Free Write

As this semester ends I am left facing the biggest obstacle of my life, student teaching! I am very nervous about this and question myself every day as to whether or not i will succeed. I will be at a career and technology center also known as a vocational education center. I have already met my cooperating teacher and students. I think that this nervousness is uncalled for and that once i get in the classroom and see that i am actually teaching at least one student i will fall in love with teaching the way i did back in high school when i got the chance to teach 4th and 5th grade students about water conservation. My college career has flew by and i am now knocking on the door of the rest of my life!

Group work

After completing phase one of the client project i feel that team bangarang is one of the best groups there is. The only problem we have run into is getting everyone at the meeting at the same time. This is understandable seeing as we all have very busy schedules. As far as getting the work done on time we haven't had any major issues. For phase two i would like for our group to get the work done at a faster pace, not that this was a problem in the first phase. We have found success just filling in the group members that were not present on the assignments that needed to be completed. I feel that our group is well comprised with team mates that know how to cooperate and have a variety of skills that will make our project a success.

Free Write

Food is one of the basic necessities of survival. This does not mean that it has to be an experience that you do not enjoy. I grew up in the South so I have really become fond of the traditional Southern home cookin'. While growing up fried foods, rice, and gravy were staples in my house. Since coming to college I have experienced other types of food.
I do all of the cooking at my apartment and i rarely fry any food. I am not an artistic person. When it comes to the kitchen though i feel that i can experiment and create things. I do take things to seriously however. In recent cook outs i find myself worrying over the appearance of the food rather than the taste. I think this comes from the fact that I have a pretty good base of knowledge in seasoning and flavor and now i'm trying to refine my presentation methods.
I actually believe that i would enjoy attending a culinary school. I also have dreams of owning my own restaurant. The only thing that my restaurant will have to be is authentic. I can not stand going out to eat and sitting down at a restaurant only to be served bland food that has no "kick" to it.

Resume

I had no idea that so many employers checked an applicants credentials and references. In the article Eagle-eyed Employers Scour resumes for Little White Lies it was stated that 96% of employers check credentials, references, or both. it also says that you should not say you have a degree if you do not, instead you should state how many credits you are into the degree. In the article There's No Quick-Fix Solution To Erasing Lies on a Resume i had no idea that if you lie on a resume and the company finds out that you did lie later, they can fire you. The question then arises do you come clean or continue to cover it up? Either way it can cause serious damage to your career. In this day there is no possible way to lie on a resume and get away with it. With the technology and communication today it is very simple for an employer to check your credentials.

Interviews

I read an article on tricky interviewers. It shocked me that some interviewers would intentionally be rude and put the interviewee under pressure. I don't think that i would have a good interview in a situation like this. Under direct pressure i do not perform well. Having read this article and knowing that some interviewers will play this "game" makes me feel more comfortable if i faced a situation such as this.
The best way to approach this situation according to the article is to remain calm and be just as blunt with the interviewer as he is to you. A period of silence after a question is normal. If the interviewer stares you down the interviewee should count to 20 and after this if it is still silent a question that reveals detail about the job position or company should be asked to the interviewer.

Another article that interested me was about looking at the interview as a sales call. You must ask for the job. It is not begging because you are offering your talents for the job position. This way of thinking makes the whole interview process seem much more simple to me.

Where will i be at 10 years from now?

Ten years is half as long as i have already been alive. It is hard for me to see myself that far in the future. I have given this alot of thought in the past. By the time i'm 30 i will be teaching at the school i plan to stay at the rest of my career. I want to be building a strong FFA chapter and affecting the lives of my students.
My personal goals are somewhat different. I will have a house built over a pond. I will be living a simple life. I will have my own garden and greenhouse for enjoyment. I will have at least two boats. One for freshwater fishing and one that is at least 30 feet long for offshore fishing. I will have caught a fish over 700 lbs. 30 is a good age to begin thinking about children so i'll be preparing for that.
In ten years i will be able to have the next 20 years of my life planned out. I will begin planning for my retirement. I think in ten years i will be living the best years of my life. I don't have to be a millionaire by the time i am 30 but i will be financially secure and not have so many payments that i can't just blow my money when i want to. i will be living a life that is carefree and simple.

Web 2.0

I feel that as a society we are too dependant on the internet and computers. Our entire lives are based on computers. We contact people via e-mail and other messengers, rarely visit a library to open a book, and even post our feelings on blogs. If you do not know how to efficiently use the web you will never keep up with the pace of modern business.
Everyone has to learn how to use the technological devices today to keep up with the fast paced world we live in. For the people that have not grown up experiencing the fast changing ways to interact with others it is very difficult to keep up. Even the people who are experience in all of the technology it can be difficult because of the advances in communication are so rapid.
Everything we do will have to be thought of in a different light. I remember when i was growing up i didn't have a cell phone until I was 14. Nowadays i can't remember how i talked to my friends before i had a cell phone. Think about it if they weren't at home you couldn't reach them. That was only the beginning of the revolution. We can now access the internet, that contains all the information in the world, from our vehicles. In the future there is no limit to how connected we will be.

About Me

My name is Travis Ard. I was born and raised in the small town of North, South Carolina. I am an Agricultural Education major working on my bachelors degree and i plan on staying in school to get my masters. When i get out of school i want to teach at a high school somewhere in South Carolina.
I enjoy hunting and fishing. Fishing is by far my favorite past time. I have been to Lake Okeechobee in Florida fishing, where we stayed in the Roland Martin resort. I have caught just about every fish possible to catch in South Carolina waters. Some of the biggest fish i have caught are a 200 lb. Bull shark, A 55 lb blue catfish, and a 35 lb flathead catfish. Bass are my favorite species to fish for. I still haven't caught one to put on the wall yet though.
I also like to spend time with my family when i get a chance to be home. I am very close to my little brother. We party together whenever we get the chance. Other than hangin out with my family there is really nothing to do in my hometown. I think that is why i enjoy being in Clemson so much. If i could i would be a student for a career. But since that can't happen, i guess i have to find something else to do.