Summarizing Paragraph
The mundane aspects of people’s everyday life can tell you a lot about a person. After looking at my daily activities fore seven days I was able to learn a lot about myself and how little actions I rarely even think about have a bigger impact on me then I could realize. For a week straight I looked at little things such as, transportation, technology, food, health, hygiene, boredom, and even sleep. These aspects of my everyday life make up part of my identity that is rarely noticed. I believe that these aspects of everyday life show that I am a healthy person, who is on the go, and relies heavily on technology. Each aspect of my everyday life has a specific picture to display the action, and the picture helps to display how each aspects is personally related to me. The way that I go about each of these mundane aspects is how my character is really revealed. The fact that I walk everywhere, take care of my body, and hygiene show that I am a healthy person, while many of my technologies are portable, show that I am on the go, but still heavily reliant on them. I believe that these aspects of my life can tell you a lot about my culture and what is valued. The culture that I live in places a very high emphasis on healthy habits, and that is why I continually focus on keeping my body healthy in all sorts of forms. The culture that I live in also is very fast paced, and that is why I am constantly on the go. I believe that a lot can be told about a person from their everyday activities.
Day 1: Transportation
Getting from place to place each day is something that I never think twice about I just do it. For me walking to class has just become part of my school process, waking up earlier to walk across campus rain or shine is just something that has to be done. I believe that this is almost a taste of an older era, while today most people get around via car or scooter I am still using my two feet. The amount of time that I have to put in to walk all over campus could be used in a more productive way, but the need to get to class overrides everything else. This is time where I almost shut my brain off just let my feet lead me on the walk that I have to do everyday while I just pop my headphones in and enjoy myself. Thinking about it now I ask myself why am I so peaceful on these walks even though I am heading to a class? I believe the answer to this is that with all the work I have to do as a student-athlete I consider these few minutes to be leisure time.
Day 2: Technology
For just about every class the first thing that I do is pull out my lap top. Before college I used to take all my notes on paper, but since I have been here it has become common place to use my computer. I think that this has a lot to do with the fact that just about in every class that allows it everyone uses their computers. I think that this is a product of everyone being so reliant on technology for their everyday tasks. I think that this is actually a strange habit because the computer offers so many more distractions then taking notes by hand. I think that more people need to think about what it would be like to take notes the old fashion way. Would people pay closer attention? Would they be less likely to be distracted with out the allure of the internet? Our modern society puts such high values on technology that people feel obligated to pull out a computer for every class.
Day 3: Food
Eating for me is a very mundane thing, I do it everyday, three times or more. The one thing that I noticed was most of my meals are on the go. Unlike back in the day I do not get a chance to sit down at a table for all of my meals. I believe that this is a product of our culture where everyone is multitasking, on the go, and looking to get things done. Today’s culture does not allow for families to all sit down around a table and eat a nice meal that is prepared at home, it is much more of the grab and go life style. Thinking about my meals it is strange that I rarely eat at a table, most of the food I grab come in some container that is meant for it to be eaten on the go.
Day 4: Health
Everyday after practice I willingly plunge my body in to an ice bath, where the water is normally around 50 degrees and sit in there for 10 minutes. This idea may sound like madness to some people, but to me it is all part of my daily activities to keep my body healthy. People who do not play sports might think this is crazy, but for me and a few teammates its common place. The cold water acts like putting ice on all of the places that ache, which is considerably easier then putting a ton of ice bags on your body. Thinking about this action it is crazy to realize that I willingly get in icy cold water everyday just in hope that I feel refreshed the next day. There has got to be an easier alternative, but until that is found I will keep doing what many other would call crazy.
Day 5: Sleep
My bed serves many purpose for me, its a place to sleep, read, watch TV, do homework, play video games, and more. I don’t think that people for a different era would understand how purposeful a bed is. They would also not understand why I let my bed be so mess. I believe that this is a product of the times and my age. Less and less people are making their beds in the morning, and I think this has to do with our fast paced culture. More people are taking the attitude “why make the bed no one sees it, and I am just going to mess it up again later”. I find it strange that not so long ago there was an importance placed on making the bed every morning. I think that very much do to our fast paced environment people are less worried about what the bed looks like and more worried how it feels, and if they can get a good sleep on it.
Day 6: Hygiene
Brushing my teeth is just something that I do, before I go to bed and right after breakfast. Why is something that I do twice a day never even thought about? Our society places a lot of value on good hygiene, and the importance of dental health. I think that a person from another planet would find it weird that we rub white paste on our teeth everyday. Thinking about it more it becomes odd that we stick a brush that has been sitting out in our mouths trying to make it cleaner. I believe that big companies try to make us think about our hygiene as much as possible knowing that they can capitalize and make money off people. There are so many companies that make tooth brushes and tooth paste and they all want us to think they are going to make our mouths the cleanest just so they can make money.
Day 7: Boredom
I become bored every single day at one point or another, and I handle it in a few different ways. I often get bored in the waiting times between classes and at night when my day is finishing up. I often handle my boredom by playing games on my iPad, I have downloaded close to 10 apps that are just for entertainment if I get bored. I do this because it allows me to do some type of interactive entertainment. Many people from older generations would look at this as a waste of time, for me it is an escape from the boredom. I think that this has a lot to do with our cultures emphasis on instant gratification and how highly we regard technology. These iPad games allow me to be interacting with the screen with the touch of a finger. Is this the best way to escape boredom? Probably not the most productive thing I could be doing when bored, but it defiantly alleviates the boredom.
Digital Media and Everyday Life 