New York City vs. Boston

My sister and I both go to college in the two of the most known cities of New England. I live in Boston and she lives in New York City. I just got home from visiting her in the city. I knew I liked city life but New York City is just too much for me. While I enjoy the fast-paced city life, I value Boston for many reasons. For one, it is much cleaner than NYC. Rarely do you see garbage bags piled on the sidewalks like you do on every block in NYC. Not to mention, Northeastern is in Boston, but still has a campus. My sister's college, Pace University, is literally one building. She lives in campus housing that is a high rise hotel transformed into suites. The rooms, even being suites, are extremely small. But hey, that's life in NYC. There is not much space at all in NYC. Yes there are beautiful parks like Central Park, but in Boston I feel like there is much more open space. New York drivers are known to be especially crazy and that's another thing I can't stand. You don't go five seconds without hearing someone beeping a horn. There are many more tourists in NYC on a regular weekend than you find in Boston. My sister and I met up with some friends just past Times Square. Navigating through that mess of people was so frustrating! I give my sister a lot of credit for putting up with that congestion. Lastly, there are so many subway lines that I find them more confusing than the T. The subways have numbers and letters- I don't know the difference between them. Although my sister and I both love cities, our idea of the perfect city is much different!

Why did I take a history class?!??

Yesterday I had no classes so I made myself wake up at a reasonable time and work on a research paper for a history class I am taking. It's not due until Monday, but I plan on going to New York City to stay with my sister for the weekend so I wanted to get it over with.This sounds easy enough, but I had the worst time ever! I stayed at the library for four and a half hours writing away and realized that my writing was not supporting my thesis whatsoever. By this time, I became extremely frustrated and left the library. I returned to my dorm and watched an episode of Undercovers. I went back to the library, this time to help a friend study for a math exam I also have this week. I stayed at the library a little longer to work on my english essay, another paper I have due soon. I've realized that in college you have extremely busy weeks in which you have some large assignment for every singe class you're taking. It becomes very overwhelming but you have to focus on something positive, in my case NYC or even Thanksgiving break which is coming up in a week or so. I can't wait until my classes start winding down. My freshman seminar class ends on December 6 and my Sociology class ends on December 7. Then I only have three classes to deal with. I am going to the writing lab today and hopefully they will be able to help me with my current mess of a research paper! This is the last history class I'm taking!!!

Knitting

I am eighteen and I love knitting. I used to look at knitting as an "old person" hobby until my friend took it up. She made such beautiful things, like mittens and wrist warmers. I was jealous. I had her teach me and and ever since I've enjoyed it so much. At first it was hard to pick up and get used to. It was a bit frustrating. However, once it became a natural technique, I loved it. It's the perfect thing to do in the winter when I have free time. Not to mention, the things I make are perfect (and inexpensive) Christmas gifts that everyone loves. Plus, the fact that I made it makes it that much more special. So far I've made something for all of my cousins, my sister, and my mom. I made my mom wrist warmers and she wears them almost everyday in the winter! I love seeing my creations on my cousins. Sometimes their photos pop up on my Facebook wall and I see them with the scarf I made or wrist warmers I made and I love it!
I find myself getting so excited when my friend teaches me a new pattern that she has learned. As a matter of fact, tonight I'm going to learn how to knit mittens. I can't wait! I have a goal for this winter. I would like to knit a hat before the season is over. I don't know how to make anything that men would wear and I would really like to make something for my Dad. He always loves to see my creations when I'm done with them. He would love and wear proudly a hat that I knit for him.

Intimidation

The other day I attended a meeting for the Internal Transfer Program. It’s what you have to go through in order to switch to a major outside of the college that you’re currently a part of. It was intimidating at the least! The advisor started off by asking how many of the people attending were looking to get into the College of Business and everyone raised their hand. This was the fifth session she had. She only has a limited number of spots she is able to fill. It was not looking good for all of us who wanted to become business majors. As the presentation progressed, she went on to explain the benefits of majors. When coming across business she simply said there are none. This blew my mind because there are so many kids attending college as business majors. I know of many adults that graduated college with business majors. As she went on to explain her opinion, it became clear. She explained that if you want to eventually be in business as a career you have the ability to major in something you’re passionate about and then get a masters or MBA in business. She also explained that graduate schools will accept student into the business program even if they majored in English or Political Science. That really made me feel a lot better. I am not passionate about business but I am skilled in the areas that make it up. Now I know I have the opportunity to major in a subject I’m passionate about while still being able to eventually go into business.

Photography

When I heard that we will be taking photos as a part of our next essay assignment I was a little nervous. I never had an eye for photography. I really enjoy looking at professional photos though. As I thought about it though I began to get excited. Edward Said's States was really interesting. I liked how he incorporated meaningful photos into the essay. I definitely think it was a crucial aspect. Not to mention, it made everything he was writing about seem more real. For example, a common theme throughout the whole essay was lack of settlement. The Palestinians were constantly being moved around, having no place to call home. In all of the photos, especially the ones on page 572, in which the man is sitting in the chair but in such a way that he doesn't look relaxed at all. I wouldn't have noticed many of these characteristics of the photo if we hadn't analyzed them in class. I enjoyed Wednesday's lesson. It was very interesting to focus on the characteristics such as lighting, color, exposure and camera angle. I know that it will definitely be a challenge to incorporate photos into my writing effectively, like Said, but I am excited to experiment with the concept.

Pictures

I usually love looking a pictures because they can tell so many stories. The emotions, the setting, the people- it all provides details into that snapshot of a memory. Unfortunately, after seeing picture after picture of sloppy, crazy teenagers that pop up on my Facebook newsfeed I have lost the excitement. Pictures on Facebook tell stories, but the story is shaped by the user. He or she can upload certain photos from an event, yet leave out others. Thus your interpretation and ability to create an accurate story based on the photos is impaired. One example of this is a girl I used to know. Her Facebook photos always show her with a smile from ear to ear. Her moods always seem so light. I didn't know for sure if that's what she was like because she always kept to herself. I believed her to be a cheerful, giddy person until I found out that the reason she'd missed school for two weeks straight was because she was severely depressed. She was attending a clinic to aid her with her illness. There's no way anyone could tell she suffered from depression through the many photos that showed a smile that could light up a room. Ever since this happened I have always been weary about judging someone based on the pictures they chose to upload onto Facebook. Facebook can either be a place to break out of your shell and show your true self, or it can serve as an extension of the mask you wear in public everyday.

Blogging in China

Internet censorship in China is among the most strict in the world. The Chinese government requires that websites employ people who monitor and delete content that is questionable. Despite this, China has over three hundred million internet users. Of those users, seventy million blog. Imagine blogging while knowing that every word you type will be monitored by someone employed to do so. That alone would prevent me from blogging. I feel as though Americans would never allow the government to enact legislation that censors everything uploaded to the internet. First of all, creating a firewall as intricate as China's would be extremely hard. Americans tend to be more objective as well. There was uproar after the passing of the Patriot Act following the terrorist attacks of September 11. I don't think censorship of the internet in America would go over well at all. This is not to say it was a smooth transition in China. Google closed it's internet search service in March 2010. They would do so until it's search engine was no longer filtered. The Chinese government did not give into their demand and said that companies doing business in the country must follow the law. Google attempted to get around the law by directing Chinese users to its uncensored search engine in Hong Kong. This only further angered Chinese officials. Weeks later, Google created the option for users in China to chose whether to use an uncensored version or not. It would be interesting to see the reaction of Americans if the government were to create a firewall that censored everything put on the internet. I believe it would be a disaster!

Callie Crossley

I went to see Jen's interview with Callie Crossley this evening and I really enjoyed it. I'm undeclared, so I went in with an open mind, however I never really considered majoring in media studies. I can't say I came out of the interview wanting to go into media but previous to the show I didn't know all that went into working in a media field. I also wasn't aware of all the changes that the media field is going through during this century. I've always wondered how widespread use of technology and internet are changing fields such as journalism and media. I found her conversation about newspapers very interesting. She said that newspapers will always be around, the form however that they are presented in will change. I totally agree with the statement. I began to wonder how the change in publication will then affect the material being read. She brought up a great point about cover stories. The newspaper publishers are working especially hard on finding ways to draw attention to the "cover" stories without having a cover to display them on. This is is a great point. When I go on New York Times online, there's not a bolded headline jumping out at me. There's simply a bunch of links to news stories. I have no way of knowing which are the more important stories versus the less significant ones. I believe a good solution to the problem would be to highlight the important stories on the home page of the site. The lesser stories should not be seen until viewers begin clicking subtitles and other pages. I think this will lead to greater emphasis of the big and important stories. Overall, a career in media as Callie Crossley portrayed it is a lot more difficulty than I imagined it to be! I give her so much credit for all of the success she has attained over the years. She has definitely gained my respect.

The Little Things in Life

When I think of a millionaire I think of someone like Bill Gates or Donald Trump. Someone who is very intelligent, went through much schooling, and became very successful. Today was a gorgeous day in Newington, Connecticut, my home town. My dad took my two best friends and me apple picking. It was so much fun climbing the trees, seeing all the little kids around. I honestly felt like I was a kid again. My dad then told my friends and I that the family who owned the apple farm also owns the majority of the land in the town. This includes the apple farm, pumpkin patch, two golf courses, and a corn maze. He went on to tell us that he knows someone who works for Lyman's Orchard and they informed him that this business is a twenty million dollar business! I was shocked. When you think of wealth the owner's of a tree farm don't usually come to mind. The family has been in the business for over three hundred years, however, which explains the wealth and prestige. They provide families with such joy by simply taking advantage of nature. I was surrounded by delicious apples, beautiful leaves, and amazing people. It was one of the best days I've had in a while. It once again taught me to take advantage of the little things in life.

Facebook

I really enjoyed the Facebook stalking assignment! I spend a lot of time "stalking" my good friends on Facebook but I don't really pay attention to other people. You can learn so much if you have access to their wall, pictures, and information. For the assignment I stalked this kid that was my older cousin's boyfriend back when I was probably eight years old. I adored him. He always played sports with me and included me even though I was so much younger than him. It was cool to see where he is in life now that ten years or so have passed! I definitely agree that Facebook is a panopticon, however as users we have the ability to chose what goes onto our profile. That's different from say a security camera as a panopticon. You can't pick and chose what it records. I wonder if this aspect of it prevents it from being considered a panopticon. It's funny how some people put their entire lives on Facebook whereas others barely put anything on. I am friends with one of my cousins. She has a blackberry and uses Facebook on it. She's literally always on facebook! It's funny to me because I barely update my statuses but she's always updating hers. Facebook is so entertaining, especially stalking people!

Panopticons All Around

My mom is a teacher at an elementary school a town over from where I live. She works in the pre-school wing of the school. She was talking to a friend of hers and I overheard her mention the cameras that are outside of her classroom. This isn't too different than the high school I went to or any other school for that matter. There is a big difference however. The cameras in the hallways of her school are monitored not only by the principle but by the principle of the high school as well. The security at the high school can receive the feed coming from all of the elementary and middle schools in the town. I'm assuming this is for safety purposes because the town in which she works is "rough". This is like a double panopticon. It's as if there's a tower in the center of a prison, and another tower in the center of the tower. The guy in the lower tower watches over the prisoners while the guy in the upper tower watches over him. It's pretty crazy how that works. My mom definitely has no chance of knowing when someone could possibly be watching her. It's amazing how far people will go to promote change!

Car Rides

So I'm home for the first weekend since going to college! It's awesome. My dad picked me up Thursday night because I have no classes on Fridays. During our ride back to Connecticut, he was telling me about his new Blackberry he was given through work. It was funny because I had just explained to him what I had been learning in my classes, including panopticons in English. He had never heard of panopticism before and he was intrigued. He went on to explain that a co worker of his turned the GPS off of his phone because their bosses could track wherever they were at any point in time. My dad asked him to do the same for his phone because he definitely didn't want people tracking him. I then explained to him that this was a perfect example of the panopticons I was previously informing him of. He agreed when I said that panopticons would make me paranoid. He also drives a company car and informed me that his company is going to start putting tracking devices in the company cars once their leases are up. This way they can verify where the workers are at all times. I personally find this very disturbing. They shouldn't have to monitor their workers' every move. I understand the convenience it may provide but a company should trust the people they hire as employees. I went on to wonder if they have to let the leasers know that there has been a tracking device installed on the car. It may be in fine print in a contract they sign and the driver may have no idea. I'm just glad my dad has knowledge of this change! It's amazing how many panopticons are in the world that I never realized before reading Foucault's Panopticism.

Rainy Days

It's very rainy and miserable out and I totally understand how days are ruined when it rains. All day I've felt lethargic and I just want to lay in my bed under my covers. That led me to think about how I would feel if I didn't have a bed I could lay in. It really puts things in perspective. Hurricane Katrina was not just rain, it was a five category storm. If I had to evacuate my house without knowing if it was going to survive I would be terrified. I could not imagine losing all of my belongings. I would be lost without a place to retreat to. I can't even begin to imagine the emotions one must feel when finding out that the one place you feel most comfortable in is destroyed. Not to mention everything you've acquired over the years is gone as well. Starting over is difficult for everyone especially when all of your friends and neighbors are starting over as well. I definitely take even little things, like my bed and covers, for granted. 

Author's voice

Upon writing the narrative for the Zeitoun assignment I put a lot of thought into how much of my voice, as the author, I want to be heard by the readers. Eggers voice was barely there but detectable in subcontext. For example, during the scene where Zeitoun was brought to the Greyhound station and held captive. It was evident that Eggers looked down upon all the officials who allowed that to happen. It was also apparent that he was appalled by this, enough so to spend a whole section of the book on this one event. As an author of a narrative I had to choose what issue I wanted to bring to light and how much of my opinions I wanted to share. I didn't feel right imposing on the story that I used as my basic guideline. After all, I was in Connecticut watching the disaster unfold on television screens while Philipp Meyer was in New Orleans providing aid to victims. I knew I wanted to add in some expository writing about the health care system of New Orleans, but I wasn't sure of how much. Unlike Zeitoun, I wanted to inform readers, like myself, who weren't able to experience the disaster, of facts as well as providing an entertaining story. I decided to start the narrative off with Phillip Meyer's story and then stop at a point of suspense to ensure the reader will continue reading. At the point I added in some facts about the health care system of New Orleans and how Hurricane Katrina affected it. I found a perfect place to pick up with and finish Meyer's story. I am pleased with how the narrative came together and I hope others enjoy it as well.

Katrina Assigment

I was reviewing the assignment and wanted to put my questions and concerns into writing before I forget them for class tomorrow. I found a great article of a personal account and I have a very interesting idea for the assignment, however I feel like it will be difficult because the story is already written. Eggers listened to Zeitoun and could therefore create his own story. I read this person's personal account so I feel it may be difficult writing in a different way. I'll have to try to look at it from a different perspective. Using a personal story is tricky as well because I know I'll want to change it and make it a little different just for the purpose of keeping the reader's attention but by doing so I almost feel as if I'm undermining the person's experiences. I can see the difficulties Egger's could have face while going about writing the story. Everyone hates when they read an awesome book and it comes out on movie and the movie is totally different. I wouldn't want to be the author that totally changes the idea of the story. It's going to take serious thought and creativity to successfully rewrite the experiences of people. I think a good way to go about doing it is to use the one man's personal account as the basis of the story but incorporate other facts or stories from other victims' experiences to change it up. I'll obviously have to note that in the author's decision part of the paper though so that people know I changed the story. Being and author is definitely not all fun and games!

Katrina Research

I would just like to take some time to reflect on the research I've been doing on Hurricane Katrina. I knew the severity of the disaster was unlike anything before it, but it doesn't become real until you see photographs or read personal accounts. News stories simply don't do justice for the people of New Orleans. Up until now I knew only what was in the news. I hadn't gone out of my way to read personal accounts or blogs of Hurricane Katrina victims. I am actually glad I've been assigned to finally do so because my eyes have been opened to much more. I feel like I now have a much deeper understanding of what occurred in 2005. It's easy for us, as outsiders, to have sympathy for the millions of people that lost everything to Hurricane Katrina but it's hard to have empathy. After reading these personal accounts I can now say I thought I had empathy but there's no way I felt the same way I do now. One of the articles I read was written by an EMT who stayed and lent help for as long as he could. However, unlike Zeitoun, he knew in order to live he had to leave the city. He left before it was too late and had to live with the regret of that decision. Thousands of people had to make the hardest decisions of their lives during that time. Through my research I have also learned that despite the passing of five years, New Orleans is not nearly close to being back to "normal." Thousands of people are still struggling to live and are still homeless. The city has made immense progress but still has a lot of work to do. We can only hope a disaster such as Hurricane Katrina is a once in a lifetime occurrence.

Dave Eggers

During class I began to form more of an opinion of Eggers as an author. He apparently has the ability to alter his style of writing as we saw when we compared two of his works. After our discussion about Eggers in class someone mentioned that they found a lot of criticism concerning his books. I grew curious and did some googling of my own. I personally was not a fan of the introduction that Eggers put, at least the short part I read, in the beginning of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. To me it basically discredited everything that was to follow. I don't think I would continue reading the novel after having read the introduction. Now knowing that Eggers stretched the truth so heavily in one of his previous works, I begin to question the facts in Zeitoun. Not to mention, I had not previously questioned the fact that Zeitoun's account were all from memory. It's not like he wrote a diary or kept records of his experiences. Therefore, I now find it hard to believe that all the dates and times in the book are completely accurate. While looking at criticism of Zeitoun from other sources I came across a review by New York Times. One part in particular stuck with me. The review read, "He does it without any writerly triple-lutzes or winks of post modern irony. There are no rants against President Bush, no cheap shots at the authorities who let this city drown." I completely disagree with this. I believe Eggers' voice was strongest when Zeitoun arrived at Camp Greyhound and when he was held captive there. I definitely believe he blames the Bush Administration and that his political views show through. There is an obvious attempt to hide his authorial voice but it is there nonetheless.