Last Paper

I think that for my last paper I would like to copy the works of Szymborska. I enjoyed reading her poems because I felt that her sarcasm masked the feelings she was too afraid to come out and say bluntly. Unlike other poets who use metaphors and similies to express themselves, Szymborska uses a twisted sense of humor that can give off the opposite idea of what she is trying to say.

I think that I would do a couple of short poems about subjects that humans cannot avoid. In our book Szymborska talks about love and death. These two subjects are inevitable for the human race. I think that it is going to be really hard to come up with two new subjects but I was thinking about evolution, in the sense of becoming more globally aware. I would talk about "going green" and how that is probably better than the alternative of dying or killing the planet. The other subject I would talk about would probably be divorce. I know that this is something people can avoid but I feel like it is very common and could be related to by many people. Through these two subjects I'm going to try to mimic Szymborska's sarcastic tone and underlying messages.

Thinking about the text

I think that the reason it is so easy to laugh at Lawrence is because there is nothing physically wrong with him. Unlike Laura who actually has a medical condition, Lawrence is just strange. He is amusing because of his oddities, I personally know of no one who would actually collect swizzle sticks and name them. I also think the reason why he is so funny is because he is gullible and so much under the control of his mother. If she told him to jump off a bridge he probably would. He takes everything too literally. The relationship he has with his mom is also really funny. She is sarcastic and animated while Lawrence is serious and dull.

There are some boundaries though. If Lawrence is mentally challenged it wouldn't be funny at all. The fact that you were laughing at someone who couldn't help the way they are would be very wrong. I also think that if he had some sort of physical problem then it wouldn't be funny either. But that is the main difference between the two plays and that is the thing that makes one funny and the other serious.

Doll's House Blog

I think that the character of Nora is very complex but can be related to by many young women in today's society. I know that this play was written a long time ago but I feel like Nora's personality and conflicts can still be applied to modern day.

In the first act we learn very little about her as a person. To me, at first she was portrayed very childish and silly. It was like she was very ditsy and didn't have a lot of common sense. She was portrayed as money hungry and careless. The only wise thing she did (which may not have been so wise in the first place) was to take out that loan. This was the only thing that showed she actually has thoughts.

In the second act we learn that she is smarter that what she actually appeared to be. Although she still puts on an act of stupidity and helplessness she is thinking more about her future and how to handle her problems. We also learn that she is trapped in a marriage where there is no love. But the man she truly wants to be with cant support her so she doesn't leave her husband for him. This shows us that she does have feelings and is a compassionate person, but is still greedy and is only concerned with money.

I don't think it is until the last act that she can be related to. When she sits down with her husband and claims that is the first time in 8 years they have had a serious talk, is when she breaks free of her stereo type. She can be related to in the sense of always have a man control her, and finding that strength to get up and move on by yourself. She finally does whats right and leaves her house and marriage with no love for independence. I think that a lot of young women go through this act of "growing up" and leaving your security behind to go out in the world on your own.

Concerts!

So yesterday I just bought my tickets for the spring show to see Citizen Cope and Vanessa Carlton. I think that this should be a really good concert and I'm definitely excited that the tickets were so cheap (relative to his other shows.) I really like Citizen Cope's music and its nice he is coming here because he was permanently kicked out of the venue at home... I just hope when he comes here he wont be as intoxicated as he was at home :-/

I'm pretty excited to see Vanessa Carlton too... I remember being younger and really enjoying her music. Although she only had like two hit songs she was still pretty good. So all in all we got our tickets early enough that all of my friends could sit together in a relatively good section.

This Friday I'm also going to be seeing Third Eye Blind which I'm super excited about. All last summer they are pretty much what I listened to. I think that the forecast is calling for rain but either way it should still be a good show! I think it is going to be pretty big too Because it was moved out of Marz to Battle Ship park.

Also in April I'm hoping to go see Dave Matthew's Band. They are going to Raleigh and I think my friends want to all get together to go see them. They were another band that I listened to a lot last summer, plus I grew up listening to them so hopefully I'll have enough money for tickets.
:)

Turtle Tug

Yay! We are the co-ed champs of the first annual DZ Turtle Tug. This is a tug of war game played over a giant pool of green jello... it sounds gross but it was very entertaining!

My team consisted of 8 people, four boys and four girls. So we showed up to the gazebo fields today and there were over 100 people who had signed up to compete. Fortunately there was only one other co-ed team and although they consisted of mostly boys, they were very petite boys; probably weaker than myself (not trying to be mean.) So we beat them after they put up a fight for a good minute or so.

Next they were going to put our team into the girl's division because they didnt have enough teams. So obviousley we won again and made it into the championship round for the girls too. Now knowing that this was an unfair match up, the organizer of the event asked if they could put a boy on their team to even out the competition. We agreed, making it 8 people vs. 9... little did we know that they were allowed to chose a tractor trailer as their 9th player. Honestley the kid looked like Hulk Hogan and he alone pulled our team straight into the jello.

So even though we lost the girl's championship round we still made out with a nice trophy and the title of co-ed champs!

Paper Outline

Thesis: Through the similarities of themes of punishment, sacrifices for happiness, and strong consciences, we learn the truth about what each narrator is trying to prove.

Intro: Adress how each story is different but similar in the sense that each has a narrator trying to convince the reader.
Explain what each narrator is trying to convince.

1st: Common theme of punishment
The heart beating in "Tell Tale Heart."
The small boy who is locked away in "Those Who Walk Away From Omelas."

2nd: Common theme of sacrifices for happiness
Not brining the small boy out of the basement so the town of Omelas can stay joyful.
Killing the Old man so that his eye doesn't bother the narrator anymore.

3rd: Common theme of strong conscience
The people who do actually walk away from Omelas, proving the narrator to be truthful when convincing the reader that the townspeople have feelings.
The narrator admitting to killing the old man becuase hearing his heart beat after he has died was driving him crazy. He is proved to be a liar because he actually is mad.

Conclusion: Although both of these stories differ greatly from one another they are connected by these main themes.

Billy Elliot

So this past weekend I started out my spring break in New York City. My mom decided to take my sister into the city to meet up with one of her friends she used to model with. The travel was planned very poorley, I flew from Wilmington, to Laguardia, to Burlington VT. My mom picked me up, we went to eat lunch then went back to the airport to fly back to JFK.

Despite the run around, we made it into the city Friday night and headed into Times Square to see the bright lights. I have been to NYC before but my little sister has never been so it was an exciting experience for her. We just hung around and ate dinner on Friday becuase Saturday was going to be very busy for us and we needed our energy.

We got up early on Sat. and headed out. The weather was BEAUTIFUL. You didnt even need a jacket when you were walking around. We met up with my mom's friend Ellen at Rockefeller Center and headed all the way down to the bottom of Manhatten to work our way back up. Our first stop was the remains of the Trade Centers. It was kind of an eerie experience seeing it again and realizing what had actually happened there. We started walking back to mid town and stopping all along the way to do some sight seeing and shopping. We went through So-Ho and eventually grabbed a taxi back to the hotel. After a short 30 min break we headed back out for dinner and our show.

We were going to go see Billy Elliot. And if you have never seen the movie you need to rent it! It is about a young boy growing up in Brittan during the coal strike. He is a boxer but desperately wants to become a ballerina. I think that the show was MUCH better than the movie, although both are great. The lead in the broadway is a fourteen year old boy and it is incredible to think that someone so young can be such a good dancer starring on broadway.

We got up the next day and headed home. Its nice to be back in my own house but there is honestly nothing to do here. Im not wishing my vacation away, I just wish there were more exciting things going on...