Understanding Poetry

I think that what we did in class on Thursday was very cool. I always say that I have a hard time understanding poetry and the purpose of it. I always say, "Why don't you just come out and say what you mean? Why does everything have to be such a huge secret?" I definintly still believe that about writing, especially poetry, but to read the poem at the end of class and then reading your essay you wrote on it was cool. I really enjoyed it. I felt like by doing that, I not only got a better understanding of the poem but I also got a better understanding of you. It was nice to see that you were open and vulnerable with us. You were honest about something that you and your wife faced in your life and you shared your personal feelings about it. It made me feel more like an adult instead of a little child, which is what I often feel like at this school. You allowed that to be seen by your students which helped us maybe understand you as person/ teacher a little better. It seems weird to say this, but you reading that reminded me you have a life outside of my class and what you teach us. You have a wife and kids, and you face problems too. I hope that things are better for you and your wife now and you find that deep love you once had with one another, the love that consisted of more than just the changing of diapers and paying the rent. Thank you for reading that to us. I really appreciated it!

Enemy of the State

At first, I was not very happy about having to go watch this play. I knew my weekend was going to be very jammed full of things I had to do and I really did not want to go see a play I had no interest in seeing when I didn't really have to time to see it and also spend my last 7 dollars on it. I couldn't buy myself dinner Sunday night because I went to go see this play and it did not make me happy at all.
But once I got to the play on Sunday afternoon, I was surprisingly entertained by it. I was very excited and nervous to see what was going to happen in it and how each character was going to develop. The character that I would say I was most impressed with was the main character. I do not remember his name but he was the doctor in the story and also one of the people on the board of education for the Springs. As the doctor of the town, he was wondering why everyone in the town was suddenly getting really sick. He thought that it could be possible that it would be the water so he sent in a sample to the university. The results came back that the water was contaminated and when he tried to tell his brother, the mayor of the town, he was regetted right away. The doctor wanted to put the story in the news paper but if he did his brother told him he would loose his job. After a long serious of other events, no one wanted to hear what the doctor had to say about and basically wanted to destroy him and his family. I liked this character because he believed in what he had to say and he didnt let anything change his mind. He stood his ground with the town and he refused to let them drive him away. I hope that if something like that ever happened to me and I believed in something that much that I would stand my ground even if my friends deserted me or my brother fired me from my job. I really look up to this character a lot.
Even if I wasn't happy about going to this play to begin with, I am ultimently was happy in the end. I learned a lot from the character and sometimes lessons are worth the sacrifice.

Character Based Short Story--Special Entry

With her tennis shoes tied tight and her gym shorts on, Melrose was ready to take the court. Her hair was pulled back tight in a bun and her bangs were pulled off to the side in a French braid. Yes she was nervous but like her mom had told her, would that be enough to stop her from doing something that she loved to do? Melrose had always had a passion for volleyball. She loved to watch it on television and to watch her mom’s own team practice. When Melrose was little, she always went to all her mother’s volleyball games and would sit in on the practices and help out in any way that she could. Her mom was one of the most famous volleyball coaches around. Being a Division 1 college coach definitely made you noticed. Now that Melrose is much older and into her first year of high school, she became more focused on her own team.
Melrose was always the quiet girl in school. She never really said much to anyone and even though she had a great personality, it was hard for people to see. No one ever really gave her a chance to be her true self. It was on the volleyball court that Melrose really shined. She wasn’t afraid to be the loudest, or to laugh and have fun while practicing. When the knee pads and the ankle braces went on, she became a new person. She loved it.
But today, in a new school, with a new team, and without really knowing the coach, Melrose was hesitant about these tryouts. This was a whole new ballgame now; new coach, new teammates, maybe even new techniques. What if her new volleyball coach does not like how her old volleyball coach taught her how to do things? What if the coach resented Melrose just because her mom was a famous volleyball coach and a notorious college? What if she just froze or messed up so bad that he cut her in the first 5 minutes? All these things ran through Melrose’s mind as she was walking into the gym. She was already having a horrible day so this would only make the day more complete.
First came the running around the court followed by numerous stretches. Any part of the body that could be stretch was being worked to make sure no injury would occur. So far, no one had said a word to Melrose. She was invisible and her usual bubbly personality was nowhere to be found. Her mom had told her how important it would be that she has to be herself on the court or else she will blend in. Her mother always drilled it in her that to stand out is the only way you become good. If you stand out, you get noticed by the coach, and then he will put more effort into your mechanics and will want to make you a better player. You almost have to become his friend, is what she would always tell her.
Next was the huddle. The captain of the team brought everyone in together to do a cheer and to pump up the girls for a long, hard day of practice. Once the seconds of loud screaming was over, the girls sat there and talked about school and life as they waited for the coach to come over to them. Melrose naturally just stood there waiting patiently kind of hoping that someone would start a conversation with her, just so that she felt like she maybe had one friend on the team, at least for the day. But no one said a word to her. Things would be better once the coach came over.
Well the coach came over and basically told the girls that the season was going to be like boot camp and if they haven’t been training since the summer, they probably would not be making it through the first week. Melrose did not train at all. She had a few passes with her mom on the weekends but that was about it. She knew that this was going to be very tough for her and a mountain to climb over if she made the team. She had to do her best and hope that it was good enough.
As the practice went on, she remained quiet. She played hard but did not stand out like her mom had told her to try and do. Her nerves had gotten the best of her. Melrose messed up on a few plays but nothing that made her worse than the other girls. She actually even thought that she was better than some of the juniors on the team so she felt pretty good about the tryouts. She went home that night feeling confident about what had happened at practice and even though she knew she was going to be sore the next day, it would be worth it. Melrose came home to a nice massage by her father and ice bags for her body from her mother. While relaxing after the long day, she told her parents about her long day at her volleyball tryout.
After 2 more days of tryouts and a weekend to relax, Melrose was feeling confident as she headed up to the stairs toward her high school. The roster would not be posted probably until the end of the class day so she had to practice her patients.
Finally it was the end of the day and Melrose ran to the gym locker room after she heard the 2 o’clock bell. She searched drastically to see her name as she pulled her finger down the list and her heart started to pound harder and harder and she got further and further down the list. Her finger started slowing down as she reached the end of the list. But sure enough the last name on the list was Melrose Olsen. Her heart leap with joy and her body soon followed. She was so excited she could not control her emotions. After running out to the bus, the first thing she did was call her mom with the good news. Neither of them could take the smile off their face. The whole bus ride home, Melrose dreamt of all the things that she hoped would happen this season. It was going to be a good year!

The Tale of Despereuax

The Tale of Despereuax was very interesting. I found it to be a very cute movie that just about any person would love. I did not get to watch it in class with everyone else but it still was nice to be able to watch it. I think that the main plot of the story had to do with forgiveness between the rat and the princess. A lot of what was going on in the kingdom was because the king and the princess could not find it in their hearts to forgive the rat. I don't think that the rat necassarily did anything wrong but according to the kingdom, he was responsible for the death of the queen. I felt really bad for the rat. Another major conflict in the story was the fact that Despereuax was different from all the other mice, so that meant that he had to be banished to the rats. He never did anything wrong; he was just unafraid of the things that all the other mice were afraid of. He was brave, and courageous and because of that no one accepted him for him. Not even his parents.
Roscuro (the rat)-He seemed very quiet, and nervous about things. He knew when things were wrong but he never spoke up about it except at the end when the rats were about to eat the princess. I think that he is a flat character because he doesn't really seem to have much of a personality. And I would say that he was a dynamic character because he changed at the end and became more brave about things after he met Despereuax.
Despereaux (the mouse)- Despereuax was a brave mouse that was okay with being different. He was a little goofy looking but he knew who he was and didn't let anyone try and tell him differently. He was a round character because his personality was so big and out there. And he also was a static character. He didn't really change at all through the story line. He stayed himself the whole time.
Miggery Sow (the servant girl)- Miggery Sow was a servant girl who had a dream in her mind and she didn't listen to anyone tell her that that dream was impossible. She made it to the castle and even though she was only serving the princess, in her mind she was the princess. She was a bit snotty and obnoxious at times but I think that it was only because she was cold-hearted and stubbern about things. She was round character- very full of life and I would say that she was dynamic because I think that toward the end when she met her father, she became more kind and loving towards people.
Princess Pea- The Princess was very bitter throughout the story except for when she met Despereuax. It is understandable being that she lost her mother but maybe her sadness and anger should not have lasted that long. She was a very flat character. She never really had an type of emotion besides sadness. She didn't really change much either so I would say that was a static character too.
In the answer to the last question you asked for this movie, I would say that I think a lot of people want things that they can't or will never have and that is where fairy tales come from. We are always hoping that something like those fairy tales we hear about will happen in our own lives but we really know they never will. If it is a question of examining our own lives, I think that sometimes they can make you feel sorry for your own life and you would just wish that it were better. For instance, that servant girl was always wishing that she was a princess when in reality she was and only would be a princess. Yes later when she meets her father, she is a princess in his eyes but she could never be truly given the title princess and live in the castle with a crown on her head. Fairy tales are make believe and every person I think has their own fairy tale.

home

There is nothing ever quite like home. Whether it is somewhere north, south, east or west. Somewhere colder or warmer home is home and there is no place ever that can compare to it. But what really does home mean to each person? It could just be wherever your family resides or it could be a place where all your memories lie. For me it is both and being that I am writing this blog from my hometown in New York on Long Island. I got the amazing opportunity to come home and completely surprise my while family but just showing up at the door of the very house I grew up in. They were all very excited to see me when they saw it was me knocking on the door very late at night. It was by far the most exciting thing I have ever done. Being home has given me an amazing chance to relax which I have not had the opportunity to do in a very long time. It is amazing to get to hug my dad, mom and brother; to get some homecooked food, to sleep in my own bed, to visit with my aunt and uncle and my cousins, and to get a chance to surprise my friends with my visit. There has only been one thing missing from this trip and that is my older brother who is stuck at school because of baseball. It would have been awesome to see him and him not being here I guess doesn't really make this house a home because of the fact that we are missing a family member but at the same time it still is absolutely amazing to be home. To be able to see the fall colors on the leaves and to watch as they slowly fall down to the ground. It is a big difference coming from the super hot weather to 50 degree weather but no matter what my body is telling me, it is definintely worth it..

Art Museum

When we wet into the art museum, I was looking really forward to it. I am really into art and as a painter, I was very intrigued by all the different things that people like to paint. I also like to get really cool ideas and see how people like to blend their different colors. If you really look at painting, unless you take a closer look, it would seem like they may just be one color but it really consists of many different colors. There was also many other different type of art that were being shown in the museum as well. There were photographs, sculpures, wire art work, and there was even little kids art work there. It was really cool to see the talent that such young kids have. There was also was a lot of ancient artifacts from Peru and other times like it.
But the part that most struct me and hit me in myheart was when I walked upstairs and saw all the photgraphs of the families that were from other countries. It showed and told everyone the possessions they owned. It made me truly see just how blessed I am. After I saw these pictures, all I could think about was how many times I either think or speak about how I want this or that. It really set things in perspective for me. Some of the families greatest possessions was a television or a bicycle. I couldn't even say what my greatest possession is because I have so many things that I love and couldn't see myself living without it. It is rediculous just how much we sit here and complain about how horrible our lives are meanwhile a family is making 100 dollars a week and the father has to use that to support a family of 5 for the entire week. That would not even last my family a half a day! I am such a blessed person and those pictures really touched my heart. I hope that everytime I find myself complaining that I just remember those pictures. I want them forever to be in my brain.

observing people

I did my observing on Wednesday night at a Starbucks at 3 in the morning. I was there doing an all-nighter- writing papers, and studying for my ethics midterm. Not only were me and my friends really tired, but so were the rest of the people there...doing the same thing as we were doing. It seemed that everywhere had their laptops out and were typing away, buying coffee to keep them awake and listening to music in order to keep away the temptation of talking to their friends. But I did notice that every now and then the people in starbucks would have take a break and usually that break meant these wild outburst of energy. It would involve very loud screams, laughing, and running around. I guess at 4 in the morning, it is hard to just sit there drinking cafeine and not do anything besides work. Even me and my friends would take breaks to just talk for a little bit so we wouldn't loose our minds. Even the workers, when they didnt have anything to do were fooling around with each other and talking to each other in order to just stay awake through their shifts. They were not exactly the happiest of people but then again who is happy when they work the night shift at Starbucks. No even many people are happy working period...no matter what shift it is. I thought that it was cool because even though it was late, everyone seemed to be happy and focused at the same time. It is amazing how much work can be done with just a couple cups of coffee and an all-nighter.

poetry

On Thursday in class, we talked about poetry and the best ways to read it. I have never been good at reading poetry. I always thought that it was way to complicated to understand. To me, if you are trying to say something, why don’t you just come right out and say it. I think that it is very dumb and pointless to try and make your writing sounds as difficult as they possibly can so that the reader has to sit there and try and figure out what they are trying to say for an hour for 5 lines worth of writing. Half the time the reader doesn’t even get the meaning correct. It frustrates me too much to read poetry for fun. I try and stay as far away from it as I can. It just works out better for me that way. The whole poem about onions seems like a waste of paper to me. But because I had to read it for class, and I had to take the time to try and figure out what it was trying to say, it was cool to get to the point where I did actually understand it. If you read it a couple of times and actually take it line by line and try and understand slowly it becomes easier to read and understand. Someone in the class said that it is good to get in a poetry state of mind before you actually read it. I thought that was good especially for me because I definitely have to be patient when I have to read poetry because it frustrates me that much. But it was good to be able to discuss it in class and it helped me fully understand more.