Author Archives: Christian’s Automotive Adventures

Essay #2 – My Experience as an Online Publisher

My experience with online publishing through this course has been quite the adventure so far. As the semester wraps up, I am able to reflect on the work I’ve done and see how my online presence has developed. I remember when PUB 101 first started, it was overwhelming in a sense, as we were tasked with building a website from a clean slate. With no real structure and limited guidance, it was a completely different experience than any other course I’ve taken. It seemed impossible at first, it was challenging to even figure out a starting point. 

I chose to develop my publication on the topic of cars. As you’ll learn when you read through my blog posts, I hold the topic of cars very close to my heart. Cars are more than just cars to me, they’re engineering marvels with individual characters. My goal with this blog was to try and express my take on why cars are more than just tools to transport you from point-a to point-b. I approached this in a style which aimed at being welcoming and interesting. I imagined my public to be those who don’t see cars the same way I do. If there’s one thing I learned throughout my years of being obsessed with cars, it’s that not everybody feels the same way. In fact, most people don’t understand the obsession at all. I understand this and see it as a fun challenge. I enjoy teaching people about cars and trying to convince them where I’m coming from. 

I aim to provide entertainment through my blog, in hopes of creating a personal connection with the reader. One of my deeper goals when making this blog was to make the reader feel less alone. Cars are more than just machines, they can be methods of therapy. Throughout my life, cars have been there for me in my darkest times, and I hope that my stories open the eyes of my readers to the idea of this reality. The cover photo of my website, the picture of my car in Porteau Cove actually has a far deeper meaning than just the face value of the photo. That photo was taken at probably 7 or 8 in the morning of Tuesday, January 25th (the day of our first in-person PUB 101 class). Why was I in Porteau Cove? I was having an awful night and needed to get away for a little bit. I set out of my home in New Westminster at about 11 pm the night before. I ended up in Porteau Cove after driving around at about 3 am. I sat there in my car and watched the sunrise, before heading back to the mainland to attend class. My car was there for me and provided me with the automotive freedom to decompress and relieve some of the stress that I was undergoing. Without that escape, it would’ve been a far more challenging night. 

What am I trying to get at here? My blog is more than just a face-value story-telling platform about cars. My underlying goal is to help my readers understand that there’s therapy in automotive freedom. When things aren’t going great, it’s therapeutic to get in your car and go for a drive. Cars make for excellent distractions through tough times. 

In terms of what I’ve learned about my audience through analytics, I haven’t had a whole lot of web traffic to track, but my average reader tends to stay on my website for a decent amount of time. This is refreshing to see, as it appears that my audience is connecting with my automotive adventures. I haven’t received any direct website comments, but the comments about my website through the peer-reviews have been insightful. 

Looking back, my thinking of publication has changed quite significantly. At first, I thought publishing had a solid structure, which would make it hard to set foot into the world of publication. I quickly learned that this is not the case, and there is lots of freedom in publishing. It’s been a fun process building my “online presence” and “cyber infrastructure.” I will admit that it was challenging to stay motivated at times. I related to what Gardner Campbell wrote in the 2009 paper entitled “A Personal Cyber Infrastructure.” There’s part of this work that states “sometimes progress is linear[,] sometimes progress is exponential.” I found this to be true within an online publishing context. Progress is challenging at times. However, when progress is made, I find the concept of “digital gardens” presented by Tanya Basu to be particularly applicable. With the development of my website, I’ve found that I’ve created my own “digital garden.”

References:

https://posiel.com

https://er.educause.edu/articles/2009/9/a-personal-cyberinfrastructure

https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/09/03/1007716/digital-gardens-let-you-cultivate-your-own-little-bit-of-the-internet/

Process Post #12 – Future Plans for my Blog

As the PUB 101 course wraps up, the mandatory process posts are coming to an end.

When writing these, I always think about what the future of my blog will look like.

I’ve come to the conclusion that I’d like to carry on expanding my online presence through this blog, even after the course ends.

PUB 101 has shown me that publishing can be fun. Before starting this class, I had a warped perception of what being a publisher entailed. After experiencing this class, I learned that publishing is fun, and I’d like to carry on making posts in the future.

If all goes according to plan, I’ll be taking PUB 201 in the Fall, which means this blog will be revived and improved then.

Process Post #11 – Developing Community Guidelines

If I were to have community guidelines for my website, I would have some reasonable rules in place.

Here’s a short list of what I’d imagine my community guidelines to include:

  • Freedom of speech is encouraged, however, no hate speech or harassment would be tolerated.
  • Differing opinions are welcome, as long as they’re presented respectfully.
  • Use the “Golden Rule” – Treat others the way you’d want to be treated.
  • Respect others, and their viewpoitnts.

Aside from those basic rules, I don’t think there’s much I’d implement. As long as people use common courtesy when on my website, I don’t think any issues would arise.

Process Post #10 – Integrating Transmedia

The concept of transmedia integration means expanding one’s online presence across multiple platforms. 

In the future, I could expand into other media platforms. Creating social media channels such as a YouTube account, Instagram account, or other types of social media accounts would allow for the expansion of my online presence. 

I believe that expanding my blog to other platforms would be a success. Having multiple ways for people to view my content would be beneficial, as it would allow for the expansion of my audience.

Blog Post #12 – Therapy Drives

Many nights I’ll just drive, and drive, and drive, for seemingly no reason.

Whenever people ask me where I’m going, my reply is usually “wherever the roads take me.” This concept may sound strange, but there is something that I find so compelling about automotive freedom. 

I’m a strong believer that driving is therapeutic. Oftentimes I drive to scenic places, just to decompress and stare at the city from a quiet viewpoint. There’s something so beautiful about self-reflection times like these. 

It’s late and I’m writing this while sitting in my car. It’s been one hell of a week and I’m taking this time to do exactly that. Decompress & stare at the city from a quiet viewpoint.

Whenever people ask where I’m going on drives like tonight’s, my reply usually consists of something along the lines of “wherever the roads take me.” The majority of the time I have no plans, or destination in mind. I start driving and see where I end up. Sometimes these drives are short, such as running to Tim Hortons to grab a warm drink, or sometimes they’re longer, and I end up far away from home. Regardless of the duration, I consider these to be my therapy sessions.

Blog Post #11 – An American Icon

I’ve mentioned my father’s mustang in previous blog posts, but I figured I’d dedicate one to the history of the mustang.

The Ford Mustang was originally produced in the mid-1960s in America to fill a void that existed in the car market. The mustang was intended to be a cost-effective sports car, and when released was extremely successful. 

Mustangs quickly became popular and over time developed the title of being an “American Icon.”

Over the years, Ford released various versions of the mustang. From the culture-hated, mid-80s Mustang II, to popular icons such as Shelby editions of the mustang, the name has been around for a while.

I owe my obsession with cars largely to my father’s mustang.

Process Post #9 – Ideas for Mini-Assignment #3

I seemed to hit a mental block when creating Mini Assignment #3. I just couldn’t think of a way to “remix something” in a car-related way. 

When I hear the word “remix,” I think about music. I get stuck into this mental loop of the idea that a remix can only apply to music.

After careful thought, I came up with an idea. Why not put a comical spin on the assignment, and create a cross-contamination photo edit which encompassed car brand rivalry?

I took an image of my father’s Audi TT-RS and edited an “AMG” badge onto it. Albeit, poorly, but that was sort of the point. I don’t want people to take it seriously.

Completing this mini-assignment was refreshing, as it showed me that there’s ways to overcome creativity mental blocks.

Process Post #8 – Customizing my Website

This week I worked on customizing my website. 

I’ve focused on my drop-down menus, and I’m very happy with how they turned out! I find that with this new design, my website is easier to navigate.

I also changed some colours, added some pictures, and made it easier to find my social media platforms.

As the semester has progressed, I’m very happy with how my website is turning out.

Blog Post #10 – The Audi TT-RS is a Baby Supercar

When most people hear the words “Audi” and “supercar” in the same sentence, their brain automatically goes to the R8, Audi’s flagship performance car.

The TT-RS is an overlooked, incredible piece of machinery. Introduced to North America in 2018, the Audi TT-RS has gained the nickname of “Baby R8” within the car community. 

The TT-RS is a display of engineering excellence. Equipped with a unique, turbocharged inline-5 motor, they make a whopping 400 horsepower and 354 lb-ft of torque and sound incredible while doing it. In a car that only weighs 3,300 lbs, the car presents a recipe for being an incredible platform.

Oh yeah, did I mention it’s all-wheel-drive? Being all-wheel-drive means that it can rocket from 0-100 km/h in 3 and a half seconds. How crazy is that?

The styling of the TT-RS is reminiscent of an R8 as well. Looking at photos, it becomes apparent that the nickname “Baby R8” is rather fitting.

Blog Post #9 – Why I Love the Volkswagen Golf R

When most people hear the name “Volkswagen Golf” — they usually think about a boring commuter car that looks like an egg.

What if I told you there’s a fast, sporty version of the Volkswagen Golf? 

Let me introduce you to the Golf R. Volkswagen’s flagship performance car.

What makes the Golf R different from a regular Golf? Well, in short, it’s better in just about every way. The Golf R is equipped with a turbocharged engine which produces 300 horsepower and 290 lb-ft of torque. These numbers aren’t super spectacular when considering modern performance cars, but the Golf R has a trick up its sleeve – it’s all-wheel-drive.

This all-wheel-drive system is largely what’s responsible for turning the Golf from a regular commuter car into a little rocketship. An unmodified Golf R is capable of a 0-100 km/h time of just 4 and a half seconds. Not bad for a Golf… Plus, being all-wheel-drive means that it’s suitable for just about any weather you throw at it (when equipped with the proper tires).

The all-wheel-drive system isn’t the only party trick of the Golf R though. It’s also equipped with a 7-speed, dual-clutch transmission, which means it shifts through gears lightning quick. 

In addition to the excellent mechanical components, it also looks pretty sharp. It still looks like an egg, but if you’re able to look past that, it looks pretty darn good!

The best part about the Golf R? Its practicality. It has all the functionality of the base-model, “known and loved” Golf. This means that it’s arguably one of the best daily drivers you can buy.