Read An Opinion, Give An Opinion

The opinion article from Cleveland.com on Angels, Love, Depression and Bitter Fate: What we're reading by Monica Wood is a fascinating story about her big sister who never grew but grew old. When you pick up the magazine you should also pick up a box of tissues when reading "What Betty Knows". Megan says "“She can’t reliably feed a cat or lock a door, but if you tell her a secret she’ll keep it for a hundred years.” This is a remarkable story and it has a very strong sense of emotion because it is her sister.

Tucson Meet Yourself 2011

Today, October 15,  I will be attending the Tucson Meet Yourself festival.

6:15 p.m. Arrived at the Tucson Meet Yourself Festival.

First thing I tried was the Savory Beef from The Peru tent, I asked a man in line that ordered the same thing as me and asked what he thought about it, he replied with "The Savory Beef is very rich in flavor" Tom Patterson at 6:28 p.m.

At 6:32 I walked over to the Chinese food tent and took a look at their menu, I asked a gentleman by the name of Joe Hall what his thoughts were on their order #1 Gyudon.
"Gyudon has no sauce, its rice and meat and onion; very flavorful."

At 6:37 I experimented with the caribbean chicken and the carrot juice, I asked a woman by the name of Michelle Martinez what her thoughts were about it.

"The carrot juice and caribbean chicken is spicy and peppery at first, it is very tender and it kind of tastes like an egg roll."

 At 6:40 I was making my way over to the other side of the festival that had more food tents and dancing going on and had to stop because there was a wonderful smell. I turned a looked and there was a mini-doughnut stand, I did not try them because the line was ridiculous but I was able to snap a picture of the long line and the tent.

At 7:00 I mad my way over to the Sweden tent to try their Swedish Meatballs, they were extremely delicious and flavorful, so much to the point where I forgot to take a picture of them because they were scarfed down so quickly.

At 7:20 the lines were starting to become extremely long and it was very hot, but the food was great! I snapped a picture of the crowd while I was waiting in line for the Philippine food for twenty minutes and snapped a picture of the crowd.

At 7:45 I tried the Philippine Adobe and Lumpia. It was very flavorful and very filling, after this meal I was ready to go into food-coma.

At 8:00 p.m. I was on my way to my car when people were making way for the bag pipers to come through, it was the end to a great experience that involved great food and all different kinds of people.

Review: The Big Year

The Big Year is a comedy about three avid bird watchers that attend an event every year to see who is the best bird watcher of the world. Mary Pols, writer for Time Entertainment, says "The Big Year competition may be fierce, but the movie is as soft as a bunny." The review gives a good description of the film because it tells you what it's all about. Three men, one experiencing a mid-life crisis, one dealing with a late-life crisis, and another with a no-life crisis cross paths while following their dreams. The reviewers point of view is touched but she does a good job with staying on track on letting the reader know what the movie is all about. Mary Pols authority is portrayed and her tone is extremely strong, she definatley has a bit of "snark" to her but it makes it all the more worth while of reading.

Paparazzo Article: Commentary

This story is about a girl Dodai Stewart that trails a paparazzi for a day to find out what his job is all about. The central conflict is that most people have a bias towards paparazzi because they feel that they should mind their own business; when in reality they are giving the public what they want, the hot gossip. The central character is the paparazzi himself, Wagner who knows celebrities daily scheduled routines and feels this way at the end of the day. "...I know I don't hurt anybody, you know? I go there, I take my photo, I go home."

I think that this story on, The Day I Trailed A Paparazzo, is very interesting because it gives you an eye for what someones profession is, and not just a boring profession, but one that is talked about on a daily basis and that I personally didn't think about until I read this article. Readers should definitely click on this article if you're interested in the true story about paparazzi or celebrities because it will enhance your outlook on them. The larger theme in this story to me was when Wagner spotted out Liev Schreiber and reached out to him on the subway, making small talk but also confirming with him that he knows he has to get a picture. Schreiber poses for photos rather than making it a big deal that it's an invasion of privacy and that to me shows that not all celebrities think they are too good for anyone or anything. This story makes me think about the issue of what matters and what doesn't. People are hyped up about celebrities, and that's okay, but there are so many other things in this world that matters other than if Sarah Jessica Parker is going to be coming out of her home today.

How Blogger's Make Money

In the world we live in today everyone is entitled to an opinion. One of the most popular ways of sharing your opinion is through blogging; some people blog because they just like to share their thoughts or because they're required to because of a class they are taking, but some people actually get paid to sit at home and blog about their opinion.

Jeff Wuorio, Featured columnist at the Microsoft Small Business Center, wrote an article on How Blogger's Make Money:5 tips. 

1. Sell Advertising- It is the most common way that blogger's make money.

2. Help sell others' products- A popular choice is Amazon.com

                            3. Solicit contributions- Consider relying on kindness of strangers.

                            4. Market your services in your blog- Demonstrate your abilities.

                            5. Use a blog to deepen your existing customer relations- Broaden your skills.

Top Blogs List

The Everywhereist's is a blog about a husband and wife that travel around together. The husband is on business and the wife tags along because she was laid off from her job, she than started this blog talking about all of their experiences. I am interested in this blog because I am interested in traveling the world one day.


OkTrends is a blog by Christian Rudder that "uses Math to get you dates". It is more of a humorous blog but it uses statistics and observations from millions of people on OkCupid. I believe that with today's society the things that they post about are mainly true, although it is being joked about.



The Big Picture reports the news using pictures, they tell more of a story and really give you an "eye" for what is actually going on in our world, it started in 2008. I am the kind of person that perfers to see what is going on rather than being told and that is why this is one of my top blogs. If you clink on this link for, The Big Picture, you will be taken to some of the magnificent photos that are used to report the news.



Get Rich slowly is a blog that teaches you how to reach financial goals such as saving for a house payment, paying for college, and ensuring retirement. This blog intrigues me because I am recently on the first step of starting to support myself and this blog gives me tips on how to save and be smart with my money.



The Hairpin is a blog about how-to videos, dating tips and fashion picks that is strictly written by woman. This was one of my top blogs because outside of school I am interested in looking good and learning how to do things for myself, this blog gives me tips on how to do that.

Feature Analysis: My First Time, Twice.

My First Time, Twice. Is a story about a young fourteen year-old girl who was on a mission to lose her virginity, but actually ended up finding her true self.

Photograph via Flickr by Laura Smith

Ariel Levy, is the central character in this story.

I would say that this story is an issue/idea feature, because this topic happens on a regular basis but is not usually reported on.

Ariel was always surrounded by older people, who constantly complemented her on how mature she was. Her peers at school thought the exact opposite though, to them, she was considered a nerd. She was on a mission to lose her virginity, she had already tried drugs and alcohol so she felt it was the next step. She resolves her conflict by having someone take her virginity at the age of fifteen, but she than lost it again at seventeen. To Ariel, the first time was not losing her virginity, because it was awkward, but the second time it was "different". 

The larger human theme to this story is self-discovery. After she lost her virginity she realized that she was only reaching out to have sex because her parents were going through a divorce and she wanted to rebel against them. 

"The thing I badly wanted wasn't sex but to be rid of my virginity, the last vestige of a childhood spent trusting and respecting adults, seeking their approval"-Ariel Levy.

This story is told in the first person narrative. It works extremely well because it is the authors story of self-discovery.

The authors point of view is that she has learned from her out breaks as a child because now that she is older she can look at the situation and now understand it, but even better, write about it. The authors voice is character development. 

This story made me feel curious because of the title. Than after reading the story I felt remorse for the girl because she did not know what she wanted, even though she thought she did at the time. I do not have any questions because this article was very well written and she provides all of the background flaws and she makes her characters relate to the story. 

Scrapbooking: How to make a wool poncho!

Left over fabric sparked an idea to make a wool poncho in less than 30 minutes. It requires no sewing and looks extremely stylish for this Fall season. There are step by step instructions on how to make one for yourself! 

News Round-Up

A Serious pumpkin shortage in the Northeast after Hurricane Irene destroyed hundreds of pumpkin patches. This means prices for pumpkins are going to go up significantly. Jim Murray, owner of the Applejacks Orchard in Peru, N.Y. says “Just get your pumpkins early, that’s all I can say,” he said. “It’s going to be a difficult season.”

Honey Bee's are dying off at an average rate of 34% a year, says Dan Rather, investigator on pesticides and bees. Scientists want chemical companies to prove that neonicotinoids are safe for bees.

Are restraunts responsible for your food allergies? Phoebe Damrosch says that restraunts will no accomodate and says that one and six percent of the population is allergic to a food item.


Texas backs off from serving last-meal banquets to prisoners on death row, says the LA Weekly.

Seven things to know about wine, key concepts and wonderful tips.

Tucson Sentinel

Last Thursday Sept. 15 my Writing for The Web class at Pima Community College met with Tucson Sentinel's Editor and Publisher Dylan Smith. We were required to come to class with three questions prepared. He was very short with his answers and he constantly wandered off to different topics. He also sat down in the front of the class so that no one could see him and he was very quiet while he was speaking.

1. Is Tucson Sentinel an online and print source?
-Only online. Smith said that it is too expensive to have delivery trucks and print on paper.

2. Since Tucson Sentinel is an independent nonprofit online news source, how do you make a living and/or pay your employees?
-99% of the employees are volunteers and the 1% that does receive money gets it for gas or absolute necessities. As for his living he has drained out his savings and is working on his retirement fund as well.

3. Who are the people that read your article the most?
-Southern Arizonan population.

Summary: Dylan Smith of the Tucson Sentinel was not a very informative publisher/editor. In my view he smashed journalism to the ground and made it seem impossible to make a career out of it. His website was extremely liberal in my eyes and his views on Fox news was very one-sided. He mentioned at the end of his discussion that we could intern for him but he made it seem like an absolute miserable time by saying that"if you want to get messed around with you can become an intern for us". Personally, I believe that Dylan Smith's presentation was extremely awkward and I would be perfectly content with never receiving news from the Tucson Sentinel again.

Body found in Santa Cruz may be man swept away in flood

A body was found in the Santa Cruz river on Friday which was believed to be a man that was carried away by the flood on Thursday in Tucson, AZ said KOLD. His body was found with a significant amount of brush and they are still trying to figure out who the man is. Firefighters managed to get a rope within a foot within the man but he could not catch on to it. Helicopter's tried to search for the man but ended the search after two hours.

By Michael Truelsen

Ten years after 9/11, how have the survivors healed?

The article that I read in first-person was about a 9/11 survivor. His name is Gerry Bogacz and he is a World War II veteran and  he survived the tragic day of September 11, 2001. He was in his office in the North tower on the 82nd floor when he saw the first tower being attacked. He explains that the first five minutes of getting to the stairwell was a blur and all that he can think about till this day is the people that were in his office that did not make it out. Gerry now conducts tours on ground zero, he says, "I feel a real need to somehow acknowledge my lost colleagues. In my tours I get to talk about them a little so people at least know them a little bit."  Gerry keeps the shoes that he fled in and wears a blue bracelet as a remembrance to the tragic day. National Geographic provided this moving story where you can see a photo of his shoes that he wore the day he survived the tragedy. God Bless America.

This photo is of Gerry Bogacz taken by Ira Block.

Cats, Lumberjacks, Open football season.

University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University opened up the football season on Saturday September 3, 2011. Our Wildcats and head coach Mike Stoops lead us to a victory with a score of 41 UofA and 10 NAU. Arizona football attendance is outstanding, averaging about 53,000 per game, said UA News. I was personally at my family's tailgate before the game and I was interviewed by on of the journalists there on how I believe our team is going to do this year. After I answered her questions she video taped my outfit because I was covered in red and blue from head to toe. I also attended the game and cheered them on to a victory, along with the other thousands of people that attended. The opening game was a success and I look forward to seeing the wildcats succeed and hopefully making it to the rose bowl!

                                                             Photo by Luke Adams.

Welcome to my blog!

My name is Aimee Melissa Ziegler and this is my blog for my Journalism Web Writing class.