Final Thoughts

I think this was a great way to take an English class. Even though, we have never seen each other in real life, we were still able to interact with the professor and other classmates quite easily. I liked the fact that everything was through the computer, because I would much rather work on my laptop over handwriting things. This was a great class and hopefully I will be able to take more like it in the future. So, in conclusion, I would like to thank Professor Butts for putting this all together and making it a relatively painless course.

Writing process video

Reality

When it comes to reality, I like to say it is in the eye of the beholder. any opinion, thought, or experience I have is exclusively mine and I may or may not share it with others. Anything that I can see, be it physically or mentally, is reality to me. Anything experienced is reality. Who is to say that I can't experience fighting a dragon? It can happen... in my mind or through another source like a movie or a video game. This is why I love movies so much, because they extend reality to any imaginable extent.

Organization

For my speech on organization, I am choosing to talk about my favorite movie of the summer, Prometheus. Ridley Scott hit it out of the park with his prequel to the Alien franchise. If you have not seen the movie I do not recommend you read any further. *Spoiler Alert!* The way this movie is organized is that it begins with a flashback of a humanoid that sacrifices itself in order to create more life on a planet. The next scenes depict humans searching ancient artifacts and cave drawings that all seem to point to a certain planet, which they believe will hold the answers to the creation of life on Earth. So, they head out to this planet hoping for answers. What they find out is that they were actually products of these humanoids, but they were planning on destroying the human race two thousand years ago (about the time Jesus was crucified *dun dun dun*). Now, still curious, these people are asking more questions and want to know why they were planning on being destroyed. In the process they eventually release the weapon of their destruction.... the alien xenomorph! So, basically through a series of causes and effects, the humans find out the answers they never would have wanted to know.

If you enjoyed the movie check out these explanations and fan theories, they're awesome.
http://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/uswn1/prometheus_everything_explained_and_analysed/

Websites that Do and Don't Suck

First off is my website that does not suck, ThisSongSlaps.com. It is a music blog website that is dedicated to sharing free music to fans of the Electronic, Bass, and Hip hop genres. Each post contains the song name and artist in the title, A picture, a short paragraph describing the song, a download link, and a mini player where you can listen to said song. It is simple and gets the job done. I frequent this site a good bit because I am an avid hunter of new songs and artists, plus I love electronic and bass music.

Now, a website that does suck is our very own Clemson blackboard homepage. It clusters together so many things that every time I log in, I have no clue where to go. I end up having to close all of the bubbles except for the only one I ever use, which is the link to my courses. I have literally never used any of the other bubbles in my career at Clemson. It also looks quite outdated. It seems like it was one of the very first webpages made after the invention of the internet. It needs to be updated.

Cover Story

The cover story I chose, which comes from Sports Illustrated, is about the Penn State football cover up scandal. On the cover, we see the words "WE WERE PENN STATE", a play on the prideful motto, "We are (insert team name here)". They have replaced "are" with "were" because the recent events that took place within the program have left it virtually without Identity. They have been sanctioned to the fullest and this cover displays it through the use of past tense. It is saying that everything the program has built has just been crushed. Within the story itself, it says of the events, "The worst scandal in the history of college sports led the NCAA to impose harsh and unprecedented penalties on the Nittany Lions."It goes on to speak of the result of the scandal and sanctions by saying, "What's left is a legacy in ashes, a program in shambles and a community in disbelief."

Wolff, Alexander. "Is This the End for Penn State?" Sports Illustrated July 2012. 38-41.

Nature Walk

Today I took a walk at a nature preserve. It is a piece of rhetoric towards the wellbeing of nature near a local river. It has a couple nice walking paths meandering through patches of meadows and wooded areas. It is pretty beautiful and does indeed make me appreciate nature more in its unspoiled state.

Two Books

Albers, Susan. Mindful Eating 101: A Guide to Healthy Eating in College. New York: Routledge, 2006. Print.

Selkowitz, Ann. The College Student's Guide to Eating Well on Campus. Bethesda: Tulip Hill, 2005. Print.

Freewrite

The topic I would like to write about is health and safety in dining halls and cafeterias. I recently watched the movie Supersize Me and it sort of encouraged me to write about the bad nutritional habits faced by college students and their eating options on or near campus. Sometimes it seems tough to stay healthy in an atmosphere where time and convenience are the top priorities. In my research paper I hope to bring up these factors and talk about the dining halls where most college students eat on a daily basis.

Mindmap

Research Paper Draft

Here is the google doc link to my rough draft. I welcome and appreciate any suggestions or criticisms. Thanks!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Wd1wj1ZkYbbntVuYy6MQu1yycFIjagOlLphadNg1NCc/edit

Does it Suck?

This elephant does not suck because it represents my conservative beliefs.

President Obama does not suck because he is commander in chief of our great nation.

Harry Potter does not suck because I enjoyed the movies and still do to this day.

Apple does not suck because they make my very beloved iPhone, which I am never without.

Star Wars does not suck because it is one of the greatest movie franchises of all time, and tells a heroic tale of the battle between good and evil.

Facebook does not suck because it allows people to connect socially with others in a, non-intrusive online setting.

McDonalds does not suck because their mango pineapple smoothie is the bomb.

Clemson University definitely does not suck because it is the best place ever, and that's a fact.

Lady Gaga sucks because half the time she doesn't even look human. She'd even look out of place in a Star Wars movie.

Justin Bieber sucks because he's better at wooing women than I am.

Sudoku sucks because it's just a bunch a numbers and boxes. That's no fun.

Avatar does not suck, in fact it was a great motion picture.

Xbox 360 does not suck because you play games on it, watch netflix, espn, and even HBO.

American Idol sucks because I am not into singing competitions.

Glee sucks because it is a show about singing and high school drama, another thing I'm not really into.

Marlboro cigarettes suck because they can give you cancer and make people smell bad.

Guns do not suck because "the average response time of a 911 call is over 3 minutes, whereas the response time of a 44 magnum is 1400 feet per second."

Abortion sucks and does not suck, given the situation.

That dog wearing pants does not suck because I thought it was funny.

Writing for me is sometimes a painful process. It takes a pretty long time for me to start and to maintain a rhythm of writing. Instead, I sometimes find myself stopping after each sentence or even in the middle of a sentence and I feel lost sometimes. I feel like it is difficult for me to get my disorganized thoughts on paper in a manner that a) makes sense and b) is meaningful. One tendency of mine while writing is to sit at a desk, which I barely ever do. Usually you will find me in my big, comfy chair but when it comes to extensive writing I need the desk to stay focused. My writing process begins by just a few main words that I want to cover. These are my main topics and once I have them down I can begin elaborating and extending paragraphs from these words.

Twizzlers

• Red
• Twisty
• Shiny
• Smell like heaven
• Strawberry
• Long and thin
• Chewy
• Tastes delicious
• Hollow
• Can be used as a straw if you bite off both ends

Plagiarizing is something that I will not do. If I plagiarize then you are not receiving my work, and I am in this class for me, not anyone else. It is unnecessary because I am a functioning human-being and I have thoughts; there is no need to steal thoughts or ideas from another. I'm too scared to plagiarize, anyway, because I'll end up getting caught and the repercussions will not be in my favor. In conclusion, I promise not to plagiarize on any of my papers.

Crocodiles are majestic, powerful, and amazing creatures. Amphibious creatures, they are able to hunt in the water and live on land. They glide through the water unnoticed to the naked eye. A croc has bone-crushing jaws that make short work of its prey, and huge teeth that dig into flesh like warm butter. They have been able to stick around on this earth since prehistoric times which proves they are here for the long run. They aren't going anywhere anytime soon, so we must learn to coexist with these majestic, powerful, and amazing creatures known as crocodiles.


Crocodiles are ridiculous looking, silly, and lame creatures. Their short, stubby legs do not do their long, muscular bodies any justice. They have a dentist's nightmare of tooth inconsistencies; each one pointing a different direction than the one before. Crocs will eat anything that the world throws at them. If they aren't hunting then they are probably sleeping on the shore or just not moving because they are lazy creatures. They provide their environments nothing other than being dangers to those around them, proving they are just ridiculous looking, silly, and lame creatures.

This ad I have chosen to dissect is one for a brand of shorts called Chubbies. I chose this because it has some relevant themes given it is almost the Fourth of July and this ad screams "America" and Patriotism. What better way to show your spirit than wear the American on your legs in the form of these shorts. Not only that, but the man shown is running on a beach, yelling, a beer in his left hand, and an American flag in his right. Nothing could signify more freedom than that. Another interesting part is the title, beginning with simply "America.". This isn't even a complete sentence but the period is added afterward to evoke a sense of patriotism and really it is what you make of it. It is one word, but to some it could speak thousands. The second part, "F*ck Yeah." evokes a sense of humor and is trying to appeal to young, rowdy men who like to drink beer and do whatever they want. Another interesting part of the ad is where it says "come get some". A common military phrase which means to take something to the extreme. This serves two purposes; for one evoking more patriotism, and secondly adding to the free, rowdy lifestyle of a Chubbies wearer.

I am Daniel McCarthy and this is my blog for English 103! I am a 20 year old student at Clemson University majoring in engineering. I enjoy playing sports of any kind, being outdoors, and am a bit of a movie buff. In grade school I lived in Europe, an experience that made me appreciate different cultures and develop a love for travel. In fact, The attached picture is from one of my most recent trips where my family and I visited Tahiti and Bora Bora in French Polynesia. I consider myself a very humorous person and I enjoy having fun. Having said that, I hate awkward situations and the people that cause them, so I am always trying my best to be welcoming and fun with people to avoid any such awkwardness. A pet peeve of mine is when people make a smacking noise when they chew gum. If you decide to smack your gum around me I will tell you to stop, and no, I will not be nice about. I feel like I can speak my mind in most situations, but I still know when to hold my peace. My parents taught me how to properly treat a lady, so I don't believe chivalry is dead and it pains me to see someone disrespect or harm a woman. That is just a little bit about me and I hope you enjoy my blog!