JasonDSlade.com

PRLS 317
31 March 2009

I thought of all the possibilities of leisure activities that I could do, but I had trouble because I have had trouble with determining an activity that I have not participated in or was unfamiliar to me. I finally settled on something that I had never gone out to do. I joined a gym. I have never joined a gym and have never worked out appropriately and extensivley.

I went into the gym on a V.I.P. guest pass, and joined. From the outset, the gym itself was beyond what I thought my personality would be able to handle. Firstly, there are alot of people, and in my own personality, I like to be with limited people. I like to be with family or close friends during leisure activities. I was able to go to the gym with my girlfriend. It did alleviate the uneasiness I had with the amount of people at the gym and the total lack of familiarity with the code or conduct in the gym.

The gym culture is completely different from anything I had experienced before. I have always thought that the people who came to the gym are fitness nuts, but I was surprised to find out that ordinary people of all shapes and weights come to the gym.

There are elements of the gym that do cater to my personality. These elements create solitude among the many in the gym. I know it may seem difficult to comprehend, but this solitude is created by the use of headphones. The headphones could be connected to iPODs, MP3 Players, or the headphone connection for the headphones. The headphones create solitude because one becomes immersed in either the music or the television. The very exercises and fitness activities themselves create an illusion of solitude.

It can be quite awkward while working out because I tend to think about the amount of people that could possibly stare at you. Sometimes I got self-conscious about the technique or stretching that I was doing. I have never had full training on anything I have done, and I only know stretching from basketball practice. I do have limited knowledge about working out, but it does not really help with working the machines. The first time on each machine is trial and error. It was truly hard for me to break down to just try to operate the machines correctly.

The gym experience was unique and eye-opening because I realized that I was able to accomplish some things that I did not think was entirely possible with my personality.

The Civil War broke out; lives were changed. Wives were widowed, sisters lost brothers, daughters and sons lost fathers, and families were torn apart by the Civil War. Some believed the devastating war would be concluded quickly by some decisive victory, but instead they had to endure 4 long years of that terrible war. After the conclusion of the war the era that followed was one of healing, technological advances, as well as literary change.

The North and the South had reconstruction to do in their regions. The South had a lot more to reconstruct. Fields that were destroyed needed to be retilled and replanted. The cities that had been razed needed to be rebuilt. Whereas in the North little needed to be repaired.

There were some technological advances as well, after the Civil War. Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone had been invented. This brought on instant, as well as instantaneous voice over line. Also the invention or the discovery of alternating current allowed broader use of electricity. It allowed light bulbs to be used in rural areas as well as in urban areas.

Literary change occurred after the Civil War because of people’s realization that the potential possibilities of human nature is not true. The writing of truth and realism began. Walk Whitman, a man who lived during and after that war used realism in his writings; he celebrated the advancements of the age and put down the materialism and democratic corruption.

Another change occurred in literature. This change is called regionalism. Regionalism is a type of writing which produces the effect of the region. For example: if one was writing in the south, one would use writing to record their type of dialect with their accent. Local color was also brought in along with regionalism because not only was its effect to write accents but also the social customs were also needed for effect. Brett Harte was one who wrote in this type of style, and he is famous for his depictions of the western towns. Sidney Lanier and Henry Timrod both used this effect as well.

These literary forms bring to our tables and desks a real feeling. One that is true and very heart felt. As culture changed the writings changed with the eras.