remind me of various experiences that have happened to me throughout my life, whether it was a family vacation or a feeling I had when I heard the song. His songs also inspire me in a way that I cannot describe. My favorite songs that he played were Tiny Dancer and Bennie and the Jets. I hope that I will be able to see him perform again sometime in the near future.

Jokes On Us

What has this industry come to? Recently my friend showed me this Youtube video of a thirteen-year-old girl, Rebecca Black, and her music video of her first single “Friday.” (Below is the link to her new song) I realize that the music industry is not just about good artists playing good music; many shows and individuals make a lot of money off of being horrible. America loves to hear these people and just laugh at them. A few years ago there was a contestant on American Idol that made millions of his awful and horrible singing. He even made a CD and had a record deal. In fact, American Idol specifically looks for awful singers to get their ratings up. With this being said, does Rebecca Black take it too far?

Rebecca Black is a young thirteen-year-old girl who gained widespread attention after her single “Friday” was released on you tube. I can not help but mention this similar scenario to teen pop sensation Justin Bieber who was discovered through you tube videos. Rebecca Black has said that she wanted to be the next Justin Beiber and with this single she is far away from that goal. It boggles my mind that a record company actually produced this song. Is the industry trying to push our limits to see how far we can take something like this and make it popular? Where will we come to a point where we realize that this girl is making millions at our expense and that this awful music should not be tolerated? Is the music industry really trying to say that they control us, and what we listen to. Do they determine what we believe is good music, worthy of hearing. That we Americans stupefy ourselves to follow the trend. Is the joke on us? I bring these questions to our attention because it is up for you to decide..,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CD2LRROpph0

Is she to blame? Or the Entertainment Industry?

A Tasty Treat

One of my favorite past

times is to bake. Not only is it very therapeutic for me, but I also enjoy eating food. What girl doesn’t? Although one of my favorite foods is french-fries, I also have a huge sweet tooth. When I have a sweet craving, one of my favorite things is to bake Chinese New Year Cookies. It is fairly simple and absolutely delicious!

The Recipe:

1 (12 oz.) bag of chocolate chips

1 (12 oz.) bag of butterscotch chips

2 c. Chinese noodles

1 c. dry roasted peanuts

Melt chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in a double boiler. After chips have melted, remove from heat and add Chinese noodles and nuts to melted chips. Mix and drop by teaspoons on wax paper. Let cookies set and harden. Store in an airtight container. Makes 4 to 5 dozen cookies.

Another one of my favorite treats that I have not attempted to make yet are cake balls. However, this weekend I am really going to try and make it. Hopefully it works out! Crème de la Cookie in Snider Plaza introduced me to these “cake balls.” I recommend everyone to go to Snider Plaza and try them. They are all different flavors and definitely worth the calories. Cake balls are small pieces of cake rolled into a ball with a chocolate hard sh

ell covering it.

How I plan to make them:

1. Bake a cake
2. Break it up into pieces
3. Roll pieces of cake into a ball holdingit together by mixing cake icing in it
4. Put the tray in the fridge for an hour
5. Melt chocolate chips and once the cake is cooled pour the melted chocolate on top
6. Freeze overnight

Although I do not know if this is the actual recipe, I am just giving an educated guess. Who knows, maybe I will even make something that tasted better than a cake ball!

Defining the Word:

Can you guess the word by the picture?

Can a picture be worth a thousand words:

To me, these pictures are sort of a mindmap process. One can interpret these pictures many ways and then from there branch off these pictures/ their ideas as experience, knowledge, and creativity come into play.

Answers:

1. butterfly

2.dolphin

How creative can YOU be?

minus

Can you guess the

word by the picture?

hair tie

Biggest Creature in the Sea?

Last Summer, I had the opportunity to scuba dive with whale sharks. Although I was very nervous to swimwith these enormous creatures, having the comfort of my family there kept me from backing out of this amazing opportunity. I decided to share with you all, what I experienced.

I decided to share some pictures with you, one because they are fascinating creatures not only because of their design but also because their size. the spots on their back are said to act like finger prints, no two designs alike. They are very docile creatures, note: the swimmer up on the right next to the whale shark. Whale Sharks can reach up to 50 ft. and are not carnivores. Their main diet consists of crill, better known as plankton. It is amazing to know that plankton can sustain this enormous body. They suck in gallons of water, but filter it own with a special mechanism that keeps the plankton.

Marti Gras Season

This weekend I experienced something that I have long been awaiting, a trip to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. However I was not excited for this trek for the usual reasons that college students venture to New Orleans. Though I did have my fun on Bourbon Street, I was more interested in learning about the culture this vibrant city. The three cultural aspects of New Orleans that stuck out to me were the music scene, the street performers and the great food. Jazz music seemed to be the tune of the city it was being played at every bar, street corner and restaurant I was at. Although I am fairly unfamiliar to this genre of music, it seemed capture the attention of the people of New Orleans. It was fascinating to see how this city became so united, just through song. Although I was not a huge fan of the food of Marti Gras, it consisted of Cajun and Creole food; I was a fan of the King Cake. It is a very colorful tasty cake that hides tradition every year, literally. The baker of the King Cake hides a figurine of a baby representing the Christ child. Whoever, has the baby in their cake is said to enjoy good luck for the coming year and bake the King Cake the next year. The finder is I was also a fan of the street performers. It was something that I had never seen before. Everywhere I looked There were people wearing intricate masks, dancing in the streets, not to mentions that parades that go up and down Bourbon Street in the French Quarter.

The history of Marti Gras is so fascinating; in fact, the word itself means Carnival Season. It begins on Fat Tuesday and ends the day before Ash Wednesday. It is said to be known in the past as a celebratory carnival before the lent season. The colors of Marti Gras are purple green and gold. These colors represent justice, faith and power. Marti Gras is sometimes called the Greatest Free Show on Earth. I am so fortunate to have had the opportunity to partake in a cultural, historical and carnival-like festivity.

The Entertainment Industry

Is the entertainment business too harsh? My cousin’s dream as a little girl was to be an actress. Ten years later, she starred in the The Last Airbender, playing the role of the water bender. As a main character she committed many hours to martial arts training and practicing her lines. However, this is not my topic of concern. I don’t know if its because this is hitting so close to home with my cousin newly entering the entertainment industry, but I am very am worried about the impact the media and the pressure has on child stars

In my honest opinion, I believe that the media is too harsh on their subjects. They expect an image of perfection for people in the spotlight, and if a person has one tiny flaw they blow it up with exaggeration and expose it to everyone. No one is perfect, everyone makes mistakes, allowing the media to wait for one opportunity to turn a little mishap into the next big thing. I am nervous that this newfound media attention on my cousin will impact her in a negative way. For example, in the past the media criticized actress Hilary Duff for being fat when in fact she was not at all, a couple years later she admitted to having an eating disorder. This is just one out of the many examples of media attention having a negative impact on a person. With my cousin being in the media, I am very nervous that negative attacks on her will hurt her self-esteem long term along with impacting her in a negative way.

I believe that the media should focus on the good things people to do as oppose to the miniscule imperfections people have. The media loves to hate people and their ambition to find tiny imperfections will hurt the psyche of the individual permanently, leaving the question, is the entertainment business too harsh on their victims?

The Facebook Phenomenon

By the year 2005, over eighty percent of households owned a computer in the United States and this outstanding number has only gone upward since then. It is very rare to find someone who does not know how to operate a computer in the twenty-first century. As a college student, I have seen technology’s importance in students, social lives. One of the biggest forms of social communication among our generation is Facebook. It has taken prestige over the once widely used Myspace. Although, both sites virtually have the same purpose (connect with friends, share pictures, and express interests) why is it that Facebook has become more popular?

In the beginning years and birth of Facebook, Facebook was only eligible to only Harvard college students. Then it expanded to Ivy League students. Soon after, it launched a high school version. Its final expansion, anyone over the age of 13 with a valid e-mail addresses. Although Facebook was safer than Myspace with more restrictions as to who could use it; has this phenomenon and caused Facebook to follow this same trend as more and more people are permitted to use it? If so, how safe are we?

I have used Facebook since my freshman year of high school. It became more and more popular within my school as the year went on. I believe that Facebook is a beneficial tool as it is safe and very efficient with connecting to people. One of the settings of Facebook, is you can decline and confirm a friend request and customize how much information is shared to certain people. If you do not know the person you can deny their request and they will not be able to access your information. If you accept a friend request because they are part of the same network as you ( your school) but don’t want them to see certain information of your pictures, you can control that too. All these privacy control settings lead me to believe that Facebook is a valid and safe social networking site. One just needs to be aware of who friends them and the information that they put out for everyone to see. Although this is the current state of Facebook, it is clear that Facebook keeps evolving and changing. Only time will tell how safe Facebook continues to be in the future.

Fashion for a Good Cause

This past weekend, my friend walked the runway at a fashion show event in Dallas. Although, I went solely to support her; I ended up gaining a lot more knowledge and sympathy than when I left. I soon learned that this fashion show also benefited the Suicide and Crisis Center; an organization focuses on preventing suicides. As we left the show to the dinner, a speaker got up and spoke about her experience with suicide. She is a suicide survivor; that does not mean she attempted suicide herself but that someone close to her has committed suicide. She went on, explaining that her husband had committed suicide almost ten years ago, he shot himself on their anniversary. She then went on to say that a few years after that her daughter, Hailey, had committed suicide when she was fourteen. She found her hung in the closet. Those details were more than graphic for me and there was not a dry eye in the room as she finished her story about her two loved ones who had committed suicide as a result of depression. This woman, however, was not looking for pity or sympathy, she told her story to get a point across. She said that the following years after the death of both her husband and her daughter, she went into a severe depression. As she began to notice these symptoms, she called the Suicide and Crisis Center for help. They helped her realize that the death of her husband and daughter were not her fault and helped her loose the pain and regret that had been dominating her life. She ended her speech by stating that it has taken her years to forgive herself and realize that it is not her fault. She was speaking on behalf of the center as she believes that the center can save lives of people who are a suicide risk as well as help beloved loved ones come to terms with their loss just as it did her. Suicide takes the lives of over 30,000 people a year. Although I do not know anyone personally who has attempted or committed suicide, I was so grateful to hear this story and to know that these topics are not going unrecognized.

Any Warhol

Why is this painting so famous? Is it marilyn? Is it the colors, the four pictures of her? What makes this picture one of the most famous art pieces of all time?

This is the evidence of a crystal meth abuser. Drugs become the main focus in a person’s life.

ZPeople take drug for numerous reasons:

ZTo become more popular with their friends

ZTo “have a good time”

ZThey think it will give them pleasure

ZNumb the pain

However, drugs do not solve problems. They hide feelings, and make problems and feelings worse.

Spirit

It makes me sad to think how little school pride our university has. In high school, sports were a very popular scene; everyone would look forward to going to the football games on Friday or the basketball games on Saturday. My friends and I would get so excited to dress up in our school colors and cheer on our teams. It saddens me to think that our school spirit at SMU is at an all time low. Thirty years ago there wasn’t an empty seat at the football games and now almost the entire place is cleared out by halftime. I know that we are not that good at football, but it is really about winning? Does our school spirit only come when the trophies start coming in? I believe that we should support our school no matter how good or bad we are. It is a statement of unity when we show our school pride. We should support our colleagues, teammates, students and university no matter what the outcome of the game is. in thirty years from now we wont remember going to the games, but we will however, forever remember the friends throughout college and the memories we had supporting our University.

I have attached an ESPN documentary trailer showing how far SMU used to go in order to have arguably the most school spirit in Texas. Also seen as the downfall to our school spirit.

Pony Excess 30 on 30: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwtX-4fXOyk

Is It Safe

Spring Break 2011 is coming around the corner and I am so excited to not only have a break from school but also be in the sun with my friends. This year my friends and I decided to go to Cabo in Mexico. Although, this tourist based city gets much attention from college students it also has gotten the attention of many parents. Mexico is not the safest place to be. There are drug lords, numerous people killed in the streets, poverty. It can be an all around unsafe place to be. There have been many alerts throughout the government warning Americans not to go to Mexico, not to cross the border. Although we are staying in an American hotel and planned to stay there I am still a little nervous to go. Cabo has been violence free, the media’s attention is focused on other areas of Mexico like Cancun. Cabo thus far has been safe. However, I know that I have to be extremely careful every moment I am in Cabo. How far are people willing to go to have fun? This also brings up anotheradvertising point. Do advertisers risk our safety to sell. Ads from Cancun look like paradise. The way they market Cabo is perfect for that college student looking to have fun in Cabo. Beautiful beaches, beautiful people, beautiful weather; the perfect place to be for a vacation.

Does this look unsafe to you?

However, you have to remember to make smart decisions.