My First News Stand-up

Check it out peeps.

This is my first news piece with a voiceover and stand-up.

I'm particularly proud of this piece after the fiasco I went through with my last one.  This time around, my group got along just fine.

This particular story is about the radio referendum taking place at my university.  With the shut down of CKLN last year due to lack of diversity and student-operated shows, production ceased in April. But with heavy campaigning, students in related programs such as Radio and Television Arts and Journalism have been campaigning to bring in a new station.

So...that's really the gist of it!! Watch it!!

I also showed it to my parents today and instead of praising me (I'm so vain...), they offered me critiques such as: "You talk a bit too fast", "You only interviewed guys."

Well, they were the only ones that offered articulate enough answers that were relevant!!!

Anyways, my reporting teacher and class seemed really content with the piece, so I'm hoping I did a good job this time around!!

First Year...Done. Finito.

A couple days late, but I officially finished my first year of university last Wednesday.

Thoughts on how first year went?
Amazing...though school was not what I thought it would be.

The people in my program are awesome and I love them all (well most of them anyways). I love my journalism class and professor as I feel we've somewhat became a family after being stuck in the same room every Tuesday for both semesters.

Work wise, it was difficult.  Coming into university with 80s to 90s (I'm not trying to brag...I SWEAR!!!!!!) I was hoping my marks would stay roughly the same if not just a bit lower.

How wrong was I.  There I was, plummeting from high 80s and 90s to 70s and even 60s.  Nonetheless, it was eyeopening.  It pushed me to try harder than my hardest and not take my education for granted.

But if it's one thing I learned, university is way better than high school. The professors actually treat you like mature adults and don't look at us like naive children.  As for the people, thank goodness there were no petty, little dramas.

And with going to school downtown,  it's awesome.  Never have I been on so many adventures.  Never would I have thought that I would interview a local politician, a Paralympic gold medalist, a cute cafe barista, a Toronto rapper, my journalist idol(s), or affected residents from the Wellesley St. fire.

But as fun as I had with all these assignments, it didn't mean I behaved like the perfect journalist.  I have been yelled at for being disrespectful, given dirty looks by onlookers, and rejected a countless number of times by people who wouldn't give me two minutes of their time. 

Yes, I was stupid.  But, I'm still learning.  First year was amazing, and I hope the next three will be the same, if not better!!  You're all amazing!!

An update on life.

Sorry that I haven't been able to update very frequently. School has been hard...and stressful. To think first semester would teach me something, it clearly hasn't taught me enough. I'm still working hard to boost up the GPA to something I'm more accustomed to. Who knows...maybe I'm just freaking out. But now I know I have to study and review my notes every week.......sounds really basic, but trust me, it's hard to stay concentrated.

Anyways, I'm currently working hard to getting published as well as freelancing. Clearly, Ryerson's papers aren't very keen on giving stories to me, so I have joined Global Voices, a citizen journalism section associated with Free the Children and the Toronto Star.  Of course I can't write to the fullest ability as the stories are only 350 words each. But I'll still be published right?

I have also created a blog called The Random Life Blog but the name is kind of lame...(I know). So if anyone has suggestions on a new name, please send them out? The blog will basically allow anyone who wants to write contribute whether if they're reviews, opinions, or articles...about anything. Think of it as an online paper.

But enough writing, I will update you with a couple of pictures!!

 These were at H&M and I took a picture because I know how much my cousin Rachel hates moccasins!

 Cute heart-shaped hot chocolate at Snakes and Lattes!

 Cupcake sale at Ryerson!!

 Bethany and I found a vintage pram at Honest Ed's!

 Questionable quote on an apron found at Kitchen Stuff Plus!

Boo yah!! Dancing shadow!!

High School Nostalgia

Class ended at 1 pm today so I decided to go home.  It turns out that I arrived quite early, so I decided to visit my high school on a whim. 

It's not until I walk through the doors of my high school that I realize how much I actually miss it. Crosscountry, Track, Yearbook, Newspaper, Film Class, J-Squad, seminars, Day 0's, WAC, hell..even units!!! I miss it all!

I know, I know. I was behaving like a moody, little bitch before graduation. How could I have not? I have been wronged by so many people towards the end that I just didn't know where I could turn. I vowed to never go back, forget about high school, and CHANGE FOR THE BETTER. 

Not to mention that deadlines and an endless amount of homework was piling up on me like no tomorrow at the time.

But now that it's all over, dare I say it...I miss Mary Ward. Going back today made me realize that I did have some sort of impact on the people. I was actually surprised how many were happy to see me, wanted to give me hugs, and willing to stop for a couple of minutes to ask me how I was doing. The sad thing was, the people I came to visit weren't even at school! Disappointing.

The one person who did make my day was when my grade 10 crush gave me a hug and said how much he missed me. OH MAN, he's so cute. I'm not going to lie. I will always have a little crush on him despite all the times he used to tease me about stupid things and I would get angry and pissed off about it.

Then there were others, who told me to visit more often.  Surprised they would say that, even though we never hung out that much outside of Crosscountry and Track.

So I guess moral of the story here is, never forget high school! It's a blur, and it can be a nightmare sometimes, but don't take it for granted. This sounds corny, but high school is where I learned many life lessons, more of which I hope to learn in university.

Now, all there is to do is to learn how to leave my mark in university. But first, I have to study for my midterms.           

Now here is a regurgitation of photos from grades 9-12.

 You can really tell how lame and awkward I was back then haha!

Happy October!

Hi friends and happy October! I have created yet another video blog for all of you bored, "have-nothing-better-to-do", procrastinating, "I should be doing homework" people.

I too, should have been getting some work done.  Instead, I have chosen to hold a conversation with my camera and spend a good 30 minutes editing this video...which no one will watch because I am not INTERWEBZ famous.

Please forgive me as I have made this video on a whim and said all these things from the top of my head as I was filming! YAY for improvising!

This video is about "Smoking on Campus" and my opinion towards it.  I realize I sound really unintelligent in this clip, but to get my point across...I APPRECIATE MY OXYGEN THANK YOU VERY MUCH.  Cigarette smoke may be the preferable choice for some, but please do a favour to non-smokers and smoke somewhere with fewer people.

Getting to a Routine.

It is now officially my third week of school and to be honest with all of you, I actually kind of love it!  At first I had my doubts because of my terrible marks (as seen in my total FAIL of a video blog) and not moving out.

 Don't get me wrong though. I STILL hate the commute and not being able to stay as long as I want downtown. The hour and a half commute there and back (that's three hours in total) is exhausting!  I absolutely hate it.  I could be sleeping or even joining a cool club or sports team down at my school.

 In terms of adjusting to my classes, I'm hoping that it's getting better.  For sure, Writer's Block is no longer much of a problem.  I don't even have time to do much thinking, because usually an assignment is just thrown at me to be done by the end of the class.  And in a weird and twisted way, I'm actually kind of enjoying these exercises.

By far, my favourite assignment was the 'Streeters' I did last week.  This consisted of me going up to Yonge and Bloor to ask random people on the street a question about the Toronto International Film Festival.  This was mainly an exercise to help the class get used to approaching people and collecting quotes word for word.  It also helped us a lot with note-taking.

Although this experience was enjoyable, I encountered several people who did not want an interview.  If they weren't 'too busy' or 'to cool', they would end up answering my question but refuse to give me their names!!  Seriously, approaching people can be hard! 

I did get several interesting answers.  One man actually worked at the festival, and he interviewed Keanu Reeves!  Another, gave me a humourous answer about why James Franco should play the role of Superman (which I 100 percent agree!)

At first, I thought that I would have a lot of trouble getting people to talk to me, especially in a busy location such as Yonge and Bloor.  While I did have a little bit of difficulty, it wasn't so hard in the end. I was actually really scared to approach people in the beginning, but I realized that I probably wouldn't see those people again.  Therefore, I broke out of my shell and started asking questions without thinking of what others thought of me.

So Lesson One of being a Journalist:  DO NOT BE SHIT SCARED TO APPROACH PEOPLE TO DIG FOR ANSWERS. IF THEY DON'T GIVE A DAMN, THEY PROBABLY AREN'T WORTH A QUOTE ANYWAYS.

And really, who wouldn't want to be featured on a publication? 

NEW PROJECT......sorta..

I'm new at this. So PLEASE FORGIVE ME!! I have decided to start video blogging again, so if I bore you, I AM SO sorry.

Feeling truly honoured...

 Many people have a reason as to why they want to become a journalist.  Some are inspired by columnists, and some are into politics. As typical as this seems, I was sparked through watching Muchmusic in elementary school.  I know this seems like a bad reason to become a journalist because many frown upon pop culture news.  However, it was always more than that for me. At Muchmusic, I found that they always used arts and culture to promote something good for viewers whether it was a charity, or a non-profit organization. For me, I didn't just want a cool job interviewing celebrities. What I wanted, was to use my job as a journalist to provoke a positive change in the world.

So there's no surprise how quickly I jumped at an opportunity to talk to one of my favourite Muchmusic VJs.  

I had this school assignment that required me to interview a journalist and and I had a bit of trouble finding reporters who would spare JUST FIVE- TEN MINUTES with me for an interview.  20 emails sent out, I got five replies back. One was at New York Fashion Week and couldn't talk until Friday.  Another, was 'crazy busy' and also couldn't talk until Friday. Another, was an assistant saying how George Strombo was very busy and gets many requests for an interview. While the other, didn't want to give her number away...which was respectable, but offered to call me.  One journalist said I could call her. However, that was until I found someone better and more inspirational to me.  The fact that she took time off to talk to me is so flattering because I wasn't even expecting a reply!

(I referred the other journalist to a fellow j-skooler so she could complete her assignment!!)

So to keep you from being curious....I talked to Hannah Sung!

Hannah Sung used to work as a Muchmusic VJ.  However, her work was always geared toward the music/entertainment journalism side as opposed to the Leah MIller 'talk-show host style'.  What I like most about Hannah is her passion to cover stories about making positive changes in the world one small step at a time.  She is so inspiring to me because she quit a dream job as a Muchmusic VJ to travel to Indonesia and East Timor to make a documentary about youth coping with the effects of the 2005 Tsunami.  Not only that, she continues to be a social activist, writing and covering stories about making a difference.

She is one of the reasons why I want this job because she is an example of what I want to be when I grow up.  I realize I sound like I'm writing some persuasive essay over here, but she has really made an impact on me.  I really hope I didn't sound like a nervous loser on the phone!!!  She is so articulate...and SHE IS SO NICE.  I hope to meet her in real life one day.  After that, it's George Stromboloupolous. I just hope he has some more time.

Motivated.

Yesterday, I received my first assignment back.  It was not pretty.

As a student who did pretty good in English at school, I got a C-, my first in a really long time. Of course, none of this is going towards my final grade, but it really shot me down.  I'm used to getting 80s and 90s in my assignments, and clearly university is proving to me that this is REALITY and no longer high school.  Though I am shot down about this, I feel very motivated to do better and progress. I will delve into more detail later, because I'm planning to start video blogging again.  I dream of becoming a broadcast journalist one day, but I first have to get used to speaking clearly and gaining more experience.  However, I don't have much.  Therefore, I am going to start my own little project...with the help of a potential collaboration from a suggestion made by a friend.

Check back soon for more deets!!!

Uni's what you make it.

As I write this as I wait for the guy to finish fixing my shower, I am going to recap my first week of University...well sortof.  It hasn't officially started yet, but Ryerson University is seriously better than I expected.  Mostly everyone is commuting, and if not, I have found a couple of friends who have apartments downtown.  Can you say party time?!

The first couple days of Frosh were a bit awkward for me because it's a whole new environment with so many people of different personalities.  I don't think I've met anyone who wasn't open to meeting new people, because everyone I talked to were pretty nice and friendly! Frosh has tired me out...thanks to the blistering heat and staying outside most of the time.

As you all might of read in a couple of blog posts before, I mentioned about the subway having issues.  I was so scared I was going to be late for Frosh, but it turns out I arrived on time! When I got Ryerson I was supposed to sign up for Orientation.  They put me in Group 1, but since it was kind of unorganized, I joined Team 16.  Team 16 was probably better than Team 1 anyways because both of my leaders are 4th year Journalism students.  They really helped me with a lot of my questions and told me not to worry too much about what's to come.  They actually told me to lower my expectations in terms of my marks because my assignments are going to be torn apart.  I guess I'm just going to have to get used to constructive criticism! (I'm not really good at taking it)

I'm not going to go on a writing tangent on all the events that took place during Frosh week to save you from boredom, but some of my highlights consisted of the Photo Scavenger Hunt, Hypnotist Show, Guiness World Record Beat-Boxing Contest, MTV Live and my Academic Orientation.

The best part was definitely the Photo Scavenger Hunt because we got to not only travel around the city taking whacky pics, but we got to cheer obnoxiously too.  While the Scavenger hunt was taking place, we also had to trade a Pipe Cleaner for something better.  This means that we had to go around asking people what they had that was better than what we had in exchange for our lousy little pipe cleaner.  Sounds tough to do, but we ended up with a Bracelet.  We almost got a real cellphone from this sketchy guy until we told him the bracelet wasn't real diamonds. I wonder if we should have lied...haha that wouldn't have been a good idea!

 Another memorable thing that happened during the Scavenger Hunt was when our team stopped the police car just so we could take a picture with them.  However, someone was getting arrested at the time, so they sadly declined.  However, one of the police officers told us to laugh at the person being arrested...which I find quite mean and funny at the same time...

To say the least about the other events:  we broke the Guiness World Record (though Brock is going to try to beat us!), I want to try be hyponotized now after seeing the Hypnotist, MTV Live was too short and kind of boring, and Academic Orientation was probably the most helpful and social day of my week! 

From what I'm seeing here is, University life without living on campus can be fun as well!  I suppose it's what you make it so now I'm just trying to be as social and true to myself as possible. This means that I will be attending events and joining a ton of clubs instead of rushing home after class.  By the way, there are only about 20-ish Asian people in the entire Journalism program.  I'm thinking I should befriend all these Asians, because ASIANS stick together! Wow, I kind of sound like a jerk for saying that and I'm sorrrryyy!!  Everyone can be my friend!!! =)

In the mean time, I am currently saving money and proving to my parents to let me live in an apartment downtown.  I know it's expensive, but I am going to become the stingiest Asian person ever to find an accommodation.  I'm sick of living at home and I WILL SUCCEED!  THIS DETERMINATION WILL NOT DIE!!

 TOO LEGIT TO QUIT!!!!!!

Journalism Orientation

After attending my academic orientation in addition to seeing the facilities I get to take advantage of, I have concluded that I am at the right school and program. I had previously visited the Rogers Communications Centre, but I have never really looked around.  But after having a second tour, I cannot wait to start classes!

  When I reached the building at a very early 9:00 am, it was time to mingle.  Today was my absolute favourite day of the entire frosh week because I finally got to meet people in my program.  Everyone is so nice, outgoing and friendly. These are not only my future classmates, but they are also potential colleagues and partners in the career of my choice.

I certainly did not DRESS for the occasion.  I don't know about anyone else in Journalism school, but after seeing a lot of the people today, I feel like I should step up my wardrobe.  I felt so plain, and kind of messy! AGH...They even took press photos of us today!  Although I wasn't ready, I did feel very nice about having my picture taken.  It felt very professional but the photographer kept taking photos of me!  It HAD to be PERFECT:  "There's something wrong with the lighting....It's too dark...How about fixing your smile...?...Hmm...the glare is too bright..."

Well...I suppose it really is important to get that perfect shot! Hopefully this can somewhat help me get an internship hahahaaaa..

My favourite part of the whole orientation process was the panel of second-year students offering advice ranging from tough professors and assignments to getting involved at school.  The whole thing really made me inspired to go out and find internships and to get ahead right away.

But all of this information is very overwhelming for me.  I know what I can expect, but I will not actually know how it will feel like until I start the program. I have heard that my first few assignments are going to be torn apart in terms of sentence structure, content, and grammar.  I'm a girl who's used to 80s and 90s, how am I going to prepare for 70s?  And also, what about the grammar test? Even though people say it's NOT that HARD..., I'm still worried because a lot of people still fail!  I suppose that's another thing I have to look forward to...

P.S.  I'm a girl who wants to go into broadcast journalism.  So does the majority of the people (COUGH girls) in my program.  Therefore, I'm kind of assuming that it will be kind of cut-throat and competitive.  I suppose it's time to step my game up! SERIOUS BUSINESS. They need more Asians in the field.

Frosh Week Day 1

Frosh today was certainly quite an adventure. First of all, it was one of the hottest days to have an orientation day!  I was already sweating buckets by the time I reached Finch Station.But who can help weather right?

What really got me angry was the TTC.  I know I complain about public transit on a regular basis , but today was absolutely ridiculous!  When I reached Finch Station, there was a HUGE delay due to problems on the subway line.  After much waiting, there was FINALLY a shuttle bus to Sheppard Station.   Good thing there was this cute, little boy in front of me who kept smiling and playing with me. But good gracious, that was seriously ridiculous!

By the time I reached the university, I was already overwhelmed by the loudness, and the amount of students.  I was supposed to be put into Group 1 but I couldn't find them!  Instead, I was put into Team 16, which I don't mind at all!  Both of my leaders are in Journalism and they LOVE IT!  I'm taking this as an advantage to ask them several questions about the program.  It was also refreshing to finally meet some people because this summer has been kind of a bore...

To be honest, I don't even feel so bad about not living in residence.  There was this girl I met who didn't get in...and she lives in Vancouver!  That doesn't make any sense!  Now I understand why I didn't get in, but the fact that she had to come all the way to Toronto by a plane gives her enough of a reason to movie into rez! 

It was pretty awkward meeting new people, but I suppose that's what it's supposed to be like when you're going to a new school!  From what I have seen, it is certainly not like Catholic schools!  The people are more uncensored, are a bit weirder and do worse things.  How naive I am.

P.S.  There was a creepy old man talking to me on the subway.  He was telling me how he hated people who were cheap with money, and that he couldn't deal with it.  He said that he would cut their heads off or something...that was what his gesture was like! I don't know...but he kept talking to me and he was definitely giving me the skeevies.  I started to run away when I reached Don Mills, but he saw me.  He pumped his fist in the air, and he laughed manically.  I think I'm going to have a nightmare tonight!

ENROLLING FOR CLASSES = STRESSFUL

This is my finalized schedule for the fall semester.  At first I wanted to take Popular Culture for my elective, but it turns out that it was either full or conflicted with my other classes.  I was really angry Popular Culture filled up so quickly because I woke up early just to enroll!!  And so, I tried Music and Film, Politics and Film, History of Film and The Art of Culture...all complete no-gos.  So then, I tried The Politics of Human Needs.  And finally, it fit into my schedule.

But I didn't want that course.

I wanted to avoid anything politics related (except for Politics and Film because it had to do with Film) because I'm not interested in that subject.  So then, I decided then and there that I would take up French and continue where I left off.  I took the online placement test (I'm not going to lie here, I used the dictionary to help me find words when composing.) and apparently, I'm in Intermediate FRENCH II! That makes me really scared because I heard University French is difficult and completely different from high school. So what should I expect?

I think for now I'm going to stay optimistic about the course because the profs said I COULD switch to the lower level within the first two weeks. Good thing that class fits into my schedule as well. Now that I think of it, I'm kind of glad I stuck with French.

A couple of small regrets

I know I should be excited for University, and I am...but I cannot help but feel a little sad that I won't be leaving home.  It's funny how all the universities I applied to were out of town except for Ryerson University.  But the one I ended up choosing, was Ryerson.  I cannot stress how much I want to leave home, move in somewhere by myself, and just LIVE.  I want to be on my own, go out with friends, and learn how to do things myself.  Not to mention, I want to be far away from my parents, to HAVE SOME FREEDOM. 

Then why didn't I pick the schools that are out of town?  Several would ask that, and my answer is because of the program that I'm going into.  I chose the school solely for it's excellent reputation for Journalism and Broadcasting.  There has been a lot of funding put into the program; not to mention the plethora of opportunities set around Downtown Toronto. Getting into the program was even harder, as I had to set up a portfolio to get in. So you can imagine what a relief and joyous moment for me it was to learn I got accepted!

I really did have a hard time deciding which school to choose because I REALLY wanted to go out of town.  I had to do a lot of thinking, and realized that the benefits from Ryerson surpassed Carleton in terms of my education, experience, and my future.  While Carleton is a great school, I just couldn't really picture myself in that atmosphere. And did I really want to risk getting cut from Carleton's Journalism program in the second year? It was a risky position to be.  Besides, from seeing all that Ryerson Journalism can offer, it would be silly to refuse this program just to live out of town.

I have tried to make the best of my staying-at-home-situation by applying to residence at Ryerson.  But I am on the waiting list.  I've lost hope however, because the school only has 500 vacancies.  Obviously, I would not be a first choice.  This makes me a bit upset because my stay at home has been prolonged.  But come second year, I will hopefully be able to get a condo with a couple of room mates.  It would be much easier to travel, and I WOULD GET TO LEAVE HOME!! How this day is so close but yet so far....

Don't get me wrong though.  I love Downtown Toronto. It's so busy and full of life!