The Tourist

The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco is one of the biggest tourist attractions on the west coast. Many tour to San Francisco merely to gaze at the enormous structure that we see commonly throughout our lives. I for one wish to travel to New York as well as many other places in the world in my life time simply because I am interested in different cultures and meeting new people. This fascination with the world around me is a moral feeling that many others, such as ones who visit places such as the Bay Area, share. It is in fact what inspires them to visit new places as well. The massive red towers of the Golden Gate that protrude from the crashing shark infested ocean against the rocks gives a certain feeling that only can be felt daily by the blessed bay area locals. When this image of the bridge is copied onto something such as a postcard, it reminds me of baseball games at AT&T Park and The City’s nightlife with a group of friends. The many tourists that visit, in this case, do not perceive the same atmosphere. However their perception of the city may be entirely different, it is most possibly more enjoyable because of the fact that they are "making the most of the trip". In essence, their senses are in fact stimulated greater by the amazing beauty of the Pacific North West and the Golden Gate. With all that this exciting city has to offer much of its economical growth comes solely from the expensive nights that are lived lavishly and in style. The continuous economical advances in San Francisco and other cities that have heavy tourist involvement benefit over time. With the growing population and the continuous desire to travel with the pursuit of happiness in life, which is in essence the growing moral thought of wanting to travel, the economic status in each town across the U.S. will continue to be supported by the major interest in tourism amongst the nation.

The Loss of the Creature

Peoples’ expectations of their ideal vacation place are fabricated in the mind and a specific picture of beauty and enthralled excitement fill the empty spaces of the perplexed mind to satisfy our desirable thoughts of travel. Prior to arrival to the Vacationland, there is a set image in the mind that keeps our desire to travel growing upon arrival. Once we have arrived, a feeling of slight disappointment percolates through the mind if the imagery we have conjured in our mind does not meet expectations to what is presented before us in reality.
Preconceived notions of a place and the cultures within them are what cause this tarnished view of the personal vacationland. The people surrounding the place and the social exchange make it difficult to see the vacationland in its entirety. In Walker Percy’s article, “The Loss of the Creature”, he goes about explaining the vacationland and how the full assimilation can only be “approached by the stratagems we have mentioned: the Inside Track, the Familiar Revisited, the Accidental Encounter”. Percy believes that in order to obtain this full sense of a place, one must encounter the vacationland through the eyes of one of the three approaches mentioned without the social and preconceived interference.
When I am traveling I do in fact imagine the place in my mind to the fullest extent. For example, when I go camping in a new location I imagine everything in detail. From what the lake will look like as the warm sun shines on the undulated murky water, to the granite mountains surrounding the lake announcing their decorum of beauty of the entirety of the place. Upon arrival I think of how my campsite will appear to me as well as how I would like it to be. As I drive through whatever environment I am venturing into I feel like a voyager who is merely out on a quest in search of relaxation. Once I arrive to the campsite, to my dismay it is not how I appeared it to be. However being and optimist and one who is open to newfangled ideas, I accept this newly found vacationland and rather than suffering from a slight case of neurosis from the entangled vision I once had of this place I on my quest in search of relaxing satisfaction.

The Functions of Home: Dining & Hospitality

People of gentry in the 18th century began recognizing one another through many different social and cultural aspects. Households having segregated spaces separating persons and activities replaced houses that promoted communal living. In the dinning room more specifically, everyone has their own space and the seats would be arranged according to status in the family.When my family comes together for dinner occasions we each have our own particular seating arrangement at the table, which is similar to the old traditions of the 18th century. My grandfather sits at the head of the table on one end and my father sits on the other end and the rest of the family sits in their own special spots on both sides of the table. Lately however my family has not been able to carry out these traditional dining experiences due to my busy baseball schedule. Instead for the past couple of years my family has all been so busy that sometimes we even come home and cook our individual meals. We eat while doing homework and talking to one another about our days. The Hospitality of different families ensures their guests that they are welcome in the visiting home. People such as Martha Stewart try to provide knowledge of how the simple act of hospitality is possible. Polite things such as offering different appetizers, cooking a fine meal and the quality of good conversation are all ways good hospitality is possible.

Cooking Trends

New technologies and changes in technology have Better kitchen appliances and the availability of more processed foods have cut the amount of time necessary to prepare food and helped make it possible for men and women to do more things outside the home such as extended work hours and more family time. Food preparation in 1900 was very time-consuming and didn’t apply much time for other activities. The coal and wood stoves commonly used were a big improvement over the open hearth cooking practiced by earlier Americans, but were labor intensive. Wood had to be cut and a fire had to be made until the entire stove became hot. Soot from the stoves is intensively annoying and complicated to clean. There were many factors that were time consuming in the 1900s that are no longer a worry today. Things such as indoor plumbing were not available to the public because that technology had not been discovered yet, therefore water for cooking and all other purposes had to be pumped and carried in from outside. Most food was still prepared from scratch so preparing a meal could take hours upon hours. The amount of time that it took to make a meal in the 1950s has been cut down due to the overwhelming amount of new technology and appliances that has made all of this possible. And because of this new technology, clean up time has also been cut down.
With the introduction of electric stoves and ovens, preparing meals was easier than ever and the inventions that once helped our family members are now being improved and redesigned for the better. There have been a number of new utensils that have been introduced such as specialized pots and pans, measuring cups and spoons, and a variety of useful gadgets, such as apple corers and mechanical beaters.
I believe that the quality of life has most definitely improved because of new inventions that have cut down the time it takes to do simple tasks. The new technology we continue to discover in the near future will constantly impact and improve our ways of doing things in the kitchen and in our homes. We have gained a variety of different appliances and processed foods that are “instant meals” or “instant desert”. On the other hand when we look at the negative side of the addition to these new technologies in the American kitchen, we can regretfully say that we have also lost a “good home cooked meal”.

A Christmas Memory

Capote describes a humble abode on a frigid November evening that makes me think of my own home and the similarities it has with Capotes home. The frost on all the windows in my house builds during the day until I arrive home dragging my feet through my heavy dark brown front door with the gold handle and lock, once saunter in the rich smell of mahogany and leather bound books fills my nostrils and I immediately think of all the homework that I need to finish as I look to my right and see my school supplies on my kitchen table. The windows are a misty white color around the edges of the clear glass, that give off an orange yellow glowing tint as the fire in my heavy black wood burning stove slowly burns. With the cracking of the wood and being able to see the mist of my breath as I breathe I think of the holidays and how my Christmas was this year. It was composed of not much time spent with my family because of my parents’ divorce that is in progress and our family’s fighting situation. Capotes feelings of home seem to be similar to mine in the sense that he has little money to spend during the holidays. Home is wherever my friends are for me because of my parent’s situation. The sense of home in Capote’s writing can easily be explained by the good relationships he feels with his family members during a winter holiday. Relationships that I can somewhat relate too but to an extent. Capote's family makes him feel "at home", but for me this is not possible because the close family situation in Capote's case does not apply for me.

House Hunting

Hido’s photographs make me think about the loan house in the middle of nowhere that you would typically see in most horror movies. The glowing light in all the houses gives of an eerie feeling that makes me feel a little uncomfortable and spooked. Hido’s photos are taken of more run down areas rather that Owens’ photographs of the upper-class homes in the suburbs. Hido’s photos, being night time exposures, give each house a creepy and dark feeling that Owens may not appreciate. Owens’ work seems to be more lively and spirituous than Hido’s photographs. A sense of community is involved in the main subject in Owens’ photos whereas the subjects in Hido’s photos seem to be just involving the private lives of those in the rooms with the single light on. I do not like this feeling I get when looking at Hido’s photographs because they all seem mundane and boring. The loneliness of Hido’s night time exposure photos of creepy houses give me a sense of loneliness when I look at them, therefore I have little interest for these photos. The majority of Hido's photographs give this lonely feeling when they are observed and i cannot come to find even the smallest amount of desire to continue looking at them because of the mundane subject matter.

Slowly Calling the Burbs Home/Suburbia

In Lahrmer’s essay she explains how life in general, living in the suburbs being surrounded by many different people and animals is appeasing. Living in a small community has its ups and downs but one thing remains constant throughout the year and that is the amiability of everyone in the community. Lahrmer's positive outlook on her community opposes Gates' beliefs of suburbs greatly. The two writers' opinions are completely opposite however Lahrmer's essay is more appeasing when she explains the typical suburb community simply because of the positive attitude and outlook she maintains in her writing. Lahrmer’s description of the suburbs seems more positive and lively, therefore it is easier to follow and understand rather than the jumbled assortment of paragraphs of Gates' writing.
The photo of the cul-de-sac community b.b.q., taken by Bill Owens, in the middle of the street displays happiness and joy of all in this small community. This is my favorite picture because of this simple reason as well as what it reminds me of the spring. In my small town after the cold dark winter weather has cleared and the sun is shining vibrantly on my back porch is when all of this occurs in my neighborhood, more specifically at the different baseball fields I play at. Lahrmer would love these photographs because they would support her positive reasoning for liking suburbs in her essay. Just as Bill Owens would appreciate the generous explanations of the common suburb that Lahrmer gives in her short essay. I admire both of these peoples' work because of their positive outlook on life and the way they both try to express the importance of a small community and the comradery amongst its inhabitants.