Social Networking Experience

I know that the day is not over. But so far, it has been a great day. While I was catching up on some tivo'ed shows from the week, I decided to play on my Twitter account and see if I could bump myself up to 50 followers. It may not seem like a big deal, but to me it is or should I say 'it was." Why do we need a world to define what is the meaning of a friend to us?

I don't believe that every follow is going to be a friend, but it is nice to have people that are willing to listen to your random rants, view the funny photos, and add their opinions on the world events (just a few things that I share on Twitter). When I started on Twitter, I was conducting an experiment on how social networking was becoming more embedded into our everyday lives. In the beginning, I didn't get it. I wondered why people would spend their time updating their friends and random people on what was going on in their daily life. But then, isn't that what we do on Facebook and when we blog. With twitter, we are limited to 140 characters. So I guest the people at Twitter are helping us not ramble. (Blogger, do not get any ideas).

Only a few of my friends were let in to knowing that I had an account. Months went by and I was happy to see what was going on in two of my friend's lives because it seemed it was the only way I could keep up with what was going on in their lives. As we get older, move to different cities and states, it becomes harder to pick up the phone and make a call. I remember in high school, the few times I was grounded, my punishment was no phone privileges. Now, I see my roll over minutes building up month to month to a point I think that I could actually be on the phone outside of my free nights and weekends and not have to pay an overage charge for a week. (For those trying to the math on that, I have about 3500 minutes saved up).

During my research, I realized that there is/was so much more involved in Twitter than letting people know "what's on your mind." I'm not going to spoil anymore of what Twitter can do for those who don't have Twitter. You really need to experience it for yourself. But what I will tell you is that I have met some very interesting people through it and hopefully some new friends.

Personal Twitter goal #1: getting 50 people to follow me... complete. Now, can I get another 50 people to follow me by next Friday?! I guess only time will tell.

iPhone 4 Release Day

Yes, so I decided to spoil myself and get the new iPhone. But in my journey of getting the phone I was lucky enough to not have to deal with the crazies that decided to suck up all of the parking at the Brea mall. There were 1000s of people that stood in line all day to try and get the phone. What I do not understand is why not just order it online and have it delivered to your house like I did. I got my phone when they said I would and as you can see from my pictures, I walked right by people who were so desperate to get the phone they every waiting outside in the sun for over 6hrs to get the phone.

Stampin' my thug card... officially!

For the doubters and the haters, you didn't believe I would ever do it. Well here you go. I actually like them very much. It took about 2hrs and my head is not sore. Yes, my head feels cooler. If you have any other questions, just ask.

A bit of a history lesson for you about 'cornrows.'

Cornrow braids are not only widespread in Africa, they are also quite ancient. Dating back to at least 500 BC.

Cornrow hairstyles in Africa also cover a wide social terrain: religion, kinship, status, age, ethnicity, and other attributes of identity can all be expressed in hairstyle. Just as important is the act of braiding, which transmits cultural values between generations, expresses bonds between friends, and establishes the role of professional practitioner.

Like many other “Africanisms” in the new world, knowledge of African hairstyles survived the 'Middle Passage. Heads were often shaved upon capture, ostensibly for sanitary reasons, but with the psychological impact of being stripped of one’s culture. Re-establishing traditional hair styles in the new world was thus an act of resistance; one that could be carried out covertly:

"The slaves that worked inside the plantation houses were required to present a neat and tidy appearance… so men and women often wore tight braids, plaits, and cornrows (made by sectioning the hair and braiding it flat to the scalp). The braid patterns were commonly based on African tradition and styles. Other styles Blacks wore proved to be an amalgam of traditional African styles, European trends, and even Native American practices (Byrd and Tharps 2001 pp.13-14)."

For the full and complete article, including pictures, please visit this site. I would like to thank Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for the story.


http://csdt.rpi.edu/african/CORNROW_CURVES/culture/african.origins.htm

Acapulco fundraiser

So I went to Acapulco for dinner Monday night. A friend that was having a fundraiser for a club she is apart of. 25% of the sales yesterday would go to the club. This is a great deal that they were able to work out. It happened to be Margarita Monday as well so there were some craziness there at the end of the night but overall I had a great time. After dinner, we went to a bar to shoot some pool. The plan was to go bowling, which at first I was excited for. But after seeing how expensive it was going to be, I made the executive my money would be best to save for another rainy day. Some still went bowling but I stayed behind. Good thing too, because I met someone and we had great conversations. Not trying to be cryptic right now, but guys "yes you can actually talk to gals and not want to sleep with them." And no, it doesn't mean they are a relative or an ex. I know, I know... it doesn't make any sense to some of you, but Google it. It is possible.

Silver Dollar Dream

I had a dream about a silver dollar last night. It was wrapped in a plastic cover printed with the design of a quarter on the front and the back. The plastic coming up a bit which is how I discovered that it was a fake. There was a couple that was trying to get it back from me, but I don't know why.

The big about the dream is that I usually do not remember my dreams. I wonder what it means. Does it mean that I am going to receive or find a fortune? Or does it mean someone is going to try and rip me off? And if they are, how? Are they going to get me to give them money? Or am I going to be turning a profit and they are going to get me to give it to them? So many questions and so many different outcomes... oh dear.

Hundred Dollar Bill

Earlier this week, I had a guest come into the shop at 5:30a wanting to purchase a cup of coffee for her and her husband and a pastry. The total for all of this was under $5.00. She placed a hundred dollar bill down on the counter and preceded with her conversation with her husband. After a couple of "polite" throat clearing sounds, she looked back at me and I informed her that I didn't have enough change to break her bill, and ask if she had something smaller or a different payment option. Now before I continue, I will say I was actually being polite, we as polite as I could be for it being 5:30 in the morning.

So she gave me this look ( you all know the look) and said, "what do you mean you
cannot break this, you didn't even open your register." Now, the E.J. you all know and sometimes love... had to come out. "Well Miss, I did open the store this morning and I know how much is in the register. And since we just opened 30 minutes ago and there were four guest before you, I might have just a little idea on how much is in the register." She gave me one of those 'Orange County housewife' grunts of discust and pulled out her credit card, paid and left.

We are living in a world where there is not a need to carry that much cash on you. Just use your bank card or carry small bills, then you know that you will not have troubles with places not being able to take your hundred dollar bill.

Big Bear Mtn Commercial

Okay okay... there has been a lot of snow this season. And maybe this was the most snow since "El Nino." But your advertisers need to rethink your latest commercial. You cannot write a jingle calling this storm "el Nino." Go back to the drawing board and come up with your own material. Oh wait, they couldn't come up with their own stuff so they had to recycle. Did you think that it was so old that we would not remember it?