Sayonara!

Finally!! The time has come where all the hard work I have put into this research project comes together.
It's a pretty awesome feeling. Actually, more like a sigh of relief that its over :)
I'm finishing up my Bibliography and pasting in my Appendix.

Looking back, although this blog was NOT my favorite part of the class, I enjoyed looking back at past blogs to see how my project evolved. From the overwhelming feeling at the beginning, to the "it wasn't so bad" feeling at the end.

This class has been interesting and I feel I got a lot out of it. I don't think I will ever approach my research papers the same again.

Almost there..

Coming into the last two weeks of the semester I'm beginning to feel even more overwhelmed.
Although I can see how the entire research project is coming together, I still feel like there is still so much to do.
I'm concerned with my last multimodal. It is still in the works. In regards to my ARP, all that is left to type up is my conclusions. Thank God.
I'm also a bit apprehensive about tomorrow's poster presentation. I hope I will be able to relax enough to give a good presentation. The board still needs a bunch of papers to be glued on... that will be tomorrow's AM assignment!

Bridal Plasty

This super new series on E! premiers Sunday November 28th at 9:00pm.

The show consists of brides-to-be who compete in challenges to earn plastic-surgery procedures in a quest to win their ultimate dream wedding.

After watching the video online I was less than surprised. This series is just one of the many ways the media has showcased the importance of beauty and how average women "should" look. Below is the link to the video on the E! online website:

 

http://www.eonline.com/videos/v91756_bridalplasty.html

 

 

 

 

Awkward observations

This week I did another observation for my research project at St Thomas cafeteria.
Needless to say it was the most awkward situation I have been in...

I walked into the cafeteria like a lost puppy. After  walking around in circles for 5mins trying to figure out where the plates were, I took a look at what was being offered for lunch. I was overwhelmed with the food options. From what I can remember, the cafeteria served: chicken breast, rice, corn, pasta, cheeseburgers, onion rings, hummus, chicken soup, pumpkin soup, and pretzels. At the center of the cafeteria was a small area for the "salad bar". It was not impressive. Considering the wide selection of food being offered I assumed there would be just as wide of a selection at the salad bar. Unfortunately, the opposite was true.

Once I sat down and began eating my lunch, I observed what the majority of students selected to eat. The #1 choice by the students was the cheeseburger and onion rings. Furthermore, it was observed that the majority of students accompanied there lunch with soda (high in sugar).

Women's Campaign

While researching for different campaigns against negative body image, I came across Cambridge University's Student Union. They have established a Women's campaign which represents the women of Cambridge and voices change in CUSU, student unions, University and faculties. They are an autonomous policy making body, which means that although we receive funding from CUSU.

Here is their page:  http://www.womens.cusu.cam.ac.uk/

I thought this would be a great proposal to submit to St Thomas University's Senate. We can establish our own Women's Campaign that will bring awareness and eliminate all forms of discrimination faced by women.

Interview Summary

Last Wednesday I conducted my very first interview with Mr. Glass from the Health and Wellness Center.
It was very interesting to say the least.
Since it was my very first "official" interview, I was extremely nervous. However, I kept my composure and was able to have a very pleasant conversation with Mr. Glass on the issue of body image.
Although the interview went well, and Mr. Glass was very helpful, I'm concerned that the information acquired from the interview is nothing new to me. Majority of the answers were very similar to the points made in many of my text-based materials. 
For my next interview, I would need t reevaluate my questions so this doesn't happen again.

Moving Forward

These past couple of months have been a nightmare to say the least. The amount of stress due to the excessive amounts of school work, prepping for the Oct LSAT, and working two jobs has come to the point of being unbearable. Migraines has become a daily occurrence, and the pressure has become quite to much to handle. At times I get the urge to throw everything in the garbage, scream, and walk away from it all.

However, I will not allow myself to give up. Although these months has literally tested my limits and my abilities to manage time efficiently, I will move forward. This week I am sending an email to my first interviewee, G. Matt Glass MA, LMFT of the Health and Wellness Center at ST. Thomas University. I am quite eager to meet him, for I have many questions to ask him concerning his opinion on body dissatisfaction. I have accumulated an array of questions which I have gathered from my articles, as well as from the film "Killing Us Softly" by Jean Kilbourne. I'm very interested in what he has to say, and hope he can give me more insight towards these issues.

Getting this out of the way :)

While typing up my interview questions, I stumbled upon an amazing website www.eatingrecoverycenter.com
It provides great information such as, treatment options and tips, as well recent publications and helpful links.

I also heard a commercial once on TV about a special on eating disorders, however, I forgot where I heard it and even the title of the film :(
I did however, through a helpful classmate, get the name of a famous feminist author, speaker, and filmmaker, Jean Kilbourne. Her film "Killing Us Softly" depicts how women are strategically used in advertisement and its effects on impressionable women. I'm so eager to begin watching this film, and I hope it will provide some useful information on my research topic!

Surviving with no AC

So my AC broke on Friday night, and I have been without AC ever since.
I have nooooooo clue how anyone survived prior to the invention of air conditioning. My room feels like a sauna causing me to be very irritable. :( Needless to say, I did not get much school work done this weekend.
I'm hoping this week I can get more accomplished.

Growing up in Manhattan

Manhattan, one of the five boroughs of New York, is a major commercial, financial, and cultural center of both the United States and the world. Filled with many famous landmarks, tourist attractions, countless museums, and the home of several international headquarters, such as the United Nations. Manhattan is also one of the most densely populated areas in the United States. Rich in culture and history, one can wonder how growing up in such an area can be. I spoke with a student here at St Thomas University who grew up in this glorious city. Not affected at all by the big city during her early years, the student then realized the importance of the city once she moved to Costa Rica.
Given the history of crime in New York (ethnic gangs, mafia, etc), I was curious to see how this could impact an individual who was surrounded by this environment. The student clearly stated that violence and crime was apparent. She recalls an incident in her old apartment building where a man was shot, stating "my grandfather saw blood along the walls and floor." She also recalls seeing needles in a local park nearby her school.  A more tragic event in the city was the September 11 hijacking. Although the student was living in Costa Rica at the time, the events still impacted her as she felt for the families of the victims. When asked about the controversial building of a Mosaic near the World Trade Center memorial, the student feels that although there is a freedom of religion, the site should be relocated to a less sensitive area.

Literacy History Interview

Today I interviewed a student at St Thomas University about her literacy history.
When I asked her about when/how she learned to read, she responded that she began reading in elementary school. Her parents did not teach her prior to elementary school, however, they did hire a tutor to further assist her in her studies. When asked if she would have liked her parents to take a different approach to reading/writing, the student responded that she would have liked if her parents would have encouraged her to read more during her leisure time. She continued on by stating that she would encourage her future kids to read, as well as write, for it helps them widen their imaginations.

When asked about her high school experience, the student clearly expressed that she was not interested at all to reading/writing. She recalled a teacher who was highly critical about the writing styles of each student, and assigned an immense amount of books to read throughout the semester. The student stated that she was pushed away from writing, until she came to St Thomas University. At the university level, the student had a professor who made her enjoy writing/reading once again. The student then decided to add English has her second major. Although the student prefers writing over reading, she does enjoy reading fan-fiction novels from time to time.

Questions, Questions, Questions...

So this week we worked on formulating questions that can better guide us towards a research proposal.

My topic of choice is Body Dysmorphia and Eating Disorders in Universities.
Some of the questions I came up with are:

-Individualism difficulties
-Does overwhelming stress have an effect on women/men's eating habits
- What are the male/female perspectives on the "ideal" body.
-What is the role of the media (advertising stereotypes/ pro eating disorder websites/ etc)
-Eating Behaviors/habits in the U.S. vs Europe

Religious Battle

Well the other day, actually yesterday, I got into a heated debate with a friend of mines. He is what I like to call a "Jesus Freak" and although I admire his passion, at times I find him to be quite overbearing.
So yesterday he emails me an excerpt about "forgiveness" in which he plans on preaching to a group of imprisoned men. I simply replied back that I did not agree with evangelism. Well to make a long story short, the debate ended with me calling him narrow minded and ignorant... to be quite honest though, I found the whole debate to be amusing which led me to instigate the situation. :)
But then today I reassessed the situation and came up with the idea of researching "The Effects of Theological Exclusivity."
Although I'm still leaning more towards "Body Dysmorphia," "Theological Exclusivity" is just a thought. hmmm...

Welcome

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