Captured Thought: Oh crap. I'm going to graduate soon.

          It's so damn weird. I've always been used to being in the same community of the same kids- or most of them at least- since kindergarden surrounding me in the same grade. People whose faces have transformed from little first graders to young adults so gradually that I never noticed until I looked at old video tapes of elementary school performances; we all have grown into ourselves. Now we will be going all of our separate ways; some going off to college far away, and starting their lives. I sort of feel like I'm going to be left behind, as I'm staying and going to Oakton for my post-high school education. Other than (hopefully) working a lot and going to school a couple days a week, nothing will change much for me.
          I'm sad that my friends and I will drift apart, as it's already happening. I can only hope that their memories of me will be fond ones, and that their minds will drift to me once in a while. I really don't want to be forgotten by people I have felt so close to at some point in my life. I also hope that they make the right decisions when on their own, I want all of my friends and loved ones to live to their fullest potential. And I suppose I should follow my own advice. I need to come out of the shell of my bedroom, break away from the video game consoles, get things done for once, meet people, and live my life to my fullest potential. All I can say to everyone is good luck with their journeys. Live long and prosper.

           I shall part with a happy image:

                                                                                                              

Inconvenient Truth: Things Can't Always Go Your Way

          I know this may be an obvious statement to some, but it still saddens me. There are many times things haven't gone my way; my prayers and hopes for my best friends' mom's cancer to go into remission and for 
her to live to see her daughters grow up (reading that sentiment from my 8th grade self's letter brought me to 
tears), plans never going right in the end, my continuous hopes for my next birthday to be a happy and 
eventful one (I become increasingly pessimistic for my 18th- my golden birthday next week) and I feel that 
my future may become something completely different from what I want it to be. 
          
           Sometimes this inconvenient truth is a necessary and beneficial lesson to learn in order to become more appreciative of when things do go right, but somedays, I wish things would go differently. But I realize that things happen for a reason. I feel there is no alternative, yet I feel there isn't any predestination either. Things just end up a certain way, and there's no going back into the past. All we can do is hope for the best in the end. I remember my past self crying into my friends' mother's arms when I really weighed the fact that she 
could die soon and telling her that I hope things work out for the best in the end. I would like to think they did. If we think of all the what if's in our lives, we may come up with creative ideas of what could've been, but in the end, nothing will come of it. Still, I've had so many dreams at night where she was just there in the living
 room and I comment on the fact that she should be dead, but she just shrugs it off and we continue talking like we used to. During those dreams, it feels like a known fact that she's not dead. I feel like a part of myself- my past- is restored and I feel at peace.

         And that's what we need to do with the inconvenient truth of things not always going our way: just
make peace with it and carry on.

Blogging Around #3

I first commented on Hana's blog entry about life before the internet. Her reflection on this Do You Mind? question brought back some nostolgic memories:

"I had completely forgotten about KidPix. God, I remember being in the computer lab at Westbrook with Miss Kemper teaching us how to use it. I think I still have a printout of one of my drawings. Thanks for reminding me of a great childhood memory. I don't think we necessarily block these memories, we just store them away in a little time capsule in our brains, which makes rediscovering them even more thrilling and comforting as we remember the little things that made us who we are today."

I then commented on Kayvon's blog entry about the misleading phrase, "America: Land of the Free":

"I feel the whole "Land of the Free" phrase is nothing but a slogan that gets slapped on T-shirts, bumper stickers, magnets; pretty much any sort of purchasable merchandise that the blindly patriotic people just eat up- especially around the 4th of July. I really dislike it when a person uses that phrase to describe the United States of America and they do not take this country's history of hypocrisy and outright denial of a citizen's basic rights into consideration. I don't know. It's just another slogan used by the willingly ignorant. But hell, who am I to judge? I used to be one of those kids who believed whatever was said by an authority figure. For all I know, I may still be one. One can never be too sure."

Best of Week: Copyright Laws Stifling Creativity

          Spencer's TED Presentation really got me to start rethinking the whole crusade on copyright infringement. I believe that using someone's work without giving them any credit whatsoever is wrong, but cracking down on people making fan videos- even when they credit them- is rediculous too. I also never really took into consideration that copyright laws make the younger generation fearful of taking something existing and building off of it and creating something new. The way people who create mashups or use someone's work to make something their own are criminalized, I begin to wonder to what extent are people allowed to be creative. I believe it's fine to prosecute people who actually steal an artist's work and sell it as their own, because if someone did that to my work, I'd be extremely pissed off too, especially taking my crappy financial situation into account, because I worked my ass off on it, and it's wrong for someone to take complete credit for something they did not do. But personally, as long as they are not claiming that they created my work and they credit my work, just a name drop will do, I don't mind a little publicity, and it is flattering to see your hard work inspire something new and incredible. Still, I enjoyed Spencer's presentation, and he did a wonderful job with it. If Mr. Allen doesn't give him an A+, I'll be severely disappointed.

Mashup: Sexuality and Gender

Mash-up: Sexuality and gender

Females and Sexuality: Why is something natural, beautiful, and human so misunderstood by society?

1.)

2.)   Bodily delight is a sensory experience, not any different from pure looking or the pure feeling with which a beautiful fruit fills the tongue; it is a great, an infinite learning that is given to us, a knowledge of the world, the fullness and splendor of all knowledge.

3.) 

4.)   Man and woman, freed from all mistaken feelings and aversions, will seek each other not as opposites but as brother and sister, as neighbors, and will unite as human beings, in order to bear in common, simply, earnestly, and patiently, the heavy sex that has been laid upon them.

5.) How can they find a way out of themselves, out of the depths of their already buried solitude?

6.) There is a realm above this plane of silent compromise.

7.)        Women, have unique talents and emotional lives that have been relatively neglected for centuries, and are only now beginning to find full expression within the mainstream culture.

8.) 

9.)  Women, in whom life lingers and dwells more immediately, more fruitfully, and more confidently, must surely have become riper and more human in their depths than light, easygoing man, who is not pulled down beneath the surface of life by the weight of any bodily fruit and who, arrogant and hasty, undervalues what he thinks he loves.

10.)          

11.)   This humanity of woman, carried in her womb through all her suffering and humiliation, will come to light when she has stripped off the conventions of mere femaleness in the transformations of her outward status…

12.)   

13.)     A monster threatens humanity, appearing as the serpent demon (Satan writhing at the bottom of hell), dragon, gorgon, golem, vampire.

14.)      Perhaps all the dragons in our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see us act, just once, with beauty and courage.

Cited Sources

1.)                Nyugen, Khoi (BlackJack0919 on deviantart.com) “Mr Mrs Apple” http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2010/269/d/5/mr_mrs_apple_by_blackjack0919-d2ziiqq.jpg

2.) Rilke, Rainer Maria. Letters to a Young Poet. 2001 Modern Library Edition. Modern Library, Print. (36)

3.) Trini (artificialXkisses on deviantart.com) “Boy Girl” http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2011/005/5/1/boy_girl_by_artificialxkisses-d36h8bo.jpg

4.) Rilke, Rainer Maria. (41)

5.) Rilke, Rainer Maria. (73)

6.) Updike, John. “The Angels”.

7.) Wilson, Edward O. Consilience. Print. (234)

8.) Hughes, Adam. “Women of DC”. http://adamhughes.deviantart.com/art/Women-of-DC-91401295

9.) Rilke, Rainer Maria. (76-77)

10.)              Screenshots from Batman Returns http://distractionsoflola.tumblr.com/photo/1280/595439262/1/tumblr_l294ualm9z1qa2ylw

11.)              Rilke, Rainer Maria. (77)

12.)              Concept art of Poison Ivy from Batman: Arkham Asylum http://api.ning.com/files/6KdPbS4y5nxf4p-FAPbmuZGTGoTkJzHxOpflm4d1uzfFq6if4k8lgHH2tafqP8L8FKEgtWmJRL-0aiYkPoyc83LVlxhpTFYi/poisonIVYbatmanarkhamasylum.jpg

13.)              Wilson, Edward O. (244)

14.)              Rilke, Rainer Maria. (92)

Best of Week: Kyle Jung asking Stephanie Gordon to Prom

I know this isn't a subject we legitimately discussed in class, but I thought it was really cool how Kyle set up the Do You Mind??!! question with Mr. Allen to ask Stephanie to Prom. That's the second time I've seen an example of spontaneity and creativity in using Humanities class to ask someone to an important social event. I especially enjoy seeing how creative people get just to ask someone to do something with them, whether it be a dance, a date, marriage, or anything sappy and sweet. I can't help but smile when I see people take risks and put themselves out on a limb publicly like in the case of asking someone to a dance, and sometimes I wish I had the courage to take initiative and do something like ask someone to Turnabout or Prom. But Prom costs money, which is something I lack, and I am a bit too awkward and shy to ask someone I barely know to hang out, and I've sort of given up on being very social, so I'll probably just continue my routine of staying home and playing video games. Perhaps I'm just a late bloomer.

Blogging Around #2

First I stopped by Spencer's Captured Thought blog entry about his fear of singing publicly and I felt I could relate to his plight:

"I sort of have this same fear. And when I do sing in public (or at least around a group of friends), I sing in an over-embellished voice in order to portray myself as silly and try to get people to believe that I don't take myself seriously. I could never do a serious vocal solo because I just lack the confidence to even do one. My voice cracks, I lose breath very easily, and it's just safer for me to act like a fool who doesn't care because I fear judgement. I congratulate you and wish you luck in conquering your fear.
~The Lizard"

Then, I stopped by Marlee's Captured Thought blog entry about documenting at least one unusual event in your day, which I thought to be a great idea:

"Huh. I never thought of that before, at least about documenting strange moments, even if one sentence. Each day blends together with the next and I feel like I can't differentiate between events, or if there even were any. It feels like I'm sleeping all the time, and I'm sleepwalking through life. Maybe I'll try out this method of recording unusual happenings.
4/22/11
Today I found out that it turns out I didn't destroy ALL my playpens as a toddler (about 3), but rather the last one, my brother broke while he got in to take a nap with me. He was 9 years old at the time. Go figure. My parents don't know about this.
The things you learn.
~Liz"