https://docs.google.com/document/d/18sEKZSkbX16HY7Bw3BFpqBxFqRNC8op91JYNYuJI99E/edit

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Bhj0ir7VOUHIJgnlbHRqLE8tr_Uf9QJNv0fB87lCX-4/edit

I started my first job at Journeys in 2018 at the age of 17. I quickly became aware of how to sell and market shoes to gain sales for my daily goal. Working for Journeys taught me a lot about how to read people, how to market to certain people, and how to swindle people into making unnecessary buys. In one year I went from being a part-time seasonal associate to the co-manager of the store. Learning my way to becoming part of the management team while being the youngest in the store helped me learn a lot of communication and leadership skills. 

Journeys is owned by Genesco, an independent brand that specializes in brand name shoes. There are almost 2,000 stores in North America and one in every state. In 2011 they implemented a program called “Attitude that Cares,” which helps employees reach out in their community and service. In 2014, Journeys became partners with Vans Warped Tour and invites top employees to festivals that are sponsored by Vans. Each holiday, different brands sponsor Journeys and give free shoes and shirts that must be worn at work for promotions. The company focuses most of their extra time for community service such as cleaning beaches and giving back to the community.

My personal experience with Journeys is a little different. As my first job, I poured my heart into learning everything that I could and helping anyone I could. Each day we had goals on how much money we had to make a day and a ratio that counted how many socks, shoes, and accessories were sold. On top of that, we had to organize our stock room and accept the weekly shipment of inventory. We were expected to do all of this within a four-hour shift as a part-time associate. As I climbed the ladder, I was trusted with more important jobs such as scanning shipments, closing the registers, taking the deposit to the bank, and decorating the store. After a year of being with the company, my manager was suddenly being investigated by corporate due to one of my coworkers emailing them about her lazy attitude and her slack with her job. I had to be interviewed and write corporate an email about my experience with her and how she handled her job. She was quickly fired and I was chosen to become co-manager. 

After a month of being co-manager, I transferred to the Chico store and became a sales lead. The stores had two completely different vibes and I did not feel appreciated by the company anymore so I decided to leave the company. Overall, I believe that the company has good intentions, yet they do not live up to them. I have sent a letter to corporate about how much I loved the company and try to help them create a good environment for their employees. I am grateful for the things Journeys has taught me and how I can use those skills for the rest of my life. 

works cited

“Genesco.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Feb. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genesco.

“Journeys (Company).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 Feb. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Journeys_(company).

The Patagonia company is very well known for being a safe eco driven corporate. They strive to benefit and give back as much as they can to the earth and their workers. They create safe and equal working environments and donate money to help preserve the precious earth we live on. They have acknowledged that the earth is facing a difficult time and that all hands need to be on deck to try and help restore it. They bring up how the issues can lie in the economic system, especially in large corporations. In their effort to create a better company to overcome these large corrupt corporations, they implement three main ideas: sustainability, successful communities, and quality. To help implement those ideas, they have also created a list of seven values. They make decisions based on the environmental crisis, making sure that they do not harm the planet with their products. They also give all attention to the quality of the product by using natural resources as long as safe working conditions. They also put pride in treating their employees with the utmost respect and treat them very well with fair pay. Patagonia also encourages its workers to participate in their core values. They also do not expand their company in an attempt to earn more money. They also donate either 1% of their gross sales or 10% of profits, whichever is higher. Lastly, they encourage equal opportunities for all employees with transparency.

I belive the Patagonia, as a company, is an amazing example of what more corporations should become. Their dedication to the environment and their employess protrudes their amazing values. I am a proud customer of Patagonia and I plan on supporting them for as long as it is available to me.

In this meme, the white van represents the stereotypical sex trafficker car. In California, human sex trafficking is a very scary and real thing. Half of all sex trafficking victims are children aged 12-14 years old. It also is a $35,000,000,000 business that is made from prostitution. California is the most trafficked state in the United States and is used more in Northern California. Many women do not feel comfortable walking alone at any time of the day in our area. Parking lots, alleys, neighborhoods and more have been known to be areas where women are kidnapped and sold into sex trafficking. Yet, 51% of women who are put into sex trafficking are put there by family members. In this day and age, it is not safe for any women and we all have to be on high alert constantly. If you are able to escape from the horrors of sex slavery, less than 1% of traffickers can be identified and caught. With this very real and scary event that is happening all around us, we need to bring more awareness to the topic to help the women in our community.

“Northern California Anti-Trafficking Coaltition.” Northern California Anti-Trafficking Coaltition, 2019, http://www.ncatcoalition.com/.

What have you taken away/what can you tell me about rhetoric?

I have learned the different emotions and depth that is hidden in rhetoric. Ethos, pathos, and logos are all examples of well used rhetoric and can manipulate or influence any conversation. Discovering how to use these and when they are being used has helped me understand conversations and what the point is of each one.

How does rhetoric relate to critical thinking/reading?

Critical thinking and reading make your mind understand and logically think of the reasoning and arguments in a conversation or reading. Using the tools of rhetoric can put yourself in a position of understanding your situation and emotions being used.

1. Many famous Instagrammers post advertisements in their feed as a way of making money. These ads are seen by millions of people which helps spread the product quickly. Teenagers and people who admire the famous Instagrammers, tend to want to do things that they do. These ads are targeted to help their customers become the people they look up to, which usually ends in disappointment. Huge companies thrive off of these people and use them to expand their empire of a business. A good example of this is the Flat Tummy Corporation that is advertised by the Kardashians and many other big celebrities.

As a huge fan of Patagonia, I became interested in the background of their products and its journey. In the article, Patagonia Clothing: Made Where? How? Why? from the Cleanest Line, they explain the quality standard that they keep their products at making it difficult to find the right manufacture. Majority of the United States manufacturers for clothing have shut down forcing Patagonia to look overseas for the creating of their products. As part of their standards, they refuse to have any material put together by children, forced labor, or sexual labor. They partnered with the Fair Labor Association (FLA), a non-profit organization dedicated to decent working conditions and fair wages. They also made contracts with their manufacturers to make sure that there was no subcontract work without their permission. Before placing an order, Patagonia sends a representative out to the location to check the materials and work environment so approve the conditions. In the early 2000’s, Patagonia made the wrong decision to expand their factories to law-wage labor. This caused them to not be able to track the conditions of the factories and seriously hurt their revenue due to poor quality, customer dissatisfaction, and long inspection waits. To fix this, they reduced their 100 factories to 65, and today are at 45 factories. After finding some American factories, they brought a small percentage of their factories to the states. Their factory in Texas employs disabled workers, making it one of their top priorities to stay in business with them. With all of the different countries they are associated with, they have investigated the appropriate living wages in each country to pay fairly. All together, Patagonia is a modern company that believes in equality and great products equally.

In the article, What is “Academic” Writing? by L. Lennie Irvin, explains the difference between writing in high school and college. It starts with their 7 myths of writing, giving the reality of how the writing process works. My favorite myth was number three, “perfect first drafts,” it explains that not everyone gets a draft correct the first time. I have struggled with trying to do it perfectly the first time and hope to learn how to become better at allowing myself to not have it perfect. They go onto explain that writers have to express in their writings to readers. The physical content contains influences, purpose, and the interpretation of the reader. When writing you must keep in mind who’s your audience? What’s the occasion or context? What’s your message? What’s your purpose? What documents/genres are used? Asking yourself these questions while writing can guarantee a better reading for your audience. I believe that this article has helped me understand the components of writing and how to change and grow through it.

My name is Jillian Carlton, I am 19 years old and I am from Redding California. I was born in Chico while my dad was a Chico State student and I have lots of family in the area. I was originally a pre-nursing major, but I am changing to a History major and I will become a High School History teacher. My love for history has been a lifelong fascination and I have travelled all over the United States to see some amazing historical sites. I love to hunt and fish with my dad and play/coach Volleyball and Softball. My family means a lot to me and I enjoy spending lots of time with them.