The Sane Side of Crazy

It was difficult to choose any feature story over they Whitney Houston article in Entertainment Weekly, but I settled on an artist that I don't know a lot about. You learn something new every day!

Sinead O'Connor is a name that has long been tied to drugs and being crazy. An article by Melissa Maerz in EW however discusses her path to a new album and life, and how she feels about her past labels.

Maerz opens up with a quote from O'Connor, "You're treated like shit if you're perceived as crazy."

The unmistakably Irish, 45 year-old singer has had a tough time, to say the least.  An 18 day marriage, an accidental crack deal and a suicide attempt are just the highlights of the past few months in her life. Despite the bad circumstances, the article gets the point across that O'Connor is moving on and moving towards happiness.

Maerz portrays O'Connor as a very open artist who is connected with her fans. She even references O'Connor's personal tweets, including a tweet about trying to kill herself the previous week and asking for doctors that could see her that day. She quotes, "I'm really unwell and in danger. And I desperately need to get back on meds today."

I took a look at her website and it is true, her blogs and tweets are very blunt, harsh, sometimes vulgar, and completely open. It is intimidating and risky for a celebrity to open up so much. If anyone can do it and withstand the response, it's the outspoken and strong O'Connor.

While there were obviously hardships to cover, Maerz moves quickly through the mess and gets to the music. The article is mostly a breakdown of her newly-released album, How About I Be Me (And You Be You.)

O'Connor's music is self-described as a diary. "There were one or two songs that I wrote hoping they might come true." O'Connnor said

There is a melancholy feel to the article. Maerz captures the blunt, somber, funny, and dark sides of the singer which is hard to do in one article.

The article wasn't that long and I would have liked to read a bit more detail about the situations that lead O'Connor to write the songs. Even more, I would like to know how she got past her point of being suicidal and emerged with what is called her best album yet.

I like the ending quote Maerz uses from O'Connor about her album, "If you listen to this record from the beginning thorough, hopefully you will hear it end joyfully. It was a journey towards happiness."

As for happiness, O'Connor says, "I'll get there."

Besides a few unanswered questions, the article was well written and taught me a lot about Sinead.


Here are some links to articles about her suicide attempt and divorce, along with the link to her website were you can read recent entries. Warning! She has a very Irish mouth!

O'Connor 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/29/sinead-oconnor-divorce_n_1174538.html


http://articles.nydailynews.com/2012-01-12/news/30621260_1_suicide-attempt-downward-spiral-twitter-followers

http://www.sineadoconnor.com/index.html




Entertainment Weekly, February 24, 2012

The Island before Time

The Island before Time

   To match the numerous shades of green that color Ireland’s hillsides, there are also numerous types of places to visit. There is the hustle and bustle of tourist-filled Dublin, the quiet home-feel of towns like Thurles but then there is a place, just off the coast, that takes you to a land frozen in time.
    The Aran Islands are three islands near the Galway Bay on the western side of Ireland. There is the ‘east island’, Inis Oirr, the ‘middle island’, Inis Meain, and the ‘big island’, Inis Mor.
   Inis Mor is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Ireland. The only way onto the island is by ferry or plane. The ferry departs from a port an hour outside Galway and the ride is typically 40 minutes depending on weather conditions.
  John Espey, Tennessee Consortium for International Studies (TNCIS) program director, said he felt the ferry ride alone was an experience. 


Historic Legacy
   The landscape, history and authentic culture of Inis Mor draw people from all over the world. Espey said TNCIS decided to visit the island because of its history and reputation.
   “It is remote and holds the history of the knitting,” Espey said. “The people were very isolated from the mainland for centuries. Seeing the very quaint shops on the far side of the island really set the stage for getting a sense of centuries of a rather rough existence.”
   Despite being popular, the island maintains its old-world feel.
   “It is the islanders that contribute to this, their pride and respect for their culture and island,” Clodagh ni Ghoill, Inis Mor resident, said. “There is a uniqueness, sense of freedom, peace and the calm, that one feels when on the island. It is a stress free experience.”
   Ghoill, who is the proprietor of the Ard Einne Guesthouse on Inis Mor, was born and raised on the island. She now provides accommodations for visitors who come to visit. Ghoill says the Aran Islands have always been culturally connected to Ireland and they have a rich Irish history from the Celts and Fir bolg period and the monastic period which was around 500 ad.


Personal Experience
   Upon arriving in the port city of Kilronan, TNCIS student Greta Beil saw tour vans and rental bikes to take her and her friends around the island.
   “It was raining, so we all hopped in the closest van we could find just to stay dry,” Beil said, junior at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. “Our tour guide was great,” Beil said. “He was this happy, little old man that knew everything there was to know about the island.”
   Because of the island’s landscape and history it is often referred to as an outdoor museum.
   “He told us there was over 20,000 miles of hand-built stone walls around the island,” Beil said. “And seriously, the walls were everywhere. It amazed me how they were still standing since the weather is so windy and rainy there. There were stone houses too with thatched roofs that the guide said were built thousands of years ago.
   “There were no commercial stores either, just little shops with mostly hand-made stuff. My friends bought wool hats from a lady who was literally making them right in front of us.”
   While on the tour Beil said they came across quite an interesting sight.
   “We were just driving along, looking out the window, then I screamed ‘donkey!’,” Beil said. “Right there on the side of the road, looking over a stone wall was a donkey’s head. It was pretty much the funniest thing I’ve ever seen. It looked like it was just floating.”
   Beil said the group got out of the van and took pictures with the donkey that turned out to be ‘really friendly.’


Things to See
   There are several historic sites on the island. Perched on the edge of a 100m cliff plunging straight into the Atlantic Ocean, Dún Aonghasa is a prehistoric fortress dating back to 1000 BC. It is the island’s best-known attraction.There are three forts on the Inis Mor, Dún Dúchathair, also referred to as The Black Fort,  Dún Eochla, and Dún Eoghanachta. All three have unique architectural qualities that bring appeal to tourists.
   Na Poill Seideáin, The Puffing Holes, are two large, circular holes about 100 yards from the cliff edge, where the sea water will "puff" up through as waves crash into a cave beneath the cliffs.
   Na Seacht dTeampaill, The Seven Churches, is an ancient monastic site, with two churches and several out buildings. Students from the TNCIS group were able to visit here.
   “It was almost creepy,” Jessica Copeland, junior at East Tennessee State University said. “There were a lot of cemeteries and building ruins which made it seem almost like a haunted place.
   “But then again, the history of it was beautiful. I felt like I was somewhere important, you know, standing where so much has happened throughout history.” 

Life on the island
   Inis Mor, with a population of 850 people, is one of the only places in Ireland where Gaelic is still spoken as the first language. All native born islanders are raised bilingual in English and Gaelic. Clodagh ni Ghoill, one such native born islander said that her favorite part about Inis Mor is where she lives on the island.
   “The guesthouse is overlooking its own beach and St. Enda Church,” Ghoill said. “It is elevated up on a hill with the spectacular views of Galway Bay, Connamara and Clare Coastlines.”
   According to Ghoill, the main industries on the island are tourism and fishing. However, she said there are some residents that commute to work on the mainland daily.
   There are three kinds of schools on the island, Pre-school, Primary school and Secondary school. Remy Hamel, another member of the TNCIS program met some school-aged children. 
   “This one kid had orange hair, not red, orange,” Hamel said. “We asked him what they did for fun and he told us about a playground they hang out at near his school. It was amazing. It was really colorful, especially on such a rainy day and even had a little zip line. 
   “We ran into more kids there and talked to them about what school was like. One of the girls said sometimes class sizes are as small as two kids.”
   Ghoill said that children receive the same education as other children in the country and they do have internet and phone access. Ghoill also said that the island has no crime at all and describes Inis Mor as a ‘haven.' “When visiting the Island, it is important that in order to enjoy the peace and tranquility of the island, one must stay on the Island for a few days to get the true feeling of Island life and 'timelessness.'”
   If planning a trip to Inis Mor, one might want to forget their watch, for time is lost there anyway. 

More Info at http://www.aranislands.ie/Inis-Oiir/inis-mor-island/

 Photo by Jillian Boreing. John Espey with a donkey on Inis Mor Island. 

 

Photo by Jillian Boreing. Graveyard and building remains at Na Seacht dTeampaill, The Seven Churches, on Inis Mor Island.

Where's Ronald?

The world's leading global food-service retailer is changing its iconic image.

'We strive continually to improve. We are a learning organization that aims to

anticipate and respond to changing customer, employee and system needs through

constant evolution and innovation.'

This is one of the McDonald’s Corporation’s values statements. It addresses the

constant change customer’s have seen in McDonald’s over the years, but are the recent,

drastic changes necessary?

“Yeah, you try to upgrade, but they’ve built a reputation and now they’re trying to

change it.” said freshman college student Sarah Verble. The reputation she referred to

is one of family and fun. Verble remembers going to McDonald’s as a child and playing

in the PlayPlace with her friends. In middle school, her basketball team would stop to

eat after away games. It was always the team’s choice because it was a fun experience.

“It’s always been McDonald’s, it’s always been a fun place to eat,” said Verble.

“Now they are trying to be like a fast-food Starbucks and it’s just not appealing. If I

want to go to Starbucks, I’ll go to Starbucks.” Verble said that people are going to go to

McDonald’s for what McDonald’s gives, which for her is a cheap meal.

“I go off the dollar menu ‘cause I’m a broke college student,” said Verble about what

she gets when eating there. The prices of the newer, healthier options hinder her from

choosing them.

“They wonder why America is obese,” said Verble. “They put the bad stuff on the

dollar menu and make the good stuff expensive.”

Verble believes that adding a few new menu items and changing the architecture are

only going to make the restaurant into something that clearly isn’t McDonald’s.

The target audience of McDonald’s seems to no longer be families. Instead, the

restaurant now targets business people and young adults. In our society it is easy to fall

behind, but society is losing one of the only restaurants that catered to kids. What was

once a childhood utopia is now an adult domain.

Children used to want a birthday party at McDonald’s PlayPlace, now people could hold

business meetings there instead. Wi-Fi and flat-screens playing news networks have

replaced the slides and Ronald McDonald.

In the Nashville area, only 10 out of 25 locations still have a PlayPlace, and those

10 PlayPlaces remain only because the stores haven’t been renovated yet. Out of the

same 25 restaurants only one, which is located inside a Wal-Mart, is without Wi-Fi. The

company introduced free Wi-Fi in 2010.

Over the years, changes to the menu have included the addition of recognizable

items such as the French Fry in 1949, the Filet-O-Fish in 1963, the Big Mac in 1968,

and of course the Happy Meal in 1979. The seemingly healthier options began with

salads being added to the menu in 1987, and then premium salads were introduced in

2003. These were the subtle changes that led to adding other choices such as apple

slices, fruit and yogurt parfaits and oatmeal.

In 2009 the biggest momentum change for McDonald’s came with the launching of

the McCafe. Gourmet coffee drinks at a reduced price allowed McDonald’s to compete

with Starbucks and other local coffee shops. McCafe has since become its own brand.

The McDonald’s in Antigua, Guatemala even has a separate area for the McCafe

complete with couches and a barista.

The shift in McDonald’s image causes mixed emotions in sophomore college student

Brent White.

“I think it’s a good idea, but it’s probably not gonna last,” said White of the image

change. “They’ll end up going back to what they’re used to doing.” He said that when he

first saw a renovated McDonald’s he thought they were just trying to copy-cat everyone

else.

“They’re just trying to keep up,” said White.

Megan Eads, Integrated Marketing Communication major at East Tennessee State

University has a more business minded response to the changes.

“From a marketing/branding standpoint it is long overdue,” said Eads. “Maybe if they

decided that vegetarian options might be good on the new menu, I might consider

going. Otherwise, no, thanks.”

The company is never going to please everyone. They need to pick an audience

and stick with it, cater to its needs. 

Regardless of the aesthetic changes, many people still find the food to be

disappointing, even if there are healthier choices.

“Even if they have beautiful building and a new image, they still have crappy food,”

said stay-at-home mom Rachel Clark.

“I'm still not gonna eat there,” said college student Kristen Creager. “The image and

menu doesn't trade for the bad service and bad food.”

Despite all the controversy over food quality and image, there are still no McDonald’s

restaurants going out of business. No matter what the restaurant looks like, people

are still eating there. In the past 72 years, McDonald's has become the world's leading

global foodservice retailer with more than 33,000 locations serving nearly 68 million

customers in 119 countries each day. For better or worse, happier or healthier,

McDonald’s is here to stay.

To read more about the McDonald's Corporation...

http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/our_story/Corporate_Info.html