Blog assignment for this week: Due August 4

Write a narrative on the following topic using proper paragraph formatting and including transition words of time (see p.157 in your R&W textbook):

The Good and the Bad: Think about an event in your life that seemed bad but turned out to be good. Maybe you got injured and while you were waiting for your broken leg to heal, you learned how to use a computer. What makes the event change from bad to good may be something that you learned as a result, something that you did differently as a result, or something that happened that wouldn't have occurred otherwise. Tell the story of the event that you experienced and help your readers understand how an event that seemed negative turned out to have valuable consequences.

Students have been asking me about my wife so I have a picture here of a party I went to last weekend. It was a pretty good party - great food, good music and interesting people. During the party, someone decided to take some pictures and I tried to turn my chair so they could get a good picture of my beautiful face. Unfortunately, even though it was early in the evening and I had drunk just one drink, I lost my balance and fell over when I turned in my chair. I seriously hurt my wrist and screamed in pain. My wife is the one at the table laughing the hardest.

Journal topics for this week: Due Thursday, July 23

Title: Any regrets?

Think First

When young, people often make choices that affect their lives. While you were a teenager, you may have had opportunities to join teams or special interest clubs. Sometimes people aren’t able to join some events because of the location or a lack of opportunity, time or money, etc. Were you an active teenager outside of school time? What did you do? Most importantly, what didn’t you do? Was it your choice not to do it?

Then Write

Write about three things you wish you had done when you were a teenager, but didn’t. Explain the circumstances and explain why you regret not doing it. If you have no regrets, write about three things you did when you were that age, and describe what you learned from those experiences.

Title: Being Polite

Think First

What is considered polite or rude in your culture? For example, is it okay to put on lipstick in the classroom? Is it polite to call someone by his/her last name only? Is it rude to put your hand on the top of a person’s head? Have you found that there are differences between polite behaviour in your culture and this culture?

Then Write

On one page, write a list of 10 ways to be polite in your culture.

On the second page, write about the difference of ideas of politeness between your culture and this culture.

My Favourite Vietnamese Restaurant

I went to one of my favourite restaurants in Vancouver this weekend. It's a Vietnamese restaurant called Pho Thai Hoa, and it's located at 1625 Kingsway. This restaurant has a great menu with a large selection of food. And so cheap! We ordered the Vietnamese crepe (closest dish), the green papaya salad (in the middle), and the Vietnamese style beef stew with rice (at the far end). Everything was absolutely delicious, and the total cost was only $21. Also, there was also enough food to take half of it home and have it for lunch the next day. (Hint: at a restaurant, if there is too much food you can just say to the waiter: "Can I get this to go?", and they will put it in a container for you to take home.) If you haven't tried Vietnamese food before, I recommend this restaurtant for your first experience. Just don't forget to invite me!

This is a picture from last Friday when I went fishing with my best friend Paul. We've been friend's for about thirty years and we've done a lot of camping together and caught a lot of fish together. The thing I like best about Paul is that he is not as good a fisherman as I am.

Paul has a dog, Micky. Micky's very cute and playful, but totally out of control. You never know what she's going to do next. Suddenly, she'll jump off the boat and into the water and scare all the fish away. Then she'll get back into the boat and shower me and Paul with water as she shakes herself. If you catch a fish, she'll go crazy and jump on the fish. Often the fish escapes because you can't control the fish and Micky at the same time. Generally, I like Micky best when she's sleeping.

Journal Topics for this week: Due Thursday, July 16

1) Title: Being a foreigner

Think First

Many languages have a word for a foreigner. What does the term “foreigner” mean to you? Do you feel like a foreigner here? If you had to draw a picture which reflects your feelings about being in a new culture, what would you draw? Which colors would you use? Which shapes (lines, circles, squares, etc) would help you express your ideas?

Then Write (and draw)

Draw an abstract picture that describes how you have felt as a foreigner. An abstract picture has shapes and patterns that DO NOT LOOK like real people or things (like Picasso). That is, an abstract picture does not try to show the same things that a photograph does. Remember, there isn’t a right or wrong abstract picture, so just enjoy the process.

At the bottom of the picture, write as many words as you can to describe the ideas that you tried to show in the abstract picture.

2) Title: Communication Breakdowns

Think First

Everyone, even native language speakers, experience a communication breakdown. The consequences of a communication breakdown range from slight to very serious. As a language learner, you have no doubt experienced a time when you didn't understand someone or someone didn't understand you. What happened? What did you do? What were the consequences?

Then Write

Describe the event in your journal. Include this information in your description.

• What happened?
• How did you feel about this experience?
• What did the other person (people) feel and/or do?
• What can you do to avoid this experience next time? What class activities can help you?

How do I add a link to my blog?

Adding a link to your blog is a great idea if you want to share the location of a web site with friends.

1) Go to your blog

2) Click on “customize” in the top right corner

3) Click on “Layout” tab in the top left corner

4) Go to “Link List” in the middle of the page and click on “Edit”

5) Add the URL of the blog you want to link to where it says “New Site URL” → e.g. to link to my blog type in: thefishinmusician.blogspot.com

6) Add a title → e.g. for my blog you may want to call it “Michael’s Blog”

Welcome!

Welcome to my blog.