Rhetorical Response #5

I converted my essay about The Freshman 15 into a powerpoint presentation. I chose to convert this essay because it is about the causes of freshman gaining weight their first year in college and since most of us are freshman and are in college, people can relate to this topic. Also, this topic is not old and outdated, so it is still somewhat interesting to some people.

I chose a solid light purple background for behind my pictures, because it doesn't distract my audience from the actual pictures, which help me get across the main message. I started off googling pictures that I though were main topics in my paper such as, exercise, drinking, and excess stress and workload. I made a folder for all the pictures I found, and sorted through it and figured out the main ideas that I want to get across. Knowing that I could only have five slides, I had to get rid of pointless pictures that did not contribute to my overall message.

My presentation starts off with a a picture of 'a fork in the road'. This is symbolic of a choice, and foreshadows that the freshman 15 is really a person's own choice. Also the song, "I love college" is the audio part of my presentation, that plays during the drinking slide. I chose this song because it is about loving college/drinking/partying/freshman. It helps set the tone of my presentation and gets the audience in the mood. My second slide consists of a lot of pictures of different people stressed/junk food/a melting clock. I used different pictures to help people really visualize time management, and how stress contributes to their diet. The next slide is about eight different pictures of beer, people drinking, and keg stands. This slide has the most pictures, because it is one of the most important factors of weight gain for college freshman and beer appeals to people, so they will pay attention. I also chose to overlap pictures on both the second and third slides instead of laying them out in an orderly fashion because everything in college piles up on top of each other, just like these pictures do, and its more chaotic. On the fourth slide, I put pictures of a couple of ways that people can take action and not let the freshman 15 affect them. The very last slide I asked the question, "Will You Let the Freshman 15 Happen To You?", to leave the audience thinking about what they just saw in my presentation. During this slide I chose the song "MMMBop" by Hanson to play. This seems random, but the song is kind of bubbly and makes me think, and wonder, therefore I thought it might be good to end with a light hearted song.

Making this presentation, I realized how much of a difference that visuals make. It is easier for people to look at a slide show of pictures and pay attention, rather than reading a paper that is trying to get the exact same message across with words. It was also easier for me to put this together than my actual paper, because I am more of a visual learner, so I enjoyed making a presentation better than writing a paper.

In Class: Sarah Haskins

Sarah Haskins claim:

First Video:
-"your not gonna find a hot chick using regular chick tactics"

Second Video:
-you have to have the coolest/hottest fashions to be cool

Support:

First Video:
She uses TV commercials to show different examples of some 'tactics' to use...
-body smells (gum, febreeze, etc..)
-burgers

Second Video:
-shoes that vanessa hudgens wears
-sears because of selana gomez
-walmart brand because of miley cyrus
-"rockstare"

In Class: Freewrite

I wish that I didn't have class at 8am.
I wish my roomate woke up after me or at the same time as me.
I wish I had my own thermostat in my room so I did not always have to be cold.
I wish my roomate did not wake up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom.
I wish I had a gallon of milk, so I could have ate breakfast in my room instead of going to the BLUU.
I wish there was not a lady in my music class that walks around and supervises, because everyone on facebook gets us in trouble.
I wish they had chicken nuggets and corndogs every day in the BLUU, so I did not always have to eat a lame salad.
I wish I had the motivation to go to the REC.
I wish my dog was here so I could take him on a walk.
I wish I did not have to write a journal along with my reading for religion every week.
I wish I did not have mold in my sink.
I wish my dorm did not have a different disgusting random smell everyday.
I wish my neighbors were a little more quiet at night.
I wish we still had 24 hour visitation.
I wish the internet worked on the lawn behind Colby.
I wish the parking lot was closer.
I wish I drove my car more when it was here, so I did not have to leave it at home.
I wish students LOVED going to football games more.
I wish I took at least one more class to get some more hours out of the way.
I wish people cared about going to class, and succeeding.
I wish I took summer classes this past summer.
I wish we could sign up for classes whenever, instead of last, so they did not fill up.
I wish I knew what I wanted my major to be.
I wish I didn't have a fish, he smells.
I wish TCU really associated with the 'Christian' in their name.
I wish froggy 5-O would figure out their system better.
I wish my roommate would go in the hall to talk on the phone.

Provoke disagreement:
-going to bed before my roommate
-roommate on the phone in the room
-people caring about their class
-TCU being more associated with Christian
-Chicken nuggets in the BLUU
-parking
-students not going to games

Coming in to TCU, I did not realize that TCU was not associated with the 'C' for christian in its name. I think that with TCU having christian in its name, they should'nt be able to just be like 'oh we don't affiliate with christian anymore'. I have friends at A&M and Baylor who have the most amazing school wide church/youth events. Its not that surprising for Baylor, but A&M has nothing in its title that has to do with it being a christian school. I think having religious community events can bring a school together. We had that one event, afterdark, but that was a once a year deal. People have mini worship services outside on their football fields. This is so awesome because one, the football field is a main point of attraction, and two, it brings people together.

People who disagree will say that they are on their own now and have been raised always going to church, and doing church related things with their family, but now they are away and arent required to do anything. People who also disagree will say that people believe in whatever they want and should not be having to participate in something that 'everyone else' believes in. Some people might think that TCU being more christian might divide people who do not have the same religious beliefs, instead of bringing people together.

Rhetorical Response #4

I found the reading about the second amendment pretty boring compared to the other papers that we have read and wrote about. This kind of makes me nervous to write this paper because I hope I will be interested in what I am writing about. I personally never am around handguns and no one in my family owns a handgun, except my grandpa, so I do not connect that much with the second amendment. In the second reading, I found this, "no one in the district could posses a functional firearm in his or her residence" was really fair. This applied to everyone, no matter if they "honest, and responsible citizens" or not. What surprised me while reading the two excerpts is how close the 5-4 vote was and how people react to the second amendment. No one will ever agree on what they think the right to bear arms should entitle, therefore the vote probably will never be unanimous. It surprised me how much people and the government really are concerned about gun rights.

The first visual has a humorous spin. It seems like some people with guns do what they want, and then try and back it with the second amendment. I thought the second visual, was funny, but a bit dramatic. In the top right box, when the guy says "the erosion of freedom is not a pretty sight", I don't think not being able to own a weapon or have a loaded handgun in your house is even close to the 'erosion of freedom'. That is an extreme exaggeration. I think the second amendment is an important issue to try and clear up, but since people have their own arguments and will never agree, it is hard to completely solve the issue of the second amendment. I think it is important for the government to try and come to an agreement as to what the second amendment really applies to, but I also found it interesting that people are just now really concerned about what the second amendment is about.

After reading this I am a little nervous for this upcoming paper. It seems like it is going to be difficult and take a lot of time to write, to make it efficient and effective. Reading this helped me sort of figure out how to construct my paper. Both excerpts did a good job of not taking sides and used facts to develop the issue in a way that wasn't biased. I hope to make my paper a little bit more interesting than the excerpts I read from the common reading.

In Class: Freewrite

I was not as interested in the profile, "The Man in the Iron Mask" as I was in the profile about Erykah Badu. I thought that the profile was organized in a very unique way, which caught my attention. It was interesting how they talked about Colbert for a little while now, then they went back and told us the history of Colbert, which led him to be the man he is today. This was a better way for the author to catch my attention, because if it had started out with the facts of Colbert's family, I doubt that I would have been able to pay attention to the article at all. The article was not as personal as the article about Badu, but it had some elements that made me feel like I was apart of the story. The author used great detail describing Colbert before he went on the set, which helped me create a visual image in my head.

Rhetorical Response #3

The narrative "Home Girl" was a very interesting profile of Badu. I have never heard of Erykah Badu before reading this article from Texas Monthly, but the details of Erykah in the opening paragraph got my attention and made me want to read more. Hall makes Badu seem "real" by telling us what she was like in different settings. The story opened up with us being able to view Badu from her home setting with her four assistants, and dealing with her children. She seemed pretty normal besides the fact that she had four assistants. We then see her in the studio, dancing, and after that we see her actively involved in her community. Seeing Erykah Badu in all these different settings helped me really grasp an idea of who Badu really was. I felt like throughout the story I almost knew her because of all that the author mentioned her doing. Even though Erykah Badu is famous, the author focuses on her personally. He mentions the great accomplishments that she achieved, but he does not only talk about her achievements that make her famous.

 

 I personally was more interested in Badu because of how the author did not make her seem like such a celebrity. He used details to make her seem like a normal ordinary person, who I could relate to. The author uses really good details while describing her at the dance studio, and I could really grasp a good idea  of how Erykah acted in the dance studio. 

 

The author uses a great deal of details to help the reader picture , “A box of art supplies sat on a cluttered table next to a couple of palettes of dried orange and purple paint; on the wall were paintings of and by mom and her other child, nine-year-old son Seven. A piano and guitar sat next to the fireplace, and a hundred stalactites of colored candle wax descended from the mantel” This quote from the passage creates a visual of what it is like at Badu's home. Besides knowing that Badu is a celebrity, dancer, singer, and mom, we can have an image of her personal lifestyle based on this description from the author.

 

Another thing that stood out to me was the author's focus on Badu. He did not just say how famous she was, he focused on all of the elements about her. This sentence really stood out to me, "Next to the covers was a cabinet that held some twenty trophies, including her four Grammys". Hall mentioned her getting four Grammys, but he did not go on and on about her winning these awards. He mentioned them like they were just an ordinary thing, but this attitude about the Grammys is similar to Badu's attitude about being famous. She is truly a 'home girl'. You could tell this by her just wanting to be able to 'go to the store and buy milk'. This shows that everything that Badu is about is not just about what she has accomplished, and the author makes sure to focus on her, not what she has done and how famous she is. 

 

 Overall, I like how this was not just an ordinary biography. Hall uses an interview to help us see the behind the scenes of Erykah Badu. He focuses on Badu and keeps the reader (me) interested by using important details of Erykah's life to develop a narrative about who she is. Interviewing Badu lets the readers explore a more personal level of Badu's life. This is more interesting because it is not just facts that the author could research, its primary information from Erykah herself, which makes it that much more entertaining and personal. Not only does the author interview Badu in one setting, but he views her at all different aspects of her life. I thought this kept me more interested because I was able to see everything that Erykah Badu is about. 

In Class: Notes on Essay #3

what essay 3 should look like:
-focus on the person, not what they have done
-you argument should be simple/oriented in the person
-organization* --figure out a creative way to begin, usually the profile is structured by the story that you are telling
-don't include everything!
-can speak in first person
-every description the writer gives should help the reader understand the person
-you have to have a strong beginning, especially if the person isn't a celebrity
-talk about the person in different scenes/settings

In Class: Freewrite

I did not read the assigned reading, Home Girl. I read the book about writing about people, not celebrities, and how we should make the beginning of our papers really interesting, if I want people to care what I have to say in my paper. In the book Ballenger gives different ways to profile a person and focus on them, to make the paper interesting. He says that the paper flows (duh) sort of like a narrative, and that the paper provides just enough information to really talk about one person, rather than adding a bunch of details that do not matter. It is very unlike me to miss an assignment, but it happened and I will not let it happen again.

In Class: "Reading" the visual

I think that the image, Nighthawks, makes me think of being lonely. I feel that since the colors are dark, the image seems kind of dreary, and the people in the image have nothing else to do, besides drink late on a corner of the streets. I think that the guy that is alone at the bar, probably has issues, that no one notices. I feel sad for him, that he is alone that late at night. I think the other couple is on a date and the man or bartender? behind the counter looks like he is on the prowl about to hit on the girl. There is no cars in the street which also makes me think that this setting definitely occurred late during the night. I feel like the artist maybe was trying to maybe show people how sad and maybe pathetic people look late at night like this, because he does make these peoples night lives seem very dead and unlively.

Overall, I think that this image is maybe trying to tell the story of lonliness. The couple on the date seem to be mellow and bored, which makes me think that even though they are accompanying each other, their facial expressions make them seem alone. The man alone sitting at the corner of the counter also looks very alone. He is wearing a hat and a jacket, and onlookers can not see his face, but his body language (he is kind of slouched over) makes me feel bad for him. The streets are empty and it is late at night, which if I picture a place like that, it just seems so sad and lonely. The counters of the bar are very clean, which probably means the bar either never has any customers, or the man behind the counter has already cleaned up for the night. The man behind the counter must also be very lonely, becauase he is creeping in on the couple. This makes me think of maybe a sad time in a community somewhere, and it gives me a feeling of lonliness and I feel bad for the people in the picture.

The colors used in this painting are dark and dull, which made me feel sad and lonely. The dark colors help show that it is night time, but the only light is the light from the bar. There is no street lights to liven up the mood. Also the men are wearing dark color suits and dark hats, which also helps give the lonliness vibe. The only bright colors of the painting are the reflection of lights from the bar on the sidewalk, and the offwhiteish, yellow wall in the bar. Also the bartender or worker behind the counter is wearing white, which doesn't make me feel as bad for him. The girl in the picture is wearing a red dress, which sort of stands out, but still kind of blends in to the darkness of the background.

I first notice the couple at the bar and the bartender. They stand out because they are right by the bright wall of the bar, which catches my eye, since the rest of the picture is dark. I notice that all of the people in this picture are slouched over and by what the people are wearing, this probably was depicting a time period from a while ago.

The image is trying to make me feel, sad and maybe feel bad for the people in the picture. I don't want to live my adulthood by hanging out around empty streets at bars late at night. These people do not seem the happiest and I would not want that for myself. It would be a whole other story if these people were up dancing around, but they are not. The artist of this picture purposely placed the people in this picture where they are, to make me feel bad for them.

In Class: Generating Ideas for Essay #3

Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders are 'idols' to some Americans. Two years ago, my sisters best friend tried out for DCC and I remember going to school, and Kaitlin was literally the talk of the school. I think people just thought about how she was almost famous, and that she was 'hot' but no one really knew who Kaitlin was. They just knew her for her appearance, not for how hard she worked and what she went through to accomplish the dream of a lifetime. I think people should know more about the actual individual that Kaitlin is, so people can understand that Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders are much more than just a pretty face. They are real girls, who have to work for what they do. They are not just catered to and get whatever they want, like some people think. Some girls just assume that Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders have unlimited access to boys in the world, including NFL players, but that is false. People are too quick to judge, but they have a reason to be since Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders are always being watched. From the show on CMT and from commericals, and views from the sidelines, its hard for Kaitlin and other cheerleaders to get away from the spotlight.

In Class: Brainstorming for essay #3

I am an authority:
-working with special needs kids--Doug Schulte or Donna Pugh
-my high school--Mr.McDaniel
-going to concerts--Melissa
-boarding a plane--My Uncle Dave
-having a good time--Kaitlin Ilseng
-how to entertain myself during road trips--
-loving and spending time with my family--Natalie White
-being a good friend--
-going to football games--Kaitlin Ilseng
-redheads--
-frozen yogurt--Tiana Hauber
-how hard it is to play the piano--the girl that always plays in the lobby of Colby
-going on mission trips--Les or Connie Hodson
-Young Life--Scott Rhoades

I think it might be interesting if I write about my sister's best friend, Kaitlin Ilseng. Kaitlin is a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader, and I think people just assume negative things about her and prejudge her, because she has long blonde hair, has the perfect bronze skin tone, and is definitely in shape. I think it would be good for people to know that Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders are normal people. Kaitlin is one of the sweetest girls I know, and when I am around her...it does not seem like she is some fake celebrity, because she isnt. I know a lot about Kaitlin, but I never really ask her many questions about being a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. I know some stuff she has told me about, or things that her mom has said, but I think I could learn even more about her if I ask her on a personal level. I have seen her 'in action' before, and could probably easily go to a practice, or watch the show on CMT. I am going to a cowboys game, but not until Thanksgiving, so that wont help.

In Class: Freewrite

I am pretty much done with essay #2. I still could probably add details, or facts to my paper if I reread it enough times. Tonight, I am going to review what I wrote and make sure that it is personal enough, but provides enough information about my topic. My essay was kind of hard to write because the topic was common sense in a way, and all of the information/research I found seemed to be very repetitive. I hope that I do as well on this essay as essay #1, but this essay did not come as natural to me. It might have helped me to have a teacher conference, because that is what really helped me know what I was missing in essay #1. I hope I sited my sources right throughout my paper, and I hope that my research flows in each paragraph and sentence. I need to double check and make sure my research is not scattered throughout my essay, and I also need to make sure my ideas flow, so I do not confuse anyone who reads my paper. I am glad that I chose my topic because it was reassuring to find out that as I researched, people lose weight their freshman year. Also, not everyone gains 15 pounds their freshman year in college, and it is very rare that students gain the full 15 pounds.

In Class: Freewrite

This weekend I went home for homecoming. I was really involved with my high school and loved every bit of it, so going home was exciting for me. It was weird going home and relizing how different it is here from my normal lifestyle that I had at home. It was hard for me to come back to college because I was comfortable back in McKinney and knew of the challenges I would have to face back here at college.

At home, I caught up on some much needed sleep. Sunday night, I went to bed rather early, and woke up before my alarm which is a good sign. Last night, I tried to go to bed early, and sort of suceeded. While dead asleep in mmy bed, at three in the morning and abrupt noise occured. The noise was the FIRE ALARM. Someone pulled the fire alarm at three in the morning, and I had this class at eight. I am not the persont that can sleep two hours a day and be fine, I need my complete eight hours, if not more, of sleep. I was furious. Not only did the alarm go off, but I had to climb out of the second story window fire escape. I am sure this will be a funny memory to me in the future, but as of right now it is just an annoying prank that should be controlled.

This morning I woke up and was not as tired as i thought I would be having woken up like five hours ago, and I stumbled to class.

In Class: Freewrite-Essay #2

For my topic I am thinking about writing about 'midnight' snacks and/or maybe weight gain in college. One of the main questions I want to focus my paper on is "Is the midnight trip to 1873 really worth it?" I am not sure if this topic is too broad, or if it is too narrow, because college weight gain might be a hard topic to find in magazine and periodicals. I thought of this one night when I was hungry and I wanted a snack, but the fear of gaining weight in college crossed my mind. This made me think about how bad it REALLY is to go and get the discount $.99 chicken at 1873. Do you think I can find a sufficient amount of information over this topic? I think my peers will be interested, because the lines in 1873 at night are crazy long, and I am sure that some kids sitting among this classroom today have been a part of that line. Is there any ideas you can help me think of to make my paper narrow/broad enough? I might also suggest to the reader alternative foods that they can snack on during late hours of the night. I am no health freak, but it just makes me wonder what really goes into those fried popcorn chicken and curly fries.

Research Question: Is the midnight trip to 1873 really worth it?
-I am not really sure the answer to this question, the obvious answer is...It depends on your daily activities and what you eat, but I am curious to find out more and see how much it will cost someone in the gym the next day.

This question will be helpful to me or anybody, because people eat. Some people simply get hungry and casually walk over to 1873 or drive through a fast food restaurant without thinking about the fat and calories that they are putting in their body, that they are not working off,because they go back to their dorms and sit on facebook or sleep. This topic can apply to anyone. People that are not college students get hungry at late hours of the night and do the same thing. After football games in high school we would all pile in people's car and go to sonic at 10 or 11, which I thought was somewhat bad then...now I see people walking through the doors of 1873 at like 1:00am. I think that my research will just inform people of where the food really goes that you consume late at night, and I might be able to give some tips as to alternative 'snacks' that they can have instead of stuffing their face with fried food or a chocolate cake with mounds of ice cream.

Blogging Rhetorically #2

Both "Tattoo Crazy" and "We Proudly Brew Starbucks Coffee" were very informative and entertaining stories. As I started reading, I did not think much about the topic of essay number two, therefore I did not think about what these stories would be about. I read "Tattoo Crazy" first and as I started reading I realized that it was a research paper. The way the story started made me think that it was just a normal narrative, with some facts, but overall it was nothing like any other research paper that I have ever written or read. I thought there was just enough facts in both papers to make it not just fact after fact. The facts never made me bored while reading the papers, even though I think most research papers are extremely boring. There was interesting details about the writer that kept the research more personal, so it was not just boring research.

In "Tattoo Crazy" I liked how the writer develops her story by starting with facts from the research she found, to her analysis/opinion of the facts, to show the research has influenced her decision of getting a tattoo. The author does not just state facts, she states her personal opinion as to what she thinks of the facts. This kept me entertained, because I could develop my own opinion and relate to the author. Also, tattoos are popular in my generation, so the research was an interesting topic that I could apply to my life.

In "We Proudly Brew Starbucks Coffee" I loved how the beginning of the story just seemend like a narrative, then in the second paragraph, the author gives facts about how the 'phenomenon of Starbucks began' to how it has thrived among consumers today. Starbucks was a good topic to research, because a lot of people can relate to loving starbucks as much as the reader does. With my personal interest in Starbucks, it was interesting for me to read about the facts behind what really goes into each one of my drinks. It was interesting comparing my thoughts after reading this paper to the authors. In the conclusion of the paper when the author says, "I believe that the cup represents more to me now. I will still see me and my dad at the table, but the corporation of stuffy businessmen will always be in the cup I hold." This ending sentence was a great way for the author to end. She recreates the image of her and her dad, but also shows how her research about the 'behind the scenes' facts of Starbucks that consumers don't know has impacted her. The author does not try to persuade anyone, she simply says how she has the researcher has been effected by the facts she has found.

Both readers show their progress of how the research has changed their view on both tattoos and Starbucks. There were enough facts in both papers to make them a research paper, but there weren't too many facts that made the papers boring. I liked how "We Proudly Brew Starbucks Coffee" started out more as a narrative and faded into a research paper as the author started stating facts. The beginning made me interested to keep reading the paper, and the facts made me think, and the paper had inquiry. These papers helped me understand how to write a research paper, without it being the usual boring fact after fact paper that I am used to writing.

In Class: Free Write

This morning I woke up and almost did not come to class because I didnt/dont feel good. I am not the person to miss class though and I have two tests after this class, so coming to this class at 8 am will help me wake up a little. I am without a doubt happy that I didnt skip because you are letting us out early!

Last night I went to the library to study for "Rock to Bach" my music class and for my math test that I have today. I am a little worried about my math test because I dont want to sit down and start taking the test and forget all the formulas. I practiced a lot of problems which will hopefully help me do better on the test. Rock To Bach is a lot of memorization. We have to listen to a song and be able to tell the genre of the song and we also have to know the form of the song based on the verses and the backbeat. Think this is confusing? Yeah it is. Hopefully the songs will be the same songs that my professor showed us in class, so it would be as hard to identify.

Tonight I have connections at 5, but if I dont feel better I might not go. I am supposed to go eat lunch with my youth pastor from home (He is a religion major here at TCU) at Dutch's, but I dont think I will be able to make it. I feel bad because I dont want to ditch him at the last minute, but I think it will be a better choice if I go to the health clinic and get some meds before I get really sick.

This weekend is out first home game and it is also my birthday! I am so excited. My family is coming because they have season tickets and we are going to tailgate with some family friends before the game. After the game One Republic is going to be here performng a concert and I think it will be so much fun, even though I only know like two of their songs.

In Class: Faulting Questions About Essay #1

I have written quite a few personal essays in elementary-high school. I always write about the same topic over and over again, but this time I chose to write about something i've never even considered to be a big deal in my life, yeah it was embarassing, but I have never thought about the reults its had on me today. I am worried that I wont be able to deveolp my story to make it long enough, but I dont want to drag it on too long and lose my reader's intrest.

How will this writing workshop help me? Everytime I do writing workshops it seems like everyone just sits there and stares at each other akwardly and nothing gets accomplished.

Is my first paragraph entertaining enough that someone would want to read this?

I am exctied to see how this essay will turn out since it isnt like anything I have ever written about before.

In Class: Freewrite

Today I am super tired. I am a morning person, but this morning I did not want to wake up. My roomate turned on our light when I was still in bed, so it helped me get out of bed. I started walking around the room trying to get ready and she rushed me out of the room to go gt breakfasat. I ate some honey nut cheerios and left the BLUU around 7:45 to get to class on time. I really wanted a bagel but the slicer thing was messing up all the bagles and wasn't cutting them so I didnt have time to waste.

This class is so cool to me. When I told my parents about it, I couldnt get over the fact that I had a writing class in a computer lab, and that all of my assignments were on the computer. Some of my friends think it is funny that I have to blog writing assignments, but I like it and think its fun. Writing/reading has never been my favorite subject, but this class has already made me like it a little more.

I am going home this weekend for labor day, and then I am going to Grand Lake in Oklahoma to see my family. I am so excited because I havent seen my family since my graduation. We normally go up there a whole lot in the summer, but I was out of town both times my family went up to the lake. Im hoping to get to go out on the boat and just chill by the pool. Hopefully the hurricane wont affect the weather and prevent this from happening. If it does ill still be excited to see my family because my aunt just had a new baby!

The Biography of Blake Stone

The Biography of Blake Stone is an interesting because it relates to our society today. The beginning of the story, when Blake Stone is introduced, I could picture this'perfect guy', which is really how some girls picture their 'man' today. When the author says,  "The only problem with Blake Stone was that he didn't exist. He was the imagination of everything I considered to signify masculinity based on a lifetime of reading and watching [T.V.] "(1). it is so true to today's society. Girls compare so much of their life and dreams based on T.V. and books, that its almost unrealistic. No one is perfect and while reading this I kept thinking to myself if my ideal guy was as fiction and perfect as Blake Stone.

Not only does this relate to how girls picture their perfect guy, and how guys try to win over their perfect girl, but it also applies to online dating, and how the internet plays such a big role in people's lives today, especially middle school and high school age girls, even some college age girls. What some people think is just casual online flirting can eventually evolve into feelings for another person and can lead to online dating, which is where drama can begin and people begin to get their feelings hurt. As Gambit (Blake) and AzrealAsh began competing for CalendarGAL's affection, things got heated and CalendarGAL's real emotions came out. "CalendarGAL broke down to dark pink Arial tears. When Blake tried to protest, CalendarGAL wouldn't listen. Unsure of how to handle the situation, Blake signed off" (8).  Even though the relationship of CalendarGal and Gambit is online, it can apply to how real some peoples online relationships really are, and it gets serious. CalendarGAL obviously formed feelings for Gambit/Blake, and when Blake realized what he thought was just a virtual relationship turned out somewhat serious, he fled because he didn't know how to handle it. The online boys made CalendarGAL feel special and loved, but CalendarGal felt like they only liked the girl that she was online, and not the real her. The boys didn't know the real woman behind CalendarGal, the "fat 32 year old woman from Georgia"(8). I wonder why people let themselves get involved in situations like this, but then again I can sympathize for CalendarGAL because the boys gave her attention which made her feel special. The thing that stood out to me the most was when the author said, "arial tears". This is a simple two word phrase, but it just made it seem that more real. This makes me wonder how people get themselves involved in such serious relationships like this online, but it also helps me see how serious something so innocent transforms to be a serious online relationship and how people are affected from it. 

The Biography of Blake Stone was entertaining to me. I was able to stay focused, and enjoyed what I was reading. I liked how the author used elements that influence our society today such as the internet, tv, and books to create his characters, because I could apply it to my life, and visualize it and put myself in the character's shoes. 

Kraatz, Jeramey, and Sandra. The Biography of Blake Stone

In Class: Authority

I am an authority:
-working with special needs kids
-my high school
-going to concerts
-boarding a plane
-having a good time
-how to entertain myself during road trips
-loving and spending time with my family
-being a good friend
-going to football games
-redheads
-frozen yogurt
-how hard it is to play the piano
-going on mission trips


I became an authority on working with special needs kids because I devoted my time to Younglife Capernaum. Younglife Capernaum is younglife for people with special needs. On the third Saturday of every month I was a leader at Capernaum younglife club. I spent time with the kids, laughed with them, played games with them, and just had a good time with them. As I continued to spend time with them, I started connecting with the kids and formed a relationship with them. In March, I was asked to go to a Younglife camp with in Florida called South Wind. Knowing that I would LOVE to do this, I said I would go. I kept working with the kids and hanging out with them as much as I could before the trip. When I went on the trip with them I had two buddies and I was 'in charge' of them. Not thinking to much about it, I just kept doing what I was doing and had a good time, not thinking how much the kids looked up to me. As I went to camp I had to help these buddies everyday. I helped them eat, brush their teeth, get ready in the morning, etc. These daily actions made these kids look up to me. Not only was I there leader, but I was a friend to them whom they looked up to. I learned so much from these kids, and was humbled by my experience at Southwind. I never thought that I could be that someone that people looked up to. I just thought of myself as a friend, not really a leader. These kids trust me and come to me if they need anything. Its so good to know that the kids have an outlet of someone to go to if they need anything. A lot of people look down at kids with disabilities. I dont even notice that they have a disability now. I look past that and see their personality and that they are just as capable as I am.

In Class: Freewrite

Bruce Ballinger

When I was writing Writing as Inquiry, I was not excited about it. As I began to read I noticed that what I was reading was interesting and not as boring as I thought it would be. Bruce Ballinger is humorous and made me feel like it was okay to not be a perfect writer. His tips of how to read and write helped me know things to help me be successful as a writer. I would lose focus and he would make a joke about me maybe not paying attention to the text and it got me right back on track. Writing as inquiry to me means you should freely write and practice writing and not let yourself get stopped because you 'don't know what to write'. He encourages you to write about anything you think of instead of taking the time to brainstorm to try and write something perfect. He mentions that even experts have to practice and write alot of drafts of their work. You cant just expect to have a perfect paper by writing one draft and letting that one draft be your final piece of work. I thought the diagram of the line was interesting compared to the writing process that bounced back in forth from step to step. I never really thought about how much you repeat steps and go back to steps to complete a paper. I also thought alot about how I write and my style of writing. I thought about if I question myself while writing and if i really focus on my promt and brainstorm alot or if I just let my thoughts flow onto paper. I also thought it was interesting when he talked about people's habits while writing. Like the boy who could only write on yellow paper with a pencil. This made me think about my writing habits and what I do to help me write a 'perfect paper'. I feel like chapter one and two helped me not be so uptight about my writing and maybe will help me write better because I can relax and not stress about my writing, because after going over multiple steps in the writing proccess more than once will help me clean up my paper to be the best it can be.

Hi, my name is Abbey Baxter. I am from McKinney, Texas and have lived there for my whole life. I am a freshman pre-major (I'm undecided) at TCU. I love to hang out with my friends and spend time with my family.

I chose TCU because of the small size and location of the campus. My dad also went to TCU and my sister currently goes here, so I decided I would keep the tradition alive. If I was chancellor of TCU there really is not anything I would change. So far my experience here has been good, and there is nothing that I have wanted to change. A good teacher is someone who you can relate to, and will make you work but also will understand when something holds you back from accomplishing your work, and will take the time to help a student be successful. Good students are ones who work hard and are serious about the classes they are in, and want to be successful and not just want to 'get by'. They also respect their teacher and take the time necessary to pass the class. If I could have dinner with three people it would be Hanson. Three things you should know about me are; My faith and family are the two most important things to me, I love to laugh, and I am very down to heart and go with the flow. 

I took this course because it was required, but it seems really cool, and I think I will work well in it since we do get to be in a lab on computers. Its a different and interesting way for me to learn. I don't write too much, besides what is required for me in my english classes. I use facebook all the time, I text message and sometimes email. These three things have in a way decreased my writing ability because I  hurry and don't use proper grammar or just don't feel like typing that much, so I shorten things up. I don't really use abbreviations of things, so using phrases like 'LOL, BTW, etc.' aren't an issue in my writing. 

If I could have dinner with three people living or dead, I would have dinner with Hanson! Three things you should know about me is that; I have a good sense of humor, I am very chill, and you will rarely see me serious.

I have read and looked over the syllabus, and I am very excited for this class.