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Today is the last day of September. Where has the month gone?? It seems like yesterday I was moving in to my room and hoping my roommate would bring a couch...
So, deep theological question: How have I changed in the past month?
Well, for one thing, I can now sleep through the night without getting too many back pains.
I have connected with last-year's friends on campus.
I have been reading my textbooks more.
I have been avidly attacking my homework when I get the chance.
I have made many new friends, most of them freshmen.
Instead of wondering what on earth I'm going to do this fall, I've gotten a pretty good idea.
I have (most unfortunately) developed a taste for staying up late to watch movies.
I have developed also, the ability to write news stories with more fluidity.
I am learning to listen to myself--how many times I speak in a conversation more than whomever I'm speaking to.
I'm learning to control my desire to be accepted.
I'm learning to listen to others and remember what they say.
I'm learning how to be an effective reporter.
I've taken this break to write. It helps me focus if I take a break or two while doing my homework.
Tomorrow is another Production Night for the Crusader staff, so I'll probably stay up till all hours of the night, but I don't mind because I have no classes on Thursdays.
I've been wondering several things lately, but to save space, I'm going to list them as my top questions for the month of September:
The American Culture--what securities does the Digital Age bring?
The End Times--what is the nature of the society in which we live?
Why do the "good people" die first?
Do I really learn in school?
I will probably devote a post to each question, maybe.
Also, thanks to Dr. Patton, the words I have learned this month are:
1. imperturbable (17 Sept)--adj. not easily disturbed, agitated or disconcerted.
2. derided (17 Sept)--to make contemptuous fun of; mock
3. pontificate (29 Sept)-- to perform ecclesiastical rites or ceremonies as a pontiff 2. to talk in an arrogant or self-important manner.
Hmm. So that looks like everything I can write, I guess. The joy (and pain) of life is that it's so intricate, I couldn't possibly list everything I've learned this month, everything I've been wondering, or even everything I've improved in my life. It amazes me that each person's life meets with others at different points along the way, linking person to person, network to network, creating the fabric of reality and interaction as we know it. Thoughts like this remind me how insignificant I am, but help me understand my place and my role--should I try to fit in to society, or is it better to spread out?
Good bye, September.
Have a wonderful evening, everyone. Keep safe.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Reflections
Today is September 11th, 2008. It is a day of reflection.
Even if you do not know anyone personally who was affected by the tragedy that happened seven years ago, it is nonetheless important to reflect. In an age where instant gratification is the norm, and receiving information from somewhere far away is commonplace, the effects of the world in which we live leave an imprint on us all the same. Many, if not all, of you reading will be able to identify exactly where you were and what you were doing on this day when you heard the news. This is a definite impression.
Televisions and radio footage of an event--any event--can give us the impression that we live in a bubble. While this is true, it results two ways: one, we only pay attention to the bubble in which we live, and two, things that happen outside our bubble may affect us for a little while, but eventually, life will continue its course as though nothing had happened. I'm not saying that we should live in the past; this is unhealthy and unpractical, but it is important to remember such things.
We should remember why we live where we do. I, personally, did not fight in the American Revolution, or help word the Bill of Rights, and yet, I share the benefits of these events. What have I ever done to deserve these benefits? Nothing. I was just born here.
Our troops understand this: there are some things worth fighting for, and others for which you will die. Do your best, and that's all anyone can ask of you.
No one likes war. War is terrible, and comes at the price of human lives. It's awful, but if a war back in the 1700s gave me the ability to express myself freely, then was that war necessary? That depends on whether I would be willing to relinquish that right.
A lot of my generation are opposed to war at all costs. This is very admirable. However, it is not practical or logical. If I seek to be a peaceable person for the rest of my life, that personal decision will not necessarily protect me from the more bellicose. It is essential to realize that people's theory of life is what dictates their actions. If a group of people strongly believe that their deity has called them to annihilate and repress other groups that don't share the same view, we can rely on that first group to act according to their personal theology. As individuals, it is impossible to single-handedly change another individual's philosophy of life. As humans, we tend to collect a collage of different ideas and interpret them in ways that resonate most with, what ends up being, our personal philosophy. The terrorists on those flights seven years ago strongly believed that they were doing what is right in accordance with what they believed. Thus, all of the people on those planes, regardless of whether they were peaceful people or not, they were the victims. This is what deserves our reflection: how war is terrible, but those who believe in war will find ways to bring it about.
I commend heros like Todd Beamer, and other nameless individuals who decided on the difference between reaction and action. Even though they knew the chances of survival were slim, they fought before going down. What bravery!
I pray for our troops in Iraq. I'm sure it's not easy fighting a war, but it is cause for reflection nonetheless.
Even if you do not know anyone personally who was affected by the tragedy that happened seven years ago, it is nonetheless important to reflect. In an age where instant gratification is the norm, and receiving information from somewhere far away is commonplace, the effects of the world in which we live leave an imprint on us all the same. Many, if not all, of you reading will be able to identify exactly where you were and what you were doing on this day when you heard the news. This is a definite impression.
Televisions and radio footage of an event--any event--can give us the impression that we live in a bubble. While this is true, it results two ways: one, we only pay attention to the bubble in which we live, and two, things that happen outside our bubble may affect us for a little while, but eventually, life will continue its course as though nothing had happened. I'm not saying that we should live in the past; this is unhealthy and unpractical, but it is important to remember such things.
We should remember why we live where we do. I, personally, did not fight in the American Revolution, or help word the Bill of Rights, and yet, I share the benefits of these events. What have I ever done to deserve these benefits? Nothing. I was just born here.
Our troops understand this: there are some things worth fighting for, and others for which you will die. Do your best, and that's all anyone can ask of you.
No one likes war. War is terrible, and comes at the price of human lives. It's awful, but if a war back in the 1700s gave me the ability to express myself freely, then was that war necessary? That depends on whether I would be willing to relinquish that right.
A lot of my generation are opposed to war at all costs. This is very admirable. However, it is not practical or logical. If I seek to be a peaceable person for the rest of my life, that personal decision will not necessarily protect me from the more bellicose. It is essential to realize that people's theory of life is what dictates their actions. If a group of people strongly believe that their deity has called them to annihilate and repress other groups that don't share the same view, we can rely on that first group to act according to their personal theology. As individuals, it is impossible to single-handedly change another individual's philosophy of life. As humans, we tend to collect a collage of different ideas and interpret them in ways that resonate most with, what ends up being, our personal philosophy. The terrorists on those flights seven years ago strongly believed that they were doing what is right in accordance with what they believed. Thus, all of the people on those planes, regardless of whether they were peaceful people or not, they were the victims. This is what deserves our reflection: how war is terrible, but those who believe in war will find ways to bring it about.
I commend heros like Todd Beamer, and other nameless individuals who decided on the difference between reaction and action. Even though they knew the chances of survival were slim, they fought before going down. What bravery!
I pray for our troops in Iraq. I'm sure it's not easy fighting a war, but it is cause for reflection nonetheless.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Going with the ebb and flow...
Whew. What a week I've had! What a week!! I know everyone's dying to hear my tale...
So I finally got my computer, and I must be honest, Macs are cooler than any other computer. Hands down. However, I'm still a PC person at heart--some comforts just die hard, I guess.
Not only did I get my computer, but I got all of the four different software I needed to install on it, along with a FREE* printer and a FREE* iPod Touch. In addition, I have my CDs that I kept with me, as well as all the information from my old computer stored on my 2GB flash drive, my digital camera installation CD, and my printer CD. Needless to say, I spent the entire day last Thursday just inserting CDs and CD-ROMs into the Mac to bring it up to speed. I have been trying to get all of my information on the computer ever since, and it's a little slow-going. To top it off, it seems as though my 2GB flash drive isn't Mac-compatible, so I've been emailing myself all of my documents from my dorm's computer lab on the third floor...
It's raining outside now, when it was chilly in the morning, muggy and hot around midday, and now it's cold and wet. I just don't understand MI weather. It messes me up: I think it'll be the typical fall day, so I'll wear my numerous layers. MI weather dictates, however, that unless all four seasons can pass within the space of one day, it's not true MI weather. That said, we'll most likely get snow in the beginning of October. Speaking of absurdities, the ice cream truck has had the audacity to drive down the street just now.
I have been in and out of everything this past week, getting my computer and effects, going to my classes, and trying to find good school materials for the cheapest prices. I'm sharing what books I won't need, but am trying to buy what I can from students, since their prices are generally lower than what I've found online or on the used books in the school bookstore. I stayed up till 3 am this morning trying to get homework done. I didn't get much done over the weekend because I didn't have the books for those classes, and everyone who did went home for the weekend. I will finish buying my books tomorrow, though.
I'm taking a very fascinating class called "An Introduction to Communication Theory." It is more or less of a theory class on how communication has affected societies, and ultimately the world, through the communication technologies. Like I said, fascinating. Dr. Patton really has a way with words, and he generally acts out many of his concepts for class (he's the director of the Drama Dept, so any class with Patton is engaging).
Today we discussed 1960s University of Toronto professor Marshall McLuhan and his theory that significant scientific and social changes of history were not necessarily dictated by science or the society itself, but by communication. The beginning of history and peoples is known (according to McLuhan) as the "Tribal Age" where society and people relied primarily on their sense of hearing to gain information; the "Age of Literacy" where, once the phonetic alphabet was created, the average people learned to read by that phonetic alphabet and retreated to a slightly more individualistic culture because they were able to read for themselves; the "Print Age" during which reading material was mass-produced, resulting (possibly) in an upswing of both nationalism and individualism, as books were printed in one language but many dialects; and the "Electronic Age" which is essentially an era of instant and endless communication, renewing the ancient survival senses of both sound and touch all in one. With all these eras, there is an invention/discovery of some kind that completely revolutionizes history: after the "Tribal Age" it was the invention and collective agreement on the symbols that comprise various phonetic alphabets; after the "Age of Literacy" it was Gutenburg's printing press in 1455 A.D.; and after the "Print Age" it was the telegraph in the 1830s. McLuhan maintained nonetheless that with each brilliant new discovery/invention, something was lost and something was gained. The price tag for the invention of phonetic alphabets was that although people could now read information, they no longer relied on storytellers or advanced forms of memorization because writing could be better preserved. Such "price tags" are similar at the other stages as well.
It's food for thought, I guess.
Well, I'll probably write more later, eventually...
*With the purchase of the computer
So I finally got my computer, and I must be honest, Macs are cooler than any other computer. Hands down. However, I'm still a PC person at heart--some comforts just die hard, I guess.
Not only did I get my computer, but I got all of the four different software I needed to install on it, along with a FREE* printer and a FREE* iPod Touch. In addition, I have my CDs that I kept with me, as well as all the information from my old computer stored on my 2GB flash drive, my digital camera installation CD, and my printer CD. Needless to say, I spent the entire day last Thursday just inserting CDs and CD-ROMs into the Mac to bring it up to speed. I have been trying to get all of my information on the computer ever since, and it's a little slow-going. To top it off, it seems as though my 2GB flash drive isn't Mac-compatible, so I've been emailing myself all of my documents from my dorm's computer lab on the third floor...
It's raining outside now, when it was chilly in the morning, muggy and hot around midday, and now it's cold and wet. I just don't understand MI weather. It messes me up: I think it'll be the typical fall day, so I'll wear my numerous layers. MI weather dictates, however, that unless all four seasons can pass within the space of one day, it's not true MI weather. That said, we'll most likely get snow in the beginning of October. Speaking of absurdities, the ice cream truck has had the audacity to drive down the street just now.
I have been in and out of everything this past week, getting my computer and effects, going to my classes, and trying to find good school materials for the cheapest prices. I'm sharing what books I won't need, but am trying to buy what I can from students, since their prices are generally lower than what I've found online or on the used books in the school bookstore. I stayed up till 3 am this morning trying to get homework done. I didn't get much done over the weekend because I didn't have the books for those classes, and everyone who did went home for the weekend. I will finish buying my books tomorrow, though.
I'm taking a very fascinating class called "An Introduction to Communication Theory." It is more or less of a theory class on how communication has affected societies, and ultimately the world, through the communication technologies. Like I said, fascinating. Dr. Patton really has a way with words, and he generally acts out many of his concepts for class (he's the director of the Drama Dept, so any class with Patton is engaging).
Today we discussed 1960s University of Toronto professor Marshall McLuhan and his theory that significant scientific and social changes of history were not necessarily dictated by science or the society itself, but by communication. The beginning of history and peoples is known (according to McLuhan) as the "Tribal Age" where society and people relied primarily on their sense of hearing to gain information; the "Age of Literacy" where, once the phonetic alphabet was created, the average people learned to read by that phonetic alphabet and retreated to a slightly more individualistic culture because they were able to read for themselves; the "Print Age" during which reading material was mass-produced, resulting (possibly) in an upswing of both nationalism and individualism, as books were printed in one language but many dialects; and the "Electronic Age" which is essentially an era of instant and endless communication, renewing the ancient survival senses of both sound and touch all in one. With all these eras, there is an invention/discovery of some kind that completely revolutionizes history: after the "Tribal Age" it was the invention and collective agreement on the symbols that comprise various phonetic alphabets; after the "Age of Literacy" it was Gutenburg's printing press in 1455 A.D.; and after the "Print Age" it was the telegraph in the 1830s. McLuhan maintained nonetheless that with each brilliant new discovery/invention, something was lost and something was gained. The price tag for the invention of phonetic alphabets was that although people could now read information, they no longer relied on storytellers or advanced forms of memorization because writing could be better preserved. Such "price tags" are similar at the other stages as well.
It's food for thought, I guess.
Well, I'll probably write more later, eventually...
*With the purchase of the computer
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