Ye Olde Hob Lob

While in high school, I definitely belonged to a group based on skills, but it had nothing to do with school. I had a part time job, so I was part of an occupational group (41). I worked at Hobby Lobby, so there was a sort of a creative knowledge I needed to learn. I also had to learn different terms for specific products or different procedures for making the same thing (giving customers choices for how to make the same thing). At first, I think I kind of had to earn my way into the group I am now a part of because they all knew all that knowledge already. This reminded me of the hierarchy or level of knowledge of job skills explained in the book (51). Once I learned all of that, I was accepted into the group. Now there were a couple different groups, some that I was a part of and others I had nothing to do with other than we all worked in the same store. I had my small group of friends, who were not only coworkers, but had similar interests and beliefs as well (41). We definitely had some inside jokes specific to our group, like when we were all really stressed out we called it a “double eyebrow situation” because when you cover your face, you touch your fingers to your eyebrows. Stressful situations required us to put both hands on our faces, thus touching both eyebrows.
Another piece of verbal folklore that was part of our group was that we all called our boss “Dave” even though that wasn’t his name. We used this pseudonym so that we could vent our frustrations about him when he was around, that way he would have no idea we were talking about him. This was something that the “lifers” (workers who had worked at the store for a long time) would introduce to the new workers. I guess we had a lot more verbal folklore within our folk group than I originally thought.
The way we dressed also distinguished groups within our store (54). All of the employees had to wear something that had the store name on it as well as a nametag, that part was store policy. All the cashiers had to wear these blue smocks that had pockets in front and tied on the sides and a generic blue nametag with the name printed off a label maker. The managers wore dress pants and nice shirts, along with their hierarchical gold nametags with their names preprinted on them. The people who mainly worked on the floor in specific departments wore blue vests and the same type of nametag as the cashiers. The “stock people,” the people who worked in the stockroom opening up boxes and moving freight, wore jeans and t-shirts, and then put on their vests if they came out onto the floor. This really made me think about how all the sudden there are four subgroups within the big group of employees and how there are obvious differences between them. It just surprised me because I never really took the time to notice these differences. This post is my response to the Chapter 2 Reflection Question.

Peer Response to "Janky 404."

This peer review is in response to Meg’s F121 Blog about “Janky 404.” This can be found at http://megaliciousf121.blogspot.com/. I thought this encounter project was hysterical because it is so true. I think jokes are great, but inside jokes can be so much better because only a specific group of people really understands them. Reading this piece made me think of all the inside jokes I have with friends and family, which made me end up calling a few people to talk about them. I guess I also like the fact that certain little things can make you think about an inside joke, as I’m sure seeing a “janky” anything might make these girls laugh about their house and bring them closer together. What was even better about this piece was that it was so descriptive, not only could I imagine what their house looked like, but I imagined all the nasty stuff in my old apartment too. I definitely think inside jokes play an important part in folklore because they help bind a specific group together. There could be a folkgroup of family members or friends who have known each other for a long time, and then within them another folkgroup of a few people who have an inside joke together. Inside jokes just make for almost a more intimate joke with people because only those people really truly understand the relevance of it. I’m glad she brought this type of joke up because I feel like people assume a joke has to be this planned thing with a specific punchline, but inside jokes are so different. Not only are they unique in that sense, but I guarantee you could ask a lot of people the inside jokes they have with others and they will probably be completely different and random, but that’s what makes them so great. This post is my response to the first Peer Response Comment.

Food,Food,Food

This weekend my boyfriend suggested we try something new to eat, so I figured I might as well go for it. He said he wanted to go to Snow Lion, and although I was apprehensive, he said it was going to be similar to Thai food and I would probably like it. I also knew since it wasn’t far from downtown, its located at 4th and Grant, we could walk around after we ate. We first walked in and it was a little dimmer than I expected, but the different decorative pieces all over the place made up for that. It was very colorful and artistic looking, I almost felt like I was in a home in India or Tibet. There were some photos and memorabilia of the Dalai Lama of Tibet, which I later found out was the uncle of the owner of the restaurant. The mood was very calm inside, with music that sounded to be from the areas of India or Tibet. I could also hear water running from a fountain while I ate, which was quite calming. It was a little strange when we first sat down because there are mirrored walls, so I kept seeing someone stare at me, and then remembering I was looking into a mirror.
Every entrée comes with an option of having chicken, pork, shrimp or keeping it vegetarian style. I decided to get the most popular dish they serve, Jasha Thupka, which is chicken and vegetables with egg noodles. I was asked how spicy I wanted it, from one to five, and I went with a one—not being extremely adventurous in these situations. I noticed that most of the dishes include lots of vegetables, which surprised me because I read that this cuisine typically doesn’t have vegetables since they are very scarce in those areas. Traditionally, this type of food is made with a lot of fat, but because it is slightly Americanized so less fat is used and more vegetables are included (TravelChinaGuide.com).
Since all the entrees are served with tea and salad, our waiter brought us our salads and told us to enjoy the house dressing. I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it because I thought it might be really spicy, but it actually tastes a lot like Ranch dressing. The tea tasted like a mixture between warm sweet milk and a chai latte from Starbucks. After doing some reading, it seemed like it was a traditional sweet milk tea. It is made from black tea, sugar and warm milk, which is why it tasted sort of like chai tea (TravelChinaGuide.com). I thought it was really good, although I did have to continue mixing it up to get rid of the light film on top. The second cup I had didn’t have a film at all because I drank it down too quickly! My entree came out rather quickly, and it was heaping with food. I ate most of it, but I’m not sure I would order it again. I expected it to be a little sweeter than it was, and it actually was a bit spicier than I like. My boyfriend ordered a dish that had rice, vegetables and chicken, but it was far too spicy for me to enjoy. I know he enjoyed it though because Snow Lion is one of his favorite restaurants.
I think I would definitely go back again, and next time just order a different dish. I also think I would go with more of an open mind because I kind of imagined it was going to have a Thai flavor, and that may have influenced my perception of the food. It was not extremely expensive, most dishes ranged from between $7 and $12, and already included the salad and tea. I really liked the ambiance, the waiter was helpful and the food was served relatively quickly. All in all, I think I can say I enjoy some parts of Tibetan and Indian cuisine. This post is my response to the Restaurant Visit Project.

The Whistle--Chapter 1 Reflection

I guess part of my motivation for this response stems from the fact that my mother’s birthday is coming up in a few weeks, so my mind is going through all the different things she does within my family to figure out how to help celebrate. I automatically thought about this whistle she does with every member of our family, the ones who live together that is. It’s this high pitched whistle she makes by putting her thumb and her middle finger in her mouth, and I know other people do it too, but I swear hers sounds different somehow. The best way to describe its purpose is to explain a good situation it would be used in. When my brothers and sister and I were younger, and playing whatever sport was in season, my mom would use “the whistle” to let us know she was around. I would be up to bat in a softball game and hear all the whistles coming from parents, and then hear that one. I knew mom was there watching. It also has uses for safety sometimes, like when we were in big crowds during 4th of July parades. I remember going to “explore” and when I heard that sound it meant I was supposed to go back to its source because she wanted us to stay close. Of course there were times that it was used to get some sanity back into our house, six people (four young children) typically makes for a lot of chaos and noise. All the kids would be screaming or “playing” loudly, and all the sudden we’d hear it and know it was time to chill out. The funny thing about it is that we all know that specific sound by heart and it provides some sort of comfort to everyone, even my dad. This summer we went to California to visit my older brother, and we were at this hippie festival and my dad got lost. Well, mom did the whistle and dad managed to find his way back to the group. I think its kind of cool that my family has some of its own folklore, something that my mom spread around to us, that we all understand together. I like that it is not something within society’s culture that my family is part of, but something that is part of my family’s culture on its own. This blog entry is my response to the Chapter One Reflection Question.