The fifth story and another blog

Another blog response

            So I figured it’d be in my best interest to write another blog response considering I accidentally missed one. There are plenty of things that I could write about, but I think I’m going to focus on The Fifth Story by Clarice Lispector.

            First thing I have to say about this story is that it has a weird writing style. While there is sort of a story, there really isn’t much of one, this story is special not because of it’s unique plot, but just the obscure way it is written. For example, the story starts “This story could be called “The Statues”. Another possible title would be the “Killing””.  This actually got my a little intrigued, as the question of statues and killing would somehow have to be linked. These are linked (cockroaches turning to stone, it made sense in the story but for some reason I just can’t describe it) and in a very strange way.

            This story seemed to be just about an obsession with cockroaches in a building (no underlying meaning, stories can just be stories, they don’t have to always symbolize modern sexuality or political overtones), and just wanting the cockroaches in their building gone. Obsession is something that is very easy to get, and I think  it something that everyone goes through. I got obsessed over the dishes in the sink and how they never seem to be clean, despite my constant attempts to clean them.  I could get obsessed like the character in this story and do the same things as they do. Cockroaches crawling through drainpipes, that’s fricken creepy.

            So here is my own little story that I think I can relate to this. A few years ago, my dogs chased a groundhog into a tree. This freaked me out, because after being suspicious about why there was a groundhog in my neighborhood, I found out online that their was a rabies outbreak involving groundhogs in my area. So there I was, with a rabid groundhog, in my yard, in a tree, with my dogs barking at it. I swiftly got the dogs inside, and tried to figure out what to do with the groundhog. I imagined it would come to the door, foaming at the mouth, and ready to attack. I thought about it coming in underneath the house, and then it coming in from the floor. It was a dumb obsession , but it was similar to the obsession with the character in the blog.

            Well anyways, here’s how my fifth story starts. It starts with me complaining about groundhogs J

maps to anywhere

Maps to anywhere blog

            Maps to anywhere is a collection of memoirs in an almost poetic form. One of the first little memoirs stood out to me, and I’m going to tell you why.

            The memoir “The Heralds” I found quite amusing, as it was a very relatable memoir. The idea of religion seeming a little bit suspicious is something that I have always done. There is a passage in the memoir mocking how the book of mormon was made from someone reading through the nipples of Roman armor, which of course doesn't make sense unless your eyes are far apart. I found this quite an amusing thing to read in an assignment.

 I've always had some issues in religion, and it is kind of amusing to read a memoir which has the same point of view. When pointed out "Religion meant people in shrouded heads mumbling in gaudy, I found this really relatable. I have always kind of thought that, and it is nice to hear it out loud.

Maps to Anywhere isn't terrible. It has a few interesting points, although it is a memoir. If there is any memoir I think that should have been read it is "Running with Scissors" which is a very interesting (and  true story). I think that could have been a good read in this class. The stories in this aren't as strange as in that book, but they have good meaning. I kind of feel like I should write my life stories in memoir forms. I think I should do that at one point. 

I had a good time in this class. I guess this will be my last blog.

Juice

I'm not going to say I thought this was a piece of art. To be perfectly honest I didn't really quite understand why I was supposed to read this book, but I've got to write a blog about it so here it is.

After reading the segment Proportion Surviving I have to say that I thought this was a very pointless segment. It seemed to be nothing more than a memoir (I know it's fiction) of a lost time before the apple crisis. Apparently when their weren't fresh apples around it was a very dark time, it's kind of like Mad Max only worse...
I of course know that the juice is a symbol of losing something that you once loved. You take for granted what you have, you keep thinking you have "the same juice" but in reality it changes. And of course, one day, it'll be gone. 

As far as being an interesting story I really wasn't super in to it. I feel like there is a demographic and young adult male definitely isn't it. Essentially Rennee talked about her lovers and apples, and how she liked tough vegatables. She looks back on the good old days when she wanted to work with juice, and when she had a lover who slept a lot. I'll be honest that is all I got from this, there wasn't really a plot just an idea not a story. I don't think this was trying to be a story however, I feel like this was trying to sound realistic.

As far as writing styles is concerned I noticed it was very personable. Renee likes to write with numbers, and using descriptive writing instead of using the iceberg principle. There was definitely a sonnet poetry style that occurred in the stories. She tries to make the reader relate to the story, to feel how she feels, in her shoes. However, it is kind of hard to relate to her, I just live in too different of a world.

Juice just isn't for me, I hope to read a sci-fi story soon.

Also, If you are reading this, blogger is driving me insane, it keeps telling me I have logged out from another location, do you want to log in again?  Do you know how to fix this problem? My main blog response is just below.

For the most part I was amused by the short stories. Some of the stories had bizarre ideas, like ears falling on the floor, and some just flat out boring, like the run on sentence in “The letter from home”. However there was one story I particularly liked. “Morning News” by Jerome Stern.

            This story stuck out to me, just because of its interesting subject matter, dealing with death. Essentially, summarizing a short story into a shorter sentiment, a man gets bad news, thinks about death, his wife, a fairy tale, then decides to go “screw it” and buys a big ass TV. It really is a simple idea, but the story is something that anyone can relate to. When I was younger I always thought about death and dying (it sounds creepy) but more or less the mystery that has to do with what happens when you die.  The man in the story was given bad news for his health, and immediately thinks about his mortality, as really anyone would. Thinking about your mortality isn’t really a fun thing, but when it is put right in front of you, it’s just all you can think about.  Wanting something beautiful, “A final meal atop the Eifel Tower” as quoted in the story, is only a natural response.

            This story particularly stuck out to me because of its ending. Instead of doing any of those fantastic things, or figuring out what will happen after he dies, he goes out and buys a 60-inch TV, “The largest set in the whole god damn store”. It is such a funny realization, that even after death is staring you in the face, you waste your time in front of a screen.  Every day I say I’m going to do something, and instead of doing what I want think I should be doing. And even when the shortness of life is put in front of you, you still go and buy a TV. It’s funny, how everyone considers watch TV a waste of time, but I love spending time watching TV, even though it isn’t constructive. It is just funny how life can be.

            Kim Addonizio also brings up the idea of mortality in the story “Survivors”. That story brings amongst a different sense of mortality, as the characters are hoping to die so they don’t have to deal with the repercussions of staying alive. It kind of is a funny story, two gay men who are about to die from a most likely AIDS related death, just wanting out already, for the most selfish reasons, not having to deal with family, and even having to take care of a parrot. I found this story most amusing, and how it isn’t really a story, but more or less just painting a setting, and allowing you to imagine a setting. Dark comedy is always a plus; I hope I get to read more in this class.

Dim Lady Blog Response

So I’m deciding to write a response to Dim Lady by Harryette Mullen from the poetry packet. The reason I am choosing to respond to this poem out so many others, is because for one, I comprehend it, two, I don’t mind it, and three, why not? There are plenty of confusing poems (essentially anything by Shakespeare) and many that are just hard to read.  And plus I’m waiting until the last minute to get Fluorescence (don’t worry I’ll read it, I just feel like doing this first).

First thing I have to say about the poem is it is clearly a modern revamp of the “My Mistress” poem by Shakespeare (as discussed in class).  “Today’s special at Red Lobster is redder than her kisser” from Dim Lady and “Coral is far more red than her lips red” from “My Mistress” are pretty similar lines.  I like the Dim Lady poem better, mostly because it doesn’t feel like it is in a foreign language like Shakespeare tends to.  Plus this poem caters to me, as I live in a world of Red Lobster and not in a world comparing lips to coral.

The whole beauty is in the eye of the beholder stuff is always cute, however questionable. The lyrics in this poem remind me of lines in a Bruce Springstein song, Thunder Road in which he says the same things” Ain't a beauty, but hey you're alright. Oh yeah, and that's alright with me”. I think Bruce Springstein had the same thoughts as this poet, however I also think he was talking about a groupie that he wasn’t’ interested in getting to know. While I would like to analyze Bruce Springstein, a true poet, I think I should go back onto what I thought of “Dim Lady”.

I haven’t quite been able to tell if this poem is mean or not. I could argue it is sweet but I don’t really think it is, to be honest I don’t think I would find much sex appeal in the girl described in this poem. My girlfriend doesn’t wheeze a garlic breeze (often) and if liquid paper is white, than she is liquid paper. I’ll admit I’m a shallow fellow, but then again I think that’s what really liking someone is, not seeing the flaws but still caring about said person. No, I think liking someone is more about being perfectly blind to the flaws, because I could see all the gross things my girlfriend did, but then if I saw them she probably wouldn’t be my girlfriend.

            My overall thoughts of the poem is that it is clever, even thought it has already been done.  It is cute, bringing in pizza parlors and Red Lobster in the mix to modern it up a bit. However, I find the content in this (and in Shakepere’s poem) a little hilarious, and a little degrading. If I had these thoughts about a girl I was dating, I think I would need a mistress (although in Shakepere’s case his mistress wasn’t a looker so I’m suspecting his wife was really unattractive, I don’t know anything about Shakespeare; I’m just making a funny).  This poem is funny, and kept me entertained, so I think in the simplest terms, I liked it. 

Assignment one

About me:

I am a junior at the Eastern Michigan University, I am majoring in communications, Electronic media and film, and I am trying to decide upon a third major which might be creative writing. I love to write songs, and I am an aspiring screen writer. My dream job of course is to be a screenwriter or songwriter (clearly). I am taking this creative writing class in hopes to zone in on what major to take.