Music and Running

So before when I would go running I would always take my ipod and listen to music because I thought it would make me more motivated to run harder and longer.  Then about a month ago I stopped taking my ipod with me and I realized that the music was more of a distraction than anything else.  Without it, I was free to think about life, which is always a good thing.  The prophets and apostles have been telling us to slow down and take some quiet times to really ponder and for me not listening to music while running or during the whole commute to and from work has helped me to be more in tune with the spirit and evaluate where I am in life.  While music is a good thing (as long as it is clean and doesn't drive the spirit away), it is also good to take a break from it.

News

Sometimes it really drives me crazy when the news or other magazines distort reality and what is really happening in the world.  I came across this picture and it seems like this really is how the news is sometimes.  Also a while ago I was talking to a friend about the news and we were talking about how a lot of news stations won't talk about happy news as often because they get more viewers from the negative (and maybe scary) news.   I don't know if that is true or not, but I would believe it.  It seems like a lot of people are just out there to earn money and not for the greater good of the people.  

Miss Representative

I was amazed by this movie.  Seriously, the whole way I look at media and the world changed because of this movie.  The part I was most shocked about was the limited number of women with careers in the media and those who do are down talked or portrayed in a more sexual light.  Also I was amazed at how poorly women in leadership positions are treated and how many men belittle and make fun of or sexualize their every action.  I hope that when I have daughters and even sons that I can teach them how wrong the media truly is and what standards they need to uphold in this very male dominant world.

WIFI

Is WIFI/wireless a good thing or not?  I have thinking about this question this weekend a lot.  I think that it is nice, but it is also a huge distraction!  For instance, when there are people over and everyone is on their computer or smart phone or some other device, there is no conversation, just silent social isolation.  It takes away from family time, from study time, from doing a number of other wholesome physical (rather than electronic) activities.

This weekend my husband and I were in Idaho with a bunch of his extended family and there were several times that I noticed a few people would just be on their electronic devices and not communicate or interact with the rest of the group and for me, I love family time.  I loove playing tangible games, talking, and having fun together.  This weekend, I did not use my computer once.  I did not check my email, I hardly texted or called anyone and I had a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend.  On the other hand, in the past, I have been known to spend gobs of time sucked into electronics and it makes me feel icky and lonely.  I personally feel that when there are better things to do (like spend time with family), electronics are not necessary and in fact they hinder family time.

Favorite Commercial :)

I love this commercial, it is so cute and it makes me laugh.  What I love most about it is that it portrays a very positive imagination and family relationship.  Anyways, here it is if you haven't seen it:

Mainstreaming

It is incredible how the media will mainstream our beliefs.  For instance, I went visiting teaching earlier and we got talking about animals and how because of being mainstreamed by the media, to us some creatures seemed more dirty and evil, like rats.  We both agreed that rats just seem more evil and dirty because that is how they are usually portrayed in cartoons and other media when in reality they are not much more dirty and certainly not more evil than some other creatures like a hedgehog (which is what my visiting teachee owns).  I just think it is really interesting how the media really does change and alter how and what we think.  So we should be very aware and careful what we watch!

Billboards

So I have an internship up in Lehi this summer, and so I have a 25-40 minute commute there and back and I see all sorts of Billboards advertising just about everything under the sun.  I noticed today as I was driving home on i-15 that the  ones that stood out to me the most were the simple ones that emphasized just ONE point.  The ads that were very wordy and crazy I had a hard time figuring out what some of them were for, because I was driving by after all.

I just thought it was interesting the things people advertise and how they do it.

Because of this class, I have been more and more aware of all the media surrounding me each and every day, and it is amazing what I see that I never knew was there in the first place!