People Watching

Kind of Job Gender of Work Age of Worker (approximately)
1.sales woman (American Eagle) Female 22
2.sales woman (New York & Company) Female 27
3.hairdresser (Nicole’s) Male 30
4.cashier (H&M) Male 27
5.shop woman (coffee shop on campus) Female 55
6.sales woman – at the register (Wal-Mart) Female 20
7.sales woman (Target) Female 30
8.hairdresser – cashier at Nicole’s female 25
9.person in charge at the enterprise car rent station Male 30
10.popcorn seller at the cinema Female 18


My observations
If you look at my observation table, you can notice that the age of most working persons are in the range between 20 and 30. Only one of these 10 observed people was much older. I was wondering what the reason for that could be and my only answer I could think of is the traditional American family structure. As we were talking about that topic in class, in the past the woman was seen as the “house maker” and therefore it could be that many older women are more involved in the house life instead of in the current American working world. However, all of the observed people acted in an extraordinary nice and friendly way with each customer and some of them also asked how the customers sensed their shopping experience.

Questions about American family life

1. Do you have to have a cogent reason to get divorced in the US?
2. Is a marriage that took place in Las Vegas valid in all other states of the US? And what about other countries?
3. Is it the norm to wear your wedding ring on the left hand in the US?
4. Do you have to pay for high school in the US?
5. Why are American families moving frequently and complicate their children's life?
6. Are homosexual couples allowed to marry in all states of the US?

RECENT OBSERVATIONS

Observations of children and adults

(http://www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/February05/Findings/images/finding_WICfoodcosts.jpg)

The last times when I went over to Shopko and Wal-Mart I really paid attention to how children and parents act together while shopping. I’ve to say that I especially saw women with children which would amplify and reinforce the position of the father in the American family life. The father is still breadwinner or not really existing in the American family life. Pertaining to what we’ve discussed in class, divorce rates and children growing up without biological father are extremely increasing. Moreover, I got some more feeling for why American children are becoming more and more overweight. Most children in the grocery stores got candy to behave properly while the mother was collecting the items she needed. I had the feeling that the mothers wanted to pamper their children by giving them sweets and calm them down by keeping them occupied. Generally, You can see mothers with more than one child which is might be still the impact of the concept of the American dream saying a perfect family has at least two children.


Ask older Americans

(http://images.doityourself.com/stry/o/older-american-act.jpg)

My average interviewee hopes to stay active and to be able to enjoy his or her hobbies and life when he or she retires. Some commented that they want to be able to garden and do yard works, crochet, and sew. Some answered that they probably will have time to do some volunteer work. Most panelists wish to stay in their home as long as possible which represents the homey component of the average American individualist. Generally, they wouldn’t move in with their children when they are older. Americans tend to think that their life will be fine when they are 65 or older even though they demur about staying healthy and active. About the half of the people I questioned told me that they are afraid of growing old and about the other half of the respondents are looking forward to have time for themselves and travel around in the future.

The American family

This blog entry covers the topic American families and wants also to provide a little insight into the change of the family structure over the last century as well as the opinions of Americans.
Introducing, I just want to present the survey I used to find out more about American families by questioning 10 Americans. Additionally, I read the chapter The American Family in the book American Ways, 3rd edition, published by Longman in 2005 and I informed myself about this topic reading different online articles.

My survey questions are following:
1. Who are the members of your family? Name them and indicate their relationship to you (mother, sister, …).
2. Who lives in your household?
3. How often to you see your parents? Your grandparents? Your sisters and brothers? Do you write, e-mail, or telephone any of them regularly?
4. What occasions bring your relatives together (birthdays, holidays, …)? Have you ever been to a family reunion?
5. Do you feel you have a close family? Why? Why not?
6. Who would take care of you if you became ill?
7. On a scale of 1 – 10, with 10 as most important, how important are the opinions of the members of your immediate family concerning the following decisions? Who you marry; where you live; what job you take.
8. Unhappy couple should stay married for the sake of the children – Yes/No.

The first two questions give a good overview about what’s the typical American family like.
All of my panelists, except one girl who has no siblings, mentioned their parents, their siblings and some of them also mentioned their pets.

It’s typical that married American adults name their husband or wife and their children, if they have any, as their immediate family. If they mention their father, mother, sisters or brothers, they will define them as separate units, usually living in separate households. Aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents are considered extended family. Traditionally, the American family has been a nuclear family consisting of a husband, wife, and their children, living in a house or apartment.

The third and the forth question help to provide a better understanding of how close American people are with their family. Mentioning family, I always talk about the nuclear family from now on. All my interviewees have a regular contact with their family and with the exception of one person all of them have a nearly weekly contact with their grandparents, what surprised me.
It seems like that all of these people have an intact family.

Actual data about America shows that only one in four households consists of a traditional family, approximately. Many children live in so called stepfamilies or blended families or with a single parent. Today, there are many single people, divorced people, families where both parents work and couples without children. This could also be seen as a ramification of the higher standard of education as well as the changing lifestyle in the American society.

All the interviewed people have already been to at least on family reunion and the most mentioned holidays where family members come together are Easter, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthdays.

The sixth question was really interesting for me, because all respondents’ answered that their parents, especially their mom would take care if they became ill. This still represents the mother as the “homekeeper”, even though America is seen as the country of equal opportunities and I know that there are still a lot of women in Austria who stay at home and take care of the children and everything, but even this is becoming more and more rare.

In the 1950s, typically the father was the “breadwinner” and the mother was the “homemaker”. The typical American family consists of two parents and two children. This traditional picture that probably comes into mind thinking of family has been changing drastically over the last decades.
Beginning in the late 1960s, husband and wife are seen as equal partners in most American families nowadays.
The belief in equality has had a strong effect on the family. The father was always accepted to be the ruler and master even though this has been changing in the last decades. Democracy is really important in most American homes compared to aristocratic societies where there is more formal respect towards parents.

The seventh question gives information about how much people concern about their family’s opinion towards special topics, like marriage, work and location of living. Marriage was highest ranked, followed by the location of living and the influence on which job they should choose was ranked lowest. This shows that those Americans I interviewed concern a lot about what their family thinks, but usually this isn’t the rule in American society anymore.

Freedom is really important for Americans and they don’t want to be told what to do. Each individual decides what’s best for him or her. What would be best for the family is not usually considered to be as important as what would be best for the individual. This also means that parents usually have little control, and generally not much influence, over whom their children marry. Traditionally, American children have been experienced to leave the nest at about age eighteen, after they graduate from high school. At that time they are expected to go on to college or to get a job and support themselves
Some parents seem to have little control over the behavior of their teenage children, particularly after they turned sixteen and get their driver’s licenses. On the other hand, many Americans give their young people a lot of freedom because they want to teach their children to be independent and self-reliant.
Working parents constantly struggle to find enough time to spend with their children.

The last question was most interesting to me since all of them had a personal conflict answering this question. I just wanted to have a simple yes or no answer, but most of them were talking about “ifs”. In general, it seems that Americans see divorce as the last chance if nothing else helps anymore. In reality, divorce rates show other facts.

Concluding, I want to state that the family life and how it has changed in the last years is nearly the same in the US and my home country, Austria. I have the feeling that people in more rural areas, like Wisconsin care more about family life than people in more urban areas which would explain some of the answers of my panelists. Having that said, I just want to mention that the topic American family includes much more than I mentioned previously in this post, but talking about all aspects would go beyond the scope of this assignment.

What are my coulda, woulda, shouldas?

At some point in life, most people wish they had done something they instead passed up.
There aren’t really times in my life that I would go back and redo.
However the question I ask myself is what would I’ve done differently during this past year?
The first half of the year was more or less perfect since I started a new, very interesting job besides my study and finished my Bachelor’s degree with excellent success.
Well, let’s have a look at the current second half. I would have chosen another university in America to study abroad, because I can’t identify myself with this remote rural area in Wisconsin. Even though I really like to be in the nature and love out-of-doors activities I prefer to live in a bigger town. I like the campus and the people here in Eau Claire, but I should have chosen a university situated somewhere in or around a bigger city. Moreover I should have looked more carefully into the courses I selected at UWEC. I would have chosen more Business classes if I knew what I know now. In spite of that, I think that I’ve had time to think about my future life here at UWEC and therefore I can say that I definitely know what I want to do and reach in my future life. I am not the person who wants to have a big house with garden, marry and then have children. If I wouldn’t have had the possibility to study here at UWEC I might haven’t detected this. To sum it up, the last year was a great year since I really know now what I want to do with my future life.

Would you rather live in a country that is described as a „melting pot“, a „salad bowl“, or a „mosaic“? Why?

Introductory, I want to mention that in my opinion it’s not wise to discuss this issue, because we’re living in a globalized world where we can’t choose which kind of ethnic diversity we’d like to have in a country.
Nevertheless, let’s have a look at the diverse definitions and detect some of their qualities.
The theory of a country as “melting pot” surmises that the various racial and ethnic groups have been combined into one culture, which means that you can’t identify the different cultures anymore. A new culture emerges from different ones.
Based on the “salad bowl” theory, the various racial and ethnic groups have been remained somewhat distinct and different from one another, creating a richly diverse culture. People live together peacefully and respect the culture of one another with still maintaining original traditions, customs and their mother tongue. Each multicultural individual only assimilates himself to a certain extent.
The “mosaic” theory defines a country as a picture made up of many tiny pieces of different colors. If one looks closely at the nation, the individuals of different colors and ethnic groups are still distinct and identifiable, but together they create a picture that is unique for a country. This theory seems to me relatively equal to the “salad bowl” theory, whereupon to my mind the “mosaic” theory assumes different groups to act more segregate and irrespectively.
Pertaining to the different theories mentioned above and provided that you could choose the country’s conditions, I would prefer to live in a country characterized as a “salad bowl”. The reason for that is that a “salad bowl” still represents the different cultures living together without creating a completely new culture. People don’t have to confirm their strain to live together with other cultures. Population in such a country includes a large variety of ethnic groups without bias and discrimination coming from many races, nationalities, and religions.
I figure that it is important for every human being to accept one another and not to dream about what could have been if. Overall, I am happy to live in a globalized world, because each of us can learn so much from different perspectives linked to the cultural background.
Finally, let's think about the following two proverbs, which from my point of view represent a good thought-provoking impulse to this topic and may help to act in a more open-minded way with different cultures.

"Who does well, will receive good!"

"What one individual does is a drop in the sea, but if it didn't do it this drop would miss forever."

Would you have a gun in your home? Why or why not?

I’ve never asked myself that question before and I am not sure how I should deal with this issue. Usually, in Austria nobody would raise this issue since it is seen as a really sensitive topic. However, I think I would never have a gun in my home, because I don’t feel comfortable in the near of weapons. The last time when I went to Scheels and Gander Mountain with my Host Family, I was really shocked about the fact that you can buy guns in a sports store without spending a lot of time and effort. In Austria you could never imagine buying guns in a sports store and we have quite strict laws concerning gun possession. Moreover, I can’t appreciate the fact that young children are allowed to hunt here in Wisconsin, because I don’t think that children at the age of twelve really understand what they’re doing. Additionally, cruel movies desensitize children as well as adults and deform their perception of reality. Therefore, I persist in my viewpoint of not having a gun at my home and I would definitely never let my children watch violent movies on TV.

Who should be most respected and why?

Americans are often accused of admiring youthful beauty and energy over the experience and wisdom of older people. Who should be most respected – young adults, middle-aged people, or senior citizens? Why?

Basically senior citizens should be most respected, but this also depends on what those people have reached during their whole life. Honor and respect are due to people who have really influenced the society, the city, or maybe even the country in an impressing way. What I am talking about is that every person, who has worked during their whole life, or has been involved in charity organizations, only to mention some examples, is important for all other descendants. Nevertheless, even special thanks go to young or middle-aged people, who have reached something extraordinary in their life. Overall, you can never admire youthful beauty, or mere beauty, and energy over experience and wisdom. Furthermore, you can’t say that only old people are smart and have experience. Every human being has to be respected, no matter what age, color, education or family background he or she has. In spite of everything, Americans are not the only ones who have problems to recognize the real values of a socitey that should be admired. Unfortunately the advertising industry has an enormous impact on the attitude of people towards beauty and the everlasting youthfulness. Every person should think about how advertisements influence our life and what we can do to remain true to ourself. Human values and moral concepts are very important factors that determine the way of our peaceful living-together.



Be the change you wish to see in the world.
(Ghandi)

The typical Austrian

How would you describe the average person in your country and what he or she believes?

The typical Austrian is a homey person, who enjoys to be surrounded by his or her family and adorable, honest friends. A high value is set on good as well as on proper behavior, on a good and solid cuisine and on having a relaxing weekend. Austrians cherish their weekends, on which they are often able to go skiing, sledding, swimming at a lake, biking or hiking together with their family or friends, certainly depending on the season. Summer and winter vacations suit the typical Austrian cheery. The majority of Austrians loves to spend the summer vacation in Italy at the beach, enjoying the Italian food. Most Austrians dream of a family with 2 children and a big house in the outskirts as well as having enough money to live without financial worries. Lots of Austrians also love animals and have dogs or cats. Christmas, Easter and birthdays are usually celebrated by gathering the whole family.
The typical Austrian is well educated and is glad if he or she has a satisfying job with a free weekend.

Wienerschnitzel, a traditional dish in Austria, is customarily eaten one time per week and a chilly, fresh beer is loved by nearly all Austrians. Austrians attach importance to living in freedom in a democratic country with a good health-care system.
Finally I would say that the typical Austrian is a folksy and sociable sport with whom you can have a lot of fun.

My sightseeing tour through Eau Claire

Donald "Sarge" Boyd Bandshell



This historic building, located in Owen Park, was built from funding provided by the Works Progress Administration (WPA).
The bandshell is named after Donald "Sarge" Boyd who became the director of the Eau Claire Municipal Band in 1929 and is still known for his enthusiasm and dedication for music.

Grace English Lutheran Church





This church was formed in 1909, because people wanted an English speaking Lutheran Church in Eau Claire.
The church building was completed by 1916.
In 1938 eleven Memorial bells, that first rang out on Easter morning, were installed .
Today, the church building itself has undergone numerous remodeling whereas the first remodeling occured in 1925.

Phoenix Park





The Farmers Market



Royal Credit Union



The Royal Credit Union, shortly called RCU, is located at Phoenix Park and I only publish the picture, because I really like this modern architectural style of this building.

Union National Bank (now U.S. Bank)



This building, which was designed by Burham Brothers, Inc., of Chicago, represents the "modern" architecture that highlighted the central business districts of the nation's largest cities in the 20th century. The name of the bank changed during the time from first "Wisconsin National Bank of Eau Claire" in 1965 to "Firstar Bank" in 1994 and to "U.S. Bank" in 2002.

L. E. Phillips Memorial Public Library



Eau Claire City Hall





The building was constructed in 1916 and was attached to its neighbor building, the former public librery in 1978-79.
The method of construction, like the two-story brick structure, is typical for civic buildings of the early 20th century.

Eau Claire Public Library



The library was designed by two Chicago architects, named Patton and Miller, and was built in 1903. The building is constructed of buff and blue Bedford limestone.
Since 1978-79 the library has been used as a city office building.

Federal Building - United States Courthouse of Eau Claire

After your first week here, what comparisons and contrasts can you make between UWEC students and students in your country's university

After my first week here I perceived already a lot of differences between UWEC students and students in my country's university.

First of all there’s a big difference in how the campus here and in Austria looks like. In Austria you don’t have a campus like here, where people live in dorms and have so many spare time activities, like sport activities, joining a group association or working on the campus, only to mention some of them.
American people love living together in these dorms and most of them are really involved in the campus-life.

In Graz, the city where I am studying Business Administration as major, you have all the faculties and university buildings on the campus and people live off campus in flats, apartment-sharing communities or at their parents' home. We have some student residential homes in Graz, but all of them are situated off-campus.
The professors at our university are very reserved and you would never be allowed to address him with his first name, like it is common at UWEC. Another difference is that we usually don’t get assignments like it is here. Of course, we have group projects and papers to write or to do a research for instance, but most of the time you have a midterm exam and a final exam or only a final exam to pass. That's why the American university system reminds me of the Austrian school system.

Moreover we have a cafeteria and some other eating opportunities at the Karl-Franzens-University, but you can’t compare our cafeteria with the ones here on campus since our cafeteria is significant smaller and has not such a great variety of food. Constitutionally you can’t compare the eating habits of Austrian and American people. Furthermore we don’t have the possibility to get an all-access meal plan like it is possible here.

American students are really open-minded towards exchange students and they are really interested in other cultures. They start talking with you, no matter if you are at the campus, at a supermarket while you are paying or at the Minnesota State Fair at a snack bar. They act in such a friendly, affectionately and collaboratively way with each other and they like to talk with anybody. Austrian students can also be explained as friendly and cooperative, but usually they wouldn't start a conversation with anybody. They would never start asking foreign people at a snack bar why they are here and where they come from.

American students like having their room doors open in the dorms to get new friends and get informed about what is going on outside their rooms. Austrian students wouldn’t act in such a way since they like having their privacy.

All in all you can see that there are differences between the Austrian and the American culture, but I think that this is the interesting point of living in another culture and trying to do somebody’s best to get involved in the unknown culture.