Ola!

So, we had to comment on six other blogs right? Well, here are the blogs that I commented on!

Diana Ho’s Colossal U Blog:
http://dianasaaurus.blogspot.com/2009/05/re-colossal-u-ad-campaign.html

Francesca Gomba’s Cell phone Blog;
http://chelalala.blogspot.com/2009/06/hello.html

Rosemary Ku’s Technology Blog;
http://rosemaryk01.blogspot.com/2009/05/everything-is-amazing-and-nobody-is.html

Mandy Chik’s Gaming Blog;
http://mandy-mw.blogspot.com/2009/01/gaming-gone-wild.html

Cassandra Fidelino’s Eccentrick Blog;
http://cassandrajaade.blogspot.com/2009/06/eccentrick-art-show-2009.html

Gelica Salvador’s Obama Blog;
http://gelllybeans.blogspot.com/2008/11/campaign-trail.html

Goodbye Gr.10 Comm!

I can’t believe the year’s already over! Grade 10 has been quite the year for me, and even though I might not have spent much time in the Comm department, this really was one of my favourite courses. I think I learned quite a bit from what I hadn’t already known. I’ve been into Photoshop since like, grade 7, and I was really excited to take this course. Not only did I further develop my skills in Photoshop, but I learned how to use the program Illustrator, and throughout the course, we created projects using both of them.

For our first project, we did a multiple exposure picture. I have done many of these images before, so the unit was really easy to me. I went to Velanie’s house to take my pictures! J A couple days ago, I was examining the pictures, and noticed that one of them was slightly moved, and it saddened me! Next time, I’ll use a tripod... Hahaha. Anyways.. Yeah, this project was really fun, and really easy. Unfortunately it wasn’t put up in the art show... :(

For our next project, we did a “Circus Collage.” At first, I thought that this project was really hard. I had no idea which images to put on it, or how to arrange everything. I started it, and then I didn’t touch it for a while, and then when I got back to it, I realized that it was really bad, and deleted it... Hahaha, so then I started a new one, and found it to be incredibly easy! I have no idea why. I guess I was just feeling more creative! I personally don’t think my collage was all that great, and I sort of think I rushed it a bit. But that’s okay, it’s not soooo bad..... :)

Our next project was based on Illustrator. Vectorizing! I didn’t quite get how to do it at first, and I was quite confused doing the tutorial, but in the end, I finally got the hang of it, and now I’m an okay vectorizer! So for our pattern, we had to vectorize three objects. The objects that were “randomly” chosen for me were a guitar, a dog bone, and an iPod nano. I don’t think that my pattern is really good... The objects were sort of spaced out too much! And I didn’t know how to get it closer without overlapping another image... So I had to settle for what I could.

The next project was the Eccentric Inspiration. For my inspirational person, I chose Jason Mraz. I’ve never heard of him until about September 2008, through the song “I’m Yours.” I really liked the song, so I decided to check out his other music, and I found that all of his songs were all amazing, because they all have great meanings and lyrics that anyone can relate to. The first image I chose to vectorize was extremely confusing. I thought that maybe I was doing something wrong! So I chose another image, and it was so much easier! Sort of.... I thought this project was really fun to do. After I understood it, that is!

Our last and final project was the WEccentrick Video! I was stuck working with Nykosi... (Just joking, it was really fun working with her!) And our video was called s0 PHUNNIE. We seriously had so much fun creating it. We laughed a lot, and were often told to start working! We were working! Mostly...Hahaha. Our video took quite a few days to film, but when we did film, it was really fun, and got great videos. We ended up getting our video completed in time for the art show. I was really happy to see our video up there, and I was even happier to hear that so many people enjoyed it!

Comm. Tech was such a fun course! From the stuff we learned, to the area, and all the people who also took it, they all helped make my Comm. Experience so much more enjoyable! :)

Algoma U!

Well, this topic thing isn’t in the comm blog, but we need 6 blogs, so it only makes sense to steal one from media! Haha.

So anyways, when I first saw those “Colossal U” advertisements on busses, and subways, I was quite confused. Were they trying to make their university sound good? Was it a joke? Usually when there’s ads like that which are supposed to be a joke, they would indicate it somewhere on the ad. But nope, not this one! So then I decided to see the website. I was checking everything out, when BAM! Some random lady appeared, and started talking. Turns out this whole Colossal U ad was a cover! The website reveals that all of those ads were for an actual university called “Algoma University.”
After that lady explains Algoma, she brings up a couple clips about some of the students and teachers experiences from there. Personally, I don’t think this is a good way to advertise a university. If you want to get noticed, you have to actually put yourself out there. Algoma was basically doing the opposite. They put up fake ads. The ads, however, were kind of describing the complete opposite of what the university is all about.

What if someone came across that ad, and saw what it said, and didn’t bother to check anything about it. They would take one look and go “Yeah right!” And leave. Algoma would get one less person to see what they’re really about. However, hopefully university bound students have more curiosity and actually check out the website. If Algoma advertised themselves for who they are, and not by putting up fake ads, I think they would get a lot more recognition. But whatever, to each his own, right? But I guess they did get a lot of attention, seeing as there’s about like, a million grade 10s who have to write a blog about it! And, their ads were interesting, because they made people thing... So I guess the ads weren’t that bad after all.......

ART SHOW YAY! :)

I have been going to all of Mary Ward’s art shows since Enigma. They were all amazing! I remember this year’s art show week like it was just yesterday! I didn’t think I would spend so much time at the art show, because I had lots of work to do, but the art show is just so magical, it was hard to stay away. I’m pretty sure I spent most of my time in the Grade 10 “I AM” video room. I always got excited to see my video playing. However, it got awkward when it was done, and there was just a bunch of random people staring at me wondering “is that the girl from the video?” Nonetheless, it was fun watching every single one of the grade 10 videos. I swear I’ve seen them all like, 3454 times.

I really enjoyed this year’s art show. I liked the theme “Eccentrick.” Everything was really crazy and unique, and I enjoyed all the piece’s I saw. I remember one of the days, I spent a while in the little graffiti area, just writing “TAYLOR WAS HERE!” “TAYLOR IS COOL!” “TAYLOR WAS HERE, TOO!” all over the place! It was really fun, and I think that made Eccentrick a lot more enjoyable, because people who don’t even attend Mary Ward could be part of the art show just by signing their name.

I think that aside from the grade 10 videos, my favourite part of the art show was those little stuffed ...things.. hanging from the ceiling in the design area. I thought some of them were really cute. By far, my favourite was the lima bean one! However, I loved all of them. They were really creative, and some of them were extremely cute. The whole art show was really enjoyable. I only got to spend probably less than 2 days there. Which sucks, because it was really amazing. I can’t wait for next year’s art show, and I hope it’s just as amazing as this year’s! Wait, never mind, I KNOW it’ll be just as amazing!!

s0 PHUNNIE

Best video ever! ;)

The colours on the picture are sort of distorted... ;[

Hold on, someone's on the other line!

No matter where you go, there will always be that one random person behind you yapping away on their cell phone. I think that cell phones are a great invention, don’t get me wrong, but it’s annoying when people take advantage of them. I mostly use my cell phone for text messaging. I have unlimited texting, which most people consider lucky. However, I think that people should be more considerate when using cell phones. Cell phones have changed a lot over time. When I got my first cell phone, I was really young. Believe it or not, I was 10 years old. It was my birthday present. My mom set it up and everything, put it in a little gift bag, and when she handed it to me, my father called it, and surprisingly, the ring tone was set to “Happy Birthday.” I was really excited. My first ever cell phone! However, now that I think of it, I really had no use for it. All cell phones could do then was make calls, and send text messages. Now, cell phones have many features, such as voicemail, internet, mp3 players, and real song ring tones. My cell phone does all of those.

I feel like a hypocrite now that I’m writing this blog. I got my cell phone at such a young age, yet now, when I see a young girl or boy on a cell phone, it kind of gets me angry, because they should be outside doing something with their life. I was never really a phone talker (still not,) so I guess that makes me less of a hypocrite.. Right? Anyways... Here are my five rules for proper cell phone etiquette!

1. Don’t yell. Cell phones are magical inventions that let you talk to someone who could be on the other side of the world. Just because they’re on the other side of the world, that doesn’t mean that you should yell loud enough for them to hear you! That’s why you’re holding that little thing in your hands!
2. Be respectful. If you’re hanging out with your friends, don’t spend all your time texting or calling someone else for the whole time. If you really wanted to talk to them at that particular moment, you should’ve invited them..
3. Earphones, earphones, earphones! Sometimes when I’m on the bus, I start to hear some random music blasting at the side of my ear. Just because cell phones now have built in mp3’s, doesn’t mean you should abuse it. Not everyone listens to the same music that you do. So don’t let them suffer just because you don’t feel like using earphones.
4. Don’t drive and talk. It could be just as deadly as drinking and driving. Say you’re driving down the highway, talking to your significant other on the phone, when all of a sudden you get into an argument! You’re not focused on driving, and all you think about is how angry you are. It will take your mind off the road, and the next thing you know, you wake up in the hospital without an ear.
5. Turn them off. When you’re in class, there’s nothing scarier than the thought of your cell phone going off in the middle of your teachers speech about quadratic functions. What happens if it does? The teacher will magically appear at your desk with their hand out. You may think they just want a friendly high-five, but you’d be wrong! Turning it off could be a bit extreme, which is why the makers of cell phones have created ring types such as “silent” and “vibrate.”

Again, I feel really hypocritical. I always leave my cell phone on the loudest volume. What would happen if I was in the test centre and someone decides to call me and ask where I am? Uh oh!

Technology helped me create this blog post! :)

Watching that clip was very entertaining. It really made me realize that people these days really do take things for granted. It also made me realize how stubborn people can get when something so innovative is right in front of their face, and they are so unfortunate. My mom always tells us that we’re lucky to have what we do, because she never had it when she was young. Sometimes you just need to realize what is really right there, and stop complaining.

With all the advertising that we encounter every day, it’s hard to not want whatever you see. They make everything look so good, and so magnificent, that you just HAVE to have it. I think that the only form of technology that I couldn’t live without is my laptop. I have a cell phone, and an iPod, but I don’t find myself using those as much as my laptop. But a laptop could perform what a cell phone and an iPod do also. You might not be able to make calls, but there’s instant messaging, and emails that help you to communicate with others. Also, programs such as iTunes, and Windows Media Player allow you to listen to your (..purchased..) music! Unlike many other teenagers, I do not watch television. I did, however, watch Hell’s Kitchen.. But since the season is over, I don’t watch TV. Sure, if I’m passing by my living room while my brothers are watching TV, I’ll watch for a bit, but that’s all.

My father always told us that he never had a microwave when he was a child. I don’t think I would be able to live without a microwave now. Everyone has those times when they’re extremely hungry and need something to eat right that second. So they go into their freezer, and see a box of Pizza Pops. They turn the box over and read the instructions, and there are two options. “Oven Instructions” or “Microwave Instructions.” As soon as you notice that it only takes 3 minutes to cook a Pizza Pop in a microwave, why on earth would you bother waiting half an hour cooking it in the oven?!

Gaming gone too wild.

Having 4 brothers has gotten me to be quite a "gamer." Although I don't play as much as my brothers do, I'm still up to date with many new games because of them.

I like playing video games, but I don't make my life revolve around it. I know when to stop, and I know when I've had too much. I think video games are much more important to young children these days than they were before. I think that is because there are a lot of new gaming systems and games coming out faster than ever.

I think children these days need to play less games. When I was in 7th grade, our school started a program called "Daily Physical Activity," where we took 20 minutes from the day and went outside and participated in something active, whether it be playing basketball, or walking a couple of laps around the track. No one really knew why we had this program at first, but when we asked, they told us truthfully that it was because Ontario's youth are becoming obese. When I heard that, I was really disgusted. How can young children think video games are so important?

I have heard on the news a bit too many times about video games and children. There was a boy who hung himself after his father took away his Nintendo Wii, another boy ran away because he was banned from a video game. He was then later found dead. Also, there was a 15 year old boy who was hurt by playing World Of Warcraft for 15 hours straight. I don't think that anyone should ever play any game whatsoever for 15 hours at a time. That is insane.

Anyways, I think that children need to seriously lay up on the video games.

OBAMA FOR PREZz

I'm not really a person to follow politics, but all the attention about Barack Obama has practically drowned me. Before we were shown the videos during the seminar, my father showed them to me. At the time, I didn't really understand it, because I didn't really pay attention. After I saw it again, I thought that it was a really great way to get a message across.

The messages that are brought to light in this advertisment are the loss of homes, the war in Iraq, medical issues, stock market issues, and hurricane relief issues. I think that Obama's message to the Americans is that he knows and understands these issues, and he wants to do his best to help them. I think this campaign method was effective, because he got his message across to thousands of people.

Most political debates are shown on news channels, and not many people watch those every minute, so having a general commercial like that, that could be shown on many different channels has widened their chances of people seeing it. Seeing at Barack Obama was elected as president, I think that his campaign methods were very effective. He knew what he had to do to get peoples attention, and he did it. He has made history by becoming America's first black president.

Photo from;
http://www.barack-obama.tv/wp-content/themes/Andreas04/images/barack_obama%20dem%20convention.jpg

Hello. This is for my commtech course. Have fun? Bye :)