The Kirksville Socialite

A Farewell to (Kirksville) Blogging

Howdy Socialites.

This is Casey, the founder/editor of the Kirksville Socialite.  I've spent the past semester in Jefferson City interning for a Missouri legislator so it's been some time since I last posted here.  This post will be one of my last, and likely among the last on the site altogether.

Throughout the past five months I've been wrestling with what to do with this little conglomeration of thoughts and HTML once I walked the commencement stage on May 8.  I started the blog knowing that there would come a time when I wouldn't be able to blog on it anymore, and I'd always hoped that it would be something I could pass along to an intrepid younger Truman student or local resident.  

To date, I have had several offers from several people from both of those categories to take over the day-to-day blogging on the site now that I'm a proud Truman alum.  The fact that these people have volunteered to do this of their own volition, without the promise of academic credit or any financial incentive, means more to me than I can address in this brief space.  My decision to decline their offers and signal the end of this blog was a difficult one to make.

Blogging isn't for everyone.  Deciding that you've got something to say that other people should hear is an easy enough decision to make, and if you're passionate about writing that comes easily enough, too.  The tricky part is getting people to listen: to be a successful purveyor of information in the era of information overload you've got to prove that there's something you can tell people that no one else can.  I've found that there are two ways of doing this: the first is by identifying a niche that isn't being addressed properly; the second is by having a unique voice.

I started the blog because I thought that the Northeast Missouri niche could be explored and explained differently than the way it was at the time.  This isn't to say that I felt that The Kirksville Daily Express, The Index, KTRM, and KTVO didn't do a good job of covering the area; on the contrary, the longer I've been blogging the more my gratitude for the breadth of their coverage has grown.  My impetus was to cover NEMO in a way that I hoped would get people to start interacting with and thinking about their community a bit differently.  I wanted Truman students to feel that they could include Kirksville/NEMO along with campus proper in their concept of "their community," and for local citizens who didn't have any interaction with the University to get some sort of insight into what was going on in one of this area's biggest economic drivers.

I'm not entirely certain what, if any, impact the Socialite has had in this regard.  I know it's gotten attention both on-campus and off; I know it clocked over 60,000 hits in its first year; and I know that there have been several posts I've made which have gotten attention from beyond Missouri's borders. (Including some unlikely international locations, which I find bemusing.  I'm talking to you, Kazakhstan.)  I feel comfortable in saying that it became an area PR resource, but I don't feel comfortable in saying that that aspect of the site ever found its appropriate groove.  I feel confident in saying that content on it spawned discussion, but I don't feel confident in saying to what extent.

At the end of the day all writing is really about is using a visual verbal means to communicate something to someone in the way you think it can best be communicated.  With this in mind, I really can't hope for anything greater than some people having learned something from some post put up on the site at some point.  

Additionally, I do hope that more people will start blogging about the area, even though it won't be under the moniker of the Kirksville Socialite.  Goodness knows Northeast Missouri is a veritable hullabaloo of activity just begging to be explored; the inner political workings of Truman State alone would make for fantastic blog fodder. (Hint hint.)  It's been one hell of a lot of fun to try to figure out this place, and I can't imagine that's going to cease to be the case anytime soon.

I do have a few more posts I'm planning on throwing up here over the next couple of days, just a few "tying up loose ends" pieces that I think are important to get out before officially stopping the posts, but before I did that I did want to take the time to share my decision about the site.  Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for just a little bit longer.

Cheers,

Casey

Learning Journey

Hello Socialites,

I must say, it’s been an interesting semester. I’m not saying goodbye, or even really promising that this will be my last post because let’s be real, I still have all the passwords to get on and post should the urge strike.

First of all, I have to give a big shout out. For those of you who don’t personally know her, Casey is THE socialite. She’s the one who started this blog, gained a readership, and has solely kept it going despite any roadblocks, surely a few, that she has encountered in the process. When I had the opportunity to gain internship course credit by blogging for the Socialite, I jumped at the chance to interview.

Blogging, I thought, would be easy. I have friends. I talk to them. I can put thoughts into words...to people other than my friends. I know how to make a link. Easy, right? Well, maybe to an extent. I’m a bit of a technology freak. I like what technology has done to our society, how it has been able to give the common society a voice in a way that has never been possible before. We all have opinions, and I know I certainly do. What I didn’t forsee, is the questioning. Every time I contemplated a topic for a post, I thought about who/what/when/where/why anyone would care what I had to say on the topic. I considered what authority I had to even believe that anyone would be interested.

I actually happen to think I’m at least a half way decent writer. You know, I can form sentences, I know how to use a comma, and I even know the fancy word for this sign “&”--ampersand, but what does it mean to be not just an interesting writer, but a credible source of information?

In essence, my time spent blogging as made me think about information, news, entertainment, opinions, anecdotes, and the connections and variations found among each of those things. I highly doubt this will be my last blogging or writing experience, and I’m happy to have taken this learning journey with you all.

‘Til next time...Cheers,

Shannon

Relay Review

Hello Socialites,

The end of the semester is coming to a close, and it still seems that this community is itching to get those last few events in. If you aren't attending the Bonnaroo College Comedy Tour tonight courtesy of SAB, then maybe you had the privilege of attending Relay for Life this past Friday.

For me, the Relay experience was my first, but it certainly won't be my last. How could it be when there was an insane amount of awesome food, inspiring survivors, and a great group of volunteers.

Today, the Index ran an article entitled "He Ran for his Life" by Shawn Shinnemann. I feel lucky to say that I was able to both meet and walk some laps with the survivor featured, Mr. Andrew Lovy. This man's white beard, attraction to carbonated beverages even when running all night long, and encouraging words were without a doubt, uplifting. I encourage you to check out the article if you're looking for a little extra motivation this finals week.

Study hard, enjoy the weather, and live a little in these last days before summer.

Cheers,

Shannon

What's the Diff?

Hellooo, socialites, have you been observant these last few days? If so, you may have noticed something different outside the Ruth Warner Towne Museum that serves as the University's admissions office and is located at the corner of Franklin and Normal.

One small letter may not seem like a big difference to you, but many community members that knew and loved Dr. Ruth Warner Towne have been pushing for that "W" to be added to the outside of the building. Last week, they got their wish.

This museum is one of my new favorite parts of Truman's campus, and since I'm sure none of you schedule yourself to go on tours through admissions, you may not have even been there. I encourage you to head over there and check it out if you haven't already. If not out of your own curiosity, then for the legend of Dr. Towne.

The brief though charming biography of Dr. Towne on the museum's website can be found here.

Cheers,

Shannon

           

VOTE!

Hello, Socialites!

Voting for the Truman State Student Senate as well as FAC representatives and some other offices ends this Wednesday at 8p. This is your chance for your voice to be heard, so do some research, and don't forget to vote! www.vote.truman.edu

Cheers,

Shannon

Kirksville's Movie Gallery To Close Doors

 

Alright, you caught me. I've known about this one for a bit, but I was hesitant to tell you until I checked out the goods for myself.

Kirksville's Movie Gallery will be closing its doors soon, and as the signs proclaim, everything must go!

A movie fiend, myself, I was anxious to check out the deals. The advertisements in the window state 20%-50%, but a more accurate description would be that the majority of the DVDs can be purchased 3 for $20, with the exception of the new releases which are 3 for $25.

Sadly, I walked out empty handed, nostalgia over the great finds I made out with in 2006 when a local movie store had a similar everything-must-go sale. However, if your interest is in chick flicks, recent popular dramas, or slasher movies, I guarantee they have something you'll be interested in.

Cheers,
Shannon

Truman Rocks this Week

Great Things going on this week...or at least 3 among many:

1. Big Event: ...or WENT on. Saturday was the Big Event, sponsored by the Serve Center, in which over 1,200 Truman Students signed up to do service in the Kirksville Community. Though there were many cancellations due to the freak snow, it still amazes me how many people come out for the cause when all they’re benefiting is a free doughnut and getting to scream “HAPPY SPRING!” in a large group photo. Truman Students live to serve!

2. Tunnel of Oppression: Each year, MAC and ResLife along with other volunteers put on a Tunnel of Oppression in the BNB Hall basement. Small groups are led through the tunnel by volunteers into themed rooms based on different types of oppression. This year featured more hands on activities than in the past including simulations of schizophrenia, blindness, and physical handicaps in addition to the other captivating. The last night is tonight and it runs from 7-9p. I really encourage you to go and become engaged by seven different areas of oppression commonly found in America.

3. Greek Week: If you know me, you may think this is me pushing for some good press for Greek Life, which, of course, it is, but I have to say that I think Greek Week is a truly great week on our campus. Each night there are events of great tradition, sportsmanship, and camaraderie combined with week-long philanthropy events. This year, Greek Week has chosen the Haiti Relief fund as their philanthropy that each team’s individual events as well as all money raised during the week will benefit.

Happy fun-filled week, socialites!
Cheers,
Shannon

Weird Science

 On Saturday the 20th at 2:00pm in MG 2001 the American Chemical Society will be putting on a show of chemistry demonstrations set to music. Am I a geek because I think that sounds totally awesome? Maybe! But I don't even care because it's going to be suh-weeet! 

Cheers, 

Whitney

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Wishing you all a Happy St. Pat's! Get out tonight and celebrate your (real or pretended) Irish roots at some of our local watering holes. I'm sure Guinness will be on supply in all of them :)

Cheers, 

The Socialite

 

Truman Students Travel to...hang out with other truman students

 
  

...Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

I believe the days following spring break are possibly the biggest Facebook days of the year. Album after album pops up of tropical beach scenes, students doing volunteer projects, and friends hanging out at home.

This year, a fellow spring breaker friend of mine pointed out something interesting. When we reached our SB’10 destination, all we constantly seemed to be doing was looking to meet up with those Truman students that also happened to travel to that destination, and to take it even further, hell, that’s probably why we all ended up in the same place.

Throughout the week, I continued to notice this trend. Each day it seemed we would say “Shoot, we didn’t see (insert truman friend’s name) today.” or “Let’s hang out with (insert group here) tonight.” Moreover, I realized that my friends and I began comparing everything in Florida to something in Kirksville. “Yeah, I think the walk home last night was about as far as a walk from Barnett to the SUB.” or “Hey, that woman looks like Barbara Dixon!” We would walk on the beach, scan the area, and expect to know someone, which, most of the time, we honestly did.

I think we’re spoiled here at Truman. We’re stuck in some sort of odd cultlike experience in which we expect everyone to know us and what we stand for. I’ve set up this post like I’m going to say we all need to have a change of heart, branch out, and prepare ourselves for the real world, and maybe tomorrow I’ll be in that way of thinking, but for now, I’m happy. I enjoy our Trumanite clique, and I’ll keep happily clicking through the “***SBPCB’10 <3***” and the “2010 Spring Break” albums that look nearly identical to the “typical weekend” albums I see every Monday.
Stay tuned, socialites. We’re in crunch time now, and these next 7 weeks are going to be full of awesome events and news to bring the school year to a close.

Cheers,
Shannon