Man on the Street

Wow! I can't believe that I completely forgot all about this...

Dot Com Fever

My pride and joy of this multimedia class...

30 whole minutes of me discussing and showing some of my favorite viral videos.



Dot Com Fever from kellytalento on Vimeo.

News Story

Donald Trump has clearly got it wrong...

A bit of advice

Part of me absolutely hates the idea of final exams, but the other part absolutely loves it. Having to cram that last week means that it's almost all over, and that it's time to go home for the summer. Nothing feels nicer than laying in your own bed, in your own house, surrounded by only your stuff, without two other girls crowed you at all times of the day.

Let's just go ahead and review some of the more memorable moments in my dorm this semester, and why I will never miss having two room mates...

1. One of my room mate throwing up in her bed, so belligerently, that she fell back in it.

Yes. That happened. Nothing better to walk into after a long night than your half-clothed roomie passed out in spew.

2. My other room mate flipping over her desk, breaking everything on it, and her boyfriend passing out on our floor.

Possibly my favorite night... not. Nothing's better than cleaning up your best friend's things while she combo cries/vomits.

3. Me coming into the room, alone, and then continuing to get sick for the next 10 hours.

Yes, I too am guilty of making a bit of a mess. However I did take care of business and clean it up myself. Proud moment...

So if you've never lived with other people your age before, get ready. You know all those gross little secret things you do? They do them too, and maybe no so secretly. Yes, it's definitely an experience and it can go really well or horribly, but always try to have fun.

Incoming freshmen want some advice? Well lucky you, I've got some tips:

1. Don't limit your group of friends to just your suite mates or room mates.

It may seem like you and your room mates are destined to be BFF from day one, but trust me, it's rarely like that. When you first move in everyone is so eager to make friends, so everyone is nice, polite, fun, and down for anything. Give it about 2-3 weeks, you'll see people's true colors and how they really are once the shock of first being a college kid fades.

2. Don't let anyone borrow anything, and keep track of your stuff.

One of my room mates steals. Don't bother asking her, she'll deny it, but you know it's true when you see her wearing your clothes and see your UNDERWEAR on the top of her hamper. YES, I said underwear. Try not to cringe, it's hard I know. I cannot stress enough how important it is to keep your stuff yours, and other people's stuff theirs. Don't touch your roomie's stuff, and pray she wont touch yours.

3. Don't be afraid to set rules in your room.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is not setting boundaries and rules in their rooms. You may not want to be the bad guy, and you may not want to seem lame, but it is so important to talk to your room mates about certain key issues. If you don't say that you want people out by a certain time or you don't say that you don't want a bunch of people partying in your room IT'S GOING TO HAPPEN. I can promise you that. You're not a bad guy, your room mates are probably thinking of some of their own rules anyway.

4. Bring cleaning supplies, and lots of 'em.

I'm serious. Vomit doesn't clean itself. Either do bathrooms, floors, and laundry. Your rubber gloves will end up being your best friends by the time winter break comes.

I CANNOT wait to leave St. John's. It's really nice to be with your friends all the time, but personal space is just a bit nicer.

Hair Dye

I don't think that anything makes me feel more brand new than changing my hair color. I've pretty much had it all - whether it be red, brown, blonde, and super blonde. My Aunt is a hair dresser and sleepovers at her house meant waking up in the morning with a new hair style. Lately I'd been feeling bored with my locks, and I decided it was time to do something I hadn't done in a long time. Go brunette.

Since junior year I've been the blondest blonde you can be before platinum. I don't quite know how it got to that much of an extreme, but it never bothered me and I enjoyed being a blonde. As a little kid I had the same color, so it just seemed like a repeat of the past. Coming to college made me want to change my hair. I mean hey, new school new hair right? Needless to say thing after thing kept popping up and my hair stayed the same.

Over Easter break I decided to just do it. I made an appointment with my hairdresser, Danielle, at Ntrigue Salon in Port Jefferson, NY. The area it's in is called "down port" by everyone who lives in the area and it's full of bars, restaurants, and little shops. It's the right on the water and the perfect place to spent a summer day.

Port Jefferson, on Main Street

Anyway, getting back to my hair story, I brought in a picture of Drew Barrymore from one of her CoverGirl ads as a reference. Danielle told me it might not come out like that and I responded by simply saying "It's cool, just do whatever and make me look cute." Clearly, I was very stressed about the whole situation.

It hardly came out like this at all...

After FOUR HOURS of never ending processes and washings, I was done. I love the way it came out! Having dark hair again is refreshing and awesome. I love seeing the reactions of people to my new hair and how different it really makes me look. For now, I'll stay a brunette, but who knows what I'll want in a few months.

Rainbow

My favorite part of family gatherings is the epic desert table that forms by the end of the night. Having a family of over 30 people usually means have at least 15 deserts. Everyone always brings something - whether it's cake or cookies. However, my all time favorite holiday staple is the rainbow cookie.

Mmmm...

These bad boys are my weakness. If you have had a deprived life and have never experienced the delight that is rainbow cookies let me attempt to describe it to you...

It's more of a tiny cake than a cookie. Each different color is made up of a soft, moist almond flavored cake. In between each layer is usually raspberry jam, but I've seen them made with apricot jam too. But wait -  it doesn't end there. Did I mention they're completely smothered in chocolate? That's right. Chocolate. This dessert is everything anyone would ever want in a food. Seriously.

To my delight as I scanned the table this year my eyes landed on something even more spectacular than in my rainbow dreams. What I saw was a rainbow cookie cake. Not only did this mean more chocolate, but I no longer had to be ashamed at the mass of cookie I took from the table. I simply took a "ahem" larger piece of cake. 

Our cake wasn't quite this fancy, but the inside looked identical.

Apparently, to my surprise, rainbow cakes are becoming more and more popular. When doing my back-to-dorm-life food shopping at Uncle G's (whom I featured in one of my earlier posts), I noticed that they too sold rainbow cookie cake!

Our cake, however, was from Alpine Bakery. If you dare to go near Alpine on or near any holiday, not only will you dish out big bucks, but you can also except to wait on a line that wraps around the building. The shop is practically famous on the Island.

But what's the best part about having so many desserts? Leftovers. I happily cut another massive piece of cake before I left. Now half of it is gone, but the other half is still resting in my mini-fridge, taunting me.

Procrastination

On the subject of procrastination, I'm an expert. However, not as much of an expert as Caroline Trezza, a Roslyn High School senior who just won $35,000 for her research project on why students procrastinate. According to her, procrastination is linked to students' self-confident, motivation, and ability. She mentions the psychological harm that putting tasks off can have.

Original Newsday article: click here

As far as my opinion goes, I agree with Trezza. I don't have to research to support my view, but I know from personal experience that I am more eager and likely to do projects I have an interest in or know I can do without much effort. The work I usually put off the most is the assignments that I have a hard time with, or that I find plain boring.

Procrastination is a horrible habit, and I'm guilty of indulging in it. Just like the 40% of sophomore at Roslyn High School, I often regret it when I put things off. A perfect example is my multimedia class. I have a lot of trouble with computers, thus I try to not think about the projects I have due. This leads to me panicking last minute begging my friends to help me edit, record, and add music to videos.

A day in the life of your typical procrastinator...



It really doesn't help that we are constantly surrounded by so many distractions. Websites like facebook, stumbleupon, and tumblr have all contributed to my delaying work. Almost all of my homework requires me to use my laptop. It's so easy to open up a webpage and find yourself wasting time doing random things on the internet. It seems like there's always something to pull your attention away from your schoolwork.

Commercial

This project seemed never ending. After not being able to upload my videos, to getting sick and having to go home, it felt like I would never be able to finish. Luckily my good friend from home helped me while I was home sick. He's really good with computers and helped me with the editing, voice overs, and uploading.

Uncle G's

I love food shopping. That may be a weird thing to say, considering most people see it as a boring, tedious task, but searching through the aisles has always been fun for me. One of my all time favorite grocery stores is Uncle Giuseppe's. I'm not sure if the chain is exclusive to Long Island, but by my house in Mt. Sinai there is a store only a town over in Port Jefferson Station.

Surprisingly enough on their website (linked above) they have a video of my local Uncle G's when it was first opened...



Imagine your typical grocery store. Now take your grocery store and imagine it decked out in every sort of food under the sun -  oh and not to mention the fully working deli, pizza parlor, and never ending free samples available from every department.

Another reason I love this grocery store is because of how good their "take out" is. When ever I'm feeling too lazy to make dinner for myself or for any of my friends, I just take a trip down to Uncle G's and buy one of their packaged dinners. It's far from a TV dinner, it's literally a homemade meal just put into Tupperware.

There's nothing better than going home and being able to make and eat real food again. Pretty soon it will good bye Montgoris cafeteria and hello fresh groceries!

Bubbles

I’m not usually the type to try anything crazy or new. I guess you can say that I’ve always been a rather picky eater and that plenty of foods out there gross me out. However, lately I’ve been more adventurous with what I’m trying.

My mom’s birthday just passed on April 1^st. When someone in my family has a birthday, the tradition is that the special birthday boy or girl gets to choose where the entire family goes to eat dinner. So, since it was my Mom’s choice, she chose to go to a new hibachi restaurant that all her coworkers have been raving about. It’s called Nishiki, and it was delicious. We all sat around a big table with a hot flat grill in the middle. Once our chef came, he cooked all our different meals with impressive speed and skill, shooting saki and broccoli into our mouths at the same time. As if that wasn’t enough, he created giant flames and “volcanoes” on the table for us too.

If you're not sure what I meant by volcano... 

You may be thinking "there's nothing that weird about hibachi..", but it's what I ate there that is unusual for me to try. I don't like sushi, but I love what they called their sweet potato roll. It has no fish, which makes me happy, plus I absolutely love sweet potatoes.

Another new thing I tried this week was bubble tea. Wow. If you've never had the pleasure of drinking it, you need to stop whatever it is that you're currently doing and run - not walk - to Green Lotus and get some. It's amazing. My friend Berenice told me about it and took me to get some. At only 4 bucks for a large I couldn't complain. It is by far the strangest looking drink I've ever gotten, but easily the most tasty.

Yes, those black things are meant to be there. They're tapioca, and you suck them up through your jumbo straw with the sweet, flavored tea. I got the almond flavor (upon recommendation). It was sweet, nutty, and smooth, just like the outside of a toasted almond ice cream bar. Needless to say, I'm addicted. 

Journal

With seemingly endless tests, essays, and assignments, college has been as extremely stressful experience. From having to live with people in a cramped room to being broke, things feel like they're piling up. One thing I've found that always makes me feel better is keeping a journal. Being able to write down things that are bothering me or just venting makes a world of difference.

I guess you could say I'm a newbie to keeping a diary. I never really kept one as a kid or preteen, but I had an extra notebook laying around my desk and figured why not. I write about things like school, work, and friends and more personal things like relationships and what's on my mind. Also, thanks to stumbleupon, I've found lists of different questions that are meant to prompt writing on different topics and ideas.

Besides keeping a journal, I've started to make frequent posts on a tumblr account. It's similar to our blogs, but the posts can be anything you from - even something as small as a quote to a picture. Having that has also given me something to focus my time on instead of excessively worrying about my grades and future assignments.

College is mainly about work, but it has a huge amount to do with getting good marks and learning, but it's also important to have fun and make friends. Having an outlet for my stress has made things a lot easier, me less homesick, and happier.

Gym

How I love thee, how I hate thee. My newest obsession with health and fitness has lead me to not only be more careful with what I slap on my plate at Montgoris, but to be a frequent visitor of the Carnasecca Arena gym. With Summer fast approaching, that also means that the era of the bikini is rounding the corner with it. After my mom ordered a white and flower covered bathing suit offline for me as a gift, I knew it was time to buckle down. I'd rather put in the hard work now and feel confident on the beach than be constantly aware of every inch that is exposed.

My Favorite Beach, Cupsogue Beach

I'm no stranger to the gym, but I can admit that I've neglected it since coming to school. While I was at home I was a member of Planet Fitness. However I've set the habit and I'm sticking to it. Every night, around 8:30 pm, I gear up in sweats and tee shirt and leave the comfort of my dorm room to walk in the freezing cold to Carnasecca Arena. Once there, I swipe in and make my way to the lines of treadmills, bikes, stair masters, and ellipticals. It seems awful while I'm there, but on the way back I'm always happy that I went.

Elliptical Machine 

Aside from just doing work at the gym Tara and I bought a workout tape off of amazon. It may have been an impulsive reaction the the movie we had just watched, but the tape is Bollywood themed. The instructor teaches you all sorts of moves from India choreography as well as makes you sweat. We both can't stop laughing at each other while we do it, but it's still a super fun workout. 

Happily I am slowly starting to see the results of my hard work, making it all worth the effort. 

Japan

The devastating effects of the nuclear reactor failure at Fukushima are now spilling over into the Japanese food supplies. According to the New York Times, two of Japan's best known brands - Kobe beef and sushi - are now in danger of being tainting from the release of nuclear radiation.

Video Footage of the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant

Tests done on supplies of milk and spinach from up to 90 miles away from the reactor failure site show increased levels of radiation. Although neither the seafood markets or live stock tested positive,  a Japanese agricultural expert expressed fears that the threat of contamination could lead to "brand damage." Not only would the blow negatively effect the country's exports in these markets now, but the bad image would create a long-lasting reduction in the consumption of both Japanese Kobe beef and seafood. Hiroshi Uchida believes that the only way to comfort buyers is to provide tests to prove the beef is safe.

Kobe Beef Sirloin

Sushi

Just like the problems that the gulf fishermen faced after the oil spill, Trevor Corson stated that the Japanese seafood industry will have to work hard to "establish faith in the safety of their seafood."

The Tsukiji fish market is one of the the largest in the world. New York Times reports that 10% of the inventory came from the shores of Tohoku - the central site of the earthquake. The general manager of Tsukiji does not have high hopes for the market, stating "At least for now, the brand is finished. Gone. It's hopeless." With this large source gone, fish necessary to make sushi are near impossible for restaurants to obtain. Suppliers are turning to other competitive markets to buy their seafood.

Tsukiji Fish Market Before the Nuclear Collapse

 Kobe beef can be worth as much as $50,000 per cattle. As of Saturday March 12th, farmers had not tested the cattle nor have they tested the feed they give to their prized animals. Kazunori Ikeda said "We're not afraid of contamination because Kobe is so far from Fukushima. I'm sure all cattlemen in Japan feel the same way." Although it is true that over 360 miles away from the reactor site, the damage to the water and feed supply are of more concern. Masaru Takahashi, manager of JA Cooperative, reports “We have only 20 percent of the feed we need. I can’t imagine what effect this is going to have on our herd.”

Also, if rumors of the radiation contamination continue to envelope the minds of potential buyers, Takahashi fears that no one will buy their products. 

As for the other parts of this assignment, they're labeled and appear below.

Print Story - 500 words

                The devastation in Japan seems to only keep mounting. Not only have the earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear reactor failure taken the lives of countless citizens, now The New York Times reports that the threat of radiation is now pressing on the country’s food supply.

                Tests performed on crops of spinach and milk have proven that the radiation levels have indeed risen. Both of the milk and spinach were grown and harvested from over ninety miles from Fukushima, the site of the nuclear reactor failure. This fear of contamination is spreading rapidly throughout the nation, and rumors of unsafe products are spreading to markets and Western buyers.

                Japan is famous for its brands of Kobe beef and sushi, both bringing in profits in the millions of dollars for the nation. Former agricultural scientist Hiroshi Uchida fears that unless the government starts testing and proving the beef is unaffected by the release of radiation from Fukushima, “it will damage all the brands and people won’t buy any of it, even if it’s safe.”

Not only is there a fear of tainted mean, but as for first markets in Japan, such as the world’s largest Tsukiji, they have already experienced huge losses due to the earthquake. One of the primary fish harvesting locations, Tohoku, had its docks shattered and destroyed, lost fleets of ships, and supplies of scallops, seaweed, bonito and shark’s fin – products which the market is famous for. The general manager of Tsukiji doesn’t seem hopeful for the future, stating “It’s not like the brand is just damaged now — it’s over. At least for now, the brand is finished. Gone. It’s hopeless.”

                Sushi chef, Tomohito Narasaki, at the Tsukiji market reinforced the impact of the loss of Tohoku.  He said “Scallops, sardines and oysters from Tohoku, none of that is available now,” and also mentioned how millions of dollars had been lost in bluefin tuna, red snapper, and yellowtail because of the destruction as Tohoku. 

                Cattlemen of Kobe beef are stationed over 360 miles away from the terrible failure of the nuclear power plant at Fukushima. This being said many are confident that their cows are safe from the radiation, and that they will not have increased levels of radiation. One such man is Kazunori Ikeda, director of the Wagyu Registry Association. He stated “I don’t need any tests. We’re not afraid of contamination because Kobe is so far from Fukushima. I’m sure all cattlemen in Japan feel the same way. I’m confident.”

                However, according to Masaru Takahashi, manager of the JA Cooperative, another problem being consequently inflicted on the beef industry is the lack of the necessary water and feed available.  “We can’t feed our cows anymore because of the shortages of feed and water. We have only 20 percent of the feed we need. I can’t imagine what effect this is going to have on our herd,” stated a concerned Takahashi.

Mr. Takahashi also expressed his fear that trade nations will refuse to buy Japanese products when he stated “If the rumors grow, I’m not confident that anyone will buy our beef, even if it’s the highest quality and even if it’s safe.” It seems that his fears are coming true.

                Despite the safety and testing of many Japanese products, many nations have already reduced their trade with the nation. According to the Asia Pacific News, China, Russia, Australia, Singapore, the United States, South Korea and Taiwan have all put restrictions on food imports from Japan after the natural disasters and nuclear collapse.

Television Script - 60 Seconds

Things continue to look dim for the Japanese people.

News has surfaced that the radiation stemming from the failed nuclear power plant in Fukushima is affecting their food supply.

The New York Times reported that milk and spinach from far outside of Fukushima have tested positive for heightened levels of radiation.

(Video of nuclear plant explosion will play from “News has surfaced… “ to “levels of radiation”)

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_N-wNFSGyQ

What will this mean for specialty Japanese products such as Kobe beef and sushi?

The earthquake has already destroyed the docks and fleets surrounding fish markets and now radiation threatens to deplete the supply of scallions, oysters, and fish even more.

As for Kobe beef the cattlemen leading the herds are confident their live stock will not be affected by the radiation because they are over 350 miles away.

However a lack of necessary resources presents a more immediate problem.

According to Masaru Takahashi manager of JA Cooperative the usual supply of water and feed for the cattle has been cut down by 80%.

Depending on how rumors of radiation spread throughout Western nations Japan may not be able to sell any of their exports  - safe or not.

(Video of Kobe beef preparation and cattle will play from “As for Kobe beef…” to end)

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q5bTqobO4o

Radio Script - 20 Seconds 

Things are continuing to look dim for the Japanese.

The effects of the nuclear reactor failing are now spilling into their food supply .

The New York Times reports that elevated levels of radiation have been found.

 Now fear spreads to Kobe beef and sushi.

No exported shipments have been found contaminated but the findings will hurt the sale of Japan’s brands.

However distant cattlemen are convinced their herds will be unharmed from the radiation.

Stumbled

Recently, I discovered the newest excuse for my procrastination. It's an amazing website called stumbleupon.com. An end has come to the days when I hopelessly stare at my Facebook news feed, waiting for something that tickles my fancy to appear. No longer must I stalk people from my high school graduating class, despite the fact that we haven't spoken in months. Now, thanks to stumbleupon, I can waste hours that should be dictated on writing papers and studying looking at things that I actually find interesting, and pretend I'm actually learning something while I wait until the last minute.

What I love so much about stumbleupon is that I got to customize it to my exact interests. When you register (which I urge EVERYONE to do, considering it's free) you go through hundreds of different topics - ranging from history to bizarres/oddities, a personal favorite of mine. Once this is done, all you need to do it click the "stumble" button to generate something which is sure to amuse you. Depending on what website or image the site gives you, you can decide whether you approve or disapprove by clicking either thumbs up or thumbs down. Also, if you ever want to look at something again you can add that link to your favorites file, ensuring you can access it anytime you want.

If you're looking for a more in depth explanation, just click play on the video below...

What did I put as my interests you ask? That would be humor, photography, indie rock/pop, and fitness, just to name a few. I love taking and look at photographs, and stumbleupon always manages to find some that take my breath away...

Not only do I get photography on my stumbleupon page, I also get assorted articles and links to funny websites.

So now, I must leave you... stumbleupon is calling. 

Nose Ring

My parents have always been relatively liberal when it comes to my siblings and I expressing ourselves. They never tried to dictate what we wore, or how we styled our hair and usually supported most of our decisions. However, when it comes to tattoos and piercings, both my mom and dad are hesitant. In order to convince them what you're planning is a good idea, you better have a great proposal.

Being the baby of the family, things such as these are usually easier for me to get away with. Thankfully, my older brother and sister did a great job of breaking in my parents - from surprise belly button rings, to a tattoo that sits right below my brothers wrist. I've never been the type to shock my parents, so this weekend I brought up something I've wanted for a long time... a nose ring.

My mom always thought they were cute, so she didn't seem to bothered at the idea. My dad, on the other hand, resisted. In order to make him see things my way, I brought up a few key things in our conversation. My main point is that a piercing is temporary, unlike a tattoo. I always made sure to talk about how sanitary the tattoo shop I was going to get it done at was, and how good of a reputation they had. He was worried that I wouldn't be allowed to work - McDonald's has some rules regarding facial jewelry - but I talked to my boss and got the "okay" before hand. With all of his questions answered and concerned soothed, he finally gave his blessing.

Now with my nose freshly pierced, I can go back to school with a little more sparkle and feel a tiny bit more unique for the upcoming summer.

New Dress

I don't think there's anything that cheers me up more than a beautiful day. The frigid winter weather never fails to get me down in the dumps, and heavy sweaters always seem to be itchy on my skin. Needless to say, when those first glimpses of spring days come along I am overjoyed to slip into my summer uniform - a light , flowing sun dress.

Several weeks ago mother nature graced us with what felt like the perfect spring day. My friends and I welcomed the change in climate and, taking advantage of the weather, took a trip into Soho. After finally managing to navigate the subway system, we arrived at our destination - a street lined with stores and boutiques. We window shopped at the more expensive stores like Ben Sherman and Prada, but we took advantage of the small stores with hip, inexpensive clothing. One of these boutiques was called Mystique. It's not a fancy place, but the clothing was cute and cost next to nothing, perfect for a college girl's budget.

After a few minutes of browsing, my eyes gravitated to a dress hanging in the back of the store. It was off-white and covered in different flowers. A soft ruffle adorned the neckline and hem, and a belt cinched in the waist. I loved it. And as fate would have it, the only one left was in my size.

I tried it on and it was love at first zip. I hadn't even thought of the price, assuming its price would follow the same trend as everything else in the store. I cringed as I flipped over the tag, revealing the price. Twenty bucks? I think I can handle that.

My new dress now hangs perfectly amongst the rest of my clothes in my over-crowded closet. With three girls living in one tiny room, you couldn't expect anything less.

Assignments

Over the past couple of weeks, Professor Ernay assigned our multimeda class projects revolving around photography and film.

The first of these assignments was to take five photographs, each with a different purpose and focus. The different shots we needed to take were of a group of people in action, a group of people posed, a long shot of a location, a close up of that same location, and a self portrait of you in front of that place. I had a lot of fun not only taking the pictures, but deciding where and what I wanted to photograph. Although they're quite simple, I am happy with my results for this project.

A few of my friends studying the basement of St. Vincent Hall

My friends posed for my group shot

A distance shot of St. Thomas More Church

A close up of the entrance of St. Thomas More Church

Me in front of St. Thomas More Church

Another project that our class was assigned was the create a video between 30 and 60 seconds long, depicting some aspect of St. John's according to the rules regulated in the Capture the Storm video contest.

Once again I really enjoyed this project and planning the various scenes I recorded. It was also my first time working with iMovie, a movie-making program that comes on Mac computers. Editing the different clips and adding music and sound effects turned into a marathon activity, taking over 4 hours, but I am extremely happy with the overall result.

My video highlights the different aspects of St. John's University that I love and how it has many things to offer to all of its students.

Feathers

There's so few people we encounter in life that we can truly call a real friend. We all have our acquaintances that we go out with or people that we hang out with every so often, but those people rarely stay in our lives in the long run. When you meet one of those people, you know. I'm happy to say that I've found a true friend while here at school.

Me and Tara during winter break

On an everyday basis, while school is in session, Tara lives in the same room as me. Once we have a break or  classes end, she lives over 3,000 miles away. I'm from Long Island and she's from the Los Gatos, California. I've never even met someone that lives that far away, let alone be friends with them, but I've never gotten as close with a person in so little time as I have with her. We always have a good time, even if it's doing something weird or slightly unorthodox.

It was a regular day, I was sitting on my computer and Tara was sitting on her bed. Out of nowhere she yells and calls me over, showing me something that we "ABSOLUTELY MUST HAVE." You should know that this is not an unusual thing to hear out of her mouth. I walk over, skeptical, and look at what she has pulled up on her Macbook...


FineFeatherheads: Spring 2011 from Dakota Hills on Vimeo.

The next thing I know I'm on the phone with a hair salon in East Village making appointments to get feathers stuck in my head for the next 6 weeks. I'm not really the spontaneous type, but Tara always seems to push me to do things I wouldn't do normally.

The only problem was that now we had to figure out how to get there.

Neither of us are very good at directions, but we figured we could find it by ourselves. Once we got off the F train we spent about 20 minutes walking in the wrong direction. Apparently both of us didn't realize that there's a big difference between 7th Ave and 7th East. Thank God for iPhone's map application, or we would have walked in the wrong direction until it was dark, just staring into all the restaurants we wanted to eat at after our appointments.

After all was said and done, we were in love with our new hairstyles. Needless to say we spent the rest of the night strutting around campus showing off our hair to anyone that was willing to look.

If you look at me today you will still see the feathers strategically poking out from behind my right ear.

Every time I get ready in the morning or go to fix my hair I'm reminded of how much fun we always have and how close we are. That day was the perfect example of why we're such good friends and why I'm sure we will be for a while.

Interview

For the interview assignment I was paired with Kaitlin Simpson. We got along right away and we recorded our interview in one of the lounges in my dorm, St. Vincent.

A picture of Kaitlin from her Facebook

There were a few answers she gave me that were really interesting and that I wouldn't have expected her to say. Considering she's from the complete opposite side of the country, she was able to show me a different perspective on things.

Question: What was it like growing up there? (talking about California) 

Kaitlin's Answer: It was a kind of quaint, small town but kind of close to the big city, but i really never went into LA that much. Everyone thinks if you're from California you're from the beach, but no I live over half an hour away.

She was right, I had always assumed that living in California meant you practically lived at the beach. It was cool to see how diverse a single state could be.

Question: Why did you chose journalism as your major?

Kaitlin's Answer: Well I joined my school's newspaper in 8th grade because yearbook was full and I fell in love with it. I loved writing, I always loved writing. 

I thought it was funny that she joined the newspaper club as a last resort and she ended up loving it so much she wanted to make a career out of it.

Question: Do you follow any blogs about fashion or any other writing about it?

Kaitlin's Answer: I follow on twitter. I follow Glamour magazine and some designers so I know what's coming out, whats the next thing. I try to form my own opinion before reading someone else's.

I liked how she said she cared more about what she thought about a fashion or a trend more than a critic writing a blog or a review.

Those were just some of the highlights. To hear the rest of the interview click on the player below...

I really appreciated how honest Kaitlin was with all of her answers. She made it fun and easy to talk to her, making it more like we were hanging out than trying to finish a project.

Lunch Date

Being away from school there's few things I miss more than my mom. We've always been incredibly close and she's always been one of my best friends. Our relationship is something that I've always been so happy to have, and something that my friends have always teased me about. 

Mom eating her wrap at Tiger Lily

This weekend I was lucky enough to be able to go home to my house in Mt. Sinai, NY and see my whole family together for the first time in almost a month. The summer before I came to school I would always spend Saturday mornings and early afternoons with my mom. We usually did the same thing... get manicures and pedicures and get lunch at our favorite little cafe in downtown Port Jefferson, Tiger Lily. This Saturday was no exception. I never realized how much I missed our afternoons together until I finally got to have one again. We both ordered our favorites... I got "falafel with the works" and she "grilled vegetable and humus wrap." 

My falafel wrap

Aside from the food being healthy and delicious, the whole atmosphere of Tiger Lily is amazing. The walls are covered with art from local artists and all the tables and decorations are unique, giving the place a really cool indie feel. We always try to get the same table, the one right in the middle of the cafe. It's the perfect little table for two and it's surrounded by art. 

One of the art covered walls at Tiger Lily

Being away from my parents is hard, especially since we've always been so close. Getting to spend time with my mom, just me and her, makes me realize how lucky I am to have such an amazing woman, and teacher as my mom. She inspires me in so many ways, from her work ethic to her caring nature. I always hope that one day I'll be able to treat her to lunch and a "mani pedi" and to make her proud of the person I become. I can't wait until the next time I get to come home and get to have another lunch date.

Two of Hearts

I was never a sports person until I came to school here. I’m not going to lie, it’s still not the most exciting thing to watch to me, but going to the games with my friends has become one of my favorite things. Not to mention my Dad loves that we can watch and cheer for St. Johns together. It makes it feel like I’m back sitting on my couch, both of us decked out in our baggiest pajamas, eating chips and salsa and yelling at the television every time the other team makes a shot. So, naturally, when his birthday rolled around last month it only made sense to get him tickets to the Duke vs St Johns game at Madison Square Garden. This way, he could take the train in with my family and I could meet them there with my friends in tow.

After the game we celebrated an unexpected victory with a nice dinner then said our goodbyes and parted ways. I may only live an hour and a half away, but it doesn’t mean I miss my family any less. People might say it’s weird for a teenage girl to miss her Dad while she’s off at college, but I’ve always been a Daddy’s girl at heart.

Needless to say I was bummed on the ride home. I shoved my way onto a crowded subway, from the subway to an overflowing bus, and then took a brisk walk back from the bus stop to my dorm. I was careful to watch my feet and where I walked to avoid what was sure to be a graceful collapse onto the slick ground. To my surprise what I saw when I looked down wasn’t a patch of ice, but just one card from a deck of cards… the two of hearts.

I couldn’t help but smile. It may sound lame, but I felt like it was meant for me to find and pick up. So I did and stuffed it deep into my coat pocket. That card is now sitting on my desk, a reminder of how even though we might be two separate people in two different places, our hearts will always be together.

Ducks

I never thought that moving from home would be such a huge transition for me. I mean, I only live an hour away, but it still feels like I left everything and everyone I used to know so far away.  Being broke has not helped either. Without a steady job and the high price of everything in the city, it seems like no matter what I do or how careful I am I’ll always still be worried about that number in the bank account. This may sound like I’m complaining, but I’m actually extremely happy that I came away to school. Without my parents there as a financial buffer, I’ve learned to find more happiness and enjoyment in the things around me that I see every day and not worry about material possessions so much. That’s what I’ve decided to write this blog about, all the new things that I see that I probably wouldn’t have even glanced at before. I’ve never been this aware of all the little things or how much joy they really bring me.

Ducks Near the Great Lawn

The walk back to my hall from the D’Angelo Center is never a pleasant one, especially at night… in the freezing cold. Oh and did I mention it’s snowing? Anyway, as I turn the corner and start past the great lawn I hear something that I haven’t heard in a long time. Quacks. Coming from Long Island, I have seen plenty of Ducks in my life. I never expected to see them here though, on campus in the freezing cold. I wasn’t even sure where they had come from. It was a classic scene; the big duck led the line with a row a smaller ducks following it. The whole scenario seemed so out of place, but it still made me smile. It brought back memories of home. I remember as a kid playing out at the duck pond a few miles by my house and feeding tiny pieces of bread to what I thought were the cutest ones. After that my mom would almost always take me to our favorite pizza place next to Sylvan Park, where my brother used to play little league baseball.

Sylvan Park

Seeing the ducks brought back so many memories from home. Not only from days in my childhood, but from where I come from. Seeing the ducks waddling in a line made the walk from D’Angelo back to St. Vincent’s bearable and even, dare I say, slightly enjoyable.