The Last Post

Class ending is pretty bitter-sweet.  Yay, class is over, but summer is too.  I actually enjoyed the online experience with the class.  The blog posts were a creative way to interact, although there were a lot.  I think compared to the regular class, this worked a lot better for me.  Getting the group project done was definitely difficult online, but we ended up with a really good product.  'A' material for sure.  I thought a lot of the topics presented in the class were interesting, making it easier to write about.  Overall, I think the class was a good experience.

Writing Process

Roughness

https://docs.google.com/a/g.clemson.edu/document/d/11L9N8sqGEMMP70bX94Rx9tdB_OQim7GfAl87PcTK3ok/edit?hl=en_US

Define Reality

I don't think it's possible to define reality other than to say it's what happens.  I'm not going to limit myself to 'my world.'  Personally, I think it's necessary to acknowledge the existence of reality in its entirety.  Yeah, I judge based on look and I judge in general - not a single person you meet can say otherwise.  But I'll say this - people dress a certain way for a reason.  People's body language is a certain way for a reason. So taking pictures of the minority is just the minority, nothing else.  To be the best at what you do, no matter what it is, you need to acknowledge everything.  And that's what I think reality is - everything.  Dreams, miracles, if it happens it's reality.

ORGANIZATION

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osyRqD8-v2I

"Daughters" by John Mayer

6/8 meter

A-A-B-A-B-C-A-B  Song

Intro Instrumental - 8 bars  (Exposition)
Verse - (A) - 8 bars
Verse - (A) - 8 bars
Chorus - (B) - 8 bars
Verse - (A) - 8 bars
Chorus - (B) - 8 bars
Bridge - (C) - 8 bars with tagged ending  (Climax)
Instrumental interlude - 8 bars
Verse - (A) - 8 bars
Chorus - (B) - 8 bars
Tagged Ending  (Resolution)

• The third and fourth verses (A) are modified by variations in the melody.
• Instrumental breaks between the chorus (B) and the second cycle of verse (A) help the listener know that John is starting a new cycle in the pattern.
• Interesting that no instrumental break is given between the chorus (B) and bridge (C).  This makes the bridge more exciting and even stronger.
• Tagged ending helps to resolve the song.

This is pretty ordinary compositional organization.  John Mayer's composing and performing are pretty extraordinary!

Not Much of a Field Trip...

This image depicts one of the tiger statues in front of the Scroll of Honor at Clemson.  This is the tiger of more ferocious nature.  I think it serves several purposes, especially being the meaner looking tiger.  It's a guardian over the Scroll of Honor and has an air of strength, making it a testament to all of the military members that have, and will come from Clemson.  At the same time, being right across from Memorial Stadium, it sends a message saying be afraid.  It's a pretty neat statue to have on campus.

Questions

How does an entertainer look at themselves as being someone who is emulated?
Why does the average person idolize entertainers?

Website

To get the bad out of the way, this first screenshot is HVCHSMTPA.org.  This is the digital home of the Hopewell Valley Central High School Music and Theater Parents Association.  Quite the mouthful.  This is a poor website firstly, because the information doesn’t fit between the curtains that are the background.  Then if you were to scroll down, you might never get to the end.  Rather than linking material and putting it all up front, you have to scroll all the way down and search through the different colors and fonts to find what you need.

This screenshot is of the General Motors website, GM.com.  It took me a long time to find the website, because I was looking for a truly “perfect” website.  This website gets everything you need in front of you immediately; no scrolling is necessary.  It has a very modern, “metal” feel due to all of the straight edges, the plain font, and the photo of buildings as the background.  As far as functionality goes, the drop-down menus are far from cumbersome and there is a news feed right in the front preaching the gospel of GM.

"Faster, Cheaper, Better"

It’s a jet flying into the perfect blue sky with turbo propulsion.  That is, it’s a 100 dollar bill folded paper airplane, well shadowed as if it was flying up into the beautifully shining sun, folded so that the 100’s are very clear.  It may be seen as a jet propelling through the air toward a vacation destination, an F22 going into battle for financial success, or maybe just your money flying away!  But next to the words in big, bold, yellow capital letters are the words:  “Faster, Better, Cheaper.”  Inside this edition of Money, the cover story pulls the verbiage from the cover:  “Faster, Cheaper, Better” and relates it to budgeting, setting up a portfolio, selling your house, trading stocks, investing, planning a vacation.  It is a collection of smaller pieces about each of those areas organized by the theme of “Faster, Cheaper, Better”.   The authors introduce that they are attempting to appeal to different types of people.  Those “crave{s{ extra time, even if you have to spend a little more money to get it” will look at the advice under the “Faster” headings (52).    “Cheaper” tips are for frugal people who are “willing to do more legwork or cut some nonessential corners to maximize savings” (52).   And those looking at the “better” tips are the perfectionists, though there’s little definition of what a perfectionist might look like.    There are many graphics throughout the article including a bar and line graph.  However, I found the best images to be of a revved-up piggy bank.  It’s souped up with extra horsepower (pun intended), with mag wheels and a turbo exhaust system.  This image is repeated in some of the sections, first as it crashes through a fire ring with the title “Set Up a Moderate-Risk Portfolio” (55).  Then it’s in the driveway of a house in the “Sell Your House” section (56), and on an island wearing a sombrero with various needed beach articles surrounding it (63).  I find it interesting that the image inside the article was not the same image used on the cover.  Though the cover image did catch my eye easily, the piggy bank worked quietly effectively, as well. 

Rosato, Donna, Penelope Wang, and Susie Poppick. "Faster, Better, Cheaper." Money July 2011: 52-63. Print.

My Books

Greco, Albert N. The Media and Entertainment Industries:           

 Readings in Mass Communications. Boston: Allyn and Bacon,

2000. Print.

Gorman, Lyn, and David McLean. Media and Society into the 21st

Century: a Historical Introduction. Chichester, UK: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. Print.

I think the first book will be a good help because it gives a very good general overview of the  industry aspect of entertainment.  The second book will be good because it focuses more on the socio-economic aspect.  While I don't believe either is exactly what I'm looking for, I hope to get valuable information from each book.  An added benefit of these two books together is the difference of almost a decade.  They can offer a look at the change in entertainment.

Free Write

The entertainment industry.  So much to talk about.  So many visuals that come to my mind.  So many issues.  Are they overpaid, are they not?  What about relative to the average worker -- teacher or policemen or small business owner or professional athlete.  (Then again, these are celebrities.)   So I need to think about what I mean by the entertainment industry.  Thinking about musicians, specifically, there are a lot of issues with good versus poor musicians and which are recognized and how they make their money.  The images presented on their cd covers is pretty interesting, as well.  There is always the conversation about how "sex sells" and this could be studied with these images.   What about the confidence relative to the skill/ability.  But isn't that just interpretation by the listener/viewer?  I think of somebody like Lady Gaga who is an excellent musician, but presents herself to sell herself and market herself.  In a different time, would she have a more traditional look?  Time's up.

Bubbles

It Pretty Much Sucks

The elephant sucks, yes.  I mean, why would you make your logo an elephant?  Something more badass like a tiger would probably be better.

I’m not answering this one.  I couldn’t possibly answer something I couldn’t support.

If we are talking about the Harry Potter fifth movie I would have to say I’m on the sucking side.  After Chris Columbus was no longer the director, the movies became horrible.  However, I think the story of Harry Potter is one of the best – it’s not that often you hear of a fictional story so many people really want to get into.

I’m going to say Apple sucks.  Despite the fact that I use a Mac and an iPod, Apple sucks because they literally suck.  They suck you dry of your money.  You want to hook your computer up to your tv? Okay, just buy this fifty dollar mini-port adapter.  Oh, now you need another type of connection? Buy this other one, too.  Also they limit their products capabilities at each launch, so should they run out of new things, they can easily upgrade what they have.

Star Wars is awesome.  George Lucas wrote Star Wars based on classic, loved mythology and tales, so for anyone to say they don’t like Star Wars they have either not seen them, or are lying.

Facebook sucks.  I constantly want to know what is going on, so I check facebook way too much.  It has literally replaced human interaction.  And I need to stop.

McDonald’s doesn’t suck.  I, personally, am not the biggest fast food eater, but the idea of McDonald’s is phenomenal.  Obviously – look at how many customers they serve.

Clemson doesn’t suck.

Lady Gaga sucks.  She’s really talented, but her music sucks.  Plus she kind of detracts from it with her showmanship.  She should put more time into her music.

Justin Bieber sucks.  Nobody actually likes him.  Do they?

Sudoku doesn’t suck; I suck at it.  But it is a good time killer.

Avatar sucks.  It’s absolutely horrible.  The acting sucks, the story, while also a classic like Star Wars, was horrible and not well executed.  Everyone says how awesome it looks.  It’s fake.  Hawai’i looks awesome, go there.

XBOX sucks.  I literally spent my entire day playing NCAA 12 yesterday and not only do I have nothing in the real world to show for it, but I’m still just as bad as when I started.

American Idol didn’t suck…but now it does.  It is an awesome idea and there were some talented singers on it.  Adam Lambert is filthy.  But now, I mean Steven Tyler is a horrible judge.  They should have stopped while they were ahead.

Glee doesn’t suck.  It’s a unique idea, which I like.  It’s surprising that it took off, but it’s really talented people who actually go out and put on shows when the TV show isn’t on.  That’s pretty cool.

Cigarettes suck.  People took a natural herb, I guess it’s an herb, and put it in a package that kills people.  You can’t really say that doesn’t suck.

Guns don’t suck.  I’d rather be in a war zone with people shooting at me than trying to hack away with swords.  In a civilian setting they suck though.  People use guns for the wrong reason.

I’m pro choice.  Pick whatever you want, and leave me out of it.  I’m just going to try really hard to not get anybody pregnant.

Not sure what this one is, but I’d say it sucks.  Why would you dress your dog like that?

Extra Credit

“For your protection, this bottle has an imprinted seal around the neck.”




 

My Process

I’ve never really looked at writing as my “thing.”  I also wouldn’t say what I do is really a process.  I start by doing a lot of other things, very far separated from the writing I have to do.  Then I look at a clock and realize I should probably start soon.  Then, when I finally get to my computer, I will realize I am famished, so leave to get some nourishment.  But once I actually start to write, I don’t really stop.  I just write whatever crap I can think of, and then I’ll worry about how it sounds after.  Because I think a million times faster than I can write, a common occurrence is me forgetting what it was I wanted to write and getting pissed of.  That is why I have to write down everything, grammatically correct or not, so I can get everything out of my head.  I think really the best thing for me is getting it all done immediately though.  Once I start going it becomes significantly easier, but if I take a break it all starts over.  As far as location is concerned, it doesn’t really matter, but I’m definitely a desk person.  I try to do a lot of work sitting upright at a desk, but otherwise I’ll just do it in my bed.

Plagiarism

I, Ryan Nutt, promise never to plagiarize on my papers.  Why won’t I?  Well, first of all, it’s wrong ethically, and therefore will get me in a lot of trouble.  When you plagiarize, you’re in effect stealing another person’s ideas.  Stealing is against the law and it’s immoral, and so is plagiarism.  Can you go to jail for plagiarism?  I don’t believe so.  However, the consequences are quite grim and serious in the academic world, often leading to failure.  Not plagiarizing is important for reasons other than failing in an academic setting.  Personally, not plagiarizing shows that I have integrity as a learner.  Even more, not plagiarizing means that as a learner, I have an opportunity to take in information and make judgements about it and then creatively and insightfully provide it back in my writing.  This is an important part of learning – coming up with your own ideas from information you’ve come across instead of simply taking someone else’s ideas and saying they’re your own.  So in the end, while plagiarizing is ethically unacceptable, the reasons for not plagiarizing go beyond the basic ethical arguments to personal ones.  

Homemade Peppermint Patties

• Cool
• Fresh
• Chocolatey
• Smooth
• Soothing
• Comforting
• Fresh
• Cold
• A more sophisticated candy
• The tastes blend together so well
• Sweet
• Reminds me of being a kid
• Fulfilling

Crocodiles

Crocodiles are majestic, powerful, and amazing creatures.  They are skillful hunters that stalk their prey with great grace and speed.  They hide under water where they are almost invisible waiting for the right opportunity to strike.  A swipe of their tail is more than enough to propel them rapidly through the water or take a person out.  The strength of their jaws is not even close to a match for any creature’s flesh, and will shatter bone with ease.  Crocodiles also have a life span comparable to that of humans.  They are feared and revered by so many making them truly a formidable force in the marshes.

Crocodiles are ridiculous looking, silly, and lame creatures.  They have legs that are less than a foot tall and they waddle around.  To swim, they have to use their big, clumsy tail to push them forward.  The swamps they live in are nasty and hardly a place for a majestic creature.  They have an enormous jaw that is extremely ugly and the rest of their body is a gross green color.  These are hardly fun creatures to be around.  Crocodiles also have the most ugly eyes.  They pop out of the top of their flat head and are big and bug like.

Rhetorical Ad

This is a Gatorade advertisement for the entire product line as opposed to one specific product. It’s a line of advertisements with the broken up words and a famous athlete.  While the company is speaking to the audience, they use the phrase “No Truces” to make it seem like GSP himself is talking to the audience.  The message is just badass.  Gatorade is trying to show they have a product for tough people, and who doesn’t want to be tough?  The use of only two words is a ‘speak softly, but carry a big stick’ type of reference.

Who this message talks to is largely based on knowledge of GSP and mixed martial arts.  This ad depends heavily on the ethos of GSP.  If you don’t know who he is, this ad just looks like a dancing, or something.  Gatorade is also depending on the ethos of their company logo.  Nowhere in this ad does it give any clue about the product being advertised.  As such, this ad is only trying to draw in people that already know about Gatorade and are familiar with GSP.  This ad has some pathos in it just because of the whole ‘badass’ effect.  It stirs up your emotions so you can say,  “GSP is hardcore and drinks Gatorade, maybe I will be too if I drink Gatorade.”

Hi

Hi.  My name is Ryan Nutt and I’m from Titusville, NJ.  I’m a computer engineering major…for what reason I am not really sure, but it definitely makes me sound smart.  I get asked all the time why did did come to Clemson and why would I you want to drive so far to get here.  First of all, it really isn’t that far.  Far is Russia.  I guess the answer to the question, though is that I don’t really know.  It felt right?  But it was definitely a solid choice.  If I had to pick a sole interest that was my favorite in life I would have to say music.  Just music.  Not limiting that to just creating it or listening, but music in its entirety.  The associations music can make with feelings are spectacular.

I’m in AFROTC because it is my ambition to be commissioned as an officer in the United States Air Force.  I am completely dedicated to this pursuit and am working exceptionally hard to get where I need to be.  I went through some rough times in the past and messed up a little bit on my way here, which is taking this goal farther away from possibility, but I’m determined.  School is not my thing, but if it’s the only thing that will get me to the place I want to be, it has got to be done.

If there is one thing I hate more than anything, it is school.  This sounds so typical and stupid, but I actually am a horribly inept student.  I’m not calling myself unintelligent, it’s just that I struggle with the format of it all and I have trouble asking for help…my ego doesn’t like it.

I like this picture because it shows a little more laid back side of me.  I love golfing, but really golfing is about hanging out with people you like.  Plus it was a nice day and I like warm weather very much.