Archive

Next week is crunch time.  I have about three different assignments I'll be working on.  I'll be working on two things for the newsletter that will be released later this semester and one thing for the Arts and Letters page on the CMC website.  I'm ready for it though.  I don't have any complaints.

If you are reading this, then you realize that technology is changing our society and culture.  It's funny how 20 years ago it might have been unheard of that students or employees would take classes or go to work via satellite.  Also from what I understand, it was only around 10 years ago that ODU's Teletechnet was really just getting started.  I'm not one to be left behind in this technology advanced age, but by being a distance student I wish sometimes I could talk to classmates and professors face-to-face.  Even with this internship, sometimes I'd like to communicate with everyone at the CMC in person.  Email is great but sometimes I miss personally talking with someone.  I'm not complaining at all, but it can get frustrating at times. 

Maybe I'm from the old school but I wonder if my children (whenever I have them) will value face-to-face conversation as I do? 

I mentioned last time that next week I'm on vacation from my job.  I'm not going anywhere, but it's just good not to have to go to work sometimes.  I'll use my free time to get some much needed work done for other classes and to continue to work on things for this class.  Next week I won't feel so rushed and restricted in getting things done. 

I've been thinking lately about what type of jobs to start applying for after graduation.  I've been with my current employer for the last six years.  It's an easy job but it's not fulfilling.  I love writing and that's why I chose professional writing as a major.  But sometimes I wonder if the enjoyment I get from writing will change since, then, it'll be my job.  I don't want writing to ever feel like work.  I want to always enjoy it.  For writing to feel like work would certainly take the fun out of it, no matter how much money was made.  I just pray that that never happens. 

I can't believe how busy I've been lately.  Yet, it still seems that I haven't gotten much done.  I've got to do better I guess.  I'm on vacation from my job next week so that should give me the feeling that I'm back on track. 

I can remember as I child, my mother used to talk about how she learned about the three R's as a child.  Of course most people know about it.  They stand for Reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic.  Well, I think I've come up with the three R's of the writing process, with my apologies to anyone who has already thought of this.  I give you: Research, wRite, and Revise. 

Most of the time during the writing process, a writer may neglect at least one of these.  Sometimes the writer may only concentrate on the middle R and not care about the other two at all.  Many times, this is due to procrastination or even apathy.  In my earlier years, I've been guilty of this type of neglect.  It can be easy to do- receive an assignment, write it, and hand it in.  I can't imagine doing that now.  But sometimes, I don't think I put equal attention on all three R's.  For example, I may write something and after submitting it, I think it would have been better had I researched a little more.  Or, I missed a simple mistake because I didn't leave enough time for proper revision. 

Basically the most important thing I learned about writing is that it is a process.  It involves more than just putting the words on paper or computer screen.  It begins well before and ends after the middle R is done.  Futhermore, if we want good writing, we must not procrastinate and devote the necessary time to all three R's, not just the middle one. 

"Procrastination makes easy things hard, hard things harder."  -Mason Cooley, U.S. aphorist

Today, I got my syllabus.  It's good to be able to know what's ahead and to be able to plan around it.  I've got some pretty big assignments coming up- the Employer Spotlight and the Major of the Month are two of them.   I've got a few small ones here and there coming up as well.  I still marvel at how seemingly small things I've learned in some classes are coming into play now.  For example, simply paying attention in one of my communications classes on how to prepare interview questions might save some time when I have to interview the employer for the first Employer Spotlight piece.  I know sometimes it's easy to not pay attention when we think that certain information won't ever benefit us.  But, as I see now, you just never know. 

The people at the CMC have still been wonderful.  I heard that my name got passed along to a site director who wanted to know of some CMC distance student success stories.  That site director may even contact me to ask some questions.  Also, the people of the CMC has been helpful.  They remind me that if any of my assignments seem too much or out of the scope of what I may want to do for a career, then to just let them know. 

The upcoming assignments will be challenging, but I'm ready for them! 

It feels so refreshing to be doing this internship.  It's new and it involves something that I love doing.  I just hope I don't disappoint- the people at the CMC or myself.  It seems that I'm one of the first to do a distance internship with them.  I wouldn't want to ruin it for someone who may come after me and may be worthy of the opportunity. 

Last time I wrote about struggling with some writing assignments.  It may just be me, but it's a bad feeling to know that I "must" write but I "can't" write.  When I speak of "can't", I mean not knowing what to write.  Sometimes, I've sat in front of the computer or with paper and pencil in hand and I couldn't come up with anything.  I don't where to begin.  I can't find the right words.  I can't even count how many times I use backspace/delete or my pencil's eraser on any given assignment.  Mix that uncertainty with me wanting everything to be "perfect" and that becomes very frustrating.  Even as I write this, I can't even remember how many times I added one thing, deleted another, or just completely changed the wording.

I once heard or read that Ernest Hemingway rewrote the ending to "A Farewell to Arms" about 39 times.  So maybe it's good that I try so hard.  After all, Hemingway was a great writer.  As far as my own writing, I still know that I have a lot to work on.  But like I said last time, good writing is good revising and rewriting. 

This week has been busy- researching on other websites,studying for tests in one class and getting caught up on some reading for two other classes.  It's okay though; I can handle it.  Graduation is in sight and I'm ready to get a better job!

It took me a while though to determine what I wanted to do, as far as a career.  From the time I was fifteen until around 2000, I wanted to be a psychologist.  I saw the movie Copycat and wanted to study the minds of serial killers and know what made them abnormal.  But in high school, I had an English teacher who noticed "my creativity."  She suggested I join the literary-art magazine at my school.  As a high school senior, I had a short story and a poem in the magazine.  After I graduated though, I still wanted to be a psychologist even though I enjoyed writing. 

I stopped going to community college after a year and a half because I wanted to make better money.  Also, I was having doubts of would I be satisfied being a pyschologist.  During that time, I still had a passion for writing and literature.  Even though I wasn't enrolled in classes at the local community college, I would still read books about improving writing and getting published.  Then when I found out that ODU offered Professional Writing at DCC, I had to enroll. 

I love writing but sometimes the process has been somewhat stressful.  Sometimes I've made a simple assignment difficult just because I want it to be flawless the first time.  I've had to learn from each of my English professors that good writing comes from revision after revision.  Most people don't write a perfect paper or article the first time.  They have to constantly revise.   I've learned that but sometimes it's still hard. 

I got to see the articles I wrote for the newsletter today.  I thought that they looked pretty good.  It was cool to see my name as the writing intern.  I hadn't seen my name in any published material since high school when I had a short story and a few poems printed in the literary-art magazine.  I got some very helpful feedback from the CMC that will help me when the next newsletter is due.  Having this one under my belt, I think I'll be fine for the next one. 

I got my next few assignments that I need to start working on.  I'm looking forward to them.  It will give me the chance to be creative and do some brainstorming and research.  Some of you may be wondering, "Who looks forward to researching?"  I can't say that I do all of the time, but this assignment seems like it'll be creative.  That won't be so bad. 

I think I mentioned last time (or I meant to) that I can see how my past experiences have prepared me to do this internship.  I also think it's funny how some of those experiences have been in the classroom, while others have been elsewhere.  It goes to show us that we can learn from all experiences- no matter what it is or where it occurs. 

I can't express enough on how excited I am in doing this internship.  I've told my family, friends, and fellow students about it.  Today, one of my classmates, who is also an IDS- Professional Writing major, asked me for the information on how to get connected with doing an internship.  She now plans to look into doing an internship in the spring. 

Being a distance student, I didn't think that an internship of this kind would be possible.  To be honest, I had never given much thought into doing an internship until one of my English professors suggested it.  I need to thank him for doing that.  Learning in the classroom is great, but I'm not sure that it prepares students as well as getting hands-on experience.  As the old saying goes: "Experience is the best teacher."  I believe that the experience I get here will help me in the future. 

I'm looking forward to tomorrow.  That's when I get my syllabus from the CMC.  This way I'll be able to keep track of all the upcoming assignments.  I'll also be able to plan better since I'll know which assignment I'll have to work on next and its due date. 

Wow, my first blog!  I guess I should introduce myself first.  My name is Mario and I am 26 years old.  I'm a senior here at ODU.  I'm also a Teletechnet student who lives in Danville, VA.  My major is Interdisciplinary Studies with a Professional Writing Concentration.   After I graduate (in December of this year!), I hope to find a job that I can write and be creative while I go to graduate school.  I'd like to eventually teach English in college, preferably some writing courses or some that may be specific to the skills that I've acquired on the job.  My long-term goal, however, is to write books, both fiction and nonfiction. 

My first week at the Career Management Center has been wonderful!  My first assignment was to write an article for both the student and alumni newsletters.  I'll admit- I was nervous at first.  You know the feeling you get after you turn in your first written assignment in class and you don't know how the teacher grades.  Then, you're left wondering will he or she like it.  Well, that's kind of how I felt.  I always want to do well.  I didn't want the people at the CMC to think- "Where did they get that guy from?"  But they told me that I did a nice job.  I'm glad. 

Before I began this internship, I had heard of the CMC and I was somewhat familiar with what it does.  When I began to research on the website, I realized that it does a lot of great things for the students of ODU.  Being at a distance site, I don't think you get the full effect of what's being done.  I told a few of my fellow students at my site that I was doing this internship and they seemed not to know much about the CMC.  I hope that since I'm a distance student interning with them, I can help bring awareness that even though students aren't on main campus, the CMC can still help with any career questions/concerns that they have.  The CMC provides various services that are still beneficial to distance students. 

Overall, I'm just excited about this entire experience.  I also thought it was good to see how past experiences can prepare you for future experiences.  I've written a few articles like the ones I wrote for the newsletter.  Now, I'm waiting to see how the experience I get here will help me after I graduate.