Final Portfolio

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Final Piece

     This is the home stretch for Writing 102. Our final essay based on all of the essays we have been working on throughout the year, believe me, not as easy as it sounds. So far I have decided to spilt my paper into sections such as background information, how I am connected with the topic, interviews and so on. The paper is going strong so far but there is still some work that has to be done.

     As for my portfolio, almost all of it is completed aside from the introduction. Also, I am still deciding whether or not I should spilt my final piece into sections on my website or just leave it in one whole document.

Strike!

As reading this week, we read the last sub-piece of the essay. This sample piece really put what us, as a class, must complete to have a successful essay. With the help of this example, we learned that it is not acceptable to completely copy and paste your complete three essays together but it is okay to use bits and pieces. Also, that there are some sections you will not use from your previous essays. It was helpful to know that in-text citations are very important and therefore must be included in the final paper. It made my experience easier by seeing this because I know that the possibilities can be endless for this essay, because of the amount of information collected we have the opportunity to pick and choose what information we think is most important. Most importantly, I learned how to write about the group without judging their groups styles and techniques which I thought at first was going to be difficult but with a sample essay, I understand how easily it can be done.

Interviews

There are two major parts of interviewing,asking and listening.
In the asking aspect of interviewing, you will encounter two kinds of question, closed and open.
1) Closed questions are similar to questions on an interview, they are often single phrased answers. Asking too many closed questions can lead to an akward conversation consisting of only closed questions.
Some examples are:
- How many years of school have you had?
- Do you rent your apartment?
-Do you own a car?
2) Open questions are questions that have no single answer and can engage in a lengthy conversation that can lead to personal information astray of the question originally asked.
Some examples are:
-Tell me more about the time when ...
- How would you describe yourself to others?
-Describe a typical day in your life.

The listening aspect of interviews involves having the ability to change the directions of your questions. You need to be able to read the persons body language and follow-up with questions that will contiune them to talk and not shut down.

These are two important parts that lead to a successful interview.

March 25, 2010

     After reading the Bowling interview, I got a really good sense of what goes on inside of the leagues. You learn that each league has a different approach, some do it for fun while others are very competitive. Also that some league members are friendly and open while others give you a "just go away" look and are reserved. The bowling interview also showed the difference between the men and women teams, the men teams tend to be more competitive while the women teams seem to be there for the fun of it.

This paper also went into detail about the staff at  the bowling alley, it told how the owner and his family bought the alley after theirs got shut down and that besides one woman and two teenage workers, it was a family run business.

     All in all, it gave me a better sense of how I should apply the same technique to Hair's To You, I should not only talk to the customers but the staff as well and get everyones point of view. Also get the atmosphere on a particular night, like Monday nights at the bowling alley were the most packed.

Group Presentation

     Our group is presenting on good and bad fonts and colors which we are focusing onto websites, resumes/essays and others. Each member of the group is going to specifically focus on one of the websites, essays and so on. Together we are going to put all of our information on a powerpoint and take turns presenting.

Mid.Term

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The Grammar of Observation

How your observations pull readers in the based on your use of grammar. This is what I learned this week:

1. When using nouns,be sure that you choose words from the list (that you originally created) to created a strong description of your focal point. "A focal point is often a noun - a concrete object in the informants' space that represents more than it actually is" (Fieldworking pg.233). When using these strong nouns, you want the to link to a larger picture.
2. When using verbs, you want to be sure that they capture motion. Instead of using walk, use saunter because it brings out a stronger action although the words mean the same.
3. When using adjectives and adverbs you have to make sure that you let your informants and other data contribute to the material. In other words do not make the assumptions for the reader.

This link goes into further detail and explains the grammar a little differently:
http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/fieldworking3e/pages/bcs-main.asp?v=&s=01000&n=00120&i=01120.01&o=

Diamond Creative Eyebrows

For this blog I decided to observe Diamond Creative Eyebrows in Pawtucket, RI.

-small area, in a strip mall type location
-surrounded by many salons, barber shops, nail shops, etc.
-clean and neat: everything has a place
-has purses, jewelery, etc. for sale as well
-has non-American music/ tv playing
-only two women work at this shop
-neither speak english all that great
-quite a few people came in a once (otherwise not too busy)
-workers do not communicate with customers a lot (only when asking questions)
-do not try to have conversations while cashing out customers like some other businesses do
-has a small waiting room, seats alligned in order around the small divider wall and window wall
-has two chairs for the customers to sit in (as well as a room in back)
-room is overall spacious, no clutter

Lay of the Land

     This week, I am basing my blog post on Professor Williams, "Slide, Roll, Slam" Lay of the Land essay. The part of her essay that I found the most interesting was the different types of people that she observed at the bowling alley. I found her description of the bowling alley itself very helpful because it made you feel like you were present and made it easier to relate to the essay in general. I really liked how she zeroed in on one specific bowler, the "random" guy who wore the shorts and sang Toby Keith's Who's Your Daddy. Also that she observed how he liked wrestling and related that to why he might be packing up his things and leaving earlier than some of the other bowlers. It was really helpful to the reader to get examples of the companies that willingly leave business cards as well as the specials that the alley offers to draw in business.

     I agreed with how she decided to wait until her next observation period to interact with the bowlers and ask questions. I feel it is important to observe how everything runs before you put yourself into the equation. Everything stated in "Slide, Roll, Slam" was well supported because of the many examples offered from her observation. Overall, Professor Williams "Slide, Roll, Slam" essay really gave the reader and accurate account of what it would be like to observe a bowling alley league.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNxhF2_8Vbk

The link included in my blog shows what Professor Williams explains in her essay that the leauge members are quiet yet they still cheer on their team in their own way.

Hair's To You Salon



Hair's To You - Front Window



      My research site is going to be Hair's To You in South Attleboro, Massachusetts. It is located on 638 Washington Street which is also Route One. The owner of the salon is Deidre Dubois who also works as a hair stylist along with four other stylists/ manicurists, some part time and some full time. Hair's To You was voted first place for  'Best Hair Salon in the Attleboro Area' in the Reader's Choice Awards in the Sun Chronicle (which is a newspaper mostly in the Attleboro area) in both 2009 and 2010. Both appointments and walk-ins are accepted, the salon is open Tuesday to Saturday.



     A few questions I have for Hair's To You are; what are the biggest days of the week? As well as the biggest times of the day? Are there a lot of "regulars" (same time, same day of the week, etc.)? Do you get a lot of business being located in a small strip mall? How do you decide who gets the walk-in customers?

"Friday Night at Iowa 80" January 28, 2011

     "Friday Night at Iowa 80" includes Rick Zollo's accounts of the happenings at the Iowa 80 truck stop. He begins by explaining what is included in this massive stop and goes into the opinions from the different truck drivers that stop there. I found it really interesting how the truck drivers opinions vary based on the age of the driver, the older driver referred to as "'an esteemed older gentleman in a green shirt" (Old-Timer at the Fuel Station 17) stated that "things" were both better and worse than they were 20 years ago. In his opinion the trucks were better, the money was still supporting him but things such as the logbook have no changed. Another man, Dan had a different train of thought he believed that everything was worse because he looked at only the bad in every situation.
    I agree with Rick Zollo in that truck stops such as Iowa 80 are considered a community. People that are not truck drivers, also known as "four wheelers" are considered outsiders and in Rick Zollo's situation are wary of because they could be from the government or different trucking companies. Rick Zollo's account was very well developed, it was easy to read. Also, getting the opinions of different truck driver's as well as the employees who work at this particular truck stop gave his account much support. Truck stops, like Iowa 80, are like a family, if as a truck driver you frequent there often you are well known and possibly know others who are there. It is a place where the blue-collar workers that drive trucks can share horror stories and experiences that "four wheelers" cannot relate to.
   I am including this link to show how truck drivers are like a community, how they can relate to each other and how they can act like a family.
http://www.rankmyrig.com/index.php