The Unprepared Critics

DINOSAURS ARE TAKING OVER SOUTH VERMONT

2008-12-16T23:47:00.003-05:00

Seriously, I didn't believe it. But then I saw a youtube video, and then I believed it. Because, if you see something, then it must be real. The scientists said that a "T-a-suarous Rex-I-cus" was invading the malls of South Vermont looking for sales in Macy's.

A concerned and obviously frightened shopper remarked, "It was just aweful. They came out of nowhere, eating and squashing everyone in there path. They saw the sales in went in for the kill. It was just awful carnage. The Horror. The Horror!"

Around the country, other have seen them. They travel in packs and were ridiculously nefarious. Game wardens around the country have released to basic depictions on what the perps may look like.

Ode to Stuff Way Late

2008-12-16T23:35:00.002-05:00

O, Stuff That is Way Late
You make me sick
Not in a throw up sorta way
But like a nagging old lady
Poached behind my ear
Informing me I just missed a sale
It was a week ago
Dammit.

O, Stuff That is Way Late
If I do you
Will you make my grades better
If I do you
Will you leave me the hell alone
I think not
And that's why you have not been done

O, Stuff That is Way Late
It's not as late as it would have been
If I had done it a week later
Right?
Certainly, this ode will make amends
It has to, or else it won't

O, Stuff That is Way Late
Will you sweeten like a good wine,
After I age you with time?
Or will you sparkle
Like a diamond smushed from Dino poo

O, Stuff That is way Late
I apologize to your beauty
For I shaved your head
When you asked for a lite trim
What could you have been
If you weren't so late?

The Last Class, A really short story.

2008-12-16T23:26:00.003-05:00

I walked in the door. It was the last class, the final class. I emailed my project. Good, that's over. Dr. Parent is in the front, and he posted a sick video. I watch, I laugh, I cry.

I thought he was going to get Ben Peek. It was a pizza. Sweet.

Good plates. They were animal faces. We talked about them. It wasn't a red panda, it was a fox. In case you were wondering. I was one of the last to finish the course evaluation. Nice.

See you in the digital future. Future you.

Ode to Exams

2008-12-16T23:19:00.002-05:00

O, Exams
You make me question
The value of a grade
Is it not better to party
and then get a C
Then to study
and get a C

O, Exams
How I longed for you
From Afar
But like those girls at parties
You looked better from afar
Now that your here
I would rather not be here

O, Exams
How you taunt and tease
With your six page study guides
And your fancy vocabulary
But still, I take thee anyway
If only to fail
With your F-ing rejection

O, Exams
You make me procrastinate
It's your fault
That these posts are so long
That's what she said, exams
That's what she said

Last Blog Post

2008-12-11T15:29:00.005-05:00

Seeing as though this is our last English class, it seems fitting to write my 6th and final blog post about this class and blogging in general.

I think that blogging is a very unique way to put your ideas and opinions out in the world for other people to read and respond to. Everyone in the class did a really good job with their blogs. It was cool to see how they all progressed from the pre-fab templates provided by blogger to cool backgrounds, adding pictures and movies, and everything else.

Having said that I'm not personally a fan of blogging. It just doesn't really fit for me. I like using the internet and various technology, but at the same time I get kind of paranoid about people hacking into my accounts, etc. I forgot about blogging a lot of the time, but in my defense I did make up for it eventually. Honestly, I probably won't keep up with the blog after this class. I had a hard enough time remembering it in the first place.

I really liked this class. I love the fact that it was in a computer lab, and could use the computers as well as the internet to supplement the class. Also, the class wasn't a typical English class that focused on American Literature, Brit Lit like high school, or grammar/writing. I liked learning about different types of digital literature, being exposed to different things, and having interesting discussions in the class. I think that Dr. Parent is an awesome teacher, and if I get the chance and need another English credit, I'd definitely take a class of his.

:)

The biggest rip off on campus

2008-12-11T10:43:00.002-05:00

It's only 10:45am on Thursday and it's already been a fairly busy day. Today was the first day that you could sell your books back to the bookstore. So I decided that I would get up 15 minutes earlier than I normally do so I would have extra time to get to the bookstore to get rid off all of my textbooks. I stumbled out of bed at 8am to shower and hop on the bus and I got to the bookstore around 8:30ish. I was seriously the only one in the store. So I went over to the counter they had set up for buying back books and the guy started to scan the books back into the system.

Let me say that I wasn't expecting much money to begin with, having heard that the bookstore was the biggest rip off on campus. I spent somewhere between $250 and $280 on books at the beginning of the semester. Any guesses as to how much they gave me for all of them?

...

...

$30.50. And I had to keep one of them (one of my English books, but it's ok because they took the one I didn't like. Sorry N. Katherine Hayles).

I just don't understand how the hell they can sell all of these books for such high prices, and then when you turn them back in at the end of the semester, they're worth practically nothing. I bought my biology book from the bookstore used for $116, and they gave me $10 for it. Somehow that doesn't seem quite right to me. To anyone else selling back books, good luck and I hope you do better than I did.

One final down, two more to go.

Top Three Christmas movies EVER

2008-12-10T21:58:00.005-05:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Yes that's right I said Merry Christmas, not Happy Holidays, or any other politically correct phrase for wishing someone happiness during this wonderful season. It's late when I'm writing this, so I decided that being politically correct was overrated. Plus if I want to wish someone a Merry Christmas, the phrase has the same good thoughts and intentions as Happy Hannukah/Kwanza/Yom Kippur...but that's a bit of a tangent.

Anywho I was thinking about Christmas and presents and snow and such and thought of three movies that I absolutely have to see during the Christmas season:

A Year Without a Santa Claus. For the longest time, I thought the movie was called Heatmiser and Snowmiser. I remember when we had a VHS player at my house and we had the video in a white cardboard holder with the name Heatmiser and Snowmiser written on the side. It wasn't until later that I actually realized that the actual title of the movie was sung in the opening credits. Love the movie, it's old fashioned animation, kind of along the lines of Wallace and Gromet, except the people are made out of cloth instead of clay.

A Muppet Christmas Carol. Modern update of a classic Christmas story by Charles Dickens. Gonzo plays Charles Dickens/the Narrator, Michael Caine (who is an absolutely fabulous actor) plays Scrooge, and Kermit is Bob Kratchett. Anyone who is a fan of the Muppets will love this movie. It's cute and it's fun, but has it's poignant moments at the same time.

And finally....A Christmas Story. If you haven't seen this, it's blasphemy. You should stop whatever you are doing, go find a copy and watch it. A classic ---for me it's not truly Christmas until I've heard the phrases, "I TRIPLE dog dare you" and "you'll shoot your eye out kid!"

modern art = ???

2008-12-10T15:53:00.004-05:00

Right now I am in Art History 005- Western Art, Renaissance to Present (or something like that). Though the teacher was no necessarily my favorite, I thought that the material was very interesting. I liked learning about the different periods in art history such as the Renaissance, the Baroque, and Impressionism, and how all of these periods influenced each other. It was also very interesting to see the shift in subject matter as time passed. Of course we looked at the very well known paintings/sculptures of DaVinci, Michelangelo, Renoir, and countless others. These artists very brilliant and their works art absolutely art.

But when we started to move towards modern art, abstraction, and minimalism, things started to get weird. I don't think it's fair to consider DaVinci's Last Supper as being art in the same sense as Marcel Duchamp's Fountain. It's a urinal he turned on it's side and signed a name (not even his name) to. I understand that most of modern art is "conceptual" but something like the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel or the Mona Lisa took real skill, skill that most of us can't even begin to fathom.

Final Project

2008-12-10T14:56:00.002-05:00

I decided to be boring and un-creative and do a paper for my final project. Combined with everything else going on, I figured that this would be the best option for me. I took the question "What is Literature?" and applied it to the readings that we've had in this class.

Here's a few snippets:

"In my opinion, literature is written, and should be read. The word ‘literature’ is related to words like literacy, and literate. These words suggest reading, and the ability to read. Therefore literature is something that we read. However, that does not mean that everything we read can be considered as literature. The marquee in front of a movie theater is not literature. An exit sign on the highway is not literature. We can read Pride and Prejudice or the sign in front of the local theater, but what distinguishes one as literature and the other as something else is the content."

"...These new and virtually unlimited possibilities call in to question what we view as literature. Is it possible for a work that is made solely with a computer and is meant to be viewed via computer to have the same literary value as one of Shakespeare’s sonnets?"

I didn't think that Slice or Inanimate Alice could be considered literature and went on to explain my reasoning. For an example of literature from the class I used Lasting Image and said why I considered it to be literature.

Thoughts? Opinions?

uh oh...

2008-12-09T16:34:00.004-05:00

6 posts? AND 6 comments? in two-ish days?
this is going to be fun..

So I've completely blown off blogging over the past few weeks. Between Thanksgiving break and doing disgusting amounts of work for finals, blogging admittedly was not the first thing on my mind. oops.

I have three papers to write. English is done and sent in. French and Anthropology are being reviewed and I'll hopefully get the drafts back tomorrow to edit and fix to turn in for Friday. Tomorrow I have my Biology final and the second half of my Anthropology final (yes I had a final and a paper for one class). Friday I have my Art History final, which is a cumulative exam (50-75 multiple choice) spanning from the Pre-Renaissance to the present.Thankfully I'm staying relatively sane and have been keeping up with everything.

But the great part about all of this is that after Friday I'm DONE for the semester. So I get to go home a week earlier than everyone else :)

Final Project

2008-12-07T23:19:00.003-05:00

For my my final project, I decided to create a digital work similar to Slice. As a work in progress, the most difficult problem I find is polishing and developing a believable story. So I started to think, what makes me believe an author of the interweb?

Seriously, I find myself believing quite a lot these days. Its as if the internet is my encyclopedia and the authors are experts. But it isn't, and they aren't. If anything, a digital work that appears to be truth, can in reality be nothing but a lie created by someone who doesn't even exist.

It's funny to think about how people are willing to believe so much on the internet, especially if it is from a "reputable" website like news.yahoo.com or maybe sciam.com. But unlike fact checked paper, digital stories require trust.

So, that lead me to formulate the hypothesis that if a website seems clear, consise, and desketchified, we as a society are far more likely to believe its claims.

But alas, as with all things that happen in my mind, I get lost in tangents and tangle with tidbits. But what are your opinions? Is there something that you look for when you are reading something fascinating on the internet to determine if it is real or there is any fact behind it? How much do you trust the author?

Talk About Last Minute

2008-12-07T23:09:00.002-05:00

So yeah, this blog is pretty last minute. I mean seriously, 11:10pm on Sunday night? I guess I really am that big of a procrastinator. So anyways, where are we going? As a class, or time together is growing to a minimum. So now, what are we going to do now? Will you keep blogging?

I find myself at a crossroads. I didn't blog for fun, it was just an assignment. But I enjoyed it. Compared with the normal, run of the mill papers and such it was a well received reprieve. I wonder what this blog was to outsiders, I wonder if anyone outside of our class ever read, and what they thought?

In the future, I want to be an author and a teacher. I want to leave behind a literary legacy, both in paper and in mind, for future generations to explore. Sometimes I wonder if I will accomplish this. I know I am not the best writer, I am not even sure if I have the potential, but that won't stop me. I will try. And in the future, whatever it may hold, will I remember this blog? Will I remember the entries I wrote? Or will it become just another cataloged page in the internet's way back machine?

Millions of Misguided Penguins

2008-11-20T20:43:00.003-05:00

So, yea.... What to say about A Million Penguins. I think that this idea in itself was a good one. Think about it. What I believe happened was that people weren't given rule and guidelines. Something so new, especially on such a grand scale, need to have rule in order to create some form of unity and coherence.

I mean seriously, trudging through that ridiculous debacle was painstaking. Some of the writing wasn't half bad but couldn't bring myself to care enough to ignore the rest. Again, imagine if penguin had laid out a series of rules to govern the event. For example: 1) all third person limited omniscient 2) List of characters that must play roles throughout the course of the work 3) Even if you disagree with the previous writer, try to follow the mood... at least until an appropriate point.

Maybe I have no idea what I am talking about but I think structure and unity would make this into something truly interesting. Will it be a work of William Faulkner or James Joyce? Probably not. But it will be a work that might one day be studied in an English class, just like its horribly deformed Predecessor.

I. Hate. Cell Phones.

2008-11-20T18:57:00.002-05:00

I got a blackberry for graduation and at the time thought it was the best thing ever. I could get e-mails, go on facebook and everything was great. The first time i broke my phone it was kind of my fault. I was at the beach sleeping on a towel when the tide came up. As you can imagine, i got soaking wet and so did my phone. It was really frustrating at the time but not as frustrating as the process i had to go through to get my new one.

The Verizon store is probably my worst nightmare. You wait online for an hour or more to talk to someone, and when it is finally your turn, they tell you that you need to mail in your phone which is not in stock and you wont get your new one for 5-8 business days...AND they cannot transfer your contacts.

While at school my phone has turned off on my twice and has refused to turn back on for 2 days until it finally decides that it will. Wow, thank you so much for making me insane for two days and then just DECIDE to turn back on. This time, the third time, it decided to turn off and has not turned back on for over a week. So basically, i need a new phone and i could not be happier. I have come to despise my blackberry. The thing i loved so much at one point has become my greatest enemy. The first thing i do when i get home for thanksgiving is buy a new phone that is the least complicated one in the store.

Dakota and Nukorea

2008-11-20T18:49:00.002-05:00

Dakota...awful. Nukorea...awful. I really did not enjoy either of them and just sat and prayed for it to be over. They both lasted too long so I never thought my prayers would be answered.

For Dakota, I do not like the fact that I couldn't read what was being shown to me. What is the point of writing something if no one can read it? I understand that he wanted to show the chaos of what was going on, but it was just frustrating that I could'nt fully understand the entire story.

For Nukorea, the details were a little much for me. Actually, they were probably the only thing that did interest me out of the whole thing. The point i was paying the most attention to was when he was describing the maggots and rats on the dead bodies. Another thing I didn't like about this was how he continuously used transition words to start way too many sentences. It seemed like he had never taken an English class before even though he obviously has experience in the subject. The idea was interesting but it is kind of scary to think that this could possibly happen. The whole thing was also wayyyyyyyyy too long.

One of the funny things is that I think that the music should have been switched for the two pieces. For the first one, i was more interested in the story but couldn't read it because the music was too fast and it was following the music. For the second one, the music was slow and there are a lot of things i wish i didn't read. If the music was reversed i think i would have liked them both at least a little bit more...

Belly Dancing

2008-11-20T14:39:00.002-05:00

I'm not really an athletic person. Nor am I a slave to the gym and working out. In 18 years, I obviously haven't had any major issues, so I don't really feel the need to start changing that. However, I do exercise occasionally and feel better about myself by getting out and doing something somewhat physical. I used to play soccer, and I like to play tennis and ski.

I thought about joining a team/intramural sport here, but it didn't end up happening. Too much of a time commitment and not enough skill :) So I looked around the Campus Recreation website and found that the University offered various fitness classes. There was a weird type of yoga, self-defense (which I seriously considered), a few others, and then I stumbled across belly dancing. This was one of those things where I always thought it was cool, never had any exposure at all to it. So for $40 I decided why not-I'll give it a shot.

The class met for six weeks, and there were 10 or 12 of us in the class, depending on the day. Our instructor was really chill - she was very much into the dancing, how it's an art form, and very pro-female empowerment/getting in touch with yourself. It was really cool actually. We learned really basic moves like belly rolls, shimmies, and hip drops, and put together two different choreographies to help learn the moves. One day, the instructor brought in veils and belts that jingled so we got to play around with those. I really enjoyed the class and loved getting out once a week and doing something fun and stress free.

Here are a few videos of belly dancing courtesy of youtube. Generally, belly dancing is a solo dance for a woman...

...but men can do it as well...Personally I think the women are more impressive than the men...

for the record, I along with everyone else in my class, don't even come CLOSE to these people :)

Blog News Theft - Burger King Wallets?

2008-11-20T11:17:00.002-05:00

I found this on another blog and thought it pretty interesting. This being the case, I am going to summarize what going on with Burger King Wallets. So it turns out that those cheesy, no pun intended, Burger King commercials where the King gives people money is becoming reality. Reportedly, Burger King decided to drop 5,000 wallets with, get this, between $1 and $100 dollars of actual cash and gift certificates for Burger King in them. Along with the nice surprise is a driver's license for the king, and note indicating what the wallet is, and a map to Chicago or Orlando's Burger Kings.

Although at this point only reports suggest that they will be dropped in major Urban area of Chicago, they could be headed this way. So next time you are a hungering for a burger, just look at your feet, and maybe, just maybe, you will find that magical burger wallet to guide your hunger.

First Transplant with Synthetic Organ

2008-11-20T11:04:00.002-05:00

So there are a fair share of science fiction movies, books, etc that depict a future where organs can be "manufactured" simply, inexpensively, and reliably. Think about all those patients that wait for years in an organ donor line, often succumbing to the failing organ before they ever get the transplant. But even if they are among the lucky ones that get the organ, they have to take heavy medications for a long period of time to subdue their immune system from killing the new resident.

But it seems that science and technology continue to trace our imaginations. It seems that Claudia Castillo, a mother of two, has undergone the first transplant of a synthetic organ created from her stem cells (attained from her bone marrow.)It was a team of British scientists that one the global race to create the worlds first organ from adult stems cells. This time, the organ was Castillo's windpipe and the surgery seems to be a brilliant success.

Are we approaching a future of endless possibilities? Where new organs can be created and implanted based of your own stem cells? It seems to good to be true, but in tomorrow's yesterday it seems that it is happening.

Source

Times Best Inventions of 2008

2008-11-20T10:47:00.002-05:00

So, the other day I stumbled upon Time's top 50 inventions for 2008. Like all things, some weren't all great, in my opinion, while others were simply fascinating. Take for instance a camera for the blind. That's right. A specially designed camera is held to the forehead of a blind person. After the picture is taken, a brail representation is created on the backside of the camera. Seriously.

Another fascinating invention was a Bionic lens. It works just like a normal contact but with one huge difference. Using LEDs that are powered by solar cell and radio frequencies, lol yeah all this stuff being beamed into your eye, the contacts can display information like maps, pictures, etc in the wearers view of vision. In other words, data and such will appear to be floating in front of you. It'll be like your very own video game.

Finally, one other invention that both mesmerizes and invokes fear is the synthetic organism. J. Craig Venter, who helped map the human genome, spliced together man made compounds to create a genetic organism. Although it was one of the smallest genomes known to man, it is still an amazing feat, with about 582,000 pairs needed to be spliced. Although the organism has not been proven to be alive yet, Venter believes it will be by the end of next year.

Source

21 Steps

2008-11-19T19:15:00.002-05:00

This was such a cool idea for a way to tell a story. First of all, Google Earth is probably one of the coolest things that has ever been thought up. It's so easy to use, unlike Mapquest, which just sucks. I love the fact that it gives you actual satellite images of the place that you're looking up.

Using Googe Earth in this story added a whole new level of interacting with the story. Instead of having to visualize all of the places that the guy (sorry forgot his name) went to, you could see it mapped out on the screen. The red and blue lines that showed him moving and where he was going really helped me to see what was going on, instead of just reading about it. I tend to get confused when I read about places and distances, so actually seeing him riding around London in a taxi, or flying on a plane to Edinburgh was quite helpful.

It reminded me of a few different books I've read and movies that I've seen where the main character has no idea what is going on, but he/she has to do these various things. Sounds kind of vague, but I really like stories with this type of plotline-action, suspense and a little bit of mystery. Reminds me of James Paterson/John Grisham/Dan Brown....

CRAZIEST

2008-11-19T16:02:00.004-05:00

I really enjoyed watching Craziest. I think it might have been my favorite thing we have watched in class all year. I like things that are funny and I was laughing throughout this entire video. It was extremely clever and smart, and i almost didn't want it ot end because I was so entertained by it.
It kind of reminded me of a documentary i watched one time called Wordplay. It was about crossword puzzle fanatics who do competitions and basically live for crossword puzzles. It was hilarious at time when it wasn't even supposed to be just because of how crazy the people were. This video definitely reminded me of that. I also saw another documentary about kids who enter spelling bees. These kids let spelling and studying take over their lives, kind of like how the woman in the video let scrabble take over her life. Fanatics can be kind of scary and that definitely came through in Craziest.

If You're Into It

2008-11-19T15:02:00.004-05:00

When i came to school my roommate introduced me to a show called "Flight of the Conchords". I had heard of it before but i never had any interest in watching it. Now i can't get enough of it. It's actually one of the funniest things i have ever seen. If you have never seen it, it is basically about two guys from New Zealand living in NY because they are trying to become famous as a band. During the show they will randomly break into song. This one is one of my favorites...

but this one is actually probably my all time favorite

Basically this is the first thing my roommate and i every did together. We went in our lofted beds and watched flight of the conchords. We were basically crying with laughter the whole time so it was a good ice breaker and now i am officially addicted.

Thanksgiving!

2008-11-19T12:57:00.003-05:00

Thank GOD that I get to go home for Thanksgiving break this Friday. My mom is coming at 2 and then my roommate and I are peacin' out! Everyone I talk to is so excited to be going home for Thanksgiving. Maybe it's because we're all sick of campus food, which isn't all bad, or sick of our roommates, or just want to be home to see friends and family. Whatever the reason, it's very exciting. I know that I have little to no attention span to do anything lately...all I want to do is be home for a week. I miss my friends from home and I can't wait to see them all. There's going to be some big get-together, but I have no idea what (pretty typical for my friends).

Plus it doesn't help that this is really the first break we've all gotten since classes have started...I suppose it's a trade off. No Columbus Day off for a longer Thanksgiving break.

As far as food goes, what's not to love? Turkey, stuffing (my personal favorite), mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, pumpkin pie, apple pie...I'm sure everyone has their own family specialties. What is kind of cool about mine is that for the past few years we haven't done a traditional turkey. Instead we've done different turkey recipes. For instance, last year my dad made turkey breasts wrapped in prosciutto...it was soooo good. I really like that we do something that's a little bit different from everyone else.

Anyone else have unique little family traditions around Thanksgiving?

SCRUBS!

2008-11-18T18:33:00.002-05:00

I absolutely LOVE the TV show Scrubs. I really don't get into TV shows and follow them religiously, usually because I forget about them, I'm busy, or they're on at a weird time. So when my friend sent me the link to all of the seasons of Scrubs that I could watch online, I was pumped!

Within the last couple months, I've been watching episodes and I love it. I think it's better than other medical shows on TV because it's more relatable, because most of us don't understand some of the crap that happens on House or Grey's Anatomy unless we're in advanced med. classes. And I don't know about you, but that's definitely not a class that I'm in...anyways, Scrubs combines humor and a little bit of drama without it being too heavy. You get to know the characters so when something happens to them, you feel more involved. There are heart-wrenching moments as well, just like any TV series, but the way it's done makes it unique.

So if you don't watch Scrubs, I highly recommend it. Elliot is one of my favorites---she reminds me a little bit of myself. Here's a funny clip/series of clips about Elliot. She can't say the words for penis or vagina so she makes up her own...

Jeff Dunham

2008-11-18T18:21:00.002-05:00

If you haven't heard of Jeff Dunham you're missing out. He's a comedian who is also a ventriliquist. I know, it sounds kind of creepy right...kind of like mimes and sketchy clowns? But I promise you it isn't. At first I thought the same thing because He uses 4-6 different puppets during his various acts and does his stand-up. I haven't laughed this hard in a long time.

The first time I saw Jeff Dunham perform his act, I was at my boyfriend's house, and we were watching it with his parents (this was a long time ago). Now, keep in mind, even though I've been with my boyfriend for almost three years now, and I've obviously met his parents, there's still that kind of weird/awkwardness sometimes. In retrospect, watching it all together was actually a great way to just chill out and not really worry about anything. The four of us sat on the couch for 2 hours (or however long the act was including commercials on Comedy Central) and laughed our asses off :)

SOOO....here's a few clips that I really like. My favorites are....

Walter, the senile old man....

...and Peanut, who is this weird little Muppet thing...

He's on Comedy Central a lot, and I heard that he just did a new show...it might've been a Christmas special?
Enjoy!

Detentions

2008-11-12T20:03:00.002-05:00

The only funny story I have about detention is that at one of my old high schools, the contest between students was to see who could snag a blank detention slip, write some obscure/comic name on it, and have it read on the afternoon announcements like all the other no-good-detention-loving-students. Among the top names read out were as follows: Chris Cross, Lando Calrisian, Peter Griffin, Rick James, Robert Shakes, Jackson Hoff, and Mark Hamill.

But in college, who gives a fuck. No detention, no stupid write your name on the chalk board repeatedly, seriously did anyone do that? But I found these two detention rather funny.

2008-11-11T23:45:00.002-05:00

I post this video because I like the message. I won't try to persuade you, just watch it and think for yourself.

I don't know what to think of the economy. I am told it is bad. I hear it in the news, in conversations, in jokes. Companies like AIG begin crawling to the government asking for tax payer bailouts. What am I supposed to think?

I know this isn't a quick fix, one way or another. I am pretty optimistic about the future, especially with President Elect Barack Obama at the helm. But what can I do to help the economy? I don't pay taxes, you can hardly call what I do work, and I sit on my ass typing for a blog that very few people will ever read.

I feel like there must be something that me, a small group, or even the nation can do to fix this. What I have been told is to spend. To spend money, and lots of it. Imagine what would happen if everyone went out tomorrow and spent $500 dollars from their savings. That's simple math. 300 million (abo) * $500 = $150 billion (I hope I got the decimal places right) pumped into the economy. That's gotta do something, right?

But how do you convince a nation to spend their savings when the future looks so bleak? Is it even possible? I for one won't stop spending my money because I don't think saving is always the answer. Saving is like watching the weather during a Hurricane. You prepare your house, your valuables, etc. in order to weather the storm and continue after less affected. But then again, that is all based on the assumption that your home, your valuables, or even your life will be there afterwords. In other words, if people continue to save money, without spending, the economy will become stale and eventually shrivel up. Right?

Anyways, what I am getting at is the question, what should we do?

to dress like a slut, or to not dress like a slut...THAT is the question...

2008-11-11T21:36:00.006-05:00

So for Halloween every year, girls find an opportunity to have an excuse to wear costumes that are extremely slutty without being judged by other people. I mean its normal right? Girls dress like sluts on halloween. But i beg to differ. Im not really into the whole typical slutty nurse, slutty cop, slutty cat? costume and instead like to think of the funniest thing i could be while still looking somewhat good. I have included a few examples.

I love Halloween...but not because its a night where i can acceptably dress inappropriately but because i can show my inner-creative side...

Maybe Not So Lucky

2008-11-11T21:29:00.002-05:00

I know this is super super late but since we havent had class i TOTALLY forgot that blogging even existed so im going to make up for it for posting some great stuff. Maybe... haha

But about "The Lucky Ones"... I thought this thing was really awesome but it would probably have been more awesome if it had at least SOMETHING to do with Mercury cars? Which was its purpose? But i guess thats beside the point. The title in general is rather ironic considering these people seem to be extremely unlucky. For the most part they are either unhappy, lonely, or dead. I do like things that are not just fluff and light hearted though so i found these videos to be very entertaining.

Something that i didnt like though was the interactive things you could click before the videos. I thought they were kind of annoying and pointless considering you basically found out all the information they gave you in the video. I think that maybe if they got rid of the interactive part and made the videos longer it would have been better. Overall i though that watching these videos was very entertaining and i even felt connected to some of the people in the videos...but maybe next time Mercury will choose a more effective marketing strategy...

Random Post

2008-11-10T17:51:00.002-05:00

Thank God, after a week of feeling like crap and not doing much more than being a lump of blankets in my bed, I'm back to normal and feeling better...prednisone is great stuff. I will say though it was somewhat good timing because I didn't miss either of the English classes, and didn't miss anything in my other classes too. So hopefully I won't get sick again for a while...(knock on the wood-like substance of my desk).

I remembered that we have our advising meetings for picking out classes and that mine is this Thursday so I've been trying to pick out my classes for next semester. As of right now, I have a math class (17 or 19) and Geology w/ a lab. After that, I have a few other classes that I'm deciding between to take for my Fine Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences requirements. I think by the end of this year, I'm going to have all my requirements fulfilled for my B.A. and then I can focus on my major/minor classes. Which I'm changing. Or at least that I'm working on changing - kinda hard to explain, but I'm excited about it. I can't believe that I'm picking out classes for second semester already and that Thanksgiving is only 2ish weeks away...time has flown by. Anyone else feel like that?

Also....anyone else have any idea what they're doing for our English project? Suggestions?

Funny... Now with MORE Science

2008-11-05T20:16:00.003-05:00

Here are some videos and articles you should really check out:

Humor: (videos)

1) What to say after you shoot a bad guy.

2) How Classic video games came to be.

3) Greatest Medication Side Effect Ever!

Science: (videos & articles)

1) Jurassic Park, here we come! (article)

2) Bleed-no-more internal wound fixer-upper. (article)

3) Did you catch CNN's Hologram during the election? Me either.
(video) Additionally, check out this other video if your interested in the above.

4) 'Deflector' shields could protect future astronauts. What's that Spock? (article)

5) A fungus. First penicillin, now fuel? (article)

6)Ghost in the Machine? Physicists May Have Detected a New Particle at Fermilab (article)

7) Protect those keys from key-jackers? What, now? (article)

8) Finally, the end. Don't stretch like a noob, its bad for you after all.

President

2008-11-04T12:13:00.000-05:00

Obama won.
Just in case you don't have tv/internet/ears/eyes.
Dibs.

The Lucky Ones

2008-11-02T17:19:00.002-05:00

So, are you a lucky one? Upon watching/exploring Mercury's "Meet the Lucky Ones," I was one part confused, one part entertained, and one part left thinking what possible connection this video had to do with cars. I mean seriously? I could see this being some kind of viral video for lawnmowers, the lotto, even a pet store. But cars?

I figured I would Google the marketing ploy and find out what was the deal. According to media.ford.com, after the first two weeks of the five week program, Mercury's website had seen over "825,000 unique visitors." That is a lot of people, in a short period of time. With these record numbers, as many as 64,000 of these visitors went on to look a the Mercury Mariner (the car Sharon was given.)

What I Liked:
I enjoyed how all the stories, more or less, were interconnected. In order to appreciate the work, it needed to be viewed in it's entirety.

What I Disliked:
I disliked the info you could click on in the background. I found it a waste of time because 85% of all the info was provided in the video.

Halloween Masks for Gangs

2008-11-02T16:29:00.006-05:00

What does this drawing mean to you? What does it depict? If I asked who would draw something like this, what would you say? If you asked me, I would say it was a zombie some little kid drew for Halloween. Well, this is actually half right. The artist, Jordan Hood, is a fifth-grader at Pooler Elementary School. Jordan's vampire, looked like a zombie to me lol, was part of an assignment. That assignment was to draw a scary Halloween mask in art class. After the art teacher helped Jordan with some finishing touches, off he went to other classes.

So what the catch? When little Jordan got to his home room class, his teacher, Melissa Pevey, was so disturbed by the picture she found it necessary to to involve the vice principal, Valerie Johnson, and the campus police. Wait, it gets even better. Pevey argued that the blood tears and the phrase, "I Kill For Blood" were indicative of the L.A. gang known as the Bloods. WAIT, WHAT?! Jordan was taken out of school and required to take psychological testing before he could return to school.

So, at the end of the day, Jordan returned back to school after the evaluation found him in good psychological health. Seriously, sometimes I doubt the competence of some of our species. It's a child, at Halloween, given an assignment to create a scary mask, in art class. Lay of the horror movies, lady.

Source

Angels and Demons

2008-10-30T15:03:00.002-04:00

I must say that Dan Brown is one of my favorite authors...a little predictable after reading all four of his books, but I still very much enjoyed them..Angels and Demons was definitely my favorite (partially because it was the first one I read?)...so I got extremely excited when I was looking around the internet today and saw that the Angels and Demons movie is coming out in May 2009 - SO PUMPED!!!

Here's the trailer:

'Tis the Season

2008-10-29T19:22:00.006-04:00

Halloween always seemed like a weird holiday...people dress up in weird costumes and walk around begging for candy, with the intent of scaring people or wanting to be scared. Personally, I hate being scared, and the whole horror genre. So I decided to look into it a little more, because I really don't have a clue about the actual origins of Halloween and it's traditions. HistoryChannel.com is wonderful! If you're interested in superstitions, Halloween around the world, or the origins of Halloween, definitely check it out!

On a side note that I just remembered...

My brother is a junior in high school, so he doesn't go out trick-or-treating anymore. Instead, he decides to dress up in morbid costumes and scares people who come to our house. In front of my house there are a lot of thick bushes and when it's dark, they're kinda creepy because a person could definitely hide in one (speaking from experience getting home late...). Last year he found this hideous mask with long scraggly hair, put on a leather jacket that is similar to Ghostrider, and went crazy...he actually chased people down the street. But for the record they were people he knew :) This year he decided to dress up like a deranged clown, which my mom was NOT thrilled about because she hates clowns. Tonight is trick-or-treat night for my hometown, so I really want to hear how his dressing up/scaring people adventure goes this year...supposedly he was going to take the chain off my dad's chainsaw....maybe it's a good thing I'm not there!

Better Late Than Never

2008-10-29T19:06:00.002-04:00

I realized that I am a little behind on my blogging...I forgot about it and then something was mentioned the other day in class about this week's blog post, and I suddenly remembered. I don't know why I keep forgetting about blogging-maybe because it's online and not an actual paper assignment, but that really doesn't make sense because I use Blackboard for three other classes...or maybe it's because I feel weird blogging, like I'm just being fake and just coming up with weird stuff to talk about... whatever-Here is my entry on Understanding from 26 Lies/1 Truth.

The two entries entitled Understanding are both pictures. The first is a close up of a pair of eyes. The eyes look tired, sad, and empty, as if there is something missing. The second picture is (I'm assuming) of Ben Peek lying in a bed looking at an empty side of the bed. The bed looks like it has an imprint of a person who was lying there. Ben's facial expression looks the same in the second picture as it does in the first picture, like the first is a close up of the second.

I think that close ups are a good way to emphasize something. The close of of his eyes really show the pain and sadness that Peek is going through. I mean seriously...his significant other (Geraldine at the time right?) just died with his unborn child in a car accident that HE survived. That is some serious stuff to be dealing with, no matter who you are or what you've been through. Eyes are one of those things where you can really see what a person is feeling or thinking or what mood they're in. Which is why this close up is important. You can bulls*** your way through a book, and pretend like you're fine and nothing is wrong, but you can't bulls*** your eyes.

Personal Touch on the Diary Entries

2008-10-26T20:16:00.002-04:00

Ben Peek's entries are all pretty personal but the personal diary entries have that little extra personal touch. When we were asked to re-read JUST the personal diary entries i didnt think it would make that big of a difference as opposed to when we read them along with the story, but i was mistaken ( i guess we should never second guess our professors). We actually found out a lot of things by reading them all in order, for instance that Ben got his book deal the same day that he crashed the car and G died. We also were able to really see into how he was feeling and how he was dealing with the guilt. I cant really imagine how he felt but the diary entries definitely let us into how he was feeling. One that stuck out to me was the one called vindictive. He talks about all these things he was going to say to G through e-mails, calls, messages, but obviously cant do any of that since she is dead. It;s just another way people deal with guilt and stress. Sometimes if you write things out its a way to get it all out of your system and thats kind of what i think he was doing in this entry.

What's With Kids and YouTube?

2008-10-26T19:44:00.007-04:00

I really love youtube and all the great things it has to offer our world, but lately i've been noticing that more and more kids have been using it. My friends always send me funny videos they find funny and think i would find funny too, and lately they have all been pretty similar. Take this one for example:

Tina enjoys posting herself singing songs ranging from the backstreet boys, to high school musical, to the jonas brothers. Her talent amazes me, really. The notes she hits are incredible.

Then there is this one...

This is a personal favorite, mainly because of the artistic use of the light switch. The light goes on and off right on beat with rihanna herself. Its really a great touch.

If i had youtube as an expressive outlet when i was younger it would have been extremely dangerous. I loved doing stuff like this with my friends and being able to show it to millions of people would have probably not have been a great idea..

Things You never Knew You should Know

2008-10-24T23:16:00.003-04:00

So if your blogger routine has gotten dull as of late then just contract your work out. How, you might ask? Well if you speak Japanese it is pretty simple. You see, click here to see the video or read more.

A potted plant at a cafe near Tokyo, Japan is entertaining customers by writing a regular blog about its feelings.

It is the work of a university engineer who has been studying how to communicate with plants.

He devised a sensor which he attached to the plant named "Midori-san" that measures bio-electric signals. These are converted into data by a computer next the plant and then translated into Japanese in the form of a blog.

The plant's latest entry reads: "It was cloudy today. It was a cold day."

What about Halloween? How are you going to navigate the dark scary streets? You probably need a light and a friend. How about both? Scientist's have created the first cat that glows in the dark. Those aren't effects, it is really glowing under black light.

Interested? Creeped out? Want your own light bulb kitty? check out this for more info.

Worried your eye site is failing? Need glasses. Don't fret. This guy has an eye that is 123 years old.

In Final, how about the recently released archived film of the early French preparations to explore on the moon in the 60s. After the government witnessed the catastrophe, the mission was immediately canceled and instead they drank wine to celebrate.

http://view.break.com/584997 - Watch more free videos

Sad Eyes... or moth?

2008-10-24T22:43:00.003-04:00

So Ben Peek's novel "twenty-six lies/one truth" is a truly different approach at telling a story. In regards to the entries on understanding(the pictures), I feel like Peek is expressing his ability to understand the gravity of the situation. I honestly don't feel that he intentionally tried to harm G.

Seriously, he cared deeply for her. I mean, what else could he have done in a split second. The choice, in my eyes, was not between who the car was going to hit, but which direction to turn the wheel. He uses his guilt to try and make a rational reason for her death. He even admits that he likes the lies because they make it easier.

What would you have done? Personally, I probably would have turned the wheel to the right because I am right handed. But since this is Australia and the wheel is on the opposite side, this would have protected me and not the passenger. This is probably way over analyzing this, but I think it is an interesting point. Why would someone, even if he hated the mother, hurt his unborn child?

Journal Entries

2008-10-23T14:50:00.003-04:00

I don't know about anyone else, but I'll fully admit to being confused about some parts of 26 Lies/1 Truth. It seems like the more that we discuss the book, the more in depth it gets, and the more confusing it becomes because nothing really seems to connect, or if it does, we can't tell if it is a lie or if it is a truth.

The journal entries seemed to be somewhat straightforward. The first entry talks about how Peek has just heard from the publisher and how she wants him to create a book based off of his blog. The comment about "Don't be afraid - Go Further" caught me off guard a little bit because it could be taken as the publisher giving him no limits on the book, or it could be talking about Peek and his current significant other in an intimate situation. This entry occurs in early March.

The following entries occur in October, and all of them occur on the same day: October 12. These entries talk about how everything has changed. I think they refer to his life after the car accident. You can see the grieving process that Peek goes through: blame, anger, sadness, acceptance, etc. I don't think that there is any more hidden, deep meaning within these entries. I think that they are just suppose to reflect his personal thoughts and what he is going through, which is the purpose of a personal journal.

Digital Age Is Coming...Again

2008-10-20T22:35:00.003-04:00

Many people may, or may not, have heard about the upcoming switch to 100% digital signal for your televisions set. That's right. No longer will those clunky rabbit ears do you any good unless you have a digital converter. So what exactly does all this mean for us?

Not so much right now. On February 17, 2009 all television signals in the United States will go all digital. The implications of this switch are staggering. For example, with 100s of bands of airwaves opening up, companies like Microsoft and Google are fighting tooth and nail in order to secure them for themselves. Why, you ask? Because these waves may prove the future of wifi. Imagine getting internet ten to hundreds of times faster in your home via "outdated" analog. And did I mention all at an amazing cost of free? That's right. Check it here for more info.

So again, what about those of us that aren't tech savy, don't really understand what this means, and likes video clips? Check This out for a better explanation.

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

C is a Good Chapter

2008-10-19T18:40:00.003-04:00

Ben Peek's "twenty-six lies/one truth" is a fictional autobiography. When asked what entry I liked best, I honestly could only remember one in any detail. That was the entire chapter on letter c. The beauty of the chapter was the continual use of the word cunt.

It's funny because I would have to say I picked the chapter for two reasons. First, this entry was 10 entries on cunt. Now everyone knows that cunt is seen as a taboo. Using the word in any formal setting would be completely inappropriate, albeit funny. So the use of this word was refreshing. Secondly, it was the only series of entries that I clearly remembered.

The etymology of cunt was probably the best entry of the chapter. It's always interesting to learn about how curse words became the awful, make-Jesus-cry words they are. I honestly disagree however with Peek's assumption that cunt is the worst word in the English language. I contend words like motherfucker or such are much worse. Also, anything that tears apart a person based on racial/physical differences.

So take back the word cunt. Using it to greet your best of friends.

Sanctity

2008-10-16T19:18:00.003-04:00

One of my favorite entries in Twenty-Six Lies/One Truth was the entry entitled "Sanctity".

Sanctity is defined as something that is holy or sacred. According to the Church, sex should be saved until after marriage, and pre-marital sex isn't looked kindly upon. Since Peek doesn't hide his dislike of the church, this entry is somewhat of a contrast.

The subject of the entry is sex, more bluntly, the word fuck. He uses the word as a noun, adjective, verb, adverb and probably other parts of speech, and as far as I can tell, it's all used correctly. He goes on the the entry about different things you should not do (according to him) in regards to fucking. For example:

"Don't fuck dead bodies."

"Don't fuck animals."

"Don't fuck with food."

And the list goes on....

"Don't fucking make porn."

"Don't fucking cheat."

My favorite lines from this entry are the at the end: "Don't fuck for revenge. Don't fuck to pass the time. Don't fuck to fuck. Fuck that. Fuck sanctity. Fucking ruins everything."

Through these lines, you can hear Peek's voice and his opinions on the subject. I give him a lot of credit for not taking any crap from anyone about what he thinks and believes. But I have a question to pose to everyone which is up to interpretation. Read the entry. Then look at the last sentence. Does the word fucking refer to the the previous sentence, with the implied meaning "It fucking ruins everything." - OR - Does the word fucking stand on its own as the subject of the sentence?

Fall at UVM!

2008-10-16T09:22:00.004-04:00

Alright, so this might look like one of those pamphlets we all got in the mail with these really nice pictures of UVM in the fall that tried to convince us why are lives would be so much better if we chose to go to college at UVM...but since we're all in fact here at UVM for college, that changes things a little bit.

Leaves changing color is one of those quintessential New England characteristics. Natives to N.E. might mock all of the tour buses that can be spotted during this time carrying truck loads of "leaf peepers", but I don't care how long you've lived in New England, seeing the seasons change never gets old, and you secretly love it. Autumn is my favorite season.I love being able to wear warm clothes on cool fall mornings, or putting an extra blanket on my bed. Something about this time of year just feels good to me.

Last weekend, the weather was absolutely gorgeous, so my friend Heather and I decided to go on a photo-expedition, taking pictures around campus at sunset. We decided to climb all the way up to the top of the Williams Hall fire escape, and I thought I was going to pee myself. I hate heights and HOLY CRAP! It doesn't look that bad from the ground, but once you get up to the top, you realize that you were seriously mistaken. Not only that, but you can see through the stairs, so you can see all the way down to the bottom, which is freaky as hell.

However the view from the top and the great pictures I took definitely paid off made it worth the climb up. And as soon as I got the pictures I wanted, I bolted back towards firm ground :)

The "C" Word

2008-10-15T14:52:00.006-04:00

I don't really have a favorite entry, but a favorite chapter...and it may seem strange that this is my favorite chapter considering i am in fact female, but i though it was one of the most hilarious things i've read in a while.

I don't know what Peek's reasoning was to make all ten entries about the same thing, but it definitely caught your attention. Each entry got more absurd and you continued reading. One that was extremely entertaining was the one with the 3rd graders. It reminds me of a time when i was also in third grade, and one of the kids dared another to scream sex as loud as he could in the middle of class. I, being the innocent third grader that i was, had no idea what it meant, but some student found this hilarious. I guess they were more mature than I.

Some girls may find this C word extremely offensive, and like Peek stated, "the baddest and worst word ever". I don't really think of it that way. I mean, im not one to use it, but i wouldnt consider it the worst word in the english language. There are definitely much worse. I would consider racist slurs the worst words one could use. But the C word? Come on. I mean, if someone called me one i would not be that happy but for the most part im alright with it.

by the way, i have no idea how to organize images, but i tried

Prose

2008-10-15T00:48:00.004-04:00

Here is some prose I composed. Lol. It's a lot more intense than a lot of my posts. But it is still fictional. It is the first page in a long series of pages. Maybe its crap, maybe its not. Tell me what you think if you feel in the mood to read some long ass prose by a peer. Bear (maybe bare? lol) in mind that it is a small excerpt from the work as a whole. It isn't finished. Isn't final. It just Is.

What happens when a family member’s mind is slowly unraveling before your eyes? Do you turn a blind eye to their increasing paranoia?
But then, what if they are your sole support and you are not capable of supporting yourself or living on your own? If they are a parent, as a child, what can you do?

The flicker on the TV lights up the dark, hostile room. The same DVD menu has been playing for hours, quite literally. Its once happy music has now been transformed into a dirge. In part by its constant repetition, but mostly because of the sullen atmosphere of the room. It’s so cold in here. Not just the temperature, but the mood. It permeates the air. With each breath, I feel it stinging and crawling to escape my lungs. But this is just the beginning.

I stare at the outline of a person dear to me, lying on the bed. As I stand there, I don’t have to see her face to know the emotions it harbors. I hear the breath, the one that always proceeds. That‘s when they come. The words. The quick, high paced words full to the brim. They start loud and strong. I am being chastised for something I didn’t do. Something I couldn’t have done. Why, is not important anymore. I don’t even remember why to be quite honest. It the words that haunt my memory. To be scolded. I would welcome it compared with the verbal rampage that is tearing away at my soul.

Some say words don’t matter. But of course, those people are wrong. Words live just as much as you or I. The difference, however, is that they are only casts made from the molds of our emotions. Words given birth during joy, reflect the happiness of our souls. Likewise, words shaped in hatred burn like the sorrow that created it. We give them life, and as a result, they reflect us, even define us. Well, that’s my thoughts anyway.

But in my case, or at least at this particular moment in time, I am struggling to cope with so much hatred. It seeps into my mind. I want it out. It isn’t mine. It is forcing hateful thoughts to escape the darkest recesses of my mind. Leave. I can control what I think. But I can’t. I can’t keep them contained in my head. Verbally, they do not escape. But the hateful sentiments of another is creating words inside of me.

As I stand there in fear and anger, the only thing that keeps those words inside is the knowledge that my mother is not alright. Her mind has been crippled by events of her past. In all honesty, events of our past. The same, albeit not exact, events of our past have left her mind unhinged. Events that are now painful memories, like the divorce, the abuse, the anger, the fights, the lies. I manage not to remember them well.

My father broke her. I have never seen a human soul so utterly crushed by the actions of another. It wasn’t the physical abuse or the manipulation, it was just the action of his willingness to leave. She could have, she would have, endure all if only it would have meant his presence. But that was not fate. As I see the light reflected in her eyes, all I see in them is emotions. The essential fabric, if you will, has been torn form her mind and she is lacking. Its as if she is permanently separated from the results of her actions.

Her actions scare me. She is now describing her death to me. Her suicidal thoughts manifested in those god forsaken words again. As her child, how do I react? How can I react? Hearing the pain in every word, it makes me feel responsible. I know I am not. But how else can I feel. The anger makes me wish that they were true, makes me wish she wasn’t here. How can a human feel that way? I deeply care for her. Those aren’t my words.

If you saw her on the street, you would not point at her. Not for fear she would retaliate, but because at a distance, she still manages to functions in society. She is tall, broad and carries around a few extra pounds in the waist. She keeps her hair short, blond sometimes. But it used to be black. She was always scarier with black hair. Her face is narrow, with small eyes and a pointy pale nose. It’s the kind of face I always associated with authority.

Her rant slowly starts to quiet down. I try to squeeze the words out of my mind the best I can. Don’t misunderstand me, I am thankful for the good that I have. In fact, that is all I can thank for being able to endure this. I allow these pleasant thoughts to whirl and whiz around in my head. Words like love, friendship, relationship, sport, book. Thinks that I find joy in. I like those words, I will keep them.

I Don't Have the Slighest Idea What I am Doing

2008-10-14T22:39:00.007-04:00

If you like it shout out. If you don't shout out louder because I have no idea what I am doing when it comes to blog templates. I have spent way to much time on this and my head is going to explode.

P.S. To AKH and Chelsea, if this is horrible just let me know and I can switch it back... or you guys can if you have a better understanding of html or just blogspot for that matter.

P.P.S. Here is Step Child's Lastest Snowboard Flick called "Downloaded" so that this post wasn't a complete waste of space. Checkit and drool for snow.

http://video.stepchildsnowboards.com/embed/small_wide/359/8473/

26 Lies~1 Truth

2008-10-14T14:39:00.003-04:00

I absolutely loved Twenty-Six Lies/One Truth. I started reading it early because I didn't think I was going to have time this weekend to finish the reading, so I did it last week instead. I got really into the book and ended up finishing it because I liked it so much. And that is saying a lot seeing as though I haven't finished a required reading book for an English class in a very long time.

Having said that, I thought that it was really cool that Ben Peek turned his blog into a book, almost like a dictionary of his blog. So if you wanted to know what Peek thought about Identity, Sex, or University, you could look it up and see an entry about the topics, or a story that had to do with one of the topics. I loved how you could really hear Ben's voice through the entries and exactly what he thought about each subject. The interspersed dialogue was effective because you got a feel of the interactions that happened between Ben and his friends/family members.

I think that the different format of the book is what kept me interested, because you still got an idea of a story without resorting to a typical story format. Peek kept it interesting by not telling you everything all the time. He left some things up to interpretation. What also kept me interested was how the semi-randomness of all of the posts/subjects all fit together, and they made sense together.

Another Creepy Alice?

2008-10-09T15:28:00.005-04:00

Is there something about the name Alice that is just inherently creepy?! "Slice" was similar to Alice in Wonderland...now this inanimate alice...it's all just weird.

...now that I think about it, I knew a girl in high school named Alice and she was a weirdo...but I digress...

When I read Inanimate Alice, I'll admit I was kind of confused at different points as to what was going on. I felt like I was missing something during multiple sections. I really can't put my finger on what exactly about Inanimate Alice I didn't like. I think the idea is kind of cool but it falls short for me...maybe it was the layout, maybe it was the ambiguity...I don't know. It's not among my favorite readings that we've done. I felt like I was waiting for something to jump out at me, especially in "Hometown" when she was making her way through the labyrinth-esque warehouse. Since I'm not at ALL a fan of horror movies, I didn't particularly like this aspect. I did think it was clever to include a mini-game within the story.

SPEAKING of a labyrinth...

I've decide that the Patrick Gym is like a freakin' maze....not laid out well at all. If any of you have been in the gym, you'll know what I'm talking about. I'm in a fitness class that meets in the Patrick Multipurpose Room, and the first time that I went to the class, it was waaay to complicated just to get to this room. Go down the stairs, follow the hallway, go up another set of stairs, follow the signs to the gym, go through the gym, go up another set of stairs, and finally I got to the room. Same goes for the ice rink. I have pep band practice at the rink. If you go through the back of the gym, near the fitness center, it's easy to get to. But if you go in the front door the directions sound a lot like the directions to get to the multipurpose room. You would think that if so many people are going to be using this facility that they would make the layout much more user-friendly.

YEAH!!!! I caught all the falling dolls on a Skateboard!!

2008-10-09T11:40:00.006-04:00

If you don't know what I am talking about, then go play
Inanimate Alice Episode 3: Russia. My first impression when I started to play the game version instead of reading, I was like sweet, gameboy Tony Hawk eat this. I thought the stories were pretty cool too.

So what is Alice's last name? Do you know, cause I do. But never mind that, the sickest part of these stories were the blurry dial up speed videos. Seriously though, they were sweet.

I enjoyed the music a lot as well as some of the videos. It also felt like the actually quality of the stories and their creation improved as the episodes progressed. Russia and Hometown(?) were my two favorites. Russia because the story was a lot darker, more sinister. I wanted to know why the situation was like the one presented(and play the same game over and over which I did because I am slow). Hometown was even better because of the labyrinth.

The labyrinth really made me feel more involved in the story. It felt almost like a horror video game. I kinda cheated because I kept pressing "b" to get hints. But its all cool, I made it to the roof and my friends were like wtf mate. But in the end, I just wanted to see that mysterious Alice and her delusion Brad fight a zombie. Is that really too much to ask Alice?

Countless Tabs of Information

2008-10-09T10:59:00.003-04:00

When I first got Firefox, I marveled at the idea of multiple tabs. I know that lots of other browsers now have it, but I never updated to the newer versions. That was until about two years ago. I remember the freedom of having one window up, with two pages loaded. Now my "continual partial attention" could have its fill. At the same time, I promised myself that I would only have about 3-4 tabs max at one given time.

Believe it or not, I actually succeeded at this for about a year. Now you have to understand my reasoning for this. The dorm room adjacent to me my junior year of high school had a kid by the name of Adam Blackwell. Now besides the fact that he had a sleeping disorder in which it was almost impossible for him to be woken up, its true I swear (kids actually broke a chair over his back and he didn't wake up for another hour), he was crazy good with computers. However, whether his lack or sleep or his intelligence were responsible, he had severe add. As such, he would have between 70 to 100 tabs open at any given time.

So now you now where the fear comes from, I have some how slipped into this fate. I now average about 15 tabs and at times I have had as many as 30. I am getting scared of this exponential expansion. I don't know why I leave them all open considering I could always go back to the website.

So what does these picture have to do with anything? It's just one of the things on my 19 tabs rights now. Why? I don't remember, but I know that it is important and I don't want to close the tab until I remember why. Because I am an internet pack rat. But there pretty sweet right? This is another tab. Check it out if your into political comedy. Still need more tabs? Want to waste more time not doing other stuff? Click it to prove your science teacher wrong.

Check out more crazy computers so you can have +1 tab.

Italy & Russia

2008-10-08T20:00:00.002-04:00

Both were definitely my favorite of the 4 "interesting" episodes. I was a bit confused by the first one but then started to get the hang of it and of what was going on. Italy was when it started getting interesting for me and I actually felt some sort of emotion from the story. When Alice fell in the snow I was genuinely worried about what was going to happen to her. It was kind of weird. I LOVED the background music. I dont know why, I just thought it was really cool.

Russia was also pretty exciting. I found the whole perspective from the closet thing kinda cool. I also liked the scenery shots and the music. This whole series is pretty strange, and it's weird that the writing is like that of a young girl. It adds a really creepy feel to it. A lot of it was creepy actually, like the electronic static sound effects. Overall i thought it was very cool though and very different. I have never seen anything like it.

Final Digital Story

2008-10-05T20:55:00.007-04:00

Here is my final digital story. This was my first time using iMovie, so it was a bit of an experience. I really enjoyed it though and am probably going to use it a lot more in the future. I decided not to use music in my story because nothing seemed to fit. It always seemed not right when i would listen to it with music, so i decided to just leave it out. Now i worry that it is too boring without it, but i think its better than having something distracting in the background.

My story is about all of the comforts of home that i am missing at college, but the fact that i might find many of them throughout my experiences at uvm. Hope you enjoy it.

Finished, But Lazy

2008-10-04T17:57:00.006-04:00

I am finished my project. Yeah! I hope you enjoy. Sorry about the background noise, I recorded the voice over in class. I guess the awkward silence wasn't silent enough. Enjo! (maybe?)

Watch Shred story - Wired Lit in Sports Online | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

A Moveable Feast - D.S.

2008-10-02T19:32:00.001-04:00

Here is my final project in all it's glory. I hope you like it!

In Class... Now What

2008-10-02T15:43:00.003-04:00

So I am in class right now and am unsure of what to do. As the silence looms heavily, we are whispering back and forth. I don't want to go first, just as I am sure no one else does either. But I did go, and I was fine cause I put the volume up way loud and everyone else's voice just faded out. Oh well, it was still kind of funny. I had to play all the obscure sounds on iMovie to keep from laughing. But that was stupid, because the "seal bark" and "crowd boo" really made my day.

It really is funny how people respond when not given any directions to follow, only an objective. Take for example our class, we all (minus a few exceptions) had to do our voice overs in class. But we all tweaked our projects patiently in silence terrorized by the idea of other eavesdropping peers chuckling at our already ridiculous voice over. Seriously though, the silence was killing me. I mean, I don't mind silence if it is peaceful, or in meditation, but a classroom of silence without directions just made me want to ruffle my notes repeatedly until some one made a comment.

All and All, I like the project. Is it something that I will send to Steven Spielberg? Absolutely. Not that I will. But Hooray now I have to write a 4-5 page analyzis on it. I hope I am right! Fingers crossed.

Finally Figured it Out

2008-09-30T16:07:00.002-04:00

Ok so here's my digital story - I don't like posting things before they're finished, but here it is. There are a few issues I still have to work out. The images are from my week in Paris this past spring, and music and hopefully more transitions will follow shortly. My idea is that Paris is a contrast in itself - tourist hotspot, modern and contemporary, but antique, familiar, and special at the same time. Hope y'all like it!

I reallyyyyyyyy want snow...

2008-09-30T14:18:00.003-04:00

When choosing which school i wanted to attend i took many things into consideration. It's academics, size, location etc. But when i decided to come to the University of Vermont there was another pull that had a pretty large impact on my decision... and that is the fact that i LOVE snow. When i visited UVM before making my decision it was a beautiful february day. Twenty five degrees and snow everywhere. When i imagine UVM that was the only picture that i had of it in my head; a winter wonderland. My first week here was drastically different than that picture. Eighty five degrees and sunny? I mean i knew it wouldn't be snowing in the beginning of september, but i was definitely not expecting that. I would walk to class with sweat dripping down my face. Something i never associated with Vermont. Every day i just hope for winter to come sooner. I love everything about the winter. Snowboarding, sledding, ice skating, just walking through the snow in general. UVM definitely isn't a good choice for those who don't enjoy some of those things let a lone any. I love the summer at home, but i came here for all the exciting winter activities UVM has to offer (there are also many other reasons why i came here). So when is it gonna snow already?

Work in Progress (WIP)

2008-09-30T12:07:00.006-04:00

So this is my digital story. It is a work in progress, but maybe you will be able to tell where I am going at this point. Feel free to be rough and critical if need be. The point of this is to relate struggles that snowboarders face while still remaining comical. Thanks.

Watch SnowShow (WIP) in Sports Online | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Digital Story in the Making

2008-09-28T15:48:00.003-04:00

ok so i dont know why its really fast in the beginning but it took a long time to upload and im not going to re-upload it. Soooo it will be fixed for the final product. I don't have my sound or voice over yet but these are for the most part, the pictures i am going to use. I had a lot of trouble deciding what i was going to make my video of, and i really wanted to do something crazy and interesting but i really couldnt think of an idea that i really wanted to do. So at the moment my story is about all of the things Vermont is missing, for me atleast. I'm going to spice it up though and hopefully it wont be boring once i add the voice over of what i have written. I might even completely change everything, im not totally sure yet. I have never used imovie before so this has been a challenge for me but i think i got the hang of it. Hopefully for now my pictures and transitions can entertain you.

Procrastination, No Hesitatin

2008-09-25T11:15:00.001-04:00

I am procrastinating as long as I can before I type this for no other reason than to procrastinate. It seems pretty logical, right? I think so too. These are my self outlined rules for the art of procrastination. I call it an art because not everyone can be good at procrastination. Some people have traits such as "work ethic" and "time management." Things like these will never allow you to truly master this ancient art. For example, procrastination is the good side of the force and these other "skills" are the dark side. Now, if you have no idea what I am talking about, that means you are a true procrastinator and have not seen any of the Star War's movies. Bravo. If you do understand, there is still hope. Just follow these guidelines.

1) When you have a big test/quiz/exam/essay/anything else, set aside 30 minutes a day for a week before that in order to properly prepare.

2) Next, plan to do all of your homework the night it is assigned and not the night it is due. This is absolutely crucial.

3) Let your friends know ahead of time that you can't hang out at those specified times.

4) Now these are the last, and most vital parts, of the process.

5) In that time you set aside to study, go play where's waldo on google earth. (Hint: He is the one in the red and white striped shirt. Check California.)

6) Now that you are wasting considerable amounts of that time studying, you are on the right path. Remember to always complete the homework at least within a week of it being past due. (Hint: Walking to class is a seldomly used cram time in order to completely finishing studying for that bogus exam on Ole Christy Colombo. )

7) And with all your new free time, you cancel not doing crap with you friends and instead go over to their rooms a put of doing work together. And that is the true spirit of procrastination, community.

Am I Missing Something?

2008-09-24T17:30:00.000-04:00

Maybe I'm the only one who's noticed this but I doubt it.

It seems like no matter where I go on campus the conversation topic of choice is Drinking/Smoking. Whether I'm alone or not, the only thing I hear people talk about is how smashed they got last weekend or how much pot they smoked. All the stories and little anecdotes (which only are funny if you were actually there) start the same way: "when we were at this party last weekend I got so drunk..." or "we were so high that night..."

Now before I get accused of being a hypocrite let me just say this: I have drank before. I have never been drunk. I drank because I like the taste of it, not because my goal was to get smashed. I've also never had more than one drink at one setting.

I just don't get it. I don't see what's amusing about going out and getting completely smashed every weekend, and only have a disgustingly painful hangover to show for it. What's the point? What are people trying to accomplish? Are they just trying to live up to some stereotypical college experience? Because if that's the case, that's pretty pathetic that they can't make their own experiences - instead people just do what they think everyone is doing. Trust me - not everyone is doing it. Drinking to get drunk is completely and totally irresponsible and shouldn't be used as an excuse for doing or not doing something. For example, both of my roommates (on separate occasions) come home drunk and then I heard this the day after: "Yeah I hooked up with a bunch of guys at this frat party and my friends told me I was dancing like a slut" and "this is why I don't drink because I end up having sex with someone"

Personally I prefer remembering what I did on my Friday and Saturday nights and not wasting it by drinking myself into being happy.

Excited for parents weekend...not as much as my parents though

2008-09-22T14:51:00.000-04:00

So parents weekend is coming up in about two weeks or so, and i mean i am pretty excited to see my family for the first time in 5 weeks. I miss them, but not to the point where i feel the NEED to see them. My mother on the other hand has a countdown until the day she is coming here. She texts me everyday, calls me every other day, and asks me to "video chat" with her at least once a week (which has yet to happen). I definitely do miss my family but my mom is a bit psychotic about it all. She cries to my aunt on the phone about how much she misses me and is probably driving my younger brother crazy at home. My dad is much more relaxed, and will talk to me when he's around while my mom is on the phone with me and does not text me everyday like her. Hopefully when my mom comes here and physically sees that i'm still alive she wont feel such a need to constantly check up on me. She needs to "let go" and hopefully after this parents weekend she will be able to do that. Or maybe she never will. She kind of has the personality where she is extremely sensitive and emotional. She is basically the opposite of me; extremely independent and does not show emotion whatsoever. That's also probably why it is so hard on her. My roommates parent's are much more laid back and call her twice a week, which i think is a reasonable amount. Maybe my mom can learn a thing or two from them.

Electronic Literature... What?

2008-09-18T11:22:00.000-04:00

N. Catherine Hayles's "Electronic Literature: New Horizons for the Literary" is a very complicated and difficult read. With constant references to huge events in electronic literature, which to the novice are completely unheard of, the works seems confusing at best. Just what type of crack was Hayles on when she wrote this. I will admit there are instances when it actually makes sense, but seriously, were all those references and diction nessecary to achieve her point?

I didn't just passively read this, I sat at my computer and looked up both words, and references she mentioned. That helped a little, but it was still confusing. For example, "...Deviant: The Possesion of Christian Shaw, combines primitivism with a sophisticated visual sensibility, contemporary landscapes with a narrative originating in the seventeenth century." (9) What? Why did it have to be written like that? Could she have simply wrote "it is a combonation of simple and complex visuals based on a work in the seventeenth century?" Maybe I am being too critical, but it seems unessecary.

At the end, I am left with the key sentences in the passages. Having little to show for the fourty- two pages of reading other than lots of references and few concrete ideas. It might just be my lack of knowledge that creates this perception. If that is the case, however, should a book I am reading to gain more matter on the subject provide that knowledge more adequately?
You tell me.

LOST is the greatest show ever created

2008-09-17T15:24:00.000-04:00

Ok so I'm not really one to sit at home and watch TV or become "addicted" to a show, but that all changed when I discovered LOST. I would hear my boyfriend and other classmates at school talk about the show and how cool it was but I just didn't really get it. I watched one episode, saw that there was a giant polar bear on an island where a plane had crashed and immediately decided it was stupid and a waste of time. That is until my mom bought every season on DVD for my brother in march for his birthday. I popped in the first disc and started to get kinda into it. Before I knew it I had become a hermit and the only thing I was doing with my life was watching LOST dvds on my laptop in my bedroom. The second I got home from school I would start watching them and wouldn't stop until I could barely keep my eyes open. I wouldn't even go out on weekends. I was content just "partying" with Kate, Jack, and Sawyer as they roamed the island looking for "the others". I never realized a show could be this addicting, and it kind of scared me how into it I was. Every time I told myself, "OK I'm going to take a break after this episode" I would just want to watch another one, and then another one. I would talk to my friends about theories and what we thought was going to happen next. It was kind of sick actually, but SO awesome at the same time. It took me about three weeks to watch season 1 to 4, which I think is rather impressive. When I was finally finished though, I felt an emptiness. I didn't know what to do with myself anymore and was upset that I didn't have more episodes to look forward to. I guess I will just have to wait til next season.

What are you going to do with French?

2008-09-16T19:13:00.000-04:00

I hate this question.

I've declared myself as a French major. After taking all of the French classes that my high school offered as well as AP French, I've grown to love the language and foreign languages in general. However, my problem is not what I love to do, it's what I can DO with what I love. Before I graduate college, I want to learn a few more languages, but it's not going to do me any good if when I graduate all I can say is WOOHOO I know 5 languages...yeah that's all well and good, but what else can you do? There are plenty of people who can speak tons of language, but they all can do other things too which make their language(s) very beneficial.

So I don't know what I want to do. I applied to UVM as a business major, but quickly decided that was crap and switched to French. I don't really want to be a teacher, and I don't want to sit at a desk from 9am-5pm for the next 40 years of my life. I'd love to be a translator or do translating work, but most people who are in that field have been bi or tri-lingual since birth.

Maybe I'll do communications with French, or advertising or graphic design for a French company...who knows? I just wish it was a little easier to figure out. I hate not knowing what to do, or which direction to go in, which just gets me even more stressed out.

Like I said, I hate this question.

Fellow Blogger Interview

2008-09-11T15:55:00.001-04:00

Interviewer: AKH
Interviewee: Melissa Partington
Subject: Center for Digital Storytelling

What was your favorite digital story?
"My favorite story was 'Ironing'."

Can you summarize this story for me?
"Ironing is about a guy who finds comfort in ironing. He realizes that he finds this comfort because he sat with his mom while she ironed when he was growing up. He now realizes how talking [with his mom as she ironed] filled the loneliness of life."

Why did you like this story?
"Because it clearly showed how when you are older, you can understand and relate to your parents much better than when you're younger."

What didn't you like about this story?
"I didn't like how some of the pictures were very faded. This made it so you concentrated more on the picture and less on the story being told. It was distracting."

Thanks Melissa :)
Good story - check it out!

Doug. That is his name.

2008-09-11T15:53:00.000-04:00

Doug. That is his name.
"Mama Bisrat, Yea, In the family section." That is his favorite digital story.
"In Mama Bisrat, it's about this guy who moved to the United States from Ethiopia. He moved in with his great aunt and this video was a kind of tribute to her. Also, he felt like he had no home to back to. It was a double edge sword, a tribute to his great aunt and no home in Ethiopia." That is his summary.
"I thought that it was kinda poetic, which was cool I guess, and used symbolism." That is his explanation for why he liked it.
"Um, it kind of over explained things, things that were already simple." That is what he did not like.
"Probably the sound affects of the rain that he used, like that is the specific one thing. But I liked the whole video." That is his legit favorite part.

Erik's Views on "My Shoes"

2008-09-11T15:51:00.000-04:00

While interviewing Erik , I could tell that he just could not hold back his passion for how much he loved My Shoes. It was definitely his favorite digital story which is a story about an immigrant from Peru who left because it was getting too violent there. She was not treated well at her job because people thought she was lazy and she was also a lesbian which people didn't really like. She ended up persevering and graduation college despite all she went through. He enjoyed this story because the woman in the story continued to persevere; very uplifting. It was extremely tough, but she kept going and didn't let anything hold her back.

His least favorite part of the story was that it was very sad and depressing how she was mistreated and didn't leave you very happy at the end. It also didn't really tell you what happened to her after she graduated. Overall, he really liked it.

OMG, WTF I'll BRB in 1 Sec like k?

2008-09-11T12:09:00.000-04:00

Ghosts live in Coolidge. Did I get your attention? What does the title have to do with this? How should I know, I just wrote it. But lets stay on topic here. How many people live in or have visited Coolidge? Small number, that's what I thought. Now I bet of those small number, an even smaller number of people know about "Bill." Actually, I don't have the slightest idea what the ghost's name is but Bill definitely has a scary ring to it. I mean really, if you're named Bill you enjoy accounting and live in your parent's house (This statement is not true unless by the off chance that it is true). Another thing, nobody ever wants to get mail from you. But hey, lets get back to the subject matter. Bill is a very real and scary ghoul. He makes you feel like you are being followed, or wakes you up by starring at you in the middle of the night.

But of course, those kinds of things don't exist. Mere superstitions and drafty air conditioning. Right? Left? Why am I asking rhetorical questions? To make things more interesting? To be quixotic? It's just what crazy people want you to believe. They want you to get off subject and make no sense so the Government can deny it! Are you with me?! We must unite and overthrow the current Government! Woah, Woah, Woah, there. Looks Like I took a digression on the off topic train.

Ghost are everywhere! Yea, that's better. I feel as a society, we have not openly addressed the possibility that ghosts are here, and the implications that implies. For example, lets break this one down. Ghost are the number one security threat to the country.

Here's how I reason. Ghosts in the United States have no passport or visa. This means they are illegal aliens. Lets break it down more. Illegal aliens are terrorists. Not only are they terrorists, but as the name implies, they are also aliens. So seriously, instead of fighting terrorists in the Middle East we should be combating the terrorists right beneath our noses. And those are the Alien Ghost Terrorists that are lurking in Coolidge Hall!*^

And yea, blogs are weird. Point proved.

*Taken from the Department of Homeland Security Website.
^Not Really.

Alan and My Shoes

2008-09-10T17:30:00.000-04:00

I really liked how the Digital Storytelling incorporates images, music/sounds, and narration into a single story. I think that this is a very effective way of communicating a story to someone. In my high school music department, every year the seniors in the dept. put together a presentation quite similar to the ones from the Center for Digital Storytelling - we all record a message, thanking friends, family, and the directors, and then that narration is over-laid with music and pictures or videos. It's quite a bit longer than 3-4 minutes though.

The stories I particularly like were "Health - Alan", "Education - M.S.K. Running", and "Community - My Shoes". In a story like "Health - Alan", it seems to be very common for the narrator to have a family member or a friend who is diagnosed with some horrible disease, and then go on at length about how they feel responsible and how they wish that they had done more before they found out. However, in this case, the narrator (Albert) is very concise and straightforward when it comes to talking about his brother, Alan and finding out he was diagnosed with MS. He conveys his emotions without being maudlin. When Albert describes how he was feeling the night Alan died, he never outright says that he died, but by knowing the style that the story is told in, and by getting to know the narrator, it's very obvious.

The way the author adds pictures into the story really adds to the overall effect. By showing the photos of their home, where they were going to school, and family/individual portraits, we get a glimpse into the lives of the characters in the story and it gives the story more depth. Seeing Alan's school picture and hearing his brother talk to him is very sentimental and touching to the reader. Out of the six stories told, "Health - Alan" was my favorite, with "Community - My Shoes" being my second.

I Only Do This Because I Have Tooo..

2008-09-10T16:47:00.001-04:00

So blogging is really NOT my thing at all. I actually kind of hate it. I find it extremely creepy and basically just a waste of time. I mean, it's a good idea for an assignment for class because it's much more interesting than just writing papers or essays of what not, but the over all idea of blogging is just not too appealing to me. From what I've seen of blogs, usually there are just extremely creepy people you don't know leaving extremely strange comments on on things that they shouldn't really care about in the first place. I mean, you don't know me, why do you give a "F" what I did today? Why do you care what my dog looks like or what classes I am taking? I personally don't think its normal for strangers to be interested in things like that. They could be anywhere from a 17 year old girl like they "claim" to be or a 60 year old man living in Minnesota. Who really knows? It really is just asking for trouble if you ask me. It also can take over people's lives. Some people get so involved in their blogs they become different people and don't know how to be themselves in real life. It's more of an escape than anything. I mean, I'm sure there are perfectly normal people who enjoy just letting their feelings out through blogging and this probably seems like a stereo type but from personal experience, it's all a very strange process to me.

SLICE

2008-09-09T20:27:00.000-04:00

Soo there are a lot of things missing to this whole scary/weird/ messed up story, so I'm not quite sure exactly what to make of it. Basically this girl hates her life, is living in a haunted house, and her mom compares her disappearance to when their cat ran away. Real loving family. Basically, they are all MESSED UP. When I first read Slice's blog I thought she had killed herself in the end when describing her departure into a hole in a wall. She said she was "leaving this place" as in killing herself? Not really sure. I can see why this girl is so messed up though. Her parents are pretty shitty, I mean they brought her to a different country to get her away from bad influences yet they leave her alone in a house all day. That doesn't seem like a great way to help out a rebellious teenager. Also, I completely DON'T understand the whole twitter thing. Maybe it's because this is the first blog site I've ever gone on in my life, but none the less its pretty confusing, but at the same time extremely addicting. I mean I don't think I would ever get overly involved in it (besides out in class blogging) but I can see why people do. Slice's blog was pretty interesting and I was always eager to read what her next post was. It also helped that her blog had some darkness to it. It definitely made it more interesting. It's kind of sad though that I would rather read a blog about a girl who hates her life as opposed to someone extremely happy all the time. I guess that's just more interesting to read.

Slice, What Kind of Nickname Is That?

2008-09-09T11:39:00.000-04:00

Upon reading Toby Litt's "Slice," and her parent's blog "Rayandlynn's Weblog," questions immediately began to ransack my mind. First off, Lisa prefers to be known as Slice. Unquestionably a nickname usually reflects the character or nature of the person of whom it concerns. What's the correlation between the name Slice and Lisa? Slice seems to be fairly depressed and downtrodden, so does the name reflect this nature? Anyways, there is much more to the story then simply names.

Another thing that came to question was some discrepancies. The first of which involved the previous family's demise. Slice records that they are killed in Florida while taking a taxi from the airport. The account further explains that some mysterious force was possibly the culprit because the surviving taxi driver recalled, "... never seen an animal quite like it before." Then comes the conflicting account of Slice's parents. "Still thinking about those poor people dying on that plane. And we’re using their teapot!" This post really gets you asking what is really going on here.

Now we move into the darker more mysterious series of events. Slice finds out that Mary Jane was into magic. Now the plot thickens as mysterious pellets are found continually around the house. Slice believes them to be from a rat, but later watches as a rabbit appears from the wall and craps. After following the rabbit throughout the house, it eventually leads her to a hole outside, " under the ivy, just too narrow for me to get through." Now these same pellets are believed by her parents to be drugs. Wait... what? "And there were pellets of some sort on the floor. It’s possible they were marijuana, although we can’t think where she could have got it." This is the first, and only, mention of drugs throughout the story. Is this all happening in Slice's magical trip? But what about the mother who claims to have seen a rabbit come out of the wall? Is stress causing shared hallucinations? Possibly, because her mother does not see the rabbit until after she reads her daughter's blog. But is such a simple answer sufficient? Then what about Slice. Did she really find a portal to another dimension, or just to the neighbors backyard?
What do you think?

Response to "Slice"

2008-09-08T16:24:00.000-04:00

After reading "Slice" and the corresponding blog written by Lisa's parents, I noticed a few different things. In both blogs, the authors mention seeing a shape of an animal, but they don't know what animal it is, or where it comes from. This validated to me that it wasn't just Lisa making something up. In fact, the house might actually be haunted. Also, when Lisa's family finds out that Mary Jane (along with her family) has been killed in an accident, they discover that the reason for the accident was that a dark animal ran out in front of another car which caused the accident. Maybe this is a coincidence, or maybe it is showing some sort of connection to the house in London.

I also found it interesting to read Lisa's blog and then read her parents' version of the same story. Though they both are essentially the same, they offered different perspectives. Lisa thinks her parents are crazy for making her move from her home and her friends in Florida to a creepy old house in London. Her parents think that it is a wonderful idea that will help to "get her away from the bad influences."

Both blogs leave off in the same place. The most recent post for each is saying that they are going to go through the hole in the brick wall to find out what is on the other side. Lisa is going through out of curiousity and because she wants to get away from her parents. The parents are going through to find Lisa.

The way in which both blogs are ended is very smart. The entries end by saying they're going into the hole, they don't know what they'll find, and to wish them luck. This keeps the reader wanting to know more about the story and what happens to Lisa and her parents after they enter the hole, which guarantees that people are going to stay interested and want to keep reading the blog.

Welcome!

2008-09-04T15:48:00.000-04:00

Hello - This is our first blog ever, hope y'all like it!

We (Amanda, Chelsea, and Brandon) are all freshman here at UVM. Though we all seem to be rather indecisive, we're pretty cool people!

...more to come later...