Thursday, October 28, 2010

Leggy Lady

Now this is a sensitive topic: Leggings. Leggings, I think, are the herpes of the fashion world. The trend spread like wildfire and it can be seen on people all over the world.



Now don't get me wrong I LOVE leggings, I wear them almost everyday and they are so so so comfortable. They are versatile and I don't have to worry about them falling down.

However, I do have a beef with them. Whenever I wear them I feel like a bit of a slob. They are weird if you where them in the place of pants but also weird if you where them in the place of tights or nylons. They are this strange hybrid garment stuck in limbo.

But my god are they comfortable.

So my friends this will be the first post on It's Not the End of the World where I ask you if it is or is not the end of the world.

In this case is it the end of the world that leggings are so comfortable but are that in between pseudo clothing?

Tell me!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Be Stupid

Well this flips my world upside down. I'm pretty sure this could mean the end of the world. Or just a whole new way of looking at it.

The Social Network: The Mark Zuckerberg Story



So, I went and saw the Social Network some what reluctantly. I thought it looked boring, but I was wrong (yes I know it's the end of the world I'm finally adnmitting I'm wrong). I thought to myself "Is the creator of Facebook an asshole?"

I think that Mark Zuckerberg was portrayed in a negative light, however, I think the audience still wanted him to succeed. The opening scene of the film portrays Zuckerberg being very rude and selfish during a conversation with his girlfriend. His girlfriend gets angry breaks up with him and says something along the lines of “You’re going to go through life thinking girls don’t like you because you’re a tech geek. And I want you to know, from the bottom of my heart, that that won’t be true. It’ll be because you’re an asshole.” Instantly the audience doesn’t like Zuckerberg, but as the film progresses and other characters are introduced you begin to feel sorry for Zuckerberg.  It makes the audience think maybe deep down underneath his rude exterior Zuckerberg is a nice guy with a brilliant idea. The film shows all the negative things Zuckerberg has done (for example betray his best friend), but yet it still portrays Zuckerberg as the creator of the idea Facebook and his passion for succeeding.
I think the impact of this film has had a positive impact on Facebook, but I don’t think it has made it more popular. The reason why I think it has made a positive impact on the company is because it has drawn interest in Facebook as a story, not just as a website. I don’t think that necessarily means that Facebook will have more people joining the site, but the film has drawn more attention to the site. To me it seems as if it is the scenario of any attention is good attention even if it doesn’t make people hop on the bandwagon. I think the film just increases people’s knowledge of the topic and gives them a better idea of where it came from.
Mark Zuckerberg’s response to the film was basically to shrug it off and say that his life wasn’t really that dramatic and that the story is more fiction than fact.  He suggests that the movie is just fun and that people shouldn’t take it too seriously. Consequently this encourages audiences to do the same and believe that not every story you hear is true. The response from Zuckerberg and his PR team is smart because if the celebrity doesn’t care neither will the public. They will think “Hey cool I don’t know that” and forget about the film and consequently continue with their lives, instead of saying “wow, that Mark Zuckerberg guy is a huge A-hole”. I also think the film wasn’t as cut and dry as Zuckerberg being a bad guy or not. It’s a lot of grey, Zuckerberg is a bad guy, but with a really good idea that made a lot of people want a piece of (it’s as if yes Zuckerberg is a bad guy, but everyone else is too). So was it necessary for Zuckerberg to give the response he did? I think yes. It ties in with his personality and the film and it’s a great promotion tool. It makes the audience truly believe Zuckerberg is care free and doesn’t let the negative light bother him.  I think his reaction hasn’t altered the audience’s perception of him from the film because he reacted to the film the way the film would’ve portrayed his character. What I would recommend the PR team do differently is to not of made any donations to any charities immediately after the film was released because they should’ve just stuck with the “Shrug-it off technique”. Because it doesn’t matter if film is fact or fiction it’s all about people’s perceptions. If people liked Zuckerburg or didn’t after the film, Zuckerberg should just keep trying to be himself and leave it at that.
The ending scene of the film shows Zuckerberg this time with another female that says to him “You’re not an asshole Mark. You just want to be.”
Sources:
http://wiscreenwritersforum.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Social-Network-The-by-Aaron-Sorkin-May-28-2009.pdf

Friday, October 15, 2010

Detox Shmeetox: A Buyer Beware Adventure

This as been a topic of interest of mine for the past five or so years. I used to work for a health food store and I wondered if detox programs work. I took a brochure for one of these detox/cleanse plans from work one day and showed it to my biology teacher in high school. He informed me that detoxes don't work and that they are a scam. He said that the body already has built in detoxifiers and they are called the liver and kidneys. 


So, finally I (and with the help of others) got to do the research I've always wanted to do. In my group I focused on U Weight Loss. U Weight Loss is a weight loss program that is developed by a physician and involves the processes of detox and cleansing in order for their clients to loose weight. Now, I was a little skeptical myself because I thought how can eliminating toxins from your body help someone loose weight? And what are these toxins? And how do they chemically interact with the human body? 


So, I decided to book myself in for a consultation (I had won a free detox kit from a raffle I signed up for half a year ago, but I realized that you don't have to win in order to have a consultation and free detox kit).  I also was curious about all these medical professionals who advertise on the radio and see if I can actually speak with one. 


When I went in for my consultation I was set up with someone who is called a health coach. When I asked the health coach how a detox will help me she explained that there are tons of toxins in our world (for example pollution in the air we breath and the food we eat). She explained that the difference between their formulated detox plan is that it targets the liver and not the colon. I asked her what exactly is a toxin chemically and how does it interact with the body. She answered that it is pollution in the air. So then I asked how does pollution in the air affect my liver if I'm breathing it through my lungs. I also asked how the detox targets my liver and what supplement actually targets it to that specific area and she said it was just a combination of all of them. I tried to ask more about the actual weight loss program after the initial detox and she gave me very little information. She said that it is three phases and once all three phases are completed the person then goes on a maintenance program. She said that they formulate meal plans which include all nutrients (fats, proteins, and carbohydrates) and that all families can eat the meals.


After my consultation I went and spoke with someone who had been on the program before. She said that the detox portion to the program is just a ploy to get people in the door. She said that it didn't benefit her or help her loose weight in any way. She was promised at the beginning of the program that she wouldn't have to buy any more supplements or detoxes but she said that she could tell the health coaches were commissioned because they kept trying to sell her more products every week. She said that the first phase of the weight loss program forced her to eat excess amounts of protein (ex: 4 eggs and a protein shake for breakfast and a fast food option that included a chicken salad with 2 extra chicken breasts from Wendys). She began to experience severe headaches and found she couldn't adhere to the diet plan at all. She decided to quit the program but only after spending more then a $1000. She said that U Weight Loss is a scam and that the people who work there are scam artists.


I also decided to consult a fitness expert. He said that in his 20 years as being a coach he has never heard of toxins as a cause of obesity. He said that this may sound harsh but people sometimes blame their weight on something else (toxin) in order to absolve themselves of guilt (it is the toxin that is the cause of extra weight). 



What Consumers should be Aware of:
Detox is a ploy to get people in the door. Detox does nothing to help weight loss but it is the meal plans that make people loose weight in an unhealthy way. U Weight Loss uses nutrition, supplements, and words like “registered nutritional consultant” as a disguise for an unhealthy way to loose weight. There is no proof detoxes help people loose weight. 

Here is the Free Detox Kit:


 

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Surviving a Bad Birthday


So we've all had one. A birthday that has gone terribly, terribly wrong. It's birthday season in my life right now. All my friends birthdays seemed to fall in October and November so this has inspired me to ask everyone if they have ever suffered through a terrible birthday. Whether it be uncle Fred getting drunk and crashing your fourteenth birthday party or the time your brother opened all your presents before you had the chance to. Let me know. I want to hear your bad birthday story and how you survived it! Feel free to post comments of your story underneath this blog.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Look What I Found!

Take a look guys. I'm going to have to read this and give you some tips!

Decentralized Dancing



Hey y'all,

So I had a life changing experience. I went to a decentralized dance party Monday night and it was mind blowing.
Here is some background info on what the decentralized dance party is and how it originated.
Tom and Gary are two guys who decided they didn't want to worry about paying cover charges at bars, dancing to lame bar music and dealing with curfews. So put off by the lameness of the conventional night life experience they decided to start a revolution.
It started small at first for example in pizza parlors, playgrounds, subway cars and buses. But they brought the party to the people and thus the Decentralized Dance Party (DDP) was birthed. They had death metal face offs and all night 90s jams and much much more.
Now you may be wondering how on Earth can Tom and Gary bring the party to the people anywhere, anytime or any place. Well, you may be familiar with the radio transmitter for your Ipod that connects with a radio frequency and you can play in your car. They took this idea and made it sooooo much cooler. Taking old school boom boxes you'd find at garage sales they tuned the radio station to their own frequency and played their music from their Ipod. Now take 20 people and 10 radios all playing the same song and you have an audio paaaartay! Genius.
Tom and Gary didn't just stop at having these dance parties around their home but decided to take it across the country. Stopping in different cities not announcing their location to the day of. No advertisement just Facebook messages and word of mouth.
Now take those 20 people and turn them into 2000 with 500 radios and you have a MAJOR DANCE PAAARTAY!


500 radios tuned to the same frequency playing fun songs by Meatloaf, Beastie Boys and anything in between. You don't know what to expect but you just dance. No lame top 40, just all fun nostalgia.

Oh, I forgot to mention the reason why it is called decentralized is because it moves. All radios are battery operated and can move! So you move them from location to location.

Here in Winnipeg more then 1000 people went to the Forks Monday night to dance with Tom and Gary. They lent out a whole bunch of radios to people and there must have been at least 200 radios. The tunes were jammin and the party moved around the Forks to the Provencher bridge and the skatepark.
Although, Saskatoon doubled Winnipeg's dance party by 2000 people, I still think it was a success. Tom and Gary gave out banana suits and mini trampolines as well and used the Olympics as a theme. It was a ridiculous good time!

Friday, October 8, 2010

The Gloves are Off: Mayoral Debate. Sam takes on Judy (and vice versa...sort of)



Alright I could try and spin this as an End of the World entry, but I think that's a little too much work for an end of the week task so I'm going to leave it as is.
Wednesday morning RRC held a mayoral debate between two candidates Judy Wasylycia-Leis and current Mayor Sam Katz.
My favorite part of the debate was watching the pros at work. Not the two political figure heads in front of me but all the media specialists who have already established themselves in Winnipeg.
I had the pleasure of sitting in front of Bartley Kives from the Winnipeg Free Press who was commentating the video for the debate, which would be put up on the Winnipeg Free Press website, and was tweeting as the debate went on. Without being too obvious about it, I would try and listen in on Kives's comments during breaks of the debate. I was impressed because he and Katz were making eye contact and motioning gestures too each other. This showed how much of a relationship Kives has made with the mayor. I was fascinated by how well  Kives communicated and built relationships within City Hall and couldn't help but think how talented this guy is. I mean I hate to gush about people, but when you see someone who is able to establish relationships this well with politicians really blows my mind.
I also really enjoyed his commentary during the breaks. He was able to summarize quickly and concisely what was going on in the debate. The skill to decipher political jargon always blows me away because it takes a while for me to really listen then figure out what they're saying (or not saying in most cases).
Not only that, but he was tweeting too! How on Earth can you sum up a bunch of empty comments and put it into 140 characters or less. Again it blows my mind.  Kives is extremely talented. I tried to absorb and listen as much as I could.
As for the debate itself, like I hinted too, it was an act that was full of empty answers that danced around the main issues. I find debates completely uniforming other then the fact that I was turned off by both candidates. One kept repeating the same answer for every question (lets get more community centres!) and the other was rude and won an audience over not by making points but trying to be popular and funny. In my opinion (because you know it's so important) I think politics in this city, not just switching to a new mayor, needs to change some how. It needs to get away from the fake acts and empty words and move to where people are actually volunteering and getting an idea of what a city really needs. For example riding the bus EVERYDAY including in the winter time, trying to get from beautiful bran new stinky (because it's near the dump) Waverley West to downtown within an hour.

Okay, okay, I know, I know, I'm ranting and getting off topic. I think I'm going to let this post die it's natural death now.
Remember no matter how much your politicians suck it's not the End of the World (ha ha I spun it anyway).

Saturday, October 2, 2010

Detroit Rock City

So, have you ever been in the situation where you you've been dying to go to a concert all year and you go to buy tickets and they are SOLD OUT. Well, never fear it's not the end of the world.

Click Here

This is my story.

About three nights ago I went to buy tickets to a band I have been dying to see (no pun intended). They are a metal/hardcore band so typically I can buy tickets a day in advance, however, when I went to Family Foods the lady sneered at me and said "that concert sold out days ago don't even bother."So, bowing my head down low I walked to the car.

When I got home I decided social media could help me out. I tweeted and facebooked the general public asking anyone if they could find out how to get tickets. After no answer I decided to aim my tweets directly at the band and local radio station pleading for the answer to where to find tickets to the sold out show.

The morning of the show I frantically searched my twitter feed and nothing. My only option was to find a scalper and maybe wait in line to see if they were selling tickets at the door.

When we arrived at the venue an hour early the line up was the longest I had seen it ever for this particular venue. Discouraged my boyfriend and I walked around the building in search of the tour busses.
"I'd forgive you if you where to make out with a band member for tickets," my boyfriend said.
"Seriously, I don't think so." I replied.
Coming up empty handed we headed down Portage in search of something to do until the line up died down a bit.
We saw a Hotel with a Starbucks and decided to formulate a plan Detroit Rock City styles. We sat down and pondered out loud when suddenly my boyfriend froze and stared at the person sitting behind me.
"Hey I think that guy sitting behind you is the drummer from As I Lay Dying," my boyfriend whispered.
(As I Lay Dying is the headlining band and just so happens to be up there with my most favourit-ist of bands)
"What!" I say.
"Shhhhhhhhhh, you should go talk to him...." my boyfriend says.
My heart beats (sorry again no pun intended) a million miles a minute.
"What do I say?" I said.
"Tell him what an awesome drummer he is," my boyfriend suggested.
Like jumping of a high cliff into water I get up turn around and go talk to him...

I think I must have blacked out a little because I can't remember exactly what I said to him but it probably went a little something like this.

"Oh my god, I'm you're biggest fan....." Blah, blah, blah I love you guys your music is sick. You're one of my favorite bands. Blah, blah, blah, more unintelligent comments. Hey can I pull up a chair blah, blah, blah, more unintelligent comments. Blah, blah hey guess what I'm in journalism school and I like interviewing bands. And more unintelligent embarrassing comments.

But despite my lack of on intelligent comments and questions and him probably being annoying him slightly, I happened to tell him I tweeted their band. He looked into his phone and found my tweet and laughed.

After that he set me and boyfriend on the guest list and we got to go to show for free.

Just like out of the movies.

So remember just because it's sold out, it's not the end of the world.

Click Here

This is him!