In Class; Free Write

Over this past week I was able to relax and recouperate and get ready for the last three weeks of the semester. I ate lots of delicious food and played in the New Hampshire snow. Thanksgiving is always a fun holiday because everyone in the family reunites and we are finally able to spend time all together. Especially now that I am away at college, it is important to spend time with the ones you love.
Having a break was much needed, but it also gave me time to think about all of the craziness ahead of me for the next three weeks. I have papers and projects, essays and tests all due at the same time. And then to top it all off...finals week- the most stressful time of the year. Thankfully, Christmas is right around the corner and I will be back at home relaxing. December 17th can't come fast enough.

Unit Three Proposal

We have chosen to address the topic of music piracy. We would like to enter this conversation because music piracy has recently become more prevalent than ever. With websites offering free music at the click of a mouse, it is easier and more affordable to download illegal songs than it is to obtain the music legally.

It is necessary that we spread awareness of the consequences associated with music piracy. Although there are positive aspects to free music downloads such as exposure, copyright infringement is punishable offense. It is common that students are unaware of the consequences that can range from lawsuits to large fines of millions of dollars.

Our audience will be traditional students currently enrolled in Texas Christian University, usually between the ages of 17 and 25. These students tend to be more thrifty than others because of the high cost of education. Students are often the most common offenders of these copyright laws. Most students own a laptop and have access to the internet making it easy to download illegally.

Ideas for genres/mediums:
- Daily Skiff Article
- Poster (mainly visual)
- Song

In Class; Visual Arguments

Visuals are extremely important to making a convincing argument, especially when dealing with particular audiences. You must assess who will be viewing your argument and design accordingly. Some designs need color and pizazz, while others must be simple yet elegant. This lesson will be very helpful when it comes to unit 3. In unit three we are using these skills to create a masterpiece argument that will convince our established audiences to think a certain way or complete a certain task.

Job Titles

For our job titles, we came up with;
Axel: Captain of Computers
Erica: Queen of the Media
Remley: Remley the Writer

Each of us has a specific role in the group. Each group member should contribute equally to all aspects of the project. But in order to be efficient, we will specialize and use our talents to complete each section of the project.
I will be in charge of the writing portion of the project. I will write rough drafts, with the help of my peers as well as editing all final drafts to be sure that they are grammatically correct, etc...

In Class; Ideal Group

If I were to imagine the perfect group situation, I would like to work with people who have similar goals and interests as myself such as Erica Torgerson. Everyone in the group should agree on the grade that they wish to obtain. A lot of the time some people don't care as much as others about getting an A and that can make it difficult to spread the work around evenly. One aspect of group work that is very important is motivation. If everyone is equally motivated, it is much easier to accomplish the project.

Unit Two Proposal

For my unit two project, I would like to analyze the arguments presented by those directly effected by the Lindsay Lohan scandal this past year. Lindsay was recently arrested on several occasions for various reasons (mostly related to drugs and alcohol). She was then sent to trial to decide whether she should go to jail, rehab, or be free. It was up to the judge to determine her fate and there was much controversy over what that should be. I think that this will be an interesting topic because coverage of the scandal was all over TMZ, Perez, Twitter as well as the rest of the media. Sources like these interest me because I always want to question the reliability of them. I wonder where, exactly, the get their information. It is interesting to see how everyone feels about this particular situation, within the movie industry and beyond. Because of Lindsay's influence on young people everywhere, some people thought that she needed to be sent to jail and rehab to set an example. Others thought that she didn't deserve the negative spotlight that she was under. I look forward to examining further why people thought the way they did.

In Class; First Paragraph

The space I chose is Yo!, a frozen yogurt lounge on University Drive across the street from the Texas Christian University campus. The shop itself is located next door to a few landmarks on the TCU campus. Dutch's a student staple and the TCU Barnes and Noble bookstore are located within feet of Yo! Making it easy and accessible to all students. The building is small with large windows in the front allowing students and visitors to look in and out as they please. The space inside is clean and somewhat neutral; white walls with brown trim and blue accents. The space is open to all kinds of people. The frozen yogurt itself is located in the back of the lounge and can be sampled as one decides which flavor to choose. The location of the frozen yogurt selection is key to the flow of the space. Patrons walk in the front door and go directly to the back in order to choose a flavor. As they make their decision they move closer to the large windows. After selecting one of the 12 flavors available, one must select toppings. There are many choices for toppings including; fruits, sauces and candies of all sorts. After filling a dish with fro yo and toppings, you move forward to the check out counter. There is usually a younger person, if not the owner who will assist you. One places their desert on a scale while the cashier converts ounces into dollars. Yo! prides itself on its accessibility and affordability. The posters on the walls use phrases such as "Put more bounce in your ounce, only 45 cents an ounce".