Creatively Speaking

Editing Blunders

2010-01-27T16:21:00.002-07:00

Sorry I haven't posted for awhile friends. School got the better of me.

My roommate came home one night with this fortune: "Your love of the life will be happy and harmonious."

I hope I'm not the only one with a painfully puzzled look on my face. What is this supposed to mean? Will my roommate's dream guy be happy and harmonious? Will her life simply be happy and harmonious? I'm not even sure what to do with blunder because the meaning itself isn't clear.

My poor roommate got jipped. If anybody's interested, I'll find out which restaurant this fortune came from and let you all know so you don't get jipped too.

I hope you've all learned today's lesson: Never trust fortune cookies. And laugh when people make silly mistakes in English.

Book Review: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

2010-01-08T17:20:00.003-07:00

Book Review: The Book Thief

Author: Markus Zusak

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf

Release Date: 2006

I picked up this book because it's about someone who steals books and thus starts a love affair with words. How could I not read it?

The year is 1939, in Nazi Germany. Liesel Meminger becomes the book thief at the same time that she joins a foster family, both of which change her life. When her foster family decides to harbor a Jew in the basement, Liesel's world is both opened up and closed down by the power of words. Death himself narrates Liesel's story, about her journeys learning to read and to make sense of the world and the war around her.

There are two major techniques present that make me absolutely love this book. The first is Death's role as narrator. How does a writer get any more creative than that? Because of his role, Death becomes as much of a character as any human in the story. Death most often talks to readers in the usual paragraph form, but sometimes he uses something like an aside in a play to interrupt himself or the story to provide another point of view or pertinent fact, a lot like this example from the prologue.

****HERE IS A SMALL FACT****

You are going to die.

If you ask Death, he'll tell you he does that to distract himself. Distraction is his vacation from collecting the dead, since he's the only one who can do his job. Because of his role, Death becomes as much of a character as any human in the story. In the prologue and his introduction he says, "I most definitely can be cheerful. I can be amiable. Agreeable. Affable. And that's only the A's. Just don't ask me to be nice." By using Death as the narrator, Zusak also makes great use of foreshadowing, since Death is looking back on the story as he tells it and because he knows what ultimately happens to every person in the story.

The other technique in this book that I love actually isn't a technique at all. It's a matter of style. Zusak phrases things in the most interesting and provocative way I think I've ever read. He often combines verbs and objects to be affected by the verbs in unusual ways. For example, Death tells us in the prologue that a formal introduction isn't necessary, because we'll all meet him eventually, when he'll be standing over us ("as genially as possible") to collect our dying souls. "At that moment," he says, "you will be caked in your own body. There might be a discovery; a scream will dribble down the air." I've never thought of my soul as being caked inside my body, or of a scream as something that dribbles. Zusak's syntax style extends throughout the book and to other parts of speech, such as when Liesel's foster parents decide to harbor a Jew in the basement and the weather outside reflects the misery inside: "Outside, a mountain of cold November air was waiting at the front door each time Liesel left the house. Drizzle came down in spades. Dead leaves were slumped on the road." I doubt I've ever seen leaves slump, and I hope I never run into a mountain of cold air.

The beginnig is a bit slow, and towards the end of the book it gets sad. I admit I cried. Even Death is appalled at what's happening in Germany in 1944. The words Liesel loves and hates so much can only save her, not the other things she loves when her town in bombed. But the very end, the epilogue, has a good ending. Something else she loves survives the war, and Death talks to her face to face, wondering how mankind "could be so ugly and so glorious, and its words and stories so damning and brilliant." It's a universal uncomprehending.

The Book Thief is a great read to see another side of the Nazi Germany story, about normal Germans living ordinary lives and helping their Jewish friends. The book also received several starred reviews and many, many awards, including the New York Times #1 Bestseller, the National Jewish Book Award, the Publisher's Weekly Best Book of the Year, and the Booklist Best Book of the Year, among many others. As a starred review from The Horn Book Magazine put it, this book is "a tour de force that to be not just read but inhabited." Plus, it just feels good to hold it in your hands.

Book Review: Made From Scratch by Jenna Woginrich

2010-01-04T17:21:00.004-07:00

Book Review: Made From Scratch: Discovering the Pleasures of a Handmade Life

Author: Jenna Woginrich

Publisher: Storey Publishing

Release Date: 2008

I asked for this book for my birthday because I read Jenna's blog fairly regularly and enjoy her opinions and turn of phrase. Made From Scratch is part autobiography, part introduction to basic homesteading skills, and part DIY homesteading projects and ideas.

When Jenna first began considering a vegetarian diet, she researched how the food she ate got to her plate, and the truth of it disgusted her, as well as increased her respect for small farmers and her desire to live a more self-sufficient life. Her only skills at the beginning of her journey were basic knitting and soap-making, which she did for fun; with the help of friends and more research, the list of homesteading skills she developed grew to include gardening, raising chickens, beekeeping, training work (and sled) dogs, shearing angora rabbits, collecting antiques (especially hand-powered kitchen appliances), sewing clothing, and making her own entertainment by learning to play the fiddle. In each chapter devoted to one of these skills, Jenna tells her story, then directs us how to get started. At the end of the book in something like a bibliography or reading list, Jenna points the way even further with the books and websites she used to research these skills.

I really enjoyed this book and I recommend it for anyone who misses summer now that we're in January or who likes the ideas of controlling how necessary items get to them, learning basic self-sufficient skills, or living closer to the land. Jenna's humor and honesty draw you in and really make you part of the community she herself has joined, while the story of her mistakes and successes and growth encourage you to do something productive, something real and authentic. As MaryJane Buttars (to whom Jenna refers multiple times) said, "Jenna walks you to the door of your fantasy and points the way towards a more self-sufficient and authentic lifestyle."

To get a taste of the book before you buy (or borrow from me), check out Jenna's blog. And as always, I'd love to hear what you think.

Book Review: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

2010-01-01T16:23:00.006-07:00

Book Review: The Lightning Thief, book one of Percy Jackson and the Olympians series
Author: Rick Riordan
Publisher: Miramax Hyperion Books
Release Year: 2005

I chose to read this book because it's the favorite series of a good friend of mine (and then I saw the trailer for the movie). All I can say is...Wow. I read this book in about six hours. It was the first time I have stayed up so late it was early to finish a book since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows came out. As a starred review from Kirkus Reviews put it, "Look no further for the next Harry Potter; meet Percy Jackson, as legions of fans already have." I simply could not put this book down. I have since read three of the four remaining books in the series, all in a similar timeframe. I'm hooked.

Weird things always happen around Percy Jackson. He's been kicked out of a new boarding school every year and it's about to happen again in the sixth grade, but that's the least of his problems. Greek mythological monsters and gods keep appearing in his life. Zeus's master lightning bolt--the one from which all other bolts are copied and the most powerful weapon in the universe--has been stolen, and Percy is the number one suspect. Now Percy and his friends have just 10 days to find the bolt and return it to Zeus before all-out war starts on Mount Olympus. But in order to find the thief and the stolen property, Percy must come to terms with the father who abandoned him, solve the riddle of the Oracle, and unravel a powerful treachery.

The first thing I love about this book is the chapter titles. They're creative, provactive, and usually hilarious, and they are consistently so throughout the series, with titles like "I Accidentally Vaporize My Pre-Algebra Teacher," "Three Old Ladies Knit the Socks of Death," and "I Become Supreme Lord of the Bathroom." You just can't help being sucked in with titles like these.

The clues about Percy's parentage, the quest he undertakes to find the lightning bolt, the treachery he discovers as he attempts to prove himself innocent of theft, and the gods themselves are well spaced and delivered so the reader can see just a bit further ahead than Percy. The battle scenes are believable and intense, and as are the abilities and powers of gods, monsters, and certain individuals. I am highly impressed with how clean this book is. There is absolutely no inappropriate language or behavior. The battle scenes are the only violence, but they are never gruesome or bloody; some people die and some get hurt, but these battles are always ultimately an issue of good versus evil.

I may not have studied Greek history and mythology for several years, but I still think the Greeks are a huge part of our collective cultural history. I think students in whatever grade learns about Greek civilization should read this book at the beginning of the unit as an introduction to and creative application of the subject. This is a very, very good read. I read this book and then almost immediately bought the whole series because after the first book, I knew I would love them all. That is a rare gift. I highly recommend this book and it's series.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Book One: The Lightning Thief is a New York Times Notable Book of 2005, a Child Magazine Best Book of the Year, and a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year. As the New York Times Review put it, this book is "Perfectly paced, with electrifying moments chasing each other like heartbeats."

The new movie Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief comes to theaters February 12, 2010.

As always, I welcome your comments. Let me know what you think.

Movie Review: The Princess and the Frog

2009-12-30T13:10:00.009-07:00

If this blog is supposed to be a collection of "thoughts on books, movies, and more" then I thought it ought to contain reviews of those media. Hopefully I can write reviews and post them here regularly with my busy spring semester schedule at Utah State University. Here's to my first review!

Movie Review: The Princess and the Frog
Release Date: December 11 2009
Company: Walt Disney Animation Studios
Rated: G

I was really excited to see this movie when my two little sisters, my sister-in-law and I went to see it last week, but unfortunately, the movie didn't live up to the standards I expected from either the commercials for the movie or other Disney princess movies.

The Princess and the Frog takes place in Jazz Age New Orleans. Tiana is a hardworking young woman who wants nothing more than to fulfill her late father's dream of opening a restaurant, while Prince Naveen comes to the Big Easy looking for a good time and a rich bride, since his parents have cut him off from the family funds. Both their plans are disrupted by the sinister plots of the Shadow Man, and they must work together and make unusual friends to resume their rightful forms and normal lives.

The film reminds me of movies like Beauty and the Beast (1991), Aladdin (1992), and The Little Mermaid (1989), which is likely because two of the film's three directors, Ron Clement and John Musker, also wrote and/or directed the last two movies in that list. Their involvement and leadership affects many aspects of the movie: the 2D animation is superb, the music fantastic (I'm considering buying the soundtrack), the voices and accents spot-on, the characters developed and believable, and the setting real. The story, however, feels a bit weak, with too many loose ends. Why does the Shadow Man target Prince Naveen? What are the reasons behind the actions of Prince Naveen's butler? What happened to Tiana's dad? Why does Prince Naveen choose New Orleans if he has no money? Why are the Shadow Man's "friends on the other side" working with him? They don't seem to like him. What do they want? Questions like these are unsettling, especially in a G-rated, kid-targeted movie.

Speaking of the rating, this movie contains scary images that I think deserve a PG rating. I find the Shadow Man's manipulation of his own shadow interesting, but when he uses other shadows--the creepy kind--to do his bidding, I'm concerned that young children will get scared easily and even have nightmares.

The Princess and the Frog has been nominated for the 2010 Golden Globe Best Animated Feature Film award, as well as 15 other awards in categories such as Best Original Song, Voice Acting, and Character Animation.

All in all, The Princess and the Frog was worth my time and money. I'm glad I took the opportunity with my sisters to go see it, but I won't be seeing it again. I probably won't buy the DVD anytime soon.

As always, please feel free to comment on this post. I want to hear what you think about my reviews and what books, movies, or music you think I should review. Happy Holidays everyone!

"Burn Down the House" by SHeDAISY

2009-09-06T21:59:00.004-06:00

I love this song. I especially love listening to it while driving. I admit it: I get road rage. But the thing that makes this song great is the poetry of it. The lyrics are full of strong images and beautiful sounds that make it easy to sing along. I realize that country-ish music isn't for everyone, but listen to the words: see the images that build this song and taste the sounds that make it fun to sing along with.

You can listen to the song on YouTube.com here. (I'd rather import the video for your audio-visual enjoyment but I can't figure out how.)

And here are the lyrics, to aid you in seeing imagery and tasting sounds:

Today I promise I'll never love you again
I swear I'll care as little as I can
'Cause I've become accustomed to wearin' nothin'
But pink nail polish on my left hand
So many valuable lessons I learned from you
Like forgiveness and breakin' hearts too
Now that you're a goner in your honor
More of the silence is the least I can do

Cut the lines
Blow up a few bridges
Trim the fat
Trim the grass
Clean out the fridge
Then sweep up the mess
Put on my Sunday best
And burn down the house
Burn down the house
Toss an easy stride into this dance I call life
And Burrrn, yeah

I never did like your fantasy football friends
I'll never have to watch Caddyshack again
I finally started cookin' and if you're lookin'
I'm walkin' my new dog in front of my new house
Got a new job and the money's come in
See you need a new man and a world and a new life
Nothing's quite as right as a girl on the mend

Cut the lines
Blow up a few bridges
Trim the fat
Trim the grass
Clean out the fridge
Then sweep up the mess
Put on my Sunday best
And burn down the house
Burn down the house
Toss an easy stride into this dance I call life
And BurnYeah, yeah
Oh, whoa, whoa

Tearin' down old walls
Puttin' up new ones
Have a little fun it's wreckin' ball night
Gotta little itchin' to get down in the kitchen
With my tall drink of water and some dynamite

Cut the lines
Blow up a few bridges
Trim the fat
Trim the grass
Clean out the fridge
Then sweep up the mess
Put on my Sunday best
And burn down the house
Burn down the house
Toss an easy stride into this dance I call life
And burn, burn, burn
Baby, burn
Ah, burn it up, yeah
Don't know burn, burn
Burn it, burn it, burn it up

School is back

2009-08-30T20:43:00.003-06:00

Sorry it's been awhile since I posted, folks. That second internship at the USU Press kept me really busy up until school started. Some good news and some bad news following the first week back on campus: I was lucky enough to make it into Dr. Sinor's Creative Nonfiction Writing class, which I am very excited for! Plus, the focus of my Prose Studies class is autobiography, so the two classes will reflect off each other and I will learn more than I could taking each class singly. The bad news is that I did not make it into Dr. McCuskey's British Writers class all about Jane Austen, and I don't think I can audit the class. I might talk with him tomorrow and see if we can work something out so I can learn to read Jane Austen critically without actually being in the class. Other than that, I'm good to go! Lots of reading and writing to do already, but that's why I'm an English major.

I have a correction to make for my previous posts. I am not entering the May Swenson Poetry contest even though that would be a great opportunity for me to grow as a writer. I decided I should probably start studying for the GRE and write poetry when the creative urge hits me. Poetry never sounds or feels good when you try to force it.

Since I am no longer entering the contest, I thought I'd share with you my "midnight poetry" from the last post. Let me know what you think.

Today I ate a grapefruit

and now Orange describes everything

as I sit in the sun:

the glow through my eyelids

the radiation of heat from my center

the calm energy of this yoga pose

the sour citrus taste on my tongue

even the cricket-song of sunset

puncuated by the crunch of dry grass.

Yay for writing

2009-07-20T14:53:00.003-06:00

I couldn't fall asleep last night, so I wrote some "midnight poetry" at 2 am. The desire and inspiration to write is such a good feeling! The problem is that now I want to post it here; I hadn't realized how much sharing my writing on the internet contributes to my attitude about writing. Let me know if you want to read it, or if you think I wouldn't be disqualified from the May Swenson Poetry Award by posting it here.

I'm also thinking about advertising myself on campus as a freelance editor. I'm thinking with two internships at the Press, my job as a Rhetoric Associate, and currently being trained as a copyeditor that I have experience to do scholarly/research papers; I also think that with my experience in creative writing and the fact that I'm a senior in that major I could also freelance creative work. Let me know what you think.

The May Swenson Poetry Award

2009-07-18T13:42:00.003-06:00

...is my new deadline. I've already posted how strange it feels to have a large percentage of my no-assignment, no-deadline writing take the form of poetry, and now I'm doing something even stranger: trying to write even more of the genre I've never previously had feelings for, and get it peer-reviewed and edited and as perfect as possible, and submitted to (my favorite place) the USU Press for the May Swenson Poetry Award BY SEPTEMBER 30. Am I crazy?

So this means lots of work. The submissions must be unpublished, so only first drafts have the potential of making it onto the blog, and then probably not many. Mostly I will probably keep you updated about the process and what I'm learning, maybe a few troublesome lines or deep questions I'm pondering. If you want to help me out and peer review some of the poems (50 to 100 pages, one poem per page--AAH!), let me know and I will find a way to get some to you! I need all the help I can get!

How many poems a week do you think it's reasonable to expect myself to produce? Remember I have to have time to edit and get them peer-reviewed, too. Ten weeks between now and then, subtract a two-week cushion, equals eight weeks to write. Aim for 75 poems (middle of 50 and 100), divided by 8 weeks...basically I'd have to write (at least) one poem every day. That's a lot more writing than I've ever done.

Tell me what you think of this idea: Shanan Ballam was my Poetry Writing teacher this spring, and since she writes a lot, she's been published, she has her MFA, and she was my teacher of poetry, I'm thinking about emailing her and seeing if we can establish some sort of mentor relationship. Meeting with her once or twice a week would be very helpful for my writing because not only would I be discussing my poetry with someone who knows what she's talking about, but I would have more and closer deadlines and the writing would feel more like an assignment, the two things that I lack over the summer. The only thing is that it's still summer break, so the beginning of this relationship might be mostly email-based, which is okay. Even if I don't earn the May Swenson Poetry Award, Shanan would know of other publishing venues, like journals (or databases of them), and be able to help me either write for a journal's guidelines or find some that are likely to accept my style. Of course, the real goal here (besides an improvement in writing, a bigger portfolio, and a better chance of getting published) is to get another letter of recommendation for grad school. That way I'd have one for my creative work, one for my academic work (Dr. McCuskey, hopefully), and one for my publishing experience (John from the USU Press).

And they tell you who the judge is on the guidelines website (http://www.usu.edu/usupress/poetry_award/), so now I'm nervous. Grace Schulman sounds incredible. Should I read some of her poetry collections? Some poetry in general probably, just to sort of immerse myself in the situation and the genre, but should I read hers specifically? How much?

This is a lot to do and think about, on top of grad school research and materials, GRE studying, working at Walmart as much as possible to afford tuition, my internship at the Press, reading (hopefully) Atlas Shrugged for a scholarship essay (conveniently due in the middle of September...), and any other kind of writing.

If anybody sees me wasting time, such as watching TV, will you please smile and remind me that I have writing to do so you can see a published book of my poetry? Thanks.

Question 5:

2009-07-15T08:35:00.002-06:00

Someone whose opinion I value greatly read that poem yesterday and commented that the switch from comical to serious seemed a bit harsh for her. This led me to think: how would the poem change if it ended with the comical "What thunderous snores..." line? Is the realization of how loud his snores must be enough of a twist at the end for the poem to feel done? Can the poem function as simply a funny take-off of a nursery rhyme?

And Question 6: Any ideas for a title? It'd be great if the title made readers think about the poem differently or see something new in it the second time around.

Hallelujah!

2009-07-14T14:35:00.003-06:00

I started writing again today! Woot! I'm not sure if I'm going to write that memoir about Megan; maybe, but I'd have to do it all from scratch, and that's hard when you've already started the project in a different form (like, say, a badly written version of the memoir from when you were 16...). Today I wrote a poem. Actually, I expanded on an idea I had for a poem in January, but that I couldn't find a direction for in my Poetry Writing class. Hopefully this means I have successfully psyched myself into writing something every day; the more seriously I consider grad school, the more things I have to do yesterday to make myself a competitive applicant (the acceptance rate for the school I really want to go to is about 50 seats to 150 applicants--yikes). Sometime this week I need to go to Testing Services and figure out how to register for the September GRE, then go to Hastings and buy the book my brother told me to study from. I need to write something every day, so that a) my writing improves, b) I'll have a bigger portfolio, and c) I might get scholarships, published, and/or go to conference(s). I need to read every day to expand my knowledge base (to be a good writer you have to read, you know), and I really need to start reading Atlas Shrugged so I can write a killer essay and get a scholarship in September. Never mind all the good stuff I'd like to do anyway, like practice French, learn the piano, and crochet my afghan. It really doesn't help that my otherwise totally awesome roommate Christina got me hooked on a Japanese anime, "Bleach." There's not enough time for everything! AAH!

Anyway, now you all know my stress. Below is the poem I wrote today, because I know you've all been dying to read it from the first line of this post:

It’s raining, it’s pouring, the old man is snoring—
Wait—
Why is there an old man?
Why not a young man? Or a woman? Or a child?
That line is so restrictive.

Breathe. I’m over it.

It’s raining, it’s pouring, the old man is snoring—
Wait—
Why does he snore when it rains?
Why doesn’t he sit by the fire, holding his white-haired wife’s hand?
Or finish his homework to Nature’s background music?
The least she can do is watch through the kitchen window as greens grow brighter, reds burn longer, and all colors blend into an ephemeral arbor over her roses.
Surely the little one learns the pleasure of puddle-jumping and the cold eerie surprise of water in one’s boots.

Or maybe it’s raining and pouring because the old man is snoring. Hmm.

What thunderous snores he must make, to be heard above the rain’s roof-tapping.

What manner of Man he must be, to call forth the tears of heaven.

What so many sorrows He must have endured, to know how to wash away the faded green of dying flowers, the bright crimson stain on pure white clothes, and give them new life.

It's hard to see some of the formatting this way but that's okay. I love comments on everything, but if you could, I'd like my readers to respond to a couple questions.
Q 1: Does the switch from comical to serious work? Why or why not? How can I make it better? Did you see this poem going in a different direction? Why?
Q 2: Is there enough imagery and sensory detail in this poem? Why or why not? Any ideas?
Q 3: Any help with poetic techniques in general would be great, specifically internal music.
Q 4: There are a couple of lines that I'm not so sure about right now. If a line doesn't seem to fit, or confuses you, PLEASE tell me. Any ideas for these are especially helpful.

Any other comments are always welcome! Keep your fingers crossed for me that I'll be able to write something again tomorrow!

In Memoriam, F.M. Megan

2009-06-30T18:10:00.010-06:00

My horse Megan had to be put down today. She developed a strange form of colic, probably within the last 24 hours, that completely backed up her digestive system. The vet said we would have found her dead this afternoon if we hadn't seen her laying sprawled on the ground in pain and made an emergency visit this morning. She's been my one of my best friends since I was 12, about 8 years. I cried in sympathy a week or two ago when my roommate and her family had to put down her Golden Retriever that they'd had seemingly forever, but you just don't understand it until you've felt it for yourself. My emotions have been close to the top all day. As part of my grieving process I want to share some pictures of her with you.

This was taken soon after we first bought her, when we were both 13. I'm holding her and my brother Rick is sitting on her.

This is actually my riding instructor, RaNae, riding Megan in a Western Pleasure show before we met. Isn't she just beautiful?

This is a photo I took two weeks ago to put with Megan's ad on KSL.com (which is no longer online). For a 20-year-old horse she still had pretty good form. My sister Katie is holding her.

I also think instead of a USU Press memoir (although it's a good idea, and I might come back to it), I'm going to revisit a memoir I wrote as a high school sophomore in my first Creative Writing class. It's about when I first met Megan and our riding lessons together. Since I wrote it when I was 16, it needs work. It's 8 pages long but it's all summary, and it only covers our riding lessons before we bought her, which is one summer out of 8 years. I think there's some room to play with there. My idea is to revise each paragraph or section for detail, description, dialogue, imagery, stories that highlight the ideas or detail, etc, and then I'd like to post some of them here for your enjoyment and critique. Let me know what you think.

How about a memoir of interning at the USU Press?

2009-06-28T15:37:00.002-06:00

Does that sound like a good idea to anyone? I interned at the USU Press over spring 2009 semester and I just started another three-credit internship there, which will hopefully end before school starts. I've been thinking a lot about my last post's plea for help in writing inspiration (and I got several comments--thanks!), and I remembered today that one of the example Masters projects on the Emerson College website was a memoir of life in London's publishing houses, and I thought, I could write a memoir of life in a publishing house. I love the USU Press! Since I'm always saying that, why not? The thing is, I'm not sure how valuable such a memoir would be or how many people would be interested in reading it. It probably wouldn't be book-length, but I don't know anything about the market for short memoir/short nonfiction. I know short fiction is usually published in anthologies, either of the author's work or of several authors' work, but I don't think they do that for short nonfiction. Would it be something I could publish in a magazine?

And what things should I include? Of course my first impressions of the place and people, my original goals for each internship, maybe part or all of my five-page essay that I wrote at the end of the first internship to get the credit, talking with John about grad school and increasing my editorial skills. Maybe some things about the culture of the press, like talking endlessly with Sandy (the secretary) about religion, school politics, allergies; the day Michael (the director) came out to my desk, which is on the other side of the small building from the offices that he, Dan (designer), and John (editor) work in, to inform me that I'm supposed to say hello when I come in because otherwise he only hears the door close and thinks there's someone waiting out there. The main thing I suppose would be about the stuff I worked on and the things I learned, but at this point I can't directly quote anything (and wouldn't want to if it's from a book) and I can't really remember any stories to tell from my spring internship. The one about Michael happened on Friday, which is why I remember it.

If you have any ideas, I'd love to hear them.

It's been awhile...I feel sheepish

2009-06-26T20:27:00.007-06:00

Sorry everyone that I haven't blogged regularly for some time. I haven't blogged at all for awhile! Summer is just a weird time warp for me: I never know exactly what day it is because I'm not in school; it seems like no time passes and there's never any deadlines, so I simply don't do the things that the regularity of school facilitates, like blogging and writing and reading.

Anyway.

Quick update: I have a job!!!! I'm a cashier at the new South Logan Walmart. I kind of feel like I was brainwashed instead of informed at my orientation and training, but it's better now. Not too bad a job to have actually.

I have also started reading a book I borrowed from my mom, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, by Alexander McCall Smith during my breaks at work. Love it. It takes place in Botswana Africa and has calm, soothing, almost folklore-ish feeling to it, a lot like Chinua Achebe's writing.

Good news: I've started another internship at the USU Press! I love the press. If it were possible I would stay in Logan and work there for a long time. Alas, it's unpaid. But it's okay because John (my supervisor and the executive editor of the press) is going to train me to be a professional proofreader and copyeditor, so I can advertise myself on-campus as a freelance editor, and maybe even advertise elsewhere. Yay for good editing experience!

And the biggest (and scariest) news of all is that I'm thinking about grad school and getting my Masters in Publishing. Right now I'm researching two schools, Portland State University in Oregon (where my brother lives) and Emerson College in Boston Massachusetts. Big cities, expensive schools, far away from home--I'm terrified. Since my brother lives in Portland, I'm less scared of PSU, but lately I've been leaning toward Boston, where I know no one and nothing! So if anybody knows anything about Boston or Emerson College, I'd love to hear it!

Another plea for help: summer is a time warp for me, which means there are no deadlines like there are in school, which means I never write anything except random comments on Facebook. I really need to write! at least something every week. I need to practice for school, for grad school application essays, and for grad school resumes. To get into publishing, I really should be published, and do that I need to write. Anything: poetry, fiction, nonfiction (memoir, travelogue, etc). If anybody has any writing prompts (other than my two books, In the Palm of Your Hand for poetry and The Pocket Muse for a bit everything), or even better, a motivation technique to take the place of deadlines, I NEED TO HEAR IT!!!! Please feel free to help me out!

Also, quick poll: should I write my stuff (assuming I write) and then find magazines or other venues in which I would like to publish my stuff? or should I find the mags/venues first, and then write for the kind of publication they are?

FINALS ARE OVER!!!!

2009-04-30T19:19:00.004-06:00

Thought I'd let you know how happy I am. :)

The Victorian Literature test wasn't very bad, actually. The only problem is that I always run out of time! This happens to me on every test in McCuskey's classes! There were 40 quotations from Middlemarch, 20 of them spoken by and 20 of them describing one of 20 listed characters, and we had to match the character to either the two things they said, the two things describing them, or one of each. Piece of cake. Then we had to choose three of four essay questions, which were all based on the major themes of Victorian culture that we discussed in the first half of the class: Industry and Class, Victorian Ladies, Victorian Gentlemen, and Science and Religion. I answered the last three, and my essay on Victorian Ladies was pretty well-done for a thirty-minute essay if I do say so myself (actually it took 45 minutes, which is why I didn't finish the Science and Religion question...oops).

Now that school is officially over the only problem is that I have nothing to do, except crochet and read and watch movies and be lazy in general. And water and mow the lawn, prep and plant the garden, weed the landscaping, etc but I had a massive headache so can you really blame me for not doing anything? I didn't think so. I suppose this will give me time to work on some of my goals that school kind of prevented, like practicing the piano more regularly and practicing my French, because I really don't want to lose that skill, but I need a job! *insert sound of frustration* This weekend I'm going to do some serious yard work, help my friend Christina move into our apartment, and visit my parents' house in Kaysville. If I don't have a job by Monday, I guess I'll just have to apply at grocery stores and bug the theatres to get a job.

So Christina moves into my apartment tomorrow, which is AWESOME because not only is she super cool, but my other roommate Ellie is going to Orlando (among other places) for a WEEK AND A HALF!!! If Christina wasn't going to be here with me, I. Would. Go. Nuts. I like the idea of living alone, but I don't think I could handle it right now, and my not having a job yet would make it exponentially worse. Christina moved about half of her stuff into our house today, including her DVDs, which I helped her put on the shelves in the box window. I saw that she has Becoming Jane, which I have wanted to see again for awhile, so I said, "Christina, I love you." A little while later I saw she had an Avatar: The Last Airbender DVD and I told her how excited I was that she likes Avatar too. She said she only had the one DVD, so I told her that I have them all, and she said, "Christina, I love you." :) Ah the joys of roommates.

My movies take up three of the four shelves on the right. Christina's are on the top two shelves on the left. Ellie has two DVD's still in their cases and the rest in CD cases on the second shelf up on the left. In the middle is our lovely picture window, which is closed because it faces the setting sun and I didn't want to blind you.

P.S. Thanks to everyone who wished my luck on my exam this morning! Let me know what you think about my plans, what your plans are, life in general, anything and everything. I want this blog to be a way of letting others know how I'm doing and of facilitating communication between us about the things we have in common, so please, comment away!

Silver White Winters That Melt Into Spring...

2009-04-29T22:24:00.008-06:00

No, unfortunately, I have not watched The Sound of Music recently, because I don't own it. But the song "Favorite Things" popped into my head today and that line stuck. I'm so happy that spring is finally in Logan!

A few days ago I found a patch of tulips growing in our front yard!

And today they looked like this! I'm so excited! I love flowers.

Now, as everyone knows, it's finals week. For our "final" in my Poetry Writing class, we just met during our scheduled examination time as if it were class and discussed submission tips and read aloud some of our poetry before turning in our final portfolios. It was a fabulous experience. As a writer in a writing class, I'm aware of others' writing because we workshop, but I don't really think about them much because I'm concerned with what I'm writing. I never realized how many brilliant poets surrounded me in that class. One girl read a poem all about the letter X: how it only says its own sound above a door in an "exit" sign, how you can see it in the body of a cheerleader, how it replaces a cartoon figure's eyes to signify death, and how it changes a person by putting itself in front of their title (ie, ex-boyfriend), among other examples. I never would have thought to write a poem about a letter! Another girl, K.J., shared a poem about Joseph Smith, Jr.'s First Vision of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ from the point of view of the tree he knelt next to. It was amazing. I realized that religious themes crop up in my ficion writing--in fact, religion has been a major theme in my two most recent stories--but for whatever reason they never seem to show up in my poetry. Any guesses why? I have no clue.

As far as Fiction Writing goes, our "final" was a major revision of one of the two stories that we wrote this semester, which I started and finished all yesterday afternoon before turning it in early this morning. I got a lot of useful feedback for my second story, "Crisis of Faith" (see that religious theme? it's even in the title!), which was about an LDS girl's attempt to reconcile religion with a dating issue and which I didn't really like once I'd finished writing it, but even though I think better of it now because of a great workshop, I decided to revise my first story. "Unexpected" was about a girl in an American tour of Italy and how God and art history work in her life in one day and it needed a lot of work, which got crammed into one afternoon and evening. Hopefully it turned out all right and I can pull off an acceptable grade in that class.

And tomorrow is my final in Dr. McCuskey's Victorian Literature class (for which I have not studied...!), after the roommate tradition of IHOP during finals week! It really shouldn't be that difficult of a test; he said it was mainly to prove that we'd read Middlemarch and could relate it with the other stuff we read in the first half of the semester. Well, wish me luck!

Additions to my Bookshelf

2009-04-25T11:45:00.004-06:00

Before I get to my summer reading list, I have some other books to tell you about. First is the Sigma Tau Delta Rectangle, the journal of creative writing for the International English Honor Society (the only Greek organization to which I belong). I haven't actually started reading it yet, but I'm way excited to read it, and hopefully I can begin next week as a break from finals. This yearly publication has a good smattering of poetry, short fiction, and creative non-fiction, and one award every year for each.

Next is the Sigma Tau Delta Review, the journal of critical writing, which I'm also very excited to start reading. I find it strange thought that the Review is smaller in thickness than the Rectangle, as if the judges value creativity over criticism...? Maybe that's just me. The goal this year was to incorporate some modern criticism of Middlemarch into the essay I gave to Dr. McCuskey and submit it for publication to the Review but the deadline is April 30, and I have finals and revisions and portfolios to work on, so...I might not make it into the 2010 journals. Hopefully I can write and revise some really good critical and creative work in the next year and submit next April. That will be my last chance to submit because the journals only accept work by enrolled students.

So this is my plug for Sigma Tau Delta. There are tons of English majors at USU but our chapter is so small! Please join! Come to the activities! Network! Make friends! Have fun! Get scholarships! Beef up your resume! Submit your writing and maybe get published! A one-time fee gets you lifetime membership, and a subscription to the journals as long as you're an enrolled student. We have lots of great ideas for activities and things to help each other in our various disciplines this year, so come see what it's all about! If you're interested in finding out more, visit the website at www.english.org/sigmatd.

The other addition to my bookshelf is Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage. I've decided to do my best to study the good word in the morning and at night, so it will feel like it's a greater priority in my life than it might be if I only read before bed. Last night I read chapter 4, which proves the antemortal existence of Christ by the significance of his names; for example, "Jehovah" (and the related Hebrew word for "I Am") means "Self-Existent One" or "The Eternal." Remember when Jesus tells the Jews in John 8 that "Before Abraham was, I Am"? Talmage tells us that "The true significance of this saying would be more plainly expressed were the sentence punctuated...as follows: '...Before Abraham, was I Am'; which means the same as had He said--Before Abraham, was I, Jehovah." I thought it was so interesting to prove the premortal divinity of Christ by using scriptural evidence of his names and titles. I highly recommend this book, and I haven't even finished it yet.

A little bit of everything

2009-04-23T16:40:00.011-06:00

Thanks to Dr. McCuskey, my summer reading list now also includes John Fowles' (sp?) The French Lieutenant's Woman, which is a (short) Victorian novel written in 1969...how does that work? Anyway, he said it was really great so I think I'll try to give it a shot.

So my internship at the USU Press is officially over...*sigh* This weekend I will write an essay about my experiences there in order to get credit for the internship. Before today, I thought that I would be changing my emphasis to Literary Studies (which doesn't require elective credits like Creative Writing), and getting a 40+ hours per week job over the summer, and therefore volunteering at the Press like I have been except without the official title of internship, just to learn more about publishing and copyediting, but then, my fellow English Creative Writing major Curtis (I think that's his name...) and I were talking today about Creative Writing when Dr. McCuskey's class got out early. It would honestly just be easier for me to finish school in Creative Writing. For Literary Studies to work, the stars would have to align perfectly, and they're not likely to do that. And I've heard good things about the classes I have left to take. But I've already signed up for Lit Studies classes, and now Access is down so I can't see or change what I'm registered for...!

Anyway...(can you tell ellipses are my new favorite form of punctuation?) My Middlemarch essay was due today so I took the evening off from doing any work, since yesterday was stressful enough. I was up till 3 am writing it! But it's okay. I'm done. I'm watching A&E's Pride and Prejudice, one 50-minute video cassette a night, which means that my crocheting is coming along nicely. I'm so excited to make this afghan! Many thanks again to Sarah for teaching me this useful art.

The finished pattern will be 100 or so of these hexagons stitched together like this.

This is one of the hexagons. The colors from the inside out are green, pink, yellow, and green This one actually has 6 corners! (some of them have only had 5, unfortunately)

Summer Reading

2009-04-20T10:37:00.006-06:00

Any ideas? So far my list includes Inkheart, thanks to the movie; Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, because there's an essay scholarship based on that book in September; all of Jane Austen's novels, because I still have my fingers crossed that I'll be able to get into Dr. McCuskey's British Writers class this fall (which is all about Miss Austen); oh and I still have to finish Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre. Maybe I'll even read God Grew Tired of Us, since I didn't read it when it was the Aggie Readers Book Club book of the month. Another book I saw in the bookstore that caught my attention was The Book Thief, which sounded extremely interesting.

I can read boring stuff too. To further my hopeful career as a freelance editor of scholarly writing, maybe even graduate theses, next fall, I'm hoping to get and should probably read The Chicago Manual of Style, maybe even books about the other top two academic styles, CBE and APA.

And just to be totally random, I want to read Made from Scratch by Jenna W., the author of Cold Antler Farm blog. I've decided I really like the idea of being green and doing some of the things that she's done, especially the "back to the land" idea. Being a semi-city girl I probably don't realize what I'm saying, but you never know til you try, right?

I love comments! If you have a good book you think I should read, please let me know!

Hiking, Dresses, and a Jester

2009-04-19T21:45:00.009-06:00

Remember the problem with my camera? Old batteries. Thanks to Sarah for giving me new ones so I could take some pictures on our hike on Saturday! Sarah and Andrew invited me to go with them on a hike to the Wind Caves, which was awesome (and totally wonderful of them to include me). This was my first time hiking in Logan Canyon. Enjoy the pics!

The view across the highway.

Me inside the Wind Caves. It was a lovely cool respite from the warm sun (I actually did get some minor sunburns). I could hear and feel the wind really well. No wonder various Native American groups thought the wind was a spirit.

Sarah and Andrew eating lunch on the very ledge of the cave. Crazy kids.

Besides hiking, I watched two movies this week that I haven't seen before. The first was "27 Dresses" which I had never wanted to see before, but my friend Kellie brought it with her for the weekend while she was visiting and talked me into it. My first thought after the movie was over was that the cover of the DVD really didn't do Katherine Heigl justice. And having only seen James Marsden in "X-Men" as Cyclops and in "Enchanted" as Prince Edward, the role of city slicker-newspaper writer was a very refreshing one to see him play. For those of you who don't know, Heigl plays a woman who has been a bridesmaid 27 times, and has issues with planning her sister's wedding to the man Heigl's character loves. As far as plot, it seemed like th only thing the movie had to fall back on was that Jane mothered everyone; the movie hit home the point the first time really well, so the second time felt weird. I wish there could have been two problems with Jane, or two different versions of the same problem that were more obviously two different versions. Her tendency to mother her sister and to always say yes to her friends didn't feel as unrelated as I wanted them to be. The movie did do a good job of setting up suspense and major plot points, though. Within the first five minutes I knew who the love interest would be, and when the car hydroplaned down the hill I knew exactly what was coming next. It was a nice kind of predictability. I would recommend this movie to chick flick lovers, the kind of people who love the kind of chick flick that has no other plot besides falling in love.

I also saw an older movie today called "The Court Jester", which was hilarious. If you like musicals, or old-fashioned movies, or medieval England and Robin Hood-ish tales, this is a movie you must see. Danny Kaye plays a carnival entertainer who joins the forest band of the Black Fox (the Robin Hood-ish figure) to help overthrow an unlawful king, and ends up going undercover as the court jester. This movie had more twists and turns than most modern movies; probably the closest a recent movie (that I've seen) has come to that many plot turns is "The Dark Knight", and that one only because it was three hours long. Or felt like it. Anyway, hilariously funny movie, especially if you like tongue-twisters. Highly recommended to everyone.

Why I Love to Read

2009-04-16T12:50:00.003-06:00

So in Dr. McCuskey's class today, we talked about why it's good to read novels, which is a hard thing to discuss because the satisfaction that comes from reading a good book can't be quantified, and that's how our society does things (for more on this, visit an older post, The Director of USU Press). This is how Dr. McCuskey proved that it's good for us to read deep, difficult novels like Middlemarch:

Books like Middlemarch are deep and slow, and therefore the opposite of things like Twitter with its instant updates. According to some new research, the rapid-fire news updates like those on Twitter come too fast for the brain's moral compass to process properly, which can negatively affect a person's morality. So if Twitter is bad for you, then it's opposite--books like Middlemarch--must be good for you.

I love it. Life is beautiful (except when you have chest cold and cough--ARGH!).

Just When I Want to Take More Pictures...

2009-04-14T12:53:00.004-06:00

My camera dies and I need a new one. Early birthday present, anyone? I really don't want to have to wait until September for a new camera. The problem with the old one is that I change the batteries--I even tried two different brands--and the thing won't turn on. And I don't have a 3.4V DC adapter floating around either so I can't charge it.

I was going to take a picture of the afghan I'm working on, so I can show you all what I do when I watch movies (like the Ironman cartoon :) and what I'm all excited about all the time. Bummer.

I also wanted to show you guys a picture of my yard, since I wrote a poem about it yesterday. Random huh? Blame the exercises in my poetry book. The chapter dealt with writing about nature, and the exercise told us to praise something most people wouldn't praise, like weeds or flies. Here's the poem sans picture anyway, since I actually like it:

My yellow brown green lawn is littered
With sticks from my neighbor’s lovely shade
Tree, so huge and skyline-dominating that
It’s our cul-de-sac’s personal fire hazard.

Long sticks, short sticks, fat sticks, skinny sticks,
Some knotty, some straight, even a few
Whole branches have fallen across my
Sidewalk and into the bushes I’ve been
Planning to rip out anyway.

My roommates grimace at these bland
Gray lines that cross-hatch our curb appeal
But I like them: they give me something to do.
Someone has to meet them all,
Learn their names and their histories,
Introduce them all to each other in little bundles
So they don’t get lost on their way to the
Landfill.

Of course, doing my homework hinder my idleness too,
But
I’d rather meet the sticks.

So...let me know what you think. Ideas for revision are always welcome. I expect a comment from Chessie since we're in the same poetry class. And hopefully I'll figure out a way to put pictures from real life on here sometime soon.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T15:50:00.006-06:00

The Easter Bunny found me today (which is the real reason I came home this weekend; never mind anything you hear about my brother's reception). I got a ton of candy, as usual, but the cool part is the useful gifts I got, such as the Ironman DVD pack that came with a DVD of the old cartoon too. Anybody wanna watch the cartoon? My brothers love it. I guess I'll have something to babysit with if they come up and hang out with me for a few hours (don't know when that might happen...).

I also got a DVD of the second season of Matlock!!! I love Matlock! It's one of the best TV shows of all time! I'm so excited. I've been waiting to see seasons of Matlock on DVD forever. The next time I get sick, it will be a difficult decision: Avatar or Matlock?

Since blogging is as much about networking as any other hobby (or many professions), every once in a while we need to talk about other people's blogs, right? So my faithful followers, check out some of my favorite blogs:
*My cousin Matt writes about the various hilarities of life, a lot like the rest of us, but with a unique voice all his own: www.mattbarrington.com/wordpress.
*I love the blog My Castle in Spain. The author writes about the kind of slower-paced life I hope to have someday.
*And a new discovery (thanks to my favorite website ever, MotherEarthNews.com) is Cold Antler Farm. The author is also a writer, so her posts are always interesting to read, but she also mostly addresses modern homesteading, which I would love to learn more about and maybe even try someday.

Now that you know a bit about my online tastes, let me know what you think about my faves, what your fave blogs are, and/or anything else you think I'd like. And I'd love to hear about your Easter! Mine was great. I hope yours were too!

The Director of the USU Press

2009-04-10T20:45:00.003-06:00

His name is Michael. He was a Literary Studies major, so I figured he'd be interested to know I plan on changing my emphasis. I thought he'd be excited for me, but when I told him he made the weirdest exasperated kind of face. "You like to read," he said.

I nodded emphatically and asked, "Have you read Middlemarch?"

He nodded.

"Well, when we started reading it," I said, "I hated it. But now that I've finished it, I want to read it again. I want to write another paper on it." (even though I haven't actually written the first one, but that's beside the point) "Dr. McCuskey's Victorian Literature class is my favorite this semester."

Michael squinched his eyes and snort-giggled and said, "Christina you've got it bad! Wouldn't you rather work at a computer all day and make money and then come home and read Middlemarch?"

The answer is no. I want to read. It's one of the things I've always loved. I once got grounded from reading in the fifth grade because I wasn't doing my math homework, and it was horrible. And I don't actually want to read books like Middlemarch all the time; I'd prefer to read scholarly work for a career so that fiction is still fun.

So after that Michael and I had this great, albeit depressing, discussion of why such rewarding intellectual work is undervalued, especially by universities. If Lit Studies students are "only reading a novel" (Middlemarch), then why do they need any money? The problem is that university people are only interested in the economic, quantitative value of things, and the benefits of the humanities can't be measured that way.

P.S. I want to put pictures on here; my blog feels really boring compared to others, but when I'm not talking about movies what kind of pictures can I post? Ideas please! They're always welcome in the humanities! ;)

For Sarah

2009-04-08T17:13:00.005-06:00

I'm blogging again. You can all give your thanks to my totally awesome roomie Sarah who reprimanded me on Facebook for not updating my blog regularly, like I said I would. The problem has been the last two weeks of stress and laziness. Odd combination, I know. C'est moi.

I was supposed to have McCuskey's Middlemarch essay done a week ago, at least a rough draft so I could meet with him again. So far I have nothing. By Thursday, since the essay is supposed to be done, I'm supposed to have gathered some outside criticism of the novel so I can build up that essay into something worthy of being published by, say, the Sigma Tau Delta Review. I'm also supposed to have gathered similar materials so I could do the same thing with an essay I wrote last semester about Chaucer's "Wife of Bath's Tale" (if you remember that far back; that was some of my first blogging). I have nothing for either essay.

I'm also behind in my poetry homework. That class feels like such a waste of time. Sometime soon I'll have to start working on a revision of one of my stories for Advanced Fiction Writing to hand in during finals week. I can't express in words how excited I am for another class and writing exercise that feels like a waste of time. If you've been reading regularly (even though I haven't been posting regularly), you know that my dislike for these classes has been fairly consistent this semester. But I have good news: I'm changing my emphasis from Creative Writing to Literary Studies, so next semester I should at least feel more fulfilled and satisfied by my classes, if not actually happy with the workload. I realized about two weeks ago that the reason I wished I could fit the British and Commonwealth Studies minor into my schedule was because I really wanted to write a 20 ish page paper in the Directed Studies class; that realization led me to consider which classes all my favorites have been. All my favorite classes were/are Literary Studies, Dr. McCuskey kind of classes. It occurred to me that I would rather read a book and write an essay on it, even a huge one, than just make up something on my own.

This led to another realization, even more life-changing than the first. Part of why I don't like my Adv. Fiction Writing class is because we only ever workshop, which gets old fast. If I don't like writing fiction regularly in class, and I don't like workshopping fiction regularly in class, then why in the world would I ever want to become a fiction editor? One of the best things about my schedule this semester has been my internship at the University Press, which only publishes scholarly, research-based work, and I have loved all the minor editing tasks I've been assigned. As an RA (Rhetoric Associate) I regularly read and edit scholarly, generally research-based writing, and I love that too (except on weeks like this, when it prevents me from getting all my homework and other good plans done, so I always feel like I'm running to do something). I'd rather write and edit scholarly work, which means I can get a job at any university press or non-fiction publisher, like Gibbs Smith in Utah, and not be backed into the New York/Los Angeles based industry! I can live almost anywhere! Yay! That might seem like a silly thing to be happy about but I really don't want to live in NYC or LA.

So that's my life so far. Major thinking going on if you couldn't tell. And that's not all either: I need to see Career Services for what I can do to prepare myself for a publishing career, make an appointment with my advisor so I can actually change my emphasis and talk about graduation and career plans, keep writing all genres regularly so I can get my own stuff published, get a job and make tons of money so I can finish school and maybe go to University of Denver's Publishing Institute program in summer of 2010, read Sigma Tau Delta stuff and various literary magazine stuff to get to know the market and find calls for submissions, figure out how to nominate myself for a leadership position in Sigma Tau Delta besides just wanting a leadership position, get a job (did I mention that one yet? it's really important), clean my room, wash my sheets, read something for fun...the list is never-ending.

Ah! One more thing before I sign off for today (or this week): anyone ever heard of freelance editing? I hadn't before this week. It sounds like an interesting way of gaining experience, beefing up my resume, and making a little extra cash. I realize I couldn't charge much because I would compete with the Writing Center and other RA's, but I'm wondering how I would go about doing that. Where on campus could I advertise my service of scholarly editing? How much would be a reasonable amount to charge? Would anybody actually be interested in my "service"? Let me know what you think. Also if you have any other ideas for my never-ending to-do list of career advancement, you can tell me that too. ;)

So much blogging...so little time!

2009-03-27T22:24:00.003-06:00

HUGE apologies for not blogging regularly everyone! I made some bad decisions with my time the two weeks before this one, and this week I've been paying for it. And since I haven't been blogging regularly I have TONS to tell everybody. I never think that I'll have much to talk about with books, movies, and writing as my main topics, but I'm an English major! There's always something to say about books, movies, or writing, or at least about my plans in those areas. Fingers crossed that I'll do better at writing regularly in the future!

I've been reading To Draw Closer to God a second time, and since I have my own copy now I've been able to mark it up. Y'all should read it. Fabulous book. I learn something new everything I read through it. My new favorite quote is from that book: "If you wish to get rich, save what you get. A fool can earn money, but it takes a wise man to save and dispose of it to his own advantage. Then go to work, and save everything, and make your own bonnets and clothing." (from Brigham Young, Journal of Discourses, 11:201) Of course Pres. Eyring says tons of great things of his own, but this quote is the one that speaks to me the most right now. Only problem is I can't make my own clothing...it'd be cool if I could...but for now I guess I'll just reuse and recycle!

So a long time ago I talked with Dr. McCuskey about literary criticism and undergrad publishing opportunities, etc. He told me to talk to my fellow undergrad Trent, which I did on Tuesday. He's done lots of conferencing so I learned a lot about something I've never done. He also suggested the British and Commonwealth Studies minor (BCS), which I have always been interested in but up til now have found reasons why I couldn't do it. So the week I pick to email the people who would have answers to my questions is the week that those professors don't check their email! How frustrating! What's worse is that I think registration for summer classes begins next week and if this minor works for me I would take a summer class. The longer they take to answer me, the less time I have to make up my mind and finangle my finances!

Anyway...pretend that they've answered me, and I'm signed up to take three credits of Directed Study. I have to write a proposal for the topic of my 20 ish page paper that I will produce under the direction of my supervising professor (Dr. McCuskey or...or...just Dr. McCuskey). With this in mind alongside my angst about unanswered emails, I've come up with a few paper ideas.

1. Film Adaptations of Jane Austen's Novels. I would probably investigate how these adaptations change modern perceptions about the era in which she wrote; what thematic and formal changes have been made in the transition from book to movie; how do those changes reflect or affect modern society. I like the idea of the paper, but I feel like I'd have a hard time researching for it.
2. Domestic Angels/Cult of Domesticity/Female Gender Roles in Jane Austen's Novels. This is the topic I am least excited about, mostly because I feel like this is a topic that everyone will have written about. I suppose that's helpful for research, but there's no point to my paper if this something everyone talks about.
3. Dancing and Physical Activity, either in Jane Austen's novels or in Romantic/Victorian literature in general (I'm getting less specific as I go along...). How did dancing function in society? How did it change between the Romantic and Victorian periods? How did it differ between classes? I think this would be a really fun paper to write because it's so random.
4. Love Letters in Victorian Literature. This idea comes from our reading of Middlemarch by George Eliot. And doesn't Darcy write something of a love letter? or Mr. Ferrars? I might even use Elizabeth Barrett Browning's "Letters from the Portugeuse" (sp?), I don't even know. I think it would be fun to write though, because love letters in Victorian literature just don't really ever work, so why do they come up?

Anyway, those are my ideas so far. Let me know what you think.

Inkheart

2009-03-10T21:26:00.003-06:00

I've been in Kaysville since Friday (I get to spend my Spring Break at my parents' house--exciting) and I discovered on Saturday that the wonderful amazing dollar Kaysville Theatre had some great movies playing this week, including Twilight, Valkyrie, The Tale of Despereaux, Bolt, Marley and Me, and Inkheart. I've already seen Twilight twice, and of the rest I wanted to see Inkheart the most. My little sister Katie came with me and we had a whole row to ourselves.

Now before I talk about the movie, I want to extol the virtues of Kaysville Theatre. Dollar theatres are just fabulous anyway you dice it, even if they can only play 3-6 movies in any given week. The theatre is located along the west side of Main Street attached to all the other old buildings and shops in town and right across from Kaysville Library and the city hall. I absolutely love this theatre. It's a Kaysville institution. I have great memories of seeing movies I've long forgotten with friends, of learning to save my money so I could spend it on something I really enjoyed. The best thing about Kaysville Theatre is the "keep the theatre clean" message they always play before the previews: two guys are watching a movie in a theatre (all you see is their knees down), and one of them is nice and tidy--he puts his drink and candy wrapper inside his empty popcorn bucket, which he sets between his feet--and the other is wholly absorbed in the movie--he drops his drink and popcorn, which spill all over the floor, etc. At the end of the movie, the tidy guy picks up his popcorn bucket of garbage and leaves hassle-free; the not-so-tidy guy stands up with gum stuck under his shoe, and as he pulls his foot up off the floor everybody shouts "EEWWWW!!!!" It's great. If you ever get a chance to go to a dollar theatre in a little town, like Kaysville, you should do it. You get to know a community that way.

On to the movie!

Inkheart, rated PG, is based on a book of the same name by Cornelia Funke, which, sadly, I have not yet read. Because of this movie it is now on my summer reading list. Inkheart stars some big names and good actors, including Brendan Frasier (The Mummy, Journey to the Center of the Earth), Paul Bettany (Da Vinci Code, Firewall), Helen Mirren (National Treasure 2, The Queen), and Andy Serkis (Lord of the Rings, all three). Basically, Mortimer (Frasier) is a Silvertongue, which means his reading out loud brings stories to life. Once nine years ago he read the book Inkheart and brought some of their villains--and a random fire-juggler--into our world, but by reading them out of their story, he read his wife into it. Now he, his daughter, and the fire-juggler have an opportunity to put characters and people back into their proper places. I love the idea this move poses about the relationship between author, reader, and character. My sister Katie said she's read the book and that it's better. We'll see. I highly recommend this movie, although there are a few scary images for a really young audience. Eight years and older should be able to handle it.

reading, writing and facebook...and Spring Break!

2009-03-05T22:18:00.005-07:00

My titles are getting lamer.

Eventually I will post more often. I would have blogged last night: I had a great idea while chatting on facebook with my new friend Abraham and editing my personal information (favorites etc), but when I pulled up the blogger window the great idea vanished. Bummer.

I love Victorian Literature. It's my favorite class. Dr. McCuskey is awesome, the book is hard and I'm behind BUT I love discussing it and learning how to think critically, and I'm just excited to go to class every day. The difficult part is that next week over spring break I have to read two sections in the novel, which is at least 100 pages. Not looking forward to that one.

So I told you that for story #2 I was writing about an existential character and having a hard time of it, remember? I got a whopping 2 1/4 pages written. Well, on Monday my Fiction Writing professor told us if we were having a hard time to just scrap it and write something we really cared about (which is ironic because wouldn't that be creative nonfiction? not fiction?). So I ditched the existential story and decided to write something a little closer to home. She's been telling us to try new things since this is Advanced Fiction Writing, and I've noticed that religion is a theme I keep coming back to in my last two stories, so this one that I'm working on right now for class is an exploration in fiction (obviously) of the impact religion has on dating, and how/in what ways such an experience could change a character. In about three hours of sitting at my computer I've written 5 ish pages!! That doesn't include brainstorming. The Lord has really helped me with this one. As far as the brainstorming goes this could be one of the most complex stories I've written. This story is due the Monday after Spring Break (3/16), so I'm hoping I can get it finished by next Wednesday or Thursday, and then use next weekend in revision and maybe get a friend or two to read it. Wish me luck!

Nothing to write about poetry. I would post one for y'all but we turned in our journals today. No cool Christina poetry for you. :(

Speaking of Spring Break, my bff roomie Ellie is getting her wisdom teeth out! Wish her good luck! We're going to have a Masterpiece Theatre Jane Eyre party. And I'm going dress shopping with my mom for my brother's wedding reception, and I might get my hair cut, and it will just be a great week. I'm also job hunting in Logan so if you know of any good opportunities, let me know.

Happy Spring Break!

Sorry it's been awhile...

2009-02-28T16:15:00.005-07:00

I keep getting headaches that keep me from doing what I love: blogging, facebooking, reading Victorian literature, writing fiction and poetry. I'll try to blog more regularly for my my devoted followers. :) And I'll try to keep myself hydrated, eating and sleeping right, etc so I don't get these stupid headaches.

So I got the Madagascar 2 soundtrack from my little brother and I love most of the music but I haven't even seen the movie yet! But hopefully I'll get to see it in about 3 weeks when my family drives to Portland, OR for my brother's wedding. Yay!

I finished and turned in my Victorian Literature paper but I haven't gotten it back yet. You guys will be one of the first to know the result! I got my test back and I got 4 out of 5 on all four short essays (100% on the other parts!!!) so my final score was 92. I got an A-. And I'm way behind in my reading! We're reading Middlemarch by George Eliot which is really slow and hard to get into because it's a "study of provincial life". Stupid serious novel. Even worse is that I haven't done that most basic and essential of reading skills for English majors: reading with a pencil in hand to mark metaphors and things worthy of discussion and/or essay-writing!!! I'm doing it now but that just slows me down even more. Hopefully Spring Break will be a good catch-up time.

So I have again decided not to type up that surrealist poem that I wrote about a couple posts ago. I probably won't. But today the chapter in the book for my poetry writing class was about writing ecstatic poetry, which was rather erotic and strange and I didn't like it. The exercise was basically a free-write and then cutting out the lines that weren't powerful or musical. It's kind of a random poem:

Sunlight looks orange through my eyelids.

Fanciful lights spreading from the poles—purple, green, yellow—
Beautiful ribbons of Aurora covering the Earth—
We die with our necks craned to see the lights as the colorful
Burning rays destroy us with cancers and strange sunlight.

The personal transportation structure of our country is poisoning it.
But I don’t want to ride the bus, the train, the metal monsters
That trap us together like so many bugs in a fly-trap light.
Bzzt! Another one dead.

The moon bathes me in the music of crickets and a soft white light.

The stars are millions of bubbles floating away—if I stretch out my
Hand far enough I can catch them all without lifting my head
From the pillow—far better than the best fireflies that give only
The yellow light of pure artificiality.

I am warm, laying in the cool grass after a picnic.

Sunlight looks orange through my eyelids.

Told you it was random. If you have ideas and/or opinions for me, leave a comment!

Today...

2009-02-16T21:11:00.002-07:00

I finished my essay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay, I'm not entirely done. I still have to add a conclusion, and revise it for clarity and strong support, and it ends on the 6th page instead of the 5th so there's some cutting to do, but for all intents and purposes I'm done. All the hard thinking has pretty much ended. I just wanted to let everyone know how excited I am to be blogging instead of writing my essay. Remember all those things that I had to remember in order to write this essay? All of that has made it one of the most difficult essays I've ever written. But I still love being an English major. Occasionally I look at the requirements for other majors, and some of those classes sound like fun, but there's just no way in the world I would ever switch my major. If I changed anything it would be my Creative Writing emphasis (which I would hypothetically trade for Literary Studies) but I only have a year of that left so I might as well finish. And I am learning a lot.

I haven't written anything for my story yet. Yikes! I'm hoping to get at least 8 pages done tomorrow before my student-instructor conference on Wednesday.

I still haven't read any Jane Eyre this weekend, and it doesn't look like it'll happen for another week or so because I have to write this 20 page story and I have poetry homework to do and I'll have to start reading a Victorian novel. Think the length of most Charles Dickens books and I have to read that between now and the end of the semester in April. Which I guess isn't that bad except that this novel was originally published in sections over the course of a year, so Victorians had some time to delve deeply into the book.

So I realized I keep talking about my 20 page story #2 but I haven't said anything about story #1. That was a 10 page requirement and I wrote about an art history graduate on a tour of Italy (she told us to write about a gutsy topic and mine was a travelogue--lame I know). The thing I want to talk about though isn't the actual story but the workshop. I had to print 20 copies of this story for everyone to read, so everyone wrote comments on their copies and gave them back to me, so now I have this 1-inch thick stack of papers to go through whenever I find time to revise the story. The only good thing about that workshop was that they told me what I did well--apparently I describe scenes really well and observe characters--which was great for me since I by the time we workshopped mine I was convinced it was a crappy work of fiction. But I still don't know if I'll ever be able to revise the story because the stack of comments is really intimidating.

I'm running out of ideas for titles

2009-02-15T16:37:00.007-07:00

So I haven't gotten to any Jane Eyre yet this weekend; maybe I'll do some of that later today. I pretty much haven't done anything that I said I would do over the weekend except brainstorming my essay for Dr. McCuskey's Victorian Literature class. It's supposed to be 4-5 pages, ending somewhere on the 5th page; I've only answered half of the question and I'm already on page 4. This sounds bad, but really it's a good thing because it means I can cut out all the crappy support for my first point and only keep the strong stuff. The hard part is that I have to keep multiple points in my head all at once: the first half of the question (the half that I have brainstormed and written some of) asks me to talk about content--not language--and how the author of the work (Eliot, Prelude to Middlemarch) complicates and challenges patriarchal views of women's roles, and I have to remember that Eliot is trying to change readers' views of women and readers' views of books about women, and I have to remember how all this is related to the main female character of the actual novel and how it won't be a silly novel about silly subjects, AND I have to prove my point. You think having every paragraph link back to the thesis is hard--try to make everything you say do all of that, all at once. I love being an English major. I was actually having a difficult time emotionally the other day, so I brainstormed and wrote part of my essay to distract myself. It worked fabulously well. I know I'm in the right place (and I feel much better now, since I know you were wondering).

And we did watch movies during our pity party yesterday! My Big Fat Greek Wedding was funny, and cute. I don't know that I'd ever watch it again but I did enjoy it. I didn't expect the ending to show her with a daughter. And I could never live next door to my parents; I love them but it poses too many issues. Everybody Loves Raymond, anyone?

Return to Me was also funny and cute. The old men make that movie, like Scrat made Ice Age. I liked the portrayal of human-animal relationships, and the music was good. If anybody ever finds a real Irish-Italian restaurant, let me know so we can go check it out.

I found a book that everyone ought to read: To Draw Closer to God. It's a collection of discourses by President Henry B. Eyring, and it is fabulous (can anybody tell what my new favorite word is?). I have learned so much about my own testimony and how to be a better daughter of God, and it has helped me through the reason for my emotional difficulty alluded to earlier. I'm borrowing it from my roommate right now, but as soon as I finish (which will probably be this week), I'm running straight over to Deseret Book and getting my own copy for around $7-8 so I can read it again and mark it up. My Institute teacher told us that the Prophet Joseph Smith said something like, "The reason God doesn't give the Saints more revelation is because they don't value his words enough to record them." So I need my own copy to mark up and make notes in. I imagine it will be a great resource for giving talks.

While we're on the topic of religion, Dr. McCuskey said something really interesting in one of our discussions about Tennyson's "In Memoriam" and the Victorian crisis of faith: "Science and religion are both exercises of imagination in the absence of certainty." What an interesting concept, that the same things can be proven by either/both science and/or faith, and that two things we believe as certain could actually be imagined. I personally think they're both certain, but it feels like imagination because they don't always agree. Anyway. Can anybody tell how much I love Dr. McCuskey?

P.S. Check out my updated bookshelf to the left! I added some of my favorite things that we've read in Victorian Literature.

2009-02-12T22:01:00.004-07:00

The Victorian Literature test was today! I don't know what was wrong with me today--I was fine in Institute this morning--but by the time I got to RBW 306 my left eye was partially blind, like the snowy stuff on a TV with bad reception. I had no peripheral vision; I probably wasn't safe to drive. A fervent prayer five minutes before class replaced the blindness with a pounding headache but at least I could read the exam questions and get home safely to crawl in my bed.

Anyway, the test: I love Dr. McCuskey's tests. He designs them to help me pass. There were 20 quotations we had to match to authors, but the quotations were all examples I could use to answer the four short essay questions. We criticized the effects of industrial capitalism using three authors (I used Charles Dickens, Friedrich Engels, and Thomas Carlyle), female education/female role of "angel in the house" using three authors (I used Caroline Norton, John Stuart Mill, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning), the idea of the gentleman using two authors (I used Robert Browning and Christina Rossetti), and Tennyson's illustration of and attempts to reconcile the conflict between science and faith, which means we all had to use "The Kraken" and "In Memoriam". Even with the headache I think I did pretty good. Now I must use the long weekend to write the essay! Ahh!

On a totally different note, I met with Dr. McCuskey yesterday to discuss literary criticism, since I want to improve that kind of writing and increase my portfolio of it. The whole point of the discussion was for me learn how to be flexible in my writing. It was a fabulous meeting: he had great ideas of other professors I can contact for more specific information; he directed me to three magazines that I can use to learn more about how popular critics write (for your information, they are the New Yorker, Harpers, and Atlantic Monthly, and I've only ever heard of one of them); and he explained the different kinds of literary criticism so I can decide what I want to write. I don't think I'm much interested in academic literary criticism because you basically have to go to grad school and become an English professor so you can do it full-time. He told me not to sell myself short on the idea of going to grad school; apparently he thinks I could do it. Yay for encouraging teachers! Probably not, though. What I really need to do is talk to a fellow student of mine named Trent, who's really on top of presenting and trying to publish his work. If I could get published before May 2010 (when I will graduate), that would be a very cool thing. I need to email some of the other professors to talk about nonfiction and literary/cultural reviewing, although I know very little about nonfiction because I haven't taken my Nonfiction Writing class yet. Anyway. More stuff to do.

I thought I might post my surreal poem I mentioned in my last post, but I don't want to type it all up. It will be an excuse to blog later.

While we're talking about writing, I have a draft of my 20-page story due for a student/teacher conference on Wednesday and I HAVEN'T WRITTEN ANYTHING YET!!!!! I actually have this totally random idea (thanks to Ellie for helping me think this through) to write about an existential character. The point would be to make fun of her; I really want to write something funny, but I honestly have no ideas other than this one. The prompts my professor emailed me haven't helped (true, I haven't tried them, but still). I'm a little concerned about writing an existential character because I don't really like existentialism, the story would be totally inside her head and how do I make her interesting/entertaining to follow? Especially for 20 pages? The idea is basically to have her sitting in a window seat and watching significant events in others' lives; the funny/satiric part would probably come from the totally random things she worries/thinks about immediately after the significant event. The only two existential things I've ever read to help me with this are The Stranger, which I suppose could actually happen but it was totally random and the narrator/main character was so not clued in to life; and The Metamorphosis, which was just plain weird. Both characters in these books worried about random things that really had nothing to do with what was happening around them. I almost want to discuss the lack of religion generally inherent in existentialism, but I don't know how to make fun of the associated emptiness. Any ideas?

On another totally random note, my internship at USU Press is AMAZING FABULOUS and WONDERFUL!!! I do things like compare old and new copies of a work to make sure the changes have been made, double-check page numbers and citations, accept changes on document in MS Word, proofreading, making copies, merging documents, etc. To most people this sounds really boring (and part of my mind does get bored with it very quickly, which is why I love my iPod) but I have discovered that this job is exactly what I want to spend the rest of my life doing. My top career choice used to be an editor in a fiction publishing company, which I think I would still love, but that kind of editing is more thematic and organizational, whereas being an editor in a university press or scholarly publication seems to be more double-checking the research and organization of the argument so that it makes sense. Just a different kind of thinking I suppose. I might also spend the rest of my life writing literary criticism; I do enjoy it and it would make me more flexible as a writer and editor, but I'm concerned about the job security of writing in general. On the other hand, there's always a need for good editors. And just because the economy seems to be taking a downturn doesn't mean research will end.

I was probably going to say something else--every time I start blogging I always have more to say than originally planned--but I don't remember. More blogging later. Hopefully I can read some Jane Eyre this weekend (Mason has just left Thornfield after being attacked supposedly by Grace Poole), write about an existential character, brainstorm an essay, write my poetry homework, learn more about literary criticism, and have some fun. And watch a movie to talk about! My roomies and I are supposed to watch Return to Me and My Big Fat Greek Wedding in celebration of Singles Awareness Day, neither of which have I seen all the way through. I'll keep you posted (no pun intended).

Thursday February 5

2009-02-05T21:35:00.005-07:00

Today was a good day.

I love my LDS Institute class--Book of Mormon 2. We talked about Ether 3 and the inherent dilemma and how to wrap our heads around it. I love classes where I actually learn something. I didn't ever really want to take a BOM class because I feel like we hear about it all the time, but this is different. I will be taking classes from Brother Patty till I die.

I love my Victorian Literature class (which is really called Period Studies and is based on the professor's expertise, so I'll just call it by what we're studying). I love Dr. McCuskey's engaging lectures and half-serious jokes and half-joking deep thoughts. I even love how he knows my name and usually I prefer to hide somewhere in the middle of the classpeople. I raised my hand today to voice an idea about the topic we're writing our paper on (due in two weeks--aah!) and he held his head with one hand and said, "I'm not holding my head because I'm disappointed--I'm holding it trying to keep the top of my head from coming off." Apparently it was a great idea and he liked it. Yay for voicing comments!! Plus we had a great discussion of possible interpretations of the topic question, and a great discussion of science and religion in Tennyson's "The Kraken". We didn't get to "In Memoriam A.H.H." which is 20 pages long, but we'll talk about that on Tuesday I suppose.

I love my Poetry Writing class--but just for today because WE DIDN'T HAVE CLASS!!!!!! I feel bad that Shanan's grandfather died (she was gone for his funeral) but all I had to do was hand in my assignment to the appropriate person. I got to spend an hour and fifteen minutes talking to my friend Mikey, who's also in my Advanced Fiction Writing class. He is an amazing person, we have a lot in common, and I'm really excited that I'm getting to know more people this semester than I ever have before since leaving home.

So my homework poem for last night was strangely surreal but I just remembered that it was in my notebook, which I had to turn in today, so I can't reproduce it here. Bummer. Here's one that I really like though, written as homework earlier this week:

The Desk

The dull scratched wood had fueled a decade of creativity and academia—
Favorite pens had carved owners’ names on the side
by the wall

Blunt scissors, yellowed paper, bent staples,
and dried-out markers filled
it like dead coals

The sparks of genius once fanned had long since gone out—
In the world they were extinguished
by other flames

And the desk had been smothered—
shoved into an icy corner—
left dark and cold

Let me know what you think.

I also actually enjoyed my Sci/Tech class today. I didn't have a lot of fun actually participating in the debate with my group but listening to debates about human and animal cloning and adult and embryotic stem cell research was tons more interesting than listening to a presentation on one of those topics. My group presents next on Tuesday--blaahh--on technologies of modern society or some broad topic like that. So I'm researching cell phones and teleconferencing/skype stuff. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPzeCcoXZjA&NR=1 is a really funny video about the hands-free while driving law recently passed in California (why does everyone care that it's in California? several other states have passed similar laws). Another funny one is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLCY9eBa5r0&feature=related . If you hurry you can vote for which one you think should be in my mini presentation. Just comment below!

(if someone figures out how to put the actual Youtube video on my blog so you can just hit "play" instead of opening up a new window, would they please let me know so that at some totally random time in the future I can make this easier for my unnumbered readers)

Life in general I suppose

2009-01-29T21:58:00.005-07:00

So three things to talk about today: Bride Wars, poetry writing, and Jane Eyre.

First, one of my friends FINALLY asked me to see a movie!!! We went to see Bride Wars last Saturday at the University Stadium 6 in Logan (rated PG). It was fabulous! I would totally go see it again. Language was kept to a minimum and it honestly wasn't as cat-fighty as I thought it would be. Anne Hathaway plays Emma and Kate Hudson plays Liv, two best friends since childhood who have always wanted June weddings at the Plaza. When a mistake occurs and their weddings are scheduled on the same day, the two girls try to sabotage each other because the other one won't change her date outside of June. They use such methods as sending each other sweets so they won't fit in their dresses and rescheduling their dance instruction. It's a very funny movie and I highly recommend seeing it.

As for poetry writing, it sucks. I hate that class so much! I don't learn anything, the hour and fifteen minutes twice a week are a total waste of my time. The class would be so much better if we posted things online somewhere and worked out of the book, and only met once every two weeks for workshops. Unfortunately life doesn't work the way I think it should. Hopefully I'll be able to fit in the prereq in the theatre department for the playwriting class next semester so I don't have to take Advanced Poetry Writing.

While we're talking about class, I also hate my Advanced Fiction Writing. I don't the think the problem is the professor's background in poetry; rather it's her lack of intelligence. In class on Monday we did a group write-around that ended up being really funny but I felt time-warped back into high school creative writing class. She also expects each of us to print 20 copies of our 20 page stories! That's 400 pages! It's like carrying an unbound encyclopedia! One of my friends from Poetry Writing is also in this class, and we're hoping to talk to as many of the people in it as possible to get them to email her. We want her to send out a mass email so we can just hit "reply all" with our 20 page stories attached so we only have to print out copies of our stories for the people in our workshop groups; that way everyone else can read them online, or shrink and print them, or whatever. Stupid classes.

On to something happier. I got to read some of Jane Eyre in between my Rhetoric Associate conferences. Her self-discipline is amazing! A whole page of "you idiot Jane!" I couldn't do that. Of course, that all goes down the drain when Mr. Rochester comes home, but still. Hard core "Bridle your passions".

A little bit of everything

2009-01-14T20:48:00.006-07:00

So I was going to read more of Jane Eyre before I blogged again, just to have something intelligent to talk about, but I'm too busy with school. Actually I'm lazy, and that forces me to be busy doing homework when I would otherwise be reading and blogging. So no Jane Eyre today. Sorry.

It's these Creative Writing classes that I'm taking for my English major (since CW is my emphasis...also my initials...hmm). Advanced Fiction Writing seems like it should be fun; we get time to write in that class, which didn't happen in my intro FW class (yet I liked FW better than I like Adv. FW). The teacher is...interesting. The problem is just finding time to sit down and write when I'd rather be watching movies or TV or something else lazy. Poetry writing sucks (and I don't like to use that word, so it conveys the strength of how much I hate that class better than just saying I hate that class). So much writing for an intro class! and I don't even like READING poetry! We have 9 peer workshops that are supposed to be different from the 9 poems we turn in to the professor periodically that are supposed to be different from the 6 poems we'll discuss in three student/instructor conferences; that's at least 24 poems! Not to mention the poetry journal we do our homework in, which is worth the most in the grading breakdown (although most of those 24 poems will come from the exercises in the journal). We'll also have a final portfolio, a poem recitation, and a poetry analysis essay (in a poetry writing class?) I agree with Chessie. This class might kill me. But, since Chessie posted a poem, I guess I will to. This is a poem I've revised for our first peer workshop tomorrow:

We pick our way among nettlesome brambles and brush
following a path of flesh-colored sand through black green trees to the beach
The steely blue ocean, more dirty sand, and poorly lit sky
appear before us past the trees

The wind is thundering, we shout to talk, and my feet
feel dirty and cold. The kids chase the tide and race it back
We’re looking for seashells, waiting for the dark cold ocean
to hit the line dividing the light and dark sand and touch our toes

The water is faster than my brother.
It is behind him, around him, over him.
Mom is shouting Dad’s name as we fear
the Master Riptide has claimed him.

The heavy water rushes back, leaving a dark lump
in the sand, gagging for breath. Dad picks him up, heaves him
back to Mom, where he stands shivering in his blue oversized
sweatshirt with his already-straight hair plastered to his skull

We pick our way among nettlesome brambles and brush
following a path of flesh-colored sand through black green trees to the condo
The steely blue ocean, more dirty sand, and poorly lit sky
Disappear behind us past the trees

I don't know. I think I tell too much instead of show in poetry. I just don't feel it like some people do.

On a happier note, Dr. McCuskey's class is awesome, of course, just because he teaches it. I'm not very familiar with the Victorian novel, so I can't say whether or not I'm a big fan of them or not (since Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters were publishing before 1832, when this class starts), but even though our mini history lessons are depressing (because of the Corn Laws and poorhouses and the ignorance of the upper classes) I still label Period Studies as my favorite class. Dr. McCuskey just makes thing interesting when, in less capable hands, the subject would be butchered and boring-to-death (like my poetry class--ugh).

So I haven't done so well with my goals (remember they are not resolutions). I'm still on 0-3 fruits and vegetables a day, and I haven't exercised three days in a row since I posted those goals. I am drinking what feels like lots of water but it's probably not the recommended 8 glasses a day.

I did sign up for an LDS Institute class (Book of Mormon 2) and it's AWESOME (big thanks to Ellie for signing up to go with me!). I'm still working through the Gospels. I need to get more motivated though; right now I tend to read 10 minutes before I go to bed. I get good review on the stories and parables, but I don't feel like I'm learning much. On the other hand, I'm just not a morning person, so I have a really hard time getting up and studying before class and homework. I'm not quite sure what to do about it.

And no one has told me any of the new movies they want to see! How can I go with you and share my educated opinion with the world about the movie if no one lets me know what movies to see? Here, I'll make it easy: the following movies are in theaters now or soon.

Taken opens January 30, rated PG-13.

Inkheart opens January 23, rated PG.

Paul Blart: Mall Cop opens January 16, rated PG.
Bride Wars opened January 9, rated PG.
Marley and Me opened December 25 2008, rated PG.
Bedtime Stories opened December 25 2008, rated PG.

Valkyrie opened December 25 2008, rated PG-13.

Yes Man opened December 19 2008, rated PG-13.
Seven Pounds opened December 19 2008, rated PG-13.

To learn more about these movies, including the cast and plot, visit the Internet Movie Database.

I almost forgot: I saw Eagle Eye this weekend! It is a great film and I highly recommend it. It's like a cross of the Bourne movies and Stealth, oddly enough, and not predictable either. There is a fair amount of language and violence, but no adult content. Shia LeBeouf does a fantastic job. I would watch it again.

School is back

2009-01-06T17:01:00.003-07:00

I have successfully finished the first day of classes (actually it's the first two days, but they were both first days for certain classes; we'll just lump it all into one).

The teacher of my racquetball class will be providing all the equipment, which is nice (even though I have my own). Even nicer is that I can go to class from home, and come straight home when it's done to shower, so there's no awkward changing or showering at the HPER, which I can't even imagine doing (the showering part anyway).

My Advanced Fiction Writing class, which is 2.5 hours long, should be okay; I've heard rumors about this professor but she seemed pretty put together, and it's only a once-a-week class anyway. But it's advanced. That will probably balance it out.

Period Studies will be FABULOUS!!!! Mostly because Dr. McCuskey is teaching it. We're studying the Victorian period, which I'm not an absolute fan of, but I'm way excited for that class. I think I can safely say that it will probably be my favorite this semester, even though we're reading Middlemarch by George Eliot (who was really a woman). I know nothing about that book, except what Dr. McCuskey told us in class: "I have to warn you," (pause as he looks all around the class) "People tend to hate this book." Sounds like fun!

Poetry Writing I am not excited for. Basically I'll have to write 2-3 poems a week: 9 poems are turned in periodically throughout the semester; about 6 poems will be reviewed in one-on-one conferences with the professor; and there's like 8 peer workshops/reviews that are supposed to focus on totally different poems from any of the above. I don't like poetry. I'm only in this class for my major. And I don't think this approach will help me learn to like poetry, either.

Science and Technology in Modern Society is my depth science requirement and Sarah says it's easy, but we'll see how that goes. No book, which is good, I guess, but the students basically teach the class because once a week a group presents on a topic. Hopefully this class is interesting enough that I can stay awake. The last class I fell asleep in was in the same room. Is that a sign?

Since my roommates came home and school started again I haven't been reading much in Jane Eyre, but I'll finish it, I promise!

Happy New Year

2009-01-02T12:58:00.006-07:00

Happy New Year's everyone (all three of you!)

So my New Year's celebration was really boring: I drank a bottle of Martinelli's and stayed up till two in the morning watching the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth (watching P&P and reading Jane Eyre has a strange effect on the way I think; instead of "that stinks", I think, "that is terribly inconvenient"; or when another driver bothers me, I think "insufferable!" or "hateful man!"). Not that that is a bad thing; I love that movie, I just didn't party or even watch any celebration on TV.

I think New Year's resolutions are old and washed-out ideas that never get done, but I have some goals anyway. They're not resolutions. They're goals. And they are:

1. Live a healthier lifestyle. My last visit to the doctor produced evidence of high cholesterol, and I wouldn't mind shedding a few extra pounds anyway, since I'd feel better, look better, like my clothes more, be happier in general, you get the drift. So my goal includes working up to eating at least 5 fruits and vegetables a day (not 5 each--5 total; right now I average 0-2 daily), drinking all 8 stupid recommended glasses of water a day (which will include carbonated water, Propel, and KoolAid mixes), and exercising for at least 30 minutes a day at least 5 days of the week. Usually that 30 minutes is on a treadmill or elliptical machine, since I'm lucky enough to have free subscription to the university gym, but I got a Balanceball set for Christmas so I'll give myself some leeway. The Balanceball workouts are only about 20 minutes, but toning is a lot harder than walking on a treadmill (run? me? are you serious?).

2. Come to know Christ. I feel like I don't know him very well. I know of him, I know most of the stories, but I don't feel like I could testify of him and his power right now. And I'm Christian, I ought to be able to do that much. So I'm reading the Gospels right now; I think I'll sign up for an LDS Institute Book of Mormon class this semester; I'd like to study on my own how Christ is the Master Teacher, since every calling in the Church requires a teacher and someday my children will need me as a teacher of Christ, and teaching is just an all-around good skill to have anyway; and I'll probably try to work my way through Jesus the Christ by James E. Talmage. I am convinced this will add greatly to my happiness.

3. Ain't this a blog about books and movies? I'm going to try to step away from the tried and true this year. Instead of wasting money on junk food from the Quickstop on campus, I want to invest in my personal entertainment and see more movies that are currently coming out, instead of watching the old ones that I know I like (A&E Pride and Prejudice, anyone?). The only problem is that someone has to go with me (my mother taught me never to go to the moviehouse alone), so if there's a movie you really want to see, let me know. I also would like to read more books that deserve to be read. Some of these will be classics like Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte; some of them I'd like to be contemporary, but I don't quite know how to decide what's worth my time. I'll have to figure out current bestseller lists, I guess. If you know of any books I should read, or if you have any ideas about how to find books I should read, please share them in the comments section below.

This post wasn't supposed to be so long. Oh well. Happy 2009!

Jane Eyre...and other random stuff

2008-12-31T11:41:00.004-07:00

I have sinned, for I have never read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. I am currently working on the repenting process by reading it this week when I get bored of watching TV (since I have no job and my roommates aren't here and I have nothing else to do but watch and read). I'm in the middle of chapter 9 right now, when Jane's friend Helen is dying from consumption. I've seen the Masterpiece Theatre version of the movie, so I already know a lot of what happens, and I already knew anyway that schools like Lowood at this time period were bad situations in many ways. What bothers me isn't the location of the school being a breeding ground for diseases like typhus, but rather the attitude of the owner of Lowood Institution. He talks about instilling in these orphan girls humility by their plain dress and simple food, but "humility" is just a nicer word for poverty in this case. Jane has already been at the school for a month, and readers know that her plain dress is inadequate for January weather, even when she's inside the building; readers know that her food isn't just simple but inedible and malnutritious, both in content and amount. Then in the very next paragraph after he talks about "humility", his wife and daughters come in the room, obviously at the opposite extreme of the spectrum from the orphans. It just makes me sick. I almost cry every time I read a paragraph containing a similar attitude, similar use of acceptable words to cover up an inexcusable crime. This makes me think of the orphanages in China where girls are sent because they are not wanted, and are therefore basically condemned to die (I'm sure this happens in other places too, to both boys and girls; this is just the first example I thought of). This makes me want to donate books to rebuild schools in Uganda (see the posters in the TSC bottom floor), but I don't think I have any books in my apartment that they would appreciate my donating.

Okay I'm done ranting. I feel better now. *sniffle*

On another note, I've been blog-hunting recently and I found one worth mentioning. It's called My Castle in Spain and I love reading it. The writer, Lala Ema, has a calming kind of blog style that almost reminds me of Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes: many of her recent posts talk about rural places and traditions (she also has pictures; I'm still trying to figure out what kind of pictures I can post when all I talk about are books and movies). I'm also amazed at how many languages this woman knows. She's from Provence, France; lives in southern Spain; blogs in English; and just recently blogged about learning German and Latin. Someday maybe that will be me. Anyway, give her a visit. Let me know what you think.

Another list

2008-12-30T18:57:00.003-07:00

I like lists. Can you tell? This one is all the movies I got for Christmas!!!! In the past I would have listed books, but I asked for lots of DVDs this year so that's what I got. Although I still got two books: Tales of Beetle the Bard by J.K. Rowling and Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (which I am WAY excited to read! Thanks Sarah!)

Anyway, back to movies (in alphabetical order for your convenience):
1. August Rush. Great music, cute story. Heartwarming tear-jerker. A young orphan, played by Freddie Highmore, who hears music in everything, runs away from the orphanage to find his parents, while they search for meaning in their lives. The kind of movie you watch when you're in the mood for a happy ending.
2. Bourne Identity and Supremacy. Great music, great story. Finishes my collection! (last year I got Ultimatum for Christmas) A man who believes his name to be Jason Bourne has almost complete amnesia. While he tries to remember who he was and what he did, his old associates from a covert operation in the CIA are after him. Great action film.
3. A Chorus Line. Haven't watch it yet; my mom thought I'd like it. Something about Broadway productions.
4. Cool Runnings. Family-friendly and cute. Four Jamaicans who tripped out of one of the pre-Olympic foot races make a bobsled team and journey to Canada for the Olympics against all odds. This is a great family night movie, and the Jamaican accents are hilarious.
5. Get Smart. Good music, hilariously funny! Some language and sexual innuendos but definitely worth seeing. Maxwell Smart (played by Steve Carell) is promoted from analyst to field agent when terrorist group KAOS nearly destroys Max's anti-terrorist employer CONTROL. The movie is all about his strange ideas and funny reactions to things as he and Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway) try to save the world. Also starring Dwayne Johnson.
6. Hotel Rwanda. Most heart-wrenching tear-jerker of them all, but as Joel Siegel said on Good Morning America, this is "the kind of film that can change the world". If you can't handle war or racial conflict, don't watch this movie. Don Cheadle stars as the manager of a five-star hotel in Rwanda in 1994, when a civil war broke out between the race in power and the other race that was being exterminated (I can never tell the difference just by looking at them). All the whites leave and the UN isn't working fast enough to help solve the conflict, so the hotel manager opens the hotel to over 1200 refugees, with only his wits and words to keep the army at bay. Very intense.
7. Indiana Jones boxed set!!! It's the old one though, so it doesn't have Crystal Skull. That's okay; maybe I'll get it next Christmas. :) If you haven't seen Indiana Jones (played by Harrison Ford), then I'm not going to tell you about it. Go rent them. IJ and the Last Crusade is the best one.
8. Karate Kid. Family-friendly martial arts movie (duh). And those keep getting harder and harder to come by. A teenage kid and his mom move to California from somewhere back east, and he immediately gets picked on by the local bullies. The apartment complex janitor, who happens to come from Okinawa Japan, teaches him karate, the appropriate way to use it, and little bit about growing up. If you liked Ninja Turtles, you'll recognize some things from this movie and probably like it, too.
9. The Mummy. Halloween movie, although it's not necessarily frightening. Just supernatural. Treasure-seekers in Egypt go to the city of the dead and accidentally awaken a cursed mummy, and then must find the Book of Life to kill him.
10. Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man's Chest. Also finishes a collection! Here we learn more about the relationship between Jack Sparrow and Davey Jones. Probably my least favorite of the three Pirates movies but worth seeing once to get the story. It just amazes me that Disney made a movie off nothing more than a ride and popular myth.
11. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. Another chick flick, but with a good amount of action. Kevin Costner stars as Robin of Locksley, and Morgan Freeman as his Moor friend who follows him home after the Third Crusade to lead a band of outlaws and woodsmen in a revolt against the evil Sheriff of Nottingham, played by Alan Rickman. Fabulous acting, great music. One use of the f-word (but still rated PG-13. It was made around the time the ratings changed)
13. Sleeping Beauty!!! I love this movie. Aurora and Belle are my favorite princesses. You have sinned if you have not seen this movie. It's rated G; it has beautiful music; modern villains are based off this movie's villain; it's a classic Disney princess movie. I understand if some people have chosen not to watch PG-13 movies, and that lots of the movies I just listed have that rating. Here that is not the case. You have no excuse not to have seen this movie. Go rent it. Right now. Watch it with girls, especially those younger than 10.

So I am way excited to have expanded my movie collection by so much! And since I'm alone at my apartment right now because I came back early, I'll probably get most of them through my new DVD player on my new 13" old-fashioned TV in my room.

If you have any comments about my list, or you know of some movies you think I should see, please leave a comment below.

Finals...and lists...

2008-12-23T23:56:00.004-07:00

I got all As and A-s!!! *happy dance* I was aiming to make the dean's list again this semester but the letter hasn't come yet so I'll keep you posted (no pun intended).

So I have this rule with myself that I can't put anything on my bookshelf until I talk about it, so I'm going to mention some of my favorites now so that I can list them. Deeper discussion can come later.
1. My favorite series of ALL time: Death Gate Cycle by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, a 7-book fantasy series. Reading this made me want to be a writer and strengthened my desire to be an English major. Highly recommended.
2. Harry Potter rocks my socks!!! These books also inspire me to write, but they bring back good memories too: I read all 7 (several times each) out loud to the fam as we drove to and from Yellowstone National Park every summer for many years.
3. Under the Tuscan Sun by Frances Mayes always makes me feel warm and content, and helps me appreciate the good things in life. Coupled with HGTV shows like House Hunters and Flip That House, it also makes me want to renovate something. The movie's good too, although a bit different from the book.
4. No list of faves would be complete without Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, including the many movie remakes (most of which are worth seeing). The twisted romances are always good, but I also really enjoyed learning to think about this novel in a totally different way this semester in one of my Brit Lit Hist classes (I won't tell you about that now. It will be part of a future "deeper discussion" so I have something to write about).

More favorites later. That will guarantee that I always have something to write about. At least, it should...

Brit Lit Hist (again)

2008-12-14T21:20:00.002-07:00

The update on my papers...

I got my paper back from 2140 part 1 of the survey--the paper that practically wrote itself--and not only did I earn an A for a fabulous paper, but the professor wants me to email her a copy to use as a model. That's almost like being published!!! Actually I got that high of a grade because I met with my professor a couple days before the due date to go over my first draft; she liked all my ideas (it helped that I was the only one writing on Chaucer) but the quality of my presentation and organization doubled with her suggestions. I highly recommend that students, especially those studying English, meet with their professors to talk about their papers. I had never done it before this, but I think I'll do it a lot more in the future.

I don't have my paper back from 2150 part 2 of the survey. I think I did pretty well, but I wish I had met with that professor too.

Kung Fu Panda

2008-12-06T22:53:00.003-07:00

I just saw Kung Fu Panda for the first time today. I can't believe that I haven't seen it until now! It's great and I highly recommend it, especially for families.

Po the (fat) Panda doesn't want to work in his father's noodle shop; instead, he dreams of joining the Furious Five kung fu masters. By a strange and hilariously funny accident, he becomes the Dragon Warrior, the only one who can defeat TaiLung, an evil kung fu master enraged at not becoming the all-powerful Dragon Warrior. Thrown in among all the comedy and a couple thwarted expectations that add to it are some little tidbits of life wisdom. I'm not going to tell you what that wisdom is because I think you should see the movie.

I was a bit nervous with Jack Black being in the movie, but it wasn't crude at all with very little body humor, and Dustin Hoffman and Angelina Jolie also add their vocal talents. The main characters were developed well, and the kung fu was based on actual moves (think Dreamworks animal version of Forbidden Kingdom, which was also good movie). The plot was fairly predictable, but the humor and backstory was worth it. The only thing that could have made this movie better was lots of Orville Redenbacher's butter popcorn and kids.

British Literary History

2008-12-05T15:25:00.005-07:00

I turned in my two papers today. Whew. Studying for finals will be a lot less stressful than writing those papers.

The problem I had with the 2150 paper--namely not knowing when I was comparing Krapp to a character or a writer--I solved by simply not comparing him to other characters. I think my paper for that class is adequate. I feel pretty good about my grade in that class before studying for the final, so hopefully I'll get an A.

The paper I wrote for 2140 was fantastic, even though I didn't like that class as much. I said I might post it, but I'm a little nervous about doing that with my essay, first because it's six pages long, and second because there are some stupid people out there who think they can coast through life by stealing smarter people's intellectual hard work. I don't want to risk that happening to my paper, and I don't want to bother with copyrighting it, so I'll just give you some of my main arguments.

Basically, the Wife of Bath uses elements of the romance genre to put and keep women in power. The first woman in the tale is the maid whom the knight rapes; while she has no power over him, this relationship with women established by his crime is reversed through the story as he meets and obeys various women of power. The first of woman of power in the tale is the queen, who gains power over the knight due to Arthur's chivalry and with the classic quest. Next is the hag, who gains power over the knight because she's linked to magic, twists the damsel-in-distress element of romance, and uses the spiritual quest element to build herself up as a Christ-figure. It's a sweet paper.

Hopefully in the next two weeks I'll find out how well I did on those papers. I'll let you know.

Writers Unite

2008-12-02T10:17:00.005-07:00

Three cheers for my friend Lichelle! She just finished writing her first novel, a fantasy, about 2 weeks ago. She's even got it copyrighted and everything. Being something of a creative writer myself, I know how difficult it is to write something and go through all the revision and look at it one day and say "It's done! (Finally!)". This is I know because I've never actually been able to do it. So hooray and congrats to Lichelle, for finishing writing a 300-ish page novel! Now all she has to do is find a publisher. Won't that be fun.

If you any congrats, comments, or suggestions for my friend Lichelle, let me know in the comments section below.

You can see Lichelle's brand-new blog (inspired by moi) at http://sexyslater.blogspot.com

Finals Are Here!!!

2008-12-01T22:12:00.004-07:00

Two of my English classes this semester--2140, British Literary History I, and 2150, British Literary History II--have a final paper (normal, right?). I'm having a hard time brainstorming for 2150 part two of the survey course, which, strangely, is the class I like the most. At the same time, I'm coasting through a paper for the other half of the survey, which I didn't like much at all. How weird is that? Plus they're both due on Friday, so I really need to get myself in gear and get them done (procrastinators unite...tomorrow).

English 2140 covers Anglo-Saxon to Restoration periods, and our example texts were Beowulf (Anglo-Saxon), various tales from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (medieval), Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (Elizabethan Age), Milton's Paradise Lost (17th century), and Swift's Gulliver's Travels (18th century), as well as many smaller texts to fill in the gaps. I've decided to write my paper, which is supposed to be 3-5 pages (originally I thought it was 6 pages, so this is one of the few times that I am very much relieved that I was wrong), on the use of elements of the romance genre in the Wife of Bath's Tale from Canterbury Tales. Basically my paper will be about how things like chivalry, the quest, magic, etc put and keep women in power. Looking at my outline/brainstorm I think it will be an awesome paper. Maybe I'll post it.

English 2150 covers Romanticism to the present. We've had more example authors than texts: William Blake, William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, John Keats, Mary Wollstonecraft (her A Vindication of the Rights of Woman is one of the few example texts), Jane Austen (!!!), Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Robert Browning, Matthew Arnold, Alfred Lord Tennyson, Christina Rossetti, Gerard Manley Hopkins, William Butler Yeats, Wilfred Owen, T.S. Eliot, James Joyce, Virginia Woolf. The major text to which we refered is Samuel Beckett's Krapp's Last Tape. For the final paper we're supposed to use our first two small drafts about how Krapp (the character) is neither a Romantic nor a Victorian writer and combine it with a discussion of WHY Krapp isn't a Modern writer either. I'm getting confused knowing when I'm comparing Krapp to a character or a writer. Hopefully I get this paper done in the next two days. Wish me luck.

Happy People

2008-11-27T23:51:00.003-07:00

Happy people live longer. Google it if you don't believe me; I know there are studies out there to support my opinion (I love how "google" is a verb now). I'm sure that happy people still want things, make mistakes, have regrets, but in my experience, which I admit is limited, truly happy people are content with their lot in life. So in honor of Thanksgiving, and because I want to be a truly happy person, I have decided to share with you five things that I'm grateful for:

1. A skill with my hands: my roommate taught me how to crochet this semester and now I will never be able to sit at home and idly watch a movie again. I am grateful that I can be productive and lazy at the same time.

2. Good food, and lots of it. I've never understood disorders like bulimia and anorexia because I have a great relationship with food (I'm still working on my relationship with the gym). And I'm sure there are more people than I can imagine who didn't have dinner today. On the one day of the year that it's acceptable to not be on a diet, food is definitely something to be grateful for.

3. BOOKS!!! I love books! I will never be able to say this enough. I love books so much that I have bookshelf full at my apartment and a bookshelf full at my parents' house. My mother actually grounded me from books in the fifth grade because I read instead of doing my math homework (the only time I've ever been grounded, by the way). Books have the amazing power to take me places--analytically, emotionally, imaginatively--that I doubt I'll ever find another way to travel to. Can you tell what I want to do when I grow up?

4. Movies. To a much lesser degree than books, movies can also take me places I may never experience in any other way. The major difference between books and movies is the latter's visual element; the range of sensory detail available for expression is much greater in movies because of that. And when a movie reinterprets a book, it totally changes how you read that book again, because you go to it with the visual element and the imaginative element side by side in your mind. They're also a great way to be productive and lazy at the same time, if you have a skill with your hands (if not, you're just being lazy).

5. Education. As strange as it might sound--especially as we approach finals week--I love school. I love learning new things, reading new material, thinking about something in a way completely opposite to how I might have originally thought about it. This applies particularly to my Fiction Writing class, where in small workshops we help each other write better by sharing what we thought the authors did well in their stories and by offering suggestions for revision. My fiction is so much better now. I love my roommates, but they read my stories and say "I like it. It's good." I love my workshop classmates, because they tear my writing apart and point out all my weaknesses, and each story I write gets stronger than the last, builds on techniques I learn from that education.

I realize that technically it's not Thanksgiving anymore, but if you haven't already, I challenge you to pause and consider the things you're grateful for. Feel free to share in the comments section below. It's a hard lesson to learn how much you love something only after you've lost it. And you'll be happier anyway. That's the whole point of life, isn't it?

Twilight

2008-11-26T22:21:00.002-07:00

So I saw the Twilight movie today with some friends, and obviously the books were in the back of my mind. Talk about a book sensation: everybody talks about the Twilight series now like they talked about Harry Potter the last couple of years (everybody in Utah, anyway). As a lifelong leisure reader, I liked the story. I got sucked in and I read all four books. As an English major who is studying great literature and learning the techniques used to write that great literature in order to write better myself, I can't help thinking these books could have been written better. The moon imagery in the titles; the reinvention of vampires and werewolves; fight scenes, especially with the Volturi; the sensory detail readers get when Bella becomes a vampire are all great techniques Stephanie Meyer used to pull her readers in. And it's good that she used them because I have never followed a more whiny or naive protagonist than Bella. The problems in Bella and Jacob's relationship were visible long before they actually became problems; predictability like that is really hard to get away with in fiction and I didn't feel like Ms. Meyer earned it elsewhere in the story. Some of the turns in the story are great because they're totally unexpected, like when Edward disappears, but the pleasure of the plot twist was lost in page after page of Bella's pain. The section in the last book when we got out of Bella's head and into Jacob's during her pregnancy was great; why couldn't we have had something like that for the most dragging part of the story? But let's not dwell on the series; people have strong opinions. Let's talk about the movie.

The movie was fabulous! I can't think of anything from the book that was cut out of the movie, anything that was changed except maybe a few minor details. The actors were great: Dr. Cullen looked a bit younger than I imagined; Edward didn't look quite like I expected either but he pulled it off fabulously; Bella was pretty enough for the interest in her from other students to be believable and she was just clumsy enough to match the book (and not whiny at all!); Rosalie and Alice hit their characters right on the mark. The scenery was gorgeous. Actually seeing what Forks and the surrounding area might look like has totally changed for the better the image in my mind when I think of the books. The special effects matched the story and blended in to the fabric of the movie pretty well, and the music was beautiful. I want the soundtrack even if I never see the movie again. Even the ending was well done, indicating the possiblity of sequel movie but designed so that it will still work even if a second movie never comes out. My official stamp of approval on this movie: It is worth seeing at least once, especially if you've read the books.