My phone is broken. Why? I do not know. I took it out of my pocket last night and it said "Insert SIM." Now, this had happened to me before, so i shut off my phone, took out the battery, took out the SIM card, and put it back in. I tried starting my phone up again, but to my dismay, "Insert SIM" came back on the screen.
Needless to say, I am not a happy camper.
I called the Cingular people for some help. I got a lady who sounded like she knew what she was doing, but in all reality, could do nothing for me but tell me to go to the nearest Cingular store. I asked her why the phone would just stop recognizing the SIM card and she told me that sometimes the phone malfunction. Wonderful! I don't drop my phone in water or step on it, but it still decides to malfunction.
Needless to say, I am still not a happy camper.
So, this morning, i get up at 8:15am in order to shower and get ready before making a journey to the Cingular store on University. I planned my bus trip on the Madison Metro site and had my bus pass ready to go. I get on the bus outside Chadbourne which takes me to the corner where the Cingular store is. I get out and walk up to the door to find out the store doesn't open till 10am. I got there at 8:55am.
Needless to say, I am starting to be an angry camper.
It is partially my fault for not looking up the hours of the store (I just assumed the open at 9am). I have to be back by 10:30am for work, so waiting until 10 is out of the question. Instead, i get a bagel from Panera and head to the bus stop to wait for the buss that will take me back to campus. However, I find that the bus i planned to take no longer stops at that corner.
Why is this happening to me?!? It seemed like everything was going wrong!
Well, instead of stressing out anymore, I decide to just get on the first bus that comes and ride it around for a while. It was an interesting trip. It went south for a while, then west, then back east till it finally got to Johnson Street. I got off the buss and walked home.
What I thought would be a very productive morning turned into an adventure of sorts where nothing but consuming a bagel and riding around aimlessly on a bus were accomplished. My phone still says "Insert SIM," and I am more confused about the transit system than i was before this morning.
What this morning has shown me is that not having a phone, as much as i don't really want to admit it, makes me feel disconnected from the world. Technology is so important in today's society that if one thing malfunctions, a feeling of hopelessness ensues. If you are without technology, it is almost as if you cannot function as a member of society. People rely so much on technology, using it for many different things, like e-mail or phones or calendars.
...It has also shown me that I need to take the bus (other than the 80,81, 82, or85) more often.
To conclude, if anyone is good with phones (or bus routes for that matter), let me know. I am open to suggestions on how to fix this problem.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Mission: BLOG
Pre-reading-----
How would I define rhetoric? I'm not sure at all what rhetoric is, but I'll give it a shot. I think someone told me that rhetoric had to do with persuasive speech/writing. Also, when i think of rhetoric, I think of 'rhetorical questions'. So maybe rhetoric has something to do with expressing yourself in a manner that does not need an immediate response but simply invokes thought. My friend is a Comm Arts major focusing on rhetoric, so rhetoric must have something to do with presenting ideas to audiences in order to get across a point or to make people aware of a piece of information. Now I'm going to research rhetoric and see what it actually is.
Post-reading-----
My perception and definition of rhetoric has definitely changed. I checked out Silva Rhetoricae and an article from the class reader, and they provided me with a lot of info on what rhetoric actually is. I would now say that, in general, rhetoric is the careful use of symbols (such as language or music) in everyday life during interaction with others. It does have to do with persuasion, but it's more about the use of language/symbols in order to persuade.
In specific, I learned some interesting things about rhetoric:
-Rhetoric is used each and every day. Whether you are telling an opinion or addressing an audience, rhetoric is a part of everyday interactions.
-Rhetoric has to do with persuasion as an idea goes from simply accepted to acted upon.
-More delicately, rhetoric is responsive communication. It deals with inviting responses and making responses to others as well.
I think possibly the most interesting thing i learned from researching rhetoric was that it is used to build communities. I never even thought of a communication as a way of creating community. It makes sense though, as there are many different communities that share common thoughts and beliefs. For example, College Democrats as UW-Madison is a community based on common beliefs in political issues. Which brings me to another point: I now understand how rhetoric is so vital in politics. Rhetoric involves addressing issues and communicating your opinions about issues, and politicians do that such thing during races for office.
Reading about rhetoric and what is really is has given me insight as to how important rhetoric is to everyone. It is used very often, and sometimes people don't even realize they are using it. I am going to be more aware of rhetoric now and be conscious of how I use it each and every day.
How would I define rhetoric? I'm not sure at all what rhetoric is, but I'll give it a shot. I think someone told me that rhetoric had to do with persuasive speech/writing. Also, when i think of rhetoric, I think of 'rhetorical questions'. So maybe rhetoric has something to do with expressing yourself in a manner that does not need an immediate response but simply invokes thought. My friend is a Comm Arts major focusing on rhetoric, so rhetoric must have something to do with presenting ideas to audiences in order to get across a point or to make people aware of a piece of information. Now I'm going to research rhetoric and see what it actually is.
Post-reading-----
My perception and definition of rhetoric has definitely changed. I checked out Silva Rhetoricae and an article from the class reader, and they provided me with a lot of info on what rhetoric actually is. I would now say that, in general, rhetoric is the careful use of symbols (such as language or music) in everyday life during interaction with others. It does have to do with persuasion, but it's more about the use of language/symbols in order to persuade.
In specific, I learned some interesting things about rhetoric:
-Rhetoric is used each and every day. Whether you are telling an opinion or addressing an audience, rhetoric is a part of everyday interactions.
-Rhetoric has to do with persuasion as an idea goes from simply accepted to acted upon.
-More delicately, rhetoric is responsive communication. It deals with inviting responses and making responses to others as well.
I think possibly the most interesting thing i learned from researching rhetoric was that it is used to build communities. I never even thought of a communication as a way of creating community. It makes sense though, as there are many different communities that share common thoughts and beliefs. For example, College Democrats as UW-Madison is a community based on common beliefs in political issues. Which brings me to another point: I now understand how rhetoric is so vital in politics. Rhetoric involves addressing issues and communicating your opinions about issues, and politicians do that such thing during races for office.
Reading about rhetoric and what is really is has given me insight as to how important rhetoric is to everyone. It is used very often, and sometimes people don't even realize they are using it. I am going to be more aware of rhetoric now and be conscious of how I use it each and every day.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Something new...
So I'm taking this composition class at UW-Madison that focuses on rhetoric and network culture. I was surprised when I first saw the topics and what we were going to be doing: writing blogs, making a personal web page... I guess I figured this English composition class would be a standard English class with hard copy essays researching some topic or book. Although it's different, I think the class will be pretty interesting. It will be a good break from other science related classes. We'll see how it goes though. I hope to have a successful future in blogging...
I guess i should introduce myself. My name is Andy, I' from Milwaukee, WI...the actual city, NOT a suburb (which is not common here in Madison), and I'm a sophomore majoring in biochem and Spanish.
That's all for now. I'll keep you posted if anything exciting happens soon.
I guess i should introduce myself. My name is Andy, I' from Milwaukee, WI...the actual city, NOT a suburb (which is not common here in Madison), and I'm a sophomore majoring in biochem and Spanish.
That's all for now. I'll keep you posted if anything exciting happens soon.
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