1.) You’re sitting at home, bored out of your mind. What are you doing that is making you so bored?

a.) Single-handedly saving Mother Earth.

b.) Absolutely nothing. I am incapable of entertaining myself, or thinking for that matter.

c.) This quiz.

d.) Plucking my eyebrows (or other types of beauty regiments.)

2.) Do you connect emotionally with cats?

a.) Yes.

b.) What are cats?

c.) No.

d.) Kitties are just so adorable! And puppies! And furry things!

3.) Paper or Plastic?

a.) Paper. People who use plastic bags are suffocating the dolphins that I’m busy saving.

b.) You mean I get to choose?

c.) If the bagger looks like a hippy, plastic.

d.) Whatever comes in the best color.

4.) Girl Scout or Honey Badger?

a.) I am currently on strike for the plight of the Honey Badger.

b.) Girl Scouts. They bring me cookies.

c.) YouTube will explain my answer.

d.) Ohhh boy I have the sewing patch and the animals patch and the building fire patch…

5.) What level does your amp go to?

a.) I play acoustic ukulele only. I hate electricity. And I can’t carry an amp on the street with me.

b.) 10

c.) 11

d.) I have no idea. But I can guarantee you it is pink.

6.) Where is Waldo?

a.) I have bigger problems than some missing man. I have whales to save.

b.) I remember those books! I still can’t find him.

c.) At a therapists, trying to find himself.

d.) Buying better clothes at Brooks Brothers. Red stripes are so fattening.

7.) Have you ever considered competing in the distinguished sport of dressage?

a.) I don’t believe in animals submitting to human will you cruel animal suppressor.

b.) Is that where I get dressed everyday? Then no, no I don’t.

c.) I once started a horse moshpit.

d.) I do it for the tiaras.

8.) Who is your favorite LL Bean Boyfriend?

a.) LL Bean is so commercial. My closet is completely hemp.

b.) I am a guy.

c.) Sebastian.

d.) I follow yoururbanoutfittersboyfriend.tumblr instead. I have a thing for skinny jeans and deep vee’s.

9.) What is your favorite language?

a.) I don’t believe in languages, I feel that they are the barriers between myself and my true self.

b.) I communicate purely through grunts. Shout out to Tarzan, that bro taught me everything I know.

c.) German. Because everything sounds cool in German. Try it.

d.) *Squealing* OHHHMIGAHD!!!! I AM SO FLUENT IN ENGLISH. LIKE I AM SO LIKE GOOD AT LIKE WORDS! I SO KNOW WORDS!!!

10.) Which American Girl Doll did you have?

a.) Who has time for dolls? I single handedly supplied food for a secret leper colony off the coast of Africa by the time I was five.

b.) I still play with my GI Joes.

c.) Well Kirsten was terrible. I mean she didn’t speak English, or have cool clothes, her best friend died of illness right away, and her bangs were a botched job.

d.) Samantha. She was gorg.

If you answered mostly A’s…

You are incredibly self righteous. Because of this self righteousness, you refuse to take other peoples advice. I am slightly confused as to why you are taking this quiz actually. But, if for some reason you answered mostly A’s and are not self righteous, I recommend that you get yourself on the next Greenpeace boat to Greenland and save some arctic worms.

If you answered mostly B’s…

You are most likely a man, in which case you will not heed my directions. I see many couches and friends basements in your future. Or, a fraternity. Either works.

If you answered mostly C’s…

You, my friend, are probably the best person on Earth. You have a wonderful sense of humor, you’re pretty intelligent, and I would venture to say you are rather attractive. I can give you a 99% guarantee that you will rock the socks off off anything you set your mind to. Keep shining, you diamond.

If you answered mostly D’s…

You probably have wonderful taste, and are inclined to buy anything that glitters. You may be daddy’s little girl (or mama’s little boy?), and are completely content having relationships where you are spoiled. I would recommend you get a reality T.V. show or become best friends with Kim Kardashian.

Bastien-Lepage maintained a naturalistic color scheme of greens, browns, beiges, and oranges to emphasize the toll life takes on it’s subjects. Vibrant spots of green appear throughout, indicating a passage of time from the carefree days of summer to the impending lifelessness of winter. The two subjects are depicted in vivid detail as they creep towards the viewer from the depths of the woods. The young girl, clothed in pale blue, prances about in the flowers, reveling in the glory of the changing seasons. The pale colors and her peaceful demeanor illustrate the youthful innocence found in those that have yet to face hardships. In contrast, the elderly man clothed in browns and greens hunches under a bundle of wood vital to his family’s survival in the impending winter months, evoking a sense of weariness. The worn colors and weary expression illustrate the resignation one feels after a long life of hard work and hardships.

The humble subjects of this piece lead the audience to discuss the physical and mental implications of age and what connotations it carries. As time passes, one must garner new knowledge and apply it to their way of thinking. Through this application comes the wisdom of old age, and through the remembrance of one’s youth comes vitality and passion for life.

Picchi credits the recent of the past decade as the reason for low incomes. Meanwhile, the high debt levels are accredited to the rising costs of college tuition. She states, “if you graduated in the 21st century, tough luck: you likely paid more to earn less.”

The stark contrast between the two sums is very telling of the dire straights that our economy has been in for the past decade. The tone reflects this as stark and dour words are used throughout the piece. After reflecting on the piece, I found that I kept asking myself the same question– should I apply ridiculously high tuition to be able to have more connections to top execs that went to my alma mater, and center myself in the area that I need to be in to receive a job that matches my degree, and possibly receive a larger payout, or pay a manageable tuition amount nearer to home and have the possibility of not networking correctly, yet also not drowning myself in debt?

With the knowledge gained from this article, I will now have a better perspective of the economic climate I am entering, and how to set myself up correctly.

Smith attributes the high rates of unemployment to three main sources; one, that many candidates are networking incorrectly; two, that many candidates are not applying for jobs as soon as they need to; and three, that many candidates are not applying to enough companies.

With students facing growing unemployment rates, many are eager to know what they can do to successfully obtain a job by graduation day. Smith establishes logos through the use of facts and tone. The beginning of the piece is heralded by a startling fact– “seven out of ten college graduates, ages 22 to 26, wish they had done more to prepare for the real world,” (1). Throughout the piece, the author employs an authoritative and direct tone to discuss the dire prospects of the current job market. The piece as a whole was extremely organized and straightforward, reflecting the style of the source of print.

With the state of the job market as it is now, students are conscience now more than ever of finding a job. By applying early on in their college careers and by applying to a multitude of different companies, students are striving to ensure their success after college.

Thomas’s suggestions ranged from tailoring ones resume with specific details to utilizing technology such as LinkedIn and Twitter. Despite the large range of suggestions, each stressed the importance of details. Brianna McMeekin, a career consultant at the University of Pittsburgh explained that details will show that you “don’t just talk the talk, you walk the walk!” By explicitly detailing your experiences, employers are given an exact picture of what you can bring to the table.

In todays market, ones level of education is no longer the leading factor in employability. Instead, much of one’s employability lies in how one can adapt to different situations and how they present themselves socially. In the current job market, dynamic personalities and creative minds are the keys to success. Because of these ideals, candidates are learning to create a resume that reflects their employers desires. Technology such as LinkedIn is now utilized to sell oneself to future employers in addition to the traditional resume. McMeekin explains, “A resume and cover letter are stagnant in the sense that it is a document that once sent out, does not change and does not offer the interactive quality that a LinkedIn profile can.” Using sites such as LinkedIn allows candidates to showcase these ideals simply because of the nature of the technology. By presenting these ideas with an upbeat and informative tone, the author reaches her audience of twenty-somethings that are about to enter the workforce.

As the standards of the workforce change, applicants are changing with it, employing new strategies to stand out from the crowd of traditional resumes through the use of technology and the reflections of personality.

Arguing that “In 140 characters or less, students can jeopardize their chance at their ideal career or dream graduate school,” (3) Roberts set out to list common Twitter blunders. Detailing gaffes such as unprofessional posts, alcoholic references, and hashtags and posts including swear words with direct examples from fellow students, Robert proposes simple solutions to the readers such as self editing and protecting one’s account.

In a world where one’s every move can and does get announced to the digital world, job candidates must be more careful than ever with the way that they portray themselves. With employers googling potential employees on a regular basis, a single post could be the difference between having a job and being turned away. The author recognizes the gravity of the situations, and presents it in a lighter mood as a way to connect to her audience of twenty-somethings. By using informal language, the author effectively reached her audience without sounding domineering.

In a society that is dominated by endless streams of information, one must practice caution during their interactions on social media sites to ensure that their future is not marred by a questionable post.

Truman Capote’s 1965 novel In Cold Blood marked the beginning of a new literary genre– the nonfiction novel. By meticulously documenting the 1959 Clutter murders, Capote appears to have created a perfect argument for each side, but after closer examination, readers can discern the carefully masked opinions of Capote from the facts garnered from years of research.
The entire premise of the novel, from the concept, subject matter, and format instantly excited me. When I first read the novel, I was drowning in the mess of happily ever afters, unrealistic events, and perfect characters that remained relatively unmarred through the entirety of the novels that clogged the masses of mainstream teen fiction. My little black heart yearned for reality– all of its misery, negativity, marred characters, and moral dilemmas. I found what I desired in In Cold Blood. As the perfect world of Holcomb was shattered, I saw life– life that I would be exposed as I moved out of the innocence of both my childhood and small community. This novel posed questions that I had never been exposed to in my previous reading endeavors. Having a general idea of what my opinion was was no longer enough; I needed to formulate my opinions by considering every detail, moral implication, and fact. But my still young mind did not grasp the full argument of the novel, nor recognize the falsities present because of human error and nature. Given the opportunity to revisit the novel in recent months, I have delved deeper into the novel than ever before.
During my first experience with In Cold Blood, I recognized the two topics debated openly within the body of the novel– nature versus nurture and the effectiveness of the death penalty. I took his word as fact and used the arguments he posed to create my opinions. I did not recognize the sometimes obvious glares of human error and personal bias. Capote claims to have formulated the perfect piece of journalism, free of bias and falsities. But human error could never allow this; all of the research that Capote performed in order to remain objective only created a further opportunity for personal bias. With this new realization I was forced to reevaluate the opinions I had formed years before during my first encounter with the novel. I called into question the validity of the self dubbed title of “nonfiction novel.” But I found I could not fault Capote– he was human, as human as the surrounding characters of In Cold Blood and myself. His errors changed the book from a piece of journalistic art into a reflection of humanity; as much as we strive for perfection, we will always fall short.
After recognizing the glares of bias, I combed through the novel to find more of Capote’s opinions. I compiled my findings and searched for a meaning within in them. I recognized that Capote’s relationship with the killers seemed to be the root of most biases, but I could not understand why a man so set on perfection would allow opinion to seep through his perfectly composed piece of neutrality. I searched through the ending, reread the autobiographies composed by the murderers, and finally found my answer. The key to In Cold Blood lays in the examination of psych and how it interacts with the law. Capote allowed his compassion for those that lacked mental control to seep through lines to call into question the effectiveness of institutionalization and the outdated views of mental health held in the world of law. Smith and Hickock proved to be the perfect examples of this; Smith was twisted into a monster after a childhood of mental and physical abuse and Hickock after an accident that injured his head. These men were deemed mentally stable by a specialized doctor on a later date, but because of the bias of the law the men were originally examined by an nonspecializing doctor who declared them sane by the standards of the law. Because they knew what they were doing while they were completing the murders, the men had no chance of pleading insanity. This argument was brought forth again as the readers are exposed to the inhabitants of death row. All were found guilty of heinous crimes, but Capote calls into question whether death is the best way to deal with the mentally unstable. As I finish the novel for a second time, I am left with another question to ponder– is rehabilitation or death best when dealing with violently unstable individuals capable of heinous crimes?

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Relating to the audience his various defeats in highly renowned competitions, the author explains the epiphany he experienced while at the Junior Olympics. After placing in the bottom two-thirds, he felt himself melt into the homogeneous crowd. In his own small town he had reached the stars, but when thrust into the outside world, he saw that those stars had belonged to someone else all along. Questioning how anyone can be special in a world where everyone is “special,” he soon found solace in the fact that he is “not the only one doomed to this lackluster fate.” (5).

Coming to terms with his destiny of mediocrity, he soon discovered that through this fate, he will find who he is as an individual, stating “By accepting that I may never be the best, never be top dog, I can come to terms with my true self.” By accepting the fact that our mediocrity is inevitable, we become ourselves, our own special individual.

The reader is presented with a young boy named Jack, who suffered from severe asthma. Day after day, he suffered with his illness, unable to even walk. On a whim, the exasperated doctor, with 12 other patients to visit, presented the child with a valentine plastered with a picture of Britney Spears. “Whenever you get tight I want you to think of this picture; focus on Britney.” By the following day, the child had regained strength.

The author closes, saying, “we can close our eyes, breathe deep and envision a better life. They give us the courage to stand up and make it so.” Through Jack, the readers are taught to find inspiration in the most inept parts of life.