Weekly Journal
Summer semester 2021
Week 1:
monday: Today I started classes for the semester, went on a walk, got dressed, took a nap, made dinner, did some errands, picked some stuff up from the store, got organized, checked something off of my to do list, cleaned my room, did the dishes, and watched tv. I saw classmates that I hadn’t see in a while, a man mowing the grass outside, people shopping at Target, a cat in the street, people hugging in the parking lot, neighbors walking down the street, and kids buying toys with their parents at the store. Today, I honestly didn’t hear or have very many conversations in person because I was home alone all day, and it was pretty lonely. I did overhear a couple at Target talking about a mirror that they were buying for their living room. It sounded like they had just bought a house or apartment together and were in the process of decorating it. I enjoyed today because it was the start of classes; I felt very organized and on top of everything because it is the first day lol… I’m sure this will change.
wednesday: Today I woke up and chugged a glass of ice water, went to class, made breakfast, took a nap in between classes, sat outside, took a shower, went to dinner with some friends, ate some really good Venezuelan food, did some homework, and took some time to relax by myself before bed. I saw another cat outside in the street, classmates in online class, people walking around in OTR, a perfectly poured smoothie, a tile falling out of the wall in my shower, the most amazing cilantro cream sauce on empanadas, and an article about the mask mandate lifting in Cincinnati... which is scary. I overheard a conversation at a restaurant where one of the servers was telling another server that he couldn’t walk down the stairs very well because he had tripped and sprained his ankle on a run that morning. I had a conversation with someone on the phone tonight about what makes someone in America be considered “wealthy.” I also had a conversation about capstone with someone who graduated a few years ago; they were talking about finding a topic that is meaningful to you, but still fun, or else you’re gonna suffer through it. Overall, it was a good day, and I felt pretty productive.
thursday: Today I slept in, made breakfast, sat outside, did homework, went on a walk, went to the grocery, made dinner, and watched a funny tv show. It was a pretty slow and boring day; I feel like need to start doing some more things during the day that make my days feel better and more full. I saw the poorly mowed grass, the messy inside of the fridge, my full clothes hamper, a funny tv show, a food truck on the street, people buying groceries at the store, an update on the mask mandate, and my unmade bed. I overheard a conversation about King’s Island today, and it made me want to go! I talked to my roommates about going to the beach on Saturday. I didn’t feel as productive and motivated today, maybe because it’s the end of the week. The first Thursday of the semester feels pretty nice though, I have some things planned that I’m looking forward to this weekend. Overall, it was a slow, but good, day in the sun.
The school/work projects that I’ve always enjoyed the most are the ones that I am super interested in. Liking the topic obviously makes me put more work and effort into it. I have noticed that if I just go with my gut feeling and hop on my first idea, it always works out the best, instead of spending too much time/energy/anxiety trying to pick the “perfect topic.” The explorations and ideas that come from sticking with my gut feeling always end up being more enjoyable for me. There’s always a reason that it was my first idea. I have also noticed in myself that I have to ideate a lot at the beginning, even the terrible looking stuff. It seems like a pattern for me to start a project in some direction, end up hating it, starting over, and then loving it. I am also very hands on, and like to work with physical items, and I like to see my designs in real life. I like putting things together physically, and making every part of something come together perfectly.
Week 2:
This week has felt busier with school, and I feel like I’m started to get a little bit overwhelmed, but I need to stay organized and on top of all of my work. So far, I have been pretty good about staying on track with some of the goals that I made for myself for this semester. I am starting to get a tiny bit stressed about the co-op search, but I am excited too. I have been thinking about capstone a lot this week, and I feel like my ideas are evolving, which has made me think of a couple of new ideas that I wasn’t thinking of before. I found that its extremely helpful to me to talk through my ideas with other people, even though I feel intimidated by that, because I am always scared of someone judging my ideas. I know that I want to design something for kids (and parents), but I feel like I don’t know enough about the audience, because I don’t have a kid… haha. It makes me feel a little lost, but excited at the same time, because I feel like I’ll be able to do a lot of cool research. I don’t want to get too hung up on picking a topic right off the bat, but I definitely want to narrow down my ideas so that I have something to work with, that I know I’m passionate and excited about. I want to feel that excited feeling when I pick something to work on for this. I know that I can reach that, but I think I need to do some self-reflection about what I am really interested in.
Week 3:
This week I’ve been thinking a lot about why and how a brand tries to reach a specific audience. A brand identity has to be way more than just selling something to anyone. It has to catch a specific person’s attention, and make them have an emotional connection to buying the product. Instead of just making a profit, they have to create a reason for wanting whatever it is that they’re selling. I think this is interesting to think about in terms of my capstone project, because I do want to make a physical product that people would buy. Sometimes, when I’m designing something, I catch myself trying to make it look ‘cute and appealing,’ instead of digging deeper and and finding the actual reason why it should look the way it does. Looking at designs is so such an underrated thing that happens when you’re in a store. Everyone inevitably buys something based on how they feel when they first see it, and if it quietly tells a story and gets the person to understand and connect emotionally, then it’s successful. I don’t want to design something that people see and just go “oh wow that looks good.” I want them to really understand WHY I made the design decisions I did, and understand the story that I am trying to tell. I want it to reflect all of the personal research I do. I am excited but nervous to start doing research for this project. I feel very overwhelmed, but also excited. I feel like I say that all the time. This week I am definitely feeling more overwhelmed than excited. Something that I have been telling people is that there’s a reason that your gut is telling you to go a certain direction. Passion breeds success (in my opinion). I’ve been thinking a lot about how if I am not happy working on something, then it will turn out bad.
Week 4:
I feel better now that I turned in my rough draft for faculty review, although I am feeling nervous about the responses that I will get. I have started benchmarking images and quotes and anything I see on my phone that I feel some type of inspiration from for this project, which has been exciting and interesting to look at. I feel like sometimes I try too hard to make my initial ideas work for something like this, but I want to try and take a step back to really understand why I am passionate about the topic and why it is important to me. That feels like the first step for me, instead of thinking ahead and trying to come up with a solution right off the bat. Before, I was really set on making a book, and I still do want to do that, but I think I should explore some other areas. This week I have felt really busy with schoolwork, and it feels like it consumes most of my free time. I enjoy the nights where I know that I have everything done for the next day and that I have done as much work as I can, and then I can relax and do fun stuff with my friends. Last weekend, I was with my family on a little weekend trip, and being with them always puts me in a happy place. Family is one of the main inspirations and themes I have for this project, and it’s something that is really important to me. I am excited to start the research phase of the project, because I really do enjoy researching something I am passionate about. I am excited to start interviewing people and going a little out of my comfort zone. Anyways, I had a good weekend and a good week, and I’m looking forward to next week.
Some benchmarking process:
Week… not sure what number it is…:
I have started to do primary research. I made a survey that I sent to some people I know, as well as groups of parents on FaceBook or anywhere else I could think of. I have also just been telling people by word of mouth about my capstone project and gauging people’s interest and to see if they know anyone that I could interview or survey. I’m starting to think about how I’m going to actually start putting this together… After the survey, I’m gonna have to compile a list of recipes and start creating all the content… even photos? I am also going to have to develop a visual/graphic style. I’m not sure if I need to start doing that now? If I start that now, I’ll definitely hate it in about a month, not to mention in a year. Steps I’m thinking of (just to try and get it straight in my brain): 1. interview/survey/research 2. consolidate info 3. compile recipes 4. create visual style 5. put it all together. I guess. Still feeling a little lost, but it makes me happy that everyone I’ve talked to has liked my idea. I am having fun with it so far. I have a decent amount of survey results. I am wondering how I’ll get in contact with a family therapist/specialist? Agh.
In terms of what I did the week/have been doing.. All I do is class, homework, and go to work. And eat. And drink wine when all of that is done. I’ve been interviewing for co op and its stressing me out, so that’s what I’m dealing with right now. Hopefully, I’ll have a job really soon, and I’ll be able to relieve some of that stress, but it might create even more stress. Okay, we’ll see what happens.
Week 8:
I have been interviewing and surveying people. I have sent a couple of surveys to a bunch of different groups, mostly facebook groups and whatnot. I haven’t gotten too many responses yet, but I’ll be checking it everyday and seeing if I can send it to more people. I want to get as much feedback as I possibly can, before I start anything else. I have already interviewed one of my cousins, but I need to interview the other, and then ask around to see who else I can interview. I’m thinking of asking them if they have any friends or anyone who would be interested in helping.
Week 9:
I was able to get into contact with Grace Shae, who is a child nutritionist! It was really really helpful to talk to her, because she’s not only a mom but she is very knowledgable about kids and eating habits and healthy foods. I was able to interview my other cousin as well. Im getting some results back on the surveys, and all of the answers so far seem really helpful. It sounds like a lot of people are interested in my project, and want to help out, which is really encouraging. I appreciate when people take the time to answer the survey questions really well and in depth, it makes me feel like they think my project is meaningful.
Week 10:
I have been writing my project report and round robin pitch (both in progress), and I actually really really enjoy writing about this topic. Doing both of those assignments made me realize how emotionally attached I am to this project, and how that can push me forward.
Week 11:
I took these photos of a book when I was at the store with my mom. We were looking at the books, and my mom grabbed this book and asked me if I remembered it from when I was a kid. I didn’t realize that I remembered it until just then, and I was reminded of how influential the books I read as a kid were, and how things like that always bring back the best memories for me. I love to be nostalgic about my childhood and my parents.
Week 13:
I was able to go home this week and talk to my parents, and I got to take another look at my mom’s recipe cards and hear her tell more stories about cooking for me and my brother when we were little. She also has a lot of stories about cooking for my brother when he was sick, because he would always ask for a lot of the meals we had when we were little. I made a Gantt Chart to map out my plan for the next 2 semesters, so I feel a little more organized now.
I’m gonna keep working on this during co op, and hopefully revisit it once or twice a week, or whenever I am feeling creative. I’m excited to start developing a graphic style for this, I want to be really proud of all of the work I do for this project, and so far I feel really good about it. I am also going to try to keep writing in here, just to keep myself on track, and make sure I’m making progress and documenting it.