essay 4

                    In the story All I Asking For Is My Body, we learn about the struggles of a Japanese American
 family. How they lived when the children were young, following them until the become young adults.  We
learn that the the children are responsible for the parents debt.  In their culture it was expected that the oldest
male child would pay back the debt of his parents.  the reason for this repayment is, in my opinion,  not
warranted.   If it is OK for your child to repay your debt, some parents may loose the drive to make an effort
to repay the debt themselves. In turn, this passes on to the next person in the family, the oldest son.  Now
that his son has the debt, he can not provide for his family, and then the debt may be passed yet again.
                  Tosh's parents expect him to repay their debt of six thousand  dollars.  After working only one
year to repay their debt, Tosh is no longer happy to work.  This makes the father very angry, and when
telling Tosh to do what is expected of him no longer works, he changes his tactics to using guilt.  He tells
Tosh that someday he too will have a bad son.  To me, this was sad.  The way that he communicates with his
children is wrong in so many ways.  This is not uncommon in Japanese culture, so it was hard for anyone to
speak up or to disagree with what he telling them.   When he first starts to question his duty,  he only asks for
how long, and how much does he owe.  This makes his parents very angry, even saying they cant depend on
him, and that they will depend on Kiyoshi instead. 


           When Tosh finally states the obvious, that he will never be able to repay all of this debt,  his father
tries to throw him out.  This was absurd to Tosh, he knew that his father could not keep the family fed
without the contribution of his money, yet his father treated him like dirt. This sense of entitlement that his
parents have is mid boggling. I don't agree with how the parents believe that the children should be
responsible for the debt that they agreed to.  If anything we as parents owe our children, we should never
charge or put our children into debt.



           

The Ending

I really enjoyed this story.  The ending at first felt like it was hurried.  But after reflecting on the rest of the story, it made sense. The way that Kiyoshi is dealing with being gone from home.  The way that he made all the money that his family needs to get out of debt, and how is ready, or maybe not so ready for war.  I thought that this is good way to end a story about superstition, and stories of bad luck, and what seemed a life of hardship.
 In the ending of the story it was like he was obsessed with  money and how he could padroll to win. When he was a child, all he heard about was bad luck and superstition, and now, on his way to war, he is making his own luck.  The way that he feels about taking the money of others was a little twisted, " besides if I didn't take their money another padroller would have".  What a common way of making it OK.  I liked how the last lines of the story, Take care the body.  In the last pages of the story we find him going to war, but he really never talks about how he feels, only the gambling.

Substitue

This is a great question.  Why does Kiyoshi believe that Obaban is a substitute for his mom?  He feels that she is the substitute because of all the superstitions that his mother has taught him.  The way that the older generation believed that all things were connected, and how to get rid of bad luck has been passed down to the next generation.  This bad luck, can be passed on to someone else, a substitute. He thought that Obaban was the perfect substitute because of her age, she had already lived a full life. He had also convinced himself that she would not be missed as much as his mom would.
The way that people believe in superstition is still common.  When you see a ladder, you think about the bad luck of waling under it.  When you see a black cat, one cant help but to think of bad luck. The same can be said about broken mirrors and crows.  Or the one about a penny in your shoe.  Whether you believe or not, we still think about them. I think this is the same for Kiyoshi, he may not believe but he still participates in them.

Chapter 13 Eliminate distracting shifts

      Chapter thirteen talks about points of view, the perspective in which something is written, and why it is important to stay in that perspective.  Informal letters and writing based on personal experience should  be written in first person (I or we).  When the writer is giving advice or explaining how to do something, the writer should use you, which is second person. When the writer is is writing in a formal academic or professional setting, the third person perspective is appropriate,  (he,she,it,one, or they).  When a writer doesn't settle for one point of view it can become confusing for the reader. 
      The writer needs to maintain the the same time table, keep the same verb tenses, or the reader may become confused.  If the writer is talking about past tense and then jumps to the present all of the verbs need to match.  Also verbs that show how the overall mood is should be consistent as well.  The writer should try to keep questions and quotations either direct or indirect.  What this means is that if you are going to quote in one part directly(word for word) you should continue that in all writing.
       This chapter will help in my writing, I tend to shift.  I will try to pay more attention to the time shifting.  I sometimes use past and present in the same paragraph.  The  way that we use the first, second, or third person perspective will also help to write more clearly.  I don't remember learning the part about keeping the quotations the same, and I will definitely use that in my future writing

Extra Credit

The way that we watch movies is for the most part passive. When we watch an action film, we are only watching and waiting for the action scenes.  The reading material explains how we (the audience) don't really pay attention to all of the other things that are happening on the screen.  The way the the director has the lighting can totally change the feeling that the viewer has.  Take for example the Blair Witch Project, the movie was a horror film.  This movie was one of the scariest movies I had ever seen. When I look back, most of the terror I felt was because of the lighting, and the way that the film looked like a documentary.  By making it look like a documentary film, it made it seem more real.  While I was watching the movie I never thought of this, otherwise it might have not been so scary.
I will use this information the ext time that I have an assignment on writing about film.  Now I will be a little more analytical when I watch movies.  I will try to spot the hidden triggers that the directors has in play.  This was and insightful reading for me, I never thought about the way that lighting has such an effect on the viewer.

Essay three workshop

In the story Oomah Loompah, we learn about a young girl named Lovey.  In lovey's life, she takes everything and judges it against what she has learned from the media.  The media has shown her what is beautiful, ugly, accepted, and what your supposed to eat , drink and think. The little girl in the story has internalized on how her life should be according to what she has been shown to her through media. 
In the beginning of the story we find Lovey getting her hair done by her mother. This is where it becomes apparent that the media has told the young girl how she is supposed to look.  The media tells people that if you buy a product, use it , you will look just like the person that is promoting the product.  At least that is what people hear.  But in all actuality, what is said is that by using this product you may, or might, or results may vary.  I have a young girl at home who is, much like Lovey, very connected to the media as well. She wants the skinny jeans and the cool shirts, and just recently the shorter skirts.  This is the media telling her that these things are what she wants.  I know this because it is November and it's cold. Who wants to wear a skirt in the winter?
The way that Lovey takes images from media and uses them to compare real life with fiction, is not uncommon.  Many children, and even adults, compare their own lives to that of the lives of fictional or famous people in the media.  This is one way that a person can feel like they have a connection, or similarity with someone famous.  If you wear the same jeans that the famous person wears, you will look like that person.  This is how big companies make their money, through good marketing. This is what is happening to Lovey, she has been targeted by big media, she is buying what will make her look a certain way. This is how companies make their money, they find a group of people that can be manipulated into thinking that they need something to help fit in, or look better, to be socially accepted.  In Lovey's case this didn't work out, she ended up staying home. 
Even when something looks bad, Lovey turns to the media.  When she describes how something looks bad she calls it Oompah Loompah, which is a reference to the movie Willa Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, the funny looking short people in the movie.  She uses this imagery to help explain her distaste of what she sees.  The funny clothes that her father wears, grandma has orthopedic shoes, her friends banana seat bicycle, these are all Oompah Loompah. This child is emmersed in what the media is has shown her what is acceptable and what is not.

Week 11 Dialogue

In this weeks dialogue I decided to pick a quote from the story.  The quote is from when the two are going to the fairgrounds to watch the fireworks.  " You know," Thomas said. " It's strange how us Indians celebrate the Fourth of July. It ain't like it was our independence everybody was fighting for."  After the exchange, Victor tells Thomas that he thinks too much and that the Fourth of July is just for having fun.  The first time I read this passage, I didn't really think about it, but the second time I automatically thought to myself that Victor must understand what Thomas is trying to say. The reason I say this is because the way that Thomas is talking to Victor is how two people talk about something that the two both understand.  He isn't explaining something to him, he is almost complaining about it.  The way that Victor brushes this off, by saying that it is just meant to be fun, sounds like a person who knows what he is saying isn't true, but it is easier than continuing the conversation.
I think that for some people it easier for them to "play down" their own feelings and just go with the flow of other people.  This is how I read what happened in the story.  I think that Victor is well aware of what Thomas is saying, mostly because he grew up with him. I am sure that they had the same conservation about thinking too much more than one time.

Week Eleven

I choose to write about chapter 41. This chapter tell the reader when it is OK to write out numbers instead of just typing them.  The general rule is that if you can put the number into words and use less than  three, you can type out the words. If the number you are using needs to have more than two words use figures.  Here is and example 192 would be written out as 192,  the figure three would be three.  Also if the figure is to be used in the beginning of the sentence it should be written out.  Generally figures should be used on dates, addresses, percentages, fractions, decimals, scores, statistics, exact amounts of money, divisions of books and plays, pages, id tags and time.

I will use this chapter when I write numbers in written form. I had no idea that there were so many different rules about numbers. I write them down in figure form all the time, and I had no clue that it was wrong.

Smoke Signals

I decided to pick a scene  from the movie, and  to write about it.  The scene that I picked is when the two girls are in the car talking.  This is happens in the beginning of the move, so I felt that it was important and it was funny as well. The way that the story portrays Indians is very stereotypical,  and at times, to me awkward.  The way that the two girls are talking to each other leads the viewer to believe that they are ignorant people.  What I mean is why would the girl ask for a beer, and then the other girl tell don't you remember we quit drinking.  I thought that this was a little extreme. Very amusing, but extreme. I also liked this part because the whole time that they are driving, they are in reverse.  Which, right away I thought that their car had no forward gears maybe, meaning that they couldn't afford to fix it?  I felt that this string of scenes all the way until the two boys get on the bus was about how the Indians had little to no money, and were just all around goofy.

Chapter 48

Chapter forty eight covers evaluating arguments.  Sometimes both sides of an argument have solid facts, other times one or both sides may have half truths.  This chapter explains how to distinguish between reasonable and fallacious arguments, and the use of misleading statements and and dishonest strategies in order to persuade the audience. Allot of people make hasty generalizations all the time.  That statement is an example of one in itself.  Writers are no different, they also use generalizations and stereotypes to get an idea or point across.  These are common traits in people, we make uninformed choices and then we form opinions around what we think to be truth.  Just like the saying that lawyers are all sneaky people.  Not true, I am sure that there is at least one good one out there somewhere. Drawing analogies to make a point is another tactic that shows two things that are not alike, then show that they are in fact similar.  Cause and effect can show the reader evidence of what something does by show its lasting effect. Describing the view of others in a misrepresenting way (like politicians) is a fallacy.  If the writer use the opposing persons words in quotations it is usually done so the reader thinks it is in fairness and accurate.  Overall the way that a writer describes the opposing points of view will often let the reader know how the writer is, is he bashing the other guys ideas, or is the writer just telling you what his opinion is.  It is hard to tell sometimes, when a person has some personal connection with what he or she is writing, the truth may get a little fuzzy. Many people have  an opinion because of media or other types of advertising.  It is hard to be unbiased, when everywhere you look you have someone or something telling you what is .......
I enjoyed this chapter because it give you pointers on how to look at an argument.  I like how it described some of the ways that a writer can use tactics, some good some bad, in order to sway the opinion of the reader.  I will use this information in the next essay, so I can do a better job at getting whatever ever my point is, across.

My response to Mr. Harvey.

When I read about Mr. Harvey, I was surprised at how he spoke to students.  I have never heard a teacher tell a child that he or she would be nothing when they grew up.  My first thought is how is this person telling a child something like that, their whole purpose is to nurture and to help a child flourish.  The next thought is that this man must of had a terrible childhood, or maybe he was picked on because of his own speech problem.  Even if this is the case, that is still no reason for a teacher to degrade a student. 

I have a daughter that is in elementary school, in the fourth grade.  If she had come home and told me or her mother that a teacher had spoken to her like this, there would be a teacher parent meeting the following day.  I think people that work with children should be held at a higher standard, and not allowed to take out their frustrations on children. Mr. Harvey, in my opinion, is probably not a bad person, but someone who gets frustrated a little to easy to be a teacher. Teachers need to have patience, and want to be there to help learn, not to have the attitude that "it'll take us a goddamn lifetime".

Purdue online Writing Lab

The Purdue Online Writing Lab tells the reader about writing fiction, and some of the pitfalls the reader/ student fall into.  Close reading means using a highlighter, after you have already read for comprehension, and writing notes in the margin. The notes in the margin should have questions, statement and some general notes.  Right after reading the essay, the student should keep a notebook for free writes and response entries.

Here are some of the pitfalls, the plot summary syndrome, this is when the student believes that the only task is to remember the plot, it is not the intended goal. The right answer roulette, this is when the student tries to guess the only right answer that only the teacher knows, there is always more than one.The everything is subjective shuffle, this assumes that every interpretation is of personal taste, and ignores the validity of the need to reference specifics of the story. the last one is how can a person write 500 words on a short story, you have to be able to put your own ideas down in order to write 500 words, especially if the the story is short.
I will use this information the next time I write about a work of fiction.  I am just now starting to actively read .  I just now began marking in the margins of books, and asking questions.  I like how it helps me to grasp what the author is trying to convey.  This will help me to better understand the mechanics of what the writer is doing.

Chapter 47

    Chapter forty seven tells the reader how to construct reasonable arguments.  In order to have an effective argument, you need to be assertive, state your belief, with facts that back it up, and not be to passive or to aggressive.  When forming an argument, the writer has to be aware of the context, whether it is social or intellectual debates.  The writer needs to be well informed if he/she wants to have an advantage in the argument.  The readers should be seen as jurors, if you assume that they don't see it the way you do, you will provide more evidence to support your argument.  In the beginning of you paper, the writer need to state their position and establish credibility.  If the writer shows the reader that they are knowledgeable, the reader will be more likely to actively pay attention to what is presented.  The writer has to be able to show specific evidence to support their argument.  It is very helpful if the writer can state facts and statistics.  If the writer can anticipate counter arguments, they can have a rebuttal ready, to dispute the counter and to strengthen the argument.  When the writer uses illustrations, it can connect on an emotional level, one that statistics cannot.  If the writer can build a coomon ground, the reader may listen to what the writer has to say.  If the writer can show the reader that they may share the same values, the writers opinion becomes valid, and reader might pay closer attention to the other side of the argument.

      I will use this information not only when forming an argument, but also when writing in general.  I tend to forget that the reader does not allways agree, or have the same veiw as me.  When I write I need to illustrate more, and to show more specific evidence to support my ideas.  this will help me to get my point across more clearly, and quickly.

Sarah Vowell, How her parent's shaped her life.

Sarah Vowell's family moved from the country into a more town like atmosphere when she was eleven.  It was here that she began to grow into the writer that everyone knows now.  This is  the time frame where she began to think for herself.  This is also the time frame in which she begins to question what others are saying, and to debate.  Sarah's father shapes her into an artistic writer who thinks for herself and voices her opinions clearly, with a great devotion and work ethic in her career.

Sarah and her father had many debates when she was young, which as she got older helped her to be able to communicate so clearly as a writer.  The two would argue about the Constitution, politics and everything in between. When a child is in constant debate, they become very opinionated or quiet.  In this case Sarah, choose the first option.  By her and father debating all of the time as a child, she grew up to become very opinionated.  A writer needs to be sharp, and have the skills to be able to debate and form opinions at will.  Sarah's father taught her to have her own opinion, and be able to express it.

When a person is in constant argument, they become sharp witted.  I am sure that this is what happened to Sarah as she was growing up.  When I read the story "Shooting Dad", I heard a strong voice in the writing.  I believe that the voice I "heard' was the voice that she learned from her father.

When Sarah was growing up her parents let her decide what was important to her.  This freedom of choice let her become the person she is now, the writer.  Had her parents pushed sports, or had her father made her shoot/hunt with the rest of the family, she may have not become the writer.  Her father let her follow her passion, like he followed his.

He taught her that devotion, and dedication will bring success, and happiness.When a child sees a parent being proactive, the child has a better chance of being proactive as well. Her father had a love of firearms, and he let her have her love, writing.  

As a child Sarah would spend hours in her music room, just like her father who would spend hours in his shop.   This showed her that being so involved in what she was doing was OK.  Had her parents not been OK with her being by herself, reading ,  she may not of become the writer she is. By letting her be herself and not making her be someone else, they helped to shape into who she is now, the artist and the writer.

Sarah says it best herself in the story "Shooting Dad", "Were both  smart-alecky loners with goofy projects and weird equipment".  That statement tells me that her father played a huge role in Sarah's life as a child and as an adult.

Chapter Four

Chapter Four explains how to build effective paragraphs.  Paragraphs should have a topic sentence, that supports the thesis, and focuses on what is coming next in the essay.  The topic sentence doesn't always have to the first sentence in the paragraph, but it should state the main point.  The rest of the sentences in a paragraph need to stay on topic and develop the main thesis.  The way that an essay is written, the pattern, doesn't have to be in any one way , but it needs to flow.  The writer should provide examples in the essay where ever there might be a need to better illustrate the idea.  Narration or a narrative paragraph tells the reader a story in chronological order, but can also include flashbacks or forward to break it up some.   Descriptive paragraphs are just that, descriptive, they describe a person place or thing.  A process paragraph tells you how something is accomplished in order, step by step.  Paragraphs can also be used to compare two or more subjects to show the differences or contrasts.  Another tool for showing comparisons is to use analogies.  The writer needs to be able to make paragraphs readable, by having the ideas linked clearly and coherent.  By adjusting the length of paragraphs the writer can keep the reader involved in the essay.  If the writer changes point of view the reader can become easily confused. If the writer uses transitional phrases in between sentences it lets the paragraph flow and read easier, the same goes for transitioning between paragraphs as well.


This chapter had allot of information on how to keep the reader engaged in the essay.  The part that I will use the most is to stay on point.  I tend to put to much information into one paragraph.  I will use this chapter when I start to put my ideas into paragraph form. I never even thought about the transition between sentences or paragraphs, I just wrote down what I was thinking, and hit spell check.This chapter made me think more about how to convey what I am thinking, and to put it into a more coherent order.

Shootin Dad

This story has a great title"Shooting Dad".  As I started to read this story all I could think of was the title. The way  she described all of the things her father was to her, Republican with NRA stickers all over the car. Then I thought about the title and wondered is she going to shoot this guy.  The story is very familiar, the younger generation not understanding the values of the older.  It happened to my Dad and his Dad, to me and mine.  This is the same story. I am surprised at how the story tied the title in.  I never thought that she was going to shoot ashes. 

The way that the writer starts the story, her and her father always disagreeing, many if the younger generation can relate too.  As the story progressed the story became easier for me to realize with. As we get older we want to be OK with our parents, maybe because we start to realize that "this" is not forever, who knows.  The story became more moving as it went along, and at the end when she realized that she  and her father were the same person, made me chuckle out loud.  The title "Shooting Dad" was made clear in the last paragraph when the reader realizes that the daughter is going to shoot the ashes of her father out of a cannon.  The fact that the writer doesn't agree with firearms has an ironic ring when she says that she wants the cannon to hurt when it is fired.

Chapter Three

In chapter three we learn how to make global revesions.  The order that your rough draft paragraphs are  in can be changed to make it easrier for the reader to follow.  Or you may stretch or condense paragraphs to get better get your point across.  This chapter has a great check list that can help you in your revision.  Purpose and audience: whats the purpose of the essay? who is the audience
Focus;  does it make sense, clear or are you on point
Organization and paragrapghing; Is there order  spread out or too condensed?
Content:  do you have supporting information for your ideas?
Point of view: Is the essay written from you he or they or it and is it relative?
The chapter tells you about being clear and to the point and to proofread and spellcheck as you revise your rough draft.  The more time you take to revise your essay the easier it will be for the reader to understand what you have written 
The checklist in this chapter will help me on the next essay. I will work on my point of view statements more.  The other is how to be more objective in my sentence structure and have more supportive content to back up my thesis.  The ideas of not having to rewrite the whole essay is also nice.  I  see how I could of  changed some of my first essay as well.  I found some of my weak points while reading this chapter and I plan on working on them.

Coming Home

What's the importance of food in this essay?

The author tells a story about a time in his life when his mom got sick and died.  The way that he tells the story is through a visual recollection of memories that for the most part have to do with food.  When he first starts to tell you about his mom he starts off with how she is "fed" through an electric pump.   Every time the author tells you about a part of his life he includes something about food.  When he first moved back into the house, he started to taking over all the cooking and cleaning of the house.  Then he writes about when he was a child and was sent to a boarding school, his parents visited him and had brought a large amount of food, he ate so much he got sick.

The author tied most of the story together food. I think that it makes it easier to relate to.  By talking about family life, sitting at the table together, and laughing in the kitchen as a meal is made, the majority of people have had that at some point in their life.  Then to tell the reader that he (the author) has tried to mimic the recipes tells me that he has tried to fill the void, but can't.  I really liked the story, the author describes alot of events with the use of food.  The story would have been alot harder to follow had he not described how his mother brought the family together with food.

Chapter Two

  In chapter two we learn about how to continue working on our rough draft.  It talks about some of the problems that writers may have, like writers block, or just getting started.  When you write you need to think about who the audience is and how are you delivering the information,  are you being to informative, too many facts or are you being to vague?  The thesis, is it in the beginning of the first paragraph or towards the end?  Where is the "hook", the sentence or sentences that draw the reader in and makes them want to continue reading.  Next you have to draft the body of the paper .  The body has to support the thesis and give examples or facts that will back up what you are trying convey.  All of your supporting points are in the body.  the next part of your paper is the conclusion. This is where you "remind" the reader of the thesis without repeating it in the same word.  Your conclusion should leave the reader felling what you wanted, meaning that the reader left the reading seeing your point of view. 

I am going to use this for sure.  Before reading this I just put all of my ideas down as I was writing the paper, not before. I think that this will help me to get my point across on the first essay.   The thesis might not have been as apparent to the reader as it is to me.  The part about how to decide if the points are to much information or not enough, had never occurred to me before. I just assumed that the reader would understand.  This chapter has a lot of information for how short it is.

Essay

My essay is about my daughter,Hannah. She is the most important person in my life.  She has shown me how to be compassionate to other people and show patience when it is needed.  She has more strength than I can express with words.  She is brave and kind and caring.  She is nine and half. Everyday is filled with new feelings and smells and sights.  She is full of wonderment.  She is surprised when the dog barks for food, yet the dog does this everyday.  She never gets tired of running on the beach with dog, or swimming at the gym, where the chlorine is so strong it almost burns.  She is mad when its time to go to bed and happy when she wakes up.  She is nine and half.  She can do flips and hand springs across the room and will if you let her.  She is honest, even when she gets into trouble.  She is in the fourth grade and somehow on some days she knows everything.  But like I said she is nine and a half.  She has taught me that I need to choose my words carefully, because she has a near  perfect memory and can recite them at will.  And that I need to watch what I eat because Mom said to.  She is the best thing that has ever happened to me. Hannah is an only child who is doted for , hand and foot.  She has no wants that aren't filled and no needs unmet.  One of my main reasons for going back to school is to show my daughter the importance of an education.  My parents never had the time or energy to do anything above or beyond the bare minimum parenting.  I regret not going to school earlier, a regret that my daughter will never have to feel.  Hannah loves to go to school and she is enrolled in sports.  She has done many over the years.  I am proud to be in her life and to help her flourish as an active kid.  My parents were never there to take care of the little things, like make sure I did my homework or sign me up for sports or any extracurricular activities at all. So as soon as some became available I enrolled Hannah into Gymnastics.  Over the years she has been involved in Tee Ball and Soccer and Swim Team as well as Tae kwon do.  I know that I am over compensating for the lack of activities I had as  a child, but I want her to have all of the things I did not. So when I get home from working a twelve hour day Hannah is there with a smile and a kind word.  That is what keeps me going, going to work , going to school, to church and on.  She is my motivation. She will have all the opportunities  that I didn't have.  She will strive in school  and at life.  And if she doesn't, I will be there to help.

Chapter one

Chapter one talks about the process of writing.. It tells you about the purpose of writing, the thesis how to make an outline and who the audience is.  First it talks to you about generating a planned assessment of the  the writing situation. Then you have to find the purpose of the writing, inform persuade etc.. The next step is the audience, who are they what ethnic, or age group?  Or are they business or academic?  The next part of chapter one talks about  how long the essay should be, is it defined how long it should be?  Then it moves on to talk about freewriting and brainstorming and using formal outlines.  Annotating text as you read them will help to remember what you have read. 
This chapter will definitely help me to have  an outline to go by.  I cant remember the last time I wrote an essay so this will all help me. I like the thought of thinking about what the audience is thinking and the purpose of writing is for. The freewrites we have been using will help and I believe that the use of a formal outline will help, (breaking everything down into categories and subcategories) will help to keep me on task
Benjamin

The Joy of Reading and Writing

"The words inside a paragraph worked together for a common purpose.  They had some specific reason for being inside the same fence.  This knowledge delighted me.  I began to think of everything in terms of paragraphs." 

When I first read the story I read it pretty quickly.  I didn't put much thought into this statement.  But the second time around, I found myself looking at my desk and before I knew it I had turned it into an essay.  The cup that holds my pens, the color of the pens , the tips of the pens.  I couldn't help but to chuckle.  Then I continued to break up everything in my office in the same way.  I am not sure that it will help me write better, but it is entertaining to do.
I did find that by "using this logic", my drive to work this morning was full of paragraphs.  I had never thought of looking at things in the sense of how they related, if they were in an essay.  I had fun with it for most of my day.  I remember my brother teaching me chess as a child, and supermarket tiles as being a giant chess board, with pieces making their way down the bread isle.  To funny. I  had fun reading and writing about this story.

Chapter 46

   Chapter 46 Writing about texts.  This chapter tells the reader to read actively.  By taking notes in the margin, underlining and rereading the text, the reader can better understand what the author was tring to convey. This style of reading can be used on other types of media as well, photographs or other visual media. By underling key points, and writing in the margin you can write an outline or summary of key points. Later in the chapter the author suggests that by writing an summary in outline form with all of the topics in your own wordsit will be easier to understand.
    The author states that by summarizing the work you will have a better understanding of what you have read. By using critical thinking in your summary you are taking apart what you have read and studing the pieces.  The author shows the reader different analitical guidlines for visual text.  What stands out about the image, color , shape or size.  Or is it the media,does it include words and is it an advertisment.  At the end of the chapter it talks about how all the different styles of text share guidlines for analysis.
   I can't wait to apply these ideas in my writing.  I don't remeber ever being told that it was ok to write in a text book when I was in school.  I think that having my ideas in the marigin the second time I read something would help me to better understand what Ihave read.  I never thought of taking something I read  and take it apart, and reword it in outline form.  Maybe I didn't pay attention in High School.  This is definently going to help me.
Benjamin 

Freewrite

Hi


     A freewrite is a tool for a writer to get ideas on to paper.  The idea is that he/she can put many thoughts down quickly.  Then the writer can go over these thoughts and streamline into another freewrite .  By doing this, you can end up with some great material about the subject.  There are no rules in the freewrite.  The writer jots/types as many ideas as possible on a subject.  Sometimes the subject will change, or alter after the writer starts to brainstorm.

     Me, on the otherhand found that my first freewrite was strange.  I cought myself totally thinking , "did I spell that right"? Or was my grammar correct..  Too funny.  I also found that I digressed many times.  I had no idea that freewriting will help you to become a better writer.  It seems that if you pratice bad puncuation, that it will be hard to implement it when you need to.  I seemed to have problems putting myself back on task, but will continue to try to do this to help refine my writing. 
    
    I thought that the freewrite would be easy.  My first attempt,  got caught up in watching the time and hit somtething that exited the widow.  My second attemtp I could not seem to focus on the subject. I am hoping that this will get easier for me.  I am sure I wasnt the only one that had this happen? 
                                                        Benjamin

Benjamin

          My name is Benjamin Dillingham.  I decided to go back to school after a 20 year break.  The last time I was in school paraachute pants were cool.  Now my priorities have changed, and I want to grow mentally.  I have an understanding wife and a nine and half year old daughter who are my suppoort team.  I work in construction in Marin County for an underground company. My goal is to receive a degree in enviro science with some concentraion in construction management.  I consider myself as a self starter, and can't stand waiting for the last minute.  I hope that I can bring that same mentality to my school work.  I am very excited to begin with class work, and to learn (relearn) study habits.