Oklahoma City Memorial/ English Assign#9

The Oklahoma City Memorial website was great. I have been to the memorial and the pictures used in the website were able to capture the sights of the memorial well. Although the mood was missing in the photos. What I remember most at the memorial was the mood it created. Everyone was so quiet and respectful. This was probably because of the way your heart ached for the people who were involved and lost their lives in that day. The memorial truly honored those who were involved in the Oklahoma City bombing and gave visitors the emotion of that day.
At the memorial there is a Field of Empty Chairs. These chairs were lined in 9 rows (representing the 9 floors) and had the names of the people who lost their lives that day. There were also nineteen smaller chairs that represented the children who were lost. These chairs were a symbol of rememberance. The people who lost their lives will always be remembered when someone sees these chairs and it seems that your heart aches for every chair that is there.
There is also a room that is not shown on the website that is full of Origami cranes hanging from the ceiling. These birds were sent from children all over the nation to symbolize hope. I remember making one of these cranes when I was in school to send to the survivors of the bombing so, it was very moving getting to see all of them. I hope that these cranes were able to bring a little comfort to the survivors and give them hope of a brighter tomorrow.

Family Photos/ English Assign#8

In the readings on pages 109-127 there were different stories from different people. These stories were of memories (mostly of family). There were pictures used so that the reader could get an image of the stories that were being told. The pictures used weren't necessarily of the event that the writers were talking about but they shared the same idea. The saying that "a picture is worth a thousand words" is so very true. Photography can be used as a composition because it tells a visual story. It can help fill in the holes that a narrative may leave out. I loved Jeffery Wolins pictures at the end of the reading. His pictures told the story not only in a visual way but in a narrative and emotional way as well!

The family picture I chose is a picture of me with my in-laws! This picture is one of the first family pictures taken since Kyle and I were married. This picture means a lot to me becuase it marks the beginning of me being apart of this family and their wonderful get togethers.

Our First Base House!

So we are finally all moved in to our new house on base! This house is amazing and we love it! It seems so big for just the two of us and Amos ha! It is a three bed two and a half bath and Amos now has a yard! Kyle is only two minutes from work and it is nice to get to have lunch with him everyday!! A bunch of you have asked for pictures so here are some but I would rather you all just come and visit us and see if for yourselves ;)!! We don't have furniture for all the rooms yet so I didn't really take pics of those!! Kyle is in the progress of re-doing some furniture for the bedroom and when he is finished I will post pics of the before and after! He is really doing a great job. Enjoy the pics :)!

The front of the house!




Entrance!


Half Bath

Living room

Dinning room

Kitchen

Upstairs guest rooms!

Laundry room

Bedroom

The best closet EVER!

Amos' Backyard :)!

Thesis/ English Assign# 7

I have been thinking a lot about what my argument for Blackboard as a discourse community will be. I decided to weigh out the pros and cons and then see where that leads me.

Pros:
I can do school anywhere.
School work is done on my time schedule.
I don't have to get up early for it ha.
I still get to be a wife ha.
I can be more of myself since no one is actually meeting me face to face.
I don't stress out as much as when I did when I was actually going to class and, Iam not as tired.


Cons:
I miss out on lectures that I feel are important.
Some teachers don't seem to take online classes seriously and don't respond to emails (Not you Jen).
Communication is delayed between peers and the teacher (waiting on emails or disscusions).

I feel I can talk about both the pros and cons and make my arguement.

Thesis:

Blackboard is a wonderful tool for students on the go but, patience is needed to successfully complete a class with it.

Technology Discourse Communities/ English Assign#6

I belong to a bunch of Technology Discourse Communities. My assignment is to list these and then pick one to be the subject of my next paper.

My Technology Discourse Communities:
Facebook
Myspace
Hotmail
Blogger
Photo Bucket
Online Banking
NMSU- Blackboard
Sprint (cell phone)
Comcast (cable & internet)
Sirius Radio

I think that I will go with NMSU-Blackboard. I can talk about how computers and the internet have helped schools grow and, give people like me the chance to go to school even though I am across the country. Blackboard has helped me communicate with teachers and peers and has allowed me to access to a degree.
I also like the idea of using Facebook. I am new to Facebook but it has allowed me to connect with family members and friends. It has become a useful tool in staying up to date with everyone while I am in NJ. I can see family pictures and status and never feel in the dark.

My main argument for either Facebook or Blackboard would be that these techonolgies have helped me stay apart of my school, family, and friends while I am in NJ. These technologies have been nothing but useful to me.

Discourse Communities/ English Assign# 5

For my assignment I am to list all the discourse communities that I belong to and then pick three to elaborate on.

My Discourse Communities.
Air Force Spouse
NMSU- Student
Aspiring Counselor
Church of Chirst- Christian
Dog Owner
SPC- Alumni
CHS- Alumni
Facebook
Myspace
Blogger :)

As an NMSU Student I am among a group of people who are all striving for a degree. We are constantly doing homework and studying to acheive this goal. We use language to encourage others to do what we are doing and help each other with misunderstandings in class. My commonplace with NMSU would be Blackboard since I am a NMSU online student.

As a Facebooker :) I am in a group that is full of my friends. We use language to communicate old memories and keep in touch with one another. In this group I get to pick who is apart of it and who will not be. Our commonplace would be www.facebook.com where we use pictures and profile status to express ourselves.

As an Air Force Spouse I am part of a group of women (and some men) who deal with their husbands/wives constantly fighting for our country. We use language to help eachother deal with common problems and keep others out who don't know what we are going through. Our commonplace would be any Military base.

NYC!

So yesterday I went to the city to visit the new married couple Matt and Joanie :)! It was a lot of fun. They didn't want to see a ton of sights which is great for me because I have seen them a million times lol!!
I took the train all by myself and met up with them at Borders by Madison Sq Garden. They wanted to see Times Square so we walked through there and then went to NBC studios :). The guide asked if we needed any help with anything and I said "yes how do I get on the Office?" thankfully he thought I was funny and laughed with me ha! We then went to the top of the Rock and saw just how pretty Central Park really is. We then went to lunch and headed up 5th Ave to FAO Shwartz (we did stop at Tiffany's on the way)!! FAO Shwartz had this thing where you could build your own muppet and of course Matt and Joanie took advantage. They made really cute muppets haha!! We then went to the Central Park Zoo yay!! I have been wanting to go there forever......but it was a major dissapointment haha. It was nothing like in Madagascar!!! There was no Lion or Zebr or Hippos or Giaraffs ugh!!! There was the cutest Seals and Penguins though!! The Penguins are great haha that is where I am going from now on if I need a laugh haha! We then took a cab back to their hotel and rested for a minute. By this time it was already 6:15pm so I needed to head back since it was rush hour. We said our goodbyes and I went back to Penn Station (after a stop at Starbucks of course ha) and caught the express train home yesssss!!!
I was soooo proud of myself for going to NYC alone. I only had to call Karen once to see what street Borders was on and that was for Joanie and Matt ha!! I was sad that I forgot my camera so I have no pics from the zoo :( or with Matt and Joanie! But I did post a few pics that I love from the city. I am going back this Saturday with a group from church so I will get some more then!! "Pray a lot" everyone!!!

Lady Liberty!


Me and the two men in my life!


The Hubby and I

:)

Love it!

Street Art! There are things like this all over the city.

Empire State Building.