When I was searching for summer classes, this project was something that really convinced me to join this class. I’ve always wanted to create my own podcast and I thought this was a really great opportunity. Whenever I am doing chores or driving, I enjoy turning on my favorite podcasts. I guess it’s the “listener” in me that enjoys listening to people talk about honestly anything. And I think it also roots from the fact that I really cherish my conversations with people. Podcasts allow people to go back three years and remember every word that was spoken in a conversation, and I think that’s really beautiful. I went into my Notes app and started writing down ideas for my commercial. I was looking for a more peaceful, ASMR-style commercial rather than something too obnoxious and pushy. I chose words and phrases that I can comfortably say without using too much energy. During this planning process, I imagined myself talking over the sounds of spa music and I think it worked out really well. Originally I intended on just recording a normal commercial, with just my voice and some spa music. But I got the sudden idea to use one of IMovie’s background images. I found a serene video underwater and decided to keep it throughout the entire podcast. To add another touch, I was able to add fading words that introduced my podcast and my name. I am very pleased with the outcome. This entire process was relatively easy and I didn’t run into any major problems. I did use IMovie which made it quite difficult to play around with the audio. Unfortunately there isn’t a feature that allows me to fade in or fade out audio in IMovie. So what I did instead was split up the audio into smaller sections and lowered the volume for each one. This explains why my fade in and fade out may not sound as natural. I think it sounds alright and I definitely want to find a way to work through this in the future. Overall I had a really fun, easy experience making my commercial.
new info
Week 9: Free Blog Post 5
For today’s blog post, I wanted to talk about something slightly different from what you are used to. For those of you living Bergen County of New Jersey, you may have heard the news that there has been E-coli detected in water. Now what do we do?
The only course of action is to ensure that we are consuming and using water that is safe for us. This can be done by using bottled water or boiled water that has been cooled down for drinking water, brushing your teeth, etc. My family has been using bottled water for everything, including making food, brushing our teeth, and obviously for drinking. As of today, the boil water advisory has been lifted at around 3pm. Find more information here.
Week 8: Free Blog Post 4
Have you ever had a couple lemons sitting in your fridge- and didn’t know what to do with them? Well for today’s blog, I want to show you guys how you can turn lemons into cleaning solutions, scrubs, and many more. But before we start I did some research to reassure you that these natural cleaning products will indeed clean those dirty surfaces.
“While they may not be as powerful as commercially formulated products in eliminating bacteria, natural sanitizers inhibit bacteria growth. They can reduce it to undetectable levels, mainly if used regularly. When it comes to natural cleaners vs. store-bought, the store-bought will likely be more immediately effective. Still, you should ask yourself whether you need such an intense approach, given the potentially damaging side effects.”
Cited from thisoldhouse.com
When you think about it, nothing will ever be 100% clean. By cleaning our dirty surfaces with wipes, we are simply making them clean before they get dirty again. That is why it is important to not only clean frequently but also efficiently. Some cleaning products can be very intense and can cause side effects, especially when dealing with more sensitive spaces, like the kitchen sink. With that being said, let’s get right into how lemons can help your sustainable cleaning habits.
Here are some everyday ingredients that can be easily made into cleaning products according to thisoldhouse.com
- baking soda
- white vinegar
- lemon
- olive oil
- soap nuts
- castile soap
- essential oil
How to create a lemon all-purpose kitchen cleaner
- You will need vinegar and water
- Mix EQUAL parts of vinegar and water in a container
- If you would like, add a few drops of essential oil to customize the scent of your cleaning spray
- Slice up a few lemon peels and you can even add a few drops of lemon juice.
- Transfer into an old spray bottle or a reusable bottle
- Now you have an all-natural cleaning spray! Make sure to label with a marker or sticker that indicates it is a cleaning spray. Here are some labels I found on Amazon.
Week 7 : Hyde, et al., Discussion
Today’s reading reminded me of many thoughts and feelings I had throughout this blog-making process. Let’s start with a quote from the section “The People Formerly Known as the Audience”.
If all would speak, who shall be left to listen? Can you at least tell us that?
pg. 13
This quote here is the way I felt going into this blog-making process. When I opened the Webliography for the first time, I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by the numerous types of websites that were being made. I couldn’t seem to settle on just three because many interested me. This made me wonder about this quote about having someone to listen. If we are all busy making our individual blogs, will we be able to hear out what the other classmates are presenting. Or are we too fixated on our own project? How are you listening?
Week 7 : Promotion Post
For this week’s blog I will be talking about social media platforms I think will effectively promote my website. I’m sure many people have mentioned this platform, but I believe that TikTok will be able to spread my content in the best way possible. Why? Because almost a billion people are on it. TikTok has quickly grown to become the most popular social media app since the global pandemic. When we were stuck at home in quarantine, I can guarantee that many of us found TikTok and its unexplainable addicting charm. Each TikTok video ranges from about 15 seconds to a minutes, which is very different from, for instance, Youtube that utilizes short to very lengthy videos. The ‘For You’ page allows users to mindlessly scroll for hours and hours without realizing that so much time has passed. Personally I went through a horrible phase of just binge-watching Tiktok, and there were multiple times where I would literally spend the entire day in my bed. Thankfully I have grown to learn how to control myself, but it is still difficult to stay away from it.
The nature of my website deals with fun hacks and tips for how to clean properly. I feel like TikTok would open doors for my website because it’s a great place to make short, catchy videos. Because of TikTok’s large audience, it would be much easier to reach as many people as I can in a short time.
Free Blog 3 : Cleaning Tips & Hacks for College Students PART 1
Are you an incoming college student worried about what to buy for your dorm? Before you go to Target and spend money on all types of cleaning supplies, read these tips & tricks that might help you save $$$
Free Blog 2: How to LAUNDRY
This week’s HOW-TO is none other than how to do your laundry. Now, although doing laundry sounds very straightforward, having to share washers & dryers with fellow college students made me realize- it’s not so straightforward. Here’s why and how you can get it right every time.
Hre are some essential materials you need before doing your laundry
- Personal or shared washer and dryer
- Detergent
- Softener
- Dryer Sheets (optional)
- Scent Boosters (optional)
- Laundry Bag/ Bucket
- Coins/Online App to Pay
- Timer/Clock
Step 1: Separate your white and black/colored clothing. Personally, as a broke college student, I often skipped this step but it eventually ruined my white clothing. So if possible, I recommend separating these two!
Step 2: Are you using liquid detergent or laundry pods? For liquid detergent, pour the appropriate amount in the pull-out compartment located on the top left or right corner of the machine. Ensure that you are pouring the right amount for your load.
For the laundry pods, you want to place them in the drum. Now, this is something that I noticed many people were doing at my college dorm. I would see so many Tide pods getting stuck in between the washer, as shown in the image here. To prevent this from happening, you simply need to place the pod in the drum FIRST and then your load on top. This will keep the pod from moving around and eventually reaching the front door of the washer.
***If you would like to do so, add softener and/or a scent booster to cater to your load’s needs.
Step 3: Depending on your laundry machine, the settings may look slightly different. However most conventional machines should have the option to do a general wash, rinse, and spin. Depending on the weight of your load, the washing time will differ but it will range from 30-50 minutes. Now all you need to do is press Start.
Step 4: Set a timer. If you are a college student like me, you know that sharing a laundry room with who knows how many people is a nightmare. I still remember when I was under five minutes late to move my laundry, and someone had tossed my wet clothes on the dirty counter. So to prevent this, I highly recommend setting your own timer, even if you are using an app. (Sometimes Speed Queen is not accurate)
Step 5: Dry and fold. When your clothes are done washing, move it over to the dryer. Dry for 60-80 minutes, depending on your load. Once you’ve set a timer, waited, and finally gathered your laundry, all that is left is to fold and organize your clothes.
Congratulations, you are now a laundry expert!
Week 5: Editing an Image
For this week’s assignment, we were able to design our image/header. Unfortunately, my theme did not allow me to add a header, so I decided to design a regular image for a blog post. I much prefer the features offered by Canva, so that is what I used instead of Photoshop or Pixlr Editor. The goal behind creating this image was to make my message clean, clear, and aesthetically pleasing. I chose a neutral color palette to match the theme of my website and a thin, sophisticated font to write my website’s name and motto. The two images were obtained through a very simple Google search for “messy sink” and “cleaning”. The tricky part in creating this image was that I felt like I was being “too simple.” Every image of cleaning just had a pile of trash, some towels, and some dishes. If it were some other subject, like dancing, I feel like I can think of so many ways to create this abstract, interesting work. However since my website is about cleaning, it was really hard for me to feel truly satisfied with my work. To be very honest, I think I could’ve done a better job in tidying this up and adding something to it, but I’m still grateful that I got the chance to play around with photo editing.
Free Blog 1: How can beeclean help you?
- college student on a budget
- doesn’t know how to truly clean everyday surfaces
- can’t tell the difference between cleaning products
- has to ask an adult about a certain cleaning task/ product
- struggles to find which products are the best
- curious about sustainable cleaning
Do you find yourself filling in any of these listed points? Well this is a perfect place for you to learn how to clean the right and if possible, the sustainable way. I am also a college student who struggles to keep my space clean without splurging money on wipes, sprays, and various cleaning products. Here, you will learn how to turn lemons into all-purpose cleaning sprays, baking soda into a toilet gel, and many more.
Here’s one of my favorite cleaning videos on Youtube filmed by @krist & yu
I’ll catch you guys on the next blog~
bee clean 