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The author with Thomas Mason

by Ashlie Harper

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” Simple question, right? For many people it is. As for me, I’ve had a pretty clear understanding of what I’ve wanted to do for a while now, but it hasn’t come easily for me. Up until I was 18 I could not answer that question for the life of me. What did I want to be? I looked at a degree in college as a marriage…your stuck with it for the rest of your life so you better pick well. Sure, I had always loved reading books and writing stories, but is that something to make a career out of? It wasn’t until freshman year of college when it really hit me; everyone needs to communicate, so why not major in something that will perfect that skill? The sad thing is now, I’m no longer asked what I want to be, I’m asked why? Why would I spend four years and thousands of dollars to study a major that in many people’s eyes is dying? Why not go into Marketing or Business, a more “marketable” major? Those questions were answered very clearly for me in these last few weeks. Read more »

By Ashlie Harper

One of the top five days — so far — of my life, happened yesterday.

It all started with my — and my best friend Danielle’s —obsession with Oprah’s new network, OWN. Season 25: Oprah Behind the Scenes soon become our favorite show to watch together. Both of us were fascinated by not only how the show was run, but with how Oprah ran her life. It opened up our eyes to the inspiration she brings to viewers every day.

Since this is Oprah’s last season doing the show, Danielle had a great idea: try to win tickets to see her show. Obviously, it isn’t easy winning tickets considering the high demand of very dedicated viewers, and we soon realized our dream of going might never come true. So far we had received constant rejection when trying to get tickets. One day, Danielle, while searching Oprah’s website, came across an essay contest for viewers who felt they had an “Oprah and Gayle kind of friendship.” (Gayle King has been Oprah’s best friend for the past 35 years.)

Immediately, we started thinking of a great, heartfelt essay to write so we could be selected to see her show. And you know what? A few days after submitting the essay, we got an email saying we WON! Not only were Danielle and I going to see Oprah in person, but everyone in the audience would be people who were best friends who had written winning essays as well. Read more »

By Ashlie Harper, Intern

I’ve been an active “facebook-er” for years now, but it was only in the last six months that I jumped on the tweeting bandwagon. Before I correctly learned how to use it, I found myself thinking Twitter was a pointless and unimportant tool. “Why does anyone need to know what’s happening in a short 140 character sentence?” I thought.

It wasn’t, then, until a few months ago that I really saw the potential of Twitter. Not only can I find out the latest news instantly — I follow such news sites as The Huffington Post and PBS News Hour — but I am now constantly connected with friends, coworkers, classmates, and even teachers. I’ve also found myself using it as a search engine, just like I use Google or Bing. If I browse my Twitter home page for just a few minutes, I’ll get the latest information in not only news and politics, but also celebrities, fashion, and friends.

The funny thing about all of these websites is, the more you use them, the more useful and more personalized they become for you. A couple of weeks ago, I started following the Twitter account of my college –Western Michigan University. By simply doing that, I could now find out on my phone and computer the latest news and information about what was happening around campus. The value of social networking is becoming more important by the second for schools because it connects thousands of students and faculty together who have a common interest –education.

But a tweet isn’t just about news. In a marketing class I’m taking this semester, my professor tweets a list of “to-do’s” for the next class period. It is a simple yet effective way to get an assignment out to mass amounts of students quickly. That’s why using Twitter is becoming more popular every day. Read more »