Columnist packet readings

I thought that most of the readings where pretty interesting and fun.  For this blog, I'm going to state my thoughts about all columns and specifically the ones from the packet. 

I think that columns can be a pretty fun, interesting read.  I enjoy reading columns, especially ones about Disney,  and think that they can make a special connection between the reader and author in a short amount of time.  I think that sometimes columns can be more relatable than books or short stories, which may be due to the fact that columns usually state their opinions openly rather than "hide" them, which requires reading "in between the lines" something that most people don't enjoy doing.  I also like columns because I feel like they can be funny or witty and still be taken seriously or have serious topics in them.  I also feel like columns can capture emotions better than books can, and they do it in a smaller amount of time.

Of these specific columns, I liked The Mother of all Parties best.  I loved the humor that was included I thought that it was just hilarious.  One of my favorite lines was,
"For the `sky,' I used the actual sky, which was visible because I removed the ceiling and roof with a chainsaw, which is when my husband, Ed, left me, but the overall effect was well worth it.''  I thought that this hyperbole is just a great example of how serious some people take the stupidest things. 
I also liked the column about getting a dog,  I thought that it also had a lot of humor that was relatable.  My favorite line from A ruff and ready playmate was, "This is something that used to be a recognizable object -- a stuffed animal, a basketball, a Federal Express driver -- but has long since been converted, through countless hours of hard work on the dog's part, into a random wad of filth."
My friend's dog did this with everything, socks, shoes, stuffed animals, my friend's iPod, etc. So I felt like this column was very relatable. 
This picture is from http://birthdaypartyideas.com/. 

Fahrenheit 451 Theme Handout

Fahrenheit 451 Theme Handout

Theme: Engaging with difficult and uncomfortable thoughts and experiences is the only route to true happiness.

Sammi St. Arnold, Brian Whitney, Hannah Lea, Stephanie Schoenlein, and Evan Haas Bell 3

Events

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1. Clarisse asks Montag if he's happy.

2. Montag realizes he's unhappy, and threatens to start reading books.

3. Montag meets Faber and realizes the power of reading/ learning

4. The firemen went to Montag's house.

5. Montag burns Beatty.  

6. Montag meets Granger.

Quotes

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1. "He was not happy.  He was not happy.  He said the words to himself. He recognized this as the true state of affairs.  He wore his happiness like a mask and the girl had run off across the lawn with the mask and there wa no way of going to knock on her door and ask for it back." (Bradbury 12).

2. " 'If there was no war, if there was peace in the world, I'd say fine, have fun! But, Montag, you mustn't go back to being just a fireman. All isn't well with the world.' " (Bradbury 104).

3. " 'We all made the right kind of mistakes, or else we wouldn't be here.' " (Bradbury 150).

How it Relates

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1. This theme is important to our understanding of the story because the story is based on a society that believes in the opposite, that thoughts and uncomfortable experiences actually diminish a person’s overall happiness, and have rules against people creating their own thoughts and opinions.  

2. This connects to our society today because people are depressed and don’t realize that they have to deal with and engage in uncomfortable and difficult experiences is the only way to achieve true happiness.  It is important to study and be aware of this theme so that we can grow and be happy in our daily lives, dealing with the hardships in our modern world.  

Life on the Refrigerator Door

Dear Ms. Kuipers,

     I am writing to inform you of a teenage girl's opinion and perspective of your book, Life on the Refrigerator Door.  My first impression of it when I bought it at the bookstore was that it was going to be about a mother and daughter who might have some timing and communication problems and later on some more serious problems, thinking along the lines of boyfriend issues or normal teenage issues, because the back reads, "Claire and her mom share the same house but they live on different planets. ... It's where they leave little notes for each other.   It's how they keep in touch.  Then one day Claire comes home to a note that's different from all the others."  I started reading the book and thought it to be very mundane, even boring at first.   However, it took a very serious turn very early on in the book, "Claire, honey, ... I found a lump in my right breast." (Kuipers, 26).  I personally didn't see this coming but, it hit me very hard, I know two people who have had cancer so it struck me immediately.  I hated when Claire would skip her mom's appointments to go hang out with her friends and do other stuff, I feel like you should support your family first.  

      I also felt like Claire's story should've been more focused on her trying to cope with everything that was going on instead of her relationship and her friend, because I feel like that might've been more beneficial to girls who are going through the same thing.  Also, many of Claire's messages seemed to be begging for money or gifts and that sort of thing, "Could you leave me an extra 10 dollars?" (73). "Could you leave me 10 dollars, Mom?" (13). I really didn't like that because I feel like she should've spend more time focused on her mom instead of shopping and buying all new stuff, what was going on with her mom was way more important.  

    Lastly, I didn't like how you ended the book, not the plot itself because that happens, but the way it was written as a giant letter instead of a bunch of little notes, I think that made the whole thing worse.  

Other then those few things, I thought that it was a great book, and one that really strikes emotions.