Category Archives: The University of Sydney makes rush hour traffic seem fun

Orange Sky – Sand Storm – Bondi Beach and Part 5 :)

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Ok – so today is supposed to be my LAST 200 words about online communities but BEFORE we get to it (cuz I know you’re all like SUPER DUPER EXCITED about it) I want to show you what I woke up to this morning.

CRRAAAZZZYYY!  I’ve seen the world glow before.  A bright moonlit night with snow all around makes for a stunning BRIGHT night.  But glowing red, orange and sometimes blood orange?  Today was a first.  Definitely a wow!

Ok so I’ve come to realize that online communities and our identities within online communities are complicated topics!!!  There’s no way we could really have a full blown conversation about it in only 200 words per pop.  But hey – it’s the effort that counts right?  :)  Thanks to the commentors (scoMan, dave, ebonyJewel and MattyMatt) for commenting!!!  It’s always great to hear others’ insight!!

And for those of you who I have no doubt WANTED to comment deep down in your heart (which is everyone else i.e MOM, TIM, ALEXIS, SCOTT and all of my other bloggy friends) thank you ALSO because life is more fun with family and bloggy friends!!!   :)  )  Oh and it’s not too late to throw in your 2 cents because I’ve decided to write my final paper in a different class on this topic.  :)

Down to bizness.

ONLINE COMMUNITIES – You and Me are a CommuniTY – part #5 – wrap up.

(btw anyone notice that I did part NUMBER 5 or part NUMBER 4? LOL I did it just to be silly.  I am fully aware, thank you, that it SHOULD be part 5 or just #5. hee hee)

I’ve decided that I am fascinated by this topic.  100%.  Our world is becoming more and more digital every day.  We move to online communities more and more every day.  Our selves, our identities, and our culture are all being impacted by this change.  And though I suppose our identities, cultures and selves always change, I think it’s important to recognize the significance of online avatars/identities and how this increase in control over image may affect our core definitions.

I took this opportunity to round up some (only 3 because most of them were dumb) quotes on self image.

1“The ”self-image” is the key to human personality and human behavior. Change the self image and you change the personality and the behavior.”
2“Our self image, strongly held, essentially determines what we become”

Maxwell Maltz quotes (US plastic surgeon, motivational author, and creator of the Psycho-Cybernetics, 1927-2003)
3“If you wake up at a different time, in a different place, could you wake up as a different person?”

Chuck Palahniuk quotes (American freelance Journalist, Satirist and Novelist. b.1961)

I suppose one interesting thing about networks and identities is they change with time.  As I meet and become connected with more people, my network grows.  As my connections meet and become connected with more people, my network grows.  As my identity is tried and tested with time, it evolves and takes stronger shape.  I don’t believe we can STOP a network or an identity.  We may take on new layers, new directions and new flavors, but the network around us and our identity (regardless of how many we choose to have) all overlap a bit with each other.  We can’t go backward – only forward.

Part #4 – You and Me are a CommuniTY – Avatars

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HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!  You MUST MUST MUST watch these videos – LOL and you should watch them simultaneously if possible.  :)  Same song – different actors.  In one version you see an ACTUAL person.  In the other version you see their AVATAR (or online identity.)  SO CLASSIC!!!!

We left off yesterday thinking about how many identities we have and how our online identities may differ from our “real life” selves.  I confessed that years ago I presented my identity on mySpace differently than on Facebook.  I was the same person – but my online identities differed.  ScoMan made a good point about how our identities change according to context.  Dave philosophized that our TRUE identity is found somewhere between our dreams (identities we wish we could try out – or do try out in the online world) and our fears (the identity we present to the actual world – held back by fear or societal pressure.)

Soo… let’s get on with it.  200 words or less.  :)  Let’s talk AVATARS!!!  :)

(First you should PROLLY for fun – turn a picture of yourself into an avatar-ish pic at BeFunky.com – why? because it’s FUN! :)

Dr. Suler from Self Help Magazine explains,

“The basic assumption of a psychotherapy using avatars is that all of the personae created in the virtual scenario are the various manifestations of the person’s psyche.”

DO YOU AGREE??  Is the picture you choose to use as an avatar a manifestation of your psyche?  I think it might!!  We choose the clothes we want to wear and how we present ourselves.  It says something about us.  How is choosing how we present ourselves online be any different?

This begs the question – if the avatar we choose is an alter ego then is it our alter ego interacting in the network or online community? For example if Jane is a thin, elderly woman but her avatar in her online community is a fat man – is it the fat man or thin Jane engaging in the network??  And if our avatar becomes besties within a social network with the fat man, are we really only networked with thin Jane?  Because we THOUGHT we were besties with a fat man!!

This next clip is an example of how online identities can be so very, very different than real life.

Alright – that’s enough for this part!!  We’ll conclude tomorrow!!  :)

Online Communities #2 – You and Me are a communiTY – Blogosphere

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200 words or less – ready, set GO!  :)

In the last post we considered (or rather I suggested we consider) how online communities play into our sense of identity and self.  Princess Pointful, once (and probably still) a well known blogger who received several SUPER BLOG awards (by 20sb) and has been featured in print blogs, is a great case of how an online identity can significantly impact a “physical” identity.  Back in May she announced she was going to take a break from blogging and then followed up with comments discussing how different her life was now that she wasn’t blogging as regularly.  At one point she asked her readers if she should give up or continue and quite literally discussed that her ego has been deflated a bit (though it appears she has taken that post down) and I wondered if you have to ask the question, well … maybe that’s your answer??

The online world has meaning.  It contributes to our sense of worth, connection, self esteem, etc.   But just as in the world outside of the internet, when we use connections with others as our point of personal validation we open ourselves to the possibility of losing it all with one false rumor, one bad post, or just losing our edge period.  Having a balanced life between online and social engagements is one way to prevent loss of self worth due to decreased online activity.  Though with that said, just like in the social world, if one finds they no longer fit within one clique or group, there are many other groups for which one may seek acceptance.  And in an online world there are no geographical boundaries preventing one from finding the group to which they belong.

Next up –  now that we’ve seen an example of an “expert” in the online community, we’ll look at experts in sociology and see what they have to say.

Online Communities Part #1 – You and me are a communiTY

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200 words or less – discussion part #1 – “Online Communities”

For my Network Society class I am to have a 5 part series/discussion on something cool (i.e. my choice) as long as it’s academically relevant to my class.  I’m also supposed to make it more formal than a ‘normal’ blog post (who defines normal?) and I would GUESS that means I should use BIG words.  I sure hope that words in capital letters count as BIG!!!  (hee hee)  Thankfully for YOU each of the parts only has to be about 200 words.  That’s like NOTHING!  Sooooo…. (does it count as big if it has eeeexxxxtttrrrraaa letters?) here is my first part – 200 words on online communities.  I hope with my WHOLE HEART you choose to participate (comment.)  :)

Online Communities

Never in my life did I realize how much my identity was tied to my culture and community until I moved out of my community.  Living in the heart of one of the chirpiest cities in the United States, full of people who don’t drink, smoke, do drugs, or watch dirty movies, and who wave and smile at everyone who drives into the neighborhood, I was in for a bit of culture shock when I moved to the busy city life of Sydney, Australia.

Who are my neighbors?  Heaven knows I have no clue!  Who was the dude yelling at his alleged crazy girlfriend down the street?  Heaven knows I’m OK that I don’t know!  And umm, excuse me, WHY did you think it was OK to pat my behind while I was walking down the street you crazy stranger?  No, actually – don’t answer that – in fact let’s both forget you exist. (snap!)

Community and culture play a huge role in the way we see and define the world and our surroundings.  It helps us assess meaning and value.  It contributes to our filters and our level of comfort.  And HOW we define our relationship with our community and culture (whether we accept or reject it) contributes to our personal identity.

In a new world full of online communities, how do these digital cultures affect our daily lives?  How much of our identity is wrapped up in digital cultures and online communities?

NEXT POST – I’ll bring in what a few of the “experts” have to say about it – but until then – I’d LOVE to hear what you have to say.  :)  :)  :)

Daisy says the Darndest Things days 20-31

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It’s been awhile.  Like over-a-week-awhile.  Like the longest-I’ve-ever-gone-without-blogging-while.  Not a good thing.  What’s happened in the last 11 days??  A whole lot of not a whole lot.  Yeah – that’s right.

First I had an assignment due – a big one.  That was due 2 weeks ago.  I still haven’t handed it in.  Things haven’t been going as smoothly as hoped.

Day 20, 21 & 22- when I was still optimistic about my essay

20/365

21/365

22/265

Day 23 and 24 – Remember how I decided no more kissing North Sydney because HE IS A COMMITMENTPHOBE who FREAKS OUT every time HE kisses me!?!?  Yeah – that didn’t last long.  And then I went to my international adviser and she told me that she struggling to try and work with me because I’m smarter than her and my life is very complicated.  Gee – that’s encouraging. (insert glare.)

23/365

24/365

Day 25 and 26 -  I think it was about THIS point in my life when I discovered North Sydney didn’t remember ANYTHING about our meeting, his “stalk you later” phone calls and our very brief romance a year ago.  I very bluntly called this to his attention. :)   He tried to kiss and make up – I rolled my eyes and laughed.  Then I tried to do my essay and fell asleep over and over again.  Oh and I discovered I can tell the difference between fresh and not-as-fresh M&Ms. oh yes.

My angry face hee hee 25/365

Chocolate on My Lips 26/365

Day 27 – I went and met with the adviser again and this time she was more encouraging.  We determined that I’m having issues with essay writing because of my first semester as a graduate student when I had a super nasty teacher who used her dislike of my nationality to influence the marks she gave me.  As a straight 95% and above student my whole life – I lost all confidence in my ability to be a student after I received her grades and this lack of confidence is a detriment to my current studies.  :(   We agreed that discrimination and racism are out of my control and I need to try and move forward.  I decided to study in the park under the bright and beautiful sun.

Studying in the Park 27/365

Day 28 -  I actually went to class – instead of staying home sick like I did the rest of the week.  Class was REALLY good – I’m in the process of animating a girl on a swing set.  It’s a lot of fun and I can do it for hours and hours without getting bored.  A BIG relief from essay writing.

Flip Flop Season!! 28/365

Day 29 and 30 – I’ve had insomnia like no other the past couple of weeks.  “Bones” the television series has become my nightly insomnia treatment.  It also makes for great dreams.  I’ve never been a better crime fighter/super hero/pretend anthropologist in my life. :) lol.

Watching Bones 29/365

Bedtime!! 30/365

Day 31 – One month down – 12 more to go.

I love you! 31/365

It means “I love you” in sign language.  I might have accidentally kind of said something that would indicate the possibility that I COULD be in love with North Sydney.  I didn’t mean to!!  It slipped out!!!

He said- “You need to have kids.  You will be a great mom.”  (a nice compliment bcuz he has a child.)

I said – “Yeah but finding the right guy is going to be next to impossible.  I think I’ll just settle with my dogs – they’re like my kids.”

He laughed and said, “You’re getting close.  If you mix CC+4 with -3 you’d almost get the perfect man for you.”

I said, “Yeah but I’m never going to meet someone who is perfect and there isn’t going to be a guy out there who is a cross between all the good of CC+4 and all the good of -3.”

He said, “You never know…”

I said, “What I really need is just to find the American version of you – then I’d be set.”

I CAN’T BELIEVE I SAID THAT!!!

I told my flatmate that I couldn’t believe I let that one slip out!!!  North Sydney gets scared off every time he kisses me – and then I tell him he’s like the perfect guy for me??  My flatmate said, “Yeah but do you feel that way?”  I said – “Yes.”  And my flatmate said, “Well then you told the truth.  You shouldn’t be worried about it.”

He’s right.  I told the truth.  And fortunately for me – North Sydney DIDN’T freak out – he just took it as a compliment – and things are the same as always.  :)

Day 4 – Some much needed ME time

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On set of Insight TV Show

TODAY’s horoscope

You may become less confident as the day wears on, especially if you must show up at a big social event. But if you are able to steal away for a while, then you can emerge from your mini-retreat revitalized and ready to go back out for another round of battles with the status quo. Don’t be afraid of your own power, even if you think it’s wiser to wait for the right time to act.

Annnddd yahoo.com’s said something about taking time for myself and writing a list of “to dos”….

LESS CONFIDENT

I was pretty confident about life this morning but as luck would have it (or more likely as my subconscious would have it because I had already read the above horoscope) I DID lose confidence in myself as the day wore on.  WHAT??  Why would I ever do a thing like that?

Prolly because I realized I’m in some suck classes, the camera adds 10 lbs, I stuttered on TV today and I ran into TWO professors who gave me the pity look because they know about my stupid special consideration and swine flu last semester.

Yeah – that could be why.

Some ME Time

I was kind of excited that my horoscope encouraged a little ME time today but I wasn’t sure how I was going to fit it in – I had a full schedule today!!  After my first class I decided to skip class #2 because it sucks and I’m going to change it for a different one anyway … and I had a choice:

BUS OR WALK??

WALK of course!!  Why?  Because walking is ME time!!  YAY!!!  So I walked from Uni to Central and did some thinking – lots of thinking.  Mostly about the pavement, the cars driving by, the hotties in business suits – but ALSO about Uni, my list of things to do – and ok – that was about all.  Unless you count trying to decide whether or not to text/sms No. Syd and tell him about my day’s adventures as thinking – if you do? well then I thought about that a lot too.

I decided to text him – and got no reply.  And not that I’m getting ready to throw in the towel or anything but seriously – EVERY TIME I DECIDE I LIKE A GUY IT ENDS WITHIN LIKE A WEEK.  So I wouldn’t be terribly surprised if the Love Gods out there put a jinx on this whole thing – aw well.  Time will tell.

No backing out now!!

Even if things don’t work with No. Syd guess what?  I meant what I said about the taking a chance thing – no more negative nancy from me about relationships.  I am ready to put myself on the line – it may take a REALLY LONG time before I find someone that I want to commit to – it may take a REALLY LONG time before I start dating again … but I’m not going to be actively AGAINST it like I was.  In fact! I even replied to Adorable Boy’s (he was the reason I went on the cruise where I met CC+4) email today.  He wants to come visit.  I told him that’d be great.  And you know what will happen if Adorable Boy comes out to visit?  hee hee.  SPARKS WILL FLY!  :)

I HATE TOMORROW’s HOROSCOPE

I just want everyone to know that I already hate tomorrow’s horoscope.  WHY??  Because it is going to require super extra effort on my part to make it come true.  The task??  Find meaning in the mundane things you do.  And after the 2 page long TO DO list I made today of MUNDANE SUCK THINGS TO DO!!! Tomorrow is DEFINITELY going to be a challenge.

But the joy is in the challenge right??  :)

>.< ANGRY >.< yes-indeed-ee – Rally against International Student Discrimination

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Ok so if you read my blog last semester you would know that I think Australians (in general – let’s not get all defensive and angry with me here) are TERRIBLY racist.  Not just against Americans but against all sorts of internationals.  If you’re from Europe you get a free “cool” pass but the rest of us have to EARN it.  And by EARN I mean meet the few Australians who aren’t racist. >.< there aren’t many things that get me riled up – but this is DEFINITELY one of them!!!

Rally to be held at Sydney Town Hall – June 7th at 12:00pm

Exhibit A – the email I received from SUPRA – a student union at Sydney Uni – announcing a rally to be held protesting the discrimination against international students. http://twitpic.com/6n984

Exhibit B – the flyer attached to the email – http://twitpic.com/6n9ii

Exhibit C – a news story from Melbourne about a racist attack  http://bit.ly/cCtkD

I’m pretty sure I could give you exhibits d-z but instead I’ll just say that I know from first hand experience that international students ARE discriminated against.

I’ve been discriminated against for being American

and I know it’s much worse for Indian students.

And speaking of discrimination – the Australians at work are racist too!

I was so happy that I got a “cool kid pass” at work.

Next weekend some workmates are having a “cool kid” night after work and only the “cool kids” were invited.  I was pepped up about it because I’m new and that’s pretty sweet that they’re including me.  YAY!!

UNTIL I LEARNED WHO WAS BEING EXCLUDED

and then that “yay” went to – you stupid cool kids are mo-fo jack-As.  And I don’t want to be a “cool kid” if it means that you are going to sit around and make fun of my not-cool friends.  You see I’m friends with ALL the people in the store – I didn’t realize that cool kids exclude and make fun of the not cool ones.  GO TO H.E.DOUBLE COOL KIDS!!

One of the guys labeled as not cool enough told me that I’m one of the only people he likes in the store because I’m one of the ONLY PEOPLE WHO TREATS HIM WITH RESPECT AND AS AN EQUAL.  He’s Indian and therefore he is a target for all racist jokes and slander.  :( THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THIS!!!

Ok ok – I could rant and rave about this for ages but I won’t.  Let me just make this VERY VERY CLEAR.

IT’S NOT COOL TO BE PREJUDICED!!!  AND I HOPE YOU GO TO – somewhere really TERRIBLE – and get what you deserve if you make fun of people because of their race or their nationality!!!

First Day on the job xTWO – a business ~date~? Strike canceled and DOSE DEUX of D’sD’s500lbPQ

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First up – EIGHT HOURS of mind-numbing training for a purportedly sophisticated and elite company whose trainers may know less about their products than I do.  yeah.  And don’t get me started on my fellow trainees who lack very basic skills …

Next up – a little side work for a ~friend~? And NO – not like THAT.  It was just some simple admin stuff.  And then he took me to dinner and we talked for hours and then he took me home (and NO – not like THAT) and then he gave me a lingering kiss which I don’t want to read into … but also wouldn’t mind reading into.  But probably shouldn’t – it’s complicated.

Got home and had this email waiting – don’t mind that my ENGLISH uni teacher SPELLED CANCELED WRONG!!! Dude for real?  She’s an ENGLISH TEACHER!!!!  Ever heard of SPELL CHECK??

Dear All,

Please note that the strike planned for next Tuesday has been cancelled.  This means that classes will be on as usual next Tuesday.

I apologise for the inconvenience.

Best wishes and see you all next week.

Umm – wow.  Alrighty then.

Dose Duex of Daisy’s Dad’s 500lb Pumpkin Quest

Day 4 -  “Oh happy day.  I saw a root starting to come out of a seed.  A little more probing and I found 3 more seeds that had germinated.”

Day 5 – “Okay, I couldn’t wait.  I transplanted one or two plants into their new home, a 1″ x 2″ pony pack (4 compartments per container.)   Prodding of the soil tells me that many of the seeds have germinated.  (What have I done?  How will I find home for all of these sleeping giants?) ~No kidding dad!  You planted ONE HUNDRED!!~ The first leaves are just starting to emerge from within the seed’s outer shell.  It’s amazing how fast they are growing.  Within a couple of days they will be ten times the size of the seed they once were.  What will tomorrow bring?”

OMGOSH – what WILL tomorrow bring?  If this keeps up I won’t be surprised if we hear next that my dad’s pumpkins have turned his house into the little shop of horrors and I’m going to have to fly home with an ax and save my parents from man-eating jack-o-lanterns.  What you don’t think I’m tough enough to wield an ax to man-eating jack-o-lanterns?  Think again doubty-pants.  It’s called ADRENALINE.  And I’m pretty sure I’d have a bit of it.  ;)

Nighty night! xoxo~Daisy

I’m an explorer/negotiator/builder something-or-other – what are you?

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TAKE THE QUIZ YOURSELF )

Tuesdays are soooo long.  I’m out of the house by 8:00am and don’t get home until after 8:00pm.  What do I do all day?  School.  Gee whiz – super fantastic.  Anyway – at about hour 7 in my school day I got really really bored (I had a break between classes) and I thought – “A QUIZ will relieve my boredom. Hip hip horray!” :) :) :)  But then my conscience got the best of me so I did school research instead of taking mind-numbing quizzes.  HOWEVER – awhile back I took the quiz below and have decided to share my results.

I found the link to the quiz on Empossible in El Paso‘s Blog.

This quiz is a trip!

I’m not kidding – it pretty much describes me to a T! So yeah – are you bored?  Will you be bored in the near future?  Do you have a weird obsession for quizzes?  Oh nevermind – just take the quiz anyway!  It’s FUN!  :)

PLEASE PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU GET IF YOU TAKE THE QUIZ  :) and for you shy ones – you can always leave an anonymous comment :)   My results are after the section break.

Daisy you are an…

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