Thanksgiving break...I forgot what we did in class...oops

Journal 2-2


Thanksgiving break...I forgot what we did in class...oops


I. In last week's blog I said that I wanted to know more about the group in Dallas that is similar to the Maine Troop Greeters. I had a difficult time finding any information about this group. However there were two articles that at least proved the existence of the Dallas troop greeters.


http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/jun/20/they-need-to-know-theyre-loved/
>> The first paragraph talks about a woman who greets troops at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport


source:
Volunteers greet troops every day - Washington Times. (n.d.). Washington Times - Politics, Breaking News, US and World News. Retrieved November 28, 2010, from http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/jun/20/they-need-to-know-theyre-loved/.




http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local-beat/Returning-Soldier-Surprises-Wife-at-DFW-Airport.html
>> A young girl was greeting incoming troops at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, and to her surprise, her husband was one of them


source:
Surprise! Troop Greeter Gets to Welcome Husband | NBC Dallas-Fort Worth . (n.d.). NBC Dallas-Fort Worth - Local News, Weather, Traffic, Entertainment, Events, Breaking News | NBC Dallas-Fort Worth . Retrieved November 28, 2010, from http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local-beat/Returning-Soldier-Surprises-Wife-at-DFW-Airport.html. 



II. Last week we started watching a film called "The Persuaders" and began working on our storyboards for our documentaries. "The Persuaders" is an interesting film about the techniques and motives of the advertising industry. It shows a bunch of different commercials and analyzes the persuasion techniques behind them. We did a worksheet on brand loyalty and talked about what brands we stay loyal to and why. As far as storyboarding goes, we looked at an example of an ideal storyboard, and talked with our groups about how we would set up our documentary. We also watched two short videos, in which a guy discussed the basic ground rules for making a documentary. He talked about lighting, interviewing, camera angles, zooming, etc.

source:

"What’s Your Advertising Technique? | Gas Station Advertising." GasStationAdvertising.com - Executing Non-traditional advertising ideas.. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. http://www.gasstationadvertising.com/business-advertising/104-what%E2%80%99s-your-advertising-technique/.

source:

Creative Advertising Techniques That Work - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum. (n.d.). Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum. Retrieved November 28, 2010, from http://www.contractortalk.com/f12/creative-advertising-techniques-work-67079/.

Personally I think the advertising unit is very interesting. It's interesting to be exposed to the trickery and deceit that comes along with everyday adversiting. I love to watch commercials and you begin to have a greater appreciation for them once you've been behind the scenes. One brand that I am loyal to is Rainbow flip flops. I've never seen a commercial for them, but they're certainly advertised by the general public. When you go into a shoe store, the Rainbows are generally on a rack behind the counter. This alone proves that they're high quality. I'm loyal to Rainbows because they're the most comfortable flip flops i've ever put on my feet. Also they're extremely durable. I've had the same pair for two years and they've been through dirt, mud, rain, snow, and tons of wear and tear. They've faded in color and the leather is worn down, but they're still perfectly usable.

source:

"Keely-Okie." Keely-Okie. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2010. http://keelyokie.blogspot.com/.

Something we haven't discussed in class that I find very interesting about advertising is radio advertisements. They're really different because there's nothing to see, and "seeing is believing". Are radio advertisements still equally as effective? Do they bring in as much business as TV and magazine ads do? I know that personally, I switch the radio station when the commercials come on. I hate listening to people talk, so if there's nothing to look at, I don't want to hear about it. Radio advertising does nothing for me unless I happen to hear a key word at the very beginning that holds my interest. Usually those are just about concerts or upcoming events though.


III. For next week's blog I want to do some more research on documentary making. Those videos we watched were very helpful, but I feel like there is more to be learned before we start filming. This is a project that really interests me so I'm hoping to do an awesome job with it. Therefore I hope to find more useful tips that will guide my group as we make our film.

What is...the way we get by?

Journal 2-1


What is...the way we get by?


I. In my last blog, I was curious about the results of the election that took place on November 2. Here is what I found:
This chart has basically all the information reguarding the election results.
https://www.voterinfo.sbe.virginia.gov/election/DATA/2010/EB24720D-F5C6-4880-8DC5-12AE4D0C3772/Unofficial/6_s.shtml


II. This week's blog is going to be about the latest documentary we watched in class, called "The Way We Get By". This was my favorite documentary so far. It was really interesting to me. It was about a group of veterans, three seniors in particular, who devote their time to welcoming home or sending away troops. They're called the Maine Troop Greeters, which is a group of veterans and ordinary people who greet the current soldiers and let them know they're appreciated. The main characters were Bill, Joan, and Jerry. Bill was a widower who had prostate cancer and was struggling to pay his bills. Joan is a mother of eight with two grandchildren in active duty. Jerry lost his youngest son at age 10 and is currently suffering heart problems. Obviously, these three have their fair share of difficulties in their lives. However, they choose to devote their time to serving others.

source:

Fanning, L. C. (n.d.). The National Guard - Heartwarming film pays tribute to Maine troop greeters. The National Guard - Official Website of the National Guard. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from http://www.ng.mil/news/archives/2009/07/071609-Heartwarming.aspx

Personally, I thought this documentary was very moving. It proves that life isn't always about you. No matter what you're going through, you can always find a way to make someone else appreciate you. My favorite part of the whole film was the speech that Bill gave to the camera person. He said "My life don't mean a hell of a lot to me, but if I can make it mean something to somebody else, that's my endeavor...I have nothing, really, to live for except what I do for other people. I've outlived my usefulness as far as individually. But helping other people puts a little meaning back into my life. At least I hope that's what it's doing." This was expecially moving to me because it just goes to show that everyone has a purpose. No matter how worthless you think you are, there is someone out there who values you. If you think you have nothing to live for you're absolutely wrong. Everyone has a purpose and a meaning in life. For Bill, he believes that the only purpose he has left is to help people. Therefore, no matter how old, poor or sick he is, he can still serve a purpose in life.

source:

POV - The Way We Get By . Have You Met the Maine Troop Greeters? | PBS. (n.d.). PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from http://www.pbs.org/pov/waywegetby/have_you_met.php



It is believed that volunteering is a way for people to stay happy and healthy. I fully believe this because my grandpa is a living example. He is currently 83 years old and he worked for FEMA as a civil engineer up until last year. That job was everything to him. He poured every ounce of heart and soul into that job. Sometimes is required that he travel, and stay away for a long time. This was rough on his family, but we knew it made him happy. There were several times when he considered retiring, but he couldn't ever bring himself to do it. We, as his family, knew he shouldn't be traveling anymore, but we also knew that his job was keeping him happy and healthy. There was even a few times when he wound up in the hospital in another state due to health problems that he encountered while he was on the job. However no struggle was great enough to make him stop doing what he loved. So, because of personal experience, I thoroughly believe that doing what makes you happy can boost your well being. In this film, it is volunteering to greet the troops that brings joy and strength to these elderly people.

source:

Sobel, R. S., & Leeson, P. T. (n.d.). Find the FEMA Concentration Camp Near You! | USAHM Conspiracy News. USAHitman | Conspiracy Theories & Alternative News. Retrieved November 14, 2010, from http://usahitman.com/find-the-fema-concentration-camp-near-you/ 


III. For next week's class I want to know more about the group in Dallas that is similar to the Maine Troop Greeters. It was mentioned in the packet that we read, so I plan to further research that organization.

The Difficult Journal

Journal 1-7

The Difficult Journal

At the end of last week's class I wanted to know more about Mormons. We had researched the state of Utah and found that the population is primarily Mormon. Here's what I found out about Mormons:

Joseph Smith, president of the church, said: "The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the apostles and prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it." However they believe in different additional scriptures to the bible, and continuing revelation through prophets and apostles.

source: Mormons. (n.d.). The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . Retrieved November 2, 2010, from http://lds.org/topic/mormons/

Joseph Smith

source: Joseph Smith - Mormonism Photo (344391) - Fanpop. (n.d.). Fanpop - Fan clubs for everything. What are you a fan of?. Retrieved November 2, 2010, from http://www.fanpop.com/spots/mormonism/images/344391/title/joseph-smith-photo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-aSq4xoXTQ&feature=related

source: PolishAbinadi. (n.d.). YouTube - truth about mormons( secrets), What they won't tell you . YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. . Retrieved November 2, 2010, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-aSq4xoXTQ&feature=related

This week is going to be a little bit difficult to write a journal entry about. On Wednesday I wasn't in class, but I was told that the projector broke and we didn't have class that day anyway. I was also absent from most of class on Thursday. I was only present long enough to catch about five minutes of the video. So I will do my best to discuss what actually DID happen in the three days of class that I witnessed. We continued to watch the documentary called "Divided State", which deals with the controversy over Michael Moore speaking at UVSC. There were obviously two different viewpoints reguarding this issue. The people that supported Michael Moore speaking at the college did so with respect to our freedom of speech. The ones who were opposed to Michael Moore speaking believed that he was going against their personal values and those of the state of Utah.One guy even offered to pay the amount of money that was spent on all the tickets, just to keep Michael Moore from coming. Personally I agree with the people that wished to allow Michael Moore's freedom of speech. There is no reason he shouldn't be allowed to express his viewpoint, especially when he has as many supporters as he does. In the end, he ended up giving his speech at the college campus. There were only two protestors shown, who were ejected from the premisis. Other than that nothing crazy happened, and the Michael Moore supporters were satisfied with what he had to say.

source: UtahMentor. (n.d.). UtahMentor. Retrieved November 2, 2010, from http://www.utahmentor.org/campustour/undergraduate/5338/Utah_Valley_State_College/Utah_Valley_State_College1.html

III. For next week's class I want to know more about the election that took place today, Tuesday November 2. I plan to research the candidates and the results of the election.