paper two ideas

                My first idea for Paper two is to explore the cult of text messaging. It has become a generational obsession which deepens with every new cell phone on the market. Teenagers have come to communicate with one another solely through sending text messages. During movies, in class, at work, and even while driving, texting is taking over society. No longer do we take the time to call a friend and have an actual conversation. Instead, we find it easier to type short questions and responses to one another. I am part of the texting generation and I feel its effects are overall negative. I hope to get across that texting is causing many of us to lose important social skills because we rely on our cell phones to meet and get to know another.

What am I writing about?  My generation’s addiction to text messaging

Why am I writing about this topic? I am directly affected, and although I feel text messaging is a great way to communicate and get to know someone briefly, it largely affects my generation’s social skills by not communicating face to face in the “real world”

What do I know about this topic and what do I still need to find out? I know that wherever I go it seems that everyone pulls out there cell phones to check text messages. This includes anywhere public such as movie theatres, restaurants, sports games, church, class, etc…

What are my personal feelings on the matter? I do not want to completely stop communicating through text messaging but I do not want to lose my social skills.

What effect do I want my writing to have on the reader (keep in mind the audience for this piece)? The older generation had much better social skills because they did not have the technology of today to communicate. Instead of a phone call or text message people would walk or drive to their friends’ houses and have in depth conversations to build relationships

What is my readers’ understanding of the issue? Older generations have visual experience on the use of cell phones. Wherever they go they see teenagers distracted by their cell phones.

What biases or objectives (mine or my readers) should I take into account? Older generation is against technology, while my generation seems to be all for technological growth and convenience of communicating through text messaging

Which Common Culture reading might be a good fit for my proposition? And how can I use it (will the cultural artifact or ritual extend the article or seek to disprove it or what?)? Our cell phones, ourselves will be a good reference for my topic. The article gives good examples on how cell phones take people out of the real world and place us in a bubble with our cell phones.

                Another idea I have is to explore the cult of Face book online.  It is a huge online network where teens post pictures, comment on other’s pages, and meet people from similar high schools or colleges. It is a useful tool to keep in contact with faraway friends and family, however it is rapidly becoming another social barrier. Instead of going out and experience the real world, society may find themselves at home on a Friday night searching through friends and having conversations on facebook. I feel that opening a facebook account is parallel to joining a cult. You don’t know what you are getting yourself into until you are addicted and check your computer ten times a day. I would hope to get across that face book and other online social tools  such as MySpace are fine in moderation but can quickly leave you disconnected from the real world and remain lost in cyber space.

Add a comment September 29, 2008

The Purchasing Cult

                As I stand in the middle of my dorm room and begin to look around at my possessions I start to wonder what reason I had for wanting these items and what had lead me to purchasing them. I will first begin at my closet. I see dresses, shorts, tank tops, jeans, flip-flops, and some high heels. My wardrobe definitely belongs to a girl who lives in warm weather. But is the fact this it’s hot outside my motivation for shopping. Thinking back on specific shopping experiences I can conclude for certain that the weatherman for Arizona was not my shopping coordinator. Instead I realize that I look to what celebrities are wearing in movies and on television shows, how my friends dress, and ultimately what is in style. Do I even like my clothes? I honestly do not know and I do not suspect I ever will.

            I now contemplate on the technology strewn about my room. I see a television, a Bose radio, a cell phone, an I-touch, and the lap-top which I am using at this very moment. I know I bought the television for entertainment purposes. It is a time for relaxation and a break from homework. Commercials, however, are a time to let advertisers repeatedly show me what I should buy and why their product is the best. For instance, the I-pod commercial, which replays about one thousand times throughout the day on various channels, is probably the reason I am obsessed with my I-touch. I was brainwashed without even realizing it.

            The brands that are labeled on practically everything in my room is recognizable with some form of advertisement; half of which I could sing the jingle for. Whether it is television, radio, or simply walking through the mall, everywhere I go I am prompted to purchase one thing or another whether I truly need it or not.

            I am a typical college student surrounded by millions of others which belong to the same generation of consumers. Together we make up an inescapable cult that producers thrive on. From the time we were children trading the ever famous Pokémon cards to college students searching for the newest cell phone on the market, our brains are programmed to buy what is shown on television, billboards, or on Jessica Simpson on the red carpet. The Purchasing Cult we have been initiated in will only gain strength as we continue to keep up on the latest trends and technology.

Add a comment September 25, 2008

A Different Culture

A different culture

               As I sat in a somewhat familiar room filled with identical chairs and people of all ages sitting in a wide-spread circle, I began to notice all of the differences between everyone. There were around twenty- five women from age eighteen to fifty and two men both in their early twenties; all of us listening to a counselor reading an article on addictions at around ten in the morning on a typical Sunday. Everyone looked somewhat tired and somewhat bored of the repetitive schedule of which many of us had been following for several weeks. Each of us in a different stage of life, having experienced different emotional traumas and struggles which brought us together in this unified moment in time. We had different histories, families, cultures, traumas, and memories; yet the one thing we all shared was what set us apart from the rest of the world. We each had eating disorders and had traveled to Pacific Shores from all around the country to get treatment for our disease. Many patients at Pacific Shores, including me, were unsure if they were even willing to let go of their life-consuming disorder. It was a peculiar coping mechanism which had gotten us all through some difficult times and had become engrained in our minds. We knew nothing else and it was entirely scary to explore new options.

               I was one of the youngest ones in treatment and was incredibly withdrawn and closed-off the first week after my arrival. I was in shock that my parents’ threat had actually come into play; I was sent off to Oxnard, CA on my own in hopes of recovery. I was partly in denial of my problems and in no way saw my disorder as life-threatening. As I got used to an intense schedule that started at five-thirty in the morning and kept going until ten at night I observed everything

 around me and soon became ashamed of myself for ending up in such a dark situation in a place where I felt I did not belong. Reality quickly set in, however, and I realized that the sooner I

opened up and dealt with my issues the sooner I could return home to my family. It was initially very hard for me to open up and share my feelings with the counselors and out loud to other patients. I myself could not fathom what had happened to cause such a horrible disease, let alone discuss my issues with others. One Saturday morning in a family session, however, I heard a girl’s story that I could have claimed as my own. She spoke with such honesty and bravery that I immediately spoke up and added part of my story. The counselor promptly gave me amazing feedback and I then knew that I had to share my past experiences if I wanted help. At that moment my stubbornness faded away and I broke through my shell as I told my whole story; and it felt good to be heard. I soon stopped counting down the days to leave Pacific Shores as I began making the best friends I had ever had. Never had I connected with a group so intensely who knew everything that had been passing through my mind each and every day for the past year. Back home these thoughts classified me as crazy and sick, but here these thoughts were common and surprisingly expected. There was nothing any of us could say pertaining to our disorders that would come as a shock to other patients. At last I felt free to say what I was truly feeling and that was an amazing feeling of freedom.

               Six weeks of treatment flew by as I finally found a safe place where I belonged. A place where everyone understood exactly what I was feeling. The crazy rituals inside my head came naturally to other patients, such as obsessively counting calories and strictly monitoring my intake of fluids, and I was no longer viewed as different. We had created our own unique culture to support one another through recovery. With different sayings, such as “keep on keeping on”

and the Serenity Prayer, we did whatever it took to get each other through such a miserable process back to normality; whatever that meant. There were absolutely no secrets that had not

been shared in a group at least once . Honesty was the only way to get better and it was exhilarating to learn others’ stories and the experiences that made them who they are today. I often sat down and had hour-long conversations with women twenty years older than me and connected with them better than my own best friend back home. Many people would consider this strange, as I at first did, but the more I spoke it the more I felt I was truly heard. Gaining a sense of belonging somewhere in this world was the silver lining on an underlying black cloud.

               I will always feel a strong emotional bond to this culture of people, no matter how far along in life I am. This is not an ordinary group to belong to, but I am not an ordinary person. We are each trying to survive in an utterly hectic world and without the support and love from my brand new circle of friends I may not be here today. I fear I may remain attached to my disorder, on some level, for the rest of my life. My culture shares this fear and it takes constant reminding that there is way more to life we all deserve to experience. My addiction continues to be a daily struggle and I constantly call my support system from pacific shores for help and motivation. Even though I am back in the real world, things still get tough and old habits slip themselves back into my life.

Add a comment September 22, 2008

Epigraph

“My aim is to put down on paper what I see and what I feel in the best and simplest way.”

-Ernest Hemingway

About my Epigraph:

            The simplest way to write what I feel is to look back on my childhood memories of which I never put much thought into while they were forming. I remember many details from my younger years, including riding a bicycle for the first time and waking up on Christmas morning ready to power through my presents. As I look back today, however, it has become easier to describe these experiences through descriptive words and emotions. I believe Anne Lamott is correct when she explains that the best writing comes from telling the truth. It doesn’t matter if a memory is positive or negative, as long as one is able to describe it as honestly and thoroughly as they can remember. Writing is not simply a way to get published and make money, but to re-experience hopeful memories or let go of painful memories through releasing the emotions. Writing can be a simple task when I acknowledge my inner feelings and allow the words to flow from my fingertips. I feel Writing is not meant to be perfect the first moment I sit down and turn on my computer screen. It is not meant to be perfect at all- there is no such thing as perfect. It is instead a process in which I must connect to a deeper side of myself and allow vulnerability to slowly peer through as I recollect on past happenings. There is no way to create a genuine piece of writing if I cannot connect with the words on a personal level. Whether I feel like sitting down and transcribing or not, writing is the perfect outlet to release stress and relinquish a feeling.

Add a comment August 28, 2008