Revised Proposal

The organization Habitat for Humanity would not exist today without volunteers. Volunteers who need a house and also volunteers who just wish to volunteer. In order for Habitat for Humanity to help build you a house, you must volunteer your time not only on your own house but also on the houses of others. This basic foundation of helping others and helping yourself goes to show that volunteering is crucial to the Habitat for Humanity. I will begin my activism in this organization by creating a pamphlet to hand out to students on our classes' public sphere day. Also in April, USI's Habitat for Humanity plans to raise money by sponsoring a 4k race and a car wash in order to help build a house here in Evansville. I not only plan to help build the house, but I also plan on giving my time at the fundraisers the organization is putting on. I must also try and attend every weekly meeting on Wednesday evenings to stay informed and updated on their upcoming events and or fundraisers. It is important that in order to be an activist in any certain organization that you are informed to the best of your knowledge about your specific group.

Comments I Have Made

I have commented on the following blogs:
Mike's Eng 101 Contributions
Service and Activism-Taking Control
Getting Involved Within Your School/Community

Analyzing the blog "Let's Smell Each Other Today"

Every person in our world today had the chance of receiving five senses, but whether or not all five senses function, is based on each individual. Ocean Vice is a blogger who finds the sense of smell very interesting, but also not as important as the other four senses at the same time. He seems to be around the age of 30 and single. He responds to one of his comments that he is alone, but not lonely (Ocean Vice). To me, there was no specific reader, just anyone who finds the sense of smell fascinating, like myself. As I have recently learned in psychology, smell and memory are closely linked. Ocean Vice states in his blog “Let’s Smell Each Other Today” which most people may not realize it, but when they smell something it can remind them of something or someone. He talks about his smells taking him back to his childhood days and memories. The smell of an old perfume takes him back to a specific era of his life when the perfume was used more often (Ocean Vice). He also mentions how society today have taken these smells away from us and our memory by making them in bubble gum, detergents, air fresheners, and toothpaste. When the smells of these memories go into these products and we smell them much more often and at times that are very different from the primary smell, our memory may be erased or altered. He states that the world today is based on visual stimulation, and that between vision, taste, and smell, smell would most likely be the choice of sense to lose. He also states that he believes people can live an ordinary life without their sense of smell, which I believe is a horrible assumption. One example of why smell is so powerful is simply a car problem. You cannot “see” a problem under the hood as you drive, but you can smell it some of the time. The sense of smell is not vital, but also somewhat necessary. Ocean Vice also speaks about how businesses will probably make scents such as a “party” smell and that will allow people to feel like they are at a party in the comfort of their own home or an “outdoors” smell that will allow people to feel like they are outdoors while being indoors. Ocean Vice explains how he believes that what smells good to him are linked to specific memories in which he smelled that specific smell. The message of his blog, “Let’s Smell Each Other Today”, is to explain the psychological effect that smell and memory are linked in a close manner and that he can remember certain moments in time or a whole era of time based on the smell of something or someone. The blog also discusses the society and businesses effect on our sense of smell. Ocean Vice communicated the message of his blog very clearly and was liked by his readers. He completed the relationship between the writer, reader and message in his blog “Let’s Smell Each Other Today”.

The assignment in class was to make a list of issues that interest or concern me personally. This is the list I came up with:

1. Will gas prices rise back up in the summer?

2. How short will my dad get with his spinal stenosis?

3. Why do so many people not recycle?

4. I used to live next to corn fields, but now there is a busy subdivision across the street.

5. My car has over 200,000 miles on it, will it last?

6. Why is laundry so expensive, when all they really supply is power and water?

7. How do I not know my brothers major?

8. How are the Taylor's doing after the loss of Jonnae and her battle of Leukemia?

9. How will Barack do as president?

10. What will he change in America?

11. Will there be another World War, and if so will we win?

Exercise on Page 4

Public Spheres in Evansville:
-USI involvement fair
- sidewalk chalk
- bulletin boards in the UC
- Televisions in UC and other buildings
-bulletin boards in Dorms
-billboards
-signs containing information in the ground
-big windows in UC