Wednesday, February 8, 2012
I'm still in real time
Hello dear readers! I know it looks like I'm neglecting this blog, but I assure you, I'm still in real time. My blog has moved. Find the new Bonnie Evans Blog on a wordpress site via HeavyCDN. I have posted a few updates this week and would really love it if you stayed with me during this transitional period. Thanks!
Monday, February 6, 2012
Coming Soon!
Sorry no new posts over the weekend, but I have lots of exciting new developments coming soon! I'm hard at work on a Bonnie Evans Blog for my job BLARG! blog at www.bonniejobs.heavycdn.com , thanks to the generous efforts of my dear friend Dave over at Heavy Digital (who thinks my cranberry background is too busy. HMPH!). I have a phone interview with the American Cancer Society this week, made an IRL networking connection for a copywriting gig in Boston, will be taking over branding for my internship, and am getting ready for a short trip to the Bahamas this weekend. I'll have lots to update you on this week, so be sure to check back soon
Friday, February 3, 2012
A quick note on education
A quick note pertaining to my views on education.
Below is a quote from His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Close to 42,000 people "liked" this quote, with an additional 1,200 commenting on it. Over 2.2 million people follow the Dalai Lama on Facebook and saw this quote in their news feed.
"My hope and wish is that one day, formal education will pay attention to what I call 'education of the heart.' Just as we take for granted the need to acquire proficiency in the basic academic subjects, I am hopeful that a time will come when we can take it for granted that children will learn, as part of the curriculum, the indispensability of inner values: love, compassion, justice, and forgiveness."
HH Dalai Lama
December 12, 2011
Official Facebook page
This quote inspires me to think that if everyone works their hardest to ensure students loved being in school and are learning to their fullest potential, we would all be better for it. Cooperation and patience in the classroom for alternative view points and learning styles, not just from students, but from teachers too, promotes community. This is the path to ensuring a self-sustaining state economy in the future.
Below is a quote from His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Close to 42,000 people "liked" this quote, with an additional 1,200 commenting on it. Over 2.2 million people follow the Dalai Lama on Facebook and saw this quote in their news feed.
"My hope and wish is that one day, formal education will pay attention to what I call 'education of the heart.' Just as we take for granted the need to acquire proficiency in the basic academic subjects, I am hopeful that a time will come when we can take it for granted that children will learn, as part of the curriculum, the indispensability of inner values: love, compassion, justice, and forgiveness."
HH Dalai Lama
December 12, 2011
Official Facebook page
This quote inspires me to think that if everyone works their hardest to ensure students loved being in school and are learning to their fullest potential, we would all be better for it. Cooperation and patience in the classroom for alternative view points and learning styles, not just from students, but from teachers too, promotes community. This is the path to ensuring a self-sustaining state economy in the future.
Handwritten Thank-you Note BLARG!
Here’s a hilarious job hunt BLARG! that kept me laughing at myself for a few days.
I recently interviewed at a really cool arts-based community outreach organization in Southie called Medicine Wheel Productions. I was absolutely smitten with the office, where each room, wall, and angle had a different art installation. They even had a meditation room with dark blue walls, polished stones on the floor, hand-pounded copper walkways and benches, and an illuminated reflecting pool with running water to soothe the senses. It was a WORLD away from my previous job in a fast-paced restaurant where I could go 10 hours without thinking, eating, or relieving myself and not even know it because I was too busy making things happen. The atmosphere at MWP was so stimulating, and the mission was one I could fully endorse.
Unfortunately, I bombed the interview. I knew it the second it ended and I realized it only lasted forty-five minutes even though the interviewer told me to prepare for two hours. My only hope was to redeem myself with a killer thank-you note.
I’m one of those people who think sending thank-you notes is a dying art. The importance of a thank-you note was instilled in me at a very young age by my grandmother. She had eight children and nineteen grandchildren, and after Christmas, she could always keep track of who sent a note of acknowledgement for her presents. Same with high school graduations. I picked up the value from her, so I was confident that my letter to MWP would seal the deal.
I chose a very special card to send. It was handmade paper with a hand-pressed image of a Celtic animal inked onto the front. I got it at a street market in Galway, Ireland in 2009 and have been saving it for a very special occasion. Since MWP has close ties to Ireland, and since they can appreciate the beauty of a handmade card, I thought this was the perfect occasion to send it out.
I worked out the content in a Word document, then practiced writing it out three times on a piece of paper to make sure it would fit and to tone down my (somewhat sloppy) penmanship.
Next it came time to finally ink my words onto the paper. I wrote very slowly, reading off of my practice sheets, and transcribing each letter and phrase with care. When I was all done, I read it over to make sure I didn’t make any mistakes.
BLARG!
Of course I made a mistake. Smack in the middle of the letter, I fudged the line “I am confident I will be a success in the development role at MWP.” My freaking boyfriend (yeah, I’m blaming him) woke up in the middle of my writing, distracted me, and I copied the line down as “I am confident I am confident I will be a success…”
Double BLARG!
I had to figure out what to do. I couldn’t white-out the error because the card is off-white, handmade paper. I didn’t want to trash it because it is a very special card and I have been saving it for over three years. So I considered how to work with what I had.
Earlier in the card, I wrote how empowered and motivated the atmosphere at the office made me feel. Could I exude enthusiasm by adding an exclamation point? “I am confident! I am confident I will be a success…”?
Should I have crossed off the extra “I am confident” and hoped it didn’t look too unprofessional? Or used the white-out and come up with a new line?
In the end, I chose to try to squeeze in an extra sentence. Now the letter reads “I am confident I will fit in at MWP. Also, I am confident I will be a success…”
In retrospect, I probably should have ditched the whole thing and sent a thank-you email instead. I looked on the internet and found that it is appropriate to use emails instead of handwritten notes if the hiring process is going to be very quick (in this case, she told me a week). But honestly, I was already feeling like I wasn’t going to hear back, so I just went with it. I’m a “bare it all” kind of person, and if you can’t appreciate me for what I am, I probably shouldn’t be working with you anyway.
How I Bombed My Interview
Here’s how I bombed the interview I had (the ONLY interview I’ve had) by answering interview questions wrong, being unprepared, losing confidence during an interview, and talking about old experience.
First: the background.
My interview was at Medicine Wheel Productions in Southie. They are an arts-based community outreach organization that gets its name from one of their past projects: the creation of a massive stone medicine wheel by members of the community affected by the AIDS epidemic. It is an art installation project that enables mourners to have a vehicle to physical embodiment of their grief. MWP was looking for a Development Associate (my prime career choice). I don’t have much experience in development besides my internship (5 months proposal writing and program development), so I know I only got the interview because I mentioned in my cover letter that “I have witnessed firsthand the healing power of art when I recently helped my mother create a stone walking labyrinth to help cope with the loss of her sister.”
Now: how I bombed the interview.
I did all the necessary research on the organization to prepare for the interview. I read every single word on their website and looked them up on various social media outlets. I looked into their collaborators, and Google image searched the building and the people so I wouldn’t be taken by surprise. Then I moved on to myself.
I made lists of why I’m interested in nonprofits, development and fundraising. I discerned the difference between development vs. fundraising. I read my book “101 Smart Questions to Ask on Your Interview” and made a list of smart questions in my notebook. I printed out three copies of my resume and two copies of my cover letter. And then I prepped myself for the question I always bomb in interviews:
“What are your strengths and weaknesses?”
My strengths are easy: I am an excellent writer, as proven by my academic success. I have excellent interpersonal skills that enable me to be a successful member of any team. I am professional, show up to work on time, always work my hardest to succeed, and I’m honest to a fault.
After Googling the best pocket responses for weaknesses, I had put some thought into my REAL weaknesses. Fortunately, I was still working full time in the week preceding my interview, so I was able to ask my coworkers and consider real time examples myself. I came up with two answers. I can be hyper-focused, so when I am working on a project, an employer may need to be explicit if they want me to change directions. Also, I can be a black-and-white thinker, so I sometimes need to step back and consider other people’s points of view before answering or making a move.
Unfortunately, she didn’t ask this question.
Instead she asked me what three words describe me and why. Such a pocket question, yet I was unprepared. BLARG! And since I was unprepared, I responded by making a lame joke. BLARG!
First I answered, “wicked hella pissa” (we had spent a lot of time talking about Southie, so it was somewhat relevant). The 19 year old intern from the neighborhood chuckled at it. The interviewer, an out-of-state transplant, didn’t like it. My confidence disappeared.
So I recouped with real answers. “Driven. Flexible. Motivated.” Yes, I know driven and motivated are the same thing (and I admitted that to her! BLARG! some English major I am), but I was squirming in the hot seat and was out of my comfort zone.
Another question she asked me that I wasn’t prepared for was what kind of project I would create or bring to MWP if I was hired. I wanted to play up the experience that I had, so I talked about databases and how successful I was doing that in my previous office position. Unfortunately, that’s HER job. I should have focused on the grant writing, which is what she wanted her new hire to take over and is also what I want to do with my degree.
This BLARG! goes back to my weakness of being a black-and-white thinker. She had already said that she wanted her new hire to take over grant writing so she could be freed up for other things, but I didn’t extract that pertinent source material (one of the key skills in grant writing) because I was too focused on highlighting my old experience. This also lost me a chance at an internship earlier this year. I need to start focusing on what I want to do and what I can do, not what I’ve done. If I always did the things I’ve done, I’d never succeed at doing something new.
Worst of all, she asked me if I’ve ever had to deal with a conflict with a coworker and how I dealt with that. As I mentioned, I’m honest to a fault. And even though I know never to bring up negative work relationships in an interview, I answered her honestly. I told her about a coworker who’s been harassing me for a year because of her own unhappiness, and that I try to just avoid her and focus on getting my own work done and supporting the team to the best of my ability while remaining out of her way.
What I should have said was that I find I’m very easy to get along with and so long as everyone works their hardest and stays focused on the final goal, conflict should never be a problem.
Oh yeah, she also answered the phone right when I was about to talk about my mom’s labyrinth (my real selling point) so she could teach the intern to transfer to voicemail, and I missed my opportunity. BLARG!
Next, find out how I tried to save my chances with a handwritten thank-you note, but blarged that up even worse than the interview!
First: the background.
My interview was at Medicine Wheel Productions in Southie. They are an arts-based community outreach organization that gets its name from one of their past projects: the creation of a massive stone medicine wheel by members of the community affected by the AIDS epidemic. It is an art installation project that enables mourners to have a vehicle to physical embodiment of their grief. MWP was looking for a Development Associate (my prime career choice). I don’t have much experience in development besides my internship (5 months proposal writing and program development), so I know I only got the interview because I mentioned in my cover letter that “I have witnessed firsthand the healing power of art when I recently helped my mother create a stone walking labyrinth to help cope with the loss of her sister.”
 |
| Mom's Labyrinth in Marshfield. Please visit if you have some free time, the entrance is right off the Bridal Path at the end of my driveway. If you feel moved to do so, you may also bring a stone to contribute to the path. |
Now: how I bombed the interview.
I did all the necessary research on the organization to prepare for the interview. I read every single word on their website and looked them up on various social media outlets. I looked into their collaborators, and Google image searched the building and the people so I wouldn’t be taken by surprise. Then I moved on to myself.
I made lists of why I’m interested in nonprofits, development and fundraising. I discerned the difference between development vs. fundraising. I read my book “101 Smart Questions to Ask on Your Interview” and made a list of smart questions in my notebook. I printed out three copies of my resume and two copies of my cover letter. And then I prepped myself for the question I always bomb in interviews:
“What are your strengths and weaknesses?”
My strengths are easy: I am an excellent writer, as proven by my academic success. I have excellent interpersonal skills that enable me to be a successful member of any team. I am professional, show up to work on time, always work my hardest to succeed, and I’m honest to a fault.
After Googling the best pocket responses for weaknesses, I had put some thought into my REAL weaknesses. Fortunately, I was still working full time in the week preceding my interview, so I was able to ask my coworkers and consider real time examples myself. I came up with two answers. I can be hyper-focused, so when I am working on a project, an employer may need to be explicit if they want me to change directions. Also, I can be a black-and-white thinker, so I sometimes need to step back and consider other people’s points of view before answering or making a move.
Unfortunately, she didn’t ask this question.
Instead she asked me what three words describe me and why. Such a pocket question, yet I was unprepared. BLARG! And since I was unprepared, I responded by making a lame joke. BLARG!
First I answered, “wicked hella pissa” (we had spent a lot of time talking about Southie, so it was somewhat relevant). The 19 year old intern from the neighborhood chuckled at it. The interviewer, an out-of-state transplant, didn’t like it. My confidence disappeared.
So I recouped with real answers. “Driven. Flexible. Motivated.” Yes, I know driven and motivated are the same thing (and I admitted that to her! BLARG! some English major I am), but I was squirming in the hot seat and was out of my comfort zone.
Another question she asked me that I wasn’t prepared for was what kind of project I would create or bring to MWP if I was hired. I wanted to play up the experience that I had, so I talked about databases and how successful I was doing that in my previous office position. Unfortunately, that’s HER job. I should have focused on the grant writing, which is what she wanted her new hire to take over and is also what I want to do with my degree.
This BLARG! goes back to my weakness of being a black-and-white thinker. She had already said that she wanted her new hire to take over grant writing so she could be freed up for other things, but I didn’t extract that pertinent source material (one of the key skills in grant writing) because I was too focused on highlighting my old experience. This also lost me a chance at an internship earlier this year. I need to start focusing on what I want to do and what I can do, not what I’ve done. If I always did the things I’ve done, I’d never succeed at doing something new.
Worst of all, she asked me if I’ve ever had to deal with a conflict with a coworker and how I dealt with that. As I mentioned, I’m honest to a fault. And even though I know never to bring up negative work relationships in an interview, I answered her honestly. I told her about a coworker who’s been harassing me for a year because of her own unhappiness, and that I try to just avoid her and focus on getting my own work done and supporting the team to the best of my ability while remaining out of her way.
What I should have said was that I find I’m very easy to get along with and so long as everyone works their hardest and stays focused on the final goal, conflict should never be a problem.
Oh yeah, she also answered the phone right when I was about to talk about my mom’s labyrinth (my real selling point) so she could teach the intern to transfer to voicemail, and I missed my opportunity. BLARG!
Next, find out how I tried to save my chances with a handwritten thank-you note, but blarged that up even worse than the interview!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Why Arts in Education?
I've explained why I blarg and why I blog. Now I will explain why I'd like to start a career in development of nonprofit organizations, for those of you wondering how I was led into my areas of interest (listed in my profile on the left hand side of this page, interests include the arts in education, arts in community outreach, education equality in urban settings, the role of the arts in healing communities, and the nonprofit sector).
I just found the "perfect job for me" that required me to answer this exact question. Well, the education part at least. (The arts part will be a separate blog post because it involves a personal topic.) This position is a Development Associate position for an education reform organization based in NY that starts and manages urban charter schools that close the achievement gap and prepare low-income students to graduate college. Perfect, these are exactly the goals I'd like our state to focus on. Plus, it's about a ten minute bicycle ride from my house.
While the application process involved registering, creating a password, uploading documents, and filling in YES/NO boxes (all part of an incredibly dehumanizing process that is crushing my soul. BLARG!), it allowed for the applicant (me) to answer three brief, personalized, short-answer questions.
The first: Why are you interested in us as an employer? I cheated cut and paste the first two sentences and the last sentence of my profile for this blog. I've already spent a lot of time considering what I want to do with my education and training.
The second: Why are you interested in closing the achievement gap? I drew heavily on my experience with the Cooperative Artists Institute for this answer. As a result of working with them, I have strengthened my belief that all children have the ability to realize their academic and social potential, but only if the system works with them to allow it. I believe that the state, and students in the state, will not be able to compete in the rapidly changing global marketplace if schools do not enable students to become life-long lovers of learning by allowing them to succeed at a young age. I believe that the state's economy can recover, and even become self-sustaining, if all of our students are educated to the best of our ability, so they may work to the best of theirs.
The third: What have you done to contribute to these efforts already? I have volunteered with the Cooperative Artists Institute, which runs such successful programs as the Peace Drum Project and Tribal Rhythms. CAI is currently working towards instituting and arts-based education reform project called the Partnership for Whole School Change. I have also volunteered with the Eliot School in Jamaica Plain to research and write an article on their School Partnership Program, which works with underserved schools in the BPS system to bring arts back into the classroom in urban settings.
Having to spell out these answers helped me better understand why I desire to work with organizations focused on education equality. I hope my readers understand as well. If anyone wants to learn more about my the second answer, I encourage you to go to CAI's website and the PWSC website. Curtis (CAI's founder) has some profound thoughts on simple but effective education reform. We are working towards getting a bill passed in the senate to support his ideas.
I just found the "perfect job for me" that required me to answer this exact question. Well, the education part at least. (The arts part will be a separate blog post because it involves a personal topic.) This position is a Development Associate position for an education reform organization based in NY that starts and manages urban charter schools that close the achievement gap and prepare low-income students to graduate college. Perfect, these are exactly the goals I'd like our state to focus on. Plus, it's about a ten minute bicycle ride from my house.
While the application process involved registering, creating a password, uploading documents, and filling in YES/NO boxes (all part of an incredibly dehumanizing process that is crushing my soul. BLARG!), it allowed for the applicant (me) to answer three brief, personalized, short-answer questions.
The first: Why are you interested in us as an employer? I cheated cut and paste the first two sentences and the last sentence of my profile for this blog. I've already spent a lot of time considering what I want to do with my education and training.
The second: Why are you interested in closing the achievement gap? I drew heavily on my experience with the Cooperative Artists Institute for this answer. As a result of working with them, I have strengthened my belief that all children have the ability to realize their academic and social potential, but only if the system works with them to allow it. I believe that the state, and students in the state, will not be able to compete in the rapidly changing global marketplace if schools do not enable students to become life-long lovers of learning by allowing them to succeed at a young age. I believe that the state's economy can recover, and even become self-sustaining, if all of our students are educated to the best of our ability, so they may work to the best of theirs.
The third: What have you done to contribute to these efforts already? I have volunteered with the Cooperative Artists Institute, which runs such successful programs as the Peace Drum Project and Tribal Rhythms. CAI is currently working towards instituting and arts-based education reform project called the Partnership for Whole School Change. I have also volunteered with the Eliot School in Jamaica Plain to research and write an article on their School Partnership Program, which works with underserved schools in the BPS system to bring arts back into the classroom in urban settings.
Having to spell out these answers helped me better understand why I desire to work with organizations focused on education equality. I hope my readers understand as well. If anyone wants to learn more about my the second answer, I encourage you to go to CAI's website and the PWSC website. Curtis (CAI's founder) has some profound thoughts on simple but effective education reform. We are working towards getting a bill passed in the senate to support his ideas.
Job Search Techniques
Earlier I explained why I blarg. Now I'd like to explain why I blog.
I've been pounding the pavement for a month now. The first few weeks were pretty passive. I was still applying to restaurants and was largely unfocused. Back then it was OK because I was still earning an income. My boyfriend and I have agreed that I'll give it two more weeks before I give in and return to the service industry.
Not that there's anything wrong with that! I'll never say I left waitressing to get a "real job." I prefer to say that I'm looking for a career in my field of study. I'm only reluctant to return to the service industry because it recently began to take a toll on my physically, and the long hours and odd shifts were affecting me emotionally. (Just refer to my old blog to understand how unhappy I was.)
Anyway, in a month, I've applied to ten restaurants, several major museums and hospitals, a couple of major businesses, and over a dozen nonprofits. I have only had one interview (at Medicine Wheel Productions. I didn't get the job, but the organization is REALLY cool and worth looking in to) and haven't had any other bites. BLARG!
So, I'm taking the job hunt to the next level. I'm developing an "aggressive" social media and online presence,also known as "branding myself," in an effort to make connections and increase my social media savvy. This week, I have registered on JobFox and Idealist. I have accounts on Facebook (still private), Twitter, and LinkedIn. And, of course, I have this blog. On here, I am able to link to samples of my writing and editing, let some of my personality show, and laugh about the mistakes I make. Also, more importantly, I'm able to get tips and leads from my readers! So if anybody has any advice, comments, or encouragement, I welcome it here!
I've been pounding the pavement for a month now. The first few weeks were pretty passive. I was still applying to restaurants and was largely unfocused. Back then it was OK because I was still earning an income. My boyfriend and I have agreed that I'll give it two more weeks before I give in and return to the service industry.
Not that there's anything wrong with that! I'll never say I left waitressing to get a "real job." I prefer to say that I'm looking for a career in my field of study. I'm only reluctant to return to the service industry because it recently began to take a toll on my physically, and the long hours and odd shifts were affecting me emotionally. (Just refer to my old blog to understand how unhappy I was.)
Anyway, in a month, I've applied to ten restaurants, several major museums and hospitals, a couple of major businesses, and over a dozen nonprofits. I have only had one interview (at Medicine Wheel Productions. I didn't get the job, but the organization is REALLY cool and worth looking in to) and haven't had any other bites. BLARG!
So, I'm taking the job hunt to the next level. I'm developing an "aggressive" social media and online presence,also known as "branding myself," in an effort to make connections and increase my social media savvy. This week, I have registered on JobFox and Idealist. I have accounts on Facebook (still private), Twitter, and LinkedIn. And, of course, I have this blog. On here, I am able to link to samples of my writing and editing, let some of my personality show, and laugh about the mistakes I make. Also, more importantly, I'm able to get tips and leads from my readers! So if anybody has any advice, comments, or encouragement, I welcome it here!
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Published on the Boston Globe!
BLARG! In a GOOD way!! I’ve been published!
Well, not my writing, but my editing. I just received an email from the people I've been working with for my volunteer editing at the Jamaica Plain Historical Society. The article I edited on the statues of D.C. French at Franklin Park Zoo on Boston's Emerald Necklace got published in the Boston Globe! Read the story HERE! Congratulations to the author, Richard Heath!
I got really positive feedback from the author and the JPHS contact person during this whole process. As if that wasn't encouragement enough, now it's published! How exciting! Richard called me, "Bonnie the unsung heroines of all scholarship are the editorial support" (you can see how much he needs an editor). Of course, my attribution got dropped in the Boston.com edition, but I still get name recognition in the Original JPHS Posting.
The article was about 2450 words when I got it, and I flushed it out just a small amount. A lot of the changes were easy things, like pronoun associations, capitalization, punctuations, and parallel form continuity. My two favorite changes to the piece were the following:
Before, a sentence describing a statue said, "Titled Peace and Vigilance, it was composed of two reclining figures, one alert holding a sword and the other resting and holding an olive branch, one on each side of a round arch dormer the top of which is a wing - spread eagle ready to pounce."
After I edited, the (now emotionally stimulating and superbly crafted) sentence reads, "Titled Peace and Vigilance, it is composed of two reclining figures, one alert and holding a sword, and the other resting and holding an olive branch. The figures are placed on each side of a round arch dormer, on top of which a screaming eagle is perched with wings spread, ready to pounce."
My second favorite change is the title of the piece. Ever-vigilant of SEO in this new day and age of writing, I urged the author to change the previously stale title from, "The Statuary Groups by Daniel Chester French at Franklin Park" (I know, what the heck is a statuary group and how is it different from a plain old statue or sculpture?) to "The Statues of D.C. French from the Old Boston Post Office at Franklin Park." Truth be told, I suggested a different title--"The Statuary Groups of Daniel Chester French at Franklin Park: Sculptures and Statues in Boston's Emerald Necklace"--and now that I type out the new title, I see that it is grammatically incorrect (are the statues in Franklin Park or was the old Boston Post Office? BLARG!). Regardless, I am thrilled that the author was excited and enticed when I raised the SEO question, and now has new motivations in his writing as a result of my expertise. He even went back to change the title of a previously submitted article on the JPHS website.
I can’t express enough gratitude towards the Jamaica Plain Historical Society for giving me the chance to gain experience and build my resume (which is now result-oriented thankyouverymuch). I will have to make a blog post about how I came around to hooking up with this and other organizations in JP that have helped me begin my career. More on that later! For now, go read the article!
Well, not my writing, but my editing. I just received an email from the people I've been working with for my volunteer editing at the Jamaica Plain Historical Society. The article I edited on the statues of D.C. French at Franklin Park Zoo on Boston's Emerald Necklace got published in the Boston Globe! Read the story HERE! Congratulations to the author, Richard Heath!
I got really positive feedback from the author and the JPHS contact person during this whole process. As if that wasn't encouragement enough, now it's published! How exciting! Richard called me, "Bonnie the unsung heroines of all scholarship are the editorial support" (you can see how much he needs an editor). Of course, my attribution got dropped in the Boston.com edition, but I still get name recognition in the Original JPHS Posting.
The article was about 2450 words when I got it, and I flushed it out just a small amount. A lot of the changes were easy things, like pronoun associations, capitalization, punctuations, and parallel form continuity. My two favorite changes to the piece were the following:
Before, a sentence describing a statue said, "Titled Peace and Vigilance, it was composed of two reclining figures, one alert holding a sword and the other resting and holding an olive branch, one on each side of a round arch dormer the top of which is a wing - spread eagle ready to pounce."
After I edited, the (now emotionally stimulating and superbly crafted) sentence reads, "Titled Peace and Vigilance, it is composed of two reclining figures, one alert and holding a sword, and the other resting and holding an olive branch. The figures are placed on each side of a round arch dormer, on top of which a screaming eagle is perched with wings spread, ready to pounce."
 |
| Photograph of Peace and Vigilance stolen from Saint Louis MO Daily Photo Blogspot. |
I can’t express enough gratitude towards the Jamaica Plain Historical Society for giving me the chance to gain experience and build my resume (which is now result-oriented thankyouverymuch). I will have to make a blog post about how I came around to hooking up with this and other organizations in JP that have helped me begin my career. More on that later! For now, go read the article!
Why BLARG?
You may be asking yourself, what is a "BLARG!" and why would anyone use it in the title of a blog?
To answer this question, let us first turn to one of the internet's most useful tools, UrbanDictionary.com. According to anonymous and presumably stoned contributors over there, a "blarg" is a "unique word" that "means anything you want it to, or is used to show disinterest or boredom." It is also a "sigh of complete angst/depression" and "has no concrete or absolute meaning. Its meaning is derived all from how you say it and in what mood you say it."
So why choose a word with no real meaning to title my blog? The answer lies with Liz Lemon.
Liz Lemon is the fictional lead character of NBC's hit show 30 Rock. Written and portrayed by Tina Fey, Liz Lemon is constantly pushing herself to extremes, stretching herself thin, and bending backwards for others, all to support the success of her writing career. Sound like anyone we know?? Like me, Liz sometimes finds herself faced with missteps, upsets, and hilarious disasters in her professional life that lead her to utter that most appropriate phrase I am so confidently relying on: "BLARG!"
Enjoy this plot-changing BLARG! from season 4, when Liz finds GE CEO Don Geiss dead on a couch. Prior to his death, Geiss had made certain promises to Liz's boss that would propel Liz's career and earnings to unfathomable amounts (for a comedy writer). In the instant she finds the deceased CEO, the brief glimmer of hope she had was thrust out the window, a feeling I find myself relating to each time I find "the perfect job for me," but then never hear back from after submitting a painfully crafted cover letter.
WHAT? Was that a "BLERG" she uttered??? Not a "BLARG!"?
BLARG!!
Too late, I'm not changing my blog name now. Job BLARG! Blog is too fun to say! Job Blerg Blog doesn't have the internal alliteration that keeps me snickering every time I say it out loud. Anyways, just because something doesn't work out the way you plan doesn't mean you have to trash it completely.
So now you know why I BLARG. Later on I'll tell you why I blog!
To answer this question, let us first turn to one of the internet's most useful tools, UrbanDictionary.com. According to anonymous and presumably stoned contributors over there, a "blarg" is a "unique word" that "means anything you want it to, or is used to show disinterest or boredom." It is also a "sigh of complete angst/depression" and "has no concrete or absolute meaning. Its meaning is derived all from how you say it and in what mood you say it."
So why choose a word with no real meaning to title my blog? The answer lies with Liz Lemon.
Liz Lemon is the fictional lead character of NBC's hit show 30 Rock. Written and portrayed by Tina Fey, Liz Lemon is constantly pushing herself to extremes, stretching herself thin, and bending backwards for others, all to support the success of her writing career. Sound like anyone we know?? Like me, Liz sometimes finds herself faced with missteps, upsets, and hilarious disasters in her professional life that lead her to utter that most appropriate phrase I am so confidently relying on: "BLARG!"
Enjoy this plot-changing BLARG! from season 4, when Liz finds GE CEO Don Geiss dead on a couch. Prior to his death, Geiss had made certain promises to Liz's boss that would propel Liz's career and earnings to unfathomable amounts (for a comedy writer). In the instant she finds the deceased CEO, the brief glimmer of hope she had was thrust out the window, a feeling I find myself relating to each time I find "the perfect job for me," but then never hear back from after submitting a painfully crafted cover letter.
WHAT? Was that a "BLERG" she uttered??? Not a "BLARG!"?
BLARG!!
Too late, I'm not changing my blog name now. Job BLARG! Blog is too fun to say! Job Blerg Blog doesn't have the internal alliteration that keeps me snickering every time I say it out loud. Anyways, just because something doesn't work out the way you plan doesn't mean you have to trash it completely.
So now you know why I BLARG. Later on I'll tell you why I blog!
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