Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Finals Time! - Fall 2009


So finals are coming up and I'm somewhat-stressed, somewhat-not stressed, depending on the exam I'm thinking about. That's right, I only have 2! For English, we just had to turn in our portfolios and I got out of taking the Psychology final because I did everything on time and have an A (technically an A-, I think). Anyways, I have one exam Saturday: my History 125 class (the Social History of American Popular Music in 20th Century America), and I'm not too worried, he kind of showed us what would be on the exam, so I just have to find all the info and put it in one place to study study study for it. I'm mostly worried about my chemistry final next Thursday, as the professor said it was going to be hard. So far my 3 tests all are B-'s and I just don't want to mess up and tip my grade over to a C. Anyways, becuase of the long break I'm just going to go ahead and go home after my Saturday exam just because I might just go crazy here at UNC! Thus, I'm missing a review session but I think it'll be for the better regardless...Everyone good luck, and same for me!

New Moon Parody - CollegeHumor.com



So this video was posted on MSN's site and I saw it like a week ago, and it made me laugh after having seen "New Moon" (as I mentioned previously). The parody video successfully recreates the two hour movie into one minute with the criticisms I had previously talked about. The main girl even got the main character's real-life mannerisms down! From the "didn't I already go through this?" to the wolf being a dog, this video was dead-on with its humor. Even real Twilight fans can't deny that this was at least somewhat entertaining.

The Blind Side (2009)


So I also saw this movie over my Thanksgiving Break with my sister and my grandmother. I didn't really go in with high expectation for the movie; just figured it'd be another cliche sports movie. While at times, you feel those cliches working into the film, the movie is really good, entertaining, and heartwarming. Knowing it's a true story doesn't hurt either. Seeing the compassion extended by one family to help a struggling boy find what family truly means and help his reach his dream made for a wonderful film. Sandra Bullock was really funny and good in this film--totally believable. You may not be expecting it, but this film is better than the average sports film and easily flys by in its two-hour time slot! Though I must admit the poster is a little cheesy...But definitely a must-see!

New Moon (2009)


So over Thanksgiving Break, I went and saw "New Moon" with my grandma and sister. Let me make one thing clear though, I'm not really a fan of the movies or books (haven't even read them). Still, both the movies are okay but really do best when tension builds up with action. Otherwise, the series is obviously not geared towards me. In this movie, though, not much happens. Basically, there's a repeat of the whole "I'm dangerous, you can't be around me" thing with now the wolf instead of a vampire. It picks up towards the end when the main character must go to Italy to save the vampire, but it's over and done in like 5 minutes. Overall, it was a decent movie that kept my attention but nothing to rave about.

The Box (2009)


So a couple of weeks ago, I went and saw "The Box" in theaters. I wasn't super excited to see the film or anything, but I thought it would be decent. While the plot and initial phase of the film hook you in, the rest of the movie just leaves you scratching your head. Now I'm all for the confusing movie that then in it's climax makes sense and it's like "wow". This, however, did not occur in "The Box", as by the end you still have questions and nothing is really explained. As well, it seems like the whole middle of the film could have just been cut out as the ending suspected to happen does and nothing discovered in the middle helps resolve the issue. James Marsden and Cameron Diaz star and are generally good, though I just couldn't get past Diaz's southern accent. Watch the trailer below, but wait for the movie on TV!


Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Unit Project 3: Thoughts on Revising

So when I was supposed to post this over Thanksgiving Break, I didn't have access to wireless internet, so I'm just posting what I wrote then now.


When first thinking about how I was going to revise the rough draft of my unit 3 project essay, I knew I needed to take some things out. The rough draft of my essay came out around 1,200 words and the desired length was only a thousand words. In the rough draft, I just wrote straight through without worrying about length, so one of the things I had to keep in mind in editing was to shorten the paper. As well, initial thoughts also dealt with comments my group members had written after reading my essay. These comments mostly involved just shortening certain parts to help make my points/ideas more concise or clearer. To help with this, I needed to be sure to look at my sentences and make sure I wasn’t being too vague or including a bunch of extra words that may not have been necessary for the sentence. Also, after reading through the paper, I need to get rid of a few sentences that were either repetitive or simply didn’t add anything to the paragraph or my point. As far as content, I feel I successfully explain to my audience what I want to study and the information that already exists, as well as how my proposed study would benefit others. The organization of the proposal seems to fit as I start out discussing my project and what specifically I want to study. Then I spend two paragraphs on explaining the research that already exists and other background information and two on how I would carry out my proposed study. In the end, I feel like I describe well what the data would provide and how in-turn it would be used to design an awareness program on the issue of stigma around physiological disorders. With the good feedback I received, the biggest issue I face is simply reducing the length of the proposal and making sure I am getting my point across without any unnecessary additions.

Monday, December 7, 2009

Charlie Brown and the Mayflower Voyagers

Like I said, my mom and I watched the Thanksgiving Charlie Brown special yesterday and then the DVD set had this extra episode. I think I had watched it before, as it seemed familiar but I didn't remember much. Unfortunately, it does not live up at all to the previous special. This episode recounts the Mayflower's journey to the New World and the pilgrims' first Thanksgiving. At first, I thought they would do plenty with the story to keep it as funny as the regular specials. However, not much is done besides the probably semi-accurate, little-kid version of the pilgrims and Thanksgiving. I was disappointed but it wasn't bad, it just couldn't compare. PS: Don't really know what's up with the video at the end, but it's the only clip I could find of the episode...


A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Special

So since I missed it during Thanksgiving week, me and my mom watched the beloved cartoon yesterday to catch up. As I've written previously, I love the Charlie Brown holiday specials and enjoy watching them year after year. In case you didn't know, this special involves Charlie Brown attempting to put together a Thanksgiving meal for his friends, as one invited herself and others without asking. And poor Charlie Brown just couldn't say no. Of course, as kids, the meal ended up comprising of popcorn, pretzel sticks, and toast. However, all ends well as the gang gets invited to go to CHarlie Brown's grandmother's dinner. Funny how I always say Charlie Brown and not just Charlie...and I never can't laugh when Peppermint Patty continually calls him "Chuck", haha. And poor Charlie Brown, will he ever get to kick that football? Can't wait for the Christmas episode!


Outside Christmas Decorations

When I was home yesterday, I helped my mom put up some of the outside Christmas decorations in our front yard. She had already put up lights on the rim of the house. Since it was so cold, we put together some of the pieces best we could in the garage before having to head out in the complete cold (the garage is only a little warmer). As usual, we had a big snowman, a reindeer, and a Christmas tree (lights not the blowup kind). As well, we had multiple colored lights around four of the bushes in front of the house. This year, my mom added these 3 connected penguins that lit up. Though kind of small, we put them near the front so they could still be seen. After a minor setback, we finally got all the extension cords connected so that all the lights came on. I think we still have a couple more things to do, but I can't wait b/c even though being out in the cold sucks I love seeing all the decorations up!

It's Freezing Today!


Although I'm no stranger to North Carolina cold weather, this morning's cold definitely got me shivering. And the surprising part--I still saw people in shorts and flip-flops. I mean I get some people don't get as cold as others but seriously put some clothes on! I know if I'm freezing with my jeans, shoes, and big jacket they must be dying. And unfortunately, the weather isn't going to change. I mean I'm fine with the cold in small doses, but mostly I like being inside knowing it's cold outside...and drinking some hot chocolate! That's my kind of experiencing cold weather...with the occasional walk outside to realize how good inside feels :)

Scary Maze Game Reaction - YouTube

so the other night, my friends and I recalled the Scary Maze Game they showed me online last year and the reaction it got out of the person next to me when we were in lab; more funny memories! Anyways, so then we started looking up reactions to the game on YouTube. Most were not that funny but we only looked through a few. The one shown below was the funniest we found, and I just can't stop laughing when the kid keeps hitting the computer screen. Though I don't enjoy seeing kids cry, this was definitely hilarious for me. If you haven't heard/seen the game, you can probably see some of it in the video below OR Google it first and play it then watch this video.


Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Beyonce Clown - YouTube

My friend asked if I had ever seen this video on YouTube and I hadn't even heard of it but just the name itself sounded amusing. So we went and watched it at lunch. At first I was creeped out by the clown mask and it dancing for some reason. But then I laughed out loud when she bumped her head and then wanted to stop and take the mask off. Then of course she wanted to turn the camera off after that little mishap! Lesson learned to not dance near TVs!!!


Scarlet Takes A Tumble - YouTube

Even though I watched this video like a year ago, my friend brought it up again at lunch this afternoon. We both went and watched it for like the zillionth time, and still busted out laughing like it was the first time we'd ever seen it. Watching it also brought back some good memories from senior year of high school, as I originally watched it on a friend's iPhone before an away football game that a bunch of us went to and were freezing the whole time. Even though we got smashed in the game, my friends and I enjoyed attending and making funny memories like this one!


The Serious Baby - YouTube

So i was bored at lunch and my friend showed me this hilarious video of this baby that makes a serious face and then laughs. It's so funny to watch him go back and forth between the serious face (I call it the "whatchu talking bout" face) and the happy, laughing child. Definitely watch it and laugh; it made me do so at lunch! :] Sometimes it's just so great to browse youtube for funny videos!