Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Fieldnotes Analysis
I actually really enjoyed taking my first set of fieldnotes! I was a little worried when I first arrived at Sullies. I was afraid I would not noticed important things or I would not observe enough going on around me. But at the same time I did not want to be focused on how many pages of notes I have written. Thankfully, taking the fieldnotes came pretty natural to me. I immediately sat down and just started writing. Bottom line, what I observed was that nobody else was observing. Like here I am, a weirdo writing in a notebook by herself at a table, and nobody even gave me a second glance. Most people were too preoccupied with their families, which is a positive thing. I never noticed that it was predominately young families visiting Sullies. I figure this is due to Sullies being located in the city. Kids have no backyards to play in so families go to Sullies to grab a quick bite to eat before playing in the park next-door. It made me happy that families were actually enjoying time together outside, not blocked off in their houses with mounds of technology. I feel like this is, unfortunately, a rarity in today's society. Another reason why people were not observing was because they were not staying long. Many got their food, sat down at the first bench, ate, then left. Others just brought their food directly to their car. I guess this is what happens at a take out food place. I was still slightly surprised at the lack of lingering going on. Most of the time, when people left they were going for a walk around the park. I feel like Sullies is a special place. When people go their they actually enjoy the food, enjoy each other's company, and enjoy the land which it is located on. This makes me happy and appreciative that Sullies exists. I enjoyed viewing Sullies from a different perspective than normally and it really made me see common things I never noticed on my million other visits. I'm interested to see if i make the same observations during the next set of fieldnotes.
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Shannon: I like reading about what you noticed, and I'm going to push you to go further and directly respond to the questions posed by Fieldworking, for the questions themselves push you to do the cognitive process of analysis. So, it seems like the fact that folks weren't lingering and eating slowly surprised you. Why? You comment that many people got their food and took a walk in the park. What park? You need to tell us everything. We've never been there. We can't see what you see. You must convey it to us in writing, as though we were there. Also, respond to the other two questions: What intrigued you? (this may lead you to a possible focus for fieldnotes #2, and if you're confused, read Cam's fieldnotes analysis to get some ideas or at least a good model of how to do analysis. I think Cam touched on many topics that he can follow up on next time.) Finally, the last question is: What disturbed you? What was kind of "off," or weird or shady or sketchy or half-baked? I'm sorry to keep pushing you to do more, but it's my job to ask you to do the assignment as it is written! The purpose of those questions, and the exercise of directly answering them, forces you to be specific, something I feel you need to concentrate on as a fieldworker. Specific answers to specific questions. Keep going!
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