The Last Maker Blog

     When I first read that our last blog was supposed to be one that wrapped up what we have learned in the Maker class I had no clue what to write about. I have learned so much and have so many take away's from this class, how could I possibly include them all into a 500 word blog? But, I still have to write something, and therefore here is some, but most definitely not all, of the things I've learned and will take away for Dr. Reitmeyer's class.
     The first thing I learned in the Maker class is that everyone, yes everyone, is a maker. Whether it be an essay or space shuttle, we all make something because we all have the desire to make. It took me some time to actually believe this one but once I did, it was as if a whole world of possibility opened up to me.
     Another thing I learned in this class is that nobody does most anything perfect, or even near perfect, on the first try. Perfection takes practice and time, but this is no reason to give up. What's that old saying, if you fall off the horse, get up and back on the sattle again? I can't tell you how many "shitty first drafts" or awful proto-types I have made, but now I know that these things are just the process in which we someday receive a better version.
    The last thing I've learned through this class, or at least the last thing I'm going to talk about learning, is that everything can be, and is connected. Whether it be your writing class and your math class, or your speech class and your science class, everything connects. And, if everything connects, it's important to explore all aspects of life (different classes than just what you degree needs not like murder or something) so that you get a better understanding of life as a whole and become a much more rounded person.
    The last thing I would like to say in this blog is a big THANK YOU to Dr. Reitmeyer and all of her awesomeness and even more towards the awesomeness of her teachings.

Making and Manifesto

     When I began my project of making, my Manifesto was to make for someone else. It was to use my making skills for the greater good. This was because, in doing so, I would have a greater purpose in making and therefore every struggle, every time I wanted to give up, and every tedious hour spent on creating my make, it could remind myself of the purpose of it all. Therefore I decided to make a baby mobile for my boss.
     When I was creating my mobile, I can remember so many times during the process when I wanted to give up. After my horrible proto-type, after burning myself about forty times while making my sheep, and most defiantly when I had to try to make my clouds hold together after the third time gluing them together, but in each instance I would go back to my Manifesto.
     "Your doing this for the greater good of those around you. Your doing this for Cindy." I would tell this to myself over and over and over again, get myself back together, and go about making all over again.
In the end I was left with a beautiful piece of art work and was extremely joyed when I saw the look on Cindy's face when she received my gift. That's what made this project worth all the pain. The look on Cindy's face.
I end this blog with one of my favorite quotes:

First Steps of Making the Make

When I am first asked to create something, my first instinct is to pick up some items and make. This type of beginning in my making leads to a lot more failures than successes. With the knowledge of failure in mind, I knew I had to find a different strategy in how I ought to make things, and this project gave me a new tool into how I should start a build before I start a build. This step is the step of research.

Research has helped my build because it not only tells me how something, in my case a baby mobile, is made, but also explains to me the purpose of it being made like that. For example, the reason baby mobiles began to move both vertically and horizontally was to not only amuse the baby, but teach it the different types of linear motion. With this idea in mind, I now hope to put empathise I might not of had before, on making sure my mobile can move in more than one type of direction.

After the research it finally my favorite part, the build, but even this part is different in this project than what I am used to doing. This is because the build also includes a prototype. Normally I see this step as extra, but now I see it as the necessary step in my making because it is my chance to fail! In a good way! You see, if I fail, which knowing me I will, I am then given the opportunity to take that failure and turn it into a successful final product. Afterall, all failures are just opportunities to grow and learn. And thats what I plan on doing with my prototype, grow and learn to make an excellent final product.
I thought this was a funny portrait of prototyping

Researching Baby Mobiles

When I began research for my baby mobile build, I surely thought to myself, this should be as easy as pie. However, it didn’t take long for me to realize that this wasn’t the case. Research on something you're trying to make is really hard, (who knew!), and it seems like I can never come up with the right “key words” to find what I am looking for, or if I do I might find one or two articles that help me in my research and then I start all over in finding another “keyword” for another article. At first this process was intriguing and fun! Now it seems vigorous and taunting. Not my favorite research projects thus far, but maybe when I begin building and find questions as I build that might give me my “key words”, I’ll feel a different way. After all, isn’t the worst part of all research projects finding the research? It is for me.

In other research papers I’ve done, the worst a part of finding the research is going through the articles to find if they help win over you argument or not. This paper’s hard part is just finding articles. However, in both, my favorite part is reading what I find. For example, when I was researching Abraham Lincoln, I found billions of articles about him, and, therefore, learned so much. I found out that his mother died when he was young and his sister and his wife were named Sarah, and a lot more. I loved it.

In this paper, although finding it to be difficult, I have learned a lot about the look of babies rooms and am finding it quite interesting. Like did you know that babies rooms weren’t done by theme and color, pink and blue, until the 60s? Before then the room was made to be mostly neutrals: cream, white, gray, etc, and might have some teddy bears or angels in them. The sixties is when babies began to be, what the article I’m reading refer to as, “stereotyped”. 

 http://swra.oxfordjournals.org/content/20/1/7.short

I still have a bunch of research to do, but I hope to find more great finds and I hope that it gets easier.

Laura's I-Make Project

                In my proposal I wrote about making a baby mobile and what it is. A baby mobile is like a spinning chandelier made with stuff, animals, balls, butterfly’s, lights, etc. that are hung over a baby’s bed. I discussed the issue of balance because the most important part of a baby mobile is balance. I also talked about how my baby mobile is going to consist of two different baby mobile designs based on ones I found on Pinterest. These are the picture of the two designs I will be using:

The butterfly's will be on the inside and the pompoms will be on the outside. 

                The reason I choose to make a baby mobile is: one, because I love babies and baby things, and two, because my work study boss is expecting her first child and I thought a hand-made baby mobile would make a wonderful gift for her and her baby. I realize that there is a lot of other baby gifts I could make, but a baby mobile sounded most interesting to me because it’s not a gift most people think about giving, and it will be a fun challenge for me to create one.

                Knowing that my baby mobile will be for my boss, there are a few aspects of the design I must adjust according to her baby room design planes. These include, but are not limited to, the color scheme of the room, and if there is any theme; duck, jungle, butterfly, etc. that I should consider. Finding this information may be difficult because I want the mobile to be a surprise for her and don’t want to give any clues that I am making something for the baby room. Therefore, to find out this information, and any other info I might need, I plan on using my fellow work study members to ask her different questions, at different times, about the baby and babies room and then report back to me the information. Overall, I’m really excited about this build. 

Journalistic Jargon

I first want to liberate that I had no clue what jargon was. Jargon, according to dictionary.com, is the words or slang of a community. And then I found this, and it made me laugh.
 

     To be honest my community, the EJC- Journalism Community/ Future of Journalist, doesn’t have a special type of jargon.  All of the articles and stories are written in such a way that just about anyone can understand them, and this is an important aspect of my community because we, journalists, want people to read and understand what we are saying. The whole point of journalism is getting the word out on what is happening in the world, and if we write in such a way that distracts people from what we’re trying to say because they can’t understand it, we aren’t completing the job.

     While we are using an understandable langue, I also notice that the journalists are also using langue to administrate the importance of all the issues they are talking about. For example, one wouldn’t say that the church had a separation from state issues, but rather the church underwent a formal separation from state issues. This is the way we use common language so that the reader know what we are talking about while still having description to bring importance to the issue.  

     For more understanding on what I’m talking about, here is a link to one of the articles a journalist in my community wrote and posted on the wall of my community: http://community.ejc.net/group/futureofjournalism/forum/topics/the-european-journalism-centre-announces-journalism-grants-for-in

Joining a Community

      Joining a community is a risky business.  Putting oneself out into a new “world” that they may, or may not fit into or be welcome into, wow it can be ruff. But honestly, it’s so totally worth it because, although you don’t always get the outcome you want, every time you try to join a new community, you learn something new. That in itself is worth the try.

     I remember the first time I tried to join a community on my own, so not the churches I went to as a family, or the sport teams I tried out for with a group of friends, but the one I did without anyone I knew doing it with me. The community was my high schools yearbook class, and I tried to join during my sophomore year. At the time I had just moved to Texas, had no friends and just wanted any excuse for me and my camera to have more time with each other. I didn't know what I was getting myself into.

     In order to get into the class, there were a series of criteria I had to complete before I could even be considered for the team. I had to of taken a photography or journalism class the year before, I had photography under my belt. I had to write a three page essay on why I would be a good fit for the class, I had no idea so I just bs-ed something’s. And last, but not least, I had to send in some material of my work, in this case some of my photos.

     For the normal person, it takes about a week or so to hear back from the team. I got accepted within a day, I guess I’m pretty good a bs-ing something’s.  I was soaked to finally have an opportunity to put some new roots in a community in Texas, but I wasn't ready to meet a bunch of new people who, in my option, were even weirder than me.  The first week of the community was strange and I was unsure of my feelings towards it, but by the end of the second week I was addicted and looked forward to everyday in the class. The best part of joining this group of weirdo’s was that, in the end, its what made me realize my passion for journalism. 

My Regis and Manifesto

 
    When I think about my Regis experience and my manifesto experience I immediately realize that they co-inside with each other. As you might recall, my manifesto is that I want to use my life to make a difference in our world. My experience with Regis co-insides with this because it is Regis's goal is to make us "men and women in service of other". When I am in service for others, am I not making a difference? I believe that the answer to this is yes. Along with this I have experienced, through Regis, that the degree I came in wanting to do isn't the one that will best suit me.
    I came in thinking that I wanted to get a degree in Marketing, and quickly realized that I would never be happy doing this job. This is because, although I would be helping people, I wouldn't be doing it in the way that my heart desires. With this in mind I have come to the realization that I want to be a journalist, but not just any journalist. I want to go out into the world, to countries in civil war and third world countries, and get the real story so that people in first world countries, like America, will know the truth about the world and maybe be convicted to help out.
    I am thankful to Regis for making me re-realize my goal.

My Manifesto

     In order to know how to make a Manifesto I looked up the site: http://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Manifesto. I’m not entirely sure if this is a normal manifesto but it’s what I made, see what I did their, out of it.

    Making is a profound piece of human nature. Making is necessary in everyone’s lives but especially mine.  Making is a sacred part of my living

   Doing is not the same as making. Doing is completing a task but making is creating said task. Doing cannot be done without making.

    I realize that without making I would not be such of a human as I am. I also realize that I am a maker and so is everyone else. In this I realize that no one is a greater maker than somebody else because everything made was made from a magical imagination of another human.

      Making, which is not doing, should be recognized as a special part of human nature, not just to me but to everyone.

     I make crafts. I make photos. I make changes. I make moments. But what I love most is the fact that I indeed make.  

     Now that I know what I make and see its importance I want to make a goal because right now I want to state that, above everything I make, I want to make a difference.

     A difference in other people’s lives by making choices that put others above me. This will make a difference in the lives of those around me. I hope to one day take this goal around the world with me and make a difference throughout earth.

   In the end, I guess that my maker manifesto is that I want to make my life one in which I can make a differences, not for myself but instead for the lives of others.

I also found this manifesto poem and thoroughly enjoyed it. Hope you do too.

My Writing Relationship

          I can still remember the day that I hated writing. The process of brainstorming, and outlining, then rough drafting made me sick to the core. To be honest, I think I felt this way because I was scared. I was scared that if I was to misspell a word or use grammar wrong my teacher would secretly mock me and think I was dumb. I was scared I would write something that would be taken the wrong way and people would judge me. But, to be honest, I think I was most scared that my writing would never be good enough for myself because maybe, just maybe, I would never be able to reflect myself through my writing. This was the reason I used to hate writing, but what I didn’t know was that writing would soon become my passion.

      Beginning my freshman year in high school, I still cringed when I thought about the process of writing. but this all changed when I moved away from the place I lived in for fifteen years, Aurora, Colorado, into my new life in Houston, Texas. When I first moved away I hated everything about my new “home”, but the growing questions from my Colorado friends made me feel like home. I started to write them nightly about my adventurous move into Texas, and soon became a story teller about a “far off land”. I hadn’t even realized it, but I was writing paragraphs beyond paragraphs about my stories every single day, and in doing so, I started to become a really good writer. I started to notice what I was doing when I would get essay assignments from my teachers that became almost second nature for me to write because of all my un-instinctual practice. It didn’t take me long to love the process of writing and instead of worrying about people reading what I wrote, I almost started to beg people to.

     By time I was a junior in high school I really began to amuse myself with ideas of becoming a writer, but had no idea on what type of writing I would do, and then it happened. I joined the yearbook team and finally allowed writing to become my passion. Not just any writing. I let journalism become my passion. Going out into the world and watching a story revile itself in front of your very eyes just to turn around and write that story onto paper for the world, or the school, to see, was the most amazing feeling my soul had ever felt.  

     After doing journalism in high school for two years and knowing that it is my passion, I now hope to become a journalist. I find it a little funny that the thing that used to scare me the most, writing, is now what can make me the most happy. 

I don't know why but it wouldn't let me put the link yesterday but here it is
http://litreactor.com/columns/the-importance-of-journaling

What I've Been Taught

     When I think to about my experience of learning I immediately start to categorize the type of learning I have had and then who has taught me the best in that category. The first category is life lesions, then education, and finally spiritual lesions. For life the people that have taught me the most are my mom and my yearbook teacher, Mrs. O’Neil. For education, Mr. Rustle taught me best, although I still have a hard time admitting it. Lastly, for spiritual lesions my dear friend Dawn Shea made me learn the most.

     Ever since I was born my mom has been teaching me life lesions, and let’s be honest, it’s not that far-fetched that most of your mothers have done the same. However, my mom has gone far and beyond this. She has taught me so much but if I had to choose just one thing she has given to me, I would choose the lesson of always being there for the people you love no matter what you feel like because this life isn't just about you. She taught this lesion to me my whole life through her selfless attitude and continues to teach it to me every day by answering two in the morning phone calls and rush to a friend in need attitude.

     As for Mrs. O’Neil of whom has taught me more than anyone else. I could go on for hours talking about the things O’Neil has taught me but for now I will tell you about one very special story. At the beginning of junior year I was late to her class because I was helping a friend in need. After I told her why I was late I mentioned at the end that it was no big deal and that I didn’t really do anything to help and this is what she said:

     “Laura, what you did was a tremendous amount of help, you were there for her when she needed you and that was the type of help she needed. I notice that a lot of the time when you help someone in need you act as if you were not important, but every type of help is a big help, so quite putting yourself down as if you weren’t doing anything important because the fact is you are.”

      This has been in my head ever since she told me it and I still remained myself of it every time I help someone out.

    I’m going to be brief with Mr. Rustle and Dawn. No teacher has ever been so mean to me, yet no teacher has made me improve in school as much as he did. As for Dawn, nobody has shown me Gods love for me like she does. She speaks of Him in awe and wounded and still challenges, in a good way, my faith today. I couldn't ask for a better role model than Dawn.

     To all of my teachers, in every kind they come in, thank you.

Becoming my own DIY-er

      I have had knowledge of DIY culture ever since I can remember. I grew up watching my dad tear apart kitchens, living rooms, bedrooms, and so on, just to rebuild them from scratch, but it wasn’t until I grew older that I realized that my DIY capability was very different from my fathers. See, my dad is very capable of looking at a pile of wood and creating a table. As for me, I can see a pile of flowers and make wonderful arrangement, or I can see a group of people and create a beautiful photograph. Does this make my dad’s skills better than mine? Absolutely not.

      At the end of the day, my dad’s DIY capability helps makes people’s lives easier or better, while mine helps make peoples days better. For example, when my dad makes redoes someone’s bathroom, the people living with that bathroom get to use it on an everyday basis and enjoy the upgrades that made the bathroom better than it was before. But when I make a flower arrangement, someone gets take that arrangement to someone and, hopefully, make them smile.

      To be honest, feeling my skills were meaningless compare to my dad’s, I used to try to copy my dad’s skill set. My most prevalent memory of doing this was when I tried to paint my room myself. Now I couldn’t just paint my room. I had to Paint my room, so I found a link (similar to this one: http://www.marthastewart.com/274499/paint-stencil-ideas/@center/276988/painting-ideas-and-projects ) and attempted to stencil my entire room as if it were wallpaper. All I can say is that it didn’t even take an entire day before my dad came in and covered my mess with his own masterpiece.

     Looking back at the situation can see how silly I was being for trying to be my dad. I now see that there is no such thing as being a better DIY-er. DIY is about someone taking their skills and making something with them. Making the creativity of their minds come to life. I now see that every DIY-er has worth, and without the diversity in the DIY world, the world wouldn’t be nearly as creative.

http://recycledmiracles.blogspot.com/2013/07/stylish-paralyzed-wiener-dog-drag-bag.html
This Link shows how to make a drag bag useful/durable yet comfortable for the dog