ADPR 5990: Copywriting, Spring 2023

  Morning routines have the sort of predictable cyclicity that borders on religion. Something about a daily ritual of coffee, bagels and quiet solitude invokes thoughts of prayer. When I moved into my college house junior year with my three best friends, one brought her espresso maker. The MICHELANGELO 15 Bar Espresso Machine with Milk Frother. It has changed my life. Dragging myself downstairs to make breakfast every morning is now completely motivated by the knowledge that Michelangelo is awaiting me. Emptying the previously brewed beans, refilling the water, packing new beans and pressing the 2 shot button has the sort of performative method to it that is practically confessional. It has become a sort of love language of mine. A roommate is under the weather or sad about a boy? I shall brew her a coffee. A day went poorly for me and life is getting me down? Let me make myself a coffee. It astounds me that such a mundane (it feels sinful to call it that) object could have touched...

Uncomfortable chairs and my inability to sleep on planes made the 10+ hour ride to Rome, Italy tough. Once the plane touched down, not even my lack of sleep could ruin what I was finally seeing after years of wanting to go abroad.  My family’s Airbnb was not ready yet, so we rolled our suitcases along on the uneven cobblestone streets while exploring the markets and downing espressos for the first hour of our day. I sat staring at the beautiful sights of Rome missing my brother since he was the only family member not on the trip. With the loss of him, I gained the ability to bring a friend. I watched as my best friend since kindergarten grimaced while quickly learning that she does not like espresso.  We dedicated each day to tours, sights and food. We sweated in our sundresses and shorts while walking around in the brutal June sun. Small attitudes would start to show when the heat and dehydration would take over, but nothing was going to stop us from seeing everything.  ...

 After falling short last year in the NBA Finals, I felt like the Boston Celtics missed their chance at bringing home championship #18. I was torn up about it because my last memory of truly seeing them be great was losing in the 2010 NBA Finals against Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. Years of my dad and I watching together as the Celtics were getting further and further away from the greatness they once held has made it hard to be optimistic about the team’s season at the start of every October. The results of last year’s season were bittersweet because I was happy to just see them at the pinnacle of the sport again but winning the first 2 games of the series and squandering it away immediately after was not the way I would have wanted us to end things. With how much money our stars Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart, and Al Horford were taking home there wasn’t much money left to go around for new acquisitions over the offseason. So, it really felt like that was the last chance...

I've always been vegetarian, and I will probably always be vegetarian. Hinduism as a religion generally advocates for vegetarianism and respect for animals, and in the state my parents are from in India, vegetarianism is the norm by about 86% give or take. I am not someone who actively participates in my religion, not for any one reason or another, but when it comes to not eating animals, it is a hill I will die on...for some reason. I will admit, this hill isn't exactly the most pleasant place to die--I'm pretty protein deficient and anemic, and I also don't eat vegetarian the way that baby vegetarians do, meaning that lunch is sometimes a handful of hot Cheetos and a Gatorade instead of a "green-goddess delight vegetarian whole grain sandwich". My family even sometimes dabbles in non-veg, but not without a little bit of shame. My dad eats chicken when he's at dental conferences or with friends that typically eat meat around him (Follower. Sheep, even), a...

I smile at the impossibly small Mary Janes in my hands. Now as an adult, I find it hard to comprehend once having a routine where I clasped the ankle strap and set off into the world. If my mind could imagine it, these shoes could take me there. In those days, wealth was what I found when I defeated sinister dragons on my elementary school’s playground. My only worry was avoiding getting little pebbles and pieces of mulch stuck under my socks. I laugh and wonder why they make such sturdy shoes for the part of life that has so little to handle. I blink and suddenly the glossy black flats turn into the worn out pair of black Converse I donned throughout my teenage years. As I packed for college, I remember seeing the torn soles and frayed fabric peering at me from deep within my closet. I knew that when I left, I would shut the door on late nights at Waffle House after football games and rushing through hallways in the five minutes I had to get to class. They fit perfectly for the girl f...

  Now I know what you’re probably thinking: what an insane thing to say when there’s only been three weeks of baseball so far. While that’s true, I’ve never been more confident in a Braves roster than I have been with this one. At the time this post is being written the Braves are in first place in the National League East with a 14-5 record, one of their best starts in franchise history. With only 19 games being played, how could I be so sure they’re going to win it all come October? There’s a couple key reasons why. The first and most important reason is having a healthy Ronald Acuña Jr., who suffered a complete tear of his ACL during the 2021 season. Having his MVP caliber presence at the top of the lineup sets the tone for every starting pitcher as he poses a speed and power threat, something rarely seen in today’s game. However, the Braves can beat you with more than just their former NL rookie of the year, and they have arguably the most formidable lineup top to bottom. With ...

I've had to go through many interviews over the past couple of months. Each one had its own unique flavor and style. It may be weird to say, but I've realized an interviewer fits into one of three categories.  First, we've got the Serious Interviewer. Let's take Matt as an example. He's probably the stickler of his HR department. He's the type of guy that wears business professional to work every day, takes a five minute lunch break, and is excessively allergic to casual workplace relationships. He goes above and beyond and, worst of all, he wants you to do the same. Work is his wife, his child, and his overly pampered pet hamster. Matt's interview style is very rigid and straight forward. He never reacts to your answers, asks in-depth follow-up questions, and rarely smiles. It makes my palms sweaty and my blazer from 9th grade feel a smidge tighter than usual. When the whole thing is over I'm relieved. However, in hindsight, Matt's actually a funny ...

As the sun rises and the world gradually awakens, I am already up and started my day. I feel as though being a 20-year-old college student, I would fall under the “night owl” demographic but I am definitely more of an early bird and I am 100% a morning person. There are early birds that still wake up grumpy and hate the mornings, but that is NOT me. While many may find it hard to fathom waking up early with a smile on their face, for me, mornings are a time of peace, quiet, and pure magic. I rise between 7 and 8 every day, and never once do I wake up grumpy. Instead, I am filled with a sense of gratitude for the gift of a new day. The world is still and serene, and I cherish the moments of solitude before the hustle and bustle of the day set in. The gentle chirping of the birds outside my window is like a symphony of nature's orchestra, serenading me with their melodies and reminding me of the beauty of life. One of the things I adore most about mornings is the opportunity to start...

I will begin this review with the ordering process. At the Tate Chic-Fil-A one must place their order themselves on one of the screens provided. I can understand the idea behind that. The use of machines in customer service can be very beneficial and cuts down the work that employees must do and the people they must handle. However, for a food establishment this practice can range from unclean to downright dangerous! The use of self-order screens brings me to question the health safety of the facility. If hundreds of people are coming through the Chic-Fil-A each day and touching the screens with hands they’ve been sneezing and coughing in, picking boogers with, how do they combat the spread of germs. Due to the current state of world health, I’d argue that Chic-Fil-A does not combat the spread of bad germs, they promote it!              My second gripe is with the sun joy beverage. The enjoyment of a classic half lemonade ...

  It’s 10 pm but, as if someone painted it, the sky is still a mix of gold and blue. Chapel bells ring and I can even see a steeple in the distance. We’re in Copenhagen on a June night. I take a moment to soak it in; I never imagined I’d be brave enough to do something like this. Across from me are my roommates, two strangers whom I’ve just met. We sit on a picnic table tucked away among trails in a park and pass around a wine bottle. Over tipsy giggles and random questions, we bond over the exciting loneliness of being in a new country alone. I realize even new people can feel familiar when you’re out of your element. For the next day, we make a plan to visit the independent region to buy some more agents of relaxation. I walk through cobblestone streets and over canals to my childhood best friend’s dorm. As we set off to explore the city for the day, I take another moment to look over at her. I feel so lucky to have a piece of home in the chaos of a new country. Like the little g...

My earliest and sweetest memories begin with my Grandma. I couldn't wait to get off the bus, because I knew that's when I got to see Granny. Every day, I would get sent off to the bus by her, and welcomed right back home once I got off. I would plow into her stomach, nuzzle my face into her, and know I was safe. The bus stop was the house right next to mine, so she didn't really need to be there for me, but she was. This was always her constant theme while I was growing up.  Since my mom worked late, my Granny was normally the one doing the cooking. Most things she cooked I categorized as "old people food," such as collard greens, shepherds pie, meatloaf, and cornbread (not the sweet kind). But the one thing I couldn't get enough of was her chili. It was more like a soup since she would grind up the beans, given that my mom didn't like beans, but it was enough to last us two weeks in the winter. I would eat that recipe every night, until it ran out, and th...

Visiting my grandmother in Georgia meant going with her to the furniture store where she worked. My brother and sister and I loved to roam the showroom and look at all the new furniture, grouped as if in rooms throughout the display area. We liked to decide what pieces we liked best, what we would buy if we were rich, and how we would decorate our dream houses.    Then, when it was time to open the store, my grandma would get us situated in the back room so she could talk to customers. The back room was not as nice at the showroom. It was home to the furniture they hadn’t sold and couldn’t sell. It was a last stop for old and hideous couches. Most of these couches had been on sale for years and still hadn’t been snatched up: hideous, scratchy fabrics that not even livestock would have been interested in lounging on, foul studies in Naugahyde, patterns that looked like some mutant animal had been killed for its lurid pelt.     The tables in the back room were eit...