El Final!

When I originally started this project, I was honestly at a loss. I’ve always been a creative person, but never had to come up with a “big picture” idea. I just would know exactly what I wanted to do and I’d make it happen. However, for this, I randomly started googling things that have a plethora of meanings. Finally, I stumbled upon--no, not actually on the website--the word “power”. There are many things that power could describe: love, comedy, leadership, strength. Furthermore, there are both positive and negative connotations of the word. With this in mind, I set to work with a positive spin on things.

I knew one of my pictures would have to do with sports--the power of muscles. Shawn Johnson, the olympic gymnast, is one of the strongest athletes I know given her size. So, I did a quick search of her on the vault, and voilà! I had my image. My second image is the power of laughter. When I find random pictures online, the funniest ones tend to be the photobombs, be it intentional or unintentional. Based on that, I found a picture of an awkward llama and a snowboarder because who the heck would expect that animal in a terrain park? My third image has to do with the power of love. I could’ve chosen the cliché pink tinted, hand holding, ooey gooey picture, but I put a different spin on it. I chose the most absolutely awkward picture that I own: 2 of my best friends and me at our 8th grade dance. It literally reeks of awkwardness. My take on this image was the fact that even though we were horribly nerdy and weird, we’ve stuck by each other through everything, even crazy college life!

Overall, as I look at these images, I realize that they depict my life, even through the lives of others. I’ve always been big on sports and strength, so Shawn Johnson seemed like the perfect person for that, especially because I was a gymnast myself. The snowboarding picture honestly just makes me laugh. My best friend and I always joke about how awkward llamas are, so the blending of that and my favorite thing in the entire world--snowbarding--seem to be the perfect culmination of these 2 ideas. The last thing truly is my life. My best friends and I love each other, even if we’re weird and crazy and pretty awkward looking. These 3 images portray not only the big idea “power”, but also myself!

Power

What is power? It can be a dictator seeking to rule all citizens in his land. It can be the power that a muscle has to propel one's self forward. Power also encompasses love, peace and happiness. The power of laughter is nothing short of astounding. Power is what brings people together and separates them. Power is also an incredibly fake, awkward advertisement for an energy drink. Power is what keeps my computer running.

With such a copious number of definitions, power is a very palpable topic. As a video editor, I find this medium the easiest to work with. Ironically, I have the power to make an amazing video with the power fed to my computer via electricity. Since I have an affinity towards sports, laughter and technology, I will work with these three aspects of the term. Power is necessary for life. Power is the focus of the project. Power is power.

To Lift

The two words assigned to me were "to shorten" and "to lift". Being the random person I am, I looked around my room and saw all of the products and items I use to do my hair. I thought for a second and realized that there is no better lift than the "Snooki Lift". Thus, my idea blossomed. I showed all of the tools and possible accessories necessary to create the look. I started with the basics of straightened hair, moved to the lifting tool--the brush--showed the necessary holding products and ended with any glam that could be added to make the style gaudy. The last pictures were added for the "final look". However, because it's such a different way to wear one's hair, I decided to make an awkward face to complete the photo!

Here's the link to the video!

My Life as a Superhero

At first glance, my photo may appear to just be a girl doing a handstand on top of Cloud Gate--more commonly known as "The Bean"--with no special powers. However, my ability is more of a personal thing. Since I was a gymnast, I know how important balance is, not just in my sport, but life in general. I would have the power to have perfect balance in my life and the world in general. For example, last week was very hectic for me, as i had multiple midterms and papers due. I tend to procrastinate, so with a little special power, I would've been able to do everything without a stress or care in my life. This power applies not only to physical things, but emotional, as well. One's attitude can really affect how one carries herself. A balanced set of emotions may very well be one of the most important aspects of my special powers. The world would be much more calm and peaceful because I would have the power to even out people's moods and cause many less conflicts!

I chose the location of my photo because I know how hectic life is in the City. Being in the Loop during rush hour can be a very emotionally charged thing. I across these 2 ideas after thinking for a while. Most people would choose the clichè flying or x-ray vision, but I wanted something unique. I thought back on things I'd done in my life and voila! I had my answer.

My Sculpture

My sculpture is on a bench in Mirror Lake. I chose this location because there are many people that walk by it every day, but more than likely, few people will notice it. It is on the leg of the bench and has a penguin, along with a quote by William Durst, "Laughter is defiance. It's a snort in the face of fear and anxiety." I decided to add a penguin because if most people know me, they know that I have a stuffed penguin named Mumble from Happy Feet. I chose this quote for a couple of reasons. The first of which is that I truly believe that laughter can make all things better. The second being it fits rather well with a random penguin on a park bench. Personally, if I saw this, I know it would make me laugh. My sculpture is a simple, small painting on an already existing surface.

Me in 10 Objects

Softball Bat: When I was 11, I bought this bat and started smacking the crap out of the ball. Due to it's green color, it was nicknamed the green goblin. It's always been my go to slugger and has made me confident in my athletic abilities. (Green Goblin)

Swedish Poster: The poster says "Fear less, hope more; Eat less, chew more; Whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Love more, and all good things will be yours” This quote has truly inspired me to be a more patient and calm person. (Less is More)

Stuffed Pengiun: My friend gave me Mumble, my stuffed animal--named after the Happy Feet penguin--for my birthday one year. I'll admit, I still sleep with him every night. He reminds me of how I'm still a child at heart. (Childhood Memory)

Harry Potter Poster: I'll admit, I have a slight obsession with the series by JK Rowling. I have posters hanging in my room, I've read the books countless times. I'm still waiting for my Hogwarts acceptance letter :) (Harry Potter)

Glasses: I didn't start wearing glasses until my freshman year of college. I had a nice pair, but there really wasn't much pizzaz to them, so I finally got a new pair and they're absolutely perfect! (Trendy Nerd)

Cut up Shirt: I've always loved the laid back, beach-y look so my mom finally came up with a name for my style. (Beach Hobo)

Snowboarding picture: If I could do anything in the world every day for the rest of my life, it would definitely be snowboarding. After I graduate, I'm planning on taking a year off and becoming an instructor out in Colorado. (Life's Joys)

Picture of my brother and me: Alex, my little, well not so little brother, is honestly one of my best friends. We're totally crazy when we're together. I love him to death and I wouldn't trade him for anything (Sibling Love)

Awkie Middle School Photo: My best friend in the whole wide world and one of my really good friends and I all had our picture taken right before the 8th grade dance. Needless to say, middle school was not our finest moment. (Friends Forever)

Family Photo: Every year, without fail, my family goes to Brookfield Zoo and has a picture taken with Santa. I love this tradition and I love that we're all still willing to go. (Family Traditions)

The Story of Us

Ever since he broke up with me, it seems like Taylor Swift has written about my life. The Story of Us? Yeah, that's about me and Sean. Mean? Yup, he's that jerk she continues to refer to. This Summer, he shut me out of his life, even though he said that good ol' clichè "I want to be friends." How'd that work out? Not so well.

We met my Freshman year in our Residence Hall. We were on the activities board together, so one day he asked me to hang out. We instantly clicked and he became my best friend. I wasn't ready for a relationship right away, but 2 months later we were dating. We played frisbee and I even attempted to teach him how to do a handstand! (Lower right hand picture) Everything was going fantastically, until the Summer between my Freshman and Sophomore year. He was back home in California and I was in Illinois, needless to say, the distance just about did us in. He came and visited for my birthday and our 6 months anniversary (upper right hand picture) and things were awesome again. When he left, it became bad. However, when I went to visit him at the end of the Summer, everything was great once again. We drove all the way from his house in LA, to mine in Chicago. We saw amazing sites like the Grand Canyon (Lower left hand picture) and the Rockies. By the time we got back to school, we'd stopped fighting and went to all of the football games together (upper right hand picture). Long story short, at the end of this past school year, he broke up with me pretty much out of the blue. I went home for my internship and he stopped talking to me. We had a huge fight about seeing people after our relationship and he became furious with me. I wrote him a snail mail letter and he didn't even respond. In fact, when he saw me for the first time this year he barely acknowledged my presence. This past week, he started dating this other girl, who we both ironically had thought was, for lack of a better term, a "not so nice" person (center picture).

Needless to say, everything on campus reminds me of him. He came into my life so early in my college career, there's almost nothing that we haven't done together at Ohio State. To make this a full circle, when I walk to class, I almost satirically think about him. He was actually the one that suggested I take this class because he'd really enjoyed it. Funny how things work out!