A Reflection by Sarah Mahl
In the scary time we live in now, it can seem impossible to escape the constantly developing news on COVID-19 and the pandemic encompassing the world. It’s hard enough to cope with this, but as a college student, it feels as if my entire life has been uprooted, not to mention the unpredictable future we all face. I do have my online classes to keep me busy, as all of my peers do as well, but many of us face unemployment as a result of the pandemic. Plus, because of our government mandated social isolation, we’ve all lost some form of human contact. This has left most of us with more free time, especially since our spring break was extended by a week. Many are taking the opportunity to read, watch movies, play video games—whatever is relaxing and enjoyable. There’s also the recent trend in bread baking. With this much free time, I’ve been spending a lot of time on the Internet, and I’ve noticed a lot of people giving advice on how to stay productive while isolated at home. In conversations with friends, I’ve also noticed how “productivity” is being used to measure how meaningful a day was spent, and their attitude about their day would usually be negative if they weren’t “productive” at all. The negative affects of this productivity, while seemingly beneficial, could be interesting to explore. Maybe it’s a product of our society and the pressure we face to use as much of our time as possible to work—whether we’re working on improving ourselves, starting that project we’ve been meaning to for months, or trying to make some extra money—but this pressure has made me feel as if I’m doing something wrong if I’m not completing these activities. It’s very stressful to think about, especially now. Of course, for those who are fortunate enough to be able to work from home, being productive is important because they still have to work, and still have to “go” to work, even though it’s from home. It can also help with our schoolwork, since it can be easy to get distracted at home with our families. Students are around the country are facing this reality, and when we don’t have work or schoolwork to do, there is a tangible pressure to be productive, to make sure that we don’t waste our time. We have to be “productive” to feel like we’re contributing to society, so that, eventually, we can be successful. There’s also a pressure to commodify our time for profit, which causes us to measure our time based on how much money we are making, such that if we aren’t making any, we are wasting time. When we’re not faced with a global pandemic, this pressure isn’t great for our mental wellbeing, and now that we are all stuck at home, the pressure is even greater, and yet, we should be allowed to take a break every so often, especially now. This pressure to be productive is only adding to the stress of the pandemic. Our definition of “productive” could be reframed to include the activities we complete to keep ourselves alive, such as sleeping, eating, and drinking water. Someone’s definition of productive could also involve hobbies, such as painting. It may seem arbitrary, but something as simple as a check list can help someone’s feel a little more structured and as if an effort has been made to participate in the simplest actions of self care. It’s difficult to become accepting with doing nothing, and with just existing, but I believe that we need it more than ever right now. Even so, it should be ok to not be “productive” all the time, or to consider yourself as being productive. The pandemic shouldn’t be seen as an opportunity for success; instead, we should take the time to breathe, slow down, and cope with our current reality. Even though we do have schoolwork right now, we are not obligated to work according to the expectations that are set when we are on campus. At least, we shouldn’t be. It’s ok to not be productive, it’s ok to do absolutely nothing, and it’s important to remind ourselves of that. I know that I need to. For more thoughts on the topic, there’s a fantastic article from the New York Times by Taylor Lorenz titled “Stop Trying to be Productive” as well as an article from Refinery29 titled “No, You Don’t Need To Use Isolation To Write A Novel” by Vicky Spratt that elaborate more on the pressure to be productive and how the Internet has impacted our lives during the pandemic.
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By Elena Selthun So, if you’re stuck at home and you have a dog, or know someone with a dog...or just want to make really unique cookies, I highly recommend trying your hand at making homemade dog treats. Not only does it make you feel more like a functioning human to create something from scratch, it’s also immensely satisfying to bring simple joy to your dog’s life, and as someone with a weirdly picky husky puppy, I can guarantee that these treats will do that. There are lots of easy dog treat recipes available, but I used this recipe from Damn Delicious: https://damndelicious.net/2015/01/07/homemade-peanut-butter-dog-treats/ It’s a pretty straightforward recipe, and includes lots of beautiful pictures of the process. Fair warning, the process was slightly less beautiful for me, but the result was worth it. (Note: These biscuits are technically perfectly edible for humans, and I did try them, and my conclusion is that they’re just okay. They taste exactly like how dog treats should probably taste to people, so I guess that’s a success.) If you do decide to try making these dog treats, hopefully my experience can prove helpful to you! Before even starting the recipe, I recommend having a dog cheerleader at the ready. My two-ish year old husky Freya loves to watch people cook or bake (and she’s surprisingly polite in the kitchen). However, when trying to get her opinion on which cookie cutter she preferred, she was not very helpful. These treats use eggs, pumpkin, peanut butter, and A Lot Of Flour. Freya loves peanut butter more than she loves us, pretty sure. You can add other things to this dough or substitute pumpkin with banana if you want. The goal of this experiment was to 1) escape existential dread and 2) make treats that actually fit in her Kong toy (her current treats absolutely do not) so I made a little stencil of a dog bone and cut out the treats from the dough using a small knife with the stencil as a guide. Then began the adventure of actually making the dough from scratch. This recipe calls for a stand mixer (which I don’t have) with a paddle attachment (nope). I decided to use an electric hand mixer. If you’re in a similar predicament, I will say it’s possible to do this, but if you have a stand mixer...do yourself a solid and just do that. This is biscuit dough so it’s very dry, and I recommend adding the flour only a little bit at a time and making it with 1/2 cup less flour or very carefully adding a bit of water to your dough as you’re kneading it out. In the end, the semi-harrowing process was worth it – this recipe makes tons of treats, and although it says to make them ¼ inch thick, I found you can adjust that depending on your pup’s preference. You can also decide how crunchy you want them to be based on bake time (the longer they’re in the oven, the more satisfying the crunch). I cooked them until they were golden brown, not a big change in color, but noticeably flaky. Once they were out, they had to cool for a while, but someone was very excited to try them. Thankfully, the treats were a success with Freya and her dog friends, who thankfully do not have to stay six feet apart (I don’t think they could handle that!) unlike us humans. Baking is something a lot of people have turned to in this increasingly surreal time, and I think that’s because it’s both creative and hopefully rewarding to make something from pretty much nothing! Dog treats are especially rewarding because, let’s be honest, even if you mess it up a little bit, your dog will probably still love it. Especially if you use them as inspiration! By Sabrina Klindworth Since being home and starting classes online, I’ve found it hard to tear my eyes away from a screen. From playing apps on my phone or checking social media, then having classes and homework online, to watching Netflix on my TV, phone, or laptop later that day, I can’t seem to escape a screen. I’ve also noticed a spike in the amount of headaches I’ve been getting, and I suspected the two were connected but I had no idea all the other effects blue light can have. According to Pixel Eyewear, blue light can lead to headaches but it mainly affects your eyes, causing them to become dry or strained and causes blurry vision. I also learned that blue light can also lead to an inability to focus as well as disrupt sleep (Pixel Eyewear). So not only was my increased usage of tech giving me headaches but it was also the cause of my inability to focus! I also found that blue light can actually be helpful, in moderation. According to All About Vision, blue light can help improve memory and cognitive function, boost your alertness, and lift your mood. The issue is that our eyes aren’t good at blocking blue light and that our devices emit significantly more than the amount of blue light the sun produces (All About Vision). There are some simple ways to help reduce the amount of strain on your eyes, if you’re also feeling the effects of blue light like me. One way is to get blue light glasses, which help filter the amount of blue light that reaches your eye to reduce strain. These can start off cheap and can get more expensive, just make sure that you’re buying glasses from a reputable company so you don’t get scammed. If you’re more on the frugal side like me, there are a lot of other ways to reduce your blue light exposure without spending money. One way is utilizing the blue light filter on your phone or laptop or lowering the brightness of your screen. Other ways include limiting the amount of time on your phone and doing other activities instead. Taking a walk is one of my favorite things to do in quarantine so far and turns out it’s a great way to get the right amount of blue light. I’m able to stay off my phone, get some fresh air, stretch my muscles, and absorb natural blue light from the sun, leading to a mood boosting and more focused mindset once I get back home. If you don’t want to leave the house rocking sweatpants and a hoodie, take some time to play with your pet. I like petting with my cat and telling him about all the things I find stressful about being a human, just so that he knows what he isn’t missing out on. You can also spread the love with your family and chat with them about how their day is going or plan to spend some quality family time together without electronics, such as working on a puzzle or playing board games. The one strategy I’ve personally been putting off has been taking the time to read a book, maybe one you’ve been wanting to read or re-read a childhood favorite. So if one day you get really bored of being on a screen or start to feel the effects of blue light, take a chance and open that book or take a walk. You’re doing it for your health. If you want to learn more you can find the Pixel Eyewear article here and the All About Vision article here. Ever wanted to get to know our consultants and OAs? Learn more about the writing process? Have your work be read out aloud? Find new ways to interact with the Writing Center?
Then we would like to welcome to a very exciting piece of news we here at the Writing Center would like to share with you! Introducing our very first… (Drumroll please!) Writing Center podcast, Hoo's at the Writing Center! This wonderful project has been in the process of development for a couple of months but now makes its grand debut to the public eye. This podcast was established by Karissa Lopez, Elena Selthun, Sarah Shaffer, and Kimberly Le. We are four first-year consultants at the Writing Center who wanted to create an accessible and exciting medium to interact with clients and all listeners alike! Our current "Pilot" episode can be found at https://anchor.fm/su-writing-center. It is short, but we plan for future episodes to be longer, so stay tuned! This project was designed as a way to extend the Writing Center's dedication to a peer-to-peer environment during our consultations and allowing a new platform for clients and listeners to learn about certain topics, about the space, and about us. More importantly, it is meant so that you, the listener, are able to interact with us on a different level. We want our episodes to be what you want to hear, so long as it's related to writing in some capacity. Future episode ideas include: interviews, book reviews, opportunities for stories to be read out loud, writing-related topics, and more! We cannot stress how exhilarating and nerve-wracking this is for all of us, which is why we stress the collaborative aspect of this project continuously. We are always open to feedback that will help us grow and learn on how we can better reach the community. Episodes are expected to be published every other Tuesday! There may be delay in some publications due to lack of free time, editing issues, or problems with software and other technical issues. We strive to post these episodes in a timely manner so that you the audience can start off your week with an exciting new topic or interview or whatever we have in store! If you want to contact us about ideas or any of our previous episodes, feel free to shoot us an email at [email protected] and ask away! We are so stoked to be going forward with this project and look forward to hearing from all of you soon! With Joy, Hoo's At The Writing Center Podcast By Sabrina Klindworth
Not feeling inspired to write that essay sitting at home or not sure where to even start on your paper? Try starting with your prompt! I like to start by looking at my prompt and getting a clear idea of what the paper is about and if there is any particular information I need to include. I find that prompts are especially useful when working with a new professor as no two professors have the same expectations (extra-specially for the first paper of the new quarter). It also helps make sure that you don’t forget any major parts of your paper and lose points just because you missed a part of the prompt. This blog post will walk you through my thought process when I decode a prompt. To start talking about my process, I chose a prompt from an old class I took, which will be interwoven through this post. Assignment 2: Mini-genre analysis So far, we’ve read a range of “texts” that take the intricacies of urban space as their focus. And, as we’ve discussed in class, each of these texts operates within its own generic parameters. This assignment asks you to start identifying the conventions and expectations of a particular genre by analyzing one of our course texts. Identifying specific genre conventions and their rhetorical effects will not only further develop your analysis of the cultural products we consume on a daily basis, but will also further develop your genre awareness in order to make effective writing choices. Based on the information in this first paragraph, I now know that I need to use at least one source to identify the conventions and expectations of that genre. One way to do this is to look at rhetorical effects and genre specific conventions. This last point could be a great starting point for your paper as it gives concrete examples of information to include in your paper. Your Task: This assignment asks you to conduct a genre analysis of one of our course readings. Once you select a course text, identify the genre(s) you see it working within and conduct an analysis by describing the genre’s setting, subject matter, participants and purpose. Be sure to refer to your selected text for evidence to support your claims. Use the questions below to guide your analysis: In the task section, a lot more information is given that can easily be overwhelming. However, since I read the first paragraph I’m able to build on the information I already have. I learned that the genre’s setting, subject matter, participants, and purpose also need to be mentioned in my paper. Immediately, I think of this information as background on the source and genre I have chosen so I would group all this information in a paragraph following the introduction before getting into the genre specifics. The task section also confirmed my suspicion that I would need to cite my source. Generally I’ve found that professors want you to cite your sources even if you are using a single source from class. If your professor doesn’t mention citations or a specific citation style, that would be a good question to bring up either in class, after class, or during office hours. Questions to address:
The next section detailing questions to be addressed is an extra helpful section, especially if you get stuck and need something else to write about to reach page count. Many of the questions are about the genre specifics which was already something we were planning to write about, however questions about the productivity of the genre or what assumptions or beliefs show through are new things to add to the list of information included in the paper. My professor for this class also had a list for formatting requirements that I didn’t attach here, however formatting requirements are super handy to have as it includes information about what citation style and font your professor wants as well as the page requirements. Writer’s Memo:
This is an extra requirement that my teacher added after the paper itself. At first I wasn’t sure what a writer’s memo was, but after reading the requirements I determined that it was just a fancy way of saying a reflection. I would write my reflection after writing my paper so I could reflect on my progress and challenges with that aspect while also including any challenges or growth from in class. At the end of the prompt, some teachers may attach a rubric so that you know how your paper will be assessed. My professor didn’t attach an assessment for this project but I don’t typically look at those. By focusing on the aspects of the prompt, I’ve been able to do well on my papers despite not looking at what could possibly get me an A. I find the assessment tends to confuse me and build anxiety rather than helping me be productive in starting my paper. If you prefer to know how you are being assessed and find a rubric helpful, you can always ask your professor if they don't include the assessment as part of the prompt. Now that I’ve finished going through my prompt, I would pick my genre and source before starting to write out my paper. I don’t use an outline, but if that’s helpful for you, don’t forget that step! Have questions about the prompt? Ask those questions in class! I would typically ask the questions I brought up earlier during class so that my peers can also hear the answers in case they have the same questions. And if I think of questions while I’m working and can’t find the answer from re-reading the prompt, texting a friend from class can be a great way to get an answer or if your professor is good at answering emails (mine usually aren’t) sending them an email with your questions is another great way. It’s important to ask any questions you have, even if you think your question is dumb, it’s always better than assuming what your professor wants and getting it wrong. Now that you know my process for decoding a prompt, it’s time to start decoding yours. Happy writing! by Ali Shaw I think the word "unprecedented" has gotten more air-time over the past three weeks than it ever could have imagined. Without the past to guide us in how to react to the circumstances that COVID-19 has brought about, I, like many others, am turning to comforting activities to pass the time between classes, daily walks, and naps. For me, that means reigniting my love of baking! When I was twelve I "interned" at a local bakery in Portland: St. Cupcake. Seeing that I was twelve and, ya know, not legally allowed to work yet, I'm pretty sure I wasn't much more than a volunteer in the kitchen, but you'd better believe that I proudly touted my intern status to anyone that asked. As an awkward kid with few social skills to speak of, watching endless hours of Food Network's Cupcake Wars and the TLC-smash-hit Carlo's Bakery while poring over cookbooks and decorating manuals took up much of my middle school free time. Though I claimed that my passion was entirely rooted in making sweet treats for my loved ones, I will admit that a huge part of it was (and still is) my insatiable sweet tooth. At St. Cupcake I learned from many a Portland confectionary professional while shocking them all when I'd casually mention that no, I was not a young twenty-something peer, but in fact, was going into the eighth grade. Alarming for some and amusing for others, I walked away from my three-week stint as a baker knowing that as much as I loved cupcakes, the sheer amount of dishwashing required to be a professional baker was enough to deter me from pursuing culinary school as my next steps. However, when Colorado's "Stay at Home" ordinance was announced last week, I looked around my partner's house and decided that there really wasn't anything more comforting that I could provide to her and her family than some warm homemade treats. I'm a firm believer that carbs help any situation, so the first stop of the Baking Obsession Reunion Tour brought me to shoot my shot at the world of bread making. Denver, Colorado, nicknamed the Mile High City for its 5,000 ft above sea level elevation, may not have been the best choice to dive headfirst into the whiles of highly altitude sensitive yeasted doughs, but no matter: it's not like I had anything better to do over Spring Break! My first loaf was a classic French bread recipe courtesy of a class my partner's mom took eleven years ago. Most of us are our own worst critic and that's usually hugely true for myself in particular, but I must say, for a first attempt at a complex, seven and a half hour process: I think I did pretty alright! Next up on my baking journey, I'm upping the complexity (might end up being a big mistake) and trying out Bon Appetit's Best Bread Recipe with the help of my personal hero: Claire Saffitz. Currently, my first 'Poolish' is fermenting upstairs on our kitchen counter, and with any luck, we will have bread by Wednesday.
Though this time is scary and overflowing with unknowns, I'm trying to hang onto the light and the gifts that our isolation is bringing. For me: that's sharing bread with my Colorado family here, and taking lots of time to watch as many Netflix documentaries and Tik Toks as I want: sans self-criticism. We might be telling ourselves that "Now is the time to be our most productive! We have all the time in the world!", but, to me, that doesn't seem entirely fair. Of course, the extra free time is nice, but I do not see how holding ourselves to an idealized idea of what we could do with our time in quarantine is going to make this time any less trying. We are living through unprecedented times (see, there's that word again!) and with that, we must give ourselves grace to be overwhelmed, to be sad, disappointed, and lonely. With those feelings comes space to find the joy that certainly does exist within the walls of our homes, or even, our ovens. |
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January 2024
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