Coffee talk

On August nineteenth American reporter James Foley who worked for Global Post was beheaded by ISIS an Islamic group that stretches from Syria to Iraq.. Foley was kidnapped back in 2012 while reporting in Syria where he reportedly went missing. Video of the beheading can be found online but I find it too gruesome to show here.

The timeline of events is simple, James Foley was kidnapped in in 2012 and never heard from again. Obama decided as of late to start taking military action against Iraq due to the uprising of ISIS which caused the resurfacing of Foley. ISIS decided to behead Foley live in front of his family on camera for Obama to watch so he can understand how serious they are.

If you remember back to the Bush administration there were many beheadings of American journalists over seas. It was so bad I feel like most journalists didn't even want to report overseas for fear of getting kidnapped and possibly beheaded.

If you also remember a few years ago Obama made an attempt at bringing back kidnapped journalists. When the operation went sour he seemingly gave up. Now that Foley has been beheaded we already have boots on the ground. This comes after we were supposedly supposed to have all troops pulled out of Iraq. Seriously though, we all know that was never true. some of us might even know a troop or two who is still deployed in Iraq. I fear that our military presence will never end over there.

With a newly reestablished military presence in Iraq we will surly see a rise in the death toll of American soldiers and a new wave of jingoism here in America. For me personally I am not happy to hear any of this especially with Obama publicly stating that we officially have "boots on the ground" again.

What's really at play here is Obama not doing enough prior to save Foley and the other journalists overseas that have been kidnapped. Foley is just the tip of the ice berg in a war that most of the US at this point doesn't want to get involved in. Now I'm all for patriotism (although I'd rather live in Canada) but this is insane. We were supposed to be out of Iraq but Obama can't help but stick his fingers where they don't belong. I'm not saying here that we shouldn't do something about this but I don't think another war is the right answer.

With all of this going down this is just one more thing that our generation is going to have to clean up from our parents (not blaming our parents) generation. They seem to gravitate toward violence while we flock to social media and tell the real story.

Speaking of social media I want you all to tell me your thoughts by tweeting me @prepidemic with the #TPcoffeetalk.

xoxo Rebecca

Confessions of a news junkie

If your anything like me your news stand on your iPad is chalk full of magazine subscriptions and your front door littered with newspapers every morning. You probably percolate a pot of black coffee on the stove or go and get a tall blonde roast from Starbucks and sit down and start processing all the new information you have just been handed. You might even be inclined to write a tweet or take an Instagram photo or two.

Every morning I wake up and make myself either a pot of coffee or a pot of tea it depends on my mood. I take out my iPad and start from top to bottom flipping through every News app from CNN to the Guardian to The BBC. It usually takes me a little over an hour to go through my news apps alone not to mention all the related content linked within over half of the articles. Don't even get me started on days when a new issue of Time or News Week comes out.

Sometimes though when I'm especially desperate to read a newspaper I can be found driving around to just about every local place that has free papers bumming a copy of everything I can find. Most of the time I don't even order anything I just sit down and read the paper or even worse just grab one and go. I even have a list of places and what papers they carry like for instance a popular Italian sandwich shop down the street carries a small time paper called "The Coffee Times".

Even when I'm at work I'm scrolling my Twitter feed searching for new articles posted by the New York Times magazine or CNN. It's crazy how much I absorb myself in popular culture and the amount of news I read. I feel as though I don't have anyone that I can sit down with a nice cup of tea and talk current events.

I confess that a lot of my friends are getting really tired of me saying "hey, wanna hear something interesting?" or "You should check out this article I just read" or even worse "I wanted to get your opinion on (long story)." I've always made the joke that I would make a good news anchor because I could ramble on for hours about crap no one seems to care about and get paid for it.

In the end when it comes to hard news I feel like every story no matter how personal has a price. These days It seems like everything is for sale in America and everyone wants to get a slice of the delicious pie called capitalism. I feel like I'm just another player in the game hungry to read it all and that's exactly what I do.

What's your opinion towards news and the media?

xoxo Rebecca

What your probably missing from your college packing list

As many of us gear up to go back to school we can't help but think to ourselves "did I forget something?". We go over our list again and again making sure we have it all and give ourselves a pat on the back for not forgetting anything this time around (or the first time). It's not until we arrive on campus only to get the dreaded call from mom saying you left your clothes in the dryer or I have your phone charger.

I remember my freshman year, I was so eager to get to college and move in. I had so many ideas for decorating my dorm room. I even requested to move in early so I could get the better side of the room. After all your going to be living there for the next two semesters right? Alas as the first week came to a close I already had a pretty big list of things I either forgot or needed to go out and get. In hopes that you won't befall the same fate as me here are my top ten items that you don't want to forget when packing for college.

Power strip- Dorm rooms are notorious for not having enough outlets. It's a good bet that the room your moving into doesn't either so you should pack a long power strip. Your going to want to be able to plug in your laptop, cell phone, alarm clock and just about everything else in your bag not to mention curling iron for when your going out so the longer the strip the better.

 Ethernet cable- Not all dorms come with wifi and almost all campuses don't allow students to have their own especially if it's not offered. If you don't have a long enough Ethernet cable to reach that plug that just so happens to be on your roommates side of the room your going to have a hard time doing work let alone arranging your dorm room to accommodate your short cord.

Advil- I can't tell you how many times I woke up on a Sunday morning with a headache so bad all I wanted to do was go back to sleep. What's worse is that most of those times I didn't even have Advil to stop the pain. It's a good idea to bring the largest bottle of asprin you can find. I prefer the Advil liquid gels because of hoe fast acting they are.

Box fan- Most colleges don't offer air conditioning to their students in their rooms so It's a really good idea to bring one of these. The smaller fans are alright but a box fan can go in your window and trust me it makes all the difference when it's 98 degrees outside and you're stuck in your dorm room writing a paper.

Command strips- These seem to be the standard wall hanger in all college dorms. They go on easy and come off even easier (sometimes). I love using these because I can literally stick them anywhere and hang just about anything even my collection of bags. If your looking for a cheap way to hang things on the wall without having to worry about it falling off every 5 minutes because your tape isn't strong enough then invest in a bunch of these.

External hard drive- You never know when technology is going to fail on you, it's a smart idea to keep your files backed up. Your going to be thankful that you did when you spill that mixer all over your laptop and seemingly lose the term paper you've been working so hard on the past few weeks. I can't tell you how many of my friends broke their computers or had a hard drive crash and didn't back up their files before hand.

Umbrella- Rain can strike at any time even when it feels like the most beautiful day of the year the weather can change in an instant. My freshman year it rained so hard my dorm actually flooded once and I was so unprepared. Your going to regret it when you just finish doing your hair and you look out your window to see a big storm cloud pouring down rain so hard you wished class was canceled. 

Febreze- I may not have a great sense of smell but let me tell you when you wake up on a Sunday morning and your sheets smell like you threw up a whole handle of tequila you'll be happy to know you can at least make your dorm room smell like Spring flowers even when you don't. Or when your roommate decides to go all natural and not shower for a week your going to rest easy knowing you can febreze the crap out of their side of the room when their gone.

Shower sandals- College dorm bathrooms are disgusting (yes even the girls bathrooms are gross). After the girl living in the room next to you tries to make it to the toilet to boot but barely makes it through the door it'll be nice to have something to wear that isn't one of your nice pairs of shoes. It's a good idea to buy cheap sandals like the Old Navy rubber sandals. Their great for the shower because they don't retain any water and are easy to slip on and off.

Band-Aids- I'm a bit accident prone, I go through almost a box of band aids every couple of weeks. When I was in college it seemed as if I didn't have a band-Aid on something was wrong. Bring a few boxes in varying sizes and styles. Like clear ones for when your going out or water proof ones for when your getting in the shower. Try to avoid the tough strips though because they leave a sticky residue that's near impossible to get off without feeling like your scrubbing your skin away trying to do so.

What's on you essential packing list?

xoxo Rebecca

Coffee talk

If you haven't been watching the news in the past week then you might want to drop by your favorite social media outlet and look up Michael Brown.

Here's a quick recap/timeline of events.

On Sunday August 9th at about a hair past noon a call came into the Ferguson Missouri police department dispatch from another officer saying a young black male had been shot. The officer claimed it was a self defense shooting ie. he reached for the officers gun and the officer shot him.

What had happened is that a call was made about a robbery. The store clerk gave the dispatcher directions as to where the suspect was heading. Police later found eighteen year old Michael Brown walking in an area near where the supposed suspect was to be located. The officer stopped Brown and that's where the whole thing gets fuzzy.

The story quickly escalates as word spreads from eye witnesses that the officer blatantly shot Brown who was unarmed and cooperating with the officer because he was black.

Later that night a candlelight vigil was held in honor of Brown which soon turned violent as officers try to break it up. As a result over a dozen businesses are looted in protest.

Monday August 11th school is canceled as a safety precaution to walking students. Later that day hundreds of people gather in front of the Ferguson PD to protest Browns death. Police arrest at least seven of the protesters. Later that day the NCAAP holds a meeting to pray for Brown and an end to the violence. That night protesters in Ferguson are tear gassed for not protesting peacefully.

Tuesday August 12th the Ferguson police announce they have arrested fifteen people in connection to the protests.

Wednesday August 13th Ferguson police lock down the city blocking all media from entering and covering the story. They also detain two reporters from the Huffington Post and Washington post.

Saturday August 16th Governor Nixon issues a state of emergency and imposes a curfew in the Ferguson area.


What I think....

The reason this escalated so quickly and is picking up international concern so quickly is because this isn't just about a police officer shooting a man. This is about the police being bias toward blacks, it's about freedom and justice.

Michael Brown was an unarmed black civilian and the police shot and killed him in cold blood. That right there ladies and gentlemen is what this is all about. Peaceful protesters getting shot at with tear gas and rubber/wooden bullets because their protesting the shooting of an innocent black man.

Throughout the history of the US the justice department has favored white people to some degree. There are countless cases to use as a precedent to back that statement up and this shooting just creates another one. As a believer of libertarianism myself I am all about justice and freedom of speech. I believe that as Americans we all have equal rights as is stated in the constitution plain and simple. The fact that every time a black person is shot by a police officer just adds to the stigma that the police don't care about the rights of African Americans in this country which makes this is just as relevant now as it was back in 1963.

What also bugs me about all this is that so many people are still so ignorant towards what's going on. Creating hash tags like "iftheygunnedmedown". So many people are using that now to post pictures of themselves in a good situation and then a bad situation and making a joke of which picture the police would use if they got shot. The problem here is they are inadvertently making fun of blacks by posting these pictures because this is an actual issue with black people. The media always finds a way to use the worst possible photo of a black person when portraying them. Every time someone black ends up in the news there's always a photo of them drinking, smoking, looking thuggish etc to accompany it and it bothers me that people still don't get it.

Media is always out to create a commotion and to stir the pot. They always find a way to negatively portray a situation. As Abraham Lincoln once said “If you look for the bad in people expecting to find it, you surely will.” All you need to do is look at someones Facebook or read some of their tweets and that's all you'll need. Social media makes it so easy now-a-days to twist a story from "Boy scout saves cat in the street" to drunken teen gets hit by car while walking in the middle of the road". Remember, media is NOT always your friend. Don't always trust what you hear on tv or read in the paper.

As the whole situation has yet to resolve itself I would love to hear what you have to say. Tell me your thoughts and opinions by tweeting me @prepidemic with the #TPcoffeetalk.

xoxo Rebecca

PSA announcement

With all these changes to the layout of this blog there are also coming other changes as well. Mainly that I will be starting a new section on Monday mornings called coffee talk in place of my old "weekly scoop" which was a bit of a spin off of something a fellow blogger currently does which is why I stopped. Coffee talk will be where I pick one topic in the news from the week prior to talk about and discuss. Think of it like Last Week Tonight with John Oliver except on a much more refined scope.

I will also be starting a few series that I plan to begin in the next week or so starting with "dining out" a series dedicated to seacoast towns and good food.

I hope you all enjoy the rest of your evening.

xoxo Rebecca

Change

So I haven't been posting here much, I've just been really busy with work and the like. I know I haven't followed through with much lately especially things like getting photos of my apartment (their coming I swear). With the school year right around the corner I really want to spend more time blogging here and building this blog. Over the next week I plan to roll out a bunch of changes and hopefully will be blogging on the daily. So lets see where this all goes.

Tips for stress free living

Everyone gets stressed out sometimes. Whether it be from work, school, a recent break up or just about anything. I like to think of stress as my everyday mid life crisis. As I am plagued with constant stress I am always searching for new ways to live a stress free life. These tips although simple are great ways to help distress and calm your mind, body and soul.

Over thinking it
I know this is something that's been way over stressed to a lot of us but don't over think it. One of the biggest things you can do to help you relieve stress is to not over think anything. As soon as you start it's like a chain reaction and you can't stop. There's no reason to over think anything. Life isn't going anywhere anytime soon. If you just take a minute to breathe you'll realize that there's no reason to get so worked up over it.

Yoga
When I'm alone and have the time I like to do some yoga. Unlike other members of my family who do yoga all the time I do not. I only know some basic things but i'm telling you it works. Yoga is all about relaxation, breathing, flexibility and inner peace. If I need to distress my mind, body and soul yoga does the trick. It allows me to relax and feel at peace with my inner self.

Going for a drive
I drive a low mileage SUV which makes this hard but when I have stress on my mind I love to take a drive. For me getting in my car, putting some relaxing music on and taking a long drive calms me down and distresses my mind. I especially like to take a drive down the coast, it's one of the most beautiful and tranquil drives. I often pull over and just gaze out at the ocean sometimes for hours on end.

Walking the beach
Walking the beach in the early AM when there isn't really anyone there is so relaxing. The smell of the salt water and sound of the waves lapping against the shoreline is so calming. If you live near a body of water and can wake up early enough to catch the sunrise it's one of the most beautiful things.

Drinking tea
I don't know what it is about tea but for me it's a really soothing experience. Now I'm not talking about going to Starbucks and ordering an iced chai although very refreshing. No, I'm talking about brewing a nice cup of hot tea. I prefer loose leaf tea like mate but the bag teas are just as nice sometimes. Even in the heat of summer there's just something about coming home and having a cup of tea. There are a lot of different kinds of tea out there and it's hard to find the right one. Most tea enthusiasts like myself have a large collection of various blends but if you were to ask me what I like the most I would have to say either peppermint or Yerba Mate. If you don't know what mate is it's an Argentinian loose leaf tea. It's meant to be made in a large quantity and steeped for a long time to really bring out the flavor. It's the perfect tea for someone who enjoys strong scents or black coffee.