Padd Solutions

Hey all! I'm Chelsea Hulen, and I'm one of the new AC bloggers for the semester, along with Matt. There's not much to me, but I guess something is better than nothing!

Hello everyone! My name is Matt Horsley and I am one of the new AC Bloggers for the Spring 2010 semester. I thought I would give you an about me post that will kick off my blogging for these next few months.

Today was the Annual Mass Communication Christmas party at Mike’s house. I get lost pretty easily when I’m driving in a part of town I’m not used to, so yesterday Andrea, Miguel and I decided we would all go together to Mike’s house. I thought we should leave for the party around 11 because it was supposed to start at noon, but I had a feeling we’d get lost, because neither of them had ever been there before and I had just been there twice. So, I figured we would all take one car to the party.

We decided to meet in the parking lot by Parcells Hall a little after 11:00. Around 10:40 Miguel called me and said he had to go get a haircut and that he will be at AC at noon. I didn’t want to sit in the parking lot for an hour so I said that was fine and told Andrew about our new plans.

I left my house at noon to go to AC and right as I was stopped at a red light on 27th Street, I got another call from Miguel asking where I was because I was late and Andrea was looking for me. I was trying to get there as quickly as I could and I asked him where he was because I was visualizing both of them waiting for me in their cars in the parking lot…no, not the case. He wasn’t there either! I get there and neither was Andrea, so I didn’t feel so guilty for being late.
Miguel got there not long after I did and then Andrea pulled up. I got in the car with Miguel and Andrea followed behind us to Mike’s house. We got there and pretty much everyone else was already there.

Yesterday before we went to Announcing for Radio and TV, Jill was making a blooper video to show at the party. They were bloopers from the videos Miguel, Bill and I have made throughout the semester. There was a lot of footage of me fixing my hair during my stand-ups and just a lot a lot of funny stuff! So, hopefully we can put it the Ranger website soon, for everyone to see!
Miguel and I had to leave the party early because he had to go to work, so we missed out on the gift exchange and the rest of the festivities. I took cream puffs to the party and Mike told me to take them with me. So, when I went to get them off of the table, I dropped the lid in Nancy’s banana cream pie, so I got whipped cream all over it.

I didn’t realize until I got in Miguel’s car, how much of the whipped cream I had taken with me…I had it all over my purse, my new jacket, Miguel’s jacket, then he put some in my hair and I even managed to get some on a little car ornament hanging from the rearview mirror! It was like Gelato on 6th Street all over again!

A few weeks ago in my Fundamentals of Photography class we were given the assignment to take self-portraits of ourselves using black and white film. I borrowed my mom’s camera from 1982 and Mr. Cavanaugh provided the film. Miguel and I partnered up for this assignment as well and we decided to go to the Lynn Library to take some photos. We went up to the fourth floor and took his photos. We ran out of time before our next class started so I decided I would just take mine later on that day.

The next time we met for photography we were going into the darkroom. So, Mr. Cavanaugh brought in some reels and some rolls of film that we could practice with before we actually went into the darkroom. He told us to practice rolling up the film on the reels with our eyes closed because that’s how dark it was going to be in the darkroom. I knew it was going to be dark, but I didn’t expect it to be THAT dark!

So, Miguel and I practiced unrolling the film without touching it to our fingers and attaching it to a reel and twisting the sides until the roll of film was all the way rolled up. Miguel was having a hard time getting the film onto the reel so we decided my job would be taking the film out of the cartridge and getting it attached to the reel and he will twist the film onto the reel.
So, after waiting 45 minutes on the first group that went, it was finally our turn to head into the darkroom. We had a small group there was only four of us but only two people can fit in one room, so you have to be pretty comfortable with your partner! It would be really awkward if you didn’t know them.

After making our way through a dark hallway with about 15 little closets, Miguel and I settled into a room. We sat everything down on the counter, both rolls of film, two reels, a light tight container and a pair of scissors. Mr. Cavanaugh told us to make sure we knew where everything was because he was going to be turn out the lights and we won’t be able to see anything.

He finally turned out the lights and it was pitch black! Like I said before, I wasn’t prepared for it to be THAT dark! So, since I couldn’t see anything I started to feel around on the counter in front of me so I could get a roll of film and get the process started. I found the first roll of film just fine and I didn’t have any trouble at all getting it to pop out of the cartridge, but as soon as I got it out and started to cut the end off, I dropped the whole roll of film on the floor! So, Miguel got down on the floor trying to find this roll of film in the dProxy-Connection: keep-alive
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kness. While the two people in the next room were laughing at us.

After Miguel picked up the roll of film I cut the end off, attached it to the reel and handed it back over to Miguel so he could do his job of twisting the film onto the reel. I started working on the second roll of film and this time I didn’t drop it so that was good, but I did rip part of the end off, which ended up being okay because there was nothing on that part. Before we knew it we had both rolls of film on the reels and we were ready to get started the development process.

That was the part that took the longest because there are so may steps you have to take and everything is timed, it’s just really time consuming. It also smells really gross…kind of like rotten eggs mixed with chemicals and it takes a long time to get the smell off of your hands. But getting to develop my own negatives was one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. I just hope next time I remember to fix the flash my camera because most of the film had a stripe down the side because the flash went off too quickly!

This past month has been so busy! So, I haven’t been able to actually blog for quite some time now. But I have been writing stuff down as it happens so I can blog about it later, so in the next couple of days you guys will be bombarded with blogs! You’ll get to hear about me getting to meet Nando Parrado, getting to meet Elmo and Cookie Monster, my first plane ride, the Journalism convention, my first time in the dark room and some other stuff too!

Bonjour! These last few weeks have been crazy for me, tests popping up like daises and just alot of events happening around school. Nando Parrado came to talk to AC this past week and it was pretty awesome.
So in the spirit of Halloween, I have decided to write about some of the scariest movies I have yet to see. As well as some good old classic non-scary Halloween movies. The very first scary movie I ever watched was the ever famous "The Ring" staring Naomi Watts and let me tell you I was scared for 7 days of my television.
A terrific classic is "The Shining" staring Jack Nicholson, based off the novel by Stephen King. It combines all the elements that a scary movie needs- shrieking music, ghosts, and a crazy story. Nicholson is fantastic and who can forget "Here's Johnny!" If you are just starting on your scary movie endeavor, I would recommend this be your first. King is a master story teller and the movie is fantastic.
And now on to the scariest movie I have seen yet- "Paranormal Activity." Let me tell you, that movie is crazy scary. When I went to see the movie, there were people walking out because they were so scared. I am not going to ruin it for anyone who has yet to see it, but it some sort of freaky.

I will leave this scary movie subject with a list of movies that will dare to scare you:

• Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978 with Donald Sutherland)
  
• Jaws
• Psycho (the Alfred Hitchcock classic)

Now on to some good old Halloween classics that are there not to scare you. One of my favorites that is on every year is "Hocus Pocus." Yes, it shows itself every year on the Disney channel as well as ABC Family, but it is just a good classic.
I also enjoy "Interview with the Vampire" starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. But I do not reserve this movie just for Halloween, it's a good all-year movie. It is a wonderful movie based off the novel by Anne Rice. It's a good vampire story if you are looking for one.
And last but not least is "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown." I have been watching this every year since I was little and it has become tradition to watch this once every year. And the Peanuts cast never fails to impress.

I hope everyone has a wonderfully awesome Halloween!

And those of you who are free this Thursday, Jonny Zavant is coming to AC. He is a mentalist, meaning he can read minds and do some crazy tricks. The (free) event will begin at 7:00 pm in the AC Concert Hall Theater, but free food and coffee will be avaliable at 6:30 pm.

Last Thursday in my Fundamentals of Photography class, we were given the assignment to go on Sixth Street and find certain items listed on a sheet of paper our teacher gave us before we left.

Miguel had an interview for The Ranger he needed to get done before we left and since I’m not too familiar with Sixth Street, I stayed with him to help out so we could go there together. After the interview we got in my car and headed for our destination.

When we got there we immediately started taking photos. After we walked about a block or so, we found some of our classmates and asked them how many items they had found. While we were talking to them, I turned around and there was a man in a Gorilla suit standing at the other end of the street wanting us to go over there.

So, Miguel and I go over to him and take a couple of photos of him sitting on a bench, waiting for a bus, then we both posed for pictures with him and as we were trying to leave, he kept motioning for us to follow him.

I kept thinking to myself “I’m not following this crazy Gorilla guy! Where is he going to take us?!” But we followed him anyway and he opened the door to one of the shops on Sixth Street and motioned for us to go inside. At this point, of course I knew it was a stunt to get us to buy something, so we went inside and realized it was a little restaurant and when we walked toward the front. I saw Gelato and remembered seeing a feature story about Cowboy Gelato on the news a while back.

There was a guy standing in front of us wearing a red jacket tasting all the different flavors of Gelato so Miguel and I joined in the tasting. I had never had Gelato before but my friend who always used to go to Italy told me how phenomenal it was, so of course we had to get some!

The lady who was serving us was having a hard time getting the cones out for our order and she apologized for taking so long because she said they weren’t open yet. So of course, without even thinking, the first thing out of my mouth was “we followed the Gorilla and he told us to come in here…I’m sorry we didn’t know you weren’t open yet…the Gorilla made us do it!”

While we were waiting for my order of white chocolate Gelato and some concoction of two flavors mixed together that Miguel ordered, I realized more and more people were coming in this little restaurant and they were all wearing red blazers, I guess they were official taste testers or something.

After we got our Gelato, I made the suggestion that we should stay there and eat it so we wouldn’t get it all over ourselves. But we didn’t and we started off on our scavenger hunt again…Gelato in hand.

At the time, it didn’t seem like such a bad idea, until the Gelato started melting like crazy! Miguel had most of his eaten while I was still working on the top part of the cone. We kept finding more and more of the items we needed but it was harder to take photos now that we had our hands full.

Then Miguel was finished with his Gelato and mine was completely melted inside my cone. The paper with all the items on it was all sticky because I kept spilling Gelato everywhere. I looked down at one point and realized I poured Gelato all over my pant leg and shoe and when we got in my car to head back to AC I looked at my right shoulder and noticed I had it there too! I have no idea how I got Gelato all over me! So, as it turns out we should have just stayed and ate our Gelato at the restaurant like I suggested because I knew it would be messy…I just didn’t know it was going to be THAT messy!

 

This past week has been pretty busy, having some of my first tests in some classes. Have you ever realized that tests always come in twos and maybe three? It's like they cannot be taken alone and must find a buddy from another class.

Anyway, this weekend I went to Arena Cross. Talk about intense. I did not know much about the world of motocross outside that really, really old Disney movie "Motocross." It was pretty cool, they do all sorts of races for all ages. When the pros raced, it was awesome, it was very fast and very cool. And then there was a monster truck that did a flip, complete 360. That was neat to watch. And the announcer was entertaining and excited about every little thing, I thought it was pretty hilarious. Overall, the event was pretty awesome and I learned a heck of alot. Like whoops, I thought that "whoop" was just a used in describing a sound but turns out its also the small hills on the track. Just think of Mario Kart for all you gamers out there, think of Wario Stadium and you have a dirt bike track. If you are able to go to Arena Cross next year, go.

Last week, the movie "Away We Go" finally came to dvd. This movie was one of my favorites from this summer. It stars John Krasinski (Jim from The Office) and Maya Rudolph (SNL star) as a couple trying to put down roots before their baby is born. The movie is very sweet and touching. I highly recommend "Away We Go" to anyone looking for a good movie and the soundtrack to the movie is amazing as well.

Some upcoming events around AC:

• Johnny Zavant- He is a mentalist, which is a guy who can read minds and play tricks on the mind. He is going to be here October 29th. I am getting some posters and flyers ready.
• Nando Parrado- The author of Miracle in the Andes will be here October 20th. This is going to be awesome, he is coming up from Uruguay. The book is amazing and anyone who can go should.
• THIS WEEKEND LEADERSHIP RETREAT: October 9th and 10th. Its going to be neat, its going to be based on the book Miracle in the Andes and if you can go, go. To register go down to the CUB Basement and talk to one of the student workers down there.
  

At the end of October, the Journalism Department is planning to go to a convention in Austin. This is a huge deal! There are going to be thousands of colleges and Universities from all over the United States. I’ve only gone to one other Journalism convention because we took a van to Dallas and every other time; they fly to wherever they’re going. Out of fear I’ve always opted out of the plane ride and I’ve gotten teased for it every time. They know if we’re taking a plan, I’m staying in Amarillo.

So yesterday, I read an e-mail saying we MIGHT take a plan to Austin or we MIGHT drive! At the bottom of the e-mail it said something like “Maddisun, if we go by plane, we’re talking you into it.” Road trips don’t bother me; I just sleep the whole way there anyways. But, I’ve never ever stepped foot on a plan and that’s what I’m having trouble with. I’m just scared I’m going to get thousands of feel up in the air and want off the plane and I can’t just get off because I’m scared.

When I was in the 5th grade, my friend Mandy and I thought we wanted to ride the Pirate ship at Wonderland. So, we got on and at first everything was fine. About 45 seconds into the ride both of us were down in the seat screaming and my mom actually had to get the boy controlling the ride to stop it and let us off.

I’m pretty sure I’ll be fine, but there’s this little part of me that says I’ll freak out as soon as we take off and I’ll want to get off. I couldn’t get to sleep last night because all I could think about was the ride to Austin. My friend Miguel might also be going on this trip and he said the flight won’t take long, so I’m hoping it won’t. He’s making me feel more comfortable with going on the trip…I have to say whether or not I’m going for sure by Thursday, so I have a couple more days to come up with a definite answer…wish me luck convincing myself!!

Hi, my name is Kaitlyn Banks and my major is Physician's Assistant for Pediatrics.
I have been going to AC for a year now and love it!

For my first blog I thought I would let you know a little bit about me with 30 random things!

1. I was born in Mobile, Alabama.
2. I have 2 yorkshire terrier pups.
3. I want to travel the world.
4. I have a younger brother who is about to graduate high school.
5. The beach is my favorite place to be.
6. My favorite superhero is Batman.
7. I have played the clarinet for 9 years.
8. Pride and Prejudice is my favorite movie.
9. I am currently in ceramics and it proved to be much harder than I anticipated.
10. I have always wanted to sky dive.
11. My favorite actress is Keira Knightly and my favorite actor is Brad Pitt.
12. I went to England this past summer and fell absolutely in love with the country.
13. I love art and film. My favorite painters are Michelangelo, Renoir, Da Vinci, Titian, Jacques Louis David, Seurat, and Van Gough.
14. The Office and Gilmore Girls are my favorite shows.
15. I would like to meet Clint Eastwood. He is fabulous.
16. I drive a Chevy Aveo, it's pretty awesome!
17. I love reading, I try to read at least 2 books a month.
18. I adore Italian food, I can eat it all day.
19. Yoga, swimming, sailing and skiing are my favorite forms of exercise. I like watching tennis but I cannot play it so well!
20. I want to be an extra in a movie, I think it would be neat.
21. I love coffee.
22. Losing my cell phone is common.
23. Zelda games are my favorite video games of all time.
24. Summer is my favorite season.
25. I have always wanted to go to Vermont in the fall to see all the leaves.
26. My favorite comedian is Demetri Martin.
27. Some of my favorite bands/singers right now include Coconut Records, Fleet Foxes, Alexi Murdoch, Cut Copy and Phoenix.
28. My favorite clothing stores are Jcrew, Gap, and Threadless.
29. I am currently the publicity chair for the Student Government Association.
30. I love shoes of any kind.

That's me in a nutshell! Hope everyone has a great week! I will keep everyone posted on what is going on around campus!

Chao, Kaitlyn