As the date draws nearer, reality becomes clearer…
I am going to be an adult in just a few more weeks — like, a real adult, graduated from college. How weird is that?
It’s pretty weird, but I’m totally ready.
In preparation, I have been updating my LinkedIn and my resume.
So feel free to peruse them, as well as my many Tweets, posts on Belmont to Brooklyn, and other various links you can find. While you’re at it, why not consider me and my many talents for a job, or pass my name & info along to someone who may be interested?
Anyone who knows me remotely well enough knows that I am in love with Seventeen Magazine. I have been subscribed to it since I was roughly 13-years-old… maybe even sooner! I’m getting too old, I can’t remember.
One reason I’ve always loved Seventeen was because of their vow to stay true. They provide girls with real advice, real options, real stories. They empower young girls to be true to who they are and not be afraid to take risks. And today, news has been surfacing that they’re going one step further in that real girl empowerment.
NO MORE PHOTOSHOP!
or something like that
I saw this image posted on HelloGiggles yesterday and could not have been more excited!
This is in their August issue (currently sitting on my night stand, featuring the fab. Shay Mitchell on the cover, actress in ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars.) Seventeen has always promoted embracing yourself, regardless of your body type. In every issue, their Body Peace Treaty is mentioned, as well as work outs and ways to stay healthy without the emphasis on being stick-thin. Now, they’ve gone a step further thanks to one 14-year-old reader who wanted to make a bigger change.
If I were an artist I would not to give the impression that I would make my music to fit in to any certain category or to make play on any specific radio station. I’d just want to make music and let politics do with it what they wish.
Now, I know some people are going to not be so happy about this post, because they think artists could just have different expressions, different version for different reasons. They are allowed to experiment, there are things such as remixes, there’s plenty of reasons for this. I get it. But I also think it’s just pretty silly, and it’s usually dependent on exposure in different markets, and mainly making money.
Have you noticed lately how certain songs sound differently on different stations? Or, you find this song on the internet or some TV show and you fall in love with it, then hear it on the radio only to hear some strange beat track behind it?
I’ve noticed it. And I DO NOT like it. Some examples…
Gotye – Somebody That I Used To Know (Original)
vs Gotye – Somebody That I Used To Know (Radio Version)
And Kelly Clarkson – Mr. Know It All (Original)
vs Kelly Clarkson – Mr. Know It All (Country Version)
These are only two examples, but I’ve heard it repeatedly by different artists over the last few months. And I think what gets me the most is the fact that wouldn’t Gotye’s song be considered a pop song without the unnecessary background track? Wouldn’t Kelly’s song work just fine on a country station without the strange banjo in the background?
Both versions of both songs sound fine, honestly, but it’s the fact that the original versions were released originally. Then these strange edits popped up on stations across the nation… Maybe so they would get more air play in different markets? Probably. But there’s honestly no point. If a listener doesn’t like your original track, but suddenly they do with that strange sounding background noise… You don’t deserve them as a fan.
And I’m sure I’m not the only one who changes the station when the altered version comes on, as my ears cringe in disgust.
I kid you not, my second new years resolution (or was it third?) this year was to own my own domain. Well, it took me 6 months + 30 days BUT I DID IT. (Better late than never, right?)
After purchasing the oh-so-precious and highly coveted ValerieWire.com (Yes I just linked to the website you’re on solely because I CAN.) I came out to the kitchen to profess this glorious occasion to my mom and she just laughed and said I sounded like Salem the cat.
I’ll take it as a compliment.
But seriously, the domain is a powerful thing. Even though I’m more limited to what I can do than I thought (seriously, WordPress, no plug-ins unless you’re hosting by WordPress.ORG?!), I still feel like I claimed what was mine today.I suddenly feel the professionalism, the security and the creativity to do with it what I want (or, well, what I can…).
Professors have been repeatedly telling us for I don’t even know how long that we need to own our own domain. It gives us an identity, a presence and a personality that no other place on the web can. I can perfectly showcase who I am, my strengths, what I have done, and how to be contacted all in one place. It serves as the perfect hub of all information about me in a nice little nutshell. I can post my resume, portfolio and other things to send to employers, prospective clients and everything between!
Now, I could create business cards that just said valeriewire.com (If I really wanted to) rather than a less than impressive valeriewire.wordpress.com address. And this site directs people to every other branch I have in the internet as well, including what I can do offline.
Point is, it’s affordable, it’s manageable, it’s easy. Now when professors harp on students saying there is no reason not to own your own domain this day in age, I don’t have to awkwardly avoid eye contact. Whatever the reason you’re holding back from purchasing that domain you’ve been thinking about — just do it. It’s only a few bucks a month for something that will leave a priceless lasting impression on all who visit.
valeriewire.com 