BOOKS

1. "Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr. Seuss
I would say that this is the most simple, yet impacting books I have ever read. It was the first book I ever read on my own. I remember sitting with my aunt for hours and hours sounding out every syllable, crinkling every page. And finally, I learned to read it all by myself. I associate this book with so many of my childhood memories. It is most impacting because without it, I wouldn't have read any other books.




 2.  The Bible, preferably in the message translation. Being raised in a Christian home, this book contains everything that my parents have spent the last 18 years instilling into myself and my brothers. My core values, convictions, and the foundational truths I stand on all come from the words and ideas expressed in the Bible. This is my "how to" book on life.

3. "Bossypants" by Tina Fey
I recently finished reading this book on my Kindle, and I have not laughed this hard in quite a while. The people at Starbucks obviously hadn't read this satirical, sarcastic and hilariously crafted synopsis of Tina Fey's life, because they sent me judgemental "shut up" glances as I giggled and gasped page after page. I would say this book was impacting to me because it inspires me. I see Tina Fey as a role model, someone I can relate to. A girl with a killer sense of humor, leadership abilities and a knack for finding herself in awkward and embarassing situations. I loved every moment of this book and can definitely see myself reading it again and again, and laughing every time. see for yourself!

Week 1: Media Autobiography

I would say I was raised in a very tech-savy home, so I have experiences all of the following types of mass media.

-Books: I really enjoy reading, more so when it is for leisure, rather than assigned for my classes. I would say I use at least one book at least once a day. Whether it is a textbook, map book, notebook, Bible, or instruction manual of some sort. I recently bought a Kindle, so now many of the books I read are stored digitally on my own personal e-reader, making reading novels much more convenient. I think books are important, provide us with essential information and enjoyment and I don't think that e-readers could ever permanently replace a good old fashioned, paper bound book.

-Magazines: To be honest, I don't really read or subscribe to any magazines. I've browsed through the tabloids at the super market check out stand, but magazines have never been appealing to me.

-Newspapers: My family has never had a newspaper subscription. My mom would only buy one on Thanksgiving morning for all of the Black Friday ads. I never liked the way you had to sort through a bunch of different stories in search of the one you actually want to read. However, like most kids, I loved the comics. When I want to know the news, I look it up online or watch it on TV.

-Movies: I love movies, they are definitely important to my family and myself. I was raised with "family night" once a week, where we would all go to the movies. Whether it is to unwind after a long day at work, wanting to sit in front of the TV, watching a movie and veg-ing. Or a romantic flick to sob your eyes out to, or a funny movie to go see with your friends. I grew up always watching movies, and I still do today. Action, comedy, romance, foreign, documentary, thriller, horror, I love them all.

-Recordings: I used to have CD's, and now I have an ipod on my phone. I couldn't imagine living without instant access to all of my favorite songs.

-Radio: The only time I ever listen to the radio is while I am driving my car. I hate the commercials and the fact that sometimes you cannot quite find the station/song you want to hear. I don't really listen to talk radio either, because I find it very biased and political and depressing at times. I would rather listen to my ipod than the radio. However, I do like Pandora (internet radio) because I can choose the music genres I'd like to listen to with far less commercial interruption.

-Television: My family has always been big on television, and I must say that DVR (tivo) has changed the way I watch it. I don't have the patience to watch commercials, so I refuse to watch live TV. I would rather wait an hour to let the show record and fast forward through the commercials, than watch it live without fast forwarding. Reality TV, food channel. MTV, VH1, sitcoms. All of it is so entertaining and addicting.

-Internet: I had a Myspace, and a Facebook, email and personal blog. I do a lot of shopping online, check my bank account balances online, sign up for classes, collect research for papers online. I was raised with everything just a click away, instant gratification. I love the internet because it is so useful, expansive and to be honest, I have grown up with it and couldn't imagine having to go to the library to do my homework. I use the internet every single day.