It's been a while

"At twenty years of age
I'm still looking for a dream
A war is already waged
For my destiny
But you've already won the battle
And you've got great plans for me
Though I can't always see

Cause I've got a couple dents in my fender
Got a couple rips in my jeans
Tryin to fit the pieces together
But perfection is my enemy
And on my own I'm so clumsy
But on your shoulders I can see
I'm free to be me"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujenRXDu2Ik

Anyone can relate to this song, no matter how many years young you are.

Not sure exactly what I'm after in this blog, but I do know that many lives have been taken in the past week: Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, Billy Mays, Ed McMahon and a 24-year-old lady from Fort Worth, TX, Megan Porter (also known on Twitter as @megapixel).

I'd say that's five too many, but there are reasons for everything and it's made me come to the conclusion regarding the following that is a combined quote of two: "wake up each morning as if it were your first day and live it like it's going to be your last."

I'm going to do my best to blog weekly about whatever it is that is on my mind and today, I really don't have a whole lot to say except I'm doing a nationwide search for communications positions on LinkedIn. I'd prefer to find entry-level marketing/pr positions since this is what I need and that is what is realistic as a recent college graduate.

People ask me all the time what kind of job do I want.

To work with people
To inform people
To help people (non-profit)
To travel (I have no current obligations to not travel)
To write
To research
To market
To campaign
To find a company with strong values/visions, that is innovative, has direction and one that I can grow with

I'm not picky, but compaines/firms/agencies/non-profits are.

That is all I really have and I'm going to post a video as soon as I'm able to about whatever.

Jon and Kate Plus 8 - thoughts

This isn't a "taking sides" blog. This is about 10 people who deserve happiness, love and a peace of mind.

Nobody wants to be a statistic and kids, grown adults rather, don't become proud of what had at one point happened to their family. They become thankful for the choices made for their own emotional benefit.

Nobody is perfect, but some people become controlling or too passive or allow their personality to change that brings them to the point where communication just isn't possible. Why is the communication just not possible?
It could be out of fear, resentment, uncertainty, sorrow, pain and quite frankly, the list goes on.

Maddy, Cara, Aaden, Joel, Collin, Hanna, Leah, and Alexis...these kids deserve happiness.

I don't give a rats bahooty about what TLC wants in regards to their numbers, what their public wants or contracts that have been signed.

Jon and Kate have a huge responsibility to pull through and do their best to communicate (obviously) and bring themselves back together for their family. Hopefully, when they reunite after all is said and done, they'll want to genuinely make it work and find their happily ever after again. If their hearts are not in it, even after a seperation with time to think, then it will be best for a divorce to be issued because as I stated before: This is about 10 people who deserve happiness, love and a peace of mind.

Not that you might care, but after the first episode, I turned off the television and decided to leave this family in peace, minus tonight for the "special announcement" since I'm not a fan of reading People Magazine or any magazines for that matter when it comes to gossip-filled situations like this. I just wanted to know the truth and hear it directly from the source.

I wish the Gosslin family all the love, support and guidance they will need at this point in time.

Next Chapter Is Here!

There's many new exciting things happening to me and I'd like to share them with you along with thoughts I have that I feel my readers need to understand, in regards to my very last post.

On Monday, June 15, through the American Red Cross, I took classes to once again proudly became a certified Lifeguard along with earning certifications for First Aid and CPR/AED for the Professional Rescuer.

The class was a roughly 24 hours in length, over a period of three days, with day No. 4 being the day to put all of the skills we learned together and apply them to "real life" situations.

A few things I've learned through First Aid and CPR/AED material:
- taking care of bee stings

- rescuing a victim who is having a seizure in the water

- how to perform shallow/deep water rescues that could be either spinal injury related, or the victim became restless (distressed) or went from active to passive in a matter of seconds (p.s. active to passive should never happen unless there's a serious medical issue)

- backboarding victims in shallow/deep water <-- deep water is VERY challenging - rescue breathing ratios for adult, child and infant

- CPR ratios for adult, child and infant

- there's many others . . . just named a few here

On Thursday, June 18, I passed the final scenario, without hesistation (I actually had to talk one of the other students through it) and shortly after packing up, one of my instructors offered me a 1-day job for the Lifetime Fitness Triathlon 2009 which takes place at Lake Nokomis in Minneapolis. I feel really happy about this since I was one of 29 students (was 31; one student became ill and the other couldn't finish the 300 yard prereq. swim) and I was taking this class very seriously; I'm convinced my instructor took notice.

By the way, @ACES4KIDS (on Twitter) is looking for volunteers: http://www.aces4kids.org/2/LTFTVolFactSheet.pdf
(help to Support ACES Partnernship with Life Time Fitness)

I'm on my way to joining the awesome team at Lifetime Fitness, as a lifeguard and applying their Vision and Mission Statements; only one interivew left. :)

On another note, I'd like to say I did not continue on into a higher education and come out with a bachelors of science degree and not intend to use it in one form or another.

There are six things I've very sure of.
I enjoy media, the general public, helping people, being in the water, being crazy, creative and being active more than anything on a daily basis.

This is why I chose Mass Communications and with my emphasis being in Public Relations, I couldn't have chosen a better route for myself.

If [you] know of anyone whose looking for some to do free lance work, send them my way. I'm also working on volunteer hours right now for different events, one of them being the link I just posted from @ACES4KIDS.

I talk highly and more in depth about Aquatics since that is more prevalent in my life, but I will continue to reach out in all forms of mass media as much as I can. Please don't underestimate my dedication to Mass Communications.

Twitter is down, so "The Golden Key" is my topic

I'm doing my best to not bore my readers to death, which is why I'm not blogging very much. I have many things to say, but not always worth others valuable time.

For some, time is money, but not for me. I enjoy getting in touch with my inner thoughts and speaking on behalf of what's really going on, all why trying to be informative.

That "informative" part, might not happen here so just warning you in advance.

I've decided that above all things, no matter how hard you try and no matter how hard you look, how smart you are, or how savvy you are in your ways, sometimes, the doors that are usually just waiting for you to open them, won't.

Though I have The Golden Key, the door that unlocks levels which would not exist otherwise had I not continued my education as I graduated from high school, are failing to open faster than normal.
"It's not about what you know, it's about who you know" couldn't be more true, nowadays.

I believe that most people are honest and we're all trying to help each other get to the next place we most desire to be. There's very few dishonest people in the world and most of us have made embarrassing mistakes that we are not proud to admit, but it's OK. Are you learning from them? That's all that matters.

Moving on.

I had had an idea sitting in the back of my head for quite sometime, only because I was a lifeguard for 3 years and was an assistant teacher for swimming lessons. I loved it. Though I was in college for six years, I continued in my search after graduating looking for jobs I could apply for, not just because I 'wanted a job and would do anything,' but I was looking for a job that fit my personality best.
You can't fool an interviewer as an interviewee. If you think you can, either you're a natural, or you haven't found what makes your heart sing and are allowing yourself to settle for anything but what makes you the happiest.

I typed the job title "lifeguard" into the a Web site search engine I'm currently a member of called LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanr09) and looked to see what the outcome of job postings were. *Jaw. Hit. Floor* I noticed that Lifetime Fitness was in the process of hiring, though I didn't know how many people had applied for the same job.
What did I do? What most people are afraid to do -- I called Lifetime and asked to speak with the Aquatics Director.

I told her my background, why I wanted to work for Lifetime and our conversation lasted at least 15 minutes. Fifteen minutes!! And let me just say that I was pumped by the time we were done speaking.

I see myself being in Aquatics, taking classes to become a certified Swim Instructor and staying with this company for quite sometime. Not only this, I can eventually use my Mass Comm degree and put it to good use.

I hope that someday soon, I can be the hero and the "best swim teacher" (according to a future student of mine) while thoroughly enjoying my co-workers, the company I plan on pursuing a career with and the success that will occur each and everyday. Because I've chosen to take on a career in Aquatics, I'm also choosing to save lives and possibly be the swim teacher I've longed to become for the past two years.

What I desire is quite simple: a level of responsibility some may take for grantide and everyday challenges for not only myself, but my future students. This has become my own Golden Key.

"...yet I feel empty"

Society has this image:
- Graduate from high school (18)
- Move away for college
- Study hard
- Find "The One"
- Graduate
- Find a job
- Get engaged/married
- Buy a house
- Start a family (sooooo by the time you're 26??)

Well, I'm not exactly 26, but I HAVE completed 4 of the 9 things. But the clock is ticking...

I have every right to feel behind because of society's "expectations" and it's not any fun. Society is making me feel empty and is draining me of my "belonging."

There's a quote about college that I know of and this part of it (off the top of my head):
You have "four years" here to goof off, be irresponsible, date, spend money that you may or may not have, stay up all night and become someone you never knew you could be or had the ability to become.

It's Vegas without the slot machines.
(HA. Did I really just say that? *laughs to self* That's the first time that's ever come to mind.)

This image I have in my head is starting to bug me and I'm losing sleep over it. Quite literally.
I'm at this point in life where everything is competitive though...and I feel that the world is way too competitive. Here's a question for you:
Are you a robot? Is your best friend a robot? Is your boss a robot? How about your co-workers?

We are choosing to live like robots. Yet we've been giving the ability to become anything we want. I like social media. Don't get me wrong. Gosh, I enjoy talking to people a lot. I'm one of those people never wants the night to end, usually. But I think that we sometimes need to treat each other like the human beings we know we are, not always demand.

My main problem? Not all companies are hiring, even though there's always "demand" for 'this or that.' It's far and few in between when it comes to call backs. So, I'm supposed to take whatever I can get, right? Right. *paused* Wait...what if my dream job is currently not available because of the economy, even though there will always be demand in this world? Do I make it happen by my own free will? I just personally feel very stuck. I'm graduating and society is making me feel as if I'm drowning into nothing. Yet, I asked for none of this.

I know I'm not perfect, but I promise, I'm worth it.

Liberation vs. Terrorism

I'm taking a class called Intro. to Speech Communication 190.

It's all online material and the lectures to me, are boring. Well, most are. Some students have been engaged in this art of rhetoric material, though every once in a while, I'll hear my professor more clearly in other parts of these lectures than I do in others. I heard him loud and clear just moment ago.

I came across this part in my professors lecture:

What is the nature of the world created by Rhetoric?

Social-Constructivist
Through the use of language, individuals come together & build a community. It is only through language that we can understand one another, it is only through language that we can understand the world, live & affect the world.
Therefore, the world is both a reflection and creation of our use of language.
The language we use, the symbols we use, create the world in our image.

Terministic Screen
Is like a filter that stands between each person and the world that s/he observes. The symbols that we use, create a screen or filter, and that screen changes what we’re able to see out of it. A screen or filter lets in certain things and keeps others out. As screen or filter distorts what we're able to see in the distance and magnifies other things that we can see.

Example: when we were little kids, the symbol "dog" meant just about anything with four legs and fur. We drove by a field and pointed to the cows and said, "dog." We saw a cat and said, "dog." We saw a bear in the zoo and said, "dog." All we could see through our screen, were dogs.

When we got a better screen, we could see the difference.

"A choice of words, is a choice of worlds." - Kenneth Burke

Simply put: When we use one symbol, rather than another, we create a different world.

When we say "Terrorist," we create one world. When we say "Freedom Fighter," we create another world.

When we name a situation, that situation is so devine, it requires certain actions. Those actions are discint to that situation.

Rhetoric allows for people to choose the most appropriate action for each situation.

For instance: We are at war in Iraq. We term that situation a war against terror.
When we used that term, it sets up the rules that we have to live by and we have to play by in this war.

Had we used something else, such as a term we used in the 90s, a Liberation for example when we removed Iraq from Kuwait, all we had to do was take care of moving one person out of another area.

Now we use the term "War against terror," and we have a whole different set of rules we have to deal with.

Rhetoric tells us how we should feel about situations, rhetoric tells us what behaviors are appropriate, rhetoric tells us how to draw comparisions and distinctions.

Rhetoric provides a map of that world and also provides a key for that map.

If you want a definition of rhetoric, I do not have one for you.

Go here: http://www.amazon.com/History-Theory-Rhetoric-James-Herrick/dp/0205566731/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1240778279&sr=1-1

and you'll see the book I've been studying out of for this class.

I thought this was an interesting example he used. Let me know your thoughts!

LINKEDIN [easy access to my page]

I figured I could blog about this on here.

Go ahead and take a peek if you're interested!

http://www.linkedin.com/profile?viewProfile=&key=23667340&locale=en_US&trk=tab_pro