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| Journal |
| 08/11/2003- Today I was robbed. You see, last monday, I gave a speech on the art of comics and sequential art. I did great. In fact, I would say that I did the best in the whole class. So, what did I get? A "B"!!! AN 84!!! So, needless to say, I could not let that go. My rebuttle follows: Dear Professor Babcock: I am writing today in regard to the grade I received on my informative speech. I received an 84, which is a mid-to low �B�. There is nothing wrong with a �B� for a good speech, however, I delivered an Excellent speech, for which I believe I deserve an excellent grade. The reason for my current grade appears to be because I only used three outside sources in my Bibliography, instead of six. However, does this merit a fifteen-point deduction? I understand that in our Speech Class syllabus, you state �At least six (6) outside sources are required- only three (3) of which can originate on the internet.� Nowhere in our text, notes, or your presentations do I recall seeing a formal number of outside resources required to make an excellent speech. It is very true that I came short in my number of sources, obviously nullifying me from achieving a �Perfect� score. But I am only humbly requesting an �Excellent� score. In our handbook, A Speaker�s Guidebook by Dan O�Hair, Rob Stewart and Hannah Rubenstein, on page 197 it states �The degree to which listeners understand a speech is directly linked to how well it is organized. Apparently a little bit of disorganization won�t ruin a speech if the speaker is otherwise engaging, but audience attitudes take a decidedly negative turn when the speech is very disorganized.� I hardly consider missing a few outside sources on my bibliography to be considered disorganized, especially when my topic flows so naturally from my own general knowledge of the subject. But to be fair, I will reference my evaluations to see what other people thought of my speech. For the question �Were the main points well organized?� Sarah White gave me a full five points, as did Margaret Chonest and Pamela Brumbley. Even you gave me full points for organization, so my research and effort put into my outline couldn�t be that bad now, could it? In all of my evaluations, I received high �A� scores, one student even declared my speech perfect by giving me a 100. Even you, before deduction gave me a 97. Without deduction, my average score still came to 97 (so close to perfect.) Obviously, regardless of number of sources, four people within our very own speech class decided that my speech was very excellent (including yourself) so I ask again, does missing a few outside sources warrant a fifteen point (a letter grade and a half!) deduction? I think that we can both agree that an outline is an organizational tool used to build a great speech. That having a great outline is very helpful to having a great speech. And I believe that you will also agree with me that an outline is not a speech. A screwdriver is a tool, but that same screw can also be turned with a flat metal disk, and you can still have a great finished product as grand as the rest. So why, in Speech and Public Speaking, am I being punished for a minor infraction of my tools? The course description states that �In this course, students learn effective communication skills and their application in a variety of situations. Topics include proper vocal production, projection and articulation with exercises in oral interpretation, communicative reading and public speaking.� I would say that you have done a wonderful job teaching me these skills, according to my unaltered grades for my speech and regardless of my minor infraction, you should be proud to give me, your student, an Excellent grade. I�m not asking for a perfect �A,� not even a high �A.� All I want is an �A.� You owe it to me, your learned pupil, yourself, my accomplished teacher, and all of my fellow students who enjoyed my Excellent speech. Thank you for your time, Erik Smith 08/01/2003- Does anyone really care that I don't keep up with my pathetic journal? No. So now that that's aside, let me catch you up. Well, I've been doing great in my classes. Still drawing, going into new styles and finding out new things about Photoshop and Illustrator. Yippee. It's now summer session, and me being the cancer to society I am, had my birthday in the month of the crab, July 17th. I am now 23... and boy do I and my parents and sister feel old. It almost feels like I can't call myself a kid anymore, but I will. Just like Josh calls himself "Doc". For my birthday, Sara went ahead and splurged and got me A GAMEBOY ADVANCE SP WITH METROID!!! HOLY CRAP!!!! THANK YOU!!! I liked it, if you couldn't tell. Most of my time is now spent playing that infernal distraction device... THANK YOU! ^_^ . My roommate Penny got me a hamster. I almost didn't keep her, but then dammit, she did that cute cleaning herself thing, and I had to keep her. I named her Cassidy; she had tan and white fur and big, cute red eyes, much like the devil herself. Wanna see a picture of her? OK.... Don't get too attached folks... she's dead now. Poor lil' Cassidy. She had a prolapsed rectum, and her insides started spilling out of her rear-end. I celebrated the 227th year of our Nation's independence putting my hamster to sleep approximately 12:30 a.m. Huzzah. Well, It's been a while since I've talked to you folks, and I didn't come her just to depress the living Shit out of you, no sirree. I've come on Business. You see, I've been addicted to game shows lately. All kinds. And one thing I've noticed? We've lost our minds. It used to be that someone asked you a question, and when you got it wrong the home audience would just point and laugh. Oddest thing you ever had to do was spin a gargantuan wheel. But all that's changed. Now, if you missed a question, there's a possibility that you will be sent to a bottomless abyss where the soul of Bob Hope will constantly ridicule your televised failure. There are shows where they will spin you in a giant hamster wheel while asking you questions until you start to shit your lower intestines. And you know what I think? The clique needs part of this. If you know us, and if you are reading this, you probably are us... if not, get out... we spend most of our time playing Trivial Pursuit, Balderdash and other nerdy brainy games instead of smoking pot and raping basketball players. You see, I was watching this pathetic man answer a multiple-choice question on this show... do you know what he picked? Nope... Not A... Not B.... Not Chuck D, or any of the other Chucks in our alphabet. Nope, he picked an answer that WASN'T EVEN A FUCKING CHOICE!!!! And you know what? That same moron went on to win. He didn't answer anything correct. He just avoided being dropped in a hole. WE CAN DO THAT!!! But most importantly, HE can do that. That's right ladies and Gentlemen, our very own, Steven Kospender. Self proclaimed master of Trivial Pursuit... only beaten amongst ourselves a total of three times (All by me, by the way... your welcome for that lengthening "L" column) My friends, this man holds such a vast collection of useless information in his bespectacled little noggin', that Alex Trebec would blow him if the price was right. Steven Charles Kospender Who Must Not Be Named the 3rd, by the time I next update (read: 2015) I better see your ass on one of these game shows. And you better not come home with a home version of the game, a consolation prize, or a sprained ankle from plummeting into the dark regions of the Netherlands, Either. No, you better come home with the damn showcase-big-ass-prize-mother-load-thing-a-ma-jig... and a couple of the display girls, too. You are going all the way, my big man! To the top! You're spinning that wheel, hitting that buzzer, and shaving that goat like no other contest before. And you are doing it all in the name of the clique! We are behind you one hundred percent! Take your mighty plunger of truth, ring that sweet melodious buzzer of justice, and above all else, don't forget to spay or neuter your pets. Good Night. |
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