Costa Rica Day 3 + 4

Hola Amigos y amigas!
Yesterday we woke up super early, and went on the horseback safari excursion. Seeing as I have three horses in my backyard and rarely ride, I wasn't too thrilled. But we had a fantastic time! My horses name was Rocio and hated not being the leader, so of course he sped to the front. Emily rode Camanche and looked like a professional as usual. Caroline aka CiCi had Pallamino, meaning BLONDIE! Poppy and Katy rode Candy. While Camanche, Rocio, and Candy all loved to trot and gallop like crazy, Blondie simply was not having it, making CiCi a drama queen and semi bitter. (Love you Mom!) I was amazed at how much I loved galloping. Not only was it way smoother than I imagined, but I also got the biggest adrenaline rush. Emily helped our guides herd some cows and water buffalo into different fields too which was neat. After riding for quite some time, we stopped at a river with a ropeswing, ate some pineapple, and hydrated. Poppy, Emily, and I all looked like pros on the rope swing even though I was sure I was going to snap the thin rope. Afterwards we rode back through the jungle and saw more mono titis, exotic plants, and native fruits. The overall experience was awesome (even though today my derriere is in pain and super sore!) We came back to some burgers Renzo cooked up for us, and relaxed by the pool for the rest of the day. For dinner, Ana and Renzo not only hit the spot, but also managed to steal my heart and my hunger with chicken breast and a creamy mushroom sauce, mashed potatoes with bacon inside, and veggies. I literally could have eaten three more plates if I didn't have more sense. Definitely my favorite dinner so far. After we ate, we hung out, showered up, ang got ready to go out. Emily, Janelle, and I hit up this local bar and restaurant called BambooZu I think? It was awesome. They had live music and people dancing everywhere. Watching the ticos bailar (Costa Rican natives dance) was amazing becuase they moved so fast and smoothly. Janelle drank mojitos, Emily drank cosmos and Pelicanos, and I had tequila sunrises. I was asked to dance by some kids who were having a great time from California even though we all probably looked like fools next to the ticos, but I had fun! That's one of the many amazing things about this trip you just have to take risks, and not get embarassed over silly things. Whether it be in attempting to speak Spanish to those who are fluent, to even dancing latina style, its the fact that you tried. Anyways, after chatting it up with our cab driver in broken Spanish, and asking him if he liked girls instead of if he had girls like in his family, (quite hysterical) we attempted to go somewhere else that was bumpin. However, sadly we ended up back at home seeing as it was a Tuesday night. Good thing last night was just a trial run. I can't wait for when we go out this weekend! After almost 7 and a half hours of sleep, we woke up for the Manuel Antonio National Park tour. After writing my first blog, my buddy Scott Imirie from high school commented that his uncle lives here and that the National Park tour was awesome...He was correct seeing as is was absolutely beautiful. Our guide, Johan, had a great eye for hidden creatures and showed us lizards, frogs, crabs, monkeys, huge spiders, mariposas (butterflies) the size of a Harry Potter book, and SLOTHS! I love the sloths they look so cute however Johan quickly changed my mind of bringing one home with me when he told me their skin is like the end of a broom, and that they are the hosts of over 1500 fleas, ticks, and other insects that live on them. Quite dissapointing, right? On the hike I managed to get eaten alive porque soy muy dulce al parecar (Because I am very sweet apparently). We stopped at a couple beaches and at the end for some locals coconuts. He took a machete and sliced off the top ready for us to drink. Coconut milk is apparently really good for your skin and deep conditioning your hair, so I'll probably finish that off later. At the villa we haven't seen our mono titi friends yet today, so hopefully they stop by soon. Hope everything in Americas as great as it is here! Until next time, muchos besos a todo el mundo! xoxo Ais

Costa Rica Day 1 + 2

Hola America!


After two lengthy flights and a 3 hour car ride from the airport, we have arrived at the beautiful Villa Cantico in Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica! When we arrived we were exhausted and so ready for some dinner by our personal chefs Ana and Renzo. While I'm not much of a fish eater, I really enjoyed red snapper and ate the whole thing shockingly then we hungout and hit the sack. The next day I woke up at 6:30 am for some reason and waited for breakfast in which we had pancakes, bacon, and exotic fresh fruit. There also was a yellow and black snake coiled up in between our villa doors too which was a fun surprise. The villa guard had to come and remove him seeing as los serpientes aren't exactly welcomed by a villa full of women and children here. haha. We lounged by the pool which has an awesome scene of forest and the beach. Right before lunch was served the mano titis aka monkeys stopped by in which we fed them by hand. Definitely the most awesome thing so far. They climb all over the house like acrobats and if you hold a piece of banana flat in your hand they scurry over and grab it with their lttle claw fingers. Its wild! For lunch we had a mango salad and quesadillas which was yummy. After lunch Caroline, Emily, and I walked up some humongous hills into the small town and restaurant area, and played frogger because the locals all drive their cars super fast on the small windy roads. Anywho, we're talking legit ALL uphill...the way back was way better, mostly downhill :) On our walk I was dying to see a sloth, however I only saw a raccoon which I guess was better than nothing. When I talk about a workout I mean it, my ass and calves were burning. The villas are hidden in the mountains so walking anywhere is quite the trek and workout in itself. In the village we saw a couple small shops and lots of restaurants, then presumed back to the villa just in time for a nice rainshower to pass through! After our hike, we sat in the air conditioning and watched Alvin and the Chipmunks which of course I got a kick out of. For dinner we had fajitas and el helado aka ice cream for dessert. If you know me well, you know I'm quite the sucker for icecream. After dinner, I practiced some of my amazing Spanish with Renzo and he made Em and me some strawberry margaritas. We played some Just Dance on the Wii, skyped our boys aka Tommy, Rory, and my dad, then called it a night because we were going horseback riding at 7 the next morning. After getting up at 7 am, getting ready and almost ready to walk out the door the excursion manager called and told us they were short one horse so we're doing it a different day. Afterwards, we had another great breakfast of eggs, pancakes, and bacon then relaxed by the pool. After about 2 hours of failed attempts of monkey calls and using the binoculars, I gave up and retreated inside to read. As it is now time for lunch with the ladies and to practice more Spanish, I will be picking out excursions tonight for what I want to do for the week. Some of the options consist of surfing lessons, waterfall repelling, boating and snorkeling, and ATV tours. They all sound awesome, how will I choose? As you also probably know I'm also very indecisive when it comes to making decisions between a bunch of awesome things...one of my few flaws, I know ;) Lunchtime but I'll keep ya posted. Fingers crossed for another visit from the mono titis :) xoxo Ais

Baseball and the Media: How fans lose in Today's Coverage of the Game

In this article, Chicago Cubs baseball beat writer George Castle takes a different side on how fans are beginning to miss out on coverage of baseballs game due to the non-stop flourishing of technology and all of its advancements. Castle believes that "Baseball is the most media-accessible professional sport, but increasingly, fans are receiving far less information about the game for a myriad of reasons, including the shrinking news holes, a re-emphasis on high school sports, the pervasiveness of sports talk radio, the 24-hour news cycle and the neogig." With this being said, he emphasizes on how less and less people are going to games and can just check the statistics and scores on their different techonology devices. I chose this article because it shows the argumentative side of my groups webisode but also gives more resources and details that we used in our project. As the future comes closer and technology progresses, many fear that fans will lose the vast information that they would normally recieve about the game due to relying on the technology that is here now and what's to come in the future. As far as a real world example goes, this is similar to online shopping now adays. Because shopping online is now offered, employees working in stores fear the loss of their jobs and the decrease in sales at malls and stores due to competition. In our class textbook, Media Programming, they mention that megasports events such as NBS, NHL, and MLB games are all covered by ESPN, which has talk shows on highlights and such that can appear live a dozen times a day or be cut back so that fans don't even have to watch the game. This idea is very similar to Castles article and shows the more defensive side of the effects of media on fans and everyday people.
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=25413623&site=ehost-live

MLB's Real Competitve Advantage

The questions of when and how major league baseball will use cutting-edge technology to rake in millions of dollars by cellular devices, live streaming via internet, and other technological media over time has finally been answered. Nowadays, with technology being as vast and ubiquitous as it is, game content streaming on cellular devices has taken off and been a huge success for the MLB industry. According to MLBAM chief executive Bob Bowman, "Somehow the strategy of putting baseball games on every device that has a plug or a battery has worked for the business partners. Even more important, it's worked for our fans." While at first many were uneasy about the streaming of live game videos online, (due to the fear of ratings being hurt) MLB has proved that right fees, attendance, and viewership is up making it a win-win situation for both parties. People love going to baseball games and living and seeing the action for themselves, however for those who can't always make the games, technology has been made portable and convenient for them too, pleasing all parties. As of now mobile devices revenue don't bring anywhere near as much as television does, but thats all in the future. While the fear of television ratings possibly suffering is controversial and still in the air, Bowman sticks with his strategy and motto of "If you serve the fans, you take care of your business." I chose this article because it related to my groups baseball in the media webisode perfectly. Throughout our webisode we tried to show how baseball in the media is on the rise and how technology has made it so convenient and portable for its fans. The article touches on what is to come in the future of media as far as technology and MLB which is an important insight to fans, coaches, and players everywhere. The fact of the matter is that technology is only progressing and now is starting to show how it can be applied to everyday things such as entertainment and sports (in this specific case baseball). In our text, Media Programming, it was said that "As connection speeds improve, future attempts may meet greater audience acceptance. Major League Baseball began offering on its site mlb.com, live streaming video pregame shows before every postseason game (including the world series)" (332). This goes to show you just how baseball has made its impact in the technology world and how the future may be unpredictable but in the end can only progress and continue upwards.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/aug2008/tc20080828

Interview with Media Professional Linton Weeks

For my second interview wth a media professional, I interviewed Linton Weeks who works as an national correspondent for NPRs digital news. I attended high school with his son and he spoke to us one year about careers and the future. Mr. Weeks graduated from college as an English major and took his first job as a writer for a small weekly newspaper in Arkansas making a hundred dollars a week. When asked the sole purpose of his job was he replied that "Someone once said that journalism was storytelling with a purpose." After nearly 20 years at the Washington Mr.Weeks decided to leave the paper with some money in his pocket and interview at NPR and got the job the same day. There are many components that go into being a national correspondent and the thing that Mr.Weeks both likes and dislikes about his job are the certain people that are involved with his work. Although Mr.Weeks is intrigued by the never ending techno-evolution, he believes that the most important thing is being able to tell a story in both a concise and compelling way. As far as students getting started somewhere, Mr. Weeks states that you should "decide what you want and do everything you possibly do-legally and ethically--to pursue your dreams. He also believes that its not about money, it's about meaning, and that people should try everything and embrace change. He says to read as much as you can and recommends that students do what they enjoy, and enjoy what they do. Experience is everything, and to become indispensable by working for free at a place that you love at first then go after that job.

Interview with Media Professional Gonzalo Accame

For my first interview with a media professional, I interviewed

Gonzalo Accame. Mr. Accame is not only a national and international award winning bilingual producer, but also juggles production as well as being a cameraman and the co-owner of Visual Edge Productions. He started at the lowest position in his business and worked as hard as he honestly could to work his way up from there. In addition, he began his broadcasting career in 1978 in Boston as the associate producer of a Spanish program. From there he was promoted to story producer and was fortunate to have produced or been apart of productions for many major tv networks such as the Discovery, TLC, Animal Planet, and the History and Learning Channels. Later on he joined forces and became co-producer of his own production company. I came into contact with Mr. Accame seven years ago when I became good friends with his daughter in high school. I knew that he did media work, however I wasn't aware of the extent of his work and what exactly went along with it until I did this interview. When asking Mr.Accame of what his many jobs consisted of he replied "the fun stuff like getting to wear many different hats, as well as producing, managing, and marketing and public relations." This was a lot to take in because I quickly understood that it was a huge responsibility and a large workload trying to balance everything and keeping it stable. When asking Mr.Accame what he disliked most about his job he responded that dealing with the day to day management of owning a business and having to deal with everything that comes into the mix. However, he counteracted this by stating that he loved working in unison with his crew, great actors whether pro or not, and the famous personalities that come with his line of work. I was intrigued by the fact that he has worked with many of our Presidents dating from the Carter and Reagan Administration to Obama today, and traveled all over the world in maing documentaries and filming stories. As far as the future goes, Mr. Accame stressed that the web was the place to be, and that with all of the technological changes that have taken place that it's really had to keep up with. In the past we were satisfied by the print media and tv, however now we don't need them becuase we can put all types of information and videos on the web. When I asked of advice for students wishing to pursue the same type of line of work, Mr. Accame stressed students to work hard, not get discouraged, and to put as much time into learning as much as you possibly can, whether it be by volunteering or getting an internship with a smile on your face at all times. Last but not least, he told me to give it my all and work super hard as well as to not rely on luck and that opportunity and preparedness were the most important tools to success. When doing this interview, I learned so much more valuable information I had never known or even thought about. This summer I was invited to go on a couple of shoots with Mr. Accame to see him at work, which I am really excited for and can't wait for the experience.

Warner Bros to axe licenses for free streaming services

Warner Brothers music group has finally announced that it will no longer be offering licenses of its music to services that offer free streaming, in hopes of people realizing that free streaming services aren't realistic, and work against the industry. Because of this, Warner will now begin to pay more attention to having people pay subscription services on their licenses. While this would be considered great news all around in a utopia that we will never have, Forrester analyst Mark Mulligan stated that "The majority of consumers simply have no appetite for paying for digital music, and that free and subsidized services are quite simply part of the future." With that being said, this article is important because it shows just how far people will go in resorting to stealing just so they get what they want, when they want it. Sadly, greed takes a large toll on people's lives, always has and most likely always will. Nowadays, it's all about convenience and free stuff. Each of these things rely and balance each other out. Convenience makes the world go round, and free stuff makes people feel extremely happy. Because of this, when people are charged by a service that makes you pay, they begin to lose interest and quickly proceed to begin the process of rebrowsing all over again until they they come across a service that allows them to download and listen for free, making them happy once again. Ever since file sharing and free downloads became big in the beginning of the 2000's, it has been almost impossible in working backwards and getting people to pay again. Although the industy and artists have already lost so much revenue from the past 10 years of illegal downloading, they still have managed to be successful at selling CDs and getting their songs out there. While this may not be as much as they had hoped for, technology is constantly blossoming and no matter what, people will find ways to get what they want, when they want it, and for a very small to nothing price. Everyone has been taught that stealing is immorally wrong, but when it comes to getting caught, its a risk their willing to take (in the case) not pay for at all. In Media Programming, it states that one ray of hope for the music industry is getting existing customers to "use social networking to promote content to potential buyers, which helps encourage more paid downloading" (335). Social networking is a hot commodity and remains huge today. Could it possibly be the answer paid downloading has been searching for? http://arstechnica.com/telecom/news/2010/02/warner-bros-to-axe-licenses-for-free-streaming-services.ars