Interviews in Bowling

I have friends who are in a bowling league and I've never really understood the appeal. Every time I read one of Nicole Williams' essays about the Hanover Bowladrome I find a better appreciation for the sport and the people who play. In this third essay Mrs. Williams effectively incorporates 1st hand research in the form of interviews, making her paper informative and easy to read. The reason for this is because she knows how to pack in a lot of information while still telling a story and not just listing facts. Before she gets into the actual narration of two separate nights at the Bowladrome she gives the reader a small paragraph filled with historical information about the game of bowling. This sets the reader up to appreciate bowling for how far it has come. It also made me appreciate the characters I later read about, Carol and Hank, two great examples of people who keep the sport of Bowling alive.

I was glad to see how this essay was set up. Instead of there being one long essay, Mrs. Williams broke it down into two parts, each describing a visit to the bowling alley. I still am not sure on how to best incorporate many research sessions into one paper but this time I know I don't have to worry about that. It was really interesting to see how different the two visits were and especially how different they are from her previous visits that did not require interviews of patrons.

I like to think that I am confident but I know that the interviewing process will be hard for me. When writing my third essay I have the benefit of being at a bar where people are usually willing to talk to strangers but that hardly makes me feel any better. I am nervous about approaching people and having the right questions that will lead to an interesting/informative essay. I found these questions when googling "Interviewing for Ethnographers" and I think it will help me come up with some great questions of my own!

Check it Out if you'd like! --> The Ethnographic Interview

Mid-Term Portfolio!

So here is my completed mid-term portfolio... a compilation of what I have written so far this semester.

Hope you like it!

http://writing102-sarahhayes.weebly.com

What I know and don't know...

For my semester long research project I have chosen to research a local hangout in Bridgewater.

The Riviera Cafe is located just past McDonald's on the left hand side of Route 18 if you are driving away from Bridgewater State University's campus. It's called "the Riv" by the local townies. My father and his fellow alum from Bridgewater say it's not a nice place and known for its biker crowd. Students today however, do not have anything to say except maybe, "Which bar is that again?” I have been inside this bar and it is a lot nicer than people lead you to believe. Even though it still seems to attract an older crowd, who may be a bit rough around the edges, I did not notice any bikers. The reason I have occasioned this local hangout is because a couple times my friends thought it would be fun to try out the Karaoke night. I did not participate but I did enjoy seeing the many types of people who were willing to publically showcase themselves.
What I don't know...

and would like to find out:

I'm curious as to the type of people who frequent this bar. I would assume that it has it's "regulars" since the bar has been in business for so long. The couple times I went were spread out by at least a month and a half during last year. Both times I noticed there were large crowds and everyone seemed to know each other. I wonder if these "regulars" only come on the Karaoke night or a few nights a week. Is this the type of place where a man or woman would feel comfortable getting a drink by themselves? Also, the establishment is called the Riviera Cafe and so I believe it would serve food. Does anyone come here for a family dinner? Or maybe the people who eat here do so because they don't like to eat alone in front of the television? There was one woman who caught my interest because she was there both times I've been and sang more songs than anyone. To top that off both nights she sang "Baby Got Back" with unique enthusiastic dance moves. The DJ seemed to know her. I wonder if she is always there and if her singing of "Baby Got Back" is a complete joke or something she views as a serious choice (she looked pretty serious).
Check it out!

Friends singing and dancing at Riv on Thanksgiving '10