Final Project

Video Project 2

Kingdom Trails: Hidden treasure

           

“Welcome to Kingdom Trails in Northeast Vermont, a multiple-use trail system unlike any other and recently voted as the best mountain bike trail network in North America by Bike Magazine in their annual Reader's Poll,” reads the home screen from kingdomtrails.com.

            Kingdom Trails Association was founded in 1994 by local residents and businesspeople with a goal to encourage recreational use of the Northeast Kingdom that is ecologically sensitive and promotes the natural beauty of the region.

The Kingdom Trails network is headquartered out of East Burke, Vt. next to the Pub Outback restaurant. The main shop is small but don’t let that fool you; with the help of 55 cooperating landowners, Kingdom Trails has grown to the largest mountain biking trail network in the area.

Kingdom Trails offers an array of mountain bike trails in the green seasons and Nordic skiing in the winter months. The Northeast Kingdom is perfect for this sort of adventure because mountains and rivers offer all sorts of terrain. Not only is the community involved, but they have visitors from all around the world with great testimonials of the network.

Hailey B. from Boston, Mass. said, “The best mountain biking in the U.S.!” Matt C. from Manchester, Vt. said the trails were worth the investment. “It’s pay to play but well worth the cost because they employ locals and keep the economy rolling all winter.”

Not only does the Kingdom Trails offer biking, but often times area athletic teams and cross-country teams come up to the trails for advanced training by running the trails for conditioning, and cooling off after in the swimming holes in the Passumpsic River.

Kingdom Trails also has connection to the college, as Tim Tierney, the Executive Director of the trails, coaches the men’s lacrosse team at the school. Tierney was also a member of his town’s school board and was a former high school soccer coach. Kingdom Trails and their employees have strong ties to the Kingdom and have always been there to serve its members.

Kingdom Trails does not just exist as the best mountain bike trail network in North America, it exists as a driver to the community and its economy, and helps ordinary people to better connect themselves to the beautiful nature that surrounds them. 

Final Project

Kingdom Trails and Mountain Biking: We can take some still-shots of Burke Mountain and the biking trails that they offer, and then take some video of bikers going through the trails, going off the jumps, and whatever else they might be doing. The idea for the project is how to correctly bike and where to bike.


Jessie, Patrick and Kristin will be working on the video and pictures.  Patrick will work on the editing.

Video 2 Synopsis

For the second video project, our group is going to the Lyndon Dog Pound to talk to Cindy Cady, the Lyndon Animal Control officer. We will talk to her to see what her job is like, how many animals she is dealing with, and how the adoption process works, along with other topics. 


Kristin and Jesse will take the camera to interview Cindy 
Patrick will edit the video and write the paper

New Video Synopsis for Video 1

Group 4 has decided to do a video on Black Bears. Vermont State has had a rising issue with Black Bear population. Bears have been traveling closer to non rural areas in search of food. We will video tape black bears hanging out in the back yard Kristen’s family friend. Bears have been coming to this house for a few years now eating out of the bird feeder. The story will tell about a recent bear attack and what one can do to take caution. It will also address the rising issue of black bears in the state of Vermont.

We will be using natural sound from the bear rummaging through the yard.  There will also be an interview going as the video plays. The video will mostly be natural sound. Some music will play at the beginning and the end of the video. There will be a short introduction with a picture and music.

Kristin will shoot the video and do the interview

Patrick will edit the sound and the video

Jessie will write the story

Video Project 1

Vermont has several laws to protect wildlife. Over the years, black bears have been a rising issue.

Though black bears are known as carnivores, they are true omnivores. Their food sources include plants, small animals, seeds and insects. When spring time comes around, food is scarce. The bears often travel closer to resident’s homes in search of plants and seeds.

 There have been several cases of black bear attacks in the state of Vermont. The bears get into bird feeders and gardens of homes around the state. There have also been several cases where home owners spot the bears and feed them. The bears may seem harmless at first but they can get quite aggressive.

On May 30^th, 2011, a woman was attacked in Cabot, Vermont.  Jessica Miller claims she was trying to shoo two cubs off of her back porch when her cat ran outside. She immediately grabbed her cat which resulted in the cat letting out a dreadful cry. When the mother bear heard the cat’s cry, she reacted as if one of her cubs were in trouble. The bear attacked Miller leaving her with claw and bite marks on her leg. Miller had apparently been feeding the bears for a few years. She was previously warned by the states game warden not to feed the bears. She claims she had not been feeding the bears that year and it was simply a mishap.

Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife officials says that bears have been poking their noses closer to non rural areas in search for food. Officials claim that the bears usually will not attack unless provoked. They strongly advise that residents take caution to the bears.

Bird feeders should only be used during the winter seasons and garbage cans should be put in a location where the bears cannot get into them. If one see a bear or come in contact with it one should keep their distance and holler at the bear until it leaves. Stay indoors until you are positive that the bear has left the premises. 

It is also advised that all pets and animals are kept inside because bears will eat just about anything that crosses their paths.  Pet food and grills will also attract these bears. The black bear usually will travel around so if you hear a neighbor mentions a bear sighting don’t ignore it.  To avoid a bear attack take all of the previous precautions.

Video Project 1 Idea

Group 4 has decided to make a video about selling a house.  People say the housing market is turning around, so we are going to videotape a mock showing of Patrick's family home they are selling.  He will walk around and point out the highlights of the home and go over the asking price with the potential buyer.  The story will talk about different sellers dropping their prices regularly because the market is still not that great.  And also address the idea that people do not actually buy the home, but buy the land the house is on.
 
We will have back ground noise from the house: echoes because it is empty, voices of Patrick and the buyer and outside noises when they take a stroll on the property.   Jessie and Kristin are thinking about low background music, but not 100% sold on the idea.

Patrick and Kristin will shoot the video and do the talking.
Jessie and Kristin will edit the video.
Linda and Patrick will work on the story.

Learn to Tie Your Shoes

Learning how to tie one’s shoes is an important skill that one learns at a young age. Many methods have been used to help children learn this more easily. Some are taught songs, poems, or even dances. Each of these has some kind of catchy rhythm that helps children catch on to this skill and enjoy it while they learn.

“Two snakes escaped from the zoo and live the holes in my shoe! In and out they twisted and fought, till their tails were tied in a knot.” This is an example of a poem that children are taught in kindergarten. This poem is fun and keeps kids attention.

Teaching people how to tie their shoes is everywhere. There are children’s books, magazines, and computer games. Many children shows have done skits on how to teach children how to tie their shoes, shows including Arthur, Rugrats, Full House and Spongebob. Spongebob even did an episode that had a song at the end. “Just do a loop de loop and pull, and your shoes are looking cool.” This line is teaching kids while persuading them that they will can look cool by learning this skill.

Different types of shoes require different types of knots. If one is wearing a sneaker one might want to use the basic knot that he or she first learns. However, if one has shoes that have longer laces, they might want to use the double knot to shorten up the laces, however, double knots are usually a bit more difficult to untie. Boots are a little different. Boots require extra support and lacing. Usually one has to go lace around metal clamps up the ankle and back down just so that way there is some more support.

Now days there are hundreds of different types of shoes. Slide on shoes have become really popular along with flip flops and Velcro. The skill of tying shoes is a forgotten talent. Older generations of kids took pride in knowing how to tie their shoes, now; kids have so many different types of shoes that tying their shoes hardly seem important anymore.

Tying your shoes is a fun skill that when learned is something one usually never forgets. It sticks with people for life and those people will teach their kids who will teach their kids. Hopefully this skill will continue to be taught by parents, guardians, and teachers.

Slideshow Synopsis

Learning how to tie your shoes is an important skill that many learn at a young age. Some kids are taught a pretty basic way but other has different techniques and tactics while going about it. Group 4 is going to interview one person and ask them how they tie their shoes.

We decided to switch up roles this time. We will be breaking up in editing and taking on new positions.

Patrick is going to interview his coach. He will ask him basic questions and take pictures with each step that he responds to. 

Kristen is going to be doing a lot of the sound and video editing. She will also find music that goes along with the story. Jessie and Linda will be helping out whenever they can on the audio editing as well.

Jessie will be writing the synopsis and the 400 word story that goes along with this project. She will show the story to the rest of the group to make sure everyone agrees on it.

When we are all finished with our parts, we will come together for the final cut and collaborate all of our individual work. Group 4 is going to show an old skill in a new light.

Slideshow 2 Idea

For the slideshow 2 project, Group 4 is going to learn how to tie shoes. We will interview one person on the way they tie their shoes. During the interview we will have pictures that will document how he/she is doing it.

CBS Atlanta

Website:
I found the CBS Atlanta website boring. Since the college basketball playoffs are starting they have littered their page with "bracket challenge" advertisments. It really over powered the site. Also, the website only had one picture and little story on the home page. Everything was links to other stories. It was a lot of reading and really cluttered. If you did want to see a slideshow or video there were links on the right side of the page, but again you had to read and read to figure out where and what things were. There was no breaking news scroll, "new" headlines were noted by using the word "New" in orange next to the link. All in all the website scared me off a little bit. There was just too much at once.

Facebook:
Since I wasn't too impressed with the website, I didn't have high hopes for their facebook page. They had some stories on it, but I saw alot of other people making posts. One woman inparticular used their facebook page to vent about her unemployment and government aide. I found that very tacky and couldn't believe they left it posted. There was an agrument between her and a man about racisim and drug testing and government aide. It really took away from their facebook page. I am all for viewer input and letting your audience interact, but there needs to be some type of monitoring going on. I do like that they post often and get feedback on their news posts. Other than that it was a pretty basic facebook page.

Slideshow

Student athlete.  That is a common term here around Lyndon State College.  These are students that have decided to play a varsity sport or an intramural sport during their college career.  Lyndon offers a variety of extracurricular activities for students with the stipulation that being a student comes first.  Notice how the term is not Athlete Student.                

                How do these men and women balance being a student, an athlete, work and a social lift?  I think maybe they are cloned.  But seriously, how do people learn to multitask and where do they learn time management skills?  Many people have different systems; some prefer the trial and error method, some talk with employers and some utilize their resources that coaches and teachers offer.  Any way you look at it these are lifelong skills that students cannot learn by just opening a book in the classroom.  Lyndon offers students these extracurricular activities to help broaden their skills for the job market. 

Baseball just doesn’t teach you about the sport, but offers students a chance to travel to other states and see the other sights of New England.  All of the sports here at Lyndon offer that chance to students.  Along the way students learn how to plan accordingly for papers and projects.  Students work as a team to help each other with homework and find ways to work through the stress that is accompanied with high education.  Coaches work closely with their players to make sure they are on the right track to graduation, because at the end of the day that is the main goal. 

                Student athletes don’t just come in the form of a varsity player though.  Lyndon offers intramural sports as well.  These are teams that are formed by students with no coaches.  They do not have to “tryout” and “cuts” are not made.  These sports a little more laid back in the fact that there are not practices to attend, but it is just as time consuming as the varsity teams.  These students have to make sure that they have all the players for their teams and that there are enough teams to play.  Not only do they play they help organize.  Even though these students do not have a coach to help them through, there are many other faculty members that can and will help. 

                In the end it is up to the student to make sure that they have their priorities straight.  Student comes first and athlete comes second.  Lyndon encourages students to pursue any extracurricular activity they are interested.  It helps build those skills that are not taught in a book or on the computer.  These are valuable skills that will help everyone through life.      

Project Synopsis

Lyndon offers many extracurricular activities for its students.  But how do students balance school, work, friends and the extracurricular activities they are involved with?  Group 4 is going to explore how student athletes manage their time.  We will speak with a variety of students that play sports to discuss challenges they face on a daily basis.

                Everyone in the group knows someone on a sports team, so everyone will take part in the interviewing process.  Group 4 wanted a wide variety of students and sports so limiting the interviewing to only one person would be hard to do. 

                Everyone will also contribute to the pictures for the slideshow.  Linda knows students that participate in outdoor snow sports; Jessie knows students that play intramurals; Patrick and Kristin know multiple students on the varsity teams and some of the coaches.  The four of them will take pictures of the sports they interviewed about to help create that story through the slideshow.

                Group 4 did decide to break up the editing.  Linda and Jesse will work on the sound editing; intermixing the interviews and music.  Kristin and Patrick will work on editing the photos and arranging them in a fun and interesting pattern.  Then all four group members will collaborate on the final project; putting the sound and photos together.

The group is hoping to shed some light on the responsibilities and time management skills it takes to be successful as a student athlete. 

Photo and Slideshow Critique

Two of the websites that I have posted I look at often. The third on was more or less me goofing around because I couldn't find a slideshow with sound on any of the regular websites I visit.

Wesite #1 http://www.bettycrocker.com/

I do enjoy cooking. I like to make new fun recipes and so I frequent the Betty Crocker website. At the top of the website there is the slideshow. There is no audio in this one, but they do show a variety of pictures and have a little blurb on the left side explaining what it is. One picture had fresh dill and the explaintion said "Herbs 101". Kind of fun and interesting if you like this sort of thing. I liked that the slideshow made it easy to navigate to the page that I wanted to see, I didn't have to search through the list of recipes. I also like how not all the pictures in the slideshow were recipes, but some were just informational about food. There is not much that I do not like about this page. Easy way for me to find new recipes. Betty Crocker really isn't around to tell a story, but is more of an information website about cooking. The slideshow does not tell a story, but instead give you some ideas you may have not ever thought about.

Website #2 www.vermontfineartgallery.com/collections/2501

 I was very interested in art before I moved to Vermont and was pleasantly surprised when I found that there were so many local artists. I am not very artistic which is why I like to look at what other people can do. Vermont has an art website. It contains many local artists and their portfolios. There is not music and no slideshows, instead you just click on what picture you want it will enlarge and you can take a closer look at it. I liked that they chose not to add a slideshow or music to it. I don't like to feel rushed when I look at pictures and I want to have my own music playing when I am relaxing and looking at it. I do blieve that these pictures tell a story, maybe not a chronological on, but a story none-the-less. The gallery that I chose was from a Russian artist that lives here in Vermont now and he draws in pen and ink. I thought that was pretty neat, mostly because I could never draw using those two....too many mistakes.

Website #3 www.bored.com/getrelaxed/003.htm

 And finally, the slideshow with the sound. I came across this website by chance because I do not frequent a website that had slideshows and sound. I was at this point bored with my search, so that is what I typed into Google and is this is what popped up. It is a soothing sounds website. Reminds me of the aisle in Wal-mart when the soothing sounds CD that everyone walks by and touches. Made me laugh. So, you pick what soothing sound you want and it will start, but also includes a slideshow of what you are listening to. I chose a fire, so not only do I get to listen to the crackling of the fire, but I also get to watch different fires. Yep, totally cheezy. There is no story and really no point to this website.....I think it was made to help me with this assignment. It is by far my favorite one though. It really did a good job with the sounds and the slideshows. They took that extra step and added pictures, when it could have just been those relaxing sounds you listen to.

 Not really any of the sites I found told stories of any sort, but it was fun to get to see the differences in the slideshows and the sound. All are very functional and I think were made in good taste based on the user.

Valentine's Day Podcast

Valentine’s Day Podcast

           

            Valentine’s Day is a holiday that can divide our opinions as much as any other major holiday we celebrate. Some people really love the holiday and give more love on February 14 than any other day. Other people might think that this holiday is good but that they should show love every day of the year. And then you have those people who think that this holiday is the worst thing ever and a complete waste of time. Here at Lyndon State College, we see those same divisions as there are wide arrays of opinions even in this small community.

            Our group ventured out into the world of Lyndon to see these very opinions. Upon walking the halls and computer labs of campus, as well as some off-campus apartments, we noticed that Valentine’s Day was greeted with hate and love. First, we find one student in the Hornet’s Nest thinks that a night in with a bottle of wine and a movie would be the best way to spend the day and night. She valued the holiday as a way to treat herself and have a nice night in.

            We then interviewed faculty and staff who are both married and they saw the holiday as a way to spend time with the ones they love. They were both going to spend time together and have a nice dinner together. They saw the love of one another every day so this was a nice change of pace for them.

            After we interviewed a few people that were married, we then interviewed some students who all had different ideas on the holiday and who were mostly spending it the same way. They saw the holiday as an unnecessary day because that if you are with someone that you love, that every day should be like Valentine’s Day. One student even said that Valentine’s Day was a, “crock of shit.” But either way they look at it, they are all single and they didn’t see a reason to celebrate more than they would any other Tuesday. They all believed that if they were in a relationship with someone, they would probably see the benefit of having a Valentine’s Day so they could, “spend more money that I could be saving.” I thought it was pretty funny.

            Although Valentine’s Day was originally a day to show love to your significant other, by hand-writing out cards and giving flowers, it has transformed into something much bigger than that. This holiday has grown from something small into the chaotic day that is February 14, Valentine’s Day remains popular and seems to keep growing every year.

           

           

Outline for Podcast

Outline – Valentine’s Day Podcast


Our podcast will end up being about Valentine’s Day on campus and with the Lyndon community as a whole. We are interviewing students, faculty, and staff about their opinions on Valentine’s Day while incorporating a brief history of the holiday and any other relevant information we can find on the topic. We hope to get people who love and hate this holiday, and hopefully we get some interesting responses to our questions because this holiday is all over social media and the news and it seems to create a lot of interesting debates on relationships and love for everyone involved.

Ideas for Group 4 Podcast

Group 4 has come up with a few ideas that we are bouncing around.  One of our group members was missing last week, probably sick like everyone else, so we really haven't decided which idea we are going to run with.  It is important to us that everyone is satified with the topic we will choose. 

Idea 1:
      Noises in the workout room.  Yes, we know that everyone makes them and they are kind of interesting.  It ranges from grunts to heavy breathing.  Why does this happen?  Well, that is what we wanted to find out.  We would talk to people working out, trainers and also some athletes that play here at Lyndon. 

Idea 2:
      Valentines Day.  Oh we know, so obvious.  With the "holiday" coming up, we were kind of intereted in everyone's plans.  Do they have a significant other?  If so do they have somthing planned?  Is it just the guys job to plan and get the gift?  Why are some women so obsessed with this holiday?  The questions are endless.  There is also a wide age range here at Lyndon, so we would be able to talk to huge variety of people.

Idea 3:
     The last idea that was brought up was, interviewing a band that one of our teammates is aquainted with.  They are trying to make an album so we can talk about their stuggles and triumphs. 

All these ideas a fun and intereting, but we haven't fully made a decision yet.  Today will be the day that we mull it over with all of the member and move forward.     

3 Podcasts

The first podcast I listened to was called Stuff Mom Never Told You at How Stuff Works.com.  These two women are so funny.  This podcast isn't suppose to be that funny, but the two women have a lot of fun together.  If men don't know what women talk about when they get together, listen to this and all their questions will be answered.
The two women talk about all sorts of things that women have questions about or common issues that women face.  I listened to bra sizes, circumcisions and hair washing.  They give general information about their topics and some history about each topic.
I really enjoyed listening to them, it reminded me of talking with my girlfriends.  They make these topics seem so comfortable and use language that everyone will understand.
There wasn't much I didn't like, it just seemed so laid back and fun.

My second podcast was called Books on the Nightstand.  This is so different from my first podcast, so I had a hard time switching from the fun and laid back atmosphere to the serious and all business atmosphere that this podcast has.  These two people are little more organized in their podcast, they have their episodes numbered and start by saying what episode it is and what they will talk about.  I did really like that about this podcast; I could tell if I wanted to continue listening to that episode or not based on the intro.
I wasn't a big fan of how serious these two were.  They didn't have fun with the books, it was more opinionated. 
They mostly talk about books, but they also talked about McDonald's giving books out in their happy meals and they get reader input in a couple episodes.  But for the most part they picked books apart and compared them to other books they have read by similar authors.  If I pull up this podcast again, I would probably only look for a cast that talked about authors I have read.  I wouldn't just listen because I really enjoyed what they were talking about.

My third podcast is about critical thinking, it was called The Critical Thinker Academy.  The intro really tries to be hip with the music, but then the guy starts to talk.  He is pretty serious.  He does explain what his podcast is about and lets everyone know that he has a video podcast on i-Tunes as well.
This podcast really reminded me of a school lecture.  I spent a year at a relatively large University and this podcast reminded me of that.  He outlines his cast and then goes into detail about his general topics.  I really am not 100% sure as what he was saying in his podcasts though.  I tuned out pretty early, because he was so matter of fact and wasn't really giving any room for other thought.  It was his way or it was wrong.  I probably wouldn't listen to this podcast again.

Robber Escapes in Swanton Vermont

On December 6 the Hometown Sunoco located at 166 First Street in Swanton was robbed.  A single male entered the building with a gun at 1:15AM and left with an undisclosed amount of cash.

Fortunately, no one was injured in this crime.

The Vermont State Police are now looking for a white male, between 5' 8" and 6' 0".  Every lead will be followed up on.

Please contact the Vermont State Police in St. Albans at 802-524-5993 or Franklin County Sheriff's office at 802-524-2121 if you have any information.

Since this case is still under investigation, there is no further information at this time.  Updates will be issued as more information becomes available.

Shooting a Fellow Hunter

Another surprise during hunting season.

Two men were out in Albany, VT on October 20, 2011 hunting bear.  Their bear hounds tracked a sent and the two men, Conrad Masse and Wayne Goff,  were hot on the trail.

The GPS tracking devices that were attached to the hounds showed they were headed towards Urie Rd.  Masse and Goff started in that direction to trap the bear before it crossed the road.

Goff got out of the truck and Masse drove down the road about 541 feet where he proceeded to wait for the bear to cross.  The bear ended up crossing in between the two men.

Masse shot three rounds from his Remington .30-06 rifle towards the bear and Goff.  The bear was struck, a tree was struck and Goff was struck.

Goff was treated at North Country Hospital and later transported to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center for gunshot wounds to the pelvic region.  He has been released and is in stable condition.

That is not the end though,  Masse has been charged with Aggravated Assault.  His is waiting for hearing on February 28, 2012.

We have heard these stories time and time again during hunting season.  Man shoots fellow hunter, fellow hunter is in hospital and shooter is charged. 

When will all these hunters learn?  Isn't it required to take a hunter safety course and have the proper documents?

People get too comfortable in things that they know and do every year, but you never know what will happen and mistakes are made.  I think as a reminder hunters need to take a refresher course every year before hunting season. 

There needs to be greater consequences for hunting without a license and not having the proper documents.  Men and women lose their lives every year due to hunting ACCIDENTS that could have been prevented with refresher courses on hunting safety. 

Blog Critique

http://deborahmacgillivray.blogspot.com/

I am always amazed all the "stuff" I can find online.  I didn't want to find just another generic blog about hobbies or sports or news; I wanted something that no one else would really think about.  I came up with books and reading; then when I started to look around in that genre I found the dreaded Romance Novel!  Yes, a romance author blog.  I am not really into romance novels, so this is a good way for me to broaded my horizon.
We all already know that the blog is going to be full of promotions for her books and signings she will be attending. But I was surprised to see that she had actual postings on her site.  She thanked a reader for a very strange gift basket that had books on cats....maybe she has a cat, I don't know.  She also talked about Christmas and went on this quick rant about how Christmas shouldn't be a religious holiday but should be about peace on earth.  She also informed everyone on that same post about how she almost died last year and how 2012 looks a little more promising....I would hope so.  You never know what kind of stuff you will find when it comes to blogs. 
So now you kind of know why I picked this blog, let me tell you what I like/dislike, updates, comments, etc etc etc.  Her blog site caught my eye.  It is this dark hue of red and has pictures of men all over it; looks like heads on the men were photo shopped in though.  I also like that you are not confused as to what this blog is about, it reads cheezy romance novel all over it.  Deborah does a really great job of keeping her blog up to date too.  She doesn't post everyday, but does enough to keep everyone updated.  Finally, I think the most surprising thing for me was that people (women) actually follow her blog and get pretty excited about the events she has coming up.  One woman said she didn't know this author but would be out at a signing to meet her. 
So again, you never know what you will find online when you just go out and look for the random.

Multimedia Examples

www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/01/22/travel/22HAMBURG.html?ref=multimedia

www.etapmarketing.com/3d_castle.php.