Journalist Jadyn

The new Khaled Khaled album, by no one other than DJ Khaled is actually really good! The album features 14 new songs including bunch of other popular musicians including: Justin Timberlake, Cardi B, Justin Bieber, Postmalone, Drake, and more!

When first coming across the playlist I couldn’t help but notice how every song is titled in all caps. I’m mot sure the significance of this, but I would love to find out more. Also the album cover is an image of Dj Khaled on his knees praying with both of his children on each side of him. I think this goes to represent the importance of Dj Khaled’s family and the praying represents his religious beliefs that are mentioned in the lyrics of the very first song, THANKFUL (feat. Lil Wayne).

When listening to all the songs I found that every single song is sang by a different artist and it’s almost like DJ Khaled was “featured” in his own songs. I think there should almost be more of just his vocals, but in majority of all of his songs it’s other artists that you hear more than him.

Overall I would say my favorite songs in the album are LET IT GO (feat. Justin Bieber and I DID IT (feat. Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Baby, & DaBaby. They are both upbeat and definitely something I could listen to on the daily.

If there is one thing I would say about this album is that it offers a great variety of artists and beats. You can find a song for any kind of mood and I really like that. Overall, I would give this album 4/5 stars!

Alright ladies, summer is coming up faster than we expected and there is a lot we need to catch up on for the upcoming season. So, rumor has it that Megan Thee Stallion is in a relationship with Pardison Fontaine. Now this may not sound like a huge deal, but if you are looking forward to a  Hot Girl Summer, then you know that the founder has officially fallen. 

What is a Hot Girl Summer you ask?  According to urbandictionary.com it means, “A Hot girl summer is the summer where girls take over and express their inner hoe. Hot girls no longer care for the male gender and are no longer living by social constructs. The hot girl gang sign is made by twerking.”

Though there is no set definition, Hot Girl Summer has been a trend since last summer. Just recently social media is blowing up over Megan getting into a relationship. Does this mean that Hot Girl Summer is cancelled? How can you have a Hot Girl Summer if the woman who started it all is committed to a man?

According to Vox,  Megan said in an interview, “It’s just basically about women — and men — just being unapologetically them, just having a good-ass time, hyping up your friends, doing you, not giving a damn about what nobody got to say about it. You definitely have to be a person that can be the life of the party, and, y’know, just a bad bitch.”

Meg Thee Stallion Fan, Chloe Pieper says, “This summer is going to be all about the girls even though it won’t be quite the same without Megan. I’m just going to be focusing on myself and making sure I look good.”

 In response to all of her fans, Megan tweeted, “Hot Girl Summer… but my man picking me up after.” So ladies whether you will be participating in Hot Girl Summer starting in May or not, Megan isn’t  letting the tradition die. Go and live your best life!

The documentary I chose to analyze is called “Blackfish.” This documentary is an extremely eye-opening film about the neglect and abuse of orca, a.k.a “killer,” whales at the SeaWorld facilities. The following facilities that we brought up are located in Orlando, San Diego, and San Antonio. The specific basis or argument that this documentary is based off of, is that killer whales are not aggressive in the wild, but due to captivity these animals become extremely dangerous. Throughout watching this documentary I was absolutely shocked that the majority of people do not know what goes on behind closed doors at SeaWorld and I’m glad this information was able to be exposed. Before watching “Blackfish” I never thought of SeaWorld as this wretched hell for sea animals, because SeaWorld has always wanted the public to think SeaWorld is saving these animals’ lives because the animals couldn’t make it in captivity, but boy are we being fooled. 

So where is the proof Sea World actually neglects its animals? This film depicts the whales with bent and floppy dorsal fins, which are signs of depression, and only whales who are help in captivity have them since they are stripped from their families. The film also exposes SeaWorld for not rescuing their animals, but rather ripping them away from their families which often results in killing the mother whale and stuffing rocks into her belly so she sinks to the bottom of the ocean and it takes years for a carcas to ever wash up. On top of this the film directly shows inside information to the specific whale, Tilikum, the orca whale who is famous for killing his trainer. This documentary shows that starting off Tilikum was put in a tank much too small for his size and still he had to share it with two other whales that attacked him every day, since these animals are very territorial. Now you would think that SeaWorld, claiming to be the professionals they are, would know that orcas are very much family oriented animals. They strive best and travel their entire lives in packs with their families, so they are naturally happy and healthiest with their own out in the wild.

So why would they steal the whales away and put their young into tanks with other orcas who are ready to fight at any minute. They don’t even give these whales enough personal space that is required for them to live let alone for three to live together. You can’t expect these whales not to become extremely violent. Ontop of the living quarters these whales are trained for hours every day and starved when they do not complete a correct task. I honestly would be angry too if my trainer tried standing on me and I was hungry and exhausted!

Overall I do not and will not ever support SeaWorld. I do believe that the passing of the trainer was extremely sad and that it should not have happened to such a young innocent girl, but there is no one to blame, but SeaWorld. Tilikum should have been released back into the wild as soon as he was “nourished back to health” and SeaWorld should better educate themselves on how to properly train and raise orcas if that is how they wish to create their business.

Imagine setting an alarm 5 minutes before class is supposed to begin. You quickly throw your hair in a messy-bun and roll over to click the link to the ZOOM call and there you are. A face on a screen, surrounded by all your classmates who are just as relaxed and as comfy as you are. The professor starts the lecture the same as always. Greeting everyone with, “Hi, how are you today” and drags on for the remainder of the class period with information we already got from the previous readings or instructions for our next upcoming assignment. After it’s all over you feel so mentally drained trying to stay focused and listen that you just go back to bed until it’s time to do it all over again.

Is this really supposed to prepare us for the real world? I mean don’t get me wrong it’s extremely nice having the opportunity to attend classes online, but at the same time it makes it that much harder to return to normal. This semester has really beaten me up. Going from hardly having to get out of bed to now having multiple in-person classes a day, cheer practice, work five days a week, radio shifts, homework, and having a social life; has absolutely destroyed me. My sleep schedule is entirely messed up. I go to bed at 3am and attempt to get up at 8:30, but a lot of times it’s the waking up that kills me. I find it so hard to fall asleep after working until 11 then finally getting to eat supper and then I begin my homework after that.

So, how have online classes completely changed the college culture? Morningside student Emma Endrulat said, “It has been so hard to even function this year. After that extremely long break it’s like my brain gets tired much quicker and I lost skills like time management and prioritization.” These are both very important skills that will be needed by every single student in order to succeed. It’s crazy how what becomes a temporary new normal can completely destroy what we once used to possess.

Madison Nicks, student from Iowa Central Community College, said,”It’s almost like we went on this half-way break for way too long and now we can’t get back to normal. I find myself completely unmotivated and especially just trying to jump back into things full-force is extremely overwhelming.” This is a great point! As students, we were not eased back into the classroom setting and work environment. It was just one day everything started back up and we were expected to adapt immediately.

Thanks to the global pandemic college culture has changed from being the best years of your life to a stressful, unexpected mess. We were once able to make friends in class that we had never seen before and now we can hardly tell who’s siting in the chair next to us with their face covered. We lost the mental capacity and academic qualities we once used to have and now more than ever college students everywhere are struggling.

This year Covid-19 has taken a lot of things from all college students across the world. New classroom regulations, mask mandates, less breaks, restricted athletics, limited travel, etc. The list goes on and on, but what does it mean for the upcoming spring break?

As most of you know Spring Break consists of college students traveling to somewhere warm with their groups of friends. Activities include: soaking up the sun, absolutely relaxing, letting loose, and taking their minds off of, yet another stressful semester. Except this year there is a bit of an issue…WE’RE IN A PANDEMIC! So what are college students going to do on a break that won’t ever live up to the hype that it once had?

Here at Morningside College, plenty of students have expressed their disappointing plans for the academic break. Jacob Bottom said, “I’ll be working every single day and playing Xbox just like every other day off.” Emma Endrulat said, “I might go visit my boyfriend for a couple of days, but otherwise I need to work and save up for my new tattoo.” After these responses I thought about reaching out to my friend who always travels to see if that would still be in her cards this year. She said, “Don’t get me wrong flights are cheap right now, but I just don’t think being on a super packed beach with strangers is a good idea.”

I was glad to hear her concerns for her health and others, but it still lead me to wonder if all students considered staying put or not. My friend Courtney from the University of Iowa said, “My family always loves going on vacation during Spring Break, but because of financial issues due to the pandemic they couldn’t even afford to go this year.” Everyone I seemed to talk to didn’t have any big traveling plans at all. It was kind of shocking how our world has seemed to be turned upside down in the last year or so.

This year Spring Break seems like less of a break and more of a time period to work even harder to gain financial support for whatever corona virus brings next. So much for relaxation.

I nervously start-off towards table 233, rehearsing my greeting word for word. “Hi guys, I’m Jadyn I’ll be serving you today. Could I interest you in any of our Legendary Margaritas or Ice Cold Beers to start off with?” I can’t forget the three story points! What if these guys are shoppers? I could get fired! I calmly gather myself approach the guests with a big smile and raise my voice a couple octaves. They seem super nice and they ordered some pretty expensive drinks, so hopefully I get a good tip out of this. I just have to remember to go back and check on them in five or so minutes and see if they need anything. Oh great! You have to be kidding me I just got sat again and this time it’s a large party! Table 232 here I come.

The global pandemic has brought a significant amount of change here around Morningside’s campus and it has created a completely new normal for everyone. Whether that includes: wearing masks, social distancing, ZOOM meetings, minimal breaks in the academic calendar, or quarantine floors this year has been the most different compared to anything we students and athletes have experienced before.

Not only has the pandemic affected the classroom setting and living situations, but even the athletic aspects such as practices and games. This year as a cheerleader it was extremely difficult trying to adapt to new rules and expectations. Every day before practice or game days we have to line up to get our temperatures taken and report any new symptoms we may be experiencing. We have to wear masks into the football stadium and when we enter the crowd, but when we are cheering on the sidelines masks are not required. On the other hand, for all basketball games masks must be worn whether we are cheering from the sidelines or mingling in the crowd. I believe this rule is different for the two athletics, because of the setting. Basketball games are in the confined space of the gym versus football games being in the outdoor stadium and further away from the crowd.

A major issue we have run into is trying to cheer with a mask on in a very loud gym filled with roaring fans. It is so extremely hard to hear one another when were are right next to each other, so I can only imagine how the crowd can even hear us from a distance. Thus making our presence almost irrelevant to the event entirely. I feel that this year has limited our cheer experience in so many ways, but hope that in the future we will get to enjoy our season as we could once before.

When talking to our cheer coach Dakota VanHauen he said, “This year has definitely been different, but as a team I haven’t had a better group of girls. This season everyone has been extremely responsible and there has been very minimal drama.” When I asked him what his hopes are for the future of the cheer squad with the occurring pandemic he said, “I can only focus on expanding our team and hoping these unfortunate conditions of limited practices and mask mandates comes to an end along with the spread of corona virus across campus.” I asked him his thoughts on how the pandemic has affected our squad and he said, “At the beginning of the year it was really hard to keep positive when 16 of our 30 cheerleaders were out due to contact tracing and exposure, because we could hardly get anything accomplished in practice.” Since then we have had to work even harder to make up for lost time.

To gain more opinion on the cheer season this year I also talked to cheerleader Emma Endrulat. She said, “This year has been very challenging with all the different requirements, but I still am so glad I got to be apart of this team and make lots of memories with my teammates.” I asked her what was the most difficult change for her and she said,”The most difficult challenge would probably have to be trying to yell through a mask and nearly suffocating through the limited airflow.” I told her that I could not agree more. The masks make any part of being an athlete that much harder and majority of the time you can’t even breathe and become extremely light headed. Emma says, “Going forward I hope that COVID-19 no longer has to be an issue for our team and that one day we can go back to having camps and being able to show-off facials and smiling at all our friends and family in the crowd or even getting to go into the crowd to hug our families and take pictures without having to have a mask on.” It’s the smallest things and privileges that we take for granted and we never realized how much they actually mattered until they’re gone.

Overall the cheer team has come out on top this year even with all the obstacles thrown our way. They have made us that much more hard-working and dedicated along with the extra responsibilities that coach talked about earlier. Our team is now that much stronger and I can’t wait for all the positivity that lies ahead. Hopefully next season we can return to our old normal and continue to spread cheer through out each and every event we attend.

It is so crazy how the smallest acts of kindness can completely change someone’s day for the better. As I handed out fruit snacks around campus the responses I got were extremely eye-opening. I first approached one of my friends, Ashley Duncan, who I hadn’t seen all semester. I saw that she was waiting in line for a coffee at the SpoonHolder and I told her I had something to give her. As I handed her the fruit snacks she immediately questioned why I was giving them. I told her I just wanted to give them to her, because I wanted to be a positive part of her day and right away she smiled and thanked me. Nearly every person I did this to had the exact same response. To be exact 9/10 people.

It’s crazy to me how before people thank you for a kind gesture they jump straight into wonder why you are being kind in the first place. I think that goes to show a lot about our world and society now-a-days. We aren’t used to random act of kindness, so that when they happen it is an awkward experience. Another type of experienceI had was when I had given the fruit snacks to was a student on campus that I had never seen before. He was just walking back to his dorm from class and I asked if he wanted one. He looked at me kind of strange and then asked if I was talking to him. When I responded yes he seemed completely shocked and accepted the fruit snacks while thanking me over and over again.

I think that in today’s world we get so caught up in our own lives we forget about those around us. We don’t know whether the stranger walking home from class is on the verge of a breakdown or if they had just had the best day of their lives and I think that is what makes considering our own actions so extremely important. You could be the reason someone’s day is the best or worst they’ve had in a long time, so think of that the next time you are in a rush to class. Something even as small as stopping and holding open a door can mean the world to someone else. Our world is in dire need of positivity.

With Biden becoming president, he has began cracking down in efforts to end this global pandemic. His goals include: increasing the amount of vaccination sites, the government will purchase more doses, and more people will be able to get the immunization.

Right now the people that qualify for a vaccine include: health care providers, front-line essential workers, and politicians. Eventually once vaccines become more available they will be offered to elders aged 65+, people aged 16-64 with underlying medical conditions, and other essential workers such as people who work in transportation and logistics, food service, housing construction and finance, information technology, communications, energy, law, media, public safety, and public health.

Talking to students and professors on Morningside’s campus, one major question is why aren’t colleges becoming a priority for this vaccine? English and CIC professor David Elder said, “Students live and congregate with groups of people all day, every day and professors are also exposed to these students and meet with them for in-person classes, making college staff, faculty, and students a highly exposed area that should be considered much more seriously.”

Hopefully, with Biden in office, he will be able to offer the United States’ Colleges and Universities more access to vaccination doses and cites.