Happy Texas Independence Day!

In honor of Texas Independence Day, I thought I'd put up a picture of the frame I made TC for her birthday. We both love Texas and plan on living here with our hot husbands and adorable children until we are old and senile. So we took the phrase, "Texas forever" from the show Friday Night Lights and adopted it as our motto. For her birthday I thought it would be fun to make her a gift that reflected our future plans for Texas.

It was really simple to make. I bought a white frame at Hobby Lobby (my favorite store) and used a ruler to mark off the lines of the Texas flag. I used a star stencil for the star since my hand can get a little shaky and I wanted a clean line. I painted the different sections and let it dry for a couple hours. Then I modge-podged each section one by one and sprinkled on glitter in the matching color. I let it dry over night and voila! An adorable, glittery Texas flag frame. All that's left is to find a cute picture of the two of us to put in it!

Memaw's Twice Baked Potatoes

Now that I'm living in my own house, I've been getting into cooking and have been collecting recipes to try. When I think of great cooking, the first person I think of is my Memaw. She is the typical Southern grandma whose joy in life is feeding her kids and grandkids until their pants are about to burst a button. She's no fancy chef who serves tiny portions of some expensive dish on fine china. She serves real-butter, home-cooked, Louisiana-bred Southern cookin'. Her food is simply divine, so I thought I'd share one of her dishes. These twice baked potatoes are my absolute favorite. I sometimes dream of them and their warm, gooey deliciousness. When my parents come to visit us in Texas, my Memaw will make a batch of them and send them down for us. It's her way to spoil us even when we're not back home. So here is the recipe:

Ingredients

6 lg.baking potatoes or 12 small potatoes

6 oz. regular sour cream at room temp.

1/2 cups milk, warmed

3 tbsp butter/margarine, not light

1/4 tsp white ground pepper

2 tsp salt

3 tbsp onion powder (adjust to your taste)

Baking instructions

Wrap each potato in foil and bake for 1 hour or 1 hour and 15 minutes for lg; 1 hr for small---bake until tender

After potatoes are baked, score top of potato and remove a thin slice from top.
Discard skin and remove cooked portion and place in mixing bowl.
Add milk,margarine,and beat until there are no lumps. Add sour cream.salt,pepper,onion powder and blend until creamy.

Make a foil saucer for each potato half and fill with creamed potato mixture.

Put filled shells on pan and cover with foil and bake 350 for 35-40 min (or when centers of potatoes are hot)

Add grated sharp cheddar to top of potatoes and place on low broil for 3-5 min (until cheese is melted. I usually watch until cheese is melted because it burns easily.

Enjoy!

New Beginnings

So this blog has gone through a couple make-overs since it's creation. First, as a class assignment where we posted entries about public relations news. Then, as an attempted study abroad blog. And now, just as a general interest blog where I share things that are interesting or important to me. So I hope this won't be a failure like the two times before. I'm excited to start sharing things and maybe someone will even read this silly thing!

So here goes...

Beaucoup de Neige!

The streets of Paris have been dusted with snow the past two days. The weather here is so unpredictable! Yesterday I woke up to the sun shining for the first time in a week. My walk to class was beautiful and I felt so awake. In class however, I look out the window and it is practically blizzarding. In my next class, I was surprised again by a ray of sunshine, and when I looked outside, it looked like a bright spring day. The sun didn't last however because when I left to walk home it was in full blizzard mode again. The flakes here are so big, but they are barely frozen so I was soaked by the time I got back to the apartment. I wish the weather would make up it's mind!

The school week goes by so fast here that I can't believe it's the weekend already. I guess it helps that I don't have class on Friday. I've been working hard in all my classes, especially Phonetics, which I am really enjoying. I'm nervous for my "Labo" though, which is when we meet with our professor one-on-one. I hope I don't get nervous and forget everything I've learned so far.

I'm really excited because we booked our trip to Amsterdam for next weekend. We are taking the bus there because it is only 75 Euros, which is very cheap for travel here. I can't wait to visit the Van Gogh museum and the Anne Frank museum. We just finished a lesson on Van Gogh in my Modern Art class, so that makes it even more interesting for me. About ten people from the program are going, so it should be a fun weekend. We've also started to plan our spring break in Italy more. We've already booked our tickets to fly into Milan, and Caroline found this really cool private wine tasting/castle tour/lunch and dinner excursion in Tuscany, which sounds amazing. We plan on visiting Florence (where Madison and I can see some TCU friends), Venice, Rome, and possibly another city. I can almost taste the Italian food now!

Super Bowl

Watching the Super Bowl in an American bar in Paris was one of the most fun times I've had here so far. We decided to make it an American night so we went to a restaurant called American Dream where they had horrible American food. Then we went to a bar called The Long Hop to watch the game. It was packed, and surprisingly there were a lot of French people there. Who knew they liked football?

It was so nice to be able to watch the game because I'd been missing football here. Class today was not fun though since we were out so late. Kick-off here didn't start until 12:30. But it was worth it to watch the Saints win!

I had Phonetics today after Modern Art, and I realized that I really like the class, maybe because it's so interactive and I always have to be on my toes. I like repeating after her and how she corrects our pronunciation and intonation and such. I feel like it's really helping my French, and it's really interesting. It definitely went by faster than the hour and a half lecture in Modern Art.

Paris 2

This past week was my first week of classes. It went really well, even though I had to switch two classes due to scheduling conflicts. I didn't realize how exhausting it would be to have all my classes in French. If I drift off for even a few seconds, I get completely lost. I'm used to having French language classes in French, but a history or art history class in French is a whole different story. All my professors are really nice and interesting. Jeanne, the dean of academics, teaches my Intro to Lit course, which is intimidating, but I like her a lot. None of my classes seem like they will be too overwhelming, but I know they will be a lot of work, especially the readings.

I'm starting to get more adjusted to life here. I'm more comfortable with the metro now so I don't feel as nervous as I did. What really helped was when I went to visit my friend Hunter in Montmartre. I took the 4 almost all the way to the other end and then switched to the 12. I did it all by myself, which convinced me that I am not a complete failure at taking the metro. It was also good to see a familiar person. Hunter is a friend from high school, so it was good to catch up.

I went out last night with my friends in the program and it was actually fun. It was the most fun I've had since I've been here, which really isn't saying much since I've spent most of my time in the hospital or class. I have to say though that I'm disappointed in French guys. Everyone always says how romantic and good looking they are, but so far I've only encountered creepy, not cute guys who don't understand the word no. If you make eye contact with them for more than two seconds, they take it as an open invitation to come maul you.

Hopefully tonight will be fun too, because tomorrow will be a day full of homework.

Welcome to Paris

So my first few weeks in Paris have been a disaster, to say the least. I arrived Monday, January 18th. I moved into my apartment and met my roommate, Erin, who is really nice. I had gotten a urinary tract infection the Sunday I left, so it made it even harder for me to adjust being sick.

Then on Wednesday night, I was napping and Erin was sitting on her bed on the computer, when she heard a noise on the balcony. She peeked around the curtains and there was a man on the balcony. She screamed and we ran out without our keys or cell phones and ran down the hall for help. It ended up that the girl next door was smoking pot on her balcony with three guys when her social worker showed up. She got scared and made them jump across to our balcony (on the 5th floor) to hide. Even though it ended up being harmless, it was traumatizing at the time.

That morning I woke up shivering and with a fever. By the next the day it was 104 degrees. On Friday the RA called the doctor and he came to the apartment and said I needed to go to the hospital. So I rode in an ambulance to the hospital where I waited hours to see a doctor. When I finally did see one, he said that the infection had spread to my kidneys and that it was very serious. They hooked me up to an IV and put me on antibiotics. The worst part was the fever because I would alternate between being very cold and shivering and sweating buckets.

They gave me an ultrasound to look at my kidneys, and then I had to wait about three hours in a bed in the hall to be given a room at 2 a.m. Needless to say, it was a horrible experience. The next day they moved me to the ICU so they could monitor me more. I spent three days there and when my fever finally went down, they were able to take me off the IV and give me the antibiotics orally. The student insurance paid to fly my mom over. She got here on Tuesday and left today about an hour ago. It was nice having her here, but I felt bad that all she got to see was her hotel and the hospital.

It's such a relief to finally be out. And luckily I haven't missed any classes since they don't start until Monday. So far my time in Paris has been pretty terrible because I've been sick the whole time, but I'm hoping things will start looking up now that I feel better.

AT&T vs. Verizon

AT&T is suing Verizon for it's commercial called "There's a Map for That." AT&T believes the commercials are misleading and that customers will believe that they won't get service in the areas the service doesn't have 3G coverage. The map shows white space that indicates where AT&T doesn't have 3G service, but that doesn't mean they don't have service in those areas at all.
AT&T is asking Verizon to simply change the wording of the ad so it isn't as misleading. They don't want them to stop running the ad completely. We will have to wait and see how this case turns out!

Do Something Awards

VH1 has partnered with DoSomething.org to create an award show for young people and social change. VH1 will televise the 2010 Do Something Awards on July 27, 2010. The Do Something organization has honored young world-changers since 1996.
Five nominees will be rewarded a community grant, participation in the live tv show, media coverage, and continued support from Do Something. The winner will receive $100,000.

http://www.dosomething.org/programs/awards

Paranormal Activity

Paranormal Activity is a scary movie made in 2007 that surprised many with its huge success and popularity with almost no advertising or publicity. The film, a movie about a couple haunted by a demon, was shown at a few festivals and then it was released in 13 college towns. It sold out in 12 of the 13 towns. The producer then put the film on eventful.com so people could vote where the film should be released next.
Because of it's success, the producer decided to release it in 20 more towns, where it sold out 33 of the showings. The producer announced he would release it in 40 markets if he got 1,000,000 requests online. He got the desired requests, and the rest is history.
Paranormal Activity grossed $107.1 million in the U.S. and Canada, making it most profitable independent film. This is with literally no advertising or publicity. This story shows how much word-0f-mouth advertising and publicity really matters and how big of an impact it can have in certain markets.

Modern Mousekateers

An article in this month's Time magazine titled "How Disney Builds Stars" talked about Disney's ability to manufacture teen talent. Superstars like Miley Cyrus, the Jonas Brothers, and Selena Gomez all got their start from Disney.
Disney not only manufactures these stars, they have developed ways to keep them with Disney for extended periods of time, instead of branching out to other endeavors (like Hillary Duff). The current model for Disney teen stars is attractive, wholesome 14-18 year olds who can act, sing, and dance. These triple threats have helped Disney stay afloat, despite dropping theme park attendance and DVD sales.
Disney is on the forefront of promoting young stars. They start with a 30-minute sitcom, a record deal with their own Hollywood Records, and a concert tour with Disney-owned Buena Vista concerts. Add on tie-in merchandise and heavy song rotation on Radio Disney and Disney movie soundtracks, and you have a winner.

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1930657,00.html

Food with Integrity

Chipotle, a popular semi-fast food Mexican restaurant, is popular not only for it's enormous burittos. It is popular for it's promise to customers that their food is fresh and not full of unnatural substances, like antibiotics. 

Chipotle's motto is "Food with Integrity." These are not just words though. Steve Ellis, the founder and CEO of Chipotle, is dedicated to keeping the products fresh, the farms and dairies sustainable, and the food tasty. The following link to their website further explains their goals and practices. 

http://www.chipotle.com/#/flash/fwi_story

The great thing about Chipotle from  PR perspective is that it lets the world know what a great job it is doing, which in turns help business. Chipotle has huge billboards advertising the fact that their chicken is antibiotic free. Printed on their cups are stories about how Chipotle is making their food safer and how they support family-run farms and dairies. 

Chipotle is an excellent example of a restaurant that doesn't keep money as their bottom line. They realize that if they maintain a good relationship with their publics, business will flourish and grow, like it has for Chipotle. 

Spit Blood TCU

I saw a link to a website called Spitbloodtcu.com. Obviously, I was intrigued so I decided to check it out. It turns out it is a blog a former TCU student about the TCU football team. It combines humor with legitimate sports knowledge. This blog appeals to fans of all levels because it's not cut and dry statistics like other sports blogs. Any TCU fans should check this blog out. 

http://www.spitbloodtcu.com/

Up-and-comers

CNN.com published an article titled "40 under 40." It contains a list of the rising stars of the business world. I found it interesting that a majority of the people honored created/owned/ran Internet web sites. The number one spot went to Sergey Brin and Larry Page, the creators of Google. Number two was Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of Facebook. 

This just goes to show the growing impact of the Internet on every type of business, from social networking to volunteering to stock exchanges. Check out the list for a glimpse at the future of business. 

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2009/fortune/0910/gallery.40_under_40.fortune/index.html

Frogs for the Cure

        TCU will be hosting it's annual Frogs for the Cure game November 14  for the TCU vs. Utah game. All money raised will go to the Susan G. Komen foundation for breast cancer research. If you buy a t-shirt through a TCU organization, you will be able to go on the field during half-time and help make a human pink ribbon on the field with the band. A video will also be shown during half-time with stories from breast cancer survivors and other facts. 

Three dollars from t-shirt sales will go to the Komen foundation. A percentage from ticket sales purchased through gofrogs.com will also go to Komen. 

TCU was the first university to do a program like this, and now other schools and even NFL teams are putting on similar events. 

Check out the Facebook group (Frogs for the Cure) or Twitter (frogs4cure) for more information and updates. 

Help be a part of the cure! 

gofrogs.com 

It's a bird, it's a plane, it's balloon boy!

     The hype about balloon boy, the six-year-old thought to have floated away in a helium balloon, has spread like wildfire. News stations, blogs, and gossip websites have covered this story for the past week, with millions of people actively following the story. The controversy continues, even though the boy, Falcon, was found in his attic. Now people are questioning the validity of the story, with some saying it was a publicity stunt for reality TV. 

Falcon's parents are now facing charges of conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and false reporting to the authorities. Their house was raided by the police. 

This leaves the question, was it worth it for the publicity? I think not, but Americans will continue to follow the story to see what happens next. 

OMG So Superficial

      Gossip blogs have become all the rage, but I never understand the draw until my best friend introduced me to the Superficial. From the first time I browsed the gossip site, I was hooked. It isn't that I'm obsessed with staying up to date with celebrities, I just really enjoyed the blogger's writing. Yes, he posted about all the goings-on of the celebrity world, but his writing was witty and definitely not politically correct, which is refreshing. 

For those who enjoy the occasional story about Miley Cyrus or Paris Hilton, or for those who just want a good laugh, check out the Superficial. (Those easily offended beware.) 

http://www.thesuperficial.com/

Ch-ch-ch-changes (climate that is)

       The organization 350.org is taking a stand against climate change. Regardless of your position on global warning, as human beings we all know it is our responsibility to take care of our planet. 

 

        An organization called 350.org is concerned with climate change. A famous climatologist found that if we let the amount of carbon in the atmosphere grow above 350 parts per million, the Earth will return to the state it was in when life began evolving. This is not something we want. Unfortunately for us, there are already 390 carbon parts per million in the atmosphere. 350.org is holding an event to help bring awareness to this fact. 

         A small group in my PR class is helping promote 350.org's event on October 24. The organization asks people across the globe to hold events that make the number 350 visible to everyone, whether it's planting 350 trees or draping a sign with the number 350 on it. 

 

         Visit 350.org to find locations where the organization is having events, and also to learn about climate change. 

http://www.350.org/

Tweets for Eats

Pizza Hut recently announced its decision to help World Hunger Relief, a campaign supporting the United Nations World Food Program, work towards an end to hunger. Pizza Hut is pledging four meals for every Twitter follower who re-Tweets the link to Pizza Hut's World Hunger donation page.
Twitter users must simply Tweet a post containing the website link and the hashtag #pizzahut, and the company will donate four meals to those in need around the world. Over 36,000 other companies and franchised restaurants will be contributing to World Hunger Relief's mission to eliminate hunger worldwide.

http://ow.ly/qWn8
Above is the website link to Pizza Hut's World Hunger donation page.

www.fromhungertohope.com/donate
Above is a link that contains more information about World Hunger Relief.

Paid to Tweet

One of the new trends in advertising is paying a celebrity or spokesperson to Tweet or blog about a product. Some consumers are not happy about this. They think that this practice has tainted the organic, word-of-mouth social networking sites. 

     

However, what is the difference between paying Taylor Swift to Tweet about her favorite brand of boots, and paying Eva Longoria Parker to represent L'Oreal on commercials and in print ads? Attached is a story from AdAge about this new advertising practice. 

http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=138980

The consumers who do not support paid Tweets and blogs about products have good reason to be wary. Because money is involved, things get a little sticky. Just because a celebrity endorses a product does not mean they use it or that the product works. Many consumers look to Twitter and blogs for actual product reviews and recommendations. 

However, I understand the desire of the ad agencies to personally connect with consumers. The Internet is a great medium to connect more personally with target audiences.