Summary Blog: All Walks of Life

This course began by asking us to think about our own culture. We were asked to make a video to define our own culture. When doing this, the first important question is: What is culture? "from a pattern of perceptions that influence communication to a site of contestation and conflict. Because there are many acceptable definitions of culture, and because it is a complex concept, it is important to reflect on the centrality of culture in our own interactions." (Martin, 2013) After contemplating my own culture for quite some time I recorded a video describing all the major part of my life that I feel have defined me to be who I am. Through my experiences in life I do feel a bit culture-less and more connected to the people around me. I am easily able to adopt my style of communication according to the experiences of the person I am communicating with. I have also spent time explaining to many people from all over the world how Americans communicate with each other. I have discovered that people not from America tend to be just as open as I am to learning about how other people live. Part of what defines me is my complete lack of cultural values. I try to keep my mind open and would not consider myself to have a single deeply held belief or a static worldview. I have learned to live with a complicated dynamic worldview that changes with each new thing I learn. I have no faith in anything and this is reflected in my way of life.

 

After thinking about how we would define ourselves culturally we were asked to start thinking about a culture we would like to spend some time studying. I felt it would be a good idea to find an interesting culture in the part of the world I am living now. Observing the life within Lincoln I quickly became interested in the community of people home brewing beer. The people were interesting and were very social. Beer has long been a medium people have used to increase the quality of communication within a social situation. The culture is open to all walks of life and  excited to meet anyone that has a passion for beer and all the things that come with it.

After interviewing Jason McLaughlin for my video I soon began to really see the lifestyle of home brewing beer. He knew everything about what type of flavors each ingredient could give you. He wanted to teach his understanding to anyone that wanted to learn about how to make great tasting beer. He loved to buy beers and let friends try the so they could taste something he enjoyed. It is a culture about sharing stories and thing with each other. Being generous and friendly is a must within the community. They are always trying new things and learning about new flavors people were putting into beers. Everyone has one thing in common in this culture, they all have a passion for beer.

It was great learning about how beer is made and how powerful it is at bring people together. I also participated in "Beer to There" for this project. https://www.facebook.com/beertothere This was an event where over 200 people rode there bikes on a 10 mile tour while stopping at the local breweries in Lincoln to drink fresh beer. I had the opportunity to meet many new great people doing this. At the last stop there were some food trucks and even a live polka-rock band. Trying all the beers at each brewery and talking about them with others was a great way to learn about the beer culture in Lincoln. I met the brewers working at each of these breweries. Each was able to tell me about their own process and what they were trying to accomplish and where there were going in the near future with there beer brewing. I also got to meet new people and learn about their lives and ride my bike around on a beautiful day in Lincoln and see parts of the city I had never been to before. I experienced a deep part of the culture of the people in Lincoln, Nebraska, just as I had set out to do.

Sources Cited

Martin, J. (2013). Intercultural communication in contexts. (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.