Hello readers!
For personal circumstances I needed to withdraw from Blogging and Online Communication Techniques Summer intensive session and begin again in trimester one. To be honest, my personal life has dramatically changed since December, and has deeply affected several of my values whilst also serving as motivation to finally get around to doing things that I had shelved for a later date.
Whilst protecting privacy of my family, someone in my life was diagnosed with stage 4 non-small cell lung cancer in early December. Cancer.
However, this diagnosis and world shift has in several ways exposed me to how we communicate with topics we’re afraid of. How we communicate with those who are scared, the unknown, to finally cast off inhibitions and really get things out in the open. Actually, internet communications is becoming quite an impact in this person’s cancer treatment in the way of internet support groups and youtube discussion. This is phenomenal, that for those who are critically and chronically ill that they can still be apart of any conversation without being judge on their physical conditions. I have noticed people are treating this person differently now that she has lost her hair due to chemotherapy, and the radiation has given her pain affecting her physical stamina, so face to face communication has been a little challenging. However, communicating across the internet – the ability to be anonymous, at least in her position her name is still her full name but she chooses to not use her photo – she can get some normalcy back.
Never did I think that such a horrific time in my life could give me a new perspective in just how individuals, and even societies, communicate with those who are terminally ill. You’d be surprised at how different tone is, and how people are ever so careful in choosing their words. Afraid that may make a Freudian slip, or a faux pas. Sometimes it is a little like seeing people not know how to talk.
This post is just me rambling mostly, but it also serves as a reminder of something I wish to accomplish throughout this subject, and that is to understand further how blogging and online communication serve as advocacy for those with illness and also how digital communication tools enhance their communication experience. Over the next few weeks I’m going to be sharing articles on this blog and through twitter that explores how digital platforms and communications are linked to the cancer community, as well as how these technologies help those with other chronic illnesses.
It will be a challenge this trimester, as I am assisting this person with some of their cancer care, as well as keeping up with a 4 subject load. Deadset, I know this is going to be very hard, and I’m not setting myself up for any excuses. By sharing this information, I want to be transparent with my life, and also put in to writing a public motivation for me to keep going. I consider myself warned.
pasteur's soapbox 
Good on you for joining in the blogging – I’m sorry to hear it’s been a rough last few months, I hope you and your family are doing well, and good on you for persisting in your goals. If you’ll indulge some brief feedback, this would have been a great post to showcase your engagement with CC material – be sure to check out the Wk3 study notes and videos (particularly my chat with Astrid on this issue). Keep up the good work, and all the best with the unit!
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Thanks Adam, and the feedback is greatly appreciated! I’m watching the interview now. It’s a little tricky to grasp some of the concepts, especially the licensing. I just reached the section about copyright of memes in Australia, but I’m still a little confused. If it was an image, someone else had already taken – I didn’t capture the image – and I used a meme generator website to add text, is this enough to get by in the satire clause? I’ll have to look at the site’s T&C’s, but I am assuming it’s a US owned/based website, so their rules are different to ours. VERY CONFUSING! haha
Also, thank you for the kind thoughts. We’re getting by, and life has settled a little 🙂
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No worries at all, good to hear. There’s probably no catch-all answer to your question, as it will depend on the context and whether the original creator had the rights to the image (and has in turn shared them with you). Parody/satire is also notoriously difficult to prove, as I think Astrid might say in that video too. You can see the complexity of the issue already, which is why I simplify things in this unit and generally restrict media-making to your own stuff and stuff with appropriate CC licences (which are handy to learn about in their own right)…
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