Last Blog for I.S.

Hi everyone!

There are three weeks of classes left at McGill for the Winter semester, and this blogging assignment for my Information Systems class is done tomorrow, which means that this will be the last time that I am "forced" to blog.  I have to admit that this was by far the most enjoyable assignment that I have had to do at McGill thus far, although I didn't really understand the point of doing it.  I do not feel as though I learned that much by completing this project... Perhaps the professors should have forced us to blog about technology rather than any topic of our choosing.  

On the other hand, being "forced" to Tweet made me appreciate Twitter.   I never really understood the appeal of the social media site before.  However, by being exposed to recent headlines --especially about topics/companies that I find intriguing-- enticed me to read and keep up with the latest articles and trends.

Well that's the end of that chapter.  Here's to the end of the semester and a good exam period! :) 

SUMMER'S COMING!

MODERN FAMILY

YAY! IT'S SATURDAY :)
Hello everyone!


What is it about rainy days that make us want to curl up under a blanket in front of the TV?  Today, I procrastinated, and watched reruns of 'Modern Family' -- arguably one of the best shows on television.  Modern Family is a satirical look at three different families and the trials they face in each of their own uniquely comedic ways. 


Some may find the characters a little hard to keep track of at the beginning, so I have made a map to help you identify the family ties.


FAMILY TREE -- Modern Family

I love this show because it is realistic, relatable and outright hilarious.  If you have not seen an episode, I suggest buying the pilot off of iTunes.  It is definitely worth the $3.99.  WARNING: You will get hooked :)

FIRST DAY OF SPRING

Bonjour tout le monde!

Quelle belle journée!!!

Today was the first day of Spring, and it was such a beautiful day.  It was 22°C outside!  I left for school at 7 a.m. and did not realize how hot it would be... so I brought my little jacket and wore my Uggs.  I quickly regretted it when I started to see students in shorts and sundresses.  I envied them.  For it was such a gorgeous day, and I was wearing my dark blue long-sleeve v-neck, beige pants, boots and a jacket (and even had a scarf in my school bag!).  I am normally one to get chilly, but today I felt as though I was ready to burst into flames.

All that to say that tomorrow, I will dress appropriately, and that I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT SPRING IS BACK!  During the cold and dark winter, it feels like nice weather will never come back, but Mother Nature has been generous this year and given us a small heat wave in March! 

The only downfall is that it is much harder to be motivated to do schoolwork when all you want to do is go out and enjoy the sun. 

EMPOWERED WOMEN

Forbe's recently came out with their annual list of billionaires, and I was pleasantly surprised to see another woman added the list.  LIST of Billionaires 2012

The youngest, self-made female billionaire, Sara Blakely is the inventor of Spanx.  Like so many entrepreneurs, Sara was trying to solve a problem.  She had bought a pair of white pants and could not find any undergarments that fit well under the pants.  Finally, she took a pair of panty hoes, cut off the bottoms, and Spanx were born.  The problem-solving brand has become a red carpet must-have for celebrities and a daily necessity for women and men everywhere. Headquartered in Atlanta, GA, SPANX^® is available in 35 countries and now offers more than 200 products ranging from slimming apparel and swimsuits, to bras, activewear and men's undershirts. These body-shaping innovations have secured SPANX a place in pop-culture, with daily mentions everywhere from CNN to SNL.

It's nice to see another woman go up the ranks.  Now, if only I could come up with an ingenious product like this one :P

O.NOIR

Happy Sunday :)

Today's blog is for anyone who is in bored in Montreal and looking for something to do without drilling a hole in their wallet.

O.NOIR - Canada's first-ever restaurant that invites you to experience food, drink and conversation like never before IN THE DARK!  I have been to the restaurant twice, and believe me when I say "in the dark", I mean you cannot see ANYTHING.  The restaurant is designed to stimulate the senses. After a few hours in complete darkness (that's right, no flashlights, matches, cell phones, cigarette lighters or luminous watches), customers gain a better understanding of what it's like to be blind - just like the restaurants' entire wait staff!


This restaurant would be the IDEAL way to test out a blind date.  You'd only have the person's personality to decide whether or not you like them :P

MAKE KONY FAMOUS

Happy Wednesday Everybody!

I know that I do not have very many people who follow my blog, but I am trying to use every social media outlet at my disposal to help spread an important message. I realize that I am only one person, but if I can get another person to share this video, and that person gets someone else, etc... then we will be spreading the message at an exponential speed.  

Today, I stumbled upon a video that really shocked me.  I will not describe the video, as I believe that it is worth watching --> STOP KONY. 

With technology today, we are no longer limited to being "one voice" out of billions, we have been given the opportunity to come together and make a difference.  Every time you share this video, you are increasing the voice that will help stop Kony.  It's free to share, so why not?

NEW WAVE OF SOCIAL NETWORK

Hello all :)

Seeing as this blog is for an Information Systems class, I thought it might be a good idea to talk about a new social network that has emerged.  

I recently discovered "Pinterest".  "Pinterest" is a virtual PinBoard that lets users share and organize their interests, articles, pictures on a "pinboard"... While I think that the idea is clever, I do not see the need for such a network, as Facebook, Google + and Twitter are already dominating the social scene.  Although, I have to admit that I really enjoy the page setup of Pinterest.

What do you think?  Will Pinterest last?  Will it surpass the existing networks?

HAVE A GREAT MONDAY <3

SHARE A COKE WITH...

HAPPY SATURDAY EVERYONE :)


I hope that you are all enjoying the weekend.  
I wanted to share with you an interesting advertising campaign that I recently learned about.  In Australia, in 2011, Coca-Cola began the "share a Coke" campaign, where the Coca-Cola logo on bottles was replaced with first names. Coca-Cola used the 150 most popular names in Australia to print on the bottles.  The campaign was paired with a website page, Facebook page and an online "share a virtual Coke".  I think that this campaign is really clever; for anyone who likes to collect things with their name on it, or if you want to feel famous for the day :P


Here's an example:

"Share a Coke With..." Video

Who do you want to "Share a Coke" with?

CHEERS <3

STUDY BREAK

Hi :)

So, we're already about halfway through our "break", and if you're like me, you're stuck on the cold island of Montreal studying for the midterms that are coming up....  Isn't it lovely how we have to spend our break buried under textbooks?  I love how clever McGill was by naming our break, "reading week" rather than giving us a "spring break" like every other university.  

Anyways, there isn't much content to today's blog; just a small rant before I continue studying.  For all of you McGillians that are spending Reading Week on a tropical island, please do the rest of us a favour and don't come back TOO tanned ;) For the rest of you that are here in Montreal, keep your spirits up and try to have a bit of fun.

Bonne "semaine de relâche" ;)

I wish was there...

 Instead of at home doing this...

BUCKET LIST

Good-Morning!


Today's blog, believe it or not, is inspired by a show on MTV called "The Buried Life".  The show is about a group of Canadian men that are on a mission to accomplish their "Bucket List" -- a list of things you want to do before you die.  I really enjoy it, because it sheds a light on how we should not take any day for granted. If you have not seen the show, I encourage you get watch an episode -- it's a good break from studying :P


The show inspired me to make my own bucket list, and although some of my "dreams" are personal, I will share a short excerpt from my list here:

1. For those of you who follow my blog, you know that I wish to travel, A LOT.  Especially to the 5 countries that I listed in one of my earlier blogs.
2. Wish on a shooting star -- I have yet to even SEE one!
3. Go Sky diving
4. Learn to cook an entire meal (appetizers, main course & dessert) -- I'm a real dud in the kitchen.
5. Get my work published -- whether it's an article for a newspaper or magazine, or by writing a book.
6. Learn how to skate -- Can you believe that I live in CANADA, in MONTREAL, where Hockey basically runs our entire winter, and I don't know how to skate?! Pathetic haha.
7. Be part of a Flash Mob
8. Run a marathon
9. Get a tattoo
10. [........]

Some of my "bucket list" dreams were accomplished recently:

• Swimming with Dolphins
• Making the Canadian National Team in Synchronized Swimming
• Featured on TV
• [....]

I once read an article about people who wrote down their dreams and goals over the next 5 years on paper versus a group of people who didn't.  The group that wrote their dreams down were far more successful, and happy at the end of the next five years than the other group.  So, I urge you all to make your own bucket list.  Remember, it's not about making tasks that are impossible to achieve; it's about being able to accomplish the "little victories" that make life worth living.

     

NERD IT UP

Hey there party rockers :)


Stress + no sleep + extra snacking = MIDTERMS are here.


That's right; that dreaded time of the year is back.  Not only is it cold, and gets dark out early... we are all cooped up indoors with our laptops and textbooks trying to catch up on overdo studying.  


At the beginning of every term, I tell myself that I will not procrastinate and let myself fall behind in my work... for some reason this never seems to work.  The only positive news is that SPRING BREAK is a mere 4 days away which means that there is A CHANCE for me to catch up on all my work -- as long as I steer clear of Procrastination Nation.


Alright, well it's time to get the day started with some O.M. studying.......... I hope that my day isn't divided up like this pie chart ;)

GOOD-LUCK WITH EXAMS!!  

TRAVELS

ALLO ALLO ALLO :)

For anyone who knows me well, they know that I LOVE to travel.  This year, I am planning to go to Thailand and Bali for two weeks, and I could not be more excited.  I have travelled quite a bit, but I have not gone to Asia yet.  From what I hear, I am in for a huge culture shock.  I cannot wait to visit the sites, hear different languages, GO SHOPPING, but I am a little worried about the food.  I have always been a picky eater... so I may be in for a surprise.    

Here's a taste of what I will be seeing during my trip:

After this trip, I will still have 5 major countries -- although, I wish that I could visit every country-- that I NEED TO VISIT before I die:

• Australia -- to see kangaroos and swim in the Great Barrier Reef
• Egypt -- Visit the Pyramids
• South Africa -- Go on an African Safari
• England -- Ride in a red double decker bus, and visit the Queen ;)
• Greece -- Go island hopping and visit all the monuments

What is your dream destination?

GRADE INFLATION

Hey Party People!


In light of it being Monday, I thought I would address a school issue today, but before you read on, you should probably read THIS article.


Alright, so I feel the need to address this article.  I admit that I am among the group of students who detests the grading policy at McGill, and I do agree that it is disheartening to be brought down from an A to an A- or lower.  If an entire class is intelligent (smarter than the average student), and their class average ends up being higher than the mandated average, it is unfair to bring down everyone's grade.


Having said that, I have to admit that this way of grading is effective in the grand scheme of things; it differentiates the above average, average and mediocre students.  


Here are some things that I did not like from the article:


-Yes; Princeton has adopted a similar grading scheme, but the article fails to mention that Princeton also puts disclaimers on transcripts to say that they are a "low grading school".  In my opinion, if McGill adopted this policy, students would complain a lot less about getting an A- rather than an A.


-Ummmm Concordia? What do they have to do with this article?  They are not subjected to mandated averages, and their average GPAs are lower, not because they have a "valid grading scheme" but because they have lower admission standards, hence the average student has a lower GPA to begin with.  IRRELEVANT to the article.  


-Grades are not everything.  McGill is a reputable school, and employers (in general) know about the "deflated grades".  At the end of the day, you will most likely be competing against other McGill students for internships/jobs that were exposed to the same grading scheme.  


What are your thoughts? :) 

WHAT WILL REPLACE COMMERCIALS?

Bonjour les amis :)


Today's blog is a query about technology, but more specifically, advertising.  More and more, I am getting too impatient for commercial advertisements, and I'm sure many of you are the same.  We TiVo our shows to skip over commercials, or stream seasons of shows off the internet to avoid those annoying 2-3 minute commercial breaks.  So, I did a bit of research and I found out that commercials are becoming less effective.  In fact, even politicians are having difficulty reaching the population with their messages.  I read an interesting fact on Say Media:

"With more than one in three voters opting out of live TV, politicians must adjust their campaigns to effectively reach voters." -- Say Media

This got me wondering... If commercial advertisements are becoming less effective, what will be the next biggest fad in advertisements?  Any ideas? :)

UNDERWATER FAIRYTALE

Good-morning :)


Before we all get on with our day, I would like to share some information about myself.  For those of you who read this blog and do not already know, I am a retired National Synchronized Swimming athlete.  I have participated in aquatic sports my entire life, although I spent most of my time in competitive swimming and synchronized swimming.  To get to my point, I have always been fascinated with water, whether it's a pool, lake, river, water falls or Ocean; I simply cannot get enough.  I spent many days as a little girl playing in the pool and dreaming up fairytales, which is why I immediately fell in love with these pictures.


Here is the Underwater version of Alice in Wonderland.
*Please note that I do not own any of the pictures below. You may access more magical underwater photos HERE



What did you do for fun as a kid?

"FRENGLISH"

This is the first of many blogs to come over the next 3 months as it is part of my McGill assignment for my Information Systems class.  I have to admit that an assignment that entails creating a Twitter account (follow me @PowellCat) and writing a blog every so often is by far the best assignment that I have had since starting McGill in the Fall of 2011.

So, what's to come in the following three months?  Well, I hope to entertain anyone who takes the time to visit my blog with interesting videos, facts, or simply with details about my day :) I am infatuated with travel, so there is a good chance that you will find ideas about my "ideal vacation spot" or cool sights to see around the Globe.  Also, you should take note of the title of this first post.  Why is it called "Frenglish"? Well, I am bilingual in French and English, and often find myself switching languages mid sentence.  I have a strong feeling that this idiosyncratic behaviour will persist in my blogs as well; so for those of you who do not speak french, I hope that you will learn a little here.

Before, I finish off I would like to leave you with an interesting word of the day: "flibbertigibbet".  It sounds like gibberish, but I assure you that it is a real word.  I challenge you to use it sometime during a conversation this week!

Cheers <3