Cultural Confusion

After discussing American culture with my classmates, I realized that Americans do not have a culture to call their own. From the Revolutionary War to the present, Americans have valued diversity; therefore, America has transformed from British colonies to a cultural melting pot.  Although there are some classic American icons such as a hot dog or a Chevrolet automobile, there is no right or wrong way that a person can "Americanize" him/herself. People in America have the freedom to express themselves with their religion or hobbies/interests.

Like America, my high school does not have a distinct culture because there are so many different types of people who attend the school. There is so much opportunity for students, and everybody belongs do different clubs or plays different sports. The cliques formed in school make it hard to pinpoint a specific culture type for my school. Furthermore, all high schools have cliques, and people have to find where they belong in the high school society.  

Speaking Un-spoken Languages

This picture was taken in China by my uncle.

People can say so much without even opening their mouths. In class, we discussed gestures that are interpreted differently depending on a person's native country. I had no idea that certain gestures could be offensive to someone in another nation! A couple years ago, my dad took a trip to Egypt. Unlike Americans, Egyptians expect tips for a lot more than just serving food in a restaurant or parking a car in a valet service. Doing a favor for someone (i.e. showing someone where bathroom is or holding a door open) is worthy of gratuity. If a person does not tip, he or she is considered rude or disrespectful. On the other hand, the Chinese are less greedy. In fact, when my dad took a trip to China last year, he said the Chinese were very hospitable. My dad went on the business trip with his brother, an experienced traveller. Since my uncle had been to China multiple times before, he insisted that my dad learn Chinese before going on the trip because the Chinese are honored when someone takes the time to learn their language. When my dad and uncle would go to dinner with the business associates, the associates would wait until the guests ate before they would eat the meals themselves. My dad felt bad because he would wait to eat until the server brought him steamed rice, but the Chinese insisted on waiting! Both of these experiences were culture shock for my dad. After living in America and following American rituals for such a long time, it was a strange adjustment for my dad! My uncle does A LOT of traveling in the Middle East, so I can find out about more cultural differences.

Humanitarian of the Year

The other night, I attended a training for PADS. In the hour that I was there, I learned so much about poverty in my community. When I was given a tour of the HOPE Center facility, I didn't realize that the Journeys program had so much to offer. From showers to psychologists, the people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless can get so much help from this center. Another cool service that the foundation offers is the condos that people can live in so they can learn to get back on their feet. The leader of the tour explained that the poverty rate was increasing while the funding of the Journeys foundation was lower than ever. Luckily, big companies like Starbucks and Red Lobster donate food to Journeys multiple times during the week. I used to donate my old clothes to a veterans foundation, but I am going to start donating my clothes to the HOPE Center.  There is a closet full of clothes that people have donated, but the foundation is always looking for more. The closet had a variety of clothing for people who are businessmen or even babies! There was also a play area for little kids. One thing that the trainer made very clear was that the homeless people that we typically find in the north shore are people that we cannot pick out as homeless. He explained that, like me, most people give homeless people the stereotype of a dirty person who sits on the street with a can begging for money. In Buffalo Grove, you could be standing in line at a Starbucks with a homeless person, and you would never know the person was homeless. I am looking forward to working with people who are in poverty because I have never done volunteer work like this before. I am used to either working with little kids or the elderly. I am glad that I am branching out to help a different group of people.

Without PADS, people would not understand that homeless people are just like you and me. Some people just struggle more than others. PADS teaches us to lend a helping hand to the homeless, or there will be consequences... Watch this video to get an understanding of how not to treat the homeless! http://www.comedycentral.com/videos/index.jhtml?videoId=209909&title=homeless-attack

ComplexALLIEty

In class, we did an activity where everyone had to select groups in which they identify themselves. As a family member, I identified myself as a daughter, sister, niece, cousin, and granddaughter. As a friend, I associated myself with camp and school peers. I am a student, employee, and a volunteer. At first, I thought that being a family member and friend were the things that defined me as a human being. By doing this activity, I realized that so many other aspects have made me the individual I am today. I have been shaped because of my nationality and religion. I've even been shaped by the area that I live in! Sometimes, it is difficult for me to balance all of the roles that I play. Sociologists call this role conflict. The situations can be minor. For example, I need to balance being with my camp friends and my school friends. Some situations, on the contrary, are more difficult to handle. As a student, I have the responsibilities of doing homework, but I need to balance schoolwork with my work schedule. As the amount of roles put on my plate increase, I am able to put life into perspective easier. What is more important? Do I work more hours to make more money, or do I leave work at an earlier time to get homework done? I have experienced role strain as well. This is when the lesson of picking and choosing battles plays a big role in my decision making. Over the summer, I was a camp counselor for thirteen year-old girls. Some of the girls would cause drama in the cabin, and my co-counselors and I had to put the situation into perspective and decide whether it was worth making a big deal over. Another situation where I experience role strain is in school. The academic pressure that school puts on students is absurd! Looking back at previous years in high school, there are classes I know I could have done better in. When I don't meet the expectations of a certain role, I always try harder because I am a very self-driven person who is very competitive. WIth a sociological mindset, I will be able to look at my peers differently because the groups that people belong to shape each individual uniquely.

9 Weeks with Freaks and Geeks

The groups in the T.V. show "Freaks and Geeks" play different roles in the high school. Lindsey, the rebel, is questioning her identity, so she wears her dad's army jacket. This jacket is used to help Lindsey fit in with the burn-outs. She slowly drifts away from her best friend, who is symbolic of the person that Lindsey used to be. The smoking patio is for the people who don't want to be at school, and the "Mathletes" is a group of people who don't seem to fit in with the high school. As a "camp person," I can totally relate to people who are "cliquey." At the beginning of the summer, people from all over the world come to pre-camp not knowing anyone. Some of the staff members had never even been to America before coming to camp! During the week, the staff members are forced to step out of their comfort zones and meet people right away, so they have friends for the summer. Although everyone introduces themselves, cliques begin to form immediately. People who teach the same activity or come from the same country make connections right away and isolate themselves from the rest of the staff. My group of friends consist of people who were campers, like me. We, as the junior counselors, isolated ourselves from the rest of the staff because we were not old enough to make connections with them, and we were too comfortable with ourselves to branch out and develop relationships with the other staff members. Today's society makes it seem like the person who knows the most people will be "on top." People should have many groups of friends, but in my opinion, cliques are acceptable in society because they give people a "niche" of close friends that they can depend on.