I Prefer VH1... That's Just Me

There is something strange about Mike's writing style. His writing is both organized and formal, yet also encompasses the whole pop-cultural feel a lot like an educated tabloid or a well put together presentation that would not really be normal when you try to describe MTV. What I mean is MTV is talked about with your friends or on TV in a very non-formal "yea last night's Cribs episode was sick" type of way. This was even more peculiar to me being apart of this so-called MTV generation, because we shared these experiences, yet I can say I have never heard MTV talked about in such a way. He made the intent of Beavis and Butt-Head sound intelligent, this I formally thought of as an impossible task was done quite neatly. 

            Even though he had a very formal and intellectual set-up Mike made it very easy to connect with what he was talking about. If possible Mike didn't really explain what it was to be a part of this generation he showed us. Through some of his diction and also connecting with our sub-conscience, we all thought about how utterly stupid Beavis and Butt-head were, or how shallow "Next" was, yet we never put it to words. And so, reading Mike's essay half of it felt as though he was pulling my thoughts from my head. This made me see right through his formal presentation and feel at home with his essay. At first it seemed like it be a dry analytical passage written by some guy who "observed" our generation. Though quickly I found that I was getting comfortable with adapting to his style. 

journal 2

Throughout his writing mike uses a very casual and informal style. Because of this it is an easy read and one can sense the "youthful" tone in his sentence structure and vocabulary. This tone further emphasizes on his subject, he writes very outspokenly and honestly. Very much the opposite style in which "TRL" would communicate in. In terms of balancing his identity and the influence MTV has had on it I think he tended to exaggerate. Stating things such as "Beavis and Butthead built the foundation of my own uniqueness" and "the deprivation of quality television that demonstrates positive morals has made me strive to exemplify the Golden Rule," I would say these quotes are a little bit exreme. This definately aids in exemplifying how much this "church of conformity" has affected his own life, allowing him personalize these shows to such an extent. Also, the style of figuritive language he uses makes the reading feel personal, like he is trying to introduce or "sell" himself to the reader.

JOURNAL 2

Mike’s writing style is informal and somewhat conversational. He relates his examples very clearly through his writing and seems to be directing his text at the teenage audience. The words he chooses are very common and ordinary. He keeps his language simple using phrases relevant to his topic. It was easy to follow along with his story and how MTV influenced him. Mike uses the TV shows from MTV, almost everyone has seen, as one way to convey his subject to the reader. I think that is what made it such an easy read. This is something that is familiar to relatively everyone. The language he uses goes hand in hand with the subject he is talking about. Mike calls MTV the “Church of Conformity” where teenagers learn their dress, actions, and way of life. He clearly believes MTV is not the most positive network. The life lessons learned are actually the opposite of what goes on in the TV shows. For example, Mike learned how to treat people by watching the show Next. Noting how people hated to be treated, Mike knew to do the contrary. By using examples such as these and by keeping the language plain he reflects the subject of MTV and some of ridiculousness that comes with it. MTV!

journal 2

Music Television Mike. I would say over all think every word Mike said was completely true. Sometimes I wondered why, and how some of the things that are on TV get on TV. I would describe Mike's writing style as descriptive. Why descriptive? Because in his writing he is describing how they different type of TV shows effected his life. He describes how although things may be looked at in the wrong way it can be a positive side to it also. As he used the cartoon show Beavis, and Butthead as one of his examples. And he said that the show showed him what not to do. Instead what some think of it as showing, and encouraging doing the wrong thing? I think the type of language he uses is rite to the point, and is well understood. The language affects his subject matter. Because not only what he where talking was related to a more slang type of show. But they did not talk in what you would call a high level of speaking.

Journal 2

Read and respond to Hendrickson’s essay ("MTV Mike"). Examine which character traits MTV has inspired in Mike and also how he balances his descriptions of MTV shows with his discussion of their impact on his character. How would you describe Mike’s writing style? What sorts of language does he use to convey his subject to the reader? How does this language reflect his subject matter?

Journal 1- Travis Weddle

One of the first movies I can recall watching quite frequently as I was growing up was the Goonies. Ever since I first saw it around the age of 6 or so, I have been fascinated with it. This movie has the plot every kid dreams about: a group of friends find a treasure map and solve a number of booby traps to ultimately find a shipload of treasure. I wanted to be a Goonie so bad when I first saw this movie, I would have even been Chunk if I would have to have been. You can't forget about Chunk's friend too, the cool mutant guy who likes candy bars. Unfortunately the movie has started to get less and less interesting as I get older. However, the fact is that I realize that I have watched this movie so many times throughout my life because it reminds me of my childhood and even though I never had as an exciting story to tell as the Goonies did, I still had fun and cherish every moment of my early years of life.

Early Technology!

When I was younger, I wasn't really into the video game thing. My mom thought that if she had gotten me a Nintendo 64 I would just sit around my house all day and play that. As I think about it now, I am really glad i never had one. If I had one, I don't think that I would have been as good at soccer as I am now. While all my friends were inside playing on their gaming systems, me and my sister would be outside juggling the ball and trying to basically prove that we were better than each other.
One bit of fun technology I had was the "Tamagachi". They were those little virtual pets on a keychain that you had to take care of. I loved mine. I kept it on my backpack and it gave me so much enjoyment while I would be bored in school. The only thing is, for some reason, i would lose it for 3 day periods of time, mostly on the weekend, and the thing would die. Then you would have to reset it and start all over.
Another big thing when i was younger was those damn furbys. Ugh. When i first got mine I loved it. I thought they were the coolest thing ever. However, after like the first week, you could never get the stupid thing to shut up. I can recall one time, I even chucked mine against a wall and it was still alive. As i think about it, what were the furbys even good for. The only thing they did was talk about how pretty you were. Which is funny because even if you looked like hell, they would still think you looked awesome.
OOh. Baby G watches were big in my time too. I had a green one and my best friend Ashley had a pink one. They were these huge chunky watched that almost every girl had to have. There was this little man on the watch that if you pressed a certain button, he would run across the screen and fall down. I always thought that that was hilarious. Today, I don't think I would ever be caught dead in one of those watches, unless i was going to an 80's or 90's party. :)

Journal 1

I've always been a big fan of horror movies. Anything with over the top gore usually ranks on my top 10 list. No other movie has managed to do this better than Dead Alive. It was an early work of Peter Jackson, who was made popular by his work on The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and the more recent King Kong movie. However, in this low-budget film, you see some of the most shocking scenes ever filmed. The most twisted scene involves a lawnmower. The main character Lionel walks into his zombie-infested house with a lawn mower in his hands, blade facing towards the crowd. He proceeds to walk through the masses, as dismembered limbs fly in every direction and fake-looking pinkish gooey blood sprays everywhere. This scene lasts for about three minutes, and by the end, all that's left is a thick coating of liquidated zombies covering the floor. The whole movie is pretty graphic, twisted, and yet somehow so over the top that it comes off as more humorous than scary. If you want to view the scene i was talking about, just go to this link, but i warn you, this isn't for people that are easily grossed out. ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tkaz_gT7mAY )

Journal 1

If you are growing up in my generation, you are bound to be almost obsessed with video games. Ever since I could remember I loved to play, even when I was only five or six years old and had no idea what I was doing. I remember having a Super Nintendo, but the most advanced piece of technology when I was growing up was the N64. I remember getting Madden 64 and everyone thought it looked so real; we thought there was no way the graphics could ever get better than that. I would get home everyday and play Mario Kart 64 or 007 Golden-Eye. I have two older brothers and competing in sports was never really an option, but when it came to Nintendo, I felt like I could hold my own.

New systems were being introduced, but none could match the N64 in my eyes. My mind was quickly changed when the Playstation 2 was brought into the market. I remember Christmas the year it came out, it was nearly impossible to get your hands on. Our dad had my two brothers and me convinced he could not find it; but on Christmas morning it was there and I cannot explain how excited we all were. Now we really started to wonder what could be next.

The progression continued as things like the Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, and Playstation 3 were made. There are people who even have parties to play Rock Band with their friends. The motion sensor system of the Wii is another innovation that has changed the way we play video games and now even my parents can play. These companies definitely still have me wondering: what could possibly be next?

Journal 1

I remember always having interest in cars and racing as a kid. Also in the environment and nature as a result of living across the street from the gulf in a fairly undeveloped area. So as far as television and video games, my interest typically fell in these categories. Games such as Gran Turismo and Need for Speed and any other racing game captivated me. The Idea of building and racing your own vehicle was fun in a game so I could only imagine how great it must be in reality. The more I played the more interested i became so i would say that this contributed influence to my "automotive enthusiasm." T.V. programs that caught my eye were of course any racing or custom car building shows. I also enjoyed learning ineresting facts about the world on discovery channel or history channel when growing up. I think these shows helped me to start thinking about different things and putting my world in perspective, so I'd say they influenced me in that aspect.

Journal 1

Nintendo was introduced to my house hold after a heated battle between brother and sister. The winner became a proud owner of the old school Super Nintendo. I was the lucky winner of this battle, and my older brother had to deal with the fact that his little sister had beaten him out of a Nintendo. Of course after a few months the Nintendo being in my possession we moved it to the family room where my brother and I continued to battle it out. Whether it was Super Mario Brothers, Mario Kart, or Donkey Kong we went head to head to battle to be the best. Over time I found that I didn’t really care for what video game we played, I just cared that my brother still didn’t mind playing a good game of Mario Kart with his little sister. Of course technology has changed, and with time the graphics have improved. New game systems come out every year normally slimmer and better then the previous. However, no matter how much technology improves it can’t change the bond my brother and I share. To this day every Thanksgiving I’d bring the Nintendo out and we’d go back to being little kids battling to be the best. Thanks to an old Super Nintendo our bond continues to grow and I’m thankful for that.

Journal 1

Companies pay millions of dollars in order to promote their products. Some commercials are boring and just there on TV but other stand out in everyone’s memories. The most important night for all commercial lovers is of course, Super Bowl night. I watch it for the game but the commercials are bonuses for my entertainment. The one that I will always remember from last years Super Bowl is defiantly the Diet Pepsi Max commercial. It shows people throughout a city falling asleep and as soon as they drink a sip, they wake up! The funny part about it is they make fun of Will Ferrell and Chris Kattan in the movie Night at the Roxbury when they bob their heads to the song What is Love. Chris Kattan actually makes a cameo in the commercial making fun of the “Head Bob.” This caught my attention in the fact that people know that one sip of Diet Pepsi Max does not wake you up but they are still intrigued by the music and idea of the commercial. Every time it still plays today, I get a little chuckle out of it and know that millions of other people will always remember this particular commercial.

Journal 1

Although I've seen many t.v. shows throughout my life, CSI has always intrigued me, and all of a sudden I became hooked to the show. I believe it was something about the victim's mysterious and outrageous deaths, and the teams amazing ability to catch the not so smart murderers that got my attention. Whenever an episode is on, my mom and I always make to to sit down and watch it, even though we might fall asleep doing so. It's just amazing how one strand of hair, piece of DNA or part of a fingerprint can cause someone to get caught, when they thought they would get away with it. Although some of the graphics are gruesome and gross, they're also eye-catching at the same time. Even though I like to watch the show, I don't think I have "the guts" to actually be a crime scene investigator myself.

Journal1-Brandon O'Connor

I have played many video games in the pass years. The one video game that has cought my attention is the new track and field game called Beijing 2008. Reason why this game has cought my attention is because I run track myself and I am in love with track and field. Also because it is a video game and I enjoy playing video games. I believe video games are a stress releaser, they take your mind off of stress. Another reason the games had cought my attention is how hard it is to play and how u can run against other people on the internet. It brings out the competition in me. One more reason would be the number of events u can do in the game, its more than any that have been on an other track games I've played.

Journal 1

Hands down, without a doubt, Legends Of The Hidden Temple. Yes, that 90’s Nickelodeon classic. It’s been some time since I’ve seen the show, obviously, but the thrill of watching teams battle for a chance to enter The Temple is something I will never forget. I remember how upsetting it was to watch the Green Monkeys or the Red Jaguars fall into The Moat in the first round only to have to restart from the beginning. I remember feeling my stomach drop every time a Temple Guard would come out of nowhere and grab an unsuspecting contestant, even though he shouldn’t have chosen The Swamp as a part of his journey because everybody knows that’s just asking for trouble. I remember knowing that if a team didn’t have two whole Pendants of Life entering The Temple, they were doomed. I remember how aggravating it was to sit on the other side of the television and watch some stupid kid trying to assemble the Silver Monkey. No, buddy, the head goes on top, not in the middle. I remember listening to the host, Kirk, hopelessly try and lead the teams through The Moat, The Steps of Knowledge, The Temple Games, and finally, The Temple Run. The addicting combination of the thrill, the stomach drops, and the aggravation made Legends of the Hidden Temple nearly impossible not to watch and definitely impossible to forget.

Journal 1

I learned everything I needed to know from the Madden video game series. For a one time fee of $59.95, you could purchase a disk of values to live your life by. Anyone who has ever picked up a controller and ran, threw and tackled their way to victory knows exactly what I mean. I learned at a young age that anyone could simply devastate the computer on "rookie" mode with an all star team, but there was no honor in manipulating the odds. I learned patience, building my team up with key free agent acquisitions and timely draft picks. It was better to draft young skilled players instead of flashy standouts who were sure to cripple your salary cap during their contract year. I was taught humility in "franchise mode" because it was impossible to have an undefeated season. No matter how perfect a game you played, your star running back would inexplicably fumble late in the 4 quarter or the computer would run a perfect 2 minute drill with a star quarterback. When playing against a friend, you had to be sure not to run an unstoppable play too many times and not run up the score in the 4th quarter. No one wanted a friend to storm off after you ran for 385 yards with Ladanian Tomlinson. I was made a better person by all of the life decisions i made playing Madden NFL football. I am, however, guilty of "trading" just a 1st round pick for Derrick Brooks. I never said i was perfect.

Journal 1

Needless to say, over my past eighteen years and forty-six days i have run across my fair share of movies, video games, advertisements, and other various forms of media. Normally when I browse for something new, I look for something violent, or funny. Typical guy, right? Anyways, one day when I was about eleven, I stumbled upon the movie Braveheart with Mel Gibson in it. On the cover is a man holding a sword, so of course I picked it up and put it in the DVD player. Right off the bat I was enthralled...it opens up to a violent scene. I continued to be amazed as I finished the movie. It was packed with massive battle scenes and blood. I continued to watch this movie over and over again, at least once a month. Then, when I was probably around fifteen, it hit me. This was about much more than blood and guts, it was about much more than violence. It was about a man fighting for what he believes in. It was about a man who saw something unjust and stepping up to the plate and doing something about it.

journal 1

Through out my life on this wonderful planet. I have seen many things, liked many things, and influenced by lots of things. I watch t.v I mostly watch cartoons, because they are funny. And because I like tweety. I also watched ''I love New York'' because it is also funny to me. And i do not not mine watching others make a fool of them self. I am more into sports because i play basketball, and run track. I normally watch the sports channel just to see how every body is doing. I like to look at older runners because it inspire me to work hard to make it to the level the others are. My favorite movie is '' Love and Basketball''. The movie relate to me in so many ways that is really crazy. Being that i am always practicing or doing something with sports i really do not have that much time to do the fun things everybody else get to do. But it will all pay off in the long run.

JOURNAL 1: Black Mesa Labs Presents:

Throughout my years on this planet, I have seen many things that could have influenced my day to day life. These would include television shows (Myth Busters), movies (The Incredible Hulk), or books (anything by Clive Cussler). However there is one particular form of entertainment that caught my eye from a young age: Half-Life.



I can just remember sitting at my friends house, which was equipped with about six computers all networked together, playing this Game of the Year for 1998. Not only was the game play intense, but the visual effects were amazing as well. This game opened my eyes up to my ever growing interest in computers, games, weapons, and in some cases law enforcement.

This was one of the first computer games I had played (besides Wolfenstein 3D) that had me racing my friends to try to get through the puzzles of each level and finish the game, which required destroying a very large baby looking monster from the planet Xen.

As I said above, this compilation of strategy, wonderful eye candy, and shooting sparked my interest in many, many things that play a huge roll in my day to day life.

JOURNAL 1

JOURNAL 1
Growing up with an older brother, and 7 cousins that were all guys, I have been revolved around thousands of video games. Though most of the time I was kicked off or told I wasn't good enough for them, there was one game in particular that really interested me. Mario Kart on the Nintendo 64 was by far my favorite. My grandpa was the first person that introduced the game to me. We played for hours after we set up the system. Racing through space and within the volcanos, I thought it was the coolest thing ever invented. Technology has made many advancements since then and a thousand more video games have been invented. However, according to me Mario Kart will always be the best. The PS2, and Xbox have now exceeded the Nintendo but that game and Nintendo system is something I will always remember playing. It does'nt have guns,knives, or a crazy taxi...which I feel makes it pretty unique in camparison to all the games today. Its an easy learning game and you can play with multiple players. I can' say I've ever played Halo, but I hear it's one of the most popular video games today. Even knowing that, I still doubt it could surpass the joy that comes with Mario Kart on Nintendo 64. Yoshi,Mario, Luigi, Browser, Toad.. how could you even compare?

Journal ONe

The Anamaniacs

Whenever I think of my childhood there are always certain memories that stand out. Like the time my brothers knocked me out while playing an intense game of kickball in my living room, when my brother decided I was a good candidate to try a wrestling move on, or the time my brothers thought it would be funny to use me as their own human tug of rope. However luckily for my safety (and my mothers nerves) at three o’clock everyday the violence stopped and my brothers and I sat in front of the TV and watched our favorite show, The Anamaniacs.
In the show there are three characters: the two older brothers, Yacko and Wacko, and the youngest sister, Dot. The show was much like a parody of our family. In all of our years watching Anamaniacs I can never recall a time when we fought during it. It was our peace time. Just about the same time in which we became too old to watch it, the show went off the air. However, last Valentines Day, as a gift from a significant other I got the first season of the Anamaniacs. That night my whole family, including my 25 year old and 23 year old brother sat around and watched the whole season and no one fought. I guess some things will never change.

Journal 1

            Oregon Trail

There are many things as far as games, movies, and TV that occurred during my lifetime so far. Most uninteresting, and others held precious to my generation or as we like to say the nickelodeon generation. I am going to stray from the long hours in front of the tube, and concentrate on a voyage we all took at some point in our life. A search for gold west or maybe just a better life, who knows. You pack your best friends or family members, and sally forth to the west. How long will your journey take? Will Timmy die of malaria? It’s up to you, for you chose to go through or around the river, you chose to pack the refrigerator or the proper ointments to save Timmy. The ox has died, its ok you had two, but now your sister just died of dysentery, but really you wish she would have died before the last stop so you had room for that mega successful hunt, but now all you have is some bits of meat and headstone with her name on it.

            Everybody has played Oregon Trail, sitting in front of putty colored apple computer that displayed three or four colors (partly what I blame my colorblindness on). It is my opinion that this game still tops all of the games that have come out since (except lemmings), and therefore the most memorable. 

Over the years of watching countless T.V shows and seeing so many movies that you get confused as to which one you saw last week, the piece of media that stands out most to me is the movie Forrest Gump. This was a remarkable motion picture, and almost anyone can quote at least one line from that movie and just start laughing. There are so many comedic scenes in this movie and so many one-line jokes that he says they made a book of "Gumpisms" for people to use and remember the movie. However, along with the extremely funny moments in this movie, there are also some very serious and tear-jerking moments in this film to. For example, when at the end of the movie you find out that he is standing over his wife's grave telling her this story, which is the whole movie, you want to cry because through the entire film he was trying to gain her love and approval, then when he finally gets that and discovers he has a son she dies. That is very depressing but he continues to live his life and take care of his son as if nothing has changed his view of the world. That kind of objectivity towards certain areas of your life can take you to very high places.

Journal 1

Over the course of my short but exciting life filled with commercials and cartoons to actions movies and comedies, a few advertisements have stood out in my mind. The most outstanding advertisement I have ever seen would have to be the sobe drink commercial with the dancing lizards. This was the strangest commercial I have ever seen. I was mesmerized by it and had to watch because i had never seen something like that before. Although it told me nothing about the drink itself, the dancing lizards kept me entertained until the commercial ended. Another reason it stuck out in my mind was that towards the end of the commercial a lizard actually eats a fly by grabbing it with its tongue. Along with this, i belive they only showed the actual energy drink a few times in the commercial and there was only a lady dancing next to the lizards. This made me laugh because once again it had absolutely nothing to do with the commercial at all, but it left a lasting imprint in my memory as the strangest commercial i have ever watched.

Journal 1

Recount some of the most memorable television shows, movies, video games, or computer games that you've encountered throughout your years. How did this particular media catch your attention?

Use examples! Have a creative title! Be funny! Add links/photos! I want you to have fun with your journals, and use them as a place to begin sorting out your ideas. Please respond in at least 150 words, and to tag your post as "Journal 1". Remember, this is due before class begins on Friday, August 29. As always, you can email me with any questions.

Welcome

Welcome to our class blog. This, I hope, will be a fun, free space for you to consider new ideas alongside your peers. You will need to create a Google account to participate. If you don't already have one, it's easy to sign up at google.com. Please email me at lcg04c@fsu.edu if you have questions or need help.