Category: fiction

poetry rambling

poofypuffyLeave a comment

In English, we have a “March Madness” poetry bracket. I like that we are reading poetry instead of writing essays. Writing essays is fine too, but reading poetry is more enjoyable. After reading so many poems in one sitting, I’ve found a greater appreciation for poetry, because the range of poetry styles and topics is so diverse. I submitted “The Rose Family” by Robert Frost because I thought it was really cute. Another poem I really like is “My November Guest” by Robert Frost, even though I didn’t like it at first because it seemed like any other poem. Once I found an analysis of the meaning, however, I felt more appreciation for it. However, there were some other poems I also really liked. I liked reading “This is Just To Say”  by William Carlos Williams, although I’m not sure how exactly poems like that qualify as poems. I don’t like descriptive poems about landscapes and things, because they feel so dry and meaningless. I like the poems that don’t make any sense because they seem more profound that way. For example, I have no idea what “They Shut Me Up in Prose” by Emily Dickinson means, but it is really enjoyable to read, and I bet it will be even better when I understand it. Also, “Masks” by Shel Silverstein is really cute and it has a good message behind it. Shel Silverstein writes a lot of nonsensical, funny poems, but there are some really good, more heartfelt poems buried among the fun ones. Even some of his silly poems, like “The Generals,” potentially have a more serious message behind them. I find it really impressive how authors of poetry and other writing have such a capacity for evoking emotion and experiences.

Picture Credit: Department of English

A short story about waiting for the bus

poofypuffyLeave a comment

Once upon a time, there was a man named Bill. He sat at the bus stop, and it was raining. He held of bouquet. It was a bouquet of roses. They were very pretty at one point, but he had been sitting and waiting at the bus stop for a while, and they were wilting. It was wet and cold outside, but he knew that it would be better when he got on the bus. He wore a dress shirt and pants that were not warm enough to shield him from the cold, wet, weather. Bill shivered. 

He stared out at the supermarket across the street. It would be dry and warm in the supermarket, but he was waiting for the bus. 

Bill looked out at the damp scenery, doing and thinking nothing. He was simply waiting in a cold, trance-like stupor. 

A woman walked along the sidewalk, holding an umbrella. She was walking her dog, and the dog was wearing a little raincoat. As she approached the bus stop, she could see a man sitting on the bench. She wondered if he was waiting for the bus, and she wondered if he knew that the bus had been decommissioned earlier that month. The woman hesitated. Should she tell him that the bus would not come? He looked quite still and content, waiting, and she did not want to intrude. And perhaps the bus was back in order. She was afraid to interrupt his day and afraid to be wrong, so she walked past the bus stop and said nothing.

Bill waited for the bus, but the bus never came. It continued to rain for years, and for years, the bus never came. Bill sat a the bus stop, waiting for the bus. Every year that passed watered the seedling of despair that Bill nurtured in him. His bouquet of roses died, and his clothes faded. With this despair, Bill clung to the hope that the bus was almost here and that when the bus came, it would restore the delicate life in his bouquet and the robust color of his clothes, and everything would be right again. Sometimes he thought he heard the hiss of an engine or the grumble of the wheels, but it was an illusion brought on by the rain.

Eventually, Bill grew old and died at the bus stop, waiting in the rain. 

Photo by Jana Shnipelson

would you rather ?

progstenLeave a comment

over the years i have come up with quite a few would you rather this is my favorite

Would you rather have control over all birds in the world or all insects?

some rules of this question

  1. you can control them from anywhere anytime and as many as you want at a time
  2. you can make them do whatever you want either by general commands like “attack them” or “Go get me a bag of chips from the nearest gas station”
  3. you could also control them like they were a drone or some sort of remote control thing like your guiding them with your mind
  4. all birds are included not just the flying ones example: ostrich and penguin
  5. for bugs, you get the Insecta class which includes things like bees, mosquitos, all flys, fleas, and many more
  6. A common misconception when asking this question is that things like spiders are included in the insects the answer is no.
    • Now the original question was to control all birds or all bugs however I changed it to insects because if we said all bugs then that might be considered part of the Arthropod which includes things like spiders which is close however it also has things like crabs and crawfish so i felt it was best to just use insects.

Some interesting facts for both sides

  1. the biomass(the total quantity or weight of organisms in a given area or volume) of birds is about .008 of all animals while insects is about 1/3 of all animals
  2. there are about 80 billion birds and roughly 10 quintillion insects
  3. the fastest insect is the dragonfly clocking in at ~33 mph the fastest bird is the
    The peregrine falcon at ~186 mph
  4. the biggest insect is the giant weta(I wouldn’t recommend googling) at about 3.9 inches while the biggest bird is the Common Ostrich at about 9 feet tall

For my decisions I choose to control the birds

please let me know what would you choose and why!

https://www.google.com/search?q=all+classes+of+arthropods&sca_esv=579068902&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS974US975&ei=q5dEZaC4G9rbkPIPspKGuAg&oq=all+classes+of+&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiD2FsbCBjbGFzc2VzIG9mICoCCAMyBRAAGIAEMgUQABiABDIFEAAYgAQyBRAAGIAEMgUQABiABDIFEAAYgAQyBRAAGIAEMgUQABiABDIFEAAYgAQyBRAAGIAESPcoUL0FWJIXcAJ4AZABAJgBhwGgAfEIqgEEMTMuMrgBAcgBAPgBAcICChAAGEcY1gQYsAPCAgoQLhiKBRiwAxhDwgIOEC4YigUYxwEY0QMYkQLCAgsQLhiABBjHARjRA8ICHRAuGIoFGMcBGNEDGJECGJcFGNwEGN4EGOAE2AEBwgIFEC4YgATCAggQLhiABBjUAsICCBAAGIoFGJECwgILEC4YgAQYxwEYrwHCAggQABiABBjJA8ICCBAAGIoFGJIDwgINEC4YgAQYxwEY0QMYCsICFBAuGIAEGJcFGNwEGN4EGOAE2AEBwgIaEC4YgAQYxwEY0QMYlwUY3AQY3gQY4ATYAQHiAwQYACBBiAYBkAYJugYGCAEQARgU&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#vhid=YZk9Ml0MTMJMZM&vssid=l

A Letter

urmom8beanLeave a comment

write a letter to your younger self.

Dear ___________,

i haven’t yet made it, but hopefully I will. School just started and its already been a lot but what else did I expect, a calm year ? No, unfortunately not but then again its only the beginning. My only hope is I make it into my dream college and can pay for it.

this is the typical things I would expect in a letter maybe more personal updates but i’m not going to write those here.

To be honest i’m sure my younger self would be a little disappointed but who knows. She would be so happy if I could get into college. maybe i should re-do my letter.

hey

I haven’t gotten into college and its a lot more stressful then i thought it would be. My advice start applying to scholarships as early as you can. You’re in some trouble but hopefully we’ll be able to pull ourselves out of this mess. There is one thing I should say to you,

I’m sorry, i’m so so so sorry.

anyways thats all 185 words later

8 Pigeon Clipart Images! - The Graphics Fairy
pc: https://thegraphicsfairy.com/carrier-pigeon-image-letter/

The best movies by genre

lizlovelaughLeave a comment

Here are my mini-Oscars

In general best movie ever: Scent of A woman. Already wrote an entire blog post about how great this movie is, but overall 10/10 across all categories- especially acting, plot, and screenwriting.

Soundtrack: for me, it’s a 3-way tie between Baby Driver, O Brother Where Art Thou, and 500 Days of Summer.

Action: John Wicks- super basic but true like for me it goes in order of chapters 1, 4, (3 and 2 tie). All the action is super satisfying to watch, but an underrated one would be Scarface

Horror: ok the scariest movie I’ve ever seen is the Lighthouse but it’s not really scary. It’s just really gross and made me the most uncomfortable- I really don’t like this movie.

Romance: to be honest I’ve only seen a ton of romcoms, but my favorite has to be Notting Hill, 10 Things I

hate About You, and My Best Friend’s Wedding.

Comedy: Superbad- it’s just hilarious I love Fogell and the Cops, haha.

Best “film bro” movie: The Pianist, French Dispatch.

Cinematography: The Grand Budapest Hotel.

PC: https://www.eastman.org/sites/default/files/styles/gallery_overlay/public/Scent%20of%20a%20Woman%202211-154_F.jpg.webp?itok=u9ZElJDe

A Perfect Summer Day

graceovsLeave a comment

There are only 7 more weeks of school until summer and I am so ready. This is what my perfect summer day looks like: I start off the morning reading in bed, then make myself a delectable smoothie bowl. I get ready – shower, pick out an outfit, brush my teeth, and put on some mascara and sunscreen. I work on my French course a little bit and do the NYT mini in the hammock outside. Before it gets too hot I might go on a bike ride in the meadow with Siya or Tomoki or them both. We make avocado toast and fresh lemonade for lunch.

PC: Me

Next, I drive to the beach, listening to Spotify’s Daily Drive (which mixes your favorite tracks with daily news and is my new favorite thing.) I meet up with friends here – let’s say Ula and Melia – and we sunbathe and swim and body-surf and laugh. We probably hit a thrift shop and pick up a burrito on the way back, before staying up all night together.

The World’s Best Mystery Author

graceovsLeave a comment

What a lot of people don’t know about me is that I am a nerd for murder mysteries. I love Agatha Christie. I love her mustache-twisting, balding, OCD detective, Hecule Poirot and his “little grey cells”. I must have read close to 30 of Christie’s books by now; starting from the age of 10, up until today, at age 16. And yet, I still can’t see the plot twist coming, or guess the motive, or identify the murderer. I’m impressed by anyone who can.

PC: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FqtvAhnXoCkYyPC?format=jpg&name=4096×4096

Coming from an Agatha Christie connoisseur, here are my recommendations:

Christie writes about a few different detectives. There’s Miss Marple, Tommy and Tuppence, and my personal favorite, Poirot. If you’re new to Agatha Christie or detective stories in general, you should start one of her most famous, either The Orient Express or Death on the Nile. From there, I would strongly recommend The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Crooked House, or And Then There Were None.

There is supposed to be a chronological order to the stories, but you really don’t need to follow it. Every once in a while, a Christie references another case from another book, but it is of no real importance. My only guidance would be to read Curtain, Poirot’s final case, last.

Reading Journal on Dr. Faustus i was kinda proud of

Pete WebbLeave a comment

Beginning in the 1500s when Dr. Faustus was written and spanning to the modern era, the human race has pushed the boundaries of what is natural and tried to become gods. We invented the astrolabe, conquered the seven seas, built nations on the destruction of entire peoples, and constructed skyscrapers which seem to defy every idea of what is possible. Our health has improved, we’ve made life convenient beyond belief, but despite all this achievement we, like Marlowe’s arrogant celebutante “yet art thou still but Faustus, and a man.” 

For the past few hundred years mankind has become increasingly involved with the same internal struggle as Faustus. Each new level of knowledge we acquire we become more careless and ignorant. Everytime some new process or physic principle is discovered we slip deeper into the Faustian bargain we call progress. This rat race for discovery becomes paired with this nonsensical notion that we are the only important thing on the planet and that we deserve everything which we can fathom and more. This is the mindset which sent Faustus to eternal damnation, and this is the mindset which plagues the modern world. Regardless of all the power we may accumulate over the natural world we still are humans, flawed forever by stagnant ideas and held to earth by the unrelenting and unstoppable march towards death. 

 As private school educated students from generally wealthy families, fiscally or situationally, it is easy for us to fall into the Faustian mindset. I’ve been at fault of this, my friends, my family, and classmates––all at some point have looked at the world and thought “I deserve more”. This mindset ruins the last humanity which wisps gently between us, we become stale, ignorant, and spoiled, unable to understand that there are other people around, and even more so, other things. We all too easily divulge in the trap that we can do what we want to the world without consequence. 

Just as Faustus enjoyed his twenty four years of power which ended in a no bit unexpected end, mankind is still enjoying its twenty four years marching towards an end we can all see and yet choose to believe is not real. Like Faustus, humans are just people who happen to be in situations of extraordinary power. 

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If I Could Have a Superpower

graceovs1 Comment

If I could have any superpower it would be the ability to press pause. I’d watch as vehicles stopped in their tracks, raindrops hung suspended from the sky and people froze like statues in a museum. I can picture it clearly. My world of chaos would dissipate, and calmness would take its place.

“statues in a museum” PC: The MET

Amidst this setting, I could finally organize the mess that is my life. I’d be able to complete all my homework, chores, and responsibilities, with time to spare. I’d spend hours devouring books, articles, and literature in all its shapes and forms, acquiring knowledge far beyond my years. I’d learn Calculus and how to paint; I’d try a new sport and play piano. I would live lavishly; taking bubble baths and treating myself to spa days. I’d finish all seasons of Gilmore Girls and binge Friends for the millionth time. I would cook myself incredible meals or waltz into a Michelin Star restaurant and help myself to the dishes balancing upon waiters’ hands. I would sit with my thoughts – something which I rarely have the time and space to do – and reflect on my past and my future; who I am as a person, and who I want to be.

Everything would be totally under control. I forgot my computer charger? Pause, and I’ll go pick it up. I’m almost dozing off in class? Pause, and I’ll take a long nap. I would do all this and so much more with all the time in the world. And when I got lonely, I would only have to press play, and my day would resume its natural course.

‘The Things They Carried’ Essay Pt. 1

graceovsLeave a comment

I wish I had the time to write something good but I am in a rush. Here’s part of an essay from earlier this year in English class:

  1. What servicemen chose to carry revealed who they were. Select 3 of the characters. Explain what each carried and what was revealed about that character.

The Things They Carried is Tim O’Brian’s semi-fictionalized account of his time spent fighting in the Vietnam War. Told in a series of short memoirs, the author jumps from character to character, a story to story, in order to explore a range of themes: from death and ethics, to love and the relationship between truth and fiction. In Chapter I, O’Brien describes the physical items each soldier chooses to carry during their march. With this, the reader gets a sense of the characters, their emotional baggage, and their coping mechanisms; all of which are expanded on throughout the novel.

In just the first few pages of the book, the platoon leader is introduced through his chosen supplies. Jimmy Cross, simply referred to as Lieutenant, carries with him correspondence from a girl named Martha, who lives back home in Ohio. “In the late afternoon, after a day’s march, he would… unwrap the letters, hold them with the tips of his fingers, and spend the last hour of light pretending.” Among these letters are also two photographs and an oval pebble collected from the Jersey shoreline and gifted to him for good luck. The Lieutenant’s memorabilia expresses that he is lovestruck, and wishful and turns to his imagination in order to escape his dire reality. In fact, Cross will one day be so absorbed in his fantasies that when a fellow troop, Lavender, is shot on his watch, he blames himself and burns the letters. Because, while he may be a romantic, the Lieutenant also has a great sense of duty. As the unit commander, “Jimmy Cross carried a compass, maps, code books…and the responsibility for the lives of his men.” Altogether, the Lieutenant’s possessions reveal his sentimental and dutiful true nature – two qualities that he relies on during the intensity of warfare.

PC: https://snworksceo.imgix.net/jhn/334322c3-3260-4fc4-a9ba-1e713aea3c73.sized-1000×1000.jpg?w=1000