Friday, December 4, 2009

Section Two, How I Will Miss You (yes, that does rhyme!)

As Creative Communications Year 1 Section 2 begins their last week together, I felt the need to say a few words. Most of my previous entries have been wordy, but since there are so few words to describe how I am feeling about some of the best people I’ve met in a really long time, I’m going to try to be as succinct and articulate as possible.

What it has meant to be to be around some of the smartest, most talented people I know, as well as be surrounded by people who are equally as passionate about things that matter to me, I cannot explain. I have enjoyed getting to know you all; I know that I can call each one of you my friend. Thanks SO much for all the laughs, treat days, I LOVED coming to class every day. What a great time it was. And dancing! Our section can dance!!!

I wish everyone so much luck in the next semester; I am already looking forward to seeing you around. Thanks for everything, everything, and everything.





Wednesday, December 2, 2009

How do you know when to let go?

How do you know when to let go of a significant other? A love? A relationship? A friendship? A connection? Ie: When is it really over?

One of two times.

1) When you don’t care enough to keep trying. It isn’t worth it to you anymore. You’ve lost too much in the relationship and can’t bring yourself to make a change in order to make it work. That means you don’t care enough. Time to move on.

2) When you’ve done everything you could do to make it work. I know a lot of people feel sadness when this happens. They think, I did everything I could, and it wasn’t enough.

I look at it the other way. When you’ve given all that you can to a relationship, everything except disrespecting yourself, and it still isn’t enough, that’s when you should let go of it. Take comfort in this. You did everything you could do, compromised and sacrificed, and if it still wasn’t enough, that really isn’t your fault. Sometimes it really is the other person who cannot meet you half way.

Maybe it really isn’t you, it’s them.

Long Distance Love

Since the beginning of the semester, there has been a girl in my class, Stacia, who I have known is in a long distance relationship. Her boyfriend, ironically he has the same name as I, goes to school in Thunder Bay and the two were separated in September when he left Winnipeg.

I have known since I met Stacia, she is deeply in love with her boyfriend. Her face lights up with any mention of him, she has his photo on her laptop screensaver, and sincerely, you can really hear it in her voice when she talks about him.

Now, I have no concept of how hard it must be for Stacia and her boyfriend to be in a long distance relationship. When she tells me how difficult it is for her, I feel sympathy for her, ask her some questions, and try to be supportive.

It wasn’t until last week, when I was talking about the Christmas break with someone and Stacia’s name came up, that I truly stopped to empathize with her. Stacia gets to see her boyfriend on Dec. 13 when she heads to Thunder Bay. Wow…..Dec. 13. She hasn’t seen him since? I don’t know why, but it didn’t really hit me until that moment. Can you imagine being away from your significant other for almost 4 months? And moreover, how is it going to feel for her when she sees him again?

I know my heart would be bursting with excitement.

So this one’s for you Stacia. I hope the trip is wonderful. And tell Kieran….that Kiran says hi!

Monday, November 30, 2009

The Little Things Really Do Count the Most



Every time we receive an assignment in our Journalism class, our instructor chooses one student that he feels produced the best article in the class. The chosen student gets a handshake, a Spiderman sticker on their paper, their work read out loud, recognition for doing an amazing job, but most importantly, the satisfaction of mastering what was surely a difficult task.

Although difficult to receive, it is truly an honour if you are lucky enough to be a recipient of a sticker.

Angele Faucher, one of the girls in my class, just told me the sweetest story the other day on this topic.

For her one-year anniversary, her boyfriend Taylor gave her a Spiderman sticker because he knows how much it would mean to her to receive one.

As Angele told me the story, every girl in our class melted.

What does the Spiderman sticker symbolize for the couple?

It is indicative of Taylor’s consideration, thoughtfulness, and support. He truly listens to her, believes in her, respects and admires her, and cares about what she cares about.

Now that, Angele, is a keeper.

Epic Fail- How NOT to Pick Up a Girl

Try emphasizing her brain.

Kiran sits down to eat her lunch in the crappy café at the RRC Princess Street Campus.
Random business admin boy sits next to her and starts a conversation.

“So what are you studying in school?’ he asks Kiran.
“Journalism, you?” Kiran responds politely.
“Oh…so you want to be some writer? Like for Maxim?”
“Umm….no….I’m thinking like the world news eventually! It’s ambitious, I know, but I…” Kiran says.
“So…like you want to work for Cosmo then?” He says as he cuts Kiran off.
“Huh??…No, I said, world…” A confused Kiran stutters.
“Ah! I totally get it now. You’ll be a great weather girl.” The boy says, clearly very proud of his progress in the conversation.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Twitter???? Ah..ok!



So today in Public Relations, Melanie informed us that our assignment was to create a Twitter account.

Err...Twitter? Isn't it enough that I have hotmail, a blog, and Facebook? I'm not sure if I can handle another social media networking site...Remember the days of Myspace, Hifive(sp??), and other awkward friend-making/stalking sites? Please, not another one.

But then again, I've now been on Twitter for 20 mins and I already am enjoying it. The best part of it so far is that I can follow such a wide variety of people and get the news in that way. For example, I'm following CNN, CTV, Barack Obama, Oprah, Larry King, Anderson Cooper, Ellen Degeneres, and a few more, so now, instantenously, I'm getting a good variety of news that I'm interested in at my fingertips.

Additionally, I do think that Twitter is an amazing resource for communicators. It allows them the ability to send out their messages in a mass way that is super fast and efficient. Moreover, it also allows communicators to receive messages that they otherwise may not have access to. So overall, I may not be a huge Twitter fan yet, but I do see its value.

Friday, November 20, 2009

Can Guys and Gals Just Be Friends?

The million dollar question: can boys and girls ever just be friends?

The million dollar answer......I don’t have it. But I do have my opinion.

This is a touchy topic, and one that I know most people have an opinion on. My answer to this question is simple. No. They cannot.

Now, of course, I have one exception to this rule. Guys and gals cannot just be friends...if in any way, they are physically attracted to one another.

The premise is simple. Not every person of the opposite sex you meet and create a connection with, you’ll have feelings for. In fact, quite the opposite is true, in my opinion. Most of the people you meet, you will not have romantic feelings for. Some will become your greatest friends, strongest allies, and greatest confidants, and yet, you will never consider them to be any more than just your friend. Why is this? Because you are not sexually or physically attracted to them.

Think about it. When you meet someone new and begin to forge an association, do you not consider if they could be a potential match for you? Of course you do! Be honest. Every time you meet someone of the other sex, you consider whether or not you could see them more than an association or a friend. Sometimes, this process is innate, fast, and takes no time. Nope. He’s as old as my grandpa. Nope, she is kind of rude. We go through this process in our minds and in the end; a person emerges into one of two categories. Category one is friendship or association. Category two is potential.

I’m not advocating that you’ll be in love with a “potential” or be super interested in them. I’m just saying that if there is any physical attraction there, the person has potential to be more than just your friend. I’m not even saying that you’ll be SUPER attracted to the person (they don’t have to be your Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie), just that there is SOME physical attraction to begin.

So then what happens? You become friends with that person. That’s fine. I’m also not saying that the friendship is not sincere. It is....but still, I think that if at any time there is potential or physical attraction between two people, even if they are just friends, there will always be a degree of jealousy, possessiveness, curiosity, or interest between them.

Now, a refutation to my theory is this: in order to be in love with someone, you also need an emotional connection. I agree with this though. I’m just saying that friends have emotional connections to.... psychological and intellectual connections as well. So what differentiates a friend and a lover? A person you emotionally connect with and a partner?

That’s physical attraction.

When Harry Met Sally....go rent that movie. This movie deals with this topic in the best way.



Disclaimer: I am completely aware that people reading this blog may be interested in someone of their own sex. In order to make my blog comprehensively flow well, I only address women and men as potential matches. That being said, I do mean to include gay men and lesbian women in my posts. All of this still applies to you!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Three Types of Boys to Avoid




Three Types of Boys to Avoid

1) The guy that hits on your friends: There is no excuse for this kind of guy. And I have no patience for him. We all know him, the guy that seems to like one girl but cant really make up his mind...and is a little too nice to her friends, but never crosses the line blatently so she can't do anything but feel insecure and sad about it? Yeah, I know this guy. The one who enjoys a free-for-all, whatever sticks, he’ll go with. AVOID. If he can’t even decide that you’re the one he wants to pursue, you’re already too good for him. Move on. You’re dogging a bullet on this one. Trust me.

2) The overall asshole: This one is a bit more subjective, I realize. I'm not talking about the bad boy with a good heart here...When I was growing up, one of the biggest criteria I had for a guy was not only how he treated me, but how he treated everyone else around him. If a guy likes you, most likely, he’ll give you attention and will show interest in you. All positive things. The thing to watch for? How does he treat everyone else? Your family? Your friends? More than that, how does he treat the cashier? The gas attendant? The ticket taker at the movies? The taxi driver? The waitress? That’s important. Why? Because it is a clear indication of how he’ll treat you the second he’s not getting what he wants.

3) The cheater: No girls, I don’t care if “they weren’t really together,” “he wouldn’t do that to me,” “ he didn’t really like her,” “it was last year,” or “it only happened the one time.” If he’d cheat on her, he’d cheat on you. If he has cheated on you, his instinct will be to do it again. Cheating represents SERIOUS character flaws in the cheater...Moreover, even if it was really just a one time thing, you don’t know that, you'll probably be plagued with insecurities....so all I’m saying is, if you know a guy has cheated in the past, next. Find one that hasn’t first before you even consider the loser that has. And never forget, he's a loser because he cheated.
Next week's topic: Can guys and girls ever really just be friends?

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Soulmate?

Soulmates, soulmates, soulmates! Soulmates?????

What are soulmates? Do they exist?

I believe in soulmates the same way I believe in flowers and chocolate. They may seem cliché, but they exist and they make our lives better.

Now, to begin, I also believe in fate and karma (call me idealistic, everyone does). I believe that everything happens for a reason,even if the reason is not evident or obvious to us at first glance. In terms of karma, what goes around definitely comes around.

My best friend Darcy often scolds me on my undying faith in the concept of karma. He says, “but Kiran, if you only do good things because you don’t want karma to come around and work against you, that isn't true karma. You’re only being good so it will come back to you.” He thinks the idea of karma is hypocritical and I will admit, that based on his logic, it implies that people’s good actions are not altruistic at all because they seem to be doing good deeds with the expectation that the good karma will come back to them. But I don’t agree with that. I think that over your lifespan, if you do good things and genuinely have a good heart, karma will reward you somehow. Kinda like there is no such thing as luck; luck is preparation meeting opportunity.

Anyways, off of my tangent, I do believe in soulmates. My definition for soulmates is a bit different then you may anticipate though. I think your soulmate is someone who completes you, who brings out the best in you, and who you are most comfortable with. That at the end of you life, you can trun around and say that you were most at ease with that person who understood you the best and with whom you bonded with most. Even if you don’t end up with that person or the relationship fails, that does not mean that it wasn’t worth something, that it didn’t teach you about yourself, or that it hasn’t made you who you are.

Based on this definition of soulmates, if you’ve read carefully, you'll notice that I don’t actually think that your soulmate has to necessarily be someone that you are romanticailly involved with. Instead, they can be a parent, a mentor, a sibling…..a best friend. The person in your life who you truly connect with. Stop for one second and think of that person in you life now or in your past who you havebeen most at peace with….they may be a strong contender in your soulmate search.

Watch the trailer below. It's for the film Prime with Bryan Greenberg, Meryl Streep, and Uma Thurman. The movie seems a bit silly, but it is truly lovely once you watch it. I highly recommend it because it deals with a few of the topics (soulmates as well as having an ex matter to you even if the relationship fails) I've written about tonight.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Top Three Reasons why I Love Blogging





















The middle of the semester has arrived and as I reflect upon the last two months of school, I realize how much I am enjoying the Creative Communications program. Before I talk about how much I love blogging, I want to talk about school so far in general. I had one of those “ah ha!” moments last week while I was interviewing Ace Burpee for my personality profile article.

After the epic interview ended and I felt like I had really grown as a journalist, I couldn’t seem to contain my excitement. You know when you have one of those moments? Where you realize that you are exactly where you belong? If my job is honestly going to give me the opportunity to sit down with people, get them to open up to me, and then write about it, I’m pretty damn lucky.

Right after my interview ended, my old elementary teacher walked into Starbucks. She had taught me grade four, five, and six and is one of the teachers I will remember the most in my life. She taught me how to write, how to enjoy reading, and just about being a better learner in general. Anka Mraovic teaches at Landsdowne Elementary School in the Maples now (not my old elementary), and she is literally one of the best teachers in Manitoba. Maybe the world. How lovely that she walked in right after I had my epiphany? It was full circle!

Anyways, this leads me to my blog topic this week. How cool is it that one of my SCHOOL assignments is to blog?? I never expected to feel this way, but ever since being given the blogging assignment earlier this year, I have loved this process. Here are my top three reasons why I love blogging:

REASON #1

I really love reading my classmates’ blogs. Everyone is SO interesting, funny, and smart and so, I really do enjoy sitting down and reading their writing, thoughts, and opinions. Most of the time, they really make me laugh.

REASON #2

I love that I actually do stop and think about what my blog post will be that week. It’s fun to look for inspiration around me and make a blog topic out of an idea that I may not have otherwise explored before.

REASON #3

The third reason that I love blogging is because I am able to write freely about something that I am passionate about. I am able to sit down and write openly about a topic that I care about. How often does that happen? I’ve been told that I write the way I speak in my blog, which is pretty accurate, I think.

Usually, we write because we have to or for school, not out of pure enjoyment but this blog has given me the opportunity to just give my opinion on LOVE...no strings attached. I’ve always been a writer, but honestly, this is the first time in my life that I have consciously enjoyed writing. I look forward to writing my blog entries each week because I can document my thoughts in a laid back way. I feel like I'm journaling, so there's no pressure, and I can enjoy the process. Quite frankly, this assignment has helped reinstate my love for writing.
















SIDE NOTE

How WONDERFUL is it that I am able to write about love? Seriously, Love is such a big topic in most peoples' lives and I love love love love love that I am able to talk about it! Or that you’re here to listen. Thanks!

Coming soon, my theory on SOULMATES.


Monday, October 26, 2009

Because I LOVE my freaking amazing classmates

I'm still laughing. What a day! One that had every reason in the world to end epically badly and disastrously has been one that was actually pretty funny...and it's all because of CreComm section 2.

Firstly, I gotta give a shoutout to Miguel Martinez, an amazing guy in my section. This morning, I got to school early to print my personality profile, but for some reason, when I went to print it at 7:45 am in W308 (that printer is my NEMESIS), it paper jammed. I desperately tried to fix it.....but nothing worked...the minutes ticked by....Running out of options, I sprinted to the office to tell Steve. I could tell he felt bad for me but had no option, I had to print the article on time or else I'd fail.

At this point, I'm sort of freaking out. 7:49 the clock says. I run out of the office and collide into Miguel. "Miguel!!! The printer! I need help..," I say as I sprint by him, get my student card, and desperately( yes everything was desperate this morning), make my way to W312. Of course, starting the computer and signing in seems to take ages and ages. The clock ticks by, 7:53 am....it keeps going, on and on while the damn computer takes its sweet time.

Finally, at 7:58 a.m. when I try to open my document, it won't work....because the document is still open on my computer in W308. My heart sinks. It's all over. All the work I did on this assignment for nothing. I've failed.

Trying not to give up or burst into tears, I run out of W312 towards W308 to close the document and go back to W312 to print it. I run by the clock 7:59 am. I collide once again into Miguel. "Kiran, it's fine. I handed it in," he says with a smile.

I think I literally bodychecked him with my embrace and I definitely didn't let go for a solid minute. He had followed me into W308, fixed the printer, printed my paper, and then went to the office and handed it in for me, while I was running around in W312. He didn't even tell Steve what he did, he just put my paper in the drop box. No attempt at getting recognition for his help.What a guy!

I know a lot of people in CreComm are kind of competitive...I'm not really. I try to only compete with myself, and I admit that the competitiveness of the program is the one thing I'm not crazy about. But look, Miguel looked out for me, he saved me, and he literally allowed me to pass an assignment I'd worked so hard on. Dude, he's one kick ass guy.

And then!? Before I left class today on my way to the gym, I realized that I'd left my lights on and my car woudln't start. Of course, I was parked right on busy Princess street too. What did I do? I called Jeremie and Kylie...I knew I could depend on them. And without a pause, the two and Alexa showed up to help me boost my car. Haha, it was a debaucle. None of us really knew what to do, Alexa was on the phone with her "booster cable source" and in the meantime, Jeremie electrocuted himself...in the end, two randoms had to come show us what to do...but we laughed the entire time.

Thanks guys...not only for helping me...but for being the first people I thought of to call. And for being so cool, that I didn't even blink an eye when the whole thing happened.

OH and!!! Group one in Broadcast this morning? Minority Report was SOOO funny! I loved it, I laughed soooo hard!

It has to be said. Section 2 is the most amazing section ever. These people are funny, kind, and god, do I love my CreComm classmates.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

But I didn't get butterflies.....


















I had a friend that told me about her new outlook on relationships the other day.

She told me that after being hurt by dating so many guys in the past that she’d had nothing in common with but ones that she’d been insanely attracted to, she has decided that she no longer cares about getting “butterflies” for a guy. She has decided that to her now, it is more important to be with a guy that she can trust. She’s over the whole “bad boy thing.” She no longer cares if she gets butterflies from a partner, just that he’s there for her when she really needs him.

As you get older, butterflies are overrated anyways.... trust is the most important thing in a relationship....or is it?

What do you think? Which is of the following options is more important in a relationship to you?

Option one: You get butterflies whenever the other person is around. You are insanely attracted to them physically. You get so much adrenaline and excitement just from being around them and the passion between the two of you is out of this world. Your chemistry has been crazy from the get go and you can’t stop thinking about the person. You want to be around them all the time and you can’t wait to see them next.

Option two: You’re with someone that you really connect with on an emotional level. Maybe you match intellectually, maybe the person challenges you and makes you think in ways you’d never even considered before. You are friends, you can rely on this person, you can trust them, they are dependable, and most of all? You feel safe with them. The relationship is stable and consistent.

Now most people argue that you can really only have one of the two options in a relationship. You are either madly and passionately in love with your significant other where you can’t keep your eyes or hands off of each other or you are with the “nice guy/girl,” the one that you can relate to, the one you get support from, but the one you don’t feel that extra “ouumph” for.

My opinion? Which is more important to me?

I think, of course, it is going to be difficult to find that person who completes both sets of criteria for you. The one that challenges you intellectually and supports you, the one that you can trust and depend on yet the one that you also have crazy amazing chemistry with and can’t stop thinking about.

That’s my answer. Don't settle for less.

One isn’t more important than the other. They go hand in hand. You can’t have one without the other. Passion without trust is weak. Trust without passion is friendship.

My theory? Maybe....when you find the person that completes both options for you......that’s when you know that you’ve found the one.


Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Buyer Beware: Halloween Face Paints (on an unrelated note)

For our Advertising class, we were instructed to choose a topic and create a “Buyer Beware” project. The purpose of the project was to recommend certain products to consumers or to advise consumers against certain products.

MOTIVATION FOR PROJECT
Our group chose to test and study different Halloween face paints. More and more, it is recommended that children use Halloween face paint as a part of their costumes instead of masks. Masks have been found to have safety concerns for children. They can be restricting or suffocating for different kids and therefore face paint can be a safe alternative to them.


















TARGET AUDIENCE
Our target audience was parents because they are the ones that buy face paint for their children (it is mostly children that go all out and get dressed up for Halloween).

PRODUCTS
We decided to go around the city and go to the places that are most popular for Halloween costumes to buy different brands of face paint. We chose Dollarama, Superstore, Walmart, Party Stuff, and Value Village. We ended up buying a total of six different brands, the Dollarama brand, the Fun World brand (Walmart), the Rubie's brand, the Seasons brand, the Danson Decor brand, and the Lucky Art brand.

RESEARCH AND METHODOLOGY
Over the course of the next five days, my group met in the morning and we all painted our faces with the same brand of makeup. We then wore our face paint for a total of 6 hours and at the end of the day, we filed out a pre-made questionnaire and evaluated each product. All of the different skin types were represented by our group members and so we think that our results produced a holistic and fair evaluation.

Our group judged the products based on the following criteria:

Application: How smoothly the product could be applied and how well the colours show up (how bright).

Longevity: Whether or not the product faded throughout the day or smudged

Removal from skin: How well the product comes off with water at the end of a long day.

Skin irritability: Whether or not the product caused skin to become itchy, red, or did it give anyone a rash?

Physical activity: How well the product held up during physical activity. On Halloween, a lot of kids apply their face paint in the morning and then run around all day. We wanted to see whether or not the face paint would last even if the kids were running or sweating.

Removal from clothing: Often, children will get their face paint make up on their clothes while moving around. At times, face paint also has the ability to smear, smudge, or run onto children’s clothes. After our five days of testing, we tested how well the paints could be removed from clothing. We applied the face paint directly on to two pieces of fabric. One of the fabrics was pre-treated with Spray ‘n Wash while the other was left as is. They were both put in to a rinse cycle using Tide Coldwater and through the dryer. The results were taken, and then put through the wash cycle again.























In terms of our analysis, we did not take into consideration the price of the different products because although we do think price is an important factor in a parent’s decision of which brand to use, we did not think the price differences were enough of a reason to buy one product over the other because at the end of the day, in our opinion, quality is most important.

RESULTS

Overall we found that the Dollarama scored a 3.076 out of ten. I had a really hard time with this product for a few reasons. I have a darker skin tone (a light brown) and the colours came up really faint and were not vibrant at all. This meant that it took longer for me to apply the colours and I had to press harder (making the process uncomfortable) to get a decent colour. Additionally, the product really faded throughout the day. By the end of the day, it was barely visible and when I went to work out, it smeared and smudged, and even rubbed off onto my clothing. I know the other member’s didn’t have as hard a time with this product as I did, but I would not recommend it.

Overall, we found Danson Decor scored 5.195. The product was very faint and the colours were very dull during application which meant that it took a long time to get the desired shade. Additionally, the crayons themselves were hard to draw with or get a good colour out of. This product faded fast as well and it also seemed to rub off very easily (which made it easy to remove from my skin later on). Personally, the product was barely there to begin with and it continued to fade throughout the day. Also, my skin became itchier as the day went on and there were a few times when it seemed to smudge onto my clothes. It did wash out my clothing easily though.

Overall, we found the Seasons brand scored 5.412. I found this product to have a weak application and although it went on smoothly, it took a long time to get the desired colour because the colours were so faint. The product began to fade almost immediately, and by mid day, it was not visible on my face anymore (and it was also very light on my other group member’s faces). What was left of the product came off easily but disappeared during my workout. This product did not irritate my skin though.

Overall, we found the Rubies brand scored 5.872. I found that the colours were good but not that bright, vibrant, or interesting. Additionally, the application was not smooth. Again, although this product lasted better than the two before it, it was not that visible by the end of the day. That being said, for the most part, removal of the product was easy and most of the colours came off easily. It was a bit itchy and uncomfortable to wear and also, there was a bad selection of colours for the product.

Overall we found the Fun World brand scored 6.4083. The colours showed up clearly and vibrantly upon application and the process was smooth and easy. I was even able to blend the colours together to make more colours. Unfortunately, again for me, the product seemed to smear easily and before I knew it, the product was barely visible on my skin because it had faded so much. It had also made my skin itchy throughout the day but again, because it faded off, I was not able to judge it adequately for the physical activity, irritability, or removal from skin categories.

Overall, the Lucky Art brand scored 8.915. I loved this product compared to all the other ones. The colours were vibrant, bright, and the application was smooth. The crayons even came with a pointed tip so that there was good detail in the drawings. For the most part, the colour stayed on throughout the day and it came off well at the end of the day with just water. The Lucky Art brand also lasted throughout my workout and did not smudge at the end of the day. My skin was a bit itchy, but overall, there was no irritation.


















CONCLUSION

We found that the Lucky Art brand from Party Stuff was the best face paint by far out of all the ones that we tested (with a score of 8.9 out of ten) for the reasons mentioned above. Personally, Lucky Art brand was also the ONLY brand that was visible on my skin and the only brand that lasted throughout the day on my face and did not fade during my workout. The Lucky Art brand does have its faults such as the fact that it does rub off onto hands and objects but overall, it is still a quality product.

It is important for parents to test a product on their child’s skin before they paint their kids face with any type of face paint. Remember to read the directions and watch for any fragrances or preservatives that may harm the child.

Most of the face paints we tested were of bad quality. That being said, we believe that if you find a good one, such as the Lucky Art brand, it is still better to use Halloween face paint as a safe alternative to masks.























EXPERT OPINIONS

We also spoke to two experts to get their educated opinions on face paints. The first expert that we consulted was Dr. Earl S. Minuk MD who is a board-certified dermatologist and internist in both Canada and the U.S.A.

Overall, Dr. Minuk warned that just because a product claims to be non-toxic, it does not mean that it is safe for your skin. Additionally, even if a product claims to be hypoallergenic, it does not mean that it will be allergy specific and safe for all individuals. He also advised to avoid contact with any products that contain preservatives or fragrances. He encourages consumers to always test any product they use before application by testing it on a small part of their body. If a consumer checks their product for harmful ingredients before use, they should be ok.

Our second expert was Simbo the Clown, also known as Simmie Nasberg, an expert on face painting because she paints her own face and childrens’ faces for a living. She recommends that parents use the brand Caran d’ache to paint their childrens’ faces. A bit higher in price, $2.50 for one crayon and $20.00 for a full kit, she insists that the extra money is worth it. She tells parents to avoid covering a child’s entire face with paint. “Make sure the paint comes off before you put it on and avoid covering the whole face, the skin will not be able to breathe and irritation will be inevitable,” says Simbo.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

My Buyer Beware group consisted of Angèle Faucher, Jeremy Giacomin, Stacia Franz, Kiley Dyck and myself. I found that we had a good group, one that split up our duties in a fair and productive manner. For our memo, we got together to brainstorm and Angèle typed it out. After that, I edited it, added to it, and submitted it. In terms of our research, Jeremy and Angèle bought the face paints. Stacia created our grading template and each member wore the different face paints and filled out the templates at the end of each day. The face paint clothing test was performed by Kiley and the expert interviews were conducted by Jeremy. In terms of our final draft, Stacia wrote the intro, Angèle wrote the research summary, I created the results section, Jeremy wrote the expert summary, and the stain wash summary was prepared by Kiley. The responsibilities section was created by Stacia and the final draft was edited by all the group members. Photographs and attachments were also something the group did together.

FINAL PAPER
I found that I really enjoyed doing this part of the project. Our team divided up all of the parts of the paper equally and everyone finished their individual work on time. After that, the combining of the different parts went smoothly and everyone took turns editing through an “edit train” which I think went really well. I am very proud of our finished document.

PRESENTATION

The presentation was probably the part of the assignment that I was most worried about. Funny as it is the part of the project that was worth the least. That being said, our group collaborated well and everyone came together to come up with an interesting way to present our findings. Pictures, information, and some short skits helped us present our project in an effective way, I think.

I found this to be a really great project. I enjoyed the entire process and I really liked working with my group members. Hopefully our story will be profiled through some type of news outlet and our findings can be shared with the Winnipeg world! I’ll let you know how it goes!



Thursday, October 8, 2009

Theories about Love and Life

As promised, I thought that I would post some theories I have about love and life.

Just to clarify before I begin, the following is my opinion. By no means have I done any type of scientific research to back up my theories and so, I admit, they may be flawed. That being said, the theories are a result of active observation of some of my friends and the people around me. Anyways, take from them what you will. Food for thought.

Let’s begin.

Theory #1: Why some men are players

Alright, this theory is based on all the guys that I know that are overall good guys but that play women. It can be frustrating, mostly because these are guys that are able to separate their everyday lives and personality (usually great people) with how they treat women and what they use them for.

My theory on why some men are players is that usually these are men who themselves have been hurt in the past by a relationship or a woman.

Think about it for one second. Think of all the “players” you know out there. Did they start out as players? Or did they maybe have an experience in their past that has tainted them or jaded them? Most of the players I know (and trust me, I know a lot of them) are great guys, good people, students, family members, friends, and workers etc. But they just aren’t that good to women. And more often than not, if you were to analyze their past, I think you’d find that each “player” has most likely had one or two really bad experiences with a partner in the past.

When a woman goes through a negative experience with a partner, it often causes her to crave love and acceptance even more than before. After a bad experience, women often are not turned off of love all together, instead, usually they crave it even more than before. Men, on the other hand, after they’ve been hurt once or twice, begin to separate having a good time from love. They now are less interested in relationships because they’ve already been hurt and now are looking out for themselves before being interested in a serious relationship.

The theory is simple. Think about it. Of all the guys you know who are “players”, I bet you could link them to one or two girls that broke their heart in the past, that turned them off to the idea of love, at least for a bit, and therefore now they are more likely to be uninterested in love.

But it's all a show!



Maybe I should be a psychologist? I think my theory rocks.

Theory #2: Why some women are players

This theory of mine also derives from observing many different women around me. The women that I know that are most interested in having a good time without having a relationship have one thing in common. The absence of a male father figure in their lives.

Now, I want to reiterate that I am not trying to offend anyone by my post. I realize that I could be totally off (and if that’s the case, I welcome you to comment on this post and give me your opinion!)

All I’m saying is that a lot of the women that I know that could be seen as “promiscuous” are usually ones that have lacked a strong male presence in their childhood. As a girl grows older, I think it is imperative that she has a father figure in her that demonstrates to her how a woman should be treated, respected, admired, and loved. As well as someone who reiterates how she deserves to treat herself. If a girl is lacking that in some way, I think her perception of men can be a bit skewed. I have many friends who tell me that to this day, because they were lacking a father figure in their lives, they now seek validation from men and often reach out to them in the easiest way, through promiscuity. (Perhaps it is a way to get validation from that “father figure” that wasn’t there for them? Just an idea???)

Every woman deserves to be desired, to be put on a pedestal, to be pampered, to be treated as if she is the most beautiful woman in the world. Now, to be clear, I’m not saying that going out and having a good time is a sign of promiscuity or weakness, not at all! I’m just saying that in terms of society’s typical and stereotyped “promiscuous” woman, if I had to guess, I bet that in her past/childhood, she was lacking a strong male figure that showed her just how much of a gem she really is.

Again, don’t hate! These are just my theories...totally based on observation and I am always ready to discuss!


Love, Kiran.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Another kind of love. Empathy.



I decided on what my blog posts were going to be earlier this week....and will still post those two topics later on (preview: my theories on why some men are womanizers and why some women are promiscuous...stay tuned!) but I decided after my encounter with a woman at Starbucks today that I had to post about her.

I was at Starbucks on Osborne today after school, getting myself a coffee and sitting down to do some homework. That particular Starbucks is home to me. I can be found there a few times a week on coffee dates, studying, or just getting a drink. I’m there regularly and loyally and always get my signature venti Earl Grey tea with a shot of caramel.

Anyways, every time I've been there in the last month, I’ve seen the same guy there. Now this guy is a simple guy. He is in a wheelchair, has an obvious deformity to his face, and a distinct speech impediment. He moves around the store in his wheelchair and approaches different people, spends a few mins at each table, and then moves on.
I have had him come up to me quite a few times. I always quietly smile at him and make way if he needs me to. He usually comes to my table, talks to me (I have never been able to understand what he is saying), and then he moves on.

Today, something different happened. I was sitting at my table writing on my laptop when the same guy approached. I smiled at him, moved some chairs for him, and then continued on with my work. This has been the standard response towards him. Every person I have seen with him reacts quite similarly. Except today. At the table next to me was a lady, about 40 I'd say. She was a simple woman but beautiful and I could tell that she was probably waiting for a friend of hers to meet her for a coffee date.

The man in the wheelchair rolled up to her. I had my headphones in and so I could not hear what they were talking about and I proceeded to write. After about 5 mins or so, I glanced over. The man in the wheelchair was still at her table with her. This was odd. I'd never seen him stay at a table for more than a minute or so. Most people did not talk to him for that long because it was so difficult to understand what he was saying. I slowly took my headphones out and listened. The woman was talking to the man. They were chatting. She could understand what he was saying. She was laughing. She told him that he was an inspiration to her and she continued by asking him a few more questions and soon, I knew this man's history. He had been in a car accident at the age of 19, about 10 years ago, and had been seriously disabled since. The woman related with the man, told him about her own son that was 19, and even pulled out some photographs that she had with her to share with him. They laughed for a while longer and soon thereafter, the man moved on.

A few minutes later, I couldn't help myself. I turned to her and said, “I’ve seen countless people smile awkwardly at that man, barely look him, or talk to him in a condescending and pitiful way. You are the only person who I have seen reach out to that man. Thank you for that. You inspired me." The lady looked at me, expressed that she believes that everyone deserves a little empathy, and then wiped her tears that she said I caused because of my kind words.

She told me later she was a teacher and had a student in one of her classes that also had a speech impediment. She said, as long as you listen closely, even if you miss a few words, you can eventually pick up what they are saying.
She had asked the man if he was hitting on her during the conversation as a joke. She said his reply was, “for now, we're just talking. But soon, you'll see how incredible I am and not be able to resist."

We laughed together. The fact that he had that much insight is more than most of the bozo men we've met in our lives have, we agreed.

I want to thank you, mystery woman. Because you inspired me. I consider myself an open and inviting person to most and live my life trying to be as good of a human being as possible but when I couldn't understand that man on the first try, I did just give up on him. You did not. Your empathetic and patient nature towards him touched me so and was one of the nicest things I have witnessed in awhile.

I couldn't help but have to write about you. You inspired me. You motivated me to be better. And you've given me a lesson in humanity and love that I'm sure I'll remember forever. Thank you.

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Lovely Love



















For more images, check out the following websites:

http://josevillablog.com/

http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/15-beautiful-modern-love

A Picture Can Speak a Thousand Words





A Little Dose of Saturday Love





Monday, September 21, 2009

Is inspiration all around me?

Today’s post is inspired by the people around me.

Let’s begin on a positive note. Today, after being let out of class early, I ventured on to my regular and routine visit to the gym. As I approached the front desk at Shapes, a huge smile spread across my face. There, sitting next to the front desk worker, was a huge bouquet of flowers. And I mean, huge. The bouquet was stunning to the eye, elegant, lovely, and gorgeous. Pretty, floral, and pink. I couldn’t help but stop and smile and then lean in (not lean down, the flowers were taller than me!) and smell. Of course, I had to ask the worker where they had come from. She proceeded to tell me that they were for one of the female trainers. Apparently, this was the third week that flowers were delivered to Shapes in her name. The girl mentioned that the workers think the flowers are being sent from her secret admirer or a new boyfriend. I gushed, how beautiful!!!! I know a lot of people think that flowers are overrated. I don’t. What a sweet and thoughtful declaration of love, and appreciation flowers can be. The bouquet was stunning and as I collided with Olivia later on, the trainer who the flowers were for, I told her how beautiful I thought the gift was. I could not help but smile and notice how happy she looked to have received it. Anonymous stranger or new boyfriend, either way, this guy or girl truly made her day. And for that, I was impressed and inspired.

Now I am going to move on to my real topic for this blog; cheaters. First, let me begin by saying, I have never been cheated on, I have never cheated on anyone, and I don’t agree with the idea of cheating. I think that I am a fairly non-judgemental person though; I don’t proceed to pass judgement on people who have cheated on their significant others. It just really is not for me. I think that if you could cheat on your partner, then probably, there is something very wrong with your relationship in the first place. And if you are unable to break up with your partner before you engage in these actions, you might just be scared. Either way, if a guy were to cheat on me, I think it would be one of the most disrespectful things he could do to me. Simply put, it would be a complete disregard for my feelings. Anger, passion, hate, love....these are all emotions. But indifference is the worst thing someone can feel for you and I sincerely think cheating occurs when one partner is indifferent to their partner’s feelings. What is that saying? Love me or hate me, it's still an obsession.

Moreover, I think cheating represents a weakness of character in the cheater. Maybe the cheater will also be a bit cowardly, selfish, and disloyal in other areas of their life? I’m not sure but one of my life mottos is that you should never apologize for how you feel. Because feelings are the one thing you cannot help. You may be able to help your actions, those we can control. Our feelings we cannot control. So if my best friend came up to me and said she’d fallen in love with my boyfriend (I’m single, go figure), I’d be likely to forgive her for that....because love you cannot help. If my boyfriend cheated on me with my best friend, that on the other hand, I’d have a much harder time forgiving or forgetting.

I don’t mean to offend anyone with today’s entry. In fact, I was hesitant to post on the topic. But after reading my classmate Jeremy’s blog the other day about cheating, I was tempted to post a response. Here is a link to his blog about the topic.

http://memoirs-of-a-gentleman.blogspot.com/

His major point is that if a girl would cheat on her boyfriend with him, that really isn’t his issue and he’d go ahead with it. The other day over lunch, he and I started talking about the topic and I, trying to be as open to the idea as possible for argument’s sake, asked him to elaborate. “But Jeremy, you wouldn’t mind being with someone who was cheating on her boyfriend? If she is cheating on her boyfriend, she’ll likely cheat on you too. Is that the kind of person you want to be with?” I asked him curiously.

And how did Jeremy respond to my interrogations? “No,” he replied. “I’d never actually be in a relationship with that kind of girl.”

Point taken and reiterated. A mental note. Guys never want to be with that girl. Of course they want to have fun. We all know it and I’m glad I’m not her. But as a girl myself, I still feel for the girl who thinks otherwise.

So what was the other encounter that inspired my post?

Someone I met the other night. I was at a social function, one where there were a lot of young people around, ready for a good time. A guy approached me and we got to talking. For a while, we talked about friends, life, and school. The conversation was going normally well until he brought up his girlfriend from back home (Calgary). I thought it was a bit off that he would want to go into such great detail about her with a complete stranger, but being the hopeless romantic I am, I listened contently. In fact, the more he talked, the more appealing he became. I couldn’t help but think how refreshing it was to find a guy who was so openly in love with his girlfriend.

He went on and on, talking about this perfect girl from back home that he missed dearly. I gushed along with him. He then went on to tell me that a lot of his friends often encourage him to cheat on her. I looked at him horrified and quickly blurted out,” Oh no!!! Don’t do that, it would ruin her.” He adamantly agreed. He would feel too guilty and would end up telling her himself if he cheated and she would never take him back, he told me. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“What a good guy,” I thought.

After our epically long but pleasant conversation, I went over to one of my good friends and, as most girls do, told her about how nice and loyal this new guy was that I’d just spoken with (also mentioning that it was a bit strange that he’d opened up to me so quickly). My friend looked at me, pointed at the guy, and said, “That guy? He cheats on that same girlfriend all the time. I’ve seen it with my own eyes on multiple occasions.”

I stood there dumbfounded. He’d completely made a fool of me. I realized that he was nothing more than a master player. Normally, I am quite intuitive. I had picked up on his telling me in the beginning of the conversation that he was once a big player but I eventually ignored that sketchy feeling because he seemed so sincere about his girlfriend. Anyways, it all made sense now. He had told me about the girlfriend so that I’d feel closer to him (also to avoid my finding out about her from mutual friends). After making himself look like the perfect guy to me, he then went on to bring up the topic of cheating to see how I’d react to it and if I’d be open to the possibility.

Psychologically, it makes so much sense. I bet a lot of girls fall for the whole “Oh, he doesn’t usually cheat, I must be special” thing. I'm not saying I'm any better. I almost did too ( not that I would have fallen for him, but I did fall for his act!)I foiled his plan though by jumping right in and telling him how destructive cheating can be and he had to backtrack. I never would have jumped to the conclusion that he cared enough to play me but my friend insists. This guy is a major player and cheater. What a silly boy. And so, this post was inspired by the dumb boy who regulary cheats on his unsuspecting girlfriend back in Calgary.

A lesson to everyone out there. Cheating sucks. Cheating hurts. Cheating is sketchy. Don’t do it.

Love, Kiran.

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Dance that feeling!

Another small movie clip that shows just how lovely love can be. Or is it?

500 Days of Summer- Tom thinks he has it all....

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Unrealistic Expectations about Love

I found myself sitting in the theatre a few weeks ago watching the movie “The 500 days of Summer” for the second time ( I went with two different girlfriends who were going through a rough time with guys. If you haven’t seen the film yet, go watch it) and agreeing with some of the PIVOTAL messages in the movie.

I found myself nodding aggressively as the narrator described exactly where the main character Tom’s ideas about love derived from. As the movie described, Tom thought that love was exactly what he was taught to believe by the mainstream media. His idea of what love is came from movies, music, cheesy love songs, Valentine’s Day customs, advertisements, billboards, commercials, greeting cards, and every day lovey-dovey images of love that the media presents us with. In the movie, Tom feels duped. Does that perfect, all encompassing, amazing, wonderful, indescribable, and passionate love even exist? Does anyone really feel it? Or is it all a gimmick? A marketing technique designed since the beginning of time to capitalize on this need we all have to feel special?

A heavy question indeed. One that I’m sure as the weeks pass, I’ll explore more and more. Today’s topic of conversation however is not what my definition of love is...that will come later on....but instead, where my ideas of that “ideal love” come from in the first place.

Answer? Movies. Most people argue that love stories and romantic comedies portray a “perfect love” in an ideal way. I am physical proof that this is true because my expectations about love come from movies as well (as unrealistic as they may be).
I enjoy Hollywood films. Who doesn’t cry when in Titanic Jack watches Rose go down in the lifeboat as they both cry, the fireworks blasting in the distant sky, and the haunting music echoing in the background? Sob. So very tragic. Great scene.

Or what about the scene in My Best Friend’s Wedding where Julia Roberts and Dermot Mulroney go on a Chicago boat cruise and she has the opportunity to tell him that she loves him but ultimately doesn’t? The moment just passes her by. Who doesn’t cry alongside her as the best friends dance to their song?



As much as I like Hollywood movies, I will admit that my true expectations about what love is and should be have come from the Bollywood movie industry. Bollywood is the Indian film industry (also known as the biggest film industry in the world, it surpasses Hollywood by quite a lot). There is one movie in particular that has shaped my “unrealistic expectations about love” and I would recommend it to you all. The film in particular, Dilwale Dulhunia Le Jayenge, was released in 1995 when I was only 7 years old but I will never forget the first time I watched it and how it made me feel. Since then, the movie has become the longest running film in the history of Indian cinema. In fact, it still plays in some theatres in India today.

The story is about a girl named Simran who lives in London with her loving but very traditional parents. She’s just finished college and her parents are beginning discussion about getting her married to the son of an old family friend from back in India. Simran is horrified, she respects her family and Indian customs and culture but she has secretly had an amazing fantasy that one day, instead of having an arranged marriage, she will marry the man of her dreams. She hasn't met him yet but she is a hopeless romantic and believes that her soul mate is out there...Crushed by this arranged marriage, Simran still eventually but reluctantly agrees to her parent’s wishes. What happens then when as a last hoorah before leaving to get married in India, Simran takes a trip through Europe with some friends where she meets Raj, a bad boy with a great heart?

Here’s a little scene from the film that sums up why I adore this movie and EXACTLY what and where my “unrealistic expectations of love” came from. In this scene, Raj and Simran have been separated from the rest of the group while travelling through Europe and have had to spend the night in a hotel before catching a train to meet up with their tour group the next day. Raj takes Simran out drinking for her first time and the next morning when she wakes up in his bed, everything goes horribly wrong.



I think it’s pretty evident in this clip exactly why this movie has helped shape my definition of love. Even when things are less than ideal, love seems to be perfect, ideal, passionate, supportive, kind, unconditional, and just very lovely. Is this the case in real life? Stay tuned to find out!

Thursday, September 10, 2009

How does one even begin to write a blog? There seems to be so much pressure- will the writing entice the reader? Will it be interesting? Funny? Epic? Tragic? Will I be able to attract you with my first few words?

If I’m being completely honest, I’ll admit, I don’t really know. What I do know is that I’m writing this blog for a school assignment...but that although mandatory, in the history of my education, this may be one of my favourite assignments I’ve ever had to complete (and that’s about 18 years worth...) Seriously! Why? Maybe because I love writing. And writing with a purpose? Writing while opening up a forum to talk about issues and ideas that are important to you with similarly (or not so similarly) passionate people? How exciting! That’s a gift.

So where to begin? I guess first I should introduce myself. My name is Kiran and I am a first year Creative Communications student at Red River College. Before this, I attended both the University of Manitoba and the University of Winnipeg. I have a double major in Communications and Psychology. I decided to come to Red River because at the end of the day, I really want to be a journalist....or a broadcaster...or to just have a show that’s named the Kiran Show (run similarly to the Oprah show). Anyways, Red River and this program seemed to be the best avenue to follow that dream, at least in Winnipeg, and I am thrilled to be a part of the program.

In order to enrol though, I had to do something that I’d been dreading. Quitting my fabulous job. I have just spent the past 15 months working at Manitoba Film and Music as a Locations Services Coordinator. Basically, MBFM is the province’s Film Commission and my job was intricate, stressful, hard...but exciting, exhilarating, and challenging all at once. I spent a lot of time reading feature film scripts and analyzing them. I’d then create packages for offshore producers in which I matched the locations in the scripts with different locations in Manitoba that could double for the script’s locations. Once that was done, I was in constant communication with the producers...basically convincing them to film their movie in our province. Then, when producers came to the province to get a feel for what we could offer, it was my job to take them around, schmooze, get them familiar with the province and our locations, and entice them to shoot their movie here. It was a hard, time sensitive, detail oriented, and difficult job...but it was an amazing experience that I loved. I had the opportunity to work with some of the greatest people I’ve ever met.

In order to keep my job though, I worked full time during the day and did full time night school at the U of W so that I could still finish my degree. This lead to quite a difficult year for me but one in which I learnt a lot. That being said, I was glad to shift gears and go back to just being a student this year. I’m excited to focus solely on this program and have fun while I’m at it (I’ve taken up a part time waitressing job on the side! I’ll let you know how it goes!)

So where does that leave me now? What kind of a person am I really? I guess this leads me to the topic of my blog (if you’re still interested! :)). I thought a lot about it...and decided finally to write about the thing that I know the most about; love.

Now I know, I’m young...how much could I possibly know about this vast, intricate, and complicated topic? I’ll admit...not everything. That being said, I find myself always being asked for advice on the topic. I realize that I am no expert and I know that most of the time, people come to me with their problems just because I love to listen (and who doesn’t like to talk while someone truly listens?) But because of my listening skills and the fact that I am a hopeless romantic, I think I’ve acquired enough information about love to make it my blog topic. I’ll be writing about all kinds of love: relationships (good and bad), platonic love, companionate love, familial love, and movies, songs, books, and experiences that pertain to it. Every post I’ll explore another issue, problem, or experience that relates to love and find some way to dissect the issue! Sound passionate? Well good... I am :)