Post #10, 3-31-09, Weight Watchers

In the newest Newsweek, the health article by Sarah Kliff posed an interesting perspective on how to get children to eat more nutritious foods at early ages. It's really a simple idea. Kliff starts the article: "What's the best way to make sure a kid eats an apple? Ask him if he really wants one... Want her to eat her veggies, too? Rename them." In short, this new concept, called "stealth health", will cause kids to find a balanced diet more appealing because they are being pushed towards the healthier choice. Kliff states that this "push" may be verbal encouragement in the lunch line in the school cafeteria, more expressive food labels in grocery stores, and making healthier foods more readily availiable. As a result, "the most nutritious decision [will be] the most desirable one."

It seems that especially in the United States, people are either at one end of the extreme or the other when it comes to weight. It's easy to find nine year olds who are anorexic, or young adults that weigh three hundred pounds. Fitness is a main focus here. Almost every magazine has at least one article per issue on health, Newsweek no exception. Looking good is a very important part of our society today. I'm not arguing that staying active and eating right are bad things, but the more this concept is stressed, the more I question it's actual benefit. Although these articles target all of the pro's to healthy habits, continually reading them could be a possible con. Your opinion?

Post #9, 3-24-09, Is it the simple things in life?

"You couldn't have said something like that at Oxford. You couldn't simply say: I don't like Hamlet because I think he's a lousy person. Everything had to be more clever than that; you had to recognize Hamlet as a character in a text, and then you had to dismantle it accordingly, layer by layer, not just the play itself but everything that had ever been written about it. You had to consider what all the other critics had said, and the accumulated weight of their knowledge and nonsense sat heavily on the play. You had to think about how the play tied in with current events and trends. This process had some value, of course, but for many readers it seemed to have reached the point where there wasn't even a split-second break before the sophistication started. As a student, that was all I had wanted- a brief moment when a simple and true thought flashed across the mind: I don't like this character. This is a good story. The woman in this poem is beautiful and I bet her fingers are slim like scallions."

-Pete Hessler, River Town

Pete Hessler spent two years in Fuling, China as an English teacher at a small college, and afterwards wrote River Town providing a written account of his life while there. During his stay, Hessler discovered countless times how extremely important language is in China. Pete writes, "So much depended on knowing the language- my friendships, my ability to function in the city, my understanding of the place." Two tutors arranged to meet with Hessler seven hours a week in order to improve his written and spoken Mandarin. Hessler studied rigorously out of stubbornness, because many of his students and colleagues thought his interest in the language a joke. The process of learning Mandarin was a very enlightening experience for Hessler. Everything was "budui"- everything was wrong. It didn't matter if only one character was slightly mispronounced, in the Chinese way it was all or nothing. This caused Hessler to begin to appreciate what he did correctly, even if it was merely reading a short paragraph a young schoolchild could handle.

Although in Hessler's classroom the roles of teacher and student were reversed, the same concepts still applied. Hessler's students declared their thoughts outright and plainly. Because the students were learning the language, there was no need to go into great detail over the meaning behind what was being read. The students were able to come up with their own observations about the characters and plotlines, imagining them as real people in real situations.

Sometimes I think that we need to go back to the basics. Sometimes I think that we let things become too complicated. We focus more on the author's intentions rather than our own interpretations of the story. Often this mindset causes us to develop a hate for literature, rather than an enjoyment. Even with River Town itself, the first time it was introduced to the class there were moans and sighs of disappointment instead of smiles and excited gasps. We dread the point when we are going to have to dissect the book, and look deeper into the story for connections to our everyday lives and hidden intentions behind the author's word choice or sentence structure. On the other hand, I do understand the importance of developing a deep understanding of the book in all its entirety. Sometimes we learn more from our conclusions than from the story itself. I guess, both aspects might be of equal value. It's possible that the two might go hand-in-hand, that fully comprehending the book's plot leads to attempts at comprehending the book's meaning. Let me know what you think.

Post #8, 3-17-09, More than Words

"The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug." -Mark Twain

Save that thought.

So, I took my SAT's yesterday. It was a long, excruciating process- no joke, no lie, no exaggeration. I thought, with as much experience as I've had taking test after test, week after week, over an accumulation of sixteen years, nine months, and seventeen days, that this would be a breeze. It wasn't- I lost stamina, not even half-way through. Word of advice to those who haven't taken the SAT yet: don't fight it, timed writes really do help.

During one of the three critical reading sections, during one of the million excerpts and passages, one short story really struck me. Let me just say, after about the first section the stories all start running together; you end up filling in the second half of each sentence and skimming paragraphs, bored out of your mind. The reason why I'm not fond of reading comprehension questions is simple- I'm terrible at them. I'm incredibly stubborn, and if I'm not interested in what's been given to me to read, I just won't read it. In these cases, I usually forget words the instant after I read them. So the fact that this excerpt particularly stuck out means a lot. The story was about Zubin, a computer programmer who decided to then pursue life as a novelist. He quickly learned that writing out repetitive source coding in complex computer programs is very different from writing a book. A book requires finding the exactly right words to fit into the exactly right sentences with the exactly right structure, etc. etc. etc. It's a much more meticulous process. In the end, Zubin had a new-found respect for writers, as well as a greater knowledge of the off-the-page work involved.

The quote mentioned at the top of the blog was mentioned in the passage mentioned in the previous paragraph. I'm sure I wasted a good three minutes of my test time rereading Mark Twain's wise words over and over. I believe that there's two types of people in the world: the writers, and the editors. I am an editor. I've never really written out an actual draft, of anything. When I write, I continually pick apart what I want to say in my head until I find it worthy enough to put on paper. I rarely find existing words capable enough to perfectly express my thoughts. I am extremely picky; my thesaurus is my best friend. Knowing that someone else felt the same way was a huge relief.

light⋅ning

–noun

a brilliant electric spark discharge in the atmosphere, occurring within a thundercloud, between clouds, or between a cloud and the ground.

light⋅ning bug
–noun
any nocturnal beetle of the family Lampyridae, characterized by a soft body with a light-producing organ at the rear of the abdomen.

"firefly." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 17 Mar. 2009.

"lightning." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 17 Mar. 2009.

Obviously, the minor change between the two words is not minor at all. The addition of three letters changes the definition entirely. That is a concept I can easily relate to. While writing this, the video we watched in English class last semester keeps coming to mind- the documentary about Isabel Allende. What I specifically remember is the part of the interview in which Isabelle Allende discussed the importance of words, and how the meaning of a certain word in Spanish can mean something completely different in English. She used the example of "bread". In English, bread is an every day staple. To us, bread is an often overlooked, common household item. We use it to make sandwiches, toast when it gets old, and that's it. But in Spanish, bread has sacred connotations to it. Bread signifies the "bread of life". It's almost overwhelming how unalike identical words can actually be.

Just some food for thought, I guess.

Yahooing the "importance of words", I came across a business article about how to make your writing more effective in the corporate world. I realized, words connect countless topics. You can end up learning a lot from something you wouldn't think relates at all to what you're talking about.

Post #7, 3-10-09, MacFrugal's: The Way to Go

When it comes to frugality, I've grown up in a pretty average family. We're somewhere smack dab in the middle of all the typical economical stereotypes. We don't toss aside the never-been-used every Wednesday with our trash, but we don't hoard everything either. However, I have to admit- after reading the latest business article in Newsweek, I felt like my family could be doing a much better job at managing our money. Called "The Frugal Family Guide", Steve Tuttle describes his family life growing up in rural Virginia. His parents have never owned a television, clothes dryer, or credit card. Some people may think that their approach to life is a little extreme, but it actually worked. The Tuttle family ends up saving enough money every ten years to buy a new car and pay in full the day of. Up until now, I basically thought doing that was impossible. Even the most thrifty people I know are nothing in comparison to the Tuttle's. Long story short- I was amazed at how far living simpler and more efficient can get you. But the point of the article was to convince readers that during this recession, "there are still valuable lessons to be gleaned: the people who have been living the thrifty life all along are the smart ones now... while the rest of us watch and worry, my parents, with their paid-for house and their old rusty mousetraps, have peace of mind to spare." This is true. We're in the midst of some difficult times. My dad just recently switched jobs and is making less money than before, but we're still pretty well off. We cut back a little, but with the way the economy is headed, I'm beginning to wonder if it's enough...

Post #6, 3-3-09, A Difficult Read

"The death of a beautiful woman, is unquestionably the most poetical topic in the world."

-Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe sure seemed to think so. Most, if not all, of Poe's dark work seems to have something to do with the death of a beautiful woman. Poe was raised to be a Southern gentleman: witty, charming, intelligent, polite. As a result of his upbringing, he practically worshiped women and viewed them as angelic figures. Due to the poor sanitation of the time, Poe stood by and watched most, if not all, of the women he loved die. His mother died of Tuberculosis when Poe was very young and his first girlfriend died of brain cancer when he was fifteen. But perhaps the most influential of all these on Poe's writing was the death of his wife, Virginia, in 1847. From this event, short stories and poems such as "Annabel Lee", "Ulalume", "Lenore", "Eleonora", "The Oblong Box", "Ligeia", "Metzengerstein", "The Tell Tale Heart", "The Black Cat", "The Cask of Amontillado", and "The Raven", were all written. Obviously, these deaths had quite an impact on him. Learning about Poe earlier this week, I discovered just how full of tragedy his life really was. It seemed as if everything he had ever strived for- family, true love, a career- all slipped right out of his grasp like handfuls of sand. His father abandoned him a year after he was born and as previously mentioned, his mother passed away shortly after. He was put into foster care and eventually taken in by John and Frances Allan, family friends. John Allan treated Poe cruelly and extremely disliked him. His stories, if ever published, did not make enough money for Poe to live off of. These misfortunes caused Poe to develop a mindset in which he felt the need for his every attempt at a better life to fail. If these attempts were not unsuccessful on their own, Poe destroyed them himself. This eventually led Poe to his death in 1849.
Yes, Edgar Allen Poe's biography can be rather depressing. I figured that out the hard way. But after thinking about it for a while, I realized that good did come out of it. For one, Poe is now well-thought of and seen as a very talented and influential writer. His ultimate goal was reached, although it was some time after his death. His written thoughts give the sad and lonely something to relate to. His unique writing style give students something to study, teachers something to teach, and fellow writers something to emulate. Being a model to others is the most anyone can ask for. So, in conclusion, here's something to keep in mind during the hard times: there's always a bright side; silver lining can be found on anything. Don't forget it.

P.S. Need more of a pick-me-up? After reading Poe's Biography, you just might. Turn to Scripture- after rough days, God will always be there to pull you out of it. These encouraging Bible Verses are here to help: http://highhopesforhardtimes.com/.