Just yesterday, I had an Admissions Advisor ask me to make an exception and let a student retest again. She claims the student says she did poorly because her mother was texting her the whole time she was taking the test. The texting was distracting her, and it wasn't fair to her.  

This is what I can't figure out. The student was told several times by me and by the testing directions that her phone should be turned completely off. She either chose to ignore me, or she just didn't pay attention. Now if I were taking a college entrance exam, I would be darn sure to listen and pay attention. Wouldn't you? The student should have known about the rule, but she still thought it was okay to tell the Advisor she left it on and that is why she did poorly. Just by admitting that she broke one of the labs biggest rules, put her in jeopardy of never being able to take classes with us.

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With all this talk about Generation Y or the Millennial Generation, I sometimes wonder where I fit in.  I'm just shy of 29, depending on which Sociologist's timeline you look at I am either Generation X or Y.  I remember all the talk about Generation X back in the 1990s and thinking I related to them. I watched movies like Reality Bites and Empire Records, listened to grunge, and was happy to relate to the whole Generation X Scene. That is until I was a little older, and I started working in the education field.

Suddenly I am faced with people/students that are a little bit younger, and in some ways are so different than I am…and sometimes the same.  Generation Y is known for their television viewing habits, their love of technology, naively optimistic outlooks, and an over all lack of responsibility.  I find myself getting frustrated with their (in my mind) glaring shortcomings. I just don't my students who can't be bothered to read the syllabus and expect me to spoon feed them each week' s assignments. It annoys me that I have to lock their computers or I will be fighting MySpace and Facebook for their attention.  
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Last night I was sitting alone in the DJ booth, I had this totally introspective moment. Sitting in  bar listening to some stranger sing mediocre karaoke is not usually the place where people have deep thoughts, but stranger things have happened.  As I sat there waiting for the song to end, my mind was flooded with  lessons learned. I’m not sure if anyone else can relate to the specific situation, but they are lessons we can all learn from.    

Lesson 1   
Life happens. Had you told me a year ago this would be my life, I would not have believed you. I thought I had my life all figured out. I had a plan and goals. However, things didn’t turn out quite as I expected. My plans didn’t exactly pan out, but that path led me to meeting a Karaoke DJ and his girlfriend. After some prodding, I started singing a song or two at his Wednesday night shows. Then we started going to his Thursday night show.  I’m not  great singer, but I’m not tone deaf.

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In high school and university, my friends and I would plan camping trips every summer. It was a cheap way to gather everyone together for the weekend, have fun and create some memories. The camp site/conservation area was a short 45-minute drive from the city where we all lived. It wasn’t remote, but that’s what we liked about it.

The drive to the conservation area did not look any different from what we were used to seeing back home in the city. Pizzerias, brand name grocery stores, McDonalds, you name it, and we drove past it.

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There are two parts of my life. As writer, I spend most of my time in front of my computer writing, wearing grubby clothes and no makeup. Many days don’t see, or visit with, anyone outside of my family. Instead of bemoaning those days, I consider it to be a good thing because it means I’m productive. I also read a lot of news and try to keep up on what’s going on in the world so I don’t write in a vacuum.

I also try to be an involved parent and as a freelancer, I’m blessed with having a flexible schedule which makes me available for school festivities. When I do venture out of my office and go to these activities, it sometimes puts me in contact with other moms and that’s when I get an education and realize just how isolated and out of step I am with normal moms. Continue Reading

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Ok, I'm about to hand over my dude card and confess that I, she who loves beer, UFC, fishing, burping, and home depot, loved Sex In the City, the movie. Yes, it was predictable. Yes, it was the pure definition of chick flick. And yes, I would most definitely go see it again. Lucky for me, I am a female. Despite my otherwise manly indulgences, I have a ticket that excuses me from the ridicule of my fellow peers. Men, however, don't have it so easy.

My husband and I have been avid Sex in the City fans since the comfort stage of our relationship. You know the one, six months after the first sleep over when you no longer purposely match your underwear to earn "best girlfriend ever" points.

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Ever have the urge to peak behind a closed curtain?  Ever put your hand on a restricted door to see if it’s locked?  Ever want to experience new cultures, see how different people live?  Maybe you’re like me.  Maybe you explore people.  Searching out the exceptional, the precious, the unique – the people that bring intensity and novelty to your life.  Diving into the ocean of community and searching out the treasure of a meaningful connection with an authentically rare person.  The kind of person who would test a locked door. 

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During a recent trip to Wal-Mart with my good friend, we stumbled into the toy section after roaming around the store collecting items. My friend wanted to find something small to bring with her to Europe to take pictures with, as many people do with gnomes or small stuffed animals. Our search came up empty, but something else caught our eye.

Placed in a display all to themselves were historical figures, but not just any historical figures, Canadian historical figures. John A. Macdonald, Sir Isaac Brock and Sir Wilfred Laurier packaged up and being sold as action figures under the Canadian Legends line.  Continue Reading

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If there is any one over-touched topic in the news these days it’s the subject of racism—with regards to whom WE are as Americans. And I am as guilty as the next person when I say this: I want to talk about it—so badly—but I so badly avoid it instead, all for the sake of not arguing or being blacklisted as a racist myself or the target of a race debate.

I have written countless articles on the subject, but no one has seen them or heard of them. I look them over, considering submission, and using my journalistic hat, I review them to ensure they are free of any racial bias, only to discard them. In the end—I put them away—stored in a place where they can’t be found. I do it because I’m scared of what people might say if they read my words. Continue Reading

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Like other writers on CultureFeast, I'm a movie buff. I'm also a big fan of anything that can make me feel like a kid again and while this is an internet scavenger hunt, I'm totally hooked. It took me about 40 minutes to complete and I realized that I was not just having a bunch of fun, I was being immersed in the site. I was entirely impressed and… I have a chance to win a Nintento Wii, which I've been meaning to win for a while now. I've never seen anything like it on the internet and it's a genius marketing move. I got a hold of Ian MacLurg, the marketing guy at Spout.com, and asked him some questions.

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