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Final projects

While reading the final projects, I honestly loved reading David's portfolio and final project. The idea of tattoos and the opinions that many people have and the examples he gave were excellent. I like how he says tattoos are no longer a back alley subculture. My parents once thought they were too, up until they got their first tattoo. My parents let me get a tattoo when I was 17 because they believe every tattoo is a memory of your life and the things you go through. As he was explaining the tattoo shop, he gave vivid detail and I could really understand what this establishment looked like.

Reading for 4/20 Pages 429-439

In the reading, their are responses to the fieldwork dealing with Rick, Ivana, and Karen. Questions stated in the work are, What Surprised me? What Intriqued Me? What Disturbed Me? These questions are very important to ask and comment on because it makes a person's writing that much better. For example, "Karen was intrigued by the glossy photo's on the wall, the wardrobe selections ( metal-studded denim jackets and gold lame blouses)." These few things that she talked about in her fieldwork were key points and artifacts that the reader often remembers. They are significant in her work as well as her life. Atiya decided to ask these questions because they helped track her changes in her own studies and gave her a different perspective.

One interesting thing I read in the reading was Sam's fieldwork and his observations on telemarketers "I'd say 75 percent of the material I gathered didn't make it into the final piece...There will be other drafs of this piece." When I write my final draft, I'll have to look over my final pieces and determine which parts I want to keep and which parts I should get rid of. Having info about your fieldwork that is not needed is just wasted space when it could contain facts that people are intrigue with. Certain artifacts and events that have a significance on the site are much more important.

Reading for 4/15

In the article, From Down Draft to Up Draft, it talks about having a pile of data and knowing where to go from there. We have compiled loads of data together and we're finalizing our "field study." It talks about the terms stepping in and stepping out, which means negotiating between your intimate view and a cool assessment of it. It's basically saying to construct "I" correctly with the other voices in your story. Using the word draft, to us, means a quickly written paper that needs to be edited. Drafting means something different to each writer. "Just as fieldworkers establish various habits for organizing info during data collection, so do writers develop successful drafting habits."

Revising for a Reader : There are many lessons I took out of this specific article, especially when it comes to revision because it's something I need to work on. " Revision is not a failure, but an opportunity. It is an essential part of the process of thinking that produces a series of drafts that clarify and communicate significant meaning to a reader." Revision is in fact a second chance to review your fieldwork and make the Ethnography even better. It's key to look over your facts and evidence you have at your site and revise what interviews you have made as well as info you have with the people and site itself. " Don't look for errors, look for what works."

Readings for 4/1/11

In the first set of reading, it explains an interview and the importance of letting people speak and listening to what they say. Their are important strategies to conducting a successful interview, such as asking questions and listening to their responses. An interview needs to be organized yet free to comments and stories. A story, artifact, or a phrase can sometimes make the best interviews. One example I enjoyed from the reading was Bonnie interviewing Ken. Bonnie connected his ideas with a philosopher by the name of John Dewey. She was influenced by his thoughts and ideas that she read about. In the end, Bonnie asked Ken which of Dewey's works was the most important to him. In reality, he had no idea who Dewey was. Without a well conducted interview, Bonnie would have never known Dewey was not one of Ken's favorites.



Being a good listener is key to having a good interview. Interrupting, moving conversation, eye wandering, are all negative points during an interview. Follow up questions and positive comments keep the interview flowing. Some example questions come from an interview conducted by Paul Russ. He interviewed five AIDS survivors for his ethnographic film. Some questions included, "How many months have you lived with your diagnosis?" While another question was, "When did you first request a "buddy" from health service?" These questions had a specific answer and were fairly simple for the AIDS survivors to talk about. As the interview went on, the questions and answers kept flowing and Paul was getting very informative and emotional answers from the survivors.

Interview Bowling Response

After reading the interview, I retained a great deal of info just based on the first few paragraphs. The number of people that have participated in bowling is more than I ever expected. 72 millions Americans have bowled in their local communities whether it be in friendly games or serious leagues. One fact that interested me was the automatic pinsetter, which must have been a huge deal in that time period when it came to technological advancements.

As I began reading the section titled " Hanover Gems", the description "a sea of people" told me just how many people were bowling that night. Their were kids of all ages at the bowling alley that night, either at the arcade, doing their homework like one of the girls, or running around socializing with the other children. Some females in the league were described to be in their late sixties and have been bowling since high school, which is very impressive in my opinion. I suppose if you like an activity this much and always get to socialize with your friends then why stop? The men's league however is very different from that of the woman's. Men are very aggressive when it comes to sports, especially in an older bowling league such as this one. 

Weebly Website

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Weebly Website

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Tinsley Center

Once classes are done everyday, I make my way to the gym to work out. As a member of the Men's Soccer team at BSU, it's very important that I stay in shape all year round. My observation point earlier today was the Tinsley Center, the gym that almost all the students go to regularly. Observing this made me realize I had not seen much of what goes on here. The staff, people working out, visitors, all add to the atmosphere the gym has to offer. While I was observing, I recognized many of the people that came in and what they were there to do. Many of my friends that work out at this gym are looking to gain a bit of weight, while many of my soccer teammates do cardio and simple lifting. 

Other observations I made are what some people do while at the gym. Many people I saw went to the gym by themselves, possibly to concentrate on their workout. In fact, I often go to the gym by myself to focus and to relieve stress. Other people simply go to the gym to gossip and meet up with their friends. A lot goes on at the gym, and many people do not realize this unless they really sit and watch. I observed when the most people came to the gym, which is around 4:00 PM, right before dinner. This time is very convenient for most. The downside to this is it's very hard to find a machine to work out on, because of the wait. I can recall one instance where I was waiting for the bench to open up, however 3 people were waiting before me because of the time we all went at. Tinsley Center was very interesting to observe and I would definitely recommend " people watching " there. 

Lay of the land response

Right from the start of this passage, I can already tell detail and adjectives are a big part of making a good ethnography. She begins by saying she is the only female in site during the men's league, which must have been awkward at first, but she was soon welcomed in. Observing anything without many people knowing could also be a bit odd at first. The positive thing about my project site is many of the people know me from when I previously worked there. As she observes the team, the overall game play becomes much easier to see. She states, " Each player bowls three sets with three balls in each set.  In his first and second set he is unable to knock down all the pins, but he clears all the pins on his third set.  When he finishes he goes back to sitting at a table next to me, behind the rest of his team." This specific quote gives the reader a sense of what is really going on in the bowling alley. 


Another observation was how the men were, their actions, and descriptions of a few of them. One of them is wearing a blue t-shirt that says bowling stones on it, which is very comical in my opinion. I had a similar idea for a dodge ball team in high school. We were called the Gut Busters, mostly because we accidentally hit people in the stomach. The next observation she had that was very interesting was when she talked to the owner, Hank. He played with the team that were probably in their 50's. He's the eldest there, and has many memories from the game. When I become that age, I hope to do the exact same thing. Have so many stories that I do not know what to do with all of them. 


Overall, these observations and details could really help when it comes to writing my paper. Seeing people in the bowling alley, and how they were interacting was very interesting to read about and I plan on doing the same thing when I visit Goretti's. Watching people come through the lines, the courtesy booth, and interacting within the aisles is where I plan on spending some of my time. 


 

Project Goretti's

Goretti's Supermarket, located in Millbury, MA has been a family owned business for the last 30 years and has been extremely successful. I use to work there a little over a year ago until I got a new job. My sister currently works there as a cashier and she enjoys going to work part time. The people and atmosphere that this supermarket presents is so interesting that theirs always a new story coming from my sister. Many of the shoppers live in the Millbury/Sutton area so any shopper is bound to run into someone they know. The types of people that come to shop are from different backgrounds and each customer is different, which is why Goretti's has such a great reputation. It competes with local stores such as Stop & Shop, Price Chopper, and other local businesses.

When you first walk into Goretti's, the first thing you smell is the bakery, which is always a great first impression smell. The freshly baked muffins and pastries catch your attention right away and many customers have to stop and have one to shop with. The next stop is the Deli, where the aroma of chicken and freshly cooked meals swarms the area. This store is full of great aroma's from the fresh food that it never gets old.

Iresearcher

After reading Iresearcher, I feel much more familiar with how an ethnography is suppose to be set up. An ethnography goes into detail about surroundings that the writer has witnessed. In this ethnography, the writer talks about the Hanover Bowladrome and how her family enjoys bonding in a way such as this. Because of her large family, the Bowladrome is also a cheaper alternative to other things, plus they really enjoy the sport itself. I was most interested hearing her describe the surroundings inside the building and the overall aroma it gave off. She could smell the pizza from a mile away. While reading this ethnography, the detail and descriptions of everything gave me a sense of actually being there which is really important. Without detail and descriptions, how are you suppose to know what the reader experiences? I knew exactly what she was seeing, smelling, and experiencing just based off her descriptions. When I write my ethnography in the future, I hope for it to be similar to this one because I enjoyed reading how important this place was to her family and growing up.