Project 3 Reflection: Meh

I've recorded a podcast before, and let me tell you, it is only fun if you make it a little more silly.  I hate being constrained to the very tight lipped way of writing reports, let alone the fact that I felt like my natural way of talking felt more awkward.  My argument was alright, but quite frankly, I don't believe that it was as strong as it could have been because of the way I had to be more formal with my interviews.  The Tiki Luau isn't supposed to be all sharp and strict, it is supposed to be fun for the incoming students to enjoy. 

I guess that is probably what I struggled with.  I had such high hopes for this project being more fun than it turned out to be, and  it ruined mood for the whole thing.  I would have preferred to have had more room for fun, rather than be so serious.  Don't get me wrong, I understand that this was all supposed to be a report, but quite frankly I believe I could have written a report with a bit more voice to it.  On the other hand, I felt as if I did a good job with my editing; I chose the bits and pieces that I felt were more necessary than others, I took out my stumbling mistakes, as well as timed down the audio clips so that I would not go over the allotted time.  I wish I could have added pictures to the podcast (I know how to, so it could have been fun) but alas, the audience does not want to tire their eyes with pictures of students having fun and getting to know one another at the luau.

Going into my report, I already knew the answers to a lot of my questions.  I knew that RHA receives its funding from the housing fee students that live in the dorms pay, I know that programs are meant to be enjoyed by students, as well as that it is easy to make new friends at these events.  All I had to do was to write up questions that I already knew the answers to, and have my interviewees reiterate what I already knew.  If I were to have made this more interesting, I would have probably gone with a topic I don't know that much about, such as a club or organization that I myself was curious about.  As for what I would change with my writing process, probably coming up with a better script.  I am more of an in the moment kind of person; I like to come up with questions on the spot.  However, I understand the importance of a script, so as to allow me to better articulate my report and support my argument.

PewdiePie... You should  youtube hime :3

If I were to apply this work to outside of the university, I would probably just do a podcast series about random facts that relate to my major, or even relates to needling down to what I want my career to be.  Maybe I could apply it in the sense as to think more analytically when offered a job, or for when I do research on a possible company I may work for.  Both instances would be very helpful in guiding me towards my future.

I did my interviews, and here is what I will say in between them

Intro:  Rooming Hall Association, also known as RHA, hosts multiple events for students living on campus.  One of RHA's most well known programs is the Tiki Luau hosted at the very beginning of the school year.  The Tiki Luau is a great place to meet and befriend people, but it would not be possible without the proper funding and hard work on part of RHA.  Luckily enough, I was able to interview one of my friends that I made at the Tiki Luau, as well as my hall council's president, who has had previous experience as a programmer for RHA.

Interview with Diana

Segway: Friends are a vital part of the college experience.  It is very possible that the people you meet at the Tiki Luau will become your best friend forever.  Nick Rice even talks about how important this first true event is for these students for the process of going out and making friends.

Interview with Nick

Conclusion:  With that said, the Tiki Luau is an important event.  It is, in a way, the grand welcoming to first year students at ASU.  The Tiki Luau is also a very time consuming, as well as taxing event funded by the housing fee students pay.  All in all, this event is one of the biggest, and helps shape a student's first semester or year of college.

Katherine Broyles, PR and Marketing Coordinator of Center Hall Council.

Script Draft: Tiki Luau

Interview material, as well as a complete and persuasive argument about the tiki luau.

RHA, or Rooming Hall Association, is an organization that hosts events as well as programs for students living on campus.  One of their annual, and best known events is the Tiki Luau.  The Tiki Luau is hosted at the very beginning of the semester, when students have just moved into their dorms on campus, but have yet to go to a class.  The Tiki Luau is hosted as a free event, just like all of the programs hosted by RHA are, and it is usually for first year Arizona State University students.  With such an event like this, there is bound to have a large amount of attendees, and a lot of effort as well as spending put into it. 

As mentioned in the above flier, the event has a lot of fun activities in store for the students, along with free "swag" or items such as glasses, pens, as well as cups.  For some students, this is where they meet their best friends, and start their long list of college memories to follow in the next four years.  Take it from these students who probably would have never met, had it not been for meeting people at the Tiki Luau

(Interview Diana and John.  Remind them we probably would not have met had it not been for meeting Zach, Reece, and Ethan)
(Ask Leah if she made any friends at the Tiki Luau)
The goal with these interviews is to start having them all go into a conversation of how they would not have met some of the people they know now because of this program.

I probably wouldn't have made some of the friends I have now if I hadn't gotten to go to the Tiki Luau, and because of that experience, I have now made some of the best friends that I could ever imagine.  Do you guys think we would have all met, had it not been for the Tiki Luau that would result in the chain of events of us getting to become so close?

(more discussion amongst us all.  The actual podcast/npr style of report will actually be less formal most likely, as well as eventually resulting in us all gliding off track, but that should help prove how close we have all become, as well as how we have started creating our college memories.  How the podcast will be set up will help prove my point further, is what I'm getting at, I guess)

Now I wouldn't be a very good interviewer if I didn't get some information from the people who help put on the event.  Rooming Hall Association is one of Arizona State University's largest organizations.  RHA hosts multiple events all year around, as well as supply students living on campus with resources along with opportunities to be heard.  In some ways, it is sort of like a Student Council, only it is on the college level, and more stuff happens.  However, to have these events and opportunities open up for students living on campus, there must first be an idea of what should happen.

(Talk to Nick or Bri, maybe Ryan and Alen as well about how RHA comes up with what will be at the Tiki Luau, and what funds are used.)
This discussion, I presume, will take at least till the end of the allotted time.  I will have covered all the subjects necessary for my project, so, that Professor L may give me an A on the project (pretty please, with a cherry on top?)

Due to not knowing what the friends and peers will start discussing, I am incapable of filling this up to be a thousand words.  However, I could supply this post with a lot of pictures.  As you may be very well aware of, a picture is worth a thousand words.  Plus, with that being said, I should technically have over a thousand words.  I MAKE A VERY VALID POINT, do I not?  Heck!  I'll add another picture to make that 2500 some-odd words!

ASU Reacts: More Gibberish

In the NPR broadcast "It's Gibberish, But Italian Pop Song Still Means Something"  Adriano Celentano, an Italian songwriter, is interviewed about his song Prisencolinensinainciusol.  Celentano talks about how his song was meant to bring multiple cultures together, and help cross language barriers between multiple languages.  How did he plan on crossing the language barrier?  By writing the song so that it is made up of no real language.  When I presented this clip to my boyfriend, and he had response of intrigue and confusion.  I asked him what his take was on Celentano's purpose of the song, and what he came up with was this:

"The song is pointless.  If you really think about it, lyrics make the song, and if it is just gibberish then there is no point to it."

So you don't feel like the song has any purpose, even though its purpose is to show how we may not understand other languages, but that's alright because we can always get some point across?

"Yeah, no, there was no point at all."

No point at all?

"No point at all."

Though his reaction to the song was different to mine, I can understand his view.  He believes strongly in having a more visible purpose, rather than an abstract or symbolic meaning to a song.  It is understandable to want a more clear cut message in a song, and I can respect that.  However, I do feel as though the song's symbolism is rather unique, and it should be kept in mind to the listener Celentano's purpose of his song.

Genre Analysis: It's Gibberish, but Italian Pop Song Still Means Something

In the NPR report “It’s Gibberish, but Italian Pop Song Still Means Something” it is easy to say that this was just a simple piece of a news article.  It is informative, and it also includes has an interview with the creator of the song himself.  In a lot of ways, this style of giving information is somewhat similar to an annotated map, only it is just one of the many annotations.  I don’t think it is all that similar to an essay, because it is far more concise with presenting the thesis, facts, as well as formatting it down to something short, sweet, and to the point.

The NPR report draws the audience in with playing the song in the background.  Its catchy beat intrigues the reader, enticing them to sit and listen for a bit longer.  As the music fades ever so slightly, the reporter’s voice can be heard, as he introduces how the song is made up of no real words.  He gives some information about the song, such as that it was created by an Italian, and that its purpose was to show how language barriers need to be broken in order to communicate with other cultures.  After he explains the significance of the song, it gets louder in the background, and then tones down again.  This is then followed by the reporter introducing the songwriter, as well as the interpreter.  He interviews the songwriter, and learns more about the song.  Once the interview was over, so was the recording, as it faded away with the music.

Again, I believe the styles of writing to be similar to that of an annotated map.  Where as a subject is introduced, and then branches off into a more detailed line of information relating to a topic within the area the subject includes.  It is structured so that the audience has an idea of what will be discussed, which later expands with more sources of information being used, in order to support the thesis.  For example, in “It’s Gibberish, but Italian Pop Song Still Means Something” the reporter states that the song is of greater significance than the garbled nonsense the singers sing, and that the songwriter intended it to be about communication.  He helps prove himself by interviewing the songwriter firsthand, and actually having him state that the reporter’s thesis is correct.

I do not believe the report is similar at all to an essay, due to how swift the information is presented.  I feel as though an essay usually beats around the bush, while this recording gets right to the point when it comes to stating the thesis and the points that help support it.  An essay takes its time to build up the suspense of facts needed to prove one’s self, but this recording does all that in an extremely timely manner that does not bore the listener.

I might like to talk about the Tiki Luau that happens at the beginning of every school year.  The Tiki Luau is especially known as a way to welcome new students to ASU.  I would also like to look into possibly talking about Snowpacolypse, another event held by RHA, which is held near the end of the first semester.  Either way, I think I would like to discuss one of the big events that ASU hosts, and see what some of my friends think of it.

Project 2 Reflection: Organized Chaos

After the process of not knowing what in the world I should do for my project, and creating an incredibly disorganized rough draft, I do believe that my second project came out quite marvelously.  I had quite the bit of trouble of trying to organize my thoughts on not only how to write out about the dorms that underclassmen live in, but also about where I even wanted to begin!  That in itself, organization and brainstorming, were my main struggles with this project.  The way I solved that problem was with a little help from peer review, and sorting out my thoughts by talking to my friends and asking their opinions.  I even emailed Prof. L for some guidance as well.

I feel as though I did a really good job at relating each evaluation back to my thesis, even if I didn’t talk about each individual criteria applicable to the evaluation of the different dorms.  Not only do I feel confident in my evaluations, I also believe that I did a grand job at organizing my posts so that it goes from the introduction post with the map, to the evaluations of the dorms’, and finishing up with my works cited page.  However, the works cited page gave me problems when it came to formatting it, as in it would not allow me, for whatever reason, to invert the second line in any citations that were longer than one line.  Yet I just figure let it be bygones.  Regardless, my formatting is crisp and well organized, and it makes me squee in happiness.

I believe I crafted a fairly strong evaluation, and that I could possibly do a similar evaluation again in the future.  I could easily use this new experience to inspire me to become more thought provoking when it comes to evaluating movies, video games, as well as books and shows that I would like other people to check out.  Evaluations are already used everyday outside of the classroom, such as reviews for movies found on rotten tomatoes, or book reviews inside magazines.

If and when I use evaluative writing in the future, I am sure I will go about the same process.  However, I will think out what I will evaluate the topic or subject at hand, and what criteria it will be held up to.  I can see myself using this process, not only for the benefit of trying to sell a product to others, but also for the benefit of myself when it comes to determining if I want to buy something or not.  The process of evaluating helps lay out the pros and cons of situations, and helps to organize thoughts on what should be done in reaction to something.

Overall, this project started off as a pain in the arse, but in the end, I wound up really enjoying it.  I loved watching my project work its way together from chaos to beautiful organization.

Research Sources: Dorm Life

At first, I thought about writing about Hayden Lawn, as well as how there is so much around it.  It would have been a great topic, but there was one problem.  It is near impossible to find any kind of scholarly article about it!  I searched high as well as low, resorting to sources about lawn care, but I was not satisfied with what I found.  Instead, I will be talking about dorm life, the benefits of living on campus, as well as something that has far more interesting information on it than a plot of grass certainly does. 

I would like to explore more about dorm life, because I have heard about many studies done that speak about the benefits of living on campus.  Not to mention, seeing as how I myself am both a resident on campus as well as part of RHA, a student organization that is specifically for residents.  I believe that it would be very beneficial to not only myself, but possibly other members of RHA as well; to inspire them all to work even harder for the benefit of the residents.

The evaluation process will be related to the atmosphere within the dorms, as well as the functionality of the community.  Seeing as how there are more aspects to dorm life, the aforementioned two are the most basic, as well as necessary for determining the success of the students.  I could try and delve in deeper, into the interpersonal relations between roommates as well as suite mates, but that would only complicate the project, in addition to being rather unnecessary.

Some sources that I have found include the book Chic U by Christie Garton, pages 30 through 57, an article in the Arizona Republic by William Hermann titled Living Up the Dorm Life (665 words), Dorm Life With New Puprose (962) published by The Frederick News-Post is another article.  Lastly there is one last scholarly article, published in the New York Times, by Susan Jo Keller by the title of Dorm Life 101 (1438).  From these sources, I will learn more about the benefits to dorm living along with relations between dorm mates within one’s living community.

Rather than exhausting this topic further, I am just going to blather on about my day.  So far, I woke up, had breakfast, ate part of a giant Rice Krispie treat with this amazing guy.  My friend and I gave him a card and the monstrously giant sweet treat for his birthday.  It was quite delicious, but we all know that it most certainly is not nutritious.  I love my friends so much, they are the fucking shit.  If celebrities walk on the red carpet, we walk on toilet because we are the shit.

Evaluation: Miss Congeniality

I see what you [I] did there!

Even though “Miss Congeniality” is an old movie, it is still a favorite for many.  The other night, I had a movie night with some friends, and we decided to sit down to watch that movie.  Remembering that I have an assignment in which I would evaluate and review a movie, book, or show, I payed closer attention to the different aspects of the movie.  A new perspective opened up to me as the movie played.

Gracie Hart, played by Sandra Bullock, is one of the most unfeminine women in the world; even the guys respond to her as if she herself is one of them, and not of the opposite sex.  She epitomizes everything that isn’t related to the Miss America beauty pageant;  Gracie relies on brute force and her high intelligence when it comes to just about anything. Despite her lack of womanliness, and good manners in general, she is chosen by her colleagues to go under cover as a contestant in order to catch a terrorist.  Gracie’s transformation, aided by a staff of ‘professionals’, is astonishing, but it is only surface deep.  Swapping her messy ponytail and baggy clothes for a more groomed look and short skirts.  She herself is still the quick tempered agent, commenting as soon as the painful transformation process was over that, “I am in a dress, I have gel in my hair, I haven't slept all night, I'm starved, and I'm armed! Don't *mess* with me!” to all of her male coworkers.  You would think her credibility with them would remain the same, regardless of the significant change in appearance, but alas, you are mistaken.

Isn't she beautiful? :)

At the beginning of the movie, Gracie got herself in some trouble during a mission.  Losing some credibility amongst her fellow coworkers, they still treated her as they always did before; like one of the guys.  When she transformed into the beauty, they suddenly stopped with the jokes, and started treating her like a lady.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I appreciate it when a guy holds the door open for me, but if he suddenly stops treating me how he used to before an appearance change on my behalf, I’d be annoyed.  Does suddenly having more femininity in appearance justify such a change in behavior on the behalf of her male friends?  I don’t think so.  They should have been treating her as such long before the transformation, or at least continue treating her as one of the guys.

Where is she hiding the gun? :o

Though Gracie is treated more like a lady, she also begins to lose more credibility still.  She is intelligent, perceptive, and actually knows what is going on behind the scenes of the pageant.  Do her superiors believe in her enough to actually make sure that her hypothesis of someone plotting to do off with the crowned winner of Miss America? No, they brush her away as if she herself had become one of the ditzy contestants.  I bet that if she had been in her baggy clothes and tangled hair, they probably would have stuck around for a little longer, and made sure that the mission truly was finished.

I believe she is thinking, "Really now?" with a dose of sarcasm

The interactions that happen within the movie are humorous, and I still find it enjoyable to watch.  However, I do not appreciate how degrading it should be to all powerful women that the heroine in this movie went from high to low, just because she learned how to put in some effort into her appearance.  It is a slap to the face that this movie showed such immaturity within the male characters perspectives’, and if such a thing were to happen in real life, I would have less respect for those men.

I apologize for going over the length, but I believe that every word I wrote was necessary to get my point across.  Analyzing this movie opened my eyes to a completely new perspective of it, and I hope it did for you as well.

Reviewing a Project

I am not a huge fan of analysis papers; I tend to find them rather dry and boring.  Add on how I don’t want to analyze a place, and you have an angry Katie.  I mean, what else can I say about Palo Verde Main without running around in circles like Hamlet’s “To Be or Not to Be” speech?  Yes, it’s a great place, and through Vanclay’s lens; it has all the elements to be deemed a place, and it can be an argued point, because someone else may not view it the same way as I do.  Regardless of how I didn’t enjoy attempting to write an analysis paper, it is finished.

Though there is always room for more, I feel as if I did a decent job.  Considering how I had to go to outside sources to review my paper, and those outside sources wound up being some friends of mine, they helped me as much as they could.  Upon asking them how I could make it into more of an analysis paper, they told me that it was fine, and that I should just look into editing my paper for more clarity.  I wanted to add and subtract matter from my paper; isn’t that how you are supposed to improve it?  I wanted to reach a better level of analysis, but to attain it, I would need more in depth reviews, and a less stubborn attitude.

Next time, my writing process will be a little different.  I’ll reach out to more people that know how to peer review similarly to me.  With their help, I’m sure I could reach a better level of analyzing the subject at hand.  I could also stand to be a little less stubborn; I tend to like certain things in my papers that shouldn’t really be there.  I liked using the first person point of view for a reason, on this paper; because I went to a place that I liked.  I know that it is usually frowned upon for such a young writer as myself, but I feel like I used it correctly.  Along with using first person point of view pretty well in ONLY my first paragraph (I edited out the other times I used it), I really like how I made connections between how Palo Verde’s aspects relate with Frank Vanclay’s description of what a place is.  I did that very well, and I am quite proud of myself.

I don’t see myself writing any analysis papers later on in life, after university.  However, if I do, I am sure I will go about it in a different way from this time.  I can see myself writing out more analytical notes, rather than observational notes.  Seeing as how they distract me from writing an analytical paper versus a reflection paper.  I will have colleagues that know how to peer review really well give me tips and ideas on how to improve my paper, and I will see how it goes by using a majority of their tips.  Now for me to just remember this all for when I do have to write an analysis paper outside of university!

Worksheet Notes of Place

Project #1 Worksheet                   


Your Place: Palo Verde Main


What are the intended functions of the place?       
Living environment for students, along with a place to eat, and a place to purchase toiletries.  There is also a lobby area that people gather in or study at.

What overt messages does the place send (i.e., openly communicated through signs)?
Obviously the engineering dorms, becasue of the “Engineer Exploration Night” posters.  RHA helps run it, up to date thanks to the posters that talk about events that will happen soon.

What covert messages does the place send (i.e., hidden messages)?
Somewhat studious during the middle of the day, but more fun and light hearted at night and on the weekends.  As you get into the dorms, the environment is even more fun thanks to how many people play video games, play music, practice their instruments, or anything that adds to the noise that is PV Main.

Have previous users left traces behind in the place?
There is a water ring from a glass that was once on a nearby table, but that doesn’t tell us much other than that people live here.

Has the place been re-appropriated (i.e., beyond its original functions)?
No, not really.

What social or cultural customs did you observe (i.e., rules governing appropriate behavior)?
Being friendly, leaving doors open for everyone to come in whenever they would like.

Who has access to the place?  Are there insiders and outsiders?
Everyone has access to the lobby and the eating areas, but only the inhabitants of the dorms are allowed to enter, and only they can bring friends in.

Who owns the place?
Legally, the school does.  However, it seems as if nobody owns it.  Everyone is part of the community, and the community is the one that owns it, by contributing to the overall atmosphere.

What is the place’s value (i.e., monetary or otherwise)?
I would imagine that it is somewhere between 6-7 digit figures, but it is priceless to me.

Are there official representations of the place (i.e., online, in promotional materials)?  Do they accurately capture the place as you experienced it?
There are probably pictures of it online, but they are just external photos.  Nothing compared to the people, memories, and life that is inside of these buildings.


Is the place in transition, a changing place?
There is always an influx of people.  During different times of the day, you may seem one group of people at one point, and the next a different group will take their place, and more people will be inside the building.

What conflicts or tensions are there in the place?
None.

What is the place’s history?  Do you see evidence of the past there in the present?
It has always been dorms.  The closet doors inside of them show years of being open and closed multiple times.

How does this place differentiate itself from other places?  What other places is it similar to, but how is it different from those places?
The people are incredibly friendly and energetic.  Everyone is so open to one another, and they don’t try to drown each other out with loud music.  Rather, they create their own music.

What questions do you have about your place?
Why are you so much cooler than mine?


Key Features / Profiles (taken from the Norton Field Guide (Goggin and Bullock) Chapter 16, pages 165-166)

An interesting subject.  What is unusual about your place?  Alternatively, is there something ordinary about it that you can show in an intriguing way?
Though the dorms are co ed, it is mostly inhabited by males.  The Devil’s Diner is reminescent of a fifties malt shop, but the music inside is all from this time, and a few from the seventies and eighties.

Any necessary background.  What background information will you need to include about the place in order to situate readers?
It’s situated on the north campus, and they are dorms.


An interesting angle.  Rather than trying to tell readers everything about the place, what angle(s) might you use?
First person pov, my groups perspective.

A firsthand account.  Did you interact with people in the place or participate in some way?  What experiences did you have there that you can write about using “I”?  (Yes, first person point of view is encouraged, especially for this paper.)
I interact with the people by playing video games with them, conversing with everyone, and participating in the pull up contest.  I have too many stories about this place.  Nights watching How I Met Your Mother, falling asleep on Reece’s rug (twice now) while watching a movie, playing Halo and Prototype 2.  Messing with Sloane by saying the word “Moist.”


Engaging details.  What specific information must you include in your description of the place?  What potential does your place have for the use of sensory images, figurative language, dialogue, anecdotes, and showing rather than telling?  What do you want the dominant impression to be?
I could talk about how the guys tried to change their theme to “Slenderman” (an urban legend about a guy that kidnaps children and kills them, leaving no trace).  Dialogue and anecdotes can be about how we all exclaim when we are playing certain games, and how I will laugh uncontrollably while playing a particularly fun game.

Generating Ideas and Text (taken from the Norton Field Guide (Goggin and Bullock) Chapter 16, pages 168-169)

Explore what you already know about your subject.  Why do you find this place interesting?  What did you already know about it?
I find this place interesting because I feel like I can relate to the people here really well.  I already know that it houses some of my best friends.

If you’re planning to interview someone, prepare questions.  What would you like to ask someone in the place in order to better understand it?
What makes it a home for you?
Do you enjoy the people that live around you?  Why?

Do additional research.  Does your place have an online component?  How else might you gather additional research?
asu.edu

Analyze your findings.  What patterns, images, or recurring ideas or phrases did you use to describe your place?  What contrasts or discrepancies do you see?
Geeky, fun, full of guys.  The original theme is a little odd for this group of people, seeing as how it is obscure rather than being related to pop culture.

Come up with an angle.  What is most memorable about your subject?  What most interests you?  What will interest your audience?
Memories are the most memorable about my subject.  The future experiences I will have here are also of interest for me.  I believe my stories will entertain my audience pretty well.

Observational Notes on a Place

PV Main, or Palo Verde Main, is known for housing many students that have majors related to engineering.  Now, I have nothing against my own hall (McClintock), but I just like the atmosphere at PV just a little more than I do in my own community.  Here are some reasons why.

There is always something going on, be it everyone playing teir respected instrument or having a LAN party and playing Halo: Reach.

When you are on the third floor of building C (most of my friends are there), there is an odd, yet beautiful clash of every type of music, from classical to dubstep and everything in between.

Video games... Video games everywhere in these halls!  You can most likely find everyone with either a PS3 or an XBox 360.  Who knows, maybe someone is hiding a Wii somewhere up there as well.

If you get them started on Marvel vs. DC, it gets kinda crazy!

Jokes relating to Slender Man

The Slender Man Wiki

They even went as far as to slightly change their hall's theme from Carnival to Slender Man.  Having the 8 notes to find, and then finally Slender Man appearing behind you (you have to see it to believe it.)

One such inhabitant of the dorm is hosting a pull up contest.  I entered as Leroy Jenkins as a joke.  Now I am actually in the contest >.<

Most of my new friends are from that hall, such as Ethan, Zach, Spaceman (though his real name is John), not to mention my boyfriend Reece.

The community they have is unlike any other.

Taken from asu.edu

McClintock is nice, but they (my fellow McClintock residents), don't have the same energy as these nerds do.

These are my people, how I am around them is my natural state.

When Zach is gone for the weekend, we take his food sometimes.

Just like the theme from "Cheers" everyone seems to know your name.

Just about everyone you run into is friendly, and they are more than willing to help you with problems, be it homework or personal.

Spaceman is just about everywhere.

Leave your door open and you will have company in no time.

Though the dorms seem to be made up of mostly guys, I don't mind that much.  I'll just bring my girls with me to the LAN parties!

Inside jokes (like the song "Sweaty")

When you play video games, you will have an audience cheering you on, and sharing your different levels of excitement and annoyance (depending on how well you are doing).

If you get hungry, there are three meal plan exchange places to go to, along with a convenience store that takes M&G.

To go off of that, I should also mention how we like having the juke box around, from the Devil's Diner.  It just adds to the atmosphere, and everyone enjoys listening to some of their favorite songs through such ways.

When watching movies, Zach's rug is pretty comfortable to lay on, rather than sitting in the blue chair.

There is probably more that I am forgetting to mention, but I feel like I got a pretty good amount of reasons why I enjoy PV Main, and what goes on up there.


As you can see, these are merely my observational notes, rather than my notes relating to the Frank Vanclay's lens upon my "Experience of Place."  Those will be part of another blog post, possibly shorter or longer (it really all depends on how I take those notes).  Regardless, I got a little over two pages of notes (written) with these observations.  They were done in more of a cluster, or organic organization, rather than outlining it (saving that for Vanclay).

I hope you enjoyed, and you will hear from me another time.

Analysis of an Image

SELF magazine (2010)

Wait, let me get this straight.  You’re telling me, a sweet, innocent, food loving girl, can eat while on a diet, with “31 Tiny Tricks” (Self Magazine)?! And not only that, but I can “Get Slimmer Every Day” without going to the gym?  I can save so much time by doing that!  Oh, and no magazine cover, geared towards women ages 18 to 45 would be complete without some tips on how to *ahem* spice up their bedroom.  Sure, some of these articles might actually be helpful, but for the most part, I’m just picking up this magazine because I know that they have delicious recipes inside.

Those scrumptious recipes wont help much with “Peel[ing] Off Major Pounds.”  Not to mention, where in the world would I have time to cook?  I’m a college student.  I’m lucky as it is to have at the very least 30 minutes of exercise on most days.  If I don’t have that kind of time, then I’m certain a working mom wouldn’t.  The magazines are merely bought out of the desire to gloat.  These woman want to say, “Oh, that article?  It helped me to be able to fit into my old jeans from high school. 

The reality of it is not many of the readers will actually utilize those health tips.  Only a percentage of the readers of SELF magazine will apply these occasionally helpful tips to their life.  After all, each issue will repeat itself again next month.  All you have to do is change the way it is written out.  I’m sure the audience wont notice that one of those thirty one tricks was already mentioned two or three months ago.  (This right here, personal opinion).

Why would anyone subject themselves to the torture of reading such things?  Is it for the false sense of possibly doing something that might help them stay or become healthy?  Or maybe it is just more entertainment that occasionally gives the reader ideas of things to do, only to be forgotten the next day.  Regardless, a cover can’t promise you anything.  Those tricks and tips are empty words, mentioned before.  Maybe they were said in a different magazine you half heartedly read at the hair salon.  The magazines themselves aren’t meant to promise anything more than entertainment for when you can’t find anything better to read.

Analysis of a Writing Situation

When the idea of a random act of kindness is brought up, one would connect it to giving a stranger your one day metro pass when you were done with it for the day.  However, there are more abstract ways of showing kindness to a person.  In David Levithan’s book The Realm of Possibility, his poem “The Patron Saint of Stoner’s” explores a similar compassion to a random act of kindness in a more obscure fashion.  Elements of this text that help the reader see something beyond a drug transaction include an appeal to emotion and the school’s multiple social circles.

Clara is studying endlessly with occasional breaks to listen to her bed ridden mother’s crazy stories of her youth.  Already, the reader learns how sickly Clara’s mother is.  This appeal to emotion draws the reader into a state of compassion for the two, and bringing upon memories of someone they themselves may have of a loved one, or a friend’s loved one that may have had cancer or another concerning illness.  With this approach, Levithan is able to bring about the reader’s empathy and understanding as to why Clara is in search for marijuana.

Clara seems to have a very academic schedule for school, leading to hanging out with more academic students like herself, and at home she is always working on homework.  In comparison to Toby, she is “Socially Inept But Intelligent” (Levithan, 128) while he’s the kid “the principal knows by fist name/ But can never nail him for anything more than his attitude” (Levithan, 130).  The readers observe that there is a type of social separation between the two characters, because of their school setting.  The only real connection the two share is a mutual dislike of their P.E. class.  Clara’s mother has more in common with the boy than her daughter does.  This fact not only shows the readers that both Clara and Toby are nearly strangers, but it adds to the awe of Toby’s way of showing compassion towards Clara’s situation.

A sick family member is already a tough thing to deal with.  Adding the even more difficult task of pretending everything is alright when it’s not just adds to the emotional beating.  Clara is capable of taking so much of that, and if giving her mother an escape to memories of a time before she was sick through an unconventional way meant a bittersweet happiness, Clara would take it.  Reader’s are able to see how Clara’s front she wears at school may fool people, and the reader can also see her act faltering as she is given the pot.  These little slip ups in her act let Toby see into her life, and the pain that is going on behind her studious ways.  When the readers see this, they are able to understand how the taboo object, the pot, that Toby gives to Clara for free, is an incredibly beautiful act of kindness for a near stranger.

About my Rel 100 class and its work load

In my Religions of the World class, the teacher has assigned quite a large quantity of homework already.  Nearly one hundred pages worth of reading, two online quizzes, and just about everything is online, aside from her lectures.  Now, I don't mind the lectures, and the reading I can do right before I go to bed (If I don't wind up falling asleep that is), but the online portion is awful.

I get it, it's a big class; not everyone can sit in the front row, do the minimum, and pass with a good grade.  However, it is a 100 level class, and I don't know about you, but me and many of my fellow students in the class agree that what she expects of us, might be a little too much for us to handle.  It's not like theology is my major, you know?

Can you say, "easy way to cheat on quizzes"? (Don't worry, I'm one of those people that doesn't want to cheat myself out of learning interesting things).

From my trip to Spain (I swear to God I'm not plagiarizing!)

And it's not like the subject matter is boring, I actually really enjoy learning about different religions.  I'm not religious myself, but it is fun to learn the philosophy behind different religions and what their origins may be.  I just flat out do not agree with the course load she has given us all.

Regardless, I'm staying in the class.  I might have to drop a different class (Spanish 313, which I don't want to really.  If I can't handle it though, I would rather be less stressed by copious amounts of homework.)