tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13718898287026587952024-02-19T02:49:12.330-08:00Tech to the Higher DegreeUsing my experiences in college to look at technology. With some baking and music thrown in!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-26264987748331767742013-01-17T07:00:00.000-08:002013-01-17T07:09:45.780-08:00Let the Job Search Begin!<!--?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no"?-->
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Graduation keeps getting closer and closer (100 days and counting for me). As the end of April creeps toward me, the job search has begun. Job searches are time consuming and can be disastrous if not organized well. So when it came time to choose how I was going to organize mine, there was one obvious choice.</span><br />
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Now you can't read my blog or follow me on Twitter without realizing that I'm a huge fan of <a href="http://www.evernote.com/" target="_blank">Evernote</a> (and that's probably an understatement). So of course I am using this wonderful application to keep my job search organized. In this post I'm going to share my process, as well as some of the tips that I've picked up from my own Career Services Advisors at Pitt.
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Let's start with the basics. We all have a resume. In fact, we all probably have multiple variations of our resume. As I've started collecting resumes for different applications, I keep them all in Evernote, so I have them all no matter where I am. I also keep a copy in <a href="http://www.dropbox.com/" target="_blank">Dropbox</a> as well, just to be safe.
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A lot of the job listings that you find will be online. You might decide to apply for something, and get a call for an interview months later. By that time, the listing may or may not still be on the company's website. Advisors have told me to be sure to print out the description and keep it in paper form. But as we all know, there's a better way. Using the Evernote Web Clipper, I clip the description into my Job Search Notebook. I'll then tag the note with the company. As I start to prepare my application, I add each document to that note.
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Another recommendation made to me was to keep a spreadsheet with information pertaining to every application submitted. I am keeping all of this in Evernote as well. Here's a screenshot of my Job Application note. (For privacy, I've blurred out most of the information but I will explain it all)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdRSgsl4MIb0pKvNDpvv767ye8q-AlNjlOyzuO6Mqixy415xuPumOxxF0dgAjNGu22m7-eKu1YHmxIBNeQC9J9SzcngcujZNwjdV856sTiJRjuqFKjaW1EmGYr0sn6bkZt5XWaZS98etS0/s1600/Image+1-13-13+at+10.56+AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="95" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdRSgsl4MIb0pKvNDpvv767ye8q-AlNjlOyzuO6Mqixy415xuPumOxxF0dgAjNGu22m7-eKu1YHmxIBNeQC9J9SzcngcujZNwjdV856sTiJRjuqFKjaW1EmGYr0sn6bkZt5XWaZS98etS0/s320/Image+1-13-13+at+10.56+AM.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>1. Position:</b> Pretty self explanatory but this is where I put the official position title that I'm applying for.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>2. Company:</b> Also self explanatory.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>3. Link to Job Description:</b> When I clip the job description into my Evernote account, I create a note link. I then paste that link into my table, so I can quickly reference the right document from anywhere.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>4. Contact Person:</b> Rather than listing someone's name and email here, I prefer to simply make their name a link to their email. This way, all I have to do is click on their name and Mail launches, with an email already addressed to them.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>5. All Materials Submitted:</b> Here I use check boxes, signifying that I have done everything necessary for the application. This makes it easy to glance at my table and see which applications I still need to work on.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>6. Follow Up:</b> It is always recommended to follow up after submitting a job application, whether that be with a phone call, an email, or a thank you note after an interview. No matter what form you choose,it can be a lot to keep track of. Using check boxes again, I've created a simple way to know who I've followed up with, and who I still need to contact.</span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>7. Application Status:</b> This is where I'm keeping my own information on my application. Some examples of statuses I have are: Haven't Submitted, Submitted, Phone Interview, etc. Some companies have a way to check your status online. Others you will have to wait to be contacted. Either way, it's a good idea to pay attention to where you are in terms of each application.</span></blockquote>
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So whether you're looking for internships, grad schools, or jobs like me, the search can be a long and stressful process. Hopefully these tips will help you keep it all organized! And help me find that perfect job!
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.00390625);">Have any questions? Want to share how you're organizing your job search? Comment below or find me on Twitter @OtterMC!</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-39735538961306457132013-01-15T09:42:00.000-08:002013-01-15T09:44:19.068-08:00Looking For Some HelpHey everyone!<br />
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So this is a bit of a different kind of post for me. I do have another post scheduled for Thursday that I'm really excited about. So stay tuned for that!<br />
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But anyway, I need some help. You may or may not know this, but I am an English Writing major. As this is my final semester, I'm getting started on my Senior Writing piece. This is an essay of at least 40 pages of creative nonfiction, on pretty much anything that I want. I'll be working on this for the entire semester and this piece will make up basically all of my grade for the class.<br />
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So here's where you all come in. I am looking for people who love their job, people who have managed to turn something they love into their career, anyone who keeps doing what they're passionate about. If that sounds like you, I want to talk to you! Or if that sounds like someone you know, I want to talk to them too! I'm looking to conduct some <b>short </b>interviews, which can be done via email, phone call, Skype, Twitter, letter writing, carrier pigeon... Whatever sounds best to you.<br />
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So if you want to help me out, and I really hope you do, please comment below, email me (ottermc91@gmail.com), or send me a message on Twitter (@OtterMC). I'm really looking forward to hearing from all of you! Thanks!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-32446776459278072802013-01-08T05:46:00.000-08:002013-01-08T05:46:04.707-08:00Joining ScanSnapI've written a lot of posts about different technology that I love and use. One product I'm a particular fan of is my Fujitsu ScanSnap. To celebrate my love of scanner, I've joined the ScanSnap Squad. My first post for them can be found <a href="http://bit.ly/ZBZ8mZ" target="_blank">here</a>. Be sure to check it out! I'm excited to talk more about ScanSnap and how it can be best used for school.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-7266019840162631562013-01-03T08:00:00.000-08:002013-01-03T08:00:08.453-08:00My Evernote Structure<!--?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no"?-->
<span style="font-family: Arial;">I've gotten a lot of questions as to how I set up my notebooks and tags in Evernote for my school work. There are a lot of different ways to go about it, depending on what works best for you. I recently changed up my own structure to better reflect my current needs. I'll go through both setups to give multiple ideas.</span><br />
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I've come to use <a href="http://www.evernote.com/" target="_blank">Evernote</a> for a lot more than just my school work. I'm also using it to organize my job search, my recipes, my workouts, and more. So for different functions, I'll tag differently. This post is only about how I tag for school work.
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So as students, we have a lot of different things going on: classes, clubs, internships, etc. For most of my college career, I used a separate notebook for each class and club. All of these notebooks were collected into a notebook stack titled "College." I also had a "High School" stack. This system worked very well for me, making it easy to separate my notes into exactly what I needed to view at that moment.
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As I'm heading into my final semester of school, the amount of notebooks I had was getting a little out of hand for my liking. I wanted to streamline things, especially since I knew that I would soon be transitioning from college life to the working world, meaning I wouldn't be accessing my school notes nearly as often. Hence my restructuring.
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What I decided to do was rather simple. Instead of having separate notebooks for everything, each class, club, and internship got its own tag. By using the select all function in each notebook, I easily added this tag to every note at once. All of the notes were then moved into one "College" notebook. I did the same thing with my "High School" Stack. Now, instead of having two separate stacks, with well over 50 notebooks, I have one "School" stack with two notebooks.<br />
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Besides the tags for each class, I also add tags for the type of note. For example, when I'm taking notes in class, I'll tag the note with the name of the class, as well as "Class Notes." I have several other tags like this, such as "handout," "research," or "assignment."</div>
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So, by using this structure, if I had an exam in my literature class, I can view all the notes from that class tag. From there, I can search for a specific topic, or I can limit my view to just notes from that class with the tag "class notes" if that's what I'm using to study.
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Now I've also gotten some questions as to whether or not I tag based on the topic of my notes. I personally don't. Evernote has some pretty intense search capabilities so I have always been able to find what I needed with that. If I were doing a much larger project, such as a dissertation, I might choose to tag in this way then, however, for now, I've found my current tagging structure to be more than enough.
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Looking for some more ideas on tagging structures? Check out Allan Johnson's post <a href="http://thisisallan.com/2012/12/27/taggingconvetions/" target="_blank">here</a>. He's a fellow Evernote Ambassador!<br />
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How do you set up your tags for school? Comment below or let me know @OtterMC on Twitter! </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-68446388436073947252012-12-27T13:26:00.000-08:002012-12-28T17:05:09.635-08:00How I Survived Finals Week Without My Computer<!--?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no"?-->
<span style="font-family: Arial;">Technology is great… until it doesn't work, always at the worst possible time. For college students, this is especially true. We become dependent on our technology, doing most of our work on our personal computers and devices. So what happens when we can't use them? Unfortunately, during finals week of this past semester, with my computer out of commission, I found out.</span><br />
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I've talked to a lot of students who've dealt with computer problems during college. I've heard stories of losing papers the night before they're due, hard drives crashing in the middle of projects when they didn't have a backup, being forced to gather class notes from other people in the weeks before finals. Certainly doesn't help endear anyone to the idea of using technology in education.
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We are told again and again to backup everything and often. But how many of us do? I certainly don't nearly as often as I should. So when I had to hand over my laptop for repairs the weekend before finals, everyone expected me to panic (and trust me I did for a few minutes). I thought about typing and turning in papers, studying for exams, all of my projects saved to my hard drive.And then, after about five minutes, I relaxed. If only there was something that would back up all of my stuff, without having to think about it. Oh wait. There is!
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Everyone knows that I love <a href="http://evernote.com/" target="_blank">Evernote</a>. I have all of my notes and a lot more in my account. So even though I couldn't access my desktop client, I had everything on my phone, my iPad, and in the web client. The web client became my most helpful platform. At Pitt, we have a pretty great computer lab system: 8 labs with over 500 computers, running 3 different operating systems. Any student can log onto these computers. So whenever I needed to work on something in my Evernote account, I logged onto a computer, went to Evernote's website, and picked up from right where I left off.
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But what about editing files, formatting papers, working on presentations? While I could keep all of these in my Evernote account, it would take up a great deal of my monthly allowance. In comes Dropbox, another service that I'm a big fan of. For those of you who aren't familiar, <a href="https://www.dropbox.com/" target="_blank">Dropbox</a> is a cloud based service that syncs files, photos, etc. to your account, making them available across your computers, devices, and from the web. I have my Dropbox account set up to sync everything saved in my Documents folder on my computer, meaning that I can then log into my account from any web browser, and download whatever files I need.
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So no, maybe we don't run our backups as often as we should. But that doesn't mean that we have to be left in a jam when our computers decide to fail on us. Using a couple different services, we can easily have access to everything we need from anywhere.
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How do you keep your files and notes backed up? Leave me a comment or let me know @OtterMC on Twitter! </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-66918186266614861422012-11-26T16:19:00.000-08:002012-11-26T16:19:57.627-08:00My Top 5 Evernote 5 Features for Students<!--?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no"?-->
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px; font-family: Arial;">Pretty recently, Evernote updated both Evernote for Mac and Evernote for iOS. Safe to say, Evernote 5 is pretty awesome. Each app got a complete makeover and they both look great (plus I still can't get over the fact that I'm in the <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ5U8r81B-EoyNqYzniXFWDHp0Q1pf-XPhYu8D5Nzv7tlaloC0lCqBs-oI6djLBgl_wW_k_dTlo_o_s70q0PRgZzfavMosxKbsfdok02ioiV-Ta32lKfjnnn5wFmcwVS1CkxWsgQHPYbbE/s1600/IMG_0558.PNG" target="_blank">intro</a> of the iOS app). Evernote introduced a ton of new features into their apps and you can check them all out here (<a href="http://evernote.com/evernote/whats_new/mac/" target="_blank">Mac</a>) (<a href="http://evernote.com/evernote/whats_new/ios/" target="_blank">iOS</a>) but I wanted to look at 5 features that I think will be especially helpful to students.*</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">1. <b>Shortcuts:</b> There are certain notes/notebooks that I use all the time. My Homework Planner notebook comes to mind. With the Shortcuts feature in Evernote for Mac, you can add these notes and notebooks to your shortcuts on the upper left hand side, giving you access to your most important information quickly and easily from anywhere in the app. Right below your shortcuts is a list of your 5 most recent notes, which is also helpful for multitasking.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><b>Activity Feed/Shared Notebooks:</b> We all share information with someone. Whether we are using shared notebooks to work on a group project or just to make sure that someone else has access to important stuff, shared notebooks come in handy. It's great that now these notebooks are shown right with all of your private notebooks, both on your Mac and your iOS devices. Also, in Evernote 5 for Mac, Activity Feed is better than ever too, so you always know when someone has updated a notebook.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">3. </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><b>Notebook Stacks on iPad:</b> Pretty self explanatory, but you can now view Notebook Stacks on iPad, which makes staying organized on the go that much easier.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">4. </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><b>Improved Page Camera:</b> As students (or anyone really), just because we try to go paperless, doesn't mean that everyone else does. So sometimes we have to get our paper into our Evernote account. There are plenty of ways to do this: scanners, photos, etc. But Evernote has improved the Page Camera from within the iOS app. This is one of the easiest ways to get stuff into your account as quickly as possible.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;">5. </span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><b>TypeAhead Search:</b> Last but not least is TypeAhead Search. College students are often pressed for time. While it may not seem like a huge time saver, seeing ahead to what notes you have in your account can be really helpful. Sometimes we have so much information in our heads that we can't remember exactly what we named a particular note or what information was where. Now we can see ahead, helping us remember.</span></div>
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What are your favorite new Evernote features? Let me know @OtterMC!</div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*All of this is my personal opinion.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-8987062750014103972012-11-12T15:49:00.000-08:002012-11-12T15:49:32.451-08:00My Visit to Evernote Headquarters<!--?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no"?-->
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; border-spacing: 0px; font-family: Arial;">As I get closer and closer to graduation (166 days and counting), I've been thinking a lot about the things that have gotten me through the past few years. This past weekend, I had the opportunity to travel to Redwood City, CA, to visit Evernote Headquarters. As the Student Ambassador, <a href="http://www.evernote.com/">Evernote</a> is something that I definitely cannot picture my college experience without, which made my visit that much more exciting.</span><br />
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While I was sitting in the airport waiting for my connecting flight, I heard that <a href="http://blog.evernote.com/2012/11/08/the-new-evernote-5-for-iphone-ipad-and-ipod-touch/">Evernote 5 for iOS</a> had gone live. Talk about perfect timing! I had just enough time to download the update onto my iPhone before I had to board the flight. Needless to say, I spent a good portion of the flight playing with the app rather than doing all the studying I promised myself I was going to do. If you haven't checked out the new app yet, do it now. And be sure to log out of your account once you've downloaded it. Then you'll get to see some User Stories, featuring five of the Ambassadors including myself!</div>
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After finally making it to Redwood City, I had the chance to meet up with my fellow ambassadors at <a href="http://www.martinswestgp.com/">Martin's West</a> for some great food. It was so good to see everyone again and meet some new people as well!</div>
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Friday morning kicked off early with a workout at Evernote HQ with the Fitness Ambassador, Chad Williams (<a href="https://twitter.com/AnthroPhysique">@AnthroPhysique</a>). It was a great workout. Afterwards, we had a little time to explore before everyone else arrived.</div>
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Eventually the rest of the Ambassadors joined us for breakfast, which was accompanied by this awesome gift box.</div>
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Even before I opened it, I knew that it was going to be filled with complete awesomeness. I was right.</div>
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Lots of goodies from San Francisco, another Evernote Ambassador T-Shirt, some gift certificates from partners, and yes, a LiveScribe Sky Smartpen! Literally five minutes before opening this up I had been talking about how much I wanted to try this pen out. I can't wait to use it in my classes and meetings. Look out for a post on how it works soon.</div>
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In addition to all of that, I now have a smaller Moleskine notebook to keep my larger one company. I'll be writing up a post about using these for school as well.</div>
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The rest of the day was packed with sessions from pretty much every department imaginable from Evernote. We got to meet with product managers, developers, PR, plus the great people that we email and collaborate with all the time through the program. Oh yeah, and CEO, <a href="https://twitter.com/plibin" target="_blank">Phil Libin</a>. Everyone was incredible and made us all feel like celebrities (that may have also had something to do with the cameras following us around all day as if we were on a reality show).</div>
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At the end of the day, we got to gather with all of the Evernote employees for drinks and… A S'MORES BAR. Anyone who knows me knows just how much I love s'mores. As if Evernote HQ had not already become my favorite place ever, this completely secured it in the top spot.</div>
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Overall, this trip was amazing. I can't wait to go back and see everyone again. If you aren't using <a href="http://www.evernote.com/">Evernote</a>, check it out. Feel free to ask me any questions that you have! Also, check out some of my fellow Ambassadors' posts about our visit:</div>
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<a href="http://www.brandiekajino.com/evernote-ambassadors-visit-the-mothership/">Brandie Kajino</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.jamierubin.net/2012/11/12/my-visit-to-evernote-headquarters/">Jamie Todd Rubin</a></div>
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<a href="http://www.thenerdyteacher.com/2012/11/i-could-start-school-in-evernotes.html">Nicholas Provenzano</a></div>
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You can find all of the ambassadors <a href="http://evernote.com/community/#/ambassador15">here</a>.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-81270834874383098582012-06-04T18:53:00.006-07:002012-06-05T12:39:10.577-07:00Covering Up<br />
Every season on a singing competition reality show, someone performs a recent hit. The judges or coaches always say something similar: that it was just too big of a hit recently to be redone so fast. Apparently David Nail, who recently released a video of the Adele staple "Someone Like You," never heard them say that. And thank goodness he didn't.<br />
He proves with this performance that sometimes even the tiniest inflection can make or break a song. Even though "Someone Like You" is already an international hit, Nail's small twists make it an entirely new interpretation, rather than just one of the thousands of covers out there. He hits the higher notes fearlessly, without losing any of the passion of the lyrics. The video is simple and elegant, adding to the intensity of the feeling. Shot in black and white, candlelight casts shadows on his face and the keys of the piano, the only instrument used.<br />
With a string of country Adele covers coming out lately, Nail's manages to stay true to the original interpretation while still putting his own spin on it. An out of the ordinary song choice, "Someone Like You" showcases his range, both vocally and stylistically. As we wait for more new music from David Nail, we definitely now know that there is no limit to what this performer can do.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-38338354036159522952012-06-04T18:24:00.001-07:002012-06-04T18:27:24.788-07:00Cruisin' into Summer<br />
It's that time of year again. Time for all of the singles to come out claiming to be the "Song of the Summer." In the endless parade that is the summer anthem song list, "Cruise" by duo Florida George Line is one of those summer songs that should do very well, and already is.<br />
Combining country with a rock edge, FGL's vocals give the expressive lyrics of this song a unique sound that brings a breath of fresh air just in time for summer. The harmonies keep the melody from getting repetitive, giving it an added punch when the chorus comes around, without overcomplicating the tune. This will easily become a concert staple, with the singers holding their mics out to the crowd, who will be singing along with arms waving back and forth in the air.<br />
"Cruise" paints the picture of summer love, the desire to just drive down some back roads, and being care free. All the things that we all want from our summer. But more than just the well written narrative, this song is catchy and completely relatable. Because let's face it: who doesn't love to roll the windows down and cruise?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-18345303151680628182012-05-07T18:26:00.001-07:002012-06-01T19:13:39.998-07:00Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I just recently moved into a new apartment and haven't really had time to completely adjust to the kitchen just yet (gas stoves are scary). So, to give myself a chance to get used to everything, I decided to make a super easy no-bake treat: Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles! Not exactly easy to say, not exactly easy to stop eating, but so easy to make. To all you dorm room dwellers who hate not having a kitchen as much as I did, all you need to make these is a fridge!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Now let me start by telling you that I normally don't eat the things that I bake. For whatever reason, after my treats are done, I'll have a little sample, just to make sure they taste good. And then I'm done. I have no interest in them. When I made these truffles, I took my test bite, and had to suppress the urge to shove every single one of them into my mouth one after another. That's how good they are! Rather than give myself a serious set of chipmunk cheeks, I hid them away, to wait for a roommate or visitor to arrive.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But… maybe I'll have another while I write this post. Just to refresh my memory ;)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">So, first off, crush up your pretzels. The recipe that I used called for 1 1/2 cups of crushed pretzels. When I make them again, I will probably cut that down a little bit, but that is personal preference as to how crunchy you want your truffles. To crush them, you can use a food processor, or put them in a Ziploc bag like I did. A rolling pin would work better, but I used what I had.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Next, is the peanut butter mixture. I used my favorite peanut butter from Peanut Butter & Co. They have tons of flavors of all natural peanut butter AND a sandwich shop in New York City, with all kinds of crazy sandwiches like the Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Peanut Butter Sandwich. Ah, someday…</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">Check out Peanut Butter & Co. at <a href="http://www.ilovepeanutbutter.com/">http://www.ilovepeanutbutter.com/</a></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">To make the peanut butter mixture, you're going to cream together the peanut butter, butter, brown sugar, pretzels, powdered sugar, and just a little bit of salt.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Then it's time to get your hands dirty! Roll the dough into balls, whatever size you want your truffles. I made mine a little bigger than 2 teaspoons each. I only ended up with 13 truffles, but this recipe would be easy to double.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Throw them in the fridge to chill. For the chocolate coating, microwave chocolate chips and shortening together. Roll the peanut butter balls around in the mixture (a fork will come in handy to roll them), and put them back in the fridge to chill some more. Finally, if you want, melt some peanut butter add some drizzle! Don't forget to crush some more pretzels over them!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDEAjIIx5Y9njKbUCZ5eunyurV9up-8bFAoGPguNaPqq2y4UxrC_AtCzQ1wcYaFO_HrXJ3Cq-9i3Cfa5KwZ69GD9YZLMsSf_DUjaHvsSJhkOPV3zrI9Sx5ykBHGV3uYk5dpDSleXT3vog/s1600/DSC01071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoDEAjIIx5Y9njKbUCZ5eunyurV9up-8bFAoGPguNaPqq2y4UxrC_AtCzQ1wcYaFO_HrXJ3Cq-9i3Cfa5KwZ69GD9YZLMsSf_DUjaHvsSJhkOPV3zrI9Sx5ykBHGV3uYk5dpDSleXT3vog/s320/DSC01071.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b style="background-color: #fff2cc;">Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles</b></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">(Recipe adapted from <a href="http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/12/chubby-hubby-buckeye-peanut-butter.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Six Sisters' Stuff</a>)</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ingredients:</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 1/2 cups pretzel pieces</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1/2 cup peanut butter</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 tablespoon unsalted butter brought to room temperature</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">2 tablespoons light brown sugar</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Pinch of salt</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">3 tablespoons powdered sugar</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 cup semisweet chocolate chips</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 tablespoon vegetable shortening</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Crush pretzels into very small pieces.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Combine peanut butter, brown sugar, butter, and salt in a small bowl. Make sure that the ingredients are completely blended, to a smooth consistency.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Mix in the pretzel pieces.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Add powdered sugar. Combine completely.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Put a sheet of wax paper down on a baking sheet. Make balls, about 2 teaspoons in size, and place on sheet. Repeat with the entire mixture.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Place the baking sheet in the fridge for 30 minutes.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Once they have chilled, microwave the chocolate chips and shortening together for 30 seconds. Stir. Continue microwaving in 30 second increments until both are completely melted, combined, and smooth.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Roll each peanut butter ball in the chocolate mixture. Make sure the entire ball is coated in chocolate. Let the extra chocolate drip off before placing back on the wax paper. Repeat with each peanut butter ball.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Place the dipped truffles back in the fridge for 30 minutes.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">When chilled, add a peanut butter drizzle and crushed pretzel garnish, if desired.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: #fff2cc; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Keep in the fridge in an airtight container.</span></li>
</ul>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-67698438219822478342012-05-07T15:13:00.003-07:002012-05-07T15:14:30.865-07:00Makeover!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So as you can see, my blog has gone through a complete makeover! I want to make my posts more regular, as they obviously haven't been in the past. I'll still be posting music reviews too though! Music is a major passion in my life, but unfortunately, it sometimes takes more time (and money) than I have to bring you an insightful review. So, I am excited to welcome you to the new phase of my blogging: cooking! Or mainly, baking. Baking is another one of my passions and, as I am finally done living in dorms without a kitchen, I am completely able to bring you delectable delights and help you enjoy them yourself! Thanks for reading and look out for my next posts!</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-8138973747382962242012-02-11T20:05:00.000-08:002012-05-09T08:47:28.627-07:00One Dream, One Connection<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">As you're driving down the road, a song comes on the radio. That one song that, when you hear it, memories wash over you as quickly as water rushing through a river after a heavy rain. You can't help but smile as you're transported to another time, another place. The title track from David Nail's sophomore album</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><i>, The Sound of A Million Dreams</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;">, explores the artist's point of view in creating those songs.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Dreams," written by Scooter Carusoe and Phil Vassar, definitely draws on Vassar's piano skills. Throughout the entire song, the piano remains the solo instrument. The piano evens makes it's way into the lyrics, when Nail sings, "out of these piano keys, comes the sound of a million dreams." That same lyric opens up an immense ideal: that one song could connect a million dreams, a million people, a million souls.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You won't find a country twang in Nail's voice, but that in itself, sets him apart from other male country singers today. His voice brings soul to each song that he sings, "Dreams" included. He has a unique sound that really could give him a lot of cross-genre appeal.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">David Nail has finally been starting to get the traction in the music world that he has deserved for a while now, with his first #1 "Let It Rain" (featuring Sarah Buxton) and his Grammy Nomination for "Turning Home." "The Sound of A Million Dreams" should get the same high praises. David's fans can only hope that other listeners connect their own dreams and memories to the song that could connect us all.</span></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-75276526194652140892011-12-28T18:59:00.000-08:002012-05-09T08:47:49.410-07:00Leave What's Safe, Take the New Sound<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Taylor Swift is repetitive. On all three of her very popular albums, she basically sang the same couple songs over and over, with meanings, melodies, and even the tone of her voice, telling the same story with a slightly different presentation. While millions of fans remain on the bandwagon for her relatability, others continually jump off in search of something more meaningful and new. Well, rejoice past Swift fans, for the single that will bring you back into a loving embrace with the blonde beauty has arrived.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"Safe and Sound" leads off the soundtrack from <i>The Hunger Games</i>, the highly anticipated movie, based on the book by Suzanne Collins. Singer-songwriter duo, The Civil Wars, lend their words and vocals to the song, as well as their very unique folk sound. The track starts out with an almost eerie guitar plucking; Swift comes in with her vocals, recalling tears running down someone's face. Rather than her normal belting, she softens her voice, adding to the beauty of this song. Themes of struggle give a dark vibe, but the overlying theme definitely develops into one of the promise of protection. The latter makes the single relatable, without taking things too far.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Swift definitely takes the lead vocal position, but The Civil Wars add haunting harmonies that their fans have come to expect. The combination of their harmonies with Swift's vocals gives "Safe" a sound that has never been heard from Swift before. We can only hope that she continues her musical evolution, leading to more singles like this. Otherwise, we will once again find ourselves dancing to the same song for hours, banging our heads against the wall hoping that the DJ puts on something new.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1371889828702658795.post-80357459901099811662011-12-28T15:03:00.000-08:002012-05-09T08:48:05.906-07:00Tractors Are Cool<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 27px;">Imagine for a moment: standing deep within the woods at a log cabin. You inhale and smell the familiar scent of trees with the sound of a creek running behind you. Family and friends surround you. Your significant other tells your son to stop harassing his siblings, and your grandfather sits on the porch in his rocking chair with you by his side, telling you the secret of life. Imagine that and you can imagine the themes of Take a Back Road, Rodney Atkins’ newest album. To some that will sound like a stereotypical country album, but for country lovers, this record will add some new songs to the Favorites playlist.<br /><br />“Take a Back Road,” the title track from Atkins’ fourth studio album, hit #1 upon release, making it his sixth #1 single but this album has a different feel to it than his previous ones and shows some artistic growth. Rather than relying on mostly fun-loving country anthems, Atkins focuses more on intimate love songs.<br /><br />“Feet” tells the story of a typical couple, going through the usual fights. Someone always says not to go to bed angry, but what couple actually follows that advice? In the chorus, Atkins sings, “We’ll go to bed, butting heads and tugging sheets, but we never fall asleep without touching feet.” This song explores the small allowances each person makes in the moments before falling asleep, just to let the other know that they won’t leave. The soft guitar instrumentation allows Atkins’ vocals to take precedent and vocal harmonies come in during the refrain to give the song a fuller sound.<br /><br />“The Corner” starts out with only percussion and Atkins speaking. An electric guitar comes in once he starts singing, highlighting impressive skills on guitar as well as his vocals. “The Corner” records a continuous string of conversations between a father and son with the kind of advice we have all heard: don’t drive too fast, think before you speak, call your mother while you still can. As Atkins sings “I’ve been around the block enough to know what’s ‘round the corner,” he leaves you believing what he says and wanting to follow his guidance.<br /><br />Something about a harmonica just gives country songs that much more character. In “Family,” the third track on Take a Back Road, a harmonica gives the song a homey feel. Most people understand the slight dread of going to a family reunion, when you realize that you have to see those crazy family members that you only see every three years or so. This is what “Family” is about. You can’t choose your family, but most people would never change a thing about them, no matter how crazy they may be. Atkins sings this song with a sincerity that anyone can relate to when thinking about their own relatives. Interestingly enough, Atkins was adopted into his family.<br /><br />“Take a Back Road” becomes the country anthem that fans have grown to expect from Atkins. On past albums, this song would have been one of at least three, but on this record, it stands alone. Anyone who grew up in a small town understands. Sitting in your car, stuck in traffic in the city, can make anyone angry. So instead of dealing with the interstate system, Atkins decides that he needs “a curvin’, windin’, twistin’ dusty path to nowhere.” While a lot of people will agree that they would love to escape the hustle and bustle of the city for a while, only the hardcore country kids will agree that “if I’m gonna hit a traffic jam, well, it better be a tractor, man.”</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 27px;">Not a lot of artists these days have a company claiming to be “the official tractor of (insert artist’s name here.)” Rodney Atkins does. Inside the cover of his album, you find an insert from Massey Ferguson, the official tractor of Rodney Atkins, proving that he will always be a country boy at heart. Which just happens to be exactly why his fans love him.</span></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07592011539055689247noreply@blogger.com0