D-Week

So it's been forever and a day since I last posted, and here's the reason: The last month of school is always the most stressful.

However, this hasn't kept me from going to some of the activities held this month.

One activity I went to was the D-Week events. This year I went to the D-Queen pageant, which I have to say was the best pageant I've seen at Dixie in a long time. I sat in the front row and took video footage of the event for the newspaper. Here's the clip if you missed it.



I also got the chance to be the team captain of the Dixie Sun's very first Great Race team. Boy, did I underestimate the strength needed to do that race! I participated in the swimming leg of the race. You have to jump in the pool either sitting on, laying on, or laying in an inner tube. You do two 25 foot laps and then jump out of the pool to run the baton to the next person.

To begin with, I embarrassed the heck out of myself by accidentally mistaking my little sister's swimsuit for my own. That proved to be a problem when getting out of the pool. But once I actually did get out of the pool, I was exhausted! I could hardly run to the next person on my team! So to give you a glimpse at how the Great Race went, take a look at this clip.



The last thing I participated in this month was the Dixie Awards. I was nominated as the Outstanding Female Student of the year, and I really have no clue why. I didn't expect anything, and am not surprised that I lost. My problem I have with the Dixie Awards is unless you are winning an academic award, the different award nominees tend to be mainly student government members. It's been like this for as long as I've been there. Once I saw the final nominees I knew I really didn't have a chance, because I was the only non-student government member of the category. It was an honor to be nominated, but I suggest that DSC honor more students than student government members. I realize they do a lot, but so do so many other students on campus. But this is only one student's opinion.

Graduate Record Exam

After hours of studying, it is official. I have taken the GRE and received my scores. I am proud to say I received a 760 total, which may not seem like a very high score. However, I am proud of myself and my accomplishment. I commend those who have taken the GRE and received a much higher score than me, because it's not easy! It took a lot of studying and commitment to get what I got today, so I can only imagine what it would be like for them. Now let's see if I can be accepted into the college I'd like to attend: Southern Utah University. Fingers crossed because Master's degree, here I come!

Getting down and dirty at the Chalk Dance

It has been a goal of mine to attend more events as my senior year at Dixie State College comes to a close. One of these events happened to be the Chalk Dance on Friday.

I wasn't quite sure how it was going to be pulled off, or if there was going to be a large problem with students who were asthmatic and inhaling massive amounts of chalk. However, I was truly impressed with the way the Chalk Dance turned out! If Dixie would hold a Chalk Dance every weekend you could totally count me in!

The best part was a few newspaper staff members and I all hung out together. Not to say we didn't throw chalk at each other. LOL. The music was also very good! Kudos to the DJ. So here are a few pics along with a very short six second video. I was too afraid I'd get chalk in my Blackberry and in the camera lens.

Letter to Adi

Dear Adi,

It may seem cliche for me to be writing a letter to you online; however, I feel I need to.

I remember my excitement when I chose my first class of yours: Comm. Theory. Us newspaper girls would sit in the back of the class, and you would always say we were sure to cause trouble since we were "the media." That's when I knew I was in for a great semester.

To tell you the honest truth, I didn't know much about your cancer before attending your class. I had heard rumors and bits of information here and there, but I never really knew, and I didn't want to pry. I am very glad you were willing to share that information, though.

Halfway through the semester you changed my life. I didn't expect to get a phone call from my doctor as I was walking out of one of your many famous classes. I didn't expect it to be my OB/GYN. And I didn't expect them to tell me I may have HPV and cervical cancer.

At the time I really didn't know you had been diagnosed with cervical cancer specifically. I just walked up to you before class and apologized if I seemed distracted. You took the time to look me in the eyes--with so much empathy and understanding--and told me it would all be OK. I had cried, and you had too.

No matter how you were feeling each day, you always asked me how I was feeling, and what I had heard from the doctor. You explained each procedure to assist me in reducing my uncertainty. We even exchanged many text messages with dirty jokes to keep us laughing.

The part that always got to me though was a common quote you used to say to me. You would say "No one your age should have to go through this much medical stuff. It's just not right."

Adi, you we don't have a large gap in age difference between us. You're right, but at the same time you're wrong. No one at any age should have to go through this much medical stuff.

Toward the end I really started to get depressed knowing you were struggling. Even though you were getting sicker, you still found time to laugh with me over text messages. I didn't know how I was going to handle it when you finally left us because I couldn't help but think: what would I have done in your situation? If I had been positive for cervical cancer, would I have taken this as well as you had? Would I have had the courage and strength to continue to bless so many lives? I'm just not sure.

Before you left, you asked me one thing. You asked me to make sure your family back East received the ribbons. I want to let you know I personally handed the ribbons, along with the gift I had had for you to your brother. I'm sorry you were not able to hand them to them yourself.

So Adi, wherever you are, please don't stop listening. Please continue to inspire us and teach us. And please, never, ever stop laughing at the jokes we had. I love you Adi and miss you very much.

With love,

Casie

Mr. Dixie Pageant

I know it's been a while since I posted last. I wanted to make sure you received the full experience of the wonderfully funny event called the Mr. Dixie Pageant.

I volunteered to help a friend of mine on the newspaper who wanted to run for Mr. Dixie. Little did I know it would turn into a crazy, anxiety-inducing experience! It was definitely one of the best moments of my life, though, since I was able to break out of my social phobia box and perform on stage. I hope you enjoy!

And, yes, the back up dancers are dressed as Lady Gaga. I am on the far left of the screen, Kate Semmens (the most amazingly confident Lady Gaga rockin' it out next to me), Amanda Anderson doin' her thing in the center, Kassi Gillette shakin' her stuff, and Whitney Phillips struttin' it across the stage. Matt Jacobson is the amazing singer pulling off the Billy Idol look in the front. Thanks guys!

Mr. Dixie Pageant from Casie Forbes on Vimeo.

2010 DSC job fair a disappointment

I decided to drop by this year's job fair held in the Gardner Center Ballroom. My first surprise was when the people sitting at a desk in front of the Ballroom stopped me and required me to fill out a name tag before I could enter. If I'm coming to the activity and it's free, what's the purpose of requiring me to wear a name tag before I can enter the double doors? It's not like the people offering career opportunities are going to really remember my name. Then when I walked in I was surprised to see there weren't many people offering jobs or school information. I could not find anything to fit my interests. Last year's Employment Fair was so much better. The main reason I went was to get information from Southern Utah University representatives about its Master's programs. Well, this was another disappointment because they only had information on special education degrees and social work. Why would you not send representatives that would be able to talk about all its Masters degrees? I just don't get it. So I didn't find any job opportunities that fit me, and I left empty handed from the school tables.

It's time to find strength in ourselves

I find it very interesting how most times we do not see the best qualities in ourselves until someone else points it out.

This epitome came to me after having a very meaningful discussion with someone I admire. I told her I respected her strength during difficult situations, in which she responded she was not strong. To give a little bit of background, the woman I am speaking of is battling cancer. I can't think of any other adjective that better suits any cancer fighter than "strong." If strength doesn't work for you, you can have your choice of any of the following words:

able, able-bodied, big, capable, durable, enduring, energetic, firm, fixed, hale, hard as nails, hardy, hearty, mighty,reinforced, robust, rugged, secure, sinewy, solid, sound, stable, stalwart, stark, steady, strapping, sturdy, substantial, tenacious, tough, unyielding, vigorous, well-founded, well-made,aggressive, brave, clear, cogent, courageous, dedicated, deep, eager, fervent, fervid, fierce, firm, forceful, gutsy, handful, hard-nosed, independent, intelligent, intense, iron-willed, keen, perceptive, plucky, potent, resilient, resourceful, sagacious, self-assertive, steadfast, take charge, tenacious, tough, unbending, uncompromising, unyielding, vehement, violent, zealous.

So why is it we refuse to see what seems obvious to everyone else around us? We're constantly underestimating ourselves, seeing ourselves as insufficient. The problem is we are not insufficient. Individually we are strong, charismatic, amusing and truly amazing. There's no reason to doubt this.

It's time to take a step out of the cut-throat competition of daily life. It's time to realize our worth and utilize our best qualities. It's time to be ourselves. Let me know how you'd best describe yourself by commenting below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

23rd annual Robert N. & Peggy Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show

The 23rd annual Robert N. & Peggy Sears Dixie Invitational Art Show and Sale begins Saturday.

I had the opportunity to view the gallery today and took a couple photos to show you the upcoming, and truly amazing, works of art. I was taken aback by the meaningful contexts behind the different mediums depicting epic tales of travel and hard work. Native American images line the walls while more modern art is displayed on pedestals throughout the showroom. Sadly, I can't say I've been to many of the art shows here on campus. However, now that I've seen a few, I can advise you to not let the opportunity fly by. The Sears Art Gallery allows students and community members to view the wonderful talent located both here in town and other areas.

One of my favorite pieces in the show is by Cheryl Collins. The sculpture is titled "The Glass Heart." No one can miss the powerful sculptures standing tall with its organic-looking medium. The earthy colors are subtle, but the vibrant red heart stands out to give the sculpture meaning.

For those who would like to go see the exhibit, I have listed the times below.

Monday-Saturday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Sundays: 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.

(*Editors note: I apologize for the amateur look of these photos. They were taken from my phone since my camera died.)

Design Evaluation

Examples of good design

I found many different designs I would consider as good examples. Here are a few that caught my eye.



This first photo is a photo of Choxie chocolate, offered at Target.

Balance: Choxie uses both symmetrical and asymmetrical designs to make its products stand out. This balance can be found on both the packaging and the chocolates itself. In this photo, you can see there are both evenly balanced designs and asymmetrical designs. When looking at the three-dimensional product, it seems to be very asymmetrical. Some boxes they produce, however, are symmetrical. The circular patterns--even though they are repetitive patterns--are spaced far enough apart that if it were split down the center, it would not be obvious it was the same pattern. In addition, the asymmetrical balance is shown with the brown lid versus the blue box. The blue box takes up much more space than the brown lid on the box.

Contrast: The dark and light colors on the box contrast each other in size, texture, position, shape, color and orientation. As stated above, the asymmetrical design assists in contrasting all of these primary forms of contrast. Contrast is obvious on most Choxie products. Simply looking at the black and white chocolate design you can see the difference between contrasting shapes (the squares and circles), position (where these items are placed), color (the difference between the light and dark), and orientation (circles inside squares and squares inside circles).

Line:One of the first things I noticed was the concept of lines. Choxie utilizes a variety of lines, including vertical, horizontal and curved lines to create patterns both in the chocolate itself and the packaging. This photo shows the chocolate pieces individually without the packaging. The different uses of lines create an eye-catching display that stands out among some of its competitors.

Texture:The texture of most Choxie chocolates are very smooth and flat. This allows the designers to imprint colorful designs that come out clear and crisp on the top of individual pieces. Even the chocolate covered espresso beans have a smooth finish. This is much different from an average Hershey or Crunch bar.

Color: My favorite thing about Choxie's products is the color used to catch attention. One way to persuade me to buy a product is simply having good use of color in a design, which seems to make me want the packaging more than whatever it actually contains. The use of vibrant colors makes it stand out. The business also coordinates colors very well. I don't think I've ever seen an ugly box produced by Choxie.

Space: Choxie packaging doesn't really use negative space. The only negative space I could find that was prominent on the box of chocolate espresso beans was the brown lid. The solid brown creates a sense of negative space when contrasted with the positive space underneath it. The individual chocolates in this photo show a balance of positive and negative space through the designs imprinted on the tops. These designs wouldn't look good unless they had at least some negative space between the elements.

Shape and form:Choxie utilizes both shape and form in its packaging. It uses shape by creating designs imprinted on the box or chocolates. It uses form by the way the boxes are actually shaped. The box of espresso beans is not just a regular box; rather, it is more of a cone. Since this is not in a regular shape, it helps to stand out from any other box-shaped products. Choxie also uses hatbox shaped items and other geometric forms to stand out from its competition.

Gestalt principles: Choxie uses the laws of similarity, proximity, pragnanz, continuity and closure. Items of similar shape and size are grouped together on the packaging and individual chocolates. They are very simple forms, such as circles connecting to other circles. They also follow a path (i.e. the swirling pattern on the individual pieces). The differences in circular patterns also add to the law of closure. It's also shown on the domino-like pattern on the blue and black and-white chocolates above.

Below are a couple other designs I felt fit these principles.






Examples of bad design



This Web site is the raw form of what could be replacing our Dixie Sun Link Web site.

Balance:This Web site tries to use an asymmetrical balance to make different items stand out, such as the Utah News Channel and the placements of the two vertical navigation bars. If the Web site would have been created with three columns instead of four it would have been more properly balanced.

Contrast: Overall this site doesn't have a lot of good contrast. Most of the colors are dull and dark, with the occasional bright, random color.

Line: One of the only things I did like about this Web site was its use of lines. It uses horizontal lines to separate the different stories and vertical lines to draw the eye up to the icons. The horizontal line on the top of the page cuts the image off from the rest of the splash page, which is OK.

Texture: The attempt of texture is used on the top of the page with the Dixie rock. The image is created into an almost animated version of the actual mountain by the pixilated dots.

Color:I hate the colors. The colors look very simple and childish. They also downplay the seriousness of the Web site since they look like something any very, very beginning Web design person would pick out of clip art.

Space: There is a lot of negative space right now since the Web site is not up and running yet. Once it is running, the white space will be filled with broadcasts and text. There is also a lot of negative space with the blue horizontal navigation bar.

Shape and form:The shapes are very simple. You have the simple looking sun for the weather, boxes for news, and boxes to separate the different elements of the page. Although I'm OK with the different boxes separating the stories, I do not like the shapes used for the icons.

Gestalt principles:Since the Web site is in the very beginning stages, it does not meet most of the Gestalt principles. There are a couple laws it does meet, such as the law of similarity and the law of continuity. The law of similarity is shown through the grouping of similar shaped boxes to separate the stories, through the different navigation bars and through the grouping of icons. The law of continuity is shown on the top with the Dixie rock that continues horizontally in both directions.

**Side note** Utahnews.ch is in the very beginning stages of design. I took a very critical look at this design, but mean not to hurt any feelings. The design will be changing if the Web site is approved.

Dixie Sun

I've dedicated over five years of my life to the Dixie Sun; however, after this semester it will all be over. As I sat in class today I realized that this really is it. I remember starting out as a staff writer my senior year of high school. I volunteered in hopes of being picked for a scholarship my freshman year of college. That was in fall 2005. I started on staff as an opinion editor. That turned into the editor-in-chief position the next two years. Then I have fulfilled the role of Dixie Sun's first online editor. What I'm having a hard time digesting is the fact that it all went by so quickly.

I've seen a lot of staff members come and go. Most of the staff this semester has served with me for at least a year. I was fortunate enough to work with a few of these staff members for four years. At the end of this semester we will all part ways. A few of us may stay in St. George, and a few of us will leave. Either way I will not wake up every morning knowing I will see these close friends in newspaper every day.

As cheesy as it may sound, I can't imagine waking up without going to school in the morning. I'm looking into Master's programs and I realized I will not be going to Dixie State College after my last final in April. That is actually what determined my decision to possibly apply to work for the college. I really am keeping my fingers crossed I can be hired on asap; however, I cannot really start unless I'm in a Master's program. Eventually I look forward to possibly running the new magazine production in DSC's communication department.

To give you an opportunity to walk in my shoes for a few moments, I have added some photos below of the program that has consumed my life.



Every week we look forward to seeing these newly printed newspapers stacked outside our door. We print 2,500 papers per week and also publish online.



The Dixie Sun doesn't bind its editions anymore. But back in the day we used to bind the issues at the end of the year. There is an amazing collection of historical Dixie Sun issues. This newspaper has grown so much!



Blood, sweat and tears go into these newspapers every week. What most students don't realize is how many hours their fellow students are dedicating to publish a well-written and accurate newspaper every week. Next time you pick up a Dixie Sun, realize there is an amazing staff of students working hard for your benefit.



We work a week ahead of ourselves to produce a new newspaper. We map out our game plan and share ideas.



This is just another photo of the newsroom.



I took this photo a couple years ago and I absolutely love it. It just seemed to capture the theme of Dixie Spirit while showing the new ideas they're moving forward with. It's amazing this college has been open since 1911.



My newest assistant online editor, Kassi. She's an amazing person, and she was willing to try an anchovy all in good fun.



She didn't like it. :)



Here are some of the amazing staff members that give the Dixie Sun a heartbeat.

Contrast and Balance lab assignments

Contrast

The following images are photos I took a few years ago that I feel fall into the categories of contrast and balance.



This first image was taken with a 35 mm camera with black and white film. The first noticeable principle is the texture. It is easy to see the texture in the fur and whiskers of the cat. The audience can see the cat's face since there is a narrow depth of field, which makes it easy to see the shape of the facial features. I don't feel I did a good job with the position of the face. Maybe if it was shot with the rule of thirds in mind it would have turned out more interesting. Another aspect created by the shallow depth of field is shadow. The audience can see the shadow along the eyelids, the natural shadowing of the pattern in the fur, and also the shadowing underneath the chin and face from taking the photo from above. I couldn't determine any psychological, cultural or social contrasts of this image.

Balance



The second image was also taken on a 35 mm camera with black and white film, and displays balance and contrast in a very organic way. The position of the shot follows the rule of thirds better than the first image. I felt my eyes were drawn from the bottom of the shot and follow the natural curve of the shore. What I really like about this photo is everything in the shot is a complete organic shape. Nothing is the same size, shape or texture as anything else. This is a very asymmetrical shot, and what I like is it creates a vertical (and almost a 90 degree angle) by looking straight forward. If I would have shot this facing the water, it wouldn't have had as much impact as it did from taking the frame at this angle.

New classes with a touch of Club Rush

The spring semester has officially started so let the stress begin!

My schedule has been really hectic this week, bouncing back and forth trying to get into the new rhythm of my life. However, I have had a few chances this week to enjoy the ride and take a chance to branch out.

First, I have come to the realization that, yes, this is it. This is THE final semester. No more jokes, no more procrastination, just good ol' nose to the grindstone. You know, I never understood that saying. It's more like getting a weary mind to the textbook.

Second, I got a chance to meet students at Club Rush. I was really surprised to see how many outgoing students we have on campus. As one who's always been worried about self-image, I had a chance to realize it's OK to just let go and dance every once in a while. Here are a few photos of Dixie Sun staff members and some students on campus at the Diagnol at Club Rush.