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 ^_^
Monday, November 24, 2008
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 ^_^
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 ^_^
Friday, November 21, 2008
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 ^_^
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 ^_^
Monday, November 17, 2008
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 ^_^
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 ^_^
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
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 ^_^
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 ^_^
Monday, November 10, 2008
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 ^_^
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 ^_^
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
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 ^_^
Monday, November 3, 2008
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.
"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.
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