Inside Kristi's Head

Day 3: Love at First Sight

2011-05-28T21:19:00.000-07:00

I remember the first time I saw it, looming in the hazy distance over the enchanted city. The group was walking across the bustling city bridge close to the famed Pont Neuf, quickly trying to make our way to the bus stop that would take us back to our hotel. I was parched from the break from Paris’ typical rainy day that ushered in unseasonal heat, and was purchasing a bottled water from a street vendor for 1 euro—a bargain in this astonishingly pricy city.
After struggling to continue walking across the bridge while wrestling to return my money to my purse, I heard my group leader say, “Everyone look to your right.” My head snapped up, worried that I would miss a piece of magic Paris had to offer, and a let out an audible gasp. After twenty years of waiting, it was right there in front of me—Le Tour Eiffel. Well, not exactly right in front of me. But it was there, and it was real, and I felt like it was all mine.
Though it was rather far in the distance, I could still see its majesty. I can understand why the people of Paris fought to keep the tower standing on the edge of the Seine River’s artsy Left Bank after the 1889 World Fair. Those who initially thought the tower was an eyesore began to see its symbolic power—Le Tour Eiffel had become an icon of Paris. Even from a distance, I could see the strength and elegance of the tower, two qualities that summed up Paris beautifully.
Standing there on that bridge, looking at the creation that had beckoned me here to wander the ancient streets of Paris since I was a little girl, I felt a most interesting sensation in the pit of my stomach: Butterflies. Big, fluttery, gut-filling butterflies. They were the kind that you get when you experience the first kiss of a new love, because that’s what this experience was for me. Though I had only been in the city for three days—a seemingly insignificant amount of time when compared to the number of days I’ve spent dreaming of being here—I could already tell that I was falling in love with Paris.

Is Mr. Right Out There? Nicholas Aretakis Thinks So

2009-12-08T14:56:00.000-08:00

“Why are great girls settling for guys who aren’t right for them?” It’s the age old question that opened Nicholas Aretakis’ Tuesday Nov. 4, 2009, lecture, “Ditching Mr. Wrong.” It was clear from the amount of women toting notebooks and pens to jot down Aretakis’ tips during his presentation that they were here for one reason: They wanted to find Mr. Right.

The lecture, which ran roughly an hour, brought out a variety of listeners. From the lovelorn few who’ve just recently ended a relationship, to the hopefuls still looking for that special someone, like Eastern Michigan University sophomore Sally Daniels, who said, “I was hoping that he would be able to help give me some tips on how to find my Mr. Right.” Aretakis promised all of these people that he could help them by using his cleverly titled, “Five Steps to Change Your Life.”
1) Start with you
2) Start early with him
3) Measure and profile prospective dates
4) Ditch him (while minimizing collateral damage)
5) Attract Mr. Right

Though Aretakis came prepared to help those who sought it, the lecture didn’t go on without any skeptics. EMU junior, Christine Bailey was one of the women who filled the Student Center’s auditorium, “Most of it I already knew from past experiences,” she said. Daniels also said that she didn’t learn too much at the lecture, “Turns out I already had a grasp on how to find Mr. Right, get your act together, bars and clubs not the best places and sometimes you just have to wait until he's ready.”

According to Aretakis, who is not a certified psychologist or therapist; he is an expert on Mr. Wrong because, for about 20 years, he was one of them. While becoming a successful business man, he spent his 20s and 30s as a noncommittal bachelor prowling around with other Mr. Wrong’s. It wasn’t until he found his Ms. Right at the ripe age of 42 did he seriously begin looking for an answer to that question: Why is she with him? Through that search, including hundreds of interviews with single women and those infamous Mr. Wrong’s, came the inspiration for Ditching Mr. Wrong.

While this “Dating Boot Camp,” didn’t come equipped with every woman’s Prince Charming, Aretakis had excellent delivery. He managed to keep a room full of women engaged and even laughing – which is not an easy task. Through popular movie clips and sincere ideas, Aretakis created a fun, inviting environment in the hopes of educating women that, “Making the selection of a lifetime partner is one of, if not the most important decision in life.”

photo credit: Eastern Michigan University- Campus Life

Broken Promise, Broken Dreams

2009-12-08T14:50:00.000-08:00

By now, any student in the state who was granted the Michigan Promise Scholarship has received the letter. The letter telling them that Michigan has broken her promise, the letter informing them that the state can no longer afford to help its future and fund higher education. It is the letter telling them that they are no longer a priority. It was this letter that crushed the dreams of thousands of students at Eastern Michigan University, and even more across the state. It was this letter that officially broke the news of Michigan’s broken promise.

The Michigan Promise Scholarship was a $4 thousand scholarship granted to Michigan high school students who participated in, and scored well on, the Michigan Merit Exam (MME). The students received the scholarship if they planned on attending a Michigan College, University, or Vocational School. The scholarship was intended to show students that they didn’t need to go out of state for a great education, and students were happy to receive all the help from the state to further their education that they could get.

EMU alone is home to 2.4 thousand students who were granted the Promise Scholarship for the 2009/2010 school year. For many students, like Stephanie Hawkins, an EMU sophomore, it was the Promise Scholarship that allowed them to come to a University. “I really relied on this scholarship. I made my choice to go to Eastern Michigan University partly based on this scholarship. I think that I would have gone to a community college for a few years before going to a University if I would have known that The Promise would be taken away,” Hawkins said. EMU junior Jaclyn Reardon is also suffering the loss of the scholarship, “I still am supposed to receive another $2000, it doesn't seem like a lot compared to what college costs but to a college student with a part time job, it can make a big difference.” The loss of the scholarship means thousands of dollars thrown on top of the already growing pile of debt college students are facing.

With the loss of the scholarship, many students are speculating on the long term effects it will have on the University, “I think that a lot of people are going to leave the University. With school being so expensive, I think it just makes more sense to go to a community college for the first two years,” Hawkins said. The loss of students would mean a greater raise in tuition cost at EMU, who worked hard to have the lowest tuition increase in the state this year with just 3.82 percent hike, or roughly $10 per credit hour. Reardon also voiced her concern for the future, “Fewer students will be able to attend their classes without the money and tuition will rise again which would affect students not being able to attend college,” she said.

This cycle will continue year after year until there is a change in the system. It will only be when the state follows through on her promises and takes the cries of her students to heart that the students will be able to trust their state again.

photo credit: MSUdems.org

Yes We Can!

2009-11-02T13:02:00.000-08:00

Change. It was on everyone's mind that fateful night one year ago when Barack Obama took to the stage in Chicago and graciously accepted his new Presidential title. Though he has had his fair share of naysayers throughout the year, Obama still projects the image that, "Yes, we can!"

"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer."

It was these powerful words that began President Barack Obama's acceptance speech on Nov. 4, 2008, in Grant Park in Chicago. It was these words that not only kept the pace of his campaign, but that set the tone for the future of the nation: "Yes, we can!" Throughout his speech, the president reinstated the idea that America has never been and will never be just a group of democrats and republicans, America will never be just a collection of different races. President Obama believes that we, as Americans, are united through good and bad, and that we can continue to change and evolve.

As an testimony to our changing nation, the president used Atlanta citizen Ann Nixon Cooper, age 106. "She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons -- because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin," he said, "And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America -- the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can" Those three words resonated throughout the speech: Yes we can.

Indeed, the thought that we as a nation can pull together and face any hardship that comes our way was the greatest underlying message of President Obama's speech. He acknowledged how difficult a road we have in front of us. He, as well as every American citizen, knows that we face monumental enviormental, financial, and internatational challeges that could take years to overcome. However, he also knows that we are in America, and we will unite to survive.

Yes, we can.

EMU Hosts Writing Celebration

2009-10-21T22:16:00.000-07:00

On October 20, 2009, Eastern Michigan University opened its Ballroom doors to hundreds of students and faculty gathering together to spend the day exploring different types of writing during their event for the nationwide National Day on Writing celebration.

According the the NDoW's website, the day is used to, "Draw attention to the remarkable variety of writing we engage in and help make writers from all walks of life aware of their craft." The site also makes sure to mention that the National Day on Writing is a real, officially recognized national day, as of October 8.

Eastern's celebration focused on the idea that writing is used by everyone in everyday life, no matter where we are coming from. It is something that connects people on both personal and professional levels. The different levels of connection were apparent in the selection of activities.

The event offered a selection of activities available to the entire campus community. The activities ranged from creative- like the PEOPs activity in which participants created an image reflecting themselves with writing about what and how they write surrounding the image and a short biographical blurb under the image- to the informative- like the Roving Reporters in which students were given a camcorder and instructed to interview fellow students or staff about writing. Whichever category the activities fell under, one thing was apparent: the student center was alive with writing!

The National Day on Writing celebration showed the deep significance writing has on each person. It showed that we can use writing not only as a way to communicate, but as a way to discover ourselves. The event's activities linked writing to something that is deeply personal and differs between each writer.

Perhaps the most self exploring activities the celebration offered were the Writing Corps and the Bio Poems activities. Writing Corps allowed students access to a Mac computer in order to submit a short blog to Emuenglish.org's National Day on Writing website. The blogs focused on each writers personal stories. Writers reflected topics such as why they write, what they write about, and how writing has changed their lives. The entries, available for viewing on the emuenglish.org website. The Bio Poems activity prompted participants to create a 10 line poem about a themselves, a person they look up to, or the person they hope to one day be. Though the activity is rather easy, it probs into a deeper part of the writer, asking them to look seriously into the personal qualities they deem important.

Overall, the October 20 celebration was a successfull one: It was thought provoking and exciting. The event brought together people from all different walks of life to bond them with writing. The event managed to be both educational and fun, Eastern created an learning experience that was not painful, but rewarding.

Tragic Accident Causes Chaos

2009-10-15T08:32:00.000-07:00

The crash scene looked like a battle field.

Early this morning, a serious accident occurred on Interstate 790, leaving two people dead and many more injured. The accident started initiaally by two tractor-trailers colliding. This caused a chain reaction which involved a total of four tractor-trailers and 14 cars.

The accident required all five of the department's ambulances to respond to the scene. What they found was bodies scattered on the road. A helicopter was also on the scene to fly two of the most seriously injured to a trauma center in Statesville. Four others involved in the accident suffered from injuries that may be life threatening.

Though the accident took place in the northbound lanes of Interstate 790, the severity of the situation caused all lanes to be shut down. There is no word yet of when the lanes will reopen.

Written By:
Kristine Trickey, Jaclyn Reardon, Kelly Cook

38.8 Percent

2009-10-13T08:49:00.000-07:00

A measly 38.8 percent. This is the shocking and staggering statistic recently released by the Education Trust regarding Eastern Michigan University's graduation rate. As a hardworking EMU student, I find this number appalling. It amazes me that with all of the time, work, not to mention money, that we as students put into our education here, that much less than half of us will graduate within six years of enrollment.

While we do not hold the award for the lowest graduation rate (that honor is bestowed upon Wayne State University, coming in at 32.4 percent), we are far to close to the bottom for comfort.

Michigan's Broken 'Promise'

2009-10-12T20:36:00.000-07:00

Students on college campus' all across Michigan are in a flurry. The talks of the Michigan Promise Scholarship, a $1000-$2000 scholarship offered to Michigan college students for high MEAP scores, being cut from the state's budget has students in Eastern's community in quite a stir. An article in the Eastern Echo, Black Student Unions unite to save scholarship, showcases the efforts among the Black Student Union and the NAACP to bring light to the issue. In the eyes of most college students, many who rely on this scholarship to continue their education, Michigan has broken her promise. Cutting the scholarship can, and will, have HUGE effects on college students.

First, cutting the scholarship will unneccesarily force many students to take out more student loans, or, in the worst case, drop out of school completly. This scholarship is essential to most of the students who use it, myself included. This will inevitably drive college students into an even bigger pile of debt.

Second, aside from the debt, cutting the scholarship can deter future college students from lower income families from attending a university. This, in the long run will no doubt have negative effects on the colleges and universities themselves.

Third, a slightly optimistic effect of the scholarship cut would be to educate young people to get involved. To write to their congressmen and local officials. To fight for their right to an education. The article described the efforts of not only students at Eastern and U of M but students at MSU to write personal letters describing how the cut would affect them, as well as to plan trips to Lansing.

The Michigan Promise Scholarship has been a blessing for many college students across the state. It has given countless young people to attend a higher education facility in the hopes of achieving their dreams. Why would Michigan want to break her promise?

Organize Your Thoughts, Write Better News!

2009-10-05T20:38:00.000-07:00

We've all read it: terribly constructed writing. The ideas are jumbled, the page is hard to read, and when you finish reading it you're left wondering, "What's the point?"

All of the frustration involved in reading- and writing- news can be avoided if the author used a few simple tools to organize their thoughts, to really narrow down what exactly they want to say. Additionally, more organization can help an author to draw in readers rather than push them away.

Some helpful tools to thought organization are:

-Free Writing- This can typically be done before you actually start writing article as a way to figure out your main point.
-Use a Light Opening- as Bruce Ross-Larson said in his book "Writing for the Information Age," light openings will help to draw in readers, rather than repel them.
-Keep Paragraphs and Sentences Short- This is another tool used to bring in readers. It is also used to keep similar information together.
-Use Bulleted Lists- Not only are bulleted lists aesthetically pleasing, they help to bring together the main points an author is trying to
Use Quotes- Quotes are like the dialogue of an article. As Ross-Larson says quotes keep articles "conversational." Not only do they add force to your story, they show your audience a real person supporting your point.

Organizing your writing does not stop with this list. Ross-Larson has detailed many other writing techniques in his book. He shows that with a little practice, you can organize and change your writing habits into those that will attract readers.

Hey! Obama! Leave Those Kids Alone!

2009-09-27T21:28:00.000-07:00

Summer vacation. It's the roughly two month period that kids all across the country impatiently wait for from the beginning of each new school year. However, if President Obama has his way, those two glorious months could be in jeopardy.

According the the article "More School: Obama Would Curtail Summer Vacation," the President wishes to keep kids in school longer. For more hours per day and more days per year. Additionally, he wants schools nationwide to be kept open late and on the weekends to act as a safe haven for underprivileged kids who have no where else to go.

While it is a reletively well known fact that kids in the U.S. tend to score lower on tests in subjects like math and science than their international counterparts, I feel like Mr. Obama is forgetting what it was like to be a kid. He is forgetting what it was like to relish in the few weeks of freedom that summer provided. Taking away, or severly shortening summer vacation would be taking away a part of childhood.

That being said, I don't believe that Mr. Obama's heart was in the wrong place. It is true that, in order to survive in the global community, kids-and the bevy of less-than-supportive parents- need to step up. To focus more on their education. I did like the President's idea of keeping kids in school for a few extra hours a day to not only keep them from getting into mischeif on the streets, but to extend class time and help support better studying habits . To make education not only a necessity, but a priority.

Good Journalism: an Example.

2009-09-23T21:55:00.000-07:00

Every person has a view of what "good journalism" is. In an effort to allow users to judge various journalism articles, the social networking website, Newstrust.net, has set up a list of qualities used to review the content of the articles. The list includes, but is not limited to insightfullness, well sourced, and balanced.

David Colker's article describing a rumored new gadget created by Mircrosoft, posted by the LA Times, is a great example of not only Newstrust.net's, "Informative," category but also of Bruce Ross-Larson's technique of keeping paragraphs and sentences short when writing for the web. Because of David Colker's use of this technique, the article seemed less daunting to the reader.

I found Colker's article to be highly informative, exemplifying one of what I believe to be one of teh most important qualities in journalism. He details the origins of the rumor behind the new Microsoft Courier, quotes company spokespeople, supplies the site in which readers can discover more about the rumored gadget.

Aside from informing about the rumor's origin, Colker describes the gadget's features and design. Though he does not go into great detail, he provides enough information for the reader to understand the as-of-yet unrealeased product.