Weekend from Heaven, Week from Hell

This weekend was fantastic to say the least!! I had a great outing with some friends, and we hadn’t gone out in a really long time. Then on Saturday one of my best and sweetest friends, Nahla Bahgat, got married!! She looked stunning in her dress and I really could not be happier for her. It was a perfect night for a perfect bride.

And now midterms have begun and my fantastic weekend is leading into a horrible week. Papers, exams, and projects seem to be popping out of nowhere.Not to mention the deadlines for submitting graduation things which no one seems to want to mention to me, so I just happen to find these things out. The days seem to be dragging on as spring break approaches, and at this point the thought of having a break is the only thing that’s keeping me going. Well, it really isn’t a vacation for me, I won’t be getting up early to go to college, instead I will be getting up early to finish all the projects and studying I have to do!

It is times like these that make me wish graduation would hurry up and come. And staring that the 109 pages that have to be finished before tomorrow’s exam, I realized that my mind is already on vacation.

Dalia Fares: A New Age Mom

Dalia Fares is a symbol for successful, intelligent women who chose to give up careers and become stay at home mothers. Despite her promising potential in the field of Business administration, she chose a different path and in this interview I want to find out why.

When you think about your life, what do you feel gives you the biggest satisfaction?

When you say stereotypically life would expect of you, what kind of life do you mean?

How would you say that being a mother is more important than being a big manager in a big multinational company?

How would you say that it is your role to create these people? Couldn't teachers or nurseries do this sort of thing? Why would you have to be a stay at home mom to do it?

What sort of dreams do you hold for your children, is there anything that you hope or aspire for them to be?

Do you not feel that by your presence around your children all the time that your overbearing them or not giving them their own life?

If there was one certain value that you wish to instill in your child's life, what would it be?

Podcast: Whatever happened to when a BlackBerry was a fruit

Facebook, Twitter, BBM. All of these forms of communication are a part of our everyday lives now. We use them almost without thinking, and check them obsessively throughout the day. A few years back you were considered out of the loop if you didn’t have a cell phone. Now if you do not have a facebook account, you are considered behind the times.

All of these social networks and communication tools are very useful in keeping in touch and knowing what is going on in the world, but increasingly I feel like I am isolated from people because of these things. Instead of calling my friends I will BBM or chat with them. Instead of going out I just sit around on facebook all day.

There is no doubt that these social networks are important, but are they making us lose touch with the people who we are close to? Even when I am out with friends, everyone is BBMing or talking on the phone. We are out and sitting together, but we are usually not really paying much attention to each other. I do not deny the importance of being able to access information on demand, but there is a price to pay for that also.

Maybe I am overly simplistic and nostalgic of old times but I really miss when me and my friends would sit together and enjoy each other’s company, without having all the technology between us. Not only that, but I feel like my increasing dependency on communicating through technology instead of face to face, has caused me many problems with friends. A lot of times they way I say something is misinterpreted because there is no body language.

Times have obviously changed now that hanging out with friends means sitting with them but chatting with other friends on your phone or laptop. I am not immune to this fad because I myself have a BlackBerry. But I do make a point of not using it when around friends. Sometimes I miss the days when a blackberry was just a fruit.

Podcast: The Secret is really the key to having it all

I was a bit skeptical when I first heard about the book The Secret. The power of positive thinking in order to get what you want in life seemed like a big sham to me, just a way for someone to make money of off people silly enough to believe it. I am not a completely negative person, but it seemed a bit farfetched that if I think of something all the time then it will come to me.

Recently, however, I have become more of a believer in the power of positive thinking. I do not mean this in a sense of any supernatural forces or anything like that, just simply that if I think positively about something and if I want it bad enough then I can get it.

It takes a lot for someone to keep thinking about something without for one second hesitating or thinking they may not be able to achieve it. For example, I know a guy who wanted to be a millionaire, which seemed like a far off dream for someone like him, not only because of his fairly modest income, but also because he was never a high achiever at school. However, he disregarded everyone’s criticisms and kept his dream in focus. And now at the age of 36 he has his dream and a Mercedes and a few villas to go along with it.

I do not think that life is all about luck, or living the hand we have been dealt. I think that we can make our own luck sometimes. When someone knows what they really want, and focus all their energy at attaining it, without thinking of the negativity, then all they see in front of them is the path that leads to their dream. I think that this is the key for someone to get to where they want; focusing on your dream without putting an option for failure. So no, I no longer think that The Secret is a sham. I actually recommend that everyone read it, so they realize they have control over their own lives.

The end of one chapter...

As my time as an undergraduate at AUC winds down, my life is getting more and more hectic. Friends getting married, graduation stuff to do, exams, and papers for courses are all things that I have on my list. But lately I have taken some time out to think about the past four years and I realized how much I would miss these years.

I remember my first day at college, not knowing anybody having just come from the States, and terrified at the idea of starting all over in a new country. My first memory at AUC was walking into the freshman advising office, and knocking down a little cat figurine and the pencil holder off of my advisors desk. Thankfully my day only started bad, but it ended with me getting to know friends which I will know for the rest of my life.

As I look back I realize I would not change this experience for anything. I have unforgettable memories and friends that stuck by me through all of the messes I seemed to get myself into. Everyone always told me that college years will be the best of my life, and I realize this now that it is winding down to a close.

The late nights studying and the times when I thought that I really could not get done with all of the things that needed to be done seem so far away now. The idea of me finally going out into “the real world” and starting to make a living on my own is starting to scare me! It is hard for me to imagine my life without due dates and exam schedules and sitting in lectures. Now that I am nearly at the end I wish time would slow down, but a part of me is still looking forward to what’s to come.

Listening Journal: Dressy Girls

The documentary I listened to was Called Dressy Girls. It was produced and narrated by Lena Eckert-Erdheim. The total length of the documentary was 8 minutes and 10 seconds.

This documentary was taking a look at how and why some girls dress the way they do. Lena chose to interview several girls who dress in a provocative way, asking them what their reasoning was behind dressing the way they do. She also compared many of the things they wore to fashion advice aimed at teen girls in Seventeen Magazine.

This documentary was very interesting and a real eye-opener. It was presented in such a way, that it really showed what some girls would go through to get attention, and this was done through Lena’s excellent choice of soundbites. The soundbites were also complimented by Lena’s narration of parts of Seventeen Magazine, where the fashion advice mirrored what the girls were wearing.

The sound quality was good with everything being clear and concise. However, there was no use of nat sound, only soundbites, and I think that with a documentary such as this one the use of nat sound would not have only been easy, but also enhanced the piece very much. The sound of the girls in high school, at the mall, or runway sounds could have all been used to enhance the documentary.

The narrator’s voice was very suitable, however, her tone was sometimes very sarcastic, and it seemed that she was portraying too much of her own opinion. However, her voice was good for the narration because it went well with the story and she sounded young which would appeal to the target audience. The writing quality was not too sophisticated; however, it got the message across clearly. For example, Lena would often compare what the girls said with something written in Seventeen Magazine, and this was a good way to get her point across about girls following the trend. Her writing was simple and to the point, which was what made it effective.

Also, the writing included comparisons between what the narrator was wearing and what the other girls were wearing. This was interesting and effective because it further emphasized her point to the the listener that some girls only think about dressing to impress boys, while others do not really care about it.

The documentary was just the right length. It began strongly by having a lot of soundbites by some girls telling what they were wearing, and all of the sounds overlapped. However, I felt like the ending could have been stronger had the narrator not concluded it using her own voice. I think it would have been better had she used a nat sound or soundbite.

American Heart Association PSA

National Contact: Nicole Thurston; nicolethurston.abdou@yahoo.com

Organization: American Heart Association

Contact Info: www.americanheart.org

Heading: Start! Your life again in 2010

Airdate: March 2010- May 2010

Duration: 30 seconds

Music: Fade In “young folks” (from beginning)

Basma: Say goodbye to lazy and tired employees for good by joining the American Heart Association’s Start! Program.

Basma: Who says that your job has to be all work and no play? With the Start! Program your tasks and errands will be a way for you and your employees to start losing weight. Healthier snacks, walking paths, and newsletters turn any normal workplace into a heart healthy environment.

Manar: Join the American Heart Association in our fight to stop heart disease. Make this the year where you keep your resolution to live a better, healthier life so you can start again in 2010.

Music: Fade out “young folks” (30 seconds)

Listening Journal 2: NPR news

In the NPR newscast the presenter was Renita Jablonski. She simply stated her name and began her story which was good because it was direct and to the point.

The newscast began talking about Obama and one of his many policies. Obama was the main subject of the first two stories, one talking about health and the other about energy issues. Then it was followed by Hillary Clinton and the Chile earthquake issue. Then there was a Wall Street story. Then it ended with more financial stories.

The NPR story in total was 4 minutes 46 seconds. I found it to be extremely dry and boring. The presenters along with all of the reporters were very monotonous, and they did not catch my attention as a listener. Also, it seemed like in many of the reports such as in the Wall Street story used information that was very boring and dry and not appealing to the audience. The only soundbite used was that by the President Obama discussing his policies, and the rest was either the presenter talking or the reporters.

Although the quality of sound was good, there were a few problems. First of all, the anchor stuttered a few times in the story. Also, her tone along with all of the reporters was not captivating and it did not sustain my attention. Also, the newscast itself was not diversified enough, and the news was presented in a very uninteresting way. There was no nat sound used, which made this newscast even more boring.

Overall, I felt that this newscast was long even though it was less than 5 minutes. I think that a lot of elements could have been added, such as nat sound, to make the stories more rich and interesting to the listeners.

Listening journal 2: BBC News

In the BBC Newscast, Mike Cooper was the presenter. He started out direct and to the point by simply stating the name of the station and his own name and going straight to the news. The newscast was a total of 5 minutes.

The newscast was rich with political news, political figures, and natural disasters. It began with Hillary Clinton and the Chile earthquake issue. Then he moved on to Uganda landslides. Next came news about Palestinians and other stories with relevance to the Middle East. The final story broke this trend by giving a scientific story about ostrich eggs and how they were used as a form of messaging.

This newscast was very interesting for several reasons. First of all, it was very much diversified in the type of news and in the way the news was presented. There were reporters and also with some stories you could hear clips of speeches such as with the Hillary Clinton story. Not only that but the stories varied in locations so there were highlights from every part of the world, and it was stated briefly and concisely in the 5 minutes. The quality of the content was good because it was strait to the point.

The quality of the sound was very clear and easy to listen to. The only problem was when listening to part of Hillary Clinton’s speech there was some feedback that could be heard. Other than that the presenter’s voice was appropriate for the type of news presented. His accent was British but was easy to understand, and he even shifted his tone depending on how serious or not serious the story was. There was not any nat sound used, just simply parts of speeches in some of the stories. The reporter's also were clear and we could understand them. The newscast overall was not boring and it was engaging.

The varying lengths of the stories, as well as the different elements such as the different reporters and the different soundbites used gave each story its own flavor. Each of the soundbites used added more to the story because they showed the tone of the speaker, so it was more interesting to hear it directly from the source. All of the soundbites used were not too long and not too short, and they were rich with information.

Overall this newscast was very clear, conscise, and interesting.