Post 15....LAST ENG 104 POST!! AHHHH

Within the time that I have been in ENG 104 I think that I have improved on one really main thing. When I started writing my first papers and my first blogs I would just kind of write what I had to say and then that was it. Towards the end of the semester I really started elaborating more and really explaining myself. As I gave further detail, it gave me more ideas and essentially was easier. On the other hand, I still am a huge procrastinator. I think I will always be like that but hopefully I can slowly make some improvements. Another one of my flaws is organization. I am one of the least organized people ever. I don't know where any of my old papers are for any of my classes. I tend to put something down and then forget where I put it. The only thing in the class that I would suggest changing is more in class group work. I know that I am not outspoken at all and I think that in order for me to be more vocal in discussions I have to be comfortable with the people in the class. Maybe if there were more of the group work activities that we did in front of the class at the beginning of the semester then I would have been more apt to speaking up. As for the assignments, I thought they were all easy to understand and if I didn't understand I could just look at sample work, but as for the final mini ethnography profile, I have no idea about websites or anything. It took me about 15 minutes to figure out how to put a picture on my page. I think that the conferences were good and I think that 2 was enough because it was right at the right time in the semester.

Poetry Reading- Extra Credit

When I first came into the library I had an assumption that the reading was just going to be a couple people reading poems. I had never been to one before so I really didn't know what to expect. It was a really relaxed atmosphere and everyone seemed layed back. I always thought that everything would be planned out but it was kind of here is your time limit do what you want. It made it really interesting to hear what was going to be presented. Some of the poems were really short and very emotional and some were kind of longer and funny. Just to see how everyone presented there pieces and the different kinds of poems and writings there were was very interesting. It seemed like the crowd was into in because it was all kind of personal and well presented to the audience. Everyone could relate to something that was said.

Post 14

I think that the best piece of writing that I have done in this class is the Exploring Subcultures paper. Other than having the highest grade, I felt like I really knew what I was talking about. On the other papers I had an understanding of what I was supposed to be doing, but I wasn't exactly sure of how I was going to tie everything together and what I was going to say. When I started out writing my rough draft about my subculture, I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted to say, what stereotypes there were, and how I was going to portray everything. I felt the most comfortable writing my first paper. Not only was it my best writing, it taught me a lot about how I was going to construct my final mini ethnography. When I wrote my annotated bib and my literature review I always had my first paper to fall back on and to see what I wanted to say and how I was going to change somethings. My final piece has been altered a lot from what I originally wanted to say, but now I have it narrowed down to the most important information.

In Class Writing

When I think of that day, I think of the sunny, clear skies that hovered overhead; I think of the parking lot jammed full of car, which were at one point jammed full of people hoping to get in a few rounds on this gorgeous day. I myself was with a group of 8 or 9 friends, and we were there for the same reason. The group represented almost every skill level: we had at least 2 really good players, 4 or 5 'once-in-a-whilers,' and 2 almost complete beginners. While we were talking, the archers’ were still shooting their competition. All of the sudden, I hear, “Oh, Shit!” This was uncommon during business hours, because there are “NO PROFANITY” signs everywhere in the shop. The team I had lead for 4 years to share to bittersweet feeling I had held within me and to understand how much they and the sport meant to me. All of this show the incredible closeness that lies within the community. Some say blood is thicker than water; not in the case of this community.

Post 13

It was the first SIU softball game that I had ever been to because it was my sister's freshman year. The season had just started and was about to play there first game. I didn't really know what to expect because I didn't know there background or how good they would even be. The first two batter for the SIU team both were out and it was time for my sister to bat. My family was on the edge of there seat and seemed very nervous for her. The other fans on the bleachers were just watching the game without any idea of how good my sister was going to be and watching anxiously to see what she would bring to the table. The pitcher was winding up and the pitch was delivered, then all of the sudden BOOM my sister hit a homerun on the first pitch of the first game of her freshman year. The crowd went wild and my mom literally started crying. From there on out my sister was a strong asset to the team and everyone had high hopes for her. Now, when I watch her play and go to her games I'm always excited to see her because she is very good and I am proud to call her my sister.

In Class Writing

Personal: Being the youngest is the life.

Subculture: Relationships are made for success.

Post 12

When I think of the word rhetoric, to me it means being able to talk or write well. I think that if you can use words efficiently and be able to communicate with others, that is rhetoric. I guess what constitutes rhetoric is essentially the way a person speaks, but when you look more into detail it can be assumed if a person dresses well or holds themself together in a good manner because rhetoric is a way of communicating and if you have good communications skills you must be educated well. So, someone that has there stuff together could be assumed as rhetoric. I've never heard anyone just talk about rhetoric during everyday conversations, but it always seems to emphasized in English classes and speech classes. Well when you first hear the word rhetoric it is used in a postivive way, but when you hear it more and more and are maybe being critiqued on it a few years later, I would say it is negative because you should already be able to understand what the word means and how to use it. I definitely think that there is a rhetoric that comes with my subculture. If you don't know the rules of softball or the way that the game works, you're out of the loop. Another kind of rhetoric that the team itself has that not many people outside of the team know are signals. The coaches relay signals for what to do when they are up to bat and give signals to the catcher to give to the pitcher to relay what pitch to pitch. In my final parts in constructing my ethnography I think that I might need to give a little background on the rhetoric on the team. Meaning, if I find myself using certain words that might not make sense to outsiders I will give them a little definition off the side so that they understand what I am saying.