Blogging for the Non-Blogger

Blogging has become the new popular way of expressing an opinion to world from the very comfort of your own home. Until I entered Creative Communications at Red River College, I had never even considered becoming a blogger, partially because I had no interest and partially because I didn't really know what it was.



I guess you could say I have been forced into doing it, but secretly, I'm kind of enjoying it.
I'm not really an opinionated person. My opinion is have your own opinion. It's this weird curse I've had my whole life where I'm always in the middle of everything. Every time I think of the pro-side of something, the con automatically jumps into my head.



I find a lot of blogs are a lot like journalism, dealing with topics in the news and hot events and issues that everyone is talking about. They uncover facts and stories and display them from a certain perspective or point of view. People are starting to find out the information they are seeking from blogs alone.



I have chosen to take a different approach to blogging. I don't really have a direction, or particular interest that I share with other people. I'm also not the greatest journalist on the planet, so uncovering government slip-ups is not something that I can devote a public part of my life to. I just write about the silly things that may not be relavent or related to current events, but people may find them funny or entertaining. That's what interests me. When I have a topic I'm more passionate about, I'll guide my blog in that direction.



In the mean time, here are a few things I have learned about blogging:
1. Make it interesting to people other than yourself. People don't want to hear about your weekend.
2. Don't write long, wordy entries that use a vocabulary that a dictionary wouldn't understand. Use words that everyone understands.
3. Include visual things like videos, pictures and links to other websites or blogs that you like or are related to the topic. Interaction = interesting.
4. Strive to get recognition. The idea is to share your mind with the rest of the world. There are people that can make a living blogging. Any recognition from others is a crucial part to a good blog. For example, get noticed on a Citytv segment. Just for example. (Wink, Wink, Nudge, Nudge)
5. Update as much as possible. People are only going to continue to come back if you stay up to date and present fresh, new stuff as often as possible.
6. Check out the blogs of others. You can learn some new things. I've always had an addiction to cartoons and comics, so one of my new favourite blogs to check out is by Dan Piraro and it features his strip called Bizarro http://bizarrocomic.blogspot.com/search/label/contest. His blog and his comics easily get the attention of any passer-byer.
7. The "Automatic Save" function is probably the greatest thing to ever be invented! Every part of life should ahve this option

There are some downsides to blogging though. If you don't want everyone to see what you have to say, than blogging is not for you. It is also having an impact on media as a whole. People seem to be wanting their news from someone other than the TV or newspaper. Journalists who aim to get the facts and the truth are not as interesting as the people that can say it with passion and style. That may be why many journalists are turning to blogging as an alternative outlet for their writing.

Although my blog may be rediculous to many because of it's lack of current event content, I will continue to post the wierd and wacky stuff that I find in hopes that it will be interesting to at least a couple of people. Even if it's just me and my mom.

Happy Blogging!!!



Here's as close as I can get to knowing anything about current events. Who better to go to than Anderson Cooper for your important GNN News (that's right, I said GNN).

Buyer Beware: Things to Consider When Renting

For our Buyer Beware project, my group members (Cindy, Neal and Aggie) and I looked at things to consider when renting an apartment, as well as the rules and regulations for tenants and landlords.



We started off by conducting a survey that asked 70 people questions pertaining to how much they pay for rent, what company they rent through, if they have encountered any problems and how efficiently the issues were taken care of.



We were actually quite surprised at the results from the survey. Most of the people who were surveyed were generally happy with their rental agency and there were very few who had serious problems. As far as agency reputations within Winnipeg, Sussex Reality seemed to have the slowest response time for repairs, while three quarters of the tenants of A.S.H. Management had encountered no issues at all with their unit in the last 12 monthes.



Another form of research we did was reading the guidebook on the website for the Residential Tenancies Branch. It gave a lot of insightful information on what is acceptable and legal when it comes to things like rental agreements, privacy policies, rental unit maintenance and termination of rental agreements. From that we were able to compile a list of suggestions to potential renters, tenants and landlords that will hopefully make for a better understanding of each side of an agreement and prevent serious problems from occuring. Here are some of the suggestions we came up with:

• Landlords and tenants should always be in contact with one another, particularly on changes that occur, to ensure that problems can be dealt with appropriately or avoided all together.
• Potential tenants should always make themselves aware of rules and expectations, particularly those outlined in the rental agreement, as well as for their potential landlords. They should also ensure that landlords are living up to the expectations and duties, and acknowledge when issues are neglected.
• Landlords and tenants are both responsible for maintenance in accordance with health, building and occupance standards. If one or the other does not comply, it can be considered grounds for terminating a tenance agreement.
• Be aware fo when rent is due, as it may not be aligned with a monthly calendar, and be willing to accept teh consequences of failure to pay on time. Late fees may be applicable and after the fifth day of non-payment, a landlord can deliver a termination notice.
• Landlords and tenants shoyuld both be aware of what constitutes reasonable grounds for terminating a tenancy agreement.
• Tenants should be respectful of other tenants in the complex as well as residents in neighbouring buildings.

Another interesting rental tool that we found while researching the internet were checklists for renters and landlords. Just by searching "renters checklist," a number of different type come up. Some are very short and cover the basics, while other go into great detail, asking things like "is there is a power outlet in the backthroom?" and "how cleanable are the floors?" Checklists for landlords are also very useful because they can provide renters with a good idea of what a landlord is looking for when reviewing tenants.

We think that with all the information we have compiled from our research, people who are looking to rent an apartment will have an easier time and be better educated on what to look for when renting. This will hopefully make for better tenant and landlord relationships as well as help people find units that are suitable for them.

No Thanks H1N1 Vaccine, I Think I'll Fight It On My Own!

It seems like on of the more popular news topic recently is the one that no one actually wants.

It seems like everytime I hear about how important it is for Canadians to get the vaccination, I hear a story about how it has the potential to actually be more dangerous. I read an article in the National Post called "Getting ready for swine flu? Read this first" by Yoel Abells and he says that there have been signs that it may actually cause the disease. I am not convinced so far that getting the shot will actually benefit me this year, even though I am not among the demographic that is threatened by the virus.

Now that I've said that, I'll probably get the disease.

I do not like needles. Not that anyone really does, but I do everything I can to avoid them. So when I hear things along the lines of "[a]n extremely rare but possible side-effect of getting the flu shot is Guillain-Barre syndrome, a disorder where the body's immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system," I don't really have the urge to go out and get vaccinated. If I someday have a greater risk of getting the disease and there has been a vaccine developed that poses no bigger risk to me than the virus itself, I'll consider it.

Until than, if given the choice between getting poked in the arm, with what could potentially make my life worse, and washing my hands often, while I avoid kissing strangers, I think I'll just grab the soap and hold my breath.

Picture from punditkitchen.com and thetartan.org

Article about GBS

I Can't Wait For These Movies!

CONFESSION: I am the type of person that is still strongly attached to their childhood (is that actually a "type of person" or am I the only one?). Anytime I see a cartoon or toy that I enjoyed as a kid, I can't turn away. Other people are slowly starting to learn this about me too. My Minnie Mouse ring might be giving it away.

So it comes as no surprise that I am overly excited about three movies that are going to be premiering within the next six monthes.

First we have Astro Boy. I have a hard time finding people that actually know who this little robot is, never mind people who want to go see the movie. I watched the cartoon when I was pretty young and had almost forgotten about it until a couple of years ago when it randomly popped into my head. Suddenly it was everywhere! I saw people dressing up as Astro Boy for halloween and wearing t-shirts with the adorable face printed on them ("bad-ass" face for you masculinists...)

While the brand new movie, set to premier October 23, isn't exactly the same as the original cartoon, I'm still planning on going to see it as soon as possible. I'm embracing the 3D approach and am willing to give the star-studded cast a chance at doing justice to the originally-Japanese animated characters. Some of the voice talents include Freddie Highmore as Astro (Finding Neverland, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) and Nicolas Cage as Dr. Tenma, as well as Samuel L. Jackson, Donald Sutherland, Kristen Bell, Charlize Theron and Eugenne Levy.

Next up is Where The Wild Things Are. I'm surprised to find that so many people my age have never read, or even heard of this book! It's a classic in my mind. It's imagination for the brats! This book also features a bunch of monsters that are friendly. If you have never read this book, you better get on it, than go see the movie. I heard it was also very good.

And last, but not least is Alice in Wonderland, a Tim Burton movie. I think Tim Burton is one of the few directors that is still coming up with original ideas, but when he takes an idea that already exists, he blows it out of the water. He did this with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and it turned out to be much different than the original movie that everyone loves. (I've heard a few complaints about his rendition of this, but I heard that he's never actually seen the original and based it purely on his perception of the book, hence the reason it's so different. Why would you want it to be the same?) I've already seen a preview of this movie and it's gonna be good. Johnny Depp is the Mad Hatter. I'm exploding with anticipation.

So, now that I've embaressed myself with my rambling of how much I love childish things, here's the previews. Maybe I'll see you there...?

If this doesn't make you laugh...

This is probably one of the funniest videos I have ever seen. I had a cat Tito and I loved him so much. He died in the spring when he was less than 4 years old but I think he would have been good friends with this cat. He did wierd things like this too (like play fetch!). If there's anyone who doesn't find this hilarious, than I don't know what's wrong with you!

(I recommend watching it without the sound. For some reason it makes it so much funnier!)

My Theories About The Dog On The Roof

(This is actually a post I started at the beginning of last semester that I never got close to finishing. Now the dog is gone. But don't worry, I've got theories for that too!)

If you go to Red River College at the Princess St. Campus and you have recently been in one of the classes on the upper floors of the William Building, you may have noticed the large, brown, stuffed bull dog that has made itself comfortable on the roof of one of the buildings down the street. I noticed it the first day of classes, and it hasn't moved yet. That got me thinking. How did it get there?!

So I have decided to post my theories on how the poor thing got there. As the weather cools off, I also begin to wonder how it's going to survive the winter.

(This is where I ended the first time around. I guess we all know how he survived, eh?)

1. Fell from a plane overhead that was carrying toys.

2. A group of young hooligans were being rebellious and climbed the building, panicked when they heard the sirens coming to get them (why else would there be sirens downtown?), and forgot our poor friend when they ran.

3. A kid with aspirations to be an Olympic shot put gold medalist was doing his daily training in the district, using the stuffed dog to work on his balance. He broke his own personal record.

4. He was set free through one of the windows of an adjacent building.

5. Someone at RRC wanted to give us something to look at while we're sitting in Kenton's class (juuuuuuust kidding Kenton!)

It kind of reminds me of when you see an old, lonely shoe on the road. I could never figure out how someone could just lose one shoe on the road. I always wonder where the other shoe is and what that person is wearing on their foot now. It's not something you typically see hanging off of vehicles just waiting to fly off and most shoes are usually too big to let slip through your fingers while walking down the sidewalk.

(Now we jump into the future that is now.)

THE DOG IS GONE!!

My heart is broken.

We came back from our Christmas break and the rooftop was covered with snow, but the dog was gone.

So here are my new theories on what happened:

1. The toy company that lost him during the flight sent out a rescue team.

2. The Winnipeg Humane Society rescued him.

3. The hooligans, who are no longer grounded by their parents, returned when they knew the school would be empty (no witnesses) to retrieve him.

4. The little shot put hopeful needed exact measurements for his record and decided to grab him while he was there.

5. Kenton wanted his students to pay attention in class, so he climbed up and got it himself.

All of these are possible, but who really knows. Maybe there's some surveillance footage that has an angle on that rooftop that could solve the mystery.

Or maybe it should just remain a mystery.