Fast Technology and Faster Lives

With people living in the twenty-first century, they are living like there is no tomorrow. Each day grows shorter, and each second is filled with one more thing to do. People aren't able to live as care free and easily as they used to. Life is being thrown at us at a much more rapid speed. People want to go faster, they want to do more, they want to make more money, they want bigger and better lives. What we used to have in the past is not working for today's future. Technology is what is powering the world of the twenty-first century.
Cars, phones, television, internet, texting. Those are all things that are moving our world at a much faster pace. Many people think these are all good things, and others think it is a step in the wrong direction. Without this technology many new advances would not have been made. With the technology more accidents have been stirred up. What is the correct way to go? Technology or the Older, Simpler Days?
Technology-Technology has helped many people be in multple places at once. Cell phones are allowing people to communicate with anyone, anywhere. You can contact grandma all the way from China while you are in America. It reaches anywhere in the world while you are working or running a business. Cell phones also work as a day planner. It tells you where to go, when to be there, when to eat, how to dress. They are replacing almost everything, that is why you see so many people with them attached to their ears. They are the biggest and best craze in the world. People go out and buy a new phone almost every month. Something new comes out and they have to get it. One that is easier to text, bigger keypad, holds more music, or looks cooler than the older one because it flips sideways instead of upward. Another thing are cars. Everyone has to have a cooler, newer, faster, prettier car than their best friend or their neighbor. Cars are what get us everywhere, we can not get anywhere without our cars. Instead of having a car for the mother and father, everyone has to have one or two. Cars are turning into something that isn't just for practical use, but for aesthetics. You have an image if you have a nice car, or if you multiple cars. The fancier the car the more money you have. That isn't always the case. Television is the best way of entertainment, news, relaxation, and a way of doing nothing. People don't want to slow their life down by reading a paper, they want their information fast. Television provides a quick way to learn about the weather or the latest in the stock market. Internet is an even faster way of accessing information. One click and you have the front page of yahoo and news is at your fingertips. Click the button again and you are watching a funny video of two kids singing in Japan that was made five minutes prior. It is so fast that people are able to keep in contact with the world and what is happening at that very second. Technology has advanced our world in allowing for anything and everything we want. We can get movies, songs, pictures, or anything else for free and within seconds. The old days didn't even come close to matching that speed.
Older, Simpler Days-"Back in my day, times were simpler." Many old people have told me something along that line. They think because there wasn't as much to worry about, the times were better than they are now. Kids weren't being abducted, brains weren't being rotted by television, people were slower and cared about their fellow neighbor, times were "peachy." Now with all these perverts allowed to gain access to any young child, more crimes are targeted towards the youth. In the older days kids rode around on their bikes without talking to their parents the whole day. There wasn't as much worry back then as there is now. They didn't worry about playing with mercury in thermometers or riding their bikes without helmets. People watched out for one another. Now people can only talk through phones or through a text. Back then people said hi to one another and took time to care about people other than themself. You didn't worry about your old neighbor giving candy to your kid, they were just being nice. People now are always worrying about that person creeping behind the bushes. Television wasn't as important because kids had an imagination. Now kids are being told what imagination is by playing video games. Back in the older days kids made up their own games. They turned a sock and a stick into a game that would keep them entertained for hours. Now kids have to be told how to be entertained, they can't come up with it on their own.
With each of these two ways of looking at technology and how it was before technology, there are pros and cons to each. With anything that is introduced or any way of life, there will be negatives. There is nothing that is absolutely perfect for everyone. Some people would argue until they are blue in the face that cell phones are better, and others would say that talking to someone face to face is far better. With our culture the target ages of each technology is growing younger. Kids are using phones when they are still in Elementary school, when they can't go anywhere without a parent. Technology will only advance as our culture advances into the future. The good will always be accompanied by the bad. The only thing that will change are peoples' opinions on whether they will accept these condtions or not.

The Freedom of 2009

The Freedom of 2009

 

            Imagine that it was the year 2009.  Your technological possibilities are endless.  You could communicate with people all over the world with a click of a mouse.  You could write and say almost anything you want for everyone to see.  There are no limitations to your technological imagination.  It will be a world where communication has no barriers or rules.  It would be a time where only the youngest and most learned minds could comprehend this new found informational wealth.  A technological world so advanced that it will consume almost everyone all over the world.

            What is really more astounding than this information itself, is that it applies to our world today.  It is 2009!  As the youth of this decade, we are experiencing the booming growth that exponentially out does itself everyday.  Technology continues to become faster, easier, and more efficient every second.  It is difficult to try to explain in words how much of a role this newfound information plays in our lives everyday.  We are known as the technology generation.  It is such huge part of our lives that without it, we feel a void.  Try to take a phone from a young man or woman.  See how long you could keep it before they throw a fit or strangle you until you drop it.  We came out of the womb “texting” our mom, “skyping” our friends from across the world, and “blogging” our peers to share opinions whenever the breeze blows us to.  The previous terms must even include quotations because before this push of technology began to sweep the world, these were unrecognized by anyone.  We know no other world.  This technology allows us to talk to people in real time all the way around the globe.  To meet people and experience cultures that would have otherwise gone unknown.  It is astounding to hear myself say these words.  Yet, it has become a worldly norm to have access to so many newfound resources.

            So now the question stands.  Is all of this beneficial?  Is this tech-savvy world worthy of having faith and belief in?  Is it truly good to have this freedom and this never ending growth of communication and technology? Some would agree.  There is more than enough stature to stand and fight in this side of the subjective opinion.  The opportunities and communicational benefits that have presented themselves are undeniable.  Almost everything in the world today has become more efficient and easy that ever imagined.  The list of benefits truly is substantial.  Yet, with every great occurrence, comes an equally present defense.

            What if it isn’t completely beneficial?  Is it a detrimental crutch to the youth of this age?  Has it become a world where hard work has been shoved to the side by a technological solution?  Have the standards once set by our founding fathers been abused and mistook?  There is more than enough good argument to agree.  Technology has become solutions to many previously solved human problems or restraints.  Many people today have become dependant on this world constant communication.  Has the simple pleasure of quiet alone time become extinct?  As every second goes by, the world is slowly more and more consumed by new, bigger, better ways of living.  There is always a new phone, computer, or gadget that has outdone the previous.  Is there an end? Could this end in a corrupt society that has become engulfed by what was intended to be a positive, beneficial solution to better our planet?  To speak down technology totally is a crime.  There have been unimaginable accomplishments that have occurred from this boom.  However, it can control your life.  Anything new and intriguing has a hidden addictive quality that is saran wrapped by the shiny desire to have more.  Our desires are endless.  However, our resources are finite.  An economic mindset considers that everything in the world used as a resource is scarce.  Can we ever find happiness in this crazy new world?

            It is hard to set on one solution.  However, understanding this new information is the best precaution to avoid the negative side of technology.  When you understand both views of any topic, you are able to form an educational opinion.  An individual’s view on a topic varies from person to person.  Therefore, you may not be able to solve this debate completely.  Yet, it is a comfort to know that there are pros and cons to each new occurrence we face.  It is a comfort that we can consider what is best for us as an individual and accept this crazy world whatever way we see fit.   

Technology: Positive, Negative, or Both

Technology has rapidly changed the lives of millions of people across the world. Technology has come along way especially in the past ten years. Technology has allowed people to connect with other people very easily. You can now talk to someone on the other side of the world or send messages through a cell phone. People can even use video to communicate over the internet. It has made it very easy to keep in touch with old friends. There are so many things you can do with technology, so many you really can’t even list all of them.
Technology can’t always be just a good thing. With such things as email, facebook, and myspace almost everything can now be seen on the web. A lot of personal information is put up on the internet that almost anyone can get a hold of. Also now people are able to pay bills and check financial records on the internet. This can also be viewed by hackers very easily as well.
Belief and doubt can really help someone see the whole picture of a topic and not just have a biased opinion. Believing in a topic can help you get a good grasp on it. If you believe in something you are going to put your full effort into it. But believing may not always a positive thing if you believe in something that is wrong. Then again doubt is not always a bad thing. It may not always be a good thing to believe in something that is not true.

Technology and Us

Technology is starting to consume our daily lives. We all use some form of technology constantly throughout the day, whether it is making a call on a cell phone or popping some food in the microwave. There is strong debate on whether this technological boom in today’s society has actually been beneficial or problematic to interactions and community. Many aspects of our lives have changed in even the past decade and overall I believe that technology as a whole has improved communication and community. However, I am not saying that all uses of technology have been improvements.

Community has drastically changed in the past several years thanks to technological advances. People can now connect with friends and family virtually anywhere on the planet. This allows people to keep friendships and keep family members informed on family matters even from long distances. Social wellbeing of individuals has been improved by this advancement. Thanks to cellular phones people can now be contacted wherever they are throughout the day. This is beneficial especially in case of emergencies and other less dire circumstances. People can also now interact with and meet way more people with social networking sites like facebook, myspace, and even youtube. These sites can help join people with common interest together no matter how far away they may be. Information is also so easily accessible in today’s society. It is much easier to search for specific information to improve learning.

Technology also has some down sides to counter the up sides. Cell phones are helpful in many ways; however being able to be reached at any time can be a problem. Cell phones have made life, for some, more hectic, stressful, and at a faster pace. Everyone knows a person who seems to have a cell phone glued to their ear at all times. These people may be making business calls or doing something else that may be important, but it is also important to be able to relax everyday and enjoy life. I believe that there are families that have suffered from the over use of technology. Kids constantly on the computer or playing video games and parents making important phone calls, decreases the amount of time spent together as a family and that can be extremely harmful to that family. I also mentioned earlier that people can now interact with much more people and make new friends thanks to technology. It can also be argued that technology has decreased the quality of friendships and that when it comes to friendship, quality is more important than quantity.

I believe technology has improved our ways of life greatly. I also believe that there are many people in this world that abuse technology and therefore turn it into something harmful. Those who use technology way too much and at inappropriate times can experience the downsides of technology. Just because we can chat online or on a cell phone, make friends online from different countries, and buy products online does not mean that we always should do that. It is usually better to interact with people face to face in a personal manner and have friends that you can see in person and interact with. It is also important to slow down every day and not let technology and this high speed life we live in be stressful. Technology can be very beneficial in helping build and create community between people when it is used in the right way.

Cell phones...help us or hurt us?

I feel cell phones both help us and hurt us in the world today. Cell phones are the best way to get in touch with people and stay connected. They are very helpful to us in cases when there is a car accident, you can dial 911 quickly, when you are lost you can call someone to give you directions without having to stop. Cell phones really are great for when you are on the move because you don't have to have a land line to get ahold of someone. Cell phones hurt us when people are texting and driving because they are usually more focused on their conversation and not on the road in front of them. Talking on your cell phone and driving can also be very dangerous but I feel it is much better to talk than to text. Even though when you are talking you maybe more concentrated on your conversation your eyes will still be on the road and what is going on around you and not on the phone while your typing out a text, but either way talking or texting on your cell phone is very dangerous while you are driving. So although cell phones are a great way to stay in touch with people at all times even when you are out and about they can be very dangerous because you aren't paying all of your attention to your driving anymore. There is an article on associatedcontent.com titled "How Talking on a Cell Phone Caused My Car Accident". In this article this lady tells us about the car accident she and her husband were in 2 years ago and how they are still in pain and have to rely on pain killers and muscle relaxers everyday in order to get through the day. She and her husband were sitting at a red light waiting for it to change when they were rear ended by a truck. The truck sent their car through 2 lanes of oncoming traffic. There were 2 men in the truck coming back from their landscaping job. The passenger was looking at their book and the driver was on the phone with their boss. The driver told the police officers that he "saw the green turn light and just assumed that the regular lane was green too". That's when he rear ended this woman and her husband. If he hadn't been on his cell phone he would have been paying enough attention to notice that the light was red and the car stopped wasn't moving. I feel like this article is a very good example of how talking on your cell phone can distract you enough to cause a big problem and possibly an accident that could cause someone pain that won't go away. I feel like belief and doubt function to help me see all the aspects of cell phones in the way that there are so many things that can be negative and positive about using cell phones that you can't really have one belief without one doubt that goes along with it. For example the belief of how great cell phones are for getting ahold of people while they are out and about comes with the doubt about how they can cause accidents when people are out and about because they talk on the phone while driving and aren't paying enough attention. In the case of cell phones I do feel that belief is always positive and doubt is always negative because I can't think of anything that I can say to prove it otherwise. Beliefs for me always show the good things about what I'm talking about and the doubt always shows how that belief can be flipped to be a bad thing.

The end of the world... or a new beginning?

Technology has slowly, but surely inched its' way into our world. Along time ago, the most recent form of technology was the paper and pencil. Obviously, technology has come along way. But just because technology has helped us in some ways does not necessarily mean it is a good thing. 

Technology enhances our community by allowing people to keep in touch, even though their days are busy and never-ending. Asking my mom on the subject, she told me that before computers were really used and before email, it as hard for her to keep in touch with her college friends and her friends from high school because of how busy her days were. She worked all day then cooked dinner for her family at night and then went to bed. Now, because of email, it is a fast and conveinent way to keep in touch with the people that are important to your life. You do not have to step outside to call them, you can do it while at work or at home while you are busy doing other things. Cell phones are great for our community too because they make great rescue devices. If someone was to get in a car accident, if capable, they could call 911 immedialtely. Those are the two main pieces of technology that are excellent for our community, but there is much more.

On the reverse side of things, there are several factors about technology that can threaten our community. Now that individuals have access to email, facebook, myspace, and all those types of websites, it can get pretty dangerous. A lot of people put a lot of their personal information on the internet and that can be a perfect tool for murderers and robbers. People are putting where they live, their cell phone number, and a lot more personal information on there. If they are not careful, the wrong person can get a hold of that information. Also, kids that have cell phones are not getting the proper amount of sleep when they constatnly text and get phone calls during the night. Before cell phones, land line phones were the only way of contacting someone you wanted to talk to. In order to do that, you take the chance of waking up everyone in the house. Now that cell phones exist, people do not have a problem calling or texting someone in the middle of the night because they know only the owner of that cell phone will hear it. People can also lose their personal communication skills by texting and typing all the time. Barely anything is face to face anymore, it is all through a screen. 

Having belief and doubt on a topic is a good thing because it helps not to be so biased on a topic. Belief in a topic is seeing the positive things in the particular subject and agreeing with whatever is being discussed or argued over. Doubt is not believing in the topic and trying to find ways to prove it wrong. Having an open mind with your topic by having some belief and doubt will help get you a realistic conclusion. Belief is not always positive because sometimes when people believe in the wrong thing, it can result in misinformation. Doubt is not always negative either because it is good to not believe in something that is not true. Sometimes people just always go with the flow and go along with what everyone else thinks and that is not good. Individuality is a good thing, and having doubt in something, even if you are wrong, can show people that you are questioning things because you care and you are interested in learning. For example: when my friends were talking about Obama and how he was going to be a horrible president, I almost just agreed with them because they were so confident, but then I really stopped to think about it. I had been keeping up with Obama and I thought he could make a decent president, so I said something. My friends were shocked that I said something that all of them agreed with, but in the end they respected me for doubting their confidence. 

Mobile Phones: Keeping People Connected?

My sister and I are on the phone talking and laughing about everybody we know, when suddenly she says, "Oh, my God, where is the toilet paper?"

It turns out she's at the grocery store, but when I think about what we've been talking and laughing about, I almost wish she really was sitting on the toilet. At least she doesn't have me on speaker phone. She doesn't have me on speaker phone, does she?

Mobile phones have certainly changed things, and not all for the better. In less than 20 years, they've gone from clunky suitcase phones to slim hand-held devices, from status markers to necessities of life. It used to be I could tell when someone was actually talking to me, and I used to know that people who were talking to no one in particular were best avoided. It used to be that I would sometimes wonder about the people I saw around me; now they tell me more than I ever wanted to know. It used to be that I'd see college kids walking in groups, enjoying each others' company; now I see them walking together, but they're all on cell phones, virtually somewhere else. It used to be that going away to college meant forming new attachments in a new place and becoming part of a new community; now the cell phone makes it too easy to avoid cutting the apron strings.

Cell phones also have created new etiquette issues and I'm not sure anyone knows what the new rules are, much less agrees on them. I can't help but feel slighted when a friend takes phone calls over lunch when we're supposed to be catching up on things. Multitasking is a myth, which is why I still can't drive and talk on the phone at the same time. It isn't always wonderful to be always so available: It can be inconvenient, rude, and even dangerous.

On the other hand, cell phones have made it easier and cheaper to stay connected with people when distance can't be helped. It used to be that going away to college meant losing touch with family and friends because long-distance calls were just too expensive, and there was no such thing as email or AIM. It used to be that getting separated from the group or getting stranded in the car was not only frustrating, but potentially dangerous. When we moved to a new town six years ago, my daughter didn't lose touch with her old friends as would have happened when I was a kid; she still talks and texts to them regularly--in addition to communicating with them via AIM and Facebook.

Doubting the value of cell phones and other technologies is actually a positive exercise because it makes me realize that most of what I complain about is the lack of etiquette and the annoying distractions--which are nothing new. There have always been rude people; there have always been distractions. This lack of etiquette and lack of attention to the people around us threatens community, not the cell phone itself. A lot of people believed in the cell phone, and that has led to innovations in communication that, quite honestly, I never imagined would be possible in my lifetime.

Doubting and Believing is the yin-yang of critical thinking it seems to me: Does Doubt remind us that even great ideas have drawbacks, while Belief sets us up to be cheated? Or does Doubt prevent us from dreaming and achieving, while Belief sustains us through what seem to be impossible challenges? When it comes to technology, too much or too little of either Doubt or Belief can be a dangerous thing--but where is that happy medium?

The good and bad of technology use

Technology is a great source for enhancing the learning community. Computers and cell phones are just a couple of examples that have helped to enhance the learning community. With computers people are able to access the web, which is another type of great technology. The web provides an almost endless supply of information. The great thing about the web is that it is always being updated, and new information is posted on it every day. Computers and the web also allow people all over the world to connect with each other. This provides people with the means to communicate with each other about research projects. In this way people are able to gain valuable information from their peers. Cell phones allow for people to communicate anytime and from almost anywhere. With cell phones people can also access the web.
Technology can threaten a community by taking the personal feel out of things. Instead of going to the store and talking to someone about the problems you are having with their product you send them and email. Technology can also be very distracting. Most people sit in class rooms on their computer and get on face book or play games. When people are doing this they are not paying attention to what the teacher is saying.
Belief in technology helps me to see the upside of technology and the downside of technology. With technology we all want to believe that it is helping us to work more efficiently, and get more work done. However the downside is that sometimes technology distracts us from getting work done, and distracts us from what is happening at the present. Doubt in technology presents the same factors. I doubt that all technology will improve mankind. On the other hand I also doubt that all technology will hurt mankind. Belief is not always positive. People can have positive beliefs and negative beliefs. Just like I belief that technology has its positive sides and its negative sides. Doubt is also not always negative. Some people doubt that technology has a bad side to it. They see only the good side of technology.

"You are responsible for other voices as well as your own"

This is a quote from the the pages 439-449 that I read. I agree with it because when you are doing research and working with your fieldsite you need to realize that what you say is accurate since you are talking about other peoples opinions. For example, when I interviewed people from S.E if I put quotes in my paper from what they said, they needed to be 100% accurate or else that is faulty interviewing and research skills. I as a researcher am not the only person that matter when it comes to discussing my topic. I have to take into consideration everyone else that I am observing and studying. It is my observations that make up this paper and if I didn't have a fieldsite to study this whole semester of english would have been pointless.  I am allowed to state my own personal opinions, but for my paper to be a well crafted and written field study i should be able to interpret what people are doing and thinking in reference to my topic, that is a good skill as a writer. 

Using Your Inner voice

I have to respectfully disagree with some of the other voice posts.  In line with most other opinions, the average person may shy away from educated writing.  Most of the time, I speak in a very casual, basic language.  However, when I write, I find my inner beauty of language.  True I may use bigger words and more educated language when I write, but I believe that writing should be natural and flowing.  If your flow is natural, then big words and all, let it out.  If your inner writing voice tells you to write a certain way, go with it.  The more you hold back from your natural inner talent, the more damage you do to your true talent in the long run.  

The Writer's Toolbox

As I reflect on the reading, many things come into focus in my mind about the skills and values any one writer possesses and offers as they begin to write.  Another way to think about it is the question, what are you made of?  As a writer, your only true tool is yourself.  Therefore, your toolbox is what skills you have to use as you write.  In order to increase your writing skills, you must expand and grow your personal toolbox.  This analogy is very basic and extremely effective. We are workers of our own language.  We are compelled to use our personal tools to create the best works we can.  

Voice

It is important for your essay to sound like you. Many people try to use big words to make themselves sound more intelligent. Sometimes using a thesaurus is helpful, but most of the time it does not turn out well. Some people will use the word even when they do not know how to use it. A big "intelligent" word when used out of context can ruin a perfectly good sentence. Even some authors keep sentences simple.

Organization

Organization as discussed in the chapter is key to being able to write at your best. I for one am very disorganized. Fortunately on the computer I can save things to folders to keep all of my files together when I write. When talking about tools for writing as tools in a toolbox it kind of made me think about how I use physical tools. I am not a handyman by any standards to beyond basic hammer and nail type projects I am out of my league. I can make some educated guesses and maybe use a few more advanced tools correctly but the end result would still be sloppy. Just as a to become effecient with physical tools you need to observe their use and follow directions. Similarly with writing I can write in my own voice fairly well but when doing scientific or research based writing I struggle. So I need to take advantage of reading other people's work and help build my skills using different writing tools.

Toolbox

In Stephen King's entry, Toolbox, it really open my eyes to all the "tools" one really need to be a good writer. He also explains why it is important why even if you are strong in a certain field such as vocabulary it does not mean you can slack in other aspects of writing such as grammar or organization. While the things at the top of your toolbox may be the strong points in your paper, your paper could be ruined without the things at the bottom of your toolbox. Kings makes it clear to the reason why it is important for one to have multiple layers in their writing "tool box." One needs to expand their toolbox as much a possible to improve their writing skills.

ORGANIZATION IS KEY!

I really like how on page 447 it talks about the different strategies. I am a very organized person and I like things to be "black and white" sort to speak so this part of the text really helps organize my thoughts. It talks about experiential strategies. Those consist of fieldnotes, double-entry notes, notes from our background reading, and other feildwork records like tapes and transcripts, photos and artifacts. It explains how in our fieldwriting, we will use this information to convince our readers that we were there, and that we saw the places, heard the people, and treid to interpret what they were doing. I really like how the author explains into detail what experiential stragegies are because it gives me a clear picture in my mind. It helps to remind me that I have been working hard on this project and I know a lot of information from all the observations and interviews and I need to give myself more credit for it. Another way to represent myself and my information is by rhetorical strategies and by aesthetic strategies. I think the other two are wonderful strategies as well but I really like the first one the best because it is the most personal. I do like the aesthetic strategy too because it talks about representing our information in a creative way and that is something I like to do! I love to be creative so I think that part of the project would be really fun. The text on pages 439-449 was very imformative and I believe it will help me for my final project!!

Toolbox

After reading Stephen King's entry Toolbox it got me thinking.  I really liked his thinking about the "toolbox". He doesn't necessarily mean an actual toolbox he is talking about what you use to assist you in something.  I think each and everyone of us has a toolbox in writing.  The things that help us out the most on top. And the least used on the bottom and so on and so on.  It's a great way to look at things.

Resisting Writing

I enjoyed reading this part of the chapter. I mainly enjoyed it because it described me in a lot of ways. I feel like it is hard for me to just sit down and write on the computer. This is because these days there are so many distractions once you get onto your computer. There is facebook, aim, email, and just plain surfing the internet that can distract you from hours on end. I liked the quote even when you're prepared to begin writing, it's difficult to " just do it." I usually have to sit down, get comfortable and think for five to ten minutes about what I am going to say in a blog or what I am going to focus on in order to be able to start writing and entering a successful blog entry. I thought it was interesting to read that even professional writers procrastinate. I am not surprised by that but it made me feel like I wasn't dumb for procrastinating and going on different websites before I write since even professionals do the same thing. I also enjoyed the quotes that this passage provided from professionals, I thought that they were very informative and smart. Writers are not born but dependent on work habits, daily discipline, and reader response, as well as the voices of other writers they've read. You have to be motivated and disciplined in order to be a great writer, and focus on what you're saying whenever you are writing so you don't sound like an idiot.

Tools of Writing

Withing writing are many aspects. You have to look at writing as not one entity, but as a multi-faceted device. When writing you have to use nouns, verbs, adjectives, verb/subject agreement, gerunds, no runons and the list continues. They are the little things that make up the overall paper or writing. You have to know how to use these in order to write effectively. If you can't then you don't get your point across. People need to practice and figure out all of their tools while they have the time. High school was a great time for figuring out. College is also another great time. It is more crucial to have more of an understanding at a college level, but you can still practice. People do not want to hire someone who does not know how to properly write. Writing is within every discipline that exists. Reading, writing, and speaking correctly all make up how a person is perceived. If they can't do all of them or even just one of them well, they will be looked down upon. That will result in problems, not only for themselves but for those they are around. Writing well is something everyone needs to master to be able to have a life that people respect. Use the tools and learn how they better support writing.

aesthetically pleasing strategies...

they suggest using metaphors, similes, images, ethnopoetic notation, and spatial gaze.... all of these should will be extremely useful for my mini-ethnography presentation... all of these aspects will make my presentation more interesting and easier for my classmates to follow along and get involved, well as long as i use them in the correct way....

sensory expressions also show the audience a lot of what you are trying to explain and sort of put them into the environment along with you... and since my mini-ethnography has to deal with environment i want to somehow include in some or all of the senses in a unique way showing my creativity and also explaing why environments can affect your creativity...

Your Toolbox

Having your own toolbox is a great way to describe how every writer should write to the best of their abilities. Stephen King gives some great examples of some authors/writers who have a well put together toolbox and some that don't. Just because if someone has a huge vocabulary doesn't mean they're a good writer because when they use all these long words in their writings, no one knows what the heck they are talking about. He tells us to use simple vocabulary because not only will people like it more but they can follow and understand it more. I like how he puts all this into perspective because he pretty much says that everyone can write no matter how smart or well educated you are, it just depends on what all you have in your toolbox.

drafts, drafts, drafts.

"the single quality that distinguishes the unpublished writer from the published is not talent but work" (pg.421)-- this quote can really give you a sense of hope and an achievable goal to make your writing better.. just through work habits. as they say "practice makes perfect"through writing, studying, working, and any daily habits.

one of the stages they talk about is really shitty first drafts. which also goes to show that good writers dont just come up with these masterpieces out of no where... it takes time and lots of changes. so next time ill remember its okay if my first draft is in fact really really shitty.

one change i can make after writing my shitty first draft is to question it?... what surprised me? what intrigued me? what disturbed me? some of these questions might be a little tough to answer on your own just because you have been the one researching and dealing with this information for awhile now and you already know what youve said or want to get across.... but group members could really be useful in this stage....

419-427 Resisting Writing

During my reading of this assignment this particular portion caught my eye because it involves not writing! I found it really interesting to notice that even people who love to write procrastinate almost as much as I do. Even the people who wrote the book we're learning our study habits from are telling us that procrastination is almost like a given habit for being a writer. Although their ways of resisting writing are slightly different than my they all serve the same purpose. This small paragraph was very comforting for me to read because it let me know that it's normal for a writer to procrastinate.

Writing a Draft

I know that I am not a good writer. To hear (or read) that people who write for a living have to write rough drafts makes me feel better. I know that I have to think about what I write and come up with a few drafts to polish what is in my head. You have to work out what you want to say exactly. You have all these notes and they need to be worked into a well written piece of information, not a jumble of a multitude of things. I guess I should have thought about professional writers needing to write drafts, they aren't perfect either. As they say, "practice makes perfect." That is necessarily true when writing a piece of work with the information that you have. You must practice writing your paper to make it the perfect piece in the end. It will show what you are trying to convey much better.

Procrastination

I was more relieved than anything to find how professional writers procrastinate. Many times that is what prevents me from writing well. I put off writing when I have good ideas and istead wait until dyas before the deadline and forcing the issue to meet length requirements. I also found the section about drafts important. Sometimes I take advantage the fact that drafts are rarely graded and tend to either ignore them completely or not really work hard on them and just do enough to get by. I could improve my writing a great deal by putting my mind to it and getting it done rather than putting things off.

Resisting Writing

I found it very interesting that even professional writers procrastinate actually writing.  For me, it takes a lot of motivation to actually start writing.  What's funny is that as soon as I start the actual process, it actually seems to go by really fast.  It is also hard to come up with good ideas, or if I have a good idea, how to start it.  Once I actually start the introduction, it normally starts to flow pretty steadily.  

A book Don Murray wrote call Shoptalk: Learning to Write with Writers, talks about the habits it takes to write, rather than talent.  One of the quotes that I liked was, "Writing... is like rearing children--willpower has very little to do with it.  If you have a little baby crying in the middle of the night, and if you depend only on willpower to get you out of bed to feed the baby, that baby will starve.  You do it out of love."  That was interesting to me because it seems true.  Even writers procrastinate, but what makes them actually start writing is the fact that they love doing it.

Madeline L'Engle

Madeline L'Engle's quote on page 421 struck my interest. It says, "Inspiration usually comes during work, rather than before it." I took this as you can not be inspired by something that is not there. The first step is always beginning. After you have the ball rolling, it is easier to come up with fresh thoughts and ideas to continue. This has happened to me a lot. I won't have any ideas on what to write, so I just start writing an introduction and see where it leads me.

First Drafts are COOL not stupid

I really liked the analogy of comparing research to chaperoning an 8th grade dance. I thought it was funny how they compared the two. But that's kind of irrelevant. Anyways, I read "Shitty First Drafts" by Anne Lamott. I like how in the first paragraph the story talks about professional book writers. It really stresses how drafts are important. It talks about how professional writers don't sit down at the desk every morning and feel like a million bucks and just can write whatever they feel like. It takes a lot of time and thinking and rough drafts to create a great final paper. I laughed out loud when I read the quote from an unknown writer, " It's not like you don't have a choice, because you do-you can either type or kill yourself." I think quotes like that give writing a little humor. I also like how the text breaks down the rough drafts into different types. The first draft is like a child's rough draft. It can be where you pour out all your emotions. I really like that idea because that could be a big stress reliever for a lot of writers. I like how the text emphasizes the difference between editing and revising. They both can take place during the drafting process, but revision always involves making substantial changes, not just fine-tuning a sentence or two; i'll have to remember that one.

Inspiration

As I was reading through the quotes from Don Murray's book, I came across I really believe to be true. "Inspiration usually comes during work, rather than before it" by Madeline L'Engle.  This is so true!  Often I find myself thinking before I sit down to work on a paper coming up with nothing.  But when I get started it just all begins to come to me.  She says it perfectly in her quote that you must begin the work to get the inspiration.  It's helpful to remind myself of this every time I am starting a paper.  I can't just sit around expecting something to come to mind.  I need to begin and then it will all slowly come to me in my writing.

Resisting Writing and Shitty First Drafts

I agreed 100% with the resisting writing assignment and found this true all the way through high school till now. As I have grown older I have also found it harder and harder to just be able to sit down and write. With distractions such as Facebook, eBay, and many other websites I am easily distracted before and while writing a paper. I found it interesting to that not only do young student who do not care much for English find it easy to procrastinate but so do professional writers.

After reading the Shitty First Drafts article, I found this very relevant to my writing as well. I usually wind up writing multiple copies after my first draft. I have also realized that the more and more I review and edit my paper the better grade I will receive. While that seems like it would be obvious, this whole chapter basically explained this, so obviously some people do not realize this.

Questioning Your Draft

After writing your draft, many students don't go back and read through it. Not only should you go through your paper after you have finished it but you should also question it. This section talks about what questions you can ask yourself when going through your paper. We always had to do this throughout high school and it helped tremendously because sometimes you can ask yourself something you and you can't even answer it because it's not talked about in your paper. This is why you should make up a few questions that you want to answer before you start writing you paper. It helps because you have a better chance of answering the questions better and more thoroughly.

Drafts

This reading talked about drafts and how people tend to resist writing, at least initially. This chapter covered subjects that are really just common sense, I honestly feel that this stuff at this point should already be well within a person's knowledge. It's obvious that you need all the information you gathered spread out before you as you write your draft. And, it's no secret that most drafts are originally very "shitty", which is to say they are not very good. Which is why the writer must question their draft, as indicated on page 427. As a whole I didn't find this particular chapter to be all that enlightening, in fact, the only page that would offer me much, if any, assistance is page 427.

Electronic Archives: UsinIg tge Internet

I cannot imagine life without the internet. The book was right saying that the internet has become a big part of our lives. We really rely on it for research and what not. I know I could not have done my project on wallyball without some help from the internet. I have searched through a lot of data to find valueable information on my subculture. I can remember in the beginning of this project I had some trouble finding the information I actually needed, and about gave up hope for finding it. Like the book stated, I remained patient to find information and started to choose my words carefully. After I started that information on my subculture started becoming easier to find, and made my research so much easier.

Electronic Archives

The internet has become an important source of information. When doing research we often surf the Web to find information on our topic. We often find a great amount of information. However, it is important to take your time going through the information in order to find out what is legitimate and what is not. It takes time and effort to do research, even on a high speed connection. Finding information is not the hard part, but finding quality information is some times difficult. The book describes how the information on the web works in a few ways. It says that it is a basic source of information and it can offer you potential contact information.

Chapter 6 talking about Language

I strongly agreed with what this chapter was saying about how not all language has to do with talking. On page 307 it says  some linguists claim that there is no thought without language, we think much of daily life moves along without the language of words. That is totally true! A lot of times when I am talking to friends, teachers, or peers I can totally see and tell there reactions by something as simple as a facial expression. If I am telling my roommate a story, often times she raises her eyebrows or opens her mouth real wide reacting to the story I am telling her and  I can tell her reaction without her even saying a word. While i observed my group Something Else I looked around the room at each of them and noticed that some of the students were slouched down which means they are bored or uninterested in the subject that is being talked about. While others were sitting up straight and smiling which led me to believe they were interested in the topic. Language isn't just word of mouth, it is your body language and facial expressions as well!

Ball Fruit Jars and Dumpster Diving

After reading about how Muncie, Indiana was going to be involved in this chapter I became very intrigued and read it very carefully. Who would have ever thought Muncie would be talked about in an English book. The best part was when they talked about the giant jars of preserved peas from the nineteenth century that they claimed were still edible today. It was very well written and informed me on a part of Muncie's history I was unaware of.

I felt the dumpster diving article was some what a waste of time. I see what he was getting at but I feel the example he used was simply dumb. I know I would not be willing to do that unless it was my very last option, but I guess you do what you have to do to get a story.

I found it interesting that the book talked about Muncie. Of course if I were writing about Ball Fruit Jars, I’d be sitting on a hotbed of information. Unfortunately, there isn’t so much history or information available about my subgroup in Muncie!

“Archives” seems to be a less than concrete noun. You can call a junk collection in your grandma’s attic an archive, but you can also call the Smithsonian an archive. These hardly seem related. Granted if you were doing a family history project the attic junk may be a more important source of information. However an unorganized collection of things can hardly be compared with the catalogued and intricately organized archives of a museum. Either way as I read about all these archives I am struggling with how to relate the information to my project.

The dumpster diving article was a little ridiculous. Obviously this man is a perfectly capable writer. Instead of telling us how to scavenge for food why not tell us how to write well. Bona fide idiot. By closing his essay acting like he had found some “better way” than those watching late night cable he made me officially ANGRY for even reading the article. They may not find a good show but they aren’t fighting the “big D” because they ate trash. Thanks for not contributing to the economy.

DUMPSTER DIVING

I think artifacts are extremely interesting....but dumpster diving?  I thought the section in our reading on dumpster diving was disgusting.  I would never dive into trash to find anything.  It also talked about EATING from the dumpster! I can't believe people actually do that.  There are tips on eating safely out of the dumpster, as far as I am concerned there is NO safe way to eat out of a dumpster!! The one statement that made me chuckle was in the three principals of eating safely from a dumpster. "Seeking always to answer the question, why was this discarded". I think it is just gross.

BALL STATE

i think it is really cool that there is an article relating to ball state and the ball brothers. i never knew that they were the ones that manufactured the BALL jars...
"you can find scripts and transcripts in many different places" --this just goes to show you that there is much more than what meets the eye....through transcripts and scripts (and any writing document for that matter) can tell you so much more than what you might already know...
since im doing my ethnography based on interior designers it would be really helpful if there some type of museum or interior design building that i could go and visit... it could really help out as another source for an archive and help me find another perspective

Public Archives

I like the article on Dumpster Diving. I think it is very interesting in many ways especially the fact that this guy really enjoys doing it. Most people wouldn't be willing to share what they enjoy to very many people especially if it's anything like dumpster diving. I also like how he italicizes certain words of importance. To me this really draws in the readers attention more and helps them feel more involved in the article. This is one of many important things to consider when writing or presenting because it shows that you actually care about and enjoy what you are talking about.

Alternative Archives

I really like how the text talks about, "Someone else's junk could be the treasure needed to understand a culture or subculture." I love that saying because it has so many meanings. Sometimes when I go over to my friends house and I raid her closet i'll find a whole bunch of stuff that she never uses or wears. To me it's great stuff but to her it's just old news. I really like how the text talks about other people's garbage. We really don't think of the value of junk because we automatically think if someone else threw it out, it's no good. Sometimes they hold important cultural meanings. 

I read On Dumpster Diving by Lars Eighner and I really liked it. It's actually a pretty long story but it is very interesting. In the middle of the text it talks about the certain things he found on a college campus. It said on one hot day he found a large jug of Pat O Brien's Hurricane mix. The jug had been open but was still ice cold. He drank a lot of it then realized that there was a LOT of rum in it. I thought that part was pretty funny!!

archives

I really enjoyed this section. I never really thought of things that they mentioned as "archives". It puts a whole new spin on the saying "One man's trash is another's treasure." I only though of archives as stuff in museums. When I went to the Louvre, there was a whole area devoted to Napoleon's stuff. They said it was set up just as his apartment was in his time. I wonder what kind of things I can find for my project. I may not be able to use actual objects, but I bet i can find pictures of old architecture supplies or schools to use as a compare and contrast between the present.

Dumpster Diving

I thought the article on dumpster diving was really gross.  I can't believe there are people that actually go to dumpsters and eat food out of them and think it is safe. It says that the new scavenger is filled with disgust and self-loathing and hides when they first start dumpster diving  which doesn't surprise me at all. I also thought it was interesting how in the article it said that people tend to gain weight that dumpster dive because more people are likely to throw away old pizza, candy, and doughnuts rather than  salads, tun and yogurt. I don't know, this article was just very strange to me and I could never eat food out of a dumpster.

Online Archives

I thought this was an interesting passage to read. Not only was it talking about different kinds of things you can find on the internet but it  basically discussed how nothing is private on the internet which is true. I enjoyed the part that said Anyone with Internet connection has access to an international treasure trove of public and private databases. I think it is bizarre that people have diaries on the internet because of that statement I just said. It is nearly impossible to keep anything on the internet private these days no matter how hard you try. Online Archives can be very useful for school but a lot of stuff online that you post is way to private to be public which is a scary thing to think about. More and more archival material is available to the public every day. The thing about that is, nothing gets completely erased from the archives of internet databases either. Weird. 

Archiving the Past

Archives are a great source of information. They can range from Washington D.C. to your own attic in your house. People archive quite a bit of information and it is something that can help in any sort of research needed. It can date back to thousands of years ago and as early as yesterday. This gives great insight into what you want to know about. It is an extended tool from journals, articles, and newspapers. Something to put in the tool belt of research tools.

Online Archives

I thought the section on the online archives was most interesting. Mostly because I never really thought of finding archives on the Internet. I also never knew that you could tour museums. I think that is so cool. I will honestly now go and look at museums online now that I know that is even possible. Also I thought it was interesting that they used an artwork that they found from online sources for the front cover. I now will try to look for archives online. 

I found the picture above from a online museum. The website was called, The Museum of online Museums. 

Archives

Using an archive can really help a researcher study a person or a subculture. Whether it is a person's garage full of old stuff or a museum full of information on a subculture, it can be very useful. Online archives are perhaps the most used and the easiest to use. People all over the world can now take virtual tours through museums and access many different archives that are full of information. Another type of archive is a family archive. Family archives can help a person learn more about their family tree. Family heirlooms such as old letters, photographs, or even old journals can be examined and learned from. I never really thought about using an archive for my project, but can now see how it could possible help me to use some kind of an archive in my research of my subculture.

Archives

I hadn't thought of looking into archives for my project. Archives are a valuable way to preserve and organize information. I hadn't thought of incorporating previous years youth groups. Since my paper is about an urban Ft. Wayne church it would have probably been quite interesting to see how the youth representation in the church shifted as the city of Ft Wayne as it developed into an industrial hub of the upper midwest and as it declined with the downturn of the economy and the closing of factories in Ft. Wayne led to a significant turn for the worst in parts of the city. Where once had been well employed and affluent families now sit condemned houses and graffiti.

Using internet archives and databases is a huge step for research in general. My parents couldnt imagine accessing so much information about such obscure topics with so minimal effort. Where people once paid hundreds of dollars for encyclopedias we can now get the answer to almost any question in the world in complete detail on our Blackberry for $20 a month. There is a reason this is called the information age. With our current ability to receive data we are probably living through the most important information illumination since the written word.

Researching Archives: Locating Culture

In this reading, it states that archives are collections of documents and artifacts.  I thought it was very interesting that we could create our own archives.  It says, "An archive can be a shoe box full of mementos from your volleyball career, a collection of pens used by a local mayor to sign laws, an elderly neighbor's egg cup collection..." I had no idea that collecting things from my marching band season could actually be considered an archive.  That seemed very interesting.

I also had no idea that the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., is one of the largest archives in the U.S.  Having no idea what was actually in this archive, it was interesting to find out that the ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore in The Wizard of Oz were located in the Smithsonian.  It also "has 10 separate archives, which hold an estimated 50,000 cubic feet of paper documents, 7 million still photographs, and thousands of motion picture films, videos, and audio recordings."  I did hear that the Smithsonian is closed down for ten years, but it would definitely be interesting to go visit that archive.

Online Archives

I did not have much knowledge about online archives, and honestly did not know what they actually were until reading about them. Upon reading about archives I had several different things I thought about them. I agree and believe they are becoming very popular, and make it easy for people to view different things or places without actually taking time or paying for them. I have had many projects I have done that involved getting pictures and what not. It saves me a lot of time to find them through the internet, and I do not have to travel or pay to get them either. I think these archives will be very helpful for my subculture, because it will help me find any information available to it, which I would be able to use.

Electronic Archives:Using the Internet

While after reading through this section, the questions they listed to help someone critique a websites usefulness and credibility caught my eye. Since the internet has basically become the first place many people look when doing research I feel these questions should become common knowledge among internet users. While we have discussed this in our class and we have been taught how to critique a website, I feel many people are very uneducated when it comes to this matter. While many people will tend to think what they find first must be right, it actually takes time and effort to do quality research on the internet. One must gain depth and credibility in their research which is made much faster with technology such as the internet but it still takes time and effort. I also like how they describe the Web working in three different way. First being a place to find information on virtually anything. Second it is a good place to go to look for contact information for you to obtain further information. Third how it has has created its own subculture in multiple ways.

Archives

Reading this article made me think about the same thing Elliot thought about, the internet and how much it has evolved. I'm sure that when the internet was first introduced no one would have ever thought we would be able to take virtual tours of places without leaving our homes. These virtual tours make it easy to see the things we need or want to see without having to take the time to actually go there to see it. It's amazing to see the different things you can do on the internet.

Chapter 7: 359-379- Online Archives Response

While reading through this section of our assignment this paragraph caught my attention because of what we've been talking about recently in class. This article discusses how we can take virtual tours of museums that we may never get the chance to visit in real life, or may give us reasons to visit in person. The article is basically showing us how far the internet has brought us. We're now able to critique works that we may never see in person, and expand our knowledge of art, documents, photographs, maps, manuscripts, collections, corporate archives, church records, and historical society records. It really is amazing what we can view through the internet these days, it seems like almost everything is just a mouse click away.

Chapter 7: pgs. 359-379: The Different Archives

After reading this section of chapter 7, I view archives in a different way. From reading this, I have learned that there are a few different types of archives including museums, online museums, and family archives. I think that the online museums are interesting because you can get the experience of going to the museum without even leaving your house with a virtual tour. I am not sure how I can use any archives, online especially, for my project unless I can find a few pictures.

Organizing Archival Material

When preparing to research and gather information, one of the most important things is how you organize everything you have collected. Without doing this your research could be all scattered out and not make any sense. There isn't one specific way to do this but you must look at everything you have gathered and collected. Depending on how you organize your information, it will build a frame for everything you did and it will keep building around all that you have gathered. Everything an anything you collect will help you in writing your material. This goes from historical artifacts to a collection of archives put together by other people.

pg. 331-357

In the section headed "Describing Occupational Terms" I found this very relevant to my project. Basically they narrow it down to what they describe as verbal art and why it is important for an outsider to understand it. To really grasp the traditions and ideals of a certain subculture you really need to spend time observing it and in doing so you will run across these different types of verbal arts the subculture have adopted. Learning these "verbal arts" rather it be a certain behavior or language and having them explained to me in depth will really help my paper out in the end.

Groundwork Activity

On page 351, there is a groundwork activity.

 I thought this was a good activity to help you

 organize and understand your feildsites language

 much better. Ti just helps you narrow your thinking 

down to one thing rather than your mind thinking of all aspects 

of the feildsite. You can have a more detailed understanding.I just thought that was interesting. 

language in text

dialogue and showing language and conversation can be kinda tricky in writing, "here are two stories from two different waitressing situation that both show how waitresses, when stiffed or stressed, retaliate." each one of these situations will have my similarities or differences but its also the way in which the writer portrays each situation... even in a incident that is the exact same, if you have two different people the views and writing and dialogue chose will be completetly different. even lore, jargon, and the verbal art can be told in multiple views and really add character to the stories, showing what that person is feeling and thinking. i think the reading is telling us students that it is our job as writers to change the information we recieves variants... we need to add our own creativity to make the story pull together to form an interesting story that someone will want to read.

Insider Language

When I was reading about inside terms it made me think back to my subculture. With my specif subculture I have noticed that there is a lot of specif terms floated around. These terms would mean nothing to anyone outside of the group. In the section it was talking about how to effectively translate the insider terms to common terms. I believe doing this will be very in useful in my paper because terms like ruck and maul mean nothing to a person walking down the street, and by being able to communicate that those are ways of keeping play going after a tackle or penalty will help me create a better paper.

"Inside Terms"

When I read this section it made me think of "inside jokes" that some friends have that other people just don't understand. That's kind of the way some subcultures are. They have "inside terms" that are hard for people to understand if you aren't a part of that particular subculture. This section talks about how to translate these "inside terms" to "outsiders" or the people who will read your paper. It will be easier for you to have someone from the subculture sort of "dumb it down" for you, for lack of better words. If they can explain it in terms that you understand it will be easier for you to express these terms in your paper. 

Creating a New Perspective

This is a response to the reflection titled Insider of Outsider, by tdhampton04. I also find the insider verse outsider perspective very interesting. Suppose one person is on a competitive speech team and the other person plays basketball. I believe that they would both think their activity is more challenging and competitive. However, I think if someone made them switch roles their mind might change. Perhaps, they would learn to respect one another more. The basketball player wouldn’t stereotype the speech team as “nerds” and the speech team might think more of the basketball players than just “dumb jocks”. Taking people out of the comfort zones can really broaden their horizons and bring a better perspective onto the actual subject.

pg 331-357

In this section of reading the "Describing Occupational Terms" was extremely helpful for me and my current situation with my paper. In this small portion of the reading it talks about how to collect verbal art of a subculture, and how to explain it to outsiders. With my paper there are many terms and words that no one outside the subculture would understand, and because of that I have to what seems like overwriting just to explain a term. It gave me the idea on how to have the person being interviewed to explain something that would otherwise be misunderstood to a "foreign" reader.

Pg 331-357

I thought it was pretty interesting when it talked about how it describes subcultures ritualized language events into a category called lore. I have heard the term "lore" but I never knew what the actual definition of it meant, but after I read the pages about it I really started to think about the different things lore describes. One thing it made me strongly think about is baseball for some reason. For example ,I know so many different stories about it, and it was something I talked about with other teammates and even friends in general without realizing it. I think people are able to talk about many things with others when they have some sort of bond. When I played baseball for my school the team had a strong bond, so we could talk to each other about certain things like fears, stories, and etc. The lore is our everyday language as the book describes, and we are just unconscious of it, because we use it so much.

Insider or Outsider?

The text talked a lot about gathering information from verbal performances, storytelling, and working with different languages. It was all very informative but I personally found the Groundwork Activity box on page 351 very interesting. It brought up a lot of good quality questions like: In what ways do you understand its language forms? What do you wish you knew? In what ways will you always be a nonnative speaker? Then it breaks down tips into three different steps. The first step talks about making a list of words, phrases, and other verbal artforms. They tell you to do this so you can ask an insider and an outsider what they think about the words or phrases you have listed. I think it would be interesting to see what an insider and outsider thing when they are side by side. I wonder if there would be any friction on the different opinions or simply the lack of knowledge.