Family Story

I don't really have any worth while story telling to do about my family. Both my mother and father were raised in different kinds of ways which I think reflects greatly on who I am. My mom's side is the type of family that sticks by one another no matter what. Even if someone in the family has done something wrong and everyone knows it, they still stick by them. My mom was rasied with the tradition white picket fence and all that sort of stuff. Her father was a businessman and her mother a housewife. Everything was very typical.
My father was raised slightly different. His father worked with cars and his mother held several diferent jobs trying to support the family. My dad and his brothers knew the had better do what was expected of them. My dad would tell stories about if he were to do something wrong that he knew very well he shouldn't have done that my grandmother would make him out to a tree and pull of a small branch or twig and the she'd beat the hell outta him. Granted this may sound extreme but he grew up an a completely different time than that of now. My dad's side was always rough and opposite of my mother's. If someone on my dad's side of the family screwed up they were forced to face it. The rest of the family would cover it up. It was a mistake and they were going to learn from it. My poor grandmother had to raise four boys...boys that were known throughout the small town by nearly everyone. My dad tells stories of running and getting away from the cops only to see them the next for them to ask "okay how did ya get away". It was this small town, old school attitude that isn't present in our society anymore.
Too many family are like my mom's and too few are like my dad's. Yes there were strict punishment but whats the point in a punishment if it doesn't teach a lesson. One time my dad bought a motor cycle which my grandpa didn't approve of so my grandpa took it clear across the county and hid it until my dad hid my grandpa's truck in the same place. That mindset doesn't exist anymore.

Structure W10

In regards to how I plan on constructing my mini-ethnography, I am going to divide it into sections seperated with titles. Some of those times mayt include but are not limited to: Being a Swimmer/Diver, Being a Coach, Being an Aqutics Director, Being a Lifeguard, Being an Official, etc. Obviously you can tell that a theme I am going to use is making my reader feel as though they are in a specific position. The only way to incorporate the many different aspects of the industy as well as my interviews, experiences, and stories is to divide my paper into sections dedicated to certain positions based on the point of veiw of that position.
In regards to starting and ending my paper, I will begin introducing my subculture as well as the way I plan to present it so my reader won't be lost when they begin to read the first subheading. I am not going to write my introduction now because that would be an extreme waste of time...sorry. Same goes for my conclusion. I will tie eveything together just like all conclusions as suppose to do whilemaking some closing remarks on my subculture that will be benifical to the readers further interpretations.
Really I don't plan ahead. This is all subject to change as soon as I sit down to write my paper. Everything depends on the moment I write. Otherwise its too dry and not creative. The information get processed so much that it ends up being further from the truth than if I would have just lied from the beginning. You can tell writers that do too much planning, because their papers are like textbooks and the reader is practically in a coma by the third paragraph. Writing papers inpropto allows the words to convey more feels and emotion that something that has been copied and pasted from a blog month ahead of time.

Glossary

Free, Freestyle-forward stroke alt. arms
Back, Backstroke-backward stroke
Fly, Butterfly-forward stroke arms together
Breast, Breaststroke-stroke where swimmer pulls through water and kicks like a frog
Pike, Tuck, Straight, Free, Twist, Somersault, Dive, Reverse, Inward, Forward...-Diving terms
Stroke- a practicing technique
Drill- a practicing technique
Sculling- a practicing technique
Finger-tip drag- freestyle swim while dragging fingers along the water, practice technique
Chlorine- chemical used to sanatize pools
Kick, Breath, Pull- words usually yelled by caoch at meets to communicate with swimmer in the water
Flip-turn- how the swimmer turns around in the pool the fastest way
Two hand touch- what the swimmer must do on breastroke turns
Starting block- where the swimmer starts the race
Touch pad- touch sensitive pad that records a swimmers time at the end of the race
Diving board

In Class Writing Questions Movie

1. If to redo this research don't think I would change much. The maker of the movie covered a variety of accents and made a valid point. I would do pretty much everything th same. I think the majority of this information is still valid even after 20 plus years. I might put them one member from each group all together and see if they could understand each other. That or just watch as chaos unfolded.
2. I think everything was coveed well. The only things is they did show the extremes of each accent and didn't really prove that not all people from an area talk the same. In order to make it more appealing to an audience I would just updae everything to fit our time period but you can;t blame the maker for that.
3. I don't think you can dismiss someone because of there accent. I think it shows the real person, for who they are.

In Class Writing Questions

1. In the scene of my mini-ethnography, I am right in the middle. I am as involved as it gets. I am an equal within the industry, only separated by experience. When interviewing my informants I am close to them in physical space. The people I am interviewing are good friends that I can converse with closely and off the record without that typical interviewer-interviewee distance. We're not sitting in chairs across from each other, instead we are at a table or on a couch; somewhere casual. My subculture is not one that is extremely formal so it would be out of place for me to expect and conduct an interview as so.
2. There can be much meaning behind recorded words in some subcultures though since I am closely related to the people with whom I am speaking I take their recorded words exactly the way in which they intended them to be taken. It helps to know your informant to understand where he or she is coming from, though this could be considered a fixed position. The could be times when knowing my informant so well inhibits me from actually hearing what they are saying and twisting it to the way I think they mean something, so I think you have to take what they say and keep yourself out of it. Not much of a power difference exists between me and my informants. We're all on a pretty level playing field. Experience is the only thing that separate people in the industry so if there are some power issues they are derived from that.
3. When I listen to my informant I here a lot of joy in their voices. They are talking about something they enjoy doing. Gaps appear when they are trying to word something a certain way, maybe not exactly speaking from the heart and instead trying to make something sound better than it really is. The tone is full of humor usually resulting in reminiscing about old memories and laughing. The emphasis is on the important things in the conversation. the things that make us angry or we feel strongly about. Sometimes the tone or emphasis is placed in order to try to make the other person understand where we're coming from.

Reflecting W9

Reflecting on what I have done so far for this project I feel that hardest thing has been finding the time to do the writing for each little thing. Between other classes and coaching I find it hard to write about something that is so much more interesting to just do. Being at my field site everyday also makes me unwilling to write about it. I live it, I don't necessary want to write about every bit of it. The easiest part has been my access to the field site as well as the people with whom I need to contact considering I work with them on a daily basis. If I had to start over I really wouldn't change much. If anything maybe start preparing a little sooner but that's difficult with a busy schedule being involve in my subculture. In response to the question of whether or not a blog has helped me in this project, I can undoubtedly say no; absolutely not. It's been one of the biggest wastes of time, I'm sorry. I am the type of writer that sits down and writes everything. This step by step stuff doesn't work for me.

In-class Research Questions

1. Anyone who reads my writings will probably be someone within the industry because an outsider wouldn't find my information useful unless trying to enter the subculture. Mostly other coaches, swimmers, official, etc. would turn to my would and find it to be of use because a large amount of information will be presented. Instead of having to go to different journals or websites my mini-ethnography will serve as a "one stop shop" for those individuals wanting information.
2. My reader will probably have general information abut my topic and will be searching for more information. What they are looking for depends on who my reader is. My readers could be anyone from an expert in the field to someone just getting started within the industry. My paper will satisfy their needs in different ways. An expert may learn nothing when a beginner may find every bit of information to be of use.
3. Again it depends on my reader what they already know. If Lee Yarger were to read my paper it would probably be very elementary to him and he would probably find a flaw here or there. It could serve as somewhat of a tool for experts to look at an understand where the industry may be headed in the future with the way I present the information. A reader who is new too the subculture may no absolutely nothing
4. I want my readers to learn how someone from my background and my experiences feel about the subculture and how it is reflected in my eyes. This will allow experts to get an idea of things that may need improvement as well as things that are working well within the industry. For those who aren't as experienced as me, I want to show them a wide range of opportunity that the industry presents, as well as the joy that it can bring to an individual who takes pride and enjoyment in what they do. Also showing how someone in the industry can touch the lives of someone else will be a goal.
5. They should be persuaded fairly easily. My experience within the community will validate my credibility.They would have know reason to discredit any of my writing.
6. My readers will use my writing for as an overview of what the industry is.

W8

The main theme of my paper revolves around how swimming is underestimated and how the aquatic industry is very under appreciated. Talking about the common relationship shared among those in the industry will also be another theme my paper will revolve around. When speaking with members of the community, it is common that they mention someone else within the industry that is well known. Everyone knows everyone within the industry. Its like a distant family.
In regards to if my position within the subculture has changed; the answer is no. I am still as involved as before, but have moved away from the athlete image and more to the coaching/ administration image. Other than that there isn't much more to say in response to your question. I have discussed the themes as well as my position within the community. Other than that there isn't much left to say