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Show AggieLife Page 6 Friday, Sept. 18, 2009 A Utah woman blogs her way to the White House By CELIA CHILD staff writer Some might refer to her as a “mommy blogger.” This local woman takes her personal blog to new heights. With an invitation to the White House, Loralee Choate represents many of her followers by voicing her opinions on health care reform to Valerie Jarrett, President Barack Obama’s senior adviser. The 35-year-old mother is a member of BlogHer and blogs on a daily basis about life issues. Choate’s springboard came from an opportunity at BlogHer, which is a group of women blogging about topics they are interested in. Feeling a bit out of place being in the presence of scientists, doctors and politically involved women, Choate broke the ice with humor about her “tatas”. “Immediately everyone started to laugh and that is when women began to Twitter and pull out their blackberries for my personal information,” Choate said. “I was so impressed with the women that I was surrounded with. I mean I’m a stay-at-home mom with kids who blogs about her life and people read it.” Feeling out of place at the convention, Choate retreated to the restroom to try and regroup after having a challenging year and being surrounded by highly influential women. Crying in a stale, things seemed to become worse when she overheard some women conversing about her blog. Thinking only the worst, Choate began to wish she was home, until she realized what was being said. “They commented on how much they love my blog and wanted to be like me,” Choate wrote on her blog. “One woman said I had inspired her to start her own blog. Another commented on how she would sacrifice one of her favorite cats and give up her career as an architect if she could figure out how to write like me and start a blog of her own.” With her spirit lifted she returned to the dinner and was inquired by the Queen of Spain if she had checked her e-mail. The email was from Elisa Camahort-Page, a co-founder of BlogHer, inviting Choate to a small luncheon with Jarrett. Having dealt with many health problems and insurance woes, Choate advocated her message of change she believed needed to be address in the health care reform. In the meeting she shared views from a Republican perspective and why she felt it was important to come to some type of consensus with civil dialogue. Many of her opinions have been viewed and commented on by thousands of followers via Blogspot and Twitter. Jarrett read through all the posts on Choate’s page dealing with her concerns on health care reform. Jarrett explained to Choate that many do not believe the president loves hearing ideas about solving this problem from people with differing points of view. After meeting with Jarrett and a group of Democrats, Choate recalled what Jarrett had told her on her blog: “After this meeting is over I would like you to go over to my assistant, Adam, and block out some time on Monday morning to have your husband speak with me on the phone. I would love to hear his ideas for change.” Choate’s husband is very conservative, often disagreeing with Choate, creating engaging dialogue with opinions on the change they both believe is needed and the action that should take place. With an invitation back to the White House, Choate continues to blog about her opinions and life events. She is on the board of Social Media Club Cache Valley (SMCCV) as the meeting director and serves as a guest speaker in seminars. Her most recent appearance LORALEE CHOATE, 35, runs a blog that has received national attention and given her the opportunity to visit the White House, all in addition to her duties as a mother. Photo courtesy of Celia Child was at Club New York, on Main Street, where she shared her story and past experience with the do’s and don’ts of blogging. More information on Choate and her blog can be found at www. blogcatalog.com/blogs/loralees-looney-tunes.html. SMCCV meets the second Thursday of every month with rotating locations. More information on SMCCV can be found on www.smccv.net. -C.Child@aggiemail.usu.edu Book tells story of life in a post-9/11 world “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close,” by Jonathan Safran Foer, is a 2005 novel following a precocious child on a desperate quest to find something of his late father. Though the book was published four years ago, the events that triggered Oskar’s frantic search still trigger something equally desperate in many of us. The book is set in 2003, two years after Oskar’s father is killed in New York City on Utah State University Kappa Delta Sorority Making GREAT Things Happen! Discover Greek Life Committed to inspiring each and every member to lead a valuesSorority - Sept. based life Recruitment & providing opportunities for 8-9 lifetime achievment. Both nights start in the Sunburst Lounge, TSC rowth through lifetime learning •Tues: Orientation & Entertaining House G Toursfor our own integrity and ethical action RTime: esponsibility Choose one: 6:00, 6:30, 7:00 p.m. “Focus onand Philantrophy” night E•Wed: ngagement in social civic interests Time: Chose one: 6:00, 6:45, 7:30 p.m. Altruistic service to others Fraternity Recruitment - Sept. 8 Meet on TSC and&go from there! 6:00 Patio we’ll go from there! 6:00 pm Truthand andthe loyalty to Patio each other our University Register on-line: www.usu.edu/asusu/htm/greeks/register For Membership Information: Call or visit Student Involvement, More info? call or326, visit 797-2912 Student Involvement: 326 TSC/435-797-2912 TSC • www.kappadelta.org BRIDAL FAIRE ® Sat., Sept. 19 10AM to 5PM USU Student Center 2nd Floor Fashion Shows 12:00 & 2:30 www.bridalfaire.org Everything to Plan Your Wedding! Free Admission - Free Parking - Many Prizes Co-sponsored by: Sept. 11, 2001. I felt it an especially relevant selection for this week, given the recent anniversary of the events eight years ago. As that day is fresh and sharp to Oskar Schell, this novel is a sharp and fresh take on post-Sept. 11 society, our society. It makes a use of recent historical events in an original way. The first modern-day problem novel, to my knowledge, to incorporate Sept. 11 in such a crucial and poignant way. Plot devices and narrative technique aside – and both are enormously creative and not anything to be set aside – Foer uses an almost interactive method of visually aiding the reader into seeing what Oskar sees. Fonts, page layout and photographs manipulate to bring us into the world as it is seen by this Manhattanite Chelsey Gensel boy, and, provocatively, as Foer seems to want us to see Book Critic it – or at least, contemplate seeing. Delightful and intriguing as the characters are, and Oskar is certainly not the only one we meet, there is some sensi- Grade B+ tive material in real-life photographs from Sept. 11, as well “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close” as some intense language. Like his first novel, “Everything is Illuminated,” the book uses a highly contemporary and modernized setting and narrator to tell a moving and sometimes tragic, but fascinating, tale of the effects of war. However, “Illuminated,” which was made into a quirky but insightful film of the same name (starring Elijah Wood and an ingenious soundtrack) weaves in and out of Holocaust history and present-day Ukraine. With “Close,” Foer touches on parallels between Oskar’s world and that of Dresden WWII, but for the most part sticks to a present time and does the weaving, instead, through the lives of seeming strangers, the parts of life that you can’t discern from walking past someone on the street, but instead by letting yourself in as Oskar does and discovering an interconnectedness that may well affect us all. This Friday The Utah Statesman is introducing a new column by staff writer Chelsey Gensel, who will review a book every other week. The column will feature books newly published as well as old favorites. Suggestions for books can be e-mailed to Chelsey at pulcre.puella@gmail. com, and for the next week she will be accepting suggestions for the name of the column. Book Review Chelsey’s favorite books are the Harry Potter series, “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” “Looking for Alaska,” “Stranger in a Strange Land” and dozens of others which can be found on her Facebook profile. Favorite genres are young adult fiction, sci-fi and fantasy and classic novels. A Bridal Faire Production For more information call: 753-6736 Local band opens the year for the independent music club A BAND, BATTLE SCHOOL, performs at the opening social for the Independent Music Club Thursday night on the TSC Patio. PATRICK ODEN PHOTO |