Bilbao, mi nueva casa

January 15, 2012 by Ebony Bailey

First week in Bilbao = success! From eating pinxtos to meeting fellow members of the Trojan Family to singing hard rock karaoke, everything I have done this week has put a smile on my face. I technically haven't even been here for a week yet but since it's Sunday I felt it was an appropriate time to blog. I feel like I've been here for weeks but it's only been a few days..

Bilbao is a city with personality. I'm not quite sure how to explain it. Perhaps as I spend more time here I will be able to forumulate a description of this "personality," but for now all I will say is that I love being in the Basque country and being explosed to two cultures.

One fascinating tidbit about Bilbao is that I believe it tries to fall somewhere between the "historical-looking" city and the "modern" city with its clash of medival and contemporary architecture. I call Bilbao "la ciudad del futuro" because of its arcitecture and infrastructure. It's gorgeous. And the fact that it's surrounded by mountains and divided by a peaceful river has me convinced that I am living in the most beautiful part of Spain.

In other news, as I breifly mentioned before, I have already ran into two members of the Trojan Family in Bilbao. One of them works at the study abroad office at the University of Deusto (where I go to school here), and he got his PhD from SC! The other is a girl about my age who is from Bilbao and studied abroad at SC last year. Cool, huh? I love how the Trojan Family is everywhere.

My friend said I should keep a list or something of all of the people I meet who are connected to SC. I think I might do that.

Time to update my travel log!

Five days to go...

January 06, 2012 by Ebony Bailey

Five days from now, I will living in a single dorm in Bilbao. I meant to write a similar "one week left" post, but the pain from my root canal got the best of me (I get to have another one today, yay!). I can't believe after four years of talking this up to friends, stalking travel websites, and browsing through thousands of photos of Spain, it's actually happening. I finally get the opportunity to discover the world. Life is so beautiful right now.

My friend suggested I make a goals list of the things I want to accomplish in Spain. In order to save paper, I've decided to post it on my blog instead!

Create a timelapse: I've been wanting to do a timelapse for the past month or so but haven't found a place cool enough in Porterville to do it. I figure Bilbao will have plenty of cool places for one. Now when I get there, all I have to do is pick a spot. And shoot.
Become fluent or close-to fluent in Spanish: One of the main reasons why I am going to Spain. I am giving up speaking English for Lent, so hopefully this will help.
Eat, eat, eat: I know this is probably a silly goal to have, but I love food too much.
Take lots and lots of photos: Finally going to put my DSLR to great use.
Learn Basque: One of the cool parts about being in Bilbao is that in addition to being immersed in Spanish culture, we are also immersed in Basque culture (as Bilbao is in Basque country). I hope to learn enough Basque to have a very basic conversation with someone.
Make Bilbao a place I call home: It's not enough to just be a tourist for four months, I really want to get to know the place where I'll be staying. Porterville is my default home and Los Angeles has been the home of my heart since coming to college. It's time to expand my conceptions of "home."

This list will probably expand as I discover more of Spain. Hasta luego!

Beauty in my backyard

December 30, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Porterville. My home. Those who know me know that I have a love-hate relationship with this city, mostly on the side of hate. It's air polution, dirty lake, and extremely hot weather never did it for me. And the fact that Target acts as the "town center" is just plain sad. Nevertheless, it does have its perks. I like the people. My oldest friends and family are here. I like the open fields. They allowed more time playing outside as a kid rather than watching TV or surfing the net. I like the food. I haven't found a city with better Mexican food. As badly as I always seem to talk about this city, I do appreciate it...I guess. It's my home.

This winter break it's been my quest to find the beauty in my hometown that I've ignored for so long. I've been going on a series of photo adventures to try to find this "beauty," and to also get more comfortable with using manual settings on my DSLR.

Ebony's travel log

December 18, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

In 23 days, I will be off to see the world. Well, Europe....and hopefully northern Africa. Now that I'm in winter break and really have nothing to do until I go, I thought it would be an appropriate time to create a travel log. I'll see this as my first step in documenting my foreign adventures.

And what better way to create a travel log than Google maps! Really, Google, what can't you do?

With its two placemaarks, my current travel log is...mehh. I'm not a well-traveled woman, but this will change soon.

View Ebony's travel log in a larger map

Perhaps if I add in states this log will have a bit more life to it. Ah, too lazy.

LA Gang Tours: "Nobody can change the hood but the hood"

LA Gang Tours: "Nobody can change the hood but the hood"

November 16, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Last week I had the great fortune of going on the LA Gang Tours with the Latino Student Assembly. It was one of the most educational experiences of my life -- to say the least. I will never look at gangs the same way again.

Brother John's

September 27, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

This week when I was strolling south of Slauson, I stumbled into Brother John's barbershop. It was very reminiscent of the South. Nevertheless, I liked it a lot. Here is a slideshow about the shop I made for my class.

Strolling South of Slauson

September 13, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Ten photos from South LA:

From first to last: eyes, blue, hands, looking up, self reflection, texture, looking down, ant POV, red and WTF.

Photo Essay: Lupe & Elisa's

Seven days ago, Lupe Osorio opened a discount warehouse after holding her business at a swap meet for more than five years.

The shop sells kitchen supplies, other household appliances, bikes and bike parts. Osorio gets most of the products from Skid Row.

Since the warehouse just opened, Osorio spends most of her time outside waiting for customers and cleaning.

The warehouse has a number of toys and other children's items for sale.

Osorio reading her Bible. She says it's her mission to spread the word of God to anyone who walks into the store.

Earlier this year I blogged about Helvetica, a font that I absoltely love. Now I'm going to blog about a font that I absotely hate: Comic Sans. I'm sure a good 99.999% of the people on this planet agree with me.  To keep it short. Comic sans i… — Earlier this year I blogged about Helvetica, a font that I absoltely love. Now I'm going to blog about a font that I absotely hate: Comic Sans. I'm sure a good 99.999% of the people on this planet agree with me.

To keep it short. Comic sans is ugly. It's childish. It's cheap. A good 0.001% of the people on this planet think it's cool and like it use it pamplets or warning signs on doors. I even saw it in my textbook. Shame.

Note to these people - please refer to these websites:
http://comicsanscriminal.com/
And neve use Comic Sans again, or only when approapriate.

The opposite of Helvetica

July 19, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Yesterday a fire broke out near my high school, Granite Hills, in my hometown of Porterville, Calif. I initially heard about it from my mom and kept updated through looking at photos from my cousin's Facebook.
 

You may be wondering, why di… — Yesterday a fire broke out near my high school, Granite Hills, in my hometown of Porterville, Calif. I initially heard about it from my mom and kept updated through looking at photos from my cousin's Facebook.

You may be wondering, why didn't I go to the local newspaper, the Porterville Recorder, to keep updated about the fire? They did write a brief report on the fire, but the report didn't necessarily fill my needs. And coverage of the fire after that report was severely lacking. *Note, when I read the report yesterday, the only information posted was the info under "**Update 10:44 p.m. Saturday."**

Considering that this is the biggest story to happen in Porterville since God knows whe, I was a bit dissapointed in the Recorder's coverage.

If you read the report, you'll probably understand how it left me with a lot of unanswered questions...is the school ok? Was anyone injured? Does anyone know how the fire started? Is anyone investigating? I understand that it's a small paper with limited staff. And I understand that there was only one reporter working at the time. But the fact that I didn't get any info on the fire from the Recorder for nearly 20 hours irritates me a bit.

Porterville's a small town, and the Recorder is a small paper. It has three full-time reporters and two photographer's, so obviously it's limited in its resources. With that being said, social media is a cheap resource would've allowed the resources to do *so much* even with the one reporter on the job. They could have kept their Facebook and/or Twitter posted with updates every hour. They could've engaged with readers who witnessed the fire. My friend Lauren, who currently resides in Seattle, made a storify post with info and reactions on the fire that I linked to earlier. The Recorder could've made a storify. Like I said before, there is so much the Recorder could've done with social media. But they don't understand how to utilize it very efficiently.

I didn't write this post to bash the Recorder or anything like that. I'm sure this is a problem for small news publications everywhere. I just wanted to say that the workers need to understand that there are so many options now with the web. Once they realize that, they'll be able to provide sufficient content for their readers. Even with limited resources we are able to live/work in a 24-hour news cycle, as long as we have an internet connection. I sincerely hope that, one way or another, the workers at the Recorder learn to use social media to their advantage, or they reach how to someone how can teach them how to use it. Because they desperately need the help.

Well that's the end of my rample. I initially wrote the bulk of this in a private Facebook message when my friend urged me to post it publically. Thanks, Lauren.

When a paper doesn't recognize its biggest resource

July 10, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Life and lyrics

July 06, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Music is a huge part of my life. I believe it's a significant aspect of my background, culture, and even just the way I think. I hardly ever listen to a song just because it's catchy. There's always some underlieing reason why I listen to the types of songs I do.

That is why I've decided to start series on this blog called "life and lyrics." Usually in every song I listen to, at least one powerful lyric will stick out at me and will often get me to contemplate about life. This series will allow me to conceptualize these thoughts on a written outlet. And hopefully it will allow people to see some of the deeper meanings in music that I see.

I am going to kick off this series with a lyric from one of my favorite rappers - Lupe Fiasco.

*Disclaimer: a good majority of these posts will likely discuss lyrics from hip-hop/rap songs, as it is the type of music I most frequently listen to.

Lupe is a deep dude. He is an educator through music. He rhymes so many lyrics from so many songs that just hit me; it's hard to choose. So for today, I am going to go with the song I most recently listened to, Words I Never Said. This song as a whole hits me like bricks. He addresses a lot of issues in this song that people don't give second thought io. There are actually two lyrics from this song I want to write about, so I am probably going to write about one today and for another day.

"I think that all the silence is worse than all the violence."

Truer words have never said. If we do not speak out for our cause, our burdens will eat us alive. The issues we care deeply will continuously affect our daily lives. We as a society need to find our voice.

I can relate to this personally because, as an aspiring journalist, it is my job to make every voice heard. It is my job to make the public aware of the issues so that they can be addressed. I recently was inspired by the story Jose Vargas wrote about coming out as an undocumented immigrant. To me that story is the essence of journalism: it put face to a human face to an issue that has desparately needed "human" attention for years. For so long immigration has been seen more as an issue on people's "agenda" rather than one of human rights. People seem to have forgotten that there are real human beings involved in every side of this, and each has his or her own story.

I think Vargas's story helped get some people back on track.

That was a little bit of a tangent there. But what can I say? Lyrics get me thinking.

I need to get back on the blogging grind. I know I say this every summer but this time I really mean it (hopefully). In my mind, if I have enough motivation to write a complete blog post at this hour when I am hitting a point of delerium, then I wil… — I need to get back on the blogging grind. I know I say this every summer but this time I really mean it (hopefully). In my mind, if I have enough motivation to write a complete blog post at this hour when I am hitting a point of delerium, then I will have enough motivation to keep at it. At least that's how it works in my mind.

This post is a bit overdue, but here goes...

This past semester I had the wonderful pleasure of reporting in the city of Bell. Yes you read correctly, the scandal-ridden Bell. It has that bad reputation of being a typical city of mostly low-income residents who are controlled by the people at the top of the heirarchy of power and wealth.

But during my tenure in Bell, I did not see that city. I saw and met activists, city officials, laborers, students, and teachers who were working together to fight for a cause. It's a microcosm of dreamer and whenever I entered those city limits I felt a part of that dream. Through my reporting I felt like I was making a difference. Whether it was through reporting on an important story, or merely getting to know someone I interviewed, I hope I have made a lasting impression on Bell, somehow some way. Because it sure has made a lasting impression on me.

I don't know why got so attached to the city. Perhaps it's because it reminds me so much of Porterville. The small, dedicated group of underrepresented citizens is so reminiscent of home that every time I enter its borders I just feel that need to give back. I hope I do go back to Bell - whether it's through reporting or not - to see what this community has accomplished in the light of reform.

I learned a lot from my time in Bell - mostly about communities, journalism, and myself. Bell has really changed the way I think about life and shifted my goals a bit. I need to take some time and really think of how I can integrate my two passions of journalism and community empowerment for my career path (which will come in a later post).

Now that I am practically falling asleep on my laptop, this will be a farewell for now. Excuse any typos and/or grammar errors.

The other side of Bell

June 16, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

My first Illustrator experiment with the infamous pen tool. I wanted to keep it simple-ish because I haven't quite gotten the hand of Illustrator yet. No better way to start my Illustrator adventures than an expression of my love… — My first Illustrator experiment with the infamous pen tool. I wanted to keep it simple-ish because I haven't quite gotten the hand of Illustrator yet. No better way to start my Illustrator adventures than an expression of my love for USC. Fight On!

I love SC - an illustration

February 05, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Helvetica love

January 28, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

I designed this image as the start of my campaign for Helvetica.

This semester, I am a graphic designer for Neon Tommy. Our graphics editor asked us to send in our favorite fonts to vote on a central font that we will use on our graphics to make them more uniform. And of course, I sent in Helvetica.

Anyone who knows me knows my obsession with this font. It is perhaps number three in the hierarchy of things I love (number one being food and number two being SC *). It's my font crush.

The only word I can use to describe Helvetica is orgasmic - the same word I use to describe shiny new Macs and homemade egg rolls. Words like "simple, pretty, or cool" don't cut it. When I look at it, it brings to my eyes a sensation of physical and emotional pleasure.

It's the "standard design font." It was rated number one in FontShop Germany's Best Font's of All Time. There are sites dedicated to its love. Arial and Verdana are poor competitors, and Comic Sans never stood a chance. The average person probably cannot tell the difference between Helvetica and similar fonts (such as Arial), but it's the minor differences that make all the difference.

Helvetica is simple. It's pretty. It's modern. It's love.

Now that I am done praising, I just hope my fellow graphic designers at Neon Tommy see this font and learn to appreciate it as I do. And to anyone reading this: jump on the design bandwagon, and become a Helvetica groupie.

*Note about the hierarchy of things I love. Family, friends, religion don't count because they are just a given.

Photo of the day...

January 21, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

...or should I say the past 21 days. I jumped on the bandwagon again and started my own "365" project where I take one photo a day for 2011.

Sadly, I skipped a few days: Jan. 4 and Jan. 19 (I actually don't even remember what I did these days). But I hope I don't skip any more days for the rest of the year.

I'm not sure what I am going to do with these photos. Up until now they have just been on my phone. Maybe I'll get Flickr. Maybe I'll post them on my Tumblr. Maybe I'll just keep them on my phone and post them on here every so often. So.many.options.

*This post was written much later than I had intended. Shows how much I've been keeping up with resolution number one.

Android alternative to Instagram

January 06, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Instagram is an iPhone app that enables users to filter photos on their phone and make them look more "retro." I have found an alternative for Android users like myself.

Prompted by my jealousy of iPhone users and their ability to download Instagram, this Android user set out to search for a similar app for Android phones. After searching through several different apps I finally found one that I was content with: FxCamera.

FxCamera enables users to filter photos in five different ways, and there is no account setup like I found in other apps. The app also has color filters such as sepia, negative, and black & white.

I won't say that it duplicates Instagram, and I'm sure Instagram has more advanced features. This is just a simple filtering app for any Android user who yearns to take cool mobile photos like I do.

"Polandroid"

"ToyCam"

"Fisheye"

"SymmetriCam"

"Warhol"

Until Instagram develops an app for Android...this is my app.

Last photo of 2010: SC Christmas tree!
I decided to jump on the bandwagon and write a "New Year's resolutions" post. Before I do that, though, I am going to reminisce about 2010. 
Last year was a year of many "firsts." It was the first f… — *Last photo of 2010: SC Christmas tree!*

I decided to jump on the bandwagon and write a "New Year's resolutions" post. Before I do that, though, I am going to reminisce about 2010.

Last year was a year of many "firsts." It was the first full year I lived in LA, and I won't go into much detail other than that. Although I traveled the least in 2010 (I didn't leave the state), it is safe to say that last year was so far the funnest and most interesting year of my life.

Now to 2011...

Admittedly, I don't think I have ever made a New Year's resolution. Every year I contemplate it, but I always convince myself not to because I know I'll just break it.

I don't know what's different about this year...maybe this is just the year! A year of "change." Or maybe I'm just bored. Whatever the reason...I just know I'm doing it. I only hope my resolutions are realistic and concrete enough for me to actually commit to them.

**Blog regularly/find a "niche"** - As you can see from this blog, this has been a fail in previous years.

**Don't pull any all-nighters** - This will result from not procrastinating. In 2009, I pulled maybe 20-25 in the second half of the year. In 2010, I pulled around 10 all year. I hope for 2011 to be the year of sleep.

**Eat regularly** - Don't get my wrong, I love food. But last year I went many days where all I ate was dinner (perhaps from lack of funds/time). That's not healthy. This year I'll make the effort to eat something for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

**Leave the state** - Hopefully this will happen if spring break goes as planned. As stated before, I didn't leave California at all in 2010.

**Be happy and nappy** - In a few months hopefully I'll have the courage to cut off all of my relaxed, or "permed," hair. I can't wait for the day where I can wear all of my natural hair freely.

So there it is. I was going to add "work out more," but I'm not sure how long that will last.

Let's see what awaits in 2011...

2011 Resolutions

January 02, 2011 by Ebony Bailey

Well, not anymore. 
My thirst has thus been quenched. But not by indulging in alcohol like the typical college student. I quenched my thirst with a refreshing milk tea drink with boba at ID Cha House in the 626.
Also known as "… — Well, not anymore.

My thirst has thus been quenched. But not by indulging in alcohol like the typical college student. I quenched my thirst with a refreshing milk tea drink with boba at ID Cha House in the 626.

Also known as "Asian-land," the 626 is the land of glittery photo booths and authentic B restaurants. I like to think of it as my second home...it has good boba.

This is how I spent most most of my Thursdays: I go somewhere with friends or I sit at my computer and do nothing. Actually, most of my Thursdays seem to be the latter.

Thursdays need to be more productive, but since I don't have class on Friday I never have the motivation to do something. Thursday needs a purpose! Sunday through Wednesday are for homework, Friday is for work and hanging out afterwards, Saturday is for football games (even when they're away), but what does Thursday do for me?

While pondering this I came up with a revelation: I should blog on Thursdays (!!). It is more productive than Facebook, but still a nice break from homework.

Actually, this *will* be my homework. Each time I don't blog on Thursday I will give myself an "F" in life.

Yes, I realize that it is technically now Friday morning, but if it's still Thursday night for the drunken girls I hear outside my window, then it is Thursday night for me. No "F" this week.

I wanted to design a cool graphic for this post, but the more I look at it the more uncool it seems. Maybe I am just tired, which is why I should sleep soon.

More blog posts coming soon; hopefully on Thursday.

Thirsty Thursday

November 12, 2010 by Ebony Bailey

On the search for a blog

July 19, 2010 by Ebony Bailey

Yes, another blog. I know I've been down this road before (in fact, I
think this is my 23894th attempt at a blog), but this time may
actually be different.

I've tried to start a blog on many different sites in years past. I've
tried Blogger, LiveJournal, and even Myspace in my early teenage
years. More recently (this summer actually) I started up a Wordpress
blog in which I said that I would update once a week. That failed.

But there's something different about Posterous. The simplicity of
it...amazes me actually. It baffles my mind how I can post an endless
amount of blog entries (with media) by simply sending emails. If I
ever become a hardcore code fanatic, this is a technology I would love to explore.

Posterous is very similar to Tumblr, which is probably why I like it so much. The difference though as that Posterous feels more like an actual blog, whereas Tumblr feels like a massive Twitter (no offense to Twitter; I love you). Hopefully with Posterous, I will find my blog-sanctuary.

Right now it seems like the only topic I have to blog about is blogging. I promise in the future I will have more to blog about (I've already started to think of topics).