As stated on the class Discussion page, postings are graded for both form (editing) and content, and they are not simple opinion pieces. Postings are the equivalent to in-class essays in a face-to-face class, so they must show your understanding of the reading, your ability to apply the situations to actual experiences described in precise detail, the depth of your thinking and creativity developing an essay about the topic. A typical posting should be 350+ words long and, when appropriate, incorporate documented quotations from the readings.
Likewise, simple "I agree" or high-five ("Good job") responses will earn no points. Responses need to demonstrate your ability to add examples and ideas to the discussion. Ideally, they will introduce new ways of looking at the topic that will allow others to pick up on your examples and expand on their own discussions. A typical response will be 200+ words.
Hellos and "Too Much Stuff"
NOTE: This Discussion Post has TWO PARTS; be sure you do both parts.
First, in a couple of sentences, introduce yourself (you might want to let us know a little bit about your background, your goals, your thoughts (fears?) about Freshman Composition--whatever you feel you want to share).
Second, discuss the following:
VERY IMPORTANT NOTE: This topics require you to get up off of your chair, move somewhere, and actually LOOK. This is not a mental exercise; it is completely about using your eyes, observing, looking very closely, recording (I would use pen and paper to take notes) exactly what you see in precise detail. If this seems like a spin on the Annie Lamott exercise from Lecture 1, well, good; you are paying attention.
Both articles on "Too Much Stuff" have different ideas about what generates the impulse to acquire "stuff." One suggests there is the guilt attached to getting rid of things associated with personal memories. The other looks back to earlier times when it was a necessary survival mechanism which has continued even though it is not generally necessary (and, in fact, it often makes the quality of life worse, not better).
Look at one place in or around your home--your car's trunk, your junk drawer, your garage, your front yard, your bedroom closet, wherever--that is so crammed with unnecessary "stuff" that, for some reason, you just can't part with. Looking very closely, list exactly what all that stuff is (include type, name, brand, color, size, condition--anything that will make that visible to the reader. Make sure it is excessive (try for about 300-500 words of very specific things) so that your reader will shout, "Enough! That is just too much." Open or close your list with a sentence or two explaining why you just can't seem to let all of that stuff go (is it sentimentality? guilt? hoarding instinct? laziness? something else?); maybe you are just a committed "collector" (I can relate; I collect things too :)
Some of you just can't relate to the "Too Much Stuff" topic; you are organizers, de-clutterers, minimalists. That's super. Write, instead, about someone else's clutter, mess, hoard, collection. Look in your sister's closet, your aunt's dining room, your brother-in-law's garage. Start listing!
NOTE: be as exact as you possibly can.
"Several old sweaters" is just dull (and leaves no real impression). Try, instead, "Thirteen ugly Christmas sweaters, which I gathered over the years for an annual ugly Christmas sweater competition, include my 2015 winner--red, green, purple, and pink lightning bolts zapping Santa on top of a roof; the lightning hits him right in the plumber's crack as he is vanishing, head first, down the chimney."
"Stacks of my favorite books" is blah (and leaves no real impression). Try, instead, "My Stephanie Meyers collection, including first editions of Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn, alongside my Veronica Roth books: Divergent, Insurgent, Allegiant, and Free Four.
Special Note about Replies this Week: Some of you may have looked ahead (good), in which case you know we will next be looking at upcycling--a kind of repurposing that turns unwanted junk into useful and/or artistic new things. If you can spot some things in another student's list that you think would be a great candidate for repurposing, point it out and explain briefly how it might be upcycled.