"Digi-chant"

In the video "Digi-chant" I thought its tone was unique and weird at the same time, the way it was describe was completely not what I was thinking about when I was reading the lyrics off the paper we were given in class. The lyrics on the paper differs more than the video because the lyrics on the paper sounds like a rap when in reality the video on YouTube is a computer robot to you talking about how Technology and how it sucks your imagination or thoughts in and controls your life. The point of the video was created to prove that technology is worldwide and a lot of people who use it either becomes it or it controls who you will be later in life such as your personality or facial appearance, so choose either to "Utilize it or become it". I think the author wants us to realize that we must only use technology for the good and not the bad, many people use technology to find the wrong necessities rather than the good, such as watching fighting videos, gang videos, pornography, and even as it said in the video, "Www.killallniggasfagskikes@burninhell.com, learned to make a bomb in three easy steps". These are the different types of advice that the author tries to tell us in the video. The world wasn't made to be perfect but, technology isn't making it any better by creating monsters or thieves. I think in a way this video is related to Social Justice because it goes against the law in a way, in the lyrics it talked about how bloods or crips would shoot at each other or kids go on YouTube or websites to learn how to be a "gangster" or the requirements to become a "gang member", these sort of things are making what today is, which is causing hell on earth by promoting fighting, shooting, making others scared and afraid to come outside at night, and even during the day.

how technology is changing us

Technology has changed the way we as humans live; it changes our understanding of the way things work and changes the way we interact with one another. It was once opposed but is now somewhat welcomed into homes. In the renaissance, technology was opposed, as the church believed that technology would oppose beliefs of god. Well they were right. Technology isn't just computers or TV’s, its engineering science. And in Science, our goal is to get further and understand everything there is to understand about us, our planet and beyond. However, the way we understand and experience this concept the most is that its just to make our lives much more efficient. When you look around, what do you see? Just at an intersection in downtown Calgary, you see people walking around with cell phones and carrying around laptop cases, other’s just listening to music. But then the companies that build these types of technology want to make them better and more efficient. So they keep releasing new devices that are smaller and faster and mostly more costly.

Technology has changed the way we track money, do business and much more. It is becoming a huge aspect of social life as well as communications. We are seeing more of the workforce not having to commute, but work from home, which can change the way we design our living communities. Over the last five years, technology has been rapidly changing and expanding in every field imaginable. Smart phones are now capable of acting as standalone computer devices that can take pictures, search the Internet, send emails and text messages and yes, they even make phone calls. While it might seem that the technology of today has reached its limits, it is still actually spreading its proverbial wings. Only twenty or so years ago, personal computers were becoming small enough and affordable enough for families to buy them for home use. Since then, the world of technology has shown no signs of slowing down and practically every device available today is somehow tied to computer technology.

Technology is a concept that will never end. new devices will be released and then refined just about endlessly. Not even if or when we start running out of resources, because we would have recycled parts to build new technology and we will build new technology to possibly refine available resources or even find another planet that has the same resources. Technology now is a concept that we cannot survive without; an average North American person needs technology, to eat, to entertain, to cook, and to do many other daily functions. Lets face it we need technology to survive. But this is to an extent, for example a computer can be one of mans best friends, it helps us write documents such as the one you are currently reading, it helps us obtain knowledge through the internet, and it helps us entertain ourselves with games, movies, and music. But the computer can also have side effects, to our behavior, and even to our appearance.

Some children get so entangled in this technology that their eating and sleeping habits change and so do their behaviors. Not just on the computer, even just playing on game consoles such as the Xbox or the PS3 or even iPod's they can all change the way we eat, sleep, and behave. While children play on computers or gaming consoles, they get so involved that they begin to avoid eating and sleep later to play longer. The games they play really can change their usual behavior. For example, shooting games or fighting games can make them more violent, strategy games can make them more strategic (slightly), and racing games can make them aggressive drivers, it all depends on how much you play and how addicted you become. But gaming can also lead to a loss of physical activity, when someone is addicted to a game, they refrain from leaving the house until they reach a certain ‘achievement’, until they win a race or even until the ‘die’ in the game, this behavior can cause us to gain weight and/or become obese because we also begin snacking more instead of eating proper meals and we stop exercising often.

I’m not saying technology is bad. Technology changes the way we live, changes the way we interact, it lets us understand the world better, and it helps us write documents, do our homework, present neat computerized presentations, and even edit documents with others in real-time. So as it says in the video "Digi-chant" by Ursula Rucker, are you going to "utilize it or become it", well in my opinion, I would utilize the bad behavior of it and only become it just for the better and positive feedback of it. The video is reality and we are reality meaning we do "download our life, edit our dreams, cut and paste our memories" it is a daily thing we do and technology will never stop, well unless we all die.

Fade To White

Fade to White

I think this is related to Social Justice because it shows how an Asian girl is being transformed into someone she isn't; just because of society causing her to. She is constantly being told by her mother that being white is a better life when in reality, you can be yourself and show your pride of your own skin race. How would I characterize the tone of this piece, well let’s see, it can be depressing and also interesting. The world we live in now is basically run by ignorant immature adults or kids, who make others feel like shit and feel like they aren't worth shit because of their appearance; I have never let anyone do this to me because I know I’m strong. Others don't have the strength to put up with it and just let themselves get bullied by other people just because of either their race or facial appearance. The kind of people who might benefit from analyzing this film are those who were in her position sometime in their life or were treated like shit once before. The big points they are trying to make is that society is all fucked up and if we don't do something about it, our whole world will go to shit. Even though there is violence all around us, it will not stop. Despite being a different race among others, people will still judge you. I say we should take a stand, and let others know that the world can be a safer place if we approach it with confidence. We can also show pride of whom we are and what we are capable of. And this is what I think about the video we saw in class. Be yourself. Trying to be anyone else is a waste of the person you are. Embrace that individual inside you that has ideas, strengths and beauty like no one else. Be the person you know yourself to be – the best version of you – on your terms. Above all, be true to YOU – if you cannot put your heart in it, take yourself out of it.

Starting today…

Get your priorities straight. – Twenty years from now it won’t really matter what shoes you wore today, how your hair looked, or what brand of jeans you bought. What will matter is how you loved, what you learned and how you applied this knowledge.
Take full responsibility for your goals. – If you really want good things in your life to happen, you have to make them happen yourself. You can’t sit around and hope that somebody else will help you; you have to make your own future and not think that your destiny is tied to the actions and choices of others. Read Quitter.
Know your worth. – When someone treats you like you’re just one of many options, help them narrow their choice by removing yourself from the equation. Sometimes you have to try not to care, no matter how much you do. Because sometimes you can mean almost nothing to someone who means so much to you. It’s not pride – it’s self-respect. Don’t expect to see positive changes in your life if you surround yourself with negative people. Don’t give part-time people a full-time position in your life. Know your value and what you have to offer, and never settle for anything less than what you deserve.
Choose the right perspective. – Perspective is everything. When faced with long check-out lines, traffic jams, or waiting an hour past your appointment time, you have two choices: You can get frustrated and enraged, or you can view it as life’s way of giving you a guilt-free breather from rushing, and spend that time daydreaming, conversing, or watching the clouds. The first choice will raise your blood pressure. The second choice will raise your consciousness.
Don’t let your old problems punish your dreams. – Learn to let go of things you can’t control. The next time you’re tempted to rant about a situation that you think ended unfairly, remind yourself of this: You’ll never kill off your anger by beating the story to death. So close your mouth, un-clench your fists, and redirect your thoughts. When left untended, the anger will slowly wither, and you’ll be left to live in peace as you grow toward a better future.
Choose the things that truly matter. – Some things just don’t matter much – like the kind of car you drive. How big of a deal is that in the grand scheme of life? Not a big at all. But lifting a person’s heart? Now, that matters. The whole problem with most people is, they KNOW what matters, but they don’t CHOOSE it. They get distracted. They don’t put first things first. The hardest and smartest way to live is choosing what truly matters, and pursuing it passionately. Read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
Love YOU. – Let someone love you just the way you are – as flawed as you might be, as unattractive as you sometimes feel, and as unaccomplished as you think you are. Yes, let someone love you despite all of this; and let that someone be YOU.
Accept your strengths and weaknesses. – Be confident being YOU. We often waste too much time comparing ourselves to others, and wishing to be something we’re not. Everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses, and it is only when we accept everything we are, and aren’t, that we are able to become who we are capable of being.
Stand up for YOU. – You were born to be real, not to be perfect. You’re here to be YOU, not to be what someone else wants you to be. Stand up for yourself, look them in the eye, and say, “Don’t judge me until you know me, don’t underestimate me until you challenge me, and don’t talk about me until you've talked to me.”

Learn from others, and move on when you must. – You can’t expect to change people. Either you accept who they are, or you start living your life without them. And just because something ends, doesn't mean it never should have been. You lived, you learned, you grew, and you moved on. Some people come into your life as blessings; others come into your life as lessons.
Be honest in your relationships. – Don’t cheat! If you’re not happy, be honest, and move on if you must. When you’re truly in love, being faithful isn't a sacrifice, it’s a joy.
Get comfortable with being uncomfortable. – Life as we know it can change in a blink of an eye. Unlikely friendships can blossom, important careers can be tossed aside and a long lost hope can be rekindled. It might feel a little uncomfortable at times, but know that life begins at the end of your comfort zone. So if you’re feeling uncomfortable right now, know that the change taking place in your life is not an ending, but a new beginning. Read The Power of Full Engagement.
Be who you were born to be. – Don’t get to the end of your life and find that you lived only the length of it; live the width of it as well. When it comes to living as a passionate, inspired human being, the only challenge greater than learning to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes, is learning to walk a lifetime comfortably in your own. Follow your heart, and take your brain with you. When you are truly comfortable in your own skin, not everyone will like you, but you won’t care about it one bit.
Never give up on YOU. – This is your life; shape it, or someone else will. Strength shows not only in the ability to hold on, but in the ability to start over when you must. It is never too late to become what you might have been. Keep learning, adapting, and growing. You may not be there yet, but you are closer than you were yesterday.

I found this interesting article by blogger Marc Chernoff. You might want to check it out here [http://www.marcandangel.com/2012/05/23/14-rules-for-being-you/] in which I used information off his website onto my blog.

Is Fighting Ruining Your Relationship?

Is Fighting Ruining Your Relationship?

Reduce Stress and Tension By Avoiding Arguments

It’s hard not to take an “every man for himself/anything goes” attitude when caught in an argument with a loved one. Setting some personal ground rules for yourself or your relationship can help keep arguing a healthy, useful means of communication instead of an opportunity to tear one another down. Although they’ll be most helpful if you, after reflecting on your own difficulties and strengths when communicating, personalize them to your liking, here are some suggested rules to follow to get the most out of an argument without letting it get the best of you.

Put The Past In Its Place

Although it’s not always possible, avoid bringing up the past. This rings especially true of past fights or offenses that have since been resolved. While it’s easy to find fault with past mistakes, if they have been discussed, handled or apologized for it is necessary that you let them lie. Bringing up the past puts your partner in defensive mode. It also makes you, as a pair, lose track of what you originally began arguing about.

Benefit From A Break

If you are both able to acknowledge that an argument has lost its direction, and instead has become a way to hurt the other because you yourself are feeling hurt, then by all means give yourself a break! Although it can be hard to pull yourself from a heated moment, a breather can give you both time to cool down and return to the issue more open to fair and goal-driven discussion. Sometimes an argument begins to take on a circular pattern -- one accusation leads to another, and to another without any hope of resolve.

Pick Up On Peace Offerings

Whether it’s in the form of a joke or an apology, be on the look for an attempt by your partner to end or begin ending the argument. While your initial reaction may be one of offense (“My partner isn't taking this seriously.”) or opposition (“I’m not done.”) at least consider where you stand in the argument and what your partner’s attempt means. Unless you see the argument heading in a clear, productive direction, if one of you feels ending it then is the way to go, maybe honoring that feeling is the way to go. You’ll likewise appreciate it when they in turn recognize your attempt at ending another argument. Acknowledging your partner’s “request” to end the argument will create trust between you and make individual arguments feel less major.

Listen Like You Mean It

It might be tempting to spend the time your partner is speaking to plan what you will say next, but you should actively work to avoid doing this. Be present in the argument. Whatever is happening, being said at that exact moment, be a part of it. Hear the words your partner is saying to you, think about the meanings behind them, look at their face when they form those words and allow it all to mean something to you. In the same way that when you speak you are trying hard to convey something, have them understand, they are striving for you to comprehend their words.

The Path to Success

People often want something for nothing.They want to work for a year, and be rich for a lifetime, diet for a month, and be skinny for years, work hard for a season, and become CEO. But real change…requires a life style change! Tell me how you spend your time and I will predict your future, because the secret of your future lies hidden in your daily routine.There are no short-cuts! You can’t cheat the system. In fact, the more you try to cheat the system, the farther away from your goals you get. There are no back roads to success; everyone has to climb the same mountain.

Success Is Simple, But Hard

What deceives most people is the fact that success looks so simple, and it is simple. Simple to understand that is. But success is also very hard…and it’s hard because it requires you to be consistent; it requires you to change your lifestyle (your daily actions, thinking, and habits). Never forget that your habits will take you farther than your desires! Desire can only take you so far…before you burn out, you must rely on the train tracks of habit to get you to your destination.

Change Your Lifestyle

It is your lifestyle that produces rewards. A lifestyle of working hard every day produces certain rewards; a lifestyle of learning everyday produces certain rewards; a lifestyle of eating right everyday produces certain rewards; a lifestyle of focusing on your passion every day, produces certain rewards.

A lifestyle of trying to cheat the system and get something for nothing, also produces, but it doesn't produce rewards, it produces confusion. It produces confusion because you don’t understand why you can’t have the results that others have. After all, you've been working hard for six months, why aren't you rich yet. You've worked out every day this month, why aren't you skinny.

Question

Do people gather apples from an orange tree, or coconuts from a peach tree? No, every tree produces after its kind. "To produce success, you must have the roots of success; you must have the lifestyle that produces the fruit that you want to enjoy."

Hard Work

Dear Hard Work,

I used to hate you. When you called my name, I heard it, but ran away from you. When I knew you were coming I used to hide from you. When you influenced others to talk to me, I quickly made excuses to get away from you. Afraid of the pain because I didn't want to get hurt. Afraid to fail, so I didn't even try. And afraid of your name because of what you have done to others. Who do you think you are, making me so afraid of who you are, reflection in the mirror, shadow behind me, I take one step and you're still ahead of me. Sweat in my face.Tears in my eyes. I keep on going. I heard you tell no lies. You turn the poor to rich, the F's to A's, is there anything you can't do?

Now look at me, you made me who I am today. Because of you, I have this never losing, never giving up attitude. Quitting, that's not in my vocabulary. When they quit, I keep going. When they sleep, I work harder. When they say that I can't, and count me out, I show them that I can. When I tell them about my dreams and they laugh, I make sure I laugh last. I'm a dream chaser, that means I chase my dreams, no one else. Only I can defeat me. Its me against this work you put on me, there's no losing. I will not lose.

I came this far and I'm not stopping now.

Oh hard work, my dad was right about you. You do pay off, because of that, I love you. How can I not? I'm no longer hiding from you. I'm waiting for you. Matter of fact, where are you? I need you. Because in hard work I trust.

Celebrate Halloween !

How to celebrate your Halloween with spirit?!

Ever wanted to make Halloween a bit more fun? Well i'm here to introduce these amazing "Best Rolled Sugar Cookies". Whenever you make these cookies for someone, be sure to bring along several copies of the recipe! You will be asked for it, I promise! Cookies that everyone will enjoy eating rather with milk or no milk, They will compliment you on how amazing they taste and the quality of either which ever you make pumpkins or ghosts, i prefer pumpkins, they are much more fun to make and eat of course.

NOTE: I make icing with confectioners' sugar and milk. I make it fairly thin, as I 'paint' the icing on the cookies with a pastry brush. Thin enough to spread easily but not so thin that it just makes your cookies wet and runs off.

Ingredients

Original recipe makes 5 dozen cookies

√ 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
√ 2 cups white sugar
√ 4 eggs
√ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
√ 5 cups all-purpose flour
√ 2 teaspoons baking powder

PREP20 mins
COOK8 mins
READY IN3 hrs

Directions (If you get lost, I have a link to a media player, below)

http://allrecipes.com/video/624/the-best-rolled-sugar-cookies/detail.aspx

1.In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).

2.Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

3.Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

(Full credit goes to http://allrecipes.com/Cook/19991953/Profile.aspx)

Failures

Failures Are The Pillars of Success

Failure is a strong word, failure can ruin someone, failure is the wrong path to go. Life is not a bed of roses. It is full of thorns. There are ups and downs in life. Life means perpetual struggle. It is a series of battles. We are to fight hard against cruel realities of life. Our attempts always may not be crowned with success. We may fail once and again but we should not lose heart rather we should take heart and advance with indomitable spirit and invincible will power. We should not consider failure a curse. We should accept it heartily because failure are not really as bad as they are thought to be. Failure is a curse to those who lack in action and have no determination. But failure can not dishearten a man of iron will and firm determination. It develops our latent powers and strengthens our mind. It teachers a man to be self determined. Failure makes us conscious of our defects and helps us to rectify ourselves. We can know the reason of our unsuccessful from failure. Then we can start our work with new energy and finish it successfully. So failure, instead of damping our spirits, paves and way to success. Failures make us wiser, more patient and more practical. History is replete with the examples of the great men who did not allow their spirits to be damped at the first failure. They tried heart and soul once and again and in this way they succeed in life. So it can be said that failures are the pillar of success.

In high school, failure came to mind, failure happened. Failure started in my 2nd year in high school, i started to lack in doing homework, not caring about my hardest classes, telling myself that i can't do it, might as well fail the class. Failure at that time was the path i choose to take because i thought i would never be able to pass the class or be able to be successful in life. Until one day, being screamed at by the top of their lungs, my parents. My parents were the ones screaming at me, telling me if i don't step up my game, i will be like the rest who work in McDonald's who think they will succeed by working there for years. Then i started to realize that the only reason i kept failing the class was because i tried being that cool kid in the class, that kid were everyone knew I was a bad ass by talking back to the teacher or being kicked out of the classroom. One day, i stood up for myself, i told my parents, watch me succeed, watch me graduate with my class, i promised them these things because i knew i could do it, i knew from the bottom of my heart that failure wasn't going to be in my life. I started paying attention in class, I showed others that one day they will fail in life but it takes heart and compassion to keep on going and fighting for that victory. Taking summer school to taking adult school, i achieved my goals and showed my parents that failure isn't the path i'm going. June 5th, 2013 came along, standing proud, receiving my diploma, you see failure wasn't my path, and it shouldn't be yours either.