My name is Jennifer R. I have been in the MET program since September 2019. With one more course to complete after this term, I hope to graduate in the summer. I have been teaching primary school in Calgary since 2014. I completed both my BA and B.Ed. at Simon Fraser University.

I have several bags that I take to and from my different contexts, but this one to me is my most sacred. I guess I say this because this is the bag that transports the tools that enable my expression. This is the bag that I carry to and from my jam space, which I try to go to for at least an hour everyday. 

In my old Browns bag I carry a vocal pedal, microphone and power cables to match. I also bring a compact midi controller and USB cable for making music on my white laptop computer. I lug around my binder of sheet music in this bag, so I can practice for my Friday drum lessons. I have my sticks, an egg shaker (which I rarely use), and a practice pad to cover my snare head when my ears need a break. When I am feeling overstimulated, I will write in my journal and have some tea. 

When I consider the contents of my bag, I think that there are a couple items that operate as text. The binder, given to me by my instructor, has both pre-written sheet music and sheet music that he writes himself in our sessions. When I am learning new songs from the pre-written sheet music, I am developing literacy in musical notation. Musicians who can play by ear or are able to sight-read are often differentiated, as they are considered two distinct literacies. When my instructor writes new music for me to practice, he is communicating new ideas to me. These ideas are often based on questions I have, so his text can be thought of as one part of a conversation. I think two other items that can be considered text in the picture, include the microphone and my journal. The microphone allows me to sing text and my journal allows me to write it. The three objects I have mentioned tell a story about the spaces I inhabit. If someone were to find my bag, they would know that I love to create. Although there are some musicians who like to play music alone, I use these items to connect to other people. I love to be part of a community and to be inspired by others. 

I think that the text technologies that exist in this bag include the laptop, the midi controller, the vocal pedal, and microphone. These items can be considered text technologies because they enhance text through technological means. The midi controller creates messages when triggered, that then creates sounds on a digital interface on my computer. When the midi messages are recorded in a computer program, I can then edit them to sound different. This changes the sound or message of the original text. The microphone on it’s own, amplifies spoken text, but when it is run through a vocal pedal, the message is altered again. The message that is relayed by using auto-tune vs. your natural voice is very different! I think that these items in my bag show that I like to be playful with language and communication. I love nuances and feel that you can get to know someone more deeply by how they choose to express themselves. While engaging with the objects in my bag, I am able to hone my text, technological and musical literacies. 

I feel that the narrative of my bag conflicts with the one that I project to the world.  As a newish teacher, I have been unable to focus on music as much as I used to. My focus has been more on my career and it has taken a toll on the musical part of my life. I sometimes feel as though it’s been difficult to leave room for both identities to exist at the same time. Although I still see myself with these interests, I feel like I need to be part of a community again in order to sync my inward and outward identities. 

That being said, I am happy where I have landed. This bag 15 years ago would have had maybe a patch cable and a journal. Back then I could play keyboards, but definitely not drums, and I was TERRIFIED of technology. 25 years ago, I carried around my journal and pen in my small side bag. I now have two Tupperware containers full of old journals.