In my argument essay I discussed the controversy over the new 23-story high-rise apartment complex that is being built on a neighborhood street in Houston. This new building has made most of the residents in the neighborhood very angry. My essay discusses the positive and negative aspects about the new building, but it also portrays my opinion on the matter as well. I personally believe that there is no need for this monstrosity in the middle of a residential neighborhood. Throughout the essay, I present the audience with good evidence to support my opinion, but I also try and present a fair portrayal of the opposing side of the argument.

I have chosen to use a yard sign as the medium for my argument because I think it will be the most effective source of advertisement. A yard sign will allow all of the residents in the neighborhood to voice their opinions on the issue, and the point will also get across to other people who view the signs from the street. A yard sign would catch the attention of many people outside of the neighborhood who might not be as informed on the issue. It would also be a good souce of advertisement that would attract other residents in the area to voice their opinion on the new high-rise.

On the poster/sign I plan to have an effective image that will attract the reader's attention. I will divide the sign in half and take the before and after approach. On the before side, I will draw the West University neighborhood before the high-rise was built and put emphasis on the happy, sunny, and neighborly side of things. I will use bright colors on te efore side so that it will spark a positive feeling within the audience. One the after side of the sign I will draw the same neighborhood only replacing a few homes with the new Ashby High Rise. This side of the poster will be drawn in darker colors that promote negative feelings within the audience. The high rise will be overlooking all of the surrounding houses and maybe I will draw a member of the neighborhood on the side looking sad and depressed. Since much of my argument in my paper involves the deprivation of sunlight from many houses, I will try and make the houses on the "after" side of the poster look darker. If I use colors like black and grey that should make the audience feel negatively about the new building, which is precisely my intention. Even though my ad has not fully come together yet, I have high hopes that it will be effective. I think that this is the best way to advertise to the people that this issue concerns. It is important to realize that I have a certain audience, and tat not everyone will be as interested in this controversy as others. That being said, I think a yard sign is the perfect way to speak my mind.

Argument Essay Topic

For my final essay, the argument essay, I am planning on writing about a new highrise apartment building that is being built on one of my neighborhood streets in Houston. It is a very controversial building, because most of the neighbors are very angry that there will be a huge tower overshadowing our houses. It will be a good topic for me to research because i want to find out more about the situation and hear other people's opinions.
My interest in the topic is pretty obvious. This new 20 story high rise directly effects me and my family because our house is located a few streets away from the possible building site. I am interested to hear my parent's point of view on it as well as my surrounding neighbors. I hope that they can provide me with enough evidence to support the pros and cons about this new building. I am also interested in finding out more about this building in general, because the idea to build it was pitched after I had already left for college so I am pretty outside the loop on this. It will be good for me to know more about the circumstances and possible outcomes that could effect me when I go back to Houston for the summer.
As far as brevity goes, I think my topic is specific enough to make my paper brief and to-the-point. It inolves one portion of the neighborhood, and therefore it is not as broad of a topic.
This topic will also produce disagreement simply because there are people who feel strongly about not building this new structure, and there are others who feel differently. I am interested to see how much people certain people agree and disagree, and if there is a fight against the contractors who are building the high rise. I think this topic will portray a lot of disagreement which is hy I am looking forward to writing about it.
Although this argument is taking place in Houston, I am hoping that I will be able to gather enough information from my parents and neighbors in oprder to write a sufficient paper. I think the information will be very easy to access via email or telephone. Since they have not actually built the structure, there is nothing to see yet, so I should not be missing out on any picture research. However, I do know of two families already that have differing viewpoints on the subject, and that will give me a good start for the paper.
This topic poses a question that contains two different answers and many possible solutions or alternatives. I intend to have enough information that will equally present two different sides and will provide the reader with a solid argument.
I am looking forward to writing this paper, becasue it will give me a chance to study my community and the people in it. It has been a while since I have been updated on the news from home, so it will be good to be aware of what is going on back in Houston.

Ethnography Essay Topic

For the past couple of days, I have been thinking about different subcultures, and which ones I might take a particular interest in. After brainstorming for what felt like hours, I finally narrowed it down to picking a subculture within the different majors here at TCU. I am currently an education major, but since the first few weeks of school I have been questioning myself a lot. Do I really want to teach? Is this truly my passion in life? When Ms. Patrick assigned this topic for our essay I immediately saw it as an opportunity to explore another type of major and the subculture that it forms. I have narrowed it down to observing either junior class business majors, or radio/TV/film majors. I know that we can only pick one, but I am still having trouble deciding which one will provide me with more information. I am leaning more toward the RTVF majors simply because I have been interested in that field since day one of college. It is very accessible to me since the students meet in the Moudy building right on campus. This building is close to my dorm room so I could easily make it over there to observe and interview students whenever I needed to. Ever since high school I have taken a personal interest in movies and film. I think it is fascinating the way movies are made, and the fact that it takes months (sometimes years) of hard work to complete a film. I also think it is amazing the way something or someone can be captured on film and then edited to look a certain way. I love movies, and always have, so I am truly interested in learning more about this major. Hopefully I will learn more about myself and what I really want to do with my life. Although I have plenty of time, it is important for me to study something that truly interests me and inspires me to work hard in life. I would hope that this is a topic that I can research in the library as well if I get stuck on anything. I would think that there would be plenty of books and sources involving radio, TV, and film, but that is something that worries me a little about my topic. Nonetheless, I am not a member of this subculture so I will be able to write my paper from both ends of the spectrum. I am assuming that this subculture shares the same interests since they are majoring in the same thing, but I have yet to observe them so it is hard to tell for sure. I know that the RTVF majors must have a shared interest in certain objects because film and radio requires a lot of equipment and knowledge of that equipment. I hope this sounds like a good topic, but if it doesn't meet the qualifications then I am willing to change it. I look forward to this paper no matter what topic I use because it gives us an opportunity to broaden our horizons and look past the stereotypes. I look forward to reading and editing my peers papers' as well.

Discovery Essay "Glossing"

Although we have only written two papers in this class, this essay seems to be the hardest for me. However, I am really enjoying writing and reading about technology, becasue it truly is amazing how far we have come. I think that my essay has a recurring theme of the affects of being addicted to the Blackberry. Although I discuss good things and bad things about this phone, all of the points in my paper could somehow be incorporated to addiction. For example, one of the positive affects that I mention in the paper is that people end up working longer hours which earns them higher paychecks. However, this could also be seen as being "addicted" to the Blackberry because people are easily tempted to work on their phone all day if it earns them more money. The theme of family in the second and sixth paragraphs surprised me because I was struggling to find a way to bring my own personal life into my paper. the most high-tech thing I own is an Ipod, so naturally it was hard for me to find a good personal story to add into my essay. I found it kind of ironic that I mention my dad in this discovery essay on technology, becasue he is usually the last person that would come to my mind when I think about technology. I think that this theme of family and my personal experience with the Blackberry needs to be developed a lot more so that the reader will stay interested in my paper. I hope to make the paper more interesting by adding more stories about my dad and his new Blackberry as opposed to statistics and facts. For the most part, I think that my themes fit together pretty nicely. They all have a connection through the Blackberry even though I discuss positive and negative effects of the phone. My main concern about the essay is the organization of it. I do move from personal experience to public information, but I try to transition in a manner that is not confusing for the reader. However, I think that I need to add more personal experience in my essay because it does not balance out as well as I would like. I think adding more personaly exeperience would help the audience understnad my positive and negative points more. It might also give them a more personal feeling about the paper. All in all I think that my paper is good start, but I could definitely clean up my transition sentences a bit. There is room for personal opinions and stories in order to make my paper longer, so hopefully I can take care of that as well. I look forward to editing my paper and putting more of my own thoughts into it.

Researching Experience

As I was researching my topic I found that it was very easy to find information on the Blackberry phone in general. There were plenty of websites that popped up, but it was challenging trying to find sites that discussed the time people spend on Blackberries. There are plenty of people who want to talk about the good aspects of Blackberry phones, but there are not quite as many that want to discuss the pros and cons of being available all the time. I used a variety of words in my search like Blackberry, Blackberry and time consumption, Blackberry cell phones and so on. I am not quite sure if it will be an easy topic to do but I do not want to give up on it. It really does interest me but i'm just worried that I will not gather enough information. I would advise my classmates to make sure that their topic is narrow, but also not too make it too narrow to the point where you can't research it. The internet has a very wide range of sources so whatever your topic may be, it should be very easy to come up with some sort of information. I am really looking forward to finding out more about my topic and question, but it might be a little bit challenging.

Research Essay Topic

The topic I have chosen to research is the original Blackberry phone. There are so many different types of Blackberry phones but I am focusing on the fact that it is an all-access phone. Besides just being a phone, it also provides access to the internet, and email which allows someone to be available at all times of the day. Therefore, my question is: Is it always a good thing to be available at all times? I'm a little concerned about my question being too broad. I figured that in order to narrow it down I would discuss the pros and cons of being available at all hours of the day. I think that narrows my topic down to the right size. Blackberry phones have become very popular over the years so I am confident that I will be able to find a sufficient amount of information on them. I also think that this topic can be debated both ways so it will keep me asking questions. I hope that my research will present more questions as well. This topic is obviously interesting to me and I hope that it would be for other people as well. I think if I found statistics like, how many hours a day someone typically spends on their Blackberry, then maybe it would spark the interest of others.
I have always been the one with the cheapest cell phone which is fine by me. However, that does not mean that I have not always dreamt of having a blackberry. Basically, I really like those phones and I was interested in researching more about it. It is also interesting to me because my dad, who is the most technologically challenged man on Earth, just recently got a Blackberry becasue his job supplied it. He suddenly turned into this whiz at email, cell phones, and sending pictures over the internet since his phone comes with a camera. He is teaching me things about his phone that I neer would ahve known so that is another big reason behind my interest in this topic. I hope that through my research I will be able to find out whether or not people prefer to be available at all times or not. It is not a perfect topic, but it is something to work with. I hope that I will be able to come up with good research that will give me a good paper.

Personal Essay Topic

After thinking long and hard about my topic for this personal essay, I finally decided to write about the mission trips that I have been on for the past four summers. Even though I haven't exactly thought about how I would write this paper, I realized that these were very significant events that took place in my life and with each new summer I find myself wondering the same things. How am I so fortunate in life when there are so many people suffering around the world? Why do we take so many things for granted? How do people survive in these living conditions? How do these people remain so happy all the time? It is questions like these that kept me going back each summer to a new place to try and discover the answers. I have worked on mission trips in New York City, Jamaica, Belize, and Costa Rica. I have returned from all of these places with a new outlook on life and a wonderful feeling of accomplishment. However, when we return from the ten day long trips I find myself disappointed with how little time it takes to become right back where I started. That leads me to ask myself "Why do I conform to the luxuries of my life so quickly after helping people with so little?" That question might not even make sense but it is just another thought that crosses my mind after these life-changing trips that I was fortunate enough to take.
I am really looking forward to writing this personal essay and I hope it will help answer some of these questions that I have left unanswered for so long.

Writerly Roles

My first role as a writer would definitely be a sister. I am extremely close with my sister therefore we talk about everything. However, she lives in Ohio so most of our conversations are on the phone. My sister is actually my half-sister so she is significantly older than I am. Our twelve year age difference makes her my “go-to” girl for any advice that I need. It has been this way for as long as I can remember. When I talk to my sister I definitely use a more informal tone because she knows me well enough to where we do not have to be formal with each other. Email and text messaging are a big part of our communication because it is so fast and easy since we are so far apart. There is more slang in our language and we both talk a bit faster than usual. We discuss social issues that I would not discuss with my grandparents or sometimes even my parents. My sister is my source of advice for everything. There is nothing I cannot talk about with her and I am confident that she will always be there for me. My loving sister makes this next role easy for me to play. I am also an aunt to my sister’s beautiful one-year old girl named Elise. Since my niece doesn’t talk quite yet our conversation is obviously very minimal. However, I wrote her a note for her first birthday that was filled with advice that she can use as she grows up. I used sort of a motherly tone with her, one which would not be used with my friends or teachers. Elise is a different kind of audience member than usual because most of what I tell her she will look up to. Since I am the youngest of three children it will be very nice to be a role model for someone. I have to make careful choices and act responsibly around her so that she can learn from my actions. My actions in front of my niece would be very different than if I were with my school friends.
I also play the wonderful role of being a granddaughter to the only grandmother that I have ever met. Although the rest of my grandparents passed away before I could meet them, it is nice to have such a close relationship with my grandmother. I talk about more important events in my life with her like school, grades, and my plans for the future. I overly use my manners and am very formal when talking with my grandmother. She watches our every move so my discussions and actions are very different with her than they would be with my friends or parents.
My next role is a student in a religion class. I write and speak very carefully in that class because religion is such a sensitive subject for some people. I use a formal tone on the rare occasions that I do speak and take many notes so that I “understand” the material. I also play the role of a student in an Education course which is more relaxing since it is an area of interest to me. I speak more freely in that class, but also tend to pay more attention since it applies to my major. I pick out the notes that are “more important” than others since the material comes more “naturally” to me.
My last role as a writer would definitely be a friend to people all over Texas since all of my friends went to different schools. I use a very relaxed and informal tone with them. Text messaging and emailing is a large part of our communication because we are so far apart from each other. The conversation is very different than if I were talking to my family or my professors. Slang is commonly used and sometimes it is a gossipy conversation. My role as a roommate also ties into my friend role because my roommate and I are very close. We have very intellectual conversations and very pointless conversations too. Text messaging is a good way for us to communicate when we are separated which is very rarely. We are both filled with advice for each other which is very useful in the end.

"I believe that I can learn to write well..."

I believe that I can learn to write well if I practice and out my best effort into wanting to learn more. Writing does not have to be a difficult "task" if you just write off the top of your head. I am slowly finding out that writing can actually be fun if I am not afraid to make mistakes. Even though there are basic "rules" to follow while you write, there is no right and wrong answer. A large part of my difficulty with writing is that I have always been too worried about what grade I would make or what the teacher would think. Those are the factors that I must clear from my head if I want to succeed with my writing. I intend to work hard this semester at my writing because I believe that I could learn to love it. I truly feel so accomplished after writing a paper and usually I am very proud of my work. Now if it wasn't like pulling teeth to get my words out on paper then maybe I would not dread it as much. I hope to learn how to open my mind and write freely, and as soon as I conquer that my papers should look better. I know that it is possible for me to write a great paper because I love to talk and be social with other people. I feel that this characteristic proves that I have a lot to say which I could easily add to my writing. I am so excited about this English class this semester because I truthfully feel that I am going to learn a lot and come out being a better writer. I look forward to learning more about writing and myself as I apply my social skills to my writings.

Introduction

Dear Ms. Patrick,
I figured I would start off with the basics and let you know that I grew up in Houston, Texas. I have lived in Houston all my life so moving to Ft. Worth for school is quite a change for me. I absolutely love Ft. Worth so my parents might lose me to this city. I am a freshman at TCU and I am currently majoring in Early Childhood Education. Children have been my passion and I have always loved working with kids. My mom is a pre-school teacher and for as long as I can remember I have been going to her classroom to help out with her kids. However, as much as I love kids I also enjoy writing as well. That is why I was excited about getting into this English class because I was hoping it would improve my writing and allow me to figure out if I might want to consider English as a major. I really enjoy writing personal essays where I can use examples from my own life in order to tell a story or make a point. I am not a huge fan of writing research papers or reports. I get very overwhelmed and stressed out when I have to write papers like that. Although writing can be very difficult for me at times it is very important in everyday life. Writing allows you to express yourself and discuss matters that you might not feel comfortable talking about in person. I enjoy writing when I am not under pressure and when I can just write in my own way. I lose my focus very easily which makes it very frustrating to write sometimes. I must be in a quiet room where there are very few distractions in order for me to complete a paper. Of course there are always the occasional writer's blocks that I get as well which are equally as frustrating, especially when I have an assignment due. The person who has the biggest influence on my writing is probably my older sister who majored in English in college. She is always the first person I turn to when I was stuck on a paper. She has helped me throughout high school with my papers and she has the best advice for me. I hope that I can greatly improve my writing this semester and that the words in my papers will flow smoothly. I have always seemed to have a problem with transitions in my papers so I hope that I can improve that aspect of my writing as well. I am really looking forward to this semester in English because I hope that I can build up my confidence in writing papers and maybe, just maybe become a better writer after taking this course. I am really looking forward to your class Ms. Patrick and I hope that you are able to enjoy our class as well.
I also have read and agree to the terms in the course syllabus and I am completely willing to abide by these terms for the entire semester.