For this weeks blog, we are... yet again commenting on how the internet has changed our life and de-dee-dum de-dee-dee. I am known to be a Web Doctor for myself and anyone who is sick around me. I love the virtual chase of rummaging through WebMD and all of someone's symptoms to diagnose them much more severely than appropriate. This is slightly off topic, because they aren't really citizen journalists, but it has to do with blogger credibility. Anyways, so many people post responses to these questions and give specific medical advice to these random people, and I can assure you that they probably did not attend any kind of medical school. While there are obviously some unreliable bloggers- the internet provides a wealth of knowledge that if used diligently, can serve many purposes.

 When I think of the term " citizen journalist", I can't help but imagine our class reenacting the Sun Devil Football pre-game video... haha  " I.... am a CITIZEN JOURNALIST!" I have been looking for good examples of a citizen journalist blog, I was only able to find examples of the Oscars, which by the way were the absolute best they have ever been. It is interesting to read the point of view of a citizen. I think it adds to the experience and they are able to a different approach to covering a certain story- whether it be through details- or even language. Some languages will interpret things just because there meaning is skewed or "lost in translation" 

I decide on an ounce and I wait at the counter and gently slide the cash on the table to complete the transaction.

I close my eyes, put it to my lips, and take my first wheat grass shot. This week’s blog is about my weeklong journey of “Life, on grass”.

The title might throw you for a loop, thinking this blog would be about marijuana. Well hopefully it doesn’t disappoint you that it’s actually about wheat grass. Have you ever felt like you just need a good detox, or maybe just something healthy? I presume that I am guilty of this. Rumors of wheat grass’s miraculous health benefits provoked my actions this week. I wanted to find out for myself.

After some careful research I constructed a daily routine, to which I would strictly adhere. It went something like this:

1 shot Acai blueberry juice

1 Activa Yogurt

Pineapple

1 One Fiber Bar

8-16 oz. of Green Tea

6-8 glasses of lemon water

1 ounce of fresh wheat grass juice

as for meals- I ate small portions ( the size of my fist) every two hours

All of these things have a specific purpose and all are very important when naturally detoxing.

Why Detox?

Some feel that wheatgrass is a bunch a bolgna, but it is highly recommended by many physicians. Here are 35 health benefits of Wheat grass.

I am an advocate, but I think you just have to try it for yourself.

If, as Sullivan says, "A successful blog therefore has to balance itself between a writer’s own take on the world and others," how can you meet the challenges of blogging? Writing in digital spaces is different from writing outside the digital world. Having blogged now for a few weeks and read blogs during that time as well, what can you say about how writing in a digital space such as a blog differs from others kinds of writing you have done?

In this week’s activity- we are doing some personal “me work. “ haha. How do I see myself as a blogger? I might categorize my style and myself, as introvert- I discuss a lot of what is going through my head and life realizations. I think I do this because- for me, when I write something, it’s as though I have processed something in a way my mind agrees with. My friends are always keen to notice the detail or time I will spend on choosing the most correct word to most accurately communicate what I am thinking. In my introvert-ness this attention to detail helps me figure things out.

I think that Rebecca Blood describes what I feel blogs do, “ …weblogs point to, comment on, and spread information according to their own, quirky criteria.”

I notice that some bloggers choose to blog about things that they read about- I approach the blog writing process a little different. I will think of something that I want to figure out or that I think is interesting- and then I will research it and try to find other sources and means of media to communicate in more than one dimension.

As a blogger, I hope to learn to write in slightly different voice, less familiar to me and do so more effectively. My main goal is to just become a better writer in general because it is something that I enjoy and I will continue to practice, as well as pursue my journey to become a “Jedi-Master” of writing. May the force be with me…?

Ryan

In spirit of Valentine’s Day, I thought I would entertain the concept of “love” for this week’s blog entry. When I first sat down to gather my week’s thoughts about love and synthesize them into a blog, I found my self lost in the journey. Questions arose like, “ What is love?”

Research only produced further questions and alternative definitions, which led me to inconclusive understandings.

Perhaps love was created the instant that history began to write itself, or maybe love has always existed. I am unsure of love’s origin, but I am sure that it has existed as a mysterious and magical marvel that society (Primitive to most advanced, Alpha to Beta, and Poor to Privileged)- all have had a difficult time binding love’s meaning to words.

“Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.”

Aristotle

“He who is in love is wise and is becoming wiser, sees newly every time he looks at the object beloved, drawing from it with his eyes and his mind those virtues which it possesses.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

"For stony limits cannot hold love out, and what love can do, that dares love attempt"

William Shakespeare in Romeo and Juliet

“Love suffers long, and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.... And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”

The Bible, I Corinthians 13:1-2

These quotes encompass, what I consider, a meager attempt to define love, and I am still unsatisfied with it. I do not believe it can be wholly defined or understood completely. I believe… that love… is written in a unique language of the heart, and that from which it is written, is where it is understood.

So I challenge you (whoever reads this blog) to think about love this Valentine’s Day, because love should be recognized and held higher in thought than a box of chocolates or flowers. Everyday, I learn more and more of the purpose of things- finding that there’s a design.

Live. Learn. Love.

"Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence."

- Erich Fromm


-Ryan-

My inspiration for this week's blog title obviously, or maybe not, comes from the movie I am Robot! Clever...eh maybe, but oh well I tried.

In response to this week’s assignment, I feel more motivated to comment on the subject matter, as it seems to utterly fascinate me. Yes, we as humans are becoming increasingly dependent on technologies- the Internet and all the glorious gifts it bears, but if you stop to think about the transformation process of all of this, it truly is baffling.

This past week, due to a series of unfortunate technological events, my Internet was on/off for long periods of time making my life miserable. As a student, the Internet has become the blood in my veins. My dependency has grown so strong that not only was I not able to work on my online classes that I’m enrolled in, but I was not even able or willing to work on my regular classes. For Spanish I need my wordreference.com, and of course I need my facebook… I mean I could get a notification perhaps or friendship request! I unfortunately relived this experience while reading A Prisoner of Hope in Cyberspace and I thought about how.. I guess.. “Assimilated” I am with the Internet.

Also, I am taking a computer literacy course and I am learning all kinds of things that I have not already taught myself. This came to mind when Jackson said, “New media develops faster than our ability to adapt to the conditions it occasions.” This is so true and I am living proof. It is impossible to develop in a synchronous manner with the Internet, which is basically a compilation of millions of minds… but that is why we all as users are lagging,

Commenting further on Jackson’s article, I found that when he stated, “Our relationship to our world requires metaphysical grounding…” I am somewhat confused at what he is possibly purposing. Going out on a limb, I am guessing that he is saying that technology will advance so much that it will fulfill this desired “grounding” – I don’t think he is saying that it will replace religion- any thoughts?

As for sharing…There are always “Napster Debates” and what not going on… Sometimes I just think that these artists are making more than doctors do and I believe that their contribution to society is, to some, more valued. I don’t really want to get into that. In kindergarten I learned it… In adulthood I am mastering it! J

It goes without question that weekly T.V. shows have under gone some Extreme Makeovers over the past decade. The days of Who Wants to Be A Millionaire are going out of fashion, becoming less popular as each year progresses. There will of course, always exist trash T.V. a.k.a A Shot at Love, Rock of Love... etc all of which I proudly do not watch, but there are also a plethora of talent searching shows. Every channel has its own unique talent show. Some involve dancing; cooking, dieting, fashion/modeling the list has no end. 

On June 11, 2002, American television aired what would become one of the most popular talent hit series ever. This was the day that American Idol charmed itself onto our screens. I tuned into that first American Idol episode and have yet to miss one in 7 years, consequently I have fallen victim to its enchantment.

         With every passing year, there is new talent. They are eager to raise the bar and they’re constantly out to surpass the accomplishments that idols have set before them. Being an avid fan, I cling to the classics, like the Power House, the Spark, and the Unexpected.   Our music industry is filled with American Idol contestants – some may be seen as a flash in a pan, but some contestants have already won multiple Grammy Awards along with having platinum records.

         My appreciation for the show comes mainly from the fact that most of the contestant’s talent is genuine. Little posing occurs on the show. It has always been important to me that respect and recognition fall on individuals who deserve it. We are currently in Season 8 and I have a feeling that America might find a superstar this season. 

While searching for blogs that I might possibly be interested in, I just continually found ones that I did not like. Some I actually found annoying- leaning towards being offensive. So until I find a blog that I really enjoy, I am left no other choice then to talk about that of which I did not like. 

I am not a theologian nor am I a philosophical genius, but when I ran across this blog about Proud Atheists – I got a little laugh at how pathetic this blog is. Not to go off on a tangent but they themselves have created a place of fellowship- discussing and “disproving” religion- Sounds like a Virtual Church/Bible study to me! Unfortunately there was a picture of him and I was forced to picture him as a normal person instead of some devilish figure. I will be respectful of his beliefs or lack there of, but I will just say, “ Get a life buddy.”

 When I did search- I found that I am particularly drawn to blogs whose designs are professional in overall appearance, and/or layout. Some blogs were invaded with hundreds of widgets suffocating the blog content and diverting my attention to too many places at once, instantly magnifying my ADD. In my opinion, this distracts the reader and puts them out of the “personal space” rather than inside.

 Hope is not lost though – during the period of time that it has taken me to write this blog entry I have found a very interesting blog called NapkinDad. This blog is about an unemployed father who wrote insightful and loving messages on his daughter’s napkins (he calls it napkin art) inside her lunchbox everyday. His daughter had secretly kept all the napkins and gave them back to him for Father’s Day. This blog is basically all focused on image- Kind of like that Cheezeburger blog. These images, as well as the story and concept of the blog, have influenced me to have respect for this man.

Yes, I am choosing to define myself through a location, and I can be found at the intersection of Rio Salado and Mcklintock at Tempe Marketplace. As a freshman, my very first night at ASU was spent at Tempe Marketplace, and I was equally astonished as I was marveled at this magical place that seemed to project my personality in an edifice form. You name it, and Tempe Marketplace has it, from clothes and food to pet supplies and sports gear. I will, for now, just focus on only 2 aspects of Tempe Marketplace that I feel describe me best.

• One of my favorite things to do is sit down, relax, and watch a movie. It doesn't matter really what it is - I'll see practically anything. I have watched everything from Brokeback Mountain to Horton Hears a Who - haha and I am not ashamed of either choice. I guess I just love a story and I cannot seem to feed my imagination enough to satisfy my creative cravings. I subscribe to the largest NetFlix package, I Redbox it when I run out of NetFlix movies, and almost every Thrusday at midnight I am at a movie premiere.

I set out on a life mission many years ago, that no matter where I live- I should know the best restaurants in order to sustain the best dining experience possible. In the near future I will share with you my most treasured restaurants that I have found here in Phoenix. Most people who know me consider me a food critic, just from my particularity, but I really just strive to experience the best of anything in life. Anyways, Tempe Marketplace offers a wide variety of restaurants to choose from, both fast and dine-in types.

Whoever thought of Tempe Marketplace... Congratulations on being an absolute genius. Thank you for creating a one stop destination for all my needs.

Ryan