January 9, 2009
OH HELL NO!!
I love/loved www.tickle.com. So imagine my surprise today when I decided I was going to go get my test on and they were closed. IDK what sparked this. They had some good ass tests on their site. I have a folder in my Gmail dedicated to my Tickle results. I have my sexual persona, my personality type, and my subconscious mind among others.
Formerly known as Emode.com, Tickle was founded on the belief that personal insight and connections to others could be both scientific and fun. Tickle was the leading interpersonal media company, providing self-discovery, and social networking services. Their results, if you answered as honestly as possible with the choices, were usually so on point. I read online that they had psychology and marketing experts from Harvard, Yale, Duke, Northeastern, Washington University in St. Louis, SUNY at Albany, and The University of Kansas on staff. I remember when it used to be eMode.com too, LOL. I wonder what the site upkeep was there? They had over 200 tests, some PHd Certified.
If you type in tickle.com they will refer you to other career based sites, but its just not the same. The biggest one they are boosting is TestQ.com, which doesn’t seem as fun or interesting. Sigh.. I’m sad.. I guess I’ll head over to blogthings.com and b.s. over there…
Posted in Cleo's Rants, news | Tags: blasphemy, curiousity, learning, news | 10 Comments »
December 28, 2008
I’ve been meaning to write about Kwanzaa since the day after Christmas, but all types of holiday stuff had me too busy. I can’t say that I actually participate in Kwanzaa, but I think that people have the wrong idea of what it exactly is. Some think of it as an alternative to Christmas when its not actually so. In fact, Kwanzaa is a cultural holiday versus being a religious one. Kwanzaa was “created” in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga, a professor of Africana Studies at California State University during the Black Freedom Movement. t is celebrated December 26-January 1. The name Kwanzaa is derived from the phrase “matunda ya kwanza” which means “first fruits” in Swahili. Its thought to reflect the communities concern for cultural grounding and the unity and self-determination associated with the movement. Kwanzaa was created to reaffirm and restore our roots in African Culture-making it a reconstruction of African Culture.
Kwanzaa is said to represent a time of ingathering of the people to reaffirm the bonds between them. It’s also a time of special reverence for the creator and creation in thanks for blessings and the beauty of creation. It also represents commemoration of the past in pursuit of its lessons and in honor of its models of human excellence, a.k.a our ancestors. Additional first fruit celebrations include a time for re-commitment to our highest cultural ideals in our ongoing effort to always bring forth the best of the African cultural thought and practice, and a time for celebration of the good: the good of life, family, community, culture, the ordinary, the divine, the natural, and the social.
Kwanza is built upon 7 principals. I remember in elementary school during the Holiday play, which was every year no matter what grade you were in, we had to recite the seven principals of Kwanzaa. I remember BET used to have a Kwanzaa special. This was the old BET, not the crap as of late. The BET I remember had shows like Teen Summit. OH yeah! Back to the 7 principals of Kwanzaa,ne is celebrated each day of Kwanzaa.
1. Umoja: Unity
2. Kujichagulia: Self Determination (I just used to love saying this).
3. Ujima: Collective Work and Responsibility
4. Ujamaa: Cooperative Economics
5. Nia: Purpose
6. Kuumba: Creativity
7. Imani: Faith
I think Kwanzaa isn’t widely practice because no one is really taught about it. Sure, in class they glaze over it, but no one is instructing people on how to practice the ceremony. No one is helping kids light the Kinara or anything. Whereas we are socialized about Christmas from nearly birth. Even as a child you are instructed on the art of gift giving. From a kid you write letters to Santa, or Saint Nick however you want to refer to him. Christmas is truly lacking in its origins but people are still caught up in the commercialization of it. Going into massive credit card debt every year while other holidays such as Kwanzaa and even Hanukkahs (did I spell that right) are briefly acknowledged. Who’s fault is this? People or the businesses? If we weren’t inspired by all these shiny and technological they wouldn’t have us in this continuous consumer warp.
More Info
And yeah.. I know some people like to be funny, but I hate to read ignorant crap like this…
Ignorant Blog-Read at your own risk…
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October 12, 2008
I picked up this book in the train station, Shoe Addicts Anonymous, because I was done reading my current book on the ride to the city. If I had one word to describe this book it would be… FLUFF! I’m an avid fiction reader, but sometimes fiction still makes you think and ponder the possibilities. There was none of that here for me. It was an easy read. I bought it on Monday evening, was done Saturday night and didn’t even read some every day. The gist of the story is that there are four people who have a club dedicated to swapping shoes. The idea started with Lorna, who is so deep in credit card debt that she needs to consolidate. She works as a waitress and lives in a condo that is $1200 a month and still has time to shop for shoes and pay her other bills? UNREALISTIC in the DC area! Anyway, after meeting her her “debt counselor” she places an ad on “gregslist.org” for a group to meet. Other characters include Helene Zajaris, wife of a politician, who is unhappy that she’s been cut off from funds until she gets preggers by her hubby so he can have the perfect political family to tote around even though he’s a philanderer. Next is Sandra. Sandra is overweight and agoraphobic. She makes her money being phone sex operator. Thought that would be juicy but no. She talks on the phone to a psychiatrist about her agoraphobia and she eventually goes to a hypnotist. To get herself out the house, she goes to these meetings. She does eventually come out of her shell, realizes people are the big bad wolves and all that juicy stuff. And Jocelyn. She doesn’t even wear the size that they are swapping. She goes to thrift stores and finds the high-end shoes in their size to swap so she has a reason to get out of the house that she stays in. She is a nanny and her boss is a mean bitch who demeans her and makes her do work not in her contract. Hence a reason NOT to be a live-in nanny.
Anyway.. the characters, while all very real parts of society, only touch on the surface of what these real life caricuatures could do. I feel like yes, this is a great concept for a book, but the author always fell short of really pulling me in. I could not lose myself in this book which is what i like to do when i read fiction books. and as you all know I am a lover of shoes and books alike, so to combine the two was supposed to be heaven. But instead they threw out name brands i coudn’t afford and stores I never heard of. What is Ormands anyway? Is that like the DC version of Saks? Sure, there were Guccis and Jimmy’s in there too, but not enough. She also tries to make light of other cultural phenomenons, like ebay and her fake Craigslist, gregslist.com. I enjoyed her concept but didn’t like the author’s, Beth Harbison, execution. And it all had such a fairy tale ending. I don’t believe in fairy tale endings. Not cool folks! Good Fluff reading.. would I recommend it to a friend,, probably not. This book doesn’t get a rave nor does it get a wtf. It’s kinda just there.
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September 30, 2008
I came across this article about how 2008 was proclaimed the year of reading. In the article they said Posh Spice (Victoria Beckham) has never read a book, but yet she writes them. How does that really work? What about her kids? I think this occurs a lot today. Hell, we have a lot of “authors” who do not really write their own books. I mean, every time one of these “tell all” books comes out by these former video groupies, do people actually think they wrote them? No, they are more like dictations to a person they sold their story to. Foolishness!
Anyway, the article asks, does reading make you clever? Not necessarily. Reading does stimulate the cortex, and does improve things like:
- vocabulary
- grammar
- spelling
- writing
- comprehension
- reasoning
- analytical skills
People seem to think that there is tangible knowledge in books, but its not measurable knowledge. It’s not like needing to know something and googling it. If you want an understanding of a subject beyond skimming it then yes read books. Books go in-depth while the internet and other mediums give you only general ideas about things. And this is just non-fiction.
Fiction books are where imagination begins. Why do we begin telling our children stories and letting them watch cartoons? To stimulate creativity and teach lessons. Stories are oratory books. By giving children books it internalizes their ability to engage in a fantasy whenever they want. However, people aren’t creative enough anymore. Reading fiction requires patience. You have to let a story grow and develop and we are victims of an instant gratification society. We want what we want and we want it now! A good number of people in the younger generations (this includes me at times) have had their imagination muted by television , movies , and video games.
To answer the article, cleverness can’t be learned, its an innate ability, sort of like sarcasm. You can’t train to be sarcastic. There is no google search for sarcasm or cleverness. But you can draw inspiration from characters in books and mimic them. Learning does not just come from a classroom. People need to step out of that box. Lately, I’ve been slacking on my reading. I’ve been trying to diversify the books I’m reading. Read more non-fiction. My book I just started today is a mystery. I started trying to get back to where I read all day every day when I wasn’t busy. To start I’ve been trying to dedicate at least one hour a day to reading. Sometimes I’m not so successful. 
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September 29, 2008
1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
2. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.
3. Follow these R’s:
Respect for self
Respect for others and
Responsibility for all your actions.
4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
6. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
7. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
8. Spend some time alone every day.
9. Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
11. Live a good honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.
12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation, don’t bring up the past.
14. Share your knowledge, its a way to achieve immortality.
15. Be gentle with the earth.
16. Once a year, go someplace you have never been before.
17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
19. Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.
-Dalai Lama
————————————–
I found this poster at a poster sale near my job, and I love it. Especially numbers.. well all of them. I am really taking to heart #1 as of late. And I’m following number 14 by posting this for all your eyes. I know someone else can be inspired.
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September 24, 2008
When you find a good pair of shoes you should love them. Care for them. In fact, you should buy two pair! LOL. I had this pair last spring and I loved them so much that I wore them out. I mean wore them OUT! I tried to get the nice suede material cleaned, but it wasn’t the same. So, I did what any shoe lover would do-bought a new pair. This is why I love the internet, because I would have had to search store after store after store after warehouse to try to find these shoes, let alone in my size since they were from last season. I had to first find out the shoe name, because I didn’t even know it. I just knew the brand, so I searched and searched. Then I searched for them in the desired color. I finally found them AND they were cheap, which they should have been since they were last seasons shoes. I got them for a whooping $25.34 and then 6.00 for shipping. Which I consider a great deal since they were much more than that before I wore them out, LOL. This is the Tribeca Prime Suspect shoe and he is being re-introduced into my closet with his other “friends.” In the past I might not have been so resourceful, I would have searched and searched for a comprable shoe, but no more. And why should I? I like new shoes as much as the next girl (probably more) but I also love the shoes that I have. And as I get older, I am definitely pickier and choosier with the shoes I buy. And I like them so much more for that, which is why I invest in keeping them. Getting those little things on the bottom replaced or repairing a scuff is an absolute must with shoes you love. It’s worth it, trust me.
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September 22, 2008
Where did the money go? Isn’t that the wonderful question plaguing us all in this “economical crisis” that the US is in? My question is slightly different, where are we getting the money is my question. Supposedly we are in a 5 trillion dollar deficit. So where is the federal government getting these billions of dollars to “lend” the huge companies that are going bankrupt. Where? Check it. Me and a friend are talking and we’re like isn’t it a little ass backwards to give the kapoot mortgage/loan companies money versus giving the public the money to be able to pay them back. Isn’t that what should be a focus? Why is this acceptable? I don’t understand. It’s almost as if the powers that be got together and said, “Yes, let’s make the people poorer and keep these rich idiots in place to continue to rape the public. Yay for big business, Down with middle class.” Something is wrong and yet no one is really digging into why this is cool. Why are my tax dollars going to failed companies and not my local schools.
Other money issues.. why has it been found out that the state of New Jersey has been pummeling monies into the Rutgers football team. Shady, under-the-table dealings are why Rutgers is pushing for a stadium expansion for an undeserving team. It’s a ploy by the state to generate revenue. Or is it? Someone needs to be accountable for the money, but no one is being called out.
And why are Republicans surprised that they are taking the brunt of the blame? Have they not been in favor of big business since… FOREVER? I can’t believe that I’m actually living in what could really be a depression or is it that already but we just can’t see it? All these money “crises” have really taught me that money isn’t as tangible as we think and that it really is arbitrary. The US is giving out promises of dollars to save ghosts of companies that exist to simply take our “hard earned” money in the long run. But yet everyone is concerned about “making paper.” As Diamond said in Players Club, “Make the money girl, don’t let the money make you.” PREACH!!!
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September 17, 2008
I have a wonderful video playing at my job today to celebrate this document… even though so many things that occur today are UNCONSTITUTIONAL… I should get John McCain’s quote about how he wants people who will apply interpret the constitution as the forefathers wanted it… Anywho… everyone is all handing out free stuff in honor of Constitution day.. I got a handbook with the Constitution in it, an American flag key chain, and a free piece of cake… ALL is well when there is cake involved… So to celebrate Constitution day I say go out and say some really obnoxious crap and blame it on your right to free speech… and tell them its constitution day so you can say whatever you like… And please… make sure you fully understand the right before you violate it or take advantage of it… Because not knowing is never a good enough excuse…
“The Declaration of Independence was the promise; the Constitution was the fulfillment.”
Posted in Randomness | Tags: learning, news, random | No Comments »
September 9, 2008
I had an interesting discussion the other night about audiobooks, e-books, and regular old books. It seems to be that audiobooks are on the rise and books are on the decline. For me, part of the joy of reading comes from flipping the pages of the book and slipping into a world that isn’t my own. I don’t see the joy in listening to someone read to you. Usually, when someone talks to me for an extended period of time I tune them out. I only have a listening period of so long before my thoughts take over and I don’t know what they said. I feel the same would happen with an audiobook. And, why are audiobooks so much more expensive than a plain old book? I heard someone say their audiobook cost $119. WTF! Why waste that money when you can spend 24.99 and it won’t scratch, you can’t lose the file and if you did misplace a book, its much easier to replace it (and less expensive).
E-books. Oh sweet e-books. another rising trend that I could not partake in. I don’t understand how people can read at the computer for extended periods of time. Imagine having your eyes pierced open reading Harry Potter on your laptop… talk about a headache. And doctors have said that its not good to stare at monitors for so long. It has so many harmful effects that I can’t and won’t name. And sure, you can print out an e-book, but wouldn’t that be same as buying a book (probably waste more paper actually)? I just don’t see the logic. I think this goes back to that dependency on technology.
I love a book. I fantasize about one day having a grand library in my home and sitting there reading books I want. It would have dark wood (because it just looks so nice) and I’d have first editions of all my favorite books. I’d also have one of those cool ladders that slides across the shelves because I’m too short to reach the top shelf. I was devastated when I was younger, my grandmother threw out lots of my books when we moved once. I mean I had a slew of Baby Sitter Club books, Christopher Pike, Goosebumps, and every book from the Little House on the Prairie series including the not so talked about one after Laura got married. AND I had a first edition of Richard Wrights The Long Dream. I’m still searching for that book everywhere. I think if libraries had better hours and maybe even a coffee shop they’d thrive still. I see plenty of people, myself included sitting at Barnes & Noble reading books they don’t intend to buy. I know I’d have my ass at the public library because then I could borrow the book and take it back without a problem. Some books make it home and others don’t. So here’s a cry to our local libraries-Take back your throne. Open Later, Serve coffee/tea and snacks. Trust me!
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September 8, 2008
I always knew i was attached to my devices. My cellphone, computer, ipod or anything else that was small and portable. Needless to say I felt completely disconnected from the world when my laptop was on the fritz for a few weeks a couple of months ago. Sure internet can be accessed via cell phones, work computers or even using my roommates computer. But everything ceases when your own personal computer is gone, or at least for me it did. Goodbye to free music downloads. I can’t tell you how sad it made me not being able to download anything new or update my ipod. Do you know how disheartening it is not to be able to add new songs to a playlist? To see how many play counts a song has received? It’s plain torture on an Itunes lover’s soul. I can’t remember my last music download prior to the kaputzing of my laptop and that depressed me. I couldn’t even download or watch zshare vids. My fascination with the internet and all things wireless was dulled by the realization that the computer that I was using wasn’t mine. Another down side to not using your own computer was not being able to log-in to sites that you need to use because your passwords were saved. Can you say hello to late fees while I spent days searching for the answer to my “secret question(s).” Depressing and costly I might add. Sites need to all get together and make password rules universal, I change my password due to different restrictions-some are only 4 letters, some are a combo of numbers and letters, some want symbols-how can a girl keep up?
I am a member of Gen X and I am not ashamed to say I am hooked. Hooked on instant gratifications and constant access to information. Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night, rolled over and checked your email or did something random online, then rolled over and went back to sleep? No? Ok, maybe that’s just me, but that goes to show how attached I am to my electronics. In the absence of my laptop you’d think I’d have accomplished all the worldly things I’d been missing out on. Not so. I have the same number of unfinished books I had when it broke. I am the person who reads 3 books at once. So I’m still into 3 books, just a little bit further along. I did manage to catch up on a whole season of Gossip Girl and episodes of other shows left on my DVR from November. It was simple-replace one electronic with another.
I’m one of those people who believes that our children aren’t learning proper social skills due to technology being everywhere. But am I just as guilty as them? I mean, I’d rather instant message someone than sit on the phone. Am I someone who lacks social skills? do I prefer texting to talking? Or am I just evolving with technology. Everywhere you look people are using technology to reach broader audiences and increase revenue-online classes at major universities. I am guilty for signing up for one of those. Now you can even get a whole degree without ever having met a professor face to face or even stepping foot into a classroom. Is that really imaginable? Is that really a quality education? Are people becoming so dissocial (is that a real word?) that they can’t even be bothered with classmates and teachers? Isn’t socialization an integral part of learning? This is wh y we make sure out children get into the best pre-schools or our teen-agers don’t get caught up with the “other” crowd. So with socialization being so vital to our well being as people why are we OK with its demise? My 8 year old cousin wants a cell phone. He’s 8. Who does he have to talk to that he doesn’t see in school everyday?
This all came back to me over the last week when I lost my Blackberry. I didn’t have any of my contacts, writing ideas were lost along with quotes I wanted to use. How could I have been so easily enticed-using my blackberry instead of my handy notebook. Why do I text more than I talk. I can remember a time when my life literally revolved around my telephone-my house phone. Then it later progressed to my cell phone, I couldn’t wait to devour my free nights and weekends. But now I talk to everyone via instant messages and my minutes no longer near their peak ( besides the fact I’ve upgraded to unlimited). I am guilty. I am addicted to google and IMs. I like having the information super highway at my fingertips but I don’t like feeling like my social skills are lacking. Nor do I want to get there someday. So this is what I’ll do, I vow to take back my social life and make it more personal! I will call people and actually visit with them more often. That’s step one. (I’m a work in progress).
-p.s.
Do NOT mistake this as vow to not EVER use texts or IMs.. but more so a reform effort.
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August 29, 2008
So in my world, Thursdays have recently become “Spin Class Thursday.” So every week no matter how tired I am and I drag my ass to the 6:45 pm Spin Class at my gym. Now, I’ve been doing this class for about 3 weeks, so its fairly new, but its pretty cool. However, if anyone has taken a spin class they have realized that this bike hurts your ass. Not in a “Oh my god! we worked our glutes hard today,” kinda way, but in a “Damn, my ass is sore kinda way.” No matter how softly I try to come down on my seat, that damn piercing seat makes my ass hurt.
I don’t know if everyone knows what a spin class (or a cycle class as some call it) entails, so I’m going to tell you. It is a class, with an instructor, and you ride a stationary bike. Basically you use increasing levels of tension and various speeds to simulate outdoor cycling. You might crank your tension up really high and stand like your peddling up a steep hill, or you might sit and pedal as fast as you can to pretend your racing. Sometimes you do different “routines.” You might reach back and “GO!” as my instructor yells, or you might lunge forward just to make sure your hitting all your muscles. I’ve only taken this class with one instructor and he’s pretty good, not horrible choices in music, but he’s a talker. And if its one thing I dont like its people who I don’t really know talking to me at the gym. Like, he tries to get you to talk back, “how you feeling out there…” you know stuff that requires a response. Now, I’m not much of a talker in certain aspects of my life and that bothers me. Especially when they force you to talk back. I don’t do well under pressure.
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August 20, 2008
Every time I’m updating my playlists on my iTunes I always wish that I could see if a song is already on a playlist and silently prayed for the iTunes Gods to add that user-friendly feature. And before I tell you about my blunder its important that I note one thing, I consider myself pretty iTunes savvy. So imagine my surprise when one day I right clicked on a song to see something and I noticed the options, add to playlist and shown in playlist. Usually when I add to a playlist I kinda just drag and drop. I’m also assuming that this isn’t a new feature since the last itunes update was for iPhone fixes and etc. So I felt like a complete idiot. Why didn’t anyone tell me this whenever I mentioned it. Now I’m wondering what other features, in Itunes and other programs, am I not taking advantage of. I mean, people call me for help with their iTunes problems. So how could I have missed this. I feel like I need to retake my itunes Tutorial. Sigh
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