Stages of Interpretation

Coming back from the break was very hard. I enjoyed my thanksgiving break very much. In class on Thursday before we left for break we watch this animation video. In this post I am going to explain the stages of Interpretation and how it related the animation video we watched. The three stages you have to keep in mind are 1. What does the text actually say, 2. What does it mean, 3. criticize (Critical thinking) what does it matter. My first thought about the seven minute video we watch, I thought that a lot of people died and only a couple survived. At the beginning it made it seem like they were on a ship and they are heading off to an Island away from everyone.
To answer number one of three stages I think that this video was saying that he was on a ship escaping from society. There was a disaster that happen and trying to escape and find a deserted land to live in. To answer number two, I think this video can mean it's an old memory that passed a while ago and now he's grown old and going crazy. It also can mean he is a crazy man and just makes up stories. Its really hard to know exactly what is going on in his head. To answer number three, I think that overall it doesn't really matter because he suffers from Dementia and all his stories are made up.
At the end of the video before he pulls the gun on himself, it goes back to reality and shows that he's in a nursing home. What he thought was gun was really a door handle.
William Shakespeare had a really good quote that captured my attention as soon as it came up. It says "Its a tale told by an idiot, full of sounds and furry signifying nothing". Relating this the video, this made up story is told by an idiot. It is a very adventurous story but overall it doesn't mean anything. When I say it doesn't mean anything I mean that it is a made up story so it doesn't matter.   
I really enjoyed watching this video in class. I enjoyed trying to figure out the meaning of everything. After watching the video a couple times, you begin to notice more things that you haven't noticed before. 

A Temple of The Holy Gohst!!

Reading "A temple of the holy gosh" was kind of weird. There were times in the story where I got lost. I tried my hardest to figure out was going on. The 12 year old girl was the main Character in this story. They really didn't mention her name but they mentioned a lot of things about her. Right off the bat she came across as a mean girl. As the story progressed I found out that she was a mean girl and she says rude things to other people. The 12 year old girl and two cousin Susan and Joanne who decided to come stay with her for a long weekend. Her two cousins basically laughed at everything and at times can get real annoying. The 12 year old Catholic girl took religion very seriously. Her cousins really did not care much about anything but boys. They all decided to go to there fair not knowing what to expect. One of the tents had a person that was a man and a woman. To the 12 year old girl that was very shocking to her. The people there at the tent were called "Freaks". The lilttle girl confuses the freaks with a religous service. At the end of the story both the little girl and her cousins learned something, the little girl doesn't want to be mean anymore. She understand that the freaks will be freaks because God has made them that way. 

I think that she is beginning  to realize that her body and her curiosity about different things will change. In this story Religion is a symbol that is very important to this family. The temple can aslo be a special and important symbol in this story. The Temple car represent the body or a holy place. Overall this story was good, I can not wait for class tomorrow so we can discuss it.

The (movie) boys next door.

Today I am deciding to to go with option 3 and watch the movie "The boys next door". I was really disappointed I didn't get to go see the play. That is why I was really excited when I got the option to watch the movie. Watching the movie gives me a different perspective as to reading the book. Arnold is a person who has a lot on his mind. There are times Arnold cant stop talking.  Lucien is this black guy who is a perfectionist. Everything has to be in order, specially his agricultural books. It's weird because when I read the book my favorite character was Jack, but now that I am watching the movie Lucien just makes me smile. The things that he says just makes me laugh. I might of said this on the old blog but before reading and hearing about this play I thought they were different. There are different in a way of being mentally challenged but they are normal and funny people just like us. My favorite scene is when Lucien is talking about the clip on tie and how much he loves his clip on tie. At the end of it, Lucien asked jack if he can tie the tie for him lol. Things like that just make laugh out loud. Norman crush for Shiela is on going through out the movie. His dream finally came true when he dance with Shiela and couldn't get the smile off his face. So watching the movie is way better then reading the book. It's the same story and plot but something about the expressions of the actors face just makes each and every character. Jack is a man with a big heart. Even through some times he might get a bit frustrated and lose his temper, his love for those guys are bigger than ever. Jack feels like the guys need him to survive in this world. It is hurting and and his wife. It was hard for Jack separating with the guys but it is one of those things he had to do.

The Boys Next Door

Really make you appreciate the mentally challenge

(Edward Barbanell) Actor with down syndrome acting since 2000

Reading The Boys Next Door was truly a huge impact on my life. Some of the main characters in this play are Jack, Arnold, Lucien, Norman, Barry, Sheila, and Mr. Klemper. Out of all the characters in this play Jack was my favorite character. Jack is a social worker and he basically took care of the mentally challenged men. Jack was sweet, caring, and always willing to help. At times I feel like Jack gets overwhelmed taking care of these men, because it took over his personal life.  I can mostly relate this character because I had to take care of my Grandmother in high school. My Grandma is an amazing woman who did a lot for her kids. At the of 65 my grandma was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. For those who doesn't know what that is, it's a general term for memory loss and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Symptoms usually develop slowly and get worse over time, becoming severe enough to interfere with daily tasks. My mom was not comfortable in putting her in a nursing home, so we took turns taking care of her. This might be a little different then being mentally challenged but you have to take care of her the same as you would with a challenged person. If my grandma wasn't watched 24/7, She would exit the house in the middle of the night or forget where she's at. I love my grandma but there are times when I get so overwhelmed. I think that is the same feeling that Jack felt in this story. The Alzheimer's has gotten worst and my grandma now doesn't remember me. She is now in the nursing home where there's people to take good care of her. Being mentally challenged or having some kind of brain dis function is hard thing, But if you really pay attention to their faces they are not sad. I trained myself to not feel sad for them but treat them like a normal human being. Because that is what they are.

Mary Oliver (Messenger)

Reading Mary Oliver's poems were really great. I enjoyed the activity we did outside. My favorite poem has to be the messenger. The messenger caught my attention because it talks about loving the world. There are times in my life I totally forget what is around me. I am standing on solid ground, the world is slowly turning, there are different creatures living around me. All this God has created and I show no interest in it at all.  My favorite lines in this poem are "My work is loving the world, here the sunflowers, there the humming bird equal seekers of sweetness, here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums, here the calm deep in the speckled sand". I mostly enjoyed how in depth she was with all her lines. What exactly does My work is loving the world mean? Does it mean by her work she need to love the world?
I think by that sentence she is trying to say that her purpose is to love the world. By that I mean for her to admire the wonderful things that God has created. 
"Am I no longer young, and still not half-perfect? Let me keep my mind on what matters, which is my work".  I underlined this sentence as I was reading through this poem. I think this sentence relate to me in a way. Now that I am old enough to realize the awesome things God put around me, I will pay more attention to nature and his creation. For Mary Oliver, the only thing that matters to her is her work, which is loving the world.
I enjoyed reading the different poems by Mary Oliver. They Opened my eyes to new things. Going outside and sitting in the peace and reading the poems was very relaxing.  I wish we can do more field trips like this more often.

Lake Bonnie Park (NATURE)

Today I decided to go to lake Bonnie park for the assignment that was given to us by Mr. Corrigan. Going out there I really didn't know what to expect or what to write about. I was just hoping that nature would take its course so I can get some ideas on what to write about.

As I enter the park and got out of my car, I took a big breath of air just so I can come one with nature. As I sat the for a little bit I can hear the sound of children having laughing and having a blast.  It reminded me of the good ole days where all I did was play outside till the sun went down. As I walked out on the board walk I saw a bunny jump into a big bush as if I was chasing it. I can also hear the different sounds of bugs and insects running away as i go further down the board walk. As weird as this sound, I can relate to them. If there was some kind of army that was bigger and stronger than me, I would sense some danger as well. I am now stepping into their territory so they have the rights to feel threatened. Sitting there on the board walk I heard many bird sounds that they made to each other. They all had different sounds and tones to their call. It made me wonder how cool it wold be to understand what they are saying.
Every where I looked I saw the color green. God has put amazing things around us that I took for granted. Looking over the water I see tall trees, the top of the plant,  the birds soaring through the air and the gnats that are flying around my head I'm trying to sit there in peace. By the end of my 45 minutes they were real annoying by the way. The words that are best put to God's creating are PEACE, LOVE, CALM and HAPPINESS. Even though I hate reading and writing about nature I enjoyed myself watching God's beautiful creation.