Scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream

For a scene I would like to act one containing the actor such as Bottom and Quince. In the first scene they appear in, I would have to act like our troop is talented and skilled. It would be challenging to try to act like an amateur actor that's trying their best to act professionally well. I enjoy the craziness that ensues when they're trying to practice their lines. It wouldn't matter to me who I played in the scene.
I would also like the second time they appear because that's when Puck makes his mischief, turning the head of Bottom to that of a donkey. This scene would display the actor's surprise and distraught, while Bottom remains undeterred, which would be challenging, but fun to act. It once again doesn't matter who I play in the scene, just one of the troop or Puck.
For a scene not containing the actors, I would like to do any part in Act 3 Scene 2. This is the part when both Lysander and Demetrius are spellbound by the flower to love Helena, with the Oberon and Puck behind the scenes. I like this scene because of the interactions between the characters, as well as Puck and King Oberon meddling in their affairs. In this scene I would like to play either Lysander, Demetrius, or Oberon.

FlatWorld Reflection

Our Class participated in a writing project called 1001 Flatworld stories. This is our class reflection on it.

1. What did you like best about the project and why?
I liked that our comments of our story was from many different people with varying viewpoints on writing, it wasn't all the same people with similar thoughts. I also liked that we got to read pieces from over the world and see the way they think.

2. What did you like least and why?
I least liked when people gave either criticism that could be more precise or none at all. It makes it hard for your story to work well if your commenter aren't doing their jobs.
3. What was something surprising that you learned about the other students (from other schools)?
I learned a lot about the areas they live in and what kind of culture they have. In the school in Korea, I read numerous stories containing their cultural food, as well as stories about both the North and South Korea. From the school in Colorado I learned about the favorite pastimes they enjoy on the mainland.

4. How do you think the project affected your writing?
The project altered my writing my introducing me to many different types of styles. There were countless ways a story was introduced, and even more differences on how it was carried out, and I saw some excellent techniques that I could employ myself.

5. Describe the most challenging aspect of the project.
The hardest part in this project was collaborating with people around the world. Since all the variations in timezones, work was often due on different days for everyone, which made it confusing at first. After a few weeks though it became clear what was due on each day.

6. Offer some advice to future participants.
Be sure to read and give comments, and especially give them on time. The commenting is one of the things that makes the Flatworld project unique. You can get feedback from people that have a lot to offer you writing wise. If you don't use their comments your giving up a valuable resource to make your story shine.

7. Other comments.
This project was really fun, and it was great to work with all the people from Colorado and Korea.

Continuation of Bellow Analysis

Bellow from Act 1 acts almost exactly like the Bellow of Act 3. He'd probably look almost the same, considering not much time has gone past since they were last in the play. They have their whole cast, but are still missing most everything of the play. One detail we get from Bellow is that he's a well-respected character in the troop. When talking to Peter Quince, he referred to Bellow as "bully," which in their time (and to my surprise still does) meant worthy or admirable. He seems like a master of play directing compared to everyone else, offering script and scene recommendations to his troop. He still sticks out to me as comic eccentric character as he does very random things when he's not acting. In this Act, like Act 1 he sang another of his self-composed songs. His appearance does change about halfway through the act as Robin changed his face. He thought his entire troop was making fun of him, but he now has the head of the donkey. He never finds this out, but when and if he does I think he'll be distraught. He'll probably even sing a song when he finds out for dramatic effect.
Another part of his character revealed in the Act is how gracious, or at least courteous Bellow is. When meeting the Fairy Queens attendants, he asks for introductions and praises them. This surprised me as he takes on a totally different character when not around his fellow actors. I think Bellow's the kind of person who is rowdy with his friends and polite to people he doesn't know.

Bottom from A Midsummer Night's Dream

Bottom from the Midsummer Night's Dream is first introduced in the casting of a play. He is a weaver and plays the part for Pyramus, the gallant lover who eventually dies. He himself isn't so gallant, from what I ascertain from Bottom's words. If he was to be acted, the actor would have to act like a comic fellow with odd and erratic behavior while not on stage. Here is one example of his behavior,


Bottom What is Pyramus––a lover or a tyrant?
Quince A lover that kills himself most gallant for love.
Bottom That will ask some tears in the true performing of it. If I do, let the audience look to their eyes. I will move storms; I will condole in some measure. To the rest,–– Yet my chief humor is for a tyrant. I could play Ercles rarely, or a part to tear a cat in, to make all split;

The raging rocks And shivering shocks Shall break the locks Of prison gates. And Phibbus' car Shall shine from far And make and mar The foolish Fates. This was lofty. Now name the rest of the players.

I'd imagine he'd look look like a slightly above normal height, with some meat on him with a deep voice. I'd also imagine him to be sweet faced, because of Quince's comment saying that "You can play no part but Pyramus, for Pyramus is a sweet-faced man, a proper man as one shall see in a summer's day" When he is acted, I expect him to be rowdy and also roused by conversation since he likes to word in edgewise on everything that goes on. He might also wobble around a little like he's half drunk because he acts like someone who's had a few drinks. However when he's on stage, he has a complete change of character, acting noble and proper just as how the play asks him to be. He seems like the person to get laughed at because of his behavior, but holding on to them by the shoulders and laughing along so he could share his marriness. The people their probably admire his skill of an actor, but some might not appreciate how he acts off the stage.

Sustainability Survives

Sustainability was a big topic at our school last week Friday. We had a fair displaying all the different ways you can become more sustainable. It also had mind blowing numbers. Did you know if you wanted to power a T.V. with a bicycle it would take five people. Who would have guessed a hair dryer takes twelve times as much energy as that T.V.?
There are different methods to becoming sustainable, from reducing energy use to using alternative methods. One interesting alternate energy form was fuel cells. I'm sure you heard of this before, but just that day I really learned how it works. It takes hydrogen gases, H2 and separates them into two separate hydrogen atoms, creating energy in the process. The hydrogen then mix with oxygen, so the byproduct of fuel cells is water, not CO2 emissions.
It can be very easy to ease up on your CO2 consumption. Biking or commuting with someone 3 days for work would save one ton of CO2 from going into the atmosphere. What I find scary is that an average tree only absorbs 3-15 pounds of CO2 a year. Keep in mind how to keep the world clean, if you are trying to get somewhere close, do you really need to take the car? If you keep sustainability in mind, not only will you be helping the environment, but you'll probably save some money as well. Sure we have a lot of trees and resources on this planet, but with deforestation and increased CO2 pollution, how can the Earth keep up?

Flickering Lights

Yesterday we were sharing ghost stories in class. After hearing the stories, it helped me remember my own strange happenings one Saturday.
My friends and I, along with our families were camping at Bellows, an which is next to the beach. We were staying for two days, and by night we had accumulated a lot of trash that our parents told us to dispose. The trash dumpster was quite a distance away, thankfully our path was lit. There was no one else out, save for a passing car. As the building entered our sight, a soft wind started blowing. As we got closer, the wind got stronger, and when we were twenty yards away a can made a clink as it fell down and rolled on the ground. The building in question was lit by two lights, one on either side, the left flickering. The dumpster was past the light, with only darkness where the beach should be behind it. We stopped in front, as we were getting chills. The whole time the light was going on and off, on and off, but a moment after we paused the light turned off. We then noticed the stars. They were shining not the usual white starlight, instead all of them were shimmering hues of red, green, blue and white. Sincierly freaked out by now, we ran to the right side, where the light still worked, dropped the bag and fleed. As we looked back, the light on the left was back on, perfectly fine. The weird thing is the light was a halogen bulb, the kind that take a minute or five to turn on. We made it back to the campsite safe, the wind was still.

Woman Warrior Word Definitions

These are some words definitions from Woman Warrior which you many not know.

commune (p.50):A relatively small, often rural community whose members share common interests, work, and income and often own property collectively. A relatively small, often rural community whose members share common interests, work, and income and often own property collectively.

Three-legged toad: A symbol of good wealth and fortune

Javanese (27): of or pertaining to the island of Java, its people, or their language (Java is an island off the coast of Indonesia).

quarry (26): an excavation or pit, usually open to the air, from which building stone, slate, or the like, is obtained by cutting, blasting, etc.

goodly: of good or substantial size, amount, etc.

palanquin: (formerly in India and other Eastern countries) a passenger conveyance, usually for one person, consisting of a covered or boxlike litter carried by means of poles resting on the shoulders of several men.

idiom (53):A speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements, as in keep tabs on.

fontanel (40): one of the spaces, covered by membrane, between the bones of the fetal or young skull.

palpable (41) 1. readily or plainly seen, heard, perceived, etc.; obvious; evident
2. capable of being touched or felt; tangible.

collared (44): To seize or detain. (slang)

deigned (48)
To think it appropriate to one's dignity; condescend

A Valued Hero

Mr. Watson gave us for homework the task to write about a superhero that is someone whose characteristics you value. The superhero that I think has great values is Spider-Man, a wall crawling, and web-slinging guy, but also a hero with high morals.
Spider-Man's true identity is Peter Parker, and he is close to the exact opposite of his alter ego. He isn't always a superhero, but is there when someone is in trouble. His ability to be both a superhero and a normal person is something I value, because it shows that although Spider-Man is a super hero, he is a normal person at heart and he knows that. This value of his I also value because it is a reminder to be humble, and no matter what you do, you are also the same as everyone else.
Another quality that Spider-Man does unconsciously is helping people that are in need of it. Even when he's fighting his super-villains, if he sees someone in danger, he doesn't give a second thought. Usually for me if someone is in need of help I try my best to give him or her assistance.
Spider-Man is a great person, even though he isn't real. He was created to be an entertaining character, but ends up like many super heroes by showing values and morals on how to be a good guy, not one of the villains.

6 Methods of Characterization

We learned about 6 ways to characterize characters in a story. Our homework was to characterize our story from the other night.

Apperance: My story to tell is about my cousin Chucky. He is about 6 years older than I am. His hair is of reativly short length, neat and tidy, and he wears glasses. Chucky is pretty thin and probably a little taller than the average height, and 2/3 Chinese.

Inner thought/Feeling: He showed a look of surprise, then it turned to a worried face before he rushed to the garden outside.

What they say:"Have you seen my rat around?" Chucky asked his mother.
"Yes," she answered, "I threw him out in the garden."

Enviroment:His mother, my aunt is a school teacher. Chucky's father lives on the Big Island with his grandfather.

Actions: He showed a look of surprise, then it turned to a worried face before he rushed to the garden outside.

The Author of The Woman Warrior

We are discussing the Woman Warrior in class. The story so far doesn't talk about the author directly; instead it is written about the aunt. A question our teacher asked us is "What does Maxine's description and imagination about her aunt say about her."
One image I get from the author is that she is a very open person. When she writes about her aunt, she does so in a very open manner, she tells her mysterious man "I think I'm pregnant" even when she knows that it is a troublesome and potentially dangerous sentence to say.
Another quote that gives me an idea of the author is that she is informed about the Chinese traditions and culture. "On nights when my mother and father talked about their life back home sometimes they mentioned an 'outcast table'… In a commensal tradition, where food is precious, the powerful older people made wrongdoers eat alone."

Family Story

In class our homework was to bring a family story and to post it on our blog. Here it is.

My story to tell is about my cousin Jack. He is about 6 years older than I am. His hair is of reativly short length, neat and tidy, and he wears glasses. Jack is pretty thin and probably a little taller than the average height, and 2/3 Chinese. He likes to do a lot of stuff, including paintball, playing on his computer and taking apart a different computer. His mother, my aunt is a school teacher. He doesn't say much unless he has to. Jack's father lives on the Big Island with his grandfather. He normally listens to his mother, at least he does when I'm around and does his chores and such. Once in a while though he doesn't heed my aunt's warnings. Not listening to a mother sometimes has bad consequences.
I hear this story from my mother, once for some reason, Jack had eaten ice cream. Eating a scoop of ice cream a day isn't that bad for you. Two is nice once in a while. Jack had ice cream for breakfast, lunch, and dinner; it was his whole diet. He did that for three days straight. His mother told him to not eat so much ice cream and he didn't listen. She decided to let the ice cream to show him when to stop, and that worked just fine. After the third day, Jack didn't feel well and eventually got sick. Now he doesn't eat desserts as much now.
Another time my cousin refused to listen to his mother was when he decided to get a pet rat. The rat didn't in one of those clear plastic hampster cages, he lived in Jack's own created structure. It was basically cardboard with newspaper stuffing used to form a very basic, crude house design. Although the rat wasn't trapped inside his enclosure, the rat just stayed there, ate, slept and did all the things that normal rats do. He didn't clean the rat's home very often, and it often smelled rancid. She hadn't mind at first, but eventually the smell filled his room and my aunt had enough. Jack came home after being outside and was surprised to find his rat was no where to be found in his room.
Have you seen my rat around?" Jack asked his mother.
"Yes," she answered, "I threw him out in the garden."
"Oh no." Jack uttered as his face showed a look of surprise, before it turned to one of worry. Seconds after, Jack rushed out to the garden outside, almost knocking the lamp over as he ran. As hard as Jack looked, he couldn't find his rat, maybe he found a hole in the wall and escaped.…my Aunt also owned a cat back then.
Both times Jack didn't listen to his mother and had consequences, even though he probably only deserved the ice cream punishment. Mothers have many ways to make your life miserable. Jack found that the hard way.

Two quotes from Woman Warrior

We read part of the first chapther from Woman Warrior in class today mostly concerning the dead aunt. Our homework was to write two quotes and comment on your thoughts about them.
One quote from the book is on page 6: "My mother has told me once and for all the useful parts. She will add nothing unless powered by Necessity, a riverbank that guides her life. She plants vegetable gardens rather than lawns; she carries the odd-shaped tomatoes home from the fields and eats food left for the gods."
This quote gives some insight on the mother. She doesn't do anything unless she feels she needs to, and is a practical person. The narrator's mother cares more about eating and surviving than having a beautiful lawn, takes home food that normally wouldn't be taken and only tells people information if she feels the need or necessity to.
Another quote from this book I found interesting is on page 7: :the other man was not, after all, much different from her husband. They both gave orders:she followed. 'If you tell your family, I'll beat you. I'll kill you. Be here again next week.'"
This quote holds some significance to me because it shows the daughter is imagining all these instances of her aunt. She has no information on how or who the aunt got pregnant with, but is still coming with conclusions, most of which are probably not true.

Moodle Comments

Our class is using an online tool, Moodle to help with our ideas and discussions.
I like the Moodle website, as it offers a way for the whole class to contribute. It lets our whole class comment on something and even lets us write a story or poem together.
What I don't like about Moodle is that if someone posts a message before you, you will have to post your own message again and possibly lose it. I also don't like how some functions are defined by your browser, as I like to use one that isn't fully compatible with it. Also sometimes all the links and tabs are confusing and don't seem to work sometimes.
A creative way we could use Moodle is we can turn in all our work on it, saving trees and ink. Another great thing to put on it is the cycle homework, so we always know what the homework is and will never lose the cycle sheet.
One of the things that I wish Moodle could do is fix that aforementioned problem with the posting, as it would save time and allow you not to worry about posting first. Another thing I wish that Moodle could do is not be too slow, because when our whole class is on it at the same time it begins to slowdown and cause us problems.
Overall I think that Moodle is a neat piece of software and it allows us to do new activities than we normally do.

Quiz answers

In class we read a short poem about Chinese woman, and the hardships they had and what they encountered when they came to America.
The poem is written about woman's identity in China, and how it changed when they came to try and change their life. "The meager provisions and sentiments of once belonging¬ –– fermented roots, Mah-Jongg tiles and firecrackers set but a flimsy household in a forest of nightless cities." This quote deals with the differences the woman encountered when they left their home. The things that once made them comfortable and fit in now separated them from everyone else, and instead of helping the women, hurt and weakened them and their households they had.
This poem is written telling us the identity the woman from China had, and how they tried to go about changing it. I think that this poem is trying to show that if you leave something that is familiar and defines your life, whether good or bad, if you try to leave it you lose a part of yourself and feel lost and out of place. The Chinese woman were trying to define their own lives, to not have to conform to a set lifestyle, but in the end they were not successful and had lost their identity, and was always connected to it anyway "You find you need China: your one fragile identification, a jade link handcuffed to your wrist."