His Dark Materials, My Daemon

Daemons are made up creature by Pullman, they're not real, however, everyone has one? It's the reflection of the soul, shown on the outside of the body, so naturally it's always with you, one must depend on their soul...Each daemon is different, in personality as well as form. I find it interesting that the daemon is not a direct reflection of its body counterpart, but can be more timid or more out spoken, varying with every one. Also, it makes sense that in the novel, a person cannot be too far away from their daemon without feeling pain, or a discomfort rather, which makes sense literally, because if a real human was without one's soul, they would feel incomplete and in fact not exist as a whole person, who is not a person at all. Of course I understand that is my soul which is my daemon, however, to fit in with the novel, I decided to choose and animal that would be my daemon....and I chose my cat, because I love cats, especially

mine, and I hate being away from her, and she is very comforting to me, as I am to her :) Here is picture of my daemon Izzy....she is 15 years old, and still plays like a kitten! Enjoy!

Group #2 Presentation

I hope you all enjoyed our project presentation today. It was a little far fetched, but I think everyone followed along coherently for the most part. I'm glad everyone laughed and had a good time with our pictures, however, I do feel like we should have added another bullet to our opening WARNING page....something to give you all a heads up about the giant ugly drug sniffing Dorothy picture that will no doubt catch you off guard! I was a little embarrassed :) But, I am proud of our end result. Dr. Sexson was right when he said that it takes a lot of man hours to put together something like that....At one point there were four different computers going all reformatting/cropping/adding pictures and around midnight....everything was funny. I'm relieved to know that it wasn't just us that thought it was funny. The most obvious question was how did we come up with that idea? I know it was Ronnie who brought it up at first, we were all a little caught off guard, but as we started to incorporate plot, dialogue, and characters...it all started to fall into place. It was interesting how the random background in our pictures ended up being extremely important....such as the brass lion behind out character playing the part of the cowardly lion. The tin man was played by the overworked business man, and the scarecrow was played by the stripper who wanted to go to school...to get a brain. Also, the wicked witches bicycle was hanging from the ceiling of the Hauf. It all came together perfectly...and I am glad it's over.

Is Dust God?

What is the point of dust in Philip Pullman's trilogy? Did he write dust to be something in particular? From my research about the function of Dust in these novels, the general consensus is that Pullman wrote it making dust act as a godlike figure, saying that "Pullman has portrayed the true God, in the form of Dust. Dust is the unseen but always present representation of love, conscious thought, and free will. It is what makes us human beings." (http://www.facingthechallenge.org/ppfaq03.php) This idea is helpful for a better understanding of the novel. The fact that we know Pullman is unsure about God and his existence, however in his books, "he makes a clear connection between the God described in the Bible and 'the Author." The idea of dust in these books, in my opinion, does stand for some higher, all knowing, which in a way is what God is, but I don't think its meant to be a god. Dust is only one of the many confusing elements in this trilogy that can be tweaked, questioned, and defined with multiple definitions and ways of functioning....to each his own!

How to read the Alethiometer....

I found actual directions on how to read the alethiometer on one of the "His Dark Material" websites. Its all a little hard for me to grasp because after all, it doesn't really exist, and I have a hard time wrapping my head around trying to understand how something imaginary works....But I'm trying. So basically, any question can be found an answer which will be given by the close reading of three symbols. They gave the example of "Should I marry now, or wait for a year? would be expressed by means of the bird (third meaning, marriage, because birds mate for life), the hourglass (tenth meaning, a year), and the horse (fifth meaning, constancy)." The person asking the question will move the pointers until it points to a symbol. Then I start to lose grasp of using the tool because it is a mental process to complete the use of the tool. The directions described say that the "inquirer must endeavor to hold in his or her mind a clear picture of where each of the meanings comes in its range. Evoking the image of ladders with rungs extending downward is sometimes advised by skilled practitioners of alethiometry. Picture three ladders side by side, each rung being one meaning in the range, and mark distinctly the rungs corresponding to the meanings you intend - for example, by imagining a bright light shining on them, or ribbons tied around them, or by covering them in gold leaf." So...once you have this class system of questions and answers plotted out, the questioner must hold this image in their head while moving the pointers into their position (I'm not sure what position that is however.) As soon as the question is asked the "needle" will navigate around the dial while the questioner watches intently :) They need to be watching each and every stop the pointer makes on each symbol, and also how many times it stops on specific ones. This is because "the number of times corresponds to the place of the intended meaning in the symbol's range. For example, the question above might receive an answer in which the needle stopped at chameleon three times, walled garden seven times, baby five times, madonna nine times, sword six times, bull two times, ant ten times, and bird three times. By noting the pauses carefully and consulting the books of readings, the inquirer would discover the following meanings: "wait", "allow", "fail", "love", "not", "strong", "sustain", and "marriage." After the reader carefully notes all the symbols, then they must consult the book for the meanings and THEN figure out how to put together all of the random words to make an answer to the question asked. This tool reaches the answer immediately and also mostly only answers the questions asked one time. I don't think that I would be a good user of this tool, I'm not quick enough and I'm sure my memory would betray me with all of the stops the hand would make on multiple symbols, I would lose track, and my answer would not be what was meant to be. The web pages sums it up nicely, saying that the "alethiometer supplies the semantic content of a message, and the mind of the inquirer supplies the grammatical connections between the individual elements." You cant have one of those talents and not the other, they go hand in hand for success in using this tool. While thinking about the Alethiometer being real, I decided that I didn't like the idea of having something that answered questions, like an all knowing higher being...I think we're all better off being naive and I actually enjoy not knowing what's going to happen next. Besides, we can always just use the magic eight ball and Taylor's sheep bones for the really tough, life changing questions:)

Sexson Exam 2 Questions

ENDINGS:
Snow White: the wicked woman had to wear the heated iron slippers and danced until she dropped dead.
Sleeping Beauty: Everything and everybody awoke, she married the prince and they live out their days in happiness.
Rapunzel: She had twins, a boy and a girl. The prince followed her voice, she cried in happiness and her tears healed his eyes, they lived in happiness and good cheer.
The Frog Prince: The coach falling apart noise, but it was only the master, being set free
Rumpelstililtskin: They guessed his name, he stomped his foot into the floor, and ripped himself in two.
Jack and the Beanstalk: Jack and his mother showed the harp, sold the eggs, and became very rich, married a great princess, and lived happily ever after.

ALSO NEED TO KNOW THE CHAPTERS:
Humpty Dumpty:
Wool and Water:
Tweedles:
Caterpillar:
Moral of the Story:


- The illustrator of the Alice books? Tenniel
- The last word of the Tatar Beauty and the Beast? Virtue
- Who wins after death? The worm…triumph over the worm? Groucho Marx…inevitably
art wins mortality
- Oscar Wilde says, “Life imitates______? Art
- The 5 themes of class? Myth, Dreams, Coincidence, Art, and History
- Who is the white knight? Lewis Carroll
- What is the counter part to “how doth the little busy bee”? ___”how doth the crocodile”
- What beautiful food does the mock turtle sing to Alice about? Soup
- Why is a raven like a writing desk? “I haven’t the slightest idea
- Who is the most quoted after Shakespeare? Lewis Carroll
- ________ depersonalized __________. And __________ is a personalized _________
- Portmanteau? Who is Alice explained? Humpty Dumpty
- Who is the rudest of all the flowers? The violet
- The word animated contains what word meaning soul? Anime
- Who is the volcano? Alice
- Where does Alice live w/in all of us? Collective Unconscious (the dust)
- After 1st drink, what height does Alice shrink to? 10 inches tall
- The title of the deleted chpt. of “Through the Looking Glass”? The Wasp and the Wig
- How does Alice offend the mouse? Bringing up the subject of cats
- During protestant ref. what’s the main idea behind children’s lit? To teach moral values
- The 1st bible is published in what language? Algonquin
- Before Darwin, what 2 animals spark ideas about evolution? Mammoth and Monkey
- What invention had an impact on the protestant reformation? The Gutenberg
- Mad hatter mad b/c of mercury in their hat bands is ____? Misplaced concreteness
- What does the white rabbit drop that scares Alice? White gloves and Fan
- What do beauties tears in the film we watched in class turn into? Diamonds
- When reading, trust the _____ not the ______. Tale not the Teller.
- Lewis Carroll’s nickname inspired what character? He stuttered his last name “dodo”
- “I’m interested b/c its interesting” is the rhetorical form for ____? A Tautology
- Goodie 2 shoes is an emblem for ______ perfection that adults lack? Perfection
- Tweedels response to “If I’m a dream, what are you?” Ditti, ditto, ditto
- What causes the walrus and carpenter to leap? A pig with wings (rebecca’s dream)
- Main theme of English class is to look at the _____side of things? Dark
- Most prolific serial killer in 19th cent history? Mary Ann Cotton
- Who were the 2 prominent ghosts in Sunderland? Sid James, and the White Lady
- What legend does Talbot say the Jaberwocky poem comes from? The Lampton Worm
- What is the entire last line in Alice? “Life, what is it but a dream”?
- The 1st letters of the Alice poem spell a name, it’s an example of a? Acrostic
- Walter Pater said, “All art aspires to the condition of _______? Music
- From my book and heart film, “The text informs _______”? Reality

Alice related to Deams

In class today I was looking through my Alice in Wonderland book, just at random....it's interesting that this is the type of book that even though you have already read it, possibly many times, and you know what will come next, a reader can still start somewhere at random, and get sucked in to turning page after page, as if it is all very new.......I stumbled upon something in the very beginning of the story, and it reminded of the dreams that we have been discussing in class.

"There was nothing so very remarkable in that; nor did Alice think it so very much out of the way to hear the Rabbit say to itself 'Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!' (When she thought it over afterwards it occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the time it all seemed quite natural)"

This fact of seeing or experiencing something out of the ordinary and not thinking it strange at all.....is something that I live for. It depends on the profession. Sitting here at my work desk it would be extremely odd to see a man walk in the office with a bloody hand and the cut off finger in a plastic baggy of ice, however for the front desk clerk at the hospital, it would be just another day at the office.....and in a dream, a talking rabbit with a pocket watch seems natural, and in my dream blindness without it being blindness is just as normal as seeing, and when my sight returns, still nothing seems out of the ordinary. It is when we wake up that we think it strange, and the imagination/fun/horror/ new friend is gone. Moral of the story....sleep more, you can dream more, and not think the world is so strange!

Alice in Wonderland Chapter Pick

I know that the chapter I chose as my favorite is a very well known chapter, but it does not make it any less of my favorite. I have always loved the "Advice from a Caterpillar" chapter, but mostly because it was the one chapter that truly hit the core of my annoyance. I can relate to Alice in this chapter because I have met a person who responds and reacts to questions and a general conversation much like the caterpillar in this chapter. I think it is interesting how towards the end of their conversation, Alice's patience for waiting for him to stop smoking and hear what non sense he had to say grew.....mine with me encounter however, did not grow. The mere idea of someone asking the same question as you, or skirting around the question asked, or not even talking about the same thing you were.....drives me crazy. I like an absolute solution at the end of my encounters with people, there is not one with the caterpillar, he crawls off with a comment hanging in the air. All in all though, the chapter is important, and would not be the same book without it, however, it still drives me nuts!!! Answer a question without a question!!!! :)

Dream Land

There are many different theories as to why dreams happen....because its your inner want and desire, your deep down fears, something you read or saw right before you fell asleep....and my personal favorite, something you ate before climbing into bed. Alfred Alder says "...dreams were a way of addressing our insecurities. In a dream we can safely face things that would otherwise scare us. We can try out strategies for overcoming our shortcomings or simply compensate for them via wish-fulfillment." I have a dream interpreting book, which I almost never rely on because everything according to it is related back to sex. Climbing the stairs, mailing a letter, making your bed.....all sexual, it's entertaining to thumb through, but I don't trust it. Now, here is my dream:

I am walking around somewhere outside, I can tell it's day time and a nice day, however I cannot see. I'm not blind though, its a feeling of still being asleep but trying and trying to wake up...I'm walking around and my eyes wont open....in my dream this feeling was making me anxious, but at the same time seemed to be a normal occurrence. I was walking slowly beside the fence, with both my hands using the fence as a guide. Then I heard something behind me, the steps were brushing past the grass and the steps quickened. The foot steps were at a full run, I was scared and decided to start running to. I ran and let go of the fence, I dont remember the transgression or why or how it happened, but I was running up to the front doors of random peoples houses and I could see again, but it wasn't celebrated...almost like there was no difference between the before blindness and after....I was relentlessly banging and screaming on the door for them to let me in, but no one came. I ran in the back yard, over a fence and in the back door of another house, I just walked right in, crying and out of breath and begging the man to hide me and protect me, I cant place the man, but I do know that the sense I got from him was that in my dream he was familiar and I knew him, although I cant tell you who it was now that I'm awake. The chaser, man? animal? I never find out, but it finds me and we both start running, and we run to the bathroom and shut the door behind us, I lie panting on the bathroom floor, and wake up. This dream is odd for me, mostly because it was one of the most normal dreams I've ever had, and also because most of my dreams are about animals being abused, and almost never involve me, but I am a third person watching from some other place where the abusers cant hear or see me, and I am helpless.....fun huh? And just in case this contributes....I had a glass of chocolate milk and some spaghetti at 12:30 after I finished my homework. Dream on Dreamers!

Possible Paper Topics

I had not thought about my paper topic until I was put on the spot in class, and am now suddenly stressed thinking about the wizard of oz project and now researching for this paper....but all stress aside.....I think I will be writing my paper on how mythological stories and characters function children's literature. I have not even started looking into it yet, but it's nice to have an idea!

My Book and Heart Shall Never Part

I was very excited to see this movie....it was a long thursday, and I couldnt wait to sit, relax and watch it. It was not quite what I had expected. I think I was looking forward to a cornucopia of fairy tales and Dr. Sexson's granddaughter jumping into the character of each fairy tale and perhaps changing the view of it from a different perspective. There were some elements of this, however it was more generally concentrated towards the history of books and childrens learning; which was very interesting. I really enjoyed seeing how the old books were covered, from recycled wall paper, to actual boards. I would love to stumble upon one of these books, and the scrap book that contained the amazing nature drawings....they were beautiful. It was also interesting to learn that the letter J was missing in some of the first accounts of the alphabet...what the world be like today with the J? June? July?...Our summer would be non-existent! :) My favorite part of the movie was when Sexson's granddaughter gets married and she has "grown into a fine young lady" ...its funny....and then the shoe gets left behind! I did hear the question, "what is a child and I strained my ears for the long awaited answer...but I never did hear one....perhaps I missed it because I was distracted by someones beer can rolling down through the isles....! The movie was great, and I learned something, what more could I ask for...Cake! Which was good as well.

Fairytale Song, by Sara Bareilles

This song has been one of my favorites since it came out, and it only just occurred to me yesterday how well it fit in with out class. It's interesting because Cinderella isn't waiting for her prince, she daydreaming about a commoner, Sleeping Beauty is grumpy and wants nothing to do with her prince, Rapunzel wants to cut her hair so he cant get to her... because the general consensus is that these prince figures are a waste of time, and these women have better things to do then wait around on men :)Look it up if you get a chance!

"Fairytale"

Cinderella's on her bedroom floor
She's got a Crush on the guy at the liquor store
Cause Mr. Charming don't come home anymore
And she forgets why she came here
Sleeping Beauty's in a foul mood
For shame she saysNone for you dear prince,
I'm tired todayI'd rather sleep my whole life away
than have you keep me from dreaming

[Chorus:]
'cause I don't care for your fairytales
You're so worried about the maiden
though you knowShe's only waiting on the next best thing

Snow White is doing dishes again cause
What else can you doWith seven itty-bitty men?
Sends them to bed and calls up a friend
Says will you meet me at midnight?
The tall blonde lets out a cry of despair says
Would have cut it myself if I knew men could climb hair
I'll have to find another tower somewhere and keep away from the windows

[Chorus]

Once upon a time in a faraway kingdom
Man made up a story said that I should believe him
Go and tell your white knight that he's handsome in hindsight
But I don't want the next best thing
So I sing and hold my head down and
I break these walls round me
Can't take no more of your fairytale love

[Chorus]

I don't care, I don't care
Worry bout the maiden though you know
She's only waiting
spent the whole life being graded on
the sanctity of patience and a dumb Appreciation
But the story needs some mending and a better happy ending
Cause I don't want the next best thing
No no I don't want the next best thing

Cinderella Rebuttle

Look at the pretty woman walking down the street
All she is for you is a conquered feat
She is a gorgeous as can be
But past her beauty can't you see?
She portrays smarts of every kind
But intelligence in you she cannot find
She is blessed with true beauty and grace
And you are a bad omen to the human race
Your true ugliness shines from inside out
And causes the pretty woman to cry and pout
Because her poor fortune has bestowed her a curse
She prays for a new mate before things get worse
She spends each night pleading, "not tonight man, I've got bad cramps"
And he will leave her be and search for willing tramps
She is exceedingly smart with a angels face as well
She is perfect in every way, or so the moral should tell.

A Closer Look at ToTo

What can I say about ToTo...? He was Dorothy's dog in The Wizard of OZ....and so damn cute! For our class projects that are TOP SECRET...I was looking into this cute little creature and found some interesting info. (I found it on Wiki!!) Perhaps I was out of the loop, but did you know that L. Frank Baum's wrote series of Oz children's books?? I only ever knew there was the one book/movie! In this series ToTo played the part of the hero type...however he was never depicted as speaking. All of the other animals in the series did talk, especially when they reached OZ. At one point in the series it is revealed that he can talk, but instead chooses not to....weird? Then in In The Lost Princess of Oz, he talks a lot. Other major pieces include The Road to Oz, The Emerald City of Oz, Grampa in Oz, and The Magical Mimics in Oz.

Of the actual MGM Film it was said that:

"In the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz, Toto was played by a black Cairn Terrier whose real name was Terry. Terry was paid a $125.00 salary each week, which was far more than many of the human actors (the Singer Midgets who played the Munchkins only received $50.00 a week). Also, Terry was stepped on by one of the witch's guards, and a double had to be used because her foot was broken. The popularity of the movie actually changed her name to Toto, because that was the role she was most remembered for. However, The Wizard of Oz wasn't the only film that Terry played a role. She actually starred in 13 films. She died at age 10." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toto_(dog)

I think I'm going to have to go out and buy me a little yappy terrier to carry around in a basket!

The Triple Goddess

I decided to look into the triple goddess concept and stumbled upon some really interesting stuff....from a web site called "The Witches Way." It says that "The concept of the Great Goddess as The Triple Goddess, young woman (Maiden), birth-giving matron (Mother), and an old woman (Crone), dates from the earliest ages of mankind. " We already knew these titles, but what I didn't know was that these three molds can also be used for the phases of the moon, the Maiden goes along with the new moon....the Mother is paired with the full moon, and the Crone is matched with the waning moon. As we have learned in class there is no such thing as an original, so it's no surprise that this concept of the triple goddess is used in many different mythologies and all over the world:

"The Vikings had the Norns (Urdu/Verdandi/Skuld), the Romans had the Fortunae (Concordia/Salus/Pax), the druids had Diana Triformis, the Greeks had the Moirae, Graeae, Horae. "

It is said that the Maiden conveys "enchantment, inception, expansion, the female principle, the promise of new beginnings, youth, excitement, and a carefree erotic aura. She is innocent in some ways, but also a seductress who recognizes the power of her sexuality. Maiden goddesses include: Anatha, Brigid, Nimue, Kore, Persephone, Gerd, Caer, Blodeuwedd. Her traditional color is white."

It is said that the Mother portrays "ripeness, fertility, fulfillment, stability, and power. Mother is ripe, full-breasted, at the peak of her womanly powers. She is the one who tenderly rocks the baby, but she is also the lioness who hunts to feed her offspring and will fight to the death to protect them. Mother goddesses include: Aa, Ambika, Anahita, Asherah, Ceres, Coatlicue, Danu, Demeter, Hathor, Ishtar, Isis, Lakshmi, Luonnotar, Nintu, Sheng-Mu. Her traditional color is red."

It is said that the Crone represents "wisdom, retrenchment, repose, and compassion. She is old age, experience, accumulated wisdom and death. She is the gateway to Death, and the guide to Rebirth. Crone goddesses include: Annis, Baba Yaga, Cailleach, Greine, Hel, Maman Brigitte, Oya, Sedna, Skuld, Takotsi, Toci. Her color is black."

There are some Goddesses who embody the triple, these being: "Brigid (Ireland/Celtic), Carmenta or Carmentis (Roman), Hekate or Hecate (Greek/Anatolia), Helice (Greek), Kali (India), the Morrigan (Ireland/Celtic). "

Ideally every woman would be one of these three at some point in their lives...so ideally every one of us women are the triple goddess? And why shouldn't we all be goddesses.... :)

Exam Review

You need to have read The little Mermaid, Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Beauty and the Beast, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Rapunzel, East of the Sun West of the Moon, Blue Beard, and the Juniper Tree. Read the notes along the margins about other versions...

The questions are as follows:
Archetypal lady in Finnegan's wake? The Prank Quean
Portmanteau: alot of meaning packed into one word (ex:) "slithy" slimy and slithery
What are the privileged numbers in fairy tales? #3 and #7
Displaced Concreteness: something that is no original, and can be true in real life (ex:)
hair really could hold the weight of a man.
Type 333 in the index of folk tales belongs to what story? Little Red Riding Hood
Collective Unconscious manifests itself through.....archetypes
"If you're really crafty you'll get them both." said by the wolf in Little Red Riding Hood
What are the 3 parts to the universal quest? Separation, Initiation, and Return
Triple Goddess? The mother, the maiden and the crone
Why is there no original? Because everything is really just displaced myth
What are you recognizing in someone when you bow to them? the divine
The genie in Aladin says "I'm not history, I'm ......" mythology!
The difference between Cinderellas name in the two versions is her name is......? Ash Girl
Motif index, where does Hans my Hedgehog, Beauty and the Beast, fall under? Beast Groom, or
the search for the missing husband.
What story doesn't concern itself with parents trying to conceive? Blue Beard
Mythological mother and daughter duo? Demeter and Persephone
Significance of the blue in blue beards beard? all of the above
The cause of transformation in Beauty and the Beast is due to? Love
How many wives does blue beard have? 7? 4? No body knew
The first talking horses? The golden ass
Why did cupid wake when his wife was looking at him? Hot oil hit his shoulder
The two Sisty Uglers is an example of.....? A Spoonerism
Which poet believed that man knew everything is to know? Wordsworth
What mythical story does beauty and the beast derive from? Cupid and psyche
Whats the moral to blue beard? anti- female, blames the woman for being curious. curiosity kills
few Grimm fairy tales have a witch in them...which one does? Hansel and Gretel
Who wanted to marry little red riding hood? Charles Dickens
What common phrase begins every fairy tale? Once upon a time/ Long Long ago

The Lady of Shalott

The Lady of Shalott lives in an island castle in a river which flows to Camelot, but little is known about her by the local farmers.
She has been cursed, and so must constantly weave a magic web without looking directly out at the world. Instead, she looks into a mirror which reflects the busy road and the people of Camelot which pass by her island.
Then comes "bold Sir Lancelot" as he rides past, and is seen by the lady.
She stops weaving and looks out her window toward Camelot, bringing about the curse.She leaves her tower, finds a boat upon which she writes her name, and floats down the river to Camelot. She dies before arriving at the palace, and among the knights and ladies who see her is Lancelot.

I fell in love with this poem. It was the painting however that caught my attention first. The painting of the Lady of Shalott was the cover to the third volume in out set of British English anthologies....I used to stare at the cover, something about it, it was an escape....to a fairy tale. There was so much going on in it, I was caught up in its beauty. Then, we read a poem in class, and it was beautiful, flowing and imaginative...and heart breaking at the same time, a love story with no happy ending! I wanted a picture of this world that was described....then Kimberly Meyers said that the picture on the front of our text was the actual painting of the Lady of Shalott....I loved them separately without knowing that they belonged together. The poem has remnants of the classic fairy tale.....a prince who is unattainable, a curse to stay in a tower....the beauty in the sadness! For some reason....watching Hans my Hedgehog reminded me of this poem, I think the princess looks like the Lady in Shalott?? I'm not sure what it was that sparked this memory, but it's a beautiful one!

Assignment Questions

A child is pure, as an adult I have a pang of jealousy towards them because they can not see past nap time, they don't have a fear of whats to come with the future or have been tainted by life. They find joy in the ribbon on the gift, and toss the gift aside, they believe in the fat man dressed in red who brings those gifts, they believe that money is easy to come by....just leave your tooth under the pillow, or set up a lemonade stand on the sidewalk....#3.50!!! "We're Rich!" A child is a parents true love.

A book is an escape from life, whether that is a good escape or a torturous escape is up to the reader. A book is a way of life, the key to knowledge and power, and also a weakness if you spend all your life in books, you will never experience the real world around you. Shiny and new, or binding broke and pages wrinkled with the tears it caused, or the water from the tub as is slipped from your fingers....or spilled coffee because you have not slept in two days because it's finals week, a book is open until it is closed.

Nature is......nature. It is the open, the wild and also in a sense the tame, not to the civilized world is it tame, but it is tame in the sense that that is all there ever was, people in nature, they went hand in hand. It is outside, natural, trees and animals, birds and beasts, a night of bad sleep from rolling around in poison ivy with Spot, itchy legs from being eaten alive by giant mosquitoes.....waking with the fresh air, standing, and looking at the amazing view that is painted before you, with the big sky in all its glory, the snow tipped mountains, and the river water so clear you can see the fish. Nature is happiness, peacefulness, its terrifying, and awe inspiring.....a connection to the greater being that is earth.

Why Not Real Stories?

Humpty Dumpty fell off the wall....but what kind of life did he live before he fell off....and why was he sitting up there in the first place? And why are fairy tales, generally, so happy. We all know they're happy, because it's a fairy tale, and I see now as a very much needed escape from real life. I went to a funeral today, obviously sad and had a huge effect on me. He was only 22, already accomplished so much, and was now gone. It's in no way fair. Where are all the kings horses and all the kings men to come and put him together again. Where is the nasty sea witch to cut his siblings hair in order for his life to come back. Where is the fairy god mother to tink her wand on his family and the church filled with mostly young adults all under 25....where is she to make everything better? I suppose there is a fairy tale somewhere hidden in this mess, although I cant think of one now. I had a huge feeling come over me, which often times does when people around you are sad....you want to make them happy....should I have ran to the front of the church, whipped out my large orange fairy tale book and read them a story with a happy ending? Because fairy tales heal all, they help everything, I should have. Maybe the strangeness of it all would have at least taken their minds off of why we were all there. Why don't parents read their children real stories...once upon a time there was a young prince who died, his family and friends were sad and confused, they went home, went back to school, went back to work. They will always remember him. The end. That's not what people want to believe, that's not what I want to believe. And all lived happily ever after! The end. That's what we all deserve.

Ignorant Bliss

You will never in a million years believe this story! Jake was always on his phone, running up the bill to insane amounts and his parents were sick of it. It was a cold day in Los Angeles, and Jake’s dad sent Jake on an errand that lead him to down town L.A where it was very hard to find anything. He gave his son directions that were two pages long and sent him on his way. It took Jake two hours to get to the appliance store to put in an order for their new oven. As he was leaving he realized that he had left his directions on the sales counter and the store clerk had taken them and had just shredded them because they were just left there and he was going to recycle paper that day. Jake remembered that he had on star in his car and would be able to use that to get back home. He had gotten about three turns into his directions when the system shut off, he called to get it turned back on but the lady on the other end of the phone said that his parents had the service shut off. Right then his battery on his phone went dead and they were disconnected. He drove around for hours getting on and off random highways, going down one ways and became lost in the maze of the city. He drove around all night until he ran out of gas in Ghettos, and decided to just lock the door, get some sleep, and look for help in the morning, because he didn’t know what was going to be lurking down the dark shadows of the alley ways. When the morning sun made its appearance Jake began to walk in search of a phone. After five hours of being lost in a town that seemed foreign Jake’s determined steps turned into a trudge until he rounded a corner in the middle of a deserted street and saw something odd, but exactly what he was looking for. It was a little building at the back of a dark alley that was completely covered with all different kinds of cell phone chargers and electric outlets! Jake didn’t give a second thought as he ran up to the building and frantically tugged at and plugged in the different chargers until he found the one that fit his dead phone. Out of a side door walked a hunched over, emaciated Verizon wireless rep with his blue tooth blinking in his right ear. He lured Jake in with an offer to upgrade his text and picture messaging. The door slammed shut behind him! The evil rep made Jake take a survey to get the upgrade. As Jake sat down and started to take the survey and he realized it was less like a survey and more like an exam. It had math, science, English, and computer questions. The rep graded it when Jake was done, it must have been unsatisfactory so the rep handcuffed Jake to the table. For the next few days the evil man lectured on the topics on the “survey” and made Jake take more and more exams saying…”you’re not smart enough yet….study more and I’ll come back to check on you later.” Eventually Jake passed these exams and while the rep was celebrating a piece of paper from his tablet fell to the floor where Jake could read a plan to take his brain from him and use it in experiments! Jake waited until the next morning when the rep un-cuffed him so he could eat some granola, and he did a quick Chinese fighting move and before the rep knew what had happened he was in Jake's place, handcuffed to the table. As revenge Jake turned on the T.V. to an all day marathon of what not to wear so the Verizon wireless nerd became dumber and dumber with each passing commercial. Jake escaped with the reps fully loaded BMW, complete with on star. Jake decided to live technology free because of all the trouble it caused him ,an he lived him ignorant bliss.

No Pebbles No Crust

When I look at this picture.....after reading the tale of Hansel and Gretel.....I am very thankful that my family was able to afford food.....or else my dad would have left us here in this park....and I didn't bring any moon lit pebbles OR crusts of bread!!!

Crazy Cravings

So today our class discussions about the wife longing for the veggies just over the fence reminded me of my mother.....when she was pregnant with me. During this time she had CRAZY CRAVINGS for peanut butter...anything and everything peanut butter! She became so crazy that my father had to go out at all hours of the night to find something along those lines....usually to the local 24 hour filling station for candies.....she said if she didn't get that peanut butter she would just die!!! He would come back and dump the contents of the brown paper sack on the bed and she ate the candies up Ravenously!!!! He never did get caught by the evil keeper of the peanut butter... but the store clerks working the night shift did come to know him well....And all lived happily ever after, and they had a new baby girl to bring home :)

The Hidden Door

I was doing a homework assignment for my crative writing class, and found this ironic peom in the archives of the Valparaiso Poetry Review website:

HIDDEN DOOR, by Jared Carter

The old stories do not end the way you were told.

Hansel and Gretel do not escape from the witch's house;

they decide to stay. Ali Baba does not emerge from the cave,

but enters a subterranean chamber that goes on for miles.
At every juncture there is always a hidden door.

When the characters step through, they enter a realm

having no resemblance to the world the rest of us know.

The old stories are never about what happens next,
but about the glass vial on the table. After days of heat,

you hear three sharp raps, and look out and see

winter coming through the forest—neither rain nor snow,

but a wind stripping the leaves and stiffening the grass.
© by Jared Carter

Do NOT talk to Strainers!

When my brother Cahle and I were youngsters, my parents had a very effective way of disciplining us. They didn't do it all themselves though, they brought the "crusty old man" in as their secret weapon to scare us into listening them!!

At the dinner table my brother and I decided to boycott eating what was for dinner, mostly our vegetables, and we sat there, and sat there, and sat there (meow meow meow meow meow....just kidding Dr. Sexson) Eventually my mother gave up the threats of no bed time story (ironic?) and desert, and resorted to our worst fear as children. She went to the phone..."if you guys wont finish your dinner like good kids, then you don't deserve to live in this nice house with us, you deserve to live with the crusty old man...he wont make you eat your dinner...would you like that? Ill just call him to come and pick you two up....go pack your pillow, while I make the call" She would dial, meanwhile the children at the table were big eyed and silent....."hello....crusty old man, Cassi and Cahle are not listening to me, you would like to have them?" Cahle being the youngest, 6 at this time, started to cry and on the spot....you know, those real big crocodile tears that you were real, me on the other hand...I stayed strong, I didn't cry, but I ate that whole plate of cold broccoli in about 30 seconds and thanked her for dinner....she called the crusty old man back and told him never mind, she would keep us for a while longer. I can't begin to explain how frickin scared I was of this person, to be honest....it still might work!

Pay Pit Doll Pit Doll

Pay Pit Doll Pit Doll

The fat ofend da little

Ta meow lump duh cover da toon

Ta sit tall fog taffed who be much done,

Andy fish rand pay wiggle coon

by Cassi Clampitt

Hey diddle diddle,
The cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon.
The little dog laughed to see such fun,
And the dish ran away with the spoon.

Fairy Tales?

The fairy tale that we read in class was a scary tale!!! I could not imagine reading that to my cousins...or my own children for that matter. I can just see it now...my children would never again eat apples and and would always hide under random objects when outside for fear that the bird flying above them would drop something heavy on them a squish them to the ground!!! Perhaps I will tweak it a bit....later. I can see a pattern for this class, and I am liking it! And now I must retire to my dungeon....or perhaps a library cubical, and read for the next 6 hours...and still not be caught up....senior year is amazing!!! Enjoy the pics :)