Last Bag. Last Reecie.

*Shakes out bag to get the last reecie, takes bag (bag including everything from this blog) gives it one last look, holds on to memories, crumples bag, throws away*

Well everyone, yes, this is my last blog for DSP. Its been real. Its been nice. And yes, it has also been real nice. I truly feel that the things we have learned in this class we will be able to keep with us. The whole idea of Cosmopolitanism has just opened up a whole new way of thinking for me. I now see that all around us theres canopies and non canopies. Unspoken rules. Folk ethnography. And I feel like our class definatly was a canopy. We had such a diverse class it was great! Being able to do group projects in Second Life or games like BAFA BAFA. It was fun. I learned things I do not think I would have leanred in other classes, and I can take this information and apply it to those other classes. I have learned things about myself even, from reading other blogs and seeing myself fit into the mold they described. I am definately (but slowly) branching out of my shell here at UK. Oh! AND I also learned how to do a power point! last night in fact. It only took me 6 hours! haha.. ok so i over did it.. but at least i get to show it tomorrow in our final class :( I enjoyed hearing what everyone else learned about their projects and the class in general, and its great to compare it to what I have learned. Overall, (beside the fact that tis class was on te tougher side) I really liked and enjoyed the class... I would also like to thank our professors for being so helpful and for a great class :)
Classmates and professors: thank you for contributing to a enjoyable experience my first year in college, and back in a school (since middle school). It was a great experience.

I would like to thank you all for taking the time to read my blogs and comment. I hope they were entertaining and enjoyable (^.^)
Signing out..

-Reecie ^_^

Were running out of Reecies????

Season one of Reecie and her thought pieces is coming to an end... sniff* sniff* (T.T)
We are on the last bag of Reecies chocolately goodness


The Showcase is coming up… is everyone ready to rock it?

Well that’s right.. ya girl Reecie is presenting at the DSP Showcase with my group… we call ourselves
Team SL; Guiding You Through Your Virtual Reincarnation.
Pretty catchy huh?
My group includes Phoolendu, LandRe, Elle, Raito, Rupert, Rasay, Maekeo, Azriquel and Cadence. Theres a lot of us I know haha… We are basically going to take everyone through our Second Life adventures. We have put together a great slide show that covers some screenshots (even a screenshot at the University of Kentucky Island :D ), what we found in second life, and what we concluded from it. We will have one projector with that going on a continuous slide show, and a second projector will be projecting Second Life LIVE!!! That’s right I said live :) We will be giving anyone who wants to a chance to try out Second Life for themselves, with myself or one of my group members helping and explaining how to play. Hopefully there will be some people who would like to play :) I think that overall it will give everyone a good sense of what we have learned from it and a sense of what the class has taught us to look at in a community. I think it will be fun and a great experience. I’ll see you all there :D

Thanks :)
-Reeice ^_^

EXTRA CREDIT BLOG

Hi guys, here is my blog for extra credit about Appiah believing that a community built on cosmopolitan principles would be one of the finest expressions of our humanity. Hope you enjoy <(^_^)>

I believe that Appiah has great intentions when he says that a cosmopolitan community would be one of the finest expressions of our humanity. But, I believe there are both pros and cons to this type of community. So first, I’ll express what I think is good about a cosmopolitan community. Living in a cosmopolitan place where people tolerate all of your beliefs and values (again they don’t have to agree, but rather just understand them) would truly be a place to take in. I don’t see how there could be any hate or war or anything of that idea if your values were tolerated by everyone. It would most likely be multi-cultural since every culture is understood by everyone. Everyone would matter to everyone else, and they would have their universal obligations to others. Everyone would care if someone else didn’t want “something done unto them,” and rather would ask if they want the same things. So from these few examples you can see a community that is full of respect and understanding, a great idea isn’t it?

Well actually, as great of an idea that it seems to be, I don’t think it would last. As much as you would like to think it’s possible, I think it’s impossible to get everyone to maintain the same understanding for everyone else. But let’s say that it does happen, the community has people who are all complete dedicated cosmopolitans; it still would not work. Cosmopolitanism is all about tolerance of other values, culture, etc. So in multi cultural community, you are bound to have people with many different languages, beliefs, rituals, and religions. Well if all these people are living in one community, they are bound to start creating one universal language so they all can communicate, which would meaning losing a value of their own language. If this community was living and working together, they would start to share their beliefs or rituals with others and everyone would start to have the same ones. People would start to lose their individualism. They would end up creating a new culture that is a mixture of all the other cultures; and therefore lose the cultural differences. Everything would start being the same for people. I believe that if over time it got to that point, people would start to get tired of the same things, and would stop tolerating the normality. And over a period of time, the community would grow, and not everyone in the community would be cosmopolitans, and therefore the community will lose its overall cosmopolitanism values.

So overall, I think that it’s a great idea to try to start a cosmopolitan community, but would be near to impossible to keep it that way. As much as a dedicated cosmopolitan the person might be, I don’t believe that they would stay that over a period of time in this cosmopolitan place. As I said, over time it would lose its cosmopolitan values and would no longer stay a cosmopolitan community. As the “Cosmopolitan Canopy” showed that there can be a small place where people can be a part of cosmopolitanism that does not mean that the people who go to a place that represents a cosmopolitan canopy are cosmopolitan people. I am sure that some people start to relax and venture outside their bubble, but it doesn’t mean that they will tolerate others’ values. So as much as I might agree with the thought at first that it would be a great expression of our humanity, it would have a great downfall over time as the cultural differences disappear and cosmopolitans turn counter-cosmopolitans.


Thanks for reading :)
-Reecie ^_^

Wipe the Chocolate off the page then proceed to read.

Tales of a Reecie Journey.. Chapter.... What chapter are we on?

and ok, if you dont like the chocolate and peanut butter in the turkey, you dont have to eat it!


Well, I have already written my analysis and realized that the things I have found out, I did not notice when I wrote my first hypothesis. Since my analysis is 4 pages long, I won’t torture you guys into reading it. Instead I’ll give a quick summary of it. So my site, as you all should know by now, is Patterson Hall lounge. Originally I hypothesized that it would be where people come to study. When people are there I said that they knew about the unspoken rule/obligation to others to keep their voices down. And also I said that there would be respect amongst them and that they work together to make each other comfortable (in example, make sure to keep their voices down). Lastly I thought the Living Learning Community was a reason why students came down to the lounge.

What I found was that a small part of that was confirmed but most of it was not. And I started to construct a new hypothesis. As I found that I was right about people going to the lounge for studying, and it being during the evenings, I was only partially right about the unspoken rule to keep your voice down. I found that as some do keep their voices down, others know they are supposed to keep them down, but don’t care and are loud anyway. They do not have consideration or respect for those who are studying around them. Another rule I learned about was that people put their headphones in when they want to put up a guard, and to tell people to back off. I believe they also might do this if they are bothered by a noisy group, opposed to just leaving or calling for an RA. Also people generally don’t sit next to people they don’t know. They even know that you aren’t supposed to sit next to someone you don’t know. And finally I did learn that the Living Learning Communities had nothing to do with people going to the lounge, in fact they haven’t had any meetings all semester long. The other reason students do go to the lounge besides studying is a change of scenery from their room, and its just downstairs!
So I asked my informants about a few what if scenarios. When I asked if they would talk to a group of people they didn’t know they would, and they believed that they would make new friends. When I asked what would happen if they asked the noisy group to be quiet, they said that if the noisy group got complaints that they would most likely be quieter, and if that did not work they would call for an RA. When I asked what would happen if someone broke their guard and talked to them with their headphones on, they said they wouldn’t rage out, they would probably talk to that person, and if they really needed to study, they would just say they have to get back to it. When I asked if a random person sat next to them they would probably talk to that person and meet someone new. All of these what if scenarios really play out like Patterson would be a cosmopolitan canopy. The people have more respect and are letting down their guard and talking to strangers.

The problem is, those things are not happening; and therefore Patterson Hall lounge is not a cosmopolitan canopy, nor do the students seem to be cosmopolitans. The students do not tolerate each other’s values; the studiers stare at the loud group with their mean glances, and the loud group just doesn’t care. There seems to be no respect. No comfortableness. No caring about another’s feelings. And no talking to strangers. So no cosmopolitan canopy here folks, your gonna have to look somewhere else. If only the residents of Patterson did follow their what if scenarios.. But we can’t have it all can we….

As for the other projects, I noticed Phoolendu's had to do with people not sitting next to strangers, which definately relates, and so does LandRe's when one of her informants said that they wait for someone to talk to them rather than vise versa and also a small study/socializing spot. I am glad we are now making one poster for the class, as I think that will be enough to show, and we will be able to show our class in other ways. And im excited to start seeing it come together into a project :) .....oh and Great Blogs you guys :D


Thanks for reading and if you have any feedback let me know :)
-Reecie ^_^

Chocolate Peanut Buttery Stuffing

This time on Reecie Though Pieces: they stuffed the turkey with chocolate/peanut butter, and ate it!

MMM thanksgiving was really gooood :) i had lots and lots of full and I am stuffed, but I still wants some more! It was a lot great to get some time at home and just relax, well sorta relax, it felt kinda busy for me, black friday was a nightmare! never again! haha. well hope you all feel the same about having good food and a good break over thanksgiving :)

Well as I start to reflect on all of the observations I have came up with so far… I think I have a somewhat good idea of the Patterson Hall lounge. My own personal conclusion is that it is not a cosmopolitan canopy. A few things needed for a cosmopolitan canopy is a place where people have to be willing to be and let be or willing to feel comfortable enough to talk to an unfamiliar person even. In Patterson Hall lounge, I have noticed that mainly people keep to themselves, or stay with their own group of friends. The noise level is important for some and not for others, and therefore the people who do not respect the unspoken rule have no respect for the others who are trying to study, because the other unspoken rule is that the lounge is a place to study, even if at times other than quiet hours. It even seems as if the noise is louder during quiet hours more than normal hours. While thinking about the rest of the project, as for images or audio, my only idea is to take a picture of the lounge, maybe at 2 different times.. if anyone else has a better idea that I can use please let me know hehe. If I am lucky, for audio I can try to record girl who plays the piano in the lounge occasionally :P (she is really really good lol) but other than that the lounge is pretty bland, just a big room with couches and a piano :P But anyways, hopefully I can take everything I have been talking about and write a paper about it! :)
I hope everyone had a nice break and ate a lot!
Thanks for reading and feel free to let me know what you think :)
-Reecie ^_^
Ps.. thank you all for your comments (^.^)

2 New Episodes in one day!! No way!

Special!!! 2 New Episodes coming out today! Read on!

Hey guys! So with Thanksgiving break coming up.. instead of having a blog to write after I get home, I am going to post a 2nd blog today, so I can focus on relaxing while I am home haha. But I would like to talk about my interviews. I have not gotten to read any of my interviews in class yet, and I am not sure if we are going to read interviews in class tomorrow since we are going to be in the library.. So I would like to post my last interview on my blog for everyone to see. Its kind of long, and I apologize.. so i wont include my introduction to the person but i basically tell them that their answers are anonymous. Ok here goes :)

Background Female/18 years old/ White
1. Are you a freshman?
A: Yes
2. How old are you?
A: 18
3. Do you mind telling me your ethnicity?
A: White
4. Do you have any siblings? *If yes* How old are they?
A: Yes, 1 sister. She is 12 years old.
5. Are you a resident of Patterson?
A: Yes
6. Are you an Honors student?
A: Yes
7. Are you an “official” member of the Patterson Living Learning Community?
A: “I don’t think so… well then, no. I don’t really know what it is.”
8. Were you an Honors student in high school?
A: Yes
9. Did you attend a large or small high school?
A: It was small
Background info about site and sustained attachment by informant:
1. Did you choose to live in Patterson Hall? If yes, why?
A: “Yes, because it’s an honors dorm, I liked the location because it is located on north campus and because my roommate wanted to live here.”
2. When you came to live in Patterson did you already know other people who came to live in Patterson also? If yes, was it an influence to your decision?
A: “I knew a few people, plus my roommate. Yes, it influenced my decision because my roommate wanted to live here.”
*Added Question*: If you didn’t know your roommate, would you still pick Patterson?
A: “Yes because as I said it is an honors dorm, and I like being closer to my classes.”
3. What attracts you to the lounge?
A: “Typically the quietness to study in.”
4. What is it about the lounge that makes it attractive in that way?
A: “Everyone is usually quiet.”
5. How often do you come to the lounge?
A: “A few times a week.”
6. Do you always plan to go or do you just show up sometimes?
A: Just shows up.
7. Do you come by yourself or with other people? If with other people, do you plan that or do you meet up randomly?
A: Both by herself and other people. Both planned and random.
8. What do you do if you do not see anyone you know here? Why?
A: “I still stay because I came to study.”
9. Would you ever consider walking up to a group of people you do not know and introduce yourself? *If yes* What motivates you to do so?
A: “Sure, because I like and want to be socially interactive.”
10. Where else do you study? And how often?
A: William T. Library a few times a week, half her time here and the other half at William T. Library during the week; and the Fine Arts Library once a week.
11. When you choose to study in the lounge, why do you choose it instead of the library?
A: “I choose the lounge mainly because the lounge is closer.”
12. What makes the lounge different from the library?
A: “The library is bigger with more people. Unless you’re in a side room it is easy to get distracted.”
*Added Question* So are you saying you don’t get distracted in the lounge?
A: “I also get distracted in the lounge but it’s more convenient to go to the lounge because it is just downstairs from my room.”
13. So why do you study in so many places?
A: “Because I like the change of environment.”
14. Have you ever studied in another lounge?
A: No.
15. What do you usually do while you are in the lounge?
A: Usually studies.
16. Why do you choose to go to the lounge instead of going to your room?
A: Same reason in #12: She likes the change of environment.
17. Does the honors program or Living Learning Community effect why you come here?
A: No.
18. Do you feel like you benefit from coming here? Why/why not?
A: “Yes, because it’s good to have variety where you study.”
19. Are noise levels important to you while you are in the lounge?
A: “Yes, because I can’t focus when people are loud.”
20. Does the noise or people ever distract you?
A: Yes, both do. (Same reason as question 19)
21. *If yes to 15* What is it that distracts you specifically?
A: People being loud, can’t focus.
22. How do you deal with the noisy people? Would you tell them to be quiet?
A: She usually just leaves, and tries to find another location that is quiet. “I should tell them to be quiet, but I don’t.”
*Added Question* Is that because you are shy or is there another reason?
A: “It’s probably because I am shy.”
23. How do you keep from being distracted from your friends?
A:“When I really have to study I separate myself from my friends, so I come by myself”
24. Is there a certain place you like to sit?
A: Anywhere usually. No where specific.
25. What kind of atmosphere do you think the lounge is?
A: “Typically, it is comfortable and suitable to get work done.”
When she mentions “typically” it’s because there are noisy people talking and being loud while I am conducting the interview. These people were annoying her and she explained that the other people studying were distracted and annoyed by this loud group. She mentioned that it usually was not that loud.
26. What is it about the lounge that makes it that type of atmosphere?
A: “The arrangement of seating and lighting. Also the quiet hours.”
27. So does the atmosphere make you more comfortable to study?
A: “Yes, it does.”
28. So why do you keep coming back?
A: Likes the change of environment when studying for while. “I get bored when I stay in one place.”
29. What are the informal and formal rules of the lounge? (Does not have to be rules that are written down)
A: “Well… don’t talk loud, if you talk, the quiet people look at you if you’re talking. Also, if you don’t know someone, don’t sit by them; I’ve noticed people generally just don’t sit by people they don’t know. And I don’t know if this would be a rule, but a lot of people listen to their iPods usually.”
30. Do you or would you say that people listen to their iPod to tell people not to bother them?
A: No, I think it just depends on the person.
OK THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME! :)


Ok thats my interview.. again sorry its so long hehe.. This girl obviously has a problem with people being noisy in the lounge, maybe if it is such an issue for her, she should try politely asking the loud people to be quiet? Or even just ask an RA about it. Well I can't say what she should do because I am not her, and I probably would do the same thing that she does haha. Its become a common factor that people say the lounge is supposed to be quiet, and that they like a change of scenery. I also figured out that the living learning community has nothing to do with the lounge as of right now. Ok well lets see where my conclusions lead me!

Thanks and everyone have a great THANKSGIVING DAY and BREAK!
-Reecie ^_^

Brand New Episode of: Reecie's Thought Pieces!!!

*suspenseful music* Last time on Reecie's Thought Pieces:
Reecie asks the question, Do people need a change of scene?
And now, its time for a brand new episode of.. Reecie and her Though Pieces....

:P

All joking aside... This week I would first like to say I am so glad last week is over.. With 3 Exams and one 5 page paper to write I am definately ready for this upcoming break.
Anyways, this week, I'm going to "borrow" a small idea from my classmate Phoolendu and build on it a little bit. After reading his blog (phoolendunaidoo.blogspot.com) I was realizing something that I thought was only me. He mentions that in his UK Project site he sees the people who sit alone are all trying to keep themselves occupied while they are alone eating to make themselves more comfortable. Now personally, I feel really uncomfortable while eating alone, or even waiting or being alone while sitting somewhere. My first reaction to this is to take my phone out and look busy or I make a phone call and hope someone answers. As I mentioned in a comment, I cant really explain why i feel so uncomfortable, its weird lol. And this makes me wonder... If I try to make myself look so busy, does this mean I am losing my chance to make a new friend? If someone was wanting to come up to me because I was alone just to start a conversation, would they hault their approach if I looked busy? Missing an opportunity to meet someone new is even worse than being alone in the first place.. or is it? Maybe I need to just get over my shyness and put myself out there more... Im still working on it anyway.. Is it just me who feels uncomfortable when I am alone in a room with alot of people? or is Phoolendu right and others feel the same way as I do.. Well let me know your thoughts on this :)

Thanks for reading this week :) And I hope everyone as a wonderful Thanksgiving :)
Eat up!!
-Reecie ^_^

Bored with Reecies?

Well i had no internet till today, I dont know why, so here is my blog for this past Wednesday that I wrote but was unable to post...


This week on the scene….

After going over my interviews, I started to notice another pattern that I maybe did not build on. They all came to the lounge for a change of scenery. Now I plan on asking new interviewees, that if they want to study somewhere other than their room, why they choose the lounge compared to the library or another study spot. The obvious answer I would think of is that it is close, but as we learned on Tuesday, ethnographers never assume, right?
That also got me to thinking… Do we all need a change of scenery sometimes? What happens if we get into habit of the same old thing? Well for me… I know in the studying sense I really haven’t ventured outside my room too often, except the occasional times when I go to a friend’s dorm room to study. But the same thing can get old pretty fast. This happens more rapidly for some than others, but I can imagine that it does happen. It makes me wonder when people do get to that point of things getting old, which actions they take. If they really get tired of their dorm, do they spend mostly all of their time in other places? And if this is true, is there a point where they feel they can start spending time in their dorm again? I can’t really come to a certain conclusion of that about myself, because if I get tired of a place, I just deal with it … hehe.

Well anyway, unfortunately I did not get to read my interview and get feedback from the class on Tuesday, but hopefully I’ll have another chance :) It was great to hear the interview from everyone else though :)

Okay over and out
-Reecie ^_^

There was a bag of Reecies under the couch >.<

Hey all!
So this week I am going to get back into my observations of my field project. I've made some new findings and I'm ready to share them! :P lol. I have made 3 interviews so far, and think they have gone well. I have found out some interesting things, some the same between my interviewees, and some answers were opposites!

So firstly, the main thing I am going to discuss is about the noise levels in Patterson Hall lounge. People's opinions, actions and reactions have seemed to be quite contrasting. Throughout my early observations, I noticed most people to be quiet in the lounge. Not much talking and if so they were at quiet levels. Another occasion that I was observing the lounge, there was some talking at louder levels, but everyone seemed pretty content, and the noise did not seem to be an issue. Now last night.. that is a different story. Before I interviewed, I had been observing taking field notes. I noticed a group being pretty loud on a somewhat busy night for the lounge (when I say it was busy I mean there were more people there studying than usual.) This was around 11 at night on a Sunday, so aka during quiet hours. In this group of loud-ish people there were 2 guys and 2 girls. Around the lounge there were 2 groups and 3 individuals. I noticed from watching the other people that they were annoyed by the loud group. They glanced over (with a somewhat "dirty look") numerous times. I then conducted a few interviews. My first interview that night was with a male from the loud group. When I asked him about noise levels he mentioned that they were not a problem for him, and he usually talked and studied at the same time and didn’t worry about his own levels when he comes to the lounge. My second interview for the night was with a female who had come to the lounge to talk to some people who were studying. She mentioned that the noise was extremely loud that night, and the other people in the lounge had a problem with it. She also said noise was a big deal for her, and she prefers it to be quiet so she can study.

So with this new observation, Ive found that noise levels either are a big deal and arent. Usually the students in the lounge do have that unspoken rule that you should keep your voices down, but there are some students who seem not to have this courtesy. I find it especially interesting when there are glares between the quiet students almost as if saying "do you hear how loud they are?" I look forward to what my new observatons bring me and the observations of my classmates :)

Thanks :)
-Reecie ^_^

A chewy place in Reecie's world...

Well to start this off, I would like to make a side note that i think i forgot to mention in my last blog.. The students who live in patterson are mostly honors students, and to be an official member of the Living Learning Community you must already be an honors student..

Ok so now that that's out of the way.... I think I'll start this blog with something other than my UK Project, because I am still working on getting more field notes, and meeting with some faculty members to learn more about it.

I have found myself lately being more aware of my surroundings.. in places other than I am studying. Almost like I am getting into habit of observing people around me. And i have seen patterns even. I know that... if I am by myself somewhere, maybe in a place i dont know, or even in a place i know but am not fully comfortable in, I tend to keep to myself. Even avoiding eye contact a lot of times (this could be because of my shyness)... but it makes me wonder a few things. Am I the only person who intentionally keeps to themselves when in an unfamiliar or uncomfortable place? Did I miss a chance to meet someone I could have befriended and connected with? This thought relates to a recent blog post by Phoolendu... about missing an opportunity to make a friend. In this large university with many places and people unfamiliar to you (and me) there are certain patterns we all take part in. Whether it is in a comfort zone or not. I find it interesting when I see the same people in certain places, people I know nothing about besides the fact that I see them often in the same place. Of course shy me wouldnt have the courage to ask lol.. unless I must (like for the project)... but I'm working on it :)

Well those are my thoughts for the night,
Thanks for listening :)
-Reecie ^_^

Finding some Reecies in Patterson Hall

So with this new blog Unit, with a pretty much open flow... I am deciding to start out by talking about my UK Project. I think it will help get my thoughts together, as I think it’s a bit messy right now.

So I choose to do my project in the lobby/lounge area of Patterson Hall. I figured since I always saw people studying there, and some hanging out, and even meetings sometimes, that it might be nice to study it. Patterson Hall is a Living Learning Community for the Honors program, so I hope to learn more about that, but most (not all) of the students in Patterson Hall are in the honors program, and only 25 of them are official members of the Living Learning Community.
So I have only had time for a few observations so far.
Thus far, I have only seen students in this area to study. I have yet to figure out when the meetings are or things to do with honors program. During these times of study, I’ve noticed that at some times the students seem to be keeping their voices down for the other students studying while talking. And at other times there are students who don’t seem to mind and talk normally, or even a little louder in excitement. When these students talk loud, there are some students who turn from the other side and watch them talk (seem to be distracted slightly), and there are other students who have headphones on and pay no attention. Most students come here with a laptop, and if not that then books. Half seem to have headphones on. There seems to be more students coming there individually, but there seems to be a time when another student comes to meet with them, and form a small study group of 2 or 3. Overall so far I am noticing a slight pattern with the students, but I will have to observe more to confirm this.
I hope to learn more soon :) And look forward to finding out about the interviews tomorrow.

Thanks :)
-Reecie ^_^

A crunchy reaction to the Cover of "A Handmaid's Tale"

Well first impressions are everything.... or are they?
Can you read a book by its cover? Well I am going to attempt to...

Only reading little of the book so far (i need to start reading faster....) I was able to get a good impression of the book just by looking at the cover, without using what I know from the inside. I'll combine some of what I said in our class thread, along with a few more things...

From the cover of "A Handmaid's Tale" I get a sense that these women, the handmaids, are trapped somehow, in a place that resembles darkness; the bricks going around them (going all the way up high) showing they are trapped with no freedom, no exit. But this resembles what I had said about the shadow and light in my previous blog, because I see that these two women are not in the shadows, but in the light. A light is being shined on them, and if I was to predict what the creater of this image was thinking, the light is being shined on their lifestyles. Such as the rules they must follow, their outfits being the same and in a certain color. It also seems like they have a certain job to do, because the one woman is holding a basket. As i know that the women's jobs are to conceive children for the elite couples who cannot, the basket might even be a means to hold a child. There isnt much else I can come up with just by looking at the cover, so I am going to start reading more of the book so I can learn more about it :)

Thanks for reading and sharing :)
-Reeice ^_^

A Reecie Tale

This week we move on to “A Handmaid’s Tale”. It’s a book about a dystopia, which I found out today was the opposite of a utopia lol. When interviewed about her book, Margaret Atwood says quote:

"This is a book about what happens when certain casually held attitudes about women are taken to their logical conclusions. For example, I explore a number of conservative opinions still held by many--such as a woman's place is in the home. And also certain feminist pronouncements--women prefer the company of other women, for example. Take these beliefs to their logical ends and see what happens."

From what I have read so far, I can definitely see how the quote relates. It takes those beliefs about a woman’s place and other things and puts it into this other world where it is just like that. The women of this novel have no rights. Even their names are their “Commander’s” name, such as Offred (Of Fred…). The handmaid’s purpose is to have offspring for elite couples (their commander and his wife) because the reproduction rate is low. These are their “roles” in this world. They have no basic freedoms. Atwood really brings to perspective these stereotypes and puts it in a whole new view. Everything women have been working toward as far as rights and freedom are just gone, and it’s back at square one.

Our class title – Between Shadow and Light – would work well with this book. Everything is hidden in the shadows. The things like the women in the house and other stereotypes are hidden in these shadows. The light is what reveals these things. It’s like when Atwood brings these ideas to life. In this novel it is focusing on the shadows. Women are in those shadows are stuck there with no place to go. It is the opposite to whats really happening now. With women getting more and more rights. Even possibilities for women presidents, and vice presidents. The novel really brings out the darker side of the shadow, with women not being able to step out into the light.

The Canopy has CANDY inside? Specifically peanut butter chocolate CANDY?

After reading Anderson’s “The Cosmopolitan Canopy,” I realize that Appiah’s “Cosmopolitanism” definitely helped me better understand the concept of “The Cosmopolitan Canopy.” Reading cosmopolitanism helped me have a better view of (…well the title and its purpose) cosmopolitanism. I learned to have more of a cosmopolitan view of things. In the cosmopolitan canopy, the writers purpose is similar, he wishes for a more cosmopolitan world. He finds a cosmopolitan vibe in places such as the Reading Terminal, a certain jazz club, and some other examples. In these places it is people, getting along, accepting one another for who that person is. And as Appiah suggests, they do not necessarily agree, but they do try to understand. It is because of Cosmopolitanism that I can interpret the meaning of the Cosmopolitan Canopy. If I did not understand the full meaning behind cosmopolitanism, then I might just think that it’s a couple races dealing with each other being in the same place as them. But it is more. These multicultural people under these canopies feel less anxiety, they let their guard down, and they even might feel safer. They strike up a conversation with someone of another race, which they might not normally do. They feel likes its okay to approach so and so person. It is from understanding Appiah’s reasoning that I can get this. Appiah tells us that we must know our obligations to others, and respect each other’s values. It is clear that in these places like the Reading Terminal that they do just that… (know the obligations and respect of values). And the obligations do not have to be a great one. Just small things that one does not normally do when they are feeling threatened or do not approve of someone else because of their race. So in conclusion, Appiah’s explanation of cosmopolitanism is definitely a good one. I can see all the things Appiah explained happening in these cosmopolitan canopies. (which thus helps me better understand where Anderson is coming from and what kind of view I should have on the situation overall). If we could get more of these cosmopolitan canopies across the world, even outside the canopy, then It would be a giant step closer to having universal understanding. (Although I don’t think it will happen any time soon lol).

Gracias :)
-This is Reecie
peace out

Your 3rd bag of Reecies already.. inside you find the cosmopolitan canopy

The definition of a cosmopolitan canopy is basically places people can go that have a closer more intimate setting and have a wide variety of race among the people that go. I definitely agree that cosmopolitan canopies are important. They are important because they offer places where people can go not just to observe and be among people of all different races/culture, but they can also go there to be free of racism and can relax in the environment. For some people like myself it might be different to think of all the racism that occurs, because I am not one bit racist. But something we have to accept is the fact that there are racists out there, many of them, not just racists but counter cosmopolitans. The main example Anderson used of a cosmopolitan canopy was the Reading Terminal. In this environment there were whites, blacks, Asians, Hispanics, and many others. He explained it as a place where people could go to relax, let loose of all the controversy of the city attitude and just enjoy and even observe. It was non-threatening. Places like this are important because it can help people understand people from another culture more, and not be so quick to judge. If you go there to have an enjoyable meal in one of the diners and you have racial views, and you are sitting shoulder to shoulder next to a person you are racist against, you might have a chance to actually talk to them in this close environment and maybe after this occurs a few times, start to change your mind about racism. It also allows an environment where you can comingle with other races without being judged. You are free to observe, chat with, or even talk about things you wouldn’t normally talk about in these environments. It is clear when Anderson mentions the occurrence of his Chinese friend’s trip on the bus that people of different race definitely do not get along and have certain places where they are not welcome. Cosmopolitan canopies are influencing people to have more of a cosmopolitan outlook. It is this cosmopolitan outlook that people take away from the experience that I would hope they bring with them to the outside world, and not just places that have this cosmopolitan canopy, but to places that do not. Can’t we all just get along? Lol

Thanks for reading ^_^
-Reecie Foxtrot
By the way.. Charlie and I have our own anti- counter cosmopolitan group for those of you who would like to join XD hahahaha
(Cadence you still cant join sorry.. you counter cosmopolitan >.>)

Second Life <---> Berry, Appiah

I would now like to discuss some connections to Wendell Berry and Appiah (Cosmopolitanism). Second Life is basically hundreds (maybe thousands, I’m not sure) communities all in one game. So there are many individual communities, each with different views, values, any everything else. I believe most of the communities were cosmopolitan communities. Most did not have that harsh of rules, such as the ECSL’s chosen community (Atlantic Waves). It was basically we accept your views and values are yours and we will have ours, they were not against what you believed. That seems just like Appiah would have wanted. Maybe communities like my own chosen one (Bogart’s) was a little counter-cosmopolitan because you had to follow their rules, and if you didn’t you were asked to leave (not murdered or anything, just asked to leave) unless you started to follow the rules and wear the appropriate attire and then you were allowed to enter. Other places like the space station, you were allowed to roam freely and explore the many different interactive stations uninterrupted. They even wanted new people of different cultures to come as you could tell from the different flags (flags of like 12 countries) that waved at the teleport spot.
Another thing I noticed was the relevance to the writings of Wendell Berry. From “A Native Hill” it talks about Berry leaving where he grew up to go to New York and other places, and later on in his life he comes back since he missed it a lot and felt that that was where he belonged. When he gets back he realized that it wasn’t the same places as it used to be, it changed just like the world around him and he would always reminisce about when he was a boy. I noticed in ECSL’s presentation they mentioned the island was started by a woman. And the island was created as a place for people to hang out. It seems to me that the island might have changed a lot since it was created because as they said the big house was there before other stuff was built. That big house could be relevant to the place Berry lived as a boy. As time went on new things were build at the Atlantic Waves and now I think they mentioned new apartments or something. So in a world full of change, it seems that even online communities can start changing with everything. Even Appiah mentions this in Cosmopolitanism.

So overall I enjoyed the Second Life presentations and I think it helped everyone see things from another perspective.
Thanks for reading
Reecie ^_^

Second Life <---> Bafa Bafa

I believe that Second Life related the most to the Bafa Bafa game. In the Bafa Bafa game we had to enter a new community where we did not know the rules of the community and had to try to communicate with this new community, but it was a bit difficult. Not knowing the rules of the Betan community, when I got there, they were showing cards in my face in a disrespectful way. It was because I did not understand their community yet. If I was there for longer I could have possibly started to understand their ways. This relates to Second Life because in the game you are an outsider, coming into a new already established community. Some of the places explored had rules that you needed to understand before entering certain places. The SL Project that related this the most was probably my own, at Bogart’s. There were the formal dress code rule, no flying rule, and human only rule that you were to understand. If you did not follow these rules and you went inside Bogart’s you would be asked to leave. It sounds similar to the Bafa Bafa game because our Alphan elder was required to ask someone to leave because she was not following our rules. Going into a new community can be fun too, it’s not always about rules and stuff, it’s about learning about a new culture/community. You just want to make sure you know of any main rules so you don’t offend their culture. So go explore a community that’s different than your own :)

Thanks :)
-Reecie

Final Observations :) .. One big Party? Grab another bag of Reecies

So I would like to have a final thought about Bogart's Jazz Club.

It really seems to just be one big party. Most of the people are there to dance, socialize, and enjoy the music. It is really fun with all the dancing, my feet are so sore! lol. A very friendly atmosphere. Everyone was very kind to me in their speaking manners. Bartenders and Hostess very welcoming. I found also that someone came to Bogart's because they felt they were born in the wrong time period! And Bogart's where her escape to be able to be in that era. And a beautiful era it seemed to be, Bogart's is very fancy with the chandaleers and goldrailways, staicases. The atmophere at Bogart's is so relaxed, I can understand why someone would enjoy hanging out at Bogarts daily! And at the same time its fun with the music and dancing and conversing! Here are some photos to show Bogart's appeal and some fun activities :)

With 2 grand staircases, red carpet, jeweled chandaleers and a huge dancefloor, its no wonder people like the way it feels in here :)

Charlie at the bar making me some drinks while the bartender was away... Bartender, ill have a martini on the rocks please.

Cadence, Charlie and I getting our groove on at the outdoor terrace.

Really white and flashy hehe

Sitting at the fountain lookin at the pretty trees and water :)

So you might see now why Bogarts is so attractive, I have had a really great time researching it :) Maybe you will check it out sometimes soon? :)

Thans for reading :)

Reecie ^_^

Delicious mixing pt. 2! Second batch! ....VOTE for Reecie!!!

Cosmopolitanism and UK… eat up!

Another passage that represents the kinds of social interactions and ethical considerations that I’ve experienced as a first year is in Chapter 9: The Counter-Cosmopolitans. There are many quotes I could take from this passage since it all talks about these (evil) counter-cosmopolitans, but one that would work for what I’m going to discuss is probably: “These counter-cosmopolitans do think that there is one right way for all human beings to live; that all the differences must be in the details.” I think a good example of how that applies to me at UK right now is probably politics. As we discussed in class, politics is one of those subjects you aren’t supposed to talk about, along with religion and…. Batman and superman? (this turned out to be true once the subject was brought up lol). I myself am not that into politics, but I do know who I am going to vote for (EVERBODY GO VOTE NOV. 4TH!). If someone wants to vote for the other party, that’s not like an issue for me because everyone has the right to choose for themselves. I am not going to convince them to vote for who I am voting for. But I know you counter-cosmos are out there…. You want people to vote for either OBAMA or MCCAIN! (by the way I am not going to tell you who I’m voting for cause I do not want to be subject to you counter-cosmopolitans!!!). You might be a counter-cosmopolitan and not realize it till reading this. But the counter-cosmopolitans are the ones who start talking your head off when you tell them who you are voting for. They are endlessly trying to convince you that you are voting for the wrong person, and the only “right” way to vote is their way. I’ve had smaller less dramatic conversations with people and have seen people arguing for both candidates, stating that only their choice is the right one, and everyone else has to have the same choice. If we would all just let each other choose for ourselves, then it would all just be peachy cream aka good. We all have the freedom to decide on our own right?

And dont forget to VOTE... November 4th!!!
Thanks for reading
and vote for Reecie! *peace sign* aka *duces*
-Reeice ^_^

The delicious mixing of chocolate, peanut butter, Cosmopolitanism, and UK

Cosmpolitanism and the University of Kentucky

A passage from Cosmopolitanism that speaks to me as a UK student is probably the final sentence of chapter 6, Imaginary Strangers. Appiah says “…the great lesson of anthropology is that when the stranger is no longer imaginary, but real and present, sharing a human social life, you may like or dislike him, you may agree or disagree; but, if it is what you both want, you can make sense of each other in the end.” This is a great example of social interactions I have experienced at UK. There are so many “strangers” here at the university. So many strangers meeting, or perhaps not meeting, other strangers every day. My new best friend could be walking by me each day and I wouldn’t even know it because they are still a stranger to me. If we take the time and make an effort to talk to these imaginary strangers, they would no longer be imaginary. They would be real and among us. Being very very shy, first coming to UK I was intimidated by all the strangers. I did my best trying to meet many of these strangers and see if I could make new friends. I began approaching people that I did not know, and made conversation. At times I made friends, and at other times we were left as acquaintances. It was not always friendship at first sight, but in the end, most of the time, we can make sense of each other. We should all have an open minded approach to meeting strangers and try to learn about them and understand them as much as we can :)

Thanks for reading :)
Reecie Foxtrot ^_^

Make sure to pass out Reecies at Halloween!!! More 2nd Life Investiga... err Observations.

That’s right, it’s Halloween at Bogart’s!
Bogart’s has added some nice decorations for Halloween. Pumpkin patches set around the island with pumpkins for sale. It makes me feel like the people on this island are very into celebration type things. As my role in the group is the passive interacter. In this role I basically walk around observing, talking to people if I see anything that strikes me as new or different and I strike up a conversation if the occasion arises. I was approached by a gentleman who seems to be looking for some chatting. I found out that he comes to Bogart’s looking to relax to the smooth jazz music. He felt Bogart’s was his place where he could just “chill out” without having to worry about being bothered by anyone. He was holding a beer, and many of the patrons also had different beverages such as martinis. I also found out he was looking for a “date” (companion… however you want to call it). This brings up the point that I have noticed a lot of romantic things at Bogart’s. Outside Bogart’s I found the first kissing “station” (blue and pink balls you can click to start kissing with your partner). Inside I found a cuddle pose station, another kissing station, and outside I found rather more passionate kissing stations as well as a hugging station (some of the cuddle poses made me say awww.. lol). It seems that Bogart’s not only allows but promote people to have some PDA (public displays of affection). On this trail I decided to search a bit more inside Bogart’s. Going to the 2nd floor, there are very intimate dinning settings… a dinner table for 2 by itself with a view of the city. I might partially regret investigating the 3rd floor, because as I have been up there before, I had not examined the 3 rooms fully. The middle room (Frank Sinatra room) is like a conference room, the only one I had seen previously. One of the other two rooms was the Marilyn Monroe room and I will just conclude my findings as saying this is a “love” room. As well as the last room. After inquiring a few people I found out that many people at Bogart’s are looking for dates to dance with, chat with, have second life dinner and drinks with, and then maybe take a trip to the 3rd floor with. Bogart’s is a very chill relaxed party vibe kind of place. People socializing, dancing, all around having a good time… and with my new findings maybe even finding the love of their Second Life. Very chill place with good music and fun people looking for a good time :D

(my groupmate Charlie and I testing out the "soulmate" pose :P )

See you in Second Life maybe?
Thanks again, this is
Reecie ^_^

Reecies SL Adventures... errr.. Observations :)

Observations of Second Life

After going about Bogart’s Jazz Club in Second Life there are quite a few things I have observed. It is pretty self explanatory as to what this island is; its main focus is a jazz club. It is themed within a period that jazz was a big hit, probably around the 20’s to the 50’s (not that it isn’t a hit today). Everything from the scenery to the clothing and music, I feel as if I am in that time period. You are greeted soon after arriving by an auto message from the island, and feel welcomed. I can name a few major things I have noticed so far. Firstly, right after I first arrived on the island I had attempted to fly and noticed that, well, I couldn’t. They seem to have created a no fly island, my assumption is that they want to keep it as close as they can to that time period, and no one was flying around in the 40’s lol. Secondly, when you reach Bogart’s you notice a big sign under the title of the club that says “Humans only please.” Again I suspect that this is to keep Bogart’s with a certain reputation, which is to stay in the era they are portraying. Next as you move closer to the entrance door, there is a message you receive that states the dress code; formal (ball gowns, tuxedos, etc.). It begins to feel a little strict with all these “rules,” perhaps they want me to follow a certain lifestyle while I am here? As you enter Bogart’s properly dressed, there is a club greeter standing at the door. She/he is a greeter and dress code enforcer, but all have been very nice. I notice the club is centered around the dance floor and 2 large staircases (that seem to ask you to walk upstairs). The 2nd floor is less popular and more secluded, and it has many pictures of old actors, singers and musicians. The overall environment seems friendly and social. Many people talking, greeting, and dancing. I place I am growing to like a lot :)

This is Reecie
See you in Second Life ^_^

You are now finishing ur first bag of Reecie's Thought Pieces; Cosmo. Ch 10

In this chapter, Appiah discusses “basic human rights.” His examples are things such as health, food, shelter, education, freedom to move, have children, express ideas, etc. Reviewing the UN Declaration of Human Rights I see many of Appiah’s examples stated in this document. I see human rights of all kind like that of equality, no discrimination, no objection of unnecessary torture, freedom, and many many more. I believe this document was created in order for there to be a statement that these “rights” should be followed, and do not cost anything except for those to understand them. That these basic needs are exactly that… basic, and should just be aiding, not harming. In order for everyone to obtain these basic rights, Appiah gives 3 examples of obligations that should be met. The first comes from the nation-state. The acceptance of this means we have responsibility to our own but also making sure other states are caring for their own. Secondly, in our obligations, we must do our own fair share, but we are not required to do more. We shall do as we see fair then know we have done our part, and that is all we can do. Thirdly, we cannot put all the obligations of the world on ourselves, nor can we put these obligations to others before the obligations we have to ourselves. As Appiah says, “I cannot be required to derail my life to take up the slack.” Overall I think that “basic human rights” are for the good of man, but it seems that it might be impossible to get the world to share the same belief about this.

Appiah states that a cosmopolitan is “responsive to what Smith called ‘reason, principle, conscience, the inhabitant of the breast.’” To start describing who at UK would be fitting of this description given by Appiah, I would have to begin by saying they would be someone with awareness of our obligations to others. Someone who knows that if they can help someone else they will, but it does not mean they can’t live their own lives to the fullest. The Adam Smith example explains that it is basically a natural instinct to look out for ourselves first. This UK cosmopolitan would think reasonably about globalization, and with principles. As for obligation to others, they would think of a stranger not quite as they think of their friends and family, but still would have cosmopolitan concern for the stranger. This means they do not necessarily “feel” for these strangers, but that they owe them they same general obligations as another human being. So if a UK student is kind and courteous to their friends, they would feel it was an obligation to others (strangers) to also be courteous. This also goes back to understanding (not necessarily agreeing to) another’s values rather than pushing their own idea only. There most likely many cosmopolitans at UK that I’m waiting to meet :)

Hope you enjoyed my thoughts on Cosmopolitanism
Thanks :)
-Reecie Foxtrot ^_^

Choco Reflection on Cosmopolitanism Chapter 9

The Counter-Cosmopolitans
In Chapter 9 of Cosmopolitanism, Appiah talks about a “counter-cosmopolitan.” If I was to describe a counter-cosmopolitan (here at UK for example) I would start out by saying they would have to have the idea of unity, but would go about it in a non-cosmopolitan way. Appiah states that counter-cosmopolitans “do think that there is one right way for all human beings to live; that all differences must be in detail.” The problem is that counter-cosmopolitans want to (and maybe can’t wait to) trample on our differences. These counter-cosmopolitans have a clear and direct sense of what it is they believe in. They do not have a certain “look” because anyone can be a counter-cosmopolitan. The way they would talk might be normal until you start talking about beliefs, then they might start trying to persuade you to follow their beliefs for what they believe to be a good reason. Which also is similar to the way they would act; they would be persuasive in the way they would try to get you to follow their beliefs and they would be against the beliefs you have if it is different than their own. There probably are many counter-cosmopolitans here at UK, and it might take a discussion of values for you to find out their true persona.

Appiah mentions that the challenge to cosmopolitanism is “the belief that [people] don’t matter very much”, and not “the belief that other people don’t matter at all.” Everyone can agree that people have some obligations to others, but that is the extent of the agreement. The question is if people do need to intervene in others’ situations, and what types of situations need intervening. When is it right to stop a culture from what we believe as wrongdoing. It might even go back to the disagreement of the “golden rule”; that we do not know if doing unto others what you want done to you is right because they don’t necessarily want the same things as you do. Overall the challenge is based on the questions: how much do people matter to you? Are you willing to believe that you have an obligation to these people? How much of an obligation?

Over and out
-Reecie Foxtrot ^_^

Reecies Yummy Thinkies on Cosmopolitanism Ch. 6-8

Ch. VI: Imaginary Strangers
When Appiah uses the phrase “the imaginary stranger”, he is talking about a stranger whom you have not met and is most likely from another culture. They are imaginary to us because we do not know anything about them. An encounter between yourself and the imaginary stranger would result in this stranger no longer being imaginary. They would become “… real and present, sharing a human social life”. Although you probably might think you have nothing in common with this stranger, the truth you find out that there is a couple of things you do have in common, and that starts a conversation. You then might start talking about things you do not have in common, whether u agree or disagree about it. And if you both want to, this will lead to an understanding between the both of you.
Ch. VII: Cosmopolitan Contamination
In this chapter, Appiah discusses cultural imperialism. The definition of this according to the believers is that places such as the United States and Europe are encouraging consumption of their movies, television, magazines, and other non-media products. And there are people who do take that bate. But what Appiah suggests is that cultural imperialism is indeed condescending untrue. That research shows that most people prefer programming and products that are close to their own culture. They aren’t dupes, and they can resist the American or European culture.
Appiah states of a “golden rule of cosmopolitanism”. “I am human: nothing human is alien to me”. This golden rule basically means that all humans have things in common. Regardless of what culture we come from, we all have basic similarities.
When Appiah writes “Cultural purity is an oxymoron,” it’s basically saying that all cultures have been “contaminated”. A lot of things in our culture, and most cultures, were ideas brought in from other cultures and were molded into our own idea of it. A simple example, that people all wear Levis. Originally not everyone did, but it started somewhere, and was adopted by other cultures. It is molded by individual cultures because some cultures such as our own wear jeans to dress down, to be casual, while other cultures wear jeans to something formal. That is a small example of how other cultures can adopt an idea, or have someone bring it to them, and make it their own.
Ch. VIII: Whose Culture Is It, Anyway?
Appiah’s discussion of art is an example of cosmopolitanism because art is sent from culture to culture, viewed by everyone as art. There really isn’t a cultural view of art, because if you have an appreciation for art, then you are appreciating all art, and not picking and choosing art that only comes from a certain culture to appreciate. Art is also cosmopolitanism because it is paint on a canvas; it has an international language that speaks to everyone in every culture.

I agree with Appiah’s argument that we should make sense of the stranger. It would be best if we tried to talk with strangers and learn about them. Even if we do not agree we should make sense of their ideas. That is what I believe happens when you meet someone new. You should start talking about what you know you might have in common, then you can venture onto other things, and could even find out you have more in common than you originally thought. It could be the opposite where you have nothing else in common, but you can learn about them.

An example of when I have made a connection despite difference would have to be when I was selecting my major. I choose to major in International Studies. I choose this not because I connected through my identity, but because it meant exploring something that was different. It affects my future because I will be studying different cultures and issues. Different as in: different than what I already am aware of. And as I pick my concentration, I will be able to choose a specific culture that I would like to study, and I will then become more familiar with this difference.

Thanks once again :)
-Reecie ^_^

Reecie chewy chapter 5. Cosmopolitanism

Study Question:
Ch. 5: The Primacy of Practice
The question states why it isn’t likely that we can come to a reasoned argument about values. I believe this is true for people of different cultures. They were taught to value something for the reasons of their culture, and in our own culture we might be taught the same value but for a very different reason. We might both see being kind as a value, but what I see as someone acting kindly, a person from another culture might not see as being kind. Thus we are not going to agree about our values because we were both taught to value it for a different reason, and are not going to change our reasoning of the value without long and hard thought. It is asked why we bother to have conversations if we cannot agree. Well I see it like this… We don’t have to agree. We can each have our own opinion, and even talk about them, but we do not have to come to a conclusion of agreement. What we should really take out of a conversation is an understanding for the other person’s value. We could find it interesting why they value something, and why it is different from our own definition of the value.

As a UK freshman, I believe that all freshmen might have similar values, or “shared horizons of meaning”, but we might define them differently. We all value the thought of receiving an education (or at least most freshmen). Education might have different meanings to each one of us. To me I am getting an education so I can gain knowledge while I am in college and apply it to the real world when I graduate. Someone else’s thought of an education could be completely different. Another value is doing well while in college. My definition of that value is trying the best that I can while I am in college, and hope for good grades. But I see trying your best more important because that really is all you can do, and if you put the effort forward, then the results should be good. Another person could possibly see the value of doing well in college just as getting good grades. Students might have the same values, but define them differently.

There are certain things that could impact these values, such as having a certain background or upbringing. You might have been taught that doing well in school is solely defined by how good your grades are. So if you got a B but tried your best, then it was still looked upon as not doing well in school. The value of education could be impacted by a couple things, such as race or gender. People have values in education but for instance do not believe that (for example) a Hispanic should or could receive an education (of course this is not my view, being half Puerto Rican). So their value of education is stereotyped and based on white Americans receiving an education, and that that’s “the way it should be”, which brings us back to the earlier chapters in Cosmopolitanism. Also, some men still believe (not so much anymore) that only men should be educated and not women. That there shouldn’t be powerful educated women. This cannot be helped anymore because women have proved themselves worthy of many leading jobs. But the values these men hold are that men should be educated, knowledgeable, and that is “the way it ought to be”.

So many people share the same values, could be anything, but most all see their value in a different light than another. We each have different reasons why we value something, it most of the time we will stand our ground about why, unless otherwise persuaded. To quote Shakespeare:
“When thou didst not, savage,
Know thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble like
A thing most brutish, I endowed thy purposes
With words that made them known”.

Thanks for reading once again
This is Reecie, hope u enjoyed ^_^

Reecies crunchy thought on Cosmopolitanism Intro-Ch.4

Study Questions:

Introduction: Making Conversation
Cosmopolitanism. Appiah explains two principles to cosmopolitanism. The first is that we have obligations to others. Not just to people we know, but even to those we don’t. To have a concern for other communities as we do our own, and to accept every culture for the way it is, not desire any change. The second is that we take the value of particular human lives seriously. This means we should take interest in significant beliefs and practices of others… and do so with an open mind, not a judgmental one. Appiah’s main objective is to make it harder to think of the world as divided between “us” and “them”.
Ch. I: The Shattered Mirror
Appiah draws out a distinction between two points of view. The first: understanding why someone does something, from their point of view… The second: why we do something from our own point of view. I think it is important to know both of these because we should know why someone does something, even if we are against it. The reasons why they feel they should do it. It is very similar to our own point of view. I have beliefs and values and someone from another culture has different beliefs and values. We both have a strong belief in what we do, and might even be against each other at first, but if try to learn why this person has these values, then it might be the first step for me to try and understand. If I understand where they are coming from, then I might not be so against it, which is a step towards cosmopolitanism.
Ch. II: Escape from Positivism
Positivism. This is the thought that there are only beliefs and desires, or, “what is” and “what ought to be”. Positivism poses a problem for Appiah, because he does not find the theory to be entirely true. The reason being is that Positivism says that you need fact for your belief to be a truth. His example is that if 1 and 1 is 2, where exactly do we find that fact? Positivism means that we cannot believe in values because they hold no certain “fact” in the world. Not just values, but things like numbers, possibilities, universal truths, and much more. Positivism also says u can criticize beliefs as unreasonable. Appiah asks, where is the fact the belief is unreasonable. Positivism’s problem lies in its starting point, to act on your beliefs and desires. To figure out your values… and values are not for just one single person, values are to guide everyone. I believe Positivism is for the less open minded.
Ch. III: Facts on the Ground
Appiah talks about facts not being wholly distinguished from values. I believe his example of witchcraft was a good one. In Ghana, they believe they gets sick because someone placed witchcraft upon them, when we know that it was most likely due to germs or disease. The meaning behind this is that in his culture, they have that belief that witchcraft is true. Some people believe they are witches, and can cast harmful witchcraft (or good witchcraft) on others. It is what they were taught, what they value, and what they teach to others so they also will have this value. It is part of their culture. We are taught a different reason behind sickness, germs (which are the scientific reason behind a cold), and hold different values. But because we have our beliefs, does not mean another culture has to believe it (or should) just because we tell them to, or vice versa. We hold onto our own values. If we do not value witchcraft like the Ghanaians, then we do not have to value or believe in it… but because they do, nothing we can say will change their minds overnight. We have to remember to understand things from the other cultures perspective, and try to understand their values.
Ch. IV: Moral Disagreement
Appiah uses the terms “contestable” and “open textured” when he is describing difficulty of agreement of values. When he uses these terms, he means that some values are meant to be argued. When you learn of someone else’s value, you do not have to accept it right away, you should determine if you are against it, and for what reasons. It is not just because we don’t understand, but as Appiah says, it is …“because applying value terms to new cases requires judgment and discretion” When others use “evaluative language”, which is words such as kind, cruel, courage, coward, etc. , they are shaping our thoughts on what happened, and what we think should be moral. This complicates the discussion on values because it is now saying that we should be arguing about other’s values instead of trying to understand them. That we use evaluative language, and it most likely aids the disagreement, as it shapes our thoughts and feelings. Everyone will have their own opinion to what politeness or rudeness is (or any other evaluative language), thus the start of this complication.


The ideas in this book can relate to Bafa Bafa because it is explaining how other cultures do not understand each other’s values, and might not right away without explanation. In Bafa Bafa even if we were open-minded, without an explanation to the new culture’s values, we are unable to understand them. The ideas relate to the writings of Berry in the sense that Berry considered it to be one world. He was one with nature, respected his community, and the communities of others, showing cosmopolitanism.

In Second Life I have yet to find myself a cosmopolitan. All the people I have came across seemed to be immersed in their own culture only and we not very open to other cultures. Hopefully I will find some soon.


As long and possibly painful that was, thanks for reading :)
Reecie here, signing out..
^_^

Reecie's chocolatey part in Tenacious III !!!!

In Second Life, my group and I have already established many skills. I would skill we are at skill level 2. The skill level 1 skills, walking, flying, talking, sitting, and dancing have become easy skills. We’re taking off and landing all the time! Flying is a great way to see your surroundings at a bigger scale. I have also altered my appearance quite a bit and have been teleporting to explore new places. The skills from skill level 2 took a little more time to understand, but I am pretty confident with them now. Changing outfits and hair, taking things off, opening a box (that took a little practice because it was lagged or something lol), and I have become a lover of shopping for freebies! Now if only I could find a decent hairstyle lol.

Our group name is Tenacious III. Cause well, we are the Tenacious III. Haha. I think that says it all, I have no other explanation lol. (other than.. we rock! Lol :P) My role in our group in Second Life is going to be “The Passive Interacter”(yes I think we created a word there lol). Im going to interact more with the community we chose. With the objects and world itself rather than the people. I will be interacting with people to find out where to go for entertainment. Watching to see where most of the people, are going and follow them, and see what most are doing. Overall I am not going to be aggressive. I am just interacting with things I find in the world and seeing how it affects myself or others, and what it can tell me about their culture. What the people can tell me about their culture without having to forcefully emerge myself in the culture. I look forward to seeing what my group and I will find out :)

Thats all for now folks
Thanks for reading ^_^
-Reecie Foxtrot.. your friendly treat :)

Reecie's Geo-Bio Peanut Butter

In Second Life we are able to choose “home” sites. When deciding on a home site for myself, I wanted to choose a place where I already felt comfortable. Since I have not travelled to many places, I choose the place that I have explored the most. I feel that when I’m on the Island, it’s almost like my home away from home..lol. I guess that being familiar with a place makes me feel almost safe when I go back to the home site, and it is just like a virtual home away from home. I feel that everyone on my home island are friendly, and I don’t feel intimidated. I do intend on exploring more sites in SL, but I’m pretty positive I am going to keep my current home site as my home site.

As for my group for the SL Project, I am part of the Arts & Culture group. Although it wasn’t my first choice (my first choice group was already too full!), it was definitely a second choice for me. In real life I’m interested in the arts and culture, so it will be very interesting to be able to explore it in SL. From the looks of the sites we have already seen for the Arts & Culture, some were very cool (Bogart’s for example), and one in particular was very shady (liquid rock- everyone was way too friendly, and it reminded me as some sort of cult, as im sure my classmates agreed.. haha). But I look forward to exploring the other arts and cultures sites we were given.

This is Reecie, signing off..
Thanks for reading ^_^

Reecie's Second Life

Hi again all. Reecie is the name, Second Life is the game. In Second Life I had to choose an avatar for myself. Instead of going for the character that was completely opposite of me, or deformed (lol), I decided to choose a character that reflected my virtual self. I guess not only by looks, but even by the name of the look I chose.

When first getting into the game, before even logging in, you’re required to choose a set avatar (that you can later configure to your liking). I went for the “girl next door” look. The avatar girl had brown hair in a pony tail, a pink polka dot dress, and black heels on. Girl next door would be a good way to describe me. I’m your typical “nice” girl, not very wild or crazy (although I can’t say that’s true 100% of the time, but I’m sure we all have our moments). I like being girly and dressing cute, which also go with the whole “girl next door” thing.

Once in Second Life, I did start making slight changes to my avatar. I turned her pony tail into longer hair. I adjusted her weight and height a bit. Made slight adjustments to her facial details. Gave her some pink nail polish lol. Once I finished with her appearance, I turned to her clothing. After finding a few clothing items from the free section (and after figuring out how to get the clothes out), I went ahead and altered her look. Even though I liked the pink polka dot dress, I decided to change to some black jeans and a UK T-Shirt (had to show my UK pride haha).

Overall, in a way, my avatar exemplifies me. If I was a virtual character, that’s how I would look lol. I might want to change my walk though, since my avatar walks with a limp hehe.

Thanks for reading :)
-Reecie Foxtrot

Wendell Berry : "A Native Hill" and "That Distant Land"

“A Native Hill” is an essay written by Wendell Berry. Wendell Berry starts out describing his hometown in Henry County, Kentucky, a small town in Kentucky with lots of tobacco farming. He describes his own life as being inseparable from the history and the place where he is from.

Education brought Berry to the University of Kentucky, but later his writing and poetry had brought him to places such as California, Europe, and New York City. While teaching in NYU in New York, Berry began to wonder about returning home, to Kentucky. As this had started out as a hard decision process for Berry, he knew it was his fate to return to Kentucky.

It was when Berry had returned to Kentucky that he really began defining us as a community. He explains that we believe that what is good for us is good for the world, but we need to change our beliefs and know that what is good for the world will be good for us. That we know but little, and each generation is leaving the land worse than the prior. That we need to slow down and appreciate the beauty of life and the things of nature. We as a community, as man, need to know our responsibilities, both to nature and to the order of things.

“That Distant Land” is another essay by Wendell Berry. This essay is focused on the greatness and last moments of Berry’s grandfather, and his family’s involvement in the tobacco fields. There are similar qualities in “That Distant Land” to that of “A Native Hill”.
Berry’s grandfather shows him and his family the quality of taking life slowly, to appreciate people and the land. Members of the community all take time to make sure they visit with Berry’s grandfather, whether it’s a short visit during the day, or for a couple hours at night. Berry’s grandfather is like a role-model to him, as well as to the other family members. Berry in particular keeps an eye on his grandfather at night, watching his grandfather look peacefully onto the night through the window. He takes joy in observing his grandfather, and enjoys all the personality traits his grandfather obtains.

As the family is involved in tobacco growing and cutting, come cutting season it was their great divider of the year. Afterwards their minds would be lightened, and they could look ahead to winter. While they went to the vast fields to cut the tobacco, they did so with a good steady pace, but not that of any great hurry. As they mentioned they needed young boys to be in competition to make the process faster, they themselves were in no race. Berry would look upon the cut field as a momentous and beautiful sight.
Upon Berry’s grandfather’s death, all were saddened but knew that life must go on, as we must.
As in “That Distant Land”, in “A Native Hill” Berry discusses his roots in Henry County, his identification with nature and the earth, and how the community cares for one another. He speaks of men of his family whom he looks up to, and of his interest of the past generations. It can be said that Berry is a man who is defined by his roots, and wishes the world better in the coming years.

There are many things I can take away from these two essays and bring them into my own life in my community. Berry obviously saw the damage that each generation brings to the earth and to nature, and says we leave the land worse than the generation before us. I believe it should really be the opposite, as we should be leaving the land and earth better than it was before us. This can start anywhere from recycling, to making sure we don’t litter, to conserving energy. Our country right now is concerned about building, building, building, and has no regard for the animals that are left homeless, plants that are killed, or the beauty they destroy. If we can’t all, as a community, make these beneficial changes, then we should one by one start the change, and as the past will show, it would become a regularity to us.

Berry also shows how important it is for us to care for one another in our community, and how much it means to others. If we could take a little time out of our day to show someone we care, then it would probably mean a lot more to them than we thought. To listen to what someone wise has to say, to find out a story behind a story. Berry’s essays showed his outlook on how we could better ourselves or be better as a people.

Autobiography of Reecie

Hey everyone. I'm Reecie Foxtrot as u should know. I was born in 1988, in White Plains, New York, and am a little bit older than most freshman. Most of my family still lives in that area of New York, but when I was 9 we moved to Florida. We moved around for awhile in south Florida, and my dad had stayed in north Florida. Eventually, last year, my mom moved up to North Carolina, with her boyfriend, and I was in South Carolina at the time at a tennis academy. I eventually left the tennis academy and went home to my mom, in North Carolina. So how did I get around to Kentucky? Well, I met my boyfriend at the tennis academy in South Carolina, and he is originally from Kentucky. I decided I wanted to stay close to him and come to UK (he attends Centre College). I have been living in Kentucky since April of this year, and I grown very fond of the state :)

So I guess you could say most of my life has been based around the sport of tennis till this point. I started playing tennis when I was just 2. I started playing tournaments when I was 7, and declared to my mom I wanted to turn professional...lol. So with my dream in mind, I started training up to 6 hrs a day starting at the age of 12. My hard work did pay off, because at the age of 15 I was ranked top 10 in the world in juniors 18 and under. At the age of 16 I turned pro, and at 17, was ranked in the top 300 in the world in women's. I was fortunate to have been able to travel to the many places. Although, I was there for the tournament, and unable to explore the cities more. The conclusion to my tennis career came when I was 19, at the end of last year. I injured my back (not sure how) and it is still not healed to this day. So, forced to end my tennis career, I decided I wanted to get a good education and that UK would be the place to do so :)

The first couple weeks of school have been interesting. Right now my major is International Studies, but I am unsure it will stay as that. I guess a slight fear of mine at UK is that I wont be able to find something that I like. That I'll come to college, and leave the same way I came in, but im sure that this is just an exaggerated fear, and that I will find what suits me best. I only attended school until 6th grade (I was homeschooled from 7th grade on), so the whole college experience is new to me. Not so much the living on your own part of it, as I have already done so while playing tennis, but the classroom aspect, and the large amount of students. I feel myself getting accustomed to it thought, and soon enough I will fit right in with the UK culture.

On the personality test, I got ISFJ, or "Introvert, Sensor, Feeler, Judging". I got this result both from the computer results and my own results, so I would say it was pretty accurate. As far as what learner I am, I consider myself a combination of a visual learner and an analytical learner. I find myself both learning best when I can see something, written down or whatnot, and when I can take the information, process it myself, and think about it logically.

The DSP class is very interesting to me. I really enjoyed the simulated cultures activity that we participated in. It was both fun and informative. We were able to find out what the Betans thought about our culture, them not knowing what our culture values were, and as well let them know what we thought about theirs. Overall I think the Alphans were better as a whole as a culture, but that might be a bit biased... haha. The personality tests were interesting as well. Although it didnt seem to work out for everyone else, it pretty much got my personality pretty close on (not 100% but maybe like 85% lol). I look forward to many of the topics we are going to cover in this class.

So thats me, Reecie. Hope you enjoyed, at least a little, my life story. Thats the way things have played out for me so far. It was pretty long I know lol, but you've made it through reading it. As far as where life will take me, I hope to find out. Thanks for reading ^_^

Class / Cosmopolitanism Ch. 1

Hey!
So like many others, this is also my very first blog. Woot! lol. Although I have been active in forums before (yes, I play an online game :P ).

So, I really enjoyed todays class. I was an Alpha. It was very interesting to see how the other culture (Betas) reacted to our culture, and also how I felt in their culture. The two cultures seemed to be very opposite. No matter how many times I flashed my insult card while in the Beta culture, they didn't understand what I was doing, so as an Alpha, I was very insulted.. haha. Overall, I thought it was very intriguing as well as fun.

I have started reading Cosmopolitanism, up to the end of chapter 1. I find it interesting so far. As for the first person talked about in chapter 1, Richard Burton, I think its crazy that a single person could learn that many languages, and about all those different cultures. I look forward to reading more of this book, and finding out more about the "cosmopolitans" and "anti-cosmopolitans". To quote the end of chapter 1...

"There is no Good, there is no Bad;
these be the whims of mortal will."

"Was he right?"