If you made it through my about page then that means you’re here by choice, and I appreciate it. This is my first post on this site. If you accidentally stumbled onto this post and don’t want to read it I’m sorry but you have to, it’s the law.
My about page covered the basics of me as a human being, but because this is my first post and I need something to write, I’m going to tell you what’s going on with me, sorry about that. Some of it isn’t boring though I promise. So with the purpose of not boring you I’ll tell you about my recent exploits as a beginner level adrenaline junkie. How does that sound?
My “adrenaline activities” include bouldering, and learning how to downhill long board as well as a top rope class that I have coming up. Last weekend I took my longboard down about a long winding golf cart ramp of a certain sports complex at a certain establishment (I think it was allowed but plausible deniability you guys). I am happy to report that there were no crashes, only lessons learned such as: if you don’t want to risk road rash tighten the board before launching yourself down a steep incline (I believe Icarus learned a similar lesson.)
It’s always important to train for any activity, and I think that this was a successful practice run. I look forward to buying more equipment like longboard gloves and a helmet of course.
That’s the most recent adventure y’all, but if you liked hearing a glimpse of that one there’ll be more to come that will be more exciting. As the great Mick Jagger once said, “anything worth doing is worth overdoing.”
I decided to do a vlog that detailed what a day of bouldering looks like. Bouldering is rock climbing boulders without ropes that are no taller than 30 feet. I decided to do a vlog because I am passionate about bouldering and thought I would be able to get good footage and have fun with the project.
I enjoyed shooting the video and brainstorming. I enjoyed shooting the video because I was able to experiment with angles and ways to prop up the camera as well as boulder which I enjoyed. Editing was fun because I was able to learn a new skill and make my video appear more streamlined.
I struggled with improving sound and video transitions. I struggled with this in part because I was short on time but also because the sound quality was not there which made transitions appear rougher than I would like.
I did not think that I would enjoy this project and was surprised that I enjoyed brainstorming, shooting and editing the video. In my future career I look forward to using video for campaigns and journalistic stories.
My multimedia class has sadly come to a close, and so I have decided to take some time to reflect on the work I’ve done and what I learned. At the start of the class I expected to learn how to edit videos, send effective Tweets, market with visuals and social media and take effective photos.
I have gained to some degree, all the information I expected to learn in the class through the use of `blog post assignments that required me to use each of the topics. I found them and the supplementary lessons to be very useful.
I have also learned to further expand my soft skills in assignments like my news story, twitter story, interview story and the video blog I am currently working on. In these assignments I learned how to develop and express complex thoughts through different mediums, listen and show empathy and problem solve in the creation process. These soft skills will be very useful to me in my future career because I am interested into going into reporting or public relations. Using skills like expressing complex thoughts, listening and showing empathy and problem solving in my creative process will help me both for public relations campaigns and writing engaging news stories.
The most challenging assignment for me was the live tweeting assignment. This was the most challenging assignment because for me there was not a human element to it. I was on a computer tweeting what I saw on a screen and it all felt very stilted. A link to my post is here: https://schillersmedia.design.blog/2020/04/22/live-tweeting-one-world-together-at-home/
If I could go back and give myself advice for the class I would advise myself to prepare myself more in advance for assignments like the live tweeting assignment that seemed difficult and more difficult, I feel if I were more prepared I would be more proud of my assignment and it would have gone easier.
I recently decided to promote my blog posts from earlier this year on a new Instagram page: Bschiller1999. I learned several things while promoting my posts.
I had no previous experience with Canva but have run and promoted two blogs on Instagram. In addition to promoting my personal blogs on Instagram I have run them as my own personal accounts and have experience posting to my feed, stories and boomerangs.
When promoting the posts I tried to maintain a conversational and fun tone that makes the target think we are both benefiting. When designing a Canva post I tried to make it fun and intriguing. I used some dark humor and a picture I took while bouldering that would catch the eye.
I found the assignment challenging because it was hard not to be repetitive after five posts and to find relative, active hashtags.
I was surprised by the wide variety of things I could do on Canva and I look forward to using it on my own accounts.
I plan to go into PR so I see myself running brand awareness campaigns on Instagram as well as using it to promote my own blog as a side hustle.
Laramie, Wyo. is home to the University of Wyoming and thousands of hungry college students. With so many college students looking for food there is a large variety of restaraunts to choose from. Being Wyo. there is also a very large amount of burger restraunts. So large in fact, that I thought it could be useful to post my personal top five ranking and map of the best burger joints in Laramie, Wyo.
I have put together this ranking by considering several factors such as taste, style of the restaurant, seating and accessibility as well as the opinion of my fellow foodie and wife Katie Brown. At the end of each option my wife will voice her opinion. The restaraunts will be ranked from best to worst and include a bonus vegetarian option. The bonus option will not be ranked as the criteria is different than your classic grilled meat burger.
1. Crow Bar https://www.thecrowbarandgrill.com/ The Crow Bar is a local bar and hamburger restaraunt with some truly delicious hamburgers and a stylish industrial interior. The Crow Bar has a stripped down menu which is good because they want to show you that they don’t need a large or fancy menu to get your attention or admiration. What they do they do well, including the King Bird a burger with peanut butter, bananas and bacon on top that’s surprisingly delicious. A waitress has even told me that it is requested by some regulars with chocolate sauce (they swear it’s better than it sounds by a mile).
Katies Verdict: “I really like this one if I want a really good hamburger it’s a great place to go.”
2. Library https://thelibrarybrewery.com/ The Library is a local brewery that was originally opened in 1994 and has continued to serve Laramie, Wyo. for nearly thirty years. If that’s not enough they’re grilled cheese burger was once voted one of the best burgers in the U.S. according to their menu. If you want to grab a burger at a place that is locally beloved and has been open for 30 years the Library is a great choice to get a feel for the culture of Laramie.
Katies Verdict: “I love the Library for a date night, its affordable but still nice and they make an excellent burger with some healthy and unhealthy options.”
3. Roxies https://www.roxiesongrand.com/ Roxies is also a Laramie staple that is located on Grand Ave. at the start of the historic downtown. Roxies offers a wide variety of menu options for dessert and entrees and a fantastic classic burger. Roxies has an attached bar and sleek, paired down interior.
Katies Verdict: “I’ve never been to Roxies but hear that it is really yummy and want to go sometime soon.”
4. Lovejoy’s http://www.elmerlovejoys.com/ Lovejoy’s is the one location on the list that is primarily a bar. They like Roxies aren’t primarily a burger joint but offer a mean classic burger. The main reason Lovejoy’s makes the list is their polished old style bar feel and location right by Laramie’s historic train tracks and walking bridge.
Katie’s verdict: “When I was on the swim team my coach insisted on eating here for state. It’s a good place to gather as a group and have a good simple hamburger.”
5. Born in a Barn https://www.borninabarn307.com/ Born in a Barn is last on the list not because quality of style or quality of food but because they serve the largest and heartiest helpings on the list. Born in a Barn isn’t for those who want a a small simple burger but they are superb and unique. Also in front of the walking bridge over Laramie’s historic railroad Born in a Born is rustic choice for those who want a large helping and unique burger.
Katies verdict: “I really love Born in a Barn I haven’t tried their burgers but my husband and his family say they are really good. The wings are fantastic and the outside seating is really beautiful in the summer.”
Bonus vegetarian option: Sweet Melissa’s https://www.sweetmelissacafe.com/ Sweet Melissa’s is a delicious vegetarian option even for those who have often preferred meat. As an avid carnivore I was skeptical of a vegetarian restraunt but Sweet Melissa’s offers a superb vegetarian version of everything you could think of including burgers at an affordable price point. With it’s boutique style an location facing the rail road Sweet Melissa’s is a great place to go for a beautiful dining experience and creative meatless alternative.
Katies verdict: “This is my absolute favorite, meat doesn’t always make me feel too good so its cool to sit down and have a burger that tastes really and makes me feel good too.”
For a great, affordable burger in Laramie, Wyo. look no farther than the six items on this list. Rated based on taste, price point, style and location these burger joints will certainly satisfy your cravings. If meat isn’t your thing Sweet Melissa’s is on the list as a bonus option and fantastic vegetarian alternative.
For my latest assignment I was given the task of live tweeting a newsworthy event. The assignment required that the event be live, over 30 minutes long and that I must tweet 10 times. I chose to live tweet the first 2 hours One World Together at Home event. The event was curated by Lady Gaga and featured appearances and performances from over 70 celebrities around the world all from their homes the event was eight hours long and started at 12:00 p.m. MT time. The link to my tweets are here for you to view: https://twitter.com/Braden05219407
For this assignment I went with a journalistic approach. I choose a journalistic approach because all though it was virtual it was the largest gathering of celebrities for one cause in history. I felt that because of the newsworthy aspects and international significance a journalistic approach was warranted.
I enjoyed watching the event and being part of history but i was not a fan of the live tweeting. I found that it was a stressful and hard to choose between what to tweet and not tweet. I also felt very limited by the character limit. One thing I did enjoy about the live tweeting event was the opportunity to learn how to better work Twitter because I feel that its a very influential and important platform in the communication world.
I learned several things while working on this assignment. I learned that Twitter is a fast and effective way to publish news as it happens. I also learned that Twitter is an ineffective way to write detailed news.
In my future career I see myself using social media for PR campaigns as well as news stories and self promotion.
Katie (Brown) Schiller, sits in the lobby of the Enzi STEM building preparing to talk about her degree path as a kinesiology major.
Hi guys! One of the latest assignments in class was to complete an audio interview that was five minutes long and then edit down to two minutes. I decided to interview my wife about her career path, I felt people would find this interesting because she has taken a very long winding road to becoming a kinesiology and health science major. This involved many bachelor and associates degree switches and two semi-consecutive semesters out of college. I thought that her advice and story may be interesting to college students struggling with their major.
Edited audio
Unedited audio
A concern for a lot of people is to either have to record someone or to be recorded. For me the act of interviewing as well as using the recording was not awkward for me. One reason is that I spend most of my day with the person whom I interviewed. The second reason is that I have had experience conducting interviews and keeping notes via recording during my time at the Branding Iron. Because of this the interviewing experience for me was nostalgic and I enjoyed getting back into it.
Going into this assignment I had zero audio editing experience. As a whole I enjoyed the process of audio editing. Things that I found particularly interesting and enjoyable was the ability to manipulate the flow of the recording as well as fix hiccups you may not have been able to fix on the spot. The one thing that I disliked about audio editing was the amount of time it took. To cut down over five minutes of audio took me nearly an hour and a half. Despite the benefits I see in knowing how to audio edit I think that the time constraint will always be a downside for me.
It was very easy and enjoyable to get the photo for the story. I got an excuse to go on a date with my wife and talk to her about the assignment. Afterward we took the photo and tried to include her personality and use the building as background.
The part of this assignment that was the most surprising to me is that I genuinely enjoyed cutting the audio. Before starting this project I thought that I would struggle to enjoy the process of audio editing but I found that I really liked the creative and technical control over the sound, pace and feel of the recording. Even more surprising is that I would be more than open to doing similar work again.
I wish that I would have had more time to polish the recording and my interviewing skills beforehand. After editing I found some obvious mistakes that went against the rubric that I had been moving too fast too catch.
I might use audio in the future to go along with PR campaigns, blog plug ins or online news content. I am primarily PR and print journalism focused but I love the idea of experimenting with integration.
The University of Wyoming is in Laramie, Wyoming which is also a prime location for outdoor activities. It sits at the foot of the Snowy Range Mountains and on the border of Colorado as well as being only fifteen minutes away from Veedauwoo, a famous bouldering and crack climbing site.
The university also started using the slogan “The World Needs More Cowboys” around two years ago. The two work together well to recruit new students.
The Outdoor Program at work
Garrett Genereux is one of the outdoor program coordinators for the University of Wyoming. He is responsible for helping to schedule outdoor programs for all skill and comfort levels and staffing the events.
The Half Acre building which houses the university gym, climbing wall and outdoor program.
“I work with Amanda Harper who is the other coordinator, we set policies procedures, risk management and we train the staff,” said Genereux.” “Harper works with the rental staff and I work with the climbing staff.”
Genereux and Harper also make the schedule, train their stuff and sometimes instruct in the field.
The Outdoor Program offers a lot both in its outdoor programs and in the rental center. The rental center offers a wide variety of equipment including bikes, fat bikes, bouldering equipment and skis.
There is also a workbench for bike and ski maintenance. All of this to say that the outdoor program is prepared for almost any experience craving a student from in or out of state may desire.
Getting a head start
One of the notable things that the outdoor program does for incoming students is offer outdoor activities during the Summer that are specifically for incoming first year students.
A university student starts a bouldering problem in the Half Acre climbing gym on Wednesday.
The programs help students to get to know each other and what Laramie and the Outdoor Program have to offer.
“A big thing we do in the Summer is offer programming to incoming first year students.So we do a batch of those in June and another set right before the semester starts in August,” said Genereux.
Genereux also stated that out of last year’s class of 650 freshmen around one hundred students attended at least one Summer programs offered to them.
Never stop selling
Genereux says that the increasing participation can also be attributed to the hard work of his partner Amanda Harper who handles the Outdoor Programs social media.
In regards to attendance and promotion Genereux mentioned proximity as an advantage that the university’s Outdoor Program has.
“We’re lucky here in Laramie I think, I would say at least eighty percent of our programming happens within an hour of Laramie,” said Genereux.
He added that there are some out of state trips to Colorado and Utah and a canoeing trip on the opposite side of the Snowy Range that take place more than an hour away.
There are sixty to eighty outdoor programs a semester.
The University of Wyoming has been using a campaign titled “The World Needs More Cowboys”. The slogan references the University’s mascot and local history. The slogan also can be helpful to get students into the outdoors.
Genereux could not speak to statistics regarding interest in the Outdoor Program before and after the campaign started but he did say that one program has had an increase in participation.
“One program specifically that we have had better numbers Fall and Spring in is our horsemanship program,” Genereux said.
Out of state students weigh in
The university of course plans its campaigning around the satisfaction of its students. Thomas is a sophomore from Hawaii. He says that the outdoor activities available locally were attractive when he looked for places to go to college.
Students walk along the edge of Prexi’s pasture, Thursday morning.
“Surely, to a small degree yes, Wyoming’s scenery and locales to ski, hike and so on are attractive,” Thomas said.
Thomas said that “The World Needs More Cowboys” campaign was not a factor in his decision to attend school in Laramie, Wyo.
Some students also appreciate the location of Laramie for their career instead of what they can do in their free time.
Junior Brayden Wirick is an anthropology major who moved to Laramie because it’s outdoor surroundings are a good location for him to study and possibly have a career.
Wirick is originally from Delta Junction, Alaska before attending college in Riverton, Wyoming and then in Laramie.
Wirick said that the Outdoor program and possible outdoor activities did not influence his move but that land laws did.
“…The location of Laramie played a role because of the anthropology opportunities.” Wirick said. “There is more Government owned land than private land like farther out west, so anthropology surveys have to be done before land is privatized which opens up more anthropology opportunities.”
Wirick did not have strong feeling about “The World Needs More Cowboys” slogan and did not think it played a factor in whether or not he attended the University.
“I like it, I’ve always liked Westerns. It obviously carries different meanings for different people, but for me it’s a good meaning,” said Wirick.
The marketing program could not be reached for comment on “The World Needs More Cowboys Campaign”.
Today I don’t have any original material so instead I’m gonna talk about my five favorite books like the nerd I am. A nerd with good tastes.
1. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is hands down one of the best books I’ve ever read. It’s a simple and short book that deals with complex themes and concepts such as love lost and the repetition of time. It’s also been made into a very stylish movie starring Leonardo Dicaprio.
2. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson is a very close second and the exact opposite of The Great Gatsby. It’s a cynical dark comedy that begins to follow Raol Duke and Dr. Gonzo “somewhere outside of Barstow when the drugs began to take hold.” It’s a very funny and semi nonfictional story of reporter getting a little to involved in the drug culture and as mentioned in the title Las Vegas.
3. Beartown written by Frederick Bachman is a book that takes place in a dying town whose only remaining activity is because of the local hockey club. When a scandal strikes the town’s team it’s war on everyone. This book is not literary master piece but it is a great, heart wrenching read and features one of my favorite characters in modern literature in Benji.
4. The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt by Edmund Morris is hard to beat when it comes to biographical novels. It’s over 500 pages long but it’s rich character development of one of the most eccentric Presidents in United States History helps you ignore the weight of the book. The book also is a great look at morals and what it really means to experience life.
5. There are so many books that could feel this slot, but for now I will have to go with My Absolute Darling by Gabriel Tallent. I read this book nearly two years ago but lately I keep thinking about the plot and imagery. This is not a book for anybody who tends to get queasy and I don’t plan on rereading it soon but if you can stomach it, it is a must read. The book focuses on Turtle a young teenager who lives in California with her physically, sexually, and emotionally abusive father who also happens to be an avid survivalist. One day, Turtle decides to run away with her years of survival experience learned from her father and hide in the Californian wilderness. This book is tragic, violent and ultimately a showcase of the human will.
Okay, this is the final week of the month long experiment where I tried to work like Teddy Roosevelt, so now it’s time for the verdict. The verdict is that it’s exhausting. I picked the shortest month not even on purpose and I had several days where I could not keep up the pace or the intense focus of the great bull moose himself. Based on what I know about Theodore Roosevelt though he became this efficient and determined through a lifetime of determination that was fueled by his obsession with being stronger than the body he was born into.
I have not had those same circumstances so I won’t call this experiment a complete failure. I think that it was very productive even if I couldn’t keep pace and for that reason I’m going to keep trying Teddy Roosevelt’s work method.
Today is Monday and it has been slammed. I had class and worked on school work all day and then had job training from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Of course I also go to the gym at 7:00 p.m. every Monday. But the purpose of this post is not to complain about my busy day, it’s to talk about how important it is to take time for yourself.
Whether it be going to the gym, taking a bath, getting your drink on or any number of other things it’s important to give yourself a scheduled time that’s about yourself.
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