Blog #10

I think this is a good time to write a blog. I am still high off of the Chargers’ win and I am pretty full. It seems like a good time to let my stomach settle. How about that game, though? I honestly thought we were gonna choke, but hey we did it.

So I have a few ideas floating around on what community I want to write about. I want to research a certain subreddit (on Reddit.) If you are not familiar with Reddit, it is a website that consists of basically communities known as subreddits. Each subreddit is unique in that nearly all of them can be their own discourse community. I wrote in a previous post about my experience with the r/fantasyfootball subreddit. I showed how it met the criteria for a discourse community. I figure that if r/fantasyfootball qualifies, many other subreddits will as well. I originally thought about doing it about r/fantasyfootball, but there are so many more options.

The thing with subreddits is that most of the communication mediums are the same. What differs is how they communicate, and what language they use. Also, you have to pay attention to how they use the ideologies of each subject they represent. For example, r/wallstreetbets is way different from r/stocks even though the main focus of each is the stock market. r/wallstreetbets is sarcastic and vulgar, while r/stocks is more educational and professional. You would have to visit the subreddits yourself in order to get a better idea of what I’m talking about. My point is, even though they both take on the genre of “financial speak,” they ideologies portray are different. When you browse the site, you will start to notice how values differ across subreddits.

The only subreddits usually require from you is your time. There are no fees or crazy initiations (that I know of). You really just need a reddit username and you’re good to go.

So yeah, that’s where I am right now. I figure that if I can’t decide on a subreddit that I will do my paper on nurses. My girlfriend’s mom is a nurse, so I figure I could interview her, and maybe even some of her coworkers.

I know this blog is a bit short, but I am still brainstorming. I hope I can pick a subreddit by tomorrow, but we’ll see. I hope you guys have a fun time thinking about what you wanna write about.

#boltup

P.S. I lost today in fantasy. I benched Matt Forte because he hasn’t been performing lately. He also went up against the Ravens D, which I thought was decent against the run. Well, there he sat, 20 something points to his name. I think I am about to lose by less than 20...Oh well.

Blog #8 - If Youre Reading This Its Too Late

If you’re reading this, I hope you are having a good day/night or whatever time it is you are reading this. If you are not, well then you wouldn’t know. (I know, the title is grammatically incorrect on purpose.)

So, while reading Mirabelli I found myself getting caught up on the concept of literacy. I mean, he has a point. We usually think of literacy as something related to reading and writing. Sometimes you hear people say, “I’m not computer literate.” When they say this, it is usually as a joke, but it is a real thing. Literacy can be applied to a multitude of things the more you think about it.

Literacy is not just about understanding words, though. It is more so that you are able to communicate with others whom have the same understanding of the concept of which you are literate in. This sounds confusing, I know. But hear me out. Say you are presenting something to your coworker in Excel. Sure, you can read what is on the sheet and maybe you understand a few of the figures, but do you know how to interpret what you have read and how to talk to someone else about it? Can you talk to someone about the functions they used to get certain data to show up? Are you literate in Excel?

Do you get my point? It’s not just being able to say “Oh, yeah. I can read that and get a jist of what you are saying.” You have to be able to carry on a conversation with someone who is literate in that subject, that’s what makes you, literate.

I think a good example of literacy can been seen in the world of meming. So, say someone sees a meme. They get it, they laugh, they share it. That meme is something people know of, and have an understanding of. They adapt it to fit certain situations, but it still retains its core meaning. All of these meme-literate people get it. But then comes along an old marketing firm, pushing out a new product for some company that desperately needs help. They try to be hip and use a meme when marketing their product. It’s that same meme that the people know and love. The thing is, the firm used it in a way that is completely different from the way everyone else has. It is not just different, it is wrong. They “just don’t get it.” They try other memes and fail. They are meme-illiterate.

You can apply this concept of literacy to just about anything. You could say it relates to discourses, but you do not have to be part of a discourse to be literate. I could know about cars for example, and know how to ask about things wrong with my car and parts and what not. But that does not make me a mechanic. I know enough to effectively communicate with another person who is literate in the subject.

It’s funny though, because you think “What makes that person literate?” According to my sentence above, the mechanic is literate, but why? Who does he communicate with that makes him literate? It’s like a chain that goes on forever, until you reach the person who created the subject. Think about reading and writing. Who really was the first literate person? We came up with the concept of reading some time ago, but who was the first to say “I can read!”?

Blog #7 - Mushfake, Such Wow

This is probably the third time I have had to study for an exam while writing a blog. It just might be. (My mom just came into my room to tell me about her day. It’s always nice to talk to her after a long day.) On to the blog…

What I get from mushfaking is “fake it til you make it.” I thought about this, and I’d have to say that my experience with mushfaking is probably a process I am still in right now. I’m talking about working in an office. I worked at SeaWorld prior to the job I have now, and before that (and still on some weekends when I need extra cash) with my brother who is a general contractor. So, I had no real experience in an office setting, or just sitting down for such a long time. I never dressed “business casual.”

That all changed when I started college. I figured it was time to look for a job somewhat related to my major. I ended up stocking inventory and cleaning for KPBS. I made it.

GIF in #wemadeit

No, but really. After a few months of being the “facilities” manager (managing great people...just myself) I had an opportunity thrown my way. I had mentioned to my supervisor that I enjoyed working at KPBS, but that I had wanted something more fulfilling. She knew what I meant, and told me she’d let me know if she heard about any openings within the organization. She hooked it up.

She introduced me to my current supervisor, and here I am now. I help manage the KPBS Events Calendar. I have my own email signature with a KPBS logo and all that cool stuff. The thing is, this is where I meant to start my blog. Ever since I started my desk job (around 2 years ago now) I’ve been trying to find out what an office job is supposed to be like. I still don’t know how to dress. I get by with khakis and some polos. I still find it weird running into people at the watercooler. I didn’t even know water-cooler conversations were a real thing. I still don’t feel like I “fit-in” in an office. It’s weird because I keep telling myself I have to get used to it. I am a marketing major, so I assume offices will be a normal part of my life. I have yet to figure out how exactly I am supposed to act in office. Maybe I’m overthinking it?

I see people looking busy, and I wonder if I look busy? Should I look busy? Is there such a thing as looking too busy? When is it appropriate to get a cup of coffee? Why is it so hard to find a dress shirt that fits?

I guess I’ll have to keep at it. I can’t expect to be the next Don Draper overnight.

via GIPHY

Blog #6 - Becoming a College Student

So, I’m writing this before bed, as I study for yet another midterm. Nothing special, all of us do it. Before I start, I just want to say that I kicked ass in Fantasy today. Julio Jones with 300 yards! The dude got me 36 points! (I just read the rest of the blog and I noticed my tone changed as I wrote more. I guess that writing this just made me feel more appreciative. Anyway, enjoy your day, or night, or whenever it is that you read this. If you do.)

So, I grew up kind of different from my friends. My parents are both immigrants and have a certain way of doing things. What makes me different (a special snowflake, right?) is that I have two older brothers. They are way older. I am 21, the middle one is 35, and the oldest is 40. My parents were young when they raised my brothers, more carefree. My brothers got into trouble here and there, and my parents dealt with it. Then I came along. I guess my parents wanted me to be different. They raised me so strictly that I almost had no social life growing up. I was very limited in what I could do and who I could hang out with. My parents always pushed for me to succeed academically. They wanted me to know English so well that here I am, at the old age of 21, speaking very broken Spanish.

What I am trying to say is that my parents have always wanted me to do well, at any cost. When I started college I knew I would be in for a bigger workload than high school. My parents knew that too. They don’t mind when I’m locked in my room all day, studying or finishing projects and blog posts. They have given me everything I need to be part of an academic discourse. They made the transition easy. There are no hard feelings when I eat dinner in my room, watching online lectures or when I come home at 12 after a late night study group.

Having so much to do can be hard sometimes, and I get lost in keeping track of things. I knew that going to college wasn’t going to be a breeze, but it is not something I see as eating into family time. It’s all about finding the right balance. If anything, I have learned how to act in a more professional manner, depending on who I am interacting with. I haven’t changed much in the transition to college. I think my parents just see me as more mature.

My parents do not see me pursuing my academics as something that is interfering with family time. Instead it is something they expect, and are rather proud of. I am the first in the family to attend a four-year university and they find joy in that. They know we are considered to be on the poor-end in terms of income, but they will never hesitate to support me in my academic endeavours.

And I thank them for that.

(I kept this short and sweet, just because it feels right.)