Blog 54: Puppy Love

I had my first crush in elementary. There was this boy who was new at my school and all the girls were crushin’! He was tan, had brown eyes, and brown hair with blonde high lights. He was really different from all the other boys in our class. Just so you know, I went to Gilead Christian in elementary, and there were maybe 32 people in the whole class; so it was a very small school and we all knew each other. He was like a little rebel from the public schools that we had never known before. He skate boarded and had a smart mouth on him. We would tease each other, a lot. You know, the typical little kid crush stuff.

Well that was my first crush, and there’s not much more to say. I’m going to tell you about my first boyfriend now. I was going to Mechanicsburg Junior High at the time, and was in the seventh grade; he was in the eighth grade. Once again, he was the new kid and was a bit of a bad boy (I never noticed the common theme until now). But on with it, we dated for awhile and he was my first kiss. Then he moved to Florida and it broke my little heart. However, everything worked out the way it was supposed to. J.J. from elementary and Claddie from junior high are a thing of the past, and now I have an amazing boyfriend, Blaine, who I am totally in love with!

Blog 53: Pet Peeves

I know I have plenty of things that annoy me, but I can’t really think of any good ones.  I’m not even sure if I can talk for 250 words about just one of them. Ok here it goes, I hate when my socks get wet; it’s the worst in the winter. First of all, I always have on socks because my feet are freezing. Second of all, people track in snow and then it melts and I step in it. It drives me crazy! I hate the feeling and then I have to change my socks, which sucks because my feet were already warm and cozy in the first pair. Well, I can’t really say anymore about my wet socks.

Another pet peeve of mine is when someone leaves the light on when they aren’t in the room. It didn’t bother me as much when I wasn’t the one paying the electric bill, but now it definitely does. My boyfriend is super bad about it. I love him and all, but I still lecture him about leaving the lights on. I will say, “Hey Blaine, are you still in the kitchen?” He is obviously sitting on the couch in the living room, but I still ask just to be a smartass.

Ok, so wet socks and leaving the lights on, what else? Oh! I hate when people rev their engines like they’re Jeff Gordon or something. No one is impressed by how much noise your car can make, so be quiet for goodness’ sake!

Blog 52: New York

I have been on a lot of trips, to a lot of different places. It’s hard to decide which one meant the most to me. Since I have to pick just one, I guess I’ll go with my trip to New York. In July of 2007, my dad and I went to New York. We were there about a week, and there was so much to do, in so little time. I had just bought a new camera; and good thing I did because I took hundreds of pictures.

We left for New York after dinner and got there in time for breakfast! We ate at this amazing place in New Jersey, the Brownstone Diner and Pancake Factory. It was so delicious! Then we drove into the city and the skyscrapers were masked by the morning fog. We checked into our hotel and went out on the town! During that week the only time spent in the hotel was to sleep. We went to Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Central Park, Little Italy, Greenwich Village, etc. In Greenwich Village we found the best restaurant in the world, The Cornelia Street Café.

The best part of the whole trip was taking the subway to the Bronx for the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox 4^th of July series. It was my first and last time in Old Yankee Stadium. After the game on the 4^th we saw the fireworks in Manhattan. It was a very memorable trip; I’m just going to stop myself right now because I could go on about it forever!

Blog 51: Jane Addams

I’m not sure how many have heard of Jane Addams, but if she were still alive, I would love to meet her because I think she was a magnificent human being. When I was in elementary, maybe second grade, we had to read a biography and I read Jane Addams’ biography. It was a lot for my second grade brain to handle, but it was some good stuff. I actually did another report on Jane Addams in my American History class in high school.

In case you have no idea who I’m talking about, let me just get you up to speed. Jane was born in Cedarville, Illinois in 1860. She got tuberculosis of the spine as a child, and it left her spine curved. She was very ashamed of her deformity; however, it didn’t stop her from achieving great things. Jane attended college at a time when there were very few colleges for women. She went on to open Hull House, a settlement house in Chicago. Hull House started off small and ended up as 13 buildings. They offered many things: continuing education for adults, kindergarten classes, a library, a gym, a kitchen, a bathhouse, etc. She was also national chairman of the Women’s Peace Party and President of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. She supported women’s suffrage, immigrants, and was a member of the NAACP. As you can see, Jane Addams was part of so much American history. She was even the first American woman awarded with the Nobel Peace Prize.

I would love to meet Jane Addams because she had such an interesting life and accomplished so much. It would make my day to sit down with her and discuss her life and hear the stories straight from her; a true American.

Blog 50: My Car

The best present I have ever been given would have to be my car. My dad bought me a car for my high school graduation and I am very, very grateful! I definitely did not want to have to buy my own car. Cars are so expensive, and it would’ve drained my savings to have to buy one on my own. Plus, I definitely wouldn’t have spent what he did. My car is a white, 2006, Kia Spectra. It gets pretty good gas mileage and is a good looking car. It has power locks and windows, cruise control, and a CD player. The car had about 50,000 miles on it when we bought it. There is nothing wrong with it; and yes, we did ask for the CARFAX.

I remember the day we went car shopping like it was yesterday. It was July, and it was HOT! We looked all over Columbus and ended up at Hatfield Kia. I had no intention whatsoever of buying a car that day. However, when you find a deal, you have to move on it quickly. I never make decisions that fast. I always think about everything very carefully before I decide, but it was towards the end of the day, and they were about to close, so I felt some major pressure. I decided that was the car for me and that was that. I’ve had it for 7 months now and it runs perfectly, just like the day I took it home!

Blog 49: Babysitting

I haven’t ever had a “real” job. But the past two summers I have babysat for my doctor’s nephews, Lucas and Henry. They were 6 and 8 the first summer and 7 and 9 the second summer. The summer of 2009, they lived in Marysville, which was a 20 minute drive. However, in the summer of 2010, they had moved to Ostrander, which was like a 35 minute drive. I had already told them I would watch the boys the next summer, so I drove the extra 15 minutes.

The boys were very well behaved for me, but not so much for their parents. They were allowed to go to a few of their friend’s houses for a couple hours and so some days I would hardly see them. On the flip side, sometimes their friends would come over to their house and I would have double the kids to watch. The family told me that I was welcome to eat whatever they had, so I didn’t have to pack a lunch or snacks, which was really nice. Basically, I got paid to watch TV and eat their food; I had it pretty easy. I did actually work though. I would cook for the boys, play outside or play video games with them, and I even took them to the pool a few times. All in all, I would say it was a great first “job.” But, this summer I want something I can put on my résumé, so I’m not going to be babysitting for them.

Blog 48: My Grandma

My grandma is my inspiration; I think she is a saint. My grandma is such a good person; she treats everyone like a friend. She is from a small village in Yugoslavia where she met my grandpa and had two children, my aunt and uncle. Later, they moved to Italy where she had my dad. Soon after my dad was born they moved to Switzerland and then came to America. My grandpa passed away when my dad was four and my grandma was left to care for my special needs uncle and my dad all on her own. She then moved to Columbus to raise my dad. After my mom and dad got married we all moved to Arizona.

My grandma has always had to work hard and I have never heard her complain once; she has had a very hard life, and yet she doesn’t act like anything is owed to her. She came to this country with virtually nothing and knowing no English, all to make a better life for her and her family. I am very thankful that she came to America. If it weren’t for her I wouldn’t be here today with so many opportunities right at my fingertips. My grandma has been in the United States for about 44 years now and her English is pretty good now. Here are a few fun facts about her: her accent is adorable, she lives in Arizona yet her yard looks like the Garden of Eden, she is an amazing chef, she likes to knit socks, she has never driven a car, and she wears a babushka.

Blog 47: 8 Surprising Habits Ruining Your Health

So, yesterday my blog was about some myths that we hear every day about our health. Today, I decided to write my blog about another article from MSN; this time it’s about some things that actually are bad for your health. In the article they discussed eight things, but I am only going to touch on three of them. However, at the end of my blog is the link if you would like to read more.

The first thing that I found interesting was something that I do all the time, stretching my back when I first wake up; who doesn’t?! Here’s the doctor’s perspective on this, "At night when you sleep, the discs in your spine gain water," according to Ted Dreisinger, PhD. Apparently, the water puts pressure on your discs and when you stretch it adds even more pressure to them. What’s recommended is to go about your business for about the first ten minutes after waking up, and then stretching. The next little fact is something I’m sure we all do, holding your pee. I never thought I would discuss the bathroom in my blog; but here it goes. When you put off going to the bathroom it could stretch out your bladder, which is not good for many reasons. Lastly, for those of us who would rather use the elliptical or a bicycle to get in our daily cardio, we could be in trouble. The trouble isn’t with the cardio or even with our muscles, but with our bones. If you want to strengthen your bones, your best bet is to work in some walking or running; either on the treadmill or out there in the great outdoors.

That’s all for today, read the article if you thought what I discussed was interesting!

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/oral-care/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=100267248&imageindex=1

Blog 46: 9 Things to Stop Worrying About

Today I read an article from MSN. It was about some common misconceptions; things that we are all taught are “bad” for our health. This article is claiming that they’re all myths. I’m only going to discuss three of them, but if you want to read more I provided the link at the end of my blog.

The first example was that we should drink 8 glasses of water a day. However, the U.S. Food and Nutrition Board said we should drink 8 glasses of fluid a day. That means we can drink virtually anything; not just water. I always try to drink plenty of water and juice; I feel like it’s probably better for me than pop, coffee, and energy drinks. But, who knows? The next example is that reading in dim lighting is bad for your eyes and could cause long term damage. Turns out, it can make your eyes tired, but after you rest up everything is back to normal! Personally, I’m very happy about this one because I read in bad light sometimes and I always worry that I’ll pay for it at my next eye exam. The last myth I’m going to discuss is that being cold, means you’ll catch a cold. Ha! I should show this to my mom. Every time I left my coat in the car because I didn’t want to carry it around the mall I got a speech about how I was going to get sick from being in the cold. Turns out, mom was wrong!

http://health.msn.com/healthy-living/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=100268897&gt1=31036

Blog 45: Job

I really need to start looking for a summer job. I’m kind of nervous that I won’t be able to find anything that’s seasonal. I would like it to start right around the middle of June and end around the middle of September. I know that’s kind of unrealistic, but boy would it be nice! If the stars align and everything works out; I will find a job that has something to do with children. I guess now would be a good time to tell you that I want to be a teacher.

Anyway, if it started in the middle of June then after exam week, I could go visit my grandma out in Arizona for a week. I always go see my grandma during the summer and I know that if I start working before I go visit I may not be able to get time off. However, there is another road block because my mom and step dad’s birthday is June 13^th. Now, if exams are over on June 9^th and I leave on the 10^th and come back around the 17^th or 18^th I will get to see my grandma, but I will miss their birthday! Also, my nephew’s first birthday is the 23^rd so I really can’t miss that.

It’s all such a mess! It’s like no matter what I do I’m going to miss something: seeing my grandma, my mom and step dad’s birthday, and possibly my nephew’s birthday if I have work that day.

Blog 44: Life!

Ah how I love blogging about anything! So, I’m sick and I’ve been sick for the past few days. It is horrible, but the good news is that I haven’t been sick since like last April. At least I almost made it a year! Well, enough about that. I had an appointment with an advisor today; it went really well. I basically have my schedule for next quarter all figured out. My scheduling appointment is next Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. I know that I am going to take a sociology class, an earth science class, and a human development and family science class. The only thing left is to figure out the specifics. I think it’s going to be a good mix of classes for the spring, so I’m pretty excited.

Ok, I thought it was going to be warm today… It’s definitely a little chilly and I’m disappointed. Right now I’m inside; so it doesn’t really matter. I’m waiting on the second floor of the Psychology Building to do an REP hour. This is my last one so I’m psyched! Pun intended. After this I think I’m going to go back to my apartment until my doctor’s appointment. You might think it’s because I’m sick, but it’s actually for my allergy shot. Apparently these immunotherapy shots are going to make my allergies disappear or something. Thing is, it’s been like over three years now and I don’t really notice a difference. Maybe it’s just go gradual that you don’t notice it’s happening; who knows?!

Blog 43: Everybody Loves a Phony

Thanks for the feedback on my title and opening sentence today; I got some good responses! I think I’m going to stick with my original title, Everybody Loves a Phony. I actually thought of it while watching Everybody Loves Raymond. I like the title because I think it’s ironic and something that would make me want to find out more. Well, here’s my introduction:

The dating world can easily be compared to Hollywood: full of people putting on an act, like they’re getting paid for it. So you may ask yourself, if it’s a world full of phonies, how can I find someone real? The answer is, if you want someone to be open and honest with you, try doing it yourself. I know it’s hard to be yourself when you meet someone new; you want to make a good first impression. However, who says you can’t make a good first impression by being yourself? If your plan is to have a long-lasting relationship, then don’t start it off with secrets and lies. Now, I’m not saying that the first time you meet someone is the time to unleash all your “crazy” on them. We all have our quarks and our emotional baggage, but it should be unleashed gradually. In my opinion, once that person knows everything about you, and sticks around, you’ve got yourself something pretty special.

Well that’s what I’m thinking for my opening paragraph and title. I guess I have a whole lot more work ahead of me. Wish me luck and good luck to everyone!

Blog 42: Relevant

According to Common Place before you even worry about being timely and compelling you have to focus on being relevant. This makes sense to me because if someone thinks what you are discussing in your article does not apply to them, why would they take the time to read it? I guess being relevant is what draws someone in and then timely and compelling is what keeps them around.

I feel that my topic is relevant to anyone and everyone. Since we are all in a relationship or looking for one, my topic of, the problems hiding who you are can cause in a relationship, applies to us all. In my article am going to focus on intimate relationships. However, I am sure that if you wanted to, you could apply what I say about personal relationships to a friendship.

Common Place says that if your article doesn’t appear to be relevant to the editors it probably won’t make it to publication. So basically, you could write the best article in the world, but if it’s about something the editors don’t feel is relevant, that’s the end of the road for you. Luckily, our editors are our peers and our audience is our peers. I feel like this makes not only being relevant easier, but the entire process easier. It is much easier to write something that relates to your peers because they are more than likely dealing with the same issues as you are. I think that if your article is about something that you can relate to and find to be relevant, our audience will likely feel the same.

Blog 41: Compelling

In order to make my Common Place article compelling I am going to have to make the reader believe that I know what I’m talking about and that I am someone they think is a credible source that they could take advice from. To do this I plan to use a combination of what we have been discussing in class as of late: ethos, pathos, and logos. I’m not sure which I will rely on the most, since I have not started my paper yet. However, after my Psychology midterm on Wednesday morning I am going to be all over it! If I could tell the future, I would guess that I am more than likely going to rely on pathos the most.

Since my topic is, the problems hiding who you are can cause in a relationship, I feel that relying heavily on pathos is probably the best decision. Relationships are very emotional issues which is why pathos is what I plan to use. I will also throw some logos and ethos in there as well. I plan to do this by using some logical examples, like the personal anecdote and the hypothetical scenario. Once I do this I will have achieved my style, tone, word choice, and so on; that is all part of being compelling. Since I know my audience will be mostly composed of my peers, it will be easier to write a compelling article; much easier than having to imagine who my audience will be.

Blog 40: Timely

Today I have to argue about why my Common Place topic of, the problems hiding who you are can cause in a relationship, is timely. Being timely basically means that the argument is worth hearing at this point in time. For example, it wouldn’t be logical to argue that women in America should have the right to vote. Obviously women have had that right for almost a century now, so arguing about it now would be silly. Timeliness means being current.

I believe that my topic for my article is timely because I feel it is a current issue. You can turn on the radio and hear Rihanna singing “Take a Bow,” a song about a man putting on a huge act and breaking her heart. You can turn on the television or go to the big screen and see it there. I actually just saw, Just Go With It, which is a very good example; a little extreme, but a good example nonetheless. In my opinion, today’s music, television shows, and movies reflect today’s issues.

I feel as though now is good time to discuss this topic because so many people lie and hide things about themselves to get the person they want and then lose them once the truth comes out. If people were just themselves this would not be an issue. However, the world is full of actors and actresses, and I’m not talking about Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston, I’m talking about the normal people you see and meet every day.

Blog 39: Hypothetical Scenario

Ok, so here’s an example of a hypothetical scenario that I could use in my Common Place article based on the topic, the problems hiding who you are can cause in a relationship.

Let’s say you’re at a party and you start talking to this guy. He is ruggedly handsome, and you really hope that by the end of the night he asks you to go out with him sometime. Since you really want to make him like you, you listen intently to everything he says and when he talks about his hobbies you say oh yeah I love that too! Let’s just say that he is talking about how much he loves the outdoors; especially fly-fishing. Now you don’t know a damn thing about fly fishing, for all you know they are fishing for flies, but you say oh yeah fly fishing is great. He looks surprised; probably the first time he has ever heard that come out of a girl’s mouth. By the end of the night, he asks for your number and if you would like to go out with him, Thursday at 8. Of course, you’re ecstatic because you got what you wanted.

So, you get home from the party and think, I better brush up on my fly-fishing facts for next Thursday. Before your date you look up some information so you don’t look stupid; and good thing you did because he brings it up over dinner. You impress him with your knowledge, and then he asks you if you would like to come with him this Sunday, for a fishing trip. Now what? You’re in a little over your head. You don’t like the outdoors, flies, or fish. You would much rather go to the mall and get your nails done this Sunday. However, you lied, perpetuated that lie, and now you have to hope to God that you don’t make a total fool of yourself. Not to mention the last minute Saturday shopping trip to Bass Pro Shop to make sure you’ve got everything you need for Sunday.

As you can see hiding the fact that you are a girly girl and lying about having a common interest has gotten you into quite the sticky situation.

Blog 38: Personal Anecdote

Alright well here it goes, a personal anecdote based on my Common Place topic of, the problems hiding who you are can cause in a relationship.

I used to date this guy Matt in high school. He didn’t go to my high school, but he went to a nearby school. We met at a track meet and he asked for my number. So, we did the usual routine: texting all the time, then you start talking every night on the phone, next you hang out a few times, and then he asked me to be his girlfriend. Of course, you know, I said yes. I thought I knew him pretty well after talking to him for a couple months and going on some dates. Also, I knew some of his friends and they were cool guys.

But, boy was I wrong. After dating him about a month, he started acting weird. He didn’t want to hang out as much and I couldn’t help but feel like he was hiding something from me. I didn’t understand why he didn’t want to see me one Friday night, after we hadn’t seen each other the whole week. The next week, someone from my high school said that they had seen him at a party Friday night and asked me why I wasn’t there. I told them, well because I didn’t even know about it. They got that “oh shit” look on their face. You know the one I’m talking about. The one where you just said something you had no idea would put you in the situation you end up in. Now that I knew about the party I couldn’t help but want to find out more. So, I did some asking around and turns out Matt was a total stoner. You might think, yeah so what? Thing is he didn’t just smoke pot; he drank, did shrooms, air duster, and the list goes on. Now, to top it all off, he dealt drugs as well. What a winner, right?!

I often wonder how I didn’t realize any of this before I agreed to be his girlfriend. Turns out when someone doesn’t want you to know something about them they are pretty good at hiding it. He never said anything that led me to believe that this was who he was.  I guess he figured that to get a girl like me, the class president that gets straight A’s type, he would have to act like the kind of guy I would want. Let me tell you, the man should get a freakin’ Academy Award!

Blog 37: Underground Attractions

Today I read an article about underground attractions all around the world, and it was really very interesting. These underground attractions vary widely in purpose, from tombs to war shelters and mines to underground cities. They are also all over to globe, in the U.S., Ireland, England, Italy, Vietnam, and the list goes on. All of the sites are of historical value; some are only decades old while others are thousands of years old.

To me the oldest places seem the most interesting because it’s crazy to think that there were people digging underground thousands of years ago. Not only did they dig underground, but they did some very interesting and technologically advanced stuff once they got down there. For example, under Naples, Italy, there are about 250 miles of tunnels and caverns. As if what’s above ground isn’t enough of a reason to visit, when you add this into the mix it’s practically irresistible. The Greeks actually dug down beneath Naples to access water. One of the more recent sites is in West Virginia; a fallout shelter built for Congress in 1958, during the Cold War. It’s actually built beneath the Greenbrier Resort, which is very rich in U.S. history as well.

I find underground places to be very intriguing because some of them aren’t discovered for decades or more. Just think, all that time people were walking around thinking there was nothing but dirt under their feet! I would really like to visit some of the places on the list. Some of the sites only offer tours of the premises. However, some of them have restaurants and a place to stay the night, right on site. I would definitely recommend this article if you are even remotely interested in history or travel.

http://www.bing.com/travel/content/search?q=Underground+Attractions%3a+Cu+Chi+Tunnels%2c+Vietnam&FORM=TRSSPG

Blog 36: CP Idea

Alright! Well, after looking over the list of ideas we made today in class I decided I am going to write about the problems hiding who you are can cause in a relationship. This is a spinoff of my analytical research paper topic of people hiding who they really are to get what they want. I believe that one of the main reasons that relationships don’t work out is because many of us are dishonest right off the bat.

No one likes being lied to or having things kept from them. So why is it that almost everyone under the sun is guilty of doing just that? When you are meeting someone for the first time and you really want them to like you and it’s easy to agree with things they’re saying (whether you truly agree or not). Also, you may keep certain facts about yourself a secret because you think someone else would find it undesirable or judge you. The problem with this is that it leads to an unhealthy relationship.

If you don’t like the opera don’t agree with them when they tell you how much they love the opera. More than likely you will find yourself there on a date in the future and be forced to perpetuate your lie. Another thing is if you are totally in love with sitting in front of the TV and playing Madden, why hide it? For all you know they love video games just as much as you. Basically, the message that I want people to take home with them after reading my Common Place article is to be yourself because that’s the only way you will find someone that likes you for you.

Blog 35: Going Green: Just Another Act?

The article that I read on Common Place today was about celebrities participating in the “going green” movement. I chose the Culture category and saw the article titled: Going Green: Jut Another Act. This title got me interested because after reading No Impact Man, as all incoming freshman at The Ohio State University were supposed to, I am now interested in reading other pieces about “going green.”

This article discussed how the Environmental Media Association (EMA) encourages celebrities to live a more environmentally friendly life so that their followers will do just that, follow. Now I’m not stupid. I know that just because someone drives a hybrid or uses reusable grocery bags doesn’t mean they always put the environment first. Maybe these same people produce more trash in a week than I do in a month or maybe they rack up more air miles in a month than I will in my entire life. These negative things make a much larger impact than the little positive things that are done.

The argument of this article was that the same celebs that claim they are “green” are really just putting on an act. I feel this is a timely issue because in the past decade or so of my life I have watched the world flip out over “global warming” and so the “green” movement came to be. Everything is “green” now: cars, grocery bags, cleaning products, etc. The author had a compelling argument because she used real-life examples of hypocritical “green” celebrities. This is a relevant argument because it is something that affects all of us in present day society. I mean, I actually feel guilty every time I take the elevator instead of using the stairs.

Blog 34: Comfort Food

The article that I read on Common Place today was about plastic surgery, and titled "Comfort Food." I chose the Society category and saw the sentence, “Plastic surgery is the new ice cream and people are eating it up.” This sentence caught my eye and sparked my interest. I think it is a very interesting metaphor. That one sentence pretty much says it all. It surprised me how one sentence could be so short and sweet, but so full of meaning.

The article talked about different reasons why people get plastic surgery: medical, to please themselves, but mostly to please someone else. It discussed how we live in a world that expects perfection when we all know it’s unattainable. The pressure from society to be perfect drives millions to get plastic surgery. It discussed two women who are obsessed with plastic surgery, Heidi Montag, a celebrity from The Hills and a regular woman who appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Jenny. It also made it clear that plastic surgery is not only for women; many men are also lining up at the plastic surgeon’s office.

I would say that this article is very timely, compelling, and relevant. Timely because it is a current issue; something we are dealing with in the here and now. It’s compelling because the author used scientific findings such as statistics and real-life examples to back up her argument. The article is relevant because living in society this is an issue we all deal with. Since Common Place is mostly read by college students I think this is a good target audience for this subject.

One of my personal experiences that relates to plastic surgery is when I got my tonsils and adenoids removed recently. When I was at the surgeon’s office for my consultation and to do some paperwork, one of the forms on the clip board surprised me; it was a form for a plastic surgeon. The form listed so many procedures; ones I never even knew existed. From what I gathered from skimming over the form it was there in case you wanted to get plastic surgery done while they had you under for your medical surgery. To this day it still bothers me that I was even presented with this form.

Blog 33: About My Paper

My rough draft is officially completed and oh what a wonderful feeling! I am pleased with the way it turned out, but I feel like there is definitely some room for improvement. I’m sure I’m going to have plenty of corrections to make, as well as adding another page and a half. I will definitely be making another trip on over to the writing center after we get our rough drafts handed back. I just hope that I didn’t accidentally bomb this assignment. Nothing is worse than feeling like you did a pretty good job and then being shot down. That’s basically how I felt about the episode analysis.

One thing that I wondered about was if we had to do an annotated bibliography for the rough draft. I mean it’s not on the rubric she handed out to us, but I wonder if it’s something we are supposed to just know. So, I went ahead and included the annotation in my bibliography just to be on the safe side. I feel like I did a decent job covering all the points on the rubric, but in the end it’s not up to me, so I guess I’ll just have to wait and see!

Personally, I’m just glad I managed to get this done this weekend between visiting with family, my boyfriend having a party, filling out the FAFSA, and the Super Bowl. This was definitely a jam packed weekend! I am so happy this is the last blog I have to write about my rough draft; I was seriously running out of things to talk about!

Blog 32: About My Paper

So here is how I’m feeling today, I feel like I’m not going to do so hot on this rough draft. It seems like such a jumbled mess, and every time I try to make it better I think I manage to make it worse. If I’m not impressed with this paper I know that the professor definitely won’t be. After I got torn up on the episode analysis, I can’t help but feel the same will happen with this draft. I probably sound like the most pessimistic person if you read this, but I’m just not very optimistic when it comes to school assignments, especially big papers like this one.

It’s really hard to concentrate when I’m home but that’s what I get for waiting until the last minute; like usual. But, I had a good time with my family last night and it was really good to see my sister and nephew. Also, we got to meet her new boyfriend. The problem is I got virtually nothing done.

I always have things all planned out in my head, but then they never turn out the way I think they will. Another thing is that I always think I have so much time and then it turns out there is never enough of it. I say to myself well how long could this possibly take, like three hours; then it turns into five or six. I wonder if everyone has the same problems that I do. I wonder if everyone sits down in front of their computer and blanks or gets sidetracked. I wonder if everyone reads through their paper a dozen times and continues to find things wrong with it. It gets so frustrating!

Blog 31: About My Paper

So I started my paper. I’m not in love with it, but I think by Sunday it should be good and ready to turn in. I’m home for the weekend, so it’s going to be hard to concentrate on my paper with my mom, step dad, sister, nephew, and my boyfriend all wanting my attention. In retrospect I probably should’ve worked on it a lot more this past week. But I’ll get it done; I always do.

So far I’ve used a lot of stuff from my blogs. Mostly the blogs where we integrated the quotes; those are very good for copying and pasting! Also, the episode analysis came in handy. When I put all that together it gave me a good deal of pages and so now I just have to fill in some information, teak some things, and pull a couple more pages out of nowhere.

Changing my argument has definitely given me a bit of a handicap. Since I had already found secondary sources, read them, and blogged about them, for the old argument it’s a pain to find new stuff. I had to do research all over again, read the articles, and now I’m going to have to do the annotated bibliography over again. I do like my new argument better thought, so I guess all the extra work is worth it. Another thing is that I have been thinking about the episode and about my paper from the view point of my old argument for so long it’s been hard to shift gears.

Well that’s all about my highs and lows for today!

Blog 30: About My Paper

Today I went to the writing center; it went alright I guess. They say you can go at any point in the writing process, but I think it is probably best to go once you have your rough draft back with the instructor’s comments; that way they can help you fix what’s wrong. We just went over the rubric and tried to look up some secondary sources that would support my argument. We didn’t exactly have the best of luck, but hey, I got two bonus points. So there is a bright side! I definitely plan on going back after we get our rough drafts handed back. I think they will be able to help me out more at that point.

I think I better start writing my paper right after I’m done with this blog. I’m just kind of overwhelmed and don’t really know where to start. I feel like everything I do is wrong; it’s pretty depressing. Every time I write a paper I feel like I am just bullshitting the whole thing. But, I guess that’s what writing is all about; just making stuff up as you go along and hoping for the best. I mean, I have a basic idea of what I want to say, I just have problems putting it on paper. Well, on a screen I guess.

Okay, I should probably get started on this thing and stop talking about it. Wish me luck, because I’m definitely going to need as much as I can get!

Blog 29: About My Paper

It’s like I can think of nothing but this paper. It’s constantly hanging over my head, but the idea of sitting down and actually writing it makes me feel sick. I would like to go ahead and get it over with, but I always wait until the last minute and then freak out. That’s just me. I want to change; maybe the Writing Center will fix me up! I made an appointment at the Writing Center for tomorrow. I hope that they will be able to get me on the right track. I’ve never been there, so I’m not too sure what to expect.

I personally don’t think that I’m the greatest writer in the world. So, I’m pretty worried about writing this paper. I’m worried about it not being long enough, having poor structure, being repetitive, or just having a weak argument. Whenever I wrote papers in high school, I feel like the teachers would just slap an A on it and call it a day. I know my papers weren’t perfect, but I always got A’s; even when I did post secondary, and so far in college, I have gotten A’s on all my papers. However, I would like to have gotten some sort of constructive criticism.

Another thing that’s holding me back is that I recently changed my argument after my conference. So, all the information I had looked up is now useless. I’ve been trying to find new information to support my argument, but I have been having a hard time with that. Most of the article titles that sound promising end up not having a PDF, which makes things even more difficult. Well, wish me luck!

Blog 28: Quote 5

The fact of the matter is no one wants to be alone. So, we are all out looking to find that special someone. If anything, we can all agree that it’s a long and difficult road. However, for those that don’t love themselves, finding someone to love them can be even more of a challenge. If you can’t accept who you are, then being in social situations where you are meeting new people and trying to impress them can be a very trying task. “People with higher social anxiety attempt to conceal aspects of themselves that they believe others will find unattractive or will reject. Such behaviors also seem likely to relate to interpersonal dysfunction, particularly in close relationships” (Rodebaugh, 91). Basically, if you are uncomfortable with yourself it could show. Or even worse it could be obvious that you are trying to hide something. This usually leads someone to believe that you must be hiding something truly awful, when it could be something perfectly normal.

People will love you for the way they think you are and if you are putting on a show to get them and then reveal the true you, you could risk potentially losing them. Just being you can solve this problem. Everyone has their quarks and it’s certainly nothing to be ashamed of. Certainly, the first time you meet someone isn’t the time to tell them everything little thing that’s wrong with you or to unload your emotional baggage. It’s a delicate balance of being you and making a good first impression so that there is a chance for them to learn all there is to know and love about you.

Rodebaugh, Thomas. "Hiding the Self and Social Anxiety: The Core Extrusion Schema Measure." Cognitive Therapy & Research 33.1 (2009): 90-109. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 28 Jan. 2011.

Blog 27: Quote 4

If you cannot accept yourself, then you assume that others will not be able to either. This belief is what leads one to hide who they really are. "The distinctive attributes of unconditional self-acceptance are that the individuals are able to fully and unconditionally accept themselves whether or not they behave correctly or whether other people approve of them" (Macinnes, 484). What this means is that you should absolutely accept yourself no matter what; even if someone else does not. Self-acceptance and self-esteem have been shown to have a high positive correlation (484). Therefore, if you accept yourself you will in turn feel more confident in yourself and hopefully won’t feel the need to hide your true self. For all you know, the person you’re hiding from would accept you with all your “flaws.”

 I think sometimes we forget that no one is perfect and we hold ourselves or others to an unfair high standard. Most likely, if you meet someone and you really connect with them you will be able to over look a few things. For example, an annoying habit or something temporary that will soon change. Just think, if you know that you are willing to do this for someone, they are probably going to do the same. So the moral of the story is, to accept yourself and let others see the true you. Only the people who stick around after that are worth your time. Who wants to be around someone who they always have to put a show on for anyway? Not me.

MACINNES, D. L. "Self-esteem and self-acceptance: an examination into their relationship and their effect on psychological health." Journal of Psychiatric & Mental Health Nursing 13.5 (2006): 483-489. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 1 Feb. 2011.