cognitive adventures of N385

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

As a Whole.

8:28 PM Posted by M³ No comments
I didn’t know what I was expecting when I signed up for Seeing Sideways, but I definitely wouldn’t have expected it to be so truly amazing. Beth has definitely created an extraordinarily unique class and I am thankful that I got to experience it.
Creativity is easier to grasp with more openness.
Everyone is afraid.
Creativity is highly subjective but should always be appreciated.
Everyone has a deeper story than what you perceive at first glance.
All butts are great.
Every year is a year of growth.
Creativity often thrives most in sadness.
The simple things in life are often all you need.
Having a coloring book at any age is perfectly okay.
Everyone is beautiful.
Contribute yourself to the world.
Don’t look at your cellphone screen so often.
Hugs & drugs.

It’s been real, IT. But I’m leaving y’all for the School of Science.

Peace. 

Sorry you didn't get any cake.

7:44 PM Posted by M³ No comments
            The end of class felt so abrupt. Even though I (unfortunately) didn’t acquaint myself with anyone in class, it still seemed that we were all connected in a quaint, itty-bitty way. The goodbye seemed so casual—there didn’t seem to be any true closure. It was a bittersweet ending.
            Everyone’s altered book was wonderful. I had anticipated this final presentation since the very start of the class.
            I love cake.
            Jake is great.
            Beth is ornate.


            

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Train your brain, man.

10:15 PM Posted by M³ No comments
Well, here’s the grand finale.
The background information. . .
             I have never read a book that I didn’t like, but I despise many magazines. They are full of trashy gossip and demeaning snippets, hold nothing of true intellectual value, and are not thoughtfully engaging to our cognitive growth.
(Despite my overall disdain of these poorly bounded pieces of “literature”, I do not think poorly of anyone who reads them. They are just not in my taste, but I also don’t presume that everyone who reads these types of magazines are trashy or uneducated.)
            After the first assignment of Seeing Sideways, it become more evident to me that I want to continuously grow as an individual—intellectually, spiritually, and abstractly. We had to incorporate who we were based off of the creation of the egg, and while it initially seemed like an odd correlation, it made more sense after the matter. With every project that we created, whether we knew it beforehand or not, aspects of our being went into the process and emitted from the outcome.
            The underlying essence of every assignment I have completed for this class shows in my Altered Book: my desire to expand cognitively and creatively; to keep an active and immersed mind; to enrich myself continuously.
The altering process…
            I will be honest, I started on this project entirely too late. Procrastination has become an unwanted and bitter ritual this semester… hopefully I can break it for the following years of my schooling. But also, rather inconveniently, I had fallen sick the couple weeks leading up to this deadline and was more focused on sleeping and trying to stay alive at work.
            I chose three pages as the main puzzles, but glued several of the pages together in order to create thicker pieces and to fully utilize the magazine into my project. Next, I poorly outlined a puzzle on the three pages and begrudgingly cut out the pieces.

           
            The First Puzzle
            Why do we have to bash butts? Yes, big butts are cool. As are small butts. All butts are beautiful—large or tiny, round or square—and you don’t have to bare two sets of balloons to be butt worthy.
            The Second Puzzle
            It worries me that people could think that Selena Gomez is now “fat”. She is still a dainty princess. But even if she feasts like a queen and puts on sixty pounds, she will still be beautiful. Also, most importantly, food is fantastic and we should enjoy ourselves.
            The Third Puzzle
            Everyone wore it best. All of those ladies look fabulous.

            Lastly, I created a cover photo for the Mason jar container in Photoshop. Mason jars are sweet as hell for whatever simplistic reason.


            And to quote my “I Got This Covered” assignment blogpost…
Puzzles stimulate your mind to find patterns, utilizing dexterity,
spatial reasoning, and logic; it keeps your mind active in both
hemispheres of your brain, like exercising a muscle to keep it
in top shape. It’s a form of critical thinking that more people should
practice—and in more ways that just with puzzles—to keep themselves
alert and mentally healthy.
            I changed an unengaging magazine into an interactive game. This is a stimulating use of a magazine so that the mind actually benefits from using it. I love puzzles.

            Fin.

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Cyber World

2:21 PM Posted by M³ No comments
            I was very aware that a lot of people were intensively engrossed with their cellphones as our final peers presented their fear assignment. I don’t think checking your phone every now-and-then is a problem, but obviously and excessively staring at a screen while your peers are speaking and expressing themselves is disrespectful.
            So many people live so much of their lives through a screen. I used to be victim to this, but now I prefer to experience what life has to offer in the real world. It doesn’t matter so much that people do this in general, but paying more attention to an electronic device during class isn’t the better thing to do. 

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Class Take Away #13

7:06 AM Posted by M³ No comments
            I knew this particular class was going to be more intense than the others since it was specifically scheduled to talk about one of the deepest part of a person’ psyche. Opening up about your fears takes a lot of courage and I wasn’t sure if the class would be ready to handle all of the intimacy that was possibly going to happen, but it seems that a lot of people have become comfortable within their environment throughout this semester. Personally, I am not connected with anyone in the classroom and it takes a lot of work for me to be able to open up with anyone in general—and unfortunately, amidst my reluctant nervousness once it was my turn to speak, my mind jumbled up and I stated only the basis of my fear. In retrospect, if I had continued further with what was mentally rehearsed in my head, I could have rambled about of a lot of things nestled underneath the general worry that time is moving too fast, and honestly, I’m just not fully ready to do that with people I don’t know so perhaps it was better that way.
I forgot to bring in my tangible representation of my fear in class but I did show a picture. I was actually really upset that I left it behind, but it was too late by the time I realized it. April 20th was not the day to be stressed so I just let the disappointment slip from my mind. I constructed an hourglass with a couple of jars, sand, superglue, yarn, and coasters that I painted. Instead of being a steady stream of sand falling to the other end, the sand pours down to represent that it feels like time is moving way too fast. I feel like I’ll run out of time to do everything I want to do and learn everything I want to learn. 
            It seems some people are unhappy with how class went. I thought it went pretty well, despite that a few people didn’t create physical mediums of their fear. We don’t know anyone’s situation so we can’t be quick to judge… which is something that was even brought up in class by Mr. Dobson. I am just impressed that everyone was able to say something about a concept that is so intrapersonal. Someone had mentioned that the class was starting to feel a lot like group therapy, and while I agree with that notion (not in a negative connation), this class is not group therapy, and therefore, I don’t think we should be expected to give the entirety of hearts and souls to the class when it’s something that could be very difficult for some people. However, I definitely see a lot of heart and soul being poured out already, and there definitely should be a little heart and soul showing in everything we create, speak, and write.


I'm a little disappointed that I forget to post this on time, but alas, wine tends to lull me out of my nocturnal patterns. 

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

I Don't Wanna be That Old Lady That Looks Back on Her Life and Regrets NOT Doing Things

12:52 PM Posted by M³ No comments
1.     Is the fear you identified for this project a fear, phobia, anxiety, or worry?
My fear is a worry. The thought is something that I am often worried about, but it hasn’t fucked me over (yet).

2.     In what ways do you notice fear in your life?
I don’t experience a lot of fear in my life anymore. I’m generally a go-with-the-flow kind of person but this particular worry is preventing me from flowing in different directions that could lead to great things. My main concerns involve the indefinite future; I used to have a set path for myself, but now that road is cracked and scattered. Now I’m just stumbling around in the dirt and rumble with too much indecisiveness clouding my mind.

3.     What does fear keep you from experiencing?
Fear is preventing me from experiencing more experiences. With so little time to do everything that I want to do, I don’t know what I should focus on first. I’m afraid that I’ll settle on the wrong things, thus wasting time from doing the right things, but then it’ll be too late.

4.     What is the use of fear in your life? 
The use of fear hinders life. And it’s hindering my learning and experiences.

5.     How does fear affect your life, especially in terms of creativity?
It affects my creativity by preventing more creative opportunities. If I were to stop worrying about the possibility of wasting time and just go for the things that interest me, I could be exploding with all sorts of creativity.

6.     What form does your fear take?
My fear takes a double form, cognitively and behaviorally. It causes me inner turmoil and is my main form of life stressor and prevents me from taking up more opportunities.

7.     How does making a creative project about your fear impact how you view it?
By creating a tangible representation of my fear, it allows me to face it more directly. This assignment in general is making me look at this fear more constructively instead of just ignoring it and hoping my life will accidentally fall into place the right way. Being able to hold the fear makes me feel more in control of the situation. 

Peaches and Rainbows and Netflix Binges

10:37 AM Posted by M³ No comments
The obstacles preventing me from creating my Fear Assignment . . .
                           i.          Not having enough time to create it.
§  What if I sacrifice a week of my social life and alone time because unfortunately life just can’t always be peaches and rainbows and Netflix binges?
§  What if I ignore my other homework assignments and focus only on this one because it’s more entertaining and beneficial to my well-being?
§  What if I pull an all-nighter with some Red Bull?
                         ii.          Forgetting to create it because I lose track of time.
§  What if I put post-it notes all over my room and car to remind me?
§  What if I tell all my friends, family, and coworkers to call/text/send a carrier pigeon to remind me?
§  What if I use this act of forgetfulness to my advantage to further elaborate on my fear (but what is my fear?—stay tuned)?
                        iii.          Becoming too stressed about the assignment so my brain represses the deadline, thus I forget to do it.
§  What if I take up yoga and eat (somewhat) healthier foods to boost good brain chemicals so I am more relaxed and positive?
§  What if I stay on campus to complete it since that environment makes me feel more focused & productive?
§  What if I pay one of my crafty friends to do it for me?
                        iv.          Procrastinating (because I would rather be doing other things) so I don’t have enough time to complete it with full efficiency.
§  What if I realize how much of a breeze this assignment is compared to other class assignments and just get it out of the way?
§  What if I tell my grandma to not allow me to leave the house or turn on the television until I complete everything?
§  What if I recite “work now, play later” in my head over and over until I’m brainwashed into being a timelier & more productive college student?
                          v.          Not being talented enough to accurately represent my mental idea.
§  What if I just stop worrying about my lack thereof hands-on art skills since my talents lie within the digital and word realm?
§  What if I simply embrace the work that I am able to accomplish instead of focusing on the work that I can cannot accomplish?
§  What if I have a bunch of my friends tell me how awesome my completed assignment is to boast my confidence?

Monday, April 13, 2015

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Look a Little Deeper

11:39 AM Posted by M³ No comments
            At first glance, it may seem that someone’s general lack of concern or evident selfishness is linked to apathy. Sometimes that absence of emotion is linked to something beyond the perceived understanding from a bystander. It’s not always that the person just doesn’t care—that care could be masked by an imperfect balance of neurotransmitters, preventing certain motivations, energies, and feelings to persist externally. Not all apathy is defendable, perhaps most isn’t, but we shouldn’t always assume the worst from the holder.

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Photosynthesis

7:05 AM Posted by M³ No comments
            I was prepared to go to class—my teeth were brushed, I managed to put on clothes, and my college essentials were in my backpack—but at the last minute, I decided I was in no mood to be surrounded by college students nor would I be mentally attentive in class. I had been feeling off all weekend, and well, I have been feeling off for the last several months in general, but I needed to get away from all of the noise and clear my overwhelmed mind.
Naturally, I ventured off to my favorite nearby park to gather my thoughts. It was only convenient that the day was lovely and full of energizing sunshine. I used to be a hermit and found most of my entertainment from the Internet, video games, and television shows. But now, however, I hate opening my laptop and staring at screens. I want to experience what the world has to offer just from itself.
There were too many pesky children running around the park, but within the trails of the forest I found my much needed solace. The sounds of the wind rustling through leaves and the gentle streaming of creeks always seems to ease me. Sometimes I think it would be neat to be a tree instead of a human, but I wouldn’t appreciate dumb boys drawing dicks on my bark.

            

Monday, March 30, 2015

Birds Can't Eat Cookies

8:41 AM Posted by M³ No comments
            I am not a traditional artist in any way and I have never been crafty. As much as I wish I could paint and mold and etch the ideas in my mind, I just can’t and it sucks. For this assignment, I knew I would have a hard time coming up with something to create, at least with confidence. As the weekend approached, I decided to bake cookies because why the hell not.

            Alongside my partner in crime, we rolled out cookie dough and stamped most of them with sugar skull and skeleton gingerbread cookie cutters. As the first batch cooled, I decided to fulfill the digital step of this assignment so I altered a picture in Photoshop.


            We decided to play around with food coloring, despite being unaware if it would mix well with cookie dough. It all worked out, though. Eventually, we strayed from the cookie cutters and made standard circular ones. But with style because lots of colors. 




            I don’t even like sugar cookies that much.



Tuesday, March 24, 2015

Class Take Away #9

9:58 AM Posted by M³ No comments
Not being able to really come up with anything during our paper-folding exercise made me think that I shouldn’t ate something more exciting. I also had a Turkish delight for the first time, but I couldn’t think of anything to create based off of the word “squishy”. I wish I was musically gifted so that I could’ve create a sound/song based off of the taste and feeling of the Japanese ice cream sandwich. That would’ve been cool—not just because being able to create music is an amazing skill to possess, but because the connection between taste and sound seems more logical and abstract, despite the dichotomy of those two concepts.
            It was mentioned in class that college students typically go into a bigger procrastination stump after spring break... I can already feel that phenomenon happening to me, so it’ll be trouble, man. I just wanna go to parks and ride my bicycle under the sunshine and not have the constant reminder of deadlines in the back of my head.

Monday, March 23, 2015

This flavor feels like. . .

9:11 AM Posted by M³ No comments
When I mentioned this assignment to a friend of mine, she offered to give me something that she buys from a Japanese grocery store. It was a vanilla ice cream and red bean paste sandwich in the shape of a fish. It had a smooth sugar-cone shell and felt surprisingly light, almost illogically. The rest bean paste was a small layer and gave the treat a sweeter taste. I had assumed it would be a bitter taste since that’s what I think of from “bean”. It was a simple extra ingredient that I hadn’t had before, but it tasted great.
I decided to wait a week to think of different things I could create from this experiment. However, since it was spring break, I decided to not think about college and feel like I was actually having a break.
         At about two in the morning, I went searching through the house to see what ideas I could muster up from random objects. I found a bag of cotton balls and the idea to create a cotton ball-shaped fish popped in my head, so I stuck with it. The dessert sandwich was very light in weight, which is resembled in this handcrafted cloud fish (I call it that because it sounds kind of poetic).


Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Class Take Away #8

6:24 PM Posted by M³ No comments
            At the start of class we watched a short, psychological realist film called “Ryan” that depicted how an artist viewed the world. It made me ponder how my own take of the world would be depicted if other individuals could view it through a concrete medium.

            Even though I was physically in class, I wasn’t there mentally. It was just one of those days, ya know. I can barely remember anything that happened after we watched the film. Spring break should be a bit of a breather and then in the next class I’ll totally pay more attention.

Sunday, March 8, 2015

I Got This Covered (Maybe)!

6:56 PM Posted by M³ No comments
            For the Altered Book project, I have decided (at least for now, because you never know when another idea will come to mind) to recreate a magazine into a puzzle. When I first had the idea it was just for fun and sounded like the better idea amidst the 50 ideas and pseudo-ideas, but almost instantly after being inquired a deeper why? it became evident how this reconstruction represented a part of me. So many magazines are just gossip and fabricated lies and there is hardly anything more intelligent to read about. While that’s entertainment for some people, it’s definitely not entertainment for me. I prefer to be educated and challenged; I want to be informed on matters of greater importance and think beyond where most people normally stop. Puzzles stimulate your mind to find patterns, utilizing dexterity, spatial reasoning, and logic; it keeps your mind active in both hemispheres of your brain, like exercising a muscle to keep it in top shape. It’s a form of critical thinking that more people should practice—and in more ways that just with puzzles—to keep themselves alert and mentally healthy.
            Since my book will not have a cover, I have a couple ideas for its external case.  
  • 1.     The puzzle pieces will be put into a box with a lid, like an actual puzzle box container. I could plaster on different pictures of intelligent individuals (like Einstein!!), math equations, quotes about intelligence, and other random things that are associated with keeping a healthy, active brain.
  • 2.     Or, I could do a circular container. Since this class is about thinking outside the box, then why not?! Plus, it would look neat.
  • 3.     With whatever type of container I choose, I could put pictures from different class assignments and quotes from my blog entries to show the course of my creativity and thought process throughout the semester.

Tuesday, March 3, 2015

Class Take Away #7

7:32 AM Posted by M³ No comments
It felt odd having barely an hour of class, but as always, there were words of wisdom and inquiring thoughts presented.
We were asked to think about why we were in media and why we do what we do. I would have been able to answer those questions more confidently a couple years ago, but now, however, it’s a bit difficult to answer that in complete confidence.
I am concentrating specifically in web development within Media Arts & Science. I began teaching myself the fundamentals of web design when I was 11 years old and became entirely fascinated with it. I figured since I wasn’t able to create art by traditional means, then I could fulfill that dream in a technological matter. Not too long after I entered the world of web design, my mind was set that I would be doing that for my impending adult career. But almost a decade later, I’m stressing out over whether I’m wasting my time on a degree that may just be a hobby and nothing more.
When I do have web design assignments, I can still get into a flow—hours go by unnoticed, I don’t even think of checking my phone or some social media website. But I have no interest in learning beyond HTML5 and CSS3; mainly, I’m focused on the overall design. I can create nice aesthetics and a responsive website, but that may not be enough for companies in this modern day because they also want you to know JavaScript, PHP, SQL, etc. And honestly, I no longer see myself hunched over a computer for several hours at a time for 50+ years of my life. I can no longer envision my future because I don’t know what I will be doing or where I will be going.
Why do you choose what you do? Who do you want to be? What can you do to get to that place?”

            Right now, I have no steady answers to these questions. In a general spectrum, I want to be happy and not look back on my life with the regrets of not doing certain things and having all these “what ifs?” I’m currently not sure what path is going to lead me the right way or how I will be able to get there, and I’m afraid of wasting time. I decided to just be a part-time student this semester so I could have less college stress on top of my general life stress, so I’m hoping by the end of this semester I can figure out what I want to do with my life, which may or may not be in the field of media. I’m still on the shaky path of discovering who I really am—the real self as opposed to the ideal self.

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Who am I?

3:21 PM Posted by M³ No comments
I have always had frustrations with questions that asked me to describe myself. Where do I begin? What do I say? How much do I say? Should I be general or go deeper? Will I come off as full of myself? And so on. All of those Myspace “About Me” sections in my past would make me cringe horribly now.
People constantly change throughout their life. The brain is such a complex organ that is influenced by our genetics, our environment, and our interactions. Life never gives us a steady path, so we are constantly growing as individuals. While everyone has general underlying personality traits, we still undergo so many different types of experiences that mold us, whether it be minimal or drastic.
For nearly twenty years of my life, I felt I was always relatively the same but gradually got less dorky. Throughout the expanse of 2014, however, I went through a pretty significant cognitive shift. While I am still the same Meghan that I have always been, there is still a great leap from who I used to be.
The blind contour drawings of myself that were done by my partner basically represent how I feel about myself currently. My profile has disconnected body parts but it still looks to be part of a whole human. While I feel strongly about who I am as an individual, I am still looking for myself. I am mostly connected to who I am, but I still experience some disconnection. As we go through this creative endeavor in Seeing Sideways, I am hoping to establish a better sense of myself since it’s about exploring yourself. As one of my friends indicated when I described this class to him, this class wants to restore you, not destroy you.

But since I should probably say something less vague… I love pizza, trees, the infinite and mysterious expanse of space, nighttime bicycle rides, and Netflix. I’m in college to be a web developer but I’ve been freaking out because I don’t think that’s what I want to do anymore. I love cats. That’s all I got.

Monday, February 23, 2015

Class Take Away #6

10:50 PM Posted by M³ No comments
            I was a bit nervous about presenting this week’s homework assignment since I had chosen to write a poem. I have always enjoyed writing an array of things to express my thoughts and lay out the stories in my head, but poetry was something very new to me. Even with my standard means of writing I was always very reclusive in sharing them, so presenting something like this with a classroom of people that I had no interpersonal connection was a bit uneasy for me. I also wasn’t entirely set on whether or not I even liked what I had written so it felt a little bit like I was going to present a failure—and probably a failure amidst a group of successful creations.
            After I explained my process and read the poem out loud, I was so nervous that I couldn’t even remember if I had actually read it. However, our fill-in (and future N385) professor expressed a liking for the subtlety I implemented into my poem and had lectured us briefly on the power of it. This made me feel more at ease knowing that I hadn’t written something that sounded ridiculous.
Toward the end of class, a peer had mentioned that she was often worrisome of whether or not her projects would be as good as everyone else’s, which seemed to be the case for a handful of other individuals. It was relieving to know that I wasn’t the only one with some insecurities about our homework assignments. In the back of my mind I knew it was a bit irrational to assume that everyone was totally confident (it sure as hell seems like that during our presentations), but I often can’t help my nervous nature. The more our class continues, however, the less nervous I generally feel. I think our required class participation and open discussions alleviate general worries and allow us to feel more comfortable with ourselves in this type of environment.  

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Fallen

8:00 PM Posted by M³ No comments
            My word was “fallen” from A Feast of Crows.
The only general idea I could come up with (—the night before the assignment was due—) was to write a poem. I have only very recently began to dwell in the poetry realm of the literature world, so this process still feels a bit off for me.
My brain associated the word “fallen” with snow, perhaps because we are currently surrounded in it during the peak of winter.

From the sea of clouds
an array of crystals begin to glide down,
for the air is falling subtly away from the heat
since the sun has reached its celestial peak.

They form divergent glittering expressions
as they drift through the sky’s icy dimensions.
They fall to the world below
in hopes of spreading their frosted glow.

But as their frigid skeletons collide,
the earth beneath it begins to cry.
The fallen arrangement covers everything that grows;
some can breathe through it, but most don’t know.



Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Class Take Away #5

6:34 PM Posted by M³ No comments
     As I was on my way to campus, I had the misfortune of dealing with a car mishap. I ended up hitting a medium which caused one of my tires to go flat, but I was able to get my car across the snowy intersection and into a nearby parking lot of a shopping plaza. All of last year I had to deal with so many automobile issues that experiencing this situation so soon in the beginning of the year pushed my mental limits; it was the topper to a bundle of stressors in my current moment of life. While I waited for my grandfather to come help me, I sat in my car with the music playing at its loudest capacity (which isn’t that loud because my speakers blew out). At any given moment of distress, I often turn to music as an initial attempt to ease my nerves.
     During my wait, I seethed at the falling snow which was the result of my accident on behalf of another individual. I had never hated the winter as much as I did this this year. The current incident aside, the bitter coldness that chilled through my bones only exemplified my dislike of the season. But as my anxiety lessened and I focused on the descending snowflakes amidst my dome of instrumental music, I noted how beautiful the snow actually was.
     I remembered from last week’s class that a peer decided to create a snowflake for her Altered Book project because it symbolized her dream of coming to America from India, whose country didn’t not experience such a natural event. Something as simple as a snowflake can mean something much deeper to someone else. It made me reflect on my current state of mind from the past several months and how easily my mood depresses. I’ve been fearful of things that had yet to come and unsatisfied with what I didn’t have yet. But there are so many things in my life to be thankful of, even all of the things that seemed too simple, that I’ve started overlooking because I experience them so frequently.
     This realization seemed obvious and had come to mind a handful of other times, but in this particular moment it hit me a bit harder. It may not be the final step in my progression of a healthier state of mind, but it would be a big leap in the path. 

Sunday, February 15, 2015

Breakin' da Rules

11:25 PM Posted by M³ No comments
               Since my media arts & science degree concentrates more specifically in web development, I created a web page that doesn’t follow some of the “professional” aesthetics standards. When I first started dabbling with HTML and CSS about ten years ago, I broke many web design rules. I didn’t care to follow all of the guidelines because it was new and fun to experiment with in my own terms. Currently, though, I find a vast majority of web design rules to be well fitting. My personal taste has correlated with the modern layouts and typical design rules, so this assignment isn’t altered in excess means.

            It’s advised that websites use no more than two—you can get away with three—fonts; too many font families can make the content seem cluttered. However, there are many individuals who thrive in cluttered, messy environments, finding organization in what would otherwise be considered disorganization. A broader variety of fonts, though not significantly different in appearance from one another, could be more attention-grabbing and allow the brain to better process and retain the information more accurately.
            I’ve been told by many web designers to never justify the alignment of the text. I see this book-style formatting to give a more sophisticated overtone
            Background music is frowned upon for most websites. While I do think this rule applies often, I also see its benefits. Some websites can establish a better vibe for their purpose with instrumental music, and it can also be comforting for the user to hear.
            Customizing scrollbars was essentially removed from browsers, though webkit CSS brought it back to designers. The basic scrollbar always looked boring and bland, so adding some color and a sleeker appearance makes a website pop more.

           (Unfortunately, I cannot attach a file of my webpage to this post, but it is included in a ZIP folder on OnCourse.)

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Class Take Away #4

8:11 PM Posted by M³ No comments
             As the class was spent going over our top potential idea(s) for our Altered Book project, it was really intriguing to hear everyone’s idea. A lot of individuals had solid plans with deep meanings behind it, which not only were entertaining/enlightening to listen to, but it also helped me further realize the reasoning behind my own explanation for my current idea. My idea didn’t originally have an extended reasoning, however, I quickly pieced it together after absorbing the creative vibes of my peers.
            The side conversations among our project presentations were—as always—interesting and meaningful. Even though I don’t partake in the exchange since I’m more of a listener than a speaker, I’m always amazed at the like-mindedness and openness of everyone in the classroom. It’s always refreshing to know about my fellow “aware” neighbors who see beyond what’s commonly seen. I’m hoping that before the semester ends I will be able to muster up enough courage to speak with everyone else.
            Our next homework assignment is, once again, not a letdown and something I look forward to completing. Being able to “break the rules” for our particular concentration in media arts & science major allows a better sense of freedom that I’m excited to dwell into. Being a web development, there are quite a few standards to follow by. And while I’m in agreement with most of them, there are still a lot of aesthetics that I wish I could do without it being labeled as “unprofessional”.

Sunday, February 8, 2015

The Many Possible & Impossible Ideas for the Altered Book

12:04 PM Posted by M³ No comments
Since I have never read a book that I hated, I will be obtaining some magazine in a novel’s place. The media’s ideas of interesting news and tips are often extremely superficial, obvious fabricated lies, and unnecessary means of gossip… which I hate with the intensity of a thousand burning suns.

            What if . . .
  1. I cut out the heads of noteworthy people and paste them over the heads of the lame celebrities?
  2. I cut out headlines, taglines, etc., from more important articles and paste them over the headlines, taglines, etc, of the original articles?
  3. I let my nine-year-old sister color over the pages?
  4. I paint abstract pictures over the pages with water colors?
  5. I melt crayons over the pages?
  6. I burn the whole thing and use it for warmth during this wintry hell we are currently experiencing?
  7. I eat a bunch of messy foods over the pages?
  8. I draw mustaches and beards over every person’s face?
  9. I tie-dye the pages?
  10. I crumble up each page and throw them into the trash where the entirety of it belongs?
  11. I create a papier-mâché dunce hat?
  12. I create a papier-mâché flower bouquet?
  13. I create a papier-mâché tree?
  14. I create a papier-mâché sun?
  15. I interview people who share the same ideas about magazines and record their statements over the page?
  16. I use the pages for tic-tac-toe games?
  17. I use the pages to protect fragile items in storage or if I ship them in a box?
  18. I doodle over the pages the markers?
  19. I cut the pages into puzzle pieces?
  20. I create a board game out of it?
  21. I post this assignment on Tumblr and have followers & other users give me ideas?
  22. I take a bunch of funny Snapchat photos with it and post them on My Story for everyone to admire?
  23. I create a Facebook page for it where everyone can vent about it?
  24. I make a prom dress out of it?
  25. I write a long, angry letter over the pages and send it to the publisher in hopes of them publishing something better?
  26. I use the pages as stuffing in a small pillow for my cat?
  27. I make a short horror film about it?
  28. I kick it around and rip it up to release my frustration?
  29. I rip up the whole thing and write a poem about it?
  30. I rip up the pages into confetti and throw them around during a “Hollywood is Corrupt” party?
  31. I rip up the pages into tiny pieces and create a mandala artwork to symbolize a potential future growth of the Hollywood industry?
  32. I create a meme about it?
  33. I write a parody song about it?
  34. I put it in the washing machine?
  35. I leave it out on a rainy day?
  36. I fill fireworks with the pages?
  37. I put it in time capsule and leave a long letter about not following suit to its contents?
  38. I do the tango with it?
  39. I line the floor with the pages while I paint a room?
  40. I fall in love with the magazine and try to make it a better person?
  41. I can’t come up with an idea for it because it’s too horrible to make any better?
  42. I burn the pages, make ink out of the ashes, and write a way better magazine?
  43. I make origami animals and objects out of the pages?
  44. I use it as a one-time use mini umbrella on a rainy day?
  45. I make tiny stars from the pages and paste them around my room?
  46. I create a short documentary about what not to publish, using the magazine as the primary example?
  47. I paint my feet different colors and stomp all over the pages?
  48. I cut out the images of the celebrities, make them into magnets, and sell them?
  49. I cut out certain words and paste them on poster as poetry?
  50. I come up with an idea that’s so abstract and incomprehensible to anyone else that I can’t show anyone what I did for the project?

Monday, February 2, 2015

Class Take Away #3

8:03 PM Posted by M³ No comments
            Since I was in Arizona during our third class, I will be writing about my experience out in the West.

            My Monday afternoon consisted of touring the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Since the start of my vacation in Arizona, I was very excited about seeing a landscape that was considered, at some point or another, one of the Seven Wonders of the World—no matter if it had been on the list or not throughout the human history, it’s definitely something that should be seen as wonderful.
            After walking across a brief forestry trail, I stood on the edge of a rocky perimeter and was doubtful of what my eyes were perceiving. As I was looking out across the incredible expanse of the canyon, it didn’t look real to me… It was as if someone had painted a colossal canvas and set it up in the corners of four states to trick people.


            My family and I walked along the trail and were amazed as the scenery and colors constantly shifted. Dirty whites, varying shades of red, dark violet hues blending at the peaks, and rock-bottom bushy-green plant life extended for unbelievable distances. It was spectacular to be able to witness such an incredible sight, though still almost unbelievable because of its extraordinary panorama. I had seen some marvelous things throughout Arizona, but seeing the Grand Canyon had surpassed all of those moments. It was very refreshing to be surrounded in such a lovely area.

            While Indiana is currently a dead, frozen tundra (perhaps a bit exaggerated, but it’s still pretty awful at the moment), it felt great to be able to witness such a beauty in this world before going back to my wintry home. This trip has further ignited my desire to travel the world and see everything it has to offer.