Group N: Interview with Tara

I just had the absolute pleasure of interviewing fellow bulldog member, Tara Hammerschmidt. Might I say, she’s quite the young lady. She told me her name is Tara and her mom gave her the right. This response was very dry and I have to say it did make me chuckle quite a bit. She told me her favorite band was anything but Larrabee. After that cruel remark I assumed she must like the differently pronounced and spelled band, Larrabe. On the average Friday night she finds herself going to McDonalds for dinner, going home to talk to herself, doing girl things with her friend Cindy, making popcorn and then watching a girly movie before bed. I asked her for a few keywords about herself, she responded with the following: outgoing, motivated, intelligent and positive. When asked manual or automatic transmission she quickly responded with automatic. This actually surprised me, especially since she earlier told me that her dream car was a Chevrolet Corvette. She couldn’t mean driving an automatic corvette could she? I don’t think so! Anyways, her favorite food is Mexican, presumably Mighty Taco. When asked if she enjoyed this interview, she responded with,  “No cuz I had to talk to you.” She did though mention that she considers herself to be a “mac” and that is very well. The interview in my mind went well. I got her to talk about a few tough issues, many of which she denied to comment on or made me promise not to put it in my article. That’s all she spoke!

N3: Spring

Bone-chilling rain, muddy lawns, and overcast skies. How a person could enjoy the time of year which conditions like this are the norm perplexes me. A reason why I dislike it so much is that it's a period of transition in weather patterns. I think I've already brought this up, my ideal weather pattern. Nine months of summer, three weeks of fall, one of spring and a month of winter. That to me is ideal. I'm actually happy that I've grown up with Buffalo weather. I've found the positives in all weather conditions. People who live here get to experience it all. Throughout the year Buffalonians experience beautiful clear days, adrenaline-jolting thunderstorms and blizzards, cool fall days and blistering hot summer afternoons. Experiencing weather like this for the past seventeen years has had an effect on me. I love a good storm, but I also enjoy a nice summer day. I love the snow in the winter, but I don't like it when winter lasts for five months. Springtime has its positive times and features but for the most part I don't like it. One of the few good things about it is that it gives us hope for the summer season around the corner. Sadly, this is only a tease. Last week we had beautiful weather, sunny days, highs in the seventies lows in the sixties. If the trees had leaves we would of thought it was summer. This week it's back to the forties, overcast, and rain. It's miserable outside. This right here is why I don't enjoy spring. As Buffalonians, we've got to take what we can get.

Group N Blog: Employment

I currently work at Delta Sonic. As far as I've seen and from what I know, it's probably one of the best places to work in Western, NY as a teenager. The company has a great model, it's professional, most of the managers are great, the workers are friendly, and honestly, I have more friends there than I do at school. The companies success begins with it's hiring process. To be considered you need to have a referral from someone in the company. Next you must pass a drug test and an interview. If you pass those steps successfully you'll sit through an eight hour orientation class, and then train for two more days before you can be let off on your own. So not just anyone can get a job there. We also have secret shoppers who come through daily and make sure that we're not getting lazy or rude and that we're following procedures correctly. This keeps the hardworking, logical, friendly employees in and the undesirables out. The services and products we offer are great, and the work environment there is fast paced, friendly and exciting. I love my job. <br>


In the fall of 2012 I will be moving to Chicago, IL to study Television at Columbia College Chicago. Luckily for me, Delta Sonic has nine locations there, one of which I'll be transferring to. I'll see how it is there, if it's not as great as it is here I'll try and get a job at the Apple Store, which is only a few blocks from my apartment there. I'd love to work at the Apple Store just as much as I would at Delta Sonic. At Apple, I'd drive less, possibly make more, and get to stay downtown which sounds better than driving out to the suburbs everyday. I love the business model and culture that Apple has built and I'd be honored to represent their company. <br>


Towards the end of college I'll have a better idea of where I'll want to work. I know that I want to produce television shows. I'd love to work for the Discovery Channel, NBC, or the BBC. They all feature great shows that I'd love to be a part of. I don't know what company I'll end up working for, maybe I'll even end up self employed. In this time of economic uncertainty and job-loss I'll never have to worry. I''m not saying that I'll never lose a job. That can happen to anyone. I'm not worried because I'll always keep my options open and in the right environment, I'll always be a hard working, logical, friendly employee.

Group M Blogs 2 Distracted Driving

I have an excellent proposition for all of you! Instead of cruising around in your mom's Pontiac Grand Am trying to find the next Little Wayne tune on your iPod Shuffle, think about what's ahead of you, what's happening around you. Instead of trying to run over the baloon that has just blown into the street watch for the child who could be chasing after it. Turn the stereo down and listen to your vehicle. Listen to what's going on around you. See what's ahead of you, and what's ahead of that. It's all quite simple. One of the things my father told me while I was learning how to drive is that you always need to read the road and what's happening ahead. If you see vehicles with their taillights on ahead see what is causing them to do so take action. I like to make a playlist of songs before I leave so I can just plug in my phone keep it on shuffle and enjoy without going through lists trying to find the song I want. If you're riding with a passenger have them text for you, have them change the song. Personally I think by doing this it can decrease your accident chances largely. One of the reasons I purchased a manual-shift car is that I enjoy driving. The main reasons people text, read books, put on make up, eat breakfast and do whatever else they want in their cars is because they hate driving. They feel as if it's just another thing sucking time out of their day. They are too busy to read the road, to see what's happening around them. These are the folks who cause accidents which honestly could of had been avoided. I'm talking about them in this very sarcastic and upset  manner because their ignorance is costing lives and opportunities. When you're driving and texting and you feel a sick sensation in your gut it's your conscious letting you know how unsafe and dangerous it is. To the drivers who don't text and drive, who keep there hands on the wheel I apploud you, but let me offer this piece of advise to you; no matter if you're right or wrong on the road be defensive, not offensive. There are a lot of dead people who have had the right-away.

Group L Blog One

This year like others I spent my Super Bowl Sunday with my family. What was different this year was that I had to work until six, but that's not too bad. Like most years we watch the game at my house, sometimes family and friends come over but this year it was just my mother, father, sister and I. Everyone already was tied up doing something else and we felt we'd have just as much fun watching it ourselves. It was a nice evening, just as entertaining as years before as well. We enjoyed the clever and humorous commercials as always. Although the half-time show wasn't as impressive as other recent acts such as The Rolling Stones or even Prince. I enjoyed coming home from work after an eight hour shift to find a bunch of food and drinks which my mom had prepared. It was a nice evening together with the family and I'm looking forward to next years Super Bowl. It doesn't matter who's playing or who you're with, the Super Bowl is one of the largest television events every year in the United States and watching it connects you with the nation.