The End

I know I say this every semester, but where has the time gone?  It doesn’t seem that long ago that we began.  Still, in this seemingly short period of time, I’ve managed to learn a lot from COM 320.

I knew that I would probably find something in class that stuck in my mind, but I didn’t know what all I didn’t know about communication when I started.

A lot of people back in the day came up with theories regarding communication.  With the exception of playing Jeopardy, I don’t see myself ever needing to know their names, but the observations they made were helpful.

I thought that the lessons about verbal and nonverbal methods of communication were interesting to learn.  The things that presenting groups did to illustrate the points were good for entertainment, too.

The service learning project itself didn’t have much to do with communication, but planning the event required us to learn to work together and make long term plans.

Learning all this stuff makes me more aware of how I communicate with people and gives me something to fall back on when I need to know how to get my point across.  Next year, (which hopefully won’t pass too quickly) I’ll be looking for a job, and these skills will hopefully help me get one.

-Mason Moyer

Notes from the photographer.

(click the pictures for a larger view)
On Saturday, Prestige Worldwide’s long awaited, much anticipated Charity Cornhole Tournament took place.  The event was held at McCormick Place apartment complex.  Due to scheduling conflicts, only twelve teams showed up, but the event was a great success.



Cornhole, if you don't know, is a group sport that relies on communication between team members.  Throwing a bean bag from thirty feet away, a person can't always see where it's going to land, so their partner at the other side has to tell them what to aim for.  It's possible to play the game without interaction, but good communication skills are a plus.

All members of Prestige Worldwide participated in the event, except for me.  I was too busy taking pictures and video.  Things were well organized and everyone who participated seemed to have a great time.

Hot dogs grilled up by Prestige Worldwide were provided for players.  Only one of them was lost to Gary’s dog.

The players all competed well, and there were many close games.  In the end, the coed team of Ben & Amnie won.  They were rewarded with a cash prize and custom made t-shirts.

The whole point of the tournament was to raise money for the Boys & Girls Club.  Official figures have not been released yet, but I think that the local branch of the Club will be very happy with the money we were able to raise.

-Mason Moyer

Communications helps you make deals

Today I went with a friend to negotiate an arms deal.   Let me clarify that that isn’t as bad as it sounds.  We weren’t buying machine guns or explosives, just considering a bunch of old rifles.  I had seen them before, and knew which one I wanted to buy.  My friend examined the guns and found one he liked.  When we began to talk with the seller, I was reminded of things I had learned in communications class.

Most communication is done in an informal setting.  The buyer, the seller and I were all college students, and none of us were representing a business.  Nevertheless, many rules of communication apply, no matter what the setting is.

The seller had a price that he wanted us to pay, and we had a price that we wanted to pay.  We then had to use our respective communication skills to arrive at a price that satisfied everyone.  Negotiation skills are a valuable thing to learn in communications.  They’re useful in many situations, from haggling on a price, to bargaining on international agreements.

What is negotiation, though?  I’ve think that negotiating is really about persuasion.  For instance, I had to try to convince the seller to accept a price lower than he originally wanted me to pay. 

I got a fair price and skills from communications class helped me do it.

-Mason Moyer

Travel by Train

I got back from vacation today.  On the one hand, I had to hang out with my parents, but on the other, they paid for everything.  Most of the time we were on a train.  We stopped for a few days in Portland, Oregon and San Bernardino, California.

Americans don’t move by train very much anymore.  There used to be a time when it was the fashionable, exciting way to travel.  Since Amtrak was formed in the 1970s, they’ve worked to bring a little bit of that image back.

Getting a room in a sleeper car costs more than a regular seat, but there are lots of little extras that make it worth the price.  Food from the dining car is really good and is free if you get a sleeper.  You also get a daily newspaper and all the coffee, juice, and bottled water you can drink.

Sleeping car passengers also get access to the Metropolitan lounge at certain stations.  It’s less crowded than the normal waiting areas and includes free WiFi, soft drinks, and snacks.

With all costs figured, going by train is cheaper than driving.  Over long distances, it’s also faster.  As a poor college student, this is great for me, although I probably wouldn’t have splurged on a sleeper if I was by myself.  The sleeper room was big enough for my parents and I to stay in.

If you want to get to your destination as quickly as possible, take an airplane.  If you aren’t in a hurry and want someone else to do the driving, catch a train.

-Mason Moyer

Current Events

I don’t have much to do today while I wait for Spring Break to begin.  Two of my classes were canceled, leaving me with a six hour gap in the middle of the day.  I bought a video game yesterday, but now I’ve already beaten it.  I don’t have homework, and my stuff is packed and ready to go home.

I guess that leaves current events to talk about.  Did anyone else notice the tsunami warning on Google’s homepage?  I thought that was cool, although only something that has a few hours’ warning like a tsunami would make it very effective.  In the next few days, we’ll have to see how many people the Google warning helped out.  Almost overlooked in the aftermath of the Japan earthquake was a smaller one in China.

Also in the news, France became the first country to publicly recognize the Libyan National Transitional Council as the true government of Libya.  The International Criminal Court believes there might have been as many as 10,000 casualties, something that does not sit well with the UN.  Muammar Gaddafi might be living on borrowed time.

Wisconsin recently passed a law that had all kinds of people protesting.  Most news sources seemed content to report on the protests, not the facts of what the law actually did, so I’m in the dark as to what’s going on.  As far as I have been able to determine, it took some power away from labor unions.

Oh, and oil is back below $100 per barrel.

Spring Break: Engage

-Mason Moyer

The Week Ahead

I’ve been waiting for a vacation since we got back from Christmas Break, snow day notwithstanding.  Spring Break is less than a week away, but school isn’t over yet.  The next week is going to be kind of hectic for me.  I have three homework assignments due, and two exams to take.  I also have to attend two club meetings and probably go to some club events.  I’ve also got to help plan an event for Communications class.

I think Prestige Worldwide has a good idea for helping out the Boys and Girls club.  I believe the easiest course of action is to raise money for them, so they can spend it any way they like.

We’re going to put on a cornhole tournament and charge an entry fee.  Our goal for fundraising is $500.  We’ve taken donations and borrowed supplies to make it come together on the cheap.  We have a small budget, so even if only a few people show up, we shouldn’t lose money. 

Everyone in the group seems enthusiastic about the event.  I think we’ve hit a pretty good Reward to Recreation Ratio (RRR).  Perhaps I should trademark that phrase.  I think it’s a good expression that describes the amount of compensation you get for doing an activity versus the amount of fun you have while doing it.

Speaking of fun, I’ll be aboard a train for a large portion of Spring Break.  Maybe I have a different definition of fun than most people.

-Mason Moyer

Gun Control

In recent news, Texas is about to pass a law allowing college students to carry guns on campus.  Arizona, Florida and Kansas are working on similar bills.  Gun control is a hot topic in the United States.  Before reading the rest of this post, please know that I am pro-gun.

I asked my cousin for her opinion of the proposed law.  She is currently attending college in Austin, Texas.

"I don't see why it's necessary to have them, but I also don't think that restricting them is going to prevent violent crime. If someone has it in their mind to cause other people harm, a law is not going to stop them."

That pretty much sums up my thoughts.  If anything, it proves that we’re related.

Would students packing heat have made a difference at Virginia Tech?  It’s possible that someone would have been able to stop the shooter before he killed 32 people.  Virginia Tech doesn’t allow guns on campus, but obviously the shooter didn't pay attention to that rule.

Probably the best argument against guns that I have heard is that when the police show up and everyone is holding a gun, they won’t know who the bad guy is.  My counter argument is that if I’ve pulled my gun in self-defense, I’m not going look threatening to police officers, because I’m not going to be pointing it at them.

This issue reminds me of the Cold War arms race.  We can’t keep the bad guys from having weapons, so we also need weapons to protect ourselves.  It’s not a perfect solution, but no one has come up with a better idea yet.

-Mason Moyer

Blogging and Taxes

How about this blogging project?  It makes me feel somewhat important.  If I have something to say that the internet wants to read, I now have the power to get it out there.  The Prestige Worldwide blog is already attracting attention.  As of this writing, we have over 100 page views. 

I would write more about the blog, but it looks like Tyler and Gary have already covered a lot of it.  Instead, I’ll discuss something significant that happened to me recently.

This year, I wanted to do my taxes early.  I decided to do this partly because I don’t want to be in a rush later, but mostly because I want my money as fast as possible.

I realized that filling my tax form was not going to be as easy as it has been in years past.  I had two jobs in the last year, with a separate W-2 for each of them.  I also have an IRA, which earns interest.  The company that does my investing sends the 1099 interest earned sheet to my house address since I’ve never bothered to have my mail forwarded to my apartment here at Purdue.  The same goes for the W-2s, so I had to make a trip home to pick them all up.

After I had all the necessary paperwork, filling in the blanks on the Federal IT-40 form and the State 1040EZ form was fairly straightforward, if a little time consuming.  It looks like I’ll be getting a modest return this year, so maybe I can spend it on a pizza or something.

-Mason Moyer

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