Freshman Composition
Critical and Argumentative Writing
Blogging in the Blogosphere
English 100 and 103
FORMAT:
When you blog, in the Title, write your first and last name as you would as if you are turning in a paper to me. Then you do not have to write my name because I know you are in my class. Write what English class you are in whether it is English 52, 60, 100 and what College.
For example, one would write:
Yue Hayes
English 103
Cerritos College
Post #1
Homelessness
Font size
In addition, for the title, pick the topic of discussion, grammar/organization, content, current events, pop culture or literature as a TITLE that we have discussed in class. Write the posts like this: write #1 Post or #2 Post or Post #50, so I can easily keep track of them and how many you write.
Of course, you are welcome to write more than several posts, and in doing so is another form of participation and does count in the participation grade. Perhaps, in class, you may not participate all that much but in the realm of the blogosphere, you can from the comfort of your own home,
* reflect on the day's class discussion or offer up an insight that you found particularly interesting, etc., etc.
*
* How does it change the way you think or thought before on the subject?
*
* What actions might you take in the future? Anything is open to interpretation.
Of course, I need not go on and on about being respectful towards your peers' opinions and beliefs. If you disagree with another student's views be discreet about it: Do not say so and so is completely wrong because of this and that. Instead, say, I disagree with so and so and here are the reasons why I do. Go after their evidence and support and do not, I repeat do not attack someone else personally. This is supposed to be a forum for everyone to share their ideas and views.
*I will enforce the blogosphere by either deleting your hard work, making an example out of you here in the realm of the blogosphere or in class* . . .
3,403 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 2401 – 2600 of 3403 Newer› Newest»Jenny Guzman
English 100
Cerritos College
Post 2401??
Yay!!
Jean Carlo Morales
English 100
Cerritos College
Post 17
Perfectionism
After having read the story I think I am starting to understand just how important writing and literature is. As the reading says, when one writes they are writing to expose a truth they believe in. Metaphorically speaking, the idea of the work at hand is like a scent that one smells. Some days the scent may seem strong but other days it may not. All one can do in this case is to keep sniffing to try and get idea out. Be persistent in your sniffing for one will see that the effort put into it was worth the struggle.
I think this is great because I have the tendency to begin my writings with great effort. I try to perfect it in one try. Usually it leads to writers block and wont let me get my idea out. It's like the reading says, "Perfectionism, on the other hand, will only drive one mad"(9) Yes it will...
Sarai Vazquez
English 100
Cerritos College
Post ???
Caner Journals by. Audre Lorde
The first thing i though about when i saw this reading was how many lived have been lost to breast cancer. The began to think of how many people i knew that had lost a loved one to this disease and it was sad. The woman in this seemed like such a strong person to me. i love the way in paragraph 3 she states how strong she still is even though the media puts her down because of her age. You saw a different side of s woman with breast cancer in this reading. in life you go around thinking that all a woman has to do is get a mastectomy and everything will be alright but you do not know how much it affects the woman. it is so hard for a woman to lose that to a disease so ugly. it is sad that these women have to get fake breasts because they have no other choice. its funny to think how so many women would love to go and get fake breasts and they complain about the size or whatever but these woman with this disease dread that and hate it. woman that overcome breast cancer are so incredible and strong.
Jenny Guzman
English 100
Cerritos College
Post I forgot!!
Well my soon to be mother in law cut my baby's hair without my permission. The baby slept over her house and when John picked her up he knew I was going to flip. (Which I did). When I saw her the first that can to my mind was professor Hsiao and a bowl hair cute. (I will let him tell you) Well my kid didn’t look anything like me before now she looks like she is mixed with Asian. My mom thought I was over reacting because I cried. I felt that my soon to be mother in law took a memory away of her first hair cut.
This was my older sister Halloween wig. I think the baby looks funny. .
Thomas Rios
GWC
English 110
Isaiah House
The Isaiah House is a great shelter for women and children. I was anxious to see if I would recognize anybody there from last year. I did notice about for women that I thought I saw last time. After breaking into groups, we were assigned a few activities. These were to illustrate the many struggles a homeless person encounters. They were very insightful. Dwight was such a great speaker. I’m not sure I have ever met such an interesting character. His passion radiates in his conversations and definitely evokes a sense of anger for all the lies that are being fed to everybody. It was easy to see that Dwight truly believes in his work and is very inspirational. I can only hope to be so passionate and sure for a cause in my life. The ladies were so sweet. I felt rather comfortable talking to them. We talked about topics ranging from family, government, the future, and dealing with stress. Breakfast was delicious! It was disappointing when we all heard that we weren’t going to the breakfast place as planned, but we were more than satisfied after eating the feast that was provided. I was glad that many students took advantage of this opportunity. I could see how many eyes were opened and how many people were affected by the outrageous truth that was revealed. I hope that somehow these injustices can be made right, but I’m not too confident in it. It seems like such an uphill battle and I commend Dwight for taking arms against it. He is truly a blessing for many. The physical features did not change, but the atmosphere seemed much warmer this time around. It seemed like there was more laughter and meaningful conversations occurring, at least from my perspective. Our group had a blast. Makayla was such a cutie! She definitely knows how to entertain a crowd. It was fun to get to know other students better as well. All in all, it was a great time and I am glad I was a part of it. Thank you again, Mr. Hsiao, for putting together yet another great trip.
Esmeralda Orozco
English 100
cc
post???
I AM SOOOOO SLEEPY I WENT TO SEE THAT SCARY MOVIE AND DID NOT SLEEP THUR NIGHT THEN ON FRIDAY U MADE MY BRO WHO IS 18 LOL SLEEP WIT ME BUT ON THE FLOOR I JUST HAD THE REELING I WAS GONNA OPEN MY EYES AND HE WAS GONNA STAND NEXT TO ME AWWWW SCARY SO I DID NOT SLEEP SAT HALLOWEEN I PARTY LIKE IT WAS 1979 LOL AND DID NOT GET HOME TILL 4 BUT GREAT NIGHT SUNDAY I WOKE UP AY 8AM AND WENT TO CHURCH TO WORK AND BAK HOME AND STILL COULD NOT SLEEP UNTILL 4AM AND AGAIN WOKE UP AT 8AM
IN THE GOOD SIDE MY BFF CAME FROM NEW ORLEANS TODAY WHOO HOO
BEST BELIEVE WE BOUT TO HAVE SUM FUN LOL
WELL MY SCHEDULE IS PACKED LOTS TO DO IN SO LITTLE TIME
I HAVE A QUESTION
CAN U STILL BE FRIENDS WIT UR EX???
Tess Elizondo
English 100
CC
Post 17
Cancer Journals
Reading this story made me think of my boyfriends mother. She is currently going to chemotherapy. My boyfriends mother also discovered a bump on her breast just as the person in the story. First she did not think anything of it, but weeks past and the bump was still there. She finally went in to see the doctor, and they confirmed that she tested positive for breast cancer. I remember crying with my boyfriend because I did not know what to do or which way to help out. I remember her telling me that she would cut off her breats if she had too. Luckily the tumor was really small so they just cut off a piece. Now everything is going well. I am really glad I read this story, and I am going to make my boyfriend read it now.
Edilu Medina
English 100
Cerritos
Post#35?
Isaiah House
An experience, a day to be remembered, valued and appreciated. I landed with my sailor hat at Cerritos college at 8:45, but took a detour to my usual place (7 eleven) to get my hazel nut with cinnamon coffee. I didn’t purchase any pastries because I thought we were going to get breakfast as Mr. Hsiao had stated but we were tricked; I will carry that subject on. I arrived placed my donation boxes in the bus, had Jessica embarrassed while helping her exchange bags for the feminine products. Then Mr. Hsiao huddled us to inform us that weren’t going to be getting breakfast but making breakfast on an empty stomach. As we landed the house seemed like any regular 2 story house in the block of Orange County, but as I stepped in the house I sensed a different feeling than any house. I saw the mats in the living room then walked into the kitchen. We were all instructed to a different job; I was in the dicing section, but Brian’s friend Valeria and I were cutting the oranges wrong, so she got moved. As I finished dicing I walked outside and saw women, they seemed ordinary but as I sat down and started talking to two of them my mind completely changed. They weren’t different in their spirits or how they spoke, they wanted to be somewhere and have employment, or a place called home. I met a lady by the name of Suzanne and Marie, Suzanne was funny she kept thinking everybody’s name was French or if they knew how to speak French. She was from Vietnam but said she was divorced with no children and was having difficulty finding a job. The one who amazed me was Marie she had graduated from Fullerton with a degree in psychology, but she changed her mind when she graduated; she wanted to be a teacher. Marie told her story but I could see through her expressions that she had not given up. She had been employed in a school, and encountered another opportunity but that opening was what changed her life. It did not go well and she got laid off, with the economy of employment in schools she could not find another job. She was out of money, out of house and nowhere to go except homeless shelters, then she found the Isaiah house since June and she has been very appreciative of it. It still has been hard for her, she only works once a month or so in a swap meet and the money she receives she uses it for bus passes, to go to UCI and use the computer for job hunting. Even that is hard as she explained she has to use a prepaid phone, but when the minutes run out and she has no money how will employers contact her for an interview? Or when she gets the interview she has no decent clothes to present herself. “It’s like a cycle once you’re in its hard to come out” as she said. After the conversations we had breakfast both Suzanne and Marie seemed to enjoy and I valued breakfast more than any day. After the breakfast we split in groups and had a discussion. How the government separates the homeless and doesn’t address them just blocks them from society. Or brings bad images, but I realized sometimes one takes things for granted and we don’t appreciate them enough. I came back with a different mindset as I got off the bus I called my mom and told her about everything. I am gathering clothes already from all my mom’s friends and my mom is going to give me suits as well. I would like to go back as soon as I gather enough to have all these women dressed to impress any employer, that they are dedicated hard working women just going through a rough time. They’re not “different” and should have the same opportunity as any other person. I have appreciated this field trip to the deepest of my heart, and plan to keep contributing in the future.
Ibeth Rodriguez
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #30
Cancer Journals by Alain de Bottom
It is sad to know that thousands of women have to face the awful experience losing a breast due to breast cancer. It does not only hurts them physically but emotionally as well. Like Bottom said a difficult challenge for a women to accept herself as the way she is, especially after the change of only having one breast. It is hard because a woman after losing a breast feels not being "normal". Our society tends to always criticize the way we look. That means that most women are going to feel insecure because they are always getting a negative criticism by the way they look, especially after losing a breast. When women get prosthesis it is not mainly because they want to feel good about themselves, it is about the people around her looking at her as a "normal" women. So basically most women who lose their breast sometimes tend to care more about what society thinks about them then how comfortable they feel and think about their body.
Edilu Medina
English 100
Cerritos
Post #36
Cancer Journals
You read this and your like WOW so much marks, and pain behind anyone who has gone through this. Having something removed is an act of something taken away especially a body part. One does not seem to be aware or have a perspective of what she went through until I read this. What she has lost, she has gained the strength to still continue in life, Its something more meaning ful as others take for granted. I admire these women, because they still keep their heads up to look towards life and not downwards. They are no different, they never will be or shouldnt be.
Antonio Acosta
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #?
Perfectionism
When I read this story for the first time i did not understand it. After a few times I understood it. I f people kept thinking of perfection the lifes would not go well. Perfecton will not let you express your self because people willthink that it is not right. If you keep thinking to much about perfection you will make mistakes. Do not try so hard to do a task just do your best. Your best is better than perfect.
Hey English 110! I hope I can do well in this short eight weeks!
Raul Moreno Jr.
English 103
Cerritos College
Post: ???
Perfectionism
After about 2 paragraphs, I thought that this piece might be written by a former student of Mr. Hsiao's. It seemed sloppy to me, but maybe it was just the typos. Either way, it is fitting that the author writes in such a way in a piece called Perfectionism. She wants to upend the presupposition of perfection by both her message and method.
Lamott notes, "One sets out to tell a story of some sort as one feels it... (9)." I would disagree with this statement in that I believe it more important to speak truth not as we feel it, but as it actually is. I despise what poison emotion might bring to a critical thought or exposition. Rather, we should separate ourselves from this emotion to speak objectively and truthfully. I do not mean that we should all be cold, callous analysts of impersonal information, but we must keep an even head in wiritng if we are to present our words to the masses as "truth".
Danielle Kennedy
English 110
GWC
Post #18?
Status Anxiety
in the story, it talks about how the possession of certain goods relates to a judge of character. those who have good morals and good judge of character corresponds to the things one has. it later talks about how people who can possess different things and how the more expensive it is, it relates to how good of a person they are. i can tell you this from experience but, this is not always true. granted, there are people who hvae alot of money and have alot of expensive things but they also donate alot of it to others who are less fortunate and in doing so, have good morals. now, majority of the time, people with alot of money have really crapy morals because they let their money do all of the talking. when a celebrity gets into trouble, they just pay the ticket price and get away with it. their fame and fortune has blocked the real reflection they view in the mirror every morning. good people, poor or rich, prove their good morals by doing actions, not by how much money they have. people of bad character, usually are stingy with their money and have to cheat and lie to get their way anyway. i disagree with this story on how money and possessions classify ones good morals and feel that no matter rich or poor, people can be good character. now, there are always exceptions.
It was pretty difficult to get through Allegory of the Cave. For starters I have read it before and I really don’t like reading philosophy. Nothing against it, it’s just not my personal preference. I do however appreciate the message. Whether it’s coming out of a bad experience or learning something that highlights your past ignorance’s, change and enlightenment is painful and difficult. It is true when Plato says, “Men would say he went up and down he came without his eyes; and that it was better not to even think of ascending…” I think that one of the hardest things about going through anything is the reaction of your peers. Sometimes they can be supportive, but more often that not they will try to discourage you. You can not always have everyone in your corner. Many times that means leaving some people behind, but one usually has to do that to find the truth or make a certain change. When one reaches the half way point though, it is just as hard to turn back.
Beatrice Fisher
English 110
GWC
Post 18
Status anxiety
Reading Status Anxiety had me nodding repeatedly in agreement. It was a sad but true realization. True, just as the reading explains, that often success is measured by the accumulation of money, power, and accomplishments. Sad, that the word decency is often associated with wealth while indecency is thought of with association to poverty. It made me think. Is this true? Do I think this? No. I nodded in agreement because I know people who do view success and status in these terms. But I do not. I love when the reading mentioned that the quickest way to stop noticing something is to buy it. So often this is the way it happens. We want something so badly, we get it, and within a month it goes unnoticed. Or maybe it doesn’t completely go unnoticed but it doesn’t have it initial ability to excite us as it once did. It also mentioned to the quickest way to stop appreciating someone is to marry him or her. If this is true, because for me, at this moment, it isn’t, then this could be the explanation of divorce rates these days. I am left wondering why we don’t appreciate what we have. Is there ever a point of just being satisfied? Or can we say that being satisfied could make us lack ambition, and without ambition we’d go nowhere. It would be really something if status were not based on what you owned but rather on the depth of the relationships you belonged to. I think we would all find that most fall short of any real status at all. The reading ended with its remedy for overcoming low status being to travel. Having lived overseas and having had the opportunity to do some good traveling, I would have to agree. My travels weren’t the average “American” travels where you jam pack 5 countries in 8 days barely getting a glimpse of the land. I was fortunate to go for 5 weeks usually and truly explore. And it is true. During these explorations you really get to see all different types of living. Though status anxiety most likely exists overall, I think, just based on my own experiences, Americans are much more status oriented than a lot of other places. Many live beyond their means. Briefly, because I could continue on, a great example is an American wedding. While there are always exceptions, many Americans these days go into dept between the cost of their wedding and purchase of rings. They get married and spend the next years paying off the credit card bills. Thousands are spent on invitations, flowers, food, booze, the dress. Most is for show. Does one really need 300 guests? Who actually has close relationships with 300 people? I surely don’t. Okay, to each his own, and if you are that person with 300 close friends and do have 50,000 dollars to spend, go for it. I believe I am going on a tangent now so I will wrap up. I was only trying to make a point that in many other places people aren’t so concerned and wrapped up in all the material things like Americans are. I am probably wrong for making such a broad accusation as to say that Americans are materialistic, but well, I was born and raised here in Southern California and it is what I see all around. I look forward to discussing this in class.
Thomas Rios
GWC
English 110
Post #20something
The School Days of an Indian Girl
This story was interesting and depressing at the same time. It gave the perspective of an Indian girl who is going to Christian school to get educated. She refelcts on the emotions she feels as she is arriving towards civilization. She was filled wth much curiosity and confusion. She felt ashamed because she was different and was the object of many bewildered stares. She feels herself being lost in the transition to civilization. This displays our intrusive nature in "helping" those we believe need to conform. You can feel the lonliness in her words when talking about her home life and mother. She began to feel like the foreign object planted in some strange earth that fascinated her as a child (telegraph poles).
Alonso Llamas
Cerritos College
English 103
Perfectionism
After reading this excerpt I felt a sort of awkward comfort, for now I feel less stressed over my research paper. Lamott put certain aspects of literature and writing in perspective. There is no true perfection in any kind of art, such as literature. However, that will not stop people from trying to achieve some sort of perfection, or at least get as close to it as possible. She goes on to explain the reason behind society’s pursuit for perfection. It is somewhat psychological. In retrospect her argument makes perfect sense. Since childhood many of us are told to strive for perfection in anything we do, or else it could be considered a failure. When in reality it is much different, it is impossible to reach a supreme condition in which this something cannot be surpassed. Lamott tries to encourage the reader not to surrender in ones attempts of writing because one believes one’s work is not perfect. It is in these small imperfections that the true beauty of literature lays in. One must not try to make every writing perfect by making it into some sort of scientific method of writing. One must just write from a steady stream of consciousness, and like Lamott says, there will be plenty of mistakes. However, that is where one must go back and try to correct ones mistakes, but only to improve the content. Now she comes to the importance of literature. Writing is a form of self-expression. It is a way of reflection in many forms, whether it be in a direct or ambiguous form. It is a way to liberate one’s mind and let it expand into an infinite metaphysical state. Besides that reading is a great way to expands one’s mind. Literature can inflate the imagination into several dimensions.
Archie Kaaua
Professor Hsiao
English 110
Golden West College
November 2, 2009
Post 31
The Salt of the Earth by Mumia Abu-Jamal
The author points out that this nation of Christians has not modeled itself after Christianity. In fact, this nation has behaved in a most aggressive manor since it was first founded. He cites slavery, killing of the native Indians and the enslavement of the Japanese during WWII to support his claims. One could not argue that the nation has misbehaved but he overlooks the fact that this is a nation of freedom; other religions such as the Freemasons also coexist and play a role in what has taken place. It is usually the Christians that are pointed to buy rarely is the information accurate. He asks where the love of God goes when the needy are in need. Good question, maybe God should make an entrance when things are bad and leave as soon as everything is back to normal. One thing I do agree with is his view of the media. It seems to be store bought and one sided. I find it interesting when they do a story on someone or a topic that they hold an interest in and the camera focus seems to catch their prey in a different light than it was a second ago. I often have seen someone being chased in order to create effect. How is it they seem to have plenty of time to say what they want but run out of film while someone else is still talking? We hear nothing of achievements, but we hear all about the crap that is going on in society of the day to day and we eat it up! The last subject is the power of the press and politics. We have a vote but is it real? I believe that we have the best government that money can buy!
Andrew Murphy
Eng103
CC
Post 22
Cancer Journals
This is a matter which most, probably all, can relate to. We have all heard, seen, or felt the overwhelming force of cancer and how it affects/shapes our lives. Out of 4 of my deceased grandparents, 3 died of cancer (1 lung, 1 brain, and the last breast) I remember seeing my ardent slovic decended grandmother all the time when I was younger. Roundtrips out to visit her and my aunt who lived close by, every school break. Being so young I was unable to recall how painful it was on my family, my dad especially, to see our other grandmother struggle with inoperable brain cancer until her final day. My grandmother I can remember vividly; one point in particular. She was a very strong woman. If you ever crossed her, by god in the following seconds you would want to be anywhere but around her because there was nothing pretty about this almost bipolar lady. I'm not saying she was pure evil, but she had some rougher edges than most. However, she was blood and I loved her unconditionally. I remember it was a night in summer at her Peoria, Arizona suburb home. Hot as usual. It was my mother, grandma, and me playing with whatever action figurines I brought with me from back home. The phone rang. My grandmother instinctively answered. It was her doctor for he matter. Then, something I've never seen my grandmother do; cry. She never cried when she learned of her breast cancer, and never shed a tear during the loss of both breasts. I asked my mom what could it be, being as she never cries and she's not dead. My mom said "morphine". "what?"I thought. My mom continued saying "morphine, it was the last thing the doctor prescribed and ordered my grandfather (grandmas husband) before he died. In other words, the only thing to do is wait and get your funeral ready. I still remember that colorfully and everytime I recall that moment it feels as though a lump sits in my stomach, something cancerous.
For breast cancer, being a male, I can't comprehend the emotional impact this form has on a female. But I can specualate on somethings. For example, in the article, and life a breast is part of femininity. It is a physical trait that does differ from males. It is a part of identity. It is not just for looks and what is forced by the media as preety and "sexy", but it IS a part of the whole you. In life has this ever happened: You get so used to a setting (school, work, etc) for years on end. It is the same always and your very comfortabke with it. It is your home, your sanctuary, or YOU. Then one day that school you loved is painted or shut down. Your job lays people off or changes ways of operation. It changes forever. It doesn't feel right anymore and your left with that awkward feeling that it will never be the same, as if something has been ripped from your soul/identity for good.
Danielle Kennedy
English 110
GWC
post #19
Isaiah House Reflection
This year, we were able to go to the Isaiah House in Santa Ana on Halloween. I have never been there before but have heard classmates talk about it. We all met up at Cerritos College at like, 8:30 am and waited for everyone to get here. I worked the night before and am not a morning person, so I was a little cranky. Lol, anyway, at 9:15 am, we boarded the bus and set sail for the House. When we got there, those who haven’t been there before were in aww of how nice the house looked. It was a big house and was very nicely kept clean. My first reaction was, “wow, this is where the homeless stay?” we took all of the donations off of the bus and placed it on the side of the house where the owners of the house would later sort through it. We all went inside the house and somewhat met in the kitchen. The man of the house, Dwight I believe, talked about the house a little bit and showed us the kitchen, living room and the backyard scene. I, without knowing at first, volunteered to make everyone breakfast. I was put in charge of making pancakes for about 100 people which I found out was only like 80. In the end, I made about 150-170 pancakes. I have only made pancakes about two times before and I am officially over pancakes. I think I will pick up on French toast. Tehehehehe!! Anyway, after breakfast, we got to meet with some of the woman that stayed here and I got the privilege to meet a woman named Silvanna. She is an older lady but has no family outside of the House. She has been on her own since she was a teen and has never found her true love and has no kids. She has been loiving at the House for a year and really wants to leave. She says that living with 70 other people is hard and there is always noise. Other women like to get into other women’s business. Silvanna says that she wants to work at a senior center and help take care of the older folks but she says there is no motivation at the House. Dwight and his wife have been very kind and generous she stated but I think it is time for me to go. I felt bad listening to her story but, I almost felt that she was ungrateful for what Dwight and his wife have sacrificed to help these people in need. I like to think that there are more people out there giving back to the community and helping those in need and I think that one day, everyone will catch on to this “helping others” attitude and our world will be a better place. This experience hit me deep down and now see how well off I am. I have a great family and friends that are always there for me. Some of these people don’t have anyone and are viewed as being lesser and now, they have no hope. I think that them seeing college students coming into help, their hope level increased just a little bit but even that little bit, is a positive in an already negative position. I have always liked helping people and I feel that we met our goal and reached out to someone in need. Giving back to others is a great accomplishment to me and I feel, even the small deed I did, helped people and knowing that they were grateful, made it totally worth the time and effort put into making the breakfast. I would like to continue to help others and hopefully, as stated before, more people will pick up on the “helping others” attitude. Thank you Prof. Hsiao for making this experience happen.
I really enjoyed Only Daughter, by Sandra Cisneros. I come from a very blended family. I am the only child and daughter from a black mother and a Mexican father. My mother remarried and had two more daughters and two sons with my Samoan step-father. My father went on having children but I am the only mixed race one. I related to the story because I understood what the author meant when she says she wants to be introduced as, “‘My only daughter, the writer.’ Not as ‘This is only my daughter. She teaches.’” Parents often place their children in hierarchies, intentional or not, and that is just the way it is. The difficult part is not to let those classifications become what defines you. I have spent lots of time wanting to please both fathers. I have wanted to be more that a step-daughter to my dad. I have also wanted to be a daughter in any way to my biological father. As I have grown older those things have carried less and less weight for me. Though I still want to please them, it’s definitely not the end of the world if I do not.
Cathedral by Raymond Carver was a great read. I think it’s the first time I have read anything that gives a real picture of what people think when they meet someone with a disability for the first time. Not only meet, but have to interact with them one-on-one. It was funny. I work with children with Autism, and before that I worked with children with varying disabilities. It used to really bother me when people would have adverse reactions to the kids I was with, or when they would ask blind people ridiculous questions like when the narrator asked the man, “Which side of the train did you sit on, by the way?” I always wanted to protect them from hurtful things or things that would make them feel different. As they got older though, I realized I had to let them get hurt, had to let them hear hurtful things because it is a part of growing. Ultimately it is much better to let them be like the man and just roll with it when people act weird. They have to lead that life and people have to adapt to them. I also enjoy seeing them get to teach someone something when they both let their defenses down.
Amber Decker
English 110
GWC
Status Anxiety
Alan de Botton, in his essay Status Anxiety, states that in societies all over the world, financial well being is what equates success. This is both true and untrue, I believe. Yes, being well off does usually indicate hard work and determination, but it definitely must be taken into account how the money was earned. Someone who has inherited a sum of money, but does nothing much sit on top of it, to me, is not as successful as the person who is working two jobs to make ends meet. But as a whole, societies tend to look at the end result, and ignore the means that one took to get there.
People generally want to look the part they play. Adam Smith said, a day labourer "would be ashamed to appear in public without a linen shirt." This is because the laborer works hard, and does not want to be placed into a category lower than what he deserves. This is constantly happening in today's world. People are often spending more money than they should to appear more wealthy than they actually are, because we all judge people based on our first impressions.
It is not necessarily a good thing to put so much emphasis on monetary values, but it is the way societies function.
Kevin Santamaria
English 110
GWC
Post #16 (Re-post, just in case. idk)
What is poverty?
This passage is very detailed. From the beginning I was shocked and naturally assumed it was a male talking because of the incredibly impoverished state that he is in. I realized he was a she only when Jo begins to talk about the birth defects of her new born baby. I can smell the smell she describes and see the dirt she describes. Her descriptions are almost too good and vivid; they made my nose crinkle in disgust. When she talks about the lack of care for her baby you kind of hate her, but you fight to think she is sacrificing what she believes to be "luxuries" such as warm water, for the survival of her baby. When she comes to describing her search for help I sort of became disappointed because that is where I wanted the most information and detail. The last line of paragraph eight is what hit me the most; it impeccably shows her state of mind and character. I also could not believe how she witnessed the future lives of her children. I never thought a parent could even touch fruition of such dark futures, yet it’s probably true though. The passage does not make me sad, it makes me angry actually. I carry so many notions with me about people living in poverty that it’s hard to begin. She addresses how we would try for about a month or even a year, but eventually we would give up. I do not understand this. Maybe I'll get some new incite in class. Very interesting topic and read.
Stephanie Farano
GWC
Eng 110
What is Poverty?
I'm officially depressed! I grew up in a home, in which I never wanted for anything. We were a middle class family and by no means rich, but I never worried about there being a roof over my head. When you are young, you never think about all of the people who are less fortunate then yourself. I know I tended to just live in my little intermediate circle, and never realized the large amount of poverty in my home town. The first time I was exposed to the reality of poverty, was my freshman year of High School. I was in a club that adopted a family for Christmas. We requested a list from the family in the form of some sort of Christmas wish list. What we received was shocking to me. It was a grandmother who was raising her six grandchildren alone. The list went a little something like this: band-aids, toilet paper, toothpaste, new toothbrushes, underwear, cleaning supplies, food, school supplies and other personal necessities. I was taken back by this simple request, that i made it a personal mission to collect as many thing off that list that I could. After the month of collections we loaded up a van and were ready to deliver. We pulled up to a one bedroom studio and out came a very excited family. They were so happy about all of the goodies we had to deliver. It was sooo rewarding, I will never forget that experience. We sometimes get so caught up in life, that we forget about all the people who are in a less fortunate situation. This story reminded me of my experience and the joy that comes from helping others.
Ronald Cabiltes
English 110
GWC
Post #18
Isaiah House
This was my first field trip with Mr. Hsiao so I was expecting the bus to be a generic yellow school bus. However as I pulled up into the Cerritos College parking lot I saw this really nice coach bus and thought to myself, “Dang, I need to go on more of these field trips.” When the bus pulled into this neighborhood I thought the house would look kind of like the majority of the houses we passed; unkempt, rundown and a lawn that was not regularly maintained. I was a little surprised to see how nice the house was. It was big, well bigger than my house, and it stood out and had a certain beauty to it. After the initial look at the house the men got put to work and took all the donations to a storage area. Then we got split into groups. There was the group that cooked breakfast, a group that role-played as a homeless person, and the other group I didn’t really remember what they did. I was put into the role-playing group and that was interesting. Half of the group was given financial scenarios and they had to budget their finances. The other people had to call various shelters and see if we can get a bed for the night. Josh, a girl from Cerritos whose name escapes me (sorry!), and I were tasked in calling shelters. After a couple of calls in, we noticed that this would not be an easy task. I got only one shelter to guarantee me a bed for the night and that was only because I told them I was 17 years old and was driven out of my home. Josh and the other girl also only had one success a piece. The majority of the shelters we called were either not open and got forwarded or they couldn’t give us a bed and gave us numbers to other shelters. It really opened my eyes on how hard it is for a homeless person to find shelter. We were using our cell phones, but most of the homeless community lack that and would probably use a pay phone to call shelters. If they got an answering machine then that would just be money wasted that could have gone to something else. After we did our activities it was time for breakfast. The food looked really good. There were scrambled eggs with ham in them, pancakes, and fruit. The eggs were really good and so were the pancakes and fruit. There were some difficulties at our table in opening the little syrup packets. That is when Josh and I found out that Leydi has a knack for opening syrup packets. After breakfast we split up into groups again and this time we talked to Andrew. He talked to us about the house and his experiences and how he started. He also made us think and asked us questions like on how we could persuade people to volunteer and the difficulties the house has to deal with; from the city, the neighborhood, police, etc. After our talk it was time to get back on the bus and head home. Overall the experience was good. It felt great at the end of the day knowing that we kept the women there company and cooked them food.
Kevin Santamaria
English 110
GWC
Post #17
Isaiah House
So I actually woke up and made in on time to this trip, even early. I did not know what to expect. I always wanted to talk to homeless and ask them about their situation and educate myself about homelessness. I guess I have always been clueless to why people are homeless. I always thought that the homeless are lazy or addicts because we live a country that wouldn’t allow us to suffer; I mean were one of the most developed countries right. After talking to the first women living in the house about feelings and stuff in a group, we individually got to spread out on our own to talk to other women there. I actually stayed with the same lady since she seemed open and sincere. I believe sincerity is a hard trait to find. I asked her if I could ask her actual personal questions and she agreed. We talked the whole time. I learned a lot. When time was up I could not really think of anything to say to her. The situation makes me mad at so many things. The situation also made me think. There were so many elements which lead a person to being homeless and I was just trying to gather and organize them. I told her thank you so much, that it meant more than I could say. My mind was running wild then Demitry gave us a piece of his mind as we went to the front of the house to talk in our group again. His words were powerful; he is an honest man, informing us about something he believes/ knows of. That is also hard to find; people actually doing something about what they believe to be corrupt. I agreed with him except for the situation falling completely on the government because we are the government. The government is a reflection of us and our ignorance. I do not believe anything is the governments fault first and foremost. Aside from that I agreed with Demitry’s passion to change a foul and cheated system. I just which he would’ve talked more about resolutions, but at the same time his character is commendable, in that he said he would not talk about it until he is in a position to carry them out. Over all it was a great experience, I am glad I went. I feel like since these field trips I have inherited such good karma. Everything is going so well, and I hope to continue learning from these experiences. (BTW, beautiful composition on that photo from I-house on the home page. Kudos to the photographer.)
Kim Luong
GWC
The Salt of Earth
I think this author does not like the American's lifestyles. First, he said that even though America is a christian nation but American men and women are all bad people. He mentioned how we treated badly to oversea people, atomic bomb,Japanese concentration camps and racial issues in the U.S. Then he claimed that "the security system" is not needed. We do not need to build up a wall among ourselves , instead we only need love, family, nature. Because those are the essential for living of a Christian nation.Then he showed his anger toward the U.S media; the author stated that the media organizations kill the true true dialogue, the true democracy.
Isiah House.
I had a good experience at the Isiah house. i got to see how the shelter of the homeless looks like.Actually, it is a very clean, big and neat house. The neighborhood is nice and quiet. Nobody would have thought that house was for the homeless. I also enjoyed the breakfast at 1 o'clock ( pancakes + fruits +eggs ). I wanted to help doing the pancakes in the kitchen because on the night before the field trip, i accidentally watched a tutorial video " how to make super Perfect pancake". I did not know that we were gonna make pancake though, but when i knew it, i really want to try (show off)what i learned from the video. However, all i could do (show off) was to break a few eggs before i went outside and joined the discussion group.Too bad ! on the night before, i should have watch "how to perfectly break eggs" instead of making pancake though. whatever, i enjoyed both the pancake and egg at the Isiah house. We also discussed some issues about homelessness and the article. We talked about how to help the homeless like reducing properties' tax, helping them individually,volunteer work. I know that we should help our community, especially the poors, the homeless people..but i kept thinking about the debate project about taxing the poor and the rich which i did for Eng 100 in the Spring semester. I remember that i asked my teacher " what should we do? we have no reason to tax the poor, we are poor ourselves." my teacher suggested" YES,tax them ! make them as poor as you can ".After that, we finally got some solid reasons to tax the poor and protected the rich people. I even changed my aspect of taxing the poor from empathic to merciless in order to success my debate. anyway, the director of the isiah house was a spirited speaker. He told us a lot about facts and what is going on around our communities about homelessness. He put a lot of time to talk with us.very passionate speech. however, he repeated things that he already mentioned during the morning and the noon and the afternoon discussion. then we went home.
Whitney Young
Golden West College
English 110
Post #21
Status Anxiety by Alain de Bottom
Status Anxiety reminds me of how our society is so fixated on how we need to look or act a certain way. It is sad how we judge people based on the type of shirt they are wearing or by the car they drive. If they are not wearing name brands, they are considered less than average. People often try to show their wealth through material things, like the clothes they wear and the cars they drive. Cars are a huge status symbol. Once you have gotten the car or the new outfit that you have wanted, what is next? It can all only satisfy us for so long. We see rich people as earning their wealth and poor people earning their poverty when that is not the case at all. Some people are born wealthy while others are born with nothing. The wealthy like to flaunt their wealth and the middle class tries to live up to looking wealthy. I think we spend too much time envying the wrong things. We should pay more attention to things that will satisfy us in the long run, rather than temporarily. We need to separate what we need instead of what we want.
Jessica Atthowe
English 110
GWC
post #?
Status Anxiety
I liked readying this piece because the writer made many good points about our society valuing material objects. Most people think having money, fame, or many material things in life can lead to happiness. Although these things may lead to happiness, that happiness is only temporary. Unfortunately, our society seems as though it will always value wealthiness over character. We do not value the most important things about a person, instead focus on, and classify them by their income. in doing this, we all miss out on the true, real people our world has in it. I can respect those people who have worked hard to be where they are, and have been successful, but once they get a lot of money they do not slow down and keep working hard. Our society needs to focus on the accomplishments of people's actions rather than spotlighting people because of their wealth. People strive to seem successful and buy unnecessary items just to try and fit in with the upper class. People should not put on fronts of wealthiness just to fit in. Overall, this piece brings to attention how people's mindsets are off on how to achieve true happiness.
Penelope Bwalya
English 110
GWC
It is so refreshing to be a part of English 110. I am glad am surrounded by smart people who are willing to sure their ideas and are also eager to learn.
Ronald Cabiltes
English 110
GWC
Post #19
The Salt of the Earth
The first thing Abu-Jamal talks about is how America isn't portraying its image of a Christian nation. And he talks about the different acts the US has done against certain groups and other nations. Even though the dominant religion and practice in the US is Christianity, I think he failed to point out that there are other religions and practices now. So the US isn't solely a Christian nation. He also talks about how in order to be heard one needs wealth and power. That has always been true. Back from when the government was from to now. I mean I rarely see the homeless or the ones living in poverty having a say in the actions of the government. Also he talks about how the news mainly focuses on stories of distress and negativity and only a small portion of the news is devoted to positive stories. It goes back to his idea of the system being built on fear. I also agree with his idea of the media being a big business. The media is very influential, and some corporations use the media to promote themselves or try to knock down a naysayer.
Penelope Bwalya
English 110
GWC
Post #1
Allegory of the Cave gave me something to think about. It's a reflection of how i was raised. The people in my life, the roles they played made me the person i am today. Every experience taught me something whether i chose to acknowledge it or not. These experiences transformed me enough to forge ahead.
Oscar Padilla
English 110
GWC
A resume of my life
Hello, my name is Oscar Padilla and I am 19 years old. I was born in Mexico and lived there for 13 years. Then, I moved to the US on Oct. 23rd 2004 and started my freshmen year in high school right away. I graduated from Ocean View High School in 2008 and entered college in the Fall of 2008. I am a full time student at Golden West College and I plan to transfer to CSULB. This is my third semester now and I am majoring for Graphic Design. I have been taking art classes since I was 10 years old, but I have been able to do great drawings and paintings on my own.
Oscar Padilla
English 110
GWC
Greetings!
Hi, um I didn't really keep track of who posted their introducion first cause I am new to this blospot, so all I can say is welcome. Also that it is an honor to be among intellectual people like you and I want you to know that you can find a friend in me.
Oscar Padilla
English 110
GWC
The Allegory of the Cave by Plato
I have never read a story like this one. It is so hard to understand and it has such a strange vocabulary. However, it is uses such a unique way to communicate the true meaning of it. It talks about the ignorance that one faces sometimes when we for some reason do not see the reality for what it is. Socrates says "they see only their own shadows" (p5) which means that we only see what we are taught to believe until we take a look at reality for ourselves. Personally, I like the story because somehow it reflects the ignorance of who are not open minded.
Joshua Greenroyd
Eng 110
GWC
Isaiah House
This was my first field trip for the Fall 2009 critical thinking class. This was my second field trip with a class taught by Professor Hsiao. The field trip was to go to the Isaiah House in Santa Ana and help around the house. The first thing, once arriving at the house, that the students did was unload the bus. The bus was full of donations. These donations consisted of everything from clothes to food and hygiene products. At this time everybody settled into the house. A few people were dragged into the kitchen to begin cooking the breakfast/ lunch for the house. The rest of the people were broken into two groups. The group I was in had six people. Four students from Golden West, and two students from Cerritos. I liked breaking into these groups. I felt like I had a good connection with the other students. Ron and I found a little connection and had a great time for the entire trip. To my surprise the groups had little projects to accomplish. The project that was pushed off on me was to call homeless shelters and try to reserve a room for the night. Ron and another girl from Cerritos accompanied me on this project. The project really showed me how hard it was for a person to find somewhere to stay in shelter for one night. The three of us resulted in lying to actually obtain a room. Even after lying we only accomplished to get three places to stay out of about twenty or so. The next thing to happen on the field trip was lunch. Lunch was great, and that is all I have to say about it just so I do not rub it in to the people who did not go on the field trip. After lunch the group that I had went and talked to Andrew. Andrew was full of wisdom about the homeless. I could tell that he loves what he is doing in the Isaiah house. This conversation opened my eyes a lot to some things the homeless do, and how the community can help them out. The entire experience of this field trip was great. There was no moment when I regretted losing a lot of my sleep to go. I connected with some people I have never connected with before, and I learned new things about something that is around everyone. Thank you Mr. Hsiao.
Yue Hayes
English 110
GWC
Post #30
What is Poverty?
I remember last year when we were doing this reading, timing had been just the same as this year. The Isaiah House experience came with the reading. I didn't get to go this year to the Isaiah House but I still remember when I went last year. This reading took a deeper meaning for me as I saw women struggle through poverty.
Lately I have been feeling very poor. I read this reading and re-think my life a little bit, and realize that I am being a huge drama queen. So what, I don't have many choices of clothes to wear? At least I have some. I should be thankful and grateful for all the things that I have that people who live in poverty don't get to.
It really puts things in perspective, doesn't it? I'm not poor. I don't live in poverty. I sleep on a clean mattress every night in clean pajamas and under clean blankets. I live in luxury.
This piece always makes me appreciate what I have.
Stephanie Farano
GWC
English 110
We live in the country of the American Dream, but that dream is in the eye of the beholder. Some people strive for the sky and others just would just like to own their on home. Education and the entrepreneurial mentality has come to overshadow ones basic needs, and flourished to extravagant displays of wealth. I found since moving the the LA area, that these ideals are even more apparent. People who drive around in Range Roovers verse a Toyota, portray a sense of wealth and ranking in society. We are a society who puts someone with money whether that are entitled or not, on a pedestal. We have become a ranking system of hierarchy, a very bizarre way of deciding who we will treat with with more respect. A person on a street corner holding a sign asking for help, would not get the same respect. Does that mean that person is any less of a person, or deserving of respect? I think we are all guilty of this quality, we sometimes all others to make us feel that we aren't worthy or good enough. The whole mentality changes our own personal perception of what we expect and how we perceive our social status and capabilities. This writing makes you think about our system of social standings.
Heather Brown
English 110
GWC
Post#3
Allegory of the Cave
This reading was awesome! Plato was a brilliant man, and the way he wrote this story made it all the more interesting. The characters he chose to use were excellent and very strategic. The part I found amusing was how Glaucon continuously agreed with Socrates, "I see.", "Very True" "No question, he replied" seemed to be his favorites (and most annoying). While Socrates continuously spoke of people not thinking for themselves Glaucon clearly did not do so either. It was ironic Glaucon was responding as if he too, were in shackles just like the people being used to demonstrate. Freaking brilliant! Hearing a story far from the past that still has relevance blows my mind. People don't change that much, especially for how "advanced" we have become. I believe any person can relate to this story no matter their background, and that's the best part. On a side note, it makes me happy to imagine Glaucon as a mute ( I know, that's mean) =).
Kevin Santamaria
English 110
GWC
Post #18
The Salt of the Earth
I totally misread the beginning. What I thought I had read though made more sense to me. Mumia says the powerful have owned the earth. And that the poor have had nothing. I do not believe this to be true. The weak have everything to show, because throughout civilization all great rulers have fallen to the "meek"/people. I believe the author takes America as a Christian nation and runs with it to demoralize the nation and people correlated to Christianity, which is easy to do with any and all: race, gender, faith, and nations. It is a total defunct description of society. People do not rebel against the system because the system is not bad, though it is not perfect either. The "system" gives and takes as all elements in life do. Nothing is perfect. Love does not solve everything, I assume the author sort of supposes. Then she starts with the powerful people again and their influence. We live in a capitalist nation, of course we look to the people with power, wealth, and rank; there is a reason why they got there!! Then she bashes on journalism which I also believe is b.s. also, just not in the same way. I was planning on going into television journalism actually, until I began to discover how undeniably useless it was. There is no recognition though to stations such as: discovery, science, msnbc’s meets the press, fox news for their controversy and Biography the channel. Those are educational, free thinking stations. I feel like the author is one of those people blaming big business and government for their problems, which makes their ideals turn them into hypocrites. I hope this author continues to "inform" the people, until people start to listen. Then eventually someone will call her out on how her ideals are fallacies. It is a circle of those people who want vindication for their own misfortune as well as society’s.
Tien Tran
English 110
GWC
Post # 23
Status Anxiety
As I finished reading this piece, I can’t help but think more into the message. As human beings, we constantly want things. We are never satisfied with the things we have. And that my friend, is the root of our problems. Adding that to society’s constant trend of innovation and progress, we will never stop to consume, thus inferring our ranks among the masses. For example, the ipod came out a couple years back. We want it. We buy it. Then, Apple came out with the ipod touch. We want it. We buy it. It is not something we necessarily need because, well, we have an ipod already. BUT, what we need is the latest and the greatest. And the latest and the greatest gives us a sense of “elite” (maybe that’s too strong of a word …. ) image. Again, something we want, but do not need. Now, do you see where I am getting with this? We are stuck in a circle. The cycle continues year after year. With innovation and constant upgrades of the best of the bestest and our never-ending “need” to want want and want …we are literally trapped in a rut we’ve created for ourselves. In the end, we think what we have makes us who we are. But really, we all know it isn’t that way. But again, we are blind. Our illusion gets the better of us in this “reality” world we live in. So really, what is status? I believe that in the end, it is simply our wants and needs, our never-ending wants and needs…
Erica Lloyd
English 110
GWC
Post #23
It's late (for me) and I'm not feeling well... I think I may have rambled a bit... Sorry!
The Salt of the Earth
I think most Christians would agree with Mumia Abu-Jamal's statement that America is a Christian nation. Sure, there are other religions in our nation and we do not have "The Church of America", but God is on our currency and in our pledge of allegiance. Try telling most Christians that you think that should change and you'll see how fast you're told that you're wrong and that America was founded on Christianity. I think what Abu-Jamal is trying to say is that the majority of Christians are only truly Christlike when it is convenient for them. I mean truly Christlike: completely loving everyone without judgment, administering to the poor and sick, living a meek and humble life. I don't think most people could live their lives like that; Christ is not the easiest person to try to live as. We as humans have faults, and one of them is our desire to better our own lives materialistically. We want to advance ourselves and so we do things to accomplish that even when it might hurt someone else. Abu-Jamal can't fault America for that. What he does fault America for is doing these things under the Christian banner. Doing evil in the name of Christ doesn't make it any less evil.
The rest of his essay I can sympathize with, but at the same time I can't. America is a capitalist country. It's not based on being fair or equal. It's based on grabbing opportunities and making the most gain off of situations. Sure the poor stay poor, but the rich get rich. It sucks, it really does, but how do you propose to fix it? I agree that we are not a true democracy without the voices of the poor and the powerless represented, but where is his suggestion on how that can change? Yes, the media thrives on sensational news stories, but that is only because that's what the audience wants. If the people demanded intelligent news stories, the press would report intelligent news stories.
Raufiel Matias
GWC
English 110
Post #19?
The Salt of the Earth
The author Abu-Jamal talks about different aspects about the United States which in my view is not right for him. First, he talks about Christianity as the main reason for the United States to be doing acts such as dropping of the atomic bomb and concentration camps. As far as religion goes, even though the author did not mention other religions and only focused on Christianity as the main reason why this country is acting that way United States has different religions now because of different races coming into this country sharing their beliefs. Then, the author also mentioned that in order for a person to be heard he/she must have high status in the country and must have power, and money. He then goes on and talk about the media and how the higher people controls what is and isn't shown in our t.v. I agree with the author that most of the stories shown on the news these days are just focused on negativity such as: murder, burglary, death of soldiers on the war, and the list goes on. There are still some positivity around it but it's mostly focus to grab our attention so that we wouldn't have to think about it. I also agree with him that the media today is a really big business because when you and I watch a 30 mins. show for ex. we only get to watch about 20 or so mins. and the rest is just advertisement/ commercial of products attracting the society to purchase/ try it. Overall, it was a good reading.
Kayla Marley
English 110
GWC
Today was my mom's birthday, so I have been crazy busy and have barely had anytime for myself. On top of all this work lately I am getting sick. I haven't been sick in such a long long time. In fact I was sick the second week of my first semester of college back when I was a senior in high school (I started early). Just wanted to rant...
Status Anxiety
Is probably one of my favorite stories we have read in the semester so far. I loved reading status anxiety last semester because status anxiety sums up a part of everyone's life, if they want to admit it or not. Everyone wants to be accepted in one way or another. People want to be liked and people will do anything or say anything just to get the approval of someone else. May it be peer pressure into drugs, or lying to ones parents so they "accept" the image of one's self. People want material things so much, and I am guilty I do too. I want things that I know will not affect my future in ten years from now. No matter how big or how little the materialistic items in life the items are still materialistic. There are people who have hundred thousand dollar cars who want to flaunt their money so people think highly of the owner of the car. I think that having money is a good thing, but I do not agree with spending out of ones means and on useless items that are "flashy". I guess there are people in the world who care more about the exterior than the interior. Sad but true. Until people realize character is what matters people will still always want the glitz and glam of the high life.
Raufiel Matias
GWC
English 110
Post #20?
Isaiah House
Waiting until the day of the field trip, I was excited to go on this one because I do not really know what to expect except the information that Professor Hsiao have said that this house is non-government related and just operates from the donations and volunteers it receives from people. On the way to our destination I was thinking that this house is going to be a small house with not-so-good surroundings inside and we are just going to provide food for them and leave. As soon as we got there I was really surprised that the house was a two story house because all the houses around it were just a single story one. It was a nice surrounding with trees and flowers in front of the house and some kind of a welcome sign written on a piece of wood in different languages. As soon as everybody have gone down from the bus the man in charge of the house immediately asks the students who have good kitchen skills to prepare breakfast. I know I’m not one of them so this other guy in charge instructed us (mostly guys) to carry the stuff from the bus to the back of the house for storage purposes. When we’re in the back of the house I noticed that the house was even bigger than I expected. I thought that the house was some kind of a preschool before because of the way it was built with benches and with tables in the middle. Waiting for about 10 minutes Professor Hsiao divided the rest of the students who weren’t preparing breakfast into groups for some activities inside the house. At first I really thought that we are going to clean the house like sweep the inside, doing some vacuuming, etc… Some of the students in our group had a list of phone numbers for shelter homes and had to make phone calls pretending they were homeless and had to ask if they have room to spend the night. I couldn’t quite imagine how hard it was to find a place to spend the night because a lot of the shelters we called were mostly answering machines and only operates from Mon- Fri. I think that out of approx. 18 or 20 shelters we called we only got 2 or 3 reserved. That ratio is pretty bad if you’re a homeless person because just making those phone calls through a payphone already costs so much and talking to an answering machine to each call makes it worst. After finishing up the calling activity it was finally time to eat our brunch at about 1pm I think. I just sat into one of the tables along with some students and some of the homeless that were living there also sat with us. That was the time where we had our own little conversations about their stories and what not while enjoying our brunch. The lady that sat in front of me while eating was Nancy and we started introducing each other and how we’re doing and stuff like that. I was surprised looking around that the residents living there were all women. We had our little conversation asking her how she likes the place and where she usually sleeps and stuff. Little after our talk led to jobs and I was surprised again that she told me that she has a part time job and just getting some kind of support from social security from her husband that passed away. Overall, it was a great experience because it was something I haven’t done before and I walked away from that house learning something that I will take with me forever. Thanks Professor Hsiao for taking us on this trip.
Gina Huynh
Golden West College
English 110
Post #3 continued
Allegory of the Cave
Reading Allegory of the Cave, I was reminded of how we sometimes accept what we are taught without questioning them. Being Vietnamese, I relate Plato’s message to the history of the Vietnam War. If you study the Vietnam War in America, you would find that the Vietnamese Communists are usually portrayed in a negative light, and likewise, for those living in Vietnam, they are taught that the Americans were the instigator, the ones killing innocent women and children. My father fought alongside the American army and saw a number of his friends as well as his father die at the hands of the Communists; it is no wonder that he has strong hatred towards the Communists. Since I was born after the war, I was taught by my father that Ho Chi Minh was a brutal and war-hungry man who led the Communists to take over all of Vietnam. It wasn’t until in college that I learned more about Uncle Ho, such as his brilliance for war strategies as well as the many languages he spoke as he traveled from country to country. The revelation that he was intelligent doesn’t change the fact that he pitted brothers against brothers or how I felt about him, but it allowed me to step outside of my box to see, for just a moment, one positive attribute he held, instead of just being taught that he was bloodthirsty. On the other hand, students in Vietnam are taught to honor Uncle Ho. They go to school singing the songs praising him and his achievements and are reminded of how he fought for his country. Here, we as children of the war, get the truths of the war from what we are taught, although in America, the history of the war is painted from a much more neutral perspective. In Vietnam, however, the government is more corrupt and has used propaganda for years to paint the Americans as having blood on their hands, so for the younger generations of Vietnamese, they are truly “human beings living in an underground den” with their “legs and necks chained so that they cannot move,” getting their truths from the shadows on the wall made from the fire behind them, with the Communists as the puppeteers, holding on to the strings that held the marionettes that cast the shadows on the wall, with the fire being the source of the distorted “truth,” or what they believed to be their truth.
Katherine Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #1
Hey everyone! I’m new to this blogging thing. Everything seems so confusing but hopefully I get used to it soon! Well my name is Katherine and this is my second year here at Golden West College. I went to Marina High school and live in Huntington Beach. I’m hoping to transfer to UCI or UCLA next fall. I’m excited for this class but also very scared since everything is crammed up in eight weeks instead of 16 weeks, so good luck to you all, and I hope I survive myself! And art class seems very interesting Oscar! I would like to see some of your drawings one day ! Ahahha
Katherine Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #2
Allegory of the Cave
I had to read this story a couple of times to understand it. But from what I got, it was about prisoners chained in a cave and all they had was a fire behind them. They only see the world from what they sees in the shadows on the wall. This story was a metaphor for the state of human existence and the transformation of the enlightenment. The cave was to represent ignorance while the mountain is the journey. Finally the sun symbolizes the perception of the truth and the enlightenment. This whole story is a metaphor of how we perceive what reality is. Many people are in their own little bubble, and they don’t experience life to the fullest, and therefore they don’t know what is really out there. What Plato is trying to say is that some people have different views on life, and if they are hidden in that little cave, then they will believe reality is something totally different then when they actually come out into the light.
Belinda Avila
English 110
Goldenwest College
Post #3
The Allegory of the Cave
I admit, when reading The Allegory of the Cave for the first time, it meant absolutely nothing to me. All my imagination could produce was the image of slaves wearing restraints, standing in a dark cave staring at the cave wall. The next image I saw was one slave being released and being blinded by the sun. Beyond that I had not seen the bigger picture Plato was trying to display. Reading it a second time, however, one can say I saw "the sun".
The Allegory of the Cave reminds me of a recent tribulation in my life. The cave is the slave's reality or entire world. My cave is my addiction. In reality it had been my entire world. It consumed me in darkness. The light from the sun representing truth, blinded the slave as he stumbled out of the mouth of the cave. It was his rude awakening to the real world. My rude awakening was being sent to an inhouse program for almost two months. I was blind at first and did not quite understand what I had been doing to myself or to the people around me, but when my eyes adjusted, I saw truth. I realized my selfish ways, the darkness of the cave. When Plato describes the slave's journey as "...reluctantly dragged up a steep and rugged ascent..."(19), he brought back my own memories of struggling and the difficulties I faced cleaning up my life. I truely enjoyed The Allegory of the Cave after understanding the hidden meanings and seeing so many similarities to my own life.
Cathedral
My first thoughts of this story was that it was rather slow but by its end I was quite impressed. The main character, an unnamed man, starts off by introducing a blind man whose wife has recently passed away. The blind man, Richard, is a close friend of the unnamed man's wife. The unnamed man I will refer to as Unnamed Man for the rest of my reflection. Unnamed Man discovers that Richard is on his way for an overnight visit. Unnamed Man's first reactions were unsympathetic for Richard's condition or for Richard's recent loss. As the story continues on, Unnamed Man and Richard begin bonding through some whisky. They are watching a program on television when Unnamed Man asks Richard if he knows what a Cathedral is. Richard’s reality is darkness, however, he still understands through communication with others and his other four senses that there are actual physical things in the world. Richard says, "I'm always learning something. Learning never ends". Even though Richard lives without his eyesight, he knows there is an actual world beyond his imagination. If one were to explain to Richard that a fire truck is red, would he know what red actually is? Would he actually be able to understand what color is? Probably not, but the fact is that he is always learning that certain words describe certain words and pretty much the descriptions are endless. I really enjoy the end of the story. Unnamed Man describes his feelings at the end, while he and Richard are drawing a cathedral together by saying (in his head), "My eyes were still closed. I was in my house. I knew that. But I didn't feel like I was inside anything"(32). He finally understood Richard through Richard's eyes so to speak. He understood that just because he could not see it does not mean it does not exist or have a name. It is just there. It is what it is.
Katherine Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #3
Isaiah House
I went on my first field trip with Mr. Hsaio! And I have to say, it was a great experience! I normally don’t wake up that early, but it was all worth it. I had a chance to meet homeless women. They are so nice and sweet. Normally, I would be scared to walk up to homeless people because I would never know what they would do to me. I used to think that they were lazy and therefore ended up on the streets because they didn’t work. I thought that if they tried hard enough, they can start a new beginning with their life. But all of that isn’t necessarily true. I’ve learned that it is so hard for them to get back on top when they become homeless. Many of these women here are trying so hard to get their life back up. I see many of them practicing on their grammar, reading, and even trying to look for jobs. One lady that I had a chance to talk to, was very hardworking. She struggles for a bus pass just to get to the UCI library and search on the internet for jobs. Then she has to use all her money on a prepaid phone so that she could put that # on her job application. Many others there don’t have that money to pay for the bus, have access to internet, or money to pay for a phone. From all of these complications, it is so hard for them to get a job. I also learned that the government doesn’t allow these women to have a library card. How do they expect these women to learn and educate themselves if they cant have a library card?? The government has a system that keeps the homeless the way they are. It is hard for them to get money or ever find a job. It is also sad to hear about how hard it is for them to get into the hospital. It would take days for them just to get into the emergency room. And by then, they are probably in much pain. For those that actually get to see they doctor, they have a prescription that they cant even afford.
Most of the ladies there got their hair done and to see their reaction and happiness warms my heart. It is such a joy to see them happy. Cooking for them was such a pleasure and I wish to do it more often! I also met this Chinese lady, who was so sweet and kind. She asked if I was going to come back and visit her again, and I would sure love to! I wish these women the best of luck and hopefully we can find a way to change the minimum wage so that the homeless would be able to work for what they are able to do
Katherine Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #4
Homonyms by Giorgio Agamben
Ok so this sooooo hard for me to understand. I read it the first time, and no idea what was going on. Read it the second time, and still lost. Thank goodness we went over it in class or else I would have been clueless about what this whole thing is about! In the beginning, it says “when we say that certain objects all have a certain property, we suppose that this property is a definite object, that it can be distinct from the objects that belong to it”. This is an example of stereotypes, and whether or not we are able to break out of the stereotype. It then foes on with the color red and that it can mean infinite possibilities. For example, when someone says red, people may think of roses, love, fire, hot, etc. When someone says horse, it can mean the galloping horse or it can mean that your voice is hoarse. In the last few paragraphs, it was a bit confusing, but the point that was being repeated was that: what name something is, can only define what it is.
Only Daughter by Sandra Cisneros
I enjoyed reading this story. It was much easier to understand than Homonyms. Its something that I can relate to. The narrator of the story has six brothers and her dad expects her to go to college and find a husband since she is the only daughter. She loves to write but her dad doesn’t appreciate it, which makes her sad since she has no support from her dad. Throughout the story, she tries so hard to impress her father because all he really cares about is her finding a husband. I think it is sad for those who don’t get the love and support from your family. Writing is what she loves to do and she should pursue it if it makes her happy. And that is what she did, and to impress her father, she wrote a book that was translated in Spanish so that her father could understand. The ending was very cute because it was a happy ending and the dad finally appreciates her writing.
(Andy) Nam Pham
English 110
GWC
Post 23
Status Anxiety
This was an interesting read. What it reminded me of was psychology. The story was about how our satisfactions will never truly be reached because the desire of wanting more and more will continue, even if success is reached. We look at the aesthetics of such great successes, as in riches, occupations, lifestyle, and never really think about the path there. "We read of the results, not of the labour required to produce them." (12). The next paragraph was about constant desire and envy. This is in psychology too, that people are really never satisfied because their sense of ambition forcefully places a person to climb a mountain with no peak. The story moves on to how everything ends, and how statues crumbles. I read the poem of Ozymandias, and it was a great transition and point to add in on portraying the message of "end." It is well known in science that the universe always favors chaos (entropy). All life will (hopefully not soon) cease to exist. Time destroys everything. The great king of kings lays crumbled on the floor. It is ironic how powerful what once was, now is only remembered by a worn-down statue, slowly being buried in the sands. This raises the question we ask ourselves "why should we waste time on trying to be so successful, if everything, what we do and what we have, will disappear?"
Angel Togafau
English 110
GWC
Post #20
The Salt of the Earth by Mumia Abu-Jamal
I liked this reading because it was about how we are a christian nation. I like how this story mentions that human begins are working jobs not because they like them, but because they need money. This is so true that most American's don't even enjoy what they do but are somewhat forced because they have no choice. I like that way after he talks about how people suffer from jobs they do not enjoy, he goes on to say we only need what God gives us. I truly beilieve in this. Especially now adays, everyone strives for more and more. Realisticly, we don't need more and more God will provide for us what we need to get by day to day. It hard to just accept what you have and be happy with it. Sometimes I get overwhelmed too and I don't realize how much I actually have until I really stop and think about it. It's one of those, don't take anything for grante, kinds of things. And, it's so true and everyone knows the old days, "You'll never know how much you truly hard until it's all gone." I like this story because it reminds us to just lay-low and God will take care of us.
Samantha Sullivan
English 110
GWC
Post #17
School Days of an Indian Girl
This story is about losing you self in the transition of conformity. A young Indian girl and her family were coming from the rural Midwest and traveling east to attend school. Her and her family was taken by train across the land that she loved and knew very well. During the journey east, she realizes that she is getting further and further away from her true self and closer to civilization. What had made her feel uncomfortable and even more out of place were the stares and attention that she and her family encountered. These stares made her ashamed and not to be noticed. Once at the school she is subjected to conformity and it taught what the “paleface” wants to teach them. In this sense I feel that they were just being helped. That does not mean that the Indians necessarily wanted to be changed, but in the eye if the white man it was for their good. Through her transition she comes very close to losing herself entirely. She no longer is in contact with her family. She does come to grip and realizes that she does not know the land in the Midwest anymore and that she has been stripped of her nature self. She describes her new self as a telephone pole, bare and stripped, all resembling the same conformed person.
Thuy-Anh Angela Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #1
A Small Introduction to the Class
Hello everyone! My name is Thuy-Anh, but I prefer to go by my middle name, Angela. I attended La Quinta High School and have attended Orange Coast, Cypress, and here at Golden West for the past 3 years. In my freshman year in college, I was an international development major, and studying Japanese as well. I had everything planned out from transferring to a UC, applying for the Peace Corps after obtaining my bachelor's, developing youth programs in third world countries, and even to working with an anti-human trafficking coalition. As the economy went down and due to personal reasons, I decided to change my major into public health. Since then, I've been working as a part-time receptionist and supervisor at a radiology outpatient center and a clinical care extender intern at Hoag Presbyterian Hospital. I've found a new passion in patient care through my internship. That's pretty much all I have for now.
I'm happy to be in this critical thinking class, but I'm a bit scared at the same time. Hey Penelope, it was nice meeting you in class last Thursday. I can tell that you’re going to be an optimist in the class from your comment :). Welcome Penelope and also, good luck to everyone!
Cianna Calandrino
English 110
Golden West
My favorite reading was The Salt Of The Earth by Mumia Abu-Jamal. I love this reading because the whole thing is truth and yet it is so controversial no one wants to touch it. I had a couple favorite paragraphs in the reading. One was Paragraph 2. It was terribly uncompfortable to read not only because that is what our country has done to "survive", but then you add in the whole christianity thing and it screams politically inappropriate all over it. The second paragraph that I love is paragraph 2 in Dialogue. The fact that the government only polls a repeated group of people and the poor have no voice has always concerned me. In this reading she calls it like it is.The blunt honesty, wether I agree with everything or not, is still great.
Brandon Hebert
Goldenwest
Eng110
Post:38
Salt of the Earth
As much as it pains me to admit, this piece is dead on. There are a lot of people who will try to fight this because of its hot topic on christianity. Its difficult to argue with if truely read objectively without a biased lens.
Yue Hayes
English 110
Golden West College
Post #31
Status Anxiety
I think this piece relates to What is Poverty? and also Homonyms.
Often times when I see people, I judge by the cover. Sometimes, I am proven wrong, that my first impression of the person is completely different than who they actually are. I think when he says "We read of the results, not of the labour required to produce them" (12).
I think this quote can relate to a drum corps/marching band show. I know, how band-nerd of me to bring up the marching band...
First of all, drum corps are very demanding physically. You wouldn't think that because what we produce (the show), does not seem as athletic as other sports. When in fact, controlling the breathing through the instruments, controlling the upper body, while keeping in same step with everyone else while following the tempo, is VERY demanding. We do physical training, put in 10 hours a day to produce this show, but from a beginner's point of view, we are just walking around with instruments.
Thuy-Anh Angela Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #2
Allegory of the Cave
After reading this story from Plato, I began reflecting about about it all weekend. Plato tells us a story about these group of people chained up within a cave. Behind them is a fire and before the is a wall of unknown shadows. Unfortunately, those moving objects were the only things that existed in their reality concept. There was nothing else beyond what they were able to see. Of course a person finally is able to break away from the "den" that Socrates mentioned to Glaucon, and found enlightenment at the end of the tunnel as he followed the source of light. One of the things I thought about most were sex trafficking victims. As the years have gone by, clients have been given higher preferences to younger women. Now even girls at the age of 6 are being sold and enslaved. The Allegory of the Cave reminds me of these girls who are confined to such a disgusting global crime. These girls, within their crucial developing years, were exposed to nothing else, but sexual abuse, physical abuse, mental abuse, manipulation, and sick clients. I recall reading a story about an 18 year old girl who was released from a brothel after 12 years of imprisonment. Within those 12 years, all she knew was to have sex and to please clients instead of growing up as a normal child. Upon leaving the brothel, she was told that she had no work experience to be hired anywhere. She couldn't return to her family, because they were ashamed of her. She knew she couldn't find the love of her life and get married, because she has HIV. The shadows of slavery will consume her site for the rest of her life. After so many years without exposure to reality, where will she go? Unfortunately, most of these girls end up returning to those brothels due to Stockholm syndrome, or resort to prostitution. I pray that someday all the freed victims can find that there's hope and happiness at the end of their cave. Also, thank God, there are amazing individuals out there who understand and knows the truth beyond captivity who can help these victims just like the philosopher did in the story.
Brett Hoxie
English 110
GWC
Post #1
New
Hello Blogsphere? This space is truly massive. My name is Brett Hoxie. This is my second year and 3rd semester at GWC and I graduated Marina High School in 2008. For many years i wanted to be an architect but that has since changed. I have decided instead to pursue Film. I hope to transfer to CSULB, UCLA, USC, or Chapman film school sometime next year to pursue a career in screenwriting and production. Its essential i do good in this class since i have decided to major in a form of writing.
Hey Katherine! We went to school together! Glad to see a familiar face at GWC and welcome to English 110!
Brett Hoxie
English 110
GWC
Post #2
The Allegory of the Cave
This is the third time i have read Plato's Allegory of the Cave for a class. I first read it in Prof. Swanson's Philosophy 101 class and then again in Political Philosophy 150. Plato's cave allegory is a very good depiction of humanity's perception of reality both on the macro and micro level. On the micro level, one can argue that every being sees their own reality. What one person may understand as truth may not be truth for another. As people are raised, they discover and learn new things increasing their knowledge. As they learn this knowledge, their realities change. In his Allegory of the Cave, Plato is trying to say speak up and question what you believe because nothing may be as it seems. On the macro level, truth then becomes a perception of society. Whose society is right and with what truths? In Allegory of the Cave we see the comparison of two societies. The society of the prisoners and the society of those outside the cave. If you were to change the positions of two people in and outside the cave, over time they would develop their relative societies truths. And all this is my perception of Plato's Allegory. It seems life is all perception.
Esmeralda Orozco
English 100
cc
post???
SO IM AT SKOO AND THE TEACHER DIDNT EVEN COME SUX I KNO WAT TO DO NOW I AM FIXIN MY MYSPACE PAGE JAJAJAJ KOO KOO
WELL SEE YA WED
esmeralda orozco
english 100
cc
post???
Perfectionism
i think that this story is very inspirational i really hate writting but the way he expresses his love for it is really nice he said that writters have a way of noticing the small details of an object and i think that is very important the small things are some times the most iportant things and for him to discribe it in such a detailed manner is very impresive i like the story beacuse it shows writing to be very important
Thuy-Anh Angela Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #3
Cathedral
This story was heart-warming. It's been awhile since I've come across a deep story like this. One can see there are two different characters in the story. One man is blind and had recently lost his wife, and the other has the blessings to see through his eyes and a spouse in his site. Other than the major differences these two men have with each other, there appears to be a complementary relationship between the two which develops towards the end of the story. The details of how Robert and his guided touch enabled the husband to finally see his life without his eyes, but through his mind. The husband was characterized in a way where he had no friends, an unstable history with his wife, and an insatiable personality. I recall him watching the television, and having trouble selecting a channel that appealed him. The husband was constantly rejecting everything, from his wife's friendship with Robert to his arrival at their home. Robert, on the other hand, has traveled and gained so many friends. He was more of the accepting individual. He's always willing to listen and willing to learn. It's funny, because I just remember something else. When Robert first arrived, he and the husband's wife sat together on the couch, while the husband decided to sit alone in a big chair. I find that the husband puts himself in an uncomfortable position at all times, while Robert constantly reminds the wife that he's comfortable. I am truly intrigued with Robert. I cannot fathom how a blind person would feel without being able to see anything of this world, other than literary words that helps him/her illustrate a canvas in his/her minds. Throughout the entire story, I cannot help but admire how encouraging this blind man was to the husband. The disabled had far more blessings than the abled. Sometimes its like that with people's lives. Some people feel like they're always in the need to be in control, the need to see things for themselves. Sometimes people define almost everything based on logic. It's all black and white. Beyond on all of that, there are always the gray areas that are left untouched. These areas are intangible and frameless. It's a beautiful place and a beautiful state mind to be at when you're in reflection. By having the husband do drawings with his eyes closed, Robert ended up assisting him to be in that open state of mind as well.
Ricky Castellanos
G-Dub
English 110
Post 1
Jenny Guzman from Cerritos,
I feel your pain. I disagree with what your soon-to-be mother in-law did to your baby’s hair because it reminds me of the time that my aunt cut my hair in 4th grade. She shaved my sideburns up to about my mid-temple on both sides and stopped. I swear, It was the shortest and most disastrous haircut I have ever experienced in my life. I looked like a retard without his helmet. Looking in the mirror was dreadful, but school was worse. For about a month, my friends were nowhere to be seen and I was banned from the heavily populated areas of the playground. I believe my aunt did it on purpose with the intention of destroying my social life. Needless to say, we have not spoken since. I resent my mother as well because I saw no effort on her part to fix the situation. I think she was in on it as well. Jenny, you have every right to be upset with your soon-to-be mother in-law. Press charges.
My name is Ricky Castellanos and I am a business major. If all goes as planned, this will be my last semester at Golden West and I will be transferring in January. I am looking forward to helping out the community with Professor Hsiao and fellow classmates. I also hope to gain and learn many things this semester that will prepare me for the next level of education. I have a feeling the Professor Hsiao is the right man for the job. He seems legit.
AOTC-
What we have seen, heard, and have been taught, is often mistaken for reality and Plato writes about this concept in the Allegory of the Cave. Since these prisoners have been exposed to shadows cast on a wall before them for the majority of their lifetime, they have established a sense of reality and believe that what they see before them is the true. We are all victims of lies and false beliefs for we have also been chained and forced to believe what is before us. Our “cave” is our source of information, the media. The media is a form of psychological manipulation controlled by politicians, executives, and wealthy investors that feed us information that will lead us to make decisions in their favor. It is a discrete form of manipulation because we are only exposed to what the top dogs want us to see. Many amongst us are also chained prisoners, for they refuse to give up the security of their familiar reality and contest their beliefs. It has been a difficult struggle for me because I have been forced to challenge many of the beliefs that have been instilled in me since childhood. I feel that I have been unchained and set free, but ahead I still have the journey out of the cave.
Only Daughter-
This is the typical Hispanic parent, always unimpressed. “Good is never enough if better is possible,” my father always says. This is what I have to experience on a daily basis. The fact that my father is a perfectionist does not help the situation either. I don’t think that I have ever been truly rewarded for the good things that I have ever done, only punished for the bad ones. Opposite to Sandra, I am the oldest and only male of four children and I feel like I am the neglected one. My sisters on the contrary are pampered and spoon-fed. Everything is handed to them on a silver platter and maybe someday they will find a husband that will treat them the same way. As for me, a male in this day-in-age, expectations are through the roof. In this society, there are so many things that a man needs to bring to the table just to be accepted. Even if society is blinded and has a false sense of what a “man” really should be, society is the majority. My parents are society. My parents are shaping me into the same “type” of man that they want my sisters to find! As different as I am to Sandra, we both come from the same culture and in a sense, we both share the same goal. She is trying to impress her father and I am trying to impress society (my parents).
Eric Monreal
English 110
GWC
Post #1
Hello everyone,
My name is Eric Monreal. I just turned 24 years old a couple of weeks ago (yikes!). I've been here at GWC for a few years off and on. I am majoring in Criminal Justice and I hope to someday in the near future work for Homeland Security.
A little about me... I am probably the only college student that doesn't have a MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, or any of that stuff. Personally, I think its a waste of time...
On another note, I just had my 5 year anniversary with my wonderful girlfriend, Amber. We went to San Diego over the weekend to celebrate and just get away for a little while. We had the best time there!
I love to watch movies! It is hard for me to pick a favorite because there are so many. I guess one of them would have to be "The Big Lebowski" (as probably apparent with my user name).
I am also very much into sports. I play softball with my dad and brother on Wed nights, play in a hockey league (also with my brother) in LB on Sundays, and try to fit in some golf whenever I can.
I am really looking forward to this class. Mr. Hsaio seems like a really cool teacher and I like the fact that he encourages us to put everything into our work. One of the first things that really caught my attention was when he told someone in our class to not "discredit our thoughts". I really liked that because nowadays people often say little things after their thought to try and make it, for lack of a better word, pleasing to those around them.
Sarah Takeda
Eng 110
GWC
post 1
Allegory of the cave
Allegory of the Cave was hard for me to understand, as will be the rest of the stories i am sure. what i got from it though is that people have to experience something to actually learn the true meaning of it. Socrates wrote, "the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images." People know what is in their cave, but not what is outside of it. They have to step outside of it to fully understand what it really is and means. I think he sort of means that people are narrow minded and see only what they want to see.
Only Daughter.
I really liked reading Only Daughter. It kind of related to me in a way. In my family it is me and my brother, he goes to West Point in New York and i go to a community college, yes it is a good education but very different levels. When my brother first left to go to school my dad carried his picture first West Point school picture around in his wallet. He showed it to anyone and everyone. It kind of made me feel like my dad had my brother on some sort of pedestal. Sandra Cisneros wrote that her brother had "fulfilled her father's dream," i feel like my brother had done that. One day i want to be able to do the same thing and feel like I have done something to make my father proud. Like she does in the end of her story.
Oscar Padilla
English 110
GWC
Cathedral by Reymond Carver
Well this story seems very interesting because it talks about memories and friendships from a long time. Although, I kind of wanted to read more because it just stops at the end without a conclusion; I would like to know what the purpose of the Robert was by telling bub to close his eyes and then look at the cathedral that he had just drawn.
I'm so sorry. jlara is
Jessica Lara
English 110
GWC
Markel Hathcock
English 110
GWC
Post # 1
Hey everyone!
My name is Markel and I am a sophomore at GWC. My major at the moment is in communications but when I transfer I am hoping to go into occupational therapy and or physical therapy for the elderly. Most people would say, “elderly? Why?” I am a very family orientated person and I have a grandma who isn’t all there. Therefore, I want to do anything and everything to help those that need it. My favorite kind of music is country and I love love love to ride horses. I played tennis and soccer in high school and still do it for fun to this day. I live in Seal Beach and love the community. I also enjoy surfing and hanging out with friends. My life revolves around my family however.
Only Daughter
I really enjoyed this story. Even though it is shot, it had a lot of meaning to it. I have an older brother (4 years older) who definitely got the brains and athleticism in the family. Don’t get me wrong, I was athletic, but just not nearly to the extent of greatness that he was. During high school my brother got straight A’s and had a scholarship to UCI for baseball. He had it all. Whenever my family would go out to friends bbqs or parties Cole was always the center of the conversation. My dad was always introducing him to his friends and telling them about Cole’s baseball season and how well he was doing. Then it came to be my time to shine. How did I get introduced? “This is my daughter Markel. She goes to a junior college and is not sure what she wants to do yet.” Great dad, way to make me feel like a loser. I can relate because all my life I have wanted to prove to my dad that I was worth something and that I am as good as my brother.
Markel Hathcock
English 110
GWC
Post # 2
Oops I totally forgot to respond to someone! Katherine, I am a bit scared as well! I feel as though there is going to be quite a bit of stressing out to do over these next 8 weeks because of all the work we are going to be doing in such a small amount of time! One of my best friends goes to UCLA and she LOVES it! She says that classes are hard but its worth it. Good luck with everything!
Jon Croft
English 110
Golden West College
Post #29
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
The blocking of creative energy is a colossally myopiatic effect of pursuing perfection. When I wrote my first essay, I decided to use zombies because I had every intention of making Mr. Hsiao regret giving me, of all people, the option of exercising complete and utter anarchy inside of a written assignment. The fact that it turned out so well is a testament to the universally useful nature of zombies.
In writing, anyways, the belief that I have to write a perfect first draft has resulted in a massive case of writers block on a number of occasions. However, unlike most people, I win at everything I want to.
When I realize that I can win at whatever I want, I also realize that I no longer have writers block, then go on to write lots of words. The first draft that is brought about in this kind of situation may not be pretty, but it forms a foundation. Any kind of first draft, regardless of the situation, is better than no draft at all. It's what you do with the second draft that matters.
Zachary Duke
Eng 103
CC
Post 666, i don't know.
Cancer Journal
I have known many people to have died do to cancer. my step mother now is fighting the fight of breast cancer. all her hair is gone and all she can do is sleep and eat. I cry every time i think about it because this cancer took an amazingly active and wild women i knew. she told me last i saw her, " I have cancer, cancer does not have me." this story reminds me alot about her. they both where strong and full of life. i have a lot of respect for both of them.
sorry i didn't show up to the last class, my grandmother had a ingerie and we all thought she was going to die. she is 96 years old i think. just to let you know, she is ok. it looks like she will survive.
Eric Monreal
English 110
GWC
Post #2
Oscar,
Welcome, I was glad I got a chance to meet you and work with you last week. I know we struggled to find meaning in "Homonyms" but I think we did alright. I was diggin' on that car you drew on the front of your folder. It definitely looked like you've been drawing for a long time. See you next class!
Eric Monreal
English 110
GWC
Post #3
AOTC
In reading AOTC, I found myself having to read the first paragraph a couple of times because it just was not "flowing" for me. I don't know what it was, but I kept having to go back because I could not for the life of me remember what I just read (preoccupied maybe?).
AOTC is about ignorance. One cannot just sit back and allow things to be presented to them as "truth". One must pursue knowledge and get out of one's comfort zone to attain it. Plato says, "...they see their own shadows, or the shadows of one another..." I take that as meaning do not just take what one knows or what someone in your "cave" tells you. Explore. There plenty of information on the way to seeing the "light".
Danh Ta
English 110
GWC
Hello my name is Danh and I am currently in Mr. Hsiao's Tuesday and Thursday night class. I like long walks on the beach and dinner by candle light... sometimes. I have a few hobbies such as basketball, snowboarding, bodyboarding, and writing music. I am very anxious to be in this class and to see if I am up for this challenge. I like people who are serious but still have time to sneak in a joke or two. Thats all I can think about for right now.
AOTC
While reading Allegory of the Cave for the first time, I could not understand it. I was so lost. I had to reread it a dozen times. After I started figuring it out and focused on the lines one by one, the picture came together very nicely. I related with AOTC very much. I appreciated the message Plato had placed within the allegory. The cave representing ignorance, the mountain as the journey, and the sun as enlightenment or truth. Reading this really made me think about a few things in my life and im proud to say, things are starting to look up a bit.
CATHEDRAL
I chose to write about cathedral because it seemed to intrigue me more. I read it during work(yeah was getting paid to do homework), and I was just trying to figure out what everything could stand for: a blind man, the wife, the narrator, the cathedral. A couple ideas that I did come up with is that the narrator comes off as an ignorant person and that after spending some time with the blind man, was actually sort of relieved from his "cave". What completely threw me for a loop was the cathedral. I cannot begin to think what that could represent. Some ideas that I thought was maybe through knowledge(the blind man) and god you can find peace in yourself? Hopefully we have a class discussion about cathedral.
Hey eric, haha you were the first person i met in the class and im glad i got to respond to you! you seem like a nice guy man and damn i know working sucks huh! this class is gonna be tough but we can do it! yahoooooo!
Gabriela Tovar
English 103
Cerritos College
Post #28
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
"Perfectionism means that one tries desperately not to leave so mych mess to clean up. But clutter and mess shows us that life is being lived" Anne Lamott wrote... I am speechless... No one is perfect, even in their own eyes, sorry... One cannot learn from their own mistakes without having any chaos whatsoever... Tell me this, what is the perfect marriage? what makes the perfect marriage? There is not... Their will always be fighting, arguing, back and forth discussions, etc. one can only learn from those and hope to make it better when it come back again... I say that no one is perfect even in their own eyes because; who wants to be known as perfect? I do not... I want to be known as Gaby may be messy, dirty, but always gets her things done on time and knows what she is talking about... My old teacher is very very messy, his desk is filled to newspapers, grading papers, used papers, everything that has to do with paper is on his desk, he looks very messy and kind of is, but when you get to see the way he teaches and everything, one will find that he is organized... He knows where all his papers are, he knows what his scheduled is, everyhting... That may not be perfect to those people that are trying to be perfect, but that is what perfect is, to be messy... I can go on and on but my ride is on his way and if i miss it, uuuhhhh... I will see if i can write more tomorrow before class, for now, I gotta go... Gaby out..
Priscilla Daza
Cerritos College
English 100
post #24
Perfectionism
This story is obviously about perfection. in this case, it talks about how perfectionism based on writing, can deprive one from being creative and what not. lamott talks about how its okay not to be a tidy the person the fact that it proves that one is living their life. and within the clutter one can still find something precious to them. then it mentions how our muscles around our wounds will cramp around it for protection. Lamott relates this fact to child and adulthood. how the times we have been disappionted, humiliated and pained from both child and adulthood has resulted in those wounds not healed due to perfectionism. I believe the ending result in the paper is that one should not be a perfecitist the fact that it will spol away any of out creativness. it reminds me when i first wrote out first essay in class about homonyms or as others wrote on allegory of the cave...anyway i wrote on homonyms and the very last night i was up until 430am just reduing my freaking introduction and my conclusion. because we all know if the intro is altered then the conclusion automatically must be altered as well. the reason why i did revise it to the extreme was because it was not to my expectation. i did not think it was perfect...and it just frustrated me. it wasnt easy as it was with my three body paragraphs were i just wrote away or typed away. but all in all...it turned out to be for the best, well in my opinion the fact that the ending intro and conclusion were way better than the one i was going to turn in before.
cancer journals
man. just the other week my mom went to her monthly check ups at the doctors office and came back was asking me if i ever had a breast exam done. then the following week mister hsiao assigns us to read cancer journals. its scary. i owuldnt know how to breast examine myself i told my mom. i jsut know there are specific weeks to perform it, or so my doctor informed me. this sotry has led me think how it would be without a breast. and its crazy. the idea of it is bogus to me that my imagination will let let me consider it. i flt the writer spoke the truth. in terms of what happens after the operation. how one reflects on themselves and how others protray them. what will make on feel most ocmfortable if it is concealed or what will make one umcomfortable to see etc. again i feel that the wrtier spoke the truth mostly in her journal when one has an instant and utter urge to complete something will give up anything to have it done. yet in a sensical mind, one would break down the options and consider every single one. in the writers case...none of the options suited. in the end, the writer is the bigger person because with her sturggles she overcame the obstacles and kept herself in the positive.
Priscilla Daza
Cerritos College
English 100
post #25
thanks to all how asked for my well being. i was incredibly sick last week. my mother insisted on me being in bed so i was for three days and nights. imagine being in your room for three consecutive days without leaving the house. i roamed around from my room, to the bathroom, to the living room at times and the kitchen less times and ended back to the comfortablness of my room. those three days sure did me some good. i feel like my myself again and yesterday in class i felt like i was in the zone man. i was really happy. ahaha...how gay is that being happy at school...i dont care i enjoy going to school ahaha ANYWAY!
thursday night my lover and i went to the movies with my friend roburrito and asw where the wild things are...didnt like it so much...i liked the idea of the film i jsut di dnot enjoy it...but then again i was still sick so my congestion probably blocked my mind into not liking it...the point is that afterward we went to go eat at IHOP...it must have been 12am at the time and we didnt leave until 130am. throughout the large restuarant there was this party of 3 playing scrabble, another party of 3 a few booths away from us, an two more parties walked in after we did. so in total the restaurant had fives tables. there was only one server, a manager, and two guy who were fixing tables and painting the faded or tagged walls. our one server was good. he was fast and hooked us up with three onion rings because samantha only wanted one so the guy gave was one each and didnt charge us for it. god knows how long those onion strings have been sitting in the kitchen...talk about mad left overs! so we got up to pay and the server charged from the kitchen to the cashier with his shiny face and with a common spanish accent asking us if everything went okay. i said "man you're running the show tonight. running around doing everything!" and the server just opened up to samantha and i saying how he has so much things on his mind. that he is stressed and frustrated. he also mentioned that he missed the birth of his first child which took plave that every night. i asked him "why didnt you ask for the night off?" the server said "becuase she wasnt due until next week" i told him "at least you have a lifetime to make it up to her" and he shrugged. holding back his tears and again letting out his stressful thoughts to me and my lover "i have an appointment with the judge on tuesday. about the ins. and if that doesnt go well then..." and he shrugged his shoulders again. i was like man. poor guy. then roburrito finally showed up from god knows where and paid the bill. after we left sam and i wondered how stressed this guy really must have been to have opened up to two complete strangers. i just felt for the guy. samantha and i agreed to blog about this so there you go
Matt Wilkins
English 110
GWC
Post #1
My name is Matt. I grew up the youngest in my family with two sisters. As far as I can remember I had a reasonably happy childhood. I recently went through a stack of the old assignments and test scores that my mother had saved from elementary school. They seem to back up the idea that I was well rounded and stable. Then I turned eleven. I am not sure if it was the onset of puberty, or a change in my environment, but around midway through the fifth my battle with depression began.
Up until then I had always been at the top of my class in almost every subject. I had even been accepted into the “Accelerated Learning Lab” class which was designed to take kids through the fifth and sixth grade and put them into Junior High at an eighth grade level. I failed spectacularly. For the first time in my life I failed. I have continued to fail ever since. At the end of my freshman year I think that I had only about sixty percent attendance. Officially I dropped out and got my GED the summer after my sophomore year.
“After high school” I moved to Sacramento with my sister. I worked a number of dead end jobs (mostly pizza delivery) and hated myself. I attended and failed out of two years of city college. Met my fiancé, and followed her from Davis, Ca to Tampa, Fl then to HB. I am finally getting somewhere, but as you can tell with the abrupt ending of this introduction I have once again not given myself enough time to adequately complete the assignment. If I don’t destroy myself first then there is nothing that I can not do.
Monique Gutierrez
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #63
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
I believe the message Lamott is giving in Perfection, is that it is okay to let loose once in awhile. For example in a persons writing, their greatest mess of a paper can be their greatest work. She felt that trying too hard to be a perfect writer would just suck the fun out or writing. Perfection does not show a life that was worth living. Lamott wants us as writers to get over our own perfectionism and have fun with it. Also, English Professors will notice in your papers that you tried too hard. I do not think she is trying to tell us to not try at all to do a good job, but she just wants us to not take it all too seriously. She wants us to not take life too seriously. I would say Anne Lamott is what you call a free spirit. She wants us to try our best, but not try and be an overachiever. “Perfectionism, on the other hand, will only drive one mad” (8). Desperately trying so hard to perfect anything, can be frustrating. There are times when I feel like such a loser when I do not complete a task. I have very high expectations of myself and I feel like a total failure, when I do not succeed with whatever goal I have set for myself. I feel like I am the one who sucks out all the fun from my life. But, I am slowly starting to let loose with my life. Thank god for writing! Writing is one of the greatest ways that I can express myself. So when I look back and read all the craziness of my writings, I could just sit there and laugh at myself. I feel like I write better when I am angry. Sometimes my writing does not make sense to others, but it sure does to me. I think that my understanding is the most important thing. I am my own critic. These are MY WORDS! I wrote them! Writing is my therapy. You can express a lot of emotion in writing, especially when you lack emotion in person. “Becoming a writer can also profoundly change one’s life as a reader” (The Last Class, 7). I think this statement is true. Since I have been in this English 100 class my eyes are more open. I neglected the outside world a lot more than I imagined. I am becoming more aware of my surroundings. I feel like I have been in hiding for so long that I need to spread my wings and fly. I noticed that I am learning a lot more with music and movies. I watch movies I never understood as a child and now I am aware of what they mean. When listening to music, I search for the meaning rather than just listening to the beats. I read the lyrics with my writer’s eyes. I can say now this is one of my favorite things to do. In conclusion, everyone has their own unique writing style. Writing brings many people together. In some ways you can relate to what the writer is talking about. But, also you can argue with the writers beliefs. I think when a writers work produces an opinion, then the writer must have been doing something right after all.
Jaime Valadez
English 100
CC
Post #24
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
The author is trying to say that its ok not to be perfect. It is actually unnatural to be perfect. If you try to be perfect in everything you do all your going to do is make your self mad. This story was great because it made it easy for me to start on my 7-10 page paper. I was having trouble starting the paper ,but after reading this story it have me the push i needed to start it even if it was not perfect. The point of the story is be your self.
Joshua Greenroyd
GWC
Eng 110
CALLING ALL BLOGGERS WHO WENT TO ISAIAH HOUSE
If you took any pictures (with or without me in them), can you please send them to me =) I need them for a little something something. I greatly appreciate all of your future help.
p.s: Jon I think we should get some pirate/ ninja/ zombie blogs going.
Brandon Hebert
Goldenwest
Eng110
Post:39
Ninjas?
Pirates?
A jedi craves not these things.
Heidi Martinez
English 110
GWC
post #1
ok i think i finally got it.My name is Heidi Martinez, I am Mexican and Native American and I am 19 years old. This is my second semester at Golden West College. I am originally from Anahiem and moved to Huntington Beach when I was little. As far as a major I have jumped around all over the place, I have yet to find something that I really want to stick with. As long as I am working with children when I get older I will be happy. I come from a huge family with six other kids. My family is one of the most important things to me. Anyone who takes the time to get to know me will find out that my favorite thing the in the entire world to do is laugh. I love to laugh and I tend not to be too quiet when I laugh either. My aunts a nurse and when I was seven she told me that laughing makes you live longer. Since then I doubt there has been a day that I haven’t laughed, so I plan on being really old. I am really excited about this semester I think getting to know everyone in class is going to be so much fun. My last semester with Mr. Hsiao our class really became like my second family, so I am really excited to start a new family with everyone this semester. I read the post before me so hi matt. i think its really cute that you have a fiance and your willing to travel to be with her. i read you had two sisters and i love mine but it must be hard to be the only boy.
Heidi martinez
English 110
gwc
post #2
In Allegory of the Cave, I remember reading it last semester and having no idea what it meant. This semester re-reading the story I have a better understanding of it. I thought I would never be able to relate to this story in a million years, yet the more I read it the more it relates to life in general. These prisoners have lived in a world that is so unknown to them and in a way we all live in a world unknown to us. In Allegory of the Cave, Plato says, “How could they see anything but the shadows if they were never allowed to move their head?”(6). The prisoners have to experience things for the first time in life. They were locked up and not allowed to see anything other than shadows. With only being able to see shadows the prisoners were not able to see a real view of what the world is like. Even though the journey for the prisoners is much harder in learning how to leave the dark cave and adapt to world above the cave, in a way we all learn to adapt to different things. As we go through life we are all going to be stuck in our own dark caves, it is only a matter of time that we soon learn how to adapt and come out of them with every experience we have. To the prisoners learning how everything happens outside of the cave is hard and tedious, but once they did I am sure it was worth being set free. Once we overcome obstacles like coming out of our own caves it is very much being set free like the prisoners were. We are all stuck in caves at time, but finding the light and overcoming the obstacles making being stuck worth the while.
Heidi Martinez
English 110
GWC
Post #3
Cathedral is one of my favorite stories. I really enjoy how the author makes the husband and Robert two completely different characters. Every characteristic that Robert has the husband has the opposing one. The husband is so with drawn from Robert because he is blind. There is no difference between the two men except how they each learn to interpret the world. Robert is disliked by the husband to begin with and then the husband through a life changing experience grows to really like him. While drawing this cathedral the husband is finally able to open himself up and put him in Robert’s shoes. He is no longer judging him, but learning to view things the way that Robert has to view them. In Cathedral, Raymond Carver says, “It’s really something”(32). This is the very last quote of the story and yet it is my favorite. The husband is now viewing the picture of the cathedral that he has drawn for the blind man, yet he is viewing it with his eyes closed. The husband thinks that his picture is beautiful without even looking at it through his eyes. By drawing the cathedral and learning how to see things through other senses then just vision he is finally able to find the beauty in life.
Celina Rivera
English 100
Cerritos College
Post# 64
I can not stand being sick. I had class today and it was crucial. I need to attend class because the semester is almost over. I really do not want to do anything. My brain has congestion not just from school, but because I am sick. I get home have the chills, goose bumps and freezing. Then I wake up because I am so hot because of all the clothes I have on that once kept me warm. I also have snuffles.
Celina Rivera
English 100
Cerritos College
Post# 65
Jenny...
I can not say I know what you you feel about the the whole hair cut thing. I know that my aunt cut my brothers eyelashes when he was little. The reason she did that was because they were long and her songs were not. My mother was so upset about it, but they never grew back. At least your daughters hair will grow up.
Arturo Lopez
English 103
CC
post # idk
Cancer Journals
This essay was very sad. Although this journal is about breast cancer, it is applicable to both sexes. The journal is not just about breast cancer, rather its about losing a apart of oneself literaly and metaphorically. When a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer they get a mastectomy which is a procedure where they remove the breast so the cancer within the breast does not spread. After they remove the breast the woman has a choice to have their breast reconstructed. The author brings up the paradox of breast implants as prosthetics. In a sense it is a prosthesis. The purpose of the prosthesis is to function as if the missing limb would. However the reconstructed breast is a prosthetic that does not function as a natural breast. The prosthetic only looks like the orginal breast. This proves how society has sexualized breasts and women. The Author brings up the question of why cant society see the beauty in women for just being women? Her point is that women with one breast or no breast are just as beautiful as a women with both breast. I believe that the thesis in this essay is that we live in a society in which appearance and image is everything and when we let those things consume our being we forget what is truelly beautiful. Nature is beautiful.
Alvaro Sosa
English110
GWC
Post#1
Hello Everyone!
I am Alvaro and I am 23 years old. I am enjoying this class so far and surprisingly time doesnt seem to drag on as in other English classes. I feel like I'm getting to know some of my class mates just by the interesting class discussions we have. I have attended several other community colleges in the area and this is my second semester at GWC and i now wish i would have done all of my pre recs here, it is worth the drive..Anyways its almost bedtime for me, so all i gotta say is good luck to you all especially the ones that are expecting A's in this class, and see you thursday.
AOTC
I had never read AOTC before and i was very enthralled by it. Not too long ago i had just seen one of the scariest movies ever. I literally didnt sleep the night i saw it. This movie Zeitgeist talked about three things. One was about how practically all religion sprouted from the acient worshippings of the sun among other things. The second part was about the federal reserve bank and the world bankers and how they control much of the world and what their ultimate goals are. Some other things discussed were some government cover ups such as 9/11 and other incidents the US had intentionally created so they too could cash-in in the profits of war such as pearl harbor and the golf of tunkin incident.Im still doing some research on trying to confirm their claims. This made me ask my self how far in the cave I'm in, and how deeply rooted the lies that i have bought as truth are and if i would even be capable of accepting the truth when i come out of the cave.The only way to escape the cave and see the truth is to question and trying not to take anything on faith not even if they call you judas.Anyways Hi Heidi! I beilieve you know about the laughing. You should be a Laughter Yoga instructor all you have to do is start laughin which comes natural to you and lead the class in a laughing frenzy. You would be perfect for the job. I have tried it but never in a big group just by myself in my room but it works its unbelievable your fake laughter eventually turns into a genuine one and when your done you feel amazing, you must always feel like this huh?
Sarika Vaswani
English 103
CC
Post #idk
Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde
This inspirational reading made me both sad and angry not only for those who have battled/are battling cancer, but also because of the media itself. Society/the media creates its own set of standards, rules and expectations.. like a world of its own that we are all striving to live in. We become more concerned with what others think of us, rather than what we think and feel about ourselves from within. We are given these unrealistic standards of what "normal" is that often leaves us insecure and unhappy. For women alone, I know it's already difficult trying to accept how we look as it is, but imagine what it would be like living in this same world with only one breast? I can't even begin to try to understand what that may be like, but Audre Lorde did after having to have one of her breasts removed due to cancer. When a breast is removed, women are given a prostheses as though this is the ultimate solution to make a woman feel whole again. This is to say that breasts are only seen as objects and their sole purpose is for appearance to others because this is the idea the media gives off. Lorde sees it differently. She did not grieve the appearance of her breast after having it removed, she grieved the "feeling and the reality of fact". Breast or no breast, or just one's overall appearance does not determine beauty, nor should we let society or outsiders make us feel any less because of it. BEAUTY COMES FROM WITHIN, FROM THE HEART.
Jessica Vasquez
English 100
CC
Post #: ??
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Michael Swisher
English 100
Cerritos College
Post#48
Cancer Journals
Cancer is a terrible affliction. My grandfather passed away after battling the disease for years, and I have a strong feeling that is what will do me in someday. The author of this excerpt is a very strong person. It takes a unique individual to not only fight the illness itself, but to find ease with the consequences post-treatment. Amputation is a common practice for cancers (of certain areas of the body) especially breast cancer. She made the statement that “it is not a woman’s breast that makes her a woman”, and I agree. If my wife, heaven forbid, ever lost a part of her body, it does not amputate any portion of her soul. I feel very deeply sorry for the author because of the circumstances surrounding her life, but I am glad that she made peace, and learned how to create positive outcomes from such a negative, impugning subject.
Veronica Vasquez
English 103
Cerritos College
Post #30
Perfectionism
I think my favorite part in this story is where the author compares perfectionism to the time he got his tonsils surgically removed. Perfectionism, in the author's eyes, is a setback for writers. It keeps them from writing the awful first, second, or nth draft which allows them to throw out their individuality in writing. Perfectionism does not allow you to go back and fix writings that may only need minor adjustments, or even extreme additions to it. Perfectionism, as I understand it, inhibits one from learning from one's mistakes, or worse, inhibits the writer to grow stronger. When the author had their tonsils removed, and was in great pain, they would not believe simple chewing gum would work stronger than the max painkillers he was allowed to take. But to his surprise, the chewing gum relaxed his muscles in his throat that were protecting the wound from surgery, and instant relief came. As human beings, when we go through traumatic events, we never grow from them, and just close ourselves to the world to disable that traumatic experience from happening again. In a way, perfectionism was this author's muscles protecting him from bad writing.
We all should try to relax our protective barrier, and allow ourselves to actually live and learn. As the author describes these people with constant barriers around them, he compares them to jumping in a river with stepping stones. It is a lot less fun to carefully jump from one stepping stone to another, constantly trying to not make a mistake and fall. Who doesn't want to get wet once in a while, anyway?
Samantha Shepherd
English 103
CC
Cancer Journals
When I started reading this, the further along I got the more infused with passion I felt. The fire that the narrator displayed through her diction was amazing. The way that she felt going through her surgery and then the way she feels toward society and the ways they perceive themselves and others is something that we should really take into consideration. I think that she hit it spot on when she said that society always tries to find a shortcut so that one won't have to go through the pain and the sorrow or misery. However, these are the things that change us, feeling such negative feelings are also how we learn to appreciate our positive feelings. We have to go up to come down and vice versa. Of course no one chooses to go down, but it is something that I believe our society has to learn to accept more easily, for as Audre Lorde says, "...my feelings are a part of me, my sorrow and my joy...I would have never chosen this path, but I am glad to be who I am, here" (7, 8).
To touch on another thing, I think that she was also right when she said that the idea of going through the surgery was more traumatic than the real-deal (1). I think about those negative feelings we're like a chlid (and some adults) right before we go into a dentist's office or a doctor's office and we're more scared of just thinking about it, than the actual procedure. We should learn to stop worrying so much and just take a breath and the plunge. We need to stop being so scared of getting hurt. It's going to happen either way.
Kyle Umbarger
English 110
Goldenwest College
Post #2
"Allegory of the Cave" uses symbolism to express the unseen truth to the story. The "cave" plato is talking about is a person's subconscious. People are trapped in a cave within themselves that creates their hurt and grief. Plato uses chained prisoners in his representation of a cave. These chained prisoners in a cave represent the vast majority of people in the world which are misguided in seeing the truth towards enlightenment. Breaking free of your cave is the way towards the sun. The "sun" is our end result; the truth people realize throughout their life. Plato uses Socrates as an example of somebody who is already traveled far through that road towards enlightenment. Glaucon on the other hand, represents somebody who is just finding his journey toward the sun. He does this by showing clearly the power Socrates has over Glaucon. Socrates acts as a teacher, where Glucon acts as his student. Plato could therefore be trying to tell us to follow what socrates has to say about enlightenment.
Kyle Umbarger
English 110
Goldenwest College
Post #3
Sandra Cisneros portrays her own life in her short story "Only Daughter" to credit the writer and person she is today. Using her own life as a framework, she can then easily talk about how she constantly has struggled throughout her life to get her father's approval. She was the only daughter in a family of 9, which made her go through her childhood very alone. Her father was a hard-working man, who was trying to create better opportunities in life for his family. He had his beliefs though that women should only be going to college to find a smarter man. He never respected Sandra's own beliefs on her future, which caused Sandra's drive grow stronger. She worked harder and harder to become known as a professional writer. A child is influenced by the people who surround their life. Therefore, when Sandra's father would tell people that he had 7 sons, it made Sandra try to impress him more and more. This caused Sandra to eventually write "Only Daughter" in spanish, which caused her father to finally be proud of her.
Priscilla Daza
Cerritos College
English 100
post # 26
okay...here i am in the stinkin computer lab and i say stinken because im still trying to recover from my cold or flu or whatever the heck i had last week and the only seat available is the one right under the stinken air conditioner...man! thank goodness for my furry coat! so as im maning up i realized that i am trying to everything today (the three paragraphs and what not to show hsiao what we got) and i have not written anything! man sorry mister hsiao if im upsetting you. im doing this scholar google search which i believe will help me out TREMENDOUSLY but i have like 40cents left on my little card and it is not enough to print the 30 pages of info i want to use in my writing. i am saving a few though on my wonderful flashdrive to go back later...oh i gorgot to mention that i have NO CASH to insert more money into my little card so im S.O.L...i figured i can easily write a paragraph or so on the books my theatre professor let me borrow but it just donned on my that all seven of the borrowed books copyright from the 60s and some from the 30s...the books were priced at 95cents at that time if ya'll curious...ahaha "ya'll"
sorry i got distracted freaken sherry from last class just sat next to me at "da lab" trying to make it sound cool...the place to be yo! yeah i guess i can stop ranting...or complaining? whining? anyway i still goin to show up to class though because i want to be a good debate group not the leftovers...i already have in a mind a couple of people i want in my group but i think its not going to happen because show has us in groups on 2 or 3 and i want like seven people in my group...ahaha one thats not even our class ahaha...okay so yeah thats all im going to say! i'll see you guys in class!!
Janice Silva
English 103
Cerritos College
Post#21
Perfectionism
Perfectionism is a mere image of what we strive to be. We can never be perfect, because then we would not be able to grow. We learn when we make mistakes, to understand life. Many of us have done stupid things in the past and most of us have understood that the mistakes we made were not the right choices, but getting up and changing is were we grow. When one get's there head wrapped up in being perfect, they loose the sense of themselves, trying to be something, but loosing the color, everything is black or white, right or wrong. "Perfectionism is one way our muscles cramp. In some cases, we do not even know that the wounds and the cramping are there, but both limit us" (5). The idea of being perfect hurts us more than we think. Thinking that one has to be one way, and the mistakes when thet fall are enormous in the perctionist eye, that it's to much to bare. Get up, we have to get up and learn. Through pain sorrow comes honest joy, in order to understand the light we have to go through the dark. In order to grasp a concept, we must fall. Nobody is perfect, but that is the beauty of it, no one is alone in that concept.
Ana Cervantes
English 100
Cerritos College
Post # ??
Cancer Journals
When I first read the tittle my first thought was, this story is going to make me cry. Luckly it didnt. Usually a lot of cancer stories are sad and do not end well. Like a story i read called Before I Die, I really recomend this story. But anyways when i was reading through this story I couldnt help and think of what I would of done if I was in that position. It is true that not having a breast does not mean you cannot continue on living or not FUNCTION. But us woman have learn and seen that sometimes our physical matters a lot to us more than we might assume. One can say that it can't be that hard not having a breast because is not like loosing a leg or arm that we actually need. However, think of it this way how about when you have a bad tooth and cannot chew from one side. Therefore, you try to chew using the other side, is not that easy at first it? The reason why is we have gotten use to chewing by that side that we tend to want to go back at it but the pain reminds us we cannot. I can give my opion on how i could react but that does mean i would react the same way when actually put in that situation. However, what I can assure is that the struggle to get where the narrator did will be painful and heartbreaking, but at the end it would be worth it.
Priscilla Daza
cerritos college
english 100
man michael...you always know the right things to say...man! your blog on cancer journals how you mentioned it doesnt amputate the soul...my grandfather as well died from cancer two days after his birthday...its a tedious process to die. not only the victim but everyone involved suffers greatly...i know my dad sure did...always lighing a candle on june 26...it still pains my emotions whenever i see my daddy's face aching for the loss of his own father...his blue eyes fade two shades...anyway how the heck do you get all feelings and make sound i dont even know...good stuff
Tess Elizondo
English 100
CC
Post 18?
Perfectionism
When I think of perfect, I think of something or someone too good to be true. In reality no one and nothing is perfect. As I read this story I thought of walking into some person's house and there whole house being spick and span. In reality people usually have a spick and span house when they are having guest over, and even when it comes to that a house is not all that perfect. Then the story talks about a person's writing being perfect, as people know there is no such thing. Yes, the writing may be spectacular, amazing, and outstanding, but perfect no. Writing comes from creativity and imagination. Being perfect blocks those ideas from being in a person's paper. In my opinion there is no such thing as perfect. Something always goes wrong and people make mistakes all the time.
Freddy Villalobos
English 103
CC
Post#??
Cancer jornals.
well i guess we see woman in this society as sex tools. me being a giy makes it worse but in reality is thats thats the truth.we see them to have sex. the more good loooking they are the more we want them. and sadly thats how we see ourselfs too. woman can see the same and feel the same as guys, yet they think there superior. there more worry about there looks rather than what people think of them. they want to look more on the outside than their inside. thats its the meaning of cancer jornals. regardles if its man or woman, they want to be the best thing they could be. even if it means to defacing there true self.thats is what i belive the author us trying to tell us.
Martha Vazquez
ENglish 100
CC
Post 26
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
This piece was written with so much passion and love for writing. It made my writing efforts seem worthwhile. "To have written one's version is an honorable thing to have done" She speaks about how even just describing your hometown can be helpful to someone in some way. I often get discouraged when I can't express an emotion through writing. This piece made me feel as though my efforts were not wasted, that every word that is written with honesty and emotion, as small or insignificant as it may seem, can change, or impact a life.
Jonathan Aguilar
English 103
Cerritos College
Post #29
Perfectionism
This story talks about how being perfect is not good at all in writing. In the process of being perfect we lose other characteristics for the paper. We lose our creativeness and our ideas. we have to have some fun with our lives and with our work. If not everything becomes boring. We need to make mistakes and get things wrong in order to learn from them and make our writing stronger. Perfectionism was compared by the author to have his tonsils removed. He compares them by stating that in the mouth there are muscles that protect a wound from infection. He says that in writing perfectionism is the muscle that protects from bad writing. And chewing the gum and going through the pain gave him pain relief. Which is like the drafts you do for your papaer before the final draft. This was a great comparison. It is crazy to see how people can make such great papers on any subject.
Jonathan Aguilar
English 103
Cerritos College
Post #30
Cancer Journals
This was a very sad story to read. Because of my medical condition i use to go get treatment done at the hospital with Kemo patients. I have talked to a few before and it is a terrible feeling to watch people go through so much pain. Audre talks about how hard it is for women to lose one of their breasts and then be offered a fake one that does not function the same way. It is tough because it is a part of them. It is there's and it seems as though they lose a part of themselves when it is taken away. Media/the press have made it so tough on women with the simple fact of looking beautiful. To be beautiful you need to be this or look that way. You need to be this tall or this skinny. You need to have both breasts. When this is not the case! Beauty is what is inside but this is not what we are told. This is not what we see on television. But beauty is and always will be in the eye of the beholder.
Adrian Moreira
Cerritos College
English 100
Post# 28
Perfectionism - Anne Lamott
What a "perfect" read at the beginning stages of our research paper. Anne Lamott let's us know what will ruin our writing and what will help our writing in a blunt, frank way. This is exactly what I needed right now. Since we have started our research paper, I have not been able to write as well as I would like to. But like Lamott writes, "...the bottom line is that if one wants to write, one gets to, but one probably will not be able to get very far if one does not start trying to get over one's perfectionism." (9) Especially right now that we are in the beginning stages of our paper where all we really have is first drafts. And like Anne says (about first drafts), "But he [God] might give you the courage and stamina to write lots and lots of terrible first drafts, and then one learns that good second drafts can spring from these, and one sees that big sloppy imperfect messes have value." (6) I feel comfort in knowing that no matter how bad I think my first drafts are, they might bring on some much better second drafts and eventually a final draft. I hope I can do well on my future writing endeavors and I know that when I feel like I am not doing so well, I can read this essay over and get over my doubts.
Jasmyne Young
English 110
GWC
Post # 16?17?
Cancer Journals
Us women do need to be aware of health issues that might arise within our gender. It would be horrible to have to lose an important part of what makes one female in order to live, but sometimes one has to do it. I do agree with the fact of not being able to truly cope with a loss like losing a breast though and not being able to show any emotion toward that loss. In today's society it is about how we look to everyone else, but it should start with one's self. If I lost one of my breasts I would feel insufficient as a woman, it does not matter if there is the illusion of a breast or not.Eventually, I would learn to love the fake breast though and know I am still the beautiful woman that I am. For the most part, us women just need to learn how to love our bodies and ourselves, no matter what may or may not happen in our lives. We also should be thankful for the things we do have in this life and not regret losing other things. As Audre Lorde says, "I alone own my feelings. I can never lose that feeling because I own it because it comes out of myself." It all comes from within. So, women, love yourselves, love your body... it should not matter what others think of you, all that matters is your own love for your own self.
Samantha Navarro
English 103
Cerritos College
Post#2000?
Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde
No matter how our physical body is transformed, we remain our own selves on the inside. Lorde describes the experience of losing a part of herself that we tend to identify our womanhood and sexiness with. If a breast (or both) have to be amputated for the sake of survival, does our womanhood also get cut off from ourselves? The way a woman is portrayed in society is that she'll be happy if she looks a certain way; small waist, big breasts, big hips, even young age. We also tend to fear aging, so there are treatments to make one look younger. "Women [after their 40s] are portrayed in the popular media as fading and desexualized figures" (3). This vision of womanhood has robbed us of our true identity, and Lorde has made it clear to us that our identity goes beyond our physical attributes. We must embrace our experiences as stepping stones in the process of learning in life, which will ultimately make us who we are. When one loses her breast to cancer, Lorde explains that she is offered a prosthetic to make it seem as she has lost nothing. But this prosthetic is only an illusioned cure, it only covers up the emotions that one must go through. We are always in a constant struggle with the media portrayal of women, and we either conform to it or we fight it. The way society reacts to physical attributes is disturbing; this can be compared to judging someone because of the genetic body we were born with. We glorify someone who was born beautiful and discriminate someone who isn't considered beautiful by society.
Lorde also explains how she gained from her loss. She was able to identify with her true self, she explains, "I alone own my feelings. I can never lose that feeling because I own it because it comes out of myself...my feelings are a part of me, my sorrow and my joy. I would never have chosen this path, but I am glad to be who I am, here" (7-8). This correlates with Man's Search for Meaning; no matter what may happen to us in our physical life, our thoughts and feelings can't be taken away if we are aware that our physical is seperate from our SELF.
Romero, George
English 103
cc
Post #....
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
such an awsome story that can reflect my state of mind. my ideology used to be that if one was to write an A paper than one must write a perfect paper, but i soon found out that this ideology was a hard path to follow. i would eventually come to the conclusion that i will merely write from the heart, and if that was not a good paper well than i know atleast that i spoke the truth. even now when writing this blog i merely write what my heart tells me. in the end this story is all the insperation anyone would need when writing a paper.
Jessica Atthowe
English 110
GWC
Post #?
Cancer Journals
This piece had a lot of meaning to it. Throughout the whole story i could not help but think about my classmates in elementary school who's mothers passed away from breast cancer. I think it would be very hard to live with the insecurities of a mastectomy. Since society is all about body image that would be a difficult way to live. To read this story of this lady dealing with breast cancer is inspiring because, although she has some rough times she keeps a positive outlook on life. It's too bad people don't value life sometimes until it flashes before their eyes, but when they finally do realize how much life has to offer them their whole view of the world changes for the better.
Diana Amezcua
English 103
Cerritos College
Post #??
Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde
This reading was interesting because i could kind of relate with what she is talking about. Lorde is saying that women are seen by society in a way that if they are not sexy, look right or normal they are not going to be accepted by others. Indeed, the womens body is just seen as a sex symbol and nothing else. Therefore, when some women go through breast cancer and need to get a breast removed they have a difficult time. The fact that they are not going to be accepted by society is very harsh.
Arcelia Swarr
English 100
Cerritos
Post #idk
First, I want to say thank you SO MUCH to Mr. Hsiao and Tess and Janelle for being so concerned monday night, it meant a lot that you guys cared. Everything's a little calmer now at home, hopefully it stays calm at least until we move.
Now, onto the homework. I read Perfctionism and I instantly loved it! I don't know what it was about that piece that really got me, but I think it is my favorite so far! I like how the writer talks about perfectionism as a sort of disadvantage. She says that by being a perfectionist you block out your natural creativity. The part of the story that got to me was "clutter and mess show us that life is being lived"(2). I admit, I am not always the cleanest person. I like to have organization, but sometimes I do better when I have clutter around me. I like to do things the right way the firsttime, though I rarely accomplish that. I have always believed that the more you focus on how clean and neat and tidy every little thing is around you the less you appreciate an dnotice everything else around you. This story is a great way to remind yourself that it's ok to not be perfect. Sometimes, in all the drats and efforts put into a "perfect" paper or project you may find that you as a person have grown. Not everything in life is meant to be perfect. Life is messy sometimes. Life has sticky situations. Life has its ups and downs. One thing that life will probably never be though, or at least for me, is perfect the first time around. If you can learn to accept the imperfections in everything and work towards being your best "self" that you can be, then you will continue to grow as a person, and that is what life is all about.
Archie Kaaua
Professor Hsiao
English 110
Golden West College
November 2, 2009
Post 32
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
I have been told that I am a perfectionist to a fault. I like things done right and looking their best. I know that this is a good trait to have but it is also a fault. Perfectionism is far more time consuming. It is also a stumbling block to creativity. I love completing a project for myself and using it for years to come. I build everything from sun decks to vehicles. One problem is the creativity dies when something has to be perfect. In the story Perfectionism by Anne Lamott she says, “Perfectionism will ruin your writing, blocking inventiveness and playfulness and life force” (p2). I do not see my writing being ruined, but maybe I have not realized what has been done so far. I certainly have seen some improvements and want further creativity, but who wants to read something that has not been proofread? I guess now that I have learned to fix run on sentences and fragments, I have become a little spoiled. Sometimes in our lives we get hurt. We build up barriers that keep us from getting hurt again and these barriers like perfectionism keep us from discovering anything new. We need to make mistakes. In the story Perfectionism by Anne Lamott she says, “I’m sure forgot to mention when we were children was that we need to make messes in order to find out who we are and why we are here—and by extension, what we are supposed to be writing”(p10). If we were near death would we take so long to finish our memoirs? Probably not, so let’s give it a try (the writing that is).
cathrina afusia
cerritos college
english 100
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
This reading sort of reminded me of the time when we were discussing our caves. I have always tried to be viewed as a perfectionist in my mother's eyes. At times I feel as if I am pushing myself too far just to live my life for her. I know I am not alone out there. I believe our parents are our greatest fear, and who wants to dissapoint their parents? Not me. I can see how this also relates to my writing. At times I get frustrated when writing a paper. I will read it back and not feel as if it is good enough, eventhough I have delivered the message I set out to give. It is especially hard knowing you have Mr. H reading your papers! I believe that is what makes me a good student. It is not easy thinking about what another person wants to hear, especially when you have so much to write. I always read my papers, and wonder if the reader will feel the emotion that I felt at that time.
Brenda Flores
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #?
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
So this story is talking about perfectionism and writing. Two things I believe do not go together. I feel that when you write you have to make mistakes. Of course you need to follow the rules of grammer but mistakes are allowed. Why people are trying to achieve perfection is a mystery to me. Life is all about mistakes, and everything that can go wrong will. All you can do is embrace it.
Celina Rivera
English 100
Cerritos College
Post # 66
Perfectionism
Being perfect is what everyone tries to be. In anything I do in my daily life I try to do with perfectionism. I know that no one is perfect, but in everyone has what is perfect to them. When I try to do something perfect I keep fixing it. Everyone else who sees what I have done might be perfect to them, but I do not. I am so picky. I want to do always do things right. I never seem to do it that way which makes me upset.
We all try to be perfect in our own eyes, but it is never good enough for us. Why is there perfectionism?
Jenny Guzman
English 100
Cerritos College
Post me no know
Ricky,
Sorry to hear about the bad haircut, I think one time or another everyone has had a bad haircut, but those hair cuts should be from our parents not anyone else. I laugh when you said to press charges, I would have if I wanted to break up with my boyfriend. Ha!!
Celina,
Why would anyone cut eye lashes?? I mean What the fudge??? That is crazy.
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
HHMM... where to start. Well When I read the story I thought how people SHOULD be perfect. Well she said it is not talking about being prefect. Nothing is really perfect anyways. People who thrive to be perfect, will most likely fail. I feel all we can do is try to do well and hope for the best. I know that everything I try to write a well written paper it will have to be read and written like 40 times. No one is born perfect, but people are born smart. IF people would practice to at something they will eventually become better at the at what we do.
Sten Cordova
English 100
Cerrotos
Post #8
Perfectionism
This perticular story spoke to me in a way that stood out than the other stories. I really did't like what it was saying. I completely disagree with the authors view of writers. She thinks that writers should not obsess over what they write and to be proud of what they innicially have writen. I think that writers should continue to fix what they have writen until they are satisfied with their work. She claimes that a feeling of pride cn come of something unrevised. I resent that comment. For my senior project in high school, I wrote a story that was three Acts long. Although it was for a school project and it came out better than I expcted, I am still not happy with it. And I can't be until I revise it about three or four times. I think feeling proud of an inicial effort when it comes to writing is not pride at all, it is huberous.
Jessica Vasquez
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #: 2666124654131316
Caner Journals by. Audre Lorde
Upon reading this story about this lady dealing with breast cancer, it brought back many memories from one of the most difficult times my family has ever gone through. My close aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years back. I must have been around 14 or 15 when this occurred. Everyone was in shock upon hearing the terrible news, and as a family we all came together to bring her strength and to help her through her rough way. I remember sitting with all of my family in the waiting room as the surgery went on and they amputated one of her breast. Silence filled the air as everyone desperately prayed for the best outcome. Thankfully all went well with the surgery and most of the cancer was contained. Next came her chemo, her sleepless nights in pain and feeling as she was slowly burning up inside. One thing I will tell you is that no matter what breast or not, and hair or not, my aunt always felt beautiful. The was never a time when she did not dress up or felt ashamed of only having one breast. Instead, she walked proud and with her head up because in the end cancer didn't kill her, she killed it. Having one breast should not make you feel less of a woman, because inside you know who you truly are. Cr@p if that was the case, then I should be called a man, since I was not "blessed" and am flatter than a wall (I'm exaggerating)... lol..
Maria Ascencio
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #23
Perfectionism
I guess now I understand the importance of writing. People focus too much on having such perfect paper right off the bat. "Perfectionism, on the other hand, will only drive one mad"(9) It does, definetly does. We write to expose what we believe. When we start wrting, we sometimes have all these ideas of what we want to writre, but when we have to trasfer them to a sheet of paper, they are suddenly gone. Whe I write soemthing I tryto get my ideas written down so I will not forget them later. When I reread what I have written, I feel that it is still not good enough. To my dad,I have always tried to be on top of things perfecting everything that is a foible to him. As hard as I try, a minor mistake causes him to be dissapointed.
Sarai Vazquez
English 100
Cerritos College
Post ...
Perfectionism by. Anne Lamott
what i got from this reading is that you should live life to the fullest. do not worry too much and have fun. it is a good motto to live by but you also need to be careful that you do not hurt the people around you. being perfect is something that nobody will ever achieve in their lifetime but we try our best to acheive it. we knoe we will never reach it but push ourselves everyday to get to that point of "perfection".
Stephanie Farano
GWC
English 110
Post#?
My last post was about Status anxiety, but I forgot to write a headline. :)
Perfectionism I feel is talking about the life of everybody and how in life it take countless shitty first drafts to make a good one. By that I mean that in certain points of your life there has to be mistakes and from those mistakes you learn from it and attain a better draft. According to Perfectionism by Anne Lamott, she states, “but clutter and mess show us that life is being lived”(1). She meant that in life you make mistakes and get messy and through that is a sign that life is being lived. There was also things she talked about in the story which was one about life and the other about writing. It was confusing and could not really understand it fully and what her thesis was. I just know she talks about herself when she was twenty one years old and had her tonsils removed. Then she uses her throat to explain psychic muscles. She explains that trying to be perfect is a way that peoples muscles cramp up and never lets the wound heal. What this story kind of reminds me of myself. For writing is like a wound that never heals because I hate to write. Or I am not good at it. It take hardwork and countless mistakes or shitty first drafts in order for me to make a reasonable good essay. But this class for some reason is the piece of gum which anne talks about because Mr. H pushes us and kind of feel that my wound of writing is closing which according to myself I think is but very slowly. If I continue on this path maybe I wont be that bad of a writter.
Brian Jimenez
English 100
CC
POst# I forgot.Will check later
I posted again becasue on the first one I forgot to put my name and everything else.
Perfectionism I feel is talking about the life of everybody and how in life it take countless shitty first drafts to make a good one. By that I mean that in certain points of your life there has to be mistakes and from those mistakes you learn from it and attain a better draft. According to Perfectionism by Anne Lamott, she states, “but clutter and mess show us that life is being lived”(1). She meant that in life you make mistakes and get messy and through that is a sign that life is being lived. There was also things she talked about in the story which was one about life and the other about writing. It was confusing and could not really understand it fully and what her thesis was. I just know she talks about herself when she was twenty one years old and had her tonsils removed. Then she uses her throat to explain psychic muscles. She explains that trying to be perfect is a way that peoples muscles cramp up and never lets the wound heal. What this story kind of reminds me of myself. For writing is like a wound that never heals because I hate to write. Or I am not good at it. It take hardwork and countless mistakes or shitty first drafts in order for me to make a reasonable good essay. But this class for some reason is the piece of gum which anne talks about because Mr. H pushes us and kind of feel that my wound of writing is closing which according to myself I think is but very slowly. If I continue on this path maybe I wont be that bad of a writer.
Belinda Reed
English 100
Cerritos College
Cancer Journals
I admire this womans courage. We don't realize what we have until we don't have it anymore. Especially a limb or other body parts. That goes for Eye sight as well. Im not big busted by no means, but am extreamly thankful for have I never had the chance to breast feed any of my children because I simply didn't enough milk for them, and now i can no longer have children do to problems earlir on in my life So when i think of breast cancer. I think how sad that these woman will also never experience the joy of breast feeding. I do admire their courage.
Edilu Medina
English 100
Cerritos College
Post 34? I think i been skipping
Perfectionism By Anne Lamott
Perfect? who is perfect ? I dont believe anyone is and what I always believed in is you learn from your mistakes. Correct what you did and take it as a learning experience, because on a daily basis everyone in the world makes errors. We are so distraught on making the perfect life, but in reality we dont appreciate. I always take it to the fullest and I have done my shares of mistakes but it has build me up to be better person. As a writer Anne states "we build this place with the sand of memories; these castles are our memories and inventiveness made tangible" As she has apprecitated the skill of writing she has appreciated who she is as one.
Ibeth Rodriguez
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #32
Perfectionism by Anne Lammot
Life is not perfect and it will never be. That is why we need to learn how to deal with mistakes and tough situations that we will face someday in our life, or problems that we are having now. Lamott writes about what we should do in order for our life problems to not affect us. She writes that just like writing, our life is going to consist of many mistakes that we can fix and others mistakes that are just going to make us stronger. Just like writting we always make mistakes but those mistakes always seem to make our writting better because we go back and think of how to change that mistake and make it better. That is what we need to do with our life, look at our mistakes and if we can fix them and make them better we should, and if they cannot be fix we should go on and use better decisions so that we dont commit the same mistake that we once did. Of course it is harder to erease our mistakes from our life than to earase mistakes from our writing, but they both require for the person to make better decisons and to use better words. We should not care what other people have to say about how we live life. If we think we are making mistakes then sure we will have to fix them, but we should fix them because we know that what we are doing is wrong, not because other people tell us. Sure it is always helpful to take advantage from other people but they are not always right. That is why we should live life like writing a paper. If one thinks they made a mistake in the middle of their writting (life) they should stop and think and proceed to a better decison that will make their writing stronger and better.
Yi-Hui Chiang
English 103
Cerritos College
Post #24
I just got back from English class. I haven't slept since last night till now! I had to stay up the whole night for the math exam this morning, just like I always do, but I still did so bad on the test. Sigh, so frustrated from studying, it's horrible! I almost gave up on my calculus. :(
Oh well, I really need to go to sleep now; I need to get rid of my panda eyes...
Antonio Acosta
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #?
Cancer Journals
The first thing I thought about when I saw this reading was how many lived has been lost to breast cancer. Actually it talks about how woman can survive breast cancer. What they may feel after surgery. The breast prostheses they offer to make a woman fell happy like when a child is offered a candy after an injection. (4)The doctors know how they feel so the try to make woman fell better. It works like any prosthetic limbs; it gives the viewer the elution that the person has the real thing. It is the person that has prosthetic limb(s) that knows the truth.
Jean Carlo Morales
English 100
Cerritos College
Post 18
Cancer Journals
The author of the story addresses something all women can relate to and will agree on. That is how the media influences how society tends to view women and their bodies. Although it is a reading directed to women in general I still managed learn something from the story. The author of the story is unfortunate to have been prognosed with breast cancer. She talks about how getting some silicone breasts is a pretense for women to feel more comfortable with themselves. She understands why people who lose a limb tend to use prosthetic devices but she doesn't agree with why women need breast protheses just to feel "normal". People who lose an arm or a leg need to get it in order to function properly. After having such a tragic loss she still manages to find this "truth" that helps her cope with her breast cancer. She still manages not to feel inferior after having only one breast. She doesn't feel ugly and insecure inside like other women might feel after only having one breast. Reading this story reminded me of the story Separation-encounter-return for the fact that people in situations that hit them the hardest always change. A purpose can be found through a tool like affliction. A path will be made towards a deeper meaningful life.
Liza Heacox
Eng 110
GWC
Post #2
Allegory of the Cave
In Allegory of the Cave by Plato, he vividly describes what it means to be trapped by one's ignorance and misunderstanding. An individual stuck in their cave is chained by self-perception, routine, and lack of knowledge. He further discusses the difficulty of change when faced with the truth: "He will suffer sharp pains; the glare will distress him, and he will be unable to see the realities of which in his former state he had seen the shadows." Plato, through Socrates, goes on to describe the confusion one would face at the prospect of changing one's understanding of reality. For so long thinking and understanding were governed by a false sense of reality. Now, for the few who are faced with change, they must withstand the confusion and embrace this new way of thinking, of being. Even further, one must leave the cave and “be dragged up a steep and rugged ascent” of consequence to face the light of truth. According to Plato, when “one approaches the light his eyes will be dazzled and he will not be able to see anything at all of what are now called realities.” The journey from ignorance to enlightenment is difficult and confusing, but Plato put it best when he stated that it would be “better to be the poor servant of a poor master, and to endure anything, rather than think as they do and live after their manner.” There is more to life than what meets the eye, and it is up to the individual to accept a new way of thinking, leave their cave, ascend their mountain, and stand in the light.
Liza Heacox
Eng110
GWC
Post #3
Only Daughter
The frustration one must feel at not being accepted and understood for who they are pales in comparison to the feeling of accomplishment at finally being understood by the one that matters most. My heart aches for the author as she describes yearning for her father’s attention and approval while growing up. I can relate to her feelings of disappointment at not being accepted by her father. Living in a household being reminded daily that her destiny was waiting at the altar did allow her to grow as an individual. This paired with feelings of being erased as her father would mistakenly introduce her as a son and not acknowledge her accomplishment of becoming a professora. I appreciated the author recognizing that her life could not be summed up in one phrase. It showed me that she had become her own woman and not the woman her father predetermined her to be. The pride the author felt when her father read her recently translated story made me beam with admiration. After years of feeling second best, the author received the biggest compliment when her father requested additional copies of her story for the family to read. This author is inspiring. She did not let her father get in the way of her goals and dreams, and was rewarded by his acceptance and approval.
Stephanie Farano
GWC
English 110
Post ? I was absent on Tues...but saw that everyone was posting on Perfectionism and thought that I should follow suit.
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
Life is like a cycle of trial and error periods. We continually learn and try to progressively make better decisions. We start off as a child trying to learn the ways in which we are suppose to act and behave in society. We do things and based on other's reactions, we learn the morals and behavior that create our individual personalities. The decisions that we make, whether it is the color we dye our hair or the foods that we eat, are not the things that define us as people. In the line “dying people can teach us this most directly” (10) explains this idea perfectly. When you are dying the small things no longer matter, and the clarity that you see allows you to oversee all of the insignificant details. The idea of perfectionism, is that trail and error that we experience in life. We try things and it doesn’t work, and the next time we remember those lessons in hopes for a better outcome. I don’t think that we can live in a world of perfection, but we can just try to be the best version of ourselves. I have attempted three professions, and no going back in hopes of finding another. We are continually trying to improve. I felt when the Lamott said “in dedication to their craft they will find solace and direction and wisdom and truth” (4) these are all things that one looks for and if they can find it, they are very lucky. Some people find perfection in areas of their life and not other areas. I’m a person who hopes to find perfection in family. I don’t want perfection, but hope to be a mother and wife that my family looks up to. I have never been career driven I just want to please my friends and family and feel pride in return.
Dalene Kolb
English 110
Golden West College
Post #49
To start off I feel bad I have not posted on here for a week...or more. Things seem to be going from bad to worse in a days period. Hopefully things start going good...I hope.
Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde
I really enjoyed this article. It really got to me when Lorde mentioned the rape victim is accused of enticing the rapist, and the battered wide is accused of having angered her husband. These two statements are unfortually true. Some people say being a woman is easy, when in reality it takes all your time to try and pull off what the worlds ideal is. Even after having spent all your time trying for that ideal woman, we can never get there. It is unfortunate that there are standards to live up to. Why? To please others? That is not a good answer. To change yourself you should be willing to do it on your own, and not at the cost of losing your true self. Having lost her breast, and finally able to live with the way she is now, is amazing to me. I have major respect for someone like Lorde. Lorde also states that we look at Cancer as a nightmare and not a relality. Which is sad, but true. We all think it won't happen to me, which it can. Very inspirational story. Thanks for the chance to be able to read it. "I would never have chosen this path, but I am glad to be who I am, here". Personally my favorite quote through out the article.
~Dalene
Tien Tran
English 110
GWC
Post # 24
Perfectionism
It is true to say that many try to strive for perfection their first time around. And I am, like everyone else, apart of that group. And what Lamott does best is her delivery in showing us that perfection is well, just not the way to go. She eloquently tells us that it is ok to not be that clean-slated writer wanting every word to be perfect like a skilled knife handler to his delicate target. We can, well, just write and write. It should just come out with imagination and we should not care about all the errors. Because as a matter of fact, rough drafts are good. It is the process that makes your paper better. We have to stray away from trying to write professionally perfect and let our fingertips let loose so that it leads your paper. So to conclude this, the next time I write, I should just write and not think about the technicalities of making it an A quality paper. Because well, that’s what rough drafts are for right? Imperfect so that we can put the finishing touches.
Liza Heacox
Eng 110
GWC
Post #4
Happy Endings
Margaret Atwood was on to something when she wrote, “The only authentic ending is the one provided here: John and Mary die…So much for endings. Beginnings are always more fun.” Think of a child upon receiving a new toy. There is no stopping the imagination, and no limiting the amount of fun that child is about to experience. Now think of that same child a year later seeing that once limitless toy. The toy will have lost its luster. The excitement will have dissipated. At first it was fun, but now it just is. Margaret Atwood allows the reader to glimpse in the life of John and Mary. John and Mary get married amidst the joy that surrounds a new couple. The couple enjoys the “stimulating and challenging” life they lead. Twist and turns eventually rattle the happiness. Mary falls for a younger man. John kills Mary and her younger man then marries Madge. The two marry amidst the joy that surrounds a new couple. John and Madge enjoy their “stimulating and challenging” life and in the end they die. It is the never ending circle of happy endings. “Beginnings are always more fun.” (Margaret Atwood)
Kim Luong
GWC
Cancer journal
Audre Lorde is a very strong and brave woman. She ignored the shame of having 1 breast and accepted to live on with "reality" rather than " appearance" (8). She was right that prostheses such as artificial limbs are designed for function and fake breasts are used for appearance. however, i think appearance is important to the society today.Just imagine that you are the only drive a bicycle on the freeway while others drive their beautiful cars, wouldn't that embarrassing and inconvenience to you ? i would say yes. This essay was written in 1979 and the world today is not the same as the world of 1979. Not many woman can be as courage as Audre Lorde.Since the author does not like 'appearance' that much, i just wonder how would she react to the modern women in the 21 century.there are a lot of women who got many plastic surgeries done like breast implants, fake nose, chin, eye lid, lip ...etc and they wanted to do it just for appearance. i admire the author's determination but that is not relevant to the modern society.
Brandon Hebert
Goldenwest
Eng110
post:40
Perfectionism
in my calm, objective opinion:
Lamott's thesis:
in my own words described:
I'm not here to argue. Many aspects of human nature is despicable. But those fleeting moments, when someone selflessly donates an organ, or just yields the right of way, when someone opens a door for someone else, or just says have a nice day, it stirrs that feeling. And the idea, (almost question) ping-pongs in one's mind: "maybe there is hope for humanity afterall".
I like the line about discipline. It is markedly different than conformity. When one obey's their parents against one's own desire, that feeling is there again.
Finally, from putting it all down on paper. Exposing the other side, the lover side, the darker side, any other side of one's soul, that feeling is there. We can only describe the feelings around it, in a feeble attempt to triangulate a description. But it is there, in the chest, in the mind. And it boils over, in a smile, in a laugh, or simply peace-of-mind. No one will probobly read this post. Its long and abstract. I dont blame them, there are too many posts to read anyway. But thats the point. I posted, and I didnt hold back for any of you.
Kevin Santamaria
English 110
GWC
Post #18
Cancer Journals
The reading gave me a mix of attitudes towards it, as always. I love Audre Lorde because she is able to except her situation and herself. I am annoyed because after half way through I figured she was a 1960's women’s activist and was totally confirmed when I googled her. Though her powerful character is indicative of her activism, I cannot help but say her energy is exerted too much upon "men". I feel like the activist movement of these times was coming from people who wanted vindication from the status quo and didn’t look to themselves and others within their group as participants in any. In paragraph thirteen I feel like she goes into the who’s who of society and repression. The excerpt as a whole though is plentiful. Lorde is one of very few people. Hardly anyone could actually choose to live with a disfigurement they could do something about. Loving yourself is harder than loving someone else and she does so regularly and proudly. She is a statement against the false images of ideal women implanted into society. To be able to love yourself without something that people look to, that creates the image a man or a women courageous and a model for others behind her.
Kayla Marley
English 110
GWC
Cancer Journals
This story lies deep in my heart. My aunt passes away with cancer. Not necessarily breast cancer, but she had cancer twice. The first time she overcame cancer my dad told me that she lived her life differently after she had cancer the first time. My aunt lived in London and in the middle East as well. I remember my aunt being so thankful for everytime the family would get together. I absolutely adored my aunt and do to this day. This story reminds me that looks aren't everything and that the media is so concerned about women making sure they feel and look great on the outside but on the inside those feelings do not really matter. Now a days to realize that the smallest things in life are taken for granted tasks such a large act. This country is so obssessed with someone weighing 100 pounds that 110 pounds someone is fat. I think that if someone loves themselves and they are healthy that is all that matters. Natural is so much better than fake. I think that the author makes that clear in the story because image is so important. Overcoming breast cancer then replacing it with silicone gives off the impression of never even having breast cancer. The journey in life is so important and to teach kids that being skinny, getting face lifts, and getting fat injected to your lips is just distrubing.
Macey Lindsay-Clinton
English 110
Golden West College
Post #20
Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde
This piece made me really stop and think, "What would I do in that situation?" Initially, I was thinking that the author was being very one sided. When I think of people with breast cancer, it only makes sense in my mind for them to want to have a fake breast. Then I stopped and thought, "Why?" Why would someone who survived a fatal disease care about how their breasts look. Then it hit me. Society. For my research paper, I am doing gender roles and the suppression of women in society. I think this piece shows how women have been so fine tuned by society to think that they need to look a certain way to be happy. I know it has happened to me. As I was reading, I was thinking that I would want to have a fake breast so that I would feel normal. What is normal? It is amazing how society and the media shapes peoples minds so unnoticeably. Everyone has these views of how women should look. The most judgmental people when it comes to how a woman should look are indeed women. We read magazines at age 11 telling us how do our make up and make it look like we did not try. The media tells us to wear certain clothing. They tell us that we need to but do they ever tell us why? To get that great guy? To get a great job? To be accepted? Why should appearance have anything to do with those subjects. Audre Lorde is right. We need to accept and love who we are. We need to come to terms with what is really important in life. Most importantly, we must make sure that everything we do, is for ourselves.
Ronald Cabiltes
English 110
GWC
Post #20
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
Being perfect. I don't think there is such a thing. Nothing is perfect. You can work and achieve a state close to it, but never really be 100% perfect. When I was reading, the instances that kept popping in my head were my high school drumline days. We would rehearse for 4-5 hours a day trying to hit our spots correctly, play the music on time, and try to make our show as perfect as possible. Our instructor knew perfection could never be achieved, but he always pushed us to get as close to it as possible. For writing I have never strived for perfection. I just kind of write what ever pops into my head and put it down on paper. Sometimes it makes my paper choppy and inconsistent but that is what rough drafts are all about, messiness. Lamott talks about how messiness and clutter are like fertile ground. Essentially your paper grows out from all that mess.
Joshua Greenroyd
GWC
Eng 110
Perfectionism by Anne Lamott
"Try not to feel sorry for oneself, I say, when one finds the going hard and lonely. One seems to want to write, so write" (1). In life every goes through hard times. We become lonely, and sometimes think that life just is not fair. This is because we are not perfect. Perfectionism is relating writing to life. I believe the main point is to write down what is happening in ones life. With this written down a person can see what is going on. They can sort through this "first draft," and refine it to make it less cluttered. By doing this refining process over and over again, a person will see the solution to their problems. A person cannot fix a problem on the first try. In life we must learn to be patient, and find the correct solution. "If one stops trying to control one's mind so much, one will have intuitive hunches about what this or that character is all about" (2). One must let their feelings flow through their writing. This is the only way one will really know about their character. Do not look at the finish line at the beginning of the race. Look at the road a few steps ahead of you, and you will eventually reach the finish line. Perfectionism is about training a person to learn from their mistakes.
Thomas Rios
English 110
GWC
POST # 24?
Perfectionism
I enjoyed reading this because it illustrates a feeling I have had for awhile now. I used to try and be a perfectionist, I say try because, as we all know, nobody is perfect. I would do an assignment and redo it because I did not like the way it turned out. In all reality, the first assignements were probably as good, but I needed to have a second look at it to be more confident in turning it in. Now I know that the confidence is there, so I do not stress over small things like that. I try and enjoy the smaller things in life, but there is always a deadline looming somewhere. It is hard, especially in these fast times we are living in. I was talking with Greg and Brandon about Shawshank Redeemption and this reminds me of a quote that Brooks said after finally getting out of prison and into the real world..." Dear Fellas: I can't believe how fast things move on the outside. I saw an automobile once when I was a kid but now they're everywhere. The world went and got itself in a big damn hurry."~ Brooks.. It seems like everything is moving quickly in life nowadays and if you try and be perfect in all aspects, you will miss what life is really about. It is characterized by preparation, successes, failures, and heartaches. I feel like if you are walking on egg shells your whole life, you never even set your feet on earth. (What kind of life is that?) I have learned to let go of the stresses that used to bind me to misery.
Celina Rivera
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #67
BEING SICK....
I am still sick once again. I went to school, feeling like crap. I had to leave my class after English because I felt as though I was going to pass out. I can not feel like this with the end of the semester coming at me. I need to study, but I have no energy. I am just going to push myself till I can not anymore. I do not know if it will be a good thing or bad thing, but I need and want to get all my work done. I have to study for so many test. All I can say was that the debate thing seems interesting. I think that the whole thing will be a learning experience I think. So that is it for now with me feeling like crap. Till I blog later on the story.
Celina Rivera
English 100
Cerritos College
Post # 68
Jenny,
My aunt did it because she was jealous that my brother got a lot of compliments on his eyelashes. My cousin on the other had did not.
My aunt also when I was a baby put me in hot water and burned me. From there on out I was scared to go into a bath because of the water. Sucked for me!
Raufiel Matias
GWC
English 110
Post #21?
Cancer Journals
When I read this story I thought about how many women have lost their lives because of breast cancer. I give props to the author because she shared her experience of how hard it was for her to battle the decisions she had to make from beginning whether she'll have the surgery until after she had the surgery of beating the mental and physical process of her right breast being gone. I can just imagine how hard can that be missing a part of your own body. She also mentioned how uncomfortable for her to be carrying a fake breast with just for looks. I agree with her that back in the day women did not get breasts implants for their appearance so it's not really acceptable back then. But now in the 21st century, many women aren't satisfied with what they have so implants are their next option right away. It is just hard to imagine how the author was able to surpass all her struggles from the media, to her mental and physical process of accepting her own body after the surgery. Overall, it was a good reading and the author was letting us to know to remain strong no matter what the struggle is.
Whitney Young
Golden West College
English 110
Post #22
Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde
This story really got to me. Last year, my mom had a breast cancer scare. It was probably one of the scariest times of my life and her life. The hardest thing to deal with was probably seeing her fear what the future would hold for her. My mom was always so strong and she was not the type of person that showed any sign of weakness towards her kids. This ordeal was so scary to her, that you could see it in her eyes. She had a biopsy which turned out to be negative. Thank God. It was probably one of happiest days of her life and even mine. This story just reminds me of how shallow our society has become. Women feel like they have to try so hard to look a certain way just to fit in. I think the idea of a “fake” breast works for some people and not for others. For some women, breasts are what make them feel beautiful and confident. Losing that is like losing a part of themselves and their confidence. Others could care less. It just depends on the person. Overall, I really admire her strength in this story. I believe she wants everyone to accept themselves the way they are.
Christina Arredondo
English 103
C.C
Post: ??
In Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde it is a very sad story. She was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a mastectomy, which is removing the breast that has cancer. In addition, she is giving the option whether she wants to get a prosthetic breast or live her life with only one breast. She informs her readers in deciding to decline the offer because she believes that majority of women approving breast prosthesis is in consideration of their image towards others. She states, how many have this image of how a female is suppose to look like and feel incomplete if they do not portay it. They focus more on what others think rather than caring about what makes them happy. I believe that the media and society itself is the main cause for this issue. There has always been some sort of ideal representation on women. Therefore, females believe that it is a necessity for them to represent that ideal look. The main message that she is trying to get across is to simply be natural, for us to decide based on our innerselfs and not on the perspective of others.
Danielle Kennedy
English 110
GWC
Post#19
CAncer Journals
this was a very sad piece but i found myself relating to the story a little bit. my grandma's best friend was diagnosed with breast cancer and unfortunately had to lose one of her breasts. i remember going to the store with both of them and people just stared at her. she didnt get the implant done because she didnt believe that it would help her situation. i asked her if that bothered her and suprisingly, she said no. other people are always going to stare and point, and sometimes make a coment but she knows that this is who she is and doesnt have to prove herself to anyone. now, my grandma's friend, bless her heart, passed away about 4 years ago. what she explained to me, about knowing who you are and what amkes you feel beautiful, has stayed with me til this day. i know i am not the thinest person or even the prettiest, but i know who i am and i am ok with that. i am a much prettier person on the inside than most people are on the outside. i am the girl who hardly ever wears makeup or gets super dressed up; not saying that i never do but merely for special occasions. i feel that the woman in this story wishes that this type of disease didnt have such an impact on who you are. we are all competing to look thin or feel sexy, or look pretty. most women who dont pay attention or dont care what other people think, are usually very pretty and dont need that extra fluff to make them feel pretty. breast cancer is an awful disease and it saddens me to think that millions and millions of women are diagnosed every year. this disease, although life threatening, almost always kills the person that you were once before. your view of yourself is always lesser and you find yourself disgusted with what you see in the mirror. i want to say that this disease doesnt have to have that affect on you, dont give up and never hate yourself for what has happened. things happen for a reason and, should make the best of it. i know about 10 women who have all been diagonsed and of those 10, 6 have passed away. all of them i can assure you, never gave up, never beat themselves up for the way they looked, and never let anyone tell them who they were. these amazing women, hvae sent their message just like the woman in the story. yes, breast cancer is awful, but who you become after doesnt have to be.
Yue Hayes
English 110
Golden West College
Post #32
Whitney
It must have been very tough for your whole family to have to go through that. I can only imagine how scary it must feel to see your mom go through the scare... I'm glad the biopsy came out negative, though. That's like having one foot in the door... It must have been a very, very happy day for everyone :)
Celina
I do hope you feel better. Drink lots of water and try to get a lot of sleep. Eat well, too. You can do it, just push through!!
EVERYONE ELSE
I know that school is getting pretty tough, and sleep deprivation seems necessary to finish projects/essays/homework, but PLEASEEEE try to give yourself the time to sleep! Take care of yourselves, because it would definitely suck if you are sick AND are trying to finish work.
Brittany Williams
English 110
GWC
Post 42
Cancer Journals
This month, precisely one year ago, I found a lump in my breast. I cannot tell you of the multitude of feelings that ensued other than unrelenting fear and anxiety caused from this newly discovered nuisance. It was in this discovery that I immediately called my doctor with whom I met only a few days later. Upon explaining my new discovery with her she exclaimed, "you are much too young for it to be cancer" with a slight chuckle in her voice. How I hoped that she was right. She then proceeded to examine me. Suddenly, I heard a gasp and I quickly turned to her attention. A look of bewilderment swept across her face as she suggested I see a breast specialist. My heart sank. Cancer was all I could think about. What if I had to lose a breast? What if I had to lose my life? In the week leading up to my appointment with the specialist, anxiety grasped at my very being. I was plain scared.
Luckily, the appointment with the specialist went well, and I found out that the lump was nothing of concern. It was in reading Cancer journals, however, that the feelings I felt at that point in my life were re-examined. I liked her point regarding form and function. I had never truly given thought to that truth. I too grew uncomfortable with the thought of losing a breast... but why? In answering honestly, I would have to say that it is in part due to social acceptance, much like the issue stated in Lorde's piece. Granted, there is more to it than that, but I found the inclination interesting in itself.
Yue Hayes
English 110
Golden West College
Post #34
Perfectionism Anne Lamott
Ughhh. I feel like this piece is directly applying to me. It's like Anne Lamott is talking to me about my problems!
I like how she relates "psychic muscles" to relaxing a specific muscle by using surrounding muscles. I think it's definitely true. You must look back at the past constantly in order to embrace it.
Also... I LOVE the part where she talks about writing. Honestly, when I write an essay I cannot write a paragraph per sitting. I would have to finish the whole thing. Like how I can't tell different chunks of a story in different sittings, I can't write parts of essays. I think my best work comes out when I just write, like when I don't necessarily think or worry about the prompt, but just write what I know, whether it's about my understanding of a certain work or just personal stories. Yes, I have to sit in front of my laptop for 5 hours, 6 hours straight at a time, to focus on an essay.
Maybe that's why often times the "good" writings have grammar errors... Because when one stops to worry about those technical things, one is able to express themselves without restrictions.
Samantha Sullivan
English 110
GWC
Post #118
BOTH readings really hit home for me so I am choosing to say a little bit about both.
Cancer Diaries:
Lorde is so courageous and a powerful woman for being able to speak aloud about her, once, depressing and now uplifting story. What she says is true. The depiction of a women, societies stereotyped image, is of an unrealistic being. The pressure for women to try and mold themselves into this image of “perfection” and what is thought to be the norm is a waist of time. The process of this unachievable feat requires the stripping of one’s self. Through her life changing experience he came to realize that there is nobody to please but herself and that this would make her happy. I believe that the image that she was trying to fulfill was tarring away at her self. This created more pain because it made her feel that if she was not up to the standard of what a woman should be than ultimately she was not a woman. Fortunately she realized that she is still beautiful and that she didn’t need prostheses to accomplish that thought. She held onto her true self and is content.
Perfectionism:
I have always fallen victim to perfectionism. I don’t know why and I wish that I could just be let free, but I have not found my way yet. I may or may not ever either. It is hard for me to do things just because and do them with out a plan in mind or a thought already scrambled about. Mapping things out prior to doing them is my way of preventing the wrong or imperfections from happening. I REALLY tend to either over analyze things or just take into consideration of all the above in possibilities. This is one of my many faults that keeps me human and a realization that I am NOT perfect. The meaning of perfection, in reality, can never be quenched, nor seen. Nobody or anything is perfect. This needs to be my realization, yet the haunting strives of perfection hovers of me. Sometime I tend to do things in a very meticulous manner unknowingly. When I cannot complete a task to my standards I get frustrated, but I think that I need to realize that the standard is too high for my capabilities. In the reading it is said that perfectionism takes over you like and keeps you from putting yourself out there and this is true. It sucks the life out from its victims and leaves the struggling for more and more. The more, that they so long to reach, will never be accomplished because perfection does not exist, in reality that is.
(Andy) Nam Pham
English 110
GWC
Post #24
Perfectionism
Wow... this is deep.
The author describes beauty in truth so well. Observing the yew without the petals and how it connected to all the stems was a metaphor for how beautiful and connected the world and our lives really are. The end result of true, passionate devotion is difficult to obtain, but extremely rewarding. If the heart is not true, easily corruptible, one will never finish the path of true success. This reminds me of how musicians lose their ways and themselves by becoming corrupted and filled with greed and selfishness. Most famous musicians "sell out" and do it all for the fame and money, instead of the music. "Maybe what you have written will help others..." (12). It is the same way with music. Strumming the chords on a guitar or hitting those high notes, helping others is all of good heart, and fulfills it by doing such.
This whole story really opens my perspectives towards writing. I believe I know why I procrastinate so much now. Putting myself back against the wall forces me to avoid my cold revisions. Instead of doing the hard work and adding up all the mistakes and errors, like a great writer should, I instead accept what I deserve, the the belief that "I could have not done anything else."
Wow.
Eric Torres
English 110
Golden West College
Post #19
Cancer Journals
I think the purpose of Lorde writing this was similiar to the reason Goodwin Parker wrote about her poverty. Lorde does not want the reader to feel pity when reading about her situation, but she wants us to inform us about her situation. Even further, Lorde wants to point out how women are constantly being "depersonalized" every day with the media and society in general. The attitudes in society toward the necessity for prostheses after having surgery is based on how women our supposed to look to be "normal" and sexually appealing. Once a woman accepts her new body after sergery, then there is nothing wrong with prostheses. It is just that, when someone loses a leg, they get a limb so they can walk. Well when someone loses a breast, the only purpose of a prosthesis is to make it look better for appearance only. Lorde has made it very clear that when she mourns her breast, "it is not the appearance of it [she] mourns, but the feeling and the reality of fact" (8). In order for her to move on and not feel objectified and depersonalized, she must accept her loss. Lorde has lost her right breast, but she has gained the understanding to value her own beauty and how to look closely into the beauty of others.
Angel Togafau
English 110
GWC
Post #idk
Cancer Journals
I like this story because it talks about the one cancer women fear the most, breast cancer. However, althought the stop spoke about the cancer and the process throught the cancer, there was also positive feedback about the whole situation. Lorde spoke about how having the cancer taught lessons of survival. Like the old saying goes, "What doesn't kill you, just makes you stronger." It was nice to see someone speaking about such a negative topic in a positive light. It takes a special strong person to be about to do that and I think that is exactly who Lorde is. She also speaks about how societies view of a women are so unrealistic. I couldn't agree with her more! It's because we are a women, we are expected to look a certain way, with certain features, and do certain things. However, what most people don't realise it that it is all very unreal to conform to societies image of a women.
Erica Lloyd
English 110
GWC
Post #24
Perfectionism
This essay really appealed to me because I am currently attempting the NaNoWriMo. For those who don't know, November is national novel writing month and the goal is to write a 50,000 novel in a month. This is my third year trying and I hope to actually finish this time. So far, not so good. I don't have much time for leisurely writing, unfortunately.
This essay is exactly what is wrong with my writing: I can't leave mistakes on the page. If they're there, it's because I missed it some how. Whenever teachers say that they want a rough draft or they want all the drafts of the paper stuck together, I panic. Normally I just write once, and it will take me a few hours because I rewrite and change and fix my paragraphs and sentences right there in the final (only) draft. It is challenging for me to write a first draft and leave all the problems and mistakes. I want it to be right the first time around. I need to let go of that.
I agree that perfectionism leads to writer's block. When you are concentrating so hard on getting it right, you the words and thoughts can't come to you. Again, that it sort of what NaNoWriMo is about. The idea is to write feverishly and not look back until the month is over. That's the part I always have the trouble with, but this essay has soft of inspired me to try harder this year.
Beatrice Fisher
English 110
GWC
Post 20
Perfectionism
I once was on a small plane that sat about 10 people. I can remember clearly all the bumps and how shaky it was. I was not flying with anyone I knew. The plane was going over snow covered mountains when it suddenly dropped about 100 feet, or what felt like 100, in the air. The other 9 gasped huge scared breaths and all I could do what laugh hysterically. In the last lines of Perfectionism, Anne Lamott writes about singing on a boat during a terrible storm at sea. She writes that one cannot stop the storm but that singing can change the spirits of those who are together on the ship. I didn’t laugh to calm the spirits of the other passengers on the plane. It was a nervous laugh, but when reading this, it came to my mind.
There were many parts of this reading and if you saw my binder, it is full of stars, question marks, highlighted lines, and underlined parts. I will only touch on parts since there was so much I related to. I loved the reference to the Lighthouse. I have often thought of writing my own story, not for anyone to necessarily read, but more for myself and my children. Close friends have made the remark many times over the years, “you should write a book.” When I was younger I used to write a lot. I wrote it all down but more in a journal/diary form. It wasn’t something I hid away, but it was something I didn’t voluntarily share with others. After having people without permission read my thoughts, I decided to stop. I traded writing for talking. I figured that if I told it all there would be no interest in others trying to dig deep and know all my “not so secret” secrets. It has worked. Bringing it back to Perfectionism, speaking has been my way of hollowing out my tree and finding my niche.
There was another part where Lamott wrote about making a decision. She wrote about a friend once telling her that even when you don’t know what to do, just do something because the worst thing that could happen is you make a mistake. This has been my philosophy for as long as I could remember. I credit this quality to my Dad. He always told me to do what I wanted and not wait for others. That instead of sitting around and thinking about it, there would be only one way to find out. I find myself frustrated with others who are unwilling to MOVE. Just DO something. Close your eyes and jump, take a leap of faith. When we sit around afraid to make decisions, we are missing out on life’s experiences. I wish we all had more courage and got rid of the fear of making mistakes.
Like I wrote in the beginning, there was plenty I related to, but to blog it all…I will just talk about it in class. :)
Cianna Calandrino
English 110
Golden West
first before I do my post I wanted to share with you guys that last night my softball team placed second in our league! I know second you say? well you have to understand that we used to play like and be the bad news bears... no joke. So second place is a deffinate improvement.
Cancer Journals
I loved this reading not only because of the peice itself, but because my grandmother was a breast cancer surviver. To beat it though she had to have a double mastectomy. She was one of those women that unfortunatly did not feel like a woman because she did not have her breasts. Always Embarassed because it didn't look "right". I would hope that if I was ever put into that situation that I would be alright with myself and the body transformation. I can probably say that I have a greater chance of following in my grandmothers steps and be emmbarassed. I believe that it has alot to do with a womans self esteem before the surgery.
Matt Wilkins
English 110
Post 4
When Will It All Just End?
As I approach my own oncoming marriage I begin to wonder what it is all for? I love my fiancé; there is no question about that. I am devoted to her. I want to have a family with her. I want to spend the rest of my life with her. There are times though, when I want to strangle her! We have lived together for the past three years. I have been following her back and forth across the country to support her career. I think that I know her as well as I ever will, and it frightens me. Kate Chopin’s “wife” Mrs. Mallard goes through the gamut of emotions in The Story of an Hour after hearing of her husband’s death. She goes from miserable sadness, to numbness, and finally to elation? I can understand how a woman in the 1890s could be happy at her husband’s death though. Divorce was nowhere near as readily available to an unhappy spouse then as it is today. When Mrs. Mallard describes her husband’s “powerful will bending her in [a] blind persistence” It makes me shudder (13). I often feel the pressure to change my own habits for my fiancé. I will openly admit that I am a natural slob. I don’t like to tidy up my home, I only do laundry or the dishes when I begin to run out of things, and I will sit on the couch for hours and do nothing but play video games or watch television. I do not at this time wish for my own nor my fiancé’s deaths, but I can understand at times how Chopin could believe that a woman could “shudder that [her] life might be long” (17). I too am looking ahead to a long life with a spouse that, though I love dearly, can absolutely drive me nuts.
Liza Heacox
Eng 110
GWC
Post #5
The Story of An Hour by Kate Chopin
One cannot help but laugh at the irony of this situation. Upon hearing of the tragic death of her husband, Mrs. Mallard is struck with a “storm of grief.” As one can imagine this news could have devastating affects. A wife now turned into a widow no longer having her counterpart to care for, think about, or love. She retreats from the arms of her sister to grieve in private. Hunkering down in a cozy armchair Kate Chopin describes Mrs. Mallard having seen “beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely.” When one would think a woman be at her darkest hour, Mrs. Mallard is whispering that she is, “Free! Body and soul free!” The imagery of a woman curled up in a chair next to an open window, her cheeks stained with tears, while embracing her autonomy is nothing short of comical. Eventually Mrs. Mallard opens the door at her sister’s beckoning. As they descend the stairs they are greeted by Brently Mallard, the very living husband. One can imagine the shock of seeing a person who was thought to be dead standing in plain view. A shock so great it takes the life of Mrs. Mallard. She was freed at last by “the joy that kills.”
Leydi Espinoza
English 110
GWC
Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde
When one thinks of cancer, one feels fear that they are the next ones on the list. However, breast cancer is a catastrophe. I admire the strength Audre Lorde have to survive such painful procedure. Half a year ago, my mother kept telling me that she felt something in her breast that was not right. My father already has cancer. So, when she told me about this, I was very scare. I could not lose the two greatest people of my life due to cancer. However, I kept bugging her to go to the doctor to check that her breast were fine. I even went with her. After the examination, they found something, so they send my mother to do a biopsy. I was terrified because that little something could have been malignant. Luckily, it was not. However, one of my mother's priorities is looking good. She always worries about having the perfect body. I think that if something worse had happen, my mother would have suffer greatly. Lorde also mentions that "women have been taught to respond with a guilty twitch at any mention of the particulars of our own oppression as if we are ultimately guilty of whatever has been done to us" (8). I saw this in one of the episodes of Sex & the City, where Samantha has to go through chemo and has to lose her hair. She questions wether her situation is a punishement for not having children. However, she finds a nun that is trying to schedule an appointment with the same doctor. Then, she realizes that it can happen to any women. Women have been taugh that apperance is one of the most important factors they should worry. Slim body, perfect face, style, etc. are keys for them to be successful. However as Lorde explains if a women were to lose their breast to something that they did not provoke, they still have to adapt themselve to the pubic, as a way to confort the public. Many women are willing to give their life if they can still feel complete. However, others choose prothesis as a way to hide their tragedy from others. However, for us, women, to be stronger we need to understand "that sense has completely passed away, as [we] have to come to realize that the well of feeling [is] within [us]" (6).
Yue Hayes
English 110
Golden West College
Post #35
Cancer Journal by Audre Lorde
I feel like a lot of these excerpts have the same theme: importance of inner self rather than outer. Inner beauty, inner happiness, and inner realization are some of the topics that we have discussed in class and this piece could very much add to... let's say, the ultimate "truth."
Not having gone through anything like Audre Lorde has gone through, I really can't relate to the physical or the emotional pain aspect of it. However, it is very scary to see that so many has been touched by the horror of breast cancer even in our class. It really does puts things in perspective. Hits home, really.
Lorde is so, so strong. Like Angel said, it takes a very strong person to take this awful thing and turn it into an encouraging message like she has here.
We grow up with Barbie dolls and Disney princesses that look a certain way. We grow up with different perceptions of what women should look like, and it seems to always be unnatural. "Perfection" is just unnatural. It makes it difficult for everyone to accept themselves as natural beings, then. This phenomena in itself is man-made. It doesn't have to exist, but it does.
(Why can't we just accept things as they are, instead of trying to change it? Time and time again, expectations are piling on, while many times we are unable to fulfill them)
I was very surprised to see the date that she wrote this, too. I think her understanding of this situation and this issue is beyond her time... I wish that I can embrace her understandings as much as she does, but I know it's not possible because I haven't gone through what she has. I hope, though, that one day I can learn to really love myself for who I am, instead of trying to mold myself into something that society expects me to be.
Tien Tran
English 110
GWC
Post # 25
Cancer Journals
“As women, we fight this depersonalization every day, this pressure toward the conversion of one’s own self-image into a media expectation of what might satisfy male demand.” I can’t help but say something about this quote. Um, excuse me? We have to satisfy the needs of male demand? Its like we’re a muscle car and the shinier we are, the more we satisfy their demand. And that’s suppose to be … good? Normal? Coommmeee oonnn nooowww …. who are they for us to satisfy? This quote is just so … utterly nasty. Nasty for this demand of “better looking” females … which by the way, brings in a whole new subject. Females, I think, have a harder time looking a specific way. Skinner. No wrinkles. Pretty. Guys on the other hand have …. To …. Well … I can’t think of anything look wise. There could be some that is not on the top of my head right now, but my point is the emphasis on physical appearance is more burdensome on females then male. I’m just going to make a final statement. I dress up for myself, not for you men. I pretty up for myself, not for the male population. And I wish all females would too.
But I digress.
Going back to topic … Audre Lorde puts light on the normality of things and its form and function. It’s a punch in the face for me when she says, “when I mourn my right breast, it is not the appearance of it I mourn, but the feeling and the reality of fact. The idea that a woman can be beautiful and one-breasted is considered depraved, or at best, bizarre, a threat to ‘morale’” Wow. That is powerful. Everyone has a different meaning for what is normal, but if we look at normal at is basic form, then yes females should get it. Why? Because when everyone walks into this life, you have a nose, a mouth, an ear … and two breasts. Not one, but two. So everyone is on the same playing field… which means you get a breast to even it out. Another normal is “society normal.” This normal is the invisible standard wavering on top of our head each day. It’s the normal that we try to become so that we can feel accepted, feel that we are part of that special “group”. If it is this normal, then you’re just getting that breast so that you feel you’re not that outsider. (and it sucks that being different is scorned and looked down at by society ….. ) You’re now getting it just because … you “have” to. Sometimes we think we are our own person, our own carved up individuality … but really at times … there is an invisible string pushing us to become that copy. And society is the puller pushing us to that same target.
Gina Huynh
English 110
Golden West College
Post #4
Bliss
Bertha Young, the main character, had the perfect life: youth, money, a nice house with a blossoming garden, a baby that was being cared for by a nanny, a loving husband, and very unique friends. Reading the story, one understands that Bertha did acknowledge her great fortune and was very much in love with life; she saw beauty all around her, and that “the lovely pear tree with its wide open blossoms” in her garden came to symbolize “her own life.” However, like most things in life, not everything is as picture perfect as it seems. While reading the story, I had made the assumption that perhaps Bertha was a lesbian, because the story mentioned that she did not love her husband “in that way.” I thought she was in love with her mysterious new friend, Miss Fulton and was very much fascinated by what secret her friend held. It was not until the end of the story that I realized the truth: Miss Fulton’s secret was that she was having an affair with Bertha’s husband, Harry. Bertha seemed to be on to the truth, and it was finally confirmed to her when both she and Miss Fulton stood by the window, admiring the pear tree blossoming in the garden, that she saw how much Miss Fulton admired that perfect tree in the beautiful garden; the pear tree represented Bertha’s perfect life, and Miss Fulton wanted a piece of that fruit.
This short story truly reflected my own life. Like most marriages, my parents’ marriage was also rocked by scandal. My father had a year-long affair with my mother’s friend from work. My mother had an inkling that he was cheating on her because they had all worked together. Her friend, who was a mother of ten children, would offer to buy lunch and coffee for my father on a daily basis, and he accepted her affection with open arms. My mother, after being married with him for over twenty-something years, had thought that she had a good marriage, so she chose to deny the truth that was burning in her heart. She did not believe that my father had the courage to do such a thing, for he was a man who was somewhat terrified of her (from what I had seen over the years). After a video camera at their workplace captured their open relationship, my mother’s world came crumbling around her. Despite my mother and Bertha’s class and social differences, they both felt the same amount of pain upon discovery of the affair that no amount of money could heal. This goes to show that in life, perfection hardly exists and it’s how we learn to deal with the challenges that come with the territory that truly defines our true happiness.
Gina Huynh
English 110
Golden West College
Post #5
Happy Endings
The different scenarios in this “story” really touched me and made me think about life. Margaret Atwood seems to be saying that people’s journeys in life are all different, that everyone faces different challenges and obstacles, but in the end, we all share the commonality in that we are all mortals and will all die. This is shown when she emphasizes that the “only authentic ending is the one provided here: that John and Mary die. John and Mary die. John and Mary die.” In scenario A, the descriptions are short and basic: John and Mary fall in love, lead a perfect life, and die. There is not too much detail here because Atwood leaves out any negativity and only mentions the perfect life that John and Mary had. This paragraph is very short for a reason; no one’s life is as simple as that. From birth to death, everyone’s chapters in life are not left blank; people face difficulties, big or small, on a daily basis. In scenario B, we see life from a less sugar-coated perspective. Who does not know somebody who is so desperate for attention and to be loved in life that he or she is willing to do anything to achieve that, even if it meant sacrificing one’s self respect? We, as humans, thrive on love, so to be denied love is the greatest punishment that exists. This scenario reminds me of an episode on Oprah. Some of Oprah’s guests came on the show revealing their secrets of incest, specifically their incestuous relationships with their fathers. Most of these women were denied love from their fathers at a young age, so when their fathers began to give them any sort of attention, they jumped at the opportunity and held on to that feeling, despite the fact that it was a taboo form of love. It was love, nonetheless. They all committed incest not because they were trailer trash and wanted to appear on Jerry Springer; they wanted to experience what it was to be loved by their distant fathers, even if it meant sleeping with the men who contributed to half of their genetic makeup. Other scenarios further emphasized the complications of life, such as affairs, jealousy, and murder. When we first fall in love, we lead life through blind eyes. We choose to view most things in life through rose-colored lenses. Perfection only lasts so long, until we are bored of the routine and the excitement phase fades. Then life hits us, and some of us would take the path of sin to continue to experience that initial phase of love, and if that does not work, some would choose death. Love is complicated and changes constantly, so it is really all about how we learn to adapt to these changes that we continue to feel fulfilled in life and not take the shorter route.
Jenny Guzman
English 100
Cerritos College
Post Caked LA!!!
So I have a friend that started her own business. It is called Caked LA!!
What is Caked LA you may ask??
Well Caked LA makes Cake Pops!!
Now you may ask what is a cake pops?
Cake pops are cake on a stick. I think they are heaven on a stick. I feel it is a good size piece of cake, so if you eat one you will not feel guilty.
They are new so they only have a few choices like Sock it to me, Red velvet, Chocolate, Marble, lemon and My favorite is Cookie and cream. They are growing so new flavors are coming.
They are a cute and new way to celebrate at parties. Here is their website.
cakedla.com
You can also find them on facebook, myspace and twitter.
I sent this before, Just reminding you guys.
Jessica Vasquez
Eng 100
CC
Post #: x + 1
Jenny!
I say you bring some to class!?!? We could all pitch-in!! (<- I think I spelled it wrong) & I'll bring the milk! =D yay!! cake pops for everyone!!
Jenny Guzman
English 100
Cerritos College
Post Caked LA!!!
Well guys the first ever CAKED LA event was such a success, that they are going to do it again.
They are going to have a sample event on November 7TH at 7:30pm if people 21 and over want to come. It will be at Shipmates in Cerritos.
Lulu,
I am going I have a babysitter yay!!
It’s on Gridley and South in the same parking lot as Carls Jr
Just let me know if you need the address.
Heidi Martinez
English 110
GWC
Post #4
In The Story of an Hour I actually felt really bad for this woman who had just lost her husband. Reading in the beginning it only seems natural that she would cry and be extremely said losing a loved one. When I read on she started talking about being free. At first I thought the shocking of losing her husband may have made her start to go a little crazy. In The Story of the Hour, Kate Chopin says, “And yet she had loved him—sometimes. Often she had not”(12). This made me start to question their marriage a lot. I think that everyone loves who they are married to in some way or form, therefore when she found out her husband died it was a shock to her and she was sad, yet in a way I think it might have been freeing to her. I think that they had a very rocky marriage. Perhaps she loved in a way when they were first married, yet started growing a part from him and the love she once help for him started to fade away. The death of her husband set her free from him without having to do the hard work of leaving him herself. She was said yet happy that she was able to enjoy her days without him. It is ironic how right when she was set free of him he returns and brings her to her death. He once again in trapped her, but this time for good.
Heidi Martinez
English 110
GWC
Post #5
I really enjoyed reading Happy Endings. Most of the stories ended rather sad, yet I liked the different format of writing. The stories seemed so real. Rarely do couples get the happy ending with the two children and a great house that stay in love till the end. The other endings are what we see in reality now. It is sad to see how many people have the alter endings that are sad and depressing. Each one of the endings happens to often in society now days. The man who uses a woman to get what he wants happens all the time. Men are not the only ones to blame for using women, women need to blame themselves for not having enough guts to stand up and tell the men not to use them. People teach other people how to treat them and too many people do not have the strength to stand up for themselves. In another ending the husband was cheating on his wife for a younger woman, and the woman was just using him till her younger male came back. In the end they were both using each other, but it ended in a violent death of three. The wife who did not cheat and was cheated on seemed to find her happy ending after all with a new man, but was short lived by his death. This is reality it is sad to say what this is what the worlds coming to. When it is fine to cheat on your wife, to use people, to lie and the end people wonder why they do not get a happy ending. When they should be asking themselves why they should deserve one? In Happy Endings, Margaret Atwood says, “The only authentic ending is the one provided here: John and Mary die. John and Mary die. John and Mary die”(F). In the end we are all going to die, however the in between is what we make it. Some will choose to cheat and some will choose to look for the one to live their happy ending with and other will never find it, but in the end we are all going to die, however you get to choose the time you live till death.
Feross Khouraki
GWC
English 110
Post #3
Bliss
The setting of Bliss – the type of characters everyone was, the language they used - sounded too good to be true. It sounded like something that F. Scott Fitzgerald had imagined, something out of The Great Gatsby or This Side of Paradise. For a majority of the story, I could not relate with Bertha Young, and this feeling of inexplicable elation she had. I think in a society like the one we live in now, very seldom do people stop to smell the roses, appreciate blossoming pear trees, banter on the subject of art, poetry, and theatre. In that sense, I find Bertha extremely admirable, to be able to love life for no exact reason. Every aspect of her life is so elegant, from her home to her clothing to her friends. It’s as if her friends were made for her. As the story continues, we learn about Miss Fulton. I, like Gina, assumed Bertha was experiencing sort of pre-mature lesbian feelings toward Miss Fulton. I could not understand what it was about her that Bertha was so attracted to, which led me to believe that Bertha was either mildly in love or wildly infatuated with her. The way Bertha’s fascination with her is described, it’s almost as if Bertha and Miss Fulton were the same person, shared the same soul, only separated in different shells. When Bertha suddenly and curiously either imagines or hears the words,”Soon these people will go… and you and he will be alone together in the dark room – the warm bed,” one can’t help but wonder where they came from. Having such a strange, ethereal connection with Miss Fulton, again as if they were the same person, it’s as if Bertha had heard or read Miss Fulton’s thoughts. When we learn along with Bertha towards the end of the story that Miss Fulton and Bertha’s husband, Harry, are having an affair, we’re sort of thrown for a loop, but we also can kind of piece together all the little nuances that had been occurring throughout their party that had been indicating something was up. From the beginning, it had been wondrous joy and magical happiness that I felt was not realistic enough for anyone to relate with. The inclusion of her husband having an affair brings the story back to earth. It ends with Bertha fixed on the pear tree, still in bloom, still as radiant as ever. I believe that even faced with something as gut-wrenching as being cheated on, Bertha will continue to be a bubbly, happy person, sustaining herself with laughter, absorbing every particle of positive energy, and her life will continue.
Kayla, yes, I am Sarrah Khouraki’s brother. When you asked me that, I was thinking, “I’m pretty sure I’ve heard her say something about working with Kayla.” I checked your profile page and saw your occupation was barista, and was like “Oh okay, yeah.” :)
Happy Endings
I found Happy Endings to be extremely creative and personable. I think a majority of people anywhere have experienced or experienced something similar every ending, except A. As I was reading it, I felt what they were feeling because I believe I’ve been John, Mary, Fred, and Madge, in all the endings except A, in some way or another. It was so personable to me that it invoked in me each of their feelings. We always only hear about happy endings like A, but they never seem to actually happen to us. The existence of ending A, in my opinion, is astronomically unusual. Life is never as easy, as “stimulating and challenging” as ending A would like for us to imagine. Life is a continual struggle to get ours. Tying this back to AOTC, after a perilous journey up the mountain and having glared into the sun, we don’t stay on the summit forever. Life will find another challenge to present to us, dragging us back to the cave and through the same struggle we just got through finishing. The last ending, F, is where Margaret Atwood tells us like it is. She says “Look, here’s the truth, whether you would like to believe it or not.” She corroborates what most of us already believe; whatever trial you have been and will be faced with, it’s not the beginning or the end that count, it’s everything in between. In the movie, Little Miss Sunshine, Steve Carell’s character is explaining to his nephew the life of Marcel Proust, an openly gay French writer. He tells his nephew that Proust is noted to have said that anytime he was unhappy, depressed, or struggling was the best time of his life, because upon looking back at his life, the only things he found any worth in were the things he had to fight for.
Danh Ta
English 110
GWC
Post #2?
Story of an Hour
After reading The Story of an Hour I really felt like I did not receive any information or anything regarding metaphors. Maybe its because I cannot relate to the events happening in the text. I tried to place myself within the shoes of Mrs. Mallard but everything was tossed upside down when she ended up being the person who has passed. I find it strange how Kate Chopin decided to keep the twist right until the part where the door opened. The last line of the entire story really intrigued me. "When the doctors came they said she had died of heart disease--of the joy that kills." heart disease... joy that kills? i cannot comprehend what this means. something along the lines of what i was thinking was that after she had found out that her husband had died, she sort of felt as though she was "free". she whispered a few times during the text "Free! Body and soul free!". heart disease---of the joy that kills, maybe the reason why she died was because she was kind of happy and relieved that her husband had died and her heart knowing that she is in the wrong, actually gave in? some other lines in the text that actually back up what i think is "there would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself." and "and yet she had loved him--sometimes. often she had not." because the story was very general and did not go into detail about the relationship they had, these few lines could have sparked some thoughts regarding a bad relationship? maybe she feels that she is treated unfair and that she is actually trapped? "'Go away. I am not making myself ill.' No; she was drinking in a very elixir of life through that open window. I actually thought this line was powerful because of the irony. It says shes drinking in the elixir of life, but in reality she is actually dying. I guess maybe what she was feeling felt so good that it felt like it was giving in her life even though she was dying.
Baba and Daddy Gus
After reading Baba and Daddy Gus I couldn't help but to think back on my childhood. My mother had me when she was 17 and a half so she could not support me financially so I lived with my grandparents til about the age of 4. I still remember the first time I met my mother and trying to comprehend that she is my mom, and that my grandparents were not. In Baba and Daddy Gus, Bell Hooks talks about how her mother wanted to move far away from Baba and Daddy Gus's way of thinking and living as far as possible. When reading this, it reminded me of my own mother and my grandparents. When I say Grandparents, I really only mean my grandma because I have never met my real grandpa, and the reason why I only say mother is because my real father abandoned me and my mother before I was born. I DONT NEED YOUR PITY!!!! Back on topic, My mother is very Americanized and has adapted more modern views and as for my grandma, she has the traditional collectivist outlook on everything. Although I haven't really had any male role models in my life, Daddy Gus sounds like a sound man. The patience and level headed descriptions of Daddy Gus remind me of all the lessons my mom tell me about being a good man and treating a woman well. I currently live with both my mom and my grandma, and let me tell you, when we have conversations WE HAVE CONVERSATIONS. My grandma and her old ways, my mom and her mixed views, and me being the only male in our household, we have some very interesting talks. A while ago, i had a talk with them about being a good man. Can you imagine sitting next to your mom and your grandma and they are telling you how theyve been wronged by men and that how a good one is so hard to find and how they want me to be the best man that i can be so i can provide and take care of my family and do things the right way?
Monique Gutierrez
English 100
Cerritos College
Post #64
Did someone say Cake Pops?
Wow I would have never thought of that brilliant idea! People and their inventions...lol. I think that is awesome. If they ever make a mint and chip one I will be all over it! Now if someone could just invent a Monster Energy Drink Popsicle that would be so cool. Shipmates is a nice hangout, if anyone has ever been. They have this Nuts & Berries shot that is to die for. Try it you may like it.
About the upcoming Debates. This sounds like it'll be a fun experience. I am going to try my very best to not disappoint my teammates. I know if we stick together we will SUCCEED. Girl Power!!!
Mr. Hsaio about Boondock Saints 2, Are you really gonna believe what the critics say about the movie? Siskel and Ebert or Ebert and Roeper whomever...to me their opinions do not matter. I am sure they are professionals with the movie biz but usually the ones they do not like are the ones I love! How about you?
Belinda Avila
English 110
Goldenwest College
Post#4
The Story of an Hour
I admit when I first read this story it sounded somewhat familiar. Apparently my 8th grade class and I read it. I hated it. Reading it a second time and a third time, I started to find my own understanding of it. From my understanding, when Mrs. Mallard first discovers her husbands death her natural instinct is to react how she thinks a wife is supposed to react to her husband's death. However, after escaping to her room, sinking into her large armchair, and taking in the sounds of the outside world, something started to overwhelm her. Strangely she is overwhelmed with joy. Mrs. Mallard's overwhelmed with many thoughts of freedom, "there would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself" (11), and for what it seems like, her husband's death is the first time in years she has been happy. So when her sister comes to her bedroom door to retrieve her she looks like the gods themselves are carrying her. Almost like she is floating. To her dismay, her husband comes home ALIVE and unharmed. In what seems like an instant, Mrs. Mallard dies. I believe it is because she worked herself up so much with the thoughts of freedom only to have the all taken away in a span of probably two seconds. Her heart simply could not take the disappointment.
Markel Hathcock
English 110
GWC
Post #3
Bliss
I really enjoyed this story. Near the end I started to lose interest but I think I got the jest of the it. Bertha Young had everything. Her life was perfect, just like the garden, the pear tree. To me, Bertha seems to not get much respect and is very passive. The reason why I say this is because when she comes home to her nanny and wants to hold her baby, the nanny gets a bit upset. It was like Bertha wasn’t allowed to hold her baby without permission from the nanny. Shouldn’t it be the other way around? I found this very odd and it showed me that she was held in very high regard. This seems to play a big part in the story because in the end, she finds out that her husband is cheating on her with one of her friends. Still, no respect. Poor Bertha, she found herself to be so happy that day. Complete bliss, and then her world came tumbling down. She had found that Miss Fulton, her friend, had been having an affair with her husband. Earlier in the story, her friend had wanted to see her pear tree. When she saw it she thought it was perfect, just like Berthas life.
Belinda Avila
English 110
Goldenwest College
Post #5
Baba and Daddy Gus
I both enjoyed and hated this reading. It was very unentertaining yet the thoughts that came to mind while reading it were very pleasant. While I read it reminded of my father's parents. My grandparents do not exactly resemble Baba and Daddy Gus but some of their of habits were similar. My grandmother is similar to Baba in the sense that she loves to talk. She always had little sayings to tell me as well. My grandmother is also similar to Baba in the sense that she enjoyed growing plants and what not. My late grandfather is similar to Daddy Gus in the sense that they both were hoarders. I remember going into my grandfathers room and seeing "little treasures" everywhere. He would have broken clocks and piles of books. He would collect "worthless" crap, but these things all meant the world to him. From him I picked up the same habit of collecting and collecting and collecting. It is one of those habits only one understands. Like the narrator of the reading, Bell Hooks, my grandmother also gave me a nickname. Maria Chiquita, after my mother named Maria, of course, and chiquita means "little". The similarity that baffles me the most between my grandparents and Bell Hooks' grandparents is "as children one of the first things we noticed about our grandparents was that they did not sleep in the same room. This arrangement was contrary to everything we understood about marriage,"(6). Since I was a little girl I always wondered my parents did not sleep together. To this day I still cannot think of a real answer. When I would come to spend the night my grandmother had no problem with me staying in her room. It was not until after my grandfather died till she moved all of her belongings to my grandfathers room. She would cry herself to sleep even when I spent the night. I guess this reading was better than I originally thought in the sense that it brought back a lot of old memories, emotions, and feelings I have towards my grandparents.
Macey Lindsay-Clinton
English 110
Golden West College
Post #21
Perfectionism
I do not see my self as a perfectionist. I like things complete. I like things done correctly. To me, perfectionism leaves a person drained. No one can, nor ever will be perfect. Thus, by nature it is going to leave you dissatisfied in yourself. Dissatisfaction in yourself is a very negative thing. I believe what the author is trying to convey is a sense of contentment with your work. If you try your hardest, what you produce may not be amazing, but you tried. If you give your all, you will be content. I really liked the part about clutter and mess. The author says that these things show that life is being lived. For example, my room becomes messy and cluttered when I have a busy week. If I was a perfectionist, this would never happen. She also points out that clutter and mess are a good thing. They are substance rather than nothingness. Back on my room, when cleaning I may find something that I was looking for. Life needs substance. Humans need feelings. Whether it is something petty like longing to find your favorite necklace that disappeared in the disaster of your room, or something serious like straightening your life out after it has fallen into pieces... This is substance. Life gives you a mess, and it is your job to clean it up. In the long run you learn from these experiences. When you are a perfectionist, you will never come in contact with disorder. Perfectionism will never let you live life to its fullest. When you accept disorder, you accept life.
Alvaro Sosa
English 110
GoldenWestCollege
Post#2
Story of an hour
First of all this story was hillarious! hahahaha.oh it truly made my day today at work. As i started reading i was like "oh no its gonna be one of those heart broken motivational stories were the victim eventually finds a new meaning in life and blah blah blah lives happily ever after" but then i got to the part were she whispered "free free free!" and it completely changed my view about the character. I stopped sympathising for her, because her loving husband in her mind had just died in a horrible train wreck and all she could think of was how awesome her life was going to be from then on(Talk about self centeredness).Suddenly they here someone fiddleling with the door knob and unfortunately for Mrs.Mallard it was not the travel agent she was hoping for, but her husband with out a scratch on him. She died of disappointment.
Kyle Umbarger
English 110
Goldenwest College
Post #4
Constantly around the world, millions of people are feeling like their life has no more meaning. These people are all around us in life; sometimes showing their hurt, and sometimes hiding behind their image. Kate Chopin's, "The Story of an Hour", is part of this "feeling worthless" percentage. Kate tells the story of a young lady stuck in her marraige, but one day she was delivered false information that her husband died. She instantly colapsed into her sister's arms spewing tears from her eyes. Once out of her sister's arms, she found her way to a cozy arm chair, where she lost herself in her thoughts. Instead of tears of sorrow, they were tears of joy. This made here realize that she finally had the chains off of her, therefore she could be her own person. At the end of the story though, instead of her finding her enlightenment, her husband walked in the door unharmed, and not knowing what had happened. This caused her to die from heart problems. This young lady was so overwhelmed by her worthless life, that when finally given the chance to create new opportunity, it got horribly taken away from her because of bad news.
Eric Monreal
English 110
GWC
Post #4
Story of An Hour
I was kinda caught off guard while reading Story of An Hour. Mrs. Mallard, with her frail heart, is given the news of her husband's death by her sister, Josephine and her husband's friend, Richard. Her first reaction froze her in disbelief followed by an emotional breakdown when she "...wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment..." [3]. Once the "breakdown" subsided, she almost seems catatonic. She goes to her room alone, slumps herself in a chair and stares out the window, reflecting on what just happened. As this is happening, it's as if something empowering is happening to her, "...she said it over and over under her breath, 'free, free, free!'" I got me thinking, how bad could her life have been with her husband that it seemed she felt almost relieved to hear of his death? Her husband did seem controlling and possibly manipulative (in her defense), "There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence..." [11]. I know with the time period this was in a divorce would almost be impossible. .. She's there in her room, alone. Her sister is at the door, pleading with Louise, to open the door, afraid she might do harm to herself. She ends up saying a quick prayer for a long life when before she heard of her husband's accident, she shuddered at the thought. The end of the story was almost a poetic irony of karma. Louise is walking down stairs when her husband, Brently, alive and well, walks through the front door to her surprise. The doctor comes and pronounces her dead of "heart disease--of the joy that kills" [15].
Oscar Padilla
English 110
John Hsiao
Happy endings
This story is a story of reflection, most people live life without caring about anything, or trying to achieve a lot of things; poeple who are always ambitious of more luxuries and less things with value. To my understanding, it tries to teach us that no matter how much we fight for what we want the end will pretty much be the same for all of us and therefore we have to take care of things that may seem small, because it is the small things in life are the most significant. Although, we need to make good deeds and always do our best, so that at the end we will die with the satisfaction that we did something good with our lives and that probably we will be remembered for the good things that we did.
Heather Brown
English 110
GWC
Post#4
Happy Endings
This story was..interesting. The aspect I enjoyed the most was it seemed to mock the typical tragic endings in relationships. It was brilliant how the author made the character's lives flow into one another. It seemed the author did this intentionally to keep the reader asking, "what?! what next!? and!?"..it worked. At the end of the story Margret Artwood wrote, "That's about all that can be said for plots, which anyway are just one thing after another, a what and a what and a what. Now try How and Why." After reading that last line, I laughed knowing I fell into her little trap so to speak. I was one of those tunnel-visioned people, too caught up to ask why or how.
Thuy-Anh Angela Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #4
Happy Endings by Margaret Atwood
I truly liked the way Margaret Atwood organized this story. The breakdown of all the different scenarios helps you visualize all the possible outcomes of relationships based on how they turn out or even how they end. The story in part A, portrays a basic "ideal" love story. In reality, not everything goes smoothly as one would want in a relationship. Does everyone find their soul-mate? Does everyone end up affording a nice big house? Does everyone end up with kids? Does everyone have the same luck in real estate? Does everyone end up being financially stable? Does everyone have time to go on vacations? Do all lovers die together? Of course not. Human beings aren't Barbie and Ken dolls. Reality comes with obstacles, and is often unfair. It's all part of the package. Part B, reminds me of a classic example of many people I know. Mary is the girl becomes head over heals for a guy, and gets extremely desperate to win his heart. John takes advantage of it, because the ball is on his court. He uses her as a friend with benefits. In this case, I honestly think that Mary puts all of this onto herself. Her denial and obsession over this guy caused her to take a chance in life to see if she can get his attention and pity for her. John didn't care much for her in from the beginning anyways, so life moves on for John. As for scenario C, John is the older married man who is seeking for a younger girl who makes him feel more lively and young. Mary has this side relationship with John, only to seek security which James seems to lacking. Sure, James is the guy she's in love with, but he's not willing to settle down with a relationship, or even with a career. The relationship between John and Mary is complementary, because it fulfills this need they have in their lives. Again, John seeks companionship, and Mary seeks security. After all the deceit and insecurities, the three individuals end up dying. In story D, Madge, John's wife, moves on with a man named Fred. These two, unlike the others, managed to get pass a huge obstacle in their lives, and ends up dying. In this case, Fred dies before Madge does. These short interconnected stories are pretty straight-forward. The purpose and the meaning of all of them is that no matter what happens, people will end up at the same place, death. Things might not end up the way they expect to, but people always have a chance to move on and straight something new, just as long as they are alive.
Thuy-Anh Angela Nguyen
English 110
GWC
Post #5
Baba and Daddy Gus by Bell Hooks
This story reminds me of my parents. Like Daddy Gus, my father spent the past 5 years of his life being a devoted Buddhist. He spends his time on his own, to meditate, and to retreat from his work and family. After the age of 16, I saw my father as a gentle man, a man who didn't speak much, but had an powerful skill of listening. Just like when the narrator in the story sat near Daddy Gus, he felt, "...all the pain and anxiety of his troubled childhood leave him,"(9), I was able to feel cathartic after spending hours on the phone venting to my dad about my problems. My mom on the other hand is just as dominating like Baba. She's a strong minded woman and isn't a much of devout Catholic like the rest of my family is. She believes that the ability so speak your mind and to not like anyone correct is a good sign strength. Baba's skill in making quilts is just as good as my mom's skills in cooking. Due to old age, my mom, too, has lost some of her touch in culinary. Even though narrators' grandparents lived within the same household, they still lived separate lives. My parents divorced when I was born, so I spent most of my life understanding their polar personalities. Their extremes helped me develop into the individual that I am today.
sarah takeda
eng 110
gwc
post#2
The Story of an Hour
I liked all the detail in this story. It gave me a very nice image of everything going on, and everything she could see. I really enjoyed the sentence that Kate Chopin wrote "...pressed down by a physical exhaustion that haunted her body and seemed to reach into her soul." It let me feel how Mrs. Mallard felt. It was very well written. The ending of the story made me sad though.
Happy Endings
i've always liked reading those books where you get to choose what happens next, so i liked this story. i like the part where she wrote "true connoisseurs are known to favor the stretch in between, since it's the hardest to do anything with." I think this is true, in the end we all die and all that matters is what we do with our lives. I believe she is trying to tell people to live their lives to the fullest because the ending is always the same.
Heather Brown
Wnglish 110
GWC
Post 5
Bliss
Bliss was a very entertaining and dynamic story. I have to admit there was a lot of odd things being said, but I'm pretty sure it was put in there to give a feeling of the society back then. All the characters were very snobby and ignorant of their actual lives and what it was doing to/for them.
The main character, Bertha seemed to be the only one aware and grateful for life and what life actually was. She came home, spent time with her child then went on with her social obligations. As the story unfolds the author drops hints that Bertha was becoming aware of a fling between her husband and another, "classy" woman.
It was funny to see how these two women, opposite in appearence, and morals were forced to interact because of their chosen social lives. As Bertha became fully aware of the fling I remembered a quote earlier in the story, "A grey cat, dragging its belly, crept across the lawn, and a black one, its shadow, trailed after. The sight of them, so intent and so quick, gave Bertha a curious shiver.". She was picking up how the grey cat was her husband (a shade not committed to white or black), and the black cat the woman whom he was cheating on her with.
The ironic thing in the story was, the woman the husband was cheating with, was seen as the most sophisticated and most alluring person about, but she was the ugliest and most disgusting thing on the earth. Looks are deceiving and so is society.
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