I think that kids should be taught poetry at a much earlier age than junior high school. Among other things it would help early memory development, which would no doubt help kids in most other subjects. It would help kids to understand the subtleties of language before they are expected to understand classics, unlike most schooling today. I mean, understanding poetry is something so rare yet so appreciated by people who matter; it helps with the study of all literature. Finally, it would help today’s kids to appreciate words. With all of the text slang and instant messenger punctuation running rampant in teenage society today, having an appreciation for the thoughtful use of words and punctuation would be a shield against stupidity.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Reality TV Show Pitch
The quest to achieve the title of "best writer ever."
Who will be the best writer ever?
Will it be Abraham Rosenkrantz-Steinbergenthal, the aspiring Hallmark greeting card writer? Or will it be Hank Brown, the cream of the tomato-blending machine instruction manual writing crop? But the competition becomes fierce when the semi-motivated, food-addicted fortune-cookie writer, Mildred Smithers, enters the scene. And the game will really heat up when Colgate-graduate, Carlton Thomas Fitzgeralingstonworth VII, steps up and wows the audience with his provocotive real-estate descriptions for WeBuyUglyHouses.com. What about Inas, the larger-than-life clothing-tag scribe? Or maybe that lady who wrote Twilight? Only the pages will tell as this gripping saga goes to print.
How to Make Sarah Palin Not Look Stupid
Voice coach: Half the battle is delivery Gov. Palin, and your voice makes you sound 300 to 400 percent stupider
Less make-up: Politicians are ugly, JFK was an anomaly, base your look on Joe Lieberman.
Script audience and reporter questions: Nobody in North Korea thinks Kim Jong-il is a retard…
Work on getting rid of the “rugged Alaskan” association: Nobody watched Jeremiah Johnson for the intellectual stimulation
Supertaster
Something really comforting to say to a blind person: Hey, at least you can still tatse!
I’ve always been interested in taste. The actual sense of taste is probably the most overlooked of all the five senses. Most people don’t say to their recently blind friend “Hey you know, at least you can still taste!” Pretty much only a Michelin Guide critic is going to want to hear that when they go blind. I think taste is way underrated though, I mean, I’m not saying I’d choose it over sight, but maybe touch…it’s definitely not last place, okay? Did you know there are flavors that chemists can make that aren’t found on Earth? So maybe they’d be delicious to aliens, but they just taste like Acetone to us. Plus then there’s the whole notion of non-tasters, medium tasters, and supertasters. Let me tell you, I hope I’m a supertaster. If you are unfamiliar, it has to do with the intensity you rate the taste of a solution of Propylthiouracil, people who think its super bitter are supertasters.
I pretty much hate 3g networks right now
We get it Verizon, you have tons of 3G coverage, and At&t we are also aware that you have EDGE as well as your 3G network.
Seriously kids, play nice. And At&t, did you really think getting Luke Wilson to toss postcards onto a map would be the best response to Verizon’s smear campaign? Really? Verizon, we really do get it, you have more 3G coverage, but a Droid is always going to be shittier than an iPhone, I mean, it’s got a lowercase i in the name…aka gold. Verizon, I must also inquire about the name of your top phone…Droid? The name is a registered trademark of Lucasfilm Ltd., how nerdy do you think society has gotten? I mean, kids like wizards and vampires, but who’s going to want to talk on a “Droid”? We all saw The Matrix, naming a phone “Droid” is just the beginning.
Tiger Woods - Monogamy Defined
Tiger Woods: The most loyal husband known to mankind
I totally get that primetime news programs are going to push the stories that are going to get the most views, but I cannot stress enough how sick I am of turning on CBS and seeing Katie Couric’s Botox ravaged face telling me about Tiger Woods and all of his VHI alumnus girlfriends. It is annoying any night you see it for a number of reasons, prime being that it feels like a story Inside Edition or Access Hollywood should be showing, but what made me really angry was that Tiger Woods’ cheating took more time out of last Tuesday’s news than the 30,000 man troop surge and Obama’s speech at West Point. Clearly producers of today’s nightly news programs aren’t concerned with journalistic integrity.
Monday, December 7, 2009
What I Would Say To Jesus
This is what I would say to Jesus if he asked me who he is. I'm not very religious, but I used to go to a lot of church as a kid.
You are very confusing to me. I and many billions of people in their lifetimes have thought long and hard on who you are. I have prayed to you, sang to you, looked at you, and imagined you, and you have never once given me a response, or something to think about, that would be considered “clear” in any of the very many cultures of Earth. This being an earth that is inhabited by those that were made in your/your father’s image. To a person who thinks critically, it would seem that though you are the “Lord of Love”, you “love” extremely selectively. You are a man who; if half the stories about you are true, are still the most remarkable person to ever live. I say that I love you, and yet I have never seen you, touched you, or heard your voice. I have come to the conclusion that most of my fellow Christians who say that they “believe in you” only do so out of fear of uncertainty of death. The only stories I know of you, didn’t come from you. And yet, as I tell you all of my reasons why I shouldn’t believe in you, I can see you watching me struggle over the concept of you. I am so damn confused still.
Carpets and Crop Circles
Sometimes when I’m walking on carpet and I see those square marks from where the couch used to be, my mind jumps to crop circles. So when you see the marks in the carpet it is not difficult to estimate, with relative accuracy, how heavy the object was that made said mark. With that in mind, alien spaceships must have an incredibly terrible proportion of weight to size. Now the obvious argument in response to this idea would clearly be: “well, spaceships probably didn’t make those marks, considering the massive RADAR signature and incredible amount of sound no doubt accompanied by the landing of such a craft…etc”. That counter-argument could easily start a very long debate with both sides having valid points, i.e. “clearly a species with the technology to make a journey of at least 4.7 light years (the closest probable life sustaining planet to earth) is well past the technology needed to disguise a landing in a corn field…”
All arguments omitted, if we could somehow say that crop circles are truly made by alien spacecraft, maybe aliens cover their floors in carpet.
Letter to Future Self
Dear Kate,
I can only imagine how you must have turned out five years from now. It is difficult for me to see how the hell you are going to pull yourself out of this one. I hope you have realized that true happiness does not come from external factors; it comes from the inside. You have so many wonderful qualities about yourself, and I hope to God that you have seen them by now.
Our past will never disappear, and we both know that, but all that matters is what is in front of us.
Happiness is not created by other people, nor is it created by school or work. I hope you have found happiness in the mere idea of being alive, or at least in knowing that you are a good person. I can't see it right now, but I hope when you read this you will be able to smile, nod your head, and think to yourself that you have accomplished these goals that I have set for us and we can finally be at peace.
I love you very much. And I hope you will always love me back. But mostly, I hope you don't think about me too much. Don't look backwards; look forward.
Love,
Kate
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Fur is Green?
From www.greenwashingindex.com
Rate This Ad
Thank you for rating this ad using the Greenwashing Index. It will generate a score based on your response to the following statements. Your score will be included in the ad’s overall score and your comments will be added to the tally. Scoring is similar to golf: high scores are undesirable (for the advertiser).
This advertisement disturbs me because the connection between protecting the environment and wearing the fur of animals is vague. I do not believe that the majority of trappers are primarily concerned with being eco-friendly, hence the fact that they are trappers and their livelihood is dependent upon the fur trade. It is true that the well-being of the Earth's forests is important for trappers for the mere reason that wildlife can prosper fitfully, but economically that is due to the fact that they will benefit financially. I do not consider trappers to be "protectors" of wildlife. It is also very hypocritical for the ad to say that trappers are "the first to sound the alarm when these vital wildlife habitats are threatened" since they are the ones who are actually harming the wildlife. Keeping the environment safe is necessary; killing animals to sell furcoats is not. The text is misleading in a non-obvious way, but it is indeed obvious to me that FurisGreen.com and Beautifully Canada was scrambling to find some kind of correlation between wearing fur and going green.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Apple
I took this photo of an apple and decided to Photoshop it to make it look as normal, yet crazy at as possible. The apple is still green, its original color, but it is intensified in color by the backdrop and by the detail of the photo that you were not able to see in the original picture. You can clearly see the water droplets on the apple.
I think people should take the time to observe these minor details in a photograph. I think it is the water droplets that make this photo so unique and interesting, and it is my favorite part of the image. It is the subtle details that are most important in a picture.
Photoshop is fun. : )
The Earth in 100 Years
Where will we be as a civilization or a race of human beings in 100 years?
I believe that there will be a World War III over fresh water. The rain is no longer good in many places in the world because the pollution has turned the rain into acid rain and it is dangerous to drink. Oil is something we can live without (whether we believe that or not), but water is a necessity to live, and if its availability is jeopardized, there could be a problem.
The population will also be even more out of hand. Today, the number of people on this Earth exceeds the number of people who have ever died in the history of our world. That's a lot of damn people. And the numbers are growing. Is it possible for all countries to enact a law similar to China's law about having children? Being if a son is born, you can have two kids but if a daughter is born you can only have one kid. Then we would all feel like our rights are being violated.
And what if the environment becomes so incredibly terrible it becomes against the law to not recycle and you must pay a very large fine for littering or throwing trash around outside. I hope people would want to recycle and not want to litter, but that is not human nature sometimes. Then people would again feel like their rights are being violated.
So then what would be the solution to all of these issues?
No idea, but I sure wouldn't want to be the President right now.
School Supplies War - Who will win?
Permanent Markers, Stapler, pencils, scissors, and scotch tape VS pens, hole puncher, gluestick, highlighters, calculator, and paperclips.
Who would win?
Highlighters can highlight things to make certain words or sentences more important, but permanent markers are, well, permanent.
Which item holds things together better? Scotch tape or a glue stick?
Does a stapler or paperclips hold paper together more efficiently? A stapler is more powerful in terms of engineering, but paperclips come in large numbers and the stapler is sure to be outnumbered.
Frederich Alexander
Frederich Alexander was my pet frog. I found him in a park. I thought it would be a sensational idea to collect him and take him home with me. And by collect, I mean seize without warning or consent. I am quite an animal lover, but I thought it would be so much fun to raise a pet frog on my own and make him a really badass playpen/cage for him to hang out in.
I even went as far as to research toads indigenous to Texas so I could learn about Frederich's natural habitat, eating habits, living environments, etc. to ensure best quality life under my roof.
I came up with several contraptions for Frederich Alexander, better known as FA. The guilt of what I had done, taking him out of his natural habitat, prevented me from actually making the contraptions. I returned him to his rightful home, back to where he belonged.
I cannot say if I will ever take a frog away from its home again, but I hope to think twice next time before doing so.
Oh how I do miss Frederich.
Five Things I have Extreme Grievances About
1) When I ask the professor a question during class, and the kid next to me answers the question.
2) The phrase "pet peeves" (see title of blog for suggested replacement).
3) When someone asks me "What's wrong?" when there is nothing wrong.
4) When my friends take my clothes without asking first.
5) When people interrupt me when I am speaking.
Toy Story Character Analysis
I went to see Toy Story and Toy Story 2 back-to-back in 3D at Northpark the other night. Because Toy Story happens to be one of my favorite movies and I have seen it possibly one hundred times, I decided to focus on purely the character aspect of the film. It is not the storyline of a film that makes a film great, it is the characters. Toy Story has a relatively linear storyline with a pretty typical conflict between the protagonists and the antagonists, but the characters are so rich and humorous the conflict creates itself, independent from the storyline.
However, I chose to carefully notice the personality traits of the more minor characters, being Rex, Hamm, and Slinky.
Rex is a toy T-rex, and everyone knows T-rexes are not smart creatures. At least WERE not. His character in Toy Story is enriched by this fact through his clumsy, confused, and insecure personality.
Slinky is the dog who gives full loyalty to Woody, even when everyone else is against Woody. Dogs are stereotyped as loyal and true to their owners.
Hamm is a cunning, confrontational pig. He has no trouble stirring conflict and drama between the toys. It is in the nature of a pig to be snobby and stubborn.
Although these are all obvious observations, I do not think these are connections the audience makes on a conscious level. I think it is interesting to look into character representations depicted in films and how it generates the conflict.
If I were a Lizard...
I would hide in a blender
I would be held tender
I would take baths in a sink
I would make myself shrink
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Questionaiire
While I was babysitting the other day, I came across this book filled with fun questions for the reader to fill out. Obviously designed for tweens, the book compelled me nonetheless, so I filled out one of the questionairres and tore out the page.
I know that they're cheesy, but silly questionairres are my guilty pleasure. I think a vast majority of girls have filled these out before, but never as honestly or truthfully as they should. Even if you know nobody will ever read your answers to the questions, you always fill them out as if everyone you have ever encountered in your life will read all the answers. And in the process of doing so, your real answers are lost.
TEN 2010 New Years Resolutions
1) Replace all "bad words" with happy words
examples: "Holy Sugar"
"What the fruitcake is going on here?"
2) Call old friends from high school twice a month
3) Only eat when feeling hungry (No more snacks due to boredom or random eating rampages at 2:00 in the morning)
4) Work out 4 times a week (walking to class doesn't count)
5) Slow down to see the beauty and goodness in everything, especially the things that are prevalent in my everyday life
6) Read 12 books for fun
7) Have at least one hour of "Kate time" per day, doing things for myself I really enjoy (playing guitar, painting, reading)
8) Cliche Alert: At least one selfless act of kindness every day
9) Return all Blockbuster movie rentals on time
10) Establish a specific money-spending budget to abide by each month
Facebook Forever?
If I had a Facebook until I was 98 years old, how many pictures would be tagged of me?
I wonder how long we will all have our Facebooks. It's hard to think we will have them our whole lives, but unless something else comes along to replace Facebook, then we just might. We will all watch each other get married, have children, and become senior citizens. My generation will watch itself grow up, and it will all be documented on the world wide web.
A Facebook page encompasses all you need to know about a person, depending on that person's privacy settings. And if my Facebook represents who I am, how will I change and grow as a person over the next 20, 50, 70 years? Will my interests be the same? Will I still be obsessed with Alfred Hitchcock movies? Or Harry Potter books? Will I still love to listen to classic rock? And will I still consider myself to be a liberal person?
Even after 5 years having a Facebook, I have looked through my photos and have found a vast change in myself. And I have seen changes in my friends too. Although the makers of Facebook most likely did not plan it to be a timeline of people's entire lives, I believe that is what it is.
Tide Detergent
My friend Connor and I decided we were going to make up a rap song. The only trouble was, we couldn't decide what to rap about, so we asked a friend of ours to give us a topic, and we were faced with the challenge of "Tide Detergent." This was the result:
Folding clothes all in those hoes
Thinking of no one knows
When you break it down and every thing goes down
You put it in the hamper and nothing is a damper
So blame those hoes
You feeling like you may not know
Where the hell your clothes are gonna go
T-T-T-Tide for you laundry
give you lots of pride
dream on me
(x 2)
Eff chlorox, eff bleach, eff chlorox, eff bleach
Eff downy because it makes you frowney
But Tide give you, give you pride
So you dont need no alibi
So you can get clothes on the indside and the out-out-out side
Clothes in da washa
Clothes in da drya
When you put on that fresh clean shirt,
You'll soar higha
I AINT NO LIYA TELL EM GANGSTAS
(jam out) - bamba bamba dam bom bom bom ("TELL EM GANGSTAS")
When i was a lil girl, I thought tide was dirty
Then i put on dem clothes and the world got flirty
So i said to my Gs to the left: Put that shirt in the wash
And show me your best cause Tide, it's better than all the rest....
dj spin that shit
bom bom chicka wawa wawa
T-T-T-Tide for you laundry
Give you lots of pride
Dream on me
(x 2)
Tide its really neat
Put the motha freakin socks on your motha freakin feet
Cause you dont need no bleach to feel motha freakin complete
Thats why im saying that heat is sweet
And Mom don't need no meat because Tide's beat is meat
Tell em gangstas
Street Stun
What if you saw this one day?
Or this?
What if you were driving around in your car, just running errands and minding your own business, and every ordinary thing around you was suddenly unordinary? Let me elaborate. The streetlights are purple, orange, and blue. The trees are upside down. The cars are all driving sideways.
What would you do? Completely freak out obviously. Because the fabrics of everything we know and are comfortable with would be destroyed and our world would fall to shambles. You might even suspect someone of putting LSD in your coffee that morning, because that is the only thing that might explain what the hell is going on.
I asked myself what I would do if all of the street signs around me said something different. I would completely panic. I think it would be really cool if everything that was "ordinary" was actually unordinary.
The truth is, ordinary objects are as ordinary as you make them. It is the perception of the viewer that makes that decision. I have decided to look at everything around me in a different way, and it makes life much more unordinary, and that's the way I like it.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
2009
The year 2009 was an odd year (pun intended). I wouldn't particularly want to relive it again. The second half of freshman year at SMU definitely beat the first half, and so far the first half of sophomore year beats the second half of freshman year, but 2009 was just plain bizarre for the following reasons:
*I lost my phone 5 times
*My GPA was a 3.153
*The family I babysit for gave me a raise from $12 to $15 an hour
*Second semester freshman year I was enrolled in 13 hours of class
*I am currently enrolled in 17 hours of class
*I went on one vacation
*I had 7 overdue rentals at Blockbuster
And what do all of the numbers in these points have in common? They are odd. You might be wondering why this is significant. And I am wondering why it is not.
Yes, I'm sure I could think of just as many scenarios that would encompass even numbers, but 2009 was not an even year. I tell myself I am not superstitious because I feel no remorse for walking under a ladder or breaking a mirror. Breaking a mirror just sucks. But at the same time, what if life was just one big sign? Or series of signs?
Why or how could I lose my phone five times? For the reason that I am forgetful and clumsy most likely, (or maybe there is some kind of SINISTER alterior motive being plotted by the thing in the place) but also maybe because after five times, I begin to understand the why and the how, and I take corrective measures to prevent it from happening again, which I did. But why after 5 occasions would I change my ways? That is the very question I am pondering.
And why would the family I babysit for choose a $3 increase, changing my hourly pay from $12 to $15? Obviously due to the fact that I am a terrific babysitter and deserved it, but why? Because it is the year 2009. And 2009 is an odd year.
It is an interesting thought to consider: What if every odd situation that occurs during an odd year was important? And I do not yet know the significance of the events and scenarios. It is a pretty stupid thought, but compelling too.
Think about it.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
I saw this commercial at a movie theatre when I arrived too early. I did not know this ad played during the Superbowl until I searched it on Youtube.
I think this ad does an amazing job of selling the audience an emotion: A sudden warm and fuzzy liking for the random person sitting next to you. I feel as though the two opposing forces (the Republican and Democrat) represent any conflict between individuals or groups of people. It is an unrealistic scenario that makes the viewer believe that something as simple as an old-fashioned bottle of Coca Cola could easily stop (at least temporarily) a large-scale rivalry. Sharing a bottle of Coca Cola could unite even the most unlikely pair.
Not only did the bottle of Coca Cola establish a sense of rapport to its drinkers, but it also made the world surrounding it seem much more interesting and engaging. The two politicians, obviously having spent a great deal of time in Washington D.C., took the time to really emerge themselves in a whole different outlook of the city. There is implied humor in the ad as the two men ride one of the buses to go on a tour of the city they should know so well, and they are taking a sudden interest in exploring Washington D.C.
Coca Cola is advertised as a product that brings people together and sparks an interest in the drinkers' surroundings.
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