My schedule, although chaotic, has not changed. I get up at 6:30AM, head to class, head home to change for work , leave at noon and head into the office, where I stay until about 6, to get home at about 7, to eat, then do homework, then shower and hit the hay. Yes, I do realize that was one VERY long run-on, but I also found it appropriate for the theme of the post, no?

Look forward to the days when my schedule isn’t so…y’know…rinse and repeat.

I met risky drivers, high-fallers, fire specialists and fighting doubles within moments of walking in. It wasn’t long before someone approached me asking “So, what stunts have you done?” and with an outright “HAA!” I stated, point to myself shamelessly, “this girl doesn’t even do roller-coasters, nonetheless jump from the 5th story to land on the windshield of a vehicle!”

The night concluded with the awards ceremony for awards like “Best High Work,” “Hardest Hit,” “Best Stunt with Fire,”  and “Best Work with a Vehicle.” All of which I was extremely impressed by. Although there are stunt-pads and much coordination involved, the bodies hitting shards of glass from 80 ft in the air or the woman hanging from the ledge of a tall building, are all real people risking their safety for the enjoyment of people like you and me. Unless you’re one of them, wherefore you are owed a round of applause. ::claps::

Journalism isn’t dying, it is merely taking on a new shape; adapting to the ever-changing environment that we have created.

The Internet.

The first of two major issues in the industry is that with the emergence of limitless internet connection, blossoming social networks and an affinity for instant gratification among nearly every demographic, micro-blogging sites like Twitter, photo hosting sites like Flickr and Twitpic and hosts like WordPress are giving everyday citizens the ability to become citizen journalists.

Citizen Journalism is creating a new temperature for the industry; information is unbiased and honest, but the quality cannot be controlled. Because information is more readily available, and consumers are finding it to be convenient and unbiased, our traditional news sources are losing the following they once had.

The second major issue is we see today is that more and more people are finding their news on the Internet, but most of the papers are making money from their print advertisements. This, being completely ineffective, means the print newspapers will have to adapt to online endeavors and subsequently charge a fee for their offerings as well as make money from direct-targeted online advertisements. In order for it to be effective and efficient, however, each of the newspapers would have to implement this business model simultaneously and without wavering from the newly-set standard.

Just as technology gains momentum and adapts to our needs,

professions and skills must also adapt.

While picking up a bulky 4-section newspaper may not be completely convenient in our fast-paced lifestyles, it is the duty of learned Journalists to make moves to adapt to the needs of their readers.

Patrick Thornton, blog writer of “The Future of Journalism,” states very wisely that “If you’re not willing to work on the Web, do more than write, get your hands dirty with code, blog, be a social media pro, etc, than journalism isn’t for you.” Those currently working for publications should be hyper focused on making the same content available online as it happens in order to adapt to the changes in modern Journalism.

So, while most think Journalism is “dying,” I challenge you to explore the idea that yes, there are significant differences in the way we dole out news, but the change is both necessary and exciting. We need to take the future of journalism into consideration and initiate a renaissance of sorts. A rebirth of Journalism.

Apparently, at some point last night the auxiliary battery died- causing the heat to shut off. Even after reading the owner’s manual, the cause of my glacial awakening goes unknown.

It is now nearly 1pm and I have refused to get up from bed for anything but to brush my teeth and grab a bowl of cereal. Oh, and to turn the heat back on. The radio is on Jill Fm, the “diva on the dial” playing everything from Backstreet Boys to the Moody Blues. Can’t figure out exactly what this “diva” is thinking with such a compilation.

Maybe this afternoon I’ll let the awning out, I can throw down a blanket outside, and grill some habanero and chicken bratwurst while taking in some sun. The campground we’re stay at- the O’Neill Regional Park- has horse trails, bike paths and hiking trails along the river and make for great ambiance.

I’ll also be nursing my bruised rib back to health…youch!

Until next time,

Mia

For the past 3 years I have spent the holiday season (usually December 27th- January 3rd) on some sort of road trip or travel and have found it to be a great time to get away from all things comfortable and see things from a different perspective upon my return.

Road trips before the new year give you time to reflect on all that has happened in the last year and mentally prepare to return home with a new perspective. This year’s holiday road trip was spent in the U.S. for once, visiting Yuma, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tucson, Arizona. The vast deserts and multicolored sunsets have provided me with the respite that I had been needing in order to sum up the events of 2009.

It’s also nice to get out of your element. We are, by nature, creatures of habit and by stepping away from all that is normal in our lives, we are allowed to see more clearly the things we seek to change or improve in our lives.

Now, I may be biased- seeing as there is obviously a direct connection with travel and my career- but I truly believe that  returning to your home creates a nice segue into the new year.

With the new design comes a few changes in my life as well. I’m moving, for one, so that my daily commute is nearly 1/3 of what it is now, and have also picked up a couple new projects. One of the  more recent developments, is my guest-authoring a blog that aims to help people design their dream lifestyle- Lifescaping, to put it simply.

In addition to writing, studying and travel, I’ve become quite an avid Twitter-er and have even met some really interesting people in the realm of travel and blogging.

Along with picking up some fun projects and tweeting, I’ve been planning another trip. I’ll be heading out of town on an 11-day RV road trip with very little planned ahead of time- just the way it should be! It is a much needed vacation from the daily grind. I’ll be leaving Los Angeles on the 23rd en route to various locations in Arizona including, Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tuscon. If you have recommendations of things to do or see, I welcome your comments here!

On that note, it’s time for me to start making my list of things to pack!

All my bags are packed and I’m on the go
I’m Tweeting here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye.
But new topics are trending, it’s early morn’
The taxi is waiting, he’s tweeting porn
Already I’m so lonesome, I could cry

www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4hsC0nRvZM

So tweet me and cybersmile at me
Tell me that you’ll link to me,
“List” me like you’ll never un-folloowww

I’m leaving on a jetplane, Can’t tweet til we take off again
Oh Twitt, I hate to go000,
There is so many times that I’ve left town
So many times I’ve @replied around
I tell you now those twits don’t mean a thing.

Every place I go I’ll tweet with you
Every song I sing, I blip it to you.
When I come back I’ll wear your wedding-ring

So tweet me and smile for me
Tell me that you’ll tweet @ me,
Tweet me like you’ll never un-folloowww

Cuz I’m tweeting, on a Jetplane.
Can’t tweet til we take off again.
Oh Twitt-love I hate to go,

Now the time has come to leave you
We must take off, let me tweet you.

Close your phone, I’ll be on my way
Dream about the days to come, I wont have to shut my phone
and I won’t have to say…

So tweet me and cybersmile at me
Tell me that you’ll link to me,
“List” me like you’ll never un-folloowww

Tweet it.  Here’s a shorter link for all you twits.    http://nzod.com/tweeting

A recent article in the Santa Monica Daily Post discussed the need to improve the cleanliness of the local Santa Monica beaches by netting off the Santa Monica Pier  from seagulls that desecrate in and around the water. While I agree that  Santa Monica beach pier area has a lot of birds, it is still their natural habitat and netting off their homes and hatchlings seems, well, like the least of our problems.  Their solution was to hire the Bird Busters to net the area beneath the pier- a home to baby birds and gulls alike- for a mere $100,000. Instead, they could spend a fraction of that cost to clean the trash from the beach. (see photo at right)

With California’s budget in the red as of late, wouldn’t you think that Santa Monica- a pet friendly and eco-friendly city would focus more on cleaning the beaches of trash rather than removing the gulls- in any way they deem necessary to do so? Our state needs to re-think budget allocation. Schools are lacking the fundamental requirements that students need in order to learn, State Parks are being shut down and worst of all- many California residents received IOU’s instead of tax refunds. But that’s a whole other issue.

Here is what I wrote to the Santa Monica Daily Post in reply to their article:

It was kinda like this:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nKlzQo3Wqo

Well Ma’am, they pay us to deliver the bulk mail to you, so we can’t simply stop delivering it.  What you can do, however, is contact each of the distributors personally and pay to be removed from their mailing list.

Well, let me give you an idea of how long this would take.  In 2 days of not checking my mail, I received the following pieces of junk: (Keep in mind that most of these have multiple pages…as I’m sure you well know!)

• Organize your home, ClosetWorld- Sent to Postal Customer
• PennySaverUSA- Sent to Postal Customer
• A Local community center pamphlet- I receive this bi-monthly at LEAST
• Walt Disney Concert Hall
• Faith Baptist Schools pamphlet
• Henry’s Farmers Market – Sent to Postal Customer
• Misc Furniture on Sale- Sent to Postal Customer
• IKEA pamphlet (I do not shop here and have not given them my address)
• Doit Center Sale junk- Sent to Postal Customer
• Longs Drugs/ CVS coupons- Sent to Postal Customer
• MoneySaver
• Rite Aid pamphlets/Coupons
• Molly Maid
• 40-page LocalValues coupons
• REDPlum coupons – Sent to Postal Customer
• Vons- Sent to Postal Customer
• Albertsons- Sent to Postal Customer
• Ralphs – Sent to Postal Customer
• Pavilions– Sent to Postal Customer
• Smart& Final- Sent to Postal Customer
• LA Private Trainers – Sent to Postal Customer
• World Wide Windows
• Hometown buffet- Sent to Postal Customer

Yes, Ladies and Gentlemen, two days.

Case and Point.  I will be switching to a private post office box.

Ever sit in your kitchen shaking all the grocery coupons and pamphlets erratically just to make sure you didn’t lose a piece of mail in the abyss of junk mail?  It’s a regularity for me. Maybe I’m getting more junk and bulk mail than most, but that’s unlikely. I’m sure I’ve accidentally tossed an important letter here and there, and for this reason I’ve decided to become a P.O. Box user. Why has getting our mail from the mailbox regressed to the days of sifting through email inbox spam folders of the 90’s ? And better yet, Why can we not opt out of receiving all the junk?

I stopped by my local USPS store to see if I could fill out a form which would (hopefully) put me on a list of others annoyed with CouponMania, MoneySaver and all the other bulk mail, but to no avail. “You mean I have no option in the matter,” I said to the postman.  He looked at me and simply said…”Um…no ma’am.”  Fan-tastic. Cool. Great. Thanks USPS

Yesterday,  when I picked up my mail (and the endless junk mail that accumulated over just 2 days) I noted that it was time for a blog post. Not only irritating, the junk mail problem has become more and more wasteful over time.  Aren’t we trying to go “green?”

Like I said. It’s a big problem. Make the switch- get a P.O. Box near your home or work.

Visit http://donotmail.org/ to sign the petition against junk mail!