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Catching Fire, Missing

Catching Fire, Missing

By Penny

As many of you know, the new addition to the Hunger Games movies came out in November. The movie was a great; I loved every minute of it. When I got out of the theater I thought what moments the movie got right, and what the movie was lacking. Thinking about it, the book could have used a few pointers from the movie. I thought I would sit down and discuss this with all who have read the books and watched the movie.

  What moments were not included in the movie were small things not to important. I still would have loved to see some of them on the big screen. In the book when Katniss is dancing with Plutarch Havensbee (the new gamekeeper for the Hunger games) he shows her his watch, which a picture of a mocking jay on it. This gives a little hint that he is on Katniss’s side. It also helps Katniss when she is in the games a second time. She remembers the watch and puts the changing of the arena and watch together to come up with the idea the arena is a clock with new threats coming every hour.

  The only other thing I wish was included in the movie was when Katniss tried all of the different wedding dresses, this was then put to a vote throughout the capital on which one would be the dress she wore to her wedding to Peta. When she comes out in their choice at the interview before the games instead of a wedding, it provides the capitals community darker emotion. The movie does have her coming out in a wedding dress which changes into the mocking jay dress, but President Snow picked the dress out, not the capital population.  I think it just lacks the emotion it did in the book when the people chose the dress.

  What the movie had I wish was in the book, I love the scenes with President Snow and his granddaughter. These were not included in the book, but it shows more emotion from Snow. It also gives you the growth and power Katniss image is to people. When Snow’s Granddaughter tells him she wants to love someone the same way Katniss loves Peta. The look on Snow’s face is priceless. She also is styling her hair to look like Katniss’s hair, telling her Grandfather this is the new fashion for hair today. Again another priceless looks from Snow; played by Donald Sutherland.

The other scene that should have been in the book was when President Snow is left viewing the game waiting for Katniss to die, and Plutarch leaves Snow to save the victors so they can start the rebellion. Snow has no idea what is going on until it is too late. He thinks everything is going according to plan with the games until the screen goes black. Due to Katniss shooting an arrow with wire attached to it that is being struck by lightning through the force field destroying the whole arena. When this happens he runs into the control room for the games and sees no sight of Plutarch.  

  That is some of the things I wish were in the other form of the story Catching Fire. I can’t wait to see what they are going to do for the next movie.

All Photos by http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/catching-fire/images

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Enough is Enough

The shooting that took place at Arapahoe High School in Littleton, Colorado on Friday the 13th, 2013 was just sickening. Not even a year after the Sandy Hook Elementary school massacre, and only 8 miles away from the Columbine shooting that happened in 1999. Not to mention the shooting that happened last year in Aurora, Colorado at the theatre. These active shooter situations are getting out of control in America. It is not even safe to go outside your front door.

I agree that gun control laws need to be stricter in the United States, but in this case the gunman was an 18 year old high school senior using a shotgun against his victims. I am from northern Michigan and there is not one house hold in my hometown that probably does not have a shotgun or a hunting rifle of some sort. America has already banned some semi-automatic weapons and 30 round clip magazines in certain states. Which I am all for that. If you are using the weapon for hunting and a way to survive and put food on the table then there is no reason why you need a semi-automatic weapon or a 30 round clip.

 That being said this gunman had a shotgun not sure what kind but a typical shotgun is normally used for bird hunting or small game hunting of some sort. The solution is not just to create another band. If a person has a desire to cause harm to another they will find a way to carry out their motive regardless of what bands lie ahead.  As a nation we need to find another way of solving this issue. Instead of the quick fix.  

Photo by: http://www.nydailynews.com

Photo by: http://www.nydailynews.com

By: Derek Keegan

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Assignment 1: Effects of Mass Media Paper

-Listen to the song Gullible from the album "The Gifted" by Wale.

-Analyze the song!

-Write a paper about the song! The assignment instructions are listed in the course syllabus.

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In US Today World News, there is an article, "Can Wendy Davis win in Republican-red Texas?" Wendy Davis, a second term State Senator announced that she will be one of the opponents to run against the 13-year State Governor, Rick Perry. Davis says "...It's time for a Governor who believes that you don't have to buy a place in Texas' future." Now Rick Perry, the Republican who helped make Texas one of the reddest in the nation, isn't feeling that. Even though Davis stood in her pink running shoes for 11 hours and went against a bill banning most abortions, she stopped the bill and passed a special session of the GOP which is controlled legislature and signed into law by Gov. Perry, none of his rivals in the 3 campaign for governor mastered more than 42% of the vote. Attorney General Greg Abbott, who is most likely to win over Davis due to his mindset that Texans are use to. Abbott vows to preserve Texas as, "The land of liberty and freedom against Obama and his allies as they attempt to turn Texas blue." I truly believe Davis has good intentions behind her idea for wanting to run as Governor of Texas. She could be a fresh breathe of air for the Texans to get use to but as a Texan myself I feel you have to understands, the whole state of Texas believes that Texas should be a Republican state they have it in their brains that laws should be ran a certain kind of way an thats the orderly robot way. Will Davis be able to win the Hispanics and Blacks over and transform Texas into a Blue Demarcated state?? Well according to Matthew Wilson, a political scientist, "For a Democrat to win in Texas in 2014, there would have to be an unprecedented mobilization and enthusiasm among Latinos voters. An Anglo woman best known as an abortion champion doesn't seem well-positioned to achieve that." It would be interesting to see Texas as a Demarcated State. The only thing I worry though, Are the Texans ready for such huge change? #DontMessWithTexas #Demarcates #Republican -signed Bianca B.

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Zumatic Fun

DITCH THE WORKOUT, COME JOIN THE FUN. ZUMBA FUN.

                                                                             I first learned about Zumba five years ago. Not until two years ago did I go and give it a try. Zumba is a dance fitness program founded by a Colombian dancer named Alberto Perez. He goes by the name “Beto”, and created Zumba during the 1990’s. In 2001 Beto introduced it to the world, and now more than 10 million people practice it. Zumba dance moves include salsa, hip-hop, martial arts and more. During a Zumba dance routine lunges and squats are incorporated into the choreography, which makes for a fun great workout for the whole body. You have so much fun dancing that you don’t feel the stress of working out. There are four chemicals in our brain that is triggered when we dance, these chemicals are known as Endorphin, Dopamine, Oxytocin, and Serotonin.  Setting of the effects of happiness. When I Zumba I get a therapeutic relief. All my stress from the day is gone, and my workout is complete. 1000 calories are burned in just one Zumba class, and all while losing weight some find it great to be gaining definition and muscle. Zumba is offered in more the 150 countries in the world.  My love for Zumba sky rocketed after my first class was over, an instant hook. I believe I have seen the results I wanted from the Zumba dance class as oppose to when I was lifting weights and running. Another great reason I feel in love with Zumba is because they have dance routines made for children and even ones for the whole family to do… we all get to have fun together, dance and get a great work out. It doesn’t get any better than that!!

            -Tina-

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqfoQz2iwtE

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Nectarhead

Brittany Valdez

10/08/2013

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Hurry Up Winter, Well On Second Thought

Snowy cold days below 10 degrees; sitting in traffic for hours; waking up 2 hours earlier than normal to go to work. Oh boy, I sure can’t wait for winter to get here! Ok on second thought I can wait for all that to happen, actually I’d prefer it if it never happened at all. Don’t get me wrong I love the snow, maybe not the 10 degree days, but snow I love. I just really hate the snow when it is in Denver; it’s like nobody has ever driven in this stuff before. Come on people, it happens every year for roughly 6 months. This isn’t a new concept, it has been happening for quite some time now around these parts.

photo by Denverpost.com on Google

Everyone likes to claim they are “Natives” in Colorado or play the “I have been here longer game.” I don’t give a sh*t who has been here longer, just drive better! If you are a “Native” you should be setting examples for the rest of us to drive in the snow, but you’re not. I see the ones out there in their Subaru’s with Pioneer license plates driving like a sixteen year old taking their drivers test. Are you actually a Pioneer? Like you settled the land here and that is how old you are so that’s why you suck at driving. Maybe you’re just used to the pioneer days, carting around in a horse and buggy so speed isn’t in your vocabulary.

photo by paulamahla.com on Google

Back to the part about loving snow though; this means it’s snowboarding time. This is the part of the winter I want to stick around. Going up the hill and spending a day or two at the ski hill is one of my favorite things to do; especially if you are in good company and don’t forget the beers. There is something about being at a ski hill I love and I wish I got to do it more. This is when you’re dressed for the weather and falling in the snow doesn’t bother you, it actually makes you laugh. Winter here in Colorado is a great time of year, it means family holidays are near (I guess if you like your family); snowboarding and don’t forget chili. As great as the winter is here in Colorado, can we just keep it out of Denver Monday through Friday. 

photo by sporcle.com on Google

photo by paulamahla.com on Google

By: Andy Green

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Battlefield - New and Improved

So the new Battlefield is to be released on October 29th and I'm looking forward to the picking it up and starting my new soldier. Battlefield has usually been based on a war between the United States and Russia, but in Battlefield 4 they have switched it up and is now based on a war between the United States and China.

  Dice recently released a BETA form of the new battlefield to help test the online capabilities and make last minute changes to the game. Everyone playing the BETA including myself is helping to test the new game to work out all of the last minute bugs. So far the game runs very smooth, with of coarse the occasional hic-up, which is expected because, let’s face it is a BETA.

My Favorite new addition to Battlefield is the new knife animations. My favorite part of battlefield is the knife kills. Each time you perform a knife takedown in battlefield you take your opponents dog tags. Each person has their own personal dog tags based on their skills and achievements they have made throughout the game. Mine of coarse is knife kills. Performing a knife takedown allows me to take a trophy with me or each kill i get. It does come with a downside sadly, I get banned or kicked from servers, and sent a lot of hate mail because no one likes to get knifed in battlefield, especially multiple times in the same round.

  All in all I am very excited to get the full game on October 29th and enjoy the other nine levels that will be available for online play. With all of the new additions like Levelution, which allows you to take down even the largest skyscrapers. Most of all I am excited to start my new collection of enemy dog tags!

  Adam Giffen-Kent

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Bill Nye

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Assignment 1: Effects of Mass Media Paper

-Listen to the song Gullible from the album "The Gifted" by Wale.

-Analyze the song!

-Write a paper about the song! The assignment instructions are listed in the course syllabus.

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LEFT, RIGHT; LEFT, RIGHT WHERE ARE YOU GOING TO GO?

Damn!! These drivers now a days don’t know how to drive not even if their lives depended on it. It really irritates me when I’m driving and a driver left from me cuts me off and swings across all three lanes, and doesn’t even have the common courtesy to even turn on their turn signal. In return the driver flips you off just because you were in his or her way. This is why people get road rage and traffic jams build up. It is all a chain reaction.

I also hate it when ignorant drivers who think that they know how to drive, are in front of you and pull a crazy stunt. These little stunts that they pull are so dangerous that it could cause a serious car accident. I hate it when they break all of a sudden or how about when they decide to turn at the last minute and you have to slam on your breaks to avoid a collision. How about when the driver in front of you decides to turn at the last minute but turns on the turn signal as they are doing the turn. This defines the purpose of the turn signal. That’s why it was inputted in the vehicle as a safety feature.

These drivers think that they own the street in which they drive on. What these drivers don’t realize is that they are endangering their lives and everyone else around them who drive. Most of the drivers who bend or break these driving rules, are never going to understand what they are doing until they harm someone or kill someone. That is when they will realize why the rules are in place. Most of these wreck less drivers don’t see what they are doing is wrong. All they care about is getting through traffic and getting to where they have to be.

But I will leave you with this thought, my mom always told me, “IT IS BETTER TO GET THERE LATE, THAN NOT TO GET THERE AT ALL!”

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Who Are You?

As we all know who we are is apart our surroundings the people around us the things we see what we watch and the way we act towards the things we encounter. All of these things can either have a good or bad affect on what we become of ourselves.  Coming into this world we have no control over the things we encounter, our parents are our first insight to what this world is to us. We watch the way they move their reactions with other people we hear the way they speak and we feel what they believe.  Our parents are our biggest influence, sometimes it can affect what we do with our lives growing up until we meet other people in the world such as our friends or in other cases our associates which is the people that aren’t as close as our friends are. All of these people we allow in our lives create who we are what we become and even sometimes how far we may go.  As you get old enough to think for yourself you began to wonder about the actual person you are if you actually stopped to think for a second you would realize the people that has been in your life and those people created you.

 Now I’m not saying who you are is 100% from those that have been in your life because when you are old enough to say yes or no your old enough to have a choice of the decisions you make but those people who come into our life play big roles. It can sometimes catch you off guad because when you do stop to think who you are you don’t have any answers for yourself but to think of those that has been in and out of your life and maybe that is who your are or maybe its something deeper about you something special inside you but regardless of who are you are you allowed yourself to create that special person.

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Hello my name is Dr. Greenthumb

  It started in 2003!. My aunt and uncle helped me begin m

y first garden. It was then that I realized I had a gift. They would bring me plant after plant of their choosing to grow in the garden. Every time I would ask to plant a particular plant it was always “it won’t grow in Colorado” or “it’s too late in the season and they won’t produce you anything.” I saved up my money and bought them anyway and proved them wrong.

In the years to follow, I had nowhere to plant my own garden. So instead I just studied gardening and horticulture in my spare time.  Learning different ways I can create my own garden with even more success than when I was younger.  In late 2012 my Great-Grandmother died and I inherited her house. I was full of depression and I needed an outlet.

One day I was taking out the trash and got disgusted by the amount of weeds in the backyard. They were out of control. Naturally I put the trash down and began pulling weeds. The longer I pulled, the more I noticed that there was good soil in the yard, and a light bulb went off in my head. This was the perfect place to get back into gardening. Before I knew it I had cleared an 8x12 area.

The next morning I woke up and headed straight to home depot.  I bought seeds and small starter plants to add to my new garden.  I got home and planted everything. My family thought I was just doing it out of boredom and always would joke about me, calling me “Gardener John” lol.

That was two months ago, and everyone I know asks about my garden. People stop by just to see the progress I’ve made. And all I can do is sit back and enjoy it, doubters becoming believers. Who would have known that my little garden from 2003 would inspire me to do something I enjoy and is outside the norm (at least in the neighborhood I grew up in) .

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#EVERYTHING

Hashtag a funny idea really. What is the purpose of this epidemic? Firstly, hashtag generally has one rule of thumb: put more hash tags on posts and receive more “likes.” When people receive more “likes” on Twitter, Instagram and Vine (a few Social Media outlets) it raises morale. People receive a chemical rush, a heightened sense of popularity, and the instant smile. One “like” from someone, your day gets brighter. 

On the flip side, what does that “like” actually mean? Almost every day, I press the “like” button on tons of pictures while using Instagram. Does it mean I actually like that person? What does the “like” mean? It means nothing. It is verification of seeing and enjoying someone else’s photo. But it is more than thinking the photo is visually appealing to the eye, it’s an addiction. The same rush as falling in love or getting a paper done before the due date. That feeling inside, is what drives social media. It is the ego boost, and the imagery popularity points. The thought of oneself actually being famous. It is a numbers game, the more hashtags the more “likes.” It is the internet’s version of a click. It is similarly like being back in high school: the cool kids, the nerdy kids, and music geeks. The more hashtags the more cultures and clicks we can reach out to.

Social media is a digital scrap book of memories. We take pictures of events that we want to remember. We take pictures with our friends, the ones we love, our dogs, the things we buy, and the vacations we take. We also share various personal philosophies and educate the public on current events. We add the hashtag to prove it was a good photo to remember and to connect our lives. The more “likes,” makes it appear I am popular.

The funny part of the imaginary popularity points is the constant need to put photos up and the need to share ideas. Along with the hashtag, we need the photo, and a filter to possibly add. In the daily life of a person with a smart phone, we take pictures, lots of pictures. If we see something that is appealing, WE MUST SHARE WITH EVERYBODY! That’s where the hashtag is the key. We live our lives though our smart phones. When going to a concert the first thing we do is take a picture to get an ego boost to show everyone that we are there. The hashtag must also be clever, and have the ability to become optimized.

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A Vine-oultion

by: Blake Susmann

       Vine the application and website that is the newest rage in online entertainment, social media, video sharing and content aggregation. This new freeware software program, called Vine, has been sweeping the nation recently in popularity and the amount of entertainment content available to the consumer. Vine is a video posting and sharing app that allows posting of videos no more than 7 seconds long. Bloomberg TV from Bloomberg.com reported as of June 3rd, 2012 Vine had over 13 million active users and counting on the Vine network (Bloomberg TV (Bloomberg.com), 2013).

       Hailing from New York: Dom Hofmann, Rus Yusupov and Colin Kroll founded Vine in June 2012. The company has had an exciting and fast paced 1st year of business. Vine caught the attention of Twitter in its early stages of development and was acquired by the social media giant in October 2012 (Kafka & Isaac, 2013). The application wasn’t even launched yet and didn’t until January 24, 2013, making this Twitter Vine acquisition historical and something of a tech-geeks wet dream. This also highlighted the large amount of faith Twitter was putting into the possibility of success with the product (which some media outlets at the time gave twitter slack for). In the beginning, Vine released only iOS versions of the application for the iPhone and iPod Touch and later released Android versions of the freeware software on June 2, 2013.

       Interesting trending facts: Only after several months “Vine became the most used video-sharing application in the market, even with low adoption of the app” (Moore, 2013). As mentioned earlier in the blog on June 3rd, 2013 Vine had an astounding 13 million users but that was only a portion of the smart phone market at the time (apple only products) and analyst are predicting that number only to exponentially grow with new availability to android users and growing popularity and notoriety with the public.

        Why we love Vine? Vine caters to our ever changing and controlling attention spans with captivating short films that keep us laughing while surprising us with the amount of content conveyed in a 7 second film. Latimes.com said, “Tens of millions of Vine users say the six-second vignettes, shot on Apple and Android devices, capture emotions better than text, photographs or drawn-out videos” (Dave, 2013). The added layer and power of embedding these clips into content through cross-platform sharing into the social media moguls of Twitter and Facebook have only incited the creative process of vine videos. This Vine-oultion is showing the beginnings of an interesting Internet trend and application to follow for enjoyment for years to come.

      References

Bloomberg TV (Bloomberg.com) (2013, June). How Many People Are Using Twitter's Vine App? [Video podcast]. BWest Byte. Retrieved from http://www.bloomberg.com/video/how-many-people-are-using-twitter-s-vine-app-E0~roR82Tj2oTCDDTLdQmg.html

Dave, P. (2013, August). Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from http://articles.latimes.com/2013/jun/20/business/la-fi-vine-20130620

Kafka, P., & Isaac, M. (2013, July). Twitter Buys Vine, a Video Clip Company That Never LaunchedTwitter Buys Vine, a Video Clip Company That Never Launched. Retrieved from http://allthingsd.com/20121009/twitter-buys-vine-a-video-clip-company-that-never-launched/

Moore, R. J. (2013, July). Vine Takes Early Command In The Mobile Video Market Over Viddy, Socialcam And Others Despite Low Adoption. Retrieved from http://techcrunch.com/2013/03/06/771378/

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OH MY GOODNESS, I was definitely not prepared!

I have been thinking all week about what to blog about! Then I remembered…. I had an interview this week! I was so worried that I was going to be a nervous wreck that I started looking up interview tips on Google. After viewing what felt like hundreds of tips and frequently asked interview questions I felt so much more prepared for my interview.

I think one of the most important tips was to be confident, regardless of how you feel when you walk in the door. You need to be confident in yourself, your job history, and whatever questions the interviewer may ask. Employees who are confident in everything they do is almost always what the company you are applying to is looking for. However, do make sure you do not overly confident and act like you know more about the position and company than the interviewer.

Another thing that is helpful for your interview is to make sure you research the company and the position you are being interviewed for. The person who is interviewing you will ask what you know about the company and the position. And… Well… If you do not know anything about either, you will not be offered the job, regardless of how confident you are. Companies do not want to hire people who think that they can just get by with good looks and confidence. I mean, it helps but companies want someone who knows something about the position and company.

The last thing I did before my interview was look at common interview questions. The reason you want to do this is so you are prepared when the interviewer asks, “Tell me a suggestion you had that has been implemented.” Or, “Tell me any issues you have had with a previous boss.” I know I wouldn’t have been prepared for this without reading and thinking about this beforehand.

It is so important to be prepared for your interview, I mean, you want the job right?

  -Heather Smith

          Michael, P. (2007, October 4). How to Answer 23 of the Most Common Interview Questions. WiseBread. Retrieved from http://www.wisebread.com/how-to-answer-23-of-the-most-common-interview-questions

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Nothing Left to Explore: The Star Trek Theory

This planet is depleted. It is over populated. The resources have been exhausted. The food has all been consumed, and atmosphere is polluted. Humans are in constant conflict with each other for the last resources on Earth. The last natural resource on the planet in abundance is human. Humans are the only species on the planet to imagine new experiences, create tools and technology, and have the capability to heal the sick and diseased. A common goal could unite the population and bring a since of responsibility to our species.

  With vehicles that travel faster than the speed of light, we can explore the stars, discover new planets, and tap new resources. Power sources could be enhanced with new elements found on alien planets. Bio-domes could be constructed to support population. Planets can be altered and be used for specific purposes. Other species can be discovered, such as; animal or plant life that can enhance medical technology, or end famine.

  -Medical-

Imagine humans using the full potential of medical knowledge. We could use stem cell research to regenerate cells, or use laser technology to fight diseases. We could develop miniature robots to target cancers cells, or the HIV virus, and they could be programmed to eradicate the disease. The most incredible idea is to clone a person, and download his life and memory into a brand new body, conquering death.   

-Technology-

                With new placed to explore, we can create new technologies. We could add to the periodic chart by discovering new elements. We could create new types of metals that can be stronger and lighter than the ones we have now. These new metals can streamline construction, cut down on cost and time, and also make buildings more durable with less maintenance. We could build bio-domes on planets like Mars and turn a dead planet into a farm planet that used to create additional resources. We could grow giant cows and vegetables to end world hunger. We could populate the planets and decrease over-population on Earth, giving the planet time to replenish itself. The possibilities are unimaginable.

                  -Alien Plants and Animals-

                When everyone thinks of aliens there first instinct is to think of intelligence. When we can explore the stars, we may find a planet similar to ours before the disaster that killed the dinosaurs. On the rings of Saturn there is a moon called Enceladus. This moon is only 310 miles across, but has made its presents known to the universe with its top frozen salt water ocean. Scientist speculates life could exist below this frozen ice water shell. Giant sea creatures could contribute to food sources or other beneficial technology.       

                    -My Starship-

                On my starship I would explore the universe with my closest friends. People who I know I could trust in a hostile situation. I would open every crack in the solar system, and peek in every hole of the universe. I would seek out new technology, and I would claim it all for the advancement of the human species.  I would uphold the” Prime Directive”, and would follow the teachings of Captain Jean Luc Pickard.

In the opening credits Captain Picard describes exploration, he says, “Space…The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its continuing mission, to explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before” (Picard, 1987- 1994).    

-Tony Tucker