Blog Post 7: Update on my Thoughts and Research

This week is particularly special because it’s the first time we don’t have any readings! I even had to send an email to confirm this was true! Anyways, I’m done taking my exams, and I can finally catch my breath for a moment. Finding out there weren’t any readings this week definitely helped ease my anxiety, for as much as that’s worth, but at least I can free write about my thoughts and research now! Something well needed, and different, after a stressful week.

I have recently incorporated viewing videos on YouTube into my research process as a way of consuming information. I already consume news via digital media, more specifically YouTube, on a daily basis, so it makes sense to use this platform as a way of getting information for my research. I usually watch a news outlet called The Young Turks every day, so now, for my research, I watch a variety of channels that report on gun control and gun violence. Of course the majority of my research is text-based sources, but watching videos makes things MUCH more enjoyable and relaxing sometimes.

I’ve enjoyed researching gun control and gun violence more than I thought I would, and this is because It is satisfying to be informed on a position you hold. I strongly believe that enacting stricter gun laws is the answer to America’s massive gun violence issue, and after doing research over the past 7 weeks, I am becoming better at forming an argument for gun control. Hopefully, by the end of the semester, I’ll be able to create an effective argument!

The last thing I want to talk about is the midterm portfolio that is already due NEXT FRIDAY! Time to start getting my ideas flowing because I’m VERY undecided about what I’m going to do. This will probably be the thing I’m MOST stressed about over the next week until the moment I turn it in, but I’m going to do my best to not procrastinate and start early. Anyways, good luck on our second Critical Response and first portfolio!

Hi Michaela :)

Gun control is a really interesting topic to do your research on, I hope it’s going well for you! I was also eased of my anxiety to know we didn’t have a reading this week. Midterms can be really intense. I need to start working on my midterm portfolio also, but thinking about ideas now can help for when you start next week. You’re already onto a great start! Hope you have a relaxing and nice weekend. Good luck on your portfolio!!

Blog Post 7: Update on my Thoughts and Research

This week is particularly special because it’s the first time we don’t have any readings! I even had to send an email to confirm this was true! Anyways, I’m done taking my exams, and I can finally catch my breath for a moment. Finding out there weren’t any readings this week definitely helped ease my anxiety, for as much as that’s worth, but at least I can free write about my thoughts and research now! Something well needed, and different, after a stressful week.

I have recently incorporated viewing videos on YouTube into my research process as a way of consuming information. I already consume news via digital media, more specifically YouTube, on a daily basis, so it makes sense to use this platform as a way of getting information for my research. I usually watch a news outlet called The Young Turks every day, so now, for my research, I watch a variety of channels that report on gun control and gun violence. Of course the majority of my research is text-based sources, but watching videos makes things MUCH more enjoyable and relaxing sometimes.

I’ve enjoyed researching gun control and gun violence more than I thought I would, and this is because It is satisfying to be informed on a position you hold. I strongly believe that enacting stricter gun laws is the answer to America’s massive gun violence issue, and after doing research over the past 7 weeks, I am becoming better at forming an argument for gun control. Hopefully, by the end of the semester, I’ll be able to create an effective argument!

The last thing I want to talk about is the midterm portfolio that is already due NEXT FRIDAY! Time to start getting my ideas flowing because I’m VERY undecided about what I’m going to do. This will probably be the thing I’m MOST stressed about over the next week until the moment I turn it in, but I’m going to do my best to not procrastinate and start early. Anyways, good luck on our second Critical Response and first portfolio!

Blog Post #7

I can’t believe it’s already week #7. Where is the time going?!? So this week we didn’t have a reading! Which was fine because I’m still drowning in other school work. It was a goal of mine to develop a better work ethic this year. It is already halfway through the semester and sometimes I feel defeated. Although I do, I still won’t give up! I am still trying my hardest, I just need to find ways that work better for me. Work is really stressing me out right now too. I contemplate quitting all the time because I just want to focus on school, but that seems impossible. I am very thankful for my job though. Working as a waitress can be very interesting and entertaining at times. I meet people from around the country everyday and they always have insane stories. Coming home to my excited puppy makes it a little easier too. Actually a lot easier! Anyways, this week was pleasant and I actually started writing in my journal. Hope my fellow classmates had a great week!!! Stay awesome.

Hey there! I liked this week’s podcasts also, Grammar Girl made it super easy to learn. I loved her humor. It was also pretty humorous that this years top words had to do with the crazy election. I had heard of the term “gas lighting” before but I never actually knew where it came from. I thought it was super interesting that it was actually from an old movie. I would have never known. I’m going to try to use some of her tips too, such as writing in a journal! Good luck to you with that--you totally got this. Her second podcast was full of brain terminology but thank the Lord she made it make sense. I had never heard of aphasia before this, so it’s really interesting to me how it all works. You’re very right, the brain is weird and complex. Thanks for sharing a piece of your brain! I hope you have a great weekend!

BRAIN STUFF: Blog 6

In this week’s reading it was a podcast, I’m loving the new way we can connect and learn, anyway. I found Grammar Girl very interesting. In the first podcast, “Words of the Year and Easy Tips to Improve Your Writing” I was surprised. I never knew that there was a tally of all the words searched at the end of year, that is pretty dang cool. Of course the top words where words that had to do with this years political election and certain government moves through the world.

Dumpster fire being the word of the year was genius 

along with the matching emoji. The fact that we now have categories like these, such as digital word of the year being an @ and using it as a verb is so funny to me. I’m definitely going to start using gas lighting.How does someone even join the american dialect society? Other note Grammar Girl’s easy tips to improve writing where actually really good I might use 2 of the four.

I also enjoyed the second podcast How Aphasia Causes Difficulty Speaking I always find it interesting to think about language and how the brain works. It’s crazy to think if you were blindfolded and had something in your left hand you wouldn’t be able to name the object in your hand as easy as you would in the right. I have always said left handed people had it better now I know that’s true since they can recover faster and use language more evenly in their brain.

The whole time all I could think about was being a kid and calling apples bananas and talking like dog chase cat. Having a niece with aphasia has made this very normal to me but, to think about how the brain compartmentalizes these words we use everyday is interesting to say the least. This podcast just made me think the brain is weird.

Sorry if that this blog post is everywhere that is just how my brain is this week. As always I hope everyone had a wonderful week and goodbye for now.

Hello! I really enjoyed your opinions about this week’s reading. You made a really good point about the connection between speaking two languages and having to keep up with the language of both. I applaud you, I’ve been living in the valley for 15 years and still don’t know Spanish. I thought it was crazy also that people kept track of words as time goes by. It was super interesting that a lot of the top searches had to do with politics. I totally agree with you about the fact that language is very fluid. Slang like “bae” and “FOMO” weren’t around in 2000. Language is always evolving. I like comics too! You should start writing some and see where it takes you. Maybe you can be the next Stan Lee, who knows? 

WEek NUMBER six!

Looks like this week’s assignment was a podcast. Overall, both podcasts by Grammar Girl were interesting. To think that there are actual people that keep track of the words we use as time passes is pretty crazy. One thing that I kept going through my mind was the fact that our language is fluid. What I mean by this is that it changes. Living on the border and working retail (have the privilege  (NOT) of providing customer service to  Mexican nationals) I have to keep up with two languages. With that being said, these past few years I have started to hear the “You are in the US so you HAVE to speak English” argument. I am not so sure I agree with that. Soooo… what’s my point? Listening to the first podcast, I could not help but think that English, isn’t really English. It changes with the times and adapts to the type of culture or overall way of life that we are living at the moment or in this case year. So the English of 2000 really isn’t the English of 2017. 

As the weeks go by, I keep wanting to write on here a bit more but I don’t really know what to write about. I like reading comics so that might be one way that I can practice my writing as I move forward in this class. 

Hope you all have a good weekend!!!

Blog Post #6

So this week we listened to “Grammar Girl” and I really enjoyed her tips and facts. I loved how she mixed humor with grammar facts, it kept things a little more interesting. She explained in episode 551 “Words of the Year. Easy Tips to Improve Your Writing” many of the top searches in online dictionaries. Miriam Webster’s word of the year for 2016 was “surreal”. The searches for the word started to spike after occurring terrorist attacks this past year. I find it so amazing that the most searched words had a lot to do with politics in 2016. It seemed like everyone was on their toes the election, and this proved that. Grammar Girl also gave us some pretty good tips to improve our writing in 2017. My favorite and most relevant tip was “write for fun”. I’ve been telling myself to start writing in a journal for YEARS and I’ve never actually pushed myself to do it. 2017 is my year and I will finally start writing in the journal I bought for myself back in 2014.....

In episode 510 “How Aphasia Causes Difficulty Speaking”, I learned about aphasia which is a type of brain damage in which you lose your ability to speak or understand speech. I loved this podcast because I had absolutely NO idea was aphasia was. The brain damage is most commonly caused by stroke, which is overall very sad. The most severe cases are called “global aphasia” and it may make the person mute. Less severe cases such as “fluent aphasia” and “non fluent aphasia” makes the person have a harder time structuring sentences. Dyslexia is also very common among people who suffer from aphasia. I learned a lot about my brain in this podcast! I had no clue who “Grammar Girl” was before but I’m going to challenge myself to listen to 1 podcast a week. Why not learn some more grammar tips this year?! This week was all about setting goals for myself and I’m excited to see where this takes me. Hope my fellow classmates had a great week! Stay awesome.

Blog Post #5

So this week instead of having a reading we had a VIDEO! John Berger’s, “Ways of Seeing” put a very interesting perspective to the way we look at pictures. We all interept paintings and pictures in different ways, but why is that? Are we interpreting the painting the way the artist would? Berger talks about the reason why--it is caused by what we know. Berger believes the way we see things are all caused by past knowledge. I never really looked at it that way, but after watching the video I can see the connection. When I study paintings, I subconsciously try to find a connection to myself. 

Anyways, this week was a lot better than last and it will KEEP getting better!! I am finally getting on top of what I thought was impossible these last couple of weeks. Ready to tackle the semester :) have a good weekend y’all!!!

MY ANGEL, COCONUT WALLACE!!!

Hiiiii

Hello all! My name is Janet Wallace. I prefer to be called Denny. This is my third year at the university, I am a business management major. I am excited for this class but also very nervous, I like doing things online, but I am already kind of confused. Hopefully with more practice, I’ll get to where I need to be. I like being outside, listening to music, and hanging out with the world’s most wonderful pup, Coconut Wallace! I was obsessed with using tumblr in high school, so I’m pretty excited to get back into it again. Hope all my fellow classmates are having a great start to their semesters.

Denny Wallace <3