Monthly Archives: December 2022

Guidelines for Comments.

When I think about a comment section on social media, I immediately think toxic. I think about the no-filter responses people give without any thought of repercussions.

Comment sections can be detrimental to some individuals’ mental health and well-being. Comments can be utilized to tear people down and isolate them.

In my opinion, over the years people have become more aware of the issues regarding the comment sections on differnt social media platforms. Although people have become more aware, the problem is still exists.

For example, when I was in middle school and high school there was a social media platform called ASKfm. ASKfm was an online platform where people could anonymously ask other people questions or leave comments on their pages. ASKfm was used to create cruel rating systems of peopel and to anonymously leave hateful comments.

From a greater perspective, the whole idea sounds harmless. However, in application, it was horrible.

Trying to navigate middle school alone is a challenging time, but adding social media bullying to the mix, made it a struggle.

The whole idea that people exude hate on the internet is exhausting. The more ideas of comments, the more I think of differnt social media platforms. For instance, I think of the early days of Instagram, where people would post and rate each others pictures and posts. For example, people would rate a photo out of 10 on how “attractive” someone looked in a photo. 

Social media comments are not built for success. 

When I think about Lyz’s (2022) story, I can understand and support why she would make those comments. Living in the world of social media platforms is difficult. Comments are a free space where people can comment whatever they feel.

The one slightly good perspective of comments is the opportunity to share information. For example, sharing recommendations for places to go, or commenting on where someone purchased a item. Therefore, using the comments as a place to distribute information.

On certain platforms, the idea of negative toxic comments is highly unlikely. To some extent, I believe trolls and scammers are not be looking at unpopular websites or media. Trolls and and scammers are more likely to spend time on platforms that generate more attention. 

For my website, I choose to have the comment section available. Based on my posts and the platform I created, I believe the idea of negative comment curating is low. Of course, if someone were to comment anything hurtful or toxic towards someone else, I would address it and remove it. For right now, I don’t think my website needs the comment section removed.

References 

Lyz. (2022, February 2). That’s how it works when you’re a woman on the internet. That’s How It Works When You’re a Woman on the Internet. Retrieved from https://lyz.substack.com/p/thats-how-it-works-when-youre-a-woman?s=r 

In Summation

Process Post 12

Throughout the entirety of this course, I feel as though I have been very lucky to get to work on a passion project of mine while also working towards a potential future career. I’ve enjoyed the process of getting to sit down and actually write out these posts, though it took me a while to get into the swing of things. You never really realize how much work goes into something until you actually give it a shot yourself. I certainly have a newfound appreciation for all the cooking blogs I mercilessly scrolled through in the past, wondering why they haven’t posted anything in six months. I know that I had it easy, given the fact that I’ve been posting tried and true recipes that have been handed down through my family. Even then, I wasn’t able to get something up every single week like I had wanted to at the beginning. I also think that being able to have an independent, online space for me to work through my personal musings has been incredibly helpful. I didn’t realize how much of my experience with online spaces involved being saturated with targeted content and algorithms until I took a step away from it to create a digital garden space of my own.

Furthermore, I’ve really appreciated getting to learn about each individual aspect that goes into running a website. From the ground up, how business construct their sites can make or break the reach that they might attain. Using keywords, SEO, ads, and looking up the name of your website before settling on a domain are all key parts of making sure that you’re going to be recognized based on what you actually want to represent in your work. Ads themselves are an entirely different ball game, it was incredibly interesting to see a little of the process of how ads come to be and the thought processes behind them. Additionally, I’ve gained so much more experience with running a site through WordPress, and I’m very happy to have re-familiarized myself with the tools given the fact that I will be working with them again next semester in my co-op position.

PUB 101 has been a wonderful class overall, I’ve gained a lot of valuable knowledge and insight on how to best present myself online, and represent the versions of myself I want to be visible. I really enjoyed running Considering Cardamom this semester, and while I know that it will be difficult for me to continue to run the site while in school, I wouldn’t mind having the opportunity to come back to it every now and again to pick up where I left off.

The Mainstream

Diversity is always something of a tricky question for me. I find it odd to think of myself as diverse, considering how I just exist. I never really thought about how things like representation or seeing my culture appreciated by people outside of it might be important until recently. As I’ve mentioned before probably countless times, I grew up in a very white environment. We lived just off of the Bible Belt in the Lower Mainland. All my neighbours were white or mixed, most of the kids I went to school with were white, and all of my friends were white or East Asian. Whenever there were kids of South Asian descent in my classes, I always felt like I had some weird obligation to be their friend, even if I didn’t like them very much, based solely on the fact that we shared a culture. In the fourth grade, there was a new girl who came to our school, and she was from Sri Lanka. Even though we did not look anything alike, we had entirely different names and I had been in the same class as most of my peers for four years up until that point, we would get confused all the time. It was as though we were synonymous with one another. I’ve only recently started to look back at such interactions and think about how that probably should have bothered me.

I couldn’t blame the kids, of course, they had no way of knowing the difference between India and Sri Lanka. First of all, they were fourth graders. Aside from a Diwali presentation that my mom sometimes would give to my and my sisters’ classes, they really had no knowledge of Indian culture. Unlike my isolation from people who shared my heritage, this phenomenon lasted a little while longer. I remember being in high school and bringing daal to school only to be asked excitedly what it was that I was eating. It blew my mind to think that people had no idea what it was. Even further back, we had family friends that would come over every year for New Year’s to have my mom’s butter chicken, because they had never had it anywhere else and swore that hers was the best.

Nowadays, things are slightly different. Indian culture is not at the forefront of many people’s minds, but it is not as invisible as it used to be. I’ve seen characters in popular fictional works that are coded as being South Asian, like Inej from Leigh Bardugo’s books. South Asian beauty rituals such as hair oiling are going viral on social media apps. Even the restaurant where I work has added butter chicken to their menu! There is still a long way to go when it comes to the representation of South Asian people in popular media, but I’m optimistic given the changes I’ve been seeing in the past few years, and I look forward to seeing where it goes.

Costco? UnderRated.

In general, shopping is a struggle. 

Whether it’s grocery shopping, clothing shopping, furniture shopping, or anything else, it’s a struggle. Running from store to store for the greatest deal can be exhausting. Some stores are so far from one another, they are not in the same vicinity. It can be so time-consuming!

For me, shopping and running around used to be the worst. 

Until I started going to Costco. 

Costco has seriously been a lifesaver. 

When I moved out, I thought I couldn’t possibly shop at Costco. At Costco, you buy in bulk. I thought it would be WAY too much for myself and my partner. But wow, I was wrong. 

Costco has not only saved me money but time! 

I sometimes laugh at myself thinking about my newly found passion for Costco. I used to say to myself, I will never get excited about grocery shopping or buying furniture. But, here I am. 

I am now that person who will buy clothes at the same store I buy my groceries. 

Food-wise, my partner and I eat a ridiculous amount of food. I used to find it a real challenge to keep the fridge and cupboards stocked. Shopping for food at Costco has made a world of a difference. We buy fruit and vegetables, meats, crackers, cheese, and bread! 

I know, you may think, wow food must spoil. But surprisingly enough, we have yet to let food go bad. Keeping in mind, we do cook a lot of food that involves throwing everything in the fridge into a pot and calling that dinner, but still, we eat it.  

Shopping at Costco has allowed us to save money on food and allow us to buy more luxurious items with our savings. Sometimes we even buy organic! 

Grocery shopping at Costco also equals free samples, so that’s always a win. 

Clothing-wise, Costco has some great deals. I have found great clothes for everything. I have bought a layering jackets for hiking, everyday walking socks, and blouses for work. Who cares about the name brand, if it’s quality, I’d say it’s perfect! 

Furniture and fun items are something else. For instance, I went to Costco this weekend and I found the cutest Christmas snowman to add to my décor. The snowman is so cute, he is holding a little lantern. The funny part about buying my little snowman is I originally went in for groceries… Oh well, it was a deal.

Honestly, Costco is an adventure. I used to think I was too cool for Costco, but now I’m thinking Costco is too cool for me. 

The ONLY struggle with Costco is that you may come out with more than you bargained for. But honestly, that’s part of the fun. If you are struggling with shopping, I recommend trying a store like Costco. Make grocery shopping fun!

Costco? UnderRated.

A person posing with a shopping cart full of food outside of Costco
A person posing with a shopping cart full of items outside of Costco

👩‍🏫💻🍪🥤🗼💻🙋🏻‍♀️✌.

Dear Posiel,

So long, farewell, bon voyage. Today marks the last day of Poseil 😥 (emojis courtesy of Jim over at Slice of Jim, otherwise I’d still be googling emojis and Ctrl+c & Ctrl+v-ing them like a peasant… Thanks Jim!). As it is the last day, I would like to dedicate some of this post to how I believe (know?) my experience went.

Before we get into that though, I know the process prompt is supposed to be about community guidelines, but honestly, I feel like I could care less what What the Cat Said‘s community did (if there was a community in the first place). What exactly would I be guiding? Article commentary if there were any comments I guess? Write whatever you want! I don’t think that I will be moderating anything too closely as long as it doesn’t get all Ye up in here.

Young Kanye West wearing a shirt that says, "Say NO to Nazis New America"
🪦RIP

So with that said, run rampant, go crazy, start a fire, start a flame war, tell someone you love them, I do not care. Ok maybe don’t start a fire? Unless it’s cold and you need it for warmth, IDK, IDC. I couldn’t have made this section longer if I tried.

Ok, moving on.

Posiel, Posiel, Posiel… Where to start… This class has been one of the most laid-back classes, if not THE most laid-back class of my entire undergrad. Don’t get me wrong, it was work, but not the kind of work that sprouted a garden of silver hairs upon thine crown. It was fun, dare I say, therapeutic work.

With my CS undergrad, I don’t get many chances to be creative. Yes, there are opportunities to design and develop applications, but most of these projects have been group work, and not truly, solely my own. This blog is my own. These words are my own. These thoughts are sometimes my own, but they are also explanations of already documented topics in my own derivation (it’s something, ok). I like having a space where I can just be myself for a moment. This space is not something I’ve had before or believed I needed until it was in front of me.

From start to finish, these blog posts have been helpful in breaking the monotonous mould of code this, code that, and they have really allowed me to find a voice in something for the first time in a long time.

The random girl from the movie, "Mean Girls" that confessed her feelings to everybody. The text says, "I wish I could bake a cake made out of rainbows and smiles."
“She doesn’t even go here!!”

Ok enough sap, after today I may still post here and there, but probably not weekly. Although I’m planning to take 4-6 months off after I graduate (burnout is my best friend) so maybe this blog will be more in the forefront of my noggin.

So, with that said, thank you for being there on this journey!

Adios! It’s been a slice, and I’m excited to see what life beyond graduation holds👩🏻‍🎓. Good luck with your life! Byeeee.

A picture of a very excited grad.

It’s Fine

I wish I knew before

I wish someone had told me

At least now

I’m here to help myself 

It hurts to hit rock bottom 

It hurts when no one is there

It hurts to see failure standing there

Standing there with a vicious grin

I can’t express enough

How much it hurts to be tormented 

Tormented by what could be 

It hurts when they say it’ll be fine

When it won’t 

It can’t be fine if I’m not fine

It hurts to live with this guilt 

That you’re doing something wrong 

Maybe I am doing something wrong 

No

I’m definitely doing something wrong

I’m absolutely doing something wrong

But I can’t help it

I needed someone to tell me

I needed someone to be there

When I was screaming my silent screams

But now I’m fine

They were right 

It’s fine

Everything is fine

All is fine in their eyes 

But they don’t see what’s in the dark

They don’t see what’s happening 

They don’t know what’s going on

Don’t worry I’ve learned

I’ve learned that I must be fine

If all around me is fine

Then I am fine

Absolutely fine

Week 12: Community Guidelines

Since, the beginning I have wanted my website to be a place where my content and online persona would basically be very true to who I am in real life. I wanted it to be a place where I can post my writing stuff without judgment and without worry. That is also the type of community I want to create. The type of community that helps each other, gives advice, gives feedback, and is just a place to be your true inner self.

Over the past couple of weeks (more like months, but let’s go with weeks) I have been creating, developing, and improving my website and my content to fully show my online persona, both my website and my creator personas, as well as look further into my audience and other key aspects of my website. Thinking about all that made me realize that I should probably create some community guidelines and figure out ways to implement them as well (even if I don’t actually have a community).

Alright, let’s do this! First things first, the community guidelines for my website. Let’s get this thing started, the community guidelines for my website are basically like any other guidelines that people with any basic human decency already follow. These basic guidelines include the usual… 

  1. Treat others how you want to be treated (I know it is cliche, but it is important)
  2. Be respectful of other people and their opinions
  3. Communicate with kindness
  4. Be polite
  5. Do not post personal information
  6. Report anything that is rude, harmful, disrespectful, etc.
  7. Be mindful of your behaviour on the website and toward others
  8. Treat everyone equally
  9. Do not share other peoples’ stuff without their permission
  10. Remember to express yourselves (in ways that do not harm others)

I personally believe that the best way to implement these (extremely basic and common) guidelines would be to obviously set an example and follow them perfectly to the very last letter. Another way to implement them would be to keep an eye out to see how my (non-existent) community interacts on my website and take action accordingly if someone were to go against the community guidelines.

I guess those are my very simple community guidelines that should be extremely easy to follow! Always remember that this website was created by a weirdo (me), so that I could finally have a place to be free to post my type of writing content and I want to keep it that way!

Sign that says good vibes only

Community Guideline

This process post is for November 29th, 2022 on community guidelines.

I want my site to create safe and ethical conversations about topics I have talked about through my podcast. Of course it is important to acknowledge that all individuals should feel safe and that their voices are being heard, so the guideline is making that happen. In the guideline:

  1.  I want to include that this site is a safe space for everyone. This includes everyone with different beliefs, religions, mindsets, etc. However, everyone must respect each other. 
  2. No type of harassment is acceptable on this site, nor to the community outside of the site that my audience may be a part of together. 
  3. No spamming is allowed on the site
  4. No promotion on the site that may involved with illegal content

If the audience cannot follow one of the guidelines, they would be contacted by myself for a warning. If the behaviour continued, they would be blocked from accessing this site.

Week 12 Process Post: Community Guidelines (for now) + Farewell (for now)

Apparently, I need to have some sort of Community Guidelines… For who? I guess Suzanne and Lauren may be thinking that I have actually gathered Dished viewers to Vancouver Gems. As previously mentioned in process post 11, I would have to actually expand myself onto other platforms.

Though hypothetically, my community guidelines would incorporate approving comments on my website. If you scroll to the footer or look to the right, it says “No comments to show.” Well, that is because I haven’t enabled them. Enabling comments would be suitable for my blog as engagement and traffic would grow.

Implementing this will hopefully not attract bots…not that it has happened before…

FAREWELL!

I guess this last process post is also a farewell, farewell to PUB 101. Is it an actual goodbye? Nope! See you in PUB 201! (if I decide I can handle next semester’s course load)

Peer Review 1

I was requested to evaluate Lily’s blog, Knitting After Hours. I was astounded by how well-designed the website appeared when I initially clicked the link to it. Lily’s website is well-organized and put together, while we have just begun developing our website.

During the day, Lily studies, and at night, she knits. She intends to highlight her accomplishments and successful ventures. She discusses twist socks in the part on her knitting endeavours. I had the impression that I was speaking with Lily directly while reading the post. Even though I’ve never been interested in knitting socks, it was interesting, hilarious, and engaging enough to have me wanting to learn more.

Going through Lily’s website made me immediately take note of the images she included to each post. Since I like to see things visually versus mentally picturing them, I am a huge photo enthusiast. When I clicked on the post because there was an image, I instantly felt as though I understood everything Lily was saying. I loved that there was an image and a brief description of the post before you read it. I really appreciated how she combined visuals and links to the topics she was discussing.

In between the white and black on Lily’s site, there is this lovely yellow colour. The colour palette she is utilising, in my opinion, has a strong knitting connection. It is quite relaxing and does not overwhelm. Because of all the categories she has established, I had no trouble finding her posts. She has developed links to the knitting patterns she uses in her work.

I immediately recognise what Lily is attempting to advertise when I visit her website. She wants to share her experience with each project because she is so passionate about knitting. Regarding the goals she has for her website, I had no questions. Lily strikes me as funny and as someone who is well-versed in website editing.

I’ll sum up my evaluation by saying that she’s organised and can knit. She did mention that she would be include food and playlists in her “about me” section. Because I adore food, I can’t wait to see her prepare recipes. Her website will have content that goes beyond knitting, which is incredibly interesting. Additionally, I really appreciate how she’ll be sharing her own playlist. If she included a category of projects, she’s interested in trying, I think it would be interesting. Additionally, she might mention where she gets the yarn or give advice for it. It’s interesting to hear about what she does, but to keep people interested, she should provide more advice. I’d love to learn how to knit, so I’ll be sure to visit her page more frequently.

Lily’s website is knittingafterhours.com.

Korean Corn Dogs.

Never in my life have I eaten a corn dog. Never had a strong desire to give it a try or find out more about it.

While I was visiting a friend, she expressed a desire for a Chung Chun Rice Dog Korean corn dog. I suggested that because we were both hungry and I am the pickiest eater ever, we try it.

We travelled to Burnaby’s Location, located at 4428 Beresford Street. From 11:30 am until 11:00 pm, it is open. Its brightness and simplicity caught my attention right away. It seemed strange that there was nowhere to sit down and eat, in my opinion. You order your dish and then wait for it to be freshly deep-fried in the incredibly small restaurant. There are 17 sauces and spices to choose from after it is prepared. They will put the sauce and seasoning on for you. 

I bought a Chung Chun Original, which is a full-flavored beef sausage, and a Half Mozzarella, which is a mixed-meat and cheese sausage. I chose several condiments for every corn dog. My original corn dog was topped with honey butter, sweet mayo, honey mustard, and ketchup. Teriyaki, sweet chilli, and sweet mayo were the flavours in my half-mozzarella corn dog. I’ll just say, WOW! It was incredible.

The price was roughly around 12$.

Rating was 9/10.

Would I go again? YES.

Clothing With A Twist

Each day thousands of individuals make efforts to venture into the fashion industry by creating a clothing brand, yet few are able to succeed. On Tiktok, Instagram or even Reddit, I often see people posting their ideas, drafts, or launching their collection for a clothing line. A lot of the people starting their brands have very similar products to the rest of the industry, and many follow suit with current trends. 

 

The clothing brand that I have chosen to showcase today is the opposite of those start-up brands, in the sense that it is unique. CurrieGoat (real name Denzel) is an artist who makes a variety of different types of clothing, accessories, and home products. He does both the creative design and labor for all of his products and it is evident by the quality. Denzel has videos on youtube where he breaks down every step in the creation of his products. He walks through choosing the designs, drawing the design in photoshop, and the detailed process of sewing the product. The result of this hard work is spectacular-looking products that are known to be high quality. Denzel’s visually pleasing patterns and colors are a staple in all of his products, you can see similar patterns re-appear as you scroll through his Instagram page. Another interesting selling point of Denzel’s brand is his range of products. Denzel has made handbags, rugs, hoodies, shoes, and even a table. Lastly, I wanted to showcase one way Denzel is adding new elements to the fashion industry. In one of Denzel’s recent posts, he videos the rug that he made with his phone, then on his phone the rug starts doing an animation. I was blown away by the creative processes of adding augmented reality to fashion. I can only imagine what’s next for Denzel as he continues to break norms in the fashion world. 

The post Clothing With A Twist first appeared on Astrometrics.

Fashion + 3D printing

I remember being in sixth grade when my teacher told our class about something that blew my mind. She told us that there was a such thing as a 3D printer, where instead of putting ink onto paper, you could print out a real object. My mind was blown, my friends and I then went to Youtube and watched videos of 3D printing being done. I remember thinking,” this can be the solution to so many problems, it’s like being able to create something out of nothing”. However, since the 6th grade, I rarely hear about 3D printing and I nearly forgot that it existed. That’s why seeing the impressive application of the machine, done by young artist “yalocaloffgod” re-ignited that childhood wonder. 

Yalocaloffgod (real name drew) is an artist that I have been following on instagram for a long time due to his unique cartoons of famous rappers. One day however I saw multiple images of him being re-posted on my feed by other pages. His accessories for apple AirPods max had gone viral, and he was getting recognition across his page. 

I too found the idea to be remarkable as it combined technology and fashion into one. I was impressed by the sheer creativity to have that idea and then the bravery to apply it in a functional manner. After the success of his first model, drew released multiple other designs, each more creative than the last, one was even made from lego. Drew also showed the behind-the-scenes of how he made the accessory, showing the 3D model on his computer and the printing of the headphones. 

I think the implication of Drew’s innovation is also of a large magnitude. After seeing these headphone accessories on my page, I saw other people also customizing their headphones in their own style. I think that the world of fashion may have latched onto Drew’s idea, not only of customizing headphones but the style that Drew used as well. Even more so, I think that posts like these may inspire upcoming artists to also implicate 3D modeling and printing into their art creations and in fashion. 

 

The post Fashion + 3D printing first appeared on Astrometrics.

Photography

The first photographer I would like to showcase is @thezairul, a creator from Kula Lumpur Malaysia. The moment I saw one of their posts my attention was captured immediately. The reason for this was because of the seemingly impossible photos that zairul seemed to capture. At frist glance, the photoshop is done so well that the impossible illusions seem real. Each post on zairul’s feed makes you question physics and reality and bring you into a fantasy world that looks so fake yet so real at the same time. Although some of the posts are a little repetitive I think this creative approach to photography as well as a great way to attract new people that may not be into photography. The image of zairul’s that I have attached is one of my favorites from their page. Staring at this photo I feel engrossed in a magical space in my brain. This photo captures how I feel on a late-night drive with my favorite song playing on the speakers. It makes me feel a combination of adventure, mystery, and peace. The amount of detail in the photo is also something that greatly impresses me. The way that the windshield of the BMW is consistent with the background and how the horizon where the road cuts off fits in perfectly are details that show that a lot of hard work has been put into the editing.

The second photographer that I have chosen to display is Kerry Skarbakka who is an artist as well as a professor of photography. This choice was a little more abstract and weird as a little dive into Kerry Skarbakka’s work and you will find some strange photos. Nonetheless, I found his project “the struggle to right oneself” to be something unique and eye-catching. Skrbakka describes his photos as capturing the “sublime metaphorical space where balance has been disrupted and the definitive point-of-no-return has been met.” Skrarbakka shows us visually how it feels to let go during a struggle. He shows that letting yourself go and fail away into nothingness is just as scary as continuing to suffer through whatever is burdening you. My personal interpretation of the photo that I have selected is the sinking feeling of fear. I feel as though Skarbakka has been able to capture that exact moment when your stomach sinks and a shock runs through your body.

The post Photography first appeared on Astrometrics.

Scary But INTRIGUING: Jesse Kanda

This post is one that may stand out for reasons that are different than usual, today we are looking at the work of Jesse Kanda. Jesse Kanda is an artist and musician who was bought up in Canada but is currently situated in London. Jesse has worked with other popular musicians and even provides visuals for the fashion label “Hood by Air”. Kanda’s art is known for being different, my first impression of it was something along the lines of “haunting”. There is, however,  a purpose and message behind Kanda’s frighting drawings. Kanda has stated in a Dazed 100 interview “The inside of our body is much more beautiful than the skin that coats it, yet we’re afraid of it. When you see blood or organs, you sense pain and danger. (Todd, 2016)” Kanda’s goal is to bring out the beauty in things that are not conventionally visually appealing.  In the same interview, he states “part of my goal is to present ‘disgusting’ things as something beautiful,(Todd, 2016)”. Although this type of art is not my usual cup of tea, I can understand Kanda’s motives and overall message. When I look at Kanda’s work I get a sense of monstrosity and beauty at the same time, which is something that is very rare. Another thing I like about Kanda’s work is the contrast between different drawings. In the two photos that I have showcased above, you can see a huge difference in the aura they give off. It’s like one represents euphoria, growth, and life, while the other represents pain, suffering, and death. One other thing I like about Kanda’s work is its uniqueness and bravery. In the world of social media, creators often follow trends and copy what others do; Kanda’s work stands out from the crowd, and that’s how it caught my eye. Now that I’ve seen Kanda’s art, I don’t know if I should be excited or scarred to listen to his music. 

The post Scary But INTRIGUING: Jesse Kanda first appeared on Astrometrics.

The Intricate World-Building Of Gibson Hazard

When it comes to directing music videos,  album trailers, and million-dollar advertisements, there is one person in the business whose work is in a league of its own. That director is Gibson Hazard, a creator that I have looked up to for years.  Before I dive into what makes his work so great let’s have a look at some of his work. 

 

The first thing that separates Hazard from nearly every other music video director in the game right now is his use of 3D modeling. Hazard is able to model precise objects, build landscapes and animate the world he has created using these objects. He is also able to seamlessly integrate elements of real footage and 3D modeling together. Many other directors are able to use these techniques, but none are able to combine all four at such a high level. Let’s break down each technique and analyze how Hazard is able to add his magic to them. 

 

First building precise objects. Building a simple 3D model with little detail on software such as Blender or Element 3D can take hours to do alone. Hazard takes this to the next level by adding every precise detail possible, including shadows, lighting, texture, glow, etc. An example is this is the jeep used in the Lil Uzi Vert music video “I just wanna rock”. 

 

If you look closely at the jeep you can see the nails on the back, patterns on the tire, and shading on the sides of the car. When the car is in motion in the video you can see the light bounce off of it and the shadows move off the car. 

Gibson Hazard is able to use these models to build a world that encompasses you when you watch his videos. In all of his videos, the background detail is always fully complete, giving you the feeling that you have actually entered the world that he has created. For example in the VMA’s video above, if you pause the video at any moment, and examine the background you will not be disappointed, whether that be in the carnival, the bridge, the subway or the city. 

Lastly when watching Hazard’s videos, a sense of motion is always felt. Gibson is able to build anticipation and excitement by leading you through the video with clever transitions. There is not one dull frame, as there is constant stimulation at every corner of your screen. That is what makes the video feel alive. This technique coupled with some of the best sound design in the industry makes for a jaw dropping video. Hazard adds to the feeling of motion by adding sounds that signal the animations. If you were to watch the VMA video above with your eyes closed you can still get a pretty good feel of what is going on in the video, and the added bonus is that the sounds stand out more (they’re so crisp). 

It’s so great to see Hazard being commissioned by huge brands and artists to do work for them, however, I feel like his name is still relatively unknown. I hope one day he is recognized as a great, and that he continues to build his legacy. 

 

The post The Intricate World-Building Of Gibson Hazard first appeared on Astrometrics.

Update on the Audience

This post talks about the audience of my blog after starting to personalize the site more.

Since the last time I posted, I have made quite a bit of change to both the visual and the content visibility of the site. I mentioned in the process post back in October that I would like to make this site feel more like me and start to do something else that is not writing. Since then, I have started uploading podcasts every week and recently posted unedited videos on the site. Surprisingly but not really, I find joy in the uploading process again! Although I know that it will not be perfect like my YouTube videos, I can speak my thoughts and keep those funny little moments. Those moments are the portions that make my posts unique. I laugh at myself, I make jokes, and I ask questions. The audience can be a part of the conversation. Instead of making it a monologue, it is more like a dialogue.

Once I start creating this vlog, I get to put the pressure off as an “Influencer” and become who I am both in person and online. The audience is informed about who I am as a creator through my choice of content on the page. Putting myself outside of my comfort zone during the most stressful semester I have ever experienced, I can feel like myself again. And the audience can feel that! Although I still receive no comments on any posts, I see an increase of numbers in views on my YouTube videos. It would be impossible for people to find my content since I haven’t posted anything for the past 3 months, other than checking this blog out! I am excited to see this site grow and see the potential of what I can do as a creator! More to come!

Community Guidelines & Comments – Week 12

Here are Astrometrical’s new community guidelines:

Thank you for visiting Astrometrical, on this site you are encouraged to broaden your tastes in art and contribute to the community by adding your thoughts to the collage. This site’s purpose is to inspire you as an individual and bring attention to those hard-working individuals who deserve it. Here are the following guidelines on how to best engage with the astrometrical community

 

Please Do:

Interact with others and voice your opinions on the blog and featured posts

Be respectful and patient with others on the site

Give constructive feedback on your experience on Astrometrical

 

Please don’t:

Use any form of hate speech, whether it be racism, sexism, homophobia, or any other form of discrimination

Post links  to your own pages to “self-promote” or any other forms of spam

Breach privacy of others on the site by posting personal information (doxing)

 
 

 

Part 2: Navigating Social Media Waters

Related to the idea of community guidelines is the social conduct of individuals online, specifically, in comment sections. This week I had the opportunity to read an article by Aubrey Hirsch (2022) where she describes the struggles she faces online as a female journalist. The article was truly shocking for me, as the whole time I was reading I could not shake the sinking feeling in my stomach. Hirsch described the misogyny, racism, and rudeness that she experiences every day simply for posting comics as a journalist. The examples she provided were truly vulgar and loathsome. However, there was one part of Hirsch’s article that was particularly horrifying for me to read, and that was when she talked about how the hate she receives online translates to attacks in the real world. Hirsch writes “Remind me to tell you the funny story about the time my internet stalker called my boyfriend’s cell phone. Remind me to tell you about the time I came home and my front door was unlocked and I spent 15 minutes standing in the rain trying to remember if I’d double-checked it before I went out “(2022). Hirsch also talks about a time when strangers came to her house and launched dinner plates at her. Personally, I know if I was faced with that kind of pressure and that level of threat on a daily basis, I would constantly be in a state of paranoia. 

The examples that Hirsch provided reminded me of some other examples of threats in the online world being pursued in real life. One that I had just seen recently was a case of swatting. For those who don’t know, swatting is when someone on the internet finds your address, and calls the local police saying that there is a severe crime (ex, hostage situation) occurring at your address. The swat team then arrives at your house and many times this situation arrives in disaster, as an innocent person is killed or injured. Adin Ross, a streamer that I used to watch was recently swatted. Since he was live at that time, you can see the fear in his eyes as he begs his viewers not to swat people. 

To someone who is not internet famous like myself, I am always in shock when I hear stories of individuals with malicious intent trying to harm someone online. Hirsch has done a wonderful job illustrating the importance of moderation and regulations against hate speech and reminding me of the pressures those who make their livelihood online face. Moving forward as a community, I think we should show more support for our favorite online creators and each do our part by reporting the threats and hate speech we see online. 

 

Hirsch, A. (2022, February 2). That’s How It Works When You’re a Woman on the Internet. 

The post Community Guidelines & Comments – Week 12 first appeared on Astrometrics.

Process Post #11: Transmedia Integration

This process post was intended for Week 12, November 29, 2022.

Am I doing this transmedia integration stuff right? I do have two social media accounts as an extension of my current website. So I think I am on the right track? According to the blog, “Pokemon as Transmedia Storytelling” from Kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com (2013) with words from Henry Jenkins, “Transmedia storytelling is a process. Elements of a fiction get dispersed across multiple media for the purpose of creating a coordinated entertainment experience” (Jenkins, 2009). While transmedia integration does not directly mean social media integration—that’s the way I’m going to interpret it for this process post.

After reading the Pokemon blog, I had a good idea of what transmedia integration was— simply put, it is creating something that can be translated across different forms of media such as magazines, movies, tv shows or even a video game—these were things I knew weren’t really possible for my TessDrives site. Something that is possible for the website is the social media aspect of it. Currently my website translates across two different social media sites, YouTube and TikTok. In a way, you could say I’m on the right track?

My YouTube channel currently has a total of 1,327 views and my TikTok currently has a total of 1093 views. These are some pretty impressive numbers given the amount of subscribers and followers I have across both platforms. If I have to be honest, I did start my YouTube channel much before this Pub 101 class started but the TikTok account was actually created during the first week of class—so I am definitely impressed with the latter.

If this class were to extend longer, I would definitely work on establishing TessDrives as a recognizable username that translates across all social media platforms. Those who prefer longer educational videos would turn to YouTube, those who prefer shorter videos would go to TikTok, and those who prefer looking at photos of my Tesla would go to Instagram. I believe this would be an effective way to capture a larger audience with different types of preferences.

Featured photo from: B. Tenderich (2015). Transmedia Branding vs. Integrated Marketing: What’s the Difference? LinkedIn. Retrieved from: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/transmedia-branding-vs-integrated-marketing-whats-burghardt-tenderich

References:

POKEMON AS TRANSMEDIA STORYTELLING (2013). Retrieved from: https://kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/pokemon-as-transmedia-storytelling/