Phase 1, Prompt 3

            The term, “reservation realism”, used by Sherman Alexie in The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven can be defined in many ways. Alexie choses to leave the term undefined in the introduction by saying, “Well, I’ll let you read the book and figure that out for yourself” (xxi).

            While doing some research I came across this on a website (ipfw.edu): “Alexie’s statement presents a contradictory definition that is reminiscent of Tim O’Brien’s similarly contradictory attempt to define how to tell a true war story in the Things They Carried. O’Brien’s definition similarly asserts that “a thing may happen and be a total lie, another thing may not happen and be truer than the truth” (Things They Carried 89). The difference, the narrator notes later, lies in the fact that “story-truth is something truer than happening truth” (TTC 203). This really opened my eyes to what I think Alexie meant by “reservation realism”. He means that something is not necessarily real just because it is true. In fact, he means that something that is not true can be even more real than something that is. What I am trying to say is that the kind of realism Alexie is referring to is realism on a whole new level.

            Indian Education is one of the short stories from the book that shows what “reservation realism” is. I did some research and found that what the narrator experienced in school was a typical experience for Indians growing up. “In the 1960s, a congressional report found that many teachers still saw their role as civilizing American Indian students, not educating them. The report said the schools still had a "major emphasis on discipline and punishment” (npr.org). This report goes hand in hand with this quote from Alexie’s short story: “Once, she [the teacher] gave the class a spelling test but set me aside and gave me a test designed for junior high students. When I spelled all the words right, she crumpled up the paper and made me eat it. “You’ll learn respect,” she said” (pg. 173).

            Another short story from the book that I feel really shows what Alexie means by “reservation realism” is Family Portrait. There are many examples in this story that I perceive as “reservation realism”. One example is, “For instance, in the summer of 1972 or 1973 or only in our minds, the reservation disappeared… Finally, I remember thinking, but I was six years old, or seven. I don’t know for sure how old; I was Indian” (pg. 192).  This is a good example because the narrator of this story admits that he does not know if this even happened. It is considered realism because it was real to the narrator which justifies it as real to the story. Another example from this story is, “Will my children love me when I’m old?” she [Mother] asked, but I knew she wanted to ask me, “Will I regret my life?” (pg. 194). The realism behind the mother kicking her son out into the snow because she thought he saw the future is that she wanted him to see the future so she could know if she would regret her life later on.

            My personal definition of “reservation realism” is something like this: Reservation realism is what a person gets out of a memory, a conversation, or a situation. It is what the person considers “real”, what sticks with them afterward. For example, it could have been something that was said that was never really said at all, like on page 195. “My sister told me she could recognize me by the smell of my clothes. She said she could close her eyes and pick me out of a crowd by just the smell of my shirt. I knew she meant to say I love you.” Do you see what I mean? The sister never once said that she loved her brother, but that is what he took from what she told him. “Reservation realism” is a way to see past things like “small talk” and get the real(ism) from it.

 

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16516865

http://opus.ipfw.edu/english_facpres/58/

Phase 1 Prompt 3

Alexie has admitted that Victor is a representation of himself. He also uses the word “reservation realism” in describing his style of writing. But what exactly is reservation realism? Reservation realism seems like it is something that describes the truths from the struggles in their lives.

In The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, we are introduced to stories that are not hopeful, and contain a big amount of alcoholism. Under these circumstances, Alexie makes these stories easier to comprehend by lightening the mood with humor and unique characters. Despite the conflicts, the characters still search for their happy place and face the “reservation realism.”

 “Every Little Hurricane” gives us an insight into their life on the reservation. There is a hurricane prediction and Victor’s parents are planning on throwing a huge party. The hurricane is foreshadowing the events that are going to happen at the party. At the party, drunken fights and other events have occurred which resemble a hurricane. Victor’s uncles get into a disagreement and start fist fighting. The narrator says that “They are all witnesses and nothing more.” (2)  Having to watch this fight and encounter such problems such as a hurricane is part of “reservation realism.” Victor is only able to stand back and watch the disagreement. He was not able to help them or do anything about it. “Reservation realism” comes into play because it relates to his own personal hurricanes.

On the reservation, Victor and the other Indians do not so anything to ignore their current situations. They learned to accept it and move on. Occasionally, they can escape it through their imagination. I think this is why Thomas-Builds-A-Fire tells so many stories. It is his way of escaping the hard times. Thomas is the only one that is brave enough to imagine a better life. The others are too scared. They do not want to go to a place that may never be real to them. With these hard times, they are forced to face the “reservation realism.”

Along with the stories, Victor also shares other nightmares. These can be related to Alexie’s struggles in real life. Throughout the book he tells us about times when he was starving to death or when his father would wake up drunk. This to me seems like it could be very realistic in relating to his real life. After doing some research I found that the quality of life on reservations experienced issues with life expectancy, nutrition, poverty, and alcohol abuse. From some of the stories in the book, it seems like Alexie could be indeed sharing some of his personal experiences. One could argue that he may exaggerating a bit but he still shares the idea of the issue he was given.

There can be many definitions given for “reservation realism” based on the book. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight is an exciting but controversial book. We all may be facing some “reservation realism” in our lives.  What do y’all think reservation realism means? Do you think Alexie’s experiences are believable?

"Life on the Reservations." U.S. History Online Textbook. Independence Hall Association, 2012. Web. 30 Sep 2012. <http://www.ushistory.org/us/40d.asp>.

Prompt 4: Becoming a Warrior and Learning to Survive

Throughout The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, Sherman Alexie uses survival as a common theme to emphasize the importance of being a warrior in the Native American society. Even in the very first story, “Every Little Hurricane,” Victor vaguely depicts his life’s struggles as a boy in the Spokane Indian tribe. Even from early on in his Indian life, between his family and friends, Victor’s time on the reservation is plagued by trials and tribulations. His metaphor of personal hurricanes symbolizes survival and that every man must experience things that shake their personal foundations to the core. The ideas of becoming a warrior and fighting for your life are very present in Alexie’s collection of short stories because they are fundamental to all Native American culture.

         Young Native American men especially long to be warriors within their reservation’s society. I believe the yearning stems from the boys’ desire to protect the Indian community from another genocide or disaster. The idea of being a warrior can be related to the idea of being prominent within the reservation, and even to being a hero. After white people infiltrated the Spokane tribe, the society was never the same – Sherman Alexie even writes on page 29, “Indians are pretty much born soldiers anyway. Don’t need a uniform to prove it.” As Native Americans, there is an innate desire to triumph, whether it is over white people, over each other, or over personal hurricanes. It is clear throughout the novel that each character utilizes their own means of survival in order to endure life on the reservation. Thomas Builds-The-Fire fights battles by means of honesty and storytelling, for example, and even eventually lives his life through his adopted son, James.

         “But it’s almost like Indians can easily survive the big stuff. Mass murder, loss of language and land rights. It’s the small things that hurt the most” (49). The destruction of the Spokane people, as well as Native American society as a whole, is mentioned throughout the several short stories as a hurricane felt by all. On the reservation, although sharing different characteristics, the tribe bonds over their survival and over the loss of their loved ones and people. Fighting and becoming strong as individuals is what leads to the strength of their community. Survival is even more played up in “The Approximate Size Of My Favorite Tumor,” where James is dying of terminal cancer. James Many Horses uses humor to survive, while his wife Norma doesn’t understand his actions. James combats a world full of terrible struggles in his own way. Some other examples of potential Indian warriors learning to cope and fight would be the man in the tribe who can only drive in reverse or when the young men steal a car and park it in front of the police station.

Sherman Alexie essentially points out that being a warrior can be just as figurative as well as it is literal. Do the men of the Spokane tribe collectively struggle for the same end result? Or do they choose to fight individual battles for specific purposes? The fulfillment of their desires is continuously frustrated by the quality of life on the reservation – the lack of an advanced infrastructure or a well-developed economy greatly hinders the progression of their society.

Phase 3: Basketball on the Spokane Indian Reservation in "The Only Traffic Signal"

 

Basketball is a significant motif throughout Sherman Alexies’ The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. In “The Only Traffic Signal on the Reservation Doesn’t Flash Red Anymore,” former basketball hero Victor and his porch-side pal Adrian witness and comment on the rise and decline of an Indian ballplayer, Julius Windmaker.

Windmaker is portrayed as a hero at the beginning of the story, as Victor notes that Indians “see ballplayers as saviors” (52), comparable even to Jesus Christ. To be good at basketball is to be the face of the reservation, since “a reservation hero is a hero forever” (48), even if he is destined to fail. In the case of Julius Windmaker, the best player in Spokane, Victor and Adrian speculate on his chances of ‘making it all the way’ as the boy walks past the house with this posse. The two old, beer-bellied men wonder if maybe, just maybe, this kid will finally be the hero to break the legacy of ballplayers who lose their career to alcohol, of which Victor is firmly a part of. “He must not be drinking,” says Victor, “yet" (45).

However, just as Victor fell victim to beer and outside pressures, so too does the youthful Julius. A year after the old men optimistically speculate on his future as a basketball idol, Julius stumbles by the house, “drunk as a skunk” (50) before a game. Windmaker’s skills have significantly declined as he replaces practice with a pitcher, effectively ending his once dominant career. Victor tells us “there’s a definite history of reservation kids who never finish high school, who never finish basketball seasons” (47), and Julius only perpetuates this hopeless cycle with a horrific game our narrator calls a funeral. As Windmaker’s athletic hopes die, Victor and Adrian reminisce on his former successes, just as they had done with every basketball hero before him.

“The Only Traffic Signal” clearly illustrates the importance of basketball on the reservation. Victor claims it was not James Naismith who invited the game, but Indian hero Aristotle Polatkin. Perhaps Polatkin is a direct ancestor of Junior Polatkin, who later becomes a member of the Indian basketball legacy in “Indian Education” and “Somebody Kept Saying Powwow.” Sherman Alexie uses this reference to tell his readers that basketball runs in their Indian blood, as if the game is part of their genetic makeup. The sport is more than a game; it is a way of living, a way of surviving. “Indians need heroes to help them learn how to survive,” our narrator notes, “But what happens when our heroes don’t even know how to pay their bills?” (49)

This theme is littered throughout Alexie’s book: In “Jesus Christ’s Half-Brother is Alive and Well on the Spokane Reservation,” the narrator gives an account of his spiritual love for basketball when he states,”This is my religion” (114). Basketball is an escape from the impoverished reality of reservation life in Spokane. “I play and I play until the music of my shoes against pavement sound like every drum. Then I’m home alone and I watch the cockroaches live their complicated lives” (115).

By the end of “The Only Traffic Signal,” Julius is face-down on Victor’s carpet, drunk and done with basketball.  Victor and Adrian head back to the porch and watch as third grade basketball star Lucy walks by the house with her friends, just as Julius had done one year earlier. “God, I hope she makes it all the way,” (53) our narrator tells his friend. But Victor knows she won’t, because he knows what happens to ballplayers on the Spokane Indian Reservation.

Perspective in "A White Heron" and "A Memory"

Sarah Orne Jewett, author of A White Heron, and Eudora Welty, author of A Memory both use the perspective of a character to build the story they write, not just in an explicit manner (building the story) but also in an implicit manner (building a meaning or value of the story). This use of perspective is a powerful tool for building on these two elements to a short story. The perspective of a key character can be used to build on something the author needs to be seen to understand what is actually happening in a story, and to a varying degree, the mood of a story. The two perspectives of Sylvia in A White Heron and the narrator of A Memory have very different perspective and these different perspectives are used by the authors to build upon each story respectively.

                In A White Heron, Jewett uses the view of fairly innocent young girl to build upon the mood of the story. The mood matches that of a young girl. She sees nothing as inherently evil or good. Things just are. This is exemplified in the way the girl thinks about the hunter. She does not see the hunter as a bad man, as some might, for doing what he does, she just sees him as a nice man because of the way he treats her (Jewett 71). She does not like what he does as she does not understand why he kills what he loves, however, this does not affect the way she feels about him (71). She does however, struggle with the idea of telling him where he can find the bird he seeks. She considers whether she could give up the bird for ten dollars, a sum she sees as a great prize (71). The decision is made not to give up the bird because she sees it as a noble creature (75). Out of her innocence she gives up the money for the sake of the bird. Had we not seen the view of Sylvia, we would not know the decision she made and would not see the cautious mood of the story as Sylvia struggles with her decision.

                The narrator of A Memory, however, is a very different creature from Sylvia, but her perspective is used to produce a colorful short story just the same. The narrator is not such an innocent person as Sylvia. She seems much more hardened and cynical. Much of her cynicism, as we can see from the text, springs from a poor relationship with her parents (Welty 179). This is a key element to understanding the meaning of the short story. Consider the scene at the beach. Only once we know the personality of the narrator can we see the resentment of the life the “common” people she has. This is evident when she describes everything they do in a negative light (ugly bodies, etc.) (183). Her negative attitude help us to better understand the situation not as a day at the beach, but as a painful memory of something she desired more than anything: a loving family.

                We can see that each girl has a very different outlook on life, but these outlooks drastically alter the story and help us to understand the true importance of the story.  In the one case, the innocence of the one girl helps us understand the difficulty of an important decision and the implicit meanings behind it. In the other case, the cynicism of the other girl paints us a picture of a painful day, rather than just another day at the beach. Each perspective, though unique, build a story in the same manner. 

Phase 2 Prompt: Fairy Tale With an Un-Fairy Tale Like End

           Life dishes out challenges that cost some sacrifice. Sarah Orne Jewett’s fairy tale like story, A White Heron, shows the struggle between love vs. loyalty, and bravery.

            Initially, Sylvia was alone and isolated because of her fear towards people (hence, the name little-woods girl). “Afraid of folks” old Mrs. Tilley said to herself (67). This was confirmed when she heard a whistle from not far away which was described as, “not a bird’s whistle, which would have sort of friendliness, but a boy’s whistle, determined, and somewhat aggressive” (68). It turned out to be a bird hunter looking for a place to rest his head for the night. The terrified girl naively leads the way back home to her grandmother’s house, fearing that she made a dangerous mistake (She did, but what can you expect from a 9 year old child?). Luckily the hunter spoke honest words. Sylvia spent more time with the young man and grew fond of him, “a loving admiration” to be exact (puppy love). But what she could not understand was the reason behind killing the birds that he liked so much.

            Jumping back to the beginning, when Sylvy heard the man’s whistle, Sylvia attempted to hide in some bushes, possibly leaving her companion (the cow) to her fate. This is a sign of weakness; her fear taking over, causing betrayal towards the thing she was a shepherd for and friend towards.

            Towards the end of the story Sylvia undergoes a change in spirit. Even though she deeply admires the hunter, she doesn’t guide him on his search for the white heron’s nest. Due to her sudden urge of bravery, she finds the white heron’s nest after taking the dangerous climb to the top of a pine tree, also the last of its generation. This is where the choice between loyalty and love come in. Sylvia and the hunter both shared the love of nature, but the hunter also destroyed nature, while Sylvia connected with it. That bond towards nature is stronger than the puppy love towards the hunter, which keeps her quiet from giving up the location of the nest.

            In a way, this story can be seen as a fairy tale, but with a twisted un-fairy tale like end. Let’s take Cinderella for example, abused and mistreated by her step-mother and step-sisters out of jealousy. Cinderella, like Sylvia, turns to the animals for companionship. Cinderella’s fairy godmother shows up giving her the opportunity to find true love and a boost of courage towards her step-mother’s warning to not go to the ball. Sylvia toughened up seeing the determination the hunter had towards finding the white heron. The hunter was like Sylvy’s fairy godfather in a way, giving her a boost of strength and courage. The twist to A White Heron’s fairy tale is instead of choosing love (seeing as Sylvia is too young for that anyway) she chooses her loyalty towards nature. Cinderella was loyal to her step-family, despite their jealous abuse, but took her chance at love (in her situation, I would have chose love too). Cinderella’s story has a “happily ever after” ending while Sylvy’s ending left her lonely again asking, “Were the birds better friends than their hunter might have been, - who can tell (75)?” I sense a bit of regret.

            Jewett was frequently sick as a child, was home schooled, and never went to college. At a young age she knew her calling was to be a writer (her triumph), just like Sylvia triumphed at a young age. Jewett was focused on her career and never married. Sylvia’s rejection towards the hunter could be a representation of Jewett’s choice not to be married. But it left Sylvia still alone. Does Sarah Jewett feel alone?

Phase 1, a Twist on Prompt #2

     Shirley Jackson’s story, “The Lottery”, was a major influence in Suzanne Collin’s The Hunger Games series; with this being said, there are noticeable similarities between the two, but there are also noticeable differences.

     A major similarity between “The Lottery” and The Hunger Games is that they are based on the same idea. Groups of people choose a person or persons as a sacrifice to benefit them in some way. In “The Lottery”, the townspeople sacrifice one person for a better harvest. “Used to be a saying about ‘Lottery in June, corn be heavy soon’ (The Lottery 199). In The Hunger Games, every district has one girl and one boy chosen as tribute (which is just a nice way of saying sacrifice) to fight to the death until there is only one victor. Knowing that extra food is given to the victor’s district makes the tributes fight harder against each other.

     Another major similarity between “The Lottery” and The Hunger Games is that the people do not have a choice but to put their names into the lottery of potential sacrifices. They are all forced to do so. In “The Lottery”, they are forced by the rest of the townspeople, and in The Hunger Games, they are forced by the Capitol (the government).

      A major difference between “The Lottery” and The Hunger Games is the way the people and their families react to having to sacrifice their loved ones. I was very disturbed at how the family and townspeople turned on Tessie Hutchinson immediately when it was determined that she would be the sacrifice. They acted indifferent to the fact that they were about to stone their friend, mother, and/or wife to death. One of Tessie Hutchinson’s sons is actually given some pebbles so he can join in on stoning his mother (202). In The Hunger Games, the family and the people of the district mourn appropriately for the chosen tributes, even though there is a one in twenty-four chance that they will stay alive.. Katniss’ sister freaks out when Katniss volunteers herself for Prim’s sake. This is the response that the family in “The Lottery” should have had when their mother was chosen to be sacrificed.

      Another major difference between “The Lottery” and The Hunger Games is the main characters’ personalities. Sure, they both speak out against being forced to participate in these awful traditions, but Tessie Hutchinson and Katniss Everdeen are very different people. Tessie tries to go along with the Lottery until she is the one that is chosen. She then speaks out about it, but does not try to fight back; consequently, Tessie is stoned to death. Katniss, on the other hand, has always been against the Hunger Games. She only volunteers herself as tribute to save her sister’s life. Throughout the series of The Hunger Games, Katniss speaks out and fights against the Capitol; consequently, Katniss ends up living! (I am sorry if this is a spoiler to anyone.)

      “The Lottery” and The Hunger Games are both great reads. I absolutely love The Hunger Games. “The Lottery” was very creepy, but I still enjoyed reading it. There are many more similarities and many more differences between this reading and this series of books. I think it is obvious that Suzanne Collins was influenced by Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”.

Phase 1 Topic 1

                The short stories “Girl” and “Everyday Use” are two well written stories that contain positive and negative mother-daughter relationships within the theme of the story. In Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl”, we see the mother being very hard on her daughter in fear that may lead to promiscuity. She scolds her continuously because she wants her daughter to be powerful and is very uptight about the way that she goes about doing things. Even though she is very disciplined, she behaves this way because she wants the best for her daughter. In Alice Walker’s “Everyday Use”, we encounter both positive and negative interactions. The mother and Dee have different views on the family’s heritage which causes some protestation.

                In “Everyday Use”, we see that Dee has come up of her own idea of what heritage means to her. The mother disagrees that her new conflicts with her real heritage. Dee views her real heritage as something of the past. These beliefs bring strain to their mother-daughter relationship. An example of some of the problems was when Mama, Dee, and Maggie were trying to sort out the quilts. Mama finally came to realization and “snatched the quilts out of Miss Wangero’s hands and dumped them into Maggie’s lap” (334). Mama realized that Dee wouldn’t appreciate the quilts the same way that Maggie would.  I take from the story that before Dee had gone off to school, her mother and she had a fairly decent relationship. While at school, Mama realized that she had changed and felt the disrespect coming from her daughter. Although there were many points of negative interaction, there were also sometimes that come across positive. I believe that Mama was happy to see Dee since she had been away for so long. Mama had struggled to send Dee off knowing that an education would be beneficial. She was not aware of the negative effects that would be put on their mother-daughter relationship.

                In Jamaica Kincaid’s “Girl”, we are introduced to the narrator’s constant worries about her daughter’s behavior. She worries about her promiscuity, “on Sunday’s try to walk like a lady and not like the slut you are so bent on becoming” (350). The narrator connects chores to the topic of sexuality. She does this to show her daughter that she is a woman and needs to act like one in order to gain respect from the community. The narrator believes if she keeps her daughter busy, it will distract her from temptation. Their mother-daughter relationship is very negative unlike the relationship we see in “Everyday Use.” In this style of writing, we never see and conversation between the narrator and her daughter. This could be a hint that they don’t have a strong relationship. The narrator acts more like a teacher rather than a mother. The way that the narrator gives her daughter instructions are very forceful and powerful.  She is very specific on how to cook, clean, shop, and perform the tasks around the household. The narrator uses these tactics to save her daughter from disrespect, rather than focusing on a positive mother-daughter relationship.

                Although both short stories have rocky relationships between the mother and their daughter’s, one can argue that this may be for good reason. Mothers are supposed to be role models and teachers in a daughter’s life. Even though it was more in a negative way, these stories portray both of these roles.  In the end, it may end up making or breaking a strong relationship. 

My Biography :)

Hey everyone, my name is Sara Sonoski. I am going into my fourth year at Texas Tech, and am planning on majoring with a degree in Media Strategies. I grew up in a big small town called Flower Mound, which is about 10 minutes north of the DFW airport. Before living in the wonderful state of Texas, I lived in Orlando, Florida. My dad and two half sisters live in South Carolina, and they are 5 and 6 years old. I have always loved music, and would one day like to either produce or manage someone in the industry. Until then, I spend my time hanging out with my roommates, and working at Texas Roadhouse as a server and the front-of-house training coordinator. I think that class will be beneficial and interesting. I can't wait to meet all of y'all :)

Here's a picture of me during a summer vacation to go see family.

South Texan.

Hey guys, my name is Shelby Heffernan! I am from Pleasanton, Texas, which is about forty miles south of San Antonio. I am studying Agricultural Education with a minor in Animal Science. Even though I will be getting my teaching certification, I would like to go into veterinary pharmaceutical sales when I graduate. I have a passion for agriculture and it is what I grew up knowing. If plans fall through with the sales career, I would not mind teaching students about what I love. I grew up showing pigs, playing volleyball, and staying active. Since coming to college I have found a passion for running and working out. I usually use that as a way to relieve stress, clear my mind, and "get away." I can't wait to get to know all of you a little bit better this semester! 

My Biography

Hi! My name is Rusty Shellhorn, and I am from Spokane, Washington. I have two younger siblings: my brother is a senior at West Point and my sister is a sophomore at Seattle University. I’ve spent most of my life in the Pacific Northwest. After high school, I attended Washington State University for my freshman and sophomore years but transferred to Texas Tech in the fall of 2010. Baseball is my true passion – I pitched for three years in college (including this past year for the Red Raiders) and was drafted in June. Now, I am a professional baseball player for the Seattle Mariners. I am currently in Iowa finishing up my first year of pro ball at the single-A level, which is why I won’t be back in Lubbock for a few weeks. My goal is to work up the system and eventually make it to the big leagues. I am a history major and secondary education minor at Tech, and I can't wait to work with all of you this semester!

About Me

Hey guys! My name is David Lawson and I am a sophomore math major. However, this does not mean that I'm the typical math nerd that people envision when they think of math majors. I hope to use my degree to teach high school math classes, so the degree is a means to an end in that I need a math degree to teach high school rather than an education degree as with other levels such as middle school and elementary school. That being said, I have a real passion for education and really look forward to my student teaching and eventually having a class of my own. I also love to read and am taking this class first and foremost because I need the credit, but second because it is a class that stirs my interest. I really look forward to a few of the books we will be reading, "A Brave New World" most of all. I am also an active member in BYX and love being involved in my church, so a great deal of my time goes into these activities and similar things. Overall i really think this is going to be a great class and can't wait to dive into it fully.

The pictures below are (from top) my brother and I at his wedding (me on the left) and my sister, my dad, and I holding a bull elk skull we found in Yellowstone among about five other elk skeletons (notice my sister is freaking out).

About Me and My Love For Animals

Hi, my name is Bianca Peters. I’m from Austin, but originally from San Antonio. I’m a new transfer to Tech from UTSA. I am a Zoology major and Animal Science minor. I came to Tech because this school has to best Zoology program in Texas, some of the best research programs, and is just an all around awesome school!! As you can see by my picture I love dogs, especially my own. My dog’s name is Chip and he is my motivation to becoming a veterinarian. He’s my little mascot. Ever since I was a kid I would watch Animal Planet and Discovery Channel. Television’s new edition of Nat Geo Wild is my new favorite channel. My goal is to better our environment for the sakes of the animals and ours. Animals are my passion but on the side I like to read, go to the lake, play video games, go to the movies, draw, hang out with friends, and more. I’m a well rounded person, I like to do everything. That is probably why I get along with everyone. Well that’s the gist of everything; you will get to know more of what I’m about in class. Good luck this year everyone!