I may be one of the few people in the class that has experience with blogs, and blogging. I wouldn't call myself a pro, but I've been around the block a few times. I've had a few different blogs over the past few years, all on Tumblr. My internet presence is a direct representation of my sense of humor. I don't necessarily take the internet seriously, often making my facebook profile pictures cartoon characters or hilarious screen caps. Or sometimes I'll get a kick out of writing in broken english, in a way mocking how seriously some people take the internet. I made an okcupid profile merely just to fill in the "You should message me if" section with "if you'll do my statistics homework." When I asked my friend Jack to describe my internet presence he said, "I would say that you sort of mirror the abstract concept of the Internet by creating an immense collage of mixed media and abstract niche humor."
What I worry most in this class is people not understanding my sense of humor...perhaps I would be penialized for not taking it serious enough. Or perhaps my jokes will come off as stupidity, or defiance toward the school work. I think that in reality I respond to the internet in such a way because I am so experienced with it.
Though I am so experienced with the internet, blogging, and social media, this is my first online class as well as my first moodle class. This means I have to keep in mind that because I don't meet in a classroom, my classmates and professors will only see me the way I present myself on the computer screen. This is a bit scary, but it means I have to take this part of the internet seriously. I can't hide behind my bizarre humor.
Hey Mindy, thanks for the heads up on your quirky sense of humor, but indeed you're right, your classmates (nor on occasion, your prof) might not get it. A classroom setting IS different than a blog persona or a social networking profile, we're not pretending who we are here (usually), we're all trying to learn from each other and that is usually taken seriously on some level. That is not to say humor is not appreciated. You might find in your projects you can have fun with that, but in a straight discussion you might read through your post and make sure you're not being overly flip or sarcastic, that's where I've seen folks get in trouble, it can come off arrogant and mean (not saying you would, I've just seen that happen in an online class situation).
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