Behind the Scenes of Dog Show Culture

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When one thinks of Dog Shows, probably the first thing that comes to mind is the infamous movie, “Best in Show.” But there is a whole culture surrounding dog breeding and competition happening right around us, a culture that people dedicate much of their lives to. I decided to do my final project for my advanced photojournalism class on something local, but different and interesting at the same time. The care and love that people invest in their pets is extraordinary, and I hope these photos convey that.

Holy Week at Armenian Church

Five-year-old Will Natcharian gets his foot washed by Father Sahak Kaishian in light of Holy Thursday at St. Mark Armenian Church in Springfield, MA on April 21, 2011.

Dog Show Audio Slideshows

http://www.boston.com/yourlife/specials/bay_colony_dog_show/

Rally for Wisconson Teachers at UMass

This woman was one of over 150 people who gathered to rally at the Student Union at the University of Massachusetts on March 2, 2011. The rally was held to support the Teachers Union in Wisconson in light of their collective bargaining rights being threatened by the Governor.

Village Store in Wilbraham

The Village Store is located in the center of town on Main Street, and is a popular gathering place for both students and adults.

Students of Wilbraham Monson Academy, located down the street from the Village Store, use the relaxing atmosphere to wind down after class on March 4, 2011.

Students take advantage of the free internet offered at the Village Store.

The Village Store offers foods for any time of the day, whether for a coffee break or a full lunch.

Local artists and vendors are able to sell their products at the Village Store, such as these soaps which were made in Wilbraham.

Village Store employee Colin Geaghan, a junior at Minnechaug High School down the street, waits on customers. He has been working at the store for over two years.

The Village store offers a variety of both prepared and freshly made foods. "Dinners to Go" are very popular, and the ice cream is always a hit.

One of the workers at the Village Store in Wilbraham prepares a customer's lunch.

Wilbraham Monson Academy students make the Village Store part of their everyday routine to have a snack after school and hang out.

WMA student Katie frequents the Village Store.

Colin Geaghan assisting a customer.

UMass Student With an Interesting Major

Emily Seifert sits in her Sunderland apartment on February 14, 2011 practicing a Chinese song that she has to sing for class.

The wall in Seifert's living room is adorned with Chinese characters that she wrote.

Seifert's cat helping her turn the pages while studying.

This picture adorned with Chinese writing hangs in Seifert's living room.

As a Chinese major, Seifert has to practice the language every day and is in the most advanced Chinese class.

Seifert doing her homework out of the textbook.

There are many online resources for a student learning Chinese to access. Seifert chose the design of her Chinese tattoo on this website.

Seifert's tattoo is a Chinese symbol meaning "Little Brother."

A close-up of Seifert's tattoo, which she got only three months ago in Amherst.

Seifert relaxes in her living room after finishing her homework. Although she isn't sure exactly what she is going to do with her Chinese degree, she wants to travel to China after graduating.

Seifert presenting in Chinese in class.

The class listening to other student's presentations.

Seifert with her professor after her presentation. She showed the class the picture that she is holding, of her and her brother.Seifert during her presentation.Seifert told the class about her tattoo which she got for her brother.

Seifert presenting to the class on February 16, 2011

UMass students carry on with their morning before classes were cancelled as campus gets hit by snow once again on February 1, 2011.

A New Kind of Family in “Modern Family”

photo courtesy of http://www.examiner.com

 Television has brought us families of all kinds over the years. In the 50’s the popular situation comedy Leave it to Beaver brought us the idealistic suburban family with lighthearted mischief, and a few decades later America fell in love with a whole new kind of family with a group of best friends in the big city in Friends. Sitcoms like Everybody Loves Raymond and King of Queens poked fun at the little quirks that families generally encounter, putting a slight spin traditional family components. But recently, traditional has taken on a whole new meaning in the  ABC sitcom Modern Family, a show in its second season that has brought to life the new American version of a “normal” family. It tells the story of three separate households who are all related to each other, ranging from a couple who are 20-plus years apart in age to a gay marriage, to the traditionally chaotic family with three kids. The show has gained huge popularity in its short time on the air, which shows that people may find a commonality in their own families to the Modern Family and its many hilarious situations. When Leave it to Beaver was on the air, it was geared more to children; Everybody Loves Raymond attracted the adult crowd. But with Modern Family, you get a situation comedy that appeals to viewers of all ages because there is a character for everyone to see a little of themselves in. And with over 13 million viewers and three Golden Globe nominations, that’s easy to prove.

Modern Family is a sitcom with multiple dimensions that keep its viewers intrigued. What makes it work so well is that there are three families with unique circumstances that contribute to endless possibilities of things that could go wrong, things that could go right, or things that are just plain ridiculous. And even though every character has their own unique personality their vulnerabilities inevitably shine through, which ultimately brings the sitcom to a more real level.  Here are the breakdowns of the families:

Let’s begin with Jay Pritchett (played by Ed O’Neill) who was once divorced and then remarried a much younger, beautiful woman, Gloria (Sofia Vergara) who has a son Manny. Jay is much older and has already raised two kids, Claire and Mitchell, so needless to say parenting the second time around provides a few laughs. He puts up this oftentimes grumpy, always sarcastic front, but when it comes down to it, he’s an older man married to a woman the same age as his daughter, and that definitely catches up with him. In one of the episodes, Gloria wanted to plan a romantic dinner out with Jay and told him to meet her at the restaurant of their first date. Jay showed his weakness when he, for the life of him, couldn’t remember which restaurant that was. Every sitcom has its out-of-the-box characters with exaggerated behavior; Gloria is one of those characters on the show. Her thick Columbian accent and strong personality bring humor to the Pritchett household, and sometimes even steals the whole show. Jay and Gloria’s marriage is proof that opposites do really attract. Gloria has very different traditions than the rest of the characters on the show, which raises the bar on the comedic level. But sometimes she uses this to her advantage. In the Thanksgiving episode, she told Jay that he needed to slap the chicken to scare the death out of it and wear shoes around his neck because she believed her dead grandmother was in the house with them. Jay, of course, went along with it to satisfy her, but she’s the one who got the last laugh.

Jay’s daughter, Claire (played by Julie Bowen) is married to Phil Dunphy (Ty Burrell), the typically fun-loving, sarcastic, and often oblivious husband and father of three. Of the three households, the Dunphy family would be classified as the most traditional. Claire is comparable with the majority of moms today: multi-tasker, caring, and unintentionally a little neurotic. Claire and Phil don’t always work in the most straightforward manner, for instance when Phil was to host a real estate dinner event and had prepared a long list of jokes. To spare Phil of what Claire thought would be utter humiliation, she stole his note cards right before he went on stage. Phil ended up being a big hit anyway, but this is just one example of the continuous lesson that is being expressed in the show: the characters may act in unconventional ways, but only because they care. On another occasion there was an earthquake and Claire got locked in the bathroom with the plumber. Claire had reminded Phil to drill the big bookcase in their living room to the wall in the event that an earthquake did occur, but of course, Phil didn’t listen and it did end up toppling over. Instead of trying to get his wife out of the bathroom, he kept her in there to put the bookcase back up.; a completely typical situation for this family.

Finally, we come to Jay’s son Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson), who is married to Cameron Tucker (played by Eric Stonestreet). This family dynamic has made giant leaps since the Cleaver days when openly gay couples were almost unheard of. Modern Family brings to light how a gay couple works through life’s day-to-day situations. There are moments that are exaggerated for the sake of laughter; Cameron is the out-of-the-box character in this specific household being a little overemotional and dramatic, for example when he went through a phase of wearing bike shorts that he really didn’t fit him well. When he ultimately found out that Mitchell felt that he just shouldn’t be wearing them, he ran in the other room and sobbed uncontrollably. Mitchell on the other hand, is a little more level headed and realistic.  After Cameron had his little outburst he attempted to get back at Mitchell by criticizing his beard, at which point Mitchell proceeded to begin shaving it off. Mitchell is the more level-headed of the two and has the ability to bring Cameron down to Earth when he needs it, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t have his little vulnerabilities, too. Mitchell still has some insecurities about public affection with Cameron, especially with a father like Jay. Having gay characters on the show is definitely the new element in the traditional sitcom, and shows how the American family dynamic has evolved and grown in the past few decades. Years ago it would’ve been a big risk putting a gay couple on a primetime sitcom, but it works in today’s society.

Modern Family defines family in an entirely different way than it has been defined in sitcoms before, but it reflects how our culture has evolved over the decades. What was normal then would seem strange now, and vice versa. The amount of people who would list this show in their primetime lineup is a direct reflection of new tradition.

The Armenian Church in Photographs

All churches serve a common function, which is to convene and worship in a space designated for that sole purpose. But each church has particular details that differ from the rest, especially depending on the specific denomination. Armenian Churches are filled with fine details that reflect historical significance and pure beauty. From the brilliant stained glass windows to the architectural design there is exquisite detail in every direction. What makes all churches especially beautiful, though, are the people that fill the pews. Here are a few photos I took at a traditional Sunday service at St. Mark Armenian Church in Springfield, MA:

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The Armenian Genocide and the Impact it Has Today

 

Politics versus morality: which do you think would win the race? In a perfect world, everything is what it should be, and right and wrong would be without question. Unfortunately, we are far from a perfect world, and in certain situations even farther from resolving issues that have been around for generations. The Armenian Genocide of 1915 is approaching its 96^th anniversary in 2011 and is still an unsettled tragedy because of the denial that is strongly held firm by Turkey, and even the United States. For many Armenians living today, they face the struggle for acknowledgement and acceptance that two-thirds of the Armenian population was wiped away in what is considered the first genocide of the 20^th century.

The United States is in between a rock and a hard place on this issue. All it would take is for the U.S. to formally name the massacres of Armenians during World War I as “genocide.” But “genocide” is a loaded word, and may lead to repercussions. Turkey is an ally to the United States as it has airbases on their land.  Because of this, breaking this alliance would make U.S. foreign policy difficult at times, which would potentially happen if the United States chooses to formally brand the massacres as genocide. Turkey strongly plays up this point anytime that the topic arises. But in an article from BBC news on March 4^th of this year, committee chairman Howard Berman laid out the facts: “‘I believe that Turkey values its relationship with the United States at least as much as we value our relations with Turkey.’”  If this is true, if both countries hold their relationship with each other equally valuable, then formally acknowledging the genocide ultimately would not affect this alliance. Berman’s formal objection to denying the truth that the Armenian genocide occurred can be read here. Each consecutive politician that raises awareness in their state and amongst Congress and the House of Representatives brings the Unites States closer to formal acknowledgement.

Aside from Berman, there have been a countless number of half-attempts by American politicians to stand up and formally recognize the genocide. However, once they have the spotlight to speak up when it really matters, they weaken their position on the issue. What is necessary for recognition is a President who isn’t afraid to stand up and use the word genocide without fear or regret. Barack Obama is the most recent in a long line of Presidents to acknowledge the importance of formally identifying the events of 1915 as genocide, but failing to make the necessary motions as President. During Obama’s campaign, he made powerful statements against Turkey, basically stating that enough is enough. In an article on ABC news dated on April 24^th, Obama was quoted: “‘America deserves a leader who speaks truthfully about the Armenian Genocide and responds forcefully to all genocides,’ he said. ‘I intend to be that President.’” (blogs.abcnews.com) After being elected in 2008 his position faltered. President Obama has spoken for the past couple of years on April 24^th, the Martyr’s Day of the Armenian Genocide. There was great anticipation for him to follow through with his campaign promises, but instead, he neglected to use the word “genocide” in his speeches. ““Well, my views are on the record and I have not changed views,’…‘I want to focus not on my views right now, but on the views of the Turkish and Armenian people. If they can move forward and deal with a difficult and tragic history, then I think the entire world should encourage that.”” (timesonline.co.uk) This public statement isn’t exactly what was in mind for formally recognizing the genocide. In fact, it angered American-Armenians more than comforted them.

You can watch the actual footage from this speech here.

There is no doubt that the United States is in a tricky position, but American-Armenians especially believe that the country also has an obligation to its people. For the population of Armenians living in the United States, they are living in a country that will not accept that their people were massacred.  It is a matter of deciding which is more important: a key ally, or doing what is morally correct. Armenians have numerous stories of family members who endured mass killings by the Turks; there are documents that provide physical evidence, but Armenians will have to wait another day for justice.