Thursday, December 20, 2007

Assignment #12

1) Writing the play was harder than i thought it would be. I kept writing it like a short story, where the characters feelings were described instead of shown. And you had to explain everything that you imagined and how it would work on stage. Like the tornado, in my imagination could be literally IN the story, but on stage, that would be too hard to do, so it's offstage. Also, it was easier to be comedic in a play, because people's natural reactions are funnier than describing those reactions.

2) I might write about one of my experiences camping and coming together as a group, specifically in the Boundry Waters or Gooseberry Falls. Or maybe I'll write about synchro and how our team came together last year to dominate at state more, than any other team in our division from Edina has in seven years. Or I could be kind of funny and creative and write about a re-occurring dream i had in pre-school, although I'm not sure what the theme of that would be. Mostly I want to convey the message of community.

3) for the ten year old- Don't have any regrets. But make decisions within reason. Try not to get into drugs and alcohol, but like I said, don't have any regrets. If you try something, you don't have to do it again, and then you know what it's like without being a pothead or alchie. Try hard in school, but make time for fun. Get involved in sports and extra-curricualrs because that is where you make your true friends. Have fun, and make educated bad choices every once in awhile, it's for your own good. Overall, be balanced, not only in your actions but in your groups of friends as well, don't get tied up into one group, get out there and experience different things. Get a job, so you can realize that that's NOT what you wanna do for the rest of your life therefore making you more driven to go to college. That pretty much sums it up.

Monday, December 10, 2007

Assignment #11

1) I think a great piece of writing has a theme that is not obvious but is still there. This way, someone who just wants a good story gets it, and a more in-depth reader can analyze the story to pick out the theme. For example, in literature classes, I enjoy reading the books just because they have intersting plots, but I also enjoy looking deeper into the story to find what the meaning of everything is.

2) Those stories and works of writing last forever because they were innovative at the time. Be it innovative in their plot or theme, they were something that people from that time had never seen before. Or they could last forever because they are stories that people enjoy getting lost in. I could forsee maybe at some time, one of my stoires getting passed on beyond the time that I live, but not much longer than that. Only because it would be intersting to hear or funny or something like that, not neccessarily innovative.

3) If I were to have a long-lasting impact as a writer, I would want to make people laugh. There is too much sadness in the world today, and I believe that if you can make just one person smile or chuckle, you've done your part as an active member of society. Overall, everyone just really needs to buck up and put a smile on, which I know is hard to do some days, even most days, but to stay positive, we must be actively trying to stay positive.

Monday, December 3, 2007

Assignment #10

1) I see more hatred between people than ever before, I know I am young, and I don't know directly about the hatred in the past, but in everyday life, there is so much anger and disrespect. I listen to people's conversations, and so often you hear the words, "hate", "gay", "fag", "f***ing"...it's disappointing, and it's so hard to remain happy and content in a society filled with so much angst. In politics, in school, at work, in the media, I wish everyone could just cool down and try being peaceful for once.
I sound like a hippie, but it's so true.

2) A dynamic person that I know is my friend and counselor Jesse. He is insane. He is a commercial fisherman in the winter(as in crab fishing, like in the TV show "The Deadliest Catch") which is crazy in and of itself. In the fall and spring he lives in Hawaii where he does basically nothing but surf and have BBQ's on the beach with the locals. In the summer he is a church camp counselor where he follows no rules and jumps off of lots of cliffs with us. He is certainly dynamic.

3) I like the book, "Paddle Whispers" by Douglas Wood, it is about the BWCA and Quatico Superior, relaxing and amazing.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Assignment #9-Happiness

1) When you are overcome with a feeling of extreme comfort in your surroundings.

2) I am happy when I am with my friends, doing what we love to do. I am the kind of person that needs other people to be happy. I find myself to be happiest when I'm hiking, camping, swimming, dining, singing, doing synchro and sometimes working; all with the people I love most, the people that make me laugh and smile.

3) My family influences my happiness, when they're happy, I can be happy. Also, my co-workers influence my happiness, I love it when I can walk into work, and my supervisor says, "CLLAAIIRE!! You're here!" it just sets the tone for the whole shift.

4) I impact my family's happiness, if I'm crabby, then they're gonna get crabby and visa-versa, if I'm excited and happy, I'm gonna try to get them to play along with me.

5) My greatest need in life is human contact, I love to be social, and without my friends and family, my community, I would be nothing.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Assignment #8

Friendship
Synchro
Star Lake
Childhood
Happiness
Smiles
Good Sam
ASP
The wilderness
Family
Friends becoming family
Summertime

Assignment #7

1) I liked the poetry the most because I felt like I was more able to write about what I wanted to write about, rather than what I am being told to write aboout, there was more creative freedom. There aren't really any rules with poetry.

2) Although my favorite thing to do was to write poetry, my favortie pieces of writing were some of the prompts. It was really interesting writing "things I no longer do", and "most beautiful place" because it really brought back memories and forced me to think.

3) I have found that I don't like the structure and direction, but I need a lot of feedback. Also, when I start writing, I just keep going, I can't just stop, in fear of losing my train of thought.

4) I would like to spend some time on memoirs.

Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Assignment #6-Creating Fear

1) I only like being scared occasionally, usually I don't like it. I'm the person in the haunted house that yells at the workers. I'm okay with being scared when I'm in a giddy mood, or with poeple I really trust. Like, scary movies with close friends is okay, as long as I can grab onto someones hand.
2) I am afraid of being by myself in the dark, like, in my basement, I always scare myself into thinking there is gonna be someone down there. Or at camp, if I have to go to the privy at night, I always sit in my bed for about half an hour before I can work up the courage to go pee. Especially at camp, because there is a true-well, I believe it- story about an 'orb' we call it "orbie", it is sadi to be the ghost of a native american mother, who on the camp-one trail in particualr-watched her children get murdered by voyagers or something...and the story goes that she's looking for her children.
I am more afraid of the possibility of something horrible happening, your imagination can be much more scary than real life.
3) Someone who has no control of their emotions and reacts automatically to everything without thought.
4) Pressures in modern socicety drive people to madness. Their personality starts to change, and their lives start to be run by ultimately, money, which makes them make decisions automatically without a thought about anything else.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Assignment #5-First Lines

1) He couldn't help it, that little green button was just so enticing, he had to press it. Little did he know that after that moment, his life would be compleately different.

2) A hard wooden desk, a bright, annoying white board, the humming of an overhead projector, John found himself in his last hour math class...but he had already lived through this moment. He glanced down at what he had thought to be a toy remote, and hit the little green button again.

3) So unsuspecting, the colors drew John's eyes to that litttle remote curiously sitting between two dumpsters. He had to touch it, had to press that green button, he had to give it an owner, a home.

4) John looked down, his shoe was gone, and he was sitting in his math desk, but he had just been waiting for the bus. He looked down at what he thought to be a little kid's toy. JOhn hit the green button again.

5) Normal, that's how you would describe John, he never really wanted to stand out. Insecurity and the strive for perfection dictated his life, as they do for most high school students. The day John found that little green remote, he took control, or so he thought...

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Assignment #4- Where are you going? where have you been?

1) b. How does Connie's character draw the reader in? What does she do that drives you crazy or makes you like her? Is she asking for trouble? Does she represent something in our own society?

-Connie's character draws you in because she makes the reader yell at her, she keeps them wondering what she is going to do next, how she is going to react, or what she is thinking. She dosn't look at things responsibly, she is only concerned with what is going on in that moment, not what could happen to her in the future. Connie represents the teenage girl, the only way she thinks she can get attention is if she puts herself out there as a sex object, something for a boy to look at, but she dosne't realize that this can get her into trouble.

e. What actually happens at the end in your opinion?

-Connie goes with Arnold Friend because she dosen't know what else to do, she dosen't want to be home with her wretched mother or her ignorant father, so she goes with Arnold Friend becaus ehe represents freedom, but also the cruel, sick world one must face in order to cheat their way to freedom.

f. How do you explain the actions of the male antagonist? How do you think he got to be such a disgusting human being? What could he represent in our own society? Why is he so important to the story?

-Arnold represents what will happen to someone if they live in the past and constantly try to re-live their youth. Eventually, one grows out of their youth, and moves on into adulthood, but Arnold just becomes an old man trying to scam on little girls. He is important in the story because he serves as the scape goat for the reader, the reader can comfortably put all the blame on Arnold while ignoring the idiotic behavior of Connie.

Great Short Story:
1) Conflict-to keep the reader thinking
2) Intensity-putting all the emotion of a novel into a short story
3) Character Development- get the reader to be intrested in the character in a short period of time.
4) one strong setting- keeping the reader involved in the scene, putting them inside the story
5) Expanded Vocabulary- intresting word choice
6) Poetic language- the keep the flow of the story and melodic phrasing
7) 5-12 pages long- as to not lose the readers attention
8) Origionality-a unique plot line
9) Humor- some jokes in there to lighten it up a bit
10) a complete ending!- it's so annoying when stories stop in the middle of the action!!!!

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Assignment #3-Poems

School Spirit

Summer-Freedom
My heart is struck by the bell.
No more play,work time is now.
Lesson one, unit two
think about the future!
Or you're gonna get screwed...
Test after test, better not fail.
Sports after school,
pressure's on now.
Do I look alright?
Apparently not, because you didn't
get a date to homecoming.
Which college are you going to?
If you don't, well, then you've failed.
Memorize vocab.
Study equations.
I just want to get in the car,
and drive away.
But I can't even leave the
North lot because it's so crammed.
waiting for the weekend,
then things will be alright.
The life of a highschooler,
man, this is not right.



Sleeping Under a Starry Sky

The stars paint the sky.

The sand below me is warm.

The smell of a campfire lingers on my sweatshirt.

The slight laughter of a friend resonates in the distance.

The once dark sky is illuminated by the sliver of a moon.

The solitude is wonderful.

The slumber is sweet.

The stars paint the sky.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Assignment #2-Important writing

My best friend Steph gave me this book for a Christmas gift two years ago, it's called, The Gas We Pass: The Story of Farts by Shinta Cho. I know this sounds really silly, and it is, but that's what I love about it. I am always able to get a good laugh out of reading it, and especially when I'm missing Steph since she left for college, I just sit down and read this book, and am instantly reminded of the good memories we have had. Here is one of my favorite passages, "The farts of animals who eat things like potatoes and grass-such as elephants, rhinos and hippos-don't smell that bad. But eating potatoes or grass causes lots of gas to build up in their intestines which makes them fart a lot."(Cho) this is just an example of one of the passages I find hilarious and always seems to cheer me up.

Prompts:
1) Is there a piece of writing that always puts you in a good mood or makes you laugh? Or is there a children's book that you still enjoy reading today? What is it and what about it makes you happy, or do you find interesting?
OR....
2)Do you think that there is a line of vulgarity in writing that shouldn't be crossed? Do you think this book crosses that line? When a book talks about so-called inappropriate material, is it mocking certain types of writing? For example, a children's book or a book of poems.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Assignment #1

Hey guys, I'm Claire! My favorite way to write is with poetry and stories full of imagery, and I'm obsessed with quotes, I put them all over everything. I like to write about experiences and people that I love and have ahd an impact on me. Over the next four months, I would love to inspire and be inspired, possibly make a few people laugh and discover how skilled and professional my writing can be.

Some of my favortie writers are Leif Enger, the author of Peace Like a River, I love his use of symbolism. Douglas Wood, who wrote Paddle Whispers, a journal-style quazi poetry book about the Boundry Waters. Also Shakespeare, I think old english is so sweet!! I also enjoy the lyrical genius of Sufjan Stevens quite a bit.

a sample of me!...

blue sky,
a great cliff,
the water below, fridgid I know.
jump!
my skin hits the water, I shiver.
swim to the rock, my friend helps me up.
blue sky,
a great cliff,
the water below, fridgid I know.
jump! again!