Situating Narrative Inquiry did not draw me in as much. Though I thought they had some useful advice, the article was much more point blank and offered more definitions and straightforward terms than analytical thinking.
A recognition that capturing the particular and local rather than insisting on the development and validity of a “grand narrative” of a culture is a worthy goal (Geertz, 1983)
People tend to make such a big deal lately out of the culture that I feel like they have started to forget the individual. Especially in my teaching classes lately, we have been discussing respecting culture and multiculturalism repeatably. Though I wouldn't call this lesson useless, I definitely think it's overemphasized. As teachers, we shouldn't be so distracted by someone's culture, so why are we making it such a big deal? We should be able to look at the whole person no matter what and see what exactly it is that makes them a true individual. We put such a focus on these seemingly big things, but I think the little things, the particulars, the local, matter just as much if not more. These are the things that need to be recognized, so I definitely find this a "worthy goal."
Such a stance assumes that time is real and static rather than constructed or influenced by culture or individual human interaction (Slife, 1993).
Time is always moving. However, time is not influenced by a person, the person is influenced by time. So many people live their lives trying to race against the clock whether it is for sport or simply a part of their daily lives. They have to make the best of it and use time to their advantage. Time will always be there. Though it is constantly changing, this is still a static reality. No one can change or stop time. Individuals and cultures need to realize that they are still control over time in their own lives. No one can dictate for another what to do with it, but we all hope we make use of it. We are the influencing factor on time, not the other way around.
A turn toward acceptance of multiple ways of knowing the world is a turn toward establishing findings through authenticity, resonance, or trustworthiness (Clandinin & Connelly, 2000; Denzin & Lincoln, 1994).
This was probably my favorite quote throughout the selection. Everyone has a different view of the world. They feel differently about different subjects and different people, but this does not make their view wrong if you do not agree with it. This is that person’s absolute truth, their knowledge of the world based off their own experiences. Just because you cannot know their same world does not make it any less authentic or real. It is still real to them and understanding that can only make you a more researched and trustworthy person overall.
There were quite a few quotes I found while reading Narrative Inquiry that really stuck me. Here I have offered the quotes and provided my own feelings towards them underneath.
"The answer to the question, Why narrative? is, Because experience."
I think that this simply phrased statement explains the entire writing process. I know in my experience I need to write after big occurances or thoughts to sort myself out. I cannot process everything that has happened to me in such an experience without writing. When you think about it, almost all good writing is prompted from experience because it is in these instances where you can sympathize with the character. Where you can feel what they feel and truly be a part of the story. When you are distanced from the experience, you might find it fascinating, but you can only wish to be a part of it. Our narratives tell the audience everything they need to know about our experiences.
Ming Fang's long-ago China stories and present-day Canadian ones help us, as Blaise (1993) suggests, "live in their countries, speak their language, negotiate their streets on their buses and turn our keys in their locks" (p.201). .
I really loved the way this was phrased. "Live in their countries, speak their language, negotiate their streets on their buses and turn our keys in their locks..." This is everything we can hope for from a story. As I touched on above, the stories we tend to crave are the ones we can be a part of. If you can be in that moment, if you can be on their buses, the author has achieved the upmost form of success from their writing. It is the kind that everyone should strive to as they construct their stories. Most likely, it is one that the author has already lived. If they can allow the reader to do the same, they have done their job.
"Sometimes, this means that our own unnamed, perhaps secret, stories come to light as much as do those of our participants. This confronting of ourselves in our narrative past makes us vulnerable as inquirers because it makes secret stories public."
This quote exactly captures how I feel about my Twitterive. Though I did not have to research to do my project or conduct studies and interviews, it was an examination of myself, one that was very much unintentional. The story I told is one that I hold away from some of my closest friends because in my mind, it is almost as if everytime I share it with someone, I am getting judged. My secrets are out on the table and my world is no longer as safe. My relationship is no longer as safe. And yet for the sake of what will hopefully become great writing and a better understanding, I left my Twitterive up. I continued through with it even once I realized what it was about to become. I think that happens to every writer at some point. A bit of yourself, intentionally or not, is reflected through your writing for the word to see. Even if you are not writing your own story, it will find you, which is exactly what this quote tries to tell you.
How has technology affected your writing in class?
I never really found a use for Twitter before this class. I had to make an account for my Intro to Writing Arts Class, but I didn't have it on my phone and rarely remembered to use it except for when we were reminded to in class. I definitely found more of a use for it in this class. As for our class blog, I have blogged before for various other classes, so this wasn't as new to me. For the website, I found myself intrigued, but a little unsure how to approach it. I like posting here and trying to express myself on the page, knowing that any visitors to my site will only have that to define me by. For that reason, I find that my writing is most professional here. I would never think to use texting language or acronysms in a forum like this, but try to show the best version of myself and my best writing. I definitely find myself writing for the genre in this class. My blog posts are obviously much more thought-provoking than my tweets. I would say though that my tweets are more personal, at least at surface value as they are usually spuratic thoughts, but they are still more condensed. I still prefer writing for a blog over Twitter though.
How has technology connected or made you mindful of your writing and place?
I used to think that I did my best writing on pen and paper. There was a written draft for just about everything, but lately I have been doing less of this and using the computer as a primary tool as well. I have done my blog posts straight on this forum, sometimes saving my pieces as drafts first and coming back to them, but usually making minimal changes. I don't think I ever completely let technology in as Theodora Stites did in "Rock My Network." I could never imagine being in so many networks as she is over having identities online just for the forum. "We love personal information; Internet communities are a popularity contest, and it is no longer chic to be mysterious." This comment particularly struck me. I actually won’t add a lot of people on Facebook because I think it’s mysterious that strangers want to be “friends.” I would definitely lose the popularity contest she's referring to. I don't want people to be able to just stare at my page or my friends. The page is personal to me and I use it to connect to people I can't be in daily contact with anymore; it's not simply a count for me. I feel like I am just the opposite of Stites. While she said, "I honestly don't know why anyone wants to socialize in person anymore. It's so difficult to concentrate on talking to just one person at a time. Eye contact isn't all it's cracked up to be, and facial expressions are so hard to control," I find that these are some of the exact reasons why I love talking in person or on the phone. It's much more personal to hear a voice or see a face; you're there, in the moment and in the same place, no doubt about it. A text or facebook chat does not guarantee this. All of my best relationships are ones that do not rely on these tools.
How has technology impacted your identity construction?
I would have to agree that I am a different person for in each medium. I reflect myself differently in class than I do in writing. In class, I don't present myself as strongly as I do through writing. I am quieter and more reserved, and quite honestly a little more tired in my first class of the morning so my brain is not exactly at its peak. When I sit down to write after class, I reflect a lot more of myself. My mind is more alert, and I have also been stronger on paper than speech. My tweets, though slightly more forced since I feel like I should be doing them, are usually personal talking about what I'm doing or what I want to be doing. My blogs are more analytical and display my true thoughts about the articles, also interweaving my own opinions about the topic. Though this isn't all necessarily shown in class, I get the opprotunity to redeem myself through my technology use. However, someone who already knows me on a personal level that I am close to might disagree. Just last week my friend said in response to someone's comment that I'm quiet, "You've never seen or heard her really get started then. Then you can't get her to stop." Though this is true and I prefer more personal conversations and connections, my writing is my most expressive. A facebook page won't share facts about me for the world, but a blog or paper I consider personal absolutely will.
Does my prologue give enough of an introduction?
Should there be more of a focus on my home as a place itself, or is the focus on my state of mind in the place alright?
Are there any gaps or confusing parts of my story?
What can I add to make my piece stronger?
Are there enough genres?
Should there be more pictures?
Who are the characters in your story? Me and my friend back home
What is the connection/disconnection you feel to the place? The connection I talk about is that to my home itself and the people I have there and go home for.
When did this story take place? I talk about stories from about a year and a half ago until the present.
Where does this story take place? The town in general; I also particularly point out a park there.
Why did you choose this place? All my tweets were primarily related to home, so it made me think and came naturally.
How do you plan to deliver this piece? My twitterive is a narrative primarily, but I include song lyrics, a poem, and a picture as well.
I think this exercise was helpful for me. I knew the basics about my story, like the characters and place I was talking about in my Twitterive, but talking about it here made me realize I really need to decide how I will present it. This is a very personal story for me and even explaining it to my small group was a process for me. I want to still add a bit more to my twitterive, but my main focus needs to be on my deliverance. I think I am headed in the right direction with my story itself, but thinking about presenting it is still giving me some trouble. I either need to add a bit more to potentially change the focus of my story a bit, or I just need to rehearse until it no longer feels awkward to talk about my story. Either way, I have a bit of work to do within the next few days.
A photo journal of today's match. 
The Second Rate Contender and Gossip Columnist discuss the opponents before the match.
Stephanie the Slammer during the press conference.
Liv to Kill trash talking her opponent during the press conference.
Stephanie the Slammer is not pleased with Liv to Kill's mudslinging.
Liv to Kill's biggest fan is excited for the fight.
The announcer begins to start our show.
The announcer calls up the fighters.
Stephanie the Slammer is ready for the fight!
Liv to Kill fist pumps her way into the ring.
Round 1 begins!
Stephanie the Slammer defeats the odds to win Round 1.
Round 2 begins
Stephanie the Slammer is undefeated!
Stephanie the Slammer takes the crown.
Discussing her triumphant win after the fight.
Liv to Kill was no match for Stephanie the Slammer!
For our next assignment, we were each given roles of people who would be at our "wrestling-match", which is taking place this Wednesday in class. As photographer of the event, these are some of the pictures I have already captured before the big day.  The competition prepares for a fight!
 The current champ and her biggest fan.
 Our champion is already being swarmed by the masses!
How did changing genres from your past blog posts impact your writing and meaning making?
When approaching the assignment of making a haiku out of my microfictions, I began by reading the two pieces over and and pulling out words I thought could be useful. I constructed this list in Microsoft Word and was able to make a coherent piece pretty quickly. However, it did not have anything to do with either microficiton piece I had initally written. The haiku was an entirely new topic for me. It only came easily because the words I was able to pull out still fit together in other settings without losing a meaning. As I said, it was not the same meaning, but when looking at the words, it was easy to find one. I was pleasantly suprised by the seamless process of creating my haiku.
I initially followed the same process when attempting to create my found poem. I looked at the list of all my tweets and began pulling words out that I thought could be placed in my poem. I compiled these words in a Microsoft Word document again. By the time I had about twenty words, I was already starting my poem. This time though, I didn't keep referring back to the words. I wrote the majority of the poem, once I knew what it was going to be about, first, and then looked back at my tweets for a second time to make sure all the words had been used there. If there was a word that was not available from my tweets, I found a way to adapt and alter the words in my found poem. The poem seemed to write itself after I found my start.
What I found truly interesting about my new pieces of writing was that neither seemed heavily influenced from my starting pieces, those of the microfictions and tweets. Though it was possible to see the themes in them upon closer reflection, they did not start out from the same topics. When I looked at my finished products of my haiku and found poem though, the two ended up being of very similar topics and tones. This was not my original intention, especially since I was starting with a different set of words each time, but the end result was the same. I think my new products could have potentially been influenced by my original pieces underlying messages, but they do not look to be of the same topic at first glance. By the end of the creation of my new pieces, the theme and meaning was the same.
We were asked to pull words out of our microfiction pieces to make a haiku. With the words I chose, I ended up with: Youth is so precious Appreciate the common See, love the journey Our next assignment was to create a found poem out of words from at least 10 of our tweets. I came up with the following: Imagine Home again Enjoying the eventful treat I’m here I see you But I’m curious, love You look surprised I’ve always been here I knew it all this time Look past all the fog I’ll still be here at the end of the day This is the only one I’ve missed These are the only people I’ve missed I hope you changed your mind I’m home for good this time I used words from twenty of my tweets to complete my found poem, which are in boldface. @ Linzz88 Agreed- if the snow doesn't keep me here cuddling with my puppy is exactly what I'll be doing tonight too #twitteriveProbably one of the only ones not watching the Super Bowl. Instead in the library for monitoring. Awesomee. #twitterive #wrt1I missed my baby <3 http://twitpic.com/3u8kwqThe people you have here, you always have here. But me, i'm a ticking clock. So why aren't you here #twittteriveCould barely see on the way to class because of all the fog #twitterive #wrt1Turns out when babysitting caillou and curious george really are "baby crack." Who knew? #twitteriveMy roommates and I never leave if the fire alarm isn't in our own hall...could be risky but that hasn't changed our minds yet. #twitteriveIt should be past my bedtime already tonight, but alas I have many more hours of work ahead of me. #twitterive #wrt1@ TarrMart I completely agree with you about Pagnucci- I loved it! #twitterive #wrt1@ linhoop Grammar? I feel your pain; that was the longest class for me last semester! Can't handle another snow like this at home again today #twitterive http://twitpic.com/3vj1viEnjoying this minor break before my four hours of classes starts up again...then zumba tonight! #twitteriveStill need to catch up on sleep. Nap time to day? #twitterive #wrt1@ MissJessW @ linhoop I had her too; she was a really good teacher but it still took me forever to understand. I felt bad haha #wrt1@ sabatinomangini I've never really liked Twitter, but I'm curious to see if I can get into it this time. It seems more useful than I thought Home again tonight...could be a little more eventful than I had thought. #twitterive #wrt1Forgot that only my apartment is 75 degrees. Slightly freezing now. #twitterive #wrt1Somehow a little sore. Amazing being my fri end took the shovel right from me and finished my driveway yesterday. Looks amazing! #twitteriveStill can't imagine eating pigs feet, sorry. It scares me as a dog's treat too. #twitterive #wrt1Boy tricked me and suprised me last night- he was waiting for me when I got home- so cute :) Looks like I forgot to add #wrt1 to all my tweets. Sorryy
For this assignment we were asked to take a line from one of Gloria Anzaldua's pieces, either Borderlands or How to Tame a Wild Tongue. I chose the line "So common a site no one notices," to begin my story. So common a site no one notices. A little boy, about the age of six, stretched out his precious, miniscule hand to reach for his mother’s as they began to walk across the street. Though the mother was smiling, it was clear she was distracted and more focused on her surroundings than her son’s gesture. To her, and to little boy, this was the norm. But as an elder woman watched from behind, she could see much more than anyone else. She had been through it all. Reminiscing, she remembered starring into her handsome son’s tiny face all those years ago for the first time. He was squirming and squiggling, but was easily the most incredible creature she had ever laid eyes on. His first laugh came a few months later. He learned to walk at fourteen months, only stumbling a few times on his journey across the room into Mommy’s open arms. She remembered walking across the street with her son arm in arm, skipping and smiling through life. “Hi, Mom,” her son greeted her, breaking her from her memories. “Sorry I’m late.” “That’s ok, Brian,” she said with a somber smile on her face. Grown at twenty-two, he already looked just like his father. She looked back, searching for the young mother and son, but now they too were out of reach. She only hoped that the mother would appreciate the time she had with her son, and both their youths, before it was too late. So common a site no one notices.
We were also asked to create a microfiction piece beginning with one of our Tweets. The tweet I chose was "We're going to Camp Bow Wow!" which the little boy I babysit for told me.
“We’re going to Camp Bow Wow! We’re going to Camp Bow Wow!” the children chanted. Brandon was thrilled. He and his parents had seen Camp Bow Wow for the first time last summer on their endless drive to Florida. They were on their way to see their grandparents, but luckily, his dad had desperately needed a bathroom, so they happened to stop in the glorious land of Camp Bow Wow. He fell in love at first glance. Though the camp seemed a little out of place for Savannah, Georgia, with its thick evergreen trees and wooden cabins, to Brandon it was perfect. His brother Charlie was still too young to join him, much to his dismay. At least Brandon’s friend Patrick was joining him or his worrisome parents probably wouldn’t have let him go at all. At this point, Brandon’s excitement was unbearable. He could smell the sweet forest air, feel the summer breeze on his neck. As soon as he got there, he was going to jump straight into the lake, where he would spend his afternoon before the campfire tonight. His parents had even packed him his own bag of marshmallows for the occasion. He was literally jumping up and down on the bulky bus seats with the thought, causing quite the uproar when they hit a bump in a road as he would almost crash to the floor each time. “Attention children!” We are pulling into Camp Bow-Wow now, please grab all your belongings-“ “This is it!” Brandon yelled. He grabbed his bag, ready to jump off the bus. He was home.
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