Thoughts on Building a Community Website

Here we are again at that time of year when books are packed up or sold off, and luggage bags are pulled out from underneath beds for use. Also a good time for evaluations and recaps. Learning how to build a community website was the purpose of my New Media II course this semester.

The easiest part was sourcing material for my chosen topic of Intelligent textiles; I underestimated the amount of information that I'd find on the web. It was exciting to learn that whole industries and a multitude of professions were built upon something I'd never previously heard of. Seeing as my topic of choice is something close to the heart, I am motivated to find out how I can apply my learnings to my future.

It was a even more of a challenge for me compared to previous work I'd done in Professor Klinkowstein's classes, as it required a lot of fraternizing. I personally work best solo, but a community website obviously entails recruiting the cooperation of others. I dislike having to chase people around, cajoling them to do something. That's why I could never work in sales. However, my efforts paid off - I got to build up my ability to work as a team, and with the help of my 'community,' we put together a website to be proud of.

Copy Machine Typography

Planning stages; all great ideas start in a sketchbook.

Turning the copy room into an art studio..

Via Behance Network.
Artist: José Ernesto Rodriguez

Imprisoned, but not inactive

This is why I heart NY.

Phenomenal artists and Chinese civilian, Ai Wei Wei, is not only unappreciated by his government, but also tossed in jail for tainting young minds with propaganda art. Meanwhile, Bloomberg has called him "one of the most talented, respected and masterful artists of our time.”

New York (or the USA for that matter) has long earned its reputation as 'land of dreams.' As someone who moved to the States to realize that dream, I understand only too well. In Bloomberg's words, NY “fiercely defends the right of all people to express themselves."

Which is why it's no surprise, but still an honor, that Mr. Ai's first public sculpture, “Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads” opened at the Pulitzer Fountain in front of the Plaza Hotel just two weeks ago.

Read the full article on the NYTimes site.

Luxirare - Designer Food Blogger

Once again, Luxirare wows me with her simple yet elegant recipes. Her most recent dish - Truffled Shrimp Tempura.

What sets her apart from other food bloggers?



Her kitchen experiments are comparable to high-fashion, which is the other love of her life.


Her photography is also exceptional; she manages to inject drama in a task as ordinary as cleaning seafood or deep frying battered shrimp.



And then of course, there is the packaging. I don't think she sells the fruit of her labor. However, her elaborate presentations set an inspiring example of how to think out of the box when gifting food.

Fossil necklace

Mr. Devin likes dinosaurs.

Interview with An Exceptional Person

Brittany Miller is a 19-year old student at University of Maryland. We became acquainted through a mutual friend who lives in the town of Orley, MD. Although she's not in the art nor design industry, I chose her as my exceptional person over others whom I've met over the course of this semester. Her work etiquette is excellent, and I found my interview with her to be the most interesting and inspiring.

Q: What do you do?

A: So I've been riding for over ten years and I'm now a working student at a dressage barn, which means I get paid in riding lessons for working. I'm in a professional agriculture sorority, Sigma Alpha, and we work to educate people about agriculture. For instance, we go to elementary schools and teach kids where their food, fuel and clothes come from. We also try to build on our own knowledge by going on USDA tours and having agricultural professionals come speak to us. I am also on a dairy cattle judging team; we learn how to look at dairy cows and heifers (baby cows) and rank them - within their class - based on their udders, frames, feet and legs, and dairy character. Then we present our the rankings and reasoning to a higher judge. We'll be competing at dairy world expo in the fall. Tomorrow is my heifer show at Maryland Day. I've been working on training my heifer to walk with me and stand upright on its own. Last year, I presented a lamb and we won second place. This summer, I’ll be working at a dairy farm, which will allow me to learn all about the industry. We’ll be doing some pretty awesome things like pull calves out of cows during difficult births. I'll also be working at the state fair at the end of the summer, giving barn tours and teaching the public about livestock. So right now I'm an Animal Science major with a focus on Animal Care and Management. As far as my future career plans go, I want to work in the dairy industry. However, I'm not sure what specific position I want; I could be a professor while doing research in lactation or nutrition, an extension specialist, or a dairy herd manager on a farm. But I've decided that a dairy technologist is not what I want to do after all.

Q: How did you get started with your major / What kindled your interest?

A: It all started from riding horses. I just love being outside and working with animals. When I came to the University of Maryland, I’d intended on pursuing Equine Studies, but upon coming here, I was exposed to so many species of livestock that I'd never had the chance to work with. I somehow fell in love with cattle (even though they smell much worse than horses!). There's nothing I enjoy more than spending an entire day outdoors, working with the cattle, and coming back tired and covered in manure. I think that coming to University of Maryland and being given the chance to try my hand at certain new things made me realize it was exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life. Since coming here, I've also learned to appreciate how agriculture is such an integral part of our live. Most people don't realize it, but it's exciting to learn how so many things in the sector carry over into my daily life.
  

Q: What tips can you share with someone who would be interested in pursuing your future profession?
A: To someone who is interested in this profession I would say that the most important thing to do is to get out there and get some hands on experience. In this field, classroom reading is not enough to learn how to do something. As often as a professor may describe how to give a shot, pull a calf, castrate a lamb, or milk a cow, nothing compares to getting out there and doing it yourself.
  
 
     

Making your Office Space Memorable

Renown plastic surgeon, Dr. Kim, of Beverly Hills, CA knows how to get a smile out of his clients while sending across a message.

Part of Michelangelo's The Creation of Adam is incorporated next to the elevators. The doctor means to make a statement, saying that one can "be born again."

Via Reflectionof.me