The Details

The last part of the wedding that I want to discuss is the details. There are a lot of little things that need to be dealt with, and I just want to insure that you are aware of a few things. The easiest way to do this is to make a list, so here it goes:

1) What material do you want for the table cloths?
2) Do you want candles to line your path?
3) What color do you want the candles?
4) What kind of space are you going to have?
5) Do you want a seating chart?
6) Do you want a flower bearer?
7) What kind of flowers are you going to use?
8) What color are they going to be?
9) How do you want your hair?
10) How do you want everyone else’s hair?
11) Is everyone going to wear the same shoes?
12) What about jewelry?
13) What appetizers do you want?
14) What kind of cake do you want?
15) How many do you want?
16) How many people are you going to have?
17) Where are you having the wedding?
18) Do you want a slide show for the beginning of the wedding?
19) What songs so you want played?
20) THE LIST IS ENDLESS!!!

Or so it seems when you are in the middle of planning. I tried to put a few of the details that are uncommonly thought of in there. Remember there are many more things to worry about, and I just wanted to get you started. This is where I am ending my postings, but I wish you all the best of luck, and congratulations!

The Dress

Ok, time for my favorite part of the wedding… the dress!!! There are many different styles of dresses to fit any bride, and the one belief that I hold firm on for the wedding dress is that you are in love with it! Now I’m not saying that you should take a trip to New York and have a famous designer make your dream dress, but I do think that you should be patient and find something that shows your personality. Personally, I am in love with a dress that has a red pattern on the bust and two inch thick red hems, and though I know that it is very untraditional to have color in your dress, I want it really, really badly! I guess it’s a good thing that there aren’t any wedding bells any where in the near future.

The bottom line is that you should do what you want and not worry about what others think on your wedding day. This is about you, and for once I want you to be a little vain and make sure you look gorgeous. Even though I usually attest this kind of behavior, I can let it slide this once…

The Wedding Party

There is a tradition in my family about the wedding party: all of the cousins have to be in it… I know that it has been hard for my older cousins to incorporate (since there were thirteen of us), and now five more can be added to the list! Do you have any family quirks like that? I keep praying that the man I marry doesn’t have a large family that I have to incorporate as well, ugh! But, as we all know, that is unavoidable, so get to planning! I will warn you though; there are a few tricky situations you might find yourself in. One of them is two best friends. What is a girl to do?! My mom had this problem and eventually decided on one of them, but I think there should be another answer. Why can’t you have two bridesmaids? I know that someone has to hold the bouquet, but why not hold two smaller ones? Is it really worth it to hurt one of your best friend’s feelings? Another problem is having a best friend of the opposite sex… uh oh! I must say that being a female Best Man is probably easier to pull off than a male Maid of Honor, but both situations are incredibly sticky. What do they wear? At least it’s socially acceptable for a woman to wear pants and a tie, but what about a man in a dress? I know it sounds funny, but seriously these occurrences happen and they can change the course of a traditional wedding enormously! There are so many situations like these that all I can say is good luck, and I wish you the best!

The Reception

Alright, it’s time for one of the major questions: do I have any say in the reception? Well I believe that this question revolves around a few things. First, are you having a reception because this wouldn’t be kind of pointless if not? Second, are you having a traditional reception (the grooms family takes care of it)? Third, what do your future in-laws think about the whole situation? Communication is the key to this step in planning your wedding. If your future family wants to do the reception themselves, then you don’t have to worry about it, but if they want your opinion or help, give it to them! What better way to get close to his parents then helping them plan? If nothing else, you get some quality time with them.

What you wear to the reception is a toss up as well, in my opinion anyway. I think there are many different possibilities that are all unique and totally up to the bride. Do you wear your dress part of the time? All the time? At all? Once you figure that part out then the rest will come into play. If you change at any time for the reception, what color should you wear? At the weddings I have been to the brides all wore white or cream, but I think a little color is fun and adds a little personal flare. What clothing should you wear: a dress, skirt, pants, or something else? That, I believe, is completely up to you! Be unique!

The Theme

Though there are many different parts to a wedding, the theme is probably my favorite. It is something that can be 100% you. Whether you want to have a traditional wedding or something more creative, the possibilities are endless.

When most people think about a wedding they think white, red, pink, cream, and any other frilly feminine color imaginable. Why not try something new? If white is what you want, and your mind is set, then go for it, but I want to point out a few things that may interest some of you…

1) What is your personality? I know mine is anything but feminine, so why make my most memorable day something I’m not?

2) What matches your personality as a couple? Are you outgoing and wild, laid back and reserved, or somewhere in-between? Don’t forget that your fiancée is having a big day too!

3) What makes you happy? Enough said!

There are many different ways to make your wedding special, and spicing up your theme is just one of them, but I encourage you to think outside of the norm and personalize! Like they say, half of the fun is getting there! So have a blast and get creative!!!

The Location

Where two people are married has been a struggle from the very beginning. It seems like there are certain places that we women are ‘required’ to be married in, and it leaves us feeling cornered. I have a close friend who is thinking about proposing to his girlfriend soon, but he has a major setback. He is Catholic and she is not. When he told me I said big deal… just book the church! Then he informed me that unless both partners are members of the Catholic Church, they can’t have the full service. My friend is postponing his proposal over the site of the wedding, and I find that heartbreaking!

I know another couple whose parents couldn’t decide where the couple should be married, and they never asked for the couple’s opinion. The two ended up eloping because they didn’t want to mess with the fighting anymore. Is any of this sounding familiar? I know there are hundreds of different scenarios like these, and if you are caught up in one my advice is to do what you want! Heck, have a theme wedding! Talk about memorable… And if tradition is what you want, then go for it and make it your own! Whose wedding is this? That’s right, it’s yours! Respect is a must in my book, so of course you have to do all of this politely, but the last thing you want is to be miserable planning what is supposed to be the happiest day of your life! Stand up for yourself, but please (and yes I am begging you!) do NOT become an out of control maniac; the opinion of others is just that, an opinion. You can definitely gently throw their idea out the window… or just nod and do it your way! Remember, it is your wedding!

The Date

Ok ladies, he just proposed in the most romantic way, and of course you said yes! What kind of girl wouldn’t? Now for the hard part… the planning! The first thing you should decide upon is the date. I know that you can’t set an exact date until you get closer to the month you want (for those of you who are wondering why, there are weather issues you have to watch out for during every time of the year), but the season and even the month can greatly help you plan the rest of your wedding. You want to get married in the winter? Consider sleeves (fashionable of course)! Want a summer wedding? Your bridesmaids’ dresses should probably be short. The list is endless! What I strongly believe in, however, is picking a date that is meaningful to the two of you. When was your first date? You might want to think about setting it in relation to that day. I personally am not a fan of the exact day… but what about exactly six months after? Three? It is all up to you, but I think that the more memorable the day, the more special and personal it will be for the two of you. My boyfriend and I have birthdays thirteen days apart, and if we end up together I would love to have my wedding in-between our birthdays. Maybe you have something quirky like that, or even an inside joke. Either way I strongly suggest that you make this about the two of you! Have fun with it and then move on to the other details!

Diet Pepsi Max Commercial

· Product Name: Diet Pepsi Max
· Year Made: 2008
· Ad Agency: BBDO

The Diet Pepsi Max Ad for the 2008 Super Bowl certainly turned a lot of heads, and
not only on the commercial either. Everyone at the party I was at for the game was sitting mesmerized as the commercial was playing. What makes this ad so special that a large group of teenagers were stopped in their tracks? The answer is simple: it was funny! What set this commercial apart, however, was the head bobbing technique. It is the attention grabber along with one of the funniest things to see someone do. Seeing people in their everyday lives falling asleep brings everyone back to a time that either they fell asleep on the go or saw someone else do it (which is even better!). Not only was there definite puffery with the snapping of the head when everyone fell asleep, but after they drank the Diet Pepsi Max they all bobbed their heads to the beat as well. This ad is not really selling anything other than the actual product because it is full of average everyday people living their lives. It did promote a universal sleepiness, but I don’t think that is an uncommon belief.

This ad was very effective to not only one, but many different groups of people. Since this commercial targeted multiple age groups and ethnicities, the Pepsi Company had the hard task of appealing to everyone. When they made their ad they knew that they would be dealing with die hard football fans, husbands and wives of the die hard football fans, casual football watchers, channel surfers, and children. They know that a good amount of these people would be drinking, and since their product is non-alcoholic, those people would need a little bit of persuasion. By using one of the most popular songs of the year What Is Love by Haddaway, they got a lot of people to pay attention right off the bat. Then by using the head bobbing technique they turned a few more heads. The fact that the commercial was on during the Super Bowl pretty much guaranteed that everyone else was watching anyway (since everyone knows that this is the best time to watch commercials). I definitely went out and tried the Diet Pepsi Max after seeing this commercial out of pure curiosity, and I do not even like diet soda. In fact, I usually avoid it like the plague...

Rift Fournier

Last Friday I had the privilege of listening to Professor Rift Fournier speak about his experiences in the media industry. Mr. Fournier hasn’t been teaching at Lindenwood University that long, in fact I believe this is the first year we students have had the opportunity to take one of his classes. What Professor Fournier is really famous for is writing, producing, and even acting for television.

When Rift was young, he aspired to be a writer. At the time he believed that writing was sitting around in a bath robe all day, waiting for ideas to come. However, when he graduated from high school he decided to get a degree, so he went to a university and studied to become a doctor. Many science courses later he decided that the medical field wasn’t for him and decided to go to law school. In his junior year, Professor Fournier decided to move to Hollywood to become a writer. He eventually got a job writing for a comedian who paid him five dollars a joke… not exactly his idea of fun, so he decided to move on.

A few years and several moves later, Rift landed a job writing and producing the hit television series “Go”. He and two other guys about his age (mid twenties) were a huge success and he said that they had a lot of fun. He told us about one time in particular. He said that he had a huge office (oversized in his opinion) that he and one of his colleagues were in one day, talking about how if their bosses knew how much fun they were having with their jobs, they would probably get fired. Mr. Fournier’s advice to my class was to find something that we enjoy, for if we don’t, no matter how much money we make, we are going to be miserable. He went on to write for twelve more television shows, and produce for three of them. He even acted in “Kiss My Grits” in 1982.

Mr. Fournier’s life has been filled with change and excitement that many will never have the opportunity to experience, and as an aspiring writer I can only hope that in the years to come I will have some of the success that he has had.

TV on the Internet

Television replaced radio’s spotlight a few decades ago because the shows that families were listening to suddenly had actors that they could see. Since then TV has pretty much been on top of the electronic totem pole, but now the internet is changing that. Many of the shows that are available on television are now also available online, without time restraints, and without commercials. You can also get your news and music online which makes the idea of watching television fade into the back of our minds.

The reason that this change is coming about is convergence, the combining of two or more different kinds of electronic devices into one mechanism (example the iPhone). This idea has been expanded to the internet, and it seems likely that computers will soon bring serious problems to television if some sort of action isn’t taken soon. One big problem is commercial revenue. If the internet becomes a large source of entertainment, then businesses aren’t going to want to publicize on TV stations anymore since the majority of the population are going to be using the internet.

I believe the big question is ‘what are the television companies going to do’ because convergence with the internet is inevitable. Just like radio had to become something it wasn’t used to (music based) TV needs to change in order to survive.

Writing Style

I am not into blogging… to be completely honest, I had no idea what a blog was until I was told to make one for this class. What I have discovered is that I absolutely love it! Having the ability to put my opinions out for everyone to read is amazing, and since I am double majoring in communications (public relations) and journalism, this project is by far my favorite from any class up to this point in my educational career.

When I was told that I had to write about a blog, I was at a total loss. I had never read a blog that wasn’t from Professor Falk or one of my classmates. While I went searching for a blog that I liked, I stumbled across an author named Aida Falzic. She has her degree in public relations and is fluent in three languages. However, what caught my attention is her ability to discuss serious topics as well as lighthearted ones.

My favorite post on her blog is her first one: “You Can’t Sit With Us!” The reason that I love this particular post is that it is so true. She discusses cliques and that they don’t stop after high school and even after college. She claims that it is still a problem in the workplace. I think that what makes her writing so successful is using a quote or example from a popular subject like a movie in her posts. This draws you in and is usually humorous. She doesn’t use any other types of multimedia components, but I still like her style of writing, and I think that it speaks for itself. She writes from the heart and personal opinion, so she doesn’t really need other forms of multimedia to make her point.

I hope that my writing has the same impact on others as hers has on me, for she makes me think with everything she writes. I encourage everyone to read a few of the posts on her blog.

Palin Rocks It!

Presidential debates are usually long, drawn out, and if you pay close enough attention you will notice that all candidates for President and Vice President turn every question so that they talk about a totally different issue than was originally being discussed. If the question was focusing on how an issue should be handled in one country, another country is immediately brought up with only a vague description of the original issue, if that issue was mentioned at all. When a candidate is questioned about their personal views, they automatically attack their opponent’s views. The Vice Presidential debate between Senator Biden and Governor Palin was no exception to this trend. While the debate was typical, there was another aspect that I focused on.

I personally am not the biggest fan of either set of candidates, believing that we need a new party… but since I can’t do anything about that, I instead focused on something completely different about the debate. How would Governor Palin present herself to the masses? Think about it, she is the first republican women to make it to the final leg of a presidential election, so how would she portray women? When you take the time to really think about Senator McCain’s surprising choice for a running mate, he was pretty smart about it. Not only is Sarah Palin family oriented, a Governor of a large state, a Republican (important for the fact that he is of the same party), and gorgeous (which for some reason is important to some people…), but she also doesn’t have the same kind of political baggage hanging over her head that most politicians in Washington do.

In the debate Senator Biden claimed that she didn’t have enough experience, but she retorted that just because she didn’t participate in the same kind of political ‘activities’ as the politicians didn’t mean that she was inept. She sold herself as the new kind of candidate, one that was experienced in leadership and could bring completely new things to our country’s government on a national level. She also didn’t pretend that she agreed with John McCain on every issue. While Senator Biden was saying that he backed Senator Obama in every issue, Governor Palin was stating that she and Senator McCain didn’t agree on everything, but that is what made them a good team, that they would have to come to compromises instead of the Vice President rolling over and playing dead. This shows that more than one side will be supported in a lot of issues, and I think that in general that is something the public likes to hear.

Now put your individual thoughts and beliefs aside, and think about her as a person. She didn’t back down when hard questions were presented, and more importantly she was never intimidated. If you forget the issues and look at Governor Palin you will see a strong woman who is more than capable of making decisions. If nothing else, Sarah Palin showed that a woman is more than capable to be in office, whether or not she is elected for the job.

The "War of the Worlds" Crisis

Imagine you were watching your favorite television program, and you were in a very intense scene when suddenly the commercials came on. You were so mad that they left you hanging that you decided to channel surf for a few minutes (and everyone knows that you have to turn it to the news, or you might get hooked on something else), so you switched to your favorite news station. As you half listened to the reporter you noticed she was talking about a major bombing in the United States a few minutes ago. What would your reaction be? I bet you would at least forget about your show.

The people who were listening to the radio the night “War of the Worlds” was broadcasted had this same scare. Suppose that the reporter in the scenario above had started the program stating that the story was fictional, maybe even came from a new controversial book or something along those lines, but you didn’t hear that part. Is a bombing so unlikely?

After September 11, 2001, a lot of people came to realize that America could be affected by other countries. Since we hadn’t been attacked since Pearl Harbor during World War II, a lot of citizens thought we were invincible, but the truth is that there are ways to get past security (even though they have greatly diminished since that tragic day in September). The people who believed the Hallows Eve broadcast had been through the Great Depression and were still wary of wars breaking out throughout the world, so was it a far stretch to believe we were under attack? I don’t think so.

By missing the first part of the program, many people thought the broadcast was factual. My question is why didn’t the program tell the listeners periodically that the news report was actually a story? How hard would it have been to say “for those of you who just joined us, all of the following content is fictional and not based off a real event”? Just a few words every once in a while would have solved many problems. I personally think that it was irresponsible and poorly thought out to have a warning at the very beginning of the show, but leave the people who tuned in late in the dark.

The study said that people who were less inclined to critical thinking or more religious were likely to be more affected by the broadcast, but I have to ask myself why? Why wouldn’t a logical thinker believe that America could be under attack? Is this why our country wasn’t prepared for September 11, because our leaders thought we were invincible? That doesn’t sound right to me. The logical thinkers, in my opinion, should be more cautious when it comes to our nation’s safety, not assuming that nothing could go wrong. This being said, I personally thought our government handled the Twin Towers incident to the best of their abilities and don’t blame them. My point is that the broadcast was believable.

If people were overly cautious it was for a good reason, and I think we need to keep preparing for devastating incidents, even if they are far fetched.

American Media: Worldwide or Nationwide

For this weeks post I was asked to interview an international student attending Lindenwood University, and I thought there was no better place to go than the place I do my Work and Learn: the Cafeteria. At my college we can enter a program called Work and Learn where we work 150 hours a semester earning eight dollars an hour, and most of the international students work in the cafeteria. Tonight I found this assignment a great way to not only learn about different cultures, but also to make new friends. I met two girls in the cafeteria from two different countries. I decided to ask the first about her nation’s television and newspaper distribution.

Erica is from Japan and she is at Lindenwood studying Business Management and wants to go back to her hometown to work. When I asked her about American Media she wouldn’t stop talking about it. She said that all of it was translated on her local stations so she could watch her favorite shows. This is when she surprised me by asking me if I watched anime, Japanese cartoons (for lack of a better definition), which I have to admit I am addicted to (InuYasha is my favorite!!!). She explained that the same concept applied to American shows; the words are dubbed over. She also said that American music was very popular. When I asked her about Japan’s newspaper system she said it was all done through individual providences. Japan is made up of 47 providences, and each one is responsible for their own newspaper branch.

All in all Japanese media seemed to be handled about like American media in most respects. Then I talked to a girl from Brazil who was also studying Business, but unlike Erica, Jackie wants to get her visa and work in the United States. She said that in Brazil their regular ‘cable’ television has some American shows; however, they aren’t translated. This being the case, there are two options for Brazilians if they want to watch these shows. They can either learn English or pay for a different type of television that either dubs over the words or has the translation at the bottom. She also explained that most of her favorite series’ are in their fourth season here but are only in the second season in Brazil, so she missed two entire seasons when she came to college. The Brazilian newspaper system, according to Jackie, isn’t very popular where she lives. She said that you can usually find a newspaper in her local bookstore, but other than that newspapers weren’t around except in big cities. This is a lot different than the American press, for you not only find one but three or four major newspapers in most medium sized cities, let alone major ones.

When you look at media it is going to be different in every culture, but the basic idea is the same, well at least in Japan, Brazil, and America. The main thing is that different cultures pull from each other to create change and to improve. No country hasn’t been affected in some way, and in my opinion that’s the way is should be.

With My Generation It's Like This...

The older generation has one thing right about mine: they don’t understand us. They say that we are lazy and disrespectful in the workplace, expecting too much, but I have to strongly disagree. There are many things that Generation Y has been raised around that no other generation can understand, yet the older generations are becoming bitter instead of listening and trying to understand. This reaction is to be expected because that’s the way it has always been.

I went home this weekend and discussed my generation with my family, and what they told me came as a surprise: their parents had said the same things about them. My dad once told me that his parents (who are Pentecostal preachers) hated his rock music, just like my mom hates my rap music. Look at the movie Footloose, they weren’t allowed to dance because it was considered evil. In biblical times children were stoned for any disobedience. Every generation is different from the next, and to be honest I believe that it is the fact that older people don’t understand younger ideas that is causing the uproar.

60 Minutes stated that The Millenials are lazy. Every generation has lazy individuals, and my generation is no exception. This being said, I don’t believe that we are all lazy. I believe that we are just so used to a fast paced response to our requests and problems that we are seen as lazy. When I think about it, I had a form of LeapFrog when I was 5 and a cell phnoe in middle school. My mom and I shared our first phone plan together. I have the laptop that I am typing this on for college and my own credit card. My parents didn’t even have seatbelts growing up. My mom told me that she debated whether seatbelts or airbags should be in cars. Oh how the times have changed.

It was also mentioned in the 60 Minutes recording that we were told that we were special at an early age, and a lot of us were. I guess I don’t understand when being encouraged became a bad thing. Just because you didn’t win a ball game, doesn’t mean you aren’t a winner. When I was in first grade I threw some of my papers away because they “weren’t good enough grades”. It turns out that my teacher was my next door neighbor and gave the papers to my mom. My mom had to have a long talk with me about how an A- was a good grade and to be proud of it. To an extent I think elementary and high school teachers did me a disservice by telling me that a C was okay. Even though I never listened to them, other kids did. So how is giving the last place team a metal worse that telling a kid that achieving mediocrity is acceptable? How can our elders say that we are a generation that will accomplish nothing when they taught us not to achieve?

I believe that my generation is full of potential, and we will surprise many with what we accomplish. We are highly underestimated, yet we will show everyone what we are really made of. Look at our high school and college graduate level; it’s much higher than in the past. My elders need to give us a chance. Since this isn’t very likely, I think that a lot of people will be eating their words in the future, and that’s okay. I just hope not too many of my peers let their criticism get to them before then.

Away From Home: Where to Turn

I grew up in church. Three times in a week just like clockwork: Sunday morning - go to service and Sunday school. Sunday evening - back to another service. Wednesday afternoon - go to the church meal and then the evening service. When I moved to Jefferson City my junior year of high school I was faced with starting completely over, and I had never been anywhere but church.

There are many things that people don’t know about me. The most surprising to most is how much I love my family. Almost as shocking is the fact that I don’t party… ever. In high school I went to one party only to have someone take me straight home, but it wasn’t because I didn’t like the people. They were some of my best friends, yet something kept me away. I spent a lot of time searching for the reason for my “anti-social” tendencies, and for a long time I just couldn’t place it.

I was talking to my mom last year, and she asked me why I never went out with friends. I told her that I just didn’t want to be a part of the same things that they did, but when she asked me why, I still didn’t have an answer for her. I didn’t even have an answer for myself. As we talked about the reasons why I liked to listen to music instead of go to dances and read instead of party, my mom found the answer. It was there all along. The reason that I didn’t do any of the things that my classmates were involved in was my faith.

I now realize that my faith keeps me grounded. In 1 Corinthians 3:16 the Bible says, “You are the temple of God and that the Spirit dwells in you” and I truly believe that. My morals are based on the faith that I have in Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior, and even though I might get ridiculed for it, sticking to my beliefs is very important to me.

Now that I am in college I understand what it is to truly feel alone. The first night I was here I truly lost it, but when I called my dad he reminded me of my faith and told me to read my Bible. He then prayed with me and I went right to sleep. The peace that comes over me when I pray is an awing experience. I already love this campus and feel like I have really found my calling in the communication’s field. I know I am in the right college: Lindenwood.

When I was asked to write about something that I was passionate about, I was clueless. Then I remembered the first day on campus and I realized that there is nothing that I am more passionate about than my faith. It defines me. If you ask any one of my friends they will tell you that I read my Bible regularly and constantly am looking for someone to discuss ways to apply it. Without my faith, I wouldn’t be the person that I am today.

I am truly blessed. How many kids get to follow all of their childhood dreams? Honestly, I am just glad to be here and I, along with all of my peers, need to cherish every moment because not everyone gets an opportunity to get the education that they want and they certainly don’t get all of the job opportunities that we will be receiving when we get our degrees. What we do with our lives now determines what we can accomplish later, and I believe that through my faith I will do whatever I set my mind to.