Archive for July, 2009

Go Rhino!

{ July 15, 2009 @ 9:36 pm } · { marie puddu essays, marie puddu insights, marie puddu writer, marie puddu writing }
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Charlie TyrianYesterday I attended a customer service training by Charlie Tyrian of Keep Charging Enterprises. Who doesn’t know this guy? Who doesn’t recognize his rambunctious style? It dawned to me that unless you spoke in front of a hundred or so audience ready to take a siesta in a hot Texas afternoon without any clownish somersaults, then you wouldn’t be as successful a motivational speaker as Charlie.

Not trying to be patronizing, I just started jotting down a few things that I thought were a little interesting and applies to my job at Sheppard. MAKE A DIFFERENCE. That’s only one of a million things you could learn in his seminar. It stuck to me like frozen peanut butter. My head started rolling with thoughts of whether I made a difference in somebody’s life, of whether I made a difference in any person I encountered.

I think I did.

I make my family happy. I make the library patrons feel special by stopping in the middle of putting away books to ask them if they need help with making copies on the machine. I say thank you to everyone who does me a favor. I try to do my best to cooperate, even though people everywhere are different and don’t appreciate it. Of course I’m not perfect, since I scream at my stepson to move the damned old washing machine out of the driveway when I’m pulling out. But at least I’m not a drama queen.

Charlie Tyrian should be proud of me. At the end of the seminar, we all got our own Rhino creed cards to remind us that we should get excited each morning to go through the day, feel happy that we are alive. I already know that, but maybe I should thank him for reminding me. Go Rhino!

The Black Eyed Peas “The End” album review

{ July 13, 2009 @ 4:39 am } · { marie puddu essays, marie puddu writer, marie puddu writing }
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It was my birthday almost a month ago. I had taken the freedom to drive around, shop at the mall, treat myself to girly things, and cut my chocolate cake. It was also that day when I picked up a copy of “The End”, the Black Eyed Peas’ latest album. I am a dance music fan and I got caught off guard. My first thought was, “Hey, if I didn’t like this album, then I can give it to someone else or just trade it.”

The Black Eyed Peas has been around for quite a while, you would think the creativity has been sapped out of their motley band. Some of their songs capitalized on Fergie’s vocal prowess. Some really stood out with Will-I-Am’s lyrical genius. A couple odes were even meant to inspire patriotism, such as Apl.de.ap’s rap interludes.

But the album “The End” is such a gargantuan leap from their early releases. Themed around current events and futuristic beats, the songs such as “Now Generation” and “Imma Be” deliver the band’s point of view without sacrificing the sound. There is a hint of techno and electronica in “Rock that Body” (doesn’t it remind you of Daft Punk?). Love songs still are very much a part of the band’s repertoire — with “Alive” being the most endearing. If you’re going to a B.E.P. concert, you certainly would want to hear live-out-loud songs such as “Showdown”, “Party all the Time” and “I Gotta Feeling”.

Fergie did such an awesome rendition belting out old grooves with her fresh, imaginative vocal craft. It’s difficult to miss her style in songs such as “Meet Me Halfway” and “Out of My Head”. But the ultimate number that sealed the B.E.P.’s new album’s success was “Boom Boom Pow”. Imagine a supercharged dance floor with everybody’s feet thumping and bodies “rocking to the beat”. Upon hitting the play button, a hollow, god-like voice (Taboo’s?) creates a chilly atmosphere of floating in outer space. Then suddenly the dance beats are unstoppable.

The Black Eyed Peas’ “The End” album is money well-spent. I hope though the album title is not a bad omen to those who look forward to more body-twitching  B.E.P. grooves. I don’t plan on giving away or trading my CD. Kudos to open minds, cultural diversity, and shaking booties!

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