Sunday, December 18, 2011
Writing and Reading
I wouldn't say that writing has "forced" me to look at the world in a different light, but I would have to say that writing has "allowed" me to look at the world differently. Anyone can piece together letters to form words (aka writing), however it takes practice and dedication to piece together these words into something powerful, something surprising and something with meaning. I find it interesting how we spend a lot of our time studying rhetorical strategies and how they are different strategies are emphasized in a writer's work. While writing my own work, I do not put certain rhetorical devices in it on purpose, however when reading through it again and really picking it apart, I notice all the rhetorical devices that I incorporated subconsciously. This brings me to wonder whether experienced writers try to include strategies or does it just come naturally to them after a lot of practice? I also read differently than at the start of the year because when going through a book, I make sure I grasp the main concept, but do not spend majority of my time focusing and memorizing it. I think that if a reader is reading an essay by a very experienced writer, than they will not have to focus on memorizing the plot, but instead because of the devices implemented bits and pieces of information will piece together in their head without having to think about it.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Things I Would Like to Learn to do...
1. Play guitar. In sixth grade I came back from a week-long overnight horse camp, and I was so upset that I would have to leave horses and return to my family that I cried the whole night. My mom brought out a guitar she had brought me while I was gone at camp, and she told me that she had signed me up for guitar lessons starting in a few weeks. I was so ecstatic, yet my excitement was short-lived. Who knew guitar playing was such hard work? Definitely not me. To this day I only remember three chords...and just because I remember them does not by any means mean that they sound good. As far as guitar playing, my dreams have always been to be just like Taylor Swift. However, I am currently too lazy to pick up the guitar and learn to play a few more chords, and so hopefully in the future I will start taking lessons again. While in Texas over Thanksgiving I saw this guitar in a store, it was hand-made and on sale for a lot of money. I thought, "wow, that looks so cool, and not that hard to do." So because my guitar is currently sitting dormant in my room (hopefully only for a little while) my goal is to decorate is just like this guitar, without all the Texas symbols and stuff of course. (If this ever happens, I will try to post it to my blog.) Once it's all blinged out and pretty maybe I will have the urge to pick it up more often and learn a few new chords.
2. Cook. I know how to make anything that at one time was sitting on a shelf in the freezer aisle...and goes in the microwave. I would like to learn to cook like my grandma, because she makes these extravagant homemade meals everytime I am over there (even just for a casual occasion). She even makes her own potato salad! (I had no idea that was possible! I guess I just figured the heavens parted and plop, down came potato salad right onto the grocery store shelf.) My goal in life is to have recipe that I thought of myself, and when I bring the dish to parties people will be asking me for that recipe. That would be nice.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
A Word That Should Not Be in the English Language
Chunky is defined as "bulky and solid," either referring to a stocky person, or an object. When someone hears the word "chunky," their mind often thinks of it as something solid within something somwhat liquidy, such as potato chunks within Campbell's soup, or pieces of chocolate in your dog's throw up the morning after Halloween. Chunky is a good description word, and often an object cannot be described as anything but chunky. The reason we are so repulsed by this word is because when we hear the word, our brain immediately visualizes an image to go along with it. When referring to a person, we should instead use the word "stocky," to avoid a negative connotation, and confusion with an object being chunky.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Holiday Stories
1. I asked my family if they could remember a funny story from the holidays. They thought of one, which was when my sisters and cousins and I were younger, we would spend our Christmases up north at the lake. Apparently, my younger sister (only a year old at the time, and had just learned to walk) hit my dad's car keys in a random drawer in a bedroom upstairs. Panic ensued when the keys were nowhere to be found, as my whole family searched frantically. My dad thought he maybe lost the keys when snowmobiling. Great, that narrowed it down. They're just somewhere on the lake, all 9 square miles of it. Eventually, hours later, my little sister grabbed my grandpa's hand and led him up the stairs, pointing at the drawer where she hid the keys.
2. One funny holiday story that I can actually remember is two years ago for Thanksgiving we stayed with my dad's parents in Wisconsin, and other relatives drove in from Iowa. We figured we'd skip cooking this year and instead go out for a nice Thanksgiving dinner. My family and I were all excited as we pulled up to this nice restaurant, only to order the "Thanksgiving feast" and have a pile of brown, tasteless mush set in front of us. Actually, it was food that should be brown, such as turkey and stuffing. However it was more dull than brown, almost a gray. Everything on the plate had the same texture:mushy. This mush also had the same taste: almost like you took stuffing and mashed it up so much it became mushy, chunky soup. I looked around at everyone picking at their food, wondering if I was the only one to think that. All I ate was the side of cranberry sauce, because it was red and not brown. I whispered to my sisters, and they said they thought the same thing. So we would not waste our food, we built sculptures out of our food, because it was squishy and molded perfectly. I built a heaping volcano, because we were given enormous amounts of food. As soon as we arrived back at my grandparents we agreed to cook the meals ourselves, because we would rather cook the food ourselves than pay for that again.
3. I have a lot to talk about for this story, but I will try to just explain the highlights. This year for Thanksgiving someone had the genius idea to rent an RV with 11 of my family members and drive down to Austin, Texas to visit my aunt and uncle. Well, we made it back alive, I'll say that. It was also an experience, one I am okay with not experiencing again for a number of years. I loved being in Texas, however the 23 hour drive was somewhat brutal. I ran out of movies within the first day of driving (we drove four days, two there & two back), and so I rewatched them, and then rewatched them again. Among my favorite memories though was our last night in Austin we went to a BBQ place along a river. The river was totally like a scene from the show River Monsters because the water was dark and murky, there were no houses and the shadows of three feet long fish swam by us as we were standing on the dock. There were also about six baby turtles, and my uncle was brave enough to scoop some out of the water and watch them walk on the dock, eventually waddling back and plunging over the drop into the water. My favorite part of the evening, however, was when we got our food. Everyone ordered ribs, however my uncle ordered the "King's feast." We were not sure why it had this name until the plate was set in front of him. They were beef ribs, and were about two feet wide and a food tall. They weren't even on a plate, they were on a platter. All seven pounds of it. We have this hilarious picture of him with a bib on, the platter in front of him, and his wrists on the table, knife in one hand and fork in the other. Among other funny memories were the conversations after my relatives had visited three bars in one day, and then came home to drink some more (my aunt counted 14 corks, when we were only there for two days and only 10 of us can actually drink). Another highlight was celebrating my dad's birthday, and I got to his phone and changed his ringtone to "I'm Sexy and I Know it." His face, and everyone else's was priceless when it went off (and then kept going off in stores because he forgot to change it.) Yes, it was a memorable Thanksgiving, but I am more thankful that I am home.
2. One funny holiday story that I can actually remember is two years ago for Thanksgiving we stayed with my dad's parents in Wisconsin, and other relatives drove in from Iowa. We figured we'd skip cooking this year and instead go out for a nice Thanksgiving dinner. My family and I were all excited as we pulled up to this nice restaurant, only to order the "Thanksgiving feast" and have a pile of brown, tasteless mush set in front of us. Actually, it was food that should be brown, such as turkey and stuffing. However it was more dull than brown, almost a gray. Everything on the plate had the same texture:mushy. This mush also had the same taste: almost like you took stuffing and mashed it up so much it became mushy, chunky soup. I looked around at everyone picking at their food, wondering if I was the only one to think that. All I ate was the side of cranberry sauce, because it was red and not brown. I whispered to my sisters, and they said they thought the same thing. So we would not waste our food, we built sculptures out of our food, because it was squishy and molded perfectly. I built a heaping volcano, because we were given enormous amounts of food. As soon as we arrived back at my grandparents we agreed to cook the meals ourselves, because we would rather cook the food ourselves than pay for that again.
3. I have a lot to talk about for this story, but I will try to just explain the highlights. This year for Thanksgiving someone had the genius idea to rent an RV with 11 of my family members and drive down to Austin, Texas to visit my aunt and uncle. Well, we made it back alive, I'll say that. It was also an experience, one I am okay with not experiencing again for a number of years. I loved being in Texas, however the 23 hour drive was somewhat brutal. I ran out of movies within the first day of driving (we drove four days, two there & two back), and so I rewatched them, and then rewatched them again. Among my favorite memories though was our last night in Austin we went to a BBQ place along a river. The river was totally like a scene from the show River Monsters because the water was dark and murky, there were no houses and the shadows of three feet long fish swam by us as we were standing on the dock. There were also about six baby turtles, and my uncle was brave enough to scoop some out of the water and watch them walk on the dock, eventually waddling back and plunging over the drop into the water. My favorite part of the evening, however, was when we got our food. Everyone ordered ribs, however my uncle ordered the "King's feast." We were not sure why it had this name until the plate was set in front of him. They were beef ribs, and were about two feet wide and a food tall. They weren't even on a plate, they were on a platter. All seven pounds of it. We have this hilarious picture of him with a bib on, the platter in front of him, and his wrists on the table, knife in one hand and fork in the other. Among other funny memories were the conversations after my relatives had visited three bars in one day, and then came home to drink some more (my aunt counted 14 corks, when we were only there for two days and only 10 of us can actually drink). Another highlight was celebrating my dad's birthday, and I got to his phone and changed his ringtone to "I'm Sexy and I Know it." His face, and everyone else's was priceless when it went off (and then kept going off in stores because he forgot to change it.) Yes, it was a memorable Thanksgiving, but I am more thankful that I am home.
Friday, November 25, 2011
Rhetorical Modes
1. Boredom is to make weary by being dull or uninterested in one's current activities. The feeling of boredom sometimes arises from not being interested in current activities. However, often when one is bored, it is because they are simply not doing anything at all. Therefore, boredom is not enjoying what you are currently doing, but more often it means that you are doing nothing, and although you are unhappy with doing nothing, you cannot find anything to do.
2. Tiresomeness is often a synonym to boredom, however boredom often results from lack of interest and not finding an activity exciting enough or worth doing. Tiresome activities at times can be boring, if the activity is repetitive and tedious, therefore boring. However, not all tiresome activities are boring. In fact, most activities that involve a lot of thinking or manual labor are tiresome, but often not bored. Tiresomeness and boredom are often linked because when you are bored, you may feel the lack of energy to get yourself out of the slump of boredom you are in.
3. Boredom is caused by lack of finding an interesting, enjoyable activity. Humans like to be doing something all the time, moving a million miles a minute. People find it hard to sit still because of the busy lives they have created for themselves. Being busy has become a habit and a lifestyle, making it hard to enjoy the feeling of being calm because they are not used to having nothing to do. When we have time to sit and rest because we do not have a million things to be doing, we take this as being bored.
4. You are sitting in the car, scrunched in the back seat with nothing in sight but open road and bland looking scenery. Your mom's classical music is quietly playing from the radio. You do not feel like doing your homework because your brain feels exhausted but your body does not feel tired. There is nothing to snack on, which we often do in place of finding something to actually do. Although you are doing nothing, your brain is weary. You are bored.
5. Everyone has had a point in their life when they are bored. Nothing to do but are often too tired from being bored to actually do something about it. There is a simple solution to fix the boredom slump so many of us are in. Boredom is caused by not having something to do. If we program our bodies to not have something to do more often, they we will be forced to sit still or be creative and make something to do. When we are loaded down with things to do, we do not feel bored. However, the best way to go about fixing the problem is to never be super busy, but instead constantly have small things to keep you busy throughout the day.
6. I had been in the car for over twelve hours straight and my brain was unfortunately not in the right mindset to do homework. I had already blazed through every decent movie we had already packed, and had probably consumed a whole day's worth of food just in snacks. I rested my head on my hand and stared blankly through the window at nothing. We were about halfway to our destination, but for how sore my butt was I was hoping we were farther. I have been bored many times in my life, so it was easy to tell that I was, at that moment, undoubtedly bored.
2. Tiresomeness is often a synonym to boredom, however boredom often results from lack of interest and not finding an activity exciting enough or worth doing. Tiresome activities at times can be boring, if the activity is repetitive and tedious, therefore boring. However, not all tiresome activities are boring. In fact, most activities that involve a lot of thinking or manual labor are tiresome, but often not bored. Tiresomeness and boredom are often linked because when you are bored, you may feel the lack of energy to get yourself out of the slump of boredom you are in.
3. Boredom is caused by lack of finding an interesting, enjoyable activity. Humans like to be doing something all the time, moving a million miles a minute. People find it hard to sit still because of the busy lives they have created for themselves. Being busy has become a habit and a lifestyle, making it hard to enjoy the feeling of being calm because they are not used to having nothing to do. When we have time to sit and rest because we do not have a million things to be doing, we take this as being bored.
4. You are sitting in the car, scrunched in the back seat with nothing in sight but open road and bland looking scenery. Your mom's classical music is quietly playing from the radio. You do not feel like doing your homework because your brain feels exhausted but your body does not feel tired. There is nothing to snack on, which we often do in place of finding something to actually do. Although you are doing nothing, your brain is weary. You are bored.
5. Everyone has had a point in their life when they are bored. Nothing to do but are often too tired from being bored to actually do something about it. There is a simple solution to fix the boredom slump so many of us are in. Boredom is caused by not having something to do. If we program our bodies to not have something to do more often, they we will be forced to sit still or be creative and make something to do. When we are loaded down with things to do, we do not feel bored. However, the best way to go about fixing the problem is to never be super busy, but instead constantly have small things to keep you busy throughout the day.
6. I had been in the car for over twelve hours straight and my brain was unfortunately not in the right mindset to do homework. I had already blazed through every decent movie we had already packed, and had probably consumed a whole day's worth of food just in snacks. I rested my head on my hand and stared blankly through the window at nothing. We were about halfway to our destination, but for how sore my butt was I was hoping we were farther. I have been bored many times in my life, so it was easy to tell that I was, at that moment, undoubtedly bored.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Think Green
Agent: From a 2008 English writing class
Act: Beneath the rubble and garbage is a plant sprouting, showing that by thinking green we can break through the garbage building up, and turn the planet into a better place. Nature is in trouble, and one way to help it out is reduce this giant pile of garbage. Obviously, we are never going to get rid of garbage. However, reducing our amount of garbage, going green and recycling are all small things that have a huge impact on the environment.
Agency: It is a photo, however it is most likely staged so the lighting and arrangement of items is perfect.
Scene: It is to promote recycling and reducing our amount of garbage, because this may be what the planet looks like in the future (life merely poking through piles of garbage).
Purpose: To encourage recycling and going green.
This picture has a strong visual argument, however some of the reasoning behind it is not because of what is in the picture, but rather what draws the reader in to the picture. The plant is centered in the middle, giving the clear impression that that is what is to be focused on. The garbage surrounding the plant is colorful, unlike real garbage. I think it would be a better statement if the garbage was lacking color and dirty, while the plant was more lively. The bright colors provide contrast between the garbage, the plant and the sky, allowing reader to focus on each component fully and individually. If everything was dirty and grungy looking, then it would be hard to distinguish each piece of the picture. The solid blue backgrounds shows that is is outside, however does nothing more than provide a contrasting enough color to make the other components stand out, but do not distract the reader from the main point. If you observe the garbage, all of them are crinkled up just enough and positioned so that you are unable to see any of the labels. This is helpful in the argument because it does not advertise or target any specific companies, rather just referring to garbage in general.
The argument in this article can be looked at in many different ways. It could be saying that this may be the future if we continue on the path we're on because the garbage will overtake and consume the life. Soon, rather than grass on the ground with the occassional piece of garbage scattered throughout, it will be all garbage and there will be the small, occassional piece of life poking through. The fear of what become of the futurue will encourage more to recycle. It could also be looked as at life and nature will persevere no matter what we put it through, but either way to help nature out this picture inspires us to recycle and "think green" so no one will have to see this sight.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
X2 P. 113
Words I just can't spell!
1. Embarrassing (ugh, gets me every time)
2. Then there are some words that you just never know if you should combine the words or not, such as a lot and cannot.
3. I never knew how to spell definitely until my 9th grade comm. gave us a way to remember it
4. License - I always manage to add an extra "s" somewhere (same with exercise).
5. Recommend-I get confused on how many c's and m's to add.
I gave up on spell check a long time ago because I find it hurts me more than helps. As far as grammar it underlines it in blue or green, and then when I right click the suggestions make even less sense! I like it though when if you spell a word incorrectly, but only by a letter or two it auto corrects it for you. We have gotten so used to spell check doing the work for us, that I'm expecting those little colorful squiggly lines to appear under some of my words (even though this program doesn't have spell check. Spell check is a helpful tool, as long as you pay attention to what you're correcting the word to and don't get fooled easily.
If we could spell as we pleased, then many word's meanings would be lost. Often, there are words that are pronounced the same, but written differently because they have a different meaning. If we could spell these words however we wanted, then how is one to know what they are trying to say? You never know, it may be taken as an insult rather than a compliment, or the other way around. For example, you may not want to mix around "axe" and "acts," or "son" and "sun" in the sentence "wow, the sun looks really hot today", and be mistaken for "son" (especially if you're standing by someone's mother).
So many stores are spelled incorrectly, such as Kwik Trip and (the one that bothered me as a kid)...Kit Kat. These play on words simply stand out to the consumer. You see so many words every day, and so the ones spelled incorrectly always seem to remain in your brain at the end of the day, which helps out the companies.
1. Embarrassing (ugh, gets me every time)
2. Then there are some words that you just never know if you should combine the words or not, such as a lot and cannot.
3. I never knew how to spell definitely until my 9th grade comm. gave us a way to remember it
4. License - I always manage to add an extra "s" somewhere (same with exercise).
5. Recommend-I get confused on how many c's and m's to add.
I gave up on spell check a long time ago because I find it hurts me more than helps. As far as grammar it underlines it in blue or green, and then when I right click the suggestions make even less sense! I like it though when if you spell a word incorrectly, but only by a letter or two it auto corrects it for you. We have gotten so used to spell check doing the work for us, that I'm expecting those little colorful squiggly lines to appear under some of my words (even though this program doesn't have spell check. Spell check is a helpful tool, as long as you pay attention to what you're correcting the word to and don't get fooled easily.
If we could spell as we pleased, then many word's meanings would be lost. Often, there are words that are pronounced the same, but written differently because they have a different meaning. If we could spell these words however we wanted, then how is one to know what they are trying to say? You never know, it may be taken as an insult rather than a compliment, or the other way around. For example, you may not want to mix around "axe" and "acts," or "son" and "sun" in the sentence "wow, the sun looks really hot today", and be mistaken for "son" (especially if you're standing by someone's mother).
So many stores are spelled incorrectly, such as Kwik Trip and (the one that bothered me as a kid)...Kit Kat. These play on words simply stand out to the consumer. You see so many words every day, and so the ones spelled incorrectly always seem to remain in your brain at the end of the day, which helps out the companies.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Weekend!
This weekend was fairly...boring. Friday I worked pretty much all night (yuck). Saturday morning I woke up super early (like 7:30 early, which for a weekend is too early), and my friend Elise picked me up to go to a tack sale. For those who have no idea what a tack sale is, and think it maybe has to do with those pointy things you stick on a bulletin board, you're really off. It's horse "equiptment" so to speak, and the sale was packed! It began at 11:00, but of course it had to be like an hour away (in my opinion, it wasn't worth the gas to get there because I didn't really find much). We arrived at around 10:15, and the line waiting for the doors to open was already out the door and down the block. Everyone was shoving eachother, kinda like the halls at WHS, so you have to make sure you get there early. All the good stuff goes fast! I ran around frantically for about half an hour, not finding much so instead I stocked up on Christmas presents for our secret Santa gift exchange at the barn. I got back home around 12:30 and then I had to go to work...again. I got off work at 5:30 and then went out to dinner with friends and then watched Paranormal Activity (I didn't find this movie scary at all...and for anybody that knows me well I get scared super easily! When we're playing hide and seek and someone startles me it takes me awhile to recover I get so scared). Sunday morning I had to get up at, yup you guessed it, 7:30...for work. I worked until 1:30 and then I got home and was so lazy and exhausted I just made an omelette and watched A Walk To Remember on Lifetime Network. I didn't cry, but I normally would have if I wasn't half asleep. Oh dang, I have an AP Comp test tomorrow, and a busy week to come. I just...can't...wait (no hint of sarcasm).
Monday, October 31, 2011
The Beauty Myth
In The Beauty Myth, Naomi Wolf intends to persuade and convince the audience of mostly middle-aged women that women are (and always have been) undermined and unappreciated in society. Wolf is a woman, giving her credibility for the audience, but she is so dramatic that we cannot respect her opinions after the first sentence. She argues that “The Beauty Myth” dictates women’s lives, but is only convincing for those who believed it in the first place. Wolf’s book is perfect for somebody who wants their original views to be articulated, but is overbearing and unnecessary for anybody who is reading the book with an open mind. Wolf quickly becomes harsh, critical, and demanding of women instead of supportive or even realistic. We, as teenage girls, expected to be convinced but instead felt chastised, like we should believe something about ourselves that we do not. We are aware that America is materialistic, we are aware that girls are often not confident, and we are aware men desire beautiful women, but Wolf was too forceful to take seriously. We didn’t learn any great values, or form any opinions, aside from the unanimous agreement that we won’t be reading this book again.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Halloween Memories
I love Halloween, and even as I've grown up I've found ways to make it fun. Except this year might be different. Why? Because it's on a MONDAY, and I will probably have homework and other stuff that I will need to be doing. Anyway, I have a lot of fun Halloween memories. In seventh grade I went with my sister and some friends as the cast of High School Musical (I even had a mask of Zac Efron). All I remember from that year is getting kind of far from home and then sitting on the curb eating candy until my mom came and picked us up. Last year and the year before I wasn't that creative, so I wore some torn jeans, a plaid shirt and this huge matted wig (which I stuck some garbage and leaves in), and called myself a hobo. I also love going to the Halloween parties at the barn that I ride at. Unfortunately this year I couldn't go because I had to work, but last year I dressed up as Thing 1 and the horse was Thing 2 (complete with blue wigs). I thought that was pretty creative. When I was younger I would go over to my neighbor's house after a long night of trick-or-treating and we would count our candy and then exchange some with eachother. If I went trick-or-treating now I would probably just get some weird looks, so I'm stuck passing out candy and scaring kids.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Things That Drive Me CRAZY!
1. When you turn on the radio and you're so excited because it's your favorite song and then you realize the song is just ending.
2. When my mom barges into my room in the morning five minutes before my alarm is suppossed to go off
3. When my mom barges into my room at night to ask me a question five minutes after I have already fallen asleep
4. Squeezing the kethup bottle and only getting the watery stuff
5. Waiting in line for five minutes in the cafeteria just to get some dang mustard!
6. When you lose something and ask somebody if they've seen it and they say, "Well when did you see it last?" or "Do you remember where you put it last?" Well, obviously the answer is NO!
7. The sales people in a store that won't leave you alone
8. People who push your backpack when you're walking down the stairs at school
9. Those annoying clear straps on the shoulder of shirts that is meant to hang them up on a hanger with but you rarely do.
10. A slow computer (and hitting the back button on the Internet but it for some reason blinks for a second and then stays on the same page-does that only happen to me? I wonder about that kind of thing...)
11. When my dog lays in my room and snores so I can't fall asleep
12. How you can never understand the ladies in the nail salons (and I'm pretty sure they're saying mean things about people behind our backs).
13. People who borrow your pencil and then never give it back
14. The sound of a mosquito buzzing in your ear
15. You get all settled on the couch under a comfy blanket and then realize you can't find the remote
16. You find a really cute shirt you like...but of course they have every size but yours!
17. Justin Bieber and the Jonas Brothers (when there was that weird obsession with them in middle school)
18. When I paint my nails and they get smudged and I have to do them all over again...and then when I use the nail polish remover to take off the bad nails I accidentily take off the good nails as well!
19. You get all pumped to watch a movie because the trailer looked so good and then the movie sucks.
20. The sound of a hair dryer
21. When my mom creeps on my Facebook
22. When my mom turns the volume of the radio down RIGHT after I just turned it up.
23. How much effort it takes sometimes to get your arm through the arm hole of jacket.
Wow...that's a lot. I must be more irritable than I previously thought.
2. When my mom barges into my room in the morning five minutes before my alarm is suppossed to go off
3. When my mom barges into my room at night to ask me a question five minutes after I have already fallen asleep
4. Squeezing the kethup bottle and only getting the watery stuff
5. Waiting in line for five minutes in the cafeteria just to get some dang mustard!
6. When you lose something and ask somebody if they've seen it and they say, "Well when did you see it last?" or "Do you remember where you put it last?" Well, obviously the answer is NO!
7. The sales people in a store that won't leave you alone
8. People who push your backpack when you're walking down the stairs at school
9. Those annoying clear straps on the shoulder of shirts that is meant to hang them up on a hanger with but you rarely do.
10. A slow computer (and hitting the back button on the Internet but it for some reason blinks for a second and then stays on the same page-does that only happen to me? I wonder about that kind of thing...)
11. When my dog lays in my room and snores so I can't fall asleep
12. How you can never understand the ladies in the nail salons (and I'm pretty sure they're saying mean things about people behind our backs).
13. People who borrow your pencil and then never give it back
14. The sound of a mosquito buzzing in your ear
15. You get all settled on the couch under a comfy blanket and then realize you can't find the remote
16. You find a really cute shirt you like...but of course they have every size but yours!
17. Justin Bieber and the Jonas Brothers (when there was that weird obsession with them in middle school)
18. When I paint my nails and they get smudged and I have to do them all over again...and then when I use the nail polish remover to take off the bad nails I accidentily take off the good nails as well!
19. You get all pumped to watch a movie because the trailer looked so good and then the movie sucks.
20. The sound of a hair dryer
21. When my mom creeps on my Facebook
22. When my mom turns the volume of the radio down RIGHT after I just turned it up.
23. How much effort it takes sometimes to get your arm through the arm hole of jacket.
Wow...that's a lot. I must be more irritable than I previously thought.
"I Just Wanna be Average" by Mike Rose
The short story "I Just Wanna be Average" focuses on the idea that there is going to be that one person in your life that will inspire you and change your outlook on life forevor. Following the crowd by not trying or giving less than you are capable of is harmful in the long fun. Often people cover up failures by saying they didn't try or want to be good at it in the first place. They usually do car, but simply want to mask their feelings of emberassment or failure. Rose argues that by throwing away potential you will get nowhere, and by conforming to the standard that soceity has set for you is easy, but damagins in the long run.
Being the first to do something-especially if it's outside the mold you have been placed in-is scary, and at first you are looked down upon. The author realizes he doesn't want to be average, he want to be more. Culture often shows that if we are less than average, we want to be average. If we are average, then we want to be more than averag (Average is often confused with normal, but although many are average, let's face it, there is no such thing as normal). A leap from less than average to more than average is a tricky thing, but Rose had the right guidence and the determination to do it.
Being the first to do something-especially if it's outside the mold you have been placed in-is scary, and at first you are looked down upon. The author realizes he doesn't want to be average, he want to be more. Culture often shows that if we are less than average, we want to be average. If we are average, then we want to be more than averag (Average is often confused with normal, but although many are average, let's face it, there is no such thing as normal). A leap from less than average to more than average is a tricky thing, but Rose had the right guidence and the determination to do it.
"For Once, Blame the Student" by Patrick Welsh
"For Once, Blame the Student's" argument is very similar to that of Two Million Minutes in that American kids are lazy and do not try as hard while foreign kids in America get much better grades. Author Patrick Welsh feels that kids today are making even more excuses for the academic failures, and always finding someone else to point the finger of blame on. Dave Roscher quotes, "Kids have convinced parents that it is the teacher or the system that is the problem, not their own lack of effort." I believe if a kid does not want to learn, they are not going to. If the student does not want to do well, then they are simply not going to. These ideas cause motivation and determination (or lack of) and it is up to the students to find that reason to become motivated. What Welsh is trying to get at is it is up to you.
The constant comparison between Asian and American students is getting a little old. we know how much more disciplined they are and how they are so smart and work so much harder...but this article gives the reader a new idea to ponder. "But a clear majority of U.S. students put the responsibility on their teachers. A good teacher, they said, was the determing factor in how well they did in math." Welsh makes it seem like it is absurd for kids to rely on their teachers to learn, but in reality a teacher's job is to teach. It is then up to the students if they choose to listen and learn. In reality, although it is mainly up to the student the teacher has always played a key role in a child's education. Welsh put it perfectly by saying, "As a teacher...who among us would say we couldn't do a little better? Nonetheless, teachers have no control over the student motivation and ambition, which have to come from the home-and from within each student."
The constant comparison between Asian and American students is getting a little old. we know how much more disciplined they are and how they are so smart and work so much harder...but this article gives the reader a new idea to ponder. "But a clear majority of U.S. students put the responsibility on their teachers. A good teacher, they said, was the determing factor in how well they did in math." Welsh makes it seem like it is absurd for kids to rely on their teachers to learn, but in reality a teacher's job is to teach. It is then up to the students if they choose to listen and learn. In reality, although it is mainly up to the student the teacher has always played a key role in a child's education. Welsh put it perfectly by saying, "As a teacher...who among us would say we couldn't do a little better? Nonetheless, teachers have no control over the student motivation and ambition, which have to come from the home-and from within each student."
Two Million Minutes
The film Two Million Minutes interviews an assortment of kids from America, India and China. All are successful, but for different reasons and because of different reasons. The movie argues that America has fallen behind other countries in terms of education because of the lack of motivation and discipline.
The people interviewed in the movie were all chosen strategically to show a variety of kids to represent these three countries. The boy from India kept up on his schoolwork and spent the majority of his time learning, while taking time out of his busy academic driven schedule to form a band with three friends. The Indian girl featured in this film spent time with family as well as studied hard everyday of the week. The Chinese girl dedicated most of her time for schoolwork while having ballet and violin on the side-all three activities having high standard and an involve an incredible amount of discipline. The Chinese boy's main interests were math and computer games-though he does all of his studying before beginning the allotted amount of computer games. The American boy balanced numerous activities including a variety of clubs, football and a job along with his schoolwork (though schoolwork was always second priority). The American girl was in the top 5% of her graduating class, yet also very social and a sports star.
This movie chose to include activities outside of school as well as academics to show the well-roundedness of all countries and to disprove the myth that all Indian and Chinese students do is study. The main difference this movie is trying to get at though in terms of academics is that American students tend to view schoolwork as a priority, just lower down the list whereas Asian students view schoolwork as top priority. This movie also shows the incredible amount of determinatino and discipline of the Asian kids, while American kids are portrayed as lazy and unmotivated. It was mentioned in the movie that Asian kids need to work hard to get a good job in order to support themselves, their family and a decent lifestyle. For many American kids they are already economically stable so they do not feel the drive to make a better life for themselves. It was also mentioned how Asian kids have their future planned out for them at a young age, while American kids do not know what area of study they would like to go into until halfway through college. I believe this statement contradicts the previous one because it seems as if you have a future planned out, there is less need to work so hard at everything, and instead your focus should be on the area of study. Is the problem in America the parents because they hand their kids everything? Although that could be the foundation for the problem there is much more to it. It seems as if American kids are exposed to much more than academics, and therefore have more opprutunities. They may feel that being successful in life branches way behond academics, and that one must also be really good at a sport, have a job or a large circle of friends, and if you happen to be good in school on top of that then that's great.
It is a matter of lifestyle and culture that sets America apart from their Indian and Chinese counterparts. For this movie to more accurately portray American students they should not have interviewed two students who have a lot of academic success, yet rarely study because of their involvement in other activities. That is not portraying the average American student. Instead, to more accurately portray American students the makers of the film should have interviewed an American student who gets good grades and spends a lot of time studying while balancing her other activities. The second person could be your average football player who tries in school and does his homework but does not push himself to go outside of his comfort zone when it comes to school. These kids would give a more accurate portrayal of America instead of making others believe that all Americans get good grades without working at it (however the statistics that flashed across the screen-only a small percent of kids are proficient in math, they rarely push themselves to take more years of a class then required...-states otherwise).
The whole movie is looking down at America, while it seems as if the Asian kids are looking at America as simply having a much easier lifestyle. "Like a dream..." the Indian girl quotes. How bad is America? If they compared America to France and Brazil instead, would we still come out on the bottom?
The people interviewed in the movie were all chosen strategically to show a variety of kids to represent these three countries. The boy from India kept up on his schoolwork and spent the majority of his time learning, while taking time out of his busy academic driven schedule to form a band with three friends. The Indian girl featured in this film spent time with family as well as studied hard everyday of the week. The Chinese girl dedicated most of her time for schoolwork while having ballet and violin on the side-all three activities having high standard and an involve an incredible amount of discipline. The Chinese boy's main interests were math and computer games-though he does all of his studying before beginning the allotted amount of computer games. The American boy balanced numerous activities including a variety of clubs, football and a job along with his schoolwork (though schoolwork was always second priority). The American girl was in the top 5% of her graduating class, yet also very social and a sports star.
This movie chose to include activities outside of school as well as academics to show the well-roundedness of all countries and to disprove the myth that all Indian and Chinese students do is study. The main difference this movie is trying to get at though in terms of academics is that American students tend to view schoolwork as a priority, just lower down the list whereas Asian students view schoolwork as top priority. This movie also shows the incredible amount of determinatino and discipline of the Asian kids, while American kids are portrayed as lazy and unmotivated. It was mentioned in the movie that Asian kids need to work hard to get a good job in order to support themselves, their family and a decent lifestyle. For many American kids they are already economically stable so they do not feel the drive to make a better life for themselves. It was also mentioned how Asian kids have their future planned out for them at a young age, while American kids do not know what area of study they would like to go into until halfway through college. I believe this statement contradicts the previous one because it seems as if you have a future planned out, there is less need to work so hard at everything, and instead your focus should be on the area of study. Is the problem in America the parents because they hand their kids everything? Although that could be the foundation for the problem there is much more to it. It seems as if American kids are exposed to much more than academics, and therefore have more opprutunities. They may feel that being successful in life branches way behond academics, and that one must also be really good at a sport, have a job or a large circle of friends, and if you happen to be good in school on top of that then that's great.
It is a matter of lifestyle and culture that sets America apart from their Indian and Chinese counterparts. For this movie to more accurately portray American students they should not have interviewed two students who have a lot of academic success, yet rarely study because of their involvement in other activities. That is not portraying the average American student. Instead, to more accurately portray American students the makers of the film should have interviewed an American student who gets good grades and spends a lot of time studying while balancing her other activities. The second person could be your average football player who tries in school and does his homework but does not push himself to go outside of his comfort zone when it comes to school. These kids would give a more accurate portrayal of America instead of making others believe that all Americans get good grades without working at it (however the statistics that flashed across the screen-only a small percent of kids are proficient in math, they rarely push themselves to take more years of a class then required...-states otherwise).
The whole movie is looking down at America, while it seems as if the Asian kids are looking at America as simply having a much easier lifestyle. "Like a dream..." the Indian girl quotes. How bad is America? If they compared America to France and Brazil instead, would we still come out on the bottom?
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Weekend :) (Sorry Ms. Prokott)
It's Saturday night, and I know my weekend is not over but I can still blog about my weekend because I have a pretty good idea of what I will be doing tomorrow. Today we got up early and drove to my Grandparent's in Wisconsin (I'm typing this in Wisconsin!). They live on Lake Wissota, and so I helped them take out their dock today. I also spent two hours working on Chemistry before I realized I wasn't doing it right, and we went golfing. I really don't like golfing, but I only went because I was promised I could drive the golf cart. We just got back from going out to dinner, and we will be leaving early in the morning because I am working tomorrow from 2-9. Hopefully I can catch a little of the Vikings game (It's sad, really...this early in the season and I've already given up hope).
On another note, something that I love is random, useless facts...and so I typed that into Google and here's some of the facts I got.
1. The Human Heart Creates Enough Pressure When It Pumps Out To The Body To Squirt Blood 30 Feet.
2. Every Time You Lick A Stamp, You're Consuming 1/10 Of A Calorie.
3. Despite a population of over a billion, China has just over 200 family names.
4. A Square Mile Of Fertile Earth Has 32,000,000 Earthworms In It.
5. A Normal Raindrop Falls At About 7 Miles Per Hour.
6. At Any Given Time, There Are 1,800 Thunderstorms In Progress Over The Earth's Atmosphere.
7. The Average Person Will Spend Two Weeks Over Their Lifetime Waiting For The Traffic Light To Change.
8. Psycho (1959) was the first movie ever to show a full toilet.
9. Pi has been calculated to 2,260,321,363 digits
10. A giant squid has the largest eyes in the world.
Don't you feel smarter already?
On another note, something that I love is random, useless facts...and so I typed that into Google and here's some of the facts I got.
1. The Human Heart Creates Enough Pressure When It Pumps Out To The Body To Squirt Blood 30 Feet.
2. Every Time You Lick A Stamp, You're Consuming 1/10 Of A Calorie.
3. Despite a population of over a billion, China has just over 200 family names.
4. A Square Mile Of Fertile Earth Has 32,000,000 Earthworms In It.
5. A Normal Raindrop Falls At About 7 Miles Per Hour.
6. At Any Given Time, There Are 1,800 Thunderstorms In Progress Over The Earth's Atmosphere.
7. The Average Person Will Spend Two Weeks Over Their Lifetime Waiting For The Traffic Light To Change.
8. Psycho (1959) was the first movie ever to show a full toilet.
9. Pi has been calculated to 2,260,321,363 digits
10. A giant squid has the largest eyes in the world.
Don't you feel smarter already?
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Speeches
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/jfkberliner.html
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/MovieSpeeches/moviespeechthewizardofozcourage.html
I found two great speeches for comp. class, not sure which one to do yet. The first is "Ich bin ein Berliner" by JFK and the second is "The Cowardly Lion on Courage" from the Wizard of Oz.
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/MovieSpeeches/moviespeechthewizardofozcourage.html
I found two great speeches for comp. class, not sure which one to do yet. The first is "Ich bin ein Berliner" by JFK and the second is "The Cowardly Lion on Courage" from the Wizard of Oz.
Obama's "Back to School" Speech
1. First of all, I thought it was clever how he used a student in the area to do the opening because it gives students watching a sense of familiarity right off the bat, also making Obama seem more relatable.
2. I just found it strange how there was not a single Caucasian kid in the background, making it seem as if he was just talking to the minority of the population when really he was speaking to every "young person" (as he would say) in America. In fact, the girl introduces Obama's speech by saying he "represents students all over America." It just seems ironic to me.
3. The girl at the beginning said their school had a 100% graduation rate, which to me almost seems uheard of. This statistic I believe also boosts Obama's credibility because the teachers, parents and even him are guiding this nation's children to success.
4. As soon as Obama came to the podium and began to talk I actually had to turn down my volume quite a bit! He was speaking so loud, but had a huge grin on his face when acknowledging certain teachers and had a certain liveliness to him that made the audience excited to listen to him and feel as if they are welcomed.
5. Throughout Obama looks down at his (what I would assume note cards) a lot. However, it seems more like it is just a nervous habit than actually looking at what to say because he glances down for less than a second, and in my opinion I think that is too quick to actually read anything.
6. Right away Obama acknowledges that kids these days are busy in school and also with extracurricular activites, boosting his relatability and credibility because he knows what kids are up to and that they do have a lot going on in their life.
7. At the beginning of Obama's speech his voice is quite loud but in an enthusiastic tone instead of an angry one. Throughout he is quiter but also much more intense, saying the future rests in our hands. At the end he remains quiet, but lightens up again when he closes his speech.
8. Another aspect of his speech that boosts his credibility and relatability is when he mentions Facebook and Twitter, showing he keeps up with the current times and can relate to his audience.
9. Often Obama throws in short, quick and snappy sentences such as "You have to wonder, you have to explore, you have to question." (8:15) These statements make an impact on the listener.
10. I noticed Obama is very expressive with his hands, and is constantly making hand gestures. He tends to point when he is giving facts that are suppossed to make an impact and he wants the kids in the audience to really listen up. Almost as if he is pointing at the kids and saying "these facts pertain to you, all of you, and I want you to listen."
11. At 6:15, after he cracks the joke about Twitter, he takes a more serious tone and slows down and sounds less intense as he brings up the touchy subject of the economy.
12. Obama uses repitition to get his point across, often by saying "we're the future" and "right now." We need you "now, right now." Showing his urgency as well as his desire to bury that thought deep in our brains. Another example of repitition is using the word "diverse" multiple times as well as "try new things."
13. Around 9:30 Obama brings up his own school experience, and how he wasn't the best student and didn't like some of his classes." He is constantly trying to increase his likeability and credibility while boosting his relatibility to kids and how he knows what being a kids in school is like. By throwing his own experiences in there it gets other kids to listen and believe in what he says, and that if the President wasn't that good at school but has turned into something great, so can the kids today.
14. Obama uses the examples of kids who are already doing something great, and I feel that can either encourage some kids or discourage them. For me I thought "wow, I am really behind."
15. Obama has a way of connecting with the audience with eye contact and also throwing in pieces of information that make him more relatable. He often looks to one side of the audience, quickly glances at his notecard and then glances to the other side, making sure to give even attention to everyone.
16. The quick glimpses of the setting that we were able to see was when the girl was talking at the beginning, and it appeared to me that they were in the high school gym. Although this doesn't allow much room for spectators, however I thought is was the perfect place to hold a "back to school speech." However, some might argue that Obama is trying too hard to be relatable and liked.
17. Obama's speech is usually fairly slow, however he tends to speak slow when he is addressing a main point and then speeds up the slightest bit when backing it up with facts or examples.
18. He seems to settle down by the end of the speech and closes it quietly, as if to seem not so intense.
2. I just found it strange how there was not a single Caucasian kid in the background, making it seem as if he was just talking to the minority of the population when really he was speaking to every "young person" (as he would say) in America. In fact, the girl introduces Obama's speech by saying he "represents students all over America." It just seems ironic to me.
3. The girl at the beginning said their school had a 100% graduation rate, which to me almost seems uheard of. This statistic I believe also boosts Obama's credibility because the teachers, parents and even him are guiding this nation's children to success.
4. As soon as Obama came to the podium and began to talk I actually had to turn down my volume quite a bit! He was speaking so loud, but had a huge grin on his face when acknowledging certain teachers and had a certain liveliness to him that made the audience excited to listen to him and feel as if they are welcomed.
5. Throughout Obama looks down at his (what I would assume note cards) a lot. However, it seems more like it is just a nervous habit than actually looking at what to say because he glances down for less than a second, and in my opinion I think that is too quick to actually read anything.
6. Right away Obama acknowledges that kids these days are busy in school and also with extracurricular activites, boosting his relatability and credibility because he knows what kids are up to and that they do have a lot going on in their life.
7. At the beginning of Obama's speech his voice is quite loud but in an enthusiastic tone instead of an angry one. Throughout he is quiter but also much more intense, saying the future rests in our hands. At the end he remains quiet, but lightens up again when he closes his speech.
8. Another aspect of his speech that boosts his credibility and relatability is when he mentions Facebook and Twitter, showing he keeps up with the current times and can relate to his audience.
9. Often Obama throws in short, quick and snappy sentences such as "You have to wonder, you have to explore, you have to question." (8:15) These statements make an impact on the listener.
10. I noticed Obama is very expressive with his hands, and is constantly making hand gestures. He tends to point when he is giving facts that are suppossed to make an impact and he wants the kids in the audience to really listen up. Almost as if he is pointing at the kids and saying "these facts pertain to you, all of you, and I want you to listen."
11. At 6:15, after he cracks the joke about Twitter, he takes a more serious tone and slows down and sounds less intense as he brings up the touchy subject of the economy.
12. Obama uses repitition to get his point across, often by saying "we're the future" and "right now." We need you "now, right now." Showing his urgency as well as his desire to bury that thought deep in our brains. Another example of repitition is using the word "diverse" multiple times as well as "try new things."
13. Around 9:30 Obama brings up his own school experience, and how he wasn't the best student and didn't like some of his classes." He is constantly trying to increase his likeability and credibility while boosting his relatibility to kids and how he knows what being a kids in school is like. By throwing his own experiences in there it gets other kids to listen and believe in what he says, and that if the President wasn't that good at school but has turned into something great, so can the kids today.
14. Obama uses the examples of kids who are already doing something great, and I feel that can either encourage some kids or discourage them. For me I thought "wow, I am really behind."
15. Obama has a way of connecting with the audience with eye contact and also throwing in pieces of information that make him more relatable. He often looks to one side of the audience, quickly glances at his notecard and then glances to the other side, making sure to give even attention to everyone.
16. The quick glimpses of the setting that we were able to see was when the girl was talking at the beginning, and it appeared to me that they were in the high school gym. Although this doesn't allow much room for spectators, however I thought is was the perfect place to hold a "back to school speech." However, some might argue that Obama is trying too hard to be relatable and liked.
17. Obama's speech is usually fairly slow, however he tends to speak slow when he is addressing a main point and then speeds up the slightest bit when backing it up with facts or examples.
18. He seems to settle down by the end of the speech and closes it quietly, as if to seem not so intense.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Jim Crow Laws
First off, don't tell me I'm the only one who thought Jim Crow was a real person! While reading through these laws I was not at all shocked or mortified because it is what I expected. However, I also expected there to be a few laws saying that whites could do something while colored people couldn't, but there was not. Instead every law simply stated that this building was seperated and so on. There were quite a few laws that I found especially harsh or just strange. For example, for different races to be in the same restaurant there must be a wall at least seven feet tall seperating the two groups. Another law stated that a white baseball team is not allowed to play within two blocks of a playground devoted to a different race. We have come so far in terms of this law because today if seems as if half of our professional sports players are of another race. A law I found strange is that circus entrances and ticket booths must be seperate for each race (apparently they had a lot of circuses in Louisiana). The other law I found peculiar is that buildings for teaching the blind must also be segregated. First of all, the students are blind so they probably do not care if they are in a room with someone of another race (seriously, how would they know?) Secondly, I can't picture them having enough blind kids to open up a different building for each race (but who knows, I could be wrong).
Intermarriage seemed as if it was the most strict law, and also the most common. A white person was not allowed to marry a colored if they were one-eighth or more of African descent. (I heard in Social Studies that humans originated and evolved in Africa, but I'm sure if someone used that as an excuse back then it would not go over well.) They also mentioned in a few laws that whites and Mongolians were not allowed to marry, and I was not sure if that was to be taken literally or did it refer to anyone of any Asian descent. We have also come a long way in terms of this law, because we don't just tolerate other races, but there is a great percentage of interracial marriages in the U.S.
Another law said that textbooks were not to be shared between races. It takes me back to kindergarten when everyone had cooties! The law that disturbed me the most was that white convicts and colored convicts must be seperated in prison. It's puzzling as to why whites were still considered better than blacks even when they were both in prison for of committing heinous crimes. This is like saying a white person can do no wrong, which in a way is what people stood for during this time period.
Intermarriage seemed as if it was the most strict law, and also the most common. A white person was not allowed to marry a colored if they were one-eighth or more of African descent. (I heard in Social Studies that humans originated and evolved in Africa, but I'm sure if someone used that as an excuse back then it would not go over well.) They also mentioned in a few laws that whites and Mongolians were not allowed to marry, and I was not sure if that was to be taken literally or did it refer to anyone of any Asian descent. We have also come a long way in terms of this law, because we don't just tolerate other races, but there is a great percentage of interracial marriages in the U.S.
Another law said that textbooks were not to be shared between races. It takes me back to kindergarten when everyone had cooties! The law that disturbed me the most was that white convicts and colored convicts must be seperated in prison. It's puzzling as to why whites were still considered better than blacks even when they were both in prison for of committing heinous crimes. This is like saying a white person can do no wrong, which in a way is what people stood for during this time period.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
I thought you were supposed to sleep on weekends!
Monday, September 12, 2011
A fashion blog I found!
Kendieveryday.blogspot.com
Kendi is a girl in a small town who started her own fashion blog. Her outfits are very unique and show you it's okay to mix patterns and colors! I love her blog and you should follow it as well!
Kendi is a girl in a small town who started her own fashion blog. Her outfits are very unique and show you it's okay to mix patterns and colors! I love her blog and you should follow it as well!
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Why I Write
Although Didion is inspired by Orwell, her purpose for writing is completely different. Didion wrote, "I knew I couldn't think, all i knew was what I couldn't do. All I knew then was what I wasn't, and it took me some years to discover what I was. Which was a writer." Later she states, "I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means." Didion writes because she enjoys learning more about herself, and unlike Orwell, the public, politics and what is taking place in the world does not seem to affect her or her writing.
Orwell however wrote, "Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written directly or indirectly against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand. It seems to me nonsense, in a period like our own, to think one can avoid writing of such subjects." Orwell seems to write about what he already known and wishes to inform his readers. He gives his opinions on politics and the world, and writes about what angers or frustrates him. Orwell is deeply affected by the era he lives in and his work is greatly influenced by that. "I wasn't born for an age like this," Orwell claims. Although he tried at one point to stray away from writing there was something pulling him back.
I write simply to be creative. I don't make a living out of writing, nor do I write because I feel like it is the only thing I am decent at. I don't write about politics or write because I don't know the answer and wish to to learn that answer while discovering something about myself. I simply write for the joy and satisfaction of putting my ideas down on paper, with the hopes and intent that someone will find as much pleasure in reading it as I did in writing it.
Orwell however wrote, "Every line of serious work that I have written since 1936 has been written directly or indirectly against totalitarianism and for democratic socialism, as I understand. It seems to me nonsense, in a period like our own, to think one can avoid writing of such subjects." Orwell seems to write about what he already known and wishes to inform his readers. He gives his opinions on politics and the world, and writes about what angers or frustrates him. Orwell is deeply affected by the era he lives in and his work is greatly influenced by that. "I wasn't born for an age like this," Orwell claims. Although he tried at one point to stray away from writing there was something pulling him back.
I write simply to be creative. I don't make a living out of writing, nor do I write because I feel like it is the only thing I am decent at. I don't write about politics or write because I don't know the answer and wish to to learn that answer while discovering something about myself. I simply write for the joy and satisfaction of putting my ideas down on paper, with the hopes and intent that someone will find as much pleasure in reading it as I did in writing it.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Do What You Love and Love What You Do
In "Superman and Me",Sherman Alexie, a young boy living on an Indian reservation grows up to write novels, short stories and poems. He redefines what it means to be an Indian on a reservation when he states, "I was certainly never taught that Indians wrote poetry, short stories and novels. Writing was something beyond Indians." Although he had never been taught to write the poems and stories he does, he has a passion for it and because of that visits school systems to teach creative writing. I found it interesting where he said he was going to be a pediatrician. Why didn't he become one? I think it was because he feels as if he is still part of the classroom of Indian kids, and he knows they need his help. He wants more of them to be introduced to creative writing at a young age like he was and eventually help out the entire Indian population. Although he had no training, he grew up in an environment where he was constantly surrounded by books and story telling. Growing up no one shared Alexie's interests, but that didn't seem to bother him. Now he has the opportunity to teach writing and teach them why he finds creative writing so fascinating.
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