Blogger Experience

When Ms. Gazom first revealed the blogger project to the class I was happy about the choice. I read blogs all the time so I was very excited to jump right in and start writing. Writing for the blog was a good experience, although sometimes I had a little trouble finding appropriate topics to write about, but once I finished a couple of articles the task got easier. I like how we were able to dercorate our blogs and make them our own. I also like the convience of blogging, because you update and edit articles form home.

Does Anyone Take Music Piracy Serious?

It seems as if everyone has a mp3 player these days, where they download their favorite music and listen on the go, but does anyone actually pay for their music? I think we all are aware that a lot people don't purchase their music. And these same people don't really consider it a crime because the odds of getting "caught" are slim to none, and because the number of people who commit piracy is so large that it's difficult to monitor. Sure we have heard of the extreme cases where teens have been caught, like the creator of Napster who was sued by Metallica, and had to pay several fines. However music is illegally downloaded more and more making it difficult for recording artists to sell albums and become a sucess at thier record labels. I think most young people who download illegally don't even think twice about the consequences since this problem is very hard to control. I also think a lot of people are even unware that their downloading methods are illegal. Most people just see it as an easy and free way to get the new singles and albums that they want. However this issue often makes me wonder, will there ever come a time when this problem will be strictly monitored, and millions of people get in to trouble or will the problem persist causing the the music industry to become a graveyard?

Is Black Really Beautiful?

Today's society has created a large neagtive effect that tends to make many feel deeply insecure or unhappy with their self-image. Predominately women, are the victims who nowadays are always searching for the lastest diet, clothes, make-up, and hair to make them feel more beautiful or up to par. This occurs amongst all races but mostly women of color tend to feel even more passionate about this issue being as they were seen as inferior in history, and they often feel as if they aren't as beautiful as more fair skined women. Speaking as a young woman of color I have also felt this way before and thought if I were light skinned with naturally straight hair, then I would be veiwed as being more beautiful. Or that the straighter my hair the better because natural hair is "nappy" and not as attractive. These standards of beauty are common agmonst society and give young women even little girls negative preceptions about self-image. Kiri Davis invetstigated this when she directed the documentary A Girl Like Me in 2005. In the short film she talked to a few young black women about their personal misconceptions of beauty, how this issue affected others they knew, and the present and common sterotype of the black woman. Wahida, one of the young women interveiwed, stated how she knew someone who actually put cap fulls of bleach into thier bath water in hopes that their skin would lighten. Also featured in the video is a modern day doll test, like the one conducted by Dr. Kenneth Clark, which was used in the Brown vs. Board of Education supreme court case. There were two baby dolls, one black and one white. Kiri asked the each of the little girls and boys to picked the doll that they thought to be "smater","better",and more "beautiful". It turned out that 15 out of the 21 children always picked the white doll. This test proved that young black children have the same negitive issues with self-image as they did back in the 1960s and much hasn't changed. After vewing the documentary I was shocked at the doll tests results. The video made me think that the black community needs to do more teach our children to love their apperance from any early age, hold their selves in high esteem and that we need to undo this common generational misconception. If you would like to watch A Girl Like Me for your self, please cut and paste the link below into your browser.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWyI77Yh1Gg

I Got A Penny For Your Thoughts...

It seems as if everyone hates pennies. People often throw them away,throw them on the ground, or pay them no attention at all. Why? I like pennies and when ever I see them I pick them up. They come in handy when your making a small purchase, and they can help to create exact change in some instances. I know for one I still save my pennies, no they aren't my only means of saving (i do save large bills as well). But I never saw pennies as worthless. My mom would tell me as a child, "don't throw away pennies little girl, your not rich!" So I always saved them up. I beleive that quote about snow the that says a few snowflakes are pretty and just weak but when the snowflakes ban together in an outrageous number they became something greater bigger, and mighty like a snow ball or an crazy avalanche. Pennies can do the same. If you save enough of them overtime you'll have a nice little peice a change to spend however you like. Saving pennies also can give a little bit of spare cash when the going gets tough. So the next time you get dead broke think about how many pennies you through away and how those could help your situation; or you could just think of me and how I must have a lot of pennies, and that I'm probably cashing them in at the coin star while you're at home cause you didn't have enough money to go to that new movie that everyone's going to be at.

Lady In Red?

Acoording to a new study by the University of Rochester, men actually find women more attractive when wearing red more than any other color. So to test this theory a New York City news station conducted an experient where a female reporter went on the streets with two indentical pictures of beautiful women the only difference between the two pictures was the color of the dresses, one was red while the other was blue. When the reporter asked the men which picture the liked the best, the majority of the men answered red. The reserchers behind this study explained in the video why men are so fascinated with this color, stating that red has always men a staple a beauty and affection as it was worn back in ancient Egypt, on the faces and mouths of women. They also stated how red is also commonly known as the color of love, and symbolizes passion. The study conducted by the U of R also stated that the retnia in our eyes responds differently to the color red. In conclusion the news reporter stated that if a woman is going on a dtae and doesn't know which color to wear, she should almost always go with red. If you would like to watch this experiment done or see the coverage of the story, please click the link below.


http://video.yahoo.com/watch/4035119/10909549

NOTORIOUS

Notorious B.I.G has been critically acclaimed as one of the best rappers of all time and his epic story is known by the hip hop community. With a distinct swagger and charming charisma the 250 pound lyricist posessed a talent like no other. His legacy left a colassal impression on all his fans and he is still veiwed as one of best to ever done it. To this day he is missed by fans and will never be forgotten.
Although his story is known by many there are still some aspects of his life that were untold, causing Fox Searchlight Pictures to fill in these gaps. The movie Nortorious will show the rise and fall of the legendary rapper, Christopher Wallace, while giving fans a deeper look at the man behind the music. The movie includes some familar names such as Angela Basset and Derek Luke, and is expected to acheive high numbers at the box office. The movie is set to be released at the top of 2009 and has already generated quite the buzz. Jamal Woolard a rookie to the acting game, will star as the Brookynite rapper and is said to provide veiwers with an exceptional performance. The movie will also answer many questions surrounding the legend like his infamous affair with rapper Lil' Kim, his tumultuous marriage to singer Faith Evans, and close-knit friendship with Sean "Puffy" Combs.