Smart Phones

This world is changing drastically, and fast. With all of the technology to get things done from a simple email, to turning on your car, to turning on a fire in your home, listen to music, tv, and even cash checks with smart phones, they are just doing it all these days! They are taking over! Have you ever wondered what it would be like if we did not have all of this technology and communication 24/7 by juggling Facebook with family, Twitter with friends, and Instagram for the fun of it? I know that if I am ever in a time where I cannot have my phone for some reason (ex. bill needs to be paid, phone breaks, etc.) that I am actually SO MUCH less stressed out without the constant vibe or notification sound every second of the day. People used to live so much simpler lives, and appreciated the little things. I realize that America is evolving, but are we actually putting our values into question when a son sends his mother a text for mother's day, instead of just calling? To keep up with this fast pace environment that we live in, of course these smart phones enable us to get things done quicker. But is this the answer?

Living Social

So, I have known about Living Social for a while now but I just finally gave in and downloaded the app. It may be the coolest app that I have on my phone now! How Living Social works is they have new coupons that you can purchase under "Today's Deals" everyday! For instance you can spend only $15 on Living Social and spend $30 at a restaurant with the voucher that you print off or simply have the bar code to scan on your phone! I know this is terrible, considering I am broke! But for Christmas and stuff, they have tons of massages, chiropractic work, plants, phone cases, you name it! I have already purchased my little brother's birthday present on there & it shipped to my house for free! You can find ANYTHING including trips and excursions on Living Social, for example a 2-night stay in DC at the Atlantic City Casino for almost half the price as if you just went into the casino and purchased a 2 night stay. I want to believe that it is a way to save me money, BUT the downfall is that in one-click of a button I can purchase these great deals that I see on my phone. This flamboyant spending is NOT what I needed, but I think I am addicted.

Legalization of Marijuana Bills PASSED

I know this is a TAD late, but OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS THIS IS AMAZING. On November 7th when Obama got reelected as president, there was also some great news given to the US that night. This news was that Colorado and Washington passed the bill to legalize Recreational use of marijuana in their states! Not to mention, Massachussetts passed their bill to legalize Marijuana for medicinal use. This is a major stepping stone for our country. Some have other opinions, everyone does, but watch these states excel over the next few years money wise. Taxing marijuana could be the answer the our prayers these days. Everyone needs to admit that the United States is not as conservative as we used to be, and in these hard times maybe we should be more open minded on how to fix all of the money and criminal issues that the legalization bill may aid. Overtime, I know that more states will join in and vote to pass this law in other states. It is sad to say that Virginia will most definitely be LAST. Just my opinion of course. But this is why I would LOVE to move out of the commonwealth and actually have some freedom at last ;)

 

NEXT STOP: Boulder Colorado!

Quite Ironic: Topic of Family

Today in Sweeney's class, most people did not show up, but we did some pretty important stuff! ;) Kidding, don't freak out anyone. But we did brainstorm on the board all of the topics that relate to FAMILY. To everyone's surprise, this brainstorm on the board took much longer than the Pop Culture and Crime and Punishment topics. WE as a class chose to do the Family topic last, KNOWING that this paper would recieve the most credit. WOW GUYS, we could barely fill the board! Just kidding, but the brainstorming didn't just come as easily to us today. Perhaps it was because there were not as many classmates that attended today's class, or perhaps this topic is actually a tough one! Sweeney made a good point that it has to be an argumentative essay, and to keep our audience in mind. Family is a very controversial topic, considering everyone has one, and they are all different. I hope to see many good ideas flourish from this topic, maybe even some sentimental value in some of them! Ones that touch the heart, ya know? Unfortuantely, I have not chosen my topic yet but since this is our last paper AND it is about something that everyone is hopefully familiar with, I believe that I (As well as everyone else) will be enthused to write when we all land on something worth writing about.

What's up with this weather VA?

Alright so it is kind of freaking me out that we just had a hurricane.... that brought SNOW, as well as much devastation. (Luckily Richmond did not get so much damage from Sandy) But in general, yesterday my phone said that the temperature outside was 76* but TODAY on the other hand, my phone reads something like 46* ! WHAT?! This weather is completely unpredictable and quite frankly, I'm over it. Yesterday it didn't even feel like it was almost Thanksgiving and now today it feels like we are in the middle of winter PLUS with rain! Such a bummer. It is really throwing me off, and I do not like this sudden change. I'm not a completely religious person but not being able to predict the weather is actually written in stories in the bible, I want to say in the book of Revelation. I'm not sure if any other religions have this stuff documented but this weather issue, as well as many other issues of course, I believe are foreshadowing our future. I'm not usually a dark person, but I do believe that we are living in terrible times. I'm pretty nervous of what the future may bring.

Online Learning

I am the type of person that likes everything on paper, call it old school all you want; but I hate doing any type of schooling online! Whether it be writing, reading, math, science, etc. I learn better and retain my knowledge more accurately when it is in front of me, physically on paper. I know it's not the most eco-friendly approach on learning but that's just how I am. When I write papers for english, I'm the type of person that literally WRITES it on paper, and then types my work on the computer. This, I believe, gives me an extra step to revise my work and it helps me everytime. On the other hand, my math class has a Webassign which is online homework assignments that have to be submitted over the internet. Typing in the exponents, variables, fractions, plus/minus/equals signs is such a pain! Not to mention, if just one little piece is typed in wrong, the whole problem is incorrect! It makes me so frustrated when I cannot figure out a problem and then I find out that it was because of a small error that I typed out wrong. I'm deffinitely on the losing end considering that everything is turning to technology, and in the future I'm sure that writing things down will be something of the past. Saving trees and paper is certainly a great point, but I'd rather recycle, than use the internet for all of my learning ;)

Worst Cell Phone Service EVER

So, is it me or does anyone else have THE WORST cell phone reception on campus (especially in the dorms) of anywhere besides in a valley of the mountains in West Virginia? I get so incredibly frustrated when I am trying to multi-task for example, do my work on my computer in my room and take a phone call. In addition, my phone barely works in Mcneer (not at all on the 2nd floor) and Wi-Fi cannot connect in HMSS. It is so inconvenient to completely stop what I am doing to go outside to talk on my phone, as well as send a text several times for it to go through. I am getting so fed up with my coverage here with T-mobile that I am actually asking for a new phone for Christmas on my dad's plan (Verizon). Hopefully someone has some feedback regarding if Verizon coverage is better here at Richard Bland? Because I really do not think that anything makes me more upset than to go outside alone at night in my pajamas simply to use my phone.. I don't think that is unreasonable, is it? Maybe it is just my service provider, but if not then this is very inconvenient and I really do not know how to go about this ongoing issue.

P.S. I've tried my Wi-Fi calling in my dorm.... still will not work. Can you say FRUSTRATING?!

Too Much to Handle

It is unfortunate that I JUST realized 2 days ago that I was taking 16 credit hours, and I was trying to maintain a 5-6 day weekly work schedule. I felt like I had been overwhelmed for the past couple of weeks, but I thought that was normal. When I realized how many credits I was taking this semester, I was on the verge of dropping my Gen Bio course, and the Bio Lab. Instead, I talked to financial aid and they highly recommended that I do not drop these courses due to the fact that I have already paid for them, not to mention I am passing both and have done so much work for them already. Luckily, I slept on it and called my grandmother the next day in a panic because I did not want to drop the classes. My grandmother agreed and decided that I should cut back my hours at work and she so generously said that she would help me pay for the necessities of living (gas, food, etc.) I wish that I could just concentrate on school and not have to work, but I do realize that this is just an adversity of life. Money is an issue, and I wish that it was not. But I am so very lucky to have a supportive grandma that is willing to aid me during this time of financial struggle. In the end, I am staying in my Bio courses and have cut my work days to only 2-3 days max per week. A weight has been lifted off of my shoulders and I feel like I can now do my best in my courses, as well as have time to get help when I need it. I am so grateful that the lady in financial aid told me to sleep on it, and that I reached out to my loving grandmother. Now, all is resolved and I can sleep a little better at night.

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store

So, I just started working at Cracker Barrel about a month ago now and I think I'm diggin' it! Ever wondered what those yellow stars on the brown aprons were? Well, there are these weird PAR (Personal Achievement Responsibility) tests that are a requirement for every employee and with each test passed, you earn a star. It sounds corny, but its not just a "star" that you earn on your apron, but also a pay raise! $$ employee discounts, PAID VACATIONS, etc. It's kind of crazy because I never in my wildest dreams thought that a restaurant would have benefits and paid vacations, but anyways..... At PAR level 2 (2 stars) you can cross train to do whatever you want in the restaurant/store. And boy is there a crazy amount of opportunity there! Because you could either do Cashier, Retail, Cook, Server, Host, Dish, and there are probably more jobs other than these but GEEZ that's kind of a lot of choices! Not to mention, inside of every one of these different jobs I named are about 10 other duties that you must perform inside of that particular job.

For instance, I have trained to be a Hostess: Ok, so a Hostess' "bottom line" as they call it, is: "No Empty Tables" So if we are on a Wait List then AS SOON as a table gets up, we are to "scout" it and call the next party to be "on deck" while the busser cleans it.

 The Hostess' job is split into 4 main parts on the weekends because it gets so packed,

#1 Name Taker who is at the front of the store (outside on the porch) at a podium taking names

#2 Name Caller who is at the main Host stand and he/she calls the names on the loud speaker

#3 Seater who literally walks the people to their seats

#4 Scouter who is the person that looks for the open tables

MIND YOU that we all have headsets that connect us with one another, and to be honest it gets pretty intense on the weekends!

So stop in sometime to see me, it's the one in Hopewell/Chester! Great food, service, & a cool store!

After reading The Question of Originality and Writing and the Threshold of Life, I concurred that the art of writing is not as simple as I thought it was prior to being exposed to these essays. The knowledge and perspective of Jane Hirshfield was quite insightful to read as our first English assignment, due to the depth and unique outlook included regarding writing, poetry, art, and even life itself. One quote that stood out, in my opinion was "There are mountains hidden in mountains. There are mountains hidden in hiddenness." Personally, I perceived this metaphor to symbolize how life is full of mysteries, and things we are not aware of; and even once we make discoveries along our way, still present is a never-ending amount of the unknown still waiting to be uncovered. I also learned that, in fact, the most beneficial writing takes place individually, alone, and in silent solitude. These essays have stimulated my thoughts on how to write something "original" by explaining how the truth and authenticity is essential, and sometimes rebellion can have the outcome of achievement. The threshold theory is quite extreme, but can be utilized in a more casual sense to enhance a writer's thought process when creating a piece. Instead of over analyzing everything that can be written about, the threshold theory exhibits the mentality to let the various aspects of life come naturally. Additionally, recalling the past, pondering the future, and finding the place in between the two is necessary to originality, creativity, and innovation with anything that has been, or will be constructed.