Friend: What’s dazzing?

Me: Just chilling!

Friend: Wanna do something?

Me: Ye

Friend: What time?

Me: Not sure, I’ll text in a bit : )

—

Me: What shall we do?

Friend: Park?

Me: Sounds good to me

Friend: Wanna walk up?

Me: ye

—

Friend: lets get a drink

Me: Yeah, better

Video (1)

kind words from friends

IMG_0036-1bhtwu0 (2)

MyTunes

Room view

A few of my favourite things

Father’s artwork

Friends

Typewriter

Ping-pong convos

John Cage’s piece 4’33, although completely silent, spoke volumes. Composed to highlight the sounds of our environment, it asserted its own presence while the growing tension in the audience became palpable. In our second ‘lectorial’, we were given a chance to appreciate how the audience might have felt as we too sat in silence. The room was only silent for about 30 seconds, but as time elapsed I became hyper-aware of my surroundings. Cage described his work as a reflection on ‘Zen Buddhism’, which he studied in the late 1940s, yet it seemed to have an adverse effect upon me, for I became increasingly apprehensive as the silence continued.

I did, however, notice some themes within this space. As one individual coughed, another would, and so began a domino effect. I didn’t think much of this during the ‘lectorial’; however, on reflection I realised how innately human this was. No one wanted to break the silence, so people sat motionless, stifling any sound. Yet as one person coughed or another moved, the feeling of tension eased slightly. Once silence was restored, so too was the apprehension, causing an ebb and flow of comfort and discomfort: a very novice feeling in a world where silence is a rarity.

To notice or to not notice

Media by its very definition requires people to notice it; if not, it becomes more-or-less redundant. It is, however, something that passes us by, perhaps because its not targeted to us or maybe its lost amongst the plethora of things we try an absorb daily. Social Media is something that has become synonymous with the Y and Z generations; however, our cognisance still seems limited as we scroll mindlessly through feeds. I personally use social media as a platform to communicate with friends and family and to try to stay abreast of new music and, rather shamefully, the lives of celebrities, but even now as I talk of such things I cannot recall a significant post or conversation I’ve had in recent times. So much for noticing. Our ‘lectorial task’ of active noticing was an odd yet insightful one, I had never considered noticing as something we must actively engage in, always assuming it was an integrated part of our cognitive make-up. Yet, as I glanced up at the buildings on Swanston Street, I saw things I’d vaguely recognised before but never, for a lack of better word, noticed. One billboard in particular caught my attention (see below): a sunglasses advertisement that bared some resemblance to the ‘eye’s of Dr. T.J Eckleburg’ in the ‘Valley of Ashes’ from F Scott Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby. Intentionally or not, the strange similarity prompted some ideas about media, much like the Eckleburg spectacles, Media has become omnipresent in our daily lives.

some things I…Noticed

The ‘Eyes of Eckleburg’

Fashion n’ Logos

Graffiti, street art

News – similar to London Underground symbol

am I…

a) self-doubting or self-assured?

b) brave or coward?

c) outspoken or shy?

d) all of the above? ✓

This may be harder than initially thought.

The idea of a self portrait has prompted some uneasy questions and has left me perhaps more existential then I was on March the 1st. Some research left me inundated with different understandings and concepts of a ‘self portrait’ from the works of Vincent Van Gogh to the ‘True Hollywood Story of Lindsey Lohan’. Drowning in what seemed an ocean of interpretations I figured this might be something, for a change, not found beginning with ‘www.’, forcing me to look at my surroundings, or perhaps what I choose to surround myself with.

Some new questions…

What do my family and friends think of me?

What causes me anxiety and what relaxes me?

Where/when am I most comfortable?

What are my likes/hobbies?

Hopefully I’ll have better luck answering these questions in the assignment, without another existential crisis.

What do I want to gain from this course? 

Glad you asked.

– To understand the world of media and find my niche within it.

– Comprehend the relationship between pop-culture and media.

– Create a network whilst studying to further myself and others careers post university.

– Become more ‘tech savvy’ to help in all areas of media.

– To Gain ‘hands-on’ experience outside RMIT to facilitate further understanding of post-uni life.

– Understand and appreciate the effect Media has on different people and cultures around the world.

– Format and express my idea’s concisely and lucidly.

– Learn how to engage an audience effectively.

– To be more confident and brave when expressing my opinions.

– Understand different markets.

Unsure what to expect coming into my first Media ‘Lectorial’ today, I found I thoroughly enjoyed it. Unlike other lectures I have experienced it was informative but not overwhelming, with the opportunity to clarify and discuss certain points during the session and feeling comfortable doing so.

The reading ‘Hyper and Deep Attention: The Generational Divide in Cognitive Modes’ defined the difference of Deep and Hyper Attention, and subtly helped categorise ourselves with either cognitive mode. The general consensus of the class seemed to fall with ‘Hyper Attention’, certainly I did. Although I had finished the reading in the allotted time I found myself having to re-read points of the article as my mind had wondered off into different tangents, something synonymous with Hyper Attention.

Although I struggle to focus on one particular task, writing is something that takes my full attention as it is one of my passions. I have always enjoyed writing, both as a cathartic release and for its honesty. It is far easier, I find, to express my opinion candidly and eloquently in text rather than vocally, which sums up my strengths and weaknesses pretty aptly. I struggle with public speaking, something, I hope, will improve in the duration of this course as I will be forced to break out of my comfort zone.

Thats it for now!

Hello readers,

My name is Bridgette, I have just commenced first year in Communications Media at RMIT, and am thoroughly looking forward to it. I am nineteen, second year out of high-school, I studied Arts at Monash last year for a short period of time, but found it wasn’t my ‘cup-of-tea’. This particular course appealed to me strongly as it incorporates many of my likes. Although vague, I hope this gives you some idea of who I am and why I am here.

P.S

Just didn’t want to start my blog with ‘Hello World’.