El Fin

Posted by mdlarotta on

So another semester with Groover has passed one again and the time has come to bid each other a hearty “Farewell!”

As much as I hate to admit it, the high of this semester for me came during the week of mandatory tweeting. It was hilarious to see students, myself included, tossing out random tweets about class left and right, just to make the minimum number required. I don’t think I’ll ever forget tweeting about Groover giving away free Chik-Fil-A coupons. I don’t think I’ll ever stop tweeting that Groover is giving away free Chik-Fil-A either.

The lows of the semester came every time missed an assignment or quiz. Although it was my fault for trying to take on such a large course load while working, there really were a shit-ton of online assignments and quizzes. I also didn’t like hearing today that we had this blog to write. At least now I know for future reference that our professor is the kind of lady that likes to pull a Houdini on her students at the end of the year and hit them with blog post on the last week of classes, knowing good and well that we’re all stressing so badly over finals that our bodies could go into shock at any moment.

I think what I’ll carry with me into my classes next year will be a better understanding of the different forms of PR writing.  I can’t wait to have Groover in publications next semester.

Getting Away with It

Posted by mdlarotta on

Of course, if I could get away with anything it would have to be robbing all the funds from the Federal Reserve. Although this is an absolute impossibility, so far as my own talents will permit, the thought of never having to worry about the stresses and strains of financial insecurity brings a certain amount of solace to my mind that makes me wish that it were possible. If I were somehow to collect the testicular fortitude to attempt such a hopeless heist and fail, the consequences would be life in a federal penitentiary — not my idea of fun.

Now to visit the world of reality, where the things that I wish I could do and get away with are completely within the constraints of my own abilities, but I am unwilling to do them because of the absolutely certain consequences I would suffer. More than anything, I wish I could tell some of the people I work with to just f**k off and mind their own business. I don’t understand how some people see it as a bad thing that to have a good work ethic and want things done as quickly and efficiently as possible. Unfortunately, some of the people I’d like to tell these things to are directly responsible for determining whether or not I keep my employment.

I remember getting out of having to go to ISS for skipping class by writing a note in pencil saying that I would get extra credit if I had a parent sign a note saying that they had read the syllabus for one of  my classes. My mom signed in pen, I then erased everything I had written in pencil and rewrote the note to say that I was home sick the day before.

Stuff I’m Thankful for and Stuff

Posted by mdlarotta on

First and foremost, I am thankful for the opportunity to see my dad. I haven’t been able to visit him in Tampa since he moved there about three years ago. I’m also glad I get to see my brother and his wife. I saw them a couple of weeks ago in Columbus and realized that I miss my brother a lot more than I thought that I would. It seems like we didn’t start developing a healthy relationship until we were both adults. Now, I love going to visit him and just sit around shooting the proverbial shit. I guess this Thanksgiving I’m actually thankful for the one thing that the holiday seems to be meant for — spending time with family, so I’ll start my list with that.

Things I am thankful for this Thanksgiving:

1. Family

2. Friends

3. No class for a week

4. Food (namely turkey and ham)

5. A chance to study without having to worry about newspaper deadlines

6. A chance to work on my magazine articles without any other academic distractions

7. Liquor (rum or vodka)

8. Beer (Yuengling or various imports)

9. The semester coming to an end

10. Getting out of Statesboro for an entire week

 

Twitter

Posted by mdlarotta on

Over the past week I have once again been subjected to the mandatory use of Twitter for strictly academic purposes, and I can safely say that my experience with the aforementioned social network was drastically different than my last. Much of this can be attributed to the fact that I removed the majority of celebrities and public figures I had previously saved to my list of individuals who I was following. I figured this would be a better move than my last attempt as far as trying to see how individuals who actually know each other in  real-world settings use Twitter to interact with one another, rather than simply following a bunch of status updates from people who you really don’t know on any real level.

What I noticed the most from interacting with my classmates through Twitter was that the majority of people were really just trying to get their 30 tweets in for the week as quickly as possible. Most tweets between classmates took place during class and were usually regarding how someone wished that we wouldn’t have class on Friday, or that they were still tired and didn’t feel like being in class that day. Admittedly, I joined in the with a few of these comments.

For the most part, I used twitter to successfully complete this assignment. Although, I did try to promote a party at my neighbor’s house on Friday night, but I ended up passing out anyway. I also made it public that I have a legitimate stalker who I am most likely going to have to file a restraining order against. I figured that served as a public service announcement for anyone who was considering stopping by to hang out.

Overall, I must say that I enjoy Twitter much more when I don’t follow a bunch of random celebrities and actually follow people I know.

Sunday Alcohol Sales

Posted by mdlarotta on

I believe that Sunday alcohol sales are a great idea. It’s ridiculous that because we live in the Bible belt, buying alcohol on Sunday is demonized. Someone can easily buy alcohol on Saturday and save it for the next day. People need to get over the stigma associated with a town that allows its citizens to purchase alcohol on Sunday because they see it as a sign of a lack in moral fortitude inherent in the community.

It only makes sense that Sunday alcohol sales be allowed everywhere. Every day that alcohol can be sold is means more money for the government from the taxes applied to the sales. Why should South Carolina get Georgians’ money on Sunday when they make the hour-drive to cross the bridge in Savannah to stock up on booze before the football games start. Our state is losing money that could be used to fund programs that it could benefit from.

Having said all this, I’m sure I have made it blatantly clear that I am a supporter of Sunday alcohol sales. However, I will do nothing to advocate the sale of alcohol on Sunday. The reason for this being that I don’t care enough to vote on it. I don’t plan on living in Georgia for much longer, so the loss of money to the state won’t affect me. I am also not an alcoholic who needs to drink every single day. I don’t watch football that often on Sundays, but when I do plan on watching a game with some friends I  buy what alcohol I see fit the day before and save it for the next day.