Blog Post #9: Dancing Orange Pants Skittles Man?..

Non Sequitur: The fallacy of offering reasons or conclusions that have no logical connection to the argument at hand (e.g. “The reason I flunked your course is because the government is now putting out purple five-dollar bills!”). (See also Red Herring.) Occasionally involves the breathtaking arrogance of claiming to know why God is doing certain things. E.g., "Obviously, God sent the earthquake to punish those people for their great wickedness."

Question: What in the world does this commercial have to do with Skittles? Answer: I haven't a clue. Honestly, seeing this man dancing around in tight little orange shorts does not give me the urge to go out and buy a bag of this candy. It's hilarious, but I do not have an overwhelming craving for candy now. Overall, this is totally irrelevant to promoting the purchase of Skittles.

Blog Post #8: TweetDeck = LOVE

     TweetDeck is a pretty amazing thing I must say. The hashtags I used to find my 2 articles were #FoodAdditives and #HFCS. Needless to say, they brought up a TON of information. Luckily I narrowed down the clutter and found two very interesting articles.

     Under #FoodAdditives, I read an article about the use of carrageenan, an ingredient derived from seaweed. It is in most everything we eat that is packaged, including some organic foods, low-fat dairy foods, and even soymilk. Its purpose is to create a better texture and to eliminate you having to shake or stir the product before consuming it; however, it’s shown to cause extreme inflammation, leading way to 100+ diseases, including cancer.

     Under #HFCS, I pulled up an article from extraordinaryhealth.com stating that in addition to High Fructose Corn Syrups role in obesity, diabetes, and fatty livers, it’s also shown to slow down your brain, putting a damper on your memory and hindering your abilities to learn new things.

Blog Post #7: What Should I Eat?

          I recently read an article on Discovery Fit & Health about what to eat before and after a workout. It was extremely informative. Everyone always thinks that exercising is what counts when, in reality, what you eat is just as important. Making sure your body has plenty of energy to burn while working out is so essential. It's essential that your body has fuel to burn or else you will feel hungry during your workout, as well as "weak and unmotivated." In general, your post workout meal should include something with moderate protein, high carbs, and low-fat. Also, be sure to drink lots of fluids.

            In regards to your post workout meal, carbohydrates are futile. Eating carbs an hour or two after a workout helps to enhance your energy for the next day. Protein is significant as well; it helps to rebuild any tissues that may have been damaged. Additionally, staying hydrated is always necessary.

Blog Post #6: My Three Loves - Nature, Natural Living, and Nutrition.

          I absolutely LOVE the outdoors. Nature is such a huge part of my life and my upbringing. This is what influenced my decision in joining the group entitled Wildlife Gardening. After reading the titles of the articles in this particular group, I decided to click on and read more about Landscaping with Landscaping with Native Plants. Wild flowers and flowers native to the land have always been something I adore. They’re just so beautiful in such a way that’s very mesmerizing to me. While reading the article, I ran across something really interesting; each species of native plant “is a member of a community that includes other plants, animals and microorganisms.” This natural balance that occurs keeps the species’ “in check” while still allowing them to thrive in conditions where they are suited, however, it keeps them from becoming invasive and taking over “as plants introduced from other areas can [become].”

          The second group I decided to join is simply titled Nutrition. Luckily I didn’t have to scroll through pages and pages of articles to find something interesting; the one that caught my eye was the third on the list. Lucky me J. Its title is Top 5 Foods for Healthy Hair so you know I had to click on it. Who doesn’t want healthy hair? I was really surprised at the items on the list: Whole Grains, Vitamin C-rich Foods, Brown Rice, Dal (a legume), and Calcium-rich Foods. Whole grains contain a lot of antioxidants and work in keeping away chronic diseases, making them #1 on the list. Vitamin C is jam-packed with collagen which is a protein that helps to maintain hair follicles, scalp, and blood vessels. Brown rice gives your hair shine. Dal is high in protein, potassium, and magnesium, making it a triple threat. Lastly, calcium-rich foods make your hair shine as well, in addition to strengthening your bones.

          Thirdly, I joined a group called National Natural Living Examiner . Upon browsing the many interesting articles in this group, the one that caught my attention was titled The low down on soda and foods: High fructose corn syrup. For a while now, I’ve been very interested in finding out just what exactly high fructose corn syrup is, why it’s in so many things, and what it is that makes it so very bad for you. After reading this article I was honestly very disappointed. It didn’t tell me anything about what high fructose corn syrup is except that it is “a sugar that is made from corn.” However, from my own gathered knowledge, I understand that it’s extremely detrimental to your health when ingested. For about two years now I haven’t been drinking anything with sugar of any kind, nor have I eaten any fast food, fried foods, greasy foods, candies, or desserts, and I have to say, I haven’t felt better!

Blog Post #5: DIY Galore!

I’ve always been a fan of DIY projects so I figured, what the hay, this would be the perfect topic for my blog!

While browsing the millions of blog links on the World Wide Web, I luckily stumbled across Ms. Courtney Lane Michaels’ blog of Recycled Calendar Art. She made wall art from left over calendar pictures! While I have thought of saving the pictures from my calendars, I decided against it because buying that many frames and stressing about how to place them on the wall and whether or not I want the frames to be the same would have been a total nightmare. Her approach, tear the edges and tape them on the wall! She simply overlapped them ever-so-slightly and achieved a beautiful, one-of-a-kind, collage. I really wish I weren’t so anal. :p

In addition to the calendar art masterpiece, I found a blog for Recycled Candles! After all this time groaning about having half a candle left with no way to light it again, I have finally found a solution to my problem. All you need is: 1. Left over candles 2. A jar of your choice and 3. Wicks from any craft store. Just heat water in a pot to a boil, place the jar right-side-up in the water, and drop in cut up chunks of candle. The chunks will melt as the jar heats up. Be sure to stir the pieces for consistency. Next, she suggests adding extract if you’d like. Finally, place the wick you bought into the jar, cut off the excess on the top, and voila! A brand new candle!  

Blog Post #4: Fact or Fiction?

First things first, here is my Diigo account. :)

After watching Catfish, my first instinct was really on figuring out what in the world Angela was thinking when she pulled this elaborate, out of this world, kind of insane, stunt on this poor man. I came across an article from ABC News, and from what I have taken from it, Angela really wasn’t interested in the well-being of Nev, Abby, Megan, or Aimee when the whole story began to unfold. Her focus seemed to be on the hope that her escapade would become a movie. She actually told 20/20 “I hope they're filming it.”

What was bugging me next was whether or not what I had just watched was legitimate. I found a blog post from Blog.MovieFone.Com with commentary from Henry Joost, and Ariel and Nev Schulman discussing its authenticity. They insist that the documentary is, in fact, “100 percent real.”

I was then interested in what other people thought about the movie and what comments they had. At ScreenRant.Com I found an article with two reviews in one; one being positive, the other negative. The positive reviewer much so believes that the documentary is all factual. Rob Frappier even says he believes that it will be “...One of the most memorable documentary films in history.” Rob gave Catfish a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Next was Mike Eisenberg’s review. In a nut shell, he was not impressed. He feels that the whole movie is a fake and that is was a “bore.” He also insists that we not feel like we missed anything if we didn’t/ don’t see Catfish. His review, 1 out of 5 stars.

I honestly believe that this is a true story. However, at times, it is too good to be true. For now, we have the confessions from the creators that the documentary is factual. Maybe someday down the road we might get a real confession. Who knows.

Blog Post #3: Fun In The Sun :)

It’s a hot and humid summer day. I’m on a road trip and I’m wishing my favorite songs would come on. Listening to this boring radio station was starting to put a damper on my good mood. Just as I was about to change the station, to my surprise, Take Care by Drake and Rihanna comes on and I start to freak out. I loooove this song! It starts to play and I begin to sing along, not missing a word. Eventually, I’m starving for more music. Country Grammar by Nelly comes on, and I’m speechless. My mom and I sang along to this in the car so many times it’s a little ridiculous. Immediately afterward, Ellie Goulding’s Lights comes on and I get so pumped up! This is a road trip I'll never forget.