Hey Notes From North Sheridan Followers:
Exciting news! I just received an e-mail from Jimmy Greenfield, the site manager on ChicagoNow.com, teling me that NFNS will be added to ChicagoNow.com!
AAAHH! For those of you who don't know, ChicagoNow is an online blogging community with 200+ blogs carrying on conversations about literally everything. It is a way for Chicagoans to connect and create and discuss anything and everything- I can't even describe the variation in subjects so check it out right now! www.chicagonow.com
The other exciting part of this is that ChicagoNow plays a large role in feeding to RedEye, the free daily commuter paper that I am in love with so this is my first step toward my dream of writing for RedEye!
Basically, I'm psyched. However, this means NFNS is going to move to a new home on ChicagoNow.com pretty soon (more details to come) and I'm going to need all the help I can get. Right now I'm going to be blogging on a trial basis and I need to prove myself if I want to move up to the paid blogger tier. Basically I have to be more creative, more innovative, make more use of social media and get more page hits than ever before, so I'm counting on YOU, the readers, to help me out!
Well that is all the information for now, but just wanted to let you all in on this exciting move for NFNS. Thanks for all your support!
3.09.2010
3.04.2010
Conversational Phrases That Should Probably Die
Lately, I’ve noticed several patterns in the way people talk. Not so much in diction or accent or sentence length, but rather those phrases you hear people say in class or when they don’t know someone very well. They say these things time and time again in order to send a certain message about themselves, when really all they’re provoking in the listener is a disenchanted glare and internal groan.
“Where is home?”
At first glance this seems like a harmless question. However, in my experience it is almost always uttered by some overly friendly older man at the airport who chose to sit at the stool next to you, even when there are plenty more available further down the counter, or by some college aged guy who isn’t used to talking to girls but wants to appear intelligent so he thinks of this genius way to ask “Where are you from?” To be honest, home can be a relative answer. Do you really want me to answer this? I can answer about how home is whenever I’m with my laughing with my close friends or drinking a raspberry mango shake with passion fruit jellies from Tea Garden or closing my eyes and feeling a warm breeze stroke my forehead or the sound of a pipe organ playi- oh what? You’re just wondering where I’m from? Maybe move over a couple stools and I’ll tell you.
“(Insert activity here) is what I do.”
I’ve heard this in many contexts. Art is what I do, soccer is what I do, music is what I do, summer is what I do, swimming is what I do, knitting is what I do- okay, well I’m glad you do that, but do you do other things? Do you also “do” eating? Do you “do” friends? It appears that this singular activity is so much a part of their identity that it is the only verb they can perform. “Hey man, wanna go play some basketball later today? You’ve been sitting inside staring at that plant for like three months…” “Sorry dude I can’t. You know this. Horticulture is what I do. I literally cannot do anything else.”
“Well I was just going to say…”
This statement is almost always heard in large classroom discussions. Usually two people will start talking at the same time, and then one will actually talk and preface their statement with “Well I was just going to say…” No, you are actually saying that. There is no past tense in the comment you are currently making. And the worst is when people say this even when the teacher actually calls on them and there is no question in the fact that they are supposed to be talking at that moment but still manage to sneak in the excuse that this was what they were going to say if they didn’t get called on, but they did get called on so… I guess they’ll just say it?
Somehow making any small group discussion into a comparison of who has the best I-did-the-stupidest-thing-when-I-was-drunk story.
If you are a typical college student you probably will drink at some point. Meaning that all the other college students around you probably drink as well, and they have all probably done some pretty dumb things. However, I don’t really get what people are trying to prove to me when we are in class and they decide it is necessary for us to discuss their beer pong record or their terrible hangover. I generally don’t hang out with those in my small groups outside of class, and so it is slightly frustrating when the only interaction I have with them is their retelling of the previous night’s shenanigans. We are actually discussing post WWII gender roles and if you can tell me the answer to number three I will be way more impressed than that story about you spending $54 when you were blacked out at Dunkin Donuts last weekend. In addition, these stories are actually a lot less original than you would think. There is inevitably one girl who off handedly mentions she owes her mom a bottle of peppermint schnapps because she drank it all last Christmas (a painfully obvious set up to the exchange: “wOw your parents don’t care if you drink?” “Oh hell no they get drunk with me!” “wOw you’re sooooo lucky”). There is also inevitably some guy who brings up the time he saw (insert animated fantasy movie here) high (“I bet that was soooo crazy” “Dude it totally was!”) If this practice continues (which I’m sure it will considering this seems to be a theme among every college campus everywhere) at least think of something more innovative to do when drunk, so I can be mildly entertained when you distract me from doing any sort of work. Thanks.
Note: Though I say all this, I know that I have definitely been guilty of all these phrases myself, and will probably continue to accidentally use them for a very long time. Also all of these statements said in most contexts aren't really bothersome to me, its just that I happen to notice them in certain settings as of late. Just wanted to add that disclaimer so no one is offended because they happened to use one of these in the last few days. No worries. I probably have too haha.
“Where is home?”
At first glance this seems like a harmless question. However, in my experience it is almost always uttered by some overly friendly older man at the airport who chose to sit at the stool next to you, even when there are plenty more available further down the counter, or by some college aged guy who isn’t used to talking to girls but wants to appear intelligent so he thinks of this genius way to ask “Where are you from?” To be honest, home can be a relative answer. Do you really want me to answer this? I can answer about how home is whenever I’m with my laughing with my close friends or drinking a raspberry mango shake with passion fruit jellies from Tea Garden or closing my eyes and feeling a warm breeze stroke my forehead or the sound of a pipe organ playi- oh what? You’re just wondering where I’m from? Maybe move over a couple stools and I’ll tell you.
“(Insert activity here) is what I do.”
I’ve heard this in many contexts. Art is what I do, soccer is what I do, music is what I do, summer is what I do, swimming is what I do, knitting is what I do- okay, well I’m glad you do that, but do you do other things? Do you also “do” eating? Do you “do” friends? It appears that this singular activity is so much a part of their identity that it is the only verb they can perform. “Hey man, wanna go play some basketball later today? You’ve been sitting inside staring at that plant for like three months…” “Sorry dude I can’t. You know this. Horticulture is what I do. I literally cannot do anything else.”
“Well I was just going to say…”
This statement is almost always heard in large classroom discussions. Usually two people will start talking at the same time, and then one will actually talk and preface their statement with “Well I was just going to say…” No, you are actually saying that. There is no past tense in the comment you are currently making. And the worst is when people say this even when the teacher actually calls on them and there is no question in the fact that they are supposed to be talking at that moment but still manage to sneak in the excuse that this was what they were going to say if they didn’t get called on, but they did get called on so… I guess they’ll just say it?
Somehow making any small group discussion into a comparison of who has the best I-did-the-stupidest-thing-when-I-was-drunk story.
If you are a typical college student you probably will drink at some point. Meaning that all the other college students around you probably drink as well, and they have all probably done some pretty dumb things. However, I don’t really get what people are trying to prove to me when we are in class and they decide it is necessary for us to discuss their beer pong record or their terrible hangover. I generally don’t hang out with those in my small groups outside of class, and so it is slightly frustrating when the only interaction I have with them is their retelling of the previous night’s shenanigans. We are actually discussing post WWII gender roles and if you can tell me the answer to number three I will be way more impressed than that story about you spending $54 when you were blacked out at Dunkin Donuts last weekend. In addition, these stories are actually a lot less original than you would think. There is inevitably one girl who off handedly mentions she owes her mom a bottle of peppermint schnapps because she drank it all last Christmas (a painfully obvious set up to the exchange: “wOw your parents don’t care if you drink?” “Oh hell no they get drunk with me!” “wOw you’re sooooo lucky”). There is also inevitably some guy who brings up the time he saw (insert animated fantasy movie here) high (“I bet that was soooo crazy” “Dude it totally was!”) If this practice continues (which I’m sure it will considering this seems to be a theme among every college campus everywhere) at least think of something more innovative to do when drunk, so I can be mildly entertained when you distract me from doing any sort of work. Thanks.
Note: Though I say all this, I know that I have definitely been guilty of all these phrases myself, and will probably continue to accidentally use them for a very long time. Also all of these statements said in most contexts aren't really bothersome to me, its just that I happen to notice them in certain settings as of late. Just wanted to add that disclaimer so no one is offended because they happened to use one of these in the last few days. No worries. I probably have too haha.
Turns Out Professors Want You To Learn
After nearly seven months of struggling through the new medium of lecture classes, accelerated learning curves, and grades comprised of two papers, a midterm, and a final, I’ve discovered something very important: professors actually want you to learn.
Yes, yes, I know. Of course they want you to learn. But the fact I’ve come across is they want you to learn. Learn, as in get the nuggets of information they pez dispense three times a week and insert it in your mind for your neurons to chew, suck and crack in their little dendrite teeth until they’ve lost their sugar rush and are ready for the next dispense. However, not everyone eats their pez the same way, and its up to us, as students to let our teaching professionals understand how do dispense it best.
Let me explain.
The other day I was in my philosophy class, blandly transcribing my teacher’s blackboard notes and lecture voice to my notes on John Locke. Typical day, typical class: I was just ready for it to be over. Then my teacher stops her lecture and completely switches gears. She goes into a maniacal fact vomit on the state of the prison system, practically yelling at us to agree with her sweeping general statements on how “This is the civil rights issue of our time, GUYS!” and how this is a terrible travesty, and how, oh, yea, John Locke talked about liberty and this pertains to liberty as well. Okay go ahead and leave ten minutes early.
Wait, what?
Okay, first I am forced to regurgitate mundane basic facts about a reading wrote four hundred years ago in thick archaic diction, then listen to fact after fact about an issue I am unaware of in an attempt to connect the basic facts to our lives today, and THEN without giving me a chance to discuss or ask questions you boot me out of a class I am paying $200+ for?! Not okay.
By the time I had walked ten feet from the door, I was livid. Obviously there was some disconnect between the way she was teaching and the way I was learning- how can I be getting anything out of that class period?
So I decided I needed to let her know in some way how I felt about her teaching practices. I wrote her a polite but firm e-mail explaining my frustration at class being cut early and the disconnect between contemporary issues and the topics being discussed. I also suggested a few alternative options to the way she was approaching the material. Then I signed my name, proofread for grammatical errors (she is my professor), and hit send.
Though I was slightly nervous about her reaction, I felt glad I sent the e-mail. Even if she didn’t agree, at least I would have felt like I did something to change my academic life for the better in a class that could pertain to my eventual major/minor.
Thankfully, she was more than happy I wrote her the e-mail. She said she normally doesn’t get this sort of honest feedback from a student and had noticed a decreased level of interest in our class. Apparently she had also just finished grading our papers and wasn’t too pleased about those grades, starting off the class on a sour note. However, the next class period we spent the entire time discussing how we could make the course more relatable and beneficial for everyone. It was probably the liveliest discussion we have had thus far. The class since then has been going much better, for both students and teacher.
So here is my advice to students everywhere: if you don’t like something that is going on in your class chances are other students feel the same way and your teacher is noticing. We only have four years of college (and maybe two-four years of grad school) to prepare us for the rest of our lives. That’s pretty intimidating once you think about it. So if for any reason something isn’t working for you, take some initiative and make it change. You’ll likely help yourself, and probably a few other students and professors along the way.
Yes, yes, I know. Of course they want you to learn. But the fact I’ve come across is they want you to learn. Learn, as in get the nuggets of information they pez dispense three times a week and insert it in your mind for your neurons to chew, suck and crack in their little dendrite teeth until they’ve lost their sugar rush and are ready for the next dispense. However, not everyone eats their pez the same way, and its up to us, as students to let our teaching professionals understand how do dispense it best.
Let me explain.
The other day I was in my philosophy class, blandly transcribing my teacher’s blackboard notes and lecture voice to my notes on John Locke. Typical day, typical class: I was just ready for it to be over. Then my teacher stops her lecture and completely switches gears. She goes into a maniacal fact vomit on the state of the prison system, practically yelling at us to agree with her sweeping general statements on how “This is the civil rights issue of our time, GUYS!” and how this is a terrible travesty, and how, oh, yea, John Locke talked about liberty and this pertains to liberty as well. Okay go ahead and leave ten minutes early.
Wait, what?
Okay, first I am forced to regurgitate mundane basic facts about a reading wrote four hundred years ago in thick archaic diction, then listen to fact after fact about an issue I am unaware of in an attempt to connect the basic facts to our lives today, and THEN without giving me a chance to discuss or ask questions you boot me out of a class I am paying $200+ for?! Not okay.
By the time I had walked ten feet from the door, I was livid. Obviously there was some disconnect between the way she was teaching and the way I was learning- how can I be getting anything out of that class period?
So I decided I needed to let her know in some way how I felt about her teaching practices. I wrote her a polite but firm e-mail explaining my frustration at class being cut early and the disconnect between contemporary issues and the topics being discussed. I also suggested a few alternative options to the way she was approaching the material. Then I signed my name, proofread for grammatical errors (she is my professor), and hit send.
Though I was slightly nervous about her reaction, I felt glad I sent the e-mail. Even if she didn’t agree, at least I would have felt like I did something to change my academic life for the better in a class that could pertain to my eventual major/minor.
Thankfully, she was more than happy I wrote her the e-mail. She said she normally doesn’t get this sort of honest feedback from a student and had noticed a decreased level of interest in our class. Apparently she had also just finished grading our papers and wasn’t too pleased about those grades, starting off the class on a sour note. However, the next class period we spent the entire time discussing how we could make the course more relatable and beneficial for everyone. It was probably the liveliest discussion we have had thus far. The class since then has been going much better, for both students and teacher.
So here is my advice to students everywhere: if you don’t like something that is going on in your class chances are other students feel the same way and your teacher is noticing. We only have four years of college (and maybe two-four years of grad school) to prepare us for the rest of our lives. That’s pretty intimidating once you think about it. So if for any reason something isn’t working for you, take some initiative and make it change. You’ll likely help yourself, and probably a few other students and professors along the way.
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