Thanksgiving

My Thanksgiving break was very relaxing. I didn't do much. I had Thanksgiving dinner with my family at home. It was delicious. We had turkey, sweet potatoes, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and to top it off we had some pumpkin pie! The remainder of the break consisted of doing homework, hanging out with my friends, and helping my mom put up the Christmas decorations. It was a good time and I enjoyed spending it with my family because next semester I am transferring to South Carolina- USC, so it depends if i'll be coming home for the holidays next year if I will be with them next Thanksgiving. I do have some family over there so I may stay with them. There wasn't a difference in this year's Thanksgiving for me because I have been staying home this semester. Next year, however, I'm sure I will witness a difference because I will either be traveling back home, or not coming home at all.

Bittersweet

Lester and his beautiful wife Martha lived in a quiet and cozy cottage deep within the mountains. Martha was everything to him. They had been together ever since he could remember. They were high school sweethearts. He loved everything about her; her long, curly blonde hair that was now grey, her ocean blue eyes and her baby soft skin. They lived far away from society because the only thing they needed was each other. 

On their daily stroll, Martha, although fairly elderly, noticed shortness in breathe. This had been more than usual. She felt the need to describe the rather odd experience to Lester, but the two went on with ignoring the symptom. 

The shortness of breath began happening now on a regular basis accompanied by massive dizziness spells. It happened on their walks, while cleaning, or even climbing the same stairs she had been climbing every day. This became a worry to the married couple.  Lester took his beloved angel to the hospital the very next day. 

There, the doctors ran tests and questioned Martha further. She described all of her symptoms and how much they were increasing day by day. When the test results returned she was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. Both Martha and Lester related this back to when she used to smoke in her earlier years. There was no time to wait, Martha was to begin treatment as soon as possible. There was no guarantee to the success that the treatment would have because of the stage the cancer had already reached.

This went on for about a year and Lester remained by her side through every treatment, every doctor visit, and as the condition worsened, he arranged to have hospice care at their home. This would allow Martha to be able to spend her remaining time in a comfortable and familiar place with the man that she loved. Lester did everything he could to ensure his wife's level of satisfaction. 

He had never dealt with a more sad moment then the one where he had to let his wife, lover and companion go. Late that night Martha passed away leaving Lester with nothing but his love for her and the memories of their life together. A memorial was held with unforgettable pictures and some of Martha's favorite songs.

I based this story off of a true event, of course cutting many details out. 

The two stories I read were The School and The nose. I liked both of these stories but when I went to writing mine I decided to do my own thing.

Cathedral

What did you think of Carver’s sparse writing style? Did you find it easy to read, annoying, ugly, pretty, etc? How might you utilize what he does in your own writing?


I found Carver's writing style to be very easy to read. It wasn't the prettiest form of writing and was a bit repetative at times, but he kept his sentences short and simple. It was easy to create an accurate mental picture from the words he chose to use. When he was describing what a cathedral looks like to the blind man, I was picturing it in my head. I felt that his writing portrayed common confusions placed with blind people and it really got me to thinking about what it would be like to be blind.


He used a lot of emotions in the story such as confusion, ignorance, curiosity, etc. I think that it would be fun to write a story like this; showing an experience in a simple and less complex fashion.

5 writing tips

1. Read as much as possible. Reading helps your writing in a way that introduces your mind to new ideas and at the same time you are processing the ways of writing, such as grammar and sentence structure. Whether you are noticing it as you are reading or not, reading helps you to understand structure and order in writing and the flow of sentences together.

2. Don't procrastinate! This has always been a bit of a problem for me. Your writing will not become the best it can be if you put it all together in one night. The key is to start early with a draft and from there continue to shape it and to form it into the final piece you are expecting. In most cases your final draft will be very different from your original piece.

3. Write every day. Practice makes perfect right? Writing every day will most definitely improve your writing skills. It will increase your use of correct grammar and punctuation. Not only that, but it will also allow you to establish what kind of writer you are and what types of writing you enjoy most.

4. Proofread. It is important to read over your work several times before finalizing a piece of writing. This may introduce you to things that you want to change or that should be worded differently. You wouldn't want to publish something with careless mistakes would you? That can all be avoided with proofreading. I would recommend doing this 3-4 times. Maybe a friend could look over it as a second opinion.

5. Start a blog. I love blogging. It's a different form of writing and expression. It's a fun way to write about whatever you are feeling at that moment. It is more like a journal of some kind and can end up sparking your best ideas.

What am I lying about? :)

I lived in Hawaii for the first 3 years of my life until my dad was transferred for work.

I am not only a citizen of the United States, but of Switzerland as well.

I have a hole in the back of my left eye from a soccer accident, giving me a blind spot in my central vision.

That 70's Show :)

That 70's show has pretty much always been my favorite tv show. The cast consists of many of my favorite actors/actresses. It revolves around a group of teens in the 70's who are best friends. They're constantly going through this cycle of relationships between each other. It is a full on comedy and couldn't be more perfect for putting you in a good mood.
It's always on late at night which I have found to be great on those nights I just CAN'T fall asleep. Another thing that I really enjoy about this show is that it relates to my life in many ways and to my group of friends. I can honestly say that not one line goes by me without a giggle. Something funny will be said and it will cause an initial laugh, but I will find myself laughing even harder because of the fact that it is illustrating something so true in my life.
 Behind all of the comedy, the show portrays the social issues of the 70's such as feminism, recession, teenage drug use, etc. If you're a sucker for sarcasm, jokes, humor and amusement there is no doubt in my mind that you will love this show!

Op Eds

The first op ed i read was Facebook Relationship: It's Complicated. This piece was very interesting to me because of the fact that so much related back to me personally. She is discussing how facebook is such a huge part of our lives, whether you are a middle school student, college student, parent or grandparent. She uses ethos throughout the piece to get the point across to the reader that "we're stuck with facebook and may forever be trapped in a digital world of 'pokes' and 'likes'." Her opinion on the subject was very strong and for the most part negative. She explains how there are so many things she could be doing and would love to be doing, but instead it is more likely for her to be on the internet chatting away on facebook. I agree with this article, as much as I love facebook, I do realize that it might very well be a progressing problem in our society. We have become reliant on it in terms of communicating and finding people of our past.
The second piece I read was The Things I Think I Think: You Say Tomato, I Say Taste Bud Changer. The author despises tomatoes and includes information explaining that some tomato companies have made it so that while you are eating a tomato your taste buds change and are flipped upside down, increasing your desire. I didn't agree much with this article because I feel like he is using a large amount of persuasion, which is fine, but I do not think that the wool is being pulled over our eyes. I believe that I undoubtably do love tomatoes :)
Lastly, I read Sex Column: There's No 'I' In Threesome. The author of this article felt it to be acceptable to experience a connection and or start a relationship with more than one individual at a time. He believed that it was much better to experience as many people as possible as long as it's keeping you excited and "grinning." I felt it to be a bit ironic that a BOY/MAN would be the author of this particular piece. Hmmm..? :) But I did not agree with it at all. Cheating is cheating, and what this boy is writing about is portraying just that.