My First Caucus

http://wiuqctheedge.com/2016/02/03/my-first-caucus-by-stephanie-hoover/

My First Caucus by Stephanie Hoover

Posted on February 3, 2016 by Edge Staff in Opinion // 0 Comments

As a woman in my 30’s I cannot believe this was my first time caucusing! And while I watched the numbers roll in and listened to the news anchors talk about how close the numbers were between Bernie Sanders and Hilary Clinton it felt like I was watching the results for the actual election of the President of the United States, less the Republican party. Here’s the process I went through:
One of the great things about Facebook is that there are enough people who will make their political stance known so if you have questions about who to contact to get involved it’s fairly easy -and there’s Google.

These were the following sites where I found such information:

If you want to caucus on the Democrats’ side, here’s a locator tool:
http://iowademocrats.org/2016-democratic-caucus-locations/

If you want to caucus on the Republicans’ side, here’s a locator tool:
https://www.iowagop.org/2016-republicans’s-caucus-locations

From there I just typed in my address to find out where I was to go between 6:30 pm and 7:00 pm, however it lasted until about 8:30 pm; thank goodness for small areas! I came about the question as to whether you had to go to the location on your license or if it was based on your current residence. I called the number for my party and found out it was based on wherever you lived. Score! You just had to be within the doors/lined up at your location by 6:59 pm to participate; doors closed at 7:00 pm; which apparently was an issue with some locations presumably letting people in shortly after this time. I found one of my neighbors as soon as I walked in and she helped me get to where I needed to go. As many people are registered with a particular party those who were listed as “independents” had to declare that they were a democrat to caucus for a candidate, which I was told could be changed back at a later time. After signing in and registering as a democrat I was anointed with my party’s sticker and hung out with everyone else in said group. At my location there were signs to direct you to: Clinton, Sanders, O’Malley, or independent.

After the leaders totaled how many people were there to caucus (people who would be 18 by the date of the election) they figured how many people needed to be in each group which was a minimum of 15% of those caucusing. For instance, the O’Malley group didn’t have 15% representation so they were forced to then choose Clinton or Sanders and the independents had to align with one or the other also. This process was called realigning. During this time each group that had the minimum of 15% was encouraged to influence the decisions of the O’Malley group and the independents. I only spoke with one of the independents and she seemed mostly focused on which candidate was going to do more regarding healthcare. As this was not my strongest area I just listened before returning to my table; man my scholarly research was needed here! It ended up with both parties having close numbers (84/91) and each candidate receiving 3 delegates.

Now this was what I was not ready for and confused by…after we counted ourselves a million times –pretty accurate- and everyone was aligned with a party that had at least 15% representation we had to decide who our delegates were going to be. As the Clinton and Sanders groups both won three delegates we each got to choose three people from within our group to go to the national party convention to vote for our candidate on behalf of our state. We had about 8ish people who wanted to represent our candidate so everyone was allowed a few minutes to speak about why they should be chosen. We eventually widdled it down to three people by majority vote with everyone else remaining as alternates.
My caucus ended with some talk about resolutions, but really everyone was just like “I motion…I second…peace out let’s go home.” I don’t really know what that last bit was about. I’m thinking the next election I have to be way more involved…or I need a class about the voting process because CLEARLY I wasn’t paying attention to the fine details if I ever learned them! I will say, that what really saddens me is when people think that they will not make a difference. Remember, if enough people think they “won’t make a difference” they won’t because their voices and many, many others who think this will not be heard and collectively these people could have made a difference. No one is saying your one vote will change the world, but if thousands of people thought/think that then so much more than “just my vote” is lost. I also hate hearing people complain about our government, but also hear them say how little they pay attention and/or participate in elections. Be informed and act. You can make a difference!

Netflix Binge Worthy: The Guild Review

http://wiuqctheedge.com/2016/02/03/netflix-binge-worthy-the-guild-review/

Netflix Binge Worthy: The Guild Review By Stephanie Hoover

Posted on February 3, 2016 by Edge Staff in Entertainment // 0 Comments

No, you don’t have to be a gamer to appreciate The Guild, as I am not, but that doesn’t make it any less funny. However, having a gamer on hand to explain terminology like “afk” (away from keyboard) and QQ (crying/quit) can help; or Google…Google can help also. The Guild is about a group, a guild, of gamers who play an online game together. The first episode opens with the main character Cyd (gamer name Codex) talking to her therapist about how she needs to detach from the interactive gaming world and interact more with “the real world.” Cyd is soon ambushed by one of her guildies when he pops up on her doorstep because he misconstrued their online interactions for flirting (the story of my life!).
Most of the show is told through Codex’s video blog (vlog) reactions to what’s going on in her life and the guild. This is by far one of my favorite nerd shows. I originally started watching The Guild on YouTube and was super stoked when I found it was on Netflix! However, I also own the DVD’s because I became quite a fanatic. I hope to one day be Codex for Halloween, but I’m limited to one day a year to partake in dressing up! #nerdygirlcharactersonlyaselectgroupofpeopleknow. –Yea, I know about cosplay, but that’s more expensive than Halloween. Halloween doesn’t involve as much travel and registration fees. What’s equally as awesome as inspiring is the creator, Felicia Day (Codex/Cyd), had written the script for The Guild and was rejected by everyone she pitched it to. She was talked into putting it onto the web as it was a show for people who were active on the web and that’s where it took off! The Guild has some of my favorite nerdy songs: Do You Want to Date my Avatar, Game On, I’m the One That’s Cool, and more!! Google and/or download them!!
I must have a soft spot for a well delivered monotone dialogue because one of my favorite characters to quote is Vork (on the subject of what restaurant to meet at), “Somewhere with low price point. I didn’t budget for social activities this month.” Codex has some great advice throughout the series as well, “It is so much easier to measure life in experience points. As I’m not as super huge of a nerd as I may seem I was crazy excited to see that Wil Wheaton has a reoccurring role on this show! (He’s also on The Big Bang Theory guys!) I’m so sad The Guild is done. I wonder if I could lobby to bring it back? Why must good things die!!! But seriously you should watch it; binge watch it!!

There are Processes for Processes and Processes for when those Processes aren’t Processed Correctly

http://wiuqctheedge.com/2016/02/05/there-are-processes-for-processes-and-processes-for-when-those-processes-arent-processed-correctly-by-stephanie-hoover/

There are Processes for Processes and Processes for when those Processes aren’t Processed Correctly by Stephanie Hoover

Posted on February 5, 2016 by Edge Staff in Letter to Editor, Opinion // 0 Comments

No, I am not Abbot or Costello, however the way they looked at the world and parodied it resonates greatly with me. As I was reading the journal of Dorothy Wordsworth for my class and in thinking about “the good life” and “nature” camping suddenly popped into my mind. But just as it brought to me the relaxed feeling of “getting away” it also brought to me anxiety. Why? Because there seems to be a process for everything in this day and age and trying to relax seems to be more work than it should be! This is the same reason I was afraid to fly! Not because I’d much further off the ground than I’m used to or that something on the plane may malfunction and I’d die, but because I had never flown and I knew there were very specific processes which had to be followed that could be met with a variety of consequences if done wrong. Processes encompasses my fear of driving to places/parking in places I’ve never been/are unfamiliar with. Some people can be understanding when one is inexperienced with a process, but it seems so many people get frustrated when others are in unfamiliar territory. Of course, being in a Master’s program I am well aware that the more one knows the better off (generally) they are, especially in knowing the loopholes of a process, but this is also what gives me anxiety in being unfamiliar with something I want/have to do.

There are even rules for hanging out outside, specifically, camping. I’ve always been intimidated by camping because I didn’t know how to do it. Sure you mainly need a tent and sleeping bag, but there’s so much more to it. The first time I went camping was with my old boyfriend and his family at a local camp ground where most people seemed to have campers. This was not really the camping experience I’d had in mind, but it was fun nonetheless. Old boyfriend and I just had to set up our tent where his parents told us to and hung out by the fire until it was time to go to bed.

However, the second time I went camping there was a bit more to it. We had a secluded area with tents (his friend was with), a fire, the gathering of wood for the fire, using that fire to cook our dinner, and the boys fished. Mind you I wasn’t anticipating the raccoon that I later had to deal with, but still, that was closer to what I thought camping would be like. But there was more to it than that; there were processes to be followed!

For instance, you cannot just pitch a tent anywhere you’d like, you’re generally supposed to find specific camping grounds to do so. I mean, I could very well get into trouble for camping in my front yard! Granted I live in a townhouse that I rent from a company, but there’s yard right out in front of me that goes mostly unused aside from aesthetic purposes, lawn care, and a LARPer and his friends who live near me. If I wanted to camp in the yard in front of me I’d have to ask permission from my landlord and could very well be denied for various reasons (i.e. I was told we were not allowed to have patio furniture in the huge unused space on the side of our townhouse because it’d be something that would have to be moved when the lawn was mowed). And I’m pretty sure a fire would be OUT of the question! Due to the standard camping rules and regulations I’m left to finding a spot where it’s acceptable to place a tent and have a fire…maybe even a place to fish or swim.

Some camp grounds even require a reservation, whereas others leave it to a first-come first-serve basis. Where you camp also depends on if you’re going to have a single tent or multiple, an actual camper or not, or depends on family size. For instance the park ranger (I assume) let us stay where we were, but technically unless my boyfriend’s friend was our child he could’ve made one of us move to another location. There was plenty of room for a few more tents in addition to the two which were set up, but there was a rule that unless we had a separate tent for our child[ren] we could technically only have one tent set up where we were. The ranger also had to note down who we were, take down our car information, and we had to pay a fee to be there. Yea, it makes you feel safe that everyone is seemingly accounted for, but it really felt like I was checking into a hotel less the walls and toiletry. There was also a rule that you were not allowed to cut the wood from the trees for firewood, but as my boyfriend (at the time) told me anything on the ground was fair game, otherwise you had to buy your own and bring it. Which I saw on a site that there was an issue with a certain kind of wood being brought in and there was a process about that, “Firewood Ban Due to infestations of Emerald Ash Borer, Out-Of-County firewood without proper IDALS labeling is NOT permitted” (http://www.scottcountyiowa.com/conservation/west-lake).

It may not seem like much, but the fact that I have to go to a designated area where camping is allowed, check in with a ranger, pay, be told how, where, and with what I can make a fire, how many tents were allowed despite there being space for more, etc. was just too much for me. This was exactly how I felt and still feel with flying. There’s a process for parking, checking in, what can and cannot be packed, what can be taken as a carry-on and what needs to be checked, what devices can be used on the plane and what cannot, how to get through the screening area…I remember I had to take my laptop out of my bag and put it into a bucket, take my shoes off and put them into a bucket, make sure I didn’t have my knife in my purse and put that into a bucket (What? You never know when you’re going to need a knife! I use it mostly to open packages and such), have my i.d. and ticket out, I worried my tongue ring/belly button ring might set off the alarm, etc. Then when you’re on the plane you have to shut your phone off, trays need to be in a certain position at a certain time, you can get up during this time and cannot during this time, and you have to wait until it’s time for your drink/meal if applicable…and many other things I’m sure I’m forgetting as I haven’t flown in YEARS!

Then parking. Ugh! There are signs where you can/can’t park on a certain side of the street, that your car has to be moved by a certain time for snow plowing, there’s no parking allowed between this time and this time on this date and that date, there’s 2-hour parking only and you cannot “repark,” this parking is for this establishment only, this spot if for loading and unloading only, during the evening it’s okay to park anywhere, this parking is for this tenant only, but it’s not marked –just supposed to be common knowledge, people are parked in the grass –I’m not sure if this is allowed, but I’m going to do it because other people did it, this spot is for this size car only, etc.

Yea, this is just sort of the way of the world and I’m sure there are reasons for everything, but it just gets exhausting. I didn’t even list a whole bunch of other processes that give me anxiety! It’s not even the anxiety that really bothers me, but it seems to be so hard to do anything on whim because there are rules for everything. I wish I could just sit about and read and chat with intellects all day long and go for long walks wherever I want, but it’s not that simple. If I’m at a park after hours I could get into trouble! I had to wait outside of an arcade once because they were at capacity. I couldn’t go to a rally because it was encouraged to make reservations, but it wasn’t required and it was really first come first serve and I didn’t want to stand in line for three hours to go. I had to put my purse back into my car because you “couldn’t have weapons” at the Social Security office (my knife, remember?). Some places only take cash or check while others only take cash or card and some places won’t take cash at all! You can’t take you phone into the courthouse anymore. You have to learn about bats and tracking things in and out of the caves before you’re allowed to trounce about Maquoketa Caves like in the good ole days.

In reading and thinking about “the good life” I’m having trouble figuring out how to be as leisurely as those were when they spent more time reading, writing, and conversing with one another. I’m just a little processed out. My good life involves less processes…and maybe a beach. What are some processes that drive you nuts?

http://wiuqctheedge.com/2016/02/10/super-bowl-sunday-commercials/

Super Bowl Sunday: Commercials

Posted on February 10, 2016 by Edge Staff in Entertainment // 0 Comments

Anyone who knows me knows I’m not big into sports (i.e. see my shirt), but Super Bowl Sunday seemed like a good study break and I’m a sucker for the funny commercials! Here’s my recap:

Booooring! Did something change? I thought having a commercial air during the Super Bowl was one of the most costly and competitive parts of this day! I don’t think I really liked one until Kevin Hart’s (Hyundai) commercial right before half time. And with that, one could argue that Hart should trust his daughter to make her own decisions, however I love 98% of what Kevin Hart does and I have a teenage daughter so I just sat back and laughed my ass off; maybe I should trade in my car??

The Ryan Reynolds (Hyundai) commercial was okay, but I don’t go gaga over muscles. Now, if Reynolds would’ve been making snarky, witty comments while I was driving I might’ve been distracted, but that commercial was just “meh.” They really should’ve gone the Deadpool route and used the car’s accident detection from that aspect. Maybe it was merely a way to get the girls who love Reynolds gorgeous face, but wouldn’t necessarily want to see Deadpool, to SEE DEADPOOL! (p.s. you should see Deadpool)

Honestly in looking back I don’t know why I laughed so hard at the Doritos dog commercial, because when I think of who wants Doritos it’s never dogs. Yea, yea that’s the funny part and that’s probably why I laughed. They made it quick to connect the “no dogs allowed” in the store with dogs wanting to get into the store and whatever for? – DORITOS!!!! But I was really expecting more…for a Super Bowl Commercial. I think what really made the commercial was the part was the cashier saying, “Whaaaaa?” However, compared to the ultrasound Doritos commercial this one was gold.

Helen Mirren’s Budweiser lecturing the world on not driving drunk commercial was in my top five; I could listen to her talk for days! If you haven’t seen the movies Red and Red 2 –do! Gotta love an old, badass British woman knocking in teeth and taking names!

I was none too impressed with the “Super Bowl Babies” commercials. I mean, cool, you were conceived because your mom and/or dad’s team won and now here you are…sweet, I guess…you can be in a commercial with Seal. I rate this one a “meh” too!

I think by far my favorite commercial was for the Amazon Echo. I’m a sucker for Jason Schwartzman, I’ve been binge watching 30 Rock (Alec Baldwin) lately, Missy Elliot is a badass, and Dan Marino was the perfect patsy in this commercial. Nothing like using technology as a backup for sh*t talking to someone! A++ in my book! Everyone played very well off of one another in this commercial!

Steve Harvey’s T-Mobile commercial gave me a little chuckle and I’m glad he’s embracing everyone laughing at him for his mistake, but I’m a little Steve Harvey memed out to have enjoyed that as much as I should have. Or maybe I shouldn’t have?? What do you think? Still funny or overplayed joke?

It was just super disappointing for me to get more enjoyment from the game than the commercials; or the half time show for that matter. With that said the game went super downhill after the first half. I don’t sports and even I was like, “Come on [Panthers] QB!! What are you doing?!” Was there also grease on that ball and/or did everyone lose their depth perception? All in all the Super Bowl this year was very disappointing, for me personally, through all its aspects. I should’ve just played Paperboy all night…I mean…studied. Studied alllllll night.

The Importance of a Portfolio

http://wiuqctheedge.com/2016/02/16/the-importance-of-a-portfolio-by-stephanie-hoover/

The Importance of a Portfolio By Stephanie Hoover

Posted on February 16, 2016 by Edge Staff in Opinion // 0 Comments

My former journalism instructor Kay Luna, reporter for the QC Times, always described me as a “prolific writer” to anyone I met -and I hold to that title! However, whenever people ask me what I’ve written I just say, “Um, I wrote most of the Scott Community College paper when I went there, I write a lot for class –a lot about Frankenstein and Fight Club, um, I have a vlog and blog, and I think I have 72,000 different Facebook pages…oh and I have two published books and I [sort of] started an organization trying to change the perception of body image in society, and I have 9 billion writing projects on my mind…” But what do I have to show for it? A stack of SCC newspapers and countless binders and notebooks full of my work collecting dust in my basement is what I have!! So I decided to organize my precious writing projects into a portfolio. Now my work is has become organized, [more] purposeful, and tangible that I can now [better] use in job interviews, in preparation for application into a PhD program, and something a little bit more concrete to remind myself of what I’m capable of! (Including my incessant use of endings sentences with prepositions!) “Wow! I did a lot more than I thought I did!”

For my articles from the SCC paper and magazines I thought it best to use a scrapbook. I went to Michael’s (craft store) because they had a deal to buy one and get one free! They also usually have a 40% off coupon in their ad and/or on their website. I bought a black one for $30 with no picture pocket on the front. However, the ones with a little picture pocket were $20 and you could insert your name and [contact/date] information into that slot to make it more usable. If you only need one, then ask a friend if they need one and you can split the cost (if BOGO is going on)! Then your portfolio could cost you only $10-$15! Mine came with black paper in the sleeves so all I had to do was cut out and glue my work to the pages and lay everything out as I wanted it. I typically have 1-2 articles on a page, but every now and then I have 3 if they were small enough. Or I’ve made use of tiny tidbit pictures or mentions of my name to offset the layout a little to make it stand out.

My next big project is to make a portfolio of my papers, which many may see as just assigned work to get a grade, but realize how much work you put into that! Use that to show your skills! More importantly take the feedback from your professors and rewrite those papers and put THOSE into a portfolio. I think I’m going to use binders and clear sleeves for this project, but I’ll keep you posted on the final product!

Burlesque is NOT Cabaret: Pasties and Panties, oh my!

http://wiuqctheedge.com/2016/02/16/burlesque-is-not-cabaret-pasties-and-panties-oh-my-by-stephanie-hoover/

Burlesque is NOT Cabaret: Pasties and Panties, oh my! by Stephanie Hoover

Posted on February 16, 2016 by Edge Staff in Entertainment // 0 Comments

If you’re looking to take in a burlesque show you don’t need to truck it to Vegas in order to do so. Just head over to Bottoms Up Quad City Burlesque located at the Speakeasy in Rock Island.

Now, my first experience with burlesque was interesting to say the least. Apparently I thought that burlesque and cabaret were synonymous, but I quickly found were not because what I saw was not what I thought I was going to see. Let’s just say it’s like how non-nerds think Star Wars and Star Trek are the same thing; psst, they’re not! Those who know the difference either get offended or die from uncontrollable laughter…I think? What I thought I was going to see when attending my first burlesque show was girls dressed up sexily singing and dancing like Liza Minnelli or something to the effect of the movie Chicago. Nope! These girls were dressed up, but typically ended in them dressing more down…if ya know what I mean. No, not sweatpants! Pasties and panties! (oh my!) And there was no singing. No, I don’t hate girls taking off their clothes –most do it every day! I love dancing. I love shows. I love trouncing about in my panties (overshare?). I love women feeling empowered about their bodies and shakin’ their “stuff.” And I’m all for sexiness. But I just didn’t love burlesque. Why?

Well, there were some amazing numbers so it’s not like I had a horrible time and disliked it all. One of my favorites was a girl who hula-hooped, danced, and shed her clothes. Another was more like a cross between a ballet number and a theater performance. And the guy[s] who were introducing the girls were HIL-arious! But I’d say a good 85% (if not more) of the show I didn’t like. Ultimately I began thinking, “Okay, now how’s this girl going to get down to her pasties and panties?” and I felt like a lot of the moves were the same. It was like the typical tropes in storytelling except it wasn’t masked enough and/or blended into the routine that the signature moves of burlesque stuck out in each number like a sore thumb. –For those of you who read my IT Crowd article it was like Moss’s reaction to sports (Google the video if you don’t know what I’m taking about).

For me the show I went to was like reading a book of short stories where I just didn’t happen to like most of them and those few good stories just weren’t worth it for me to like the book or the author. And what seemed to put a bad taste in my mouth were the pasties. I just don’t like ‘em. Especially the ones with the tassels. And that’s how most of the numbers ended: pasties and panties (oh my!). Would I have liked it more sans pasties?? I have plenty of friends who love burlesque –and that’s awesome! I really wish I liked it and if you check out their videos on their Facebook page or website you can get a sneak peek at what you’ll see so you don’t go in thinking it’s something that it’s not (like me!). After my Burlesque experience I learned that it is just not for me! But maybe you’ll take in a show and find it’s for you! -Is there a cabaret show I can take in in the Quad Cities?? BOTTOM’S UP QUAD CITY BURLESQUE 

Upcoming Events:
March 18 & 19
Doors 7:00, Show 8 pm
Tickets $18.00 advance, $20.00 at door

You’ll find other events at the Speakeasy listed on the following website: http://www.thecirca21speakeasy.com/#!events/cb3i