Fact or Fiction

We are all constantly bombarded with advertisements. Some use bright colors, some use pretty people, and some use both. This Revlon advertisement does just that. Jessica Alba is perfect, and women everywhere want to be her, making her the perfect candidate to sell their product. She has definitely made a name for herself as she has been in multiple movies and shows. Besides, she is gorgeous with her dark brown hair, dark brown eyes, clear tan skin, perfect teeth, and luscious lips. Wait, that’s what they’re selling! Lipstick. The ad itself was set up brilliantly. Using a dark, dramatic background, allowed Jessica to stand out which is exactly what Revlon wants to get women to think this product will do for them. Then they use a dark red lipstick which makes her lips pop even more, drawing attention to their product. Honestly, looking at this ad makes me want to buy lipstick. If only I looked this stunning with it on. Oh, the wonders of advertisement. Now no one would consider this lying would they? They used a real person, a real product, and real facts. Or did they? It comes down to presentation. Yes, Jessica is a real person, but the girl in the ad is all done up. Very few of us have a personal make-up artist with us every day. The product is lipstick yes, but is it always that shiny, and will it look that good on you? That picture took less than a second to take with the perfect lighting and precise flashes. Now to the facts. Does lipstick really have the “feather-light feel you’ve been dreaming of” with “elasticolor technology that hugs lips with a burst of weightless color?” I guess the only way to find out is to try it, and then you’ve already bought their product. So, do you look as good as Jessica when you wear it? Honestly, probably not, but we don’t live in a world of reality. We live in a world of fiction that will allow us to think yes we do and hence we will continue to buy their product. The producer has won and the consumer looses once again, but then again it’s what we want isn’t it?

Wonder

Some people think that the more we know, the more we discover, the more the mystery in life begins to fade. I disagree, instead I think it inspires wonder and even more imagination. This is what happened with the discovery of the human genome. It was a huge landmark in discovering how things work in the human body, but it also brought a new appreciation for the complexity, with this appreciation and complexity came new and more complex questions. Questions that spark more wonder and more mystery in how things work. We have in no way answered all the questions or are we even close, and as we continue to learn and discover I only hope we realize the mystery and wonder of this incredible universe God gave us. He is the ultimate mystery, so great that our minds will never fully comprehend. We will constantly search but never fully know how great he is, why he does things, or how he works, but we strive to learn. That is what keeps us going, that is what we long for, the knowledge of who God is and how he works in us.

Ezekiel 15:11
"Who among the gods is like you, O LORD ?
Who is like you—
majestic in holiness,
awesome in glory,
working wonders?"

God thank you for being so much greater than we could ever imagine. That is what makes the journey so marvelous is how incredible you are. The more we learn the more we are just amazed at your goodness and grace. Thank you for this incredible ride. I cannot wait to learn more, and continue to be amazed.

Amazing Grace -- Chris Tomlin

Amazing grace how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now I'm found
Was blind, but now I see

'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear
And grace my fears relieved
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed

My chains are gone, I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, amazing grace

The Lord has promised good to me
His word my hope secures
He will my shield and portion be
As long as life endures

My chains are gone, I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, amazing grace

My chains are gone, I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, amazing grace

The earth shall soon dissolve like snow
The sun forbear to shine
But God who called me here below
Will be forever mine, will be forever mine
You are forever mine

Freedom in Christ

So today I woke up, still in a funk. I didn’t understand. I have so much stuff to do and no time to do it. 19 hours and finals are going to be the death of me. Finally I decided to put on my Ipod and God spoke to me through my friends CD. “I feel an inch away from death, but no one ever knows, because I don’t let it show, all my strength is gone, all my hope is gone, all hope but one. In my weakness it is far more clear to me, in my failure its far more clear to me, in my selfishness its far more clear to me, when I can’t stand myself it’s far more clear to me, just who you are and what you did for me.” WOW. So true. I just need to live this life God has given me and glorify him in everything I do. That is all I can do, so I will let go and give up this burden that is holding me back from living life and trust God to get all this done. “I can’t wait until you walk me through those gates Halleluiah, I can’t wait until you walk me through those gates halleluiah, I can’t wait until you walk me through those gates halleluiah” So I am choosing to give it up and cast my burdens upon my God who cares for me.

Jess Ray and the Rag tag Army

Haha and the Ipod continues to play. Another of Jess’s songs: beep, beep, beep another day, wake up and try again, went to bed defeated woke up bruised and beaten, no new thing for me, im comfortable in my losing streak, I’m sure I’ll get it right this time with one more try, so here’s to my trying, goodbye, so hears to my trying, goodbye. Ding ding ding another fight, more than sure i’ll win tonight, my skin is tougher this time, as long as I can focus my mind, push a little bit harder stretch just a little bit higher, should get it this time one more fight, but I’m losing my mind, wasting my time, so here’s to my fightin, goodbye, so here’s to my, so hears to my, so here’s to my trying, GOOD BYE. So here’s to my fighting GOODBYE…cause there’s no reason to try for something that’s already done and there’s no reason to fight for something that’s already won.

Praise the Lord. My battle has been fought, my battle has been won, and now it I will praise God without hindrance, trusting that He will allow me the time to accomplish all that I have to get done.

Worries

Today was weird. Honestly not sure what I did. I felt so unproductive. I woke up wrote a couple of blogs, then went to my class, ate lunch, went to more class, then the gym and then apartment hunting. That was stressful. My dad lost his job back in December, so I need somewhere cheap. My roommate Sam and I went to this one place: OUT OF OUR PRICE RANGE! As I was getting discouraged, I called my friend and asked her about her place. She basically told me that although it was in my price range, I should not live there because of the roaches and how horrible the owner was with fixing maintenance problems. Great. So I can't afford somewhere nice, and the place I can afford has roaches and maintenance problems. With discouragement welling up within me, Sam and I decided we needed dinner. Over dinner I was honest with her about how money was tight, she said she understood and that we would keep looking. We stopped by Brookstone Village. It was in our price range and still nice, so even if we don’t end up at Brookstone, we had a good heart to heart conversation where we could both be honest with each other and compromise, realizing that there are still more options to look into. God has a plan for me and Sam next fall. We just have to trust him.

Matthew 6:25-34

25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[b]?...31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own

God I have so much to do. Please help me to not stress, but rather focus and get it done, not worrying about housing or everything else that is on my plate. Help me to give it all to you, and as you get it all done according to your plan help me give you the glory.

Interpretation

In December my dad lost his job. Now his life consists of interview after interview, application after application, and constant searching. This weekend when I went home I asked him about photography. My dad and I love photography, and the two of us have taken pictures for longer than I can remember. I decided since neither one of us really knew that much about how to get recognized or noticed we should try it all. This weekend I started a flickr account. Photography has always been a hobby of mine and something I really enjoy. I love working with the framing, the lighting, and the subject, adjusting them to my liking in order to tell the story I want to tell. I love it. As an artist, I frame it the way I want in order to tell my story. However, that story will be different for everyone else who looks at my work of art. That is the beauty of art: interpretation. My photo will speak to me one way and maybe to you another leaving the true meaning of the artwork up to the eye of the beholder. Well if beauty is in the eye of the beholder how am I suppose to take pretty pictures of pretty things that other people will like? I’m not. I have no idea what you like. I just have to take pictures that say what I want them to say, and then let people interpret how they may. So that is what I’ve done, let me know what you think!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48973467@N06/

The Environmental Issue from Hell

Is global warming a moral dilemma? Is it the public policy problem from hell? McKibben is wise to use phrases like these. By discussing hell and morals, your mind is already equating it with two heavily debated issues and beginning to question their existence and how we should deal with them. As for existence he chooses to discuss how global warming “will creep up on us.” He goes on to discuss the slight changes that are taking place and how we “live lives so divorced from the natural world that we hardly notice these changes.” He’s right. Not only in choosing the word divorce which everyone has heard and in some way or another experienced, but also elaborating and explaining about parking garages and air conditioning. Then he goes on to discuss how to deal with global warming since it is indeed creeping up on us, and that he says is the moral question: do “we owe any debt to the future.” By wording it this way, McKibben asks if we owe them anything. No, we don’t just like we weren’t owed anything, however, he then goes on to discuss how “we would loathe the generation that” did not react. Loathe is such a strong word, but I think it gets his point across. People, Americans especially, are so quick to judge however they only look through their own perspective lenses. McKibben is asking for us to take a step back and look from someone else’s point of view which as an author is a brilliant idea. He is asking them to be open minded and look through someone else’s eyes with the hope that it will be his.