other irrelevancy about your's truly..take notes if you will
Monday, December 06, 2004
“Now you just dig them in front. They have worries, they’re counting the miles, they’re thinking about where to sleep tonight, how much money for gas, the weather, how they’ll get there-and all the time they’ll get there anyway, you see. But they need to worry and betray time with urgencies false and otherwise, purely anxious and whiny, their souls really won’t be at peace unless they can latch on to an established and proven worry and having once found it they assume facial expressions to fit and go with it, which is, you see, unhappiness, and all the time it all flies by them and they know it and that too worries them no end.” (Kerouac 212 On the Road)
“He would have had to roam the entire United States and look in every garbage pail from coast to coast before he found me embryonically convoluted among the rubbishes of my life, his life, and the life of everybody concerned and not concerned. What would I have said to him from my rubbish womb? ‘Don’t bother me, man, I’m happy where I am.”
(Kerouac 250 On the Road)
“The hidden and awful Wisdom which apportions the destinies of mankind is pleased so to humiliate and cast down the tender, good, and wise; and to set up the selfish, the foolish, or the wicked. Oh be humble, my brother, in your prosperity! Be gentle with those who are less lucky; if not more deserving. Think, what right have you to be scornful, whose virtue is a deficiency of temptation, whose success maybe a chance, whose rank may be an ancestors accident, whose prosperity is very likely a satire.” (William Thackeray 594 Vanity Fair)
“Which I wonder brother reader, is the better lot, to die prosperous and famous, or poor and disappointed? To have and be forced to yield, or to sink out of life having played and lost the game?” (William Thackeray, Vanity Fair)
“I walk around the school hallways and look at the people. I look at the teachers and wonder why they’re here, I f they like their jobs or us. And I wonder how smart they were when they were fifteen. Not in a mean way. In a curious way. It’s like looking at all the students and wondering who’s had their heart broken that day and how they are able to cope with having three quizzes and a book report on top of that” (Steven Chbotsky 142 Perks of Being a Wallflower)
“Such satisfaction as she felt came only from the discovery that having renounced everything that made like happy, easy, splendid, individual, there remained a hard reality, unimpaired by one’s personal adventures, remote as the stars, unquenchable as they are.” (Virginia Woolf, Night and Day)
“ No matter, she still wasn’t happy, she never had been. What caused this inadequacy in her life? Why did everything she leaned on instantaneously decay? Oh if somewhere there were a being, strong and handsome, a valiant heart, passionate and sensitive at once, a poet’s spirit in an angels form, a lyre with strings of steel sounding sweet sad epithalamiums to the heavens. Then why should she not find that being? Vain dream! There was nothing that was worth going that far to get, all was lies! Every smile concealed a yawn of boredom, every joy a misery. Every pleasure brought its surfeit; and the loveliest kisses only left upon your lips a baffled longing for a more intense delight.” (Gustave Flaubert 295 Madame Bovary)
“ Art is all at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol do so at their peril. It is the spectator and not life, that art really mirrors.” (Oscar Wilde)
“His head thrown back, he felt the pull of his throat muscles and he wondered whether the peculiar solemnity of looking at the sky comes, not from what one contemplates, but from that uplift of one’s head.” (Ayn Rand 553 The Fountainhead)
“What was his aim in his life? Greatness- in other peoples eyes. Fame, admiration, envy- all that which comes from others. Others dictated his convictions, which he did not hold, but he was satisfied that others believed he held them. Others were his motive power and his prime concern. He didn’t want to be great, but to be thought great. He didn’t want to build, but be admired as a builder. He borrowed form others in order to make an impression on others. There’s your actual selflessness. It’s his ego he’s betrayed and given up. But everyone calls him selfish.” (Ayn Rand 605 The Fountainhead)
Ta-da essays!...and these arent even all of them, only a smidgin..
Common app.- describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence.
I consider my self an artist and hold an appreciation for art more than the average person, so when you ask me to talk about a work of art that has influenced me, I am aghast at the multitude of options that lay before me to talk about. But there is only one real option for me, a work of art in more ways than one, the 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air. The Bel Air, I believe, is the pinnacle of car design. It holds all that is good and perfect in the era of the 1950s in the mere curve of its tail fins. This car, other than being the beautiful work of art that it is, has influenced me more than other "classic" cars, by being my first car. Yes, you heard it; this classic beauty was mine to drive, to wash, to appreciate, and to repair when broken. Though I am going to have to sell it soon for a more "reliable, sensible" car for college, this car has taught me so many lessons up to this point and has given me so many unique experiences along the way I feel that though the happenings may have been rocky and trying, at times, I would not give it up for the world.
My Dad, back in August of 2000, gave me the go ahead that if I could find a car for under 2000 dollars we would think about getting it. That was a very big if, and little did he know that I would select a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air for sale 700 miles away in Virginia Beach as "the" car. But the price was right, and it was a deal, so off we went and 11 hours later I met the car that would soon become one of the favorite hobbies of me and my dad. This car is my pride and joy. However my "pride and joy," before it could travel to school, would have to undergo a complete rewiring, a reworking of the radiator, new seatbelts, a patch in the gas tank, new tires, a new speedometer and countless other worries. Little did I know that this car would turn the ultimate "girly girl" into a greasy car mechanic. My dad and I have bonded over this car. We work on it on the weekends, me learning the ins and outs of an engine, and my Dad learning just how hopeless it is trying to convince a girl that turquoise seatbelts will match a light blue interior. My car has given me new freedom-freedom to make late night runs for my mom to the grocery store, freedom to pick up my little sister from girl scouts, and freedom to understand the burden of paying for gas (especially for a car that gets 11 miles to the gallon). Nevertheless, I love this car. With the upkeep that comes with owning a 46-year-old car, I have learned responsibility, infinite patience, and the true meaning of the age-old saying, "if at first you don't succeed try, try again," (and if that doesn't work call a garage).
Sewanee- if there were one picture left on your last roll of film, what would you photograph and why?
As I often find, the last picture on your roll of film never turns out, so usually I take a picture of the ceiling, or my shoes last, but for the sake of this essay, the picture I would take for my last one would have to be of something or someplace meaningful. Although my first instinct would be to take pictures of my friends, I already have albums full of those, and I don't need a picture to remind me of the people I love the most, those pictures are already stored in my heart. Photographs are best when they are of something interesting, and touching. The best ones bring a smile to your face and instantly send you back to the moment. For my last photo I would take a picture of graduation day and the mortarboards soaring up into the air. That one simple image, though it has yet to happen, would bring so many emotions to me. With that one motion, all the years of familiarity in high school are gone, friends are lost, or kept, and everyone moves into the unknown future. Memories of late night study sessions, wacky school projects, cafeteria food fights, and early morning tests flash by. That one small 4 by 6 colored piece of paper causes you to instantly reminisce over those many experiences in high school, some triumphant, some regrettable, some making you just shake your head at how young you were, and now, now what? For me, one glance at that picture in the parking lot outside the photo store causes everything from the apprehensive feeling in the pit of my stomach about the first day of school four years ago, to the proud feeling of accomplishment when I get to walk across the stage knowing that four years of toil and stress have culminated into the piece of paper I hold in my hand. This picture holds in it so many different things for different people, it maybe be a happy remembrance or perhaps a sad one, but for me my high school years will always be fond ones. As you place the photo back in the stack with the others so many memories quickly flash by, and so many more memories are going to be made in the future that awaits after that one moment of happy abandon when everyone throws their caps into the air.
Common app.-evaluate a significant experience, achievement, risk you have taken, or ethical dilemma you have faced and its impact on you.
At the age of thirteen I made a decision that undoubtedly changed the rest of my life. I arrived at a crossroads, I had to make the choice of whether to stay at my zoned middle school, with my friends I'd known since kindergarten and an easy curriculum, or venture off into the unknown, going to an academic magnet school across town, knowing no one, and knowing nothing of the academic rigors to come. I chose the harder path, and to this day I am so very glad that I chose to go to Martin Luther King. The school and the things I have experienced while there have changed me as a person in innumerable ways.
Though the first few weeks were frightening, I survived, and grew to love it .At M.L. King I made friends from all backgrounds and walks of life. I learned about new cultures, different lifestyles, and I learned to be very open minded, not judging a person by their looks but by how they actually are. With the small student population I feel that I came to know every single classmate personally, and learned things from each of them. At MLK the students have so much freedom, diversity, and are more unique than at any other high school. I've made friends from all over Nashville, going to the most interesting places I would never have seen if I had not ventured out of my neighborhood and into the world. I've acquired new experiences, and a wider view of life from these friends, and their love and support will help me later on in my life.
My education while at MLK has been exceptional. I have always been challenged, and there is no such thing as an "easy" course. I had to take courses that I would not have chosen otherwise and because of this I found I actually enjoyed biology, and learned that geometry might actually be interesting. My teachers were all very dedicated, and strove to teach me that mediocre work would not be accepted, and I should always do my best.
I never knew that the one choice I made in sixth grade would have such a vast impact upon the person I am today. My education at Martin Luther King has proved invaluable to me; not only from a learning standpoint but also from the people I met there, and the things they taught me along the way. I have learned to cope with new pressures, stretch my brain farther than ever thought possible and learn life lessons that I can take with me once my days at MLK are over and hopefully impart them to others in the future.
(This one I wrote and never used, since I got off topic, and the end result, while memorable, was totally un-usable...enjoy)
Nashville has so many great places; the greatest though is Centennial Park. As a student at MLK, which is just a mile away, I have found that most of my fond memories, and experiences reside at that park. Although its main attraction is the Parthenon, where the giant Athena always amazes me, the park has so many other great places. On any given day you can find MLK students, playing ultimate Frisbee on the big lawn, or waiting at the duck pond to go across the street for ice-skating, and meanwhile chasing the frazzled ducks around. I've been to birthday parties at the park with a homeless man as a guest, been drive-by water ballooned, and ended my first date at the art museum there. At the park I've practiced lines of Julius Caesar in the Amphitheater, getting a small taste of Shakespeare, standing on that sunny stage on a fall afternoon, dressed in a toga. I've climbed trees to get leaves for biology class, and climbed monuments to get rubbings for history class. My friends took me for spins in their first cars at the park, and proudly showed off their new drivers licenses. For prom, we met in the Sunken Gardens there and took pictures, feeling truly grown up for the first time, in fancy dresses, awaiting a night of magical expectations. At the park I've met new people, made life long friendships, and learned lessons about myself, and others. Whenever I go to the park it seems like my inner child runs free, at least until I tire of feeding ducks, and settle into a swing for some quiet thinking.
Okayokay, I've been seriously neglecting this second installation of my blog…maybe I did take on more, than I had time for. But now...it being the holiday season I have tons of time…YAY...so here's another superfluous addition:
A long long time ago I began a noticing words, okay not just any word, but words that are fun to say, mean funny things, or make you smile whenever you hear them, so while sitting in APUS listening to one of rtbizzle's many "informative" lectures I made a list, and I thought I'd share that list with the rest of the world, maybe occasionally adding on to it, because there are always new words that have the funny little pizzazz that make them great words…
Holy moly
Mollusks
Anemone
sassafrass
actually
...you know what i have a lot more...but they're on a list in my locker at school...so right now i have a case of the lazies and will probably add them later...or not add them...
okay.. heres random stuff about me you should know, or may already know...
-i have puttputt rage...what is that exactly..well its when a person does not have the patience to putt, and hits the ball so hard it flys 3 courses over
-i am semi-dyslexic...so never EVER ask me for directions because I will be sure to tell you all the lefts and rights backwards...
-I have hermit-ish tendancies which mean i often dont go to things, simply cause..."i dont feel like it"
-all that crap in english that hurts your brain, and is hard to understand...I love..i revel in it..give me jane Austen novels, or A clockwork Orange anyday over Fences.
-the previous fact is another reason as to my exorbitantly large vocab, which i often use, without thinking about and get funny looks from people.
-i looooooove banana milk shakes
-i talk in my sleep basically all the time...many people have witnessed it, and a few have even witnessed me walking around...thank god i never reveal my innermost secrets though..only gibberish
-i find it weird that i share so many interests with boys, yet have no desire what so ever to be a boy...i enjoy the skirts, gossip, and girlishness...and equally enjoy the cars, baseball, and classic rock.
-i eat an insane amount of junk food..and probably should cut down a little...but hey food is meant to be enjoyed, not picked apart...
you know what's really great…brand new crayons..yeah..All pointy, and sharp, not yet worn, and dirty. The crayons still hold so much hope, unmarred by the first messy childhood scribble. Crayons hold so many expectations, of drawings, of visions, hopes, dreams, however after the first stroke, the perfect vision is lost, only to be replaced with a mediocre rendition of true life. The smell of crayons, the waxy feel, and peeling paper, the excitement still looms under the surface, what to draw/ what to draw?, whether it be giant rainbows, or houses with smoking chimneys and tulips, the crayon has them all stored up ready to be released in the swift stroke of a brand new crayon… that my friends is why brand new crayons are really great.
"slow down everyone you're moving too fast…" inaudible melodies- jack johnson
"are you the now or the never kind?" here's to the night- eve 6
"here's to the nights we felt alive…put your name on the line along with place and time"
"there are many things I would like to say to you but I don't know how." Wonderwall –oasis
"minutes run into hours hours run into days and you're still waiting for someone who never ever came" Fafa- guster
"Im tired of being along, so hurry up and get here" –Love song for no one
"its up to me if I decided to be what I think is right" _sha sha- Ben Kweller
"fact is only what you believe, and fact and fiction work as a team"- it's all understood- jack Johnson
"being grown up isn't half as fun as growing up, these are the best days of our lives, the only thing that matters is following your heart and eventually you'll get it right" In this Diary- the ataris
"when did your eyes begin to look fake, I hope you're as happy as you're pretending" Screaming Infidelities-Dashboard Confessionals
"some say more with their hands" Wasted and Ready- Ben Kweller
"well I'm an energetic apathetic version of another person, check out my outsides there ain't nothing in here" Posters- Jack Johnson
"lemme tell ya what its like being male, middle class, and white, it’s a bitch if you don't believe" Rockin the Suburbs- Ben Folds
"I got shit running though my brain, so intense and I can't explain" Rockin the Suburbs- Ben Folds
I was trying to write an essay, and really got off subject, and somehow onto the subject of how great Centennial park is, I mean think…so many things have happened there:
-8th grade "educational" field trip, where we proceeded to fight over swings, play Frisbee, climb the monuments to make rubbings, Craig gets in trouble for climbing trees, Brian M. gets in trouble for skateboarding.
-Maira's birthday, we smash cupcakes on David's car, we have a giant water fight, Femi almost gives me a concussion from a water balloon, and everyone goes to the fair after
-We hang out there for Renee's birthday, Craig brings his pimp car, we try to fit people into all the trunks, we end up thrift shopping, and creeped out in this one scary store with gigantic Kiss statue in the entrance.
-Summer time, we meet and all the girls try to fill water balloons in the bathroom, and just succeed in getting the floor, and each other very wet. We then drive by water balloon all the guys who were too lazy to fill waterballoons.
-We go to work on our Julius Caesar project for treherne, in the amphitheater, and end up video taping it in front of the library downtown, because they wouldn't let us in the library with a mop…I mean c'mon its just a mop.
-Scott brings the video camera, and we tape several boring hours of us playing on the playground, and goofing off, we are all "illegally" cramming way too many people in the cars, and we end the night at the Rose Pepper, where Renee steals tons of matches, and lights them all
-Kari and Katie's birthday, we go across the street and ice skate, carol falls a bunch, we take goofy pictures, and afterwards we see Mr. Rosa going in to swim..eww.
-There are several other random meetings by the duck pond, where we hang out and then drive around Nashville, trying to decide what to do, and usually end up in a coffee shop arguing about where to go next, one time though we end up in office max?, and then almost get kicked out for racing office chairs up and down the aisles.
-Prom, we meet in the sunken gardens, of course everyone is late, but Katie r. is the latest, we take tons of pictures, hug everyone a million times, and finally make it to the Sunset grill.
-After the honor society luncheon, not wanting to go back to school early, we stop by the park, and chase ducks in heels, and freeze to death.
Semi interesting happenings since school started:
-Mykael almost decapitates Mr., Pilling after running down the hall with a parachute on his back.
-Mr. Pilling asks when his picture is going to be on "sexy old guy" of the week poster…ewww, never ever!
-Ms. Hunter briefly refers to being married…the entire classes reaction…" wtf YOU'RE MARRIED?"
-The 20,000$ hybrid car, we saw, and 15 people piled in, pressed all the buttons, and cranked the stereo, meanwhile the poor car salesman, is trying to give a speech over the thumps of 50cent.
-Everyone trying to do the announcements in the afternoon…no one ever let Nancy do it again!
-Jay yelling "what the hell" on the announcements during a particularly loud thunder during a storm…I don't think many people heard it though.
-Mr. Slaton teaching art…or attempting to, and proceeds to pick on Josh Moffitt, Lee, and Chris for no reason whatsoever
-the students vs. the administration vs. Ms. Kent
-Stephen Howse sets off several peoples car alarms with his huge freakin car stereo
