Best time of the year...and I am stuck in the rain.

As some of you know, I have been going through a transition phase. I won't tell details, because there is important information that some people in my life just don't deserve to know yet, but something big is coming in my life. I have decided on a big change and I am excited and terrified and nervous that I will decide again, after making this decision, that it doesn't fit either. The best thing that I can think of though, is that I have thought this through and talked to the people I should talk to and have made a decision. I am jumping in and trying it out. I am stressed that it will cause me to get behind on life, but as my sister has told me many, many times, "Learn to take life slow. We always want to hurry, but if we hurry, what will we do when what we were hurrying to do is done?" She is so unbelievably right and every time I get in a hurry I remind myself of that.
I hate that all this decision-making came at this time of year. For all who don't know, Christmas is my absolute favorite holiday! I just love the feeling and smell of Christmas. I love the mornings that you wake up all cozy, fully rested, you get up and look out your window and there is this fresh blanket of snow covering the world. I know it's cheesy and maybe childish, but I like to look at those mornings like it is my time to wake up the world. I need to go out and play in the snow and wake up the world from under it's cozy white fluffy blanket. I went home last weekend to get our tree and decorate the house and it was probably the best weekend home I have had in a long time. Everything was just perfect. That morning happened. I woke up and snow was covering everything, soft flakes were falling, and my gorgeous puppy was outside exploring it, having never seen it before.
It makes me sad that it will be the family's first Christmas without Penny. We hung up one of our ornaments on the tree of a golden retriever with wings. It had previously been a picture of Penny when she was alive. Her official name was Penny From Heaven Hannon - it just fit her. Now the ornament means something different. She now isn't physically being an angel in our home, she is watching over us with those wings. I talk to her when I can. I tell her that I don't want her to feel replaced. Roxie is far from being Penny. They are completely different and the only thing that has happened is we have gained a member to our family. Penny probably would have hated Roxie, ha! Roxie is so energetic, Penny would have never gotten any peace. Christmas will be different this year without her. I love her and miss her so much and I will definitely be remembering her this season.

I got the idea for my title from the weather today. It rained today. A lot. I hate the rain...HATE it. I kept telling people all day, "I wish it was 20 degrees colder, because all this would be snow." A lot of people thought I was crazy, but I like the cold. It is odd though, that I am in a pretty decent mood today. Normally, when it rains my mood is rainy. It all goes back to my weekend and the time of year. Rain in December sucks, but it is December, meaning the good cancels out the bad.
I got a little off track. That's what happens with these blogs. I start writing about one thing and thoughts just flood me and I hurridly try to get them on the screen before I forget them. So, forgive me for the chaos! I am stuck in the rain, though. Literally and metaphorically. I have made that decision, but I have so much to do in order for it to be done. I so wish it would just come. I am one of those people who like to just jump in and make decisions happen right then and there. I am very impulsive. This is important though and I can't be impulsive and it is leaving me stuck. I know it will make me happy though and that is what is pushing me forward. It is what encourages me to tough out the rough time and look forward to the future without wishing it were here now. With that attitude, I know that I have grown up, at least a little in college! I know I have changed, but I wasn't sure if it was good or bad. I've decided it was good, though.

Well, I think I have finished my ramblings. I appreciate it if you have gotten this far. I actually think a new blog might be up pretty soon. Not on of great importance, but a fun one. I am not consistant with writing and so, I apologize if you have a hard time with inconsistant. Happy Holidays, everyone! Stay safe on the streets and just remember to be considerate of others. Even if it is holding the door for someone or saying thank you if someone holds it for you - just remember that the small things like that are what make people's days!

Sincerely,
The Ern

Please join me in my excitement.

Yes I did not vote, but that does not mean that I am not unbelievably excited for this county's future. I must say though with all this excitement I have already felt heartbreak. Within moments of President Elect Obama's win I read very unfaithful and poor opinions on the win. I am very moderate, straight down the middle, so I truly would have been happy with either candidate. I understand that a lot of people are not like that. A lot of people have their own opinions which they are completely entitled to have, but some people act so disgraceful, it makes me sad.

The things that I read on Facebook after Obama won the election were shocking. I saw people saying they can't wait for the next election already and I actually recieved a request to join a group called "I want to run from my country" with a picture of Barak Obama with a big "FRAUD" written over it. That is outright disgusting. Our country voted for him. We all voted for him. Yes, you might not have literally voted for him, but as a whole country we chose him. He is not a terrorist and he will not fail our country. McCain would not have failed either. They have different approaches and this is the one we chose. Whether you agree with the desicion, at least have faith in the country that you live in. Remember that you could live in a country where we have no voice. A place where we are forced to believe in one religion, wear certain clothes, eat certain foods, and have no choice in anything at all. We could have no voice, but we do.

We chose him. Have faith in the country that respects you. Respect the one who was chosen and has a huge burden on him now. One man running a huge nation like ours is tough. He has a huge mountain to climb. As he said in his speech, he needs everyone's support, even those who did not vote for him. Support him so that we can make our country even better than it is now or has been in the past. Work with him so that the best desicions can be made to better our futures. Please do not lose faith in something that we are so priveleged to have gone through. Whether you are a Republican, Democrat, Independant, Libertarian, etc., believe in what we have ahead of us. Please be the proud citizens that this country deserves. Look at the good things that this election has brought us.

Our first black president. Whether you voted for him or not, it is history. Our country came from treating african americans as property to electing one for our president to lead this country in whatever way he can do best. Have faith in his ability, he will not fail us. He may make mistakes, because he is only human, but we must look past those mistakes and help him in the huge job he has at his feet.

Love our country and respect our country. We chose him. Believe in that, believe in him, believe in our country.

Sincerely,
The Ern

My decision is final...whether you agree or not.

I have decided to write a blog to inform people I know of a certain decision that I have thought long and hard about. After I announce this decision, I beg you to please read my reasoning. If you don't agree, that is fine. Just please try to understand at least, and respect my decision as my own. No one convinced me of this - I wholeheartedly debated it within my own head and decided completely on my own.

I have decide not to vote in this election.

Now, calm down. I know you are probably really upset and disappointed with this decision, but please hear me out. I have a right to choose this. We, as Americans, have a right to vote, meaning we can choose to not utilize that right. It is not because I don't think my vote matters, or that I just don't care; it is because I think either candidate will be great for our country and I just don't have the knowledge on the affairs that I think I should have to vote effectively.

I have taken quizzes, watched the debates, read the newspapers. I have worked hard on trying to teach myself the issues. I do understand many of them on a surface level, but I don't have enough experience as an adult to make a truly informed decision on who deserves to run our country. Heck with that outlook, you know that I think my vote matters - I am acting as if my vote is the ONLY one that matters! ;)

I really truly have faith in both candidates. I am a fully moderate voter (and yes even though I am not voting in my first chance of voting, I AM still a voter) and am completely amazed at both candidates. I think they are such intelligent men and even if you don't agree with their views, at least respect them for what they aspire to do and have already done for our country. Whoever wins this year, will get us out of this economic downfall and work their hardest to do what's best for the United States of America. They may make decisions that you hate, but it is impossible to make every single American happy 100% of the time (Thank you Mrs. Prather for teaching me that lesson).

The one good thing that I ask you to take away from this blog, especially if you are beyond disgruntled by my decision, is to just have faith in this country. I love the USA. I am beyond thankful for the life she has given me and thankful for how she has provided for my parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents who immigrated here for the American Dream. Don't forget that American Dream. Remember We the People, what those men were truly doing when they signed the Declaration and wrote our Constitution. They saw this. They envisioned how America is today, and guided us with those documents even after they left our world.

Barak Obama or John McCain? I choose both. Good luck and God bless!

Sincerely,
The Ern

The Baywatch Effect

I learned an interesting fact today in my T101 class. The Baywatch effect. Mark explained it better than I will be able to in this entry, but I will attempt. I took away from today's class that the Baywatch effect means that when a certain hit becomes a hit to a majority of viewers most media creators then take that hit and make it their own to make an optimum profit (I hope that sums it up well enough for you Mark). Baywatch was the beginning of this effect, hence "The Baywatch Effect". Now it has come to a more diverse medium that appeals to viewers.

A good example came to my head during Mark's lecture. Cop shows. My dear lovable critical boyfriend brings this topic up a bunch. He complains to me often that all cop shows on t.v. today are the same. I love watching all these cop shows and he makes fun of me for it because he claims that even with their minor differences they are one and all alike. Who would have thought my boyfriend was discussing an actual theory when he complained about his contempt?

It is completely true what he complains about though. Just off of my head I can name these current cop shows: CSI, CSI: NY, CSI: MIAMI, Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: SVU, Cold Case, Saving Grace, Cops, TRU t.v., Discovery's Case Files Shows, etc. All these shows start out with someone dying mysteriously (often times including sexual abuse, but I will get to that later) and then follows the investigators until the crime is solved. So why is it such a hype to watch all these variations? The answer is really simple: Money. The creators of the shows want to make money so they look at what is already popular.
Ever since the days of Dragnet and Cagney and Lacey cop shows have been of interest to many viewers. Since then they have evolved to fit the time period they premiere in and to peek on the interests of the new curiosities within the viewers minds. Cop shows may never come to an end as more technological advances are produced and can be brought into the shows meaning continuous money flow for the creators.

Now onto a flip view of what most people appreciate. The cop show parodies. Recently people have taken notice to the abundance of cop shows on the air and have decided to use that with a completely different twist than what has been seen before. Reno 911, according to it's Wikipedia page, was created by Comedy Central in 2003 and is a "mockumentary" parodying the show Cops. It takes situations just like seen on Cops, but almost seems to make them even more real. It is almost completely improvised so it makes it feel realer that what most cop shows are. It makes fun of what cops must do to protect the law. In Cops, there are a lot of drug busts and chases. In Reno 911, there are ridiculous sexual offenders and calls made that show the cops not having any actual authority. It takes Cops and makes it so much more out there.

Another parody I have seen recently was in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. One of the main characters is an actress for a television cop show. In the movie, there are shots taken of the show she is on and it parodies how so many of the cases in the cop shows in real life revolve around sex offenders. It is obvious that the filming of her show is a lot like the filming of the CSI shows. There is emphasis put on the one liners that the actors say and the fact that each murder is somehow connected through sexual intentions. There may be pubic hair found on the victim, or evidence of rape, or some kind of dominatrix act. It completely parodies real investigation shows.

Anyway, I went on a long rant and most likely lost my main topic. This all connects back to the Baywatch effect because people are making money even off of a hit b making fun of the hit. It's a different angle of the Baywatch effect that I feel will be seen much more in the future. I must say, I do love my cop shows, but I also love a good parody as well. Yet again, my optimistic pessimism is coming out. I'll be back soon to reflect on something more that Mark made me think about!

Sincerely,
The Ern

Technology Epidemic or No?

As I've gone to my T101 class the passed couple weeks, my mind has cleared and I have begun to view things a little differently. My instructor, Mark Deuze, tells us that we should come into his class with a clear view on media, meaning we should forget our preconceived opinions and look at media with an open mind. This is a hard thing to do. I often times, in the past, would flip flop back and forth with my view on technology and the media. I would go through a period where the new technologies would amaze me and I would be totally optimistic about their futures, but then after that high a very negative view would hit me even harder than the optimistic outlook. After the optimism I would look more critically at what the technological advances were doing to me. I would start to believe that these advances were making me impersonal and lot in the world. Then it all would flip back again. Mark has changed this for me.

Technology is a beautiful thing. It's amazing what human beings can do now with all the technology that has been created. Medicine alone has advanced so much that the world is beginning to find cures to the most dangerous illnesses. That is a wide view though. The "technology epidemic" that I titled this entry has more to do with what I view on campus at IU. Ever since classes started and I began hearing what Mark has taught us I have seen the way my fellow students treat technology. Cell phones are everywhere. I have yet to meet a student who does not have a cell phone of some kind. Some are more advanced than others, but everyone has at least a basic phone. It does sadden me a little when I see people texting in my classes when they should be focused on the instructor, but that is not the outlook I want to have. I want to be able to compare what campus life was like just ten years ago. I can't imagine that many students would have cell phones. Ten years ago cell phones were just breaking out and it was a luxury then compared to being a necessity now. And yes, cell phones are necessities now. If someone doesn't have a cell phone they are very disconnected from the world.

Wait...? Did I just say disconnected. What happened to all the theories of cell phones, and video games, and computers causing people to become more impersonal. This is where that theory falters. Our world today is so dependent on these new technologies that to be impersonal is to not have a cell phone. So is it really an epidemic to have all these things?

Every person's view is different. I love that there are all these advances, but when does it go too far. I personally think some technologies are a bit ahead of their time. For instance, the Microsoft Milan, the new surface computer, is an awesome way of computing, but is it really worth it all in the end. From what I have heard these new computers are around $10,000 and take up a lot of space. Mark showed us an informational video on it and also a parody on the computer. Check out these videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rP5y7yp06n0
and the parody: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZrr7AZ9nCY

That is just one example of many new technologies that we might not be ready for. I personally agree with the parody on this particular medium. All in all though, people may think that kids are more violent and the human race is becoming impersonal, it really isn't happening. Just look around when you are walking outside. Someone is always on the phone or texting someone that they aren't physically able to be with causing more interaction. There is no epidemic in my opinion. It just advancements that come with change.

Sincerely,
The Ern

And in the beginning...

Welcome readers to Optimistic Pessimism!

I am not a writer. I used to think I was a writer until the wonderful day came that I went to college and took a writing class. I, by no means, failed; I just didn't do as well as I had expected. I technically have started this blog because of a class I am taking now, but I have been wanting to start one for a while.

Now, what is optimistic pessimism. I really have no fucking idea, personally...it's just something I consider a quality of mine. A big quality. I rant on and on about staying optimistic to everyone (mostly my boyfriend), yet I think I am probably the most pessimistic person I know.
The name came to me right before I began this blog because I told a couple people close to me the phrase "This too shall pass". That's a pretty damn optimistic phrase and I sat here and told these people that it's something I live by. In actuality, I wouldn't say I live by - I rely on it. I only think about the phrase when I am going through something tough, which is not at all living by it. I don't think twice about the phrase when I am happily content with my life.


Anyway, I have begun my blog and I hope that you enjoy it. I must warn you that it will probably not exceed too many expectations - meaning it will probably be dull and dry most of the time, but if you are willing to tune in, I will be more than happy to continue writing! On to my endless amount of homework that I have been bitching about for a few days now.

Sincerely,
The Ern