Comm 101: third blog- thoughts on class

So I'm posting from my phone right now, hoping any horrible spelling errors are caught by the iPhone. I had a few thoughts as class wrapped up today. As a Comm student, I often find myself wanting to say much more than time allows for in class. This is especially true in a class where I am technically not a student. So, for those of you who are left with a comment sitting on the tip of your tongue as class ends, a blog post might be a great way to formulate and remember that idea.
What is sticking with me is something about communication being constitutive. I grew up as the generation just before most of you, so phrases like "that's retarded" or "that's gay" were and still are common place. I can't make excuses for the thousands of times I have uttered these words, including to some of my friends who are gay, or have a learning disability. But as I struggle against the past 15 + years of this language being common place for me, what helps me to eradicate such language is knowing that by allowing those phrases to cross my lips (or the lips of friends and family) I am continuing to uphold the idea that being gay or differently abled is somehow stupid or makes a person less of a citizen of our global community. I hope that soon, I won't even have to think about this, and my brain will have learned a different way to communicate my displeasure with a situation. However, if you hear me or anyone else for that matter, please gently remind us that our words are not only constructing violence, but they are actually violent.

Oppressive language does more than represent violence; it is violence; does more than represent the limits of knowledge; it limits knowledge.

TONI MORRISON, Nobel Lecture, Dec. 7, 1993

Comm 101: Second Post

     I had a lot of fun with this reading.  Once again I had the privilege of reading words and ideas expressed by Deanna.  I find it always interesting when I am able to hear the voice of a teacher through phrasing in text, as well as in the classroom.  It also makes me think of a phrase from the reading this week. “Perhaps the most important lesson we can take from considering communication as a process is that we learn as we communicate, not before we speak or write” (p. 15).  This is one reason that a blog is necessary.  We are learning as Deanna communicates to us, but we also learn as we communicate back.  Every time we write we practice not only writing style and grammar, but also how we like to communicate.  Some people take a critical paradigm style with the writing, while others focus on quantitative work, and still others are able to express performativity even when written on paper.  The practice of writing helps us to fully formulate an argument by working out the kinks. 

     The only problem with this idea is that many of us edit as we write.  The book reminds us that editing along the way stifles the communicative process that writing should provide.  Do not feel bad when this process becomes frustrating and feels like “extra work.”  By writing a first draft, we allow the ideas to surface before we begin selecting out the good from the not quite as good.  The idea of a crappy first draft is hard to do with out planning ahead.  Time is important within the writing process, and lack of time is the enemy of good writing.  This is definitely an idea that most college students are familiar with.  Many grad students have admitted that the writing process has involved many first and only drafts that have to be edited along the way to account for procrastination.  As a result, writers need to work against this by writing early and often letting the ideas become more important than editing.

     And if you catch me still doing the first and only writing, remind me of when I sang praises of multiple drafts!

Here is a video that I think makes a lot of sense when looking at it through the lens of Chapter 1. Specifically p. 7 and p. 15.

Woodland Shoppers Paradise: Learning to Decode Scholarly Journal Articles (Par...

Love it!

Woodland Shoppers Paradise: Learning to Decode Scholarly Journal Articles (Par...: [One of my favorite parts of blogging is the opportunity to draft language for specialized projects - and potentially receive feedback from...

Comm 101: First Entry

The study of communication is a complicated idea.  Just the word "communication" can be confusing.  There is Mass communications, public relations, interpersonal, intrapersonal, business, and many more titles that the world uses to try and distinguish between the different types of communication.

  

Communication studies is a blend of all of the above and more.  This field of study allows for the examination of how the world works through how people in this world communicate together.  For me, communication studies allows me to view the world the way that most people have yet to. Most problems or situations in this world have not been exhaustively studied from a communication studies perspective.  This allows for a search for answers to questions that breed more questions.  These questions can lead to study in any subject that a researcher, student, or teacher is passionate about.  This freedom of study through a communication studies lens has allowed and encouraged me to embrace what I love and pushed me to share that love with others.

As Deanna told the class, I am a masters student here at SJSU.  This educational opportunity has allowed me to study one of my favorite pastimes, World of Warcraft.  Now before you laugh, know that I am laughing with you.  I never expected to be able to study something that seems so trivial such as a game.  However, the more I research, the more I see a real sense of meaning and importance within a silly little game.  My thesis centers on gamification of the classroom, and I plan on teaching comm majors at either a community college or 4-year university in just a year.  I know that there are many other opportunities besides teaching, such as consulting, but teaching will always be my love and my ultimate goal for my career.

Road to Winter Classic- Philly

Finally January 1st came around.  Most people dread the first of the year due to hangovers from the party the night before, but not me.  This year the first marked not only the first time I would get to set foot in Philadelphia, but also officially started the trip I won from the San Jose Sharks.


Unlike so many Sharks fans, I am new to Team Teal.  Though I had been to a few games when the Sharks first started, I found them again as my brother was battling cancer.  We had been visiting Justin again at Kaiser, trying to keep his spirits up when two very large men entered his room.  At the time I didn't know who they were, but they were gorgeous (all the ladies will agree).


 Mitchell and Murray had come to visit my brother, which basically made his day.  After seeing how wonderful these players were off the ice, I couldn't help but become a fan of them on the ice.  It did not take long to realize that I bleed teal, and always will.  I have thrown myself into learning the game and cheering for the sharks for as many games as I can see.
I religiously enter all the contests that I can, especially the ones through texting.  But I never win.  This is why I was so surprised when I got the call about the Winter Classic.  The only thing to make this trip better would be if the Sharks were playing (although they did win the game the same night!).

 Sharkie all buckled and ready to head to Philly!

As we pulled up to the Marriott Downtown, we were met with a multitude of signs that let us know that this was the headquarters of the Winter Classic. 

Love Park

 I couldn't believe how close we were to the heart of downtown.  Just a block away from LOVE park, City Hall and Reading Terminal Market, we were able to experience so many of the great things that Philly has to offer by just walking outside our hotel.

City Hall

View from our room

 We were lucky because Marriott was nice enough to let us check in early, no charge! We were on the 18th floor, so we had a good view of the city from our room.  The room itself was beautiful, and made me feel special.  We definitely got pampered on this trip!

Sharkie relaxing in our room

 

Even our key was in the WC spirit!

 After eating too much good food at a local Gastro pub (apparently that's what they are called), we settled in our room, excited for the next day.  As you may know, the game got moved back from 1pm to 3pm, which was to make sure the ice wouldn't melt during the game.  This meant more time for us at the Reading Terminal Market experiencing great food!

My husband all bundled!

Finally it was time to bundle up and head to the game in the buses that Marriott provided for their guests!  Yay, no subway!  By the way, neither of us had been to such a cold area in a long time, so even with our long underwear, long sleeved shirts, sweatshirts, jerseys, scarves, gloves, beanies and hand warmers, we were still very cold!  As we got off the bus, we were greeted with a ton of confused looks.  All "Sharked out", we really looked out of place on the east coast.  People asked if Mapquest got us lost, if we knew what ice looked like and a few other "clever" comments.  Mostly, besides wondering why there were two Shark fans wandering around, people were really nice and friendly (though I think it was mainly because we were clearly not Ranger fans).  Our seats were great, and we were able to have a great view of ice and the big screen!

 There was much Pomp and Circumstance as expected for a game like this, and it was fun to be apart of.  Patti La Belle even sung the National Anthem!  The game started and we got into cheering for the Flyers.  I figured cheering for the home team was nice since we were having such a great time in Philly.  The game got off to a slow start as the puck was behaving very differently on the outside rink than it seems to do inside.  Each stoppage of play brought a team of men with shovels to clear the ice, as well as someone to patch the divots that had been made.

Both teams seem to struggle with the condition of the ice, as Rich and I struggled with the cold. The cold was more bearable once the Flyers scored!  The Giant Liberty Bell over the right field wall lit up and tolled each time the Flyers put one away. The Rangers fans gained more confidence as the game progressed, and the Flyer fans lost a lot of steam.  I know that if the Sharks fans were there, no one would be able to hear the other team's fans.  And that is why we ROCK!  The third period seemed hopeless until an epic chance for a penalty shot came with 9 seconds left!  It was a bit sad when Briere could not score, but it was finally a hockey game where the team I was cheering for lost and I was not devastated.  I think the Philly fans were taking it quite hard, because as we left, I did not hear any comments about being a Shark fan.  We walked away with a few souvenirs that we bought, as well as two seat cushions that we got just for going!

Our Swag!

A former Sharks employee and current fan!

 I wish my words could share exactly how awesome this trip was.  I will never forget how much fun we had, and how special we felt during this whole process.  And all of this was possible because I filled out a form for a chance to win.  Next time it could be you!  Keep the faith, and GO SHARKS!

The Road to the Winter Classic 2012- Maryland/DC leg

After we found out about our trip to the Winter Classic, we had just a few days to make plans.  We have family in Maryland and thought it would be great to not only see Philly, but go spend some time experiencing the east coast since we were being flown out their anyways.  Since we are both in school getting our masters degrees (my husband as an Athletic Trainer, and I as a communication studies major), cross country trips are usually out of the question. It was my husband's 30th birthday on Dec 23rd and of course Christmas Eve and Christmas with family.  AND, we left the next morning at 5am!  What a whirlwind!

We flew in to DC, then drove to Maryland and were pleasantly surprised to feel that the weather was not much colder than California.  After hanging with the family for a day, my brother-in-law who works for NASA (Goddard Space Flight Center), agreed to give us an insiders look at the campus.  He showed us a speaker that NASA uses to test equipment that was over 10 feet tall!

 We also got to see a test chamber that can hold a space craft as large as a school bus.  I took Flat Sharkie with me, not only to show him the world, but to help take a bit of San Jose (and the Sharks) with me!

Sharkie the astronaut! 

The next day we took the Metro to DC and got to experience the nation's capital.  It was 28 degrees when we left the house.
28 DEGREES!
For this California couple that was too cold, but we donned our sharks gear, bundled up and headed out to see the Korean and Viet Nam war memorials as well as the Lincoln and Washington monuments.

 Sharkie at the Lincoln Memorial. 

 And at the White House.....

 And getting ready to see the Declaration of Independence...

 We also got to see the Constitution and Bill of rights.  We had a great time seeing pieces of our nation's and the world's history.  We even met a young sharks fan in line at the National Archives (and a Wings fan, who got stared down only because you can't yell in the museums!). As we headed back to Maryland, we were excited to get the opportunity to see another historic city!