Twitter is all-a-jitter

It's Tuesday, November 24th, 11:20 a.m., and the class is abuzz as we are schooled in the finer points of creating a Twitter account. I created an account about one year ago, but as of yet have found little use for it. Now, as I am thoroughly involved in my Crecomm program, the usefulness become crystal clear.

Twitter as a messaging tool is a glimpse into the future as communication becomes more immediate and our lives become inextricably attached to it. There will likely be imitators and the idea will continue to evolve as programmers streamline the idea to make it better. Keeping up with this constantly changing face of communication has created a new field of Darwinism (though his theory can pretty much be applied to any subject). If the modern communicator does not choose to use these functions in his or her practice, they are likely not as "in the know" as the communicators that do.

Point me in the direction of the nearest iPhone, I will need to get on board...

Cold War Films: Funny & Not so much...

About once a year there is one movie I like to sit back with a bowl of popcorn and enjoy for its comic brilliance. This movie is, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.

Much has been written about this Stanley Kubrick movie based on the Peter George novel, Red Alert. I don't intend to add too much to it here. Far more perceptive individuals than me have dissected this movie to great length and insight. If you've never seen the movie -until about a week ago my wife hadn't, so it was a perfect occasion- I suggest you set aside about 90 minutes sometime soon and rent it from your neighborhood dvd rental store.

While you're at it, get the movie Fail-Safe as well. I happened to watch this movie about two years ago on the Turner Classics movie channel and it was one of the most suspenseful and powerfully acted films made during, and about, the Cold War era. If Dr. Strangelove is the comedic winner for Cold War movies, Fail-Safe is the victor for the most terrifying endings in a war genre.

If you watch both movies back to back, try not to

be alarmed when the colour returns to your t.v. set.

Remembrance Day has passed, in date only...

I spent a total of fourteen hours on November 11th observing yesterday's Remembrance Day. It is a Remembrance Day I will not soon forget.

Two weeks ago our intrepid journalism instructor, Steve Vogelsang, tasked all 1st year Creative Communications students with reporting on a Remembrance Day service of our choice. We would be required to write two separate stories; one 300 word story about the service we attended, and a 600 word story based on a conversation with a veteran or a person affected by military conflict.

I entered this assignment with a high degree of anticipation. Unlike our last major assignment covering Winnipeg City Council, the makings of these stories were inevitably going to have points of interest. I gave myself a clean shave, dressed respectful of the occasion (black blazer/white shirt), and took off just before 10 a.m. to attend the service in my home of Selkirk at the local arena. The ceremony paid tribute to 30 veterans who sat on the opposite side of a carpeted aisle laid out on the ice surface. On the opposite side of the aisle were an assortment of RCMP, Cadets, Guides, and flag bearers. As 11 a.m. clicked over on the hockey scoreboard, the crowd of over 1300 that had gathered all bowed their heads for two minutes of silence. After the ceremony had ended I spoke with an old friend who was there with his wife and three sons (two of which are in Sea Cadets). After checking all the notes I had made for myself, I drove to the cenotaph to pay my respects, and went on to visit the Selkirk Legion.

As I passed through the doors of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 42, I was greeted by smiles. The attendance at the ceremony was high and it lifted the spirits of the veterans and personnel inside. Not the least of which was a woman I had spoke to earlier from the Selkirk Choir who had performed at the service, and Michael Tassano who handles publicity for the Legion. I told him my purpose of wanting to speak with a veteran about their experience and he pointed out several men who might speak with me.

The first man Tassano directed me to was a veteran who sailed on a Corvette that hunted German U-boats during World War Two. He was talking and sitting at a table with another veteran and having a drink. I introduced myself as a student on assignment and asked if he was comfortable talking about his experiences during the war. I can only describe the look he gave me as one of sorrow of remembrance, for if he were to tell me his story, there would be no possible way for me to accurately write them. He shook his head back and forth signaling his inability to help, and closed his eyes. When he reopened them a moment later I apologized for my interruption and thanked him for his time.

How does a stranger ask another to reveal likely the most vulnerable portion of their lives in a conflict that took over 45,000 of his countrymen, 1,190 of them from the Royal Canadian Navy which he was a part of? There is no real answer for this, but I felt like a jerk for even asking.

One man had stood out from the ceremony I had attended earlier. This man in uniform had walked the aisle during the Remembrance Day ceremony with precision and purpose. Pride flowed from his body with each step forward. Tassano had also pointed him out in the Legion as someone who may be willing to give an interview. I approached him with the same question I had posed to the WW2 veteran and he accepted.

I spent the next three hours talking with this man, Serge Raymond. We had a beer together and ate a lunch of beef stew provided by the Legion. Raymond was more warm and friendly than most people are, considering that on this day military men and women all across Canada (indeed the Western World itself) were honouring those who had died in combat in the service of their country. Raymond's French accent was refreshing and at times made for the occasional joke or two. At one point during my interview, as he spoke of friends who were killed when he was in Afghanistan, tears ran from his eyes. He apologized for having to stop the interview for a moment while he composed himself. I put forth my own apology, taking responsibility for the pain the subject had caused him. It's not hard to understand Raymond's memories will always have a raw edge to them. "It's good to talk," was his reply once we continued.

Below is the assignment I wrote called, Once a Soldier, Always a Soldier.

At the base of each thumb on top of Serge Raymond’s hands is a tattoo. Each the size of a toonie, on the right hand is a red maple leaf, the definitive symbol of Canada. On his left hand is a poppy, the symbol of remembrance to those who have fallen in times of conflict. The tattoos are testaments to things Raymond holds dear; his country, and the remembrance of those who are gone. Serving Canada one way or another has been, and still is, Raymond’s life.

To say 52-year-old Serge Raymond is a soldier in Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry does not reveal the depth of experience he has obtained throughout his career. Though the distinction is of high regard, Raymond has been to many places, and seen many things.

Raymond joined the Canadian Army in 1976 at the age of 18 and became a soldier in le Royal 22e Regiment, the Van Doos, stationed at Canadian Forces Base Valcartier. A year later in 1977, he joined the Canadian Airborne Regiment and in 1981 was sent to Cyprus on a Canadian peacekeeping mission. Because of the 1974 Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus, the United Nations created a resolution with a mandate to stop any conflict that may occur between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities.

“Four of us patrolled a 50 km buffer zone in two separate jeeps, Lynx’s, or APC’s,” says Raymond, “once in the morning and again in the evening. We patrolled as a recon platoon.”

In 1979, Raymond trained in the United States and Germany on soldier exchange programs, earning his wings as a paratrooper with their armed forces. Raymond combined his skills and experience to become an instructor, and sergeant, for the Canadian Airborne School at CFB Edmonton in 1983. This was also the same year, and the same place where he would marry his wife of now 26 years, Barb.

After the 1985 Turkish embassy attack in Ottawa, when three men exploded the embassy gate and shot a security guard and took hostages, Raymond was part of security details that protected American, French, Japan, Indian, Israel, and Turkish embassies. On occasion, he was security for the Prime Minister as well.

From 1986 to 2007, Raymond served as an officer with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. His experiences with the RCMP took him to many locations in Canada. In 2008, Raymond re-entered the Canadian Forces as a private with the 2nd Battalion PPCLI (2VP) at CFB Shilo.

“Once a soldier, always a soldier,” Raymond says, on his strong urge to return to the military.

On March 1, 2008 Raymond went to Afghanistan as part of the International Security Assistance Force to help provide stability for the country and fight the Taliban. During Raymond’s six month tour in Afghanistan, 19 Canadian soldiers were killed. Nine of these soldiers were from the same battalion as Raymond.

“There was a Taliban attack on a patrol that I was usually a part of,” says Raymond, the memory and emotion still raw, “three of my platoon members were killed in the attack. In four days they were scheduled to leave the forward operating base and come back to Kandahar.” To mark the tragedy of this day, Raymond had the date 3-9-8 tattooed on his arm.

In war we all mourn tragedy, but the military camaraderie cannot be denied. Raymond is scheduled to return to Afghanistan in 2011 should Canada’s commitment continue. To this day, he dreams of paratrooping with fellow soldiers.

“I may retire,” Raymond says, “but my options will always be open.”

The Hurt of Johnny Cash

I've wanted to create this juxta for a while now, but school has kept me uber-busy with projects. Johnny Cash died on Sept. 12, 2003, and it was my intention to post something on him around the anniversary of his death. I've finally found the time to pay a small tribute to this legend of music.

Johnny Cash was one of the most popular country musicians of his generation. He remained popular into the late 1990's before his death. One of the reasons was that he was able to take a contemporary song and give it his own Johnny Cash touch. Johnny Cash recorded Hurt in 2002 and is one of the examples heard here. The first time I heard him sing this Nine Inch Nails song, I was blown away.

I recalled the original NIN version from the album The Downward Spiral from my rock and roll youth. For me, the song speaks to the excesses of a lifestyle that will ultimately kill you. When you hear Cash play this song in his own way, I can feel the actual 'hurt' coming through in his voice. Whereas with NIN version, I feel that maybe his remorse has come too late and I have less sympathy for that. Here's the NIN version of the same song in its original form.

Both versions are performed equally as brilliant, but it's strange how I feel more sympathy for Cash who is aged and has not denied his own excesses in life. In the NIN version of the same song, I come away more with a feeling that the poor choices made in youth are maybe their own fault. I think I came across Cash's version of this song after his death. Knowing that Cash died within five months of his wife, June Carter Cash, made this song more poignant.

Cash had taken on other contemporary songs as well. Two standouts for me were a tune by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and the song Rusty Cage from a grunge band called Soundgarden. Cash received many accolades for his portrayal of Hurt and it stands as one of his final testaments to a man who is living his final years.

Feel free to disagree with me entirely.

Blogging: “To be or, or not to be…that is the question”

All hail the era of the blog, the era of the blog we hail! (or something like that) Believe it or not (as this was Wikipedia sourced), the modern blog was born of the online diary as early as 1994. The weblog phenomenon has continued to build in popularity to present day and will likely not be disappearing any time soon into online history. There are simply too many opinions with a desire to be heard. Is this a force for good or a step in the opposite direction?

I think blogs are best when they aren’t taken too seriously. At best, they avoid being offensive and lean towards humour. A blogger can always choose to inform their audience, but hopefully they find a creative way to do it and do not just spout off. I can’t imagine what Rush Limbaugh’s blog would be like as I wouldn’t risk visiting the site and fouling my hard drive.

That being said, political blogs are not all bad. As long as their intent is to inform and not manipulate, sign me up. What is unfortunate in the realm of the blogosphere is there really isn’t a checks and balances system for online opinion. I’m not aware of any governing body that moderates poor taste according to blogs. There probably should be one, but I suppose for the most part we vote with our mouse’s.

If an individual creates their own blog, they’re relatively free to say what they want. What can happen for many blogs are opinions that can be misunderstanding of the original topic. This may not always cause too much harm as with the amount of blogs worldwide has surpassed the 180 million mark and one persons opinion becomes lost in a landslide.

What I feel is a great use for a blog and hopefully most peoples intention is the idea of social networking. Whether it be for keeping faraway friends updated on what’s happening in your life, or a way of increasing your chances of employment, blogging comes into its own.

In this way you have a tool to present your personality to others in the hopes of gaining their interest. It makes keeping in touch with those close to you much easier as they can link to your blog and find out what’s new in your life. Words of encouragement can follow if they post a comment on your blog congratulating you on an achievement or providing a “there, there…” when disaster occurs.

The way you choose to blog says a lot about yourself. For me, I try to stay on the light side as much as possible. There are too many other mediums out there that offer up healthy doses of seriousness already. The world needs laughter and pretty much take anyone, as long as it’s not in too bad of taste. How will you know, you ask? Send out your blog addy to everyone in your email list and see what happens. If you build it (laughter), they will come…

Alex, I'll take capitals for $500.

I suppose it was inevitable that I post about the grade I was given today. Our class was handed back assignments that involved a pitch letter to a well-known magazine. The task was a fictional one, but we were to treat it as "the real deal" and strive for perfection. (it's pretty much the tenet of every course in this program) When I handed in the assignment a little over a week ago, I felt pretty good about it. I had struck out across the web and did considerable research, all the while making sure I sounded professional for the client I was representing.

You know there's a "but" coming, right?

I had done well, but there was one inconspicuous, yet gross, error.

I had spelled BlackBerry with one capital "B" reducing my mark to a 4/10 instead of 8/10.

I felt like I had been kicked in the stomach. I uttered the word that actress Jenny Slate was supposed to use when she made her mistake on Saturday Night Live last month. My first choice is always to go with the original, especially when I am in pain and have stubbed my toe, but I am in a classroom environment and must respect the ears of those around me.

"Fair" is not to be discussed here as the policy of making this type of mistake and the drubbing that will result has been mentioned on many occasions in several different classes. That's the rule that's been laid down and I was aware of it. What makes it more painful is that I've been burned by this mistake before in another class. Why did I not check my assignment better...

I can only chalk it up to just having to consider things I've never considered before. Small comfort if I don't put a stop to this before I find myself having plenty of time after Christmas, if you know what I mean. I'm already picturing myself as some crazy person who has post-it notes everywhere reminding me "what not to do!" so this won't happen again. Is this the answer I ask myself? Not sure about you, but I'm guessing stocks in 3M (that's a capital, right?) are pretty active when students head into the classrooms each year. Maybe we should all invest $500 each in 3M stock every August. We'd double our money just in time for the holidays. Whaddya say?

Disclaimer: all the above should be seen (mostly) as satire and is not meant to harm the reputation of any individual fictional or otherwise. They're all good people just trying to teach us to be better and make a living someday.

Students beware, we dared to compare

Our Buyer Beware team took on the task of coffee tumbler testing (that’s me kneeling with the goofy grin in the red and white fleece). We wanted to know which tumbler out of the five we tested would be the best buy for your stretched-thin student dollar. We sought out to see which one would perform the best under the harshest of conditions. We called our test:

Survivor: “Tumbler Island”

Our mission was to put these five different coffee tumblers through a set of tests that would ensure one of two things. Complete and utter failure or tumbler superiority. The five competitors we chose were:

1. Sears tumbler

2. Starbucks tumbler

3. Tim Hortons tumbler

4. Superstore tumbler

5. Dollarama tumbler

The four tests we used to challenge these five tumblers were:

-leak test

-heat retention test

-car cupholder test

-drop test (our favourite)

Test #1: Will it leak?

People are active. We move everywhere. And when we do, we sometimes make a mess. A leaky coffee tumbler can ruin anyone’s day, especially if it leaks onto your clothes or your laptop computer. We tested to see how well the seals on the lids of our coffee tumblers held up under severe conditions.

We filled up each tumbler with water about one inch from the top and put the lids back on. We had a good idea about how these would perform due to their design. The Superstore and Starbucks tumblers had screw-top lids and likely wouldn’t leak. The other three had lids that pressed or snapped on. The Dollarama tumbler had no closer for the hole in the lid. It would not fare well.

We brought all five outside and shook them in three different ways to simulate different conditions. We first shook the tumblers vertically side to side, then held them upside down, then shook them upside down. Each test was about ten seconds long. We did these tests over a concrete driveway so any droplets that fell would be seen easily. The results were:

1st place: Superstore tumbler; no leaks during any test.

2nd place: Starbucks tumbler; a couple of drops lost during shake tests.

3rd place: Tim Hortons tumbler; mild leaks during shaking, drops fell upside down.

4th place: Sears tumbler; leakage during shaking, dripped steadily upside down.

Last place: Dollarama tumbler; leaked at every opportunity.

Test #2: To cool for school?

We boiled enough water to fill all five tumblers and tested each one to make sure they all started out the same temperature. Before each lid was put on a tumbler, we used a thermometer to ensure an equal 199 F. We tested each tumbler at three intervals: 30 minutes, 45 minutes, and 1 hour. The results at the end were:

1st place: Starbucks tumbler at 164 F. (a loss of 35 degrees)

2nd place: Superstore tumbler at 155 F. (a loss of 44 degrees)

3rd place: Sears tumbler at 148 F. (a loss of 51 degrees)

4th place: Tim Hortons tumbler at 145 F. (a loss of 54 degrees)

Last place: Dollarama tumbler at 143 F. (a loss of 56 degrees)

Test #2.1: Will it freeze?

Okay, okay, not freeze exactly. Our team realized that we needed to conduct a test to simulate a cold winter. We pictured a student waiting for a transit bus, coffee in hand, and what it would take to cool their coffee before they had a chance to enjoy it.

We repeated the same start-off method as the previous test, but when the clock started ticking, these little tumblers were placed in a chest freezer. We tested the tumblers at two intervals this time: 15 minutes and 30 minutes. Like really, who’s waiting for a bus more than 30 minutes, right? Our start off temperature was 200 F this time around, likely due to residual heating from the previous test. The results at the end were:

1st place: Starbucks tumbler at 174 F. (a loss of 26 degrees)

2nd place: Superstore tumbler at 169 F. (a loss of 31 degrees)

3rd place: Tim Hortons tumbler at 158 F. (a loss of 42 degrees)

4th place: Sears tumbler at 157 F. (a loss of 43 degrees)

Last place: Dollarama tumbler at 140 F. (a loss of 60 degrees)

Test #3: Will it fit?

In this test we tested the cup holders of two common models of cars that you are likely to see on our city streets. Heck, you may even own one of these types of vehicle. With so many different cars out there we can’t test them all, but it will give you something to consider when you go out to buy your next tumbler. (much easier than buying a new car)

Out of the five tumblers tested, two of them were not the best fit for the cup holder of a 2005 Toyota Corolla. The Sears tumbler was a bit wobbly, and the handle on the Dollarama tumbler wouldn’t let the tumbler seat properly at all.

The second car we used to test-fit coffee tumblers was a 2004 Pontiac Sunfire. In this case we had very different results. The only tumbler that fit into the cup holder, and then gain reasonable access to, was the Sears tumbler.

One piece of advice we can pass on from this test is to make sure you hang onto your receipt until you try your tumbler in your cars cup holder. What really determines how well your tumbler fits is the type of car you own. Again, much easier to to a buy new tumbler than a new car. I can’t stress this enough.

Test #4: Will it break?

This test was the most fun to conduct. I guess because it panders to a base human nature to see things crash and burn. Well, crash anyways. In this test we wanted to see how well our tumblers held together if they were dropped from reasonable, everyday heights. No hijinks like SCTV televisions falling from rooftops. (as fun as that might be)

The first drop test we conducted on our unsuspecting tumblers was from waist height. This would represent the height which a tumbler would fall if a person was walking with it. Tumblers in hand and full of water, we took to the sidewalks outside Red River College and proceeded to wreak destructive forces. Here’s how they measured up.

1st place: Starbucks tumbler; hardly a scratch, no leaks.

2nd place: Superstore tumbler; lid loosened a little, no leaks, hardly a scratch.

3rd place: Tim Hortons tumbler; exterior crack down side, lid stayed on, no leaks.

4th place: Dollarama tumbler; lid came off, but no breakage.

Last place: Sears tumbler; lid came off, base broke from main body of tumbler.

For the second drop test we wanted to perform, we needed a sturdy set of stairs. Not wanting to endanger the public at large, we chose the stone staircase of the Public Safety Building across campus. (it was already drizzling outside, so a little more water wouldn’t hurt) Our team went to the top of these stairs, about seven in total, and walked towards them as if we were about to descend. When we reached the edge, we each let go of our tumblers and let calamity ensue. These were the results.

1st place (tie): Starbucks and Superstore tumblers; minor scuffs, stayed intact.

At this point of the results, the rest all pretty much came up losers. The lid flew off the Dollarama tumbler, the Tim Hortons lid flew off and the handle cracked, and the Sears tumbler broke apart even more with the slide mechanism on the lid disassembling before our eyes to lay at our feet. All of our scientific data now compiled, we cleaned up our mess and headed back to campus.

Conclusions

If you’ve read all this, you’re likely seeing a pattern and can draw your own conclusions. Here are the clear winners in terms of the testing our team conducted. I’ve included the price of each tumbler we tested to help you make your best decision.

1st place: Starbucks tumbler $21.95; best overall performance.

2nd place: Superstore tumbler $14.99; slightly underperformed, didn’t retain heat quite as well, had a minor lid issue during first drop test.

3rd place: Tim Hortons tumbler $4.69; did not lose lid from first drop test, but body cracked, heat retention was average.

4th place: Sears tumbler $9.99; broke on first drop test, second drop test broke even further, heat retention only slightly better than Tim’s tumbler.

Last place: Dollarama tumbler $1.25; leaked consistently (no closer on lid), poor heat retention, lid came off for both drop tests.

So there you have it! The skinny on how these tumblers stacked up. The big question for any student out there is whether or not they want to shell out the most money (Starbucks) for performance, or buy a tumbler (Superstore) that only slightly underperformed our first place winner. The difference being seven dollars between the two, I can field a guess which might be the better buy. If you’re loyal to what some people might call ‘Canada’s coffee’, you could go with the Tim Hortons tumbler. Just don’t drop it or the relationship is over. The Sears tumbler just didn’t seem to have the reliability we might have thought. The Dollarama tumbler should only be considered for gag gifts or for throwing at the head of an ex-lover who’s done you wrong.

The best word of advice I can give any student or consumer is to find a stainless steel tumbler with a screw-top lid and then shop for the best price. Our top two competitors both had these design features and ensured their success in our tests.