“Mylo” what?

"Mylo Xyloto" is Coldplay's fifth album, and although it is not quite a masterpiece, this concept album will leave listeners feeling happy-go-lucky with a hint of despair.

The album follows the story of two lovers: Mylo and Xyloto, as it chronicles the spark that ignites their relationship and takes the listener along on the highs and lows that love brings. "Mylo Xyloto" features slightly lackluster lyrics from such a universally acclaimed band, which may leave some listeners with a bad taste in their mouths. Still, the album's catchy melodies and cohesive transitions make it worth a listen.
The opening track is also called "Mylo Xyloto." It is a gentle tune, lasting only a few seconds, but it sets the tone right away. With more inorganic noises than some pop songs have to offer, this song lets listeners know immediately that the album is going to be far more electro than any of Coldplay's previous alternative rock albums.
"Hurts Like Heaven" is a unique song that brings listeners into the world of these characters. Lyrics heavily decorated with scenic images of graffiti on park benches and factory signs, as well as lines such as "I struggle with the feeling that my life isn't mine" make it apparent that these two characters' lives are stricken with hardship.
"Paradise" tells the story of a girl slipping away from reality and following her imagination into a new view of the world. "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall" was released as a digital promotion for the album and included "Major Minus," as well as a track that did not make the cut, "Moving to Mars." The song is extremely uplifting despite the title. It speaks of not giving up and not letting others mold the future with words such as "So you can hurt, hurt me bad/ But still I'll raise the flag."
The sleeping giants rest within the last half of the album. "Major Minus" creates a hip beat with a speedy guitar to help set the pace and transition into the latter half of the album. This track is filled with suggestive lyrics that may be more reflective of the band members' feelings than the characters Mylo and Xyloto's, with lyrics like "They got one eye on what you knew and one eye on what you do."
"Princess of China" keeps the album going strong with a surprise appearance by Rihanna. The blending of the voices of Rihanna and frontman Chris Martin make for a beautifully hypnotic sound. Even though Rihanna's melody is uplifting, the song is about Mylo and Xyloto going through a very tough time, expressing "You really hurt me." Both singers have power and sorrow behind their voices, and it definitely pulls listeners back to a time they were hurt in a past relationship. "Up in Flames" continues on a downward spiral, pulling listeners down deeper and tugging harder at their heartstrings. It serves as a cold reminder of every heartbreak ever experienced when a tough relationship ends.
With another soothing transition, listeners are brought into the last two songs: "Don't Let It Break Your Heart" and "Up with the Birds." Both songs flip the album around and land it back on its feet, bringing listeners along for the ride. Both speak of picking up the pieces and trekking on. "Send me up to that wonderful world and then I'm up with the birds," Martin slowly sings and, soon after, the slow pace starts to pick up and carries into harmonizing guitars giving the album its last lift. "But I know one thing/ good things are coming our way."
"Mylo Xyloto" is a colorful and energetic album that has been met with mixed feelings from critics. Coldplay has always been the type of band that listeners either love or hate, and this album proves to be no exception to that unwritten rule. "Mylo Xyloto" delivers with smooth transitions, a cohesive story and sound that really pulls the album together. "Mylo Xyloto" may not be Coldplay's best, but after a few listens, like the relationship of Mylo and Xyloto, it might be worth the time to let it work its way down to the heart.
"Mylo Xyloto" by Coldplay receives 3 out of 5 stars.


Orignally posted: HERE

PUGG’s 11 in '11: an all-around success

Cheers rang throughout Calumet Falls as a group of students watched the intense conclusion of a "Mortal Kombat" brawl. The Purdue University Gamer's Guild hosted a celebration for gaming of all kinds, with a few prizes thrown in to sweeten the deal, for their 11 in '11, which was the 11th anniversary of Fall Games Night.
Video games from "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" to "Super Smash Bros. Melee" were played throughout Calumet Falls. Tabletop games such as "Monopoly," "Apples to Apples" and "Vampire," a card game based around collecting vampire sets, were played as well.
"I love [PUGG's game night]. It's good to come out and get a couple of wins in," sophomore CGT major Ryan Lomax said after the "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" tournament.

Garcia (foreground), Purdue Calumet Alumni, hosts the Scrabble tournament, while Andrew Head (background), PUGG Sergeant-at-Arms, makes an announcement about the "Modern Warfare 3" tournament during PUGG's 11 in '11 game night on Thursday, Nov. 10

Fourth year PUC student Taylor Mason added, "PUGG's game night is fun and entertaining. It really allows students to socialize and try out all different forms of gaming."
PUGG Adviser Jade Greenberg expressed her excitement about the chess committee that was added this semester.
"We noticed that there were a few attempts at a chess club throughout the years. It seemed as though from semester to semester it either got smaller or did not return, so we voted on it and decided to bring it into our guild," said Greenberg.
PUGG has expanded heavily throughout the past couple of years, through constant events and even charity work.
Past PUGG members such as Ben Wolfe-Perez, from Lowell, made appearances while PUGG's founder, William Race, graced the games night with his presence and dropped a bit of PUGG history on the scene.
"I was in a role-playing club in high school, but after that people tend to go their separate ways, so I decided to join [PUC's] gaming group, but there wasn't one," said Race.
From there, the PUGG was born in late 2000, and Fall Game Night appeared two years later.
As the night started to wind down and the Mountain Dew started to fade from the back table, Greenberg gathered the students for prize distribution. There were five different tournament awards given out. Dante Vidal Silguero won the chess prize. Next was the "Vampire" game winner, Michael Cline, who was praised for all of the work he put into running and setting up the game. Third was the "Scrabble" winner, Samantha Press. The "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" winner was Theodore Napierkowski, who received a t-shirt and a poster. The last award was given to Eric Williamson for his extensive work as support staff.
All in all, 162 students graced PUGG's 11 in '11 this year, with tons of students awaiting the next group event.
To find out more information about PUGG or to join the guild, send an email to pucpugg@gmail.com.




Originally Posted HERE

“Sonic Generations” is a clean sweep

After defying physics for twenty years, Sonic is back in "Sonic Generations," which is the culmination of all the hedgehog's adventures throughout the years. Many elements from previous games are smashed into one action-packed double feature, as players get to interact with both the modern Sonic of the 2000s, and the classic Sonic the Hedgehog of the 1990s. Fans of the old can pick up and play as if they had never dropped the controller, while fans of the new can experience their favorite stages with an interesting retro twist.
The overall storyline of the game consists of the modern Sonic's friends getting abducted by an ominous creature. Sonic, as per usual, has to go on an epic journey and save each friend from imprisonment on each stage. The twist here is that time has been jumbled up by this mysterious villain, creating two Sonics who have to work together to fix time.
This is where the fun begins, because each stage has two acts which allow players to experience the areas as both the modern and classic Sonics. In each act, like in every Sonic game, the player has to jump on a myriad of enemies to progress through the game, while collecting as many rings as possible to keep from losing a life. Familiar stages like Green Hill Zone and Chemical Plant Zone are recreated and played in both modern 3D and classic 2D versions.
The gameplay can be a bit confusing for a player who is picking up the game for the first time, but any confusion can easily be resolved by utilizing the plethora of in-game tutorials and gameplay information. A character named Omochao pops up before stages and during gameplay to instruct the player on what to do at some complex parts of the game. Some glitches which cause Sonic to disappear through the floor or phase through walls can be a little frustrating, but are bound to present themselves in a game that moves as quickly as this one. Because this is a fast-paced game, Sonic will sometimes lose the camera or go zipping off of stages, causing the players to struggle to try to save themselves from plummeting to their deaths.
The graphics are not groundbreaking by any means. They are exactly what a person would expect to see from a Sonic game: extremely colorful but, when looked at closely instead of at a mind-blowingly fast pace, very simple. The occasional shot of Sonic running towards the camera while danger lurks behind him is exhilarating, but his hedgehog-spikes barely make an impact when it comes to detail. Whether playing classic or modern Sonic, each stage includes soft elements of 2-D or 3-D.
The stage turns slightly or adjusts when classic Sonic is zip-lining or sucked through a tube. Modern Sonic, on the other hand, will sometimes revert to a side-scrolling view when coming into contact with enemies or jumping from platform to platform. This is a good way to blend the 2-D and 3-D effects. As new or classic Sonic, the player needs years of training in the platformer genre to navigate these levels. Jumping forward onto a platform and quickly pressing back before Sonic falls off has always been a frustrating, but essential, part of the game.
As far as boss fights go, players will certainly have fun sparring with a few familiar faces. Plus, a pattern exists with each boss, so it is either really easy or extremely hard to beat them. After defeating the final boss, there are many side challenges and skills to gain, which gives the game a lot of replay value.
It has been interesting to watch the "Sonic" series' ability to keep up through the years. Lately, Sonic's releases have been seriously lacking with fans and critics, as they get excited for each game only to end up disappointed. However, "Sonic Generations" is not one of those games. The game is nearly a perfect mesh of the new and old that fans have come to enjoy. If the creators keep up with this pleasing trend, Sonic will definitely be able to race his way back to the top.
"Sonic Generations" receives an 8 out of 10.

Originally Posted: HERE

Return of the “Dead”

According to the Nielsen Ratings, more adults watched AMC's 90-minute second season premiere of "The Walking Dead" than any single episode of basic-cable drama ever. With unexpected twists and turns thrown around every corner, it left audiences on the edge of their seats and begging for more.

While the show suffered the loss of itsfrontrunner, Frank Darabont (ShawshankRedemption, The Green Mile) between seasons, it gained massive amounts of unexpected popularity for the debut of its first full season (the previous season was a mere six episodes). After the sudden and shocking ending of this extended premiere, audiences are likely to continue returning to AMC's zombie drama.

For the uninitiated or those who have forgotten, Deputy Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) is the hapless protagonist of this horror drama. After awakening from a gunshot-induced coma, he finds the world has been overrun by flesh-eating masses of the undead. With no idea what is going on, he hurries home to find his wife and son are nowhere to be found. Eventually, with the help of a man and his son, he is reunited with his family and becomes the unexpected leader of a group of strangers all out for one goal: survival.

Throughout these six episodes, the group is thrust into grueling and intense situations, constantly pitting them against each other and forcing them to make life-or-death decisions. The show's unlikely success can be attributed to its focus on human character development as opposed to ravenous zombie mayhem (of which there is plenty). The first season was praised by critics, and its fan base exploded during its seven-month hiatus.

The second season picks up right where the first left off, with the group solemnly searching for salvation on the desolate roads of Georgia. They eventually find themselves gridlocked on an abandoned highway and soon cross paths with a herd of wandering "walkers," staggering soullessly on a search for flesh. They narrowly escape the threat, but matters go from bad to worse when Sophia Pelletier, a young child in the group, runs away from two of the attackers. The rest of the episode unfolds in response to this situation and things get ugly, including a particularly gut-wrenching scene that even makes Rick wince. The episode is filled with hair-raising suspense and tear-jerking drama, but comes to a screeching halt when one of the group's fondest members is put in harm's way in a climax that leaves audiences reeling for the next episode.

Before "The Walking Dead" crawled onto television screens, it graced the palms of comic book readers everywhere back in 2003. Although the television adaptation has its differences, the creator, Robert Kirkman, is an integral part of the crew and has even written a few episodes, including this premiere episode.

The comic book is going on its 90th issue, but the show has already veered off in its own direction, leaving diehards and new fans alike brimming with anticipation about what will happen to their favorite survivors. Kirkman allows fans of the comic book and the show to happily coincide by keeping the heavy story elements of the book alive within the series while allowing for new ideas to flourish and keeping everyone guessing. With six more episodes before a mid-season break, the show still has a lot more to offer those who are craving the kind of constant drama that only "The Walking Dead" can deliver. 

Originally Posted HERE

Live Resume

Michelle J. Mullins
1041 E Field Street, Hammond, IN 46320
312-259-5889
mullinsmj1@gmail.com
Objective	To obtain an entry level retail position in order to enhance my professional skills.
	·     Excellent communication and writing skills ·     Ability to work under pressure, multitask, and work independently ·     2+ years of experience in customer service ·     Extremely reliable, considerate, and organized
Experience Summary Ability to work under pressure, multitask, and work independently	B.A., English, Professional Writing Option, Minor: Journalism
	Purdue University Calumet, Hammond, Indiana Degree Anticipated May 2013
2+ years of experience in customer service Extremely reliable, considerate, and organized	Staff Writer – The Purdue University Calumet Chronicle, Hammond, IN ·     Covered several news articles and covered a variety of entertainment based articles Animal Caregiver- Munster Animal Hospital, Munster, IN
		10/10 – 5/10
Education	·     Assist Veterinarian and Animal Technicians with surgery, animal husbandry, and monitoring animals in the facility; providing customer care by giving timely updates on their pet’s conditions, educating clients, and giving tours of the facility
		05/09-Present
Degree Anticipated May 2013	·         CSS, Microsoft Office Suite: Microsoft Word, PowerPoint; Typing speed of 60 wpm
Work	·         Dean’s List- Spring 2010, Fall 2010, Spring 2011 ·         College Bound Scholar