Adverstisements

Think of what the world would be like if advertisements did not exist: dull and boring. Advertisements are just about everywhere you can think of, from stores and malls, to restaurants, on semi-trucks, even in the air. Advertisements are not aimed toward a specific person or a specific type of person, however most advertisements make the customer feel like the product is in fact created for them which draws the customers towards the product.
Three places where I spend most of my time are: UMD campus, my house, and on the road. At school, there are various advertisements throughout the campus for things such as parties, Subway, charity events, job fairs, and volunteer opportunities. Even the students are walking advertisements with their laptops, cellphones, clothing, and accessories. Endless cars are also advertised on campus, by simply being parked in the parking lot.
Looking around my house, I see that my house, too, has numerous advertisements throughout. My room consists of Nike shoes, Hollister and Abercrombie hoodies, an E-machines desktop computer, a Dell laptop, Polaroid digital camera, Sony TV, Boise headphones, various magazines, Sprint PCS, University of Michigan, Franklin High School clothing, Vitamin Water, Victoria's Secret purfume, PINK clothing, Secret Deodarant, CHI straightener, the list could go on. The TV itself is an advertisement beacuse you are gaurenteed to find anything from a thirty-second commercial to two-hour infomercials. Catchy tunes or food that looks better than it actually is in reality do exactly what they're meant to do, draw people in. Where ever you look, there is some sort of advertisement constantly encouraging others to go buy the product. Thus, the consumer is happy with the product and the producer's make the consumers pay to advertise their products.
I am constantly moving from one place to another. Driving to and from school, to my friends houses, to the mall, to church, or even to pick up my sister from school I can count endless advertisements from billboards, to the signs of stores or restaurants. At times, even when you look in the sky there are big, colorful blimps in the sky advertising new resaturants or grand openings, providing the public with a number to call.
It is very shocking to me how much -advertising of a product will cause the consumer to overlook the product, therefore contradicting the purpose of advertising in the first place.

Blogs

One of the blogs that caught my interest about the 2008 election was Hiffingtonpost.com. I like this blog more than the others because it contains pictures and videos, not just words. I like to hear what others have to say about certain issues and this blog allows us to see both sides of the story, with people justifying their opinions. I have just recently become interested in politics, and as a first time voter I would like to make my vote count so by following blogs like these I can either relate to or disagree with other peoples thoughts and feelings and build upon my own beliefs. In my opinion, this blog is somewhat reliable. Though it does contain the thoughts and feelings of citizens, it also has articles from major newpapers. It does not focus on just ONE aspect of the election, rather anything you can think of. Typically I wouldn't go to a blog to help me decide who I'm going to vote for or what the major issues are in this years election, but it is a good way to hear others express themselves and stand for what they believe in.

Another blog that I would go back to was American Thinker. It wasn't promoting one specific person as much as the other blogs were. This allowed different people to express their feelings and state why they think what they think. When pepole can justify their statements, it allows me as a reader to get a better understanding of both sides of the story and thats what I enjoyed about this particular blog.

Working with the text- #3

Richard Florida and Lynne Conner both make very good points. Florida says that almost everything we do is based around creativity. People want to be creative, yet would like to remain “fresh.”
Conner, on the other hand, says that today’s youth doesn’t care as much for the arts as they do creating them. The youth of today is much more diverse than the youth of past cultures, causing a much broader range in interests. Contrary to Florida’s statement, Conner says that by looking into the past for guidance, creativity exists, just not in everyone.
I personally agree with Conner’s statement more than I do Florida’s. Today’s culture is constantly changing, yet remaining quite similar. Everyone strives to be accepted by society, and if it means being like everybody else, so be it. I think that’s what Conner means by saying that creativity exists in some, but not in all. Some people are smart enough to think for themselves, go out and experience things. Others, however, want to be like everybody else. The youth of today is becoming more unified, yet distant from each other. One thing I thought the authors did wrong was generalizing students. Not ALL students fit the description of what either Florida or Conner said. By saying most students rather than generalizing students as a whole, the audience would not be offended. One author said that all students enjoy the arts, the other said that they don’t. By generalizing students as a whole, they are contradicting each other’s statements. I understand what points both authors are trying to get across and agree with them to a certain extent, however, they could’ve articulated their thoughts and ideas better to make the messages more effective.

Text Messaging- Exercise 1

I wake up to my alarm going off on my cell phone, hit snooze several times until I get enough energy to actually get out of my bed. Once I finally get out of my bed, I turn on my laptop and check the weather. Since I'm already at the computer, I check my Facebook while I'm there. Taking the weather into consideration, I choose an outfit and head to the shower. When I get out of the shower, I put my music player on shuffle while I get ready for class. I gather my supplies (books, notebooks, and laptop), and go to school. On the way to school, I listen to music and have road rage from all the construction on the roads. Advertisements are anywhere you could imagine, such as billboards, benches, buses, and cars.
When I finally arrive to school, my friend and I go to the library and go over our homework. In the meantime, my friends and I text each other and make plans for after class. We finally go to class and attempt to pay attention, however there's only so much our brains can handle at once. During class, my friends and I continue to text each other until we finally get out of class and are able to hang out. Usually we go to the movies, to a party, or on occasion, to Starbucks to study over a Carmel Frappuccino.
If my parents are still awake when I finally get home, I enjoy spending time with them and talking about what happened that day. Having a 20-year old brother, and a 15-year old sister, we're all busy doing our own thing and barely have time to spend with each other, so when I get to I really enjoy it.
After everyone goes to bed, I usually go up to my room, turn on the TV while I study, and then go on the computer for a bit. I usually get a phone call or two, and then finally go to bed.
After actually thinking about my daily routines, I realize that the majority of my life is centered around technology. My cellphone is attached to my hand, and the truth is, my life would be so different without it. Technology even affects the way we study and become educated about things. Although that technology improves our lives and health, the more developed technology becomes the more distant we become from our family. Family is more important than our friends, and we should make an effort to spend more time with them rather than focusing on other people 24/7.