Ride Rant!

Since summer 2011, I have been taking city transit more than I ever have in my 22 year old life. Getting to and from a summer job, various city events, and Mohawk College, I now feel pretty comfortable taking the bus and getting around the city by myself. My new wisdom of HSR however has also enlightened me to the rather annoy-some behaviour of some travelers. My biggest pet peeve? People who don't move to the back of the bus when they get on. If there are seats available, sit! If there aren't, for the love of jeebus, move to the back so other people can get on. There is nothing more aggravating then getting on a bus and having to stand with a loaded backpack and laptop case at the very front of the bus becuase the otherwise unoccupied bus is blocked by some blockhead. Even when it's not me who's blocked, it's still annoying and I feel terrible for the people who get trapped or who can't get on the bus becuase its "full".
This issue seems to be common amongst "the youth". Man am I getting old! Anyway, I don't know why they don't seem to realize the common courtesy inherent in the simple act, but I feel the need to yell at them when they don't do it. I don't actually yell of course, but it does definitely grind my gears! So next time you take HSR, please remember this small rant of mine and be courteous!

Gone to the dogs!

Thanks to my PR program and its work placement requirement, I have investigated and received an internship with the Hamilton/Burlington SPCA. And boy, have I been introduced to the organization at a fitting time! There is currently a bit of a crisis occurring with the organization on a membership/governance level. Members of the board are petitioning for the ousting of the current board chair. But their arguments for why they don't want him anymore don't seem to be fair or relevant and are causing more harm than anything else for the organization. The negative publicity that's resulted from their disgruntlement can really damage potential funding for the organization. The issues have been explained to me by my supervisors and I'm hoping to continue discussion about them and possibly offer to help with crises management in the future (if they want my intern help that is).
Perhaps you'll read more from me on this issue later. 

Moving on...I've been at the SPCA four times now and for 5 hour intervals each time. Here are some of the things I've been doing:

Me and my puffball of a dog, Gracie! Wish I could bring her to work with me!










• I created a brochure for pet bereavement classes (on my first day in no less!)- this was the first time I'd had free run with a brochure and gotten to create one for publication

• I've been introduced and have been learning about their animal database "PetPoints" and have been writing pet profiles for adoptable dogs.

• I've learned about istockphoto.com and how it's a good website for design, marketing, and advertising employees to search for and purchase quality stock photos, images, and illustrations for their businesses.

• I've completed a rough draft of a media release for the upcoming "Picture your Pet with Santa" event that's going to take place starting late November - I'll get feedback on it the next time I come in.

• I'm around dogs the whole day and this makes me indefinably happy! It also makes me wish I could bring my own dog in.

So that has been my internship experience so far. I'm excited and optimistic for the experiences and opportunities that could await me in this placement.

Blockbuster Review #5: Mongol

Mongol was a movie I didn't select from Blockbuster myself. I actually had no interest to buy it, let alone watch it. But thanks to my mother's small interest in Genghis Khan and foreign films, I watched and I enjoyed! I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed it.

Mongol is a foreign film, filmed in Mongolian with English and Spanish subtitles.
It was directed by Sergey Bodrov and the crew was predominately Russian.
It was a 2007 Academy Award nominee for Best Foreign Language Film.

So what's it all about?
The movie is about the early life of Genghis Khan before he really became Genghis Khan. He is referred to, throughout the whole movie, as Temudjin (his original birth name). His early life is portrayed from childhood just up until the time he fully takes on the name of Genghis Khan. It is an epic adventure of a movie and I saw myself comparing it to the Lord of the Rings, but with the knowledge that Mongol was actually based on history. The movie tried to accurately portray events how they happened to the best of its ability and knowledge and I really enjoyed seeing that history come alive on screen! Knowing it was historically based made the movie even more interesting to me. I definitely had the urge to google Genghis Khan after it was done to learn more and to see what was really true! 


Here's the trailer:

What did I think?

The movie features beautiful, far reaching landscapes of China, inner Mongolia, and Kazakhstan as well as violent wars and battles. It portrays Genghis Khan as a very religious man, fearful of his god and the lightning storms that He creates, but also hints at the theory that he was "god gifted" so to speak and that's part of why he became such a famous, great leader (because his god was looking after him).
The movie has themes of friendship, love, power, morality, and vengeance.
The movie moves so swiftly in its telling of its story that its easy to get caught up in the majesty of it. Scenes and acting were realistic and well done and the characters were really individualistic and interesting. You ended up caring a lot about everyone involved in Genghis Khan's life, even his eventual "enemy", Jamukha. Finally, the director knew when to use his grand, scoping shots for drama and suspense and when to show character's emotions close up on screen.
Gripping and well done!

8.5 out of 10

What do you think?
Leave a comment below!