Catwoman. Catwoman has impacted our culture because she has influenced the perception of what women can do. In hero stories such as comic books, women usually are the damsels. Catwoman is not a damsel but instead she is intelligent and fights for herself. She is fascinating because not only does she stand for independence, but she is gorgeous too. I think that she is a good powerful character who stands for feminine power and independence.

Bugs Bunny. Bugs Bunny is relatable because of his tricky nature. Bugs Bunny is extremely intelligent and uses his brilliance to joke with people. People can relate to doing that and find it amusing to watch on television. Bugs Bunny represents the type of smart that a lot of people want. I think that Bugs Bunny has street smarts. He is intelligent in other ways but the show exploits his ability to think quickly and creativly. Bugs Bunny is important because his innocent tricks are something that can be appreciated by people because they are universally entertaining and funny.

Hermoine Granger. I think that Hermonie is not only an important character to the series Harry Potter but also an important character in general. Through out the series, Hermoine has always been very serious about schoolwork and her education. Hermoine is very intelligent but because of how open she is about her brilliance, she is not that popular. She gets made fun of for being so diligent about school. I think she is important because in the last book, her brilliance protects Harry and Ron’s lives. All of the stuff she learned in school helps her to protect the friends. I like this because it is an example where it shows what education can really do in a future.

Stories

Part One:
Stories are important to children because they encourage them to use imagination. People read stories to children because I think it is a way to preserve their innocence. It depends on the story, but most children’s books are innocent and have some sort of lesson or moral. Reading stories are a way to teach kids things also. By reading stories kids get ideas how they would handle situations and they can remember those ideas when they have a real life experience.

Part Two:
I think that older people read stories as a break from reality, out of boredom, out of curiosity. Reading a good book is such a good feeling. When you get into a good book, you seem to be absorbed in the story. I love that feeling.

Part Three:
Stories are so important in our nation because I think they give people new insights on a custom, culture, or problem and they also make people feel connected. People feel connected with the speaker in book if they share the same problems. The popular books fit into our nation’s identity because the books that people want to read are most likely to touch on a current event or issue in society.

Part Three:
My dad bought me a book called “Cinderellie”. It was a version of Cinderella but it compared perfect Cinderella to her not so perfect step sister Cinderellie. It has a good moral to it and I remember always loving the pictures. I associate this book with my dad because he gave it to me as a gift. It is special because I know he picked it out.

Part Four:
1. Stories should have descriptive diction
2. Stories should not be formulaic
3. Stories should have a catching intro
4. Stories should have a conclusion that successfully ends how the author wants the story to end (in suspense, setting up for a sequel, tying all the loose ends)
5. There should be at least one form of conflict , whether it gets resolved or not is up to the author
6. The main character should learn something, whether the character explicitly realizes it our not is up to the author
7. The story should flow smoothly (unless author intentionally chooses a different rhythm which enhances meaning)

Edina's Night Life

Today like most days recently, I have been thinking about my future and how my life will change. Next fall, approximately five months from now, I will be at college. I am going to Boston University. It will be totally different from anything I have ever done. It will be different because I will have so much responsibility and freedom- more than I have ever had or known. It also will be different because Boston University is very urban. I have lived in Edina my whole life. People refer to it as a “bubble”. There will be so much more diversity there versus Edina which will be interesting.
Lately I have noticed that there is no night life in Edina. Everything closes by 10. Even Lunds, formally open 24 hours, closes at 12 now! The only thing open past 10 (with the exception of Lunds) is Perkins. I am someone who loves to stay up late, and for me, one single restaurant is not enough entertainment for nights after ten for ever. People usually just go over to other people’s houses which I like, but I am kind of ready for a change. Granted, it may be more claustrophobic feeling in the winter time because people can’t hang out outside because of the cold. I feel like Edina and maybe most suburbs are a good place for kids to grow up. But after you get to a certain age, high school and college, the suburb life (at least at night) does not seem to accommodate. Sorry if I am rambling but I just hate how after 9 pm sometimes, there is no one on the streets, everyone is in their houses.
You don’t realize how different this is until you see other places. For example, New York City. The subway runs all night for a reason. They say that the city never sleeps and I think that is so comforting. The idea that you are surrounded by people who are awake seems cool to me. Also, last summer, my family went to Spain. In Spain, people stay up later. They don’t eat dinner until 10 or 11 at night. My sister lived with a family there this summer and she said that at midnight the whole town would be at the town square hanging out. She said that whole families with young children were out. It is just a cultural difference which I think is really cool.

post # 5- A poem we find beautiful

" Soul Meets Body" - Death Cab for Cutie

http://www.songmeanings.net/lyric.php?lid=3530822107858549428

I want to live where soul meets body
And let the sun wrap its arms around me
And bathe my skin in water cool and cleansing
And feel, feel what it's like to be new

Because in my head there's a Greyhound station
Where I send my thoughts to far-off destinations
So they may have a chance of finding a place
Where they're far more suited than here

I cannot guess what we'll discover
When we turn the dirt with our palms cupped like shovels
But I know our filthy hands can wash one another's
And not one speck will remain

I do believe it's true
That there are roads left in both of our shoes
But if the silence takes you
Then I hope it takes me too
So, brown eyes, I'll hold you near
Because you're the only song I want to hear
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere

Where soul meets body

1. I selected this song because I think that the lyrics have poetic merit. I think that the way the song is phrased is interesting. For example I love the line, "I do believe it's true, that there are roads left in both of our shoes". I like that line because I think it is cleverly written. You usually think of shoes walking on roads and deciding which ones to walk, not roads controlling where the shoes walk.

2. I think the title works with the song. To me, the song's imagery and lyrics all depict finding comfort, contentment or peace in life. I think that "Soul meets body" expresses the wish of finding happiness and contentment.

3. I like the metaphor of comparing your thoughts to a grey hound station that can be easily cast away. I think that it is interesting thinking about getting away from all of your thoughts. If someone is so uncomfortable or tired of his/her thoughts that he/she wants to completely rid them from the mind, then the grey hound station is a good metaphor for sending them away. Because the purpose of those stations is to leave somewhere far away, I think this metaphor is a good depiction of leaving your thoughts. I also like the metaphor of searching for something about yourself to turning dirt over. The idea of using your hands to dig in the ground illustrates an image of excitment and curiosity to find something new.

4. I think that then general tone in this poem is comfort and tranquility.  All of the words and images are very peaceful and calm.  Also the ideas are very comforting.  For example, the image of the sun wrapping its arms around him is a very comforting and calm image.  Or the image of the water being cool and cleansing illustrates a calming situation.  

Post # 4

1.) Myself as a writer. I enjoy reading poetry and short stories. I do not enjoy reading plays, however, I like watching plays. I also like to read novels but I am a really slow reader so sometimes longer stories are hard for me to stick with. I like to write short stories though. I enjoy writing outside of school a lot. It all depends on how much free time I have though. I write more in the summer time or on vacations when there are not a lot of definite plans. Topics that most intrigue me are interactions between strangers. That seems rather broad and random but I think you can learn so much from the people that you do not even know and I enjoy exploring different ways of that.

2.) I was not here to get the writing territories sheet so I decided to pick a random topic. The topic that I pick to write about is my grandma.

I walked into the yellow room with intense sunshine coloring the walls and surfaces in white light. My grandma ushers me to a mint green couch and I take my seat. The apartment still smells of fresh paint.  Today is another day in the nursing home.  

"Kelsey, so tell me."  She pats my hand.  "How are things in your life?"  A high pitch sound starts to beep.  Two nurses come in through the door.  

"Where is he?"

"He is sitting in the other room," my grandma said.  The two nurses walk swiftly into the other room.

"Is grandpa still having problems?"

"Oh yes.  That man is so strong, he will get through it."

"Yeah he is," ushering to a painting of a man above the tv, "that is such a good place for that gram."

"Thank you.  I thought so too.  Where did I get that again?"

". . . Mark painted it grandma.  Your son."

"Oh right, yes how is Mark?"

Post # 3

1. I surprisingly enjoyed writing in the play format. I liked how there was so much room for creativity with the stage directions. I thought it was cool how you were totally in charge of how the story was to be acted out. It is amazing how much a story can change depending on the set, delivery of the lines etc. There were some aspects of play format that I found frustrating. For example, I usually write with a lot of description and not as much dialogue. It was frustrating to me to focus mainly on the dialogue. It also frustrated me that I could not display or explicitly say a character's thoughts or reactions.

2. If it were to give a ten year old advice about growing up in this world, this is what it would be. I would stress the importance of accepting, and more importantly respecting who you are. It is wasted energy trying to be someone you are not, or trying to silence something that comes natural to you in order to conform to how others act. In my own experience, I have found that everyone is innately very different- there is not point in trying to cover that up. I think it is sad when you see someone with potential in something and they do not embrace it because they feel different.

3. It amazes me when literary works written hundreds of years ago, are still present in people’s reading lists. I think that what makes literary works last so long are the storyline and the lessons that are behind it. I think that the collaboration of good technique (sentence structure and how something is written) and honest exploration behind human behavior makes great literature. By “exploration behind human behavior” I mean that the author explores how humans perceive things, react towards things or think. I cannot foresee my writing lasting in a hundred years.

Post #2- Luigi Pirandello

1.) Theme is very important in what you write. The theme is the substance to your writing- it is the reason writing is written. The point to any writing is for the writer to try to and express ideas with his/her reader. The theme and ideas in writing can teach the reader valuable lessons on how and how not to act. A piece of writing is great when it makes its readers think about ideas or examples in a new and interesting way. For example, I think that the novel "The Great Gatsby" is a great piece of writing because it makes you take a deeper look at the socialite society that Daisy and Tom live in.

2.) I am not sure about the theme that I might consider writing about in my play yet. I find it more interesting to read about character who have internal conflicts. I think that reading about characters who have self vs. self conflicts is interesting to read sometimes because it is more subtle and the audience gets to see how the internal struggle in a character affects them on the outside. For example, if the audience can know the characters inner thoughts and insecurities it is interesting to see how that character reacts in situations and with other characters. I have not decided what kind of a theme I am going to write, but I know that I want to have a self vs. self conflict.

3.) I already addressed what type of conflict I am going to write about (self vs. self) but I am not sure the exact conflicts I am going to write about. Some possible conflict ideas could be the character struggling to accept another character's personality, opinions, culture, etc. Another possible internal conflict could be the character's insecurity with themselves and then the audience could see how the character deals with that on the outside.