I was initially registered for a different Literature in the 21st Century section taught by a different professor. After sitting through the first day of that class and reviewing the syllabus, I knew that it wasn’t going to work for me. I went straight to the computer lab and removed that section from my schedule in favor of this one. Good decision. I had some experience writing blogs coming into this class. I have been keeping a blog on a leading NCAA track and field website called trackshark.com since last spring and I have mostly enjoyed it. At times it can be annoying, but all it entails is me explaining my training and giving some specifics and explaining them. It has provided good exposure for both me as a student-athlete and for St. Francis College. The blogs for this class, however, left my trackshark blog suffering because I certainly did not feel like writing another blog after writing 3 about subjects that didn’t particularly interest me.
Finally, last night I wrote my first blog on trackshark.com in over a month. I explained to my readers why I had not been writing, and I hope they understand. That is what I have learned that has surprised me the most about blogs; the amount of people who actually read them. I have been at track meets and people have come up to me and introduced themselves to me and told me they read my blog and like it. That was something I totally didn’t expect. Personally, despite being a big “computer person” the only reason I ever participate in the world of forums or blogs is to find answers about specific things. I’m not sure how many people actually read my blog for this class, but I would be surprised and impressed if anyone besides Professor Lennon did.
The format of the blogs rather than papers is something I definitely favor. I consider myself to be a good writer despite hating to read. Teachers often find it odd when I say I hate to read because my writing suggests otherwise. I usually write ‘A’ papers so I certainly wouldn’t have minded being forced to write a paper or two for this class. However, a 21st century literature class which will obviously deal with such modern topics and ideas that are typically brought to our attention through more than just words on paper benefits greatly from a technological enhancement. The proof is in the virtual class. I understood very little of what I read of The House of Leaves, but once I began searching for answers online and on other people’s blogs, much of it became less foreign to me. Also, I think people generally seem surer of the point they are trying to make when given the opportunity to write it down and examine it before clicking ‘submit post’. Writing a blog can help you formulate your idea and enhance it using other people’s ideas, not just the people in this class.
If I had to change anything about my blog, I would probably try to find some way to incorporate the two blogs I was running so neither would be neglected. I believe in quality over quantity. And I mean quality not just in how you write, but how much you know about what you are writing about. Meaning that if I write only 1 paragraph and someone writes 3 paragraphs about the same topic, it doesn’t mean the person who wrote more knows more about the subject than the person who wrote less. Some people just are able to express and explain what they want to say in less space. I think that is something overlooked too much by professors. The same applies to the blogs. Three blogs a week was not a lot, but there were times I felt I was writing blogs about stuff just to have the 3 blogs and maybe only 1 of the 3 was enjoyable to write.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Skip It
The main thing Matthew Megerdichian skipped when reading this book was the Introduction. He knew this probably wasn't the best idea in the world, but he fell into the trap of being lazy because the pages were numbered with roman numerals instead of regular page numbers and thus not part of the assigned reading. Likely, Matt will only go back and read it based on the feedback he gets from the question he asked on whether or not it had significane or helped the reader understand anything.
The other parts he skipped were the parts with the red words crossed out and the blue boxes from page 109 onward. Knowing Matt well, I know he is the kind of person who is not willing to strain his eyes, or use a mirror to read a book. Reading the book at all was an accomplishment for someone like him. He probably thought that if the author really wanted you to read it, then the author should have just left it as plain text.
In the end, chances are that Mr. Megerdichian is not left wondering what he might have missed by skipping these sections. Instead, he is thinking that this virtual class was in many ways superior to the actual class setting. While it took him some time to think of examples and to formulate his exact thoughts, it helped his understanding of the book more. In class, he might have been attacked or felt lost if certain topics were not explained because having the ability to look things up gave him the oppurtunity to clarify some unclear things. Also, Matt didn't get back from track and field practice until 6:30 today so he would have been late to class.
The other parts he skipped were the parts with the red words crossed out and the blue boxes from page 109 onward. Knowing Matt well, I know he is the kind of person who is not willing to strain his eyes, or use a mirror to read a book. Reading the book at all was an accomplishment for someone like him. He probably thought that if the author really wanted you to read it, then the author should have just left it as plain text.
In the end, chances are that Mr. Megerdichian is not left wondering what he might have missed by skipping these sections. Instead, he is thinking that this virtual class was in many ways superior to the actual class setting. While it took him some time to think of examples and to formulate his exact thoughts, it helped his understanding of the book more. In class, he might have been attacked or felt lost if certain topics were not explained because having the ability to look things up gave him the oppurtunity to clarify some unclear things. Also, Matt didn't get back from track and field practice until 6:30 today so he would have been late to class.
When a House is not a House
If the house in this book is not actually a house but rather a metaphor for something else, I would have to suggest that it represents the strain of the relationship between Karen and Will. Karen was never sure about their marriage and so they bought the house to try to solidify things. The house's interior continues to expand like the tension between them, but on the outside (the house's exterior) everything appears status quo.
We see this right in the beginning on pages 11-12. Karen is watching her children and waiting for Will to come home. She constantly looks out the window into the driveway for even the slightest sign that her husband will be home soon. When he pulls into the driveway, she seems very excited at first but by the time she gets to the door to meet him, she is only concerned with the water heater.
Buying a house was hardly the answer for them. That scene shows that she is basically living moment to moment, day by day. The house was an attempt to save something that wasn't meant to be saved.
We see this right in the beginning on pages 11-12. Karen is watching her children and waiting for Will to come home. She constantly looks out the window into the driveway for even the slightest sign that her husband will be home soon. When he pulls into the driveway, she seems very excited at first but by the time she gets to the door to meet him, she is only concerned with the water heater.
Buying a house was hardly the answer for them. That scene shows that she is basically living moment to moment, day by day. The house was an attempt to save something that wasn't meant to be saved.
Character Sketch
Billy Reston: An engineer who was injured in a freak accident. He is brought in to help Navidson explore the labrynth in his house. We find out that while he usually just observes, he can also jump into action and start 'bustin caps'.
Page 37-38 : Describes the incident which crippled Billy. An inexperienced crane operater led to his demise by cutting an electrical cable and it struck Billy Reston with the ferocity of cobras in the Jungle Book. Good thing for footnotes or else I would not have gotten the reference to the cobras names.
Page 97 : Exploration #4 - Billy Reston acts as the monitor of all of the equipment which Navidson has set up. Page 98 provides a suggestion of why Exploration #4 is told through Billy Reston's perspective.
Page 208 : We find out that Mr. Reston is strapped.
Page 37-38 : Describes the incident which crippled Billy. An inexperienced crane operater led to his demise by cutting an electrical cable and it struck Billy Reston with the ferocity of cobras in the Jungle Book. Good thing for footnotes or else I would not have gotten the reference to the cobras names.
Page 97 : Exploration #4 - Billy Reston acts as the monitor of all of the equipment which Navidson has set up. Page 98 provides a suggestion of why Exploration #4 is told through Billy Reston's perspective.
Page 208 : We find out that Mr. Reston is strapped.
Video
Fast forward to 45 seconds into the video and watch until the 1 minute mark to understand why I chose this video.
Seriously though, It's very interesting to see why he wrote this book. The thing that struck me the most about what he said is that writers not only have to reap but also sew. He seems to fit perfectly into the stereotype of a person who is different for the sake of being different; he claims stuff like what he has done with this book is what drives the evolution of culture...that's not egotistical in any way, shape, or form.
I thought the best way to start this would be to run a Google image search on the word HOUSE. Low and behold the above image appeared on the first results page with the caption "houses that defy physics". How appropriate for a house that, well, defies physics. Page 32, "The interior of the house exceeds the exterior not by 1/4" but by5/16"" It doesn't get more physically impossible that that. A little background info on the house pictured here: It is an actual house in Poland that was built as a statement against communism.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
House
Okay, so I am sitting there trying to read this book and understand what its all about, but I am having trouble focussing on some of the words every so often. In particular the word "house". Then I realized that the word "house" is blue. I'm not sure why this is, but I'm guessing it will be explained later in the book? Also, I just noticed that the word "house" in the title on the cover is blue. I'm hoping this will have some kind of significance and is just not intended to throw my eyes off. I'm not saying I have an eye problem or a reading problem; just that its something you are not used to seeing and it can attract some of your attention away from the rest of the page.
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