The reasons for why I chose this particular topic, titled “Baruch’s Children”,  which centered on the general aspects of life that affect children, are simple enough. The assignment for the New York Times project included a part that had to be written by the group and had to be about something about Baruch that at least one of us had experienced and felt the least bit interested in. Not to make Baruch seem lesser than it is, this part of the assignment cut down a lot of the possibilities for what our topic could be. The basic routine of my day was basically to go to my classes, go home, and then repeat – which left no real room to explore what the school had to offer. That is, until I got the opportunity, through the Work Study program, to spend my break time working at the Baruch Early Learning Center – which I had only accepted because I thought that if nothing else it would be an easy gig. Pushing aside the fact that I was very wrong, it soon became one of the more enjoyable periods of my day-to-day schedule. The kids were fun to hang around and have the sort of boundless energy that boldly strides the line between cute and unbearable. They have stuff to say, and never run out – which is something I see so very littler of these days. It was refreshing to see how these kids reacted to stuff and how things seemed from their perspective. They’re an endearing bunch and I grew to really find peace in being around that place. So, with that being the only real Baruch experience I have had, it became the topic. The rest would fall into place because media sources like the New York Times always have some sort of point of view on the welfare of children. Even if they only do something like a fluff piece, meant to fill up space, there is at least still a large base of articles from which to work. The project would then pretty much do itself, in theory.

My group and I decided to use culture as our topic due to the fact that all of us share different cultures. Our cultures are what makes us who we are. Each of us came into Baruch with a different perspective, and we decided that we should share our perspective with our peers, in order for them to understand us better. The articles we chose illustrated  a part of our culture that we wanted to share. My article was about the history of Jamaica. It grabbed my attention because it incorporated both food and music (and everyone knows I love food and music). We were not concerned about  culture in Baruch because Baruch actually highlights it. However, we wanted to express our appreciation for different cultures being permeated throughout our school.

The NY Times Project helped me to strengthen the bonds of teamwork through my group and helped me to learn more about the Shutdown. I typically stay away from the news, so I was unaware of the Shutdown until my supervisor mentioned it while I was on the job. This meant that one of the main projects would have to be put on hold and it gave me the inspiration to suggest that as our group’s theme. My teammates were on board with the idea and that’s how it all started.

The first article I chose was how the Shutdown affected the research that was being done on the ice. I thought that it was a good article to include because it showed how the Shutdown had far reaching effects that went beyond the States. I published an article that showed more of a personal effect and how the Shutdown affected the average person as well. Less customers for the family restaurants, and many other ways in which people were affected. I published a pair of articles that announced that the Shutdown was over and also covered some of the after affects. Everything would not go back to normal immediately, following such a big event. This is only a short break and the Shutdown will continue if a deal is not reached soon. I also linked the Shutdown to Baruch and how it could possibly affect the school as well. All, in all, this project required team work and a willingness to put 100% effort into the project. We did well and made the experience fun

http://www.photosnack.com/B955B86BDC9/ptmfbjim

Okay, so hopefully that works, I’ve never been great with technology. You know that feeling you get when you’re all done with your homework, you did the last of your math problems, and then you double check just to see and you realize that you have another 50 or so to do in 15 minutes? That just happened to me. Frankly, I think that scenario best describes my life.  It’s filled with good intentions, unintended consequences, silly mistakes, and a loathing of math.

I’ve rambled on long enough, so to explain the pictures and why I picked them. The photos I picked generally contain my friends and I. I choose this because in the course of my life my friends have had a incredible impact on me. I’ve never been one to have a lot of friends, but rather a small group of very close friends. I was bullied a lot through out elementary school and I didn’t have a lot of friends until sometime in Middle School. Because of this I truly value my friends, they make me who I am, they have my best interests at heart, and they know me better then I know myself.

The first picture is of my friend Emily and I. Emily and I have known each other since I was 2 years old, and she moved across the street from me from her home in upstate New York. Emily was a year older then I, and my Mom suggested that we go over and introduce ourselves to the new neighbors. Emily was too shy to talk then, but then next day she spoke to me, and she hasn’t stopped for the last 16 years!

The second photo is of my friends Becca, Ashley and I. I met Becca and Ashley in 8th grade, they were the first people who had many of the same interests that I had. They  both love theatre, Ashley loves to read and write, and Becca loves Music and is a fantastic Flute player. (Best on Long Island, not to brag or anything.)

The third, forth and fifth pictures are of various activities that I participated in through my schools music wing.  The music wing in my High School was a separate entity of it’s own, a small little close knit, drama filled, musical family. I’ve been involved in theater since I was in Middle School, and the first photo is of the cast of Les Mis in my Freshman year, I participated in every musical since. The second photo was taken on my schools music trip, when we went to Washington D.C. to compete in a music competition. The next is of my schools Women’s Choir, I could write a book on how much I adore these girls and how this group has impacted my life. Honestly nothing can compare to the thrill of singing with such a talented bunch of girls.

Then there is a picture of this kid Josh and I, we’ve been dating for about a year in a half. I guess he’s pretty cool and stuff.  He gives me ice cream, therefore I like him. Of course there is an obligatory prom photo, no prom was not the most magical night of my life, but the people I spent it with made it one of the funniest nights of my life. Last but not least, because I’m going over my word count, is a picture of my parents and I on the day of my graduation. I know that not everyone has a great relationship with their parents, but I can say through out my Senior year I came to appreciate them a lot more, and I continue to each day.

Now back to the depths of hel- I mean Math.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/102886047@N06/?details=1

I have always found it extremely hard to “briefly” describe anyone because humans consist of so much to put in words or pictures. When it comes to myself, it gets a lot harder  because I have not fully figured myself out yet. In addition, I am constantly changing just like everyone else. Which is why I think the first picture really represents me best. “Change Ahead.” The second is of the flag of my country merged with the LGBTQ flag. It is a dream I have that someday homosexuals will be decriminalized in Bangladesh which they currently are not and it is also my ambition in life to work for that goal. The next picture is of my sister and me and the one below that is of my mother. These two people are the ones I take for granted even though I know I should not so I felt that I should include them here. I realize that I should have probably included my father too but I ran out of space. Some of the pictures are purely humourous and they describe me because I barely ever take anything seriously.  I know sometimes that is not very smart but hey, we are all just stardust after all. Also, Rob Halford ( the bald man in the picture under Gerard Butler) is one of the greatest singers alive and Judas Priest(the band he is from) is one of my favourites. The picture with the giant blue pillow represents a tiny part of the culture I come from. I think body pillows are one of the most unique things that Bengalis are very habituated to. Babies and kit kats are my obsession almost. They sound absolutely absurd when put next to each other in a sentence like that. I guess I could not leave out my creepy nature of this post after all. A Thousand Splendid Suns is a book that really changed my life in so many ways. I finally decided to stop ignoring the way women were treated in certain areas of the world and realized how my idea of romanticizing oppression would someday drive me insane. I used to romanticize the idea of a husband telling the wife what to do and being protective of her but this book made me realize how bad things can turn and how I was simply ignoring that possibility. I suppose I did not want to believe that the future I was headed for, and probably still am, was as bad as they made it sound. The picture of my face in shock usually describes how I feel inside almost every minute because I always describe something new. I know everyone can if only they pay attention to their surroundings just a little more.

I don’t really think it’s possible to explain who you are through a few slides, or a list of songs, or a a video. Learning who someone is takes time and effort. But I guess I’ll give the playlist a shot.

spotify:user:1272223602:playlist:2GY9gmV5xCEipgbW5680ln

For a very long time I battled with depression and anxiety, Although I still do, I’ve learned better coping skills and now its manageable. “You’re Not Alone” was a song that helped me get through this really dark stage in my life. The reason why is pretty self explanatory. It made me realize that I wasn’t alone, and ending a story before it was finished was not something I truly wanted to do. The songs “Living In The Moment”, “Waiting For The End”  and “Who I Am Hates Who I’ve Been” are all songs that help me when I think of turning down that dark road that I fought years to get out of. They remind to me to always stay positive, not let things get to me, take everything day by day. I can’t let my past eat me alive, and I can’t let it dictate my future.

The song “Who You Are” helped me through self worth issues I’ve had for as long as I can remember. I don’t remember a point in my life where I wasn’t self concious and hated who I was and how i looked. Once i got to high school and got involved with dating, it got even worse. I let guys alter my way of thinking of myself worse than it already was, and tried changing myself to be what THEY wanted. But this song taught me that it’s okay to be who I am, and it’s okay not to be okay sometimes. It’s hard, but everyone goes through it.

The songs “Maps” and “Flashlight” represent moving onto a new stage in my life. Maps is about moving onto bigger and better things, and going to new places. Flashlight is a song about growing up, and about how people change. That’s a large lesson you learn in high school; that people change. And you continue learning it throughout your whole life.

The song “The Chain” stands for my love of dance. The last dance I ever competed on stage (and won 1st place out of the entire competition for) was my solo to this song. This piece was so meaningful to me; it really was much more than just a dance. My senior year of high school was terrible, and this piece explained it perfectly. I’ve never connected to a dance so much.

The song “Swing, Swing” represents my relationship with my brother. The song itself, its lyrics and what its about, has no significant meaning for us. This was the first song my brother learned on guitar, and we used to perform this song for our family. We even recorded a “demo” of only this song. It’s one of my fondest childhood memories and will always remindme of him.

http://grooveshark.com/#!/playlist/Swiss+Cheese/90714984

This playlist does not define me, for as complex of a creature a human being is, cannot be defined by 10 songs, nor by any means. There would be too many nuances and details to explain or comprehend. On the other hand, this playlist does succeed in simply characterizing my musical pallet and what I enjoy listening too, even though I do have a more varied and wider array of songs in my full playlist. These 10 songs were selected for no real profound meaning, just to showcase some songs I enjoy listening to on some occasions, whether it be on the train, walking, exercising, or lounging around. I listen to songs depending on what mood I am in, right now, for instance, I am very relaxed and mellow, thus I preferred the songs of the same nature when I was compiling this playlist. I don’t always listen to these songs or this type of music in all occasions, I do have very different sounding music that I may listen to if I’m feeling a certain way. What I enjoy about these songs is their unconventional music styling and more creative construct. I rather do not enjoy the so called “popular” music of this generation for it all sounds the same to me and is not appealing to my ear. I prefer more obscure and older songs or varying genres, I feel those put more feeling and creativity into their music, rather than just rehashing the same sounding songs over and over again without taking too many risks. I don’t bash anybody’s musical taste, or judge anybody on anything they enjoy, whether or not I clashes with mine. If you enjoy popular music, be my guest, nothing wrong with that.

On the topic of these songs specifically, two of them “Real Hero” and “Nightcall” I actually first heard from this movie called “Drive” which is also an excellent movie with an excellent soundtrack. Most of my songs, on the other hand, I find by making various “Pandora” playlists and saving all the songs I enjoy. Then I download the selected songs to my Iphone. I grew up listening to KROCK 92.3 before it became whatever it is now; we would always listen to that on the radio in the car whenever my family and I would drive somewhere. That is why I enjoy old school rock and rock of the 90’s such as alternative, and grunge. As I got older, still kept the taste for rock but then discovered other  musical genres on my own, most notably whatever genre those other songs are, I’m assuming electro.

All in all it has been interesting to, in a way, to  “re-discover” my music catalog for this assignment and evaluate it for myself. I’m more in tuned with what I am listening to and why.

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