I've Got the London Look

I have arrived in London, and boy is it spectacular! The streets are bustling, the architecture is phenomenal and on top of everything, my midwestern accent is in the minority! Unfortunately, my trip here was not so amazing…

After waiting anxiously in line at O’Hare–as well as countless calls to Jeff (my travel agent…yes I have a travel agent) and making everyone behind the airline front desk feel about this |  | big, we were rescheduled for the next 6am flight to DC, to then make the trek to London. We did get two $10 vouchers for food, but naturally my five star dinner of pizza and one chilled glass of pinot grigio would cost $25, but who’s complaining? Finally, nearly 12 hours after our initially scheduled flight, we were on our way!

I cannot even put into words how jet-lagged I felt on Wednesday. Getting hit by a bus + the world’s worst hangover + the tilt-a-whirl might get close. Regardless, we spent a blissful day touring the streets of London, where we saw all the fancy sites like Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey (which I absolutely must go back to), as well as some of the most expensive homes in all of Great Britain. The streets here are beautiful and authentic, although they definitely make navigation a challenge. We finished off the night with dinner at the Crown Tavern…which sounds fancy but wasn’t nearly all that I’d hoped for. After waiting over an hour for our entrees, my fillets of Gurnardo with riscotti were simply medicre. I’m holding out for the next few dinners (Asian tonight) but I’m even more excited to try some food that isn’t so similar to AJ Bombers. Kidding-I love AJ’s.


Anyway-today has been thrilling as well. We had a quiz this morning (that I prepared for like a champ and probably got 200% on it, especially after getting eight hours of sleep in the last three days) and listened to a lecturer from a local marketing agency. While he was quite interesting, we then ventured out to Oxford Circle for a lunch rendezvous and shopping! I’ve been trying my best to not scream ”I’m a tourist, please take my bag!” by looking confident and not stopping in the middle of the road with a map, today was an exception. Toting my souvenir bag and ‘I <3 London’ sweatshirt like nobody’s business, I did some serious work in all the London shops (picture New York city on roids…and yes, every shop was the same). Regardless, I’m quite happy with some of my findings, although feel like I can’t quite leave until I’ve bought a purse that, when others ask where on earth I got that gorgeous bag, I can humbly reply, “Oh, this? Yeah, I got it in London at this store that doesn’t exist here. Maybe you can find a similar one at the mall.”


But enough about the shopping. I’m seeing a show tonight that I will gush about later (when my internet finally gets attached) and continue to update with details of my awesome travel experience. One thing I’ve noticed (of the many, I suppose) is that Londonites are not the most polite people…I wouldn’t call them rude by any means, but they seem very surprised when I say “Excuse me” in a store and often do that weird shoulder-ramming thing on the sidewalk. Alas, learning something new everyday. Off to another agency!


Cheers 

Catching the Twitter Bug

Hmm...how do I feel about Twitter? In the last year, I've had many different emotions toward Twitter, including apathy, disgust, excitement, confusion...just to name a few.
The value of Twitter has recently been brought to my attention through the information-overload of social media I've received at school in the past eight months. It's weird, even freshman year "Do you have Twitter" was still not a very popular question, yet, barely years later and I am required to have one for a class. Let alone the fact that many of my friends already had Twitter accounts...of their own free will. I just did not understand. Now, however, it is minimally more clear to me, Twitter does have its benefits. One thing I personally find valuable with Twitter is the quick information updates among businesses. I think it is less useful to me to know what my friends are doing or thinking via Twitter, since I use facebook for that more anyway. I do enjoy the College of Communication's Twitter updates, as well as big PR firms in the area's, complete with job and internship updates. On that level, Twitter is valuable because it benefits me directly and can be used as a great resource.

Network professionally – Follow and get to know other people working in your industry
Find local events – Watch for interesting events that your connections are attending. Take advantage of the opportunity to take online connections offline

...two of the most interesting and applicable Twitter suggestions that particularly stood out to me in the article, "25 Suggestions for How to use Twitter in 2011." Ever since I really discovered Twitter and found out what it is and does, these two factions are really of interest to me. 1) As a student of communications, it is more important than almost anything to have and use an ability to network with professionals, other students, and businesspeople. Twitter makes it that much easier, especially since sometimes face-to-face networking is difficult at first. Twitter almost breaks the ice for you and gets you in the door. 2) I can't believe how old I am! College is almost in the past, so it's really important for me now to know what is going on in the world, both at school and in the area. If I can't get my hands on a newspaper every moment, or only see advertisements for a specific audience, Twitter allows me to view a variety of upcoming events (of all varieties!) at once.

I think my PR client could really benefit from the use of Twitter right now. They already have a Twitter account, but from what I can see, their Tweets are all automatic updates from facebook, sprinkled in with a newsletter or two...not exactly personal or particularly interesting information. I've brought up the topic with my supervisor and he seems pretty blase about it, so hopefully I can make it more of a medium for followers looking for concerts, performances and audition opportunities, instead of a boring and repetitive update of just rehearsals. Specifically, I think Twitter would benefit my client solely in publicity--getting their name out there and getting more people interested. Nonprofits are built on their client and donor base, so as we continue to build those up, we can build a better, more stable, more communal organization!

To Follow, or Not to Follow?

BigShoesNetwork
The Twitter for BigShoesNetwork will probably be one that I stop following after my time with this class. While the updates are nice to see, I actually prefer to go to their physical website and search jobs and internship postings of my own accord. Plus, a lot of what they post isn't directly interesting to me, so again, I'd rather just sort through the entries on the site itself.

Dr. Scott D'Urso
I really enjoy reading Scott's Tweets because I think they're informative, funny, and relevant, all at once. I am often tempted to click on the links he puts up, just out of straight curiosity, so his is probably one I will continue to follow. Additionally, after I graduate, it might be nice to keep in touch with some of my professors, and if no other way, Twitter will help me do that.

College of Communication
This is another one I'm interested in post-class project. I think I'll always want to know what is going on at my Alma Mater, and if there are alumni events going on, Twitter is probably a good way to hear about them.

Friends
Again, in regards to networking, I think there is a lot to say about keeping in touch with friends, classmates, even acquaintances are so vital to your future, it would only be an asset to continue following them on Twitter. For even more obvious reasons, I am afraid of losing touch with some of the remarkable people I've met at school, and at least this way, I'll be able to keep up on their lives when we are unable to meet face-to-face.

I really don't have anyone else that I am following on Twitter. Professors, friends and connections to school are the only people/organizations I am interested, and the rest of my <25 followings fit somewhere within those categories.

What are your opinions? Anyone particularly agree? Or supremely disagree? I'd like to know where I stand with the others in my generation...

kiks

It's About the "Us"

I'll easily fall for a sappy Hallmark commercial just as quickly as the next person, but I can't say that I've ever honestly acted on an emotion just because little Billy and his dying dog told me to. Well, that may be a little harsh. However, I think that Hallmark really got it right this year. We should be celebrating and saying "I love us."

Now, I am one of those people who have strong opinions about Valentine's Day. It would be false to say I don't like a bouquet of flowers from time to time, but something about there being an entire day set aside to acknowledge that special someone just gets to me. As if the other 364 aren't quite enough of a reminder that you have decided to invest your heart with another being and now therefore think for two instead of one.

Personally, even when I am in a relationship I prefer spending the blessed holiday with girlfriends, and preferably accompanied by a bottle of wine and a serious stockpile of Dove chocolates (of the Bliss variety).

But now I am getting off topic. I think saying "I love you" is great, really. Sentimental, emotional, personal...but there are two of you in the relationship, so ideally, shouldn't what you really love is the stellar combination the two of you make-together? I'm quite a fan of this notion, for the "us" encompasses everything from your communication, your likes, dislikes, inside jokes, combined quirks; essentially, all of the things that make your relationship what it is. Hopefully that is synonymous with "blissfully happy" and "together forever." Or, for the less mushy, "we're cool" and "the sex is great." Or whatever.

So that is what I felt like writing about today. Happy Belated Valentine's Day <3

kiks

Post Virgin

Well hello,

This post will, by far, be the least interesting (both aesthetically and regarding content) so I plan to stay optimistic for the future. As follows with many of my fellow classmates, we are writing blogs for a Public Relations Writing class. I am actually quite interesting in starting a blog, and I hope it turns out to be something I continue doing after the class is finished.

I think this evening I will write about my favorite animal, which is the puffin. I actually do not know that much about puffins themselves, but I see there is a link option, so maybe I'll do some experimentation and find something about them. Google is such a great place for information. Anyways, I like puffins mostly because of their cuteness factor, but also because of their coloring and size. Perhaps an even more primary consideration is my need to be different from others, which is why dogs or cats (horses, fish, and bunnies, too) just simply would not qualify.

I have a stuffed penguin in my bedroom, which I like to pretend is a puffin. The penguin was a purchase gift from Aeropostale about 7 years ago, and was originally my brother's. The 8th grade was when brands were really starting  to blow up as new fad, so branded items were my ideal Christmas gift. With so many dollars spent at the store, the customer received a stuff penguin, which was my brother's prize for enduring hours (I'm sure it was less than the one) shopping around the mall for Christmas gifts. Regardless, he isn't much of a stuffed-animal collector, so I naturally conned him into giving me the penguin, too. I was that older sister.

National Geographic has some super great information on puffins, which I personally think is interesting and worth taking a look at. In case you don't want to, I'll also attach a picture of some of the cutest birds on the planet.

Another passion of mine is love (just the idea of it in general...perhaps that will serve as another post down the road), so this picture serves perfectly to encompass the two.

For anyone at all who is going to read this, I'd like to hear about other favorite animals, although it'd be best if they were somewhat unique :)

kiks