The Story of the Weeping Camel

This movie was about all of the culture in Mongolia. It showed how important the camels were in the Mongolians every-day life. The mother camel was in birth for two days straight, and rejected her son at birth by not giving it milk. The only thing left to do was to summon a musician to come and perform a ceremony on the mother camel. As soon as the ceremony was complete, the camel accepted her son and let him drink her milk.

I loved watching this movie because it showed me all the culture in Mongolia.

The Parakeet by Victor Erofeyev

This story is Russian, and we were told to try to figure out what the grandfather's name was. I came to the conclusion that the word Vich, means "son of."

The son is Yermola Siridonovich
The father is Spiridon Yermolaevich
so, therefore,
the grandfather is Yermola.

Osama

This was a movie we watched in class called "Osama." It was the first movie filmed after the fall of the Taliban, but took place when they were still around. The mother's husband and brother both died. Women can't be in public, unless escorted by men, and they aren't allowed to work. In order to survive, the woman dresses her daughter up as a boy and has her get a job. After a while, the girl is discovered and is married off as punishment.

This movie reminded me of the book, "The Kite Runner", because it had the same setting and time period. They were both about the Taliban too. It showed me how bad things really are over there, and it's not their fault. Sometimes people in America are so focused on their own lives, that they can't stop and see all the bad around us. I think this movie shows us how bad things really are overseas.

The Child Who Raised Poisonous Snakes by Can Xue

This story was about a boy who enjoyed playing with snakes. His parents didn't agree with the things he loved to do, so they sent him to a psychologist because he was a little strange. I think the narrator of this story is the psychologist. By the end, the boy isn't even noticed, the parents gave up, and now their hair is turning gray due to stress.

A Riddle by Antonio Tabucchi

This story is Italian and takes place in Italy. In the story, they mention the Gothic cathedrals of Normandy. To the right is the Coustances Cathedral. It's an example of the Gothic style of Normandy, which consists of many long, straight lines.


Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coutances_Cathedral

Reflecting an Honest Image: Portraits of Lesbian and Bisexual Women

Our class went to a gallery with photographs taken by Alyssa Jones, and she wanted to capture the image of these women in whichever way they wanted. It was up to the person in the photo, rather than the photographer, to decide where the picture was being taken and what was going to happen in it.


A few photographs that really jumped out at me were the ones of Steff, the girl with the dog, Hanna, the girl in the hall with magazines, and Elisa, the girl that was fly-fishing.

Steff was playing with her dog and looked as normal as anybody. I think Jones was trying to show that dogs don't discriminate, and neither should people. It was a great portrayal of someone just being happy and confident.

Hanna was sitting in a hall with a dress on, and magazines were covering the floor such as "Vogue." This is showing that even lesbians and bisexuals can be girly, and that they shouldn't always be judged.

Elisa was fly-fishing, showing that even women can do things that most men enjoy. She's happy who she is and what she's doing, and no one can tell her otherwise.

The Way Home

I am but seventy five years old and a mute, at that. My only daugher is thirty-two years old and she has a son, Sangwoo, who is only seven. She came to visit today.
“Mom, I need you to do me a favor. Can you watch Sangwoo for a while? It’s just everything that’s happened with his father, and… I just need need your help,” she said.
Being her mother, I couldn’t decline.
“Thank you so much. I shouldn’t be too long.”
Then she left and it was just me and Sangwoo. He started calling me a retard and making fun of me. I wanted to say something, but I can’t. I’m just too old to even let those things bother me anymore.

It’s already been a week. I help the boy when I can. He wanted something from the top shelf, so I helped him get it down. He never says please or thank you. He wanted batteries, and I’m not familiar with these things, so I couldn’t help him with that. He got mad at me and started making fun of me. When I help him, he hates me, and when I can’t help him, he still hates me. However, I am his grandmother, and I will always love him no matter what.

Sangwoo wanted something called Kentucky chicken. I went to the market and bought the chicken. I walked all the way there and back in the rain. I cooked the chicken and fed the boy. He yelled at me and threw the food, saying that’s not what he wanted. I’m so confused. I just tried to help. The next morning I woke up with a fever and he made me breakfast. Even though he doesn’t show it all the time, I know he still cares about me, because of times like these.

We’ve been going to the market lately, taking the bus. I sell bundles of thread for money there. I saved up enough, and Sangwoo and I went to a restaurant. All of the money I earn goes right to him, because I love him, but he never says thank you. Sometimes it upsets me. I didn’t have enough money to take the bus, so I lied and told him he could get on the bus, and I would take a later one. When I got back, I was tired from all of the walking, and Sangwoo just yelled at me and asked what took me so long.

Sangwoo wanted a haircut, so I gave him one. He looked at it when it was finished and immediately yelled at me because it was too short. I did my best, but nothing is good enough for him. I still love him though. He tried to teach me how to write because I couldn’t call. I’m having a tough time learning it because I’m just too old. He started getting upset and gave me a hug. It’s times like these that I know he still cares.

His mother finally came today. It’s been a month and now she’s leaving. She told me to take care of myself and gave me a hug goodbye. I wanted to hug Sangwoo but he didn’t even look at me. When he got on the bus, he ran to the back of it and looked at me. He gave me the sign language sign for “sorry” and waved goodbye. I am his grandmother, and I will always love him no matter what.

Henry David Thoreau quote

"How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live."
-Henry David Thoreau

I resonate with this quote because I believe that the best stories that are written come from actual events in the author's life. If you haven't experienced life itself, then how can you write about it? And this is what Thoreau was trying to explain.

The Girl Who Left Her Sock on the Floor by Deborah Eisenberg

This story went in a completely different direction than I thought it was going to. It was written by an American writer, so culturally, it's present day.

Our class read the beginning part of the story in class and had to respond with what we thought was going to happen in the end. I said that Francie was going to get called to the office and be accused with sleeping with her teacher, but it ended up that her mother died. This girl was very torn up and lost inside and needed some help that no one could give. The only person that made her feel a little better was the woman on the bus.

Reflections of Spring by Duong Thu Huong

Betel Nut- another term for an areca nut, which is the seed of an areca palm often chewed with betel leaves. It is also used as an offering in Hinduism.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betel_nut

Somewhere I Have Never Travelled by E.E. Cummings

omewhere i have never travelled, gladly beyond
any experience, your eyes have their silence:
in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,
or which i cannot touch because they are too near

your slightest look easily will unclose me
though i have closed myself as fingers,
you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens
(touching skilfully, mysteriously) her first rose

or if your wish be to close me, i and
my life will shut very beautifully, suddenly,
as when the heart of this flower imagines
the snow carefully everywhere descending;

nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals
the power of your intense fragility: whose texture
compels me with the colour of its countries,
rendering death and forever with each breathing

(i do not know what it is about you that closes
and opens; only something in me understands
the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
nobody, not even the rain, has such small hands

I chose this poem because it jumped out at me.
It's about a man that changes for the good whenever
he is around this girl that he loves.

Evermore by Julian Barnes

This short story is also English, just like "G-String." The story was about a man at war. The first page was kind of interesting, because you got a feel for what people went through in the army, but then it started getting lengthy and boring.

bayonet- a swordlike stabbing blade that may be fixed to the muzzle of a rifle for use in hand-to-hand fighting.

G-String by Nicola Barker

I thought this story was funny because the author was English, and in his writing, he would use words such as "bloody."

fizzy- lively and high spirited
white chiffon- a light, sheer fabric typically made of silk or nylon
cami-knickers- a type of underwear

I loved this story, because the woman's husband yelled at her for wearing a g-string, and in the end, she was the one that got them home. It was very ironic that her g-string helped them.

Original Short Story

This is a short story that I wrote in class. We had to take a line from the short story "Betrayal" and use that as our first line in ours.

I was the only person not close to an outburst of hysetrical murderousness. I sat completely still in my chair and looked around at all of the people surrounding me; wearing the colors of thier home team, of the team that just lost. To me, it just felt like another football game, but to my school, it was much more than that. Our football team made it all the way to the State Championships, something that hasn't happened in decades. And now their dignity and pride were crushed.
The opposing team's fans were rowdy and pompous, as they chanted and rubbed their win in our faces. I looked over at the players who were more upset than angry. Some of the Seniors were even crying. But for some reason the crowd always reacts differently than the team that just lost. The fans were rowdy and starting fist fights in the lower rows of bleachers with kids from the other school. But I managed to sit steady and clam with one tear rolling down my cheek, because I realized it was one more moment, memory, and day closer to graduation.

Between men and women there is no friendship possible...

"Between men and women there is no friendship possible. There is passion, enmity, worship, love, but no friendship."
--Oscar Wilde

I believe this quote holds true in everyone's lives at some points. I think that in order to really love someone and know someone, you must become friends with them first. The best relationships come from the best friendships. I've realized that now out of having many relationships fail, because I get to know the person a little too late. I love Oscar Wilde's quotes because what he says, actually has meaning behind it. He also quotes things that many people can relate to, such as relationships and friendships.

However, I do believe it is possible for men and women to just be friends and nothing more. Sometimes when you are too good of friends with the opposite sex, you don't want to date because you don't want to lose what you have already, but the truth is, sometimes those two people are meant to be and everyone can see it except for them.

Betrayal by Patricia Duncker

I think this story was an odd one. I couldn't quite follow it or the characters very well, and they threw the word "lover" around a lot. Some of the sayings were a bit confusing, considering they were in a differentt language, but I looked some of them up.

Cultural references:
ça va = "that goes"
ça va me changer mes idées = "that will change my ideas"
lavage = "washing"
mousse = "foam"

They also talk about a 500 franc note, which suggests that this is taking place in France.

Source www.freetranslation.com

Which family in the short stories do I most resonate with?

I would have to say that I resonate most with the family from the story "A Family Supper." In this story, the narrator has an awkward relationship with his father and his mother is dead. My parents are divorced and I live with my mom, but I see my dad occasionally. Now that I'm away at school, it's awkward to come home because me and my mom don't really know what to talk about, just like at the end of the story with the father and son.

I could also picture my mother asking if I wanted to come live with her after I was out of school and on my own, out of politeness, but I would decline because even though I miss being home, I love Boston. Just like the narrator loves America, and he has friends back there. So, if I were to relate to a relationship in one of the short stories, I think it would be the father and son from "A Family Supper."

A Family Supper by Kazuo Ishiguro

My major is architecture and I had to do a project about Japanese residences, so I am familiar with the cultural references about this story. The tatami mats that they speak of are actually pieces of floor at a certain measurement. They use these pieces to know what the dimensions of a room are just by looking at it. The tea room they are in over-looks the garden, which is very common in Japanese houses, and sliding partitions are just like sliding doors, excpept they are made out of the same material as the wall, making all of the rooms seem closed off. This offers much privacy to the owner of the house.

Short Story Painting

This painting is called Usurer with a Tearful Woman, painted in 1654, but Gabriel Metsu. The painter is Dutch and was born in 1629 and died in 1667. The painting can be found in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

In this painting, the woman has borrowed money and can't pay it back. She is begging the lender to be a little leniant with her because she's extremely poor. The lender of the money looks cruel and money hungry while the begger looks very sad and in need of help. This painting would go very well in my house because at one point or another, we all struggled with money, and every time we would look at it, the painting would remind us of the rough times. This would keep motivating my family to strive for bigger things and work hard to achieve them.

An original short story:
I was sitting in my living room whatching the television show Blue's Clues learning my shapes and colors when I looked over and noticed the big painting on the opposite wall. It seemed to intrigue me more than the T.V. so I walked over to it and pondered about what it could mean. This painting wasn't like any I've seen in my story books. This one was very dark and dreary and looked like it was painted a long time ago. There was a woman standing over a table with a man sitting in a chair. The man had a lot of money on the table and looked very mean and wealthy. I know people like him. Then I looked at the woman and realized she was poor and very sad and needed his money. I don't understand why he couldn't just let her have some because he certainly didn't need all of that.
Shortly after I was still staring at the picture and my mother walked into the room. She saw that I was gazing at the wall.
"Hunny, what are you looking at over there?" she asked.
"Oh nothing. Just looking at this painting," I replied.
She looked at me, surprised I was intrigued by art.
"Mommy, why is the lady so sad?" I asked.
She walked over to me and began to explain that the woman was going through a tough time in her life and couldn't make any money. "She needed help and no one would give her any. So, she had to resort to borrowing money from a mean old man. Eventually, she couldn't even pay him back, and he grew angrier."
"So then what does she do? What happened to her?" I asked anxiously.
"Well, she knew she had to go back to school and get an education that could get her a job and make money. So, she did just that."
"Well, is she happier now?"
"She is very happy."
My mother kissed me on the forehead and went back to doing laundry. Ever since that day I have had much respect for my mother and the things she did for me and my brother and sister. She is one of the reasons I am so determined and self-motivated to be successful.

My Father, The Englishman, and I

Cultural References:
The father and son in the short story were from Ogaden and spoke Somali. Their country was independent and powerful until forces came over to Abyssinia (present-day Ethiopia) and made them stronger. The people that came over used their weapons and strength to capture Harar in 1884 and raid Ogaden villages. Eventually, the Ogaden people gave in and signed a treaty, and Abyssinia took over their country in 1948. The narrator’s father was the translator for the Ogaden people and was present during the signing of the treaty.

http://www.sidamaconcern.com/articles/ogaden_past_present.htm

Vocabulary
Factotum- an employee who does all kinds of work
Boiled sweets- hard candies
Truant- wandering, straying
Jaamuus-
Euneched- castrated
Ignominous- deserving or causing public disgrace or shame

Class Notes
-Father is a translator for an Englishman.
-Father is short-tempered with his family and people he’s comfortable around.
-Kid is three years old and didn’t eat the candy out of respect for his mother.
-Father acts very passive towards Englishman, when the child knows he doesn’t act like this in the house.
-Before the child had to leave with his father to visit the Englishman, he remembers his parents arguing. His mother were asking why do you deal with these people who are taking over our county. Why don’t you stand up to them.
-Pivotal occasion in the child’s life.
-Child is saying that his father beats his older brother. The father was either very aggressive or patting them on the head. Remembered his hands.
-The child knew that even at the age of three, he had to behave when his father pushed him forward.
-Kid heard arguing and yelling going on between the people and screamed as loud as he could. Englishman looked down at the kid and apologizes to him and adjorns the meeting to another time.
-At the next meeting, the Ogaden people signed the treaty.
-He says that maybe is his mother was around, she could have had a say in it, but really, she didn’t have a say in anything.