STUDIO TOURS

I've been assigned to tour the following blogs and comment on them as directed in the assignment link above:

Walk Away Renee
joggua
At a loss...for words

Keep on walking, Renee!

Walk Away Renee is one of the blogs I've visited on a regular basis throughout the semester, so I was glad to see this was one of the three I am to comment on.

I've always appreciated the honesty of Renee's posts. She keeps readers attention by her great use of links throughout her text. For me, it's like opening a fortune cookie when I click on the links, wondering where it's going to take me and how it relates to what she's talking about in her blog. I compare it to a puzzle sometimes, trying to find the connection path of her text to the reasoning behind a chosen link. In my opinion, this sort of deliberate action is what often keeps a reader coming back for more.

I hadn't read Renee's project proposal until this assignment and was surprised to discover another part of the project that I had no idea existed until now. It got me to thinking about the fact that I was reading her blog for the last several weeks, in a perspective totally outside of what it seemed was the intention of her proposal. I'm not saying that's good or bad, merely an observation.

The proposal indicates that she wants to do reflection of her non-English classes. Specifically, the Focus says, "I will post weblog entries that focus on topics from non-English classes I have taken at Bemidji State University. In my blog I will strive for a casual contemplation approachable through an organized topical structure of the wiki, which I will use to report on my blog." I looked through the class cubby independently and attempted to cross-reference them to the posts on her blog and had a difficult time making the connection. This could in part be due to the fact that I already have a bit of a personal "attachment" of sorts to her blog. It's almost as though I don't want the structured academic part that she talks about in her proposal to taint the beauty and freedom that I appreciate already. I'm curious if her project has simply changed from what she intended or maybe I'm making a completely incorrect observation.

From Walking to Jogging

Murray's joggua is also on my list of favorites, long before this assignment. Josh is following his proposal exactly as planned.
His posts tend to be responses to things in the news and I give him major props for often posting his response in the same style as what he is reading. I get a commentary, journalism "feel" while reading Murray's posts. Even as some are very casual in tone, they are consistently giving me the impression of being deliberate and well-planned. There are times where he lets the readers in to have a view of who he is as a person, but then others where he keeps his distance, each time exercising those decisions very effectively.

I like the links to the left of his entries to the various news sources he is using. I recall the first time I visited this project that it gave me a brief glimpse of what kind of responses I might be reading. My brother always says you can tell a lot about a person by where they get their news. Only recently did I start to consider this....

I find myself wondering about the story of the "Open Door" knowing there must be a great story behind it. In my opinion, joggua is probably doing exactly what pioneer bloggers hoped blogging would become.

Finally at a Loss After Walking and Jogging

How lucky am I to have three of the blogs I visit in a regular basis be part of my assignment rotation?

Jessica's At a loss...for words is of particular personal interest for me because I was going to keep a similar blog for my project, but decided I wasn't brave enough to expose myself to the class, finally agreeing to continue the dieting diary I've been keeping in Microsoft Word, with the promise to switch to blog once the semester is over.

I love the honesty of her posts and the way she integrates humor so effectively while speaking to a topic that is sometimes touchy in our society. I am able to see her coming to realizations about herself right in the middle of some of her posts, which is exciting for me as a reader. I find myself wishing she would go into more depth in her posts about how she is feeling physically, mentally, and emotionally--along with when she eats what she eats and how much and wondering if there is any correlation between any of it. Possessing the hectic life of a student, I imagine it's difficult to keep up with the blog and as a simple suggestion wonder if posting several short entries a day, rather than one summative entry would be more effective for her schedule and for the overall success of the blog.

Though it may be difficult to find the benefit in writing down what she's eaten, I hope that Jessica goes back to the "consumption diary." I think it requires observing over several weeks, even months, before one can truly decide if it's worthwhile or not. I'd also like to suggest maybe looking for ways for Jessica to "pat herself on the back" via her blogging. Rather than mentally punish herself for not going to the rec center, she could focus on what good she's done for her body, even if it's something as simple as taking a 10 minute nap to rejuvinate or to paint her toenails, just because. Don't stop now, Jess, your audience is counting on you!