Entry #7 Hashtag

I like getting actual topics to write about even more than I like having to pick my own.  This week my assignment is to talk about hashtags.  Do people really even use hashtags?  Just kidding I know the answer to that.... OF COURSE THEY DO!! Hashtags are used to put a "tag" on something so you an easily find it.  At least I think that's what they're for.  Hashtags are everywhere.  I see them on social media, on billboards, in magazines, they are pretty much anywhere you can think of.  

This just shows how much hashtags are used.  

One thing that I really notice a lot when talking about hashtags is television.  I watch reality t.v. shows often and i'm pretty sure every single show I watch has it's own hashtag.  I think that sometimes they are overused.  For example, whenever I'm on Instagram there are certain people that feel the need to put (what seems like) 200 hashtags on one picture just so they can get more likes.  Here is an example...

I don't think hashtags can really be "harmful", but to some they might be annoying.   I personally do not use hashtags, I think they are really annoying and I don't see a purpose in them.  Although there are many "popular" hashtags, I don't really know of many.  Some of the ones I'm familiar with are your typical, #selfie, #throwbackthursday, and #WCW.  I think most of these are hashtags that my generation came up with.  I believe (hope) that one day hashtags will die down and no longer mean anything to anyone.  Hashtags started as a cool trend but I think they will start to become insignificant sooner than later.  

Entry #6 Here I Am Again....

Here I am again, having to google what to blog about... I wish I knew why I'm having such a hard time finding my own topics.  I think that this time I'm going to pick something that really interests me.  With that being said, this blog entry is going to be all bout cooking!  You may or may not know this, but right now I am going to school and taking 16 credit hours as well as working part time.  So free time to me is kind of non-existent.  Although, when I do have free time I often cook dinner for my family, or bake desserts.  I think my love for cooking was brought upon me when I was old enough to actually use all the utensils in the kitchen and was able to come home after school and plan what I wanted to cook for dinner that night.  My favorite part of cooking is that fact that although you have recipes to follow, you can tweak them and make them your own.  My favorite thing to cook is pastas and basically anything Italian. My grandma is Italian and has given me a lot of family recipes that I love recreating and putting my own twist on them.  Tonight I actually made minestrone soup that was delicious!  Another huge reason I love cooking so much is because it is a big stress reliever for me.  If I have a lot of homework or something and I can't stop stressing, if I start cooking a meal I completely forget all about everything.  I think that it is very important to have a hobby/interest in life that takes all of your stress away and really relaxes you.  Mine just so happen to be cooking and baking.  I hope you find something that takes all your stress away just like cooking does for me.  Happy blogging. :)

Entry #5 Do We Need More College Graduates?

For my english class we had to read an article and write our thoughts on it.  First of all, i'm going to start by saying how important college is to me personally.  Since I was young enough to remember, going to college and getting a degree has always been engraved into my head.  Not going to college was never an option for me or anyone in my family.  With that being said, I find it very interesting that the article mentioned how better educated households have higher financial stability in the future. Since I think it is very important to go to school and get an education, I think it is great that they are setting a goal to educate at least 60 percent of Arizona by the year 2030.  I love this goal and feel it will have nothing but a positive outcome.  I feel that as time passes jobs are accepting less and less people because they don't have a college degree.  Having an education is very important in my opinion.  It is crazy to me that as of right now only 42 percent of Arizona has a degree or training past high school.  Being in college and seeing the benefits from it, I realize how great it is.  One thing that I think should be changed if they want to get to 60 percent, is the cost of school.  I truly do believe a lot of people don't get an education past high school simply because they cannot afford it.  This, in my opinion, has a huge impact on the fact that there is only 42 percent right now.  This article really made me realize how many people actually don't have a college education and I think it should be more easy for people to acquire.   I really enjoyed reading this and am very hopeful for the future.  I think America is way too smart to not be educated past a high school diploma. As always, happy blogging! :)

Entry #4 Organic Eating

Well, here I am again at a loss for what to blog about.  When I first heard my teacher say that we were going to get to pick some of our blog topics I was so beyond excited!! Now that I'm actually here, not so much.  Thinking of a topic that will intrigue readers is very hard.  With that being said, this blog I am choosing to write about organic eating.  I wanna know more about what organic really means. I think that as people we often hear about organic and how much better it is for not only you, but the environment.  Personally, I don't see why there is such a big "hype" about eating organically.  When I go to the store and think about eating organic foods I go right back to eating regular as soon as I look at the prices of how much organic food really is. It is significantly higher in price compared to non-organic foods.  I must say that after doing my research I might switch to eating all organic foods.  One thing I found on one website was that organic weeds are killed naturally by crop rotation, hand picking, etc.  When it comes to non-organic weeds that grow near all the fruits and vegetables we eat, they are killed using chemical herbicides.  

Organic vs. Non-Organic
Organic produce:	Conventionally-grown produce:
Grown with natural fertilizers (manure, compost).	Grown with synthetic or chemical fertilizers.
Weeds are controlled naturally (crop rotation, hand weeding, mulching, and tilling).	Weeds are controlled with chemical herbicides.
Pests are controlled using natural methods (birds, insects, traps) and naturally-derived pesticides.	Pests are controlled with synthetic pesticides
Organic meat, dairy, eggs:	Conventionally-raised meat, dairy, eggs
Livestock are given all organic, hormone- and GMO-free feed.	Livestock are given growth hormones for faster growth, as well as non-organic, GMO feed.
Disease is prevented with natural methods such as clean housing, rotational grazing, and healthy diet.	Antibiotics and medications are used to prevent livestock disease.
Livestock must have access to the outdoors.	Livestock may or may not have access to the outdoors.

("Organic Foods: What You Need to Know About Eating Organic: The Benefits and Basics of Organic Food and How to Keep It Affordable")

I found this chart on the website I mentioned earlier and I found it to be very interesting.  I didn't realize all the harsh chemicals that are used in non-organic farming.  Also, I was aware of what animals went through when they are not organically raised, but seeing this chart made it so much more real.  It's horrible that we eat out of animals that are pumped with antibiotics, grow hormones, and are fed non-organic, GMO feed.  

After reading more into organic food and why it is so important, my opinion on it has changed drastically.  I think it is important to know what you are putting into your body, and clearly, I was unaware. There are millions of things to learn about organic foods and this is only a bit of the information I found.  I hope I swayed you to research more into what you're actually eating before you eat certain things next time! Happy blogging. :)

Entry #3 Slanted Reporting

I didn't even realize there was such thing as slanted reporting.  When researching it I was so surprised at all of the articles and videos I found on it.  The example of slanted reporting that I found that I liked best was, http://video.foxnews.com/v/4677434881001/?#sp=show-clips.  I think this is a really great example of how reporters and people that have a platform will take that as an opportunity to express their opinions on a serious topic.  In doing my research, I realize that almost all of the "slanted" articles I found were talking about something that has to do with politics. All of the examples in the video I provided are talking about politics in some type of way.  I think that it is very interesting the amount of slanted reporting there is in the media these days.  These people are trying to get a point across to the public, but using way too much opinion in doing so.  All of the sources that are mentioned in this video are very credible sources.  With that being said it is interesting that all of these examples were slanted and used the language they did.  When the reader is reading this type of writing they may never want to read something from this author again because they used their opinion too much.  

If someone is reading something that is supposed to be informative and unbiased, and they find something that is based in the article, they may never want to  read something from that source again.  Also, by putting opinions into this type of writing, it lowers the credibility of the source.  

I think that when you are a writer for a well known company and a credible source, it is important to keep your opinions out of it.  Slanted reporting is a big deal and negatively affects a lot of credible sources creating less viewers.  Happy blogging :)