family profile part 2

The event that happened in our family was that our 18 year old son had gotten straight A's. It was family tradition to go out to eat to reward him. Fortunately, we had enough money saved that we were able to afford this. We could even have the option to go to a fancy restaurant. By cutting back on personal expenses, and the internet and cable, we could put more into our savings. We didn't have to redo our budget at all because of this. This has showed that putting more money into your savings can be used to your advantage. We could reward our son for his good grades without having to worry about money.

family profile

My family's background consisted of living in an apartment in a large metropolitan area. One adult worked as a teacher in the public school and the other was a stay at home mom. There were two children, an 18 year old and a 6 month old. The teacher and the 6 month old were covered under her employer's insurance program. There was also a bus service available to them. Our income was $25,000 and we had a cash savings of $250. When adding up the costs of all the bills we had, it became very stressful. We had to cut back on many things that we usually would take for granted. We couldn't afford a car, so we had to get a bus pass instead. We also had to take away our internet and cable. We had to decide if we wanted the 18 year old to move out and be on his own, or continue to live with us. We got a two bedroom apartment which concluded in him sharing a room with his 6 month old brother. Even though it wasn't our real life, it was stressful going through the different costs and having to make sacrafices in order to survive. We had to reduce the cost of our personal items and even insurance for one adult and the 18  year old. In my opinion, this family had the opportunity to increase their income by maybe getting a better job, or the other adult could have worked. That way, they could make enough money to afford day care for the baby.

Group Dynamics

My group of friends have many different personalities. There is always that one person who thinks they know it all and have to be the boss of everything. They don't like listening to other people's opinions and think theirs is the only correct one. I also have the friend who everyone gets along with. They are liked by many people and just has that likeable personality. Not saying names here, but I have that one friend who always rejects the ideas of others. If we are planning something, they think every idea is "dumb." Although, when criticizing other people's opinions, they aren't contributing any of their ideas at all. I have that one friend who thinks they need all of the attention as well. I feel that they are insecure about themselves and pick apart other people to make them feel better. When they are in an uncomfortable environment, you can see their insecurites leak out. I believe that having these different roles in your group of friends, is what makes up society. If everyone played the same role, it would be much different than it is now. You would rarely have conflict within your group of friends and there wouldn't be drama. Drama is pretty much what high school is, that's why I think these roles play a huge part in society.

Values

Some of my important values include kindness, loyalty, and encouraging. I was brought up to respect others and to always be helpful. In my family you wouldn't let anyone struggle without giving them a hand. These values are important to me because its what makes me who I am today. Through my life I have built up more confidence in myself through many things. In sports I played I especially learned that having confidence in yourself goes a long way. I love the feeling of encouragement as well. When so many people have supported me in my life, I feel that encouraging others can only just help them. I have always been on the shy side as a kid and have been kind to other people as well as my peers. I like to have an open-mind about many things because new ideas can be very helpful. Through my church mission trip, I have learned to never take things for granted. We were there to help the less fortunate and it left me feeling very accomplished.

Sociological Imagination

My sociological imagination has and will influence my life. It is influenced by the way I see myself through the way I act, think, and even dress. My gender being female, that has also infulenced on the way I dress, act, etc. Having three other sisters has showed me the different styles of clothes there are. Even going through school has shown me the different ways other girls interact with eachother. Most girls see other girls as compititon. In my opinion this happens by the way society is today. Society plays a huge role in how others see eachother. It is common for people to judge others without even getting to know them. Being brought up in my house as showed me how my parents want us to live. They raised my sisters and I to be respectful to others and never have a limit on what we want to do with our future. Living in the small town of Freedom has also shown how you get to know everyone in town. Being brought up as Catholic has had an impact on my view on religion as well. Society today always keeps you wondering what else is out there. With so many different opinions from different people it is almost endless of what you could encounter.