Junkyard Quote 3, Week 3

We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid.
~Benjamin Franklin~

Junkyard Quote 2, Week 3

100 is worth 100 no matter how dirty or crumbled it may be. Similarly you don't lose your worth because you've been through something!
~Rev. Run~

Junkyard Quote 1, Week 3

"A whistling woman and a crowing hen never comes to a very good end."~woman from back home~

I love this quote because it basically tells you to be who you are.

Reading Response Week 2

When I first began reading Abducted by circumstance I was confused and overwhelmed by the writing. As I continued on I began to notice a theme of sorts. Many of the characters portrayed were seemingly larger than life. From Glenda to Carol’s own father, all seem to have a persona that is almost unbelievable. However when I began to look at our world today there are people who are similar to those found in the book. For example Glenda seems like she has everything together, however as the book continues we see that her life isn’t perfect either. I believe this book shows the nature of us a individuals. Whether we want to admit it or not we all have Glendas in our life. We have someone whether real or fictional that we admire and strive to be like. Although we might not obsess to the extent that Carol does we tend to copy the things they do, the same way that Carol copies Glenda’s laugh. Also it shows the determination of the human spirit to be known through the woman depicted on page 84. Even in her old age she feels the need to do something out of the ordinary. Reading this book made me think of a principle we are focusing on in my Creative Process course. Boldness is not always the way to get the message across. Subtle instances that make people think often have a deeper impact. Although it doesn’t bluntly state it Abducted by Circumstance makes me realize that there is a little “Carol” in us all.

Calisthenics Week 2

This exercise is based off the active voice exercises we did in class. Here are a few more of my attempts to turn the passive into the active.

Passive: The math problem was hard.

Active: Figuring out the limit problem was like figuring out why the Z put bacon on rice krispy treats.

Passive: The show was boring.

Active: His elbow slipped from the armrest, waking him from his slumber for the third time since the show started. His eyes blinked furiously but his head quickly found the comfort of his open palm once more.

Classmate Response Week 2, Response 2

This is a response to Beverly’s junkyard quote: “Something I said to my personal trainer:"It's not that I really LOVE chocolate. I use it only for medicinal purposes!" I find this quote really intriguing because 1. I am a self confessed chocoholic, and 2. Because it brings me in mind of the class discussion we had over giving an unexpected twist to a normal object. It intrigues me because I believe you could write a fascinating piece using this quote. I know that chocolate does in fact have medicinal properties but what if you used this fact in the uncanny sense. For example a girl drinks hot chocolate because doing the Boolean algebra problems gave her a severe hand cramp.

Classmate Response Week 2, Response 1

This is a response to Kelsey’s free entry about her “Taco Tuesday”. Click here for the link In general you did a great job turning it into a story rather than just a simple journal entry. Also I enjoyed the way you worked the song into the story, the repetition of the same verse was a good way of showing annoyance rather than just saying, “the song was annoying”. In order to make this story better, maybe you should include more on what the annoyed listeners are doing and their feelings on the matter. For example at the very end of the piece when there is finally silence how is Maggie feeling about this moment. Is she ecstatic or just waiting for the next round of the song? Also you could extend the story by giving the girl playing the song a deeper character. This would be a good way to use the calisthenics exercises we did in class.

Free Entry Week 2

Writer’s block? I sit here now I began to ponder on the mythical entity known as writer’s block. Of course there is nothing special about the word writer, or so I thought. A writer as defined by Webster is somebody who enjoys writing. Enjoyment? Can there be such a thing as raw enjoyment in putting words on the paper? Surely not! No one enjoys writing for hours on end, and then you get that annoying cramp around your wrist that runs up your middle finger. Wait maybe it’s not in the enjoyment in the physicality of writing but rather the enjoyment of using words. Playing with nouns and verbs, making them perform like little marionettes on a college ruled stage. Yes this is the enjoyment that Webster speaks of. Now to the next portion of this entity: block. The first definition of the word spoke of a solid piece of a hard substance. No this isn’t the meaning I was looking for; I’ve already come to the conclusion that it is not a physical thing.  Ah this definition is interesting it reads: failure to remember something. Yes this is the definition I was looking for. So writer’s block can be defined as the affliction of someone who enjoys writing but had forgotten how. How to write? No that’s not what it means at all, it’s not physical thing. Perhaps they have forgotten the enjoyment. Yes that’s it they have forgotten how to enjoy writing. They have forgotten how to pull the strings that make the nouns and verbs leap across the page. They have forgotten the fun that can be found in verse, in prose, in scripts. Yes that is writer’s block, the buzz kill of literature. Now the question is. How do you defeat it? Hmm. . . now is not the time though. I have an appointment with fun. Excuse me.

Junkyard Quote 4, Week 2

"Golden, Ripe, Boneless Bananas, 39 Cents A Pound."
-Promotional ad in a local sales paper-

Improv Week 2

I really enjoy the concept of defamiliarization. So here’s another shot at a poem see if you can figure out the action I’m describing.

Sprinters run on

A misshapen track.

They fight over thunder

Then carelessly throw it away.

I hear the shrieks of terrified mice

But I don’t see them scurry.

This is what came to mind when I was watching intramural basketball. Let me know what you think. :)

Junkyard Quote 3, Week 2

Ink runs from the corners of my mouth
There is no happiness like mine.
I have been eating poetry.
~Mark Strand, "Eating Poetry," Reasons for Moving, 1968

Junkyard Quote 2, Week 2

Poetry is just the evidence of life.  If your life is burning well, poetry is just the ash.  ~Leonard Cohen

Junkyard Quote 1, Week 2,

If two wrongs don't make a right, try three.  ~Author Unknown

Reading Response, Week 1

For my first reading response I choose the story Next Door. Before class when I read the story on my own, I didn’t recognize the large amount of symbolism, or the deeper meanings hidden within the text. Before taking this class, my past teachers have stressed the importance of describing characters in a strictly physical or a strictly mental sense. But now I see the mental aspect of a character and their physical attributes together is what makes up a character. After all we as people are not strictly mental or strictly physical. I also realized that if you truly understand the mentality of the character the physical nature of them can be inferred and vice versa. For example the wife in Next Door is probably conservative in her attire. I doubt a woman who gasps at the neighbors nighttime antics, would be found wearing a pencil skirt or a tube top. As Dr. Davidson said it’s important to have a balance of the abstract and concrete, but with a larger focus on the concrete. In Next Door Wolff uses strong concrete images to develop the characters without giving them a name, or describing their features. But those added details are not needed since you can construct the character yourself based off his actions and verbiage. It is my goal to grasp the concept of the 80/20 balance between the concrete and the abstract.

Improv Week 1

I was intrigued by the “A Martian Sends A Postcard Home” poem that we read in class. Therefore I wanted to try my hand at it. I have a huge love of riddles and the concept of demfamiliarization feeds to that love. I am going to improv stanzas 1-3 describing books.

Original

Caxtons are mechanical birds with many wings

And some are treasured for their markings-

They cause the eyes to melt

Or the body to shriek without pain.

I have never seen one fly, but

Sometimes they perch on the hand.

Improv

They sit atop tables like a family ready for dinner,

But none have the same last name.

They make raindrops form on cheeks

And the face to contort without pain.

I have never heard one speak, but

they tell stories.

Classmate Response Week 1, Response2

This is in Response to April’s Junkyard quote: "Experements have shown that even monkeys will work longer and harder to discover what is on the other side of a trapdoor than they will for either food or sex." I find this an intriguing quote because I have often found that curiosity is a stronger motive in life than many others. Curiosity is what makes you place your hand on the stove despite your mom’s warning. It’s what makes the people in the horror move look for the “bump in the night”. We as a society want to know what is going on at all times and hate the very thought of being out of the loop. This quote shows that it’s not only the cat who’s too curious.

Week 1, Calisthenics

I based this off the show verses telling exercises we did in class. Here were my other two entries that I didn’t share along with one new one.

Tell: Her boyfriend left her and broke her heart.

Show: The ashen pieces float away on the wind, and out of her life just like him. The fire blazes when it touches the cologne drenched bear, destroying the last shrine to him. That is those that could be destroyed.

Tell: The girl is bored.

Show: She noticed them now, over a million of them on every inch of her desk. They twist like leaves caught up in a never ending breeze around her. Why had it taken so long for her to notice these tiny performers?

Tell: The girl is afraid of snakes.

Show: The sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach increased as they got closer to the glass case. She could already see the long slender body slivering towards its awaiting crowd. She stopped and refused to move. This was as far as she was willing to go.

Classmate Response Week 1, Response 1

This is a response to Morgan’s Week 1 Junkyard Quote 1 “It took them forever to figure out sliced bread..... they are NOT that smart.” I too remember the little discussion we had after she stated this. I also feel that often times we read too much into works of literature. I understand that there are works where there is hidden meaning, but I don’t believe that is always the case. When taught to analyze poetry, I was told to first focus on the literal, then focus on the deeper meaning. How do we know if there is a deeper meaning present? Who’s to say that a poet writing about a bug on a leaf is not simply writing about a bug on a leaf? I feel that we as a society sometimes grasp for straws which aren’t there, because we are trained to do so. I mentioned this idea to a fellow student and the very idea was treated as if it was forbidden to think in such a way.

Junkyard Quote Week 1, Quote 4

When love is not madness, it is not love.  ~Pedro Calderon de la Barca
This quote intrigues me because we don't often associate love with madness. Once I read this I began to think about the correlation. The word madness is often immediately connected with thoughtless and unfonded behavior. However when I researched the definition it showed that it also could be associated with enthusiasm and excitement. It is this definition of madness that Barca is referring to. He is referring to the passion between people, passion that he feels is necessary to love someone.

Free Entry Week 1

I recently attended a screening of The Help here on campus, and as I watched the reactions of my fellow students I had an epiphany of sorts. I realized that we as a society take many things for granted. Simple everyday moments and privileges, such as choosing our professions, sitting where we want on the bus, eating and socializing with whomever we choose, and being protected by the law are often overlooked. That is until an incident comes along, or a movie such as The Help shows us what could have been. Once this happens, for a brief moment in time we are grateful for everything we have, but this truly grateful nature dissipates in a day’s time, and is replaced by an almost oblivious contentment with our current situation. I myself am guilty of this as well. Often I am so caught up with my laptop, iPod, and other technological devices that I fail to remember the struggles of those that allow me to enjoy such privileges. It is my goal for this week to focus on remembering and realization. I intend to focus on remembering the raw determination of the trailblazers of the past, and realizing the efforts of those today that are diligently shaping the future.

Junkyard Quote Week 1, Quote 3

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

I chose this quote because it reminds me of a philosophy that I have heard since I was young. I have always been told that if you truly believe in something you should speak out about it. If you can show others that it matters to you, maybe it will begin to matter to them as well.

Junkyard Quote Week 1, Quote 2

The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts; therefore guard accordingly. -Marcus Aurelius-

This quote reminds me of an old idiom: "Negativity breeds Negativity. Positivity breeds happiness." It's the same principle just presented differently.

Junkyard Quote Week 1, Quote 1

 "Never give up on your dreams. If you do, all that is left are nightmares" -My high school teacher-