Flash Fiction Story #1

So, I decided to do a flash fiction story for a blog. For those of you that don't know what it is, it is a story created from a prompt that gives you a certain time limit. 

This is the prompt:

It’s garbage day and you put your trash on the curb, but when you return home from work, it’s still there (though everyone else’s garbage has been taken away). The next week, it happens again–and again the following week. Why is the trash collector snubbing you? Write a scene explaining why he’s skipping your garbage and how you figured it out.

And here is my story:

I knew he was no ordinary garbage man. An evil, horrible man like that with such a grotesque expression on his face easily suggested his picture in the dictionary under "goblin" or "ogre." A man so malignant to others that he often caused them to blow a blood vessel or cause an instantaneous nose bleed. No ordinary man, indeed. At least, not to me.

I'm a simple person. I live halfway down the block on Cherry Street amid the wonderful houses that resemble Full House's type of city. I'm pretty decent about making sure my waste doesn't go straight to the environment, so I didn't quite understand how he could shun me so. Several days a week, I would peer out my window like a recluse/hermit watching the people with whom he refuses to associate. The garbage man would appear, take the neighbor's garbage, take one look at my garbage can, and drive away, giving me a shrewd stare from his beady little eyes until he reached the next house. This war between the garbage collector and I was unbeknownst to me, until I saw him purposely drive away from my garbage. As I'm sure, his motivations come from that evil little imagination of his. He probably imagines me as a cruel lord from a distant land trying to steal his ring. Yes, I know that sounds a little Lord of the Rings-ish, but he truly reminds me of Golem in uniform.

One day, I decided to confront him about it. I was tired of sneaking my garbage over to the dumpster at work or asking the neighbors to include it with theirs. As usual, he came around the corner, and from a distance, I could see his impeccably black eyes staring at me in their usual scoffing manner. Slowly, he reached each house, and, finally, he came to the neighbors' house. I was waiting for him in my nice fluffy bathrobe with the morning paper in my hand. 

"Nice to see you again, Ron," I said to him with a smirk.

"Uh... Yeah... Nice to see you too."

"How long has it been? At least a few weeks now, since I last talked to you."

"Yeah. It's been pretty hectic," he replied in his gravelly voice. I could just hear him in my mind saying, "Those hobbits are tricksy, precious." Fortunately, I'm relatively sure he couldn't read my mind.

"It has been several weeks. Well, I've got to go now. Lots of trash to pick up." He gave me his evil stare and climbed back up into his truck. Hunched over the wheel, he shifted the truck into gear and totally bypassed my house. Lazy, good-for-nothing...! Excuse my purposely invisible language.

The next week I confronted him again. Again, he made small talk and left my filthy garbage waiting on the street. Finally, I decided to take action.

While he was picking up the trash at a house farther down the lane, I snuck up behind his truck. He was preoccupied with dumping the garbage into the truck, so I climbed into the truck and stole his favorite charm: the bobbing hula girl that sat on his dashboard. I quickly made my escape right before he got back in the truck and snuck back to my house like the Grinch on Christmas. It wasn't long before he suspected me. While I waited to talk to him one day, he came driving around the corner like a speed racer on crack. He slid the car into a parked position and came marching up to where I was standing with an impetulent glare on his face.

"What did you do with Rita?"

"Oh, nothing. She is just hanging out with LeRoy." (My dog.)

"Give her back to me now!" He was breathing heavily.

"Only if you promise to tell me why you have been avoiding my garbage. There is nothing wrong with it so far as I can tell." I stared back at him with my lip pouted.

He immediately shied away. "It's nothing. Just give me Rita back!" he said in a shaky voice.

"If you tell me first, I'll give you Rita."

"If you give me Rita first, I'll tell you."

"How about we trade? While I'm giving you back Rita, you can say what it is that is bothering you about my garbage. Deal?"

"Fine. Deal," he said with exasperation.

"Okay. One... Two... Three!"

"IT'S YOUR GARBAGE BAGS!" he blurted out.

"What?"

"I don't like how you tie your garbage bags."

"Yet you seem to pick up everyone else's. Doesn't everyone tie them differently?"

He paused for a moment. "Well, yes, they do, but your knots are particularly annoying. I don't like them one bit."

Suddenly, I started laughing. It developed into hysterical laughter, crying involved.

"What is so funny?" Ron asked curiously.

I replied between fits of laughter, "It's just that... isn't it... a little... STRANGE that you... are a garbage collector... and you're obsessive compulsive?"

He stared at me for a few seconds as it sunk in, and he began to laugh too. "I guess you're right."

We had a good laugh together, and he showed me how he wanted me to tie my garbage bags, and we've been good friends ever since.

My Short Story... "The Love Poem"

Here is my short story... I hope you enjoy it! :)

I was conceived from hatred and love. The moment of my conception was a blurry one, images of my mother and father, dimness, and angry words.

            “How could you? I can’t believe…”

            “ I told you once before, but you must not have been listening…”

            “We can work through this…”

            “No. I’m tired of trying to ‘work through this’…”

 

            I have tried over and over again to remember my life before I was created. All I can recall are flashes of my mother’s thoughts: the blank look on my father’s face, my father’s proposal to my mother, a younger version of my mother. In order to understand my mother’s thoughts, I have been trying to analyze those small fragments of her mind that so cruelly escape completion…

 

            “Oh, Victor, there you are. I have been searching for you everywhere!”

            I worry about him so much sometimes. Why can’t he just stay in one spot?

            “Sorry. I was over by the punch bowl. Could we step outside for a moment?”

            I say that we can, and we exit the party life for a moment. As we walk through the extravagant patio doors, a gust of cold wind hits me. I shiver, and Victor offers his coat to me. I graciously take it and absorb our surroundings. We are walking through forest, quiet except for the nocturnal sounds of nature. I can see a dark pond, where the serene waters are like black glass, undisturbed. Resignedly, I stare at my reflection. I am tall, somewhat graceful, with my hair swept back into a low messy bun. The red dress I chose sweeps low but emphasizes my figure. Also reflected in the small bottomless pool is Victor’s face. Half of his face is shrouded in darkness, while the other half is framed sternly with dark brown eyebrows lingering over chocolate eyes. Victor has always seemed a little stern, despite his playboy appearance. Finally, I look up to the sky. The stars are spread across the sky as if diamonds were dropped against the achromatic earth that bore them.  

            “Rosalie, I want to ask you a question.”

            My heart has stopped beating. I know what’s coming, and I know exactly what I’m going to say. Victor’s dark brown eyes give his question away.

            “We have been dating for several years now, and I know that you are the only one for me in this world. My whole life has been nothing until you came into it. Rosalie, will you marry me?”

            I have never been so full of joy! I can’t believe he’s asked me to marry him! We’ve only been dating for three years, but I love this man more than my own life.

            “Yes! Of course I’ll marry you!”

            We embrace each other and start walking back toward the country house. I love him so much! Oh! And I need to start thinking about the ceremony. The wedding will have roses, doves…

 

            I find myself in the hands of a stranger. He has picked me up off the sidewalk and is reading me slowly. I can see the pain in his face; he doesn’t appreciate me like my mother did. But, then again, no one has really appreciated me, especially not my father…

 

 

            “Victor, this is a lovely dinner.”

            We have finally gotten a reservation at this wonderful little restaurant on the corner of Daniela Avenue. A very refined restaurant, it serves the most delicious food anyone can imagine. The table is covered in a white cloth, with two slim candles set up on either side of the table. There is wine and bread, and it is wonderful. I’m so surprised he took me here! Just when I thought our relationship was on the ropes.

            “Thank you so much for this Victor,” I say as I cut my filet mignon. “It must have taken a huge effort to get a reservation here!”

            “It was no problem,” Victor replies. He seems so withdrawn these days. I wonder what is bothering him.

            We continue to eat in silence. I want to say something to keep the conversation going, and I can see that he doesn’t wish to speak to me. Now, I’m truly starting to get worried and a little angry. Why can’t he just be honest with me? I have been completely honest with him, and he can’t return the favor?

            “Victor, I need to…”

            “I’m going to the bathroom,” he interrupts me.

            While Victor is in the bathroom, I can feel my poetic side slowly coming out. I don’t have any paper, so I quickly grab the wine list. The back is blank. Perfect.

            Victor comes out much later, and I finish my poem just in time. He is taking a seat, and I am ready to show him my poem in the hopes that it will provoke him to speak to me.

            “Victor, I want to show you this poem I wrote.”

            There is complete silence. He knows I haven’t written a poem in years. I wait for him to give me an answer.

            “Rosalie, I’m having an affair.”

            “Oh.”

            “I told you once before, but you must not have been listening.”

            “When? When did you tell me?” How did I miss this?

            “I told you when you were feeling ill last month. You just stared at me like you didn’t comprehend.”

            “I was very out of it when I was ill because of my medication. We can work through this, though. I know a great counselor that my friend went to see when her relationship was deteriorating. Surely we can go too.” I answered. Victor was giving me his blank stare, as he was accustomed to giving these days.

            “No. I’m tired of trying to ‘work through this.’ I have been fighting with myself this whole time over whom I love more and if this is moral. I’m leaving you. I still love you, but not the same way.”

            I can’t believe he took me to this wonderful place to leave me.

            “I wrote you this poem to see if you would tell me your problem, but since you already told it to me, I might as well give it to you.” I put the poem on the table in front of him and leave.

 

            Father read me after she left. His face showed no emotion as he looked over the bitter words she had written, even though the last line gave away her true sentiments towards him.           

            The man has thrown me away. It seems that I will never be good enough for people because I bring pain to them and because I’m essentially a tool of hatred. In some ways, I’m a masterpiece for the heartbroken.  I say what they all want to say, demonstrate the true resentment of their lots in life.

            However, when my mother was younger, she wasn’t full of pain and her heart wasn’t broken. She was full of the life, strength, and vigor of youth.

 

            “Rosalie, let’s go!”

            I really want to go with them. I love volleyball, and this is the perfect opportunity to take a break from my studies. Poetry is hard stuff! I wonder why I decided to become a poet, but I don’t know, so I give up. College is hard, and I like to party more than study. But there is always this side of me that interferes and says, ‘Let’s put down, into words, this feeling.” I wonder if I’m normal sometimes for thinking that. I seem normal enough, to me anyway. I’m tall and athletic, but I just don’t fit the jock mold. I tend to think, unlike most of the stereotypical athletes.

            “Rosalie, hurry up! We don’t have all day!”

            “I’m coming!”  I scream from my room. They’re lingering in the hallway. Why are friends so great? I let them get away with being impatient and so much more, and yet, I still consider them the most reliable people I know. Oh, well. Time to have some fun.

            “Wait up, guys!”

 

            Isn’t that a great memory?  I can almost feel the warmth of it out here on the cold street. I like to visualize it over and over again. It is amazing how people can feel that way.

            Sometimes, I think I feel a link with my mother. The last time I “linked” with her, I sensed a touch of forgiveness. From thoughts I received through the connection, it looked like she was going to take him back. He was begging her to take him back because he had realized his love for her.

            I can still picture his face when I was conceived into this world from the ideas and thoughts of my mother. I came from the passionate flames of hatred and love, and back into them I shall go. But, before I leave, I will give you the chance to read my mother’s compassionate words: 

You’re a fool and an asshole to treat me this way. 

I’ve completely adored you from the very first day. 

Now I can’t get a word. My heart’s breaking in two.

 My soul and life perforated. And that’s due to you.

Give me a clue, a hint, some sign

What’s caused you to repel, retreat and resign?

I love you.

Christmas Preparations

When I came back from break, I was psyched to put up Christmas decorations. My mom had bought me a three foot plastic Christmas tree and lights and ornaments to decorate it. I arrived to find my roomie armed with a Christmas lava lamp and little sticky decorations to stick on our mirrors and microwave. We were off on our Christmas journey to festoon our dorm room with wonderful decorations. I pulled out the Christmas tree and set it up to its regal height while my roommate showed me the special optical effects her red lava lamp. She then set to wrapping the Christmas lights around the lifeless evergreen, and I came over to aid her in encircling the tree with the last of the lights. Perched on the limbs, the lights seemed to float effortlessly, seemingly not touching the tree. Afterwards, she pulled out the sticky Christmas window decorations and split them up between her, me, and the microwave. Like a professional runner, Maris must have had a record time in speed when it came to decorating the microwave. She placed a red and white hat on the microwave first, then a red oval nose, and a white mustache and beard to accompany the rest of the facial structures. The small black eyes were last, and, once it was complete, it resembled the finest miniature, bodyless, black Santa anyone could imagine. Our microwave is black, and since the manufacturers didn't provide skin for Santa, he took on the ebony hue of our appliance. Santa couldn't remain alone though, so we added holly and miniature Christmas trees to his place of residence. With the rest of the decorations, we created winter wonderlands from our mirrors. Maris's was a land of red bells, bright green-leaved and red-berried holly, and Christmas trees of various tints of green. Mine, on the other hand, contained a nation of green Christmas trees, holly, and blood red candy canes lined up across the sides of my mirror. Unfortunately, we didn't have metal hangers to put up the ornaments due to my own forgetfulness, so no ornaments adorn the tree. However, we have a wonderful handmade star with our names on it that was made by Michelle from down the floor. Its sharp orange outline and soft yellows make it the ultimate star, one that seems to resemble a person in its qualities. Christmas music is resounding around the room, compliments of Maris's iPod. If we only had gingerbread cookies and more presents under our Christmas tree, this would be a perfect Christmas!

The Christmas tree is set, and I am always thinking of ways to set up the rest of the room. I can imagine silvery tinsel enveloping our bed rails and a Christmas blanket draped across our futon, bright multicolored lights surrounding the doorframe and a wreath made of false poinsettia leaves and dark green holly leaves. The nice part about Christmas is the ability to keep decorating!

Tough... My Favorite Short Story

     My favorite short story was Jhumpa Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies. In high school, we read this story, and when we discussed it and analyzed it, I got a better understanding of the complexity of the story. It amazes me how much she did with this story, how intricate and deep it is with so few details. Poems amaze me too, but that's not the point. The perspective was an interesting choice. Because we see the Das family's troubles played out through another person's thoughts, the author gives us a subjective view, an outside view that is judgmental and critical as we ourselves can be to others. Another interesting technique was the inclusion of the monkeys. They played a vital role in keeping the story moving forward, especially towards the end, when they beat Bobby with sticks. Through their actions, we see a true, unexpected side of the Das family: love. After hearing Mrs. Das's explanation of her "one afternoon stand" and seeing her apathy towards her family, the audience questions her attachment to her family, i.e. why is she still with her family if she hates them so much? She shows her affection by treating Bobby, and the rest of the family helps him and comforts him. 

       Also, I liked the choice of characters. Mr. Kapasi is a man who is smart enough to be a politician but has fallen on difficult circumstances, leaving him with a worse life than he had hoped. This enables Mr. Das, a high school science teacher, to consider Mr. Kapasi on the same level as him. By insinuating that he is as smart as him, Mr. Das is demeaning Mr. Kapasi, but it allows us to see the differences in their lives that led the smarter man to be poor and the dumber man to become rich. We also see a change in Mr. Kapasi towards the end of the story. Instead of revealing a dark secret to Bobby about his origin and conception (which would be morally right to Mr. Kapasi), he refrains and decides to view the family as they are in the one instance of compassion in the whole story. This makes the audience happy, even though Mrs. Das's secret is still a secret, and the audience wants to tell Bobby and Mr. Das. Mrs. Das is also interesting. I have always found it odd that people can be so self-absorbed and wonder why they are in so much self-inflicted pain. She did not call it her "guilt" but instead called what she felt "pain." How can she know so little about herself when she is so absorbed in it?

Overall, I don't really think there is anything Lahiri can do to improve it. It seems to me that she has achieved a perfect story already. Any more or less could ruin the whole story and the purpose it serves.

Movies! Movies! Movies!

I have realized, since I returned home on Tuesday, that I haven't truly been up-to-date on my movies lately. I used to be the movie kid who, when asked, could name the relationship between two actors/actresses and what movies they had starred in. Unfortunately, my memory has been slipping a lot within the past two years, and I have trouble remembering people's names. Since I have arrived at Purdue, I haven't really had the chance to watch a bunch of movies like I did at home. Now, I'm behind, but I hope to catch up over winter break. 

On Wednesday, I saw Transiberian. It is a movie about a couple who are missionaries riding a train across Russia and Siberia to China. They get mixed up with their cabin mates, who are drug-traffickers. This leads to a struggle between the two couples. I stopped watching it about two-thirds of the way through because I lost interest.

The second movie I saw on Wednesday was Get Smart. It was funny. Maxwell Smart is a CONTROL analyst who is seeking a promotion to field agent. After the CONTROL headquarters are attacked, he becomes an agent and works with Agent 99, a woman who underwent plastic surgery after a bad fling within the agency. They are searching for CHAOS, a villainous group that plans on destroying the United States.

The third movie I saw was Tropic Thunder. It is about a group of actors that are slated to play a Vietnam War movie. Unfortunately, they are too amateur to play the parts, so the director decides to drop them into a forest in Vietnam where they will be recorded on video cameras, and the video footage will be spliced together to create the perfect film. The director is killed, and the actors are left on their own to find their way out of the jungle. It is funny, but in a stupid kind of way. I liked it.

Those are the movies I saw on Wednesday. I saw a BUNCH on Saturday, but I figured three was the perfect amount to talk about.

ThAnKsGiViNg BrEaK!

Over Thanksgiving Break, I was very busy. I came home Tuesday night, arriving at the Sirloin Stockade where my mother was giving her food sanitation presentation at around 6:30 p.m. After she gave her presentation, we went to get some supper at Applebee's. I got to see all my coworkers that I hadn't seen in what seemed like forever! Then, we went home. My dog Ella was excited to see me, unlike last time, and she spent the whole night following me. On Wednesday, I stayed home all day, leaving the house only once to go to ShopKo to buy some warm underclothes to bring back to Purdue and to Family Video to rent some movies, which include Tropic Thunder, Get Smart, and Transiberian. I watched all but Tropic Thunder that day. My mom came home from work, and we made chicken and noodles for supper. Around 8:30 p.m., I went to hang out with my friends. We went to the cinema and saw Role Models, which is actually pretty funny. Afterwards, we went to Taco Bell and sat in the parking lot, talking and catching up on stories until 2 a.m. I returned home and fell asleep in my bed.

The next day (THANKSGIVING!!!), I woke up and helped my mom set up. We held Thanksgiving at my grandparents' house, but my mom was the one who hosted it. We made sure everything was spick and span, and my cousin arrived to prepare drinks. For about an hour, everyone sat in the living room to chat, then dinner began. I didn't fully realize how much I had missed Thanksgiving until I saw the options I had for dinner: dark or light turkey meat, inside or outside stuffing, rolls, mashed potatoes and/or gravy, green beans, oysters, or Jello with fruit in it. It was AWESOME! I stuffed myself so completely that I couldn't eat another bite. Then I had pumpkin pie. (The sentence before last was meant to be an exaggeration.) It was amazing! I LOVE pumpkin pie! We cleaned up, and left to nap. Later, around 6:45 p.m., Mom and I returned to Gram and Gramps' house to have leftovers for supper and complete the puzzle. The puzzle this year was a picture of a small town with a giant lit Christmas tree and a street filled with shops lit up for the night. It was pretty. Unfortunately, we didn't finish it before we left. 

On Friday, I worked all day. I work at Applebee's, and I chose to work a double that day. It was alright, but I was tired when I returned home. The next day, I had to leave to spend the night with my dad. I hadn't seen him since I left this summer, and we had a fun time watching a movie marathon. Today, I had to leave him and return home to finish packing at 10:30 a.m., but I didn't feel as though I spent enough time with him. I finished packing and carpooled back to Purdue at 2 p.m., arriving here at 7 p.m. in this time zone. It was a busy 5 days!

Black Friday

So, as everyone knows, that day of the year is coming up to get everything bought for Christmas! I decided this year to research "Black Friday" (considered by some to be the busiest shopping day of the year) and see what it's really about. These are some fun statistics I found:

~National Research Foundation

Men spent an average of $393.63, which is almost $90 more than the women's average!

Most people said that they planned on getting to a store at 6 A.M.

~Christmas Shopping Facts and Figures (guess what? One of our own Purdue professors came      up with this list of retailing feats! :))

Black Friday is the fifth to tenth busiest shopping day of the year! 

Most stores start decorating for Christmas on Oct. 15th.

Approximately 7,720 children visited Santa in 1999.

~Do You Believe in Cyber Monday?

Cyber Monday is the internet form of Black Friday. It occurs the Monday following Thanksgiving.

There is also the possibility of an "eFriday" which, according to Deloitte & Touche USA, had one point higher for shoppers than Cyber Monday (20% of people surveyed shopped on Friday, 19% shopped on Monday).

Fun history: Black Friday was named for the day on which people shopped so much that stores' accounts would come out of the red and "into the black".

Born into Brothels--Should Children Be Allowed to Decide If They Want to Be In a Documentary?

     In the documentary, Born into Brothels, several children of prostitutes are filmed, and their lives are revealed through their own photography. A question is raised, however, about if it is "fair" to the children to be displayed to the whole world. I believe that it is the children's choice. If they wish to be seen by the whole world, then let them. I don't believe it is fair to their mothers and caretakers, though. They should be the ones to give consent to see inside their homes. The parents own the homes, so they should be the ones who control it. I think it would be fair to allow the children to show videos of school or of others around the neighborhood, but the parents should decide to let the cameras into their homes.

In terms of the children's success, I believe Zana Brinski did help them. By teaching them photography, she guaranteed them at least one portal into equality with others in the world. Considering that Avijit became a successful student in the United States, and the others are all currently learning new things and continuing their education, I would totally agree that they are finally getting the education they deserve. However, I don't completely agree with her methods. By exposing the children to the world, she took the risk of giving them no privacy once they grew up. Maybe the children didn't want so much attention? I think she was successful, though, and I'm pretty sure that the children are all thankful now for what she did. 

This Season of Saturday Night Live

     My dad and I always used to watch Saturday Night Live late at night on Saturdays. For the past few years, I have lost track of what is going on in Saturday Night Live. But this year, I'm not going to miss it. I have ordered it on iTunes, and I won't miss the sketches. For those of you who don't know what Saturday Night Live is, it is a sketch show that makes fun of anything and everything. It covers politics, the latest gossip, and random ideas.

   This season of Saturday Night Live has been okay. As compared to other seasons, I don't think this ranks the top 10 in my mind. However, there have been some good skits and good actors that have hosted the show. Here are a few sketches I personally liked:

Ben Affleck as Keith Olbermann

Jon Hamm's John Ham

Anne Hathaway as Mary Poppins

The Looker (a parody of The Closer)

The OJ Jury Trial

Night School Musical

and any political sketch they have showed so far!

If you're ever feeling down and want to watch something funny, these can be pretty hysterical. I will warn you, though, that some of them have very dark humor (such as the Anne Hathaway one, John Ham, and Night School Musical). Anyway, I hope you enjoy these!

P.S. I'm watching the Paul Rudd-hosted episode right now, and it's going really well! :)

Traces of Me... Unfortunately.

Surprisingly, I use less than the average U.S. citizen in everything. My mother is very frugal, and she tends to focus on saving money. By the way, I based this on my home life because I haven't truly been here long enough to know how much of everything I use. 

Carbon footprint: Mine = 49.2,  Country = 91.4

Food footprint: Mine = 65.7, Country = 65.7

Housing footprint: Mine = 21.9, Country = 31.6

Goods and Services footprint: Mine = 42.5, Country = 57.7

Total: 179.39 global acres

People would have to inhabit 4.62 Earths if they all live the way I do!

     I wouldn't exactly say it is "fair" that Americans take more than their share of resources. But, at the same time, there are a LOT of people living on this Earth. Since we are a dominant species (humans, in general), we are taking up more and more room and resources. Before long, we'll run out of food, water, and space, and everything in nature will be out of balance. 

     Therefore, we can try to redress the Earth for what we have done to it, but, in the end, it won't do any good if we can't stop our population from growing. Currently, we have engineers working to solve the problem, but not every problem can be solved, only delayed. I don't believe we can repair what we've done to the Earth, but we can try to relieve the suffering as much as we can.

Oh, How I Hate You, Canker Sores!

      Within the past couple weeks, I haven't been eating very well. It has become evident in the presence of a canker sore in my mouth. On Friday, I had passed the night with a dull pain right inside of my lip, so I checked it out in the mirror, and it turned out to be a canker sore. I've had them more than once before, so I knew I just had to wait it out, and the worst was yet to come. The next day, I was going to make a trip to WalMart anyway, so I decided to get some Anbesol or other pain ointment for my mouth. I spent over fifteen minutes just trying to locate some, and then spent some time getting the rest of my things. By the time I was ready to leave, some guy ahead of me in the checkout had two WalMart gift cards, and neither of them would scan through to the register. Keep in mind that I had a bus to catch, and the whole ordeal took an extraordinarily long amount of time (in my rushed mind). Finally, I got up to the register, and the poor guy checked everything through, and the receipt printer was jammed. So, I decided I really didn't need the receipt; it would be fine because I paid for all of it with cash, not a debit or credit card. He was about to let me go, and I was very impatient because the bus was supposed to be there right then, when his manager stopped by and told him he needed to print it out. So he told me it would take a couple of minutes and proceeded to print the receipt out. The printer finally finished, and I walked out the door with my bags in hand, and just as I reached the door, I saw the bus. The last two people were about to load onto it. I ran through the crowd of people coming in, mumbling my "Sorry"s as I passed by them. I felt incredibly rude, but at the same time, my adrenaline was pumping because I didn't want to miss the bus and wait another HOUR for the next one. I reached the bus and finally made it back to the dorm. 

     When I got to my room, I put some Anbesol on my lip, and the numbing took effect. I worked on homework and caught up on some of my TV shows online, and finally fell asleep at around one o'clock in the morning. When I woke up at ten thirty the next morning, one half of my lips was swollen. The bottom lip was huge and blistered, and the top lip looked affected too. I started panicking. My first thought was that I was allergic to Anbesol, and I needed to get it checked out. So, I stopped by the urgent care center at PUSH, and they told me it was just a canker sore. I have never had a canker sore that large, and it really bothered me. Since Sunday, the swelling has gone down, but I feel a little embarrassed that I wasted their time and mine over something so silly. So... That was my weekend! :)

The Questions I Would Have Asked Margaret Edson

     On Thursday, the "Margaret Edson Event" took place. Margaret Edson came to discuss the process of writing the play and vignettes were acted out in between her explanations. She explained how she wanted to make this play about grace and redemption. It was a struggle between her and her main character Vivian. Edson wanted her to become herself, the sensitive real person inside that tough, scholarly exterior. But Vivian didn't want to become that person. Edson told us that she controlled Vivian, even though Vivian struggled against her, and that Edson controls us, that we, the audience, are against her too. Vivian Bearing undergoes a transformation, morphing from a scholar seeking knowledge, to a woman in fear, to a beautiful woman in her original form (completely naked). 

     I was really surprised not to see Susie in any of the vignettes. I would have asked her about that, but she showed some surprise in it too. Otherwise, I didn't really have any questions. The whole experience made me understand the play better. I understand now that The Runaway Bunny was Vivian's transition into her real self. It was put into terms that she could comprehend ("an allegory of the soul"), and it allowed her to go peacefully. Overall, the experience helped me learn a little bit more about what is happening in the play and the author's intentions for the play.

Counting Down to Thanksgiving Break

     I'm really looking forward to Thanksgiving Break. It seems that even though the exams are just now ending for a short period, it is still the eye of the hurricane. Exams will be coming a week or two before Thanksgiving Break, and it's almost inevitable. Mostly, I'm looking forward to going home. It seems like it's been a long time since October Break, even though it hasn't, and I'm just plain ready to be sitting at home, eating my turkey and mashed potatoes. On Thanksgiving, my family usually has a big feast, including but not limited to: turkey (of course), mashed potatoes and gravy, bean casserole, cranberry jelly, rolls, and Jello salad with lots of fruit in it. I especially love Thanksgiving (and Christmas) because after stuffing ourselves with food, my family goes home, naps off the excess calories and tryptophan, and comes back for a puzzle. When we return to do the puzzle, it is around supper time, and we try to finish off the leftovers from the feast we call Thanksgiving lunch. The puzzle normally isn't finished when everyone leaves, but we have fun doing it. I wonder what puzzle we'll do this Thanksgiving? 

     In addition to delicious food, I can't wait to see my friends. I didn't see them over October Break, and I'm having friend withdrawals. I miss seeing them practically everyday and talking about how our classes are going. Anyway, I can't wait to get home for Thanksgiving Break!

The Election

This year, I was very excited to be able to vote. Our high school history teacher would always stress how important it was to vote since the people control their leaders and their government through their choices of candidates. So, I went to the drivers' license facility in our little town, and I signed up to get a voter's registration card. Sure enough, it came a few weeks later through the mail. But not too long after, I lost my voter's registration card. I have searched all over for it, but I have been unable to find it. This partially influenced my decision not to vote. The major influence, however, is my lack of knowledge about the candidates' campaigns. I haven't devoted much time to researching their platforms, and I don't truly know what they are promoting. Yes, I see the commercials and flyers and chalked sidewalks, but I don't really understand what is going on in our economy and government. I am more of a science and math person, not politics. Anyway, I decided not to vote because I am ignorant of the issues in government, and my vote would be made for the wrong reasons. I currently don't really have the time or focus to vote, and it would be too late for registration, so, this year, I am not voting, despite the huge implications for gender and race in government it will have.

History Research... This Topic Is Perfect For Loewen!

My thesis statement is: "To what extent did the Vietnam War Have an Impact on the Literary Movements in 1960-1975?" I have been researching, and, so far, I have discovered that there were many literary movements in progress during the Vietnam War. Instead of doing ALL of them, I am going to research the impacts on the Civil Rights movement, the Beat generation, and the counterculture.

~ "Straight" and "Secret" History in Vietnam War Literature

This paper discusses the "secret" history as provided by the literature during the Vietnam War. The author explains his view that the actual history ("straight" history, as he puts it) is more skewed than the history as viewed by literature. Literature provides personal insight instead of straight facts which were probably fabricated by the government in the first place. He examines the works of Allen Ginsberg, Ron Kovic, and Tim O'Brien.

This next article is about the poor usage of anti-Vietnam War poetry in anthologies.

~"Where Is Vietnam?": Antiwar Poetry and the Canon

The writer explains his research over anti-Vietnam War poetry in anthologies. He searched many anthologies, and found very few poems that are taught. Since it comprises most of the poetry written by Americans, it is very disturbing that such a small amount of antiwar poetry in the Vietnam War era is published and taught. He also decries the choices of the editors of the anthologies to only use the poetry of Bly and Merwin because their poetry doesn't cover most of the depth of the involvement of the Vietnam War in the poetry movement.

~Howl.com by Thomas Scoville

This is a parody of the poem Howl. I thought it was interesting, so I decided to include it, so others can see. Instead of talking about the "best minds of [his] generation" who are "angel-headed hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly connection to the starry dynamo," he modernizes it to say: "HTML-headed Web-sters coding for the infinite broadband connection to that undiscovered e-commerce mother lode." It seems pretty modern, and I like the author's ability to take a poem from the sixties and change the wording to fit today's people.

~Howl by Allen Ginsberg

This is an example of poetry during the Vietnam War. In it, Ginsberg expresses his anti-war sentiments. His motivation for the poem came from the death of his mother (an insane woman for whom he approved a lobotomy) and from his friend, Carl Solomon. In the poem, he is also very open about drugs and sexuality.

~Interview with Tim O'Brien

This site gives a typed interview between Daniel Bourne and Tim O'Brien. In it, Tim O'Brien discusses how his draft into the Vietnam War inspired him to write, his own demons, and the some of the themes of his stories. He also talks about his personal struggle with questioning reality.

 

My Day with History

I went to the Beering Technology Center to research the history textbooks, and guess what I found: not enough information. The history textbooks barely discussed the literature impacted by the Vietnam War. The textbook that we had in high school (The Americans) mentioned some literature written about the Vietnam War, but nothing about the literature of those who were influenced by war but not involved in it (a.k.a. the counterculture). Another textbook (The American Pageant) reviewed the counterculture and its literature, which was more helpful. It talked about The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, a book written by Tom Wolfe about Ken Kesey's life on the road. Ken Kesey was a poet of the Beat generation. It also discussed the sexual revolution and Alfred Kinsey's findings and estimates on the sexual habits of many Americans. The third textbook (The American Nation) didn't review much at all. It provided a small amount of information about Le Ly Hayslip, a Vietnamese refugee who escaped imprisonment by the South Vietnamese government to the United States. It also mentioned Born on the Fourth of July, a book about life as a soldier in Vietnam and the lack of support for the Americans from their fellow citizens at home. The final textbook I found only mentioned two books: Silent Spring and Unsafe at Any Speed. Silent Spring, as many of you biology majors may know, is a book concerning the spread of the pesticide DDT and its impact on nature. The pesticide spread through the consumption of insects by birds and the dinner that other predators would make of those birds. It led to an investigation of pollution. The other book, Unsafe at Any Speed, was written by a famous presidential candidate, Ralph Nader. He argued in the book that many Americans would die in automobile accidents due to the faulty creations of the automakers. This textbook (A History of the United States) wasn't quite what I was looking for; despite its inclusion of literature during the time, the included literature wasn't the direct impact of the Vietnam War. The rest of the textbooks I looked through made no mention of any literature impacted by the Vietnam War. The search was, overall, unproductive.

THE MARCHING BAND!

When I decided to come to Purdue University, I wanted to join the marching band. However, my mother told me that I shouldn't because Honors Engineering would take up too much of my time, and there wouldn't be enough left for band. Boy, she was right. I barely have enough time to hang out with my friends! I don't really like football too much, so I haven't been going to the games. But on Saturday, the tables turned when I found out my friend had a spare ticket.
I went to the University of Minnesota vs. Purdue game on Saturday, and I fell in love with the marching band! In case you weren't there, the show on Saturday was the standoff of Joe Tiller. The marching band formed many designs and characters, including Joe Tiller (a stick figure with a hat) and his arch-nemesis (also a stick figure with a hat). The band wove in and out of many designs, one of which was composed of four arrows closing in on one point to create a square. I saw it on the big screen, and it blew my mind. Everything was so coordinated and flawless. I greatly enjoyed the marching band. :)

Why Does Internment Fascinate Me So?

When I listened to everyone's presentations, I realized that the internment of Japanese-Americans stood out to me the most. We briefly heard in history class that Japanese-Americans were forced into concentration camps, but I never realized that the conditions were so poor! In my mind, it had always been a comparison between the Japanese-Americans and the victims of the Holocaust, but once I listened to this presentation, I began to think about the internment of Japanese-Americans on a scale all its own. I never realized that they didn't get fed very much each day, had poor quarters, and were treated badly, and it made me sad to think that we would be willing to stoop to that level.
The basic gist of the topic was that the Japanese-Americans were treated poorly. They lived in small barracks, had little money for food, and had poor medical treatment. Hawaii didn't become involved in this display of racist passion, even though it had many Japanese-Americans in its population and was bombed by the Japanese. The German-Americans were also not rounded up and put into internment camps like the Japanese-Americans, even though they were more closely related to the cause of the war. The legal basis for the internment of the Japanese-Americans was brought into question, too. I also found it interesting that someone is going to research how the reparations are measured. Overall, I think it is going to be an interesting presentation. :)

Indiana Jones... Yes, I'm writing about it.

I really love the Indiana Jones movies. Mostly, I love them because of their adventure and their history. They also have very good special effects. Because of those movies, I became really interested in history and paleontology. If you have never seen any of the movies, I am going to give you a quick summary. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark covers Indiana's search for the biblical relic that contains the Ten Commandments. With the help of Marion Ravenwood, the daughter of a lost professor whose research was based on the relic, "Indy" travels across the world to find clues and try to discover the ark's location. He is racing against the Nazis, who are trying to find the relic to control the world. In the next movie, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones is accidentally dropped in India while one of his enemies is trying to get rid of him. A night club singer by the name of Wilhelmina "Willie" Scott is also dropped off with him, and his sturdy young sidekick Short Round travels with him. They reach a village where a mystical stone is missing, bringing destruction and poor luck with its disappearance. Many young boys are missing from the village, too, and Indy discovers a large underground labor operation involved with a cult. The priest of the cult tries to stop them from taking the stone. The third movie, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, entails a wild chase between Indiana Jones and the Nazis for the Holy Grail. In this movie, we see Indiana Jones' father, played by Sean Connery, and a small flashback of his youth and how he began searching for lost artifacts. Most recently, the fourth movie Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is the most recent movie. Indy searches for a missing professor after a boy (Shia LeBeouf) tracks him down. They become involved in a search for the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, a lost city that was incredibly advanced for its time. Indy is much older now, and we learn a bit more about what has happened to him since the last movie. Indiana Jones is played by Harrison Ford, if you didn't already know, and I think these are some of the best movies I have seen. The first three were created in the 1980's, and the last one was produced this year. I am an Indiana Jones fanatic, so if you ever have any questions about plot line or who a certain person may be, let me know!

Feast at Purdue!

One of the most surprising things I have found at Purdue is that the food is actually decent. I didn't exactly know what to expect food-wise when I came here, but I really do love the food! I live in Earhart, and I think it definitely has some of the best food here. I love the stir-fry, and they have great food at the Heartland Classics. I have tried food at Wiley, Windsor, Hillenbrand, Earhart, and Ford, and out of all of them, I would have to say I liked Wiley and Ford the best. Earhart is great because it is so conveniently located downstairs, but if I had to walk, I would go to either Wiley or Ford. I think Ford has really great pizza. It seems like there is never enough for everyone, though. Wiley has great desserts. :) I also love their architecture. Wiley and Ford both have many windows and open spaces. In the dorm dining centers, there doesn't seem to be much sunlight because they don't have many windows. It's nice to be able to see outside. Anyway, I also like the choices. I didn't think the meals would be buffet-style, so it was a pleasant surprise to be able to heap many different kinds of food on my plate. I really do enjoy the food here, and I hope you do too.

Exams: Yay or Nay?

This year I have encountered several exams. Most recently, I took the engineering exam, and it was tough, considering I didn't know quite what to expect. Unfortunately, most of my exams are under 100 questions, especially the math and chemistry exams. Both exams had 20 questions. In my high school, each of our exams had 50 or more questions. Coming from such a small high school to a large university has made me realize each point counts. I tend to study more for these exams because I try to understand all of the material in order to score higher. As a result, I begin to wonder: Is this to make us learn more? By having fewer questions, which means a greater chance to miss more points in many cases, are we forced to learn more? Curved grading does occur many times, too, but I would think that it would push you to learn more, also. Because you might not know the extent of your classmates' intelligences, you try to learn more. This also makes me wonder if it's too much stress. By providing competition, faculty push people to retain more, causing stress to dictate people's lives. In the end, is it really worth causing health problems for students to pass classes? I believe college life shouldn't be the reason for poor health. I try to not worry so much about homework and exams, but sometimes, I just stress out, and it reflects poorly on those around me. On the other hand, I don't think I have ever worried about school so much before, and it has certainly taught me to work hard and study. All in all, I think it's a good balance to try not worry too much about homework. Get it done, and you won't have to worry about it. I hope it works for me.

My Somewhat Less Fabulous October Break

For October Break, I decided to go home. I needed a respite from my homework, as I'm sure my fellow Honors Engineers know, and October Break provided the perfect opportunity. I went home on Friday with my mom, and we went to bed as soon as we got home. I set up her new VCR for all the VHS tapes that we have because we are too adamant not to buy them all on DVD. On Saturday, I went to dinner with my grandparents and cousin, who was also conveniently on fall break. It was a nice night out, and I enjoyed spending time with my grandparents. Then I went to the Gilson Haunted House with my friend Heather and some other people. The haunted house is ranked one of the top three in Illinois every year. We had a great time. After going to the haunted house, I stopped by my old workplace, Applebee's, to say hi to some people, but, unfortunately, waiting in line for the haunted house took to long, and I missed them. On Sunday, I stayed home to get some homework done. I worked a little bit on my genetics paper and relaxed mostly. To top off that overly relaxed day, my mother and I baked cookies to bring back with me and enchiladas for supper. It was great! By Monday, I was ready to finish my genetics paper and be good to go when the internet went out, and I lost the ability to access my bookmarked genetics sources. Needless to say, I was a little mad, but I got over it. I went to my grandparents' house to chatter for a little while, and then went home to pack. On Tuesday, I finished packing and came back to Purdue through carpooling. Overall, October Break was a much-needed break, and I really can't wait until Thanksgiving! I hope time runs fast.

My Topic for the History Paper

I am currently still deciding what topic I am writing about. I will have decided later today, Monday, October 6th.

Waiting for the Days of Break

I am so very excited about October Break. All of this homework for engineering isn't going well with me, and I need a break. Next semester is going to be even longer. I'm starting to get a little down-hearted. I knew there would be a lot of homework, but I never would have dreamed that there would be this much! I also miss home. My mom sounded really excited about my coming home. I haven't really talked to her much lately, and I think she is worried. This week is so crowded already, that I won't even have enough time to study for my engineering exam without losing sleep. I feel like I'm sacrificing too much sometimes. I don't know about others but I have seen quite a few people break down on my floor, and it's not pretty. My roommate broke down the other day, and I felt really bad for her, but at the same time, I have realized that this major isn't enough to sacrifice your health or sanity over.
On lighter news, I'm excited to see my family and pets. I really miss my dog, no matter how unbelievably hyper she is. She can be so sweet sometimes and so obnoxious at other times. I wonder if she's training me... She tries so hard to be devious that it can be annoying, but I still miss her. My cat is wonderful, too. She is Siamese, but looks Balinese, and she is such a good cat. And I know this may sound weird, but I have a hamster. He is very laid-back but loves to pull kamikaze moves such as jumping out of his cage onto the floor 2 feet below. He's very entertaining. Anyway, I hope everyone has a great break!

A Day in Taylor's Life

An imagined day in my life... I wake up to my own theme song, based on whatever mood I'm in. We'll just say I'm in a good mood this morning. The song will be "It's a Beautiful Morning." Anyway, I get out of bed and discover that the height of the bed from floor is two inches. My feet fall softly on the floor, and I head toward the shower. The water is at the perfect temperature, and there is no sporadic hot flashes in the temperature of the water. I gracefully walk back to my room and get dressed for class. Upon arriving at class after walking to the building on a sunny, carefree day, the teacher tells us that we aren't going to do any homework. Instead, we will get to watch a comedic movie and eat pizza and a lot of desserts. Our teacher's assistant hands back our homework, and everyone discovers they have an A. It is a long, but happily eventful day, and I become tired. As I exit the building, I hear a limo pull up. Someone calls my name from inside the limo, and I turn to find James McAvoy sitting in the back. He invites me into the limo, and we have an interesting chat about movies and his acting career. After the two-minute drive back to Earhart, I walk into my room, say,"Goodnight" to my roommate, and fall asleep peacefully in my comfy bed, looking forward to my happy dreams.

An actual day in my life... I am abruptly and rudely woken from sleep by a noisy car passing by. I check my alarm clock only to find that my alarm didn't go off, and I am running late for class. I crawl down from my bed and slip, hitting the floor, and my head, very hard. As I'm mumbling curses, I head to the shower. The shower rapidly changes from excruciatingly hot to icy cold in mere nanoseconds, and I think to myself, "HOT... cold... HOT... cold..." My day then gets worse. I arrive late at my class and realize I don't have the homework done because it was lost last night in the large pile of books and paper that I call homework. The TA gives me a stern, you-will-be-an-example look, and I fear for my GPA. Class runs longer than usual, and it sets off a string of tardies for the rest of my classes, each of which I only have 10 minutes to reach, no matter how far they are away. Then my academic day ends, and night comes rushing in to meet me. I return to my large heap of homework and continue to work on it until 3 A.M. in the morning. I fall into bed, tired and disparaged, and slip into fitful dreams.

As you can probably tell, I exaggerated the second part a little bit. However, it's mostly true. Hope you enjoyed a peek into "A Day in Taylor's Life." It will be on video soon. :)

My Role Model

I don't exactly agree with Loewen. If you only provide the provocative details about a person, people tend to remember that they were "good" or "bad" based on their presidency. I believe that only the important details of a person's beliefs or administration should be provided. In high school textbooks, only the basics should be given, unbiased. However, interesting facts do help people remember names and facts. My high school teacher, Ms. Bodenhamer (Ms. Bo, for short), proved that. She told us about Nero, a Roman emperor whose reign included a controversy about the burning of Rome. His history included molestation by his uncle on a secluded island when he was younger. She narrated Nero's story to us two years ago in World History class. I still remember certain parts of his reign, but his victimization is what I associate with him the most.
I don't really have a hero in history. I do admire several people, but I don't want to BE them. One of the people I admire is Amelia Earhart. She became one of the greatest women in history despite the domesticated role of women in society in that era. I do know that she had her problems, but that is what makes her human. I read her biography several years ago, and I enjoyed reading about her accomplishments. Some of her low points included a noticeable closeness to her boss, George C. Putnam, even though he was married, and the alcoholism of her father.

Evita

So... I really don't have too much to say for this week. It has been pretty laid-back as compared to other weeks. My first exam is on Monday night, and I'm interested to see how it goes. But for right now, I am going to promote the musical Evita. It is about the rise of Eva Peron during the labor rights movement in Argentina in the late 1940's to the early 1950's. The musical was created by Andrew Lloyd Weber, the composer of other numbers such as The Phantom of the Opera and Cats. Maria Eva Duarte de Peron was born as an illegitimate child and lived in poverty as a child. She supposedly "slept" her way up to fame and fortune as an actress and radio speaker. She met her future husband, Juan Peron, at a fundraiser, and they rose to the top of a labor rights party and became the president and first lady of Argentina. During that time, Eva instituted many programs to help the lower class. After a few years in power, she developed cancer and died. She was embalmed and placed in a coffin for the public to pay their respects. Her body was stolen by generals opposed to Juan Peron, and it wasn't returned for over twenty years. By that time, Peron was with his third wife, and when the coffin arrived on his doorstep, he kept it with him until he died. His third wife had Evita buried in the Duarte family tomb. The movie was great, and if you loved Phantom of the Opera, I'm pretty sure you'll like this movie. It is like Phantom of the Opera except with more of a Spanish feel.

To forgive or not to forgive?

I believe forgiveness varies greatly between people. As suggested by the video, As We Forgive, some people almost can't bring themselves to forgive. Rosaria forgave Santeri almost immediately. Chantal, on the other hand, was still irate over the murder of her father by one of his best friends. She took over six months to forgive him. If I had been put in that situation, I don't know that I could forgive someone for murdering my family. Sometimes, I can easily forgive someone for doing something that angered me. A good night's sleep helps calm me, and I'm completely cooled down the next day. But I do hold grudges, and a problem that huge would stay with me forever. I am naturally a very stubborn person, and grudges come easily to me.
I think forgiveness and reconciliation are possible. One just has to open his heart to change and accept the past for what it was. Many people are unwilling to forgive because of the suffering they have endured and the memories created during that suffering. Forgiving is setting yourself free of a burden you have shouldered for a long time. As someone once said, "To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover the prisoner was you."

Homework = Doomed Infinity

At this point in time, I am learning what a "full work load" really means. I have had so much homework this week that I am ready to pull my hair out! It doesn't help that our engineering class isn't told everything when it should most likely be told. This Thursday, our professor told us specifications for our engineering project. By the time we were ready to get materials to practice with, others from the other division of our engineering class warned us not to practice with the other materials, telling us that our professor, who teaches both classes, had told them to not do that. My group and I were upset, to say the least. I wish that he would keep track of what to tell the classes so neither of our divisions are ignorant of what he said to the other class. 

Needless to say, I have been pulling all-nighters to get a great deal of my homework done. It's become extremely hard to balance my social life, health, and academics. October Break is going to be a great respite from all my activities and schoolwork. Sadly, it will probably be used to catch up on sleep. Anyway, I am having fun contrary to my large amount of responsibility. I hope I can get ahead!

The Hour Takes On Child Soldiering

My impression of Beah from the interview is that he is very relaxed now. He seemed like he was just being himself, even though he was talking about a very serious issue. I also noticed that he didn't blame anyone. When he discussed the lieutenants as "father figures," Beah simply explained his and other soldiers' impressions of them; he didn't call them lunatics or murderers or anything of the sort.

Ishmael stuck to many of the ideas and parts of the novel he wrote. There was a lot of repetition for those who had read the book, and most of his interview was laced with commentary that seemed to be quoted from the book. 

On-air, Ishmael Beah is very casual, laid-back. He is very much in control of his life as it appears from his interview. He even seemed happy.

I thought the book was extremely interesting. It presented the lifestyle of a country torn by war. As compared to the American Civil War, Sierra Leonean soldiers and rebels took more drastic measures: torturing others, raping women, pillaging, and forcing people to do many different and, to some, unethical atrocities. I believe that the book reveals a very dark side to human nature when causes are involved, and it shows the extent of the startling behavior and attitude people take toward others. I have already mentioned this book to my friends at home and to some friends here at Purdue. I will not, however, mention it to my family. My mom rarely reads books in her free time because she lacks free time, and my dad doesn't like those kinds of books. My grandmother, on the other hand, might enjoy it, so I will mention it to her when I return home for October Break. Otherwise, I will recommend this book to anyone who wants to know what they may have been missing in the rest of the world.

Here's the address for those that would like to see his interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K4yhPSQEzo

My Day at the Animal Shelter

       Hey, it's me AGAIN!! This year I decided to participate in volunteering with Helping Paws club at Purdue. It's a form of getting involved with the Humane Society. We went to a shelter today on the outskirts of town called Crystal Clear Kennels. There were so many dogs and cats! They were all well-behaved, though, and I greatly enjoyed the trip we made there. We tried to train dogs with the basic commands: sit, down, heel. The dog I was training would heel, but she refused to sit. Her name is Maya, and she is a chocolate lab, by the looks of it. She was so interested in everything else that she wasn't focused on treats or training. My time there made me realize that most of the animals at the shelter were actually really nice and gentle. Sometimes, I expect the animals that weren't adopted to be rude and mean (just in the biting sense, not attacking). Training with Maya showed me that isn't true. In a way, that kindness reminds me of the book we're reading, A Long Way Gone. People can be so nice, given they don't feel threatened by strangers. Animals are the same way. If they feel threatened, they will let you know, usually through a growl or their stances. People tend to be the same way; however, they don't always get the chance to redeem themselves for behaving badly in times of fear. Animals are treated the same way. Bite a person once, and you're gone. That seems to be the motto of today's population. Second chances are few and rare; any time you get one, use it.

A little about myself...

Hello, I'm Taylor Willett. I live in a small town called Cameron in Illinois. I love living out in the countryside and enjoy the freedom and open space. Living in a city just doesn't provide the beauty of nature as much as in the country. My family has two pets: a dog and a cat. Our dog, Ella, is a golden Labrador retriever, and she is just as hyper as a puppy, even though she is approaching five years old now. Maddy, our cat, is genetically Siamese, but she matches all the criteria for a Balinese cat. She is almost fifteen years old now, and enjoys lying around the house. I love animals a lot, and being away from them is pretty tough. I can't wait to get an apartment just to have a nice furry animal to keep me company.
I am going to Purdue to study biomedical engineering. I really enjoyed my biology classes in high school, and I want to help people, so biomedical engineering seemed like an interesting field to go into. I am a behind-the-scenes type of person. I don't want my face covering newspapers or anything close to newspapers. I don't even like being in photos!! Otherwise, I am usually pretty outgoing, and I hate disrespecting others. 

I am really excited to experience college life, and I am looking forward to English this year!

P.S. I am a huge fan of James McAvoy's acting!