Parting Ways

       Saying goodbye to my conversation partner seemed to be harder for me than it was for her. I had been thinking about it up to our final meeting- this was the last time my partner and I would see each other. Throughout the semester, it was difficult for us to meet, and it often felt forced when we finally did meet. I would gladly meet with her next year to catch up, but I'm not sure if her schedule would allow for it.
       As we sat at the table talking, she seemed slightly disinterested in the conversation. We talked about the usual topics: food and family. I tried to expand the conversation a little more, but she would respond by talking to the friend she brought with to our meeting. Whenever she talked to her friend, she would speak in her native language, making me feel a tad bit awkward. She was always very polite though, saying excuse me or often apologizing for things.
     Since she always brought a fellow IEP student along to our meetings, I was able to hear from a whole bunch of Saudi Arabian students; this was a really cool experience, especially since I was able to see how they interacted with each other. Part of me wishes I had been able to experience some one-on-one time with my partner. Maybe we would have been able to discuss deeper things than deep dish pizza if it had just been us meeting.
    When we wrapped up our final meeting, I guess I expected a little bit more of an actual goodbye. I had wanted to write a letter to her, thanking her for letting me see into her culture for a few weeks. Sadly, we ended up not meeting for McAlister's for an extra meeting, so I was never able to give her a letter. Towards the end of our final meeting, my partner and her friend were just scrolling through their phones until my partner looked up and asked how long I wanted to stay until. I said it was up to her, since I had a class later that day. She stood up, apologized, and said she had to go.
     I completely understand that schedules get busy, but I was sort of taken aback by her abrupt exit. What was really strange to me, was that she left behind her friend as well. I wasn't quite sure what to do, so her friend and I said goodbye before parting ways. A few days after our meeting, we had an awkward encounter on South University. I was walking with my friend to Barnes and Nobles, and my partner and her friend walked past us. I was extremely excited, but my excitement faded when she seemed to pretend that she didn't know who I was.
    Even though our last meeting ended abruptly, I learned a lot from my partner throughout the semester. There are so many things I never knew about Saudi Arabia (like laws relating to drinking, driving, and smoking). It was an amazing experience and I would do it again in a heart beat. 
  

Laughing like a Hyena

I don't know about you...but I went to the zoo! Here's a little back story in order to get you in the loop on my feelings towards zoos...
       
        My whole life, my family was all about going to zoos. Luckily for us, Chicago has two: the Brookfield Zoo and the Lincoln Park Zoo. Despite there being two zoos not too far from home, my family was adoment on going to as many different zoos as physically possible. One time, we drove all the way from the top of Illinois to the bottom of Alabama for one zoo. Of course, we stopped at nine other zoos along the way. Since I've been so submerged in the world of zoos, I'm not particularly a fan, not to mentiont the nice array of smells you get depedning on the animal you're near. You'd think they'd plant some flowers or something to mask that distinct "nature" smell.

With all of that being said, here's some snapshots of my day at the zoo:

    Walking around, the zoo was pretty empty, so it was surprisingly difficult to find people laughing. My roommate, who I forced to come with me, was going from exhibit to exhibit with me. Near the monkeys,we saw two little boys running around and imitating the sounds the monkeys were making. The one brother initiated the laughter and play, and it sparked laughter in his little brother. The laughter of one brother was contagious, making the other laugh even more. The parents thought it was funny at first, but eventually they told them to quiet down and look at the animals. Children are so imaginitive, and parents aren't always able to be in that same mindset.

 

 

As we continued walking, we kept coming across two girls that went to TCU (The one had a horned frog shirt on under the blue top). Seeing how they interacted with each other made me laugh; the one was more serious, and the other would often make jokes about things they were seeing. This made me laugh because in my situation, I was the one joking around, and my roommate was the serious one. At one point, the girls came across a little gift cart, filled with funky animal hats. The girl in the purple put one on, and got a laugh out of her friend. This inspired her friend to try on a silly hat as well. This went back and forth for a little while, each time eliciting more and more laughter. In this case, the laughter came from incongruity. How often does someone have a purple giraffe on his or her head? Exactly. The girls appeared to be getting some relief (hint hint: relief theory) from their finals by having fun at the zoo.

I'll admit that I'm an incredibly random person- always have been, always will be. Although this kangaroo isn't alive, it still got some laughter out of my roommate. For whatever reason, my initial instinct upon seeing the golden marsupial was to mimic it and take a picture. "WAIT! TAKE MY PICTURE!' I yelled at my roommate. Being used to my antics by now, she didn't question my request and simply laughed. Not only did she laugh at me, but I laughed at myself. You could consider this laughter contagious, but she was really just laughing at my inherent awkwardness. 

This isn't really a picture of people lauging or animals (besides the fake vulture), but I thought it was so neat that the zoo had this. "Dear Departed Brother Dave, He chased a bear into a cave." When I saw this I immediately started laughing. It reminded me of the little tombstones that they have outside of the Haunted Mansion in Disney World (I'm a child I know..). The fact that a zoo has a mini cemetery was so funny to me; it definitely shows incongruity since it's one of the last things you expect to see on a stroll through the zoo. The intended purpose was obviously to make peope laugh, but it doesn't really prove to spark a domino effect of laughter since it's really up to each indiidual person if it's funny or not. 

The Age of Technology

How often do you check your phone a day? Once? That's not true. Fifty Times? At least that many. We truly are living in the age of technology. Fourth graders trying to figure out what apps they want on their iPhone is an epidemic that is sweeping the nation. The United States isn't the only country with fancy gadgets though; other countries, like Saudi Arabia, have iPhones and Samsung Galaxies just like we do. Since phone technology is mutual (as far as I know), it makes it easier to communicate with our communication partners when schedules don't line up or someone gets sick. 

 My partner and I seemed to have pretty conflicting schedules. Her only availability was from 1-3, on some days, it made it hard to meet since I have a 2pm class on Tuesdays and Thursdays and work at 1 on Wednesday. Pretty early in the semester, my partner got sick; she had a quick recovery, but during those days, communication was very limited. Since it was so hard for us to meet, we talked a lot through text messaging and Snapchat.

Texting is as simple as a few swipes of the thumb, which really comes in handy (no pun intended).  My partner and I text multiple times a week, either trying to figure out our hectic schedules or just asking about each other's day. Since the IEP students had a different Midterm schedule, I would text her "good luck" and after her tests I would ask how they went. Through our virtual conversations, we were able to keep up with each other even when our schedules couldn't.

            My partner and I also use apps to communicate. Snapchat is our sole source of multimedia communication. The great thing about Snapchat is that you can send a picture directly to someone, or you can out something on your “Story,” which allows everyone to see it.

            Often, my partner would post things to her story, which allowed me to see what was going on in her life. A lot of the posts were of things happening in her classrooms. This was interesting because it allowed me to see a class through the eyes of an IEP student. It was also interesting because in my classes, teachers do not allow students to openly use their phones.

            One time, my partner and I had a full length conversation over text about our families. It was a continuation of a conversation we had earlier that day at Union Grounds. Family was a common topic of our meetings because of how many family members she has in the Intensive English Program. I then talked about my sister who goes to school in Indiana. We talked about how close we were with our family members, which was interesting to hear since a lot of her family is still in Saudi Arabia.

            Overall, I learned a lot about my partner by the things she posted for everyone to see and by our brief, friendly conversations through text messaging. I was able to see a class through the eyes of an IEP student, and I also was able to see how my partner’s written (texted) English improved throughout the semester. Our texting went from formal to more casual as we got to know each other which was really great to see.

Too Cheesy

     

         First things first, my addiction for pizza is real. Whether it's cheap Texas pizza or pricey, Chicago deep dish, I'll buy it in a heartbeat. Luckily for me, my conversation also shares a love for all things pizza.

        Just as we had planned, we met at Pizza Snob in between classes this past Monday. I got there earlier than her, so I sat and waited for a little while. A few minutes before our planned time, she texted me asking if she could bring a friend with. Getting the opportunity to meet another student in the IEP program, I of course said yes. When they arrived, I went and met them at the back of the line. She introduced me to her friend who had a heavier accent than her. They were dressed similarly, which I was used to after meeting several other Saudi Arabian students through my partner.

       Once we got our pizza and sat down, our conversation went as it usually does. We talked about the classes we had that day, talked about finals, and talked about food. I can't really put a reason behind it, but our conversation never ceases to shift to food. She asked what I usually get on my pizza; being an animal of habit, I always get the same thing and answered her effortlessly: alfredo base, asiago, tomatoes, and mushrooms. It's the closest I can get to a margarita pizza, which is a type of pizza I usually get with my mom when I'm at home. 

      We then started to talk about movies that we thought were interesting. She raved about the movie Gone Girl; she then went into detail about the plot. I thought it was funny that she didn't really consider the idea of "spoilers," so she told me who died and who the actual murderer was. Granted, the likelihood of me seeing the movie was slim, but a lot of people in the U.S. are big on keeping big events in movies and books secret. An example of this is the Harry Potter series; one time, I was watching it with a group of people, one of which had neither seen the movies nor read the books. If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone yell "spoiler alert," I'd be pretty close to paying off tuition. 

     Every time I meet with my partner, I feel as if I'm finding a new piece to the puzzle that is Saudi Arabian culture. Like in literal puzzles, some pieces are easier to find and connect—outside and corner pieces. Other pieces are tricky and are easy to confuse with a similar piece. In some instances, I can see this confusion. There have been numerous instances where she has made sure I went first, but at Pizza Snob, she didn't. It was interesting to compare and contrast each of our food adventures. It's crazy to think how much you can learn about a culture from something as simple as a slice of pizza (cheesy but true).

    

Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

Here's a look into my semester in Honors Lit and Civ II: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCVe78Woo5w


A look into my final presentation justification: 
          Signing up for a class you know nothing about can be a daunting task, especially when it’s an honors course. Diving into a unique learning experience can offer many unexpected learning opportunities, even some which immerse you in the cultures of other countries. Through a variety of text, YouTube videos, and out of class experiences, I became more knowledgeable over the course of the semester. With such a variety of topics covered, all branching off of humor, there was no way to just pick one thing that was impactful during the semester....

General Thoughts
        The world is full of surprises. Sometimes the surprises are at the hands of others, but sometimes you can surprise yourself. I learned so much about who I am as a person and what is important to me from taking this course. Who knew that reading a short story about a failed vacation and a murder could be so sentimental? Going off to college 800 miles away from home, I thought I would create my own, adult world, a world where I didn't need my mom to do anything for me. Boy, was I wrong. I didn't realize it until we read A River Runs Through It, but I can't imagine a world where I didn't text my mom about something dumb I did or call my sister asking for homework help. Accepting help from others is an amazing thing; I've been living in A River Runs Through It and never noticed it. I feel blessed that I was able to take one of the last spots in the class because if I hadn't, who knows where I would be (probably studying Astronomy or something).