Black friday

    The biggest shopping day of the year is known as "Black Friday," this is the day right after Thanksgiving. Every year my aunts and my mom go shopping on "Black Friday," my mom and I usually do not go as early as my aunts. This year I told my mom I probably was not going to go this year, because every year it seems to get crazier and crazier. So while I slept in my mom went shopping. My boyfriend, Ben, his mom also went shopping on "Black Friday," as well. I woke up around ten o'clock and called my mom to see where she was. She said she had went to Toys R Us, and that it was crazy. She said that she had heard that when they opened the doors at midnight that people pulled out their tazor guns and were shocking people as they entered the door. Luckily my mom was not there, when it happened. She said that she was on her way to target and that she got my niece, her granddaughter's toys that she wanted. I figured that I would get ready and try and see if I could get some shopping done. When I finally got out, it seemed that the madness had worn down. The stores that I went to were not very busy and the lines were not that bad. I did not even attempt to go to Target or Wal-Mart because I knew that they would be packed. My mom however did go to Target and she said that the line to check out, wrapped around to the back of the store. She was in line for about thirty minutes. After that she decided she was done for the day and went home. I did not get much done either, because I really did not know what exactly I was looking for. I ended up getting some small presents for my family and some shoes for my boyfriend at Bass Pro.

    I really do not understand all the hype of Black Friday, unless a child wants some new game system or a new toy that is on sale. I would rather do my shopping in peace rather than with thousands of people around me fighting for gifts. Also, I tend to find more sales the week before Christmas, because the stores are trying to get rid of the stuff. I am not going to worry right know because I do not have a lot of my shopping done, at least not yet. If worse comes to worse I know that everyone enjoys gift cards. Therefore, I am going to focus on my finals for school and worry about Christmas shopping later.

Word Count 451

Thanksgiving

    Thanksgiving, of course, is about spending time with friends and family, good food, and remembering what it is you are thankful for. I had to go to three different houses to eat Thanksgiving diner and by the third stop I swore I thought I was about to pop. The first house me and my boyfriend had to go to was my aunt and uncle's down in Mississippi. Their house is about forty-five minutes away in North Hernando. We got there about two o'clock and all of my dad's side of the family was there. All the cousins played football outside while the aunts finished preparing the food and exchanged the nieces' and nephews' Christmas list. I was starving after playing football in the backyard, so I got a huge plate of food, my boyfriend on the other hand did not eat much because he wanted to be able to eat a lot at his family's house. After we got through eating, my cousin's and I had to pull a name out of a hat. Every year we do secret Santa between the cousins and we have to buy a gift for someone under twenty dollars. I wish that just one year I could pull one of my girl cousins' names, because every year I pull a boy's name and I never know what to get them. After I found out whose name I got, my boyfriend and I had to leave to go to his uncle's house for his mom's side of the family's Thanksgiving. We got back into Memphis around 4:30, and rushed over to his uncle's house. I really did not want to eat again, because I knew we would be going to his mom's house in a little bit for dinner. Therefore, I ate a little desert because I did not get to have any at my aunt's house. Since we got there late everyone was starting to leave including his parents, because my boyfriend's mom was having Thanksgiving dinner for his dad's side of the family at seven o'clock at their house. We got to his house at about six o'clock, which meant that I had an hour to settle my stomach. So, I walked around the block twice to try and help regain my appetite. When it was time to eat dinner, I was still had not regained my appetite, so I only ate a small plate of food. After I ate, felt like my stomach was seriously about to pop, I defiantly ate too much at Thanksgiving. In my boyfriend's family, it has become somewhat of a tradition to play poker during the holidays. Therefore, we all played and even though I had no clue what I was doing, I ended up beating all of them and it was such a surprise. I won forty dollars and gave twenty of it to my boyfriend, because he was pretty upset that he lost to me. Overall I had a great time on Thanksgiving, even though I do not think I will be able to eat anything for about a day or two.

Word count 517

I Never Want to Pick Up Another Turkey Again

    I never want to pick up another frozen turkey ever again. I say this because I work at Schnucks as a cashier, and it is Thanksgiving week. This is my third year at Schnucks as well as third Thanksgiving there. This past weekend was not to bad as far as being busy. But last night which was Wednesday, was completely insane. I got to work at two o'clock and had to work until nine o'clock that night. I did not have a register to check on, because my boss scheduled more checkers than we had registers, just incase someone called in sick. Luckily, no one did, and therefore I ended up checking on other checker's registers while they took their lunch. Our store got a lot of complements from customers, because they were grateful that we had every lane open. The customers said the hardest part for them was trying to find a parking spot. I ran from register to register for most of my shift, which actually made the time go by faster. When there were no breaks to fill, I would help bag and "direct traffic" as my boss would say, which meant that I would tell customers that were ready to check out, which line was the shortest. I am glad that I kept pretty busy because it made the time go by fast, but by the time my shift had ended I was so exhausted. I am so thankful that I do not have to work on Thanksgiving, because I would probably loose my mind. Even though we always close at four o'clock on Thanksgiving, cashiers still have to stay late because even though we close at four does not mean the customers will be through shopping at four. I feel bad for all the cashiers that have to stay late on Thanksgiving, but I am really glad that I am not one of them. In my opinion I think stores should be closed on Thanksgiving. But, I guess company's want to try to make as much money as they can, therefore that will probably never happen. Anyways, at least we will have a few days to recover because, people will be eating leftovers for a few days and also the biggest shopping day of the year is the day right after Thanksgiving. I really hope that I do not have to pick up another turkey again or at least until next Thanksgiving.

Word count 407

How Point of View is changed

    The point of view is not exactly changed between the story and the movie of "A Worn Path." But, the point of view is shown or displayed in a different way between the movie and the story. There is a difference in how the audience may interpret the point of view to be. The point of view of the story makes the audience feel like they are being told or described something, where as the movie represents the story as though the audience is right there watching the story as it happens.

The point of view in the story "A Worn Path," by Eudora Welty, is nonparticipant objective, because even though the narrator is not a character, the narrator however describes Phoenix and describes what she is going through and the things she sees in her mind. The audience or readers are seeing these events happen and being played out, but without any judgment or ideas about these characters put into his or her mind. The narrator or point of view paints a picture for the setting and the mood of the story. It is very descriptive in describing the events that Phoenix experiences during her journey. The style of this point of view makes the audience feel like they are being told this story from an outsider point of view. This is the main difference in the movie, because the audience feels like he or she is the outsider watching the story as it takes place.

The movie does not have someone telling the audience what is going on, rather it uses characters and demonstrates what is going on. The point of view is still a nonparticipant objective. The reason being because, the audience becomes the outsider or the fly on the wall that is watching the story being played out. But, it does however eliminate the fact that the audience feels like he or she is being told the story, almost like eliminating the middle man. The use of settings and actors eliminates the fact that the audience is told by a narrator, instead the audience is shown what happens. The point of view is almost invisible in the movie, but yet it is still there. The point of view is somewhat invisible because, the audience does not have someone telling the story, but it is still there because it is brought to life by the actors.

The difference of point of view in the story and movie is simply that in the story the point of view is clearly nonparticipant objective, the audience is being told the story through an outsider and through the movie the audience becomes that outsider or flies on the wall. The audience is shown the point of view almost through the outsider's eyes rather being describe and told the story through the outsider's words. This difference makes the point of view change because, it makes the audience feel like he or she is the outsider watching the story happen. Therefore, the point of view between the story and the movie is not changed completely, but it is altered, which makes the audience see the story take place rather then hear about it.

Word Count 556

 

      

Writers on the Road Series

    The literary event, "Writers on the Road Series" at Burke's Bookstore, was great experience. "Writers on the Road Series" gives students, who are aspiring to be future writers, a chance to read their work to audiences. Also, it gives them a chance to speak with other students and answers questions that other students might have about becoming a writer. The place where this event took place was at Burke's Bookstore on south Copper. The seating was very limited and a lot of people had to stand. They probably did not expect as many people to come that did, but we managed all to squeeze in to listen to the students read. The atmosphere was laid back and relaxed even though it felt like we were on top of one another. It was nice that is was small because, it gave a chance for the students to connect with the audience. Another plus to it being a small audience in a small place was that the audience could hear the student speak very clearly withou0t a bunch of noise or interruptions. Although there were a few interruptions because where they were reading was right by the entrance to the store. And since the audience was squeezed in the students decided to stand while reading their work so the audience could see them. Therefore, anytime someone would enter the store the writer and to move over and tell the person that was entering the store that they could come in. This caused a little distraction not only for the audience but for the student reading as well because; they had to stop what they were reading and start again. This was really the only big downfall to the setting and stage of the event. Besides the interruptions the event itself was very enlightening.

    Although I am not becoming a writer, this event enlightened me on how writers write the stories they do, rather it is from own personal experience to something that is completely made up in his or her minds. The two poets mainly used personal experience for their ideas on their poems, but sometimes they also added things and changed things up a bit. Even though fiction is considered to be made up, the two fictional writers stilled seemed to get their ideas from something they could relate to or have experienced. The girl fictional writer, even though the story was fiction, she still got the idea and setting from a bar in her hometown. Through this I learned that sometimes fiction may hold some sort of truth or idea within the story.

    Besides the fact that the setting was limited and some of the audience members had to stand and there were a few interruptions with people entering and leaving the store, the event was a great experience. The experience was great, not only for the audience, but for the student writers as well. They got a feel for what it is like to read their own stories to an audience and also how to express and connect with an audience while reading their stories. I hope that Writers on the Road Series will keep going and that other future writers and college students get to experience this event for years to come. It is a great way to see how the writers come up with their stories and also a great way for students who are in college and aspiring to be writers themselves, a chance to ask questions. It is definitely a learning experience from both ends, and who knows maybe one of those four students will become famous one day.

Word Count 604

Reflection Nov. 13

    My boyfriend, Ben, and I are helping his Aunt Amy and Uncle Scott, move to a new house this week. We have been helping them move for about a week now. I can not believe how long it has taken. In the middle of the week she got so frustrated with moving that she just started throwing away stuff. Her attic was filled with fifteen years of stuff, stuff that she had forgotten about and stuff that she did not even know why she was saving. It has been a nightmare moving, I am in such shock about how men think the right way to move is. Us girls have been wiping stuff off and organizing things as we put them in boxes. And yesterday after Ben and Uncle Scott had been at the house moving things all day. Aunt Amy and I came to the old house to find stuff thrown unto the trailer, stuff that had not been wiped off yet and stuff that was halfway packed. We could not believe their idea of how to move was. I could not help but to laugh because Aunt Amy yelled at Ben and her husband like they children. It was so funny. After she calmed down me and Ben had to leave to go to a literary event for my English class. It was a lot of fun and got our minds off of helping his Aunt and Uncle, move. But, I will talk about that event in another blog. After the event we went back over to help them move. When we got back all that was left to move was the big like, furniture, refrigerator, and washer and dryer. Finally, we got everything over to the new house, all that is left there is the huge fish tank. Now all that is left to do is organize the new house and decorate it. This is basically the girls' part. We have started to organize things and hopefully by the end of this week or the beginning of this week we will finally have the stuff unpacked and them settled into their new house.

Word count 356

Reflection Nov. 3

    The fall is so exciting and wonderful. I love the fall; because it is so pretty and so many holidays are coming that bring friends and families together. The leaves are changing and falling off the threes and we just had Halloween which was a night that I will never forget. People are starting to buy things at the grocery stores to prepare for their Thanksgiving dinner, which is in two weeks. My store was pretty busy this last weekend, it went by so fast. The new people could not believe how busy it was and I told them that it was only going to get busier and they should get use to it. It is getting colder and colder outside as the days pass. Right now it the weather is changing to winter, it is cold in the mornings, nice during the day, and then cold at night again. The only thing that is bad about the weather changing is the fact that people become sick more often, because their bodies are trying to get use to the cold weather. Also, it is becoming darker at night, which is probably the only thing that I do not like about the fall. Families are coming in town for the holidays. People tend to give more donations during the holiday seasons, like donating food to the food bank and donating money to people in need. The fall makes me so happy because, I get excited to see my friends that are away at college come home for winter break and I get to see my aunts, uncles, and cousins that I have not seen in a few months. The fall is definitely one of my favorite seasons, but it is about to come to an end, because winter is near. But after winter it will be spring time, which is my other favorite season.

Word count 313

Answers to Questions for Sonny’s Blues & A Worn Path

 

Answers for "Sonny's Blues":

1. "Sonny's Blues," is told from Sonny's brother's point of view. Sonny's brother does not fully understand why Sonny became a heroin addict and why Sonny chooses the things he does. This affects the story, because Sonny's brother finally understands Sonny and his life and what he has been through.
   
2. The older brother's profession is an algebra teacher. The fact that he is a teacher suggests that his personality is caring and helpful. He wants to help Sonny beat his problem and addiction.
   
3. The story would be changed if it were told by Sonny; by we would know more about his experience and how he felt. Also, Sonny's point of view would be a lot darker and deeper. Since, Sonny was under the influence in part of the story, he would be considered as an unreliable narrator.
   
4. He decided to write Sonny when his little girl, Gracie, died from polio.
   
5. The narrator's mother asked him to look out for Sonny and watch him. He tries to keep his promise to her by making Sonny stay with Isabel and her family while he is away. But, Sonny ends up dropping out of school and joins the navy. When they got back the older brother tried to help Sonny, but all they did was fight and finally he gave up on Sonny. Then he tries to help Sonny again, by letting him stay at his house after he got clean.
   
6. The names of the major characters affect the story, by showing that they were close. The names of these major characters were Mama, Daddy, and Sonny, relates to the fact that everyone has a family, which connects the story to the audience. The fact that the older brother was not named puts the reader themselves in the story.
   
7. The statement "Now these are Sonny's blues," shows that he is finally ready to let go and be free of his addiction to heroin, his suffering. Sonny made his music his own by telling his story through music. Sonny's blues makes people become free of all their grief and sufferings in life.
   

Answers for "A Worn Path":

1. The narrator is a non participant who is impartial omniscience. The narrator is not a character in the story, therefore he or she is a non participant, and he or she is impartial omniscience because he or she describes and presents the thoughts and actions of Phoenix Jackson.
   
2. The significance of the old woman being named Phoenix Jackson is that she may have once been a slave and never learned to read or write, also she probably did not know her real name, therefore she was named after cities Phoenix and Jackson.
   
3. This technique contributes to the stories effect, because Phoenix is very old and is starting to forget things. In some ways she may not be able to tell reality from her dreams.
   
4. Phoenix is treated with kindness by the white people she meets, they understand she is old and needs a little help doing things. The story takes place in the south at the end of the depression.
   
5. She admires that he is not scared of anybody. This attitude tells us that she is a brave woman and that she admires people who are not afraid of anything.
   

This statement shows reveals that she may be going through a hallucination again. It seems as if she is thinking of something else and her mind was in a different place.

Memphis Matters outside Event

    Memphis Matters at Theater South was a very interesting and exciting event. Memphis Matters is about real issues concerning Memphis citizens and their lives. This event was not elaborate and there was not a lot of money put into props and staging. The setting was simple and showed that they did not need to be elaborate to be able to express their points. I enjoyed the fact that the audience seating was small because, it brought a sense of closeness between the audience and the actors. Since this was such a close setting, we got to know about the audience members and the actors and their stories. These stories ranged from funny to serious, from happy to angry, and from loosing love to finding love. Also, the type of style and arrangement of the event was casual and free, and anything could happen. The fact that the actors used the style of improvisation was very important and meant a lot to the point they were trying to get across with Memphis Matters.

I have never been to an event quite like this one; therefore the style of improvisation was very new to me. There was no script, no structure, and no guidelines, which showed that anything could be a story. Through improvisation audience members got to tell the actors an issue or story that they had within his or her life. Then the actors would act out these different stories and issues that people had. The theme of Memphis Matters is very important because, it shows that what is happening to people here and different places also affects Memphis as well. I am sure this event can be liberating for some people. It can be liberating, because the audience members get to see his or her issue played out on stage and also they see that other people believe that their issues and stories do matter. And that these issues and stories do not just affect certain people, they affect everyone around them. Also, it shows that anyone's story can be turn into a play of some kind. Basically, life is one big show that we are waiting to be played out. Like a story we are waiting in suspense to see what happens next in our lives.

Memphis Matters is a great event and I hope that people keep supporting it. It is a great experience for all people. People do not even have to love literature or plays, to be able to enjoy this event. It opens people's minds and ideas about stories and about how their own stories matter. This idea that anyone's story matters and that it affects everyone, is very interesting and inventive idea. I never would have thought that I would be touched by people's stories and lives that I did not even know, but that is what makes this event interesting. It is definitely worth the experience of learning how everyone matters. I would advise everyone to go to Memphis Matters, but only if they are willing to open their minds and see how everyone's stories affect them and their lives.

Word Count 518

Reflection Nov. 1

    I am reflecting today on Halloween. Last week, I wrote a blog about my plans for Halloween and what I was going to be for Halloween. Like, I said last week I was going to a Halloween party and my costume was a gangster. I went to work at eight o'clock and got off at four o'clock. All day we gave candy to the little boys and girls who came into the store. The kids were all adorable, most of them were wearing their costumes and they were all excited to tell me what they were going to be and what they were doing for Halloween. When I got off work, I went straight home to get ready. There were so many people at the party. I could not believe all the different type of costumes that people wore, no one was dressed a like. The costumes ranged from cute and sweet to scary and strange. The scariest one, I thought was the guy who dressed up as Hell Raiser, with all the needles sticking in his head. The funniest ones were these to guys who dressed up like their girlfriends; they even wore dresses and heels. But, there were a lot of really good ones and it was awesome that everyone actually dressed up and got into the Halloween spirit. A lot of good memories were made that night and I will never forget them. It was a great party and I am so glad that I went.

Word Count 249

Reflection Oct. 29

My reflection today is about one of my outside events. I chose to go see Alice Randall, the author of the book "Rebel Yell," last Thursday at Davis-Kidd bookstore. The event on my English class's blog said that it was supposed to be at seven o'clock. I thought I was early when I got there, because I arrived at 6:15, but when I went in I realized that the author was already speaking. I noticed that the sign said that the event started at six o'clock. Even though I was late I still got to see the author speak for about fifteen minutes. It was a great experience, even though I can not use it for one of my literary events because I only saw the author speak for a few minutes. There were a lot of people there to see Alice Randall and also another author as well. I thought that the setting was very relaxed and casual, since the author was speaking in the middle of the bookstore. I thought that the authors should have spoke at separate times rather than at the same time, so that the people could get a chance to see both of them speak without having to go back and forth. I would like to go to another reading, not just because it would count as an event, but because I can fully experience what it is like to see an author read and speak about his or her book. I asked the cashier when they would have another author read, but he did not have the list for November yet. I plan on going back up there next week to see if they have the schedule out. Also, I hope the next reading I go to will last longer than thirty minutes, but I do understand that these authors are very busy people. But, I hope the next author I see will talk for at least an hour. Overall, I thought it was an enjoyable and nice experience and I especially liked it, because it was very relaxed and casual. I would definitely go to another reading at Davis-Kidd Bookstore.

Word Count 358