Now that I'm a graduate from the great Georgia State University I am forced to start to make a name for myself in the world. With a combination of economic peril and high unemployment rates, it seems as if my task is more daunting than those before me. Is this mountain getting taller as the decades go by? Was it easier for the Roosevelts to make money because expectations were lower?
Whatever the reason I have found myself working for free. Don't get me wrong, it's better than paying to work, which is what we all did in college. However, it's not as satisfying a bringing home a check for you work. It's definitely the in-between stage in our lives where we find ourselves offering our services to prove that we are worth an investment.
Okay, I sound a little dissatisfied, and I am, but I'm learning something here. Something that I haven't yet learned and never thought I'd need...Humility.
So, keep and eye out for me and my humility as we work for free writing Examiner food blogs and political insight columns for Sunday Paper, an Atlanta weekly. I guess it's important to remember that even the best of us have to prove ourselves now and then. Maybe it's okay to work for free once in a while, just don't make a habit of it.

Throughout college, I was told that the media was moving away from print and television and onto the Internet. We reviewed the decline in newspaper circulation over the past 20 years. We saw staffs cut in half and reporters forced to retire early. In my four years as a journalism major, we were urged to "Get out now." I thought they were being overly cynical. I've had a handful of professors reassure us that the Internet was where our generation was going for information and it would only a few years before every media converted to the Internet. I never bought into their theories and I still don't now. I'll tell you why.
I believe that we are a generation that relies heavily on the Internet. I believe it's how we communicate and get information quickly. I do not believe that we are an "Internet Generation" when it comes to traditional media. My top reasons for believing this are:
1) Advertising is inversely proportionate to custom practices.
In traditional media, if one million people watch Rachel Ray, an advertisement during her show would cost roughly $200 per 1000 viewers, but if one million people visit the New York Times home page a day the same ad would cost $10-$20 dollars per 1000 viewers. See the difference..
2) Internet authors receive no credibility and sometimes no credit.
If you read a story on CNN.com and you look to the end for an author, you more than likely won't find one. I know a man who works for CNN.com in hopes of one day becoming a writer for the New York Times. He has hundreds of stories in his portfolio but if you Google his name, only 2-3 stories will show up. He receives no credit for his work.
As for bloggers like myself and even Matt Drudge. Big Media give regard us as simplistic everyday people, as though my B.A. in journalism and his breaking of the Lewinsky scandal means nothing.
3) We love the Internet, but it's not as convenient as they say.
I understand going to the internet for the weather and quick news, but let's be honest, we don't always have access to the internet. My favorite example of how traditional media will continue to flourish is the bathroom. I don't know how many people will read an article on CNN.com while they are on the toilet, but I guess only a few. There are still many places for magazines and newspaper to remain in our lives.

So then I wonder, why would my professors urge us to concentrate on the Internet, especially if we make less money, have no credibility, and reach less people than Anderson Cooper. Are we really an Internet Generation?

I've never been to Australia, but I know a lot about it. I had the great opportunity to spend half a semester researching the country/continent when I was in high school, and all that knowledge stuck with me. So, yesterday, when I saw the "Australian Bakery Cafe" I had to go in.

Having already eaten lunch, I went in with hopes of finding one of the best desserts I've had in years, the Australian national dessert, "Pavlova." It's a meringue bowl, crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside and filled with fresh fruit and sauce. I had it at a restaurant in Vidalia last year. It was simple, but far from what we expect to see on a dessert menu. It's lighter and less decadent. It's a dessert that makes you feel refreshed and not weighed down.

To my disappointment, they were already sold out by the time I got there, but he promised they would have it today. Instead, Regina and I shared a "Matchstick." A dessert with crispy and flaky layer on top and bottom, and in between, a fresh whipped cream and a raspberry preserve. It wasn't a Pavlova, but it was good. For anyone in the EAV or Marietta Square, make a stop by the bakery and try the Pavlova. You won't be disappointed, and if you have any questions about Australia, the manager will be glad to answer them. We learned a lot in the few minutes we were there.

An insider tip: If you order lunch in the EAV location and you make good conversation, the manager, Dave, might be inclined to throw in dessert, for free!

There is a big difference between choosing a restaurant concept and a concept restaurant. Any, and everyone, opening a food spot will eventually be forced to decide on a concept. What types of people are you looking to attract? What kind of food and drinks? Dance floor? Sommelier? Etc. The biggest difference between the two, is in one you choose every element of your restaurant and in the other, the restaurant chooses for you. That is to say, if I look at the Atlanta market and I see a lack of farm-to-table restaurants, but I see a surplus of southern food places, how can I make the most money off of this information. A concept restaurant would then be born from this data, "Welcome to the newest spot. A farm-to-table southern-soul food inspired restaurant."

What I'm saying is, in a concept restaurant, with a theme that is so tightly defined, it is hard to play with any of the other elements of the restaurant. If it's southern-food, then there must be fried chicken. If it's farm-to-table, then there must be fresh collard greens, etc. As for the decor, expect a home like feel, similar to what you would see in Gone with the Wind, perhaps there will even be pictures from the movie on the wall.

A concept restaurant is typically the safer way to go. It makes sense that if there are three candy shops on 5th St. that it wouldn't make sense to open another candy shop there. However safe concept restaurants are, they can also create a sense of claustrophobia in a chef. Concept restaurants tend to constrict thebrain wavess of the most talented chefs. A chef in our previous southern food farm-to-table model would not have to think about what to serve, he in fact would not have to do much thinking at all. And we know from our adolescent years that practice makes perfect. If the chefs in Atlanta aren't practicing, will we ever get better?

I just got a heads up from a source that says by tomorrow morning the gas prices will be nearly five dollars. FIVE DOLLARS!!! Let me take you back to the last time our nation faced gas prices that high, Katrina. For Americans these raising gas prices don't just hit us in the pocket, they should hit us in the political side of our brains. The chart shows the fluctuation of gas prices over the past 10 days. The "energy crisis" that our nation has been facing for decades needs more than just a nod from politicians. This is much more than a crisis, it's an epidemic. Offshore drilling is not the answer, it's not even the short term answer. If we put up hundreds more oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, how high do you think gas prices will shoot up next year when Hurricane Annie or Brandon tear them all down? Addiction can't be solved with more of the drug, we need out. I think I've written about Pickens Plan, an energy plan focused on wind energy, hell, anything is a better idea than setting ourselves up for failure. If you don't agree with me today, let's see how high gas prices are tomorrow, if I'm right, at least do our country the courtesy of voting for a candidate with an energy plan worth standing on.
Go to this website to see where the Presidential candidates stand. (click here)