Tuesday, December 22, 2009

It's a wonderful lunch

Yesterday, my boss took the departement out to lunch at Aperitivo Bistro in Downtown Schenectady. What a treat!

We all preordered. I got the Grilled Cheese Panino with soup. Which humored my co-worker: "You go out to a nice place and order a grilled cheese? When my daughter was younger, it didn't matter where we went to eat; she always ordered a grilled cheese."

But this isn't the same grilled cheese that you make at home with two pieces of Wonder bread, some butter and a slice or two of American Cheese. This was a grilled bacon, tomato, mozzerlla, and provolone panino- Sue.


[Thanks for the photo Donna]

The soup made the meal even more grown up looking and tasting. It was a "tomato something" soup. And, several of my co-workers commented on how good it looked.

More important than my choice of lunch, or the appearance or taste of the food, was the company. I work with a very fun group of people who can always make me laugh no matter how messed up things are. Sharing this special holiday meal was such a treat. We got to get away from the office and relax after a long and trying semester.Some of our department are new to the College and have brought new ways of thinking and ideas. More than that, they have brought ambition and drive to make the College a better place for the students. I guess that's what makes our division so special-- our connections with the students and the importance of these students to each of our staff member's work.

 Thanks, Martha, for the wonderful holiday meal. It was nice to sit down with our work family and share the holiday spirit.


Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Why I write this blog

Being a blogger involves more than just engaging in a hobby; it takes real commitment. Blogging requires discipline, application, and professionalism. When I write for my blog, I am showing my literacy skills in both computers and writing. Blog writing incorporates grammar, syntax, and most importantly personal voice.

While work-shopping my blog posts at the College of Saint Rose, I received a lot of praise for my style and content. My fellow bloggers commented on my control over personal disclosure.

Unlike the “Web’s original oversharing champion” (Rosenberg 44), Justin Hall who first showed us the capabilities of the blogosphere by publishing blog posts thick with personal information and even naked pictures of himself, I am able to draw a line between the private and public self.

In the blogosphere, there are many types of bloggers and even more kinds of blogs. The mission of my blog is to be informative on some level, yes. But, I also want to build up the idea of community which makes Schenectady Community College so great.

The best way to build on my mission, thus my blog, is to share parts of me that make people interested and witnesses to my character.

Through my blog posts I have hyped up many of the campus events. At times, I feel like an SCCC cheerleader.

And maybe I am.

I think this college is a great way to get you started in life, develop professional skills, and give yourself to something bigger while still keeping the main focus on the self.

I believe that my blog shows and tells my own personal standpoint and faith in the College’s mission to build-up and mold successful students. My posts are appropriate because they show students how to be successful despite many of the College’s flaws and faults, such as parking.

My Live blog post was one of my most interesting posts because it gives readers a true picture of the campus atmosphere and chemistry. I hope to do this type of blog post again soon at another event.

The trouble with this type of post is that you can easily miss something while you are writing/ reporting on something else. Live blogs must be written from an observer’s point of view. One cannot expect to engage with students and faculty while writing a live blog post. Choosing an event or nonevent, to live blog about is crucial to a blogger’s agenda and writing capabilities.

However, one must always remember: blogs are published, therefore, anyone wishes to read and have access to your blog may in fact have access. Not all people will appreciate what you write, but writing to evoke emotions is what makes a blog so great and interests readers making them want to return to your blog and read more.

If I were to give my blog a grade in comparison to other blogs I have read, I would probably give it a B.

I believe that my personal on the blog is well developed; the content is appropriate and usually interesting; and the blogging conventions such as consistency and style are executed pretty well.

But, I am struggling with other aspects of the blog. First and probably my most obvious and common to all bloggers is my grammar. It is very easy to have typos when there’s no spell check feature. Secondly, it is difficult to go back and edit previous posts when you have to continue to publish each day. The frequency of blog posts is my third struggle. I made a commitment to publish daily on this blog, and I will often go several days without posting anything.

Recently, I published a blog post that said that I would be featuring other blogger’s posts while I was off being busy finishing up my semester at St. Rose. However, I was obviously too busy to even follow through with this promise I made to my readers. Very bad business. But, since I don’t really have a following of readers, YET, I can get away with this.

However, it’s a blogging “no, no”.

In reading other blogs, I noticed that I am more interested in the blogs that post a lot of content daily. I, as do many other blog readers, get bored easily.

We want fresh news and stories.

We want to go to a blog daily, or several times a week, and be presented with new information.

And, it can’t always be the same story.

We’ve got to change it up a bit. (Thanks Nester for the list of types of blog posts and prompts to get the ideas flowing. I have no excuse not to have something new to write about each day). Now, just because we bloggers change it up a bit doesn’t mean that we don’t repeat kinds of blog posts regularly. For example, link round-ups are great Monday-morning-get-your-week-started kinds of posts. They will never go out of style (at least I don’t think that they will).

Overall, I think that my blog is a pretty good read. My goal, now that I have some content, style, and foundation in blogging, is to accumulate more readers.

What’s the point in writing for an audience if your audience doesn’t even know you exist?

Happy Birthday!

Yesterday was my birthday. Another year older and a little bit wiser. But, what really enticed me to write about this was when I read all of the messages on my facebook wall. Family, friends (both old and new), classmates, and co-workers embraced me with birthday wishes.

And, to be honest, reading all of those messages got me thinking about the many people who have somehow and in some way touched me life; it felt good.

However, these messages also made me feel a little guilty; I don't usually post happy birthday wishes on facebook, but now that I know how good it came make someone feel, I will start.

I loved hearing from those people I hadn't spoken to in a long time. It took me back to my younger years when I actually had time to chat and socialize.

I loved that everyone showed me so much love on my day and took time out of theirs just to send me a short message wishing me a happy birthday.

Thanks.

ChrismaHannaKwanzaka?

SAB is planning an event for Thursday to celebrate the holidays. We are having our final planning meeting today at 11:30 in Elston 334. Come and help us put the finishing touches on the event. We hope to see you there!

Monday, December 14, 2009

Culinary caught in the fire: Link round-up

So, this fellow blogger is a little surprised, to say the least, that Schenectady County Community College is rated one of the nation's top culinary schools, "Not the CIA. Not the French Culinary Institute. Schenectady County Community College". He buddy, don't knock it till you've tried it. If you look a little deeper into the history of Schenectady, you might find out how significant we really are. Wait. That's won't be necessary because you've already been told.

Hey, recognize this guy? Yeah, that's Max Mackissock, The Denver Post calls him one of Denvers rising star chefs. Guess where he went to school? I'll give you a little hint. It starts with an "S" and ends with a "CCC". Yep. You've guessed it. SCCC

The business and finance blog has also recognized SCCC's Culinary Arts Program, specifically, our Culinary Boot Camp. This blogger had done a fine job of including some info on Schenectady's rich history, the College's degrees and program information, and even the location of our nearest airport.

This boot camp program is making a lot of noise. It is also being covered on the Steve Barns' Times Union blog. The comments are hilarious.

Let's not forget our own Chris Tanner who breaks the program down. Letting you know just what to expect when you sign up for this new and exciting program.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Even the Bus can't make it to school today.


This photo was taken from the second floor window of SCCC looking out onto Washington Ave. This bus's back end must have slid over the sidewalk into those bushes behind it. Perhaps it would have been safer to stay home today.

I wonder if the parking lot has been plowed yet?

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

While I'm out, you can explore the world of blogs

As my semester at St. Rose is coming to an end, I will be overly busy this week and next. Be prepared to hear less from me for a least a little while. I'll be back in full swing around December 15. Since I will be so busy, and I don't want you to miss me too much, I'll be highlighting other local blogs that you can read while I am tirelessly working at writing papers.

Today's blog comes from the Times Union Schenectady Blog.

This post is all about a first time experience at the Schenectady Holiday Parade. It's full of pictures and a first hand account of the event. After reading this, if you haven't seen the parade before, you won't want to miss it next year. I hope you enjoy!