Weekly Blog #3-"Reality Sets In"

This past week has brought me to the realization that college is not as easy as it looks. I am starting to get into the teeth of each class. The exams, papers, and daily assignments are starting to pile up. Outside of class, I am overbooking my schedule with the different activities I have become involved in. It is easy to underestimate the load of college because it requires a limited amount of time inside the classroom. This is deceiving because the hours that it takes to finish the assignments is two or three times the amount in the classroom.

Bird by Bird 195-201

A lot of young writers like to emulate writers that they enjoy reading. The problem with this is that they write about the same topics and often sound like they are just rewriting what has already been written. Each person has their own voice. Each person must use their own voice to be able to tell the truth. One can tell their own story be using another writer's voice. Each person has enough material in their head to tell their own story with their own voice. It simply takes overcoming the doubt that one has this gift.

Weekly Blog #2-"The End of This Era"

I am going to elaborate on my previous post last week. This was suppose to be the most exciting week of the year. Unfortunately, the roller coaster officially got off the tracks and crashed today at about 3:00. The Brewers blew their third game of the road trip in which they led in at some point after the sixth inning. This appears to be the final nail in the coffin.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Chicago Cubs finished the week strong with a three game sweep of Pittsburgh to push their lead to 3.5 games. It will take a miraculous home stand for the Brewers and catastrophic road trip for the Cubs. I do believe in miracles, but I am a realist at the same time. I have mentally seceded the division and am looking to the 2008 season.

I am trying to take the positives out of the 2007 season. Prince Fielder proved that he is the future of the team. The team as a whole showed it is offensively stable. The biggest issue to address is the late relievers and attempting to re-sign closer Francisco Cordero. The additional payroll for next year must be put into the bullpen. I look forward to the future because it has a lot of promise. Thank you Milwaukee Brewers for another exciting year of baseball in Milwaukee!

Making Sense-"The Little Man at Chehaw Station"

The essay begins with a interesting direct parallel to the title. A boy is told that he can never be sure who is or isn't listening to his musical performances. I believe that this can be directly applied to everyone's life. I know personally my effort whether it be in a game or in practice should be at the same intensity. The details in life are what separate people from be great or blending into the crowd. Later in the essay, it is mentioned that maturity has a large role in this. Everyone is not a firm believer in this attitude. Many people aren't willing to always give what they are capable of doing. Sometimes, the person behind the stove is really out in the open for everyone to notice. This is the main purpose for someone to put forth their best effort everyday.

Making Sense-"The Wall, the Screen and the Image"

This essay has many intriguing points. It is well known that there is a lot of controversy surrounding the Vietnam War and its veterans. The fact that the symbol for the war is a memorial and not a monument shouldn't matter. Reality is that millions of American soldiers lost their lives fighting a war. The people left behind needed something to help cope with the loss of loved ones. A 21 old year old Chinese-American is the designer of the Vietnam War Memorial. I find this funny that controversy has always and will always surround the memorial and the war itself. I think this shows that the world will never be at peace and will find itself in war like conflicts every day.

The memorial has been important the country to overcome a defeat on a couple different levels. Obviously, the war was not victorious. Also, the war divided the country’s unity. The memorial symbolized the need to put things in the past and to move on. Because of the memorial, millions of people have had the opportunity to show their feelings whatever they maybe for the war and its fallen soldiers. This has helped bring the country back together.

Weekly Blog #1-"Birthday Weekend"

The Brewers completed a short three game homestand this weekend. It just happened to be my birthday along with my brother. This weekend was one of the best because not only were they at home, but they won both games. I have waited my entire life for the Brewers to be playing meaningful baseball games on my birthday. The next two weeks will be the most exciting times of my life.

Words cannot describe the emotional roller coaster this team has taken me on. The beginning of the season was enjoyable watching the Brewers climb out to a 8.5 game lead over a much despised rival, the Chicago Cubs, as late as June. The second half has been very difficult to watch. The large leads being surrendered has been the most frustrating experience of it. I went to St. Louis the last week of July with three friends. We witnessed a five and six run lost in two different games. The calendar turning to September seems to have been the best thing in recent memory. I cannot wait for the team to return to finish out the regular season with a seven game homestand. I can smell October baseball in Milwaukee.

Bird by Bird 21-32 & Online Essays

Perfectionism rarely leads to success in every aspect of life. Writing is one of the prime examples of this. Writing is not an easy task including those who call it their profession. Writing has necessary steps that must be followed to be successful. Many people find writing one of the hardest things to do. Personally, I know that I always tell myself to just get started. Once I complete a rough draft, I can relax and make the necessary changes. The concept of having drafts allows perfectionism to be put on the back seat.

The online essay points out the fact that one cannot look to complete requirements with basic ideas and words. Writing the ideas that are obvious and inside the box don't take much effort. This type of effort receives the grade it deserves. Good writing requires vocabulary and thoughts at an elevated level.

Making Sense-"The Owl Has Flown"

The essay focuses on looking past the text itself. Many people who read simply read to say they completed the reading. Honestly, if I didn't have to write this blog, I wouldn't be surprised if this would happen with this same reading. The author expands on this by writing about the true meaning of wisdom. Wisdom is having the capability to see from a different perspective. Being wise doesn't consist of simply memorizing facts, rather being wise is seeing the details or the big picture. Today, too many people only go through the motions without thinking about the reason for doing an action. Retaining knowledge is the real definition of wisdom.

Making Sense-"Imagination & Reality"

Art does not fall into place easily in society. Art takes time to form. We live in a society that demands instantaneous results. If something isn’t making money, it doesn’t have value. The world values goods much more than it values time. Because of this, it is hard for art to coexist today. Most people can’t see the value in the art. We use objects without thinking of its value to us. Its value is appreciated when it falters and needs to be replaced. The artist is always thinking outside the box realizing the importance of everything surrounding his or her environment. Many people fail to take time out of their lives to enjoy the things around them.

Making Sense-"In Pluto's Cave"

Pluto’s Cave has a unique feature in which it allows light to seep into the cave itself. This shape is similar to the view through a camera lens. Sontag’s essay focuses in on how many different uses a camera has. Cameras are an object used every day by different types of people for many different reasons. Photography’s origins reach back to where it was used strictly as an art. The camera has become a tool used by every average Joe. It is used to freeze memories in time which are meant to be memorialized. The camera is used on a professional level to document evidence for the authorities. It locks an event into stone and tells a story. Unfortunately, it can only tell one side to a story. For this reason, it can divide people.

The essay also refers to photography as soft murder. This refers to the ability to take pictures without the subject knowing about the fact. This makes photography sound perverted and abstract. I feel that photography without the subject knowing is pure photography. Photography with subjects posing does not capture real life situations.

Bird by Bird 33-43

Lamont shows the importance of simplifying writing to be as easy as telling a story. She uses the example of lunches and the memories she has from it. It is interesting reading her account because I can personally relate to her thoughts about what other people thought of her family's financial status. I had these thoughts about other people and was always making sure the right items were packed in my lunch. She also mentions the boy by the fence. When she is done writing this first draft, she reflects on it having no idea why the boy crossed her mind. The point she makes is that writing is a process that a course of its own if you let it.

The comparison of writing to a polaroid is a great metaphor. It is a reminder that one cannot sit down and write a full paper at one time. This goes back to the one inch picture frame mindset. As she attended the Special Olympics event, she realizes that there truly is something special occuring. The effort displayed is what was amazing. I have personally had the chance to witness this type of unmatched effort. I had the chance to go school with someone who had Down's syndrome who also played basketball. However, he did not simply play for a Special Olympics team. I had the opportunity to play on the same team with him. He never played when the game was still on the line. He couldn't have cared though. He wanted the opportunity to be like everyone else. Players on other teams left him open because of his obvious difference. I never could figure out if this was courteous or disrespectful. Regardless, he put the issue to rest. He had the ability to knock down three pointers with the best of anyone out on the court. The sound of the crowd roaring after seeing what no one would have expected typically is reserved for game winning buzzer beaters. Chris' effort reminded me to always put the same type of effort out on the court at all times.

Coffee Shop Painting

The painting in the coffee shop is a very intriguing work of art. It does not have a direct message simply by looking at it. Personally, this is what I find very fascinating. It takes some inside thinking and has no right or wrong answer. It takes more than just a glance to be able to even try to comprehend what the painter is trying to say. The message I take from the painting is that the world is full of life everywhere I look. There is not one square inch on this image that does not have life within it. Unfortunately, many people today don’t appreciate life. Millions of babies are aborted annually along with the cutting down of millions of trees. The painting bleeds green spelling out the beauty of life when it is appreciated.

Bird By Bird 3-20

Anne Lamott's bird by bird discusses the keys to effective writing. She immediately states that the ability to express truth through writing is one the most important qualities in a good writer. Personally, I find this to be a half truth in itself. Most of the time, writing is not a fantasy. The limited opportunities to use creative writing though should not have boundaries.

The perfectionist writer is also talked about early in this book. At a point and time, I was very much this type of writer. I would rewrite almost every sentence after it was written. This was very time consuming and frustrating. My papers were always of a very high caliber, but the time it took me to get to that point was extremely mind draining.