It's Finished!

My film is unofficially finished! Yay! And I got an 'A' on it, so, mission accomplished.

I plan on ironing out a few troublesome areas before I officially premiere it and enter it into a few different film festivals. Until then, I won't be posting it online, but once it's ready, I'll be distributing DVDs!

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Rough Cuts: Search and Rescue and Outro

Very Rough Cuts of my documentary!

These are very rough and there are still more on the way that will likely be up later tonight. I greatly appreciate any constructive criticism, so please feel free to email me at skparker1500@gmail.com or private message me on Facebook. Thanks!

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Independent Study Update

Things are beginning to fall into place with my documentary! I still need to iron out my scripts and edit my footage, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Rough cut this week, final cut next week, entire project the week after! Hooray!

Here's something I put together briefly that I can't use in my actual documentary, but I thought it was fun and just had to share!

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Independent Study

For the past two months, I've been working on my independent study. It's a documentary about the relationship between dogs and humans. Specifically, I've spent time with dogs with jobs and their handlers, including seeing eye dogs, police dogs, search and rescue dogs, and show dogs.

It's been quite a lengthy project and I've learned that there are many, many ways that it can be done. So far, I haven't been able to figure out the best way for me, but this is my first whole video project. I'm hoping to eventually enter it into a few festivals and officially present to the campus at some point in January or so. I doubt I'll post the entire thing online, but I hope to post rough cuts of segments for feedback on accuracy and style. Yay!

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Summer Wrap-Up

So, all in all, I had an excellent summer. Many friends were made, wonderful experiences were had, and many memories created.

I got to cuddle with a manatee :)Visited the Mote Aquarium with Mom and DadAlso visited the Ringling museums with Mom and Dad
Celebrated 4th of July with some new friendsVisited Lido and Siesta Key Beaches oftenOften...Learned camera operations on several different types of camerasSpent a lot of time with the Florida Highway Patrol, on the ground and in the airPlayed with new action cameras (that we attached to the wing of this plane)Witnessed K9 Unit training and spent a lot of time with friends made within the unitsGained more respect for the highway and the troopers that protect usEnjoyed my condo and wonderful neighborsSpent some time with Courtney on her vacation on Anna MariaMade a close friend, Arelan, or Ray, if you preferOffice-mom PattyProducer Don, who taught me so much. Not only about the field of film making, but about myself and life in general.

I had such a fantastic time and I look forward to visiting again and possibly moving to the area after graduation! Thank you to all who supported me this summer!

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Two More Days!

Ahhh!! My stay here is coming to an end, but with any luck I'll be back next summer! I'll do a wrap up post with some of the videos I've worked on and pictures of projects and such, but right now just wanted to quickly post the current happenings.

Last weekend and the weekend before I spent doing interviews for my independent study. First at Southeastern Guidedogs, where I got to speak with a trainer and three visually impaired 'students' (to take a guide dog home with them, they have to spend a month on the campus training and learning how to work with the dog.) Then I spend a week in West Palm with two FHP K9 units and just had a blast. I can't wait to see them all again!

Here at work, we brought in the Fall intern and I've been showing him some of the ropes. Very nice guy, goes to Ringling College of Art & Design. Salt & Light just launched a new program where non-profit organizations nationwide can benefit from the promos and PSAs that are created. It's just in the very beginning stages but it looks very promising for reaching more people nationwide.

Also here at work, one of the concepts I presented is starting to take off as a potential documentary and the new intern is very interested in it as well. So, hopefully I may see some good come from an idea that was originally mine! :-) In a nutshell, the topic is cyber bullying and how it's lead to multiple suicides and many cases of harassment.

Well, more later as I finish up my projects and start to pack for home!!

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Two Weeks Notice

So, it's been awhile since I've posted and it's getting to be near the end of the summer. I've had a fantastic time so far and I hope to gain more experience in the next two weeks before coming home!

I've been keeping busy at work, doing research on a few concepts that are being tossed around in our brainstorming sessions. Adam's concept is animal abuse, specifically dog fighting, so I've been doing a lot of research on that, which makes me a bit emotional. But the idea is that there are people out there who want to stop it all from happening, which is comforting.

A concept that I've come up with and researched is cyber bullying. It's only in the past few years that this type of bullying has been significant, resulting in many teens being forced to move to a different school or go into therapy, and in some extreme cases, has led to suicide and suicide attempts.

Besides work, I've been playing around with my fancy new camera and have made some progress on my independent study! This past weekend I conducted four interviews; three with blind individuals training with a new guide dog, and one interview with the dog trainer. Very interesting stuff and it has me even more excited about the work I'm doing! More information to come.

So I have to leave soon, which will be sad, but I'm excited to see all my friends again. I'm also super excited to see my dogs! OMG it has been far too long without a corgi in my lap!! I can talk to my friends and family on the phone or via video-chat and they can even visit, but I have no interaction with my dogs unless it's in person! I miss my babies, but I get to see them soon!

Congratulations to everyone at the Western Reserve Specialty! I miss everyone!!

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Weekend and I'm turning 22!

My mother would tell me that turning 22 is nothing special. And according to Patton Oswalt (explicit), there are only 20 some birthdays we're allowed to celebrate in our lives. And 22 is not one of them! I won't get another "birthday" until I'm 30, which is terrifying to think about!!

Real reason why I wanted to do a post: I found this awesome gif, and since I've been doing so much research and work with police K9s, it jumped out at me (literally, haha). This dog is awesome!

see more dog and puppy pictures

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August!? When did that happen?

The summer has just been flying by and it's been so fun. I've kept busy with work and church and Law & Order SVU episodes. :-) God bless Netflix.

Salt & Light just hired another producer, Adam, who is just awesome. Very intelligent and has a lot of great ideas. I'm looking forward to working with him. We'll be scheduling for some more shoots here in the next few weeks before I head home and I'm pumped!

Before I leave, I'll also be doing some interviews with people for my own benefit: looking into my independent study about human/canine relationships. My friend and her mom took me to Southeastern Guide Dogs a few weeks back and I'm planning on going back and talking to some of the trainers. And, I have friends in the Florida Highway Patrol! Next week or so I'll be driving down to West Palm (or Miami, haven't decided) to hang out with a few of the K9 units! I'm so excited.

I'm especially pumped because I'll get to see this dog again:

I'm keeping busy and loving it and I hope I get to come back!

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Summer's halfway over! Ahhh!!

So, right now I'm continuing work on the ShelterBox promo piece and I've been given the opportunity to write the story/treatment for it! It's been very exciting. I'm actually able to apply some of the things learned from broadcasting!! Who knew? Hahaha...

As for my independent study: I made contact with Southeastern Guide Dogs and I will hopefully have an interview with them in the near future. I'd be interviewing one of the dog trainers and *hopefully* one of the "graduates," aka a blind person who's been matched with their dog. I'm still waiting to hear back from the K9 units in Miami, and hopefully I'll get to go back for a day and spend some time with them again. Now, even though I show dogs myself, I want to get a perspective from someone who shows their dogs more regularly. Hm.

Not too much to say. Enjoying life!

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Information Overload

So, my ears have stopped ringing and I'm back to researching, cataloging, and capturing footage. We are beginning to focus a bit on a project about ShelterBox. It is a non-profit organization that essentially stuffs all of the necessities for a family into a large green box! I can't share pictures yet because they are copyrighted, but you can see some images from the website here. They've done incredible things for so many countries including Haiti and Brazil, where their people were forced out of their home because of a natural disaster.

I say overload because ShelterBox has given us so much footage and plenty of pictures to sift through. I'm attempting to download them all (from a remote server) and, no joke, my computer estimates that it will take 10 DAYS+ to download it all. It's only 5 gigs too...my laptop could download 5 gigs in 3-4 hours. Man.

It's a rainy and hot day, which is a bit odd! But I plan on taking advantage of it and catching up on sleep!

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Brief Update

So, in case anybody cares, I'm keeping up with this blog mostly for my benefit. I have a project to do once I go back to school and I need to present the experience I had during this internship (a pretty great one so far!).

Also, just when I thought there were no more sounds to listen to, I was asked to switch to music and listen through the entire music library (30-40 volumes) and pick songs that would associate well with the FHP. They actually trust me with that! I was told it's nice to have me around since I'm a musician. So, I still have my ear buds jammed and am doing the same process! Listening to the music is much easier and manageable than the sounds, but there is some bad music out there. Maybe I just notice because I'm obsessed with music...

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"Hi everyone, you can call me the manatee!" - Jim Gaffigan, comedian

It's been awhile. Sorry about that! I've been busy with work, church, and family. In fact, my parents were just here. That was nice- not having to pay for anything! Mom and I spent some time on Lido Beach and I got to pet a wild manatee! Check it out!

Okay, so I don't have pictures of it. But it was a bit of a short notice, and I wasn't about to run out of the water to grab my camera! You'll just have to trust me. But he looked something like this one, who we saw at the Mote aquarium.
The best part was that he acted just like one of my dogs. He swam straight up to us, bumped into me, and rolled over so I could rub his belly. Such a sweet creature.

The next few pictures are from the Ringling Circus Museum.

And last week, Courtney Crutcher and her family were vacationing on Anna Maria Island, so I got to hang out with them too! It was fun to see some familiar faces!

I suppose I could do a brief update on what I'm doing at work; for the past week and likely most of this week, I've been responsible for collecting and sorting sound effects and music pieces for the Florida Highway Patrol piece. Salt & Light has a few libraries that they already own to sort through, and they add up to about 38-40,000 individual sounds. It's a lot of listening, but it's been an interesting experience to learn and think about how many sounds do go into professional video media. Many sounds are subtle and hardly noticed unless listened for.

That's all I have time for now but hopefully I'll have some more time to share more soon!

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Post Number 50!

Yay!!

Whoohoo!

Not that 50 posts is all that significant. Particularly because it doesn't seem like that many! Anyway, nothing horribly exciting is happening right now but the 4th of July was fun and I had some time to see the beach and explore a bit. Also, a friend is visiting this weekend and my parents are coming down next weekend! Now if I could only get my dogs down here... :-)

As for the internship, well, I've been working on a dozen different projects! Still doing some research on the homeless and the hungry but today I discovered some of the gangs that exist in our area in addition to the rest of the nation. Interesting stuff! There are over 1,000 different gangs in Florida alone! And not only are they in big cities (Miami, Jacksonville, Tallahassee), they are expanding to more suburban and rural areas now. Plus, the internet opens up world wide interaction. Scary, but true.

The Florida Highway Patrol project is moving rapidly through production and so far so good! The last of the footage needed has been gathered. Salt & Light (S&L) still wanted two more events; a traffic homicide and the Tactical Response Team (TRT) making a warranted arrest. So we attached a couple of mini-cameras to the vests of some troopers making the arrest and our senior producer, Don, dragged himself out of bed a 3:30am to shoot some footage of a traffic homicide he was called about. These things may not be pretty, but they are real and deserve some attention.

Ending on a happier note, I've discovered a fantastic church in the area that I just love. And I've finally made some friends that are around my age! Not that I don't adore my supervisors and various Hanover alumni! I've rediscovered my faith and haven't been happier in a long time.

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Sick and busy!

Sorry it's been sometime between entries. I've been sick for the past week and when I am working, I bounce between 3 or 4 projects on any given day! I've been doing a lot of research about the homeless in Florida, since that is one of our upcoming projects. So I've been locating shelters and other organizations that specialize in assisting the homeless. I've also been discovering what the real definition of homeless is. It doesn't just apply to a person who lives on the streets with a mental illness. It also applies to people who had a home but recently lost it because of financial or other reasons. Our peers could be classified as homeless if they have not had a stable place to sleep each night for a period of 3 or more months. This includes people who "double-up" and live with family or friends because they don't have a place of their own. Homeless also refers to people who ran away from their home to escape an abusive relationship and have nowhere else to go but to a shelter.

A second project that I have been working on is regarding the issue of hunger in America. I haven't dug too far into the topic yet, but I've been hunting down food banks and soup kitchens and other organizations of the like that may be helpful in our project.

The Payton's Song project is at a standstill right now as we are attempting to schedule interviews with family and friends.

Two different groups have come to us with piles of their own footage and the request that we turn their footage into promotional videos. The first group is called ShelterBox, which is actually a pretty interesting program. It's a natural disaster relief group that provides a large green container that has supplies enough to take care of a family of 10. Recent example of their use is the Haiti earth quake. The day after the quake, ShelterBox had already loaded hundreds of these boxes into their cargo planes and flew them down there and helped set up camp sites. Very cool stuff. The second group is called Faith and Action, and to the best of my understanding, it is a group of people in D.C. that bring Christianity to the Federal offices in the area. I'm still learning more about exactly what they do.

Finally, the Florida Highway Patrol project is entering its editing stage and I've been blessed with the lovely challenge of finding royalty free music that can be used. It's been quite a task! More details soon!

On a completely unrelated note, I've finally had the chance to see some of the area and have visited Lido beach a few times. Tomorrow I plan on taking an easy day just lounging on the beach, weather depending. Pictures to come!

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An Official Update!

Ah, at last, the pictures! I think they are pretty self explanatory as to what we were doing at the time! I do want to mention that we were standing under a bridge over the highway when we shot the motorcycles. It was HOT and SCARY! The cars are obviously moving very fast. Driving on it is one thing but standing next to the road is something else! No one was harmed. :-)

Following the K9 units was the most fun for me for obvious reasons! The troopers are great people and the dogs are fascinating. I've never been scared of dogs, so being told to stand back from some of these dogs was a bit off putting. Then we witnessed them practice attacking the man in a bite suit! That was intense! These dogs are brilliant and powerful. I hope I can go back again sometime this summer and do some work for my independent study!

I loved this dog's muzzle ^

This is Leroy. Of the dogs we met, he was really the only one I could pet. Ha!

For good reason too!
I didn't actually go up in the airplane, but this picture is awesome. It's actually a shot from a camera that we stuck to the wing. Wicked footage. I'll share if I can.

The last day of Miami was spent mostly with the K9 units again. We got to ride along and watch the dogs search cars. One guy got arrested for having a bag of weed that the dog found. Man. It was quite interesting to observe.

These past weeks I've been doing all kinds of different things. I've been capturing footage from the tapes from Miami as well as researching music to use in the recruiting video and in the full length documentary. I've also been working on some other projects that are up and coming. It's mostly been initial research but one topic is homelessness in Florida and how there is a new breed of homelessness (not just someone living on the streets). More details as it develops!

Besides the internship, I've been meeting some people through an awesome church in the area and I'm starting to feel at home down here. I may come back!

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Brief Update

I've been itching to do an update about the rest of the trip in Miami and what's been going on. But I've been holding out for the pictures to be posted online. Once they are, I'll share them!

My next project to focus on is called "Payton's Song." Payton was a 5 year old girl who died of cancer in Bradenton, Florida (just north of Sarasota). I've been doing research and am developing a timeline of the events that occurred and when good and bad news was discovered. It's a bit heart breaking, but her parents created a foundation that is donating thousands of dollars to research cancer in children, particularly brain cancer. It's a sad but inspiring story and I'll share more soon!

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Touchdown Jesus

Every time I drive back and forth to school in Madison, Indiana, I pass the beloved landmark that is lovingly referred to as "King of Kings" by the church but is more commonly known as "Touchdown Jesus" by the rest of us. Heywood Banks also gave it the name "Big Butter Jesus," but, whatever you called it, this statue was definitely an eye opener. During the night, it was struck by lightning and burned to the ground. I haven't been able to find pictures of the remains yet, but here are a few photos (from Google) to remember this awesomely and impressively hilarious attraction.

If anybody is interested in purchasing the t-shirt that has the statue on it from Donkey Tees, here is a link and if you use the code "HCSBA," you'll help out my organization at school and you'll save 15%!

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Miami: Day 2 and 3

Oh man. It's been a long two days. Yesterday we spent the morning riding along with a trooper on the road for basic traffic violation stops. It was very fun to be in the vehicle! However, nothing horribly exciting happened.

Then the evening was spent with the Florida Highway Patrol K9 Units during a routine training session. We first spent a few hours in a park. All of the units met up in an open field and after some warm up and basic obedience, the dogs and their handlers took turns attacking the person in the bite suit. My best pictures were taken with S&L's camera but I'll have a few below. It was very exciting to be so close to this kind of action! These dogs are amazing! After that training and some dinner, we went with the K9 Units to an abandoned building where the dogs each had an opportunity for some training with tracking scents. Someone got into the bite suit and hid in the building and the dogs were evaluated on how quickly they could find him. Again, very exciting to be following such talented dogs. We'll be meeting up with them again tomorrow for some real work, not just training.

Today, we spent the morning with the aviation sector of the FHP. They were doing a routine aviation detail where one guy is up in a small plane, circling portions of the highway and calculating speeds of fast vehicles. Once he spots one, he gets on the radio and the first trooper in line jumps behind that vehicle and pulls him over. There were about 6 cars in this continuous line and I got to ride with a very friendly and awesome guy. Again, it was quite the experience to ride along when these guys have to chase a car! This was the first time I was shooting by myself (as in, the other crew members were in other cars), and I think I did pretty well! We also had a woman in the plane with a camera and two smaller cameras attached to the outside of the plane. The footage is awesome!!

Then in the afternoon, we interviewed a few members of the TRT (Tactical Response Team, similar to a SWAT team) and got to check out the various vehicles they use and how the warrant process works when they have to arrest someone.

That was pretty much what we did today and yesterday, and it's been hot and exhausting! Once I have access to other pictures and video, I'll be sure to post it!

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Actually, I just realized I don't have a great picture editor (to downsize and crop pictures) on my netbook...so once I get back home, I'll be sure to put up the good stuff!

Miami: Day 1

Today was my first official shoot with Salt & Light. We are currently working on a project for the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) and will be spending all week here following a variety of officers while they work.

Today we met up with the Motors of the FHP. These are the troopers who ride motorcycles. Lovingly called the "wolf pack," these men spent the morning "laser detailing" the highway (I-75). Detailing involves a number of motorcycles (today there were about 7-8) and starts with one trooper under a bridge with his laser gun and was reading vehicles' speeds well down the highway. Once he finds a vehicle that is speeding, he tells the first trooper in line what vehicle it is and in which lane. Once the vehicle passes under the bridge, the trooper with the laser reconfirms which vehicle he caught and then the first trooper in line on a motorcycle follows that vehicle and pulls it over. Then the next trooper in line pulls up and the process repeats. Once a trooper is finished pulling over one of the vehicles, he comes back to the same spot to get back in line.

It was quite an interesting sight! We had two cameras on tripods underneath the bridge, one camera that was on a shoulder (my shoulder!) and then two smaller cameras hooked onto the motorcycles so we can get footage of what they are doing. Later that day we interviewed two of the troopers and learned about all the positives of being one of the motors. There seemed to be hardly any negatives!

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Sarasota!

So, I've been in Sarasota for about a week now. I'm just about settled into my condo, which is awesome. My internship is going very well so far. My only issues at the moment are the facts that I'm not used to the heat yet and that I don't know many people yet. Oh well, that will come in time I imagine!

Here are some pics of my condo!

For some reason I couldn't upload them... Oh well. More soon!

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I've Been Given Up On

Not by everybody by any means. But someone very special to me has given up on their self and has given up on me. Even though it hurts, I know that I deserve good things and hopefully I will get them soon, because I'm almost ready.

Don't give up on yourself because that means you've given up on everything that could possibly bring joy into your life.

Sarasota in 6 days!!

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Self Esteem Boost

Lately I've had my feelings crushed and have been feeling sad. Very little, if none of it was my fault. Because of it I've felt negative and I probably will for a period of time, but things happen for a reason. I know that I am a good person and that I deserve good things. And someone out there wants to be with me and thinks I deserve the best and can give it to me.

The biggest issue has been the fact that I've been confused by the whole situation. I am hoping I can discover some answers that may clear up my understanding.

Being a person who has dealt with depression and anxiety caused by many areas of my life (including but not limited to parents, family, romantic relationships, personal relationships, professional relationships, etc.) I can admit that I've given serious thought to suicide in the past. Obviously, I have not acted on those thoughts, but sometimes it still feels like it would be easier.

If you are feeling depressed to the point that you want to hurt yourself or take your own life, please read this: http://www.metanoia.org/suicide/ It's been reassuring to me multiple times and can lead you to some wonderful resources of coping methods. Please give it a read, even if suicide is just a quiet idea in the back of your mind.

And know that people do care about you and love you and want you to be happy. Love is tricky to understand. Imagine it as a rose, in which the stem is thorned and the flower will or already has opened up to reveal its beauty. Though complicated, love is a wonderful experience and there is someone out there for everyone. True love can handle pain and resistance and still survive.

Now, as wonderful as loving someone is, it's so important to love yourself first. How can you expect to truly love someone else if you don't truly love yourself? That must be learned first. Once you are truly proud and comfortable with yourself you can invite another person into your life. Having a life partner is wonderful and highly desired, but you must feel comfortable and strong being independent first.

Thanks for letting me blow off some steam. It's been quite a rough weekend and week so far, and it's only Monday!

Sarasota, Florida in 7 days! :)

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Free Promo: Michael Henry and Justin Robinett

In the past month, I've fallen in love with the voices and musical talent of Michael Henry and Justin Robinett. So, I felt like giving them some props. Please listen and enjoy!

YouTube

Album on iTunes

My Personal Favorites:

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Looking Forward to the Summer!

This summer I'll be working for Salt & Light Productions.

They are located in Sarasota, Florida and I will be staying in a nice condo in what looks like a wonderful neighborhood.

I will be working with the group there making documentaries. I imagine I'll be doing a lot of research and hopefully a lot of learning! I plan on updating this blog with my experiences.

And when I'm not working, I'll probably be swimming in the pool or at the beach. I can't wait to get tan!

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Why Those Who Criticize Me are Wrong

Everybody gets compliments, constructive criticism, and insults. Like everyone else, I've been received all of these types of comments from different people for a variety of reasons. However, some of the most insults have come from people who are supposed to care for me the most.

Those people don't know how much they've hurt me by what they've said and how the worst of the worst insults are branded permanently on my mind.

However, as I've matured and gained strength, I've come to realize how these people are wrong. I still feel the pain but I'm in better control and I've also come to realize how immature these people are. Below I've shared the criticism and why they are wrong or why they have no right to say what they've said; in many cases, they are wrong AND have no right to talk.

Criticism: "You're gaining weight, you should cut back on what you're eating."

Why they're wrong: This comment has come from several people who have no right to talk. Two of them have been overweight for nearly their entire lives and have developed high blood pressure, diabetes, and a variety of other ailments due to the extra weight. The first time I heard it, I was 16, 5'9", and 170 lbs. According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, my BMI was 25.1, which barely falls into the overweight category.

Excuse me for developing a woman's body. I may not be the skinniest person in the world, but at 21, my BMI has remained about the same, which puts me in the healthier population of America. I've also learned that many men don't mind subtle curves on a woman.

Criticism: "These grades are horrible; you wouldn't get into Sinclair with grades like these."

Why they're wrong: Sinclair is a community college. I'm honestly not sure what would keep you out of Sinclair unless you are a convicted criminal. Also, the grades this person was speaking of averaged out to a 2.9 (on a 4.0 GPA). Maybe not stellar, but certainly not bad.

Criticism: "If you abandon us, we won't consider you part of the family anymore and we'll take away everything we've given you and you'll have nothing."

Why they're wrong: I'm not an idiot. Period. Yes, I am thankful for what has been provided for me, including insurance, a vehicle, and half of my college education. But, if you were to take it all away, I would likely be just fine. I would have to take out a loan for my final year of under grad studies, but after that I can claim myself as an independent, if not earlier for other reasons.

Criticism: "You're throwing away your life by being with the person you're with. Your significant other does not have a job and is currently not in school."

Why they're wrong: My S.O. is in the unemployed population of America that is currently 9.9% of our country (15.3 million people). Let me also economically define the term "unemployed": the state of an individual looking for a paying job but not having one. This means that children, full time students, the retired, and those NOT looking for a job, are NOT included in this number.

Please realize that this definition does not use the 300 million some total country population to calculate this number!! There are only approximately 154.5 million people included in the unemployment rate calculation. (do the math)

There are other things I could comment on and could use as violent defense against these people who criticize me, but I want to be the bigger, mature person.

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Internships and hospitals

So, right now I am nearing the end of creating, making, and enforcing decisions for my summer internship.

The idea of working for Salt & Light this summer is very exciting, and I have a good feeling that it is the position I will go with.

However, I have a few other options still. Both in Washington state, Outdoors for All has offered me a unique media position. I am absolutely in love with it and with the program, but it does not meet the requirements for the CBP. The other opportunity is with Tacoma Tide Sports Club. Again, very interesting position, but it too falls short of the CBP requirements.

So, I'm having happy thoughts and am beginning to iron out my summer plans. Still unsure, but I'm embracing the uncertainty of it and I know there is no wrong answer.

In unhappy news, I'm currently in the hospital for severe stomach pain that is unexplainable.

I just hope it doesn't slow down my summer plans!

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Jon Becraft

Just finished my handi-cam edit of Jon Becraft's "I Love You but the Cops are at the Door."



Thanks to Jon and AJ for letting me put this together!

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Narrowing Down Internships!

Here are the companies I'm officially waiting on. I've already heard from and interviewed for several of them!

- Paramount Hollywood, CA
- Tacoma Tide Sports Club Tacoma, WA
- Outdoors for All Seattle, WA
- Blake House Media Los Angeles, CA
- Salt and Light Productions Sarasota, FL (no individual website)
- Isis Productions Los Angeles, CA (no website)
- Marty Katz Productions Los Angeles, CA
- Priority Films New York, NY
- Indy International Film Fest Indianapolis, IN
- Zade Films Los Angeles, CA

Very exciting!

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Happy Dog

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Opportunities?? Too much to consider!

Ok, so as a junior in the Center for Business Preparation here at Hanover, I'm required to do an internship between my junior and senior years.

I'm searching for a film/video production internship.

I've applied to these unlikely places:
Pixar
DreamWorks
Disney
CNN
FOX
ESPN
Universal Studios
Paramount

I have personal contacts, either through HC or my high school to these companies:
Blakehouse Media
Women in Film
The Green Building essentially the guy who did the documentary "FLOW"
Outdoors for All
Firebelly Design
Madison TV15

Still hoping for one out west! More details soon!

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Stressed Out

It's getting to be that time of the semester again:

Each semester there are two weeks in which everyone hates each other here on Hanover campus.

Week 1: Midterms, also right before Winter break
Why? Because everyone has too much to do for people who have too much to do as well. Students are overloaded with assignments and professors are overloaded with grading those assignments. Yet, we push forward! If only to make it to the winter break so we can breathe and actually get some sleep.

Week 2: 2 weeks before Finals week, aka Dying week
Why? The oh-so-dreaded Dead week is nothing compared to the stress of Dying week. Professors and students both assume, out of respect for each other, that Dead week will be the more stressful and difficult week. And it is stressful, but it's a relief compared to the prior week: Dying week. Every assignment, presentation, and project is due during Dying week, so it can be done with and out of the way for Dead week.

I love Hanover.

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Hardly anybody reads this anyway... haha

Lately, I have been working on me. I've had some bad experiences in the past and I'm learning to move forward.

Among my goals include:
- improving my self esteem
- moving forward from my abuse
- improving my physical health
- expanding my mind and being able to see different perspectives of situations

Wish me luck!

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