Marine Corps OCS

This summer I will be shipping to Quantico, Virginia for Marine Corps platoon leaders course. It is a rigorous 6 week pipeline where candidates undergo military discipline, principles and training. There is an overwhelming amount of information and stress and not enough time to deal with anything, its similar to being force fed by a fire hose. This will be my first increment of OCS and the more I hear about it, the more I am dreading it. You can expect 2-3 hours of sleep per night, assuming you don't have duties and fire watch. You have five minutes to eat a full meal without toughing the table or having a conversation. Everything is done at a faster pace than you can move, you are yelled at for six weeks constantly by Sergeant Instructor Sergeant_________. Tension builds and people snap and drop out or are injured during training. Attrition rates for 1st increment juniors are roughly 1/3 - 1/2. Its gonna be awesome!!!!!!!!!!

AAHHH! Finals Week

It's coming up fast and I'm very busy cramming for tests. Everything is really stressful for me right now. I shouldn't be bitching though, everyone else is in the same position as I am. The year is winding down and classes are coming to an end. This is great! The year went by fast when I look at it but not fast enough. I cannot wait to go home and enjoy summer for a little while at least... Sooner than later it will already be time to go back to school and begin the study grind again.

Final VOICE essay

Life’s Ability to Shape Minds

A person naturally tends to conform to their surroundings and adapt to what is around them, this statement also holds true to all living creatures. The way in which someone is brought up can often determine their views, personality, emotions and ultimately play a huge roll in who they become and what they make of themselves. All of these categories fall under one characteristic, this characteristic is voice. Each individual has their own voice which is used to express themselves. Voice can be portrayed in almost any way imaginable. In the film, “Smoke Signals” by Sherman Alexie, the voice of a young Native American is portrayed throughout a long journey to find oneself. I am also on a journey, this journey is known as life and it is comprised of many small journeys and adventures that will ultimately make me who I am. Voice is shaped by ones experiences and feelings and interactions throughout their own life and it is constantly evolving with new and foreign exposures to people, places and things.

Sherman Alexie does an excellent job of portraying the voice of two young Coeur D’Alene Indian boys on a journey to collect ashes of one of the boys’ deceased fathers. On this journey the boys become young men and their voice changes from experiences they had over the course of the trip. Victor and Thomas are the two Native Americans that the movie focuses on; they both have a strong sense of pride in their heritage and in coming from the reservation. Each of the boys learns a little over their journey and it changes their outlooks on life. Thomas is the “medicine man”, he is constantly telling stories and sharing his thoughts and Victor is the “warrior”, he is calm, reserved and has steel nerves. Over the course of the movie, they rub off on each other and new traits and ideas are gained by each of them. Victor becomes more open and sharing and Thomas becomes more determined. Experiences that they had and shared throughout their lives on the reservation; and experiences that they had on their journey changed them to ultimately make them who they were. This is shown in their voice.

I don’t remember much of my childhood, but from the fragments I remember life was good. I was born in the town of LaCrosse, Wisconsin, when I was only 4 months old my family moved to San Antonio, Texas. My dad was a flight surgeon in the Air Force and he was stationed at Wilford Hall Military Hospital. I lived in Texas for four years. Some of my earliest memories there consist of playing in the mud and catching toads and lizards that my mother would soon be prying off of my hand with a butter knife. At the age of 4, I moved to Spokane, Washington when my dad got out of the service, by then I had a little sister too. I grew up in Spokane and spent the majority of my life there. I went to a catholic school and went to church twice weekly, and then onto a public high school. My parents kept a pretty tight leash on me growing up; in the long run I think it was for the better even though I didn’t think of it that way at first. I landed a job at a butcher shop in 8^th grade; I started out doing a lot of cleaning but by my sophomore year of high school I was cutting meat and waiting on the counter. I worked with some really cool people, and it made work seem more like getting paid to have fun and less like a chore. All of these experiences up until present day have shaped my own voice and made me the person that I am today. Every day I am exposed to new conditions and circumstances; some even change my opinions and alter my “voice.” I would say that college has done that the most for me. It has opened my mind to the world around and current events, just as Thomas and Victor opened their minds while on their journey in “Smoke Signals.”

Individual’s voices are expressed every day. These “voices” are formed through life’s experiences and offerings. The way in which someone is brought up can often determine their views, personality, emotions and ultimately play a huge roll in who they become and what they make of themselves. As a person progresses through life and is constantly forced to conform to changes in environment and surroundings they change. As they are exposed to new people, places, and things, their views and voice changes. In the film, “Smoke Signals”, Thomas and Victor go on a journey and throughout the course of their journey they each make impressions on each other. This causes them to change. While a person continues through the journey of life they are exposed to many different experiences that shape them and determine their own voice.

Virginia Tech Schooting

Just my .02 cents here. All I have heard since the shootings is people and the media bitching about our gun laws being too lax and that it's too easy for citizens to get guns. They think that firearms need to be restricted even more than they already are, well I have news for "those" people. If we take away guns and rights from good, respectable citizens and make them illegal, criminals will still have guns whether it be legal or illegal possession and crime/ murder rates will increase more than ever. I think that the shootings could have been prevented if it was legal for students to carry a concealed weapon on campus. There are plenty of people that carry a concealed weapon with them on a daily basis and how often do rampant shootings like this occur elsewhere? The good outweighs the bad when it comes to firearms. So anti-gun activists should sit down, shut up and listen for once; they could also stop spending money on mind altering substances and give some money to the NRA or something else useful of that nature.

Brilliant or Lunatic

The other day in class we discussed the fact that some authors just seem to go on rambling in books and poems about pointless crap that doesn't make any sense. Only to have their work read later on by a person that makes some random connection between their work and then thinks their brilliant. What are literature and english? Why do we bother to learn this stuff? I think it's pointless and we should spend more time learning other subjects that make sense without comparing abstract ideas that some lunatic happened to have. However, this subject is very open and that is just my opinion on it.

Film: The Waking Life

The waking life is a film about reality, it compares it to a dream. What is reality? Are we all just a dream? How do we know that aren't all just part of a dream and that one day we'll wake up from this dream? These are questions that the movie poses. The film is done in a weird sort of animation that took film of real people and then animated it. I don't like the movie personally. I don't like having to compare stuff and think about hidden meanings and abstract ideas. That's why I chose a tech. major.

My life/ voice

I don’t remember much of my childhood, but from the fragments I remember life was good. I was born in the town of LaCrosse, Wisconsin, when I was only 4 months old my family moved to San Antonio, Texas. My dad was a flight surgeon in the Air Force and he was stationed at Wilford Hall Military Hospital. I lived in Texas for four years. Some of my earliest memories there consist of playing in the mud and catching toads and lizards that my mother would soon be prying off of my hand with a butter knife. I was a mischievous little kid, quite frankly I was somewhat of a pain in the butt, I don’t know how my parents dealt with me but they did. I can remember getting my mouth washed out with soap for talking back and saying bad words yet my parents were always there for me, despite the things I did. Some of the best memories are of my dad taking me into the Air Force base to look at the planes and see everything.

At the age of 4, I moved to Spokane, Washington when my dad got out of the service, by then I had a little sister too. I grew up in Spokane and spent the majority of my life there. I went to a catholic school and went to church twice weekly, and then onto a public high school. Looking back I think that the kids out of the catholic school system were worse than the kids from public schooling. I got a good education and I managed to keep myself in line and out of trouble. My parents kept a pretty tight leash on me growing up; in the long run I think it was for the better even though I didn’t think of it that way at first. I landed a job at a butcher shop in 8^th grade; I started out doing a lot of cleaning but by my sophomore year of high school I was cutting meat and waiting on the counter. I worked with some really cool people, and it made work seem more like getting paid to have fun and less like a chore. I still work there to this day and learned some great skills and met some great friends there.

I grew up skiing and so when it came down to choosing a college, I chose MSU for the skiing and the outdoors activities. I was ready to get away from home and get out on my own. I love MSU and I am very glad I made the choice to go there, yet I find myself missing high school and even more surprisingly, work. I keep in touch with everyone back home and in the meantime I’m just busting my butt at school so I can get some good grades and live up to my parents standards. Freshman year is winding to an end quicker than I can imagine and soon I will be back home awaiting another great year of college.

Gay Indian

Sherman Alexie wrote a piece titled, “The Toughest Indian in the World”, this piece was terrible. The writing style was not bad; however the topic that the essay is written about is very transversal. This essay goes against all of my moral values, beliefs and everything I have been taught while growing up. I truly believe that it is wrong. This piece should not be part of a college curriculum; it held no valuable insight and was offensive for many readers. You can call me close minded and I would probably agree with you in an area such as this. I have no desire to learn about a homosexual Indian and his immoral sexual encounters with another man.

The Power of Love

Ben and Dan were twins, born two minutes apart from one another. They were best friends and grew up doing everything together. They attended the same schools, played on the same sports teams, and were interested in the same things. During their high school career, they met a girl. Her name was Sara. She was beautiful, kind and intelligent. Something every guy looks for in a woman. From the start, the boys both liked Sara and as their friendships grew, so did their feelings. Sara and the boys were soon best friends and the boys each felt very strongly for her. The two were very competitive, especially with one another, always bickering over games and girls, especially Sara. But Sara thought of the boys only as good friends and nice guys to hang out with. Ben and Dan were always striving to be the faster and smarter one, which pushed them both to do well in school and excel in all other fields as well. After the three graduated high school, they each went on to the same prestigious university. It marked the next stage in their lives and moved them one step closer to a successful career. Their freshman, sophomore and junior years of college moved by very quickly and before they new it, it was their senior year. There was something different for the boys coming into the school year. They felt a nagging anxiety and more stress about moving out on their own into the real world.

A few weeks into the school year, Dan and Sara began dating. This tore Ben apart; he could not believe that his own brother would do something so cruel. After all that Ben and Dan had been through together, Ben felt betrayed and was very hurt. He could no longer deal with his emotions and confronted Dan about it, and he confessed that he wanted to be with Sara and could not be happy without her. Dan was furious that Ben could not be happy for him and Sara’s relationship and refused to let her go. The two brothers grew further and further apart and eventually hated each other. Ben began to stalk his brother and Sara, and jealousy raged within him as Sara and Dan got closer to one another. Eventually it became so bad that Sara and Dan got a restraining order against Ben. Ben slipped into a deep depression and began to drink excessively; he stopped caring about everything that was once so important to him. His grades dropped and he was soon failing all his classes, eventually he just stopped going. He developed an infatuation with Dan and Sara. Soon afterwards, Dan and Sara announced that they would be getting married in the spring. Spring came around and the couple was happily married. This set Ben over the edge.

After a night of heavy drinking and deep thought, Ben decided that he would kill Dan in order to be with Sara and his problems would then be solved. He schemed to murder Dan and then come to Sara’s side while she was vulnerable after the death of her husband. Ben began to plan the murder. He knew that Sara was gone until about 8 PM on weekdays getting work done. This left Dan alone in the house. Ben’s final plan was to arrive at the house around 6 PM; he would slip into the house quietly wearing gloves and a ski mask then take his brothers life with a knife. Ben was meticulous in avoiding any physical evidence that would link him to the murder.

It was a cold and dark night when Ben set out to murder his own brother. Sara was gone for the evening with class work so everything was going as planned. He snuck into the house and avoided making a noise. It was in the office that he found Dan studying. Ben lingered close with his knife drawn and slit his own brothers’ throat from ear to ear. Blood pooled beneath the corps of his dying brother. Crazed with excitement, Ben did not here the door creek open when Sara arrived home for the evening, earlier than usual. Sara looked in disbelief. She was shocked, outraged and heartbroken by the sight. She shrieked in anger and Ben turned. Sara quickly drew the pistol that she kept in her purse and shot Ben several times in the face. Sara’s knees buckled in pain after she realized that Dan was really dead and that this was happening to her. Crawling to her husband’s bloody corps to lay near him, she whispered. Her pain was unimaginable, after a moment of praying and hysterical crying for her lover, she picked up the .45 HK USP compact pistol, swallowed the barrel…BANG! Her body went limp and there she lay dead near her loving husband.

The neighbors heard the all of the commotion and rushed to the house only to find a bloody mess of mangled bodies. The police arrived and investigated the scene. The bodies were taken to the nearby morgue. Later Dan and Sara were buried right next to one another with an array of flowers in a beautiful field. Amazing grace played on the bagpipes at their burial. Everything seemed so peaceful, almost euphoric. Their tombstone read, “Here lay Dan and Sara, devoted husband and loving wife. May they Rest in Peace.” It is there where the lovers laid together for the rest of eternity.

Love Poem

What is Love?
Love is finding the heart of gold.
Searching for someone you can grow old.
Love is a leap of faith.
And a test of commitment.

love free write

Love is the souls recognition of it's counterpoint in another. Love is having complete devotion and faithfulness to someone. You need to be honest and caring in love. Love is also about trying. You have to try to make love work. It doesn't just happen and all work out. Love is a leap of faith, a long journey on a rocky road. You have to have faith and be willing to try.

Break of Day/ The Circular Ruins Stuff

Both the poem, Break of Day and the short story, The Circular Ruins are about dreaming. Break of Day talks about the world being a mental activity, that if people stop dreaming the world could end. The Circular Ruins speaks of a man who dreamed of a man dreaming. This also has to do with the world as a mental activity because a man is imagined through dreaming and this dream comes to life in a way. There is a metaphor in Break of Day that says "And since ideas are not eternal like marble but immortal like a forest or a river" This metaphor is saying that dreams are immortal similar to forests and rivers because dreams are always changing but they are always existent just like forests and rivers.

Metaphor

A metaphor is defined as a direct comparison between two or more seemingly unrelated subjects. Metaphors are often used to indicate that a first object is "equal" to a second object. Metaphors can be very powerful components of speaking and writing. This is the metaphor that we used in class by William Shakespeare...

All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players
They have their exits and their entrances.

Into the Wild Essay

Sean Caskey

Wayne Berg

English 121 College Writing

Feb 2^nd 2007

Perhaps all young adults and adolescents feel the need to take a soul flight, or push the envelope to its fullest extent in order to discover themselves. During a person’s voyage into adulthood, they experience life altering events and are forced to make important decisions that will influence who they become as a person. These events may be referred to as a soul flight. For everyone, these experiences and choices are different and that makes it unique to the individual.

McCandless traveled to the great white Alaskan wilderness and lived off the land in order to find himself and his purpose in life, this choice also cost him his life. While most don’t choose to do as McCandless did, they do what appeals to themselves. Some graduate high school and join the military in order to grow up, travel and experience the ups and downs as life as a soldier. Many choose to get a job and work full time, hoping to find something that they like so they can settle down. Others choose to go to college and further pursue their education, and others take some time off to enjoy life for what it is. Everyone has different experiences along the way and these experiences make them who they are.

A soul flight is defined as a spiritual healing, meditation, inner freedom, and exploration into the mysteries of the spirit by an individual. Wallace Steven writes in “The Poem That Took the Place of a Mountain” about his own experiences with soul flight and discovering himself. Stevens uses poetry as a soul flight to discover himself and escape from reality.

People all have their own experiences with a soul flight. No one shares the same interest and beliefs and therefore everyone chooses to do something separate with their lives and something separate to reflect upon their lives. People discover themselves in different ways and focus on different aspects of soul flight.

Bus 142

I don't know how to post a picture on the blog so heres the site...

http://home.fuse.net/fairbanks142/bus142.jpg

Analyzing 2 lines of "the poem that took the place of a mountain"

"It reminded him of how he had needed
A place to go in his own direction,"

Um...

I think that in these lines Wallace Stevens is explaining that to him, poetry allows him to collect his thoughts and reflect on life. Just as in the title, "A poem that took the place of a mountain." Many people go to a place such as a mountain that is peaceful, this gives them a chance to gather their thoughts and think. It is a way of relaxing. Wallace uses poetry to relax and calm his nerves, it takes him away from reality and the pressures of the world. This gives him the chance to get himself back together and focus on where he needs to go in life.

But then again, I'm probably wrong.