peoplesmart.com

So a friend of mine brought to my attention, peoplesmart.com.  I am now completely creeped out.  You can type in someones name and the website can give you information on e-mail address, home address, phone number, family members, criminal records and social networking sites that are linked to that name. You have to have an account with them to view all the information but just knowing that someone can look up my information in seconds is still terrifying!

TOMS = love

Why have I not posted about TOMS yet this semester?!?!  TOMS are shoes that when you buy a pair, they give a pair to a kid who doesn't have shoes. This is called One for One. Next semester, I will be starting the TOMS Campus Club at BSU and will be promoting TOMS Shoes.  They are extremely comfortable and are for a great cause! If anyone has ideas about getting the word out for this great cause or would like to know about joining, please let me know!

You may recognize the TOMS founder from AT&T commercials that aired not too long ago! 

Christmas TREE shopping online?

I was just watching the news and heard that you can buy your Christmas tree online.  I have to say that I am not a fan of this.  If you buy your tree in person, it's good for the local farmers and its a family outing that gets everyone in the holiday spirit.  I was extremely upset when my parents decided to get a fake tree three years ago because it was tradition to go out on my dad's birthday (December 13th) and get the Christmas tree and then decorate it. I have many fond memories from picking out a tree in person. I don't like the fact that the internet is making it possible to buy a tree online. Anyone else feel the same way?

F*** You by Cee Lo Green

So the Grammy nominations have been announced and there is great buzz around one song by Cee Lo Green because of the title.  He is nominated for four Grammys and some people think they should use the alternative name for the song which they used in an episode of "Glee."  The song is called "Fuck You" and is a very up beat song and funny.  The alternative name is "Forget You" and is just as up beat but not what the writer and performer intended it to be. The night of the Grammy awards, some of the presenters will either be saying the real name of the song or it will be censored. What's your take?

Cee Lo Green Version

Glee Version (Forget You)

Happy Christmakkah?

Today has a lot going on.  It is the first night of Hanukkah, 25 days until Christmas and World AIDS Day. Since I celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas (Christmakkah) with my family, we have always struggled at finding Hanukkah stuff on the South Shore.  My grandmother gave me this really pretty gold Star of David necklace before she passed away. My sisters have always wanted one just like mine and this year I decided to search for one.  This has become harder than I thought.  I wanted to share with everyone my story from this past weekend...

I was in the mall and I decided to go into every place that sold jewelry and ask if they had any Star of David pendents, charms, anything at all.  Most people were really helpful and said that either they have them on the online store but not in the mall since the Jewish population is so small on the South Shore or that they don't carry them at all and that they are sorry.  My last stop was Macy's and I found one Star of David, I decided to ask the lady if they had any more. She looked at me like I had five heads and then said "If we do, they'd be over there." She pointed and walked away as fast as she could.  I couldn't figure out where she pointed to so I went and I found her again and said to her "Excuse me, I asked where the Star of Davids would be and you walked away from me after pointing. That was very rude, could you please show me where they are instead of pointing?" The women became very defensive and said "Why can't you buy a cross?" I was so upset and just walked out of the store.

After that experience, I was a bit shaken up.  How can people be so rude and ignorant? I know that Judaism isn't as prominent as Catholicism in this "neck of the woods" but you don't need to be so hostile towards someone that is just asking a question.

What do you think?

What's the big deal with Four Lokos?

So I have been hearing about Four Loko in the news a lot and it is kind of driving me crazy (loco).  I understand that it the equivalent on five beers and that it combines an upper and a downer.  If kids want to be stupid and binge drink with these, let them.  If you ban them from college campuses, students will find a way to get them or they will have a party before the Four Lokos disappear from stores around campus, which will end with students in the hospital.  When will people realize that prohibition doesn't work? It will just make things worse.  I may sound horrible for saying some of these things but it's how I feel and see this situation.

Morning Glory

Tonight I went to see the movie Morning Glory with my sister.  I really liked parts of the movie but other parts, there was a lack of storyline.  The one storyline that I thought was really interesting was that one of the characters had an issue with news today. There was a debate about morning news being all about entertainment and nightly news being more about "news stories" (i.e. no "fluff').  It got me thinking about news programs today and how the morning news is light and carefree with little to no "bad news." When you turn the TV on at night and watch the news, you get the depressing scary stories that aren't all that pleasant to watch. Could news programs have a happy medium and still be successful?

Question for you...

As I was going through Playbill.com the other night planning my spring break trip to NYC, I noticed a reoccurring trend in the "new musicals" for the up coming season... Four of them are based off of movies.  "Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark,"  "Elf," "Sister Act,"  and "Catch Me If You Can."  I do have to say that I'm really excited about "Catch Me If You Can" because it has one of my favorite Broadway stars in it, Aaron Tveit.  The other ones I am not sure of.  I know "Spiderman" is a train-wreck after talking to one of my Syracuse professors about it.  He was going to do the set design but couldn't work with Julie Taymor (director).

Main point of this post... Are people losing creativity or are they just plain lazy?

Bring back the triple threats...

So I'm a huge Donald O'Connor fan and my favorite movie musical is Singin' in the Rain.  For a few years there have been many musicals made into movies (i.e Rent, Hairspray, Mama Mia, and soon there will be Wicked and Footloose).  None of these movie musicals compare to Singin' in the Rain, Wizard of Oz, Sound of Music, Cabaret and so on.  The actors in these older movies were triple threats, they could sing, dance and act.  The actors in these new movies musicals bother me (besides Rent since they did use the originals from the stage version).  Musicals started in live theatre where someone couldn't lip-sync and people came to see these well trained actors use their craft.  Today, someone can act, sing or dance... maybe they can do two but it is rare that actors today can do all three.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FW02c5UNGl0
^ Donald O'Connor- Make 'em Laugh form Singin' in the Rain

35mm creative inspiration

So I have been uninspired lately.  I'm a photographer and I have been in a creative rut which makes me very unhappy.  The other day I took out my 35mm film camera and started shooting.  I found that I got more creative shooting with my film camera compared to my DSLR.  There is something thrilling about capturing something on film without knowing what it looks like until its developed.  The images are raw, unedited, pure, natural...  You can't alter film images as much as you can alter digital files.  I developed my film and was complete re-inspired.  Sometimes its good to get away from technology and get back to the roots! 

Christmas in October?!?!?!

Today I was driving one of the kids that I nanny for to hockey.  I was scanning the radio channels and I heard "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" on Oldies 103.3.  As soon as the little girl recognized it, she screamed, "It's October! We haven't had halloween yet and I'm hearing Santa music!"  I think October 27th  might be the earliest I've heard Christmas music on the radio.  I also think stores get ready for Christmas earlier and earlier each year.  I have already seen a few Christmas commercials on television as well.  What does this say about our country?  Are we becoming even more materialistic when it comes to holidays?  Christmas isn't about competing with other stores decorations or sales, christmas is about being with loved ones and if you are religious, it's about the birth of Jesus.  Christmas comes once a year and I think stores and the media drag it out so long that by the time December 25th comes around, we are sick of it and can't enjoy our family.

But seriously, Christmas music already?!?!

'Tis the season to be slutty?

I went costume shopping with a friend over the weekend and I was horrified by how short and revealing the costumes are.  Since when did Halloween be an excuse for women to dress in a way that, I believe, is demeaning to women?  As I was watching TV last night, I saw commercials for the Halloween episodes that will be on this week. One girl was wearing a "black cat" outfit that clearly was a headband with ears, low-cut dress with a short hemline.  I'm really starting to sound like my mother.  I don't understand why women think they have to dress this way!  What happened to being creative with costumes? 

Globalization and Slums

*Warning* Please do not be offended by the music. If you are offended by someone talking about church, God or any Christian views, I suggest you do not watch it.

I went on a mission trip on 2006 to the place in this video. I worked at the orphanage in this village and saw how these people live. It was an extremely humbling experience. After watching Slumdog Millionaire, I wanted to share this video with the people in this class. We are all so tied up in our media driven lives that we don't appreciate the things we have. These families have little to nothing that belongs to them and are the strongest and happiest people I have met. I know Americans that get upset when the power goes out because they can't check their e-mial or facebook. To these people, those are foreign concepts and useless in their lives. God Bless.

FANTASMIC!

Sorry to be blogging about Disney this week but... Tonight, I saw Fantasmic at "MGM" and it was Fantasmic (waka waka as Fozzie Bear would say).  Anyway, it might be the coolest show at Disney.  There's fire, water, fireworks, boats, projected images on water, a stage show and of course, MICKEY! The part that is the most awesome has to be the movie parts they project on the fan of water.  There are clips from all the Disney movies and its crazy how a single line can bring back the entire movie.  I enjoyed the clips of songs from the movies and how I can remember all the words and plots from all! It was a complete nostalgia night.  I do blame this class for making me think about Godzilla every time I see Bambi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmJ1LTdbTfY&feature=related
^^ This is a little taste of the 30 minute show. Pocahontas is my favorite princess and this is the only place in all four parks where you can see her. I am also a fan of Disney villains. All the movie parts are projected on water.

Carousel of Progress

Today at the Magic Kingdom I went on a ride that I have never been on.  It is called the "Carousel of Progress" and it goes through four different eras in the "typical American family."  As soon as I heard "progress," I immediately thought of President Obama and his campaign.  It was more about the progress in inventions and not the government, after all it is Disney. I did read something, somewhere, that Walt Disney was racist and I could really tell since the "typical American family" was portrayed as a white family.  The mother was portrayed as a stay at home mom throughout the four eras, one of which was renovated in 1994 to resemble the future.  This didn't sit too well with me.  I had to let it go since the ride was Walt Disney's own idea and he doesn't have the same views and values as we do today. I did think it is funny that the people in the "future" were dressed as if it were the 80s and thought we could talk to our kitchen appliances today.

Carousel of Progress (wiki)

Hello from DISNEY!

I'm in Disney for the week!  Today, I went to Disney's Hollywood Studios (to me it is MGM and always will be MGM!).  While I was there, it got me thinking about media.  We are all so involved with media in every aspect.  MGM is a whole park dedicated to media.  You can go on The Great Movie Ride, where you are surrounded by all these great films in a variety of genres.  I noticed how the park is set up to be very interactive. Everyone can be involved, from filming something with special effects on the Back Lot Tour, watch a taping of American Idol Experience, or being picked out of the audience at Indiana Jones.  The park wants to take you behind the scenes, get a grasp of how movies are made and gain an all around appreciation for film.  It is my favorite park out of all the Disney parks. Who doesn't love an indoor roller coaster that goes upside down and has an Aerosmith theme?

Magic Kingdom tomorrow! What type of media related topics will I stumble upon next?

                                            (I took this from my last trip down!)

Katy Perry's Elmo Skit

Katy Perry was on the season premiere of SNL last night and this skit had a little message to the producers over at Sesame Street (and the parents that wanted to take her segment off air). In a skin tight Elmo shirt that really showed off the cleavage she had been recently reprimanded for. I think she did it in a tasteful way. It was very funny and a little media spat gets them each more publicity. SNL always sheds light on current events and I think they got this one right. What do you think?

Katy Perry gets kicked off Sesame Street?

I didn't know what to make of this video when I first heard the story of Katy Perry's segment with Elmo will not be aired. I think people really started to overreact. Parents (mostly mothers) started to complain about Katy Perry's outfit on Sesame Street. They were saying her dress was too low-cut and that she should have covered up on the kids show. Producers decided to pull the segment. If they really wanted it to air, they should have thought about the singers reputation in the first place. She was recently nude on a cloud in her "California Girls" music video and she has a new song called "Peacock" that has a completely different, sexual, meaning. I'm not sure if I should be upset with the producers or with the mother that commented on the video saying "now my kid wants milk". Are they wrong to take the video off air?

Foursquare?

read this article first!

When I read on facebook that my friend David was bringing 'foursquare' to Syracuse University, I looked up what exactly 'foursquare' is.  Basically it is a social networking site that you can use from you cellphone, facebook, Twitter, etc.  You can check into different places on your school campus or around town. In that article at the top of this post, there were interviews with different people on the SU campus.  I would have to agree with the girl who thinks it is a bit ridiculous.  If you "check-in" at one of the buildings and your neighbors know you are not home, they could easily break into you dorm room, house, or apartment.  I think it isn't that necessary.  I was walking around the RCC on Monday and I saw a sign for foursquare and am aware that many people on the BSU campus are using it.  I just think whoever uses it should be careful and not check in at every place they go.  Let yourself be a little mysterious!

Kids and Reality TV

I was sent this little gem of a youtube video. 

This is a video where parents dressed their kids up as "characters" from the reality show Jersey Shore.  I thought it was really funny the first time I watched it but then I started thinking.  Why would parents let their kids act like people three times their age? Granted they made it kid friendly but do the kids know who they're acting like?  The show is basically men and women in their 20s that drink, go to clubs, the women are scantily clad (god, I sound like my mother) and men that just try to get the scantily clad women in bed.  Is that something you would let a 7 or 8 year old watch?  I was beginning to think the video was okay as long as the kids weren't actually watching the show, but then I was on perezhilton.com last night and saw that the same group of kids were in another spoof about Keeping up with the Kardashians.  I would like to know what's going through these parents minds!

Here's another video to keep you thinking. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8L8IJ_6J2U

Tom Brady is doing just fine.

If you haven't heard yet, Tom Brady was in a car accident this morning.  While I was getting ready to go to class today, I was watching Ellen.  It was interrupted about five times with the "Breaking News" story of Tomb Brad's accident.  I'm a HUGE sports fan and when I heard the words Brady, car and accident put together in the same sentence, I started to panic a little bit.  The Pats have the season opener on Sunday and I started to think that Brady wouldn't be able to play.  By the third interruption, there was live footage on the car accident site.  It wasn't a big accident at all.  He even walked away unharmed and was seen by the team doctors.  I started to giggle after the fifth interruption because it was such a minor accident.  Because it was Tom Brady, the news stations were all over the fact that he was in a car accident.  It wasn't a big deal and to me, I think it was a waste of time.  He's fine, no need to report on it! Hopefully the news doesn't get to him and he can get to his old self for Sunday's game! GO PATS!

GLEE!

I love Glee! I'm a musical theatre dork and was studying it at Syracuse before I transferred to BSU.  Glee is one of those shows that can put you in a great mood!  It's fun, witty and has substance.  It is making more people aware that arts education in public schools might be one of the most important things to keep.  I was one of those misfits in high school and when you see what you went through being made into a tv show, it makes you feel a little bit better about your past (and present for the kids that are still in high school).  Many high schoolers are hard on themselves for not being in the "popular " group.  Glee helps kids realize that  theatre, dancing, singing, and working together to achieve the same goal is a good thing.  Many people think that the musical numbers are far fetched but you have to look at it as if you were in those kids shoes.  I remember that all the productions I was part of were the greatest and that it felt like Broadway every night.  The creators of the show, Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan, wanted to capture that feeling on film.  I can't wait for the new season to start, September 21st, everyone mark your calendars while doing a little song and dance!


Here's a link to what the first episode has lined up! 

Twilight... not again!

One of my guilty pleasures is that I like to follow celebrities and know what's going on in Hollywood.  I am a big movie person but one movie series that I will not watch ever is the Twilight Saga.  I heard about Twilight and how everyone loves it, so I decided to read the first book.  I hated the first five pages (sorry to those of you that love it).  The media got wind of how much all these girls, ages 14-23 (in some cases even older), swoon over the books.  It has been a great way to make money off of young girls.  Put a vampire that sparkles on a T-shirt and you can make thousands.  I loved the Harry Potter books and movies, they have a huge diverse fan following but I don't think it compares to the millions of girls that argue with each other over Jacob and Edward.  For some reason sparkling vampires have been the latest and greatest way to make money in TV and Film.  There is True Blood, The Vampire Diaries, Twilight Saga, and the newest (personally my favorite) Vampires Suck.  TV and Film producers really know how to get an audience, throw in a sparkling vampire and I think you have a hit for tween girls. 

That's my little rant... I got the Twilight subject off the list and will never mention it again. 

(Looks like Voldemort is on Team Jacob... or maybe he doesn't like vampires that sparkle. You decide!)

Hello blogging world!

  Hi! My name is Carlie Wilson and I am a "senior" Communications/Media Technologies major.  This would be my last year here at BSU but since I transferred from Syracuse University, I am now on the five year plan that many people at BSU are on.  I have never really blogged before and am getting use to it.  I have started a photo-a-day blog that will take me through the school year with some of my photography but that is nothing like the blogging for this class.  I can't wait to really figure out blogging and putting my ideas out there!