Research Paper

I honestly didn’t know what I wanted to write about when we first heard about this research paper. I thought of nurses as my first choice. It had all the characteristics of a discourse communities and that I had access to many of them through my family. But then I realized that it was too boring for me and that I didn’t even want to write about it. After that I was still stumped. I couldn’t think of anything that I would even be remotely interested in. Every time I thought of something, I’d realize that I didn’t even have anyone to interview or that it was something to common or easy to write about. Then when we were in class one day and everyone was talking about their ideas I thought of it. K-pop fans. I mean, I was surrounded by a lot of people who loved k-pop, and I never really understood them and how they worked, so why not?

I’m specifically going to be looking at fans who follow a group called BTS. This group interests me because of how dedicated and up to date they are all the time. My friend, Jules, who you might seen during class, is a big fan. A couple of her family members are too. I don’t know much about the group itself, except for a coupe songs and their names because Jules used to constantly quiz me on them. I do know however, that whenever a new video or song comes out, her and her family member will wake up literally at the crack of dawn just so they can see it as soon as possible. They’re obviously dedicated. They also have group chats that have conversations about BTS ninety percent of the time. I’ve even looked at their phones and other electronics and they’re always a different picture of one of their favorite members in the background or on the actual case. And that’s just the k-pop fans I know in real life. I’ve heard of BTS k-pop fans all over social media and they get really intense. You probably don’t want to say anything bad about their favorite groups and members because they’ll come for you and cripple you emotionally. At least try to. Anyways, all of the people are always waiting and updated on whatever BTS does. A lot of them will also pay a lot of money to see them live and meet them in person for a couple minutes.

This group communicates a lot through social media, like twitter or Tumblr. Like and fandom, in order to become a member of this group all you really have to do is listen to BTS music or watch their videos and such and participate on some form of social media. I’m not sure what types of costs a member of this community give but I do know that it takes a lot of time and money. I walk into my friends’ rooms and its covered in BTS stickers, calendars, posters, etc. And like I said before, they’ll wake up and stay up at any time as well as spend hours watching music videos, dance practices, and interviews. They also have their own language of some sorts. Sometimes I’ll listen and I’ll have no idea who or what their talking about

I don’t know exactly where I’m headed with this paper quite yet, but I do know who I will be interviewing and what types of questions I’ll be asking. I already have 3 people in mind. I would ask them what made them so interested in the group, what caught their eye, how they keep up to date with them and how they share things, whether or not they talk to fans online or just in person, etc. I’m also keeping in mind some follow up questions I might have, depending on their answers. I also thought that I would observe how they would act if I randomly chose 2 music videos and made them watch it together. I could observe the types of things they say, how excited they get, and how they would share the experience together.

I’m a little worried about the length of this paper. I feel like I’ll procrastinate too much or that my paper wont even make sense and that I’m probably just writing a bunch of nonsense. But at least I know ill enjoy what I’m writing about.

Blog #8

I have never been a "service worker". I’ve never been a waitress, I’ve never had to work in a place that needed good customer service, and I definitely have never worked in a fast food chain. And that’s okay, because its not something I’ve ever really wanted to do. I've only ever had one job, and its completely different because I was put in an office surrounded by people who would teach me the knowledge needed to become a physical therapist. Peter Drucker's assertion that "interactive service workers lack the necessary education to be 'knowledge workers’ sounds a lot like something my mom would say, just in more technical terms. I’m a college student so I obviously make impulsive decisions and buy things (mostly food) I think I need, when in reality I really don’t. So I thought maybe I should go and get a job somewhere. The extra money definitely would help, and I could maybe even start helping with some bills back at home. I barely even started the conversation when my mom replied with “NO I DON’T WANT YOU WORKING AT MCDONALDS”.

Honestly I was feeling so attacked at that moment, I was just trying to make a little extra money you know? You’d think she would let me get a job that way she would have a reason to not have to give me money every week, but her loss I guess. But yeah, this way of thinking is pretty prominent in my family. If you didn’t get an official “knowledge” service job, then you weren’t successful and you weren’t going to be successful. I have always thought though that the best way to get experience and references is to get a job, even if it requires working at places like McDonalds. Besides, isn’t it jobs like these that also teach people discipline and give people motivation to strive to get better jobs and maybe improve their education. But of course, my mom thinks that if I get a “service worker” job, then I’ll end up staying there forever.

 I don’t really agree with people who consider service work to be "'mindless,' involving routine and repetitive tasks that require little education".  Yeah, these jobs may not seem as hard as being the CEO of some large company, but it doesn’t mean that they’re easy. People argue that these jobs don't require identification of problems, ability to solve those problems, or other complex abilities, but I think that’s wrong. Service workers deal with problems all the time whether it be with customers or with things like inventory. I’m pretty sure if a rich privileged person who has only worked at an office type of setting will have difficulty adapting if they were made to work at a diner. Different types of jobs require different types of skills. I don’t think that just because a person works at a service job it defines that person’s ability, even if they have worked that job a majority of their life. Just because someone works at a fast food chain or at a retail store does not mean they aren’t capable of performing well as “knowledge workers”. It all depends on a persons’ opportunities and resources. If people aren’t given the opportunity to have and education, then of course they’ll work a service job because no one will hire them otherwise. Or if a person cannot afford an education, they’ll probably work a service job. Having either a “service” or “knowledge” job does not determine how capable a person is.

But like Professor Flewelling describes, I’m pretty terrified about graduating and still working at fast food chains or retail stores. I’ve met a lot of people who have graduated and still haven’t really gotten a job that involved things that they have studied. It sucks too, because a lot of people these days say that it isn’t enough to have a bachelor’s degree anymore. A lot of my family members have scared me and told me that I should at least strive to have a masters degree because that’s something important if you want to guarantee a job offer these days. I know I said that it doesn’t matter if you’ve worked at places like those, but there’s a reason why I’m willing to go to school for so long. I want to make sure I work in a place where I actually enjoy what I’m doing and where I can use what I learned in school. It also doesn’t hurt that I would be making more money.

But yeah, that’s what I think. Thanks for reading!

My Identity Kit

Oh, another blog post about me. Amazing.

I guess there isn’t much to talk about, really. I can be awkward sometimes. I can also be really talkative and sarcastic during others. Sometimes I enjoy talking to people and meeting new friends, and other times I really couldn’t care less. I try to come off as this really chill person who doesn’t really care about other people’s opinion. I try to be nice to everyone. I try to always make people I meet laugh. I want to make myself seem approachable all the time so I try to keep a smile on my face (emphasis on the “try” because sometimes it doesn’t work out and I unconsciously put on a face that makes everyone think I hate them). I can be incredibly introverted when I’m put in certain situations, especially if I am by myself. I can be outgoing in others, if I really feel like it. No one really helped me form my identity kit. I feel like I formed it myself through adapting to other situations and people and their identity kits. The most recent identity kit I’ve formed is probably one I made from volunteering at the animal shelter. I tried to make myself seem like a person who really cares about the animals, and not just a high school student trying to get community service hours. I tired to seem approachable and reliable, and eager to help. I guess identity kits all depend on the situation.

My identity kit changes from person to person and group to group. When I’m around my closest group of friends, I’m mostly myself. I don’t have to worry about what I do or what I say. I’m in the purest form of “me” that I can be. When I’m around people who are my friends, but not ones I’d call my “best friends” I’m more quiet. I talk, but I make sure to keep my sarcasm and self-depreciating humor to a minimum. I’m still myself, but the crazy, loud, and extremely sarcastic person in me is hidden enough to where it only comes out once in a while. And around strangers, well, it changes depending on my mood. If I’m having a really good day and I’m not really stressed out or tired, ill probably talk to the person next to me if the opportunity comes up. If I am stressed out, well, I’ll probably look like I hate you to be honest. I remember in high school someone I became friends with 2 years after I actually met her had told me she thought I hated her. And I told her that I thought she hated me.

Is it mushfake? I don’t know. Maybe. I mean, I think everyone has a “self” that they don’t really consider to be how they really are. I’m pretty sure the person that you show up as to a job interview isn’t the person you really are. The point is to create a facade or identity kit that makes you seem like a responsible, reliable person, isn’t it? I mean yeah, you’re probably a responsible person but that doesn’t mean you dress up in business casual clothing all the time and you are always open to cooperating with others and whatnot. You form an identity kit that makes you seem a certain way, even if you really aren’t. You even have an identity kit for people you don’t even like. Or at least I do. I can be the fakest person in the room when I’m around a person whose presence (or existence) I don’t particularly like. Everyone does it. So it can be mushfake, at least in my opinion. But I also think mushfaking can become real. I’m pretty sure everyone has heard “fake it til’ you make it”. Quote of my life right here. If you fake enough of something, it eventually comes true. I mean, a person can fake confidence or an outgoing personality throughout high school. I’m sure at some point, being a confident and outgoing person will eventually become part of who they are. We also all fake being smart. I’m pretty sure we’ve all been in a situation where we didn’t know what the hell we were doing but still acted like we did. Or at least I have. Like when a professor asks the class if anyone is confused or if there are any questions. I usually say no and act like I know what I’m doing, but in reality I’m so confused that I don’t even know what I don’t know. But anyways, yeah, I mushfake. But I’m sure everyone else does too (or at least I hope they do.)