When God Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade

Write your homework down. Be prompt. Pay attention. Do not procrastinate. Have good attendance. Ask questions. Never settle for less. All of these will lead to good grades and a great education. However, there are certain points in life that some people will never grasp. For instance a mathematical mind may not be able to grasp the details of the color wheel. Or possibly a music major understanding the laws of physics. People are not made to be good in all matters. I had one occurrence with this when I took and economics class. I never studied so hard and did so bad in a class as I did in that class. My mind is creative. It likes color schemes and logical flows of pictures and hands on learning. This occurred in high school and when I came to college I swore I would never take an econ class. I have yet to take one as a senior. Out of all my classes I manage to come across the hardest class for me my senior year. Radio News. Radio news has challenged me more then any other class, but also taught more then all my others as well.

What is radio news? We write, produce, along with the reporting and anchoring for a two minute news minute each week. Seems simple right? Well, at the beginning of the semester I was not even close to knowing what I was doing. For whatever reason, I could not sync my thoughts with my actions. For the first time in my life I felt like I was cooking in my own kitchen for the first time. Meaning I had all the skills and tools but I did not know how to put it all together. I was frustrated. I did not like the class. I did not care to do radio news. I thought it all stupid, pointless and played only to my weaknesses. Unfortunately I needed this class to graduate. I was stuck. It was either suck it up and work until I was blue and crazy or not get a degree. Easily guessed I choose to suck it up. I started being proactive about my life and my grade. I went to the professor shared my concern about not passing because of my “mental block”. I re-arranged my schedule to dedicate more time to the classes demands. I even went so far as to taking a pre-test for ADD. I became so adamant about doing well in radio news that it was almost sickening. Although I was in a dead belief that nothing would work and I was destined to fail radio news, things changed. My thoughts changed.

My perseverance for doing well started to pay off. I changed my schedule to dedicate Sundays to news. I found new ways to focus in class. I and believe it or not it helped. I was not a lost and helpless puppy. I knew my stuff. Slowly I started grasping the concepts in action. My writing was improving. my sound clips were getting better. I anchor better and my reporting is better. I feel proud that I have turned myself around so much. I also feel more confident in myself that I can do it. I have the abilities I just need to apply them fully. As much as I hate to admit it the class has actually taught me a lot not only about myself but also about life real world. Learning how to talk to people for a beat has been one of the things I learned. Asking people to help you and learning to ask the right questions is par t of what I have learned as well. A big part of what I learned is learning to listen and take my time. Because I lie to be involved and do a lot I feel that I should be speedy with everything. After much ado I have come to realize what I have learned transcends just the news room. My efforts have bared fruit (lemons) and I am proud of what I have made with them (lemonade).

“Scary Judge of Talent”

I maybe a senior but I will be the first to admit I do not know everything. I do however consider my self to be a “scary judge of talent” (Quote From The Recruit). Well a decent judge at the least. Of my many successors in the broadcasting major I would have to say there are few who interest me. One of these successors Andy Bortz sparks my interest. He may not be on air talent but he is amazing at music. Now what do I mean Music? Well there are some people who can sing or play music but there are others who listen to music. Listening is Andy specialty.

OK go ahead call me crazy. But there is a definite difference in listening to music for fun, listening with a critical ear and listen to capture the moments. Andy captures the beat the moment the personality of the music. When he listens to music he listens to the details. The drum, the flute, the piano, the down beat, and the upbeat. He has an uncanny ability to take music and mix it to fit the ear. Andy knows what people want. He can take a group of people define the audience and choose music accordingly. The transition is smooth and there is just enough old and new in the mix to make everyone happy. So what exactly would I say Andy is good … no, no, great at? DJing. Yes he knows the ins and outs of a radio station. Fro working the board or on air talent, it just comes naturally. He sounds great too. He understands how to move his voice with the music. Understanding when are appropriate times to be excited or calm is key. Working the Audience is another thing, he is good at. Lets use the “who cares?” rule. Taking a group of Caucasian 42 year olds and playing 50 cent, is not going to do much good for anyone. But take a group of male 18 to 21 year olds and that is much more reasonable. Andy grasps this concept. What is even more impressive is what he does with the music. He can mix songs that most people would never know can go together. I have heard some music and he honestly just has talent.

There is no rhyme or reason why people have certain talents. But to be able to find what your talent is at a relatively young age is quite and amazing. I believe that if you thoroughly enjoy something then it makes it your efforts twice as good. And I think in Andy’s case this happens. He does genuinely enjoy music working it and molding it. And maybe that above all else is what makes him shine.

My Mentor

There are a few things in college that will surmount anything you learn or do in any class. Mentors, best friends, and Just dealing with life through college will teach you leaps and bounds beyond what you would imagine. For many, including myself, you will find a person, a friend, who look up to and admire. I have found that person. Carsen Nesbitt… a very professional person, fair, a good student, a good sister and a great friend. I can honestly say that I look up to her more then anyone I know. Beyond my family, beyond my best friend, beyond any mentor or teacher that could pass my way… Carsen proves to be a person I can admire. There are so many reasons I look up to Carsen on a personal and professional level but I only want to give you a few instances.

I meet her through Sigma Kappa, Student Government Association, and Theta Chi. After I got to know her I started to watch what she did in SGA, in the sorority, how she handled herself in tough situations. She was professional and fair in every position she held. I started asking her opinion on different decisions I was making in my personal life as well as leadership positions. There is one specific instance that I remember made me think she knows what she is talking about.
My first semester Junior year I had my heart set on one thing, being president of Sigma Kappa. Now what you have to understand is I like to be involved, so I tend to be in everything… or at least as much as possible. I like to be busy. But I was so dedicated to being president, I was willing to give it all up. I did my homework too. I talked to the current president and Carsen. I need her opinion. She told me what people thought and how it could hinder me. She told me people thought I was too busy. Her honesty allowed me to try and to position myself so people would my dedication. Things happened and I didn’t end up running, but it was her who was able to walk me through my decision.
Carsen graduated May in 2008. I miss her dearly but I found that I have so much to learn from her still. She is in Law school and loves every minute of it. She knows what she wants and knows how to get it. She is also amazing at what she does. I love taking to her about what I should do when I graduate because I want what she has. She is happy with that she is doing in Law School and surrounded by good friends. I want to love what I do and she has given me such good advice as to what to do personally and professionally. Thankfully, I know that no matter what I do she will be there to help me and listen.

Appreciation

How much do you appreciate life? An interesting question but a very hard to answer. How do you measure appreciation for life? What kind of quantity can you make? You can’t. It is as simple as that You cannot define something intangible. However, you can tell when you personally appreciate life more then you did before. Different instances in your life such as death or births or disease will help you appreciate what you have. One reason I am doing my capstone on JoAnn Esposito is because it give hope to those who don’t have any and helps those who do appreciate what they have.
“Living Strong” is a documentary on JoAnn Esposito. It takes you on a journey through her stage 4-breast cancer, from beginning to end. All the way through her treatments to whom and what kept her motivated. More impressive still she manages a Breast Cancer Research Foundation called Par For the Cure. She is cancer free now and spends her time raising money for Par for the Cure. Par for the Cure takes place in Las Vegas, where they have a celebrity Golf tournament. While her son raising money and coordinates efforts on the West side JoAnn Focuses her energy here. In New Castle, she raises thousands of dollars for breast cancer research. All of the money goes straight to the breast cancer research, specifically to Dr. Slamon. A new castle native, who along with his team came up with a new drug that fights HER-2 cancer. As you go on the journey looking at the strength and courage, she had during this time you will find yourself amazed that one person could go through so much. In the end, I want my video to be an inspiration to others. I want people to appreciate life because it could be gone in an instant. I will produce direct run crew all on a budget of nothing to produce a 10-minute film. I will premiere it on Tuesday December 2nd in Mueller Theater at 5:00pm. Designed in accordance with the documentary is a poster and a trailer.