Deep in the Heart of Nor Cal

Howdy ya’ll..

My name is Travis, and I grew up in this region of Northern California, which is why, of course, I write with a Texas accent.  If you’re not from around these parts, and have only been exposed to the liberal oasis of Chico so far, just venture east into the Sierras, or west into the never-ending valley of farmland, and you’ll assuredly here that Texas twang a time or two.

Back to my story..

I was raised in Oroville.  If you are from around here you know it’s a dirty village, teeming with tweakers, about twenty minutes south Chico (travelling well over the speed limit).  If you’re not from this area, you will probably hear soon enough why you should never take that twenty minute drive.  I’m not going to try and change anybody’s mind about my hometown with this blog, but I will tell whoever is reading this (probably nobody) that I love that little shit-dog town.  It’s beautiful.

So far I’ve written mostly about where I’m from, which isn’t the prompt, but that essentially is who I am.

I don’t wanna “blog my blog” about my major, or what grade I’m technically in.  But, I will give you a little glimpse into what I’m doing at this moment.  If you’re still reading..

I got off work about an hour ago, after a pretty long day of classes followed by a full shift.  (I’m a shift supervisor at a retail store, conveniently located about a five minute drive from the cottage I rent).  Am I allowed to put a whole sentence in parenthesis? Probably not.  Anyways, I’m polishing off my second Heineken and trying to get this blog-ball rolling.

In regards to literacy.  To be perfectly honest I don’t write unless I have to for a class, or I’m texting. Even my text messages are abhorrently abbreviated.  I don’t know if it’s because I’m lazy or… Yeah, I guess that’s it.  I spell your, and you’re, as ur.  I spell there, their, and they’re, as ther.  As if that second e is such a waste of time.

I read constantly.  Obviously, I must be able to read in order to function as a college student, and a working stiff in my little universe.  As far as I know, I have to be literate to pay my bills.  I also read for pleasure, and it is one of the deepest passions of my existence.  Hopefully, as the English teacher I aspire to be someday, I’ll be able to pass on my appreciation for reading to my students as a career.  I suspect I’ll be even more passionate about that..

Basically everything I’ve written tonight has been formulated within the context of Szwed’s “The Ethnography of Literacy.”  But, what I have taken away predominately from reading Szwed, is the entirely new light (to me) he has shed on literary forms such as “graffiti” and “gambling slips” and “pornography.”  It never occurred to me that a scholar would appreciate the dark and dirty corners of modern society, beyond the scope of an intriguing study, or an exciting setting.