i have blogged in a while…

so, i havent been on this thing since Facebook and Beyond FYE.

but-whatever.

I haven’t even started school back yet and I’m already ready for spring break.

I can’t wait to get back to my room in statesboro and use my new wallflowers. there is NOTHING better than a goooood smelling room.

My Social Media Policy

1. Connecting: [So…tell me about yourself]

When I connect with someone in social networking my first goal is learn about the person. If we have a common interest it is there that we go from. If we do not, sometimes a little action is taken to understand if there is anything in common.

2. Follow, add, friend: [Do I really want you “following me?”]

I am very hesitant about accepting friend requests from people that I do not. I tend to not add people that I do not know, for safety reasons. However, if I know you then I will allow you to “follow” me and I will definitely communicate back as soon as I can. I do not automatically deny you if I am unaware of who you are. If there are common friends or interests then I look into the situation.

3. Privacy, boundaries and safety: [STOP!]

I am strongly against putting my phone number on websites. I am also strongly against putting my address. General areas are fine such as “Statesboro, Ga”, however I do not feel that it is necessary to give every specific detail. Social networking can be very beneficial, but at the same time can be very harmful. I do not post things that I would not normally say outloud. I am also very against posting pictures of illegal activites.

4. Signal to noise: [you are getting on my nerves.]

One thing that irritates me very bad is when “pEoPlE tYpE lIkE tHiS!”I feel as though MySpace reaches out to a younger aged audience therefore I do not use my MySpace. I am also annoyed by those who update their status every 6 minutes and give everyone their minute by minute play. That is not necessary. I also hate when people say “I’m getting off text me (and have their number on there.)” I prefer Facebook because I feel as though it is primarily used by college students, and adults. The maturity level is much higher, and it less confusing than MySpace.

5. Personal data and sharing: [let me tell you a story…]

My personal goal for social networking is to stay in touch with friends that I do not see regularly. I believe the internet is an amazing way to communicate with others that are all over the map. I also feel as though it is a fun and entertaining way to get to know others better.

6. My networking needs and uses: [Facebook vs Myspace]

“Facebooking” has become a hobby of mine. I use Facebook almost everyday, for long periods of time. I think that Facebook is more mature and does not have all the extra useless things on it that Myspace does. I rarely get on Myspace. I think that Myspace is better for listening to music than it is for communicating.

7. Do you use Social Media for the wrong reasons?

I believe that social networking is an amazing thing that people of our generation have, that others did not. However, I feel that people should be more aware of the things that follow when they expose themselves to the internet. Whatever is said on the internet can stay with them for a lifetime. Bullying is a problem on the internet…since you said it on the internet, would you say it to their face?

pod casts…

I decided that since finals were coming up and I know that I will be stressed, that watching yoga pod casts might be a way of relieving some stress…especially if I decide to do it along with the instructor!To start, I watched Episode 195 to begin with “Yoga Before Bed.”  People send in their questions to Chaz@yogamazing.com, and Chaz tries to answer them with various yoga instructions. These series of pod casts are all about breathing, relaxing, and having fun! Other episodes can be found on their website, http://www.yogamazing.com/podcast.html or for free on iTunes!

This first one you had to sit on your knees (called the cat and cow position) and place your palms open and on your legs. By inhaling and exhaling at the same pace, this warms your body. Next you had to put your legs up against the wall, with your back flat on the ground and your butt against the wall. Your palms were to be on the floor facing upward. This is a good way to relax your legs and feet, especially after being on them all day. Then we were instructed to bend our knees into a butterfly position and push against our knees, pressing them towards the wall. Again, inhaling and exhaling and the same pace makes a person relax. After other various poses, Chaz instructs us to lay flat on the floor. By completely relaxing and breathing, we supposedly are supposed to be able to sleep better.

The next pod cast that I listened to can also be found on iTunes, Discovery Health and is called Jon and Kate Plus 8: Zoo Trip. Pretty much, Jon talks about their trip to the zoo in Washington, and how it went terribly wrong. It was pouring down rain the entire time they were there, so they left. On their way home, one of the kids starts throwing up, and it was gross. So, basically what they thought would be a fun trip to the zoo turned out badly.

The last pod cast that I listened to was the first episode of antsmarching.org. This pod cast was from 2007 and the hosts talk about Dave Matthew’s wrapping up their tour for that year. They talk about how Dave fans always look back years down the road, and reminisce on how amazing the tour was. The hosts also mention that Dave songs never die out, and remain popular. This pod cast, along with many others about DMB can be found on iTunes.

blogs!

A blog that I really find interesting is Perez Hilton’s, http://perezhilton.com/ aka “Hollywood’s most hated website.” Where else can you find the latest celebrity gossip with a little bit of crude humor mixed in? Perez makes gossiping interesting. Unlike tabloids, when celebrities are blogged about by Perez, they feel a sense of honor that he would take time to analyze their outrageous behavior and actions. Being a college student, I don’t have much time to keep up with the latest news. By reading his blog I can catch up on celebrity gossip and get a good laugh while i’m reading it. It’s the perfect “pick-me-up” when I’m having a rough day.

Another blog that I enjoy reading is  http://postsecret.blogspot.com/. Unlike Perez’s blog this one expresses many emotions other than humor. People mail in their deepest secrets that they’ve displayed on a postcard and the blog is updated every Sunday. Many of the ones submitted address real life issues that many people struggle with but never vocalize. By reading this blog I feel connected and a sense of sympathy towards people who struggle with obstacles in their life and I’ve found that there are many I can personally relate to. I also enjoy reading this blog because like many of the people, I as well have sent in my own secrets in hopes that they one day will be published. I think this is a cool website because it’s interesting and is set up differently than most blogs. Haha, I’m definitely addicted and check it every Sunday. 🙂

FYE Success Series: Jumpstart Your Personal Finances with Peter Bielagus

I went to the FYE Success Series Jumpstart Your Finances. Going into college, Peter Bielagus had a lot of money to spend, but as his party days went on he found himself in debt. He talked to us about how he got into that position, and the actions he took to get out of it. First he began reading about debt and and how to get out of his situation. He was completely debt free by graduation. He began by telling us that we needed to increase our credit score, and that we needed to check it. He said there have been several cases where things have shown up on someone’s credit report that are false. He also gave us a list for us to do:
1-fix mistakes
2-pay off debt
3- establish history (www.prbc.com)
4-stop applying (www.optoutprescreen.com)
5-don’t cancel credit cards your using
6-be listed as a authorized user on someones credit card that is reliable and debt free

Then you have to start with the lists and ask yourself where is all of your money really going to…
What do I want?
-car
-gradschool
-house

What do I not want?
-brand name tissue
-brand name trash bags

What am I actually buying?
-Starbucks
-Marlboro
-Budweiser
-Krispy Kreme

By making these lists this will help you see where your money is going, and the areas that you need improve on spending your money in. Peter is well known, and has spoken to many different ages. I think that he helped me realize that debt is real and it can ruin your life. He gave us a web site (www.petesendmefreestuff.com) to keep in touch with him. I really enjoyed his respentation because he was funny and kept my attention the entire time. He even gave away free money but I didn’t want to volunteer!  BUMMER! However. I did learn a lot and hope to NEVER be in debt. By listening to his stories it makes me want to stay away from ever putting myself in his position.

Woah, I have a twitter? :)

Well…I will start off by saying that I promised myself long time ago that I would never make a “Twitter,” ha but in this situation I guess I had to compromise. I thought the idea of having a Twitter long time ago was ridiculous and I saw no point. Hahaha, I still think the name is stupid. I also think that “tweet” is silly sounding too. However, now that I have become somewhat familiar with the way it works I find it somewhat interesting. I think that the idea is neat…The only thing that I did not like was that some people post 37 tweets a day, therefore I do not get to see what those who tweet only 2 or 3 times a day are saying…I mean, I can…but it takes forever to go back and see what everyone else has said. I like that you can only have 140-characters because that keeps it from being long and drawn out. I am not sure that I see myself “tweeting” as a daily thing…but maybe I will check it occasionally. Maybe once I follow more people I learn to enjoy it more.

I also thought that people could reply back to something I had said was neat…It was kind of like a conversation sort of thing, but a public one…I also like that the fact that I can see everyone that is following me…I just wish it was a different term for people who read my updates, haha “people following me” sounds kinda creepy! I have not completely given up on Twitter….maybe I’ll give it a few more weeks. 🙂 I see how this could be a neat way of communicating, and something people do for fun…it could also be helpful in some situations.!

Ropes Course

So, my FYE class did the Southern Adventures Ropes Course the other day instead of having class…I was super excited about it. To start off, they made us pass around a ball and address the person that threw it to us, and the person we threw it to. Although it was super confusing once we got more than one ball going, it was a pretty cool way of learning everyones name. Next, we did the human knot. Haha, my group couldn’t get out out the knot…I guess we tied ourselves up pretty good. The other group did it pretty fast. What I learned from this activity is that communication within a group is very important, especially when trying to solve a problem. Next we moved onto the actual low ropes course. We were told to balance ourselves on this log. (the entire class on the same log, that is!!) Then we were told to pick our favorite animal and keep it a secret in our head (still, all while balancing on this log). Then we were told that we were not allowed to speak, and that we had to get our animals in order on the log, from smallest to biggest, WITHOUT TALKING! The only way we could communicate with by making our animal’s noise. This was tough…we were only allowed to have “three touches.” And once we used those three touches, we had to start all over. It took us a while to figure it out, and eventually we did! 🙂 I think that this was good for us to get to know each other, and learn how to work as a group. It also helped us think outside of the box. The last thing we did was, we were blind folded and led to this place with all these ropes. The class was scattered throughout the ropes, and we were told we could only ask two questions “am I good?” or “can I get some help?” Confused like normal, I was the first one to ask if I could have some help… I was told to take my blindfold off and go outside the ropes. It was ironic because most people thought they were following the rope to find the end…However, there was no end. The point of the activity was to ask for help. I guess this was a good lesson because when you are confused about something, you should ask for help.

I think that this helped us “communicate” and work as a team. This ties in with our theme “Making Connections” because by talking together, and working together we were able to communicate in a fun environment.  I think that we might benefit from going back later in the semester because we will know one another a little better, and we might think ahead before we “knot ourselves up.” I thought this was a cool experience because we got to learn about how important communication is in another way than just sitting in a class room. I think that what we have learned at Southern Adventures will be beneficial for future class activities because we have learned that communication is very important. It is also important to know one another in order to work together, and maybe even knowing someones name wouldn’t hurt either.

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