Tag Archive | MSU
On Writing ~
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Writing | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
Check out my newest page. It is part of my series of pages on my years at MSU (Michigan State University is the main page). Before I started writing down my thoughts on writing online, I didn’t fully realize just how deep my blogging roots go. It continues to amaze me just how quickly everything changes online.
Enjoy!
PS – You may also want to check out the page I created dedicated to MSU’s beautiful campus.
Campus | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
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Update ~ March 5, 2012
Readers may have noticed that I haven’t added much “new” material lately, unless they’ve looked closely. Lately I’ve been working very hard on the “pages” portion of the blog. I’m still working on getting it exactly how I want it. There are so many great topics, etc. coming up very shortly. Stay tuned!
I will shortly get back to our regularly scheduled programs. Promise. On a side note, I’ve really enjoyed reblogging as of late. I’m not going to share anything and everything, but what I do share caught my attention one way or another. Thus far I’ve enjoyed meeting other bloggers via reblogging. There are so many wonderful blogs out there! Enjoy.
In case you missed it, below are some of the new pages I created.
Anonymous | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
No new content. I just finally took the time to thoroughly work out the bugs in the HTML. If you haven’t taken the time to read this conversation, please do. The entire experience expanded my ideas as to what a blog can be.
Detroit Tigers Baseball | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
Yes, I did it. I created a fan page for the Detroit Tigers. If you want to follow the Tigers this season, look no further. I embedded their complete schedule, included several links to lots of great information pertaining to roster, stats, etc., as well as added links to a few posts in which I discuss the Tigers. I also embedded a few of my favorite Tigers-related YouTube videos. It is going to be one heck of a season. Opening Day can’t get here quick enough.
Detroit Tigers ~ Spring Training 2012 | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
Thanks to my Dad’s cousin, Glen Suszko, I have some great pictures up of the Tigers in spring training camp in Lakeland, Florida.
Michigan State University | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
I decided that I needed to pay homage to my alma mater. I included some priceless videos. It is also inspiring some additional pages coming very soon. I loved college and always will. Seriously.
Political Quotes | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
I spent quite a bit of time on this one. I came across some wonderful politically inspired quotes, many from our Founding Fathers. I may add more as time goes on.
Table Of Contents | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
I decided to create this page due to the sheer number of pages I created. It is easier to understand what I’m doing when looking at the entire thing in this format. Please take a look. It will certainly be a work in progress.
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Freshly Pressed Love
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I believe I forgot to mention just how much I love Freshly Pressed and WordPress. This beautiful Saturday morning I discovered the post below on Freshly Pressed. It is exactly what I need to hear today.
Stop Sabotaging Your Own Success: A Manifesto « When I Have Time by Sara Rosso
I had an earlier version of this post which I lost when Word decided to crash on me. Unfortunately the recovery version didn’t include the latest paragraph, and I accidently dumped the entire thing. In the end, it isn’t a bad thing. I started to discuss precisely why I need to hear the message in the above post today. It turned out to be incredibly lengthy and much more well-suited for my About Me page. I may just have to do that in the future. The gist of the message is this: I can’t understand why I am now so risk adverse in my career today when I was the EXACT opposite in my academic career at Michigan State University. I consider my years at MSU extremely successful. Unfortunately, I have yet to really do much of anything with my “career.” I’m merely getting by.
But back to the topic at hand: I just find Freshly Pressed amazing. You can find Childhood Relived’s Angie Z.’s take on Freshly Pressed here: I Got Your “Freshly Pressed” Right Here « Childhood Relived. As a direct result of Freshly Pressed, I’ve discovered some wonderful bloggers. Those listed below are just a sample.
Childhood Relived
My Pajama Days
The Middlest Sister | There are 5 sisters. She’s the middlest.
I’m just thankful I left Blogger when I did. Below Dr. Helen discusses her recent move away from Blogger.
Dr. Helen: New Blog at PJ Media
Her new blog is here: Dr. Helen
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Related articles
- Awards for the rest of us (year-struck.com)
- Five Ways to Get Featured on Freshly Pressed – Support – WordPress.com (amorsthoughts.wordpress.com)
- The power of Freshly Pressed (coffeekatblog.wordpress.com)
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On The Air
I’ve long loved radio and decided to put all my favorites in one place. I’m not sure when I first loved listening to the radio, but as a child, I remember listening with headphones late into the night, long after I was supposed to be asleep. I also made plenty of mix tapes. That doesn’t even mention one of my favorite childhood pastimes, creating radio stations, original jingles included, using a Fischer Price tape recorder. Today, I can’t stand to be in a car without the radio on. Enjoy.
Michigan State University Student Radio
My senior year at MSU I decided to get involved with the major student radio station on campus. It is something I did purely for my personal enjoyment. I love music, and playing music, that much. Everyone involved with Impact 89FM starts out on their online training station The Fix. After learning the basics, you are left alone to spin music for a few hours by yourself. You can’t imagine how much fun I had in the studio! My only regret is that I didn’t get involved as a freshman.
Mid-Michigan Favorites
WHNN-FM
94.5 The Moose
98 KCQ
102.5 WIOG
WSGW – NEWSRADIO 790
FM TALK 100.5 AND SPORTS!
The radio stations I always associate with my childhood are WHNN-FM and 102.5 WIOG. Throughout my later elementary school years, I rode to school with my Mom, who taught 6th grade at the time. She listed to WHNN-FM every morning to catch Johnny Burke’s morning show. Thanks to that station, I know the music of the 50s, 60s, and 70s pretty well – and appreciate it. I still listen to Johnny Burke every morning on my way to work. WHNN-FM covers a huge chunk of Michigan.
While WHNN-FM catered to my parents’ generation, 102.5 WIOG is still home to current pop. It was the radio station as a teenager. Like WHNN-FM, 102.5 WIOG has a huge reach. Unless you liked country as a teenager, you listened to 102.5 WIOG. Back in the 90s, mainstream alternative and SKA ruled the air waves.
94.5 The Moose and 98 KCQ are the two big country stations in Mid-Michigan. Growing up, I hated country music. Now, there is a lot of it I love. In my opinion, pop isn’t nearly as relevant as it once was. Country is now the genre featuring the best artists and innovation. I grew up a fan of Michael Jackson, Madonna, Motown, and the Beatles. Today I love Toby Keith, Blake Sheldon, Miranda Lambert, and even the Dixie Chicks. Go figure.
News, Talk, The Tigers
WSGW – NEWSRADIO 790
FM TALK 100.5 AND SPORTS!
Driving anywhere with my Grandma during the summer months meant the Detroit Tigers on WSGW – NEWSRADIO 790 and Ernie Harwell. Any radio broadcast of the Tigers will remind me always and forever of my Grandma.
Back in the day FM TALK 100.5 AND SPORTS! actually turned into a pirate radio station for a while. I love the concept of anything to do with pirates. Before that, it happened to be an alternative to 102.5 WIOG.
Austin, Texas
KOOP :: Community Radio for Austin, TX – KOOP Hornsby-Austin
Where do I even begin with KOOP? It is the reason why I love Austin so much to this day. Somehow I consented to go on a blind date with a man who happened to be very involved with KOOP. At the time, he hosted the show ATX Live. He is still involved with KOOP after serving as president of the co-op for several years. Today he serves as the Tech Team Area Coordinator for KOOP.
At the time, his involvement with KOOP led to us spending plenty of time together checking out local bands, artists, and even festivals. Andy even introduced me to one of my best friends in Austin, his former manager Cheryl. Of course, they originally meet through KOOP. I can’t begin to imagine Austin without the music.
It was directly as a result of Andy’s involvement in KOOP that I decided to go back to MSU and get involved with the Impact 89FM, even if only for one semester.
You can read more about my experiences in Austin below:
Ten Long Years … | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
NPR
WCMU / CMU Public Radio
NPR : National Public Radio : News & Analysis, World, US, Music & Arts : NPR
Fresh Air from WHYY : NPR
Arts & Life : NPR
Below is an article discussing a recent interview on NPR. It is the perfect example of why I tune in.
Meryl Streep: The Fresh Air Interview : NPR
Internet
Pandora Radio – Listen to Free Internet Radio, Find New Music
The Beatles
Undoubtedly the internet is saving the radio from obscurity. I love the fact that in many cases fans can now go to the website of their favorite band and/or artist and listen in. In particular, I love The Beatles website for this. Not only do they play everything in the Beatles’ catalog, they play John, Paul, George, and Ringo’s solo work as well. What is there not to like?
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Just Because: OutKast – Hey Ya! Don’t Rock The Speakerboxx
For me, music is almost as powerful as smell when it comes to memory. This song will always remind me of my amazing senior year at Michigan State. It was everywhere.
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Greetings From The Third Coast: To Michigan, With Love
It all began this morning while making my usual Facebook rounds. I saw that a friend of my brother posted a YouTube video featuring a vintage travelogue of Michigan from the 1940s. I just had to share it. Michigan is home and has been for all branches of my family going back generations now. As much as it kills me to admit this, I am a Michigander to the core. I’ve lived in Michigan most of my life thus far, I graduated from Michigan State University, and the Great Lakes are in my blood. I even grudgingly admit that I have a Michigan, not Canadian or Minnesotan, accent. Yes my fellow Michiganders there is such a thing.
Once there was a time in my life when I desperately wanted to leave it all behind. Just like so many other people in my family, I wanted to live in Texas. My family’s off-again, on-again love affair with Texas is a separate issue that could easily fill another post. Oddly enough, it extends to both sides of my family. Why do I bring this up? I bring it up because it was through my experiences in Texas, and those of a cousin, that I realized Michiganders are unique.
Let me explain. I have an older cousin who lived in Texas herself for a year or two. I followed suit after graduating from college. I then noticed something when I came home. She and I had our own accents. It didn’t last long as we reverted back to our Michigan accents, but for a while, if one carefully listened to how we spoke, it became easy to identify the Texas influence in our speech. I loved it. We had our own version of Spanglish. Texigan?
The entire experience, which I may have mostly imagined, made me think long and hard about the impact of place on culture. It then occurred to me that, if it were geographically possible, the place that I’d feel most comfortable would be with one foot in Michigan and the other in Texas. Here’s the problem. I love Michigan. My entire family is here, I can’t imagine not living near so much fresh water, and the change of seasons is great, even when someone decides to cancel winter.
Where do I even begin with Texas? I love the independent spirit of Texas, and unfortunately, I find it seriously lacking in most Michiganders, much of my family excluded. There is a reason why Texans are fixin’ to do just about anything. Michiganders, not so much. Texans know how to recognize people with big hats and no cattle. Michigan would be so much better off if we could develop that sixth-sense!
Unfortunately I am much more politically aligned with Texans than I am with Michiganders. I despise most unions, I can’t stand political apathy, and I am all for limited government that recognizes the rights of the individual. I’ve watched my entire life as Michigan hedged all of her bets on a dying auto industry. Instead of trying to build new industry here, we shipped our best and brightest off to Texas, Arizona, and California. Especially Texas.
Texas continues to reinvent itself and roll with the punches, exactly what Michigan needed to do and needs to do now. Texans had the foresight to embrace technology in all forms instead of relying solely on oil and ranching. I think of Michigan and see nothing but lost opportunity. It deeply saddens me. I truly love Michigan and care about the state. I just hope the recent signs of life here are the start of something wonderful. Michigan does have a history of reinventing herself too; it is just that the entire process is hindered by misguided politicians and union influence. Maybe almost losing it all will finally wake up those eternally skeptical Michiganders.
Below are a few videos of interest:
The video above is the video I came across this morning that inspired this post. The video below is an inspiring version of “Michigan My Michigan” that honors those Michigan soldiers that fought for the union. I’m proud to say that I have a great-great grandfather who was among them.
Below is an attempt to explain the Michigan accent. It freaks me out because my recorded voice sounds so similar to hers. If you ever wondered what I sound like, this video will give you a pretty good idea.
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Related articles
- Open Letter to the State of Michigan Government (anamericanpointofview.wordpress.com)
- Michigan GOP Debate: A Swing State Despite Obama’s Auto Bailout (huffingtonpost.com)
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History Of Spartanville
Image by A. Blight via Flickr
MAC – Michigan Agricultural College
I became extremely distracted by this website tonight. It is an online collection of items dating from various periods throughout Michigan State University’s long history. I graduated a year too early! In 2005, MSU celebrated 150 years.
I’d love to have some of the milk bottles, pennants, and leather patches featured on the website!
Image by matthileo via Flickr
Victory For MSU!
Another sweet Spartan victory. All I can hope for is another four years.
Related articles
- MSU beats Michigan for 4th straight time (cbsnews.com)
September 11, 2001
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Salute to Juan Armando Ceballos – Project 2,996 | Ramblings of a Misguided Blonde
I’ve tried and failed to write about 9/11 so many times over the years. Words still fail me. I can’t believe that it has been ten long years. Where do I start?
As irrelevant as it may seem all I can do is tell my story of that awful day. I’d only been in Quito, Ecuador for a couple of weeks. I spent the fall semester of 2001 studying abroad in Quito, Ecuador at the Universidad de San Francisco de Quito, campus Cumbaya through Michigan State University. I’d just settled into my classes and life with my wonderful host family, los Caleros. In fact, I’d spent the previous week on a mini vacation in Atacames on the Pacific coast near Esmeraldas with my host parents. They simply wanted to get to know me better. Nothing could have prepared me for the horror of that beautiful Tuesday morning.
I had just woken up and was preparing for the day ahead at USFQ. As I was getting ready in my bedroom, my host Mom, Adriana, yelled for me to come quick. She’d been watching TV in her bedroom as she was getting ready for the day. She watched on TV as the first plane hit the first tower. I thought that it was a horrible accident as many other people did at that point.
After eating breakfast and catching a bus to the USFQ campus, I headed to class. It was there that I began to hear rumors of what had happened in New York and Washington, D.C. I wouldn’t learn the entire story until I had a chance to eat lunch at a small café near the university. There I sat transfixed to CNN Español.
After making my way back to the university for afternoon classes I couldn’t believe the chaos erupting in the hallway housing the study abroad office. USFQ hosted several students from the United States that semester. Unlike me, most were from small liberal arts colleges on the East Coast. Many knew people who worked in the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. They were seeking information and assuming the worst.
We later had a meeting regarding the attacks and someone placed a huge TV in the lobby of the university. I remember crowds gathering there trying to catch any new piece of information. As soon as possible I headed back to my host parents’ home. I needed reassurance.
Watching the news with my host Mom, it became clear just what had happened. It still doesn’t seem real. At that point I called my parents in Michigan and spoke to my little brother. I simply needed to talk to my family.
9/11 faded into the background of that semester, but it was never completely out of mind. I admit that I thought about what I would do if my plane back to Michigan was hijacked. I also thought about who I would call. Traveling back to Michigan on December 22, 2001 was an adventure all its own.
It was then that I fully understood the impact of what had happened. I saw soldiers in the airports, new security measures were in place, and anxiety was everywhere. In my adventure home, I somehow missed the fact that the incident with the shoe bomber occurred the very same day. My parents would tell me that after the fact. In retrospect, I am glad that I didn’t know.
Early in 2002 I boarded yet another plane. This time my destination was Caceres, Spain where I was to spend yet another semester studying Spanish through the Office of Study Abroad at Michigan State University. I tried to come to terms with the changes taking place in the United States and the fact that I felt less safe as an American. It didn’t work. Some things I experienced in Spain stay with me to this day.
I travelled as much as possible throughout my semester in Spain. Naturally I ended up in southern Spain, which Muslims occupied for over 800 years. In 2002, there were many Pakistani and Afghan immigrants throughout that area of Spain. It was not hard to imagine Muslims occupying that area of Spain.
Later in the semester an anti-Semitic group posted disturbing fliers all around Caceres, angering our large contingent of MSU students. I’d never been exposed to anything like it. I can only imagine what it is like now. If people expressed such blatant hatred openly, how much hatred lay hidden behind closed doors?
