These Note Pads Need Spell Check

A group of up and coming journalists from Rhodes University created a blog to report on what interests them and allow fellow journalism students to read about what they have to say. 

On first glance, “Note Pads and Deadlines” has a rather formal, simple look to it, and the witty title caught my attention. However, after reading the posts, my mind was changed. I came across the post “The Life of a Rhodent is a Life for Me”. After struggling to get my eyes to adjust to read the text through the mesh effect of the background, I found that I had strained my eyes for nothing. I noticed many spelling and grammar errors, which is unforgivable considering how advanced Microsoft Office Word is today. I noticed spelling and grammar errors throughout the blog. 

I found the subject of the post rather ordinary and therefore not attention grabbing. The blogger seemed to get extremely excited about which university can ‘party the hardest’, which I found childish. If the post were a personal journal entry documenting the individuals’ daily life, it would be perfect. However, to expect fellow up-and-coming journalists to read about who the biggest drinkers are is a bit naïve. 

Although I was not too impressed with the blog posts, I did like the title of the Blog and the way the title was incorporated into the blog template. I understand that these are journalism students who have not yet been properly trained; hence, I hope to see their work improving over the next few years.

A DaY iN THE Life OF ME and My heels :)

Okay so I pulled an upper-east side, gossip girl stunt and spent my whole day in a pair of 12cm high heels! Something I have never done before. And boy I must tell you that the looks I got and comments that were made were both funny and embarrassing to say the least. Now I am generally a very confident person, but I truly felt out of my comfort zone, towering over everyone in the lunch line and strutting my stuff around campus. It was a great experience apart from the sore feet I was left with and Its defiantly something I would do again. It’s almost like an adrenalin rush trying to walk normally and balance as I tried to act as normal as possible. Trying to prove that I was not a rookie in the area of wearing high heels. I know that I probably looked very unstable and awkward in a way as much as I tried not to. Wearing high heels defiantly drew a lot of attention to me, walking next to my friends and being a head taller then each of them. I was a little self conscious and uneasy before I started my run way show that I called “a day in the life of my high heels.” I expected their to be a lot of stares and sniggers which was inevitable as I walked like and awkward clown on stilts but the experience I
gained and the ability to laugh at myself was all very worthwhile in the end.

A horrifyingly brilliant blog!!

When scanning the list of blogs, in search of one to review my eyes stumbled across an amazing surprise. From the makers of “I know what you wrote last semester” I bring you a review on just how splendid and absolutely fascinating their blog is.

Set out in a very orderly and accessible manner, I found that apart from one or two pieces of writing it was highly enjoyable and worthy of exceeding all excellence in blogging. The writing is humorous and plays very much on the ideas of satire. It is extremely impressive to read such a well thought out and cleverly planned blog. A lot of time and effort has gone into creating such an entertaining yet thought provoking blog.

When reading the blog, I found that many of the articles were not the predictable ideas one would usually chose to write about, but ideas that were extremely personal and individual. This in itself gives the blog its own character and a vast amount of flavour.

The blog varies from somewhat “random” experiences such as “Ah, the Beach, a Blog that has nothing to do with journalism” to more controversial issues such as “Racism, Retribution and Forgiveness”. Yet all pieces of writing are written in an easy to read enjoyable manner. This may be due to the fact that most pieces incorporate a lot of satire, or play on the “tongue and cheek “approach. The articles are all very good pieces of writing which are both thought provoking and entertaining in some way or another.

I particularly enjoyed the piece on “Ah, the Beach, a Blog that has nothing to do with journalism” as I found it extremely personal, yet something that we as students can all relate to, due to the fact that it was a fun experience shared with a couple of friends, whether they are girls or boys. The writing of the blog also varies in style of each individual blogger, which in itself makes the blog more readable. There is something for everyone to read and enjoy. I really commend the writers of this blog; it is truly worthy of great praise.

Egging catastrophy

A plastic button of wisdom (as opposed to a pearl) has been passed down through the generations: don’t cry over spilt milk. Similarly, one is instructed to make lemonade when life gives one lemons. I do not get upset when I break glasses or mess things, mainly because it happens quite regularly. Sometimes there are days of darkness and I move through space like a zombie, almost purposely knocking over things and sweeping them up in apathy. Recently I was intending to make a nice sandwich for supper, with cheese, tomato and egg. Balancing a number of ingredients and cooking implements in my hands (making sandwiches is of course an art that requires multiple intricate gadgets) I recklessly balanced my last egg between my pinky and the mass of other things crowding my fingers. Alas, it was one of those days of muted destruction and you must know already what was to come. This is something which has in fact not happened to me before. I was surprised and almost amused. I am quite sure that time does not always travel at the same speed, because when that egg was hurtling towards the floor I remembers a lengthy, distinct and clear chain of thoughts: I see the egg falling … this is probably a bad thing to be happening … I think this egg will not withstand the impact … in fact I’m sure that it’s going to smash … on my carpet. As I was thinking this the egg was falling down through space like Alice down the tunnel. After a while the impact of the two hard bodies caused the weaker one to collapse and ooze in astonishment and self-pity. I stood motionless while the consequences of this event played out in my head: my supper is ruined, and this egg is going to sink into the carpet, rot and stink. I had to act quickly. Luckily I plucked the wisdom stored in the collective unconscious, like a ripe fruit, that small accidents should not be allowed to create too much discomfort. For further wisdom of how to clean an egg off a carpet I consulted the internet. Easy it seems: simply warm water and soap solves such accidents. I deduced that there have been many people through time that have watched their eggs hurtle in slow motions towards clean carpets, since there were a number of entries on this topic. So my action was only natural. What a relief. There is a second step to overcoming acts of inconsequent mismanagement. This step is to turn the minor misfortune into something useful (otherwise known as making lemonade). No, I did not scoop up the egg and eat it anyways, with extra seasoning. Having come from a culture where domestic products have multiple unexpected purposes and are never wasted, I found a use for my broken egg. In fact, mixed with honey and castor oil the said egg made a nourishing hair mask. Forty minutes after application, a shower and a blowdry my hair looked fabulous and the egg stain on my carpet was drying under a blanket of serviettes. All in all my tiny mismanagement was turned into a domestic adventure.

Falling asleep behind the wheel; injection of life urgently required

When I evaluate a blog I look at what it has taught me, and what ideas of mine it has challenged. The creators Blunt Red Pencil twice liken their contribution to journalism as a revolution. I love revolutions. Change keeps me alive. So I wait to be impressed, but this revolution does not have me taking out my picket sign. A lot of the writing is indeed compelling and clear, for example the entries about paying attention to detail, how we experience time, Eskom and the identity crisis. It is palatable, easy to swallow. The majority of the content is, however, sadly banal. One of the entries about a blog that the writer found original and exemplary is written as a string of clichés. “Breath of fresh air” and “pulling the wool away from your eyes” tempts me to follow the inviting red cross at the top of the page and conveniently throw this blog back into the world wide web. Though the entry does not lack humour: “atheistically pleasing” is a novel concept. I’m sure the secularists would be pleased with this charming confusion between aesthetics and atheism. Apart from grammar mistakes, which I find difficult to forgive, the blog can be praised for the evident good intentions and sincere effort of the writers. However, I am neither provoked nor stirred. Reader, this is not a race through undiscovered terrain. Seat belts are not required.

I did it, now it's your turn

By Chelsea Nelson


The other day I went sand boarding for the first time. I was quite nervous because I was unsure about what to expect. At first I was photographing my friends do it but naturally, I was pulled into the action. Immediately my heart started to race and I could feel it beating hard right up in my chest as if it wanted to run away from what lay up ahead. As soon as I stood on that damn board, it moved! It felt like I was on ice. Without delay I jumped off. I took a careful step back on, found my footing, and moved myself along slowly, gaining speed as the hill got steeper. This whole sand boarding thing takes a little while to get used to, but it really gets your adrenalin pumping- especially when you start going down the steep, high dunes. Once falling down a couple times, you have no excuse not to take a dive into the sea as typically, you end up with sand in almost every orifice. Refreshing as it may be, if you stay in the Port Alfred sea for too long you may just turn into an ice block. Even though sand boarding was not exactly on my to-do-list, I would recommend putting it on yours.

Play you part in restoring what we have destroyed

By Chelsea Nelson

I want my children and my children’s children to be able to experience the world as it is today. I want them to be able to walk into the wild and see giraffes and rhinos in their natural habitat. I want them to see polar bears and polar bear cubs. I do not know if this is going to be possible, as it has been estimated that by the end of the century, polar bears will be extinct.

We often hear about the increasing number of endangered animals but this information rarely has an effect on us. It goes in the one ear and out the other when we should be taking the issue very seriously. The media and government must take action and encourage the world to follow in their stride. Explicit photos published regularly will provide a better idea of what is happening in the parts of the world that are already being severely affected by the situation we face. We are all responsible for the deterioration of our environment and therefore need to play our part in restoring what we have destroyed.

On your next holiday, make sure you go to a country with endangered species because if you do not, you may find that the next time you want to, those species will no longer exist. If we carry on living the way we do, polluting our world and destroying the natural environment, the hill we are currently spiralling down is only going to get steeper.